found working. Charity was not merely regarded as a virtue to be honored but as a paramount duty.
This service having been performed for the helpless, each prepared the land assigned to himself, his wife and children; if a large family made the work too much for one man, it was obligatory for his neighbors to aid him. The lands belonging to the government were attended to last.
Thus we see that beyond a limited extent individual liberty did not exist. Nevertheless, those people were very happy; no wretched beggars dragged their loathsome rags and filth through the streets, disfiguring the highway, filling every sympathetic heart with sorrow.
That system extended throughout a population of millions, every matter being regulated with the greatest nicety. For each ten men there was one who had to look after their conduct and interests; these officers reported to others who overlooked one hundred individuals. They in turn gave a full account of everything to higher officials; and so on up to the Inca, the child of the sun, the father of the people.
The Mayas were no less charitable than the Peruvians. Not content with giving assistance when requested, they searched their towns and villages to
