in the encomiendas where there is justice or other temporal benefit
which tends to the spiritual, the third part of the tributes in the
large encomiendas could be collected, and in small ones, the half
thereof. This sum would be for the support of the encomendero, and is
even placed under certain conditions imposed by the bishop. He says
that from the encomiendas which do not have sufficient instruction
no tribute, or at least very little, can be collected; and, even
then, it must be under the same obligation to restitution of the
sum collected or to be collected by his Majesty and encomenderos,
as well as certain royal officials, collectors, and others who
order, permit, or consent to the same. This in substance is the
content of the twenty-five conclusions of the bishop, or the greater
part of them. As I said, the bishop at the beginning spoke with me
personally in regard to these matters, and then gave his opinion to
me in writing in the letters, treatise, and conclusions which I am
sending now to your Majesty. He preaches thus to the encomenderos
from the pulpits. Inasmuch as it seems difficult for me--whose duty
it is to give orders for the collection of the tributes, and correct
the excesses in this regard, in the name of your Majesty--to put
his theories into practice, I represented to the bishop verbally,
at various times, the reasons that I had for making no innovations
until after informing your Majesty and awaiting your Majesty's order
and resolution. Setting forth many reasons, I tried to persuade
him in the letter which accompanies this; I wrote to him explaining
that, even in the never-pacified and rebellious encomiendas, your
Majesty commanded that something be paid, as a token of recognition
of authority. If there are justices and other benefits useful to
the Indians, such as instruction in the faith, teaching them to live
decently, and attracting them by kind treatment to receive instruction,
when it should be furnished, then all the tribute could be collected