Answer:
The Spanish government responded to the decline in the native population of their colonies in a variety of ways, including attempts to regulate the treatment of Indigenous peoples and efforts to import African slaves as a labor source.
One of the earliest responses was the encomienda system, which was a labor system that granted Spanish settlers the right to use Indigenous peoples for labor in exchange for their protection and religious instruction. However, the encomienda system often led to the exploitation and abuse of Indigenous peoples, and the Spanish government attempted to regulate it in the mid-16th century.
Another response was the creation of the New Laws of 1542, which were designed to protect Indigenous peoples from abuse and exploitation. The laws abolished the encomienda system, established the rights of Indigenous peoples to own land, and limited the use of Indigenous labor. However, the New Laws were unpopular with many Spanish settlers, who saw them as a threat to their economic interests.
As the native population continued to decline, the Spanish government began to import African slaves as a labor source. African slaves were brought to the Americas in large numbers from the late 16th century onwards, and their labor was used to support the growing colonial economies.
References:
Gibson, C. (1966). The Aztecs under Spanish rule: A history of the Indians of the Valley of Mexico, 1519-1810. Stanford University Press.
Lockhart, J. (1991). The men of Cajamarca: A social and biographical study of the first conquerors of Peru. University of Texas Press.
Mancall, P. C. (2009). Fatal journey: The final expedition of Henry Hudson. Basic Books.