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Title: The Works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, Volume IX
History of Mexico, Volume I, 1516-1521
Author: Hubert Howe Bancroft
Release date: September 12, 2023 [eBook #71625]
Language: English
Original publication: San Francisco: A. L. Bancroft & Company, 1883
Credits: Melissa McDaniel and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WORKS OF HUBERT HOWE BANCROFT, VOLUME IX ***
Transcriber’s Note
Inconsistent hyphenation and spelling in the original document have
been preserved. Simple typographical errors have been corrected.
In some cases, Bancroft uses both “u” and “v” to spell an
author’s name, e.g. Vetancurt and Vetancvrt.
Other archaic letter substitutions include “b” for “v”, “i” for
“y”, “x for “j”, “i for “j”, “ç” or “c” for “z” and vice versa.
These have been left as printed.
Accents and other diacritics are inconsistently used.
Some possible printer’s errors or inconsistencies include:
Barucoa and Baracoa
Basan and Bazan
Luis Becerra Tanco and Luis Bezerra Tanco
casy should be casi
Cholula and Chulula
Rᵒ de de guaqaqa is a possible double word error
overset thinge should possibly be oversetthinge
Footnotes, originally at the bottoms of pages, have been
sequentially renumbered, collected together, and placed after
the last page of each chapter.
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
This volume contains references to the previous volumes of this
work.
They can be found at:
Volume 1: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/41070/41070-h/41070-h.htm
Volume 2: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/42808/42808-h/42808-h.htm
Volume 3: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/43123/43123-h/43123-h.htm
Volume 4: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/44104/44104-h/44104-h.htm
Volume 5: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/45268/45268-h/45268-h.htm
Volume 6: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/58658/58658-h/58658-h.htm
Volume 7: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/58669/58669-h/58669-h.htm
Volume 8: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/62657/62657-h/62657-h.htm
THE WORKS
OF
HUBERT HOWE BANCROFT.
VOLUME IX.
HISTORY OF MEXICO.
VOL. I. 1516-1521.
SAN FRANCISCO:
A. L. BANCROFT & COMPANY, PUBLISHERS.
1883.
Entered according to Act of Congress in the Year 1883, by
HUBERT H. BANCROFT,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
All Rights Reserved.
PREFACE.
As the third greatest of the world’s republics, wherein society and
civilization are displayed under somewhat abnormal aspects, under
aspects at least widely different from those present in other than
Spanish-speaking communities, configurations and climates, races
and race intermixtures, civil and religious polities, and the whole
range of mental and physical environment being in so many respects
exceptional and individual, Mexico presents a study one of the most
interesting and profitable of any among the nations of to-day.
A brilliant though unjust and merciless conquest was followed by the
enforcement of Spain’s institutions upon the survivors, who were
themselves so far advanced in arts, industries, and intellectual
culture as to render such metamorphosis most disastrous. After the
awful success of Cortés, Spain neither exterminated the natives, like
the United States, nor left them in their aboriginal independence,
like the fur-magnates of British America. Aiming at the utmost
kindness, the Spanish government fastened on body and soul the iron
fetters of tyranny and superstition; aiming at liberty and humanity,
slavery and wrong were permitted. With grants of land, grants of men
and women were made. The church fought valiantly against the evils
of the encomienda system, and against the cruelty and injustice
imposed by the colonists upon the natives. There was here little of
that wholesome indifference to the welfare of her colonies later
manifested by England with regard to her settlements in America.
Spain’s American possessions belonged not to the Spanish people but to
the Spanish sovereign; the lands and the people were the king’s, to be
held or disposed of as he should direct. Hence among the people were
encouraged dividing castes; commerce was placed under the severest
restrictions, and in many ways it became clear that provinces were
held and governed almost exclusively for the benefit of the crown.
And so they remained, Europeans and Americans intermingling their
loves and hates for three hundred years, which was indeed Mexico’s
dark age, two civilizations being well nigh crushed therein. Light
at last breaking in upon the people, the three centuries of viceregal
rule were brought to a close by their taking a stand for independence,
such as their Anglo-American neighbor had so recently achieved. And
now during these latter days of swift progression Mexico is happily
aroused from her lethargy, and is taking her proper place among the
enlightened nations of the earth, to the heart-felt joy of all.
* * * * *
The first of the five great periods of Mexican history, embracing the
aboriginal annals of Anáhuac, has been exhaustively treated in the
fifth volume of my _Native Races_. The second is that of the conquest
by Cortés; the third covers nearly three centuries of viceregal rule
in New Spain; the fourth comprises the struggle for independence
and the founding of the republic; and the fifth extends thence to
the present time, including as salient features a series of internal
revolutions, the war with the United States, the imperial experiment
of Maximilian, and the peaceful development of national industries
and power in recent years. It is my purpose to present on a national
scale, and in a space symmetrically proportioned to the importance
of each, the record of the four successive periods.
The conquest of Mexico, filling the present and part of another
volume, has been treated by many writers, and in a masterly manner.
In the three periods of Mexican history following the conquest there
is no comprehensive work extant in English; nor is there any such
work in Spanish that if translated would prove entirely satisfactory
to English readers. Of the few Spanish and Mexican writers whose
researches have extended over the whole field, or large portions of
it, none have been conspicuously successful in freeing themselves from
the quicksands of race prejudice, of religious feeling, of patriotic
impulse, of political partisanship; none have had a satisfactory
command of existing authorities; none in the matter of space have
made a symmetrical division of the periods, or have appreciated the
relative importance of different topics as they appear to any but
Spanish eyes. Yet there has been no lack among these writers of careful
investigation or brilliant diction. Indeed there is hardly an epoch
that has not been ably treated from various partisan standpoints.
* * * * *
The list of authorities prefixed to this volume shows approximately
my resources for writing a HISTORY OF MEXICO. I may add that no part
of my collection is more satisfactorily complete than that pertaining
to Mexico. I have all the standard histories and printed chronicles
of the earliest times, together with all the works of writers who
have extended their investigations to the events and developments
of later years. On the shelves of my Library are found the various
_Colecciones de Documentos_, filled with precious historical papers
from the Spanish and Mexican archives, all that were consulted in
manuscript by Robertson, Prescott, and other able writers, with
thousands equally important that were unknown to them. My store of
manuscript material is rich both in originals and copies, including
the treasures secured during a long experience by such collectors as
José María Andrade and José Fernando Ramirez; a copy of the famous
_Archivo General de Mexico_, in thirty-two volumes; the autograph
originals of Cárlos María Bustamante’s historical writings, in about
fifty volumes, containing much not found in his printed works; the
original records of the earliest Mexican councils of the church, with
many ecclesiastical and missionary chronicles not extant in print;
and finally a large amount of copied material on special topics drawn
from different archives expressly for my work.
Documents printed by the Mexican government, including the regular
_memorias_ and other reports of different departments and officials,
constitute a most valuable source of information. Partisan writings
and political pamphlets are a noticeable feature of Mexican historical
literature, indispensable to the historian who would study both
sides of every question. Prominent Mexicans have formed collections
of such works, a dozen of which I have united in one, making two
hundred and eighteen volumes of _Papeles Varios_, some five thousand
pamphlets, besides nearly as many more collected by my own efforts.
The newspapers of a country cannot be disregarded, and my collection
is not deficient in this class of data, being particularly rich in
official periodicals.
* * * * *
The conquest of Mexico, which begins this history, has the peculiar
attractions of forming the grandest episode in early American annals
from a military point of view, and in opening to the world the richest,
most populous, and most civilized country on the northern continent,
and of gradually incorporating it in the sisterhood of nations as the
foremost representative of Latin-American states. On the other hand,
an episode which presents but a continuation of the bloody path which
marked the advance of the conquerors in America, and which involved
the destruction not only of thousands of unoffending peoples but
of a most fair and hopeful culture, is not in its results the most
pleasing of pictures. But neither in this pit of Acheron nor in that
garden of Hesperides may we expect to discover the full significance
of omnipotent intention. From the perpetual snow-cap springs the
imperceptibly moving glacier. A grain of sand gives no conception
of the earth, nor a drop of water of the sea, nor the soft breathing
of an infant of a hurricane; yet worlds are made of atoms, and seas
of drops of water, and storms of angry air-breaths. Though modern
Mexico can boast a century more of history than the northern nations
of America, as compared with the illimitable future her past is but
a point of time.
CONTENTS OF THIS VOLUME.
CHAPTER I.
VOYAGE OF HERNANDEZ DE CÓRDOBA TO YUCATAN.
1516-1517.
PAGE.
A Glance at the State of European Discovery and Government
in America at the Opening of this Volume—Diego Velazquez
in Cuba—Character of the Man—A Band of Adventurers Arrives
from Darien—The Governor Counsels them to Embark in
Slave-catching—Under Hernandez de Córdoba they Sail Westward
and Discover Yucatan—And are Filled with Astonishment
at the Large Towns and Stone Towers they See there—They
Fight the Natives at Cape Catoche—Skirt the Peninsula to
Champoton—Sanguinary Battle—Return to Cuba—Death of Córdoba 1
CHAPTER II.
JUAN DE GRIJALVA EXPLORES THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE MEXICAN
GULF.
1518.
Velazquez Plans a New Expedition—Gives the Command to
his Nephew, Juan de Grijalva—Who Embarks at Santiago and
Strikes the Continent at Cozumel Island—Coasts Southward to
Ascension Bay—Then Turns and Doubles Cape Catoche—Naming
of New Spain—Fight at Champoton—Arrival at Laguna de
Términos—Alaminos, the Pilot, is Satisfied that Yucatan is
an Island—They Coast Westward and Discover the Rivers San
Pedro y San Pablo and Tabasco—Notable Interview at this
Place between the Europeans and the Americans—The Culhua
Country—They Pass La Rambla, Tonalá, the Rio Goazacoalco,
the Mountain of San Martin, the Rivers of Alvarado and
Banderas, and Come to the Islands of Sacrificios and San
Juan de Ulua 15
CHAPTER III.
RETURN OF GRIJALVA. A NEW EXPEDITION ORGANIZED.
1518.
Refusal of Grijalva to Settle—Alvarado Sent back to
Cuba—Grijalva Continues his Discovery—After Reaching
the Province of Pánuco he Turns back—Touching at the
Rio Goazacoalco, Tonalá, the Laguna de Términos, and
Champoton, the Expedition Returns to Cuba—Grijalva Traduced
and Discharged—A New Expedition Planned—Velazquez Sends
to Santo Domingo and Spain—Characters of Velazquez and
Grijalva Contrasted—Candidates for the Captaincy of the New
Expedition—The Alcalde of Santiago Successful—His Standing
at that Time 28
CHAPTER IV.
THE HERO OF THE CONQUEST.
Birthplace of Hernan Cortés—His Coming Compensatory for the
Devil-sent Luther—Parentage—Hernan a Sickly Child—Saint Peter
his Patron—He is sent to Salamanca—Returns Home—Thinks of
Córdoba and Italy—And of Ovando and the Indies—Chooses the
Latter—Narrow Escape during a Love Intrigue—Ovando Sails
without Him—Cortés Goes to Valencia—Is there Ill—Returns
Home—Finally Sails for the Indies—His Reception at Santo
Domingo—He Fights Indians under Velazquez, and is Given an
Encomienda—Goes to Cuba with Velazquez—Makes Love to Catalina
Suarez—But Declines to Marry—Velazquez Insists—Cortés
Rebels—Seizures, Imprisonments, Escapes, and Reconciliation 41
CHAPTER V.
SAILING OF THE EXPEDITION.
1518-1519.
The Quality of Leader Desired—Instructions Issued to
Hernan Cortés, Commander-in-chief—The Character of
Cortés Undergoes a Change—Cost of the Expedition—By whom
Borne—Places Established for Enlistment—The Banner—Cortés
Puts on the Great Man—More of his Character—The Scene at
Santiago Harbor—The Governor’s Jester—Dark Suspicions of
Velazquez—Departure from Santiago—Cortés at Trinidad—Fresh
Recruits—Verdugo Receives Orders to Depose Cortés—The
Fleet Proceeds to San Cristóbal, or the Habana—Review
at Guaguanico—Speech of Cortés—Organization into
Companies—Departure from Cuba 53
CHAPTER VI.
THE VOYAGE.
1519.
Something of the Captains of
Cortés—Alvarado—Montejo—Ávila—Olid—Sandoval—Leon—Ordaz—Morla—The
Passage—The Fleet Struck by a Squall—Arrival at
Cozumel—Alvarado Censured—Search for the Captive
Christians—Arrival of Aguilar—His Chaste Adventures—They Come
to Tabasco River—Battles there—Conquest of the Natives—Peace
Made—Twenty Female Slaves among the Presents—The Fleet
Proceeds along the Shore—Puertocarrero’s Witticism—Arrival
at San Juan de Ulua 73
CHAPTER VII.
WHAT MONTEZUMA THOUGHT OF IT.
Home of Mexican Civilization—The Border Land of
Savagism—Configuration of the Country—The Nahuas and
the Mayas—Toltecs, Chichimecs, and Aztecs—The Valley of
Mexico—Civil Polity of the Aztecs—King Ahuitzotl—Montezuma
Made Emperor—Character of the Man—His Career—The First
Appearing of the Spaniards not Unknown to Montezuma—The
Quetzalcoatl Myth—Departure of the Fair God—Signs and Omens
concerning his Return—The Coming of the Spaniards Mistaken
for the Fulfilment of the Prophecy—The Door Opened to the
Invader 94
CHAPTER VIII.
THE COMBATANTS SALUTE.
April-May, 1519.
The Embassy from the Shore—The New Interpreter—Marina—Her
Appearance and Quality—Her Romantic History—She Cleaves
to the Spaniards and to Cortés—And Becomes One of the
most Important Characters of the Conquest—The Spaniards
Land and Form an Encampment—The Governor Comes with
Presents—The Spaniards Astonish the Natives—Who Report
all to Montezuma—Cortés Sends the Monarch Presents—Council
Called in Mexico—Montezuma Determines not to Receive the
Strangers—Reciprocates in Presents a Hundredfold—Cortés
Persists—Montezuma Declines more Firmly—Olmedo Attempts
Conversion—Teuhtlile, Offended, Withdraws his People from
the Camp of the Spaniards 116
CHAPTER IX.
THE MIGHTY PROJECT IS CONCEIVED.
May, 1519.
Serious Dilemma of Cortés—Authority without Law—Montejo
Sent Northward—Recommends another Anchorage—Dissensions at
Vera Cruz—Prompt and Shrewd Action of Cortés—A Municipality
Organized—Cortés Resigns—And is Chosen Leader by the
Municipality—Velazquez’ Captains Intimate Rebellion—Cortés
promptly Arrests Several of Them—Then he Conciliates them
All—Important Embassy from Cempoala—The Veil Lifted—The
March to Cempoala—What was Done there—Quiahuiztlan—The
Coming of the Tribute Gatherers—How They were Treated—Grand
Alliance 131
CHAPTER X.
MULTIPLICATION OF PLOTS.
June-July, 1519.
Cortés, Diplomate and General—The Municipality of Villa
Rica Located—Excitement throughout Anáhuac—Montezuma
Demoralized—Arrival of the Released Collectors at the
Mexican Capital—The Order for Troops Countermanded—Montezuma
Sends an Embassy to Cortés—Chicomacatl Asks Aid against a
Mexican Garrison—A Piece of Pleasantry—The Velazquez Men
Refuse to Accompany the Expedition—Opportunity Offered them
to Return to Cuba, which they Decline through Shame—The
Totonacs Rebuked—The Cempoala Brides—Destruction of the
Idols—Arrival at Villa Rica of Salcedo—Efforts of Velazquez
with the Emperor—Cortés Sends Messengers to Spain—Velazquez
Orders them Pursued—The Letters of Cortés—Audiencia of the
Emperor at Tordesillas 152
CHAPTER XI.
THE SINKING OF THE FLEET.
July-August, 1519.
Diego Velazquez once More—His Supporters in the Camp of
Cortés—They Attempt Escape—Are Discovered—The Leaders
are Seized and Executed—Cortés’ Ride to Cempoala, and
what Came of it—He Determines on the Destruction of
the Fleet—Preliminary Stratagems—Several of the Ships
Pronounced Unseaworthy—The Matter before the Soldiers—The
Fleet Sunk—Indignation of the Velazquez Faction—One Vessel
Remaining—It is Offered to any Wishing to Desert—It is
finally Sunk—Francisco de Garay’s Pretensions—Seizure of
Some of his Men 174
CHAPTER XII.
MARCH TOWARD MEXICO.
August-September, 1519.
Enthusiasm of the Army—The Force—The Totonacs Advise the
Tlascalan Route—Arrival at Jalapa—A Look Backward—The Anáhuac
Plateau—Meeting with Olintetl—Arrival in the Country of the
Tlascaltecs—The Senate Convenes and Receives the Envoys
of Cortés—An Encounter—A More Serious Battle—Xicotencatl
Resolves to Try the Prowess of the Invaders, and is Defeated
191
CHAPTER XIII.
ENTRY INTO TLASCALA.
September, 1519.
Native Chiefs Sent as Envoys to the Tlascalan
Capital—Their Favorable Reception—Xicotencatl Plans
Resistance to Cortés—Sends out Spies—Cortés Sends them back
Mutilated—The Spaniards Attack and Defeat Xicotencatl—Night
Encounters—General Dissatisfaction and a Desire to
Return to Villa Rica—Envoys Arrive from Montezuma—Cortés
Receives Xicotencatl and the Tlascalan Lords—Peace
Concluded—Tlascala—Festivities and Rejoicings—Mass
Celebrated—Cortés Inclined to Extreme Religious Zeal—Brides
Presented to the Spaniards—Appropriate Ceremonies—Preparing
to Leave Tlascala for Cholula—Communications with the
Cholultecs 211
CHAPTER XIV.
SUBJUGATION OF CHOLULA.
October, 1519.
Departure from Tlascala—Description of Cholula—The
Welcome—Army Quarters in the City—Intimations of a
Conspiracy between the Mexicans and Cholultecs—Cortés Asks
for Provisions and Warriors—He Holds a Council—Preparations
for an Attack—The Lords Enter the Court with the Required
Supplies—Cortés Reprimands them in an Address—The
Slaughter Begins—Destruction of the City—Butchery and
Pillage—Amnesty finally Proclaimed—Xicotencatl Returns
to Tlascala—Reconciliation of the Cholultecs and
Tlascaltecs—Dedication of a Temple to the Virgin—Reflections
on the Massacre of Cholula 235
CHAPTER XV.
FROM CHOLULA TO IZTAPALAPAN.
October-November, 1519.
Montezuma Consults the Gods—He again Begs the Strangers not
to Come to him—Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl—News from Villa
Rica—Death of Escalante—Return of the Cempoalan Allies—Again
en route for Mexico—Reception at Huexotzinco—First View
of the Mexican Valley—Exultations and Misgivings—Resting
at Quauhtechcatl—The Counterfeit Montezuma—Munificent
Presents—The Emperor Attempts to Annihilate the Army by
Means of Sorcerers—Through Quauhtechcatl, Amaquemecan,
and Tlalmanalco—A Brilliant Procession Heralds the
Coming of Cacama, King of Tezcuco—At Cuitlahuac—Met by
Ixtlilxochitl—The Hospitality of Iztapalapan 252
CHAPTER XVI.
MEETING WITH MONTEZUMA.
November, 1519.
Something of the City—The Spaniards Start from
Iztapalapan—Reach the Great Causeway—They are Met by many
Nobles—And Presently by Montezuma—Entry into Mexico—They
are Quartered in the Axayacatl Palace—Interchange of Visits 275
CHAPTER XVII.
CAPTURE OF THE EMPEROR.
November, 1519.
Cortés Inspects the City—Visits the Temple with
Montezuma—Discovery of Buried Treasure—Pretended Evidences
of Treachery—Cortés Plans a Dark Deed—Preparations for
the Seizure of Montezuma—With a Few Men Cortés Enters the
Audience-chamber of the King—Persuasive Discourse—With
Gentle Force Montezuma is Induced to Enter the Lion’s Den 294
CHAPTER XVIII.
DOUBLY REFINED DEALINGS.
1519-1520.
Hollow Homage to the Captive King—Montezuma has his Wives and
Nobles—He Rules his Kingdom through the Spaniards—The Playful
Page—Liberality of the Monarch—The Sacred Treasures—Cortés
Resents the Insults of the Guard—Diversions—Quauhpopoca,
his Son and Officers, Burned Alive—Plantations Formed—Villa
Rica Affairs—Vessels Built—Pleasure Excursions 309
CHAPTER XIX.
POLITICS AND RELIGION.
1520.
Growing Discontent among the Mexicans—Cacama’s
Conspiracy—He Openly Defies both Montezuma and Cortés—The
Council of Tepetzinco—Seizure of Cacama—The Tezcucan
Ruler Deposed—Cuicuitzcatl Elevated—Montezuma and his
People Swear Fealty to the Spanish King—Gathering in the
Tribute—Division of Spoils—The Spaniards Quarrel over their
Gold—Uncontrollable Religious Zeal—Taking of the Temple—Wrath
of the Mexicans 328
CHAPTER XX.
THE CUBAN GOVERNOR IN PURSUIT.
1519-1520.
The Mexicans Threaten Revolt—The Clergy in Arms—They
Denounce the Conduct of Montezuma—The Emperor Declares
he can no longer Restrain his People—Tidings of
Velazquez’ Fleet—Sailing from Cuba of an Expedition under
Narvaez—Arrival in Mexico—Conflict with Cortés—Interchange
of Threats and Courtesies—Attempted Union of Forces—Narvaez
Remains Loyal to Velazquez—Desertion of Some of his Men to
Cortés 353
CHAPTER XXI.
THE COUP DE MAÎTRE OF CORTÉS.
May, 1520.
Dismal Prospects—Empire to Hold, Invasion to Repel—The Army
Divides—Alvarado Guards Montezuma, while Cortés Looks after
Narvaez—The March Seaward—The Rendezvous—The Chinantecs
and their Pikes—Cortés Sows Alluring Words in the Camp of
the Enemy—Proposals of Peace—Defiance—Night Attack—Cortés
Captures Narvaez and his Army 374
CHAPTER XXII.
ALVARADO’S MERCILESS MASSACRE.
May, 1520.
After the Battle—Victory Made Secure—Conduct of the
Conquered—A General Amnesty—Disposition of the Forces—Affairs
at the Capital—Insurrection Threatened—The Spaniards Hold a
Council—Alvarado’s Resolve—The Great Day of the Feast—The
Spaniards Proceed to the Temple—The Grand Display there
Witnessed—The Attack of the Spaniards—Horrors upon Horrors 399
CHAPTER XXIII.
UPRISING OF THE AZTECS.
May-June, 1520.
Character of the Aztecs—Spanish Quarters—The City in
Arms—Growing Hatred toward the Invaders—Perilous Position
of Alvarado—Montezuma Called to Interfere—Failing
Provisions—Miraculous Water—Cortés to the Rescue—Rendezvous
at Tlascala—The City and its People—The Army Joins
Alvarado—Desperate Encounters 419
CHAPTER XXIV.
FIGHT UPON THE TEMPLE SUMMIT.
June, 1520.
The Natives Continue the Assault—Their Fierce Bravery—The
Spaniards Build Turrets—Still the Mexicans Prove too Strong
for Them—Montezuma Called to Intercede—He is Insulted and
Stoned by his Subjects—Cortés Attempts Egress by the Tlacopan
Causeway—Failure of Escobar to Take the Pyramid—Cortés
Gains the Slippery Height—The Gladiatorial Combat There 436
CHAPTER XXV.
DEATH OF MONTEZUMA.
June, 1520.
A Living Death—The Old Imperial Party and the New Power—Aztec
Defiance—Perilous Position of the Spaniards—Disappointment
to Cortés—Another Sally—The Dying Monarch—He has No Desire
to Live—His Rejection of a New Faith—He will None of the
Heaven of the Spaniards—Commends his Children to Cortés—The
Character of Montezuma and of his Reign 449
CHAPTER XXVI.
LA NOCHE TRISTE.
June 30, 1520.
The Captive-King Drama Carried too Far—Better had the
Spaniards Taken Montezuma’s Advice, and have Departed while
Opportunity Offered—Diplomatic Value of a Dead Body—Necessity
for an Immediate Evacuation of the City—Departure from the
Fort—Midnight Silence—The City Roused by a Woman’s Cry—The
Fugitives Fiercely Attacked on All Sides—More Horrors 463
CHAPTER XXVII.
RETREAT TO TLASCALA.
July, 1520.
Fatal Mistake of the Mexicans—A Brief Respite Allowed the
Spaniards—The Remnant of the Army at Tlacopan—They Set out
for Tlascala—An ever increasing Force at their Heels—Rest
at the Tepzolac Temple—Cortés Reviews his Disasters—The
March Continued amidst Great Tribulation—Encounter of the
Grand Army—Important Battle and Remarkable Victory—Arrival
at Tlascala—The Friendly Reception Accorded them There 482
CHAPTER XXVIII.
INVALUABLE FRIENDSHIP.
July-September, 1520.
Divers Disasters to the Spaniards—Mexico Makes Overtures
to Tlascala—A Council Held—Tlascala Remains True to the
Spaniards—Disaffection in the Spanish Army—Cortés again
Wins the Soldiers to his Views—Renewal of Active Operations
against the Aztecs—Success of the Spanish Arms—Large
Reinforcements of Native Allies—One Aztec Stronghold after
another Succumbs 509
CHAPTER XXIX.
KING-MAKING AND CONVERTING.
October-December, 1520.
Conquest in Detail—Barba Caught—Other Arrivals and
Reinforcements—The Small-pox Comes to the Assistance of the
Spaniards—Letters to the Emperor—Establishing of Segura de
la Frontera—Certain of the Disaffected Withdraw from the
Army and Return to Cuba—Division of Spoils—Head-quarters
Established at Tlascala 536
CHAPTER XXX.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE FLEET.
December, 1520-February, 1521.
The Objective Point—Vessels Needed—Martin Lopez Sent to
Tlascala for Timber—Thirteen Brigantines Ordered—Cortés
at Tlascala—Drill and Discipline—Address of the
General—Parade of the Tlascaltecs—March to Tezcuco—New Ruler
Appointed—Sacking of Iztapalapan—The Chalcans—Arrival at
Tezcuco of the Brigantine Brigade 561
CHAPTER XXXI.
PRELIMINARY CAMPAIGNS.
March-May, 1521.
Plan for the Investment of Mexico—Reconnoitring Tour round
the Lake—Cortés in Command—Alvarado and Olid Accompany—They
Proceed Northward from Tezcuco—Capture of Cities and
Strongholds—Xaltocan, Quauhtitlan, Tenayocan, Azcapuzalco,
Tlacopan, and back to Tezcuco—Chalco Disturbed—Peace
Proposals Sent to Mexico—Further Reconnoissance of the
Lake Region—Many Battles and Victories—Quauhnahuac
Captured—Burning of Xochimilco—Second Return to
Tezcuco—Conspiracy 582
CHAPTER XXXII.
INVESTMENT OF MEXICO.
May-June, 1521.
Phases of Heroism—The Brigantines upon the Lake—Division
of Forces between Alvarado, Sandoval, and Olid—Desertion,
Capture, and Execution of Xicotencatl—Departure of the
Troops from Tezcuco—Naval Battle—Possession Taken of the
Causeways—At One Point Cortés Unexpectedly Gains Entrance
to the City—But is Driven Out 613
CHAPTER XXXIII.
CONTINUATION OF THE SIEGE.
June-July, 1521.
Something about Quauhtemotzin—Infamous Pretensions of
European Civilization and Christianity—Prompt Action of the
Mexican Emperor—Repetitions of the Entry Assault—Submission
of the Surrounding Nations—Dire Condition of the
Mexicans—Spanish Defeat and Disaffection—Resolution to Raze
the City 636
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE CONQUEST ACHIEVED.
July-August, 1521.
The Destroyers Advance—Fierce Fighting in the Plaza—Dismal
Situation of the Mexicans—The Work of Demolition—Movements
of Alvarado—The Emperor Refuses to Parley—Misery of
the Aztecs Unbearable—Horrible Massacre of Women and
Children—The Tender-hearted Cortés Mourns over his own
Work—Capture of the Emperor—The Conquest Completed—Banquets
and Thanksgivings—Dispersion of the Allies to their
Homes—Reflections 669
AUTHORITIES QUOTED
IN
THE HISTORY OF MEXICO.
It is my custom to prefix to each work of the series the name
of every authority cited in its pages. In this instance, however,
it is impracticable. So immense is my material for the_ HISTORY OF
MEXICO _that a full list of the authorities would fill a third of a
volume, obviously more space than can properly be allowed even for so
important a feature. I therefore reduce the list by omitting, for the
most part, three large classes: first, those already given for_ CENTRAL
AMERICA; _second, those to be given in the_ NORTH MEXICAN STATES;
_and third, many works, mostly pamphlets, which, though consulted and
often important, have only an indirect bearing on history, or which
have been cited perhaps but once, and on some special topic. These,
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Mexico, Arancel Parroquial. MS. 1703. folio.
Mexico, Aranzeles de los Tribunales, Juzgados y oficinas de Justicia.
Mexico, 1759. 4to.
Mexico, Archivo Mexicano, Actas de las Sesiones de Cámaras. Mexico,
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Mexico, Archivo Mexicano, Coleccion de Leyes, Decretos, etc. Mexico,
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Mexico, Archivo Mexicano, Documentos, Historia de Mexico. Mexico, 1852.
Mexico, Arreglo del cuerpo de Artillería. Mexico, 1838.
Mexico, Auto de la audiencia. In Doc. Hist. Mex., serie ii., tom. iii.
Mexico, Autos de la real audiencia á la ciudad y su respuesta de
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Mexico, Autos sobre ereccion de nuevos parroquias de Mexico. In Doc.
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Mexico, Ayuntamiento. Acta del Cabildo en 30 de Mayo de 1836.
Mexico, 1836; Coleccion de Documentos Oficiales relativos al Parian.
Mexico, 1843; Continuacion de documentos á la cesacion. Mexico, 1843;
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el. Mexico, 1843; Manifiesto al público que hace el de 1840. Mexico,
1840; Manifiesto del de 1835 al Público Mexicano. Mexico, 1836;
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1847; Reglamento de la Secretaría. Mexico, 1844; Representacion que
hace en defensa de Industria Agrícola. Mexico, 1841; Representacion
sobre Distrito Federal. Mexico, 1825.
Mexico, Balanza general del Comercio Marítimo. Mexico, 1829.
Mexico, Bandos publicados á conseqüencia de Reales Ordenes y cédulas
de Su Magestad, etc. Mexico, 1772.
Mexico, Bases y leyes Constitucionales de la República Mexicana.
Mexico, 1837.
Mexico, Bases Orgánicas de la República Mexicana. Mexico, 1843.
Mexico, Bases sobre las que se ha formado un plan de Colonizacion en
el Ystmo de Hoazacoalco, etc. Mexico, 1823.
Mexico, Battles of. New York, 1847; New York, 1848.
Mexico, Bienes de la Iglesia. Guadalajara, 1847.
Mexico, Boletin de las leyes del Imperio Mexicano ó sea código de la
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Mexico, Boletin de Noticias. Mexico, 1844 et seq.
Mexico, Boletin Oficial. Mexico, 1829 et seq.
Mexico, Bosquejo Histórico de la Revolucion de tres dias. Mexico, 1828.
Mexico, Bosquejo Ligerísimo de la revolucion. Philadelphia, 1822.
Mexico, Cabildo Metropolitano de Gobernador sede Vacante. MS. 1811.
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Mexico, Carta del cabildo sobre el tumulto de 15 de Enero de 1624.
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Mexico, Casa de sus Magestades 1865. Mexico, 1865.
Mexico, Casas de Moneda, Noticias de Acuñacion. Mex., 1879; Ordenanzas
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Mexico, Causa Instruida contra los Placiarios del C. Juan Cervantes,
etc. Mexico, 1872.
Mexico, Ceremonial para la Fiesta Nacional del 16 de Setiembre de
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Mexico, Circular sobre nombramientos 1771-83.
Mexico, Circulares y Otras Publicaciones hechas por la Legacion
Mexicana en Washington durante la Guerra de Intervencion 1862-67.
Mexico, 1868.
Mexico, Código Civil del Imperio Mexicano. Mexico, 1866.
Mexico, Código de Comercio. Mexico, 1854.
Mexico, Código de la Reforma ó coleccion de Leyes, etc., desde 1856
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Mexico, Código fundamental de los Estados-Unidos Mexicanos. Mexico,
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Mexico, Coleccion completa de los decretos generales. Mexico, 1863.
Mexico, Coleccion de constituciones de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos.
Mexico, 1828. 3 vols.
Mexico, Coleccion de decretos sobre contribuciones directas y papel
sellado. Mexico, 1842.
Mexico, Coleccion de disposiciones relativas á la renta de Alcabalas.
Mexico, 1853.
Mexico, Coleccion de Itinerarios y Leguarios. Mexico, 1850.
Mexico, Coleccion de las leyes, decretos y órdenes 1850-1, 1853-5.
Mexico, 1850-5. 8 vols.
Mexico, Coleccion de Leyes y Decretos, 1839-41, 1844-8, 1850. Mexico,
1851-2. 6 vols.
Mexico, Coleccion de Leyes, Decretos y Circulares 1863-67. Mexico,
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Mexico, Coleccion de Leyes, Decretos, Circulares, etc., relativas á
la desamortizacion. Mexico, 1861. 2 vols.
Mexico, Coleccion de leyes, decretos y reglamentos, sistema político
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Mexico, Coleccion de los decretos espedidos por el supremo gobierno.
Mexico, 1844.
Mexico, Coleccion de los decretos y órdenes de las Córtes de España.
Mexico, 1829.
Mexico, Coleccion de los Documentos relativos al préstamo de medio
millon de pesos. Mexico, 1839.
Mexico, Coleccion de oficios originales. MS. 1779.
Mexico, Coleccion de Ordenes y decretos de la Soberana Junta. Mexico,
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Mexico, Coleccion de Sentencias pronunciadas por los Tribunales de
la República Mexicana. Mexico, 1850.
Mexico, Colonias Militares, Proyecto. Mexico, 1848.
Mexico como Nacion Independiente. Descripcion. Mexico, 1828.
Mexico, Condition of Affairs. Washington, 1866. 2 vols.
Mexico, Conducto ilegal del Ministerio de Hacienda en sus providencias.
Mexico, 1841.
Mexico, Conquest of. London, n.d.
Mexico, Consideraciones sobre la situacion política y social de la
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Mexico, Consolidacion de la República Mexicana. Mexico, 1850-1. 3 vols.
Mexico, Constitucion federal de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos. Mexico,
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Mexico, Constitucion política del Estado de Mexico. Mexico, 1827.
Mexico, Constituciones. A Collection. 2 vols.
Mexico, Contestacion á la nota dirigida por la Junta de Colonizacion
é Industria. Puebla, 1848; Contestacion de la Junta Directiva del
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Gonzalez. Mex., 1830; Contestacion que da el Ayuntamiento. Mex., 1840;
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Mexico, Contrata del ramo de alumbrado de las calles de la Capital
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Mexico, Corporaciones civiles y eclesiásticas, Noticia de las fincas.
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Mexico, Cuaderno de Formularios. Mexico, 1840.
Mexico, Cuenta de la percepcion, distribucion é inversion de los diez
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Mexico, Declaraciones sobre el tumulto. In Doc. Hist. Mex., serie
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Mexico, Decreto (A very large number quoted by date, subject, or
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Mexico, Defensa Jurídica por el venerable Dean y cabildo, etc. Mexico,
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Mexico, Derechos Mexicanos en órden á los Agentes comerciales. Vera
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Mexico, Derechos reales de la Alcabala. Mexico, 1805. folio.
Mexico, Descargos del Marqués de Gelves á los cargos. MS. folio.
Mexico, Description of the Republic. Philadelphia, 1846.
Mexico, Destierro del Arzobispo. In Doc. Hist. Mex., serie ii., tom. ii.
Mexico, Diario de la Junta Nacional Instituyente. Mexico, 1822 et seq.
Mexico, Diario del Gobierno de la República Mexicana. Mexico, 1840
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Mexico, Diario de las Sesiones de la Junta Provisional Gubernativa
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Mexico, Diario del Imperio. Mexico, 1865 et seq.
Mexico, Diario Oficial. Mexico, 1870 et seq.
Mexico, Dictámen (Several hundred reports of Committees of State and
National Governments cited by date and topic).
Mexico, Die Auswanderung nach Mexico, etc. Leipzig, n.d.
Mexico, Diferencias entre Franciscanos y Curas Párrocos. MS.
Mexico, Direccion General de la Industria Nacional. MS.
Mexico, Discurso pronunciado ante el Congreso General por José Herrera.
Mexico, 1845.
Mexico, Discurso pronunciado por el Presidente 1º de Enero de 1852.
Mexico, 1852.
Mexico, Discurso pronunciado por el Presidente 15 de Oct. de 1852.
Mexico, 1852.
Mexico, Disposiciones legales y otros documentos relativos á
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Mexico, Documentos Eclesiásticos. MS. folio. 5 vols.
Mexico, Documentos importantes tomados del Espediente instruido.
Mexico, 1826.
Mexico, Documentos impresos por acuerdo del Supremo Poder. Mexico, 1840.
Mexico, Documentos justificativos sobre la inversion de los fondos
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Mexico, Documentos que publica la Direccion de Colonizacion é
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Mexico, Documentos referentes á la cuestion agitada en estos últimos
dias sobre si los nombramientos de Jueces Militares. Mexico, 1852.
Mexico, Documentos relativos á la apertura de comunicacion de
Tehuantepec. Mexico, 1852.
Mexico, Documentos relativos á las últimas ocurrencias de Nueva
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Mexico, Documentos relativos al decreto sobre provision de las
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Mexico, Dos Años en Mexico. Mexico, 1840.
Mexico, Dos Años en Mejico ó memorias críticas. Valencia, 1838.
Mexico, Draft for a Convention. Washington, 1861.
Mexico, Dramas. MS.
Mexico, Edicto del Presidente y cabildo Metropolitano Gobernador del
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Mexico, Edicto sobre pago de Primicias. MS.
Mexico, El Alcalde primero del Ayuntamiento publica la manifestacion
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Mexico, El Congreso de 1842. Morelia, 1842.
Mexico, El Imperio y la Intervencion. Mexico, 1867.
Mexico, El Virey de Nueva España Don Felix M. Calleja á sus habitantes.
Mexico, 1814.
Mexico en 1847. Mexico, 1847.
Mexico, Encarnacion prisoners. Louisville, 1848.
Mexico, Escalafon General de Artillería. Mex., 1839; Escalafon
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Mexico, Escudo de Armas. In Figueroa, Vindicias. MS.
Mexico, Estado Mayor Gral. del Ejército, Escalafon. Mexico, 1854.
Mexico, Estatuto Orgánico Provisional de la República Mexicano. Mex.,
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Mexico, Estatutos de la Compañía de Colonizacion Asiática. Mex.,
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Mexico, Espediente con dos acuerdos del Senado sobre convenciones
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Mexico, Expediente instruido en el Ministerio de Relaciones Esteriores
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Mexico, Exposicion (Several hundred by various commissions and
individuals on different topics).
Mexico, Expulsion del Arzobispo. In Doc. Hist. Mex., serie ii., tom.
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Mexico, Extractos de Cédulas en los archivos de la Ciudad. MS. folio.
Mexico fiel y valiente en el crisol que la pusieron los insurgentes.
Mexico, 1810.
Mexico, Forcible abduction of a citizen of the U. S. Washington, 1851.
Mexico, Franciscanos y quejas de Indios. MS. 1672. folio.
Mexico, Gaceta del Gobierno Supremo. Mexico, 1826 et seq.
Mexico, Hacienda, 1845-52. A Collection. 6 vols.
Mexico, Historia de la Revolucion de Mexico contra la Dictadura del
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Mexico, Hostilities by (29 Cong. 1st. Sess. House Ex. Doc. 196).
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Mexico, Important official Documents, n.pl., n.d.
Mexico in 1842. New York, 1842.
Mexico, Indemnities, Convention of Jan. 30, 1843 (28 Cong. 2d Sess.
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Mexico, Indicacion del orígen de los estravios del Cong. Mex. Mexico,
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Mexico, Informacion sobre el tumulto. In Doc. Hist. Mex., serie ii.,
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Mexico, Informe (A very large number of reports by various committees,
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dates).
Mexico, Iniciativa del Gobierno para la demarcacion de la linea de
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Mexico, Iniciativa que la Exma Junta Departamental hace al Congreso
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Mexico, Instruccion de los comisionados de la Direccion General.
Mexico, 1783.
Mexico, Instruccion del Rey. In Pacheco and Cárdenas, Col. Doc., tom.
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Mexico, Instruccion para la práctica de los padrones que se han de
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Mexico, Instruccion para que los administradores de aduanas hagan la
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Mexico, Instruccion Provisional á que han de arreglarse las Comisarías
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Mexico, Its present Government and its Political Parties. Washington,
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Mexico, Juicio Imparcial sobre los Acontecimientos en 1828-29. New
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Mexico, La Intervencion Europea en Mexico. Filadelfia, 1859.
Mexico, La Intervencion y la Monarquía. Washington, 1862.
Mexico, La Ley. Toluca, 1871 et seq.
Mexico, Legislacion Mejicana, Coleccion completa de las Leyes 1848-56.
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Mexico, Ley decretada por el Congreso general estableciendo un
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Mexico, Ley de 4 de Nov. de 1848 sobre arreglo del ejército. Mexico,
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Mexico, Ley de Presupuestos Generales de la República Mexicana 1861.
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Mexico, Ley orgánica de la guardia de seguridad.
Mexico, Ley orgánica de la Guardia Nacional. Mexico, 1857.
Mexico, Ley para al arreglo de la Admin. de Justicia. Guadalajara, 1837.
Mexico, Ley penal para los Desertores del Ejército. Mexico, 1839.
Mexico, Ley penal para los Empleados de Hacienda. Mexico, 1853.
Mexico, Ley que arregla la renta del papel sellado y los usos de esta
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Mexico, Ley que arregla las procedimientos Judiciales. La Paz, 1867.
Mexico, Ley sobre derechos y observaciones parroquiales. Mexico, 1857.
Mexico, Ley sobre Libertad de Cultos. Mexico, 1861.
Mexico, Leyes á las que ha debido arreglarse la eleccion de los
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Mexico, Leyes, Decretos y Convenios Relativos á la deuda estrangera.
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Mexico, Lista pormenorizada de los daños, etc. MS.
Mexico, Manifestacion de las actas de las discusiones, etc. Tlalpam,
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Mexico, Manifestacion que hace al público la comision nombrada por
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Mexico, Manifestacion que el Exmo Ayuntamiento hace al público,
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Mexico, Manifestacion que la Exma Junta Departamental de Mexico.
Mexico, 1837.
Mexico, Manifiesto de la Cámara de Diputados en la legislatura de
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Mexico, Manifiesto del Congreso General en el presente Año. Mexico,
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Mexico, Manifiesto del Gobierno Constitucional á la Nacion. Colima,
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Mexico, Manifiesto del Supremo Tribunal de Guerra. n.pl., n.d.
Mexico, Manifiesto del Supremo Tribunal de Guerra y Marina. Mexico,
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Mexico, Memoria de Plumages. In Pacheco and Cárdenas, Col. Doc., tom.
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Mexico, Memorias (Regular Reports of the different government
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Mexico, Memorandum de los Negocios Pendientes entre Mexico y España.
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Mexico, Memorial de lo sucedido en la ciudad de Mexico desde el dia
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Mexico, Mensage del Presidente. [Cited by dates.]
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Mexico, Notes made in 1822. Philadelphia, 1824.
Mexico, Noticia Histórica de Infantería. Mexico, 1840.
Mexico, Noticia Histórica de los Cuerpos de Caballería. Mexico, 1840.
Mexico, Noticias de la ciudad. Mexico, 1855.
Mexico, Noticias de Mexico y sus contornos. MS. folio.
Mexico, Observaciones generales sobre Caminos de Hierro. Nueva York,
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Mexico, Observaciones que hace el ejecutivo al Proyecto de Arancel
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Mexico, Observaciones que sobre el proyecto de Bases. Guadalajara, 1843.
Mexico, Observaciones sobre la Influencia del Comercio Estrangero.
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Mexico, Observaciones sobre las facultades del Congreso Constituyente.
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Mexico, Observaciones sobre reformas á las leyes constitucionales.
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Mexico, Observations on the origin and conduct of the war with. New
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Mexico, Occupation by French troops. Message of the President, Dec.
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Mexico, Ordenanza de la division de la nobilísima ciudad de Mexico
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Mexico, Ordenanza de la renta del Tabaco, 24 de Agosto, 1846. Mexico,
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Mexico, Ordenanza del ramo de carnes. Mexico, 1850.
Mexico, Ordenanza general de Aduanas Marítimas y fronterizas. Mexico,
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Mexico, Ordenanza militar para el régimen, disciplina, etc., del
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Mexico, Ordenanza militar provisional que debe observar el cuerpo de
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Mexico, Ordenanzas de esta nobilíssima ciudad. Mexico, 1775. MS. folio.
Mexico, Ordenanzas de la fiel executoria formadas por la ciudad de
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Mexico, Ordenanzas de Lotería. Mexico, 1844.
Mexico, Ordenanzas para el régimen de los tenderos y tiendas de
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Mexico, Ordenanzas que se han de observar y guardar en la muy
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Mexico, Pamphlets. A Collection.
Mexico, Papeles Varios. A Collection.
Mexico, Papers relating to. Washington, 1866.
Mexico, Periódico Oficial. Mexico, 1863 et seq.
Mexico, Piezas Justificativas del Arreglo de la deuda Esterna de
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Mexico Plausible con la Triumphal demonstracion. Mexico, 1711.
Mexico, Present Condition. Messages of the President of the U. S.,
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Mexico, Presupuesto del Ministerio de Guerra y Marina 1º Julio de
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Mexico, Presupuesto del Ministerio de Hacienda de 1º Jul. de 1851
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Mexico, Presupuesto del Ministerio de Justicia, etc., del 1º de
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Mexico, Presupuesto del Ministerio de Relaciones, etc., 1849, 1º de
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Mexico, Presupuesto de los gastos que en un mes. Mexico, 1850.
Mexico, Proceedings of a meeting of citizens of New York to express
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Mexico, Proceso instructivo formado por la seccion del Gran Jurado
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Mexico, Providencias Diocesanas de Mexico. MS. n.pl., n.d.
Mexico, Proyecto de Basis de Organizacion; de Constitucion; de Ley,
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Mexico, Puntos del parecer que el Señor Auditor de guerra, etc., en
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Mexico, Razon de los préstamos que ha negociado el Supremo Gobierno
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Mexico, Reales Aranzeles de los ministros de la Real Audiencia.
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Mexico, Recollections of, and the battle of Buena Vista, by an Engineer
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Mexico, Reflexiones importantes al bien y beneficio de la Hacienda,
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Mexico, Reflexiones importantes sobre la inconveniencia del contrato.
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Mexico, Reflexiones sobre el acuerdo del Senado, adopcion del sistema
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Mexico, Reflexiones sobre el ramo de Alcabalas. Mexico, 1848.
Mexico, Reflexiones sobre la Independencia. Guadalajara, 1821.
Mexico, Reglamento de Aduanas Marítimas. Mexico, 1829. 4to.
Mexico, Reglamento de la casa de Moneda. Tlalpan, 1827.
Mexico, Reglamento de la Direccion de Colonizacion. Mexico, 1846.
Mexico, Reglamento de la Milicia Activa y General de la Cívica.
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Mexico, Reglamento del Archivo general y público de la Nacion. Mexico,
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Mexico, Reglamento del cuerpo de cosecheros de Tabaco. Mexico, 1842.
Mexico, Reglamento del Teatro de Mex. Ap. 11. 1786. [Mexico, 1786.]
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Mexico, Reglamento é instruccion para los presidios. Mexico, 1834.
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Mexico, Reglamento general de la libertad de imprenta. Mexico, 1827.
Mexico, Reglamento interino y Provisional para la Comisaria Central
de Guerra y Marina. Mexico, 1825.
Mexico, Reglamento para el corso de particulares en la presente
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Mexico, Reglamento para el establecimiento de las colonias militares
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Mexico, Reglamento para el gobierno interior del Congreso General.
Mexico, 1848.
Mexico, Reglamento para el Gobierno interior de la Suprema Corte
marcial. Mexico, 1837.
Mexico, Reglamento para el Gobierno interior de los tribunales
superiores. Mexico, 1838.
Mexico, Reglamento para el gobierno interior y económico de la
Secretaría de Estado. Mexico, 1852.
Mexico, Reglamento para el Supremo Tribunal de Justicia del Estado.
Mexico, 1825.
Mexico, Reglamento para la administracion y contabilidad. Mexico, 1867.
Mexico, Reglamento para la Comunicacion por la via Inter-Oceánica de
Tehuantepec. Mexico, 1857.
Mexico, Reglamento para la Guardia Nacional. Mexico, 1846.
Mexico, Reglamento para la seccion superior de los distritos de
Hacienda. Mexico, 1852.
Mexico, Reglamento para la Tesorería general. Mejico, 1831. 4to.
Mexico, Reglamento para los Servicios de Honor y ceremonial de la
Corte. Mexico, 1866.
Mexico, Reglamento Provisional para las funciones y servicio del
Estado Mayor. Mexico, 1823. 4to.
Mexico, Reglamento que han de observar el juez, el administrador
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Mexico, Reglamento y Arancel de Corredores para la plaza de Mexico.
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Mexico, Reglamentos de los Gabinetes Civil y militar del Emperador.
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Mexico, Relacion de los Conquistadores. In Doc. Inéd., tom. i.
Mexico, Relacion del estado en que el Marqués de Gelues halló los
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toda la provincia del Santo Evangelio. MS. folio; Relacion Svmaria
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Mexico, Report of the Committee on Public Credit, etc., on the
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Mexico, Reports and Dispatches exhibiting operations of the U. S.
Naval forces during the War with Mexico. Washington, 1849.
Mexico, Representacion dirigida á la cámara de Diputados por el
Supremo Tribunal de Guerra y Marina. Mexico, 1835.
Mexico, Representacion dirigida al Virey de Nueva España. Mexico, 1812.
Mexico, Representacion por la Junta directiva de la Industria Nacional
sobre necesidad de su fomento. Mexico, 1843.
Mexico, Representacion que hace el Ayuntamiento en defensa de la
industria agrícola. Mexico, 1841.
Mexico, Representacion umilde que hace la ciudad en favor de sus
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Mexico, Representacion que la Junta de Fomento y Administrativa de
Minería. Mexico, 1850.
Mexico, Representacion sobre pago de primicias en las doctrinas. MS.
Mexico, Reseña de las festividades que han tenido lugar en Puebla de
Saragoza. Puebla, 1870.
Mexico, Reseña histórica de las negociaciones entre España y Mexico.
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[Illustration: NEW SPAIN AS KNOWN TO THE CONQUERORS IN 1521.]
HISTORY OF MEXICO.
CHAPTER I.
VOYAGE OF HERNANDEZ DE CÓRDOBA TO YUCATAN.
1516-1517.
A GLANCE AT THE STATE OF EUROPEAN DISCOVERY AND GOVERNMENT
IN AMERICA AT THE OPENING OF THIS VOLUME—DIEGO VELAZQUEZ
IN CUBA—CHARACTER OF THE MAN—A BAND OF ADVENTURERS ARRIVES
FROM DARIEN—THE GOVERNOR COUNSELS THEM TO EMBARK IN
SLAVE-CATCHING—UNDER HERNANDEZ DE CÓRDOBA THEY SAIL WESTWARD
AND DISCOVER YUCATAN—AND ARE FILLED WITH ASTONISHMENT
AT THE LARGE TOWNS AND STONE TOWERS THEY SEE THERE—THEY
FIGHT THE NATIVES AT CAPE CATOCHE—SKIRT THE PENINSULA TO
CHAMPOTON—SANGUINARY BATTLE—RETURN TO CUBA—DEATH OF CÓRDOBA.
During the first quarter of a century after the landing of Columbus on
San Salvador, three thousand leagues of mainland coast were examined,
chiefly in the hope of finding a passage through to the India of Marco
Polo. The Cabots from England and the Cortereals from Portugal made
voyages to Newfoundland and down the east coast of North America;
Amerigo Vespucci sailed hither and thither in the service of Spain,
and wrote letters confounding knowledge; Vasco da Gama doubled the Cape
of Good Hope; Columbus, Ojeda, Niño, Guerra, Bastidas, and Pinzon and
Solis coasted the Tierra Firme of Central and South America; Ocampo
skirted Cuba and found it an island; Cabral accidentally discovered
Brazil; Juan Ponce de Leon hunted for the Fountain of Youth in Florida;
Vasco Nuñez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus and floated his ships on
the South Sea. Prior to 1517 almost every province of the eastern
continental seaboard, from Labrador to Patagonia, had been uncovered,
save those of the Mexican Gulf, which casketed wonders greater than
them all. This little niche alone remained wrapped in aboriginal
obscurity, although less than forty leagues of strait separated the
proximate points of Cuba and Yucatan.
Meanwhile, in the government of these Western Indies, Columbus, first
admiral of the Ocean Sea, had been succeeded by Bobadilla, Ovando,
and the son and heir of the discoverer, Diego Colon, each managing,
wherein it was possible, worse than his predecessor; so that it was
found necessary to establish at Santo Domingo, the capital city of
the Indies, a sovereign tribunal, to which appeals might be made from
any viceroy, governor, or other representative of royalty, and which
should eventually, as a royal audiencia, exercise for a time executive
as well as judicial supremacy. But before clothing this tribunal with
full administrative powers, Cardinal Jimenez, then dominant in New
World affairs, had determined to try upon the turbulent colonists
the effect of ecclesiastical influence in secular matters, and had
sent over three friars of the order of St Jerome, Luis de Figueroa,
Alonso de Santo Domingo, and Bernardo de Manzanedo, to whose direction
governors and all others were made subject. Just before the period
in our history at which this volume opens, the Jeronimite Fathers,
as the three friars were called, had practically superseded Diego
Colon at Española, and were supervising Pedrarias Dávila of Castilla
del Oro, Francisco de Garay governor of Jamaica, and Diego Velazquez
governor of Cuba. It will be remembered that Diego Colon had sent Juan
de Esquivel in 1509 to Jamaica, where he was succeeded by Francisco
de Garay; and Diego Velazquez had been sent in 1511 to Cuba to subdue
and govern that isle, subject to the young admiral’s dictation; and
beside these, a small establishment at Puerto Rico, and Pedrarias on
the Isthmus, there was no European ruler in the regions, islands or
firm land, between the two main continents of America.
The administration of the _religiosos_ showed little improvement on
the governments of their predecessors, who, while professing less
honesty and piety, practised more worldly wisdom; hence within two
short years the friars were recalled by Fonseca, who, on the death of
Jimenez, had again come into power in Spain, and the administration
of affairs in the Indies remained wholly with the audiencia of Santo
Domingo, the heirs of Columbus continuing to agitate their claim
throughout the century.
* * * * *
It was as the lieutenant of Diego Colon that Velazquez had been sent
to conquer Cuba; but that easy work accomplished, he repudiated his
former master, and reported directly to the crown.
Velazquez was an hidalgo, native of Cuéllar, who, after seventeen
years of service in the wars of Spain, had come over with the old
admiral in his second voyage, in 1493, and was now a man of age,
experience, and wealth. With a commanding figure, spacious forehead,
fair complexion, large clear eyes, well-chiselled nose and mouth,
and a narrow full-bearded chin, the whole lighted by a pleasing
intellectual expression, he presented, when elegantly attired as
was his custom, as imposing a presence as any man in all the Indies.
In history he also formed quite a figure. And yet there was nothing
weighty in his character. He was remarkable rather for the absence
of positive qualities; he could not lay claim even to conspicuous
cruelty. He was not a bad man as times went; assuredly he was not a
good man as times go. He could justly lay claim to all the current
vices, but none of them were enormous enough to be interesting. In
temper he was naturally mild and affable, yet suspicious and jealous,
and withal easily influenced; so that when roused to anger, as was
frequently the case, he was beside himself.
Chief assistant in his new pacification was Pánfilo de Narvaez, who
brought from Jamaica thirty archers, and engaged in the customary
butchering, while the governor, with three hundred men, quietly
proceeded to found towns and settlements, such as Trinidad, Puerto
del Príncipe, Matanzas, Santi Espíritu, San Salvador, Habana, and
Santiago, making the seat of his government at the place last named,
and appointing alcaldes in the several settlements. Other notable
characters were likewise in attendance on this occasion, namely,
Bartolomé de las Casas, Francisco Hernandez de Córdoba, Juan de
Grijalva, and Hernan Cortés.
Discreet in his business, and burdened by no counteracting scruples,
Velazquez and those who were with him prospered. Informed of this,
above one hundred of the starving colonists at Darien obtained
permission from Pedrarias in 1516 to pass over to Cuba, and were
affably received by the governor. Most of them were well-born and
possessed of means; for though provisions were scarce at Antigua,
the South Sea expeditions of Vasco Nuñez, Badajoz, and Espinosa, had
made gold plentiful there. Among this company was Bernal Diaz del
Castillo, a soldier of fortune, who had come from Spain to Tierra
Firme in 1514, and who now engages in the several expeditions to
Mexico, and becomes, some years later, one of the chief historians
of the conquest.
Ready for any exploit, and having failed to receive certain
repartimientos promised them, the band from Tierra Firme cast glances
toward the unknown west. The lesser isles had been almost depopulated
by the slave-catchers, and from the shores of the adjoining mainland
the affrighted natives had fled to the interior. It was still a
profitable employment, however, for the colonists must have laborers,
being themselves entirely opposed to work. The governor of Cuba,
particularly, was fond of the traffic, for it was safe and lucrative.
Though a representative of royal authority in America, he was as
ready as any irresponsible adventurer to break the royal command.
During this same year of 1516, a vessel from Santiago had loaded
with natives and provisions at the Guanaja Islands, and had returned
to port. While the captain and crew were ashore for a carouse, the
captives burst open the hatches, overpowered the nine men who had
been left on guard, and sailed away midst the frantic gesticulations
of the captain on shore. Reaching their islands in safety, they there
encountered a brigantine with twenty-five Spaniards lying in wait for
captives. Attacking them boldly, the savages drove them off toward
Darien, and then burned the ship in which they themselves had made
their enforced voyage to Cuba.
As a matter of course this atrocious conduct on the part of the
savages demanded exemplary punishment. To this end two vessels were
immediately despatched with soldiers who fell upon the inhabitants
of Guanaja, put many to the sword, and carried away five hundred
captives, beside securing gold to the value of twenty thousand pesos
de oro.
Happy in the thought of engaging in an occupation so profitable, the
chivalrous one hundred cheerfully adventured their Darien gold in a
similar voyage, fitting out two vessels for the purpose, and choosing
for their commander Francisco Hernandez de Córdoba, now a wealthy
planter of Santi Espíritu.[1] Velazquez added a third vessel, a
small bark, in consideration of a share in the speculation.[2] After
laying in a supply of cassava, a bread made from the yucca root, and
some salt beef, bacon, and glass beads for barter, the expedition
departed from Santiago de Cuba, and went round to the north side
of the island. There were in all one hundred and ten[3] soldiers,
with Antonio de Alaminos as chief pilot, Alonso Gonzalez priest, and
Bernardino Iñiguez king’s treasurer. Here the chief pilot said to the
commander, “Down from Cuba Island, in this sea of the west, my heart
tells me there must be rich lands; because, when I sailed as a boy
with the old admiral, I remember he inclined this way.” Suddenly the
vision of Córdoba enlarged. Here might be something better, nobler,
more profitable even than kidnapping the poor natives. Despatching a
messenger to Velazquez, Córdoba asked, in case new discoveries were
made while on the way to catch Indians, for permission to act as
the governor’s lieutenant in such lands. The desired authority was
granted, and from the haciendas near by were brought on board sheep,
pigs, and mares, so that stock-raising might begin if settlements
were formed.
Sailing from the Habana, or San Cristóbal, the 8th of February,
1517, they came to Cape San Antonio, whence, on the 12th, they struck
westward, and after certain days,[4] during two of which they were
severely tempest-tossed, they discovered land;[5] first the point of
an island, where were some fine salt-fields, and cultivated ground.
The people who appeared on the shore were not naked as on the Islands,
but well dressed in white and colored cotton, some with ornaments
of gold, silver, and feathers. The men were bold and brave, and the
women well-formed and modest, with head and breast covered. Most
wonderful of all, however, were some great towers, built of stone and
lime, with steps leading to the top; and chapels covered with wood
and straw, within which were found arranged, in artistic order, many
idols apparently representing women, and that led the Spaniards to
name the place De Las Mugeres.[6] Proceeding northward, they came to
a larger point, of island or mainland; and presently they descried,
two leagues from the shore, a large town, which was called El Gran
Cairo.
While looking for an anchorage, on the morning of the 4th of March,
five canoes approached the commander’s vessel, and thirty men stepped
fearlessly on board. The canoes were large, some of them capable of
holding fifty persons; the men were intelligent, and wore a sleeveless
cloak and apron of cotton.[7] The Spaniards gave them bacon and bread
to eat, and to each a necklace of green glass beads. After closely
scrutinizing the ship and its belongings, the natives put off for the
shore. Early next day appeared the cacique with many men in twelve
canoes, making signs of friendship, and crying, _Conex cotoch!_ that
is to say, Come to our houses; whence the place was called Punta de
Catoche,[8] which name it bears to-day.
Thus invited, Córdoba, with several of his officers, and twenty-five
soldiers armed with cross-bows and firelocks, accompanied the natives
to the shore, where the cacique with earnest invitations to visit
his town managed to lead them into ambush. The natives fought with
flint-edged wooden swords, lances, bows, and slings, and were protected
by armors of quilted cotton and shields, their faces being painted
and their heads plumed. They charged the enemy bravely, amidst shouts
and noise of instruments; several of the Spaniards were wounded,
two fatally. At length the natives gave way before the sharp and
sulphurous enginery of their exceedingly strange visitants, leaving
fifteen of their number dead upon the ground. Two youths were taken
prisoners, who were afterward baptized and named Julian and Melchor,
and profitably employed by the Spaniards as interpreters. Near the
battle-ground stood three more of those curious stone temples, one
of which was entered by Father Gonzalez during the fight, and the
earthen and wooden idols and ornaments and plates of inferior gold
found there were carried away to the ship.
Embarking, and proceeding westward, the Spaniards arrived a fortnight
later at Campeche,[9] where their amazement was increased on beholding
the number and beauty of the edifices, while the blood and other
evidences of human sacrifice discovered about the altars of the
temples filled their souls with horror. And as they were viewing
these monuments of a superior culture, the troops of armed natives
increased, and the priests of the temples, producing a bundle of
reeds, set fire to it, signifying to the visitors that unless they
took their departure before the reeds were consumed every one of them
would be killed. Remembering their wounds at Catoche, the Spaniards
took the hint and departed.
They were soon caught in a storm and severely shaken; after which
they began to look about for water, which had by this time become
as precious to them as the Tyrian mures tincture, of which each
shell-fish gave but a single drop. They accordingly came to anchor
near a village called Potonchan, but owing to a sanguinary battle
in which they were driven back, Córdoba named the place Bahía de
Mala Pelea.[10] In this engagement the natives did not shrink from
fighting hand to hand with the foe. Fifty-seven Spaniards were killed
on the spot, two were carried off alive, and five died subsequently
on shipboard. Those whom the natives could not kill they followed
to the shore, in their disappointed rage, wading out into the sea
after them, like the bloodthirsty Cyclops who pursued the Trojan
Æneas and his crew. But one man escaped unharmed, and he of all the
rest was selected for slaughter by the natives of Florida. Córdoba
received twelve wounds; Bernal Diaz three. The survivors underwent
much suffering before reaching Cuba, for the continued hostilities
of the natives prevented their obtaining the needful supply of water.
There being no one else to curse except themselves, they cursed the
pilot, Alaminos, for his discovery, and for still persisting in calling
the country an island. Then they left Mala Pelea Bay and returned
along the coast, north-eastwardly, for three days, when they entered
an opening in the shore to which they gave the name of Estero de los
Lagartos,[11] from the multitude of caimans found there. After burning
one of the ships which had become unseaworthy, Córdoba crossed from
this point to Florida, and thence proceeded to Cuba, where he died
from his wounds, ten days after reaching his home at Santi Espíritu.
Diego Velazquez was much interested in the details of this discovery.
He closely questioned the two captives about their country, its gold,
its great buildings, and the plants which grew there. When shown the
yucca root they assured the governor that they were familiar with it,
and that it was called by them _tale_, though in Cuba the ground in
which the yucca grew bore that name. From these two words, according
to Bernal Diaz, comes the name Yucatan; for while the governor was
speaking to the Indians of _yucca_ and _tale_, some Spaniards standing
by exclaimed, “You see, sir, they call their country Yucatan.”[12]
The people of this coast seemed to have heard of the Spaniards, for at
several places they shouted ‘Castilians!’ and asked the strangers by
signs if they did not come from toward the rising sun. Yet, neither
the glimpse caught of Yucatan by Pinzon and Solis in 1506 while in
search of a strait north of Guanaja Island where Columbus had been,
nor the piratical expedition of Córdoba, in 1517, can properly be
called the discovery of Mexico.[13] Meanwhile Mexico can well afford
to wait, being in no haste for European civilization, and the attendant
boons which Europe seems so desirous of conferring.
FOOTNOTES
[1] In the memorial of Antonio Velazquez, successor of
the adelantado, Diego Velazquez, _Memorial del negocio de
D. Antonio Velazquez de Bazan_, in _Mendoza_, _Col. Doc.
Inéd._, x. 80-6, taken from the archives of the Indies,
the credit of this expedition is claimed wholly for the
governor. Indeed, Velazquez himself repeatedly asserts, as
well as others, that the expedition was made at his cost.
But knowing the man as we do, and considering the claims
of others, it is safe enough to say that the governor did
not invest much money in it. The burden doubtless fell on
Córdoba, who was aided, as some think, by his associates,
Cristóbal Morante and Lope Ochoa de Caicedo, in making
up what the men of Darien lacked, _Torquemada_, i. 349,
notwithstanding the claims for his fraternity of Bernal
Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, i. Ogilby, _Hist. Am._, 76, says the
three associates were all Cuban planters; that they equipped
three ships, Velazquez adding one. This Hernandez de Córdoba
was not he who served as lieutenant under Pedrarias, though
of the same name.
[2] Opinion has been divided as to the original purpose of
the expedition. As it turned out, it was thought best on all
sides to say nothing of the inhuman and unlawful intention
of capturing Indians for slaves. Hence, in the public
documents, particularly in the petitions for recompense
which invariably followed discoveries, pains is taken to
state that it was a voyage of discovery, and prompted by
the governor of Cuba. As in the _Décadas Abreviadas de los
Descubrimientos_, _Mendoza_, _Col. Doc. Inéd._, viii. 5-54,
we find that ‘El adelantado Diego Velazquez de Cuéllar es
autor del descubrimiento de la Nueva España,’ so, in effect,
it is recorded everywhere. Indeed, Bernal Diaz solemnly
asserts that Velazquez at first stipulated that he should
have three cargoes of slaves from the Guanaja Islands,
and that the virtuous one hundred indignantly refused so
to disobey God and the king as to turn free people into
slaves. ‘Y desque vimos los soldados, que aquello que pedia
el Diego Velazquez no era justo, le respondimos, que lo que
dezia, no lo mandaua Dios, ni el Rey; que hiziessemos á los
libres esclavos.’ _Hist. Verdad._, i. On the strength of
which fiction, Zamacois, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 224, launches
into laudation of the Spanish character. The honest soldier,
however, finds difficulty in making the world believe
his statement. Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 348, does not
hesitate to say very plainly that the expedition was sent
out to capture Indians, ‘ir é enviar á saltear indios para
traer á ella,’ for which purpose there were always men with
money ready; and that on this occasion Córdoba, Morante, and
Caicedo subscribed 1,500 or 2,000 castellanos each, to go and
catch Indians, either at the Lucayas Islands or elsewhere.
Torquemada, i. 349, writes more mildly, yet plainly enough;
‘para ir à buscar Indios, à las Islas Convecinas, y hacer
Rescates, como hasta entonces lo acostumbraban.’ Cogolludo,
_Hist. Yucathan_, 1-6, follows Bernal Diaz almost literally.
Gomara, _Hist. Ind._, 60, is non-committal, stating first ‘para
descubrir y rescatar,’ and afterward, ‘Otros dizen que
para traer esclauos de las yslas Guanaxos a sus minas y
granjerias.’ Oviedo and Herrera pass by the question. Landa,
_Rel. de Yucatan_, 16, ‘a rescatar esclavos para las minas,
que ya en Cuba se yva la gente apocando y que otros dizen
que salio a descubrir tierra.’ Says the unknown author of
_De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 338, ‘In has igitur insulas ad grassandum
et prædandum, ut ita dicam, ire hi de quibus suprà dictum
est, constituerant; non in Iucatanam.’ It is clear to my
mind that slaves were the first object, and that discovery
was secondary, and an after-thought.
[3] Bernal Diaz holds persistently to 110. It was 110
who came from Tierra Firme, and after divers recruits and
additions the number was still 110.
[4] Authorities vary, from four days given by Las Casas,
and six by Oviedo, to 21 by Bernal Diaz and Herrera. The
date of departure is also disputed, but the differences are
unimportant. Compare _Peter Martyr_, dec. iv. cap. vi.;
_Dufey_, _Résumé Hist. Am._, i. 93; _Clavigero_, _Storia
Mess._, iii. 3; _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 348-63;
_Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, 3-8; _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, 60-1;
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 1-2; _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. ii. cap. xvii.; _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 22-4; _Vida
de Cortés_, or _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 331-41; _March y Labores_,
_Marina Española_, i. 463-8; _Robertson’s Hist. Am._, i.
237-40; _Fancourt’s Hist. Yuc._, 5-8.
[5] Though remarkably fair and judicious in the main, Mr
Prescott’s partiality for a certain class of his material
is evident. To the copies from the Spanish archives, most
of which have been since published with hundreds of others
equally or more valuable, he seemed to attach an importance
proportionate to their cost. Thus, throughout his entire
work, these papers are paraded to the exclusion of the more
reliable, but more accessible, standard authorities. In the
attempt, at this point, to follow at once his document and
the plainly current facts, he falls into an error of which
he appears unconscious. He states, _Conq. Mex._, i. 222,
that Córdoba ‘sailed with three vessels on an expedition to
one of the neighboring Bahama Islands, in quest of Indian
slaves. He encountered a succession of heavy gales which
drove him far out of his course.’ The Bahama Islands are
eastward from Habana, while Cape San Antonio is toward the
west. All the authorities agree that the expedition sailed
directly westward, and that the storm did not occur until
after Cape San Antonio had been passed, which leaves Mr
Prescott among other errors in that of driving a fleet to
the westward, in a storm, when it has already sailed thither
by the will of its commander, in fair weather.
[6] Following Gomara and Torquemada, Galvano mentions the name
of no other place in this voyage than that of Punta de las
Dueñas, which he places in latitude 20°. He further remarks,
_Descobrimentos_, 131, ‘He gẽte milhor atauiada que ha em
neuhũa outra terra, & cruzes em q’ os Indios adorauam,
& os punham sobre seus defuntos quando faleciam, donde
parecia que em algum tẽpo se sentio aly a fe de Christo.’
The anonymous author of _De Rebus Gestis_ and all the best
authorities recognize this as the first discovery. ‘Sicque
non ad Guanaxos, quos petebant, appulerunt, sed ad Mulierum
promontorium.’ Fernando Colon places on his map, 1527,
_y: de mujeres_; Diego de Ribero, 1529, _d’ mugeres_, the
next name north being _amazonas_. Vaz Dourado, 1571, lays
down three islands which he calls _p:. de magreles_; Hood,
1592, _Y. de mueres_; Laet, 1633, _Y^{as} de mucheres_;
Ogilby, 1671, _y^{as} desconocidas_; Dampier, 1699, _I.
mugeras_; Jefferys, 1776, _Iª de Mujeres_, or _Woman’s
I._ It was this name that led certain of the chroniclers
to speak of islands off the coast of Yucatan inhabited by
Amazons. ‘Sirvió de asilo en nuestros dias al célebre pirata
Lafitte.’ _Boletin de la Sociedad Mex. de Geog._, iii. 224.
[7] For a description of these people see _Bancroft’s Native
Races_, i. 645-747.
[8] See _Landa_, _Rel. de Yuc._, 6. ‘_Domum_ Cotoche sonat:
indicabant enim domus et oppidum haud longè abesse.’ _De
Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 339. ‘Conez cotoche, q̄ quiere dezir, Andad
aca a mis casas.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. ii. cap. xvii.
‘Cotohe, cotohe,’ that is to say, ‘a house.’ _Fancourt’s
Hist. Yuc._, 6. ‘Cotoche, q̄ quiere dezir casa.’ _Gomara_, _Hist.
Ind._, 61. ‘_Con escotoch, con escotoch_, y quiere dezir,
andad acá á mis casas.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 2.
This, the north-eastern point of Yucatan, is on Fernando
Colon’s map, 1527, _gotoche_; on the map of Diego de Ribero,
1529, _p: d’cotoche_; Vaz Dourado, 1571, _C:. de quoteche_;
Pilestrina, _c:. de sampalq_. Hood places a little west
of the cape a bay, _B. de conil_; the next name west is
_Atalaia_. _Goldschmidt’s Cartog. Pac. Coast_, MS., i. 358.
Kohl, _Beiden ältesten Karten_, 103, brings the expedition
here the 1st of March. Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 350,
confounds Córdoba’s and Grijalva’s voyages in this respect,
that brings the former at once to Cozumel, when, as a matter
of fact, Córdoba never saw that island.
[9] So called by the natives, but by the Spaniards named
San Lázaro, because ‘it was a Domingo de Lazaro’ when
they landed. Yet Ribero writes _chãpa_, while Vaz Dourado
employs _llazaro_, and Hood, _Campechy_; Laet gives the name
correctly; Ogilby and Jefferys call the place _S. Fr^{co}
de Campeche_. ‘Los Indios le deziã Quimpech.’ _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. ii. cap. xvii.
[10] Now Champoton, applied to river and town. Ribero
writes _camrõ_; Hood, _Champoto_; Mercator, _Chapãton_, and
town next north, _Maranga_. Potonchan, in the aboriginal
tongue, signifies, ‘Stinking Place.’ Mercator has also the
town of _Potõchan_, west of Tabasco River. _West-Indische
Spieghel_, _Patõcham_. Laet, Ogilby, and Jefferys follow
with _Champoton_ in the usual variations. ‘Y llegaron á
otra provincia,’ says Oviedo, i. 498, ‘que los indios llaman
_Aguanil_, y el principal pueblo della se dice _Moscoba_, y
el rey ó caçique de aquel señorio se llama Chiapoton;’ and
thus the author of _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_,
‘Nec diu navigaverant, cùm Mochocobocum perveniunt.’
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, 340.
[11] Pinzon and Solis must have found alligators in their
northward cruise, otherwise Peter Martyr could not honestly
lay down on his map of _India beyond the Ganges_, in 1510,
the _baya d’ lagartos_ north of _guanase_. Mariners must
have given the coast a bad name, for directly north of
the _R. de la_ of Colon, the _R:. de laḡ r̄ tos_ of
Ribero, the _R:. de lagarts_ of Vaz Dourado, and the _R.
de Lagartos_ of Hood, are placed some reefs by all these
chart-makers, and to which they give the name _Alacranes_,
Scorpions. The next name west of Lagartos on Map No. x.,
_Munich Atlas_, is _costanisa_, and on No. xiii. _Ostanca_.
Again next west, on both, is _Medanos_. On No. x., next
to _costa nisa_, and on No. xiii., west of _Punta de las
Arenas_, is the name _Ancones_. Ogilby gives here _B. de
Conil_, and in the interior south, a town _Conil_; east
of _R. de Lagartos_ is also the town _Quyo_, and in large
letters the name _Chuaca_.
[12] ‘Dezian los Españoles q’ estavan hablãdo con el Diego
Velazquez, y con los Indios: Señor estos Indios dizen, que
su tierra se llama Yucatã, y assi se, quedò cõ este nõbre,
que en propria lengua no se dize assi.’ _Hist. Verdad._,
5. Gomara, _Hist. Ind._, 60, states that after naming Catoche, a
little farther on the Spaniards met some natives, of whom
they asked the name of the town near by. Tecteta, was the
reply, which means, ‘I do not understand.’ The Spaniards,
accepting this as the answer to their question, called
the country Yectetan, and soon Yucatan. Waldeck, _Voy.
Pittoresque_, 25, derives the name from the native word
_ouyouckutan_, ‘listen to what they say.’ The native name
was Maya. See _Bancroft’s Native Races_, v. 614-34. There
are various other theories and renderings, among them the
following: In answer to Córdoba’s inquiry as to the name
of their country, the natives exclaimed, ‘_uy u tan_,
esto es: _oyes como habla_?’ _Zamacois_, _Hist. Mej._, ii.
228. ‘Que preguntando a estos Indios, si auia en su tierra
aquellas rayzes que se llama Yuca.... Respondian Ilatli,
por la tierra en que se plantan, y que de Yuca juntado con
Ilatli, se dixo Yucatta, y de alli Yucatan.’ _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. ii. cap. xviii. Whencesoever the origin, it
was clearly a mistake, as there never was an aboriginal
designation for the whole country, nor, like the Japanese,
have they names for their straits or bays. For some time
Yucatan was supposed to be an island. Grijalva called the
country _Isla de Santa María de Remedios_, though that term
was employed by few. In early documents the two names are
united; instance the instructions of Velazquez to Cortés,
where the country is called _la Ysla de Yucatan Sta María de
Remedios_. On Cortés’ chart of the Gulf of Mexico, 1520, it
is called _Yucatan_, and represented as an island. Colon,
1527, and Ribero, 1529, who write _Ivcatan_; Ptolemy, in
_Munster_, 1530, _Iucatana_; Orontius, on his globe, 1531,
_Iucatans_; _Munich Atlas_, no. iv., 1532-40, _cucatan_;
Baptista Agnese, 1540-50, _Iucatan_; Mercator, 1569,
_Ivcatan_; Michael Lok, 1582, _Incoton_; Hondius, 1595,
Laet, Ogilby, etc., _Yucatan_, which now assumes peninsular
proportions.
[13]
[Illustration: ARMS OF THE REPUBLIC OF MEXICO.]
[Illustration: ANCIENT ARMS OF THE CITY OF MEXICO, FROM A
RARE PRINT.]
The term Mexico has widely different meanings under different
conditions. At first it signified only the capital of
the Nahua nation, and it was five hundred years before it
overspread the territory now known by that name. Mexico City
was founded in 1325, and was called _Mexico Tenochtitlan_.
The latter appellation has been connected with _Tenuch_, the
Aztec leader at this time, and with the sign of a nopal on a
stone, called in Aztec, respectively _nochtli_ and _tetl_,
the final syllable representing locality, and the first,
_te_, divinity or superiority. The word Mexico, however,
was then rarely used, Tenochtitlan being the common term
employed; and this was retained by the Spaniards for some
time after the conquest, even in imperial decrees, and in
the official records of the city, though in the corrupt
forms of _Temixtitan_, _Tenustitan_, etc. See _Libro de
Cabildo_, 1524-9, MS. Torquemada, i. 293, states distinctly
that even in his time the natives never employed any other
designation for the ancient city than Tenochtitlan, which
was also the name of the chief and fashionable ward. Solis,
_Conq. Mex._, i. 390, is of opinion that Mexico was the
name of the ward, Tenochtitlan being applied to the whole
city, in which case Mexico Tenochtitlan would signify
the ward Mexico of the city Tenochtitlan. Gradually the
Spanish records began to add Mexico to Tenochtitlan, and
in those of the first provincial council, held in 1555,
we find written _Tenuxtitlan Mexico_. _Concilios Prov._,
i. and ii., MS. In the course of time the older and more
intricate name disappeared, though the city arms always
retained the symbolic nopal and stone. _Clavigero_, _Storia
Mess._, i. 168; iv. 265-70; _Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_,
viii. 408-15; _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant. Méj._, ii. 157-9;
_Humboldt_, _Essai Pol._, i. 146-7; _Cavo_, _Tres Siglos_,
i. 2; _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 92-3. See also
_Molina_, _Vocabulario_. A number of derivations have been
given to the word Mexico, as _mexitli_, navel of the maguey;
_metl-ico_, place amidst the maguey; _meixco_, on the
maguey border; _mecitli_, hare; _metztli_, moon; _amexica_,
or _mexica_, you of the anointed ones. The signification
spring, or fountain, has also been applied. But most writers
have contented themselves by assuming it to be identical
with the _mexi_, _mexitl_, or _mecitl_, appellation of the
war god, Huitzilopochtli, to which has been added the co,
an affix implying locality; hence Mexico would imply the
place or settlement of _Mexica_, or _Mexicans_. This war
god, Huitzilopochtli, as is well known, was the mythic
leader and chief deity of the Aztecs, the dominant tribe
of the Nahua nation. It was by this august personage, who
was also called Mexitl, that, according to tradition, the
name was given them in the twelfth century, and in these
words: ‘Inaxcan aocmoamotoca ynamaz te ca ye am mexica,’
Henceforth bear ye not the name Azteca, but Mexica. With
this command they received the distinguishing mark of a
patch of gum and feathers to wear upon their forehead and
ears. _Bancroft’s Native Races_, ii. 559; iii. 295-6; v.
324-5 et passim. I can offer no stronger proof as to the way
in which the name was regarded at the time of the conquest,
and afterwards, than by placing side by side the maps of the
sixteenth century and instituting a comparison. In _Apiano_,
_Cosmographica_, 1575, is a map, supposed to be a copy of
one drawn by Apianus in 1520, on which _Themisteton_ is
given apparently to a large lake in the middle of Mexico;
Fernando Colon, in 1527, and Diego de Ribero, 1529, both
give the word _Mexico_ in small letters, inland, as if
applied to a town, although no town is designated; Ptolemy,
in _Munster_, 1530, gives _Temistitan_; _Munich Atlas_,
no. vi., supposed to have been drawn between 1532 and
1540, _Timitistan vel Mesicho_; Baptista Agnese, 1540-50,
_Timitistan vel Mesico_; Ramusio, 1565, _Mexico_; _Mercator’s
Atlas_, 1569, _Mexico_, as a city, and _Tenuchitlan_; Michael
Lok, 1582, _Mexico_, in Hondius, about 1595, in _Drake’s
World Encompassed_, the city is _Mexico_, and the gulf _Baia
di Mexico_; Hondius, in _Purchas, His Pilgrimes_, Laet,
Ogilby, Dampier, _West-Indische Spieghel_, Jacob Colom,
and other seventeenth-century authorities, give uniformly
to the city, or to the city and province, but not to the
country at large, the name as at present written.
CHAPTER II.
JUAN DE GRIJALVA EXPLORES THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE MEXICAN GULF.
1518.
VELAZQUEZ PLANS A NEW EXPEDITION—GIVES THE COMMAND TO
HIS NEPHEW, JUAN DE GRIJALVA—WHO EMBARKS AT SANTIAGO AND
STRIKES THE CONTINENT AT COZUMEL ISLAND—COASTS SOUTHWARD TO
ASCENSION BAY—THEN TURNS AND DOUBLES CAPE CATOCHE—NAMING
OF NEW SPAIN—FIGHT AT CHAMPOTON—ARRIVAL AT LAGUNA DE
TÉRMINOS—ALAMINOS, THE PILOT, IS SATISFIED THAT YUCATAN IS
AN ISLAND—THEY COAST WESTWARD AND DISCOVER THE RIVERS SAN
PEDRO Y SAN PABLO AND TABASCO—NOTABLE INTERVIEW AT THIS
PLACE BETWEEN THE EUROPEANS AND THE AMERICANS—THE CULHUA
COUNTRY—THEY PASS LA RAMBLA, TONALÁ, THE RIO GOAZACOALCO, THE
MOUNTAIN OF SAN MARTIN, THE RIVERS OF ALVARADO AND BANDERAS,
AND COME TO THE ISLANDS OF SACRIFICIOS AND SAN JUAN DE ULUA.
As Diego Velazquez talked with Córdoba’s men, and with the captives,
Melchor and Julian, and examined the articles obtained from the
natives, their superior kind and workmanship, and the gold and
images taken from the temple at Catoche by Father Gonzalez, all grew
significant of yet greater things beyond. The hardships attending
the expedition were light to him who did not share them, and the late
commander being now dead, the governor found himself free to act as
best suited him.
He determined at once on a new expedition. There was a young man who
seemed admirably fitted for the purpose, Juan de Grijalva, a gentleman
of the governor’s own town of Cuéllar, nephew of Velazquez, though
some deny the fact; he was twenty-eight years of age, handsome,
chivalrous, courteous, and as honest as he was brave. He had been
with the governor for some time, and the wonder was how so bad a
master should have so good a man. There was no lack of volunteers,
two hundred and forty[14] coming forward at once; among them several
who afterward became famous. Two caravels were added to the two
brought back by Córdoba, making in all, refitted and equipped, four
vessels, the _San Sebastian_, the _Trinidad_, the _Santiago_, and the
_Santa María de los Remedios_. The pilots and many of the men from
the former expedition were engaged, and some natives of Cuba were
taken as servants. Grijalva, as commander of the armada, directed
one vessel, and Pedro de Alvarado, Alonso Dávila, and Francisco
de Montejo,[15] were appointed captains of the others. Grijalva’s
instructions were not to settle, but only to discover and trade.[16]
License was obtained from the Jeronimite Fathers, who stipulated that
Francisco de Peñalosa should accompany the expedition as veedor. As
priest, attended one Juan Diaz,[17] and Diego de Godoy went as notary.
Embarking from Santiago de Cuba the 8th of April, 1518, and leaving
Cape San Antonio on Saturday,[18] the first of May, they fell to the
south of their intended course, and on Monday sighted the island of
Cozumel,[19] which they named Santa Cruz,[20] “because,” says Galvano,
“they came to it the third of May.” After passing round the northern
point on the sixth[21] in search of anchorage, the commander landed
with a hundred men, and ascending a high tower took possession of the
country; after which, mass was said. And Las Casas questions if it
was quite right for Juan Diaz to hold this solemn service in a place
where sacrifices were wont to be made to Satan; for even between the
two great and formal exercises of the Spaniards, an old Indian priest
with his attendants had entered and had blown incense before the
idols, as if to rouse his gods to vindicate their might before these
opposing worshippers. To the point was given the name San Felipe y
Santiago, and to a town standing near, that of San Juan ante Portam
Latinam. Then they entered the town, and found there houses of stone,
and paved streets, in the eyes of Juan Diaz not unlike the towns of
Spanish construction. Meanwhile, a small party penetrated one or two
leagues into the interior, and observed other towns and cultivated
lands.
[Illustration]
While crossing to the Yucatan coast the following day, they descried
in the distance three towns, and, as they descended toward the south,
a city “so large that Seville could not show to better advantage.”
Next they came to a great opening in the shore, to which, after
Alaminos had examined it in a boat, they gave the name of Bahía de la
Ascension, from the day of discovery. Unable to find a pass in this
direction round the supposed island of Yucatan, they turned back,
passed Cozumel, and, rounding the peninsula, arrived at Campeche the
25th, rescuing on their way a woman from Jamaica.
* * * * *
Everywhere they beheld the same evidences of high culture seen by
Córdoba, the tower-temples and crosses of the Mayas rising from
gracefully outlined promontories, and glistening white from behind
legended hills, leading them every moment to anticipate the discovery
of some magnificent city, such as in our day has been revealed to an
admiring posterity; for while the East buries her ancient cities in
dust, the West none the less effectually hides hers in foliage. And
of the monuments to the greatness of the past, and of the profitless
millions here engendered, who shall speak? And why do men call
nature considerate or kind? Does she not create only to destroy, and
bestow blessings and cursings with the same merciless indifference?
Surpassingly lovely, she is at once siren, nurse, and sanguinary
beldam. This barren border of the peninsula rested under a canopy of
clear or curtained sky, and glared in mingled gloom and brightness
beside the fickle gulf; and from the irregular plains of the interior
came the heated, perfumed air, telling here of treeless table-lands,
of languid vegetation, and there of forests and evergreen groves.
“It is like Spain,” cried one. And so they called the country Nueva
España,[22] which name, at first applied only to the peninsula of
Yucatan, finally spread over the whole of the territory afterward
known as Mexico.
* * * * *
At Campeche, or more probably at Champoton,[23] occurred a notable
affray. The fleet anchored toward sunset, half a league from shore.
The natives immediately put on a warlike front, bent on terrible
intimidations, which they continued in the form of shouts and
drum-beating during the entire night. So great was their necessity for
water that the Spaniards did not wait for the morning, but amidst the
arrows, stones, and spears of the natives, they landed the artillery
and one hundred men before daybreak, another hundred quickly following.
But for their cotton armor the invaders would have suffered severely
during this operation. Having reached the shore, however, the guns
were planted, and the natives charged and driven back with the loss
of three Spaniards slain and sixty wounded, the commander-in-chief,
ever foremost in the fight, being three times struck and losing two
teeth. Two hundred were killed and wounded among the natives. The town
was found deserted. Presently three ancient Americans appeared, who
were kindly entreated, and despatched with presents to the fugitives,
but they never returned. Two nights were spent ashore, the tower and
sacred edifices adjacent being used as barracks.
Embarking, soon a large opening in the coast was discovered, and
entered by Grijalva, the chaplain says, the last day of May. Puerto
Deseado[24] the commander called his anchorage, being the desired
spot in which might be repaired the leaky ships. The Spaniards
thought themselves at first at the mouth of a river, but on further
examination, it appeared to them more like a sea. Whereupon the
pilot Alaminos, who, notwithstanding evidence to the contrary,
notwithstanding three days’ explorings, left this salt-sheet still
landlocked, never ceased insisting that Yucatan was an island, and
he now gravely assured his commander that the great opening opposite
Amatique Bay and Golfo Dulce, or if that were too far, then opposite
Chetumal or Ascension, confirmed his suppositions, and settled the
matter in his mind that this was the termination of the islands;
hence the names Boca de Términos, and Laguna de Términos,[25] which
followed. The temples here seen were supposed by the Spaniards to be
places where merchants and hunters made their sacrifices. A greyhound,
eager in the pursuit of game, neglected to return in time and was
left behind; when the Spaniards came with Cortés they found the animal
well-fed and happy, but excessively glad to see them. Before departing,
Grijalva again declared for Spain, “as if,” growls Las Casas, “the
thousand possessions already taken were not enough.” Indeed, this
fierce charging on a continent, so often repeated, hurling upon the
inhabitants a new religion and a new king, was about as effective
as Caligula’s advance on Britain, when, preparatory to crossing, he
drew up his troops in battle array, on the seaboard, and gave orders
to collect shells, the spoils of conquered ocean.
Proceeding the 8th of June, and creeping stealthily along the
coast,[26] dropping anchor at night and weighing it with the dawn,
they came to a river which they called San Pedro y San Pablo, and
then to a larger one, the native name of which was Tabasco,[27] after
the cacique of the city, but which the Spaniards called Grijalva, in
honor of their commander.
The face of nature here changed. The low, gray hills of the peninsula
gave place to elevations of enlivening green, made lustrous by large
and frequent streams. Boldly in the front stood the heights at present
known as San Gabriel; beyond continued the flat, monotonous foreground
of a gorgeous picture, as yet but dimly visible save in the ardent
imaginings of the discoverers.
The two smaller vessels only could enter this river of Tabasco,
which, though broad, was shallow-mouthed; and this they did very
cautiously, advancing a short distance up the stream, and landing at
a grove of palm-trees, half a league from the chief town. Upon the
six thousand[28] natives who here threatened them, they made ready
to fire; but by peaceful overtures the sylvan multitude were brought
to hear of Spain’s great king, of his mighty pretensions, and of the
Spaniards’ inordinate love of gold. The green beads the natives thought
to be stone made of their chalchiuite, which they prized so highly,
and for which they eagerly exchanged food. Having a lord of their
own they knew not why these rovers should wish to impose upon them a
new master; for the rest they were fully prepared, if necessary, to
defend themselves. During this interview, at which the interpreters,
Melchor and Julian, assisted, the word Culhua,[29] meaning Mexico,
was often mentioned in answer to demands for gold, from which the
Spaniards inferred that toward the west they would find their hearts’
desire. Then they returned to their ships.
In great state, unarmed, and without sign of fear, Tabasco next day
visited Grijalva on board his vessel. He had already sent roasted fish,
fowl, maize bread, and fruit, and now he brought gold and feather-work.
Out of a chest borne by his attendants was taken a suit of armor, of
wood overlaid with gold, which Tabasco placed upon Grijalva, and on
his head a golden helmet, giving him likewise masks and breast-plates
of gold and mosaic, and targets, collars, bracelets, and beads, all of
beaten gold, three thousand pesos in value. With the generous grace
and courtesy innate in him, Grijalva took off a crimson velvet coat
and cap which he had on when Tabasco entered, also a pair of new red
shoes, and in these brilliant habiliments arrayed the chieftain, to
his infinite delight.
The Spaniards departed from Tabasco with further assurances of
friendship, and two days later sighted the town of Ahualulco, which
they named La Rambla, because the natives with tortoise-shell shields
were observed hurrying hither and thither upon the shore. Afterward
they discovered the river Tonalá, which was subsequently examined
and named San Antonio;[30] then the Goazacoalco,[31] which they could
not enter owing to unfavorable winds; and presently the great snowy
mountains of New Spain, and a nearer range, to which they gave the name
San Martin,[32] in justice to the soldier who first saw it. Overcome
by his ardor, Pedro de Alvarado pressed forward his faster-sailing
ship, and entered before the others a river called by the natives
Papaloapan, but named by his soldiers after the discoverer;[33]
for which breach of discipline the captain received the censure of
his commander. The next stream to which they came was called Rio de
Banderas,[34] because the natives appeared in large numbers, carrying
white flags on their lances.
With these white flags the natives beckoned the strangers to land;
whereupon twenty soldiers were sent ashore under Francisco de
Montejo, and a favorable reception being accorded them, the commander
approached with his ships and landed. The utmost deference was paid the
guests, for, as will hereafter more fully appear, the king of kings,
Lord Montezuma, having in his capital intelligence of the strange
visitors upon his eastern seaboard, ordered them to be reverentially
entertained. In the cool shade was spread on mats an abundance of
provisions, while fumes of burning incense consecrated the spot and
made redolent the air. The governor of this province was present with
two subordinate rulers, and learning what best the Spaniards loved,
he sent out and gathered them gold trinkets to the value of fifteen
thousand pesos. So valuable an acquisition impelled Grijalva to claim
once more for Charles, one of the natives, subsequently christened
Francisco, acting as interpreter. After a stay of six days the fleet
sailed, passing a small island, white with sand, which Grijalva called
Isla Blanca, and then the Isla Verde, gleaming green with foliage
amidst the green waters, four leagues from the continent; coming
presently to a third island, a league and a half from the mainland,
which afforded good anchorage. This, according to Oviedo, was on the
18th of June. On landing the Spaniards found two stone temples, within
which lay five human bodies, with bowels opened and limbs cut off;
and all about were human heads on poles, while at the top of one of
the edifices, ascended by stone steps, was the likeness of a lion in
marble, with a hollow head, showing the tongue cut out, and opposite
to it a stone idol and blood-fount. Here was evidently a sacrifice
to some pagan deity; and touching it is to witness the horror with
which these men of Spain regarded such shocking spectacles, while
viewing complacently their own atrocious cruelties.
Crossing from Isla de Sacrificios, as they called this blood-bespattered
place, the Spaniards landed on the adjoining mainland, and making for
themselves shelter with boughs and sails began trading for gold; but
the natives being timid and returns inconsiderable, Grijalva proceeded
to another island, less than a league from the mainland and provided
with water. Here was a harbor sheltered from the dread yet grateful
north winds, which in winter rush in with passionate energy, driving
away the dreadful summer vómito and tumbling huge surges on the strand,
though now they formed but a wanton breeze by day, which slept on
waves burnished by the radiant sun or silvered by the moon. Here they
landed and erected huts upon the sand.[35] To the Spaniards all nature
along this seaboard seemed dyed with the blood of human sacrifices.
And here, beside evidences of heathen abominations in the forms of a
great temple, idols, priests, and the bodies of two recently sacrificed
boys, they had gnats and mosquitoes to annoy them, all which led them
to consider the terror of their voyage and the advisability of return.
Of the Indian, Francisco, Grijalva asked the significance of the
detestable rite of ripping open living human bodies and offering bloody
hearts to hungry gods; and the heathen answered, because the people of
Culhua, or Ulua, as he pronounced the name, would have it so. From this
circumstance, together with the facts that the name of the commander
was Juan, and that it was now about the time of the anniversary of the
feast of John the Baptist, the island was named San Juan de Ulua,[36]
while the continent in that vicinity was called Santa María de las
Nieves.
FOOTNOTES
[14] Solis and Herrera say 250; Gomara and Galvano, 200; Peter
Martyr, 300, etc.
[15] Torquemada, i. 358, asserts that Montejo furnished
his own vessel, and that Alonso Hernandez Puertocarrero,
Alonso Dávila, Diego de Ordaz, and others, went at their
own cost.
[16] As upon this point, that is to say, the orders and their
fulfilment, turned the destiny, not only of Grijalva, but
of the conquest, there has been much controversy over it.
‘Si Iuan de Grijalua supiera conocer aquella buena vẽtura,
y poblara alli como los de su compañia le rogauan, fuera
otro Cortes, mas no era para el tanto bien, ni lleuaua
comission de poblar.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, 57-8. Partisans
of Cortés regard Grijalva with disdain, while no one seems
greatly to care for Velazquez. Bernal Diaz was of opinion
that the matter of founding a colony was left to Grijalva’s
discretion; but Las Casas, who had much better opportunities
for knowing, being intimate with the governor, and at special
pains to ascertain the truth of the matter, states clearly
that Grijalva’s instructions were positive, that he should
not settle but only trade. ‘Bartolome de las Casas, autor
de mucha fe, y que con particular cuydado lo quiso saber, y
era gran amigo, y muy intimo de Diego Velazquez, dize que
fue la instruccion que espressamente no poblasse, sino q̄
solamente rescatasse.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap.
i. So hold Torquemada, Solis, and all careful writers on
the subject.
[17] Or as he calls himself, ‘capellano maggior’ of the
armada. Long before the soldier, Bernal Diaz, published
his ‘True History,’ Juan Diaz had given to the world an
account of the voyage, _Itinerario de la isola de Iuchatan_,
following the _Itinerario de Ludovico de Varthema Bolognese
nella Egitto_, etc., in a volume printed at Venice in 1520.
Juan Diaz disputes the honor with Bartolomé de Olmedo of
having first said mass in the city of Mexico.
[18] Here again Prescott falls into error in attempting to
follow a manuscript copy of Juan Diaz, without due heed to
the standard chroniclers. Mr Prescott writes, _Mex._, i.
224, ‘The fleet left the port of St Jago de Cuba, May 1,
1518,’ and refers to the _Itinerario_ of Juan Diaz in proof
of his statement. But Juan Diaz makes no such statement.
‘Sabbato il primo giorno del mese de Marzo,’ he says,
_Itinerario_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 281, ‘de
questo sopradito anno parti il dicto capitaneo de larmata
de lisola Fernandina.’ Saturday, the 1st day of May, the
armada left the island of Fernandina, or Cuba. The writer
does not intimate that they left the port of Santiago on
that day, which, as a matter of fact, they did not, but the
extreme western point of the island, Cape San Antonio. This
Prescott might further have learned from Herrera, dec. ii.
lib. iii. cap. i., ‘Despachado pues Iuan de Grijalua de todo
punto, salio del puerto de Sãtiago de Cuba, a ocho de Abril
deste año de 1518;’ from Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 6,
who states that all met and attended mass at Matanzas, the
5th of April, just prior to sailing; ‘Y despues de auer oîdo
Missa con gran deuocion, en cinco dias del mes de Abril de
mil y quinientos y diez y ocho años dimos vela;’ from Solis,
_Conq. Mex._, 25, ‘tardaron finalmente en hacerse á la mar
hasta los ocho de Abril;’ from Robertson, _Hist. Am._, i.
241, ‘He sailed from St Jago de Cuba on the 8th of April,’
etc. Ternaux-Compans perpetrates two gross blunders in the
first four lines of his translation of this _Itinerario_ of
Juan Diaz. First he writes March for May, ‘equivocando,’
as Icazbalceta says, ‘la palabra _mazo_ del original con
_marzo_.’ and, secondly, he brings the fleet to Cozumel
Island on the 4th, when his author writes the 3d, which is
enough, without the palpable absurdity of making Monday the
4th day of a month wherein the previous Saturday was the
1st. Oviedo states, i. 503, that ‘salieron del puerto de
la cibdad de Sanctiago á los veynte é çinco dias del mes de
enero;’ that they were at Matanzas the 12th of February, at
Habana the 7th of April; that they left Matanzas finally
the 20th of April, and San Antonio the 1st of May, in all
which, except the last statement, he is somewhat confused.
[19] Like a good soldier, Bernal Diaz makes the time fit
the occasion. ‘A este pueblo,’ he says, _Hist. Verdad._, 7,
‘pusimos por nombre Santa Cruz; porq̄ quatro, ò cinco diaz
antes de Santa Cruz le vimos.’ The native name of the island
was _Acusamil_—Landa, _Rel. de Yuc._, 20, writes it _Cuzmil_;
Cogolludo, _Hist. Yucathan_, 10, _Cuzamil_—Swallow’s
Island, which was finally corrupted into the Cozumel of
the Spaniards. Mercator, indeed, writes _Acusamil_, in
1569, although Colon, Ribero, and Hood had previously given
_coçumel_, _cozumel_, and _Cosumel_, respectively. Vaz
Dourado comes out, in 1571, with _quoqumell_, since which
time the name has been generally written as at present.
[20] Some of the authorities apply the name Santa Cruz to a
port; others to a town found there; but it was unquestionably
the island to which they gave this name. ‘A questa isola
de Coçumel che ahora se adimanda Santa Croce.’ _Diaz_,
_Itinerario_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 287. ‘Se
le puso nombre á esta ĩsla _Sancta Cruz_, á la qual los
indios llaman _Coçumel_.’ _Oviedo_, i. 504.
[21] This, according to Diaz; Oviedo says they landed on
Wednesday, the 5th, and again on the 6th; and Bernal Diaz
affirms that the landing took place on the south side of
the island.
[22] It was the crosses, which the Spaniards here regarded
of miraculous origin, more than any physical feature which
after all gave the name to these shores. Cortés established
it for all the region under Aztec sway, and under the
viceroys it was applied to all the Spanish possessions
north of Guatemala, including the undefined territories
of California and New Mexico. _Humboldt_, _Essai Pol._, i.
6-7, and others, have even shown an inclination to embrace
thereunder Central America, but for this there is not
sufficient authority. See _Medina_, _Chron. de San Diego de
Mex._, 227; _Lopez Vaz_, in _Purchas, His Pilgrimes_, iv.
1432, and _Gottfriedt_, _Newe Welt_, 74; also Torquemada,
from Herrera, and several standard authors. New Spain was
for a long time divided into the three kingdoms of New
Spain, New Galicia, and New Leon, each composed of several
provinces. Under the administration of Galvez, this division
gave way to intendencias, among them Mexico and a few
provinces, and New Spain came to be limited in the north
by the Provincias Internas, though including for a time at
least the Californias. With the independence the name New
Spain was replaced by Mexico, less because this term applied
to the leading province and to the capital, than because
the name was hallowed by association with the traditions
of the people, whose blood as well as sympathies contained
far more of the aboriginal element than of the imported.
On Colon’s map the name is given in capital letters, _Nova
Spaña_. Under _Nveva España_ Ribero writes _dixose asì por
que ay aquy muchas cosas que ay en españa ay ya mucho trigo
q̄ an lleuado de aca entanta cantidad q̄ lo pueden encargar
para otras partes ay aquy mucho oro de nacimiento_. Robert
Thorne, in _Hakluyt’s Voy._, carries _Hispania Noua_ east
and west through Central America, while Ramusio, _Viaggi_,
iii. 455, places _La Nova Spagna_ in large letters across
the continent.
[23] It is remarkable, as I have often observed, how two
eye-witnesses can sometimes tell such diametrically opposite
stories; not only in regard to time and minor incidents,
but to place and prominent events. In this instance Diaz
the priest is no less positive and minute in placing the
affair at Campeche, than is Diaz the soldier, at Champoton.
The second-rate authorities, following these two writers
who were present, are divided, by far the greater number,
Herrera among the rest, accepting the statement of Bernal
Diaz. Oviedo, who was a resident of the Indies at the time,
describes the battle as occurring at Campeche. Perhaps
one reason why the soldier-scribe has more adherents than
the priest, is because the existence of the narrative
of the latter was not so well known. Las Casas affirms,
_Hist. Ind._, iv. 425, that the pilot unintentionally
passed Lázaro’s port, or Campeche, and landed and fought
at Champoton. ‘Llegaron, pues, al dicho pueblo (que, como
dije, creo que fué Champoton, y no el de Lázaro).’
[24] Puerto Escondido. On the maps of Colon and Hood it
is placed as one of the eastern entrances of the Laguna de
Términos, the former writing _p. deseado_, and the latter
_P. desiado_; Gomara places the _Laguna de Términos_ between
Puerto Deseado and Rio Grijalva. On Ribero’s map, north
of Escondido, _isla ger_, Vaz Dourado marking in the same
locality _p:. seqº amgratriste_, Dampier gives _Boca
Eschondido_, and Jefferys, _Boca Escondida_.
[25] Velazquez had instructed his captain to sail round
the island of Yucatan. Cortés, in 1519, ordered Escobar to
survey this sheet, which was found to be a bay and shallow.
Still the pilots and chart-makers wrote it down an island.
It is worthy of remark that in the earliest drawings, like
Colon’s, in 1527, the maker appears undecided, but Ribero,
two years later, boldly severs the peninsula from the
continent with a strait. See _Goldschmidt’s Cartog. Pac.
Coast_, MS., i. 412-14. The earliest cartographers all
write _terminos_, Ribero marking a small stream flowing
into the lagoon, _R:. de x p̅ianos_. Here also is the
town and point of Jicalango. Ogilby calls the lagoon _Lago
de Xicalango_, east of which is the name _N^{ra} S^{ra} de
la Vitoria_; Dampier places south of _Laguna Termina_ the
town _Chukabul_; Jefferys writes in large letters, a little
south of _Laguna de Xicalango_ or _Terminos_, the words
_Quehaches Indios Bravos_. Kohl thinks Puerto Escondido
may be the Puerto Deseado of Grijalva mentioned by Gomara.
[26] Of ‘la isola riccha chiamata Ualor,’ as the chaplain
calls it, _Diaz_, _Itinerario_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 295, ‘descoprir una altra terra che se dice Mulua.’
Alaminos believed New Spain to be another island distinct
from Yucatan. The natives called it Coluá, says Las Casas,
_Hist. Ind._, iv. 428.
[27] On the chart of Cortés, 1520, it is called _R:. de
Guzalua_, and placed west instead of east of Rio Santa
Ana. Ribero writes, _R:. de grisalua_; Vaz Dourado, _Rº.
de grigalua_; Hood, _R. de Grisalua_; _Mercator’s Atlas_,
1574, has a town, _Tausco_; Ogilby, Dampier, and Jefferys
employ the name _Tabasco_. Kohl ascribes the name of the
river _San Pedro y San Pablo_ to Grijalva. Colon has _R:. de
s. pablo_; Ribero, _R. de s:. Pabº_; _Munich Atlas_, No.
iv., _rio de s. p._; Baptista Agnese, _rio de S. paulo_;
Hood, _R. de S. Pablo_; Ogilby, _S. Paulo_: Dampier, _St.
Peter_, _St. Paul_, etc. As there are plenty of streams
in that vicinity Herrera gives one to Grijalva and still
leaves the chieftain, Tabasco, his own.
[28] It is Las Casas who testifies to 6,000; Bernal Diaz
enumerates 50 canoes; Herrera speaks of three _Xiquipiles_
of 8,000 men each, standing ready in that vicinity to oppose
the Spaniards, waiting only for the word to be given.
[29] Not ‘Culba, Culba, Mexico, Mexico,’ as Bernal Diaz has
it. The natives pronounced the word Culhua only; but this
author, finding that Culhua referred to Mexico, puts the
word Mexico into the mouth of Tabasco and his followers.
Long before the Aztecs, a Toltec tribe called the Acolhuas,
or Culhuas, had settled in the valley of Mexico. The
name is more ancient than that of Toltec, and the Mexican
civilization might perhaps as appropriately be called Culhua
as Nahua. The name is interpreted ‘crooked’ from coloa, bend;
also ‘grandfather’ from _colli_. Colhuacan might therefore
signify Land of our Ancestors. Under Toltec dominion a
tripartite confederacy had existed in the valley of Anáhuac,
and when the Aztecs became the ruling nation, this alliance
was reëstablished. It was composed of the Acolhua, Aztec,
and Tepanec kingdoms, the Aztec king assuming the title
Culhua Tecuhtli, chief of the Culhuas. It is evident that
the Culhuas had become known throughout this region by
their conquests, and by their culture, superior as it was
to that of neighboring tribes. The upstart Aztecs were only
too proud to identify themselves with so renowned a people.
The name Culhua was retained among the surrounding tribes,
and applied before Grijalva to the Mexican country, where
gold was indeed abundant.
[30] ‘Das grosse Fest des heiligen Antonius von Padua fällt
auf den 13 Juni, und dies giebt uns also eine Gelegenheit
eines der Daten der Reise des Grijalva, deren uns die
Berichterstatter, wie immer, nur wenige geben, genau
festzusetzen.’ _Kohl_, _Beiden ältesten Karten_, 105. Cortés,
in his chart of the Gulf of Mexico, 1520, calls it _Santo
Anton_; Fernando Colon, 1527, _R. de la Balsa_, with the
name _G. de s. anton_ to the gulf; Ribero, 1529, _r: de
Sãton_; Globe of Orontius, 1531, _C. S. ãto_; Vaz Dourado,
1571, _rio de S. ana_; Hood, 1592, _R. de S. Antonio_, etc.
For _Santa Ana_ Dampier in 1699 lays down _St. Anns_, and
Jefferys in 1776, _B. St. Ann_.
[31] Cortés calls it _Rio de totuqualquo_; Colon, _R. de
gasacalcos_; Ribero, _R. de guasacalco_; Orontius, _R.
de qualqº_; Vaz Dourado, _R.º de de guaqaqa_; Hood, _R.
de Guaca_; Mercator, _Quacaqualco_; De Laet, Ogilby, _R.
de Guazacoalco_; Jefferys, _R. Guazacalo_; Dampier, _R.
Guazacoalco_ or _Guashigwalp_.
[32] Colon gives it, _Sierras de San mrtí_; Vaz Dourado,
_seras de S. martin_; Hood, _Sierras de Sᵗ. min_; Ogilby,
_Sierras de S. Martin_; Dampier, _St. Martin’s High Land_,
and _St. Martin’s Point_. This soldier, San Martin, was a
native of Habana.
[33] Herrera makes the Indian name Papaloava; Bernal Diaz,
Papalohuna, Cortés, 1520, and Orontius, 1531, give _R.
d alvarado_; Colon, 1527, _R: del comendador aluarado_;
Ribero, 1529, _R:. de Aluarado_; Vaz Dourado, 1571, _Rº.
de Alluorado_, etc. ‘Die Karte von 1527 hat den _Rio del
comendador Alvarado_ etwas weiter westlich, jenseits des
Rio de banderas, welches keineswegs mit den Berichten des
Bernal Diaz übereinstimmt.’ _Kohl_, _Beiden ältesten Karten_,
106.
[34] Some of the early maps place this stream incorrectly
east of the Papaloapan; where Ribero writes _P. delgada_,
first east from _R: de uanderas_, Vaz Dourado writes _p:.
de hiqada_.
[35] The Chaplain Diaz affirms that ten days were passed
on the mainland, where Indians dressed in mantles brought
them food, and where they melted their gold into bars;
and that on the San Juan Island they appointed one of the
natives cacique, christening him Ovando. ‘El capitaneo li
disse che non volevano se non oro et loro resposseno che lo
portariano laltro giorno portorono oro fondido in verghe
et lo capitaneo li disse che portasseno molto d quello.’
_Itinerario_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 299.
[36] To distinguish it, Herrera says, from San Juan de Puerto
Rico. On the chart of Cortés, 1520, the _B:. de Sant Juan_
is laid down, but no other names are given except that of
_Sacrificios Island_, which is placed some distance out and
called _Yˢ della creficio_. On Orontius’ globe, 1531, three
islands are called _Insula Sacrifici_. Colon lays down _R:
de s. Juhan_; _R. salado_; _R: de s. x pouae_ (christobal);
_villa rica_, and _y^{eo}: de sacreficios_. Ribero designates
_R:. de s. Jua_; _R:. de cãpual_; _uilla rica_, and _y:.ª
de saćficios_. Vaz Dourado writes _R.º de Säo_ (santo)
_Joáo_ (_Juan_); _llaueracrus_ (la vera cruz), and _uilla
riqua_ (villa rica). Hood gives _R. de medelin_; _S. Jon
delua_; _Laueracruz_; _Sen Jual_; _Villa Rica_; and marks
the point south of Vera Cruz _P. de antonisardo_. Mercator
gives _Villa Rica_; Ogilby, _S. Juan de Luz_, and north
of it _Villarica_. On another of his maps we find _S. Juan
de Lua_; _P^{ta} de Antº Sardo_, _I. y Fuerca de la vera
Cruz nueva_, _La Vera Cruz_, _R. Medelin_, and _Y^{as} de
Sacrificios_. See further _Cartography North Am._, MS., i.
531. Las Casas confounds the islands Sacrificios and Ulua,
calling them one. The Spaniards supposed the continent
thereabout, far into the interior, was known to the natives
as Culhua; hence we find Velazquez, in his instructions to
Cortés, _Mendoza_, _Col. Doc._, xii. 227, speaking of ‘una
tierra grande, que parte della se llama Ulúa, que puso por
nombre Santa María de las Nieves.’ See also _Oviedo_, i. 539.
CHAPTER III.
RETURN OF GRIJALVA. A NEW EXPEDITION ORGANIZED.
1518.
REFUSAL OF GRIJALVA TO SETTLE—ALVARADO SENT BACK TO
CUBA—GRIJALVA CONTINUES HIS DISCOVERY—AFTER REACHING
THE PROVINCE OF PÁNUCO HE TURNS BACK—TOUCHING AT THE
RIO GOAZACOALCO, TONALÁ, THE LAGUNA DE TÉRMINOS, AND
CHAMPOTON, THE EXPEDITION RETURNS TO CUBA—GRIJALVA TRADUCED
AND DISCHARGED—A NEW EXPEDITION PLANNED—VELAZQUEZ SENDS
TO SANTO DOMINGO AND SPAIN—CHARACTERS OF VELAZQUEZ AND
GRIJALVA CONTRASTED—CANDIDATES FOR THE CAPTAINCY OF THE NEW
EXPEDITION—THE ALCALDE OF SANTIAGO SUCCESSFUL—HIS STANDING AT
THAT TIME.
At various places during this expedition, notably where is now
Vera Cruz, and at the River Tabasco, both in coming and returning,
Grijalva’s men begged permission to settle and subdue the country. In
their desire to remain they pictured to themselves all the pleasures
of the abandoned crew of Ulysses, in a land as happy as that of which
Horace sang, where Ceres decked untilled fields with sheaves and
Bacchus revelled under purple-clustered vines. And they were angry with
their commander for not breaking the instructions which forbade his
colonizing. Pedro de Alvarado was particularly chafed by the restraint,
though he kept his temper until he obtained permission to return to
Cuba with one of the vessels[37] which had become unseaworthy, so as
to report to the governor the progress of the discovery, and obtain
recruits and fresh supplies, with permission to found a colony.
Beside some fifty sick persons, all the gold, cotton, and other
articles obtained from the natives thus far were placed in Alvarado’s
ship, which sailed the 24th of June. The remainder of the expedition
continued its now north-westward course past Nautla,[38] which the
Spaniards called Almería, and with the mountains of Tuxpan[39] in full
view, advanced as far as Cabo Rojo, some say as far as the Rio de
Pánuco.[40] The entrance to the large lagoon now known as the Bahía
de Tanguijo, was mistaken for a river and named Rio de Canoas. On
anchoring here the ships of the Spaniards were fiercely attacked by
the occupants of twelve canoes,[41] which came out from a large city
compared by the worthy chaplain to Seville in size and magnificence,
in common with other towns along this seaboard; and as if this were
not strange enough, the same authority goes on to relate a miracle
which happened here because Grijalva refused the soldiers leave to
sack the place; how a star, poised above the fleet after sunset, shot
toward the town and hung over it invitingly, as if Jehovah signified
his pleasure that the Christians should seize the city.[42]
After beating back the canoes the Spaniards proceeded, but found
their course impeded by the currents off Cabo Rojo; from which
circumstance, together with the hostility of the natives, the rapidity
with which the season was advancing, and the condition of the ships,
they determined to return. Turning toward the southward, therefore,
they were carried past the River Goazacoalco by boisterous winds, and
entered Tonalá to careen and repair a leaky vessel.[43] Again the
men blasphemed and held the commander in derision because he would
not settle. After several failures in starting they continued the
voyage, encountered bad weather, touched at Deseado for water, engaged
in a parting fight with the natives of Champoton, sailed again, and
the fifth reached San Lázaro, where they were led into ambush while
searching for water, and attacked. After helping themselves to maize
they embarked, followed the shore past Rio de Lagartos, the Comi of
the natives, whence they sailed for Cuba, and arrived at Matanzas
about the first of November.[44]
When Grijalva cast anchor in the bay of Matanzas his heart beat high
with promise. He had returned successful from a brilliant discovery,
in which had begun that pronounced mastery of life which is the
dream of every chivalrous mind. There had been nothing in the least
irrational in his policy, or fickle or factious in his conduct. He
had used diligence and discretion, had been true to his companions,
and faithful to his king and to his chief. Surely his uncle would
praise him, his governor would reward him, and his king would intrust
him with new commissions. So he deserved; so he had every reason to
expect, and hence it was with pride and pleasure that he once more
set foot on Isla Fernandina.
But, unfortunately, this most virtuous cavalier was now destined
to reap the too common reward of honest service in the cause of a
vicious master. Scarcely had Grijalva landed, when a letter from
the governor was placed in his hand, ordering him to repair with his
ships at once to Santiago, and at the same time to notify his soldiers
that opportunity would be quickly given all who desired to embark in
a fresh adventure to New Spain, and that meanwhile they might rest
themselves at the governor’s farms in that vicinity. Then, too, he
first learned how Velazquez, ever fickle and distrustful as are all
timid and unscrupulous men, becoming nervous concerning the fleet,
had sent Cristóbal de Olid in a small vessel with seven soldiers
to search and report; and that on reaching the coast of Yucatan a
storm had obliged the explorer to part with his anchor and return
to Cuba.[45] Before the return of Olid, Alvarado had arrived with
the gold and good tidings from the armada, which gave the governor
unbounded joy. Grijalva had yet to learn, however, how Alvarado,
not forgetting the censure bestowed on him for disobedience, had not
failed to color the conduct of his commander to suit his own ends.
Grijalva’s repeated refusals to colonize were paraded as the gross
mistakes of a stubborn and spiritless man; the coolness and bravery
displayed at Champoton were made to appear as reckless imprudence; and
as the governor thought of the danger to which his adventure had there
been subjected, he became alarmed. “Had I lost all,” he muttered, “it
would have been a just penalty for sending such a fool.” And now both
Dávila and Montejo poured fresh poison into the ear of the governor
respecting his nephew, in revenge for similar fancied injuries; so
that when Grijalva reported himself to Velazquez at Santiago, he was
told to go his way, since the governor had no further use for him.
Indeed, this line of action had been for some time determined on.
Immediately upon the arrival of Alvarado, a new expedition had been
planned, in which Grijalva was not to participate. The latter was hurt,
almost to death. He had conferred a great benefit on this Tiberius
of an uncle; but as affection is heightened by the conferring of
benefits, so it is often lessened by the acceptance of them. Not long
after, Juan de Salcedo was sent to Santo Domingo for permission to
colonize New Spain, and Benito Martin, chaplain and man of business,
was despatched to Spain[46] with a full account of the discovery,
and with gold for the bishop of Búrgos. Haste seemed necessary to
Velazquez lest some one might anticipate and rob him of the honors
and emoluments won through Grijalva’s efforts. Nor were forgotten the
Licentiate Zapata and the Secretary Conchillos; and so happily were
distributed the Indian villages of Cuba among these conscientious men
of Spain, that Velazquez gained all his requests, with the title of
adelantado of Cuba added.
* * * * *
How different the quality of these two men, Velazquez and Grijalva,
and both so widely different from the phœnix now about to rise from
their ashes! The character of the governor was like a candle flame, hot
without and hollow within. Almost as much as gold he loved glory, the
brass and tinsel of it, but lacked both the ability and the courage
to achieve noble distinction. As easily worked upon by designing men
as Othello, there was in him none of the nobility of the Moor; and,
possessing no great integrity himself, he was very ready to suspect
treachery in others.
Grijalva, on the other hand, was the Lysander of New World discovery;
of a modest though manly spirit, obedient to customs and superior
authority, preferring honor and duty to self and pleasure, native
to generous action, the very faults brought out by his enemies shine
brilliant as virtues. He was as chivalrous as any Spaniard that ever
drew steel on naked savage, as brave and talented as any. But he
lacked the unscrupulous positiveness inseparable here from permanent
success. He was resolute in overcoming difficulties, and he was
strong and shrewd enough in the prosecution of any high enterprise,
particularly so long as fortune favored him; but he was no match for
the subtle-minded of his own nation, who overwhelmed him in their show
of learning, backed by imposing forms. All contemporary writers speak
well of him; likewise all the chroniclers, except Gomara, who permits
chivalry no place save in his pet and patron, Cortés. The soldier
Bernal Diaz pronounces him a most worthy officer. The historians
Oviedo and Herrera call him a comely man, thoroughly loyal, and never
backward at fighting. Yet we are told that some censured him, while
others cursed him outright for his conscientiousness, because he did
not break orders and seize opportunity. So ready were they to engage
in the fallacious argument that it was right to do wrong if good might
come of it. To disobey Velazquez, they said, was to break no divine
law; forgetting that the governor derived his authority from the king,
and the king from the Almighty. Of a truth, when force alone is the
standard of right, then honesty is not the best policy. For a time he
carried himself with a brave front, conscious of his integrity, yet
we may say he was laid low forever by the blow misfortune here gave
him.[47] Meanwhile patience, good governor! For soon enough will arise
an agent capable of playing shrewd tricks to your ample contentment.
Before the return of Grijalva, interest in the new expedition had
already raised itself into a whirl of excitement; and as volunteers
pressed forward, the captaincy became an apple of discord among
aspirants. Chief among these were Vasco Porcallo a near relative of the
count of Feria, Antonio Velazquez,[48] and Bernardino Velazquez, the
last two kinsmen of the governor. Another was Baltasar Bermudez,[49]
from Velazquez’ own town, and his intimate friend. None of these
suited. Then followed for the governor nights of troubled dreams and
days of irritable indecision. It was a peculiar personage Velazquez
wanted. He must be, in Mexico, courageous, wise, and prudent; in
Cuba, obedient, teachable. He must be able to command men, to brave
the proudest barbarian, and so fired by enthusiasm in the field as
cheerfully to endure hardships and risk life; his work successfully
accomplished, he must return humbly to Santiago, and lay his trophies
at the feet of his master. Grijalva was most nearly such a man; but
he lacked that subtle second sense which should tell him when it was
the governor’s pleasure to have his orders disobeyed. Porcallo was
competent, but Velazquez was afraid of him. He was scarcely farther
from the throne than himself; and in reporting any important conquest
to the king would prove the greater of the two. The relatives present
were worse, if anything, than Grijalva; besides, they had no means,
and to this position the successful aspirant must bring money as well
as courage and discretion. Bermudez might be eligible, but for his
services, in braving the dangers, and bringing the results of the
expedition to Velazquez, he had the temerity to demand three thousand
ducats. The proposition was not for a moment to be entertained; the
job must be accomplished for less money.
Watchful eyes saw the governor’s dilemma, and artful tongues wagged
opportunely. Near to him in their daily vocations were two men, both
small in stature, but large of head, and broad in experience and
sagacity. One was the governor’s secretary, Andrés de Duero, and
the other the royal contador, Amador de Láres. Both possessed rare
attainments; they were skilled in every artifice, and could make
their master see white or black; while Láres could not write, he had
not failed to profit by a twenty-two years’ career in Italy, during
which time he rose to the honorable distinction of chief butler to the
Gran Capitan, and he seldom found it difficult to move the unstable
Velazquez to his purposes, although they were not always the purest and
best.[50] Following the example of the governor, these two worthies
were not averse to improving their fortunes by securing, at little
risk or expense, an interest in the New Spain conquest; and so they
gave heed when the alcalde of Santiago softly insinuated that he was
the man for the emergency, and that if they would help him to the
command they should share the profits.[51]
* * * * *
The alcalde of Santiago bore a fair reputation, considering the
time and place; for comparatively few names in the New World were
then wholly free from taint. In the prime of manhood, his age being
thirty-three, of full medium stature, well proportioned and muscular,
with full breast, broad shoulders, square full forehead, small straight
spare compact body and well turned limbs, though somewhat bow-legged,
he presented a pleasing rather than imposing front. His portraits
show fine antique features, bearing a somewhat sad expression, which
was increased by the grave tenderness of the dark oval eyes. The full
though thin beard, cut short, counteracted to some extent the effect
of the small ash-colored face, and served to cover a deep scar on
the lower lip, the memento of a duel fought in behalf of a certain
frail fair one.
He was an exceedingly popular alcalde; there was nothing staid or
sombre in his method of administering justice. The law was less to
him than expediency, and his standard of right was easily shifted,
according to circumstances. In wit and vivacity he was a Mercutio.
Astute of intellect, discreet, of a cheerful, even jovial disposition,
with brilliant intuitions and effervescent animal spirits, he knew
how to please, how to treat every man as best he liked to be treated.
A cavalier of the Ojeda and Balboa type, he was superior to either.
He would not, like the former, woo danger for the mere pleasure of
it, nor, like the latter, tamely trust his forfeited head to any
governor. Life was of value to him; yet adventure was the rhythm of
it, and the greater the peril the greater the harmony secured. An
hidalgo of respectable antecedents, whatever he might have been,
or might be, he now played the part of magistrate to perfection.
As a matter of course, he was in entire sympathy with the religious
views of the day, as well as with the leading men among the clergy.
Indeed the friars ever praised him, believing him to be a zealous and
conscientious man; he made it a point that they should. The moral
ideal of the Japanese is politeness. Politeness is virtue. They do
not say that lying and stealing are wrong, but impolite. While the
alcalde if pressed must confess himself an optimist, believing that
whatever is, is best, yet in practice that best he would better, and
whatsoever his strength permitted, it was right for him to do. He was
a sort of Mephistopheles, decked in manners and guided by knowledge.
Besides the world, he knew books, and how to make somewhat of them.
Earnestly devoted to the service of the church, many of his acts yet
met with its most unqualified condemnation. Possessed of vehement
aspirations, his ambition was of the aggressive kind; not like that
of Velazquez, mercenary and timid. Like Tigellinus Sophonius, it was
to his pleasing person and unscrupulous character that the alcalde
owed his rise from poverty and obscurity; and now, like Phaethon,
if for one day he might drive the governor’s sun-chariot across the
heavens, it would be his own fault if he were not a made man. This
much at this time we may say of Hernan[52] Cortés, for such was the
alcalde’s name; which is more than he could say for himself, not
knowing himself as we know him, and more than his associates could say
of him. Hereafter as his character develops we shall become further
acquainted with him. It is as difficult to detect the full-grown
plant in a seed as in a stone, and yet the seed will become a great
tree, while the stone remains a stone.
And so, with the aid of his loving friends Duero and Láres, whose
deft advice worked successfully on the plastic mind of Velazquez, and
because he possessed some money and many friends, as well as courage
and wisdom, the alcalde of Santiago was proclaimed captain-general of
the expedition.[53] And now, while the heathen wail let the Spaniards
rejoice. Yes. Noble Castilian! cry aloud! for gold shall fill the
coffers of your king as they were never filled before, and great
shall be the glory of your kingdom; and if the sight of the blood
your captains shall draw from the hapless savages, even more freely
than gold is drawn, does not spoil your appetite for the game, then
whet your swords for the grand pacification.
FOOTNOTES
[37] Herrera says it was the _San Sebastian_; Oviedo, the
_Trinidad_.
[38] Town and river given both by Cortés and Orontius. Colon
writes _R: de almeria_; Ribero, _almera_; Vaz Dourado,
_allmeira_; Hood, _Almeria_; nos. vi. and vii., _Munich
Atlas_, _rio de almeria_, and Mercator, _Almeria_. Ogilby
places north of _Lhanos de Almeria_ a large gulf labelled
_R. de S Pº y S Paulo_, and south of it _Toluia_, and _Tore
Branco_. Dampier lays down _Almeria I._ opposite _Tispe_
and _Haniago Isle_ on the mainland. Laet gives _Naothlan
ó Almeria_, and _Lhanos de Almeria_.
[39] ‘Vimos las sierras de Tusta, y mas adelante de a hi á
otros dos dias vimos otros sierras muy altas, q̄ agora se
llamã las sierras de Tuspa;’ so called, Bernal Diaz says,
_Hist. Verdad._, 10, from the towns lying at their base.
The Rio de Tuxpan is supposed to be the _San Pedro y San
Pablo_ of early days. ‘Da das Peter-und-Pauls-Fest auf den
29 Juni.’
[40] Kohl thinks Grijalva did not pass Cabo Rojo, the
_C:. roxo_ of Vaz Dourado, and Hood, and I am inclined to
agree with him. Bernal Diaz says, _Hist. Verdad._, 10, ‘Y
esto es ya en la Provincia de Panuco: é yendo por nuestra
nauegaciõ llegamos á vn rio grande, que le pusimos por nõbre
Rio de Canoas.’ The nomenclature of this stream is quite
regular in the several times and places. Cortés gives _Rio
Panuco loaton_; Colon, _R: panuco_; Ribero and Vaz Dourado,
_panuco_; Orontius, _R. panico_; Hood, _Panuço_; Baptista
Agnese, _panucho_, and _rio panucho_; no. vi. _Munich
Atlas_ the same; Ptolemy, 1530, in _Munster_, _Panuco_;
Mercator, river and town _Panuco_, and next town south
_Chila_. And so on with Hondius, Ogilby, Dampier, and the
rest. See _Goldschmidt’s Cartog. Pac. Coast_, MS., i. 578.
Upon the hypothesis that the San Pedro y San Pablo and the
Tuxpan were two streams, the latter may have been the Rio
de Canoas of Grijalva and the Pánuco discovered by Montejo
and Alaminos the year following, as Kohl surmises, but not
otherwise. Herrera says the expedition did not pass Cabo
Rojo; Bernal Diaz speaks of a wide projecting cape, which
does not exist beyond the Pánuco River. Yet both affirm
that the province of Pánuco was reached, and we well know
that little would be said to strangers of an aboriginal
province by its inhabitants before its great town, or its
great river, was approached. Hence the general impression
that Grijalva on this occasion coasted as far as Tampico,
and that the Pánuco was his Rio de Canoas. It is my opinion
that the entrance to the Bahia de Tanguijo, mistaken for
a river, was the Rio de Canoas of Grijalva, and that Cabo
Rojo was his ultimate point of discovery.
[41] Some say sixteen.
[42] In questo giorno sul tardi vedessemo miracolo ben grande
el qual fu che apparve una stella incima la nave dapoi el
tramontar del sole et partisse sempre buttando razi fino che
se pose sopra quel vilagio over populo grande et lasso uno
razo ne laiere che duro piu de tre hore grande et anchora
vedessimo altri signal ben chiari dove comprendessemo che
dio volea per suo servitio populassemo la dicta terra.
_Itinerario_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 302.
[43] Bernal Diaz claims to have planted here the first
orange-seeds sown in New Spain. It was at the base of a
temple, on whose summit he had enjoyed a refreshing sleep,
above the clouds of mosquitoes, and through gratitude
he sowed these seed, which he had brought from Cuba. He
tells, likewise, of obtaining here by barter 4,000 pesos,
which, with the 16,000 pesos Alvarado carried home, made
20,000 pesos secured during the voyage. Among the treasures
were some copper hatchets, which the Spaniards took to
be an inferior kind of gold. Las Casas gives a detailed
description of the treasures obtained by this expedition,
among which was an emerald worth 2,000 ducats, from the
mainland opposite Isla de Sacrificios.
[44] This, following Oviedo, who in 1523 visited Velazquez,
and was told these things. Other authors give widely
different accounts of Grijalva’s return, most of them
taking him at once from Tonalá to Matanzas, but allowing
forty days for the voyage. Oviedo dates Grijalva’s arrival
at the River Goazacoalco July 9; at Deseado, August 17;
at Champoton, September 1; San Lázaro, September 5, and
Matanzas, October 8, which is too early, according to the
date of Cortés’ instructions.
[45] Oviedo says that Olid went to Cozumel and took
possession of the island, thinking he had discovered it;
then coasting north and westward to a port, Laguna de
Términos, and finding no traces of Grijalva, and having
lost his anchors, he returned to Matanzas eight days before
Grijalva; but in this statement he is sustained neither by
his contemporaries nor by his own collateral statements.
Velazquez’ instructions to Cortés are dated the 23d of
October, at which time neither Olid nor Grijalva had
returned, since Cortés is told to search for them; both
arrived, however, before he sailed.
[46] It was in May, 1519, according to Oviedo, that Benito
Martin—some call him Martinez—sailed for Spain, Grijalva
having arrived at Santiago late in the October previous.
By reference to a Velazquez memorial, in iv. 233-4, _Col.
Doc. Inéd._, we find that before this, upon the strength
of Córdoba’s discovery, the king, on the 13th of November,
1518, at Saragossa, made Velazquez adelantado of what he
had discovered, or might discover. Thus far he claimed as
having found, at his own cost, Cozumel and Yucatan, the Santa
María de los Remedios of the Spaniards, which was not true.
Indeed, these memorials of the descendants of conquerors
are, as a rule, widely different from the facts; instance
this one again, which gives Olid seventy men instead of
seven. As a matter of course, the honor of the discovery is
claimed wholly for the governor of Cuba, to the prejudice
of others who ventured more than he. See _Carta del Ayunt.
de Vera Cruz_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i. 418-9. Instance
further a _Memorial del negocio de D. Antonio Velazquez de
Basan_, in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, x. 80-6,
in which Grijalva is given five ships and a year and a half,
and Olid three ships and seventy men. In the _Instruccion
que dió el adelantado Diego Velazquez á Hernan Cortés_,
in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, xii. 226-46, the little boat of Olid
has grown into a caravel with 80 or 90 men.
[47] Las Casas saw him at Santo Domingo in 1523. He was
reduced to penury. Proceeding thence to Panamá, he was
sent by Pedrarias to Nicaragua, where he was killed. So
perished the best and morally bravest of cavaliers, while
unscrupulous tricksters flourished. Prior to his departure
from Cuba, however, and notwithstanding the vile treatment
of the governor, at Velazquez’ request, Grijalva wrote a
narrative of his expedition, which was lost by Oviedo in
its transmission to the king. It is embodied, however, in
substance, in _Oviedo_, i. 502-37. One of the most original
and complete accounts of Grijalva’s expedition extant is
that by the priest Juan Diaz, _Itinerario de Larmata del
Re Catholico in India verso la Isola de Iuchathan del anno
M. D. XVIII, alla qual fu Presidente & Capitan Generale
Ioan de Grisalva; el qual e facto per el capellano maggior
de dicta Armata a sua Altezza_, published in Italian, at
Venice, in 1520, in French by Ternaux-Compans, in 1838, the
former being copied and quoted in manuscript by Prescott. The
issue at Venice was as the second part of the _Itinerario de
Ludovico de varthema Bolognese nello Egitto, nella Soria_,
etc., and was there begun, _Qui comincia lo Itinerario de
Lisola de Iuchatan nouamente ritrouata per il signor Gioan
de Grisalue_, etc. By far the best edition is that given
with a Spanish translation by Icazbalceta, in his _Col.
Doc._, i. 281-308, printed in Mexico in 1858. Next is the
account by Bernal Diaz, who, like the chaplain, accompanied
the expedition, thus giving us narratives by eye-witnesses
at once from ecclesiastical and secular stand-points. The
statements of Gomara, _Hist. Ind._, 56-8, and _Hist. Mex._, 9-11,
must be taken with allowance. Worse still are the memorials
of the relatives of Velazquez to sovereign majesty, such
as that found in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, x.
80-6, which are little better than tissues of misstatements
and exaggerations. Solis, _Hist. Mex._, i. 24-40, gives
a fair, full, and graphic statement of particulars. The
_Instruccion que dió el adelantado Diego Velazquez á Hernan
Cortés_, in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xii.
226-51, also important, as furnishing original collateral
light. Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 16, 421-4, though full,
is specially inaccurate and weak, not only in his facts,
but in his deductions. Nor is Peter Martyr, dec. iv. cap.
iii., any stronger. _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 4-6,
_De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 341-6, and _Landa_, _Rel. de Yuc._, 21,
are mediocre; and _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. i.
and ix., is quite full and very valuable. Cogolludo, _Hist.
Yucathan_, 8-16, gives a fair résumé, but a far better one
is Torquemada’s, i. 351-7. Prescott’s account, _Mex._, i.
224-9, is meagre and imperfect, though his deductions are
much more sound than those of Robertson’s _Hist. Am._, i.
240-3. One of the most superficial of the modern narratives
of this expedition is given by Zamacois, _Hist. Méj._,
ii. 236-52. Those by Morelet, _Voy. dans l’Am. Cent._, i.
179-85, and Fancourt’s _Hist. Yuc._, 9-18, are valuable. A
collection of extracts from several letters to Charles V.,
referring to Yucatan, and forming ‘an account of a recently
discovered island, describing its locality, the customs
and habits of its inhabitants,’ was printed at Nuremberg,
by Frederick Peypus, in 1520, under title beginning _Ein
auszug ettlicher sendbrieff dem aller durchleüchtigisten_.
Carbajal Espinosa, _Hist. Mex._, i. 51-65, ii. 21, and
Ramirez, in his Mexican edition of Prescott, i. 132 and 135,
beside narratives, give portraits of Velazquez, Córdoba, and
Grijalva. _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 9-13, and _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 27-50, are most valuable
from an aboriginal stand-point. Alaman, in his _Disert._,
i. 49-91, treats of both Córdoba’s and Grijalva’s voyages.
Among the many allusions to these two expeditions of no
special significance are those found in _Ogilby’s Am._, 76-8;
_Purchas, His Pilgrimes_, v. 858; _Oveido_, _Sommario_,
in _Ramusio_, _Viaggi_, iii. 182-9; _Soc. Mex. Geog._,
_Boletin_, iii. 242-3; _Robertson’s Visit Mex._, i. 143;
_Voy., Cur. and Ent._, 471-9; _World Displayed_, i. 166-79;
_Voy., A New Col._, i. 189-98; _Sammlung aller Reisebesch._,
xiii. 254-64; _Laharpe_, _Abrégé_, ix. 219-31; _Kerr’s
Voy._, ii. 70-1, and iii. 416-53; _Klemm_, _Allgemeine
Cultur-Geschichte_, 219; _Cordua_, _Scheeps-Togt_, 3-18, and
35-89, in _Aa_, _Naaukeurige Versameling, Montanus, Nieuwe
Weereld_, 72-5; _Gottfried_, _Reysen_, iii.; _Folsom_,
in _Cortés’ Despatches_, 6-8; _Howitt’s Hist. U. S._, i.
8-9; _Lardner’s Hist. Discov._, ii. 43-4; _Span. Conq. in
Am._, ii. 3-9; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii., 106-9;
_Larenaudière_, _Mex. et Guat._, 53-4; _Calle_, _Mem. y
Not._, 81-2; _Mayer’s Mex. Aztec_, i. 14-15; _Hassel_,
_Mex. Guat._, 6; _Holmes’ An. Am._, i. 35-7; _Galvano’s
Discov._, 130-2; _Corradi_, _Descub. de la Am._, ii. 7-19;
_Dalton’s Conq. Mex. and Peru_, 47-9; _Span. Emp. in Am._,
27-8; _Snowden’s Am._, 77-9; _Raynal_, _Hist. Phil._, iii.
246-7; _Descripcion de Am._, MS., 112-13; _Gordon’s Hist.
Am._, 112-13; _Malte-Brun_, _Yucatan_, 23-4; _Wilson’s Conq.
Mex._, 291; _Castellanos_, _Varones ilustres de Indias_, 71;
_Peter Martyr_, dec. iv., cap. i.-v., _Dufey_, _Résumé_, i.
97-103; _Mavor’s Hist._, xxiv. 65-6; _Gregory’s Hist. Mex._,
19-20; _Norman’s Rambles_, 95; _Wilson’s Mex. and Reg._,
18; _Colton’s Jour. Geog._, No. vi. 84; _Newe Zeittung von
Jucatan_, 1, etc.; _Monglave_, _Résumé_, 41-6; _March y
Labores_, _Marina Española_, i. 463-4; _Cortesii_, _von dem
Newen Hisp._, pt. ii. 2-5; _Morelli_, _Fasti Novi Orbis_,
16; _Armin_, _Alte Mex._, 77-8; _Touron_, _Hist. Gen. Am._,
iii. 58-78; _Bussierre_, _l’Empire Mex._, 193-9; _Sandoval_,
_Hist. Carlos V._, i. 161-2; _Cortés_, _Hist. Mex._, 30-110;
_Campe_, _Hist. Descub. Am._, ii. 7-19; _Cortés_, _Aven. y
Conq._, 12-13; _Stephens’ Incid. of Travel in Yuc._, ii.
366-9; _Drake’s Voy._, 161-3; _Hart’s Tabasco_, 4-5; _La
Cruz_, v. 541-4; _Nouvelles An. des Voy._, xcvii. 30-1,
and clxiv. 101; and _Manzi_, _Conq. di Mess._, 1-3.
[48] Called Borrego, says Torquemada, i. 361. Bernal Diaz
gives Borrego as the second surname.
[49] Bernal Diaz says Augustin Bermudez.
[50] Las Casas regarded him as a schemer, and often warned
Velazquez against ‘Veintidos años de Italia.’ _Hist. Ind._,
iv. 447. He calls him likewise ‘Burgalés’ and ‘hombre
astutísimo.’
[51] ‘Que partirian,’ says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 13,
‘entre todos tres la ganancia del oro, y plata, y joyas,
de la parte que le cupiesse á Cortés,’ and also, growls
Las Casas, _ubi supra_—knowledge of the facts as yet being
but rumor—what Cortés could steal from the king and the
governor was subject to division, beside what he would rob
from the natives.
[52] Hernan, Hernando, Fernan, Fernando, Ferdinando. The
names are one. With no special preference, I employ the
first, used by the best writers. Among the early authorities,
Solis, the Spanish translator of _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi
Cortesii_, and many others, write Hernan; Pizarro y Orellana,
_Varones Ilvstres_, Fernan; Bernal Diaz and Oviedo, Hernando;
Gomara, Fernando. In accordance with the Spanish usage of adding
the mother’s surname, he is sometimes, though rarely, called
Cortés y Pizarro. For portrait and signature I refer the
reader to _Alaman_, _Disert._, i. app. i. 15-16; portrait
as an old man; _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 6-8;
_Prescott’s Mex._, iii. 1; _Id._, (ed. Mex., 1846, iii.
210-11); _Armin_, _Alte Mex._, 82, plate from the painting
in the Concepcion Hospital at Mexico; _March y Labores_,
_Marina Española_, i. 466.
[53] In making out the commission Duero stretched every
point in favor of his friend, naming him captain-general
of lands discovered and to be discovered, as well as of
the fleet. _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 47; for the greater
the share of Cortés, the greater Duero’s share. Gomara says,
_Hist. Mex._, 12, ‘Hablo a Fernâdo Cortés para q̄ armassen
ambos a medias, porq̄ tenia dos mil Castellanos de oro,’
etc.; but 2000 castellanos alone would not purchase a half
interest in this undertaking. Las Casas, loc. cit., states
that Velazquez, for reasons that will appear in the next
chapter, was very cautious in intercourse with Cortés until
his scruples were overcome by advisers.
CHAPTER IV.
THE HERO OF THE CONQUEST.
BIRTHPLACE OF HERNAN CORTÉS—HIS COMING COMPENSATORY FOR
THE DEVIL-SENT LUTHER—PARENTAGE—HERNAN A SICKLY CHILD—SAINT
PETER HIS PATRON—HE IS SENT TO SALAMANCA—RETURNS HOME—THINKS
OF CÓRDOBA AND ITALY—AND OF OVANDO AND THE INDIES—CHOOSES
THE LATTER—NARROW ESCAPE DURING A LOVE INTRIGUE—OVANDO
SAILS WITHOUT HIM—CORTÉS GOES TO VALENCIA—IS THERE
ILL—RETURNS HOME—FINALLY SAILS FOR THE INDIES—HIS RECEPTION
AT SANTO DOMINGO—HE FIGHTS INDIANS UNDER VELAZQUEZ, AND
IS GIVEN AN ENCOMIENDA—GOES TO CUBA WITH VELAZQUEZ—MAKES
LOVE TO CATALINA SUAREZ—BUT DECLINES TO MARRY—VELAZQUEZ
INSISTS—CORTÉS REBELS—SEIZURES, IMPRISONMENTS, ESCAPES, AND
RECONCILIATION.
Let us now look into the life of this Cuban magistrate, so suddenly
raised to prominence.
Medellin, a small town of Estremadura, Spain, was the birthplace of
Hernan Cortés, and 1485 the year in which he was born—miraculously
born, as Mendieta and others believe, and perhaps by way of
compensation for the appearing about this time of Martin Luther.[54]
The shade of Montezuma, peradventure, might deny that his was the
advent of a new Messiah, though the deluded monarch, at the first,
sorrowfully hailed him as such. The father, Martin Cortés y Monroy,
was of that poor but prolific class who filled Spain toward the close
of the Moorish wars, and who, although nothing in particular, were
nevertheless permitted to call themselves hidalgos, sons of something.
Some give him the title of escudero, others place him still higher in
the scale of fighting men. The mother, Catalina Pizarro y Altamirano,
likewise, with poverty, claimed noble blood.[55]
Hernan was a sickly child, and probably would have died had not his
good nurse, María de Estévan, secured in his behalf Saint Peter,
thenceforth his patron.[56] With his mother’s milk he drank courage[57]
and intelligence, and he was schooled in the virtues and the vices
of the day. In his youth he was headstrong, but chivalrous, and he
revelled in his superiority over other boys. The brain-ferment, chronic
throughout his life, set in at an early day. He was keenly sensitive
to disgrace. As he developed somewhat of archness and duplicity,
he was deemed best fitted for the profession of the law. At the
age of fourteen, accordingly, with such preparation as the slender
means of the father would allow, he was sent to Salamanca, whose
university, though past the zenith of its fame, was still the leading
seat of learning for conservative Spain. Two years of restraint and
intellectual drudgery, during which time he lived with his father’s
brother-in-law, Nuñez de Valera, sufficed to send him home surfeited
with learning, to the great disappointment of his family.[58] A
frolicsome and somewhat turbulent disposition, more marked since his
college career than previously, made his return all the more unwelcome.
Not that his studies, despite his aversion to them, had been wholly
neglected; he could boast a smatter of Latin, which indeed proved
of advantage afterward, giving him influence over many of those with
whom he associated. He had also acquired some knowledge of rhetoric,
as is manifest in his letters and occasional verses.[59] At present,
however, his intellectual talents were employed only in scribbling
rhymes in aid of amorous intrigues, which were now his chief pursuit.
Hence when arms possessed his fancy the parents did not repine, but
were only too glad for him to enter service, as he seemed inclined,
under the Gran Capitan, who was just then alluring to his standard
the chivalry of Spain by brilliant achievements in Italy. There was,
however, the glitter of gold in the Indies, and the appointment of
Nicolás de Ovando,[60] as governor, turned the youth’s vacillating
mind in that direction.
Cortés had concluded to accompany the new governor, when one night,
just before the sailing of the fleet, an accident intervened. While
engaged in one of his intrigues he had occasion to climb a courtyard
wall to gain the lady’s apartment. The wall crumbling beneath his
weight threw him to the ground, and the noise brought to the door
of an adjoining house a blustering Benedick, who, perceiving the
situation of the gallant, and suspecting his own newly made wife,
drew the sword with bloody intent. At the prayer of the suspected
wife’s mother, however, the husband suspended vengeance. Before the
scapegrace recovered from a fever brought on by the bruises received
in this fall, the fleet of Ovando had sailed.
After this, Cortés thought again of Italy, and went to Valencia to
place himself under Córdoba, but once more illness overtook him, this
time accompanied by destitution, and he returned to Medellin somewhat
sobered.[61] Thus another year was idled away; but notwithstanding
his follies, the youthful cavalier, who was now nineteen, displayed
many fine qualities. As he approached manhood his health improved, and
form and features became more pleasing. Though proud in his bearing,
and of quick perceptions, and high-spirited in temper, he sought to
school his tongue, and to practise discretion in the use of his sword.
Native to him were generosity and amiability. The qualities of his
heart were noble; the vices were those of his time and station. Yet
he lacked the moral fibre which should be interwoven with the good
impulses of every rich, sensitive nature, and this want could not be
made up by repeating prayers and singing psalms, wherein Gomara
describes him as efficient.
The pinching economy to which Cortés was reduced made his present
frequent visions of the Indies appear only the brighter; and when,
in 1504, a fleet of five ships was announced to sail for Española,
he determined to delay no longer. With little else than his father’s
blessing he proceeded to Seville, and took passage with Alonso
Quintero, master of one of the vessels, who fancied himself shrewder
than other men, and shrewder than he was. Thinking to overreach his
brother captains in whose company he sailed, and to secure at Española
the first market for his merchandise, he stole forth one night from
the Canary Isles, where the squadron had touched for supplies. A gale
dismasted his vessel on reaching the open sea, and sent him back
to port. The others agreed to await his repairs, which generosity
Quintero repaid by seeking a second time to take advantage of them
by going before, and his treachery was a second time punished by
the winds, aided, indeed, by the pilot, who was at enmity with the
captain, and who threw the ship from her course during the night so
that the reckoning was lost. The usual sufferings are related; and,
in answer to prayer, we are told of a miraculous interposition. On
Good Friday, when all hope had been abandoned, there was seen poised
above the ship a dove, which presently dropped down and rested on
the mast.[62] However this might have been, we are credibly informed
that the wind subsided and the ship proceeded on her voyage. Finally,
on reaching his destination, Quintero found the other ships snugly
riding at anchor, their cargoes having been profitably disposed of
several days before.
The governor being absent, his secretary, Medina, received Cortés
kindly, and pointed him the common highway to fortune. “Register
yourself a citizen,” he said. “Promise not to leave the island for
five years, and you shall have lands and Indians; after the expiration
of your time you may go where you choose.” Cortés answered: “I want
gold, not work; and neither in this island nor in any other place will
I promise to remain so long.” He thought better of it, however, and on
the return of Ovando he presented himself, and was induced to settle.
Not long after an Indian revolt called Diego Velazquez, lieutenant of
Ovando, into the field, and Cortés hastened to join the expedition.
The coolness and ability displayed in this short campaign won for him
the admiration and esteem alike of chief and comrades.[63] His reward
was an encomienda of Indians in the Daiguao country, together with
the notaryship of the new town of Azua. For the next six years he was
occupied in husbandry and in official pursuits, varied by military
exploits and love intrigues which kept his sword from rusting and
gave him wounds which he carried through life. An abscess under the
right knee, a most lucky affliction, alone prevented his joining the
ill-fated expedition of Nicuesa to Veragua.[64]
On assuming the direction of New World affairs as governor, in place
of Ovando, Diego Colon in 1511 fitted out an expedition against Cuba,
and gave the command to Velazquez, who appointed Cortés his adviser and
executive officer,[65] a position which the latter gladly accepted,
deprived as he was of his patron Ovando, and heartily tired of the
monotony of Española. Still hidden beneath a careless exterior were the
deeper qualities of his nature, and there were yet six other years,
and more of ordinary business and pleasure, before the appearance of
earnest thought or great self-reliance.[66] Meanwhile Spanish women
were not numerous in the Indies, and rivalry for their favors was
great. Cortés had escaped with light punishment many gallantries, but
he had not been settled long in Cuba before he found a more serious
case upon his hands.
Among those who had settled in Cuba was a family from Granada, Suarez
by name, consisting of a widow, her son Juan, and three daughters,
remarkable for their beauty. They had come with the vireyna María
de Toledo, and Gomara is so ungallant as to say that their object was to
secure rich husbands.[67] Scores of hearts are laid at their feet, but
the marriage obligation is evaded by the more promising men of the
colony, for the Suarez family has a somewhat clouded reputation. In
one of them Velazquez takes a tender interest;, some say he marries
her.[68] Cortés fancies another; Catalina is her name; he trifles with
her affections, obtains her favors, promises her marriage, and then
seeks to evade the issue. The brother petitions the virtuous governor,
who cannot see the sister of his love thus wronged. Velazquez orders
Cortés to marry Catalina. The cavalier refuses. Enmity arises between
the two men, and without difficulty Cortés is persuaded by certain
disaffected to join a cabal against the governor. Nocturnal meetings
are held at the house of Cortés; and when it is determined to lay
their fancied grievances before the authorities at Santo Domingo,
Cortés is chosen bearer of the complaints.[69] As he is about to
embark on his perilous mission, to traverse in an open boat eighteen
leagues of open ocean, the governor hears of it, seizes the envoy,
and sends him in chains to the fortress. His partisans are likewise
imprisoned, and active in preferring charges against them are Bermudez,
the two Velazquez, Villegas, and Juan Suarez. Friends intercede and
prevent immediate hanging.[70] Cortés resolves on escape. With some
difficulty he extricates himself from his fetters, seizes the sword
of the sleeping guard, forces the window, and dropping to the ground
takes refuge in the church.[71] Velazquez, enraged at the escape,
yet not daring to violate the privilege of sanctuary, resorts to
artifice. Introducing some soldiers into the chapel through a small
door in the rear, the blushing Catalina is stationed at a distance
before the sacred edifice as a decoy. The lover sees her; the dear
girl wishes to speak with him, but her maidenly modesty forbids her
nearer approach. Cortés rushes forward to clasp her in his arms,
only to be seized from behind, and placed under a strong guard in
the hold of a vessel bound for Española, where, in company with the
other conspirators, he is to undergo trial.[72]
Sympathy for Cortés increases with his misfortunes, and aid is
furnished for a second escape. The shackles are removed, and
exchanging clothes with an attendant, he mounts the upper deck,[73]
strolls carelessly about watching his opportunity until he gains
the skiff; then cutting loose the boat of another vessel near by, to
prevent pursuit, he pulls lustily toward Baracoa. The boat becomes
unmanageable, he plunges into the water, swims ashore, and once more
gains the sanctuary.[74]
Cortés was sensible enough now to perceive that he had involved
himself more deeply than a trifling love affair would justify, and
that possibly he might best rid himself of the charming Catalina
by marrying her. Once determined on this course, he called to him
the brother, Juan Suarez, and informed him of his doleful resolve.
Meanwhile the constant importunities of powerful friends, and the
need of Cortés’ services in an Indian outbreak, induced Velazquez
to make overtures of reconciliation; but Cortés met him in a haughty
spirit, and surrounding the church with a guard he went his way to the
wars. Notwithstanding the cavalier had made up his mind to drink the
marriage-draught, he would none of the governor in it; or if he must,
the reconciliation should be accomplished after his own fashion. No
sooner had the governor departed than Cortés directed Juan Suarez,
with lance and cross-bow, to await him at a certain place. Escaping
the guard during the night, Cortés joined Suarez, and proceeded to
the plantation where Velazquez was quartered. The governor, who was
engaged in looking over some books of accounts, was not a little
startled when Cortés knocked at the open door and entered. “Is it
murder the man means with arms in his hands, and at this hour?”
was his thought, as he gave the visitor a nervous welcome. “Command
that no one come near me!” exclaimed Cortés, “else I will put this
pike through him. And now, if my excellent and brave captain, Señor
Velazquez, has aught against me, let him speak. I am here to answer.”
So sweet was the mutual forgiveness that followed, that in the morning
the two gentlemen were found occupying the same bed.[75] Not long
after Cortés married Catalina, and jointly with his brother-in-law
received an encomienda of Manicarao Indians. Like a brave cavalier
he put the best face possible on the inevitable, and vowed he was as
pleased with his bride as if she had been a duchess.[76] Velazquez
stood godfather to a child born to them, and thenceforth addressed
Cortés by the intimate term compadre,[77] investing him afterward with
the staff of alcalde at Santiago de Cuba.[78] For a time, however, he
remained at Baracoa, where the preceding events occurred, and beside
mining he was one of the first upon the island to engage in stock
raising. Thus by diligence and judicious investments he was enabled
to rise from poverty, as well as from profligacy, and to stand ready
to embrace the golden opportunity fortune was now about to offer him.
The soft white snow gently dropped upon the mountain top is forged
by alternate thawings and freezings into hard, rasping glaciers.
FOOTNOTES
[54] Indeed, to make the miracle perfect in all its details,
a little warping of the facts is perhaps allowable. So
when the zealous chroniclers bring into the world the same
year, the same day, even the self-same hour, these two
great champions for the souls of men, we should not be too
critical, though in truth there were two years difference
in their ages. ‘Y así, no carece de misterio que el mismo
año que Lutero nació en Islebio,’ that is to say Eisleben,
‘villa de Sajonia, nació Hernando Cortés en Medellin, villa
de España; aquel para turbar el mundo y meter debajo de la
bandera del demonio a muchos de los fieles que de padres y
abuelos y muchos tiempos atras eran católicos, y este para
traer al gremio de la Iglesia infinita multitud de gentes
que por años sin cuento habian estado debajo del poder de
Satanás envueltos en vicios y ciegos con la idolatría.’
_Mendieta_, _Hist. Ecles._, 174-5. Pizarro y Orellana will
not be outdone by any one in zeal or mendacity. ‘Nació este
Ilustre Varon el dia mismo que aquella bestia infernal,
el Perfido Heresiarca Lutero, salió al mundo.’ _Varones
Ilvstres_, 66. Bernal Diaz is the first authority on the
question of age. ‘En el año que passamos con Cortés dende
Cuba,’ he writes _Hist. Verdad._, 238, ‘a la Nueva España,
fue el de quinientos y diez y nueue años, y entonces
solia dezir estando en conversacion de todos nosotros los
compañeros que con él passamos, que auia treynta y quatro
años, y veynte y ocho que auian passado hasta que murio,
que son sesenta y dos años.’ While agreeing with Bernal
Diaz in the date of Cortés’ death, December 2, 1547, Gomara says
he was then sixty-three. From his false premise Mendieta
elaborates a comparison between Luther and Cortés, dwelling
with pious pathos on the holocaust of human victims offered
up at the consecration of the great Aztec temple at Mexico,
which deed, he coolly states, was committed on the day
Cortés was born. For the facts, see _Bancroft’s Native
Races_, v. 5, 439-40. Without taking the trouble to test
Mendieta’s statement, Torquemada, i. 340-1, carries the
miraculous still further. Following the heaven-descended
Cortés in his piratical raid on Mexico, he sees the hand of
God in the finding of Aguilar, who, like Aaron, was to be
the mouthpiece of his chief, in the alliances with native
states, and in the great victories and hair-breadth escapes
of the conqueror, fighting under the banner of the cross.
[55] According to the _Testimonio de Hidalguia de Cortés_,
in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, iv. 238-9, the names of the mother’s
parents were Diego Altamirano and Leonor Sanchez Pizarro,
which would reverse her surnames, and make the son a Cortés y
Altamirano. But Gomara, _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, and
other authorities, do not accept this form. This important
document, however, the _Testimonio_, establishes the fact
that both parents were hidalgos, ‘gozando de los oficios
que gozan los hijosdalgo en ... Medellin.’ Some historians
strain themselves to make Cortés the scion of a Roman
family, or even of a king of Lombardy and Tuscany, whose
descendants entered Spain during Gothic rule. Those who
have tastes in that direction may consult _Siculus_, _Viris
Illust._, 141; _Anales de Aragon_, iii. xiv.; _Pizarro y
Orellana, Varones Ilvstres_, 67. Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv.
11, who claimed acquaintance with the family, slurs their
pretensions to high origin. ‘Ambos hijosdalgo sin raça’
is the qualification in _Sandoval_, _Hist. Carlos V._, i.
160. No doubt the parents of Cortés were respectable and
amiable people, but to attempt to make of them other than
they were is folly. ‘Catharinia namque probitate, pudicitiâ
et in conjugem amore, nulli ætatis suae feminae cessit.’ _De
Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 310-11. This document refers to Martin Cortés
as ‘levis armaturae equitum quinquaginta dux fuerit,’ on
which evidence Prescott makes the man a captain when he is
only a lieutenant, which yet more clearly appears by Gomara, who
states, _Hist. Mex._, 4, that he was a ‘teniente de vna
compañia de Ginetes.’
[56] The nurse was a ‘vezina de Oliua,’ and her method
of choosing a patron was characteristic of the times. ‘La
deuocion fue echar en suertes los doze apostoles, y darle
por auogado el postrero q̄ ssliesse, y salio san Pedro. En
cuyo nõbre se dixeron ciertas missas y oraciones, con las
quales plugo a Dios q̄ sanasse.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 4.
[57] And Pizarro y Orellana, _Varones Ilvstres_, 66-69,
indulges in a lengthy dissertation upon the effect of
mothers’ milk on heroes. ‘Criole a sus pechos Doña Catalina
Pizarro su madre: y a la generosidad deste lacticinio
atribuye Marineo e Siculo su gran valor, y virtud.’
[58] Pizarro y Orellana, _Varones Ilvstres_, 67, states that
he was supported at college by Monroy and Rodriguez. It is
possible that his proud spirit chafed under this dependence,
or that he felt too deeply his position as a poor student
among the wealthy youth there congregated; or that this
aid was withdrawn owing to the turbulent character here
developed by the young man. These views find support in _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 4: ‘Boluiose a Medellin, harto o arrepentido
de estudiar, o quiça falto de dineros.’ While admitting the
want both of money and inclination for study, Torquemada,
i. 345, states that a quartan fever came on as he was
preparing for the study of law, and was the chief cause of
his leaving the college. Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 11,
gives him the honors of a bachiller, and as having studied
law, both of which statements are unlikely, considering
his short course. ‘Aprendiendo gramática’ implies a course
of study in Latin and Greek, as well as rhetoric, which it
required three years to complete. _Plan de Estudios de la
Universidad de Salamanca_, quoted by Folsom, in _Cortés’
Despatches_, 10. According to Peralta, ‘asento con un
escribano, ... y aprendió á escrebir,’ etc. in Valladolid.
_Not. Hist._, 56.
[59] Verses which were tolerably good, and even procured
him some fame. _Anales_, 220. ‘Quando hablaua con Letrados,
y hombres Latinos, respondia á lo que le dezian en Latin.’
Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 238. The combined qualities
of scholar and general have called up a not inappropriate
comparison between Cortés and Cæsar. See _Helps’ Span.
Conq._, and other authorities.
[60] Some claim him for a relative of Cortés. See _Pizarro y
Orellana_, _Varones Ilvstres_, 70; _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i.
45; _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 312.
[61] ‘Anduvo se a la flor del berro, aun q̄ no sin trabajos
y necessidades cerca de vn año.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 5.
‘Squandered his means at Valencia with bad companions,’ is
the term used in _Sandoval_, _Hist. Carlos_, i. 161.
[62] Torquemada, i. 346, sees in the bird a messenger from
God to conduct safely his chosen instrument for converting
the natives of the New World. Pizarro y Orellana, _Varones
Ilvstres_, 69-70, recognizes the Holy Ghost, who assumed
this form, and comments on similar appearances elsewhere.
How goodly a thing is faith!
[63] He assisted in the pacification of Higne, Bauruco,
Daiguao, Iutagna, Jaraguá, and Amguayagua. _Cortés_,
_Memorial_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, iv. 220.
[64] The author of _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_
directs this expedition to Cuba, after delaying it three
months in the hope of securing the services of Cortés, in
both of which statements he is in error. _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 318-19.
[65] ‘Socium et ministrum consiliorum omnium adsumit.’
_De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 320. So highly did Velazquez esteem the
qualities of his friend, ‘diu multùmque Cortesium rogat,
ut secum eat: maria ac montes pollicetur, si operam ad id
bellum polliceatur.’ _Id._, 319. Las Casas, who knew Cortés
at a later time, makes him one of the two secretaries of
Velazquez, the other being Andrés de Duero; and this would
coincide with the above. Las Casas is too inconsistent to
be very reliable. On the same page he refers to Cortés as a
prudent, reticent man, and also as a prater not to be trusted
with secrets; useful to Velazquez only for his knowledge
of Latin. _Hist. Ind._, iv. 10-11. _Herrera_, dec. i., lib.
ix., cap. viii., follows Las Casas. Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 6, calls
him ‘oficial del tesorero Miguel de Passamõte, para tener
cuẽta cõ los quintos y hazienda del rey, y aun el mesmo
Diego Velazquez se lo rogo, por ser habil y diligente.’ Gomara may
have had his reasons for not connecting him too closely
with his later enemy, but he admits on this and on the
following page that Velazquez intrusted him with business
affairs of his own, which he was afterward charged with
having divulged. Among these duties was superintending
the construction of a mint and hospital. The position of
clerk to a treasurer would of course be inferior to that
of secretary to the chief of the expedition; yet if the
treasurer was as illiterate as Contador Láres, his clerk
would rank rather as deputy.
[66] ‘Era muy resabido y recatado,’ says Las Casas, ‘puesto
que no mostraba saber tanto, ni ser de tanta habilidad como
despues lo mostró en cosas árduas.’
[67] The deceased head of the family bore the name of Diego
Suarez Pacheco, the mother that of María de Marcaida, also
wrongly written Mercaida. The son, Juan Suarez, the partner
of Cortés in the Cuban encomienda, afterward settled in
Mexico. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 12-13. See also
Proceso de Marcayda, in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 333.
Peralta, the son of Juan, gives the family a genealogy of
high order. _Not. Hist._, 57. ‘Suarez ... gente pobre.’ _Las
Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 13. ‘Doña Catalina Suarez Pacheco
(the daughter), doncella noble y recatada.’ Solis, _Hist.
Mex._, i. 46, and Pizarro y Orellana, _Varones Ilvstres_,
70, also write Suarez, Herrera and Gomara, Xuarez. The latter
says three or four daughters, _Hist. Mex._, 7, but it seems
that there were four children in all. Those who write the
more common form of Suarez are more explicit, and deserve
at least equal credit with Gomara.
[68] Velazquez was married not long after his arrival in
Cuba to the daughter of Contador Cuéllar. The bride died
within the same week. _Herrera_, dec. i. lib. ix. cap.
ix. ‘Velazquez fauoreciala por amor de otra su hermana,
q̄ tenia ruin fama, y aun el era demasiado mugeril.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 7. Delaporte, _Reisen_, x. 141-2, assumes
that Cortés won the love of her whom Velazquez wished to
possess; while Gordon, _Anc. Mex._, ii. 32, supposes that
the bride had been the object of Velazquez’ gallantry;
hence the trouble. Folsom, on the other hand, marries
one of the Suarez sisters to Velazquez, and calls him the
brother-in-law of Cortés. _Cortés_, _Despatches_, 9, 11-12.
[69] Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 7, insists that Velazquez had no
motive for anger except the refusal of Cortés to marry. The
meeting of conspirators at his house gave plausibility to
the charges of his enemies. By others it is even stated that
at these meetings Cortés defended the governor against the
charges of the conspirators and overruled their plots. _De
Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 325-6. The preponderance of evidence, however,
is against this supposition.
[70] ‘Estando para se embarcar en una canoa de indios con
sus papeles, fué Diego Velazquez avisado y hízolo prender
y quísolo ahorcar.’ _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 11. He
was cast in the fort prison, lest the army should proclaim
him general. ‘Timebat ne si quis,’ etc. _De Rebus Gestis
Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i.
325 and 326-7.
[71] In _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 326-7, it is related that
Cortés broke the ropes holding him by means of a stick,
and filed the padlock of the chains. Seizing a bludgeon
he advanced on the sleeping jailer, resolved to break his
head if he moved. But Cristóbal de Lagos either slept or
pretended not to hear the noise as Cortés seized the sword
and shield at his head. Swinging open a small window, Cortés
slid down and hurried to the sanctuary, giving on the way
a word of cheer and advice to the conspirators who were
held within the prison.
[72] ‘Cortés ... tuuo por cierto q̄ lo embiariã a santo
Domingo o a España.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 7. There would
have been no reasons for his fears on this score, if he
possessed papers implicating Velazquez, as Gomara states.
Another version is that the alcaldes imposed a heavy sentence
on Cortés, after his capture, and that Velazquez, on being
appealed to by Duero and others, was noble-minded enough
to grant a pardon. He discharged him from his service,
however, and had him placed on board a ship for Española.
_Torquemada_, i. 348. Herrera says that Catalina lived
near the church, and while Cortés was making love to her
an alguacil named Juan Escudero, whom Cortés afterward
hanged in Mexico, came up behind him and pinioned his arms,
while the soldiers rushed to his assistance. Dec. i. lib.
ix. cap. ix.; _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 63, etc. _Las
Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 11; _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi
Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, i. 327-8, give minutely the
mode of capture.
[73] Broke the pump and crawled through, ‘Organum
pneumaticum,’ etc. _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 329.
[74] The current of the Macaguanigua River did not allow
him to enter it, and elsewhere the breakers would upset
the boat. Stripping himself, he tied to his head certain
documents against Velazquez, held by him as notary of the
ayuntamiento and clerk of the treasurer, and thereupon swam
ashore. He entered his house, consulted with Juan Suarez,
and reëntered the temple, armed. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
7. _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_,
vi. 329-30, refers to a friend of Cortés chained in the same
ship’s hold, and states that Cortés rowed ashore. On the way
to the house of Suarez he narrowly escapes a patrol. Having
secured arms, he proceeds to cheer his captive partisans,
and then enters the sanctuary. At dawn the captain of the
vessel from which Cortés escaped comes also to the temple,
to secure himself against Velazquez’ wrath, no doubt, but is
refused admission into the sacristy by his fellow-refugee,
who suspects the man, and fears that the provisions may
not outlast the siege. In _Herrera_, dec. i. lib. ix. cap.
viii., Cortés drifts about on a log and is finally cast
ashore.
[75] So the story was current at the time, and I doubt
not it contains some degree of truth, notwithstanding
Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 11-12, scouts it as a pure
fabrication. He knew both men; Velazquez as a proud chief,
exacting the deepest reverence from those around him,
and making them tremble at his frown; while Cortés was in
those days so lowly and humble as to be glad to curry favor
with the meanest servants of the governor. The good bishop
is evidently prejudiced. In _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi
Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 332-4, the
facts are a little elaborated and contradictory, as usual.
Cortés escapes the guard round the church, and reaches the
farm. ‘Halloh, señores!’ he shouts, ‘Cortés is at the door,
and salutes Señor Velazquez, his excellent and gallant
captain.’ Velazquez is astonished, yet pleased, at the
arrival of one whom he always had regarded as a friend and
beloved brother. He orders supper and bed to be prepared;
but Cortés insists that none shall approach, or he will
lance them. He demands to know what complaints there are
against him. He abhors the suspicion of being a traitor,
and will clear himself. ‘Receive me,’ he concludes, ‘in
your favor with the same good faith that I return to it.’
‘Now I believe,’ answers Velazquez, ‘that you regard as
highly my name and fame as your own loyalty.’ They shake
hands, and Cortés now enters the house to fully explain
the misunderstanding. After supper they retire to one bed.
In the morning the messenger, Diego Orellana, arrives to
announce Cortés’ flight, and finds them lying side by side.
Cortés will not proceed with the expedition just then; but
after arranging his affairs he joins, to the delight of
the general, who follows his advice implicitly, as he had
done in former campaigns. After their victorious return
Cortés enjoys greater honors than ever. Peralta, who also
gives the story at length, states that Cortés surprised
Velazquez asleep. At the request of the governor he gave
himself up to the jailer in order to be formally released.
_Nat. Hist._, 58-62. Still Peralta is a little confused.
[76] She was received by Cortés in Mexico, after the
conquest, with great distinction; but died in about three
months after her arrival.
[77] Las Casas, who, as usual, will have a fling at Cortés,
writes: ‘Tuvo Cortés un hijo ó hija, no sé si en su mujer,
y suplicó á Diego Velazquez que tuviese por bien de se lo
sacar de la pila en el baptismo y ser su compadre, lo que
Diego Velazquez aceptó, por honralle.’ _Hist. Ind._, iv.
13. Among Cortés’ children a natural daughter by a Cuban
Indian is mentioned, _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 238,
but it is not likely that Cortés would ask the governor to
stand godfather to a natural child. The same writer makes
Velazquez the groomsman or sponsor at the marriage. ‘Fue su
padrino, quando Cortés se velò con Doña Catalina;’ _Id._, 13;
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 109. Although compadre
is not unfrequently used as a mere term of friendship, it
is not likely to have been applied by a marriage padrino;
hence the title of co-father indicates that it originated
at the font.
[78] An office granted only to men of note and to leading
conquistadores. _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 46. It conveyed
the title of ‘muy virtuoso señor,’ the governor being called
‘muy magnífico señor,’ _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col.
Doc._, xii. 225, and permitted the holder to walk side by
side with the governor. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap.
xii. ‘Auia sido dos vezes Alcalde en la Villa de Sãtiago
de Boroco, adõde era vezino: porque en aquestas tierras se
tiene por mucha honra.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
13. He does not refer to him as alcalde at Santiago de
Cuba, where the fleet is fitting out, as he clearly states.
Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 4, mentions merely that he was here
before the quarrel with Velazquez. Some writers assume that
Santiago de Cuba is the same as Santiago de Baracoa, but
Herrera, _loc. cit._, and others, observe the distinction.
CHAPTER V.
SAILING OF THE EXPEDITION.
1518-1519.
THE QUALITY OF LEADER DESIRED—INSTRUCTIONS ISSUED
TO HERNAN CORTÉS, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF—THE CHARACTER OF
CORTÉS UNDERGOES A CHANGE—COST OF THE EXPEDITION—BY WHOM
BORNE—PLACES ESTABLISHED FOR ENLISTMENT—THE BANNER—CORTÉS
PUTS ON THE GREAT MAN—MORE OF HIS CHARACTER—THE SCENE AT
SANTIAGO HARBOR—THE GOVERNOR’S JESTER—DARK SUSPICIONS OF
VELAZQUEZ—DEPARTURE FROM SANTIAGO—CORTÉS AT TRINIDAD—FRESH
RECRUITS—VERDUGO RECEIVES ORDERS TO DEPOSE CORTÉS—THE
FLEET PROCEEDS TO SAN CRISTÓBAL, OR THE HABANA—REVIEW
AT GUAGUANICO—SPEECH OF CORTÉS—ORGANIZATION INTO
COMPANIES—DEPARTURE FROM CUBA.
With relations so lovingly established, and with a personal knowledge
of the military genius of Cortés, and the strength and versatility
of his character, it would seem that here would be the first instant
choice of the governor for the command of the important expedition now
in preparation. But the quality of the man required did not altogether
hinge on merit. As we have seen, Velazquez required for his purpose
an anomalous creation. He must be able but humble; able to command
men, and able likewise to obey his chief; honest to Velazquez, but
false, if necessary, to all the world else. It was not an Alexander or
an Alcibiades that was wanted; not so much a man as a thing: “Piper,
non homo,” as Petronius Arbiter said; pungent as pepper, and not a
human being.
Be this as it may, the sordid friendship of Láres and Duero prevailed
with the governor, and on the 23d of October, 1518, his instructions
to Hernan Cortés, commander-in-chief of the expedition, were drawn
up before the notary, Alonso de Escalante, in accordance with the
permission granted by the authorities at Santo Domingo, which limited
the enterprise to exploration; the privilege to colonize depending
on royal favor for which Velazquez must sue in Spain.[79]
One would think that after these twenty-five years of experience
there could be found no ecclesiastic or ruler so childish as to
expect morality or humanity from the wolves of Spain let loose among
the naked and defenceless of America. And yet we find the friars of
Española, in pursuance of the devout and high-minded views expressed
by Velazquez, subscribing to instructions which enjoin Cortés to
observe a conduct befitting a Christian soldier, as if there were
any reasonable hope of his doing so. He must prohibit blasphemy,
licentiousness, and gambling among his men, and on no account molest
the natives, but gently inform them of the glory of God, and of the
Catholic king. Possession must be taken in Velazquez’ name and the
secrets of the country ascertained. Search must be made for Grijalva
and Olid, and for the Christian captives supposed to be in Yucatan. We
might again mark the double-dealing of the governor, who discharges
Grijalva for not having settled contrary to his instructions, while
charging the new commander not to seize the country, yet expecting
him to do so.[80] The instructions consist of thirty clauses, and
the document reflects no credit on the scrivener.[81]
* * * * *
Man and his character are subject to environment. Neither is finished
until decay has well set in. Long before the receipt of his commission
the adolescent Cortés was a creation of the past; even the adult
Cortés was a different being before and after his appointment. His
action now was the expression of new intuitions. Always under the
influence of turbulent emotions, his ambition had suddenly become
more aggressive. In pure impulses, in refined feelings, in noble
instincts, he was essentially defective. He harbored no ideal of duty,
such as we have seen in the mind of Grijalva. His code of ethics was
neither broad nor catholic. And notwithstanding his great respect for
religion, so great indeed as to excite suspicion that he cared very
little for it; notwithstanding his outward piety, and his devotion
to the church, the lighter immoralities fitted him with an ease and
grace that hampered his movements not in the least. Yet for all this
the alcalde of Santiago suddenly became a great man, not in name
only, but actually; wellnigh revolutionizing the society of which
he himself was the product. To him, and to others, his commission
was a match applied to explosive material, letting loose the latent
force. The leaders of the first gulf-shore expeditions, Córdoba,
Grijalva, and Cortés, present themselves before us in relatively
increasing proportions. Córdoba, the first, was least, though a most
gentlemanly and kind-hearted pirate. Grijalva, though second to
Cortés in talents and fame, was far before him in honesty. During
the preparations which quickly followed the appointment of Cortés,
the inherent qualities of the man developed to a degree alarming
alike to friends and enemies, and astonishing to himself. He found
his nature a strong one, with magnetic attractions, and an affinity
with danger. He found himself possessed of that higher courage of the
mind which begets self-confidence, breeds the hero, and ends in the
achievement of the uttermost. And genius was there; he began to feel
it and to know it: the genius of ambition and egotism, whose central
figure was himself, an all-prevailing sentiment, before which right,
religion, humanity, and even life itself, must be subservient. His
rapidly evolving will was becoming ponderous, overwhelming. Fame was
becoming to him what ambition was to Columbus; only he possessed his
idea instead of being possessed by it. Sufficiently educated for the
purposes of statecraft, opportunity alone was needed to enable him
to turn every weapon to the furtherance of his own designs. Without
attempting to pry into the occult, he now began to see things with a
large and liberal eye. Life was assuming tremendous realities, which
bridled impulse; yet it was an ordeal he believed he could face. While
in sophistry he found himself equal to Euripides, he began to put
on bombast such as Æschylus could not have scorned, and to display
an energy as sublime as that of Archilochus; yet all this time his
good sense was supplemented by graceful courtesy. All who worship
the bright wit and intellectual versatility that flatter ambition
and yield unscrupulous success may henceforth bow the knee to Hernan
Cortés.
* * * * *
No sooner was his commission sealed than Cortés set himself about the
task of collecting his many requirements. His own few thousand pesos
of ready money were quickly spent; then he mortgaged his estates, and
borrowed to the uttermost from his friends. Velazquez was free with
everything except his substance; free with his advice and ostentation,
free with the ships of others, and willing to sell to the expedition
the products of his farm at exorbitant prices. Nevertheless the
investment to the governor, as well as to Cortés, was large, the
former furnishing some ships of his own and some money, the whole
cost of vessels and outfit being about twenty thousand ducats.[82]
Establishing places of enlistment throughout the island, Cortés roused
to action his many friends, both in person and by letter. At principal
settlements the expedition was proclaimed about the streets, in the
king’s name, by the beating of drums and the voice of the crier. One
third of the proceeds of the adventure was promised the soldiers and
subalterns, two thirds going to the outfitters.[83] A banner of black
taffeta was embroidered with the royal arms in gold, and blue and
white flames surrounding a red cross, and round the border it bore
the inscription, “Amici sequamur crucem, si nos habuerimus fidem in
hoc signo vincemus.” Friends, let us follow the cross, and if we have
faith under this sign we shall conquer.[84]
Assuming a dress and bearing more fitting a military commander,
Cortés threw open his doors, and by judiciously combining the frank
joviality of a soldier with the liberal hospitality of a man of
wealth, he rapidly drew to his adventure all the available men of the
island. There were not lacking those to sneer at this assumption of
preëminence, which flaunted it so bravely with plume and medal, with
martial music and retinue, saying, here was a lord without lands.[85]
But they little knew the strength and firmness of him who, having once
put on the great man, would lay the livery down but with his life.
This soldierly display, always taking to the Castilian fancy, could
scarcely be called affectation, for the genius which commands success
was present, and the firmness of resolve was covered with such pleasing
affability as to render its presence scarcely suspected. With his fine
soldierly qualities were financial and executive ability, and fair
common sense, a rare combination in a Spanish cavalier. While loving
adventure he did not altogether hate ideas. His world now spread
itself before him, as divided into two unequal classes, those that use
others, and those that are used by others, and he resolved himself
forever into the former category. Like Diogenes, though enslaved at
Crete, Cortés felt that if he could do one thing better than another
it was to command men. Coupled with this egotism was the sensible
intuition that the mastery of others begins with self-mastery. Indeed
his command over himself, as well as over others, was most remarkable.
“By my conscience!” was a favorite oath, which implies not brutal
passion. At times a swelling vein in the forehead, and another in the
throat, indicated rising anger, manifested also by a peculiarity of
throwing off his cloak; but the voice would remain decorous, and the
words seldom passed beyond a “Mal pese á vos!” May it bear heavily upon
you. To the insolent soldier, whom we shall often find overstepping
the bounds of prudence, he would merely say, “Be silent!” or “Go,
in God’s name, and be more careful if you would escape punishment.”
Equally composed in argument, he wielded his persuasive powers to
their best advantage. Rio de Avenida, the Rushing River, was at one
time a nickname, and later he affected long hair and lawsuits. At the
gaming-table, to which he was greatly addicted, he won or lost with
equal sang-froid, ever ready with a witticism to smooth the varying
course of fortune. Though he did not hesitate as gay Lothario to invade
the family of another, most unreasonably he was very jealous lest his
own family should be invaded. While liberal to friend or mistress,
and ready to sacrifice almost anything to gain an object, he was not
always regarded as over-generous by his men, too many of whom were
of that class, however, that nothing would satisfy. Although a fair
eater, he drank but little, and confined himself to simple diet. This
moderation also extended to dress, which, before his elevation, was
not only neat but tasteful in its rich simplicity, ornamented with
few but choice jewels, and with little diversity. A love of pomp,
however, developed with his rising fortunes, more particularly in
the way of showy residences and a large retinue, which accorded well
with the courtly manners native to the Spaniard claiming noble blood.
Cervantes says that in the army even the niggardly become prodigal.
Cortés found the way of throwing into his cause not only himself, but
others, in some respects as able as himself. His liberal measures
and enthusiasm became infectious, and brought to enrolment wealthy
volunteers, who furnished not only their own outfit, but helped
to provide others.[86] Within a short time there joined over three
hundred men, among them some high in the service and confidence of
the governor—instance, Francisco de Morla his chamberlain, Martin
Ramos de Láres a Basque, Pedro Escudero, Juan Ruano, Escobar, and
Diego de Ordaz mayordomo of Velazquez, and instructed by him to watch
proceedings and secretly report.
The harbor of Santiago at this time presented a busy scene. There
were the hurrying to and fro of laborers and recruits, the clang of
carpenters’ hammers upon ships undergoing repairs, the collecting of
goods, and the loading of vessels. Every day the landing was enlivened
by the presence of the governor, often arm-in-arm with his most
dutiful and compliant captain-general, surrounded by gayly dressed
attendants and followed by half the town. On one of these visits of
inspection, while engaged in friendly conversation respecting the
progress of affairs, the Governor’s jester, Francisquillo, who was
present, as usual, performing his antics before his master, cried
out, “Ah, friend Diego!” Then to Cortés, “And how fares our brave
captain, he of Medellin and Estremadura? Be careful, good master, or
we shall soon have to beat the bush for this same Cortés.” Velazquez
laughed heartily, and turning to his companion exclaimed, “Compadre,
do you hear this fool?” “What, señor?” replied Cortés, pretending
preoccupation. “He says you will run away with our fleet,” replied
Velazquez. “Pay no attention to the knave, your worship; I am very
sure these infamous pleasantries never emanated from his mad brain,”
rejoined Cortés, deeply chagrined. And ere the laugh died away on
the lips of the governor his timid breast was chilled by fearful
forebodings. What if it were true, thought Velazquez, and this fellow,
whom I have lifted from his low estate, should declare for himself
on reaching New Spain? Then he called to mind his late quarrel with
Cortés, and the courage, energy, and determination displayed by
the latter throughout. The governor trembled when he thought of it.
About him were enough of the disappointed only too ready to fan these
suspicions into a flame.[87]
I regret having to spoil a good story; but the truth is, the drama
reported by Bartolomé Las Casas, and reiterated by Herrera and
Prescott, was never performed. It tells how Cortés put to sea,
Prescott asserts the very night after the jester’s warning; and that
in the morning, when the governor, early roused from his bed, rushed
down to the landing with all the town at his heels, Cortés returned
part way in an armed boat and bandied words with him. Beside being
improbable, almost impossible, this version is not sustained by
the best authorities.[88] The fact is, some time elapsed, after the
suspicions of the governor had first been aroused, before the sailing
of the fleet, during which interval Grijalva with his ships returned.
Gomara states that Velazquez sought to break with Cortés and send
only Grijalva’s vessels, with another commander; but to this Láres and
Duero, whose advice was asked by the governor, made strong objection,
saying that Cortés and his friends had spent too much money now to
abandon the enterprise, which was very true; for like the appetite of
Angaston which came with eating, the more Cortés tasted the sweets of
popularity and power, the more stomach he had for the business. And
the more the suspicions of the governor grew, the greater were the
captain-general’s assurances of devotion, and the firmer became the
determination of Cortés and his followers to prosecute this adventure,
in which they had staked their all.[89]
Warned by Láres and Duero of every plot, Cortés hurried preparations,
sending friends to forage, and shipping stores with the utmost
despatch, meanwhile giving secret orders for all to be ready to
embark at a moment’s notice. Finally, the hour having come, on the
evening of the 17th of November, with a few trusty adherents, Cortés
presented himself before the governor, and politely took his leave.
It fell suddenly on Velazquez, in whose eyes all movements relating
to the expedition had of late become the manœuvres of men conspired
to overreach him. But having neither the excuse nor the ability to
stop the expedition he let the officers depart.
By playing with the devil one soon learns to play the devil. From
the governor’s house Cortés hastened to the public meat depository,
seized and added to his stores the town’s next week’s supply, and
left the keeper, Fernando Alfonso, a gold chain, all he had remaining
wherewith to make payment.[90] It was a dull, dry, gray November
morning, the 18th, very early, after mass had been said, when the
squadron, consisting of six vessels, sailed out of Santiago harbor
amidst the vivas of the populace and the inward cursings of the
governor.[91] But of little avail was Velazquez’ remorse; for Cortés
carried no Æolian wind-bags to drive him back from his destination.
Despatching one of the vessels to Jamaica[92] for provisions, Cortés
touched at Macaca for further supplies, and thence steered for
Trinidad, where he was received with demonstrations of enthusiasm by
the alcalde mayor, Francisco Verdugo brother-in-law of Velazquez, and
by other hidalgos, who placed their houses at his disposal. Raising
his standard before his quarters, he proclaimed the expedition and
invited volunteers, as he had done at Santiago. Soon his force was
augmented by over one hundred of Grijalva’s men. Here also joined
several captains and hidalgos, afterward famous in New Spain adventure.
There were the five brothers Alvarado, Alonso de Ávila, Gonzalo Mejía
afterward treasurer at Mexico, Cristóbal de Olid, Alonzo Hernandez
Puertocarrero cousin of the count of Medellin, Gonzalo de Sandoval
who became so great a friend of Cortés, Juan Velazquez de Leon a
relative of the governor, and others.[93] From the plantations of
Santi Espíritu and elsewhere came many. This Cortés beheld with proud
satisfaction, and welcomed these important acquisitions with martial
music and peals of artillery.
In seeking supplies Cortés paid little heed to rights of property, so
long as he obtained what he needed; he was subsequently not a little
proud of his success. “By my faith,” he boasts in Spain in 1542, “but
I did play the corsair genteelly.” Among the arbitrary purchases was
that of a vessel from Jamaica laden with provisions for the mines,
for which the owner might accept promissory notes or nothing.[94]
Another vessel from the same place, on the same mission, Cortés sent
Ordaz to seize and convey to Cape San Antonio, or perhaps to San
Cristóbal where we afterward find him, there to await the fleet.
This captain, it will be remembered, was the spy of Velazquez, and
to him, therefore, rather than to another, was given this mission,
to prevent his watching proceedings at Trinidad. The commander of
the seized vessel was Juan Nuñez Sedeño, who was induced to join the
expedition.[95] Meanwhile in the breast of Velazquez was stirred afresh
the poison of jealousy by an astrologer, one Juan Millan, employed by
the enemies of Cortés to work on the fears of the governor. The result
was the arrival at Trinidad, in hot haste, of two messengers from the
governor, with orders for Verdugo to detain the fleet, the command
of which had been transferred to Vasco Porcallo. Moreover, all the
retainers of Velazquez were called upon to aid in deposing Cortés. It
was no difficult matter, however, for Cortés to persuade Verdugo of
two things: first, that there were no grounds for Velazquez’ fears,
and secondly, if there were, force would now avail him nothing. So
strong was Cortés in his position that he could easily lay the town
in ashes should its authorities attempt to interfere in his purposes.
Taking one of the messengers, Pedro Lasso, into his service, by the
other Cortés wrote Velazquez, in language most respectful, begging
him to believe that he would always be true to his God, his king,
and his dear friend and governor. In like notes the robin and the
screech-owl muffle their voices when danger is near, so as to conceal
the distance, and make themselves seem far away. Thus passed twelve
days, according to Bernal Diaz, at Trinidad, when one of the vessels
was despatched to the north side of the island for supplies, and the
fleet departed for San Cristóbal, then Habana,[96] while Pedro de
Alvarado, with fifty soldiers and all the horses, proceeded thither
overland, adding to their number at the plantations on the way.
One night during the voyage to San Cristóbal, the flag-ship was
separated from the other vessels and stranded on a reef near Isla
de Pinos. With skill and promptness Cortés transferred the contents
in small boats to the shore, set free the lightened vessel, and,
reloading, joined his captains at San Cristóbal. This accident delayed
him seven days, during which time there was no small stir among his
men at San Cristóbal as to who should command the fleet in case its
captain-general failed to appear. Conspicuous among these questioners
was Ordaz, who claimed precedence as Velazquez’ representative.
But the arrival of the commander put an end to the controversy and
spread unbounded joy throughout the armada. Landing, he accepted
the hospitality of Pedro Barba, lieutenant of Velazquez. Among those
who joined him here were Francisco Montejo, the future conqueror of
Yucatan, and Diego de Soto, who in Mexico became the mayordomo of
Cortés. Again the commander rid himself of Ordaz by sending him with
a vessel to the plantations near Cape San Antonio, there to await
the fleet. The artillery was landed and cleaned; the cross-bows were
tested and the firelocks polished. Cotton armor was secured. More
provisions being required, Quesada, the Episcopal tithe-collector,
contributed his stock.
Warranted, as he thought, by his success and prospects, and well
aware of the effect on the Spanish mind of some degree of ostentation
and military display, Cortés put on the paraphernalia of still
greater leadership, and appointed a chamberlain, a chief butler, and
a mayordomo, in the persons of Rodrigo Rangel, Guzman, and Juan de
Cáceres, which pomp he ever after maintained.[97] Gaspar de Garnica
now arrived with letters from Velazquez to Barba, Ordaz, Leon, and
others, ordering and entreating them to stop the fleet, arrest Cortés,
and send him a prisoner to Santiago. It was of no avail, however.
Soldiers, officers, even Barba himself, were enthusiastic for Cortés,
who once more wrote the governor, in terms as courteous as they were
costless, and shortly afterward, on the 10th of February, 1519, the
fleet again set sail.[98] Guaguanico, on the north side of Cape San
Antonio, was the place appointed for muster and apportionment.[99]
Meanwhile Pedro Alvarado was sent forward with sixty soldiers in
the _San Sebastian_ to bring Ordaz to the rendezvous, but driven by
a gale beyond his goal and near to Yucatan, he thought it useless
to return, and so proceeded to Cozumel Island, where he arrived two
days before the others. The expedition consisted of twelve vessels,
the flag-ship or capitana of one hundred tons, three others of
from sixty to eighty tons, and the rest small brigantines and open
craft, including a transport commanded by Ginés Nortes. The soldiers
numbered five hundred and eight, and the sailors one hundred and nine,
including officers and pilots. The priests present were Juan Diaz and
Bartolomé de Olmedo, of the Order of Mercy. Under Juan Benitez and
Pedro de Guzman were thirty-two crossbowmen; thirteen men only carried
firelocks, the rest being armed with swords and spears. The artillery
consisted of ten bronzed guns and four falconets, and was in charge of
Francisco de Orozco, aided by Mesa Usagre, Arbenga, and others. About
two hundred Cuban Indians, together with some native women and negro
slaves, were brought for service, despite the prohibitory clause in
the instructions. Sixteen horses receive the minute description and
glowing encomium of the soldier Diaz, and play an important part in
the coming campaign. The supplies included some five thousand tocinos,
or pieces of salt pork, six thousand loads of maize and yucca, fowl,
vegetables, groceries, and other provisions. For barter were beads,
bells, mirrors, needles, ribbons, knives, hatchets, cotton goods,
and other articles.[100]
The force was divided into eleven companies, each under a captain
having control on sea and land. The names of the captains were Alonso
Hernandez Puertocarrero, Alonso de Ávila, Diego de Ordaz, Francisco
de Montejo, Francisco de Morla, Escobar, Juan de Escalante, Juan
Velazquez de Leon, Cristóbal de Olid, Pedro de Alvarado, and Cortés,
with Anton de Alaminos as chief pilot.[101]
From this list it will be seen that those but lately regarded as
of the Velazquez party received their full share in the command.
