Their conduct, however secretly pursued, being known among many, came at length to the knowledge of some friends of the marquis, who endeavoured to put him on his guard against the machinations of his enemies.  But he, confiding in his honour and good faith, judged of others by himself, and refused to listen to this advice; saying that it was proper to leave these unfortunate men in peace, who were already sufficiently punished by the shame of their defeat, the public hatred, and the poverty to which they were reduced.  So much were the Almagrians encouraged by the patient indulgence of the marquis, that their chiefs used even to pass him in public without saluting him or giving him any token of respect; and one night some of them had the audacity to affix three ropes to the gibbet, one of which was stretched towards the palace of the marquis, another towards the house of his lieutenant, and the third to that of his secretary.  Even this insolence was forgiven by the marquis, in consideration of their misery and the unhappy situation of their affairs.  Profiting by this indulgence, the Almagrians assembled together almost openly, several of their party who were wandering about the country without property or employment, coming to Lima from the distance even of two hundred leagues.  They resolved upon putting the marquis to death; yet waited to hear from Spain what judgment might be given in the case of Ferdinand Pizarro, who was there thrown into prison as accused, of the murder of Don Diego Almagro; and to prosecute whom Captain Diego Alvarado had gone home and was actively engaged in soliciting his trial and punishment.  When the conspirators learnt that his majesty had appointed the licentiate Vaca de Castro to proceed to Peru, on purpose to examine into all the past disorders, but without orders to prosecute the death of Almagro with that rigorous severity which they wished and expected, they resolved upon the execution of their long concerted enterprize.  They were anxious, however, to learn exactly the intentions of Vaca de Castro, as the intended assassination of the marquis was by no means universally approved among the Almagrians.  Several of the gentlemen belonging to the party, although much incensed at the death of Almagro, were anxious only for redress by legal means, and in a manner that might be conformable with the pleasure and service of the sovereign.  The chiefs of this conspiracy who were now assembled in Lima, were Juan de Saavedra, Alfonso de Montemayor, Juan de Gusman controller, Manuel de Espinar treasurer, Nugnez de Mercado agent, Christoval Ponce de Leon, Juan de Herrada, Pero Lopez de Ayala, and some others.  In this assemblage, Don Alfonso de Montemayor was deputed to wait upon Vaca de Castro; and accordingly set out with letters of credence and dispatches to meet Vaca de Castro at the beginning of April 1541.  After his arrival at the place where Vaca de Castro then was, and before he proposed to return to his employers, news was brought of the assassination of the marquis.  On this occasion, Montemayor and some others of the Almagrian party, who were not concerned in the murder, remained with Vaca de Castro till after the defeat of the younger Almagro in the battle of Chupas, preferring the service of their sovereign, in whose name and authority de Castro acted, to their individual resentments.