A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels Volume Iv Part 2

Montezuma was much struck with the manner in which De Leon expressed himself, and asked Donna Marina what he had said. She answered with much discretion, by mildly advising him to consent immediately to go along with us, a.s.suring him that he would be treated with all the honour and respect he could desire, whereas she was convinced we would put him to death if he refused or even hesitated. Montezuma then offered to put his legitimate son and two daughters into the hands of Cortes, as hostages, and earnestly entreated that he might not be exposed before his subjects as a prisoner.

But Cortes a.s.sured him that nothing short of what had been originally proposed could satisfy us, and that all remonstrances were unavailing. At last he was obliged to consent, saying, "I trust myself with you, let us go! let us go! since the G.o.ds will have it so." Our captains gave him every a.s.surance of their perfect esteem and respect, begging of him not to be offended at their conduct, which was indispensably necessary to their own safety, and requested that he would say to his officers that he went of his own free will, and by the advice of his G.o.ds and priests. His magnificent state litter was now brought for his accommodation, and he proceeded to our quarters in his accustomed pomp, attended by his guards, where he was received and entertained with every mark of respect; yet our posts and centinels were properly placed in every direction to guard against his escape or rescue. He was soon waited on by the princes of his family, and all the princ.i.p.al Mexican n.o.bles, who came to inquire the reason of this change of abode, and whether it was his wish that they should attack us. But he told them that he intended to remain with us for a few days, and commanded them to take no steps which might disturb the peace of the city.

Thus we accomplished the seizure of the great Montezuma. He was attended in our quarters with the same magnificence as in his own palace; his wives, family, and officers being constantly with him, and having always twenty chiefs or counsellors in his presence. He bathed twice a-day, and appeared calm and resigned to his fate. Amba.s.sadors came to him from all the provinces of his empire; some to deliver the accustomed tribute, and others to transact various affairs of importance, all of which was dispatched in the usual manner. I perfectly remember that however great might be the princes or chiefs who had to wait upon him, they always took off their rich dresses and put on plain and coa.r.s.e _nequen_ clothes, and came into the royal apartments in this habit, barefooted, not entering directly, but making a circuit by the wall. On entering the presence they kept their eyes cast down on the ground, and after three profound reverences, always began their addresses in these words, _lord! my lord!

great lord!_ They then displayed certain cloths before him, on which the business they came upon was represented by painting, the particulars of which they explained pointing out the figures by means of nicely polished rods or wands. While this was going on, two old n.o.bles always stood beside the king, who attentively considered every circ.u.mstance, on which they gave him their opinions, and he then dispatched the affair in few words.

The person who had the business with the king then withdrew without reply, making three profound reverences as before, always keeping his eyes on the ground, and his face to the throne till out of sight. On leaving the royal apartments, they rea.s.sumed their rich dresses, in which they walked about the city.

The messengers who had been dispatched with the royal signet to arrest the officers against whom Cortes had complained for the attack on Escalente, soon returned with them to Mexico. I know not what pa.s.sed in the royal presence when they appeared before the king; but he sent them immediately to Cortes to do with them as he pleased. On their examination, when the king was not present, they avowed all that had happened in Totonacapan, but said that they had acted by orders from Montezuma, by whom they had been commanded to levy the royal tribute, and even to attack the Spaniards if they should support the refractory subjects of the empire. On Montezuma being charged with this, he endeavoured to exculpate himself; but Cortes told him, that although his partic.i.p.ation in the guilt of his officers was apparent, and although he had been commanded by his own sovereign to punish with death all who had inflicted death on any of the Spaniards, yet he had so great a regard for his majesty, that he would sooner loose his own life than do him any injury. Notwithstanding these a.s.surances, Montezuma was in great fear of being put to death. Cortes sentenced the Mexican officers to be burnt alive in front of their kings palace, which was immediately carried into execution; and to prevent any commotion while this was taking place, he ordered Montezuma to be put in irons. The unfortunate king could not suppress his sense of this indignity, and wept aloud when the fetters were put on. After the execution was over, Cortes went into the apartment of Montezuma, attended by his five captains formerly mentioned, and took off the irons with his own hands, a.s.suring him with a cordial embrace, that he loved him more even than a brother, and that he hoped soon to extend his dominions to more than double their present size. He is said also to have told him that he was now at liberty to return to his own palace, if he so wished; but we understood that Cortes ordered the interpreters to inform Montezuma, that he was inclined to set him at liberty, but that the other officers refused their consent.