This cannot be attributed so much to the captain-general’s sense of
fairness, which forbade him to take advantage of interests voluntarily
intrusted to his care, as to a studied policy whereby he hoped to win
for his purposes certain men of influence, whom it would, for that
matter, have been dangerous to remove.
Before the review, Cortés addressed his soldiers in a speech as shrewd
and stirring as that of Marcius at Corioli. Pointing to the thousands
of unbaptized, he awakened their religious zeal; dwelling on the
grandeur of the undertaking, he stimulated their ambition; referring
to the vast wealth these lands contained, he excited their cupidity.
Greater and richer lands than all the Spanish kingdoms, he called
them, and inhabited by strange races, only awaiting submission to
their invincible arms. Their whole fortune was invested in the fleet
that carried them; but who would regret so trifling an expenditure
when compared with the glorious results to follow? They were setting
out upon a career of conquest in the name of their God, who had always
befriended the Spanish nation; and in the name of their emperor, for
whom they would achieve greater deeds than any ever performed. Riches
lay spread before them; but like good and brave men they must look
with him to the higher and nobler reward of glory. “Nevertheless,”
he archly added, “be true to me, as am I to you, and ere long I will
load you with wealth such as you have never dreamed of. I will not
say it is to be won without hardships; but who of you are afraid?
We are few, but we are brave. Let us therefore on with the work so
well begun, joyously and confidently to the end!”[102] There is no
passion so artful as avarice in hiding itself under some virtue.
Sometimes it is progress, sometimes patriotism, but its warmest cloak
has ever been religion. There is a double profit to the devotee whose
religion gratifies his avarice, and whose avarice is made a part of
his religion.
On the morning of February 18th mass was said, the campaign standard
blessed, and Saint Peter invoked, whereupon the prows were pointed
toward the islands of the west. All the vessels were to follow the
flagship, whose light should be their guide by night; in case of
separation they were to steer for Cape Catoche and thence proceed to
Cozumel.[103]
FOOTNOTES
[79] ‘Fray Luys de Figueroa, fray Alonso de santo Domingo, y
fray Bernaldino Mãçenedo, q̄ eran los gouernadores, dieron
la licencia para Fernando Cortés como capitan y armador cõ
Diego Velazquez.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 12. The Fathers
no doubt required to know the name of the commander. ‘His
litteris Cortesius confirmatus,’ is the statement in _De
Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 344, in reference to their permit. This authority
intimates that Salcedo, at a later date probably, obtained
license from the Fathers for warfare in Yucatan and for
the settlement of the mainland, but this is not confirmed
anywhere. _Id._, 350.
[80] Evidently Velazquez desired his captains to disobey
instructions and colonize. He could not officially authorize
them to do so, not having as yet received permission from
Spain. Neither Velazquez nor Cortés had any intention
in this instance of confining this enterprise to trade,
or protecting the natives, or imposing morality upon the
men. It was well understood by all that licentiousness and
plunder were to be the reward for perils to be undergone.
‘Atque etiam quod Grijalvae prætentâ causa auxilii ferendi
quod Alvaradus postulabat, ire licebat,’ is the pointed
observation in _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 343-4. Bernal Diaz, _Hist.
Verdad._, 13, refers to promises of Indian repartimientos
in the new regions as an inducement for volunteers. Cortés’
statement at Vera Cruz, that he had no order to settle,
means nothing in view of the motives then actuating him.
Secret agreements between governors and lieutenants for
defrauding the crown and promoting their own aims were
only too common; and this is overlooked by those who trust
merely to the instructions for arguments on this point.
[81] The full text of the instructions is to be found in
_Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas, Col. Doc._, xii. 225-46; _Col.
Doc. Inéd._, i. 385, 406; _Alaman_, _Disert._, i. App. ii.
1-27, with notes, reproduced in _Zamacois_, _Hist. Méj._,
ii. 791-815. The Muñoz copy, given in _Prescott’s Mex._,
iii. 434-9, preserved the original spelling in the preamble,
but the clauses are abbreviated, though Prescott does not
appear to be aware of it.
[82] The ownership of the expedition has been a moot
question, some authors regarding it as pertaining chiefly
to Velazquez, while others accord it wholly to Cortés and
his friends. According to Gomara, after receiving the vessel
brought by Alvarado, and another provided by Velazquez,
Cortés, aided by his friends, bought two large and two small
vessels before leaving Santiago; and at least two more were
bought after this with bills forced upon the owners. The
rest of the fleet appears to have been made up from the
transport spoken of and from Grijalva’s vessels. The latter
is to be regarded as Velazquez’ contribution, for in the
testimony before the royal council in Spain, Montejo, the
trusted friend of the commander, declares that on delivering
them over to the governor he received the order to join
Cortés, with the vessels, of course. His statements, and
those of the captain Puertocarrero, confirmed by the letter
of the ayuntamiento of Villa Rica to the emperor, agree
that, from their own observations and the accounts given by
others, Cortés must have contributed not only seven vessels,
but expended over 5000 castellanos on the outfit, beside
procuring goods and provisions, while Velazquez furnished
only one third, chiefly in clothes, provisions, wines, and
other effects, which he sold through an agent to the company,
the witnesses included, at exorbitant prices. Montejo had
heard that Velazquez contributed three vessels, but whether
these were exclusive of Grijalva’s fleet is not clear. He
is also supposed to have lent Cortés 2000 castellanos, and
to have given twelve or thirteen hundred loads of bread,
and 300 tocinos, beside 1800 castellanos in goods, to be
sold to the party at high prices. Every other supply was
furnished by Cortés, who maintained the whole force without
touching the ship’s stores, while remaining in Cuba, no
doubt. _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i. 487-90. Puertocarrero adds that
Cortés’ liberality to men in advancing means and outfits
was generally admitted. He himself had received a horse
from the commander. He gives a list of the outrageously
high prices charged by Velazquez for his supplies. _Id._,
491-5. Another member of the expedition states that Cortés
furnished seven vessels, and Velazquez three, two more
belonging to the latter joining the fleet afterward. Cortés
paid for all the outfit. Extract appended to _Carta del
Ayunt. de V. Cruz_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i. 419-20: ‘Casi
las dos partes ... á su (Cortés) costa, asi en navios como en
bastimentos de mar.’ ‘Todo el concierto de la dicha armada
se hizo á voluntad de dicho Diego Velazquez, aunque ni puso
ni gastó él mas de la tercia parte de ella.... La mayor
parte de la dicha tercia parte ... fué emplear sus dineros
en vinos y en ropas y en otras cosas de poco valor para nos
lo vender acá (V. Cruz) en mucha mas cantidad de lo que á él
le costó.’ _Carta de la Justicia de Veracruz, 10 de julio,
1519_, in _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 8; _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_,
_Col. Doc._, xiv. 37. Claiming to have no ready money of
his own, Velazquez took for the expedition 1000 castellanos
from the estate of Narvaez in his charge. _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 12-13. ‘Salió de la Isla de Cuba ... con quince
navíos suyos.’ _Cortés_, _Memorial_, 1542, in _Cortés_,
_Escritos Sueltos_, 310. Peter Martyr assumes that Cuban
colonists furnished the fleet with the governor’s consent,
and elected Cortés commander. Dec. iv. cap. vi. Solis,
_Hist. Mex._, i. 61, considers that Velazquez held only a
minor share in the expedition. Montejo stated in a general
way that he spent all his fortune on joining the expedition.
_Cent. Am._, 1554-55, 127-30, in _Squiers MS._ In _De Rebus
Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_ it is asserted that Cortés
expended 6000 pesos of his own, and 6000 ducats borrowed
money, beside what Velazquez lent him; his expenditures
being in all 15,000 pesos. Velazquez gave not one real, but
merely sold goods at exorbitant figures, or made advances
at a high interest, even the vessels provided by him being
transferred to the commander under an expensive charter.
‘Sunt pretereà, multi Hispani viri boni qui et nunc vivunt,
et qui cum ea classis de qua agimus, apparabatur, aderant.
Hi in hujus causæ defensione, cujus apud Consilium Regium
Indicum Cortesius est accusatus, testes jurati asserunt
Velazquium nihil omnino ex propriâ facultate in Cortesii
classem impendisse.’ This would indicate that Montejo and
Puertocarrero’s testimony was confirmed by many others. The
agent, Juan Diaz, who attended to the sale of the goods
and the collection of the advances, fell in the retreat
from Mexico, and his money was lost. _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 345-9. This testimony by members of the expedition
merits the foremost attention in the question, particularly
since the fewer statements on the other side are based
wholly on supposition. It is somewhat qualified, however,
by the consideration that both Montejo and Puertocarrero
were stanch friends of Cortés, and that the letter of the
ayuntamiento was prepared in his presence. It must also
be borne in mind that a goodly proportion of the share
attributed to him consisted of vessels and effects obtained
upon his credit as captain-general of the fleet, and also
in a semi-piratical manner. The statements in _Cortés_,
_Memorial_, and in _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_,
indicate, beside, a hardly warranted attempt to regard
Velazquez’ contribution chiefly as a loan to the commander
or to the party, his vessels being spoken of as chartered.
Another proportion belonged to wealthy volunteers. On the
whole, however, it may be concluded that Cortés could lay
claim to a larger share in the expedition than Velazquez;
but the latter possessed the title of being not only the
discoverer, through his captains, of the regions to be
conquered, but the projector of the expedition. Oviedo,
while believing that the fleet belonged with more right to
the governor, feels no pity for the treatment he received,
in view of his own conduct to Diego Colon. Complacently he
cites the proverb: ‘_Matarás y matarte han: y matarán quien
te matare._’ As you do unto others, so shall be done unto
you. Oviedo asserts that he has seen testimony showing that
Cortés and his men did not sail at their own expense, but
from his own statement it appears that the instructions of
Velazquez, wherein he speaks of the expedition as sent in
his name, is the chief feature in this so-called testimony;
i. 538-9. Las Casas naturally sides with Velazquez, and
estimates that he expended over 20,000 castellanos; he had
no need for, nor would he have stooped to a partnership,
at least with a man like Cortés. _Hist. Ind._, iv. 448.
Herrera, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. xi., copies this, and
Torquemada, i. 359, reverses this figure in favor of Cortés.
[83] _Testimonio de Puertocarrero_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i.
491. ‘Mãdo dar pregones, y tocar sus atambores, y trompetas
en nombre de su Magestad, y en su Real nombre por Diego
Velazquez para que qualesquier personas que quisiessen ir
en su compañía à las tierras nuevamente descubiertas â los
conquistar y doblar, les darian sus partes del oro plata,
y joyas que se huviesse, y encomiendas de Indios despues
de pacificada.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 13. Mark
here the promise of encomiendas to the volunteers. The
word ‘doblar’ doubtless meant to explore or to sail round
the new islands. Bernal Diaz does not fail to observe that
the royal license had not yet arrived to warrant these
proclamations.
[84] See _Landa_, _Rel. de Yuc._, 23; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 554; Fancourt, _Hist. Yuc._,
27, leaves out the middle sentence; Gomara, _Hist. Mex._,
15; Torquemada, i. 364, and others give only the Spanish
translation. Prescott says the flag was of velvet, and
attributes the sign to the _labarum_ of Constantine, which,
to say the least, is somewhat far-fetched. Bernal Diaz,
_Hist. Verdad._, 13, places the motto upon ‘estandartes,
y vanderas labradas de oro cõ las armas Reales, y una Cruz
de cada parte, juntamente con las armas de nuestro Rey.’
[85] ‘Se puso vn penacho de plumas con su medalla de oro.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 13. ‘Tomo casa. Hizo Mesa.
Y començo a yr con armas, y mucha compañía. De que muchos
murmurauan, diziendo que tenia estado sin señorio.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 13.
[86] Cortés himself was very liberal in advancing money
or necessaries. _Puertocarrero_, loc. cit. This cavalier
received a horse which Cortés bought at Trinidad with
gold fringes taken from his mantle. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 14. ‘Dio a muchos soldados ... dineros con
obligaciõ de man comun.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 12.
[87] _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 450-1; _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. xi. Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._,
13, relates the incident as having occurred on the way to
Sunday mass. The fool, whom he calls Cervantes, was walking
in front of his master and Cortés, uttering nonsense in
prose and rhyme; finally he said in a louder voice, ‘By my
faith, master Diego, a nice captain have you chosen: one
who will run away with the fleet, I warrant, for he has
courage and enterprise.’ Duero, who walked close by, sought
to check his tongue by striking at him and by shouting,
‘Silence, fool! Don’t be knavish as well, for we know that
this pretended jest is not of thyself.’ But the jester
persisted in calling out, ‘Hail to my master Diego and his
valiant captain! I swear to thee, my master, that rather
than see thee grievously regret this foolish step I would
hie me with Cortés to those rich lands.’ It was supposed
that Velazquez’ relatives had induced the man to make these
remarks.
[88] Prescott states that Las Casas was on the island at
the time. In this he is mistaken. On the other hand, Bernal
Diaz was an eye-witness, and tells a very different story.
But the tale of the soldier is not so striking as that of
the priest, who writes from the statements of Velazquez’
friends, colored by time and distance. The final words
which passed between the governor and Cortés, according
to Las Casas, in effect were these: ‘Compadre, is this the
way you are going? A nice manner, truly, of taking leave!’
To which Cortés makes answer, ‘Pardon me, sir; there are
things which must be carried out before they are considered.
I wait your worship’s orders.’ _Hist. Ind._, iv. 451-2;
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. xii.
[89] _Testimonio de Montejo_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i.
437. ‘No le pudo estoruar la yda porq̄ todos le siguian:
los q̄ alli estauã, como los q̄ venian con Grijalua. Ca
si lo tentara con rigor vuiera rebuelta en la ciudad, y
aun muertes. Y como no era párte dissimulo.’ Cortés even
announced that he was going on his own account, and that the
soldiers had nothing to do with Velazquez. _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 13. But this is highly improbable. According to _De
Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, Cortés spread insinuations
against Velazquez’ greed and selfishness, commented upon his
own liberality and upon the rich prospects before them, and
thus gained the voice of his followers, so that the former
dared not attempt any overt acts. ‘Loricâ ab eo tempore
sub veste munitus, stipatusque armatis militibus, quos spe
sibi fidos amicos fecerat.’ _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i.
346-9; _Cortés_, _Memorial_, 1542, in _Cortés_, _Escritos
Sueltos_, 310. Las Casas repeats his condemnation of Gomara,
as a man who wrote only what he was told by his master. He
scouts the idea of the powerful Velazquez either needing
Cortés’ pecuniary aid or not being able to dispose of his
fleet as he wished. A humble squire, indeed, to raise his
voice against the great Velazquez, who could have taken
his bread and life at any moment! _Hist. Ind._, iv. 448-9.
[90] In his memorial to the emperor in 1542, Cortés relates
this enforced transaction quite at length. Learning that
his stock of the week had been seized, Hernan Dalonso seeks
Cortés and complains, with tears in his eyes, whereupon
he receives the gold chain, ‘de unos abrojos.’ _Cortés_,
_Escritos Sueltos_, 310-11; _Col. Doc. Inéd._, iv. 221.
[91] Bernal Diaz asserts that Duero and Láres were present
at the parting, and that Velazquez and Cortés several times
embraced each other and vowed eternal friendship. ‘Habuit
Cortesius cùm e Sancti Jacobi urbe et portu solvit, naves
sex; aliâ, nam septem habuit, in portu, ut sarciretur
reficereturque, relictâ.’ _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi
Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 348. This
authority believes that one of the reasons for Cortés’
hurried departure was a fear that Grijalva’s vessels might
turn up; but they had already arrived, as we have seen.
The seventh vessel, a caravel, joined Cortés at Trinidad,
with nine horses and eighty volunteers, under Francisco de
Salcedo. _Id._, 354. ‘Partiose de Santiago Barucoa ... en
seys nauios.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 13.
[92] Pedro Juarez Gallinato de Porra was sent with a
caravel under orders to take the cargo of supplies to Cabo
Corrientes or Punta de Santanton, and there await the fleet.
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 13. In _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi
Cortesii_, loc. cit., the captain is called Pedro Gonzalez
de Trujillo. He brings 1500 tocinas (salt pork), and 2000
loads cassava. ‘Mil cargas de pan cazavi, y dos mil tocinos
y muchos fasoles y aves y otras cosas.’ _Cortés_, _Memorial_,
1542, in _Id._, _Escritos Sueltos_, 311.
[93] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 14, mentions several
more names, with occasional remarks on wealth and standing.
Puertocarrero is also written Puerto Carrero, and in the
modern form of Portocarrero. _Torquemada_ and _Oviedo_,
passim.
[94] This appears to be the same vessel referred to by Gomara
as Alonso Guillen’s, bought at Trinidad, though nothing is
of course said about the mode of payment. _Hist. Mex._, 13.
Prescott mistakes in making Sedeño the master of this vessel.
[95] Ordaz proceeded on his mission in the caravel _El
Guerho_, and returned to Trinidad in the vessel of Sedeño,
who received two thousand and more castellanos in gold
fringes, the only treasure on hand. _Cortés_, _Memorial_,
1542, in _Id._, _Escritos Sueltos_, 312. ‘Quatro mil
arrouas de pan, mil y quinientos toçinos y muchas gallinas.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 14. Bernal Diaz intimates that Sedeño
came into port of his own accord, and was induced to sell
ships and cargo. _Hist. Verdad._, 14. He was reputed the
richest man in the party. _Id._; _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._,
ii. 455-6; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. xii. ‘De una
hacienda de V. M. compró al mayordomo de ella quinientas
é tantas cargas (pan)’. _Cortés_, _Memorial_, 1542, loc.
cit. The _Probanza de Lejalde_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 411, contains interesting testimony as to what
goods were obtained, and how.
[96] The Habana was then situated on the south side of the
island, not on the north side, where the appellation now
obtains. Prescott and others fall into numerous blunders
by supposing the Habana of to-day to be identical with the
Habana of three hundred years ago, sending a whole fleet
far out of its way for no other purpose than to collect
provisions, which one vessel would accomplish as well.
[97] ‘Començó Cortés â poner casa, y â tratarse como señor:
y el primer Maestresala q̄ tuvo, fue vn Guzmã que luego se
muriò, ò mataron Indios.’ A different man from the later
mayordomo, Cristóbal de Guzman, who captured Quauhtemotzin
during the siege of Mexico. ‘Caceres ... fue despues de
ganado Mexico, hombre rico.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
15-16.
[98] Bernal Diaz says that Barba was one of the most
devoted to Cortés. See, also, _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii.,
cap. xiii. Solis details at length a public gathering, in
which the members of the expedition became highly excited
over Velazquez’ efforts to stop Cortés, and threatened
to destroy the town. He adds that a rumor of Velazquez’
coming in person to enforce his order created another
excitement. _Hist. Mex._, i. 63-6; Robertson, _Hist. Am._,
ii. 8, follows him; also Prescott. According to Las Casas,
Velazquez sends a letter to Cortés, asking him to wait for
an important communication, which he will bring in person
or send by messenger. At the same time come letters for
Ordaz and others, requesting them to seize the commander.
Ordaz accordingly invites him to a banquet on board his
vessel, with the intent of carrying him off to Santiago;
but Cortés perceives the snare and retires under pretence of
indisposition. The good bishop observes that he never knew
Velazquez evince so little sagacity as on this occasion;
nor did Ordaz behave any better. _Hist. Ind._, iv. 456-7.
Gomara has the same account, but adds that the messenger
from Velazquez came in a caravel, together with Alvarado,
Olid, Ávila, Montejo, and others of Grijalva’s party, who
had just arrived from an interview with the governor. _Hist.
Mex._, 14. He is evidently mixed. Torquemada, who quotes
both versions from Herrera and Gomara, places the occurrence
at Trinidad, and considers that Cortés was capable of and
right in foiling Velazquez. Bernal Diaz scouts Gomara’s
story, which is repeated in _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi
Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 355-6. Peralta
claims that his father, Suarez, pursued and slew the Indian
courier sent with orders for Luis de Medina, then with
the fleet, to assume the command. He thereupon brought the
papers to Cortés and warned him to sail away. _Nat. Hist._,
62-4. Peralta evidently upholds all his father told him.
[99] So affirms Tapia, one of the party. _Relacion_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 555; and this is the view
of most writers. Bernal Diaz states that the review was
held at Cozumel, which may also have been the case; but
he was not present at San Antonio. A review must have been
held before the fleet set out on its voyage, in order that
captains might be appointed and receive apportionments of
men and supplies. Zamacois, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 292-3, assumes
that, owing to Alvarado’s absence, the muster was reserved
for Cozumel.
[100] ‘Tomo [Cortés] fiada de Diego Sanz tendero, vna tieda
de bohoneria en sieteciẽtos pesos de oro.’ _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 12, 14-15. This was at Santiago. This author, who,
together with Diaz, forms the main authority for the above
list, mentions only eleven vessels, but does not include
Alvarado’s. He places the Spanish force at 550 men, but, by
adding to this the sixty and odd men absent with Alvarado
from the review, the number would agree with Bernal Diaz’
figures. Thirteen vessels, two having joined at Habana as
transports; 530 infantry; twenty-four horses; 5000 loads of
maize and cassava; 2000 tocinos. _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi
Cortesii_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 356. Twelve
vessels and 500 men. _Carta del Ayunt. de V. Cruz_, in _Col.
Doc. Inéd._, i. 419-20. Fifteen vessels and 500 men, without
any Indians or negroes, says Cortés, in his _Memorial_,
1542, not venturing to admit that he had disobeyed the
royal order and his instructions in taking Cuban Indians.
_Cortés_, _Escritos Sueltos_, 310; _Col. Doc. Inéd._, iv.
220. Seven navios, three bergantines. _Oviedo_, i. 539. Nine
vessels, 550 Spaniards, two to three hundred Indians. _Las
Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 446, 457. Eleven vessels of thirty
to one hundred tons, 663 Spaniards, including thirty men
with firearms. _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._,
iv. 54; _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, 19; _Vetancvrt_,
_Teatro Ecles._, pt. ii. 100-11; _Fancourt’s Hist. Yuc._,
26-7; _Zamacois_, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 296. Thirteen vessels,
560 persons, thirteen horses. _Tapia_, _Relacion_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 558; Prescott, _Mex._,
i. 262, follows both Bernal Diaz and Gomara, but without
seeking to account for their differences, and thus allows
himself to exceed every other authentic estimate for the
number of the men.
[101] _Torquemada_, i. 364; Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 14, gives
the same names, except that Francisco de Salcedo stands in
the place of Alvarado. Solis, _Hist. Mex._, i. 66, mentions
eleven, including Salcedo and Nortes; Las Casas, _Hist.
Ind._, iv. 453, names eight, as appointed by Velazquez.
Zamacois, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 287, leaves out Ávila, which
is certainly a mistake, based on Bernal Diaz, who includes
Ginés Nortes, the captain merely of a transport. Salcedo
joined later, at Villa Rica.
[102] Such is in substance the speech prepared by Gomara,
_Hist. Mex._, 15-16, well suited for the enterprise,
yet not exactly in accord with the pretended mission of
peaceful trade and exploration. Torquemada, i. 364-5, gives
it nearly in the same form, while Solis, _Hist. Mex._, i.
71-3, elaborates to suit himself.
[103] The date of departure is generally admitted to be
February 18th, but in _Cortés_, _Memorial_, 1542, is written
‘tardó en esto [fitting out] desde dieciocho dias del mes
de Octubre ... hasta dieciocho dias del mes de Enero, del
año de diez y nueve que acabó de salir de la dicha Isla de
Cuba, del cabo de Corrientes.’ _Cortés_, _Escritos Sueltos_,
313. This is wrong, however, for the fleet could not have
left Santiago before the date of the instructions; yet it
confirms the fact that three months were spent, after leaving
Santiago, before the fleet finally left the island. Some of
the authors indicate a portion of this time, showing that
eight days were spent at Macãco and twelve at Trinidad,
leaving seventy-two days for the brief passages along the
south coast of Cuba and for the stay at San Cristóbal.
_De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_, or, as the Spanish
translator entitles it, _Vida de Hernan Cortés_, giving
the fullest but also the most partial account of Cortés
up to this time, is an anonymous manuscript in Latin, of
eleven folio leaves, deposited in the Simancas archives,
whence Muñoz obtained a copy, published by Icazbalceta in
his _Coleccion de Documentos_, i. 309-57. It is in a clear
hand, with corrections and marginals, evidently by the
author. Several points indicate that it formed part of _De
Orbe Novo_, a history of America, written apparently in a
series of biographies, to judge from the reference made to
a preceding part relating to Columbus, and to later parts
on the conquest of Mexico. Muñoz expresses the opinion
that the author may be Calvet de Estrella, chronicler of
the Indies, mentioned by Nic. Antonio as the writer of the
manuscripts _De Rebus Gestis Vaccæ Castri_, in the Colegio
del Sacro Monte de Granada. This title induced him to name
the present document _De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii_.
The supposition is warranted by the style and by the evident
date; for references indicate that it was written during
the lifetime of several companions of Cortés. The fragment
begins with the hero’s birth and ends at his departure with
the fleet from Cuba. Although the facts related conform, as
a rule, to Gomara’s version, a number of authorities have
been consulted, some of them no longer extant, chiefly with
a view to extol the character and career of the hero, and
to elaborate incidents into tiresome prolixity.
CHAPTER VI.
THE VOYAGE.
1519.
SOMETHING OF THE CAPTAINS OF
CORTÉS—ALVARADO—MONTEJO—ÁVILA—OLID—SANDOVAL—LEON—ORDAZ—MORLA—THE
PASSAGE—THE FLEET STRUCK BY A SQUALL—ARRIVAL AT
COZUMEL—ALVARADO CENSURED—SEARCH FOR THE CAPTIVE
CHRISTIANS—ARRIVAL OF AGUILAR—HIS CHASTE ADVENTURES—THEY COME
TO TABASCO RIVER—BATTLES THERE—CONQUEST OF THE NATIVES—PEACE
MADE—TWENTY FEMALE SLAVES AMONG THE PRESENTS—THE FLEET
PROCEEDS ALONG THE SHORE—PUERTOCARRERO’S WITTICISM—ARRIVAL AT
SAN JUAN DE ULUA.
As the everlasting waves that bowl his ships along are discoursing to
Cortés of his destiny, let us make the acquaintance of his captains,
some of whom are to play parts in the Anáhuac amphitheatre secondary
only to his own.
First, there was the fiery and impetuous Pedro de Alvarado, a hero
of the Achilles or Sir Lancelot school, strong and symmetrical as
a goddess-born; haughty, choleric, sometimes stanch and generous;
passionate in his loves and hates, with the usual mixture of license,
loyalty, and zeal for the church. He had not eyes to see, from where
he stood in the warfare of his day, at once the decline of the fiercer
barbarism and the dawn of a truer and gentler heroism. Already we
have discovered flashes of temper and tendencies to treachery that
display his character by too sulphurous a flame; but we shall find
in him much to admire as conquistador and governor.
Alvarado was about the age of Cortés, Bajadoz being his native
place. There his father, Diego de Alvarado, comendador de Lobon in
the order of Santiago, and his mother, Sara de Contreras, struggled
with poverty to maintain the reputation of a good family name. At
the age of twenty-five Pedro came over to Santo Domingo, and prompted
by vanity paraded himself in an old gown of his fathers, whereon was
sewn the red cross of Santiago. At first he wore this garment inside
out, giving as a reason his reduced circumstances which made him
ashamed to publicly own the rank of knight. On being reproved by the
admiral, he boldly affixed the insignia to his other dresses, and
thenceforth called and signed himself the Comendador Alvarado.[104]
The title was never openly questioned in the Indies, where men had
little time for inquiring into the affairs of others, and Alvarado
failed not with his plausible tongue and crafty nature to use it for
obtaining certain privileges and advancement.
When Grijalva prepared his expedition he was living as an encomendero,
near Trinidad, in Cuba, with five brothers.[105] As captain under
this chief he gave evidence of an enterprising nature, combined with
an impatiency of restraint which ill fitted a subordinate. The want
of principle already shown by his conduct at Santo Domingo was here
made apparent in the attempt to injure his commander with Velazquez,
in order to further his own ends. His now prominent position as a
well-to-do gentleman, and the experience gathered under Grijalva,
had made him a welcome member of the present expedition. He had
also acquired the reputation of a good soldier and horseman, with
a bravery bordering on recklessness, and was a great favorite with
his men, among whom he also ranked as an able drill master. With an
agile frame, he presented a most cheerful and pleasing countenance,
fair, some called it, with a tendency to ruddiness. Its attraction
centred chiefly in the eyes, and afterward obtained for him among the
Indians of Tlascala the appellation of _Tonatiuh_, the Sun.[106] His
first glance thrown upon a combatant was the flash which was to be
followed by the thunderbolt. Vanity prompted a careful attention to
dress, but with a result approaching the showy rather than the elegant.
His manner, no less winning than the face, made him a most agreeable
companion, the more so as he was a liberal fellow, particularly with
respect to women, and to pleasures generally. Beneath this smiling
exterior, however, lay hidden an insatiable longing for power, and a
blind worship of gold as the purchaser of pleasure, and under their
influence he became at times so insensible to feelings of humanity
as to place him outside the category of greatness.[107]
Another of Grijalva’s captains here present was Francisco de Montejo,
who came from Spain with Pedrarias Dávila in 1514. After enlisting men
in Española, and aiding in the conquest of Cenú, he came to Cuba to
wield the sword for Velazquez; but while ranking as a brave officer
and a good horseman, he showed greater aptitude for business.
At the present time he was about thirty-five years of age, of medium
stature, and with a bright face, which indicated love for pleasure
and generous liberality.[108]
Alonso de Ávila, the third of Grijalva’s brave lieutenants, had also
a pleasant face and liberal disposition, combined with good reasoning
power, but was altogether too loud-spoken and argumentative, and
had an overbearing manner that created many enemies. He was about
thirty-three years of age. Cristóbal de Olid, a year his junior, was a
well formed, strong-limbed man, with wide shoulders and a somewhat fair
complexion. Despite the peculiarity of a groove in the lower lip, which
gave it the appearance of being split, the face was most attractive,
and the powerful voice helped to bear him out as a good talker. While
lacking in sincerity and depth of thought, and being little fit for
the council, he possessed qualities which, in connection with great
bravery and determination, made him an admirable executive officer;
but an ambition to command began to assert itself, and directed by
evil influence it brought about his fall a few years later. Bernal
Diaz calls him a very Hector in combat, and possessing, among other
good qualities, that of being liberal; on the whole an excellent
man, though unfit to be a leader.[109] The youngest of the captains,
the most worshipful and the most lovable, was Gonzalo de Sandoval,
an hidalgo of only twenty-two years, from Cortés’ own town, the son
of a fortress commandant, but with merely a rudimentary education.
Brave, intrepid, and with a good head, he was equally determined in
speech and in deportment, yet with a faultless obedience and loyalty
that won the confidence and esteem of his chief. With a strict eye to
discipline, he possessed also a kind, humane disposition, which gained
the love and respect of his men, whose comfort he studied far more
than his own. Plain in dress, and modest in manner and aspiration, he
was free from the greed which tainted so many around him. A soldier
in all qualities of the heart and mind, he was also physically fitted
for one. In battle he was as wrathful and as beautiful as Apollo
when he slew the Python. The robust frame, with its high chest and
broad shoulders, supported a full face adorned with short, curly,
nut-brown hair. The powerful voice, inclining at times to a lisp, was
exhibited more in the issue of brief command than in conversation;
for Don Gonzalo was as energetic to act as he was chary of words.
The slightly bow-legged limbs indicated an early training for the
saddle. Indeed, equestrian exercises were his delight, and his horse
Motilla, a chestnut with a white foot and a star on the forehead, is
described by Bernal Diaz as the finest he ever saw. Sandoval stands
before us not only as an admirable man, but as an ideal officer,
in his combined qualities of juvenile ardor and prudence, valor and
humanity, modesty of disposition and purity of heart. Cortés spoke of
him after his death with feelings of deepest regret, and represented
him to the emperor as one of the finest soldiers in the world, fit
to command armies.[110]
In Velazquez de Leon we find another admirable officer, who possesses
many traits in common with Sandoval. He is described as about four
years older than that chivalrous youth, with a well formed, powerful
frame, fine chest and shoulders, full face, set in a somewhat curled
and carefully tended beard. He was open with the hand, ready with
the sword, and an expert horseman. He bore the reputation of having
killed a prominent and rich man in a duel in Española, a deed which
had obliged him to seek refuge in Cuba with his relation Velazquez.
The most devoted adherent of Velazquez, although not bound to him
by ties of relationship, was his ancient mayordomo mayor, Diego de
Ordaz,[111] a powerful man, of large stature, with full face, thin,
dark beard, and stuttering speech. As a leader of foot-soldiers, for
he did not ride, he gained the reputation of possessing great daring,
as well as a good head; and among comrades he ranked as a liberal man
and a conversationalist. Of the other captains, Francisco de Salcedo,
reputed chief butler to the admiral of Castile, bore the sobriquet
of ‘Dandy’ from his spruce manner;[112] and Francisco de Morla is
spoken of as a valiant soldier and good horseman.[113]
On the way over the vessels were dispersed by a squall, but were
gathered by the flag-ship, some at Catoche, and some at Port San
Juan, on the north end of Cozumel Island, where they all finally
congregated.[114] Quite early in the adventure Cortés was called on
to spread before his unbridled associates the quality of discipline
they might expect. It seems that Alvarado arrived at Cozumel Island
two days before the fleet, and had begun to carry matters with rather
a high hand for a subordinate. He had entered two towns, taken three
persons captive, and seized some property of the natives. “Is this the
way to win to our purpose barbarous peoples?” exclaimed the indignant
Cortés. For failing to bring the vessel to the rendezvous at Cape San
Antonio, Alvarado’s pilot was placed in chains. A little later, seven
sailors were flogged for theft and perjury. The captives were soothed
with presents and liberated, the stolen articles restored, and with
the aid of Melchor, the interpreter, the fears of the natives were
assuaged.
In answer to his inquiries regarding the captive Christians, Cortés
was informed that two days’ journey in the interior of Yucatan bearded
men had been seen by Cozumel traders, not long since, whereupon two
vessels were despatched to Catoche under Ordaz, who was there to
await, one week, the return of three Indian messengers, sent with
presents to redeem the captives, and bearing a letter telling them
where to find their countrymen.[115]
While waiting events, Cortés landed the horses to explore and forage,
and employed the otherwise unoccupied men in military exercise. The
islanders were highly entertained, and thought the animals giant deer
and the ships water-houses. In return they gave the strangers cause
for wonderment not unmixed with wrath; for this was a sacred island,
in a heathen sense, and thither, from distant parts, resorted pilgrims
with offerings for sanguinary shrines. And when one feast-day the
priests of Baal, within their temple, arose before the people and
called upon the gods of their fathers, the excited Spaniards could
not contain themselves; Cortés stood forth and preached his religion
to the indignant savages, but failing in the desired effect, the
Spaniards rushed upon the idols, hurled them from their seats, and
planted in their place the emblem of their faith.[116]
In due time Ordaz returned without the lost Christians, greatly
to the disappointment of Cortés, who desired them particularly for
interpreters. The fleet then set sail, but was obliged to return,
owing to the leaky condition of Escalante’s vessel. While engaged
upon repairs one day, the Spaniards being encamped upon the shore, a
canoe was seen approaching the harbor from the mainland. Andrés de
Tapia and others hastened to the landing, where presently the boat
arrived, and four tawny undressed figures stepped upon the shore. One
was bearded, and his form a little bent, and as he advanced before
the others there was eager questioning in the piercing glance he threw
about him. Presently he cried out in ill-articulated speech, “Señores,
sois cristianos?” On being assured that they were, he dropped upon his
knees, and with tears falling from uplifted eyes thanked God for his
deliverance. Tapia saw it at a glance; this was one of the captives.
Hastily stepping forward, he caught the uncouth object in his arms,
raised him from the ground with a tender embrace, and conducted him
to camp.[117] But for the beard it would have been difficult, from
his outward appearance, to believe him a European. Naturally of a
dark complexion, he was now bronzed by exposure, and entirely naked
except for a breech-cloth and sandals. His crown was shorn, and the
remaining hair braided and coiled upon the head.[118] In his hand he
carried a net containing, among other things, a greasy prayer-book.
On being presented to Cortés he seemed dazed, scarcely knowing whether
to call himself savage or civilized. At best he could not all at once
throw himself out of the former and into the latter category; for when
his Indian companions squatted themselves before the captain-general,
and with the right hand, moistened by the lips, touched the ground
and then the region of the heart in token of reverence, impelled by
habit he found himself doing the same. Cortés was touched. Lifting
him up, he threw over the naked Spaniard his own yellow mantle, lined
with crimson. He asked his name, and the man said he was Gerónimo de
Aguilar, ordained in minor orders, a native of Ecija, and relative
of the Licenciado Marcos de Aguilar, known to Cortés in Española.
He and Gonzalo Guerrero, a sailor and a native of Palos, were the
sole survivors of the expedition which, nearly eight years before,
had left Darien for Española, under Valdivia, whose shipwreck and
horrible fate I have elsewhere detailed.[119]
If backward at the beginning in the use of his tongue, Aguilar talked
well enough when started, giving his thrilling experiences in words
which filled his listeners with amazement. On escaping from the lord
of Maya, who had eaten Valdivia and the others with the same relish
that the Cyclops ate the companions of Ulysses, the survivors threw
themselves on the mercy of a neighboring cacique called Ahkin Xooc.
He with his successor, Taxmar, enslaved them, and treated them so
severely that all died but himself and the sailor, Guerrero. There is a
law of relativity which applies to happiness and misery, no less than
to mental and physical consciousness. By ways widely different these
two men had saved themselves; the former by humility and chastity,
the latter by boldness and sensuality. Securing services under Nachan
Kan, cacique of Chetumal, the sailor adopted the dress and manners
of the people, rapidly rose in favor, became the chief captain of
his master, married a woman of rank, and began to rear a dusky race;
so that when the messengers of Cortés arrived he declined to be
ransomed.[120] Then blushing beneath his tawny skin the sanctified
Aguilar went on to tell of his own temptations and triumphs, in which
he had been as lonely as was Ethan Brand in hugging the unpardonable
sin. So sublime had been his patience and his piety under the drudgery
at first put upon him, that he too rose in the estimation of his
master, who was led to entrust him with more important matters. For
in all things pertaining to flesh and spirit he acted with so much
conscientiousness that Taxmar, a stranger to those who loved virtue
for its own sake, suspected the motives that inspired his captives. To
test his wonderful integrity, for he had noticed that Aguilar never
raised his eyes to look upon a woman, Taxmar once sent him for fish
to a distant station, giving him as sole companion a beautiful girl,
who had been instructed to employ all her arts to cause the Christian
to break his vow of continency. Care had been taken that there should
be but one hammock between them, and at night she bantered him to
occupy it with her; but stopping his ears to the voice of the siren,
he threw himself upon the cold, chaste sands, and passed the night
in peaceful dreams beneath the songs of heaven.[121]
Cortés smiled somewhat sceptically at this and like recitals, wherein
the sentiments expressed would have done honor to Scipio Africanus;
nevertheless, he was exceedingly glad to secure this man, even
though he had been a little less chaste and brave and cunning than he
represented himself to be. He found him not only useful but willing,
for this humble holy man was a great fighter, as he had said, and
was very ready to lead the Spaniards against his late master, though
pledged to peace and friendliness.
Early in March[122] the fleet again sailed, and after taking shelter
from a gale behind Punta de las Mujeres for one or two days, passed
round Catoche and along the Yucatan coast, hugging the shore to
note its features, and sending forth a growl of revenge on passing
Potonchan. Boca de Términos was now reached, whither Escobar had
been sent in advance to explore, and within the entrance of a little
harbor, to which a boat’s crew was guided by blazings, a letter was
found, hidden in a tree, from which circumstance the harbor was named
Puerto Escondido. The letter reported a good harbor, surrounded by rich
lands abounding in game; and soon after the fleet met the exploring
vessel, and learned of the important acquisition to the expedition
in Grijalva’s lost dog.[123] Off Rio de Tabasco the fleet came to
anchor, and the pilots knowing the bar to be low, only the smaller
vessels entered the river. Remembering the friendly reception accorded
Grijalva, the Spaniards were surprised to find the banks lined with
hostile bands, forbidding them to land. Cortés therefore encamped at
Punta de los Palmares, on an island about half a league up the river
from the mouth, and not far from the capital of the Nonohualcas, a
large town of adobe and stone buildings on the opposite mainland,
protected by a heavy stockade.[124]
In answer to a demand for water, the natives thereabout pointed to
the river; as for food, they would bring some on the morrow. Cortés
did not like the appearance of things; and when, during the night,
they began to remove their women and children from the town, he
saw that his work must begin here. More men and arms were landed on
the island, and Ávila was ordered to proceed to the mainland with
one hundred men, gain the rear of the town, and attack at a given
signal.[125] In the morning a few canoes arrived at the island with
scanty provisions, all that could be obtained, the natives said;
and further than this, the Spaniards must leave: if they attempted
to penetrate the interior, they would be cut off to a man. Cortés
answered that his duty to the great king he served required him to
examine the country and barter for supplies. Entering the vessels,
he ordered them to advance toward the town; and in the presence of
the royal notary, Diego de Godoy, he made a final appeal for peace,
as required by Spanish law, casting upon the natives the blame for
the consequences of their refusal. The reply came in the form of
yells, mingled with the noise of conchs, trumpets, and drums, and a
shower of arrows. The Spaniards drove their prows forward into the
mud. The Indians crowded round in canoes to prevent their landing. A
well directed volley at once cleared the way, and notified Ávila to
attack. Panic-stricken at the strangeness and suddenness of it all,
the natives fell back, but rallied at the call of their leaders, and
poured a shower of arrows on the Spaniards as they threw themselves
into the water to wade ashore, receiving them at the point of their
lances as they reached the bank. Tabasco’s men were powerful and brave.
The charge of cowardice had been flung at them by their neighbors for
having been friendly with the Spaniards on former occasions, and they
were now determined to vindicate their character for courage. Once on
solid ground the Spaniards rang their battle-cry of “Sus, Santiago,
á ellos!” Up, Santiago, and at them! and drove the enemy within the
stockade. A breach was quickly made, and the defenders chased some
distance up the streets, where they made a stand, shouting “La, la,
calachoni!” Strike at the chief! At this juncture Ávila appeared.
The natives saw the day was lost to them, and they turned and fled.
The Spaniards did not pursue very far, but halted in an open space,
where three stately temples invited to pillage, though little was
found worth taking, except some maize and fowl. During the action
eighteen Indians were killed and fourteen Spaniards wounded.[126]
In the formal taking of possession which followed, it was noticed by
those present that mention of the name of Velazquez was significantly
omitted.[127]
Next morning Alvarado and Francisco de Lugo, each with one hundred men,
were sent by different ways to reconnoitre and forage, with orders to
return before dark.[128] Melchor, on being called to accompany one
of them, was missing. Presently his clothes were discovered hanging
on a tree, indicating that he had gone over to the enemy. Lugo had
advanced not more than a league when, near a town called Centla, he
encountered a large body of warriors, who attacked him fiercely and
drove him back toward the camp. Alvarado had meanwhile been turned
by an estuary from his course and in the direction of Lugo. Hearing
the noise of battle he hastens to the assistance of Lugo, only to
be likewise driven back by the ever increasing hosts, and not until
Cortés came to the rescue with two guns did the enemy retire.[129]
The result, according to Bernal Diaz, was two of Lugo’s men killed
and eleven wounded, while fifteen Indians fell and three were captured.
Nor did the matter rest here. The captives told Cortés that Tabasco,
concerned at the arrival of so large a fleet which augured hostile
occupation, had aroused the province, the assembled chiefs being
also urged by Melchor to manfully expel the invaders, as the people
of Potonchan had done. To depart now would leave a stain upon the
generalship of Cortés in the eyes of both Spaniards and Indians such
as was not to be thought of. There must be a battle fought and won.
To this end all the horses, cross-bows, firelocks, and guns were
brought on shore. Thirteen of the best horsemen[130] were selected
to form a cavalry corps under the leadership of Cortés. The horses
were provided with poitrels having bells attached, and the riders
were to charge the thick of the enemy and strike at the face. Ordaz
was made chief of infantry and artillery, the latter being in special
charge of Mesa.[131] In order both to surprise the enemy and secure
good ground for the cavalry, Cortés resolved to advance at once on
Centla. It was annunciation day, the 25th of March, when the army
left camp and stood before Centla, in the midst of broad maize and
cocoa fields, intersected by irrigation ditches. The enemy were ready,
their dark forms appearing in the distance under an agitated sea of
glistening iztli. The cavalry now made a detour to gain their rear,
while the infantry marched straight on.[132] Formidable as was in
truth the Spanish army, the unsophisticated natives made light of
it, and came gayly forward to the combat in five squadrons, of eight
thousand warriors each,[133] as Bernal Diaz says, “all in flowing
plumes, with faces painted in red, white, and black, sounding drums
and trumpets, and flourishing lances and shields, two-handed swords,
fire-hardened darts, and slings, and every man protected by an armor
of quilted cotton.” They would encircle these impudent interlopers,
and did they not fall fainting beneath their brave yells and savage
music, they would crush them like flies. And by way of beginning,
they sent forth a cloud of arrows, stones, and charred darts, wounding
many and killing one, a soldier named Saldaña. The Spaniards answered
with their cross-bows and firelocks, and mowed the packed masses with
their cannon. The soft soil and ditches were less to the agile Indian
than to the heavily accoutred Spaniard.
It adds nothing to the honor of Spanish arms to throw in at this
juncture a miracle to terrify the already half-paralyzed Indians, who
might otherwise prove too strong for their steel-clad assailants; but
the records compel me. While in the dire embrace of heathen hordes,
midst thrust and slash and crash of steel and stone, the enemy hewn
down and driven back only to give place to thrice the number, behold,
upon a gray-spotted steed, a heavenly horseman appeared, and from a
slight eminence overlooking the bloody field he frowned confusion on
the foe. The heathen warriors were stricken powerless, enabling the
Spaniards to form anew; but when the horseman vanished, the Indians
rallied. Thrice, with the same effect, the awful apparition came and
went.[134] Then there were horsemen indeed, more real to the Spaniards,
but none the less spectral to the Indians. They had been detained by
the marshes intervening; and now, with swords and helmets glittering,
they rose in the enemy’s rear, and midst clang of arms and shouts of
Santiago y San Pedro, they threw themselves with terrible effect upon
him. What could the Indians do? Those that were not trampled or cut
to death turned and fled, and the Spaniards possessed the field. “And
this was the first preaching of the gospel in New Spain, by Cortés,”
remarks the caustic Las Casas.[135]
The Spaniards drew up at a grove to return thanks for this great
victory. A large number of the enemy were slain. Sixty of their own
number were wounded, and two lay dead; eight horses had been scratched,
and their wounds were cauterized and anointed with the fat of dead
Indians.[136] On returning to camp two of five captives, leading men,
were sent with presents to the cacique to represent the danger of
further hostility, and to propose a council of peace. Tabasco was very
ready to lay down arms, and he sent a propitiatory offering of fowl,
fried fish, and maize bread by messengers with blackened faces and
dressed in rags. Cortés answered with a reprimand, “Tell your master,
if he desires peace he must sue for it, and not send slaves.” Tabasco
hastened to comply, and sent immediately to Cortés an embassy of
forty chiefs, richly clad and walking in stately procession, followed
by a file of slaves bearing presents. Low bowing before the bearded
assembly, and swinging before them the censer in token of reverence,
the ambassador implored pardon, and proffered submission. “The blame
is all your own,” said Cortés, with severity. The Indians acquiesced,
though it puzzled them to know for what they were to blame. Cortés
further informed them that the great king, his master, had sent him
to scatter blessings, if they were found deserving; if not, to let
loose upon them the caged lightning and the thunder which he carried.
Whereat the gun charged for the occasion was fired, and as the noise
reverberated over the hills and the ball went crashing through the
trees, the Indians fell prostrate with fear, and the noble Europeans
were proud of their superiority.
Reassured against further punishment, the next trick played upon
them was to tie a mare in the bushes in sight of a stallion which
they paraded before their visitors; and when he neighed and reared
and plunged to get to his mate, the natives were told that the great
beast was angry because of the peace that was being made, and only
further gifts would pacify him.
On the following morning Tabasco presented himself in person, attended
by a large retinue, and bringing presents, among which were some gold
ornaments of little value and twenty female slaves. The terms dictated
by Cortés were that they should return their women and children to
the village within two days, in token of their good faith, and that
the treacherous Melchor should be delivered up. But the unfortunate
interpreter had already suffered death in return for his bad advice.
It was useless to demand gold, for there was little or none here.
So they proceeded at once to expound the doctrines of their faith;
to lay before them the truths of the gospel which they had come so
far to bring. An altar was erected in the chief temple on which was
placed a large cross. From this altar Father Olmedo preached to the
natives, and here were baptized the first converts to the church in
New Spain, consisting of the twenty female slaves, who were afterward
distributed among the leaders. Then followed the ceremonial tender of
allegiance by the chiefs of Tabasco’s province to the Spanish king,
and the formal naming of the large town, which was called Santa María
de la Victoria, in commemoration of the victory.[137]
Palm Sunday being at hand, it was resolved to celebrate it in such
a manner as to further impress the natives. Attired in their most
brightly colored garments, with palms in their hands and banners aloft,
the Spaniards marched in solemn procession, to harmonious chants, about
the temple; and when these doughty men of war humbled themselves before
the symbols of their faith, the wondering heathen thought that great
indeed must be the god worshipped by such beings. After commending
the sacred emblems to the care of the chiefs, with a promise to send
holy men to teach them the true faith, and with assurances of royal
protection, the Spaniards bade the Nonohualcas farewell, and were
shortly on their way again.
Keeping close to the shore for purposes of observation, the several
places observed and named by Grijalva were pointed out to Cortés and
commented upon by those who had accompanied the former expedition.
Certain of the new captains took umbrage at this assumption of superior
knowledge, accompanied by liberal proffers of advice; and one of
them, the polished Puertocarrero, broke out in a strain of pleasant
sarcasm. “It seems to me, señor,” he said, taking the incidents
of a well-known romance for his text, “as if these gentlemen would
enlighten you, in the words of the father of Montesinos:
Behold France, Montesinos;
Behold Paris, the city;
Behold the waters of Douro,
Where they fall into the sea!
Now I would humbly suggest that your worship yourself should seek out
rich lands and learn to govern them wisely.” Catching the significance
of the words, Cortés replied: “Let God only grant success to our arms,
as he did to Paladin Roldan, and with such gentlemen as yourself to
aid me I shall well know what to do.”
Gliding past islas Blanca and Verde, the fleet anchored behind San
Juan de Ulua late on Thursday in passion week.
FOOTNOTES
[104] ‘Qustando ... en la cibdad de Sto Domingo vibiendo
con el Almirante.’ _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_,
pp. xi. 61; _Juarros_, _Guat._, i. 252.
[105] ‘Todos hermanos, que fue el Capitan Pedro de Aluarado,
y Gonçalo de Aluarado, y Jorge de Aluarado, y Gonçalo
[Alonzo] y Gomez, è Juan de Alvarado el viejo, que era
bastardo.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 14.
[106] See _Native Races_, iii. 109 and 183. ‘Biondo.’
_Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 8. Elaborating this,
Brasseur de Bourbourg says, ‘Aux cheveux blonds et coloré
de visage, ce qui lui fit donner par les Tlaxcaltèques
le surnom de Tonatiuh.’ _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 53. But
the authority for calling him blonde is not mentioned. It
may rest on mere tradition. A Mexican picture gives him
dark beard and a yellow helmet or head-dress, the same
colors being given to the beard and head-dress of figures
representing the Spanish troops. Ramirez is rather inclined
to doubt the authenticity of the portrait so frequently
copied from Cortina’s copper-plates, representing him as of
dark complexion, with long, meagre, pointed face, very high
forehead, stubbed hair, mustache, and imperial. _Ramirez_,
_Proceso contra Alvarado_, pp. xi. xxii. 277-82, with plates.
_Prescott’s Mex._ (Mex. 1844), i. 458; _Id._ (_Gondra ed._),
iii. 220; _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 340, 686,
with signature. A wood-cut in _Armin_, _Alte Mex._, 222,
presents a much younger man, with a round, handsome face,
curled hair, and full, curled beard. This corresponds more
to the description given in the text, but the authority
is not indicated. Zamacois, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 484, gives
a full-length portrait corresponding to this.
[107] Helps, _Cortés_, ii. 163, compares him to Murat,
Cortés being the Napoleon. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
15, 240, 245.
[108] _Montejo_, _Memorial al Emp._, 1545, in _Cent. Amer._,
1545-55, MS. 130. ‘Fué uno de aquellos mílites que passaron
á estas partes ... mill é quinientos y catorçe, é aquel
mesmo año ... fuésse de la Tierra-Firma ... é passóse á la
isla de Cuba.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 217.
[109] See _Hist. Cent. Am._, this series, i., 524-32. ‘Era
estremado varon, mas no era para mandar, sino para ser
mãdado, y era de edad de treinta y seis años, natural de
cerca de Baeza ò Linares.... Tenia otras buenas codiciones,
de ser franco.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 177. ‘Era vn
Hector en el esfuerço, para combatir persona por persona.’
_Id._, 240. ‘Natural que fue de Vbeda ò de Linares.’ _Id._,
241. ‘Da Baeza nell’Andaluzia. Era membruto, ombroso, e
doppio.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 8. ‘D’une laideur
extrême; sa duplicité et sa fourberie le rendaient un homme
peu sur,’ says Brasseur de Bourbourg, _Hist. Nat. Civ._,
iv. 53, with his not unusual hasty elaboration. Portrait in
_Prescott’s Mex._ (Mex. 1844), i. 421; also in _Zamacois_,
_Hist. Méj._, iv. 254.
[110] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 240, 246; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 8; Portrait and signature in _Carbajal
Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 254, 686. Portrait in
_Zamacois_, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 485, and in _Armin_, _Alte
Mex._, 217.
[111] Also written Ordás. ‘Natural de tierra de Campos.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 246. Portrait in _Carbajal
Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 192.
[112] ‘Saucedo, natural de Medina de Rioseco; y porque era
muy pulído, le llamavamos, el galan.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 240. This captain joins later.
[113] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 240-7, gives a long
list of notices of members of the expedition, many of whom
will receive attention during the course of the narrative.
[114] San Juan, Ante Portam Latinam. See also _Carta del
Ayunt. de Vera Cruz_, in _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 9. Several
authors, following Gomara, it seems, refer to one vessel
as missing, but as this is identified with Escobar’s,
sent, according to Bernal Diaz, on a special exploring
expedition to Laguna de Términos, the view of the latter
author is probably more correct. It is not likely that a
captain would have sailed so far beyond the rendezvous, and
there waited for weeks the chance arrival of the fleet. In
_Tapia_, _Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
557, are references yet more vague to a missing vessel.
During the gale Morla’s vessel was struck by a wave, which
unshipped her rudder. His signal of distress caused the
flag-ship to heave to till daybreak. The rudder was then
discovered floating close by, and tying a rope to his body,
Morla leaped into the sea to aid in replacing it. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 16; _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 458.
[115] The letter, as given in _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
17, and _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 19, differs somewhat in
tenor, and the former assigns eight days, the latter six, as
the time Ordaz was to wait. Gomara writes further that the
Indians were at first afraid to venture on such an errand
into the interior, but the large reward overcame their
fears, and they were carried to the cape in Escalante’s
vessel, escorted by Ordaz in two other craft manned by fifty
men. Cogolludo, _Hist. Yucathan_, 20, thinks there could
be no danger for messengers. ‘Escondieron [the letter] a
vno entre los cabellos, que trahian largos y trenzados,
rebueltos, a la cabeça: y embiò los dos nauios de menos
porte ... con veynte ballesteros, y escopeteros ... y que
el menor boluiesse a dar cuenta de lo que auian hecho.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iv. cap. vi.; _Peter Martyr_,
dec. iv. cap. vi. ‘Envió un bergantin é cuatro bateles ...
que esperarian cinco dias, é no mas.’ _Tapia_, _Relacion_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 556. Las Casas, _Hist.
Ind._, iv. 459, states that the cacique of Cozumel, eager
to communicate freely with Cortés, sent messengers to the
lord owning one of the captives, and asked him to sell or
lend the man. Cortés at first proposed to rescue the captive
with an armed force, but the cacique suggested a ransom
as more effective. _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 76; _Landa_,
_Rel. de Yuc._, 24-6.
[116] Two carpenters, Alonso Yañez and Álvaro Lopez, claim
the honor of having raised the first cross for the church in
New Spain. To this the natives made no great objection, the
cross having already with them a religious significance; and
surely the sanctified effigy of the benign Mary was a more
beautiful object to look upon than their idols. See _Native
Races_, iii. 468-70. In one of the temples ‘auia vna cruz
de cal tan alta como diez palmos.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
24. Las Casas objects to the compulsory mode of conversion
used by Cortés and his holy company, and devotes a long
paragraph to depicting the folly and evil thereof. _Hist.
Ind._, iv. 460-2, 470. Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 18,
describes the idolatrous rite, and Prescott, _Mex._, i.
269-71, speaks of Cortés as a reformer.
[117] This is the substance of Tapia’s own account.
_Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 556-7. Others
differ somewhat in the number of Indians who arrive in the
canoe, in the mode of addressing Tapia, and other points.
According to Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 19, some soldiers
out hunting report the approach of the canoe, whereupon
Cortés sends Tapia to ascertain its object. Seven Indians
of Cozumel land, and, on seeing the Spaniards advance, are
about to flee in alarm, but one of them reassures the rest,
and calls out, ‘Dios, y Santa María, y Sevilla.’ While he
is embraced by Tapia, a soldier rushes to announce the news
to Cortés. According to Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 20, it is
meal-time and first Sunday in Lent when the news of a canoe
with four Indians is brought. The fleet had been prevented
by a storm from sailing on the previous day.
[118] This was a common form of Maya hair-dress. Bernal
Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 19, and some others describe him
as shorn like a slave; but this man appears to have risen
from that condition. He gives him an extra pair of sandals,
hanging at the waist, a dilapidated mantle or cloth—called
a net by Herrera—wherein is tied a thumbed prayer-book, and
upon the shoulder he places an oar. This oar is brought
into camp by almost every writer, regardless of the fact
that it did not belong to him and could no longer be of
use. Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 20, gives him bow and arrows.
Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 461, remarks that in the
prayer-book was kept an account of time, which marked this
day as a Wednesday, while it really was Sunday.
[119] See _Hist. Cent. Am._, i. 350, this series.
[120] Aguilar intimated another reason why Guerrero remained,
that he had taken part in the fights against Córdoba and
Grijalva at Potonchan, which is very doubtful. Then it is
said that his face was tattooed and his lips turned down,
and when Aguilar besought him to go the children clung to
him, and the wife first begged, and then threatened, to
make Aguilar desist. _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, 23;
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 18-19; _Torquemada_, i. 370.
[121] This is in substance the adventures of Aguilar, as
related at length in _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iv. cap.
vii.-viii., followed by _Torquemada_, i. 370-72, and
_Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, 24-9, and prettily, though
hastily, elaborated in _Irving’s Columbus_, iii. 290-301,
and other modern writers. On reaching Catoche and finding
Ordaz gone, he proceeded to Cozumel, in the hope of finding
some of the Spaniards. ‘Era Aguilar estudiante quando passò
a las Indias, y hombre discreto, y por esto se puede creer
qualquiera cosa del,’ concludes Herrera, as if suspecting
that the version may be questioned. Prudence is shown in
the care with which he gradually accustomed himself to the
change of food and habits on again joining the Spaniards.
Peter Martyr, dec. iv. cap. vi., relates that Aguilar’s
mother became insane on hearing that her son had fallen
among cannibals—who brought her the news it is hard to
guess—and whenever she beheld flesh roasting, loud became
the laments for his sad fate. This is repeated in _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 22; _Martinez_, _Hist. Nat. Nueva Esp._,
ii. xxiv. Herrera, who cannot avoid mixing in all the
romance possible, makes him search for means to cross the
strait. He finds at last a leaky canoe half buried in the
sand, and in this frail skiff he and the Indian companion
presented by his late master managed to gain the island.
Others give him Cortés’ messengers for companions. Bernal
Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 18, very reasonably permits him to
hire a canoe with six rowers, for he has beads to pay for
it, and canoes would not be wanting, since the island was
a resort for pilgrims, particularly at this very time.
Mendieta, _Hist. Ecles._, 175-76, fails not to recognize,
in the compulsory return of the fleet to Cozumel, and in
the finding of Aguilar, the hand of God; and Torquemada,
i. 370, eagerly elaborates the miraculous features in the
appearance of this Aaron, who is to be the mouth-piece of
his Moses.
[122] Bernal Diaz says the 4th, which is rather close
reckoning, according to his own account, for two days are
required to reach Cozumel from Cape San Antonio, nine days
are consumed by Ordaz in waiting for the captives, and four
days for repairing Escalante’s leaky vessel. This alone
brings us from February 18th, the date of leaving Cape San
Antonio, to March 5th, without counting a probable day or
two for preparing, starting, and returning.
[123] A greyhound bitch, really of great service to the
hunters. Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 20, starts Escobar
from Punta de las Mujeres. _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, Pt.
iii. 112. Cogolludo, _Hist. Yucathan_, 29, while adopting
on hearsay the more general supposition that a missing
vessel is found here, follows Diaz in the account of the
exploring vessel. Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 25-6, and Herrera,
dec. ii. lib. iv. cap. xi., evidently attributes the name
Escondido to the finding of the missing vessel.
[124] ‘Mille quingentorum passuum, ait Alaminus nauclerus,
et domorum quinque ac viginti millium ... egregie lapidibus
et calce fabrefectæ.’ _Peter Martyr_, _De Insvlis_, 14. ‘A
poco mas de media legua que subian por el, (river) vieron vn
gran pueblo con las casas de adoues y los tejados de paja,
el qual estaua cercado de madera, con bien gruessa pared
y almenas, y troneras para flechar.’ Halls and temples are
also referred to: ‘Mas no tiene veinte y cinco mil casas.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 26-37. ‘Punta de los Palmares [where
Grijalva also camped], que estava del pueblo de Tabasco otro
media legua.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 20. Montanus,
_Nieuwe Weereld_, 77, follows Gomara and Martyr, in calling
the pueblo Potonchan; so does Helps, _Span. Conq._, ii.
260-4, who frequently reveals the superficiality of his
researches. Brasseur de Bourbourg calls it Centla. _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, iv. 58. The stockade defences are described in
detail in _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 93-4.
[125] ‘Mandò poner en cada vn batel tres tiros.’ Ávila
received one hundred soldiers, including ten cross-bowmen,
and took a route leading across creeks and marshes to
the rear of the pueblo. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
20. ‘Señalo Cortés dos capitanes con cada cienticinquenta
Españoles. Que fueron Alonso di Auila, y Pedro de Aluarado.’
A ford was found half a league above the camp. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 27; Peter Martyr, dec. iv. cap. vii., sends
one hundred and fifty men by different routes. The testimony
favors the supposition that Ávila forded the river.
[126] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 20, estimates that
twelve thousand warriors defended the town. He himself
received a wound in the thigh. Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 29,
leaves only four hundred in charge of the place. Peter
Martyr, dec. iv. cap. vii., allows the horses to share in
the battle, and places the warriors at four thousand. Las
Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 474, exaggerates, of course, the
Spanish excesses, but without giving definite statements.
[127] ‘Intẽtaba hacer lo que despues hizo,’ says Vetancvrt,
_Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 112, in reference to the later
effected independence of Velazquez. The mode of taking
possession is thus described: Advancing with drawn sword
and shield to a large ceiba-tree in the court-yard, Cortés
struck it three times, and announced that he took possession
for the king, and would defend his right against all comers.
The soldiers thereupon shouted their approval, declaring
that they would sustain their captain in his challenge.
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 21. Zamacois compares this
form with others used elsewhere. _Hist. Méj._, x. 988.
[128] The _Carta del Ayunt. de Vera Cruz_, in _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 15, refers to a certain intercourse held with
natives; on the third day the exploring parties start. This
intercourse is spoken of by Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 30, as the
visit of twenty leading men to promise food and presents,
but really to spy. The Spaniards were encouraged to enter
the interior to barter food. _Torquemada_, i. 374; _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 21. Alvarado, Ávila, and Sandoval
are sent, each with eighty Spaniards and some Cuban carriers,
to explore by three routes, and to get supplies for payment
only. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 31; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
iv. cap. xi. Three parties sent out. _Tapia_, _Relacion_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 559. Four captains sent,
with over two hundred men. _Carta del Ayunt._, loc. cit.
[129] Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 31, states that one of the
captains took refuge in a building in Centla town, and
was there joined by the other two. All three now retreat
to camp, whither two fleet Cubans run for aid. Herrera,
Torquemada, and Brasseur de Bourbourg follow him. Before
Cortés set out, says Cogolludo, _Hist. Yucathan_, 32, he
had repelled an attack on his own camp.
[130] ‘Señalo treze de a cauallo,’ who are named as Olid,
Alvarado, Puertocarrero, Escalante, Montejo, Ávila, Velazquez
de Leon, Morla, Láres the good horseman to distinguish him
from another Láres, Gonzalo Dominguez, Moron of Bazamo, and
Pedro Gonzalez of Trujillo, Cortés being the thirteenth.
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 22; Solis, _Hist. Mex._, i.
106, says fifteen horses, but in the _Carta del Ayunt. de
V. Cruz_, in _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 16, the number decreases
to ten.
[131] Gomara says the force mustered 500 men, 13 horses
and 6 guns; Herrera, 400 men and 12 horses. The alférez
was Antonio de Villaroel.
[132] This was a favorite movement of Cortés, and as such
Tapia and the _Carta del Ayunt. de V. Cruz_ accept it, while
Bernal Diaz and most writers state that the swampy ground
required a circuit.
[133] An estimate based probably upon the strength of the
regular Aztec _Xiquipilli_, with which the conquerors were
soon to become acquainted. See _Native Races_, ii. 425.
Tapia even raises the number to six squadrons. _Relacion_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 560.
[134] Cortés, on coming up and being told of this,
shouted, ‘Onward, companions! God is with us!’ _Relacion_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 559-60. Gomara, who
fervently adopts the story, states that the rider was one
of the apostles, in the person of Morla. ‘Todos dixeron,
que vieron por tres vezes al del cauallo rucio picado
... y que era Santiago nuestro patron. Fernando Cortés
mas queria que fuesse san Pedro, su especial auogado ...
aun tambien los Indios lo notaron.... De los prisioneros
que se tomarõ se supo esto.’ _Hist. Mex._, 32-3. Pizarro
y Orellana, _Varones Ilvstres_, 72-3, gives arguments to
show that it could have been none other than Santiago, as
the patron of Spaniards. After a struggle with his pious
fears, Bernal Diaz ventures to observe that Gomara may
be right, but ‘I, unworthy sinner, was not graced to see
either of those glorious apostles.’ Testimony was taken
about the battle, and had this occurred it would have been
spoken of. ‘I say that our victory was by the hand of our
Lord Jesus Christ, for in that battle the Indians were so
numerous that they could have buried us with handfuls of
earth.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 22-3. Las Casas scouts the story
as a fabrication of Cortés, written down by ‘his servant
Gomara,’ in ‘his false history.’ _Hist. Ind._, iv. 477.
[135] The bishop forgets the sermon before the idols cast
down at Cozumel.
[136] Two Spaniards fell, and over 800 Indians lay dead,
so said their countrymen. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
22-3. Over 70 Spaniards were wounded, and more than 300
Indians were slain in the pursuit alone. Over 100 men fell
sick from heat and bad water, but all recovered. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 33. Herrera, dec. ii. lib. iv. cap. xi., allows
no killed among the Spaniards, while over 1000 Indians are
laid low. _Torquemada_, i, 375. Three Spaniards are killed
and 60 wounded. _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 113.
The Ayuntamiento of Vera Cruz, in its letter to the Emperor,
10 July, 1519, for obvious reasons lowers the figures to
twenty wounded Spaniards, of whom none died, and to 220
dead Indians, out of 40,000 engaged. _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
17. Finally comes Las Casas with the other extreme of 30,000
souls, said to have been cruelly slaughtered in this first
great battle of Cortés. _Hist. Ind._, iv. 477. Quite a list
of misdeeds are here raked up, or invented rather, against
the Spaniards in the _West-Indische Spieghel_, Amsterdam,
1624, a curious little quarto, designed for Dutch traders
in America, and dedicated to their West India Company. The
author is called Athanasium Inga. ‘_Peruaen_, uyt Cusco
gheboren, die dit alles, soo door onder vindinghe als door
transpositie en overset tinghe sijnder Voor-Ouderen, hier
te Lande ons overghedraghen heeft,’ says Wachter, in the
preface. The volume opens with a lengthy description of
the Antilles, but the remaining text is wholly devoted to
the Spanish colonies on the main, mingled without order,
and interspersed with special chapters on navigation and
coast routes for the benefit of traders. Beside the usual
description of physical and political geography, with
particular reference to natural resources and aboriginal
customs, several voyages are described, mainly to point out
sailing directions and the progress of discovery, while the
conquest period is told with some minuteness, but garbled
with the idea of exposing the avarice and cruelty of the
hated Spaniards. This is also the object of nearly all the
neatly engraved copper-plates. The map extends Hudson Bay
very close to the Pacific coast, where a faintly outlined
strait is visible some distance above California Island.
The part relating to Mexico, including some brief references
to Central America, occupies about one third of the volume,
and treats chiefly of the Conquest. The book is remarkable
for its black-letter text, with marginals in the same type,
and for its title-page, with the figures of ‘Montenchuma’
and ‘Atabaliba’ surrounded by battle-scenes and Indian
industrial operations.
[137] ‘Y pusose nombre a aquel pueblo, Santa Maria de la
Vitoria, è assi se llama agora la villa de Tabasco.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 24. ‘Potanchanum dicitur ab accolis
oppidum.... Victoriam nostri appellarunt.’ _Peter Martyr_,
_De Insvlis_, 14; copied in _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 36.
Referring to the battle of Centla, Clavigero writes: ‘e per
memoria vi fondarono poi una piccola città, col nome della
_Madonna della Vittoria_, la quale fu per lungo tempo la
capitale di quella Provincia.... Si spopolò del tutto verso
la metà del secolo passato.’ A later foundation received
the name of Villahermosa. _Storia Mess._, iii. 11. This
is based on a statement by Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._,
22, and to reconcile this with the note above, it must
be supposed that the Nonohualca capital was removed to
the site of the battle-field when the Spaniards settled.
Other authors either confound the points or avoid them by
a vague reference. Victoria was founded by Cortés in 1519.
_Alcedo_, _Dic._, v. 305. It is strange that the chief town
is not referred to under its native name, for Potonchan is
evidently a mistake by Peter Martyr.
CHAPTER VII.
WHAT MONTEZUMA THOUGHT OF IT.
HOME OF MEXICAN CIVILIZATION—THE BORDER LAND OF
SAVAGISM—CONFIGURATION OF THE COUNTRY—THE NAHUAS AND
THE MAYAS—TOLTECS, CHICHIMECS, AND AZTECS—THE VALLEY OF
MEXICO—CIVIL POLITY OF THE AZTECS—KING AHUITZOTL—MONTEZUMA
MADE EMPEROR—CHARACTER OF THE MAN—HIS CAREER—THE FIRST
APPEARING OF THE SPANIARDS NOT UNKNOWN TO MONTEZUMA—THE
QUETZALCOATL MYTH—DEPARTURE OF THE FAIR GOD—SIGNS AND OMENS
CONCERNING HIS RETURN—THE COMING OF THE SPANIARDS MISTAKEN
FOR THE FULFILMENT OF THE PROPHECY—THE DOOR OPENED TO THE
INVADER.
Before entering upon the crusade which was so painfully to affect the
destinies of this vast interior, let us cast a brief glance upon the
country and its inhabitants, and particularly on that idiosyncrasy
of the aboriginal mind which opened the door to the invaders. The
first two subjects are fully treated in the first, second, and fifth
volumes of my _Native Races of the Pacific States_ to which I would
refer the reader, being able here to give only an outline of what in
detail is an exceedingly interesting phase of indigenous development.
This development awoke to consciousness in the forms of the Nahua and
Maya civilizations, the former occupying the northern portion of that
tropical table-land which rises to salubrious heights between latitudes
22° and 11°, and the latter the southern portions. Round the opaque
lowland edges of this heaven-enlightened interior the mind of man
seemed also dark and low, dwarfed by sandy sweeps, or overshadowed by
redundant foliage; yet it was not altogether free from the influence
of its neighbors, for the people of the tierras calientes bordering
this elevation were further removed from savagism than their more
northern and southern brethren. The valley of Mexico, the Anáhuac
of the Aztecs, was situated between the two principal ranges, the
Pacific branch and the Atlantic branch of the Sierra Madre, under
which name the great cordillera here presents itself, coming in from
the north-west, flattening near the centre, and reuniting before
reaching Tehuantepec. Eventually Anáhuac overspreads the whole plateau.
Cross the continent on the nineteenth parallel and you will reach the
greatest elevation and see the highest mountains in this vicinity.
Indeed, from the plain of Puebla, whereabout lay the walled town of
Tlascala, you may take in Popocatepetl, Iztaccihuatl, and Orizaba at
one view. Within seventy leagues from Vera Cruz inland, through the
temperate valley of Orizaba, you may pass from a region of palms to
a region of pines. The plains of Tabasco, upon whose border we have
already landed and fought our battle, form the north-eastern part of
the broad isthmus valley of Tehuantepec. This is bordered on the south
by the sierra connecting the elevation of Anáhuac with the table-land
of Guatemala, whose western declivity breaks into parallel wooded
ridges running due south-west. North of Anáhuac the surface settles
into wide plains between short sierras, until monotonous quietude
is attained in the prairies of Texas and New Mexico. Crossing the
isthmus of Tehuantepec at a diminished altitude the cordillera rises
again and stretches out into the broad and lofty ranges of Central
America, where the Maya nations made their home.
Earliest among the Nahua nations to stand forth upon the mythic record
are the Toltecs, whose first supremacy in Anáhuac is placed in the
sixth century. Endowed by tradition with a culture surpassing that
of their successors, the halo surrounding their name has been kept
bright by monuments, such as the pyramids of Teotihuacan and Cholula.
For five centuries this people flourish, sustained by a confederation
of kings whose capitals become in turn famous as seats of learning
and of imperial splendor. Religious strife, developing gradually
into civil war, with attendant famine and pestilence, opens the door
to ruder tribes, and the Toltecs pass off the stage. Throwing off
the Toltec veil so long shielding them, a number of tribes now rise
into distinct political existence, and the stronger, in connection
with somewhat ruder yet more energetic incomers, form the new ruling
combination, the Chichimec empire. Of the leading power, denominated
the Chichimec, nothing is known; but the permanency of Nahua language
and civilization leads to the supposition that it is of the same race
as its predecessors. In later times the name is also applied to the
wild border tribes of the north. For several centuries Anáhuac becomes
the scene of intrigues and struggles between the different branches
of the combination for the balance of power, during which a number of
towns figure as dominating centres, and a number of tribes rise to
prominence under the traditional term of conquerors and immigrants.
Among these are the Aztecs, the representative nation of the Nahua
civilization at the coming of the Spaniards.
Upon opposite sides of the largest of a cluster of lakes which
illuminate the oval valley of Mexico have stood, since the beginning of
the fourteenth century, three cities, Tezcuco, Mexico, and Tlacopan,
capitals of three confederate nations, the Acolhuas, the Aztecs, and
the Tepanecs. To the first belonged the eastern portion of the valley,
to the second the southern and western, and to the third a small
portion of the north-west. Of this confederation, Tezcuco was for a
time the most powerful; Tlacopan was least. While keeping to their
respective limits within the valley, beyond its classic precincts
the three powers made common cause against the barbarians. About
the middle of the fifteenth century, under the warlike Montezuma
I., Mexico attained the supremacy, and during the next sixty years
extended her empire to the shores of either ocean. Within this
circuit, however, were several nations which she never conquered;
instance the Tlascaltecs, the Tarascos, and the Chiapanecs. Many there
were—for example, the people of Tehuantepec, of northern Guatemala,
and Soconusco, and the Miztecs and Zapotecs of Oajaca, whose conquest
by the Aztecs was temporary—who either paid tribute for a time only,
or who threw off the yoke the moment the invader’s back was turned.
The Matlaltzincas, west of the lakes, and the Huastecs and Totonacs
of Vera Cruz, were subjugated but a few years prior to the appearing
of the Spaniards. These coast-dwellers had not yet become reconciled
to the rule of the interior lords, but hated them as inveterate
foes; and herein lay one of the chief causes of success accompanying
the Castilian arms. Indeed, Aztec supremacy was maintained in every
quarter only by constant war; rebellion, as soon as checked in one
quarter, breaking out in another. Further than this, the Aztecs, by
their overbearing spirit, had become obnoxious to their allies; yet
their aggressive policy was continued in full force by the predecessor
of Montezuma II., Ahuitzotl, with whom war was an absorbing passion.
In the civil polity of the Aztecs were elements which, if given free
play, would by elevating the people raise the nation yet higher in
the scale of domination. This did not escape the observant neighbors,
upon whom the prospect fell with chilling fear, a fear by no means
mitigated by the ever increasing tendency of the Mexicans for the
immolation of human beings. Nor were the Aztec nobles pleased to see
political power slipping from their grasp and falling into the hands
of the people, among whom the spirit of republicanism and equality
was regarded as having already gained too great ascendancy. The
result was a struggle, not unlike that at the same time going on in
Europe, between the nobility and the commonalty, the clergy taking
sides with the former. And at the death of Ahuitzotl the higher class
succeeded in raising to the throne a person of extreme aristocratic
and religious tastes, though humble withal, as Coriolanus could not
be, to catch the common herd; for when tidings of his election were
brought him he was found sweeping the temple.
Montezuma, he was called, and surnamed Xocoyotzin, the younger, to
distinguish him from the first Montezuma, known as Huehue, the elder.
He was the son of Axayacatl and Xochicueitl, and nephew of the late
king; and had reached only his thirty-fourth year when selected for
the throne, in preference to an elder brother. The reasons alleged for
this distinction were the possession of high qualities as a warrior,
whose bravery had been tested on more than one field of battle; as
an adviser, whose words, uttered in clear, dignified tones, had been
heard in the council with respect; and as high priest, whose gravity
and circumspection had won him favor among all classes. Upon occasions
he could observe the taciturnity which so often attracts a reputation
for wisdom; and, moreover, he possessed a fine figure and a majestic
presence, such as admirably suited the monarch. He was proficient in
astronomy, picture-writing, and in certain esoteric branches, for
which he showed a natural bent; likewise he was well read in the
history of his people, and familiar with all their traditions.
This second Montezuma was a born prince, and might have been a
pattern for Niccolo Machiavelli, with whom he was contemporary. For,
like the Florentine’s ideal, he was talented, learned, crafty, and
unscrupulous. Had he studied in his own language that immaculate
manual of political ethics, _The Prince_, he could not have more
faithfully followed its precepts. No sooner had he assumed the sceptre
than, throwing off the mask by which he had deceived the plebeians,
he dismissed every person of that class employed about the palace,
and filled all vacancies, civil and military, from the ranks of the
nobles. He applied himself with energy to war and diplomacy, in both
of which he was eminently successful, and raised himself and his
throne to the highest pinnacle of grandeur; whereupon he did not
disdain the title of Emperor of the World. Notwithstanding his talents
and accomplishments, he was exceedingly superstitious, surpassing
in this respect many of his followers, and was dependent on diviners
and astrologers, appealing also to the counsels of Nezahualpilli and
other prominent personages. Men, whom he knew, he did not fear; but
the gods, whom he did not know, he feared exceedingly. And because
he practised human sacrifice to propitiate them he has been called
cruel, but the actions of a blind devotee of religion must not be
measured by a too critical standard. There was nothing cruel in the
wish of Caligula, however hateful and vindictive it might be, that
the Roman people had but one head, so that he might strike it off at
a single blow; but when he tortured men and women for amusement while
at his meals, that was the quintessence of cruelty. As for honor,
integrity, and all those virtues which go to make a man, we must not
expect them in princes or in politicians; yet we may safely say that
in all the generous qualities of mind and heart the Aztec monarch
was no whit behind contemporary European rulers.
From all which it is safe to say that Montezuma, though most
magnificent and lordly among his lords, was not popular with the
masses, and his position at this juncture was not of the safest.
His extravagance exceeded all bounds; his continuous wars were
expensive; and to meet the heavy draughts upon the treasury required
excessive taxation. This was made to weigh with special heaviness on
the subjugated provinces, on which likewise was laid with peculiar
aggravation the horrible burden of furnishing victims for human
sacrifices. The successful resistance to his arms of several states
enclosed by his conquests, or bordering on his domain, caused him no
small unhappiness. There was the little republic of Tlascala, on the
very border of the Mexican valley, which often he had tried to conquer,
and failed. Then there was the Tarascan kingdom of Michoacan, on the
western side, whose people boasted as high a culture as any of the
lake region, which stood firm against all efforts of the confederation.
With nations beyond their border little intercourse existed, yet
Aztec traders, likewise playing spies, were often as far south as
Nicaragua, and along the coasts of Honduras and Yucatan. There is no
doubt, therefore, that the presence in those parts of the Spaniards
was known to Montezuma from the first. It might have been like a voice
from behind the clouds, the reports of Columbus and Pinzon, but the
appearing of Córdoba and Grijalva, who talked and drew blood, was
something more tangible. The people of Tuito, on the west coast of
Mexico, held that before the conquest a vessel was lost there, from
which had landed more than forty persons, dressed like Spaniards,
and whom the natives received kindly, but finally slew because they
insisted on the worship of the cross.[138] A box thrown up by the
waves, and containing peculiar clothing, gold rings, and a sword which
no one could break, was said to have been in Montezuma’s possession.
Vague as were these appearings, there was something painfully
portentous in them.
For the chief divinity of the Nahua nations was Quetzalcoatl, the
gentle god, ruler of the air, controller of the sun and rain, and
source of all prosperity. In the palmy days of the Toltecs he had
been their king, the creator of their golden age, giving them metals,
improved government, and products of spontaneous growth; after which
he was their god, with his chief shrine at Cholula, where surrounding
peoples, even those inimical to the city, maintained temples for his
worship. From toward the rising sun Quetzalcoatl had come; and he
was white, with large eyes, and long black hair, and copious beard.
After a final rule of twenty years at Cholula he set out for the
country whence he came, and on reaching the seaboard of Goazacoalco
he sailed away on a craft of snakes. His last words were that one day
bearded white men, brethren of his, perhaps he himself, would come by
way of the sea in which the sun rises, and would enter in and rule
the land;[139] and from that day, with a fidelity befitting Hebrews
waiting the coming of their Messiah, the Mexican people watched for
the fulfilment of this prophecy, which promised them a gentle rule,
free from bloody sacrifices and oppression; but to their sovereign
the thought gave rise to deep apprehension, for then his own reign
must terminate.
Thus it was that the tidings of strange sails and bearded white men
on their eastern border were received at the gay capital with mingled
fear and joy. And marvel-mongers went about the streets talking of
the good Quetzalcoatl and his pedigree, of the signs and wonders that
had been seen, the prodigies, oracles, and occult divinations, as
in ancient Athens the old families of Olympus, with their ape-gods
and bull-gods of Memphis, and the dog-headed monster Anubis, were
discussed; and as for Rome, Lucan has recorded no omens which the
sages of Mexico could not now match. To what extent the Spanish
chroniclers have assisted the natives in the manufacture of marvels
I leave the reader to judge, simply recommending to his consideration
the accompanying lengthy note; neither, however, fell into the madness
of Canute, who chose the time the tide was rising, instead of when
it was falling, to order the stay of waters.
It was not alone in Mexico, but in distant parts, and on the islands,
that man and nature were thus annoyed by the supernatural. There were
found predictions centuries old, by priests widely separated, and the
poems of wise men, all pointing in the one direction. The destruction
of towns was predicted by a philosopher; the famine of 1505 spoke more
plainly than words; Popocatepetl, choked by consternation, failed to
emit his smoke for twenty days, which, however, was a good omen; an
eclipse and an earthquake near together and the drowning of eighteen
hundred soldiers were decidedly unfavorable. Most terrible of all,
however, were a three-headed comet in open day, a pyramidal light
at night, and other portentous scenes, such as the furious uprising
of the lake, the awakening of the dead, and visits to the spirit
world.[140]
To us the most wonderful part of it is, not the wonders themselves,
but that it should so happen, if indeed it did, that these fearful
forebodings, running back for generations, should all converge toward
the coming of the brethren of Quetzalcoatl at the very time the
Spaniards appeared, and that the latter should be in so many respects
as the good gods themselves were to have been. The prophecies of Isaiah
are dim indeed and unfathomable as compared with these. To what end
are signs that cannot be interpreted until after the occurrence, as is
generally the case, when their interpretation is not needed, sages do
not say. But in this instance the testimony is abundant and explicit
that many of these prodigies were at the time received, not only
by Montezuma and his people, but by the neighboring nations, as the
distinct announcement of the coming of the gods, who did in good truth
appear at the proper time in the person of the Spaniards. And what
should be their doom, those stupid and profane men of Potonchan and
Tabasco, who had raised their hands against these heavenly messengers!
We are further assured that, prior to the arrival of any Spaniard,
some of the subjected provinces assumed an air of independence,
encouraged by the fear which these occurrences produced on the Aztecs,
against whom they were regarded as especially directed. Cuetlachtlan
sorcerers having in their divining-pits conjured up visions of Mexicans
acting as abject carriers to armed bearded men astride giant deer,
this people became in 1511 so insolent as to refuse the customary
tribute, and even to murder the Aztec officials sent to collect it.
And so involved was Montezuma in divers troubles that he was unable
to resent the outrage.
The thought occurred to the Mexican monarch that perhaps the
threatened evils might be averted by propitiating the gods with
greater sacrifices. For this the several campaigns then waged or
concluded promised an abundance of victims; and to make the holocaust
still more imposing, it was resolved to consecrate at the same time
a new sacrificial stone. After diligent search a suitable stone was
found at Tenanitlan, near Coyohuacan. The sculptors having finished
their work, and the priests theirs, with loud hosannas it was rolled
along toward the imperial city. While crossing the Xolco canal the
bridge broke, and the stone sank beneath the water, dragging down
the high-priest and his attendants, “who went to hell quicker than
the stone,” comments the pious Torquemada. The stone, however, was
recovered, and consecrated on the summit of the great temple, in
1512, with the blood of over twelve thousand captives.[141]
And now Montezuma almost wishes the calamities he fears were already
upon him, so full of dread and dire oppression is he. Priests, chiefs
of wards, and other officials, says Tezozomoc, are commanded to
ascertain and impart all dreams and strange occurrences relating to
a coming people or to the throne. Wise and politic as he is, he does
not seem to know that this is only placing himself and his malady
at the mercy of the masses. Who could not conjure up visions under
such a summons? Some old men immediately come forward with a dream,
wherein Huitzilopochtli’s image is overthrown and his temple burned
to the ground, leaving no vestige. Certain hags next appear with a
dream of a furious stream, which has swept away the palace and temple,
forcing the lords to flee the city.
This will not do. Away with such trumpery! And so the terrified monarch
hurls the evil dreamers into prison, and leaves them there to die of
starvation, while he orders on new ones in the persons of the priests
and men of circumspection. But softly now. These wise ones deem it
prudent not to dream at all, which course only adds suspicion to the
hot anger of Montezuma. Next he calls on all astrologers, sorcerers,
and diviners in the empire to dream, to cause others to dream, and
to declare their dreams; to declare the secrets of the starry realms,
and all things pertinent on and in this earth. Neither will these ply
their avocation during such troublous times. Down with them, then,
to the lowest depths! In prison, however, they do understand that the
planets and terrestrial phenomena combine to foreshadow extraordinary
occurrences, whether for good or evil the emperor will soon enough
know. “Force them to tell; burn them else,” are the next instructions.
But the messengers find the prison, though guarded, empty. The unhappy
monarch sends to their respective towns and demolishes their houses,
but these agents of offended heaven are never seen again.[142]
This, and more of yet wilder strain continued in the note, shows at
least that prior to the coming of the Spaniards the people of the
Mexican valley, and their sovereign in particular, were profoundly
moved with fearful forebodings of calamity of some kind. And whether
these forebodings pointed to some strange arrival by sea or other
marvel, certain it is that they opened the door of this rich realm
to the invaders.
Ever intent on means to propitiate the gods, Montezuma in 1517 hit
upon the idea of plating the temple of Huitzilopochtli with gold set
with precious stones and feathers, and gave the order accordingly to
Tzompantzin, the minister of finance. Now Tzompantzin was an old and
faithful servant of the government, blunt withal, and nowise afraid
to die. He was of the ancient chivalry, not wholly in sympathy with
the present régime, and did not hesitate to expostulate with his
sovereign, saying that the people would be ruined by the proposed
tax. “Beside,” he concluded, “Huitzilopochtli will not long be god,
for those even now are coming who will take for themselves all these
riches and lord it over us forever.” That very night Tzompantzin and
his son were politely escorted across the dark river.[143]
The following year, 1518, the temple of Coatlan was dedicated, with
the usual sacrifices, the last recorded holocaust to consecrate a
heathen temple. For already the white-winged vessels of Spain were
at hand, having on board the messengers of a purer religion, even if
it did not at once prove to be the gospel of peace to the poor Indian.
Pinotl, calpixque of Cuetlachtlan, was the first of Montezuma’s
captains, according to the native record, to make observations for
the emperor of the dreaded visitants. Prompted no less by zeal in his
master’s service than by curiosity, Pinotl, with several attendants,
armed with provisions and rich mantles for presents, had mingled
with the crowd which boarded Grijalva’s vessel, and had prostrated
himself at the feet of the commander and his officers as before kings
or gods.[144] The beads and other trinkets given in return for their
goods they received as priceless marks of favor from supernatural
personages. When Pinotl explained as best he was able the majesty
and wealth of his sovereign, Grijalva promised to return some day and
visit him in his great city. Bearing with them paintings on _amatl_,
or maguey paper, of the vessels with all their belongings, and of the
soldiers and sailors with their arms, armor, dress, and attitude, down
to their very swagger, and leaving orders that the strangers should
be treated with every consideration, the chief men of the province
set out by fast relays to report the awful tidings to the emperor.[145]
Entering the imperial presence they prostrated their bodies to the
ground, which they kissed, declaring themselves worthy of death for
having ventured unbidden before their lord, but their mission permitted
no delay. “For oh! most dread sovereign,” they exclaimed, “we have
seen gods! All of us here present have seen their water-houses on
our shores. We have talked with them, and eaten with them, and have
handled them with our hands; we have given them gifts, and have
received in return these priceless treasures.” Then they showed the
glass beads, a specimen too often approaching the value of the gifts
received by the strong from the weak. Montezuma sat mute, scarcely
heeding the messages sent him by Grijalva, concerned most of all that
vassals should not witness his dismay. Here again was his phantasy
before him, like the shade of dead Hector before Æneas, warning him
against hopeless resistance to the preordained fall of Troy.
Bidding the men retire and keep secret what they had seen, Montezuma
hastily summoned his privy council,[146] King Cacama of Tezcuco, his
brother Cuitlahuatzin, lord of Itzapalapan, and laid before them
the mystery. After sage consultations, attended by divinings and
comparisons of signs, prophecies, and traditions, not unlike the
means by which we of to-day likewise ascertain the unknowable, it
was concluded that this commander was none other than the fair-hued
god himself, who had returned to resume the throne, as he had said.
Therefore resistance would be in vain; and the only proper course was
to tender worthy reception and conciliate with gifts. The chiefs were
sent back with orders for the governors of the coast districts[147]
to report any arrival or strange occurrence. Following them was an
embassy of five persons bearing rich presents, with instructions to
bid the god welcome in the name of the emperor and of his court; yet
they were to watch him closely. But the embassy was too late. Grijalva
had gone.[148]
FOOTNOTES
[138] When Francisco Cortés entered the town, shortly
after the fall of Mexico, he was met by a body of Indians
with their hair tonsured like priests, and with crosses
in their hands, headed by the chief in flowing white gown
and scapulary. This, they explained, had been the practice
of the shipwrecked crew, who had held up the cross as a
recourse from all danger. _Frejes_, _Hist. Conq._, 63-4.
This authority places implicit reliance in the story, and
regards the strangers as a missionary party driven from
the East Indies or China. _Jalisco_, _Mem. Hist._, 30-2.
[139] See _Native Races_, iii. and v., 25-6, for the myths
relating to Quetzalcoatl, and to their interpretation,
in which occur the characters of the Messiah and the
apostle Saint Thomas, with whom some pious chroniclers
have identified him. The Saint Thomas idea is advocated in
_Florencia_, _Hist. Prov. Comp. de Jesus_, 234.
[140] The natives of Española are said to have received
an oracle shortly before Columbus’ arrival, announcing
the coming of bearded men, with sharp, bright swords.
_Villagvtierre_, _Hist. Conq. Itza._, 33. The Yucatec
records abound in predictions to the same effect, more or
less clear. The most widely quoted is that of Chilam Balam,
high-priest of Mani, and reputed a great prophet, who
foretold that, ere many years, there would come from the
direction of the rising sun a bearded white people, bearing
aloft the cross which he displayed to his listeners. Their
gods would flee before the new-comers, and leave them to
rule the land; but no harm would fall on the peaceful who
admitted the only true God. The priest had a cotton mantle
woven, to be deposited in the temple at Mani, as a specimen
of the tribute required by the new rulers, and he it was who
erected the stone crosses found by the Spaniards, declaring
them to be the true tree of the world. Cogolludo, _Hist.
Yucathan_, 99-101, gives the prophecy at length, which is
not quite so clear as the version which he afterward quotes
from Herrera. The latter calls the priest Chilam Cambal,
and says: ‘Esta fue la causa que preguntauan a Francisco
Hernandez de Cordoua, y a los suyos, si yuan de donde nacia
el Sol.’ Dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. i. Alaman enters into a
profound argument on the above, and interprets Chilam Cambal
to be the Chinese for Saint Thomas. In seeking to give a
date he mistakes the meaning of a Yucatec age and places
the prophecy back at the beginning of the Christian era.
The opening lines of the prophecy read, ‘at the end of the
thirteenth age,’ which should be interpreted ‘at the end
of two hundred and sixty years.’ The name is also given as
Chilam Balan and Chilan Balam, the latter part savoring of
the Canaanite divinity. _Remesal_, _Hist. Chyapa_, 245-6;
_Gonzalez Dávila_, _Teatro Ecles._, i. 203-4. A priest of
Itzalan, named Patzin Yaxun Chan, is recorded as having
urged his people to worship the true god, whose word would
soon come to them; and the high-priest of the same place,
Na Hau Pech, prophesied that within four ages—a Yucatec
age equals twenty of our years—news would be brought of
the supreme God, by men who must be received as guests and
masters. Ah Ku Kil Chel, also a priest, spoke with sorrow
of ills to come upon the people from the north and from the
east. In the age following the date of his prediction no
priest would be found to explain the will of their idols.
Another temple guardian announced that in the last age
idolatry would cease, and the world would be purified by
fire. Happy he who repented! _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_,
97-101. Several prophecies therein quoted literally are
reproduced in _Villagvtierre_, _Hist. Conq. Itza._, 34-5,
which also refers to Itzan predictions.
Among the Mexicans, says Mendieta, predictions were current
some four generations before the conquest of the coming
of bearded men dressed in raiments of different color, and
with caskets on their heads. Then the idols would perish,
leaving but one supreme God; war would cease, roads would
be opened, intercourse established, and the husband would
cherish but one wife. _Hist. Ecles._, 180; _Torquemada_,
i. 235-6. This smacks of an elaboration of the Quetzalcoatl
promise. Nezahualcoyotl, the wise Tezcucan monarch, who died
in 1472, left poems in which chroniclers have discovered
vague allusions to a coming race. The reader may, perhaps, be
equally fortunate if he examine the specimens of his poems
given in _Native Races_, ii. 494-7. His son Nezahualpilli,
equally celebrated as a just king and a philosopher, versed
in the occult arts, revealed to Montezuma that, according
to his astrologic investigations, their towns would within
a few years be destroyed and their vassals decimated. This,
he added, would soon be verified by celestial signs and
other phenomena. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 254-7. The
precursor of these harbingers of evil appears to have been
the famine of 1505, which compelled many a parent to sell his
children for the means to obtain food, while others lined
the road-side with their famished bodies. The cessation of
smoke from the volcano Popocatepetl, for twenty days, was
a feature seized upon by the diviners as a sign of relief;
and true enough, in the following year, the suffering people
were cheered with an abundant harvest. Soon again their fears
were roused by an eclipse and an earthquake, in the very
inaugural year of the new cycle, 1507, and by the drowning
of 1800 soldiers during the Miztec campaign. Almost every
succeeding year confirmed their apprehensions by one or
more signs or occurrences of an ominous nature. One of the
most alarming was the appearance, in broad day, of a comet
with three heads, which darted across the sky, eastward,
with such speed that the tails seemed to scatter sparks.
‘Salieron cometas del cielo de tres en tres ... parecian
... echando de sí brasas de fuego ... y llevaban grandes y
largas colas.’ _Mendieta_, _Hist. Ecles._, 179. ‘Cayó una
cometa, parecian tres estrellas.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._,
i. 4; _Native Races_, v. 466. After this, in 1507 or 1510,
a pyramidal light, which scattered sparks on all sides,
rose at midnight from the eastern horizon till its apex
reached the zenith, where it faded at dawn. This continued
for forty days, or for a year, according to some accounts.
‘Diez años antes que viniesen los españoles ... duró por
espacio de un año cada noche.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._,
i. 3. ‘Ocho años antes de la venida de los españoles, ... y
esto se vió cuatro años.’ _Id._, _Hist. Gen._, ii. 271. It
occurred in 1509, and lasted over forty days. _Codex Tell.
Rem._, in _Kingsborough’s Mex. Antiq._, v. 154; vi. 144. The
interpreter of the Codex enters into a lengthy argument to
prove it a volcanic eruption, one of his points being that
the original picture-writing places the light as appearing
behind, or from, the mountains east of the city. In 1510,
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 278, or year five, toxtli.
_Codex Chimalpopoca_, MS.; _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 139.
Torquemada, who had no other authority for the preceding
comet than Herrera, considered that by the comet was meant
this light, i. 234. Humboldt suggests that the fiery pyramid
may have been a zodiacal light. Astrologers announced that
it portended wars, famine, pestilence, mortality among the
lords, every imaginable ill, in fact, and causing one general
cry of fear and lament. Montezuma himself was so troubled
that he applied for advice to Nezahualpilli, although they
had not been on speaking terms for some time. This royal
astrologer showed his apprehensions by ordering all campaigns
then upon his hands to be suspended, and announced to
his confrère that the disasters in store would be brought
upon the empire by a strange race. Montezuma expressed his
disbelief, and proposed a game of _tlachtli_ to decide the
interpretation. As if resigned to the fate predicted for
himself, and desirous of showing how little he appreciated
wealth and power, Nezahualpilli is said to have staked on
the result his kingdom against three turkey-cocks. The wager
was not so hazardous, however, as it seemed, for the king
of Tezcuco was a good player. After allowing Montezuma to
win the first two points, and raising high his hopes, he
stopped his exultation by scoring the rest for himself.
Still doubtful, Montezuma called on an astrologer famous for
his many true announcements, only to receive confirmation
of Nezahualpilli’s utterance, whereupon the irate monarch
caused the house to be pulled down over the diviner, who
perished in the ruins. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._,
278-9; _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant. Méj._, iii. 345-7. Clavigero,
who connects the game with a comet, is quite earnest in
asserting his belief in traditions and presages of the
coming of Spaniards, as attested by native paintings and
by witnesses of high standing. ‘Se il Demonio pronosticava
le future calamità per ingannar que’ miserabili Popoli, il
pietosissimo Dio le annunziava per disporre i loro spiriti
al Vangelo.’ _Storia Mess._, i. 288-9. According to Duran,
the summoning of Nezahualpilli was due to a comet with an
enormous tail, which burst upon the view of a temple-watcher
as it rose in the east and settled above the city. Montezuma,
who had been roused to witness the phenomenon, called on
his sorcerers for an explanation, and on finding that they
had seen nothing, had them punished for their sloth. The
wise Tezcucan then came and presaged dire calamities, which
would also afflict himself. He was resigned, and would retire
to await death. This was to be the last interview between
the two kings. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 274-85. Torquemada
compares the comet to that which, according to Josephus,
lib. vii. cap. xii., presaged the entry of Titus into Judea.
When Nezahualpilli returned to his palace, a hare ran into
the halls, pursued by eager domestics, but he bade them to
leave it, saying that even so would a strange people enter
into Anáhuac without resistance. _Torquemada_, i. 211-12,
214. Bernal Diaz speaks of a round sign in the eastern
sky, of a reddish green, to which was attached a streak
extending eastward. The consequent predictions of war and
pestilence he finds fulfilled in the campaign of Cortés,
and in the smallpox epidemic introduced by Narvaez. _Hist.
Verdad._ (Paris ed. 1837), iv. 460-1. Among the accounts of
celestial signs which may be based on the preceding is one
by Camargo, describing a brightness observed in the east by
the Tlascaltecs, three hours before dawn, accompanied by
a whirlwind of dust from the summit of Mount Matlalcueje.
Remesal refers probably to the same whirlwind under the guise
of a white cloud, like a pillar, which often appeared in the
east before sunrise, and afterward descended upon the cross
erected in Tlascala by the Spaniards. The natives accepted
this as an intimation that the new-comers were heaven’s
chosen people, and received the cross. _Hist. Chyapa_, 304;
_Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 140. Gomara appears to connect
this eastern light with a thick smoke and with the fiery
pyramid, which were followed by a battle in the sky between
bodies of armed men, attended with great slaughter. Some
of the courtiers surrounding Montezuma while he observed
this phenomenon, pointed out that the arms and dress of the
victorious faction resembled those in the chest which had
been washed up on the coast. He declared his conviction,
however, that they must be relics of his divine ancestors,
not of mortal beings who fell on a battle-field, as these
forms appeared to do. He proposed, as a test, that they
should break the divine sword. This they tried, but in
vain, and remained mute with wonder at its flexibility and
strength. _Hist. Mex._, 214; _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. ii.
cap. ix. Mendieta places this sign in 1511. _Hist. Ecles._,
179. The last celestial sign, as described by Mendieta, is
a large, brilliant comet, which appeared the very year of
the Spaniards’ arrival, and remained immovable in the air
for several days. _Hist. Ecles._, 180. Before Nezahualpilli
returned to his capital, after interpreting the fiery signs,
he was feasted by Montezuma, and the two monarchs thereupon
retired to the diviners’ chamber to search into the legends
of their forefathers for further light upon the omens. From
this circumstance grew the story that the twain had made a
journey to the ancient home of their race. Nezahualpilli,
being a conjurer, took Montezuma through the air to the
Seven Caves, where they conversed with the brethren of
their ancestors. On learning that the first named was a
descendant of the great Chichimecatl Xolotl, he was offered
the government of this region, but declined, promising,
however, to return at a later date. _Torquemada_, i. 212-13.
Duran applies to the reign of Montezuma I. a similar story,
which is more appropriate to the present subject. Eager
to acquaint his ancestors with the glorious achievements
of their progeny, and to learn something of the old home,
this monarch sent a force of sixty sorcerers on a mission
to Chicomoztoc, with numerous presents for Coatlicue, the
mother of the divine Huitzilopochtli. Transforming themselves
into animals, they reached the sacred region occupied by
some Aztecs whom the god had left behind when he set out on
his career of conquest. These venerable settlers were not a
little surprised to behold in the effeminate and ephemeral
specimens before them the descendants of that doughty leader
and of his companions. On reaching the abode of the divine
mother, the sorcerers found an old woman sorrowing over her
lost son. The news of his glorious fate roused her interest,
and she was induced to reveal several prophecies by her son,
among them one concerning the coming of a strange people
to wrest the land from the Mexicans. The messengers were
dismissed with presents of food and clothing, and returned
to their master with twenty of their number missing. _Hist.
Ind._, MS., i. 467-86. Additional facts may be found in
_Native Races_, v. 422-4, etc. Another visit to the spirit
world is attributed to Papantzin, sister of Montezuma II.,
who, shortly after his accession, had married the lord
of Tlatelulco. He soon died, and after ruling for a few
years she, in 1509, followed him to the grave. She was
buried with great pomp in her garden, in a vault closed by
a flag-stone. The next morning she was discovered sitting
on the steps of the bath adjoining the vault. Her niece,
a child of five or six years, was the first to notice her.
Too young to understand what would frighten older heads, she
fearlessly approached the resurrected woman, and was told
to call Papantzin’s mayordoma. This old dame, on receiving
the summons, thought it a child’s prank, and would not
stir, but at last she yielded, and on seeing the form of
her late mistress, swooned with fear. Others proved more
courageous, and carried her into the house. Papantzin now
enjoined silence, and wished to call Montezuma, but no
one daring to appear before the cruel and superstitious
monarch, Nezahualpilli was summoned, and he brought the
brother with him to her dwelling, together with several
attendants. To them she related that, on being released
from her earthly bonds, she had entered a boundless plain,
upon a road which soon divided into several branches. On
one side was a fiercely running stream, which she attempted
to cross, but was motioned back by a youth of fine stature,
dressed in a loose robe of dazzling whiteness. His face,
bright as a star, was of fair complexion, the eyes grey,
and the forehead marked with a cross. Taking her by the
hand, he led her up the valley past heaps of dead men’s
bones, from many of which rose the sound of lament. She
also observed a number of black persons, with horns and
deer legs, building a house. As the sun rose, large vessels
could be seen ascending the river, bearing white and bearded
men in strange attire, with shining head-gear, and standard
borne aloft. They were children of the sun. The youth, in
pointing them out, said that God did not yet wish her to
pass the river, which could never be recrossed, but to wait
and bear testimony to the faith coming with these men, who
were destined to wage great wars with her people and become
their masters. The lamenting bones were her forefathers—‘who
had not received the faith,’ is the uncharitable term used
by Torquemada—suffering for their evil deeds, and the house
building was to hold the bones of those slain in battle by
the fair-faced crews. She must return to earth, await these
men, and guide her people to baptism. On being restored to
her senses from the death or trance, whatever her listeners
chose to term it, she removed the stone from the vault and
returned to her chamber. Many of those present sneered at
the story as originating in the brain of a sick woman, but
Montezuma was more deeply moved than he cared to show. He
never again saw his sister, who lived a retired life till
the arrival of the Spaniards. She then came forward, the
first woman in Tlatelulco to receive baptism, and under the
name of María Papantzin rendered good aid in the missionary
cause. This account, says Torquemada, has been taken from
old native paintings, translated and sent to Spain, and
was regarded as strictly true among the natives, Papantzin
being well known in the town. ‘Esta Señora era del numero
de los Predestinados,’ i. 238-9. Ixtlilxochitl, strangely
enough, does not refer to the resurrection. According to
him, the mother of Ixtlilxochitl, king of Tezcuco, was the
first woman baptized, and this under compulsion from her
husband. She received the name of María. After her came
Papantzin, now wife of this king, who was named Beatriz.
Cortés stood godfather to both. Sahagun refers briefly to
the resurrection of a woman of Tenochtitlan, who issued,
four days after her death, from the garden vault where
she had been deposited. Appearing before Montezuma, she
announced that with him would cease the Mexican empire,
for other people were coming to rule and settle. This woman
lived twenty-one years after this, and bore another child.
_Hist. Gen._, ii. 270-1. At this rate she must have been
alive when Sahagun arrived in the country; yet he fails to
speak of her as a princess. Boturini applies the story to a
sister of King Caltzontzin, of Michoacan, who died at the
time the Spaniards were besieging Mexico, and rose within
four days to warn her brother not to listen to the Mexican
overtures for an alliance against the white invaders. The
new-comers, she said, were destined by heaven to rule the
land, and a testimony hereof would appear on the principal
feast-day in the form of a youth, who, rising in the eastern
sky, with a light in one hand and a sword in the other,
would glide over the city and disappear in the west. This
sign appearing, the king did as she bade him, rejected
the Mexican advances, and received the Spaniards in peace.
_Catálogo_, 27-8. Clavigero censures Boturini’s work, in
this connection, as full of fables, and this after solemnly
observing that the Papantzin incident ‘fu pubblico, e
strepitoso, acaduto in presenza di due Re, e della Nobiltà
Messicana. Trovossi altresi rappresentato in alcune dipinture
di quelle Nazioni, e se ne mandò alla Corte di Spagna un
attestato giuridico.’ _Storia Mess._, i. 289-92. He places
the baptism of Papantzin in 1524. _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant.
Méj._, iii. 348-52; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii.
125-6. Torquemada gives the story of what occurred in the
spirit land in her own words; so does Clavigero, though
he differs slightly. See also his English translation by
Cullen. As if in confirmation of her story, ominous signs
became more numerous than ever. The big lake of Mexico began
to boil and foam without apparent cause, the water rising
high within the city and creating great damage. The date
generally accepted for this occurrence is 1509, but Mendieta,
_Hist. Ecles._, 178, says 1499. The lake, like the sky, was
connected with more than one mysterious occurrence. A troop
of Huatuscan conjurers arrived shortly after this in the
imperial city to exhibit tricks, in one of which they cut
off their hands and feet, disclosing bleeding stumps, and
then replaced the members. In order to test whether this
was an illusion or not, the emperor ordered the severed
members to be thrown into boiling water before they were
returned to the performers. This unwarranted curiosity
stirred the magicians to the very core, and before retiring
they predicted that the lake would be tinged with blood, and
that their avengers would soon appear in a strange people,
the conquerors of the empire. Not long after, Montezuma
noticed streaks of blood in the lake, mingled with a number
of human heads and limbs. He called others to witness the
sight, but none save himself could see it. Sending to the
injured conjurers for an explanation, they replied that
the vision denoted great and bloody battles to be waged in
the city by the strange people. _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib.
ii. cap. ix. About the same time some fishermen caught
a grey bird, like a crane, with a round comb or diadem,
resembling a mirror. On being brought before Montezuma,
he was startled by seeing reflected in this mirror the
heavenly bodies, although none appeared in the sky, for it
was yet daylight. The next moment the stars had vanished,
and in their place were seen beings, half man and half deer,
who moved about in battle array. Diviners were called to
give their explanation, but when they came the bird had
disappeared. Torquemada appears to date this as early as
1505, i. 235. _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlasc._, 139-40. Another
great bird is referred to, with a human head, which soared
above the lake uttering the prediction that speedily would
come the new rulers of the empire. Other monsters were found
in the shape of double-bodied and double-headed men, which
dissolved in the air shortly after being brought to the
sorcerers’, or black hall, of Montezuma. A horrible animal
was caught near Tecualoia. _Torquemada_, i. 214. During
all the years of these signs could be heard, at frequent
intervals, a female voice lamenting, ‘Oh, my children, all
is lost to us! My children, whither will you be taken?’
_Id._, 214, 233. A similar voice was heard before the fall
of Jerusalem. _Josephus_, lib. vii. cap. xii.; _Mendieta_,
_Hist. Ecles._, 180; _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant. Méj._, iii. 358;
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Gen._, i. 5. In 1510 the imperial city
was startled, one clear, quiet night, by a fire, which,
bursting from the heart of the timbers in the temple of
Huitzilopochtli, burned all the fiercer under the efforts
made to quench it. A precursor of this had been the fall
of a stone column close to the temple, coming no one knew
whence. ‘El chapitel de un Cú de Vitzilopuchtli, que se
llamaba Tlacoteca, se encendió.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, i.
3-4. Shortly after, the temple of the fire god Xiuhtecutli,
at Zocomolco, was stricken by lightning and burned. This
occurred without the usual accompaniment of thunder, and
with but a sprinkle of rain; many regarded it as done by
a sunbeam, and consequently as particularly ominous. ‘Los
Indios decian ... el Sol ha quemado este Templo; porque ni
hemos visto Relampago, ni hemos oido Trueno.’ _Torquemada_,
i. 214, 234. Believing, or pretending to believe, the city
attacked by enemies, the Tlatelulcans rushed to arms, for
which excess of zeal they were punished by a suspension
of all their townsmen who held positions at court. _Native
Races_, v. 461-67.
[141] Torquemada assumes that the 12,210 victims comprised
also those offered at the consecration of two new temples,
Tlamatzinco and Quauhxicalli. See _Native Races_, v. 471.
Tezozomoc relates that the laborers, after striving in vain
to move the stone from its original site, heard it utter,
in a muffled voice, ‘Your efforts are in vain; I enter not
into Mexico.’ The incident finds a parallel in the vain
effort of Tarquin to remove certain statues of the gods, to
make room for Jupiter’s temple, and in the firm adherence
of Apollo’s head to the ground, shortly before the death
of the Roman ruler. But recovering from their alarm, they
tried again, and now the stone moved almost of its own
accord. Another halt is made, a second oracle delivered, and
finally the stone reaches the bridge, where it disappears
into the water. Amid the invocation of priests, divers
descend in search, only to come back with the report that
no vestige of it is to be found; but there is a fathomless
pit extending toward Chalco. While diviners are cudgelling
their brains for clues, in comes a messenger to announce
that the stone, like the Penates of Æneas, had returned to
its original site, arrayed in all the sacrificial ornaments.
Observing in this occurrence the divine will, Montezuma let
the stone remain, and recognizing at the same time a menace
to himself, perhaps of speedy death, he ordered his statue
to be at once sculptured by the side of his predecessors,
on the rocky face of Chapultepec Hill. Tezozomoc describes
the statue. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 204-7. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._,
MS., ii. 313-27. _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, i. 292-3.
Among the troubles which after this fell upon the doomed
people are mentioned: An earthquake in 1513. _Codex Tell.
Rem._, in _Kingsborough’s Mex. Antiq._, v. 154. A locust
plague. ‘Vieronse gran cantidad de mariposas, y langostas,
que passauan de buelo hàzia el Occidente.’ _Herrera_, dec.
iii. lib. ii. cap. ix. A deluge in Tuzapan, and a fall
of snow which overwhelmed the army en route for Amatlan.
While crossing the mountains, rocks and trees came tumbling
down upon them, killing a large number, while others froze
to death. Ixtlilxochitl places this in 1514. Others say
1510. During the Soconusco campaign, see _Native Races_, v.
472, the ground opened near Mexico, and threw up water and
fish. The Indians interpreted this to signify a victory,
but the lord of Culhuacan intimated, with a shake of the
head, that one force expelled another, whereat Montezuma’s
delight somewhat abated. ‘Quando prendio Cortes a entrambos,
se accordò (Montezuma) muy bien de aquellas palabras.’
_Herrera_, ubi sup.
[142] Meanwhile it came to pass that an eagle swooped down
upon a peasant at work in a field not far from Mexico,
and seizing him by the hair in full view of his neighbors,
bore him out of sight. Landed high upon a mountain, the man
found himself led by invisible hands through a dark cave
into a hall of dazzling splendor, where Montezuma lay as
if asleep. Less favored than Ganymede, he was permitted
to see no other form, but voices around explained to him
that this was a representation of the emperor intoxicated
with pride and blinded by vanity. Tezozomoc writes that the
eagle assumed the form of a lord and spoke; but a superior
being can hardly be supposed to have assumed the office
of carrying a low peasant. A lighted pipe with a rose was
placed in his hand, with orders to burn a mark upon the
monarch’s leg, and then proceed to court and relate to him
what had occurred, pointing out the blister in testimony.
The gods were annoyed at his conduct and rule, which had
evoked the ills soon to overthrow him. Let him amend and
use well the short term still allotted to him. The next
moment the peasant found himself borne through the air
by the eagle, which enjoined upon him to obey the command
received. The man did so, and Montezuma, recalling a dream
to the same effect, looked and found a wound, which now
began to burn painfully. Throwing the man into prison as
an evil sorcerer, he sought his doctors for relief. ‘Lo
que vio el labrador, pudo ser que aconteciesse en vision
imaginatiua porque ... no es increyble que Dios por medio
de vn Angel bueno ordenasse ... que aquel auiso se diesse.’
_Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. ix. Montezuma now resolved
to seek a refuge where none of the threatened evils might
reach him. The place selected was Cicalco, ‘house of the
rabbit,’ painted by the myths as an abode of delight,
abounding in every product, sown with flowers, and flowing
with crystal waters, a place where death never entered.
As a preliminary step four human victims were flayed and
their spirits sent to Huemac, the ruler of that region, to
prepare the way for the living messengers. These consisted
of sorcerers, accompanied by dwarfs and hunchbacks to carry
the flayed skins as presents. Two hunchbacks were sent with
the skins of ten flayed men, says Duran. Entering the cave
leading to Cicalco, they were guided by its guardian into
the bowels of the earth, and presented themselves before
the Aztec Pluto. With humble reverence they proffered the
skins with the prayer of Montezuma for admission into that
abode of delight and into his service. Unwilling to make
an exception to the rule for admission through death’s
portals, Huemac sent the messengers back with presents,
giving the evasive reply that their master should confide to
him his sorrows and await relief. On receiving this report
Montezuma angrily ordered the men to be cast into prison,
and sent other messengers with fresh skins, repeating his
request for admission, yet conforming in so far as to ask
for an explanation of the many signs abroad. Huemac, again
avoiding a direct answer, told them that Cicalco was quite
a different place from what they supposed it to be. He
and his comrades stayed not of their own accord, but were
kept there by a superior power, steeped in abject toil
and misery. This unsatisfactory report entailed upon the
messengers the same punishment as before. Two Acolhuan chiefs
were now entrusted with fresh skins and the request that
Huemac should at least explain the signs which threatened
the emperor, if he still refused him admission. Among these
signs is mentioned a white cloud rising at midnight toward
the sky. Propitiated by the higher rank or qualities of
these messengers, or by the earnest perseverance of their
master, Huemac explained that the sufferings and menaces
were the result of his pride and cruelty. Let him amend,
and as a preliminary task begin a fast of eighty days.
This accomplished, Huemac would meet him at Tlachtonco, on
the summit of Chapultepec. Montezuma was so delighted with
this answer that he rewarded the chiefs most liberally, and
made the necessary arrangements for the government of the
empire during his seclusion. Going at the appointed time to
Tlachtonco, a brilliant stone ordered him to make certain
preparations and return in four days, when he would be
conducted to Cicalco. This he did, after enjoining secrecy
upon all who had assisted in the matter. Arrayed in a human
skin adorned with precious stones, gold, and feathers, he
seated himself upon a feathered throne, surrounded by his
richly dressed dwarf and hunchback pages, and in this guise
awaited Huemac. Soon a light in the distance, brilliant as
the sun, announced the approach of the mysterious being,
and hope leaped high in Montezuma’s breast. It stopped,
however, and the emperor was devoured by anxiety. Suddenly
a human voice recalled him from his absorption. It was
that of the guardian of Tzoncoztli temple, who related that
Huemac, interdicted by supreme command from approaching the
emperor, had commissioned him to recall his master to duty.
His presence is needed in Mexico to direct public affairs
and to infuse respect among the hostile nations, who would
rise the moment his disappearance became known. What will
his subjects think? He must obey the divine command, and
remember that he is emperor of the world. Montezuma yielded
reluctantly and reëntered his palace, taking to his side
the faithful Tzoncoztli guardian, and charging all to keep
the secret. _Tezozomoc_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 213-27; and in
_Kingsborough’s Mex. Ant._, v. 469, et seq.; _Duran_, _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 328-45.
[143] _Codex Chimalpopoca_, in _Brasseur de Bourbourg_,
_Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 35-6.
[144] ‘Besaron todos las proas de las naos en señal de
adoracion, pensaron que era el Dios _Quetzalcoatl_ que
volvia.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, i. 5.
[145] According to Tezozomoc, an Indian, with ears, thumbs,
and big toes cut off, arrived from Mictlancuauhtla with the
report that he had seen a round mountain on the sea moving
to and fro without approaching the shore. The informant
was placed under guard, and a chief with an attendant sent
to Pinotl to verify the statement, and to chide him for
neglect to report. They soon returned to say that from a
tree they had seen two such mountains or towers, from one
of which a canoe had set out on a fishing trip. The men on
board had white faces and hands, long, thick beard, long
hair, raiments of varied and brilliant colors, and round
head-covering. The mutilated Indian being now called to
answer further questions, his prison cell was found vacant.
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 232-4; _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii.
359-77.
[146] _Torquemada_, i. 379, names ten members, while Veytia,
_Hist. Ant. Méj._, iii. 378, says there were twelve.
[147] Particularly at Nauhtla, Toztla, Mictla, and Quauhtla.
_Torquemada_, i. 379; Sahagun, _Hist. Conq._, i. 6, calls the
districts Cuextecatl, Naulitlantoztlan, and Mictlanquactla.
_Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 49, writes
more correctly Nauthtlan, Tochtlan, and Mictlan-Quauhtla.
[148] Torquemada, i. 379-80, expresses his disapproval of
Gomara and Herrera for following only Spanish versions, and
ignoring the Indian records acquired by himself and others,
including Sahagun. The latter assumes that Montezuma has been
apprised of Grijalva’s departure before the embassy leaves,
and this body is therefore not sent till Cortés arrives.
_Hist. Conq._, i. 7. This is not unlikely, for council
had to be first held and the future course determined,
and messengers were always on the way between the subject
provinces and the capital, ready to convey news. But most
writers, followed by the _Native Races_, take the view
presented in the text. Herrera, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap.
ix., who is very brief on Grijalva’s visit, says, when it
was learned that the Spaniards wanted gold, the governors
on the coast were ordered to barter with it, and to find
out what further object they had in coming. Ixtlilxochitl
states that merchants from the coast fair brought the first
news of Grijalva to Mexico. Veytia, _Hist. Ant. Méj._,
iii. 377-8, is brief on the subject. Tezozomoc describes
the necklace, bracelet, and other jewelry prepared as
presents by four of the leading goldsmiths and lapidaries.
With these the chief who had been to the coast to observe
the floating towers is ordered to seek the white men.
Pinotl must prepare food for them, and if they eat, they
are surely Quetzalcoatl and his suite. ‘But if they prefer
human flesh,’ says Duran, in his version, ‘and wish to eat
you, let them do so; I promise to look to the future of
your children and relatives.’ _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 366-7.
‘If you are convinced that it is Quetzalcoatl,’ continued
Montezuma, ‘adorn his person with these jewels made for
the purpose, and say that I beg him humbly to come and take
possession of the throne which I hold for him.’ _Tezozomoc_,
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 236-9. This author confounds Grijalva
and Cortés, but allows the jewels and message to reach the
latter. According to Duran, Montezuma tells the chief to
ask the god for permission to finish his rule; after his
death he is welcome to the throne. ‘Que me dege morir, y
que despues de yo muerto venga muy de norabuena, y tome su
Reyno pues es suyo y lo dejó en guarda á mis antepasados,’
ut supra. Acosta, _Hist. Ind._, 508-14 refers briefly to
this subject, and to the various omens and visions, some
of which he regards as dreams imparted by angels. Meanwhile
fresh messengers arrive to report that the white captain had
spread the wings of his floating mountains and faded away
in the east. They bring later drawings and gifts, including
beads, shirts, a hat, some biscuits and wine. The monarch
crunches the biscuits and admits them to be good, but the
wine, with its penetrating sweetness, lulling the senses and
calling up happy visions, this delights him, and specimens
of both are deposited upon the altar of Quetzalcoatl at
Tula. Finally, on seeing the glass necklace, he declares the
giver to be indeed the Acatl Ynacuitl, the travelling god
of the reed; and deeming himself unworthy of so brilliant
an adornment, he consecrates it to the gods. The best
painters are called to give a superior representation of
the strange visitors from the rude drawings brought by the
messengers, and from their description, while the old and
wise men are asked for recollections and ideas which may
throw light upon the subject. After much search a tradition
is raked up, wherein a race is to come from the east mounted
on serpents or masted mountains, and with them a white,
bearded people, astride of big deers and eagles, who will
land at Tzonapan, and obtain possession of all the land.
They are also described as a one-legged people, with the
face in the middle of the body, of white complexion and
with long beard. In confirmation thereof is produced an
old painting, which agrees with those depicting the late
arrivals. Convinced of the identity, Montezuma orders the
governors of the coast provinces to maintain a close watch
for the return of the strangers, so that he may receive
speedy notice. _Tezozomoc_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 241-50;
_Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 359-92.
This chapter presents but a faint picture of the state of
affairs within the Mexican empire at the time of the arrival
of Cortés. As I said at the outset, all this I have given
in my _Native Races_, and can not of course repeat it here.
Further authorities on omens and on the state of the Aztec
empire, most of them, however, of no value, are _Carbajal
Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 5-12; _Beltrami_, _Mexique_,
ii. 137-9 and 142-3; _Zamacois_, _Hist. Méj._, iii. 130-2;
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 124-6; _Bos_, _Leben
der See-Helden_, 4-5; _Hazart_, _Kirchen-Geschichte_, ii.
505-8; _Touron_, _Hist. Gen. Am._, iii. 127-34; _Viagero
Univ._, xxvi. 192-237; _Larenaudière_, _Mex. et Guat._,
73-5; _Lafond_, _Voy._, i. 105-7; _Eggleston’s Montezuma_,
11-17; _Sammlung aller Reisebesch._, xiii. 289-91; _Russell’s
Hist. Am._, i. 76-9; _Laharpe_, _Abrégé_, ix. 268-73; _Du
Perrier_, _Gen. Hist. Voy._, 332-6; _Burke’s Europ. Set._,
i. 71; _Smollett’s Voy._, i. 214-19; _Chevalier_, _Mexique_,
7-22; _Mexique Études_, 9-10; _Robertson’s Hist. Am._, ii.
17-18; _Bussierre_, _L’Emp. Mex._, 119-30; _Manzi_, _Conq.
di Mess._ 14-19; _Roure_, _Conquête du Mex._, 211-20.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE COMBATANTS SALUTE.
APRIL-MAY, 1519.
THE EMBASSY FROM THE SHORE—THE NEW INTERPRETER—MARINA—HER
APPEARANCE AND QUALITY—HER ROMANTIC HISTORY—SHE CLEAVES
TO THE SPANIARDS AND TO CORTÉS—AND BECOMES ONE OF THE
MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTERS OF THE CONQUEST—THE SPANIARDS
LAND AND FORM AN ENCAMPMENT—THE GOVERNOR COMES WITH
PRESENTS—THE SPANIARDS ASTONISH THE NATIVES—WHO REPORT
ALL TO MONTEZUMA—CORTÉS SENDS THE MONARCH PRESENTS—COUNCIL
CALLED IN MEXICO—MONTEZUMA DETERMINES NOT TO RECEIVE THE
STRANGERS—RECIPROCATES IN PRESENTS A HUNDREDFOLD—CORTÉS
PERSISTS—MONTEZUMA DECLINES MORE FIRMLY—OLMEDO ATTEMPTS
CONVERSION—TEUHTLILE, OFFENDED, WITHDRAWS HIS PEOPLE FROM THE
CAMP OF THE SPANIARDS.
Under San Juan de Ulua the fleet of Cortés rests at anchor, lying
lazily there, its fiery purpose clothed in peaceful white, like a
snow-capped volcano basking in the sunlight. The ships had been watched
from afar by expectant eyes; and now from the wondering multitude
that lines the Chalchiuhcuecan[149] shore come two large canoes,
whose occupants step to the deck of the flag-ship and reverentially
ask for the Tlatoani. Their language is new to Aguilar; none of the
company can understand it. What is to be done? Modestly speaks one of
the female slaves, “These are Mexicans, sent by Cuitlalpitoc,[150]
cacique of the nearest town, to welcome the white chief and offer
their devotion. They would likewise know whence he comes, and why.”
Instantly all eyes are on the speaker, who under their continued gaze
draws back, abashed at her own temerity, while the warm blood mantles
beneath its clear olive confine, and the breath comes inconstant
between parted lips. Cortés regards her as she stands there unconscious
of the important service she has rendered him; for possessed she the
power of Thetis, to assume any form she pleased, the fair interpreter
could not at this juncture have appeared before the chief in any other
aspect half so fascinating. Who is she? The one baptized Marina,
at Tabasco; and who, being the greatest lady there, was given to
Puertocarrero, the greatest gentleman present. Why had she been given
to Puertocarrero? Why had not the chief chamberer himself taken her?
Cortés had weightier matters on his mind. He was playing for empire,
and would not now stop to divide the petty winnings with his men. By
and by right royally will he reward the unsanctified within him for
its abstinence. As for this girl, he seems now for the first time to
see her.[151] Had Marina, the slave, been born in other lands, under
different auspices, to what exalted sphere might not her personal
loveliness and beauty of character have entitled her!
They say she was fair for an Indian; very beautiful she certainly is,
and of that order of loveliness that captivates the understanding no
less than the passions. The old as well as the young are ravished
with her beauty, even as with Helen were the elders of Troy. She
is about eighteen, and in form and features perfect; her long hair
falling over smooth, round shoulders, and from large lustrous eyes
radiating a tender melancholy that overspreads the face and tones to
harmony whatever falls beneath its influence. Sweet and frank in her
disposition, she is nevertheless resolute enough upon occasion; yet
in her ordinary mood there is a rare grace and femininity, in which
she is as liquid and pellucid as a passage in Herodotus. There is
no shame in her blush, nothing bordering on conscious inferiority in
her bearing; nothing that these or any other beings may do unto her
can lessen her self-respect. She scarcely knows she is a slave, the
plaything of passion; she finds the world made so, men the stronger
and wickeder, and she has but to acquiesce.[152]
Cortés is deeply interested. As if from heaven some bright being
had been sent to his assistance, so comes to him Marina now. What is
her history? Strangely romantic. She is the daughter of a cacique,
born at Painala, eight leagues from Goazacoalco. While yet a child
her father died; and upon a son, the fruit of a second marriage, the
mother centred all her affections. To secure to him the succession and
inheritance which rightly belonged to the daughter, Marina was given
as a slave to some travelling merchants of Xicalanco, while a slave
girl who had just died was passed off for Marina and buried with the
usual stately ceremonies.[153] Arrived at Tabasco, Marina was sold
to the cacique, and by him transferred to the Spaniards. With a mind
elastic and quick to learn, to her native Mexican tongue she added
at Tabasco a knowledge of the Maya, becoming afterward proficient in
Spanish. And now no longer slave, save to the passion love, she is
to queen it for a while as consort of the conqueror, becoming in the
conquest second only in power and importance to Cortés himself, whom
with her whole soul she loves, and to whom alone she clings after
the departure presently of Puertocarrero for Spain. Accompanying the
invaders as interpreter and adviser, she shares their hardships and
rejoices in their successes. For is not the daring commander lord
of her heart and person? Moreover, what claim upon her has a nation
which drives her into solitude beyond its border, and for no crime?
Therefore, if her newly found friends sicken, she nurses them; if
they despair, she comforts them. Nevertheless she cannot forget her
people, but freely exerts her influence in their behalf, saving many
a life and many a town from destruction. Toward the end both races
vie in showing her their admiration, gratitude, and respect; and
although to the Indian the invaders become more and more objects of
execration, yet he never mentions with aught but loving reverence the
name Malintzin, or Malinche, as in his tongue is called Marina.[154]
To the embassy of Cuitlalpitoc Cortés makes friendly answer. He
will explain his purposes to the cacique in person. Meanwhile the
messengers are regaled with food; presents are given them, and gold
is shown as something Spaniards delight in. Then they return to the
shore, which appears not very inviting, with its broad reach of sand
and sandy hillocks whirled up by the northers. Likewise vegetation
hereabout is stunted, larger trees appearing only in the distance.
The place had been recommended by Grijalva, however, as possessing
good anchorage, and the people as being rich and hospitable.[155]
Early on Good Friday Cortés landed, planted guns upon the hillock,
and began the construction of a fortified camp, consisting of houses,
huts, and sheds, high in the centre of which was placed a large cross.
Informed of this, the cacique sent men to carry timber, plaster the
walls, and put up awnings. Food was also provided, and feather-work
and gold were presented Cortés, with the information that the governor
would visit him presently. Meanwhile the natives flocked in to trade,
so that on Saturday the place presented the appearance of a fair,
rather than the encampment of an invading army.
On Easter Sunday, while preparations were made for mass, Cuitlalpitoc
arrived with his chief, Teuhtlile, governor of the province, whose
residence was at Cuetlachtlan, eight leagues away.[156] Attending
them was a large retinue of nobles, and slaves[157] bearing presents.
Cortés, with an escort, advanced to receive them, and after interchange
of courtesies led the way to the altar, draped in native cotton
fabrics, where Father Olmedo celebrated mass,[158] aided by Father
Juan Diaz, Aguilar, and a trained choir. The service over, Cortés
invited the chiefs to dinner, and there informed them that he was
a captain of the greatest monarch the sun smiled on, Charles V. of
Spain, who, hearing of Montezuma’s fame, had sent him presents and
a message, which must be delivered in person immediately.[159] How
easy the way to him who knows it! Had Cortés but spoken the simple
word, “I am Quetzalcoatl, come to resume my rule,” he might possibly
at one time have ridden midst hosannas to the capital, and seated
himself without resistance on Montezuma’s throne.
But the minion of an earthly monarch is quite a different being from
the fair god in the eyes of the Aztec officers, who answer somewhat
haughtily, “Be it known to you that our master is the inferior of none;
and for the present let these gifts suffice.” Saying which the signal
is given; the slaves advance and deliver their burdens, consisting
in part of food, cotton fabrics more than ten bales, brilliant
feather-work, and a cacaxtli, or basket, filled with wrought gold
set with rare stones and pearls. Cortés expressed thanks, and gave
for Montezuma in return a carved and inlaid arm-chair, some engraved
marcasite laid in musk-scented cotton, a bright red cap, a gold medal
stamped with the figures of St George and the dragon, twisted strings
of beads, and other articles; and would the emperor deign to wear the
cap and occupy the chair when it became his pleasure to receive him?
To the chiefs were also given some trifles. Teuhtlile promised to
deliver to Montezuma the gifts and the message. Then pointing to the
gilt helmet of a soldier, which resembled in form the head-dress of
the idol Quetzalcoatl, he expressed a desire to show it to Montezuma.
“Take it,” said Cortés, “and bring it back filled with gold-dust,
that we may show our emperor what kind of metal you have.”[160]
Observing the native painters transcribing to amatl-paper the several
novelties, and wishing to impress them further, Cortés mounted a horse,
and ordered the troops to fall into line and the cannons to be charged.
The infantry first passed in review to the sound of music with arms
and banners displayed. Then came the cavalry with the best riders,
led by Alvarado, dashing past in varied and swift evolutions. The
graceful movements of the great animals, their rearing and prancing,
and above all their speed; the flashing swords, the glittering armor,
all seemed to these simple people like a scene from the supernatural.
Their admiration was changed to terror, however, when the guns belched
flames and smoke, and sent midst many thunderings the stone balls
scudding along the beach or crashing among the trees. All, even their
own fears, were faithfully depicted by the painters. On leaving,
Teuhtlile gave orders to supply the Spaniards with every necessary, for
which purpose two thousand of his people were detailed to attend them,
particularly to bring wood, water, and food. For their accommodation
another cluster of huts was erected, so that within these few days
two towns arose on the sands of Chalchiuhcuecan. Cuitlalpitoc, who
remained for a time to superintend the service, received from his
guests the name of Ovandillo.[161]
Montezuma was quickly in possession of all these facts; and when he
saw the gifts, and read the picture writings, and learned how a woman,
beautiful as the sun, talked to his people in their own language;
more particularly when he compared the helmet with that worn by
Huitzilopochtli, and was told that the terrible strangers insisted
on an interview, apprehension filled his soul.[162] Cuitlahuatzin,
his brother, and Cacama of Tezcuco, were summoned to aid in telling
him what to do. The council was divided. There was the popular
belief regarding Quetzalcoatl with its attendant prognostics; on the
other hand these strangers did not behave like gods. They had human
appetites, overthrew the idols, claimed allegiance to another power,
and had proved themselves vulnerable at Potonchan. Yet could beings
wholly terrestrial so live without women, mount gigantic deer, and tame
the lightning? Cacama thought they should have a hearing. The national
honor demanded it; beside, refusal implied fear. Cuitlahuatzin saw
in the visitation only evil to the commonwealth, and urged expulsion.
The gods should decide; and very foolish gods they would have been to
vote admission to their destroyers. And now behold the fatal folly of
Montezuma! Instead of vigorous action toward the end determined on,
he adopted a middle course. He would decline the interview, yet not
rudely drive the strangers hence, lest, peradventure, they might be
gods and successfully oppose him. He would send them liberal gifts,
and beseech them to depart, thus exposing at once his weakness and
his wealth.[163]
A diplomate of the first nobility was accordingly despatched to the
sea-shore. With him went Teuhtlile, returning after only a week’s
absence.[164] Numerous natives were in attendance, among them over
a hundred slaves. Bowing low before Cortés, who had on this occasion
put on greater pomp than usual, the envoy touched the earth with his
hand, carrying it to his lips, and then he swung the copal censer.[165]
Together with Teuhtlile he thereupon seated himself beside Cortés;
and it was remarked how much alike they looked, the Spanish commander
and the Aztec envoy, who, perhaps, had been selected for this reason,
with the aid of the portraits made by the native painters, and as a
mark of honor to the white captain. The soldiers not inappropriately
called him the Mexican Cortés.[166]
The slaves were then directed to lay down the presents; among which
were thirty bales of cotton fabrics, from gauzy curtains to heavy
robes, white, colored, plain, and figured,[167] interwoven with
feathers or embroidered with gold and silver thread; feathers and
plumes of all colors, embroidered sandals, and marcasite mirrors.
All these, however, were trifles beside the gold, the beautiful
glittering gold which was now disclosed, and likewise the silver.
First there was a disk of the yellow metal, representing the sun
with its rays, as large as a carriage wheel, ten spans in diameter,
ornamented in demi-relief and valued at thirty-eight hundred pesos
de oro.[168] A companion disk of solid silver, of the same size,
and equally ornamented, represented the moon.[169] Then there were
thirty golden ducks, well fashioned; a number of other pieces in form
of dogs, lions, monkeys, and other animals; ten collars, a necklace
with over one hundred pendent stones called emeralds and rubies by
the Spaniards; twelve arrows, a bow with cord stretched, two staves
each five palms in length; fans, bracelets, and other pieces, all
of fine gold, beside a number of silver. What could have delighted
the Spaniards more? One thing only, and that was not wanting—the
gilt helmet returned full of virgin gold, fine dust and coarse,
with a plentiful mixture of nuggets of various sizes and shapes, all
fresh from the placers. The value of this was three thousand pesos,
and appreciation was attracted not so much by the amount as by the
significance of the gift, as Bernal Diaz remarks, for it afforded a
sure indication of the existence of rich mines in the country. “It
was this gift which cost Montezuma his head,”[170] says Torquemada.
The words which followed fell on closed ears. These so greatly admired
gifts are but a slight token of the high regard of the emperor, who
would be pleased to form a friendship with his king; but he could not
think of troubling Cortés to come to him through a hostile country;
besides, he was ailing. Everything the visitors might wish to aid their
departure would be instantly supplied. This and more. Poor, foolish
monarch! As well might he ask the ravenous wolf to depart after giving
it to lick a little blood from his scratched hand. For the gifts, a
thousand thanks; but after so long a voyage, undertaken solely for
the purpose, the Spanish captain dared not face his master without
having seen the great Montezuma. As for the road, its difficulties
or dangers were nothing. Would the chiefs present their monarch these
further articles, and bring speedy answer?[171]
Meanwhile discussion was in order among the Spaniards, and speculation
as to what should be done. Some advised immediate advance on
Montezuma’s capital; some, fearful of the nation’s strength, as
manifested by its arts and refinements, favored return to Cuba for
reinforcements. Cortés let them talk, but said little. Traffic at
first was freely permitted among the men,[172] and as the result
was meagre Cortés did not think it worth while to require of them
a division. To this irregularity certain of the Velazquez leaders
objected, demanding at least that the royal fifth should be deducted;
the commander therefore ordered gold to be received only by Gonzalo
Mejía, as treasurer.[173]
Ten days elapsed before Teuhtlile returned, without the envoy,[174]
but followed by a file of slaves bearing, among other things, as a
present to the Spanish king, ten loads of rich feathers and robes,
some gold figures valued at three thousand pesos, and four chalchiuite
stones, each declared to be worth a load of gold, but of no value to
Europeans.
Teuhtlile then stated that further messages to the emperor were
useless, since the desired interview could not be granted. He hoped
the Spaniards would content themselves with the promised supplies
and depart in peace.
Turning to his companions, Cortés said: “Truly this must be a great
lord, and rich; and, God willing, some day we will visit him.” Just
then the bell struck for Ave María, and instantly, with uncovered
heads, the soldiers were kneeling round the cross. The priests, ever
ready to preach their faith where an opportunity presented, were soon
at work. His words, however, made a bad impression on the governor,
as had also the evasive answer of Cortés to his message. He bade
a cold farewell, and the next morning the Spaniards awoke to find
the native encampment deserted, and even the supplies carried away.
Precautions were now taken against probable attack, by sending on
board the provisions and all cumbrous articles, leaving embarkation
easy at any moment.[175]
FOOTNOTES
[149] See _Native Races_, iv. 434. Duran’s native records
call this the ‘port’ of Chalchuihqueyacan. _Hist. Ind._,
MS., ii. 389. The spelling by different authorities differs
greatly. Clavigero, and Veytia, _Hist. Ant. Méj._, iii. 377,
give April 21 as the date of arrival, while Bustamante, in
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. Mex. 1845), 135, makes it the
22d. Year Ce Acatl. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Rel._, 411. Sahagun,
_Hist. Conq._, i. 7., says 13 conejos.
[150] _Torquemada_, i. 387. Bernal Diaz writes Pitalpitoque,
named by the Spaniards Ovandillo. _Hist. Verdad._, 25.
Herrera, Pitalpitoc. Solis, followed by Robertson, Pilpatoe.
Bernal Diaz and Gomara name Teuhtlile, the chief governor
of the province, who lived farther in the interior, as the
sender.
[151] According to Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 40, and Herrera,
dec. ii. lib. v. cap. iv., this new interpreter is not
discovered until four days later.
[152] ‘Entremetida, é desembuelta,’ slabbers that lecherous
old soldier Bernal Diaz. To call women loose comes well
from men who spend their lives in making them so. If, as
has been stated, the women of her native district have
borne a reputation not altogether enviable, whose fault is
it? Not theirs, truly. That this girl was the mistress of
men, under the circumstances, detracts not one iota from
her good name in the minds of right-thinking persons; nay,
it detracts nothing from her purity of mind, her honesty,
or her innate morality. ‘Reprehensible medio de asegurarla
en su fidelidad,’ says Solis, _Hist. Conq. Mex._, i. 119,
otherwise so ready to cover up the defects of his hero.
[153] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 24-5. According to
Gomara she was born in Viluta, in the direction of Jalisco,
the daughter of rich parents, related to the cacique.
From them she was stolen by traders and sold in Xicalanco.
_Hist. Mex._, 40. The town and district may be a corruption
of Huilotlan, in Xalatzinco, which Ixtlilxochitl, _Hist.
Chich._, 287, gives as her native place, and this may be
identical with the present Oluta or Holuta, near Acayucan,
on the isthmus of Tehuantepec. Painala is no longer known.
Fossey, who travelled through the region, states that
tradition makes Xaltipan or Altipan her birthplace, and in
support of this belief a mountain is pointed out, close to
the town, bearing the name of Malinche. _Mexique_, 26-7;
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._ (Bustamante ed.), i. 41; _Berendt_, in
_Salazar_, _Méx. en 1554_, 178; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v.
cap. vi.; Sahagun, _Hist. Conq._ i. 15, mentions Teticpac,
and Oviedo names Mexico as Marina’s native place, iii.
259, while Saavedra undertakes to reconcile the different
statements by supposing that her family came originally
from Jalisco, west of Anáhuac, to Mexico city, and thence
to Goazacoalco. Her high intelligence indicates that she
was educated in the capital. _Dic. Univ._, ix. 774.
[154] Mexicans being unable to pronounce the ‘r,’ Marina
became Malina, to which the _tzin_ was added in respect,
equivalent to doña or lady. Malinche was a Spanish
corruption, which was at times applied by the Indians to
Cortés, as the lord and companion of Marina, and Juan Perez
de Arteaga had also the appellation added to his name, from
being so often with her. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
52. Another conjecture is that her original name was Malina,
or Malinalli, signifying ‘twisted thing,’ the term for one
of the Mexican days, applied in accordance with a native
custom of giving children the name of their birthday. The
name indeed is not uncommon, the lord of Tlachquiauhco, for
instance, being called Malinal or Malinaltzin. _Vetancvrt_,
_Teatro Mex._, ii. 31, 40. On finding her own name so similar
to Marina, the Spanish priest gave her this at the font.
The Indians usually acquired a surname after they grew up,
and Tenepal is that found for Marina. _Sigüenza y Góngora_,
_Paraiso Occid._, 38; _Salazar y Olarte_, _Conq. Mex._, 217;
_Arróniz_, _Orizaba_, 171, 182. To Cortés she bore a son,
who was recognized by his father and raised to the rank
of a knight of Santiago. While on the way with Cortés to
Honduras, in 1524, she was legally married to Captain Juan
Jaramillo. This took place at Ostoticpac, near Orizaba, and
excited no little comment. Some believe that the arrival of
Cortés’ wife was the cause of the marriage; but although
this may have led to his separation from Marina, it could
not have affected the marriage, since the wife was already
dead. Cortés no doubt found her an incumbrance, and sought to
be rid of it in a manner honorable to her at least. Gomara
accuses him of having made Jaramillo drunk for the purpose.
_Hist. Mex._, 251; but this Bernal Diaz corrects. He knew
one of the witnesses at the ceremony. _Hist. Verdad._, 25.
Jaramillo had achieved a certain prominence as commander of
one of the brigantines which aided in the siege of Mexico,
and in other affairs, and is said to have been an hidalgo.
Ixtlilxochitl marries her to Aguilar, probably because this
seemed a fit union. _Hist. Chich._, 287. _Camargo_, _Hist.
Tlax._, 143. Shortly after her marriage the army halted at
Goazacoalco, whither all the chiefs of the neighborhood were
summoned to tender submission and to receive instruction in
the faith. Among them was a young cacique with his mother,
whose resemblance to Marina at once called the attention of
all acquainted with the story, and led to her recognition
as the heartless parent. The old dame feared for her life,
but Marina reassured her with tender caresses, excusing her
conduct as controlled by the deceased stepfather, and cheered
her with a number of presents. She presented her husband, and
referred with fond pride to the son she had given to Cortés.
Both mother and half-brother accepted baptism, he receiving
the name of Lázaro, and she that of Marta, an appropriate
name for one who perhaps lived long enough to lament the
ruin of her people and country, an indirect result of her
unnatural treatment of Marina. Bernal Diaz, who witnessed
all this, and became further acquainted with the family,
declares Gomara wrong, and says: ‘Conoci á su madre, y á
su hermano,’ concluding ‘todo esto que digo, se lo oî muy
certificadamente, y se lo jurò, amen.’ _Hist. Verdad._,
25; _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 12-14; _Cogolludo_,
_Hist. Yucathan_, 38. Returning to Mexico, she received
lands there and in her native province, but took up her
residence in the capital, where her husband held a prominent
position through his wealth and offices, such as regidor and
as the first alférez of the city. ‘Recibieron pʳ Alferes
de esta Ciudad a Juan Xaramillo.’ ‘Primer Alferes.’ _Libro
de Cabildo_, MS., 216. Reference is made to lots and other
grants made to him and his wife Doña Marina, on March 14,
1528, and other dates. _Id._ Both held repartimientos, one
of which lay in Xilotepec. Marina appears to have been still
living in Mexico city in 1550, impressing her memory upon
the hearts of the grateful people, over whose welfare she
even now watches. Invoked by them, her spirit is frequently
encountered in its twilight flights on errands of mercy and
consolation, issuing from the ancient groves of Chapultepec,
where centres the recollection of Aztec glories. Ballads
still perpetuate her virtues, and many a nature’s monument
bears proudly the beloved name of Malintzin. Tradition also
transforms her into a naiad who daily rises from the pool
of Chapultepec, singing divinely. _Rodriguez_, _Anáhuac_,
461. She appears to have had several children by Cortés.
Peralta mentions five besides Martin, of whom two died
while young. The three remaining were daughters, of whom
two became nuns, and the third, Leonor, the wife of Martin
de Tolosa. _Nat. Hist._, 75. This is not wholly correct,
however, for in the Libro de Gobierno del Virey Mendoza is
a document, dated April, 1550, wherein the viceroy grants
a petition from her in favor of her grandson, Don Alonso de
Estrada, son of Luis de Saavedra, deceased, and encomendero
of Tilantongo town. Alaman’s notes, in _Prescott’s Mex._
(Mex. 1844), ii. 268-9. In _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 123,
ii. 70, 101, witnesses refer also to a daughter of the
interpreter Marina, with whom Cortés is accused of having
tampered, as he did with the mother. If so, this can hardly
be Saavedra’s wife, but a Tabascan child; yet Marina’s
master would not have presented a woman incumbered with a
child when he sought to do honor to the Spaniards. Saavedra
allows Marina to proceed to Spain with her husband, who
procured for her a high position at court. Here she died,
leaving several children, from whom descended some of the
first families in Spain. _Dic. Univ._, ix. 778. But this
authority is too full of blunders to be relied upon. Ideal
portraits are given in _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._,
ii. 65, and _Zamacois_, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 350.
[155] I have said, as the native record interpreted by
Tezozomoc and Duran relates, that the fleet is sighted
and reported long before it reaches San Juan de Ulua—from
Tabasco, says Vetancvrt, _Teatro Mex._, ii. 114. Montezuma,
who had already begun to hope that the strangers would never
return, becomes sad with apprehension; yet he orders special
relays to be stationed on the route to the coast, in order
to bring speedy news, commands his lieutenant to furnish the
strangers with all they need, and sends Tlillancalqui, the
messenger who met Grijalva, to ascertain their object. He
is instructed to declare that Montezuma holds the throne as
mere deputy at the disposal of the white god, for he supposes
that it is Quetzalcoatl, as before. If the god intends to
proceed to Mexico the roads will be cleaned, and the towns
and stations prepared for his accommodation. Tlillancalqui
delivers his message, together with a necklace of gold set
with precious stones, and in his eagerness to please the
strange beings he offers fowl and tortilla to horses as
well as men. Cortés signifies his wish to go to Mexico,
and asks that chiefs be sent to guide him. Tlillancalqui
hurries back with the message, leaving orders to supply the
Spaniards with all they desire. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS.,
ii. 389-96; _Tezozomoc_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 250-3. According
to the version by Sahagun and Torquemada, Montezuma sends
the same messengers whom he despatched the year before to
seek Grijalva, but who arrived too late. Their names are
Yohualychan, the leader, Tepuztecatl, Tizahua, Huehuetecatl,
and Hueycamecatleca. With them are sent the presents
already prepared for Grijalva, and the sacerdotal vestments
of Quetzalcoatl. On reaching the flag-ship they inquire
for their king and god Quetzalcoatl. At first surprised,
Cortés the next moment catches the clue. Seating himself
on an improvised throne, surrounded by a large suite, he
orders the messengers to appear. Being told that he is the
personage whom they seek, they prostrate themselves, kissing
the deck. The leader thereupon addresses him: ‘Welcome,
god and master; long have we, your servants and vassals,
waited for you. Montezuma, your vassal and lieutenant, sends
us to salute you, and begs the acceptance of this small
present and these precious ornaments, once used by you as
our king and god.’ They now array him in the vestments of
Quetzalcoatl, adding also many ornaments pertaining to the
gods Tezcatlipoca and Tlalocatecuhtli, as if to proclaim him
the greatest of the gods. The most attractive pieces are a
bejewelled and plume head-dress, and a necklace of precious
stones. ‘Is this all the gift of welcome that you bring?’
asks Cortés. ‘Lord and king, it is all that was given us
for your Majesty,’ was the reply. They are given food and
accommodation for the night. In order to impress upon them
the full extent of Spanish power, they are tied hands and
feet while the horses are exhibited, the arms displayed, and
the guns fired. They are then told that the white men have
heard the fame of Mexican warriors, as able to overcome ten
or even twenty times superior numbers, and desire a proof
thereof by fighting them in equal force. Swords and shields
are given them, but they decline, pleading their character
as mere envoys. They are thereupon insulted as cowards, and
told that the white men will descend upon their country,
kill all who resist, take possession of the government, and
secure better presents than those sent them. The messengers
now hurry back to Mexico without informing any one on the
way of what has occurred. _Torquemada_, i. 381-4; _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, i. 7-11; _Sigüenza y Góngora_, _El Fenix_,
MS., 273-8.
[156] Teudilli, or Quitaluor, from Cotosta, is Gomara’s
corrupt form. _Hist. Mex._, 39. Herrera calls Teuthlille
the chief governor, and Pitalpitoe a chief. dec. ii.
lib. v. cap. iv. Teutile, captain-general, and Pilpatoe,
governor. _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 119. Teotlili arrives
on Monday. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 286. ‘Tendile,
y Pitalpitoque eran Gouernadores de vnas Prouincias que se
dizen, Cotastlan, Tustepeque, Guazpaltepeque, Tlatalteteclo,
y de otros pueblos que nueuamẽte teniã sojuzgados.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 26. He means, however, that
Tendile is the chief governor. Pinotl had evidently left.
Cuetlachtlan province appears to have extended from Rio
Papaloapan, or Alvarado, to Rio de la Antigua.
[157] Ixtlilxochitl and Gomara place the number attending
at over 4,000.
[158] Here Solis takes Bernal Diaz to task for asserting
that mass had been already said on Friday. _Hist. Mex._,
i. 121. But the scholar is too severe upon the soldier,
whose head is true enough, however may be his tongue.
[159] ‘All Gomara’s fictions,’ sneers Las Casas, _Hist.
Ind._, iv. 484, who ignores Marina’s ability to interpret,
and thinks the interview was limited to the simplest
expressions conveyed by signs.
[160] _Carta del Ayunt._, ubi sup., 19. Gomara, _Hist.
Mex._, 39-41, while he does not refer to a helmet, states
that Cortés asked for gold, as a remedy for heart disease,
from which he and his men were suffering.
[161] ‘Dexo alli dos hombres principales, como capitanes,
con hasta dos mil personas entre mugeres y hombres de
servicio, y fuese a Cotosta.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 41.
He left over 1000 to wait upon the Spaniards, and over
1000 to carry supplies. _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 482;
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 287; Bernal Diaz, _Hist.
Verdad._, 26, supposes that Teuhtlile went in person to
Mexico, but not so Gomara and Ixtlilxochitl.
[162] ‘Y desque viò el casco, y el que tenia su Huichilobos,
tuuo por cierto, que eramos del linage de los que les
auian dicho sus antepassados, que vendrian á señorear
aquesta tierra.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 26.
This statement is followed by a cut at Gomara for giving
unreliable information. _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlasc._, 141.
The native version of Sahagun and Torquemada describes how
the messengers are sprinkled with fresh human blood, as
customary with important bearers of news, before presenting
themselves before Montezuma. They arouse his admiration by
speaking of the wonders beheld, of the penetrating swords,
the sulphurous smell of the thunder smoke, and of the
intoxicating food; but when they relate how outrageously
they have been treated and how the strangers threatened
to conquer the country, then the emperor wept, and with
him all the city. _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, i. 12-13;
_Torquemada_, i. 385-6; _Acosta_, _Hist. Ind._, 515-18.
Brasseur de Bourbourg incorporates all this native version
in his narrative, and allows Teuhtlile to reach Mexico
with his report a few days after these messengers, thus
confirming their account. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 75-6.
Duran writes that on hearing of Cortés’ eagerness to obtain
guides for Mexico, Montezuma began to grieve deeply over the
prospect of having to resign and die. The envoy consoled
him by representing the benignity of the white gods, but
he nevertheless set about to arrange for the safety of his
children. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 396-7; _Tezozomoc_, _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 253.
[163] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 287-8; _Camargo_,
_Hist. Tlasc._, 141-2; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. ix.
Torquemada refers to the similar mistake of King Hezekiah
of Judea, in exhibiting to the Assyrian envoys his wealth,
and thus attracting invaders, i. 391, 404.
[164] This seems an incredibly short time in a country
without horses, for Mexico lies over 200 miles by road
from this part of the coast; but with numerous relays of
runners and litter-bearers the distance would not take long
to cover. ‘Estas mensajerias fuerõ en vn dia, y vna noche
del real de Cortés a Mexico, que ay setenta leguas y mas.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 41.
[165] Torquemada. 389, assumes this to have been in token of
divine adoration, but the ceremony was a quite common mark
of respect for distinguished persons. See _Native Races_,
ii. 284. ‘Nos llamaron Teules ... ó dioses.’ ‘Hence when
I say Teules, or Gods, it may be understood to mean us,’
says Bernal Diaz with conscientious pride. _Hist. Verdad._,
32. But the _teu_ or _teo_ prefix to names must be accepted
in the same light as the incense burning, and in this case
equivalent to ‘hero.’ See also _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._,
iii. 19. ‘Demonios’ is Oviedo’s translation of teules, iii.
500.
[166] Some writers doubt the ability of native painters to
have given a sufficiently accurate portrait; but with the
aid of explanatory signs there was little difficulty.
[167] Some of them were checkered, which to Peter Martyr
is a sufficient proof that the Mexicans played chess, dec.
v. cap. x.
[168] _Carta del Ayunt. de V. Cruz_, in _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
29. ‘Pessaba la de oro quatro mill y ochoçientos pessos
... tenia nueve palmos y medio de anchura é treynta de
çircunferençia,’ says Oviedo, who inspected the presents at
Seville, evidently with mathematical precision, iii. 259.
‘Pesaua cien marcos, hecha como Sol, y con muchos follajes,
y animales de relieue.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 42. Peter
Martyr, dec. iv. cap. ix., describes the central figure as
a king enthroned, surrounded with foliated ornaments. In
the above _Carta del Ayunt._ a peso de oro and a castellano
are shown to be equivalent, and a marco contains fifty
castellanos. Writers differ widely in their calculations to
reduce these coins to modern values, Prescott estimating the
castellanos at $11.67 in United States money, and Ramirez,
in a critical note thereupon, at $2.93. _Prescott’s Mex._,
i. 321; also edition Mex. 1845, app. ii. 79-92. See note
on coins in _Hist. Cent. Am._, this series, i. 192-3.
Clemencin, in _Mem. Real Acad. de Hist._, vi. illust. 20,
525-45, enters fully into the subject.
[169] Weighing 48 marcos. _Carta del Ayunt._, loc. cit.
‘De cincuenta y tantos marcos, ternia de gordor como un
toston de á 4 reales,’ says Las Casas, who examined the
gifts in Spain. _Hist. Ind._, iv. 485-6. ‘Otra mayor rueda
de plata.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 26. Robertson,
_Hist. Am._, ii. 16, 449, misunderstanding Diaz, places
the value of this disk at 20,000 pesos or £5000.
[170] _Monarq. Ind._, i. 390. ‘Valdria el oro y la plata
que allí habia 20 ó 25,000 castellanos, pero la hermosura
dellas y la hechura, mucho más.’ _Las Casas_, ubi sup.
‘Podia valer este presente veynte mil ducados, o pocos mas.
El qual present tenian para dar a Grijalua.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 42. ‘Q’lo reparta cõ los Teules que cõsigo
trae,’ says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 27, intimating
that another present was coming for the white emperor;
but it was applied to the expedition treasury like nearly
everything obtained by trade or seizure. _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. v. cap. v; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii.
115. Brasseur de Bourbourg estimates the gold disk alone
at 357,380 francs. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 85. Peter Martyr,
dec. iv. cap. ix., gives a detailed description of several
of the presents.
[171] This time the presents for the chiefs were some
embroidered shirts, silk sashes and other things, while to
the emperor he sent a Florentine goblet, gilt and enamelled
with figures, three Holland shirts, and some bead articles,
not a very costly return for what he had received. Bernal
Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 27, and Herrera, dec. ii. lib. v.
cap. vi., enumerate the presents given to them. ‘Teudilli
... le rogo mucho, q pues estaua mal aposentado en el cãpo
y arenales, se fuesse con el a vnos lugares seys o siete
leguas de alli.’ But Cortés declined to leave the camp.
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 43.
[172] ‘Y aquel oro que rescatauamos dauamos â los hombres
que traiamos de la mar, que iban â pescar, â trueco de su
pescado.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 27. If so it was
probably after the Indians deserted.
[173] Gomara refers to an order to stop all barter for
gold, with a view to let it appear that the Spaniards cared
not for the metal, and thus to induce the Indians to make
no secret of the manner in which it was obtained. _Hist.
Mex._, 39. As if the natives had not already learned what
we wanted, sneers Bernal Diaz.
[174] ‘Que se dezia Quintalbor, no bolvió mas, porque auia
adolecido en el camino.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 27.
[175] According to Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 45, Cortés told the
governor that he would not leave without seeing Montezuma.
Solis elaborates this as usual into a long speech, to which
Teuhtlile replies with threats, and turning his back stalks
out of the camp. _Conq. Mex._, i. 153-5; _Herrera_, dec.
i. lib. v. cap. vi.
CHAPTER IX.
THE MIGHTY PROJECT IS CONCEIVED.
MAY, 1519.
SERIOUS DILEMMA OF CORTÉS—AUTHORITY WITHOUT LAW—MONTEJO
SENT NORTHWARD—RECOMMENDS ANOTHER ANCHORAGE—DISSENSIONS AT
VERA CRUZ—PROMPT AND SHREWD ACTION OF CORTÉS—A MUNICIPALITY
ORGANIZED—CORTÉS RESIGNS—AND IS CHOSEN LEADER BY THE
MUNICIPALITY—VELAZQUEZ’ CAPTAINS INTIMATE REBELLION—CORTÉS
PROMPTLY ARRESTS SEVERAL OF THEM—THEN HE CONCILIATES THEM
ALL—IMPORTANT EMBASSY FROM CEMPOALA—THE VEIL LIFTED—THE
MARCH TO CEMPOALA—WHAT WAS DONE THERE—QUIAHUIZTLAN—THE
COMING OF THE TRIBUTE GATHERERS—HOW THEY WERE TREATED—GRAND
ALLIANCE.
At this point in his career Hernan Cortés found himself less master
of the situation than suited him. The color of his command was not
sufficiently pronounced. He had no authority to settle; he had no
authority to conquer; he might only discover and trade. He did not
care for Velazquez; anything that pertained to Velazquez he was
prepared to take. But Velazquez had no legal power to authorize him
further. Cortés cared little for the authorities at Española; the
king was his chief dependence; the king to whose favor his right
arm and mother wit should pave the way. Some signal service, in the
eyes of the monarch, might atone for slight irregularities; if he
failed, the severest punishments were already come. But where was
the service? Had Montezuma granted him an interview, he might make
report of that, and find listeners. As it was, he could land and slay
a few thousand natives, but his men would waste away and no benefits
accrue. Nevertheless, if he could plant himself somewhat more firmly
on this soil than his commission seemed to justify, chance might offer
opportunity, and the signal service find achievement. Such were the
thoughts that just now filled his sagacious brain, but the way was
by no means clear before him.
* * * * *
While the events narrated in the preceding chapter were in progress,
Montejo, with two vessels, had been sent northward to seek a harbor
less unwholesome than the present, where many of those wounded at
Tabasco had died.[176] As second in command went Rodrigo Álvarez
Chico, and as pilots, Alaminos, and Álvarez el Manquillo. On reaching
the extreme point attained by Grijalva, the strong current prevented
further advance, as in the former attempt.[177] They were obliged by
a gale to throw overboard part of their cargo. Water failed, and in
the attempt to land an artilleryman perished. Prayer was now their
only recourse, and this not only changed the wind, but brought rain.
After a fortnight of misadventures[178] they returned to San Juan
de Ulua, and hastened bareheaded to the cross to offer thanks. More
wholesome airs were not difficult to find, but good harbors were not
abundant thereabout. The only favorable spot found by Montejo lay
some ten leagues north of the camp, close to the native fortress of
Quiahuiztlan.[179] A high rock affording shelter from north winds
gave the place some resemblance to the Spanish harbor of Bernal,
which name was accordingly applied to it. Extending inland were green
fields fringed with fine timber, and supplied with creeks of good
water.[180]
The fifty men comprising the expedition of Montejo had been picked
from the adherents of Velazquez, in order that by weakening this
faction Cortés might be allowed to develop his plans. For the army was
slowly but surely drifting into division, as we have so often found
in adventures of this kind, and the Velazquez party comprised all who
desired immediately to return. In this clique were many wealthy and
influential men who cared no more for Velazquez than for Cortés, but
who had possessions in Cuba, and were becoming impatient to return
to them. Nor was there much difficulty in giving form to discontent.
There were grave suspicions afloat as to the loyalty of the commander;
but these, which assuredly were more conspicuous in Cuba than here,
were of little moment when they harmonized with the wishes of the
men. What stupidity in forming camp amidst such malaria, and in so
early making enemies of the people. It was evident, so they argued,
that the commander intended to sacrifice the company to his ambition.
The action of Cortés here as elsewhere marks the great man, the man
of genius, the born master of men, and rightfully places him beside
the Cæsars and the Napoleons of the world. The commander wished to
remain. All his fortune, all the fortunes of his friends were staked
on this adventure, and he would rather die than return unsuccessful.
Little hope there would be of his obtaining command again; he would
not return, neither would he just at present die. In desperate cases
spirited counsels and spirited actions are usually safest.
Calling to him his most trusty followers, Puertocarrero, Alvarado
and his brothers, Ávila, Olid, Escalante, and Francisco Lugo, he
laid the situation fairly before them. Shortly after these captains
were out among the men, holding forth to them privately on the wealth
of the country, the ease and glory of conquest, and the prospect of
repartimientos. Where was the benefit of returning to Cuba? Surely
they might as well hold the country for themselves as to abandon it
and let others step into their places. It would be much easier to
increase the present force by adding to it than to raise a new army
better appointed or larger than this. Nor did they forget the argument
of religion, which, however hollow in practice, was weighty enough in
theory. “Elect therefore to remain,” they said in conclusion; “and
choose the able and generous Cortés for your general and justicia
mayor till the emperor decides in the matter.”[181]
The opposition was by no means ignorant of these manœuvres, and Ordaz
was commissioned to remonstrate with Cortés. He dwelt on the danger
of present colonization, denounced any attempt to ignore Velazquez,
and insisted on instant return. Suppressing the anger naturally
arising from these insinuations, true as they were, Cortés disavowed
any intention of exceeding the instructions of his commission. For
himself he preferred to remain, as, among other reasons, the only
means of reimbursing himself for his heavy expenditures. If, however,
it was the will of the army to return, he would yield. A few hours
later appeared an order to embark the following day for Cuba. This,
as was intended, brought public feeling to a crisis. All saw their
golden hopes suddenly dashed to the ground, their visions of honors and
repartimientos dispelled; even the men so lately clamorous to return
were not prepared to find their request so readily granted. Would it
not be well to think further of the matter, and perhaps devise a plan
to cover the emergency? After noisy discussion the soldiers appeared
in force before the captain-general and demanded the revocation of
the order. They had left Cuba with the declared understanding that a
colony was to be planted, and now they were informed that Velazquez
had given no authority to settle. And if he had not, were not the
interests of God and the king paramount to the order of any governor?
And did not this same Velazquez defame Grijalva for not disobeying
instructions in this very regard? With no small satisfaction Cortés
saw that he was safe; then urging calm deliberation he graciously
promised delay,[182] which was employed first of all in impressing
on their minds how indispensable he was to their success.
Finally before the assembled army the captain-general appeared and
said: That he had invested his whole fortune in the fleet, and
controlled it; yet he was willing to subordinate his individual
interest to that of the whole. He had given the order to return
because he understood such to be the will of the majority. As this
was not the case, he would gladly remain; for God who had ever been
with them was now disclosing such a field of wealth and glory as had
never before been offered to Spaniard. Yet, if any wished to return,
let them freely speak, and a vessel would be at their disposal. What
magic power ruled, that, when the disaffected majority were thus
given their way, every mouth was dumb, and the commander remained
more potent than ever?
A colony being thus decided on, the founding ceremony was performed
by the quasi laying out of a town, the planting a pillory in the
plaza, and a gallows at some distance outside,[183] though strictly
speaking, the town was not properly located or laid out till afterward.
Referring to the treasures here obtained, and to the day of landing,
the new town was called Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz.[184] Cortés, as
commander, appointed the municipal officers,[185] naming for alcaldes
Puertocarrero and Montejo, a judicious selection, both for his own
interests and as likely to meet general approval. And here again is
displayed the subtle policy of Cortés, who to this important position
nominates but one from among his own faction, Montejo being for
Velazquez. Thus of an opponent he made an adherent, conciliating at
the same time the entire Velazquez party.[186] The regidores were
Alonso de Ávila, Pedro and Alonso de Alvarado, and Gonzalo de Sandoval;
procurador general, Francisco Álvarez Chico; alguacil mayor, Juan de
Escalante; escribano, Diego de Godoy. Beside these were appointed,
in the interests of the military department, as capitan de entradas
Pedro de Alvarado; maestre de campo, Cristóbal de Olid; alférez,
Corral; alguaciles de real, Ochoa and Romero; tesorero, Gonzalo Mejía;
contador, Alonso de Ávila.[187] Nearly all these men were devoted to
Cortés, and were therefore a powerful _point d’appui_ for his project.
Thus far all was well. The men of Velazquez and the men of Cortés,
Spaniards all, for the same God and the same king, had of their own
volition determined here to plant a Spanish settlement, and had so
planted it. By virtue of his office, and in the absence of any higher
authority, the captain-general had chosen temporary officers for the
new commonwealth. This was all. These men had elected to transform
the army into a civil society, for temporary or permanent purposes
as the case might be; and they had done so. But about their leader?
What position did he occupy? A general without an army, _de facto_
at the head of affairs, but by no legal right. Let him cut his own
knot.
* * * * *
Hat in hand, before the new municipality, Cortés appeared and
surrendered his commission. Authority, chief and absolute, was now
vested alone in the ayuntamiento. Then with the modesty of Cincinnatus
he retired.
It was then in order, on the part of the municipality, to choose a
chief ruler and representative of royal authority. This could be done
by the council alone, though in this instance, for obvious reasons,
it would be better to secure the appointment by popular vote. Cortés
felt safe enough either way. A glowing eulogy delivered by a fluent
speaker was followed by such noisy demonstrations that the opposition
found no opportunity to express their opinion.[188] The following day
a committee was sent to apprise Cortés of his election,[189] in the
name of their Catholic Highnesses, to the offices of captain-general,
and of justicia mayor of the town. On appearing before the council to
take the oath, the alcalde addressed Cortés, giving as reason for the
appointment his loyalty, his worth, and his talents. The commission
which was then given granted him one fifth of all treasure acquired
by trade or conquest, after deducting the royal fifth. This was in
consideration chiefly for his services as leader.[190] _Exitus acta
probat._ Las Casas insists that, since Cortés had no authority to
form a settlement, his appointment of an ayuntamiento was illegal,
and consequently their election of him. No one supposed for a moment,
least of all Cortés, that these proceedings were regular. They were
but make-believe legal. But in following Gomara’s version Las Casas
failed to understand that the appointment was conferred by the popular
majority in the name of the king, which though not strictly legal
threw over all the color of law. Beside, with consummate skill Cortés
made it appear that the expedition obliged him to act as he did;
and if these manœuvres did not legalize the transaction, they were
the means of weaving a strong bond between the men and their leader,
such as King Charles and all his ordinance-makers never could have
created. Cortés was no longer the chief of Velazquez’ expedition,
but the leader of the Vera Cruz militia, as the army might now be
termed, and removable only by the power that placed him there, or by
the emperor.[191]
Although opposition was now in vain, the adherents of Velazquez loudly
denounced the whole affair, called it a conspiracy and a cheat, and
refused to acknowledge Cortés as their leader. So abusive did they
become that open rupture was imminent. The leaders of this faction
were Velazquez de Leon, Ordaz, Escobar, Pedro Escudero, Morla, and
the priest Juan Diaz. Seeing the necessity of prompt action, Cortés
seized the first two, with a few others, and sent them on shipboard
in irons, while Alvarado went a-foraging with a hundred men, chiefly
adherents of the disaffected leaders.[192] They found a fertile
country, and several small towns. The inhabitants fled at their
approach, leaving signs of recent human sacrifices in the temple. In
one building, with pyramidal foundation several feet in height, were
found a number of fine rooms, some filled with grain, beans, honey,
and other provisions; others with cotton fabrics and feathers, adorned
in instances with gold and silver. In obedience to strict orders
nothing was touched save food. The report brought back of the beauty
of the country, together with the ample supplies obtained, tended
toward harmony; and while the soldiers were thus easily reconciled to
the new order of things, Cortés with his usual tact won over nearly
all his adversaries. Some he bribed, some he flattered; others were
allured with hopes of preferment. Most remarkable was it that with such
fire in his veins, he could so control it; for however treacherous
Cortés knew them to be, seldom a sign escaped him that he suspected
them. Even the imprisoned officers yielded to his persuasive power,
aided as it was by irons, and soon were ranked among his devoted
sustainers.[193]
And now came to pass an event such as the gods not unfrequently fling
their favorites, which was materially to brighten the prospects of the
Spaniards. While preparing their removal to a new harbor, and shortly
after the Mexican withdrawal from intercourse, Bernal Diaz brought
in from his outpost five Indians, different in dress and features
from any hitherto seen. Among other peculiarities were large gold
rings, set with stones, in their perforated ears, nose, and lower
lip. Two of them, who spoke Mexican, explained the purport of their
visit. The deeds of the Spaniards having reached the ears of their
master, the lord of Cempoala, in the Totonac country, they had been
sent to see these valiant beings, and invite them to their city a few
leagues distant.[194] Questionings revealed that the Totonacs were a
subjected nation, languishing like others under the oppressive yoke
of the Aztecs, and only too ready to welcome deliverance.
It must be remembered that Cortés and his companions were wholly in
the dark as to the power and positions of the interior nations. Now
for the first time a little light was shed on the subject. It appeared
that the mighty monarch, with whom took place the late interchange of
courtesies, had enemies who, if not as powerful as himself, were still
strong, and in spirit, at least, unsubdued. Might not this adverse
influence be utilized and joined to other adverse influences for the
humbling of the great interior power? Possibly Montezuma might grant
Cortés audience under circumstances yet to be. Thus the plan of the
conquest was conceived. The messengers were dismissed with presents
and the assurance of a speedy visit.[195]
According to Ixtlilxochitl, the first revelation of Aztec weakness
was made by his ancestor and namesake, the king of northern
Acolhuacan.[196] Fearing the power and treachery of Montezuma and his
allies, and hating the Aztecs with a perfect hatred, this prince had
hailed with joy the arrival of the Spaniards, and had gloated over
the terror with which their presence would inspire the emperor. The
prospect of gaining an ally who might aid his own ambitious plans
for supremacy, and for Mexican humiliation, impelled him to send an
embassy to Cortés with rich presents, and with instructions to explain
to the strangers the prevailing disaffection, the ease with which
the Aztecs might be overthrown, and the rare spoils that would accrue
to the conquerors. The interview with Cortés is placed at about the
same time as the Totonac visit, and Ixtlilxochitl is said to have
received the most friendly assurances from Cortés.[197] Be that as
it may, here was an incident which should crush all cavillings.
* * * * *
As well to examine the country as to inure the troops to whatever
experience should be theirs on this strange shore, Cortés with about
four hundred men and two light guns proceeded by land to Cempoala,
while the fleet with the heavy camp material and the remainder of
the expedition coasted farther northward to Quiahuiztlan.
Burning overhead was the sun; burning underfoot were the sands;
while on the one side was the tantalizing sea, and on the other
the tantalizing wood, both inviting by their cool refreshing airs.
Behind the dark-fringed forests rose old Orizaba,[198] laughing at
their distress beneath its cap of snow, and wondering why mortals so
superior should choose the deadly _tierra caliente_ country for their
promenade, when gentle, genial Anáhuac lay so near. But presently
the senses quickened to the aroma of vegetation; soft swards and
cultivated fields spread before them their living green, and the moist,
murmuring wood anon threw over them its grateful shade. If beside
grave thoughts on the stupendous matters then under consideration,
might find place such trifles of God’s creation as birds of brilliant
plumage and of sweet song, they were there in myriads to charm the
eye and ear; game to fill the stomach, though not so satisfying as
gold, always commanded attention, and was also plentiful.[199] Through
all, dispensing life and beauty on every side, flowed the Rio de la
Antigua, where a few years later rose old Vera Cruz.[200]
Crossing this stream with the aid of rafts and shaky canoes, the army
quartered on the opposite bank, in one of the towns there, which was
destitute alike of food and people, but which displayed the usual
ghastly indications of recent human sacrifice. The next morning they
followed the river westward, and soon after met a party of twelve
Totonacs, who had been sent by the Cempoalan ruler with presents of
food. By them the Spaniards were guided northward to a hamlet where a
bountiful supper was provided.[201] While marching the next day, with
scouts deployed as usual to guard against ambuscades, they emerged
from a dense tropical forest into the midst of gardens and orchards,
and by a sudden turn in the road the bright buildings of Cempoala
stood forth to view.
Just then twenty nobles appeared and offered welcome. They were
followed by slaves, and instantly the travel-worn army was revelling
in fruits and flowers. What more beautiful reception could have been
given? yet the Spaniards would have preferred a shower of gold. To
Cortés were given bouquets; a garland, chiefly of roses, was flung
around his neck, and a wreath placed upon his helmet. Species of
pineapples and cherries, juicy zapotes, and aromatic anones were
distributed to the men without stint. Almost the entire populace of
the city, some twenty-five thousand,[202] staring their wonderment
with open eyes and mouth, thronged either side of the way along which
marched the army in battle array, headed by the cavalry. Never before
had the Spaniards seen so beautiful an American city. Cortés called it
Seville, a name which Spaniards frequently applied to any place that
pleased them, as we have seen, while the soldiers, charmed with its
floral wealth and beauty, termed it Villaviciosa, and declared it a
terrestrial paradise. One of the cavalry scouts, on first beholding
the freshly stuccoed walls gleaming in the sun, came galloping back
with the intelligence that the houses were silver-plated. It was indeed
an important place, holding a large daily market. A central plaza
was inclosed by imposing temples and palaces, resting on pyramidal
foundations, lined with apartments and surmounted by towers, and
around clustered neat dwellings with whitened adobe walls embowered
in foliage. Statelier edifices of masonry, some having several
court-yards, rose here and there, while in every direction spread
an extensive suburb of mud huts with the never failing palm-leaf
roof. Yet even the humblest abodes were smothered in flowers.[203]
The people also, as we might expect by their surroundings, were of a
superior order, well formed, of intelligent aspect, clothed in neat
white and colored cotton robes and mantles, the nobles being adorned
with golden necklaces, bracelets, and nose and lip rings, set with
pearls and precious stones.
When the troops reached the plaza, Chicomacatl,[204] lord of the
province, stepped from the palace to receive his guests. He was
supported by two nobles, and though enormously stout,[205] his features
denoted high intelligence, and his manner refinement. He was more
of a gentleman than many of the Spaniards, whose merriment over his
corpulence Cortés was obliged to repress. After saluting and wafting
incense before the commander of the strange company, Chicomacatl
embraced Cortés and led him to his quarters in the spacious halls
adjoining the temple, after which he retired for a time. There the
men rested and refreshed themselves, guards being carefully posted,
for Cortés would not trust his fate to strangers, and strict orders
were given that no one should leave the building.[206]
It was not long before Chicomacatl returned in a litter with a richly
attired suite, bringing presents of fine robes, and jewels worth
about two thousand ducats. During the conversation that ensued,
Cortés as usual extolled the greatness and power of his king, and
spoke warmly of his mission to replace their bloody religion with
a knowledge of the true God. Were there wrongs to redress, that is
to say, when opportunity offered for the perpetration of a greater
wrong by himself, no knight of La Mancha or Amadis of Gaul could
be more valiant than he. In return the chief of Cempoala unbosomed
himself, for the manner of Cortés was winning, and his speech inspired
confidence whenever he chose to make it so. Then his fame, already
wide-spread over the land, and the dim uncertainty as to his nature,
whether more celestial or terrestrial, added weight to his words.
So Chicomacatl poured forth from an overflowing heart a torrent of
complaints against the tyranny of Montezuma. He drew for the Spaniards
a historic outline of the Aztecs—how a people the youngest in the
land had, at first by cunning and treachery, and finally by forced
allies and preponderance of arms, built their power upon the ruin of
older states. The Totonacs, whose records as an independent nation in
this region extended over seven centuries, had succumbed only some
twenty-five years before this.[207] And now Montezuma’s collectors
overran the provinces, gathering heavy tributes, seizing the beautiful
maidens, and conveying the men into slavery or to the sacrificial
stone. Neither life, liberty, nor property could be enjoyed with any
degree of safety.
Whereat Cortés of course was indignant. It was his special business
to do all the tyrannizing in that region himself; his sword would
give ample protection to his new allies, and bring abundant honor
to his king and himself. Let but the people prove loyal to him, he
concluded, and he surely would deliver them from the hated yoke;
yet he did not mention the more fatal bondage into which he would
place them. Chicomacatl eagerly assured Cortés of support from the
Totonacs, numbering fifty thousand warriors, with numerous towns and
fortresses.[208] Furthermore, there were many other states ready to
join an insurrection which should prove strong enough to brave the
terrible Montezuma.
Their visit over,[209] the Spaniards continued their march northward
to join the fleet. Four hundred _tlamamas_, or carriers, attended, in
courtesy to honored guests, to relieve the soldiers of their burdens.
The following day they reached Quiahuiztlan, a fortified town about
a league from the sea. This town was picturesquely placed on a rocky
promontory bordering one of the many wild ravines thereabout, and of
difficult access, commanding the plain and harbor at its base.[210]
The army advanced cautiously, in battle array,[211] but the place
was deserted. On reaching the plaza, however, some fifteen chiefs
came forward with swinging censers, and apologized, saying that the
people had fled, not knowing what the strange arrival portended, but
reassured by the Cempoalans, they were already returning to serve
them. The soldiers then took possession of a large building, where
food was brought them. Presently the chief appeared; and close at his
heels in hot haste came the lord of Cempoala, who announced that the
Aztec collectors had entered his city.[212] While conferring with
Cortés and the chiefs assembled, Chicomacatl was informed that the
collectors, five[213] in number, had followed him to Quiahuiztlan, and
were even then at the door. All the chiefs present turned pale, and
hastened out to humble themselves before the officers, who responded
with disdainful condescension. The officers were clad in embroidered
robes, with a profusion of jewelry, and wore the hair gathered upon
the crown. In the right hand they carried their insignia of office, a
hooked carved stick, and in the left a bunch of roses, the ever welcome
offering of the obsequious Totonac nobles who swelled their train.
A suite of servitors followed, some with fans and dusters, for the
comfort of their masters. Passing the Spanish quarter without deigning
to salute the strangers, the emissaries of the mighty Montezuma
entered another large building, and after refreshing themselves
summoned the tributary chiefs, reprimanded them for having received
the Spaniards without permission from Montezuma, and demanded twenty
young persons for an atoning sacrifice. Well might the demoniacal
order cause to tremble every youth throughout the land; for whose
turn should be next none could tell. Even the faces of the chiefs
were blanched as they told Cortés, informing him also that it was
already determined in Aztec circles to make slaves of the Spaniards,
and after being used awhile for purposes of procreation, they were
to be sacrificed.[214] Cortés laughed, and ordered the Totonacs to
seize the insolent officials. What! lay violent hands on Montezuma’s
messengers? The very thought to them was appalling. Nevertheless they
did it, for there was something in the tone of Cortés that made them
obey, though they could not distinguish the meaning of his words.
They laid hold on those tax-men of Montezuma, put collars on their
necks, and tied their hands and feet to poles.[215] Their timidity
thus broken, they became audacious, and demanded the sacrifice of the
prisoners.[216] “By no means,” Cortés said, and he himself assumed
their custody.
Howsoever the cards fall to him, a skilful gamester plays each
severally, nothing cavilling, at its worth. So Cortés now played
these messengers, the method assuming form in his mind immediately he
saw them. With him this whole Mexican business was one great game,
a life game, though it should last but a day; and as the agencies
and influences of it fell into his fingers, with the subtlety of the
serpent he dealt them out, placing one here and another there, playing
with equal readiness enemy against enemy, and multiplying friends by
friends.
These so lately pride-puffed tribute-men, now low laid in the depths
of despondency—how shall they be played? Well, let them be like him
who fell amongst thieves, while the Spanish commander acts the good
Samaritan. In pursuance of which plan, when all had retired for the
night, he went stealthily to them, asked who they were, and why they
were in that sad plight, pretending ignorance. And when they told
him, this rare redresser was angry, hot with indignation that the
noble representatives of so noble a monarch should be so treated.
Whereupon he instantly released two of them, comforting the others
with the assurance that their deliverance should quickly follow; for
the emperor Montezuma he esteemed above all emperors, and he desired
to serve him, as commanded by his king. Then he sent the twain down
the coast in a boat, beyond the Totonac boundary.
Next morning, when told that two of the Aztec captives had broken
their bonds and escaped, the Totonacs were more urgent than ever for
the immolation of the others. But Cortés again said no, and arranged
that they should be sent in chains on board one of his vessels,
determined afterward to release them, for they were worth far more
to his purpose alive than dead.
* * * * *
It is refreshing at this juncture to hear pious people censure Cortés
for his duplicity, and to hear other pious people defend him on the
ground of necessity, or otherwise. Such men might with equal reason
wrangle over the method by which it was right and honorable for the
tiger to spring and seize the hind. The one great wrong is lost sight
of in the discussion of numerous lesser wrongs. The murderer of an
empire should not be too severely criticised for crushing a gnat
while on the way about the business.[217]
* * * * *
At the suggestion of Cortés, messengers were sent to all the towns of
the province, with orders to stop the payment of tribute and to seize
the collectors, but to spare their lives. Information was likewise
to be given to the neighboring nations, that all might prepare to
resist the force which Montezuma would probably send against them. The
Totonacs became wild with joy, and declared that the little band who
dare so brave Montezuma must be more than men.[218] To Quiahuitzlan
flocked chiefs and nobles from all parts, eager to behold these beings,
and to ascertain their own future course of action. There were those
among them still timid, who urged an embassy to the king of kings,
to beseech pardon before his army should be upon them, slaying,
enslaving, and laying waste; but Cortés had already influence, was
already strong enough to allay their fears, and bring them all into
allegiance to the Spanish sovereign, exacting their oath before the
notary Godoy to support him with all their forces. Thus, by virtue
of this man’s mind, many battles were fought and won without the
striking of a blow. Already every Spaniard there was a sovereign,
and the meanest soldier among them a ruler of men.
FOOTNOTES
[176] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 27. Herrera, dec.
ii. lib. v. cap. vi., and others refer to a similar number
as being on the sick-list. Yellow fever, or vómito negro,
now the scourge of this and adjoining regions, appears to
have developed with the growth of European settlements, and
Clavigero states that it was not known there before 1725.
_Storia Mess._, i. 117.
[177] ‘Hasta el parage del rio grande de Pánuco,’ _Herrera_,
loc. cit. ‘Llegaron al parage del rio grande, que es cerca
de Panuco, adonde otra vez llegamos quãdo lo del Capitá
Juan de Grijalua.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 27.
[178] ‘Doze dias que gastaron en este peligroso viage.’
_Herrera_, ubi sup. ‘Boluiose al cabo de tres semanas ...
le salian los de la costa, y se sacauã sangre, y se la
ofreciã en pajuelos por amistad a deidad.’ _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 45.
[179] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 289. Quiauitl, rain
or shower. _Molina_, _Vocabulario_. Hence rainy place.
Herrera calls it Chianhuitzlan, and this has been adopted
by Clavigero and most other writers. Prescott, _Mex._, i.
348, in a note holds up Clavigero as a standard for the
spelling of Mexican names, but he forgets that the Italian
form, as in the above case, would be misleading to English
people.
[180] ‘Le llamarõ Vernal, por ser, como es, vn Cerro alto.’
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 115. This may have
been the origin of the name for the Spanish port, after
which Bernal Diaz says it was called. _Hist. Verdad._, 27.
He applies the name to a neighboring fort, spelling it in
different ways, of which Solis, and consequently Robertson,
have selected the most unlikely. Gomara applies Aquiahuiztlan
to the harbor. _Hist. Mex._, 49.
[181] Bernal Diaz relates with great satisfaction how
earnestly the speaker pleaded for his vote, addressing
him repeatedly as ‘your worship.’ One reason for their
earnestness, he implies, was the superiority in number
of the Velazquez party. ‘Los deudos, y amigos del Diego
Velazquez, que eran muchos mas que nosotros.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 28-9. He forms this estimate most likely
on the proportion of leaders who from jealousy of Cortés,
and for other reasons, were addicted to Velazquez; but
their men were probably more in favor of the general than
of the captains, to judge from the result. The sailors for
obvious reasons may have added to the Velazquez number, if
not to their strength.
[182] ‘Se hazia mucho de rogar: y como dize el refran: Tu
me lo ruegas, è yo me lo quiero.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 29.
[183] ‘Se puso vna picota en la plaça, y fuera de la Uilla
vna horca.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 29; _Vetancvrt_,
_Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 116. This signifies that justice
was installed, its officers being next appointed.
[184] See note 23, chap. ii., this volume.
[185] ‘Nombrónos ... por alcaldes y regidores,’ say
distinctly the appointed officers themselves, in their
letter to the emperor. _Carta del Ayunt._, in _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 20. Bernal Diaz also indicates that Cortés made the
appointments, although he at first says, ‘hizimos Alcalde,
y Regidores.’ Yet it is probable that the authorities were
confirmed formally as they were tacitly by the members of
the expedition; for Cortés, as he acknowledges, had no real
authority to form a settlement.
[186] _Testimonio de Montejo_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i.
489. ‘Â este Montejo porque no estaua muy bien con Cortés,
por metelle en los primeros, y principal, le mandò nombrar
por Alcalde.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 29.
[187] _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. vii; _Torquemada_, i.
587. Bernal Diaz skips the regidores. He thinks Villareal was
not reappointed alférez because of a difficulty with Cortés
about a Cuban female. _Hist. Verdad._, 29; _Vetancvrt_,
_Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 116. Promotion and other causes
gave speedy rise to changes among the officials; Ávila, for
instance, becoming alcalde mayor of New Spain, and Pedro
de Alvarado alcalde of the town.
[188] ‘Los q̄ para esto estauã auisados, sin dar lugar
a que nadie tomasse la mano. A vozes respõdierõ Cortes,
Cortes.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. vii. Bernal
Diaz merely intimates that a ‘packed’ meeting was held, by
stating that the men of Velazquez were furious on finding
Cortés and the municipality elected, declaring, ‘q̄ no era
bien hecho sin ser sabidores dello todos los Capitanes, y
soldados.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 29. This indicates also that
many of the opponents must have been sent away from camp
for the occasion, perhaps on board the vessels. Montejo
had besides a number with him.
[189] ‘El qual como si nada supiera del caso, preguntò
que era lo que mandauã.’ Having signified his acceptance,
‘Quisierõ besarle las manos por ello, como cosa al bien de
todos.’ _Herrera_, ubi sup.
[190] Gomara says frankly, ‘Cortés acepto el cargo de capitan
general y justicia mayor, a pocos ruegos, porq̄ no desseaua
otra cosa mas por entonces.’ _Hist. Mex._, 48. ‘Y no tuvo
vergüenza Gomara,’ is Las Casas’ comment on the admission.
_Hist. Ind._, iv. 496. Bernal Diaz states that Cortés had
made it a condition, when the army pleaded to remain in the
country, that he should receive these offices: ‘Y lo peor de
todo que le otorgamos que le dariamos el quinto del oro.’
_Hist. Verdad._, 29. The letter of the ayuntamiento to the
emperor sets forth that they had represented to Cortés the
injustice of trading gold for the sole benefit of Velazquez
and himself, and the necessity of securing the country
and its wealth for the king by founding a colony, which
would also benefit them all in the distribution of grants.
They had accordingly urged him to stop barter as hitherto
carried on, and to found a town. It is then related how he
yielded his own interest in favor of king and community,
and appointed them alcaldes and regidores. His authority
having in consequence become null, they appointed him in
the king’s name justicia, alcalde mayor, and captain, as
the ablest and most loyal man, and in consideration of his
expenses and services so far. _Carta 10 Jul., 1519_, in
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 19-21. Both Puertocarrero and Montejo
confirm, in their testimony before the authorities in
Spain, that Cortés yielded to the general desire in doing
what he did. _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i. 489, 493-4. According to
Gomara, Cortés makes a trip into the neighboring country,
and, finding how rich it is, he proposes to settle, and
to send the vessels to Cuba for more men wherewith to
undertake the conquest. This was approved: Cortés accordingly
appointed the municipality, and resigning the authority
conferred by the Jeronimite Fathers and by Velazquez, as
now useless, these officers in turn elected him as their
captain-general and justicia mayor. The council proposed
that, since the only provisions remaining belonged to
Cortés, he should take from the vessels what he needed for
himself and servants, and distribute the rest among the
men at a just price, their joint credit being pledged for
payment. The fleets and outfit were to be accepted by the
company in the same way, the vessels to be used to carry
provisions from the islands. Scorning the idea of trading
his possessions, Cortés surrendered the fleet and effects
for free distribution among his companions. Although liberal
at all times with them, this act was prompted by a desire
to gain good-will. _Hist. Mex._, 46-8; Herrera, dec. ii.
lib. v. cap. vii.; _Torquemada_, i. 395, 587. Las Casas
terms the whole transaction, as related by Gomara and the
ayuntamiento, a plot to defraud Velazquez of his property
and honors. Comparing the conduct of Cortés with that
of Velazquez against Colon, he finds the latter trifling
and pardonable, while the former was a barefaced robbery,
resulting to Velazquez in loss of fortune, honors, and life.
