stinacy disgusted all classes, and won him an unenviable name.[1]
In his report to the king on judicial matters February 24, 1564, he said that the officials were not as they should be, hinting that the viceroy and his son and brother, as well as the oidores, had too many relatives in the country, all of whom were interested in affairs and aided one another;[2] hence the quality of justice was not always reputable. He had also concluded upon the retirement of two of the oidores, one of whom was aged and the other deaf; recommending at the same time the appointment of alcaldes to preside over the lower courts of judicature. He hinted that some infamous rascality, without saying what, was practised under cover of authority, which he would in due time expose and punish, and endeavor at the same time to clear the country of such characters as its authors.[3] His interference was salutary in most instances. In lieu of the tax of two pesos, some paid one peso, and half a fanega of maize, or each paid his proportion on the quantity of land held. A few years later negroes and mulattoes were also required to pay a tribute of two pesos yearly.[4]
The king's financial affairs were not in a satisfactory condition. Martin Cortés, who had perhaps ceased after his rupture with the Velascos to be an impartial authority, suggested that the counting and taxing of the crown Indians should not be left to
- ↑ That of 'afligidor de los indios.' Torquemada, i. 624-5; Cavo, Tres Siglos, i. 174.
- ↑ Valderrama even represented Velasco as an incompetent, who, together with his favored Dominicans, had brought the country to the brink of ruin. The Dominicans, a little later, took sides in the troubles with the audiencia and its faction, whilst the Franciscans, their rivals, for a time favored the Cortés clique.
- ↑ 'Aqui hay escribanos y testigos para lo que los quisieren.' Valderrama, Cartas, in Pacheco and Cárdenas, Col. Doc., iv. 355-7, 368-9. His undoubted zeal and ability, however, were of little avail against the power and influence of the oidores and the force of long-established usage.
- ↑ If married within their own class; if single, one peso. A female negro or mulatto married to a Spaniard was exempt; if to an Indian, the husband's rate was paid. The offspring of a negro and an Indian paid as an Indian. Montemaior, Autos Acord., 148-9; Zamora, Bib. Leg. Ult., iv. 461-2.