The spirit of the unfortunate king was now entirely subdued, and the tears ran down his cheeks while Cortes was speaking: He declined the offer with thanks, well knowing the emptiness of his words; adding, that he thought it most prudent to remain where he was, to prevent an insurrection in the city. Montezuma requested Cortes to give him his page, Orteguilla, a youth who had already made considerable progress in the Mexican language. Cortes immediately complied, and Orteguilla remained afterwards constantly about the kings person, as Montezuma took great delight in inquiring from him many particulars respecting the manners and customs of Europe; and, from his knowledge of the language, Orteguilla was of great service to us in the sequel, by communicating every circ.u.mstance that was of importance for us to be made acquainted with. Montezuma continued to reside among us, always treated with the utmost respect and attention, as no officer and soldier, even Cortes, ever came into his presence or even pa.s.sed him, without taking of his helmet. He always treated us in return with much courtesey.

The Mexican officers who were publickly executed, were four in number. Of these Quauhpopoca was the princ.i.p.al, two of the others were named _Coatl_ and _Quiabuitl,_ but I have forgot the name of the fourth[7]. As soon as this punishment was made known throughout the provinces of the Mexican empire, it occasioned universal terror among the natives, and the people of Tontonacapan immediately returned to submission to our garrison at Villa Rica.--Let me now pause, and request my readers to consider the train of our heroic acts which I have already related. _First_, we destroyed our s.h.i.+ps, by which we cut off all hope of retreat. _Secondly_, we entered the city of Mexico, in spite of the many alarming warnings we had received. _Thirdly_, we made Montezuma, the sovereign of that great and populous empire, a prisoner, in the midst of his own palace and capital, surrounded by numerous guards. _Fourthly_, we publickly burnt his officers in front of his palace, and put the king in irons during the execution. I now frequently revolve upon these great events in my old age, which still appear as fresh in my memory as if they had only happened yesterday. I say to myself, it was not we who did those mighty things, but we were guided therein by the hand of G.o.d. For without his direction, how was it to be conceived that so small a number as we were, not amounting to four hundred and fifty men, should have dared to seize and put in irons, and publickly burn his officers for obeying his orders, in a city larger and more populous than Venice, and 1500 leagues from our own country.

It was necessary to appoint a successor in the command at Villa Rica, and accordingly Cortes gave the command to Alonzo de Grado, an indifferent soldier, but a good speaker, a handsome man, a musician, and a ready writer, who had always been adverse to our marching to Mexico, and was the chief orator on these occasions, in conveying the sentiments of the opposite party to Cortes. On notifying this appointment, Cortes said to him jocularly, "Senior de Grado, you are now commandant of Villa Rica. See that you fortify it well; but I charge you not to go to war with the wicked Indians, lest they kill you as they have done Juan de Escalente."

This was said ironically, as Cortes well knew he would not venture out of his garrison for any consideration. As we noticed the concealed meaning of Cortes in these words, we could hardly refrain from laughing aloud. He then enjoined him to be kind to the natives, and to protect them from oppression; to use all diligence in completing the fortifications of the wooden fort, and to cause two large chains to be made from the old iron of the destroyed s.h.i.+ps, by the smiths at Villa Rica, which were to be sent immediately to Mexico. De Grado, on arriving at his government, a.s.sumed a lofty demeanour, and ordered the neighbouring Indians who were allied with us, to send him gold and females slaves, neglecting the fortifications, and spending his time in feasting and deep play. What was still worse, he plotted with the adherents of Velasquez to deliver up to him the post with which he had been entrusted. When Cortes learned these things, he repented of having employed a person whose bad dispositions he well knew in a post of so much importance, and sent therefore Sandoval, our alguazil-major to supersede him. Sandoval was accompanied by Pedro de Ircio, who used to amuse him with anecdotes of the families of the Conde de Ureno and Don Pedro Giron, by which means he gained the favour of Sandoval, who never ceased promoting him till he got him to the rank of captain. On his arrival at Villa Rica, Sandoval arrested De Grado, and sent him prisoner to Mexico, under a guard of Indians, by order of Cortes, who would not see him on his arrival, but ordered him to be confined in the stocks, where he remained two days. De Grado afterwards made his peace, and got the office of contador, in place of Avila, who was sent over to Hispaniola as procurador. Sandoval made himself exceedingly popular among the natives in the neighbourhood of Villa Rica, and diligently applied to complete the fortifications. He likewise sent to Mexico by order of the general, all the ironwork necessary for the construction of two vessels which were ordered to be built for sailing on the lake.