The captains were accomplices. _Hist. Ind._, iv. 453, 494-6.
Peter Martyr gives the facts in brief without venturing an
opinion, dec. v. cap. i.; _Zumárraga_, in _Ramirez_, _Doc._,
MS., 271-2. Cortés still held out the offer to furnish a
vessel for those who preferred to return to Cuba. As for
Velazquez’ goods, they remained safely in charge of the
authorized agent, who also recovered the advances made to
members. See note 5, cap. v.
[191] As for the ayuntamiento, the passive recognition
accorded to it, confirmed as it was by the popularly elected
general, may be regarded as sufficient. Spanish municipal
bodies possessed an extensive power conferred upon them
during successive reigns, chiefly with a view to afford
the sovereign a support against the assuming arrogance of
the nobles. Their deliberations were respected; they could
appoint members, regulate their expenses, and even raise
troops under their own standard. As an instance of the
consideration enjoyed by these troops, it is related that
Isabella the Catholic, when reviewing the army besieging
Moclin, gave a special salute of respect to the banner of
Seville. _Alaman_, _Disert._, i. 612; _Zamacois_, _Hist.
Méj._, ii. 401-2.
[192] According to Gomara, Cortés enters the country with
400 men and all the horses, before the election had been
mooted. He describes the towns visited. _Hist. Mex._, 46-8.
Bernal Diaz pronounces the number of men and the time of
entry false. He also states that Montejo was bought over
for 2000 pesos and more. _Hist. Verdad._, 30.
[193] According to Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 30,
gold played an important role in effecting this change of
allegiance, termed by Velazquez, in his Memorials to Spain,
a witchery. Solis sees nothing but the dignified yet clever
traits of his hero in all this.
[194] The soldiers called them Lopelucios, because their
first inquiry was Lopelucio, ‘chief,’ whom they wished to
see. They had not ventured to approach while the Mexicans
were at the camp. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 28.
[195] According to Gomara, followed by Herrera, the Totonacs
were about twenty in number, and came while Teuhtlile was
absent on his second mission to Mexico, without bringing
a direct invitation to the Spaniards. _Hist. Mex._, 43-4.
[196] See _Native Races_, v. 475-7.
[197] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 288. This author
is not very careful, however, and his desire to court
the Spaniards has no doubt led him to antedate the event.
Brasseur de Bourbourg accepts his story in full. _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 87-8. A similar revelation is claimed to have
been made by two Aztec chiefs, Vamapantzin and Atonaltzin,
who came to the camp in the retinue of the first messengers
from Mexico. Descendants of the early Aztec kings, and
discontented with the present ruler, they promised Cortés
to deliver certain native paintings foretelling the coming
of white men, to reveal the whereabouts of the imperial
treasures, and to plot an uprising among native states in
aid of Spaniards. For these services they received extensive
grants after the conquest, including that of Ajapusco town.
The document recording this is a fragment which Zerecero
parades in the opening part of his _Mem. Rev. Méx._, 8-14,
as a discovery by him in the Archivo General. It pretends
to be a title to Ajapusco lands, and contains on the first
pages a letter signed by Cortés at San Juan de Ulua, ‘20
March,’ 1519, as ‘Captain-general and governor of these
New Spains.’ Both the date and titles stamp the letter at
least as more than suspicious.
[198] The natives called it Citlaltepetl, starry mountain,
with reference probably to the sparks issuing from it. For
height, etc., see _Humboldt_, _Essai Pol._, i. 273. Brasseur
de Bourbourg gives it the unlikely name of Ahuilizapan.
_Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 99. The ending ‘pan’ implies a
district or town, not a mountain. The description in _Carta
del Ayunt._, in _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 22-3, expresses doubt
whether the whiteness of the summit is due to snow or to
clouds.
[199] Alvarado chased a deer, and succeeded in wounding
it, but the next moment the dense underbrush saved it
from pursuit. The _Carta del Ayunt._, loc. cit., gives a
list of birds and quadrupeds; and a descriptive account,
founded greatly on fancy, however, is to be found in the
curious _Erasmi Francisci Guineischer und Americanischer
Blumen-Pusch_, Nürnberg, 1669, wherein the compiler presents
under the title of a nosegay the ‘perfume of the wonders of
strange animals, of peculiar customs, and of the doings of
the kings of Peru and Mexico.’ The first of its two parts
is devoted to the animal kingdom, with particular attention
to the marvellous, wherein credulity finds free play, as
may be seen also in the flying dragon of one of the crude
engravings. In the second part, the aborigines, their
history, condition, and customs, are treated of, chiefly
under Peru and Mexico, chapter v. relating specially to
the latter country. The narrative is quite superficial and
fragmentary; the ‘nosegay’ being not only common but faded,
even the style and type appearing antiquated for the date.
Appended is _Hemmersam_, _Guineische und West-Indianische
Reissbeschreibung_, with addition by Dietherr, relating to
Africa and Brazil.
[200] ‘A tres leguas andadas llego al rio que parte termino
con tierras de Montecçuma.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 49;
_Torquemada_, i. 395.
[201] Gomara, who ignores the previous night’s camp, states
that the detour up the river was made to avoid marshes.
They saw only isolated huts, and fields, and also about
twenty natives, who were chased and caught. By them they
were guided to the hamlet. _Hist. Mex._, 49. They met one
hundred men bringing them food. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist.
Chich._, 289. Prescott allows the Spaniards to cross only
a tributary of la Antigua, and yet gain Cempoala. _Mex._,
i. 339-40.
[202] Las Casas says 20,000 to 30,000. _Hist. Ind._, iv.
492. Torquemada varies in different places from 25,000 to
150,000. The inhabitants were moved by Conde de Monterey
to a village in Jalapa district, and in Torquemada’s time
less than half a dozen remained. i. 397. ‘Dista de Vera-Cruz
quatro leguas, y las ruínas dan á entender la grandeza de
la Ciudad; pero es distinto de otro Zempoal ... que dista
de este doze leguas.’ _Lorenzana_, in _Cortés_, _Hist. N. España_,
39. ‘Assentada en vn llano entre dos rios.’ A league and
a half from the sea. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. viii.
[203] ‘Cempoal, que yo intitulé Sevilla.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
52. See _Native Races_, ii. 553-90; iv. 425-63, on Nahua
architecture.
[204] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 294. Brasseur de
Bourbourg, by a misconstruction of his authorities, calls
him Tlacochcalcatl. _Codex Chimalpopoca_, in _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 93. See _Sahagun_, _Hist.
Conq._, 16.
[205] ‘Una gordura monstruosa.... Fue necesario que Cortés
detuviesse la risa de los soldados.’ _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._,
i. 175.
[206] ‘Se hizo el alojamento en el patio del Templo mayor.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. viii.
[207] For the reigns of their kings, see _Torquemada_, i.
278-80. Robertson, _Hist. Am._, ii. 31, wrongly assumes the
Totonacs to be a fierce people, different from Cempoalans.
[208] ‘Toda aquella provincia de Cempoal y toda la sierra
comarcana á la dicha villa, que serán hasta cinquenta
mil hombres de guerra y cincuenta villas y fortalezas.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 53. ‘Cien mil hõbres entre toda la
liga.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 57. ‘En aquellas tierras de
la lengua de Totonaque, que eran mas de trienta pueblos.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 31. The province appears
to have extended from Rio de la Antigua to Huaxtecapan, in
the north of Vera Cruz, and from the sea to Zacatlan, in
Puebla. Patiño assumes Mixquhuacan to have been the capital,
but this must be a mistake.
[209] Gomara relates that the army remained at Cempoala
fifteen days, during which frequent visits were made by
the lord, Cortés paying the first return visit on the third
day, attended by fifty soldiers. He describes briefly the
palace, and how Cortés, seated by the side of the lord,
on icpalli stools, now won his confidence and adhesion.
_Hist. Mex._, 51-3; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, ii. 561; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. x.
Bernal Diaz declares Gomara wrong, and insists that they
proceeded on their way the following day. _Hist. Verdad._,
31; _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 26-7.
[210] For illustrated description of barranca ruins, see
_Native Races_, iv. 439 et seq.
[211] Ávila, who had command, was so strict as to lance
Hernando Alonso de Villanueva for not keeping in line.
Lamed in the arm, he received the nickname of el Manquillo.
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 31. The riders were obliged
to retain their seats, lest the Indians should suppose that
the horses could be deterred by any obstacles. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 53.
[212] _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 117. Others
suppose that he came merely to persuade the cacique to join
Cortés. _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 27.
[213] Four men. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 289.
‘Twenty men,’ says Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 54, who does not
refer to the arrival of Cempoala’s lord.
[214] ‘Monteçuma tenia pensamiẽnto, ... de nos auer todos á
las manos, para que hiziessemos generacion, y tambien para
tener que sacrificar.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 28.
[215] ‘Carcerati nelle loro gabbie,’ is the way Clavigero
puts it. _Storia Mess._, iii. 28. One was even whipped for
resisting.
[216] ‘Porque no se les fuesse alguno dellos á dar mandado
á Mexico,’ is Bernal Diaz’ reason for it. _Hist. Verdad._,
32.
[217] ‘Condotta artifiziosa, e doppia,’ etc., says Clavigero,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 28, while Solis lauds it as ‘Grande
artífice de medir lo que disponia, con lo que rezelaba: y
prudente Capitan.’ _Hist. Mex._, i. 186.
[218] ‘Desde alli adelante nos llamaron Teules,’ says Bernal
Diaz, with great satisfaction. _Hist Verdad._, 32. ‘A los
Españoles llamaron _teteuh_, que quiere decir dioses, y
los Españoles corrompiendo el vocablo decian _teules_, el
cual nombre les duró mas de tres años,’ till we stopped it,
declaring that there was but one God. _Motolinia_, _Hist.
Ind._, i. 142-3. See note 16.
CHAPTER X.
MULTIPLICATION OF PLOTS.
JUNE-JULY, 1519.
CORTÉS, DIPLOMATE AND GENERAL—THE MUNICIPALITY OF VILLA
RICA LOCATED—EXCITEMENT THROUGHOUT ANÁHUAC—MONTEZUMA
DEMORALIZED—ARRIVAL OF THE RELEASED COLLECTORS AT THE MEXICAN
CAPITAL—THE ORDER FOR TROOPS COUNTERMANDED—MONTEZUMA SENDS
AN EMBASSY TO CORTÉS—CHICOMACATL ASKS AID AGAINST A MEXICAN
GARRISON—A PIECE OF PLEASANTRY—THE VELAZQUEZ MEN REFUSE TO
ACCOMPANY THE EXPEDITION—OPPORTUNITY OFFERED THEM TO RETURN
TO CUBA, WHICH THEY DECLINE THROUGH SHAME—THE TOTONACS
REBUKED—THE CEMPOALA BRIDES—DESTRUCTION OF THE IDOLS—ARRIVAL
AT VILLA RICA OF SALCEDO—EFFORTS OF VELAZQUEZ WITH THE
EMPEROR—CORTÉS SENDS MESSENGERS TO SPAIN—VELAZQUEZ ORDERS
THEM PURSUED—THE LETTERS OF CORTÉS—AUDIENCIA OF THE EMPEROR
AT TORDESILLAS.
Palamedes invented the game of chess while watching before the
gates of Troy; a tame business, truly, beside the achievements of
the heaven-born Achilles, the hero of the war. Yet chess remains,
while Achilles and his heaven have melted with the mists. Who shall
say, then, which was the greater, Cortés the soldier, or Cortés
the diplomate? But these were barbarians, one says, with whom the
shrewd Spaniards had to deal; they had neither horses, nor iron, nor
gunpowder, to aid them in their wars. Furthermore, they regarded the
strangers fully as demi-gods, probably as some of their own wandering
deities returned. True; but he makes a great mistake who rates the
Mexicans so far beneath Europeans in natural ability and cunning.
Montezuma lacked some of the murderous enginery that Cortés had, and
his inner life was of different dye; that was about all. If any would
place Cortés, his genius, and his exploits, below those of the world’s
greatest generals, because he warred on enemies weaker than their
enemies, we have only to consider the means at his command, how much
less was his force than theirs. What could the Scipios or the Cæsars
have done with half a thousand men; or Washington, or Wellington,
with five hundred against five hundred thousand? Napoleon’s tactics
were always to have at hand more forces than the enemy. In this
the Corsican displayed his astuteness. But a keener astuteness was
required by Cortés to conquer thousands with hundreds and with tens.
Perhaps Moltke, who, with a stronger force, could wage successful war
on France, perhaps he, and a handful of his veterans, could land on
the deadly shores of the Mexican Gulf, and with Montezuma there, and
all the interior as dark to them as Erebus, by strategy and force
of arms possess themselves of the country. I doubt it exceedingly.
I doubt if one in ten of the greatest generals who ever lived would
have achieved what the base bastard Pizarro did in Peru. The very
qualities which made them great would have deterred them from anything
which, viewed in the light of experience and reason, was so wildly
chimerical. Then give these birds of prey their petting, I say; they
deserve it. And be fame or infamy immortal ever theirs! Lastly, if
any still suspect the genius of Cortés unable to cope with others
than Indians, let them observe how he handles his brother Spaniards.
* * * * *
It was about time the municipality should find anchorage; too much
travelling by a town of such immaculate conception, of so much more
than ordinary signification, were not seemly. Velazquez would deride
it; the emperor Charles would wonder at it: therefore half a league
below Quiahuiztlan, in the dimpled plain which stretches from its base
to the harbor of Bernal at present protecting the ships, where bright
waters commingling with soft round hills and rugged promontories were
lifted into ethereal heights by the misted sunshine, the whole scene
falling on the senses like a vision, and not like tame reality, there
they chose a site for the Villa Rica,[219] and drew a plan of the
town, distributed lots, laid the foundations for forts and batteries,
granary, church, town-hall, and other buildings, which were constructed
chiefly of adobe, the whole being inclosed by a strong stockade. To
encourage alike men and officers to push the work, Cortés himself set
the example in preparing for the structures, and in carrying earth
and stones. The natives also lent their aid, and in a few weeks the
town stood ready, furnishing a good shipping depot, a fortress for the
control of the interior, a starting-point for operations, an asylum
for the sick and wounded, and a refuge for the army in case of need.
* * * * *
Great was the excitement in Anáhuac and the regions round about over
the revolt of the Totonacs and the attitude assumed by the Spaniards;
and while hope swelled the breast of subjected peoples, the Aztec
nobles, seeing revolution in the signs of the times, began to look
to the safety of their families and estates.[220] To Montezuma the
seizure of his collectors was an outrage on the sacredness of his
majesty, and a slur on his power, which the council declared must be
punished in the most prompt and effective manner, lest other provinces
should follow the example. And yet the monarch had no stomach for the
business. Ofttimes since these accursed strangers touched his shores
would he willingly have resigned that which he above all feared to
lose, his sceptre and his life; then again, as appetite returned and
existence was loaded with affluent pleasure, he sighed to taste the
sweets of power a little longer. He was becoming sadly pusillanimous,
an object of contempt before his gods, his nobles, and himself.
It seemed to him as if the heavens had fallen on him and held him
inexorably to earth. There was no escape. There were none to pity. He
was alone. His very gods were recreant, cowering before the approach
of other gods. Repressing his misgivings as best he might, he issued
orders for an immediate descent of the army on the offenders. Let the
mettle of these beings be proven, and let them live or die with their
Totonac allies. To this end let levies be made of men and money on a
long-suffering people, whose murmurs shall be drowned in the groans
of fresh victims on the sacrificial altar of the war god.[221]
See now how powerfully had wagged that little forked tongue of Cortés!
See how those gentle whisperings that night at Quiahuiztlan, those
soft dissemblings breathed into the ears of two poor captives—see how
they shot forth like winged swords to stop an army on the point of
marching to its slaughters! Here, as in scores of other instances,
Cortés’ shrewdness saved him from disaster.
For in the midst of the warlike preparations arrived the two released
collectors, and their presentation of the magnanimity of the white
chief, of his friendly conduct and warm assurances, materially changed
the aspect of affairs. There was no alliance; there was no rebellion;
the Totonacs dared not rebel without foreign support; with them
Montezuma would settle presently. And with no little alacrity did
he countermand the order for troops, and send an embassy to Cortés.
Thus through the vacillating policy which now possessed the Mexican
monarch was lost the opportunity to strike the enemy perhaps a fatal
blow; and thus by that far off impalpable breath was fought and won
another battle, this time vanquishing the king of kings himself, with
his hundred thousand men.
The embassy sent comprised two of Montezuma’s nephews,[222] accompanied
by four old and honorable caciques. They were to express the monarch’s
thanks to the Spaniards, and to remonstrate against the revolt
encouraged by their presence. He had become assured that they were
of the race predicted by his forefathers, and consequently of his own
lineage; out of regard for them, as guests of the revolted people, he
would withhold present chastisement. A gift of robes and feather-work,
and gold worth two thousand castellanos, accompanied the message.[223]
We cannot blame Cortés if his heart danced to its own music as he
assured the envoys that he and all his people continued devoted to
their master; in proof of which he straightway produced the other
three collectors, safe, sound, and arrayed in their new attire.[224]
Nevertheless, he could but express displeasure at the abrupt departure
of the Mexicans from the former camp. This act had forced him to seek
hospitality at the hand of the Totonacs, and for their kind reception
of him they deserved to be forgiven. Further than this, they had
rendered the Spaniards great benefits, and should not be expected
to serve two masters, or to pay double tribute; for the rest, Cortés
himself would soon come to Mexico and arrange everything. The envoys
replied that their sovereign was too engrossed in serious affairs
to be able as yet to appoint an interview. “Adieu,” they concluded,
“and beware of the Totonacs, for they are a treacherous race.” Not
to create needless alarm, nor leave on the minds of the envoys at
their departure unpleasant impressions concerning his projects,
Cortés entertained them hospitably, astonished them with cavalry and
other exhibitions, and gratified them with presents. The effect of
this visit was to raise still higher the Spaniards in the estimation
not only of the Aztecs, but of the Totonacs, who with amazement saw
come from the dread Montezuma, instead of a scourging army, this high
embassy of peace. “It must be so,” they said among themselves, “that
the Mexican monarch stands in awe of the strangers.”
* * * * *
Not long after, Chicomacatl came to Cortés asking aid against a
Mexican garrison, said to be committing ravages at Tizapantzinco,[225]
some eight leagues from Cempoala. Cortés was in a merry mood at the
moment; he could see the important progress he was making toward the
consummation of his desires, though the men of Velazquez could not—at
least they would admit of nothing honorable or beneficial to Cortés,
and they continued to make much trouble. Here was an opportunity to
test the credulity of these heathen, how far they might be brought
to believe in the supernatural power of the Spaniards. Among the
musketeers was an old Biscayan from the Italian wars, Heredia by
name, the ugliest man in the army, uglier than Thersites, who could
not find his fellow among all the Greeks that came to Troy. Lame
in one foot, blind in one eye, bow-legged, with a slashed face,
bushy-bearded as a lion, this musketeer had also the heart of a lion,
and would march straight into the mouth of Popocatepetl, without a
question, at the order of his general. Calling the man to him, Cortés
said: “The Greeks worshipped beauty, as thou knowest, good Heredia,
but these Americans seem to deify deformity, which in thee reaches
its uttermost. Thou art hideous enough at once to awe and enravish
the Aztecs, whose Pantheon cannot produce thine equal. Go to them,
Heredia; bend fiercely on them thine only eye, walk bravely before
them, flash thy sword, and thunder a little with thy gun, and thou
shalt at once command a hundred sacrifices.” Then to the Totonac
chief: “This brother of mine is all sufficient to aid thee in thy
purpose. Go, and behold the Culhuas will vanish at thy presence.”
And they went; an obedience significant of the estimation in which
Cortés was then held, both by his own men and by the natives.
They had not proceeded far when Cortés sent and recalled them, saying
that he desired to examine the country, and would accompany them.
Tlamamas would be required to carry the guns and baggage, and they
would set out the next day. At the last moment seven of the Velazquez
faction refused to go, on the ground of ill health. Then others of
their number spoke, condemning the rashness of the present proceeding,
and desiring to return to Cuba. Cortés told them they could go, and
after chiding them for neglect of duty he ordered prepared a vessel,
which should be placed at their service. As they were about to embark,
a deputation appeared to protest against permitting any to depart, as
a proceeding prejudicial to the service of God, and of the king. “Men
who at such a moment, and under such circumstances, desert their flag
deserve death.” These were the words of Cortés put into the mouth of
the speaker. Of course the order concerning the vessel was recalled,
and the men of Velazquez were losers by the affair.[226]
The expedition, composed of four hundred soldiers, with fourteen
horses, and the necessary carriers, then set off for Cempoala, where
they were joined by four companies of two thousand warriors. Two days’
march brought them close to Tizapantzinco, and the following morning
they entered the plain at the foot of the fortress, which was strongly
situated on a high rock bordered by a stream. Here stood the people
prepared to receive them; but scarcely had the cavalry come in sight
when they turned to seek refuge within the fort. The horsemen cut off
their retreat in that direction, however, and leaving them, began
the ascent. Eight chiefs and priests thereupon came forth wailing,
and informed the Spaniards that the Mexican garrison had left at the
first uprising of the Totonacs, and that the Cempoalans were taking
advantage of this and of the Spanish alliance to enforce the settlement
of a long-standing boundary dispute. They begged that the army would
not advance. Cortés at once gave orders to restrain the Cempoalans,
who were already plundering. Their captains were severely reprimanded
for want of candor as to the real object of the expedition, and were
ordered to restore the effects and captives taken. This strictness
was by no means confined to them, for a soldier named Mora, caught
by the general in the act of stealing two fowls, was ordered hanged.
Alvarado, however, cut him down in time to save his life, probably
at the secret intimation of Cortés, who, while securing the benefit
of example, would not unnecessarily sacrifice a soldier.[227]
Charmed by this display of justice on the part of the Spaniards, and
impressed as well by their ever increasing prestige, the chiefs of
the district came in and tendered allegiance. A lasting friendship
was established between them and the Cempoalans;[228] after which the
army returned to Cempoala by a new route,[229] and was received with
demonstrations of joy by the populace. With a view of binding more
closely such powerful allies, Chicomacatl proposed intermarriages. And
as a beginning he presented eight young women,[230] richly dressed,
with necklaces and ear-rings of gold, and each attended by servants.
“Take them,” said he to Cortés. “They are all daughters of caciques.
Seven are for your captains, and this, my niece, is for yourself,
for she is the ruler of towns.”
Matters were becoming interesting. Cortés and some of his captains
had wives in Cuba, and nearly all of them had mistresses here. The
damsels of Cempoala were not famed for their beauty; the one offered
Cortés was particularly ill-favored. With regard to captives and
slaves, of course no marriage vow was necessary, but with princesses
the case was different. But even here there was little difficulty. The
aboriginal form of marriage, while it satisfied the natives, rested
lightly on the Spaniards. Indeed, with them it was no marriage at
all; and so it has been throughout the New World; in their marital
relations with foreigners the natives have felt themselves bound,
while the Europeans have not. To the ceremony in this instance no
objection was offered.
At this happy consummation, though the rite is not yet performed,
serious meditation takes possession of the mind of Cortés, who bethinks
himself that he is doing little of late for his God, who is doing so
much for him. Success everywhere attends his strategies. And these
female slaves and princesses! While trying to quiet his conscience
for accepting this princess, he was exceedingly careful in regard
to taking unto himself real wives, as we have seen in Cuba. But
here marriage after the New World fashion would surely advance his
purposes. And so they are compelled to submit to the stronger, who by
the right of might proceeds to rob them of their gold and to desolate
their homes; and now assumes the higher prerogative of requiring them
to relinquish the faith of their fathers and embrace the religion
of their enemies. It would please God to have these Cempoala people
worship him; Cortés can make them do so. True, they love their gods
as much as Cortés loves his. Their gods likewise help them to good
things, among others to the Spaniards themselves, who in return now
determine their overthrow. And shall they consent! Alas, they are
weak, and their gods are weak!
Heathenism, with its idolatry, and bloody sacrifices, and cannibalism,
is horrible, I grant you. “For daily they sacrificed three or five
Indians,” says Bernal Diaz, “offering the heart to idols, smearing
the blood upon the walls, and cutting off the limbs to be eaten. I
even believe they sold the flesh in the market.”[231] But equally
horrible, and far more unfair, are the doings of the superior race,
which with the advance of the centuries, and the increase of knowledge
and refinement, are often guilty of deeds as bloodthirsty and cruel as
these. With the most powerful of microscopic aids to vision, I can see
no difference between the innate goodness and badness of men now and
two or five thousand years ago; the difference lies merely in a change
of morality fashions, and in the apparent refining and draping of what
conventionally we choose to call wickedness. What is the serving of
dainty dishes to the gods in the form of human sacrifices, of carving
before them a few thousand fattened captives, to the extirpation of
a continent of helpless human beings; and that by such extremes of
treachery and cruelty as the cannibals never dreamed of, entrapping
by fair words only to cut, and mangle, and kill by steel, saltpetre,
and blood-hounds; stealing at the same time their lands and goods,
and adding still more to their infamy by doing all this in the name
of Christ; when in reality they violate every principle of religion
and disregard every injunction of the church; just as men to-day lie
and cheat and praise and pray, and out of their swindlings hope to
buy favor of the Almighty!
And now these poor people must give up their poor gods, for their
masters so decree. The chiefs and native priests protest. The Spaniards
are benefactors and friends, but the gods are superior to men. To
them they owe health, prosperity, existence; and sacrifices are but
the necessary slight returns for so great blessings. The sacrificed
are by no means injured, say the Aztecs, but are sent to heaven and
enfolded at once in the bosom of their god. Verily there are curious
articles of faith among the heathen worshipers as well as among our
own, but if we look for all the good in ours we shall be mistaken.
In vain the men of Cempoala beg to retain the religion of their
forefathers and the sacred emblems of their faith. Carried away by
the fierce zeal which more than once in these annals overcomes his
prudence and brings him to the brink of ruin, Cortés cries: “Christians
and soldiers, shall these things be—these idolatries and sacrifices,
and other impious doings? No! First down with the images, then to
arguments, and the granting of entreaties. Our lives on work rewarded
with eternal glory!” Shouts of earnest approval was the response,
and on they marched toward the temple. Priests and people rushed to
the defence of their deities. With a scornful gesture the ruler was
waived aside, as he interposed with the warning that to lay hands
on the idols was to bring destruction alike on all. “You are not my
friends,” exclaimed Cortés, “if you do not as I wish! Choose ye; and
I will leave you your gods to save you from the threatened vengeance
of Montezuma.” This was by far too practical an application of their
piety. The fact is, their gods had not done exactly right by them
in the matter of the Aztec imposition. These white strangers, after
all, seemed to be better gods than their idols. “Well, work your
will,” at length said Chicomacatl, “but do not ask our aid in such
detestable doings.” So the thing was accomplished, as before this
had been determined. In a moment fifty soldiers were on the temple
summit, and down came the worshipful wooden things, shattered and
clattering along the steps, while with bleeding hearts their makers
stood by, their faces covered to exclude the sacrilegious sight. Ah,
how they wailed, how they lamented, calling on the misshapen blocks
to pity their inability to stop the deed![232]
Not such dastards were these people, however, that not one among them
would strike a blow for their faith. For presently the court-yard was
filled with armed men, headed by infuriated priests in long hooded
robes of dark material, with slashed ears and faces clotted with blood,
determined, if not to prevent, at least to avenge the outrage. What
was sworn allegiance, or even life, beside the momentous question of
religion? Seeing the danger, Cortés with characteristic promptness
seized the lord, together with several leading men, and declared if
a single Spaniard was so much as scratched they should immediately
die. Chicomacatl accordingly spoke to the people and made them retire.
Nor was wholly lost on them the mute argument of the shattered idols
lying powerless at their feet. Hence when the images were burned, the
natives looked on with comparative calmness. “Surely these beings are
superior to our gods, whom they have thus vanquished,” they said one to
another. Sweetly and serenely Cortés now smiled on them, called them
brethren, and preached the European doctrines. The pagan temple was
cleansed, the blood-smeared walls were whitewashed, and in their place
was erected a Christian altar, decorated with flowers and surmounted
with a cross. Here, before the assembled natives, Olmedo preached the
Christian faith, and celebrated mass. The contrast between the simple
beauty of this impressive ceremony and their own bloody worship made
a deep impression on the minds of the natives, and at the conclusion
those who desired were baptized. Among them were the eight brides,
the ill-favored ruler of towns who had been given to Cortés being
called Catalina, probably in honor of his wife in Cuba, whose place
she was to occupy for a time. Lucky Puertocarrero’s second pretty
prize, the daughter of Cacique Cuesco, was named Francisca.[233]
Accompanied by the brides and a large escort the army now returned to
Villa Rica. There they found just arrived from Cuba a vessel commanded
by Francisco de Salcedo, nicknamed ‘the dandy,’ who with Luis Marin, an
able officer, and ten soldiers, all well provided with arms, and with
two horses, had come in quest of fortune under Cortés.[234] Salcedo
reported that Velazquez had received the appointment of adelantado
over all lands discovered by him or at his cost, with one fifteenth
of all royal revenues thence arising.[235]
Benito Martin, the chaplain, who had been sent to obtain the
commission, was rewarded with the benefice of the new discovery at
Ulua, which really comprised all Mexico, while the lately appointed
bishop of Cuba, the Dominican Julian Garcés, confessor to the bishop
of Búrgos, the patron of Velazquez, was promoted to the insignificant
see of Cozumel. These preferments, based on an insufficient knowledge
of the country, were corrected at a later time, when Garcés was made
bishop of Tlascala, while Martin received other compensation.[236]
Before the issue of these grants it appears that Yucatan at least
had a narrow escape from slipping entirely out of Spanish hands. At
the first news of Córdoba’s discoveries the admiral of Flanders was
induced to ask for the land in grant, in order to settle it with
Flemings, and also to petition for the governorship of Cuba as a means
to promote the colony. This was supported by Xèvres, the chief adviser
in such matters, who knew little of the Indies and the vast tracts
referred to, and so the promise was given. Las Casas was in Spain
at the time, and being consulted by the admiral as to the means for
colonizing, became indignant at the rash concession of Cuba, which
he considered as belonging to Columbus. He remonstrated, and warned
those interested to do the same. The result was the withdrawal of
the grant, greatly to the disappointment of the admiral, for whose
account several vessels had already reached San Lúcar, laden with
Flemish settlers.[237]
* * * * *
Cortés was fully aware that Velazquez, possessed of a commission,
would not long delay in asserting his claim with all the power at his
command upon the islands, and with all his influence at court; this
spurred on the captain-general to lose no time in bringing forward
his own pretensions, and in seeking to obtain royal approval of his
acts. Therefore at this juncture he determined to gain authority for
effectually supplanting the Cuban governor in the field wherein he
had already openly ignored him, and to despatch messengers to the
king. The men of Cortés needed no prompting to see how necessary to
their interest it was to procure his confirmation as general to the
exclusion of Velazquez, and to support Cortés by writing reports
in corroboration of his own statements. Yet, in view of the flowing
in of exaggerated accounts concerning new discoveries, little would
avail descriptions of conquests and resources, however glowing, and
recommendations however warm, unless made real by specimens of the
treasures which were the main attraction alike to king and subject.
For gifts can move gods, says Hesiod. To the crown was due one fifth
of the wealth so far obtained, but fearing that this would hardly
produce the effect desired, Cortés proposed to surrender the one
fifth due himself, and prevailed on his friends, and with their aid
on all members of the expedition, to give up their share in the finer
pieces of wrought gold and silver, and in all choice articles, so
that a gift worthy of themselves and the country might be presented
to the king.[238]
The flag-ship was prepared for the voyage, and the navigation intrusted
to Alaminos and another pilot called Bautista, with fifteen sailors
and the necessary outfit. Four Indians, rescued from the sacrificial
cage at Cempoala, where they had been kept to fatten, were also
sent on board, together with native curiosities, including specimens
of picture-writing. The difficult task of out-manœuvring Velazquez
and securing the aims of their party was intrusted to the alcaldes
Puertocarrero and Montejo, the former being selected chiefly because
of his high connections, which might serve him at court, the latter
for his business talent. Three thousand castellanos were given them
from the treasury for expenses, together with the necessary power and
instructions, and three letters in duplicate for the king. One of these
was the first of the celebrated letters of Cortés on the conquest.
He related at length all that had occurred since he left Santiago;
the difficulties with Velazquez, the hardships of the voyage, and
the progress of conquest for God and the king. He dwelt on the vast
extent and wealth of the country, and expressed the hope of speedily
subjecting it to the crown, and of seizing the person of the great
Montezuma. And he trusted that in return for his services and loyal
devotion he would be remembered in the cédulas to be issued for this
new addition to the empire.[239]
The second letter was by the ayuntamiento of Villa Rica, dated July 10,
1519,[240] covering not only the same ground, but giving an account
of the voyages of discovery by Córdoba and Grijalva, the reasons for
founding a colony, and for Cortés’ appointment. The features of the
country, its resources and inhabitants, were touched upon, and the
belief expressed that of gold, silver, and precious stones “there
is in the land as much as in that where it is said Solomon took the
gold for the temple.” Velazquez was exposed as a cruel, dishonest,
and incompetent governor, and as such most dangerous to be intrusted
with the control of these vast and rich territories. They asked for
an investigation to prove the charges, as well as the propriety of
their own acts; and concluded by recommending that Cortés, whose
character and conduct stamped him a loyal subject and an able leader,
be confirmed in his offices, till the conquest of the country, at
least, should have been achieved.[241]
The third letter, even longer than this, though of similar tenor, was
signed by the representative men in the army,[242] and concluded by
praying that their services and hardships be rewarded with grants,
and that Cortés be confirmed in the government till the king might be
pleased to appoint an infante or a grandee of the highest class, for
so large and rich a country ought to be ruled by none else. Should
the designing bishop of Búrgos of his accord “send us a governor or
captain, before we obey him we shall inform your royal person.” This
sentence, which Las Casas characterizes as a “great though sweetened
piece of impudence,” and several others not in harmony with Cortés’
own calculated report, were probably the cause for the disappearance
of the letter before it reached the emperor.[243]
The messengers or procuradores left the port July 16,[244] and
although ordered not to touch Cuba, lest Velazquez should learn of
the mission, Montejo could not resist the temptation of taking a peep
at his estates at Mariel de Cuba, a port close to Habana. Here they
entered August 23, and took supplies and water. This could not of
course be done in secret, and swelling with rumor the report reached
Velazquez that his flag-ship had come ballasted with gold, to the
value of two hundred and seventy thousand pesos. No less alarmed
than furious at this proof of the perfidy he had so long feared, he
despatched a fast sailing vessel with a strong force under Gonzalo
de Guzman, the royal treasurer, to capture her; but she had stayed
only three days at Mariel, and then passed safely through the Bahamas
Channel, the first to make that passage.[245]
* * * * *
The arrival of the messengers at Seville, in October, created no
small stir, and aided by their treasures and reports they became
the heroes of the hour. But their triumph was of short duration; for
Benito Martin, the chaplain of Velazquez, happened to be at the port.
This man at once laid claim to the vessel for his master, denounced
the persons on board as traitors, and prevailed upon the Casa de
Contratacion to seize the ship, together with the private funds of the
commission, as well as certain money sent by Cortés for his father. A
still stronger opponent appeared in the person of Fonseca, bishop of
Búrgos, whose interest in Velazquez, fostered by a long interchange
of favors, was strengthened by a projected marriage of the governor
with his niece.[246] Detaining the messengers and their papers by
deferred promises and other measures,[247] he filled the royal ear
with the most damaging charges against them and their party in behalf
of his protégé.
Velazquez had meanwhile been taking testimony against Cortés, and
had sent treasurer Guzman to Spain with documents and instructions
to join Martin in pressing his suit before the bishop.[248]
* * * * *
Charles V. had been elected emperor, and was busy in Spain raising
supplies and making preparations on a vast scale for presenting
an appearance in Germany befitting so high a dignity. Previous to
embarking for Flanders he was to meet the cortes at Compostela. The
messengers from New Spain could afford to lose no more time, and so
with the aid of Puertocarrero’s friends and the men opposed to Fonseca,
among them the Licenciado Nuñez, relator of the royal council and
related to Cortés, they slipped away, and in company with Alaminos and
Martin Cortés, managed to be presented to the monarch at Tordesillas,
in the beginning of March.[249] The king was not a little pleased
with the reports, gilded as they were with the richest presents that
had as yet reached him from his American possessions,[250] but he was
unfortunately too absorbed with the imperial crown and the preparations
for departure to give more than a passing attention to the subject,
and still less would he enter into the merits of the claims presented.
Finding, however, that Fonseca had not been impartial in the matter,
he was prevailed on to refer it to Cardinal Adrian, and the junta of
prelates and ministers governing the kingdom during the royal absence,
before whom the Council of the Indies had also to lay its reports.
The messengers were meanwhile allowed under bond to receive from the
seized funds what was needed for their support.[251] The powerful
Fonseca managed, however, by misrepresentation and other means, to
delay the case, and for about two years it dragged its weary length.
And yet, where a man is strong enough to carve out his own fortune,
particularly where the administration of strict justice might send
his neck to the halter, the law’s delay and its susceptibility to
perversion may be most fortunate.
FOOTNOTES
[219] Villa Rica is the name appearing in the first royal
charter of 1523, but with later foundations Vera Cruz
became the title. _Panes_, _Extension Veracruz_, MS., 1 et
seq. The municipal council, however, distinctly calls it
_la Rica Villa de la Veracruz_ and ought to be the proper
authority for the form of name first applied. _Carta del
Ayunt._, in _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 1 et seq. ‘Y luego ordenamos
de hazer, y fundar, è poblar vna Villa, que se nombró la
Villa Rica de la Vera-Cruz; porque llegamos Jueves de la
Cena, y desembarcamos en Uiernes Santo de la Cruz, é rica
por aquel Cauallero que ... dixo que mirasse las tierras
ricas.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 29. ‘Llamola
Villa Rica a la nueua poblaciõ, y de la Veracruz, por auer
desembarcado el Viernes Sãto, y Rica, por la riqueza que se
auia descubierto.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. vii.
Although nominally founded adjacent to San Juan de Ulua,
there was no intention to build the town on that unhealthy
and dreary spot. The first actual foundation took place
at the harbor of Bernal. Nearly five years later the town
rose anew on the present Rio de la Antigua, where it became
known alone as Vera Cruz. In 1599 the actual or new Vera
Cruz found itself finally planted on the very site of the
first nominal foundation. The chief reason for this change
was probably the need for the better protection against
filibusters afforded by the island of San Juan de Ulua,
whose batteries commanded the harbor. See _Albornoz_, _Carta
al Emperador_, Dec., 1525, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._,
i. 495. The charter for la Nueva Ciudad de la Vera-Cruz
was granted July 19, 1615. _Calle_, _Mem. y Not._, 68;
_Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 30; _Rivera_, _Hist.
Jalapa_, i. 27; _Humboldt_, _Essai Pol._, i. 276-7. Alegre,
_Hist. Comp. de Jesus_, i. 149-50, has some excellent remarks
hereon. Few authors, however, are free from blunders with
regard to the different sites, even Lorenzana committing more than
one. _Cortés_, _Hist. N. España_, 381.
[220] ‘Los Hombres mas Poderosos entendian en buscar Lugares
en los Montes, y partes mas remotas, para conservar sus
Mugeres, Hijos, y Hacienda.’ _Torquemada_, i. 403.
[221] Inconsolable at the prospect of the strangers acquiring
a footing in the country, Montezuma, after vainly searching
for admission into the Hades of Cicalco, retired to the
abode occupied by him ere he became emperor. _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, i. 15-16. One reason for this is said to have
been the result of the embassy to the oracle at Achiuhtla,
in Miztecapan, which brought back the announcement that
the Aztec empire must yield to strangers. _Burgoa_, _Geog.
Descrip. Oajaca_, pt. ii. 129.
[222] ‘Figliuoli porse del suo fratello Cuitlahuatzin.’
_Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 30.
[223] ‘Ciertas pieças de oro y plata bien labradas, y vn
casquete de oro menudo.... Peso todo esto dos mil, y nouenta
Castellanos.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 58.
[224] Before the embassy came, says Herrera, ‘Diò orden con
voluntad del señor de Chianhuitzlan, que los tres Mexicanos
pressos fuessen sueltos,’ dec. ii. lib. v. cap. xi.
[225] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 290. Other authorities
differ in the spelling.
[226] One of them who had bartered a fine light-colored horse
for some property in Cuba was unable to annul the trade,
and thus lost his animal. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
34. Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 64, refers merely to murmurs in
favor of Velazquez, which Cortés quiets by placing a few
in chains for a time.
[227] ‘Muriò este soldado en vna guerra en la Prouincia de
Guatimala sobre vn Peñol.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
35. He places the incident on the return march.
[228] According to Gomara the Aztec garrison does ravage
the country when the Totonac revolt occurs, and their forces
meet the Spaniards on the field, only to flee at the sight of
the horsemen. Cortés and four others dismount, and mingling
with the fleeing, reach the fort gates, which they hold
till their troops come up. Surrendering the place to the
allies, Cortés tells them to respect the people and to let
the garrison depart without arms or banner. This victory
gained great influence for the Spaniards, and remembering
the feat of Cortés, the Indians declared that one Spaniard
was enough to aid them in achieving victory. _Hist. Mex._,
59. Ixtlilxochitl, who follows Gomara, fights the Aztec
garrison as far as the city, and then captures it. _Hist.
Chich._, 290. Solis assumes that a few Spaniards cut off
the retreat of the townsmen, and rushing forward with some
Cempoalans, are already inside when the leaders come to
plead for mercy. _Hist. Mex._, i. 197-8. The foremost credit
is however due to Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 34-5, who,
being present, declares Gomara’s account wholly wrong, that
no garrison existed here, and that no resistance was made.
The latter sentence is modified by Tapia, also a member of
the expedition, who states that the town did resist and was
punished. _Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
566. Hence it may be assumed that Diaz, as a foot soldier,
was not present to see the probably bloodless rout of the
Indians by the cavalry. The townsmen are not likely to
have allowed the Cempoalans to approach without offering
resistance, or, in case they knew of the Spanish advance,
without sending a deputation before the pillage began.
[229] Passing through two towns, the soldiers suffering
greatly from heat and fatigue. Near Cempoala the lord
awaited them in some temporary huts with bountiful cheer,
though apprehensive of Cortés’ anger at his deception. The
following day they entered the city. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 35; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. xiii.
[230] ‘Veinte Doncellas (aunque Gomara dice, que fueron
ocho),’ says Torquemada, i. 399, without giving his reasons.
[231] ‘Tambien auian de ser limpios de sodomias, porque
tenian muchachos vestidos en habito de mugeres, que andauan â
ganar en aquel maldito oficio.’ This they promised. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 35. Solis assumes that Cortés was
aroused to this crusade by the heavy sacrifices at a great
festival. _Hist. Mex._, i. 204-5.
[232] Gomara makes the natives tear down the idols and the
sepulchres of caciques worshipped as gods. ‘Acabo con los
de la ciudad que derribassen los idolos y sepulcros de los
caciques, q̄ tambien reuerẽciauan como a dioses.’ _Hist.
Mex._, 67.
[233] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 36; _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. v. cap. ix. xiv. Gomara places the presentation
of the women at the first visit of the Spaniards to the
city, and herein he is followed by Herrera, Torquemada,
and Ixtlilxochitl. _Hist. Chich._, 289.
[234] These proved the more valuable since Cortés’ horse
had died shortly before. He obtained, by gift or purchase,
the fine Arriero, a dark chestnut belonging to Ortiz, the
musician, and to García, the miner. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 33. Gomara assumes that Salcedo brought a caravel,
with sixty Spaniards and nine horses, the vessel having
been detained in Cuba for repairs. _Hist. Mex._, 59; yet
he includes Salcedo as present at the final review there.
_Id._, 14. He is evidently confused.
[235] For himself and one heir. Further, after conquering
and settling four islands, he might select one from which
to receive perpetually for himself and heirs one twentieth
part of all the revenue accruing therefrom for the king.
No duty would be charged during his life on any clothing,
arms, and provisions imported by him into those lands. As
an aid toward the expenses of the conquest, a royal estate
at Habana was granted him, and a salary in those lands
of 300,000 maravedís. The other clauses of the commission
related to mines, clergy, taxes, and settlers. It was dated
at Saragossa, November 13, 1518, ‘five days previous to the
usurpation of the fleet by Cortés,’ observes Las Casas,
_Hist. Ind._, v. 3-5. Dated at Barcelona, says Herrera,
dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. xi. Several are led to suppose that
Velazquez did not receive the notice of his appointment for
over a year after its date, which is unlikely. _Mex._, ii.
222-3.
[236] Which he failed to enjoy, since he died at sea while
en route to New Spain to take possession. _Las Casas_,
_Hist. Ind._, iv. 465-6; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap.
xi.; _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, 16-17.
[237] Many of these died from hardship, and the rest
returned impoverished to their country. _Las Casas_, _Hist.
Ind._, iv. 374-6; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. ii. cap. xix.;
_Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, 8.
[238] It has been generally assumed, from a loose
acceptance of chroniclers’ text, that all the treasures
were surrendered for the object in view, but this could
not have been the case. The pile of gold dust and nuggets,
accumulated by constant barter along the coast, and increased
by the contents of two helmets sent by Montezuma, formed
a respectable amount, of which only a small portion was
sent to the king, as specimens of mining products. Three
thousand castellanos were set aside for the expenses of the
messengers to Spain, and an equal sum for Cortés’ father,
‘Otros 3000 que Cortés enviaba para su padre.’ _Las Casas_,
_Hist. Ind._, iv. 498. ‘A su padre Martin Cortes y a su
madre ciertos Castellanos.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 62.
The disposal of the dust alone indicates an apportionment.
Further, the list of treasure sent to Spain, as appended to
the _Carta del Ayuntamiento_, and as given by Gomara, shows
that much of the wrought metal received from Montezuma,
not counting that acquired by barter, was retained by the
expedition. Gomara writes that the first step of Cortés was
to order a division of treasures by Ávila and Mejía, acting
respectively for the crown and the army. All the effects
being displayed in the plaza, the gold and silver amounting
to 27,000 ducats, the cabildo observed that what remained
after deducting the royal fifth would belong to the general
in payment for the vessels, arms, and supplies surrendered
by him to the company. Cortés said there was time enough to
pay him; he would now take only his share as captain-general,
and leave others wherewith to settle their small debts. He
also proposed that instead of sending merely the one fifth
to the king, the finest specimens should be given, which
was agreed to. His list is given in _Hist. Mex._, 60-2.
Ordaz and Montejo were sent round with a list to be signed
by all who wished to surrender their share in the gold.
‘Y desta manera todos lo firmaron â vna.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 36. The _Carta del Ayunt._ refers to four
of Velazquez’ men as objecting to the presents being sent
elsewhere than to their leader. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 26-7;
_Tapia_, _Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
563; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. xiv.; _Torquemada_,
i. 407; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 118.
[239] No generous allusion appears to have been made to the
discoverers who opened the way for him. Gomara alone gives
a brief outline of the letter, but the original or copy has
never been found, notwithstanding the close search made.
Since Charles V. received it on the eve of his departure
for Germany, it occurred to Robertson that the Vienna
archives might throw on it some light, and the consequent
search led to the discovery of an authenticated copy of the
companion letter from the municipality of Villa Rica, but
nothing relating to Cortés’ report. _Hist. Am._, preface,
x.-xi. Panes insists that the letter must have existed in
the Vienna Court Library at one time. _Doc. Domin. Esp._,
MS., 59-60. Barcia suggests several ways in which it might
have been lost; one being its production before the royal
council at the instance of Pánfilo de Narvaez. _Bibl.
Occid._, tit. iv. ii. 598. Fortunately the companion letter
and other narratives cover its essential points.
[240] ‘El Cabildo escriuiò juntamente con diez soldados ...
ê iva yo firmado en ella.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
36.
[241] Written by Cortés’ most devoted friends, and
undoubtedly under his supervision, we cannot expect to
find it other than a labored effort to promote his views.
Robertson, whose suggestion led to its discovery in the
Vienna Imperial Library, offers a mere synopsis of the
contents. _Hist. Am._, preface, p. xi. ii. 521-2. It is
given at length in the _Cortés_, _Cartas_, by Gayangos,
Paris, 1866, 1-34, with notes, and with the list of presents
appended; and in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i. 417-72, and in
_Alaman_, _Disert._, i. 2d app., 41-104, preceded by an
introductory sketch of the expedition by the collector of
the papers, and containing the list of presents as checked
by Muñoz in 1784 from the Manual del Tesorero de la Casa
de la Contratacion de Sevilla.
[242] ‘Todos los Capitanes, y soldados juntamente escriuimos
otra carta.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 36. ‘El cabildo
... escriuio ... dos letras. Vna ... no firmaron sino
alcaldes y regidores. La otra fue acordada y firmada del
cabildo y de todos los mas principales.’ _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 63.
[243] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 37, gives a long detail
of its contents, particularly of the conclusion, wherein
the bishop of Búrgos is pointed out as favoring his friends
and relations in the distribution of Indian governments.
Velazquez enjoyed his special favor in return for the large
presents in gold and towns he had made, to the prejudice
of the crown. Cortés, on reading the letter, was highly
pleased with the eulogy bestowed upon himself, and promised
to remember it when rewards came to be distributed, but
he objected to the prominence given to the discoveries
of Córdoba and Grijalva, ‘sino á èl solo se atribuia el
descubrimiento, y la honra, ê honor de todo,’ and wished to
suppress the statement that one fifth of the profits were
to be given to him. The men declined to hide anything from
the king, and so Cortés no doubt made the messengers hide
the letter. Tapia gives a brief synopsis of it, mentioning
the objections raised against the bishop of Búrgos, and
the resolution not to obey any orders contrary to their
report till the king had replied to it—‘é para que otra
cosa en contrario de lo que le escrebiamos no se hiciese,
que S. M. sin saber de qué hacia mercedes, no las hiciese,
estábamos prestos de morir é tener la tierra en su real
nombre fasta ver respuesta de esta carta.’ _Relacion_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 566. ‘Esta carta no vido
el Emperador, porque, si la viera, no les sucederia ni á
Cortés ni á sus consortes el negocio tan favorable como
abajo se parecerá.’ _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 498.
[244] ‘En una nao que ... despaché á 16 de julio del año
de 1519, envié a V. A. muy larga y particular relacion.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 51; _Oviedo_, iii. 261. ‘En veinte y
seis dias del mes de Julio ... partieron de San Juan de
Ulua.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 37. On the next
page he says July 6th. The naming of Ulua as the port of
departure shows also a carelessness of facts; yet Gomara
says:‘Partieron ... de Aquiahuiztlã ... a veinte y seis.’
_Hist. Mex._, 6. Still Cortés’ letter, written so soon
after, ought to be correct. Prescott accepts the 26th.
[245] ‘Esta fuga fue ocasion de descubrir el derrotero de la
Canal de Bahama, para la buelta de España, hasta entonces
no nauegada, y desde aquella ocasion siempre seguida.’
_Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yucathan_, 41. ‘Alaminos ... fue el
primero que nauegò por aquella canal.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 36-39. Prejudiced against Montejo, as shown by
previous expressions, this author accuses him of sending
letters to Velazquez by a sailor, who spread the news of
the mission along his route. Some of the letters were from
adherents in Cortés’ army. ‘Pareciò, de otras personas
principales que estauan en nuestro Real, fueron aconsejados
que fuessen á aquella estancia ... y aun escriuieron para
que el Diego Velazquez tuuiesse tiempo de auellos á las
manos.’ Velazquez accordingly sends two small vessels under
Gabriel de Rojas and Guzman to pursue the ship, but their
cruise between Habana and the Bahamas Channel is in vain.
Montejo’s conduct before and after this indicates nothing
that can justify the accusations, and Velazquez, in his
letter to Figueroa, juez de residencia in Española, inveighs
against one ‘Montejo’ and his companion for taking not
only provisions and forty butts of water, but a number of
Indians from Mariel, and then leaving ‘without informing
any magistrate or other person,’ taking a dangerous and
hitherto unknown route. In _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i.
401. During the investigation held on the subject by the
governor, it appeared that Juan de Rojas of Habana reported
the secret visit of Montejo, who, knowing that Rojas had
become aware of his presence, wrote him at the moment of
leaving that he was going to visit Velazquez. From Perez,
a servant of Rojas and in charge at Mariel, it seems, he
exacted an oath not to reveal what he had learned of the
rich cargo and destination of the vessel. Rojas nevertheless
obtained the facts from him. _Testimonio_, in _Pacheco_ and
_Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xii. 151-204. In a letter to the
bishop of Búrgos, October 12, 1519, Velazquez states that a
man at Mariel, Perez probably, was at the last moment shown
the treasures. Guzman was sent with a vessel in pursuit. In
_Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xii. 248-50. Gomara
also says, ‘embiando tras ella vna carauela de armada.’
_Hist. Mex._, 64; _Torquemada_, i. 407.
[246] ‘Doña Mayor de Fonseca. El obispo de Búrgos ... por
la muerte del Gran Chanciller ... tornó á alear y á ser
principal.’ _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, v. 2; _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. iii. cap. xi.; _Zúñiga_, _Anales Ecles. Sevilla_,
414.
[247] The bishop of Búrgos, then at Valladolid, spoke
so harshly to Puertocarrero that the latter ventured to
remonstrate, and demand that their messages be forwarded to
the king. A charge was now raked up against Puertocarrero of
having three years before carried off a woman from Medellin
to the Indies, and for this he was cast into prison. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 38; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._,
pt. iii. 119.
[248] Guzman appears to have started in October from Cuba,
when Narvaez’ expedition against Cortés had already begun
to be fitted out. _Carta de Velazquez_, Oct. 12, 1519, in
_Col. Doc. Inéd._, i. 472-5; _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col.
Doc._, xii. 246-51; _Carta al Figueroa_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 402; _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, v. 2. His
appeal to the Jeronimite Fathers, says Bernal Diaz, met
only with rebuff. They considered that Cortés had done
well to send so rich a present to the king. ‘Le embiaron al
Diego Velazquez â Cuba â vn Licenciado que se dezia Zuazo
para que le tomasse residencia ... Uelazquez, se congoxó
mucho mas, y como de antes era muy gordo, se paró flaco en
aquellos dias.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 38. Martin petitioned the
bishop for the repair and return of the messengers’ vessel
to Velazquez, together with another vessel, both to carry
reinforcements to the Indies. This was needed, partly to
prevent the possible conflict between Cortés’ party and
the expedition fitting out under Velazquez to support the
men he had already sent under Cortés as his lieutenant.
_Memorial_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i. 407-9.
[249] _Sandoval_, _Hist. Carlos V._, i. 203. ‘Viniéronse
con la corte hasta llegar á la Coruña, y en este camino los
cognoscí yo.’ _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 499; _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. vii.
[250] In the Manual de la Casa de Contratacion de la Indias
is noted that the Cempoala natives were presented to the
king, at Tordesillas, in February, or March, 1520, and the
presents at Valladolid in April. The Indians were sent to
Cuba at the close of March, 1521, except one who had died.
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 34; _Alaman_, _Disert._, i. 91-104.
[251] According to Bernal Diaz the bishop of Búrgos retained
not only the original letters of the king, but a portion of
the presents, which produced a sharp letter from Charles.
The duplicate letters reached him, however. _Hist. Verdad._,
38-9. This author is not well informed about the movements
of the procuradores. He lets the king reach Flanders before
they arrive, and there receive only the reports.
CHAPTER XI.
THE SINKING OF THE FLEET.
JULY-AUGUST, 1519.
DIEGO VELAZQUEZ ONCE MORE—HIS SUPPORTERS IN THE CAMP OF
CORTÉS—THEY ATTEMPT ESCAPE—ARE DISCOVERED—THE LEADERS
ARE SEIZED AND EXECUTED—CORTÉS’ RIDE TO CEMPOALA, AND
WHAT CAME OF IT—HE DETERMINES ON THE DESTRUCTION OF
THE FLEET—PRELIMINARY STRATAGEMS—SEVERAL OF THE SHIPS
PRONOUNCED UNSEAWORTHY—THE MATTER BEFORE THE SOLDIERS—THE
FLEET SUNK—INDIGNATION OF THE VELAZQUEZ FACTION—ONE VESSEL
REMAINING—IT IS OFFERED TO ANY WISHING TO DESERT—IT IS
FINALLY SUNK—FRANCISCO DE GARAY’S PRETENSIONS—SEIZURE OF SOME
OF HIS MEN.
To the top of a fir-tree, which he curbed and then let spring,
Theseus fastened the robber Sinis, who had been accustomed himself
to kill travellers in that way. In a hollow brazen bull, which he
had made for the Sicilian tyrant to roast his victims in, Perillus
the inventor was roasted. A famous detective was hanged at last for
house-breaking. Matthew Hopkins, the witch-finder, who about the middle
of the seventeenth century travelled the country over to discover and
bring witches to punishment, was finally, with pronounced effect,
subjected to one of his own tests. Witches, he had said, would not
sink in water. This was a safe proposition for the prosecution; for
if they sank they were drowned, and if they did not sink they were
burned. Being at length himself charged with witchcraft, the people
seized and threw him into a river; and as he floated, by his own law
he was declared a witch, and put to death accordingly. In more ways
than one, he who invents a guillotine is often the first to suffer
by it. It is not wise to sow dragons’ teeth, and expect therefrom a
happy harvest.
Now Diego Velazquez had all his life been sowing dragons’ teeth, and
hunting witches, and building guillotines, and brazen bulls. Starting
from Spain in the guise of a noble old soldier, as he advertised
himself, though some said of him that his sword was bloodless and
his bravery bravado, he served the usual apprenticeship in the New
World, chasing, and mutilating, and murdering, and enslaving natives,
working to death on his plantations those saved for this most cruel
fate. For this and similar service Diego Colon, then ruling the
Indies at Española, sent him to Cuba to play governor there over
those inoffensive and thrice unlucky savages. Fraud being native
to his character, no sooner was he fairly seated than he repudiated
his late master and benefactor, and reported directly to the king,
even as his own captain of the Mexican expedition was now doing.
Another of his guillotines was the vile treatment of Grijalva for
not disobeying orders, on which score he could not complain against
Grijalva’s successor. Yet, as head and heart frosted with time the
Cuban governor was not happy: misdeeds never bring true or lasting
happiness. His bitterness, however, was but in the bloom; the full
fruit of his folly would come only after the consummation of events
upon the continent, grand as yet beyond conception. Ordinarily it
is much easier to kill a man than to create one; in this instance it
was extremely difficult to kill the man that he had made.
If among the New World cavaliers such a thing as poltroon or coward
could be, Diego Velazquez was that thing, notwithstanding he had
participated in so much fighting. Yet I do not call him coward, for
my pen refuses to couple such a term with that of sixteenth-century
Spaniard. Certain it is, however, that few men in those days preferred
conquering new lands by deputy to winning glory in person, and if
this soldier and governor was not a coward, there was little of the
manly or chivalrous in his bravery. He was cautious, yet frequently
his cupidity overcame his caution; and when he adventured his gold—for
he seldom risked his life, either for fame which he dearly loved,
or for gold which he loved still dearer—it was under restrictions
ruinous to almost any enterprise. In his ordinary mood he played
fairly enough the statesman and hero, but in truth his statesmanship
was superficial, and his heroism theatrical. Las Casas calls him
a terrible fellow for those who served him, and Gomara says he had
little stomach for expenditures. This much allowance, however, should
be made in any statements of historians respecting the governor of
Cuba: in their drama of the conquest Diego Velazquez plays the part
of chief villain to the hero Hernan Cortés, when as a matter of fact
Cortés was the greater villain of the two, principally because he
was the stronger.
Even the priests praise Cortés, though many of his acts were
treacherous; and timidity in a leader was accounted the most heinous
of crimes. On the whole, I agree with Torquemada that the governor
should have gone against Montezuma in person, if it was necessary
he should go on such dastardly work at all; but we may be sure that
Velazquez would not himself venture upon this sea of high exploit,
though Æolus with a silver cord had tied up the winds in an ox-hide,
as he did for Ulysses. And now from this time forth, and indeed from
the moment the unrestrainable Estremaduran embarked defying him,
the sulphurous fire of hatred and revenge burned constant in the old
man’s breast.
* * * * *
Never was villainy so great that if united with high station or ability
it could not find supporters; for most men are rascals at heart in
one direction or another. The pretty pair, Velazquez the governor,
and Cortés the adventurer—so well pitted that the difference between
them consists chiefly in setting off the position of one against
the native strength of the other, the manners and pusillanimity of
the one against the fate-defying chivalry of the other—had each his
active workers not only in Spain, but in America, those of Velazquez
being some of them in the very camp of Cortés. Since the royal grant
of superior powers to Velazquez, this faction has lifted its head.
And now its brain works.
The messengers for Spain had scarcely left the port before these
malcontents form a plot, this time not with the sole desire to return
to a more comfortable and secure life, but with a view to advise
Velazquez of the treasure ship so close at hand. Amongst them are
to be found the priest Juan Diaz; Juan Escudero, the alguacil of
Baracoa, who beguiled and surrendered Cortés into the hands of the
authorities; Diego Cermeño and Gonzalo de Umbría, pilots; Bernardino
de Coria, and Alonso Peñate, beside several leading men who merely
countenanced the plot.[252] They have already secured a small vessel
with the necessary supplies, and the night of embarkment is at hand,
when Coria repents and betrays his companions.
Cortés is profoundly moved. It is not so much the hot indignation
that stirs his breast against the traitors as the light from afar that
seems to float in upon his mind like an inspiration, showing him more
vividly than he had ever seen it before, his situation. So lately
a lax and frivolous youth, apparently of inept nature, wrought to
stiffer consistency by some years of New World kneading, by a stroke
of the rarest fortune he suddenly finds himself a commander of men,
in a virgin field of enterprise fascinating beyond expression, and
offering to the soldier possibilities excelled by nothing within the
century. As the mind enlarges to take in these possibilities, the
whole being seems to enlarge with it, the unstable adventurer is a
thing of the past, and behold a mighty rock fills the place. Against
it heads shall beat unprofitably. The momentous question of to be or
not to be is forever determined; it is an affair simply of life now.
Life and the power of which he finds himself possessed shall rise
or fall together; and if his life, then the lives of others. No life
shall be more precious to him than his own; no life shall be accounted
precious at all that stands in the way of his plans. To a lady who
complained of the burning of the Palatinate by Turenne, Napoleon
answered: “And why not, madame, if it was necessary to his designs?”
The Palatinate! ay, and a hundred million souls flung into the same
fire, ere the one omnipotent soul shall suffer the least abridgment.
It was a small matter, and he would do it; all the islands of the
Western Inde he would uproot and fling into the face of the Cuban
governor before he would yield one jot of his stolen advantage. Each
for himself were Velazquez, Columbus, and Charles, and the rest of
this world’s great and little ones, and Cortés would be for himself.
Henceforth, like Themistocles, though he would die for his country he
would not trust her. Return to Cuba he well knew for him was death,
or ignominy worse than death. His only way was toward Mexico. As
well first as last. All the past life of Cortés, all his purposes
for the future, concentred in these resolves to make them the pivot
of his destiny. Cortés, master of kings, arbiter of men’s lives! As
for these traitors, they shall die; and if other impediments appear,
as presently we shall see them appear, be they in the form of eye or
right hand, they shall be removed. Tyrant, he might be branded; ay,
as well that as another name, for so are great ends often brought to
pass by small means. Unpleasant as it may be, the survivors may as
well bear in mind that it will be less difficult another time.
So the conspirators are promptly seized and sentenced, Escudero and
Cermeño to be hanged, Umbría to lose his feet, and others to receive
each two hundred lashes.[253] Under cover of his cloth Padre Diaz,
the ringleader and most guilty of them all, escapes with a reprimand.
As for the rest, though among them were some equally guilty, they
were treated with such dissembling courtesy and prudence as either
to render them harmless or to convert them into friends. “Happy the
man who cannot write, if it save him from such business as this!”
exclaimed the commander, as he affixed his name to the death-warrants.
For notwithstanding his inexorable resolve he was troubled, and would
not see his comrades die though they would have sacrificed him. On
the morning of the day of execution he set off at breakneck speed
for Cempoala, after ordering two hundred soldiers to follow with
the horses and join a similar force which had left three days before
under Alvarado.[254]
Cortés’ brain was in a whirl during that ride. It was a horrible
thing, this hanging of Spaniards, cutting off feet, and flogging.
Viewed in one light it was but a common piece of military discipline;
from another stand-point it was the act of an outlaw. The greater
part of the little army was with the commander; to this full extent
the men believed in him, that on his valor and discretion they would
adventure their lives. With most men beliefs are but prejudices, and
opinions tastes. These Spaniards not only believed in their general,
but they held to a most impetuous belief in themselves. They could
do not only anything that any one else ever had done or could do,
but they could command the supernatural, and fight with or against
phantoms and devils. They were a host in themselves; besides which
the hosts of Jehovah were on their side. And Cortés measured his men
and their capabilities, not as Xerxes measured his army, by filling
successively a pen capable of holding just ten thousand; he measured
them rather by his ambition, which was as bright and as limitless as
the firmament. Already they were heroes, whose story presently should
vie in thrilling interest with the most romantic tales of chivalry
and knight-errantry, and in whom the strongest human passions were so
blended as to lift them for a time out of the hand of fate and make
their fortunes their own. The thirst for wealth, the enthusiasm of
religion, the love of glory, united with reckless daring and excessive
loyalty, formed the most powerful incentives to action. Life to them
without the attainment of their object was valueless; they would do or
die; for to die in doing was life, whereas to live failing was worse
than death. Cortés felt all this, though it scarcely lay on his mind
in threads of tangible thought. There was enough however that was
tangible in his thinkings, and exceedingly troubling. Unfortunately
the mind and heart of all his people were not of the complexion he
would have them. And those ships. And the disaffected men lying so
near them, looking wistfully at them every morning, and plotting,
and plotting all the day long. Like the Palatinate to Turenne, like
anything that seduced from the stern purposes of Cortés, it were
better they were not.
This thought once flashed into his mind fastened itself there. And
it grew. And Cortés grew with it, until the man and the idea filled
all that country, and became the wonder and admiration of the world.
Destroy the ships! Cut off all escape, should such be needed in case of
failure! Burn the bridge that spans time, and bring to his desperate
desire the aid of the eternities! The thought of it alone was daring;
more fearfully fascinating it became as Cortés dashed along toward
Cempoala, and by the time he had reached his destination the thing
was determined, and he might with Cæsar at the Rubicon exclaim, _Jacta
est alea_! But what would his soldiers say? They must be made to feel
as he feels, to see with his eyes, and to swell with his ambition.
The confession of the conspirators opened the eyes of Cortés to a fact
which surely he had seen often enough before, though by reason of his
generous nature which forgot an injury immediately it was forgiven, it
had not been much in his mind of late, namely, that too many of his
companions were lukewarm, if not openly disaffected. They could not
forget that Cortés was a common man like themselves, their superior in
name only, and placed over them for the accomplishment of this single
purpose. They felt they had a right to say whether they would remain
and take the desperate chance their leader seemed determined on, and
to act on that right with or without his consent. And their position
assuredly was sound; whether it was sensible depended greatly on
their ability to sustain themselves in it. Cortés was exercising the
arbitrary power of a majority to drive the minority as it appeared to
their death. They had a perfect right to rebel; they had not entered
the service under any such compact. Cortés himself was a rebel; hence
the rebellion of the Velazquez men, being a rebelling against a rebel,
was in truth an adherence to loyalty. Here as everywhere it was might
that made right; and, indeed, with the right of these matters the
narrator has little to do.
Success, shame, fear, bright prospects, had all lent their aid to
hold the discontented in check, but in these several regards feeling
and opinion were subject to daily fluctuations. Let serious danger
or reverses come, and they would flee in a moment if they could.
And the fleet lying so near was a constant temptation. Cut that
off, and the nerves of every man there would be freshly strung.
The meanest would suddenly become charged with a kind of nobility;
they would at once become inspired with the courage that comes from
desperation. Often those least inclined to fight when forced to it
are the most indifferent to death. Other dormant elements would be
brought out by the disappearance of those ships; union, fraternity,
complete community, not only of interest but of life. Their leader
with multiplied power would become their god. On him they would be
dependent for all things; for food and raiment, for riches, glory,
and every success; for life itself. Cortés saw all this, pondered
it well, and thought it would be very pretty to play the god awhile.
He would much prefer it to confinement in old Velazquez’ plaza-pen,
or even in a Seville prison. Cortés was now certain in his own mind
that if his band remained unbroken either by internal dissension
or by white men yet to arrive, he would tread the streets of the
Mexican capital before he entered the gates of the celestial city.
If Montezuma would not admit him peaceably, he would gather such a
force of the emperor’s enemies as would pull the kingdom down about
his ears. It would be necessary on going inland to leave a garrison
at Villa Rica; but it would be madness to leave also vessels in which
they could sail away to Cuba or elsewhere. And finally, if the ships
were destroyed, the sailors, who otherwise would be required to care
for them, might be added to the army. Such were the arguments which
the commander would use to win the consent of his people to one of
the most desperate and daring acts ever conceived by a strategist of
any age or nation.
Not that such consent was necessary. He might destroy the ships and
settle with the soldiers afterward. The deed accomplished, with or
without their consent, there would be but one course open to them.
Nevertheless he preferred they should think themselves the authors
of it rather than feel that they had been tricked, or in any way
unfairly dealt with. And with the moral he would shift the pecuniary
responsibility to their shoulders. So he went to work as usual, with
instruments apparently independent, but whose every step and word
were of his directing. One day quickly thereafter it came to pass
that the masters of several of the largest ships appeared before
the captain-general with lengthened faces well put on, with the sad
intelligence that their respective craft were unseaworthy; indeed one
of them had sunk already. They did not say they had secretly bored
holes in them according to instructions. Cortés was surprised, nay
he was painfully affected; Roscius himself could not have performed
the part better; “for well he could dissemble when it served his
purpose,” chimes in Las Casas. With Christian fortitude he said:
“Well, the will of God be done; but look you sharply to the other
ships.” Barnacles were then freely discussed, and teredos. And so
well obeyed the mariners their instructions that soon they were
able to swear that all the vessels save three were unsafe, and even
these required costly repairs before they would be seaworthy.[255]
Thus as by the hand of providence, to the minds of the men as they
were able to bear it, the deed unfolded. Soon quite apparent became
the expediency of abandoning such vessels as were leaking badly;
there was trouble and no profit in attempting to maintain them,
for they would surely have to be abandoned in the end. “And indeed,
fellow-soldiers,” continued Cortés, “I am not sure but it were best
to doom to destruction also the others, and so secure the coöperation
of the sailors in the coming campaign, instead of leaving them in
idleness to hatch fresh treachery.” This intimation was successful,
as had been foreordained by the ruler of these events it should be.
It was forthwith resolved to scuttle all the ships but one, the one
brought by Salcedo. Accordingly Escalante, the alguacil mayor, a brave
and able officer wholly devoted to Cortés, was sent down to Villa
Rica to carry out the order, with the aid of the picked soldiers
there stationed. Sails, anchors, cables, and everything that could
be utilized were removed, and a few hours later some small boats were
all that remained of the Cuban fleet.[256]
It was then the community first realized its situation. The followers
of Cortés, with unbounded faith in their leader, did not so much care,
but the partisans of Velazquez, few of whom knew that the affair had
been coolly predetermined, were somewhat agitated. And when on closer
inquiry they were enlightened by certain of the mariners, the cry
arose that they were betrayed; they were lambs led to the slaughter.
Cortés promptly faced the now furious crowd. What did they want? Were
their lives more precious than those of the rest? “For shame! Be men!”
he cried, in conclusion. “You should know ere this how vain are the
attempts to thwart my purpose. Look on this magnificent land with
its vast treasures, and narrow not your vision to your insignificant
selves. Think of your glorious reward, present and to come, and trust
in God, who, if it so please him, can conquer this empire with a single
arm. Yet if there be one here still so craven as to wish to turn his
back on the glories and advantages thus offered; if there be one here
so base, so recreant to heaven, to his king, to his comrades, as to
slink from such honorable duty, in God’s name let him go. There is
one ship left, which I will equip at my own charge to give that man
the immortal infamy he deserves.” This he said and much more, and
to the desired effect. The speaker knew well how to play upon his
men, as on an instrument, so that they would respond in any tune he
pleased. Cheers rent the air as he concluded, in which the opposition
were forced to join through very shame. Seeing which Cortés gently
intimated, “Would it not be well to destroy the remaining vessel, and
so make a safe, clean thing of it?” In the enthusiasm of the moment
the act was consummated with hearty approval.[257]
“To Mexico!” was now the cry, and preparations for the march were at
once made. Escalante, whose character and services had endeared him
to Cortés, was placed in command of Villa Rica. The native chiefs
were directed to regard him as the representative of the general,
and to supply him with every requirement.[258]
Some nine days after the sinking of the fleet a messenger arrived
from Escalante, announcing that four vessels[259] had passed by the
harbor, refusing to enter, and had anchored three leagues off, at
the mouth of a river. Fearing the descent upon him of Velazquez,
Cortés hurried off with four horsemen, after selecting fifty soldiers
to follow. Alvarado and Sandoval were left jointly in charge of the
army, to the exclusion of Ávila, who manifested no little jealousy of
the latter. Cortés halted at the town merely to learn particulars,
declining Escalante’s hospitality with the proverb, “A lame goat
has no rest.” On the way to the vessels they met a notary with two
witnesses,[260] commissioned to arrange a boundary on behalf of
Francisco de Garay, who claimed the coast to the north as first
discoverer, and desired to form a settlement a little beyond Nautla.
It appeared that Garay, who had come out with Diego Colon, and had
risen from procurador of Española to become governor of Jamaica, had
resolved to devote his great wealth to extending his fame as explorer
and colonizer. On learning from Alaminos and his fellow voyagers of
the coasts discovered in this direction, he resolved to revive the
famed projects of Ponce de Leon, and with this view despatched a
small fleet in 1518, under Diego de Camargo.[261] Driven back by the
Floridans with great slaughter, says Gomara, the expedition sailed
down to Pánuco River, again to be repulsed, with the loss of some
men, who were flayed and eaten. Torralba, steward of Garay, was then
sent to Spain, and there, with the aid of Garay’s friends, obtained
for him a commission as adelantado and governor of the territories
that he might discover north of Rio San Pedro y San Pablo.[262]
Meanwhile a new expedition was despatched to Pánuco, under Alonso
Álvarez Pineda, to form a settlement and to barter for gold. After
obtaining some three thousand pesos, Pineda sailed southward to take
possession and to select a site for the colony.[263]
And now while the notary is endeavoring to arrange matters with
Cortés, Pineda waits for him a little distance from the shore. At
that moment Cortés cared little for Garays or boundaries; but he
would by no means object to a few more Spaniards to take the place
of those he had hanged, and of others whom he might yet be obliged
to hang. To this end he converted perforce to his cause the notary
and his attendants. Then learning from them that Pineda could on no
account be prevailed on to land for a conference, Cortés signalled
to the vessels with the hope that more men would come on shore. This
failing, he bethought himself of letting three of his men exchange
clothes with the new-comers and approach the landing, while he marched
back with the rest in full view of the vessels. As soon as it grew
dark, the whole force returned to hide near the spot. It was not till
late the following morning that the suspicious Pineda responded to
the signals from shore, and sent off a boat with armed men. The trio
now withdrew behind some bushes, as if for shade. Four Spaniards and
one Indian landed, armed with two firelocks and two cross-bows, and
on reaching the shrubbery they were pounced upon by the hidden force,
while the boat pushed off to join the vessels all ready to sail.[264]
FOOTNOTES
[252] The names vary somewhat in different authorities,
Bernal Diaz including instead of Peñate, a number of the
Gibraltar sailors known as Peñates, who were lashed at
Cozumel for theft. The plot was hatched ‘Desde â quatro dias
que partieron nuestros Procuradores.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 39.
Cortés mentions only four ‘determinado de tomar un bergantin
... y matar al maestre dél, y irse á la isla Fernandina.’
_Cartas_, 53-4. Gomara assumes them to be the same who last
revolted on setting out for Tizapantzinco. _Hist. Mex._,
64. ‘Pusieron ... por obra de hurtar un navío pequeño,
é salir á robar lo que llevaban para el rey.’ _Tapia_,
_Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 563. Peter
Martyr jumbles the names, dec. v. cap. i.
[253] Thus Cortés had his revenge on the alguacil. ‘Y no
le valiò el ser su Compadre,’ says Vetancvrt, with a hasty
assumption which is not uncommon with him. _Teatro Mex._,
pt. iii. 119. Gomara mentions no mutilation. ‘Parece claro
ser aquestas obras, ... propias de averiguado tirano,’ says
Las Casas, _Hist. Ind._, iv. 496, which may be regarded as
a singularly mild expression for the bishop. Herrera dwells
upon Cermeño’s extraordinary skill with the leaping-pole;
he could also smell land fifteen leagues off the coast,
dec. ii. lib. v. cap. xiv. ‘Coria, vezino que fue despues
de Chiapa.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 39.
[254] ‘Embiado ... por los pueblos de la sierra, porque
tuuiessen que comer; porque en nuestra Villa passauamos
mucha necessidad de bastimentos.’ _Id._ This seems unlikely,
since the Totonacs were not only willing, but bound, to
provide supplies.
[255] _Testimonio de Montejo y Puertocarrero_, in _Col.
Doc. Inéd._, i. 489, 494. ‘Viniesen á él, cuando estuviese
mucha gente con él junta, y le denunciasen como no podian
vencer el agua de los navíos.’ _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._,
iv. 497. ‘Tuuo forma para que los soldados mas aficionados
que tenia se lo pidiessen.... Los soldados se lo pidieron,
y dello se recibio auto por ante escriuano.’ _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. v. cap. xiv. ‘Le aconsejamos los que eramos
sus amigos, que no dexasse Nauio en el Puerto.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 39.
[256] ‘Los Pilotos, ê Maestres viejos, y marineros, que
no erã buenos para ir â la guerra, que se quedassen en la
Villa, y cõ dos chinchorros que tuuiessen cargo de pescar
... y luego se vino (Escalante) â Cempoal con vna Capitania
de hombres de la mar, que fuessen los que sacaron de los
Nauios, y salieron algunos dellos muy buenos soldados.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 40.
[257] It is generally admitted that Cortés suggested the
idea of destroying the fleet, for even Bernal Diaz, who at
first gives the credit to the men by saying, ‘le aconsejamos
los que eramos sus amigos,’ confesses on the following
page that ‘el mismo Cortès lo tenia ya concertado.’ _Hist.
Verdad._, 39-40. The preponderating testimony also shows
that the masters made their report in public, with the
evident object, as the best authorities clearly indicate,
of obtaining the consent of the responsible majority for
the scuttling. During the partition of treasures at Mexico,
large shares were set aside for Cortés and Velazquez to
cover the cost of the fleet and the outfit, ‘que dimos
al traues con ellos, pues todos fuimos en ellos,’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 84, which is proof, in addition to
the reliable assertion that the deed was agreed upon by
the majority. Cortés’ expression, ‘los eché á la costa,’
_Cartas_, 54, is merely that of a leader of that party or
majority, who besides really gives credit to others. Hence
the conclusion of Prescott and others, that the scuttling
was done on his own responsibility, is not well founded.
Cortés was clever enough always to have those present who
were ready to take any responsibility for him that he might
wish. The phrase, ‘his was the greatest sacrifice, for they
(the vessels) were his property,’ _Prescott’s Mex._, i. 374,
is also wrong, for he was compensated by the army. And it
is an exaggeration to say that the execution of the measure
‘in the face of an incensed and desperate soldiery, was
an act of resolution that has few parallels in history,’
_Id._, 376, since his party supported him. According to
Gomara the pilots bore holes in the vessels, and bring
their report, whereupon five vessels are first sunk; shortly
afterward the remainder except one are scuttled. The offer
of this vessel to those who wished to return was made with
a view to learn who were the cowards and malcontents. Many
indeed did ask for leave, but half of them were sailors.
Others kept quiet out of shame. _Hist. Mex._, 65. It was
never Cortés’ policy to mark the disaffected, however.
This author is followed by Torquemada, ‘porque asi se ha
platicado siempre entre las Gentes, que mas supieron de esta
Jornada,’ i. 409, and on the strength of this the latter
argues that Herrera’s version, dec. ii. lib. v. cap. xiv.,
which adheres chiefly to Bernal Diaz’, must be wrong. Tapia,
_Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 563, conforms
chiefly to Gomara. Robertson, after following Bernal Diaz,
takes the trouble of having the ships ‘drawn ashore and
... broke in pieces.’ _Hist. Am._, ii. 33-4; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 35-6; _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, iii.
262; _Sandoval_, _Hist. Carlos V._, i. 171; _Peter Martyr_,
dec. v. cap. i. Peralta has them burned by secret agents
of Cortés. _Nat. Hist._, 76. Solis, ever zealous for his
hero, objects to Bernal Diaz’ attempt to pluck any of the
glory, and scouts the idea that fears of pecuniary liability
could have influenced Cortés to gain the approval of others
for his act. ‘Tuvo á destreza de historiador el penetrar
lo interior de las acciones,’ is the complacent tribute to
his own skill in penetrating the question. _Hist. Mex._, i.
214-15. The view of the foundering fleet, appended to some
editions of his work, has been extensively copied. One is
given in the Antwerp edition of 1704, 141. A still finer
view, with the men busy on shore, and the sinking vessels in
the distance, is to be found in the Madrid issue of 1783,
i. 213. The destruction of the fleet has been lauded in
extravagant terms by almost every authority, from Gomara
and Solis to Robertson and Prescott, as an unparalleled
deed. Of previous examples there are enough, however, even
though the motives and the means differ. We may go back to
Æneas, to whose fleet the wives of the party applied the
torch, tired of roaming; or we may point to Agathocles,
who first fired his soldiers with a resolution to conquer
or to die, and then compelled them to keep their word by
firing the vessels. Julian offered a tamer instance during
his campaign on the Tigris; but the deed of the terrible
Barbarossa in the Mediterranean, only a few years before
the Mexican campaign, was marked by reckless determination.
Still examples little affect the greatness of an act;
motives, means, and results afford the criteria. ‘Pocos
exemplos destos ay, y aquellos son de grandes hombres.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 65. ‘Una de las acciones en que mas
se reconoce la grandeza de su ánimo.... Y no sabemos si de
su género se hallará mayor alguna en todo el campo de las
Historias.’ _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 213. ‘An effort of
magnanimity, to which there is nothing parallel in history.’
_Robertson_, _Hist. Am._, ii. 34. ‘Un’impresa, che da per
se sola basterebbe a far conoscere la sua magnanimità, e ad
immortalare il suo nome.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii.
35; Prescott, _Mex._, i. 375-6, is equally carried away,
and he finds more words for his admiration. He is wrong in
supposing that one of the vessels in the harbor was left
intact; the exempt ship referred to by a chronicler was
the one carrying the messengers to Spain.
* * * * *
Antonio de Solis y Ribadeneyra is remarkable as the first
Spanish historian of the conquest. It appears to us strange
that an episode so glorious to the fame of Castilians
should have been allowed to lie so long neglected in the
musty pages of their chroniclers. True, these were worthy,
zealous men, who conscientiously narrated every occurrence
of any note, but their standard for historic truth and
dignity caused them to clothe facts, however striking, in
a garb of dreary gravity, dryness of detail, and ambiguous
confusion, which discouraged even the student. It required
the dramatic eye of the composer and the imagination
of the poet to appreciate the picturesque sketches of a
strange people now fading into oblivion, the grandeur of a
semi-savage pageantry, the romantic exploits that recalled
the achievements of the Cid. This faculty was innate in
Solis, developed besides by a long and successful career in
letters. He had profited also by the advantages opened to
him as the secretary of Conde de Oropesa, Viceroy of Navarre
and of Valencia, who Mæcenas-like fostered the talents and
aided in the promotion of the promising savant, for as such
he already ranked. Cradled in the famous college town of
Alcalá de Henares, he had given early evidence of talent,
and at Salamanca university he had signalized himself in
his seventeenth year by producing a comedy of considerable
merit. While pursuing with energy the study of law and moral
philosophy, he cultivated with hardly less ardor the muses,
to which end he was no doubt impelled also by his intimacy
with the illustrious Calderon. Several of his dramas were
received with acclamation, and one was translated into
French, while his miscellaneous poems, reprinted in our
days, are marked by a vivid imagination and an elegance
which also adorns his letters. Talents so conspicuous did
not wait long for recognition, and with the aid of his
patron he advanced to the dignities of royal secretary and
chief chronicler of the Indies. When 56 years old his mind
underwent a change, and entering the church he abandoned
forever the drama and light literature. The pen changed
only its sphere, however, for it served the historiographer
zealously, achieving for him the greatest fame; and fame
alone, for at his death, in April, 1686, at the age of 76,
deep poverty was his companion. When he entered on this
office the Indies had lapsed into the dormant quietude
imposed by a strict and secluding colonial régime. There
were no stirring incidents to reward the efforts of the
historian, save those connected with free-booter raids,
which offered little that could flatter Spanish pride. To
achieve fame he must take up some old theme, and present
it in a form likely to rouse attention by its contrast.
Thus it was that he selected the thrilling episode of the
conquest of Mexico, with the determination to rescue it
from the unskilful arrangement and repetitions, the want of
harmony and consistency, the dryness and faulty coloring,
to which it had hitherto been subjected, and to expend
upon it the effects of elegant style and vast erudition.
When the work appeared at Madrid, in 1684, its superior
merits were instantly recognized, and although the sale
at first was not large, editions have multiplied till our
day, the finest and costliest being the illustrated issue
of 1783-4, in two volumes, which I quote, while consulting
also the notes of several others. So grand and finely
elaborated a subject, and that from a Spanish historian who
was supposed to have exhausted all the available resources
of the Iberian archives, could not fail to rouse general
attention throughout Europe, and translations were made
into different languages. Robertson, among others, while
not failing to point out certain blemishes, has paid the
high compliment of accepting Solis for almost sole guide
on the conquest, and this with a blindness which at times
leads him into most amusing errors. Even Prescott warms to
his theme in a review of six closely printed pages, wherein
eulogy, though not unmingled with censure, is stronger than
a clearer comprehension of the theme would seem to warrant.
But in this he is impelled to a great extent by his oft
displayed tendency to hero worship.
Solis deserves acknowledgment for bringing order out of
chaos, for presenting in a connected form the narrative of
the conquest, and for adorning it with an elegant style.
But he has fulfilled only a part of the promises made
in his preface, and above all has he neglected to obtain
information on his topic beyond that presented in a few
of the generally accessible works, even their evidence
being not very closely examined. He has also taken great
liberties with the text, subordinating facts to style and
fancy, seizing every possible opportunity to manufacture
speeches for both native and Spanish heroes, and this with
an amusing disregard for the consistency of language with
the person and the time. His religious tendencies seriously
interfere with calm judgment, and impel him to rave with
bigoted zeal against the natives. The hero worship of the
dramatist introduces itself to such an extent as frequently
to overshadow everything else, and to misrepresent. ‘Sembra
più un panegirico, che una istoria,’ says Clavigero, very
aptly. _Storia Mess._, i. 16. His arguments and deductions
are at times most childish, while his estimation of himself
as a historian and thinker is aired in more than one place
with a ridiculous gravity. With regard to style, Solis
had Livy for a model, and belonged to the elder school of
historians; he was its last good representative, in fact.
His language is expressive and elegant, greatly imbued with
a poetic spirit not unsuited to the subject, and sustained
in eloquence, while its pure idiom aids to maintain the
work as classic among Castilians. ‘Ingenio Conceptuoso,
Floridisimo, i Eloquente,’ is the observation in the work
of his historiographic predecessor, Pinelo, _Epitome_, ii.
607. But it lacks in boldness and dignity; the rhapsodies
are often misplaced, and the verboseness is tiresome. Some
of the faults are of course due to the time, but not the
many, and it also becomes only too apparent that Solis is
so conceitedly infatuated with his affected grandiloquence
as to sacrifice facts wherever they interfere with its
free scope. It is said that he intended to continue the
history of Mexico after the conquest, and that death alone
prevented the consummation of the project. But this is
mere conjecture, and it appears just as likely that the
dramatist recognized the effect of closing a great work
at so appropriate a point as the fall of Mexico. The work
was taken up, however, by Salazar y Olarte, who published
in 1743 the second part of the _Conquest_, till the death
of Cortés, abounding in all the faults of the superficial
and florid composition of Solis.
[258] ‘Luego le zahumaron [the chiefs] al Juan de Escalante
con sus inciensos.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 40. ‘Dejé
en la villa de la Veracruz ciento y cincuenta hombres con
doze de caballo.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 52-3. One hundred and
fifty Spaniards, with two horses and two fire-arms, were
left here under Pedro de Ircio, _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
65-6, but Bernal Diaz corrects him. ‘Al Pedro de Ircio no
le auian dado cargo ninguno, ni aun de cuadrillero.’ ubi
sup.; _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 291. The force seems
to be altogether too large. Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._,
51, says 60 old and suffering soldiers were left as garrison.
[259] Bernal Diaz says one vessel; but Cortés and other
authorities mention four.
[260] Bernal Diaz, who appears to have been with the party,
names them as Guillen de la Loa, notary; Andrés Nuñez,
shipwright; Pedro de la Arpa, a Valencian, and a fourth
man. _Hist. Verdad._, 40.
[261] ‘Armo Francisco de Garay tres carauelas en Iamaica,
el año de mil quiniẽtos y deziocho, y fue a tentar la
Florida.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, 55. ‘Determinó de enviar
á un hidalgo, llamado Diego de Camargo, á descubrir é
continuar el descubrimiento que Grijalva habia hecho, con
uno ó con dos navios; el cual descubrió la provincia de
Panuco, ó, por mejor decir, comenzó de allí donde Grijalva
se habia tornado, que fué desde Panuco, y anduvo navegando
por la costa cien leguas hácia la Florida.’ _Las Casas_,
_Hist. Ind._, iv. 466; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap.
xi.; _Galvano’s Discov._, 133-4.
[262] See _Hist. Mex._, i. 29, this series. ‘El Rey se
las concedió el año de 819, estando en Barcelona.’ _Las
Casas_, loc. cit. ‘Torralua ... truxo prouisiones para que
fuesse Adelantado, y Gouernador desde el rio de San Pedro,
y San Pablo, y todo lo que descubriesse: y por aquellas
prouisiones embiò luego tres Nauios con hasta dozientos y
setenta soldados.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 41.
[263] Bernal Diaz intimates that Pineda had remained at
Rio Pánuco to colonize, while one vessel was sent down to
take possession where Cortés met the men. After giving an
account of two expeditions in 1518 and 1519, Gomara says:
‘Otros dizen, que no fue mas de vna vez. Sino que como
estuuo mucho alla cuẽtan por dos.’ _Hist. Ind._, 55. But
Las Casas mentions distinctly that it was on the strength of
Camargo’s discoveries, in 1518, that the grant was made to
Garay in the following year, ubi sup. ‘Garai auia corrido
mucha costa en demãda de la Florida, y tocado en vn rio
y tierra, cuyo rey se llamaua Panuco, donde vieron oro,
aun que poco. Y que sin salir de las naues auiã rescatado
hasta tres mil pesos de oro.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 67;
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 56-7; _Oviedo_, iii. 262-3; _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. i.
[264] ‘El uno(of the captured ones) era maestre de la una
nao, é puso fuego á la escopeta, é matara al capitan de la
Veracruz, sino que á la mecha le faltó el fuego.’ _Oviedo_,
iii. 263. Bernal Diaz, in a less intelligent account of
the capture, states that only two men landed. ‘Por manera
que se huuieron de aquel Nauio seis soldados.... Y esto es
lo que se hizo, y no lo que escriue el Coronista Gomara.’
_Hist. Verdad._, 41. But Cortés’ version must surely be the
best, since it was related shortly after the occurrence,
and by an immediate participator in the events.
CHAPTER XII.
MARCH TOWARD MEXICO.
AUGUST-SEPTEMBER, 1519.
ENTHUSIASM OF THE ARMY—THE FORCE—THE TOTONACS ADVISE THE
TLASCALAN ROUTE—ARRIVAL AT JALAPA—A LOOK BACKWARD—THE ANÁHUAC
PLATEAU—MEETING WITH OLINTETL—ARRIVAL IN THE COUNTRY OF THE
TLASCALTECS—THE SENATE CONVENES AND RECEIVES THE ENVOYS
OF CORTÉS—AN ENCOUNTER—A MORE SERIOUS BATTLE—XICOTENCATL
RESOLVES TO TRY THE PROWESS OF THE INVADERS, AND IS DEFEATED.
The Garay affair having thus been disposed of, it was announced to the
Spaniards that they would now go in quest of the great Montezuma. For
as the conciliating sea smooths the sand which but lately it ground
in its determinate purpose from the rocks, so had Cortés quieted
the ruffled temper of the malcontents, till they were committed as
one man to the will of the leader. And he smiled somewhat grimly as
he concluded his harangue: “To success or total destruction now we
march; for there is open to us no retreat. In Christ we trust, and
on our arms rely. And though few in number, our hearts are strong.”
The soldiers shouted their approval, and again signified their desire
to press onward to Mexico.[265]
The force for the expedition consisted of about four hundred and fifty
Spaniards, with fifteen horses, and six or seven light guns, attended
by a considerable number of Indian warriors and carriers, including
Cubans. The Totonac force comprised also forty chiefs, taken really
as hostages, among whom are named Mamexi, Tamalli, and Teuch, the
latter proving a most able and trusty guide and counsellor.[266]
[Illustration]
The advice of the Totonacs is to take the route through Tlascala,
as a state friendly to them and bitterly opposed to the Mexicans,
and on the 16th of August the army leaves Cempoala for the interior.
Soon begins the gentle ascent which lifts them from oppressive heat
and overpowering vegetation to cooler regions, and at the close of
the second day is reached the beautiful Jalapa,[267] a halting-place
between the border of the sea and the upper plateau.
There they turn with one accord and look back. How charming! how
inexpressibly refreshing are these approaching highlands to the
Spaniards, so lately from the malarious Isthmus and the jungle-covered
isles, and whose ancestors not long since had held all tropics to be
uninhabitable; on the border, too, of Montezuma’s kingdom, wrapped in
the soft folds of perpetual spring. Before the invaders are the ardent
waters of the gulf, instant in their humane pilgrimage to otherwise
frozen and uninhabitable lands; before them the low, infectious
_tierra caliente_ that skirts the lofty interior threateningly,
like the poisoned garment of Hercules, with vegetation bloated by
the noxious air and by nourishment sucked from the putrid remains
of nature’s opulence, while over all, filled with the remembrance
of streams stained sanguine from sacrificial altars, passes with
sullen sighs the low-voiced winds. But a change comes gradually
as the steep ascent is made that walls the healthful table-land of
Anáhuac. On the _templada_ terrace new foliage is observed, though
still glistening with sun-painted birds and enlivened by parliaments
of monkeys. Insects and flowers bathe in waves of burning light until
they display a variety of colors as wonderful as they are brilliant,
while from cool cañons rise metallic mists overspreading the warm
hills. Blue and purple are the summits in the distance, and dim glowing
hazy the imperial heights beyond that daily baffle the departing
sun. And on the broad plateau, whose rich earth with copious yield
of gold and grain allures to cultivation, all the realm are out of
doors keeping company with the sun. From afar comes the music-laden
breeze whispering its secrets to graceful palms, aloft against the
sky, and which bend to meet the confidence, while the little shrubs
stand motionless with awe. Each cluster of trees repeats the story,
and sings in turn its own matin to which the rest are listeners. At
night, how glittering bright with stars the heavens, which otherwise
were a shroud of impenetrable blackness. In this land of wild Arcadian
beauty the beasts are free, and man keeps constant holiday. And how
the hearts of these marauders burned within them as they thought,
nothing doubting, how soon these glories should be Spain’s and theirs.
The boundary of the Totonac territory was crossed, and on the fourth
day the army entered a province called by Cortés Sienchimalen,
wherein the sway of Montezuma was still maintained. This made no
difference to the Spaniards, however, for the late imperial envoys
had left orders with the coast governors to treat the strangers
with every consideration. Of this they had a pleasing experience
at Xicochimalco,[268] a strong fortress situated on the slope of
a steep mountain, to which access could be had only by a stairway
easily defended. It overlooked a sloping plain strewn with villages
and farms, mustering in all nearly six thousand warriors.[269] With
replenished stores the expedition began to ascend the cordillera
in reality, and to approach the pine forests which mark the border
of the _tierra fria_. Marching through a hard pass named Nombre de
Dios,[270] they entered another province defended by a fortress, named
Teoxihuacan,[271] in no wise inferior to the first for strength or
hospitality. They now finished the ascent of the cordillera, passed
through Tejotla, and for three days continued their way through the
alkaline wastes skirting the ancient volcano of Nauhcampatepetl,[272]
exposed to chilling winds and hailstorms, which the Spaniards with
their quilted armor managed to endure, but which caused to succumb many
of the less protected and less hardy Cubans. The brackish water also
brought sickness. On the fourth day the pass of Puerto de Leña,[273]
so called from the wood piled near some temples, admitted them to the
Anáhuac plateau, over seven thousand feet above the sea. With a less
balmy climate and a flora less redundant than that of the Antillean
stamping-ground, it offered on the other hand the attraction of being
not unlike their native Spain. A smiling valley opened before them,
doubly alluring to the pinched wanderers, with its broad fields of
corn, dotted with houses, and displaying not far off the gleaming
walls and thirteen towering temples of Xocotlan, the capital of the
district. Some Portuguese soldiers declaring it the very picture of
their cherished Castilblanco, this name was applied to it.[274]
Cacique Olintetl, nicknamed the temblador from the shaking of his fat
body, came forth with a suite and escorted them through the plaza to
the quarters assigned them, past pyramids of grinning human skulls,
estimated by Bernal Diaz at over one hundred thousand. There were
also piles of bones, and skulls suspended from beams, all of which
produced far from pleasant impressions. This horror was aggravated
by the evident coldness of their reception, and by the scanty fare
offered.[275] Olintetl occupied what Cortés describes as the “largest
and most finely constructed houses he had yet seen in this country,”
wherein two thousand servants attended to the wants of himself and
his thirty wives.
Impressed by the magnificence of his surroundings, Cortés inquired
whether he was a subject or ally of Montezuma. “Who is not his slave?”
was the reply. He himself ruled twenty thousand subjects,[276] yet
was but a lowly vassal of the emperor, at whose command thirty chiefs
at least could place each one hundred thousand warriors in the field.
He proceeded to extol the imperial wealth and power, and the grandeur
of the capital, wherein twenty thousand human victims were annually
given to the idols. This was probably intended to awe the little
band; “But we,” says Bernal Diaz,[277] “with the qualities of Spanish
soldiers, wished we were there striving for fortunes, despite the
dangers described.” Cortés calmly assured the cacique that great as
Montezuma was, there were vassals of his own king still mightier,
with more to the same effect; and he concluded by demanding the
submission of the cacique, together with a present of gold, and the
abandonment of sacrifices and cannibalism. Olintetl’s only reply was
that he could do nothing without authority from the capital. “Your
Montezuma,” replied the audacious Spaniard, with suppressed anger,
“shall speedily send you orders to surrender to me gold or any other
desired effects in your possession.”
More generous were the caciques of two towns at the other end
of the valley, who brought a few golden trifles and eight female
slaves.[278] The revelations of the Cempoalans and of Marina concerning
the wonderful power of the Spaniards, and the honors paid them by
Montezuma’s envoys, had the effect of making Olintetl also more liberal
with provisions at least. Being asked about the road to Mexico he
recommended that through Cholula, but the Cempoalans representing
the Cholultecs as highly treacherous, and devoted to the Aztecs, the
Tlascalan route was chosen, and four Totonac chiefs were despatched to
ask permission of the republican rulers to pass through their lands.
A letter served as mystic credentials, and a red bushy Flemish hat
for a present.[279]
After a stay of four days the army proceeded up the valley, without
leaving the customary cross, it seems, with which they had marked
their route hitherto; the reason for this was the objection of Padre
Olmedo to expose the emblem to desecration in a place not wholly
friendly to them.[280] The road lay for two leagues through a densely
settled district to Iztacmixtitlan, the seat of Tenamaxcuicuitl, a
town which Cortés describes as situated upon a lofty height, with very
good houses, a population of from five to six thousand families, and
possessing comforts superior to those of Xocotlan. “It has a better
fortress,” he writes, “than there is in half Spain, defended by a
wall, barbican, and moats.” The cacique who had invited the visit
made amends for the cold reception of the previous chief, and the
Spaniards remained for three days waiting in vain for the return of
the messengers sent to Tlascala. They then passed onward, reinforced
by about three hundred warriors from the town.[281] Two leagues’ march
brought them to the boundary of Tlascala, conspicuous by a wall of
stone and mortar nine feet in height and twenty in breadth, which
stretched for six miles across a valley, from mountain to mountain,
and was provided with breastworks and ditches.[282]
Between latitude 19° and 20° ranges of hills cut the plain of Anáhuac
into four unequal parts. In the centre of the one eastward stood
the capital of Tlascala. The state so carefully protected was about
the same small territory which we now see on the map,[283] with
twenty-eight towns, and one hundred and fifty thousand families,
according to the rough census taken by Cortés.[284] A branch of the
Teo-Chichimec nation, the Tlascaltecs had, according to tradition,
entered upon the plateau shortly before the cognate Aztecs, and, after
occupying for a time a tract on the western shore of Tezcuco Lake,
they had tired of the constant disputes with neighboring tribes and
proceeded eastward, in three divisions, the largest of which had, late
in the thirteenth century, taken possession of Tlascala, ‘Place of
Bread.’ The soil was rich, as implied by the name, but owing to the
continued wars with former enemies, reinforced by the Aztecs, they
found little opportunity to make available their wealth by means of
industries and trade, and of late years a blockade had been maintained
which deprived them of many necessaries, among others salt. But the
greater attention given in consequence to agriculture, had fostered
temperate habits and a sinewy constitution, combined with a deep love
for the soil as the source of all their prosperity. Compelled also
to devote more time and practice to warfare for the preservation of
their liberty than to the higher branches of culture, they presented
the characteristics of an isolated community, in being somewhat behind
their neighbors in refinement, as well as in the variety of their
resources.
In government the state formed an aristocracy, ruled by a senate of
the nobility, presided over by four supreme hereditary lords, each
independent in his own section of the territory. This division extended
also to the capital, which consisted of four towns, or districts,
Tizatlan, Ocotelulco, Quiahuiztlan, and Tepeticpac, ruled respectively
by Xicotencatl, Maxixcatzin, Teohuayacatzin, and Tlehuexolotl.[285]
It was before this senate that the messengers of Cortés appeared,
informing them in the name of the Cempoalan lord of the arrival of
powerful gods from the east, who having liberated the Totonacs from
Montezuma’s sway, now desired to visit Tlascala in passing through to
Mexico, and to offer their friendship and alliance. The messengers
recommended an acceptance of the offer, for although few in number
the strangers were more than equal to a host. They thereupon depicted
their appearance, their swift steeds, their savage dogs, their
caged lightning, as well as their gentle faith and manners. The
messengers having retired, the senate proceeded to discussion. Prudent
Maxixcatzin, lord of the larger and richer industrial district, called
attention to the omens and signs which pointed to these visitors, who
from all accounts must be more than mortal, and, if so, it would be
best to admit them, since resistance must be vain. Xicotencatl, the
eldest lord, replied to this that the interpretation of the signs
could not be relied on. To him these beings seemed monsters rejected
by the sea-foam, greedy of gold and luxuries, whose steeds devoured
the very ground. To admit them would be ruinous. Besides, should the
invincible Tlascaltecs submit to a mere handful? The gods forbid! It
was further argued that the amicable relations of the strangers with
Montezuma and his vassals did not accord with their protestations
of friendship. This might be one of the many Aztec plots to obtain a
footing in the country. Nor did the destruction of idols at Cempoala
increase the confidence of a people so jealous of its institutions. The
discussion waxing warmer, senator Temilotecatl suggested the middle
course of letting the Otomí frontier settlers, who were thoroughly
devoted to their Tlascaltec patrons, make an attack on the invaders,
aided by their own general Axayacatzin Xicotencatl, son of the old
lord, and known by the same name. If successful, they could claim the
glory; if not, they might grant the victors the permission they had
desired, while casting the blame for the attack on the Otomís. This
was agreed to.[286]
As the Spaniards halted before the great wall, speculating on the
strength of the people who had erected it, and upon the possible
traps it might hide, their late hosts again besought them to take
the Cholula route, but Cempoalan counsel prevailed. Waving aloft his
banner, Cortés exclaimed: “Behold the cross! Señores, follow it!”
And with this he led the way through the semicircular laps of the
entrance. The wall was not provided with sentinels, and the army
met with no obstacles.[287] Attended by ten horsemen, the general
advanced to reconnoitre. After proceeding about four leagues he caught
sight of fifteen armed Indians, who were pursued and overtaken. A
fight ensued, in which the natives, nerved by despair, fought so
fiercely that two horses were killed, and three horses and two riders
wounded.[288] Meanwhile a force of Indians came up, estimated at from
three to five thousand, and a horseman was at once sent back to hurry
forward the infantry, while the rest boldly charged the enemy, riding
through their ranks, and killing right and left without being injured
themselves. On the approach of the foot-soldiers, and the discharge
of a volley, the natives retired with about sixty of their number
slain.[289] Shortly afterward two of the Cempoalan messengers returned
with some Tlascaltecs, who expressed their sorrow at the attack made
by a tribe not belonging to their nation. They offered to pay for the
horses killed, and invited the Spaniards in the name of the lords to
proceed. The army advanced for a league into more open country, and
camped among some abandoned farms, where dogs proved to be the only
food left. Thus ended the first day in Tlascalan territory, the first
of September, according to Bernal Diaz.
In the morning the Spaniards met the two other messengers returning
from their mission to Tlascala, who told a harrowing story of their
seizure for the sacrificial stone, and of their escape by night. It
is probable that their detention by the Tlascaltecs for messenger
purposes had frightened them into believing that they were destined
to be sacrificed, for envoys enjoyed the greatest respect among the
Nahuas.[290] Shortly after a body of over one thousand warriors[291]
appeared, to whom Cortés, in presence of the notary Godoy, sent three
prisoners, with a formal assurance of his friendly intentions. The
only reply being showers of arrows, darts, and stones, Cortés gave
the “Santiago, and at them!” and charged. The enemy retreated with
the face to their pursuers, enticing them toward some broken ground
intersected by a creek, where they found themselves surrounded by a
large force, some bearing the red and white devices of Xicotencatl.
Missiles were showered, while double-pointed spears, swords, and clubs
pressed closely upon them, wielded by bolder warriors than those
whom the Spaniards had hitherto subdued. Many were the hearts that
quaked, and many expected that their last moment had come; “for we
certainly were in greater peril than ever before,” says Bernal Diaz.
“None of us will escape!” exclaimed Teuch, the Cempoalan chief, but
Marina who stood by replied with fearless confidence: “The mighty
God of the Christians, who loves them well, will let no harm befall
them.”[292] The commander rode back and forth cheering the men, and
giving orders to press onward, and to keep well together. Fortunately
the pass was not long, and soon the Spaniards emerged into an open
field, where the greater part of the enemy awaited them, estimated in
all, by different authorities, at from thirty thousand to one hundred
thousand.[293]
How long was this to continue, each new armed host being tenfold
greater than the last? Yet once again the Spaniards whet their swords,
and prepare for instant attack, as determined to fight it out to the
death, as Leonidas and his brave Spartans at the pass of Thermopylæ.
The cavalry charged with loose reins, and lances fixed on a range
with the heads of the enemy, opening a way through the dense columns
and spreading a confusion which served the infantry well. Bernal
Diaz relates how a body of natives, determined to obtain possession
of a horse, surrounded an excellent rider named Pedro de Moron, who
was mounted upon Sedeño’s fine racing mare, dragged him from the
saddle, and thrust their swords and spears through the animal in all
directions. Moron would have been carried off but for the infantry
coming to his rescue. In the struggle which ensued ten Spaniards were
wounded, while four chiefs bit the dust. Moron was saved only to die
on the second day, but the mare was secured by the natives and cut
into pieces, which were sent all over the state to afford opportunity
for triumphal celebrations. The loss was greatly regretted, since it
would divest the horses of their terrifying character. Those previously
killed had been secretly buried. The battle continued until late
in the afternoon, without enabling the Indians to make any further
impression on the Spanish ranks than inflicting a few wounds, while
their own were rapidly thinning under the charges of the cavalry
and the volleys of artillery and firelocks. The slaughter had been
particularly heavy among the chiefs, and this was the main reason
for the retreat which the enemy now began, in good order.[294] Their
actual loss could not be ascertained, for with humane devotion the
wounded and dead were carried off the moment they were stricken; and
in this constant self-sacrificing effort the Tlascaltecs lost many
lives and advantages. Robertson regards with suspicion the accounts
of the great battles fought during the conquest, wherein Indians fell
by the score while the Spaniards stood almost unscathed, and Wilson
ridicules the whole campaign, reducing the Tlascalan population, for
instance, to about ten thousand, with a fighting force of less than
one thousand men. Such remarks certainly show a want of familiarity
with the subject.[295] We have often seen, in the New World wars, a
thousand naked Americans put to flight by ten steel-clad Europeans,
and I have clearly given the reasons. When we look at the Indians,
with their comparatively poor weapons, their unprotected bodies, their
inefficient discipline and tactics, whereby only a small portion of
their force could be made available, the other portion serving rather
as an obstruction, their custom of carrying off the dead, and other
weak points, and when we contrast them with the well armored Spaniards,
with their superior swords and lances, their well calculated movements,
and their concerted action carried out under strict and practised
officers, and above all their terror-inspiring and ravaging fire-arms
and horses—how can we doubt that the latter must have readily been
able to overcome vast numbers of native warriors? It was soon so
understood in Europe. For once when Cortés was in Spain he scoffed at
certain of his countrymen for having fled before a superior force of
Moors, whereupon one remarked: “This fellow regards our opponents like
his, of whom ten horsemen can put to flight twenty-five thousand.” In
the retreat of the Ten Thousand, who under Cyrus had invaded Persia,
we have an example of the inadequacy of numbers against discipline.
Though for every Greek the Persians could bring a hundred men, yet
the effeminate Asiatic absolutely refused to meet the hardy European
in open conflict. Æschylus was inspired by personal experience in his
play of the Persians when he makes the gods intimate to the wondering
Atossa, the queen-mother, that free Athenians, unwhipped to battle,
could cope successfully with the myriads of despotic Xerxes. The poor
Americans had yet to learn their own weakness, and to pay dearly for
the knowledge.
“It well seems that God was he who fought for us to enable us to get
free from such a multitude,” says Cortés. He attempted no pursuit,
but hastened to take possession of Tecohuatzinco, a small town on
the hill of Tzompachtepetl,[296] where they fortified themselves
upon the temple pyramid, and proceeded to celebrate the victory with
songs and dances, a performance wherein the allies took the leading
part. The following day[297] Cortés sallied forth with the horses,
one hundred infantry, and seven hundred allies, partly to forage
before the enemy appeared, but also to inflict some damage, and to
show that they were as fresh as ever. “I burned five or six small
villages,” he says, “each of about one hundred families, and returned
with four hundred prisoners.”[298] After being consoled with food and
beads, the captives, including fifteen taken during the late battle,
were despatched to the camp of Xicotencatl, two leagues off, with
a letter to serve as credentials, and a message assuring him of the
friendly intentions of the Spaniards, although they had been obliged
to resort to severe measures. By no means impressed either with his
defeat or with the assurances, Xicotencatl replied that peace would
be celebrated at his father’s town with a feast on the Spaniards’
flesh, while their hearts and blood were delighting the gods. They
would receive a more decisive answer on the morrow. With this defiant
message came the report that the Tlascalan army, largely reinforced,
was preparing to march on and overwhelm them. “When we learned this,”
says Bernal Diaz, “being men, we feared death, many of us; and all
made confession to the Merced father, and the clergyman Juan Diaz, who
all night remained present to listen to the penitent; and we commended
ourselves to God, praying that we might not be conquered.” Cortés
applied himself energetically to supervise preparations and give the
enemy a welcome. A fresh supply of arrows, and of Indian shields of
plaited cane and cotton, were made, and the arms and accoutrements
inspected. He impressed upon the soldiers the necessity of keeping
close together, round the banner to be carried well aloft by Alférez
Corral, in order that they might not be cut off. As for the cavalry
they were to make repeated charges, without losing time in delivering
thrusts.
Early in the morning of September 5th the Indian army could be
seen extending far over the field, terrible in war-paint, plumed
helmets, and gaudy shields, with their double-edged flint swords and
many-pointed lances gleaming in the sun, while the air resounded with
shrill yells, mingling with the melancholy tones of their drums and
the doleful blasts of conchs and trumpets.[299] It was the largest and
finest army yet seen by the Spaniards, numbering, according to Gomara,
one hundred and fifty thousand men, but according to Bernal Diaz
only fifty thousand,[300] in four divisions, representing Tizatlan,
Ocotelulco, Quiahuiztlan, and Tepeticpac, each distinguished by its
own banner and colors, the latter noticeable also in the war-paint of
the common soldier and in the quilted armor of the officers. Far in
the rear, indicative of hostile sentiment, rose the standard of the
state, bearing a bird with wings extended.[301] Gomara relates that,
confident of success, the Tlascaltecs sent messengers to the camp
with three hundred turkey-cocks and two hundred baskets of tamales,
each of one hundred arrobas, so that they might not be taunted with
having fought starved men, or having offered such to the idols.
But this story, adopted by Herrera, Clavigero, Robertson, and nearly
every other writer, implies a generosity altogether too impolitic for
an enemy who had already suffered two severe defeats. It is probable,
however, that Xicotencatl may have sent small presents of food in
order to obtain an opportunity for his spies to examine the camp.[302]
The Indians advanced in several columns up the sides of the hill, and,
despite the resistance offered, pressed onward into the very camp,
but were soon obliged to yield before murderous bullets and cutting
blades. Cortés allowed the Indians to become tired and discouraged with
repeated charges, and then with a ringing “Santiago!” the Spaniards,
followed by the allies, sallied forth,[303] driving them in confusion
to the plain, where the cavalry followed up the advantage, leaving
bloody paths in all directions. Checked and reinforced by the reserve,
the enemy turned with fresh courage on their pursuers. The shock
was overwhelming. The tired Castilians yielded; their ranks were
broken, and all seemed lost. Even Cortés was seized with a terrible
misgiving, but it was only for a moment. Leading the cavalry to the
rescue, he raised his voice above the din of battle, and called on
all to rally. Nerved by his words and deeds, the men plied lustily
their swords, and, driving back the enemy, formed anew. “So ably and
valiantly fought the horsemen,” writes Bernal Diaz, “that next to
God who protected us, they proved our strength.” Following up their
advantage, the Spaniards hewed down the enemy in great numbers.
Victory might yet have turned against them but for a quarrel between
Xicotencatl and another captain,[304] one accusing the other of
mismanaging the late battle. The latter not only challenged the other,
it seems, but withdrew his troops, and induced another division to
follow him.[305] Thus left with only half his army, and that shattered
and discouraged, Xicotencatl retired before the handful on whom his
every effort seemed to have made no impression. He retreated in good
order, carrying off most of the dead, for the opponents were too
exhausted to pursue. Indeed, all the horses were wounded, and fully
sixty men, of whom it appears several must have died soon after,
though Cortés admits of no dead, and Bernal Diaz of only one.[306]
FOOTNOTES
[265] ‘Y todos â vna le respondimos, que hariamos lo que
ordenasse, que echada estaua la suerte de la buena ò mala
ventura.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 40.
[266] Bernal Diaz states, 65, that on reaching Mexico City
‘no llegauamos á 450 soldados,’ intimating that they must
have amounted to fully this figure on leaving Villa Rica.
This would allow fully 120 men to Escalante, which appears
a large garrison, even after making allowances for the old
and infirm. Gomara places the force at 400 Spaniards, with
15 horses, 6 guns, and 1300 Indians, including Cubans and
carriers. _Conq. Mex._, 67; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi.
cap. i.; _Torquemada_, i. 411, 517. Ixtlilxochitl increases
this to 7 guns, 1300 warriors, and 1000 carriers. ‘Con
quince de caballo y trescientos peones.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
52. Cortés refers later on to 400 Cempoalans. He mentions
merely 200 carriers. Clavigero has 415 Spaniards, a figure
resulting from a misreading of his original. _Storia Mess._,
iii. 36. Solis, _Hist. Mex._, i. 216-17, followed of course
by Robertson, changes the figures to 500 men, 200 carriers,
and 400 Indian troops. A page, twelve years old, was left
with the lord of Cempoala to learn the language. ‘Tomaron
un indio principal que llamaban _Tlacochalcatl_ para que los
mostrase el camino,’ taken from the country by Grijalva, and
brought back by Cortés. _Sahagun_, _Conq. Mex._, 16. Shortly
before beginning the march, says Duran, a messenger arrived
from Mexico in the person of Motelchiuh, sent by Montezuma
to serve as guide, and to provide for the proper service
and hospitality on the way. Being told that no guide was
needed, he returned, leaving orders with the caciques en
route to tender good reception to the strangers. _Duran_,
_Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 405-10.
[267] Meaning ‘Spring in the Sand.’ _Rivera_, _Hist. Jalapa_,
i. app. 7. ‘Y la primera jornado fuimos â vn pueblo, que se
dize Xalapa.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 41. But the
road was too long for one day’s march. I may here observe
that Bernal Diaz is remarkably faulty in his account of
this march and of the campaign into Tlascala, and this is
admitted by several writers, who nevertheless follow him
pretty closely. The place is known the world over for its
fairs and productions, particularly for the drug bearing
its name, and is famous in the neighboring districts for
its eternal spring and beautiful surroundings.
[268] Identified with Naulinco. _Lorenzana_, _Viage_, p. ii.
[269] Cortés refers to a friendly chat with the governor,
who mentioned the orders he had received to offer the
Spaniards all necessities. _Cartas_, 57.
[270] ‘Por ser el primero que en estas tierras habíamos
pasado. El cual es tan agro y alto, que no lo hay en España
otro.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 57. ‘Hoy se llama _el Paso del
Obispo_.’ _Lorenzana_, ubi sup. ‘Ay en ella muchas parras con vuas,
y arboles cõ miel.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 68.
[271] ‘Hoy se nombra _Ixhuacán_ de los Reyes.’ _Lorenzana_,
_Viage_.
[272] ‘De _Nauhcampa_, quatre parties, et _tepetl_,
montagne.’ _Humboldt_, _Vues_, ii. 191. Equivalent to the
Spanish name of Cofre de Perote.
[273] Lorenzana believes it to be the later Sierra de la
Agua. A map with profile of the route is given in _Carbajal
Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 201; and a still better map by
Orozco y Berra, _Itinerario_, in _Noticias Mex._, 233.
[274] The name must not be confounded with Zacatlan, as
Ixtlilxochitl calls it, for this lies north of Tlascala.
‘Este valle y poblacion se llama Caltanmi.’ ‘Tenia las
mayores y mas bien labradas casas que hasta entonces ...
habiamos visto.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 58. Lorenzana says,
‘the present Tlatlanquitepec,’ in the lower lying portion of
which stood the palace of Caltanni, ‘house below;’ and there
stands the big tree to which the natives say that Cortés tied
his horse. _Viage_, pp. iii.-iv. ‘Llamase ... Zaclotan aquel
lugar, y el valle Zacatami.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 68;
_Oviedo_, iii. 260. Cocotlan. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
41.
[275] Gomara intimates that the Spaniards were well received,
and had 50 men sacrificed in their honor. _Hist. Mex._,
68. The native records state that bread sprinkled with the
blood of fresh victims was offered to them, as to idols,
but this being rejected with abhorrence, pure food was
brought. Before this sorcerers had been sent to use their
arts against them, by spreading diseases, casting spells
to prevent their advance, and otherwise opposing them. But
everything failed before the magic influence shed perhaps
by the banner of the cross. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS.,
ii. 401-8; _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 14; _Acosta_, _Hist.
Ind._, 518; _Torquemada_, i. 417-8.
[276] ‘Tenia Montezuma en este pueblo, y su comarca, cinco
mil soldados de guarnicion.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi.
cap. ii.
[277] _Conq. Mex._, 42. ‘A muchos valientes por ventura
desmayara,’ says to the contrary Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 69.
[278] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 59. Bernal Diaz assumes that
Olintetl was persuaded by the Cempoalans to conciliate
Cortés with four slaves, a few paltry pieces of jewelry,
and a load of cloth.
[279] Camargo sends the letter from Cempoala, together with
a sword, a crossbow, and a red silk cap. _Hist. Tlax._, 145.
But it is not probable that Cortés would deprive himself
of such needful articles, not overabundant with him, even
if he had no objection to let Indians examine them. Bernal
Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 42-3, despatches two Cempoalans from
a later station, and this on hearing that the Tlascaltecs
had risen to oppose them.
[280] Still Gomara, in his sweeping way, declares that Cortés
‘puso muchas cruzes en los templos, derrocãdo los idolos
como lo hazia en cada lugar.’ _Hist. Mex._, 70; _Tapia_,
_Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 567. Twenty
leading warriors were taken from here, says Bernal Diaz.
[281] Clavigero calls them ‘un competente numero di truppe
Messicane del presidio di Xocotla,’ _Storia Mess._, iii.
41, which is unlikely.
[282] See _Native Races_, ii. 568, et seq.
[283] Fifteen leagues from west to east, ten from north to
south, says Torquemada, i. 276. Herrera extends it to 30
leagues in width.
[284] ‘Hay en esta provincia, por visitacion que yo en
ella mandé hacer, ciento cincuenta mil vecinos.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 69. In the older edition of these letters by
Lorenzana, it reads, 500,000 families, a figure which in
itself indicates an exaggeration, but has nevertheless been
widely copied. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 87.
[285] For further information about Tlascala, see _Native
Races_, ii. and v. Torquemada gives a detailed history of
the state in i. 259-78. See also _Prescott’s Mex._, 411-19;
_Soria_, _Istoria y Fundacion de la Ciudad de Tlaxcala_,
MS. in Aztec, sm. 4º of 48 leaves.
[286] _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. iii., confounds
the two Xicotencatls, and Torquemada, in seeking to correct
him, applies the title of general to Maxixcatzin, i. 416,
supposing besides, with Clavigero, that Temilotecatl may
be another name for Tlehuexolotl. _Storia Mess._, iii.
40; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 133.
Jealous of the honor of his countrymen, and eager to
vindicate them against the charge of duplicity or enmity
toward the Spaniards, Camargo lets the messengers go back
with a friendly invitation. After they had started on this
mission the idols were consulted, but remained mute; the
temples were overthrown by earthquakes, and comets appeared,
creating a general panic. _Hist. Tlax._, 144-6. The account
of the conquest by this author is particularly interesting
since Diego Muñoz Camargo was a native of the valiant
little republic of Tlascala, a mestizo, says Veytia, _Hist.
Ant. Méj._, ii. 91, who calls him Domingo, while Clavigero
gives him nobility. _Storia Mess._, i. 10. Born shortly
after these events, and in contact with the very men who
figured therein, his stories are reproduced from their lips,
though colored with the spirit of a convert and patriot
who, like nearly all of his countrymen, was only too eager
to curry favor with the dominant race. This is apparent in
nearly every line of his text, wherein the terms of praise
bestowed on the conquerors become not unfrequently absurd
from the contradictions implied by other passages. Nor
does he neglect to hold forth on his own people for their
bravery and exploits in fighting the detested Aztecs, and
their unswerving devotion to the Spaniards. In the pursuit
of this pleasing theme he scruples not to sacrifice truth
when it proves a stumbling-block. He leaves the impression,
for instance, that the Tlascaltecs never raised sword
against Cortés. Many of the misstatements are due to a
non-critical acceptance of tales, for Camargo was as simple
and superstitious as any of his contemporaries. Although
acting as interpreter in the province, _Torquemada_, i. 523,
he exhibits a not very thorough acquaintance with Spanish,
which is the cause of errors and repetitions. The conquest
forms but a portion of his narrative, which treats chiefly
of aboriginal history and customs, and touches lightly the
events that passed before his eyes. It was written in 1585,
and lay for some time in the Felipe Neri convent archives,
where it was consulted by Torquemada. Taken afterward by
Panes to Spain, it was deposited by Muñoz with the Royal
Academy of History at Madrid, from which source copies
were obtained, among others one by Ternaux-Compans, and a
faulty translation was published in the _Nouvelles Annales
des Voyages_, xcviii.-ix.
[287] A short distance further they passed through a pine
grove, wherein threads and papers were fixed and scattered
across the path, the work of Tlascaltec sorcerers, who thus
sought to cast a spell upon the invaders. _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. vi. cap. iv.
[288] ‘Segun algunos que lo vieron, cortaron cercen de
vn golpe cada pescueço con riendas y todo.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 71. ‘Io viddi che cõbattẽdosi vn dì, diede
vn Indiano vna cortellata a vn cauallo ... nel petto, che
glielo aperse fin alle ĩteriora, et cadde icõtanẽte morto,
& ... che vn’ altro Indiano diede vn’ altra cortellata
a vn’ altro cauallo su il collo che se lo gettò morto.’
_Relatione per vn gentil’huomo_, in _Ramusio_, _Viaggi_,
iii. 305. According to Duran two warriors stepped forth
from a vast Tlascalan army before the regular battle, and
issued a challenge, which was accepted by two horsemen.
After a short combat the Indians, by deft movements, killed
both horses, cutting off the neck of one, and wounding
the other in the pasterns. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 411-20;
_Tezozomoc_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 255-6. This attack is the
only resistance admitted by Camargo. The assailants were
all Otomís, who killed one Spaniard and two horses. _Hist.
Tlax._, 146.
[289] ‘Hirieron á quatro de los nuestros, y pareceme que
desde alli á pocos dias muriò el vno de las heridas ...
quedaron muertos hasta diez y siete dellos.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 43; _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 61; Lorenzana calls
the scene of this battle the plain of Quimichoccan. _Viage_,
p. viii.
[290] See _Native Races_, ii. 413; _Solis_, _Hist. Mex._,
i. 230. According to Bernal Diaz the messengers are met
before the Tlascalan border is reached, and they deliver the
announcement that the Tlascaltecs will kill the Spaniards and
eat their flesh, in order to test their reputed strength.
The Cempoalans shall suffer the same fate, since they are
assumed to be plotting in behalf of the Aztecs, loc. cit.
Sahagun supposes that the Cempoalan guide had treacherously
led the Spaniards against the Otomís. _Conq. Mex._ (ed.
1840), 40; _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 42-3.
[291] Bernal Diaz says 6000.
[292] _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. v. A pious
conquistador who was present, says Duran, told me that
many wept, wishing they had never been born, and cursing
the marquis for having led them into such danger. _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 417.
[293] Tapia gives the higher and Herrera the lower figure,
while Ixtlilxochitl makes it 80,000.
[294] During the battle one of the late Cempoalan envoys
recognized the captain who had bound him for sacrifice, and
with Cortés’ permission he sent him a challenge. The duel
was held in front of the armies, and after a tough struggle
the Cempoalan, with a feint, threw his opponent off guard,
and secured his head, which served as a centre-piece during
the Cempoalan victory celebration. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
vi. cap. vi. This author also relates that one of the final
acts of the battle was the capture by Ordaz, with 60 men,
of a pass. ‘Les matamos muchos Indios, y entre ellos ocho
Capitanes muy principales, hijos de los viejos Caciques.’
Five horses were wounded and fifteen soldiers, of whom one
died. The other chronicles admit of no dead. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 44.
[295] _Robertson_, _Hist. Am._, ii. 38-9; _Wilson’s Conq.
Mex._, 360-70; _Benzoni_, _Hist. Mondo Nvovo_, 51. It is
seldom that I encounter a book which I am forced to regard
as beneath censure. He who prints and pays the printer
generally has something to say, and generally believes
something of what he says to be true. An idiot may have
honest convictions, and a knave may have talents, but
where a book carries to the mind of the reader that its
author is both fool and knave, that is, that he writes only
foolishness and does not himself believe what he says, I
have not the time to waste in condemning such a work. And
yet here is a volume purporting to be _A New History of
the Conquest of Mexico_, written by Robert Anderson Wilson,
and bearing date Philadelphia, 1859, which one would think
a writer on the same subject should at least mention. The
many and magnificent monuments which to the present day
attest the great number and high culture of the Nahua race,
and the testimony to this effect offered by witnesses on
all sides, are ignored by him with a contempt that becomes
amusing as the pages reveal his lack of investigation and
culture. Indeed, the reader need go no further than the
introduction to be convinced on the latter point. Another
amusing feature is that the work pretends to vindicate the
assertions of Las Casas, who, in truth, extols more than
other Spanish author the vast number and advanced culture
of the natives. In addition to this mistaken assumption,
which takes away his main support, he states that Prescott
worked in ignorance of his subject and his authorities,
and to prove the assertion he produces wrongly applied or
distorted quotations from different authors, or assumes
meanings that were never intended, and draws erroneous
conclusions. Thus it is he proves to his own satisfaction
that Mexico City was but a village occupied by savages of
the Iroquois stamp, and that Cortés was the boastful victor
over little bands of naked red men. As for the ruins, they
were founded by Phœnician colonists in remote ages. Another
tissue of superficial observations, shaped by bigotry and
credulous ignorance, was issued by the same author under
the title of _Mexico and its Religion_, New York, 1855,
most enterprisingly reprinted in the disguise of _Mexico:
its Peasants and its Priests_, New York, 1856. In common
with Mr Morgan, and others of that stamp, Mr Wilson seems
to have deemed it incumbent on him to traduce Mr Prescott
and his work, apparently with the view of thereby attracting
attention to himself. Such men are not worthy to touch
the hem of Mr Prescott’s garment; they are not worthy of
mention in the same category with him.
[296] _Lorenzana_, _Viage_, ix., wherein the appearance of the hill
is described as the bishop saw it. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist.
Chich._, 292; _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 146. Other authors
differ. ‘_Teoatzinco_, cioè il luogo dell’acqua divina.’
_Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 44. Duran assumes that
the battle was for the possession of this place, which he
calls Tecoac. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 418, 422; _Tezozomoc_,
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 256. ‘Aldea de pocas casas, que tenia
vna torrezilla y tẽplo.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 74.
[297] So Cortés distinctly says. Bernal Diaz writes,
however, that this day was devoted to rest. Still, a later
observation indicates that Cortés is right.
[298] _Id._ Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 44, admits only
twenty captives, and blames the allies for firing the
villages; but Cortés is frank enough about it.
[299] Prescott, _Mex._, 438-42, gives a pretty description
of the army, but is so carried away that he dons it with
helmets glittering with gold and precious stones, etc.; and
this in spite of the efforts of the chroniclers to exhibit
the Tlascaltecs as very poor in anything but rude comforts.
[300] Under five captains, to whom he applies the names of
the four lords, as he understands them, and of the ruler of
Huexotzinco. _Hist. Verdad._, 45; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
75. 149,000 men, says Cortés, in his second letter, 62,
but this exactness is probably due to a printer’s mistake.
[301] For colors and banners, and how carried, see _Native
Races_, ii. 411-12, and _Torquemada_, i. 436.
[302] He was detected in this trick afterward. ‘Lo qual fue
gran refrigerio y socorro para la necesidad que tenian.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 76. Oviedo increases the gift to
700 baskets. iii. 495. Gomara proceeds to relate that
in sign of contempt for the small number of the enemy,
whom it could be no honor for his large army to overcome,
Xicotencatl detached 2000 warriors—200 says Oviedo—to seize
and bring him the strangers bound. They attacked, and were
routed with an almost total destruction of their number.
‘No escapo hombre dellos, sino los q̄ acertaron el passo
de la barranca.’ loc. cit. 76.
[303] Bernal Diaz states that they did not wait for the
enemy to attack, but marched forth and met them one eighth
of a league from camp. _Hist. Verdad._, 45. But Cortés says
distinctly, ‘Otro dia en amaneciendo dan sobre nuestro real
mas de ciento y cuarenta y nueve mil hombres.’ _Cartas_,
62. Gomara and Herrera also allow Indians to attack the
camp first. Cortés is too fond of announcing when he takes
the initiative to have failed to say so had he done it in
this case.
[304] ‘Son of Chichimeclatecle,’ says Bernal Diaz, a name
which should read Chichimeca-tecuhtli.
[305] That of Guaxolcingo—meaning Huexotzinco. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 45. That of Tlehuexolotzin. _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 46. Solis exaggerates this into an
actual battle between the leaders and their followers. _Hist.
Mex._, i. 255-8. Herrera intimates that a secret arrangement
had been formed between Cortés and the seceding captain,
the latter appearing with his officers at the camp, the
evening after the previous battle, and, declaring himself
convinced that the Spaniards were invincible, offered not
only to remain neutral, but to aid them in entering Tlascala.
Cortés agreed. When the captain returned to Xicotencatl’s
camp he was so badly beaten that he came back to Cortés
for medical treatment. Certain signs were to be worn, so
that the Spaniards might respect the neutral troops. dec.
ii. lib. vi. cap. vi. He also relates that one Tlascaltec
maintained himself so long and bravely against two Spanish
soldiers that Láres, the smith, rushed up, cried shame upon
the twain, and lanced the warrior. _Id._, cap. vii.
[306] This soldier himself received two wounds, which
did not prevent him from fighting, however. ‘Nos mataron
vn soldado,’ he says, and a few lines further down, ‘y
enterramos los muertos ... porque no viessen los Indios
que eramos mortales.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 45. Thus even the
‘True Historian’ reveals the common weakness. _Hazart_,
_Kirchen-Geschichte_, ii. 512-14; _West-Indische Spieghel_,
224-35; _Franck_, _Weltbuch_, ccxxix.
CHAPTER XIII.
ENTRY INTO TLASCALA.
SEPTEMBER, 1519.
NATIVE CHIEFS SENT AS ENVOYS TO THE TLASCALAN CAPITAL—THEIR
FAVORABLE RECEPTION—XICOTENCATL PLANS RESISTANCE
TO CORTÉS—SENDS OUT SPIES—CORTÉS SENDS THEM BACK
MUTILATED—THE SPANIARDS ATTACK AND DEFEAT XICOTENCATL—NIGHT
ENCOUNTERS—GENERAL DISSATISFACTION AND A DESIRE TO
RETURN TO VILLA RICA—ENVOYS ARRIVE FROM MONTEZUMA—CORTÉS
RECEIVES XICOTENCATL AND THE TLASCALAN LORDS—PEACE
CONCLUDED—TLASCALA—FESTIVITIES AND REJOICINGS—MASS
CELEBRATED—CORTÉS INCLINED TO EXTREME RELIGIOUS ZEAL—BRIDES
PRESENTED TO THE SPANIARDS—APPROPRIATE CEREMONIES—PREPARING
TO LEAVE TLASCALA FOR CHOLULA—COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE
CHOLULTECS.
In the late battle three chiefs had been captured, and they together
with two others were sent, this time to the Tlascalan capital direct,
to carry an offer of peace, and to explain that the Spaniards would
not have harmed their warriors had they not been obliged to do so.
If peace was still declined they would come and destroy them all.
Meanwhile Cortés set out on another foraging and raiding expedition,
and “burned more than ten towns, one exceeding three thousand houses,”
retiring by the early afternoon, when the Indians began to gather in
aid of the raided neighbors.[307]
Tired of the fruitless fighting, attended with loss of life and
property only to themselves as it appeared, the peace party in Tlascala
had been gaining the ascendancy, with the efforts of Maxixcatzin,
supported as he now was by the powerful factions which had quarrelled
with the general. When the peace messengers of Cortés arrived they
were therefore received with favor. His previous friendly offers
were considered, also his kind treatment of captives, so unusual
with the natives, and the oracles and signs of a coming race of
rulers. Whether gods or men, they were evidently invincible, and the
friendship and alliance held out by them must be desirable, and ought
to be secured before the strangers, embittered by further resistance,
should pass on to join their enemies. An embassy, headed by Costomatl
and Tolinpanecatl,[308] was accordingly despatched with provisions
and some other trifling gifts to open negotiations for peace. Humbly
these men appeared before Cortés, expressing the sorrow of the lords
for the hostility shown, and their desire for peace. With a grave
reproval for their obstinacy, Cortés said that he would admit their
apology, and the envoys departed, after leaving beside the other
gifts a number of male and female slaves.[309]
Smarting under the disgrace of his defeats, Xicotencatl had meanwhile
been laying plans to retrieve himself. Among other counsellors he had
summoned diviners to his aid, and they, calling to mind the assumption
that the Spaniards were children of the sun, declared that as such
the new-comers were invincible only when animated by its beams, and at
night, when deprived of this invigorating power, they became mortals,
who must bow to superior force. Knowing the strength of the party
opposed to him in the Tlascalan capital, he does not appear to have
submitted his projects there, but to have ventured upon detaining the
envoys as they were returning from the Spanish camp until the result
of his plans should have been ascertained; and this in face of the
command to desist from hostility.[310] In order to make everything as
sure as possible for the intended blow, Xicotencatl sent fifty Indians
to the camp, with instructions to gather information concerning the
approaches, the condition of the soldiers, and other points. They
appeared before Cortés with the usual demonstrations of respect, and,
placing before him five female slaves, a quantity of food, and other
presents, they said: “Lord, behold these slaves! If you are fierce
gods, eat their flesh and blood, and more shall be brought; if gentle
gods, take these feathers and incense; if men, here are fowl, bread,
and fruit.” Cortés answered that they required no sacrifices of men.
Had they desired such they could have taken by force all the victims
needed. He rebuked their obstinacy and advised submission.[311] They
were then taken aside to receive the hospitalities of the camp, after
which they dispersed to satisfy their curiosity, and to question the
allies. This aroused the suspicions of Teuch, the Cempoalan chief,
who warned the general. Seizing the men he examined them singly, and
soon ascertained that their object was not only to spy, but to fire
the huts, and otherwise to aid the attack which would be made upon
the camp that very night. Finding that his friendly advances had been
scorned, Cortés resolved to inflict a lesson that would be understood
by a people so deeply intent upon war and sacrifices. This was to cut
off the hands of the leading spies, and the thumbs of others, and to
send them back with the message that this would be the punishment of
spies, and that the Spaniards were prepared, night or day, to face
their enemies.[312]
Fearing the confusion and danger of a night attack, when the artillery
and other means would be less effective, Cortés resolved to anticipate
the enemy by a counter charge, wherein the cavalry might render
particular service. Learning that Xicotencatl was hidden with ten
thousand or twenty thousand men behind a hill not far off, Cortés
did not despatch the mutilated spies till after dusk, in order to
let him approach nearer to camp.[313] When his messengers returned
to Xicotencatl and displayed their bleeding stumps, the general
was troubled, and throughout his army there was consternation, and
numbers of warriors declared openly that it was useless to fight men
who not only appeared to be invincible, but who could read their very
intentions. While in this state of demoralization they were startled
by the jingling of bells and the tramp of the dreaded horses, magnified
by their fears and by the weird moonlight into a host. The next moment
the Spaniards announced their presence by a ringing “Santiago!” and,
undeterred by the few stray and feeble volleys of stones and arrows
sent against them, they rode into the crowds of natives already in
full flight, slashing and riding down in all directions.[314]
After this lesson Xicotencatl appears to have made no further attempts
to molest the Spaniards, although small skirmishing parties, chiefly
Otomís, continued to hover round the camp and give the soldiers
opportunities for sallies. Gomara magnifies these skirmishes into
daily attacks on the camp by the army, whose divisions take turns so
as not to embarrass one another. This caused them to fight better,
partly from a spirit of rivalry to surpass the preceding record. The
ambition of the natives was to kill one Spaniard at least, but the
object was never attained, so far as they knew. This continued for
a fortnight, and daily came also messengers with food to sustain the
strangers.[315]
In order to farther impress upon the Indians that fighting by night
was quite congenial to the Spaniards, Cortés set out one midnight to
raid and forage in the direction of a large town called Tzompantzinco,
which could be distinguished beyond a range of hills, toward the
capital.[316] The soldiers had not gone far before one horse after
another began to tremble and fall, including the general’s. This was
regarded a bad omen, and the men urged a return, but Cortés laughed it
off, sent back five horses, and proceeded with the rest, declaring that
God, in whose cause they were engaged, was superior to nature.[317]
Two small villages were surprised, with some slaughter, and shortly
before dawn the Spaniards fell upon the large town, containing twenty
thousand houses, it is said. Frightened out of their senses by the
noise, the people rushed from the dwellings to join in the crowd
which sought to elude the pursuers. Finding that no resistance was
attempted, Cortés speedily stopped the attack, and collecting his men
in the plaza he forbade any attempt on life or property. The chiefs
and priests presently appeared with gifts of food and two female
slaves, pleading that the proximity of Xicotencatl’s army had prevented
them from sending in their submission. They would henceforth prove
their gratitude for his leniency by sending supplies to the camp.
Cortés accepted their excuses, and told them to proceed to Tlascala
to urge upon the lords the necessity for accepting peace. Before
returning, Cortés ascended a hill, and thence saw the capital, with
its surrounding villages. “Behold,” he said to those who had objected
to his leniency with the towns, “what boots it to have killed these
people, when so many enemies exist over there?”[318]
Although left in comparative peace for some days, the end of the
campaign seemed to the Spaniards as remote as ever. The harass and
hardship of their life, the vigils, the cold nights, the scanty
supplies, the absence of salt, medicine, and many other necessaries,
all this was severely felt, particularly since so large a number
were either sick or wounded, including Cortés and Padre Olmedo.[319]
The ailments and wounds were as a rule slight, yet they helped to
magnify dangers, and to dim every cheerful aspect. The very cessation
of regular hostile demonstrations seemed to cover a plot for a new
Tlascalan combination. If this people could exhibit such armies
and such valor, what must be expected from the far more numerous
and equally warlike Aztecs? These views owed not a little of their
acceptance to the fears and exaggeration of the Indian allies, and
through their medium the prospect of reaching the impregnable Mexico
began to appear preposterous. Cortés was aware that this feeling
existed among a large number, for in making his customary tour of
the camp one evening he had overheard a party of soldiers express
themselves pretty strongly about the madness of his enterprise. It
would happen to him as to Pedro Carbonero, who ventured with his force
among the Moors and was never heard of again. The general should be
left to go alone.
The murmurs in camp grew particularly strong during the raid on
Tzompantzinco, promoted of course by Velazquez’ men; and when Cortés
returned, a deputation of seven, whom Bernal Diaz forbears to name,
appeared before him to recommend that, in view of the suffering, the
danger, and the dark prospects, they should return to Villa Rica,
build a vessel, and send to Cuba for reinforcements. They were only
tempting providence by their foolhardy course. Finding that arguments
would be lost on these men, Cortés had caused his adherents to rally,
and turning to them he recalled the determination formed at Villa
Rica to advance on Mexico, and extolled their valorous deeds, which
dimmed even the Greek and Roman records. He was suffering equally with
them, yet he wavered not. Should they, the brave Spaniards, belie
their character and country, and desert their duty to their king,
to their God, who had protected them hitherto? To retreat now would
be to abandon the treasures to be found only a few leagues off, the
reward for which they had striven during a whole year, and to draw upon
themselves the contempt not only of their countrymen, who at present
looked on them as the bravest of the brave, but that of the natives,
who regarded them as gods. The Tlascaltecs had already sued for peace,
but let the Spaniards take one step in retreat, and the enemy would
turn with renewed ardor on them, joined by the Mexicans, so far held
in check by their fame and deeds. Even the allies would for their own
safety join to crush them. To retire was impossible, because it would
be fatal. In any case, death was preferable to dishonor. The usual
marks of approval which followed the speech silenced the deputation,
and nothing more was heard about retreat.[320]
* * * * *
Great was the sensation in Mexico at the successive reports of easy
Spanish victories over the stanch armies of Tlascala—victories by an
insignificant band over armies which had successfully resisted the
vast forces of the Anáhuac allies. Since it was only too evident that
force could not keep the strangers from reaching the capital, Montezuma
again called his council to consider the situation. Cuitlahuatzin
proposed that they should be bought off with presents, while Cacama
represented that their mission was probably harmless, and that they
should be frankly invited to the city, there to be awed with the
grandeur of the monarch. Others favored this course, but with the
idea of laying traps for the strangers. The fear of their being warned
and aided by Ixtlilxochitl, the rebellious brother of Cacama, caused
Montezuma to incline to the advice of Cuitlahuatzin; and six prominent
lords, headed by Atempanecatl,[321] were accordingly despatched to the
Spanish camp to congratulate the white chieftain on his victories,
and to offer annual tribute in gold, silver, jewels, cloth—in fact,
to do almost anything that his king might desire, on the condition
that he should not proceed to Mexico. The envoys entered the presence
of Cortés followed by two hundred attendants, and laying before him
a present of twenty bales of embroidered cloth and feathers, and
about one thousand castellanos in gold-dust, they delivered their
message.[322] They explained that their monarch would gladly see him
in Mexico, but feared to expose the Spaniards to the hardships of the
rough and sterile country wherein Mexico was situated. Cortés expressed
his thanks, and said that he would consider the proposal.[323]
While entertaining the Mexican envoys the camp was stirred by the
announcement of the Tlascalan plenipotentiaries, consisting of fifty
leading men, headed by Axayacatzin Xicotencatl himself.[324] The
soldiers crowded forward to gaze at the dreaded general, who appeared
to be a man of about thirty-five years, tall and broad-shouldered,
well formed and robust, with broad, rough face, grave in manner and
commanding in presence, though he came a suppliant. He had used every
means as a noble patriot to save his country from the enslavement
which he seemed with prophetic spirit to have foreseen; and as a
brave soldier he had struggled to uphold the honor of the army. With
pride subdued he had sought pardon of the lords for disobeying their
orders,[325] and offered the best amends in his power by personally
humbling himself before the chief who had torn the wreath from
his brow. He approached Cortés with the customary profound salute,
while his attendants swung the copal censer, and announced that he
had come in the name of his father and the other lords to ask his
friendship, and to offer their submission to the mightiest of men, so
gentle yet so valiant. Accepting a seat by Cortés’ side, he entered
into explanations, and frankly took upon himself the blame for the
resistance offered, but pleaded the Tlascalan love for liberty,
threatened, as they imagined, by an ally of Montezuma, for were not
Mexican allies in the Spanish train? and had not the Aztec monarch
exchanged friendly intercourse with them? While delighted with the
manner of the chief, and particularly with the object of his visit,
Cortés thought it necessary to administer a slight rebuke for the
obstinate refusal of his friendly offers; yet since his people had
already suffered enough for this, he freely pardoned them in the
name of his king, and received them as vassals.[326] He hoped the
peace would be permanent; if not, he would be obliged to destroy the
capital and massacre the inhabitants. Xicotencatl assured him that
the Tlascaltecs would henceforth be as faithful as they had hitherto
been unfriendly. In proof of their sincerity the chiefs would remain
with him as hostages. He begged Cortés to come to the city, where
the lords and nobles were awaiting him, and regretted not being able
to offer a present worthy of his acceptance, but they were poor in
treasures, even in cloth and salt, and what they once possessed had
been surrendered to the Mexicans.[327]
Mass was said by Padre Diaz to celebrate the concluded peace, and in
honor of the occasion Tecohuatzinco received the name of Victoria.[328]
Both Spaniards and allies concluded the day with feasting and
appropriate demonstrations of their delight. At Tlascala, where it
was soon understood that the Spaniards were in some way to liberate
the state from the tyranny of Montezuma, floral decorations and
sacrifices gave eclat to the festivities, and twenty thousand leading
men are said to have taken part in the _mitote_ dance, singing to
the prospective overthrow of the Mexicans and to the glory of the
Spaniards.
The Mexican envoys felt not a little chagrined at a peace which
could bode no good to their nation. Before Cortés, however, they
sought to ridicule the whole proceeding as a farce on the part of the
Tlascaltecs. The latter were too treacherous to be trusted. When the
Spaniards were once in their city they would fall on them, and avenge
the defeats and losses which till then must rankle in their hearts.
Cortés told them that the Spaniards could not be overcome in town
or field, by day or night. He intended going to Tlascala, and if the
inhabitants proved treacherous they would be destroyed. Xicotencatl
had been no less abusive of the Mexicans during his late interview,
and Cortés, as he declares, enjoyed their dissension, sympathizing
alternately with either party, in order to promote his own ends.[329]
Finding the general so determined, the envoys begged that he would
remain at the camp for a few days while they communicated with the
emperor. This was granted, partly because Cortés wished to await
developments, not being at all sure of the Tlascaltecs, and partly
because he and others needed a respite to recover from their wounds
and fevers.[330]
* * * * *
The only result of the message to Mexico appears to have been
an instruction to the envoys to use every effort to prevent the
Spaniards from going either to Tlascala or to Mexico; and to make
their representations more weighty a present was sent, consisting of
ten pieces of wrought gold, worth over three thousand castellanos,
says Bernal Diaz, and of several hundred pieces of cotton fabrics,
richly embroidered.[331] It served but as another magnet to aid in
attracting the invaders. Cortés accepted the presents, but held out
no hopes of changing his determination.
The Tlascaltecs had meanwhile kept the camp liberally supplied with
provisions, for which they would accept no recompense, and were daily
urging Cortés to depart for Tlascala. Alarmed at his delay, the lords
thought it best to go in person, accompanied by the leading nobles,
to entreat him.[332] The last envoy from Montezuma had just delivered
his presents when they were announced. Descending from their litters
they advanced toward Cortés with the customary salute,[333] the lead
being taken by Xicotencatl, ruler of Tizatlan, so blind and old
that he had to be supported by attendants, and by Maxixcatzin, of
Ocotelulco, the youngest and wisest of the lords.[334]
Xicotencatl expressed his sorrow for their resistance, but reminded
the Spanish chief that, this being forgiven, they had now come to
invite him to their city, and to offer their possessions and services.
He must not believe the slanderous insinuations which they feared the
Mexicans had uttered. Cortés could not resist the evident sincerity
of this appeal from so prominent a body, and he hastened to assure
them that preparations for the departure and other affairs had alone
detained him.[335]
The lords accordingly returned to prepare for the reception, and to
send five hundred carriers to assist in the march, which began the
following morning. The Mexican envoys were invited to accompany the
Spaniards, in order that they might witness the honors paid to them.
The road to Tlascala, some six leagues in length, passed through
a hilly yet well cultivated country, skirted on the east by the
snow-crowned peak which was soon to bear the revered name of Malinche.
In every direction were verdure-clad slopes spotted with huge oaks,
while above and beyond the vista was closed by a dark green fringe of
the hardier fir, which seemed to rise like shielding bulwarks round
the settlements in the valleys. The leading towns on the route were
Tzompantzinco and Atlihuetzin, where the population turned out _en
masse_ to receive the Spaniards.
A quarter of a league from the capital they were met by the lords
and nobles, accompanied by a great retinue, attired in the colors of
the different districts. Women of rank came forward with flowers in
garlands and bouquets; and a long line of priests in flowing white
robes, with cowls, and flowing hair clotted with blood from freshly
slashed ears, marched along swinging their copal censers, while in
the rear and around surged a crowd estimated at one hundred thousand
persons.
Before them rose the capital, prominently located upon four hills,
“so great and so admirable,” quoth Cortés, “that although I say but
little of it, that little will appear incredible, for it is much
larger than Granada and much stronger, with as good edifices and with
much more people than Granada had at the time it was captured; also
much better supplied with the things of the earth.”[336] There were
four distinct quarters, separated by high stone walls and traversed
by narrow streets. In each stood a lordly palace for the ruler, and
here and there rose temples and masonry buildings for the nobles, but
the greater part of the dwellings were one-story adobe and mud huts.
The highest quarter in situation was Tepeticpac, the first settled,
separated from Ocotelulco by the river Zahuatl.[337] The latter was
not only the largest and most populous, but the richest, and held a
daily market attended by thirty thousand people, it is claimed.[338]
Quiahuiztlan lay below on the river, and above it Tizatlan, the
residence of the blind chief.[339]
It was here that the Spaniards entered on September 23d,[340]
henceforth a feast-day to its people. Through streets adorned with
festoons and arches, and past houses covered with cheering multitudes,
they proceeded to the palace of Xicotencatl, who came forward to
tender the customary banquet. Cortés saluted him with the respect due
to his age,[341] and was conducted to the banquet-hall, after which
quarters were pointed out in the courts and buildings surrounding the
temple.[342] Neat beds of matting and nequen cloth were spread for
the troops. Close by were the quarters of the allies and the Mexican
envoys.
A round of invitations and festivities was tendered the guests in
the several quarters; yet Cortés allowed no relaxation in the usual
discipline and watches, greatly to the grief of the lords, who
finally remonstrated against this apparent want of confidence. The
Mexicans must have poisoned the mind of Malinche against them, they
said. Malinche was becoming a recognized name for Cortés among the
Indians. It seems strange that they should have fixed upon no higher
sounding title for so great a leader than ‘master of Marina,’ as
it implied, while the inferior Alvarado was dubbed Tonatiuh, ‘the
sun.’ The Tlascaltecs had, however, another name for the general in
Chalchiuitl, the term for their favorite precious stones, and also
a title of Quetzalcoatl, ‘the white god.’[343] Cortés was quite
touched by the fervor of the lords in their newly formed friendship.
Untutored in some respects, they appeared to rush like children from
one extreme to another—from obstinate enmity to profound devotion,
now worshipping the doughty little band who had overcome their vast
number, and admiring their every trait and act, willing to yield
life itself for the heroic leader. He hastened to assure them of his
confidence, and declined the hostages they offered, asserting that
strict discipline was part of the military system which he was in duty
bound to maintain. This seemed to convince the lords, and they even
sought to introduce among their own troops some of the regulations
which they learned to admire.
The second day of their sojourn Padre Diaz said mass in the presence
of the two leading lords, who thereupon presented Cortés with half a
dozen fishes made of gold, several curious stones, and some nequen
cloth, altogether worth about twenty pesos, says Bernal Diaz.[344]
Insignificant as was the gift, they expressed a hope that in view
of their poverty he would accept it as a token of friendship. Cortés
assured them that “he received it from their hand with greater pleasure
than he would a house filled with gold dust from others.”[345] In
return he gave them some of the robes and other useful articles
obtained from Montezuma, beside beads and trinkets. They now proposed,
as a further proof of their good-will, to bestow on the captains
their daughters, in order to have for relatives men so good and brave.
Cortés expressed himself pleased, but explained that this could not
be admitted till the Tlascaltecs renounced idolatry and its attendant
evils.[346] He thereupon proceeded to expound to them the doctrines of
his faith and contrast them with the impure, cruel, and bloody rites
practised by them. This was ably interpreted by Marina and Aguilar,
who were by this time expert in preaching, and the cross and virgin
image were produced to illustrate the discourse. The lords answered
that they believed the Christian’s God must be good and powerful, since
he was worshipped by such men, and they were willing to accord him
a place by the side of their idols;[347] but they could not renounce
their own time-honored and benevolent deities. To do so would be to
create an uprising among the people, and bring war and pestilence
from the outraged gods. Cortés produced further arguments, only to
be told that in time they would better understand the new doctrines,
and might then yield, but at present their people would choose death
rather than submit to such sacrilege.
Finding that the religious zeal of Cortés threatened to overcome his
prudence, Padre Olmedo hastened to interpose his counsel, representing
the danger of losing all that their valor and perseverance had gained
if they pressed so delicate a subject with a superstitious and warlike
people as yet only half gained over. He had never approved of forcible
conversion, and could see no advantage in removing idols from one
temple when they would be sure to rise in another. Indeed, persecution
could only tend to root idolatry more deeply in the heart. It were
better to let the true faith work its way into the appreciation of
the people, as it would be sure to do if the natives were given an
opportunity to contrast their bloody rites with the religion of Christ,
provided the Spaniards would themselves follow the precepts of love
and gentleness they were commending to the Indians. The success of
the conquest owes much to Olmedo, whose heart, like Las Casas’, warmed
for the benighted Indians, to him wayward children who must be won by
moderation. Like a guardian angel he rose in defence of his flock,
saving at the same time the Spaniards from their own passions.[348]
Alvarado, Velazquez de Leon, and others, who had no desire to witness
a repetition of the Cempoalan iconoclasm, supported the father in his
counsel, and Cortés agreed to content himself for the present with
having an appropriate place set aside in the temple for an altar and
a cross.[349] And upon this cross, say the credulous chroniclers,
a white radiant cloud, in form of a whirling pillar, descended at
night from the sky, impressing the natives with the sacredness of
the symbol, and guarding it till the conquest had established the
faith in the land.[350] The Spaniards succeeded further in abolishing
human sacrifices, and the fattening-cages being torn down, a large
number of intended victims sought refuge in their camp, lauding their
doctrines and aiding not a little to pave the way for conversion.[351]
The inaugural mass for the new altar was followed by the baptism of
the brides, the daughters and nieces of the lords being the first to
undergo the ceremony. Cortés pleading that he was already married,
Tecuilhuatzin, the daughter of Xicotencatl, destined for him, was
at his request given to Alvarado, his brother and captain as he
proclaimed him, and blessed with the name of Luisa, while her sister
Tolquequetzaltzin, baptized as Lucía, was conferred on the brother,
Jorge de Alvarado. Maxixcatzin’s niece Zicuetzin, a pretty girl,
was named Elvira and given to Velazquez de Leon, it appears. Olid,
Sandoval, Ávila, and others also received distinguished brides with
dowries. Cortés found it necessary, however, to decline accepting
wives for the whole company, as the lords proposed.[352] Indeed, they
urged him to settle among them, offering to give lands and to build
houses for the whole party.[353]
Finding him determined to proceed to Mexico, they offered their
coöperation, and gave an account of the wealth, power, and condition
of the lake states, dwelling in particular on the magnificence of
Montezuma. They did not omit a tirade against his tyranny, and stated
that whenever he proposed to attack Tlascala no less than one hundred
thousand men were placed in the field. It was because they were
forewarned that their resistance was so successful, and because the
Aztec troops, gathered as they were to a great extent from subject
provinces, fought with less spirit.[354]
Cortés had now a further motive for going to Mexico, which was the
alliance proposed to him by Ixtlilxochitl, the rebellious brother of
Cacama, and ruler of northern Acolhuacan, who hoped with Spanish aid
to overthrow the hated Montezuma, and raise himself to the throne
of Tezcuco, at least, and to the head of the allied states. To this
pleasing proposal Cortés replied in a manner which could not fail to
promote his own interests by keeping alive the spirit of dissension
among his prey.[355] Huexotzinco, the ally of Tlascala, sent in her
formal adhesion about the same time.
Finding that the Spaniards could not be kept away from Mexico,
Montezuma thought it best at any rate to hasten their departure
from Tlascala. An urgent invitation to visit him in his capital
was accordingly sent through four prominent caciques, attended by
followers bearing as usual a costly present, consisting of ten bales
of embroidered robes and a number of gold articles, worth fully ten
thousand pesos.[356] A council was held to consider the departure
and the route to be taken. The lords of Tlascala did not relish the
idea of a friendly visit to Mexico by their new allies, to be won
over perhaps by the arts of the enemy. They sought to impress upon
Cortés that Montezuma was the incarnation of treachery, awaiting only
an opportunity to get them into his power and to crush them. They
were ready to join in an armed descent upon the tyrant, proposing to
spare neither young nor old; the former, because they might grow up
to be avengers, the latter because of their dangerous counsel. Cortés
suggested that he might yet establish friendly relations between them
and the Mexicans, and reopen the trade in salt, cotton, and other
articles; but this aroused only an incredulous smile. With regard
to the route, they favored either the Calpulalpan road, proposed by
Ixtlilxochitl, or that leading through Huexotzinco, friendly to them,
declaring that it would be preposterous to pass by the way of Cholula,
as urged by the Mexican envoys, since this was the very hatching-place
for Montezuma’s plots. The road to it, and every house there, were
full of snares and pitfalls; the great Quetzalcoatl temple-pyramid,
for instance, being known to contain a mighty stream which could at
any moment be let loose upon invaders, and Montezuma having a large
army hidden near the saintly city.[357]
The extraordinary accounts of Cholula served to arouse Cortés’
curiosity, and the representation of dangers made him the more
resolved to encounter them, chiefly because he did not wish to appear
intimidated. This route was beside easier, and passed through a rich
country. He accordingly decided in favor of it, and when reminded of
the suspicious absence of any deputation from that city, he sent a
message to the rulers that they might remedy the omission.[358]
The Cholultec council was divided on the answer to be sent, three
of the members being in favor of compliance, and the other three,
supported by the generalissimo, opposing any concession.[359] Finally
a compromise was effected by sending three or four persons of no
standing, and without presents, to say that the governors of the
city were sick and could not come. The Tlascaltecs pointed out the
disrespect in sending such men and such a message, and Cortés at
once despatched four messengers to signify his displeasure, and to
announce that unless the Cholultecs within three days sent persons
of authority to offer allegiance to the Spanish king, he would march
forth and destroy them, proceeding against them as against rebels.[360]
Finding that it would not do to trifle with the powerful strangers,
some of the highest nobles in the city were despatched to the Spanish
camp, with a suitable retinue, to tender excuses, pleading that they
had dreaded to enter Tlascala, a state hostile to them.
They invited Cortés to their city, where amends would be made by
rendering the obedience and tribute which was considered due from
them as vassals of his king.[361]
FOOTNOTES
[307] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 62-3. According to Gomara the
Indians pursued to the very camp, where they were defeated
with great slaughter, after five hours’ fighting. _Hist.
Mex._, 76-7.
[308] _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 146. Duran gives a short
speech, delivered in the council-chamber. _Hist. Ind._,
MS., ii. 422-3.
[309] Cortés places the arrival of this embassy on the
day following the raiding of the ten towns, _Cartas_, 63;
but Bernal Diaz at a later date. He makes the envoys four
in number, and allows them, in returning, to instruct the
neighboring settlements to furnish supplies to the Spaniards,
all of which Xicotencatl prevents. _Hist. Verdad._, 47-8,
50, 55.
[310] Bernal Diaz assumes that the lords consult the
diviners, and allow a night attack to be made; but then
he describes two night attacks, while Cortés and others
distinctly allow only one, and he forgets his former
admission that, in addition to the peace party, half the
army had actually abandoned Xicotencatl. It is after this
first night attack, ignored by other writers, that the
senate send in their submission, and order Xicotencatl to
desist from hostilities. He refuses to obey, and detains
the envoys on their way to the Spaniards, whereupon his
officers are ordered to desert him. Finally he repents and
is forgiven. _Hist. Verdad._, 46-7. The detention of the
envoys must be placed on their return from the Spanish camp,
for Cortés distinctly states that the peace proposals from
the lords arrived before the night attack.
[311] According to Gomara, Cortés announces that his men
are mortal like themselves, which is not very likely. _Hist.
Mex._, 77. Bernal Diaz calls the slaves four old hags, and
allows the Indians to act in rather an insulting manner,
and without tendering the usual courtesies, which is also
unlikely, when we consider that they had an object to gain.
_Hist. Verdad._, 49.
[312] ‘Los mandé tomar á todos cincuenta y cortarles las
manos,’ says Cortés, _Cartas_, 63; but the phrase may be
loose, for Bernal Diaz specifies only seventeen as sent
back with hands or thumbs cut off. _Hist. Verdad._, 49.
‘El marques les hizo á algunos de ellos contar (sic pro
cortar) las manos.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, ii. 570. ‘Mandò cortar las manos a siete dellos,
y a algunos los dedos pulgares muy contra su voluntad.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. viii. Gomara places
this occurrence on the 6th of September, but it is most
likely later, and makes the spies a different party from
those bringing the slaves and feathers, who arrive on the
preceding day. _Hist. Mex._, 77-8. Bernal Diaz accounts
for this difference by stating that the party had been in
camp since the previous day. Robertson reverses the order
by assuming that mutilation of the spies so perplexes the
Indians that they send the men with the slaves and feathers
to ask whether they are fierce or gentle gods, or men. He
does not understand why so many as 50 spies should have
been sent, but had he read Cortés’ letter more closely, he
would have divined the reason, that they intended to fire
the camp, and otherwise aid in the attack. He stigmatizes
as barbarous the mutilation, _Hist. Am._, ii. 42, 451, but
forgets, in doing so, that the Spanish conquerors belonged
to an age when such deeds were little thought of. Spies even
now suffer death, and the above punishment may therefore
be regarded as comparatively lenient, particularly by a
people who daily tore out the heart from living victims.
The mutinous pilot of Villa Rica had his life spared, but
lost his feet. Cortés, as the captain of a small band,
was obliged to conform to his age and surroundings in the
measures taken for its safety.
[313] ‘En yendose las espias, vieron de nuestro real como
atrauessaua por vn cerro grandissima muchedumbre de gente,
y era la que traya Xicotencatl.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 79.
[314] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 63-4; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
78-9; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
569; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. viii. Bernal Diaz
describes a night attack with 10,000 warriors, made a few
days before, in which the Spaniards drive back the Indians
and pursue them, capturing four, while the morning revealed
twenty corpses still upon the plain. Two of the diviners
appear to have been sacrificed for their bad advice. He now
reappears with 20,000 men, but on meeting the mutilated spies
he becomes disheartened, and turns back without attempting a
blow. _Hist. Verdad._, 46, 49-50. He is the only authority
for two night expeditions. Having already been defeated
in one night attack, Xicotencatl would be less likely to
attempt a second, particularly since nocturnal movements
were contrary to Indian modes of warfare. Cortés distinctly
intimates that the present occasion was the first attempt
at a night raid. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 291.
[315] He begins to suspect that their object may also have
been to spy. Cortés was suffering from fever at this time,
and one night he took pills, a course which among the
Spaniards involved the strictest care and seclusion from
affairs. Early in the morning three large bodies of Indians
appeared, and regardless of his pills Cortés headed the
troops, fighting all day. The following morning, strange
to say, the medicine operated as if no second day had
intervened. ‘No lo cuẽto por milagro, sino por dezir lo que
passo, y que Cortés era muy sufridor de trabajos y males.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 80. But Sandoval assumes ‘que sin
duda fue milagro.’ _Hist. Carlos V._, i. 173. Solis applies
this story to the night attack, which seems plausible, and
smiles philosophically at Sandoval’s conclusion. _Hist.
Mex._, i. 271; _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 291;
_Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 47-8. ‘Tenia calenturas, ò
tercianas.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 47. Some place
the story with the later capture of Tzompantzinco, where
it is entirely out of place, if indeed worth recording at
all, for this expedition was a voluntary project, calling
for no sick men to venture out. Duran relates that, tired of
being besieged, Cortés one night made a sally in different
directions. One party surprised all the native leaders
together and asleep, and brought them to camp. In the morning
they were sent back to the army, which had awakened to find
them missing. In recognition of their kind treatment the
chiefs raised the siege. This is told on the authority of
an eye-witness, who evidently reserved his choicest stories
for Padre Duran. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 419-20.
[316] Bernal Diaz places it one league from the camp, and
Tapia four leagues. Ixtlilxochitl calls it Tzimpantzinco;
others vary.
[317] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 80. Tapia allows the horses
to overcome their attack and proceed. It appears to have
been due to the cold night winds.
[318] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 80-1. According to Herrera,
Alcalde Mayor Grado counselled Cortés, on seeing this
populous country, to return to Villa Rica and send to
Velazquez for aid. Deeply grieved at such advice, the general
remarked that the very stones would rise against them if
they retreated, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. viii.; _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 64-5. Bernal Diaz places this raid before the
final night attack. _Hist. Verdad._, 47; _Tapia_, _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 568-9.
[319] ‘Nos vimos todos heridos â dos, y â tres heridos, y
muy cansados, y otros dolientes ... y faltauan ya sobre
cincuenta y cinco soldados que se auian muerto en las
batallas, y dolencias, y frios, y estauan dolientes otros
doze.’ _Bernal Diaz_, 46. Prescott, i. 458, is careless
enough to accept this verbally, but the run of the text
here and elsewhere indicates that the sentence is rather
figurative. The last four words, ‘twelve others were on the
sick-bed,’ indicate that only three per cent. were laid low,
and that the general health and condition must therefore
have been tolerably good. This also indicates that the 55
missing soldiers could not have died since they left Vera
Cruz, as certain writers assume. The only obstacles under
which the soldiers could have succumbed in any number were
the several battles with the Tlascaltecs, wherein the total
number of the wounded nowhere foots up to more than 100. Of
these 50 per cent. could not have died, to judge from the
warfare engaged in, and from the very few, a couple at the
most, it is said, who fell on the field. Nor could diseases
have killed many during a month’s march through a fine and
fertile country, for the passage of the Cofre de Perote
did not affect the Spaniards seriously. Hence it must be
assumed that the 55 dead include the 35 who fell out of the
ranks ere the army reached Villa Rica. This leaves, say,
fifteen casualties for the present expedition since it left
Villa Rica, and that appears to be a fair proportion. The
only one who rightly interprets Bernal Diaz on this point
appears to be Torquemada, who says, ‘desde que salieron de
Cuba, se avian muerto cinquenta y cinco Castellanos.’ i.
428. The old soldier confirms the interpretation by stating
in more than one place that the Spaniards numbered 450, or
nearly so, on entering Mexico City. ubi sup., 65, 109.
[320] Gomara gives a long speech, and intimates that it
was delivered before a regular meeting. _Hist. Mex._,
81-3; _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 65; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
vi. cap. ix.; _Torquemada_, i. 428-9; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 571. Bernal Diaz addresses
the speech to the committee, and states that Cortés, on
finding them still unconvinced, abandoned the gentle tone
he had used, and exclaimed with some asperity that it was
better to die like brave men than to live dishonored. The
men being appealed to upheld him, and declared that they
would listen to no contrary talk. _Hist. Verdad._, 48-9;
_Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, i. 259-63.
[321] Surnamed Tlachpanquizqin, it seems. _Ixtlilxochitl_,
_Hist. Chich._, 292; _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant. Méj._, iii. 380.
Bernal Diaz calls them five leading men.
[322] Nearly every writer states that Montezuma acknowledged
himself the vassal of the Spanish king, but it is doubtful
whether he stooped so low before a distant enemy. Gomara,
_Hist. Mex._, 79, calls the present 1000 ropas and 1000
castellanos de oro, and Cortés says pesos de oro, which
doubtless means dust; but Bernal Diaz terms the latter gold
jewels worth that amount. Prescott confounds these presents
with a later gift, and assumes without good authority that
they came after Xicotencatl had brought in his submission.
Gomara on the other hand places their arrival on September
6, which must be altogether too early.
[323] ‘No les quiso dar luego la respuesta, porque estaua
purgado del dia antes,’ says Bernal Diaz, in explanation
of the delay. _Hist. Verdad._, 51. Brasseur de Bourbourg,
however, lets Cortés declare that the orders of his king
oblige him to disregard the wishes of the emperor. But the
general was too prudent to give an open rebuff ere he saw
how affairs would develop. According to Gomara he wished to
detain them to witness his prowess against the Tlascaltecs.
_Hist. Mex._, 79; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. x.
[324] Ixtlilxochitl alone differs by stating that they were
headed by Tolinpanecatl Tlacatecuhtli the younger brother
of Xicotencatl; but he appears confused.
[325] Solis causes him to be dismissed from the office
of captain-general. _Hist. Mex._, i. 272-3. In _Carbajal
Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 154, is a portrait of him,
corresponding fairly to the description.
[326] It is generally accepted that the Tlascaltecs submitted
as vassals. Yet it is just as likely that they merely offered
their friendship and alliance, a relation which after the
conquest was changed into vassalage.
[327] According to Bernal Diaz the Tlascaltecs gave but one
present, and that at the capital, but some authors prefer
to bring it in here. ‘Le presentó cantidad de alpargatas
para el camino.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 292;
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. x.; _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 84-5; _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 66-7.
[328] _Herrera_, loc. cit.
[329] ‘Aun acordéme de una autoridad evangélica que dice:
_Omne regnum in seipsum divisum desolabitur_; y con los
unos y con los otros maneaba.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 70.
According to Ixtlilxochitl quite a quarrel sprang up between
the Mexican and Tlascalan representatives in the presence
of Cortés, attended by an exchange of epithets. _Hist.
Chich._, 292.
[330] Cortés gives only his suspicions of the Tlascaltecs
as a reason for the delay, without referring to any
communication being sent to Mexico. _Cartas_, 67. Meanwhile
he wrote to Escalante at Villa Rica, informing him of
occurrences, and asking for a supply of holy wafers and
two bottles of wine, which speedily came. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 51.
[331] After an absence of six days, six leading men came
from Mexico, who brought, beside the ten pieces of jewelry,
200 pieces of cloth. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 52.
The envoys who had been sent to Mexico came back on the
sixth day with ten beautifully wrought jewels of gold and
1500 pieces of cloth, far richer than the former. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 85-6.
[332] ‘Todos los señores me vinieron á rogar.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 67. ‘Vinieron assi mismo todas las cabeçeras y
señores de Tlaxcallan a rogarle.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
86. Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 52, names five lords,
but the names are very confused, except Xicotencatl and
Maxixcatzin, which approach nearer to the usual form.
Ixtlilxochitl states that Cortés made it a condition that
the lords should come and ask him, whereupon they each
select two high representatives to proceed to the camp
and escort him to Tlascala. They were guided by the envoys
Tolinpanecatl and Costomatl, and brought a few jewels as
presents. _Hist. Chich._, 292-3. Nor does Camargo allow the
lords to go to the camp, but Costomatl and Tolinpanecatl
are sent. _Hist. Tlax._, 146.
[333] ‘Tocarõ las manos en el suelo, y besaron la tierra.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 52.
[334] _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 155. Maxixcatzin is put
forward by the Spanish writers as the principal lord, chiefly
perhaps because he was the most devoted to the conquerors,
but also because his quarter of Ocotelulco was the largest
and richest. Camargo and Ixtlilxochitl place Xicotencatl
first, and he certainly takes the lead in speaking and
in receiving the Spaniards at his palace. His age, which
Camargo raises into the hundred, may have had something to
do with this, however.
[335] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 52, states that he
pleaded the want of carriers, which was not very plausible,
unless intended as a hint at Tlascaltec hospitality.
[336] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 67.
[337] Now Atoyac.
[338] Cortés proceeds to give an account of articles sold
here, which is on a par with his Granada comparison, and
accords little with the declared simplicity or poverty of the
people. In the temple over 800 persons had been sacrificed
during some years. _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap. ii.
[339] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 87-8; _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. vi. caps. v. xii. xiii.; _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 162; _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apolog._, MS., 13-14.
[340] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 52. Gomara, followed
by Herrera, says the 18th.
[341] ‘Se quitó la gorra y les hizo una muy grande y
humilde reverencia, y luego abrazó á Xicotencatl,’ says
Ixtlilxochitl, with an exactness which is doubtless intended
to impress the ruder Spanish population of his day. _Hist.
Chich._, 293. Camargo also describes ceremonies with some
detail, _Hist. Tlax._, 147, and Duran, _Hist. Ind._, MS.,
ii. 425-7.
[342] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 86. Camargo and Ixtlilxochitl
quarter the Spaniards in the palace. ‘Á las casas reales.’
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 17.
[343] _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 150; _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 52.
[344] Camargo calls it a rich present.
[345] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 53.
[346] According to the somewhat mixed account of Bernal
Diaz, Xicotencatl offers his daughter at once to Cortés,
who accepts, and thereupon urges Padre Olmedo to begin a
raid against idolatry. The latter tells him to wait till the
daughters are brought. They are introduced on the following
day, five in number, and Xicotencatl joins the hands of
the general with the one intended for him. He accepts her,
but declares that she and her companions must remain with
their parents till conversion is consummated. Finally the
daughter is transferred to Alvarado.
[347] A not uncommon practice in Mexico, carried out in
the same manner as among the Romans. See _Native Races_,
iii., passim.
[348] Portrait in _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii.
165, and _Zamacois_, _Hist. Méj._, ii. 514.
[349] ‘En aquel templo adonde estaua aposentado, se
hiziesse vn capilla.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap.
xv. A new temple near by was set aside for this. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 54. ‘Hizo la sala principal de
Xicotencatl Oratorio.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._,
294. ‘Hizo una iglesia en una casa de un ídolo principal.’
_Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 572-3.
This author does not intimate that Cortés sought to force
conversion, Bernal Diaz alone being responsible for the
statement, though Herrera adopts it. Eager to remove the
reproach of infidelity from his people, Camargo relates
that Cortés insisted on the renunciation of idolatry, and
that the chiefs finally yielded, while placing upon him the
responsibility of removing the images. When the iconoclasm
began, the people hastened to hide their cherished idols,
which they long worshipped in secret, although accepting
baptism. _Hist. Tlax._, 150-8. In a hieroglyphic painting
still possessed by the cabildo, says Ixtlilxochitl, it is
shown that the lords were at this time baptized. He gives
their new names. _Hist. Chich._, 294.
[350] ‘Durò tres, ó quatro años.’ _Remesal_, _Hist. Chyapa_,
304; _Dávila_, _Teatro Ecles._, i. 78; _Camargo_, _Hist.
Tlax._, 140; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. xv. Solis
dwells upon the spiritual effect of the miracle, which
occurred immediately after the departure from Tlascala.
_Hist. Mex._, i. 324-5. Torquemada devotes a whole chapter
to it, and states that the first cross was raised by unseen
hands the night after the arrival of the Spaniards in
the city. The high-priest placed over it a guard, who was
surprised by a celestial light which appeared at midnight
and drove out the demon from the temple, iii. 200-3.
[351] ‘Lo primero que mandaua nuestro Capitan era quebralles
las tales carceles, y echar fuera los prisioneros.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 55.
[352] In order to obtain by them a race of heroes. Most
writers, following Bernal Diaz and the less explicit
chroniclers, allow Xicotencatl to give only one daughter,
but Ixtlilxochitl names two, _Hist. Chich._, 294. and
Juarros, in his biography of the Alvarados, enumerates
their different wives, and among them the two sisters, with
their full names and their descendants. Pedro de Alvarado’s
only surviving issue, he says, was a daughter Leonor, by
Luisa, who married first Pedro Puertocarrero and afterward
Francisco de la Cueva, nephew of the Duke of Alburquerque.
The other sister also left a daughter. _Hist. Guat._,
347-8. Bernal Diaz mentions also a son, Pedro, by Luisa.
_Hist. Verdad._, 54; _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 54.
According to Camargo, 300 young and pretty slave girls,
destined for the sacrifices, were the first women offered.
They were at first declined, but finally accepted for
the suite of Marina. Finding that they were well treated,
the lords offered their own daughters in marriage. _Hist.
Tlax._, 148-50. A number of women were added to the suite
of Marina and of the new wives, from the first families in
the state, another authority intimates. _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 86; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. xi.
[353] _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 150-1. They opened a road
to Cempoala, and brought effects from Villa Rica, including
presents for the lords. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 294.
[354] Tapia writes, ‘Yo que esto escribo pregunté á
Muteczuma y á otros sus capitanes,’ and was told that
the Mexicans could readily have subdued little Tlascala,
but they preferred to use her as a means, close at hand,
for exercising their youth and armies in warfare, and for
supplying war captives for the sacrifices! _Tapia_, _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 572. ‘Juntaua dozientos y
trezientos mil hombres para vna batalla.’ _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 89. The Tlascaltecs spoke of their descent from
giants, and produced gigantic bones in evidence thereof.
Some of these were sent to Spain by Cortés, together with
the report. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 55.
[355] Torquemada places the arrival of this embassy
immediately after Cortés’ entry into Tlascala, _Monarq.
Ind._, i. 433, while Clavigero dates it at Tecohuatzinco.
_Storia Mess._, iii. 51-2. Brasseur de Bourbourg calls
it the second embassy, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 165, for he
accepts the statement of Ixtlilxochitl, _Hist. Chich._, 288,
that the first envoys saw Cortés at his camp by San Juan
de Ulua. For Ixtlilxochitl’s career, see _Native Races_,
v. 474-7.
[356] Bernal Diaz relates that Cortés detained these men
as hostages, while he sent Alvarado and Bernardino Vazquez
de Tapia to Mexico to communicate with Montezuma, and to
examine the route and approaches to the city. They had hardly
left before the company began to censure the rashness of
sending two valuable men on so risky a mission, and Cortés
accordingly sent to recall them. Tapia having fallen sick
on the road, they gladly returned, but left the guides to
proceed to Mexico.
[357] ‘Me dijeron ... que para ello habia enviado Muteczuma
de su tierra ... cincuenta mil hombres, y que los tenia en
guarnicion á dos leguas de la dicha ciudad ... é que tenian
cerrado el camino real por donde solian ir, y hecho otro
nuevo de muchos hoyos, y palos agudos hincados y encubiertos
para que los caballos cayesen y se mancasen, y que tenian
muchas de las calles tapiadas, y por las azoteas de las
casas muchas piedras.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 70. The stream
within the temple was a myth, which the Cholultecs sought
to maintain in order to frighten their enemies. Oviedo
and Gomara relate that Xicotencatl junior was concerned
in these plots, and that, warned by his sister, the wife
of Alvarado, Cortés had him quietly seized and choked to
death, iii. 497; _Hist. Mex._, 90. Whoever may have been
throttled, it certainly was not the general, for he met
his fate at a later date. According to Bernal Diaz the
whole army was consulted as to whether all were prepared
to start for Mexico. Many of those owning estates in Cuba
raised objections, but Cortés firmly declared that there
was no other way open than the one to Mexico, and so they
yielded. _Hist. Verdad._, 56.
[358] ‘Y dar la obediencia â nuestro Rey, y Señor, sino
que los ternia por de malas intenciones.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist Verdad._, 56. According to Camargo, Patlahuatzin of
Tlascala was sent with the message. The Cholultecs seized
and flayed his face and arms, cutting off the hands, so that
they were left dangling by the skin from the neck. In this
guise they sent him back with the reply that thus would they
receive the white gods whose prowess he had extolled. The
Tlascaltecs demanded that Cortés should avenge the cruelty
and the insult, and he did so in the massacre of Cholula.
This, continues the narrator, is commemorated in Tlascalan
song, but the account is evidently mixed, and probably
refers chiefly to some earlier occurrence. _Hist. Tlax._,
161-2. Brasseur de Bourbourg assumes that Patlahuatzin is
merely insulted and ill-treated. The two peoples had once
been friends and allies, but during the last battle which
they fought against their common enemy, the Aztecs, the
Cholultecs had suddenly changed sides and fallen on the rear
of their unsuspecting allies, inflicting great slaughter.
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. xviii.
[359] Three of the members are imprisoned for favoring an
alliance with the Spaniards, but they escape and come to
Cortés, says Herrera, _Id._
[360] Cortés, _Cartas_, 71, says that he sent this message
by the Cholultec messengers.
[361] ‘É así lo asentó un escribano.’ _Id._, 72. ‘Otro dia
vinieron muchos señores y capitanes de Chololla.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 91. According to Brasseur de Bourbourg,
Cortés is already en route for Cholula when the friendly
council members appear to bring excuses and invitations.
_Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 169-70. Bernal Diaz, indeed, appears
to say that the Cholultecs sent to excuse themselves from
appearing before Cortés so long as he remained in hostile
territory. _Hist. Verdad._, 57.
CHAPTER XIV.
SUBJUGATION OF CHOLULA.
OCTOBER, 1519.
DEPARTURE FROM TLASCALA—DESCRIPTION OF CHOLULA—THE
WELCOME—ARMY QUARTERS IN THE CITY—INTIMATIONS OF A
CONSPIRACY BETWEEN THE MEXICANS AND CHOLULTECS—CORTÉS ASKS
FOR PROVISIONS AND WARRIORS—HE HOLDS A COUNCIL—PREPARATIONS
FOR AN ATTACK—THE LORDS ENTER THE COURT WITH THE REQUIRED
SUPPLIES—CORTÉS REPRIMANDS THEM IN AN ADDRESS—THE
SLAUGHTER BEGINS—DESTRUCTION OF THE CITY—BUTCHERY AND
PILLAGE—AMNESTY FINALLY PROCLAIMED—XICOTENCATL RETURNS
TO TLASCALA—RECONCILIATION OF THE CHOLULTECS AND
TLASCALTECS—DEDICATION OF A TEMPLE TO THE VIRGIN—REFLECTIONS
ON THE MASSACRE OF CHOLULA.
The Spaniards had been three weeks beneath the hospitable roofs of
the Tlascaltecs, and now they departed amid expressions of good-will
mingled with grief.[362] A crowd as large as that which had welcomed
their arrival followed them for a considerable distance, and this
included all the available warriors of the districts,[363] who would
gladly have joined the handful of heroes in their quest for wealth
and glory amongst the hated Aztecs. Cortés did not think it well,
however, to trammel his movements, or to intrude on his various hosts
with too large a force of undisciplined and unmanageable men, whom he
had not learned to trust, and only about five thousand were allowed
to attach themselves to his army.[364]
Late in the afternoon the army reached the southern border of Tlascala,
and camped by a river two leagues from Cholula. The city stood in a
vast fertile plain, so thickly covered with plantations and gardens
“that not a span of land remained uncultivated.” A network of ditches
irrigated the fields wherein maize and agave, cochineal and chile,
swelled the resources of the owners. “No city in Spain,” exclaims
Cortés, “presents a more beautiful exterior, with its even surface
and mass of towers,” interspersed with charming gardens and fringed
with alluring groves. Its six sections were marked by fine, straight
streets, lined with buildings, the neatness and substantial appearance
of which fully corresponded to the reputed wealth of the occupants.
Cortés estimates the number of houses at twenty thousand, with as
many more in the suburbs, which implies a population of two hundred
thousand.[365]
Cholula was one of the most ancient settlements in the country, with
traditions reaching far back into the misty past. It was here that
Quetzalcoatl had left the final impress of his golden age as ruler
and prophet, and here that a grateful people had raised to him the
grandest of his many temples, erected upon the ruins of a tower of
Babel which had been stayed in its growth by divine interference.
Notwithstanding the vicissitudes of war, during which the frenzy of
the moment had overcome religious scruples to wreak destruction, or
during which reckless invaders less imbued with veneration came to
desecrate this western Rome, she had maintained herself, ever rising
from the ashes with renewed vigor and fresh splendor, and she was at
this time the commercial centre for the great Huitzilapan plateau,
famous beside for her pottery and delicate fabrics. The warlike
Tlascaltecs referred to her contemptuously as a city of cunning and
effeminate traders, and there was doubtless a good deal of truth in
this; but then her merchants rivalled those of Mexico in wealth, while
her citizens were not behind the dwellers on the lake in refinement.
But the chief renown of Cholula consisted in being the holy city of
Anáhuac, unequalled for the frequency and pomp of her festivals and
sacred pageantry; in being the religious centre for countless pilgrims
who journeyed from afar to worship at the shrines here maintained,
not only by the citizens, but by princes of different countries. Her
temples were estimated to equal the number of days in the year, and as
some possessed more than one chapel, fully four hundred towers rose
to bewilder the eye with their gleaming ornamentation. Chief among
them was the semispherical temple, with its vestal fire, devoted to
Quetzalcoatl, which stood upon a quadrilateral mound of nearly two
hundred feet in height, ascended by one hundred and twenty steps,
and with a larger base than any old-world pyramid.[366]
The government was aristocratic republican, directed by a council of
six nobles, elected in the six wards. At their head sat two supreme
magistrates, the _tlachiach_ and _aquiach_, chosen respectively
from the priesthood and nobility, and corresponding to pontiff
and captain-general,[367] the latter office held at this time by
Tecuanhuehuetzin.[368]
At the command of these chiefs a number of Cholultec nobles appeared
at the camp to offer welcome and to bring provisions.[369] In the
morning the army advanced toward the city and was met by a crowd
of fully ten thousand people, preceded by a stately procession, at
the head of which appeared the lords. They showed themselves most
obsequious, but requested that the Tlascaltecs, as their enemies,
should not be allowed to enter the city, and Cortés accordingly
persuaded these warriors to camp outside. Some of their carriers
alone entered with the Cempoalans and Spaniards to receive a share in
the proffered hospitality. If the troops found no arches and floral
festoons, as at Tlascala, to honor them, nor the same jubilant shouts
of welcome, they were at least heralded by clashing music, and dense
crowds of spectators lined the streets and roofs, while priests in
white robes went chanting by their side, swinging the censers whence
the copal rose to shed a halo on the heroes. Cortés was struck with
the superior quality and quantity of dresses worn, the higher classes
being noticeable in their embroidered mantles, not unlike the Moorish
cloak. He also observed that beggars abounded, as they did in “Spain
and other parts inhabited by civilized people.”
The courts of one of the temples[370] were offered as quarters for
the army, and presently servants appeared with provisions, which, if
not abundant, were at least good.[371] Cortés did not omit to vaunt
the grandeur of his king and to impress the advantages of the true
faith, but although the lords bowed admission to the first they held
firmly to their idols. The following day they failed to appear, and the
supply of food dwindled perceptibly, while none was furnished on the
third day, the populace even appearing to avoid the Spanish quarters.
Cortés sent to remind the chiefs of their neglect, but received only
the scantiest provisions, with the excuse that the stock was nearly
exhausted.[372]
The same day came envoys from Montezuma, unprovided with the usual
presents, who, after some words with the confrères acting as guides to
the Spaniards, represented that to proceed to Mexico would be useless,
since the roads were impassable and the food supply insufficient.[373]
Finding that these and other statements had no effect on Cortés,
they left, taking with them the leading envoy stationed with the
Spaniards.[374] All this was far from reassuring, taken in connection
with the warning of the Tlascaltecs still ringing in their ears, and
with the report brought by Cempoalans of barricades, of stone piles
upon the roofs, and of excavations in the main street set with pointed
sticks and loosely covered over.[375]
Now came messengers from the allied camp to announce that women
and children had been leaving the city with their effects, and that
unusual preparations seemed to be going on. Scarcely had this set
Cortés pondering when Marina appeared with the still more startling
information that a native woman of rank, won by her beauty and evident
wealth no doubt, had just been urging her in a most mysterious manner
to transfer herself and her effects to the house of the woman, where
she should be married to her son.[376] By expressing gratitude and
pretending acquiescence, Marina elicited that envoys had been coming
and going between Mexico and Cholula for some time, and that Montezuma
had prevailed on the chiefs, by means of bribes and promises,[377] to
attack the Spaniards that very night or in the morning. Aztec troops
were stationed close to the city, to the number of twenty or even
fifty thousand, to aid in the work and to carry the Mexican share
of the captives to their capital.[378] Cortés at once secured the
communicative woman, who was awaiting the return of Marina with her
valuables, and ascertained further that the covered excavations, the
stone piles, and the barricades were no fiction.
He also secured two apparently friendly priests,[379] and by bribing
them with chalchiuite stones, and showing that he was aware of the
plot, obtained a revelation which agreed substantially with the account
already given. It appeared that Montezuma had proposed to quarter
his troops in the city, but this the lords had objected to, fearing
that once within the walls the Aztecs would retain possession.[380]
The Cholultecs intended to do the deed themselves, and it was only
in case the Spaniards left the city, or escaped, that the confederate
Aztecs were to take an active part.
Only three of the wards had consented to share in the treachery,[381]
and the priests of the others had that very day sacrificed ten
children[382] to the god of war, and received assurances of victory.
So confident were they of securing the encaged guests that ropes and
stakes had been prepared to bind the captives.
Cortés called his counsellors, and placing before them the state of
affairs asked their views. A few of the more cautious advised retreat
to Tlascala, whose friendly hospitality seemed alluring. Others
suggested an immediate departure by way of the friendly Huexotzinco,
while the majority inclined to a prompt and effective chastisement
of the treachery as a warning to others. This was what Cortés had
determined upon. He showed them how well the arrangement of the courts
would answer for the plan he had evolved, and how strong they were
in case of a siege.
Summoning the lords, he expressed his displeasure at the inconsiderate
treatment received, and said that he would rid them of his presence
on the morrow. He reminded them of the allegiance they had tendered,
and declared that if loyal they would be rewarded; if not, punishment
would follow. Finally he demanded provisions for the journey, and
two thousand warriors, beside carriers, to accompany the army.[383]
This appeared to suit their plans, for they exchanged a look of
intelligence, and at once promised compliance, protesting at the same
time their devotion. “What need have these of food,” they muttered
with a laugh, “when they themselves are soon to be eaten cooked with
chile?”[384] That very night preparations were made, the Spaniards
planting guns at the approaches to the streets and courts, looking to
the horses and accoutrements, and sending a message to the Tlascaltecs
to enter the city and join them on hearing the first shot.
In the morning, so early indeed as to indicate a decided eagerness,
came the lords and leading priests, with an immense throng. A force
even larger than had been demanded followed them into the Spanish
quarter, and was allowed to file into the court, which was commanded
at all points by the soldiers and the cannon, the latter as yet
innocent-looking instruments to the Cholultecs.[385] The lords and
leading men, to the number of thirty or forty, were invited to Cortés’
rooms to receive his farewell. He addressed them in a severe tone,
in the presence of the Aztec envoys, representing that he had sought
to win their friendship for himself and their adhesion for his king,
and to further this he had treated them with every consideration.
They had withheld the necessary supplies, yet he had respected their
property and persons, and for their sake he had left his stanch allies
outside the city. In return for this they had, under the mask of
friendship, plotted against the lives of his party, the invited guests
of themselves and of Montezuma, with the intention of assassinating
them. But they had been caught in their own trap. The amazement of the
chiefs deepened into terror as he concluded. “Surely it is a god that
speaks,” they murmured, “since he reads our very thoughts.” On the
impulse of the moment they admitted their guilt, but cast the blame
on Montezuma. This, rejoined Cortés, did not justify treachery, and
the excuse should avail them naught. The lords who had been opposed
to the plot, and a few others less guilty or less responsible chiefs
and priests, were now taken aside, and from them further particulars
were obtained, which implicated the Mexicans only the more.
