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Show 226 A Relation of the Spanifh Voyage: and Crue/tie: in the VVt'lt-Indies. mental, it ought to be fuppos'd the Prince defign‘d to revoke it: {0 that it can have no more force or antherity, becaufe not according to the Prince's In. tentlon, who always ought to have Equity and the Divine Will in view. Now fince the Privilege the Clu‘iftian faith, and infpire 'em with an averfion [Q the Protellors of it. General De-Larc's carried with him three thoufand Spaniards, who landed at ‘ St. Domingo, where they foon found themfelves re~ due'd to great {traits for want of Food. granted the Spaniards to fubjeét the Indians as Valfals is become fo pernicious, and occafions an irreparable damage to the Chril'cian Religion, and to the Crown of Spain, and has bin the caufe of the ruin of fuch valt numbers of People, and of the defola- tion of fome of the finell; Countries in the World; and feeingin all appearance it is the very reafon of thofe Calamities with which God is now affliéting 227 However, the {trict Orders he had receiv'd would not permit him to do any Violence to the Indians, or to infrin e their Liberty in the leal't; upon which he writes many things to the (been againlt the Indians, hop- ing to render "cm ndious to her by his Lies and Slanders, that he llllght have leave to abufe the poor Wretches at his pleafure. Among other things he wrote, that it would be impolhble to preach the Chrifi'ian Faith to 'em as long as they were fufler'd to go to the root of the Difeafe, in revoking f0 to enjoy an entire Freedom, becaufe they indultri~ pernicious and tyrannical a Grant. , oufly avoided all manner of acquaintance with the Befides, the Dominion of the Spaniards over the Chriftians; info much that they refus'd to work Indian: has never bin judicially approv'd by the 'em, tho they ofier'd 'cm Wages for their La‘ Kings of Spain. He that firft lhar'd thefe poor for bor, and chofe rather to wander up and down as ,People among 'em, as if they had been f0 many Vagabonds, than to keep company with Chrillians Spain, 'tis neceli‘ary to apply a fpeedy Remedy, and Sheep, had no order to make this diitribution, to inform themfelves of their Religion. which abfolutely defolated and unpeopled New Spain, As if he thought the Indians were oblig'd to divine that but exceeded the limits of his Power; f0 that no jult Confequence can be drawn from what he did. It was the great General d'Alcantara who began this irregular courfe in America. In the year 1302, the molt ferene King Ferdinando and Queen Ifabella fent General Dc-Lare's from Grenada to govern the new Conquefts: At which time there were but three hundred Chriftians in the Illand of Hz‘fpaniola. This Governor was exprefly charg'd to treat the Indians as free Nations; to be very kind, tender and chari- table toward 'em, to do 'em exaé't Juftice on all there was a new Religion to be preach'd to 'em, which they ought to embrace; or that they ought, as poor as they are, to forl'ake their Houfes, Wives andiThildren, and to {save their Lands unmanur'd, to some to feek the 'ipaniards, and lo expofe them- {elves to die with Hunger in aJourney it may be of two hundred Leagues or more; or ‘as if they were under any obligation to undergo the fatigue of bringilig Provilion to the Spaniards fuch a tedious way as t is. " ' His Majelty, who was fincerely zealous .for the occafions, and not to impofe too fevere a Yoke on 'em, or to inflave 'em; ina word, to proteét 'em Salvation of thefe Idolaters, and publilhmg the of Chrift in the New World, anfwer'd the from all Injuries, left any Violence lhould prQV? a ' Name General after this manner: " We very ardently Stumbling-block to divert 'em from entertaining the if gfifire the c Gonverfion h-Oly Q 2 of- the 13‘1"?" to our fig Earth, |