homes of his ancestors, and, with a tame heart, to obey his
conqueror rather than to resist him or enjoy the fierce independence of
the forest.

The territory thus seized by violence was held by fear.--Loyalty can
never be the tenure of conquerors, and, especially, of the conquerors of
an inferior race. The Spaniard and Indian lived together in a spirit of
lordly dominion on the one hand, and of crushed dependence on the other,
whilst the Castilian derived from the native nothing but his habits of
savage life, and the Indian, in turn, learned nothing from the Castilian
but his vices.

A conquest thus achieved, an empire founded in blood and terror, would
naturally seem to have a doubtful destiny. It is unquestionably true
that Spain made humane laws, and that Charles the Fifth passed a decree
by which his American possessions were declared to be integral parts of
the Spanish kingdom. It is true, moreover, that he sought to abolish the
special grants to discoverers and conquerors by which they were invested
with almost absolute authority; and, by mitigating the system
_repartimientos_[2] or of vassalage among the Indians, to raise them to
the dignity of Spanish subjects. But, at the same time, these humane
laws were badly administered in a country so difficult of access as
America was at that period from Spain; and viceroys and governors acted
as they pleased, with but little regard to the people or the country,
except for their individual interests. Whilst this system of
maladministration made the royal and beneficent laws nugatory, Spain
seems to have been engaged in creating a colonial system which was
calculated to paralyze the energies of Mexico and Peru. She taught them
to look exclusively to mining for wealth, and to their Indians for
labor. All the laws relative to the natural development of a new
country were disregarded, and civilized existence in America began on
artificial principles. The example of the last fifty years has proved
that America is capable of producing all the necessaries, and most of
the luxuries of life quite as abundantly as Europe. Yet, Spain denied
her colonies the privilege of an effort. For instance,--she resolved at
the outset not to allow them to be independent in agriculture, commerce
or manufactures. She would not permit them to cultivate the soil save
for the merest daily necessaries. Wine and oil were to be made in the
old world. Cotton and wool were not to be woven into the beau