Returning to the envoys, who protested that their emperor was wholly
blameless, he reassured them by saying that he believed not a word
of the accusation. Montezuma was too great a prince, he continued,
to stoop to such baseness, and had beside, by means of presents
and messages, shown himself to be his friend. The Cholultecs should
suffer the penalty not only of their treason but of their falsehood.
The fact was that it did not suit Cortés to quarrel with Montezuma
for the present, but rather to lull him into fancied security.[386]
A terrible punishment was now in store for the Cholultecs.
The signal being given, volleys poured from cannon, arquebuses, and
cross-bows upon the warriors confined in the court, and then the
Spaniards rushed in with sword and lance thrusting and slashing at
the packed masses. The high walls permitted no escape, and at the
gates gleamed a line of lances above the smoking mouths of the guns.
Pressing one upon another, the victims offered only a better mark for
the ruthless slayers, and fell in heaps, dead and dying intermingled,
while many were trampled underfoot. Not one of those who had entered
the court remained standing. Among the slain were the captain-general
and the most inimical of the lords and leading men.[387]
Meanwhile other guns had belched destruction along the approaches from
the streets, as the crowd rushed forward in response to the cries and
groans of their butchered friends. Terrified by the fiery thunder and
its mysterious missiles, they fell back; and now the cavalry charged,
trampling them underfoot, and opening a way for the infantry and
allies, who pressed onward to take advantage of the confusion and
to repeat the scene enacted within. Panic-stricken as the natives
were by the strange arms and tactics of the Spaniards, they offered
little or no resistance, though armed with intent to attack. Being
also without leaders, they had none to restrain their flight, but
pressed one on the other, down the streets and into buildings, anywhere
out of the reach of the cutting blades and fierce-tramping horses.
The Tlascaltecs[388] were at the same time falling on their flanks,
glorying in the opportunity to repay their enemies the treachery of
years ago. A bloody track they left. Unprepared for such an onslaught
the people of Cholula found little opportunity to make use of the
barricades and the stone piles, and where they attempted it the
fire-arm and cross-bow aided the fire-brand. The strongest resistance
was met at the temples, wherein the fugitives mostly gathered, but
even these did not hold out long, for stones and arrows availed little
against armor.
All who could sought to gain the great temple of Quetzalcoatl, which
offered not only the best defence from its height, but was held to
be impregnable through the special protection extended over it by the
deity. Within its walls lay confined a mighty stream, so it was said,
which by the removal of a few stones could be let loose to overwhelm
invaders. Now, if ever, in the name of all the gods, let it be done!
Reverently were removed, one by one, the stones of the sacred wall,
but no flood appeared, not even a drop of water. In their despair
the besieged hastened to hurl the stones, and arrows, and darts[389]
upon the enemy as they climbed the sides of the pyramid. But there
was little use in this. Quickly they were driven by the sword from
the platform into the chapel tower. Not caring to lose time in a
siege, the Spaniards offered them their lives. One alone is said to
have surrendered. The rest, inspired by the presence of the idols,
spat defiance. It was their last effort, for the next moment the
torch was applied, and enfolding the building, the flames drove the
besieged, frenzied with terror and excitement, upon the line of pikes
inclosing them, or head-foremost down the dizzy heights. To the last
could be seen a priest upon the highest pinnacle, enveloped in smoke
and glare, declaiming against the idols for having abandoned them,
and shouting: “Now, Tlascala, thy heart has its revenge! Speedily
shall Montezuma have his!”[390]
During the first two hours of the slaughter over three thousand
men perished, if we may believe Cortés, and for three hours more
he continued the carnage, raising the number of deaths according to
different estimates to six thousand or more.[391] The loss of life
would have been still greater but for the strict orders issued to
spare the women and children, and also the less hostile wards,[392]
and for the eagerness of the Tlascaltecs to secure captives as well
as spoils, and of the Spaniards to hunt for treasures. The hostile
wards had besides been pretty well cleared of inhabitants by the time
Cortés returned to his quarters forbidding further butchery. When the
amnesty was proclaimed, however, numbers appeared from hiding-places,
even from beneath the heaps of slain, while many who had pretended
death, to escape the sword, arose and fled.
The pillage was continued for some time longer,[393] and as the
Tlascaltecs cared chiefly for fabrics, feathers, and provisions,
particularly salt, the Spaniards were allowed to secure all the gold
and trinkets they could, though these were far less in amount than had
been expected.[394] When the real work was over, Xicotencatl appeared
with twenty thousand men and tendered his services; but Cortés could
offer him only a share in the booty for his attention, and with this
he returned to Tlascala to celebrate the downfall of the hated and
boastful neighbor.[395]
The prayers of the chiefs who had been spared, supported by the
neighboring caciques, and even by the Tlascalan lords, prevailed on
Cortés to stop the pillage after the second day, and to issue a pardon,
although not till everything of value had been secured. Some of the
chiefs were thereupon sent forth to recall the fugitive inhabitants,
and with such good effect that within a few days the city was again
peopled. The débris and gore being removed, the streets speedily
resumed their accustomed appearance, and the shops and markets were
busy as before, though blackened ruins and desolated homes long
remained a testimony of the fearful blow.[396] Impressed no less by
the supposed divine penetration of the white conquerors than by their
irresistible prowess and terrible revenge, the natives were only too
ready to kiss with veneration the hand red with the blood of their
kindred. To this they were also impelled by finding that the Spaniards
not only allowed no sacrifice of captives, but ordered the Tlascaltecs
to release the prisoners they had hoped to carry into slavery. This
was a most trying requirement to the allies, but at the instance of
Maxixcatzin and other lords they obeyed in so far as to restore the
greater proportion of the thousands who had been secured.
The intervention of the Tlascaltec lords and chiefs in behalf of the
Cholultecs tended to promote a more friendly feeling between the two
peoples, particularly since the one had been satiated with revenue
and the other humbled, and Cortés took advantage of this to formally
reconcile them. Whatever may have been their sincerity in the matter,
they certainly found no opportunity to renew their feud.
The captain-general having fallen, the people, with Cortés’ approval,
chose a successor from the ranks of the friendly chiefs.[397] Cortés
assured them of his goodwill and protection so long as they remained
the loyal subjects they now promised to be, and he hoped that nothing
would occur hereafter to mar their friendly intercourse. He explained
to them the mysteries of his faith, and its superiority over the
superstitious worship of the idols which had played them false during
the late conflict, counselling them to cast aside such images, and let
their place be occupied by the redeeming emblems of Christianity. The
terrified natives could only promise obedience, and hasten to aid in
erecting crosses, but the idols nevertheless retained their places.
Cortés was quite prepared to take advantage of his power as conqueror
to compel the acceptance of his doctrines by the now humbled people,
but Padre Olmedo representing the futility of enforced conversion, he
contented himself with breaking the sacrificial cages and forbidding
the offering of human victims. As it was, idolatry had suffered a
heavy blow in this terrible chastisement of the holy city, rich as
she was in her sanctuaries and profound in her devotion. The gods
had proved powerless! Although a number of temples were speedily
restored to their worship, the great pyramid was never again to be
graced by pagan rites. Twice had this temple shared in the destruction
of the city, only to rise more beautiful than ever in its delusive
attractions; now a simple stone cross stood upon the summit, erected
by Cortés to guard the site on behalf of the church which was there
to rise a few years later. This was dedicated to the Vírgen de los
Remedios, whose image is said to have been left in the city by her
conquerors.[398]
* * * * *
The massacre of Cholula forms one of the darkest pages in the annals
of the conquest, and has afforded much ground for reproach against
Cortés, but it is to be regarded from different stand-points.
The diabolical doctrines of the day may be said to have forced on
adventurers in America the conquest of her nations, and cruel deeds
were but the natural result, particularly when the task was undertaken
with insufficient forces. According to their own admission, made also
before the later investigating committee, the Cholultecs had plotted
to destroy their invited guests, whom they sought first to lull into
fancied security, and in this they acted as treacherously and plotted
as cruelly as did their intended victims in retaliating. True, they
had been forced by threats, and by the exhibition of an apparently
superior force, into a submission which they could ill brook, and were
justified in striking a blow for liberty, especially when encouraged,
or bidden, by the great monarch; but they had no right to complain
if they suffered the penalty everywhere affixed to treachery; and
the Cholultecs did bear an unenviable reputation in this respect.
The native records naturally assert their innocence; but even if we
ignore the confession of the Indians, as prompted by fear of their
judges and masters, or as colored by Franciscans whose patron Cortés
was, and if we disregard all official testimony, we must still admit
that there was evidence enough to justify the general in a measure
which he regarded as necessary for the safety of his men.[399]
It might be claimed that by holding captive the chiefs their safety
would have been assured; but treason was rife everywhere, and a lesson
was needed. Here among the greatest plotters, and in the holy city,
the lesson would be most effective. It might also be claimed that
the chiefs were the guilty ones, and should alone have suffered,
not the citizens and soldiers; but they were also in arms, even if
subordinate, and such discrimination is not observed in our own age.
Outrages equally as cruel are to-day exculpated throughout Christendom
as exigencies of war. If we, then, overlook such deeds, how much more
excusable are they in the more bloody times of Cortés? But neither now
nor then can war, with any of its attendant atrocities, be regarded by
right-thinking, humane men as aught but beastly, horrible, diabolical.
FOOTNOTES
[362] ‘Hiço sacrificar treynta muchachos el dia que se
partieron.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 497.
[363] Estimated by Cortés at around 100,000. Others say
he was offered 10,000 to 20,000 men.
[364] This is the figure deduced from later references.
‘Quedaron en mi compañía hasta cinco ó seis mil.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 72. Dismissing the 100,000 with presents, he
retained only 3000. ‘Por no ponerse en manos de gente
barbara.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. i. ‘Six thousand
warriors,’ says Ixtlilxochitl, _Hist. Chich._, 294. He
gives the names of their chiefs, which differ wholly from
those mentioned in _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 160. ‘Fueron
tãbien con el muchos mercaderes a rescatar sal y mantas.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 91.
[365] _Cartas_, 74-5. ‘En el tiempo de la guerra salian en
campo ochenta ó noventa mill hombres de guerra.’ _Oviedo_,
iii. 498. ‘Ultra triginta millia familiarum capiebat.’ _Las
Casas_, _Regio. Ind. Devastat._, 26. ‘Parecio ... en el
assiento, y prospetiua a Valladolid.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. vii. cap. i.
[366] See _Native Races_, iii. iv.
[367] _Native Races_, v. 264; _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._,
160. ‘Gouernauase por vn capitan general, eligido por la
republica, con el consejo de seys nobles, assistian en el
sacerdotes.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. ii. Gomara
mentions only a captain-general or governor. _Hist. Mex._,
95. Torquemada gives the city four lords, who divided between
them the territory, ii. 350-1. The government appears to have
undergone several changes since the age of Quetzalcoatl,
and at one period four nobles appear to have represented
the wards, but these increased in course of time to six,
and the council appears also to have been increased by the
attendance of other priests beside the pontiff.
[368] _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, 100, 107-8. For history
and description of city and temples, see _Native Races_,
ii.-v.
[369] From a vague reference in Camargo, Brasseur de
Bourbourg assumes that this party is headed by the three
counsellors least friendly to the Spaniards. A little
later the other three come to Cortés for protection, after
escaping from the imprisonment imposed upon them by their
colleagues. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 174. Herrera places the
arrival of the refugees at Tlascala. dec. ii. lib. vi.
cap. xviii. But there appears to be no ground for these
statements.
[370] ‘Del gran Cú de _Quetzalcoatl_.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist.
Conq._, 18.
[371] ‘Les dieron aquella noche a cada vno vn gallipauo.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 92.
[372] ‘Lo que traian era agua, y leña,’ says Bernal Diaz,
_Hist. Verdad._, 58.
[373] ‘Do Muteczuma estaba habia mucho número de leones é
tigres é otras fieras, é que cada que Muteczuma quirie las
hacie soltar, é bastaban para comernos é despedazarnos.’
_Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 574;
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 92.
[374] Cortés told them to wait, for he would start for
Mexico on the following day, and they promised to do so,
says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 58.
[375] On his entry into the city Cortés also observed
suspicious features. ‘Algunas calles de la ciudad tapiadas,
y muchas piedras en todas las azoteas.’ _Cartas_, 72.
[376] ‘Hermano de otro moço que traia la vieja que la
acompañaua.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 59. This is
probably the young man who, according to Peter Martyr,
reveals the plot to Aguilar. A ‘Cempoal maiden’ was also
warned by a Cholultec woman, dec. v. cap. ii.
[377] ‘Dieron al capitan-general vn atambor de oro.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 92. This official was the husband
of the old woman. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 59.
[378] ‘Auian de quedar veinte de nosotros para sacrificar
á los idolos de Cholula.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
59. Others say half the captives.
[379] Marina won them over. _Id._ ‘Dos que andauan muy
solicitos.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. i. Brasseur
de Bourbourg supposes that the friendly chiefs were those
who gave the first intimation of the plot, _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 174, and it is not unlikely that they did warn
the Spaniards.
[380] Oviedo regards the Cholultecs as having rebelled
against Montezuma, iii. 498. But they stood rather in the
position of allies. See _Native Races_, v. Bernal Diaz
assumes that half the Aztec troops were admitted.
[381] ‘Los Mexicanos ... trataron con los Señores de los
Tres Barrios.’ _Torquemada_, i. 438. Herrera has been even
more explicit, and Bernal Diaz confirms this in several
places, without specifying the number. ‘Otros barrios, que
no se hallaron en las traiciones.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 60.
[382] Three years old, half males, half females. _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. ii. Oviedo supposes the females to
be young virgins, iii. 498. Bernal Diaz says five children
and two other persons.
[383] Most authors, following Gomara and Herrera, assume that
only carriers were asked for, but Diaz writes warriors, and
correctly, no doubt, since it could not be Cortés’ plan or
desire to wreak vengeance on helpless carriers, but rather
on the very men who proposed to attack him. According to
Tapia, followed by Gomara, Cortés upbraids the lords for
lying and plotting, but they assure him of their loyalty.
_Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 575. It is not
likely that he would have roused suspicion by such language.
[384] ‘Aguilar que los oya hablar.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 498.
[385] Picked warriors were brought, pretending to be slaves
and carriers. _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, ii. 575. ‘Cõ hamacas para lleuar los Españoles.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 93.
[386] According to Bernal Diaz the envoys are told of this
on the preceding evening, and are thereupon placed under
guard. _Hist. Verdad._, 59.
[387] Tapia states that most of the lords and chiefs whom
Cortés addressed were killed. _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, ii. 575. ‘Some of them,’ say Ixtlilxochitl
and Gomara, while Clavigero, Brasseur de Bourbourg, and
others suppose that all these leaders were pardoned, which
is not likely, since so many less guilty men fell. ‘El
que solia mãdar, fue vno de los que murieron en el patio.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 60. He intimates that the
real carriers were allowed to leave the court, the warriors
alone being detained for slaughter. The two friendly priests
were sent home to be out of harm’s way. This leads to the
supposition that all the rest of the leading men fell. ‘Los
otros señores naturales todos murieron.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 499.
[388] Wearing crowns of rushes to be distinguished from
their enemies. _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 164.
[389] Zamacois enters into an elaborate argument to disprove
the unimportant statement that burning arrows were showered
on the besiegers. _Hist. Méj._, ii. 707. This author has a
decided faculty for singling out trifles, apparently under
the impression that important questions can take care of
themselves.
[390] _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 163-4; _Torquemada_, i. 440.
‘Se dejaron allí quemar.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, ii. 576.
[391] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 73-4; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 94;
6000 and more within two hours. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist.
Chich._, 294. Las Casas lets him first kill 6000 unarmed
carriers and then proceed to devastate the city. _Regio.
Ind. Devastat._, 27.
[392] ‘Eché toda la gente fuera de la ciudad por muchas
partes della.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 74. The statement of
Bernal Diaz that the friendly priests were sent home, to be
out of harm’s way, shows also that parts of the city were
respected. See notes 17 and 23. ‘El marques mandaba que se
guardasen de no matar mujeres ni niños.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 576.
[393] For two days, says Tapia, _Id._, and Bernal Diaz
intimates that it ended with the second day. _Hist. Verdad._,
60.
[394] ‘Tomaron los Castellanos el oro, y pluma, aũque se
halló poco.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. ii. ‘Ovo
mucho despojo de oro é plata,’ says Oviedo, iii. 499,
probably because he knew Cholula to be rich; but a great
deal of private treasure at least must have been taken out
of the city when the women were sent away. The Tlascaltecs
carried off 20,000 captives, he adds.
[395] _Herrera_, ubi sup. Oviedo allows a reinforcement of
40,000 Tlascaltecs to join in the massacre and pillage,
iii. 498, and Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 60, says the
late comers joined in the pillage on the second day. The
Tlascaltecs brought the Spaniards food, of which they had
fallen short. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 295.
[396] A very similar massacre and raid was perpetrated
by the Chichimec-Toltecs at the close of the thirteenth
century. _Native Races_, v. 484-7.
[397] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 95. Finding that the brother
of the deceased was, according to custom, entitled to the
office, Cortés appointed him. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
60. Oviedo intimates that one governor was chosen to take
the place of all the other ruling men. iii. 499.
[398] It is also said ‘que la trajo un religioso franciscano
á quien se le apareció en Roma.’ _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant.
Méj._, i. 156. ‘Disgusted with the idol which had played
them false, they installed another in its place,’ says
Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 61. The disregard shown by
Spaniards even for the temples and relics of Quetzalcoatl
might have struck the natives as peculiar in men whom rumor
pointed out as his descendants, yet no chronicle refers to
it.
[399] Spanish chroniclers as a rule approve the deed as
necessary and just, either in tacit or open comment, and
a few devout missionaries, who have assumed the rank of
Indian apostles, are the only ones to take exception. Chief
among these stands Las Casas, as might be expected from his
sympathy with Velazquez, and from his character as Indian
protector. He condemns it in the most unmeasured terms as
a base murder of innocent and defenceless people, committed
merely with a view to spread terror. Six thousand carriers,
he writes, were shut up in a court and put to the sword,
while the many discovered alive on the following days
were thrust through and through. The chiefs of the city
and neighborhood, to the number of over 100, were chained
together to a circle of poles and burned alive, and the
king, who fled with 30 or 40 followers to a temple, met
the same fate there. While the soldiers were butchering
and roasting the captives, ‘eorum Capitaneum summa lætitia
perfusum in hunc cantum prorupisse:
Monte ex Tarpeio Romana incendia spectans
Ipse Nero planctus vidit, nec corde movetur.’
_Las Casas_, _Regio. Ind. Devastat._, 26-8. A number of
finely executed copper plates are appended to illustrate
these deeds.
Bernal Diaz expresses himself hotly against this version,
and states that several of the first Franciscans who came
to Mexico held an investigation at Cholula of the massacre.
After examining the leaders, and other persons who had
witnessed it, they came to the conclusion that the story
of the conquerors was true, and that the slaughter was
a well merited punishment for a plot which involved the
lives of Cortés’ soldiers, and would, if successful, have
stayed the conquest for God and the king. Diaz had heard
the pious Motolinia say that although he grieved over the
deed, yet, being done, it was best so, since it exposed the
lies and wickedness of the idols. _Hist. Verdad._, 61. The
Franciscans did not probably care to weigh carefully the
value of testimony from new converts given before a tribunal
composed of their religious and political masters, nor
were they likely to favor a Dominican friar like Las Casas
when the interest of their patron Cortés was at stake. In
awe of the friars, and in terror of the conquerors whose
encomienda slaves they were, the Indians hardly dared to
say aught to implicate the latter. This is doubtless the
view Las Casas would have taken. Intent on pleading the
cause of his dusky protégés, he cared not to sift statements
that might create sympathy for them. Yet, had he foreseen
how widely his accusations would be used to sully Spanish
fame, he might have been more circumspect. ‘E’ vero, che
fu troppo rigorosa la vendetta, ed orribile la strage,’
says Clavigero; yet he severely condemns Las Casas for his
distorted account. _Storia Mess._, iii. 63-4. According
to Sahagun’s native record, the Tlascaltecs persuaded
Cortés to avenge them on the Cholultecs, and as the latter
received him coldly, he began to believe the accusations of
his allies. Assembling the chiefs and soldiers, together
with citizens, in the temple court, he slaughtered them,
defenceless as they were. _Hist. Conq._, 18. Bustamante
comments on this version, and denounces the conquerors as
atrociously cruel. _Id._ (ed. 1840), 56-63. Duran’s version
is a little milder. His main object being to give the life
of Montezuma, he has passed by many events connected with
the Spaniards, and has suppressed many accounts of their
cruelties. He accordingly refers but briefly to the Cholula
massacre, saying that ‘the Indians, in their eagerness to
serve the Spaniards, came in such large numbers to their
quarters with provisions, grass, etc., that Cortés suspected
treasonable designs, and put them to the sword.’ _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 438-9. Ixtlilxochitl evidently struggles
between his fear of the Spanish rulers and the desire
to tell what he regards as the truth. He intimates that
the only ground for suspicion against the Cholultecs was
the effort to dissuade Cortés from going to Mexico. The
chiefs and the citizens were assembled on the pretence of
selecting carriers, and over 5000 fell beneath the sword.
_Hist. Chich._, 294. An antagonistic view of the affair
is offered by Juan Cano, of Narvaez’ expedition, who gave
Oviedo the hearsay statement that Cortés had asked for 3000
carriers, and wantonly killed them. iii. 552. Carbajal
Espinosa, a Mexican historian, like Bustamante, regards
the victims as innocent and the deed as barbarous. _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 182. Robertson considers that Cortés had good
reasons for it, yet ‘the punishment was certainly excessive
and atrocious.’ _Hist. Am._, ii. 452. Solis condemns those
who seek to accuse the Spaniards of cruelty and to pity the
Indians—‘maligna compasion, hija del odio y de la envidia.’
The conquerors gave religion to them, and that he regards
as sufficient compensation. _Hist. Mex._, i. 345. ‘Cortez
felt but doubtful of their fidelity, and feared to leave
his rear to a people who might ruin his enterprise,’ says
Wilson, _Conq. Mex._, 383, in explanation of the motive;
but he forgets that a few hostages, as taken from other
peoples on the route, would have secured Cortés far more
than the murder of a small percentage of this population.
Prescott compares the deed with European cruelties, and,
considering the danger threatening the Spaniards, he excuses
it. He prefaces his comments by a consideration of the
right of conquest. _Mex._, ii. 29-39. Alas for honesty,
humanity, decency, when talented American authors talk of
the right of one people to rob and murder another people!
See also _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant. Méj._, iii. 381-2; _Pizarro y
Orellana_, _Varones Ilvstres_, 86-9; _Peralta_, _Not. Hist._,
112-13, 313-14; _Pimentel_, _Mem. Sit._, 90-2. Although some
of the early Dutch writers eagerly copy and even exaggerate
Las Casas’ version, the contemporary German writers are
quite moderate. Cortés’ version is given in the _Weltbuch
Spiegel und bildtnis des gantzen Erdtbodens von Sebastiano
Franco Wördensi_, Tübingen, 1534, ccxxxvii leaves, beside
preface and register. This book was much sought after in
its day, and received several editions, in German and Dutch,
as late as the seventeenth century. The earliest mentioned
by Harrisse is dated 1533. The new continent was gradually
receiving a larger space in the cosmographies at this period,
and Franck actually assigns it a whole section, as one of
the four parts of the world. The historic and geographic
description of Africa occupies the first and smallest
section; Europe follows and absorbs about half the pages,
while Asia receives 100 folios, and America the remainder,
beginning at folio 210. The heading reads: _Von America
dem vierdten teyl der welt, Anno M.CCCC.XCVII. erfunden_;
but after this chapter follow several pages on Portuguese
discoveries in Africa and eastward, till folio 220, when
begins the voyage of Columbus, ‘sunst Dauber genant,’ the
German translation of the admiral’s name. After several
chapters on the physical features, natural resources, and
inhabitants of the new discoveries, comes one relating how
Americus Vespucius found the fourth part of the world. This
is followed by three pages of matter on Asia, as if the
author, fearful of forgetting it, there and then gave his
story. Several interpolations occur, but the chief portion
of the remaining folios relates to Cortés’ conquest of
Mexico. The carelessly compiled and badly arranged material
of the volume claims to be based on over sixty authorities,
among which figure Apianus, Munster, Vespucci, Columbus,
and Cortés. The affix Wördensi indicates that Franck was a
Hollander, although he is often referred to as a German,
probably because his life was passed chiefly in Germany.
Here he issued, among other works, a not very orthodox
chronicle, which was excommunicated at Strasburg. Franck
was chased from more than one place, but enjoys the honor of
standing in the first class among authors condemned by the
Roman Church, and of having been deemed worthy of special
refutation by Luther and Melancthon. Even the liberal-minded
Bayle, after applying the term Anabaptist, refers to him
as ‘un vrai fanatique.’ _Dict. Hist._, ii. 1216.
CHAPTER XV.
FROM CHOLULA TO IZTAPALAPAN.
OCTOBER-NOVEMBER, 1519.
MONTEZUMA CONSULTS THE GODS—HE AGAIN BEGS THE STRANGERS NOT
TO COME TO HIM—POPOCATEPETL AND IZTACCIHUATL—NEWS FROM VILLA
RICA—DEATH OF ESCALANTE—RETURN OF THE CEMPOALAN ALLIES—AGAIN
EN ROUTE FOR MEXICO—RECEPTION AT HUEXOTZINCO—FIRST VIEW
OF THE MEXICAN VALLEY—EXULTATIONS AND MISGIVINGS—RESTING
AT QUAUHTECHCATL—THE COUNTERFEIT MONTEZUMA—MUNIFICENT
PRESENTS—THE EMPEROR ATTEMPTS TO ANNIHILATE THE ARMY BY
MEANS OF SORCERERS—THROUGH QUAUHTECHCATL, AMAQUEMECAN,
AND TLALMANALCO—A BRILLIANT PROCESSION HERALDS THE
COMING OF CACAMA, KING OF TEZCUCO—AT CUITLAHUAC—MET BY
IXTLILXOCHITL—THE HOSPITALITY OF IZTAPALAPAN.
Elated by his success, Cortés again spoke to the Aztec embassadors,
telling them in an aggrieved tone that proofs existed connecting
Mexican troops with the recent plot, and that it would be only just
for him to enter and desolate the country for such perfidy. The envoys
protested their ignorance of any such complicity, and offered to send
one of their number to Mexico to ascertain what ground there was for
the charge. This Cortés agreed to, expressing at the same time the
opinion that Montezuma, after all his friendly demeanor, could hardly
have favored the treachery. He regarded him as a friend, both for the
sake of his king and for himself, and it was out of deference to him
that he had spared the Cholultecs from total extermination.[400]
When the envoy reached Mexico he found that his master had retired
to grieve over the fate of the holy city, or more probably over the
defeat of his plans, and to appeal to the incensed gods by prayers and
fastings, while the priests supported the invocations with reeking
human hearts.[401] But the holocaust was in vain, for a miraculous
incident frightened the idols into silence. Among the victims, says
a sacred chronicle, was a Tlascaltec, who, while stretched on the
sacrificial stone, called loudly on the God of the advancing Spaniards
to deliver him. The words were yet on his lips when a dazzling light
enveloped the place, revealing a bright-clad being with diadem and
large wings. The priests fell awe-stricken to the ground, while the
angel advanced to cheer their victim with hopeful words of a happy
future. He was told to announce to the priests that soon the shedding
of human blood would cease, for those destined to rule the land were
at hand. This the victim did, when the sacrifices were resumed, and
with the name of God the last upon his lips his spirit rose to a
brighter world.[402]
The downfall of Cholula resounded throughout the land, and the
Spaniards were now almost universally confirmed as divine beings,
from whom nothing could be kept secret, and whose anger was fierce
and devastating. One effect was the arrival of envoys from quite a
number of surrounding chieftains, bearing presents, partly with a view
of gaining the good-will of the dreaded strangers, partly to offer
congratulations.[403] As for Montezuma, his awe deepened into terror
as the reports came in and the half threatening message of the invader
was delivered him. It would be dangerous indeed to admit these beings;
but how prevent it? Thus revolving the matter, Montezuma had recourse
once more to timid entreaties. His envoy returned to Cholula within a
week, accompanied by the former chief of the commission, and brought
ten plates of gold,[404] fifteen hundred robes, and a quantity of fowl
and delicacies, together with the assurance that he not only had had no
share in the plot, but desired to see the Cholultecs further chastised
for their treachery. The Mexican troops near Cholula belonged to the
garrisons of Acatzingo and Itzucan provinces, and had marched to the
aid of that city without his knowledge, prompted wholly by neighborly
friendship. He begged the Spanish leader not to proceed to Mexico,
where want would stare him in the face, but to present his demands
by messengers, so that they might be complied with. Cortés replied
that he must obey the orders of his king, which were to deliver to
the emperor in person[405] the friendly communications with which he
had been intrusted. With this object he had crossed vast oceans and
fought his way through hosts of enemies. The privations and dangers
depicted could not deter him, for naught availed against his forces,
in field or in town, by day or by night.
Finding objections futile, Montezuma again consulted the idols. Their
ruffled spirit had evidently been soothed by this time, for now came
the oracle to invite the strangers to Mexico. Once there, it was added,
retreat should be cut off, and their lives offered on the altar.[406]
This utterance was favored by the counsellors on the ground that if
the Spaniards were opposed they and their allies might ravage the
country. The emperor accordingly sent an invitation, promising that,
although the situation of the capital made it difficult to provide
food, he would do his best to entertain them and give proofs of
his friendship. The towns en route had orders to supply all their
wants.[407]
The story is not without a parallel in classic literature. As Montezuma
awaited the approach of Cortés, so old King Latinus awaited the
arrival of Æneas and his Trojan warriors; refusing to give battle, or
to fight the destinies, and curbing his impetuous people by quoting
the oracle.
Along the western horizon of Cholula, at a distance of eight leagues,
runs the mountain range which separates the plain of Huitzilapan
from the valley of Mexico. And like sentinels upon it stand, in close
proximity, the two volcanic peaks of Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl,
terms signifying respectively ‘the smoking mountain’ and ‘the white
woman,’ and indeed most apt, the former being suggested by the
frequent eruptions, the latter by the snowy covering which falls
like a tilmatli mantle from a woman’s shoulders. Tradition has it
that Iztaccihuatl was the wife of her neighbor, whose noise and
fumes were caused by the agonies of tyrants who there underwent
purification ere they could enter final rest.[408] While the Spaniards
were at Cholula, Popocatepetl was in eruption, an evil omen with
the Indians, foreshadowing the disturbances soon to overwhelm the
country. Interested by a sight so curious and novel, and desirous
of ascertaining for himself and the king the “secret of this smoke,”
Cortés consented to let Ordaz ascend the volcano. The Indians sought
to dissuade him from an undertaking which had never been attempted,
and which would in their opinion surely involve the life of him who
ventured on it. This made Ordaz only more eager to exhibit his daring,
and joined by nine men he set out under the guidance of some citizens
and carriers who had been persuaded to go part of the way. They had
not climbed far into the cooler region before the quaking ground and
ash-rain caused the party to halt. Ordaz and two of his men continued,
however, beyond the limits of vegetation, and over the stones and
bowlders which covered the sandy expanse fringing the region of
perpetual snow. At one time the outburst of ashes and heated stones
obliged them to seek shelter for an hour, after which they sturdily
climbed onward, turning from their path for a while by the projecting
rock now known as Pico del Fraile, and almost losing themselves in the
ash-covered snow. One more effort they made, despite the difficulties
encountered in the rarefied atmosphere of this altitude, and finally
they reached the summit, more than seventeen thousand seven hundred
feet above the level of the sea. A short distance to the north rose
the consort peak, three thousand feet less in height, and at their
feet extended the field of their future campaign, in the valley to
the east. The crater was nearly half a league in width, though not
deep, and presented the appearance of a caldron of boiling glass, as
says Gomara. The situation was too oppressive to permit of further
observations, and after securing some snow and icicles as trophies,
the men hastened to retrace their steps by the already trodden path. On
their return they were received with great demonstration, the natives
in particular extolling their deed as something superhuman.[409]
While preparing to leave Cholula, Cortés was startled by news from
Villa Rica of a conflict with Mexicans, resulting in the death of
Escalante and several soldiers. On the northern border of the Totonac
territory, bathed by the Gulf of Mexico, lay the town and district of
Nautla, which together with its river had received from Grijalva the
name of Almería.[410] This was occupied by an Aztec garrison under
Quauhpopoca,[411] whose Aztec pride and loyalty to Montezuma could
ill brook the independence achieved by the Totonacs, and who probably
grieved over the loss of slaves and other contributions which once
swelled his income. No sooner had Cortés disappeared beyond the plateau
border than my lord grew audacious, encouraged no doubt by the express
or tacit consent of his sovereign, and demanded from the neighboring
Totonacs the customary tribute, under penalty of having their lands
ravaged. They refused, pointing out that they were now the subjects
of the great white king. Escalante being appealed to for protection,
sent a message explaining that the independence of the people had
_de facto_ been recognized by Montezuma, with whom he was on friendly
terms. He would allow no interference with them. Quauhpopoca replied
that his answer would be given on the battle-field. Escalante, nothing
loath, set out at once with fifty men, two horses, and two cannon,
attended by several thousand Totonacs,[412] and reached the vicinity
of Nautla, where Quauhpopoca was already committing depredations.
The armies met, and a fierce battle ensued. Awed by the remembrance
of former defeats at the hands of the Aztecs, the Totonacs comported
themselves so poorly[413] that the brunt of the fight had to be borne
by the Spaniards, of whom several were killed and wounded, while one
was captured, and a horse destroyed. The enemy was put to flight, but
it has been said as an excuse for their defeat the Mexican officers
declared to Montezuma that the virgin bearing an infant led the
Spaniards in their attack which spread terror and fearful slaughter
in their ranks.[414] Escalante laid waste the district, and captured
Nautla town, which was sacked and burned. This lesson finished, he
hastened back to Villa Rica, and there within three days succumbed to
his wounds together with several soldiers, so that the campaign cost
the lives of seven or nine men.[415] From prisoners it was understood
that Quauhpopoca had acted wholly under orders from Montezuma. The
captured soldier was Argüello, of Leon, a young man of powerful frame,
with a large head and a curly black beard. He appears to have died
from his wounds on the way to Mexico, and the head was presented to
the emperor. Its wild appearance, however, increased by the black,
curly beard, made so bad an impression upon him that he refused to
offer it to his idols, ordering it to be sent to some other town.[416]
Fearing that these tidings might dishearten the men, Cortés said
nothing about the affair;[417] but it had nevertheless a bad effect,
for the Cempoalan allies, who had learned a few particulars from the
messengers, requested at the last moment to be dismissed to their
homes, pleading not only the long absence from their families, but
the fear of being treated at Mexico as rebels. Cortés sought to
reassure them, declaring that no harm could reach any one under his
protection. Furthermore he would enrich them. But the larger portion
still insisted, and since they had served him well, he did not wish
to compel them. Several packs of the rich robes obtained from Mexico
were accordingly divided among the leaders, two packages being destined
for Chicomacatl and his nephew Cuexco, and with this parting gift
all but a small body returned to Cempoala.[418]
After a stay at Cholula of nearly three weeks[419] the Spaniards
set out for Mexico, attended by about six thousand natives, chiefly
Tlascaltecs, with a sprinkling of Cempoalans, Cholultecs, and
Huexotzincas.[420] They passed through Huexotzinco by a route already
followed by Ordaz, and recommended as the best and safest. The first
camp was made at the Huexotzinca village of Izcalpan, over four
leagues from Cholula, where they met with a most friendly reception,
and received abundant provisions, together with some female slaves and
a little gold. Leaving behind them the smiling plain of Huitzilapan,
where they had overcome so many dangers and obtained so many proofs
of good-will, on the following day they approached the mountains and
came upon the regular highway which leads across the range to the
valley of Mexico. The junction of the roads was at the south-west
border of Huexotzinco, where the Mexicans had left a proof of their
hostility toward this republic, allied to Tlascala, by blocking up the
way with trees and other material.[421] These were removed, and the
army began the steep ascent of the pass, pressing onward against the
chilling winds which swept down from its frozen heights, and before
long they were tramping through the snow which covered the summit.
Here they were cheered by a sight which made them, for the moment
at least, forget their hardships. A turn in the road disclosed the
valley of Mexico—the object of their toil and suffering—stretching
from the slope of the forest-clad ranges at their feet as far as
the eye could reach, and presenting one picturesque intermingling of
green prairies, golden fields, and blooming gardens, clustering round
a series of lakes. Towns lay thickly sprinkled, revealed by towering
edifices and gleaming walls, and conspicuous above all, the queen city
herself, placidly reposing upon the mirrored surface of the larger
water. Above her rose the cypress-crowned hill of Chapultepec, with
its stately palace consecrated to the glories of Aztec domination.[422]
The first transport over, there came a revulsion of feeling. The
evidently dense population of the valley and the many fortified towns
confirmed the mysterious warnings of the allies against a powerful
and warlike people, and again the longing for the snug and secure
plantations of Cuba found expression among the faint-hearted, as they
shivered in the icy blast and wrapped themselves the closer in the
absence of food and shelter. In this frame of mind the glistening
farm-houses seemed only so many troops of savage warriors, lurking
amidst the copses and arbors for victims to grace the stone of
sacrifice and the festive board; and the stately towns appeared
impregnable fortresses, which promised only to become their prisons
and graves. So loud grew the murmur as to indicate mutiny; but Cortés,
with his usual firm words, quieted the soldiers, supported as he was
by the spirited majority.[423]
After descending for a short distance they came to the travellers’
station of Quauhtechcatl,[424] whose commodious edifices afforded
room for the whole army. The Mexicans had prepared for the arrival by
furnishing an abundance of provisions, with fires in all the rooms,
and the tired soldiers eagerly gave themselves up to repose.[425]
No less exhausted than they, Cortés nevertheless could not think of
rest till he had seen to the security of the camp. His prudence on
this occasion came near costing him dearly, for in the darkness a
sentinel taking him for a spy drew his cross-bow. Fortunately he heard
the click and announced himself.[426] This promptness on the part
of the guard was by no means unnecessary; during the night a dozen
or more prowling natives met the fate which the general so narrowly
escaped. They were supposed to have been the spies of an army hidden
in the forest, which, on observing the watchfulness of the Spaniards,
abandoned the premeditated attack.[427]
* * * * *
Montezuma’s fears appeared to grow with the approach of Cortés, and
so did his anxiety about the import of the message which must be
delivered to him alone. Could there be a design upon his person?
This must be ascertained before the invaders came too near. Among
his courtiers was a noble named Tzihuacpopoca, who greatly resembled
him in person and voice. Him he commanded to proceed to the Spanish
camp, attended by a large retinue, and by representing himself as
the emperor to ascertain from the white chief what his intentions
were, and to induce him with liberal offers to turn back. The idea
was based on an incident which had occurred not many years before,
wherein one of the tripartite monarchs saved his life by appearing
in proxy at a treacherous court. Montezuma hoped to derive from a
similar trick more than one advantage.
Tzihuacpopoca arrived at the mountain camp the morning after the
Spaniards had entered it, and created no little excitement by the
announcement that the emperor was present in person. Preparations
were made to give him a brilliant reception. Unfortunately for the
envoy, his secret had too many keepers in the large suite attending
him; there were also many among the allies who had been at Montezuma’s
court, and who looked on this sudden arrival as suspicious. They made
inquiries and soon ascertained the truth. Cortés received the great
man with courtesy, heralded as he was with a present of three thousand
pesos de oro, but he resolved to take advantage of the discovery to
impress him with his penetration. After a few moments’ conversation
he told the noble with a severe tone that he was not the monarch
he represented himself to be.[428] He also referred to the attempts
made during the night to surprise the camp, as indicated by the dead
spies, and assured him that his men were always prepared against plots
and deception, and any attempts against them would lead only to the
discomfiture and grief of the enemy. Awed by the superior intelligence
and power of the general, the envoy thought no longer of anything
else than to keep such a man from entering Mexico. He presented among
other reasons that the city could be reached only in canoes, and
that provisions were difficult to obtain there. He repeated the offer
already made of an annual tribute payable in treasures on the coast,
and promised as a bribe for Cortés himself four loads of gold, and
for each of his officers and men one load.[429] Dazzling as the offer
was, Cortés regarded it as but a faint reflection of still richer
treasures, the attainment of which must procure for him greater glory
than he had as yet dreamed of. In his reply he accordingly pointed
out how strange it must appear to turn back now that he was within
view of the goal. Such conduct would disgrace any envoy. No! he dared
not disobey the orders of his king, who had sent him upon a mission
of great benefit to Montezuma. He would leave as soon as this was
accomplished, if desired.[430]
Nothing abashed by this rebuff, Montezuma again had recourse to the
black art, and sent a number of sorcerers, the native records say, to
cast spells on the Spaniards. They soon returned with the report that
on nearing Tlalmanalco, Tezcatlipoca had appeared to them in the guise
of a drunken peasant, frightening them greatly, and saying: “Fools,
return! Your mission is in vain! Montezuma will lose his empire in
punishment for tyranny, and I, I leave Mexico to her fate and cast you
off!” The sorcerers recognized the god, and prostrated themselves to
adore him, but he spurned their devotion, rebuking them, and finally
pointed to Mexico, saying: “Behold her doom!” Looking round they saw
her enveloped in flames, and the inhabitants in conflict with white
men. On turning again to beseech the god he was gone.[431]
Montezuma was in consultation with his advisers when this report was
brought. As if pierced by death’s dart, the monarch bowed low his
head and moaned: “We are lost! We are lost!”[432] Less impressed with
superstitious fear by an incident which he regarded as concocted by
the sorcerers, Cuitlahuatzin vividly presented the danger of admitting
such determined and powerful intruders within the city, and he boldly
urged that they be forbidden to enter, by force of arms if need be.
Cacama remonstrated that after inviting them such a course would
savor of fear. The emperor owed it to his exalted station and power to
receive envoys. If they proved objectionable, the city should become
their tomb. Surely his nobles and his armies were able to overcome
so small a number, assisted by the strategic advantages of the place
in its approaches and resources. To the affrighted monarch anything
was acceptable that would stay prompt action, and consequently defer
the ruin which he feared. He at once inclined to Cacama’s advice,
stipulating, however, that he, king as he was, should condescend
to meet the Spaniards and sound their intentions. “May the gods not
place within your house, my lord, one who shall cast you forth and
usurp the empire,” was the solemn warning of Cuitlahuatzin, as he
heard this resolution.[433]
The Spaniards had meanwhile descended the wooded slope from
Quauhtechcatl to the cultivated district round Amaquemecan, a city
which, together with its suburban villages for two leagues around,
numbered over twenty thousand families.[434] The lord, Cacamatzin
Teotlateuchtli, received them in his own palace, and entertained
them most liberally during their two days’ stay, presenting them
gifts of forty female slaves and three thousand castellanos in
gold. The chiefs of Tlalmanalco and other neighboring towns came
to tender their respects, and encouraged by the reports of Spanish
prowess they hesitated not to lay bare their grievances against the
Aztecs, who oppressed them with heavy taxes, robbed them of wives and
daughters, and carried the men into slavery. Cortés encouraged the
chiefs with fair promises, and was not a little delighted at finding
disaffection in the very heart of the empire, whose power had been
so much extolled.[435]
Passing by way of Tlalmanalco through a succession of flourishing
maize and maguey fields, the Spaniards reached Ayotzinco, a town at
the south end of Chalco lake.[436] Here was seen the first specimen
of the peculiar aquatic cities of the lake region. Half of the town
stood on piles, and was intersected by canals, wherein the traffic,
with canoes, was far livelier than in the streets. The other half
lay at the foot of steep hills, upon one of which the Spaniards were
encamped. Prompted either by curiosity or by evil purposes, a number
of Indians attempted during the night to enter the Spanish quarter,
only to pay with their lives for the indiscretion.[437]
In the morning messengers arrived requesting the Spaniards to await the
coming of Cacama. Shortly after appeared a procession more brilliant
than any yet seen. In a litter profusely ornamented with gold, silver,
and feather ornaments, and even inlaid with precious stones, sat the
king of Tezcuco, a young man of about twenty-five, carried by eight
powerful caciques. As he stepped out, attendants proceeded to sweep
the road, removing even the straws, while nobles held over his head
a canopy of green feathers, studded with gems, to shield him from the
sun. With stately steps the monarch advanced toward Cortés, saluting
him in the customary manner.[438] He had come, he said, with these
nobles, in the name of Montezuma, their master, to serve him, and
to provide all that was needed. He thereupon presented a rich gift,
to which Cortés responded with three fine marcasite stones[439] for
himself, and with blue glass diamonds for the nobles. In order to
sound him, Cacama represented that there existed almost insurmountable
obstacles to his entry into Mexico, among them the fears of the
populace, which had been aroused by terrible accounts of the cruelty
of his followers.[440] Cortés sought to reassure him, and declared
that no obstacles were insurmountable to his men, whereupon Cacama
hastened to state that Montezuma himself would willingly receive them,
and did tender an invitation. He now returned to Mexico to prepare
for the inevitable visit, leaving among the Spaniards the impression
that if he, the inferior king, exhibited such grandeur, that of the
emperor must indeed be imperial.[441]
Proceeding along the lake they entered upon a causeway in width a
spear’s length, leading through the waters for over a half league to
“the prettiest little town which we had yet seen, both with regard
to its well built houses and towers, and to its situation,” as
Cortés remarks. The admiring soldiers called it Venezuela, or little
Venice, the native name being Cuitlahuac. It was situated on an
islet, connected also with the northern shore by an extension of the
causeway, and contained a population of about two thousand families,
supported chiefly by floriculture, which was carried on to a great
extent by means of _chinampas_, or floating gardens.[442] The chiefs
came forth, headed by Atlpopocatzin,[443] and showed themselves most
attentive. Here again complaints were uttered about Aztec oppression,
with the warning that the Spaniards would meet with no true friendship
at Mexico.[444]
The Mexican envoys suspected the disaffection of Cuitlahuac, and
prevailed on the Spaniards to pass onward to Iztapalapan, where
preparations had been made to receive them. As they neared the densely
populated lake district, the crowds became larger and more curious,
wondering at the fair hue and bushy beards of the strangers, and
admiring the comely horses, and the glittering arms and helmets.
“Surely they must be divine beings,” some said, “coming as they do
from where the sun rises.” “Or demons,” hinted others. But the old
men, wise in the records of their race, sighed as they remembered
the prophecies, and muttered that these must be the predicted ones
who were to rule the land and be their masters.[445] To prevent the
natives from mingling with his men, and creating not only disorder
but diminishing the awe with which they were regarded, the horsemen in
the van received orders to keep the Indians at a respectful distance.
Iztapalapan was already in sight when a large force of armed warriors
was seen advancing, so large that it seemed as if the armies of
Mexico had come to overwhelm them. They were reassured, however, by
the announcement that it was Ixtlilxochitl with his escort, intent
on having an interview with his proposed ally. The prince had urged
upon Cortés to take a more northern route and join him at Calpulalpan,
but finding that the general preferred the Amaquemecan road, he had
hastened to meet the Spaniards on the lake. The approach of this
personage had made the court of Tezcuco more pliable to one whose
designs were well understood. When Ixtlilxochitl therefore came
near the city, the elder brother, Cohuanacotzin, made efforts for
a closer conciliation with himself and Cacama.[446] The opportunity
was favorable, for the indisposition of Cortés to enter actively into
the plans of the former, and his advance on Mexico, with proclaimed
friendship for Montezuma, made Ixtlilxochitl not averse to the advances
of his brothers, particularly since he intended this in no wise to
interfere with his schemes. The result of the negotiation was that
he found himself admitted with great pomp into his paternal city,
wherein he hoped some day to displace Cacama. Imbued more than ever
with his ambition, he hastened to intercept the Spanish captain, in
order personally to promote his views and induce him to come northward
to Tezcuco and to his own capital. Cortés was full of promises, but
it did not just then suit him to disarrange the plan he had formed,
and so Ixtlilxochitl had to wait.
It is this meeting no doubt which has been wrongly extended by several
authorities into a visit to Tezcuco.[447]
As the Spaniards approached Iztapalapan,[448] Cuitlahuatzin, the
brother of Montezuma and lord of the city, came forth in company with
Tezozomoc, lord of the adjoining Culhuacan, and a number of other
caciques and nobles,[449] to escort his guests to their quarters
in his palace. The city with its ten thousand to twelve thousand
houses was constructed partly on piles, and crossed by canals, on
either side of which rose substantial buildings, chiefly of stone, a
large proportion being, according to the conqueror, “as fine as the
best in Spain, both in extent and construction.” The Spaniards were
awed by the beauty of the place. The palace was particularly fine
and spacious, with courts shaded by awnings of brilliant colors and
bordered by commodious apartments. Adjoining it, and overlooked by a
large pavilion, was a vast garden, divided into four squares by hedges
of plaited reeds, which were entirely overgrown with roses and other
flowers. Shaded walks led out in all directions, now by beds of rare
plants collected from remote parts, now into orchards temptingly laden,
and again past groups of artistically arranged flowers. In ponds fed
by navigable canals sported innumerable water-fowl, consorting with
fishes of different species. In the centre of the garden was an immense
reservoir of hewn stone, four hundred paces square, surrounded by a
tiled pavement from which steps led at intervals to the water.[450]
Cortés was not only hospitably entertained, but received a present
of female slaves, packs of cloth, and over three thousand castellanos
in gold.[451]
The soldiers now prepared under more than usual excitement for
the final march, which was to bring them to the longed-for goal.
The reputed magnificence of the capital made most of the Spaniards
eager to enter; but there were others who recalled the rumors of its
strength, and of the terrible plots which their timid allies declared
were to encompass them. “Being men and fearing death, we could not
avoid thinking of this,” says Bernal Diaz, frankly, “and commending
ourselves to God.” And as he remembers how warnings failed to deter
them, the old soldier bursts forth in self-admiration, “What men have
existed in the world so daring?”[452]
FOOTNOTES
[400] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 75-6; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 96-7.
[401] ‘Sacrificassen çinco mill personas para festejar é
aplacar sus dioses.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 499. ‘Estuuo encerrado
en sus deuociones, y sacrificios dos dias juntamente con
diez Papas.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 61. ‘Estuuo
en oracion, y ayuno ocho dias.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
97. ‘Si ritirò al palazzo _tlillancalmecatl_, destinato
pel tempo di duolo.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 69.
[402] _Mendieta_, _Hist. Ecles._, 182; _Remesal_, _Hist.
Chyapa_, 304. According to Arias de Villalobos, the idol
was already stricken mute by the shadow of the approaching
cross; the angel released the captive, one of 500 destined
for slaughter, and he set forth to join the Spaniards.
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 126.
[403] From the lord of Tepeaca came 30 female slaves and
some gold, and from Huexotzinco a wooden box, bordered with
gold and silver, containing jewels worth 400 pesos de oro.
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. iii.
[404] ‘Ten thousand pesos de oro,’ says Torquemada, i. 442.
[405] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 75-6; _Torquemada_, i. 442.
Gomara is confused about these messages between Cholula
and Mexico, while Bernal Diaz ignores this attempt to keep
back the Spaniards.
[406] ‘Quitarnos la comida, é agua, ò alçar qualquiera de las
puentes, nos mataria, y que en vn dia, si nos daua guerra,
no quedaria ninguno de nosotros á vida.’ This oracle came
from Huitzilopochtli. The bodies should be eaten. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 61; _Oviedo_, iii. 499; _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 97.
[407] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 77. Bernal Diaz relates that
six chiefs brought this message, together with a number of
gold jewels, worth upward of 2000 pesos, and some loads of
robes. _Hist. Verdad._, 62. Most authors are, like Gomara,
somewhat confused about these messages.
[408] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 96. ‘Algunos querian decir
que era boca del infierno.’ _Motolinia_, _Hist. Ind._, 180;
_Torquemada_, i. 436-7.
[409] ‘Vinieron muchos Indios a besarles la ropa, y a verlos,
como por milagro, ó como a dioses.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
96. According to Cortés they failed to reach the summit,
although coming very near to it. But this statement is open
to doubt, for Cortés is not liberal in according credit to
others where it might tend to call attention from himself,
particularly to a man like Ordaz, who had, until quite
lately, been his most bitter opponent. Gomara had evidently
good authority for his statement, since he in this case
failed to follow his patron’s version; and Bernal Diaz, who
is always ready to contradict him, and who was no friend
of Ordaz, does also admit that he reached the summit. He
gives him only two companions, however, and starts them
from Tlascala. _Hist. Verdad._, 55. Leading modern authors
are inclined to doubt their success. Prescott, Brasseur de
Bourbourg, and others, from a misinterpretation of Cortés’
text, allow the ascent to be made while the army was camped
on the summit of the range, en route for Mexico.
Ordaz no doubt claimed to have reached the summit, since
the emperor granted him a coat of arms, wherein the
achievement is commemorated by a blazing mountain. Had he not
merited it, his many jealous companions would surely have
raised a clamor. He became also a knight of Santiago, in
acknowledgment of his services during the conquest. Having
beside acquired great wealth, he might have rested on his
laurels; but eager to emulate his late chief, he in 1530
petitioned for and obtained the governorship of the tract
between Rio Marañon and Cabo de la Vela, in South America,
with a right to extend the conquest. After suffering great
hardship there he set out for Spain, two years later, to
recruit his health and seek redress against rival conquerors.
He died on the way. _Oviedo_, ii. 211-24; _Herrera_, dec.
iv. lib. x. cap. ix.; dec. v. lib. i. cap. xi. Simon has
him arraigned at Española for cruelty to his men, etc.
Ordaz insists on going to Spain for justice, and fearing
the result, since he stood in high favor there, his enemies
poisoned him during the voyage. _Conq. Tierra Firme_, 104-35.
His portrait is given in _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._,
ii. 192, and _Prescott’s Mex._ (Gondra ed. of Mex.), iii.
221. ‘Su familia establecida en Puebla, en donde creo que
todavía quedan descendientes suyos.’ _Alaman_, _Disert._,
i. 101. Montaño, among other conquerors, made the ascent of
the volcano not long after this, and he is even said to have
descended into the crater. Padre Sahagun also reached the
summit. _Hist. Gen._, iii. 317; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vi.
cap. xviii.; _Torquemada_, i. 436-7; _Peter Martyr_, dec. v.
cap. ii. The next successful ascent was not made till 1827,
by Messrs Glennie. Sonneschmidt had explored Popocatepetl
partially only in 1772, but had reached the summit of the
consort peak. Berkbeck explored in the same year as the
Glennies. Gérolt and Gros attempted the ascent in 1833 and
1834, and succeeded in reaching the summit on the second
occasion. The record is given in _Revista Mex._, i. 461-82.
In 1857 the Mexican government sent up a successful exploring
expedition under Sonntag and Laverrière, whose report,
with drawings, is given in _Soc. Mex. Geog._, _Boletin_,
vi. 218-45. Meanwhile the observations of Gérolt and Gros
had led to the examination of the crater for sulphur, an
industry carried on pretty regularly since 1836. The volcano
was in frequent eruption about the conquest period, as if
in sympathy with the political turmoils around it. One of
the heaviest discharges recorded took place in 1539-40,
which covered the neighboring towns, as far as Tlascala,
with ashes. Since then it has been comparatively silent,
the last two outbreaks being in 1663-4 and 1697. ubi sup.,
204-5; _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 55; _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. vi. cap. xviii. The eruption of 1663-4 created great
terror in Puebla, as Vetancurt relates. _Teatro Mex._, pt.
i. 26. Bustamante extends this activity to 1665. _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 75.
Rude cuts of the volcanic eruption of 1519 are to be seen in
the old and curious cosmographies of Sebastian Munster. This
learned man, famous as a Hebrew scholar, as mathematician and
cartographer, was the author of some forty printed works,
and would probably have issued as many more had not the
plague cut him off at Basle, in 1552, at the age of 63. His
editions of Ptolemy’s Geography began in 1540, and in the
following year, according to _Labanoff’s Catalogue_, appeared
the first edition of his _Cosmographia Beschreibung_; but
this date, accepted by several bibliographers, as well
as that of 1543 for a Latin edition, are evidently wrong,
since Munster in his dedication of 1550, to King Gustavus
I. of Sweden, remarks that ‘Inn dise dritt edition’ he had
hoped to include a description of Stockholm and other towns
under the king, but had not received a reply to his demands
therefor. A few lines above this he writes equally to the
point: ‘Als ich aber vor sechs jaren noch mit diser arbeit
vmbgieng, ist zũ mir kommen E. K. M. diener, der hochgelert
herr, herr Georgius Normannus, dem ich vorhin auss etlichen
büchern vnder meinem namen aussgangen, bekãt wz, vnd als
er besichtiget dise für genom̂en arbeit, schetzet er
sie wol wirdig, das sie vnd dem künigliche schirm E. M.
an tag käme.’ Nothing could more conclusively show that
the work had not appeared in print before 1544. The second
edition appeared in 1545. The title of the first reads:
_Cosmographia. Beschreibũg aller Lender Durch Sebastianum
Munsterum. Getruckt zü Basel durch Henrichum Petri. Anno
MDxliiij._ The Gothic text is accompanied by marginals in
Italics, and illustrated with numerous small wood-cuts, some
being of the character which permits their reproduction
in different chapters and for different countries. In
the African division we find beings of the Anubis and
Polyphemus type, and animal monsters of different form. In
the dedication to Gustavus, Munster speaks of having spent
eighteen years in collecting and arranging his material, on
the plan of ‘dẽ hochgelerten man̂ Strabõi,’which is not
very flattering to that geographer, if the method before us
be accepted as a specimen. He divides the volume into six
books—the first devoted to mathematical geography, the next
three to a general rambling description of Europe, chiefly
with reference to the natural resources and settlements of
the different countries. In the third book, covering two
thirds of the text, and relating to Germany, each little
province receives a historic notice, and every town and
castle of any note its description, with rude wood-cuts
attached. The next division given at some length is Asia,
to which is appended half a dozen pages on America, while
Africa closes with the sixth book and about three times
that amount of text. The one chapter relating to our
continent is headed, _Von den neuwen inseln_, and gives a
vague account of the discovery, the physical features and
natural products of the land, the inhabitants and their
customs, illustrated with several cuts, among them a volcano
in eruption and two cannibal scenes. The regular maps are
grouped at the beginning of the volume, each on the verso
and recto of two leaves, bearing on the first recto the
title, inclosed in a border more or less ornamented with
portraits, symbols, and arabesque. The mappemonde shows
_Terra Florida_ and _Francisia_ on each side of a bay.
Above this runs a wide strait marked _Per hoc fretû iter
patit ad Molucas_, which issues between _Cathay regio_ and
_Temistitan_. Below this land are placed Hispaniola and
Cuba, at the mouth of another wide strait, bounded on the
south by the large island of _America seu insula Brasilij_.
Further down is _Fretû Magaliani_, with a large island to the
south. The map for America bears the inscription: ‘_Die newe
weldt der grossen und vilen Inselen_.’ The second edition
of 1545 is considerably enlarged, the chapter on America
covering nine pages. In the third edition, of 1550, the
wood-cuts are increased by a number of large plans, views
of towns, and other scenes by Deutsch, making this the most
attractive volume for collectors. A portrait of the author
in his sixtieth year is also given. The various editions in
different languages, issued even in the following century,
vary considerably in arrangement and extent, and that of
1614, although improved and enlarged to 1575 pages, devotes
only ten to America, while previous editions contain more
material thereon. The binding is provided with bosses,
clasps, and vellum cover, impressed with tracery, portraits,
and emblems.
[410] Cap. iii. note 1.
[411] ‘Quauhpopocatzin, señor de Coyohuacan, uno de los
grandes del imperio, que asistia en Nauhtlan, y estaba
á su cargo el gobierno de las costas del mar del norte.’
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 296.
[412] Bernal Diaz writes, 40 soldiers, 2 cannon, 2 firelocks,
3 cross-bows and 2000 natives; Cortés, 50 Spaniards and 8000
to 10,000 Indians, ‘y doce tiros de pólvora.’ _Cartas_, 88.
[413] ‘Á la primera refriega ... huyeron, y dexaron al Juan
de Escalante peleando,’ says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._,
74.
[414] ‘And Montezuma believed this to be the great lady
whom we claimed for patroness.’ ‘Todos los soldados que
passamos con Cortés, tenemos muy creido.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 74.
[415] ‘Seis soldados juntamente con él.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 73. ‘Nueue Españoles,’ says Gomara, who
assumes that two were previously assassinated by Quauhpopoca.
_Hist. Mex._, 122, 129.
[416] According to Bernal Diaz, whose version is chiefly
adhered to, the death of so many soldiers caused the
Spaniards to fall somewhat in the estimation of the Indians,
who had looked upon them as invulnerable beings. ‘Y que
todos los pueblos de la sierra, y Cempoal, y su sujeto,
están alterados, y no les quieren dar comida, ni servir.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 73-4. But this is probably
an exaggeration, for Cortés would not have ventured to
send down a new comandante almost without escort, or to
have remained quietly at Mexico for months, had his rear
been so threatened. Cortés, who should be regarded as the
best authority, gives a curious motive for the campaign.
Qualpopoca, as he calls him, sent a message to Escalante,
offering to become a vassal of the Spanish king. He had not
submitted before, fearing to pass through the intervening
hostile country; but if four soldiers were sent to escort
him, he would come with them. Believing this protestation,
Escalante sent the four men, two of whom wounded returned
shortly after with the story that Quauhpopoca had sought to
kill them, and had succeeded in despatching their comrades.
This led to the expedition of Escalante. _Cartas_, 87-8.
It appears most unlikely that this officer should have so
far forgotten the prudence ever enjoined on his captains by
Cortés, and trusted only four men in an unknown country,
in response to so suspicious a request. There was beside
no need for Quauhpopoca to go to Villa Rica, since his
submission through envoys would be just as binding. If he
desired to see the Spanish fort, he could have gone safely
by water, for large canoes were used on the coast. It is
not improbable that the story was made up to justify the
expedition sent against Nautla, since a campaign by a small
force, merely on behalf of a wretched tribe of natives,
might have been regarded as unwarranted. This story was also
useful afterward, when Cortés first thought proper to reveal
it, for rousing his men to action. Gomara follows Cortés,
with the difference that Pedro de Ircio, as he wrongly
calls the captain at Villa Rica, having orders from Cortés
to anticipate Garay by incorporating Almería, sent an order
to Quauhpopoca to tender his submission. This he agreed to
do, provided the four Spaniards were sent to escort him.
Gomara appears to favor the view that Quauhpopoca acted on
his own responsibility, for he says that this chief sent to
warn Montezuma of Cortés’ intention to usurp the empire, and
to urge upon him to seize the white captain. _Hist. Mex._,
122, 129. Bernal Diaz stamps this account as false. Peter
Martyr, dec. v. cap. iii., assumes that the two Spaniards
were slain by robbers, so that Quauhpopoca was innocent of
any misdeed. Tapia’s version is incomplete, but appears to
favor Bernal Diaz. In Duran’s native record, Coatlpopoca
appears as the guide of the Spaniards. He treacherously
leads them along a precipice, over which two horsemen fall
with their steeds, and are killed. For this he is tried
and executed. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 411-13.
[417] He reveals it only after his arrival at Mexico, and
thus leads Bernal Diaz to assume that the news reached him
there. In this he is followed by Herrera, dec. ii. lib.
viii. cap. i., and consequently by Torquemada, i. 455.
[418] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 62; _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 97; _Torquemada_, i. 442.
[419] The estimate varies from fourteen days, _Herrera_,
to over twenty days, _Gomara_. By assuming that nineteen
days were spent at Cholula, the army has a week in which
to reach Mexico, and this is about the time consumed.
[420] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 97. ‘Saliẽdo acompañarle los
señores de Chulula, y con gran marauilla de los Embaxadores
Mexicanos.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. iii.
‘Andauamos la barba sobre el ombro,’ says Bernal Diaz, in
allusion to the precautions observed. _Hist. Verdad._, 63.
[421] Bernal Diaz relates in a confused manner that at
Izcalpan the Spaniards were told of two wide roads beginning
beyond the first pass. One, easy and open, led to Chalco;
the other, to Tlalmanalco, had been obstructed with trees
to impede the horses, and so induce the army to take the
Chalco route, upon which the Aztecs lay in ambush, ready to
fall upon them. _Hist. Verdad._, 63. This finds some support
in Sahagun, whose mythic account relates that Montezuma,
in his fear of the advancing forces, had blocked the direct
road to Mexico and planted maguey upon it, so as to direct
them to Tezcuco. _Hist. Conq._, 21. Cortés indicates clearly
enough that the Mexican envoys had at Cholula recommended
a route leading from that city south of Huexotzinco to the
usual mountain pass, and used by their people in order to
avoid this inimical territory. Upon it every accommodation
had been prepared for the Spaniards. This road was not
only circuitous, but had been declared by Tlascaltecs and
others as hard and perilous, with deep ravines, spanned by
narrow and insecure bridges, and with Aztec armies lying
in ambush. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 76-8; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 574. Peter Martyr, dec. v.
cap. ii., calls this route shorter and easier, though more
dangerous. Certain remarks by Bernal Diaz indicate that
the ambush had been arranged in connection with the plot
at Cholula, and abandoned upon its failure, loc. cit. There
could hardly have been more than one route across the range,
through the pass wherein the Aztecs had erected their station
for travellers, and this the Spaniards did follow. Here also
accommodation was prepared for them, and here the embassy
from Montezuma appeared. Hence the obstructions spoken of
must have been at the junction of the Huexotzinca road with
the main road from Cholula to the pass, and intended as
an intimation to the Huexotzincas or to the Mexicans not
to trespass. They could have been of no avail against the
Spaniards, who were beside invited to enter on the main
road then at hand. These are facts overlooked by Prescott,
Clavigero, and writers generally who have lost themselves
in the vague and confused utterances of the chroniclers,
and in seeking to elaborate a most simple affair. Modern
travellers follow the easier and less picturesque route
north of Iztaccihuatl, which skirts Mount Telapon. This
was the road recommended by Ixtlilxochitl, leading through
Calpulalpan, where he promised to join him with his army;
but Cortés preferred to trust to his own arms and to his
Tlascaltec followers. _Torquemada_, i. 442.
[422] ‘Dezian algunos Castellanos, que aquella era la tierra
para su buena dicha prometida, y que mientras mas Moros,
mas ganancia.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. iii.
[423] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 97; _Oviedo_, iii. 500.
[424] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 295. Torquemada,
followed by Brasseur de Bourbourg and others, calls it
Ithualco, which appears rather to have been a general term
for these stations, since ithualli, according to Molina,
signifies a court. Peter Martyr and Gomara refer to it as
a summer palace.
[425] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 79. ‘Aun que para los Tamemes
hizieron los de Motecçuma choças de paja ... y aun les
tenian mugeres.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 97. ‘Los Indios
hizieron de presto muchas barracas,’ says Herrera, who
places this ‘casa de plazer’ in the plain below. dec. ii.
lib. vii. cap. iii. Tapia calls the buildings ‘casas de
paja.’ _Relacion_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 578.
[426] Martin Lopez was the watchful sentinel. _Torquemada_,
i. 443.
[427] _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
577; _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 80. Herrera intimates that an
attack on the summit, where the Spaniards were benumbed
with cold, might have succeeded in creating confusion. dec.
ii. lib. vii. cap. iii. Unless the naked Indians had been
equally benumbed!
[428] He appealed to the Tlascaltecs by his side, and
they declared that they knew him to be Tzihuacpopoca.
_Torquemada_, i. 446.
[429] A load being at least 50 pounds, the bribe swells to
over $5,000,000.
[430] Cortés and Martyr call the envoy a brother of
Montezuma. _Cartas_, 79; dec. v. cap. ii.; Gomara and
Herrera, a relative. _Hist. Mex._, 98; dec. ii. lib. vii.
cap. iii. According to Bernal Diaz, the bribe is offered by
four nobles at Tlalmanalco. _Hist. Verdad._, 64. Sahagun, who
is the original authority for the story of ‘Tzioacpupuca’s’
attempt to pass himself off for Montezuma, says that Cortés
was highly indignant at the deception, ‘y luego con afrenta
enviaron á aquel principal y á todos los que con él habian
venido.’ _Hist. Conq._, 19; _Torquemada_, i. 445-6.
[431] _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 20-1; _Acosta_, _Hist.
Ind._, 519-20; _Torquemada_, i. 447. Solis, the ‘penetrating
historian,’ repeats and improves upon this as an account
taken from ‘autores fidedignos.’ _Hist. Mex._, i. 353. And
with a similar belief it has been given a prominent place
in _West-vnd Ost-Indischer Lustgart_, 131. Gaspar Ens L.,
the author, was one of the editors of the famous set of De
Bry, from which he like so many others borrowed text, if
not engravings. The narrator of several individual European
travels, he also issued the _Indiæ Occidentalis Historia_,
Coloniæ, 1612. The German version, published at Cöllen in
1618 in a small quarto form, under the above title, has
for its guiding principle the appropriate maxim of Horace,
_Omne tulit punctum qui miscuit utile dulci_. The first
part, relating to America in general, is divided into three
sections, for physical and natural geography and Indian
customs, followed by discovery, voyages, and conquests,
and concluding with a review of political history, and an
appendix on missionary progress. This arrangement, however,
is nominal rather than real, and the confusion, extending
into chapters as well as sections, is increased by the
incomplete and undigested form of the material, enlivened,
however, by an admixture of the quaint and wonderful.
[432] ‘Ya estamos para perdernos ... mexicanos somos,
ponernos hemos á lo que viniese por la honra de la
generacion.... Nacidos somos, venga lo que viniere.’
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 21.
[433] ‘Este parecer de Cuitlahuac, abraçaron muchos de los
Presentes.’ _Torquemada_, i. 444-5.
[434] With seven towns and over 25,000 families, says
Chimalpain, _Hist. Conq._, 115. Herrera states that at the
foot of the descent from the range felled trees obstructed
the road, and appearances indicated that an ambush had been
intended. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. iii.
[435] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 80-1. Bernal Diaz places this
occurrence at Tlalmanalco, where the chiefs jointly offer
eight female slaves, two packs of robes, and 150 pesos’ worth
of gold. They urge Cortés to remain with them rather than
trust himself within Mexico. This being declined, twenty
chiefs go with him to receive justice from the emperor at
his intercession. _Hist. Verdad._, 63. ‘Se dieron por sus
confederados.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 74.
[436] For map of route see, beside those contained in this
volume, _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 201, 538,
and _Alaman_, in _Prescott’s Hist. Conq._ (ed. Mex. 1844),
i. 337, 384. The last maps in these books illustrate the
later siege operations round Mexico, and so does Orozco y
Berra’s, in _Ciudad México_, _Noticias_, 233. Prescott’s
route map, in _Mex._, i. p. xxxiii., claims to be based on
Humboldt’s, with corrections from the chroniclers.
[437] ‘Mataron dellos hasta veynte.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
98. The chiefs complained in secret of Montezuma. _Tapia_,
_Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 578.
[438] By touching the ground with the hand and then bearing
it to the lips.
[439] Cortés ‘le dió tres piedras, que se llaman margaritas,
que tienen dentro de si muchas pinturas de diuersas colores.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 64. A certain vagueness
in the phrase has led some to translate it as a present of
three fine pearls for Cortés.
[440] ‘No les quedaba sino decir que me defenderian el
camino.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 81. ‘Dieron a entender que
les ofenderiã alla, y aun defenderiã el passo y entrada.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 98.
[441] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 64. Ixtlilxochitl
contradicts himself about the place of meeting, and makes
Cacama invite Cortés to Tezcuco. _Hist. Chich._, 295; _Id._,
_Relacion_, 411. Torquemada does the same. i. 449.
[442] _Native Races_, ii. 345-6, 575. Cortés mentions
another smaller town in the lake, without land communication.
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 82.
[443] ‘Pariente del rey de México.’ _Chimalpain_, _Hist.
Conq._, 116. ‘Prince du quartier de Ticic.’ _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 203.
[444] ‘Cortés, ca yua con determinacion de parar alli, y
hazer barcas o fustas ... con miedo no le rompiessen las
calçadas (to Mexico).’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 99.
[445] _Torquemada_, i. 451; _Oviedo_, iii. 500.
[446] For an account of the dispute between Cacama and
Ixtlilxochitl, see _Native Races_, v. 474-7.
[447] Tezcuco was entirely out of Cortés’ route, and the
narratives of the march show that no such detour could have
been made. Torquemada, who contradicts himself about the
visit, describes with some detail the reception at this
capital, where the population kneel to adore the Spaniards
as children of the sun. They are entertained at the palace,
and discover in one of the courtiers, named Tecocoltzin,
a man of as fair a hue as themselves, who became a great
favorite. i. 444. Herrera takes the army from Ayotzinco to
Tezcuco and back to Cuitlahuac. dec. ii. lib. vii. cap.
iv. Impressed perhaps by the peculiarity of this detour,
Vetancurt, after repeating the story, expresses a doubt
whether the visit was really made. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii.
127-8. But Clavigero brings arguments, based partly upon
vague points in Cortés’ later letters, to prove that it took
place. _Storia Mess._, iii. 74. Solis, ‘the discriminating,’
lets Cacama himself guide Cortés from Ayotzinco to Tezcuco.
_Hist. Mex._, i. 360-1.
[448] ‘Yxtapalapa, que quiere decir Pueblos donde se coge
Sal, ó Yxtatl; y aun hoy tienen este mismo oficio los de
Yxtapalapa.’ _Lorenzana_, in _Cortés_, _Hist. N. Esp._, 56.
[449] Including Matlatzincatzin, lord of Coyuhuacan and
brother of Montezuma; Tochihuitzin of Mexicaltzinco, and
Huitzillatl of Huitzilopochco. _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._,
iii. 75; _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, 116; _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 205.
[450] _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap. ii.; _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 99; _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 82. What with the retreating
waters and the removal of native lords in whose interest
it lay to preserve the gardens and palaces, her glories
are now departed. The evaporation of the lake waters had
been observed before the conquest. After this it increased
rapidly, owing to the thoughtless destruction of forests
in the valley, as Humboldt remarks. In Bernal Diaz’ time
already Iztapalapan lay high and dry, with fields of maize
growing where he had seen the busy traffic of canoes. _Hist.
Verdad._, 65. The fate of the lake region was sealed by
the construction of the Huehuetoca canal, which drained the
big lake to a mere shadow of its former self, leaving far
inland the flourishing towns which once lined its shore, and
shielding the waters, as it were, from further persecution
by an unsightly barrier of desert salt marshes—and all to
save the capital from the inundations to which blundering
locators had exposed her. Humboldt has in his map of the
valley traced the outline of the lake as it appeared to the
conquerors, and although open to criticism it is interesting.
_Essai Pol._, i. 167, 173-5.
[451] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 82. Bernal Diaz reduces it to 2000
pesos. According to Sahagun, Cortés summons the lords of the
district and tells them of his mission. The common people
keep out of the way, fearing a massacre. _Hist. Conq._,
21-2. Brasseur de Bourbourg, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 205-6,
assumes from this that many of the chiefs promised to support
Cortés against the government, which is hardly likely to
have been done in a city ruled by Montezuma’s brother, who
was at heart hostile to the Spaniards. Here again, says
Herrera, dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. v., Montezuma sought to
dissuade Cortés from entering the capital; _Torquemada_,
i. 449. His envoy being Cacama, adds Ixtlilxochitl, _Hist.
Chich._, 295.
[452] _Hist. Verdad._, 64-5.
CHAPTER XVI.
MEETING WITH MONTEZUMA.
NOVEMBER, 1519.
SOMETHING OF THE CITY—THE SPANIARDS START FROM
IZTAPALAPAN—REACH THE GREAT CAUSEWAY—THEY ARE MET BY MANY
NOBLES—AND PRESENTLY BY MONTEZUMA—ENTRY INTO MEXICO—THEY ARE
QUARTERED IN THE AXAYACATL PALACE—INTERCHANGE OF VISITS.
From Iztapalapan the imperial city of the great plateau could clearly
be seen, rising in unveiled whiteness from the lake. Almost celestial
was its beauty in the eyes of the spoilers; a dream some called it,
or, if tangible, only Venice was like it, with its imposing edifices
sparkling amid the sparkling waters. Many other places had been so
called, but there was no other New World Venice like this.
Sweeping round in sheltering embrace were the green swards and
wood-clad knolls on the shore, studded with tributary towns and
palatial structures, crowned with foliage, or peeping forth from
groves, some venturing nearer to the city, and into the very lake.
“We gazed with admiration,” exclaims Bernal Diaz, as he compares with
the enchanted structures described in the Amadis their grand towers,
cues, and edifices, rising in the lake, and all of masonry.
* * * * *
Let us glance at the people and their dwellings; for though we have
spoken of them at length elsewhere, we cannot in this connection
wholly pass them by.
Two centuries back, the Aztecs, then a small and despised people,
surrounded and oppressed by enemies, had taken refuge on some islets
in the western part of the saline lake of Mexico, and there by divine
command they had founded the city which, under the title of Mexico
Tenochtitlan, was to become the capital of Anáhuac. The first building
was a temple of rushes, round which the settlement grew up, spreading
rapidly over the islets, and on piles and filled ground. The city
was enlarged and beautified by successive rulers, and when first
beheld by the Spaniards it had attained its greatest extent—one it
never again approached—and was reputed to be about twelve miles in
circumference. This area embraced a large suburb of several villages
and towns with independent names, containing in all sixty thousand
houses, equivalent to a population of three hundred thousand.[453]
Four great avenues, paved with hard cement, ran crosswise from the
cardinal points, and divided the city into as many quarters, which
were again subdivided into wards.[454]
Three of the avenues were connected in a straight line, or nearly
so, with the main land by means of smooth causeways, constructed of
piles filled up with rubble and débris. The shortest of these was the
western, leading to Tlacopan, half a league distant, and bordered all
the way with houses. They were wide enough for ten horsemen to ride
abreast, and were provided at intervals with bridges for the free
flow of water[455] and of traffic. Near their junction with the city
were drawbridges, and breastworks for defence. A fourth causeway,
from the Chapultepec summer palace, served to support the aqueduct
which carried water from the mountain spring in that vicinity.
Round the southern part of the city stretched a semicircular levee,
three leagues in length and thirty feet in breadth, which had been
constructed in the middle of the preceding century to protect the
place from the torrents which after heavy rains came rushing from the
fresh-water lakes of Xochimilco and Chalco. This levee was the chief
resort of the people—during the day for bustling merchants and boat
crews, during the evening for promenaders, who came to breathe the
fresh air soft-blown from the lake, and to watch the setting sun as
it gilded the summits of Popocatepetl and his consort.
Traffic, as may be supposed, was conducted chiefly by canals guarded
by custom-houses, lined with quays, and provided in some places with
docks. Upon these abutted narrow yet well lighted cross streets,
connected by bridges, and leading to a number of open squares, the
largest of which were the market-places in Tlatelulco and Mexico
proper, wherein as many as one hundred thousand people are said to
have found room.
Viewed architecturally and singly, the buildings did not present a
very imposing appearance, the greater portion being but one story in
height. This monotony, however, was relieved to a great extent by the
number of temples sacred to superior and local deities which were to
be seen in every ward, raised high above the dwellings of mortals,
on mounds of varying elevations, and surmounted by towering chapels.
Their fires, burning in perpetual adoration of the gods, presented a
most impressive spectacle at night. The grandest and most conspicuous
of them all was the temple of Huitzilopochtli, which stood in the
centre of the city, at the junction of the four avenues, so as to be
ever before the eyes of the faithful. It formed a solid stone-faced
pyramid about 375 feet long and 300 feet broad at the base, 325 by
250 feet at the summit, and rose in five superimposed, perpendicular
terraces to the height of 86 feet. Each terrace receded six feet from
the edge of the one beneath, and the stages were so placed that a
circuit had to be made of each ledge to gain the succeeding flight,
an arrangement equally suited for showy processions and for defence.
Surrounding the pyramid was a battlemented stone wall 4800 feet in
circumference, and through this led four gates, surmounted by arsenal
buildings, facing the four avenues.[456]
The pyramid was quite modern, and owed its erection to Ahuitzotl, who
for two years employed upon it an immense force of men, bringing the
material from a distance of three or four leagues. It was completed in
1486, and consecrated with thousands of victims. The rich and devout
brought, while it was building, a mass of treasures, which were buried
in the mound as an offering to the gods, and served subsequently as a
powerful incentive for the removal of every vestige of the structure.
The present cathedral occupies a portion of the site.[457]
The appearance of the city was likewise improved by terraces of various
heights serving as foundation for the dwellings of rich traders, and
of the nobles who were either commanded to reside at the capital or
attracted by the presence of the court. Their houses were to be seen
along the main thoroughfares, differing from the adobe, mud, or rush
huts of the poor, in being constructed of porous tetzontli stone,
finely polished and whitewashed. Every house stood by itself, separated
by narrow lanes or by gardens, and inclosing one or more courts.
Broad steps led up the terrace to two gates, one opening on the main
street, the other on the back lane or canal. The terrace platform was
particularly spacious in front, where occasionally a small oratorio
faced the entrance. The façade was adorned with elegant cornices and
stucco designs of flowers and animals, often painted in brilliant
colors. Balconies were occasionally to be seen, supported on monolith
columns without base or capital, though with incised ornamentation;
but they were not common, owing to the prevalence of flat roofs
surrounded by battlemented and even turreted parapets. Behind them
rose flowering plants, arranged in pots or growing in garden plots,
and aiding to render the spot attractive for the family gathering in
the evening. Flower-gardens might be seen also in the courts, with
a sparkling fountain in the centre. Around ran the shady porticos,
lined with suites of apartments, the larger reception rooms in front,
the stores and kitchen in the rear, and other rooms and chambers,
with the never failing temazcalli, or bath, arranged between them,
and provided with wicker screens or curtains in lieu of doors.
Courts as well as rooms were covered with flags of stones, tessellated
marble or cement, polished with ochre or gypsum; and the walls were
decorated not infrequently with porphyry, jasper, and alabaster, and
hung with cotton tapestry adorned with feather and other ornaments.
The furniture on the other hand was scanty, consisting chiefly of
mats of palm leaves, cushions, low tables, and stools.[458]
It was in the morning of the 8th of November that the Spaniards
mustered for the entry into Mexico. Not far from Iztapalapan they
came upon the longest causeway, two leagues in extent, which with
the exception of a short angle near the shore led in a straight line
northward to the heart of the city.[459] They passed several towns,
some on the shore, others touching the causeway,[460] and supported
to a great extent by the manufacture of salt from the lake water.
The causeway had been reserved for the passage of the troops, out of
deference to the desire manifested to keep the natives at a respectful
distance,[461] but both sides were lined with canoes bearing an eager
crowd of sight-seers. About half a league from the city the causeway
formed a junction with the road from Xochimilco and Coyohuacan, at a
spot called Acachinanco,[462] where a stout battlemented wall, fully
ten feet in height, and surmounted by two towers, guarded the two
gates for entry and exit.
Entering here the Spaniards were met by a procession of over one
thousand representative people from the capital,[463] richly arrayed
in embroidered robes, and with jewelry of pendent stones and gold.
These passed before the visitors in a file, touching the ground with
their hand and carrying it to the lip in token of reverence. This
ceremony occupied an hour, after which the march was resumed. At
the junction of the causeway with the main avenue of the city was a
wooden bridge ten paces wide, easily removable, inside of which Cortés
halted to await the emperor, then approaching.[464] On either side of
the street, closely along by the houses, came processions of nobles,
headed by lords and court dignitaries, all of whom marched with bare
feet and bowed heads. This humility was owing to the presence of the
emperor, who in almost solitary grandeur kept the centre of the road,
borne in a richly adorned litter on the shoulders of his favorite
courtiers, and followed by a few princes and leading officials.[465]
Three dignitaries preceded him, one of whom bore aloft three wands,
signifying the approach of the imperial head of the tripartite
alliance, so that all persons in sight might lower their heads in
humble reverence till he had passed.
On nearing the Spaniards Montezuma stepped from the litter, supported
on either side by King Cacama and Cuitlahuatzin, his nephew and
brother, and followed by the king of Tlacopan and other princes. Four
prominent caciques held over his head a canopy profusely covered with
green feathers set with gold and silver, and precious stones, both
fixed and pendent, and before them attendants swept the road and
spread carpets, so that the imperial feet might not be soiled. The
monarch and his supporters were similarly dressed, in blue _tilmatlis_
which, bordered with gold and richly embroidered and bejewelled, hung
in loose folds from the neck, where they were secured by a knot. On
their heads were mitred crowns of gold with _quetzal_ plumes, and
sandals with golden soles adorned their feet, fastenings embossed
with gold and precious stones.[466]
Montezuma was about forty years of age, of good stature, with a thin
though well-proportioned body, somewhat fairer than the average hue
of his dusky race. The rather long face, with its fine eyes, bore
an expression of majestic gravity, tinged with a certain benignity
which at times deepened into tenderness. Round it fell the hair in
a straight fringe covering the ears, and met by a slight growth of
black beard.[467]
With a step full of dignity he advanced toward Cortés, who had
dismounted to meet him. As they saluted,[468] Montezuma tendered a
bouquet which he had brought in token of welcome, while the Spaniard
took from his own person and placed round the neck of the emperor a
showy necklace of glass, in form of pearls, diamonds, and iridescent
balls, strung upon gold cords and scented with musk.[469] With
these baubles, which were as false as the assurances of friendship
accompanying them, the great monarch deigned to be pleased, for if
every piece of glass had been a diamond they would have possessed no
greater value in his eyes. As a further expression of his good-will,
Cortés offered to embrace the monarch, but was restrained by the two
princes, who regarded this as too great a familiarity with so sacred a
person.[470] The highest representative of western power and grandeur,
whose fame had rung in the ears of the Spaniards since they landed
at Vera Cruz, thus met the daring adventurer who with his military
skill and artful speech had arrogated to himself the position of a
demi-god.
After an interchange of friendly assurances the emperor returned to the
city, leaving Cuitlahuatzin to escort the general.[471] The procession
of nobles now filed by to tender their respects, whereupon the march
was resumed to the sound of drums and wind instruments. At the head
were scouts on horseback, followed by the cavalry, under Cortés, who
had by his side two large greyhounds; then came the infantry, with
the artillery and baggage in the centre; and last, the allies.[472]
The streets, which had been deserted by the people out of deference
to the emperor and to the requirements of his procession, were now
alive with lookers-on, particularly in the entrances to the alleys,
in the windows, and on the roofs.[473]
At the plaza, wherein rose the great pyramidal temple surrounded on
all sides by palatial edifices, the procession turned to the right, and
Cortés was led up the steps of an extensive range of buildings, known
as the Axayacatl palace, which faced the eastern side of the temple
inclosure.[474] Here Montezuma appeared, and through a court-yard
shaded by colored awnings and cooled by a playing fountain he conducted
him by the hand into a large hall. An attendant came forward with a
basket of flowers, wherein lay “two necklaces made of the shell of
a species of red crawfish,” so they said, and “much esteemed by the
natives, from each of which hung eight crawfish of gold, wrought with
great perfection, and nearly as large as the span of a hand.”[475]
These the emperor placed round the neck of the general, and presented
at the same time wreaths to his officers. Seating him upon a gilt
and bejewelled dais,[476] he announced that everything there was at
his disposal; every want would be attended to. Then with delicate
courtesy he retired, so that the Spaniards might refresh themselves
and arrange their quarters.
The building contained several courts, surrounded by apartments,
matted and furnished with low tables and _icpalli_ stools. Everything
about the place was neat and of a dazzling whiteness, relieved by
green branches and festoons. The finer rooms were provided with
cotton tapestry, and adorned with figures in stucco and color, and
with feather and other ornaments set with gold and silver fastenings.
Here and there were vases with smouldering incense diffusing sweet
perfume. So large was the place that even the allies found room.
The halls for the soldiers, accommodating one hundred and fifty men
each, were provided with superior beds of mats, with cotton cushions
and coverlets, and even with canopies. Cortés was glad to find the
building protected by strong walls and turrets, and after arranging the
men according to their corps, he ordered the guns to be planted and
the sentinels posted, issuing also instructions for the considerate
treatment of the natives, and for intercourse generally. Meanwhile
the servants had spread a dinner, which Bernal Diaz describes as
sumptuous.[477]
In the afternoon Montezuma reappeared with a large suite. Seating
himself beside Cortés,[478] he expressed his delight at meeting such
valiant men, whose fame and deeds had already aroused his interest
during their visits in the two preceding years at Potonchan and
Chalchiuhcuecan. If he had sought to prevent their entry into the
capital, it was solely because his subjects feared them, with their
animals and thunder; for rumors had described them as voracious beings,
who devoured at one meal what sufficed for ten times the number of
natives, who thirsted for treasures and who came only to tyrannize.
He now saw that they were mortals, although braver and mightier than
his own race, that the animals were large deer, and that the caged
lightning was an exaggeration. He related the Quetzalcoatl myth,[479]
and expressed his belief that they were the predicted race, and
their king the rightful ruler of the land. “Hence be assured,” said
he, “that we shall obey you, and hold you as lord lieutenant of the
great king, and this without fail or deceit. You may command in all
my empire as you please, and shall be obeyed. All that we possess is
at your disposal.”[480]
Cortés expressed himself as overwhelmed with these kind offers and
with the many favors already received, and hastened to assure the
emperor that they were not misplaced. He and his men came indeed from
the direction of the rising sun, and their king, the mightiest in the
world, and the ruler of many great princes, was the one he supposed.
Hearing of the grandeur of the Mexican monarch, their master had
sent the former captains, brethren of theirs, to examine the route,
and to prepare the way for the present commission. He had come to
offer him the friendship of their great king, who wished in no wise
to interfere with his authority, but rather that his envoys should
serve him and teach the true faith.
The reference to Montezuma’s grandeur led the emperor evidently
to suppose that the rumors concerning him current in the outlying
provinces might have reached the ears of the Spanish king, for he now
alluded to the tales which raised him to a divine being inhabiting
palaces of gold, silver, and precious stones. “You see,” he added
with a sad smile, wherein seemed to linger regrets arising from his
departing glory, “that my houses are merely of stone and earth; and
behold my body,” he said, turning aside his vestment, “it is but of
flesh and bone, like yours and others. You see how they have deceived
you. True, I possess some gold trinkets left me by my forefathers;
but all that I have is yours whenever you may desire it.”[481]
Cortés’ eyes sparkled with satisfaction as he expressed his thanks. He
had heard of Montezuma’s wealth and power, and had not been deceived
in the expectation, for a more magnificent prince he had not met
with during his entire journey. Such fine words must be rewarded. At
a sign the attendants came forward with a rich collection of gold,
silver, and feather ornaments, and five thousand to six thousand
pieces of cloth, most fine in texture and embroidery.[482] Being asked
what relationship the men bore to one another, Cortés said that all
were brothers, friends, and companions, with the exception of a few
servants.[483]
Montezuma afterward elicited from the interpreters who the officers and
gentlemen were, and in conferring favors he sent them more valuable
presents through the mayordomo, while the rest obtained inferior
gifts by the hand of servants.[484] At his departure from the Spanish
quarter the soldiers with redoubled alacrity fell into line to salute
a prince who had impressed them both with his gentle breeding and
his generosity, and the artillery thundered forth a salvo, partly to
demonstrate that the caged lightning was a fearful reality.[485]
The following forenoon Cortés sent to announce that he would make a
return visit, and several officers came to escort him. Arrayed in his
finest attire, with Alvarado, Velazquez de Leon, Ordaz, Sandoval, and
five soldiers, he proceeded to the residence of Montezuma, in the new
palace as it has been called, situated in the south-east corner of
the great temple plaza.[486] If they had admired the palace forming
their own quarter, how much more charmed were they with this, “which
has not its equal in Spain,” exclaims Cortés.
The exterior presented an irregular pile of low buildings of
_tetzontli_, raised upon high foundations, and communicating with the
square by twenty doors, over which were sculptured the coat of arms
of the kings of Mexico. The buildings were so arranged as to inclose
three public squares, and contained an immense number of rooms and
halls, one of them large enough to hold three thousand men, it is
said. Several suites were reserved for royal visitors, envoys, and
courtiers, while others were assigned for the emperor’s private use,
for his harem and his attendants. Large monoliths adorned the halls
or supported marble balconies and porticos, and polished slabs of
different kinds of stone filled the intervening spaces or formed the
floors. Everywhere, on projections and supports, in niches and corners,
were evidences of the artist’s skill in carvings and sculptures,
incised and in relief.
After being conducted through a number of courts, passages, and
rooms, partly for effect, the Spaniards were ushered into the
audience-chamber, and removed their hats as Montezuma advanced to
receive them. Leading Cortés to the throne, he seated him at his
right hand, the rest being offered seats by the attendants. Around
stood with downcast eyes a number of courtiers, who in accordance with
etiquette had covered their rich attire with a coarse mantle and left
their sandals outside the room.[487] The conversation fell chiefly
on religious topics, the favorite theme with Cortés, who aside from
his bigotry was not averse to use the faith as a means to obtain a
secure hold on the people. In any case it afforded a shield for other
objects. He explained at length the mysteries of Christianity, and
contrasted its gentle and benevolent purposes with those of the idols,
which were but demons intent on the destruction of their votaries,
and trembling at the approach of the cross. Aware of the inefficiency
of himself and his interpreters as preachers, indicated indeed by the
passive face of the proposed convert, Cortés concluded by intimating
that his king would soon send holy men, superior to themselves, to
explain the truths which he had sought to point out. Meanwhile he
begged the emperor to consider them, and to abandon idols, sacrifices,
and other evils. “We have given him the first lesson, at any rate,”
said Cortés, turning to his companions.[488]
The ruler of a superstitious people, himself a high-priest and leader
of their bloody fancies, was not to be touched by this appeal of
Cortés. The prejudices of a lifetime could not be so easily disturbed.
He had well considered the words, he replied, transmitted already
from the sea-shore by his envoys, and had found many of the points
identical with those held by his people; but he preferred not to dwell
on the subject at present. The god depicted was doubtless good; so
were their own, for to them they and their forefathers owed health
and prosperity. Suffice it that he believed his guests to be the
men predicted to come. “As for your great king,” he added, “I hold
myself as his lieutenant, and will give him of what I possess.” As a
tangible proof thereof, he again before dismissing them distributed
presents, consisting of twenty packs of fine robes and some gold-ware
worth fully one thousand pesos.[489]
FOOTNOTES
[453] The ruins of the old city, clearly traced by Humboldt,
showed that it must have been of far greater extent than
the capital raised upon its site by the Spaniards. This is
also indicated by the size of the markets and temple courts.
The reason is to be found partly in the former prevalence
of one-story houses with courts inclosed.
[454] For ancient and modern names of quarters see _Native
Races_, ii. 563.
[455] Cortés believed that the waters ebbed and flowed,
_Cartas_, 102-3, and Peter Martyr enlarged on this phenomenon
with credulous wonder. dec. v. cap. iii.
[456] For a description of the interior see _Native Races_,
ii. 582-8.
[457] Ramirez and Carbajal Espinosa define the limits
pretty closely with respect to the modern outline of the
city, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 226-9, and notes in _Prescott’s
Mex._ (ed. Mex. 1845), ii. app. 103; but Alaman, in his
_Disert._, ii. 202, 246, etc., enters at greater length
into the changes which the site has undergone since the
conquest, supporting his conclusions with quotations from
the _Libro de Cabildo_ and other valuable documents.
[458] For further description of streets, buildings, and
people, see _Native Races_, passim. Also _Ramirez_, _Noticias
de Mex._, etc., in _Monumentos Domin. Esp._, MS. no. 6,
309-50; _Dávila_, _Continuacion de la Crónica_, etc., MS.,
296; _Viagero Univ._, xxvi. 203-6; _Libro de Cabildo_, MS.,
1, 5, 11, 62, 105, 201-2; _Sammlung aller Reisebesch._,
xiii. 459-60, 464-67; _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apolog._, MS.,
17-27; _L’America Settentrionale_, 88-207; _Mex._, _Not.
Ciudad_, 1-8. Venecia la Rica is the name applied to the
city by some of the Spaniards. _Carta_, in _Pacheco_ and
_Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xiii. 339.
A curious view of Mexico is given in the edition of Cortés’
letters issued at Nuremberg in 1524, which exhibits six
causeway connections with the mainland. Both in situation,
with respect to the surrounding towns, and in the general
plan, it accords very fairly with the descriptions of the
conquerors. The temple of Huitzilopochtli occupies an immense
square in the centre of Temixtitan, as the city is called.
Round the south-east corner extend the palace and gardens
of the emperor, other palaces being scattered on the lake,
and connected with the suburbs by short causeways. Less
correct in its relative position is the view presented in
the old and curious _Libro di Benedetto Bordone_, which
has been reproduced in _Montanus_, _Nieuwe Weereld_, 81,
so famous for its cuts, and, of course, with considerable
elaborations which by no means promote the correctness,
however much the beauty of aspect is improved.
[Illustration: ANCIENT MEXICO. TAKEN FROM AN EDITION OF
THE LETTERS OF CORTÉS PUBLISHED AT LUXEMBURG A.D.
M.D.XX.VIII.]
Very similar to this is the view given in some of Solis’
editions, that of Antwerp, 1704, for instance, wherein is
also found a view of Mexico with its surrounding towns, as
Cuitlahuac, Iztapalapan, and others, all grouped closely
together within the main lake! A native plan of the capital,
said to have been given by Montezuma to Cortés, accords
little with Spanish descriptions, and is difficult to
understand from its peculiar outline, illustrated with Aztec
hieroglyphics. Alaman doubts its origin and correctness.
See _Prescott’s Mex._ (Mex. ed. 1844), ii. 157. A good copy
of it is given in _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 221.
The view in _Libro di Benedetto Bordone_, _Nel qual si
ragiona de tutte l’Isole del mondo_, Vinegia, 1528, 73
leaves, is accompanied by an interesting description of _La
gran citta di Temistitan_, remarkable from being perhaps the
first sketch of any value given in a cosmographic work. It
occupies the greater part of folios vi. to x., devoted to
the _terra da Ferdinando Cortese_. Five more folios describe
the West Indies and Venezuela region, the only portions of
America known to Bordone when he wrote his book. It was
completed in 1521, according to its pontifical license,
although not issued till 1528. The versatile author, who
figured both as artist and professor, died in 1531, and the
later issues of the _Libro_, henceforth called _Isolario_,
are by editors whose endeavor to keep apace with the demands
of the times is instanced by the edition of 1537, wherein
appears a letter on the conquest of Peru. In the mappemonde
of the first edition before me, the smaller northern part
of the new continent is called _terra del laboratore_,
while the southern part bears the inscription _ponẽti môdo
nouo_. The two are separated at the Isthmus, in about the
latitude of the Mediterranean, by a long strait, at the
eastern mouth of which, on the sectional map of folio vi.,
is written, _stretto pte del mõdo nouo_. Farther east lie
the islands _Astores_, _Asmaide_, and _Brasil_. The numerous
sectional wood-cut maps and plans bear the conventional
outline of a series of concave segments, and of the ten
referring to different parts of the new world, seven apply
to the Antilles.
The clearest account of Mexico given by any of the conquerors
is to be found in _Relatione d’alcvne cose della Nuoua
Spagna, & della gran città di Temistitan Messico, fatta
per vn gentil’huomo del Signor Fernando Cortese_, wherein
the description of the natives, their manners and customs,
their towns, the resources of the country, and above all,
the capital city, is to be found in concise form, arranged
in paragraphs with appropriate headings, and illustrated by
a cut of the great temple, which appears far more correct
than those given by most subsequent writers. A view of the
capital is also appended, showing the surrounding country,
and according very nearly with those of the Nuremberg type,
except in the faulty relative position to the neighborhood.
Nothing is known of the author, who is generally referred
to as the Anonymous Conqueror, but the opinion has been
hazarded that he was Francisco de Terrazas, mayordomo of
Cortés. His account was evidently written in Spanish, but
did not see the light till Ramusio issued it in Italian
under the above title. It forms one of the most valuable
documents for the history of Mexico to be found in this
prized collection of voyages and travels, the first large
work of its class. No branch of literature obtained a
greater stimulus from the discovery of Columbus. He it
was who broke the barrier which had confined the ardor of
voyagers, and who led the revival of maritime enterprise,
creating a curiosity among the stayers-at-home that could
be satiated only with repeated editions of narratives
relating to expeditions and conquests. The number of these
narratives became, within a few years, so large as to
require their grouping into special collections for the
sake of cheapness and convenience. The earliest is probably
the _Paesi Nouamente retrouati, Et Nouo Mondo da Alberico
Vesputio_; By Fracanzo or Fracanzano da Montalboddo, Vicenza,
1507, mentioned by _Tiraboschi_, _Storia della literatura
italiana_. This was reproduced in 1508 by Madrignani, at
Milan. According to Panzer, Ruchamer issued the same year a
somewhat fuller collection at Nuremberg, under the title of
_Newe Unbekanthe landte Und eine Newe weldte_, with eight
pieces, among them the voyages of Columbus, Ojeda, Pinzon,
and Vespucci. A similar work was issued by the Italian
Angiolelo, in 1519.
The best known of these early collections, and by many
regarded as the first issued in German, is the _Novus Orbis
Regionvm ac Insolarvm Veteribvs Incognitarvm; Basileæ apvd
Io Hervagivm, Mense Martio, anno_ M.D.XXXII., 4to, 584
pages, beside unnumbered leaves. ‘La plus ancienne de ces
(Latin) collections,’ says Boucher, _Bibl. Univ._, i. 55.
Although prepared by John Huttich, the canon of Strasbourg,
it is better known under the name of Simon Grynæus, who
wrote the introductory and revised it at the request of
Hervagius, the publisher, a well known bookman, greatly
esteemed by Erasmus. Meusel, _Bibl. Hist._, iii. pt. i. 221,
gives it with punctilious fairness the title of _Collectio
Huttichio-Grynæo-Hervagiana_, while others apply only the
middle name or the last two. The attribution to Grynæus
is greatly due to his fame as a reformer, as the personal
friend of Luther and Calvin, as the discoverer of Livy’s
lost books, and as the first of a long line of scholars
celebrated under that name. It is an excellently printed
volume, with quaint head-pieces, and containing as it does
so many papers of which the original editions are now lost,
the collection must be esteemed of great value. The nineteen
pieces of original contributions, journals, and borrowed
accounts, include the voyages of Columbus, Alonso, and
Pinzon from _Madrignani_; _Alberici Vesputij nauigationum
epitome_, and _nauigationes IIII._; and _Petri Martyris de
insulis_. The other narratives relate to Asia, to the Levant,
and to Russia. With some copies is found a mappemonde, but
the only genuine one, according to Harrisse, 294, bears
the inscription _Terra de Cuba_, in the northern part of
the new world, and in the south, _Parias, Canibali America
Terra Nova, Prisilia_, with the word _Asia_ in large type.
Among the several editions the German of 1534, by Herr, is
rarer than the above original, while the Dutch of 1563, by
Ablijn, is the most complete.
After Huttich the voyage collections increased rapidly
in number and size, till they reached the fine specimen
of Ramusio, forming not only the first large work of this
class, but, for a long time, the most extensive which bears
on America. Harrisse, 457, very justly observes that ‘the
publication of Ramusio’s _Raccolta_ may be said to open
an era in the literary history of Voyages and Navigation.
Instead of accounts carelessly copied and translated from
previous collections, perpetuating errors and anachronisms,
we find in this work original narrations judiciously
selected, carefully printed, and enriched with notices which
betray the hand of a scholar of great critical acumen.’ The
first issue appeared as _Primo Volvme Delle Navigationi
et Viaggi. In Venetia appresso gli heredi di Lvcantonio
Givnti, 1550_, folio, 405 leaves. ‘Les Juntes (le) publièrent
... sous la direction de Jean-Baptiste Ramusio.’ _Camus_,
_Mém. Coll. Voy._, 7. Neither in this, nor in the third
volume, issued in 1553, nor in the second edition of the
first volume, 1554, does the name of Giambatista Ramusio,
Rannusio, or Rhamusio, appear as author, and it is only
in the second volume that the publisher, Tommaso Giunti,
resolves to set aside the modesty of his friend, and to
place his name upon the title-page. The publication of this
volume had been delayed till 1559, owing to the death of
the author and to the burning of the printing establishment.
In the preface Giunti refers to the close friendship
between them, and extols Ramusio as a learned man, who
had served in foreign countries, acquiring in this way a
perfect knowledge of French and Spanish. He had long been
a devoted student of history and geography, inspired to
some extent by the travels of his uncle, the celebrated
Doctor Girolamo Ramusio. As secretary to the powerful
Venetian Council ‘de Signori Dieci,’ he was in a position
to maintain correspondence with such men as Oviedo, Cabot,
Cardinal Bembo, and others, part of which is to be found
in _Lettere di XIII. Huomini illustri_, Venetia, 1565. All
this served him in the formation of the great work upon
which he labored during the last 34 years of his life. He
died at Padua, July 10, 1557, 72 years of age.
The first volume relates chiefly to Asia and Africa, but
contains _Lettere due_ and _Sommario_ by Vespucci, and
four papers on Spanish and Portuguese circumnavigation.
The contents of the set have been somewhat changed and
increased during the several republications, but the best
editions are those of 1588, 1583, and 1565, for the first,
second, and third volume respectively. Vol. ii. of this set
relates chiefly to Asia, but is of interest to American
students for its narrative of the much doubted voyages
of the brothers Zeno. Its small size indicates the loss
it sustained by the events above referred to. ‘Et nõ vi
marauigliate, se riguardando gli altri due, non uedrete
questo Secõdo volume, si pieno & copioso di scrittori, come
il Ramusio già s’haueua pposto di fare, che la morte ui
s’interpose.’ ii. 2.
The third volume is entirely devoted to America, and contains
all the most valuable documents known up to the time of
its first issue, such as the relations of Martyr, Oviedo,
Cortés, and his contemporaries in Mexico, Pizarro, Verazzano,
Carthier, the _Relation di Nvnno di Gvsman_, in several
parts, and the valuable _Relatione per vn gentil’huomo del
Signor Fernando Cortese_. The volume begins with a learned
discourse by Ramusio on ancient knowledge of a land to
the west, and of causes leading to the discovery. At the
end of the 1565 edition is a map of America, showing Lower
California as a wide peninsula, and _Terra del Fuego_ joined
to the land of the _Circolo Antartico_. The comparative
crudeness of the wood-cuts and maps has not made the
work much esteemed by collectors, but its value even now,
for reference, is unquestioned. The set was dedicated to
Hieronimo Fracastoro, the great poet and physician, born
mouthless, yet so eloquent. _Scaliger_, _Aræ Fracastoreæ_.
At the end of the _Discorso sopra Perv_, iii. 371, Ramusio
says: ‘Et questa narratione con breuità habbiamo voluto
discorrere per satisfattione de i lettori, laquale piu
distintamente legeranno nel quarto volume.’ According to
Fontanini, _Bibl._, 274, the material for this volume lay
prepared in manuscript, only to perish in the disastrous
fire of November, 1557.
[459] It is still one of the main roads, known under Spanish
dominion as Calzada de Iztapalapan, now as S. Antonio Abad.
[460] Cortés names the well built Mexicaltzinco, Niciaca,
and Huchilohuchico (now Churubusco), to which he gives
respectively 3000, 6000, and 4000 to 5000 families. _Cartas_,
83-4. Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 99, names Coioacan instead of
Niciaca, and this change is generally accepted, for the
latter name is probably a mistake by the copyist or printer.
_Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap. iii.
[461] ‘Mandò que vn Indio en lengua Mexicana, fuesse
pregonando que nadie se atrauessasse por el camino, sino
queria ser luego muerto.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii.
cap. v.
[462] Also referred to as Fort Xoloc. ‘En donde hoy la
garita de _San Antonio Abad_,’ says Ramirez, in _Prescott_
(ed. Mex. 1845), ii. 104.
[463] Herrera, who is usually moderate, swells the figure
to 4000.
[464] The avenue is now called el Rastro. The suburb here
bore the name of Huitzitlan. ‘_Vitzillan_ que es cabe el
hospital de la Concepcion.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 23. At
Tocititlan, says Duran, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 439. ‘Junto
de la Hermita de San Anton.’ _Torquemada_, i. 450. ‘Segun
una antigua tradicion conservada en el hospital de Jesus, el
punto en que le encontró fué frente á éste, y por recuerdo
del suceso se hizo la fundacion en aquel parage.’ _Alaman_,
_Disert._, i. 103; and _Ramirez_, note in _Prescott_ (ed.
Mex. 1845), ii. 103. The previous authorities indicate,
however, that the meeting took place farther from the centre
of the city.
[465] Chimalpain mentions among others Tetlepanquezatl,
king of Tlacopan, Yzquauhtzin Tlacochcalcatl, lord or
lieutenant of Tlatelulco, captain-general Atlixcatzin,
son of Ahuitzatl, and Tepehuatzin, son of Titotzin. _Hist.
Conq._, 125. Sahagun differs slightly in the names. _Hist.
Conq._, 24-5.
[466] For dress, see _Native Races_, ii. 178 et seq.
Cortés gives sandals only to Montezuma, but it appears that
persons of royal blood were allowed to retain them before
the emperor, as Ixtlilxochitl also affirms. _Hist. Chich._,
295; _Oviedo_, iii. 500; _Purchas, His Pilgrimes_, iv. 1121.
[467] ‘Cenzeño ... y el rostro algo largo, è alegre.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 67. ‘Motecçuma quiere dezir hõbre
sañudo y graue.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 103; _Acosta_,
_Hist. Ind._, 502-3. It is from this, probably, that so many
describe him as serious in expression. A number of portraits
have been given of the monarch, differing greatly from
one another. The best known is Prescott’s, taken from the
painting for a long time owned by the Condes de Miravalle,
the descendants of Montezuma; but this lacks the Indian
type, and partakes too much of the ideal. Clavigero’s,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 8, appears more like him, though it
is too small and too roughly sketched to convey a clear
outline. Far better is the half-size representation prefixed
to _Linati_, _Costumes_, which indeed corresponds very
well with the text description. The face in _Armin_, _Alte
Mex._, 104, indicates a coarse Aztec warrior, and that in
_Montanus_, _Nieuwe Weereld_, 244-5, an African prince, while
the native picture, as given in _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 6, is purely conventional. The text description,
based chiefly on Bernal Diaz, is not inappropriate to the
weak, vacillating character of the monarch. Clavigero makes
him nearly 54 years old, and Brasseur de Bourbourg 51; but
40, as Bernal Diaz calls him, appears to be more correct.
[468] ‘Ellos y él ficieron asimismo ceremonia de besar la
tierra.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 85.
[469] ‘De margaritas y diamantes de vidrio.’ _Id._ ‘Que se
dizen margagitas.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 65.
[470] Solis assumes that Cortés was repelled when he sought
to place the necklace on Montezuma. The latter chides the
jealous princes, and permits him. _Hist. Mex._, i. 370.
‘Pareceme que el Cortès ... le daua la mano derecha, y el
Monteçuma no la quiso, è se la diò â Cortès.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 65. This phrase, which applies equally to
offering the right hand, has been so understood by those
who notice it; but as this would be confusing, Vetancurt,
for instance, assumes improbably that Marina offers her
right hand to Montezuma, which he disregards, giving his
instead to Cortés. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 129.
[471] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 85. Ixtlilxochitl has it that
Cacama was left with him; and Bernal Diaz, that the lord of
Coyuhuacan also remained. According to Cortés, Montezuma
accompanied him all the way to the quarters in the city,
keeping a few steps before. Gomara and Herrera follow this
version. But Bernal Diaz states explicitly that he left the
Spaniards to follow, allowing the people an opportunity to
gaze; and Ixtlilxochitl assumes that he goes in order to
be ready to receive him at the quarters. _Hist. Chich._,
295. It is not probable that Montezuma would expose himself
to the inconvenience of walking so far back, since this
involved troublesome ceremonies, as we have seen, not only
to himself but to the procession, and interfered with the
people who had come forth to gaze. The native records state
that Montezuma at once surrendered to Cortés the throne and
city. ‘Y se fueron ambos juntos á la par para las casas
reales.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 23-4. Leading Cortés
into the Tozi hermitage, at the place of meeting, he made
the nobles bring presents and tender allegiance, while he
accepted also the faith. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii.
440-1.
[472] About 6000 in all. ‘Nosotros aun no llegauamos á 450
soldados.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 65. Prescott
places the number at about 350.
[473] According to Sahagun not a soul was to be seen,
either upon the causeway or along the streets, the people
having taken this manner to express their indignation at
the semi-forcible entry of the Spaniards. Montezuma came to
receive them purely out of a feeling of humanity. Startled
at this solitude, Cortés fears dangers, and vows, if all
goes well, to build a church. This was the origin, says
Bustamante, of the Hospital de Jesus. _Sahagun_, _Hist.
Conq._ (ed. Mex. 1840), 79-84. See note 12, this chapter.
Brasseur de Bourbourg accepts this view. _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 212-13. Still Sahagun describes the interview
with Cortés as most cordial. He is in fact contradictory,
and it is evident that the order issued to the people to
keep the narrow causeway clear, and the etiquette which
required them to give way to the emperor, have been hastily
interpreted by the chronicler into ‘deserted streets’ and
‘popular indignation.’ Had the citizens objected to receive
the strangers, the bridges could have been raised against
them.
[474] ‘Au coin de la rue _del Indio triste_ et de celle de
Tacuba,’ says Humboldt, _Vues_, i. 58, prudently, without
attempting to give its extent. Ramirez and Carbajal do
so, however, and in allowing it about the same length
as the temple inclosure, they place it right across the
eastern avenue of the city, which like the other three is
admitted to have terminated at one of the temple gates.
_Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 222; _Ramirez_,
notes in _Prescott’s Mex._ (ed. Mex. 1845), ii. app. 103.
‘Donde hoy las Casas de el Marqués del Valle,’ says Lorenzana, in
_Cortés_, _Hist. N. Esp._, 86, a statement disputed by later
writers. Prescott quotes Humboldt, but evidently does not
understand him, for he places the palace ‘facing the western
gate,’ which is not only on the wrong side, but across
the western avenue. _Mex._, ii. 79. ‘Adonde ... tenia el
gran Monteçuma sus grandes adoratorios de idolos ... nos
lleuaron á aposentar á aquella casa por causa, que como nos
llamauã Teules, é por tales nos tenian, que estuuiessemos
entre sus idolos.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 66. The
idea of being regarded as a god seems to have pleased the
old soldier immensely.
[475] They doubtless formed a double necklace, with gold
setting and pendants. Cortés writes that on the way to
the palace Montezuma halted to place them round his neck.
_Cartas_, 85; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 100-1; _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, 23.
[476] ‘A throne of gold,’ is Peter Martyr’s briefer yet
grander term. dec. v. cap. iii.
[477] _Hist. Verdad._, 65-6; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. vii.
cap. v.; _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 25-6.
[478] Bernal Diaz states that the emperor always addressed
him as Malinche, and, indeed, it was common among Mexicans
to address persons by a name given them in later life in
connection with some peculiarity, deed, or incident. Hence
Cortés, as master of the prominent female interpreter,
received a name implying that relationship.
[479] For which see _Native Races_.
[480] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 86. This is in substance the
speech of Montezuma, as given by native as well as Spanish
records; yet it appears improbable that the emperor should
have been so ready, at the first interview, and in presence
of his courtiers, to humble himself so completely before
a few strangers whom he regarded as mortals. See note 19.
‘Myself, my wife and children, my house, and all that I
possess, are at your disposal,’ says the Spaniard, even in
our day, to the guest whom he wishes to impress with his
hospitality. Perhaps Montezuma was equally profuse with
hollow words, which have been recorded as veritable offers.
[481] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 86-7. Bernal Diaz introduces this
paragraph during the next interview.
[482] _Id._ ‘Á cada vno de nuestros Capitanes diò cositas
de oro, y tres cargas de mantas de labores ricas de plumas,
y entre todos los soldados tambien nos diò á cada vno á
dos cargas de mantas.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 66;
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 101-2; _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap.
iii.; _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 441-2; _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. vii. cap. vi.; _Torquemada_, i. 452-3;
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 296; _Peralta_, _Not.
Hist._, 107-8. Acosta implies that Cortés now reconciled
the Tlascaltecs with the Aztecs. _Hist. Ind._, 521.
[483] ‘Eramos hermanos en el amor, y amistad, é personas mui
principales,’ is the way Bernal Diaz expresses it. _Hist.
Verdad._, 66.
[484] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 102-3. ‘Los haçia proveer
luego, assi de mugeres de serviçio, como de cama, é les
daba á cada uno una joya que pessaba hasta diez pessos de
oro.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 500-1.
[485] _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 129. Sahagun,
followed by Acosta, Brasseur de Bourbourg, and others, states
that the artillery was discharged at night to startle the
natives. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 85.
[486] It is so depicted in the old Nuremberg view of the
city, already referred to. Ramirez, Carbajal Espinosa,
and Alaman give the extent, and the latter enters into
quite a lengthy account of its situation with respect to
present and former outlines of the quarter. _Disert._, ii.
202, etc.; _Carbajal Espinosa_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 221-2;
_Ramirez_, notes in _Prescott’s Mex._ (ed. Mex. 1845), ii.
app. 103. Humboldt places it opposite the southern half of
the western temple side, _Essai Pol._, i. 190, but that site
is assigned by all the above historians to the old palace
of Montezuma, so called—not the Axayacatl where Cortés was
quartered. The mistake is probably owing to his ignorance
of the fact that the residence of the Cortés family stood
first on the site of the new palace of Montezuma, whence
it was moved to that of the old palace when the government
bought the former.
[487] The Spaniards were also ‘costretti a scalzarsi, ed
a coprirsi gli abiti sfarzosi con vesti grossolane,’ says
Clavigero, _Storia Mess._, iii. 83, but that is unlikely.
[488] ‘Con esto cumplimos, por ser el primer toque.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 67.
[489] ‘Â nosotros los soldados nos diò á cada vno dos
collares de oro, que valdria cada collar diez pesos, è dos
cargas de mantas.’ The rest went to their officers. _Id._
CHAPTER XVII.
CAPTURE OF THE EMPEROR.
NOVEMBER, 1519.
CORTÉS INSPECTS THE CITY—VISITS THE TEMPLE WITH
MONTEZUMA—DISCOVERY OF BURIED TREASURE—PRETENDED EVIDENCES
OF TREACHERY—CORTÉS PLANS A DARK DEED—PREPARATIONS FOR
THE SEIZURE OF MONTEZUMA—WITH A FEW MEN CORTÉS ENTERS THE
AUDIENCE-CHAMBER OF THE KING—PERSUASIVE DISCOURSE—WITH GENTLE
FORCE MONTEZUMA IS INDUCED TO ENTER THE LION’S DEN.
Cortés failed not to make diligent inquiries and examinations into
the approaches, strength, and topography of the city, but he longed
for a view from one of the great temples which, rising high above all
other edifices, would enable him to verify his observations. He also
desired to obtain a closer insight into the resources of the place.
With these objects he sent to Montezuma for permission to make a tour
through the town to the Tlatelulco market and temple.[490] This was
granted; and attended by the cavalry and most of the soldiers, all
fully armed, Cortés set out for that suburb, guided by a number of
caciques. It was here that the largest market-place in the city was
situated.[491]
From this centre of trade the Spaniards proceeded to the lofty temple,
which occupied one end of the Tlatelulco market-place,[492] and whither
Montezuma had already gone to prepare for their reception, and to
propitiate the idols for the intrusion by prayers and sacrifices.
He hoped, no doubt, that his presence would prove a check upon the
impulsive hands and tongues of the guests. Dismounting at the gate,
the riders advanced with most of the soldiers through the temple
court, and climbed the one hundred and more steps which led to the
summit. Some priests and chiefs had been sent by Montezuma to assist
Cortés to ascend, but he preferred to trust to himself. This pyramid,
unlike that in Mexico proper, appears to have had but one continuous
stair-way leading up the western slope.[493] The first sight which
met the Spaniards on reaching the summit was the sacrificial cage
for holding victims, and a large snake-skin drum, whose sombre tones
gave appropriate effect to the horrible rites enacted around it.
Montezuma came out of one of the chapels to welcome them, expressing
a fear that they must have been fatigued by the ascent, but Cortés
hastened to assure him that Spaniards never tired. Calling their
attention to the view here afforded of the city and its surroundings,
he stood silent for a while to let the beauteous vision work its own
enchantment. Around on every side spread the lake and its connecting
waters, bordered with prairies and fields. Forests and towns
intermingled on the green carpet, and extended far away till they
disappeared in the shadows of the hills. The soldiers recognized the
settlements and towns which they had passed, and saw the causeways
which on three sides connected with the mainland. Beneath them lay
a vast expanse of terraced roofs, intersected by streets and canals
teeming with passengers and canoes. Here and there rose palatial
edifices and towering temples, interspersed with open squares, and
with gardens shaded by trees and relieved by the silvery jets of the
fountain. At their feet lay the market through which they had just
passed, alive with busy Lilliputians, whose talk and cries reached
their ears in a confused murmur. Cortés could not fail to be impressed
by scenes so varied and so attractive, but the æsthetic aspect was
in him speedily overshadowed by the practical sense of the military
leader. Then rose on high his soul as he thought to secure for Spain
so rich an inheritance as the great city with its vast population,
and turning to Father Olmedo he suggested that the site ought to be
obtained for a church; but the prudent friar remonstrated that the
emperor appeared to be in no mood to listen to such a proposal.
Cortés accordingly contented himself with asking to see the idols, and
after consulting the priests Montezuma led them past the piscina with
the vestal fire into the chapel. Withdrawing a tasselled curtain he
displayed the images, glittering with ornaments of gold and precious
stones, which at first drew the attention of the beholders from the
hideous form and features. Before them stood the stone of sacrifice,
still reeking with gore, and around lay the instruments for securing
the human victim and for tearing open the breast. On one altar could
be seen three hearts, and on the other five, offered to the idols,
and even now warm and palpitating with life. The interior walls were
so smeared with human blood as to obscure their original color, and
to emit a fetid odor which made the Spaniards glad to reach the open
air again.
Forgetting his prudence, Cortés expressed his wonder to Montezuma
that so great and wise a prince should worship abominable demons
like these. “Let me but plant a cross on this summit,” he said, “and
within the chapel place an image of the virgin, and you shall behold
the fear of the idols.” The eyes of the priests were at this aflame
with anger, and the emperor could hardly suppress his indignation as
he replied, “Malinche, had I suspected that such insults were to be
offered, I would not have shown you my gods. They are good; they give
us health, sustenance, victory, and whatever we require. We adore
them, and to them make our sacrifices. I entreat you say not another
word against them.” Observing the effect his remarks had produced,
Cortés thought it best to restrain himself, and to express regrets at
his hastiness. Then with a forced smile he said that it was time to
depart. Montezuma bade them farewell. As for himself, he must remain
to appease the idols for the insult offered.[494]
Not at all abashed by his rebuff at the temple, Cortés asked Montezuma
to let him erect a church in his own quarters. Glad probably at finding
the Spanish pretensions in this respect so modified, he not only
assented, but gave artisans to aid in the work. This was concluded
within three days, and services henceforth held therein, at which
the Indians were always welcomed. A cross was also erected before the
entrance, so that the natives might be impressed by the devotion of
their visitors.
This effort in behalf of the faith was not to go unrequited. While
looking for the best site for the altar, says Bernal Diaz, Yañez, the
carpenter, discovered signs of a door-way recently closed and plastered
over. Cortés was told of this, and ever on the guard against plots,
he ordered the wall to be opened. Aladdin on entering the cave could
not have been more surprised than the Spaniards were on stepping
into the chamber there revealed. The interior fairly blazed with
treasures; bars of gold were there, nuggets large and small, figures,
implements, and jewelry of the same metal; and then the silver, the
rare bejewelled and embroidered fabrics, the prized chalchiuite and
other precious stones! Cortés allowed the favored beholders to revel
in the ecstasy created by the sight, but to their greed he set a
check. He had reasons for not disturbing the treasures at this time,
and gave orders to restore the wall, so that no suspicions might be
aroused that the deposit had been discovered.[495]
* * * * *
One reason with Cortés for not touching the treasures was to hold out
an alluring bait to those who, more prone to listen to the warnings of
timid allies than to the ambitious promptings of their leader, were
ever ready to take alarm and urge withdrawal from a position which
they regarded as dangerous. Unbending in his resolution, the general
had nevertheless grasped all the perils of their position. Hitherto no
firm ground existed for alarm. They had been a week in the capital,
and were still receiving from all hands the kindest treatment and
the most generous hospitality. Cortés was aware, however, that this
depended on the favor of the emperor, whose power over the submissive
people resembled that of a god, and whose person appeared to them as
sacred as his will was absolute. He had also learned that this monarch
was a man affrighted by his superstitions, and often influenced by
trifling circumstances; ready to strike where he had fawned the moment
before, and little bound by words or pledges, particularly when they
involved his own sovereignty. One misstep by the Spanish leader or
any of his men, ill-behaved and importunate as they were, according to
his own statement, might precipitate the change. The presence of the
hated Tlascaltecs was itself a burden, and the drain for supporting
the self-invited guests would soon be felt. The religious topic had
already created a momentary irritation, which might rankle and grow
under the promptings of the priests, who must naturally object to
rival interference.
Emperor and subjects were evidently restrained only by the military
prestige of the Spaniards, and to some extent by the belief in their
divine mission; but they were also aware that, whatever might be the
prowess of the visitors and the power of their weapons and steeds,
they were mortals, for this had been proved quite lately by the
unfortunate defeat of Escalante, and in the Nautla campaign. The
soldiers of Montezuma had but to raise the bridges of the causeways
and cut off retreat, then stop supplies and reduce them by starvation.
True, there was the fate of Cholula before the Mexicans; but they
had gained experience, and could mass vastly more warriors and arms,
while the Spaniards would have no allies in reserve to operate in the
rear. Besides, what mattered the destruction of a part, or even of
the entire city, when thereupon depended the safety of the throne,
menaced by a horde of cruel, avaricious monsters!
Cortés had considered all these points, and knew the expediency of
resolute action. He had undertaken an enterprise wherein one bold
move must be supported by another, and to these all means had to be
subordinate. He had not come all this way to place himself within
the power of a suspicious and vacillating despot, nor to waste his
time in waiting for what events might bring forth, while his enemies,
headed by Velazquez, were arranging for his overthrow. He had formed
his plans long beforehand, as indicated in his first letter to the
king, wherein he promised to have the great Montezuma “a prisoner,
a corpse, or a subject to the royal crown of your Majesty.”[496]
Conquest, followed by settlement and conversion, was his aim. It
would not pay him to play for a smaller stake.
Just now rumors began to circulate tending to stir anew the fears
which Montezuma’s friendly and hospitable demeanor had soothed. One
was that the nobles had actually prevailed on the emperor to break
the bridges, to arm the whole city, and to fall on the Spaniards with
all available strength.[497] Soldiers were readily found who fancied
that the mayordomo was less obsequious than formerly, and that he
gave scantier supplies. It was also understood from Tlascaltecs that
the populace appeared less friendly during the last day or two. These
reports may have sprung wholly from timid minds still agitated by the
warnings uttered by Tlascaltecs before the departure from Cholula,
or they may have been promoted by Cortés himself in furtherance of
his plans. He at any rate seized the pretence to hold a council,
composed of Alvarado, Leon, Ordaz, and Sandoval, together with twelve
soldiers whose advice he most valued, “including myself,” says Bernal
Diaz. His chief reason was to persuade them of the necessity for the
measure he had resolved on, and to win their hearty coöperation. Laying
before them the current rumors which confirmed the warnings formerly
received, and representing the unreliable and suspicious character
of Montezuma, his great power, and the peculiar position and strength
of the city, he concluded by proposing the daring venture of seizing
the emperor and holding him a hostage.[498]
Here was folly run mad! Four hundred men, after penetrating formidable
barriers and gaining the very heart of a great empire, whose vast
armies could oppose a thousand warriors to every Spaniard there,
coolly propose to take captive the worshipped monarch of this vast
realm, and then to defy its millions of subjects! The wildest tales
of mediæval knights hardly equal this project. Reckless as was the
conception, it was the fruit of yet greater audacity. Cortés reared
his structure of folly insensate upon the platform of still greater
insensate folly. If it was true that he had practically placed himself
in the position of a captive, then he would cut the knot by capturing
the captor. And yet, foolhardy as might appear the scheme when coolly
viewed from the isle of Cuba, situated as the Spaniards were, it was
doubtless the best they could do; it was doubtless all they could do.
The efficiency of hostages had been frequently tried by the conquerors
in the Antilles, and the opportune seizure of the Cempoalan lord had
not been forgotten; but this had been effected under the impulse of
the moment, while the chieftain was surrounded by Spaniards. Here
was required not only a calm resolution, unflinching to the end, but
a well laid stratagem. Cortés stood prepared with both.
Producing the letter from Villa Rica, which had been kept secret all
this time, he gave an account of the unfortunate successes at Almería,
describing in exaggerated terms the treachery of Quauhpopoca, and
consequently of Montezuma as his master, and stirring the feelings
of the council by an appeal to avenge their comrades.[499] Here was
a pretence[500] which served also to set aside the suggestion that
the emperor would be only too glad to let them depart in peace,
for it was argued that a retreat now, since the Spaniards stood
revealed as mortals, would draw upon them not only the contempt of
allies and countrymen, but a general uprising, with the most fatal
results. Retreat meant also the surrender of all hopes of wealth,
preferment, and honor, to be followed by punishment and disgrace for
their irregular proceedings so far. With Montezuma in their power,
they possessed a hostage whose sacredness in the eyes of his subjects
insured their safety, and made the people pliable to their will, while
disaffected vassals could be secured by alliances, or by the promise
of reforms. Should the seizure result in the monarch’s death, the
succession would doubtless become the cause of division and dissension,
in the midst of which the Spaniards might influence affairs in their
own interest. Thus were answered the various objections raised.
As for the manner of seizure, the safest plan would doubtless be to
inveigle Montezuma to their quarters and there detain him; but this
would cause delay, and might arouse suspicion,[501] and, since prompt
action was considered necessary, the best way would be to seize him in
his own palace. This was agreed upon, and the same evening the facts
and arguments were effectively presented to the men and preparations
made.
“All night,” writes Bernal Diaz, “we passed in earnest prayer, the
priests devoutly imploring God to so direct the undertaking that it
might redound to his holy service.”[502]
In the morning Cortés sent to announce that he would visit the emperor.
He then despatched a number of small parties as if for a stroll,
with orders to keep themselves in and near the palace, and on the
way to it, ready for any emergency. Twenty-five soldiers were told to
follow him, by twos and threes, into the audience-chamber, whither he
preceded them with Alvarado, Sandoval, Velazquez de Leon, Francisco
de Lugo, and Ávila.[503] All were armed to the teeth,[504] and as the
Mexicans had been accustomed to see them thus equipped no suspicions
were aroused. Montezuma proved on this occasion to be particularly
gracious, and after a brief chat he offered several presents of finely
wrought gold, and to Cortés he presented one of his daughters, the
captains being given women of rank from his own harem, which was a
mark of great favor.[505] Cortés sought to decline for himself the
favor, on the ground that he could not marry. Montezuma nevertheless
insisted, and he yielded not unwillingly.[506]
Assuming a serious tone, the latter now produced the letter from
Villa Rica, and informed the emperor that he had received an account
of the outrageous conduct of Quauhpopoca, resulting in the death of
some of his men, and that he, the sovereign, had been accused of being
the instigator. Montezuma gave an indignant denial,[507] and Cortés
hastened to assure him that he believed the charge to be false, but
as commander of a party he had to account for the men to his king,
and must ascertain the truth. In this Montezuma said he would aid
him; and calling a trusted officer, he gave him a bracelet from his
wrist bearing the imperial signet—a precious stone graven with his
likeness[508]—bidding him to bring Quauhpopoca and his accomplices,
by force, if necessary.[509] Cortés expressed himself pleased, but
added that, in order to cover his responsibility as commander, and to
convince his men that the emperor was indeed as innocent as Cortés
believed him to be, it would be advisable for him to come and stay
at their quarters till the guilty parties had been punished.[510]
Montezuma was dumfounded at this unhallowed impudence. He, the august
sovereign, before whom even princes prostrated themselves, at whose
word armies sprang into existence, and at whose name mighty rulers
trembled, he to be thus treated by a score of men whom he had received
as guests and loaded with presents, and this in his own palace! For
a moment he stood mute, but the changing aspect of his countenance
revealed the agitation within. At last he exclaimed that he was not
the person to be thus treated. He would not go. They could always
find him at his palace.
Cortés pleaded that his presence among the soldiers was necessary,
not merely as a declaration of his innocence, but to allay the rumors
which had reached them that he and his people were plotting for their
destruction. Montezuma again made an indignant denial; but added
that, even if he consented to go, his people would never allow it.
His refusal, insisted the general, would rouse the worst suspicions
of his men, and he could not answer for their acts. Mexico might meet
the fate of Cholula, and he with it.[511]
Montezuma now began to implore, and offered to surrender his legitimate
children as hostages if he were but spared the disgrace of being made
a prisoner. This could not be, was the reply. The Spanish quarter was
his own palace, and he could readily persuade his subjects that he
went there for a short time of his own accord, or at the command of
the gods.[512] He would be treated with every consideration, and should
enjoy his usual comfort, surrounded by favorites and councillors. The
plan involved no change beyond that of residence, to a place where
he would be under secret surveillance.
Montezuma still objected, and time was passing.[513] The companions
of Cortés becoming nervous at this delay, Velazquez de Leon exclaimed
in his stentorian voice: “Why so many words, your worship? Let us
either carry him off or despatch him. Tell him that if he calls out
or creates a disturbance we shall kill him!”[514] Turning in alarm
to Marina, Montezuma inquired what was meant. Full of pity for the
troubled monarch, she told him that the men were becoming impatient
at his delay. She besought him, as he valued his life, to accede to
their wishes and go with them. He would be treated with all the honor
due to his rank. A glance at the frowning faces of the Spaniards
confirmed the mysterious words of the interpreter, and chilled him
to the heart. He had heard too many accounts of the resolution and
cruelty of these men not to believe them capable of anything. Were he
to call for aid they would no doubt kill him and destroy the city;
for few as they were they had proved themselves equal to hosts of
natives.
The unhappy monarch yielded, since it was so decreed—by the sublime
audacity of this score of adventurers. The spirit of Axayacatl had
evidently not survived in the son, and the prestige of his early career
as military leader had dwindled to a mere shadow in the effeminate
lap of court-life.[515] Summoning his attendants, he ordered a litter
brought. Everything had been quietly conducted, and since none ventured
to question the emperor, his command was silently obeyed; but the
mysterious interview and his agitation roused their suspicions, and
the rumor spread that something extraordinary was about to happen.
Wondering and murmuring crowds had already collected along the route
between the two palaces when the emperor appeared. On seeing the
sorrowing faces of the favorites who bore him, and observing how
closely it was surrounded by the Spanish soldiers who acted as guard
of honor, their fears became confirmed. The distance to the quarters
was too short, however, and the news had not yet travelled far enough,
to allow a serious demonstration.[516] But not long after the plaza
in front of it was blocked with an excited multitude, and a number of
leading personages and relatives made their way into the presence of
their sovereign, asking with tearful eyes and knitted brows how they
might serve him. They were ready to lay down their lives to rescue
him. He assured them with a forced smile that there was no cause for
alarm. Too proud to disclose his pusillanimity, he readily echoed the
words of Cortés, that he had come of his own free-will, and at the
intimation of the gods, to stay awhile with his guests. He told them
to calm the people with this assurance, and to disperse the gathering.
FOOTNOTES
[490] They had now been four days in Mexico, without going
farther than the palace, says Bernal Diaz. A page named
Orteguilla, who had already acquired a smattering of Aztec,
was sent with the interpreters to ask this favor. _Hist.
Verdad._, 69.
[491] Soldiers who had been in Rome and Constantinople
declared that never had they seen so large and orderly a
market, with so large an attendance. Bernal Diaz indicates
the site of the plaza to have been where the church of
Santiago de Tlatelulco was erected, and this still remains
under the same name, over a mile north-west-by-north of
the central plaza of Mexico. _Hist. Verdad._, 70-1. The
old maps of Mexico already spoken of give the same site,
and Alaman’s investigations point out correctly the street
which led and leads to it, although he has failed to notice
the above authorities, which give the very site. _Disert._,
ii. 282-5.
[492] It has been generally accepted that the temple in
the centre of the city was visited, but Bernal Diaz, who
is the only narrator of this excursion, states distinctly,
in several places, that the pyramid ascended was situated
in the Tlatelulco market-place, ‘adonde está aora señor
Santiago, que se dize el Tlatelulco.’ _Hist. Verdad._,
70-1. The description of the temple court and interior
is somewhat confused, and evidently combines points which
belong to the central temple.
[493] Hence the contradictions between descriptions and
views furnished by different chroniclers, which have so
greatly puzzled modern writers.
[494] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 70-1. Sigüenza y
Góngora, the well-known Mexican scholar of the seventeenth
century, follows Bernal Diaz. _Anotaciones Crit._, MS., 1-2.
[495] ‘No dexarian de quedar aprobechados ... y satisfacer
a su necesidad,’ says Vetancurt, who knew the avarice of
his countrymen too well to believe in denials. _Teatro_,
pt. iii. 131. Bernal Diaz says that Yañez, as the servant
of Velazquez de Leon and Lugo, revealed the discovery to
them, and they told Cortés. The soldiers all heard of it,
and came quietly to gaze on the treasures, which rumor
had already located somewhere in the palace. ‘Being then
a young man,’ says the old soldier, ‘and having never seen
such wealth, I felt sure that there was not anything like
it in the world.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 72; _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. viii. cap. ii. Tapia and Gomara state that Cortés
discovered the door-way as he was walking in his room one
evening, pondering on his plans for seizing Montezuma.
‘Cerro la puerta ... por no escandalizar a Motecçuma, no
se estoruasse por esso su prisiõ.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
123; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
579. Duran intimates that on hearing of the existence
of treasures in the palace, the Spaniards, including the
‘Santo Clérigo,’ occupied themselves more in searching for
them than in promoting the faith. They did not find them,
however, till Montezuma revealed the hiding-place, under
the pressure of questions and, it seems, of hunger. _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 445-6.
[496] He refers to this promise in the second letter to
the king, saying, ‘porque certifiqué á V. A. que lo habria
preso ó muerto ó súbdito.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 52.
[497] ‘En la verdad era así é lo tinien acordado,’ affirms
Tapia, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 579. ‘Estas
nueuas, falsas, o verdaderas,’ is the non-committing phrase
of Gomara. _Hist. Mex._, 123. Ixtlilxochitl takes firmer
ground. ‘According to an original letter in my possession,
signed by the three heads of New Spain, and written to his
Majesty the emperor, our master, they exculpate Motecuhzoma
and the Mexicans of this and other charges, declaring them
inventions of the Tlascaltecs and of some Spaniards who
feared that they would never see the hour when they might
leave the city and place in security the riches they had
obtained.’ _Hist. Chich._, 296. Clavigero adopts the view
that Cortés called for such testimony from certain chiefs
among his allies, whose dislike of the Mexicans would be sure
to prompt it. ‘Per giustificar vieppiù il suo attentato, e
muovere i suoi Spagnuoli ad eseguirlo, fece chiamar parecchie
persone principali de’ suoi alleati (la cui informazione
dovrebbe sempre essergli sospettosa).’ _Storia Mess._, iii.
90-1. Vetancurt has a story that, a drought prevailing
at the time, the Spaniards induced the heavens by means
of masses and prayers to send rain. This made the priests
and idols jealous, and the emperor was prevailed on to rid
himself of the Spaniards. The Tlascaltecs learned of the
plot and reported it. _Teatro_, pt. iii. 130.
[498] According to Bernal Diaz the members of this council
suggested not only the seizure but the reasons for it.
Cortés responded that he had not been oblivious of the
danger, but saw not how the seizure could be effected. The
captains proposed to beguile the prince to their quarter
and detain him. If Cortés hesitated they were willing to
undertake the task. The old soldier is evidently misled, as
he was in the scuttling affair, to assume too much credit
for himself and his fellow-soldiers. Cortés had no doubt
adopted his common tactics, so frequently admitted by Bernal
Diaz himself, of inspiring his comrades to suggest what he
had resolved on. This is proved by the promise made to the
emperor in his first letter, four months before, to capture
Montezuma.
[499] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 73, followed by a
number of other writers, states that the letter was received
at Mexico the morning after this meeting, but it has been
shown that he must be wrong. He mentions as one of the
statements in the letter that the Totonacs were in revolt,
and it is probable that Cortés may have said so to show
the soldiers that retreat was cut off, and that seizure
was the only recourse.
[500] As both Peter Martyr and Gomara call it.
[501] The neglect of this less speedy plan does indicate
that the rumors of danger were credited to a great extent
at least.
[502] _Hist. Verdad._, 74. Cortés in his quiet way writes
to the king that, after passing six days in the great city,
and finding that for various reasons ‘it suited the royal
interest and our safety to have this lord in my power, and
not wholly at liberty, lest he change in the proposal and
desire manifested to serve Y. H.... I resolved to seize
and place him in the quarter where I was.’ _Cartas_, 88-9.
[503] ‘Mandó que su gente dos á dos ó cuatro á cuatro se
fuesen tras él ... é con él entramos hasta treinta españoles
é los demas quedaban á la puerta de la casa, é en un patio
della,’ says Tapia, who appears to have been one of those
who entered. _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 579.
[504] ‘Cõ armas secretas,’ says Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 123,
and probably they did bear extra weapons beneath their
cloaks.
[505] ‘Y otras hijas de señores á algunos de mi compañía.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 89. But the customary mark of favor
was to give them from his harem. See _Native Races_, ii.
[506] ‘Per non dar disgusto al Re, e per avere occasione di
farla Cristiana,’ is Clavigero’s excuse for the acceptance.
_Storia Mess._, iii. 93. Brasseur de Bourbourg, and some
other writers, assume that Cortés declined; but the original
authorities all say or intimate that he accepted. Even Cortés
himself writes in his letter to the emperor, ‘despues ... de
haberme él dado algunas joyas de oro y una hija suya,’ etc.
_Cartas_, 89. ‘Le persuadió,’ says Ixtlilxochitl, _Hist.
Chich._, 290. Gomara is even more explicit, and Herrera
says that Montezuma insisted, ‘porque queria tener nietos
de hombre tan valeroso.’ dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. ii. The
affair is perhaps less important in itself than as index
to the character of Cortés, who could accept so intimate
an offer with one hand while he prepared a blow with the
other. It might also be made to indicate that Montezuma
could have had no base designs against him when he made the
uncalled-for offer of intrusting a daughter (if such she
was) to his keeping. Still the imperial character would
not have suffered had it been shown that this was but an
artifice to lull his intended victim into a false security.
[507] Some authors, like Herrera and Torquemada, say that
he denied all knowledge of the occurrence, calling it an
invention of enemies.
[508] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 297. ‘Q̄ tenia la
figura de Vitzilopuchtli,’ Gomara, 123; and so says Bernal
Diaz. Tapia states that Montezuma told Cortés to send two
Spaniards with the messengers; but he doubtless declined
to risk two lives on such a trip. _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, ii. 583-4.
[509] ‘Ingrato rey!’ exclaims Gallo, in commenting upon
this surrender of a devoted officer. _Hombres Ilust. Mex._,
i. 318.
[510] Bernal Diaz makes Cortés accuse the emperor of
perfidy, and of having instigated the Cholula massacre.
_Hist. Verdad._, 74. But this he would hardly do, since
his purpose was clearly to persuade, not to arouse anger.
[511] ‘No querria començar guerra, ni destruir aquesta
Ciudad ... que si alboroto, ò vozes daua, que luego sereis
muerto de aquestos mis Capitanes, que no los traigo para
otro efeto,’ is Bernal Diaz’ blunt version. _Hist. Verdad._,
74.
[512] ‘Auia tenido platica de su idolo Huichilobos ...
que convenia para su salud, y guardar su vida, estar con
nosotros.’ _Id._, 75.
[513] ‘Estuuieron mas de media hora en estas platicas.’
_Id._, 74. Tapia and others say four hours, which is
unlikely.
[514] ‘Porque mas vale que desta vez asseguremos nuestras
vidas, ò las perdamos.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 75.
[515] ‘Era, ó muy falto de ánimo, ó pusilánime, ó muy
prudente.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 289. ‘En él se cumplió lo que de
él se decia, que todo hombre cruel es cobarde, aunque á la
verdad, era ya llegada la voluntad de Dios.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_,
_Rel._, 411.
[516] Bernal Diaz intimates clearly enough that no
demonstration was made till after his arrival. _Hist.
Verdad._, 75. And so does Cortés. ‘Llorando lo tomaron
en ella [the litter] con mucho silencio, y así nos fuimos
hasta el aposento donde estaba, sin haber alboroto en la
ciudad, aunque se comenzó á mover. Pero sabido por el dicho
Muteczuma, envió a mandar que no lo hubiese; y así, hubo
toda quietud.’ _Cartas_, 90. Ixtlilxochitl, however, allows
Montezuma to stay long enough in his palace, after ordering
the litter, to enable the lords and nobles to come and
offer their services. A delay like this, which the Spaniards
certainly never could have permitted, might have given time
for the tumultuous gathering which he describes. _Hist.
Chich._, 297. Prescott, in following this version, makes
the emperor so far overstep his usual dignity as to ‘call
out’ to the people to disperse. ‘Tambien detuvieron consigo
á _Itcuauhtzin_, gobernador del Tlatilulco,’ says Sahagun,
while the leading nobles ‘cuando fue preso Mocthecuzoma le
desampararon y se escondieron.’ _Hist. Conq._, 25.
The seizure has, like the equally prominent episodes of the
massacre at Cholula, and the scuttling of the fleet, aroused
no little comment in justification or condemnation. ‘Now that
I am old,’ says Bernal Diaz, ‘I stop to consider the heroic
deeds then performed, and I do say that our achievements
were not effected by ourselves, but were all brought about
by God; for what men have existed in the world who, less
than 450 soldiers in number, dared to enter into so strong
a city as Mexico, larger than Venice, and so remote from
Castile, to seize so great a lord?’ _Hist. Verdad._, 76.
‘Never Greek or Roman, nor of other nation, since kings
exist, performed a like deed, only Fernando Cortés, to
seize Motecçuma, a king most powerful, in his own house,
in a place most strong, amid an infinity of people, while
possessing but 450 companions.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 124.
Commenting on this, Torquemada adds that ‘it was indeed a
deed for daring never seen, and must be attributed to God
rather than to human heart.’ i. 458. Solis of course fails
not to extol the genius and daring of his hero, whose deed
‘appears rather in the light of a fable’ than in consonance
with simple history. _Hist. Mex._, i. 448. ‘A deed which
makes one tremble even to conceive, and much more to carry
out. But God had so determined it.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist.
Chich._, 296. ‘History contains nothing parallel to this
event, either with respect to the temerity of the attempt, or
the success of the execution,’ etc. _Robertson’s Hist. Am._,
ii. 60. ‘An expedient, which none but the most daring spirit,
in the most desperate extremity, would have conceived.’
_Prescott’s Mex._, ii. 159. ‘An unparalleled transaction.
There is nothing like it, I believe, in the annals of the
world.’ _Helps’ Cortés_, ii. 351. Clavigero is less carried
away by the incident, for he sees therein the hand of God.
Nevertheless, he sympathizes with Montezuma. _Storia Mess._,
iii. 95, etc. Pizarro y Orellana finds the deed eclipsed
by the similar achievement, with a smaller force, under
his namesake Pizarro. _Varones Ilvstres_, 89-90. And later
Mexican writers, like Bustamante, see, naturally enough,
nothing but what is detestable in the incident, for according
to the native records which form their gospel, Montezuma
was guiltless of any base intents. Unfortunately for them,
these very records paint him a blood-thirsty despot who
punishes the slightest offence against himself, even when
merely suspected, with the most atrocious cruelty; one who
is continually seeking his aggrandizement at the expense
of inoffensive, peace-loving tribes, who oppresses not only
conquered peoples, but his own subjects, with extortionate
taxes and levies to satisfy his inordinate appetite for
pomp and for new conquests. These records also admit that he
had repeatedly sent sorcerers, if not armies, to entrap and
destroy the Spaniards. He who looked calmly on hecatombs of
his own subjects, slaughtered before his very eyes, would
not hesitate to condemn strangers for plotting against
the throne which was dearer to him than life itself. The
Spaniards may have anticipated events considerably, but there
is no doubt that numerous personages, from Cuitlahuatzin
downward, were bitterly opposed to their enforced guests, and
they would sooner or later have realized the rumors which
the allies began to circulate. Placed as he was, Cortés’
duty to himself, to the men intrusted to him, to his king,
and to the cause of religion, as then regarded, required
him to give heed to such rumors, and, after weighing their
probability, to take the precautionary measure of seizing
the monarch, since retreat not only appeared fraught with
disaster and dishonor, but would be regarded as a neglect
of opportunity and of duty. With Cortés, naught but the
first steps in assuming the conquest, and in usurping
certain credit and means, can be regarded as crimes, and
the former of these was forced upon him by circumstances of
his age and surroundings. Every project, then, conceived
by him for the advancement of his great undertaking must
redound to his genius as soldier and leader. Of course,
among these projects appear many which did not advance the
great object, and which must be condemned. But where do we
find greatness wholly free from stain?
CHAPTER XVIII.
DOUBLY REFINED DEALINGS.
1519-1520.
HOLLOW HOMAGE TO THE CAPTIVE KING—MONTEZUMA HAS HIS WIVES AND
NOBLES—HE RULES HIS KINGDOM THROUGH THE SPANIARDS—THE PLAYFUL
PAGE—LIBERALITY OF THE MONARCH—THE SACRED TREASURES—CORTÉS
RESENTS THE INSULTS OF THE GUARD—DIVERSIONS—QUAUHPOPOCA, HIS
SON AND OFFICERS, BURNED ALIVE—PLANTATIONS FORMED—VILLA RICA
AFFAIRS—VESSELS BUILT—PLEASURE EXCURSIONS.
A pompous reception was accorded the imperial prisoner. With no small
ceremony was he conducted to apartments adjoining those of Cortés, as
selected by himself, and there surrounded by all accustomed comforts
and every show of greatness. At hand were his favorite wives, his
most devoted servants; he held court daily, received ambassadors,
issued orders, and with the aid of his learned jurists administered
justice. To outward appearance the monarch was as absolute as ever;
yet Montezuma knew that his glory had departed, that the continued
forms of greatness were hollow, and that his power was but the power
of a puppet. He was wise enough to know that a strong man is not to
be trusted who is officiously kind to a weak one.
Henceforth the power of the nation, in the hands of these insidious
strangers, was to be directed against himself. It was a cunning
policy, craftily conceived and deftly executed.
Cortés took care that everything round the prisoner should move
smoothly, and that his presence in the Spanish quarters should appear
to the natives a voluntary rather than an enforced visit. To his more
intimate lords and subjects, however, who knew better his condition,
and who sometimes urged him to return to his palace, the poor captive
would say, “Ah, no! it is the will of the gods that I remain with
these men and be guided by their counsel.” But on no account must
the imperial influence be allowed for the present to decline before
the people. The deception must be continued, and the dignity of the
sovereign upheld by a deferential attention as profound as that which
was shown before his imprisonment. Daily, after prayers, the Spanish
general came to pay his respects, attended by several of his captains,
more frequently Alvarado, Velazquez, and Ordaz, and to receive the
imperial commands with respect to his comforts, pleasures, and duties.
On these occasions, and indeed whenever he appeared before the emperor,
says Bernal Diaz, Cortés set the example to his followers by doffing
his hat and bowing low, and never did he presume to sit in the royal
presence until requested to do so.
Yet a most unpleasant reminder to the monarch of his circumscribed
authority was the ever present guard in and around his apartments.[517]
This was under the command of Juan Velazquez de Leon, who enforced the
strictest watch, particularly when it became known that Montezuma’s
courtiers lost no opportunity to urge escape, and that he lent them
a not unwilling ear, despite the professed desire to remain with the
Spaniards. Among the several schemes with this object are mentioned
bored walls, tunnels beneath the palace, and an attempt by the emperor
himself to leap from the summit of the building into a safe receptacle
prepared for him.[518]
Espionage was also established on the emperor in his intercourse
with courtiers, by placing in the apartment the page Orteguilla, who
had acquired a fair knowledge of Aztec. Of prepossessing appearance,
agreeable and sprightly in manner, the youth became a favorite with
the captive king. Among other things, the little spy gave the monarch
an insight into Spanish customs and proceedings at home and abroad,
into the power and grandeur of the Castilian king, and into the
mysteries of the faith. Being constantly together they grew familiar,
Montezuma delighting to play pranks on the boy, throwing aloft his
hat, and laughing at his efforts to regain it. These tricks were
always followed by a liberal reward.[519]
Montezuma was indeed most liberal with all who came in contact with
him, as became the character of a great and rich prince. Not only
jewels, robes, and curiosities, but male and female slaves, were
freely dispensed, partly no doubt with a view to secure good treatment
from the guard. A considerate thoughtfulness and gentle manner added
to his popularity, and “whenever he ordered,” says the old soldier,
“we flew to obey.” The inconsiderate pride and selfishness of the
independent monarch seems to have disappeared in the prisoner, yet
like the captive hawk he was submissive only to his masters. Orteguilla
kept him informed of the rank and character of the men, and became the
recognized medium for his favors. He represented, for instance, that
Bernal Diaz longed to be the master of a pretty maiden, and Montezuma,
having noticed the exceeding deference of the soldier, called him,
saying that he would bestow on him a fine young woman, whom he must
treat well, for she was the daughter of a chief. He also gave him three
quoits of gold and two loads of robes.[520] The gift came from the
emperor’s harem, from which he frequently drew to please those whom
he delighted to honor. The vacancies thus created were filled from
noble families, who like those of more advanced countries regarded
it an honor for a daughter to occupy the position of royal concubine.
After his imprisonment Montezuma seems to have disposed of his wives
quite rapidly, a number of them falling to leading Spaniards.[521]
To Cortés he offered for the second time a daughter, prettier than
the one given him on the day of his capture, but in this instance
the gift was declined in favor of Olid, who accepted her, together
with any number of presents, and was henceforth treated as a relative
by her imperial father. Both she and the sister with Cortés were
baptized.[522]
The soldiers generally were by no means forgotten in the distribution
of women and other gifts, and in course of time the quarter became so
crowded with male and female attendants that Cortés found it necessary
to issue an order reducing the number to one female servant for each
man. Informed of this, Montezuma instructed his mayordomo to provide
good accommodation and sustenance for them elsewhere.[523]
Encouraged by this generosity, Cortés approached him one day regarding
the secreted treasures, which had been so long respected, but which
he desired to have in his possession. He regretted to say that his
graceless soldiers had come upon the treasure-chamber, and regardless
of his instructions had abstracted a number of jewels. The emperor
hastened to reassure him; perhaps he understood the hint. The contents
of the chamber belonged to the gods, he said; but the gold and silver
might freely be taken so long as the rest was left.[524] He would
give more, if required. Cortés did not scruple to avail himself of
the permission, by appropriating for himself and his intimate friends
a large share. So charged the discontented soldiers, but the main
portion appears to have been reserved for the general distribution
not long after. Although the most valuable part of this collection
had been freely surrendered, the soldiers hesitated not to seize also
upon other effects, such as liquid amber and several hundred loads of
cotton fabrics. Cortés wished to restore them, but Montezuma declined,
saying that he never received anything back.[525] On another occasion
the Spaniards discovered the imperial warehouse for cacao beans, the
most common currency of the country, and for some time made nightly
raids on it with their Indian carriers. Cortés proposed to mete out
punishment for this, but finding that Alvarado was a leading culprit,
he dropped the matter with a private reprimand.[526]
Montezuma’s good nature was imposed upon in more ways than one, and
with all his kindness he could not command consideration from the
rougher soldiers and sailors. One of the guard, after being requested,
with a gift, to discontinue certain unseemly acts, repeated the offence
in the hope of receiving another bribe; but Montezuma now reported
him to his captain, and he was removed. Cortés, who was determined
to enforce respect for the captive, inflicted severe punishment on
offenders in this respect. Tired of patrol duty, Pedro Lopez said
one day in the hearing of Montezuma, “Confusion on this dog! By
guarding him constantly, I am sick at stomach unto death!” Told of
this, the general had the man lashed in the soldiers’ hall, and this
regardless of his standing as a good soldier and an archer of great
skill. Another who showed insolence to the emperor was ordered hanged,
but escaped with a lashing at the intercession of the captains and
of Montezuma.[527] This strictness insured respect not only for the
emperor, but for Cortés, so that the quarter became most exemplary
for its good order.[528]
The Spaniards united heartily with the native courtiers to entertain
the captive and to remove so far as possible whatever might remind
him of his lost liberty. He found great delight in their military
exercises, which recalled the faded prowess of his youth and exhibited
the tactics which contributed so powerfully to Spanish supremacy over
native arms. He also enjoyed sports, and among games the _totoloque_
was his favorite. This consisted in throwing small golden balls at
pieces of the same metal set up as targets at a certain distance.
Five points won the stakes. Cortés often played it with him, and
Alvarado, who kept count for the general, usually marked more points
than he was entitled to. Montezuma playfully protested against such
marking, although what Cortés won he gave to the Mexican attendants,
while Montezuma presented his gains to the Spanish guard.[529]
Montezuma was at times allowed to visit his palaces, and to enjoy
the hunting-field, but these trips were of rare occurrence, owing to
the danger of popular demonstrations.[530] On such occasions, says
Cortés, the escort of prominent Mexicans numbered at least three
thousand. The first time Montezuma requested this privilege it was for
the purpose of offering prayer and sacrifice at the great temple, as
required by his gods, he said; and although Cortés did not like the
arrangement, his prisoner convinced him that this public demonstration
was necessary, in order to show the people that he was not kept in
compulsory confinement, but remained with the strangers at the order
of the deity he was about to consult. Four captains were appointed
to escort him with a guard of one hundred and fifty soldiers, and he
was warned that any attack upon them, or any attempt at rescue, would
result in his own death. He was carried in a rich litter, attended
by a brilliant procession of nobles, and preceded, according to
custom, by a dignitary bearing the triple wand which indicated that
the emperor was approaching and demanded loyal veneration.
On reaching the temple the imperial worshipper stepped forth, leaning
on the arms of his relatives, and was assisted to the summit. Human
sacrifices had been forbidden, and Father Olmedo came to watch over
the observance of the order; but it appears that four captives had
been offered during the night, and despite the remonstrances of
the friar the attendant rites went on.[531] The captains thought it
prudent not to exceed a protest, and congratulated themselves when
the ceremony was ended and the emperor safely back in their quarters.
* * * * *
A fortnight after the seizure of Montezuma, Quauhpopoca arrived in
the capital, accompanied by his son and fifteen of his staff. He made
his entry with the pomp befitting a powerful governor and a relative
of the sovereign, and hastened to the palace. As was customary with
subjects who were about to appear in the imperial presence, the rich
robes were covered with a coarse cloak, in token of humiliation.
His master received him with a stern countenance, and signified his
displeasure at the proceedings which under pretext of his authority had
caused loss of Spanish life. No attention was paid to explanations,
and he was surrendered with his followers to the Spaniards, to be
dealt with as they thought fit.[532] Cortés held a trial: he was a
shrewd inquisitor, and his sentence was sure to accord with his own
interests. “Are you a vassal of Montezuma?” he asked of Quauhpopoca.
“What else could I be?” was the reply. “Did you attack Spaniards
by his order?” The prisoner was in a most serious dilemma. At first
he refused to implicate the emperor, but finding that his fate was
sealed he confessed having acted under his orders.[533] This could
not avail him, however, for in obeying his master he had injured the
subjects and outraged the laws and majesty of the Spanish king, who
was sovereign of all, and this demanded punishment.
The fact was that Spanish prestige, on which so much depended,
had suffered through the machinations of the governor, and it was
considered necessary to restore it. Therefore it was decreed that
Quauhpopoca, with his son and officers, should be burned alive in the
plaza, before the palace. Cortés availed himself of the opportunity
to seize all the arms in the arsenals,[534] and therewith build a
pyre worthy such noted offenders.
When all was ready Cortés presented himself before the emperor, and
announced with a severe tone that the evidence of the condemned showed
their acts to have been authorized by him, and as a life called for a
life, according to Spanish laws, he deserved death. Cortés, however,
loved him—for himself, his generosity, and services he loved him too
dearly to let justice have its course, and would take on himself to
appease its demands by a nominal punishment.[535] He then turned on his
heel, while one of the soldiers clasped a pair of shackles round the
prisoner’s ankles, and the mighty emperor of the Aztecs was ironed.
For a moment Montezuma stood rooted to the floor. Then he groaned
with anguish at this the greatest indignity ever offered his sacred
person. He trembled with apprehension at what might yet follow. His
courtiers were no less afflicted, and with tears in their eyes they
knelt to lessen the weight at least of the shameful bonds, and with
bandages to relieve the imperial limbs.[536]
Meanwhile the troops formed an imposing cordon in front of the palace
to prevent a rescue of the condemned as they were led out and tied
to the stake. Writhing with pain, yet mute as became brave warriors,
with the ascending smoke from Aztec shields and darts they rendered up
their anguished souls. It was rare strategy thus with the offenders
to destroy the means of offence. Supposing that the execution was by
imperial sanction, the populace tacitly assented, gazing on the horrid
spectacle with pallid faces and bated breath. Though accustomed to
scenes like this in connection with their religious festivals, it
appeared terrible when perpetrated by foreigners, to the dreary sound
of muffled drums.[537]
All being over, Cortés reëntered the apartments of Montezuma with
his captains, and kneeling down he himself took off the fetters,
declaring that he felt deeply grieved at the infliction, for he loved
him as a brother. The monarch became almost hysteric with joy at this
deliverance, and with falling tears he expressed himself in abject
terms of gratitude, like the dog licking the hand which has chastised
it. Every fresh incident reveals some new trait in the character of
this unhappy man which calls for pity or contempt. “Yet further,”
continued Cortés, “to show my deep regard and confidence, you are
now at full liberty to return to your own house.” But Montezuma
understood well enough that these were but words, an empty offer;
indeed he had been informed by the well prompted page that, although
the general might wish to release him, the Spanish captains would
never permit it.[538] He accordingly expressed his thanks, and said
that he preferred to remain with him, giving as a reason that, were
he free, the importunities of his relatives and nobles to attack the
Spaniards might prevail over his friendship for them and their king,
and this would entail not only loss of life on both sides, but the
ruin of the city. Thereupon Cortés embraced him with every appearance
of deep devotion, and said, “Next to my king you shall be king; vast
as are your possessions, I will make you ruler of more and greater
provinces.”[539]
We can imagine the words by which the Spaniards might justify to
themselves the death of Quauhpopoca, but we cannot understand the
object in degrading the emperor in the eyes of his subjects—an act
which they had hitherto been so careful to avoid—unless it was to
lift themselves in their own esteem and that of the natives, far
above the highest American princes and powers, and to impress the
sacredness of their persons on the minds of the Indians. Further than
this, they seemed to think some punishment of the emperor necessary,
either because he had authorized the Nautla outrage, or because he
had countenanced it by neglecting to reprimand the perpetrators.
At all events, the effect was salutary, so much so that Spaniards
were to be seen wandering singly about the country without fear of
molestation.[540]
This effect, which extended also to adjoining independent provinces,
enabled Cortés to carry out the long-cherished project of gathering
information on the condition of the country, particularly its political
feeling and its mineral resources. Montezuma readily gave the aid
requested by providing maps and officials to guide the exploring
parties. The first investigations were directed to the upper parts
of Rio Zacatula and to Miztecapan, some eighty leagues south of the
capital, and to the northern branches of the Papaloapan, whence most
of the gold was said to come.[541] The Zacatula party was headed
by Pilot Gonzalo de Umbría, in compensation perhaps for the loss of
his feet at Villa Rica. He returned before the other parties, within
the forty days allowed for the trip, and brought about three hundred
pesos’ worth of gold dust, washed out in dishes from three rivers,
by order of the cacique. Two chiefs accompanied him, bearing gold
presents of nearly the same value as the dust, and offering allegiance
to the Spaniards in the name of their caciques.[542] Small as was the
treasure, it afforded a substantial proof of the glowing report of
Umbría. He had passed through three beautiful and fertile provinces,
filled with towns containing buildings equal to any in Spain. He
described a fortress finer in appearance and stronger than the castle
of Búrgos, and the people of Tamazulapan as most superior in dress
and intelligence.[543]
Another party, under one Pizarro,[544] proceeded south-eastward,
through Tochtepec and Malinaltepec, both of which yielded them gold
dust to the value of about three hundred pesos. Descending along
the northern fork of Papaloapan, they reached the country of the
Chinantecs, hostile to the Aztecs who had taken some of the border
towns. Their independence had not otherwise been affected, owing to
their mountain fastnesses, their warlike spirit, and their formidable
weapons, which were pikes about twenty feet in length. They invited the
Spaniards to enter, but would not allow the Mexican escort to cross the
boundary. The guides warned Pizarro not to trust himself to what they
termed a treacherous people, but after a brief hesitation he advanced
and received a hearty reception. Aid was given to search for gold,
of which seven hundred pesos’ worth was obtained from several rivers,
most of it in rough grains.[545] On his return he brought two chiefs,
who bore presents of gold from their chief cacique Cohuatlicamac,
and tendered his allegiance on condition that the Aztecs should not
be allowed to enter the country. Finding the inhabitants so friendly
and the province rich in resources, Pizarro left four of his small
party behind to establish cacao and maize plantations and to search
for more gold.[546]
[Illustration]
The project appears to have found favor with Cortés, who besought
Montezuma to form plantations for the king also in his adjoining
province of Malinaltepec. This was at once attended to, and within
two months four substantial houses and a vast reservoir had been
constructed, and a large tract of land brought under cultivation,
the improvements being valued at twenty thousand pesos de oro.[547]
Another important object was to find a better harbor than Villa
Rica, and the emperor being consulted, he at once ordered a map to
be made, which showed very accurately not only the rivers and inlets
already known to the Spaniards, between Pánuco and Tabasco, but the
yet unknown Rio Goazacoalco, beyond the Mexican border. This being
said to have a large and deep entrance, Cortés availed himself of
Ordaz’ offer to examine it. Ten men, chiefly sailors and pilots, and
some guides, accompanied him, and authority was given to take escorts
from the frontier garrisons. He proceeded to Chalchiuhcuecan or San
Juan de Ulua, and thence followed the coast examining the inlets.
On reaching the frontier complaints became numerous against the native
garrisons by reason of raids and outrages, and supported by the chiefs
who attended him he reprimanded the commanders, threatening them
with the fate of Quauhpopoca unless they restrained the troops. They
used to extend their raids into the Goazacoalco province, but were
at present somewhat guarded, owing to a repulse wherein a number of
comrades had perished.[548]
Ordaz’ proceedings served him well, for Tuchintlec, the cacique of
this province, sent a deputation of leading men to extend a welcome,
and furnished canoes and men to aid in sounding the river. The bar
was found to be at least two fathoms and a half deep at low water,
and above this, for twelve leagues, the soundings showed fully
five fathoms, with a prospect of an equal depth for some distance,
whereupon the pilots expressed the opinion that the channel might be
a strait leading to the southern sea.[549] Ordaz received not only
presents of gold and pretty women for himself, but brought with him
messengers bearing jewels, tiger-skins, feathers, and precious stones
for Cortés, together with an offer of allegiance and tribute similar
to those already tendered by the neighbors of Tabasco. His report,
which extolled the agricultural resources as well as the port, induced
the general to send with the returning messengers another party to
examine these features more thoroughly and to test the disposition of
the inhabitants. They again sounded the river, selected a town site,
and reported in favor of a settlement. The cacique also expressed
himself eager to receive settlers, and offered to begin at once the
construction of houses. This decided Cortés to establish a colony on
the river, and in April Juan Velazquez and Rodrigo Rangel set out with
one hundred and fifty men to carry out the project. This, however,
was not destined to be so speedily accomplished.[550]
* * * * *
Meanwhile Villa Rica had been a source of no small anxiety to Cortés.
He had appointed Alonso de Grado to fill the vacant place of Escalante,
as commander of the fortress, and as his lieutenant in the district.
Grado was a man of agreeable presence and conversation, and with
some fame among his comrades as a writer and musician, but more of a
braggart than a soldier, with decided sympathies in favor of Velazquez.
Indeed, Bernal Diaz charges him with having been the ringleader of the
mutinous demonstration at Tlascala. Cortés was well acquainted with
the character of the man; but his glib tongue had evidently overcome
the prudence of the general, or else he preferred a less bold spirit
than Escalante’s at this post. “Now, Señor Grado,” said he in handing
him his commission, “here is the fulfilment of your long felt desire
of going to Villa Rica. Take care of the fort, treat the Indians well,
and do not undertake any expeditions like that of Escalante, or you
may meet his fate.” “In saying this,” adds Bernal Diaz, “he gave us
soldiers a wink, which we readily enjoyed, knowing well enough that
Grado would not venture to do so, even under penalty of disgrace.”
The office of alguacil mayor, held by the former commander, was not
included in the present commission, but was given to Sandoval, and
when Grado remonstrated he was promised compensation in due time.
On reaching Villa Rica the evil nature of the man came to the front.
He assumed pompous demeanor, and expected the settlers to serve him
as a great lord, while the Totonacs were pressed for gold and female
slaves. The fort and the duties connected with it were neglected,
and the commander spent his time in gormandizing and gambling, not
to mention the secret efforts to undermine his general’s influence
and to gain adherents for Velazquez. This soon reached the ears
of Cortés, who felt not a little annoyed at having trusted such a
fellow. He recognized the necessity of intrusting this district to
one thoroughly devoted to himself, since a fleet from Cuba might at
any moment arrive and create mischief. Therefore he sent Sandoval,
who was brave and prudent, as well as loyal, and with him Pedro de
Ircio, a former equerry, of insinuating manners and gossiping tongue,
whom Sandoval elevated to a commanding position.[551]
Grado was immediately sent up to Mexico under a native guard, and
when he arrived, with hands tied and a noose round his neck, the
soldiers derided him, while Cortés felt half inclined to hang the
fellow. After a few days’ exposure in the stocks he was released, and
soon his smooth persuasion paved once more a way to the favor of his
general, with whom he became so reconciled as to obtain the office
of contador not long afterward.
* * * * *
Among the instructions to Sandoval was one to send to Mexico two
shipwrights with ship-building implements, also chains, iron, sails,
rope, compass, and everything needful to fit out four vessels which
had been placed on the stocks shortly after the seizure of the
emperor.[552] The object was to afford a means for the ready movement
of troops and for escape in case of an uprising, when the bridges would
doubtless be raised. In asking Montezuma for aid to fell and prepare
timber, it was pretended that it was for pleasure-boats wherewith
to entertain him. Under the able direction of Martin Lopez aided by
Alonso Nuñez, the master carpenters, they were completed within a
few weeks, and provided with four guns and tiers of oars, affording
transport for three hundred men.
A hunting-trip to one of the imperial reserves across the lake was at
once arranged.[553] The largest vessel had been provided with awnings
and other comforts for the reception of Montezuma, his suite, and
a strong guard, while other notables were accommodated in the other
craft. A volley from the guns announced their arrival, and did more
probably to inspire respect than even the presence of majesty. The
vessels were accompanied by a fleet of canoes, some holding forty
or more courtiers, hunters, or attendants. All were curious to see
how the winged water-houses would behave, for their immense size was
supposed to render them slow and clumsy. A fair breeze was blowing,
however, and as the large sails unfurled, the vessels bounded forward
with a speed that in a few moments left the occupants of the canoes
far behind. Montezuma was delighted, and the trip was repeated.
Hunting parties were likewise formed; for the royal captive enjoyed
the chase and used the blow-pipe with great skill.[554]
FOOTNOTES
[517] ‘Le dió en guarda á un capitan, é de noche é de dia
siempre estaban españoles en su presencia.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 580. This captain appears
to have been Juan Velazquez, whose place was taken by Olid,
when required. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 77, 86.
[518] ‘Se quiso echar de vna açutea de diez estados en
alto, para que los suyos le recibiessen, sino le detuuiera
vn Castellano.... Denoche y de dia procurauan de sacarle,
oradando a cada passo las paredes, y echando fuego por las
azuteas.’
The result was an increase of the guard, Álvarez Chico being
placed with 60 men to watch the rear of the quarters, and
Andrés de Monjarraz the front, with the same number, each
watch consisting of twenty men. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
viii. cap. iii. Bernal Diaz intimates that the guarding
of Montezuma proved a severe strain on the soldiers; but,
situated as they were, vigilance was ever required, and
still greater must have been the danger had he not been in
their power.
[519] Herrera calls him Peña, which may have been one of
his names, dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. v. Bernal Diaz assumes
that Montezuma asked Cortés to give him the page, after
the execution of Quauhpopoca. _Hist. Verdad._, 75.
[520] The bride was named Francisca. _Hist. Verdad._, 77.
As an instance of Montezuma’s eagerness to gratify the
Spaniards, and at the same time to exhibit his own power,
it is related that one day a hawk pursued a pigeon to the
very cot in the palace, amid the plaudits of the soldiers.
Among them was Francisco the dandy, former maestresala to
the admiral of Castile, who loudly expressed the wish to
obtain possession of the hawk and to tame him for falconry.
Montezuma heard him, and gave his hunters orders to catch
it, which they did. _Id._; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 125.
[521] Duran states that the soldiers discovered a house
filled with women, supposed to be wives of Montezuma, and
hidden to be out of the reach of the white men. He assumes
that gratitude would have made the Spaniards respect them;
or, if the women were nuns, that respect for virtue must
have obtained.
[522] Cortés’ protégée being named Ana. Quite a number of
the general’s followers declare in their testimony against
him, in 1528, that he assumed the intimate protectorship of
two or even three of Montezuma’s daughters, the second being
called Inés, or by others Isabel, the wife of Grado, and
afterward of Gallego. ‘Tres fijas de Montezuma e que las dos
dellas an parido del e la otra murio preñada del quando se
perdio esta cibdad.’ _Tirado_, in _Cortés_, _Residencia_,
ii. 39, 241, 244; i. 63, 99, 221, 263. Intrigues are
mentioned with other Indian princesses. Vetancurt assumes
that two noble maidens were given, one of whom Olid received.
_Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 133; _Torquemada_, i. 462. Bernal
Diaz supposes that this is the first daughter offered by
Montezuma, and he believes evidently that Cortés accepts
her, to judge by a later reference. _Hist. Verdad._, 85, 102.
[523] Herrera states that Cortés’ order was prompted by
a consideration for the heavy expense to Montezuma. The
latter remonstrated at this economical fit, and commanded
that double rations should be provided for the exiled. dec.
ii. lib. viii. cap. iv.
[524] _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
580. ‘Purchè non tocchino disse il Re, le immagini degli
Dei, nè ciò che è destinato al loro culto, prendano quanto
vogliono,’ is Clavigero’s free interpretation of Ojeda’s
version. _Storia Mess._, iii. 97; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
125.
[525] ‘Lo q̄ vna vez daua no lo auia de tornar a recibir.’
‘Las caxas donde la ropa estaua, eran tan grandes que
llegauan a las vigas de los aposentos, y tan anchas, q̄
despues de vacias, se alojauã en cada vna dos Castellanos.
Sacaron al patio mas de mil cargas de ropa.’ _Herrera_,
ii. viii. iv.
[526] ‘Casa de Cacao, de Motecuhçuma, adonde avia mas de
quarenta mil Cargas, que era Gran Riqueça, porque solia
valer cada Carga quarenta Castellanos.’ Alvarado alone
emptied six jars of 600 loads. _Torquemada_, i. 472.
[527] The man had insisted that Montezuma should have a
search made for two of his missing female attendants. The
emperor did not wish Spaniards punished for pilfering, as he
told Cortés, only for offering insult and violence. In such
cases he would have his own courtiers lashed. _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. v.
[528] ‘Tinie el marques tan recogida su gente, que ninguno
salie un tiro de arcabuz del aposento sin licencia, é
asimismo la gente tan en paz, que se averiguó nunca reñir
uno con otro.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, ii. 586.
[529] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist Verdad._, 77. ‘Un giuoco, che
gli Spagnuoli chiamavano il _bodoque_.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia
Mess._, iii. 97. Bodoque signifies balls in this connection.
When Alvarado lost, he with great show of liberality paid
in chalchiuites, stones which were highly treasured by
the natives, but worth nothing to the Spaniards. Montezuma
paid in quoits, worth at least 50 ducats. One day he lost
40 or 50 quoits, and with pleasure, since it gave him the
opportunity to be generous. B. V. de Tapia testifies that
Alvarado used to cheat in playing cards with him and others.
_Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 51-2. Another way of gratifying
this bent was to accept trifles from the Spaniards and
liberally compensate them. Alonso de Ojeda, for instance,
had a silk-embroidered satchel with many pockets, for which
Montezuma gave him two pretty slaves, beside a number of
robes and jewels. Ojeda wrote a memoir on the conquest, of
which Herrera makes good use. dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. v.
[530] ‘Fué muchas veces á holgar con cinco ó seis españoles
á una y dos leguas fuera de la ciudad.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
92. Both the times and the number of the Spaniards are
doubtful, however. ‘Quando salia a caçar.... Lleuaua ocho o
diez Españoles en guarda de la persona, y tres mil Mexicanos
entre señores, caualleros, criados, y caçadores.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 124; _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 297.
[531] Bernal Diaz intimates that more sacrifices were made
in their presence. ‘Y no podiamos en aquella sazon hazer
otra cosa sino dissimular con èl.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 78.
[532] Bernal Diaz admits that he knows not what occurred
between governor and monarch, but Herrera claims to be
better informed. Barefooted, and with eyes upon the floor,
Quauhpopoca approached the throne and said: ‘Most great
and most powerful lord, thy slave Quauhpopoca has come at
thy bidding, and awaits thy orders.’ He had done wrong,
was the reply, to kill the Spaniards, and then declare
that he had orders so to do. For this he should suffer as
a traitor to his sovereign and to the strangers. He was
not allowed to make any explanations, dec. ii. lib. viii.
cap. ix. It is not unlikely that Montezuma commanded him
not to reveal anything that might implicate his master,
hoping that Cortés would out of regard for his generous
host inflict a comparatively light punishment.
[533] ‘Examinaron los segunda vez, con mas rigor, y amenazas
de tormento, y sin discrepar todos confessaron,’ says
Herrera, loc. cit.
[534] ‘En vna de las casas reales dicha Tlacochalco.’
_Herrera_, loc. cit. ‘É serien mas que quinientas
carretadas.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._,
ii. 584.
[535] ‘Me has negado no auer mãdado a Couatlpopocà q̄ matasse
a mis compañeros, no lo has hecho como tan gran señor que
eres, ... porque no quedes sin algun castigo, y tu y los
tuyos sepays quanto vale el tratar verdad, te mãdare echar
prisiones.’ Herrera implies with this that Cortés laid more
weight on the disregard for truth than on the authorization
of the outrage. dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. ix. ‘Que ya que
aquella culpa tuuiesse, que antes la pagaria el Cortès
por su persona, que versela passar al Monteçuma.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 75.
[536] ‘Esto hizo por ocuparle el pensamiento en sus duelos,
y dexasse los ajenos.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 129. ‘Todo
à fin de espantarle mas.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._,
298.
[537] Solis seems to say that the bodies were burned after
execution, _Hist. Mex._, i. 461-2, but Cortés and others
are frank enough about the actual burning, which was not
regarded in that cruel age with the same aversion as by us.
Instances are to be found in the _Native Races_, ii.-iii.,
where this ordeal was undergone by criminals as well as
temple victims among the Aztecs. Bernal Diaz gives the names
of two of Quauhpopoca’s companions in misfortune, Quiabuitle
and Coatl. _Hist. Verdad._, 75. Prescott, _Mex._, ii. 173,
states that the execution took place in the court-yard;
but this is probably a misprint, to judge by his own text.
[538] ‘Á lo que entendimos, ê lo mas cierto, Cortés auia
dicho á Aguilar la lengua, que le dixesse de secreto, que
aunque Malinche le mandasse salir de la prision, que los
Capitanes nuestros, è soldados no querriamos.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 75.
[539] ‘Fué tanto el buen tratamiento que yo le hice, y el
contentamiento que de mí tenia, que algunas veces y muchas
le acometi con su libertad, rogándole que fuese á su casa,
y me dijo todas las veces que se lo decia, que él estaba
bien allí,’ etc. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 91. ‘No osaua, de
miedo que los suyos no le matassen ... por auerse dexado
prender,’ is one of the suppositions of Gomara, who calls
him a man of little heart. _Hist. Mex._, 129-30. Peter
Martyr appears to be moved rather by pity for him. dec.
v. cap. iii. ‘Non gli conveniva ritornare al suo palagio,
mentre fossero nella Corte gli Spagnuoli.’ _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 102.
[540] ‘Como este castigo se supo en todas las Prouincias
de la Nueua-España, temieron, y los pueblos de la costa,
adonde mataron nuestros soldados, bolvieron á servir.’
Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 75-6, comments upon the
daring of the Spaniards in carrying out these and similar
high-handed acts. For a short time after this, says Herrera,
the soldiers were ordered to sleep on their arms, in case
of any demonstration. dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. ix. Clavigero
regards the burning as unjustifiable, since the emperor was
regarded as having authorized it. If he was not guilty,
the Spaniards were ungrateful to treat him as they did.
_Storia Mess._, iii. 101. Robertson finds some excuse for
Quauhpopoca’s punishment, but calls the humiliation of
Montezuma a wanton display of power. _Hist. Am._, ii. 63,
453-4. Prescott, on the other hand, regards the humiliation
as politic, on the ground that by rendering the monarch
contemptible in the eyes of his subjects, he was obliged
to rely more on the Spaniards. _Mex._, ii. 177. But this
would hardly have been necessary since he was in their
power, and considering that the object of keeping him so
was to control the country, it would have been better not
to degrade him.
[541] ‘Donde mas oro se solia traer, que era de vna Provincia
que se dize, Zacatula ... de otra Provincia, que se dize
Gustepeque, cerca de donde desembarcamos ... é que cerca
de aquella Provincia ay otras buenas minas, en parte que
no son sujetos, que se dizen, los Chinatecas, y Capotecas.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 81. Montezuma detailed two
persons for each of four provinces where gold was to be
had, and Cortés gave two Spaniards for each couple. The
provinces named were Cuzula, Tamazulapa, Malinaltepeque,
Tenis. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 92-3. Of the eight Indians, four
were miners or goldsmiths, and the others guides. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 130. Chimalpain names the provinces: Tamazólan,
in upper Miztecapan, Malinaltepec and Tenich, both on the
same river, and Tututepec, twelve leagues farther, in the
Xicayan country. _Hist. Conq._, i. 254-5.
[542] ‘Con tal, que los de Culùa no entrassen en su tierra.’
They were reassured and dismissed with presents. _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. i.
[543] ‘Cortés se holgô tanto con el oro como si fueran
treinta mil pesos, en saber cierto que avia buenas minas.’
Bernal Diaz intimates beside that Umbría and his two
companions had provided themselves with plenty of gold.
_Hist. Verdad._, 81-2.
[544] A young man of 25 years, whom Cortés treated as
a relative. With him went four Spaniards who understood
mining, and four chiefs. _Id._
[545] ‘En granos crespillos, porque dixeron los mineros,
que aquello era de mas duraderas minas como de nacimiento.’
_Id._, 82.
[546] Bernal Diaz names them, ‘Barriẽtos, y Heredia el
viejo, y Escalona el moço, y Cervantes el chocarrero,’ and
says that Cortés, displeased at soldiers being left to raise
fowl and cacao, sent Alonso Luis to recall them. _Hist.
Verdad._, 82; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. i. He is
evidently mistaken, as shown by his own later text, for
Cortés himself states that he sought to form plantations
in that direction. The recall was made later and for a
different reason.
[547] ‘Estaban sembradas sesenta hanegas de maíz y diez
de frijoles, y dos mil piés de cacap [cacao] ... hicieron
un estanque de agua, y en él pusieron quinientos patos
... y pusieron hasta mil y quinientas gallinas.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 94; _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap. iii. Oviedo writes
that farms were established for the king in two or three
provinces, one in Chimanta [Chimantla]. The two Spaniards
left in the latter were saved, but elsewhere, subject to the
Aztecs, they were killed during the uprising originated by
Alvarado. iii. 376. Tapia refers to an expedition at this
time against a revolted province, 80 leagues off. _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 584.
[548] ‘Por aquella causa llaman oy en dia, donde aquella
guerra passò, Cuilonemiqui.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
82.
[549] _Herrera_, loc. cit. ‘Creyan lo que desseauan,’
remarks Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 131.
[550] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 95, 116; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
131-2. Bernal Diaz throws doubt on the expedition of
Velazquez, but is evidently forgetful. _Hist. Verdad._, 81-2.
‘El señor de la provinçia ... luego hiço seys [casas] en el
assiento é parte que para el pueblo se señaló.’ _Oviedo_,
iii. 293. Peter Martyr calls these buildings ‘Tributaries’
houses.’ dec. v. cap. iii.; _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 6,
49.
[551] He had served as equerry in the noble houses of the
Conde de Ureña and Pedro Giron, of whose affairs he was
always prating. His propensity for tale-telling lost him
many friends, but he managed to keep intimate with Sandoval,
whose favors he afterward repaid with ingratitude. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 76, 246. Gomara insists on naming him
as the comandante, but this dignity he attained only after
Sandoval and Rangel had held it. _Cortés_, _Residencia_,
i. 256; _Torquemada_, i. 456.
[552] ‘Luego que entré en la dicha ciudad di mucha priesa
á facer cuatro bergantines ... tales que podian echar
trecientos hombres en la tierra y llevar los caballos.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 103; _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap.
iv. ‘Quatro fustas.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 146. ‘Dos
vergantines.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 76. The cedars
of Tacuba, numerous enough at this period, yielded much
of the timber, and the slopes of Iztaccihuatl and Telapon
the harder portion for masts, keels, etc. _Mora_, in _Soc.
Mex. Geog._, _Boletin_, ix. 301.
[553] ‘En la laguna á vn peñol, que estaua acotado, q̄ no
ossauan entrar en èl á montear, por muy principales que
fuessen, so pena de muerte.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
78.
[554] _Native Races_, ii. 411. ‘Qãdo yua a caça de monteria,
le lleuauan en ombros, con las guardas de Castellanos, y
tres mil Indios Tlascaltecas.... Acompañauanle los señores
sus vassallos.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. iv.
CHAPTER XIX.
POLITICS AND RELIGION.
1520.
GROWING DISCONTENT AMONG THE MEXICANS—CACAMA’S
CONSPIRACY—HE OPENLY DEFIES BOTH MONTEZUMA AND CORTÉS—THE
COUNCIL OF TEPETZINCO—SEIZURE OF CACAMA—THE TEZCUCAN
RULER DEPOSED—CUICUITZCATL ELEVATED—MONTEZUMA AND HIS
PEOPLE SWEAR FEALTY TO THE SPANISH KING—GATHERING IN THE
TRIBUTE—DIVISION OF SPOILS—THE SPANIARDS QUARREL OVER THEIR
GOLD—UNCONTROLLABLE RELIGIOUS ZEAL—TAKING OF THE TEMPLE—WRATH
OF THE MEXICANS.
With their hand so securely on the spring that moved a mighty empire,
there is little wonder that these Spanish adventurers became somewhat
insolent toward the people they so injured. The Mexicans were not
slow to mark this, and there were those among them, and others beside
them, who began to think of taking matters into their own hands, of
destroying the invaders and releasing the emperor.
Montezuma’s occasional appearance in public, and the assertion that
he remained with the Spaniards of his free-will, and because the gods
desired it, had for a time satisfied the nobles; but the hard irons
on his limbs and the cruel burning of patriotic men had opened their
eyes somewhat to the true state of affairs. No one knew when his turn
might come. Life was insecure enough subject to the caprice of their
own sovereign, but the dark uncertain ways of these emissaries of
evil were past finding out. These things were thought of and talked
of in high places. Race aversions and the political systems of the
tripartite alliance caused more than one party to be formed, each with
aspirations that could not be entertained by the others. The most
prominent leader at this time was Cacama, who had at first favored
the strangers in their character as envoys. And now he began the
endeavor to direct the movement of the Aztec nobility, but jealousy
of Acolhua influence rose uppermost, and his efforts tended only to
create a reaction in favor of abiding by the will of the emperor.[555]
Although there were enough of sympathizers in Mexico for his purpose,
Cacama found that he must rely almost wholly on the northern provinces,
and in connection with Cuitlahuatzin, Totoquihuatzin II. of Tlacopan,
his own brothers, and others, he organized a conspiracy which had for
its aim the expulsion of the Spaniards and the release of his uncle.
Beneath this was harbored a design upon the Aztec throne, which would
probably become vacant; and even if Cacama was not sure of gaining
this for himself, he had at least the expectation of assuming the
leadership of the Anáhuac confederacy.[556] He presented to the council
in the most dismal aspect the purposes of the Spaniards, who evidently
sought to become absolute masters and reduce them all to slavery. It
was time to rise for religion and liberty. Their honor and welfare
demanded it, and this before the Spaniards rendered themselves too
powerful by reinforcements and alliances. With heedless confidence
he vaunted that Mexico should be his within a few hours after setting
out against her, for there were many of her citizens ready to aid in
such a work. The Spaniards were overrated, and could effect little,
surrounded as they were on all sides, and without other supplies than
those provided by the Mexicans.
The motives and the necessity were recognized, though the means
proposed met with some objections; but when the question of spoils
and rewards came forward there were still greater differences.
Among others, the brave and powerful lord of Matlaltzinco advanced
pretensions, founded in part on his close relationship to Montezuma,
which Cacama above all could not admit. The result was disagreement,
followed by the withdrawal of several members.[557]
No attempt had been made to keep the movement, or its ostensible
motive, a secret from Montezuma, nor could it have been kept from him
who was the still powerful ruler of a servile race; but, even if the
deeper lying aim was not revealed him, he could not fail to foresee
the troubles that might arise, particularly under such a leader.
He still hoped the Spaniards would soon leave, or that his release
might be effected by other means, for he dreaded a conflict with the
powerful invaders, involving perhaps the destruction of the city and
his own death. He sent to tell the conspirators that they need not
concern themselves about his imprisonment. The Spaniards had more
than once proposed that he should return to his own palace, but the
gods had decreed it otherwise. He could not allow his people to be
needlessly exposed to war, or his capital to destruction. Remember
Cholula. Their stay would not be long.
This message was not without its effect even among the Tezcucans, for,
although the fate of the Aztec capital and king may have concerned them
but little, there were many who could not forget that the impetuous
and proud Cacama had obtained the throne by favor of Montezuma, to the
prejudice of an elder brother, Tetlahuehuetquizitzin.Their father,
Nezahualpilli, had died in 1515, without naming a successor, and
the choice devolving on the royal council, in conjunction with the
rulers of Mexico and Tlacopan, Cacama was elected. Cohuanacoch, the
third brother, acquiesced, but the youngest, the fiery Ixtlilxochitl,
protested in favor of the eldest heir, and denounced the selection
as due to Montezuma, who hoped to mould the new king to his own will
and so again to control. He even resorted to arms in support of his
views, and enlisting the northern provinces in his favor, after a
short campaign he obliged Cacama to consent to a division of the
kingdom with himself.[558]
His ready success proved that Cacama had no very great hold on the
people, and now, when came the warning of Montezuma, more than one
chief counselled prudence from other motives than fear. But the king
stamped all these objections as cowardly, and appears even to have
placed under restraint several of those whose want of sympathy he
had reason to suspect.[559] His blood was hot, and relying on the
promises of his supporters, he considered himself strong enough to bid
defiance to his opponents. He sent word to his uncle that if he had
any regard for the dignity of his station and the honor of his person
and ancestry, he would not quietly submit to the bondage imposed by
a handful of robbers, who with smooth tongue sought to cover their
outrages against him and the gods. If he refused to rise in defence
of his religion, throne, and liberty, Cacama would not.[560]
This outspoken utterance of the nephew whom he had assisted to
rulership amazed Montezuma as much as it wounded his pride, and he no
longer hesitated to take counsel with Cortés, who had already obtained
an inkling that something was stirring.[561] With characteristic
promptness the latter suggested that, since Cacama’s real object
was evidently to usurp the throne, a Mexican army should be given to
aid the Spaniards in laying waste the territory of the conspirators
and in capturing them. The emperor had probably entertained a hope
that the news would frighten his guest and make it safe to urge a
retreat from Mexico, thus ending the whole trouble. He was therefore
somewhat startled by this proposal, the true tenor of which he well
understood. He feared a fratricidal war of doubtful result, wherein
he would appear as arrayed against the defenders of national religion
and liberty; and being now weak and cowed he hesitated to arm at all,
preferring peaceful measures. To this Cortés was not averse, for he
recognized on second thought that aggressive steps might become the
signal for a general uprising which would overwhelm him, since Aztec
troops could never be relied on.
He accordingly sent messages to Cacama, reminding him of their friendly
intercourse, and representing the danger of offending the Spanish
king by proceedings which could only react on himself and lead to
the destruction of his kingdom. Montezuma supported this by asking
the king to come to Mexico and arrange the difficulty. Cacama had
not gone so far to be restrained by what he termed an empty threat,
and regardless of the warnings from a timid minority he replied that
he knew not the king of the Spaniards, and would never accept the
friendship of men who had oppressed his country and outraged his blood
and religion. He had had enough of their promises, but would declare
his determination when he saw them.[562] To Montezuma he sent word
that he would come, “not with the hand on the heart, however, but on
the sword.”[563]
There was considerable meaning in this threat, for Cacama had with
great energy set about to mass his forces at Oztoticpac, and they in
conjunction with those of his allies would make a formidable host.[564]
Cortés was aware of this, and seeing that no time was to be lost he
firmly represented to Montezuma the necessity of securing the person
of the king, openly or by stealth; and when he still hesitated, the
significant hint was given that the Spaniards would regard a refusal
with suspicion. This decided him, and he promised that it should be
done, if possible. Cortés broke forth in expressions of good-will,
and again offered him that freedom which Montezuma well knew he would
never grant.