Every day after ma.s.s Cortes went with all his officers to pay his respects to Montezuma, asking his orders, the king always affecting to be perfectly contented with his situation. On these occasions the discourse frequently turned upon the principles of our holy faith, and the power of our emperor Don Carlos. At other times Montezuma and Cortes used to play at a game called _totoloque_ by the Mexicans, in which they aim with golden b.a.l.l.s at certain other objects made of gold. Once, when Cortes and Alvarado were playing against Montezuma and his nephew, the king said in a jocular manner, that he would not allow _Tonatiu_, for so he called Alvarado on account of his handsomeness, to mark, as if he cheated; on which we all fell a laughing, as we knew Alvarado was rather given to exaggeration. On these occasions, Cortes gave all his winnings among the Mexican attendants of the king; and Montezuma distributed his among us soldiers of the guard.

Indeed he every day made presents to all of us who attended him, and particularly to Velasquez de Leon, the captain of his guard, who always treated him with much respect and attention. One night, a soldier named Truxillo, was guilty of a very disrespectful action within his hearing, at which Montezuma was much offended, and asked the page Orteguilla who had committed this extreme rudeness. Orteguilla told him that Truxillo was a person of low birth, and knew no better, and then gave him an account of our different ranks and characters, by which he was much gratified. He sent next day for Truxillo, and after reproving him for his unmannerly behaviour, made him a present worth five crowns. Next night, Truxillo committed a similar rudeness, in hopes to get more gold, but Montezuma complained to De Leon, who ordered Truxillo to be relieved, after which he gave him a severe reprimand. Another night, a soldier named Pedro Lopez happened to be unwell, and cursed that dog of an Indian, meaning Montezuma, for occasioning so much trouble. The king overheard this and discovered its meaning, on which he complained to Cortes, who ordered the man to be whipped. After this, proper discipline and strict silence were preserved by the guard, which greatly pleased the king, who knew us all, and used to address us by our names, and was always very kind to us. I was then a young man, and always behaved to him with much respect. The page had informed him that I had been twice on the coast of his empire before the arrival of Cortes, and that I had desired him to say to his majesty that I would be much obliged to him for a handsome Indian girl. He very graciously complied with this request, and calling me before him, addressed me to the following effect: "Bernal Diaz, the young woman I now present to you is the daughter of one of my princ.i.p.al n.o.bles; treat her well, and her relations will give you as much gold, and as many mantles as you can desire." I respectfully kissed his hand, thanking him for his gracious condescension, and prayed G.o.d to bless and prosper him. On which he observed, that my manner spoke me of n.o.ble extraction, and he ordered me three plates of gold, and two loads of mantles. In the morning, after his devotions, according to the manner of his country, Montezuma used to eat a light breakfast of vegetables seasoned with _agi,_ which is a kind of pepper. He then employed a full hour in the dispatch of business, in the way I have formerly mentioned, being attended at this time by twenty counsellors; and in this way, sometimes amusing himself, and sometimes meditating on his situation, he spent the time of his confinement among us.

He had many mistresses, and he used often to give away some of these in marriage among his officers and particular friends. Some of these ladies fell to our lot, and the one I got was a lady of high birth, as she shewed by her manner; after her baptism she was called Donna Francisca.

