CHAPTER CIII

    How his Majesty¹ the Emperor, our Lord, ordered Blasco Nu?ez Vela to proceed as Viceroy to the Realms of Peru, to give effect there to the new laws that had been enacted² for the government of the empire of the Indies.

AS his Majesty the Emperor Don Carlos our Lord, most fortunate King of the Spains, and the members of his very high Council, had considered many times who should go to Peru as Viceroy to maintain peace in those provinces and enforce the New Laws, and notwithstanding that several Spanish gentlemen had been discussed with that view, his Majesty fixed³ his eyes on Blasco Nu?ez Vela, a native of the city of ávila, of noble descent, and very zealous⁴ for the royal service. He had already occupied[369] important posts in Spain; and it was always said that he had discharged the duties of them with fidelity⁵. He had been chief Magistrate⁶ of Malaga, on the frontier of Navarre he was Inspector-General, and he once came to this country as Captain-General of the Fleet to fetch the treasure that was here. He was tall, of good bearing, and gentle mien⁷, he had clear, light blue eyes, aquiline⁸ features, a broad forehead, a thick and very imposing⁹ beard, was an excellent horseman in both saddles, and quick of apprehension¹⁰ save that it was not very sure. He was one of those who always lay themselves out to serve their king; very God-fearing, homely¹¹, modest, well bred, an enemy to traitors¹², the friend of loyalty¹³, he was always ready to rely upon himself, and put little faith in his followers¹⁴, but this I attribute more to the perversity¹⁵ of men in this country than to his own worth. He was a passionate¹⁶ man and quick to anger; after reaching this country he placed full confidence in no person, and thus, impulsive¹⁷ as he was in his wrath¹⁸ he was equally so in killing¹⁹ those who angered him. This was the person his Majesty summoned before him and told that it would befit the royal service if he were to go to Peru and be Viceroy there, and bring those regions under a just rule, and give effect therein to the New Laws which had been made for the government of the Realm.

Blasco Nú?ez Vela, it is said, felt regret that his Majesty had ordered him to go; but although this was so, he replied that he would do all that his Majesty might wish, having been born with that obligation upon him. After other things, of which history does not call for treatment here, Blasco Nú?ez Vela was appointed Viceroy of Peru, and President of the Audiencia which was to be established at Lima. The Ordinances²⁰ were given to him to enforce, dealing²¹ specially²² with each section by itself. Having received the despatches and instructions, kissed the hands of his Majesty, and taken leave of the Lords of the Council,[370] Blasco Nú?ez Vela went to the city of ávila, to enjoy a few days with his wife and children. He left that city accompanied by his brother, Francisco Velásquez Vela Nú?ez, Diego Alvarez de Cueto his brother-in-law, and other gentlemen who were his relations or friends, and set out with a great quantity of luggage and equipment for Seville. When it became known in Spain that Blasco Nú?ez Vela had been selected to be Viceroy of Peru, there were murmurs²³, and it was said no good would come of it, but that, on the contrary, great evils would arise from his going there, for that he was not the man to keep peace in that land. They affirm that the Marquis del Valle, D. Hernando Cortés, the mirror of governors and captains in the Indies, said publicly many times that Blasco Nú?ez Vela would not succeed in establishing peace in Peru because the people who live there are unruly and self-willed, and that when he himself was conducting the exploration of New Spain he used to set up crosses along all the roads, whereas the leaders who had discovered Peru had been always envious²⁴ of each other, and there was hidden rancour between them, and transactions that ended in the battles of which everybody has heard. The commonalty of Spain and the people at large rejoiced at the promulgation²⁵ of the new laws, and desired that those living in the Indies should be governed by them. The gentry²⁶ and men of backbone²⁷, who understand what fortitude²⁸ is, said that if the residents in the Indies were to obey the Ordinances on all points they would be for ever reproached as weaklings, and the sons who might be born to them would live in affliction through the supineness of their fathers.

When Blasco Nú?ez Vela arrived [at Seville], he found there the Judges who had been appointed, and there was great confidence that they would discharge their duties well. Their names were the Licentiate Cepeda, who was a Judge in the Canary Isles²⁹, Dr. Tejada, the Licentiate Alvarez,[371] and the Licentiate Zaratena. With these he set out for the spacious³⁰ port of San Lucar de Barrameda, and ordered the ships to be got ready in which he and those who were going out with him expected to sail—wishing himself already in the land of the Indies.