In placing Cacama on the throne, the emperor had seized the opportunity
to introduce into the Acolhua government offices several creatures of
his own, who were paid to maintain Aztec influence in the council[565]
and to watch operations. To these men he sent an order, weighted
with presents, to seize the king and bring him to Mexico.[566] They
accordingly prevailed on their victim to hold a council at Tepetzinco
for finally arranging the campaign. This palace was situated on the
lake, near Tezcuco, and approached by canals. Here Cacama was seized
and thrown into a boat prepared for the occasion, and carried to the
Aztec capital.[567]
Ashamed, perhaps, of his share in the transaction, and unwilling to
face the taunts of the captive, Montezuma refused to see him, and
he was surrendered to Cortés, who, regardless of royalty, applied
the fetters as the surest means against escape.[568] This seizure
scattered the conspirators and their schemes to the winds, and the
demoralization was completed by the arrest of several of the more
important personages, such as the king of Tlacopan and the lords of
Iztapalapan and Coyuhuacan, who were also shackled.[569] Thus we see
that Montezuma’s captivity did not greatly affect his power, since
he could so readily place under restraint the confederate kings, in
their own provinces; and it was not wholly unwelcome to him to find
his misfortune shared by other prominent men, since this made his
disgrace less conspicuous.
He now resolved, with the approval of Cortés, to depose the Tezcucan
ruler, as a rebel against his authority, and to place on the throne
a more dutiful subject, a younger natural brother of Cacama, named
Cuicuetzcatl,[570] whom his ill-treatment had driven to Mexico for
protection. The nomination was for the sake of appearance submitted
for ratification to a convention of loyal Tezcucan chiefs, many of
whom hoped no doubt to obtain greater influence under this youth. The
new king was escorted to the gates of Mexico by Cortés and Montezuma,
and received at Tezcuco with triumphal arches and processions.[571]
* * * * *
And now, with the three confederate rulers and a number of leading
caciques in his power, the great king-maker thought the time had come
to exact a formal acknowledgment of Spanish sovereignty. He reminded
Montezuma of his promises to pay tribute, and demanded that he and his
vassals should tender allegiance. Instead of the objections expected,
Cortés was surprised to hear a prompt acquiescence. Montezuma had
evidently been long prepared for the demand, and said that he would
at once convene his chiefs for consultation. Within little more than a
week the summoned dignitaries had arrived, and at a meeting, attended
by no Spaniards save the page, he intimated to the leading personages,
so far as he dared before this witness, that the concession demanded
of them was to satisfy the importunate jailers. “The gods, alas! are
mute,” concluded Montezuma; “but by and by they may signify their will
more clearly, and I will then say what further is to be done.”[572]
All declared sorrowfully that they would do as he bade, and Cortés
was informed that on the following day the required ceremony would
take place.
On this occasion the chiefs mustered in force before Montezuma, who
was seated on a throne having on either side the new king of Tezcuco
and he of Tlacopan.[573] All being prepared, the Spanish general
entered with his captains and a number of soldiers. The emperor
now addressed his vassals, reminding them of the relation so long
and happily maintained between them—as dutiful subjects on the one
side, and a line of loving monarchs on the other. Comparing the
Quetzalcoatl myth and other indications with the advent of white men
from the region of the rising sun, he showed that they must be the
long expected race, sent to claim allegiance for their king, to whom
the sovereignty evidently belonged. The gods had willed it that their
generation should repair the omission of their ancestors. “Hence I
pray that as you have hitherto held and obeyed me as your lord, so
you will henceforth hold and obey this great king, for he is your
legitimate ruler, and in his place accept this captain of his. All the
tribute and service hitherto tendered me give to him, for I also have
to contribute and serve with all that he may require. In doing this
you will fulfil not only your duty, but give me great pleasure.”[574]
His concluding words were almost lost in the sobs which his humiliated
soul could no longer stifle. The chiefs were equally affected, and
the sympathies even of the flint-hearted Spaniards were aroused to a
degree which moistened many an eye. With some of the lately arrived
dignitaries, who had not had time to fully grasp the situation at the
capital, indignation struggled with grief at the dismal prospect.
Others recalled the prophecy that the empire would terminate with
Montezuma, whose very name appeared fraught with evil omen,[575] and
were quite reconciled to the inevitable. So were most of them, for
that matter, either through belief in the myth or from a sense of
duty to their master. One of the eldest nobles broke the oppressive
silence by declaring his sorrow at witnessing the grief of their
beloved sovereign and hearing the announcement of coming changes.
But since the time had come for the fulfilment of divine decrees,
they, as devout and dutiful subjects, could only submit. Again their
grief broke forth, though many a bitter glance was called up by the
allusion to changes in store for them. Observing the bad impression,
Cortés hastened to assure them that Montezuma would not only remain
the great emperor he had always been, and his vassals be confirmed
in their dignities and possessions, but that their domain and power
would be increased. The changes proposed were merely intended to
stop wars, to enlighten them on matters with which they were as yet
unacquainted, and to promote general welfare. One after another,
beginning with Montezuma, they now swore allegiance, and gave promise
of service and tribute, after which they were dismissed with thanks
for their compliance.[576]
The submission of the sovereigns appears to have been quietly accepted
throughout the country, and the impunity with which even single
Spaniards moved about shows that no hostility had been aroused by
the act, in the provinces at least. Evidently the people hovered
between fear of men who so few in number could yet perform so great
achievements, and awe of divine will as indicated by the prophecies
and traditions. Cortés was not slow in making use of his new power by
representing to the emperor that, his king being in need of gold for
certain projects, it would be well for the new vassals to begin tribute
payments as an earnest of their loyalty. Montezuma had expected this,
and it was readily agreed that he should send officers, accompanied
by Spaniards, to the different provinces and towns of the empire for
contributions.[577] These demands were met with more or less alacrity,
and in poured gold and silver, in dust, and quoits, and leaves, and
trinkets, which formed to a certain extent a medium for trade. Many
towns remote from the mines had nothing to offer save a few jewels,
which were perhaps heirlooms among the chiefs.[578]
When the collectors returned, Montezuma summoned the Spanish leaders,
and surrendered what they had brought. In addition to this, he
offered them the treasures kept in his own palace, regretting that
he had not more to give; but previous offerings had diminished what
he possessed. “When you transmit it to your king,” he said, “tell
him that it comes from his good vassal, Montezuma.” He requested that
certain fine chalchiuite stones, each valued at two loads of gold, and
some finely chased and inlaid blow-pipes, should be given to the king
alone.[579] This liberality evoked the most profound protestations of
gratitude, as may be supposed, for they had not expected so great an
addition to the glittering heaps already in their possession. Tapia
and another officer were despatched in all haste with the imperial
mayordomo to receive the treasure. It was stored in a hall and two
smaller chambers of the aviary building,[580] and consisted of gold,
silver, and precious stones, in setting and in separate form, with
feathers, robes, and other articles, all of which were transferred
to the Spanish quarters.[581]
These valuables, together with the collections from the provinces
and the previously surrendered treasures of Axayacatl, were given to
Cortés, who placed them in charge of the treasurer, Gonzalo Mejía,
and the contador, Alonso de Ávila. The famed smiths of Azcapuzalco
were called in to separate the gold and silver settings from the
jewels of less delicacy and beauty, which it had been determined to
melt. This took about three days. They were then melted into bars,
three fingers in breadth, and stamped with the royal arms.[582] Iron
weights were made of one arroba and downward, not very exact, it seems,
yet suitable for the purpose, and with these the value of the melted
gold was found to be somewhat over 162,000 pesos de oro, according
to Cortés’ statement; the silver weighed over 500 marcos, and the
unbroken jewels and other effects were estimated at over 500,000
ducats, not counting the workmanship.[583] The jewels were set with
feathers, pearls, and precious stones, fashioned chiefly in animal
forms, “so perfect as to appear natural.” A number of trinkets for the
royal share had also been fashioned by the goldsmiths after designs
by the Spaniards, such as saintly images, crucifixes, bracelets, and
chains, all made with wonderful fidelity to originals. The silver for
the same share was made into plates, spoons, and similar articles. The
feathers presented a brilliant variety of colors and forms, and the
cotton, some of the most delicate texture and color, was both plain
and embroidered, and made into robes, tapestry, covers, and other
articles. Turquoises, pearls, toys, and trinkets were also among the
treasures.[584]
Cortés proposed to defer the distribution till more gold and better
weights were obtained; but the men, who with good reason, perhaps,
suspected that a delay might diminish rather than increase the
treasures, clamored for an immediate division. The troops were
accordingly called, and in their presence the partition was made:
first of the royal fifth;[585] then of the fifth promised to Cortés
when appointed captain-general; after this a large sum was set apart
to cover expenditures by Cortés and Velazquez on the fleet and its
outfit, and the value of the horses killed during the campaign,[586]
and another sum for the expenses and shares of the procuradores in
Spain, while double or special shares were assigned to the priests,
the captains, those owning horses, and the men with fire-arms and
cross-bows.[587] After all these deductions but little remained for
the rank and file—a hundred pesos, if we may credit Bernal Diaz.[588]
This, many indignantly refused to accept; others took it, but joined
in the clamors of the discontented.
* * * * *
It is almost too much to ask of vultures not to quarrel over their
prey. The murmur against the royal fifth was loud enough, but the
second fifth for Cortés raised quite an outcry. “Are we to have a
second king?” they asked. Others inquired, “For whose fleet are we
paying?” They further wished to know whether the fame and promotion
acquired for the general by his men could not satisfy some of his
claims, for the present, at least. They had once before surrendered
hard-earned money to please him and to promote his credit with the
king, and now, when they had been led to expect reward, it was again
snatched from them. Some said that a large proportion of the treasures
had been secured by Cortés and his favorites before the distribution
began; and the value of the heavy gold chains and other ornaments
displayed by them was significantly pointed at as out of proportion
to their share.
The suspicion was confirmed by a quarrel which occurred shortly after
between Velazquez de Leon and Treasurer Mejía respecting the payment
of the royal fifth on certain unbroken jewels found in Velazquez’
possession, and received by him before the apportionment. It was
enough, said Mejía, for Cortés to appropriate unassessed treasures.
Velazquez refusing to comply, they came to blows, and if friends
had not interfered there might have been an officer or two less in
the camp. As it was, both received slight wounds, and subsequently
shackles. Mejía was released within a few hours; but his antagonist
retained the fetters for two days, persuaded to submit with grace
thereto by Cortés, it was said, in order to allay suspicions and
to show that the general could be just, even when it affected a
friend.[589]
Finding that the murmurs were becoming serious, Cortés brought his
soothing eloquence to bear upon the troubled spirits. He represented
that all his thoughts, efforts, and possessions were for the honor of
his God, his king, and his companions. With them he had shared every
danger and hardship, and for their welfare he had watched, rendering
justice to all. The division had been fairly made in accordance with
previous arrangement. But he was not avaricious; all he had was theirs,
and he would employ it for them as might a father. He would surrender
the fifth which had been assigned him, if they wished it, retaining
only his share as captain-general; and he would also help any one
in need. The treasure thus far secured was insignificant compared
to what lay before them. What mattered a few hundred pesos more or
less in view of the rich mines, the large tracts, and the immense
number of towns, which were all theirs, so long as they held loyally
together? “I will make a lord of every one of you,” he concluded,
“if you will but have peace and patience.”[590] And to give greater
effect to this harangue he bribed with gifts and promises the more
influential to sound his praises; whereupon the murmurs died away,
though rancor still remained with many, awaiting opportunity.[591]
A large proportion of the soldiers imitated the example of the heavy
sharers in the spoils by converting their allotment, with the aid of
Azcapuzalcan goldsmiths, into chains, crosses, and other adornments for
their persons, so that the display of wealth became quite dazzling.
Others yielded to the infatuation for gambling, then so prevalent,
and lost without a murmur the hard-earned share.[592]
* * * * *
But one thing now remained to complete the triumph of the conqueror.
The manacled kings were subservient, and the people displayed their
loyalty by pouring tribute into his coffers. But his god was not
theirs, and this the pious pilferer could not endure. He and his
priests had lost no opportunity to preach the faith to emperor and
subjects;[593] but the hearts of the natives were obdurately fixed on
the idols of the pyramid. He never beheld the temple without being
tempted to lay low the effigies of Satan, and it was owing only to
Father Olmedo’s prudent counsel that the temptation was resisted.
Repeatedly had he urged on the weak emperor to begin the great work
by some radical reform, but could obtain only the promise that human
sacrifices would be stopped. Finding that even this was not observed,
he consulted with his captains, and it was agreed to demand the
surrender of the great temple for Christian worship, so that the
natives might be made to feel the holy influence of its symbols and
rites. Montezuma was prepared with excuses, but the deputation declared
with fierce vehemence that if this were refused they would forcibly
remove the idols and kill the priests who resisted. “Malinche,”
exclaimed the monarch in alarm, “do you then seek the destruction of
the city? Our gods are incensed against us, and the people imbittered.
Even your lives will not be safe. Wait, I entreat you, till I call
the priests for consultation.”[594]
Cortés saw that nothing more could then be attained, but with the
indiscreet zeal for religion which often blinded him he determined
that there should be no further delay. He apprehended no uprising
among a people which had so patiently submitted to all exactions, yet
he feared that the priests, if warned, might prevent an entry into
the temple, and so he resolved to anticipate them, and to demonstrate
the impotency of their gods. Giving orders for a strong force to
follow after a short interval, he went forward with hardly a dozen
men in order not to arouse suspicion.[595] Entering the sanctuary,
and finding that he could not draw aside the costly curtain with
its golden pellet fringe which shielded the bejewelled idols from
profane gaze, he had it cut asunder. The reason for the obstruction
now became apparent. The idol showed traces of fresh human blood. At
this evidence of broken promises and disregarded orders Cortés began
to rave. “Oh God!” he cried, “why dost thou permit the devil to be
thus honored in this land? Let it appear good that we serve thee.”
Turning to the temple attendants, who had followed with apprehensive
mien, he upbraided them for their blind adherence to a bloody
worship, and compared the evil of idolatry with the saving rites
of Christianity. He was determined, he said, to remove the idols
and install an image of the virgin. They must take away all within
the sanctuary and cleanse it. The priests shook their heads at such
an insane idea. All the city and country around adored these gods,
and they would die rather than see them desecrated. They further
intimated that the deities would themselves know how to chastise the
sacrilegious. This reply only fired the fury of Cortés, and unable
further to restrain himself, he seized a bar, dashed at the idol,
and striking it a blow which caused the golden mask to fall off, he
exclaimed, “Shall we not do something for God?” Captain Andrés de
Tapia, one of the dozen Spaniards present on the occasion, testifies
to the rash proceeding: “I swear by my faith as a gentleman and by
God that it is true. It seems as if I now see the marquis springing
with excitement and striking at the idol.”[596]
When the real intentions of Cortés had first become apparent to the
priests, they sent to warn Montezuma, as emperor and high-priest,
that some outrage might be perpetrated. Suspecting that the recent
threat was about to be carried out, he despatched a messenger to the
general asking permission to come to the temple, and imploring him
meanwhile to respect the idols. The message arrived before much damage
was done, and with the advice of his followers Cortés was induced
to yield. He recognized that the attitude assumed might lead to more
serious results than had been at first supposed. The rumor had spread
of extraordinary proceedings on the temple summit, and armed and
threatening crowds were gathering at the foot, impeded only by the
Spanish reserve escort[597] from ascending to defend their gods. Why
should not they fight for their religion as well as others? Seeing that
the emperors presence was necessary to calm them, Cortés permitted
him to come. He soon arrived, under a strong guard, and pointing to
the excited masses he reasoned with Cortés upon the uselessness and
danger of his hasty project. The latter stubbornly insisted, and
after a consultation with the priests it was agreed to surrender both
the summit chapels of Huitzilopochtli and Tezcatlipoca to Christian
worship,[598] on condition that the idols within might be removed
by the reverent hands of priests alone. This was effected while the
emperor remained on the summit. The chapels were then whitewashed,
a cross was planted, and two altars rose, on which were placed the
image of the virgin and of a saint whom Tapia calls San Cristóbal.[599]
* * * * *
Preparations were next made to consecrate the sanctuary, now festive
with garlands and flowers. The Spaniards marched in procession through
the streets, to the chant of psalms, headed by the two priests who
bore the crucifix and images. Crowds of wondering natives lined
their path, and remained to watch the cross winding its way round
the pyramid in a sanctifying orbit. Cortés was the first to kiss the
installed crucifix, while tears of joy rolled down his cheeks. Mass
followed the consecration, and with a swelling Te Deum the soldiers
rendered thanks to the supreme being for the triumph accorded them
over paganism.
It was but a partial victory, however, for in the court the priests
were even then gathered in adoration of the chief idol, bewailing
their own impotency, and imploring it to rise and avenge its outraged
majesty and their humiliation. An old soldier was left as guard
to keep the candles burning, and to prevent intrusion from, temple
attendants, save to clean the place for the frequent services which
were henceforth held here.[600]
Taking advantage of the step thus gained, the priests and their
followers sought to impress upon the natives the superiority of
their faith,[601] and numbers were convinced, says Tapia, although
few accepted baptism out of fear of their countrymen.[602] There was
a drought prevailing at the time, and the priests, having in vain
appealed for a remedy, ascribed the evil to the anger of the gods at
the presence of the worshippers of strange deities and their hateful
symbols. A few days after the consecration of the altars a deputation
of natives appeared at the Spanish quarters, bearing withered
corn-stalks, and demanding that, since the Europeans had removed
the idols to whom they prayed for rain, they should ask their god
for it, so that the people might not die of hunger. Cortés reassured
them,[603] and ordered a general prayer for relief. “The following
day,” says Tapia, “we marched in procession to the temple, under a
blazing sun.” While mass was being said a cloud might be seen gathering
on Mount Tepcaquilla, and “on our way back the rain fell so heavily
that we had to wade in water up to our ankles.” The rain continued
for several days, and the harvest turned out abundant.[604] Each party
claimed the meteorological display as a direct answer to its prayer,
for the Mexicans were hardly prepared to yield everything without a
struggle. To this insignificant and hated band of intruders they had
practically abandoned their country, by acknowledging serfdom with
tribute. Daily they submitted to wrongs and indignities. The sacred
person of their king had been profaned, their nobles brought to the
dust. Now should they submit to this destruction of their gods? If
so, the heavens and earth would come together, grinding them to powder!
FOOTNOTES
[555] ‘Visto por el rey Cacama el poco ánimo y determinacion
de los Mexicanos, se salió de la ciudad y se fué á la de
Tezcuco, para juntar sus gentes.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist.
Chich._, 298, and _Torquemada_, i. 459. But it is doubtful
whether he remained many days in Mexico after the seizure
of his uncle, if indeed he was there then.
[556] Bernal Diaz assumes, naturally enough for a Spanish
conqueror, that one of the main objects of Cacama was to
rescue the imperilled treasures at Mexico. _Hist. Verdad._,
79-80.
[557] ‘Aun dezian, que le venia de derecho el Reyno, y
señorio de Mexico.’ However that may be, he laid a claim to
the Aztec throne, and Cacama replied that to himself alone
should that belong. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 79-80.
[558] See _Native Races_, v. 474.
[559] ‘Mandó echar presos tres dellos.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 80.
[560] ‘Cacama le respondio muy agramente, diziendo que si
el tuuiera sangre en el ojo, ni estaria preso, ni catiuo
de quatro estranjeros,’ etc. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 133.
[561] According to Bernal Diaz and Gomara, Cortés was
informed by Montezuma before he and Cacama exchanged the
severe messages referred to, and that the Spaniard sent
the first remonstrance, but the emperor, as master, and
as the person whom the revolt immediately concerned, had
naturally to take the initiative.
[562] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 79. He would not hold
friendship with him who took away his honor and kingdom.
The war was for the good of his subjects, and in defence of
their land and religion. Before laying down arms he would
avenge his uncle and his gods. He knew not who was the king
of the Spaniards, nor would he listen to him, much less
know him. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 132.
[563] ‘Con hechizos le teniamos quitado su gran coraçon, y
fuerça; ò que nuestros Dioses, y la gran muger de Castilla
... nos dá aquel gran poder.’ In this last he did not err,
remarks Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 80.
[564] Over 100,000 men. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 299.
[565] ‘Tenia en su tierra del dicho Cacamazin muchas personas
principales que vivian con él y les daba su salario.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 97.
[566] According to Bernal Diaz, six chiefs were sent with
the imperial signet, which was to be given to certain
relatives and dignitaries discontented with Cacama, and
they were to seize him and his council. _Hist. Verdad._, 80.
[567] ‘Tambien truxeron otros cinco presos.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 80. ‘Prendieron al Cacama vn dia, estando
con ellos y otros muchos en consejo para cõsultar las cosas
de la guerra.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 133. According to
Ixtlilxochitl, when Cacama left Mexico, partly out of fear
lest the Spaniards should seize him for promoting a revolt
there, his brothers Cohuanacoch and Ixtlilxochitl, all now
reconciled, pretended to fall into his views. Ixtlilxochitl
recommended Tepetzinco as the place best suited for beginning
operations on Mexico, and while proceeding to the place in a
canoe he was carried on to Mexico by his faithless brothers.
Without Ixtlilxochitl’s aid Montezuma and Cortés could never
have been able to overcome the powerful Cacama, concludes
the author. _Hist. Chich._, 298-9. In his _Relaciones_, 389,
412, the same author states that Cacama was seized not for
plotting, but because Cortés desired to secure so powerful
a personage. Brasseur de Bourbourg follows the former
version, and believes that Montezuma favored the conspiracy
as a means to oblige the Spaniards to depart. _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 258. There may be some truth in this belief,
so far as the beginning of the plot is concerned, but it
must be considered that Montezuma would have preferred not
to intrust such a movement to a probable rival, the ruler
of a people jealous of Aztec supremacy, and the ally of
his most hated enemy, Ixtlilxochitl. If, again, Cacama was
his tool, the emperor would not have had him seized, to be
executed for all he knew, when he could have warned him to
flee or to defend himself. Had Ixtlilxochitl surrendered
the king, Cortés would not be likely to give the credit to
Montezuma, as he does. _Cartas_, 97-8.
[568] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 133. Yet Bernal Diaz assumes
that Montezuma examined him and the other prisoners, ‘y supo
Monteçuma de los conciertos en que andaua, que era alçarse
por señor.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 80. ‘Y à cabo de pocos dias
le dieron Garrote secretamente,’ adds Torquemada, i. 470,
erroneously. Had Cortés fallen into his hands, the stone of
sacrifice would speedily have received him, and the captive
must accordingly have regarded himself as mercifully treated.
The general knew the value of such prominent hostages. The
leniency gained him besides great credit, as Solis rightly
assumes. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 21-2.
[569] ‘En ocho dias todos estuuieron presos en la cadena
gorda.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 80. This author
includes the lord of Matlaltzinco, who escaped his pursuers
the longest, and when finally brought before the emperor
spoke his mind so freely that he would have been consigned
to the executioner had not Cortés interfered. Duran adds
the lord of Xochimilco instead of the last two. _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 444. ‘Pigliò ancora il Re di Tlacopan, i
Signori d’Iztapalapan, e di Cojohuacan, fratelli tutti e
due del Re Motezuma, due figliuoli di questo medesimo Re,
Itzquauhtzin Signor di Tlatelolco, un Sommo Sacerdote di
Messico, e parecchj altri.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._,
iii. 107.
[570] ‘Se llamò Don Carlos.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
80; at a later period, most likely. ‘Surnommé Tocpaxochitl
... bâtard de Nezahualpilli.’ _Brasseur de Bourbourg_,
_Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 258. Cortés calls him a son of
Cacama, _Cartas_, 98, but this he afterward corrects. The
native records, in _Sahagun_, _Hist. Gen._, ii. 277, and in
_Ixtlilxochitl_, ignore him. The latter, indeed, assumes that
Cacama continued to reign, though captive like Montezuma.
_Hist. Chich._, 299 et seq.
[571] Herrera gives the speeches on the occasion. dec. ii.
lib. ix. cap. iii. ‘Era mas bien quisto, que no Cacama....
Y Cortes hazia reyes, y mandaua con tanta autoridad, como
si ya vuiera ganado el imperio.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
133. Brasseur de Bourbourg assumes that Cohuanacoch and
Ixtlilxochitl at once managed to obtain control of the weak
youth and of the government.
[572] ‘El tiempo andando veremos si tenemos otra mejor
respuesta de nuestros Dioses, y como vieremos el tiempo
assi harémos ... presto os dirè lo que mas non conuenga.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 81.
[573] The latter had probably tendered his submission in
order to retain the throne. Ixtlilxochitl names Cacama as
the Tezcucan king present.
[574] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 98-9. ‘Demos gracias a los dioses,
q̄ an venido en nuestros dias los q̄ tãto desseauamos,’ et
seq. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 134.
[575] ‘Tenia del oraculo de sus dioses respuesta muchas vezes
... q̄ perderia la silla a los ocho años de su reynado, y
q̄ por esto nunca quiso hazer guerra a los Españoles,....
Bien que por otro cabo lo tenia por burla, pues auia mas
dezisiete años q̄ era rey.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Max._, 134-5;
_Acosta_, _Hist. Ind._, 502-3.
[576] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 91, 98-9; _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. ix. cap. iv.; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, ii. 580-1. The allegiance was tendered before
Secretary Pedro Fernandez. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
81. Solis assumes that Montezuma of his own accord offered
allegiance and tribute, in the hope that this would fill
the measure of the Spaniards’ expectations and cause them
to depart. In that case the general grief must have been
well counterfeited. He regards this act as giving legality
to the conquest. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 23-32. Prescott supposes
that the submission was prompted less by fear than by
conscience—conscientious obedience to the myth. _Mex._, ii.
198. Oviedo looks on the tears as evidence of unwillingness,
and thinks that either the emperor was very pusillanimous,
or the will of God clearly manifest, iii. 297. According to
Ixtlilxochitl the kings and caciques were required to leave
hostages for the observance of their oath. ‘Cacama, y con
él sus dos hermanos, Cohuanacochtzin y Ixtlilxochitl, segun
las relaciones y pinturas de Tezcuco, dieron en rehenes á
cuatro hermanos suyos y otras tantas hermanas.’ He names the
brothers, and states that Montezuma also had to leave sons
and brothers. _Hist. Chich._, 299-300. Brasseur de Bourbourg
supposes, from a resemblance in the surname of the new
king of Tezcuco to that of one of his brothers’ hostages,
that he had already been forced to abdicate in favor of
Cohuanacoch and Ixtlilxochitl, and surrender himself to
the Spaniards. One of his sisters, baptized as Doña Juana,
became the mistress of Cortés, as Ixtlilxochitl observes,
and ‘périt dans la nuit de la retraite, enceinte du fait
de Cortès.’ _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 262. The readiness with
which Spaniards ventured, often singly, all over the country
to exact tribute and to inquire into resources and the
condition of affairs, would indicate that the prudent general
had taken the precaution of obtaining living guarantees.
[577] ‘Luego mandó que le diese los españoles que queria
enviar, y de dos en dos y de cinco en cinco los repartió
para muchas provincias y ciudades.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 100.
[578] According to the Tezcucan records, twenty Spaniards
were sent with two of the king’s brothers, Nezahualquentzin
and Tetlahuehuezquititzin, to collect the tribute of that
city. As they were leaving Mexico, Montezuma despatched a
messenger to the former prince, enjoining him to treat the
Spaniards well and to obtain a large sum. This whispered
advice was assumed by the Spaniards to hide a plot, and
laying violent hands on the prince, the leader carried
him to Cortés, who had him hanged at once. The king was
of course deeply grieved, but dared not say anything.
Guided by another brother, Tepacxochitzin, the Spaniards
reached Tezcuco, and behaved outrageously. With the aid of
Ixtlilxochitl they seized the contents of the royal treasury,
filling with the gold a chest two fathoms in height and
length, and one in width. After this they compelled the
chiefs to contribute as much more. Ixtlilxochitl assumes
that Cacama is the king, and that the deed occurred before
allegiance was sworn, and seven weeks after the Spaniards’
arrival at Mexico. _Hist. Chich._, 298; _Id._, _Rel._,
388-9, 411-12. Brasseur de Bourbourg repeats this story in
substance, though he corrects it by stating that Montezuma
interfered and saved the prince. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv.
252-3. Herrera writes that ‘the servant’ sent to guide the
Spaniards disappeared on the way. He was caught and hanged
by order of Cacama, who gave them a more trusty attendant.
They were received at Tezcuco with great pomp, and presented
with female slaves. A large amount of gold, pearls, and
other valuables was obtained, and 80 carriers were sent to
Mexico laden with honey, which Cortés distributed, while he
kept the treasures, dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. i. According to
Vazquez de Tapia, 15,000 pesos in gold were obtained from
Tezcuco, beside some jewels and cloth. Not satisfied with
this, Cortés sent Cacama in charge of Alvarado to exact
more. But little being obtained, boiling pitch was applied
to the stomach of Cacama before he was sent back to Mexico.
Alvarado denies this outrage. _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra
Alvarado_, 3, 35-6, 65.
Fernando de Alva Cortés Ixtlilxochitl claims our attention as
a native historian who has labored zealously to vindicate the
glorious antecedents of his race, particularly the Acolhuas,
whose loyal devotion to the Spanish invaders he advocates
with an enthusiasm as unblushing as it is inconsistent. The
chief hero of the theme is his ancestor and namesake, King
Ixtlilxochitl, his great great grandfather, according to
Muñoz’ genealogic list. Little good was derived from this
calculated zeal, for at Alva’s birth, in about 1568, the
family estate had dwindled to small proportions, while the
tribute exemption which testified to royal descent expired
not many years later. After a course at the Santa Cruz
College Alva figured as interpreter to the native tribunal
of the viceroy. The death of the eldest brother brought
lawsuits which threatened to impoverish him, but urgent
representation procured, in 1602, a cedula recognizing
him as heir to the family property. _Florencia_, _La
Estrella_, 103 etc.; _Becerra Tanco_, _Felicidad Mex._, 49;
_Guadalupe_, _Col._, 551; _Panes_, _Teatro Nueva-España_,
MSS. The requirements of the suit called forth more than
one of his writings, which had in view to establish both
his own title and the claims of his family. Their research
and style attracted the attention of the viceroy, who
encouraged him to continue a task for which he was so well
fitted, not only by his Spanish and Aztec studies, but as
a native to whom his countrymen would readily communicate
their views and traditions, and as the possessor of a vast
family archive. The command accorded with his inclination
and improved fortune, and a number of pieces were produced,
which after his death, about 1648, passed to the Jesuit
college, _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, i. 10, and thence to
the Archivo General, where they form volumes iv. and xiii.
The most complete list of his works is given in _Dicc.
Univ._, iv.; that by Boturini is nearly as full, _Catálogo_,
2 etc.; Beristain, _Bibl._, ‘Alva,’ gives it less so, and
Clavigero’s is still briefer, while Pinelo, _Epitome_, ii.
608, makes merely a general allusion. Kingsborough, on the
other hand, offers an almost complete reproduction of the
writings in volume ix. of his _Mex. Antiq._ The longest and
most important is the _Historia Chichimeca_, dedicated to the
viceroy, in 95 chapters, of which the first 76 treat of the
rise and progress of the Chichimec empire, represented at the
conquest by the Acolhuas, and of its glories as inherited
by his ancestors, the kings of Tezcuco. The remaining 19
chapters relate to the conquest by the Spaniards, and are
incomplete. It is the most carefully written of the series,
elaborated partly from previous manuscripts, partly from
fresh researches, while the account of the conquest rests
also on the testimony of eye-witnesses, reinforced by
additions from Gomara and other sources, as he admits on
pp. 300, 303. An allusion to Torquemada shows that it could
not have been completed before 1615, and it was probably
his last work. More than one copy is extant, from one of
which Ternaux-Compans printed a French translation, while
the best issue, that of Kingsborough, is after a copy from
Veytia. The material has been largely used, and Veytia’s
_Hist. Ant. Mej._ may be said to rest upon it. The more
important of the other writings are, _Sumaria Relacion
de todas las cosas en la Nueva-España, y que los tultecas
alcanzaron_, in 5 relations, which treat of the mythical
period from the creation of the world, according to native
tradition, to the fall of the Toltecs; _Historia de los
Señores Chichimecas_, in 12 relations, which brings the
history down to the Spanish conquest; _Noticias de los
pobladores y naciones de Nueva España_, in 13 relations; the
first 12 quite short, and relating to native peoples; the
last of considerable length, and dwelling on the conquest.
Cárlos María de Bustamante published the 13th relation in
separate form, to which, under an excess of patriotic zeal,
he gave the abnormal title of _Horribles Crueldades de los
Conquistadores_, Mexico, 1829. Notes were appended, and
considerable liberties taken with text, so as to increase
the odium against the conquerors. Ternaux-Compans included
a French translation of it in his collection. Kingsborough
has printed eleven shorter pieces by Ixtlilxochitl, and
a few more are attributed to his pen, as a translation
of Nezahualcoyotl’s poems, a fragment of the same king’s
biography, and a history of the Virgin of Guadalupe; but
the last two are doubtful. Several of the pieces are mere
repetitions and summaries under different titles, connected
with the author’s pleadings, while the 13th relation may be
termed a cleverly prepared biography of his great namesake,
from the exaggerated prominence given to his services for
the Spanish cause. Prescott’s several blunders on this and
other points are probably due as much to a want of access
to sufficient material as to a hasty study.
Throughout these writings are evidences of the patriotic
spirit which prompted Ixtlilxochitl in the study and
translation of the painted records of his people; and
every now and then gleams forth a very natural hatred of
the Spanish oppressor, so marked indeed as once to call
forth the condemnation of an official censor. Otherwise the
narrative of events connected with the conquerors are closely
masked; for the sake of private aims and the common fear of
the white masters. As a consequence many troublesome facts
are hidden and many questions smoothed to the detriment
of history. The narratives are also extremely confusing
in dates, and to a great extent in arrangement, while the
interest is diminished by trivial details and improbable
stories. But these were the faults of his time rather than
of himself. He did wonderfully well in grappling with misty
traditions, enveloped as they were in the intricate mazes of
hieroglyphics. And he is justly entitled to our admiration,
and to the gratitude of his countrymen, for rescuing from
now unattainable sources so large a mass of material to
illustrate the glories of his race. His style indicates a
scholar from whom even his Spanish contemporaries might have
taken lessons, for the language is exceedingly clear for
this period, and full of graceful sentences and striking
descriptions, rendering him not unworthy to be called the
Livy and the Cicero of Anáhuac, as Prescott and Bustamante
respectively entitle him.
[579] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 83, gives a description
of these and other presents.
[580] ‘Que se llamaba _Totocalco_.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist.
Conq._, 26.
[581] _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._,
ii. 581; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 135; _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. ix. cap. iv. Bernal Diaz assumes that the Axayacatl
treasures were those now given; but the testimony of the
eye-witnesses, Tapia and Ojeda, confirmed and accepted
by Gomara and Herrera, shows that they were given on a
previous occasion already referred to. Still, Bernal Diaz
does mention that after the melting of the rougher jewels
new presents came from Montezuma. _Hist. Verdad._, 82-3. He
is very confusing, however, in his account of the treasures
generally; and Clavigero, Prescott, and others, have allowed
themselves to follow him too closely in this and other
instances.
[582] ‘Como de vn Real, y del tamaño de vn toston de a
quatro.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 83.
[583] _Probanza de Lejalde_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._,
i. 421-2. Cortés, _Cartas_, 100-1, is not so explicit with
regard to the latter figure, saying merely that he had
set apart for the king unbroken jewels and other objects
valued at over 100,000 ducats; but, since this figure comes
in connection with the account of one fifth of all the
treasures reserved for the sovereign, it may be assumed that
the 100,000 formed also a fifth of the unbroken lot. This,
consisting to a great extent of precious stones, pearls,
cotton, and other effects, could not have all been reserved
for the king. It seems besides improbable that so large a
proportion of treasure as 100,000 ducats should a second
time have been taken from the soldiers, even if Montezuma had
destined them especially for their ruler. All the treasures
and gifts acquired were obtained by the efforts of the
expedition, and were always regarded as a part of its fund.
Yet Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 135-6, who had the statements of
Cortés and others at his disposal, writes that the 100,000
lot was selected from the treasures, previous to melting,
in order to form a present for the king in connection with
the one fifth. Bernal Diaz writes confusedly that the heaps
of unmelted gold from which feathers and other settings
had been removed were valued at 600,000 pesos. ‘This did
not include the plates, quoits, and dust of gold, nor the
silver and other treasures.’ A few lines further he says
that the royal officials declared the gold, melted, and in
quoits, dust, and jewels, to be worth over 600,000 pesos,
beside the silver and many jewels not valued. From these
lots the distribution was made for king and expedition.
Many soldiers declared that the original amount was larger,
one third having been abstracted by the leaders. _Hist.
Verdad._, 83. The marginal print in this authority calls
the above sums pesos de oro, which increases the value three
times. Confusing as this version is, it confirms at any rate
the supposition that the unbroken jewels were also divided
among the members of the expedition. Prescott estimates the
whole treasure in the money value of his time at $6,300,000,
which may be accepted as sufficiently approximate. See
_Mex._, ii. 202-5. Robertson accepts Bernal Diaz’ last
estimate in pesos, which is equivalent to about two fifths
of Prescott’s. The small proportion of silver indicates how
little the natives understood and resorted to mining, and
how insignificant a portion of the metallic wealth of the
country was represented by the treasures so far acquired.
Gold was obtained from loose and shallow alluvial deposits
in and near the rivers, and it was only in the extraction
of tin and copper that the Indians exhibited an advance in
the art of mining. Robertson is wrong in assuming that gold
was not used as a trade medium; still, it was only partly
so, and it was chiefly sought for ornaments. The rarity of
silver made this metal far more valuable than in Europe,
and the stones most esteemed were regarded by the Spaniards
as so many pebbles. For an account of mines, metals, and
money among the Aztecs, see _Native Races_, ii. In vol. i.
chap. iii. note 8 of the Central American division of the
present work is given information on the currency of this
period.
[584] For a description, see _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 100-1;
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 135-6; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
ix. cap. iv.; _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap. iii.; _Oviedo_,
iii. 298-9.
[585] Consisting of 32,400 and odd pesos de oro of melted
gold; 100,000 ducats’ worth of unbroken jewels, feathers,
etc.; and 100 and more marcos of silver. _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
100-1. ‘Lo dieron é entregaron á Alonso de Escobar.’
_Probanza de Lejalde_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 422.
[586] The expenditures were represented largely by a number
of unpaid notes of hand issued by the captain-general to
the owners of vessels, provisions, and arms, and held for
the most part by captains and leading members of the party.
Many of the names and claims are given in _Probanza de
Lejalde_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 411 et seq.
[587] Bernal Diaz appears to say that all these men, from
priests to archers, received double rates, _Hist. Verdad._,
83-4, and Herrera so accepts it, dec. ii. lib. ix. cap.
v.; but this seems unequal. In the _Probanza de Lejalde_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 411 et seq., a number of
special payments are mentioned, and also wages for sailors.
[588] ‘Soldados huuo q tomaron sus partes a cien pesos.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 84. But this sum may mean
pesos de oro, which according to the calculation accepted
represents nearly $1200.
[589] ‘Cortes, so color de hazer justicia, porq̄ todos le
temiessemos, era con grandes mañas.’ It appears that Mejía,
on hearing the men complain, spoke to Cortés about missing
gold, and thenceforth they were not very friendly. Noticing
that Velazquez was in fetters, Montezuma asked the general
for the cause, and was told that, not satisfied with his
share of gold, he wished to make a tour of the towns to
demand more, and perhaps to commit excesses. The emperor
asked that he be allowed to go, and Cortés consented with
apparent reluctance. A sentence seems to have been passed
for the culprit to leave camp, and he proceeded with a
Mexican official to Cholula, whence he returned with more
gold a few days later. So runs the story of Bernal Diaz,
_Hist. Verdad._, 84-5. B. V. de Tapia declares that Cortés
kept him ‘muchos dias en una casylla pequeña e con guardas.’
_Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 40-1.
[590] _Id._, and _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. v.
[591] Among those who took most to heart the disappointing
distribution was Juan de Cárdenas, a pilot and sailor of
Triana, who had a wife and children in Spain. Tired of
struggling with poverty at home he had come to seek a better
lot with the conquerors in America. The first sight of the
treasures to be divided had inspired him with an ardent
hope of being able to return to his family, for an equal
division would have given him quite a little fortune. Finding
his dream of happiness shattered he became almost raving.
Cortés gave him 300 pesos, and promised that he should be
sent home by the first opportunity. Cárdenas appeared to be
satisfied, but on reaching Spain he came forward as a bitter
opponent of the general. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
84. Solis speaks up in behalf of his hero, and condemns
the men as avaricious and ungrateful for demanding more
than their share. The leaders and best men deserved larger
gains. As for Bernal Diaz, ‘Habla mas como pobre soldado,
que como historiador.’ _Hist. Mex._, ii. 35. The share for
Villa Rica was sent to Tlascala, says Bernal Diaz, whither
rumor had it that large sums were forwarded for Cortés
and others, who claimed afterward that they had been lost
during the uprising. ‘Las piedras bajas y plumages, todo lo
tomaron los Indios de Tlaxcala.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._,
26.
[592] The cards, made by Pedro Valenciano from drumskins,
were as neatly painted as those of Spain. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 84.
[593] Herrera gives lengthy specimens of the warrior
preacher’s effusions, occupying more than one chapter. dec.
ii. lib. viii. cap. vi.-vii.
[594] According to Bernal Diaz Cortés made a sign that he
and Olmedo desired to speak privately to Montezuma. He now
proposed that in order to prevent tumult his captains might
be persuaded to rest content with a space in the great
temple for an altar and cross. _Hist. Verdad._, 85.
[595] Tapia leaves the impression that he called casually
at the temple, and afterward sent for more troops.
[596] In _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 585.
[597] Of 30 or 40 men, says Tapia.
[598] ‘Fice limpiar aquellas capillas ... y puse en ellas
imágenes de nuestra Señora y de otros santos.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 106. Andrés de Tapia is still more explicit in
relating how Cortés insisted on having both chapels cleared
of idols. ‘El marques hizo hacer dos altares, uno en una
parte de la torre, que era partida en dos huecos, é otro
en otra.’ _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 585-6.
In testifying to the proceedings in the temple previous to
the massacre by Alvarado, B. V. de Tapia states that the
Indians intended to restore Huitzilopochtli to the tower,
‘donde solia estar por que lo habia quitado de alli D.
Hernando e puesto a nuestra Señora.’ _Ramirez_, _Proceso
contra Alvarado_, 36. Alvarado confirms this in different
words. _Id._, 66-7. The only other eye-witness who refers
with any detail to the above is Bernal Diaz, and he accords
only a space on the summit to the Christian emblems. But
his different allusions to the temple are confused and
contradictory; yet he has been followed by modern writers:
first, because the preceding three testimonies have not been
accessible till late years; and second, because they have
been content to copy Prescott, who adopts Bernal Diaz in
only too many instances. The mistake appears also to rest on
the finding of Huitzilopochtli’s image in one of the summit
chapels when it was recaptured by the Spaniards during the
later siege. It is only natural that the Aztecs, on obtaining
possession of their temple, should have reinstalled the war
god. Peter Martyr does assume that one image was too large
to be removed. dec. v. cap. iv. And Gomara intimates that
idols remained. ‘Pusierõ cruzes e imagines ... entre sus
ídolos.’ _Hist. Mex._, 128. The phrase can apply to those in
the court, although his statement may be founded on Martyr,
as that of Ixtlilxochitl is on him: ‘Y dió [Montezuma]
permiso que en la capilla del templo mayor ... se pusiesen
entre los dos ídolos de Huitzilopochtli, un crucifijo, una
imagen de Nuestra Señora y una cruz.’ _Hist. Chich._, 297.
As regards the casting-down of idols, Prescott, in common
with most modern writers, assumes this to be a mere boast on
the part of Cortés; but a careful investigation, supported
by the ‘solemn’ assurance of Tapia, not accessible to them,
confirms this statement in the main. The general probably
exaggerates somewhat in saying: ‘Los mas principales destos
ídolos ... derroqué yo de sus sillas y los fice echar por
las escaleras abajo.’ _Cartas_, 106. This probably strikes
Oviedo, who, while repeating the account, expresses a
doubt about its truth: ‘Bien pudo Dios dar lugar á ello;
pero para mí yo tengo por maravilla, é grande, la mucha
paçiençia de Monteçuma é de los indios.’ iii. 303. Solis
even doubts that altar and cross were ever erected in so
unclean a spot, amid idols and idolatrous priests: it would
have been sacrilege; besides the Mexicans would never have
permitted the intrusion. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 9-12. The doubt
expressed against Cortés’ boast rests chiefly with Bernal
Diaz, whose faulty account states that Montezuma by mere
persuasion sent for the priests, and after consulting with
them had a space on the temple summit quietly assigned to
the Spaniards. _Hist. Verdad._, 85. Gomara devotes several
pages to the casting down of the idols, which he justly
regards as a memorable feat: ‘Mas honra y prez gano Cortés
con esta hazaña Christiana, que si los venciera en batalla.’
He applies it, however, to the occasion of the imperial
prisoner’s first visit to the temple. Montezuma stops Cortés
in the midst of his destructive work and checks the fury of
the crowd, which the general thereupon appeases with a long
profound speech on theologic mysteries, carefully prepared
by Gomara. _Hist. Mex._, 126-8. The preceding points assume
importance when it is considered that the usurpation of
the great pyramid by Christian emblems gave the strongest
impulse to the uprising soon to follow.
[599] ‘É puso en una parte la imágen de Nuestra Señora en un
retablico de tabla, é en otro la de Sant Cristóbal, porque
no habie estonces otras imágines.’ _Rel._, loc. cit. It is
generally assumed by the faithful that the virgin’s image
is identical with the one now known as the Vírgen de los
Remedios, in its celebrated shrine near Mexico. It had been
given to Juan Rodriguez de Villafuerte by his brother, an
Augustine friar, when he departed for the Indies. During
the uprising in June, 1520, the image is believed to have
of its own accord taken flight to the site where a shrine
afterward rose in its honor. _Medina_, _Chrón. de San Diego
de Mex._, 30; _Cabrera_, _Escudo Armas_, 106-25; _Lorenzana_, in
_Cortés_, _Hist. N. Esp._, 138 et seq.; _Bustamante_, _Mem.
Piedad Mex._ Unfortunately for this belief, Tapia’s testimony
describes the image as a picture on a board, while the
Remedios image is a little battered doll. The testimony is
contradicted by nothing but pious supposition. In preparing
the site for altars the Spaniards noticed that the walls
were of unusual thickness. Breaking them open they found
a number of jewels. Gold was also obtained from tombs on
the summit platform, and the curtain pendants and other
valuables were of course appropriated. _Tapia_, _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, 586; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
viii, cap. vi.
[600] Montezuma received the returning procession with
a forced welcome, and gave orders to destroy a series of
brothels in Tlatelulco, containing over 400 women, whose
iniquity, he said, had brought the present evil upon the
city. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. vi.
[601] Herrera devotes five columns to Cortés’ sermon. dec.
ii. lib. viii. cap. vii.; _Torquemada_, i. 465-7.
[602] Or perhaps of the teachers of the faith, who appeared
with sword in hand to enforce their cruel, rapacious, and
immoral demands. Herrera believes Montezuma would have become
a Christian had he dared. dec. ii. lib. viii. cap. ix. But
Duran states that according to the native records all the
three captive rulers were baptized, and that Father Olmedo
had told him he believed such was the case, although the
rite had not been administered by himself. _Hist. Ind._,
MS., ii. 445. This question will be discussed in a later
chapter.
[603] ‘Sed ciertos, que de aqui a mañana llouera, y tendreys
el mejor año que jamas aueys tenido.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. viii. cap. vi.
[604] _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
586; _Hazart_, _Kirchen Geschichte_, ii. 520; _Torquemada_,
i. 464.
CHAPTER XX.
THE CUBAN GOVERNOR IN PURSUIT.
1519-1520.
THE MEXICANS THREATEN REVOLT—THE CLERGY IN ARMS—THEY
DENOUNCE THE CONDUCT OF MONTEZUMA—THE EMPEROR DECLARES
HE CAN NO LONGER RESTRAIN HIS PEOPLE—TIDINGS OF
VELAZQUEZ’ FLEET—SAILING FROM CUBA OF AN EXPEDITION UNDER
NARVAEZ—ARRIVAL IN MEXICO—CONFLICT WITH CORTÉS—INTERCHANGE
OF THREATS AND COURTESIES—ATTEMPTED UNION OF FORCES—NARVAEZ
REMAINS LOYAL TO VELAZQUEZ—DESERTION OF SOME OF HIS MEN TO
CORTÉS.
War now seemed inevitable; for if earthly powers availed not against
the invaders, heaven’s artillery should disperse the impious foe. If
feeble man by fearful combinations be brought low, surely the gods
may yet defend themselves from insult.
Hitherto it had been the higher nobles only who harbored designs
against the Spaniards, but, while no longer cemented by the accustomed
despotism, they were held in check by their jealousies, their party
politics, and fear for their possessions. A stronger influence than
these was at hand, however. Now for the first time the lesser nobles
and the common people were aroused. The outrage on the idols affected
all. And the clergy, who out of regard for their high-priest, the
emperor, had remained passive, now felt themselves struck in a vital
part. Their influence, supremacy, and means of support were all
involved, and the power of the priesthood was as great here as among
other superstitious peoples. How far they worked upon the nobles and
plebeians is not clear, but their interviews with Montezuma, although
held in secret, out of the reach even of the favorite page, became so
frequent and earnest as to rouse the suspicions of the guard. It was
said that, assisted by influential courtiers, they represented how
deeply the sacrilegious act had stirred the people, already incensed
by the shameful captivity of their sovereigns. Further than this,
oracles had announced that the gods would abandon the city and its
inhabitants to their fate if the obnoxious strangers were not quickly
killed or driven hence. The masses would rise, and if Montezuma,
forgetful of his dignity and duty, still declined to be liberated,
preferring the fate of Quauhpopoca, which must surely overtake him,
then they would choose another monarch.[605] This last threat struck
home. Sorely had Montezuma sighed for liberty, and he had feared for
his throne; now his own subjects threatened him with what he dreaded
most. In this dilemma he turned to Cortés.[606]
The apprehensions of the Spaniards had been aroused not only by the
secret interviews of the priests, but by the somewhat distant manner
of the emperor, and at this unusual summons they became seriously
alarmed. Even the general could not suppress his misgivings as he
hurried to the emperor’s apartments, attended by Olid, then captain
of the guard. With solemn visage Montezuma bade him be seated. Then
he reminded him of the warnings against his many rash proceedings,
particularly the installation of the cross upon the pyramid. The
incensed gods at last had spoken, had ordered him to attack and drive
the Spaniards into the sea, and the people were stirred almost beyond
control. He had only to give the signal; nay, did he delay to do so,
they would rise. But he loved Malinche; had he not proved this by
his devotion? He wished to save the Spaniards; and now he warned,
he implored them to leave the city before it would be too late. They
might take all his treasures; nay, he would give each man a load of
gold if they would only go.[607]
The tone and manner of the prince convinced them that his words were
sincere. Cortés deemed it best to feign compliance. He thanked the
emperor for the interest manifested in their safety, and replied that
since he and his gods and people so desired it, they would comply;
but having no vessels, time must be allowed to build them.[608] This
was perplexing, but Montezuma overlooked everything on hearing that
the Spaniards were ready to leave. He insisted no further, knowing
well enough that he and the other captives would have to follow if a
withdrawal from the city was required before the means of transport
had been found.[609] He had seen that it did not take long to
construct ships, and offered the necessary carpenters to fell and
prepare timber, as before. Meanwhile he would endeavor to appease his
vassals, pointing out that an uprising would be disastrous also to
himself and them. Martin Lopez was at once sent down to Villa Rica
with Andrés Nuñez, some chiefs, and a number of Indian workmen, to
build three vessels, but with secret instructions to delay the work
in every manner.[610]
* * * * *
Cortés had no intention to surrender his hold on the country. It was
now more than eight months since the procuradores had left for Spain,
and he began to look for their return with a royal commission, if not
with reinforcements. Once provided with this worshipful paper he could
brave Velazquez and all the world. He could send to the Islands and
buy vessels, arms, and supplies; and he could easily enlist all the
troops necessary to the achievement of his great project. Meanwhile he
hoped to maintain his position, supported by native allies, such as
the Tlascaltecs, Chinantecs, Goazacoalcos, and Cempoalans. It needed
not the warning of Montezuma to convince the Spaniards that a serious
attitude had been assumed against them by the natives, and that the
precautions for defence must be redoubled. The attendants appeared
less obsequious, and the supplies had materially diminished—owing to
the late drought, they said.[611] This was remedied by the commands
of the emperor. But even the prospect of a speedy departure of the
strangers did not appear to conciliate the people; and less sanguine
than their leader, the soldiers of Cortés felt oppressed by gloomy
forebodings. In addition to this they were harassed by extra guard
duty and by being obliged to sleep in their accoutrements, ready for
instant defence.[612]
We must now go back to Cuba for a moment, where long since we left the
irate governor cursing. Poor Velazquez! Córdoba, Grijalva, Cortés,
all the deputies sent out to conquer for him new lands, had only
been a drain on him, bringing back little compensation in slaves and
gold. Deeply as he felt these troubles they had not yet affected his
obesity, and it was with difficulty that he waddled about his island
stirring up avengers. With the aid of Fonseca the chaplain, Benito
Martin, whom Velazquez had sent to Spain on his behalf, had obtained
for him a royal commission,[613] with the title of adelantado of
the lands lately discovered under his auspices to the westward; and
October, 1519, saw busy preparations on the island for an expedition
as well against Cortés as Montezuma.[614]
There was no trouble in obtaining men. The rumors created by the visit
of Puertocarrero and Montejo left the impression that ship-loads of
gold had been forwarded from the new region to Spain, and the island
was consequently in a ferment with excitement. So great indeed became
the desire to enlist that Velazquez would in any case have been obliged
to form an expedition to prevent the people from going on their own
account to reinforce Cortés.[615] At first it was announced that the
governor would go in person, and so prevent further rebellion. But
Velazquez never thought of such a thing: he was too corpulent, he
lacked courage, and he could not abandon his interests and his post
in Cuba, leaving the island scantily provided with defenders. Further
than this, he had confidence in the legal right conferred on him over
the new country and over any expedition he might send. His announced
reasons were the duties of his office, which demanded his presence
more than ever owing to the prevalent small-pox epidemic.[616]
Among the many candidates eager for the command were Baltasar Bermudez,
a relative, Vasco Porcallo de Figueroa, and Pánfilo de Narvaez, the
first two mentioned already in connection with Cortés’ appointment.
With Bermudez the governor could come to no arrangement, and with
Porcallo he managed to quarrel after selecting him,[617] so that he
was left with no other choice than Narvaez. This was the hidalgo of
Valladolid,[618] whom we have met before, who had joined Velazquez
shortly after his arrival in Cuba, and had taken a leading part in its
conquest. This over, he had married a rich widow, María de Valenzuela,
possessing a number of towns, and had accepted civil positions, such
as procurador for the island, and contador in the newly discovered
region. Narvaez was about forty-two years of age, tall and strongly
built, with a long face, ruddy complexion, and sandy beard. To a deep
voice might be added agreeable manners, being quite fascinating in
conversation. His qualities were such as created favorable impression.
Ordinarily he exhibited good judgment, but he was careless, headstrong,
and arrogant. As a soldier he was undoubtedly brave, but deficient
in discipline and foresight; as a general he was far from being the
equal of Cortés.[619]
By virtue of his commission Velazquez appointed this man
captain-general and lieutenant-governor of the new country, with
orders to send Cortés and any rebellious captain in chains to Cuba,
to carry on the conquest, and to administer for the best interests
of the settlement.[620] But the friends of Cortés were not idle. They
caused representations to be secretly made to the audiencia[621] that
a fratricidal war was about to be opened in the new region, ruinous
to the interests of God and the king, and legal steps were at once
taken by the promotor fiscal.[622] The policy of Cortés in sending
procuradores to Spain, with presents and messages to the king, had
its effect on the audiencia, which considered not only that his case
had passed beyond them, but that he was rendering, and likely to
render, greater service to the royal interest than was his rival.
By no means predisposed in favor of Velazquez, they moreover sent
to Cuba the prudent licentiate Lucas Vazquez de Aillon, a member of
their body, with instructions to prevent the threatened danger.
Accompanied by Pedro de Ledesma, secretary to the audiencia, and the
alguacil mayor, Aillon met Narvaez at Yagua,[623] preparing with
a portion of the fleet to join the rest at Guaniguanico. Placing
the captain under injunction not to leave Cuba, he proceeded to the
rendezvous and represented to Velazquez the evil which must result
from his project, urging that his duty as governor and loyal subject
demanded him to forego personal vengeance and interest, and finally
forbidding the expedition without express permission from the king. The
governor, who appears to have obtained more definite news from Spain
regarding the wealth and promises of New Spain, was more determined
than ever to carry out his scheme. Relying upon the grant of the
country to himself, he considered that he had every right to claim
his own and to treat Cortés as an interloper. At first he refused
to recognize the jurisdiction of the audiencia in the matter, but
pretended finally to fall in with Aillon’s views.
It was accordingly agreed that, in order to promote the interests both
of king and governor, by rendering available the costly preparations
made, the fleet should proceed to its destination, but without
Indians, and with a less number of settlers than had volunteered.
Narvaez might present the claims of his principal upon Cortés, but
only in a peaceable manner, without landing any forces. If they were
not entertained, he must sail onward in quest of new discoveries.[624]
In the presence of Aillon instructions were given to Narvaez in
accordance with the agreement, but the former nevertheless resolved
to accompany the expedition and watch over their observance, for he
suspected the sincerity of both parties.[625]
The expedition was the largest which had as yet been fitted out in
the New World, and consisted of eleven large and seven small vessels,
with somewhat over nine hundred soldiers, including eighty men with
fire-arms, one hundred and twenty with cross-bows, and eighty horsemen.
There were also several hundred Indians, a large force of sailors,
and a park of artillery, together with ample stores of all kinds.[626]
Sail was set early in March, 1520, and after touching at Cozumel
Island to pick up the party which had been left there[627] some time
before, they entered Rio de Tabasco to obtain water and provisions.
The inhabitants fled from the town on seeing so large a force, but
with the aid of an interpreter found there they were reassured, and
brought maize and fowl, together with three women, as presents for
the captain. Four days after leaving the river the fleet was dispersed
by a storm, with the loss of six vessels and a number of soldiers and
sailors.[628] The rest of the vessels arrived at San Juan de Ulua in
the latter part of April.[629]
Three soldiers, deserters from the exploring expedition[630] of Cortés,
came on board, and after declaring allegiance to Narvaez, poured into
the ears of their wondering countrymen the story of their general’s
brilliant achievements. They told of the vast extent and resources
of the country, of the wealth accumulated, the unfairness of Cortés
in dividing, and the consequent discontent of the soldiers and the
danger of their position.[631] This tended to render the conceited
Narvaez over-confident, so that his rival was rather benefited than
injured by the story of the deserters. He now told Aillon that he
would land, since Cortés was so far in the interior and the vessels
in a bad condition. He was also determined to form a settlement, and
regardless of the oidor’s protest a town was founded for a second
time upon the site of the present Vera Cruz.[632] The governor of
Cuetlachtlan hastened to send presents of supplies, as an act of
courtesy to a captain whom he supposed to be the friend of Cortés.
He was undeceived, however, and told by the deserters that Narvaez
was the real envoy and captain sent by the king, while Cortés and
his men were fugitive adventurers whom Narvaez would punish. His
king had heard of the outrage on the emperor, and had sent him to
procure his release, to restore order, and thereupon to return. The
governor reported this to Montezuma, who, thinking no doubt that it
would be prudent to secure the friendship of so powerful a commander,
whether he came as liberator or oppressor, sent him a number of
valuable presents, and gave orders to provide his army with supplies.
Narvaez kept the valuables for himself, a course which did not tend
to increase his popularity, and transmitted in return a few trinkets
to the monarch, with assurances of his good-will.[633]
Hearing that Velazquez de Leon was leading a large force not far
off, Narvaez sent a message, appealing to him as a relative and old
friend to join him with his men; but Velazquez, who was still in the
region in and above Chinantla, looking for tribute and gold, deigned
not even to reply, but forwarded the letter to his general and asked
for orders. Meanwhile he and his lieutenant, Rangel, assembled their
men and made them swear allegiance to Cortés, a few suspected of
sympathy with the Cuban governor being placed under surveillance.[634]
The next step of Narvaez was to demand the surrender of Villa Rica,
which the deserters represented as held by less than four score
men. This task was intrusted to the clergyman Juan Ruiz de Guevara,
accompanied by Notary Vergara, Amaya a relative of Velazquez, and
three witnesses,[635] and letters were given them for distribution
among Cortés’ soldiers, with a view to gain their allegiance.[636]
Sandoval had been advised concerning the fleet, and suspecting the
object he sent to warn Cortés, despatching at the same time two
dark-complexioned soldiers, disguised as Indian fruit vendors, to learn
further particulars. The spies remained in Narvaez’ camp a whole day,
and by mingling with the leaders they picked up valuable information,
escaping during the night with two horses.[637] Sandoval now sent off
the old and infirm soldiers to a town called Papalote, in the hills,
and obtained the promise of the remainder to hold the fort with him,
a gallows being erected in a conspicuous site as a warning to the
faint-hearted. About this time Guevara appeared before the quarters
of Sandoval. No one came to receive him, and he had to find his way
to the commander’s house. The priest had been led to believe that
little or no objection would be made by the adherents of Cortés to
his demands, and confidently he began his harangue, speaking of the
claims of Velazquez and the treason of Cortés. The word treason fired
Sandoval. His party were the better servants of the king, he said,
and were it not for Guevara’s character as a clergyman he would have
him chastised for his impudence. As it was, he referred him to Cortés
as captain-general and justicia mayor of New Spain. Guevara likewise
grew warm,[638] and a war of words followed, which the commander cut
short by ordering some Indians to bundle the three principals into
net hammocks. In these they were carried to Mexico, under a Spanish
guard, to be delivered to the general.[639]
* * * * *
When Montezuma first received news from the coast governor of the
arrival of the great fleet, he supposed that these were the vessels
which Cortés had said that he expected, and by which it was hoped
he would depart. Montezuma at once sent for Cortés to impart the
tidings.[640] The Spanish general was not a little surprised at this
second unusual summons, and still more when told that his vessels
had arrived, and that new ones need not be built. While he was yet
puzzling over the words, the emperor produced the painted message
showing a fleet at anchor off Chalchiuhcuecan. “You can now leave
in safety, and all will be well,” continued the monarch, overjoyed
at the thought of release.[641] “Thanks be to God, who provides all
things!” was the fervent utterance of the general, while the soldiers
sent up shouts of joy mingled with discharges of fire-arms. “Surely,”
they said, “Puertocarrero and Montejo have returned in good time.”
Further consideration of the matter, however, convinced Cortés that
these were not the ships of his friends, but that they belonged to
his archenemy of Cuba. His captains thought the same, and talked
with calculated effect to the men of the great wrong to them if the
hirelings of Velazquez were to step in and reap the results of their
hardships.
Anxious to learn something definite, Cortés sent two messengers by
different routes to bring news about the expedition, a third being
instructed to follow Velazquez de Leon with instructions to await
orders before proceeding to Goazacoalco; a fourth messenger was
despatched to Villa Rica.[642] Learning meanwhile from Sandoval that
the expedition was inimical to him, Cortés sent letters from himself
and his regidores to the commander, stating the progress of conquest
on behalf of the Spanish king, and demanding his object. If he needed
no succor, and came not provided with royal authority, he must at once
depart; otherwise Cortés would march against him, supported by the
vast forces of the empire.[643] The letters were made the subject of
jest among the officers of Narvaez, the veedor Salvatierra declaring
that the messages of traitors should receive no attention. He urged
the expediency of marching upon them without loss of time, and swore
that he would broil and eat the ears of Cortés.
Shortly after the letters had been sent, the approach of Guevara
and his companions was announced. And now for more of that deep
diplomacy in which Cortés was so skilled. Perceiving the importance
of conciliating men of their standing, he despatched an escort with
horses to bring them with all honor into the city, and he himself
went to meet them, expressing regret at the rude treatment they had
received. With smooth tongue and promises he wove his web round them,
and “oiled their hands with gold,” as Bernal Diaz expresses it. He
showed them the greatness and wealth of the country, and explained
to them how it was all in his power; and he sought to convince them
of the injury dissension must occasion to God, to the king, and
to themselves. Ah, rare talent, the talent of tongue! Guevara, at
least, was won over, and went back delighted with his courtesy and
liberality, and in full sympathy with his cause.[644] On reaching
the camp he told of what he had seen, the great extent of country,
its vast population, and the number of well built towns on every
side. Nor did he fail to sing the praises of Cortés, and speak of
his treasures, of which he displayed specimens. Every captain and
soldier under him, he said, could boast of heavy gold ornaments and
well filled purses, of numerous servants and beautiful women; and
they lived on the fat of the land, having the country and all its
inhabitants at their disposal. The general had taken care to exhibit
only the attractive features of his position, which as now detailed
by the priest captivated the hearts of the listeners, who longed to
be with so fortunate and liberal a leader. Even before this many were
disaffected, and despised the arrogant and narrow-minded Narvaez;
others took an impartial view, and recognized the evil of dissension
in a country only half subdued, while yet others were intent only on
securing treasures.
The priest brought a letter to Narvaez, wherein Cortés expressed
delight at finding his old friend commander of the expedition, although
he regretted that hostile measures had been taken against him, who as
a loyal servant held the country for the king. If Narvaez carried a
royal commission, it had only to be presented to be obeyed; otherwise
he was willing to come to a friendly agreement, since hostilities must
be prejudicial not only to them both, but to the crown.[645] Guevara
supported these expressions by recommending a peaceful arrangement
and withdrawal to new territory, for Cortés was evidently loyal, and
had hosts of Indians to aid him in maintaining his position. Narvaez
not only refused to listen to any overtures, but became indignant
with the clergyman and his companions for advocating them. He knew
that the forces of Cortés were inferior to his own, and of Indians
he had no fear.
Cortés had elicited from Guevara a number of facts regarding the
expedition, among them that the arrogance and parsimony of Narvaez
had alienated a large proportion of his followers, and that a little
gold would have a wonderful effect.[646] Indeed, they had come for
gold, and had no desire to raise the sword against their brethren
if it could be avoided. This information was not lost on the astute
conqueror.
Shortly after the departure of the clergyman, Cortés took counsel with
Father Olmedo, that most admirable of friars, whose knowledge of the
world, calm judgment, and clear foresight had more than once saved
Cortés from himself. Olmedo now undertook the conversion of Narvaez and
his men. Laden with instructions and jewels, he proceeded to their camp
and endeavored to win Narvaez to peaceful measures. Special letters
and presents were given Duero, Aillon, and others, who were supposed
to be friendly, with a view of obtaining their active coöperation.
Cortés wished especially that Narvaez should understand that he was
friendly to him. Dissension would react on both, particularly on
Narvaez; unity of action could alone promote their common aim and
preserve the country to the king. Cortés had fewer soldiers, but was
nevertheless stronger, from possessing interpreters, knowledge of
the country, and control of its forces and resources. Were not the
kings already his servants?
But Narvaez was stubborn. Olmedo, however, overcame the scruples of a
number of his counsellors, who advised him to negotiate with a man so
strongly established. Narvaez called them all traitors, and told Olmedo
that he ought to be ashamed of himself for promulgating such base
sentiments; whereat the priest became indignant, and devoted himself
all the more assiduously to the subordinates, among whom he found the
way well prepared by Guevara. His arguments found willing ears, and
his gold confirmed the arguments. Among his companions from Mexico was
one Usagre, an artillerist, whose brother occupied a similar position
under Narvaez. This man also did Cortés good service. These doings
could not escape notice, and, warned by Salvatierra, the commander
would have arrested the friar had not Duero and others interfered.
They called attention to his diplomatic and religious character, and
the courteous treatment Cortés had given his own messengers. Narvaez
hurried him away, however, with a letter for his general, wherein he
claimed authority to take possession of the country for Velazquez.
If Cortés resisted, it would fare ill with him.[647]
It was an easy escape for Olmedo, for Narvaez had not scrupled shortly
before to deal with the royal oidor in a most peremptory manner. Aillon
had remonstrated with him about his proceedings, such as forming a
settlement, threatening to enter the country, spreading harsh reports
among the natives against Cortés, and neglecting to restrain his
men from taking property and otherwise abusing the inhabitants. No
attention being paid to this, he formally called upon Narvaez to make
a peaceful demand for the surrender of the country, and, if refused,
to go elsewhere to settle. He intimated publicly that the measures of
Narvaez were actuated by malice, rather than by loyal wisdom. This the
vain and arrogant commander could not endure. It was to the oidor, he
said, that the present growing disaffection among his men was due. He
was becoming dangerous, and the municipal officers were directed to
seize and carry him on board the same vessel in which he had arrived.
His secretary and alguacil were placed on board another, and a day or
two after sail was set for Cuba, the captains and crews having been
sworn to deliver them to Velazquez.[648] During the voyage, however,
Aillon persuaded his jailers to take him to Española, which he reached
in the last days of August, after a long and dangerous trip of three
months and a half. The consort vessel was separated from him during
a storm shortly after leaving Ulua, and the secretary and alguacil
did not rejoin the oidor till October. A report of the outrage was
promptly forwarded to the king, signed by the whole audiencia, with
a request that severe chastisement be inflicted, in order to maintain
respect for that august tribunal.[649]
Among others falling under the wrath of Narvaez was Gonzalo de
Oblanco, whose advocacy of Cortés and condemnation of Aillon’s arrest
brought imprisonment, which so wrought upon him that he died within
a few days.[650] These harsh and foolish measures engendered further
discontent, and half a dozen of Aillon’s supporters, including Pedro
de Villalobos, deserted to Sandoval, who received them with open
arms. Others sent to signify their willingness to join Cortés.[651]
After Aillon’s arrest Narvaez had been persuaded to move his camp
to Cempoala, as a healthier place, more suitable for head-quarters,
and better provided with supplies. The cacique was intimidated to
surrender some effects belonging to Cortés and to accord the new-comers
a welcome, which seemed to stamp his conduct as desertion. “Oh, well!”
said Cortés when told of it, “long live the last victor.”[652] But
he could hardly blame the natives for yielding, when even Sandoval
himself, on hearing of this approach, abandoned Villa Rica and took
refuge in the mountains, where he remained till the general bade him
join his forces.[653]
FOOTNOTES
[605] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 136-7; _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 85-6. ‘El diablo q̄ muchas vezes le hablaua, le
amenazaua.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. vi. ‘Hiço
Monteçuma aperçebir çient mill hombres de pelea.’ _Oviedo_,
iii. 507. Others make the number less. To this Clavigero
objects: ‘Mi persuado che vi sia stata in fatti qualche
truppa allestita, non però per ordine del Re, ma soltanto
d’alcuni Nobili.’ _Storia Mess._, iii. 112.
[606] Solis sees in this determination only a proof of his
supposition that the offer of vassalage and tribute was but
a bribe to satiate the Spaniards, since he now bids them
go. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 35-6.
[607] ‘Yo os daré para vos dos cargas de oro, é una para
cada chripstiano.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 507; _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 138. Herrera increases this to four loads for Cortés
and two loads for each horseman. dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. vi.
And Duran heard that a ship-load of treasures was offered;
but the pious Cortés was too intent on converting souls to
accept the bribe. _Pizarro y Orellana_, _Varones Ilvstres_,
91; _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 86. Montezuma had become
attached to many of the Spaniards, including the courteous
general, and really wished them well.
[608] ‘Dixo a vn Español de los doze, q̄ fuesse a auisar a
los compañeros q̄ se aparejassen por quanto se trataua cõ el
de sus vidas.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 137-8. This author
and others state that Cortés gives thanks for the warning,
and offers to go whenever he is bidden. Montezuma, equally
polite, tells him to select his own time. When ready to
leave he will give a load of gold to each man, and two for
himself. Cortés thereupon brings up the question of vessels.
[609] ‘Cortes le dixo ... q̄ por fuerça auia de ir el
Mõteçuma con nosotros, para que le vea nuestro gran
Emperador.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 86. It is not
probable that this was said on the present occasion, however,
and it would only have irritated the emperor.
[610] ‘Yd con essos indios, é córtese la madera, y entretanto
Dios nos proveerá de gente é socorro: por tanto, poned
tal dilaçion que parezca que haçeys algo.’ _Oviedo_, iii.
507-8; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 138. Bernal Diaz considers
this wrong. He knows not what Cortés told Lopez, ‘mas
muy secretamente me dixo el Martin Lopez, que de hecho,
y apriessa los labrava.’ Montezuma had demanded that ‘no
huviesse mas palabras, sino obras.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 86.
Perhaps Lopez did hurry, from personal fear of remaining
in the country; or he may have been instructed by Cortés
to say so to the soldiers, in order to calm them.
[611] ‘Comenzó á faltar todo lo necessario para comer y
beber.’ To remedy this, strict orders had to be issued
to purveyors, and the Tlascaltecs were sent on foraging
expeditions, which led to much abuse. _Sahagun_, _Hist.
Conq._, 25 (ed. 1840), 90.
[612] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 138. In speaking of this,
Bernal Diaz says that he became so used to sleeping in his
clothes, and enduring hardships generally, that he almost
discarded the bed during his later encomendero life, and
could take only short naps. ‘Esto he dicho, por que sepã
de que arte andamos los verdaderos Conquistadores, y como
estavamos tan acostũbrados a las armas, y a velar.’ _Hist.
Verdad._, 86.
[613] This was dated Saragossa, November 13, 1518, within
a week of Cortés’ usurpation of the fleet, as Las Casas
observes, and conceded to Velazquez the position of
adelantado not only over Yucatan, Cozumel, and ‘other
islands’ discovered by his expeditions, but over any further
lands that he might find. In connection with this title
was granted, to him and one heir, one fifteenth of the
revenue accruing to the king from these lands; and after
their conquest and settlement one twentieth of the same
revenue, in perpetuity for himself and heirs, from any one
island that he might select—the discoveries were supposed
to be all islands. All supplies of food, clothes, and arms,
introduced by him during his life, were to be free of duty.
In support of his expenses a royal plantation near Habana
was transferred to him, and an annual salary conferred
of 300,000 maravedís. A number of other provisions were
made for the promotion of economic, politic, and spiritual
welfare in the new region. A synopsis of the commission
is given in _Las Casas_, _Hist. Ind._, v. 2-5. Prescott
misunderstands the _Carta de Velazquez_ of October 12, 1519,
in supposing that the governor had not received notice of
his appointment by that time, and is therefore wrong in
taking Gomara to task for saying: ‘Estando pues en aqueste
pensamiẽto [to thwart Cortés], auino que llego a Santiago
... cartas del Emperador, y el titulo de Adelantado, y
cedula de la gouernacion ... de Yucatã.’ _Hist. Mex._, 140.
[614] _Carta de Velazquez_, October 12, 1519, in _Pacheco_
and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xii. 246-51. Solis assumes that
the preparations of Velazquez were influenced by the news
of the reception accorded in Spain to the procuradores of
Cortés. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 42-4. But this supposition, based
partly on a vague expression of Herrera, dec. ii. lib. ix.
cap. xviii., is wrong, for the procuradores reached Spain
only in October, and were detained for some time before
they saw the emperor.
[615] ‘Conociendo que la gẽte, de vna manera o de otra, se
auia de yr, acordò de recogerla.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
ix. cap. xviii.
[616] _Letter to Figueroa_, Nov. 17, 1519, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 400.
[617] It appears that Velazquez’ suspicious nature had led
him to cast reflections upon Porcallo, who resented them
by throwing up the appointment. Herrera tells the story,
which is not very interesting. dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. xviii.
[618] Bernal Diaz says also ‘Ualladolid, ó de Tudela de
Duero.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 246, 38.
[619] ‘A este Narvaez hizo Diego Velazquez su Capitan
principal, siempre honrándolo, de manera que despues dél
tuvo en aquella isla el primer lugar.’ _Las Casas_, _Hist.
Ind._, iv. 4-6; _Oviedo_, i. 496. ‘Dezian que era muy
escaco.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 247.
[620] In a letter to Judge Figueroa, of the Española
audiencia, dated November 17, 1519, he gives notice of this
appointment, and states that the object of the expedition is
to prevent injury to the royal interest and outrages upon the
natives. That very day he was leaving for Trinidad and other
parts to aid Narvaez in the preparations. _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 399-403. Narvaez’ appointment is mentioned
already in the letter of October 12th, addressed to a Spanish
dignitary, wherein he is spoken of as contador for the new
countries. _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xii. 250.
[621] ‘Auiso y relacion dellos les embió desde Cuba el
licenciado Zuaço, que auia venido ... a tomar residencia.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 87. But we are safe in
saying that Duero gave the impulse.
[622] This official, Juan Carrillo, laid the case before
the audiencia, December 24th, representing that Cortés had
without superior permission made war on the natives of the
new lands and conquered them. He had also appropriated
Velazquez’ fleet and captured men from Garay’s party,
greatly to the injury of both. Velazquez was now preparing
an expedition against him. The two parties would meet
and fight, giving the natives the opportunity to rise and
recover the country. Both Cortés and Velazquez being guilty
in undertaking such expeditions without authority, the
fiscal prays that they be punished in person and estate. An
oidor or his proxy should at once be sent to investigate
the case and prevent such war. During the following weeks
Carrillo presented letters and witnesses in support of his
petition. _Proceso por Real Audiencia de la Española_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 404-10.
[623] Fourteen leagues west of Trinidad.
[624] ‘Todo lo qual se asentó desta manera, y lo dió por
instruccion en mi presencia al dicho Pánfilo de Narvaez.’
_Ayllon_, in _Carta de Audiencia_, in _Pacheco_ and
_Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xiii. 337. For fuller text of this
agreement see _Ayllon_, _Parecer_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._,
i. 476-9. By the time the discovery voyage was concluded
the king would have decided the case.
[625] This creeps out in his report, to which he adds:
‘Parecióme que, pues yo principalmente habia ido á estorbar
que no oviesen debates y escándalos, que debia seguir mi
camino hasta los dexar pacíficos.’ _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_,
_Col. Doc._, xiii. 337. The account of his efforts in Cuba
is also given in a special letter to the king, written by
him at Guaniguanico March 4th, on the eve of departure for
New Spain. This letter was detained in Cuba till August.
_Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xi. 439-42; _Col.
Doc. Inéd._, i. 481-6. Herrera, who is not aware of the
agreement with Aillon, assumes that Velazquez and Narvaez
answer his protests by mere assurances that they intend no
harm, but will take care of the king’s interest, Narvaez
ending the discussion by saying: ‘de qualquiera manera se
pensaua embarcar dentro de dos horas.’ dec. ii. lib. ix.
cap. xviii. Bernal Diaz also states that Velazquez relied
so much on the favor of the bishop that he totally ignored
the protests of Aillon. ‘Soldados dixeron, que venia con
intencion de ayudarnos, y si no lo pudiesse hazer, tomar la
tierra en si por su Magestad, como Oidor.’ _Hist. Verdad._,
87. Solis supposes that Aillon hoped to prevail on Narvaez
when once out of Velazquez’ reach. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 47;
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 117; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 140. The
governor evidently feared to oppose Aillon’s distasteful
resolution to embark, lest he should induce the audiencia
to adopt a more forcible interference; and perhaps he
thought that his protests could be more safely disregarded
the farther he was removed from the centre of government.
[626] At the review in Cempoala, New Spain, were found 80
musketeers, 120 archers, 600 infantry, and 80 horsemen.
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 146. Cortés was told by Guevara
that there were 800 infantry, including 80 archers and 120
musketeers. _Cartas_, 116. Oviedo has only 800 men, but with
200 horses, iii. 508, while Bernal Diaz raises the totals
to 19 vessels, with 1300 to 1400 soldiers, including 80
horsemen, 90 archers, and 70 musketeers, but not counting
the sailors. The artillery of guns was in charge of Captain
Rodrigo Martin. _Hist. Verdad._, 86-7. Clavigero adopts 18
vessels, 800 infantry, 85 cavalry, over 500 sailors, and
12 guns. _Storia Mess._, iii. 113. Aillon vaguely mentions
‘over 600 Spaniards in sixteen vessels.’ ‘Sin que yo lo
supiese, llevaron hasta mil indios.’ _Carta_, in _Pacheco_
and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xiii. 337; and Tapia says 1000
and odd men. _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 587.
The figures from the review in New Spain must be increased
by the number lost with six of the vessels off that coast,
and this may be what Bernal Diaz attempts to do, although
he evidently makes the estimate too high. Agustin Bermudez
was alguacil mayor, and Cortés’ old friend, Duero, managed
to join as contador. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. i.
[627] Eighty Spaniards had been landed, and a number of
Indians, but most of the latter, together with a large
proportion of the natives, had died of small-pox introduced
by the Cubans. To judge from Aillon’s report he appears to
have allowed a number of Spaniards to remain, with a view
to make there a calling-place for ships, and which might
serve as a base for operations tending to the conquest
of Yucatan. He refers to the latter country as an island
adjoining Ulua, which he believes is a continent, lying
near the land discovered by Solís and Yañez. _Carta de
Audiencia_, Aug. 30, 1520, in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_,
_Col. Doc._, xiii. 338.
[628] ‘Se ahogaron cinqüenta ombres é los demas escapamos
con harto riesgo.’ _Carta de Audiencia_, in _Pacheco_ and
_Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xiii. 338-9. Montezuma informed
Cortés of this shipwreck, ‘é le mostró en una manta
pintados diez y ocho navíos, é los cinco dellos á la costa
quebrados é trastornados en el arena.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 586. ‘Tuuo vn viento de
Norte ... y de noche se le perdio vn nauio de poco porte,
que dio al traues; Capitan ... Christoval de Morante ...
y se ahogó cierta gente.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
87.
[629] Aillon was among the first to arrive, Narvaez and
the other captains coming in during the following two
days. _Carta de Audiencia_, in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_,
_Col. Doc._, xiii. 339. Hence Prescott’s date of April 23d
is somewhat too accurate. Brasseur de Bourbourg assumes
that a landing is effected on April 20th. _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 276. Cortés states that the news reached him in
the beginning of May. _Cartas_, 113. Taking four days to
travel to Mexico, the fleet arrived eight days after the
ship-building party had left the capital. _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 138; _Alaman_, _Disert._, i. 109. Narvaez’ agent
in Spain states that the fleet numbered eleven vessels on
arrival. _Demanda de Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 437.
[630] Three of the men left in Chinantla, ‘que se dezian
Ceruantes el chocarrero, y Escalana, y ... Alonso Hernandez
Carretero.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 87; _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. xviii. Porras gives several and
different names. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 500. Cortés
appears to say that they were the men sent by him to bring
news of Narvaez and who deserted. _Cartas_, 115. Aillon
speaks of one man who came on board of his vessel. Finding
that Cortés had instructed the Indians to regard any foreign
arrivals as inimical, this man was sent to reassure them.
_Carta de Audiencia_, in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col.
Doc._, xiii. 339. It appears probable, however, that Cortés’
expectation of messengers from his king was known to the
Indians.
[631] ‘Alçauan las manos a Dios, que los librò del poder de
Cortés, y de salir de ... Mexico, donde cada dia esperauan
la muerte ... y aũ dezia el Cervantes, ... O Narvaez,
Narvaez, que bien avẽturado que eres ... que tiene esse
traidor de Cortes allegados mas de seteciẽtos mil pesos de
oro, y todos los soldados estan mui mal con el.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 87.
[632] This was speedily abandoned for a camp at Cempoala.
Aillon wanted merely a camp to be formed near a well supplied
town. The municipal officers were: ‘Alcaldes hordinarios
á Francisco Verdugo, cuñado del dicho Diego Velazquez,
casado con una hermana suya, é un Juan Yuste, su cuñado é
mayordomo, é regidores á Diego Velazquez é Pero Velazquez,
sus sobrinos, é á Gonzalo Martin de Salvatierra é Juan de
Gamarra.’ _Carta de Audiencia_, in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_,
_Col. Doc._, xiii. 342.
[633] ‘Conocian en el Narvaez ser la pura miseria, y
el oro, y ropa ... todo se lo guardaua.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 89, 87. According to Oviedo’s version
Montezuma held a council, wherein some members favored
the plan of attacking and killing the Spaniards then in
Mexico, so as to prevent a junction of forces. This might
frighten the rest into departing. Others, who were more
confident, urged that the new arrivals should be allowed
to come to Mexico, so as to swell the list of victims for
the sacrifices, and this proposition was carried, iii.
509. Oviedo’s informant evidently ignores the declared
object of Narvaez; or, like Solis, _Hist. Mex._, ii.
64-6, he does not believe that any communication could
have taken place, for want of an interpreter. But Solis
forgets the three deserters, and Indian mediums, perhaps.
Prescott takes the peculiar ground that for Montezuma to
‘have entered into a secret communication, hostile to the
general’s interests, is too repugnant to the whole tenor of
his conduct.’ _Mex._, ii. 236. Cortés states that Father
Olmedo had evidence of communication and interchange of
presents between Montezuma and Narvaez. _Cartas_, 120-1.
Others confirm this, as: _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, ii. 587; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 141-2; _Carta
del Ejército de Cortés_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i.
428-30. The position of the emperor as prisoner, and the
speedy succession of events, did not permit the relationship
between the two to develop.
[634] Francisco de Lugo being actually secured with shackles.
_Tirado_, in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 6; _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 118; _Carta de Audiencia_, in _Pacheco_ and
_Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xiii. 342. Oviedo reviews Velazquez’
conduct in this instance, and concludes that, since Cortés
gave him the men and appointed him captain, he was bound to
obey this his immediate principal, unless royal orders to
the contrary had been exhibited. ‘Si aquel capitan, Johan
Velazquez de Leon, no estoviera mal con su pariente Diego
Velazquez, é se passara con los çiento é çinqüenta hombres,
que avia llevado à Guaçacalco, á la parte de Pámphilo de
Narvaez, su cuñado, acabado oviera Cortés su offiçio.’ iii.
316-17.
[635] ‘Alonso de Vergara, escribano, é con Antonio de Maya.’
_Demanda de Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 439;
Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 88, writes Amaya; _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, ii. 168, 412.
[636] ‘Me trajeron mas de cien cartas,’ wherein the soldiers
were told to give credit to the statements of Guevara and
his companions, and to rest assured that they would be
rewarded on joining. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 116.
[637] While selling cherries to Captain Salvatierra they
heard him refer to the treasures of Cortés as a magnificent
prize. The designs of Cortés against Montezuma and his
subjects were painted in dark colors. One of the stolen
horses belonged to this captain, whose raving against the
spies afforded great amusement to the camp. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 92; _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, ii. 587.
[638] He ordered Vergara to read the provisions. Sandoval
declared that none but a royal notary should do so, and
threatened him with 100 lashes unless he desisted. Guevara
interfered, and was told that he lied, and was a low
clergyman. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 88.
[639] Alguacil Pedro de Solis was in charge. Bernal Diaz,
_Hist. Verdad._, 88, describes how they wondered at the
succession of great cities, etc. The guard consisted of
twenty men. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 115.
[640] Gomara describes somewhat minutely the apprehension
created among the soldiers by this summons, in face of
the threatening aspect of affairs. _Hist. Mex._, 138-9.
Bernal Diaz states that Montezuma kept the news back for
three days, while he communicated with Narvaez. He might
have delayed longer, but feared that Cortés would suspect
something. _Hist. Verdad._, 87.
[641] While still talking, they received another message,
saying that troops, horses, and guns had been landed. In
his joy Montezuma embraced Cortés, exclaiming that he loved
him more than ever, and saying that he would dine with him.
While at table both were in good humor, the emperor thinking
of the departure, the general of renewed conquests. After
this Montezuma gave daily feasts, in the belief that the
task of entertaining would soon be over. _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 139. It is more likely that apprehensions prevailed
on both sides. Brasseur de Bourbourg calls attention to
the fact that no stranger had till then been so far honored
as to sit at the same table with the monarch. _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 277.
[642] Monjaras gives their names. ‘Fuesen ... tiznados como
los yndios,’ et seq. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 442-3; ii.
47-49, 134-5. Andrés de Tapia, who had just returned from
Cholula, after settling a boundary dispute with Tlascala, was
the fourth messenger. He followed by-paths, walking by day
and being carried by Indians at night, so that he reached his
destination in three days and a half. Finding that Sandoval
had already sent messages, he remained with him. _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 586-7. Cortés writes that
after being informed by Montezuma he received a letter,
by a Cuban Indian, from a Spaniard who had been stationed
on the coast to watch for vessels. This announced that a
vessel had anchored at San Juan de Ulua, which was supposed
to be that of the returning procuradores. The general now
despatched his four messengers. Fifteen days passed without
further news—this is probably a misprint—after which native
paintings were received showing the number of men landed,
and with them the report that the messengers from Mexico
were detained by the new arrivals. _Cartas_, 114-15. A man
named Pinedo, who fled from the capital, was overtaken by
Aztecs, at Cortés’ order, and brought back dead. _Demanda
de Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 440.
[643] Cortés intimates that a friar carried this message,
and that one of the questions was the nationality of the
expedition. _Cartas_, 115. The friar appears to have carried
a later message. Gomara assumes that Cortés already knew
who the commander was, and offered his friendship. _Hist.
Mex._, 142.
[644] ‘A cabo de dos dias ... donde venian muy bravosos
leones, bolvieron muy mansos, y se le ofrecieron por
servidores.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 88; _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, ii. 168, 465, 500.
[645] Cortés said that he could not leave Mexico, where
his presence was necessary for the preservation of peace
and treasures. _Cartas_, 117-18. ‘Y q̄ se viessen solos.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 142. According to Bernal Diaz a
letter of similar tenor had been sent on before, by a swift
messenger, to clear the way for Guevara’s recommendations,
and Cortés therein intimated that the hostile utterances
attributed to Narvaez must be due to the interpreters,
for he was sure that so wise and brave a captain would
not utter anything to the prejudice of king and comrades.
_Hist. Verdad._, 89.
[646] ‘Porq̄ dadivas quebrantan peñas.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 89.
[647] According to Bernal Diaz, Duero persuaded Narvaez,
at the instigation of the friar, to invite the latter, and
to seek by friendly efforts to win him over. Pretending
to yield to his persuasions, Olmedo told him that if the
proper persons were sent to confer with Cortés, he could no
doubt be brought to terms. It was then agreed that Duero
and others should arrange a private interview between the
two generals. _Hist. Verdad._, 93; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
ix. cap. xxi.
[648] The reason for this separation of oidor and officers
was to prevent the former from issuing authoritative orders.
This seizure had been effected just as Guevara returned
from Mexico. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 118. Hence, Cortés’ letter
failed to reach him; yet Bernal Diaz assumes that he received
it, and coöperated accordingly. _Hist. Verdad._, 89.
[649] This report, embodying Aillon’s, is dated August
30, 1520. A formal statement of the case, prepared on the
arrival of the secretary, was forwarded on November 10th.
_Carta de Audiencia_, in _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col.
Doc._, xiii. 332-48; _Ayllon_, _Relacion_, in _Id._, xii.
251-2; _Carta al Rey de los Oidores_, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._,
i. 495-511. The report proved a heavy argument against
Velazquez’ case, although Bishop Fonseca at first sought
to keep it back. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 90; _Peter
Martyr_, dec. v. cap. v.
[650] Two soldiers were also imprisoned for speaking
favorably of Cortés. One of them was Sancho de Barahona who
settled in Guatemala. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 89,
100. To Bernardino de Santa Clara, who had aided Aillon in
the formal demands upon Narvaez, nothing was done, owing to
his many friends in the camp. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. ix.
cap. xx.-xxi. This man was not actuated by friendship for
Cortés, however. He had been treasurer of Española, where
his prodigality nearly made him a defaulter. _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, ii. 166-8.
[651] ‘Villalobos, y vn Portugues, y otros seys o siete se
passaron a Cortes. Y otros le escriuieron, a lo que algunos
dizen ofreciendosele, si venia para ellos y que Cortes leyo
las cartas, callando la firma ... y que publicaua tener
en Zempoallã dozientos Españoles.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
143. Bernal Diaz says five deserters, relatives and friends
of Aillon. _Hist. Verdad._, 90, 92.
[652] Herrera assumes that he was deceived by Narvaez,
dec. ii. lib. ix. cap. xix., but intimidation was no doubt
the leading motive, for he could not possibly relish the
prospect of Montezuma’s release by the new-comers, nor the
licentiousness and greed of the soldiers. ‘This conduct
of the men drove the inhabitants to flight,’ says Cortés,
_Cartas_, 119, 125. When the jewels and other effects
belonging to Cortés’ party were seized, together with
the Indian wives of the conquerors, the cacique became
seriously alarmed, exclaiming that he would surely be killed
for permitting the outrage. This excited only derision,
Salvatierra remarking: ‘Aueys visto que miedo que tienen
todos estos Caciques desta nonada de Cortesillo.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 90.
[653] _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii.
587. ‘Ellos dejaban la villa sola por no pelear con ellos.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 119.
CHAPTER XXI.
THE COUP DE MAÎTRE OF CORTÉS.
MAY, 1520.
DISMAL PROSPECTS—EMPIRE TO HOLD, INVASION TO REPEL—THE ARMY
DIVIDES—ALVARADO GUARDS MONTEZUMA, WHILE CORTÉS LOOKS AFTER
NARVAEZ—THE MARCH SEAWARD—THE RENDEZVOUS—THE CHINANTECS
AND THEIR PIKES—CORTÉS SOWS ALLURING WORDS IN THE CAMP OF
THE ENEMY—PROPOSALS OF PEACE—DEFIANCE—NIGHT ATTACK—CORTÉS
CAPTURES NARVAEZ AND HIS ARMY.
It now behooved Cortés to look well to himself. He might win a
score of Marathons, but one Paros would ruin all. When embarking in
this enterprise, he was to all appearance little above the common
adventurer. But rare talents were constantly appearing as required
by occasion. Though sometimes carried away by excess of zeal, he
had proved himself an adept in diplomacy. And for one hitherto so
sportive and pleasure-loving, his temper was now grave, particularly in
times of peril, when his calm self-mastery increased with increasing
danger. The rhythm of battle was the sweetest harmony that could stir
his soul, and yet he never fought but for a purpose. On gaining an
advantage he indulged in no holiday of retrospect or repose; so long as
anything remained to be done no time was wasted in self-gratulations.
He never turned from danger, but hastened to seek it out, perceiving
it even in the darkness, intuitively, and always looking it full in
the face. It was while preparing to strike that the enemy received
the staggering blow, and the advantage thus gained was followed up to
yet greater advantage At no time appears this hero stronger, grander,
than now, when, without authority, without the royal sanction, in one
sense an outlaw, with the people of the country against him, his own
countrymen coming to war on him, his force insignificant as compared
with that of any one of his several enemies, he yet holds them all
at bay, by his iron nerve and ever ready strategic resources, keeping
them asunder, pitting one against another, playing on the foibles of
them all as easily and serenely as a lady fingers her guitar.
Greatly imperilled were now the conqueror’s brilliant visions of
conquest and conversion, of fame and wealth. If Narvaez were to
advance on Mexico, the Aztecs could not fail to take advantage of the
opportunity, either to join the professed liberator of their emperor
and themselves, or to attack the foreigners’ quarters on their own
account. This would place him between two fires, to which famine
would prove an effective ally. If Narvaez remained on the coast, it
would be to cut off both retreat and reinforcement, leaving him to
Aztec vengeance. To abandon Mexico for a campaign against the enemy
would be to surrender the most important part of the conquest.
To divide his forces, so as at once to retain his hold on the capital
and meet this new visitation—such a measure would render his already
small force less able to cope with an enemy not only its equal
in courage and military art, but far superior to it in number and
resources. Yet this he determined to do. The revelations of Narvaez’
messengers had shown how possible it might be, by judicious gifts and
promises, to sow discord in the enemy’s camp. The priests Guevara
and Olmedo, and others of both parties, were even then at work,
and chiefly on their efforts depended his prospects. Thus would he
seduce to his purpose the opponent’s troops, in so far at least as to
effect a compromise by which Narvaez might leave him in comparative
peace.[654] Who shall say that his good fortune may not still favor
him! And thereupon he resolved to move his camp nearer to the enemy,
so as to be ready for any emergency, and further, to give himself
a more imposing appearance by the addition of native auxiliaries.
Another reason for this advance was by his presence to counteract
the defection of Indian allies, arising from the parade of a superior
force by Narvaez, and from the stamping of Cortés as an impostor.
He laid the project before his council, showing the danger of
awaiting the advance of Narvaez, whose ill-will had already caused
their property to be declared confiscated and their names branded
with dishonor. Deserters to Sandoval had brought news of serious
discontent in the enemy’s camp. Hundreds, they said, would be ready
to come over or to remain neutral if Cortés showed a bold front.
Indeed, the protests of Aillon against a fratricidal war had been
echoed by most of them, intent as they were on obtaining gold, not
on slaughtering countrymen. It was in any case better to advance and
secure a good position, perhaps to surprise the careless Narvaez.
With God and the king on their side, so they claimed, they could not
fail to conquer. Some objections were ventured upon, but promptly
suppressed by one of the captains, who reminded his comrades of their
glorious achievements under Cortés, and their probable fate should
Narvaez gain the ascendancy. The result was an unanimous approval of
the plan proposed; and Cortés thereupon commissioned the captains to
represent the matter to the men, and to ascertain who were willing
to follow, and who should remain in Mexico.[655]
On acquainting Montezuma with his intention, the monarch questioned
him as to the reason of the hostility shown by the other force. Cortés
well knew that it was useless wholly to conceal the state of affairs.
He had been silent, he replied, in order not to give him pain. He and
his men had been sent by their king on this mission, and were from
the royal province of Castile, whilst the forces on the coast were
a rebellious horde from the outside province of Biscay, and inferior
to them, as Otomís, for instance, were inferior to the nobler Aztecs.
They had come with the design of injuring the natives, and Cortés as
their protector; but with the aid of his patron saint he would have
no trouble in chastising them, and in securing their vessels for his
speedy departure.[656] Alvarado, the tonatiuh, would remain in Mexico,
and him he recommended to the monarch’s consideration, requesting that
supplies be provided and peace maintained. Any attempt at revolt would
react with terrible effect on himself and his people. The emperor
promised that this should be done, and offered not only guides, but
an army to aid him. The latter was declined, chiefly because Aztec
troops could not be relied on.[657]
It was decided that all who were not wholly in sympathy with Cortés,
should remain with the garrison left in charge of Mexico, since
self-preservation would constrain them to act in the direction of
his interest. This force numbered one hundred and forty men, and with
the loyal Alvarado for captain, Mexico was regarded as secured. The
defences of the Spanish quarters were strengthened; all the guns and
most of the fire-locks, cross-bows, and ammunition were left with the
garrison, also seven horses. Supplies being not over abundant, owing
to the drought, maize and other provisions were brought from Tlascala
to serve in case of need. The men were promised wealth and honors if
they remained faithful, and their somewhat hot-headed commander was
exhorted to prudence. “You are few in number,” said Cortés to them
on leaving, “and yet you are strong; finally, have a care of your
prisoner.”[658]
About the middle of May Cortés set out from Mexico with seventy
Spaniards, sworn to implicit obedience.[659] There were also native
carriers, a number of prominent Mexicans as hostages, and guides who
were to take them by a short southern route through Aztec territory
to the coast. Montezuma accompanied him to the Iztapalapan causeway,
and there took his leave with friendly demonstration, while a number
of chieftains continued with him for some distance on the way to
the Huitzilapan plateau. He had no intention of encumbering himself
with heavy war material, for the little he possessed could not avail
against the superior armament of the enemy. His must be a light corps,
capable of quick movements; stratagem should supply the place of
numbers. And now what hopes and fears were theirs as they marched on
toward the sea! Surely so brave a little army was never more beset
by pitfalls and snares.
On reaching Cholula they were joined by Velazquez and Rangel, with one
hundred and fifty men, who were now the mainstay of the expedition.
About a score of these, suspected of favoring too strongly the Cuban
governor, were sent back to Mexico, so that the enterprise might
not be imperilled by treason. Among the remainder were distributed
the gold collected by the expedition in the Tochtepec and adjoining
region, in order to encourage loyalty.[660]
Unable himself to visit Tlascala, Cortés sent Francisco Rodriguez, with
instructions to raise a force of her stanch warriors. He succeeded in
enlisting several thousand; but as it became evident whom they were
to meet, the natives recalled only too vividly the terrible effect of
Spanish arms and prowess, and began rapidly to desert, so that only
a few presented themselves before Cortés, and they were dismissed
with presents.[661]
During the march to the coast scouts were sent out by the main road
and through by-paths to gather information of the enemy. Not far
from Cholula Olmedo rejoined the army, with a letter from Narvaez
demanding submission. Of this no notice was taken, for although the
latter had endeavored to intimidate the envoy by holding a review
of his troops, the brave friar had sounded the disposition of the
men too truly to be alarmed. He seemed rather disposed to underrate
the strength of Narvaez, and with a sense of the ludicrous he amused
the camp with his description of the vanity and carelessness of the
leader, and the arrogant assumption of the officers. When, therefore,
at Quecholac[662] they encountered Alonso de Mata,[663] notary of
Narvaez, who had been sent with four witnesses to advise Cortés of
his commission and demands, he was told first to produce his own
credentials as royal notary, and being unable to do so he was refused
a hearing.[664] The official mission of the messengers being thus
disposed of, Cortés soothed their wounded pride with soft words
and hospitable cheer; he gave them presents, and took care before
dismissing them to feast their eyes on the gold and jewels which he
caused his men to display, and to let them know that thousands of
Tlascaltec and other troops were on the way to join him. Their report
to Narvaez was a confirmation of Guevara’s statement, and did much
to promote the growing disaffection toward Narvaez.
The army now descended from the plateau to Ahuilizapan, and followed
the slope northward to Huatusco. This town appears to have been
situated on the head-waters of the present Rio Jamapa. Half-way down
this river, about ten leagues south of Cempoala, lay the town of
Tampaniquita,[665] which was the rendezvous. A number of Indians who
here appeared with complaints of outrages by Narvaez were consoled
with promises of speedy relief. Sandoval had come by a long and
difficult mountain route to avoid the enemy, and had brought with
him about sixty able-bodied soldiers, the old and infirm remaining
at Papalote.[666]
This addition raised the force to about two hundred and sixty
men, according to common statement, including the deserters from
Narvaez. Among the number were five horsemen, and a few archers and
musketeers.[667] They were poorly equipped, for they brought from
Mexico little else than well-worn escaupiles, or quilted cotton
armor, shields, swords, and dirks, a miserable outfit in which to
meet the well armed troops of Narvaez.[668] But the ready resource
of Cortés had found a remedy. He had noticed in the hands of the
Chinantecs a spear, twenty feet in length, which struck him at once
as a formidable weapon, either in defence or attack. It would be
particularly serviceable against cavalry. Immediately on hearing of
Narvaez’ arrival he had sent a messenger to that province with an
order for three hundred of the pikes, to be finished not with the
usual iztli head, but with double points of copper, a metal which
abounded in that region. The natives having previously tendered
submission to the Spaniards, Cortés also asked them for two thousand
warriors, to join him on pentecost day at the rendezvous. Both of
these requests were promptly granted, and before the Spaniards were on
the ground the messenger had returned with a force of Indians bearing
the weapons,[669] with points superior in finish to the models sent.
The messenger was Tobilla, a soldier from the Italian wars, and an
expert at arms, particularly with the lance. Under his instruction
the soldiers soon became expert pikemen, and gained no little praise.
Add to this courage, increased by many victories, their admirable
discipline, their influence over the natives, and their knowledge of
the country, and the little band assumes more formidable proportions.
Under the several influences surrounding him the original fierce design
of Narvaez in his dealings with Cortés had cooled somewhat. The calm
confidence and caustic wit of Olmedo tended to inspire respect for
his commander, which was not lessened by the rumor of vast Indian
armies massing under his banner. Nor were his men apparently inclined
to turn the sword against their countrymen.
Before the return of Mata he despatched a commission to Cortés
demanding the surrender of the country, but offering him liberty
to depart for any other region, accompanied by those who wished to
follow his fortunes. With this object vessels and stores would be
provided. The bearers of this proposal were his old friend Andrés de
Duero, Guevara, another clergyman named Juan de Leon, and one or two
others.[670]
Duero, it will be remembered, had greatly assisted Cortés in fitting
out his expedition from Cuba; in fact, without his intervention
Cortés would never have been appointed to the command. Láres was
dead, and it was quite natural, after this lapse of time, that Duero
should desire to look in on Mexico, and for that reason had joined
the expedition of Narvaez. Yet his sympathies were wholly with his
partner, and after a warm embrace he came at once to the subject of
his ducats. Their interview was private and protracted, and appears
to have been satisfactory, Cortés receiving on the one hand valuable
information about Narvaez’ plans and position, and Duero, on the
other, coming forth with weighted pockets, as an instalment of the
larger sum to follow. According to Bernal Diaz it was arranged that
Duero should receive valuable grants and offices if he persuaded the
alguacil mayor and other leaders so to manage affairs that Narvaez
should be captured or killed, and Cortés acknowledged captain-general
over all the troops.[671] Whatever may have been the agreement, there
is no doubt that Duero promised to promote his friend’s schemes in
the other camp.
Guevara and the other members of the commission were also loaded with
presents, and confirmed as supporters of Cortés. As for Narvaez’
proposition, he charged them to reply that he would listen to none
but a royal mandate, and would hold the country for the king, as was
the duty of a loyal subject, and to this he and his followers were
prepared to pledge their lives. Still, he was ready to meet Narvaez,
each accompanied by ten attendants, in order that their respective
claims might peradventure be happily adjusted. It was supposed by the
captains of Cortés, who had influenced the proposal, that the result
would be a division of territory, and to this they were willing to
agree.[672]
Duero had been requested by Narvaez to persuade Velazquez de Leon to
visit their camp, in the hope that a personal meeting might win him
to their cause.[673]
Velazquez’ disregard of the former summons from the enemy had confirmed
the faith of Cortés in his loyalty, and since a visit to the camp of
Narvaez might lead to important information, he advised him to go; at
the same time intimating that his heavy ornaments might have a happy
effect on that gold-thirsty crew.[674] With a view to temporize he
was authorized to offer himself as mediator between the two generals,
and with a supply of gold for bribes he went over to the camp of
Narvaez. There he met a most cordial reception. Gently the commander
remonstrated at his adherence to a traitor who had so deeply injured
his relatives. “He is no traitor,” replied Velazquez warmly, “there
has been no treason either acted or intended.” He would not listen
to any overtures, even when coupled with the promise of a command
second only to that of Narvaez. “I have sworn loyalty to Cortés,” he
said, “and I will remain true.” Nevertheless, that he might not appear
ungracious, he promised to use his efforts toward the recognition of
Narvaez’ supremacy. A review of the troops was held to impress him
with the superiority of the forces with which he might soon have to
contend.
A courtier in manner, and with a fine presence, Velazquez quickly won
his way among the captains and staff; nor did he fail to improve the
opportunity by presenting his general’s cause in the most attractive
light. No little weight was given to his words by the heavy gold
chain which fell in several coils upon his breast.[675]
Cortés affirms that the proposal for an interview with Narvaez
had been accepted, and that he was preparing to attend it when the
warning came that advantage would be taken of the meeting to seize
or kill him.[676] If treachery was intended, it is more likely to
have originated with Cortés, who was by no means scrupulous, as we
have seen, while Narvaez appears to have borne the reputation of a
man of honor.[677] It is still more probable that Cortés invented the
warning in order to be free before his followers, and before Narvaez,
to carry out a more momentous project, which, with the increased
knowledge of affairs in the enemy’s camp, and with the growth there
of his party, had begun to unfold in his mind.
It was a grand conception; yet grander still the execution. It was
a different matter with a small force to fall upon a well appointed
army of countrymen; different from war on naked savages, to surprise
them by night, or otherwise to vanquish them. Yet this was what
Cortés now proposed to do. Nor, in adopting this bold measure, does
he lay himself open to the charge of rashness or recklessness. His
situation was desperate: he must conquer or be conquered. Cortés
was no abstract theorist: he dealt mainly in concrete facts; not
necessarily demonstrated facts, but facts reached often by intuition
alone. With facts, intuitively or practically arrived at, he kept
himself well stored. He possessed many noble qualities, but on the
whole, as we have seen, his character was not cast in an immaculate
mould. He was exceedingly religious; and while, as I have said, he
would not let religion stand in the way of his ambition, yet he was
more bigoted than any of his followers. Aside from the chivalrous
abandonment of himself to fate, and the brilliant achievements thence
arising, there was little admirable in him. He knew nothing of lofty
magnanimity, although he did many magnanimous acts; he knew nothing
of pure disinterestedness, or a generosity of soul, although he was
ofttimes exceedingly generous. He had none of that sense of unswerving
justness and sensitiveness to wrong which characterized Grijalva. His
self-possession never left him. He was a power within himself, and
he knew it. Thus it was in Mexico now; and for years afterward when
Mexico was all America, he was Agamemnon, king of men, the greatest
of Greece when Greece was all the world.
Under the present inspiration, he sent Rodrigo Álvarez Chico and
a notary[678] to withdraw the proposal he had made Narvaez for an
interview, and to demand of him the production of a royal commission,
authorizing his presence there, which commission would be respected;
otherwise he must cease meddling with the affairs of the country.
The followers of Narvaez were to be formally forbidden to obey his
orders; and they were to appear before Cortés within a specified time,
and learn from him what the interests of the king required of them.
Failing in this, he would have them seized and dealt with as rebels
against his majesty.[679]
The cool impudence of this demand, coming from the captain of a little
band of outlaws hemmed in between hostile forces, gave rise to no
small amusement in the enemy’s camp. Narvaez chose nevertheless to
regard the matter seriously, receiving the message as an insolent
defiance. He declared he would no longer show forbearance toward the
traitor; he set a price on the head of Cortés, announced the estate
of his followers to be confiscated, and proclaimed open war against
them.[680]
Immediately after despatching his ultimatum Cortés broke camp and
followed his messengers at a quick march.[681] At Rio de Canoas, or La
Antigua, Velazquez came up with letters from Duero and others. They
had probably been written under a preconcerted arrangement, for they
were read to the leaders and discussed, the result being a unanimous
resolution to advance. So forward they went, Cortés exclaiming, “Death
to the ass or to him who drives it!”[682]
Crossing the swollen river with some difficulty,[683] he hurried
on to Rio Chachalacas, over a league from Cempoala, where camp
was formed quietly and without fires.[684] This sudden movement,
coming immediately after Duero’s interview with Cortés, confirms
the supposition that a plot had been concocted by them, which was
to surprise Narvaez under advantageous circumstances arranged by
confederates. There were to be no half-way measures; all must be
staked on one cast.[685]
Calling his men round him, he made one of those stirring appeals in
which he knew so well how to animate their spirit and touch their
heart. He reviewed their right to the conquest, and their promises to
hold the country for the king. “And now comes this emissary of Señor
Velazquez,” Cortés continued, “full of envy and treacherous design,
to appropriate the fruit of your hard-won victories. This pompous
Narvaez, while seizing your riches and clothing himself in your glory,
would load you with impositions and brand you with dishonor. Will you
submit to this? Will you, who have overcome mighty hosts, who have
seized empires, who even now hold monarchs in your hands, will you
place your necks in the yoke and humbly submit to the unjust demands
of this instrument of your ancient enemy? God, who has always been
with us, will still fight on our side, if we will be true to him and
true to our king. We must fight, and it is for life; ay, and more
than life—for honor and glorious inheritance.” Cheer after cheer burst
from the men, while the captains hastened to assure Cortés that they
would follow him to the death.[686]
Although it was generally understood that coöperation was expected
within the enemy’s camp, the prudent general made no mention of the
fact, lest it might render the men less self-reliant. He pointed out,
however, that their opponents, although more numerous than they,
were unused to war, effeminate, disheartened from hardships, and
discontented with their commander. He explained the arrangement of
Narvaez’ camp, and divided the force into three parties, under the
command respectively of Sandoval, Olid, and himself, the position
of the former as alguacil mayor and comandante on the coast, and the
second as maestre de campo, entitling them to this distinction, young
as they were, particularly since Cortés retained the direction of
affairs. To the former, aided by Jorge and Gonzalo Alvarado, Alonso
de Ávila, and eighty men, was intrusted the task of attacking Narvaez’
special quarters, with the formally worded command to seize him, dead
or alive.[687] As a further inducement toward the accomplishment of
this important end, rewards of three thousand, two thousand, and one
thousand pesos respectively were promised to the first three soldiers
who should secure the general.[688] Olid received the important
order to capture the artillery, from which the greatest danger was
to be apprehended. With him were Andrés de Tapia, Diego Pizarro, and
others. Cortés himself was to follow and render aid where most needed,
supported by Ordaz, Grado, the brothers Chico, and others.[689] The
password was ‘Espíritu Santo,’ suggested by Olmedo with reference to
pentecost day, on which all these events took place.
While occupied with their preparations a deserter arrived, sent by
Duero, it seems, to warn Cortés that, advised of his approach by the
Indians,[690] Narvaez had taken alarm, and was forming the best part
of his troops in the field[691] between him and Cempoala. To this he
had been prompted also by the more watchful of his captains, who had
not failed to observe the growing sympathy for the rival general.
This most unpleasant change of tactics disconcerted Cortés not a
little, and for the time he could do nothing but remain in camp,
protected in front by the creek. Fortune again came to the rescue,
however, in the form of a heavy rain, which fell all Sunday. It was
the beginning of the rainy season.[692] Most of Narvaez’ men, unused
to military service, and enervated by the frivolous inactivity of the
camp, found this highly disagreeable, and began to complain at what
they termed an unnecessary precaution against an insignificant foe.
The friends of Cortés did not fail to take advantage of this feeling
by ridiculing the manœuvre, representing that no troops, much less a
handful of boasters, would think of attacking in such weather. They
would in any case be far more secure within their strong quarters,
and by leaving an advance post in the field timely warning could be
given. This appeared to be reasonable, and since Narvaez by no means
relished the exposure, he gave orders to return to quarters before
dusk, leaving, however, a body of forty horsemen on the plain and
two spies at a brook ford, about half a league off. The remainder
of the horses were kept saddled at the entrance to the camp, and the
men were instructed to sleep on their arms, prepared at any rate to
reoccupy the field in the morning. The watchword was ‘Santa María.’
Cortés was occupied in devising new measures when informed of this
movement. Pointing out to his men the effeminacy and unsoldierly
qualities of the rabble with which they had to deal, and the
carelessness and inefficiency of their commander, he ordered an
immediate advance on Cempoala, where they would now be scarcely
expected. “You know the maxim,” he said, “‘upon the enemy at dawn;’
but better still, we will surprise them by night.[693] Let each strive
to excel his comrade in valor.” These words were received with hearty
approval, for anything was preferable to suspense in a dreary bivouac
without fire or comfort. Crossing the creek they marched noiselessly
over the plain, through the rain, drenched and hungry. On reaching
the brook, near the town, they came upon the two scouts of the enemy,
Gonzalo Carrasco and Alonso Hurtado; they captured the former, while
the latter, warned by the cry of his comrade, hurried into camp to
give the alarm. Carrasco was compelled under threats to answer a
number of questions on the position and plans of his party, and was
menaced with death if he played false.[694]
A cross had been erected at the ford,[695] probably during the first
march to Cempoala, and here the army knelt in all humility to do
reverence. Father Olmedo then gave the men the general absolution,
and appealed to heaven to bless the efforts now to be made in behalf
of their faith and the king, closing with the soul-stirring assurance
that victory should be theirs. The men, one and all, felt no doubt
that they were about to fight not only for their own rights, but for
God and their sovereign; and if the robber could feel encouraged in
his lawless pursuit after kneeling at the shrine of St Demas, surely
these heroes of a hundred fights were stronger for their religious
faith. Therefore it was with renewed confidence that the men buckled
tighter their escaupiles, and pike in hand, their main reliance,
they resumed the march with quickened steps, leaving the baggage and
horses in the care of Marina and the carriers. The horsemen stationed
in the field were not encountered, thanks to Duero who was one of them.
It was just past midnight, on the morning of whit-monday,[696] when
they entered Cempoala. Owing to the darkness and the presence of troops
in the field, together with the recent marches and countermarches,
the presence of the intruders was not suspected till they had almost
crossed the plaza. The storm was not wholly past, but the moon
peered forth at times between the chasing clouds, dimly revealing the
buildings occupied by the enemy. These consisted of three conspicuous
edifices, rising upon pyramidal foundations, the ascent to which was
by a wide staircase along one of the slopes. The highest was a temple,
known as Nuestra Señora since the iconoclastic achievement of Cortés
therein, and this was occupied by the troops of Diego Velazquez. Next
to it was the building held by the captain-general, guarded by the
whole battery of guns.[697]
Hurtado had arrived nearly half an hour before and given warning,
but instead of immediately calling to arms, Narvaez lost time with
questions, which elicited only that his companion had been seized and
that he fancied he had heard Spanish voices. Some of the captains,
friendly to Cortés, ridiculed the story as a dream, and entertained
the general with speculations about the projects of the audacious
rebel.[698] While so occupied the alarm of the sentinels was heard.
Cortés was upon them.[699] Narvaez at once became the self-possessed
commander, and hastened to issue the necessary orders. There was a
rush to arms, and the confusion was increased by the appearance of
innumerable fire-flies, which the besieged mistook for the fire-arms
and spears of a large army.[700]
In order to avoid the range of the guns, Cortés had kept his men
along the sides of the approaches, and on finding himself discovered
he shouted, “Close with them! At them!” Fife and drum joined in
and echoed the cry.[701] Olid rushed on the battery, ranged along
a terrace on the ascent to the commander’s house. So sudden was the
attack that those of the artillerymen who still remained loyal had
time to discharge only one gun, which killed two men.[702] The next
instant Olid, Pizarro, and their followers had practically secured
the pieces, and were pressing the defenders, who offered little
resistance. At the same time Sandoval rushed past and hurried up the
stair-way to the summit, where Narvaez stood to receive him.[703] A
volley of arrows and bullets was fired at him, but being poorly aimed,
out of consideration for comrades below, he escaped unharmed. Nothing
daunted, Sandoval’s followers pressed onward in a compact column, and
in a moment they were on the summit platform. “Surrender!” shouted
their leader with resolute confidence, to which Narvaez responded
with a jeer, calling on his men to spare no traitors. But the order
was an empty one, for their swords and short Spanish lances availed
nothing against the line of bristling copper points on the long pikes
of the attacking party, and step by step they were driven backward
into the building. What they did with their fire-arms or cross-bows
is not stated.
Meanwhile Cortés was doing brave work below. One body engaged the
cavalry, unhorsing with the all-effective pike those who had managed
to reach the saddle, and cutting the girths. Another body turned their
attention to the reinforcements which came rushing from the adjoining
quarters to the scene of action, and taking advantage of the confusion
and the darkness, relieved only at fitful intervals by the moon,
their cool opponents readily disarmed the greater number, so that but
a small proportion made their way through the besieging lines.[704]
While thus occupied they heard a shout from above, “Victory! Victory
for Cortés! Narvaez is dead!”[705] Cortés immediately caused the cry
to be taken up by the rest of his men, which added to the confusion
of the enemy.
It appears that Sandoval, although reinforced by a portion of Olid’s
party, could not effect an entry into the building to which his pikes
had driven those who still adhered to Narvaez, a number having passed
over to his side before this. After watching the vain skirmishing
for a while, Lopez, the ship-builder, bethought himself of setting
fire to the dry palm roof of the otherwise substantial building.
The besieged now had no recourse but to come out, which they did,
headed by Narvaez. No sooner had they appeared on the platform than
Sandoval’s men charged them with the pikes, and the commander was the
first to receive a thrust, in the left eye, which bore him down as he
cried out: “Santa María, save me!” In an instant Pedro Sanchez Farfan
was upon him,[706] and he was dragged down the steps and placed in
a chapel. Awed by this mischance the rest speedily surrendered.
Alférez Fuentes fought valiantly till overthrown with two pike
thrusts. “Our Lady save me!” he cried, still clutching the standard.
“She shall!” responded Sandoval, averting the pikes of the excited
soldiers.[707]
The cry of victory and the rumor of Narvaez’ death had stayed the
stream of reinforcements from the adjoining houses, wherein defence
was now alone thought of. Recognizing that a charge on them might meet
with more determined opposition, Cortés resolved to bring the enemy’s
own battery to his aid.[708] By the time the guns were in position,
most of the forces of Sandoval and Olid were free to aid Velazquez
de Leon in the task of reducing the quarters in which Salvatierra
and Diego Velazquez still held out.
They were summoned to submit to the king and to Cortés, under pain
of death, but gave a defiant answer. The guns were now brought into
play, and fired first over their heads to frighten them. As the balls
came whizzing by, the blustering Salvatierra, who had sworn to eat
the ears of Cortés, declared himself sick. His fierceness changed to
abject fear, and his men asserted that they never saw a captain behave
so contemptibly. The shots, supported by promises, soon brought about
the surrender of this pyramid.
The last to hold out was Diego Velazquez, a brave fellow, well liked by
his followers; but after a few more parleys, and the loss of three men
from well directed shots, his party was also prevailed on to descend
and deliver up their arms,[709] the leaders being secured and removed
in irons to the chapel, the wounded receiving there the attentions
of a surgeon. Cortés looked in to examine their condition, and as
the whisper reached Narvaez that the hero of the day was present, he
turned and said: “Señor Cortés, you may hold high the good fortune
you have had, and the great achievement of securing my person.” With
a twinkle of malicious merriment Cortés regarded for a moment his
fallen foe, whose insufferable conceit did not desert him even here,
and said: “Señor Narvaez, many deeds have I performed since coming
to Mexico, but the least of them all has been to capture you.”[710]
[Illustration]
FOOTNOTES
[654] ‘Velazquez ... si yua en persona no podia escusar de
respetarle, aunque por su buena, y blãda condicion, confiaua
que le traeria a qualquier buen partido; pero temia que
yendo otro qualquier General.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
ix. cap. xix.
[655] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 144; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
ix. cap. xxi.; _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 90. ‘Afirman
muchos, que en essa saçon estaba tan bien quisto Cortés,
que si á todos los quisiera llevar, todos se fueran trás
él.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 509. Which is exaggerated, as we have
seen.
[656] ‘Debia ser alguna mala gente, y no vasallos de V.
A.,’ is Cortés’ version of the reply, _Cartas_, 119-20,
while his interpreter, Aguilar, gives it more literally as
‘una gente vizcaynos e que no los enbiava el enperador.’
_Testimonio_, in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 47, 184. Gomara
adds that Cortés said he was going to protect Montezuma’s
subjects, and to keep the strangers on the coast till he
was ready to depart. The emperor probably dissimulated,
‘holgando que vnos Christianos a otros se matassen.’ _Hist.
Mex._, 145. Forgetting that the declared purposes of Narvaez
were well known in Mexico, Herrera renders the answer that
this captain was a brother of Cortés, sent with a present
from their king. Both would come up to the capital and then
leave the country. The rumored enmity was due to an order
from Spain to avenge any injury suffered at the hands of
the natives, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. i. Brasseur de Bourbourg
follows him.
[657] ‘Aquellos españoles le dejaba encomendados con todo
aquel oro y joyas que él me habia dado ... y le dí muchas
joyas y ropas á él,’ et seq. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 119-20.
‘Aun prometiò, que embiaria en nuestra ayuda cinco mil
hombres de guerra, e Cortes ... bien entendiò que no los
auia de embiar, e le dixo, que no auia menester.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 91; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt.
iii. 135. Ixtlilxochitl assumes in one place that Cortés
asked for men, and was told that Aztecs dared not fight
Spaniards, but would go as carriers. In another version the
confederate kings grant the auxiliaries. _Hist. Chich._,
300; _Relaciones_, 389, 412. Solis assumes that Montezuma
is devoted to Cortés; so does Zamacois, who sees a proof
thereof in the offer of troops. He could not communicate
with Narvaez for want of interpreters, and had he wished to
aid the latter he would have attacked the Spanish quarters.
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 70-1. All of which shows that this author
is not profound either in investigation or argument.
[658] Bernal Diaz places the force at 83 men, with 10
cross-bows, 14 firelocks, 4 large guns, falconets, 7
horses, and all the ammunition; 150 men were left, and 150
taken, _Oviedo_; a little over 50 were left, _Tapia_; all
wished to go, but 200 were left and 250 taken, including
the men of Velazquez, with 8 to 9 horses, and a force of
carriers, _Gomara_; 150 left, 250 taken, with a number of
Indians, _Ixtlilxochitl_; 150 left, _Probanza de Lejalde_.
B. V. de Tapia, who remained with Alvarado, says 130;
_Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 36. Cortés’ own
account distributes the total of his force as follows:
140 left at Mexico, 150 absent under Velazquez, 70 taken
by himself, 150 at Villa Rica; but this is more than the
original number given on setting out for the plateau. The
Villa Rica force may, however, have been reduced by later
drafts, for other authorities allow only about 70 men for
this fortress. In the Ramusio edition of the _Cartas_ 140
men are given as the garrison left under Alvarado, while
60 are taken by Cortés, _Viaggi_, iii. 244, but later
issues place the former figure at 500, which is evidently
a misprint. However much the figures of different writers
may vary, it seems to be admitted that war and disease had
made a considerable inroad upon them.
[659] ‘Fizo capitan dellos a Alonzo Davila.’ _Monjaras and
Aguilar_, in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 48, 184.
[660] ‘Que seria fasta catorze mill castellanos.’ _Monjaras_,
in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 49. ‘Cinco o seys mill.’
_Tirado_, in _Id._, 7.
[661] ‘Porq̄ le pareciò q̄ auia conseguido su intento.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. i. Perhaps in spreading
the rumor that he came with Indian auxiliaries. Among the
auxiliaries were 400 men from Huexotzinco, under Pedro
Gonzalez de Trujillo. _Tirado_, and others, in _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, i. 247 et seq.; ii. 7 et seq. It is this
expedition of Rodriguez, assisted by Diego Garcia, Alonso
de Ojeda, and Juan Marquez, as captains, that has misled
Gomara, and particularly Herrera, in supposing that the
whole expedition received a grand reception at Tlascala;
but, beside the above reference, Cortés intimates clearly
enough that he did not go that way, and he certainly
did take a more southerly route to the coast than on the
previous journey. _Cartas_, 120. Bernal Diaz also says:
‘embiò Cortes a Tlascala â rogar ... que nos embiassen de
presto quatro mil hombres.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 91. Prescott
falls not only into this generally adopted error, but states
that 600 troops were asked for, _Mex._, ii. 243, whilst the
chroniclers all say from 4000 to 10,000. ‘La maior parte de
ellos se bolviò, porque aquella Nacion no estaba acostumbrada
à pelear fuera de su Tierra.’ _Torquemada_, i. 482. A not
very sound excuse, since their troops had already gone to
Mexico.
[662] About twenty leagues east of Cholula.
[663] ‘Vezino de la Puebla, que era ballestero.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 90.
[664] ‘Púsole preso en su pié de amigo.’ _Demanda de
Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 441. But this
is not likely. Bernal Diaz says that Narvaez was told to
send communications to Tampaniquita. _Hist. Verdad._, 91;
_Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 248, ii. 185.
[665] Torquemada and Clavigero attempt to correct this
spelling, but Bernal Diaz is sustained by Orozco y Berra, in
_Mex._, _Noticias Ciudad_, 244-6. Bernal Diaz also mentions
Mitalaguita, which may be Metlangutla, a few leagues farther
east. _Hist. Verdad._, 91. Herrera states that they passed
through Cotastlan, by which he means probably the province,
and not the town, of Cuetlachtlan. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. i.
[666] Herrera, ubi sup., leaves Ircio in command at Villa
Rica, which is improbable. Sandoval arrived at the rendezvous
the day after us. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 92;
_Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 3-9. Prescott makes him join
long before this, on the high plateau, but he misunderstands
his authorities, and is quite at sea with respect to the
route followed by the forces.
[667] Bernal Diaz and Herrera say 266 in all; Torquemada
has 266, beside captains and five horsemen; Cortés, 250 in
all; Tapia, about 250.
[668] ‘Por vn peto, ó capacete, ó casco, ó babera de hierro,
dieramos aquella noche quãto nos pidierã por ello.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 98.
[669] Thirty-eight palmos long. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
x. cap. iii.
[670] According to Bernal Diaz this commission was arranged
by the combined influence of Olmedo and Duero, during
Olmedo’s second visit to the camp. The friar appears,
however, to have been there but once, when he was expelled.
Knowing Salvatierra to be a blusterer, Bermudez, the alguacil
mayor, proposed that he should join the commission, but
his intended victim, not caring to trust himself within
the power of Cortés, pleaded sickness and a dislike to
speak with a traitor. ‘Señor Veedor,’ chimed in Olmedo,
ironically, ‘best it is to be prudent, and you may have
him prisoner before long.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 93.
[671] Duero was to receive the share of treasures claimed,
a command in the expedition equal to that of Cortés, and
after the conquest a grant of towns similar to his own.
As a further inducement, sufficient gold was given to load
his two Cuban servants. On taking leave of the general, on
pentecost morning, Duero asked: ‘What has your worship to
say, before I leave?’ ‘God be with you,’ was the reply, ‘and
see to it, Señor Duero, that it be done as arranged, or by
my conscience [Cortés’ favorite oath] I’ll be in your camp
within three days, with all my companions, and the first
to receive the lance will be your worship, if I see aught
contrary.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 94. Monjaras
states that Duero and Leon warned Cortés against opposing
Narvaez’ army and commission. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii.
49.
[672] Cortés to remain governor of the part to be allotted
him till the king should decide. _Tapia_, _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 588. According to Gomara,
who sends Veedor Álvarez Chico, Juan Velazquez, and Juan
del Rio, to carry the message, Cortés proposed a private
interview for the discussion of two points, whether Narvaez
would leave Mexico to him and go to Pánuco or elsewhere,
aided by Cortés with gold and supplies, or whether Narvaez
preferred to take Mexico and give him 300 or 400 men
wherewith to pass on to new conquests. _Hist. Mex._, 144.
The last proposal could only have been a trap to secure
Narvaez’ men. Prescott chooses to omit the proposal for
an interview, and sends instead the ultimatum with Duero,
a glaring disregard of Cortés’ own text, as confirmed by
others. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 121-2; _Oviedo_, iii. 314.
[673] ‘Dize Narvaez, y en todo su Real ay fama, qui si
U. merced [Velazquez] vá allâ, que luego yo [Cortés] soy
deshecho.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 95.
[674] Bernal Diaz states that Cortés made the request in
a manner that appeared to Velazquez an attempt to probe
his loyalty. He therefore refused to take any valuables
with him, but was finally persuaded. Juan del Rio, Cortés’
equerry, kept him company.
[675] Bernal Diaz adds that, these efforts being observed
by Salvatierra, Narvaez was urged to seize Velazquez, and
this would have been done but for the representations of
Duero and others. During the dinner given in his honor,
Captain Diego Velazquez, nephew of the Cuban governor,
alluded in one of his remarks to Cortés as a traitor. The
guest appealed to Narvaez against such expressions. Diego
repeated the term, and added that Juan did not deserve to
bear the name Velazquez. Grasping his sword the latter
retorted, calling him a liar. He would prove himself a
better man than either uncle or nephew, if permission
was granted. The others had to interfere to prevent the
clashing of swords, and Narvaez was persuaded to order the
turbulent visitor away. At leave-taking the general showed
his annoyance, and said that it would have been better had
he not come. Diego Velazquez, who stood by his side, added
a threat, to which Juan rashly retorted, with a twirl of
his beard: ‘Before many days I shall see if your prowess
equals your boast.’ Alarmed at his want of self-control,
Duero and other sympathizers hurried him away before he
could utter any more indiscretions. He and the equerry had
hardly left camp before some horsemen appeared, as if in
pursuit, and caused them to increase their pace. _Hist.
Verdad._, 95-6; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. i.
[676] _Cartas_, 122. Bernal Diaz assumes that the proposal
for an interview came from Narvaez, through Duero, to
whom he also confided the intended treachery. Olmedo, who
had pretended to be won over, was also informed. _Hist.
Verdad._, 93. Herrera supposes that Sandoval warns Cortés,
who, according to Gomara, is still at Mexico when the
proposal comes. _Hist. Mex._, 144. Solis is more correct
in ascribing the warning to Duero. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 83.
[677] The fact that he allowed such dangerous men as
Velazquez de Leon and Olmedo to go free indicates that he
harbored no treachery.
[678] Gomara sends them with Velazquez de Leon. _Hist. Mex._,
144. ‘Chico, é Pedro Hernandez, escribano.’ _Demanda de
Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 440. Velazquez
having gone on a mediatory mission, Chico must have been
sent after his departure.
[679] ‘La respuesta ... fué prender al escribano y á la
persona que con mi poder ... los cuales estuvieron detenidos
hasta que llegó otro mensajero que yo envié.’ ‘Escribí una
carta al dicho Narvaez y otra á los terceros, diciéndoles
cómo yo habia sabido su mala intencion.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
122-3. The reference to a messenger indicates Cortés’
meaning to be that Chico preceded Velazquez de Leon. Gomara
assumes that Cortés’ pretext for withdrawing the proposal
for an interview was that Narvaez had declined to entertain
the points to be there discussed. See note 19. Chico had
warned him of the intended treachery. _Hist. Mex._, 144.
‘Y que supiesse que no auian de cantar dos gallos en vn
muladar, y que aparejasse las manos.’ _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. ix. cap. xxi. Bernal Diaz sends the message with
Olmedo, ‘since no royal notary dare carry it,’ and gives
Narvaez three days in which to send in any commission he
may possess signed by the king. Without such commission he
must leave the country, or Cortés will seize him and inflict
punishment for the outrage on Aillon and on the Indians.
This ultimatum was signed also by the captains and some
soldiers, including Bernal Diaz. _Hist. Verdad._, 92-3. An
answer was demanded through the same messengers. _Tapia_,
_Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 588.
[680] ‘Daria dos mil pesos, a quien matasse a Hernando
Cortes, o a Gonçalo de Sandoual.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. i. ‘Traia mandado de Diego Velazquez que
á mí y á ciertos de los de mi compañía que ... nos
ahorcase.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 121. ‘Hizo proceso en forma
contra Cortés, y por su sentencia, le condenó á muerte.’
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 300; _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 143, 146.
[681] ‘Dende a dos horas que se partiô el Juan Velazquez,’
says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 95.
[682] Implying that since Narvaez would not listen to reason,
Cortés or he should die. ‘Velazquez dixo al ... Cortés
que adonde yva que yva a la carnesceria.’ _Testimonio_,
in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 249; ii. 9, 50, 185-6. On
the way to Rio de Canoas, where they arrived the day after
leaving camp, two hogs, with navel on the back, were killed,
an incident which many interpreted as a sign of victory.
Velazquez having arrived with the messenger who carried
the ultimatum, the army proceeded. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 95. ‘Anduvimos aquel dia casi diez leguas.’
_Tapia_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 588.
[683] Two men were drowned in crossing the stream. _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. x. cap. ii.
[684] ‘Dos leguas de los contrarios.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._. ‘Fuimos a dormir a vn riachuelo,
adõde estava en aquella sazon vna puẽte obra de vna legua
de Cẽpoal.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 96. Prescott
here evidently follows the erroneous topography of Solis,
who confuses this creek with Rio Canoas. _Hist. Mex._, ii.
85; _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 249; ii. 50.
[685] ‘Como yo deseaba evitar todo escándalo, parecióme
que seria el menos, yo ir de noche, sin ser sentido ... y
prenderlo [Narvaez]; ... porque los demás querian obedecer
á la justicia, en especial que los mas dellos venian por
fuerza.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 123-4.
[686] He also stated that offers had been made favorable to
him alone, not to them, hence he had declined them. ‘Muera
el asno ó quien lo aguija.’ Any other course will disgrace
us, was the concluding remark, whereupon we lifted him
upon our shoulders and carried him round. _Tapia_, _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 588-9. ‘Hizo muchas
ofertas, y prometimiẽtos, que seriamos todos muy ricos.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 98. It would be his fault,
not theirs, if success failed. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x.
cap. ii.
[687] ‘Gonzalo de Sãdoual, Alguazil mayor desta Nueua
España, por su Magestad, yo os mando q prendays el cuerpo
de Panfilo de Narvaez, e si se os defendiere, matadle,
que assi conviene al servicio de Dios, y de su Magestad, y
le prendió a vn Oidor.’ Countersigned by Secretary Pedro
Hernandez. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 98; _Tapia_,
_Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 590.
[688] Herrera writes 3000, 1500, and 1000 pesos de oro.
Cortés’ acts are said by the men of Velazquez to have been
prompted by ‘un diabólico pensamiento é infernal osadía.’
_Demanda de Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 441.
[689] The above agrees chiefly with Herrera, who assigns
Sandoval 60 men, and names a number of the leading members
of each party. The parties were to keep a stone’s throw
apart. One of Cortés’ squads was to look to the cacique’s
palace, and another to Alcalde Yuste’s quarters. dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. iii. He is evidently confused on many points,
and several names are guessed at. Bernal Diaz states
that Pizarro, with 60 young men, including himself, was
charged to capture the artillery; Sandoval received 60 men;
Velazquez de Leon also a force of 60, wherewith to attack
Diego Velazquez’ quarters; Cortés remained with a reserve
of 20. It is more likely that a higher officer, like Olid,
received the order to capture the artillery, rather than the
comparatively unknown Pizarro. Velazquez de Leon does not
appear to have been detailed for his charge till afterward.
Cortés names only Sandoval as the leader of one party of 80
men, he himself following with the remaining 170. _Cartas_,
123. Solis reverses Herrera’s order. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 91-2.
[690] The stout cacique had remonstrated with the general
on his carelessness, assuring him that Malinche with his
Teules was far different. ‘When you least expect it he
will be here and will kill you.’ Although the warning was
received with laughter, yet the hint was not lost. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 96.
[691] Eighty horsemen and 500 infantry. ‘Y llegó casi una
legua de donde yo estaba.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 123.
[692] _Laet_, _Nov. Orb._, 221; _Hakluyt’s Voy._, iii. 467.
[693] Botello, known as the Astrologer, who had made several
successful predictions, had assured Cortés that a night
attack would secure him the victory. _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. xi.
[694] Cortés rallied him upon his capture, and addressed him
as compadre. After obtaining certain information, more was
demanded. The prisoner declared that he knew nothing more.
‘Well, then, you will swing,’ said Cortés, half jestingly.
The two pikemen who held the rope round his neck took this
for a command, and hoisted him. Rangel rode up, however,
and saved his life, but the compression of the throat
troubled him for some time. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. ii.-iii.
Carrasco warned him against attacking the powerful Narvaez.
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Ecles._, pt. iii. 137; _Tapia_, _Rel._,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 589. Prescott says that
he with ‘Spartan heroism’ remained silent, _Mex._, 257-8;
but Prescott has evidently not understood his authorities.
[695] At a cross-road a little farther on, says Herrera.
[696] May 28th. _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, 277. Clavigero
and others assume it to be the night between Saturday and
Sunday, but the authorities are pretty clear in mentioning
the following night.
[697] Estimated by various authorities at from twelve to
nineteen pieces. _Testimonio_, in _Cortés_, _Residencia_,
ii. 12, 168.
[698] Expressing the belief that Cortés would be foolhardy
enough to attack in the morning. _Tapia_, _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 589.
[699] ‘Llegamos junto á las centinelas sin que nos sintiesen,
é iban huyendo é diciendo: Arma, arma!’ _Id._, 590. ‘Auisado
Naruaez, y se estaua vistiendo vna cota: y dixo aqui ẽ le
auisò, no tengays pena, y mandò tocar al arma.’ _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. x. cap. iii.
[700] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 99, calls the flies
cocayos.
[701] Prescott, following Herrera, makes Cortés shout the
password ‘Espíritu Santo,’ which Bernal Diaz says was given
as a secret word for mutual recognition.
[702] So say all the original authorities that refer to it,
except Bernal Diaz, who claims that four guns were fired,
three balls passing overhead and the fourth killing three
men. Cortés acknowledges no casualties from it. Tapia even
intimates that no discharge took place, owing to the fact
that to protect the touch-holes from rain they had been
covered with wax and tiles. Confused by the sudden alarm
the artillerists applied the match, forgetful of the wax,
and ‘we saw that the charges failed to go off.’ _Rel._, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 590. Perhaps he would have
been more correct in saying that the men were confused by the
glittering bribes of Usagre. Bachiller A. Perez testifies:
‘Dixo al artillero poned fuego a estos tiros ... puso fuego
e no salieron los tiros e oyo dezir este testigo que avian
puesto cera en los dichos tiros.’ _Cortés_, _Residencia_,
ii. 85. This implies that the wax had been smeared on by
accomplices.
[703] With from 40 to 100 men, are the different estimates.
[704] ‘Vinien los contrarios á nuestra gente, creyendo que
eran de los suyos, á preguntar, “¿qué es esto?” é así los
prendien.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._,
ii. 590. ‘De las otras dos torres ... no le acudierõ,
porq̄ dizen algunos que se hizieron sordos, otros que
no pudieron llegar, por el impedimento de las tropas de
Cortes.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. iii.; _Cardona_,
in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 181-2.
[705] ‘Uitoria, vitoria por los del nõbre del Espíritu Sãto,
q muerto es Narvaez!’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 98.
Even this authority now shouts forth the password!
[706] Solis assumes that Farfan gave also the thrust. Bernal
Diaz’ text leads one to suppose that Narvaez received the
thrust before his followers were driven into the building,
but the other authorities state clearly: ‘al salir de su
camara, le dieron vn picaço.... Echaronle luego mano.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 147; _Oviedo_, iii. 510. Monjaras
states that Narvaez supplicated for his life: ‘Hidalgos,
por amor de Dios no me mateys!’ _Testimonio_, in _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, ii. 51, 85, 107; i. 365. ‘Alonso Dávila le
sacó dichas provisiones reales de V. M. del seno, teniéndolo
preso é abrazado el dicho Pero Sanchez Farfán.’ _Demanda
de Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 442. This
occurred some time after the capture. Narvaez called upon
his fellow-prisoners to witness the deed, but Ávila shouted
that the papers were merely letters. They were given to
Cortés. ‘Las avian quemado.’ _Testimonio_, in _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, i. 345, 365, 250; ii. 52, 187.
[707] He died, however, says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._,
99. Herrera calls him Diego de Rojas, whom Bernal classes
as a captain.
[708] ‘Se retrajeron á una torre alta de un ídolo de aquel
pueblo casi cuatrocientos hombres, é muchos de los de caballo
... salieron al campo.’ _Tapia_, _Rel._, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, 590. Herrera says that 300 intrenched themselves
till the morning. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. iv. Cortés reached
the battery just in time to prevent a catastrophe, as
Tapia relates. A hot-blooded young companion of the latter,
carried away by excitement, rushed to powder barrels, eight
in number, and shouted, ‘Let us fire the powder and spoil
it for the enemy!’ Cleaving a barrel, he cast a brand into
it, and threw himself flat upon the ground, commending his
life to God. It happened, fortunately, that this barrel
contained sandals, which by some mistake had been mixed
up with the ammunition. After waiting in vain a while for
the explosion, the madcap discovered the reason and began
to open another barrel. At this moment Cortés came up, and
learning of his intention he rushed forward and snatched
away the brand.
[709] Including also Juan Yuste, Juan Bono, and Gomara.
[710] _Oviedo_, iii. 510. Bernal Diaz lengthens Cortés’
reply: He thanked God for the victory and for giving him
such valiant gentlemen and companions to aid him. One of
the smallest things he had done in New Spain was to secure
and defeat him; it appeared more daring to seize an oidor
of his majesty. Las Casas relates that Narvaez had a not
dissimilar surprise by night from Cuban Indians, during
his campaign for Velazquez, and had a narrow escape. _Hist.
Ind._, iv. 6-8.
CHAPTER XXII.
ALVARADO’S MERCILESS MASSACRE.
MAY, 1520.
AFTER THE BATTLE—VICTORY MADE SECURE—CONDUCT OF THE
CONQUERED—A GENERAL AMNESTY—DISPOSITION OF THE FORCES—AFFAIRS
AT THE CAPITAL—INSURRECTION THREATENED—THE SPANIARDS HOLD A
COUNCIL—ALVARADO’S RESOLVE—THE GREAT DAY OF THE FEAST—THE
SPANIARDS PROCEED TO THE TEMPLE—THE GRAND DISPLAY THERE
WITNESSED—THE ATTACK OF THE SPANIARDS—HORRORS UPON HORRORS.
Cortés was exultant. During the last brief hour how completely had
his fortunes changed! Again was his star ascendant, filling the whole
heavens with its brightness. Alas now for Montezuma and Mexico! And
Velazquez; this was his fourth attempt on Mexico, and in some respects
his greatest failure. Instead of annihilating the outlaw with his
grand army, the outlaw in one fell swoop had secured the grand army,
and was now master of all the ships, and men, and munitions of war,
which he so much needed in consummation of his further designs. It
seemed to be the fate of the fat governor out of his solid substance
to feed his enemy with wealth and honors.
* * * * *
Before it was fairly light Cortés had seized and placed in confinement
such persons as might question his rights as victor; the remainder on
surrendering their arms were permitted to go at large.[711] In order
to make more secure his magnificent prize before the all-searching
sun should disclose the paucity and poverty of the victors, Cortés
seated himself in state, arrayed in a wide orange-colored robe, and
ordered the conquered troops to pass before him, and swear allegiance
to the king, and fealty to him as captain-general and justicia mayor.
This was done by nearly all, some humbling themselves and kissing
his hand, while the late hostile leaders and old acquaintances were
recognized with friendly greetings and embraces.[712]
Meanwhile Olid and Ordaz, each with a corps, set out on the captured
horses to summon stragglers and seek the forty troopers in the field.
Duero and other friends of Cortés being among them, little persuasion
was needed to win the party over, and shortly after dawn the whole
cavalcade came in to the sound of fife and drum, shouting vivas
for Cortés.[713] High above this noise were heard from a window the
voices of two women, named Ordaz, filling the air with their loud
philippics. “Villainous Dominicanos!” they cried to the soldiers of
their own party, “the distaff would better suit you than the sword.
A good account have you given of yourselves! Unfortunate women we
to have come to the wars with such men!” Truly might Narvaez exclaim
with Xerxes, as he beheld his fair ally, Queen Artemisia, outwit her
Athenian pursuers, “My men fight like women, and my women like men.”
The Ordaz women, however, fought only with their tongues, and that
after the issue of battle. And thus relieved they immediately descended
and did homage to the victor. The general did all he could to check
this excess of zeal, which he feared might engender ill feeling, and
he even seized some of the noisiest enthusiasts, although they were
afterward rewarded.
The cacique of Cempoala, who had been slightly wounded during the
battle, appeared like the rest to offer fealty to the victor by
crowning him with flowers. Cortés received his demonstrations as if
nothing had taken place to mar their intercourse, and took up his
abode with Catalina, whose hand he had accepted during his previous
occupation of the place. The chiefs vied with one another to obliterate
their unfortunate mistake by increased attention and hospitality,
while many among Narvaez’ men thought it necessary to excuse their
tardy surrender by pleading that they had been deceived by their
principals, who had assured them that Cortés was a traitor. Great
was their chagrin in the morning on discovering how few the victors
were and how poorly they were armed. And where were the much talked
of native auxiliaries? At the same time they could not but admire
a leader who had achieved such results with such means. Narvaez and
his supporters declared that the victory was due wholly to treachery,
particularly noticeable in the action of the artillerists.[714] In
this there was much truth, but the consummate tact and soldierly
qualities of Cortés shine no less brightly for all that. And the
cost of this glory and advantage, how insignificant it was! Four of
his own men and fifteen of the enemy, including a captain, beside a
number wounded on both sides; this was all.[715]
In his report to the king Cortés seeks to gloss over the occurrence
by stating that only two men were killed, intimating that it was on
both sides. There was a deeper reason for this and other falsehoods
than the wish to hide the bloody result of fratricidal conflict. He
was still doubtful as to the view taken in Spain of his conduct, and
could not afford to prejudice his case by laying bare every misfortune.
He was aware that even to the impartial observer he must appear as a
defaulter in the duty owing by him to a principal, and in the agreement
or partnership which he had formed, and also as the usurper of an
expedition fitted out in the name and under the auspices, at least,
of Velazquez. His plea rested on his brave and masterly conquest of a
rich country, and on his election to independent command by a party
formed on the pretence that the superior interests of the sovereign
demanded the immediate subjugation of the country. But his acceptance
of that command was a breach of duty and of contract; the right of
the party to act as it did was doubtful, and its pretence hasty, or
perhaps usurped from Velazquez, who had first entertained it; while
the commission to undertake the conquest had already been conferred on
the latter. Velazquez held besides the right of a discoverer to this
coast, and above all the royal grant to it, vaguely worded though it
was so far as indicating the situation and extent of territory. He
had a right to claim his own; though circumstances had so changed,
Cortés claimed, as to render this perilous to the interests of God,
the king, and the people, which rose above those of individuals; and
in ignoring the orders of the audiencia to desist from war on his
countrymen he followed only natural law and justifiable impulse.
In this respect Cortés was equally guilty, since his duty was to
yield to the rightful claimant. He pleads in his letter to the king,
however, that self-preservation obliged him to resist, for Narvaez had
determined to hang him and several of his followers. Here he again
hides the fact that favorable terms were at one time offered. “Had
Narvaez carried off the victory,” he continues, “it would have been
with a great loss, which must have so weakened him as to surely enable
the Indians to succeed in their meditated revolt. This would have
lost the country to the king and to the faith, and twenty years would
not have sufficed to regain it.”[716] In brief, howsoever we admire
Cortés, however much we would prefer his banner to that of Velazquez
or Narvaez, we must admit that he had hardly a shadow of right on his
side, and that no position in which he could possibly place himself
was tenable. He was a defaulter, pirate, usurper, renegade, traitor,
outlaw, hypocrite; but he was a most lovable villain, an admirable
soldier, a rare hero. On the other hand, Velazquez was right. But,
though deeply injured, he was disagreeable; though foully wronged,
he was vanquished. And the Spanish monarch was not the first or last
to smile on iniquitous success, or turn the cold shoulder to whining,
disappointed virtue.
In the course of the morning the soldier Barrientos, who had been
staying in Chinantla, arrived with the promised Chinantec warriors,
two thousand in number.[717] They had reached the rendezvous on
pentecost day, as ordered, but Cortés had found it convenient to
advance on Cempoala sooner than he had intended. An imposing sight
they presented as they marched by amidst vivas in a file of three
abreast, gorgeous with plumes and shields, the centre man with bow and
arrows, while his companions on either side carried the formidable
pike, tipped with glistening iztli. It was fortunate that they had
failed to arrive in time, since much bloodshed was saved thereby. In
fact the soldiers of Narvaez expressed a fear that they would have
fared badly with such opponents. Cortés was nevertheless delighted
with their coming, since this proved not only the sincerity of their
friendship, but showed the conquered that he did indeed control native
armies. Distributing some beads and trinkets, he bade them return
peaceably under the supervising care of Barrientos.
One of the first measures after the fight was to secure the fleet;
and for this purpose a suitable force was sent down to the port to
take the vessels to Villa Rica, and remove the sails and rudders, so
as to prevent the escape of any to Cuba.[718] Shortly after, when the
masters and crews had tendered allegiance, the vessels were placed
in charge of Pedro Caballero, captain of one of the vessels under
Narvaez, in whom Cortés had great confidence.[719] The fortress was
again garrisoned, with a larger force,[720] and thither were sent
Narvaez and Salvatierra in chains.[721]
As for the rest, Cortés applied himself with his usual skill to
recompense those who had remained true, and to conciliate the yet
unreconciled. He reminded them that they had come not to risk their
lives for Velazquez, but to gain honor and wealth under the banner of
the king, and he was prepared to aid in this by offering them equal
terms with his veterans. As an earnest he restored within two days
their arms to all except a few leaders, and ordered his men to return
the horses, weapons, and other effects taken by them as spoils of
war.[722] What with their admiration of the liberality and soldierly
qualities of Cortés, and the prospect of speedy advancement, there
were but few who did not immediately and cheerfully accept the terms.
But this was by no means to the taste of the aforesaid veterans. They
had seen with envy that rich presents were made to the conquered,
while they, whose courage and devotion had achieved such magnificent
results, received nothing, and were even told to return what they
regarded as lawful spoils; and, further, to share with these late
comers and intended despoilers the fruits of their years of toil
and victories. A general murmur arose, and many soldiers refused to
surrender the appropriated effects. Captain Ávila and Father Olmedo
being requested to remonstrate, did so earnestly, and told Cortés
that he acted like Alexander, who honored more the conquered than
those who won the battle. He and all he possessed belonged to his
comrades, was the reply, but at present it was necessary to conciliate
their invaluable acquisition, whose aid was needed to overcome the
threatening danger in Mexico, and who being the more numerous party
might otherwise rise against them. Their aims effected, the entire
resources of a vast and rich country were theirs. Olmedo was convinced
of the wisdom of the course, although he considered that too great
liberality had been shown. The headstrong Ávila pressed the point with
his natural haughtiness, whereupon Cortés said: “I am for Mexico;
those who please may follow; those who do not, may leave it alone.
There are yet women in Spain to bear soldiers.” “Yes, and captains
and governors,” retorted Ávila. Cortés deemed it discreet to bandy
no further words at present. So spirited a tongue must be curbed with
gifts; but Cortés awaited his opportunity. He never forgot anything.
With a view chiefly to divert the troubled spirits two expeditions
were sent out, each of two hundred men, mostly from the ranks of the
late enemy. One was directed to Goazacoalco, as before, under the
command of Velazquez de Leon, who had already held this commission,
and two vessels were placed at his disposal to send to Jamaica for
live-stock, seeds, and other requirements of the proposed colony.
The other expedition was intrusted to Ordaz for the occupation of
Pánuco, with a view to anticipate Garay. Two vessels were given him
to explore the coast.[723]
* * * * *
While Cortés was thus risking all on the cast of fortune at Cempoala
the troops at Mexico had been exposed to even greater perils. At the
time of his departure for the coast, Toxcatl, the fifth month, had
begun, and with it the most solemn festival of the year. It was in
honor of Tezcatlipoca, the highest of the divinities, and identified
with a supreme god, although less conspicuous in the daily worship
of the people, for they appealed rather to the nearer minor deities,
whom they regarded as intercessors, than to their supreme divinity,
whom they greatly feared, and who was very far away. The Mexicans
had been permitted to hold the celebration in the great temple,
which had been partly dedicated to Christian worship, on condition
that no human sacrifices should take place.[724] A festival of this
prominence could not fail to recall with all its force to the natives
the indignities to which they and their gods had been subjected. We
have seen how narrowly an uprising on account of the occupation of
the great temple by strange religious emblems was escaped, and how
it was restrained only by the promise of the speedy departure of the
Spaniards. Before Cortés had left the capital he saw the smouldering
fire, and it was this that led him to strengthen the defences of
the fort, to obtain extra supplies from Tlascala, and to enjoin the
strictest watchfulness and moderation.
The hostile feeling was by no means diminished by the tidings of
another larger host of invaders with doubtful motives. At a meeting
of native leaders it was admitted that the promises and statements of
the newly arrived Spaniards could no more be relied upon than those
of the deceitful Malinche, and the deferred proposition to drive out
or to kill the Spaniards was renewed with ardor. A better opportunity
for carrying out such a measure could never again be found. The
great Cortés with his cunning controlling mind was absent. There
remained only a small force in charge of the city, and the troops
on the seaboard were divided against each other. On the other hand
a multitude of pilgrims were pouring in for the festival; and what
better subjects to be worked upon for an uprising than these, and
what better incentive than religion? Beside the appeal for vengeance
on the desecrators of their altars came the patriotic call for the
release of an oppressed sovereign, whose influence was still supreme
with many, and the alluring prospect of securing the rich spoils in
possession of the Spaniards and the Tlascaltecs, the latter still
more detested as an inferior race which after years of contest had
now assumed the galling attitude of master. The preparations made
during the late fermentation required only to be perfected. More arms
were made, the people were stirred by passionate appeals, warriors
were enrolled, and other measures taken.[725]
The utmost secrecy had been observed by the conspirators, but with
so many confidants, actuated by race jealousy, by ties of friendship,
by interest, and by one above all others, the love of woman, that the
rumor was whispered in Alvarado’s ear.[726] Yet to the mistress, who
in her devotion to the lover forgot her duty to home and kindred, must
not be charged more than is her due. Sharpened by the remembrance
of past wrongs suffered on battle-field and stone of sacrifice,
the wits of the Tlascaltecs discovered evidence which their hatred
failed not to magnify. Warnings were hardly required, however, to
indicate that something unusual was stirring, for the demeanor of the
Indians had undergone a yet more marked change. Supplies were further
diminished; servants sent to market were abused and ill-treated, and
insolence was shown even to the Spaniards themselves.[727] A still
more alarming sign was the discovery of an undermined wall,[728]
and after obtaining further particulars from a devoted Tezcucan
chief,[729] afterward known as Don Hernando, Alvarado resolved to
inspect the adjacent temple where the chief celebration was held.
Here a number of suspicious circumstances were noticed, which the
Castilians readily wrought into threatening realities; among them
several victims destined for sacrifice, regardless of the promises
given, while some bloody hearts which they saw testified to the work
already done by the knife.[730] With the victims Alvarado seized
their attendants and certain of the emperor’s courtiers, from some
of whom he tortured a confession. In this manner he learned what he
already partially knew, namely, that many arms were prepared; that
during the Incensing of Huitzilopochtli, as the festival was called,
the Christian emblems would be cast out of the temple, and that the
uprising was to take place at the conclusion of the feast.[731]
A seeming confirmation of the proposed sacrilege came from Montezuma
himself, who sent to request the removal of the Christian emblems
from the summit of the great temple, pleading as high-priest that the
presence of strange images must prove irritating to the worshippers
of other gods. Alvarado indignantly refused; he would rather fight.
The Mexicans did not choose to see their festival broken up before
the appointed time, and so the point was waived. It was then arranged
that the Spaniards should attend the ceremonies, so as to be assured
that no indignities would be offered their images.[732]
And now comes another of those diabolical deeds which, done in the
name of civilization, or religion, or any other entity or idea,
fills us with horror toward the gods and men for whom or by whom such
acts are consummated. The lion and the tiger are humane and gentle
beside the Spaniard, harboring thoughts born of bigoted zeal or blind
apprehension. And what are his thoughts? These: He would enter the
sanctuary, the holy temple of his god and their gods, and while all
the people, while priests and nobles, the flower of the Aztec race,
were celebrating the highest service of the highest festival, he
and his men would fall upon them and hew them in pieces! And this
because they had tired of harboring and feeding them. They desire to
be relieved of the self-invited guests, and since dismissal does not
avail they must be driven out or killed. But the intruders do not
wish to be exterminated, and if there is striking to be done, they
propose to strike first.
Pedro de Alvarado was no such man as Hernan Cortés. He was scarcely
fit to be his servant. There were a dozen prominent qualities that
combined to make up the great man in Cortés which were absent in
Alvarado. Both of them were loyal, brave, and merciless, but there
was a method in the excesses of Cortés which those of Alvarado lacked.
Cortés was deep, Alvarado shallow; Cortés was patient under affront,
Alvarado was violent; Cortés was cool in time of danger, Alvarado
was excited—and so on. And yet Alvarado was a gallant cavalier.
The Spaniards now held a council, before which Alvarado placed the
information thus far obtained of the plot, and the necessity of prompt
measures was at once recognized. They did not believe Montezuma to
be taking any active part in the conspiracy, but that swayed by hopes
and fears he was allowing himself, with his usual want of resolution,
to yield to the stronger will of his courtiers a passive consent to
the efforts for his release.[733]
Less prudent than his chief, and less fertile in resources, Alvarado
did not look for preventives to check the conspiracy, but to what he
regarded as a decisive blow to crush it, such as that administered
at Cholula. He had not the foresight of his general with regard to
the proper adjustment of means to ends, nor his magic influence over
those around him, friend or foe. He remembered only the good effect
of the massacre on the effeminate Cholultecs, and felt convinced that
so excellent a measure must answer also for the apparently abject
Aztecs. It thoroughly suited his rash daring and cruel disposition.
To attack is to win, was his maxim. The difference in circumstances
hardly entered into consideration, chief among which was the smaller
force, unsupported by the neutrality of half the city, as at Cholula,
and without allies close at hand. The gathering of so many nobles and
military leaders in connection with the war-god celebration provided
the opportunity desired, since this would permit the blow to be
directed against those who were looked on as the promoters of the
revolt; and deprived of their leaders the people would be likely to
abandon any further attempt. This plan met with general approval.[734]
The hour[735] having arrived for the visit to the temple,[736] Alvarado
selects half the force to accompany him,[737] and proceeds thither,
armed with more than usual care. Upon those who remain in charge of
the fort, says Tapia, devolves the safer, though even more cruel task
of slaughtering the greater part of the courtiers and attendants,[738]
who have this day presented themselves in larger numbers than usual.
The Spaniards with their Tlascaltec followers are welcomed at the
sanctuary with great demonstrations by the unsuspecting nobles, who
see nothing to apprehend in the gleaming arms, since the Spaniards
never go forth without weapons. We must remember it is a gala day,
and the court presents a magnificent scene with its festive decking
of garlands, festoons, and drapery, and its gayly attired audience.
A procession of plumed priests and pages march by with swinging
censers, chanting weird music before the hideous idols. Behind comes
a file of nuns and novices, with red feathers and painted faces,
surmounted by garlands of toasted maize, and bearing in their hands
flags with black bars. Hidden musicians strike, and the dance begins.
Joining the priests, the consecrated women and the tyros whirl round
a large brazier, while two shield-bearers with blackened faces direct
their motions. A conspicuous figure is the _ixteocale_, the living
representative of the god, for whom he is fated to die, like the more
prominent proxy of Tezcatlipoca. Dressed like a warrior ready for
the fray, and prepared to lead in the chief dances as is his duty,
he seems to impersonate the omen of evil which hovers over the scene.
Presently the Spaniards are conducted to a separate court, wherein
are assembled several hundred nobles and leading men, arrayed in
rich costumes glittering with gold and precious stones. The centre
of attraction is the new image of Huitzilopochtli, of _tzoalli_
dough, its jacket wrought with human bones. Before this image the
_mazehualiztli_ dance now begins.[739] Rings are formed round the
music-stand, where two leaders direct the movements, the highest
nobles and the most aged composing the inner circles, and the younger
men the outer. When all is ready the music strikes up lightly to a
well known tune, and the dancers move off, chanting a song bearing on
the event of the day, and on gods and kings.[740] Forewarned as the
Spaniards are, they see treason in every act and word, and many who
understand somewhat the Aztec language declare that the songs bear
distinct allusions to the intended uprising.
As the dance progresses a few of the soldiers, together with a number
of Tlascaltecs, take possession of the different entrances, while the
rest distribute themselves in suitable positions and watch for the
signal.[741] Instructed by his native allies, Alvarado waits the time
when the Indians shall install the war-god image in the chapel. And
now the sanguinary moment has come. Falling on the assembly with pike
and sword, some strike the idol and some its worshippers. They hew
down the priests and drive the cruel steel through the bodies of the
nobles. Few of the Indians possess any weapons with which to defend
themselves from the sharp Toledo blades. Taken thus by surprise,
panic-stricken, they tread one upon another, and then fall helpless
under the merciless thrusts of the enemy. Their first impulse has
been to rush for the gates, but lines of bristling pikes oblige them
to press back against the crowd, thereby increasing the confusion.
Some attempt to climb over the high walls, some to hide in the temple
buildings, even burrowing beneath the heaps of the slain. Before an
hour has passed there is nothing left in sight deemed worthy of Spanish
swords, so suddenly has this brilliant assembly been transformed into
loathsome masses of mangled bodies. The pathway of the conquerors is
everywhere slippery with the blood of their victims.
In this horrible butchery, as we have seen, the lower classes suffered
less than the nobles. Desolation was brought home to nearly every
prominent family in the city. Their grief, shared by dependants and
adherents throughout the provinces, was commemorated in plaintive
ballads, by which the people kept alive the hatred of their oppressors
long after the conquest. The estimates of the killed vary from four
hundred to over three thousand, the most common number being six
hundred; and as this generally refers to prominent personages it may
be accepted as not too low.[742]
Finding no more to kill, or rather no more worth the killing, the
Spaniards and the Tlascaltecs proceeded to plunder. The reward was
rich, but even in the eyes of their national historians odium attached
to every trinket, for by such action, as Herrera observes, they gave
currency to the charge that the deed had been prompted by avarice. But
this interesting occupation was destined to be interrupted. Shouts from
the maddened multitude without were soon heard, roaring in response to
the death clamor of their countrymen. Warned by the guard at the gates,
the plunderers hastened to regain the fort. Yells of execration greeted
them as they issued from the temple, and showers of stones and darts
fell thick, while the front ranks of the assailants pressed them with
swords and clubs.[743] Short as was the distance to the fort, much time
was occupied in reaching it, and hardly a man escaped injury. Alvarado
was severely wounded, while one soldier and a number of allies were
slain.
FOOTNOTES
[711] _Cartas_, 124; _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 12. Bernal
Diaz confirms that this was effected long before dawn, while
Herrera states that 300 held out till morning; but he is
contradictory. Carrasco, whom he assumes to be free, urged
them to fall upon the attacking party, who were scattered
to plunder. But this was not done for want of a leader. Nor
did they favor his advice to plunder the baggage of Cortés,
which was protected only by Indians, and to embark with
Diego Velazquez. Carrasco accordingly proceeded alone to the
baggage camp, and securing a horse and lance he returned
and urged them to follow. He had evidently supernatural
means wherewith to penetrate the besieging force. dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. iv. Duran allows Cortés to form ambuscades and
leap walls, so that the arms are secured ere the men of
Narvaez can form in defence. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 453.
Peter Martyr disposes briefly of the matter, and assumes
that the chief captains of Narvaez were seduced. dec. v.
cap. v.; _Castellanos_, _Varones ilustres de Indias_, 71-2;
_Galvano’s Discov._, 144-5.
[712] ‘Cortes se mandò pregonar por Capitan general, y
justicia mayor, de ambos exercitos.’ Carrasco was three
days in stocks before he yielded obedience. _Herrera_, ubi
sup. ‘Y todo esto era de noche, que no amanecia.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 99.
[713] ‘Viua, viua la gala de los Romanos, que siẽdo tan
pocos, han vencido a Narvaez!’ to which Guidelo, the negro
jester of Narvaez, added, ‘Behold! the Romans never performed
such a feat.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 99. Herrera
speaks more at length of the sayings of this negro, who
was rewarded with a crown of gold worth 600 ducats. dec.
ii. lib. x. cap. iv.
[714] ‘I saw Narvaez in Spain in 1525, and heard him publicly
denounce Cortés as a traitor. He asked but royal permission
to prove it, face to face with his enemy; furthermore,
he was a liar, a tyrant, and an ingrate. Narvaez had been
betrayed by those in whom he confided.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 316.
Still, the chronicler cannot excuse his carelessness nor
his entering into parley with Cortés; and he told him so.
iii. 316.
[715] Bernal Diaz mentions fifteen [a misprint of _dos_
for _doce_ makes it only five deaths among Narvaez’ men,
including Captain Rojas, Alférez Fuentes, who was an hidalgo
of Seville, and Carretero, one of the deserters from Cortés’
explorers. Cortés lost four. _Hist. Verdad._, 99. Cortés
prudently mentions to the king only two deaths, but leaves it
uncertain to what side they belonged. _Cartas_, 124. Gomara
claims them for Cortés, and states that Narvaez lost his eye,
his honor, and sixteen men. _Hist. Mex._, 148. Cortés lost
two men and one wounded; Narvaez eleven. _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. x. cap. iv. Cortés four, Narvaez eleven, besides
many wounded on both sides. _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt.
iii. 138. Solis supposes that two wounded of Cortés’ army
died, making four in all, while Narvaez lost fifteen. _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 101. One version claims that Narvaez lost fifteen
by arms and six by fire in the burning of the quarters,
which is probably an exaggeration. Narvaez lost all his
property, including notes of hand. _Demanda de Ceballos_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 442. The testimony in
_Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. ii., varies from twelve to sixteen
for Narvaez.
[716] Oviedo looks on Cortés’ reasons as insufficient to
justify his procedure, such as ordering Narvaez to be seized,
and demanding of him to exhibit a royal commission, ‘as if
Cortés had been appointed by the king.’ Velazquez, as the
principal who sent him forth, had every right to remove
him. iii. 316.
[717] Bernal Diaz places the number at 1500, while Ceballos
raises it to 3000, under Heredia, and places the arrival
a day or two later. Herrera assumes that they came in time
to march with Cortés on Cempoala. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. i.
[718] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 100, names Francisco
de Lugo as the captain of this party, but Tirado states
that he had been sent back to Mexico as an adherent of
Velazquez. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 6. ‘Dió con los
once navios que el dicho mi parte allí tenia, al través, é
les fizo quemar.’ _Demanda de Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 442. Bernal Diaz also intimates that all
but two vessels were destroyed when the army proceeded to
Mexico and one afterward. _Hist. Verdad._, 109. It is not
probable, however, that more than a few were destroyed,
because unseaworthy. Some were wrecked a few months later.
[719] ‘Por Almirãte, y Capitan de la mar ... al qual
dizen que le dió primero buenos tejuelos de oro.’ His
baptismal name was either Juan or Pedro. Two vessels were
still expected to arrive. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
100, 113. Caballero was probably an old friend. ‘Pedro de
Maluenda criado de Diego Velazquez, que venia por mayordomo
de Naruaez, recogio y guardo los nauios y todo la ropa y
hazienda.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 148. By Cortés’ order,
adds Herrera.
[720] ‘Envié otros docientos hombres á la villa de la
Veracruz.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 125. Clavigero assumes that
Cortés at this time already gave orders for removing Villa
Rica southward, but events interfered with the project.
_Storia Mess._, iii. 120.
[721] ‘Cortés le [Narvaez] tuvo preso con muy ásperas
prisiones tres años, poco mas ó menos, é con guardias que
nadie no le pudiese ver; é aquellos pasados, le quitó las
prisiones é le tuvo preso otros dos años.’ So says Narvaez’
agent. _Demanda de Ceballos_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._,
i. 442-3. The testimony in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, reduces
the term to two years, and intimates that several other
men were kept at Villa Rica, under surveillance at least.
i. 223, 362-3, et seq.
[722] Narvaez claims to have been robbed of 100,000
castellanos’ worth of effects, and it is not likely that his
property was restored. See _Demanda de Ceballos_, ubi sup.
Bernal Diaz had to surrender a horse fully accoutred, two
swords, three daggers, and other effects. _Hist. Verdad._,
100. Santa Clara intimates that the horses and arms were not
as a rule restored. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 169. If so,
compensation was probably given, according to the _Relacion
hecha por el Señor Andrés de Tápia, sobre la Conquista de
México_. This is one of the most valuable documents extant on
the earlier period of the conquest, but it is unfortunately
only a fragment, which takes up the narrative from the eve
of leaving Cuba, and carries it to the capture of Narvaez,
relating with rather uneven completeness the principal
incidents of the voyage to Vera Cruz, the march to Mexico,
the stay there, and the operations against the forces of
Velazquez. Andrés de Tápia appears from his own statement
to have been a poor nephew of Governor Velazquez, to whom
he presented himself just in time to join the expedition
of Cortés. At this time, says Bernal Diaz, he was about 24
years old, of good build, with a grave face, slight beard,
and somewhat ashy complexion. _Hist. Verdad._, 246. He took
an active part in the leading wars and expeditions during
and after the conquest, and became one of the most noted
among the captains, favored by Cortés, with whom he was
frequently associated, accompanying him also on a voyage
to Spain. Settling in Mexico, he died there peacefully,
long after 1539, to judge from his reference to this date.
His narrative, as may be supposed, is a panegyric upon his
leader and patron, and some statements have accordingly to
be weighed, but this defect impairs the importance of only
a few passages, the rest being highly valuable, and many
of them unique in their testimony. Guided by a reference
in _Bibl. de Autores Esp._, xxii., Señor Icazbalceta of
Mexico obtained, after great trouble, a copy of the apparent
original from the Royal Academy of History, Madrid, entitled:
_Relacion de algunas cosas de las que acaecieron al Muy
Ilustre Señor Don Hernando Cortés_, etc. This he published
in his _Coleccion de Documentos_, ii. 554-94. The last three
pages form an appendix of brief remarks on the inhabitants
and resources of New Spain.
[723] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 149. ‘Dos dias después de
preso el dicho Narvaez, porque en aquella ciudad no se
podia sostener tanta gente ... despaché dos capitanes.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 125. Cortés writes that before leaving
for Mexico he sent Mexican envoys to obtain the friendship
and allegiance of the lord of Pánuco. This was at once
offered, and presents were exchanged. _Id._, 56-7, 125,
144-45. Cortés was either deceived or he invented the story
to counteract Garay’s schemes. Bernal Diaz names Ordaz for
Goazacoalco and Velazquez for Pánuco; but it has entirely
escaped his memory or notes that Velazquez had already
been charged to form a colony in Goazacoalco, for which
he was also better fitted, while Ordaz was more suited
for rough warfare in Pánuco. This author gives to each 120
men, twenty of them from the ranks of Cortés, ‘porq̄ teniã
mas experiẽcia en la guerra.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 100. The
200 allowed by others may include the ship-crews. Herrera
places 300 men under Ordaz. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. iv.
[724] For description of the feast, so as better to
understand what follows, see _Native Races_, ii. 317-21,
iii. 422-8.
[725] Oviedo refers the council and its acts only to the
time immediately preceding Cortés’ departure, iii. 509.
[726] ‘Esto afirmaron muchas mugeres, de las quales se sabia
siẽpre la verdad.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. viii.
[727] ‘Nos quitaron la comida e enbiando por ella no nos
la quisieron dar e nos davan de palos a las naborias e
estando lavando una yndia de las nuestras la hahogaron e
dezian e publicavan que asy avian de hazer a los españoles.’
_Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 66. This testimony
is confirmed by a number of his followers.
[728] ‘Con muchas escalas para subir y matar a los
españoles.’ _Id._, 67. _Martin_, in _Id._, 144.
[729] ‘Le prince acolhua Tecocoltzin.’ _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 287.
[730] ‘A number of poles were raised in the court-yard,
destined, as I was told, to impale the Spaniards, one
taller than the rest upon the pyramid being reserved for
me.’ _Alvarado_, in _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_,
66.
[731] Alvarado’s statements with regard to reports and signs
of revolt, and to the confession of several natives, is
confirmed by a number of witnesses, including the clergyman
Juan Diaz. _Id._, 66, 113, et seq. Tapia, who is arrayed
against Alvarado, intimates that torture induced the natives
to give the confirmation of the plot as desired by the
Spanish captain, and that the interpreter was unreliable.
One witness declares that the uprising was understood to
be planned to take place within ten days; another says on
the day following the torture, intimating that it was to
be after the great dances. _Id._, 37, 150. ‘Alvarado dixo,
que luego le auian de venir a dar guerra ... que lo supo
de vn Papa, y de dos Principales, y de otros Mexicanos.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 102.
[732] Tapia’s testimony to this and other criminating points
is particularly valuable, as he was a bitter opponent of
Alvarado. The latter states that Montezuma declared himself
powerless to prevent the premeditated sacrilege to the
Christian images. _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_,
36-7, 66-7. But this plea, if made, must, according to other
accounts, be interpreted to apply only to pagan ceremonies,
held almost before the images, and which might be regarded as
a sacrilege. Torquemada writes that arms had been collected
within the temple and everything prepared for the day when
the Spaniards attended by invitation to witness the dance
of the nobles. At a given signal an evidently simultaneous
attack was to be made on the assembled guests and on the
fort, thus taking the Spaniards at a disadvantage. Jars
stood prepared, filled with certain liquids, wherein to
cook their bodies for the feast. i. 489-90. The general
inclination of those who follow the Spanish version, of
which Torquemada, usually so stanch for the natives, is
here the best exponent, has been to assume that the attack
was arranged for the day of the great dances; and this
is not unlikely, although the original writers and their
commentators appear to be ignorant of or oblivious to certain
features of the festival. Another view has been to place
the attack during the installation of the new image of the
war-god. This ceremony belonged to the preceding day, a
fact not as a rule understood, and therefore the source of
much confusion. Brasseur de Bourbourg, who is clearest on
these points, assumes that the raising of the idol would
involve the casting forth of the Christian emblems, and
be the signal for attack. But evidences are conclusive
that the natives were not ready on that day. They were
too occupied with the celebration, and Alvarado, with his
small force, was not so negligent as to wait till the last
moment, when the enemy was fully prepared. He and several
of his men indicate clearly enough that they attended the
temple at the installation. The uprising must therefore have
been appointed for the following or even a later day. See
note 25. Vetancurt, _Teatro Mex._, iii. 139, is among the
authorities who follow the version of Torquemada in general.
One of the fervid-minded witnesses of Alvarado repeats the
account of pots and jars for cooking the Spaniards. Helps
supposes that Huitzilopochtli’s festival had not yet been
entered upon, and that Tezcatlipoca’s image is the one in
question; but the Spaniards, who knew the difference between
these idols, all affirm that the celebration of the war-god
was now held. See _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_,
69, 113, 130, 137, and 150.
[733] This received support from his neglect to interfere
when supplies were cut down. Even Tapia refers to a change
in his disposition, and to Alvarado’s displeasure thereat,
but his words may apply to the stoppage either of supplies or
of presents. _Id._, 36. Want of power could not be pleaded
by Montezuma, because a few days later, when the natives
were far more embittered both against the Spaniards and
against their captive sovereign, the latter was able by a
mere appeal to stay their onslaught. The testimony speaks
not only of an undermined wall and scaling ladders, but
of weapons, ‘porras y otras armas,’ and of conspirators
within the fort. _Id._, 67, 113, et seq. Gomara says that
his love for the Spaniards has been denied by some. _Hist.
Mex._, 154-5; but Bernal Diaz will not believe Montezuma
guilty of conspiracy. _Hist. Verdad._, 102. The grief of the
Spaniards at his death, and the care taken of his children,
indicate that they and the crown regarded him as loyal.
[734] ‘Los españoles lo requirieron al dicho D. Pedro.’
_Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 150. Tapia pretends
that he objected. _Id._, 37.
[735] Alvarado and his men in more than one instance indicate
the day when the dough idol was raised. _Id._, 67, 113,
134. Ixtlilxochitl points to the following greater day,
which he dates May 19th. _Relaciones_, 412. Sahagun is not
so definite, but his editor accepts the chief day, calling
it whitsunday, May 27th. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 99. In
another place he says May 25th. _Tezcuco en los ultimos
tiempos_, 274. One of Alvarado’s men states that it was a
Thursday. _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 131.
[736] The testimony of the conquerors, confirmed by native
paintings and records, leaves no doubt that the dance of
the nobles and the massacre took place in the great temple
adjoining the fort. _Ramirez_, _Proceso_, 37 et seq. Acosta
writes, however, that they occurred in the palace, _Hist.
Ind._, 522, and he is partly right, since a massacre was
carried out here also. Clavigero follows Acosta, and assumes
that the fort is meant. He argues that the dance was held
there so that the emperor might, as customary, be present,
and that a massacre could not have been undertaken by so
few Spaniards in the great temple, where the arsenals were
situated, and where the concourse of people must have been
very large. _Storia Mess._, iii. 118. The Spaniards had
forbidden the use of arms during the festival, and none
appear to have been produced in the temple. Among other
precautions Alvarado appears to have insisted on a small
attendance beyond that of nobles, and most authorities so
accept it.
[737] Torquemada says 50 men; the Tlascaltecs are seldom
counted.
[738] ‘Que no quedaron sino el dicho Montezuma y quinze o
veynte criados,’ says the charge against Alvarado. _Ramirez_,
_Proceso_, 4, 20, 37, 43. This generally ignored part of the
massacre finds also indirect confirmation in the diffuse
testimony to the finding of concealed weapons among the
attendants of Montezuma. Alvarado would not have failed to
punish them for this.
[739] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Relaciones_, 412. ‘Este bayle es
como el Netoteliztli.’ ‘Mazeualiztli: que quiere dezir
Merecimiento con trabajo.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 150.
[740] See _Native Races_, ii. 288-9.
[741] ‘Fue al patio donde estava el Oechilobos e vi mucha
gente junta para le subir e defendiendolo venia mucha gente
los quales comensaron a pelear con nosotros.’ _Ramirez_,
_Proceso contra Alvarado_, 67. This is a mere excuse
evidently, which none attempt to support, definitely at
least; but it sounded well to say that the actual fight began
on the native side, as had the plotting. One of Brasseur
de Bourbourg’s unique manuscripts states that the first
attack by the Spaniards was upon those who were advancing
with the idol. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 287. ‘Este testigo
desfizo el ydolo que los dichos yndios tenian para sobir
donde estava Nuestra Señora.’ _Nuño Pinto_, in _Ramirez_,
134.
[742] There were from 300 to 400 dancers, nearly all chiefs,
and an audience of from 2000 to 3000, says Tapia; and from
the wording of the accusation against Alvarado it appears
that all the chiefs were killed, and a number of the rest,
besides those slaughtered in the fort. Ramirez interprets
the native painting to signify 400, most likely of the
nobles only, _Id._, 4, 37, 286; 400 killed, _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, i. 41; over 600 nobles slaughtered in one
hour, _Cano_, in _Oviedo_, iii. 550; 600 to 1000 nobles
and caciques, _Gomara_; over 1000 nobles, _Ixtlilxochitl_,
_Relaciones_, 412, and _Brasseur de Bourbourg_. ‘Fué tan
grande el derramamiento de sangre, que corrian arroyos della
por el patio como agua cuando mucho llueve.’ _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 100. He gives sickening details
of truncated bodies, of dismembered hands and feet, and of
draggling entrails. Father Duran goes to an extreme in his
account, according to which Alvarado prompted the deed, and
Cortés executed it. From 8000 to 10,000 illustrious men were
summoned through Montezuma to assemble in the temple, in
order to permit Cortés to kill them and thus become master
in the country. He places ten soldiers at each gate, and
sends in ten to commit the slaughter. _Hist. Ind._, MS. ii.
456-9. Las Casas is not so absurd, this time at least, but
close behind him in the estimate, for he states that the
slaughter was carried on in different parts of the city
at the same time, and in one place alone about 2000 young
nobles fell. Prescott misinterprets him. ‘Non procul à
palatio aberant, duo circiter millia juvenum nobilium.... Ad
hos se contulit Hispanorum Capitaneus, & alios ad reliquas
urbis partes, in quibus hæ choreæ celebrabantur, misit,
... non cessabunt celebrare & lamentari ... calamitatem,’
etc. _Regio. Ind. Devastat._, 32.
[743] _Tapia_, and others, in _Ramirez_, 38, 67, 131.
Torquemada assumes that the arms used by the assailants
were those which had been collected for the outbreak in the
houses adjoining the temple, i. 490. As regards the motives
for the massacre, the Spanish authorities seek as a rule to
justify them, while the native accounts are equally inclined
to ascribe them to greed or to wanton cruelty. According to
Sahagun the celebration was held at the instance of Alvarado,
who slaughtered the devotees without known cause. _Hist.
Conq._, 27 (ed. 1840), 100. Duran, who is as prejudiced
as he is blundering, dates the massacre after the return
of Cortés from the coast. Alvarado persuades him to secure
the submission of the country by killing all the lords and
chiefs, and they are accordingly allured to their death.
_Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 456-7. Las Casas inclines to a similar
motive; ‘quo magis cresceret, & augeretur in his provinciis
formido illorum crudelitatis.’ _Regio. Ind. Devastat._, 30.
Nearer the truth comes Ixtlilxochitl, who, while disposed
to credit his countrymen, dares not accuse the Spaniards,
and so takes the prudent middle course of casting the blame
on the Tlascaltecs. Prompted by the hatred bred of former
wrongs inflicted by Mexicans, and by greed for spoils, they
invent charges of treason and speedy revolt. Alvarado, being
also avaricious, is readily induced to believe them, and
considers it besides a good opportunity to obtain control
by dispatching the assembled chiefs, unarmed as they are.
_Hist. Chich._, 300; _Relaciones_, 389, 412. Ixtlilxochitl
is not to blame for his assumption, since his admired
guide, the biographer of Cortés, does not attempt to defend
Alvarado, but merely mentions that he was influenced either
by reports of a proposed uprising or by avarice. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 151. The commentator Chimalpain says bluntly
that the latter motive ‘es mas de creer.’ _Hist. Conq._,
i. 281; _Benzoni_, _Mondo Nuovo_, 94; _Pizarro y Orellana_,
_Varones Ilvstres_, 92. Vetancurt rather condemns Alvarado
for acting on insufficient evidence. _Teatro Mex._, pt.
iii. 139-40. Cortés’ silence respecting the cause may be
attributed to his usual prudence in suppressing unpleasant
facts. He states, however, that Montezuma supplicated him
not to be annoyed at what had happened, since he regretted
it as much as the Spaniards. This implies that the Indians
were regarded as originators of the trouble. The severity
with which he treated the emperor on his return to Mexico,
notwithstanding the efforts made by him to save the
Spaniards, indicates still more strongly that Cortés was
convinced of Mexican treachery. _Cartas_, 126 et seq. In the
letter of the army to the emperor the uprising is attributed
to Narvaez’ plots. _Carta del Ejército_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 429. Herrera notices the native versions,
particularly that which accuses the Tlascaltecs of having
trumped up charges against the Mexicans, but he affirms,
‘la verdad fue, que pensaron matar los Castellanos.’ He
thereupon enumerates proofs of the plot. dec. ii. lib. x.
cap. viii. Torquemada, who is more fully acquainted with
native accounts, condemns them as unreliable, and states
that Sahagun accepted them without investigation, i.
489-91. The charge that Alvarado was influenced by avarice
is promptly rejected by Bernal Diaz. ‘No lo creo, ni nunca
tal oí, ni es de creer que tal hiziesse.’ His motive was to
inspire terror and inflict such injury as to prevent the
Indians from attacking him. That they intended to attack,
Bernal Diaz fully believes. _Hist. Verdad._, 102. Solis is
quite indignant at the supposition that avarice impelled
the Spaniards. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 117. According to Oviedo
the intention of the natives was to kill also Cortés on
his return. He inserts without comment the version of
Cano, married to Montezuma’s daughter, that avarice was
the motive, iii. 510, 550. Acosta, who generally adheres
to native versions, does not apparently find them reliable
in this case, since he merely says that a ‘chastisement’
was inflicted, but that it was excessive. _Hist. Ind._,
522. This is also the opinion of Clavigero, who believes
that the Spaniards were deceived by Tlascaltec stories of
a plot, and wished to anticipate it, on the principle that
‘chi assalisce vince. Checchessia, la sua condotta non può
scusarsi d’imprudenza, e di crudeltà.’ _Storia Mess._, iii.
119. This view has been widely adopted, even by the modern
Mexican historian Carbajal Espinosa, plagiarist though he be.
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 339. His confrère Bustamante, as editor
of Sahagun, is inclined to magnify even the exaggerations
of the latter. Prescott wavers between Clavigero’s views
and disbelief in Alvarado’s apology. But in expressing
his opinion he misconstrues Bernal Diaz and raises some
meaningless questions. _Mex._, ii. 284-6. There is no doubt
that the Indians were bent on mischief. A large faction had
been hostile to the Spaniards ever since their arrival, as
intruders who menaced the existing politic, economic, and
religious order. This feeling had been steadily spreading
under the threatening attitude assumed by the unbidden
guests in seizing the emperor, in extorting tribute, and in
assuming mastery. With the occupation of the temple by the
Christian emblems the climax was reached; and now the whole
population became possessed with a desire to avenge not only
the outraged idols, but themselves and their sovereign,
and to uphold the tottering throne. The observations of
the Spaniards and the reports of their informers were
correct in pointing to an uprising, to take place during
the gathering of pilgrims for the war-god festival, when
the reduced number of the Spanish garrison favored the
design. The confession of several natives, whether extorted
by torture or not, confirmed the charges and justified
belief. Alvarado could not as a prudent commander ignore
them, and duty required him to use prompt measures for the
protection of his force, and of the interests of his king
and the expedition. It might be urged by those who seek to
defend this kind of thing that seizure of the victims for
hostages would have been equally effective and more humane;
but from the precedence established by the general himself
at Cholula the conduct of the rash Alvarado is scarcely to
be wondered at. Cortés’ object had been to strike terror
as the only effective lesson for a people who seemed
to recognize no other sway, and if this was regarded as
necessary with the Cholultecs, Alvarado must have held it to
be doubly so now. His position was far more critical than
that at the former city, for his resources were smaller,
the prospect of aid was hopeless, and escape was cut off.
He had to strike promptly and strike well. Here were the
leaders, and here the temple, wherein a punishment would
apparently have greater effect. It was natural to suppose
that the installation of the war-god would be attended by
the leaders or representative men of the enemy; and to
level the blow at this class must be considered as less
cruel at least than to strike the multitude, as at Cholula.
Perhaps the recognition of this was a reason for the silence
of Cortés. All this discussion, however, as to the minor
motives prompting a dastardly deed I do not regard as very
relevant. I am very sure that the motives of the Spaniards
in this massacre were not plunder. They were playing for
a higher stake, for the whole country, and, in case they
won, all in it would be theirs. The present heavy blow was
but one of the points in the game.
CHAPTER XXIII.
UPRISING OF THE AZTECS.
MAY-JUNE, 1520.
CHARACTER OF THE AZTECS—SPANISH QUARTERS—THE CITY IN
ARMS—GROWING HATRED TOWARD THE INVADERS—PERILOUS POSITION
OF ALVARADO—MONTEZUMA CALLED TO INTERFERE—FAILING
PROVISIONS—MIRACULOUS WATER—CORTÉS TO THE RESCUE—RENDEZVOUS
AT TLASCALA—THE CITY AND ITS PEOPLE—THE ARMY JOINS
ALVARADO—DESPERATE ENCOUNTERS.
The Spaniards had mistaken somewhat the character of the Aztecs.
Ground to the dust by political despotism and bloody superstition,
their features had assumed a melancholy cast and their form the
attitude of humility. Yet beneath all slumbered a ferocity the most
blood-thirsty among the Nahua nations. And now, though their nature
might be as cold and impassive as the stone of the pavement, the iron
heel of the conqueror had struck fire from it.
Before the fort the angry throng increased, until the whole city seemed
to have gathered there. On the roofs and in the courts fell showers
of arrows, stones, and darts, and charge after charge was made at
the entrances. Attempts were also made both to scale and undermine
the walls, and some resorted to battering, until it seemed to the
besieged as if the whole habitation was coming down upon their heads.
The structure consisted of a vast irregular pile of stone buildings,
one story in height, and raised, like most of the pretentious edifices,
on a pyramidal foundation, which was low and difficult to undermine or
beat down. An occasional tower relieved the monotony of the outline
and offered a view over the neighborhood. Beside the smaller courts
inclosed by the buildings, a larger yard appears to have been formed by
a stout wall, within which the allies had erected temporary shelter.
This was the weakest point, and here the battering parties were
chiefly collected. The flanks and curtains of modern fortification
were wanting, and the protection of the wall face depended on the
turrets which rose here and there, and on the parapets, with their
few embrasures.
Though attempting no sortie beyond the immediate vicinity of the
gates, the Spaniards were not sparing of powder and arrows, and picked
off the more presumptuous assailants, while their pikes and swords
did good service at the parapets and openings. The cannon, however,
loaded as they were with small shot and scraps, which brought down
a dozen or more at a time, were the only weapons that could hold the
enemy in check. On one occasion, when a charging party had approached
in a somewhat wavering column to carry the main entrance, the cannon
charge failed to explode, owing to dampness. This the assailants
were quick to observe, and with yells of encouragement they rushed
forward, and were soon in a hand-to-hand conflict with a party which
had sallied to break the first column. The Spaniards plied their
swords and pikes with desperation, supported by a desultory fire
from the musketeers and archers of the fort, but without effect. The
gaps made by their weapons were quickly filled with fresh warriors,
and the sallying party was obliged to fall back with the loss of two
soldiers, who were captured alive and devoted to sacrifice. It was a
critical moment, for the enraged horde was about to follow them into
the quarters. Just then, as if touched by invisible fire, the powder
ignited, sending from the cannon its death-dealing missiles, mowing
a path through the crowd of pursuers. The Mexicans were appalled and
speedily thrown into disorder, of which the Spaniards were not slow
to take advantage. Nor was this the only miracle of the day; for it
is alleged that the virgin, and he of the dazzling white steed, both
appeared fighting on the side of the Spaniards, and bringing defeat
and confusion upon their assailants, as at Tabasco and Tlascala.[744]
Thus closed the first day of Alvarado’s chivalrous doings, during which
a large number were wounded, although there were but six killed,[745]
not including allies. A portion of the quarters, with a quantity of
ammunition and supplies, had been burned, and a large breach made
in the wall. The brigantines were also burned, the bridges raised,
and barricades erected in different parts of the city; while the
supply of provisions was cut off. Even after darkness had stilled the
fury of the warriors the unhappy people remained before the Spanish
quarters, and with outstretched arms and dishevelled hair they lifted
up their voices, crying, “You are doomed, you vile things! But for
your thunder and your fortress walls, curses on them, you would now
be killed and cooked. And you shall be, unless you instantly release
Montezuma and depart. You shall meet with holy death, and be cooked
with _chilmole_, and be given as food to the eagles and the beasts,
for your flesh is bitter, as we have found, and not fit for men to
eat. Why does not the earth swallow you alive? Oh ye gods! ye gods!
unmoved all, all but the devilish gods of these devilish men. But our
mighty ones, whom you have outraged, shall yet give you your deserts.