After the iron materials, with sails and cordage had arrived from Villa Rica, Cortes asked leave from Montezuma to build two brigantines for the purpose of his amus.e.m.e.nt on the lake, and also that he would order the native carpenters to a.s.sist in their construction. Montezuma readily consented, and as there was plenty of oak at no great distance, the work went on expeditiously under Martin Lopez our princ.i.p.al s.h.i.+p-builder, so that the two brigantines were soon built, launched, and rigged. While this was going on, Montezuma begged to be allowed to perform his devotions in the great temple, that his friends and subjects might be satisfied he lived among us by his own choice, and the permission of his G.o.ds. Cortes granted this, under a strict caution to beware of doing any thing that might bring his life in hazard, as he would send a strong guard along with him, with orders to put him to death instantly if any commotion should arise among the people. Cortes likewise insisted that no human sacrifices should be permitted on the occasion. All this being agreed to, Montezuma set out for the temple in his usual pomp, attended by four of our captains, and an hundred and fifty Spanish soldiers, Father Olmedo being likewise present, to prevent any human sacrifice. Montezuma came out of his litter near the temple, where he was met by a number of priests, who carried him up the steps. They had sacrificed four Indians the night before to their accursed idols, as all our endeavours were insufficient to stop that abominable practice, which we were forced to connive at for a season, being afraid to do any thing which might occasion an insurrection. After remaining a short time at his devotions, Montezuma came down from the temple, and returned to our quarters in much good humour, and made presents to all of us who had attended him.

Our two brigantines were now afloat on the lake, fully equipped, and manned by expert sailors, and were found to obey both sail and oar to a wish. When Montezuma learnt this, he requested to go a-hunting to a certain district which was full of game, all other persons being prohibited from hunting there under pain of death. Cortes granted permission, giving warning that his life would pay the forfeit of the smallest attempt to escape, and offered him the use of our s.h.i.+ps to convey him to the hunting ground, which he accepted with much pleasure. The king and his suit embarked in the swiftest of the two vessels, and the other accommodated his son and a number of n.o.bles. Four of our captains attended the king, with a guard of two hundred soldiers, and four bra.s.s guns, with their ammunition and artillery-men, were embarked on the occasion. The wind was fresh, and our sailors took great delight in exerting their utmost skill. Our s.h.i.+ps seemed to fly along the lake, and left a prodigious mult.i.tude of the canoes of the Mexicans far behind. Montezuma landed at the place kept for his hunting, which abounded in game, so that he soon procured a great quant.i.ty of various kinds, such as deer, hares, and rabbits; and having satisfied himself with sport, he reimbarked and came back to Mexico. We discharged our artillery during the voyage, which gave him much amus.e.m.e.nt. He delighted us all by his affability and n.o.ble behaviour, and was held by every one of us in the highest respect. It happened one day, while three of our captains were in his presence, that a hawk flew into the apartment in pursuit of a quail, both these birds and doves being bred about the palace. On this occasion our officers and soldiers admired the beauty and fine flight of the hawk, and Montezuma was curious to know the subject of their discourse: It was accordingly explained to him, as likewise that we were accustomed to tame hawks, and to fly them from our hands in pursuit of game. On this Montezuma gave immediate orders to have the hawk caught for us, and the very same bird was caught and brought to us next morning.

Cacamatzin prince of Tezcuco, the largest town in the empire next to Mexico, took great umbrage at hearing that his uncle Montezuma had been kept many days prisoner by the Spaniards, and that we had opened the treasury of his ancestors. He therefore called a meeting of his princ.i.p.al va.s.sals, and of the neighbouring princes or great feudatories of the Mexican empire, among whom was the lord of Matlatzinco, a renowned warrior and near relation of Montezuma, who was reported to have some pretensions to the throne. His intention in summoning these princes was to persuade them to a.s.semble their forces, in order to attack us, and on making this proposal to the a.s.sembled chiefs, he of Matlatzinco offered to concur with his whole force, on condition that they would raise him to the throne of Mexico. But Cacamatzin alleged that he had a preferable claim to that dignity, and declared he would destroy the Spaniards with his own forces, for which purpose he entered into arrangements with his partizans in Mexico. The whole of this plan was reported to Montezuma, who immediately commanded his nephew Cacamatzin to desist from his preparations, and communicated the information he had received to Cortes, who had already received some notice of what was going forwards, but not to the full extent. Cortes immediately proposed to go at the head of a detachment of the Spaniards, and a large body of Mexican troops, and to destroy Tezcuco; but as this proposal did not please Montezuma, Cortes sent a message to Cacamatzin, requiring him to desist from his war-like preparations, and declaring his wish to have him for a friend. Cacamatzin answered, that he would not become the dupe of plausible words like others, and meant soon to pay us a visit, when he would listen to what we had to say. In a second message, Cortes warned him not to proceed to hostilities, which would certainly occasion the death of his uncle; but he replied, that he cared neither for Montezuma nor Cortes, and was determined to act as he thought proper.