1 majesty   

n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权

参考例句：

• The king had unspeakable majesty.国王有无法形容的威严。
• Your Majesty must make up your mind quickly!尊贵的陛下，您必须赶快做出决定！

2 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

3 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

4 zealous   

adj.狂热的，热心的

参考例句：

• She made zealous efforts to clean up the classroom.她非常热心地努力清扫教室。
• She is a zealous supporter of our cause.她是我们事业的热心支持者。

5 fidelity   

n.忠诚，忠实；精确

参考例句：

• There is nothing like a dog's fidelity.没有什么能比得上狗的忠诚。
• His fidelity and industry brought him speedy promotion.他的尽职及勤奋使他很快地得到晋升。

6 magistrate   

n.地方行政官，地方法官，治安官

参考例句：

• The magistrate committed him to prison for a month.法官判处他一个月监禁。
• John was fined 1000 dollars by the magistrate.约翰被地方法官罚款1000美元。

7 mien   

n.风采；态度

参考例句：

• He was a Vietnam veteran with a haunted mien.他是个越战老兵，举止总有些惶然。
• It was impossible to tell from his mien whether he was offended.从他的神态中难以看出他是否生气了。

8 aquiline   

adj.钩状的，鹰的

参考例句：

• He had a thin aquiline nose and deep-set brown eyes.他长着窄长的鹰钩鼻和深陷的褐色眼睛。
• The man has a strong and aquiline nose.该名男子有强大和鹰鼻子。

9 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

10 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

11 homely   

adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的

参考例句：

• We had a homely meal of bread and cheese.我们吃了一顿面包加乳酪的家常便餐。
• Come and have a homely meal with us,will you?来和我们一起吃顿家常便饭，好吗？

12 traitors   

卖国贼( traitor的名词复数 )； 叛徒； 背叛者； 背信弃义的人

参考例句：

• Traitors are held in infamy. 叛徒为人所不齿。
• Traitors have always been treated with contempt. 叛徒永被人们唾弃。

13 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

14 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

15 perversity   

n.任性；刚愎自用

参考例句：

• She's marrying him out of sheer perversity.她嫁给他纯粹是任性。
• The best of us have a spice of perversity in us.在我们最出色的人身上都有任性的一面。

16 passionate   

adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的

参考例句：

• He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
• He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

17 impulsive   

adj.冲动的，刺激的；有推动力的

参考例句：

• She is impulsive in her actions.她的行为常出于冲动。
• He was neither an impulsive nor an emotional man,but a very honest and sincere one.他不是个一冲动就鲁莽行事的人，也不多愁善感.他为人十分正直、诚恳。

18 wrath   

n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒

参考例句：

• His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
• The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。

19 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

20 ordinances   

n.条例，法令( ordinance的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• These points of view, however, had not been generally accepted in building ordinances. 然而，这些观点仍未普遍地为其他的建筑条例而接受。 来自辞典例句
• Great are Your mercies, O Lord; Revive me according to Your ordinances. 诗119:156耶和华阿、你的慈悲本为大．求你照你的典章将我救活。 来自互联网

21 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

22 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

23 murmurs   

n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕

参考例句：

• They spoke in low murmurs. 他们低声说着话。 来自辞典例句
• They are more superficial, more distinctly heard than murmurs. 它们听起来比心脏杂音更为浅表而清楚。 来自辞典例句

24 envious   

adj.嫉妒的，羡慕的

参考例句：

• I don't think I'm envious of your success.我想我并不嫉妒你的成功。
• She is envious of Jane's good looks and covetous of her car.她既忌妒简的美貌又垂涎她的汽车。

25 promulgation   

n.颁布

参考例句：

• The new law comes into force from the day of its promulgation. 新法律自公布之日起生效。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Article 118 These Regulations shall come into effect from the day of their promulgation. 第一百一十八条本条例自公布之日起实施。 来自经济法规部分

26 gentry   

n.绅士阶级，上层阶级

参考例句：

• Landed income was the true measure of the gentry.来自土地的收入是衡量是否士绅阶层的真正标准。
• Better be the head of the yeomanry than the tail of the gentry.宁做自由民之首，不居贵族之末。

27 backbone   

n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气

参考例句：

• The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
• The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。

28 fortitude   

n.坚忍不拔；刚毅

参考例句：

• His dauntless fortitude makes him absolutely fearless.他不屈不挠的坚韧让他绝无恐惧。
• He bore the pain with great fortitude.他以极大的毅力忍受了痛苦。

29 isles   

岛( isle的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the geology of the British Isles 不列颠群岛的地质
• The boat left for the isles. 小船驶向那些小岛。

30 spacious   

adj.广阔的，宽敞的

参考例句：

• Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞，足够建一座游泳池。
• The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。