The na/ional policy of the Peruvians had its imper- fections and drawbacks, and though capable of unlim- ited extension, it was not capable of advancement. It was in the last degree conservative, and was of such a nature that the introduction of reform in any vital par- ticular must have overturned the whole constitution. Nevertheless the wants of the people were few, and these were satisfied. Their labor was not more than they could easily perform, and it was pleasantly diver- sified with frequent holidays and festivals. They lived contentedly and securely under a government strong enough to protect them ; and a sufliciency of the neces- saries of life was obtained by every individual. Still in the valleys of the Cordilleras and on the plain of Cuzco may be heard numberless songs, in which the Peruvian mourns the happy days of peace, security, and comfort enjoyed by his ancestors. Further, they re- vered and loved their monarch, and considered it a pleasure to serve him. With subjects of such a temper and inclination, the Incas might direct the entire ener- gies of the nation as they chose ; and it is thus that they were able to construct those gigantic public works which would have been wonderful even had they been performed with the assistance of European machinery and appliances.
The Peruvian system of agriculture was brought to its highest perfection only b}' the prodigious labor of several centuries. Not only was the fertile soil culti- vated with the utmost care, but the sandy wastes of the "coasts, unvisited by any rains, and but scantily watered by brooks, were rendered productive by means of an artificial system of irrigation, the most stupendous, per- haps, that the world has ever seen. Where the moun- tain-slopes were too steep to admit of cultivation, ter- races were cut, soil was accumulated on them, and the level surfaces converted into a species of hanging-gar- dens. Large flocks of llamas were grazed on the pla- teaus ; while the more hardy vicunas and alpacas roamed the upper heights in freedom, to be driven to- gether, however, at stated periods, to be shorn or killed. The wool yielded by these animals, and the cotton grown in the plains and valleys, were woven into fab- rics equally remarkable for fineness of texture and brill- iancy of color.
The character of the architecture of the Peruvians has already been referred to. The edifices of Incarial times are oblong in shape and cyclopean in construc- tion. The materials used were granite, porphyry, and other varieties of stone ; but in the more rainless re- gions sun-dried bricks were also much used. The walls were most frequently built of stones of irregular size, but cut with such accuracy, and fitting into each other so closelj' at the sides, that neither knife nor needle can be inserted in the seams. Though the buildings were
not, as a rule, more than from twelve to fourteen feet high, they were characterized by simplicity, symmetrv, and solidity. The Peruvian architects did not indulge much in external decoration, but the interior of all the great edifices was extremely rich in ornament. In the royal palaces and temples the most ordinary utensils were of silver and gold; the walls were thickly studded with plates and bosses of the same metals: and exqui- site imitations of human and other figures, and also of plants, fashioned with perfect accuracy in gt)ld and sil- ver, were always seen in the houses of the great. Hid- den among the metallic foliage, or creeping among the roots, were many brilliantly colored birds, serpents, liz- ards, etc., made chiefly of precious stones; while in the gardens, interspersed among the natural plants and flowers, were imitations of them, in gold and silver, of such truth and beauty as to rival nature. The temple of the Sun at Cuzco, called Coricancha, or " Place of Gold," was the most magnificent edifice in the empire. On the western wall, and opposite the eastern portal, was a splendid representation of the Sun, the god of the nation. It consisted of a human face in gold, with in- numerable golden rays emanating from it in every di- rection ; and when the early beams of the morning sun fell upon this brilliant golden disk, they were reflected from it as from a mirror, and again reflected throughout the whole temple by the numberless plates, cornices, bands, and images of gold, until the temple seemed to glow with a sunshine more intense than tliat of nature.
The religion of the Peruvians, in the later ages of the empire, was far in advance of that of most barbarous na- tions. They believed in a Great Spirit, the Creator of the universe, who, being a spirit, coidd not be repre- sented by any image or symbol, nor be made to dwell in a temple made with hands. They also believed in the existence of the soul hereafter, and in the resurrec- tion of the body. The after-life they considered to be a condition of ease and tranquillity for the good, and of continual wearisome labor, extending over ages, for the wicked. But while they believed in the Creator of the world, they also believed in other deities, who were of subordinate rank to the Great Spirit. Of these sec- ondary gods the Sun was the chief. They reverenced the Sun as the source of their royal dynasty, and every- where throughout the land altars smoked with offerings burned in his worship.