Cacamatzin had a brother named Cuitcuitzcatzin, who resided in Mexico, having been obliged to take refuge there in consequence of a family quarrel. As this was known to us, Cortes proposed that Cacamatzin should be brought to Mexico, where we would seize him unless he agreed to preserve the peace, or might subst.i.tute his brother in the government of Tezcuco. Montezuma agreed to send for him, and a.s.sured us if he refused to come, he would give orders to bring him by force. Cortes thanked the king for this instance of his fidelity, declaring that he now only remained in Mexico to protect him against his rebellious subjects, and would feel happy to reinstate him in his own palace, but could not prevail on the rest of the Spanish captains to agree to this measure. Montezuma said in reply, that he would immediately transmit information to Cacamatzin, that his present residence was entirely of his own free will, and by the advice of their G.o.ds; for Montezuma was perfectly aware of the simulation of Cortes in his declarations, and endeavoured to fight him with his own weapons. He accordingly sent a message to the prince in the proposed terms; but Cacamatzin understood the manner in which his uncle was constrained to act, and declared his determination to a.s.sail our quarters within four days, saying that Montezuma was a despicable monarch, for having neglected to attack us at the Port of Chalco, as he had advised. That he was resolved to be avenged of the wrongs which we had heaped upon Montezuma and his country, and that if the throne of Mexico should fall to his lot during the contest, he would liberally reward all who a.s.sisted him against the Spanish invaders. Several of the Mexican chiefs who were along with Cacamatzin, expressed their scruples about entering into war without the orders of their legitimate sovereign, and proposed to send to him for instructions. Cacamatzin was enraged at this proposal, as adverse to his views of a.s.suming the crown of the Mexican empire, and immediately ordered three of the most refractory into custody; by which procedure the rest were intimidated into compliance with his plans. He then sent a message to Montezuma, representing the disgrace into which he had fallen, by joining himself with wizards and magicians, and declared his resolution to destroy us all. Montezuma was much offended by the proud independence a.s.sumed by his nephew, whom he now resolved to circ.u.mvent and make prisoner. For this purpose he entrusted his signet to six of his captains, whom he commanded to shew it to certain other leaders among his subjects, who were not well affected to the prince, and to communicate to them his orders to seize Cacamatzin and bring him prisoner to Mexico. These men went accordingly to where Cacamatzin was consulting with the confederate chiefs on the arrangement of his expedition; and shewing the royal signet with which they were entrusted, they secured him and five of his princ.i.p.al chiefs without opposition, and brought them away to Mexico. Cacamatzin, being brought into the presence of Montezuma, was reproached by him for his disobedience and treason, and then delivered over to Cortes; but the other prisoners were released.

Arrangements were immediately made for raising Cuitcuitzcatzin, one of the brothers of Cacamatzin, to the princ.i.p.ality of Tezcuco; who was accordingly invested with this dignity in the presence, of Montezuma, and sent over with a splendid retinue to take possession of the government[8].

This important business being completed to our entire satisfaction, we continued to reside in Mexico, paying our court to Montezuma with the utmost demonstrations of respect, yet detaining him always a prisoner in our quarters.

Cortes now resumed a proposal which had been formerly made, for Montezuma acknowledging the sovereignty of our emperor over him and his dominions; to which Montezuma replied, that he would summon a council of all his dependent princes, which he did accordingly, and almost the whole of them attended in the course of ten days. Among a few who absented themselves on this occasion, was the chief of Matlatzinco, who has been already mentioned as renowned for his warlike prowess. He sent back an answer, that he would neither obey the summons nor pay any more tribute. Montezuma was much incensed by this contumacious message from his va.s.sal, and sent officers to apprehend him, but they were unable to succeed. The princes and feudatories being all a.s.sembled, Montezuma reminded them of the ancient prophecies, by which it was foretold to their ancestors, that a people was to come from the region of the rising sun, to whom the empire of the country was to be transferred. He added, that he believed the Spaniards to be the people spoken of in that prophecy; and had sacrificed to his G.o.ds in vain to give him a distinct revelation on the subject, but they referred him to the former responses, and commanded him to ask no more. From all this he concluded that they willed him to yield obedience to the king of Castile, who was the sovereign of these strangers. "I now,"

said he in conclusion, "beseech you to agree to this submission, which is required of me by the Spaniards. During the eighteen years which I have reigned, I have ever been a kind monarch to you, and you have always been faithful subjects. Since our G.o.ds will have it so, let no one refuse this instance of obedience which I now ask." The princes, with many sighs and tears, promised to do every thing he might desire. Montezuma, who was still more affected than they, sent a message to inform Cortes, that he and his princes would tender their allegiance to our emperor next day.

