Question

Select the correct answer. Read the following excerpt about the Inca civilization written by Spanish conquistador, Pedro de Cieza de Leon, taken from the book Chronicles of the Incas. As this kingdom was so vast, in each of the many provinces there were many storehouses filled with supplies and other needful things; thus, in times of war, wherever the armies went they drew upon the contents of these storehouses, without ever touching the supplies of their confederates or laying a finger on what they had in their settlements . . . Then the storehouses were filled up once more with the tributes paid the Inca. If there came a lean year, the storehouses were opened and the provinces were lent what they needed in the way of supplies; then, in a year of abundance, they paid back all they had received. No one who was lazy or tried to live by the work of others was tolerated; everyone had to work. Thus on certain days each lord went to his lands and took the plow in hand and cultivated the earth, and did other things. Even the Incas themselves did this to set an example. And under their system there was none such in all the kingdom, for, if he had his health, he worked and lacked for nothing; and if he was ill, he received what he needed from the storehouses. Based on the excerpt, what can you conclude about the Inca government?
A. It provided for its people during emergency situations.
B. It exploited its poor and needy by overworking them.
C. It differentiated between the elite and the poor laborers.
D. It offered rewards to the empire’s hardest workers.
E. It gave special privileges to the nobility and their allies.

Answer 1

Answer: A. It provided for its people during emergency situations.

Explanation:

The Inca government instituted policy that enabled it to provide for its people and vassals during times of emergency.

According to the extract, they did this by providing food for their citizens from food stores during years where the harvest was not enough (lean). These stores would then be filled up in the better years thus allowing for the cycle to repeat itself.