If they do not, we shall; nor shall they escape, the despicable ones
of Tlascala, your slaves, who serve you as women and hire out the
wives of their lords!” Thus raved the heart-broken.
So critical had become his condition on the second day that Alvarado
appealed to Montezuma to exert his influence to stay the assailants,
intimating that if the Spaniards perished so would the Aztec king.
Montezuma’s overtures were not received with enthusiasm by the
people; nevertheless aggressive operations were reduced to desultory
attacks.[746] Water was greatly needed by the besieged, and again the
good fortune of the Spaniards, which hardly ever forsook them, came
to their aid. Digging, under inspiration or desperation, they struck
fresh water within the fortress,[747] and offered thanksgiving.
Communication was shortly after established between Alvarado and
Cortés. Several Tlascaltecs and Cholultecs were despatched by
different routes to the coast, and a courier arrived from Cempoala
and gained entrance to the fort.[748] Ordering Velazquez and Ordaz
to abandon their mission and direct their march to Tlascala, Cortés
hastened preparations to join them there. A garrison of one hundred
men was left at Villa Rica, under Rodrigo Rangel, a relative of the
general,[749] and about thirty men remained at Cempoala to take charge
of the sick and wounded, and some baggage, with orders to follow as
soon as possible.
The route to the plateau lay partly through a bleak and desert country,
and the inhabitants being beside less friendly than before, the army
would have found it difficult to obtain supplies; but Cortés had
gathered experience from his previous march, and Tlascala was entered
in the middle of June.[750] A hearty reception was accorded, and
more encouraging news obtained from Mexico, showing that the siege
maintained its passive character. Reinforcements were nevertheless
urgent, since a fresh outbreak might at any time occur. A message was
again sent to gladden the garrison with promises of speedy relief.[751]
Including the troops under Velazquez and Ordaz the muster-roll
showed about eleven hundred men, with some eighty horses, one hundred
cross-bows, and eighty fire-arms, besides several cannon, and a large
quantity of ammunition.[752] The heart of the company, however, was
the veterans of Cortés, whose superior discipline and familiarity
with native warfare made them doubly reliable. Eager for a fray with
the detested Aztecs, and desirous of excusing their refusal of men
a month before, the Tlascaltecs offered not only supplies but large
reinforcements, of which only two thousand were accepted, besides a
small number from Cholula and Huexotzinco.
The more northerly route by way of Calpulalpan, recommended already on
the former march as the easiest, was this time selected, partly with
a view to obtain provisions more readily.[753] As the lake region was
approached evidences were seen of the revolt in deserted villages and
in the sullen demeanor of the few Indians who showed themselves. The
contrast was chilling indeed as compared with the reception accorded
on the former occasion, when the journey resembled the triumphal
march of gods. Oppressed with misgivings the army entered Tezcuco,
the seat of the Acolhua kings, a few leagues north of Mexico, on the
border of the same lake.
* * * * *
It was one of the most ancient cities of the country, ranking since
the early half of the eighth century as the capital of a dominion
founded by Tezcatlipoca, the later supreme deity of the Nahuas.
After the fall of the Toltec empire it took the leading position in
Anáhuac, as the centre of Chichimec power. The new dynasty fostered
the inherited culture in every way, and made the city not only the
political capital, but the Athens of the country. The rise of the
Aztecs gave it a rival in Mexico, which in course of the fifteenth
century assumed the political sceptre, but Tezcuco still maintained
the precedence in culture and elegance. It was said to contain one
hundred and forty thousand houses, distributed among different suburbs,
and extending with their smiling gardens from the border of the lake
to a distance of from three to four leagues. The six divisions of the
city were crossed by a series of fine streets lined with tasteful and
costly buildings. Among the finest structures were the two palaces,
which are claimed to have excelled those of Mexico. The older, the
Huetecpan, wherein the poet-king Nezahualcoyotl held his court, formed
a magnificent monument of his artistic taste. It lay upon a triple
terrace bathed by the lake, and was surrounded by an immense wall,
from fifteen to twenty-five feet high, inclosing two large squares.
Within this precinct were the council-chambers, the halls for various
arts and sciences, and the royal apartments. The pleasure-grounds,
almost hedged by cedars, were filled with shady groves, traversed
by labyrinthian paths, and interspersed with well stocked ponds
and aviaries, baths, and sparkling fountains. The new palace, which
occupied a smaller space, excelled in imposing architecture and in
comforts of the most varied character.
Beside these there were a number of summer resorts in the neighborhood,
conspicuous among them the fine palace of Tezcocingo, a prototype
of Chapultepec, and like it overlooking the capital from a hill, two
leagues to the east. An aqueduct of stone supplied two reservoirs on
the summit, whence the water was distributed over grounds intersected
by canals with meandering currents and picturesque cascades. The
palace lay almost hidden within groves of gigantic cedar and cypress,
revealing to the rapt beholder pavilions of marble, tessellated
pavements, and playing fountains with statuary of unique form.[754]
* * * * *
The Spaniards found none to welcome them, but were allowed unmolested
to take up their quarters in the palace. Shortly afterward a
canoe arrived from Mexico[755] with an imperial messenger and a
Spaniard,[756] bearing the cheering news that everything had been
quiet in the capital for some time, and that supplies, which had been
scantily furnished only against heavy payments, had now become more
liberal. Montezuma sent word that the city would return to its normal
condition the moment Cortés entered it, and he expressed a hope that
no ill-will would be entertained toward him for what had happened,
since this had been beyond his control, and had grieved him as much
as the Spaniards. Reassuring messages were forwarded to Villa Rica.
After a stay of four days the army proceeded from Tezcuco by the
northern shore of the lake, and camped for the night at Tepeyacac,
the terminus of the northern causeway from Mexico.[757] On entering
this place the horse of Solis, Casquete, stepped into a hole on the
bridge and broke a leg, throwing its rider into the water. This was
looked on as a bad omen, particularly by an astrologer soldier named
Botello, but Cortés made light of it, saying, “Troubles at St John’s
festival bring peace for the year.”[758] The following morning, St
John’s day, the army entered the capital. On all sides an ominous
silence prevailed. The streets were deserted, the houses apparently
abandoned, and the solitary native occasionally seen hovered in the
distance like a shadow.[759] It was also noticed with apprehension
that many of the canal bridges were removed. On approaching the
Axayacatl palace the arrival was heralded by trumpet blasts, which
called forth responsive shouts from the garrison. Throwing open the
gates, the besieged received their deliverers with the most extravagant
demonstrations of joy.[760] For greater accommodation a part of the
troops were quartered in the great temple adjoining the fort.
* * * * *
The unpleasant aspect of affairs, so apparent during the last days
of the march, had ruffled the temper of Cortés, and his treatment
of Alvarado was not altogether cordial. Still, as he had ever been
a close friend, and as he was an invaluable officer, brave and
influential, he deemed it prudent to go no further than to express
a curt disapproval of his rashness.[761] Indeed, an inquiry into
the causes and results of the massacre could criminate Alvarado no
further than the Cholula affair did himself. The captain had acted
in full accord with his party, and whatever blame might attach must
be shared by all. Dissension would never answer, and so the matter
was dropped. But the ill-temper which the general dared not wreak on
his own men found a ready object in Montezuma. The conduct of Cortés
in this respect was most ungenerous. It shows the several sides of
humanity: how odious in some respects are those who appear to the
best advantage in other respects. This poor king had a superstitious
sympathy, a maudlin affection for the captain, who, considering his
own infamous conduct toward him, might at least have saved the captive
unnecessary mental suffering. As Cortés entered the fort Montezuma
stepped out of his apartment to welcome him. The cavalier passed by
the king in lofty disdain, ignoring his presence. Cut to the quick,
the monarch shrank back, apparently more stunned by this treatment
than by the late terrible slaughter of his subjects.[762] He retired
deeply chagrined to pour his sorrow into Olmedo’s ear. “What can I
do?” he cried; “he loves gold and fame, and I will give him a life-size
equestrian statue of himself in gold if he will but be kind to me.”
With the arrival of the main forces supplies were stopped, as if in
protest, and Cortés became only the more irritated. Accordingly, when
two chiefs appeared on behalf of the emperor to ask for an interview
they were repulsed with the insulting epithet of ‘dogs!’ Velazquez
and other officers remonstrated against the policy of this rudeness to
one who had interfered to save his troops. “What consideration can I
have for a dog?” was the dastardly rejoinder. “Was he not willing to
treat with Narvaez, and does he not now seek to starve us?” Persuaded
presently of the necessity for imperial interposition, he addressed
the chiefs roughly, “Tell your master, Montezuma, to order markets to
be held at once, or there will be trouble.” His tone and gesture were
sufficient indications to the chiefs of the insults offered to them
and their august lord, and they failed not to give them full force in
their report. In answer to the demand Montezuma said that he and his
chief officials were prisoners, and that nothing could be effected
without the release of one among them. Cortés saw the necessity,
and, without considering the result, released Cuitlahuatzin, lord of
Iztapalapan, the emperor’s brother, and generalissimo of the army, a
man whose hostility to everything Spanish was well known. According
to Aztec law he was the most probable successor to the throne, and
therefore particularly dangerous.[763]
Cortés was becoming foolhardy. Whether the brothers were in accord
upon the measures to be adopted is uncertain; but Cuitlahuatzin,
who was not only bold, but ambitious, had evidently determined on
his course. If the Mexicans had hoped for better prospects with the
arrival of Cortés that hope was now dissipated, and bitter indignation
filled their breasts. Cuitlahuatzin was welcomed as a liberator. His
constant efforts in the imperial council to oppose the admission of
the Spaniards, by force if necessary, and his services for the cause
of liberty and religion in connection with the Cacama revolt, were
sufficient to endear him to his brother patriots. Strongly urged, he
accepted the leadership of the insurgents, a position for which his
experience and success as a general had well fitted him. He began
by ordering war material and erecting barricades. The value of the
Chinantec pikes introduced by Cortés had not been lost on him, and
a number were provided, barbed with the vitreous iztli. Arrangements
were made with adjoining towns and provinces for a supply of provisions
and reinforcements to carry on the holy war.[764]
The Spaniards soon learned what was brewing, and first in this way:
Ojeda and Marquez, when out foraging early in the morning of the day
following their arrival, observed several suspicious circumstances,
among others broken bridges, which in one place obliged them to
fill up a canal before crossing it. Here and there they saw large
collections of slings and other weapons, and presently they came on a
priest with dishevelled hair shouting with wild gesticulations to a
crowd of armed men. They hurried back to inform the general, guided
through intricate cross-streets by a Tlascaltec. Antonio del Rio,
who had been despatched for Villa Rica the same morning, returned
at a gallop in less than half an hour, excited and bleeding. The
streets, he said, were full of warriors, who had raised the bridges
and were apparently prepared to attack. Had it not been for his trusty
sword and swift horse he would have been slain. At this moment the
sentinels in the towers announced the approach of a vast multitude
from different directions, with gleaming iztli weapons, and speedily
the neighborhood was alive with warriors, whose yells rose high above
the shrill shell and doleful drum.[765] Even if they did not inspire
the full measure of dread intended they presented a striking picture
in their painted bodies, grotesque with patterns and brilliant colors,
with no covering among the rank and file save the raw cotton on the
head and the universal maxtli round the loins. They were protected
in part by the _chimalli_, or shield, a slight bamboo frame covered
with gaudily colored skin or reed-grass, chiefly oval and round, and
often large enough to cover the whole body. Secured to the arm it left
the hand free to hold the bow or stone, while the right managed the
arrow or the sling. The latter was an implement of great effect with
the Aztecs, who could impel the stone with wonderful precision and
force. The _maza_, or club, with its knotty head, and the _macana_,
or sword, toothed with iztli, were well represented, while high above
gleamed the obsidian or copper points of the spear. One of the most
dreaded weapons was the _tlacochtli_, or javelin, often provided with
three points, and attached to a cord by which it could be recovered
for a fresh cast. Conspicuous among the warriors were the nobles,
those that were left of them, in lofty quetzal plumage on a head-dress
of green feathers set in tiger-skin, or in a gold or silver band,
which gave the appearance of metal helmets. The body was covered in
corselets of red, green, or yellow feathers, worked with gold, and so
arranged as to indicate the company or district to which the wearer
belonged. Beneath gleamed occasionally cuirasses of gold or silver.
The limbs were covered with wood or leather armor set with feathers
or gold plates. A more common body armor was the cotton tunic, one
or two fingers in thickness, which extended to the knees and elbows.
It was almost equivalent to the quilted cotton protector used on the
eastern coast, whose efficiency against native weapons had caused
the Spaniards to adopt it. The tunic was adorned with feathers, which
corresponded to the uniform in color and arrangement, usually in the
form of an animal. Many were distinguished by casques in the form of
eagle-heads, and in armor spotted like a tiger-skin, indicative of the
two orders of Quauhtin and Ocelome, eagles and tigers. At the head of
the different columns appeared officers with small drums, painted and
adorned with feathers, with which they directed the march. Beyond,
in the centre of the masses, could be seen banners, with devices
in various colors and forms, which the Tlascaltecs pointed out as
belonging to different wards and to cities on the mainland, a sign
that an extensive body of troops had been enlisted for the war.[766]
As the forces drew near, slingers and bowmen appeared on the roofs
of the neighboring buildings, who, together with those below, began
to send stones, arrows, and darts in showers upon the fort. The
Spaniards responded with a series of volleys, the number of cannon
being increased to twelve or more. The effect was merely to startle
them for a moment, and on they pressed over dead and dying, amid
encouraging shouts, till they reached the sides of the wall, where
the dreaded cannon, at least, could not destroy them. All attempts to
scale the wall proved futile, and soon their efforts were confined to
effecting breaches. With their rude implements this was slow work,
but they persevered with reckless obstinacy, reinforced at frequent
intervals, while the main body kept up a galling discharge of missiles,
and occupied the attention of the besieged with continual charges at
different points.
This passive or defensive policy did not suit the Spaniards, while
it encouraged the Aztecs. Therefore two corps were formed, each of
two hundred men, besides allies, under Cortés and Ordaz. Clearing a
path with a volley of artillery, they sallied in different directions
to drive back the assailants, who hurried for safety into lanes and
houses, and behind barricades. This comparative freedom of advance
appears to have been permitted to entice the Spaniards into a
disadvantageous position, for soon the natives reappeared in swarms
in the rear and along the flanks, showering arrows and stones, and
coming to close quarters with spears and swords. The heaviest attack
was from the roofs, on which large supplies of missiles had been
collected, and from which commanding position the enemy was able
to direct the discharges with terrible effect, particularly upon
the naked Tlascaltecs. Several Spaniards also fell, and the greater
number were wounded. Ordaz received three cuts, and Cortés a wound
which maimed two fingers of the left hand.[767] The assailants were
comparatively safe, for those on the roofs could be picked off only
by archers and musketeers, and those below took refuge when pressed,
only to return to fresh attack. Efforts were made to fire the houses,
but this was slow work, since they were constructed almost wholly of
adobe or stone, and were filled with defenders. Nor would the fire
spread, owing to the detached form of the buildings, separated by
alleys or canals, so that the torch had to be applied to each.
Thus matters continued until Ordaz, who was engaged on the street to
the west of the fort, sent word to Cortés, who was pressing forward
in the direction of the Iztapalapan causeway, that he was losing
ground. Leaving his own forces, the general hurried to the scene with
a few horsemen, and heading the charge, drove back the warriors at
the most exposed point, so as to relieve the infantry in the retreat
which was now found necessary. Returning to his men he found them also
retreating, those who headed the column, including Andrés Duero, the
Cuban secretary, having been cut down. “Shame upon you!” exclaimed
Cortés to the corps, as he led the horsemen to the rescue of the
fallen cavaliers. He was just in time to save them, for a moment more
and Duero, at least, would have been slain. The elated warriors fell
back before the charge of the terrible Malinche, although they soon
recovered. Cortés then concluded to retreat, but this proved no less
dangerous than the advance, and among others Lezcano was dragged from
his horse and killed, after having distinguished himself for bravery
and execution. The fort had meanwhile sustained an active siege,
and when the retreating corps approached it they found more enemies
in waiting, who, fearful of losing their prey, rushed forward with
greater fury than ever. An entrance was finally effected, the forces
in the temple being at the same time withdrawn for the greater safety
of themselves and the fort.[768]
Swelling with triumph the Aztecs now directed all their efforts
against the Spanish quarters. Burning arrows and whirling brands began
to mingle with their missiles. Although the building itself was of
stone, the roof and portions of the outwork, and the Tlascaltec camp
in the yards, were of inflammable material, and more than once the
flames burst forth, filling the whole place with suffocating smoke,
and calling for the greatest exertions to subdue them. The little
water at hand could not be spared, and so earth was cast up, and
portions of the wall were torn down to check the fire and to stop
the gaps. The assault continued all day, till darkness sent most of
the warriors to their homes.[769]
FOOTNOTES
[744] Which speaks little to the credit of either Mary or
Santiago. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 102. ‘Otro miraglo
... é fué muy notorio.’ ‘Ya sé que los incrédulos ... dirán
que mi ocupaçion en esto de miraglos, pues no los ví, es
supérflua ... é yo hablo que esto é más se puede é debe
creer;’ for did the Indians have mysteries and miracles,
surely God, the virgin, and the saints could effect greater
deeds. _Oviedo_, iii. 511. He quotes from Livy and others
concerning the reliable miracles of Roman times. Prescott
and others transfer the miracles to the siege under Cortés
for greater effect. Bustamante, the modern champion of the
shrines of Mexico, who is ready to uphold any deed attributed
to these images, is rather incredulous about miracles
recorded in favor of Spanish cutthroats. See _Chimalpain_,
_Hist. Conq._, i. 283 et seq. ‘Si no oviéssemos miedo de
esse del caballo blanco, ya vosotros estaríedes coçidos,’
cried some, _Oviedo_, iii. 511, while the more valiant added
that ‘con todo esto si no soltays a Motecçumacin, y os vays
luego, presto sereys muertos.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 152.
[745] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 127. Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._,
101-2, says seven, two having been taken alive. ‘Mataron
a Peña, el querido de Motezuma,... Valdibia, y Juan Martin
Narizes.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. vii.
[746] ‘Tuvieron guerra con los yndios en esta Cibdad dos
medios dias que fueron jueves e viernes.’ ‘Guerra casy dos
dias.’ _Lopes_ and _Flores_, in _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra
Alvarado_, 131, 134. ‘Dieron bateria los Mexicanos á los
Españoles siete dias, y los tuvieron cercados veinte y tres
dias.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 29. ‘Cercados los españoles
ocho dias.’ _Id._ (ed. 1840), 105. ‘Pelearõ y combatieron
la casa diez dias arreo.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 151.
Torquemada explains this by assuming two days of fighting
and eight days of close siege, with attacks upon all who
sallied, i. 490. Sahagun states that Itzquauhtzin, governor
of Tlatelulco, accompanied Montezuma to the roof and spoke
to the people, representing that the Spaniards, as the
mightier race, would inflict great injury on them unless they
ceased to fight, and that the emperor would be murdered. The
Mexicans responded with insults and missiles, but as the
soldiers interposed their shields no harm was done. They
appear to have stopped active operations, however. _Hist.
Conq._, 28-9. The insults and missiles belong no doubt to
the later siege under Cortés. Duran states, however, that
Montezuma was henceforth looked on as an accomplice of the
Spaniards, and discarded as a ruler, it being resolved
to kill him and his family. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 463.
According to Oviedo the news came at this time of the
victory over Narvaez, ‘é Monteçuma mandó á los indios que
dexassen de pelear é dexassen venir los otros chripstianos,
porque á todos juntos matassen; é aquesto se cree que fué su
intento.’ iii. 512. That he may have urged this with intent
or as a bait is not unlikely, but it should apply equally
to Narvaez’ men, since it appears that their defeat could
not yet have been known. When known, however, it must have
had its effect. ‘Quando supieron nuestra vitoria, cessarõ
de dalle guerra.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 101. Yet
Gomara writes that on learning of the large forces coming
against them, the besiegers resumed the attack at one time.
_Hist. Mex._, 151.
[747] This spring was rediscovered during the reign of
Viceroy Revilla Gigedo. _Bustamante_, _Mem. Piedad Mex._, 7.
A pool of sweet water was the chief inducement for founding
the city on this site in 1325. _Native Races_, ii. 559-61;
v. 345 et seq.
[748] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 126. The Spanish messenger from
Mexico returned wounded. _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap. v.
With him, or about the same time, arrived four chiefs sent
by Montezuma to complain that Alvarado had attacked the
nobles without cause. While defending themselves six soldiers
had fallen. Cortés told the chiefs with stern countenance
that he was returning to investigate the matter. A letter
was sent to Alvarado enjoining him to guard the emperor
closely. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 101.
[749] And the zealous aid of Velazquez de Leon, who did so
much toward securing the Goazacoalco command for Cortés when
Narvaez sent letters to win it over. _Cortés_, _Residencia_,
i. 409; ii. 6, 31, 165-6. He is accused by his enemies of
impiety and licentiousness, and as one whom the general
favored above more worthy men. Solis assumes that Sandoval
nominally retained the command of the coast province, Rangel
being merely his lieutenant. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 108.
[750] ‘Llegò aquel dia [the first] à la Rinconada, el segundo
caminò siete Leguas ... llegò à Tlaxcalla à diez y siete de
Junio.’ _Torquemada_, i. 492. Herrera tells a long story of
suffering from hunger and thirst during the march through
the desert. Marquez and Ojeda were sent ahead to Tlascala
for supplies, and came back with 1200 carriers laden with
fowl, bread, fruit, and other refreshments. Cortés, among
others, was found starving, and a number were discovered on
the road almost dead. All, it seems, were rescued. dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. vii. There are several reasons for believing
that Herrera, who is somewhat confused about this period,
has confounded the present march with the flight from Mexico
to Tlascala of a month later, when the people were really
starving. This seems confirmed by the erroneous statement
that the troops arrived at Tlascala July 17th, the time,
according to Herrera’s own later statement, when they reached
that place after the flight. The account also intimates
that the starving army was met among the Otomí settlements,
where food could readily be obtained, without the necessity
for Marquez and Ojeda to go ten leagues farther, to the
capital, to obtain it. These and other discrepancies are
overlooked by all who refer to the march. Prescott dwells
in particular on the suffering from thirst, forgetful of
the statement on a previous page that the rainy season
had begun about three weeks before, and that water must
have been abundant along the whole route. Solis finds that
the effeminate followers of Narvaez endured the suffering
remarkably well. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 109.
[751] ‘Embiò a fray Bartolome de Olmedo ... a Motezuma.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. vii. It is unlikely that
so valuable a man would have been sent while affairs were
threatening.
[752] Narvaez landed with about 900 soldiers, including 80
horsemen, 120 with bows, and 80 with fire-arms. A number
had been picked up at Cozumel, but an equal proportion
perished by shipwreck. Cortés had about 250 men, and 200
were probably left on the coast, of garrison, guards, and
invalids. To the 950 soldiers thus taken may be added at
least 150 from the crews of the dismantled or destroyed
vessels. Prescott manages to mysteriously increase the horses
and projectile arms beyond what he previously assigns to
Narvaez and Cortés. One thousand infantry, 100 horsemen,
and many allies, say Gomara and Herrera. The _Probanza de
Lejalde_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 425, indicates
80 horses. Bernal Diaz places the figures as high as 1300
soldiers, including 96 or 97 horsemen, 80 archers, 80
musketeers, and 2000 Tlascaltec warriors; while Cortés,
with a prudent desire to cover the subsequent losses at
Mexico, reduces them to 500 infantry and 70 cavalry. Solis
gives the reason of the profound historian for the small
number of allies taken to Mexico: ‘Por no escandalizar á
Motezuma, ó poner en desesperacion á los rebeldes.’ _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 111.
[753] The arrival at Tezcuco is evidence enough that a more
northern road was taken than the one previous. The middle
route by Telapon appears somewhat more direct for Mexico,
but requires a detour to reach the Acolhua capital, and it
is not likely that an army in hurried march could afford
to go out of its way. Hence the Calpulalpan road must have
been followed.
[754] See _Native Races_, ii. 162-3, 168-73, 569; v.,
passim; _Motolinia_, _Hist. Ind._, 181-3.
[755] Cortés writes that he was on the point of sending
a Spaniard to Mexico with Tezcucan rowers, a chief being
taken as hostage, but just then came this canoe. _Cartas_,
127.
[756] Two, named Santa Clara and Pedro Hernandez, says
Herrera, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. vii.
[757] ‘Parò en Tepeaquilla, lugar a legua de Mexico.’ _Id._
Now the shrine of Guadalupe. Prescott assumes that the
Iztapalapan road was taken, as before, but it was avoided
probably because Cortés feared the fort Xoloc, which guarded
the centre. It was also longer, and had more movable bridges
than the other causeways.
[758] ‘Riñas por San Iuan pazes para todo el año.’
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 139. The following
day a dress was found hanging from a beam, and in a square
a pile of bread, with over 500 fowl, without a guard. This
Cortés considered less favorable, and said ‘que serian riñas
de por San Iuan.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. vii.-viii.
[759] ‘Para dar á entender con esto que ellos estaban de
guerra y muy ofendidos de los españoles que él habia dejado.’
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 108. His account
of deserted streets, applied to Cortés’ first arrival in
Mexico, belongs no doubt to this occasion. Duran argues
that had the massacre taken place before Cortés’ arrival he
would not have been allowed to enter. _Hist. Ind._, MS.,
ii. 470. Equally in the dark is Acosta, who assumes that
the Indians were openly at war, but the custom being to
rest every fourth day, Cortés managed to enter during the
cessation of hostilities. _Hist. Ind._, 522. Oviedo looks
on the non-resistance of the Indians as a wile to entrap
all the Spaniards. iii. 510.
[760] Herrera writes amusingly that Cortés shouted before
the closed gates, ‘Open!’ ‘Who is there?’ demanded Alvarado.
‘I,’ replied Cortés. ‘Do you come with full liberty, and
power to command, as before?’ ‘Yes, and with victory, and
greater forces.’ Alvarado thereupon opened, kissed his
hand, and surrendered the keys! dec. ii. lib. x. cap. viii.
[761] ‘Con que aventuró la mayor parte de sus fuerzas.’
_Solis_, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 120. Or perhaps because he had
not had recourse to some safer measure, such as arresting
the leaders of the proposed plot, for hostages. ‘Le dixo
muy enojado, q̄ era muy mal hecho, y grande desatino, y poca
verdad ... no le hablò mas en ello.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 102. Cortés would hardly have told him that he
lied, since his statements were confirmed by so many; they
certainly were years after. Vetancurt supposes that Cortés
told him he should have allowed the emperor to attend the
festival, and should have awaited the attack rather than
opened the war. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 140. ‘Dissimulo por
no enojar a los que lo hizieron.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
151.
[762] Solis supposes, however, that the two met in friendly
intercourse, and takes Bernal Diaz and Herrera to task for
asserting the contrary. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 112-14. He refers
to Cortés’ friendly message from Tezcuco, which is doubtful,
and to Gomara, who certainly allows Cortés to refer to
Montezuma and his courtiers as ‘dogs.’ _Hist. Mex._, 153.
In the testimony during Cortés’ residencia the discourtesy
is asserted. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 42 etc. Clavigero
suggests ‘ch’era d’uopo il far sembianza di credere il Re
colpevole dell’inquietudine.’ _Storia Mess._, iii. 121.
[763] _Native Races_, ii. 134-6; v. 462-4; ‘Il y
joignait, comme de coutume, la charge du grand prêtre de
Huitzilopochtli.’ _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._,
iv. 309. Gomara assumes that Cortés orders a chief to open
the market. He, offended at the insults used, goes only to
rouse the people. _Hist. Mex._, 153. Ixtlilxochitl supposes
that the chief is offended at the reprimand administered for
delaying to open the market. _Hist. Chich._, 301. ‘Mandò
Hernando Cortes llamar a los mas principales caualleros,
hizoles vna larga platica diziẽdo, que les perdonaua lo
passado, con que para adelãte fuessen ... amigos: ... sin
responder ... se fueron.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap.
viii.
[764] Duran enumerates some of the provinces summoned, as
Xilotepec and Matlaltzinco. ‘Mandó llamar á ... Encantadores
y Hechiceros para que los asombrasen y los mostrasen algunas
visiones de noche, ... para que alli muriesen de espanto.’
_Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 462-6.
[765] Cortés describes first a brief attack, then a sally,
succeeded by a fresh assault on the fort, while Bernal Diaz
and Herrera let a force advance against the Indians before
they reached the palace. I follow Cortés as the chief guide,
because his account of all this period was written while
quite fresh in his mind, and appears the most sensible and
correct, while the other versions depend more or less on
faint recollection and hearsay. Cortés as a rule did not
wait till the enemy approached, but he may not have been
prepared for the sudden attack. Yet it is probable that
he wished in his report to lay the responsibility of the
attack upon the enemy. I do not think Cortés inclined to
misrepresent in general or without an object.
[766] For war customs see _Native Races_, ii. 400-32.
[767] ‘Sinistræ manus digitis duobus mutilis.’ _Peter
Martyr_, _De Insvlis_, 5. Cortés also says ‘quedé manco,’
_Cartas_, 142, 131, yet Cano ridicules the statement, and
declares ‘nunca fué manco dellos ni le faltan.’ _Oviedo_,
iii. 551-2.
[768] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 128-9. Bernal Diaz speaks of
a sally by Ordaz, with 400 men, before the natives reach
the fort. He is sorely beset, as related, and retires with
a loss of 23 soldiers. _Hist. Verdad._, 102-3. Herrera’s
account, as usual, is confused. After Rio returns wounded
to report the uprising of warriors, five horsemen rally to
reconnoitre. The following day Ojeda and Marquez set out to
forage, and come to announce the approach of assailants. Two
hundred men now make a sortie and kill a multitude without
losing a man. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. viii. It is useless to
follow this author here except for incidents.
[769] Bernal Diaz places the dead at 35 soldiers, besides a
large number of allies. Eight fell during the first discharge
upon Ordaz’ party and fifteen more before he regained the
fort, while of the 46 wounded among the garrison twelve
died. _Hist. Verdad._, 103. Cortés, with his usual prudent
suppression of evil news, allows four deaths and over 80
wounded. He never refers to those who die of wounds. Gomara
follows him. _Hist. Mex._, 153.
CHAPTER XXIV.
FIGHT UPON THE TEMPLE SUMMIT.
JUNE, 1520.
THE NATIVES CONTINUE THE ASSAULT—THEIR FIERCE BRAVERY—THE
SPANIARDS BUILD TURRETS—STILL THE MEXICANS PROVE TOO STRONG
FOR THEM—MONTEZUMA CALLED TO INTERCEDE—HE IS INSULTED AND
STONED BY HIS SUBJECTS—CORTÉS ATTEMPTS EGRESS BY THE TLACOPAN
CAUSEWAY—FAILURE OF ESCOBAR TO TAKE THE PYRAMID—CORTÉS GAINS
THE SLIPPERY HEIGHT—THE GLADIATORIAL COMBAT THERE.
At dawn the assault was renewed with the same fierceness as before,
and with even less regard for the sweeping volleys of the cannon,
which were fired without aim into the packed masses of the natives,
bringing them down by the score. The gaps were quickly closed, and
the rapidly repeated shots seemed to make no more impression on the
surging mass than pebbles dropped into the boiling surf. It was a
critical time for Cortés, who seemed not yet to recognize the full
extent of the danger. He felt the necessity of open communication with
the mainland, for obvious reasons, and to this end, in the course of
the morning, he arranged another sortie like that of the preceding
day, but in one direction only. The Indians retired, as before, into
lanes and buildings, and beyond canals, raising; the bridges behind
them. Barricades having been thrown up to impede the advance since
the last sally, some guns were brought to the front, and with their
aid a few of the obstructions were demolished and more than one
bridge was gained, together with a number of houses, to which the
torch was applied. The discharges from the roofs were kept up with
galling pertinacity, although the effect was not so fatal as during
the preceding day, owing to the experience then gained. The forces
below, who had retired before the charges of the advance, rolled back
like recurring billows, and in ever increasing number, upon flank and
rear, as if to overwhelm them. Such were their numbers and stubborn
recklessness that ten thousand Hectors and Rolands, says Bernal Diaz,
could have effected nothing against them, and soldiers from the Italian
war swore that never among Christians or Turks had they witnessed such
fierceness. Considerable alarm was also created by the appearance
of long pikes, like those of the Chinantecs, directed particularly
against the cavalry. Fortunately they were not numerous, nor were
the pikemen sufficiently practised to be very dangerous. Worn out in
the unequal contest Cortés turned to gain his camp, which was no easy
task, since the natives were massed in greatest number in the rear,
determined to cut off retreat. The fort was gained, nevertheless,
although hardly a man escaped uninjured, while about a dozen were
killed; one unfortunate soldier being captured and sacrificed in full
view of the garrison.[770]
It had been found that the greatest danger to the sallying parties came
from the roofs, whence discharges could be directed with comparative
impunity and with greater effect than from the ground. In order to
counteract them, three _mantas_, or movable turrets, were planned,
whose occupants were to devote their attention wholly to clearing
the roofs of assailants. The completing of these machines and other
preparations kept the garrison busy all the 27th of June, so that
no sally was made. Ascribing this to fear, the Indians became more
pressing in their assault, and more profuse with their insults.
“Dogs!” cried some, “of hunger and thirst shall you die!” Others
shouted, “Here is a piece of my tortilla!” at the same time flinging
them unpalatable fragments of toasted bread. “Eat it, you perjured
villains, who can fight only on the backs of animals; for soon shall
your own bodies be cut up for food and cast before the beasts!” The
enemy appeared more numerous than ever, and the roofs and yards were
literally covered with their missiles. The greatest danger to the
Spaniards lay in the operations of the battering and mining parties,
who, regardless of bullets from the wall turrets, sought steadily to
open fresh breaches. Conspicuous in the hostile camp was a richly
dressed Indian, surrounded by a staff of finely attired warriors,
who seemed to direct operations, and whose orders were received with
the deepest reverence. This personage the prisoners declared to be
Cuitlahuatzin, and the next in rank Quauhtemotzin.[771] Charge after
charge was made by his direction, and with a vehemence that threatened
to carry everything before it; and loudly rang the yells, whether of
delight at some advantage gained or of fury over a repulse.
Thus the besieged were harassed beyond endurance. Large numbers were
wounded, and all were exhausted from vigils, hard fighting, trying
work, and the want of sufficient water and food; for in view of the
stoppage of supplies, rations had been reduced. Those of the Narvaez
expedition were particularly disheartened, and bestowed freely their
maledictions, first on Velazquez, who had sent them to such a country,
and then upon Cortés, whose promises of golden treasures and well
stocked encomiendas had lured them to this plight. Perceiving, however,
that unity of purpose alone could save them, they stifled regrets
and showed Cortés that something must immediately be done to stay the
onslaught, lest the building fall about their ears. It was exceedingly
disagreeable, but it must be done; the proud Spanish general must
sue to the greatly injured captive king, pleading for his influence
in behalf of peace.[772] Montezuma had all these days been closely
confined to his rooms brooding over the insults offered him, and
apparently indifferent to the danger from without. When the message
was brought he sullenly said, “Why does Malinche address himself to
me, who care no longer for life? I will not listen to him, for he it
is who has brought me into this plight.” He intimated further that the
promises of the general could not be relied upon, and that his words
carried a double meaning. Olmedo and Olid, who had come to urge the
request, had recourse to soothing words and persuasion, and succeeded
in mollifying him somewhat.[773] He replied, however, that it was
probably too late to appease the Mexicans by promises. “They have now
a new leader,” he said, “who is resolved to spare no Spaniard, and
I believe that you have all to die in this city.”[774] Nevertheless
he yielded, and as befitted the momentous point at issue, he arrayed
himself in the richly bejewelled robes of state, and placed upon his
head the mitred _copilli_, beneath whose precious feathers gleamed
the golden plate.[775] Carefully guarded he ascended to the roof and
stepped to the parapet, preceded by a courtier who bore the triple
wand of the empire, as was customary on such occasions. Instantly
the tumult was hushed, even before the leaders could issue orders
for a stay of hostilities; instantly a thousand heads were bent in
humble adoration before the august majesty of their sovereign. This
attitude, however, was assumed but for a moment; soon these same heads
were held higher than ever. Then the chiefs drew near to listen to
the unhappy monarch.
Montezuma had appeared with a feeling of mingled fear and doubt as to
what his reception might be, and he did not fail to observe that the
accustomed reverence was shown only for an instant, involuntarily,
as it were, and that silence was prompted rather by curiosity than
respect. The urgency of the moment demanded that he should speak, but
it was rather as supplicant than ruler that he turned to his people.
“You are in arms, my children,” he said, “in hot battle. Why is this?
You will be slain, and there will be heard throughout the land for
many years the wail of wives and little ones. You would give me my
liberty, and I thank you. You do not turn from me in anger, and I
thank you. You have not chosen another king in my stead, and I thank
you. Such an act would displease the gods, and bring destruction on
all. And see! I am no prisoner. Go your way; I am free. By divine
command I must remain the guest of the Spaniards yet a little longer,
and you must not molest them, for soon they will return whence they
came. Alas, my people, my country, my crown!”[776]
With a heavy sigh, and midst copious tears, his head fell on his
breast. The monarch’s strength had indeed departed. The people knew
that he spoke falsely, that he was little better than imbecile, unfit
to be their sovereign. Oh, if he but had the good fortune to die while
helping them to grind to powder these hated enemies! Only a little
while ago his words would have been received as the utterances of a
deity. Now the scales had fallen from their eyes, and they saw him as
he was. They could bear no more. Jeers and groans reached him from
every direction. “Coward! chicken! Woman to the Spaniards, fit only
for the gown and the spindle! Murderer of your nobles!” Such were the
cries which now reached his ears as he stood stupefied with agony.
Presently came a shower of arrows and stones, and before the Spanish
guard could interpose their shields several missiles struck him, one
on the left temple, which caused him to fall senseless into the arms
of the by-standers.[777]
Startled by the crime they had committed, awe fell upon the multitude
as the stricken sovereign was led away. Taking advantage of this
feeling Cortés beckoned the chiefs to a parley with a view to explain
what Montezuma had intended to convey. He had always wished them
well, he said, and felt grieved to wage war for what had occurred
during his absence. He desired peace, yet the desire was not prompted
by fear, but by consideration for their safety and that of the city.
The chiefs replied that the Spaniards must leave the country to the
natives, and depart at once. That was exactly what they wished to do,
replied Cortés, but they would not be driven away. If the Mexicans
desired them to go, they must abandon the siege, tear down the
barricade, and retire to their homes; they must likewise restore the
bridges and supply provisions. To this the chiefs declined to listen,
declaring that they would not lay down their arms so long as there
was a Spaniard left on whom to use them.[778] The evident desire of
the besieged for peace served only to encourage the Indians, and the
assault was renewed with an increased ardor that taxed the defenders
to the utmost.
And now, whatever the cost, a way out of this place must be opened.
Cortés knew of three causeways which led to the mainland, the only
means of exit for his forces. He knew that they were low and narrow,
exposed on both sides to the attacks of canoe fleets, and intersected
by a number of bridges which were perhaps by this time raised. Each of
these openings was an almost impassable chasm. The southern causeway
to Iztapalapan was two leagues in length, and provided with seven
drawbridges, besides a strong fortress, which rendered it impassable
to an enemy. The northern, leading to Tepeyacac, was one league long,
while the shortest, conducting westward to Tlacopan, half a league
distant, was broken by only three bridges.[779] Cortés resolved to
undertake the passage by this last named causeway. During the night
had been completed three mantas, of light framework and planks, each
to hold twenty musketeers and archers, with which it was hoped to
check the assailants on the roofs. These mantas were built with two
chambers, provided with loop-holes; the upper ranged on a level with
the house-tops of ordinary one-story buildings of the city, and had
doors, so as to allow of sallies upon the roofs.[780]
The following morning, June 28th, Cortés placed himself at the head
of five hundred Spaniards and over three thousand allies, and took
the direction of the Tlacopan causeway.[781] By a sudden charge the
cavalry drove back the Indians and allowed the free passage of the
mantas, which were drawn and pushed by Tlascaltecs, and protected
by bodies of infantry. A corps of pioneers accompanied them with
pickaxes, mattocks, crow-bars, and ladders, to destroy barricades and
walls, and to scale buildings. Four cannon were also brought. The
rear was protected by a portion of the cavalry. The Aztecs were at
first amazed at the curious moving turrets, and feared that they might
contain more terrible destroyers even than the grape-charged guns;
but finding them less dangerous, they continued their efforts, and
fast and thick poured the stones and arrows on the line of advance,
particularly on the engines, which were severely damaged. The march
proceeded, however, with more or less interruption till a raised
bridge was reached on the main road, where the Indians had gathered in
vast numbers, with an evident determination to check the expedition.
The turrets were brought alongside the houses adjoining the canal in
order to clear the crowded roofs, but regardless of the volleys from
the firelocks, the natives on the roofs plied their missiles only the
faster, letting fly heavy rocks[782] upon the engine coverings, so
as to render them untenable and hinder the manœuvring of the cannon.
This success enabled the warriors beyond the canal and behind the
barricades to maintain their assault with great effect, and to prevent
a further advance. They gained a considerable advantage by a change
of tactics in directing the missiles to a great extent against the
legs of the Spaniards, to their serious discomfiture.[783] After
spending the greater part of the forenoon in an unsuccessful attempt
to destroy the houses nearest the canal, and to fill a passage across
it, the troops retired to the fort greatly disheartened. Even the
Tlascaltecs, who were usually so glib of tongue in replying to Aztec
taunts, for once held their peace.[784]
Meanwhile the battle raged fiercely round the fort. The temple in
front of it, since its evacuation by the Spaniards, had been occupied
by some five hundred Mexicans, chosen men,[785] who introduced a large
quantity of ammunition and supplies, and began to batter the besieged
quarter. It was this shower which had first damaged the turrets and
harassed the march. Perceiving the danger of leaving so commanding a
position in hostile hands, Cortés had sent his chamberlain, Escobar,
with one hundred men[786] and some allies to dispossess them. This
was no easy task, for the pyramid was of great extent and over eighty
feet in height, composed of a series of abrupt stone terraces, each
receding about six feet from the one beneath, and so arranged that
the ascent led along the entire circuit of each ledge before the
steps conducting to the next could be gained.[787] Twenty men, says
Cortés, could have held it against a thousand; yet the one hundred
were to attempt it. Step by step they fought their way, beneath
showers of arrows, and against javelins, and sword and lance thrusts
from the upper ledges. More dangerous even than these weapons were
the cumbrous missiles in the shape of heavy stones and timber which
came crashing down upon them. Three times[788] did Escobar lead his
men to the charge, only to see them repulsed and sent rolling down
the steps and over the ledges. Finally he sent word to Cortés that
the task was impracticable. The general received this notice while
vainly battling at the canal, and he eagerly seized upon it as excuse
for changing his base of operation. He hurried to the spot, threw a
cordon round the pyramid, and although badly wounded in the left hand
he immediately led his men to the charge. The Spaniards were making
fair progress, when two heavy beams, which had been reserved at the
summit for the last extremity, were loosened and sent tumbling down
the side, so directed as to sweep to destruction the assailants along
its entire length. At about the centre of their terrible passage, full
before them, stood Cortés. Immediate death for himself and his brave
comrades seemed inevitable, when behold! by some unseen finger the
beams were turned end foremost and shot harmlessly through the opening
made for them by the soldiers. “Thanks be to God and the virgin, whose
image was placed in this tower!” cried Cortés, as without the loss
of a moment he sprang forward and speedily gained the summit. There
the fight assumed the form of a gladiatorial combat, a hand-to-hand
and line-to-line conflict, poised in mid-air on this narrow slippery
summit, and in full view of the whole city. As if by common consent
the combatants below paused in their bloody work and stood breathless,
lost in the more thrilling sight above.
At the eastern end of the platform stood the two three-story chapels,
over fifty feet in height, originally dedicated to Huitzilopochtli
and Tezcatlipoca. Against this the Indians had massed themselves,
fierce in their desperation. The Castilians had taken their stand
at the other end. It was an awful situation, dire destruction being
inevitable to one side or the other. With nerves and sinews strained to
their utmost tension, they stood between attacks regarding each other,
regarding every motion, anon picking from the other’s number with
javelin, dart, or musket, as they were able. It was with difficulty
the Spaniards could stand, and there was no railing round the slippery
height; but fortune again assisted by unveiling the sun and sending
its blinding rays full in the face of the enemy. Every now and then
the soldiers charged in solid phalanx into the centre of the opposite
mass, only to be obliged to retire under the pressure of its weight,
and to receive the counter-charge, encouraged by wildly gesticulating
priests, who flitted to and fro in bloody robes and dishevelled hair.
Aware of the inferiority of their weapons, the natives sought rather
to seize hold of the Spaniards, singly or in groups, and with the
recklessness of doomed men to hurl themselves with their victims
from the dizzy height. In one instance Cortés himself was selected
for this terrible fate. Inspired to martyrdom and revenge, two young
nobles watched their opportunity, and approached him on their knees,
as if pleading for mercy. Ere he had time to consider the situation
they had seized him in their arms and were struggling to gain the
edge. One moment more and he would have been dashed to death, but by
putting forth his whole strength, nerved by desperation, he succeeded
in freeing himself from their grasp. Ojeda was singled out for a
similar attempt, and would have perished had not a Genoese come to
his aid.[789]
For three hours the struggle lasted, while one Indian after another
was picked off by the bullet and the arrow, or pierced by the pike
and sword, or sent headlong over the platform, either to be crushed
by the fall or to be transfixed by the Spaniards on the ledges below.
As their number diminished, many a one sought the higher martyrdom
by leaping from the sacred spot into paradise. Thus melted away that
fated band of Aztec warriors. At the portal of Huitzilopochtli’s chapel
fell the last defender; and two priests, one of them the high-priest,
alone remained to offer themselves as captives. On entering the chapel
consecrated to the virgin no traces appeared of the holy emblems,
only evidences of idolatrous rites, and upon the altar stains from the
blackened hands of the temple attendants.[790] In the adjoining chapel
the war-god was found reinstalled in all its glittering hideousness.
Some consolation for this sacrilegious intrusion was offered to the
victors in despoiling it of the rich ornaments, while the cacao and
other provisions stored here by the garrison proved a prize to the
half-famished Spaniards. The Tlascaltecs, so long deprived of meat,
pounced upon the bodies of the slain heroes to secure them for a feast,
which should not only satisfy the cravings of hunger, but infuse their
hearts and minds with some of the qualities of the valiant dead.[791]
The chapels were then fired. The upper portion of the structure being
of wood, the flames rose in columns heavenward, heralding the triumph
of the Spaniard, and striking the Indian with awe. It was a great and
thrilling feat, this fight upon the temple top; and so the natives
regarded it, their heart, and mind, and paintings being all stained
sanguine over its remembrance.[792]
FOOTNOTES
[770] Bernal Diaz mentions the death of ten or twelve, but
Cortés acknowledges only three score of wounded. On this
occasion, apparently, Herrera allows Cortés to gain Tacuba,
whither he might have retreated in safety with all his forces
and wealth; yet he states that the return fight proved most
severe, the fort being regained with difficulty, after the
loss of two guns and several soldiers, one taken alive.
dec. ii. lib. x. cap. ix. Solis manages to transform the
operation into a victory, wherein Cortés stays the slaughter
out of mercy. Prescott is quite arbitrary in the use of
the chronicles. He combines the incidents of several days
into one and transposes them at pleasure, with the sole aim
apparently of presenting an exciting description of what
the siege might have been. A few facts are elaborated, and
the rest sacrificed to style.
[771] Marina asked Montezuma if a new king had been chosen,
but he did not think they would elect one while he lived.
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 141.
[772] ‘Fue acordado de demandalles pazes para salir de
Mexico, ... acordò Cortes, que el gran Monteçuma les
hablasse.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 104. ‘Muteczuma
... dijo que le sacasen ... y que él hablaria á los
capitanes.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 129-30. The latter statement
may be Herrera’s authority for saying that Montezuma was
the first to propose speaking to the Mexicans. dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. x. Observing Cuitlahuatzin’s regal authority
over the besieging forces, Montezuma was seized with a
fit of jealous alarm for throne and life. ‘Chiamò Cortès,
... pregandolo instantemente di non differir più la sua
partenza.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 124. This
implies that the emperor was not aware of the vain efforts
made to open communication with the mainland, or even to
approach it. Cortés had to urge him in any case to speak to
his subjects, an unwelcome task in view of his declining
influence and of the merely partial success of the former
appeal.
[773] Among other reasons it was represented that Cortés was
not to blame for the late massacre. ‘Que si la indignacion
de los mexicanos podia templarse con el castigo de los
culpados ... le prometia castigar.’ So says the native
version of _Tezozomoc_, _Recop. tradiciones_, MS., cap.
vi.; _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, 287-8.
[774] He felt no eagerness to plead in behalf of those who
had caused all his misfortunes, and he was only too conscious
that his pusillanimity must have degraded him in the eyes
of his subjects, while the elevation of his brother to the
leadership must have diminished the influence which till then
may have remained with him. He could hardly avoid a feeling
of jealousy at the thought of this elevation; and if he,
during an impulse of anger against Cortés, had counselled
the proceedings of Cuitlahuatzin, he now felt probably both
grieved and terrified at the storm he had raised. He also
harbored a wholesome fear of Malinche, and the prospect
of his speedy departure helped to stir anew the embers of
hope. All might yet be well: the capital might be spared
further desolation, and he again resume his former grandeur.
[775] See description of his first meeting with Cortés,
_Native Races_, ii. This appearance of the emperor took
place on the 27th of June, as Cortés states, but Bernal
Diaz, Herrera, and Ixtlilxochitl place it respectively on
the 5th, 6th, and 7th day of the siege.
[776] _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. x.; _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 104. ‘No molestàsen à los estrangeros
y fuésen sus amigos, pues su persona corria riesgo.’
_Tezozomoc_, _Recop. tradiciones_, MS., cap. vi. Cortés,
followed by Gomara, gives him no time to speak ere the
people assault.
[777] They would no longer recognize him as emperor, etc.
Saying this, a chief threw a stone which struck Montezuma on
the forehead. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 468. Acosta
attributes this first throw to ‘Quicuxtemoc,’ the later
king of Mexico. _Hist. Ind._, 523. ‘Ma io nol credo,’ says
Clavigero, _Storia Mess._, iii. 126. ‘Aunque vn Castellano
tenia cuydado de arrodelar a Motezuma ... le acertò vna
piedra en las sienes.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. x.
Had not the Spaniards held up a shield before Montezuma
the people would have known it was he and not thrown the
stone which killed him, says Cano, his later son-in-law.
_Oviedo_, iii. 550. Gomara is inclined to believe this,
for his people ‘no lo quisieran hazer mas que sacarse los
ojos.’ _Hist. Mex._, 154. ‘Una saéta alcanzó al emperador
en el estòmago que lo atravezó por el baso, y una piedra
le dió en la sien izquierda.’ The people would never have
thrown missiles, for they pitied him, and were prepared
to obey his injunctions, but Cacama, who stood behind the
emperor, made signs that they should continue the attack
without regard for him or for the monarch. _Tezozomoc_,
_Recop. tradiciones_, MS., cap. vi. According to Bernal
Diaz, the four chiefs who had approached to confer with him
expressed their sympathy for his misfortunes. They had now
chosen as leader ‘Coadlabacan, señor de Iztapalapa,’ and had
sworn to the gods to continue the war till all Spaniards
were exterminated. Yet they prayed daily to the gods for
his safety, and if all went well he would more than ever
be their lord. They had hardly finished when showers of
missiles fell, of which three stones and an arrow hit him,
on the head, arm, and leg. _Hist. Verdad._, 104. ‘Remorse
succeeded to insult,’ and they fled, says Robertson, _Hist.
Am._, 90, a statement which Prescott improves by stating
that the square before the fort was left empty. But remorse
must have been brief, for the main authorities, Cortés,
Gomara, Bernal Diaz, and Torquemada, either declare or
intimate that the assault never stopped. ‘No por eso cesó la
guerra y muy mas recia y muy cruda de cada dia.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 130.
[778] ‘Esta Fortaleza casi no tiene exemplar,’ exclaims Lorenzana,
forgetting that Cortés’ firmness was due to the justifiable
fear that a trap was intended. _Cortés_, _Hist. N. España_,
136-7. Cortés concludes the sentence about Montezuma’s
being wounded by saying that he died within three days.
He thereupon resumes the account of parleys and siege
operations, leaving the impression that these took place
after his death, while such was not the case. Nevertheless,
Gomara, Herrera, and others, Bernal Diaz not excluded, are
misled, by this vagueness evidently, into extending the
siege and confounding the events, so that modern historians
have all more or less remained mystified. Solis assumes
that during Montezuma’s illness the siege was conducted
only by straggling parties, the main forces being occupied
with crowning the new emperor. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 155-6.
This is probably due to a misconstruction of Bernal Diaz.
[779] ‘En esta auia tres no mas, y en la de Yztapalapà,
siete.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xi.; _Native
Races_, ii. 561 et seq.
[780] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 130, 133. ‘Quatro ingenios ...
en que pudiessen yr veynte y cinco hombres,’ says Bernal
Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 103. ‘Tres mantas ... cõ sus ruedas;
leuauan treynta hombres a cada vna, cubierta con tablas
gruessas de tres dedos.’ _Herrera_, loc. cit. Drawn by men
within, adds Peter Martyr, dec. v. cap. v. ‘Cabia cada vno
veynte hombres, con picas escopetas y ballestas y vn tiro.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 154.
[781] Herrera unwisely assumes that the three towers with
their forces were respectively directed against the three
causeway approaches.
[782] ‘De tres y quatro arrouas, que maltrataron a los que
yuan en los ingenios, y rompieron las tablas.’ _Herrera_,
dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xi.
[783] ‘Hirieron a mas de docientos Castellanos.’ _Id._,
cap. ix.
[784] ‘Nos mataron un español y hirieron muchos.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 130-1.
[785] ‘Subieron allá dos vigas rollizas para desde alli
echarlas sobre las casas reales y hundirlas.’ _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, 30. Peter Martyr supposes the temple to have
been long held by the enemy, but this is contrary to what
Cortés and Sahagun say.
[786] Three hundred, says Gomara.
[787] For a full description of this pyramid see _Native
Races_, ii. 579 et seq. Some horses had been taken to clear
the approaches, but they slipped on the smooth pavement,
and were sent back as unserviceable. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 105.
[788] ‘Acometiola tres o quatro vezes, y otros tantos dias,’
is Gomara’s interpretation, in order to fill up the time
assumed by him. _Hist. Mex._, 156.
[789] Ojeda appears to be the sole authority upon which
Herrera relies for these two struggles. dec. ii. lib. x.
cap. ix. Clavigero doubts them; yet there is nothing unlikely
in either attempt.
[790] It was related afterward that when the natives
first sought to remove the virgin image their hands clove
powerlessly to it for some time, and left their marks
upon it. _Oviedo_, iii. 510. Montezuma, being told of
this miracle, ordered the image to be left in its place.
Afterward, ‘pareciò, segun supimos, que el gran Monteçuma
tenia ó deuocion en ella, ó miedo, y la mandó guardar.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 104, 102. Others, as will
be shown, suppose it to have been saved by its owner,
Villafuerte, perhaps when Cortés withdrew the troops from
the temple, or to have fled by its own miraculous power to
the shrine at Remedios.
[791] ‘Comierõ de los caualleros Mexicanos muertos.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. ix.
[792] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 130-1. According to Bernal Diaz
the sally with the engines was directed against the temple,
which he appears to place at some distance. It was held by
3000 or 4000 Indians, ‘all chiefs,’ and cost the Spaniards
46 lives, every man being beside wounded. They returned
hard pressed by the enemy. ‘Se mostrò Cortes mui varõ, como
siẽpre.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 103-4. ‘Murieron todos quinientos
Indios, como valientes.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 157. ‘En
trecientos caualleros que alli estauan no quedaron seys
viuos.’ _Herrera_, loc. cit. This author describes on a later
occasion the capture of a tower attached to Montezuma’s own
palace, from which missiles fell with telling effect. Cortés
goes with 200 men to reduce it, and is hotly received; yet
the Indians, relying upon the execution to be made by some
loose beams which are to be rolled down upon the assailants
at a favorable moment, allow the Spaniards to rush forward
and gain the tower, putting almost every occupant to the
sword. This story is probably a version of the temple fight.
CHAPTER XXV.
DEATH OF MONTEZUMA.
JUNE, 1520.
A LIVING DEATH—THE OLD IMPERIAL PARTY AND THE NEW POWER—AZTEC
DEFIANCE—PERILOUS POSITION OR THE SPANIARDS—DISAPPOINTMENT
TO CORTÉS—ANOTHER SALLY—THE DYING MONARCH—HE HAS NO DESIRE
TO LIVE—HIS REJECTION OF A NEW FAITH—HE WILL NONE OF THE
HEAVEN OF THE SPANIARDS—COMMENDS HIS CHILDREN TO CORTÉS—THE
CHARACTER OF MONTEZUMA AND OF HIS REIGN.
Long before this the Spaniards had learned that the power which had
arisen in Montezuma’s stead was of a different quality from that lately
wielded by the poor caged monarch, whose proud spirit they had so
blighted and brought low. No Quetzalcoatl or other personage, fair or
dark, heaven-descended or of import infernal, might now interpose to
prevent the killing and cooking of the strangers. Cortés had thought
that the late spoliation of idols would fill the people with awe
toward beings so superior to their gods. But when he threatened that
if they did not lay down their arms not a man of them should remain
alive, nor one stone be left on another throughout all their city, they
laughed at him, the priests abetting. “How speak you so foolishly,”
they said, “mortal as we now know you to be, when for every Spanish
life we are prepared to sacrifice, if need be, twenty-five thousand
of our own lives?” They had cut off retreat at the causeways, so that
the lake alone was open to exit, and here they were prepared with
fleets of canoes filled with resolute men. Even should the Spaniards
hold out against assault, hunger and thirst must overcome them in
the end. “The truth of this was too evident,” observes Cortés, “for
hunger alone would have soon killed us.”
The imperial party, which had sunk to insignificance since the
elevation of Cuitlahuatzin to the leadership, and was now sustained
only by a few relatives of Montezuma, had no longer a voice in the
direction of affairs. Their efforts to make terms with the Spaniards
might have gained public approval, but the ambition of Cuitlahuatzin
stood in the way of any compromise. To release the strangers would be
to restore Montezuma, and he preferred to occupy the throne himself.
He was also covetous of military fame; and knowing the desperate
condition of the besieged, he hoped by their reduction to add to his
record of glorious achievements.[793]
The soldiers felt the peril of their position more than the general.
They had been cheered for a moment by victory, only to find how barren
it was; only to realize that many such triumphs would prove their ruin.
In order to counteract this growing despondency, Cortés resolved on
a night sally with half his force. The Indians being unprepared for
this, the party advanced with comparative impunity, destroyed several
barricades, and fired a large number of houses along the Tlacopan
road, where the roof assault had been so severe. The warriors having
finally gathered in sufficient force to render retreat advisable, the
Spaniards destroyed a number of buildings in the vicinity of their
quarters before entering, and thus secured additional immunity.[794]
The present purpose of the Spaniards was to open an exit from the
city. At a council, called to consider the situation, it was admitted
that delay would only reduce their strength without corresponding
gain, and with the prospect of closing more effectually the gate
against them.[795] It was a great disappointment to Cortés thus to
abandon his hard-earned advantage. There were those who would exult
over his misfortunes, and never could he hope to win favor from the
king except by some brilliant success. But this he would yet achieve,
God willing, or perish in the attempt.
The engines were strengthened, and every preparation was made to meet
the rapidly accumulating difficulties. At dawn a large force set out in
the direction of the Tlacopan causeway to secure its approaches.[796]
The advance was made in the order of the day previous, with guns and
pioneers, and with cavalry in front and rear. The late destruction
of houses proved of no considerable advantage, but the cannon being
brought to play on the barricades, an opening was soon made. The
engines, with their fortified sides and covers, proved more efficient
than formerly in checking assaults from the roofs. The soldiers
accordingly advanced with firmer resolution, and although the showers
from the house-tops were still troublesome, and resistance on the
streets was as fierce as ever, yet one after another the first four
canals were captured. The nearest houses were razed, and with the
débris roadways were thrown across the channels.
These operations were carried on in the face of a bitter onslaught,
and occupied the entire day. Evening being at hand the crossings were
left in charge of a strong guard, composed of the freshest men, while
the rest returned to the fort.
Montezuma the while lay a-dying, prostrate a-dying, not as Vespasian
would have an emperor die—standing; but with manhood, and the
aspirations of man, ay, even the regrets and remorse incident to
foiled endeavor, all crushed he was killed when the insults of his
people fell upon him; he scarcely heeded their darts and stones.
It is not necessary always that breath shall cease before one can be
dead. From Ianthe’s spirit fell the shackles of sense, the body being
left with its animal life, but soulless. And though corporal life was
yet present in Montezuma, the soul was already free: the accursed
aliens had done their worst. When the might of sacred sovereignty
was extinguished, the remains were less than man, though they walked,
and talked, and wept.
Compared with his present condition, how dignified and happy death
would have been by the hands of his brother priests, before the gods,
in the eyes of the nation, on the sacred sacrificial stone! Or, like
that among the Massagetæ, told of by Herodotus, who sacrificed and
ate their old people, holding natural death a misfortune—even this
or any other stepping down and out would have been preferable to thus
dying like a silly hare in a trap!
He refused food and any attention to the wounds, which were far
from fatal. He tore off the bandages, threw from him all medicines,
and bared his body to disease, even as his soul had been long since
bared, and stretched out his hand to hasten the cold stony grasp of
death. What a farce was life, and honor, and majesty, all to end in
poverty and disgrace! Feeling the all-changing moment at hand, he
summoned Cortés; for despite his long maltreatment he entertained
a kind of affection for the monster, who might even yet prove to be
the demi-god of some far away incomprehensible world. Moreover, the
Spaniard’s intellect and arm were the stronger; he was his son-in-law
and probable successor; therefore, though his jailer, he would speak
with him. And when he came Montezuma said: “The end for me approaches,
Malinche; it is even here. You cannot harm me further, nor help me
if you would. I have given you all; you have taken all—my liberty, my
kingdom, my life, and that which is more to me than kingdom, liberty,
or life, the affection of my people, the love of my counsellors and
friends; and respect—respect of self, and that sacred respect which,
living or dead, is mine by inheritance, and by virtue of my office.
But I would not upbraid you; I pray only that my ruin will benefit
you; I beg of you care for my children, and I conjure you to avenge
me on my rebel subjects and their leaders.”[797]
Moved by the touching appeal, Cortés promised all that was asked of
him, while remonstrating with the monarch for rejecting food and
medicine. Montezuma then, in like manner, exhorted his nobles who
were prisoners with him, and was touched by their sorrow for the
sad state of the empire, and their manifestation of affection for
himself. Father Olmedo, who had never relaxed his efforts for the
captive’s conversion, now pressed to his aid the general. But in vain.
All else these beings maledict had taken from him; they should not
now rob him of his religion. His faith was as dear to him, as true,
as pure, as efficacious, as was theirs to them. Away with another’s
gods! Let each live and die by his own. He was high-priest, too, and
for him to prove recreant to the national faith would overshadow
all his former crimes combined. “What is this they would have of
me?” he groaned within himself. Then turning suddenly to Olmedo, he
asked, “Do Spaniards go to this heaven of yours?” “Assuredly,” was
the reply; “it was made for them, and is held by Christians, against
all others, as the reward of their pure belief and gentle deeds.” “It
is enough; I will none of it,” said Montezuma, who from that moment
would not listen to a word of Christian exhortation.[798] It was early
in the morning of the 30th of June,[799] three days after the trying
scene in the presence of his people, that the monarch breathed his
last. And even the Spaniards forgot for a moment their diabolisms,
and allowed their minds to dwell on the virtues of this magnificent
heathen, this mighty sovereign, their sweet-tempered prisoner, and
kind and generous host.[800]
Of a truth, despite his pusillanimity with regard to the Spaniards,
which was indeed little else than pardonable superstition, this man was
in many respects not unworthy the title of Great so freely bestowed
upon him. Montezuma was but forty-one[801] at the time of his death,
and had wielded the sceptre for nearly eighteen years with wonderful
success. Under him the Aztec empire acquired its widest extent and
greatest glory. While his armies by well directed operations spread
the terror of his name to distant provinces and increased the national
domain by fresh conquests, his subtle intrigues secured advantages
at home, and established the supremacy of Mexico in the tripartite
alliance. With a high regard for the dignity of his throne, he caused
the sovereign to be worshipped almost like a god, and sustained the
grandeur of his surroundings with lavish expenditure. This severe and
ostentatious pride kept him above the reach of his people, and failing
to understand their wants or to sympathize with their condition, he
ruled not by love, but by fear. Thus it is that we find the native
records dwell upon his fitful cold-blooded cruelty and superstition,
not as a tyrant, however, but as an administrator of their own cruel
yet revered rites. He was reputed just, but this quality was to be
found rather in the intention than in the act. With all his pride
he appears to have been most affable and kind to those with whom
he came in contact. The Spaniards certainly found him so. In their
later intercourse other considerations may have ruled him, however,
and with the cunning and secrecy of his race he may have submitted
to the inevitable demands of circumstances.[802]
Surrounded by fawning ministers, whose existence depended on his favor,
he was encouraged in the extravagant habits of a magnificent court,
which promoted their schemes at the expense of a tax-ridden people.
The ambition to extend his fame and power required the maintenance of
immense armies, of numerous garrisons, and of costly campaigns, which
proved another drain on the people. This was augmented in subjected
provinces by the extortions of imperial officers, who found means to
prevent the cry of the oppressed from reaching the throne. Perhaps the
most terrible infliction was the levy on the youth of both sexes for
slaves, and for sacrificial victims to appease the bloody appetite of
Aztec gods—an appetite which had increased in horror with the abject
superstition of this otherwise enlightened monarch. Enlightened he
undoubtedly was, for as high-priest he had become versed in the higher
learning of the priesthood. The study of mythology came naturally
to him, while astronomy and natural history were favorite subjects
with the lords of the lake peoples, the former connected with myths
and divinations, the latter illustrated by specimens from different
regions, and collected in the botanic and zoologic gardens of Mexico
and other cities. The studies of his youth had gained for him a well
merited respect from his priestly confrères, and the prudence and
sagacity which controlled the well stored mind commanded attention
in the council.[803] While yet a young man there seemed to develop
qualities which fitted him for the position of high-priest, also as
counsellor, to which his princely rank paved an easy way. Besides this
he had shown himself possessed of great courage, and had established
his fame as a general by many victories.
It was with this reputation, as zealous and learned priest, prudent
statesman, and brave soldier, that he ascended the throne in 1503,
while only twenty-three years of age. It is in such terms that his
colleague Nezahualpilli in his coronation address refers to the hopes
entertained of the youthful ruler.[804] Though ever a devout servant
of the gods, the effeminate pleasures of the court weakened the nerves
and energy of the soldier, till his warlike ardor survived only in
a taste for military reviews and for the chase. The caution of the
general remained, but timidity saves few leaders from disaster. Vanity
and designing ministers overruled too often the dictates of wisdom
in the administration of affairs.[805] His path had been prepared by
able predecessors, and answered well for the policy of aggrandizement
which became the leading feature of his reign. In this his natural
liberality and talent for intrigue, fostered by priestly training,
served him well and procured blindly devoted instruments for his plans.
Thus, by fair means and foul, the empire was raised to the pinnacle
of its glory, but not being of a natural or healthy growth it proved
unstable, and crumbling under the strong commotion created by the
approach of Castilians, it revived only for a moment in the present
uprising like the mental illumination preceding death. Montezuma could
not have failed to recognize the insecurity of the bonds which held
it, and influenced by the predictions of its downfall he readily fell
beneath the spell of the superior intellects which were to assume
control. It was his misfortune to have lost the sanguine energy of
his youth, which might have enabled him to rise above the weaknesses
of himself and his age. Duty and honor were overcome by superstition
and absorbing love of power, of life, and he reaped the natural fruit
of puerile and misdirected efforts by losing both. Resistance might
not long have delayed the inevitable, but it would at least have
procured for him an end worthy of his grandeur.
Of his many wives may be named the princesses Teitlalco, Acatlan,
and Miahuaxochitl, of whom the first named appears to have been the
only legitimate consort.[806] By her he left a son, Asupacaci, who
fell during the _noche triste_, and a daughter, Tecuichpo, baptized
as Isabel, married consecutively to Quauhtemotzin, the last Mexican
sovereign, to visitador general Alonso Grado, to Pedro Andrade Gallego,
and to Juan Cano de Saavedra. She had children by the latter two,
from whom descend the illustrious families of Andrade-Montezuma and
Cano-Montezuma.
By the Princess Acatlan were left two daughters, baptized as María
and Mariana. The latter alone left offspring, from whom descends the
Sotelo-Montezuma family. By the third wife came to the emperor the
son Tlacahuepantzin, known after baptism as Pedro Yohualicahuacatzin
Montezuma, whose descendants, the condes de Montezuma y de Tula,
intermarried with the noblest families of Spain, and connected the name
with the highest offices of state, and with the title of grandee.[807]
FOOTNOTES
[793] In _Manuscrit de 1528_, _Aubin Col._, Cihuacohuatl
and Tzihuacpopocatzin, brothers of Montezuma, are named as
the leaders of the opposition party, connected also with
the followers of Quetzalcoatl, who abhorred the cruel rites
of the Aztecs. They succeeded, it is said, in introducing
provisions for the besieged. _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, iv. 317-18. But this is doubtful.
[794] This is probably the sally which Herrera intrusts to
Salcedo. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. viii.
[795] ‘Por importunidad de muchos ... acordó de salir della.’
_Carta del Ejército_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i.
429. ‘El ... capitan dilataba de cada dia la dicha salida,’
but the officers insisted that he should leave. _Segunda
Probanza de Lejalde_, in _Id._, 423.
[796] Clavigero directs the operation against the Iztapalapan
road, which would have been a useless manœuvre. Cortés is
explicit enough on the point.
[797] In a _privilegio_ in favor of the daughter Isabel,
Cortés refers to this interview, saying that three daughters
were intrusted to him. No allusion is made to any son. The
affectionate terms in which he herein speaks of Montezuma
must be due to political reasons, and perhaps to a regard
for the princesses. _Panes_, _Vireyes_, in _Monumentos
Domin. Esp._, MS., 67-8. Ramirez ridicules the idea of an
appeal by the emperor to Cortés, who was on unfriendly terms
with him. _Soc. Mex. Geog._, _Boletin_, x. 359 et seq. But
the effort of Montezuma to save the Spaniards shows that
intercourse had been reëstablished; and was not Cortés,
as the husband of one or more of his daughters, the proper
person to protect their sisters?
[798] The question of his conversion has been much discussed.
‘No le pudo atraer a que se bolviesse Cristiano,’ says
Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 105; and Herrera is even
more explicit. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. x. Cortés and his
followers, Martyr and Oviedo, give no indications to the
contrary. Ixtlilxochitl states, however, that he had learned
several prayers, and even begged for baptism, but that the
rite was deferred ‘por la pascua siguiente, que era de la
resurreccion, y fue tan desdichado, que nunca alcanzó tanto
bien.’ _Hist. Chich._, 299. Yet he adds that it has been said
‘que se bautizó y se llamó Don Juan.’ _Relaciones_, 457.
According to Gomara he asked for baptism in the beginning
of lent, but it was determined to postpone the rite till
pentecost, for greater effect, and as more appropriate
for so high a personage. Owing to the troubles arising out
of Narvaez’ arrival nothing was done then, ‘y despues de
herido oluidose con la prissa del pelear!’ _Hist. Mex._,
154. Cortés had persuaded him, says Vetancurt, during the
early days of his imprisonment, to accept baptism, and he
was taken to the temple for the purpose, but at the last
moment he excused himself on the ground that the Indians
would elect another lord and attack them all if he abandoned
the faith. _Teatro Mex._, iii. 132-3. Father Duran, on the
contrary, ever zealous for the natives, and particularly
for his hero, Montezuma, asserts that trustworthy men had
vouched for his baptism. Padre Olmedo had also expressed
belief therein, although he had not been present when it
was administered. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 445. The father’s
memory must have failed him with respect to Olmedo. Camargo
has also been assured of his baptism, with Cortés and
Alvarado for sponsors. _Hist. Tlax._, 166. Tezozomoc, who
claims to have investigated the point, declares explicitly
that the rite was administered on his death-bed, when he
received the name of Cárlos, and that Cortés, Olid, and
Alvarado were the sponsors. _Recopilacion de verídicas
tradiciones, probando que el emperador Moteuhsoma recibió
el santo sacramento del bautismo._ This author wrote at
the close of the sixteenth century, and follows traditions
only. Bustamante, in modern times, has also reviewed the
question, and follows Tezozomoc implicitly. In support
thereof he quotes a poem, by Captain Angel Betancourt,
wherein he refers to Montezuma as the ‘indio _bautizado_,’
introduces the vague utterance of Ixtlilxochitl, and even
attempts to misconstrue a certain expression of Cortés.
Montezuma tells the latter to baptize his daughters, and
this Bustamante regards as proof that he himself desired the
rite. He does not suppose that the religion of the vicious
Spaniards could have had great attractions for him, but when
about to die he accepted it, ‘as the drowning man does the
saving plank.’ Article in _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, i.
287-95. Still fuller is the review of Ramirez, who follows
Torquemada in pointing out the fact that neither Cortés
nor Alvarado ever referred to their supposed sponsorship,
as they certainly would have done in connection with so
distinguished a personage had they felt empowered. _Soc.
Mex. Geog._, _Boletin_.
[799] Cortés’ chronology, as indicated in the _Cartas_, shows
clearly that he left Mexico during the night of June 30th,
as will be demonstrated. He also implies what Bernal Diaz
and Herrera distinctly assert, that considerable fighting
took place on the Tlacopan road between the time the corpse
was surrendered to the Aztecs and the Spaniards returned to
their quarters preparatory to evacuation. Hence the death
must have occurred early on that day. Herrera confirms
Cortés’ testimony that he could not have died before the
30th, by saying, ‘en quatro dias se murio.’ dec. ii. lib.
x. cap. x. It is also generally admitted that he was not
wounded before the third day of the siege.
[800] ‘Cortes lloró por èl, y todos nuestros Capitanes, y
soldados: è hombres huvo entre nosotros ... que tan llorado
fue, como si fuera nuestro padre.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 104. Cortés speaks highly of him, ‘y siempre tuvo
mui buena voluntad á los Españoles,’ but this is in the deed
presented to his daughter. See _Privilegio_, _Monumentos
Domin. Esp._, MS., 66. In the Cartas he is referred to
merely as a captive who dies. After saying that he never
consented to the death of a Spaniard nor to injury against
Cortés, Gomara adds: ‘Tambien ay quien lo cõtrario diga.’
_Hist. Mex._, 154-5.
[801] Clavigero says 54, but Bernal Diaz, who was so much
in his company, could hardly have been mistaken, and the
comparative youth of his children also indicates that 41
is more correct.
[802] ‘Antes ni despues huvo en este mundo quien le
igualase en magestad y profanidad ... fue muy justiciero
... de condicion muy severo, aunque cuerdo y gracioso.’
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 301. ‘Dizen los Indios
que fue el mejor de su linaje, y el mayor rey de Mexico.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 155. ‘Fu circospetto, magnifico,
liberale ... sua giustizia degenerava in crudeltà.’
Clavigero, _Storia Mess._, iii. 132; _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. x.; _Torquemada_, i. 499-500.
[803] ‘Fue muy sabio, pues passaua por las cosas assi,
o muy necio q̄ no las sentia.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
155. ‘El hombre mas sábio de su siglo,’ is Bustamante’s
interpretation. He also discovers that Montezuma objected
to sacrifices! _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, 292-3.
[804] See _Native Races_, ii. 149-50.
[805] ‘Pareva aver cangiato di sesso, siccome dicevano i
suoi sudditi.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 132.
[806] So Cano, the son-in-law, declares, _Oviedo_, iii.
549, and so Cortés intimates in the _privilegio_ to Isabel,
whom he calls ‘su legitima heredera,’ especially commended
to him.
[807] Of the rest of the imperial wives and concubines
nothing positive is known, save that a number of them
and their daughters were liberally bestowed, as a mark
of imperial favor, on prominent personages, including
Spaniards. After the conquest they sank into obscurity,
although some of them still managed to maintain a certain
consideration among the natives, despite their poverty.
Bernal Diaz claims that he received one of the concubines;
upon Olid was bestowed a daughter, and upon Cortés two,
it is said, one baptized as Ana, the other as Inés. Two
witnesses declare that Isabel also ‘cinco meses questava
casada con ... Gallego e que pario una fija y que hera del
... Cortés.’ _Cortés_, _Residencia_, ii. 242, 244; i. 63,
99, 221, 263. The three daughters confided to Cortés on
their father’s death-bed were not in the Spanish quarters
at the time, at least not all of them, but were found after
the conquest and baptized. The eldest and legitimate,
the attractive Tecuichpo, was then the wife of the last
and captive sovereign, Quauhtemotzin, her cousin, who had
married her chiefly with a view to strengthen his hold on
the throne, for she was too young for the married state.
She was baptized as Isabel, and her Indian husband having
been executed, Cortés, on his return from Honduras, gave
her in marriage to the hidalgo Alonso Grado, of Alcántara,
who had succeeded Ávila as contador, and now held the
position of visitador general of New Spain. In consideration
partly of Grado’s services and partly of Isabel’s rank, the
captain-general bestowed as dower, in the emperor’s name,
the town of Tacuba (Tlacopan), with the villages and farms
subject to it, together with the title of señora thereof.
The deed, which recounts the services of her father and the
intrusting of his daughters to Cortés, is signed by him as
captain-general and governor of New Spain, and dated June 27,
1523. It is given, among other books, in _Monumentos Domin.
Esp._, MS., 65-8. Grado dying soon after, without issue,
she married Pedro Andrade Gallego, by whom she had one son,
Juan Andrade, the founder of the Andrade-Montezuma family.
This branch inherited the Villa Alta villages, in Oajaca,
and other estates, which in 1745 were bought up by the
crown for a pension of 3000 pesos, continued by the Mexican
government in irregular payments. A member of this branch
was the bishop of Chiapas a few years later. _Certificacion
de las Mercedes_, MS., 14-18. M. Fossey describes a visit,
in 1849, to the poverty-stricken yet proud descendants.
_Mexique_, 497-500. The omission of Gallego’s middle name
has led the critical Alaman, among others, to assume that
this family descends from Isabel’s fifth marriage with
Juan Andrade. _Prescott’s Mex._ (Mex. 1844), ii. 31. Nor
is Prescott free from error in connection with Montezuma’s
descendants. The Andrade branch became allied to the Condes
de Miravalle, and a daughter of this house was the wife of
General Barragan, who became _presidente interino_ of the
republic, thus raising a descendant of Montezuma once again
to the supreme place in the country. The Princess Isabel
was married a fourth time, to Juan Cano de Saavedra, by
whom she had five children, the inheritors of the Tacuba
estates, also exchanged for a pension which was continued
by the republic. Of the Princess Acatlan’s two daughters,
María and Mariana, the former left no issue. Mariana
married the conquistador Juan de Paz, bringing a dower of
three towns, and after his death she took for husband the
conqueror Cristóbal de Valderrama. By him she had a daughter,
Leonor, who, marrying Diego Arias Sotelo, gave origin to
the Sotelo-Montezuma family. _Fonseca_, _Hist. Hacienda_,
i. 464. This work, with its collection of official papers
and extracts, gives a mass of information about the imperial
descendants and estates. Prescott confounds the mother and
daughter. _Mex._, ii. 351-2. Viceroy Mendoza, in a despatch
to the emperor of December 10, 1537, refers to the death,
three weeks before, of Valderrama, and speaks of children
by the former husband, which are not admitted in Fonseca.
_Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, ii. 208. Cortés
refers to three sons of Montezuma: the heir, who fell on
the causeway during the _noche triste_, and two surviving
boys, ‘one said to be insane, the other paralyzed.’ On
leaving Mexico he took with him one son and two daughters,
his concubines probably, all of whom perished. _Cartas_,
135, 153. Sahagun names two sons, who perished on that
occasion. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 122, 126. Ixtlilxochitl
gives them different names. _Hist. Chich._, 302. Cano gives
the name Asupacaci to the heir, or only legitimate son, the
brother of his wife Isabel, and states that he was killed
by Quauhtemotzin, who feared him as the only rival to the
throne. _Oviedo_, iii. 549. Brasseur de Bourbourg follows
him, but prefers the name of Cipocatzin for the young
prince, while Axayoca is also applied. Cortés’ version is
more likely to be correct, however. One of the surviving
sons, ‘Signor di Tenajoccan,’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._,
iii. 133, was baptized with the intervention of his sponsor,
Rodrigo de Paz, and died three years after the conquest,
‘y se enterrò en la Capilla de San Joseph.’ _Vetancvrt_,
_Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 144. This author assumes that the
youth fled with the Spaniards from the capital and hid at
Tepotzotlan. The other prince, son of Miahuaxochitl, daughter
of the lord of Tula, and niece of Montezuma—baptized as
María, says Vetancurt—received the name of Don Pedro. He
accompanied Cortés to Spain in 1528, it appears, at the
age of eighteen, and made repeated appeals to the emperor
for a maintenance in accordance with his rank. At first
some trifling favors were granted, and he, together with a
cousin, was educated by the Franciscans in Madrid. _Puga_,
_Cedulario_, 85. President Fuenleal, of the audiencia, and
other prominent persons having added their recommendation,
regular pensions and encomiendas were bestowed, including
the town of Tula, the seat of his maternal grandparents,
upon which was based the second title of Condes de Montezuma
y de Tula, conferred on his grandson. The line expired on
the male side with the great great-grandson of the emperor,
whose daughter married Sarmiento de Valladares, duke of
Atlixco, and viceroy of New Spain, thus raising the name
again to the highest position in the country. Prescott,
following Humboldt, _Essai Pol._, i. 191, 203, calls
Valladares, by mistake, a descendant of Montezuma. The
cousin of the vice-queen married Silva, the first marquis
of Tenebron, whose descendants inherited the title and
estates from the other branch, and became grandees in 1765.
Their pension amounted at this time to 40,000 pesos, says
Berni, _Titulos de Castilla_, which represented in part
the encomiendas withdrawn by the government. The republic
recognized this portion, as it had the pensions to the
other branches. Shortly after the independence of Mexico the
holder of the title, Alonso Marcilla de Teruel Montezuma,
came over with the intention of asserting his claim to the
throne of his forefathers, but the prudent possessors of
the power thought it best not to admit him, and he passed
on to New Orleans, there to put an end to his life some
years later. Prescott understands that the septuagenarian
had been disappointed in love. _Mex._, ii. 352. Several
members of the Spanish nobility have intermarried with
this line, among them a branch of the Guzman family, whence
the claim made for the consort of Napoleon III. of having
Montezuma’s blood in her veins. Gondra gives a portrait
of a member married into the Mendoza family. _Prescott’s
Mex._ (ed. Mex. 1845), 219. One of the line, Padre Louis
de Montezuma, wrote the _Historia del Emperador_, which
has been consulted by Alaman, _Disert._, i. app. ii. 158.
Clavigero gives a genealogic table in _Storia Mess._, iii.
235, and Carbajal, while plagiarizing the statements and
blunders of others, adds a few of his own. _Hist. Mex._, ii.
378-88. In _Fonseca_, _Hist. Hacienda_, i. 455 et seq., are
to be found several valuable extracts concerning titles and
estates; also in _Reales Cédulas_, MS., i. pt. i. 5, ii.
4 etc.; _Certificacion de las Mercedes_, MS.; _Mex. Mem.
Hacienda, 1848_, 35-6; _Fuenleal_, _Carta_, in _Pacheco_
and _Cárdenas_, _Col. Doc._, xiii. 222. The family name has
been spelled in different ways, also by its possessors, as
Motezuma, Muteczuma, Moctezuma, Mocthecuzoma, Motecuhzuma,
Moteuhzuma; but Montezuma is the most common form.
The _Historia de las Indias de Nueva-España y Islas de Tierra
Firme_, by Father Diego Duran, is claimed by its author, in
the introductory to chapter lxxiv., to be devoted essentially
to the life and rule of this monarch, ‘cuya vida é história
yo escribo.’ The preparation of the work was more directly
prompted by a compassion for the maltreated natives, whose
champion he constituted himself, in common with so many
of the friars. This spirit led him naturally to color the
occurrences of the conquest; and a non-critical acceptance
of whimsical legends and statements in favor of his protégés
tends further to reduce the value of the work. His deep
interest in the aborigines and their history may be explained
by the fact that he was born at Tezcuco, of a native mother.
Franco wrongly calls him Pedro, and Clavigero, Fernando. He
professed as a Dominican at Mexico, in 1556, with missionary
aspirations, no doubt, but a delicate constitution and
constant suffering confined him rather to the monastery, and
directed his efforts to researches and writing. Castellanos,
_Defensa_, 28, attributes several works to him, and Eguiara,
_Bib. Mex._, 324, the compilation of the Dominican history
of Dávila Padilla, though not the style and form. Dávila
also, ‘scrisse la Storia antica de’ Messicani, servendosi
de’ materiali raccolti già da Ferdinando Duran Domenicano
da Tezcuco; ma questa opera non si trova.’ _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, i. 13. But this may be a mistake. A similar
rewriting would have greatly improved the _Historia de las
Indias_, which is exceedingly unpolished and slovenly,
full of repetitions and bad spelling, and showing great
poverty of expression. On the other hand, it is relieved by
an admirable portrayal of character and knowledge of human
nature, and by a minute study of the effect of conversion
on the natives. The work consists of three tratados, the
first in 78 chapters, giving the history of Mexico from its
origin to the conquest, terminating with the expedition
to Honduras. This was completed in 1581, while the other
two were finished two years before. The second tratado, in
23 chapters, treats of Mexican divinities and rites, and
the third, in two, or more properly nineteen, chapters, of
calendar and festivals. Padre Duran died in 1588, leaving
the manuscripts to Juan Tovar, _Dávila Padilla_, _Hist.
Fvnd. Mex._, 653, who gave them to Acosta, then occupied
in preparing his _Natura Novi Orbis_, and other works. The
contribution came most opportunely, and was used chiefly for
his account of Mexico, as he frankly admits, though giving
the credit to Tovar, who may have claimed the authorship.
On the strength of this statement Clavigero, with others,
confirms the claim to the ‘nobilissimo Gesuita Messicano.’
Torquemada, i. 170-1, ii. 120, himself not spotless, takes
advantage of the confession to rail at Acosta for borrowed
plumage, mutilated at that. The manuscripts, now in the
Biblioteca Nacional de Madrid, are written in double columns
and illustrated with numerous plates. Pinelo, _Epitome_,
ii. 711, refers to them as in two parts. A few copies have
been taken, mine forming three volumes. A set obtained by
José Fernando Ramirez, one of Maximilian’s ministers, was
prepared by him for publication, but, owing to the death of
the imperial patron, only the first 68 chapters were issued
at Mexico, 1867, in one volume, with notes and considerable
changes of the style. This mutilation, as some term it, may
have been a reason for the seizure of the whole edition,
together with the separate plates, by the republican
government. Only a few copies escaped this fate, one of
which I succeeded in obtaining. Although independent issue
was long withheld from Duran, he has at least enjoyed the
honor of being associated with one possessed of far greater
fame than he himself could ever hope to achieve.
The motives which impelled Joseph de Acosta to write on
America were quite pretentious. Among the many Spanish
books on the New World, he says: ‘I have not seene any
other author which treates of the causes and reasons of
these novelties and wonders of nature, or that hath made
any search thereof. Neither have I read any booke which
maketh mention of the histories of the antient Indians,
and naturall inhabitants.’ With a view to repair these
omissions he issued _De Natvra Novi Orbis libri dvo, et de
Promvlgatione Evangelii, apvd Barbaros, sive de Procvranda
Indorvm Salvte Libri sex._ Salmanticœ, 1589. The first
part, _De Natura_, is a philosophic dissertation on physical
features, on the probable knowledge among the ancients of
a western hemisphere, and on the origin of the Indians.
The second part, in six books, bearing a separate imprint
under 1588, though published only in connection with the
previous two books, treats entirely of the method and
progress of Indian conversion. The _Natura_ was translated
into Spanish, and incorporated, with some amendments, in the
_Historia Natvral y moral de las Indias_, Sevilla, 1590,
dedicated to Infanta Isabel, which treats also of Indian
history and customs, and refers briefly to the conquest.
The work achieved great success, and was reproduced in
numerous editions, in nearly every language, though often
without Acosta’s name, and in distorted form, as in De
Bry and some German versions. This may not be considered
bad treatment by those who charge Acosta with plagiarism,
although he frankly admits following a number of authors,
among them ‘es vno Polo Ondegardo, a quien communmente
sigo en las cosas de el Piru: y en las materias de Mexico
Ioan de Touar prebendado que fue de la Iglesia de Mexico,
y agora es religioso de nuestra Compañia de Iesvs. El qual
por orden del Virrey hizo dõ Martin Enriquez diligẽte, y
copiosa aueriguaciõ de las historias antiguas.’ See p. 396.
There is no doubt that the interest and value of the work
are owing chiefly to the circumstance that the original
authorities have remained sealed, until lately at least;
for, despite its pretentious aim, the pages are marred by
frequent indications of the then prevalent superstition
and credulity. The _Procvrando Indorvm Salvte_ is more in
consonance with the character of the Jesuit missionary and
scholastic.
Born at Medina del Campo about 1539, he had in his fourteenth
year joined the Society, to which four brothers already
belonged. After studying and teaching theology at Ocana,
he proceeded in 1571 to Peru, where he became the second
provincial of his order. Returning to Spain seventeen years
later—‘post annos in Peruano regno exactos quindeciem, in
Mexicano & Insularibus duos,’ says the dedication of 1588
to Philip II., in _De Natvra_ of 1589—he gained the favor
of the king, occupied the offices of visitador and superior,
and died as rector at Salamanca, February 15, 1600. Several
other works, in print and manuscript, chiefly theologic,
are attributed to him—see _Camus_, 104-13—among them _De la
criança de Cyro_, dedicated to Filipe III. in 1592, which
was also a borrowed text, from Xenophon, and remained a
manuscript in the Royal Library.
CHAPTER XXVI.
LA NOCHE TRISTE.
JUNE 30, 1520.
THE CAPTIVE-KING DRAMA CARRIED TOO FAR—BETTER HAD THE
SPANIARDS TAKEN MONTEZUMA’S ADVICE, AND HAVE DEPARTED WHILE
OPPORTUNITY OFFERED—DIPLOMATIC VALUE OF A DEAD BODY—NECESSITY
FOR AN IMMEDIATE EVACUATION OF THE CITY—DEPARTURE FROM THE
FORT—MIDNIGHT SILENCE—THE CITY ROUSED BY A WOMAN’S CRY—THE
FUGITIVES FIERCELY ATTACKED ON ALL SIDES—MORE HORRORS.
And now what must have been the feelings of the invaders, who, like
the ancient mariner, had killed the bird that made the breeze blow!
For assuredly they were responsible for the emperor’s death. Indeed,
the direct charge of murder against Cortés has not been wanting, even
among Spanish chroniclers; but this was owing greatly to the effort
of the general to extricate the army from its desperate situation
while the enemy was supposed to be distracted by grief and engaged in
solemn obsequies. We may be sure, however, that the Spaniards did not
kill Montezuma; that they did not even desire his death; but regarded
it at this juncture as the greatest misfortune which could happen
to them.[808] For in the vast evolvings of their fast, unfathomable
destiny, they were now all like sea-gulls poised in mid-air while
following a swiftly flying ship.
It is interesting to note the manœuvring on both sides over the dead
monarch, who having ministered so faithfully to his enemies while
living, must needs continue in the service after death. The hostile
chiefs were called and informed of the sad consequences of their
outrage on the emperor. The body would be sent to them, so that they
might accord it the last honors. The leaders replied curtly that
they had now a new chief, and cared no longer for Montezuma, dead or
alive. The corpse was nevertheless carefully arrayed in fitting robes
and given in charge of two prisoners, a priest and a chief,[809]
with instructions to carry it to the Mexican camp, and explain the
circumstances of the death and the grief of the Spaniards. On appearing
outside the fort a leader motioned them back, and would probably
have used force but for the priestly character of the bearers, behind
whom the gate had been closed. A few moments later they disappeared
from view. The disrespect shown the living was not spared the dead.
As the corpse was borne through the streets jeers and insults fell
from lips which formerly kissed the ground on which the monarch had
stood. Many declared that a coward like Montezuma, who had brought
so many misfortunes on the country, was not worthy of even ordinary
burial.[810] The imperial party managed, however, to secure the body,
and, assisted by those to whom the royal blood and high priestly
character of the deceased outweighed other feelings, an honorable
though quiet cremation was accorded in the Celpalco, where Sahagun
intimates that the ashes remained.[811]
Shortly after the body had left the Spanish quarters Cortés sent a
fresh message to the Mexicans, believing that by this time the presence
of the august dead might have had its effect on them. He pointed
out the respect due to the remains of a sovereign, and proposed a
cessation of hostilities with that view, and till they had elected
a successor, one more worthy than the present leader, who had driven
them to rebel.[812] The chiefs replied that the Spaniards need trouble
themselves about nothing but their own safety. They might come forth,
they added tauntingly, to arrange a truce with their new leader, whose
heart was not so easily moulded as that of Montezuma. Respect for
the emperor, the Spaniards replied, had made them hitherto lenient
toward his people, but if they remained obstinate no further mercy
would be shown, and not one Mexican would be spared. “Two days hence
not one Spaniard will be alive!” was the retort.
Hostilities were thereupon resumed, and Cortés did not delay the
prearranged attempt to complete the capture of the approach to
Tlacopan. The presence of the imperial corpse had either a retarding
influence on the movements of the enemy, or else the Spaniards sallied
unexpectedly and fought with greater energy, for the four remaining
bridges were gained with little difficulty, and twenty horsemen passed
on to the shore, while the infantry and allies took possession of the
route, and began filling in the channels with débris, so as to form
a solid path, or to repair the bridges at the deeper places. At this
time a messenger arrived with the announcement from the chiefs who
were directing the siege of the fort that they were willing to treat
for peace. Leaving the forces in charge of Velazquez, Cortés hurried
with some horsemen to answer the welcome summons. The chiefs proposed
that if pardon was granted them for past offences they would raise
the siege, repair the bridges and causeways, and return to peaceful
intercourse. In order to arrange the conditions they demanded the
liberation of the captured high-priest. This was at once agreed to,
and after some discussion messengers were despatched to different
parts of the city, bearing orders, it was said, to stay hostilities.
It is somewhat singular that the astute Cortés should have given
such ready credence to proposals so advantageous to himself. Yet this
appears to have been the case. Delighted with the happy adjustment of
affairs, he ordered prepared a grand supper; but he had hardly seated
himself at table before tidings reached him that the Mexicans had
returned to the attack on the causeway, largely reinforced by land and
water, and were regaining the bridges taken that day. The conference
had been a ruse to throw the Spaniards off their guard, to obtain the
release of the high-priest, from whom besides much information was
expected about the condition of the besieged, and to gain time for
bringing up reinforcements.[813] Fearful that his retreat would yet
be cut off, Cortés galloped back to the causeway, threw himself on
the enemy, recovered the bridges, and was soon in hot pursuit of the
flying Mexicans. He had not proceeded far, however, when the Indians,
who had rushed for safety into the lake and the canals, were encouraged
to return to the attack and cut off the cavalry. With furious charges
they drove the guard from the bridges, and began to destroy them and
remove the filling.[814] The causeway swarmed again with foes, and
the water round it was alive with canoes, whence myriads of missiles
were directed against the horsemen as they pushed their way back.
On reaching the last causeway breach, nearest the city, the riders
feared they would be overwhelmed, for here the enemy was gathered
in masses and had destroyed the passage. Nothing was left for them
but to take to the water, midst a storm of stones and darts, while
lines of spears and javelins pressed against them from the land and
from canoes. The party was thrown in disorder, and one rider was
pitched from his saddle during the mêlée, obstructing the passage
to the rest.[815] Cortés remained the last to cover the retreat, and
single-handed now and then turned on the swarming warriors, striking
with the energy of despair. Eager to secure the great general, the
enemy pressed heavily upon him, and but for the stout armor protecting
himself and the horse he would certainly have perished. As it was, he
received two severe wounds in the knee, besides many scratches. The
last Spaniard having left the bank, Cortés rang loud his San Pedro
cry, and clearing the way he leaped his heavily laden horse across the
chasm, six feet in width, and quickly left behind him the discomfited
crowd. “Had not God helped me,” he writes, “that moment would have
been my last.” Indeed, it was already rumored in the city that he
was dead. It being found impossible to hold the causeway bridges, a
guard was left only at the others, while the remainder of the troops
returned to the fort, worn-out and demoralized.[816]
Long since it had been agreed among the Spaniards that the city must
be evacuated; time and method were the only questions. The former
of these was now resolved on by the council: it should be this very
night. It was safer to meet the issue now than later. The enemy was
hourly reinforced. Perilous indeed was the undertaking to pass with
luggage, war stores, prisoners, and women over the broken causeway
in the darkness; but to remain was death. Botello, the astrologer,
had declared for this time, and so it was determined. For Botello
was wise and prudent, knowing Latin and the stars; he had foretold
the greatness of Cortés, and had recommended his night attack on
Narvaez, and general and soldiers believed in him.[817] Had he lived
a century or two later his words might have been employed as the _vox
stellarum_ by the almanac makers. The Mexicans had said that they
would make it a time of sore distress, any attempted escape of the
intruders, a time when men must struggle, and women would pray and
weep; and if so, it were no worse for the fugitives that black night
should fling her mantle over the bloody scene.
Since the Indians were supposed to have destroyed the crossing at the
causeway channels, a portable bridge was made with which to effect
the passage. Two more would probably have been made had time and
convenience permitted, but misfortune willed it otherwise. It was
agreed that a large portion of the effects must be left behind in order
not to encumber the march, but the gold demanded special care. The
royal officials, Mejía and Ávila, were charged to secure it, and for
this purpose a number of carriers were assigned, the general giving
also one of his own mares. Their convoy was intrusted to a body of
infantry, under Alonso de Escobar.[818] The secretary, Hernandez,
and the royal notaries were called to testify that all had been
done that was possible. There still remained a large quantity of the
bulky jewels belonging to the king, besides a mass of unappropriated
treasure, which could not be intrusted to carriers, or for which no
carriers were found, and rather than leave them to the ‘Indian dogs’
Cortés announced that the soldiers might take all they wished—after
permitting his favorites the first selection. He warned them, however,
that the more they took the more their safety would be endangered.
The adherents of Cortés do not appear to have been eager to encumber
themselves, and Bernal Diaz shared this prudence in taking only four
chalchiuite stones. The men of Narvaez practised less restraint, and
many loaded themselves with the metal. Cortés was afterward charged
with having appropriated a considerable share of the wealth thus
thrown open; he certainly had funds with which to send for horses,
war material, and supplies.[819]
Sandoval was appointed to lead the van, with two hundred infantry and
twenty horsemen, assisted by Ordaz, Andrés de Tapia, and others. With
him went fifty men under Captain Magarino to carry the bridge. They
were pledged to remain at their post to the last, and were escorted
by a select body of infantry and allies. For the middle were destined
the baggage and treasure, the prisoners and the sick, under a large
escort, supervised by Cortés himself, who, with Olid, Morla, Ávila,
and other captains, and a special force of one hundred men, were to
render aid where needed. The artillery was intrusted to two hundred
and fifty Tlascaltecs and fifty soldiers, and the rear was placed in
charge of Alvarado and Velazquez, with thirty horsemen and about one
hundred adherents of Cortés, with most of the men of Narvaez. The
allied forces, of whom a number appear to have returned home during
the inaction of Montezuma’s captivity, and who had suffered greatly
during the siege, must still have numbered nearly six thousand men,
including carriers, distributed among the three divisions.[820] Among
the prisoners Cortés enumerates the legitimate son of Montezuma,
and two of his daughters, probably those bestowed on the general
in marriage, King Cacama and his younger brother and successor, and
several other high personages.[821] The sick were to be carried in
hammocks and behind riders.
* * * * *
It is the evening of the 30th of June.[822] Fiery copper has been the
sky that day; the sun blood-red and moon-like, turning day to night,
when night is so soon to be employed as day. As the hour approaches,
a fog sets in, which thickens into mist and denser moisture until,
to favor the Spaniards, providence turns it to a drizzling rain,[823]
thus to veil their movements, and make substantial the silence of the
city, the lake, the distant wood; and thereupon all join fervently
in the prayer of Father Olmedo and commend their lives to almighty God.
About midnight the order is given to march.[824] Stealthily they creep
down the temple square and reach the Tlacopan road.[825] The streets
are wholly deserted. All is quiet, save the dull rumble of tramping
soldiers. The blessed rain, or some supernatural interposition, seems
to keep the whole city within doors. And if this kind power will
but have patience and not desert them for one brief hour—ah, it is
so easy for Omnipotence to help! Along the road like a phantom the
army moves. The van picks up the guard at the canal crossings. The
causeway is almost reached. Already they begin to breathe freer; a
feeling of intense relief steals into their breasts, and—Mother of
God! what noise is that? It is the piercing outcry of a woman[826]—may
the foul fiend seize her!—breaking upon the stillness like a warning
note from the watch-tower of Avernus. On the instant the war-drum
of the Tlatelulco temple sends forth its doleful sound, chilling the
fugitives to the very heart’s core. Quickly its tones are drowned by
the nearer, shriller trumpet-blasts and shouts of warriors, echoed
and reëchoed from every quarter.
Meanwhile the advance column had reached the sixth bridge
crossing,[827] the first to connect with the causeway, and had
obliged the Mexican picket to retire, after exchanging a few shots.
The portable bridge was here laid, and the van crossed with quickened
steps, followed by the centre with the baggage and artillery. At
this juncture the enemy fell upon the rear, rending the air with
their yells, sending their missiles fast and furious, while from the
cross-roads issued a swarm, with lance and sword, on Alvarado’s flank.
Over the water resounded their cries, and canoes came crowding round
the causeway to attack the forward ranks. To add to the horrors of
the tumult, several men and horses slipped on the wet bridge and fell
into the water; others, midst heart-rending cries, were crowded over
the edge by those behind. All the rest succeeded in crossing, however,
except about one hundred soldiers. These, it is said, bewildered
by the battle cries and death shrieks, turned back to the fort, and
there held out for three days, till hunger forced them to surrender
and meet the fate of sacrificial victims at the coronation feast of
Cuitlahuatzin.[828]
The half mile of causeway extending between the first and second
breaches was now completely filled with Spaniards and allies, whose
flanks were harassed by the forces brought forward in canoes on either
side. Dark and foggy as the night was, the outline of the Indian crews
could be distinguished by the white and colored _tilmatli_ in which
many of them were clad, owing to the coldness of the air. Fearlessly
they jumped to the banks, and fought the Spaniards with lance and
javelin, retreating into the water the moment the charge was over.
Some crept up the road sides, and seizing the legs of the fugitives
endeavored to drag them into the water. So crowded were the soldiers
that they could scarcely defend themselves; aggressive movements were
out of the question.
Repeated orders had been transmitted to Magarino to hurry forward
the removal of his bridge to the second channel, and, seeing no more
soldiers on the opposite bank of the first opening, he prepared to
obey, but the structure had been so deeply imbedded in the banks from
the heavy traffic that his men labored for some time in vain to lift
it, exposed all the while to a fierce onslaught. Finally, after a
number of the devoted band had succumbed, the bridge was released,
but before it could be drawn over the causeway the enemy had borne it
down at the other end so as effectually to wreck it.[829] The loss of
the bridge was a great calamity, and was so regarded by the troops,
hemmed in as they were between two deep channels, on a causeway which
in width would hold only twenty men in a line. On all sides were
enemies thirsting for blood. Presently a rush was made for the second
channel, where the soldiers had already begun, in face of the foe, to
cross on a single beam, which had been left intact when the bridge
was destroyed. As this was an exceedingly slow process, many took
to the water, only to receive their death-blow at the hands of the
watermen. Some were taken prisoners; some sank beneath their burden
of gold; the horses found a ford on one side where the water was not
above the saddle.
The canoes, however, were as numerous here as elsewhere, and their
occupants as determined; and the horsemen had the greatest trouble
to keep their seats while resisting them. The general, being at
the head, suffered most. At one time some Indians seized him by the
legs and tried to drag him off. The footing of the horse being so
insecure, the attempt would probably have succeeded but for the prompt
aid of Antonio de Quiñones, and Texmaxahuitzin, a Tlascaltec, known
afterward as Antonio. Olid, who also came to the rescue, was almost
overpowered, but managed to free himself by means of backhanded blows
from his muscular arm. One of the cavalry, Juan de Salazar, the page
of Cortés, then took the lead to clear the way for the rest, only to
fall a victim to his zeal. The next moment his master had gained the
bank, and thereupon directed the troops by the ford.[830]
Thus in the darkness the wild roar of battle continued, the commingling
shouts and strokes of combatants falling on the distant ear as one
continuous moan. The canoes now pressed on the fugitives in greater
number at the ford than in the channel. Sandoval, with his party,
had swum the channel before the Mexicans assembled there in great
numbers, and was now leading the van down the causeway, scattering the
assailants right and left. Little regular fighting was attempted, the
Spaniards being intent on escaping and the Mexicans quickly yielding
before the cavalry, taking refuge in and round the canoes. With
greater hardihood and success, however, they harassed those on foot.
On reaching the next channel, which was the last, the fugitives found
with dismay that it was wider and deeper than the others, and with
bitter regret they saw their mistake in not bringing three portable
bridges. The enemy was here also gathering in ever increasing force, to
watch the death trap. Every effort to clear a passage was stubbornly
resisted, and, the soldiers growing more irresolute, a rider was sent
to bring Cortés. Before he arrived, however, Sandoval had already
plunged in with a number of the cavalry, followed by foot-soldiers,
who seized the opportunity to fall into the wake, by either holding
on to the trappings of the horses or striking out for themselves. The
passage was extremely difficult, and more than one horseman reeled
and fell, from the united pressure of friends and foes. Those who
followed suffered yet more, being pushed down by comrades, struck by
clubs and stones, pierced by spears, or, most horrible of all, drawn
in by dusky boatmen, who carefully guarded them for the dread stone
of sacrifice.
With five horsemen Cortés led a body of one hundred infantry to
the mainland. Accompanying this force was a number of carriers with
treasures secured by the general and his friends. Leaving the gold
in charge of Jaramillo, with orders to hold the entrance of the
causeway against assailants from the shore, Cortés returned to the
channel where Sandoval had taken a stand to keep clear the bank and
protect the passage. Tidings coming that Alvarado was in danger,
Cortés proceeded to the rear, beyond the second channel, and found
it hotly contested. His opportune arrival infused fresh courage,
as with gallant charges he relieved the troops from the terrible
pressure. He looked in vain for many comrades who had been placed
at this post, and would have gone in search of them had not Alvarado
assured him that all the living were there. He was told that the guns
reserved for the rear had for a while been directed with sweeping
effect against the ever growing masses of warriors around them; but
finally a simultaneous attack from the canoe crews on either side, and
from the land forces to the rear, impelled by their own volume, had
overwhelmed the narrow columns nearest the city, together with their
cannon, killing and capturing a large number, and throwing the rest
into the panic-stricken condition from which he had just extricated
them.
Leaving Alvarado to cover the rear as best he could, Cortés hastened
to direct the passage of the middle channel. What a sight was there!
Of all the bloody terrors of that dark, sorrowful night, this was the
most terrible! A bridge had been wanting, and behold, the bridge was
there! With dead and living fugitives the chasm on either side the
slippery beam had been filled,[831] and now the soldiers and allies
were rushing, heedless of the groans beneath them, across this gory
support, still narrow and full of gaps, to be filled by the next
tripping fugitive. Scattered pell-mell on the bank lay the baggage
and artillery, abandoned by the fleeing carriers, which, proving only
an obstruction, Cortés ordered it thrown into the channel in order
to widen the crossing.
But the end was not yet. Great as had been the woe, it was yet to be
increased at the last and wider channel. Here was indeed a yawning
abyss, having likewise a single remaining beam, whose narrow slippery
surface served rather as a snare than a support.[832] The necessarily
slow motion of the train had enabled the Mexicans to come up in swarms,
and like sharks surround the chasm. Harassed on every side, and with
an avalanche rolling against the rear, the retreating thought only
of escaping the new danger, and at once. They threw aside their arms
and treasures and plunged in, bearing one another down regardless
of any claims of friendship or humanity. And woful to hear were the
heart-rending cries from that pit of Acheron. Some begged help of
Mary and Santiago; some cursed their fate and him who had brought
them to it, while many sank with mute despair into the arms of death;
and over all roared the wild cries and insults of the Mexicans. In
strong contrast to the panic-stricken men appeared a woman, María de
Estrada, who, with shield and sword, faced the enemy like a lioness,
standing forth among the men as a leader, and astonishing friend and
foe with her prowess.[833]
Cortés did all he could, as became an able commander and valiant
soldier, to save his men. He was indefatigable in his efforts, being
everywhere present, encouraging, guiding, and protecting. Yet his
position was most trying; there were that night so many brave soldiers
given over to despair, so many ears deaf to commands and prudent
counsel. Unable to do more at the channels, he hastened to look to
those who had crossed and were proceeding in straggling bands to join
Jaramillo. Heedless of companies or officers, the soldiers had banded
in parties of a score or two, and sword in hand, where this had not
been thrown away, they were hurrying down the causeway.[834] The
assailants fell off somewhat beyond the last channel, and finding the
advance comparatively safe, guided by his soldierly impulses Cortés
again returned with a few horsemen[835] and foot-soldiers to cover
the remnant of the army. The rear, composed chiefly of the Narvaez
party, were approaching the last channel, but under the continued
onslaught panic had seized them. They made hardly an effort to defend
themselves, and like the Indians during the massacre by Alvarado they
huddled one against the other, offering their backs as a target for
unsparing attack. Among this number was the loyal and noble Velazquez
de Leon, who shared with the Tonatiuh the command of this section.
How he fell is not known, but he never crossed the last breach.[836]
Alvarado had been wounded and had lost his horse, in common with most
of his party. Finding it impossible to control the men, he gathered
a small band round him and sought the channel, leaving the rest to
look to themselves.[837] On reaching the spot he saw a confused
mass of struggling humanity in the water, but the solitary beam
which spanned it was vacant, and steadying himself with his lance he
sprang swiftly across. Narrow and slippery as was the beam, it was
no insignificant feat for a wounded man to cross upon it, but time
magnified the performance to something miraculous. When Alvarado came
to the channel, it is related, no friendly beam spanned the wide,
deep gap. His life turned on brief resolve and instant action. Lithe,
strong, and determined, even though wounded, he was not yet ready to
yield all. With a searching glance into the troubled pool and across
the awful chasm he stepped back for a preparatory spring. Then,
rushing forward, he planted the long pike upon the yielding débris
and vaulted across, to the wonder of all witnesses. The Indians, says
Camargo, prostrated themselves in admiration, and tearing up grass,
ate it, with the exclamation, “Truly, this man is the Tonatiuh!” So
runs the story, preserved by tradition, and by the name yet given to
the spot, ‘El Salto de Alvarado.’[838]
Cortés and his small band of rescuers came up as Alvarado appeared,
pike in hand and bleeding, accompanied by a few stragglers.[839] Among
these was Juan Tirado, who, in gratitude for his deliverance, erected
at this bridge after the conquest a hermitage to San Acacio, known also
as De los Mártires—martyrs to avarice, as Torquemada intimates.[840]
The badly wounded were now mounted behind the horsemen,[841] and
repelling the foes who still pressed on them, Cortés in person covered
the remnant of the army in its retreat toward Tlacopan,[842] losing
in this final struggle the gallant Captain Morla.[843] The route lay
through Popotla village or suburb; and here, according to tradition,
Cortés seated himself on a stone to weep over the misfortunes of this
Sorrowful Night.[844]
By a similar process of annealing, gold is made soft and iron hard;
so by misfortune the wise man is made wiser while the fool is hardened
in his folly.
FOOTNOTES
[808] According to the version of the rabid Duran, based
on native paintings and narratives, the bodies of the
prisoners were found in the fort after its evacuation,
that of Montezuma with five stabs in the breast. _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 477-9. Acosta seems rather to favor the
story, improbable as several of its points are. _Hist.
Ind._, 524. To some extent it rests on the statement
repeated by Ixtlilxochitl, which assumes that Cacama, who
had made himself particularly obnoxious to the Spaniards,
was killed with 47 stabs before the fort was evacuated.
_Hist. Chich._, 301. A more severe account is found in a
manuscript fragment in Ramirez’ collection, written by a
Tezcucan, wherein it is related that a sword was thrust into
the intestines, ‘por la parte baxa.’ The body was thereupon
taken to the roof, as if to address the people. A stone
struck the head, and now the Spaniards proclaimed that this
had caused the death. _Soc. Mex. Geog._, _Boletin_, x. 362.
This is substantially repeated in _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Rel._,
457. A stronger testimony, however, comes from Sahagun,
who states that Cortés recommended to his followers the
murder of the prisoners in order to terrify the natives
and to assume the mastery. ‘Y lo primero que hicieron,
fue dàr Garrote à Motecuhçuma, y à Itzquauhtzin, Señor de
Tlatelolco, y à otros.’ Version in _Torquemada_, i. 498,
and in _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ [ed. 1840], 113. The issue,
modified by the censor, merely states that the bodies were
found near a stone, Teoaioc, outside the fort. _Id._ [ed.
1829], 31. This account has received its chief support
in the _quasi_ admission of Torquemada; and when he, the
otherwise zealous champion of the conquerors, takes such
a view, others may be pardoned for accepting it. ‘Y que
esto aia sido asi, puede ser posible, pues para tenerse
por seguros, le avian prendido; y viendo agora, que no
bastaba la prision, vsarian de este vltimo medio, para
vèr si le aplacaban, y atemoriçaban estos Mexicanos.’ i.
498-9. Brasseur de Bourbourg accepts the version, and adds
that Montezuma was told of his fate and urged to accept
baptism. ‘On répandit aussitôt la nouvelle de sa mort comme
s’il eût expiré naturellement.’ Hence even the soldiers
did not know of the murder. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 330-1.
Bustamante, of course, adopts anything Sahagun may say
against the Spaniards; and Carbajal takes Torquemada’s view,
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 375, as does Beltrami, eager for any
sensation. _Mex._, ii. 145. Vetancurt seeks to reconcile
conflicting opinions by assuming that when Montezuma died
Itzquauhtzin and several other prisoners were murdered
and cast out together with the emperor’s body, in order to
terrify the Mexicans and occupy their attention while the
Spaniards hurried away. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 142. ‘Io
non posso persuadermi,’ says Clavigero, ‘che gli Spagnuoli
si risolvessero a toglier la vita ad un Re, a cui doveano
tanti beni, e dalla cui morte non potevano aspettarsi, se
non molti mali.’ _Storia Mess._, iii. 131. Solis cannot
believe Cortés guilty of an act so bad and reckless. _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 150-1. Prescott disposes of the charge as an
‘absurdity’ and a ‘monstrous imputation.’ _Hist. Mex._, ii.
321. It must be considered, however, that the Spaniards did
seek to profit by the death; and scruples about ‘killing a
dog of an Indian,’ as they had so lately termed him, could
not have weighed with such men when their interests were
concerned; how much less when their lives were at stake?
The whole argument, then, may be said to depend on the
question whether Montezuma was more valuable as captive or
as corpse. If the people manifested little respect for the
living ruler, the Spaniards could have had no reason to
expect more for the dead. His death would only have loosened
the bond which still restrained a vast number, whether of
kindred or of mere subjects, and given the hostile leaders
fresh motives and strength for their operations. Besides,
Montezuma must have retained a great influence outside the
city, which a fugitive army would have found of service.
The recognition of this influence is shown by the efforts
made to save the imperial children, as noticed even by the
most rabid accusers of the Spaniards. It may be mentioned
that no charge is brought forward in the residencias either
against Cortés or Alvarado.
[809] Apanecatl, according to Brasseur de Bourbourg, _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, iv. 332. Bernal Diaz sends these men to carry
the news of the death, and following them were six high
personages and most of the captive priests, carrying the
body. _Hist. Verdad._, 105.
[810] Stones were thrown upon the cortege, and it was driven
from quarter to quarter. Finally Apanecatl took refuge in
the palace where Cuitlahuatzin held forth, and appealed
to him, only to be repulsed by his courtiers. The body
was nevertheless secured by a friendly party. _Manuscrit
Nahuatl_, 1576, in _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 333.
[811] ‘Hicieron todas las solemnidades que solian hacer ...
Mocthecuzoma lo enterraron en México ... algunos decian
mal de Mocthecuzoma porque habia sido muy cruel.’ _Hist.
Conq._, 31. ‘Vimos q̄ hizierõ muy gran llanto, q̄ biẽ oimos
las gritas, y aullidos q̄ por èl dauan.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 105. ‘Hizieron muy gran llanto, para
enterrar al rey en Chapultepec.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
154. Herrera combines these two authorities in saying ‘le
deuieron de enterrar en el monte de Chapultepèque, porque
alli se oyò vn gran llanto.’ dec. ii. lib. x. cap. x. He
forgets that Chapultepec lay three miles off. Torquemada
corrects Herrera, and insists that the ‘Copalco’ was the
place. He gives specimens of the insults offered during
the cremation, i. 499. ‘Estaban indignados contra él.’
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 301. It has been asserted
by some, says Duran, that the ashes were scattered to the
winds, as unworthy of preservation. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii.
479. Acosta attempts a modification by stating that the
body being contemptuously rejected, a servant burned it,
‘y puso sus cenizas dõde pudo en lugar harto desechado.’
_Hist. Ind._, 524. The burial-place has certainly not been
pointed out to posterity. According to Sahagun, the body of
Itzquauhtzin was ‘cast forth’ from the quarters, together
with that of Montezuma, and was taken in charge by his
subjects of Tlatelulco, by whom he was greatly beloved and
mourned. ubi sup. To ‘cast forth’ the bodies could have
been only a needless insult, which Cortés was too prudent
to inflict on the people.
[812] ‘Que alçassen a su primo del Monteçuma, que con
nosotros estaua, por Rey.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
105. ‘Dixo Cortes ... el se queria hallar a sus honras.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. x.
[813] Prescott, following Clavigero, assumes that the whole
was an artifice to liberate the two captive priests, one
of whom was indispensable in the event of a coronation.
_Mex._, ii. 338. Brasseur de Bourbourg supposes that the
parley was conducted by the party favorable to the Spaniards,
and duped by the stronger faction, which never intended to
adhere to the arrangement. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, 321.
[814] ‘Como los peones estaban cansados y heridos y
atemorizados; ... ninguno me siguió. A cuya causa, después
de pasadas yo las puentes ... las hallé tomadas.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 134. Where had he left his prudence?
[815] ‘Hallé á todos los de caballo que conmigo iban, caidos
en ella, y un caballo suelto.’ _Id._
[816] With a loss of over twenty men. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 105. This author places all the fighting on the
causeway on one day, a Thursday, the day of evacuating
Mexico, and the day following the surrender of Montezuma’s
body. Herrera, who is far more confused, has a sally on
this day in three directions, one being the Tlacopan road;
but the operations on the latter route are only partially
told, and the rest referred to the third day of the siege.
There are also several contradictions to aid in confusing
the many who follow him. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap.
xi. Prescott abandons himself to the guidance of Clavigero
for the occurrences of these days, but embellishes the
narrative with some incidents belonging to the siege of
Alvarado.
[817] ‘Botello ... afirmò que ... supiessen que moriria el
o su hermano, y algunos de la cõpañia, y qui se saluaria
el Capitan, y otros muchos, y ninguno si salian de dia.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xi. ‘Hora lo creyesen,
hora no.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 159. ‘Anteponendo le
vane osservazioni di quel meschino Soldato alla luce della
prudenza militare,’ is the indignant comment of Clavigero,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 135. But there is no doubt that
‘military prudence’ had more weight in the matter than
Botello’s words, and that the result was not due to his
advice. Solis casts the blame of crediting the ‘ignorant
charlatan’ Botello chiefly on the majority of the council,
to whom Cortés yielded. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 171-2. In order
to lull any suspicions among the Mexicans, says Bernal
Diaz, a leading priest and some other captives were sent
to the Mexican camp with a proposal to surrender all the
gold if the Spaniards were allowed to leave in peace eight
days later. _Hist. Verdad._, 105.
[818] _Lejalde_, _Segunda Prob._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, ii. 424. For carrying the royal treasures ‘les dió
siete cauallos heridos, y cojos, y vna yegua, y muchos Indios
Tlascaltecas, que segun dixeron, fueron mas de ochenta.’
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 106.
[819] Bernal Diaz, for instance, states that he had hardly
taken the four chalchiuites for his share, from a collection
in a mat, when Cortés gave orders to his mayordomo to secure
it. loc. cit. His penchant for appropriating large shares
to himself is well known. Greed of gold was not now his
motive, however, but rather a prudential care to secure
means for his plans, and he could hardly neglect them when
taking so great care of the royal portion. Martyr, Gomara,
and Herrera estimate the treasure at 700,000 ducats,
chiefly in bulky jewels according to Gomara. Bernal Diaz
reckons in pesos, which may mean pesos de oro. Peter Martyr
assumes it to have been the general fund, from which the
royal fifth had been set apart only at the last moment,
but not apportioned. dec. v. cap. vi. Solis assumes that
700,000 pesos remained after the king’s portion had been
deducted. _Hist. Mex._, 174-5. One witness estimates that
over 2,000,000 pesos were lost during that night. _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, ii. 414. The _Carta del Ejército_ reduces the
loss to 400,000 pesos de oro. Another witness states that
300,000 castellanos remained when the soldiers were told
to help themselves; afterward the general compelled them
to surrender what had been thus given, only to keep it for
himself. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 241-2. ‘Lo demás ... lo
dimos y repartimos por los españoles para que lo sacasen,’
says Cortés, _Cartas_, 135, which may be interpreted as
either giving or intrusting. Whatever may have been left
after the Spaniards had taken their loads was gleaned by
the allies. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 159.
[820] Bernal Diaz gives Sandoval 100 young unmarried
soldiers, with Francisco de Acevedo, the dandy, Ordaz, Tapia,
and eight or nine of Narvaez’ men, captains on his staff.
To Cortés he gives 50 men, and adds B. V. de Tapia to his
staff. _Hist. Verdad._, 105. This author is contradictory,
however. Herrera places Antonio de Quiñones as Sandoval’s
chief aid, and Olid and Ordaz in the rear. dec. ii. lib. x.
cap. xi.; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 160; _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
134; _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 30 et seq.
[821] Herrera adds a brother of Montezuma, and Sahagun names
two sons. _Hist. Conq._, 33. So does Vetancurt, although he
assumes that one was saved. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 142-3.
Ixtlilxochitl gives a longer list, including two sons of
Montezuma, and two sons and four daughters of Nezahualpilli,
of Tezcuco. One of the daughters escaped, but it was not
the beloved of Cortés, who had been baptized and named
Juana. Cacama is not included in the list, because he is
assumed to have been stabbed to death before the fort was
evacuated. _Hist. Chich._, 302; _Relaciones_, 390. With
the prisoners’ division went Marina, the interpreter, the
Tlascaltec princesses Luisa and Elvira, and some other
women, protected, says Bernal Diaz, by 30 soldiers and 300
Tlascaltecs.
[822] This date is based on Cortés’ letter, wherein he places
the arrival on Tlascala’s border on Sunday, July 8th, after
giving a clear account of the intermediate days. Any doubt
about this date is removed by the testimony in _Lejalde_,
_Segunda Probanza_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 423,
wherein the leading captains state that the siege lasted
six days. This testimony also clears up the only doubtful
point in Cortés’ account of the siege operations, where
he disposes of the wounding and death of Montezuma in one
sentence, and then resumes the description of the fighting
in a manner that has assisted to mislead Gomara and many
others into extending the stay in Mexico till July 10th.
Ixtlilxochitl adopts this date, yet in the _Relaciones_, 390,
412-13, he states that the siege lasted only seven days.
Bernal Diaz places the eve of the departure on a Thursday,
July 10th [with Cortés it is Saturday], yet he dates the
battle of Otumba just one week later than Cortés. _Hist.
Verdad._, 105, 108. This latter date induces Zamacois to
change the date of flight to July 8th. _Hist. Méj._, iii.
406-7. ‘La notte del 1 Luglio,’ says Clavigero, _Storia
Mess._, iii. 135, but his reasons for the date are wrong,
and the term he uses may apply also to the night following
that adopted in the text.
[823] The Spaniards recognized this as a favoring shield
direct from God, says Duran, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 473-4.
[824] Ojeda was instructed to see that no somnolent or sick
person was left. He found one man asleep on the roof and
roused him. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xi. Gomara
takes the trouble to deny the statement of Cano that 270
men, ignorant of Cortés’ departure, were left behind to
perish. _Oviedo_, iii. 551. A later note will explain the
cause of this rumor.
[825] The ravaging sallies of the preceding days, which
had involved the destruction of houses in the vicinity and
along the approaches to Tlacopan, had evidently obliged
the enemy to retire from these streets and seek shelter
elsewhere for the night. Oviedo assumes that Cortés led
the way, but Diaz and Herrera let him advance only when
the first troops are guided into Tlacopan.
[826] ‘Pasaron cuatro acequias, y antes que pasasen las
demas salió vna muger á tomar agua y viólos.’ _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, 32. ‘A devil, without doubt,’ adds Camargo,
who describes her as a keeper of an eating-house, and
indicates exactly the location of her house. _Hist. Tlax._,
167. Cortés states that the alarm was given by the guard at
the first breach held by the Mexicans, where the portable
bridge was laid down. _Cartas_, 136.
[827] Sahagun names this Mictlantonco, and the next two
Tlantecayocan and Petlacalco. In another place he names
the first Tecpantzinco, and the second or third Tolteacali.
_Hist. Conq._, loc. cit., and [ed. 1840] 121-2. Torquemada
gives the second breach of the causeway the latter
name. The names should probably be written Tecpantzinco,
Tolteca-Acalulco, and Petlacalco.
[828] This native rumor, as recorded in the manuscripts
used by Duran, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 476-7, is probably
the foundation for Cano’s statement, that Cortés abandoned
270 men in the fort. Herrera reduces them to 100. ‘Que se
boluieron a la torre del templo, adonde se hizieron fuertes
tres dias.’ dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xii.
[829] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 106, assumes that the
enemy bore it down before the baggage train had crossed, and
that the channel was filled in consequence with artillery,
baggage, and dead bodies. Gomara gets the bridge across
the second breach. Both must be mistaken, however.
[830] Camargo relates the incidents of the passage in detail,
and says that Cortés fell into a hole as the enemy pounced
upon him. The two deliverers disputed the honor of having
rescued the general. _Hist. Tlax._, 169.
[831] ‘El foso se hinchó hasta arriba; ... y los de la
retroguardia pasaron sobre los muertos. Los españoles
que aquí quedaron muertos fueron trescientos, y de los
tlaxcaltecas y otros indios amigos fueron mas de dos mil.’
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 122.
[832] _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 4, 53, 68.
[833] ‘Casò esta Señora, con Pedro Sanchez Farfan [who
seized Narvaez], y dieronle en Encomienda el Pueblo de
Tetela.’ She married a second time, and died in Puebla.
_Torquemada_, i. 504.
[834] Bernal Diaz formed one of a band of 50, who were
repeatedly attacked with arms and midst insults. He quotes
some of the low expressions used. _Hist. Verdad._, 106.
[835] One authority states that Cortés was nearing Tlacopan,
when Olid and others called out to him that the fugitives
were accusing the captains of abandoning them, and urged that
they should turn back. ‘It is a miracle to have escaped,’
was his reply, ‘and fewer will be left if we return.’ Saying
this he headed a dozen horsemen and a few foot-soldiers
and galloped back. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 106.
But Cortés was not the man to wait in such a case till
entreaty came. ‘Yo con tres ó cuatro de caballo,’ he says,
‘y hasta veinte peones, que osaron quedar conmigo, me fuí
en la rezaga.’ _Cartas_, 135. He takes the palm from all
American conquerors, exclaims Oviedo, iii. 326.
[836] Zamacois makes atonement for a lack of research by
inventing doughty deeds for this hero. _Hist. Méj._, iii.
417-18.
[837] Among the soldiers contributed in later times by
Garay’s expedition was one Ocampo, who, fond of scandal
and pasquinades, libelled many of the captains, among them
Alvarado, declaring that he had left Velazquez with over
200 men to die. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 106-7. The
charge came forward in the residencia, but Alvarado brought
witnesses to prove that he had lost all control over the
men, and could do nothing else than to save himself, wounded
and unhorsed as he was. There were other witnesses who did
all they could to blacken his fame, and to attribute to his
neglect of duty a great portion of the loss sustained during
that sad night. _Ramirez_, _Proceso_, 4, 38, 53, 68, and
288. Ramirez decides against the accused. But Alvarado was
admittedly brave, recklessly so, and it must be regarded
rather as his misfortune that a panic seized the men.
Perhaps, as commander intrusted with this section, he should
have remained longer at his post. This signified death,
and such men as then comprised his command he regarded as
hardly worth dying for. He chose to save life at the expense
of a blemish on his honor. More it never amounted to, for
the court absolved him. He redeemed the fault afterward by
brave achievements.
[838] Camargo intimates that several Tlascalan chiefs of the
expedition testified to the feat. _Hist. Tlax._, 168; and
Gomara adds that several followers tried to imitate it, but
failed, and were drowned. _Hist. Mex._, 160. Contradictory
as Bernal Diaz is about the incidents of the night, he
strenuously insists that the channel was examined during the
following siege and found to be too wide and too deep to
allow of such a leap. _Hist. Verdad._, 107. This solitary
denial of a story which has been adopted by almost every
writer, from Oviedo to Prescott, finds support in testimony
during the hero’s residencia, wherein it is distinctly
stated that he crossed the channel on a fixed beam. His
own testimony gives assent to the charge so formulated,
although hitherto he had no doubt allowed the other version
to be believed. _Ramirez_, _Proceso_, 4, 53, 68 et seq.
[839] Seven Spaniards and eight Tlascaltecs, all badly
wounded. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 106.
[840] ‘Durò poco este nombre, pues tampoco les convenia à
los muertos, que iban cargados de Oro.’ _Monarq. Ind._, i.
504. Zamacois describes the site as he found it not long
ago. _Hist. Méj._, iii. 421-3. Bernal Diaz implies that
the ‘martyr’ name was given in honor of those captured and
sacrificed during the siege, a year later. _Hist. Verdad._,
153.
[841] Alvarado was taken on Gamboa’s horse, Laso on
Sandoval’s. _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 69, 119.
[842] Alvarado said that only the dead remained behind, but
Olid insisted that a number were still fighting the enemy.
Cortés accordingly went back again and rescued several more.
_Castañeda_, in _Id._, 44. Bernal Diaz also states that
Cortés returned as far as the bridges. _Hist. Verdad._, 106.
[843] The same who sprang into the sea, off Yucatan, to
replace the rudder of his vessel, unshipped during the storm.
[844] La Noche Triste, as it has ever since been called. Amid
so much that is romantic the tendency to further romance is
often uncontrollable. The truth of this statement is open to
grave doubts. ‘Llegó [Alvarado] á Cortés, que estaba ençima
de unas gradas de un qü, sentado diçiendo muchas lástimas.’
_Oviedo_, iii. 514. Zamacois describes the enormous tree,
yet standing, which shaded the stone and bears the name
of ‘_Arbol de la Noche Triste_.’ _Hist. Méj._, iii. 424.
Prescott improves the occasion by allowing the army to file
past in sad dilapidation, regardless of the fact that the
army was already gathered in Tlacopan. _Mex._, ii. 371-2.
Testimony confirms the statement of Cortés that ‘fuí en la
rezaga, peleando con los indios hasta llegar á una ciudad
que se dice Tacuba’ [Tlacopan]. _Cartas_, 135-6.
CHAPTER XXVII.
RETREAT TO TLASCALA.
JULY, 1520.
FATAL MISTAKE OF THE MEXICANS—A BRIEF RESPITE ALLOWED THE
SPANIARDS—THE REMNANT OF THE ARMY AT TLACOPAN—THEY SET OUT
FOR TLASCALA—AN EVER INCREASING FORCE AT THEIR HEELS—REST AT
THE TEPZOLAC TEMPLE—CORTÉS REVIEWS HIS DISASTERS—THE MARCH
CONTINUED AMIDST GREAT TRIBULATION—ENCOUNTER OF THE GRAND
ARMY—IMPORTANT BATTLE AND REMARKABLE VICTORY—ARRIVAL AT
TLASCALA—THE FRIENDLY RECEPTION ACCORDED THEM THERE.
What would Emperor Charles have said to Hernan Cortés had they met
on the morning after the Sorrowful Night! It is related of Xerxes
that with a golden crown he rewarded a pilot who had saved his life,
and thereupon ordered him beheaded for having sacrificed in the
operation the lives of so many of his Persian subjects. Now Cortés
had not saved the emperor’s life, nor yet the emperor’s gold; he had
sacrificed many lives, and had little to show for them. Had Charles
been there, and had he valued Spaniards as did Xerxes Persians, he
might have cut off the Estremaduran’s head; but Cortés was yet worth
to Charles more than all that had been thus far lost in New Spain.
Prosperity implies ability; adversity, weakness of mind and
character. In the high-souled and chivalrous, prosperity tends to
yet loftier heights, while adversity sinks the unfortunate still
lower; nevertheless, the fortitude and dignity which come to the
really great under misfortune are among the grandest sights in this
universe. I have said that Cortés might have ridden to Mexico over
palm branches, midst hosannas, had he but known it; but had he done
so, there would have been no greatness attending the act. The door of
peaceable exit from the city of Mexico had long been open to him; but
to have accepted Montezuma’s invitation hence would not have raised
Cortés in the estimation either of himself or of his soldiers.
After all the terrible disasters of the Noche Triste the Spaniards were
not wholly forsaken by fortune, though they called it the irrepressible
Santiago on his milk-white steed who caused the Mexicans to neglect
their opportunity of vigorously pursuing the fugitives beyond the
last channel, and in their helpless state to exterminate them. Yet
we cannot help asking why Santiago did not come to their assistance
sooner, and save them untold woe. The Spaniards, however, were not
captious in their criticisms of benefactors, and so a small stone
was erected on the Tacuba road in honor of the mounted saint.[845]
If we would have the real cause why the Mexicans did not follow up
the Spaniards, we may find it in their greed for spoils, as Sahagun
observes, which detained the warriors, especially round the channels. A
thorough search was soon instituted by them; the canals were dragged,
and quantities of arms, baggage, and personal effects were secured,
beside the gold and jewels which had been taken by the Spaniards.
Their own dead they decently buried, while those of the Spaniards
and their allies were more summarily disposed of, and the whole road
cleared of obstructions and whatever might infect the atmosphere.[846]
According to Gomara the discovery of the bodies of Montezuma’s son
and heir and other princes created such sorrow that pursuit was on
this account suspended. It seems not unreasonable that the natives
should have charged their death wounds to the Spaniards, who, rather
than see men like King Cacama free to create mischief, should have
preferred to dispatch them, offering, Medea-like, a bribe to reverence
and love with a view to retard the Colchian pursuers.[847] Although
this accusation could not be proven, their death was nevertheless to
be avenged. At least forty Spaniards and a number of allies had been
captured during the night, and at the obsequies, which were of the
most imposing order, they added solemnity to the occasion by yielding
their hearts’ blood; while those who, according to native tradition,
turned back to hold the fort for three days before they swelled the
throng of victims, were reserved for the coronation soon to follow.
The respite from close pursuit had enabled the fugitive army to join,
in detached groups, the nucleus already gathered under Jamarillo
in one of the squares of Tlacopan,[848] the capital of the smallest
tripartite state, half a league from Mexico. A sorry spectacle was
this remainder of the brilliant army which had so lately entered
Mexico as conquerors. A haggard, bleeding, ragged crowd, dreggy
with mire and smeared with gore, many without weapons, and without
a vestige of their baggage and war stores. When Cortés arrived with
the last remnant the sun was rising, and fearing the danger of an
attack in the narrow streets, such as had made the sallies in Mexico
so disastrous, he hastened to conduct his men into the open field.
The movement was made none too soon, for immediately after the scouts
gave warning of approaching hosts, magnified to a hundred thousand or
more, speedily the war shrieks again broke on the ears of the startled
troops. The Mexicans had sent word to Tlacopan and the neighboring
towns to intercept the fugitives, and assistance coming with the dawn
they joined in the attack.[849]
A Tlascaltec chief had recommended a northward course, round the lakes,
as the least exposed to pursuit, and offered himself as guide.[850]
The march was accordingly directed north-westward through some
maizefields, with Cortés leading. The enemy were upon them before the
rear left the city, and several soldiers fell in the onslaught. A short
distance before them rose the hill of Totoltepec, Bird Mountain,[851]
surmounted by a temple with several strong buildings,[852] and a
small village. This appeared an eligible spot for the rest which
they so much needed. Crossing the Tepzolac Creek, at its foot, Cortés
ordered the advance guard, under Ordaz, to capture it, while he faced
the pursuers. Little resistance was offered at the temple, but the
general was hotly pressed, as the enemy perceived that their prey
was about to escape. At this juncture it was said that the Vírgen de
los Remedios appeared, and by casting dust into the eyes of the foe
enabled the Spaniards to effect their escape with little loss into
the temple. “By this time,” writes Cortés, “we had not a horse that
could run, or a horseman who could lift an arm, or a foot-soldier
who could move.”[853]
A few additional intrenchments were thrown up, and the necessary
guards posted to watch the baffled enemy, who perceiving the strength
of the place contented themselves with flinging their missiles and
filling the air with shouts. Feeling comparatively secure, the troops
abandoned themselves to rest round blazing fires. The food found in
the place, although insufficient for the demands of the half-starved
men, afforded some comfort, which was increased by grateful sleep.[854]
Thus were refreshed the wounded and disheartened. And with grateful
hearts the remnant of the brave army returned thanks to God for
deliverance. Some, however, attributed their escape to the presence
among them of the image of the Vírgen de los Remedios, which Rodriguez
de Villafuerte is said to have afterward placed in the great temple of
Mexico. It had been brought here by the owner, although some supposed
it might have come over of its own accord, as it is said to have
miraculously done in later times when detained in Mexico against its
will.[855] Some years after the Noche Triste it was found on this hill
under a bush, by a converted cacique named Juan de Tobar, who kept it
for a long time, and then by divine direction built a hermitage for
it on the hill, where it had been found. The many miracles reported
of the shrine induced the City of Mexico in 1574 to adopt it as a
patron, and by the following year the simple chapel was replaced by
a fine temple worthy of the sanctity of the image which has absorbed
so large a share of holy pilgrimage.[856]
The review held on Remedios Hill revealed the full extent of the blow
suffered, “one which Spaniards alone could have endured,” says Peter
Martyr. At the beginning of the siege the army mustered twelve hundred
and fifty Spaniards and six thousand allies, with arms and ammunition
in abundance, and now little more than five hundred soldiers and less
than two thousand allies remained.[857] The baggage, artillery and
ammunition, intrusted to the trains of carriers, had all been lost,
and a great portion of the arms carried by the men, so that only twelve
battered cross-bows and seven firelocks could be counted. What better
commentary could we have on the night’s disaster! The side arms were
fortunately better preserved, and there were twenty-four horses left,
now the only formidable element of the army.[858] Of the treasure
none could tell what had been saved, the holders keeping the fact
secret. It was whispered, however, that Cortés had taken good care of
the portion appropriated by him, Bernal Diaz, among others, insisting
that with the first party conducted by the general to Tlacopan went
a number of carriers with gold bars and jewels. Among these is said
to have been some of the royal treasure, but the officers declared
that it had all been lost, including the mare with the fifth proper,
and the account books and records. The loss of the papers, however
unfortunate for history, must have been rather convenient to Cortés,
at least, who had a fancy for adjusting facts and figures to suit
his schemes.[859]
Deeply stricken was Cortés, and bitterly did he repent of the mistakes
which had contributed to this sad result: of having left Alvarado
in charge to follow his rash bent; of having treated Montezuma and
his chiefs so inconsiderately on his arrival; and, above all, the
faulty arrangements for the flight by night.[860] His had been the
greatest conquest yet undertaken in the New World, and his the greatest
disaster. The men of Narvaez had suffered most, partly, it is said,
because they were most eager to burden themselves with gold, but
rather because they were inexperienced, and assigned chiefly to the
rear. It was the gaps in the ranks of his veterans that touched Cortés
most. Gone was the dear dandy Francisco de Salcedo, whom slovenly
comrades should no more trouble! The cavalry, so sadly depleted,
missed among its number the dashing Láres[861] and the brave Morla.
Neither could Botello be injured by the curses freely given him for
his false reading of the stars.[862] The death which most deeply moved
Cortés, however, was that of the true-hearted and brave Velazquez,
whose standing and influence, as a relative of the Cuban governor
and as a man of high birth, had so greatly assisted the general in
carrying out his schemes. Cortés had in return conferred on him some
of the most important commissions, ever regarding him as among the
truest of his friends. With him had died his native wife, Elvira,
the daughter of the Tlascaltec lord Maxixcatzin, and nearly every
prisoner.[863]
With so many losses to deplore, it proved a solace for Cortés to
find present his favorite captains, Sandoval, Alvarado, and Olid.
His interpreters were also here, and foremost the loving Marina,
whose life, together with that of Luisa, Xicotencatl’s daughter, was
due to the zealous care of the latter’s brothers. Martin Lopez, the
ship-builder, also survived, and the sight of him assisted to give the
thoughts of the general a hopeful bent, rousing in his enterprising
spirit projects for vengeance and recuperation. Remnants though
they were, his forces were still larger than those with which he had
overcome Narvaez, and which he had till then regarded as sufficient
for the conquest of the empire. The experience gained and a knowledge
of the country were in themselves an army; and, thank fortune, he
had some gold, and better still, allies. Tlascala was now his hope.
Everything, indeed, depended on the little republic, and whether it
would afford him shelter and aid. He knew that the loss of so many
of its warriors under his banner had brought wide-spread affliction,
which might turn to hatred toward him as the cause. Thereupon he
talked to the Tlascaltec chiefs who were yet alive, and endeavored
to stir in them the thirst for revenge, and excite their desires for
rich spoils and increased domain.[864]
* * * * *
Besiegers and besieged sat watching each other the whole day, but
the latter made no signs of stirring. Thinking that they would not
venture forth for some time, many of the former began to file off
homeward, leaving, nevertheless, a strong force round the hill. Cortés
feared that the morrow would bring them back with reinforcements
and make escape difficult. Trusting again therefore to the darkness,
now joined to the more advantageous circumstance of an open field,
he set forth, leaving the fires blazing to lull the watchfulness of
the foe. Eight captains were appointed for the different sections to
maintain the arranged order of march,[865] Cortés with a portion of
the cavalry taking the rear, as the post of danger. The rest of the
horsemen led the van, while the sound infantry formed a cordon for
the centre, wherein the wounded were carried in hammocks, or hobbled
along on hastily prepared crutches, a few being taken up behind the
horsemen. The rear had hardly left the temple before the enemy were
upon them with swords and lances, many of the captured and recovered
weapons of the Spaniards being now used against themselves. But the
attack was not severe, partly because the pursuers had been reduced
to irregular bands from the mainland settlements, whose chief object
was plunder. At dawn the town of Calacoayan was sighted, and on
approaching it the mounted scouts came in a ravine upon an ambuscade
formed by its warriors. Believing them to be numerous the horsemen
galloped back, and joined by others returned to charge. It is related
that the leader halting for a moment to arrange for the attack, a
soldier became impatient, and hoisting an improvised flag on his lance
he called out, “Santiago! follow me who dare!” The rest responded,
and the enemy was routed with slaughter.[866] The town was ransacked
for food and fired as a warning to the assailants. The march was
resumed, and the plain of Tizaapan reached, but owing to the fight
at the town and the constant skirmishing only three leagues were made
that day. Toward sunset they reached the hamlet of Teuculhuacan, and
took peaceable possession of the temple for the night.[867]
[Illustration]
At noon on the 3d the march was resumed, with quickened steps and
with less interruption. Though persistent in harassing, the pursuers
fled whenever the cavalry charged, and took refuge on the hill-slopes,
flinging with their missiles jeers and insults. “Women!” they cried;
“cowards, who fight only when mounted! You are going whence none
of you shall escape!” The latter threat was frequently heard, but
its meaning failed as yet to be understood. There was a worse enemy
than the Mexicans, however, and that was hunger, which made itself
severely felt, “although Spaniards can endure its pangs better than
any other nation,” vaunts Gomara, “and this band of Cortés’ better
than all.” Eagerly they scanned the road side for fruit or roots,
and many ate grass, while the Tlascaltecs threw themselves upon the
ground and begged their gods to take pity upon them.[868] One soldier
opened a dead body and ate the liver, and when Cortés heard of it
he ordered the man hanged, but the sentence was not executed. The
route, at first craggy, passed through the towns of Quauhtitlan and
Tepotzotlan, along the lake of Zumpango, to Citlaltepec, where camp
was formed. The inhabitants had fled, but food was there to eat, and
even to carry on their journey, and there they remained all the next
day.[869]
On the morning of the 5th of July they skirted the lake and turned
westward to Tlascala, pursued by increasing forces;[870] owing
to which, or to the roughness of the road, or to the guide, less
progress was made than on the previous day, and camp was pitched at
the deserted hamlet of Xoloc. The following day they proceeded toward
the Azaquemecan Mountains, and halted at the town Zacamolco.[871]
Observing a mysterious movement among the Indians on the slope, Cortés
set out with five horsemen and a dozen foot-soldiers to reconnoitre.
After skirting the mountain he came in sight of a large army,[872]
with a portion of which he came to close quarters, the fleet natives
having gained on the foot-soldiers in making the turn of the hill.
In the mêlée Cortés was badly wounded in the head.[873] He retreated
to camp and had the wound bandaged, and the forces were hurried away
from the town, which appeared too exposed for an attack. The Indians
pursued them so closely that two men were killed and a number wounded,
beside four or five horses. One of the animals died, and although the
troops deplored its loss, the meat proved acceptable, for roasted maize
with a little fruit had been their only food for several days.[874]
Camp appears to have been formed for the night in a hamlet among the
hills, the enemy being left on the opposite western slope of the range.
A serious encounter being apprehended the next day, additional crutches
and hammocks were prepared for those of the wounded who had hitherto
been carried on horseback, so as to leave the cavalry free in its
movements.[875] Before dawn on July 7th[876] the march was resumed,
in the hope of eluding the forces in the rear, little suspecting that
this was but a wing of the main body now preparing to surround them.
They had proceeded about a league, and were on the point of entering
the large plain of Otumba,[877] when the scouts came galloping back
with the information that the whole field was filled with warriors
in battle array. The hearts of the Spaniards sank within them. They
were hoping to escape an enemy such as this.[878] Cortés ordered a
halt, and with his captains talked over the situation. Retreat was
out of the question, and to turn aside would be useless. “We must
charge upon this host,” said Cortés; “we must make our path through
its very centre. Remember your dead comrades; remember your God;
comport yourselves like Christian soldiers, and this idolatrous horde
will melt before you like the morning mist.” He thereupon issued the
necessary instructions for charging and resisting, and for protecting
the disabled. The horsemen were to ride with loose rein, lancing at
the faces, so as to break the enemy’s lines, and open a path for the
infantry, who were to follow and thrust their sidearms at the bowels
of their assailants.[879]
Commending themselves to the virgin, and invoking the aid of Santiago,
the troops advanced and entered the plain, skirted on the east by
the lower ranges of the Tlaloc, which inclosed in the distance the
town of Otumba. The sight was as grand as it was terrifying. In every
direction were seemingly endless columns, with flowing plumage,
brilliant shields of varied designs, and above and beyond these a
forest of glittering iztli points. “It was the finest army Spaniards
ever encountered in the Indies,” exclaims Bernal Diaz. Their number
was legion, and the richness of their attire signified the presence
of the strength and nobility of the empire. The original estimate was
doubled, and that was increased fourfold, until, like Don Quixote’s
sheep, two hundred thousand seemed small. Aware of the route taken
and the destination of the Spaniards, Cuitlahuatzin had sent orders
to the caciques of Otumba, Teotihuacan, Calpulalpan, and adjoining
region, to mass their forces here and exterminate the intruders. This
order came most opportune, for at the time a fair was held at Otumba,
which attracted a large concourse, from which volunteers were readily
obtained for so laudable an object, represented not only as easy of
achievement, but as profitable from the spoils that were to follow.
A strong force from the lake region had come to form the nucleus of
the army, the command of which was assumed by Cihuacatzin, lord of
Teotihuacan.[880]
The sight of the sorry remnant of the Spanish army was greeted by
the native host with triumphant shouts, trumpet blasts, and the
clashing of weapons. Nothing should now prevent their escape; they
were doomed! Cautiously the Indians advanced to surround them; for
though the wounded and bedraggled band was small, it still looked
viperish. Like the French in Egypt the Mexicans might have said that
the centuries were looking down on them from the mystic towers of
Teotihuacan, consecrated to the sacred past. It was natural enough
for them to feel glad and proud; surely the invaders had brought
them misery enough to justify any return. But let them not forget
that there are still strong men, now nerved to desperation. And just
beyond the mountain fringe, toward which pointed their holy banner
of the cross, was a promised land, ‘the land of bread,’ and, as they
hoped, of trusty friends.
Cortés did not wait for them to advance too near before he made
a charge. With head and arm bandaged he led the cavalry, which in
parties of five rushed at the enemy, lancing straight at the face,
and opening a way for the infantry, which followed at a quick pace,
thrusting sword and pike as they had been directed.[881] This tactic
disconcerted the natives somewhat, and discarding their projectile
weapons the front ranks seized on lances, two-handed swords, and heavy
clubs, encouraging one another by shouting the names of their towns
and districts. After breaking the lines the horsemen turned to open
another path in the direction of the infantry, throwing the Indians
in a disorderly pressure one against the other, and keeping them in a
state of apprehension as to where the mounted avalanche would next roll
over them. Again the horsemen turned, dashing close along the flanks
of the troops, scattering the intermediate assailants in confusion,
and rendering them an easy prey to the foot-soldiers. Swift as the
wind the gallant Sandoval flew past, crying to his comrades: “We win
to-day, señores! We win to-day, God helping us!” María de Estrada was
likewise there, cheering onward the men, and sharing danger with the
foremost of the brave.
It would indeed seem to persons of less confidence than the Spaniards
that some supernatural power had been necessary on this day to deliver
them. Nor did the Tlascaltecs belie their fame as warriors, for they
fought like lions, as the soldier-chronicler declares, the chief
Calmecahua being particularly conspicuous for his bravery.[882]
For a while the horsemen had it all their own way, chiefly, as Cortés
observes, because the enemy consisted of such disorganized masses
as to prevent one another either from fighting or fleeing; but as
they became more used to the Spanish tactics they offered firmer
resistance. The horse of the general being so severely struck in
the mouth as to become unmanageable, Cortés dismounted and turned it
loose to seek another. The injured animal, seemingly imbued with its
master’s spirit, dashed at the enemy in mad career, creating quite a
panic in its course. The cavalry took advantage of the confusion to
follow, partly with a view to secure the animal; after regaining the
main body they indulged in a brief rest. The heat no less than the
fighting had tired out both men and horses; but there was for them
little respite, for no sooner had the foes observed their inaction
than they closed in round them with renewed courage. “Thrust well
and deep,” came the order to the soldiers, “for they are all chiefs!”
And so they seemed, from their rich dress, their elaborate devices,
and their glittering ornaments. Cortés now mounted a horse whose
viciousness had hitherto consigned him to the baggage department,[883]
and again the cavalry formed, this time in more compact order. But the
enemy, ever relieved by fresh men, maintained the firmness with which
they had begun the charge, and both horsemen and foot-soldiers found
the pressure becoming greater and the fight hotter. Thus the battle
continued during the greater part of the forenoon,[884] the natives
evidently as fresh as ever, and the Spaniards visibly failing. “We
thought surely that this was to be our last day,” writes Cortés, “in
view of the great strength of the Indians and the little resistance
they could find in us, tired as we were, and nearly all wounded, and
faint with hunger.”
A feeling of suffocation and deathly despair comes over the Spaniards
as the dusky host fold them in closer and yet fiercer embrace. Hot
falls the blood-reeking breath upon their faces, as, flushed with
success and sure of their victims, the foe lay hold of the Spaniards to
drag them away to the sacrifice. Rare offerings to the gods, indeed,
are these magnificent men! And such they will surely become if Mary,
Santiago, or the ready genius of Cortés appears not quickly to the
rescue! But how shall there be rescue? What rescue is there to the
sinking ship alone in mid-ocean? Can this Cortés for the release of
his comrades baffle death like Hercules for the release of Alcestis?
So it would seem. Behold yonder grand personage, borne aloft in open
litter, high over the others, with plumed head-dress, and above it
the gold-net standard, the _tlahuizmatlaxopilli_, set with precious
feathers, and secured to his back by a staff, according to custom.[885]
This is the generalissimo of all the native forces there gathered,
and around him are the flower of the army in feathered armor of rich
designs, guarding with zealous care the banner, and encouraging the
rest to renewed efforts and brave deeds. Cortés sees him, and his
purpose for weal or woe is fixed almost before his comrades are aware
of the chieftain’s approach; for he comes as captain of the hounds
to be in at the death of these Spanish foxes. Cortés is well aware
of the importance attached by natives to the person of the general,
and to the safe-keeping of the standard. In these centre all the
hope of their armies: success is theirs so long as they remain; but
once brought low, and the Indian regards all as lost. Even at this
juncture Cortés does not fail to observe the increased firmness and
spirit among the warriors as the banner approaches. Here, then, is
the one chance more, which is all the brave man asks. With a quick
motion to his mounted followers, pointing to the sacred insignia, and
as if he would throw the whole might of Spain into his brief words,
Cortés cries out: “Señores, let us break with them! In the name of
God and St Peter, señores, let us close with them!” Not a man there
but knew that the next moment would determine all, would determine
the fate of every Spaniard in New Spain.
Throwing themselves with the compact force of one of their own
cannon-balls against the heaving mass, they mow an instant path to
the charmed centre. The wave of disorder strikes the sacred guard,
while the unruly horse of Cortés, bearing him unresistingly onward,
overturns the litter of the generalissimo, and hurls the bearers to
the ground. “Victory!” shouts Cortés, when he recovers his breath; and
“victory! victory!” echo his people, while Juan de Salamanca plunges
his lance into the body of the prostrate chief, and seizing the sacred
banner, presents it to the general as his rightful trophy.[886]
The welcome cry of Cortés electrified the whole Spanish line, while
the warriors lately so triumphant stood stupefied with dismay. With
the disappearance of the palladium their courage had fallen, while
the Spanish soldiers, with the confidence and strength of joy, rushed
from wing to wing upon them. The warriors wavered; then, with one more
searching glance in the direction of the guiding emblem, they became
convinced that their leader had indeed fallen. Consternation followed;
the panic from the centre overtook the more distant, and valiantly
as they had fought before, as cravenly did they now flee.[887]
Forgetful of wounds and hunger, and regardless of the imminent danger
attending such a course, the Spaniards pursued the foolish fugitives,
thrusting and slashing at them until they had killed twenty thousand—a
round figure, truly, and one which accords well with the estimates
of the entire force. But after all, what the natives had hitherto
suffered must have been little compared with the present slaughter,
for their dead lay very thick along the line of retreat. Hardly one
among the Spaniards had come off scathless, while few of the poor
Tlascaltecs were left to share in the rich spoils.[888]
After recalling the troops from their bloody pursuit, the first care of
Cortés was to see that the wounded soldiers had rest and refreshment.
Then a solemn thanksgiving service was held, and right earnestly
did they all join in its offering. Cortés ascribed the victory to
St Peter, as with his name on his lips he had made the miraculous
charge. But Santiago was the soldiers’ favorite, as they declared he
was present and fought with them; and near the village of Tenexcalco
a chapel was afterward erected to commemorate his appearance.[889]
Obviously this battle was the most important so far in the New World;
and it must ever be regarded as one of the most remarkable in history.
The natives were probably much less numerous than the estimates of the
boastful victors; still they were immensely superior in number and
condition to the Spaniards, enfeebled by recent defeat, by wounds,
and want. Further, the latter had no fire-arms wherewith to terrify
the natives, only swords and pikes. Their main advantage lay in their
horses, their discipline, and the genius of their leader;[890] all
strengthened by the enthusiasm born of a national pride, and a certain
knowledge that failure meant utter destruction.
Fatigued as all were, and weakened from battle, Cortés resolved
nevertheless to push on toward Tlascala the same day, fearing that the
enemy might be shamed into a rally, or receive such reinforcements to
their already immense numbers as to encourage them to return. In this
he was not mistaken, for Cuitlahuatzin had ordered Tezcuco, Chalco, and
neighboring districts to send larger forces, and so insure an assumed
victory for the Otumban army. The reinforcements appear to have been
already in motion when news came of the defeat, accompanied by the
rumor that a Tlascaltec army was on the way to aid the Spaniards. The
hasty march eastward of the fugitives offered in itself sufficient
encouragement for straggling marauders from the surrounding villages
to follow in their wake and harass them with occasional missiles.[891]
By night the town of Temalacayocan[892] was reached, and here the
army obtained some food and camped in and around the temple. Badly
wounded as he was, Cortés took charge of the watch, for sleep had no
power over his mind at that moment. Before him rose invitingly the
ranges of the Tlascaltec border, where he hoped to find a haven. It
was only hope, however; for Cortés came not as before, heralded as the
invincible conqueror, to whose bravery and deeds the warlike republic
was delighted to offer homage; nor with the vision of the mighty
Montezuma bending before him; nor with the prospect of entering to
assume control of a great empire. All this was changed. He had lost
his former prestige, and could present himself only as a fugitive to
seek protection for a remnant of his army. And this at the hands of
those who might yet smart under the stigma of defeat by a handful,
and who might now find it prudent and convenient to accept the
friendship and wealth of the victorious Aztecs. What if the people
of Tlascala should reject him? “We were not very confident in finding
the natives of the said province faithful and friends of ours,” writes
Cortés; “for we feared that they, on seeing us so dismembered, might
seek our lives, in order to recover the liberty which they formerly
enjoyed. This thought and fear kept us in as great an affliction as
when we marched along harassed by those of Culúa.”[893] Nevertheless
he sought to cheer his men with hopes for the best, and to remind
them how necessary it was, now above all, to guard their conduct
so as to give rise to no jealousies or unpleasantness, since even a
petty quarrel might raise a whirlwind to overwhelm them. Should God,
however, not permit them to rest in Tlascala, they must recall their
many glorious victories over greater forces than could henceforth be
brought against them, and be prepared with stout hearts and vigorous
arms to meet the issue.
The march was resumed in the morning with the usual precautions,
although the pursuers fell off as the border was approached. Soon
the Spaniards reached a fountain on the slope of a hill, close to
an ancient fortress, which marked the boundary of the republic.[894]
Resting there for a while, they drank of the water and were refreshed.
Then they passed on to Hueyotlipan, a town of three or four thousand
families, about four leagues from the capital.[895] Here food was
obtained in sufficient abundance, yet not without the stimulus of
presents. The women, however, were most sympathetic in their offers
to tend the wounded, although only too many were deep in mourning
and clamoring for vengeance for brothers, sons, or husbands, who had
fallen during the retreat. The captains did their best to console them
with the prospect of speedy victories, with bitter retaliation on the
hated Aztecs. Whatever doubt yet remained of Tlascaltec disposition was
dispelled in the afternoon by the arrival of the lords, including the
ruler of Huexotzinco, with a large suite, bearing provisions and other
presents, and cheering the hearts of the discomfited with the most
cordial greeting. They still showed admiration for the white heroes,
and extended a sympathy for their sufferings which displayed itself
even to tears. This feeling was particularly strong in Maxixcatzin,
the most powerful of the four chiefs, who gently upbraided Cortés and
his captains for not having listened to his warnings. Remonstrances
were now out of place, however, and he and his could only bid them
welcome, and tender their estates and services. They were to regard
themselves as in their own house. Their escape from the plots and
overwhelming forces of the Mexicans had raised them and their prowess
in the estimation of the Tlascaltecs, and they were prepared, as
friends and as vassals of the Spanish king, to shed their last drop
of blood in the task of avenging the common injury suffered at the
hands of their ancient enemies. How inexpressibly dear is the prospect
of revenge! The hatred of the Tlascaltecs for the Mexicans was too
deep to be smothered by one reverse, and the desire to avenge their
fallen brethren intensified it. When the news came of the hostile
gathering at Otumba they had endeavored to procure reinforcements for
their allies, but had not been able to collect a sufficient number
in time.[896]
Cortés was deeply moved by the kind expressions and offers accorded
him, and sought in every way to strengthen this so vital friendship.
He exhibited profound grief over the death of so many Tlascaltec
allies, and sympathized in particular with Maxixcatzin over the loss
of his daughter Elvira, who had fallen with her husband Velazquez.
He also distributed presents, chiefly such as had been obtained from
the Otumba battle-field, and induced his men to follow the example.
Maxixcatzin’s heart was completely won by the gift of the banner
taken from the Mexican generalissimo,[897] and other chiefs were
gladdened with different trophies. The troops remained at Hueyotlipan
for three days,[898] in order to recruit somewhat, and then, assisted
by a number of carriers, they passed on to the capital. Here the
whole population came forth, headed by the lords, to welcome them,
with music, and flowers, and acclamations.[899] Cortés was taken in
charge by Maxixcatzin and lodged in his palace; Alvarado became the
guest of old Xicotencatl, and the others received every attention.
The reception concluded with a series of festivities.[900]
FOOTNOTES
[845] ‘Esto despues lo declararon los mismos Indios.’
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 143. Nor do they omit
the ever recurring story of the virgin image casting dust
into the eyes of the pursuers.
[846] The Tlascaltec and Cempoalan bodies were thrown among
the reeds, and the Spanish into deeper water. _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 126-7.
[847] Duran and Ixtlilxochitl make the murders take place
in the Spanish quarters, as we have seen. Sahagun permits
two of Montezuma’s sons to fall between the last channel
and Popotla, while guiding the fugitives. _Hist. Conq._,
33 (ed. 1840), 122. Gomara assumes also that the pursuers
may have been content with the injury inflicted, or cared
not to renew the fight on more open ground. _Hist. Mex._,
161. Solis attributes the respite wholly to the discovery
of the bodies. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 185-6.
[848] ‘Llegado á la dicha ciudad de Tacuba, hallé toda la
gente remolinada en una plaza, que no sabían dónde ir.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 136. ‘Hasta cerca de Tlacupan hasta un
lugar que se llama _Tilihucan_.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._,
33. ‘Tacuba ... is at the present day chiefly noted for the
large and noble church which was erected there by Cortez.’
_Latrobe’s Rambler_, 128.
[849] Gomara assumes that the Tlacopan people were not
aware of the broken condition of the troops. Now they
joined the 40,000 Mexicans who had set forth prepared for
pursuit. _Hist. Mex._, 161. ‘Yà auian venido de Mexico....
dar mandado a Tacuba, y a Escapuçalco, y a Tenayuca, para
que nos saliessen al encuentro.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 106. The Mexicans were disgusted with those of
Tlacopan for their neglect. _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x.
cap. xii.
[850] ‘Un Angel de Guarda, ó San Pedro, como otros quieren,
ó Santiago Apostol,’ observes the enthusiastic Lorenzana. _Cortés_,
_Hist. N. España_, 145.
[851] ‘Totolpec.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 302;
Toltotepec is Vetancurt’s misspelling. ‘Cerro llamado de
Muteczuma.’ _Lorenzana_, ubi sup.
[852] ‘Una torre y aposento fuerte.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
136. ‘Vnas caserias q̄ en vn cerro estauan, y alli jũto a vn
Cu, e adoratorio, y como fortaleza.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 107. ‘A este templo llamaron de la Vitoria, y
despues nuestra Señora de los remedios.’ _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. x. cap. xii. Sahagun calls the rise Acueco, and
places upon it the Otomí village of Otoncapulco. _Hist.
Conq._ (ed. 1840), 122. Vetancurt follows, _Teatro Mex._,
pt. iii. 143, while Camargo calls it Tzacuyocan. The
variations in Sahagun’s editions lead Torquemada to say that
the Spaniards moved the same day from Otoncalpulco pueblo
to Acueco, an Otomí village, i. 504-5. This, Brasseur de
Bourbourg follows. The Spaniards may have passed through it
on departing, but would hardly move from a stronghold to a
probably open village while surrounded by enemies. If food
was the object, the able-bodied soldiers would have made a
sally for it. It appears that the army camped for the night
on the hill now occupied by the Remedios shrine, and in the
fortress-like temple, to which a small village was attached.
Alzate, however, who took pains to inquire into the subject,
found that the natives applied the name Otoncapulco, not
to the Remedios hill, but to the mountain, three fourths
of a league off. On this mountain he found the ruins of a
strong building, and none on the hill, whence he assumes
that the camp was not made on the site of the shrine, but
on the mountain. _Gacetas de Lit._, ii. 457-9. Bustamante
accepts this view, but Archbishop Lorenzana, whose testimony in the
matter must be reliable, says: ‘Se conservan aun algunos
vestigios de la antigua Fortaleza, y esta se ha convertido
dichosamente en el célebre Santuario de N. Sra. de los
Remedios.’ _Cortés_, _Hist. N. España_, p. xiii. He also
intimates that the Otoncapulco name is misapplied. Hence it
may be assumed that the common application of Otoncapulco
to this hill is due to a misinterpretation of Sahagun’s
versions, which have been greatly tampered with, for that
matter, and that the ruins mentioned by Lorenzana had disappeared
by the time Alzate examined the place.
[853] _Cartas_, 136; _Cabrera_, _Escudo Armas_, 110. ‘Aqui se
señalò mucho Gonçalo Dominguez, hombre diestro y valiente.’
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xii. Prescott makes several
blunders and omissions in connection with this day.
[854] A few stragglers managed to reach the camp, and
among them one Sopuerta, who had escaped death by feigning
it. _Herrera_, ubi sup. Sahagun states that Otomís from
Teucalhuican, and from the immediate neighborhood, no doubt,
brought food, and invited the Spaniards to the former town,
a few leagues from there. _Hist. Conq._, 33. Torquemada
follows him, but the story is probably an exaggeration.
[855] It has been shown previously, by testimony not
accessible till later years, that the image placed in
the great temple was a picture on a tablet, while that of
Remedios is a doll. But, of course, the image that could
move through the air could also transform its shape. Bernal
Diaz assumes, as we have seen, that Montezuma had ordered
the image to be cared for; yet many believe that Rodriguez
secured it before or after the massacre, while the more
pious prefer to suppose that he could not find it, for want
of time, perhaps, and that it moved miraculously to the
camp. _Acosta_, _Hist. Ind._, 524; _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist.
Chich._, 302. After the departure of the troops the image
hid itself on the spot, or Rodriguez, tired of the burden
which had saved his life, ungratefully left it there. It
is also supposed to have been carried to Tlascala ere it
reappeared on its later site. _Cabrera_, _Escudo Armas_,
106 et seq.; _Alaman_, _Disert._, i. 122. Lorenzana accepts
it as the image from Mexico’s temple. _Cortés_, _Hist. N.
España_, 138.
[856] It has frequently been brought to Mexico, and is
still brought to avert epidemics and other ills, to bring
rain or other blessings. When detained it would travel
back of its own accord to the shrine, a proof of which was
afforded by the travel stains on the dress. One rainy night
it arrived covered with mud. _Latrobe’s Rambler_, 133.
Thompson describes it as ‘a little alabaster doll, with the
nose broken, and the eye out ... about eight inches high.’
Her wardrobe and jewels are valued at over $1,000,000.
_Recollections_, 103-9. He gives an account of the veneration
for the image and its miraculous power. The history of its
origin and worship is to be found in a multitude of books,
among which may be mentioned, _Medina_, _Chrón. S. Diego
Mex._, 30 et seq.; _Cabrera_, _Escudo Armas_, 106 et seq.;
_Bustamante_, _Mem. Piedad Mex._, 1-52.
[857] Cortés prudently limits, and we must add untruthfully,
the loss to 150 soldiers and some 2000 allies. It is with
a view to this estimate that he reduced the force brought
into Mexico to 570 men, to which must be added the 140
composing the garrison. Deducting the 150 lost, 560 remain,
and since he would hardly overestimate the number, for
obvious reasons, this figure is probably near the truth.
Bernal Diaz musters 1300 at Tlascala, and has 80 at Mexico.
Deducting from this 800 men stated to have been lost before
entering Tlascala, not counting those who fell in other
provinces, leaves about 580; yet he acknowledges only
440 alive. _Hist. Verdad._, 108 et seq. Herrera is also
contradictory, admitting in one place 500, and in another
‘less than’ 400 soldiers and 600 allies. Oviedo reduces the
soldiers to 340. iii. 513. Vetancurt adopts Bernal Diaz’
440 soldiers and Herrera’s 600 allies. Prescott hastily
declares Gomara as nearest to the truth, yet he departs from
him in the result. With regard to the allies, he reckons
the full number of all who were brought to Mexico, while it
is pretty obvious, from figures and facts, that a portion
must have been allowed to return home during the inaction
of the emperor’s captivity. The list of losses, as given
by different authorities, stands as follows: 150 soldiers,
over 2000 allies, _Cortés_; over 200 soldiers, over 2000
allies, _Lejalde_, _Probanza_; nearly 200 soldiers, over
1000 allies, _Solis_; 300 soldiers, over 2000 allies, at
one bridge, _Sahagun_, 122; 450 soldiers, 4000 allies,
_Gomara_, followed by Ixtlilxochitl, Clavigero, Camargo,
and others; over 500 soldiers in all New Spain, _Carta del
Ejército_; over 600 soldiers, _Robertson_; over 600 soldiers,
_B. V. de Tapia_, in _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_,
38; 800 soldiers in all New Spain, _Cortés_, _Residencia_,
i. 42; 870 soldiers in all New Spain, _Bernal Diaz_; 1170
soldiers, 8000 allies, _Cano_, in _Oviedo_, iii. 551.
[858] The loss in horses varies from 45, in _Cortés_, to
56, in _Lejalde_, _Probanza_, both acknowledging 24 left.
[859] ‘Perdidose todo el oro y joyas y ropa,’ etc. _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 135. It had been confided to Tlascaltecs, and was
nearly all lost, says their chief. _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._,
169-70. The officers testified afterward before public
notary: ‘Se perdió todo el dicho oro é joyas de SS. AA., é
mataron la yegua que lo traia.’ _Lejalde_, _Probanza_, in
_Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 425. Two witnesses during the
residencia of Cortés stated that the general had two mares,
one given to carry the royal treasures and the other laden
with his own. The latter being lost, he claimed the other
to be his, and in this manner appropriated 45,000 pesos or
more which belonged to the king. _Cortés_, _Residencia_,
i. 69, 101-2. Not long after the retreat he called on all
to declare, under penalty, what gold they had saved of that
taken from the unappropriated piles. From those who did so
the treasures were taken, although it was understood that
they had been given to them. All this Cortés kept. _Id._,
101-2, 241-2; ii. 402. Many refused to surrender, and since
the leaders had also secured shares from the common pile,
the order to reveal possession thereof was not enforced,
says Bernal Diaz. He adds that one third was to be retained
by the possessor as a reward. Cortés kept as a forced loan
what had been surrendered. _Hist. Verdad._, 117-18. The
loss of treasure, that thrown away by carriers and pressed
soldiers, or sunken with their bodies, has been estimated at
from several hundred thousand pesos to over two millions,
in the values of that time; to which Wilson sarcastically
objects, that ‘nothing was really lost but the _imaginary
treasure_, now grown inconveniently large, and which had
to be accounted for to the emperor. The _Conquistador_ was
too good a soldier to hazard his gold; it was therefore in
the advance, and came safely off.’ _Conq. Mex._, 412-13.
[860] ‘Si esta cosa fuera de dia, por ventura no murieran
tantos,’ adds Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 161. While grieving he
recognized ‘el manifiesto milagro que la reyna de los angeles
su abogada, el apostol San Pedro, y el de los egércitos
Españoles Santiago, habian hecho en haberse escapado él.’
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 302. Vetancurt moralizes on
the flight as a chastisement by God, who saved the remnant
to spread the faith. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 145-6.
[861] On a later page Bernal Diaz says he fell at Otumba.
_Hist. Verdad._, 107, 246.
[862] Herrera attempts to save somewhat the reputation of
the astrologer by the statement that he prophesied death
for himself or his brother.
[863] Every one, say Cortés and Herrera; but Ixtlilxochitl
states that one sister of King Cacama was saved, and he
intimates that one or two of his brothers also escaped.
He is contradictory, however. _Hist. Chich._, 302, 390.
The one who escaped must have been Cuicuitzcatl, the newly
made king of Tezcuco. Brasseur de Bourbourg adds two of
his brothers, probably from misinterpreting Ixtlilxochitl.
_Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 339.
[864] Ixtlilxochitl names some of the chiefs to whom these
offers were made. _Hist. Chich._, 302.
[865] Ávila, a veritable martinet, maimed a soldier with
a blow for stepping from the ranks to pluck some fruit.
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xii. The same story has
been told of Ávila in Cempoala.
[866] Cortés allows the five scouts to defeat the enemy,
who are frightened by the supposition that a larger force
is upon them. _Cartas_, 137. Herrera is more explicit
with regard to the ambuscade, and makes Ordaz lead up the
reinforcements. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xii.
[867] ‘Mas no cenar.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 162. Sahagun
states, however, that this was the town to which the Otomís
had on the preceding day invited them, chiefly because
they were related to the Otomís of the Tlascaltec division
under Cortés. _Hist. Conq._, 34-5. A risky proceeding,
if true, for an isolated community, on whom might fall
the vengeance of the hostile Mexicans. In the account of
the route followed to Tlascala Cortés is still the best
guide, for he not only kept a record, but wrote his report
while the occurrences were yet fresh. He is wanting in
details, however, and fails to give names to localities.
These omissions are remedied by Sahagun, who now seems
more reliable. Other authors are vague or misleading for
the route, but the occasional incidents told by them are
noteworthy. Bernal Diaz indicates only one stopping place,
Quauhtitlan evidently, before Otumba is reached. Camargo
skips to a place adjoining Otumba, and Ixtlilxochitl takes
the army to Quauhximalpan, a place which modern maps locate
south of Remedios. He resumes the northern route, but names
some towns that cannot be identified. Gomara adheres pretty
well to Cortés, but his commentator, Chimalpain, supplies
names for places, which differ from Sahagun and indicate a
deviation from the extreme northern course, as will be seen.
Torquemada follows chiefly Sahagun, whom he recommends.
Orozco y Berra has closely studied the journey, and throws
much light on it, more so than any other writer; yet his
conclusions are not always satisfactory. _Itinerario del
Ejercito Español_, in _Mex. Not. Ciudad._, 246 et seq. I have
already spoken at length, in _Native Races_, iii. 231-6,
on the life and writings of Father Sahagun, and will here
refer only to the twelfth book of his _Historia General_,
inserted by Bustamante, at the beginning of the set, under
the title of _Historia de la Conquista de Mexico_. This
copy is from one found by Muñoz in the Franciscan convent
of Tolosa, in Navarre. Another copy of the twelfth book,
in possession of Conde de Cortina, claimed as the true
original, was published separately by the same editor, at
Mexico, 1840, with lengthy notes from Clavigero and other
writers to complete the chain of events, and to comment on
the suppression in the former issue of statements concerning
Spanish misdeeds. It has also an additional chapter. Neither
copy, however, corresponds quite to that used by Torquemada,
who in more than one instance quotes passages that are
startling compared with the modified expressions in the
others. The severity of the friar toward Spanish conquerors
was no doubt a strong reason for the suppression of his
work. The twelfth book begins with Grijalva’s arrival and
the omens preceding it, and carries the narrative of the
conquest down to the fall of Mexico. According to his own
statement, on page 132, it is founded to a great extent on
the relations given him by eye-witnesses, soldiers who had
assumed the Franciscan robe and associated daily with the
friar; but much is adopted, with little or no critique,
from superstitious natives, the whole forming a rather
confusing medley, so that it is difficult to extract the
many valuable points which it contains. This difficulty is,
of course, not encountered by such followers as Bustamante
and Brasseur de Bourbourg, and similar supporters of native
records or anti-Spanish versions.
In the _Native Races_ I give the traits which characterize
the French abbé and his famous works on Central American
culture and antiquities, and it remains only to refer
briefly to his version of the conquest, comprised in the
fourth volume of the _Histoire des Nations Civilisées_.
His pleasing style lends attraction to every page, but his
faults become more conspicuous from the comparison presented
by a vast array of authorities, revealing the indiscreet
and enthusiastic readiness to accept native tales, or
anything that favors the hypotheses by which he is ruled,
and in the disposition to build magnificent structures on
airy foundation. His version, indeed, strives rather to
narrate the conquest from a native standpoint, and to use
Spanish chronicles only as supplementary authority. To
this end he relies chiefly on the now well known writings
of Sahagun, Ixtlilxochitl, Camargo, and Torquemada, and it
is but rarely that he is able to quote the often startling
original manuscripts possessed only by himself.
[868] ‘Mordiendo la tierra, arrancando yeruas, y alçãdo los
ojos al cielo, dezian, dioses no nos desampareys en este
peligro, pues teneys poder sobre todos los hombres, hazed
que con vuestra ayuda salgamos del.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. xii.
[869] Herrera conforms to Cortés and Gomara in admitting a
stay of two nights at one place, but makes this Tecopatlan,
called ‘duck town,’ from its many fowl. This is evidently
Tepotzotlan. But it was not near the lake like Citlaltepec,
and ‘duck town’ applies rather to a lake town, in this
region, at least. Cortés also writes, in _Cartas_, 137,
‘fuimos aquel dia por cerca de unas lagunas hasta que
llegamos á una poblacion,’ and this does not apply well
to Tepotzotlan, which lies a goodly distance from the
lakes, requiring certainly no march along ‘some’ lakes to
reach it. Hence the Citlaltepec of Sahagun must be meant.
This author, however, supposes the Spaniards to stay one
night at each place. _Hist. Conq._, 36 (ed. 1840), 129.
Ixtlilxochitl calls the place after Tepotzotlan, Aychqualco.
_Hist. Chich._, 302. At Tepotzotlan, says Vetancurt, some
of the people remained to receive the Spaniards—this is
in accordance with one of Sahagun’s versions—and here
remained to hide the son of Montezuma, whom he supposes to
have escaped with the troops. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 144.
According to Chimalpain’s interpretation the Spaniards stay
the two nights at Quauhtitlan, and thence proceed by way of
Ecatepec, now San Cristóbal, skirting the northern shore of
Tezcuco Lake, and on to Otumba. _Hist. Conq._, i. 304-5.
This route certainly appears the most direct, but there
is no authority for it. The sentence from Cortés might no
doubt be adopted equally well for this road; but Sahagun,
Ixtlilxochitl, and Herrera name towns which lie east and
north of the Zumpango Lake, and during the rainy season
now prevailing the passages between the lakes were rather
swampy. Tezcuco was beside too close for the fleeing army.
Alaman accepts the route south of Zumpango, _Disert._, i.
122, against which nearly all the above reasons apply.
[870] ‘Nos convenia ir muchas veces fuera de camino.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 138. Owing to the guide’s inefficiency,
adds Gomara, _Hist. Mex._, 162.
[871] Sahagun also calls the mountain, or the slope, Tona.
His confusing versions sometimes reverse all the names.
Cortés places it two leagues from the last camp.
[872] ‘Detrás dél [hill] estaba una gran ciudad de mucha
gente.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 138. Zacamolco is also called a
large town. There could hardly be two large towns so close
together in a district like this, so that the other must
have been Teotihuacan, ‘city of the gods,’ with its ancient
and lofty pyramids, sacred to all Anáhuac, and one of the
chief centres of pilgrimage. For description of ruins, see
_Native Races_, iv. 529-44.
[873] ‘Con un golpe de piedra en la cabeza tan violento,
que abollando las armas, le rompió la primera tunica del
cerebro.’ So Solis defines the wound, which afterward grew
dangerous. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 203. He supposes that it was
received at Otumba.
[874] ‘Le comieron sin dexar [como dizen] pelo ni huesso.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 162. ‘La cabeza cupo a siete o
ocho.’ The horse was Gamboa’s, on which Alvarado was saved
after his leap. _Herrera_, ii. x. xii.; _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 107. Ixtlilxochitl says that Zinacatzin,
of Teotihuacan, killed it—he whom we shall find leading
the enemy on the morrow.
[875] ‘Y pareció que el Espíritu Santo me alumbró con este
aviso,’ exclaims Cortés, _Cartas_, 139. Many a soldier
carried a comrade on his back. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 163.
[876] According to Cortés, whose dates I have already shown
to be reliable. He makes it a Saturday. Prescott makes it
the 8th, a mistake which has been copied by several writers,
including Brasseur de Bourbourg and Carbajal Espinosa.
[877] ‘Llanos de la provincia de Otupam.’ The battle taking
place near Metepec. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 302-3.
Plain of Otumpan, also called Atztaquemecan. _Camargo_,
_Hist. Tlax._, 170. ‘Los Llanos de Apan.’ ‘El Valle de
Otumba.’ _Lorenzana_, in _Cortés_, _Hist. N. España_, xiv.
148. Clavigero calls it the plain of Tonan, derived from
Sahagun, who applies the name to the slope of the range
bordering it.
[878] Following the intimation given by Sahagun, Torquemada
states that the enemy came pouring in from rear and sides
to surround the troops, i. 508.
[879] While they were halting, writes Ojeda, a big Indian
with club and shield advanced to challenge any Spaniard to
single combat. Ojeda responded, but in advancing against
the man his negro slave followed him, and either the sight
of two frightened the native or he sought to decoy them,
for he retreated into a copse. _Herrera_, ii. x. xiii.
[880] _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 171-2; _Torquemada_, i.
509. Ixtlilxochitl spells the name Zihuatcatlzin, and
Oviedo calls it Xiaquetenga, based probably on that of the
Tlascaltec chief. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 480. ‘La
flor de Mexico, y de Tezcuco, y Saltocan.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 108.
[881] Solis clears the way with volleys, but only seven
muskets remained and no ammunition.
[882] Camargo states that he lived to an age exceeding 130
years. Heroes in all ages have enjoyed the privilege of
not being tied down to laws governing ordinary mortals.
[883] An ill-natured brute, which attacked the enemy
with teeth and hoofs. He did good service all through the
following campaign, till he fell in one of the last battles
of the great siege. _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 172.
[884] ‘Duró este terrible conflicto por mas de cuatro
horas.... Llegado el medio dia, con el intolerable trabajo
de la pelea, los españoles comenzaron á desmayar.’ _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 132.
[885] ‘En vnas Andas, vn Caballero mandando, con vna
Rodela Dorada, y que la Vandera, y Señal Real, que le
salia por las Espaldas, era vna Red de Oro, que los Indios
llamaban Tlahuizmatlaxopilli, que le subia diez palmos.’
_Torquemada_, i. 509. ‘Su vandera tendida, con ricas armas
de oro, y grandes penachos de argenteria.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 108. Ixtlilxochitl calls the gold net
_matlaxopili_. _Hist. Chich._, 303. Camargo more correctly
agrees with Torquemada.
[886] The accounts of this incident vary greatly. According
to Bernal Diaz ‘Cortes dió vn encuẽtro cõ el cauallo al
Capitã Mexicano, hizo abatir su vãdera ... quiẽ siguiò
al Capitan q̄ traia la vandera que aun no auia caido del
encuentro que Cortes le diò, fue vn Juan de Salamanca,
natural de Ontiueros, con vna buena yegua ouera, que le
acabò de matar.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 108. The banner could
not have fallen without the general. Gomara intimates that
Cortés charged alone against the ‘capitan general, y diole
dos lançadas, de que cayo y murio.’ _Hist. Mex._, 163.
This is also substantially the view of Duran and Camargo.
Herrera leaves the impression that Salamanca alone follows
Cortés in the charge, and cuts off the head and banner of
the commander after his chief had wounded and overthrown
him. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xiii. Torquemada, Clavigero,
Prescott, and others, also assume that Cortés lances the
generalissimo, but they let the cavalry follow. Sahagun, who
obtained his information from participants that afterward
became friars, merely states that Cortés and one other led
the charge, which resulted in the overthrow of the general
and his banner. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 132. Cortés
is still more reticent in saying: ‘quiso Dios que murió
una persona dellos, que debia ser tan principal, que con
su muerte cesó toda aquella guerra.’ _Cartas_, 139. The
assumption that Cortés overthrew the commander with his
lance rests chiefly on the fact that Cortés as leader of
the charge receives credit for everything that happens.
Writers also forget that the commander was carried aloft in
a litter the better to observe the movements of the army.
His burdened carriers would with greater likelihood have
been overthrown by the horses or in the disorder created
by their advance. This supposition is confirmed by Cortés’
reference to the affair, wherein he gives credit to none
for the act, his usual custom when some one else performed
a noteworthy deed. He was seldom chary in giving credit to
himself for achievements, as may be gathered alone from his
account of the stay in Mexico City, which announces that
he it was who tore down the idols, who captured the temple
after another had failed to do so, who single-handed covered
the retreat of his comrades on the Tlacopan causeway on
the morning preceding the flight, and who with less than a
score that ‘dared stay with him’ protected the retreat of
the last remnant from the city. The supposition receives
further support from the permission given by the emperor to
Salamanca to add to his escutcheon the trophy taken from
the commander. This implies that although the victory was
due to Cortés he could not have inflicted the mortal wound.
Salamanca became alcalde mayor of Goazacoalco. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 108, 111.
[887] ‘Los principales, lleuarõ cõ grã llanto, el cuerpo de
su general,’ says Herrera; but this is doubtful, to judge
also from his subsequent observations.
[888] ‘Murieron ... casi todos los amigos de los españoles,
y algunos de ellos mismos.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed.
1840), 132. Solis acknowledges only wounded, of whom two
or three died afterward. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 203. Cortés did
not escape additional wounds, from which he was soon to
suffer intensely.
[889] The natives were particularly ready to testify to
this supernatural aid, as Camargo relates, _Hist. Tlax._,
172, perhaps for their own credit, as good converts and
brave warriors.
[890] ‘Never,’ writes Gomara, ‘did a man show such prowess as
he, and never were men so well led. He by his own personal
efforts saved them.’ _Hist. Mex._, 163. ‘Se tuuo la vitoria
despues de Dios, por el valor de Cortés.’ _Herrera_, dec.
ii. lib. x. cap. xiii. While quite prepared to uphold the
general as a hero, Bernal Diaz takes exception to this
praise as unjust to his many followers, who not only did
wonders in sustaining him, but in saving his life. _Hist.
Verdad._, 111.
[891] Ixtlilxochitl assumes that another army was encountered
and routed with great slaughter, a few leagues ahead, at
Teyocan. _Hist. Chich._, 303.
[892] _Ixtlilxochitl._ Chimalpain calls it Apam, which
appears to have been situated farther north. Lorenzana
refers to all this extent as the plains of Apan, the name
which it now bears. Camargo names the plains of Apantema,
Tacacatitlan, and Atlmoloyan as traversed by the army to
reach Tlascala. _Hist. Tlax._, 172.
[893] _Cartas_, 140. ‘Pues quizà sabiamos cierto, que nos
auian de ser leales, ò que voluntad ternian.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 108.
[894] Brasseur de Bourbourg gives to a village here
the name of Xaltelolco. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 352.
Ixtlilxochitl refers to it as Huexoyotlipan, and states
that Citlalquiauhtzin came up with food and presents from
the lords.
[895] Cortés calls the town Gualipan; Bernal Diaz, Gualiopar;
Gomara, Huazilipan; Herrera gives it 2000 houses.
[896] ‘Yo queria,’ said Maxixcatzin, ‘yr en vuestra busca
con treynta mil guerreros.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
109. This is confirmed by the Aztec version of Duran, which
says that the rumor of Tlascaltec preparations helped to
intimidate the proposed Mexican reinforcements for Otumba.
_Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 483. According to Oviedo, 50,000
warriors, followed by 20,000 carriers, met the Spaniards
at the frontier, iii. 514. Camargo extends the number to
200,000, ‘who came too late, but served nevertheless to
check pursuit from the enemy.’ _Hist. Tlax._, 173. Gomara
stamps Oviedo’s statement as hearsay, but adds that the
Tlascaltecs declared themselves prepared to return with
the Spaniards at once against Mexico. This Cortés declined
to do for the present, but allowed a few soldiers to join
a band in pursuit of marauding stragglers. _Hist. Mex._,
164. The delay in collecting the proposed reinforcements
may have been due to the small faction hostile to the
Spaniards, headed by the captain-general, Xicotencatl the
younger, who seems never to have forgiven the disgrace of
defeat which they had been the first to inflict upon him. He
had accompanied the lords to Hueyotlipan, perhaps to gloat
over the misfortune of his victors. According to Herrera,
Captain Juan Paez—Torquemada writes Perez—was one of the
invalids at Tlascala, and to him 100,000 warriors had been
offered to go to the aid of his general; but he declined,
on the ground that his strict orders were to remain with
his 80 men at Tlascala. For this he was naturally upbraided
by Cortés as a coward, fit for hanging. The story is not
very probable. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xiv,; _Torquemada_,
i. 512.
[897] ‘Que estimó él mucho, y puso por una de sus armas.’
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 303.
[898] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 140. Bernal Diaz intimates one day.
[899] ‘Cõ mas de duzientos mil hombres en orden: yuan las
mugeres, y niños, en la delantera.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. xiii. This order may have been intended to
signify peace and welcome.
[900] Camargo differs from Bernal Diaz, in intimating that
all were lodged in Maxixcatzin’s palace, while Ixtlilxochitl
assumes that Cortés was the guest of Xicotencatl. ‘Magiscacin
me trajo una cama de madera encajada, con alguna ropa ... y
á todos hizo reparar de lo que él tuvo.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
141.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
INVALUABLE FRIENDSHIP.
JULY-SEPTEMBER, 1520.
DIVERS DISASTERS TO THE SPANIARDS—MEXICO MAKES OVERTURES
TO TLASCALA—A COUNCIL HELD—TLASCALA REMAINS TRUE TO THE
SPANIARDS—DISAFFECTION IN THE SPANISH ARMY—CORTÉS AGAIN
WINS THE SOLDIERS TO HIS VIEWS—RENEWAL OF ACTIVE OPERATIONS
AGAINST THE AZTECS—SUCCESS OF THE SPANISH ARMS—LARGE
REINFORCEMENTS OF NATIVE ALLIES—ONE AZTEC STRONGHOLD AFTER
ANOTHER SUCCUMBS.
At Tlascala were certain invalid Spaniards, who praised the natives for
their kind treatment, and for the almost universal sympathy exhibited
with regard to the misfortunes at Mexico. The army now learned
that disaster had also befallen the Spaniards in other parts of the
country. The news of the flight had spread with marvellous rapidity,
and Cuitlahuatzin’s envoys had not failed to magnify the successes
of his arms while urging throughout the country the extermination of
the invaders. This advice had found ready acceptance in the provinces
west and south of Tlascala, which had additional reasons for hostility
in the assumption of the little republic since she became the ally
of the strangers.
Shortly after the departure of the army from the coast a party of
fifty men with five horses had followed with baggage and valuables. At
Tlascala a portion of them, with two horses, under Juan de Alcántara
senior, received the portion of treasure set aside during the late
repartition for the coast garrison, estimated at sixty thousand pesos.
With this they set out on their return to Villa Rica, accompanied by
a few invalids. On the way they were surprised and slaughtered, the
treasures and effects being distributed as spoils.[901]
The larger division of the party, under the hidalgo Juan Yuste,[902]
which were to join Cortés, also picked up some convalescents, together
with additional treasure and baggage, and proceeded to Mexico by
the way of Calpulalpan. They numbered five horsemen, forty-five
foot-soldiers, and three hundred Tlascaltecs, the latter under command
of one of Maxixcatzin’s sons. Advised of their approach the natives of
Zultepec, among others, were induced, more by cupidity than patriotic
zeal, to form an ambuscade along the steep declivity of a narrow
pass which had to be followed. Here they fell upon the party on all
sides as they descended in single file, encumbered beside by their
burdens. Resistance was ineffective, and those not slain were carried
to Tezcuco to be offered up to the idols, while their effects were
distributed, some of the trophies being dedicated to temples of the
Acolhuan capital, there to tell the mournful tale to the returning
conquerors.[903]
About this time a vessel arrived at Villa Rica with three or four
score of adventurers, under Captain Coronado, and being told of the
fabulously rich Mexico they resolved to lose no time in following
the army, in order to secure a share of treasures. It was just after
the flight from Mexico, and the provinces were in arms, elated at the
triumphs at the lake. On approaching the Tepeaca district the party
was surprised, and partly slaughtered, partly captured, the prisoners
being distributed among the towns of the province for sacrifice.[904]
These reports created no small alarm for the safety of Villa Rica, and
several Tlascaltec messengers were sent with letters, by different
routes, to bring news. Orders were also given to the comandante to
forward powder, fire-arms, bows, and other necessaries that he could
spare, together with some men, sailors, if no others were available.
The reply was reassuring, for although the natives had fuller
particulars of the disaster at Mexico than Cortés had chosen to impart
to the garrison, yet everything remained quiet. The remittance of war
material was small, and the men who convoyed it numbered less than
a dozen, men stricken by disease, and led by Lencero, who became the
butt of the _drôles de corps_.[905]
Every attention and comfort was tendered at Tlascala to the Spaniards
while caring for their wounds and awaiting the development of projects.