This was accordingly done at the time appointed, in presence of all our officers and many of our soldiers, none of whom could refrain from tears, at beholding the distress and agitation of the great and generous Montezuma on this humiliating occasion.

Some time afterwards, when Cortes and his captains were conversing with Montezuma on various topics, the general made inquiry relative to the gold mines of the empire, when Montezuma informed him that the richest of these were in the province of Zacatula or Zacatollan, and said that the gold was procured by was.h.i.+ng the earth, the small grains of metal sinking to the bottom during the operation. He also said that it was obtained from two rivers in the province of Guztepeque, where the natives were not subjects to his empire; but, if Cortes chose to send some troops to that place, he would order his officers to accompany them. Cortes accordingly sent the pilot Umbria and two soldiers to examine the mines of Zacatula; and sent his relation Pizarro, to the territories of Chinantla and Zapoteca.

Pizarro was then a young man, and at that time his name and that of Peru, now so famous, were both equally unknown. Pizarro, who was one of our captains, took with him four soldiers who were used to mining, and four Mexican n.o.bles; and Montezuma presented Cortes with a map of the whole northern, or rather eastern coast of the Mexican empire, admirably represented in painting, extending at least an hundred and forty leagues, all the way to Tabasco. Among the rivers said to produce gold, was that of Huatzocoalco, which Cortes wished to have examined, and Diego de Ordas offering himself for this purpose, was reluctantly accepted by Cortes, as he was a person on whom he depended for sound judgment and wholesome advice on occasions of importance. Before his departure, Montezuma told Ordas, that the power of the crown of Mexico did not extend over the country to which he was going, but that he was welcome to the a.s.sistance of the frontier garrisons. Umbria returned first from his mission, bringing with him gold to the value of three hundred crowns and reported that the mines might be made very productive, if they were as expertly managed as those of Hispaniola and Cuba. Two princ.i.p.al persons of the district accompanied him to Mexico, who brought a present of gold to the value of about a hundred crowns, and offered to submit themselves and country to the sovereignty of our emperor. Umbria and his companions described the country which they had visited as extremely rich and populous, and he and his companions appeared to have done something handsome for themselves on the expedition, which Cortes winked at in order to make up for some former differences.

Ordas, on his return, said that he had pa.s.sed through very populous districts, in all of which he was well received. That he found several bodies of Mexican troops on the frontiers, of whose outrages the natives of the country made heavy complaints, on which account he had severely reprehended the commanders of the troops, threatening them with a similar punishment with what had been inflicted on the lord of Nauhtlan. He had sounded the river of Huatzcoalco, where he found three fathoms water on the bar at low tide in the shallowest part, and still deeper within, where there was a place very proper for a naval establishment. The caciques and natives treated him with much hospitality, and offered themselves as va.s.sals to our emperor, but complained loudly against the exactions of Montezuma and his officers, and pointed out a place where they had lately slain many of the Mexican troops, which they had named _Cuilonemequi,_ or the Place of Slaughter of the Mexicans, on whom they bestowed the most opprobrious epithets. He represented the soil of the country as well fitted for tillage and the rearing of cattle, and the port as well situated for trade with Cuba, Hispaniola, and Jamaica; but as inconvenient, from its distance from Mexico, and unhealthy owing to the mora.s.ses in its vicinity. Pizarro returned from Tustepeque or Tzapotecapan, with gold in grains to the value of a thousand crowns. He reported, that in going into the mountains inhabited by the Chinantlans, they flew to arms and would not permit the Mexicans to enter into their country, threatening to put them all to death; but admitted him and his Spaniards with great attention.

