History of Mexico (Bancroft)/Volume 1/Chapter 12

by Hubert Howe Bancroft

 

CHAPTER XII.

MARCH TOWARD MEXICO.

August-September, 1519.

Enthusiasm of the Army — The Force — The Totonacs Advise the Tlascalac 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.^[1]

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.^[2]

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,^[3] 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,^[4] 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.^[5] With replenished stores the expedition began to ascend the cordillera in reality, and to approach the pine forests vhich mark the border of the tierra fria. Marching through a hard pass named Nombre de Dios,^[6] they entered another province defended by a fortress, named Teoxihuacan,^[7] 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^[8], 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,^[9] 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.^[10]

Cacique Olintetl, nicknamed the temblador from the shaking of his fat body, cane forth with a suite and escorted them through the plaza to the quarters. assigned them, past pryamids 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.^[11] 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,^[12] 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,^[13] "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. Olintetľ'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.^[14] 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.^[15]

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.^[16] 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 the passed onward, reinforced by about three hundred warriors from the town.^[17] 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.^[18]

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 sec on the map,^[19] with twenty-eight towns, and one hundred and fifty thousand families, according to the rough census taken by Cortés.^[20] 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 Tepetiepac, ruled respectively by Xicotencatl, Maxixcatzin, Teohuayacatzin, and Tlehuexolotl.^[21]

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.^[22]

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.^[23] 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.^[24] 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.^[25] 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.^[26] Shortly after a body of over one thousand warriors^[27] 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.^[28] 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.^[29]

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.^[30] 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.^[31] 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 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,^[32] 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^[33] 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.^[34] 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 sen 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.^[35] 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,^[36] 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.^[37] 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.^[38]

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,^[39] 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,^[40] 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.^[41] 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.^[42]

 

 

1. 'Y todos â vna le respondimos, que hariamos lo que ordenasse, que echada estaua la suerte de la buena ò mala ventura.' Bernal Diaz, Hint. Verdad., 40. (191)
2. 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 20 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 lorl of Cempoala to learn the language. 'Tomaron un indio principal que Hamaban 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 caciqucs en route to tender good reception to the strangers. Duran, Hist. Ind.,., MS., ii. 405-10.
3. 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 fellow 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.
4. Identified with Naulinco. Lorenzana, Viage, p. ii.
5. Cortés refers to a friendly chat with the governor, who mentioned the orders he had received to offer the Spaniards all necessities. Cartas, 57.
6. 'Por ser el primero que en estas tierras habíamos pasado. El cual es tan agro y alto, que no lo hay en España otro.' Cortes, Cartas, 57. 'Hoy se llama el Paso del Obispo.' Lorenzana, ubi sup. 'Ay en ella muchas parras con vuas, y arboles co͏̄ miel.' Gomara, Hist. Mex., 68.
7. 'Hoy se nombra Ixhuacán de los Reyes.' Lorenzana, Viage.
8. 'De Nauhcampa, quatre parties, et tepetl, montagne.' Humboldt, Vues, ii. 191. Equivalent to the Spanish name of Cofre de Perote.
9. 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.
10. 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, p. iii.-iv. 'Llamase....Zaclotan aquel lugar, y el valle Zacatami.' Gomara, Hist. Mex., 68; Oviedo, iii. 260. Cocotlan. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 41.
11. Gomara intimates that the Spaniards were well received, and had 50 men sacrificed in their honor. Hist. Mex., 6S. 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.
12. 'Tenia Montezuma en este pueblo, y su comarca, cinco mil soldados de guarnicion.' Hlerrera, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. ii.
13. Cong. Mex., 42. 'A muchos valientes por ventura desmayara,' says to the contrary Gomara, Hist. Mex., 69.
14. 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.
15. 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.
16. Still Gomara, in his sweeping way, declares that Cortés 'puso muchas cruzes en los templos, derrocàdo 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.
17. Clavigero calls them 'un competente numero di truppe Messicane del presidio di Xocotla,' Storia Mess., iii. 41, which is unlikely.
18. See Native Races, ii. 568, et seq.
19. Fifteen leagues from west to east, ten from north to south, says Torquemada, i. 276. Herrera extends it to 30 leagues in width.
20. '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 Ictters, 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.
21. 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., i. 411-19; Soria, Istoria y Fundacion de la Ciudad de Tlaxcala, MS. in Aztec, sm. 4° of 48 leaves.
22. 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 carry 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 Ånnales des Voyages, xcviii.-ix.
23. 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.
24. 'Segun algunos que lo vieron, cortaron cercen de vn golpe cada pescueco con rieudas y todo.' Gomara, Hist. Mex., 71. 'Io viddi che cōbattēdosi vn dì, diede vn Indiano vna cortellata a vn cauallo . . . . nel petto, che glielo aperse fin alle iteriora, et cadde icōtanēte 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 Remusio, 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.
25. '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.
26. 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 Aless., iii. 42-3.
27. Bernal Diaz says 6000.
28. 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.
29. Tapia gives the higher and Herrera the lower figure, while Ixtlilxochitl makes it 80,000.
30. 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 oue of the final acts of the battle was the capture by Ordaz, with 60 men, of a pass. 'Les matamos muchos Indios, y entre cllos 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.
31. 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.
32. 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 tēplo.' Gomara, Hist. Mex., 74.
33. So Cortés distinctly says. Bernal Diaz writes, however, that this day was devoted to rest. Still, a later observation indicates that Cortés is right.
34. 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.
35. 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.
36. 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.
37. For colors and banners, and how carried, see Native Races, ii. 411-12, and Torquemada, i. 436.
38. Bernal Diaz states that they did not wait for the enemy to attack, but riarched 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.
39. 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 — 290 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 q͏̄ acertaron el passo de la barranca. loc. cit. 76.
40. 'Son of Chichimeclatecle,' says Bernal Diaz, a name which should read Chichimeca-tecuhtli.
41. That of Guaxolcingo-meaning Huexotzinco. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 45. That of Tlehuexolotzin. Clarigero, 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 canp 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.
42. 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 nuertos . . . . porque no viessen los Indios que eranios 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.