sor. Thus in
Peru, the Inca race ruled over the lower caste, and would in time have
probably extinguished it. But the Incas themselves were preceded by
another and more gifted race, since it is evident that these unknown
predecessors were far more gifted than themselves as architects. 'Who
this race were,' says Prescott, (_Conquest of Peru_, chap. i. pp. 12,
13, ed. 1847,) 'and whence they came, may afford a tempting theme for
inquiry to the speculative antiquarian. But it is a land of darkness
that lies far beyond the domain of history.'

But as the American waves of conquest flowed South, it is no extravagant
hypothesis to assume that the race of men whom the monk encountered in
Mexico may possibly have had something in common with what was afterward
found further south, in the land of the Incas. One thing is certain;
that there is a singularly Peruvian air in all that this short narrative
tells us of the land 'Fusang.' Fortified places, he says, were unknown;
and Prescott speaks of the system of fortifications established through
the empire as though it had originated--as it most undoubtedly
did--with the Incas. Most extraordinary, however, is the remark of the
monk, that the houses are built with wooden beams. As houses the world
over are constructed in this manner, the remark might seem almost
superfluous. It is worth observing that the Peruvians built their houses
with wooden beams, and as Prescott tells us, 'knew no better way of
holding the beams together than tying them with thongs of _maguey_.' Now
be it observed, that the monk makes a direct transition from speaking of
the textile fiber and fabric of the maguey to the wooden beams of the
houses--a coincidence which has at least a color of proof. It may be
remarked, by the way, that this construction of houses 'tied up,' was
admirably adapted to a land of earthquakes, as in Mexico, and that
Prescott himself testifies that a number of them 'still survive, while
the more modern constructions of the conquerors are buried in ruins.'

Most strikingly Peruvian is the monk's account of 'the Kingdom and the
Nobles.' The name Ichi, is strikingly suggestive of the natural Chinese
pronunciation of the word Inca. The stress laid on the three grades of
nobles, suggests the Peruvian Inca castes of lower grade, as well as the
Mexican; while the stately going forth of the king, 'accompanied by
horns and trumpets,' vividly recalls Prescott's account of the
journeyings of the