The New Pacific Author:Hubert Howe Bancroft Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III EUROPEAN BARBARISM IN AMERICA Europe of the fifteenth century was barbaric; or, if civilized, it was a civilization as different from the cultu... more »re and refinement of to-day as .the civilization of the Roman differed from the barbarism of the German. When Spain went forth to conquer the New World four hundred years ago, she was much the same as other nations of christendom in civility and humanity, much the same in cruelty and barbarity. In wealth and power she was equal to any, if not indeed superior to all. Later, some of them changed for the better, dropping the worst of their mediaeval manners, and emerging from under the denser clouds of ignorance and superstition. But while other nations advanced, Spain remained stationary, and in some respects retrograded, still guided by the old spirit which drove out Mohammedans, killed Jews, and proselyted at the point of the sword. Hence we can understand how it was that Weyler's methods in Cuba were so like those of Cortes in Mexico and Pizarro in Peru. In the administration of the Indies. New World affairs were at first divided into two great governments, one under the viceroy of New Spain and the other under the viceroy of Peru. Later a third viceroyalty was established at Santa Fe de BogotA, with jurisdiction over the kingdom of Tierra Firme, and the provinces of Quito and Rio de la Plata. In the islands, and in the smaller or more distant provinces, the chief ruler might be a governor, or captain-general, or governor- general, the high ecclesiastic having always much to say about matters, and the military sometimes acquiring undue influence. Discovery and conquest were made for the king, from whom emanated all grants, and to whom reverted all tenures. All America, save Portugal's portion, was the property of th...« less