SOLDIERS AND SAILORS his opportunity had come. He waved his scarf; from the fortress sounded a signal-gun ; and with fierce battle-cries the Spaniards rushed from all sides upon the Peruvians. The shouts, the blaze and smoke of fire-arms, the terrible detonations, the sight of plunging horses and their riders, with the sudden fury of the onset, paralyzed with terror the multitude of unarmed attendants, who fell the victims of a horrible massacre. The Inca was seized and borne off a captive. And yet the pursuit and slaughter did not cease until thousands of the panic-stricken and defenceless Peruvians had been slain, and more prisoners had been taken than were required to provide every Spaniard with a retinue of servants. Pizarro treated his captive with the consideration due to a great but fallen potentate ; he granted him ample apartments, and the society of his favorite wives and nobles. He at the same time endeavored to save his soul, by enforc- ing upon his mind the truths of the Catholic faith. Atahualpa accepted with dignity the fortunes of war ; and as a ransom offered to fill a large room in which he one day was, with vessels of gold, as high as he could reach. Pizarro agreed to the proposal and by the Inca's orders messengers were despatched to Cuzco and other important cities of the empire, for the required booty. This arrangement reached the ears of Huascar, then a prisoner in the hands of his younger brother's adherents ; he thereupon sent word to the Spaniards that he would pay a much larger reward if they would espouse his cause and set him free. Unfortunately for both him and Pizarro, the offer reached the ears of Atahualpa, who secretly caused Huascar to be put to death. The golden treasure soon began to come in, borne on the backs of Indians. - goblets, vases, salvers, massy plates and tiles from the walls of palaces and tem- ples, and images of plants and animals. Some of these objects weighed individ- ually several pounds ; and the art displayed in their manufacture was often ad- mirable. But they were all ruthlessly melted down into ingots, to be divided among the conquerors. Gold to the value of more than seventeen million dol- lars, measured by our modern standard, was thus secured, besides a vast amount of silver. Certainly no prince in all the world's history had ever paid such a ransom. The treasure was a long while coming in ; and Pizarro had ample time to consider how he should keep his part of the contract. He could never have had any intention of giving the Inca his liberty ; nor was he deep enough in his craft to perceive the immense advantage he might gain by holding him a captive. He resolved upon his death. The unhappy prince was tried by a military court of his enemies, charged with the usurpation of the empire, with the murder of his brother, and with attempts to incite an insurrection against the Spaniards. He was condemned, received as a convert to the Catholic faith, baptized, and exe- cuted. This event occurred August 29, 1533. Meanwhile Almagro had arrived with a much-needed reinforcement ; and ad- venturers of all sorts, from Spain and her western colonies, soon began to flock to the newly opened land of gold. Pizarro marched upon Cuzco, which he took