Hardly a man had arrived scathless, and quite a number had received
injuries which maimed them for life or resulted in death.[906] Cortés’
wounds were most serious. The indomitable spirit which sustained him
so far now yielded with the failing body. Severe scalp cuts brought
on fever,[907] which caused his life to hang in the balance for
some time. Finally his strong constitution and the excellent empiric
methods of the native herb doctors prevailed, to the joy, not alone
of Spaniards, but of Tlascaltecs, who had shown the utmost anxiety
during the crisis.
* * * * *
During this period of Spanish inaction the Mexicans were energetically
striving to follow up their blow against the invaders. The first act
after ridding the capital of their presence was one of purgation,
in which the victorious party fell on those whose lukewarmness,
or whose friendly disposition toward Montezuma and his guests, had
hindered the siege operations and aided the enemy. A tumult was soon
raised, wherein perished four royal princes, brothers and sons of
Montezuma,[908] whose death may be attributed to Cuitlahuatzin’s
desire to remove any dangerous rival to the throne. Not that this was
a necessary precaution, since his standing, as a younger brother of
Montezuma, and his successful operations against the Spaniards, were
sufficient to raise him above every other candidate.[909] Furthermore,
as commander-in-chief of the army and as leader of the successful
party, he held the key to the position, and accordingly was unanimously
chosen. About the same time Cohuanacoch was elected king at Tezcuco,
in lieu of the younger brother forced on the people by Cortés, and
Quauhtemotzin, nephew of Montezuma, rose to the office of high-priest
to Huitzilopochtli. The coronation was the next prominent event,[910]
for which the indispensable captives had already been secured from
the fleeing army. What more precious victims, indeed, could have been
desired for the inaugural than the powerful Spaniards and the hated
warriors of brave Tlascala? And what grander site for the ceremony
than the great temple, recovered from the detested intruders and
purified from foreign emblems? In connection with this came a series
of festivals.[911]
The utmost activity was displayed in repairing the damage caused
by the Spaniards, and in fortifying the city and its approaches
against a possible future invasion. The construction and discipline
of the army were improved in some degree after the examples given
by the Europeans; its tactics were revised, and its arms perfected
with the aid of captured weapons, the Chinantec pike being also
introduced and tipped with Toledo blades or other metal points.
Envoys were despatched to near and distant provinces, bidding for
their support by remission of taxes and tributes, by restoration of
conquered territories, by patriotic appeals, and by roseate views
and promises.[912] The Spaniards were painted as selfish, perfidious,
and cruel, intent on conquering the whole country, on enslaving the
people, on extorting their substance, and on overthrowing social and
religious institutions. Spoils and heads of Spanish men and horses were
sent round to disabuse the people of their supposed invulnerability;
and as a further encouragement the dreaded Cortés was declared to
have fallen.
The most important missions were those to Michoacan and Tlascala,
the former an independent kingdom of considerable extent, stretching
westward beyond the lake region to the Pacific, over an undulating,
well watered territory, which abounded in all the resources of a rich
soil and a tropic climate. The inhabitants, the Tarascos, were distinct
from the Aztecs in language, but fully their equals in culture, which
was of the Nahua type, and as a rule successful in resisting the
armed encroachments of the lake allies. The present ruler was Zwanga,
who held court at Tzintzuntzan, on Lake Patzcuaro. He received the
embassadors of Cuitlahuatzin with due attention, but hesitated about
the answer to be given. The Aztecs had from time immemorial been
the enemies of his people, and to aid them would surely bring upon
him the wrath of the Spaniards, who must still be powerful, since
the Mexicans came to plead for his alliance. In this dilemma it was
resolved, with the advice of the council, to send plenipotentiaries
to Mexico, in order to learn more fully the condition of affairs,
and there determine what should be done.[913]
More decisive in its results was the mission to Tlascala. Regarded
as the most important of all, it was intrusted to six prominent
men, of acknowledged talent for negotiation. They came fortified
with choice presents of robes, feathers, salt, and similar desirable
commodities, and were received with customary courtesy by the assembled
lords and council. The eldest was the first to speak. He recalled
the intimate relationship between Mexico and Tlascala in blood and
language, deplored the feud which had so long existed, and urged the
establishment of permanent peace, for mutual benefit, whereby the
Tlascaltecs would gain all the advantages of a long prohibited trade.
One obstacle alone interposed to prevent a happy harmony, which was the
presence of the Spaniards, to whom was due the unfortunate condition
of the whole country. Their only aim was to make themselves masters,
to overthrow the gods of the natives, to enslave the inhabitants,
and impoverish them by exactions.
The Tlascaltecs would after rendering service be treated with the
same base ingratitude and perfidy as the over generous Montezuma,
and reap not only universal detestation, but the anger of the gods.
Better, therefore, to seize the present favorable opportunity to
deliver themselves from dreadful calamities, to establish prosperity
and independence on a firm basis, and by a joint alliance recover the
alienated provinces and share the revenues therefrom.[914] The first
step to this desirable end was the destruction of the Spaniards,
now at their mercy, whereby they would gain also the gratitude of
neighboring peoples, the fame of patriots, and the blessing of the
gods.
The speech delivered, together with the presents, the envoys withdrew
to let the council deliberate. Bitter as was the enmity between the
two peoples, intensified by the recent defeat, there were not wanting
persons to whom the argument and offers seemed all that the most
brilliant fortune could bring. What, indeed, had they in common with
a strange race by whom they had been conquered, and whose presence
portended many changes in their social and religious institutions,
transmitted by their forefathers, and upheld with the blood of
generations? Their independence would be endangered. Besides, the
invaders had been shamefully defeated, and might never again hold up
their heads. The whole country was mustering to drive them out, and,
if successful, woe to Tlascala, as their ally. In any case a struggle
was in prospect, wherein their sons and brethren would be sacrificed
by the thousands. And for what? For the benefit of strangers, always
ready with their yoke of slavery. On the other hand, they were offered
the peace so long desired, with its accompanying blessings; deliverance
from the trade blockade and seclusion which had so long afflicted
them, together with the attractive adjunct of assured independence,
and the triumphant and profitable position of conquering allies of
the Mexicans.[915]
The strongest advocate of these views was Xicotencatl junior, who
had never forgotten the several Spanish victories that checked his
triumphal career as soldier and general, and humiliated him in the
eyes of the whole people. Yet this feeling was tinged with love for
the independence and welfare of the country, threatened, in his eyes,
by the invaders. With the news of disaster at Mexico his party had
assumed respectable proportions. Some of its members were impelled by
motives similar to his own; some were bribed by Mexican gifts, and
promises of wealth and preferment; some were tempted by the arms,
baggage, and treasure of the fugitives, whom it seemed easy now to
overcome. Not a few considered the burden of maintaining a horde of
strangers, with the prospect of afterward yielding them service and
blood for their aggrandizement. When the collectors of provisions for
the Spaniards made their rounds they could not but observe the bitter
feeling which prevailed in some quarters.[916] The elder Xicotencatl
appears to have remonstrated with his son for breeding trouble; but
this availed little, as may be supposed. During the deliberation
of the council on the Mexican proposal the young chieftain stepped
beyond the timid suggestions of those who inclined toward an Aztec
alliance, and boldly advocated it as the only salvation for Tlascala.
Next spoke the wise Maxixcatzin, the leading representative of the
republic. In his chivalrous nature devotion to the Spaniards exercised
an influence, while as ruler of the richest district, in agriculture
and trade, he had also an eye to the benefits which would accrue from
an alliance with them. He recalled the many instances of treachery
and want of good faith on the part of the Mexicans to show how little
their promises could be relied on. It was merely the presence of the
Spaniards that prompted their offer of alliance, which was to restore
Mexico to its former terrorizing strength. This accomplished, the
ancient enemy would not fail to remember that Tlascala, in addition
to the old-standing enmity, had been one of the chief instruments in
their late suffering and humiliation, and had figured as conqueror
and master over them. They would lose no time in avenging themselves,
and by the destruction of the republic remove forever so dangerous an
enemy. Far better, then, to maintain the friendship of the Spaniards,
whose good faith had been tried, and whose prowess was not broken
by one defeat. Previous to their arrival they had been suffering
from the want even of necessaries, and had been exposed to incessant
ravages and warfare, which threatened their very existence. With the
Spaniards’ aid they had been freed from this want and danger; they
had enriched themselves with trade and spoils, and had raised the
republic to the most prominent position it had ever occupied, all
far beyond what the Mexicans would ever permit. What did the gods
say? Oracles and omens had foretold the doom of the empire. It was
in vain to struggle with fate, which had decreed the control to the
new-comers. The interests of the state demanded the friendship of
these destined victors, who offered them wealth and glory, while good
faith and honor demanded loyalty to the invited guests, from whom so
many benefits had already sprung.
Observing the effect of the appeal on the wavering members, young
Xicotencatl hastened to defend his cherished plans, but with such
imprudence as to rouse Maxixcatzin to strike him. He was thereupon
jostled out of the council-chamber, badly bruised and with torn
clothes.[917] Against this expulsion none of his supporters ventured to
remonstrate, and the vote being unanimously in favor of Maxixcatzin’s
views, the Aztec envoys were notified accordingly.[918] How momentous
this discussion! And did the council of Tlascala realize the full
import of their acts? For thereby they determined the present and
permanent fate of many powerful nations besides themselves. Undoubtedly
the country would at some time have fallen before the dominant power;
but, had it been possible for the nations of the great plateau to
combine and act in unison, very different might have been their
ultimate condition. Cortés and his company owed their safety to a
decision which kept alive discord between the native tribes, while
the Tlascaltecs were saved from what probably would have been a
treacherous alliance, perhaps from annihilation, only to sink into
peaceful obscurity and merge into the mass of conquered people.[919]
They endeavored to keep the disagreement in the council-chamber a
secret from Cortés, but he heard of it, and failed not to confirm
Maxixcatzin in his devotion by holding forth the most brilliant
prospects as the result of this alliance. The words by which the
council decided for Cortés were to him as drops of perspiration on
the lately fevered brow, which tell that the crisis is passed.
There was another cloud about this time appearing on the horizon
of the fortunes of Cortés. During his stay at Tlascala the men of
Narvaez began again to moot the subject of return. The golden vision
of Mexico’s treasures had been rudely dissipated, leaving only the
remembrance of hardships and disgrace. The flowery Antilles appeared
more alluring than ever to these gold-seekers, only too many of whom
were more accustomed to the farm than to the camp. They could think of
nothing but the ease and security of the fertile plantations, where
nature unloaded its wealth, and where docile natives ministered to
every want. In furtherance of this idea it was urged on Cortés, by
Duero and other leaders, to retire, to Villa Rica before the Mexicans
had succeeded in their efforts to cut off his retreat. There they would
intrench themselves while awaiting aid from the islands and arranging
a fresh campaign, having the vessels to fall back on, if necessary.
But to these intimations Cortés would not for a moment listen. And
there were many reasons for this—his ambition to be all or nothing
in this enterprise, his crimes against Velazquez, his irregularities
regarding the king’s interests, which only brilliant success could
redeem. As well might they talk to the unyielding hills; he would join
his dead comrades in the canals of Mexico, or voluntarily ascend to
the sacrificial stone, but he would not turn back from this adventure.
When the general revealed his firm intention to renew the campaign
as soon as possible, the outcry became loud. The Noche Triste and the
narrow escape at Otumba had left impressions too horrible to be easily
forgotten. They shuddered at the thought of renewing such risk, and
cursed the gold which had allured them to former discomfitures. If
the general wished to throw away his life he might do so, but they
were not such madmen. Moreover, it was highly imprudent to place so
much faith in the Tlascaltecs, who might at the first encounter with
the enemy abandon or betray allies differing so greatly in language,
religion, and customs. A formal demand was therefore addressed to
him, through the notary, to return to Villa Rica, on the ground of
their small number and dismembered condition, devoid as they were
of clothing, arms, ammunition, and horses, and with so many maimed
and wounded. They were wholly unfit to undertake any campaign, much
less against an enemy who had just defeated them when they were far
stronger in number and armament than now. Declared, as it was, in the
name of the army, though in truth by the men of Narvaez only,[920]
and headed by such persons as Duero, with invocation of the imperial
name, the proposal placed Cortés in a dilemma. Yet it roused in him
only a firmer determination. He was more master now than ever he
could be under the new proposal; and Cortés loved to be master. The
same reasons which had moved him before to advance into Mexico in
quest of independent fame and wealth, and to evade the prospective
disgrace and poverty, imprisonment and death, were reasons stronger
now than ever.
Here was another of those delicate points on which the destiny of the
Estremaduran seemed ever turning. Rousing himself to meet the issue,
though still weak with disease, he summoned an audience. “What is this
I hear?” he asked of the assembled soldiers. “Is it true that you
would retire from the fertile fields of New Spain, you, Spaniards,
Castilians, Christians! leave the ship-loads of gold which in the
Aztec capital we saw and handled; leave still standing the abominable
idols with their bloody ministers, and tamely summon others to enjoy
the riches and glories which you are too craven to achieve? Alack!
for your patriotism, for duty to your emperor, to God, for the honor
of Spanish arms! Know you not that one step further in retreat than
necessary is equivalent to the abandonment of all? Or perhaps the
fault is my own. I have been too careful of mine ease, too cowardly
to expose my person to the dangers into which I directed you; I
have fled before the foe—help me to remember, friends—I have left my
comrades to die unaided on the battle-field while I sought safety,
I have fed while you starved, I have slept while you labored, or my
too sluggish brain has refused the duty due by your commander.” The
speaker paused, but only for a moment. At this, the very beginning of
his plea, a hundred eyes were affectionately regarding him through
their moisture, a hundred tongues were denying all insinuations of
baseness as applied to him, their great and brave commander. Already
their hearts were aflame with avarice and ambition; aflame, like St
Augustine’s, with Christian zeal and fervency of devotion, soldier
fanatics as they were, stern, forehead-wrinkled men—for fighting
men, no less than fighting dogs, display a gravity in their every-day
demeanor unknown to tamer spirits. “Are not my interests yours, and
yours mine?” continued Cortés. “Therefore, I pray you, ascribe not
my views to disregard of your wishes, but to a desire to promote the
good of all. What people going to war that does not sometimes suffer
defeat; but what brave men ever abandoned a glorious campaign because
of one repulse? And do you not see that it is more dangerous to go than
to remain—that to retreat further would only invite further attack?
I will not allude before soldiers of mine,” concluded the speaker,
“to the everlasting infamy of abandoning these brave Tlascaltecs to
the enmity of the combined forces of the plateau for having stood the
Spaniards’ friend in time of danger. Go, all of you who will! abandon
your sacred trusts, and with them the riches in mines, and tributes
here awaiting you, and fair encomiendas, with countless servants
to attend before your new nobility; for myself, if left alone, then
alone will I here remain and general Indians, since Spaniards have
all turned cowards!”
Hearts of steel could not withstand such words so spoken; and loud
came the shouts of approval from Cortés’ old comrades, who swore that
not a man should be allowed to endanger the common safety by leaving.
This manifestation was in itself sufficient to shame the disaffected
into resignation, although not into silence, for mutterings were
frequent against the quality of persuasion employed by the general and
his beggarly followers, who had nothing to lose except their lives.
In order somewhat to allay their discontent Cortés promised that at
the conclusion of the next campaign their wishes should be consulted,
and the first favorable opportunity for departure be tendered them—a
cool proposal, affecting only those who would be left of them, yet
made with sober visage by the artless Cortés.[921]
The determination of Cortés was now what it always had been, namely,
to conquer and become master of all New Spain; and the greater the
difficulty the greater the glory. Fearing that further evil might
result from continued inactivity, and from remaining a burden on the
allies, Cortés resolved to lose no time in taking the field.[922] In
the fertile plains to the south of Tlascala lay the rich province
of Tepeyacac,[923] euphonized into Tepeaca, long hostile to the
republic. Intimidated by the subjugation of Tlascala and Cholula, the
three brothers who ruled it[924] had tendered their submission to the
conquerors, only to return to their old masters, the Aztecs, the moment
fortune seemed to favor them. The latter had indeed, in connection
with their other preparations, made particular efforts to stir the
provinces round Tlascala and toward the coast, sending large garrisons
to form centres for the native armies, the object being partly to cut
off communication with the coast, so as to prevent reinforcements from
reaching the Spaniards, and partly to effect a rear movement when it
might be decided to attack the republic. Reinforcements had already
been surprised in this region and slaughtered, as we have seen, and
raids had been made on the allied frontier.
Here was all the cause the Spaniards required for attack, and as the
country was for the most part open, the horsemen would have great
advantage over native troops. Its subjugation, therefore, promised
to be easy, and would secure the rear. The Tlascaltecs approved
of beginning the campaign with the outlying provinces,[925] where
the concentration of forces was smaller, and where the memory of
Aztec misrule and oppression might readily induce the inhabitants
to transfer their allegiance, so as to strengthen the conquerors
and allure fresh allies. They were eager to begin the campaign, and
offered a large force of warriors. Xicotencatl junior also evinced a
promptness to coöperate, as if to remove any ill feeling that might
have arisen from his machinations.[926] In order to thoroughly enlist
their sympathies Cortés made an arrangement with the lords whereby
a number of privileges were assured to their people, together with
a fixed proportion of the spoils[927] to be obtained during the war.
The troops were mustered at Tzompantzinco, near Tlascala, amidst a
large concourse of people. There were about four hundred and fifty
Spanish soldiers, with nearly twenty horses, a few firelocks and
field-pieces, and a number of cross-bows, but the arms were chiefly
swords and pikes. The reinforcements consisted of six thousand
Tlascaltecs, including a few Cholultecs and Huexotzincas, a larger
force being prepared under Xicotencatl to follow later.[928] A demand
had meanwhile been sent to Tepeaca to confirm the oath of allegiance
once tendered the Spanish sovereign and dismiss the Aztec garrisons,
whereupon all past offences would be forgiven. The reply was a
contemptuous refusal, with the threat that any attempt at coercion
would bring upon the invaders worse punishment than they had received
at Mexico, for they all would be dished up at the festive board.
Every proposal being rejected, a formal notice was sent condemning
the province to be chastised with sword, and fire, and slavery, for
rebellion and murder of Spaniards.[929]
The army now advanced on Zacatepec, the first town on the Tepeaca
border, where an ambuscade had been prepared in some maize fields. This
was discovered in time to prevent a surprise, but a fierce encounter
took place, wherein the horsemen did good execution, and victory was
soon obtained, with slaughter of the flying. Ojeda, who had led the
Tlascaltecs into the thickest of the fight, came during the pursuit to
the residence of the cacique and planted there the republican flag, in
token of capture. These warriors had suffered severely, owing in part
to the use of large lances by the enemy, but the Spaniards had only
a dozen wounded, beside two horses, one of which died.[930] During
the three days’ stay at this town the neighborhood was reduced, with
pillage and enslavement.
The next camp was formed at Acatzingo, which had been abandoned by the
enemy after a short fight. These successes so discouraged the Mexican
garrisons that they abandoned the province, and the allies, on marching
straight for Tepeaca, five days later, entered it without opposition.
This now became the headquarters for the different expeditions sent
out to reduce the surrounding districts;[931] and rare work they
made of it, plundering, and tearing down idols, and making captives.
Salt, cotton, feather ware, and other commodities were abundant,
and with their share therein the Tlascaltecs were highly delighted,
but the Spaniards obtained little gold. The rulers of the country
had fled; one of them to Mexico, to remonstrate against the retreat
of the garrisons, and to demand additional aid. Finding themselves
abandoned, the inhabitants sent to beg mercy of the conquerors, and
being assured that no further harm should be done them, they returned
to the city and again tendered allegiance. Several other towns were
taken, some, like Tecalco, south of Tepeaca, being evacuated, others
tendering submission in advance, while still others required hard
fighting to subdue.
The reduction of the Tepeaca province, which was virtually accomplished
in about a month,[932] produced an immediate and marked effect, not
only on the natives, but on the late refractory Spanish soldiers. The
latter were reconciled to the prosecution of the conquest on finding
the opening campaign so speedy and comparatively bloodless, and fresh
confidence was infused into the Tlascaltecs, and new allies came
forward, while the prestige of Spanish arms began again to spread
terror among the enemy and open a way into other provinces. This was
promoted by messengers, who carried promises of release from Aztec
tyranny, and pointed out the fate of rebellious and stubborn Tepeacan
towns. The Mexicans, who during the inactivity of the allies had
grown somewhat lax in their efforts to conciliate subject provinces,
now became more earnest, more free with presents and offers to remit
tribute. These endeavors were greatly counteracted by their troops,
however, whose insolence and greed drove the inhabitants to tacitly
or openly favor the Spaniards.
The withdrawal of the Aztec garrisons from Tepeaca served to strengthen
those on its frontier, particularly at Quauhquechollan,[933] ten
or eleven leagues south-west of the new Spanish head-quarters,
which protected the approach to the southern pass into the valley
of Mexico.[934] Its province bordered on Huexotzinco and Cholula,
and skirting the snow-crowned Popocatepetl it extended for some
distance south and south-east of it. The lord,[935] who had tendered
allegiance to Spain simultaneously with Montezuma, had recently sent
in the assurance of his loyalty, with the explanation that fear of
the Mexicans had prevented him from doing so before. A few days later
came his messengers to ask protection against the Aztec garrisons,
reinforced to the extent of some thirty thousand men,[936] who, from
their camp within a league of the city, were plundering and committing
outrages. This appeal being quite in accord with the plans of Cortés,
he at once complied by sending Olid and Ordaz, with two hundred
soldiers, thirteen horses, most of the fire-arms and cross-bows, and
thirty thousand allies.[937] It was arranged with the Quauhquechollans
that they should begin the attack as soon as the Spaniards came near,
and cut off communication between the city garrison and the adjoining
camp.
Olid marched by way of Cholula, and received _en route_ large
accessions of volunteers, chiefly from the province to be aided and
from Huexotzinco, all eager for a safe blow at the Aztecs, and for a
share of the spoils. So large, indeed, was the enrolment that some
of the ever timid men of Narvaez conjured up from this a plot for
their betrayal into the hands of the Mexicans, with whom rumor filled
every house at Quauhquechollan, making in all a larger number than at
Otumba. The loyalty of the new province being wholly untried, and that
of Huexotzinco but little proven, the alarm appeared not unfounded,
and even the leaders became so infected as to march back to Cholula,
whence the chiefs of the suspected allies were sent under guard to
Cortés, with a report of the occurrence.[938] The latter examined
the prisoners, and readily surmised the cause of the trouble; but,
as it would not answer to dampen native ardor for the war by leaving
them in that suspicion, he apologized for what had happened as a
misunderstanding, smoothed their ruffled feelings with presents,
and encouraged their zeal. With an additional force of one hundred
soldiers and some horses he set out for Cholula to assume command in
person, shaming the men out of their fears,[939] and accepting the
large reinforcements which were offered on the way.
As soon as he came in sight, at the end of the valley, the
Quauhquechollans, who had made their preparations in advance, fell on
the garrison, securing at the same time the scouts and stragglers. The
Aztecs resisted valiantly, encompassed though they were by assailants
who filled the roofs and heights round the temple which formed the
citadel. An entry was effected by the Spaniards, and the natives
rushed upon the warriors with such fury that scarcely one was left
to tell the tale. A number of the besieged, outside the citadel,
had already fled toward the Aztec camp, whose battalions were now
descending, brilliant in feathered mail and ornaments. Entering the
further side of the city they began to fire it. Cortés was summoned
to the rescue, and hurrying onward with the cavalry he soon routed
their disorganized masses, leaving pursuit chiefly to the allies.
At a certain pass the enemy rallied, to be dislodged within a few
moments and cut off from their camp. Exhausted by battle and flight,
under a broiling sun, they turned in disorderly scramble up the
steep mountain slope, only to find themselves checked on the summit
by fleeter bands of Quauhquechollans and other allies, and obliged
to make a stand. By this time they could hardly raise their hands
in self-defence, and the battle became little more than a butchery,
during which scattered remnants alone managed to escape, leaving the
rich garments and jewels of the dead to stay the pursuers, who now,
according to Cortés, numbered over one hundred thousand. Several
Spaniards were wounded, and one horse killed.[940] The field being
reaped, the victors entered the camp,[941] which was divided into
three parts, each large enough, it is said, to form a respectable town,
well appointed, with hosts of servants, supplies, and paraphernalia.
Laden with spoils they returned to the city to receive a well merited
ovation. The citizens were afterward rewarded with several privileges
for their loyal aid;[942] deservedly rewarded, for without their
coöperation the place could not have been captured without difficulty,
since it lay between two rivers[943] coursing through deep ravines,
and was shielded on one side by a steep mountain range. Beside its
natural strength the city was protected by a breastwork of masonry,
which extended toward the mountain and down into the ravines, forming
here a smooth facing of some twenty feet, and rising in other places
into a distinct wall of great height and width,[944] with a parapet.
There were four entrances,[945] wide enough for one horseman only,
with staircase approaches, and with maze-like lappings of the walls,
which rendered it difficult to force an entrance. Along the walls
lay piles of stones and rocks ready for the foe. The population was
estimated at five or six thousand families, supported in part by a
number of gardens within the city, and subject to it were three towns
in the valley, containing an equal number of people.
Four leagues south of Quauhquechollan lay Itzocan,[946] a well built
city, with a hundred temples, says Cortés, and a population of three
or four thousand families, situated in a fertile, irrigated valley,
which from the climatic protection afforded by the sheltering mountains
included cotton as one of its staples, and had also some attractive
gold mines. The place lay at the foot of a hill, surmounted by a
strong turreted fort, and offered a striking resemblance to Málaga,
it was said. The level sides were protected by the banks of a deep
river, which here formed a semicircle, and all round the city ran a
wall five feet high, well provided with towers and stone ammunition.
The cacique was an alien, appointed by Montezuma, whose niece he had
married, and possessed strong sympathies for the lake government,
which maintained a fine garrison. To reduce the place, so as to root
out a stronghold for the dissemination of Aztec influence, was of
the first importance.
Thither, therefore, Cortés proceeded with his forces, including
allies, who were by this time so numerous as to cover the plains and
mountains, wherever the eye could reach, representing at least one
hundred and twenty-five thousand men. On arriving before the city
it was found occupied only by warriors, estimated at from five to
eight thousand, the women and children having all withdrawn. Guided
by natives the army passed to a point affording a comparatively easy
entrance. The surprised garrison now thought less of resistance than of
securing their retreat across the river. It was spanned by a bridge,
but this the Spaniards destroyed as they fell upon them, and many of
the unfortunate Aztecs took to the water in their confusion, only to
add to the list of victims. The cavalry, swimming across with ease,
overtook and arrested a large portion of the flying till the allies
came up to aid in the slaughter.[947] Two captives were sent to offer
pardon to the inhabitants, on the condition of their returning and
remaining loyal. Soon after the chiefs came to make arrangements,
and within a few days the city had resumed its wonted appearance.
Cortés thought it the best policy, in this frontier town of his
conquest, to make a favorable impression by extending mercy, and with
the rapid flight of his fame as an irresistible conqueror spread
also his reputation as a dispenser of justice, lenient or severe,
as the case might be. A number of caciques hastened accordingly to
propitiate him, during his stay in this quarter,[948] by tendering
submission and praying to be confirmed in authority. Among them came
a deputation from the inhabitants of Ocopetlahuacan,[949] at the foot
of Popocatepetl, who cast the blame for delay on their cacique. He
had fled with the retreating Mexicans, and they disowned him, praying
that the dignity might be conferred on his brother, who had remained,
and who shared the popular desire for Spanish supremacy. After a
judicious hesitation the request was granted, with the intimation
that future disobedience would be severely chastised.[950]
Still more flattering overtures came from the caciques of eight towns
in Cohuaixtlahuacan,[951] some forty leagues to the south, who had
already tendered allegiance on the occasion when Pilot Umbría first
passed through that province in search of Zacatula’s gold mines.[952]
Before leaving Itzucan, Cortés was called upon to appoint a successor
to the fugitive cacique. The candidates were a bastard son of the
late native cacique, whose death was due to Montezuma, and the son
of the deceased ruler’s legitimate daughter, married to the lord of
Quauhquechollan. The general, being only too eager to please so loyal
an ally, decided in favor of his son, on the ground of legitimacy;
but since he was not yet ten years old, the regency was intrusted to
the bastard uncle, aided by some chiefs.[953] The boy followed the
army to imbibe Spanish ideas and instruction, and received baptism
not long after, with the name of Alonso,[954] the first Christian
prince in New Spain.
Another important yet troublesome expedition was to secure the road
to Villa Rica, on which so many Spaniards had fallen, and which
was still dangerous. It was intrusted to two hundred men, with ten
horses, and a large force of allies.[955] The first reduction in
this quarter had been Quecholac, where pillage and enslavement formed
the retaliation for murders committed,[956] and Tecamachalco, which
gave greater trouble before it fell, and yielded over two thousand
slaves, besides much spoil.[957] The chastisement of these districts
had taught the easterly parts a lesson, so that more hardship than
fighting was now encountered, for the march lay to a great extent
through uninhabited tracts. It was in the region of Las Lagunas that
some captive Spaniards had been denuded and fattened, and then goaded
to death, like bulls in a ring, for the amusement of the natives.
The bodies had then been devoured, a part of the flesh being jerked
and distributed over the district as choice morsels, and pronounced
savory. Forty of the most guilty tormentors were secured in a yard
for execution. Informed of their fate they began to dance and sing,
commending themselves quite cheerfully to the gods as they bent their
heads to the sword.[958] How blessed the righteous when they die!
FOOTNOTES
[901] This appears to have taken place on the Xocotlan road,
followed by the Spaniards on first entering the country, for
in the temple of this town, says Bernal Diaz, were found the
saddles and other trophies. He estimates the treasure lost
at 40,000 pesos. _Hist. Verdad._, 108, 116-117; _Lejalde_,
_Probanza_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 425.
[902] Herrera writes, under Iuste and Morla. If correct
there were two Morlas.
[903] Herrera copies this account, but gives also another in
an earlier chapter, which leads one to suppose that Yuste
and a few companions escaped to the mountains. They either
perished of hunger or were captured at some settlement
while offering the remnant of their treasures for food.
An inscription by Yuste on a piece of bark recorded their
sufferings. ‘Por aqui passò el desdichado Iuan Iuste, con
sus desdichados compañeros, con tãta hambre, que por pocas
tortillas de mayz, diò vno vna barra de oro, que pesaua
ochocientos ducados.’ dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xiii.; dec. iii.
lib. i. cap. v. Torquemada repeats both versions, i. 530-1.
Peter Martyr and Gomara are also confused, allowing the
Yuste party in one page to fall at the pass, and on another
to turn back to Villa Rica from Tlascala. _Hist. Mex._, 165,
181-2. A misinterpretation of a vague passage by Cortés is
the cause of the mistake, into which nearly every writer
has fallen. The party carried, according to the _Cartas_,
141, 183-4, a number of agreements with the natives, and
other valuable documents, beside Cortés’ personal effects
and valuables, worth over 30,000 pesos de oro. Bernal Diaz
says three loads of gold. The inhabitants said that people
from Tezcuco and Mexico had done the deed to avenge Cacama.
But none except the natives of the district could have had
time to gather for the attack.
[904] Herrera places the number of the party at 50 or 60.
dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xv. Bernal Diaz speaks of the slaughter
in Tochtepec of 72 men and 5 women, and he leaves the
impression that they were a part of the Narvaez force which
had followed the army at their leisure. _Hist. Verdad._,
108. This is no doubt the party described in the text.
Yet Herrera, in cap. xvii., refers to the destruction at
Tochtepec of a force of 80 men under Captain Salcedo, who
was sent to reduce this province a few months later. This
incident, mentioned by no other original authority, may be
identical with the preceding. Had the party in question
belonged to the original force of Narvaez it would have
accompanied Yuste and Alcántara. Such not being the case,
it must have arrived after their departure. This receives
confirmation from Gomara’s statement that several small
parties, who had been attracted to New Spain by Cortés’
conquests, were killed in Tepeaca and Xalacinco. _Hist.
Mex._, 173. The narratives of Bernal Diaz and Cortés specify
some of these, numbering from ten to eighteen men, who
fell at Quecholac, Tepeaca, and other places. It is not
likely that so many small parties could have arrived on the
coast during the short interval of Cortés’ departure from
Cempoala and his retreat to Tlascala; nor that they would
have ventured in small numbers into a strange country,
during so unquiet a period; nor would a mere dozen have
been allowed to penetrate so far as Tepeaca ere they met
their fate. Hence they must have belonged to the large party
spoken of in the text, whose members, dead or captive, were
distributed among the different towns which had aided in
their defeat. This appears to be the only way to reconcile
the differing statements, which have so confused every
writer as to lead them into apparent blunders or into the
omission of facts. See _Robertson’s Hist. Am._, ii. 99;
_Prescott’s Mex._, ii. 409-10; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_,
_Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 353-5.
[905] Bernal Diaz intimates that only two vessels remained
of Narvaez’ fleet, and one of these was now destroyed so
that the crew might be sent to Tlascala. The reinforcements
numbered four soldiers and three sailors, two of whom
suffered from swollen stomachs, and the rest from venereal
diseases. _Hist. Verdad._, 109.
[906] Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 109, mentions only four
deaths.
[907] ‘Se le pasmo la cabeça, o porque no le curaron bien,
sacãdole cascos: o por el demasiado trabajo.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 162. Solis describes the progress of the
cure with a minuteness that would do credit to a medical
journal. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 212-14.
[908] The Cihuacohuatl, Tzihuacpopocatzin, Cipocatli,
and Tencuecuenotzin. The account of this tumult is given
in a memorial on the conquest by an Indian, possessed
by Torquemada. i. 509-10. Brasseur de Bourbourg assumes
Tzihuacpopocatzin and the Cihuacohuatl to be sons of Tizoc,
and the last two to be the sons of Montezuma, the last named
a bastard. Cipocatli, accepted by him as the other name for
Asupacaci, the legitimate heir of the emperor, he assumes
with Cano to have been murdered by Quauhtemotzin. _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, iv. 345. But we have seen that Cortés appears
more correct in saying that the prince fell with him during
the Noche Triste. Brasseur de Bourbourg’s assumption serves
merely to show how hasty and untrustworthy his statements
often are.
[909] Cortés assumes only two rivals, the natural sons of
Montezuma, ‘el uno diz que es loco y el otro perlático.’
_Cartas_, 153.
[910] Twenty days after Montezuma’s death. _Ixtlilxochitl_,
_Relaciones_, 413, 304.
[911] Of which Sahagun gives some account. _Hist. Conq._
(ed. 1840), 137. See also _Torquemada_, i. 511.
[912] ‘Él les hace gracia por un año de todos los tributos y
servicios que son obligados á le hacer.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
155; _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 173.
[913] _Beaumont_, _Crón. Mich._, MS., 68 etc.; _Native
Races_, ii. 107-8; v. 508 et seq.
[914] ‘Entrarian en parte de todas las rentas de las
provincias sugetas por el imperio.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist.
Chich._, 304.
[915] ‘Tanto supieron decir á la señoría estos embajadores,
que casi toda ella, ... la redugeron á su voluntad y deseo.’
Old Xicotencatl being one of the most devoted. _Id._ Herrera
also assumes that this chief favors the Mexicans, but the
supposition is due to confounding the two men of this name.
dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xiv.
[916] ‘A q̄ venistes, a comernos nuestra hazienda, anda
que boluistes destroçados de Mexico, echados como viles
mugeres.’ _Id._
[917] Bernal Diaz assumes that the young chief had been
brought before the council a prisoner, to be arraigned for
his machinations. His father was so deeply incensed against
him as to decree his death, but the other chiefs were
lenient out of respect for the father; the conspirators were
arrested. _Hist. Verdad._, 109-10. A later writer states,
on doubtful authority, that the chieftain was also removed
from the command of the army; and Solis assumes that the
act of jostling him down the steps in the council-hall was
the form of degradation, which took place during a special
session, after the deliberation. He appealed to Cortés,
who caused him to be reinstated. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 220-3.
According to Camargo, the elder Xicotencatl had ceded
his place as ruler to the son, owing to his advanced age.
_Hist. Tlax._, 173-4. In such a case no imprisonment or
degradation could have been admitted; perhaps in no case,
since he merely advocated what he considered to be the
best for the country. Duran states that he was surrendered
to Cortés, who ‘le puso en prisiones, y creo que al cabo
le mandó matar,’ _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 485, a statement
which may have aided to confuse Gomara, who allows Cortés
to execute him already during his first stay at Tlascala.
On the present occasion he lets Maxixcatzin strike the
leader of the opposite faction. _Hist. Mex._, 90, 164.
His blunder and vagueness helped Herrera to confound the
two Xicotencatls, and Brasseur de Bourbourg to attribute
to father and son the same opinion. _Hist. Nat. Civ._,
iv. 365-7. This is also the view of Ixtlilxochitl. The
discussion was held in the hall or oratory of Xicotencatl,
where Cortés had planted the cross. While Maxixcatzin was
advocating the Spanish cause a cloud settled on the cross
and darkened the room. This miracle encouraged the orator,
who threw down the younger Xicotencatl and won all to his
side. The Mexican envoys were now dismissed with a refusal,
whereupon the cloud dissipated, leaving the room bright
and the cross resplendent, and attracting many believers.
_Hist. Chich._, 304-5. Sahagun allows Xicotencatl, chief
among the lords, to attack the second lord for urging the
murder of the Spaniards. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 138.
[918] With reference to the attack on Xicotencatl in the
council-chamber, Herrera says, ‘Sin tener los Mexicanos otra
respuesta se boluieron, con relacion de lo que passaua,’ dec.
ii. lib. x. cap. xiv., a sentence which Clavigero elaborates
into a flight of the envoy on observing the agitation of
the people. ‘E’ però da credersi, che il Senato mandasse
degli Ambasciatori Tlascallesi per portar la risposta.’
_Storia Mess._, iii. 149. Prescott and others also suppose
that they fled; but this is unlikely, since personages so
conspicuous as envoys could hardly have escaped from the
centre of the republic without the knowledge of the senate,
who had, beside, given them a guard, as well for their
honor and protection as for preventing the undue exercise of
their curiosity. Envoys enjoyed great respect among these
peoples. Camargo and Ixtlilxochitl assume more correctly
that the envoys were notified and dismissed.
[919] Tlascala sealed her enslavement, as some view it,
ignoring national interests for the sake of shameful
revenge. Behold now the punishment in her decay, and in the
odium cast on her descendants by other peoples. So says
Bustamante, in _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 140.
They have certainly dwindled away ever since Cortés began
to scatter them as colonists in different directions; but
this was the natural and inevitable consequence of the
presence of the stronger element. During Spanish dominion
they enjoyed some slight privileges, and since then no
odium has attached to them except in casual references to
the conquest by prejudiced writers.
[920] ‘En nombre de todos.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 166.
Whereat Bernal Diaz is exceedingly wroth. ‘We, the old
soldiers, stood by Cortés,’ he asserts, ‘and Gomara’s
omission to say so is intended to exalt him at our expense.’
_Hist. Verdad._, 110. Cortés himself intimates that the
request was general. _Cartas_, 142. But Herrera more justly
attributes it to ‘la mayor parte.’ dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xiv.
[921] ‘Si mal nos sucediere la ida [of the next campaign]
hare lo que pedis: y si bien, hareis lo que os ruego.’
Thus Cortés, by his skill and firmness, saved not only
the conquest but the lives of his men, which must have
been sacrificed in a retreat. Had they reached Villa Rica
they would not have remained there, but would have passed
on to the islands, thus abandoning the country. _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 167. Most of the points in the above speech
are to be found in the lengthy harangue prepared by this
author. Oviedo’s is weaker, and loses itself in repetitions
and crude elaborations, adorned with learned references
ill suiting a soldier addressing rude men, although not
altogether inconsistent with Cortés’ love of display.
Toward the conclusion is said: ‘If any one there is who
still insists on leaving, let him go; for rather will I
remain with a small and brave number than with many, if
composed in part of cowards and of those who respect not
their honor. Even if all fail in their duty I shall not.
We shall now know who, being of us, will drink water from
the hand, and who will kneel to drink with the face to
the ground, so that they may be bidden to depart, as God
said to Gideon.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 332-3. The test, if ever
intended, was not made, since all acquiesced. Solis, the
inveterate speech-maker, has unaccountably subsided for
this period; perhaps he is piqued at finding himself so
fully anticipated. Cortés gives a brief synopsis of what he
indicates to have been a long speech. On no account would
he commit so shameful, dangerous, and treasonable an act
as to abandon the country. _Cartas_, 142-3; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 151; _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap.
xiv.
[922] ‘Habiendo estado en esta provincia veinte dias,
aunque ni yo estaba muy sano de mis heridas, y los de mi
compañia todavía bien flacos, salí della.’ _Cortés_, 143.
Gomara follows, while Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 110,
writes that after a stay at Tlascala of 22 days Cortés
announced the determination to march on Tepeaca, which
provoked murmurs from the men of Narvaez. Preparations for
the campaign appear to have intervened before the march
began, and negotiations with the province to be assailed.
Herrera intimates that fully 50 days had passed before
negotiations were opened. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xv.
[923] ‘Significa Tepeyacac, remate, o punta de zerro,’
owing to the position of the city at the end of a mountain
range. _Id._, cap. xxi.
[924] Their father, Chichtuc, had been sole ruler, but after
his death the sons divided the province. _Id._ This author
assumes that it was merely an ally of Mexico, but there
is little doubt about its being tributary. ‘Ixcozauhqui,
le principal de ses trois chefs.’ _Brasseur de Bourbourg_,
_Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 368.
[925] The suggestion of thus opening the campaign is claimed
by native historians for the Tlascaltec lords, Ixtlilxochitl
naming Xicotencatl as the originator. _Hist. Chich._, 303;
_Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 177.
[926] And out of gratitude for Cortés’ intercession in his
behalf, as Solis claims.
[927] Half of the booty obtained in all conquered countries,
with incorporation of Cholula, Huexotzinco, and Tepeyacac.
_Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 176. This extent of jurisdiction
is doubtful. ‘Les haria en nõbre de su Magestad escriptura
de conservarlos en sus tierras, y govierno,’ is the moderate
arrangement given in _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii.
146. When in 1655 an attempt was made to encroach on their
rights they produced the document and obtained justice.
[928] Bernal Diaz, who alone enters into details, enumerates
420 soldiers, 4000 Tlascaltecs, 17 horses, and 6 cross-bows,
without artillery or ammunition. _Hist. Verdad._, 111. But
this is hardly reliable, for a few lines before he refers
to 440 men, and there is no doubt that some ammunition,
field-pieces, and other war material must have been
obtained from Villa Rica. Herrera speaks of musketeers and
6000 allies, 50,000 more to follow. dec. ii. lib. x. cap.
xv. Gomara allows 40,000 allies to set out at once, with
provisions and carriers. _Hist. Mex._, 168. Ixtlilxochitl
mentions only 4000, and names some of the leaders. _Hist.
Chich._, 305. Herrera states that a question arose as to
the prudence of trusting so small a body of soldiers with
so large a force of allies—which soon swelled to over
100,000—who might in case of disagreement overwhelm them.
A council was held, which decided that the loyalty of the
Tlascaltecs had been sufficiently tried, and that a small
number of allies would be of no service. ubi sup., cap. xiv.
[929] Cortés’ first messengers returned with two Mexicans,
who brought the contemptuous reply. They were given presents,
and told to summon the native chiefs to a parley. On their
return with a threatening answer ‘fue acordado, ... por
ante Escriuano ... que se diessen por esclauos à todos los
aliados de Mexico, que huviessen muerto Españoles.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 112. ‘Respondieron que si mataron
Españoles fue con justa razon, pues en tiempo de guerra
quisieron passar por su tierra por fuerça, y sin demandar
licencia.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 168.
[930] ‘Tuuierõ los Indios amigos buena cena aquella noche
de piernas, y braços, porque sin los assadores de palo,
que eran infinitos, huuo cincuenta mil ollas de carne
humana.’ The Spaniards suffered from want of water and food.
_Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xv. Rather a strong story.
The Spaniards could not well suffer from hunger in the midst
of maize fields, in harvest time. Oviedo takes occasion
to dwell on the common practice of devouring the slain on
the battle-field, thus saving the trouble of burial. iii.
334. ‘Mi pare una favola,’ is Clavigero’s comment. _Storia
Mess._, iii. 152. See _Native Races_.
[931] ‘Padeciendo siempre de agua, y comida.’ _Herrera_,
ubi sup. But this could hardly be the case in so rich a
province, at this time.
[932] ‘En obra de veinte dias hobe pacíficas muchas villas
y poblaciones á ella sujetas ... sin que en toda la dicha
guerra me matasen ni hiriesen ni un español.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 143. ‘En obra de quarenta dias tuvimos aquellos
pueblos pacificos,’ but with great hardship, ‘porque de
sangre, y polvo que estaua quajado en las entrañas, no
echauamos otra cosa del cuerpo, y por la boca,’ etc. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 112-13.
[933] The name of a beautiful bird, now San Martin de
Huaquechula. This town was known to the Spaniards under
the name of Guacachula.
[934] ‘Á la entrada de un puerto que se pasa para entrar á
la provincia de Méjico por allí.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 145.
After the conquest it was moved to a more open site, three
leagues south. _Torquemada_, i. 316.
[935] Calcozametl. _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 372.
[936] Herrera reduces Cortés’ figure to 20,000.
[937] Bernal Diaz names Olid alone for the command, and
Gomara adds Ordaz and Andrés de Tapia, while Herrera
substitutes Ordaz and Ávila. The latter is probably wrong
in giving them 300 soldiers, and Peter Martyr errs, through
his printer, perhaps, in allowing only 3000 allies.
[938] Cortés writes that this occurred in a town of
Huexotzinco province, and that here the Spaniards were
alarmed by the report of collusion between the Huexotzincas,
the Quauhquechollans, and the Aztecs. The leaders described
the expedition as difficult. _Cartas_, 146. Gomara follows,
naming the captain who brought the chiefs captive to Cortés.
_Hist. Mex._, 169. Bernal Diaz points out very plausibly
that Huexotzinco lay wholly out of the way; and, ignoring
the accession of volunteers, he assumes that the report of
a vast gathering of Mexican troops round Quauhquechollan
was the cause for alarm, among the Narvaez party only. Olid
appealed to their honor, and did all he could to encourage
them, but failed. _Hist. Verdad._, 112-13. Clavigero
believes, on the other hand, that Olid caught the alarm as
readily as the rest. _Storia Mess._, iii. 154. The joining
of Huexotzincas may have led to the belief that the march
lay through their territory.
[939] Bernal Diaz states that Cortés did not go, but sent
Olid a sharp letter, which roused him to proceed with the
expedition. But our chronicler was sick with fever all this
time, and has evidently not been well informed. Cortés’
description of the route and of different occurrences
indicates that he must have been present.
[940] ‘Cayeron muchos dellos [enemy] muertos y ahogados de
la calor, sin herida ninguna, y dos caballos se estancaron,
y el uno murió.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 149.
[941] ‘En Mexinca.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 169.
[942] ‘Y se les conservan el día de hoy,’ says Lorenzana,
in _Cortés_, _Hist. N. España_, 160.
[943] ‘Dos tiros de ballesta el uno del otro.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 150.
[944] ‘Tres estados en alto, y 14. pies en ancho,’ says
Herrera, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xvi. ‘Alto como cuatro estados
por de fuera de la ciudad, é por de dentro está casi igual
con el suelo.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 150. Meaning, in places.
[945] Herrera says two.
[946] Later Izucar; now Matamoros.
[947] Bernal Diaz assumes that Olid is the sole leader;
that he was here wounded, and lost two horses. Returning
to Tepeaca he was received with great honor, and joined in
laughing at the alarm which had caused the army to turn back
at Cholula. He would never after have anything to do with
the opulent and timid soldiers of Narvaez, he said. _Hist.
Verdad._, 114. Gomara supposes that the bridge had been
destroyed before the flight, so that few of the garrison
escaped from the sword and the stream. _Hist. Mex._, 171.
[948] Ixtlilxochitl extends the stay at Ytzocan alone to
twenty days. _Hist. Chich._, 305. Others make it less.
[949] Cortés calls it Ocupatuyo, which Lorenzana corrects
into Ocuituco, and Torquemada into Acapetlahuaca, i. 315,
while Clavigero insists that it should be Ocopetlajoccan.
_Storia Mess._, iii. 157.
[950] ‘Vinieron asimismo á se ofrecer por vasallos de V.
M. el señor de ... Guajocingo, y el señor de otra ciudad
que está á diez leguas de Izzucan.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 152.
[951] This name is badly misspelled. Chimalpain identifies
it with Huaxtéca, which is decidedly out of the way, _Hist.
Conq._, ii. 12, while Orozco y Berra stamps ‘en verdad
errónea’ the suggestion of Lorenzana that it is Oajaca; but
modern maps do place it in Oajaca, very slightly modified
in spelling.
[952] They had always been loyal, they said, although
deterred by fear of Mexico from sooner proclaiming it; the
four remaining pueblos of the province would soon send in
their allegiance. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 152-3.
[953] The construction of sentences in _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
152, and the complex relationship, have misled nearly every
one who notices this incident—as, _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
171; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 147; _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, .
[954] Alonso Coltzin. _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, ii. 12.
Ixtlilxochitl calls him Ahuecatzin. _Hist. Chich._, 305.
Alvarado stood sponsor. Terrified by some idle gossip,
or by the preparations for his baptism, the boy asked the
friar when he was to be sacrificed; but received comfort
in a pious exhortation. _Torquemada_, i. 520.
[955] Herrera gives the command to Olid and Juan Rodriguez
de Villafuerte, the owner of the much disputed first
madonna image, accompanied by Juan Nuñez, Sedeño, Lagos,
and Mata. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xvii. Olid may have been
detached from Quauhquechollan after the first success had
made troops less necessary; yet Herrera indicates that he
set out before this expedition.
[956] ‘En lo de Cachula fue adonde auian muerto en los
aposentos quinze Españoles.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
112.
[957] B. V. de Tapia, in his testimony against Cortés,
states that about 6000 prisoners were sent to him from
these districts by Olid, all of whom had surrendered
without resistance, and that he ordered the men, 2000 in
number, to be executed, the women and children being sold
or distributed. _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i. 59-60.
[958] ‘Boluierõ a Tepeaca, y auiendo estado treynta dias en
esta jornada hallaron a Hernando Cortes, que era buelto de
Guacachula.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xvii. These
successes are said to have been dimmed by a severe defeat
at Tochtepec, on Rio Papaloapan, whither Salcedo had been
sent with 80 men. It was the _entrepôt_ for trade in this
region, and was held by a strong Aztec garrison, aided by
native warriors with Chinantec pikes. Owing partly to the
efficient use of this weapon, and partly to the carelessness
of Salcedo, the troops were surprised and slaughtered to a
man, after selling their lives as dearly as possible. The
disaster being a blow also to Spanish prestige which it
would never do to overlook, Ordaz and Ávila were sent not
long after with a larger force, some horses, and 20,000
allies, to exact retaliation in death, captivity, and rich
spoil. The victors came back with ample plunder. _Herrera_,
ubi sup. See note 4 this chapter for doubts on the massacre.
CHAPTER XXIX.
KING-MAKING AND CONVERTING.
OCTOBER-DECEMBER, 1520.
CONQUEST IN DETAIL—BARBA CAUGHT—OTHER ARRIVALS AND
REINFORCEMENTS—THE SMALL-POX COMES TO THE ASSISTANCE OF THE
SPANIARDS—LETTERS TO THE EMPEROR—ESTABLISHING OF SEGURA DE
LA FRONTERA—CERTAIN OF THE DISAFFECTED WITHDRAW FROM THE
ARMY AND RETURN TO CUBA—DIVISION OF SPOILS—HEAD-QUARTERS
ESTABLISHED AT TLASCALA.
Thus all was going gayly with the Estremaduran once more. It was easy
work overcoming the divided Aztec forces, which combined had proved
so formidable. And there was little trouble now from factions. None
advocated a station by the sea-side, with ships ready for flight; none
thought of abandoning New Spain for Cuba. The simple presence of the
general was as the shield of Abas, which performed so many marvels,
and the mere sight of which could on the instant stay a revolt or
reduce a province to submission.
The successes of the Spaniards were rapidly enlarging the fame and
influence of their leader, bringing among other fruits, as we have
seen, alliances and reinforcements, not alone from native sources,
but from Spanish. The first accession of the latter was thirteen
soldiers and two horses, brought in a small vessel under the hidalgo,
Pedro Barba, formerly commandant at Habana. Commandant Rangel at
Villa Rica had received instructions to secure any vessel that might
arrive, both with a view to obtain recruits, and to prevent news from
travelling to Cuba of the defeat of Narvaez, or other incidents. As
the vessel entered the roadstead he accordingly approached it in a well
manned boat, with hidden arms. “How fares Narvaez?” was Barba’s first
inquiry. “Exceedingly well,” replied Rangel. “He is prosperous and
rich, while Cortés is a fugitive, with a score of miserable followers
at the most; or he even may be dead.” “All the better,” rejoined
Barba; “for I bear letters from the most magnificent Velazquez, with
instructions to secure the traitor, if he be alive, and send him at
once to Cuba, whence he shall go to Spain, as commanded by our most
illustrious Bishop Fonseca.” As a matter of course, Señor Barba will
accept the proffered hospitality; he will go ashore and deliver his
message to Narvaez in person. And he will catch this slippery fox
from Estremadura, and carry him hence to be hanged; he will carry
him to his worshipful master Velazquez to be hanged. So entering the
boat he is conveyed away, but only, alas! to be declared a prisoner;
only, alas! to learn that though damned, Cortés is not dead, and is
by no means likely at once to meet strangulation at the hand either
of Barba, Narvaez, or Velazquez. Meanwhile other visitors in other
boats proceed to secure the crew. The vessel is dismantled; and
since Cortés is the king, and not Narvaez, the so lately fierce and
loyal Barba, nothing loath, declares for Cortés. Indeed, Barba was
by no means unfriendly to the general, as proven by his attitude at
Habana two years before. Any such reinforcement was gladly welcomed
at Tepeaca, and Cortés sought to insure Barba’s loyalty by making him
captain of archers.[959] A week later arrived another small vessel,
under the hidalgo Rodrigo Morejon de Lobera, with eight soldiers, a
mare, a quantity of crossbow material, and a cargo of provisions. It
was secured in the same manner, and the soldiers and sailors proceeded
to join the army. Thus Cortés draws them in, friend and foe alike
being his fish, if once they enter his net.
More substantial reinforcements were in store, however. Governor
Garay, of Jamaica, had in no manner been discouraged by the failure
of his last expedition to Pánuco, and the rumors of his rival’s
success in New Spain fired him to renewed efforts, the more so since
he possessed the royal grant, the vessels, and the men, with ample
means to sustain them. In the spring of 1520 he had despatched three
vessels, with about one hundred and fifty soldiers and sailors, a few
horses, and some artillery, under the former commander, Pineda.[960]
Ascending the Pánuco the expedition came to a town,[961] and met
with good reception, but the natives soon tired of giving their
substance to strangers, who may beside have been guilty of excesses,
and they made hostile demonstrations. Pineda showed a bold front, and
proceeded to attack the town, but was surprised and killed, together
with a number of soldiers and the horses.[962] The rest escaped as
best they could in two of the vessels, pursued by a fleet of canoes.
One of the caravels was wrecked not far above Villa Rica, whereupon
a portion of the men resolved to proceed by land rather than suffer
starvation on board, for in the hurry of the flight the lockers had
received no attention. Both the sea and land parties arrived at the
Spanish port, where every care was given them.[963] Thence they were
forwarded to Tepeaca, where their cadaverous complexion and swollen
bodies procured for them the nickname of ‘panzaverdetes,’ or green
paunches. Hardship and bad food had carried a number past relief,
and even in Tepeaca several died, including Camargo, as Bernal Diaz
believes.
A month later, after the Quauhquechollan expedition, another vessel
arrived with about fifty soldiers,[964] under Miguel Diaz de Auz, an
Aragonian cavalier. He had been sent to reinforce Pineda, but after
remaining at Rio Pánuco for a month, without seeing even a native,
he had come down to search for the fleet. The fame of Cortés and the
promise of rich spoils induced him to follow the preceding party,
in contradistinction to which his stout and lusty recruits were
dubbed the ‘strong-backs.’[965] Hearing that two other vessels had
been fitted out to follow the Pánuco expeditions, and were probably
now cruising along the coast, Cortés ordered a crew to be sent in
pursuit, with the sole desire, as he expressed it, to save them from
the fate which had so nearly overtaken Camargo. One was never heard
of, and the other, the largest, entered the port before the searching
vessel had left, it seems, bringing about one hundred and twenty
men and sixteen horses. Camargo was induced to remonstrate with the
captain against proceeding to Pánuco, since the result could only be
disastrous, the native lord having, beside, tendered allegiance to
Cortés in Montezuma’s time.[966] But the captain would not listen to
him. To the joy of Cortés, however, a storm arose, which obliged this
captain to slip his anchor and put to sea; obliged him to take refuge
in San Juan de Ulua harbor, where he found his vessel so unsafe as to
require her to be stranded, whereupon the forces and armaments were
landed.[967] Cortés at once sent a sympathizing message, offering
the captain every assistance, but never for a moment intending to
give him any. He even tendered other vessels for his voyage—so he
tells the emperor.[968] But there is no doubt that the tender was
illusive, and that he did all in his power, with bribery, promises,
and even force, to secure the men and armament, and at the same time
to weaken his rivals by their loss. According to some accounts he
caused their vessels to be sunk to prevent departure,[969] an act
which Oviedo declares a fair war measure, particularly on the part
of Cortés, who greatly needed reinforcements. Men destined for so
comparatively unattractive a region as Pánuco must have been pleased
by the prospect of ready spoils and Mexican treasures soon to fall
into their hands under so able and successful a leader as Cortés. They
were therefore readily induced to join him, the captains alone, as in
the last instance, interposing objections for a while. These several
accessions amounted, according to the testimony of Cortés, to about
two hundred men and some twenty horses,[970] together with a large
quantity of small-arms, artillery, and ammunition. Thus again and
again was the shrewd and lucky Cortés aided by the very means which
his great enemies and rivals had sent to be used against him; aided to
reap the advantages they had planned and plotted to secure. And all
the while he was pitting the antagonisms of native foes one against
another, employing them also to assist him in securing the grand
prize. Greatness is but another name for good fortune. Circumstances
certainly did as much for Cortés in promoting success as Spanish arms
and superior civilization.
* * * * *
Civilization! What fools we are, pluming ourselves in its radiance,
the radiance of ghastly electrical lights, adopted instead of the
glorious sun of nature. For is not the unartificial nature, and nature
God, while artifice is rather of the devil? And yet we persist in
glorifying artifice and calling it deity. The human sacrifice of the
Aztecs was a horrible rite, but in the hands of the Spaniards is not
Christianity a bloody mistress? And does not European civilization
constantly demand the sacrifice of millions of lives, if not for
the propitiation of gods, then to avenge an insult, to preserve the
integrity of a nation, or to gratify the spleen of rulers? At hand even
now, coming to the assistance of the magnificent Cortés, civilization’s
pride and pet for the moment, is another ally of civilization, more
terrible than horses, blood-hounds, gunpowder, or steel. At the
time of Narvaez’ departure for Cuba, small-pox was raging there so
severely that it offered a reason for preventing the governor from
leaving with the expedition. A pioneer vessel of the fleet sowed
the malady at Cozumel, whence it entered the continent. Before it
spread far in this direction Cempoala was infected by a negro slave
of Narvaez.[971] The Spaniards knew little about its treatment, and
that little they sought to impart, not for their own safety, since
those that were left of them were considered almost proof against the
malady, but for the sake of the allies. Their advice did not avail
much, however, for the natives were too devoted to their panacea,
the hot and cold bath, which only intensified the evil. The terrible
force of the first attacks of epidemics and endemics is well known,
and it has been advocated with apparent truth that the diseases of
a strong people fall with particular force on weaker races. After
desolating the coast region for some time, the small-pox crossed
the plateau border during the summer, and in September[972] it broke
out round the lakes, on its way to the western sea, smiting high and
low, rich and poor. For sixty days, according to native records, the
_hueyzahuatl_, or great pest, raged here with such virulence as to
fix itself a central point in their chronology. In most districts,
says Motolinia, over half the population died, leaving towns almost
deserted, and in others the mortality was appalling. Those who
recovered presented an appearance that made their neighbors flee
from them, until they became accustomed to the sight. Learning how
contagious was the disease, and terrified by the number of deaths,
the inhabitants left the bodies to putrefy, thus aiding to extend the
pest. In some cases the authorities ordered the houses to be pulled
down over the dead, so as to check the contagion. Not the least of
the evil was a famine, which resulted from a lack of harvesters.[973]
Among the first victims at the capital were King Totoquihuatzin, of
Tlacopan, and Cuitlahuatzin, the successor of Montezuma. The latter
had ruled barely three months,[974] but sufficiently long to prove
himself a most able leader of his people in their struggle for liberty,
for he was brave, full of devices, and energetic, yet prudent; a
man who, not content with securing the expulsion of invaders, had
sought to strengthen his position with alliances and by attracting
the subject provinces through gifts, remissions, and promises. If he
did not succeed so well as he had hoped, the fault must be ascribed
to the reputation of the previous government and to dereliction of
duty among his officers.
As a monarch he would not have fallen far short of the native ideal,
for as a general he had distinguished himself; and, the brother of
Montezuma, he had in his court imbibed the dignity and majestic manner
born of constant adulation from subservient nobles and plebeians.
Crafty and unscrupulous, he appears not to have hesitated at crime and
breach of faith to secure his aims for personal and state advancement.
The flourishing condition of his own province indicated a not unwise
administrator; and the beauty of Iztapalapan, its magnificent palaces,
and exquisite gardens filled with choice plants from different regions,
pointed to a ruler of cultivated taste.
There is no doubt that Mexico lost in him one of the most promising
of sovereigns, and perhaps the only leader capable of giving her
a longer lease of freedom in face of the irresistible onslaught of
foreigners.[975] Thus bravely worked the small-pox for Cortés and
the superior civilization.
* * * * *
The strongest candidate for the Mexican throne was now the high-priest
Quauhtemotzin,[976] a young man of about twenty-three[977] years,
rather handsome, of fairer complexion than the average of his race,
grave and dignified, as befitted a prince, and ‘quite a gentleman for
an Indian.’ He is said to have been the son of Montezuma’s sister by
Itzquauhtzin, lord of Tlatelulco, the twin town or suburb of Mexico,
who had been fellow-prisoner of the late emperor, and sharer in his
fate.[978] The brothers and descendants of Montezuma had been pretty
well removed by death, or through the machinations of Cuitlahuatzin;
but if nearer legitimate claimants existed, Quauhtemotzin had eclipsed
them all in experience, influence, and fame, as a brave and able
leader. As the chief companion of his predecessor, and one who even
before the appearance of the latter had led the uprising against
the Spaniards, he had become identified as a true patriot, keeping
himself at the head of the dominant party which began and continued
the struggle for freedom. In order further to secure his influence
he had taken to wife the only legitimate daughter of Montezuma,
Princess Tecuichpo, or Isabel; and although the marriage was merely
nominal, she being but a child, yet the alliance served the intended
aim.[979] The Tepanecs at the same time elected as successor to their
king, his son Tetlepanquetzaltzin,[980] whose coronation took place
at the same time as that of Quauhtemotzin, hallowed by the blood of
captive enemies, including no doubt some Spaniards. Cohuanacoch had
meanwhile been chosen at Tezcuco in lieu of the disowned protégé
whom Cortés had foisted upon them. By this trio were taken up the
plans of Cuitlahuatzin for the deliverance of the country from her
invaders, and especially were their efforts directed toward securing
the loyalty of provinces and allies which had been stirred by the
alarming progress of Spanish arms in Tepeaca.
A loss to the Spaniards through the epidemic, which outweighed many
a gain, was the death of Maxixcatzin, to whose devoted friendship
they chiefly owed their escape from the recent crises;[981] for he
it was who took the lead in offering the Tlascaltec alliance and
in overthrowing the inimical plans of the younger Xicotencatl in
favor of the Aztecs. When the sad news came, Cortés felt as if he
had lost a father, says Bernal Diaz, and mourning robes were donned
by quite a number of the captains and men. In this they felt the
more justified, since the chief, on finding himself stricken by the
dread disease, had expressed a wish to become a Christian, and with
the name of Lorenzo had received baptism at the hands of Olmedo, who
joyfully hastened to Tlascala to perform so welcome a service for
the Spaniards’ champion. He died exhorting his family and friends to
obey Cortés and his brethren, the destined rulers of the land, and
to accept their god, who had given victory over the idols.[982] It
was fortunate that he did not die before Spanish prestige had been
reëstablished by the Tepeaca campaign; for his friendship sufficed
to confirm the allies in their adhesion, to gain for the Spaniards
further coöperation, and to obtain for them a firm footing in the
country.
* * * * *
The allied forces had become so numerous by the time Itzucan fell
that they were absolutely unmanageable, and on returning from this
place to Tepeaca Cortés dismissed them with friendly words to their
homes, retaining only the tried Tlascaltecs, who had become efficient
in the European style of warfare under the Spanish discipline and
tactics.[983]
* * * * *
Before the Quauhquechollan expedition summoned him away, Cortés
had begun a report to the emperor on the condition of affairs. On
returning, he completed this his second and perhaps most interesting
letter, dated at Segura de la Frontera, or Tepeaca, October 30, 1520,
wherein are related the occurrences since the despatch of the first
letter in the middle of July, a year before. “I write your Majesty,”
it states, “although poorly told, the truth of all that has happened
in these parts, and that which your Majesty has most need of knowing.
With the aid of God the conquest is progressing in this new country,
which from its similarity to Spain, in fertility, extent, temperature,
and many other things, I have called La Nueva España del Mar Océano.”
Then he proceeds to humbly beg his majesty to confirm this name. In
a brief supplementary letter he asks the emperor to send a person of
confidence to investigate and prove the truth of his statements.[984]
The council also wrote a letter to the emperor, speaking hopefully
of the conquest, which already “extended, over one hundred and
fifty leagues of the coast, from Rio Grande de Tabasco to Rio de
Pánuco,”[985] while the remainder of the interior was on the sure
way to reduction, under the able leadership of Cortés, whose valor
and energy they praised.
They prayed that he, the beloved of all the troops, might be confirmed
in the office of captain-general, as the only man whose genius and
experience could be relied on to carry out and maintain the conquest.
The natives being docile and ready to receive conversion, friars
should be sent to secure this harvest for the church, and also to
administer to the spiritual wants of the Spaniards. Colonists were
needed; also horses, and other live-stock—the latter to be paid for
at a future time—in order to secure the country and develop its wealth.
With these letters went one from the army, which, recounting but
briefly the leading incidents of the campaigns, had for its main
object to decry Narvaez and Velazquez as the sole cause of all the
disasters that had occurred in the country, and to praise Cortés as
a noble, loyal, and able man, by whom alone the conquest could be
achieved.[986] These and other letters were intrusted to Alonso de
Mendoza, a townsman of Cortés, together with thirty thousand pesos,
in fifths and presents, and a number of commissions from different
members of the expedition. A well appointed vessel was assigned for
the voyage, and three other vessels were despatched for Española,
there to enlist recruits and to buy horses, arms and ammunition,
cattle, clothing, and other requirements, and four strong vessels to
maintain traffic with the Antilles. Letters were sent to Licenciado
Rodrigo de Figueroa and other royal officers on the Island, inclosing
duplicates of those forwarded to Spain; and a number of specimens of
the jewels, manufactures, and natural resources of the country, were
transmitted as presents and as samples to allure recruits. The letters
and the ample funds for the enlistment and purchases were intrusted to
Contador Ávila and another officer,[987] with instructions to use every
effort to confirm the audiencia officials in their good opinion of
Cortés, so that they might plead his cause in Spain. The ill-treatment
of Aillon by Velazquez and Narvaez had already impelled them to do
this, as we have seen. Their advice was to be asked regarding the
enslavement of rebels and other measures, and their authority and aid
sought for obtaining men and stores.[988] Another vessel was sent
under Solis[989] to Jamaica to buy horses and war material. Bernal
Diaz does not fail to point out the evidence in the large remittance
for Spain and the Antilles of treasures secretly taken from Mexico
by Cortés and his clique, and accuses him of having appropriated
also the share for Villa Rica, claimed to have been captured by the
Indians during its transmission from Tlascala.[990]
No sooner were these preparations announced than Duero and a number
of others of the Narvaez party claimed a fulfilment of the promise
regarding their departure. The success of the Spanish arms and the
allurement of spoils had reconciled most of the lately disaffected,
so that those who now demanded to return were only a few of the more
wealthy. The services of these could be readily dispensed with, now
that such large reinforcements had been received, and the display of
their accumulations at home might inspire fresh recruits. Therefore
Cortés gave his consent, with abundant promises that as soon as the
conquest was fully accomplished, gold and other rewards would flow
on those who supported his cause either in the Islands or in Spain.
Leaders like Duero and Bermudez were the chief recipients of such
offers; and offers alone they remained in most instances, for Cortés
was not the man to reward desertion. Duero and others evidently
expected nothing more, since they were soon after found arrayed on the
side of Velazquez. When some among the Cortés party raised objections
to this diminution of the force, they were quieted with the declaration
that the army was better rid of unwilling and inefficient soldiers,
whose presence served only to discourage others.[991]
The vessel for Spain and two of those for the Islands were wrecked
on the coast; and one consequence was that Mendoza’s departure was
delayed till the 5th of March. He took with him a supplementary letter
for the emperor, relating the progress so far made for the recovery of
Mexico. By this time Ordaz was, according to Bernal Diaz, commissioned
to join him and plead the cause of Cortés before the emperor, and at
the same time to receive the reward for his many achievements, one
of which was the ascent of the volcano. Several of the Narvaez party
appear to have left by the same vessel.[992]
* * * * *
In course of the late campaign the advantages of the town of Tepeaca
for permanent occupation had become apparent, chiefly as a point of
observation for watching over the new conquest. It was well situated
for protecting the road to Villa Rica,[993] and for communicating
with Cholula and Tlascala, each capital eight or nine leagues
distant, and it lay in the midst of a fertile maize country, which
offered ample subsistence for a garrison. Although the punishment at
first inflicted, by sacking and enslaving, had been severe, yet the
treatment of the inhabitants became afterward so considerate that
they themselves prayed for a continuance of Spanish protection.[994]
Every circumstance, therefore, demanding a settlement, it was decided
in council to found a villa in this same town, with the appropriate
name of Segura de la Frontera, intended, as it was, to secure the
frontier against the Mexicans. Pedro de Ircio was made alcalde, with
Francisco de Orozco and others as regidores.[995]
The campaign being practically concluded, a division was ordered to
be made of the spoils not hitherto distributed, including slaves,
which had now become a prominent feature thereof, and were intended
for personal and plantation service, as already practised in the
Antilles. The pretence was to enslave only the inhabitants of districts
concerned in the murder of Spaniards, but the distinction was not
very strictly observed, and rebellious tribes and those addicted
to cannibalism and other vicious practices were included.[996] The
Spaniards, as a rule, kept only the women and the children, the men
being transferred to the allies for their share, “because they were
difficult to watch,” says Bernal Diaz, “and because their services
were not needed while we had the Tlascaltecs with us.”[997]
The soldiers were ordered to bring in all their captives, which from
the first had been branded for recognition with a ‘G,’ signifying
_guerra_, war.[998] When the day for distribution came, it was found
that the leaders and favored men had already secured their share by
appropriating the prettiest and choicest slaves. They had probably
been priced by the officials, and the leaders, being entitled to
larger shares, had secured the best articles. At this there was a
considerable uproar, increased by the outcry against the fifth set
apart for Cortés, after deducting the royal fifth.[999] How the matter
was settled is not clear, except that the general had recourse to the
soothing eloquence he knew so well how to apply, promising that for
the future he would conform to the general desire, which appeared
to be in favor of offering the slaves at auction, so as to arrive
at their proper value, and to give all members of the expedition an
equal chance in securing the more desirable.[1000]
One of the last expeditions fitted out at Segura was for the reduction
of the northern route to Villa Rica, by which the Spaniards had first
entered the plateau, and for the punishment of those concerned in
the murder of Alcántara and other Spaniards.[1001] It set out in the
beginning of December, under Sandoval, with two hundred infantry,
twenty horses, and the usual complement of allies, and entered
Xocotlan valley, which readily submitted, with the exception of the
main town, named Castilblanco during the first entry into the country.
The cacique, who had then already shown himself unfriendly, rejected
every proposition, with the threat that he would make a feast on the
commander and his followers, as he had on the former party. There
being no alternative, the cavalry charged the large force which had
taken up position near a ravine, on the outskirts of the city, with
a view to defend the entrance. Under cover of the musketeers and
archers, who from one side of the ravine did considerable harm to
the enemy, the charge succeeded, though four riders and nine horses
were wounded, one of the latter dying. The enemy thrown into disorder
fled to join the remaining garrison, which occupied the temples on
the plaza. With the aid of the infantry and allies the stronghold
speedily fell, and a number of prisoners were secured.[1002]
Proceeding northward along the mountain border of the plateau Sandoval
added a considerable extent of country to his conquest, meeting serious
opposition only at Jalancingo, where the Aztec garrison, ever since
the beginning of the Tepeaca campaign, had been employed in fortifying
the place, and either considered themselves secure or feared that
a surrender would procure no better terms, for them, at least. They
were disconcerted by being attacked on different sides, under native
guidance, and after a brief resistance took to flight, during which
a number of them were captured, the Spaniards losing three horses,
and having eight men severely injured, Sandoval receiving an arrow
wound. In a temple were found relics of slaughtered Spaniards, in
the shape of dresses, arms, and saddles.[1003] A few days later the
expedition set out to rejoin the army, with a large amount of spoils
and a train of captives. The chiefs were pardoned by Cortés, with
politic regard for the future, and enjoined to furnish their quota
of supplies at Segura.[1004]
The head-quarters had meanwhile been removed to Tlascala, preparatory
to a march on Mexico, and Segura was now in charge of the alcalde,
Pedro de Ircio, lately lieutenant of Sandoval at Villa Rica, assisted
by the regidor, Francisco de Orozco, and sixty men, including the
invalids and the disabled.[1005] Cortés had left it in the middle
of December,[1006] taking with the cavalry the route through
Cholula,[1007] to settle the question of succession to a number of
cacique offices vacated during the epidemic. These appeals were made to
him not only as the representative of the Spanish monarch to whom the
people had sworn obedience, but as an acknowledgment of his influence
over the native mind. His treatment of the conquered and his equitable
decisions of disputes had made him the umpire and king-maker whom
not only allies, but half-reconciled tribes were willing to heed, in
private and public affairs. Having made the appointments, and formed
favorable arrangements for himself, he rejoined the army. The march to
Tlascala was one befitting the return of conquering heroes. Triumphal
arches covered the roads, and processions came to chant the praises
of the victors, and recount the successes achieved by the Tlascaltec
allies, as shown by spoils and banners from different provinces and
cities, and by long files of captives. On nearing the republican
capital the whole population came forth to join in the ovation, and
at the plaza an orator stepped forward to greet Cortés in a glowing
panegyric, wherein he reviewed his progress as conqueror and avenger.
In reply Cortés alluded feelingly to the brotherhood between the two
races, now cemented by blood and victories, and to the common loss
sustained in the death of the wise and noble Maxixcatzin. These words,
added to the evidence of sorrow in the mourning array of their dress
and arms, left a most favorable impression on the minds of the brave
allies.
He was again called as representative of his king to appoint as
successor to Maxixcatzin his eldest legitimate son, a boy of twelve
years, against whom a claimant had arisen.[1008] This done, Cortés
dubbed him a knight, according to Castilian usage, in recognition
of the services of his father, causing him also to be baptized, with
the name of Juan, Maxixcatzin becoming the family name.[1009] Taking
advantage of the occasion and of his own popularity, the general sought
to inspire a more general feeling in favor of his religion, but the
effort met with little encouragement, and he wisely refrained from
pressing so dangerous a subject. According to Bernal Diaz, the elder
Xicotencatl was among the limited number of saved souls, and received
the name of Vicente.[1010] The native records, as given by Camargo and
Torquemada, and adopted by most writers, assume that the four chiefs
were all baptized at this time, if not earlier; but they are neither
clear nor consistent, and are evidently impelled by a desire to redeem
the native leaders from the charge of idolatry. Cortés, Herrera,
Diaz, and other chroniclers would not have failed to record so large
and prominent a conquest for the church, particularly since the two
latter do mention the exceptional converts.[1011] Cortés also refers
to a conversion in the person of Tecocoltzin, a younger brother of
King Cacama, and the future head of Tezcuco, who is named Fernando;
but he does so in a manner which indicates that the conversion was
exceptional.[1012] His baptism took place probably on the same day
as that of young Maxixcatzin and old Xicotencatl, the occasion being
celebrated with banquets and dances, with illumination, sports, and
exchange of presents, the Spaniards adding horse-races and other
interesting proceedings for the gratification of the natives.
FOOTNOTES
[959] ‘Con este ... vino vn Francisco Lopez, vezino,
y Regidor que fue de Guatimala.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 113. Vetancurt assumes that Pedro del Castillo—Diaz
calls him ‘el Almirante Pedro Cauallero’—secured Barba
and his vessel. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 148; _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, ii. 165.
[960] ‘El capitã Diego de Camargo,’ says Herrera; but Bernal
Diaz explains that this man stepped into the captaincy on
the murder of ‘fulano Alvarez Pinedo,’ at Pánuco. ‘Dixeron,
que el Capitan Camargo auia sido Fraile Dominico, e que
auia hecho profession.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 114.
[961] Seven leagues up, says Herrera.
[962] ‘Muerto diez y siete ó diez y ocho cristianos, y
herido otros muchos. Asimismo ... muerto siete caballos.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 144. Bernal Diaz assumes that the whole
attacking force was killed and some vessels destroyed.
‘Dexaron vna carauela,’ says Herrera.
[963] Herrera states that hunger caused the land expedition
to abandon the vessels some twenty leagues above Almería.
The people from the wrecked caravel were taken on board the
last vessel. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xviii. Cortés leaves
the impression that both vessels arrived at Villa Rica,
perhaps because the one was wrecked so near it. ‘Vn nauio
... y traia sobre sesenta soldados.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 114. This may include the land party, but not
the sailors.
[964] ‘Con hasta treinta hombres de mar y tierra.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 154. ‘Sus soldados, que eran mas de cincuenta,
y mas siete cauallos,’ says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._,
114; and, since Cortés would be less apt to indicate large
accessions, he may be correct.
[965] ‘Este fue el mejor socorro.... Diaz de Auz sirvió muy
bien a su Magestad en todo lo que se ofreciò en las guerras,
... traxo pleyto despues, sobre el pleyto de la mitad de
Mestitan, ... conque le den la parte de lo que rentare el
pueblo mas de dos mil y quinientos pesos.’ _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 114-15. He was excluded from the town
itself, owing to cruel treatment of Indians.
[966] ‘El señor de aquel rio y tierra, que se dice Pánuco,
se habia dado por vasallo de V. M., en cuyo reconocimiento me
habia enviado á la ciudad de Tenuxtitan, con sus mensajeros,
ciertas cosas.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 144-5. But this is
probably a mere assertion, since the Spanish expeditions
had never been higher than Almería, and the cacique could
have had no inducement for submitting.
[967] Bernal Diaz refers to the last accession from Garay’s
expeditions as 40 soldiers and 10 horses, under an old man
named Ramirez. Protected by heavy cotton armor they were
nicknamed the ‘albardillas.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 115.
[968] ‘Si todos ó algunos dellos se quisiesen volver en los
navíos que allí estaban, que les diese licencia.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 163.
[969] _Oviedo_, iii. 335; and so Herrera also intimates
in reference to Camargo’s only remaining vessel, ‘la qual
se anegò tãbien dẽtro de 10. dias en el puerto.’ dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. xviii.
[970] The last two vessels bring 150 men and 16 horses,
probably over 20, to which must be added Camargo’s force,
amounting no doubt to 50 effective men, for Bernal Diaz
admits 60 soldiers, not counting sailors; and Herrera
intimates that over 100 men must have reached Villa Rica of
the total force on board Camargo’s three vessels. Bernal
Diaz’ estimates for the five vessels which he enumerates
exceed 170 soldiers and 20 horses; on fol. 115 he contradicts
several points, including the total, to which the sailors may
be added, while a small reduction is to be made for deaths
among Camargo’s men. Vetancurt follows Bernal Diaz, and so
does Prescott, who assumes that full 150 men and 20 horses
must have been obtained. _Mex._, ii. 438. Robertson raises
this nearer to the truth by saying 180 men, _Hist. Am._,
ii. 104, as does Brasseur de Bourbourg, who nevertheless,
on an earlier page, adds Sahagun’s fanciful reinforcement
of 300 men. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 371, 387. While the
Spaniards were curing themselves, ‘llegó á Tlaxcala un
Francisco Hernandez, español, con 300 soldados castellanos
y con muchos caballos y armas.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._,
i. 37. The later edition does not give the number. Gomara
merely states that numerous small parties came over from
the Antilles, attracted by Cortés’ fame, through Aillon’s
reports, he seems to say. Many of them were murdered on
the way, but sufficient numbers reached him to restore the
army and encourage the prosecution of the conquest. _Hist.
Mex._, 173.
[971] Said to have been named Francisco Eguia. _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, i. 39, 66, and _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._,
i. 278. Herrera writes that many assumed the malady to have
been one of the periodical scourges that used to fall on
the country. ‘Y el no auer tocado a los Castellanos, parece
que trae aparencia de razon.’ dec. ii. lib. x. cap. iv. But
it appears to have been wholly a new disease to the natives.
[972] ‘En el mes que llamaban Tepeilhuitl que es al fin de
setiembre,’ as Sahagun assumes. _Hist. Conq._, i. 39.
[973] _Motolinia_, _Hist. Ind._, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col.
Doc._, i. 14-15; _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, i. 39, 66;
_Mendieta_, _Hist. Ecles._, 514; _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 101; _Id._ (Paris ed. 1837), iv. 460 (a chapter
omitted in the original); _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 148;
_Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, i. 279; _Torquemada_, i. 489;
_Tezcoco en los ultimos tiempos_, 273.
[974] ‘Vivió despues de su elecçion solos sessenta dias.’
_Cano_, in _Oviedo_, iii. 549. The election having taken
place twenty days after Montezuma’s death, according to
Ixtlilxochitl, who assumes that he ruled only 40 or 47 days.
_Hist. Chich._, 304; _Id._, _Relaciones_, 413. Others extend
the rule to 80 days, both as leader and king, perhaps,
which would agree with Cano’s version.
[975] Such characteristics may be seen in Spanish as well
as native records; yet Solis writes, ‘su tibieza y falta de
aplicacion dexáse poco menos que borrada entre los suyos
la memoria de su nombre.’ _Hist. Mex._, 372. Sufficient
proof of his energy is found in the siege resulting in the
expulsion from Mexico.
[976] The native authorities incline to Quauhtemoc, but the
Spanish generally add the ‘tzin,’ the ‘c’ being elided,
and the ‘Q’ changed to ‘G,’ making the name Guatemotzin.
‘Quauhtemoc, que significa Aguila que baja.’ _Vetancvrt_,
_Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 51.
[977] Bernal Diaz describes him about a year later as 23
or 24 years old, while on another occasion he alludes to
him as 25. _Hist. Verdad._, 112, 155. Ixtlilxochitl makes
him 18. _Hist. Chich._, 304.
[978] ‘Por muerte de su Padre gobernaba el Tlatelulco.’
_Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 479. ‘Sobrino de Monteçuma,
que era _papa_ ó saçerdote mayor entre los indios.’ _Cano_,
in _Oviedo_, iii. 549; _Peter Martyr_, dec. v. cap. vi.
‘Cuauhtemotctzin hijo del rey Ahuitzotzin y de la heredera
de el Tlatelulco.’ _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Relaciones_, 413. This
incorrect view is adopted by Brasseur de Bourbourg and many
others.
[979] ‘Moglie già del suo Zio Cuitlahuatzin,’ is the
supposition of Clavigero, _Storia Mess._, iii. 160. ‘Se
hizo temer de tal manera, que todos los suyos temblauan
dél.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 112. For fanciful
portraits of these last two emperors, see _Frost’s Pict.
Hist. Mex._, 104, 114.
[980] _Ixtlilxochitl_, loc. cit.; _Torquemada_, i. 570.
[981] ‘Al que solo fue causa q̄ los Christianos se
conseruassen en aquella tierra.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
x. cap. xix.
[982] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 118; _Herrera_, ubi
sup.
[983] During the absence of the troops, says Herrera, a part
of the Tepeacans had formed a plot to surprise them when
divided; but some women informed Marina in time to prevent
trouble. Cortés inflicted on them severe chastisement. dec.
ii. lib. x. cap. xvi. xviii.
[984] The reports and other papers by Cortés, written during
a period of nearly three decades in connection with New
Spain, are both numerous and lengthy, but only the five
letters relating to the actual conquest of Mexico and Central
America have achieved bibliographic celebrity, under the
title of _Cortés’ Letters or Relations_. Although the first
letter has been lost, and the companion letter long missing,
yet an allusion to the expedition against Mexico appeared
as early as 1520 in _Ein auszug ettlicher sendbrieff dem
aller durchleüchtigisten grossmechtigistẽ Fürsten ... von
wegen einer new gefundẽ Inseln. Nürmberg durch Fryderichen
Peypus am. 17. tag Marcij MDXX._, wherein the voyages of
Córdoba and Grijalva are also described. Harrisse, _Bib.
Am. Vet._, 179, assumes that the information is taken
from Peter Martyr’s _Decades_. A later brief reference
to the city of Mexico itself is given in _Translationuss
hispanischer sprach zü Frantzösisch gemacht so durch dẽ
Vice Rey in Neapole fraw Margareten Hertzogiñ iñ Burgundi
zü geschrieben_, published in 1522. On folio A. iii. is
written: Not far from the same island they have conquered
a city called Tenustitan, wherein 60,000 hearths have been
counted, within a good wall. The letter of the ayuntamiento
was first published in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i., 1842.
By the time of the receipt in Spain of Cortés’ second
letter, of October 30, 1520, the general and his conquest
had become so famous that his communications were not likely
to be lost sight of. The incidents treated of were besides
highly enticing, particularly the victories in Tlascala, the
entry into Montezuma’s wonderful island city, the disastrous
expulsion, and the renewal of the campaign, and Cromberger
had it printed in 1522 under the title of _Carta de relaciõ
ẽbiada a su. S. majestad del ẽpador nt̃o señor por el
capitã general dela nueua spaña: llamado fernãdo cortes_,
etc. _Seuilla: por Jacobo crõberger aleman. A viii. dias
de Nouiẽbre. Año de M. d. y xxij._ ‘Fué las Primicias de
el Arte de la Imprenta en Sevilla, y acaso de toda España,’
observes Lorenzana, in _Cortes_, _Hist. N. España_, 171, but
this is a great mistake, for printing had been done already
for several decades in Spain. An Italian abstract of the
letter appeared immediately after, as _Noue de le Isole
& Terra ferma Nouamente trouate In India per el Capitaneo
de larmata de la Cesarea Maiestate. Mediolani decimosexto
calẽ. Decembris M.D.XXII._ A reprint of the Seville text
was issued at Saragossa in January, 1523. A later abridged
account of the conquest is given in _Ein schöne Newe zeytung
so Kayserlich Mayestet auss India yetz newlich zükommen
seind_, ascribed to Sigmund Grimm of Augsburg, about 1522.
_Bibliotheca Grenvilliana_ and _Harrisse_. Ternaux-Compans
wrongly supposes the narrative to extend only to 1519,
instead of 1522, and assumes the imprint to be Augsburg,
1520. _Bibl. Amér._, 5. Perhaps 1523 is the more correct
date, which may also be ascribed to _Tres sacree Imperiale
et catholique mageste ... eust nouuelles des marches ysles
et terre ferme occeanes_. Colophon, fol. 16. _Depuis sont
venues a sa mageste nouuelles de certaīes ysles trouuez
par les espagnolz plaines despecerie et beaucoup de mines
dor, lesquelles nouuelles il receupt en ceste ville de
vailladolid le primier doctobre xv. cent. xxij._ This is a
book noticed by no bibliographer except Sabin, who believes
that it contains only the second letter, although the
holder supposes the third letter to be also used. In 1524
appeared the first Latin version of the second letter, by
Savorgnanus, _Praeclara Ferdinãdi Cortesii de Noua maris
Oceani Hyspania Narratio, Norimberga. M.D.XXIIII._, which
contains a copy of the now lost map of the Gulf of Mexico,
and also a plan of Mexico City. In the same year two Italian
translations of this version, by Liburnius, _La Preclara
Narratione_, were printed at Venice, one by Lexona, the
other by Sabio, yet both at the instance of Pederzani. The
plan and map are often missing. Antonio, _Bib. Hisp. Nova_,
iii. 375, mentions only Lexona’s issue. A translation from
Flavigny appeared in the _Portfolio_, Philadelphia, 1817.
The originals of the second and other letters were, in the
early part of the eighteenth century, ‘en la Libreria de
Don Miguel Nuñez de Rojas, del Consejo Real de las Ordenes,’
says Pinelo, _Epitome_, ii. 597. Much of the vagueness which
involves the narrative of events previous to the flight from
Mexico may be due to the loss of diary and documents during
that episode. The loss was convenient to Cortés, since it
afforded an excuse for glossing over many irregularities
and misfortunes.
The third letter, dated Coyuhuacan, May 15, 1522, and
relating the siege and fall of Mexico, was first published
at Seville, on Cromberger’s press, March 30, 1523, as _Carta
tercera de relaciõ: embiada por Fernãdo cortes capitan
y justicia mayor del yucatan llamado la nueua espana del
mar oceano_. It received a reproduction in Latin by the
same hand and at the same time as the second letter. Both
were reprinted, together with some missionary letters and
Peter Martyr’s _De Insulis_, in _De Insvlis nuper Inventis
Ferdinandi Cortesii. Coloniæ, M.D.XXXII._ The title-page
displays a portrait of Charles V., and is bordered with his
arms. Martyr’s part, which tells rather briefly of Cortés,
found frequent reprint, while the second and third letters
were republished, with other matter, in the Spanish _Thesoro
de virtudes_, 1543; in the German _Ferdinandi Cortesii.
Von dem Newen Hispanien. Augspurg_, 1550, wherein they
are called first and second narratives, and divided into
chapters, with considerable liberty; in the Latin _Novus
Orbis_ of 1555 and 1616; and in the Flemish _Nieuwe Weerelt_
of 1563; while a French abridgment appeared at Paris in
1532. The secret epistle accompanying the third letter was
first printed in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, i., and afterward by
Kingsborough and Gayangos.
The fourth letter, on the progress of conquest after the
fall of Mexico, dated at Temixtitan (Mexico), October 15,
1524, was issued at Toledo, 1525, as _La quarta relacion_,
together with Alvarado’s and Godoy’s reports to Cortés.
A second edition followed at Valencia the year after.
The secret letter accompanying it was not published till
1865, when Icazbalceta, the well known Mexican collector,
reproduced it in separate black-letter form, and in his
_Col. Doc._, i. 470-83.
The substance of the above three relations has been given
in a vast number of collections and histories, while in
only a limited number have they been reproduced in a full
or abridged form, the first reproduction being in the
third volume of _Ramusio Viaggi_, of 1556, 1565, and 1606,
which contains several other pieces on the conquest, all
supplied with appropriate headings and marginals. Barcia
next published them direct from the manuscript, in the
_Historiadores Primitivos_, i. This collection bears the
imprint Madrid, 1749, but the letters had already been
printed in 1731, as Pinelo affirms, _Epitome_, ii. 597.
Barcia died a few years before his set was issued. From this
source Archbishop Lorenzana took the version published by
him under the title of _Historia de Nueva-España_, Mexico,
1770, which is not free from omissions and faults, though
provided with valuable notes on localities and customs,
and supplemented with illustrated pieces on routes and
native institutions, a map of New Spain by Alzate, an
article on the Gobierno Politico by Vetancurt, a copy
of a native tribute-roll from picture records, not very
accurately explained, and the first map of Lower California
and adjoining coast, by Castillo, in 1541. This version of
the letters was reproduced in New York, 1828, with a not
wholly successful attempt by Del Mar to introduce modern
spelling. The work is also marked by a number of omissions
and blunders, and the introductory biographic sketch by
Robert Sands adds little to its value. An abridgment from
Lorenzana appeared as _Correspondance de Fernand Cortés,
par le Vicomte de Flavigny_, Paris, 1778, which obtained
three reprints during the following year at different
places. A great many liberties are taken with facts, as may
be imagined; and the letters are, beside, misnamed first,
second, and third. From the same source, or perhaps from
Flavigny, of whom they savor, are _Briefe des Ferdinand
Cortes_, Heidelberg, 1779, with several reproductions,
and with notes; and the corrected _Brieven van Ferdinand
Cortes_, Amsterdam, 1780-1. The first edition in English,
from Lorenzana, was issued by Folsom, as _Despatches of
Hernando Cortes_, New York, 1843, also with notes.
The fifth letter of the conqueror, on the famous expedition
to Honduras, dated at Temixtitan, September 3, 1526, lay
hidden in the Vienna Imperial Library till Robertson’s
search for the first letter brought it to light. _Hist.
Am._, i. xi. He made use of it, but the first complete copy
was not published till of late, in _Col. Doc. Inéd._, iv.
8-167, reprinted at New York, 1848, and, in translation, in
the Hakluyt Society collection, London, 1868. It bore no
date, but the copy found at Madrid has that of September
3, 1526, and the companion letter printed in _Col. Doc.
Inéd._, i. 14-23, that of September 11th. This, as well as
the preceding letters, was issued by Vedia, in Ribadeneyra’s
_Biblioteca de Autores Españoles_, xxii.; the first three
letters being taken from Barcia, and the fifth from its MS.
The letter of the ayuntamiento is given and a bibliographic
notice of little value. A very similar collection is to be
found in the _Biblioteca Historica de la Iberia_, i. But
the most complete reproduction of the principal writings
by Cortés, and connected with him, is in the _Cartas y
Relaciones de Hernan Cortés_, Paris, 1866, by Gayangos,
which contains 26 pieces, beside the relations, chiefly
letters and memorials to the sovereign, a third of which
are here printed for the first time. Although a few of
Lorenzana’s blunders find correction, others are committed,
and the notes of the archbishop are adopted without credit,
and without the necessary amendment of date, etc., which
often makes them absurd. The earliest combined production
of Cortés’ relations, and many of his other writings, may
be credited to Peter Martyr, who in his _Decades_ gave the
substance of all that they relate, although he also mingled
other versions. Oviedo, in the third volume of his _Hist.
Gen._, gives two versions of the conquest, the first, p.
258 et seq., almost a reproduction of Cortés’ letters, and
the other, p. 506 et seq., from different sources.
Beside the relations, there are a number of miscellaneous
letters, petitions, orders, instructions, and regulations,
by Cortés, largely published in _Navarrete_, _Col. de
Viages_; _Col. Doc. Inéd._; _Pacheco_ and _Cárdenas_, _Col.
Doc._; _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._; _Kingsborough’s Mex.
Antiq._; _Alaman_, _Disert._, and as appendices to histories
of Mexico. A special collection is the _Escritos Sueltos
de Hernan Cortés_, Mex., 1871, forming vol. xii. of the
_Bib. Hist. de la Iberia_, which presents 43 miscellaneous
documents from various printed sources, instructions,
memorials, and brief letters, nearly all of which are filled
with complaints against ruling men in Mexico.
Cortés’ letters have not inaptly been compared by Prescott
to the Commentaries of Cæsar, for both men were military
commanders of the highest order, who spoke and wrote like
soldiers; but their relative positions with regard to the
superior authorities of their states were different, and
so were their race feelings, and their times, and these
features are stamped upon their writings. Cortés was not the
powerful consul, the commander of legions, but the leader
of a horde of adventurers, and an aspirant for favor, who
made his narrative an advocate. The simplicity and energy
of the style lend an air of truth to the statements, and
Helps, among others, is so impressed thereby as to declare
that Cortés ‘would as soon have thought of committing a small
theft as of uttering a falsehood in a despatch addressed to
his sovereign.’ _Cortés_, ii. 211. But it requires little
study of the reports to discover that they are full of
calculated misstatements, both direct and negative, made
whenever he considered it best for his interest to conceal
disagreeable and discreditable facts, or to magnify the
danger and the deed. They are also stamped with the religious
zeal and superstition of the age, the naïve expressions of
reliance on God being even more frequent than the measured
declarations of devotedness to the king; while in between
are calmly related the most cold-blooded outrages on behalf
of both. There is no apparent effort to attract attention
to himself; there is even at times displayed a modesty most
refreshing in the narrative of his own achievements, by
which writers have as a rule been quite entranced; but this
savors of calculation, for the general tone is in support
of the _ego_, and this often to the exclusion of deserving
officers. Indeed, generous allusions to the character or
deeds of others are not frequent, or they are merged in
the non-committing term of ‘one of my captains.’ Pedro de
Alvarado complains of this in one of his _Relaciones_, in
_Barcia_, _Hist. Prim._, i. 165-6. In truth, the calculating
egotism of the diplomate mingles freely with the frankness
of the soldier. Cortés, however, is ever mindful of his
character as an hidalgo, for he never stoops to meanness,
and even in speaking of his enemies he does not resort to
the invectives or sharp insinuations which they so freely
scatter. His style bears evidence of training in rhetoric
and Latin, yet the parade of the latter is not so frequent
as might be expected from the half-bred student and zealot.
Equally indicative are his regulations and instructions
of the experience gained as notary and alcalde, and the
promise once entertained of him as a legal light. The
sentences are remarkably concise and clear for the time,
and the expression both fluent and pure. The whole tends
to confirm the opinion already formed of his character,
as one who, while not wholly free from defects of his age,
indulged in grand views, and stood forward conspicuous as
a born leader of men.
[985] Of the central provinces actually under control
Herrera enumerates: Cempoala, with 50 towns and villages,
containing over 120,000 families; Tlascala, with 60 vassal
lords, over 120,000; Huexotzinco, 50,000; Cholula, 40,000;
Tepeaca, Acatzingo, and Quecholac, 80,000; Quauhquechollan
and Itzucan, 20,000; ‘beside a number of others.’ dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. xviii.
[986] Narvaez it was, they said, who without right or
without exhibiting evidence of such right, had set himself
up against Cortés, and begun to rouse the natives against
him and his followers as piratical intruders, intent on
mischief, while his own announced object was to right the
natives, release Montezuma, and then to depart from the
country without taking even gold with him. These intrigues
caused the uprising which lost Mexico to the emperor,
together with so many hundred lives and millions of treasure.
To Velazquez, therefore, no control should be given in a
country lost through the machinations of himself and his
lieutenant. If any grants had been made to him, they were
based on false representations, and would imperil the safety
of these extensive and rich lands. The second object of the
latter was to laud the character of Cortés as a man and
soldier, and to pray that he be confirmed in the office
of captain-general and justicia mayor as the only fit
and worthy person. At the foot came the signature of 534
Spaniards, the majority of the troops, headed by Alvarado,
Ordaz, and similar warm friends of the commander, and also
by such prominent personages of the Narvaez party as Vasco
Porcallo, and Juan Diaz, the clergyman. Bernal Diaz was
still down with fever, which accounts for the absence of
his name. Many others whose names might have been added
were probably away on expeditions and on garrison duty.
For copy of letter see _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 427-36.
[987] Whom Bernal Diaz calls Francisco Álvarez Chico; and
Vetancurt, Francisco Hernandez.
[988] Bernal Diaz insinuates that there were a number of
officers far more suitable than Captain Ávila for this
mission, but Cortés desired to be rid of so outspoken an
observer and champion of the men, and at the same time to
promote the more pliable Alonso de Grado to the vacated
contaduría, and the devoted Andrés de Tapia to the captaincy.
He thinks that Grado, or Alonso de Cáceres, the rich, should
have been sent. _Hist. Verdad._, 117. His insinuation cannot
be wholly correct, however, since Ávila had already been for
some time alcalde mayor of New Spain, and Grado, contador.
See _Lejalde_, _Probanza_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._,
i. 419 et seq.
[989] ‘Despues de ganado Mexico, le llamamos Solis el de la
huerta, yerno de ... Bachiller Ortega.’ _Hist. Verdad._, 118.
[990] This author indicates the despatch of only three
vessels for Spain, Española, and Jamaica, respectively, one
of which, or a fourth, conveyed the returning adherents of
Narvaez. _Id._, 117. But Cortés writes: ‘Envio á la isla
Española cuatro navíos para que luego vuelvan cargados de
caballos y gente.’ _Cartas_, 154, 162. The Jamaica vessel
is probably included in this number.
[991] Bernal Diaz names twelve of those who returned, two
going merely to bring their children. Pilot Cárdenas, whose
clamor at the treasure repartition at Mexico had called the
attention of Cortés, was allowed to return to his family,
with a present of 300 pesos from the general, only to join
the ranks of his enemies. With one of the Cubans Cortés sent
some bullion and jewels to his wife and brother-in-law.
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 117; _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro
Mex._, pt. iii. 148.
[992] Cáceres also joined the commissioners. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 117. Clavigero names Ordaz as the sole
commissioner, and he was probably the principal. _Storia
Mess._, iii. 160.
[993] ‘Para el camino de la costa de la mar no hay mas
de dos puertos muy agros y ásperos, que confinan con esta
dicha provincia.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 145. ‘Que señoreaua
los puertos, el vno que se dize de Siculchima, por donde
los Castellanos entraron en aquellas partes, y el otro
de Quochula, legua y media de Tepeaca, por donde van los
caminos Reales de la villa Rica.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib.
x. cap. xvi.
[994] ‘Le auian pedido presidio.’ _Id._ Cortés gives merely
the strategic motives.
[995] Francisco de Solis, Cristóbal Corral, and Cristóbal
Martin are mentioned as regidores in _Probanza de Lejalde_,
in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. Doc._, i. 418-19. Herrera adds to
their ranks Gerónimo de Aguilar, the interpreter, ‘porque
sabia Cortes honrar ... los benemeritos.’ dec. ii. lib.
x. cap. xvi. The villa was removed after the conquest to
a new site in the plain, not far from the old town. In
1545 it received the dignity of a city, and has ever since
ranked as a district seat, supported to some extent by
woollen factories. Of the strong fortress erected by the
conquerors the remains are still to be seen in the plaza
under the name of el Rollo de Tepeaca. _Chimalpain_, _Hist.
Conq._, ii. 8; and in _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840),
145-6. In _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xxi. is given a
description of the city and district. _Clavigero_, _Storia
Mess._, iii. 153; _Villa-Señor y Sanchez_, _Theatro_, i.
248; _Alcedo_, in _Dic. Univ._, v.
[996] ‘Tambien me movió á facer los dichos esclavos por
poner algun espanto á los de Culúa, y porque tambien hay
tanta gente, que si no ficiese grande y cruel castigo
en ellos, nunca se emendarian.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 144;
_Oviedo_, iii. 334. ‘Otros dizen que sin partido los tomo
a todos, y castigo asi aquellos en venganza, y por no auer
obedecido sus requerimiẽtos, por putos, por ydolatras,’
etc. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 168.
[997] _Hist. Verdad._, 116. This was probably the case, and
Tapia’s testimony appears to confirm it in saying that of the
6000 captives taken from the Tecamachalco region the males,
2000 in number, were slaughtered in cold blood. _Cortés_,
_Residencia_, i. 59. Perhaps it would be more correct to
assume that a few were killed to expiate the murder of
Spaniards, while the rest were given to the Tlascaltecs.
[998] ‘Saluo a las mugeres y niños,’ says Herrera, which
leads Brasseur de Bourbourg to assume that women and children
were not enslaved. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 370. ‘Creyerõ, q̄
a cada soldado bolveriã sus pieças, y q̄ apreciarian que
tantos pesos valian, y que como las apreciassen, pagassen
el quinto a su Magestad.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
116-17. This could hardly have been the case.
[999] ‘Mandò Cortes vender a muchos que auia prendido ...
aplicando vna parte a su exercito, y a otra la republica
de Tlascala, sacando primero el quinto que pertenecia al
Rey.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xv. ‘Y despues otro
quinto para Cortez,’ adds Vetancurt, _Teatro Mex._, pt.
iii. 148, and this appears correct; yet Clavigero and many
others do not refer to the second fifth. This deduction
was declared to be an attempt at installing a second king.
The deceit practised, as they claimed, at the distribution
of treasure at Mexico was again called up, and declared
to be less outrageous than the present effort to defraud
poor and wounded soldiers of the prize for which they had
shed their blood. Juan Bono de Quexo declared that he would
complain to the emperor, and others were no less bitter.
Previous to this a cause for dissatisfaction had been given
by a proclamation of Cortés ordering the surrender of all
gold saved from the common treasure at Mexico, thrown open
to the soldiers on the eve of the flight. One third was
to be retained by the possessor. Many refused to comply,
and since the royal officials and leaders had shared in
the treasure, the proclamation was allowed to lapse. What
had been surrendered Cortés kept as a loan. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 116-117.
[1000] ‘Buenas, ò malas Indias, sacallas al almoneda ...
que se venderia.’ _Id._ This was to be done at the next
distribution in Tezcuco. The proceeding was discussed at
length in Spain, and favored also by a large body of the
clergy, as justifiable; but the emperor took the humane
course of allowing captives to be held only as prisoners,
so long as this was absolutely necessary. _Solis_, _Hist.
Mex._, ii. 233.
[1001] The party commissioned to carry the Villa Rican share
of the Aztec treasure from Tlascala to the coast. Bernal
Diaz intimates that another party of nine were killed at
Xocotlan. _Hist. Verdad._, 115-16.
[1002] The bodies of five of the Spaniards here murdered
had been sent to Mexico, the rest eaten.
[1003] Alcántara’s, it would seem. The treasure carried by
him had been dissipated.
[1004] ‘Dos dias ante de Navidad llegó el capitan con la
gente ... que habian ido á las provincias de Cecatami y
Xalazingo,’ says Cortés, _Cartas_, 163-5, who had already
taken up quarters at Tlascala. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 172.
Bernal Diaz speaks of a second expedition to Xocotlan,
with 30 cavalry and 100 infantry; but this must be owing
to a confusion of names, in one case the valley, Cacatami,
being mentioned, in the other the town, Cocotlan. _Hist.
Verdad._, 116.
[1005] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 172; _Herrera_, dec. ii.
lib. x. cap. xviii. See note 37. ‘Por Capitan vn Francisco
de Orozco, con obra de veynte soldados que estauan heridos,
y dolientes,’ says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 118;
Vetancurt follows. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 149.
[1006] ‘Por tener la nauidad q̄ era de ay a doze dias en
Tlaxcallan.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 172.
[1007] Gomara calls it Coliman, which Chimalpain identifies
with Amozoc, still in existence. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 13.
[1008] In the person of an illegitimate brother, is the
assumption of modern authorities.
[1009] Herrera names him Lorenzo; but Torquemada insists
that this was the father’s name.
[1010] The old soldier calls him Lorenzo de Vargas, but is
probably mistaken. _Hist. Verdad._, 118.
[1011] Camargo gives at length the speeches of Cortés
and the chiefs on the occasion. The latter invites him
to accept their friendship and services, and settle among
them, whereupon the general explains that the main object
of his coming is to overthrow false idols, and that the
condition of his staying with them must be the adoption
of the true faith, wherein lies the sole reason for the
superiority of his race over theirs. The holy ghost assists
to impress his words, and they yield; but they implore him
not to cast down the revered idols, for such an act may be
fraught with the most terrible disasters. Cortés insists,
and promises to assume all risks. Thus pressed, they ask
to confer with the representatives of the people, lest a
revolt occur. The council objects, offers to give the most
prominent place to the new gods, and finally yields, amidst
tears and wailing. The people secretly hide the adored
images, and while accepting baptism still retain the old
worship in secret. The four chiefs first receive the rite,
under the sponsorship of the leading Spanish captains,
Maxixcatzin the elder being named Lorenzo; Xicotencatl,
Vicente; Tlehuexolotl, Gonzalo; and Citlalpopoca, Bartolomé.
The general baptism followed, those baptized on the first
day being named Juan, and María, and Ana, for men and women
respectively, each receiving a ticket whereon the name was
written. Many forgot their names, nevertheless, and had to
appeal to the register; some received baptism over again,
because they failed to acknowledge the previous rite, and
others attended service for years without having been to
the font. Among the idols and relics saved from the general
destruction were the ashes of Camaxtli, the chief god of the
tribe, said by some to have been the brother of Tezcatlipoca,
by others the father of Quetzalcoatl. They were jealously
guarded by the chief Tecpanecatl Tecuhtli, of Tepeticpac,
till 1576, when, tired of the temporal injuries which were
falling upon him, owing to their presence in his house, he
turned to the Church and surrendered the relic, and died
the same week, on holy Thursday, while penitently lashing
himself before the madonna. On opening the envelope of the
relic a mass of blonde hair fell out, showing that tradition
was true in describing the god as a white man. _Camargo_,
_Hist. Tlax._, 151-9, 178-9. Brasseur de Bourbourg eagerly
seizes on this statement to support his theory that the
Toltecs had come from the north of Europe to found their
empire and era of culture in Mexico. _Hist. Nat. Civ._,
iv. 392 et seq. Camargo places the general baptism on the
occasion of Cortés’ first arrival in the republic, but
herein Torquemada corrects him, although following the
version in other respects. The picture in the convent
at Tlascala indicates, he says, that the four chiefs,
including the elder Maxixcatzin, were baptized together,
and by the clergyman Juan Diaz. Great festivals followed
the ceremony, i. 523, iii. 166-9. Ixtlilxochitl, who also
refers to this picture, follows Camargo’s date, but names
Xicotencatl senior Bartolomé, Zitlapopocatzin Baltasar,
Tlehuexolotzin Gonzalo, and Maxixcatzin, a young man, Juan.
_Hist. Chich._, 294. Brasseur de Bourbourg corrects this by
substituting Xicotencatl junior for Maxixcatzin and naming
him Vicente. He adds Nezahualpilli’s son Tecocoltzin, who
receives the name of Fernando, ubi sup. The assumption
that the four elder chiefs were baptized together, and the
statement that the elder Maxixcatzin had died before Cortés
returned to Tlascala, appear contradictory, but Vetancurt
reconciles them by dating the general baptism just before the
beginning of the Tepeaca campaign, and adopting the names
as given on the picture in ‘our convent,’ and as quoted by
Camargo and Torquemada. Padre Juan Diaz, who performed the
rite, is supposed to have been killed soon after. Several
other versions of his fate and burial-place are given.
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 146. But he testified
during the residencia investigation against Alvarado, 1529.
See _Ramirez_, _Proceso contra Alvarado_, 124. Clavigero
follows Vetancurt, and maintains, notwithstanding the
failure of the conquest writers to notice that event, that
‘è certo, che tutti i quattro Capi di quella Repubblica
furono battezzati avanti la conquista.... Oltre ad’ altre
pruove ciò consta dalle pitture antiche.’ _Storia Mess._,
iii. 150. It would be interesting to know what the ‘altre
pruove’ are. Prescott admits only the baptism of the two
Maxixcatzins and old Xicotencatl, but avoids giving the new
names, owing to the conflict of authorities. _Mex._, ii. 445.
[1012] ‘Cómo era Muchacho, imprimió mas en él nuestra
conversacion y tornóse cristiano.’ _Cartas_, 177.
CHAPTER XXX.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE FLEET.
DECEMBER, 1520-FEBRUARY, 1521.
THE OBJECTIVE POINT—VESSELS NEEDED—MARTIN LOPEZ SENT TO
TLASCALA FOR TIMBER—THIRTEEN BRIGANTINES ORDERED—CORTÉS
AT TLASCALA—DRILL AND DISCIPLINE—ADDRESS OF THE
GENERAL—PARADE OF THE TLASCALTECS—MARCH TO TEZCUCO—NEW RULER
APPOINTED—SACKING OF IZTAPALAPAN—THE CHALCANS—ARRIVAL AT
TEZCUCO OF THE BRIGANTINE BRIGADE.
The Tepeaca campaign had been only part of the plan conceived during
the flight to Tlascala for the recovery of the dominating point of
the empire. The strength of the capital, and the ascendancy acquired
by the Aztecs during Spanish exclusion from the lake region, made it
impossible to strike directly at the centre of the uprising. It was
necessary first to conquer the surrounding provinces on which Mexico
depended for aid, and to do this in detail was easier than to meet the
combined strength of the foe. This would also leave the conquering
troops free to turn their whole attention against the capital, with
fresh allies and larger resources. A centre for operation was now
needed within the valley, and one from which the Aztecs might be
attacked in due time both by land and water. For this object Tezcuco
presented the greatest advantages in being situated on the lake,
some six leagues from Mexico, in the midst of a fertile country, and
near enough to Tlascala, from and through which reinforcements might
readily be obtained.[1013]
With a prudent foresight to these movements Cortés had shortly after
his first successes in Tepeaca sent Martin Lopez, the shipwright, to
Tlascala to prepare timber for thirteen brigantines, which were to be
transported to the lake for besieging purposes. The republic offered to
provide material and native carpenters, and aided by Andrés Nuñez and
others, Lopez soon formed an efficient corps of assistants for felling
and shaping the pieces, as modelled and numbered by himself. The
site of construction was at Atempan, on the Rio Zahuatl,[1014] which
afforded the necessary water for the trial launch, and had forests
near by from which timber, masts, and pitch could be obtained.[1015]
Iron, sails, cordage, and other needful articles taken from the sunken
fleet were forwarded from Villa Rica, together with smiths and other
workmen.
With the arrival of Cortés at Tlascala, preparations receive a fresh
impulse, and weapons and armor are overhauled, pikes and arrows made,
and stores collected. An opportune addition is made by the arrival of
a vessel from Spain and the Canaries, laden with war material, bows,
bowstrings, arquebuses, powder, and a variety of goods; also over a
dozen soldiers, with three horses. Cortés purchases the whole cargo,
and persuades the owner, Juan de Búrgos, the captain, and the men to
join him.[1016]
Drill receives attention, and equally necessary is the maintenance
of order, for they are few, remote from succor, and surrounded by a
powerful, warlike, and astute foe. Then they must maintain friendly
relations with their allies, whose aid is essential to the achievement
of their plans. One hasty utterance, one unjust act, can raise a storm
wherein all may perish. Good treatment on every hand is necessary to
win neutral and hostile provinces. It is often easier to persuade than
to enforce. With this view Cortés, as captain-general and justicia
mayor for his majesty, prepares a series of regulations which are
proclaimed on the 26th of December 1520.
In a lengthy preamble are set forth some reasons for its publication
and the necessity for good conduct, as recognized not only in human
but in divine affairs, and practised since time immemorial for the
regulation of wars.
The first article proclaims the primary motive of this, and indeed of
all their campaigns, to be spiritual conquest, in the absence of which
material conquests must be regarded as unjust. Blasphemy is forbidden
lest the offended Almighty should refuse his assistance. Gambling in
a modified form is permitted, but quarrelling is prohibited.
Rules are laid down for discipline in camp and field for sentinels,
for prompt and courageous performance of duty. No Spaniard may enter
houses in a hostile city to plunder until the foe has been driven
forth and victory secured; and booty of whatsoever nature, however
and wherever acquired, must be declared before the proper officers,
under penalty of death. Any captain who attacks an enemy without
orders shall be put to death.[1017]
Orders were also issued to regulate the prices of clothing and
accoutrements, which were excessive. In order to enforce the necessary
respect for the regulations, Cortés punished the earlier infringements
with a severity even in excess of the penalty proclaimed. Two of
the general’s own negro slaves were hanged for petty theft, and a
pilfering soldier was pardoned only when half strangled.[1018]
After a fortnight of rest and preparation Cortés concluded to resume
the campaign, partly lest a longer delay should cool the ardor of
the soldiers and allies. On the day following Christmas the troops
were mustered for review in the main square of Tlascala, where Cortés
in velvet-covered mail stood surrounded by the royal officials, the
leading chiefs of the republic, and a brilliant suite. First marched
the cross-bowmen in double file, who at a signal discharged their arms
aloft and passed on with a salute. After them came the shield-bearers,
waving their swords, which they sheathed after saluting; then the
pikemen with copper-headed pikes, followed by arquebusiers, who saluted
with a thundering salvo that reëchoed along the circling hills and
sent a tremor through the crowd of native spectators. Last came the
cavalry, prancing and skirmishing in rapid evolutions, to display
their skill as fighters and riders, and to dazzle the beholders with
their glittering arms and adornment. The total force consisted of
five hundred and fifty infantry, divided into nine companies, and
forty cavalry in four squads, with nine small pieces of artillery,
eighty cross-bows and arquebuses.[1019]
The main reliance of the infantry was in the swords and pikes, the long
Chinantec poles being largely introduced, even among the allies, and
made effective by long drilling. The nucleus of the troops, whereon
rested the highest hopes, was of course the horsemen, whose safety
had been carefully looked to by providing the steeds with poitrels,
and side and quarter coverings of stout bulls’-hide, reaching to the
hocks. They were fringed with small pieces of iron which jingled like
bells, and were supposed to add to the terror ever spread by these
animals among the natives.[1020] The riders were equally protected,
some with helmet and body mail of steel, which covered even the limbs,
leaving the wearer vulnerable only at the joints.[1021] Others had
less complete mail, while many possessed only the twisted cotton armor
worn by the foot-soldiers, though this was sufficiently effective
in native warfare. Thus was experience rapidly developing the art of
war in America.
The troops having fallen into line, Cortés advanced on horseback and
addressed them. They had mustered for a most important enterprise,
to recover the rich provinces once acquired but wrested from them by
treacherous rebels, to elevate the holy faith insulted by idolaters,
and to avenge the blood of cruelly murdered friends and comrades. “Just
are the reasons which impel us,” cried the speaker, “and necessary
to our security. Spaniards! God has ever favored you; therefore be
fearless. Let your conduct be such as to inspire with respect and
confidence our stout and tried allies, a hundred thousand and more
of whom stand ready and eager to join us. What more can Christian
soldiers desire than the double favors which God here giveth us, rich
rewards in temporal blessings and that glory immortal which follows
victory?” Thus the astute commander stirred the hearts of his men;
and believing his own words, was himself stirred thereby. And the
shout came back to him that they would regain the lost and avenge
themselves on the exultant Tenochtitlans.[1022]
Not to be outdone by foreigners, next morning the Tlascaltecs marched
into the plaza to the sound of conchs, pipes, and drums, the four
lords at the head richly attired and in plumage studded with precious
stones, which rose a yard above their heads in variegated colors,
denoting their rank and achievements. Following them were four squires
bearing their weapons, and the standard-bearers of the respective
quarters. Then in files of twenty deep came the regular warriors,
divided into archers, shieldmen, and pikemen, and into companies, each
with its ensigns and musicians. A striking spectacle they presented
in their orderly lines, gay with flowing plumes, glittering arms, and
many-colored devices; some of the latter displayed on a broad plane
of shields extended; others embroidered on the quilted cotton tunics
of leading warriors. All together formed a series of gay streaks
broken by wider bronze-hued masses of naked rank and file, while above
all heads rose a profusion of feather-work banners, speckled with
brilliant ornaments.[1023] These were lowered as the companies passed
before Cortés, who doffed his cap in acknowledgment, the warriors
responding by bending the head and discharging their bows. Their
number on this occasion has been estimated as high as one hundred
and fifty thousand, and although this is evidently exaggerated, there
is no doubt that the large Tlascaltec army was swelled by companies
from the neighboring provinces.[1024]
The march over, Cortés addressed the allies, extolling their deeds
which had covered the republic with glory. Soon again would they
add to its renown and its wealth, while avenging ancient wrongs. He
would see to it that their services were recognized by the emperor.
A small proportion would accompany him on the present march; the
remainder could follow after the completion of the brigantines.[1025]
In orthodox cheers the native warriors testified approbation. Their
general then spoke, exhorting them ever to remember that they were
Tlascaltecs, a name of terror to all foes. Only twenty thousand of the
eager republicans, including some Huexotzincas and the carriers, were
allowed to join the expedition, for more could not be conveniently used
during the preliminary campaign. Their general was Chichimecatl.[1026]
On the following day, the 28th of December, after the invocation of
divine aid, and midst the stirring strains of music, the army filed
out of Tlascala, the populace lining the route and shouting their
farewell blessings. “The gods grant you victory!” they cried, “and
successful return.” “There go the strong ones to humble the proud,”
said some, while of the women many sobbed: “Oh! if our eyes should
never behold you again!” There were three routes leading into the
lake provinces, two of them tried already during former marches; but
since the enemy were doubtless on the alert with ambuscades and other
measures, it was deemed best to select the third and worst road,
north of snow-crowned Iztaccihuatl, by which an approach would be
least expected.[1027] This led through Tezmeluca,[1028] a village in
Huexotzinco, six leagues from Tlascala, where camp was formed. Here
began a three-league ascent of the pass, and the Tezcucan border
was crossed amidst intense cold, the gradually dwindling vegetation
giving freer scope to the bleak wind which came whistling from the
summits. A league farther a convenient spot was found for a halt,
and the tired and shivering soldiers were soon huddling round fires.
On the following day a thick pine forest was entered, and soon after
the road was found blocked with felled trees. This created no little
stir among the men, but Cortés, who had not expected an unobstructed
path, sent forward a body of natives to clear it.[1029] With forces
massed and arms prepared, Cortés thereupon led the way, and in half a
league open ground was gained, to the relief of all. The difficulties
of the march were passed, and behind the army now lay the grim expanse
of barren rocks and hoary peaks; while beneath a pale-blue sky they
descended the wooded slopes to the valley below, rich in variegated
hues of field and garden, and enlivened with the gleaming white of
human habitation. Beyond spread the glassy surface of the lakes,
bordered on the farther side by the misty outline of low ranges,
fading in the distance like the glories of the now fading empire. The
queen city was the theme, however, and while some descanted to late
recruits on its wealth and beauties, others stood silently gazing on
the spot so dimmed with sad remembrances. Thus pondering on the past
they could almost hear the voices of fallen comrades calling on them
for vengeance, and “we vowed,” writes Cortés, “there to achieve victory
or perish.”[1030] As if in response to the challenge, ominous smoke
columns rose from the circling heights, the signal of the Mexicans
to rouse the inhabitants against the invaders.
No opposition was met during the descent, but beyond a ravine, on level
ground, forces were seen approaching from different directions.[1031]
By a quick movement Cortés managed to leave the broken ground and gain
the bridges ere the foe had united. Having now a plain before them,
fifteen of the horsemen charged and routed the main body. The rest
dispersed, with the Tlascaltecs in close pursuit to kill and ravage.
The army did not camp till they reached the deserted Coatepec, some
three leagues from Tezcuco.
Shortly before this there had been an accession in the person of
Ixtlilxochitl,[1032] the ruler of the northern part of Acolhuacan, who
had offered his friendship to the Spaniards before they ever entered
the valley. His faith in them was unshaken, particularly under the
aspect of their late successes, and he came to renew his protestations,
assuring Cortés that no opposition would be offered at Tezcuco. He gave
information about the political feeling, the prospect for humbling
the hated Aztecs, and the fate of certain small bodies of Spaniards
during the uprising. He also stated that Cuicuetzcatl was no more.
While at Tepeaca, Cortés had sent to Cohuanacoch, the usurper king at
Tezcuco, an Acolhua noble,[1033] with peaceful proposals. The envoy was
executed. Not long after, Cuicuetzcatl set out for Tezcuco, without
leave, tired as he was of the semi-captive restraint at Tlascala,
and confident that with the aid of his adherents and the prestige of
Spanish success he would be able to overthrow his usurping brother
and resume the sceptre entrusted him by Montezuma and Cortés. The
presence of so powerful an intriguer in the capital could not long
escape the spies of Cohuanacoch, who had him seized, and by the advice
of Quauhtemotzin summarily removed from his path.[1034]
* * * * *
Although fully a hundred thousand warriors were rumored to be hovering
hereabout, no formidable evidences of hostility were encountered during
the march to Tezcuco. A short distance from Coatepec a procession of
Acolhua nobles appeared, headed by four prominent personages, and
bearing a golden banner as a peace offering. They came in the name
of Cohuanacoch to tender his submission and the hospitality of the
city, with the request that no ravages be committed. After what he had
learned Cortés could hardly look upon their master as other than an
inimical usurper, whose tardy proffers could not be trusted, and whose
opposition need not be feared. He accordingly received the message
coldly, referred to the treacherous slaughter of the Yuste party of
fifty Spaniards and three hundred Tlascaltecs, and demanded that at
least the treasures seized on that occasion should be restored; failing
in which, a thousand natives should die for every Spaniard killed. The
envoys tremblingly explained that the outrage had been committed by
Zoltepecs at the instance of the Aztec ruler, whose men had carried
off the valuables. Still, they would institute a search.[1035]
Regardless of their urgent request that the entry into the capital
should be deferred till quarters had been prepared, Cortés proceeded
through the outlying suburbs of Coatlichan and Huexotla, where the
chiefs came forth to render homage, and passed on Monday, the 31st
of December, into Tezcuco, which was for many a month to be his
‘halting-place,’ as the name signifies.[1036] Quarters were taken up
in Nezahualcoyotl’s palace, as the largest and strongest place.[1037]
* * * * *
Meanwhile some soldiers who had ascended a tower came to report that
the inhabitants were hurrying away by land and water. Cortés now
understood why the envoys had sought to detain him on the road, and
gave immediate orders to seize the ruler and as many leading men as
possible. It was too late, however. Cohuanacoch had escaped. After
usurping the throne, combining with the foes of the Spaniards, and
murdering the ruler appointed by them, he did not dare to trust himself
within their reach. Hence, as the invaders marched in he embarked for
Mexico with his family, his chief adherents and treasures, attended by
a fleet of canoes with fugitives and effects. The anger of Cortés at
this escape encouraged the pursuing troops to commit certain excesses;
and in this they could hardly be blamed, for in one of the temples
were found relics of the Yuste party, which very naturally fired the
soldiers with a desire for vengeance.[1038] Ixtlilxochitl and other
friendly chiefs implored pity for the unoffending inhabitants, and
orders were issued in accordance, though not until the allies had
sacked a number of houses and fired the beautiful Nezahualpilli palace
containing the national archives.[1039]
Not knowing what might follow this exodus, Cortés hastened to fortify
his quarters and to collect supplies, aided by Ixtlilxochitl, who
had succeeded somewhat in reassuring the people. In order to restore
confidence, however, and win the inhabitants to his purposes, he saw
that there should be a recognized head, with influence to control
them, and one whom he could trust. The former necessity demanded that
the choice should be made among the brothers of Cohuanacoch, children
of Nezahualpilli, and of these Ixtlilxochitl and Tecocoltzin were
the only professed friends of the Spaniards. The latter was of less
legitimate birth, it seems, than some of the brothers, and a mere
youth, who had shared the _quasi_ captivity of Cuicuetzcatl, and had
accepted baptism with the name of Fernando Cortés de Monroy.[1040]
He was tall and well formed, of noble presence, and as fair as the
average Spaniard. Of docile disposition, he had readily conformed to
the teachings of the friars, had adopted Spanish ideas, and had become
a favorite among the conquerors. It may be readily understood that
this easily ruled boy should be preferred by Cortés to Ixtlilxochitl,
whose stay in Tezcuco during the troublous times had not tended to
strengthen Spanish confidence.
Cortés summoned the chiefs and represented that since Cohuanacoch
had forfeited any claims that he might have had to the throne, by
murdering the lawfully elected king and by abandoning his country,
they should therefore choose another ruler. He took care that his
selection should become known to them, and the electors hastened to
conform to the conqueror’s will, not even Ixtlilxochitl venturing to
remonstrate.[1041]
Fernando was accordingly brought from Tlascala soon after and installed
with great ceremony, receiving a Spanish dress with arms.[1042] He
proved kind and faithful, particularly to his patrons, yet Cortés never
relaxed his caution, and in order to keep him under safe surveillance
Antonio de Villareal was appointed his tutor, and Bachiller Escobar
captain of Tezcuco, while Pedro Sanchez Farfan and his brave wife
María de Estrada also remained there. This recognition of an esteemed
descendant of the beloved Nezahualpilli, and the just and moderate
conduct of the Spaniards, served to reconcile the people, who speedily
returned to their homes and avocations. The caciques of Coatlichan,
Huexotla, and Atenco tendered allegiance within three days of the
Spanish entry, protesting that their hostility had been wholly
compulsory.
This ready submission was by no means palatable to Quauhtemotzin, who
sent messengers to stir anew the spirit of revolt, while preparing to
strike a blow. But the emissaries were promptly surrendered to the
Spaniards, before whom they pretended to be merely peace mediators.
It pleased Cortés to accept the explanation, and after treating the
captives with great kindness he sent them back to Mexico to carry
peace proposals. Those who had been the chief promoters of the late
uprising were now dead, and it was better the past should be forgotten,
and friendship established. To this no answer was vouchsafed.
No hostile demonstration having occurred for eight days after the entry
into Tezcuco, Cortés resolved to waste no further time in preparation,
but to begin the campaign. This course was also needed to maintain
the troops in activity, to encourage them with spoils, and to save
the friendly Tezcucans from the constant drain of providing supplies.
Among the intended head-quarters during the siege of Mexico to follow
was the rich and beautiful garden city of Iztapalapan, close to the
southern entrance of the capital. This was an advantageous point,
through which a blow might be dealt the Mexicans while chastising
the town itself for the hostility of its inhabitants and their late
ruler, Cuitlahuatzin, the brother and successor of Montezuma. The
expedition consisted of eighteen horse and two hundred foot, with
a few thousand Tlascaltecs and Tezcucans,[1043] headed by Cortés,
Sandoval remaining in charge of the camp.
Warned by the movement, the inhabitants began to remove their families
and valuables, while the warriors marched along the lake shore for
nearly two leagues to meet and detain the invaders, supported by
Aztec forces and a fleet of canoes. As soon as the Spaniards came
up a lively skirmish ensued, the warriors being obliged to retreat,
though slowly, rallying at times, when the nature of the ground
permitted.[1044] Three hours of fighting brought them near the town,
and a final assault by the soldiers effected an entrance and forced
the warriors to take refuge in canoes and houses. The first comers
occupied the upper quarters, the others continued their course toward
the lake, where the dwellings stood on piles, cutting down every person
encountered in the streets. General massacre was followed by pillage,
and before nightfall six thousand bodies were ready for the funeral
pyre.[1045] Suddenly midst the work of destruction Cortés observed
startling signs of increasing waters, and soon after a Tezcucan brought
word that the dike shielding the town on the west had been cut. In
their desperation the inhabitants had invoked the flood, whose mercy
could not be more pitiless than the invaders, while it might assist
the work of revenge.[1046]
The opening was widening every moment. No time was to be lost. The
recall was sounded, but with the people so scattered it took some time
to gather them. Staggering under the weight of spoil they fell into
line, their march being dimly lighted by the flames behind them. The
flood increased so much that few of them could retain their burdens,
and near the opening the water came with such force as to make the
passage difficult. Several of the allies were swept away. It was nine
o’clock before the last of the troops gained the high land beyond
the dike. “A delay of three hours longer, and none of us would have
escaped,” writes Cortés. Failing in their desperate sacrifice to
catch the invaders in the flooded houses, there to be imprisoned all
night by the rushing waters, the enemy were at hand in canoes with
early dawn, showering missiles and sallying against the flanks of
the invaders. The Spaniards could only reply with sword and lance,
for the powder was wet, and since nothing more could be done under
the circumstances, they continued the retreat to Tezcuco. A number
of allies fell, and even the soldiers, who had suffered no casualties
in the capture of Iztapalapan, now lost one out of their ranks.[1047]
Notwithstanding the loss of booty and the humiliating retreat, the
expedition had succeeded in its main object, to inflict a severe lesson
on the foe by desolating one of the finest cities in the valley, at
the very threshold of the capital. The effect was noticed in the
arrival, the day after the return to Tezcuco, of messengers from
Otumba and several adjacent towns,[1048] penitently to renew their
allegiance, which was never again broken. A number of other towns
and domains followed the example, notably Chalco, a large and fertile
district extending round Chalco Lake, and toward the south-eastward.
It had fallen from the rank of an independent kingdom to that of a
province tributary to the Aztecs. The severity of its taskmasters
kept ever smouldering the flame of revolt, and deeply the people
sighed for deliverance. Owing to the proximity of the Mexicans and
the presence of their lawless garrisons, they like many others had
not before ventured to cast off the yoke, but with the approach of
the Spaniards they gathered courage, and two envoys were sent to
implore protection.[1049]
* * * * *
This accorded with Cortés’ plans, and Sandoval was instructed to
assist them. His first order, however, was to escort to Tlascala with
twenty horsemen and two hundred infantry the carriers, together with
a number of warriors, who desired to return home with the booty so
far acquired. Fresh supplies were likewise desired, and communication
with Villa Rica must be kept open. They had not proceeded far before
the Tlascaltecs, who had hastened in advance of the Spanish main
body, found themselves attacked by a large force, which slew a number
and captured the carriers’ train. Sandoval routed the assailants and
recaptured most of the booty.[1050]
From Tlascala Sandoval turned to Chalco. In certain maizefields in
front of the capital the Mexicans stood prepared with twelve thousand
warriors to dispute possession. He charged them at the head of his
cavalry, but, though yielding for a moment, they rallied and with
their long pikes compelled him to fall back upon the infantry and
allies. The second charge was more successful, and within two hours
the foe was in flight, during which large numbers were slaughtered
and some captives taken, including three leading men, while but few
of the Spaniards were even wounded.
The Chalcans came forth to tender an ovation, and the two young rulers
Acazitzin and Omacatzin[1051] accompanied the troops to personally
offer allegiance to Cortés, together with some small presents. Their
father had always admired the Spaniards and sought to serve them,[1052]
and on his death-bed, during the late small-pox epidemic, he had
recommended them and their counsellors to submit to the white chief,
for to him and his children of the sun did prophecy point as rulers
of that land. So important an accession gave no little pleasure to
Cortés, who treated the young prisoners with every consideration. At
their own request he confirmed them in the lordship, assigning to the
eldest Chalco city, with more than half the towns in the province,
while the younger received Tlalmanalco and Chimalhuacan, with Ayotzinco
and other places subject to them.[1053]
The eight captives were kindly treated, and sent to Mexico with
peace proposals similar to those transmitted by the former captors;
but there came no reply. The secession of Chalco was a blow to the
Mexicans even more severe than the capture of Iztapalapan, owing to the
bad example to submissive and wavering provinces, and Quauhtemotzin
hastened with allurements and threats to reimpress upon them the
necessity for remaining true to the empire. These messages were also
sent to the towns round Tezcuco; and the caciques of Coatlichan and
Huexotla came to the Spanish camp in great distress, to say that all
Mexico was coming upon them. They were doubtful whether to flee to
the mountains or come to Tezcuco. They were reassured and promised
succor when required; meanwhile they must entrench themselves and
prepare the warriors. The Mexicans did little, however, beyond making
raids on farms and stragglers from two towns,[1054] wherein they were
entrenched, not far from Tezcuco. This attack on the larder of the
army could not be endured, and Cortés went forth on two occasions
to secure the threatened crops for himself, driving off a force of
marauders who had come with quite a fleet in the expectation of a
fine harvest, and capturing their strongholds on the lake.[1055]
All this made communication with Tlascala insecure, and on last leaving
that province Sandoval had strictly forbidden any one to cross to
Tezcuco without a permit. It so happened that a vessel arrived at
Villa Rica with over thirty soldiers, besides the crew, eight horses,
and a quantity of war stores. Knowing how pleased Cortés would be,
a young soldier broke the rules, adventured his life, and carried
the tidings to the general, who freely forgave the disobedience of
orders. This young cavalier also reported that the brigantines were
completed and ready for transport. Since siege operations could not
begin until the brigantines were floated on Tezcuco Lake, no time
was to be lost, and Sandoval received orders to proceed at once to
Tlascala and convoy the precious train. In going he must pass through
Zoltepec, five leagues distant, near the eastern border of Acolhuacan,
and there inflict chastisement for the murder of the Yuste party
during the late uprising.
Sandoval set out with fifteen horse and two hundred foot. On the way
a house was passed bearing upon its wall the touching inscription,
“Herein the unhappy Juan Yuste was a prisoner.” The inhabitants
of Zoltepec, henceforth termed ‘pueblo Morisco,’ had long expected
this descent, and no sooner did the party appear in sight than they
hastened to the mountains. One body of soldiers entered the town to
plunder, and found among other things relics of the dress, arms, and
accoutrements of their slain comrades in one of the temples.[1056]
Another body pursued the fugitives, killing a few and capturing a
large number, chiefly women, who were enslaved. Their pleading so
moved the heart of Sandoval that he issued a pardon to those who had
escaped.
Meanwhile Martin Lopez, the master shipwright in Tlascala, had arranged
for the transportation of the brigantines. A trial launch had been
made of one or two above a dam thrown across Zahuatl River,[1057] and
this proving satisfactory they were broken up. Upon the shoulders of
eight thousand carriers were now loaded the separate pieces of timber
and planks, duly marked and numbered for fitting them together; also
the spars, cordage, sails, together with a quantity of ammunition, two
heavy guns, and other effects.[1058] Gayly they bent to the burden
wherein lay enginery so portentous for the destruction of the hated
Aztecs. The caravan set forth, escorted by a large force of warriors,
and halted at Hueyotlipan to await the Spanish convoy. After a time the
Tlascaltecs became impatient, and regardless of warnings proceeded.
While encamped near the border an alarm was raised, and tumultuously
the warriors rushed to arms to protect a portion at least of the train
which had cost such labor and embodied such hopes. The next moment
a cheer was heard. It was Sandoval and his men.
With this new protection many of the Tlascaltec escort could be
dismissed, and the remaining twenty thousand were redistributed,
the rear being assigned to the leading chief, Chichimecatl, and the
flanks to Axotecatl and Teotepil.[1059]
It was a strange sight in those parts, this serpentine procession as
it wound its way across the Tezcucan border, along the narrow defiles
of the mountains,[1060] extending two miles from front to rear, it
is said. A fleet impelled by human agencies over mountain and plain,
through forest and dale, it was indeed a “cosa maravillosa,” as Cortés
expresses it. The feat of Vasco Nuñez stood repeated, but magnified
in some respects, in the number of the vessels, in the distance of
the journey, the lurking foe being ever present, and in the audacity
of purpose, the subjugation of the proudest metropolis on all this
vast continent. And great was the rejoicing at Tezcuco as the caravan
came in sight on the fourth day, arrayed in gala attire, with brightly
gleaming devices and ornaments, and waving plumage, advancing in one
long line to inspiring music. With a large retinue, also in gala dress,
Cortés went forth to meet them, and as the procession passed into
the city the Tlascaltecs rolled forth their newly acquired Spanish
vivas: “Viva el Emperador!” “Viva Malinche!” “Castilla!” “Tlascala,
Tlascala, Castilla!” The march past occupied six hours, says Cortés.
Ship-yards were prepared for the vessels on the border of a creek or
irrigation canal, which had been deepened and widened for nearly half
a league, fortified in places with timber and masonry, and provided
with dams and locks. This labor had occupied eight thousand Tezcucans
fifty days.[1061]
FOOTNOTES
[1013] Many favored Ayotzinco, near Chalco, which offered
also a good launching place for the vessels. _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 118.
[1014] Where now is the chapel of San Buenaventura.
_Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, 176. Yet Lorenzana says: ‘Por
constante tradicion se trabajó en un Barrio de Hueyothlipan,
que llaman Quausimalán, que quiere decir, donde labran
los Palos.’ _Cortés_, _Hist. N. Esp._, 167. But it is more
likely to have been on the river passing through Tlascala
city, and near Matlalcueye Mount.
[1015] The timber came probably from the Matlalcueye slopes;
the masts from Hueyotlipan; the pitch from the pine woods
near Huexotzinco, says Bernal Diaz, where it was prepared
by four sailors, for the natives did not understand its
manufacture. ‘Es la Sierra Matlalcuie,’ states Torquemada,
_Monarq. Ind._, i. 524. ‘La brea se saca de ... la sierra
de la Agua de Xalapa,’ near San Juan de los Llanos.
_Bustamante_, in _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, ii. 13.
This applies rather to colonial times. Bernal Diaz, _Hist.
Verdad._, 118, 124, names a number of those who aided in
building. See also _Mora_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog._, _Boletin_,
x. 302-3.
[1016] Bernal Diaz names several of the thirteen soldiers.
The captain was Francisco Medel. One of the men, Monjaraz,
was said to have murdered his wife. He kept aloof from all
combat, but once he ascended a tower to look on, and was
that same day killed by Indians. _Hist. Verdad._, 118-19.
[1017] Such are in substance the famous regulations of
Cortés. The document was witnessed on the 22d of December
by the leading officers, before Juan de Ribera, ‘notary
public in all the kingdoms of Spain,’ and was publicly read
at the review of the troops, the 26th, by Anton García,
crier. The full text has been reproduced in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. Doc._, i. 445-51, and _Cortés_, _Escritos Sueltos_,
13-23, owing to the defects of the copy by Prescott, and
the briefness and blunders of earlier references to it.
[1018] ‘Quedò tal, que no boluio en si, ni pudo tragar en
vn mes.’ _Herrera_, dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xx. One soldier
was lashed for imposing on an Indian, and another degraded.
[1019] This is Cortés’ own account, with the exception that
he gives the field-pieces as eight or nine. _Cartas_, 165.
Gomara says 540 infantry and nine guns. _Hist. Mex._, 174.
Vetancurt writes six guns, which may be a misprint. _Teatro
Mex._, pt. iii. 150.
[1020] ‘Anqueras,’ as Spaniards call the covering, are
still in use by rich horsemen in Mexico, highly ornamented.
[1021] Thompson describes the armor of Alvarado at the
Mexico museum. It indicates that this renowned cavalier was
a smaller man than Cortés, whom he supposes to have been
of Napoleon’s size. _Recol. Mex._, 119.
[1022] In _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 165-6, are given the main
points of the speech, too brief evidently for Gomara,
who fabricates a verbose spiritless oration according to
his fancy, _Hist. Mex._, 174-5, while shorter versions
are presented by Ixtlilxochitl, Oviedo, Torquemada, and
Clavigero.
[1023] See _Native Races_, ii. 405-12, for description of
arms, banners, etc.
[1024] Herrera, who objects to Ojeda’s large figure, gives
60,000 archers, 40,000 shieldmen, and 10,000 pikemen, dec.
ii. lib. x. cap. xx., and this Vetancurt accepts, _Teatro
Mex._, pt. iii. 150, while Solis reduces the men at the
review to 10,000, though he allows over 60,000 to join the
march the following day. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 287-8.
[1025] If any there were who followed not of their free-will
they should remain behind. He had enough men as it was.
The lords replied that they would rather be drowned in the
lake than return without victory. _Torquemada_, i. 526. On
this occasion may have been presented to the Tlascaltec
battalion the red damask banner, bearing on one side the
crowned image of the virgin with the hands uplifted in
prayer, and on the other the royal arms of Castile and
Leon, a banner which Boturini obtained possession of with
proofs of its genuineness. _Catálogo_, 75. Yet this design
appears to belong to a standard borne by the Spaniards on
entering the conquered Mexico.
[1026] The chief motive for restricting the number was,
according to Gomara, the trouble of sustaining them. _Hist.
Mex._, 176. Bernal Diaz mentions only 10,000 warriors,
wherein he evidently does not include carriers. _Hist.
Verdad._, 119. Herrera increases the number to 80,000,
under four captains, directed to a certain extent by Ojeda
and Juan Marquez. dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xx.
[1027] ‘Acordé de entrar por esta de Tezmoluca, porque ...
el puerto dél era mas agro y fragoso.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
167. Yet Lorenzana adds a note of explanation which shows
that he misunderstands the text. Ixtlilxochitl calls the
road Tlepehuacan. _Hist. Chich._, 306. Through the Rio Frio
Mountains. _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, ii. 19. The present
improved road from Vera Cruz to Mexico. _Orozco y Berra_,
in _Noticias Mex._, 255.
[1028] ‘Lugar de Enzinas.’ _Herrera_, loc. cit. Now San
Martin Tezmeluca. _Bustamante_, in _Chimalpain_, ubi sup.
[1029] Herrera leaves the impression that a new road was
now opened to escape the entrenchments and traps already
formed by the enemy. But he is evidently wrong.
[1030] ‘Prometimos todos de nunca dellas salir sin victoria,
ó déjar allí las vidas.’ _Cartas_, 169. ‘We vowed, if God
gave success, to act better in besieging the city.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 119.
[1031] Herrera calls them 100,000; Vetancurt, 140,000.
[1032] At Tlepehuacan, near the border. _Ixtlilxochitl_,
_Hist. Chich._, 306-7.
[1033] Ixtlilxochitl calls him in one place the brother of
Cohuanacoch. _Id._, 299.
[1034] ‘As a spy,’ adds Cortés, _Cartas_, 176. Ixtlilxochitl
states, contrary to Cortés, that this general sent him to
Tezcuco on the same errand as the previous envoy. _Hist.
Chich._, 306. But this appears a needless exposure of an
important personage.
[1035] Bernal Diaz states that Cortés nevertheless embraced
the envoys, three of whom were relatives of Montezuma.
_Hist. Verdad._, 120.
[1036] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 214.
[1037] Prescott says Nezahualpilli’s, but this was burned
at this very time according to the only authority on the
point, Ixtlilxochitl, _Hor. Crueldades_, 10. Brasseur de
Bourbourg assumes that the allies stayed at Huexotla, which
is doubtful. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 402.
[1038] The stuffed skins of the five horses were found,
and other things, offered to the idol. _Cortés_, _Cartas_,
183. Strange that the Tezcucans should not have removed so
palpable evidence against them.
[1039] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 306.
[1040] _Real Cédula, 1551._ In this cédula are named a number
of the brothers, but the pagan name is not given in every
instance. Bernal Diaz and Torquemada confirm this baptismal
name for the ruler now appointed; Cortés writes merely
Fernando; Ixtlilxochitl adds Tecocoltzin; Sahagun gives the
latter name and calls him legitimate, as he was in a certain
sense. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 143. Clavigero calls him
Fernando Cortés Ixtlilxochitl; Chimalpain interpolates De
Alvarado in lieu of Cortés, but substitutes Tecocoltzin for
Ixtlilxochitl in one place. _Hist. Conq._, 21, 55. Vetancurt
evidently accepts the true name, but applies the baptism and
appointment to Ixtlilxochitl. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 152.
The latter, who succeeded to the Tezcucan rulership toward
the end of 1521, received the name of Fernando Pimentel,
and it is this similarity of the first name that has led to
the pretty general confusion about the appointee. Lockhart
actually attempts to rectify the correct statement of Bernal
Diaz with a blunder, _Memoirs_, ii. 411; and Zamacois, in
doing the same with the blundering Solis, gives a long note
amusingly erroneous. _Hist. Méj._, iii. 585.
[1041] Ixtlilxochitl states not wrongly that Tecocoltzin
was chosen by general request, but he adds that while the
political horizon was so cloudy the electors preferred
that a legitimate heir like Ixtlilxochitl should not fill
so dangerous a position; nor did the latter care to rule
while the elder brother lived. _Hist. Chich._, 307; _Hor.
Crueldades_, 11-13. Pretty good excuse for a prince who
forcibly wrested half the domain from Cacama. Brasseur de
Bourbourg assumes that he feared to be suspected of seeking
a Spanish alliance merely to obtain the crown. _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, iv. 409. But this design he had long harbored, as
even the abbé intimates at times. He no doubt stood, with
his strong character, as one of the powers behind the throne.
Cohuanacoch does not appear to have had much influence.
[1042] Solis takes this opportunity to elaborate a few
of his specimen speeches. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 315-16. ‘Fue
el primero que en publico en Tezcuco se casò, y velò.’
_Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 152.
[1043] Bernal Diaz differs somewhat, and gives the proportion
of forces, attended also by Alvarado and Olid. _Hist.
Verdad._, 121. The Tlascaltecs numbered about 4000, and
the Tezcucans, according to Ixtlilxochitl, from 4000 to 6000.
[1044] Gomara assumes that they sought to allure the
Spaniards into the town. _Hist. Mex._, 179.
[1045] So estimated by Cortés and others. Herrera reduces
it to 5000.
[1046] Cortés states that he saw men cutting the dike as
he entered the town, but did not consider the significance
until the water rose and recalled it to him. _Cartas_, 174.
[1047] So says Cortés, while Bernal Diaz assumes that two
men and one horse were lost, he himself receiving so severe
a wound in the throat as to become an invalid for some
time. _Hist. Verdad._, 121. Solis refers to the affair as
a glorious victory.
[1048] Four, says Cortés, and Lorenzana enumerates several
which may have embraced them. _Hist. N. Esp._, 196. Brasseur
de Bourbourg confounds some with southern Chalco towns.
[1049] Duran states that the Chalcans had sent presents
with offers of alliance before the Spaniards crossed the
mountain border. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 491. But this is
doubtful. Ixtlilxochitl assumes that they appealed first to
his namesake, as their suzerain, and he advised submission
to Cortés. Mizquic and Cuitlahuac appear to have joined in
the submission.
[1050] Bernal Diaz writes that two archers fell and seven
of the foe. Owing to this incident Sandoval left orders
that no reënforcements from Villa Rica should advance
beyond Tlascala till further orders. _Hist. Verdad._, 122.
Prescott wrongly assumes that this attack occurred on the
march to Chalco.
[1051] Ixtlilxochitl, _Hist. Chich._ 314. On another
page, 307, he names Omacatzin and four other caciques, and
Chimalpain, several others, _Hist. Conq._, 36-7; but they
appear nearly all to be sub-caciques. Brasseur de Bourbourg
calls the first lord Itzcahuatzin.
[1052] He had served the Spaniards during the late uprising.
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 178-9.
[1053] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 123; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 174. After taking them back to Chalco,
Sandoval escorted from Tlascala some Spaniards and Don
Fernando, the new ruler of Tezcuco.
[1054] Chimalpain names Chimalhuacàn, Chitlahuaca, and
Chicoaloapan. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 24.
[1055] Some of the raided fields were Mexico temple
properties. One Spaniard was killed and twelve wounded,
while the Mexicans lost over a dozen, besides a number
of prisoners. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 122-3. The
caciques of the captured strongholds came now to submit. The
Aztecs recaptured them, and had again to be driven forth.
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 180-1; _Torquemada_, i. 529.
[1056] ‘Dos caras que auian desollado ... quatro cueros de
cauallos curtidos ... muchos vestidos de los Españoles q̄
auiã muerto.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 124.
[1057] Herrera, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. v., intimates that
all were launched, as do Camargo, Prescott, and others, but
Torquemada observes that it would have been needless injury
to the timbers to put all together. Besides, all were made
on one or two models, the different pieces being shaped in
exact imitation of those for the models.
[1058] Ojeda, who appears to have rendered great service
as interpreter and in controlling the Tlascaltecs, was
soon after rewarded with what he terms a generalship over
all the auxiliaries under Cortés. Herrera makes a special
later expedition of 5000 Tlascaltecs convey the guns and
other effects, carried in wooden beds by relays of twenty
natives for each. dec. iii. lib. i. cap. vi.
[1059] The names are written in different ways by different
authors. The former is probably identical with the chief
of Atlihuetzian, who afterward killed his two sons for
becoming Christians, says Clavigero, _Storia Mess._, iii.
176. Chimalpain calls them brothers. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 26.
Camargo, followed by Herrera, assumes that the original
native force was 180,000. Gomara and Ixtlilxochitl allow
20,000 to have been retained, besides carriers; others give
each of the chiefs 10,000 men, while Bernal Diaz, who as a
rule seeks to ignore the value of native aid, reduces the
number to 8000 warriors and 2000 carriers. Chichimecatl
became quite indignant at finding himself removed from
the van. He was a lord of Tlascala, and had ever been
accustomed to posts of honor and danger. ‘For this very
reason,’ replied Sandoval, ‘have I placed you in the rear,
for there the foe will be most likely to attack.’ Though
mollified in the main, Chichimecatl still grumbled, and
considered his army sufficient to guard the rear without
the aid of the Spanish force attached to his. Sandoval
no doubt took the van, though Bernal Diaz states that he
joined the rear. _Hist. Verdad._, 124. Cortés implies that
the change was owing to the risk, in case of attack, to
have in the van the cumbersome timber under Chichimecatl’s
care. _Cartas_, 184-5. Chimalpain supposes that the chief
carried his points. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 27.
[1060] North of Telapon, as the easiest route, is the
supposition of Orozco y Berra, in _Noticias Mex._, 256.
[1061] ‘Hizieronla quatro cientos mil hombres.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 191. That is, 8000 fresh men daily for 50
days, to judge by the figure. Ixtlilxochitl fails not to
adopt a number which speaks so well for the size of his
province. _Hist. Chich._, 307; _Relaciones_, 416. ‘La
zanja tenia mas de dos estados de hondura y otros tantos
de anchura, y iba toda chapada y estacada.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 206. Bustamante claims to have seen traces of
it, _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 66-7, as did Lorenzana in his
time. _Cortés_, _Hist. N. Esp._, 234. For the caulking of
the vessels cotton was also used, and for want of grease,
human fat was obtained from slain enemies, writes Gomara.
Oidor Zuazo was assured of this pagan consecration for the
fleet. This has been denied by others, observes Oviedo,
iii. 423-4; but there is nothing improbable in a partial
use thereof, for human fat had been frequently used in other
cases, as Cortés admits. Additional timber was obtained in
Tolantzinco, says Ixtlilxochitl.
CHAPTER XXXI.
PRELIMINARY CAMPAIGNS.
MARCH-MAY, 1521.
PLAN FOR THE INVESTMENT OF MEXICO—RECONNOITRING TOUR ROUND
THE LAKE—CORTÉS IN COMMAND—ALVARADO AND OLID ACCOMPANY—THEY
PROCEED NORTHWARD FROM TEZCUCO—CAPTURE OF CITIES AND
STRONGHOLDS—XALTOCAN, QUAUHTITLAN, TENAYOCAN, AZCAPUZALCO,
TLACOPAN, AND BACK TO TEZCUCO—CHALCO DISTURBED—PEACE
PROPOSALS SENT TO MEXICO—FURTHER RECONNOISSANCE OF THE
LAKE REGION—MANY BATTLES AND VICTORIES—QUAUHNAHUAC
CAPTURED—BURNING OF XOCHIMILCO—SECOND RETURN TO
TEZCUCO—CONSPIRACY.
The arrival at Tezcuco of the brigantines recalled the necessity for
planning the investment of Mexico, and this involved a reconnoitring
tour round the lake, for which the Tlascaltecs in particular were
importunate. Chichimecatl pressed this measure the moment he arrived
at Tezcuco. He had come to serve the emperor, to join the Spaniards
in avenging their fallen countrymen. Cortés expressed appreciation
of his zeal, “but rest now,” he said, “for soon you shall have your
hands full.” A few days later the general set out from Tezcuco
with twenty-five horse, three hundred foot-soldiers, twenty-five
archers and crossbowmen, and over thirty thousand allies, chiefly
Tlascaltecs, with a number of Tezcucans. Among the war material were
six field-pieces.[1062] Alvarado and Olid accompanied the expedition,
and also a number of the Tezcucan leaders, partly as hostages, while
Sandoval remained in charge. A northward course was taken, though the
aim and destination were divulged to but a few, owing to the distrust
still entertained of the Tezcucans.
[Illustration: THE VALLEY OF MEXICO.]
On the Tecama Plain, four miles from Tezcuco, a hostile force
approached, probably by accident. After routing them the army encamped.
The following day they proceeded to Xaltocan,[1063] a prominent town
situated on an island in the northern end of the lake bearing that
name. Once the capital successively of a Toltec, Otomí, and Chichimec
principality, it had succumbed to the vicissitudes of political
revolution and wars, and was at present one of the chief strongholds
belonging to the tripartite power in the valley. It was approached
by a causeway provided with breastworks and drawbridges.
The intention of the army had been surmised, so that preparations were
made in every direction to resist an entry, and the water swarmed
with canoes. In advancing along the causeway a tempest of stones,
arrows, and darts came upon them from both sides, while hampered on a
narrow road, hemmed in by the waters, and able to do little against
the floating enemy, who were comparatively safe behind the bulwarks
fitted to their canoes. Advance was soon stopped by the first trench
in the causeway, not only wide and deep, but protected on the farther
side by strong breastworks. The situation was embarrassing. Falling
back a little, with the loss of one man, the guns were brought forward
to protect the allies while filling the gap; but at this juncture
two Tezcucans informed Cortés that they could guide him across by a
fordable passage.
The offer was eagerly accepted, and while a part of the forces
attracted the foe to the causeway, and the horses covered the rear,
Cortés led another party by the ford. The water reached only to the
waist, and though the enemy hastened forward, resistance was in vain,
and soon the town was reached, and all who had not escaped immediately
surrendered. Good spoils were secured of fabrics and other merchandise,
as well as some gold. Since the canoe fleet might attempt a night
attack, it was not considered safe to camp on the island, and as the
army withdrew to the plain one league beyond, a part of the town was
fired, in further warning. Xaltocan had more than once before risen
from her ashes, but these were the flames of her funeral pyre. She
never assumed importance again, and is now but a pretty village.
The next camp was formed in Quauhtitlan, “a large and beautiful city,”
as Cortés calls it, which was found deserted. Thence they followed
the route which had been taken after that night of ineffaceable
horrors, when the foe seemed to fill the air and beat their faces in
the blackness like the birds of Avernus, cutting off the stragglers
faint with wounds and hunger, and sending terror to the hearts of
the bravest. Now they came in confident strength, yet again the foe
hovered round, though only at a distance, along the safe hill slopes,
while from the summits rose pillars of smoke to proclaim the coming
of the avengers. They passed through Tenayocan, once the capital of
the Chichimec empire, and now renowned only for the immense serpent
idols in its temple, from which the Spaniards called it El Pueblo
de los Sierpes. Thence to Azcapuzalco, the former proud seat of the
Tepanec kings.[1064]
No resistance being offered at any of these towns, they were spared
the brand, whereat the disappointed sackers felt aggrieved. As
the army neared Tlacopan a large opposing body appeared, which was
reinforced by warriors from the towns thereabout and from Mexico. The
ground being level, the cavalry easily broke through their lines, and
the infantry completed the rout, pursuing them into the city. After
clearing the greater number of streets from foes, camp was formed in
the palace.
There was hardly any evidence of the late ravages to which Mexico and
its approaches had been exposed during Spanish occupation, and Cortés
saw that it would be no easy matter to besiege such a stronghold, or
series of strongholds, as the massive buildings may be termed, held
as they were by so obstinate a people as the Aztecs, with whom any
trifling or imaginary success seemed to efface the effect of continual
defeats.
The prospect was not encouraging, and as he looked at the causeway
full of those pitfalls which had defeated his high purposes, gloomy
thoughts filled his breast. “Why so sad, your worship?” broke in
a cavalier.[1065] “Yours was not the fault, and never will you be
compared with heartless Nero.” “I am not thinking of that sorrow
alone,” said Cortés, “but of the struggles yet required to achieve
the mastery. Still with God’s approval we will soon attempt it.”[1066]
In the morning hostile forces again appeared, only to be driven back,
whereupon the allies dispersed to sack and fire, with the determination
to avenge the attack made upon them during the flight from Mexico.
“And in this they used such diligence,” writes Cortés, “that even
our quarters were endangered.” The general was nothing loath to see
the flames, for it suited his plans not only to chastise the people,
but to render the place less strong in view of later operation;
furthermore, it was no easy matter to restrain the Tlascaltecs. Next
day the enemy came again in force, but this time they waited not to
be routed. They retired steadily to and along the causeway to Mexico,
drawing the Spaniards after them. It was the very spot where they
had suffered so severely the year before. Cortés had led the cavalry
far along the causeway and across one bridge, when the Mexicans with
inspiring shouts and doubled force came rolling back on front and
flank, from houses and lanes, thrusting with pikes and striking with
swords, the roofs meanwhile swarming with slingers. Cortés quickly
sounded retreat, and the troops retired, but the onslaught had been
tremendous, and it required no small effort to stay themselves.
Almost every one was wounded, it is said, and several fatally. In
crossing the bridge Alférez Juan Volante was knocked into the water.
Several canoe-men seized him, but he was a powerful fellow, and with
the strength of desperation he shook them off and sprang back to
his comrades with his banner. Cortés made repeated charges with the
horses to relieve the pressed foot-soldiers, till open ground was
gained and the danger past.[1067]
On the following days the Mexicans sought to repeat their manœuvres,
but Cortés was more prudent, and covered his rear carefully as he
advanced. Observing this, the Mexicans tauntingly called out: “Enter,
O brave ones, and fight! for to-day you will be masters of Mexico.
Enter to feast, all is prepared!” And again: “You shall find no
Montezuma now to do your bidding. Begone, therefore, to your own!”
Others confined themselves to insults directed against the Tlascaltecs.
“Rogues,” they cried, “never would you thus dare to approach us but
for the Christians, whose concubines you are. But wait awhile; we
shall eat you both with chile, for you are not fit to be slaves!” The
Tlascaltecs were not slow to answer: “Always have you fled before us
like treacherous cowards. We are the men, you the women. Never have
you entered our territory as we yours. The Castilians are not men
but gods, one of whom suffices to rout a thousand such as you!” This
verbal skirmish led in several cases to challenges, the principals
being accorded a free field wherein to settle their disputes; and
since they were generally men selected from both sides for their
bravery, skill, and strength, the struggles were eagerly watched.
On one occasion a solitary warrior of great stature stepped from a
canoe to the causeway, armed with sword and shield, and challenged any
Spaniard to combat, for he desired to appease the gods with blood. The
soldiers gaped in astonishment at this rashness. “What, you hesitate,
you cowards!” he cried. The next instant a soldier named Gonzalo
Hernandez rushed upon him with sword and shield, whereupon he leaped
into the water, pursued by the soldier, who sought to despatch him.
A number of canoes stole up, however, and Hernandez was seized by the
warriors. His comrades rushed to the rescue, and so beset the canoes
as to kill a chief and bring their champion ashore.[1068] During one
of the sallies Cortés reached the breach in the causeway where his
men had suffered so severely during the Sorrowful Night. The bridge
was down, and he appealed to the warriors on the other side: “Why so
foolishly court destruction? If there is a leader among you, let him
appear, so that I may speak.” “Speak,” was the response, “we are all
leaders here; leaders who shall make a banquet of thee and thine!”
* * * * *
Six days had been spent at Tlacopan, and since nothing could be
achieved, not even an interview with Quauhtemotzin, for which Cortés
ardently longed, he turned homeward. This abandonment of what the
Mexicans had probably regarded as the beginning of the siege created no
small exultation among them, and eagerly they pursued the retreating
army, though repelled now and then with some punishment by the
cavalry. The following day the pursuing forces had swelled to larger
proportions, and were more daring than ever. Cortés accordingly ordered
the infantry to advance, while he, with twenty horses, divided into
several parties and formed an ambuscade. No sooner had the unsuspecting
Mexicans reached the spot than the cavalry charged into their midst
with thundering war cries. The surprise, no less than the execution,
caused a panic, and the infantry hastened back to join in the usual
chastisement. Molestation ceased.
From Quauhtitlan the army proceeded by way of Acolman to Tezcuco.
The presence of so large a body of allies being considered for the
moment unnecessary, the greater number, elated with success and laden
with spoil, were dismissed to their homes, there to prepare for the
gathering to follow the completion of the brigantines.[1069]
* * * * *
The withdrawal from Tlacopan encouraged the Mexicans to attempt the
recovery of Chalco and to inflict chastisement for its secession. The
place was indeed most important to Mexico, since from its fertile
plains came the largest supplies, now more than ever required. The
threat had been held over the Chalcans ever since their submission to
Cortés, and the two young lords had hardly returned from Tezcuco before
they sent messengers to implore aid. This occurred while Sandoval
was preparing to leave for Tlascala to convey the brigantines, and no
further troops could therefore be detached without great risk, so that
the Chalcans were told to wait. As the messengers were leaving with
this cold comfort envoys arrived from Huexotzinco and Quauhquechollan.
They had seen the signal pillars of smoke of the hostile allies, and
had come to ask if they could be of service. The proposals came most
opportunely.
The Huexotzincas and Quauhquechollans had long entertained a hatred
of the Chalcans, as natives of an Aztec province against whose forces
they had often been arrayed, but Cortés represented the true state
of affairs and convinced the respective envoys of the important
service they could render themselves and their new sovereign, to
whom all owed allegiance, by forgetting occurrences for which their
oppressors were to blame, and to combine for mutual aid. His arguments
were convincing, and both Huexotzinco and Quauhquechollan promised
immediately to support the Chalcans with a large force.
The Aztecs do not appear to have gone much beyond threats until after
the Spanish retirement from Tlacopan, but two days after their return
to Tezcuco, Chalcan messengers appeared with such supplications that
Sandoval was despatched to their aid with twenty horse, three hundred
infantry, and a force of allies,[1070] largely reinforced at Chalco
by Huexotzincas, Quauhquechollans, and Chalcans. On arriving before
Chimalhuacan,[1071] he found the enemy drawn up in battle array in
three large divisions. A rush at the invaders was made. The cavalry
met them, breaking their ranks and throwing them into confusion.
Retiring to more broken ground, where they were comparatively safe from
the horses, they rallied to face the infantry, but the well directed
volleys of fire-arms and cross-bows proved another surprise, which
prepared the way for an effective charge from swordsmen and lancers.
Now the retreat assumed more the form of a flight, the Spaniards
pursuing eagerly. During this operation Gonzalo Dominguez was thrown
from his horse, which fell upon him, inflicting such injuries that he
died within a few days. In him the army lost one of its most dashing
horsemen, and the equal of any in daring.
The troops then retired to the town for the night. Next day they
marched to Huastepec, the objective point of the expedition, where
fifteen thousand Mexicans, composed partly of the defeated forces,
attacked them with such energy that five horses and a number of
soldiers were wounded. The Spaniards soon routed them, and chased the
fleeing through the town, a number taking refuge in a stronghold. While
a portion of the troops, together with the Tlascaltecs, dispersed in
quest of the rich spoil, and the cavalry were tending their horses,
the fugitive garrison stole back to the town and fought their way to
the stronghold near the square, where they took a stand behind some
breastworks. Their position was not long maintained, however, after
the troops had collected for the assault. The entire force of Mexicans
was then driven for over a league, with considerable slaughter.
The army now took up their quarters for two days in the palace. A
peaceful summons was sent to the lord of the place, without meeting
any response; another to Yacapichtla brought an insulting answer. The
insolence was due to the confidence of the garrison in its strength,
situated as it was on an almost inaccessible height.[1072] The Chalcans
implored Sandoval to capture the place and drive forth the occupants,
who would otherwise not fail to descend with fire and sword on their
land. The proposition was by no means agreeable after so arduous a
march and with so many wounded, including himself; but Sandoval never
shrank from what he regarded duty, and soon he appeared before the
fort to repeat his demands, only to hear taunts and jeers. The ascent
was steep, with few points affording cover, and when the Chalcans were
urged to begin the attack for which they had pleaded they objected
unless the Teules accompanied them. Sandoval unhesitatingly placed
some horsemen to guard the rear, and dismounting with Tápia the two
took their shields and swords and led the way, followed by a number
of soldiers.
The garrison lustily plied their stones and darts, and despite the
protecting shields several were wounded, among them Tápia and Osma,
while others were overthrown by the concussion and came tumbling
down. With cheering Santiagos the soldiers urged one another onward
until even the Chalcans joined the assault. The first Spaniard had
hardly reached the summit before the occupants attempted flight,
only to bring death upon them the quicker. Many were chased over the
cliff, to fall into equally relentless hands below; others in their
fear and despair cast themselves headlong from the height. So freely
flowed blood, the soldiers say, that the creek at the foot of the
fortress was stained sanguine, and so remained for an hour, repelling
in horror the victors who approached it to quench their thirst.[1073]
The Chalcans being now content, Sandoval returned to Tezcuco with
considerable spoils and a number of pretty slaves.
Informed of the victorious advance of the Spaniards, Emperor
Quauhtemotzin hastened to send reinforcements to his garrisons, and
hardly had Sandoval tendered a report to his general before the alarmed
Chalcans sent messengers stating that a fleet of two thousand large
canoes with numerous warriors were descending upon them. Believing
that Sandoval must have been too hasty or negligent, Cortés without
deigning to listen to excuses ordered him to return immediately.
Meanwhile the Chalcans, encouraged by the allies, had faced the
invaders bravely and routed them in a fierce battle, killing quite a
number and capturing over twoscore warriors, among them the general
and several chiefs.[1074] When Sandoval came up the fight was over,
and the proud victors surrendered their captives, who were sent to
Tezcuco, the Spaniards following as soon as the danger appeared to
be over.
Aggrieved at the brusqueness of his commander, Sandoval sent in
his report without presenting himself; but Cortés had by this time
recognized the injustice of his treatment, and actuated by policy no
less than by affection, he summoned his captain and frankly avowed
his haste, thus strengthening the friendship which ever after bound
them. The victories in Chalco left secure the entire region between
Villa Rica and the Spanish lines, and communication was henceforth
regularly maintained, permitting fresh supplies and war material to be
brought from a vessel which had recently reached the coast. A great
event was the arrival of three vessels with two hundred Spaniards,
eighty horses, and a full complement of arms, ammunition, and other
effects, partly bought and partly enlisted by the agents whom Cortés
had despatched to the Islands during the previous autumn. Among the
new-comers were Julian de Alderete of Tordesillas, appointed royal
treasurer for New Spain, and the Franciscan Pedro Melgarejo de Urrea
of Seville, bearing a supply of papal indulgences for the men who
had been engaged in the crusade. That the soldiers were conscious
of frequent transgressions may be judged from the suggestive and not
wholly reverential observation of Bernal Diaz, that “after patching
their defects the friar returned to Spain within a few months, a rich
man.”[1075]
Cortés was cheered by offers of submission and alliance, owing partly
to the good offices of Tezcucans and other allies. Some came from
places quite distant, such as Nautla and Tuzapan, on the coast north
of Villa Rica, laden as usual with presents.[1076] Another pleasing
evidence of still more devoted loyalty came not long after from the
south, from the country of the valiant Chinantecs, of the long pikes.
During the great uprising, when Spaniards in small or straggling
parties had everywhere been slaughtered, this people faithfully
protected the two soldiers who happened to be with them, and were in
return aided by their prowess and advice to achieve victories over
adjoining tribes. One of these men, Captain Hernando de Barrientos,
sent two natives in April with a letter to his countrymen imparting
the assurance that Chinantla and its six sub-towns were loyal.[1077]
The recent successes and the arrival of the two hundred men induced
Cortés once more to propose peace to Quauhtemotzin. To this end,
during passion week, he bade some of the captured nobles proceed to
Mexico with a letter as a symbol of their commission, and impress upon
their master the superiority in arms and skill of the Spanish forces,
their constant and large reinforcements, and their unvarying success
in the field. They must point out the generous and humane treatment
of the provinces which had submitted, and assure the Aztec leaders
that equal forgiveness would be accorded them. Refusal to return to
their allegiance would lead to the destruction of themselves and their
city. Only two of the captives ventured to accept the commission,
for according to Aztec articles of war any noble who returned to
his country after having been captured by an enemy was doomed to
decapitation unless he had performed some extraordinary deed.[1078]
No answer came from Mexico, and it was afterward learned that the
messengers had suffered death. The Aztec ruler had not even given a
thought to peace. He was watching his opponents, prepared to take
advantage of any neglect or relaxation in their effort. No sooner
had Sandoval been induced by peaceful appearances to retire from
Chalco than Aztec forces again prepared to invade the province. The
Chalcans had due warning, and close upon the heels of Sandoval came
two messengers lamenting louder than ever, and exhibiting a painting
wherein were named the many towns whose forces were coming upon them,
fully fifty thousand strong. These constant menaces and movements
were exasperating, and Cortés resolved personally to inflict a lesson
which might be lasting. At the same time he proposed to complete
his reconnoissance of the lake region and encourage his troops with
spoils from hostile localities whereon the Aztecs yet relied for
support.[1079]
Cortés selected thirty horse, three hundred infantry, a number
of Tlascaltecs, and over twenty thousand Tezcucans, under Prince
Ixtlilxochitl, to which twice that number of other allies were added
on the way. A large proportion of archers and aquebusiers were taken,
together with Alvarado, Olid, Alderete, Melgarejo, and others, while
Sandoval was left in charge of Tezcuco, with instructions to watch
and promote the completion of the brigantines against which several
incendiary attempts had been made.
The expedition left Friday, the 5th of April, and passed through
Chalco, Tlalmanalco, and Chimalhuacan,[1080] and crossing in a
south-westerly direction into the Totolapan province, they entered
the hills which form the southern border of the Mexican valley.
By this time the forces had assumed proportions hardly inferior to
those of the Iztocan campaign, when over one hundred thousand moved
against the foe. Highly picturesque was the spectacle of this army,
its naked hordes of warriors relieved by plumage and glittering
iztli points which rose above the broad line of gaudy shields; its
white adventurers in mail of cotton and metal, surmounted by bright
helmets, and armed knights on proudly stepping steeds: picturesque
in particular as it wound in almost endless line along the rounded
slopes of the cliffs, or climbed in clearly defined file across the
hill-tops, only to descend again into gulches gloomy as their own
sinister purpose.
Alarmed by the invasion, the inhabitants had abandoned their valley
homes, and had sought refuge on the summits, whence they hurled
missiles at the passing lines. Little attention was paid these
irregular bands, composed as they were to a great extent of women and
children. On entering the Tlayacapan Valley, however, and observing
on the craggy sides of an almost perpendicular isolated rock, perched
there like an eagle’s nest, a place of refuge peopled with more
pretentious opposers, in a fit of insensate folly Cortés ordered
the place to be assailed. He seemed to think the honor of the army
demanded it, and was ready to stake the lives of valuable men on its
destruction.
Orders were given to attack from three several sides, the steepest
being assigned to Alférez Corral, a brave and spirited leader. Verdugo
and Villafuerte were given another side, and Ircio and Monjaraz the
third. Each party consisted of about threescore men, and included
archers and arquebusiers. At a given signal all rushed forward to the
ascent. Soon they were on hands and knees, crawling over projections
and pulling themselves up by means of shrubs. All the while stones
and darts rattled on helmet and breastplate; and huge rocks came
rolling down upon them. In vain they sought shelter in crevices and
under crags; they must face the storm. Bernal Diaz followed Corral,
and after receiving many a hard knock they gained what was called
two turns of the rock. There they paused and looked around, wondering
at their success thus far. Supporting himself against a small tree,
his face bathed in blood, his banner rent, Corral said, “Señor Diaz,
it is useless to advance farther; not a man will survive.” Then they
shouted a warning to Pedro Barba, at the head of his archers, not to
climb farther. “The order is to advance!” was the reply. The next
moment Barba was wounded by a stone, and a soldier at his side was
killed. Cortés then sounded the recall, but not until eight brave men
had laid down their lives, victims of their commander’s puerility,
and of the rest most of them returned wounded.[1081]
The recall was likewise prompted by the approach of a considerable
force in the valley. This the cavalry charged and quickly routed,
following in close pursuit, though the broken ground soon enabled
the fugitives to gain shelter. During this ride some of the horsemen
came, a league beyond, to another hill fortress, strong in its natural
features, and held by a large force. Near by were some springs. The
need of water was pressing, which afforded a plausible excuse for
abandoning the scaling of Tlayacapan, and the whole force was moved
to the springs. Early next morning Cortés examined the approaches
to the new stronghold. It extended over three hills, the central
one exceedingly steep and held by the largest force; the others
easier of ascent, though higher, and occupied by smaller numbers. In
reconnoitring, Cortés advanced toward the centre. This movement led
the occupants of the other hills to infer an attack on the central
height, and they began to abandon their positions with a view to
reënforce the threatened point. Observing this, Cortés ordered Barba
to occupy the most commanding elevation with some fifty arquebusiers
and archers, while he himself continued to scale the centre as a
feint, for there was little hope of capturing a point so steep and
strongly held. The stones and darts rained here as previously, and
man after man was struck down, some bleeding freely from the wounds
sustained.[1082]
Meanwhile Barba’s sharp-shooters had made so effective a use of their
weapons that within half an hour the volleys from the fortress ceased,
and the women began to wave their robes in token of truce, shouting
their submission. Cortés graciously met the advances, and extended
full pardon. He also prevailed on the chiefs to induce the Tlayacapans
to submit. On the extensive surface of the rock were collected all
the inhabitants of the neighborhood, with their effects, which Cortés
ordered not to be touched.[1083]
The army remained encamped for two days to refresh themselves after
their arduous march, and after sending the wounded to Tezcuco,
Cortés proceeded to Huastepec. The report of the clemency extended
to preceding settlements had a reassuring effect on this town, whose
cacique came forth to welcome them, and tender his palace for their
entertainment. This was situated in a garden, celebrated throughout
New Spain for its beauty and extent, and the immense variety of
its plants, collected partly for scientific purposes. A river with
tributary canals flowed through its grounds, which extended over a
circuit of nearly two leagues, murmuring its melody in unison with
winged songsters hidden in arbors or playing between bush and hedge,
mingling their bright color with the green expanse. Adjacent were steep
rocks, on whose smooth surface were sculptured the portraits of noted
warriors, statesmen, and orators, with hieroglyphic inscriptions of
their fame. It was a paradise formed equally for student and idler, and
to the weary soldiers no spot could perhaps have proven so grateful.
Cortés certainly grows ecstatic in describing it, declaring it “the
largest, most beautiful, and freshest garden ever seen.”[1084] Tempting
as was the retreat, Cortés tore himself from it the following day,
and proceeded in a south-westerly direction to Yauhtepec. Although
many warriors were gathered there, they fled on the approach of the
Spaniards, and were chased, with some slaughter, for about two leagues,
into the town of Xiuhtepec.[1085] The women and effects there found
were appropriated as spoils, and rendered agreeable the two days’
stay. The ruler failing to appear, the place was fired, and terrified
by this warning the lord of Yauhtepec hastened to proffer submission.
After a day’s hard march the army came in sight of Quauhnahuac,[1086]
capital of the Tlahuicas. They were one of the Nahuatlaca tribes, which
according to tradition had entered the Anáhuac country to supplant
the Toltecs. Coming rather late, they found their brethren already
in possession of the lake region, and so they crossed the range to
seek a home on the headwaters of the Zacatula, where soon a number
of settlements rose round Quauhnahuac. They afterward fell under
the sway of the Chichimecs, and finally the Aztecs took advantage of
internal discord to establish sovereignty,[1087] maintaining it by a
garrison in the capital. This was a natural stronghold, situated on
a tongue of land between two steep ravines over forty feet in depth,
and through which ran a little stream during the rainy season. It was
further protected by strong walls, particularly on the side where a
strongly guarded gate opened to a fine stretch of country. Two other
entrances faced the ravines, sometimes spanned by bridges, which were
now removed.
Situated at the gateway to the tropical southern valleys, between
which and the colder lake region interposed a range of mountains,
the spot stood as a new Eden in its manifold beauties. A sight even
of the pine-fringed mountains that rolled off toward the north,
with their green slopes shaded by oak and birch, and bathed in soft
though bracing airs, was refreshing to the indolent inhabitants of
the burning plain beyond. On the other hand the sturdy toilers of
the northern plateaux might in this sunny south seek relaxation in
the varied charms of a softer air balmy with the incense of a more
lustrous vegetation.[1088]
It was an opulent community that of Quauhnahuac, surrounded as it was
by endless resources and advantages, and the people were in no mood
tamely to yield their wealth to invaders. And in this determination
they were sustained by their lord, Yohuatzin,[1089] who was not only a
vassal but a relative of Quauhtemotzin. Confident in the impregnable
position of his city, in which supplies were ample, he replied with
volleys to the demands of the Spanish forces as they appeared on the
other side of the ravines. It seemed almost impossible to effect
a crossing and climb the steep wall of the ravine to the city;
nevertheless Cortés selected a position and began to open fire so as
to occupy the attention of the garrison and cover the scaling parties.
While they were thus busied a brave Tlascaltec reconnoitred and came
to a point half a league beyond, where the ravine was steepest and
narrowed to an abyss. On the two sides grew two large trees, which
inclined toward each other, with branches intertwined, forming a sort
of natural bridge, though by no means secure. He called the attention
of his party to this and led the way across, followed by several
Spaniards. The natives, who were more accustomed to this kind of
tactics, found comparatively little difficulty in swinging themselves
across; but to the soldiers it was far from easy, and three of them,
overcome by dizziness or weight of armor, slipped and fell.[1090]
The attention of the inhabitants being attracted elsewhere, a number
of the invaders had gained a secure foothold within the city before
they were observed. Even now a few resolute men might have driven
them back, but such were wanting, and the sudden appearance of the
dreaded white men, as if indeed they had dropped into the stronghold
from some cloud made radiant by the sun whose reputed children they
were, struck terror to the hearts of the poor natives. All impotent
and nerveless, they permitted the daring strangers to lower the
drawbridge, and turned to spread the panic. Meanwhile the reports
of a formidable army advancing from the rear so wrought on the fears
of the garrison that, when the handful who had crossed on the bushy
bridge fell on them, they offered no resistance. This also allowed
the scaling forces to pour in, so that within a short time the siege
was turned into a rout, wherein the cavalry played a prominent part.
The zeal of the allies was already indicated by smoky columns in
different parts of the city, and the foot-soldiers hastened to share
in the rich plunder and intercept the women.
Most of the fugitives had gathered on an adjacent height, and though
no attempt was made that day to molest them, yet they began to fear
that men who could so readily capture one of the strongest fortresses
in the country, would find no difficulty in reaching them anywhere;
therefore, after listening to the advice of messengers sent by
Cortés, Yohuatzin concluded to surrender, and presented himself on the
following day with a large retinue and rich presents. The Mexicans were
as usual blamed for the opposition offered. He would have submitted
before, but thought it best to expiate the fault of resistance by
allowing the Spaniards to pursue, so that after spending their fury
they might be more ready to forgive.[1091]
There was no time at present to extend the reconnoissance farther
in this direction, and after a brief rest Cortés turned northward
to the lakes. The route over the mountains proved far more difficult
than before, and after issuing from the pine forest the army entered
a desert country terminating in a three-league pass through the
Ajuzco Mountains. Here thirst became so intense that several natives
succumbed.[1092] This suffering was relieved in a hamlet not far from
the pass.
On the following day they passed through a fine and cultivated
country toward Xochilmilco, that is to say, Field of Flowers, aptly
named, for round almost every house, particularly on the outskirts,
was a flower-garden enclosed by canals. Many of them were of the
chinampa class, or floating gardens,[1093] the outgrowth of early
Aztec weakness, now forming a picturesque border to the lake towns.
Altogether the aspect was most pleasing, while the buildings of the
central parts were artistic and striking. Besides the strength added
by canals and moats, pile buildings were frequent, and intrenchments
had been thrown up and drawbridges raised to defend the approach
against any enemy of the Aztecs, for its loyalty to the queen city
was fully as great as that of Iztapalapan. It was the most important
place on the thickly settled fresh-water lake. Bishop Garcés relates
that angels were heard to sing praises in the Mexican tongue when it
was converted.[1094] The usual summons was issued by the Spaniards,
and no heed being given, they attacked in three divisions by different
approaches. The enemy fell back behind the raised bridges and
intrenchments, whence they kept up a steady volley. The archers and
arquebusiers replied briskly, and covered the van as it plunged into
not very deep water and waded across to capture the fortifications.
This effected, the foe was driven from one retreat to another. Seeing
how affairs went, they sought to parley, but the pursuers paid no
heed, regarding it as a trick to gain time for the removal of their
families and property. Within half an hour the greater part of the city
was won, and soldiers and allies were sacking as they advanced. The
foe rallied now and then to cover their retreat, and in one instance
managed to despatch two soldiers who had allowed avarice to overcome
prudence.
Not long after, a body of some ten thousand warriors, reënforced by
fugitives from the city, was seen advancing from the rear as if to
cut off retreat. They were already close at hand when first observed,
and without losing a moment Cortés charged them at the head of a body
of cavalry.[1095]
At first they boldly faced the animals, and fought so well as to
severely wound four, besides several riders; but the mounted body
kept breaking through their ranks and then turned to fall on the rear.
This movement proved decisive, and the enemy dispersed in flight, the
horsemen scattering in pursuit. Already weakened by the severe march
across the mountains, the horse of Cortés became quite exhausted,
and while its rider was striking right and left into a large body of
fugitives, it fell. No other horseman being near, the enemy gathered
courage and rushed upon the general, who had risen to his feet and
stood with sword in hand to defend himself. It was a critical moment,
and had not a brave Tlascaltec warrior come to his rescue thus
opportunely, the career of the Estremaduran would have ended there;
for he had already received a severe blow on the head and was about
to be dragged away when thus rescued. The general’s body-guard then
came up and cut in pieces his late stupid assailants—stupid because
they might so easily have killed him, and did not.[1096] The pursuit
was not long maintained, tired as the horses were, and remounting
his steed Cortés led the way back to camp in the square.
Late as it was he superintended the filling of all the channels which
broke the causeways, and the erection of defences, and ordered the
soldiers to put in order their arms and prepare arrows. The forces
were distributed at three points, and extra guards were posted for
the night, together with bodies of troops at probable landing-points.
These precautions were prompted chiefly by the evident effort of the
last body of the enemy to shut up the army within the city, a movement
which boded other attempts, as Cortés rightly supposed.
* * * * *
When Quauhtemotzin heard that the Spaniards had marched against
Xochimilco he called a council to consider the course to adopt, and
the result was the despatch of reënforcements. Finding that the city
had so easily fallen, he became furious. The gods were indignant at
the outrages of the strangers. Arms must be employed more manfully,
and, these failing, the loyal ones must let their nails grow, as the
last means of protection. The first step should be the recovery of
Xochimilco. That very night two thousand canoes were sent with some
twelve thousand warriors, and a similar force by land, all approaching
stealthily, without music.[1097]
* * * * *
The rumor of a probable night attack kept the Spanish camp on the
alert, and advised of this, the enemy made no attack. At dawn their
canoes were already swarming round the city, the inmates rending the
air with loud and repeated shouts, and brandishing their weapons,
those of the chiefs being captured Spanish swords. “With your own
arms you shall be killed, and we will eat you!” they cried. “We fear
you not, for Montezuma is dead!” At the same time the land forces
were seen approaching, evidently to assist the fleet in besieging
the Spaniards within the city, which would give the Mexicans greater
advantage, as they had well learned during the siege of Mexico. Cortés
understood the manœuvre, and leaving the greater part of the infantry
and allies to guard the city, he sallied with most of the horse, in
three parties, a few of the infantry and several hundred Tlascaltecs,
breaking through the enemy’s ranks and gaining the foot of a hill in
their rear, the Tepechpan.
While the enemy were rallying, Cortés led the horse round to their
denser flank, and gave orders to the infantry to allure the Mexicans
by climbing the steepest part of the hill and pretending to escape.
This succeeded, and the next moment they were attacked in several
directions with such effect as to cause a panic and drive them in
flight toward a quarter where one division of horse had taken a
stand. Five hundred Mexicans covered the field and five leaders were
among the captured, while the Spanish loss was only one soldier and
a few allies, including three Tlascaltec chiefs, although a number
were wounded. During the pursuit the foremost division of horse came
upon a further Mexican reënforcement, estimated at ten thousand,
which rallied the fugitives and caused the pursuers to halt. Soon,
however, the remaining force came up, the charge was continued, and
the Mexicans routed.[1098]
Too tired for long pursuit, the Spaniards returned by ten o’clock
in the morning to Xochimilco, where their garrison had repulsed the
lake force. The fight had been fierce, and the soldiers had exhausted
all their ammunition, capturing in return two Spanish swords. These
victories brought little satisfaction, however, for the captives
gave information that the forces so far sent were but detachments
of the armies destined for Xochimilco, which must be recovered, and
the Spaniards driven forth, if it cost the lives of all the men in
Mexico. The Spaniards might defeat force after force, but even victory
must so weaken them that the Mexicans would finally triumph. This
seemed to be confirmed by the movements of the fleet, which, though
repulsed, was still hovering thereabout.
Cortés now gave orders to burn the city, as a warning to the wilful
inhabitants and preparatory to its evacuation. The soldiers, who
had been interrupted in their plundering the day before, obeyed with
alacrity. Xochimilco was a wealthy city, and not a Spaniard or ally
but obtained an abundance of robes, feathers, and other effects, and
even some gold, which helped to cheer those whom ordinary merchandise
and slaves did not satisfy. The enemy had been watchful, however, and
in their canoes they flitted round the city to cut off stragglers.
At one point quite a charge was made, wherein several Spaniards were
wounded and four carried off alive. This event did more to cast
a gloom over the army than many defeats, for all knew the fate of
prisoners.[1099]
After a stay of three days, all fraught with hard fighting, the army
filed out from Xochimilco, presenting the appearance of a dilapidated
caravan rather than of a reconnoitring and fighting expedition, so
much so that Cortés thought it necessary to remonstrate, but in vain.
The enemy hovered about like vultures, to harass them in what they
regarded as a retreat. The march was made in regular fighting order,
with cavalry distributed in three sections, in van, rear, and on flank.
In order to complete the reconnoissance, a north-westerly route was
taken to Coyuhuacan, the centre of a series of inner towns which lay
clustered within a radius of a league and a half, along the shores or
upon islands in the lake, all picturesque in their pyramidal temples
and their white walls, which gleamed amidst blooming orchards and
shady groves. Coyuhuacan itself was a beautiful town, and Cortés felt
so captivated with it that he afterward made it for some time his
favorite residence.[1100] It had been evacuated, but toward and beyond
Mexico the lake teemed with canoes, while in every direction spread
one continuous extent of farms and hamlets, connected by causeways
and roads with busy traffic. To Alderete and friar Melgarejo this
was a novel scene, and they could not refrain from expressing their
admiration at the enterprise and prowess of Cortés and his followers
in undertaking so vast a conquest. God’s aid alone could have enabled
them to succeed as they had done.[1101]
The army remained here over the following day, chiefly to examine
the place as intended head-quarters of a besieging force. It was
found satisfactory; and while arrows were prepared and the wounded
tended, the general advanced along the causeway leading to Mexico
and expended his remaining ammunition in the useless capture of the
temple fortress of Xoloc,[1102] during which a number of soldiers were
wounded, though the enemy suffered considerably. After offering to
heaven the fiery sacrifice of pagan temple, the army proceeded through
Tlacopan without halting, for they had no ammunition, and this place
had been examined on the previous expedition. This unexpected haste
encouraged the Mexicans to come forth in great numbers and attack
the baggage train and rear. Owing to the level nature of the ground
the cavalry found no difficulty in repelling them, yet they caused
more trouble, and succeeded even in carrying off two of the favorite
equerries[1103] of Cortés. He was deeply grieved at the loss, and
partly with a view to avenge them, partly to inflict a lesson which
should save the army from such annoyance, he formed an ambuscade beside
the road with twenty horse. Seeing the other ten horses engaged as
formerly in covering the rear, the Mexicans continued their pursuit.
At a favorable moment the hidden horsemen appeared, and soon over a
hundred of the flower of the Mexicans lay dead upon the ground,[1104]
their rich panoplies, dresses, and arms offering a pleasing addition
to the already heavy plunder. Freed from further molestation, the
army proceeded through Azcapuzalco and Tenayocan to Quauhtitlan, all
deserted. Here the army clustered round camp fires of green wood, wet
from a recent shower and supperless. Next morning they followed the
route already pursued during the flight from Mexico, round Zumpango
Lake through Citlaltepec, and thence through Acolman to Tezcuco.[1105]
A mass of booty and slaves being now at hand, a general distribution
was ordered, the second in Tezcuco. Again, says Bernal Diaz, Cortés
disregarded his promises and secured not only for himself the
objectionable fifth, but allowed his favorites to carry off the
prettiest women before they were brought forward at auction. Many
who remembered the former tricks hid their women and said they had
escaped, or they declared them free servants from allied tribes;
while a few managed to obtain a private branding, paying the fifth
required. A large proportion of the soldiers were so heavily in debt
for stores and fifths that their booty left them no surplus.[1106]
While the reconnoitring expeditions had on the whole been fraught
with pecuniary benefit and glory, they had nevertheless served to open
the eyes of many to the difficulty of the great purpose, the capture
of Mexico. This was particularly the case with the Velazquez party,
whose adhesion before the Tepeaca campaign had been compulsory, and
after it mercenary in its motives. Every obstacle to them appeared
terrible, magnified through constant fear of the dreaded stone of
sacrifice, on which so many comrades had already been laid. And this
they were encountering for what? the advancement of an envied usurper
and a pecuniary reward far beneath their expectations. The failure
at Iztapalapan, the repeated inroads of the Mexicans, unabashed by
constant repulses, and the hardships of the campaigns, particularly
the last, all tended to support their arguments against Cortés’ plans
as chimerical, involving long delays, constant toil, and waste of
life, and with poor recompense save for Cortés and his favorites.
Presently the affair assumed the color of conspiracy, headed by
Antonio de Villafañe, a common soldier from Zamora, who is claimed
by Herrera to have had the active or passive sympathy of some three
hundred malcontents, nearly one third of the army. The professed
object was to secure a pliable leader who would consult the wishes
of the soldiers, even those desirous of returning. Such a man, and
withal of great influence and valor, was Verdugo, the brother-in-law
of the all-powerful patron Velazquez, and him the conspirators chose
as the new captain-general, unknown to himself, since he might prove
too honorable to engage in plots against the commander. As a reward
for his own efforts Villafañe claimed the position of alguacil mayor,
while other friends and influential men of Narvaez were assured of the
remaining offices, from alcalde mayor and maestre de campo downward,
now held by the retainers of Cortés, as well as a share in the arms
and other effects of the doomed number.[1107] It was arranged that
when Cortés was seated at table with his intimate friends, as Alvarado,
Sandoval, Olid, and Tápia, a letter was to be handed him, as if coming
from his father, and while he was reading, the conspirators should
fall on and stab him and his supporters, since all must be removed
who might prove troublesome. The new officers were thereupon to be
proclaimed, together with the liberal plan agreed on, by which it
was hoped to allure even the friends of Cortés.
