XXVI Congreso Internacional de Americanistas

- 132 ­
person may call an Indian dog or any other name unless it is his real
name".
The introduction to these same laws explains that sorne regulation
of Indian life has become necessary because long experience has proved
that the Indians are "naturally inclined to laziness and vice". The)
quickly forget whatever has been taught them, contínues the introduction,
and ' return to their former depravity, unless constantly supervised.
Las Casas relates that when he first preached against the encomienda,
the colonits mani fested as much real astonishment as if he had declared
that they had no ríght to the labor of beasts of the field. The governmenL
itself gave sorne support to the colonists when King Ferdinand ord'ered
the Casa de Contratación on Feb. 23, 1512 to send white Christian slave
women to the Indies beca use the great lack of Spanish women there had
resulted in the S paníards marrying Indian \Vomen ":who are far from
being creatures of reason".
Thus began the inevitable conflict. Practically every important figure
in the New :World felt called upon to deliver judgment on these sulphurous
sub j ects.
One question that caused a small mountain of written opinions to
accumulate in the library of the Council of the Indies, and ,which led the
government to carry out the first sociological experiments in America.
\Vas whether the Indial~s had the ability to live alone as free ,subjects
of the king. The first 'official indication of the existence of this problem
comes in Item sixteen of the Laws of Burgos which orders that Indians
having sufficient discretion and ability to be married and govern their
own houses must be umted according to the laws of the church. Recog­
'1ition that sorne natives, may be capable of living completely alone comes
in Item four of the "Clarification of the Laws of Burgos", promulgated
July 28, ISI3, probably a result of the representations made by the
Dominican Pedro de Córdoba. Another important influence probably
was the declaration in favour of Indian freedom made by Friar Matías
de Paz and Dr. López Palacios Rubios in their treatises written shortly
z,fter the funta of Burgos. These treiltises are just now being published,
though contemporary champions of the Indians urged the government to
print them and spread them broadcast in the Indies. This I5I3 law
provides that if the Indians profit sufficiently from contact with Spaniards
to show that sorne of them are capable and desirous of becoming
Christians and are so politically c1eveloped as to be able to govern themselves
as the Spaniards do, such capable Indians are to be set free. The
royal judges in Española are to grant them the necessary authority, and
order them to pay the tax which all subjects of the king owe.
Evidently no Indians w'ere found to fulfil these conditions. At least
no record s exist of Indians being set free in the period, 15I3~ ISI&. The
complaints flbwing into 'Spain from lhe Indtes' Índicate rather that no