There were too many in the secret, however, and Cortés was a man of
magnetic influence. At the eleventh hour, two days after the return
from Xochimilco, says Diaz, an accomplice, struck with compunction,
rushed distractedly to the feet of Cortés and implored pardon for
having even dared to listen to the vile machinations. He thereupon
revealed the plot and stated that Villafañe carried the names and
details on a list in his breast-pocket. Cortés quietly summoned his
captains. He represented the need for a “remedy, since, besides the
scandal, it was evident that all the Spaniards must perish if once
they turned one against the other; and to this end not only declared
foes but allies would join.”[1108]
Attended by Sandoval and others, Cortés hastened to the house of the
accused and found several persons assembled. Some were secured as they
sought escape. Villafañe found time to take a paper from his breast and
tear it in pieces, but Cortés gathered and arranged them,[1109] and
was grieved to read the names of quite a number of promising persons
whom he had honored and regarded as friends. Villafañe confessed
the details of the plot, which had been forming since the Tepeaca
campaign. A court-martial was held, presided over by Cortés himself,
and there being no doubt of his guilt, the accused was condemned to
death and promptly hanged from the window of his dwelling.[1110]
Cortés had probably no doubt regarding the guilt of the persons named
on the list, but the prosecution of so many notable men might not
be prudent, and would only widen the breach between himself and the
malcontents and gain them sympathy. The day following the execution
the general called a meeting. Many were the consciences that pricked
their possessors to trembling on that occasion. But the sage Cortés
preferred the traitors should risk their necks in winning for him
Mexico, rather than himself to break them with a rope.
Napoleon, who in national warfare could open with his sword the veins
of the people until there poured forth torrents of blood, shrank in
horror from blood shed in civil broils. It was policy with Cortés,
however. So, after finishing his narration of the conspiracy, he coolly
informed them that Villafañe had refused to reveal his accomplices,
and he could not therefore name the guilty. There were no doubt men
amongst them with real or fancied grievances which may have induced
them to harbor resentment; but let them frankly state their wrongs
and he would seek to right them. If he had erred, let the error be
named. The conclusion of the affair created general satisfaction.
Thankful for their escape, the guilty sought both by words and deeds
to prove their devotion, and although Cortés kept his eye upon them,
there was no indication that he suspected any. He rather sought to win
them back with favors.[1111] So impressed were his intimate followers
by the risk to which so valuable a life had been exposed that they
insisted on his accepting a body-guard of twelve select men, under
the command of Antonio de Quiñones, an hidalgo of Zamora,[1112] who
watched over him day and night.
FOOTNOTES
[1062] This is according to Cortés; others differ slightly,
and Ixtlilxochitl increases the Tezcucan force to 60,000.
_Hor. Crueldades_, 13.
[1063] From _tocatl_ and _xal_, spider and sand.
_Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, ii. 29. The lake in which it
lies is divided about the centre by an artificial causeway
about one league long, running from east to west, the
southern water being now known as San Cristóbal Ecatepec,
from the town of that name, and the northern water as
Xaltocan or Tomanitla, San Cristóbal being also the general
term for both waters.
[1064] See _Native Races_, ii. v.
[1065] Bachiller Alonso Perez, afterward fiscal of Mexico.
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 135.
[1066] This incident was commemorated by some poetic follower
in a ballad which became a favorite with the conquerors:
En Tacuba está Cortés,
Con su esquadron esforçado,
Triste estaua, y muy penoso,
Triste, y con gran cuidado,
La vna mano en la mexilla,
Y la otra en el costado.
Which may be translated literally:
In Tacuba stands Cortés,
With his troopers strong and brave:
Sad he was and deeply grave;
Sad, and heavily oppressed.
With one hand his cheek he pressed;
Against his side, the other.
[1067] So runs Bernal Diaz’ account, which appears a little
exaggerated, for recently Cortés had shown the greatest
caution, and would hardly have allowed himself to be so
readily trapped on so memorable a spot. _Hist. Verdad._,
126. Cortés states that not a Spaniard was lost, though
several Mexicans fell. _Cartas_, 187.
[1068] _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. vii.
[1069] They begged permission to return home, says
Chimalpain, _Hist. Conq._, i. 31. Herrera relates that
the efforts of Ojeda, by Cortés’ order, to take from the
Tlascaltecs the gold part of their booty so offended them
that they began to desert. The extortion was accordingly
stopped, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. vii. Clavigero doubts
the story. Prescott regards the departure of the allies
as distasteful to Cortés; but we have seen that he did
not care at present to encumber himself with too many
unruly auxiliaries to prey upon the peaceful provinces.
The Tlascaltecs would willingly have remained to share in
raiding expeditions.
[1070] Including 8000 Tezcucans under Chichinquatzin.
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hor. Crueldades_, 15. On March 12th, says
Vetancurt, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 154.
[1071] Also known as Chimalhuacan-Chalco, to distinguish
it from Chimalhuacan on Tezcuco Lake.
[1072] Lorenzana inspected the position in later times.
_Cortés_, _Hist. N. Esp._, 214.
[1073] ‘Que todos los que allí se hallaron afirman.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 190. The general lauds the achievement
with rare fervor for him. Bernal Diaz sneers at the river
of blood story; but then he was not present to share the
glory. The Roman Mario was less dainty than these Spaniards
under a similar circumstance, commemorated by Plutarch;
or as Floro more prosaically puts it: ‘Ut victor Romanus
de cruento flumine non plus aquæ biberit quam sanguinis
barbarorum.’ _Epitome_, lib. iii. cap. iii.
[1074] Fifteen, says Bernal Diaz. Chimalpain, the Chalcan
narrator, states that his tribe lost 350 men, but killed
1500 foes, capturing the captain-general, Chimalpopocatzin,
a relative of the emperor, who now became a captain among
the Tezcucans, and was killed during the siege. _Hist.
Conq._, ii. 34. Some of these facts are evidently not very
reliable. He also assumes that Sandoval lost eight soldiers
on again returning to Tezcuco.
[1075] The ‘comissario’ or clerk in charge of the bulls
was Gerónimo Lopez, afterward secretary at Mexico. _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 129. This author names several of
the arrivals, some of whom became captains of vessels. A
number also arrived during the following week, he adds,
notably in Juan de Búrgos’ vessel, which brought much
material.
[1076] Gomara mentions also Maxcaltzinco as a distant place.
_Hist. Mex._, 186.
[1077] The chiefs were awaiting orders to appear before
Cortés. The general told them to wait till tranquillity
was more fully restored. The name of the other soldier was
Nicolás. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 203-5. Herrera assumes that
Barrientos arrived in camp during the late Tepeaca campaign,
dec. ii. lib. x. cap. xvii.
[1078] Of the rank and file none suffered penalty on
returning, for captivity was regarded as disgraceful only
to a noble. _Native Races_, ii. 419.
[1079] Bernal Diaz states that the soldiers were tired of
these repeated calls, many being also on the sick-list,
but Cortés had now a large fresh force only too eager for
a fray attended with spoliation.
[1080] According to a native painting the army entered here
April 5th, which is a day or two too early, and received
a reënforcement of 20,000. See copy in Carbajal Espinosa,
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 523.
[1081] So says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 130, who names
four. Cortés allows only two killed and twenty wounded; how
many fatally so, he carefully omits to mention. _Cartas_,
194.
[1082] Twenty fell, says Bernal Diaz. He speaks of two
futile attempts on the previous evening to scale the central
hill. It seems unlikely for soldiers, tired by repulse and
march, to undertake so difficult a feat, and that at the
least assailable point.
[1083] Yet Bernal Diaz relates a story to show that the
order was a mere pretence.
[1084] _Cartas_, 196; _Torquemada_, i. 536.
[1085] Some write Xilotepec. Bernal Diaz mentions Tepoxtlan,
which may have been visited by a detachment.
[1086] Place of the Eagle. Corrupted into the present
Cuernavaca, which singularly enough means cow’s horn.
[1087] See _Native Races_, v.
[1088] Cortés was so captivated by the alluring clime and
scenery that he made the town his favorite residence in
later years. It was included in the domains granted to him,
and descended to his heirs. Madame Calderon speaks of his
ruined palace and church. _Life in Mexico_, ii. 50.
[1089] _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 311. Brasseur de
Bourbourg calls him Yaomahuitl.
[1090] ‘El vno se quebró la pierna ... y se me desvanecia
la cabeça, y todavia pasè yo, y otros veinte, ô trienta
soldados.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 132. Solis
misinterprets the passage, and gives this author credit for
leading the party. _Hist. Mex._, ii. 362. Vetancurt calls
the district toward this spot Amanalco. _Teatro Mex._, pt.
iii. 155.
[1091] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 196. Ixtlilxochitl assumes that
the submission is tendered through his namesake, as prince
of Tezcuco, the only capital of the tripartite empire loyal
to the Spaniards. _Hor. Crueldades_, 17-18.
[1092] Also one old Spaniard, believes Bernal Diaz, who
relates his own sufferings minutely, and how he followed
some mounted scouts in search of water, which he found,
bringing a supply to Cortés. _Hist. Verdad._, 133. Vetancurt
names this watering-place Topilejo, now San Miguel. _Teatro
Mex._, pt. iii. 155. Chimalpain mentions Quauhxômolco, just
before. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 40.
[1093] See _Native Races_, ii., 345.
[1094] _Lorenzana_, in _Cortés_, _Hist. N. Esp._, 225.
[1095] Six, says Cortés.
[1096] Bernal Diaz states that a soldier named Olea was the
main instrument in saving Cortés, _Hist. Verdad._, 133; but
Ixtlilxochitl, _Hist. Chich._, 311, gives the credit to the
Tlascaltec lord Chichimecatl, and Chimalpain to a noble
named Ocelotzin. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 41. Cortés says: ‘Un
indio de los de Tlascaltecal,’ _Cartas_, 199, who could not
be found the next day, and Cortés accordingly attributed
the aid, writes Herrera, to St Peter, dec. iii. lib. i.
cap. viii.
[1097] Followed by other bodies. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 134; _Torquemada_, i. 537.
[1098] Cortés leaves the impression that the foremost
division of six horse defeated the foe. Both Gomara and
Herrera are confused, and Prescott and others are led into
several mistakes.
[1099] Bernal Diaz names two of them.
[1100] He even willed that his bones should there be
entombed, a request which was not carried out.
[1101] ‘No eran cosas de hombres humanos ... que ayan hecho
ningunos vasallos tan grandes servicios a su Rey ... y
dello harian relacion a su Magestad.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 135.
[1102] At the junctions of the causeways which led from
the different shores to the southern avenue of Mexico. The
place is also known as Acachinanco.
[1103] Bernal Diaz states that Cortés was preparing an
ambuscade with ten horse and four equerries when he fell
into one himself and lost the two, whom he names. Alarmed
at his delay, Alvarado went back to look for him. loc. cit.
This is less likely than the version of Cortés.
[1104] Nobles they are termed, and Herrera doubles the
number.
[1105] Prescott and others intimate that they passed between
the lakes, from Quauhtitlan to Acolman, but Cortés mentions
Zilotepec, which may be identical with Citlaltepec, as
mentioned by Herrera, or Xilotzinco, about two leagues
eastward, as given by Ixtlilxochitl. Bernal Diaz also
appears to indicate the northern route.
[1106] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 129.
[1107] Bernal Diaz assumes that more than one captain-general
was to be appointed. ‘Para boluerse a Cuba, y deshazer a
Cortes,’ is all the explanation given by Gomara, _Hist.
Mex._, 178.
[1108] Such are in substance the words used by Cortés in
his relation to the emperor. ‘E cómo yo vi que se me habia
revelado tan gran traicion, dí gracias á nuestro Señor,
porque en aquello consistia el remedio.’ _Cartas_, 269.
[1109] So Cortés intimates, while Herrera states that
Villafañe hastened to devour the paper. His throat being
pressed, about half of it was rescued. dec. iii. lib. i.
cap. i. He further says that Sandoval was sent to make
the arrest; but Bernal Diaz asserts that Cortés went in
person, which is likely under the circumstances, and took
from Villafañe’s breast the paper. Finding thereon so many
names of quality he caused it to be rumored that the man had
eaten it, or part of it. _Hist. Verdad._, 136-7. Clavigero
assumes that the culprit revealed the names, and that
Cortés preferred not to believe him. _Storia Mess._, iii.
191. Torture failed to extort any names from him, writes
Torquemada, i. 528, and those on the list he declared to
be merely of men whom he intended to sound.
[1110] ‘Un alcalde y yo lo condenamos á muerte.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 269.
[1111] Bernal Diaz states that he frightened many by having
them arrested and threatened with trial; probably those
seized with Villafañe. Oviedo, iii. 515, mentions Escudero
as executed for plotting; but this is doubtful. As for
Verdugo, he became regidor of Mexico, and in 1529 alcalde.
He afterward joined Guzman’s expedition and settled at
Tonalá in Jalisco. _Razon_, in _Cortés_, _Residencia_, i.
363.
[1112] This was Cortés’ own idea, says Bernal Diaz, and
he appealed to us to guard him. _Hist. Verdad._, 137.
Quiñones was succeeded by Francisco de Tenesas [Terrazas].
_Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, 313.
CHAPTER XXXII.
INVESTMENT OF MEXICO.
MAY-JUNE, 1521.
PHASES OF HEROISM—THE BRIGANTINES UPON THE LAKE—DIVISION
OF FORCES BETWEEN ALVARADO, SANDOVAL, AND OLID—DESERTION,
CAPTURE, AND EXECUTION OF XICOTENCATL—DEPARTURE OF THE
TROOPS FROM TEZCUCO—NAVAL BATTLE—POSSESSION TAKEN OF THE
CAUSEWAYS—AT ONE POINT CORTÉS UNEXPECTEDLY GAINS ENTRANCE TO
THE CITY—BUT IS DRIVEN OUT.
The ideal heroic character is to be viewed from two standpoints: the
effect of heroism on the hero, and on the world. A very bad person
may do mankind a great service. An evil-minded man, while sinking his
soul yet deeper in corruption, may bring benefactions upon society.
But even a fairly good man cannot increase his innate nobleness of
character while doing injury to his fellows.
I do not know that the claim of good man was ever advanced for Hernan
Cortés, except, indeed, by that strange fanaticism which, dazzled
by one object, fails to see other objects, or the terrible means for
their attainment. He and his followers formed a sad mixture of good
and evil, in which the latter predominated, if judged by the moral
standard which they had formed for themselves as soldiers of the cross.
The grossest injustice, the most horrible wickedness constituted
part of their moral ideal, so that while fighting for the highest
morality they were the most immoral of men. Long after the conquest
was consummated, under the ministrations of men of piety and ability,
it would seem that the weapons used by these conquerors, who at times
justified murder as the highest morality, were still instinct with
blood, even as the cornel-wood spear with which the king of Thrace
transfixed the unhappy Polydorus springs into life instinct with the
blood of Priam’s slaughtered son.
Cortés was not an idealist after the manner of Columbus. Both were full
of egoism; the spiritual-mindedness of both was essentially selfish.
They would both dictate terms to God and their king, that for so much
service they must have so much reward. Both were full of the follies
of their day; but Columbus displayed a grave, unconscious folly, while
Cortés consciously indulged in all the follies of lust and cruelty
that prudence admitted or his aim demanded. Cortés abandoned himself
to ambition; Columbus to brooding thought. The insanity of reckless
adventure was not the insanity of Columbus, who nevertheless was as
mad as any lunatic in his own way. Commanding energy and practical
daring were as conspicuous in Cortés as in Columbus; but it happened
that the aims of Columbus were of greater import to the race than
those of Cortés.
How alike, and yet how different, these men! Cortés was impetuous and
extravagant; Columbus calm, calculating, and prudent. One was full
of joyous activity, the simple exercise of which was his greatest
pleasure; obligations of every sort sat lightly on him; the other was
but an instrument in the hands of providence. Both were ambitious,
both excessively religious; but Cortés, in the main, made religion
subservient to advancement, as before noted, while mundane glories
to Columbus were hollow indeed beside his heavenly aspirations. Both
were exceedingly great men; both became eminent by a selfish adventure
of self; but Columbus saw the New World through the glorious haze
of immortality, while Cortés viewed Mexico under the lightly woven
covering of personal ambition.
Cortés was an Antony rather than a Cæsar, nor did he lack that one
great gift of Antony’s, subordination, as we have seen. He was not so
greatly in love with himself, stood not so greatly in awe of himself,
as Cæsar; he was possessed of finer perceptions and feelings, and
with consummate versatility could drop himself out of his plans as
occasion required. Nor was Cortés without imagination and the æsthetic
sense, though of a grosser and sensual kind; but it is not in great
men that we are to look for the swelling harmonies of nature.
* * * * *
A turning-point was now reached in the campaign. The brigantines were
completed, and the siege could begin. The day for the entry of the
vessels into the lake was a gala day, inaugurated with the communion
and festive with the concourse of gayly attired spectators.[1113]
After prayer and a discourse the flags with name and royal arms were
hoisted on each vessel,[1114] amid salvos and cheers, and the dams
being broken, the gallant fleet floated down the canal to the placid
lake.
While the mute bunting was thus proclaiming Spanish supremacy over
these inland waters, a Te Deum, in which joined a thousand voices,
echoed aloud the gratitude of every heart. Each vessel was placed in
charge of a captain[1115] with twenty-four Spaniards, of whom about
six were cross-bowmen and arquebusiers, some artillerists to manage
the bronze gun, and twelve rowers, six to each side. The boats were
evidently half-decked.[1116]
Active preparations were now made to begin the siege. Tlascaltecs,
Huexotzincas, Cholultecs, Chalcans, and other allies were summoned to
send in contingents by Whitsunday, the latter to assemble at Chalco,
and the Tlascaltecs at Tezcuco. Though but ten days’ notice was given,
the last named presented themselves in the camp before the appointed
time to the number of over fifty thousand, which was increased by
later reënforcement.[1117]
As they approached Tezcuco under the guidance of Ojeda, and commanded
notably by Chichimecatl and Xicotencatl junior, they spread out in
one long serpentine file, bristling with iztli points and brilliant
with shields and armor covered with variegated devices and flowing
plumage, while at intervals waved high the banners of the different
corps. Cortés went forth to meet them with grand demonstrations, and
as they marched past loud vivas[1118] rent the air.
On the 28th of April Cortés had mustered his forces and found that,
with the several reënforcements lately arrived, there were present
over nine hundred Spaniards, of whom eighty-six were horsemen and one
hundred and eighteen cross-bowmen and arquebusiers;[1119] the rest
being armed with swords and shields and the more formidable pikes.
They were well protected with cotton armor, many having cuirasses and
corselets, and small weapons were not wanting. The artillery consisted
of three heavy iron guns, fifteen smaller pieces of bronze, mostly
distributed among the vessels, with ten quintals of powder and a
quantity of shot, while some fifty thousand arrows had been furnished
by the Tezcucan towns, all fitted according to pattern with copper
tips.[1120]
Not only had the Spaniards, particularly the new recruits, been well
exercised in cavalry movements, target practice, fencing, and pike
drill, but the allies had been trained to a certain extent in European
tactics. For efficiency and good conduct this army rose far above
any yet mustered in the Indies. In the usual speech before the ranks,
Cortés pointed out how God had favored them with constant victories
and with reënforcements which had nearly doubled their number and
resources. They might indeed be hopeful, for holy was their cause.
Full of confidence they could march against the only stronghold yet
opposed to them, avenge their slaughtered comrades, and win riches
and glory for themselves.
On Whitmonday, the 20th of May, an apportionment of the troops was
made to Alvarado, Olid, and Sandoval, who led the cavalry in person,
but directed the movements of the infantry through captains, and of
the allies through native chiefs. Each received from twenty-four to
thirty horsemen, and one hundred and fifty infantry, divided into two
or three battalions, with a proportionate number of arquebusiers,
cross-bowmen, guns, and ammunition, besides from twenty to forty
thousand allies. To Sandoval was given the smallest number of horse and
the largest number of allies, those gathered at Chalco having orders
to await him, while Alvarado received a full half of the Tlascaltec
force, with whom the Tonatiuh was a great favorite. To this leader
Tlacopan was assigned for head-quarters; to Olid, Coyuhuacan; and
Sandoval received orders to complete the destruction of Iztapalapan,
and then to advance through Coyuhuacan and along one of the southern
causeways, and there to select his head-quarters, under the protection
of the brigantines. These appointments and orders underwent several
changes during the siege. For himself Cortés selected the management
of the fleet, whereon so much depended during the opening of the
siege, and in addition to its ships’ companies of three hundred
men he was supported by several thousand allies, chiefly Tezcucans
under Ixtlilxochitl, who attended in a large number of canoes. This
selection hardly pleased the army, which considered their operations
the most important and dangerous, and therefore in need of Cortés’
supervision. But he evidently never intended to remain with the fleet
except at the beginning.[1121]
The following day the allied forces apportioned to Alvarado and
Olid were ordered to march in advance, for greater convenience,
to the border of Tezcuco province and there await the Spaniards.
Not many hours after their departure a messenger appeared with the
announcement that Xicotencatl, the companion general of Chichimecatl,
had disappeared. Inquiries revealed that shortly before his cousin
Piltecuhtli had been severely and wantonly struck by a soldier during
a quarrel over some carriers. In order to save the soldier from the
wrath of Cortés, Ojeda, the Spanish inspecting officer over the allied
forces, smoothed the matter and sent the injured nobleman home. It
was claimed by some that this outrage had so wounded Xicotencatl
that he followed his cousin. Others assumed that both chiefs were
in love with the same woman, and that Xicotencatl could not bear to
leave his rival alone in the field. But the true reason lay no doubt
in his dislike to fight for the Spaniards, whom he had never ceased
to oppose, openly and in secret, as invaders bent on the enslavement
of the whole country. This idea, if faint at first, had become more
fixed with every fresh blow against his personal ambition, such as
the first series of defeats which plucked from him his just renown;
the equal or perhaps superior position assigned in the native army to
Chichimecatl, of whom he appears to have been deeply jealous;[1122]
and the prospect of a wearisome and unprofitable campaign, wherein
he must be content to figure as a subordinate, not only of Alvarado,
but subject perhaps to the orders of petty Spanish officers. All this
became too galling to his proud spirit, and with a few followers he
turned toward his mountain home.
It would never do to countenance desertion, and by so prominent a man,
at the very opening of a campaign; and Cortés immediately sent a number
of troopers in pursuit, with instructions to represent to the chief
the gravity of his offence, which cast a heavy stain on Tlascaltec
honor, and to persuade him to return. They speedily overtook him,
only to meet with insolence. He would not go back; if his people had
listened to him they would not now be tools and servants of a horde
of foreigners. With this reply the troops were forced to return.
“This cacique is incorrigible,” exclaimed Cortés, “and will ever be a
traitor and counsellor to evil. I have had enough of him!” The troopers
were at once sent back, accompanied by an alguacil and some trusty
Tlascaltec nobles, with orders to arrest the fugitive and bring him
to Tezcuco. In a letter to the republican lords, Cortés at the same
time complained of the desertion and its grave influence, and declared
that according to Spanish law the penalty was death. They replied
that the same punishment obtained in Tlascala; and not only do they
appear to have actively aided in surrendering the culprit, but they
declared all his property, including wives and slaves, confiscated to
the crown, against which he had sinned.[1123] Indeed, the arrogance
of the young chief does not seem to have endeared him to the other
rulers. Instantly on his arrival he was sentenced and hanged on a
very high gallows, while the crier and interpreter announced his crime.
The execution of so prominent a chief, heir to one of the rulers
among his best allies, was an act which few besides Cortés would
have ventured on; but he saw the necessity for a firm observance of
discipline, and was not deceived in the salutary effect which it had
on the allies.[1124] There were not many Tlascaltecs left in Tezcuco,
or a serious demonstration might have occurred; as it was, the mantle
and maxtli of the deceased were secured, and an eager contest ensued
for them as relics. Axayacatzin Xicotencatl had achieved fame before
the advent of the Spaniards.[1125]
Alvarado and Olid had set out from Tezcuco for Tlacopan with their
Spanish forces on the 22d of May,[1126] taking the same route by which
Cortés had returned from the Xochimilco campaign, and though longer
than that north of Tezcuco Lake, yet it was easier and safer. On
approaching Acolman, Olid sent a party in advance to secure quarters,
and when Alvarado arrived he found every house bearing the green
bough on the roof, which indicated occupancy. This raised a tumult
between the parties, and even the captains would have come to blows
but for the interference of friends. Informed of the trouble, Cortés
took steps to reconcile them, although the two leaders never renewed
their former intimacy.
On the evening of the fourth day they reached Tlacopan, which was
deserted, as were all the towns along the route.[1127] Late as was the
hour, forages and reconnoissances were made, involving a skirmish with
the Mexicans. The following day, Sunday, Olid proceeded to Chapultepec
to cut the aqueduct which supplied the city, a task which involved
another encounter wherein a score of Mexicans fell. Meanwhile the
canals were filled and other obstacles removed which might impede a
free advance, and foraging tours were made. The Mexicans continued to
harass the operations with repeated sallies, and finally Alvarado,
with characteristic rashness, pursued them until his troops were
well advanced between the houses and bridges. The Mexicans, who had
retreated on purpose, now rolled back upon his front and flanks.
The roofs, hitherto deserted, teemed with slingers and archers, who
showered their missiles with terrible effect, while from the lanes and
openings between the houses sprang numbers who assailed the cramped
soldiers with their long lances, swords, and clubs, and leaped back
into their holes and canoes and behind breastworks whenever they
were pressed. The allies were ordered back, and the Spaniards slowly
retreated, with a loss of eight killed and fifty wounded, glad to be
relieved from their strait.
Olid was highly incensed with Alvarado for his rashness, and regardless
of all remonstrance he seized the pretext to hasten the departure
to his own camp at Coyuhuacan. He established his head-quarters on
Corpus Christi day, the 30th of May, and from this date, accordingly,
Clavigero and many others date the beginning of the siege. The causeway
leading thence to Mexico was broken, and he sought for several days
to cover the breaches and gain a footing upon it, but without success.
The Mexican warriors displayed great spirit, and their leaders are to
be blamed for not energetically assuming the offensive and attacking
the two camps.
* * * * *
The Mexicans had not quite understood the drift of Cortés’ delay
and preliminary manœuvres. When they found two camps established,
the aqueduct destroyed, and earnest preparations in progress for
investment, their eyes were opened; but they were then too bewildered
to act with promptness and precision. The chronicles relate that
Quauhtemotzin held a grand council to consider the situation, and
to sound the spirit of the people for peace or war, so that there
might be no faltering when necessity came. A number indeed of the
elder and wiser lords, particularly of the Montezuma faction, spoke
of the formidable enginery and strength of the Spaniards, and their
host of allies, and expressed fears of failure. With the occupation
of all the surrounding territory, and the influx of people from
abroad, the food supply might fall short, and famine and sickness
ensue. But the young men and the warriors, as might be expected,
would listen to no counsellor whose words implied cowardice; they
were enthusiastic for resistance, and formed too numerous a party to
allow the entertaining of peace proposals. Quauhtemotzin cautiously
refrained from committing himself,[1128] but reminded the assembly
that the oracles of their gods and heroic ancestors had above all to
be listened to in so important a matter as the preservation of the
homes and sacred temples intrusted to their care. He knew well what
answer would come from the priests, whose possessions, wealth, and
honors depended on the exclusion of invaders, aiming above all at the
overthrow of their religion. “My people shall not fear the enemy,”
spake the war-god Huitzilopochtli, “for the allied hosts will not
persevere long in the siege, and I will scatter the Castilians now
as hitherto.” This utterance suited many views, and the declaration
for war was solemnized by sacrifices of human beings, including the
four Spaniards lately captured.[1129]
Renewed efforts were made to fortify and supply the city, and canoes
were collected to aid in the defence. With insolent assurance,
derived from the oracles, corps of warriors would advance close to
the Spanish camps and vent their feelings with insults and menaces,
“Men of evil, you shall pay for your madness! Behold, the gods have
already feasted on your bodies!” they cried, flinging in among the
horrified soldiers pieces of their sacrificed comrades. “Our snakes
shall drink your blood, and our tigers devour your flesh, though they
are already satiated therewith. And you, infamous Tlascaltecs, slaves
and traitors! you shall atone for your misdeeds; you shall die a bad
death, and furnish flesh for our banquets! Behold!” And therewith
they threw in disjointed pieces of dusky human bodies. “We shall
not rest till your land is desolated, and not a man or woman left to
perpetuate your vile race.” Unabashed by this tirade the Tlascaltecs
told them not to threaten like women, but to act like men. Still it
were better for them to yield unless they wished to be destroyed.
* * * * *
Cortés had been delayed till the fleet should be fully prepared. On
the 31st of May, following Corpus Christi day, he was able to despatch
Sandoval, who, reënforced by some forty thousand allies awaiting
him on the Chalco border, marched against Iztapalapan. Although
severely crippled by Cortés’ expedition, this town still figured as
a stronghold of too great importance to be left in the rear. Advised
of the movement, the Mexicans hurried by road and water to aid in
covering the retreat of the inhabitants. Suddenly smoke columns
were observed in different parts of the lake, and cries of alarm
ran through the town. Yet more and more hurriedly the people fled,
and while one body of warriors retired along the causeway to Mexico,
others departed in canoes. The Spanish forces pressed onward in close
pursuit, and slaughter, pillage, and torch accompanied them. The
chief cause of the panic was the appearance of the brigantines, which
had set sail shortly after Sandoval’s departure, attended by a large
number of Tezcucan canoes[1130] whose object was to coöperate against
Iztapalapan. On approaching it the vessels passed close to a steep
rocky isle, the Tepepulco, since known as El Peñol del Marqués,[1131]
occupied by a large number of fugitives who shouted defiance, and
showered stones and arrows. Finding that Sandoval required no aid,
Cortés resolved to inflict a lesson on the insolent islanders. The
Mexicans appeared confident in the impregnable strength of the rock,
and gave so warm a reception to the hundred and fifty men with whom
Cortés began to climb it, that fully a score were wounded at the
onset. The brigantines turned their guns upon them, however, and under
this cover the soldiers speedily gained the summit, there to wreak
bloody vengeance. Not a man was spared, only the women and children.
“It was a beautiful victory!” exclaims Cortés.
While they were pillaging, a large fleet of canoes, five hundred at
the lowest estimate,[1132] was seen to approach from the direction of
Mexico, bristling with iztli points, which found a gleaming reflection
in the smooth waters of the lake. Cortés ordered an immediate return
to the brigantines, and rowed them forward into an extended line. He
had longed for an opportunity like this, to meet a formidable fleet
upon which the brigantines might inflict a lesson severe enough to
open the eyes of the enemy to their invincible power; for “in them
lay the key of war,” as he expressed it. Unfortunately the wind was
so light as barely to flap the sails. The hostile fleet had already
drawn up in good order just beyond range, evidently puzzled at the
passive attitude of the monster vessels, yet shouting defiance.[1133]
Cortés stood chafing with impatience, for without wind his greatest
advantage would be lost, and his position even become precarious. Just
then the waters rippled and a breeze came from abaft which speedily
freshened. “Ah, God favors us!” he cried, and with a grateful gaze
toward heaven he gave orders to advance under full sail. As they
came close to the enemy a blinding volley was sent pouring in upon
them from the whole line, from guns, arquebuses, and cross-bows, and
while the natives were trying to recover from their confusion, from
out the smoke burst the ponderous bows, crashing into the lines of
canoes, overturning, breaking, and sinking. In the vessels’ wake were
wrecks and struggling bodies, while the few canoes which had escaped
by passing between the ships struggled to escape the Tezcucan boats
in the rear. At the first encounter the canoes in the farther lines
turned in hot haste for home, as did a vast number of others which had
ventured forth, partly with reënforcements, partly with spectators.
But the clumsy-looking vessels sped faster, pursuing their career
of destruction for three leagues, into the very canals of the city,
whence they turned back to pick up captives. The victory exceeded the
wildest hopes of the Spaniards, as Cortés admits, for not only did
the Aztecs lose a great number of their foremost warriors and their
best canoes, but they surrendered forever to the formidable craft
sovereignty over the lake waters, and with it the hope of assistance
from trans-lacustrine allies.
Encouraged by this success, Olid advised Alvarado, and both hastened
to take advantage of the panic to advance along the causeways and
effect considerable execution, impelled as they were with emulation
and fresh courage.[1134] Olid had advanced close to Fort Xoloc, which
with its stout battlemented walls and towers guarded the junction of
the southern causeways, when the brigantines approached it from the
eastern side. It was already after vespers; nevertheless Cortés landed
to coöperate with his lieutenant and pursue the advantage gained. A
breach was made in the wall with one of the heavy guns, and under
cover of the fleet’s artillery the place was soon carried. Cortés
had intended to make Coyuhuacan his head-quarters, but such were the
obvious advantages of Xoloc, in strength and in position, for it lay
but half a league from Mexico and was connected in the rear with the
mainland by three causeways, that he at once decided to establish
his camp there, making it also his naval station.
Enraged rather than discouraged by the several defeats, Quauhtemotzin
ordered a night attack on Xoloc, contrary to native custom. They
approached both by sea and land, but owing to their noise they were
observed, and driven back by the artillery. The fort was not very
strong on the northern side, and the force within was small; but in
the morning half of Olid’s troops came to reënforce him, together
with fifty of Sandoval’s infantry. The addition was opportune, for
the Mexicans were advancing in swarms along the causeway as well as
by water, this time on the inner side of the road where the vessels
could not reach them. The heavy guns soon cleared a space on the
roadway, but as the soldiers pursued they suffered severely from the
canoes, which not only showered missiles but afforded retreat for
the sallying parties. Orders were accordingly given to cut a passage
through the embankment, so that the four brigantines might enter to
clear the inner basin. By this means the Spaniards were able to advance
to the very entrance of the city and inflict some damage, while the
remaining vessels explored the waters beyond, and drove back canoes
and fired buildings in the suburbs.
Sandoval at the same time advanced along the causeway from Iztapalapan
to Coyuhuacan. It was a league and a half in length, and a quarter
of a league from shore it passed through an island town, which was
captured and burned. Advised of this, Quauhtemotzin directed a fleet
to cut the causeway and entrap the Spaniards; but before long two of
the vessels were able to relieve Sandoval, who thereupon left a portion
of his troops, including the allies, at Coyuhuacan, and joined his
chief with the remainder. Nearly a week was occupied in strengthening
Fort Xoloc, arranging the camp, and bringing in supplies, during
which time desultory skirmishings were maintained, wherein Sandoval
among others received wounds. The brigantines roamed incessantly and
inflicted great damage, entering on one occasion for a long distance
a canal which led into the suburbs.[1135] Canoes no longer ventured
abroad when a sail was in sight, and the Mexicans began to protect
the water approaches and channels with stakes.
* * * * *
In order to complete the investment of the city it was only necessary
to occupy the northern causeway to Tepeyacac, along which the
besieged maintained a steady intercourse with the mainland. Advised
of this neglect by Alvarado, the general ordered Sandoval to form
a camp at that town[1136] with one hundred and forty Spaniards, of
whom twenty-three were horsemen, and a full proportion of allies.
Alvarado had half as many more infantry and a few more cavalry, while
two hundred infantry were quartered at Xoloc, supported besides by
a cavalry force in the rear, and by Olid’s party, with whom remained
the largest proportion of allies, now over eighty thousand, according
to Cortés’ own statement. The fort could not hold them, and they
accordingly encamped at Coyuhuacan, which lay more convenient for
supplies, and must be occupied to watch the hostile shore and lake
towns clustered in this quarter. The brigantines carried at least
two hundred and fifty men.[1137]
Everything being prepared, Cortés ordered a simultaneous attack from
all the camps, so as to divide the attention of the Mexicans and gain
all possible advantage. He himself advanced along the Iztapalapan
causeway with the greater part of his infantry, attended by several
cavaliers on foot, and by over eighty thousand allies, while a vessel
skirted the road on either side. There was more than one breach in
the road, behind which were posted large forces of warriors protected
by intrenchments of earth and masonry.
Without the vessels it would have cost much time and many lives to
cross; but the well-directed fire from the guns and arquebuses on the
flanks and rear of the enemy soon wrought disorder, which enabled
the sallying parties to obtain a foothold. Meanwhile a number of
infantry had swum across the channel and aided to drive the Mexicans
beyond the next breach. The same manœuvre was repeated at this and
the other chasms, till the army found itself at the very entrance of
the city, protected by a wider channel than the preceding, with more
extensive fortifications, commanded by a temple tower. This with its
swarms of slingers and archers made the capture difficult, and the
Mexicans also showed more determination; but the guns and fusillade
could not be resisted, and soon the Spaniards stood within the city
for the first time since the memorable Noche Triste. Revenge seemed
already secured, and the lost treasures almost within the invaders’
grasp. Cortés, however, did not permit himself to be carried away
by a momentary success. He saw the main street beyond thronged with
warriors fiercely bent on resistance, streets as far as the distant
temple of the war-god bordered with buildings, each a fortress in
itself, while many a barricaded channel blocked the way.
A large force of allies had been left to fill the chasm and level
the ground as the army advanced, using for this purpose the captured
intrenchments and buildings, or even material from the causeway
itself. This work was under the direction of Diego Hernandez, a
man of herculean strength, who could throw a stone with a force and
precision, it was said, approximating those of cannon.[1138] This
filling of the chasms enabled the horses to be brought forward, and
they now led the charge against the dense masses of natives, after
the arquebuses had effected the preliminary clearing. Cortés had not
underestimated the annoyance to be encountered from the archers and
slingers covering the roofs on either side; but the operations of the
cavalry left the many arquebusiers and cross-bowmen at liberty to cover
the points of approach through which the allies in particular poured
in countless numbers with sidearms and fire-brands. The progress so
far had surpassed all anticipation; but now the Spaniards came to
a canal from which the retreating Mexicans removed the few planks
remaining of the bridge, leaving a solitary beam. Here the warriors
were massed in greater confidence, free as they were from the attack
of vessels and sheltered by strong intrenchments, while the adjoining
roofs, equally protected by the canals, teemed with missile-throwers.
The soldiers tried again and again to cross the chasm, only to be
driven back with injury. The volleys from cross-bows and fire-arms
could effect but little damage against the well sheltered warriors,
while their arrows and stones came in rattling showers. Finally two
cannon were brought forward. This changed the issue, for a breach
was speedily made in the intrenchments, and now the small-arms were
able to coöperate with great execution.
After a delay of two hours the soldiers were across; and while the
allies filled the canal they again pursued their advance along the
avenue, though suffering considerably from the roof missiles. They
now came to the last channel in the street, close to the main plaza,
wherein stood the famous temple of Huitzilopochtli.
The advance of the Spaniards had been so unexpected and rapid that
the Mexicans had not thought of fortifying this canal, and little
difficulty was met in crossing. But beyond, the plaza was filled
with files of defenders, determined to save their deities and that
sacred ground. Greatly frightened, the priests cried out to them:
“Behold! it was here upon this spot you fought these beings infernal
before, and drove them forth in shameful flight; the gods will help
you again!” Even the Spanish soldiers were impressed by the words
and gestures of the frantic devotees, and noted their effect in the
gleaming eyes and pressed lips of the warriors, and they paused. But
presently a gun was brought forward and directed against the packed
throng. This effected a backward movement. “There is no time for rest
or fear!” shouted Cortés, as with shield in hand he rushed forward.
With a thundering Santiago the soldiers followed. The charge was
irresistible, and already startled by the mowing cannon-balls the
Mexicans took refuge within the temple enclosure and in the by-streets.
The Spaniards followed the crowd within the sacred grounds, slashing
and thrusting. It seemed a repetition of Alvarado’s massacre, and
the war-god, thirsting for blood, might now have his fill. In a
few moments not a warrior was left round the temple, only prostrate
bodies. Then the soldiers prepared to ascend the pyramid to hurl down
the idol and its defenders. But the deity was aroused. The sombre
notes of the sacred drum struck their fearful appeal on every heart,
“Rouse ye to your imperilled hearths and temples!” It was but now the
Mexicans observed that the death-dealing horsemen were not present,
for the last channel had not yet been filled to afford a crossing.
This lent them courage, and on the foe they quickly rushed from lanes
and houses, while down from the temple-top came a doubly inspired
avalanche. The shock was overwhelming. The Spaniards were forced to
retire, partly in disorder. Cortés made frantic efforts to stay the
flight, and at the gate a momentary rally was made by a few; but
what availed that handful against the torrent sweeping onward, headed
by the renowned band of Quauhtin? Perforce they must yield and join
the troops which were in such hasty flight from the plaza that they
even abandoned the cannon. Cortés was on foot in the crowd, and his
voice was drowned in the tumult. He could but follow with the wild
current, which threatened to lead into another disaster. Just then
cries of alarm burst from the crowds on the roofs, and there was a
lull in the shower of stones and darts, and the pressure of pursuers
relaxed. The next moment the ears of the wandering Spaniards caught
the clatter of hoofs.
The cavalry had come up; a revulsion set in. They were but a few,[1139]
but enough to bring back to the minds of the Mexicans their original
and ever present fear of the monsters, for they knew not how many
might be coming down upon them.
The infantry followed the horsemen with inspiring cheers, and bore
unresisted onward, for the late bravery of the foe was now turned to
cowardice. Before long the Spaniards had penetrated through the plaza
and occupied once more the temple court. Once more their looks were
upward toward the summit of the lofty pyramid consecrated during their
former occupation to the holy virgin; and while the main portion of the
troops fought the now rallying Mexicans, a sturdy handful undertook
the capture of the sanctuary. A dozen chiefs held possession, but
naught could stay the fury of the soldiers, and in a few moments the
last defender had yielded his spirit in defense of his faith.
The Spaniards looked in vain for any trace of their own altar and
symbols, round which they had so oft congregated in prayer. In their
stead rose a new idol glittering with ornaments and hideous with
devices, while fresh stains of blood spread horror over all. The
gleam of gold proved all absorbing, however, and hastily the jewels
and the golden mask were torn away, and then the head of the idol
was struck off and sent clattering below.[1140]
There was time for nothing more, for on finding so few horsemen
present, the Quauhtin knights had again made an effective rally,
pressing the troops closely. Fortunately a larger force of cavalry
came up again to turn the tide of battle and inflict a severe lesson.
As it was late by this time, there remained no choice but that
of returning to camp. This movement gave fresh confidence to the
Mexicans, who followed in swarms, harassing from roofs and lanes,
on front and flanks, rushing forward with renewed fury after every
charge by the cavalry which covered the rear. But for the horses
the soldiers would have suffered severely; as it was, the retreat
proceeded in good order, and as many houses as possible were fired
with a view to make the next entry safer. On approaching the causeway
the canoe crews, composed of selected warriors, fell on the flanks
and created no little confusion before they were driven back. After
this no difficulty was experienced in reaching camp, thanks to the
foresight of Cortés, who had ordered the channels filled.[1141] The
other captains, Alvarado and Sandoval, had performed their share in
the day’s work, and although they do not appear to have reached even
the suburb, detained by the many breaches and other obstacles on
the causeways, yet the diversion created by their attacks proved of
great service to Cortés. One reason for their slower advance was the
want of coöperation from the vessels, which had been of such great
assistance on the Iztapalapan road. This was at once remedied by the
detachment of three brigantines each for the Tlacopan and Tepeyacac
camps.[1142]
FOOTNOTES
[1113] Several leading authors assume this to have occurred
on the 28th of April, when Cortés mustered his forces. He
says nothing about the formal launch on that occasion, and
it is hardly likely that two such performances could have
been effected in one day.
[1114] ‘Las vanderas Reales, y otras vanderas del nombre
que se dezia ser el vergantin.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 138. Ixtlilxochitl assumes that the flag-ship
was named _Medellin_, _Hist. Chich._, 313-14, but this
appears to be based on a misinterpretation of Herrera, who
places Villafuerte ‘of Medellin’ at the head of the list
of captains. Vetancurt believes that the vessels were named
after the apostles, to whom Cortés was so devoted. _Teatro
Mex._, pt. iii. 156. If so, the flag-ship may have been
called _San Pedro_, after his patron. When all were floated
a storm came which threatened to break them one against
the other. _Torquemada_, i. 532.
[1115] Their names appear to have been Juan Rodriguez de
Villafuerte of Medellin, Juan Jaramillo of Salvatierra,
Francisco Rodriguez Magariño of Merida, Cristóbal Flores
of Valencia, Juan García Holguin of Cáceres, Caravajal of
Zamora, Pedro Barba of Seville, Gerónimo Ruiz de la Mota
of Búrgos, Pedro de Briones of Salamanca, Rodrigo Morejon
de Lovera of Medina del Campo, Antonio de Sotelo of Zamora,
Juan de Portillo of Portillo, and Miguel Diaz de Auz. Martin
Lopez, the ship-builder, also joined, in the character of
chief pilot. Herrera, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xii. xxi., has
Francisco de Verdugo, of Arévalo, instead of Diaz de Auz,
but Bernal Diaz names him as one of the company captains
under Olid, and he ought to know better in this respect.
He also names a second Caravajal, Zamora, a ship-master,
afterward settled in Oajaca, Colmenero, Gines Nortes, and
Lerma. _Hist. Verdad._, 138.
[1116] The smallest was soon set aside as useless. There was
some trouble in obtaining rowers, owing in a great measure
to the employment in Spain of criminals in that capacity.
Hidalgos shrank from anything that could be regarded as
common labor, and even ordinary sailors refused to handle
a branded implement. In this dilemma a list was made of
all natives of seaports, and of those known to be able
fishermen, and finally the selected number were ordered to
take the oar, regardless of caste.
[1117] So says Cortés, _Cartas_, 208. Bernal Diaz as usual
implies a smaller number by stating that Cortés sent to ask
for only 20,000 men from the republics. _Hist. Verdad._,
137-8. The Cholultecs, he says, who had maintained a neutral
attitude since the massacre there, sent a small force under
their own captain. Gomara allows 60,000 allies to come;
Vetancurt 90,000, of whom 60,000 are Tlascaltecs; Clavigero
limits the arrival to 50,000 Tlascaltecs, the whole number
of allies swelling gradually to over 200,000, while Herrera
makes that number arrive within two days; Ixtlilxochitl
names thirteen chiefs, who commanded the 50,000 Tlascaltecs
(a misprint gives 5000), and some of those leading the
10,000 Huexotzincas; he also allows 10,000 Cholultecs;
of his own Tezcucans he claims over 200,000 to have come,
50,000 each being furnished by the provinces of Tezcuco,
Otumba, Tziuhcohua, and Chalco, with Tepeaca, Quauhnahuac,
etc.; 8000 chiefs or nobles joined besides from Tezcuco,
and 50,000 laborers in addition, it seems. _Hist. Chich._,
313; _Hor. Crueldades_, 20.
[1118] ‘Viua el Emperador nuestro señor, y Castilla,
Castilla, Tlascala, Tlascala!’ _Bernal Diaz_, loc. cit. It
took three days for the auxiliaries to enter, says Ojeda,
and great as was Tezcuco, there was not room for them.
_Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xii. Bernal Diaz reduces
the days to hours.
[1119] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 206. Gomara agrees, _Hist. Mex._,
191, but Bernal Diaz gives the number as 84 horsemen, 650
soldiers with swords, shields, and lances, and 194 archers
and arquebusiers. loc. cit.
[1120] Some half a dozen towns furnished 8000 each within
eight days. The feathers were fastened by the archers with
glue from the _cactle_ root. They kept two strings and as
many catches, and maintained their skill by target practice.
_Id._
[1121] The distribution of forces as given by Cortés stands
thus: To Alvarado, 30 horse, 18 arquebusiers and archers,
150 sword and shield men, and over 25,000 Tlascaltecs; to
Olid, 33 horse, 18 archers and arquebusiers, 160 sword
and shield men, and over 20,000 allies; to Sandoval, 24
horse, 4 arquebusiers, 13 archers, 150 sword and shield
men, and over 30,000 allies from Huexotzinco, Cholula, and
Chalco. _Cartas_, 207. Others differ more or less, some
giving details that hardly accord with the totals. Bernal
Diaz names as Alvarado’s three captains his brother Jorge
de Alvarado, Gutierre de Badajoz, and Andrés de Monjaraz,
the latter an agreeable, bright-faced fellow of about 32
years, always suffering from a Lotharian disease which
prevented him from doing anything. The three captains under
Olid were Andrés de Tápia, a growing favorite of Cortés’,
Francisco Verdugo, the unconscious fellow-conspirator
of Villafañe, and Francisco de Lugo, the natural son of
a prominent estate-holder at Medina del Campo. Sandoval
had but two captains, the insinuating Pedro de Ircio, and
Luis Marin of San Lúcar, a muscular and dashing fellow, of
Monjaraz’ age, with an open blonde face, somewhat pitted,
and possessed of a voluble tongue. _Hist. Verdad._, 139,
240, 246. Ixtlilxochitl gives a longer list, which is
clearly wrong in many respects, and he adds some names of
native leaders. Alvarado kept the Tlascaltecs of Tizatlan
and Tepeticpac; Olid those of Ocotelulco and Quiahuiztlan.
_Hist. Chich._, 313-14. He further states that his namesake
joined Cortés’ fleet with 16,000 canoes, containing 50,000
Tezcucans, of whom 8000 were nobles. _Hor. Crueldades_, 21.
Brasseur de Bourbourg follows this author in many respects,
improving somewhat on the names. Herrera names five of the
sub-captains, among them Hernando de Lerma of Galicia. dec.
iii. lib. i. cap. xii.
[1122] ‘Iva a tomar por fuerça el Cacicazgo, e vassallos,
y tierra del mismo Chichimecatecle,’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 139, which must be an idle rumor.
[1123] Some time later when Ojeda went to Tlascala for
supplies he brought back the confiscated property, including
a quantity of treasure, and 30 women, the daughters,
servants, etc., of Xicotencatl. _Torquemada_, i. 558. The
Tlascaltec laws were severe, ‘E l’odio particolare, che
portavano a quel Principe, il cui orgoglio non potevano
più soffrire.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 195. Some
Tlascaltecs say his father had warned Cortés against his
son, and urged his death. _Bernal Diaz_, loc. cit. Herrera
observes that he could hardly have been seized without
Tlascaltec aid. dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xvii.
[1124] _Ojeda_, in _Herrera_, loc. cit. Solis, _Hist. Mex._,
ii. 379, thinks that it would have been hazardous to hang
him at Tezcuco, where many Tlascaltecs were gathered; but
he forgets that nearly all this people had already set
out for Mexico. His supposition is based on Bernal Diaz,
who intimates that he was not hanged in Tezcuco. Alvarado
had pleaded for his life, and Cortés, while pretending
compliance, secretly ordered the alguacil to despatch him.
_Hist. Verdad._, 139.
[1125] Cortés divided the lordship of the chieftain afterward
between his two sons, and the name of Xicotencatl has been
perpetuated by more than one line, as Camargo shows in
his _Hist. Tlax._ Two officers of that name figured during
the American invasion of 1847 in defence of their country.
_Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, iv. 447.
[1126] Most writers say the 10th, misled by an error in
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 208; and this error causes Prescott,
among others, to fall into more than one mistake, which
he upholds with vain arguments. On earlier pages in the
_Cartas_ are given dates in connection with religious
festivals which show that Whitsunday fell on the 19th of
May, and the departure took place three days later. Bernal
Diaz gives the 13th, and says that the Xicotencatl affair
had detained them a day. He afterward varies the date.
[1127] They passed round Zumpango Lake, through Quauhtitlan
and Tenayocan. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 210; _Bernal Diaz_,
_Hist. Verdad._, 139.
[1128] ‘Jamàs quisieron Paz [the Aztecs]; y aunque à
la postre la recibieron, el Rei no la aceptò, porque al
principio, contra su Consejo, la rehusaron.’ _Torquemada_,
i. 572. Gomara says the same, but Duran, the historian
of his dynasty, declares that he loved too much to rule
and to display his personal valor ever to listen to peace
proposals. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 490. On the following
pages he gives a speech by this ruler, painting the shame
and evil of surrender. Before this, according to the native
records of Sahagun, Cortés had invited Quauhtemotzin, under
promise of security, to a conference, in order to explain
his motives for the campaign. Not wishing to appear afraid,
the Aztec monarch came to the rendezvous near Acachinanco,
in a state barge, attended by several nobles. Cortés arrived
in a brigantine. He reviewed the allegiance tendered to the
Spanish sovereign, the revolt, precipitated by Alvarado’s
effort to anticipate the murderous plot, and the subsequent
slaughter of Spaniards and robbery of treasures. These
unjustifiable and inhuman outrages he had come to avenge;
and he would not stay his hand till the enemies of his king
and God had been driven forth. Quauhtemotzin merely replied
that he accepted war, and thereupon returned to the city.
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 147-50. Torquemada,
i, 543, and Brasseur de Bourbourg adopt this story, the
latter stating that the Aztec ruler proposed to consult his
council. But Clavigero rightly assumes that the interview
never took place. All other records say that Quauhtemotzin
persistently refused ever to speak with Cortés, even from
behind his walls.
[1129] Many captives had been secured during recent raids
on Chalco and Tezcuco, and other parts, so that there was
no lack. The native victims numbered 4000, it is said.
_Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xvii. ‘All boys,’ says
Oviedo, iii. 515. ‘Yo bien creo que fuerõ muchas, mas no
tantas.’ _Gomara_, loc. cit. The limbs of the Spaniards were
sent to different provinces to frighten the inhabitants.
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 135.
[1130] Ixtlilxochitl states in one place that his namesake
remained at Tezcuco to raise troops and to arrange for
regular trains of supplies for the Spanish camps. In another
relation he allows him to accompany Cortés with 16,000
canoes. _Hor. Crueldades_, 21; _Relacion_, 314. The canoes
which now attended the fleet appear to have served chiefly
as transports.
[1131] Owned even under republican rule by the heirs of
Cortés, as a tetzontli quarry.
[1132] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 211. Bernal Diaz raises the number
to 4000, Peter Martyr to 5000, while Vetancurt assumes that
the 500 were merely the van. _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii. 158.
[1133] Oviedo writes that they were sacrificing boys to
propitiate the gods. iii. 516. ‘La flota q̄ les parecio
no dar batalla con tan pocas y cansadas,’ observes Gomara,
_Hist. Mex._, 194.
[1134] Alvarado advanced as far as the first wide bridge,
but lost three men. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 141.
[1135] Probably behind the great southern levee. See _Native
Races_, ii. 564.
[1136] Gomara calls it wrongly Xaltoca, and Robertson
confounds it, singularly enough, with Tezcuco. _Hist. Am._,
ii. 114.
[1137] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 216-17. The greater number of
the allies came daily from their camp at Coyuhuacan to
join Cortés as warriors and sappers. Digging and similar
work was done chiefly by Tezcucans. Herrera states that
the vessels of Flores and Ruiz de la Mota were placed at a
broken causeway between the camps of Alvarado and Sandoval.
dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xvii.
[1138] ‘Asserrador ... trabajò mas que mil Indios.’
_Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xviii.
[1139] Only three, says Cortés and others.
[1140] Ixtlilxochitl allows his namesake and Cortés to figure
in this scene, the former cutting off the idol’s head while
the general secured the mask. He states that the temple
was captured during the first entry into the court. When
the Mexicans rallied, Ixtlilxochitl managed to kill their
general, which so enraged them that they rushed madly on
and drove back the Spaniards till the horse arrived. _Hor.
Crueldades_, 29-30. His version is adopted in the main by
Prescott and others; but there are several discrepancies.
The death of a general as a rule discouraged native armies.
Cortés, who would not have failed to claim the overthrow
of the idol, states that it was effected by four or five
Spaniards, after the second capture of the court. _Cartas_,
218. His presence was needed below to direct operations.
Gomara’s text must have misled Ixtlilxochitl and others.
_Hist. Mex._, 197-8. Herrera and Torquemada adhere better
to Cortés.
[1141] Cortés speaks of an ambuscade by the horsemen wherein
30 Mexicans fell. _Cartas_, 218. How many of his own were
lost he prudently abstains from mentioning, though admitting
many wounded. ‘Dexaron perdido los Españoles esta vez el
tiro grueso,’ says Torquemada, i. 548, but this is unlikely.
[1142] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 221. Bernal Diaz states that
Alvarado received four and Sandoval only two. _Hist.
Verdad._, 141.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
CONTINUATION OF THE SIEGE.
JUNE-JULY, 1521.
SOMETHING ABOUT QUAUHTEMOTZIN—INFAMOUS PRETENSIONS OF
EUROPEAN CIVILIZATION AND CHRISTIANITY—PROMPT ACTION OF THE
MEXICAN EMPEROR—REPETITIONS OF THE ENTRY ASSAULT—SUBMISSION
OF THE SURROUNDING NATIONS—DIRE CONDITION OF THE
MEXICANS—SPANISH DEFEAT AND DISAFFECTION—RESOLUTION TO RAZE
THE CITY.
In their present position, with the advantages of superior
civilization, there was equal glory accruing to the Spaniards in
winning Mexico, and to the Mexicans in manfully losing their city.
Quauhtemotzin as a patriot and a skilful general was fully alive to the
perils of his position, but he was prepared to use to best advantage
all the resources at his command, and that is all any one can do.
Stern as Saturnius, and passionately patient, from the day of the
capture of Montezuma his nature had been proof against all pleasure.
Of an imperious temper, haughty and overbearing as Coriolanus, yet
was he as faithful to defend the city as any Hector or Horatius. I
hold that Spaniards of the sixteenth century were no worse than their
neighbors. It was a bigoted and cruel age; though for that matter
enough of bigotry yet remains, and there is sufficient cruelty in
our latter-day fightings to keep us humble. And while we see much to
condemn in the motives that brought hither these foreigners, and much
in their conduct that was cruel and unjust, yet we are constrained
to admit that the work which they accomplished was in the pathway of
destiny. The conquest of the county, the destruction of its barbarous
and inhuman rites, and the establishment of the religion of Christ
in their place were the inevitable consequences of the discovery
of America. Once brought face to face with the sacrificial stone,
and other brutal atrocities of the Aztecs, and Christianity had no
alternative but to eradicate these evils or be itself overthrown.
* * * * *
The victorious advance into the heart of the city had been a
pleasant surprise to the Spaniards, while to the Mexicans it was
incomprehensible. If such were the results of the first day’s doings,
what would the days following bring forth? Quauhtemotzin immediately
issued orders to reopen the channels and construct fresh intrenchments
and pitfalls. Such were the forces employed, and such their zeal,
that when the morning dawned the causeways and streets presented even
greater difficulties than before. The allies of the Mexicans were
not so easily reassured, however, and several began to waver, among
them the Xochimilcans, to the rear of Olid’s camp, who sent in their
submission to Cortés, promising not only active aid but much needed
supplies. The same offer came from the more numerous Otomís, occupying
the western mountain border of the valley, followed by the substantial
reinforcement of twenty thousand of their sturdy warriors, with large
supplies.[1143] Still larger reinforcements arrived just before these
from Tezcuco, where ever since Cortés’ departure the young king and
his brothers had been busily engaged in forwarding supplies[1144]
and fitting out troops. Fifty thousand were raised and placed under
the command of the energetic Ixtlilxochitl, who had great military
reputation and possessed far more influence than his ruling brother.
He joined Cortés with thirty thousand, and distributed the rest
among the other captains. Cortés praises him for his bravery and good
traits, a eulogy which serves only to embitter Mexican writers against
one who favored aliens against his own race, and aided to overthrow
their liberty and religion. During the campaign he was frequently
taunted as a renegade, traitor, and fratricide, but he never swerved
in his allegiance, and found ready retorts and excuses, the strongest
being that he favored the Christians for introducing the true faith.
Yet this strange religion he was in no haste, personally, to adopt.
“Curses on his odious memory!” exclaims the rabid Bustamante.[1145]
Three days after the last assault a second was made, supported by more
allies than ever. Cortés’ Spanish forces consisted of twenty horses,
three hundred infantry, with three guns. Although he had noticed the
operations of the Mexicans, he was hardly prepared to find his work
so completely undone. As before, each channel with its intrenchments
had to be captured anew, and while the causeway was readily gained
with the aid of brigantines, the advance along the street was slower,
although the soldiers were somewhat less exposed to roof volleys since
the burning of so many of the buildings during the previous entry. The
breaches and channels were filled up as they advanced. In the plaza
the houses were yet intact and the missile showers severe, so much
so that Cortés found it necessary to apply the torch, among others
to the Axayacatl palace, his former head-quarters, wherein he had
sustained so fierce a siege, and to the House of Birds, which formed
so prominent and admired a feature in the city. It was of vast extent,
and devoted almost wholly to the maintenance of beasts and birds of
every species, some kept in the gardens, some in courts, others in
galleries, rooms, and cages; altogether a collection which must tend
to cast a favorable light on the culture of the race. Both palaces
were splendid specimens of Nahua architecture, adorned with marble
galleries supported on monolith pillars, with elaborate cornices
and stucco work, and surmounted by turrets and battlements, while
within and around rose groves of rare trees, choice shrubbery, and
flowers, refreshed by ever sparkling fountains. Cortés had rightly
concluded that the destruction of such monuments, cherished not alone
for their beauty and contents but for their hallowed associations,
would be a more severe lesson than the loss of numerous lives; and as
the flames rose over all that vast area, fed by the roofs, interior
wood-work, and other combustible material, lamentations mingled with
the maddened cries of burning animals. Around in the suburbs, also,
could be seen column after column of dense smoke started by the
torches of the cruisers, and settling in dense masses over the city
as if threatening to bury her forever from sight. Fortunately for the
inhabitants, the houses thereabout were too wide apart to allow the
flames to spread far. Even at this juncture the work of destruction
might have been stopped for the reason that Cyrus stopped the sack of
Sardis when Crœsus said to him: “These are not my goods, but thine,
O Cyrus, that thou art spoiling!”
All this time waged the conflict of arms, the Mexicans seeking by
repeated charges and sallies to check the advance of the Spaniards
and to harass them. The native chronicles relate that during one of
the countercharges by the cavalry a horseman pierced a warrior with
such force that the lance remained fast in the ground. Regarding
it as a disgrace to abandon his weapon he rashly dismounted to
unfasten it, only to be surrounded by the foe and cut in pieces. His
comrades hastened to the rescue, but could recover only the mangled
remains.[1146]
When evening came and the signal was given for return to camp, the
Mexicans fell upon the rear with renewed ardor. It seems as if courage
came to them in proportion to their misfortunes. For their fury broke
forth anew, fed by the dire conditions round them, by the sight of
lately enslaved Otomís, Xochimilcans, and Chalcans, now fighting
against them under the sheltering wings of the invaders, and exulting
over their misfortunes with bitter taunts. “Behold!” they cried,
displaying dismembered limbs of Aztecs, “we shall fill our bellies
with your braves, and have enough over wherewith to feed the beasts.
Do not starve yourselves, for to-morrow we will return for more.”
“And in truth they both supped and breakfasted on the limbs,” says
Cortés.[1147] Camp was regained without serious trouble.
The following day the entry was repeated, and early as it was, the
channels had been nearly all reopened and provided with the usual
intrenchments. This involved a repetition of the previous day’s
manœuvres, but the Mexicans fought with greater obstinacy, partly
because they had become accustomed to the Spanish tactics, and it was
one o’clock before the plaza was reached, by which time the archers
and arquebusiers had exhausted their quivers and ammunition-pouches.
Cortés now advanced beyond the temple along the Tlacopan road, well
known to the veterans from the hard fighting there met during the
previous siege, and captured two canal crossings, which were filled
up, while to the buildings on either side the torch was applied.
The object of the movement was partly to open intercourse with
Alvarado’s forces, which were advancing less rapidly, owing to the
number of intrenched channels. Progress was slowly increased during
the succeeding entries, when Andrés de Tápia and Ávila pushed along
adjoining streets with detachments.[1148]
* * * * *
One result of the Spanish successes was the submission of all the
threatening and neutral lake and island towns to the south and
south-west of Mexico, from Iztapalapan and Culhuacan to Cuitlahuac.
To this step they had been partly impelled by the repeated raids of
the Chalcan confederates, and since their submission was so tardy they
were employed chiefly as laborers and purveyors. Gomara now estimates
the native auxiliaries at two hundred thousand men, “some engaged
intent on fighting, some on eating, some on stealing, and many on
gazing.”[1149] These lake peoples, known as Chinampanecs, from their
floating gardens and aquatic life, possessed canoes in abundance, and
Cortés availed himself of this to reënforce the blockading fleet with
a boat flotilla, three thousand in all, which harassed the city on
every side, entering into the canals to burn and pillage, and landing
sallying parties to carry desolation all through the suburbs.
Allured by the prospect of spoils, the Chinampanec crews arranged
a plan whereby a still richer draught might be made. Before their
adhesion to the Spanish cause, or knowledge of it had yet come to
Quauhtemotzin, they sent to offer him their services against the
invaders, with whom they proposed to deal treacherously. They were
assigned a post and played their part well. No sooner were the Mexicans
occupied with the Spanish forces than they rushed into the dwellings
of their pretended allies and began to rob, slay, and carry off
women and children. An alarm was given and reënforcements hurried up
which speedily overwhelmed the traitorous crews, killing a number,
capturing others, and recovering nearly all the booty. The captives
were condemned to the stone of sacrifice, those of Cuitlahuac by one
of their own caciques, Mayehuatzin, a companion of Quauhtemotzin.
The incident cost many lives on both sides, greatly to the delight
of the Spaniards, to whom this mutual throat-cutting was the economy
of war.[1150]
With so large a hostile fleet upon the lake the Mexican crews never
ventured abroad by day, but when darkness set in, their canoes
sped across, impelled by the demand for food. Informed of this,
Cortés detached two brigantines, under Portillo and Pedro Barba, to
cruise all night. This proved a severe blow to the poor Mexicans,
although a number of canoes still ran the blockade successfully,
and it was resolved to entrap the vessels, since open battle could
not avail against them. Thirty of the largest canoes, or piraguas,
were accordingly manned with stout warriors and strong boatmen, and
hidden amongst the rushes near a heavily staked channel, into which
some swift canoes were to decoy the brigantines. This succeeded, and
no sooner were they fast on the stakes than the canoes attacked them
with such spirit that every Spaniard was wounded, while Portillo fell,
and Barba died within three days.[1151] The brigantines managed to
escape. Encouraged by this attempt the Mexicans became more brisk
in their blockade-running, and stationed forty piraguas to repeat
the decoy surprise. Advised of this by two captives, Cortés sent six
brigantines by night to hide near the spot, leaving one to cruise
about for canoes. Some of these soon appeared, and the sailor pursued
them for a distance toward the hiding-place of the Mexicans. Suddenly
she turned about as if afraid of stakes. Observing this, the forty
piraguas ventured forth and were allured toward the Spanish ambuscade.
At the proper moment the six vessels came down upon the pursuers,
overturning and sinking a number, and capturing others, together with
many warriors. The Mexicans attempted no further naval surprises.[1152]
* * * * *
By the night cruisers and the Chinampanecs, supplies were nearly all
cut off, and gaunt hunger began to stalk the streets of the fated
capital. The ravages of the fleet and the flotilla along the eastern
suburbs had rendered these wholly untenable, and the south-eastern
district had been desolated by Cortés’ divisions, compelling the
inhabitants to abandon the greater part of Tenochtitlan and concentrate
chiefly in Tlatelulco. These two main divisions of the city had been
rivals ever since its foundation, with frequent disputes to sustain
the flame of discord. Gradually the Tenochtitlans had assumed the
sway, honored by imperial presence, while the other division had
assumed a plebeian stamp, patronized by the former. During this common
misfortune, however, rivalry was forgotten, and the more warlike
Tlatelulcans unhesitatingly aided the others and now welcomed them
into their quarter.[1153]
Every loss of allies to the Mexicans was a corresponding gain to the
Spaniards, less in regard to fresh auxiliaries than to the relief from
hostile attitude and to supplies. The Chinampanecs, for instance, were
ordered to bring material and construct barracks along the causeway
on either side of Fort Xoloc. These afforded shelter for all the
Spaniards and two thousand servants, and proved most welcome, for
the rainy season had already set in. The same natives were obliged
to provide supplies, such as fish and a species of cherry, which
together with maize formed the chief sustenance of the army. Frijoles,
or beans, cacao, _quilite_ herbs, and _nochtli_, afforded variety.
The maize was ground by hand and made into tortillas, or pancakes,
by the slave women and mistresses of the soldiers, either for their
individual lords or for the mess to which they belonged. These duties
were also assumed by some of the few Spanish and mulatto women who
had accompanied their husbands. Although there was little fear of
starvation in the Spanish camps, yet the fare was at times not of
the best.[1154] The less fastidious auxiliaries were content with
a range of eatables which the soldiers would not touch; human meat
with them was a _bonne-bouche_ for which they were prepared to risk
even their own flesh.[1155] Alvarado’s men enjoyed perhaps the least
comfort, for they had moved their camp to a point on the causeway,
leaving the auxiliaries at Tlacopan, together with the slaves and
tortilla-makers. Nor were their barracks properly constructed, so
that exposure to wind and rain was added to poor fare and miry roads,
while the situation of the camp added to danger and guard duty.
The camp had been formed round a temple square on the causeway, quite
close to Mexico, or rather to Tlatelulco, for Alvarado had tired
of having his day’s work destroyed every night, and he resolved at
least to protect the approach to the suburb. One deep channel yet
intervened, beyond which the camp could not well be moved, but a
large force was stationed to guard it at night, so that the crossing
should be assured for the morning’s attack.[1156] On the other side
gleamed the watch-fires of the Mexicans, behind and between which
might be seen the flitting figures of their warriors, signalling to
one another by whistling. This and other operations were forced upon
them to a great extent by Spanish tactics, from which they had copied
many features with no little effect.
From Alvarado’s camp to the Tlatelulco market, the heart of the
enemy’s stronghold, the distance was less than from the camp of
Cortés, though the first part of the way was more difficult than
the Iztapalapan road. The immense stride of the Fort Xoloc party
had wholly eclipsed the progress of the others, and Alvarado’s men
began to fear that, near as they were to the enemy’s centre, the
more distant comrades might reach it before them. It was therefore
resolved to make strenuous efforts to penetrate into the suburb. The
assault being on Tlatelulco itself, the Mexicans found no difficulty
in offering so strong a resistance that hardly any advance could
be made. Several vessels were thereupon directed against the suburb
to coöperate with a brisk fire, and to divert attention by landing
sallying parties. This succeeded for a while, but inspired by the
prowess of two Tlatelulcans named Tzoyetzin and Temoctzin, the warriors
rallied and drove back the invaders. Another brave who distinguished
himself during the repulse was Tzilacatzin. In the guise of an Otomí
warrior, and protected by cotton armor and shield, he rushed toward
the Spaniards as if bewildered, in advance of his comrades, and threw
his stone, knocking down an opponent at each throw. This man appeared
in different guise on different days, and did no little to encourage
his companions.[1157]
Notwithstanding these rebuffs Alvarado persevered, and the Mexicans
resolved to take advantage of his zeal to entrap him. Two or three
wide channels intervened between the end of the causeway and the
great market, and the first of these was now the point of contention,
a chasm of sixty feet in width and over ten feet in depth. By great
effort a crossing had here been formed with débris. This the Mexicans
undermined one night and covered a part with a false ground. In the
morning they attacked the Spanish outpost with great demonstration,
but retired as soon as the horsemen charged. Flushed with success, the
Spaniards followed in divided parties, and one of fifty with a number
of allies pursued across the channel. No sooner were they over than
the boatmen below tore away the support, while the warriors turned
with overwhelming force upon the band. Resistance was impossible,
and they retreated only to fall into the opening, where crews were at
hand to pounce upon them. Indescribable confusion ensued. Thick fell
the blows off the despairing men, as they sought to beat back the
triumphant foe. Bernal Diaz, who was among the number trapped, felt
himself seized by stout arms, but although badly wounded he managed
to cast off the assailant and spring to the bank, where he fell
exhausted. Fortunately Alvarado came up at this moment, after driving
back a division in another direction, and so startled the assailants
that they retreated, though with four captive Spaniards, one or two
more being killed, besides a horse and a number of allies.[1158]
When Cortés heard of the affair he came over to administer a reprimand,
but on learning the particulars he could not withhold his admiration
for the valiant deeds performed, and merely exhorted his lieutenant to
be more cautious.[1159] Great was the exultation of the Mexicans over
their success, and tauntingly they hovered round the camp, imitating
the cries of the entrapped soldiers. So encouraged did they feel as
to make several determined night attacks on the different camps or
their advance posts. Alvarado’s being nearest and most exposed had
to sustain quite a severe fight, losing several men.[1160]
* * * * *
Although Alvarado had made little advance into the city, the planting
of his camp so near it saved much fighting and enabled him to direct
daily operations almost at once against the main points. In this
he possessed an advantage over Cortés, who was compelled daily to
recapture a number of positions already gained. He himself remarks on
this loss of time and work. “Your Majesty may blame me for retreating
instead of holding what is gained,” he writes, but guards at the
bridges, which must be large, would be so harassed as to unfit them
for the next day’s work, while to take up a position within the city
would draw the whole of the large population upon them, and might lead
to the cutting off of communication and supplies, and probably to a
repetition of the great disaster of the previous year. Such a position
would besides render it possible for the Mexicans to obtain supplies
from the mainland, for the Spanish allies could not be relied on to
watch them. Cortés’ own officers, however, could not fail to observe
that Alvarado’s course might have been followed with some advantage.
They began to tire of the slow progress, attended as it was with so
much fighting for so little gain; so much exposure to alternate rain
and heat; so much discomfort in rude camps with poor diet and want of
proper care for wounded or sick men. This was represented to Cortés,
with the request that a general storming be attempted with a view
to abbreviate the siege. He represented the danger of advancing over
so many channels, along streets lined with houses, against hosts of
determined warriors, with the prospect of being caught in the rear.
Still he was as eager as any one to end the siege, and would call a
council to deliberate on the matter. The result was a decided majority
for the proposition to attempt the capture of Tlatelulco market and
there establish a permanent camp.[1161]
Since Sandoval will not be able to render efficient service on his
route for an attack on Tlatelulco, he is ordered to join Alvarado
with the weightiest part of his forces, and to take advantage of the
movement to entrap the Mexicans. He will pretend to make a general
evacuation of his camp, and thus allure the foe to an attack on the
baggage-train, during which the ambuscaded cavalry can inflict a
lesson which shall also serve to secure the camp against later attack.
Sandoval sends another portion of his forces to Cortés, who has more
points to cover, and receives instructions to attend in particular
to the capture of the channels and their filling, and otherwise to
secure the safety of the more impetuous Alvarado.
On the day appointed, the brigantines with their flotillas are sent
early to aid in clearing the causeways and approaches. The troops
find little trouble in reaching the Tlacopan avenue, from which three
long roads give access to the market. It is advantageous to push the
advance on each of these, and three divisions are accordingly formed,
one to follow the main street under command of the comptroller and
treasurer, Julian de Alderete, who has been among the foremost to
urge the assault; another under Andrés de Tápia and Jorge de Alvarado,
brother of the Tlacopan leader, both dashing and able men; the third
and somewhat larger body, swelled particularly by auxiliaries, Cortés
himself directs along the most dangerous approach, a sort of causeway,
lined with houses but bordered with water.[1162] Two cannon are placed
on the Tlacopan road, guarded by eight horsemen, and Cortés leaves
his horse at the entrance of the road taken by him, and gives strict
orders to all captains for filling every channel behind them.
Cortés at first leads his men on foot, and with the aid of a
field-piece readily gains the first bridge and barricade, carrying
all before him, while the auxiliaries swarm into the houses and
drive slingers and archers from the roofs. The determination of the
assaulting party seems to have disheartened the Mexicans, for the
advance is quite rapid, so much so that the captain who has taken
Cortés’ place at the head of his division soon reports that he is
approaching the market and can hear the operations of Alvarado
and Sandoval. May he advance? This message reaches Cortés on a
section of his causeway to the rear, where he has remained to gain
a contested point, and to oppose assaults from the cross-streets.
He replies that the captain must first secure his rear and flanks,
and look particularly to the channels, of which there are three
in that causeway. “They are filled,” was the answer, made without
a thought as to its accuracy, for flushed with the success of the
advance, soldiers and cavaliers alike cast prudence to the winds,
and disregarding common ditches bend their eyes alone upon the goal.
Immediately after comes the doleful sound of the _teponastli_, and
a shrill trumpet blast, the alarm signal of Paynalton, the mythic
page of the war-god. Struck on the summit of Tlatelulco temple, the
sounds float over the contestants, sending a chill into the heart
of the Spaniards and allies as they rush onward filled with visions
of success. To the Mexicans, on the other hand, it comes as a magic
appeal from Huitzilopochtli, stirring their spirit with fresh energy:
a resistless appeal to make a supreme effort for imperilled home,
and faith, and liberty.[1163]
Cortés also hears the warning, only too deeply impressed since that
Sorrowful Night, and with anxious heart he hastens forward to see how
matters stand. His anxiety is increased as the jubilant cries of his
own men appear to change, while high above them rise the unmistakably
triumphant shouts of the Aztecs. Just then he comes to one of the
crossings formed by his party at a channel ten to twelve paces wide,
and over ten feet deep. It seems insecure, and on looking he finds it
constructed of some loosely thrown pieces of wood and reed, covered
with a little earth. He at once orders the auxiliaries in his following
to rebuild the structure. Scarcely is the order uttered before he
sees his forces coming down the causeway in disorderly flight, led
by the allies. Cortés makes frantic efforts to stay the current. None
heed him. Fears lend wings and drown all appeal. On come the pressing
throng, on to the frail bridge, which sinks with its living freight
into the deep water. Still onward rush the mass behind, impelled by
their mad momentum, tumbling on the heads of these, scrambling and
wading, adding their cries for help to the shrieks of despair beneath,
while from the rear roll the terrifying shouts of hot pursuers. Already
the house-tops teem with slingers and archers; the lanes pour forth
their warriors with swords and long pikes to pierce the flanks, and
the canals are alive with canoes whose crews secure the struggling
fugitives for sacrifice, or deal the more grateful _coup de grace_.
The Spanish soldiers are among the last to come up, and a terrible
gauntlet they have had to run. Regardless of the showering missiles
or the pressing foe, Cortés stands on the brink to strike back the
hungry crew and lend a helping hand to his floundering men. “I was
determined to remain there and die fighting,” he writes. But so many
are beyond his reach, and there he must stand helpless to watch the
struggle; to behold now this soldier felled, now the other carried
off; and more, to see the banner torn from the hands of his alférez.
_Tlapanecatl_ is the name given by the records to the doughty captor
of so esteemed a prize.
Standing there conspicuously on the brink, Cortés becomes the target
for hundreds of missiles, though protected by his mail; but soon the
foe begin to press round him, and even in his rear, separating him from
the men.[1164] The next moment more than one pair of arms had coiled
round his body, and, with triumphant shouts of “Malinche! Malinche!”
they seek to drag him into the water to the canoes. Alarmed by the
outcry, his body-soldier, Cristóbal de Olea, hastens to his side, and
with a sabre-blow severs the arm which was well nigh pulling over the
bent form of his master. The next instant he himself falls beneath the
furious onslaught roused by the magnitude of the prize, “a glorious
death in so good a cause!” exclaims Herrera. Another soldier, named
Lerma, rushes to the spot and is nearly overpowered; while a stout
Tlascaltec, Temacatzin, plants himself in front of the leader, half
prostrate with exhaustion and wounds, and wards off the blows till
Antonio de Quiñones, captain of the guard, manages to force his way
forward and sustains him, followed by a number of men whom the report
of their general’s danger has stirred to fierceness.[1165] “Away
from here, your worship, and save your person,” cries the captain,
“for without you all will be lost!” Cortés refuses, “for I desired
rather death than life,” he writes; but finally by dint of pleading
and main force he is induced slowly to retire, seeking to cover the
rear of the fleeing. And well it was, for a longer stay would have
proved fatal. But for the eagerness of the Mexicans to secure as
prisoner so magnificent a prize, they could easily have despatched
him. Aztecs made it a point to obtain as many prisoners as possible,
particularly chiefs and nobles, and white men, who ranked even above
these, in order to do honor to the war-god. This effort was prompted
by a deep religious obligation as well as by warrior spirit.
Not far from the disastrous channel a horse was brought, upon which
Cortés was mounted, though wounded in the leg. Shortly before, his
chamberlain, Cristóbal de Guzman, a great favorite, had ridden up
with a charger to the relief of his master, only to be surrounded with
warriors and cut down, together with the animal,[1166] while another
rider was obliged to retreat with a lance-thrust in the throat. On
retiring from the section of causeway assigned to the horse, another
animal was killed and a third narrowly escaped. Finally the troops
reached the broader Tlacopan road, and now Cortés, with the nine
horsemen left in his division, was able to take a firm stand against
the enemy. Checked in their pursuit, and made timid in their charges
by the presence of the bold line of horses and lances, they flung
their missiles and insults with increased energy. Suddenly two or
three Spanish heads were cast before the horsemen, with the cry:
“Tonatiuh!” “Sandoval!” The meaning could not be misunderstood, and
as the Spaniards gazed on the gory and disfigured faces a sickening
fear crept over them. Could it be that these beloved leaders had
fallen! There was no time for deliberation. Finding his own party now
comparatively secure, Cortés hurriedly sent messengers to recall the
other divisions under Alderete and Tápia.
There was hardly need for this message. The triumphant shouts of
the Mexicans in pursuit of the troops of Cortés and the increased
attack on their own had already warned these leaders. Still they
persevered, although their men manifested some discouragement. It
was not long, however, before two or three mutilated, bearded heads
were cast before them with the cry, “Malinche is dead!” “Tonatiuh and
all their men have fallen!” The leaders saw that farther advance was
useless, especially since the Mexicans now attacked with great fury.
The leaders kept their men in good order, and were already retiring
when the order of recall reached them. The streets there being wider
and easier, and the channels all filled, they found no trouble in
rejoining their general. Now jointly they retreated through the plaza
and down the Iztapalapan road, furiously pursued by the warriors,
who showed themselves more reckless than usual on seeing their prey
escape. The central temple was filling with a vast throng to watch
the onslaught, and on the summit the priests were already burning
incense and chanting in honor of victory, while the rabble railed at
the humiliated children of the sun.
Alvarado had meanwhile advanced along the road to Tlatelulco from
his causeway, leaving Sandoval to coöperate along the flank and
to direct the movements of the brigantines and the filling of the
channels. The advance was fiercely resisted by the Mexicans from roofs,
cross-lanes, and barricades, and hundreds had been severely wounded,
chiefly Tlascaltecs, only too many fatally, yet he persevered. He
was already near the market, the aim of all efforts, when the drum
and trumpet came to startle his men and to encourage the Mexicans to
greater resistance. Progress was now almost checked, and soon came
the cry, “Malinche is dead!” “Sandoval and the other captains are
dead!” “Behold their faces!” And therewith several heads with gory
beards were cast before them. “This shall be your fate!”
Alvarado’s men were white with dismay, and but for the intrepid
courage of their leader the rout of Cortés’ party might have been
repeated. Making a bold stand with his Spaniards, he ordered the
Tlascaltecs to fall back and leave the retreat open. They needed no
second instructions to this end, for the bleeding heads lent wings
to their haste. Then grew the onslaught fiercer than ever, for the
retreat of Cortés’ forces enabled a larger number of enemies to turn
against Alvarado and Sandoval. The latter also received his cast of
bloody heads with a new string of prominent names, all calculated to
inspire terror. “By this time they had us all killed,” adds Bernal
Diaz, “but, in truth, we were all wounded, and filled with anguish
concerning the fate of our chief. Without God’s aid we could never
have escaped from the swords and clutches of the Mexicans.” Some
pious chroniclers, indeed, assert as usual that the virgin appeared
in person, together with perennial Santiago, to save the Spaniards
from their greatest peril.[1167]
* * * * *
Encouraged by the victories on land, the Mexicans had ventured forth
also in their canoes to harass the vessels which were occupied in
protecting the retreat of the armies. Unable in some instances to
leave their position, or impeded in their movement by stakes and other
obstacles, many of the brigantines were severely pressed, and one,
commanded by Briones, in Alvarado’s division, was actually captured,
with the loss of four men, one being taken alive. Jaramillo came to the
relief of the vessel, however, drove forth the enemy, and kept them
at bay.[1168] By this time both the forces of Alvarado and Sandoval
had reached the causeway, pursued by a great host, reckless in their
endeavor to inflict all the injury possible ere the Spaniards escaped.
Some delay occurred in crossing the only partly filled channel to the
causeway, and a number of soldiers were detained waist-deep in water,
seeking to lift a brigantine over the stakes, for the auxiliaries
were already away from the front; and all this time the cavalry were
compelled to remain before the causeway to cover the infantry and
bear the brunt of the terrible onslaught. Charge after charge they
made to keep back the advancing foe, through the shower of blinding
missiles, against the line of bristling lances, amidst the whirling
swords and clubs, until not a rider but felt his arm droop and his
body grow faint with loss of blood. Sandoval himself had a number
of wounds. “For God’s sake make haste and retire,” he cried to his
foot-soldiers, “or we shall all be lost!”
Finally the passage was clear, and they fell back along the causeway,
still fighting, and now exposed to the canoe sallies. On reaching
his quarters, Alvarado turned two cannon against the swarm which
sought to scale the camp, and this with the fusillade procured a much
needed respite.[1169] It was time, for the increasing darkness would
soon have added fresh dangers to the retreat. Sandoval had already
hurried away with a solitary companion to seek the camp of Cortés and
calm his fears.[1170] With a similar object Andrés de Tápia had been
sent with three horsemen from Fort Xoloc to Alvarado’s camp, where
he arrived with some scars from marauding stragglers. Not wishing to
discourage the soldiers, he reduced the losses of his party to quite
a small number, and made light of the matter.
By this time the enemy had retired, but from the city rose their shouts
of triumph, and every temple was ablaze with fires to celebrate the
victory. The summit of the Tlatelulco pyramid, the highest of them
all, was the scene of great commotion, and soon the sombre notes of
the melancholy drum called it to attention. A number of instruments
now added their discordant notes, in clash and blast, and a procession
with torches, swinging censers, and religious paraphernalia circled
round with imposing ceremony. Then a space was cleared, and a long file
of naked men stood revealed. A cry of horror burst from the gazing
soldiers. There could be no mistake. Distant as was the temple, the
glare of fire clearly revealed the white hue and bearded faces of
their comrades, bound for sacrifice, and plumed. Now they were made
to march forward, and with blows to dance before the idol to whom
they had been consecrated. Ah, to be a helpless looker-on at such a
time! Again they formed in line exhausted, and then one was seized by
several priests and borne struggling to the stone of sacrifice. He was
thrown on his back and held down by the limbs while the high-priest
with ceremonious flourish raised the glittering blade. The gazing
soldiers clutched each other’s hands in agony, as their eyes followed
the instrument and saw it plunged into the breast of the victim.
They seemed to hear his stifled cry, to feel the knife in their own
heart, and realizing that they were still safe they thanked heaven
for their escape.[1171]
Victim after victim was carried to the stone, some with frantic
struggles, others resigned, and still others weighed down in helpless
fear of what they had beheld. Heart after heart was torn from the
gaping breasts and held before the idol, while the bodies were cast
down the steps. The skin, particularly of the head and upper body,
was removed and used as a dress for festive occasion, and the flesh
was hacked to pieces, the limbs for the banquet table, the trunk
for the beasts. After a while came darker-hued victims, and now
the Tlascaltecs and other allies shuddered. To them the sacrifices
were not so terrifying as to the Spaniards, but they could not
unmoved behold the cruel death of their countrymen. Then came more
processions, music, and idolatrous rites, followed by fresh companies
for the sacrifice, white and dark; and so passed the night, until the
horror palled on the gazers, and many expressed the opinion that the
priests were pretending sacrifice by producing the same bodies upon
the stone several times so as to inspire greater fear. This belief
was strengthened when they observed similar ceremonies take place on
other minor temples, and by the continuance of the sacrifices for
several days. The offering at the minor temples consisted chiefly
of the lower class of allies. All the pyramids, however, received
a quota of heads from Spanish, leading native, and equine victims,
wherewith to decorate their summits.[1172]
Aware that the sight of the sacrifice, purposely intensified for
Spanish edification, must have stirred deeply the breasts of the
survivors, the Mexicans took advantage of this to attack the camp of
Alvarado during the night. “Behold the fate in store for you all!”
they cried, casting in half-roasted pieces of flesh from white and
dusky bodies. “Eat, for we are satiated!” The Spaniards were too well
prepared to suffer from the assault, but it added to their sorrows.
The lesson had been costly, for about sixty men were lost, with six
horses, one gun, and a number of small-arms, while the ranks of the
allies had been diminished by from one to two thousand, and this
without reckoning the vast number of wounded.[1173]
When Sandoval reached Camp Xoloc and learned the news he burst forth,
“Señor Capitan, what is this? Where are the fine counsels and warlike
skill which you are wont to exhibit?” With tears springing to his
eyes, Cortés replied: “Sandoval, my son, my sins I admit, but I am not
so guilty in this matter as I appear. The officer whom I charged to
fill the channel failed to obey.” He further intimated that Alvarado
might be led by his daring into difficulties, and bade Sandoval
watch carefully over the safety of the western and northern camps,
particularly for the present, while Cortés was restrained by his
wounds.[1174] The injunction was needful in view of the reoccupation by
the Mexicans of the channels from which they had lately been driven,
and their harassing attacks, chiefly by night, against the camps and
fleets. Alvarado’s camp, as the nearest to the city, was the most
exposed, and Sandoval with his tried prudence could be best relied
on to counteract the recklessness of its commander in repelling these
attacks. Knowing the signal for the sallies, usually a shot, the enemy
were warned in time to retire, or to form some trap or combination;
so that the charge of the soldiers carried little advantage.
On one occasion, it is related, a shield-bearer named Peinado stepped
outside the camp gate and found himself surrounded by a horde of
marauders. Escape was cut off. In this dilemma he began to rattle
his shield and sword, and shout, looking at the same time toward the
camp. The enemy assumed at once that he was signalling to some party
in ambush, and beat a hasty retreat.[1175] For several days[1176] the
Spaniards remained inactive. During this time the Mexicans continued
their daily sacrifice of captives, with conspicuous rites and loud
demonstrations.
As usual amidst trying scenes, there were here examples of the
devotedness of woman. In one of the encounters on the causeway to
drive back the prowling Mexicans, Beatriz Bermudez de Velasco, wife
of Francisco de Olmos, accompanied the soldiers, in cotton armor, and
with sword and shield. Such was the pressure of the enemy that the
troops were thrown into disorder and began to turn in flight. With
raised sword she planted herself in their path and cried, “Shame upon
you, Castilians! turn at once against this vile rabble, for I will
kill any man who attempts to pass this way.” So abashed were the men
by this resolute demeanor that they again fell upon the Mexicans and
defeated them.[1177] Other women of less valor did equally good service
as sisters of mercy, to tend and cheer the many disabled. One, named
Isabel de Rodriguez, attained quite a reputation in curing wounds,
a success attributed chiefly to her holy invocation, for in applying
the bandage she invariably uttered the formula, “In the name of the
father, the son, and the holy ghost, one true God; may he cure and
restore thee!”[1178]
* * * * *
Cortés found it absolutely necessary to resume operations in order
to prevent the utter demoralization of his men, although they could
advance no farther than the last canal on the Iztapalapan road, which
was strongly fortified to protect the plaza. On the Tlatelulco side
the channel separating the city from the causeway had been reopened
as a barrier. No serious effort was made to pass these points, and
the movements were effected with the greatest prudence possible.
For this caution several reasons existed, based on momentous
consequences of the late defeat. In their exultation the Mexicans
had imprudently published the oracular utterance that within eight
days the Spaniards would be destroyed, though many Aztecs would also
perish.[1179] Care was taken that this divine proclamation should
be known in the Spanish camps, with the intent of disheartening the
allies and procuring their desertion. This main object accomplished,
it was hoped that neighboring districts might be again persuaded to
join in hostile operations, or at least assume a neutral attitude
against the isolated Spaniards. Severely harassed by all the strength
of the capital and its allies, the Spaniards would be unable to
maintain the siege or even to sustain their own position, particularly
if supplies were cut off, and so be obliged to retreat. Many indeed
looked upon the Spaniards as doomed, and tired besides of the long
siege, so contrary to native ideas of warfare, corps after corps of
their allies disappeared, in secret retreat to their homes. Others
were sufficiently shaken in their belief to lose all ardor, the more
so when they recalled the prophecy of disaster uttered by the hanged
Xicotencatl. Cortés and his officers did all they could to counteract
this influence by referring to previous failures of oracles, to
the comparatively small percentage of the late losses, the critical
condition of the besieged, and their efforts to gain advantages by
spreading lies. Let the allies but abide till the end of the term
mentioned by the oracle and they would be convinced of its falsity.
The last argument was perhaps the strongest that could be offered
under the circumstances, and it was decided to take no risks that
might imperil the proof.[1180]
These precautions were imperative in view of the effect of Aztec
machinations in the lake districts and outlying provinces. The lake
towns last to join the Spaniards relapsed into a frigid neutrality,
and might have risen but for the imposing proximity of the fleet and
army. Remoter districts assumed a more decided attitude, and from
Quauhnahuac came an urgent appeal for help against the attacks of
the Malinalcas and Cohuixcas, prompted by Mexico. Immediately after
the late victory Quauhtemotzin had sent envoys to these and other
provinces, in every direction, bearing heads or flayed skins of
Spaniards and horses, and other tokens, wherewith to impress their
story that more than half of the white besiegers were slain, and
that the remainder would soon perish, as declared by the oracle. It
behooved them, therefore, to decide at once whether they would join
for a share in the spoils, or be forever excluded from all favor at
the hands of victorious Mexico. Thus, while many were frightened into
severing their connection with the invaders, secretly or openly, more
aggressive provinces like Malinalco hastened to profit by the state
of affairs.
* * * * *
To detach troops under the circumstances was not agreeable, and
many officers objected, but Cortés considered that it would be far
more dangerous to Spanish prestige and prospects to encourage such
hostile movements by a passive demeanor. “It was now more necessary
than ever,” he writes, “to exhibit prowess and spirit, so as to
hide our weakness both from friends and foes.” Andrés de Tápia was
accordingly despatched with ten horse and eighty foot, together with
a considerable force of allies.[1181] In order to calm the many
remonstrances against the expedition, he was instructed to return
within ten days. Tápia found the enemy awaiting him in large force
near a hamlet not far from Malinalco, and at once prepared to attack,
assisted by the Quauhnahuacs. The ground being level, the horses
proved of great service, and the hostile army was presently in flight
toward Malinalco. This place was strongly situated on a height, well
supplied with water, so that Tápia considered it useless to attempt
an assault, much less a siege when so short a term had been allowed
him, and he accordingly returned.
The complaint from Quauhnahuac was followed by a deeper wail from
Toluca and adjoining Otomí settlements in the mountain region west of
the lake. The Matlalzincas, devoted adherents of Quauhtemotzin, had
been induced to openly declare for him and to invade their districts,
preparatory to advancing against the Spaniards. This intention had
been already vauntingly proclaimed by the Aztecs, and since the
Matlaltzincas were both powerful and warlike, the necessity for prompt
measures became even more apparent in this case. The tried Sandoval
was intrusted with the expedition, composed of eighteen cavalry, one
hundred infantry, and a large force of allies chiefly Otomís, which
soon grew to about seventy thousand. After a quick march he came
to the smoking ruins of some settlements and startled into flight
a band of marauders, who left behind them a quantity of plunder and
provisions, including some tender children still roasting on the spit.
He pursued the raiders, and after crossing a river[1182] came upon
a larger force, which turned as he approached, to seek safety within
the town of Matlaltzinco, over two leagues distant. The cavalry made
terrible havoc among them, and the infantry following in their wake,
killed more than two thousand. Those who escaped made a stand at the
town to cover the conveyance of families and effects to a fortified
hill close by. This was pretty well accomplished before the infantry
came up to assist in capturing the town. The defenders now fled, and
the place was entered and burned, after being rifled of what remained
to take. Since it was late, the assault on the hill was deferred
till the morning. There the natives maintained a loud uproar until
some time after midnight, when all became quiet. With early dawn the
Spaniards prepared to storm the hill only to learn that it had been
abandoned. A number of people were seen in the field, however, and
eagerly the soldiers revived the fading expectation for a fray. In a
twinkling they were among the rabble, and a number were slain before
the explanation gained ears that these people belonged to the friendly
Otomís. Sandoval now advanced on another fortified town, whose cacique
threw open the gates on beholding the hosts before him, and not only
offered his own submission, but promised to effect the submission of
the allied caciques and those of Malinalco and Cohuixco. Regardless
of the insinuations of the Otomís that such promises could not be
relied on, Sandoval returned to Mexico, and four days later appeared
there the caciques of all these provinces to tender allegiance and
aid for the siege.[1183]
* * * * *
Meanwhile the portentous eighth day had dawned on the Spanish camps.
Hardly less concerned than the natives, the soldiers could not control
their trepidation as they thought of the oracle, although striving
to appear indifferent. Nor were they without tangible reasons for
their fears. With a daily growing desertion among the much needed
allies, and fading enthusiasm among those who remained; with supplies
greatly reduced owing to the neutral attitude assumed by surrounding
districts; with fresh wars upon their hands, which demanded not only
more hardships but a division of their weakened forces; with constant
vigils and alarms amid the harassing attacks of a triumphant foe; with
a large number of wounded deprived of needful care and comforts, and
above all the ghastly spectacle of a daily sacrifice of late comrades,
attended by wild and imposing celebrations—with all this gloom and
distress it required stout hearts indeed to remain steadfast. Yet
they were firm; they believed in the strength and justice of their
cause, and in their ultimate triumph, though momentarily dismayed,
prayer afforded them relief. It dissipated fear and infused fresh
courage.
Thus passed the day, amidst fear and hope, and the Spaniards still
existed. The Mexicans do not appear to have made any special effort
to support the oracle by a determined attack. Nor had they been able
to open any effective communication with the mainland; for although
the lake towns had withdrawn their canoe fleet, they offered no aid
to the besieged, while the brigantines maintained too strict a guard
to permit many boats to gain the capital with supplies.
The ninth day came, and now it was the turn of the Spaniards to exult,
for not only did they feel inspired with the belief that providence
was protecting them—and nobly the friars helped Cortés to impart that
stirring idea—but they were cheered with revived animation among the
allies and the early return of most of the deserters. From Tezcuco,
indeed, came additional troops under the command of some Spaniards
there stationed.[1184] Cortés greeted the returning corps with rather
cold forgiveness. He showed them that besides carrying on the siege
without their aid he had undertaken victorious campaigns, and needed
not their assistance. Nevertheless, since they had served so zealously
before, he would not only overlook the grave crime of desertion, due
partly to ignorance of Spanish laws, but let them again share in the
final reduction of the city, and thus gain both revenge and riches.
Cortés could adopt no other course, for the siege could not be carried
on without the allies.
Under Spanish training the latter had besides grown very efficient,
as the following instance will illustrate: No sooner had the eight
portentous days passed by than Chichimecatl, the leading Tlascaltec
captain serving under Alvarado, disgusted with the idle fears which
had unmanned his people, and eager to retrieve them in the eyes of the
Spaniards, resolved to show both them and the Aztecs what he could do.
With the aid of the soldiers the first fortified channel was captured,
and the chief advanced into the city with his own people only, the
flower of his warriors, after leaving several hundred archers near
the passage to keep the route clear for retreat. With unwavering
columns he advanced along the main street and captured the next canal
passage after a fierce struggle. Then he passed onward to the next,
maintaining a sharp contest all the day. Finally came the hour for
returning, and the Aztecs bore down with doubled fury on his flank
and rear. The retreat was performed in good order, partly owing to
the foresight of leaving a rear body; and Chichimecatl came back a
lauded hero.[1185]
Messengers had been sent to the allies far and wide to encourage them
with the news of the non-fulfilment of the oracle. Ojeda and Marquez
went in person to Tlascala, partly also with the object of procuring
certain supplies. They left Alvarado’s camp at midnight with only
a few natives, and when about half-way to Tepeyacac they perceived
a train of men descending from the hills with heavy burdens, which
they deposited in a number of canoes. Information was at once sent to
Alvarado, who placed a guard along the shore to check this smuggling
that had evidently escaped the cruisers.[1186] Ojeda’s party proceeded
to Tlascala and brought a large train of provisions.[1187] In addition
to this the camps were cheered by the arrival of a party of recruits
with quite a mass of war material, chiefly powder and cross-bows,
relics of Ponce de Leon’s Florida expedition.[1188] The war stores
were particularly valuable; so low had run the actual stock that
Cortés was preparing more Chinantec pikes to cover the deficiency in
weapons.
Everything was again ready for a serious revival of hostilities. Over
six weeks had passed since the siege began, and the end seemed little
nearer than before. On the day of the defeat three fourths of the city
might be said to have been reduced; but nearly all this advantage had
been lost, owing chiefly to the narrow streets, encompassed by houses
which served both for attack and retreat, and the numerous traps in
the form of canals and channels. So long as these obstacles remained
the progress must not only be slow, ever slower as advance was made,
but the troops would be constantly exposed to fresh disaster. One
more defeat might ruin all, and Cortés resolved to avoid risks. He
would tear down every building as he advanced on both sides of the
streets, and fill up every channel; “not take one step in advance
without leaving all desolated behind, and convert water into firm land,
regardless of the delay.” So writes the general, and yet he expresses
regret for this destruction of the city, “the most beautiful in the
world.”[1189] In pursuance of this plan he asked the allied chiefs to
summon additional forces of laborers with the necessary implements.
They eagerly consented, and within a few days the men stood prepared.
FOOTNOTES
[1143] ‘Eran esclavos del señor de Tenuxtitan,’ is Cortés’
definition of their vassalage to Mexico. _Cartas_, 220.
[1144] A service which employed 20,000 carriers, 1000
canoes, and 32,000 convoy warriors, all at the expense of
Tezcuco, says Ixtlilxochitl, _Relaciones_, 314.
[1145] His biographer admits to a certain extent the truth
of the invectives, but eager to please his Spanish masters
he seeks rather to extol the self-sacrifice and loyalty
of his kinsman. He claims that with this reënforcement the
Tezcucan auxiliaries reached the improbable number of 250,000
men, of whom 5000 wounded were now sent home. ‘Next to God,
Cortés owed to Tezcucan aid the conquest and the planting
of the faith.’ He further assumes that Ixtlilxochitl was
already king, and had been with Cortés since the fleet
set sail, while his brother Ahuaxpictzoctzin remained at
Tezcuco to provide supplies. _Hor. Crueldades_, 21-33. He
contradicts himself on several points in his _Relaciones_,
314 et seq. Duran also, as may be expected from a compiler
of native records, extols the hero, ‘à quien dió una espada
dorada que Don Hernando Cortes traia y una rodela.’ _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 493. With Ixtlilxochitl came half a dozen
out of his hundred brothers. _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 198;
_Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._, ii. 55. Torquemada, i. 548,
sends Cohuanacoch as general of the forces, while Clavigero
allows King Fernando Ixtlilxochitl to send his brother Cárlos
Ixtlilxochitl. _Storia Mess._, iii. 202. He is evidently
confused with respect to the surname.
[1146] _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 177-8. Torquemada
places the incident earlier, i. 547. Cortés admits no losses
of Spaniards this day.
[1147] _Cartas_, 222-3. ‘Los combidauan a çena, mostrando
les piernas y braços.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 199.
[1148] Bernal Diaz speaks of a bridge attack which cost the
lives of four Spaniards, besides numerous wounded. _Hist.
Verdad._, 145.
[1149] He enumerates also the cities of Mexicalcinco and
Vitzilopuchtli. _Hist. Mex._, 202. Herrera adds Mizquic.
dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xix.
[1150] Mazeoatzi, as Sahagun calls the cacique, sacrificed
four chiefs, Quauhtemotzin four more; the rest fell by the
hands of priests. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 187. He does
not speak of a premeditated plan like Torquemada, i. 551-2,
and since the account comes from native sources it may be
merely an exaggerated version of a flotilla raid.
[1151] This was the lieutenant of Velazquez at Habana, who
joined Cortés during the Tepeaca campaign. Portillo was a
soldier from the Italian wars. Bernal Diaz adds that one
brig was captured, but this is doubtful. _Hist. Verdad._,
143; _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 214; _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, 46.
[1152] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 144-5.
[1153] Cortés exultantly claims that three fourths of the
city is now captured. _Cartas_, 227; _Sahagun_, _Hist.
Conq._ (ed. 1840), 181; _Torquemada_, i. 550.
[1154] ‘No se hartauan de pescado, que tuuierõ pocos dias:
y demas de la hambre con q̄ peleauan, el sol, y el frio
no les dio pequeño trabajo.’ _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. i.
cap. xix.
[1155] ‘Soliti sunt hostes in prælio cadentes intra suos
ventres sepelire,’ explains Peter Martyr, dec. v. cap.
viii., and with some truth.
[1156] Forty soldiers watched till midnight, when a similar
number relieved them, and they again were relieved two hours
before dawn; all three divisions camping on the spot. Often
every man was kept awake by alarms. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 142-3. The old soldier waxes eloquent over the
hardships, for he served at this camp.
[1157] The Spaniards tried in vain to despatch him.
Sahagun states that during these attacks fifteen soldiers
were captured, and shortly after eighteen more, who were
sacrificed in a temple of Tlacuchcalco ward, ‘donde agora
es la iglesia de Santa Ana.’ _Hist. Conq._, 183, ed.
1840, 188-9. One repulse took place in Coyonacazco ward.
_Torquemada_, i. 550-2. Spanish versions indicate no such
losses, and they may probably belong to the later great
defeat.
[1158] Such is in main the version of Bernal Diaz; the
other accounts differ greatly. This author states that five
Spaniards were captured, nearly all the men wounded, and
two rowers killed, for the brigantines in seeking to aid
had become fast on stakes and exposed to attack. Had the
Mexicans not been so frightened by the horsemen the loss
would have been very great. _Hist. Verdad._, 143-4. Cortés
allows three or four captured. _Cartas_, 228; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 196. Duran places the scene where rose
afterward the San Hipólito hermitage. _Hist. Ind._, MS.,
ii. 500. But for Quauhtlizcatzin, the prince who led the
Tezcucan auxiliaries, all the Spaniards would have been
lost, exclaims Ixtlilxochitl, _Hor. Crueldades_, 36. Herrera
assumes that the fault lay with Alvarado for neglecting to
fill the channel. dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xx.
[1159] ‘No solo no le culpo, mas loole.’ _Gomara_, _Hist.
Mex._, 203.
[1160] The most serious attacks took place on June 24th and
25th, as if oracles had impelled the Mexicans to seek the
destruction of the Spaniards on the anniversary of their
reëntry into the city after the Alvarado massacre. The
Tlacopan camp lost ten soldiers and had a dozen severely
wounded, including Alvarado. _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._,
142, 145.
[1161] Bernal Diaz seeks to convey the idea that he or his
camp were opposed to the attempt, _Id._, 146, but had it
succeeded, he would probably have declared the truth, that
Cortés was urged on all sides to make the effort, as stated
in _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 203, _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib.
i. cap. xx., and _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 228-9. Perhaps the
general made objections chiefly to cover his responsibility
in case of failure.
[1162] Alderete’s party consisted of 70 infantry, 7 or 8
horsemen, and 15,000 to 20,000 allies, besides a force of
laborers to tear down and to fill up; Tápia’s of 80 men and
over 10,000 allies, and Cortés’ of 8 horsemen, 100 infantry,
and an immense number of allies. _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 230-1.
Gomara and Herrera differ slightly. Ixtlilxochitl says
that his namesake followed Cortés with 8000 Tezcucans.
_Hor. Crueldades_, 37. This insignificant number makes it
difficult to account for the 250,000 Tezcucans which he
lately introduced into the camps. Chimalpain names the
three streets Cuahuecatitlan, Tecontlanamacoya, and the
later Santa Ana. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 62.
[1163] See _Native Races_, ii. 303; iii. 293 et seq.
[1164] He crossed the channel with fifteen soldiers to
sustain the fugitives, says Torquemada, i. 554; but this
seems incorrect.
[1165] The claims to the honor of rescuing the general are
conflicting. Gomara, followed by Herrera and Torquemada,
names ‘Francisco’ de Olea. Bernal Diaz, who states that
this soldier slew four of the captains holding Cortés,
lets Lerma dispose of the remainder. After this came other
soldiers and Quiñones. Cristóbal de Olea was quite young, 26
years of age, a native of Medina del Campo, muscular, and
skilled in arms, and a general favorite. Bernal Diaz adds
other particulars. _Hist. Verdad._, 146, 246. Ixtlilxochitl,
on the other hand, claims for his namesake the credit of
having done what Spaniards claim for Olea, aided by his
Tezcucans, who kept the enemy at bay. This, he adds, is
proved by a painting on the gate of the monastery of Santiago
Tlatelulco. _Hor. Crueldades_, 38-9. Herrera briefly alludes
to Ixtlilxochitl as coming up after Olea, and then relates
with some detail that at the same time came the Tlascaltec,
Tamaxautzin he calls him, a native of Hueyotlipan. He was
afterward baptized as Antonio or Bautista, and became a
good Christian, the first native to receive extreme unction.
dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xx. Torquemada, i. 555, copies, but
calls the man Teamacatzin. Both evidently prefer Tlascaltec
to Tezcucan records. In fact, Ixtlilxochitl adds certain
incredible particulars about the prowess of his wounded hero
in pursuing the Mexican general into a temple, although such
pursuit could not have taken place under the circumstances.
See also _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 503, and _Camargo_,
_Hist. Tlax._, 130. Cortés writes that he would have been
lost but for Quiñones, and one of his men who lost his life
to save him. _Cartas_, 233. A small chapel was erected in
the convent de la Concepcion to commemorate the escape.
See _Saavedra_, _Indio Peregrino_, canto 20.
[1166] Bernal Diaz assumes that Guzman rode up after Cortés
was mounted, and fell captive into Aztec hands. _Hist.
Verdad._, 147.
[1167] ‘Como lo hallarán pintado en la Yglesia de Tlatilulco,
los cuales Indios confiesan haberle visto.’ _Duran_, _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 512. Why these patrons did not give their aid
before is a question to which Bernal Diaz answers ‘porque
Nuestro Señor Iesu Christo lo permitiò.’ _Hist. Verdad._,
146.
[1168] Herrera relates how two captains, Flores and Mota,
advanced with their vessels up a narrow channel. Flores was
severely pressed at one time, and the latter had to sally
on the street to relieve him and enable the brigantines
to gain more open water. Flores died within a week of his
wounds. dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xx. Torquemada says that
Briones’ vessel was lifted through a breach in the causeway.
i. 555. Bernal Diaz speaks of several such narrow escapes.
loc. cit.
[1169] The artillerists being all disabled or dead, Pedro
Moreno de Medrano, afterward a settler at Puebla, took
their place. _Id._
[1170] Bernal Diaz writes as if Sandoval gained the camp
at an early hour, rode over to Fort Xoloc, and came back
in time to aid in Alvarado’s retreat. But he would never
have ventured to leave his command and his comrade in
their danger; nor does it seem likely that he could have
ridden the long distance to Xoloc and back in time to join
in Alvarado’s conflict, even if Cortés’ defeat took place
before ‘misa mayor,’ as he assumes. _Hist. Verdad._, 146-8.
This author is here very confused, assuming, for instance,
that Sandoval was fighting from his own camp instead of
coöperating near Alvarado.
[1171] So deeply affected was Bernal Diaz, among others, by
the sight, and by the fear of himself falling captive—twice
had he narrowly escaped—that he ever after had an oppressive
feeling before battle. He then had recourse to prayer,
and this invariably fortified him for the fight, so that
he always maintained his reputation as a good soldier. He
enumerates several incidents to prove that he was esteemed
a brave man. _Hist. Verdad._, 157. Oviedo, referring to
human sacrifices among the Romans, observes that they could
not have been half so fearful. iii. 515.
[1172] ‘Sacrificados los Nuestros, en el Momoztli, y Templo
de su Maior Dios,’ observes Torquemada, i. 553, among other
points, though all are not exactly true. Huitzilopochtli’s
image had been brought with the retreating Mexicans to
Tlatelulco. ‘Immediatamente sacrificati,’ says Clavigero,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 212, probably on authority of Gomara;
but Bernal Diaz states that the sacrifices lasted ten days,
_Hist. Verdad._, 150; others write eight; one victim is
said to have been kept eighteen days. See also _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, 192. Ixtlilxochitl states that three victims
were burned. _Hor. Crueldades_, 39.
[1173] A count revealed the loss of 62 men and 6 horses,
says Bernal Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 146, 152, 241, though
he in one place leaves the impression that the men were all
captured alive. This could hardly be the case, for a ‘count’
would reveal only the missing; none could tell how many
fell captive. Yet Prescott boldly assumes this number to
have been taken, besides those who fell. Vetancurt divides
the figures into 40 captives and 20 dead, _Teatro Mex._,
pt. iii. 162, and Clavigero also includes dead and captive
in that number, while raising the dead horses to 7. _Storia
Mess._, iii. 212. Solis writes that over 40 Spaniards were
carried off alive, and that Alvarado and Sandoval lost 20.
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 410. Bernal Diaz acknowledges only a third
of such loss between these two captains. Gomara gives 40
captives, several killed, 3 or 4 horses lost, and over 30
wounded. _Hist. Mex._, 205-6. Ixtlilxochitl raises the allied
loss to over 2000. _Hor. Crueldades_, 37-9. Fifty-three
Spaniards, says Sahagun, _Hist. Conq._, 192. In the cédula
of March 7, 1525, granting a coat-of-arms to Cortés, 50 are
mentioned, but in his letter to the sovereign the general
acknowledges only 35 to 40 and over 1000 allies. Herrera
and Torquemada adopt these figures. Oviedo, iii. 516, lowers
the number to 30. Duran, who confounds the late repulse of
Alvarado with the Sorrowful Night and this defeat, allows
4 banners to be captured. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 501-4,
508.
[1174] Bernal Diaz gives this conversation with some detail,
and names Treasurer Alderete as the guilty officer who
neglected to fill the channel, intimating that Cortés had
been heedlessly allured onward by the Mexicans, leaving
Alderete to attend to the filling. He even allows the
treasurer to retort to the charge, in Sandoval’s presence,
that Cortés’ eagerness had been the cause of the neglect.
This is probably an invented account, based on Gomara’s
statement that the ‘treasurer,’ no name being given,
neglected to fill a channel on his route. Informed of this,
Cortés hastened thither to remedy the fault, only to meet the
fleeing. Herrera adopts this version, as do most writers,
including Prescott; but it is evidently wrong, for Cortés
writes clearly that the misfortune occurred on his own
route, some distance above its junction with the Tlacopan
road, to which they soon retreated. On reaching this road
he sent to recall the ‘treasurer and comptroller,’ who were
leading their division victoriously at the farther end of
it. Owing to their care in filling channels ‘they received
no injury in retreating.’ _Cartas_, 233-4. There can be
little doubt about this statement, since Cortés would have
been only too glad to cast the blame on any other division
than his own. He does not even claim to have been at the
front, but in the rear, and near the spot where the neglect
occurred. The only question then is, who was the guilty
officer? The ‘treasurer’ commanded the centre division,
and although there were several treasurers, the royal,
late and new, and he who acted for the army, yet the new
royal treasurer is undoubtedly meant, and this appears to
have been Alderete, according to the statement of several
authorities. Hence the accusation against Alderete must be
wrong; anything besides this must be conjecture.
[1175] ‘Bolviò à la grita, Andrés de Tapia [the captain of
his party] matò mas de sesenta Mexicanos,’ adds Torquemada,
i. 558-9.
[1176] ‘Esto no fue sino cinco dias.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist.
Verdad._, 149.
[1177] Similar women of courage were María de Estrada, the
heroine of Otumba, Beatriz de Escobar, Juana Martin, and
Beatriz de Palacios. _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. i.
[1178] Oil was the chief remedy. _Torquemada_, i. 558-60.
Bernal Diaz speaks of a soldier named Juan Catalan who
performed cures with the sign of the cross and psalm-singing.
The Tlascaltecs also besieged the man for his attentions.
‘Y verdaderamente digo, que hallauamos que Nuestro Señor
Iesu Christo era servido de darnos esfuerço, ... y de
presto sanauan.’ Not twenty of Alvarado’s men were free
from wounds at this time. _Hist. Verdad._, 142. Solis allows
this wonderful healing power to be attributed to no woman.
_Hist. Mex._, ii. 412. But then he was a strict priest,
who saw woman chiefly as a feeble and adoring supplicant.
[1179] ‘Que de ai a ocho dias no auia de quedar ninguno
de nosotros a vida, porque assi se lo auian prometido la
noche antes sus Dioses.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 149.
[1180] Solis, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 415, states, and Prescott
hastily affirms, that nearly all the allies deserted, and
Bernal Diaz enumerates the mere handful that remained;
but this must be erroneous, as shown by the course of the
narratives in general. Two expeditions were sent forth about
this time, and the large number of allies which joined
therein may account in part for the gaps which gave rise
to the above exaggeration. Cortés, indeed, alludes very
indirectly to any defection.
[1181] Forty thousand, says Ixtlilxochitl, obtained chiefly
from Quauhnahuac and other towns subject to Tezcuco. _Hor.
Crueldades_, 40. Herrera and others mention no auxiliaries
from the camp. Bernal Diaz is confused.
[1182] The Chicuhnauhtla, Ixtlilxochitl calls it.
[1183] ‘Y ellos le siruieron muy biẽ en el cerco.’ _Gomara_,
_Hist. Mex._, 207. Ixtlilxochitl claims of course that his
Tezcucans formed the chief auxiliaries of Sandoval. Bernal
Diaz wrongly gives Tápia this expedition, which Cortés
intimates to have been sent about three days after the
return of the Quauhnahuac party. _Cartas_, 237.
[1184] Farfan and Villareal came, says Bernal Diaz,
and Tecapaneca, cacique of Topeyanco, led the returning
Tlascaltecs. _Hist. Verdad._, 151.
[1185] Cortés leaves the impression that this incident
took place during the days when the Spaniards were making
desultory entries into the city; but since he does not speak
of the oracle or the defection the affair is undecided.
Torquemada, i. 557, intimates that Chichimecatl served
under Sandoval, but this is wrong.
[1186] Ojeda magnifies the train of men to 4000 and the
canoes to 3000. _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. i. cap. xxii.
[1187] Fifteen hundred loads maize, 1000 loads fowl, 300
sides venison, besides other effects, including Xicotencatl’s
confiscated property and women. _Id._
[1188] Herrera intimates that the material may have been
a consignment to Leon, for which the disappointed owner
sought a market. A vessel of Aillon’s fleet, says Bernal
Diaz, _Hist. Verdad._, 153.
[1189] Some time before he had expressed the same intention,
and the fear that little or no treasure would be recovered.
_Cartas_, 222, 241. Ixtlilxochitl claims that his namesake
provided 100,000 men for the task, _Hor. Crueldades_, 42,
and Bernal Diaz states that this prince proposed purely a
strict blockade as a safe and sure plan. _Hist. Verdad._,
150. The result proves that this would have been the best
and as speedy as the one adopted, while the city would
have been saved from destruction. That the plan was ever
seriously suggested among this impatient crew is affirmed
by no other authority.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE CONQUEST ACHIEVED.
JULY-AUGUST, 1521.
THE DESTROYERS ADVANCE—FIERCE FIGHTING IN THE PLAZA—DISMAL
SITUATION OF THE MEXICANS—THE WORK OF DEMOLITION—MOVEMENTS
OF ALVARADO—THE EMPEROR REFUSES TO PARLEY—MISERY OF
THE AZTECS UNBEARABLE—HORRIBLE MASSACRE OF WOMEN AND
CHILDREN—THE TENDER-HEARTED CORTÉS MOURNS OVER HIS OWN
WORK—CAPTURE OF THE EMPEROR—THE CONQUEST COMPLETED—BANQUETS
AND THANKSGIVINGS—DISPERSION OF THE ALLIES TO THEIR
HOMES—REFLECTIONS.
With a force of over one hundred and fifty thousand men the Spaniards
now advanced on the city, a large proportion destined wholly to raze
buildings, fill channels, and remove obstacles, while the rest were
to drive back the enemy and keep them at bay. At the channel near
the plaza the Mexicans detained the forces for an hour with a peace
proposal, in order to gain time for some operation, and then suddenly
they began to ply their missiles. Cortés was not slow to accept the
challenge, and led the attack with a recklessness that caused his
followers to remonstrate with him for exposing so valuable a life.
It had the effect, however, of so encouraging the charging party that
the channel with its intrenchments was quickly captured. On reaching
the plaza they found it covered with loose stones, which prevented
the horses from running. Several streets leading to it were blocked
with stone barricades. The main effort for this day was directed
toward opening the approach to the plaza, which was to serve as the
starting-point for subsequent movements. The work was slow, owing to
the massive character of the buildings along the leading avenue, and
in this imperial centre of the city; but myriads swarmed thereat,
and structure after structure was levelled, opening wide access to
the southern causeway.
The Mexicans made repeated efforts to stay such ruthless destruction.
But their onslaught was futile, for thundering cannon and fiery
chargers protected every point. “Burn and raze, you slaves,” they
shouted to the auxiliaries in their impotent fury; “you will have to
rebuild it all, either for us if we win, or for your present masters
if they conquer!” And so it happened. With dreary tasks did they pay
for the momentary triumph over their enemy. During the withdrawal of
the troops to camp in the evening the Mexicans were able to make a
forcible demonstration, more so than usual on these occasions, if we
may credit the native records. They pushed in front of their lines a
fine-looking Spanish cross-bowman, reserved from the late captives,
and sought to make him direct his arrows against his countrymen. This
he refused to do, always shooting too high, and finally the enraged
Aztecs cut him down. His presence naturally interfered with the free
operations of the soldiers, as the enemy had expected.
On the following days Cortés ascended the commanding temple pyramid
in the plaza, and thence directed more effectively the operations
for razing buildings and driving back the Mexicans, who fought with
desperation for every foot of ground, so much so that on one day
alone fell twenty thousand it is said. On one occasion a corps of
Tlascaltecs crossed a canal and were thrown into disorder by the enemy.
The Aztecs began to exult, and one of their number, a muscular warrior
with enormous bejewelled plumage, armed with a Spanish sword and
shield, shouted a challenge to any Spaniard. Several were ready, among
them Hernando de Osma, who had just swum across the canal to sustain
the wavering allies. Dripping wet he rushed upon the warrior, but
received a blow which cleft his shield. Recovering himself, he dealt
the Mexican a thrust from below and stretched him dead, whereupon he
snatched the sword and plumage and sprang back in time to escape the
pursuing friends of the fallen man. He afterward offered the trophy
to Cortés, who accepted, but returned it at once with the remark that
none was so worthy thereof as he who had won it. The deed served also
to reanimate the Tlascaltecs, and they sustained their position.
Not long after, another powerful warrior, similarly plumed, came
forth brandishing a Spanish sword and announcing that he sought the
glory of either dying by the hand of a brave Spaniard or defeating
him. Cortés, who was present, told him that ten more men like himself
were needed to match one soldier. The warrior insisted. “Very well,”
said the general, “this beardless page of mine shall despatch you,
and demonstrate the mettle of our Castilian boys.” Juan Nuñez de
Mercado, as the youth was called, thereupon stepped forward, and
bravely as this Goliah fought, a few passes from the skilled arm
of the youngster soon sufficed to lay him low. This feat served not
alone to discourage duels with Spaniards, but was regarded by many
Mexicans as a bad omen.[1190]
Whatever may have been the reverses of the enemy, they usually rallied
in the evening to pursue the troops as they returned to camp, the
allies being always sent back first so as to leave the road clear for
the soldiers, covered by the cavalry. One day the pursuit was not
made for some reason, and a few horsemen ventured to look into it,
but only to be driven back with two animals badly wounded. Cortés
resolved to be avenged. He ordered Sandoval to reënforce him so
as to increase the number of horse to forty. Thirty of these were
posted early in the day in a hiding-place near the plaza, and close
by a hundred select soldiers and a corps of Tlascaltecs. When the
hour came to return to camp, the Mexicans, as expected, fell upon
the retreating lines in stronger force than ever, encouraged by the
achievement of the previous evening and by the pretended timidity
of the ten horsemen who covered the rear. When the first columns of
pursuers had well passed the hiding-place, the signal was given,
and with ringing Santiagos the parties in ambush rushed upon the
startled warriors. Finding their retreat cut off, the severed section
lost presence of mind, and permitted themselves to be butchered like
cattle. When the massacre was over, fully five hundred of the flower
of the Aztec armies covered the ground.[1191] Never again were the
Spaniards exposed to pursuit near or beyond the plaza, or indeed to
any such fierce charges, and the horses became again an object of
awe.[1192]
The captives were questioned regarding the condition of the city,
and from them a revelation was obtained showing that the majority of
the occupants were in favor of capitulation, but afraid to express
their views in face of the firmness of Quauhtemotzin and his party,
who were resolved to defend their city to the end. And there was
still enthusiasm among the Mexican people. Women and cripples could
be seen preparing and bringing war material for stronger arms to use;
they swept dust from the roofs into the faces of assailants, while
children threw tiny stones and lisped an echo of the curse that fell
from the lips of their parents. But all this manifest spirit was
slowly but surely subsiding, and deep and dismal woe was settling down
upon them.[1193] Alas for Mexico, pride of the grand plateau! Alas
for thine ancient grandeur! Blotted out forever must be thy culture,
crushed thy budding progress! The days of thy glory are ended; and
so are thy bloody ceremonies and sacrificial stones!
* * * * *
Long sieges had never suited the native ideas of warfare, and
experience could therefore teach little in the preparation for the
event. Vast supplies had been accumulated by the Mexicans, but a
large influx of fugitives from the lake towns had swelled the number
of non-combatants and had helped to diminish the food supply, which
had received but scanty additions, owing to the close watch of the
cruisers. Nor had any restrictions been placed on consumption, since
the provisions were chiefly in private hands. Now famine was raging
with rapidly increasing horrors, and jewels were offered by the handful
for an equal quantity of food.[1194] Excluded from such competition,
the poorer classes sought in holes and canals for snails, lizards,
and rats, skimmed the surface of the water for its mucilaginous scum,
or tore up the earth for roots and weeds, glad even to chew the bark
of trees, and anxiously waiting for the scanty allowance of brackish
water. Disease was marching hand-in-hand with hunger, and weakened by
their sufferings hundreds were left to linger in torment till welcome
death relieved them. The frequency of these incidents made the people
callous, and the sufferings even of near friends were looked on with
indifference by the gaunt and hollow-eyed, who were themselves marked
for death.
Regardless of the consequences, many crept at night close to the
Spanish camps in search of roots and refuse which could no longer be
found within their precincts. Advised of such movements, a body of
soldiers and allies was sent out before sunrise one day and fell on
a large number, slaughtering many of them before discovering them
to be starving women and children.[1195] It was necessary to take
increased measures even against these surreptitious attempts to
sustain the defence, and to keep in the useless population, though
there was little prospect of any important exodus, since the fear
of the savage and cannibal auxiliaries who surrounded the city made
its very pest-holes appear attractive places of refuge. The vessels
were particularly efficient for this purpose, the more so since the
crews had found a ready means to render the submerged stakes and
palisades of little hindrance.[1196] They were thus enabled to ravage
the suburbs, and to coöperate with the other forces by landing and
driving the inhabitants toward the narrow quarter in which they were
now confined. They had not always an easy task, however, for the
Mexicans were growing more reckless, and would sometimes venture to
meet even the ‘winged houses.’
On one occasion a portion of the fleet was closely beset in a confined
place, and the flag-ship happening to strand on some timbers the
crew became panic-stricken and sought to abandon her. Martin Lopez,
the builder, who was the chief pilot, at once turned against the
deserters, and being a large and powerful man he pitched two into the
water, beat and bruised half a dozen others, and soon compelled their
return to duty. He thereupon led them against the enemy and drove
them off, killing the leader, who was a prominent officer. For this
important service the brave Lopez was rewarded with a captaincy.[1197]
Cortés made quite rapid advance in the work of demolition, considering
the immensity of it. The Tlacopan road had been levelled, rendering
communication easy with the camp of Alvarado, and on the eve of
Santiago’s day[1198] the greater part of the main street to the
market was gained. This thoroughfare bore afterward the name of
Guatemotzin,[1199] because this emperor’s palace was here situated.
Strongly fortified, its capture was not effected without a severe
struggle, wherein many a brave fellow met his fate. During the fight
Alderete’s horse became unmanageable from a thrust, and rushed amid
the enemy in mad fury, creating more disorder by his pawing and biting
than a squad of soldiers could have done.[1200]
Equally severe was the struggle on the following days in entering
and filling a street with a wide canal, adjoining the main road. At
the same time was taken a temple,[1201] wherein a number of impaled
bearded heads stared the horrified Spaniards in the face. Tears filled
the eyes of the beholders, and reverently the ghastly remains were
taken down to receive Christian rites.[1202]
The progress of Cortés’ party in the direction of Tlatelulco market,
the objective point of all the movements, had impelled Alvarado to
almost superhuman efforts to gain before them a spot lying much nearer
to his camp. Once within, he hoped to keep his ground, for it was
large and level, twice the size of the market-place in Salamanca,
says Cortés, and capable of accommodating sixty thousand persons. It
was lined with porticos, wherein more substantial traders had their
shops, while the open square was covered with booths, between which the
Spaniards had so often wandered to gaze on products of every variety,
from field and forest, from river and mountain, as well as from the
workshop of artisan and artist.[1203] Thus it was formerly; but now
were to be displayed only the worst phases of human selfishness,
cunning, and brutality; blood and corpses in lieu of fabrics and
provisions; fierce war-cries and the clash of arms in place of merry
traffickings and the clink of coin. By the day following Santiago’s day
Alvarado had levelled a wide approach, and now he resolved to direct
his whole strength against this plaza, leaving merely a portion of
his auxiliaries to attend to further razing operations. Before dawn
the next morning he advanced with all his force and took the Aztecs
by surprise. He effected an entrance with little trouble, and was
able to meet in good order the bands which came to retrieve their
neglect by fierce charges. They were led by the renowned orders of
Tigers and Eagles, conspicuous in their corresponding gear, and eager
to maintain the reputation which had gained for them their insignia.
Mayehuatzin, lord of Cuitlahuac, was also among the prominent leaders,
but the cavalry soon obliged him to turn in flight, and enabled the
infantry to capture a number of the shops which lined the market, and
begin to pillage. Much more determined proved the division under the
Tiger captain, Coyohuehuetzin, who fell back and maintained himself
on the Momuztli edifice.
While the main portion of the Spanish forces thus fought at different
points in the plaza with varying advantage, Captain Gutierre de Badajoz
was ordered to capture the great temple which overlooked the market.
It was held by Temilotzin and Tlacatecatl, who fiercely disputed his
advance. Time and again were his men driven back, or sent tumbling
down the steps, bruised and bleeding, many a one never to rise. But
Badajoz persevered, and step by step he climbed upward, sustained by
reënforcements, till after two hours of hard contest the summit was
gained, first by Alférez Montaño. Woe now to the defenders remaining!
Not a Spaniard there but had wounds to show, and not one who did not
strive to exact blood for blood. It was a repetition of the aerial
combat of the year before on the summit of the central temple. The
Mexicans neither expected mercy nor asked it; rather longed they to
dedicate their last breath to the gods, and gain by glorious death
admission into the abode of the blessed. By nine o’clock in the
forenoon the two wooden towers holding the altars and idols were
gained, and the next moment dense smoke columns rose to announce the
victory of the Spaniards.[1204] Loud rose the wail of the natives
as they witnessed the portentous result, and with the recklessness
of despair they renewed their onslaught, led by Axoquentzin and the
Eagle captain, Quachic. So severely pressed was Alvarado that he was
obliged to call down Badajoz and to concentrate his forces, abandoning
the several temples which surrounded the large pyramid. Encouraged by
this success the Mexicans pushed their advantage from all sides, and
unable to hold their position the Spaniards retired with considerable
loss, including three horses.[1205]
Nothing daunted, Alvarado repeated his entry on the following day, and
met with comparatively little opposition, the enemy being evidently
discouraged by the fall of the temple and the resolute bearing of
the Spaniards. He now passed through and came up to Cortés’ party, by
whom he was received with ringing and repeated cheers. The latter had
just captured the last canal and intrenchments near the market-place,
after a sharp struggle, and now the general and his doughty lieutenant
entered the market and ascended the lofty pyramid, on which the royal
banner waved a proud welcome, while beside it the still impaled heads
of white and dusky victims recalled the bitter vengeance yet to be
exacted. Surveying the city beneath him on all sides, Cortés says: “It
seemed undoubted that of eight parts we had gained seven.” The late
magnificent metropolis, the finest and largest on all the northern
continent, displayed now a mass of ruins, through which the broad paths
levelled by the invaders led to the one corner which alone remained
to the besieged,[1206] wherein, amid famine, pest, and putrefying
bodies, they huddled in packed masses, sending forth from their
midst the groans of dying and loud lamentations, in an atmosphere so
pestiferous that the soldiers who entered the lately abandoned lanes
were almost stifled. People were found in different stages of hunger
and disease, meeting the soldiers with passive indifference in the
recklessness of despair. Beyond on the roofs stalked the warriors,
gaunt and yellow, like caged and starving beasts.
Cortés felt painfully oppressed on beholding so much misery, and at
once ordering a stay of hostilities he sent some captive chiefs to
Quauhtemotzin with peace proposals, showing the utter futility of
further resistance, which could involve only a needless infliction
of suffering and slaughter, and embitter against him and his the
besieging forces. He was prepared to forget all past animosity, and
respect the persons and property of the besieged, and his rights
as sovereign, and demanded in return only the renewal of allegiance
already offered in Montezuma’s time. Quauhtemotzin scarcely gave the
messengers time to speak, before he answered solemnly: “Tell Malinche
that I and mine elect to die. We will intrust ourselves neither to
the men who commit, nor to the God who permits, such atrocities!”
Struck by the lofty bearing of the doomed, and desirous of securing
the treasure which the besieged assured him would all be cast into
the water before his fingers should touch it, Cortés again sent a
proposal, formally attested by notary and witnesses, declaring that
the responsibility for the terrible consequences which must follow
the rejection of his offer would fall wholly on the besieged. But all
without avail. And when the priests came and declared the oracle,
“Appeased by sacrifice the gods have promised victory after three
days,” Quauhtemotzin made answer, his council being present: “It is
well. And since it is so, let us have a care of the provisions, and
if need be die fighting like men. Let no one henceforth speak of
peace under pain of death!”
Preparations were accordingly made to renew hostilities at the
designated time, on which occasion sacred relics were to be brought
into service from the paraphernalia of Huitzilopochtli, one a twisted
snake sceptre set with mosaic, called the Xiuhcoatl, which was said
to become alive when launched against the foe and terrify them to
flight; the other a war-dress of feathers tipped with an owl’s head
of fearful aspect, an ægis to scatter the enemy.[1207]
Cortés on his side was not impatient to break the truce, for he knew
that hunger and disease were efficiently fighting his battle, and he
was besides busy constructing in the market-place a catapult which was
to soon end his labors there whatever might be the further decision of
the Mexicans. The idea had been suggested by a soldier named Sotelo,
who boasted of military science acquired during the Italian wars; and
since powder was becoming scarce the necessary carpenters were readily
furnished to construct the machine. “Behold!” cried the Tlascaltecs,
pointing it out to the Mexicans, “behold a monster mechanism which
will quickly annihilate you!” But on trial it proved a failure.
Then messengers were again despatched to Quauhtemotzin to talk of
peace, and were told that they should have an answer soon. Next day
the Spanish sentinels observed a great commotion among the Mexicans
and a gathering of armed masses. They gave due notice of this, but
before the troops were fully prepared the enemy came rushing from
their retreats with a suddenness that threw the first opposing lines
in disorder, a number being wounded and several killed, at least among
the auxiliaries.[1208] The troops quickly rallied, however, under
cover of the artillery, and Cortés resolved to inflict chastisement.
Alvarado was ordered to attack a large ward containing over a thousand
buildings, while the remaining forces should turn against the main
quarter. Incited by the presence of the mystic owl and the sacred
snake-bearer, the Mexicans fought with an indifference to fate that
turned the war into a butchery. When the survivors were driven back
it was ascertained that over twelve thousand Mexicans had been killed
or captured.
The promised victory had proved a disastrous defeat, and even the most
hopeful Mexican sank into the depths of despair. This feeling was
greatly fostered by a strange occurrence about this time, which the
native records describe as a fiery whirlwind, resolving into flames
and sparks. It rose with great noise in the north, after sunset,
revolved over the doomed quarter and disappeared in the lake, leaving
the natives overwhelmed with apprehensions.[1209]
Their eyes were fully opened to the situation. And in pondering on
the dreadful past and present, the dreadful future became dim, even
its terrors growing every day fainter. They had been passive under
the pain of wounds and under hardships indescribable; but when at last
frenzied mothers and fathers seized upon their own offspring to still
the pangs of hunger over which sane minds no longer had control; when
others began furtively to look about for less closely allied beings
whereon to feed, then indeed a stranger and more terrible fear came
over them.[1210]
* * * * *
When Cortés returned with full force on the following day to renew
the fight, crowds of miserable beings came forth, repulsive in their
emaciated and haggard appearance, careless of their lives yet clamoring
for mercy and for bread. Moved by the appeal, he ordered them not to
be injured, and proceeded to answer certain chiefs who had summoned
him to a parley. “Son of heaven!” they cried, “within one brief day
and night the tireless orb returns. Why dost not thou also finish thy
task as quickly? Kill us, so that we may no longer suffer, but enter
paradise and join the happy throng already sent thither!”[1211] He
told them that in their hands was the remedy. They had but to cease
their insane opposition, and their suffering would cease, for he would
give them food and respect their persons and property. No satisfactory
answer was returned. They were evidently afraid to speak of peace,
though eager for it. Cortés felt convinced that the emperor and a
few leading nobles were the only persons holding back, and willing
to spare the people he again resolved on an appeal.
A distinguished captive was prevailed on to carry this message in
order to give it more weight,[1212] and to use his influence with the
emperor. On appearing before Quauhtemotzin the noble began to speak
of the kind treatment he had received from the Spaniards. Praise of
this nature hardly accorded with the mood of the ruler or with the
views he wished to impart, and no sooner did the envoy allude to
peace than he was ordered away with an imperious sign to the stone
of sacrifice.[1213] Any fate for ruler and people was better than to
fall into the hands of Christian civilization. At the same time the
warriors faintly threw themselves against the Spaniards with shouts
of “Death or liberty!” The attack cost the besiegers a horse, and
several men were wounded, but the charge was easily repelled, and
was followed up by further slaughter. That night the allies encamped
within the city.
The following day Cortés again approached some nobles at an
intrenchment and asked, “Why remains the emperor so stubborn? Why will
he not come and speak with me, and stay the useless slaughter of his
subjects?” Bound by superstitious loyalty to their ruler, weepingly
they replied, “We know not; we will speak with him; we can but die!”
Presently they returned to say that Quauhtemotzin would present himself
in the market-place on the following noon. Delighted, Cortés ordered
a dais to be prepared on the raised masonry platform recently used
for the catapult, together with choice viands. At the appointed hour
the Spanish general appeared in state, with the soldiers drawn up in
line, ready to do honor to the distinguished guest. After waiting
impatiently for some time, they saw five personages approach, who
proved to be the bearers of excuses. Quauhtemotzin could not come,
but desired to learn the wishes of Malinche.[1214]
Concealing his chagrin, Cortés caused the nobles to be entertained,
and then he sent them to their master with assurance of good
treatment; they soon returned with presents, and said the emperor
would not come. Again they were sent, and again their efforts were
unavailing. The truth is, Cortés desired with the monarch to secure
his treasure; else he would not long have stayed his bloody hand. On
the other hand, though Quauhtemotzin’s conduct might be attributed
to selfish obstinacy, he well knew that even for his people death
was to be scarcely more feared than capture; now they might at once
enter paradise, but the foreigners sought them but to enslave.
The following day the five nobles again kept Cortés waiting with
a promise that the emperor would meet him. The hour having passed
without his appearance, the allies, who had been kept in the background
during the negotiations, were called forward and the order was given
for assault, Sandoval directing the fleet along the shore and up
the canals to the rear. “Since they will not have peace, they shall
have war!” cried Cortés. Then the carnage became fearful. Spaniards
and auxiliaries alike, two hundred thousand strong and more, so it
was said, abandoned themselves to the butchery, while Satan smiled
approval. In helpless despair, like cooped beasts in the shambles, they
received the death-blow as a deliverance.[1215] I will not paint the
sickening details so often told of chasms filled, and narrow streets
blockaded high with the dead bodies of the unoffending, while down
upon the living settled desolation. It must indeed have been appalling
when he who had brought to pass such horrors writes: “Such was the
cry and weeping of children and women that not one amongst us but
was moved to the heart.” Then he attempts to throw upon the allies
the blame of it. “Never,” he says, “was such cruelty seen, beyond
all bounds of nature, as among these natives.” Already, before this
massacre of forty thousand[1216] the streets and houses were filled
with human putridity, so that now the Spaniards were forced to burn
that quarter of the city to save themselves from infection.
Another morrow engenders fresh horrors. The three heavy guns are
brought forward to assist in dislodging the besieged. Fearful lest
the emperor escape him in canoes, Cortés directs Sandoval to place
vessels on the watch for fugitives, particularly at the basin of
Tlatelulco,[1217] into which it is proposed to drive the besieged,
there to catch the king and nobles with their gold and jewels. Of
a truth Cortés does not wish to kill the miserable remnant of this
so lately proud race—particularly if thereby he loses the encaged
treasure. So he again appeals to them, and the Cihuacoatl,[1218]
chief adviser of the emperor, appears and is treated with great
courtesy. After a time he takes his departure, then for the first
time declaring that Quauhtemotzin will on no account present himself.
“Return then,” exclaims Cortés in ill-suppressed anger, “and prepare
for death, invoked, not by high and holy purpose, but by obstinate
timidity!”[1219]
Five hours are thus gained by the wily monarch for the escape of the
women and children, who pour out in swarms, the fainting supported by
the feeble, all emaciated and haggard, and many marked by wounds or
disease. Seeing which the allies pounce upon them, all stricken and
defenceless as they are, and murder them, to the number of fifteen
thousand. And the same number perish in the fall of broken bridges,
in the choked canals, and from the tread of their fellow fugitives.
How glorious is war! How noble the vocation! How truly great the hero
of such hellish deeds! Blush, oh sun! for making such to-morrows; for
lending thy light to human intelligence by which to do such diabolical
wickedness!
* * * * *
Observing no signs of surrender, Cortés opened fire with his cannon
and gave the signal of attack. Another massacre followed, the
Mexicans displaying the same apathy and sullen indifference to death
as on other late occasions. At some points, however, large bodies
surrendered, and the remaining Mexican quarters were fast falling
into the conqueror’s hands Sandoval on his side was closely guarding
the water front and preparing to coöperate. Entering the harbor basin
with a portion of the fleet, he bore down on the canoes with a crash,
upsetting the greater number, filled chiefly with nobles and their
families, of whom a large portion perished. The canoes which escaped
scattered in different directions, into canals and corners, most of
them however turning toward a nook of the basin with the brigantines
in hot pursuit. At this moment a few boats of larger build emerged
from a retreat at the other end and paddled rapidly toward the open
lake.
Warned by his commander to watch closely for the emperor, Sandoval
had not failed to observe the movement, and he immediately directed
García de Holguin, captain of the fastest vessel, to overhaul the
fugitives, who might be persons of note. Aided both by sails and oars,
Holguin speedily gained on them, and they began to scatter in different
directions, evidently with a view to confuse him; but a captive on
board indicated one as most likely to contain the emperor.[1220] On
approaching it the archers levelled their cross-bows, whereupon a sign
of surrender was made, with the pleading cry that Quauhtemotzin was
there. As the overjoyed Holguin stepped down to secure his captives,
among whom were the young empress, the king of Tlacopan, and other
prominent personages,[1221] the monarch bade him respect his consort
and his retinue. As for himself, he was at his disposal.
Conducted by his captor, he passed along the streets to the presence
of the conqueror, the object of ten thousand eyes, for rumor had
preceded him. Men rested from the slaughter to gaze at him. In the
distance was heard the din of battle, but along the captive’s path
there fell a hush. His was a striking figure. The grave, careworn face
betokened suffering. He wore a dingy blood-stained robe, and the pallor
which overspread a naturally fair face was yet more heightened by the
feverish brilliancy of the eyes, now bent dejectedly on the ground,
now looking straight before him. He walked with a firm step, and young
as he was, the majestic dignity of the prince and leader impressed
every beholder. “He was quite a gentleman,” graciously affirms Bernal
Diaz. Cortés had stationed himself on the roof of a high building in
the Amaxac ward,[1222] thence to direct operations, and now he caused
a dais to be prepared, and a table with refreshments. When the emperor
approached the guard drew up in line, and the general advanced with
benign dignity and led him to a seat by his side. “Malinche,” said
the captive, “I have done all within my power for the defence of my
people, but the gods have not favored me. My empire is gone, my city
is destroyed, and my vassals are dead. For what have I to live? Rid
me therefore of worthless existence.”[1223] Saying this, with his
hand he touched a dagger in the belt of Cortés. The general sought to
reassure him, declaring that none could resist the Christian’s God.
He had performed his duty bravely, like a good prince, and should be
treated as such.
Although the great end was thus accomplished, slaughter and pillage
were continued until long after vespers. Before the troops withdrew to
their respective camps, the prisoners, including the pretty empress,
Tecuichpo, were conducted to safe quarters in Coyuhuacan. Shortly
afterward a rain set in, aiding the efforts of the Spaniards to check
the auxiliaries in their maraudings, and this, developing toward
midnight into a furious storm with lightning and thunder, seemed
to the homeless Mexicans to be the xiuhcoatl of Huitzilopochtli and
the tumult of departing deities. To the conquerors this flashing and
thundering of heaven’s artillery was the salvo attending victory,
which was celebrated in feasting and merriment till came late slumber
with visions of gold, and lands, and vassals.
* * * * *
Thus ended Tuesday, the 13th of August 1521, sacred to St Hippolytus,
and accordingly adopted by the conquerors as patron saint of the
city. During colonial _régime_ the day was annually celebrated by a
solemn festival, wherein the leading citizens and officials rode on
horseback in procession round the city, headed by the viceroy and the
alférez mayor bearing a banner commemorative of the conquest.[1224]
For seventy-five days consecutively, says Cortés,[1225] the siege had
been wreathing its coils midst almost hourly scenes of bloodshed,
wherein nearly one thousand Spaniards and two hundred times that
number of allies had taken part, one hundred or thereabout of the
former falling, and many thousands among the latter.[1226]
As for the Mexicans, most of the early authorities assert that fully
one hundred thousand perished, besides those who died from pest and
famine.[1227] At the order of their sovereign, after the proclamation
of peace, the miserable remnant began to evacuate their pest-holes,
and to seek the fields adjacent, now lustrous green under refreshing
rains. Ah! it was pitiful, life to them now, this world a great
charnel-house filled with the bones of their loved ones, and their
hearts dead though still bleeding. What were their sins more than
those of others, that they should be so stricken, that they should
be so ground to the dust while the conquerors flushed with victory
were exulting before God because he had so ordered and accomplished?
They had sacrificed human beings on the altars of their gods, sixty
thousand in one year, some said. But what were these butcheries of the
Spaniards but human sacrifices, of more than six times sixty thousand
in one year! Behold them as they file along the causeway, the very
sun striking black and stifling on their famine-stricken forms and
agonized faces. On them, then, ye conquerors! Complete your work;
for in its swift continuance is their earliest rest![1228]
The 14th of August the troops entered the surrendered quarters to
review their work and its results. “I swear,” writes Bernal Diaz,
“that the lake and houses and abodes were so full of bodies and heads
of dead men that I am unable to convey an idea thereof; for in the
streets and courts of Tlatelulco there were no other things, and we
could walk only amidst dead bodies.”[1229] Many became sick from
the stench, and Cortés ordered fires to be lighted to purify the
air. Natives were sent to bring forth the dead, and with them went
Spaniards seeking for gold, silver, precious stones, and plumage,
leaving textile fabrics and other less valued effects to the allies;
but the quantity known to have been obtained fell far below their
extravagant expectations, and in their disappointment the soldiers
searched the persons of fugitives, looking into their very mouths
for hidden gold, says a native record. Bernal Diaz complains that
the brigantine crews had already plundered the wealthiest persons,
who were in the canoes, and had sacked the treasure-houses while the
others were fighting. They in their turn affirmed that the Mexicans
had cast their treasures into the lake. The mysterious depths harbor
many secrets, and beneath the waters, round the famed city of the
Aztecs, tradition still places glittering deposits of untold extent.
Three or four days after the fall, Cortés passed over to Coyuhuacan
with the greater part of his forces, there more formally to celebrate
the end of the siege in banqueting and thanksgiving. A feature of the
performance was a solemn procession by all the soldiers, bareheaded,
with banners, raising their voices in praise to God, who had given
them the victory, and who was so soon to be worshipped from gulf to
southern sea.[1230]
The services of the allies being at present no longer needed, Cortés
assembled them to speak farewell. He dwelt in flattering terms on their
brave and effective deeds. He promised they should be duly represented
to his majesty, who would reward them with singular privileges. To
the chiefs were then given shields, robes, and other articles, with
promises of more lands and vassals. Then they went their way, happy
in their slaves and spoils, happy in the thought of humbled foe, happy
in the promises of the Spaniards; they did not know, poor simpletons,
that all along the days and nights of this terrible siege, with sword
and lance on Aztec breast, they had been forging their own fetters,
which they and their children long must wear.[1231]
* * * * *
The conquest of Mexico was less a subjugation by Spanish soldiers
than their skilful manœuvring of New World forces against one another.
Had Anáhuac been united it would have succumbed less readily, perhaps
never. As it was, while the native nations were slaying each other,
fighting out their ancient feuds, the astute Spaniards laid their
all-possessing hand upon the country.
Nor was any apology on their part needed before Christendom. Mankind
to this day have not become so humane and just as not to find excuse
for any wrong within the realms of strength and inclination. What
then could be expected of an age and nation wherein it was not
uncommon to cloak crime under the fair garb of religion. Hitherto
came the Spaniards to murder and to rob: to rob and murder in the
name of charity and sweet heaven. No excuses were necessary, however
convenient to that end came the appeals of the Cempoalans groaning
under terrible oppression at the hand of a race delighting in blood
and extortion; a race which within two centuries had risen from a
degrading servitude largely by means of intrigue and treachery; a
race stamped with ignoble characteristics born of serfdom, and eager
to retaliate on others for their past humiliation, yet energetic,
enterprising, and advancing with rapid strides along the pathway
of indigenous culture. Ambitious to rule, they sent their armies to
bring province after province under the yoke. Rapacious collectors
followed to press the substance out of the people, for the appetite
of themselves and their masters. Confiscation, enslavement, and
desolation marched in the train, and the fairest hopes of the land
were dragged away in bondage, and to bleed on the stone of sacrifice.
To all these appalling evils the Totonacs, among others, were exposed,
when soldiers appeared on their shores bearing aloft the symbol of
charity, of deliverance. The crushed family appealed to them, also the
writhing slaves, for from the altars of hideous idols rose the dying
shrieks of youths and maidens. But a short time before knights of
different orders swarmed over Europe, the professed champions of the
oppressed; and the spirit of the crusaders still lingered in Spain,
in form if nothing more; and what Christian soldier could unheedingly
view such outrages!
Montezuma and his people were inhuman monsters, and Grotius,
Montesquieu, and others who should know, say that war in behalf of
humanity is a duty;[1232] and this notwithstanding the remedy be
tenfold more inhuman than the disease.
Not that the Spaniards were insincere in their proffers of such
excuses; duty comes to us in the color of our desires. Moreover,
they were fresh from the Moorish wars; they were imbued with a
religious exaltation and chivalric sentiment that placed before them
in varied light duty to their God, their king, and themselves. For
centuries they had been trained to devote life and possessions to
advance the interests of sovereign and church. Many of the noblest
characteristics were interwoven in the nature of Cortés, and also
with admirable distinctness in such men as Juan Velazquez, Sandoval,
and Puertocarrero. In others we find the dignity of the hidalgo
upheld without marked stain, and this notwithstanding the tendency
to intrigue, the disregard for truth and justice, and a yielding to
certain vices on the part of leaders, and the greed and brutality
of rank and file. But even among the common soldiers, in fairness we
cannot disregard the echo of noble sentiment, the aspiration toward
high emprise there present. It is the leader, however, who with all
his selfish cruelties and unprincipled trickeries must ever remain
the central figure of our admiration. If ever there was a hero, a
genius of war worthy the adoration of war worshippers, if ever there
were grand conception and achievement, all were vividly displayed in
the mind and person of Hernan Cortés.
An able French writer, comparing the siege of Mexico with that of
Troy, depicts Cortés as an Achilles in whom were combined the talents
of Agamemnon and Ulysses.[1233]
In some respects, and as compared with his companions, he indeed
approached the deity the Mexicans thought him. Behold him out upon
this venture, throwing life to the winds that waft him from Cuba,
sinking his ships behind him, plunging into the heart of a hostile
country, and with a handful of men opposing powerful armies, quelling
insurrections, capturing his captors, turning enemies into allies,
balancing upon his finger contending powers, and after the grand
cataclysm opened by him on the central plateau has spent itself,
he quietly pockets the prize. No Alexander, or Scipio, or Cæsar, or
Napoleon ever achieved results so vast with means so insignificant.
It was indeed a rare piracy!
* * * * *
Taken as a whole, the testimony of eye-witnesses and the early
chroniclers on the conquest may be considered as fully up to the
average of historical evidence. While there was no little exaggeration,
and some downright mendacity, such were the number of the witnesses,
the time, place, and circumstances of their several relations, and the
clearness of their testimony, that we find no difficulty with regard
to any important matters in determining truth and falsehood. When in
addition to the writings of the Spaniards we have native records and
architectural remains as collateral evidence, every honest searcher
after truth may be satisfied.
In regard to the two writers by the name of Diaz who accompanied
the first expedition to Mexico, I have spoken of the _Itinerario
de Grijalva_ of the priest, and before closing this volume I will
review the _Historia Verdadera_ of the soldier. Following these were
the memorials of the relatives of Velazquez, wholly unreliable; the
relation of the Anonymous Conqueror, whose statements were for the
most part true; many documents, such as the _Carta del Ejército_, and
_Probanza de Lejalde_, as well as the _Cartas de Cortés_, in the main
true, but which may properly be accepted only after close scrutiny
and careful comparison; the reports of Zurita, and the innumerable
papers and documents lately brought to light by Navarrete, Ramirez,
Icazbalceta, Ternaux-Compans, and others, and published as _Coleccion
de Documentos Inéditos_, _Coleccion de Documentos para la Historia de
Mexico_, etc.; native and Spanish historians, Tezozomoc, Camargo, and
Ixtlilxochitl; Duran, Veytia, Sahagun, Mendieta, and Las Casas; Oviedo,
Peter Martyr, and Gomara; Herrera, Torquemada, Solis, and Clavigero;
Bustamante, Robertson, Prescott, and Brasseur de Bourbourg. These
and others of but little inferior importance offer ample foundation
on which the modern historian may safely rear his superstructure.
I say that it is easy enough to determine truth from falsehood in such
a study as this, where the evidence is so abundant and the witnesses
are so widely separated. When Torquemada enters into a long argument
to show that the misery wrought by the conquest was the punishment
by God for the vices of the Mexicans, I do not discuss the matter. I
willingly admit that the ancient historian knew, if indeed he knew
anything about it, more concerning the mind of the deity than the
modern, though the latter might ask if the sufferings of the Spaniards
were not in like manner on account of their vices.
The books treating of Cortés’ achievements, as I have said, form an
immense array, as may be expected from the importance and interest
of what Robertson justly terms “the most memorable event in the
conquest of America,” involving the subjugation of the richest and
most advanced country therein, the fall of its beautiful and renowned
city, and one of the most daring campaigns ever undertaken. The
narrative reads indeed like a romance rather than history based on
stern facts, and it is not strange that men have arisen who seek to
cast doubt, not alone on certain incidents, but on the main features
of the achievement and the field.
One method of doubt has been to lower the estimate of native culture
and resources; to sneer at the large cities, magnificent palaces,
regal state, certain industrial and fine arts, picture-writing, and
other evidences of a higher culture. Such statements reveal to the
experienced student a lamentable disregard or ignorance of evidence
extant, of ruins with their massive form, their beautifully designed
ornamentation, their admirable sculptured and plastic delineation of
the human figure, both far in advance of the conventional specimens
of Egypt, and the former equal in many respects to the productions of
the higher Greek art. The picture-writing, again, reveals the phonetic
element so developed as to endow the Mexicans with that high proof of
culture, written records, applied not only to historic incidents and
common facts, but to abstract subjects of philosophic, scientific,
and poetic nature, as instanced in my _Native Races_.
It needed not the official investigation instituted by the Spanish
government to confirm the mute testimony of relics, and the vivid
declaration of chroniclers. Native records exist in sufficient
abundance to speak for themselves; records written by and for the
people, and therefore free from any suspicion of misrepresentation;
records used by a number of writers for obtaining that insight into
esoteric features of Nahua institutions which could not well be
acquired by Spaniards. The translation of these records, as reproduced
in the volumes of Sahagun, Ixtlilxochitl, Kingsborough, and others,
with copies of original paintings, have been carefully used both
for the _Native Races_ and the histories of Mexico and Guatemala,
and introduced indeed more thoroughly in this series as evidence
than by any modern writer on the subject, not excepting the learned
Abbé Brasseur de Bourbourg, though unlike this enthusiast I have not
allowed myself to accept this evidence with the same non-critical
bias. I have merely used it for what it is worth, after applying
severe analytic tests. Certain points may be covered by merely one
or two authorities; but even then the erudite student will readily
determine the value of the testimony from internal evidence, while in
the generality of cases he will find a number of versions by natives
and Spaniards, by partisans and rivals, whose contradictions will
aid him in determining the truth.
* * * * *
In a previous bibliographic note I have pointed out the many internal
evidences furnished by the letters of Cortés, of undoubted reliability
on most points, in their minuteness, their frank soldierly tone, and
other features. They are besides confirmed in all the more essential
points by the contemporaneous letters from the municipality of Villa
Rica and the army, the sworn depositions before the royal notary by
leading officers, the narratives of Andrés de Tápia, and others. Still
stronger confirmation is given in the complaints and memorials issued
by enemies and rivals of the great captain, who in their efforts to
detract from his character and achievements provide the historian
with material that enables him to avoid the pitfalls abounding
even in the honest narratives of partisans, either from sympathy,
from lack of thorough knowledge, or from hearsay. Such testimony
is abundant in the residencia investigations of Cortés, Alvarado,
Guzman, and others, all which contain voluminous testimony on the
most important questions. Prescott’s opportunities for consulting new
material were vastly superior to those of his predecessors. If mine
have been correspondingly greater, it may perhaps to some extent be
due to the example set by him in his earnest researches, and because
since the publication of his volumes, private individuals and learned
societies have striven with increased enthusiasm to bring to light
hidden material, notably from the rich archives of Spain and certain
Latin-American states.
From this mass of what may be termed documentary evidence we turn
to the regular historians and narrators, beginning with Peter Martyr
and Oviedo, who both adhere chiefly to Cortés, though the latter adds
other versions by different eye-witnesses. Sahagun’s account contains
a strange admixture of native absurdities and vague recollections
of converted soldiers. A more complete version is given by Gomara,
the biographer of the great captain, who had access to private and
public archives and individual narratives now lost; but he frequently
colors the incidents to the credit of his hero and his profession.
Nevertheless the value of the text is testified to by his Mexican
translator Chimalpain, who adds some interesting facts from native
records and personal knowledge. The Tezcucan writer Ixtlilxochitl
also follows him pretty closely for the Spanish side, while the
archives left him by his royal ancestors and different narratives
furnish the other side, frequently absurd and highly colored. Camargo
gives a rather brief Tlascaltec version. Gomara’s coloring, which,
in accordance with the method of most historians, leaves the credit
for achievements with the leader, roused the feelings of more than
one of the soldiers who had shared in the glories of that period,
and Bernal Diaz promptly began to write his celebrated _Historia
Verdadera_, which professes to tell the true story and rectify in
particular the so-called blunders of Gomara. Although this profession
is not always to be relied on, the story is most valuable from its
exceeding completeness, its many new facts, and its varied version.
Not long after, Herrera, the official historiographer, began his
decades, wherein for the conquest he uses the material already
printed, with a leaning toward Gomara, yet with several additional
narratives to perfect his own revised version, notably that of Ojeda,
a leading officer under Cortés, and also no small mass of material
from the archives of Spain. Torquemada copies him for the most part,
though he adds much native testimony from Sahagun, from a Tezcucan
writer, and others, making his account of the conquest the most
complete up to that time. Solis elaborates with little critique,
and with a verboseness and grandiloquence that tire. Vetancurt’s
version is comparatively brief, with few additions, and Robertson’s
is a brilliant summary; but Clavigero, while adding not much to
Torquemada’s bulky account, presents it in quite a new form, pruned
of verboseness, re-arranged in a masterly manner, and invested with
a philosophic spirit altogether superior to anything presented till
Prescott’s time. On the above historians and some of Cortés’ letters
are founded the immense array of minor accounts and summaries on the
conquest, both in separate and embodied form, some of them provided
with occasional observations, but for the great part they contain
nothing of any value to the student. Those after Prescott’s time
follow him as a rule. Mexican accounts might naturally be expected to
present useful features, but such is hardly the case. Alaman, Ramirez,
Icazbalceta, Orozco y Berra, Bustamante, and certain writers in the
Boletin of the Mexican Geographical Society, have brought to light
several documents and monographs bearing on particular incidents and
features; but no complete account of real value has been written,
Carbajal’s pretentious version being almost wholly a plagiarism from
Clavigero, Mora’s a hasty compilation, and so on. As for the new bulky
Spanish version by Zamacois, it is not only verbose but superficial
and narrow in its research, blundering even where Prescott points
the way, and representing more a feuilleton issue than a history.
* * * * *
Bernal Diaz del Castillo is, as I have said, the main historian of
the conquest, from the exhaustive thoroughness of his material, as
compared with other original writers, and from his participation in
all its leading scenes, including the discovery voyages. For about
half a century he survives, and sees comrade after comrade disappear
from the field till but five of Cortés’ original company remain, “all
of us very old, suffering from infirmities, and very poor, burdened
with sons and daughters to marry, and grandchildren, and with but a
small income; and thus we pass our days in toil and misery.” He is not
so badly off, however, as he would have us believe, for a comfortable
encomienda supplies every want, and numerous descendants throng round
to minister to his comfort and listen to his tales. But as he recalls
the great achievements wherein he participated, he swells with the
importance of the events, and dwelling on the multiplied treasures
he has assisted to capture, the reward sinks to insignificance. It
is but the chronic grumble, however, of an old soldier that half the
continent would not satisfy. Springing from a poor and humble family
of Medina del Campo, in old Castile, he had embarked at an early age
with the expedition of Pedrarias in 1514 to seek fortune in Darien.
Failing there, he drifts to Cuba in time to join the discovery parties
of Córdoba and Grijalva. Subsequently he enlists under Cortés as a
common soldier, yet somewhat above the mass in the favor of his chief.
“Soldado distinguido,” says Juarros, implying higher birth; but this
is doubtful. There is hardly a prominent incident of the conquest
in which he does not participate, being present in no less than one
hundred and nineteen battles, according to his enumeration, whereof
many a scar remains to bear witness, and many a trophy to attest his
valor. In due time he receives his share of repartimientos of land and
serfs, and settles in Goazacoalco as regidor, with sufficient means to
feed a taste that procures for him the not ill-esteemed nickname of
Dandy. From his life of contentment, though not equal to his claims,
he is torn by the Honduras expedition under Cortés, who gives him at
times the command of a small party, whence comes the sported title of
captain. Afterward for a time he drifts about, and finally settles
in Guatemala city with the rank of regidor perpétuo, and with a
respectable encomienda, obtained partly through the representations of
Cortés to the king. He marries Teresa, daughter of Bartolomé Becerra,
one of the founders of the city, and repeatedly its alcalde, and has
several children, whose descendants survive to witness the overthrow
of the royal banner planted by their forefather. Grandsons figure as
deans of the city church, and an historian of the adopted country
rises in Fuentes y Guzman. _Pinelo_, _Epitome_, ii. 604; _Gonzalez
Dávila_, _Teatro Ecles._, i. 177; _Memorial de Conquistadores_, in
_Monumentos Admin. Munic._, MS.; _Juarros_, _Guat._, i. 338, 350;
_Torquemada_, i. 351.
The leisure afforded him in Guatemala, broken by little save the
inspection of his estate, gave opportunity for indulging in the
reveries of by-gone days. Histories of achievements were nearly all
connected with the great Cortés, famed on every lip; yet that fame
had been acquired with the aid of soldiers who like himself had
been consigned to an obscure corner of the vast domains conquered by
them. It did not seem right to the scarred veteran that the fruits
of combined toil should fall to one or two alone; that he himself
should be regarded far less than hundreds of upstarts whose only
deeds had been to reap the field won by him and his comrades. He
would tell his tale at all events; and forthwith he began to arrange
the notes formed during his career, and to uplift the curtains of
memory for retrospective views. While thus occupied he came upon the
history by Gomara, and perceiving “his great rhetoric, and my work
so crude, I stopped writing, and even felt ashamed to let it appear
among notable persons.” But finding that the biographer of Cortés
had committed many blunders, and had colored the narrative on behalf
of his patron, he again seized the pen, with the double purpose of
correcting such errors and of vindicating his slighted comrades.
Faithfully he carried out his plan, recording name after name of
brave fellows who shed lustre on the flag, who freely risked their
lives in gallant encounters, or who gave their last breath for church
and king. While dwelling lovingly on humble companions, whose cause
he espoused, he detracts little from the leaders and cavaliers. He
describes their appearance and traits with a graphic fidelity that
seems to bring them before us in person; he freely accords them every
credit, and if he spares not their vices they are seldom brought
forward in a captious or ill-natured spirit. On the contrary, he
frequently covers disagreeable facts in deference to the dead. This
general fairness of dealing is particularly noticeable in regard to
Cortés, whom nevertheless he sometimes severely criticises; and while
Diaz assumes for his side the credit of many a suggestion and deed,
yet he is ever the loyal soldier, and frequently takes up the cudgel
in behalf of the honored leader when others seek to assail him. He
admires the great captain hardly less than himself. Indeed, to say
that the old campaigner was vain is stating it mildly. Two licentiates
who read the manuscript pointed this out to him, but he replied, “Whom
does it harm? No one praises an old, broken-down soldier, so I must
even praise myself. It is a duty I owe not only to my fair name but
to my descendants.” He revives in his narrative and carries us back
with him to those stirring days, depicting now the hardships of the
march, now the new countries and races that appear; then he enters
into the heat of battle with a fidelity that brings the din and
turmoil vividly before us; and anon we see the adventurers in camp,
in their social relations, relieved by pleasing episodes. He enters
thoroughly into their hopes and feelings, deeds and life; he grows
eloquent and pathetic by turns, and reveals also the undercurrent of
piety and zeal which pervaded the rakish crew. Here is the gossipy
frankness of Herodotus, illumined by many a quaint observation and
many a blunt sally. Bernal Diaz had but the rudiments of education,
which nevertheless was above the average among his fellow-soldiers;
but he had evidently read a little in later years, to judge by his
allusions to classic history, though not enough to acquire more than
a mediocre proficiency in grammar. There is a minuteness of detail
at times wearisome, and garrulous digression and repetition; but a
simple perspicuity pervades the whole narrative, which makes it easy
to follow, while the frankness and frequent animation are pleasing.
Much of it appears to have been dictated, perhaps to some one of
his children, “cuyo manuscrito se conserva en el archivo de esta
municipalidad.” _Jil_, in _Gaceta Nic._, June 24, 1865. It was given
for perusal to different persons, and several copies made; but none
cared to assume its publication. Sixty years later, however, Friar
Alonso Remon, chronicler of the Merced order in Spain, found one set
in the library of Ramirez del Prado, of the Council of the Indies,
and perceiving the importance of the narrative, he caused it to be
printed at Madrid in 1632 under the title of _Historia Verdadera de
la Conquista de la Nueva-España_. Remon dying during the publication,
Friar Gabriel Adarzo, “nunc Hydruntinus præsul,” _Antonio_, _Bib.
Hisp. Nova_, iii. 224, took it in charge. Several discrepancies
indicate that revisions have been made, and Vazquez, _Chron. Guat._,
524, whose jealousy as a friar was aroused by allusions to Father
Olmedo, Cortés’ companion, compared the print with the original copy
and pointed out several differences. A second edition, bearing the
date 1632, though published later probably, contains an additional
chapter on omens, which appears in others of the many editions and
translations issued in different countries, even of late years.
* * * * *
Perhaps the most clear-sighted writer on Mexico during the last
century was Francisco Javier Clavigero, himself a native of that
country, and born at Vera Cruz in 1731. His father was a Leonese,
whose official duties called him to different parts of the country,
and young Francisco profited by this to acquire a knowledge of
its resources and idioms. After a novitiate of three years at the
Jesuit college of Tepozotlan, he passed to that at Puebla, and there
studied philosophy and theology, and showed particular fondness for
languages, both classic and native. He taught rhetoric and philosophy
in the principal schools of the country, though restricted somewhat
by the superiors in his too liberal ideas, for which Mexico was not
yet considered ripe. Meanwhile his enthusiasm centred on the study
of Aztec history and hieroglyphs, which received a serious check in
the expulsion of Jesuits from America in 1767. He sought refuge in
Italy, staying chiefly at Bologna, where he founded an academy, and
having considerable leisure he began to shape the results of his late
studies, impelled in no small degree by the writings of De Pauw and
Robertson, which grated on his patriotic spirit. They were prepared
in Spanish, but the authorities giving no encouragement for their
publication in Spain, an Italian translation was made and issued in
four volumes, as _Storia Antica del Messico_, Cesena, 1780, dedicated
to the university at Mexico. Subsequently a Spanish version appeared,
but not before several editions had been published in England and
other countries. The first volume treats of resources and ancient
history, the second of manners and customs, the third of the conquest,
and the fourth consists of a series of dissertations on the origin of
the Americans, on chronology, physique, languages, and other points.
They have been widely quoted, and Francisco Carbajal de Espinosa has
shown such appreciation of it as to copy almost the whole text in what
he calls his _Historia de Mexico_, Mex., 1856, 2 vols. Clavigero’s
work is based to a great extent on aboriginal records and personal
observation, and the old chronicles have been largely used; but their
cumbrous and confused material is here arranged in a manner worthy of
the liberal-minded philosopher and rhetorician. Indeed, no previous
work in this field can at all compare with it for comprehensiveness
and correctness, depth of thought and clearness of expression. In the
former respect he greatly surpasses Robertson and in the latter he
may be classed as his equal. His death, which took place at Bologna in
1787, found him in the midst of a number of literary projects, called
forth in part by the success of the _Storia_, and by the different
subjects which he had therein touched but lightly. Among these works
was the _Storia della California_, issued at Venice two years after
his death. It will be noticed in due order.
There can be no more fitting close to this volume on the conquest
of Mexico than a tribute of esteem to William Hickling Prescott. I
have noted in a previous volume his amiable weakness, incident to
the times rather than to the man, of intensifying the character of
prominent personages so as to present the good better and the bad
worse than they truly were, in order to render his narrative stronger
and more interesting than it would be otherwise; but this is nothing
as compared with his general fairness, united with a magnificent
style and philosophic flow of thought. I have noted some inaccuracies
and contradictions in his history, but these are nothing as compared
with his general care and correctness as a writer. I have mentioned
material which he lacked, but this is nothing as compared with the
great mass of fresh evidence which he brought to enrich his subject.
Words fail to express my admiration of the man, the scholar, the
author. Apart from the din and dust of ordinary life, he lived as
one in the world but not of it, pure of mind, gentle of heart, and
surpassingly eloquent.
Mr Prescott was born at Salem, Massachusetts, May 4, 1796. His
father, a lawyer of rising reputation, then thirty-four years of age,
removed his family to Boston in 1808. At the age of fifteen William
entered Harvard College. While engaged in a boyish frolic one day
during his junior year a large hard piece of bread, thrown probably
at random, struck full in his left eye, forever depriving him of its
use. Pursuing his studies with his wonted cheerfulness, he graduated
in 1814, and entered upon the study of law in his father’s office. In
1815 a rheumatic inflammation settled in his right eye, now his sole
dependence, causing him much pain and anxiety. A change of climate
having been determined upon, he embarked for the Azores, on a visit to
his grandfather Hickling, then United States consul at Saint Michael.
There he remained about six months, confined the greater part of the
time to a dark room. In April 1816 he embarked for London, crossed
to Paris, made the usual Italian tour, and the following year, his
eye becoming worse, he returned home. But hope for the restoration of
his sight still lingered, and the marvellous buoyancy of his spirits
never deserted him. A devoted sister cheered the long hours of his
solitude by readings from his favorite authors. A literary venture
made at this time in a contribution to the _North American Review_
failed; his manuscript was returned, and his sister, alone in the
secret, was enjoined to silence.
Leaving his darkened chamber and mingling again with society, of
which he was ever a bright ornament, he became attached to a daughter
of Thomas C. Amory, a Boston merchant, whom he married on his
twenty-fourth birthday.
Mr Prescott now abandoned the hope of the entire restoration of his
eye. If by restrictions of diet and dieting and by persistent open-air
exercise he might preserve a partial use of the organ he would rest
content. And thus he passed the remainder of his life. At times he
was in almost total darkness, but ordinarily he could read and revise
his manuscripts; for the purpose of writing, however, he was obliged
to use a noctograph.
Possessing strong literary tastes, and an aversion to law, Mr Prescott
determined upon literature as a pursuit, and in 1826, with the aid of
a secretary, he began a systematic course of reading for a history of
Ferdinand and Isabella. For three years and a half he pursued this
preparatory labor; in 1829 he began writing, publishing the work in
1837. Ten of the best years of his life Mr Prescott claims to have
devoted to this book; and for the use of the stereotype-plates, which
Mr Prescott supplied at his own cost, and the right to publish twelve
hundred and fifty copies, the American Stationers’ Company agreed to
pay the sum of one thousand dollars. But money was not the author’s
object. The publication in London was offered to John Murray and to
the Longmans, and was declined by both. Bentley finally became the
London publisher. The work was well received on both sides of the
Atlantic; it was translated into several languages, and procured for
the author at once a world-wide reputation. The _Conquest of Mexico_
was a worthy outgrowth of so splendid a creation as the _Ferdinand and
Isabella_. The year following the publication of his first work, and
after having sent to Spain and Mexico for materials for histories of
the conquests of Mexico and Peru, Mr Prescott learned accidentally that
Mr Irving was engaged on similar work. He wrote Irving, acquainting
him of the fact, and the latter retired gracefully from the field.
In 1843 the _Conquest of Mexico_ appeared, under the auspices of the
Harpers, who paid $7500 for the use of the plates and the right to
publish 5000 copies. The _Conquest of Peru_ was published in 1847;
_Philip the Second_ in 1855-8; and _Robertson’s Charles the Fifth_
in 1856. Mr Prescott died of apoplexy in the sixty-third year of his
age.
For his _Conquest of Mexico_, besides all printed material extant,
Mr Prescott drew upon a large mass of new information in manuscript,
from several sources, notably from the valuable collection of Muñoz,
brought together for an intended history of America; that of Vargas
Ponce, obtained chiefly from Seville archives; that of Navarrete,
president of the Royal Academy of History at Madrid; and the archives
of Cortés’ heirs, all of which shed new light on almost every
section of the subject. His deep research, manifest throughout in
copious foot-notes, is especially displayed in the very appropriate
introduction on Mexican civilization, which enables the reader to gain
an intimate knowledge of the people whose subjugation he follows. Good
judgment is also attested in the dissertation on the moot question of
the origin of this culture, wherein he prudently abstains from any
decided conclusions. The fact of occasional inaccuracies cannot be
severely criticised when we consider the infirmity under which the
author labored. Since his time so great a mass of material has been
brought to light that the aspect of history is much changed. This
new material consists partly of native records, and it is due to his
unacquaintance with these records that a great lack is implied in his
pages. The fact that Prescott relied too much on Spanish material
may account for the marked bias in favor of the conquerors in many
instances where strict impartiality might be expected, and for the
condemnatory and reflective assertions which at times appear in direct
contradiction to previous lines of thought. At times, as if aware of
this tendency, he assumes a calmness that ill fits the theme, giving
it the very bias he seeks to avoid. Yet with all this it is safe to
say that few histories have been written in which the qualities of
philosopher and artist are so happily blended.
FOOTNOTES
[1190] Herrera, dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. ii., lib. i. cap.
xx., places this incident on the third day of entry into
the city.
[1191] ‘Todos los mas principales y esforzados y valientes.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 244. And 2000 captives. _Ixtlilxochitl_,
_Hor. Crueldades_, 43. ‘Tuuieron bien q̄ cenar aquella noche
los Indios nuestros amigos,’ observes Gomara, unctuously.
_Hist. Mex._, 209. Bernal Diaz, who claims to have been
among the 100 select, intimates that Alvarado also formed an
ambuscade that day, though less effective. _Hist. Verdad._,
153-4. In rushing from the hiding-place, says Cortés, two
horses collided, one of them throwing its rider and charging
alone amid the foe. After receiving several wounds it sought
refuge among the soldiers and was conducted to camp, where
it died.
[1192] ‘Fué bien principal causa para que la ciudad mas
presto se ganase,’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 245, but this must
be regarded as an exaggerated estimate.
[1193] _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. ii. Torquemada,
i. 560, 564, wavers, intimating in one place that all were
determined to die. When the people at last inclined to
peace, says Gomara, Quauhtemotzin opposed it on the ground
that they had once decided for war, ‘contra su voluntad y
consejo.’ _Hist. Mex._, 213. Most of the revelation was made
by a woman of rank, it appears. Carried away by his love
for hero-painting, Prescott has either missed or ignored
the facts which now reveal his false coloring.
[1194] ‘Y asi escondidas huvo algunos Principales de las
Provincias cercanas que acudieron con algun maiz para solo
llevar joyas.’ That is, where the cruisers allowed such
smuggling. _Duran_, _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 497.
[1195] About 1000 were killed, says Ixtlilxochitl, _Hor.
Crueldades_, 44; but Cortés puts the killed and captured
at more than 800. _Cartas_, 245.
[1196] ‘Osauan nuestros vergantines romper las estacadas
... remauan con gran fuerça y ... a todas velas.’ _Bernal
Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 150.
[1197] ‘De la Capitana, que èl havia salvado,’ says Herrera,
while asserting that the captain Villafuerte abandoned her;
but this hardly agrees with his own later statements that
Villafuerte remained in charge of the fleet, dec. iii.
lib. i. cap. xxi.; lib. ii. cap. viii. The slain leader
is called the lieutenant-general of Quauhtemotzin, and
his death ‘fue causa, que mas presto se ganase la Ciudad,’
_Torquemada_, i. 558, all of which is doubtful. A similar
reward to that of Lopez was accorded on another occasion
to a soldier named Andrés Nuñez, who after the captain had
abandoned his vessel led her to the rescue of two consorts.
When the commander came to resume his post Nuñez refused
to admit him, saying that he had forfeited it. On being
appealed to, Cortés sustained the brave fellow and gave
him the command, in which capacity he rendered important
service. _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. i.
[1198] July 25th, according to Clavigero, while Torquemada
less correctly makes it August 5th.
[1199] The Spanish corruption of Quauhtemotzin. ‘La calle
qᵉ ba al tianguiz de Tlatelulco qᵉ se llama de Guatimosa.’
_Libro de Cabildo_, MS., 88.
[1200] Herrera names Magallanes as one of those who succumbed
under the onslaught of a chief, but his death was avenged
by Diego Castellanos, a noted marksman. dec. iii. lib. i.
cap. xx. On this occasion Ixtlilxochitl intimates that his
namesake captured his brother, the usurper king of Tezcuco,
and surrendering him to Cortés, he was at once secured with
shackles. _Hor. Crueldades_, 42-3. ‘De manera que de cuatro
partes de la ciudad, las tres estaban ya por nosotros.’
_Cortés_, _Cartas_, 246.
[1201] At the corner of the street leading to Sandoval’s
quarter. _Id._, 247.
[1202] I knew three of them, writes Bernal Diaz. ‘Las
enterramos en vna Iglesia, que se dize aora los Mártires.’
_Hist. Verdad._, 153.
[1203] For a full description see _Native Races_, ii. 382
et seq.
[1204] Cortés saw the smoke from his camp, from which
he was preparing to start. _Cartas_, 247. Herrera leaves
the impression that Alférez Montaño captured the temple,
dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. i., but he was probably only the
first to step on the summit. Bernal Diaz, who fought under
Alvarado, states distinctly that Badajoz led the party, but
he is no doubt incorrect in adding that the fight on the
top continued till night. _Hist. Verdad._, 153. Torquemada,
i. 565, refers to the temple as the Acatliyacapan. Duran
makes Cortés appeal to the Chalcans, and they ‘tomando
la delantera del Ejército, y con ellos Yxtlilxachitl ...
ganaron el Cue grande.’ _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 506. This
must be a Chalcan version.
[1205] _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 210. Cortés calls them wounded
merely. Sahagun’s native version of the plaza fight is very
confusing, and mixed with that of the struggle against the
other divisions, ‘y tomaron los bergantines [two] á los
españoles, y lleváronlos á una laguna que llaman _Amanalco_.’
_Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 202-3. But this must be a mistake.
[1206] ‘Que se llama Atenantitech, donde ahora està edificada
la Iglesia de la Concepcion, junto de la Albarrada.’
_Torquemada_, i. 553. Tetenamitl ward, says Sahagun in one
edition. _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 209.
[1207] This or a third relic bore the name of Mamalhuaztli.
Sahagun also refers to a divine bow and arrow. _Hist. Conq._,
53-4. But his editions vary in text; see that of 1840,
210-12. The serpent was invoked even after the conquest,
says the pious friar, and he heard Father Tembleque relate
that he one day opened his window during a storm and had his
left eye injured by a ray of lightning, which damaged the
house and adjoining church. This ray, the Mexicans assured
him, was the Xiuhcoatl, conjured up by the sorcerers, for
they had seen it issue in the form of a big snake through
the door. The editor Bustamante tells an equally impressive
story in connection with an attempt to account for the
snake and lightning.
[1208] One being killed and two horses wounded. _Bernal
Diaz_, loc. cit.
[1209] _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 213. The editor
Bustamante speaks of a similar phenomenon in Michoacan in
1829. _Id._ (ed. 1829), 68.
[1210] ‘De los niños no quedó nadie, que las mismas madres
y padres los comian,’ is the statement of the native
records. _Id._, 210. Yet Torquemada, i. 572, assumes that
the Mexicans would not eat of their own race. Thousands had
already died of starvation without touching the flesh of
countrymen, though priests partook of children sacrificed
during ordinary festivals; but at last the scruple among
the masses was overcome by despair. See _Native Races_,
ii. passim.
[1211] ‘Porque no acabas cõ el que nos acabe?... Desseamos la
muerte por yr a descansar cõ Quetçalcouatlh,’ adds Gomara,
_Hist. Mex._, 210-11.
[1212] The chroniclers call him an uncle of the Tezcucan
king, but this appears to be a misinterpretation of Cortés’
text, wherein he says that such an uncle had captured the
prisoner.
[1213] _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 251. This was partly in accordance
with the law against nobles who returned from captivity,
as already instanced.
[1214] ‘Tenia mucho miedo de parecer ante mí, y tambien
estaba malo.’ _Cortés_, _Cartas_, 253. ‘Empacho,’ explains
Herrera, dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. vii. He feared to be shot.
_Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 164.
[1215] ‘Ni tenian ni hallaban flechas ni varas ni piedras
con que nos ofender.... No tenian paso por donde andar sino
por encima de los muertos y por las azoteas.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 254.
[1216] ‘Mataron y prendieron mas de cuarenta mil ánimas.’
_Id._ Ixtlilxochitl, _Hor. Crueldades_, 48, raises the
number to 50,000, while Duran states that over 40,000 men
and women perished while fleeing. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii.
510. What pained the conquerors most, however, was the sight
and knowledge of what immense quantity of booty eluded them
to pass into the hands of these marauders.
[1217] ‘Entre la Garita del Peralvillo, la place de Santiago
de Tlatelolco et le pont d’Amaxac.’ So says Pichardo.
_Humboldt_, _Essai Pol._, i. 193. ‘Donde se embarcaban para
Atzlapotzalco,’ adds Bustamante. _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hor.
Crueldades_, 50.
[1218] Chimalpain calls him Tlacotzin, afterward baptized
as Juan Velasquez. _Hist. Conq._, ii. 71. ‘Ciguacoacin, y
era el Capitan y gobernador de todos ellos, é por su consejo
se seguian todas las cosas de la guerra,’ says Cortés,
_Cartas_, 255.
[1219] ‘Porque les queria combatir y acabar de matar.’
_Cartas_, 256. ‘Pues eran barbaros, que no queria dexar
hombre vivo, q̄ se fuessen.’ _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. ii.
cap. vii.
[1220] The distinguished captive said: ‘Capitan señor,
dáte buena maña, que aquellos indios ... son esclavos de
Guatimuçin, é podrá ser quél va allí huyendo, porque su
bandera ya no paresçe.’ _Oviedo_, iii. 516. A canoe of twenty
rowers and bearing a number of people. _Gomara_, _Hist.
Conq._, 212. See also _Vetancvrt_, _Teatro Mex._, pt. iii.
164; _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii. 230. A small canoe,
says Duran.
[1221] Torquemada, i. 570-1, followed by Clavigero, mentions
besides Tetlepanquetzaltzin, king of Tlacopan, the fugitive
king of Tezcuco; but this is doubtful, as we have seen.
He enumerates several dignitaries. Brasseur de Bourbourg
names Tlacahuepan, son of Montezuma, while his authority,
Ixtlilxochitl, states that his namesake captured him
and Tetlepanquetzaltzin in another canoe, and in a third
Papantzin Oxomoc, widow of Emperor Cuitlahuatzin. _Hor.
Crueldades_, 50. ‘Quahutimoc se puso en pie en la popa de
su canoa para pelear. Mas como vio ballestas ... rindiose.’
_Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._, 213. This probably assumed fact
has been elaborated by some writers into an heroic act.
The incident has been placed by tradition as occurring near
the later Puente del Clérigo. But this can hardly be. See
note 27. According to Bernal Diaz, Sandoval came up shortly
after, on learning the news, and demanded the surrender of
the captives to him as the commander of the fleet, who had
ordered Holguin to pursue the canoes. The latter refused,
and a delay occurred, during which another crew hurried to
bear the tidings to Cortés and claim the reward granted
for first reports. Two captains were now sent to summon
the disputants and captives. _Hist. Verdad._, 155. Cortés,
while according in his letter the credit of the capture to
Holguin, promised to refer the claim to the king. Holguin
figures some years later as regidor and estate owner in
the city.
[1222] ‘Esta casa era de un principal tlatilulcano que se
llamaba Aztaoatzin.’ _Sahagun_, _Hist. Conq._, 55.
[1223] The versions of this remarkable speech vary greatly.
‘Habia hecho todo lo que de su parte era obligado para
defenderse á si y á los suyos hasta venir en aquel estado,
que ahora ficiese dél lo que yo quisiese.’ _Cortés_,
_Cartas_, 257. ‘Diçiéndole que le diesse de puñaladas é lo
matasse, porque no era raçon que viviesse en el mundo hombre
que avia perdido lo que’l avia perdido,’ adds Oviedo, iii.
422. ‘Preguntáronle por los chripstianos, é dixo: No me
preguntés esso; é si me quereys matar; matadme ya: que harto
estoy de vivir,’ says another version. _Id._, 517. ‘Iria mui
consolado adonde sus dioses estaban, especialmente haviendo
muerto à manos de tal Capitan.’ _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib.
ii. cap. vii. ‘Why so stubborn?’ is the way Duran opens the
conversation on Cortés’ part. _Hist. Ind._, MS., ii. 509.
‘Toglietemi con questo pugnale una vita, che non perdei nella
difesa del mio Regno.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia Mess._, iii.
230. See also Ixtlilxochitl and others. Writers generally
go into ecstacy over this utterance. ‘Magnanimo,’ exclaims
Peter Martyr, dec. v. cap. viii. ‘Heroic,’ ejaculates
Bustamante in support of Chimalpain’s encomium. _Hist.
Conq._, ii. 75. ‘Ce trait est digne du plus beau temps de
la Grèce et de Rome.’ _Humboldt_, _Essai Pol._, i. 193.
‘A spirit worthy of an ancient Roman,’ echoes Prescott,
_Mex._, iii. 206. Bernal Diaz says the emperor wept, and
with him his chiefs. _Hist. Verdad._, 155.
[1224] Made a few years later by order of the city council.
It was not, as many suppose, the original standard, for
this was hidden during two centuries among rubbish in the
university, as stated in its records. It now exists in the
museum, forming a piece about a yard square, which shows
on one side the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception with
hands joined in prayer, and bearing on her head a crown
of gold surrounded by a halo and a circle of stars; on
the other are the royal arms. _Boturini_, _Idea_, 157.
In his _Catálogo_, 75, this author assumes it to be the
standard given to the Tlascaltecs, but Carbajal states
that at Tlascala exists another standard of Cortés’, with
royal arms, _Hist. Mex._, ii. 637, with a picture of the
above named virgin. See also _Beaumont_, _Crón. Mich._, ii.
345-6. By order of July 31, 1528, the city council orders
bull-fights and other entertainments in honor of the day,
‘e q todos cabalguen los q tovieren bestias.’ _Libro de
Cabildo_, MS., 127, 234. Mexicans are never seen to share
in the procession. ‘Tan profundo está en sus ánimos la
herida.’ _Cavo_, _Tres Siglos_, i. 3; _Humboldt_, _Essai
Pol._, i. 192. A minute account of the ceremonies on the
occasion is given in _Monumentos Hist. Admin. Colon._, MS.,
365, copied from the _Archivo General_.
[1225] Counting from May 30th, _Cartas_, 257, and so it is
stated in the grant to Cortés of Escudo de Armas. Duran
and Ixtlilxochitl extend it to 80 and Bernal Diaz to 93
days. ‘Despues de muchos combates, y mas de sessenta peleas
peligrosisimas.’ _Acosta_, _Hist. Nat. Ind._, 525.
[1226] Over 60 soldiers were lost in the great defeat, and
small numbers now and then, while the auxiliaries, less
skilled in fighting and chiefly unarmored, succumbed in
hordes. Gomara says about 50 soldiers, 6 horses, and not many
Indians; Herrera modifies to ‘a little over’ 50; Torquemada
advances to ‘less than 100,’ and Clavigero to ‘more than
100 Spaniards.’ Hernandez, in his _Estadist. Méj._, 232,
computes such curiously exact figures as 107 Spaniards,
18,915 Tlascaltecs, and 33,240 Aztecs. Ixtlilxochitl, ever
eager to enlarge upon the services of his race, claims
that 30,000 Tezcucans fell out of 200,000 employed, _Hor.
Crueldades_, 51; but this is evidently exaggerated.
[1227] ‘En que murieron infinitos.’ _Gomara_, _Hist. Mex._,
213; _Herrera_, dec. iii. lib. ii. cap. viii.; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Mess._, iii. 232-3. Bustamante raises the number
killed to ‘150,000 at least.’ _Chimalpain_, _Hist. Conq._,
ii. 74; Ixtlilxochitl, loc. cit., to 240,000, including most
of the nobles; while Torquemada, i. 577, observes ‘que de
veinte partes, no quedò vna, aviendo perecido, y muerto las
diez y nueve,’ he and several others allowing the estimate
of fully 300,000 inhabitants. The survivors are estimated
at from 30,000 persons, by Torquemada to 70,000 warriors
by Oviedo, iii. 516.
[1228] ‘Hiço herrar algunos Hombres, y Mugeres por Esclavos;
à todos los demàs dexò en libertad.’ _Torquemada_, 573. ‘À
muchos indios é indias, porque estaban dados por traydores,’
says Oviedo, iii. 517. Cortés stayed and punished those
who took slaves, ‘aunque todavia herraron en la cara á
algunos mancebos y mugeres.’ So states the native record of
Sahagun, _Hist. Conq._ (ed. 1840), 231. But if he punished
slave-takers it was for not declaring the capture to
the royal official. Duran reduces his account of Spanish
liberality to an absurdity, but more from politic reasons
than because he had not at hand better evidence, _Hist.
Ind._, MS., ii. 510.
[1229] _Hist. Verdad._, 156. ‘Io sospetto, che da’ Messicani
lasciati fossero a bella posta insepolti i cadaveri, per
iscacciar colla puzza gli Assediatori.’ _Clavigero_, _Storia
Mess._, iii. 231. But this is unlikely. A severe siege will
produce such results.
[1230] Bernal Diaz relates that although wine and provisions
from Cuba were abundantly dispensed at the banquet, yet
there was not room for one third of the soldiers, and much
discontent grew out of it, partly from the utterances of
drunken men. A dance followed. Father Olmedo complained of
so much revelry before the rendering of due thanks to God.
Cortés pleaded that soldiers must be allowed some license,
but the following day was set apart for religious services.
_Hist. Verdad._, 156.
[1231] Bustamante comments on the non-fulfilment of the
promises to Tlascala, saying that the republic was rightly
served for lending herself to the invaders. _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Conq._, 144. On their way home, says Ixtlilxochitl,
the Tlascaltecs and their neighbors plundered Tezcuco and
other towns. With the slaves carried home by his namesake,
he adds consolingly, the destroyed palaces of Tezcuco were
rebuilt. _Hor. Crueldades_, 52-3. The Tlascaltecs ‘aun
lleuaron hartas cargas de tasajos cecinados de Indios
Mexicanos, que repartieron entre sus parientes ... por
fiestas.’ _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Verdad._, 157.
[1232] ‘Non dubitamus quin justa sint bella ... in eos qui
humanam carnem epulantur,’ etc. _De Jure Belli_, lib. ii.
cap. xx.
[1233] Alvarado was Ajax; Maxixcatzin, Nestor; Quauhtemotzin,
Hector. _Chevalier_, _Mex. Ancien_, 232-41.
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