He brought several of the chiefs of that country along with him to Mexico, who wished to shake off the Mexican yoke, and to become subjects to our emperor. Cortes then inquired at Pizarro for the soldiers who had accompanied him, when Pizarro answered, that finding the country rich and the people friendly, he had left them to make a plantation of cocoa, and to explore the rivers and mines. Cortes said nothing to him in public, but gave him a severe private reprimand for employing the soldiers in such foolish pursuits, contrary to his orders, and immediately sent a message commanding their return to head-quarters.

Cortes now proposed to Montezuma to order a general contribution in gold to be collected through the whole of his dominions, as a tribute to our emperor, and also that he should deliver up his treasure for the same purpose. Montezuma accordingly sent orders to his officers in those districts where the mines were situated, commanding them immediately to transmit a certain quant.i.ty of gold plates, of the size usually paid as tribute, two of which were sent as patterns. He remarked at the same time, that there were many districts of the empire from which gold was not to be expected in any considerable quant.i.ty, as they had no mines, and the natives had only such golden toys among them as they had inherited from their ancestors. Much gold was immediately transmitted to Mexico from the rich provinces in compliance with the order; but when it was communicated to the refractory lord of Matlatzinco, formerly mentioned, he haughtily answered, that he would pay no tribute, for he had as good a right as Montezuma to the throne of Mexico. Montezuma was much enraged at this insolent message, and immediately sent some trusty officers with his signet, who succeeded in apprehending this redoubted chief. On being brought prisoner into the presence of the king, he behaved with so much insolence that Montezuma ordered him to be put to death; but Cortes interceded for him, and got his punishment trans.m.u.ted to imprisonment. He even endeavoured to make a friend of this chief, and proposed to have him set at liberty, but Montezuma insisted that he should be kept in chains along with Cacamatzin.

Twenty days after the orders had been issued for collecting the tribute, it was all brought to Mexico, on which Montezuma summoned Cortes into his presence, along with the captains and the soldiers who formed his usual guard, and addressed us as follows: "Being indebted to your great king, whom I much esteem for having sent you as his amba.s.sadors to me from so great a distance, and as I am convinced by the prophecies transmitted to us by our ancestors, and confirmed by our G.o.ds, that he is destined to rule over us, take this gold, which is all I could collect on so short a notice, and also the treasure which I inherited from my ancestors which you have already seen; send all this to your emperor, and let it be recorded in your chronicles that this is the tribute from his va.s.sal Montezuma. Besides all this, I shall give you for your monarch, a quant.i.ty of our most valuable jewels, which we call _calchihuis_[9], every one of which is worth two loads of gold, and three tubes for shooting darts or pellets, so richly adorned with jewels that he will be pleased with them.

Accept all this as an instance of my good will, for it is the last of my treasure." We all immediately took off our helmets, and gave our hearty thanks to Montezuma for his munificent and liberal gift, which Cortes promised should be presented to the emperor with a just representation of the merits of the donor. We were employed for three days in taking to pieces the gold contained in the various ornamental articles in the concealed treasury, which was now delivered up to us by the command of Montezuma, in which we were a.s.sisted by the royal goldsmiths from the town of Escapuzalco. When separated and weighed, these articles weighed to the value of above 600,000 crowns, besides many other articles of value, and exclusive of gold in plates and bars, and in its rough state as brought from the mines. All this gold was melted down by the goldsmiths, and cast into bars of three fingers breadth, all of which were stamped with the royal arms, with our entire approbation. The rest of the present of Montezuma was worthy of great admiration, consisting of the jewels called _calchihius_ ornamented tubes covered with gold and jewels, beautiful embroideries of pearls and feathers, plumes of feathers, and an endless variety of rich manufactures; and it was unanimously agreed by us all not to take these rich ornaments to pieces.

After the royal officers had weighed and valued the gold, which exceeded, as I have already mentioned, 600,000 crowns, exclusive of the silver and other ornamental articles, it was proposed to deduct the royal fifth, and to distribute the shares among the officers and soldiers. Cortes proposed to postpone the division till we acquired more treasure, and had more exact weights: But the soldiers were clamorous for an immediate division, as we perceived that above a third part had disappeared since the various articles were taken to pieces, Cortes and the captains and others being continually carrying it away and concealing it for their own use. It was at length agreed to make the division next day, when it was still found to exceed 600,000 crowns in weight. On making the division, Cortes in the _first_ place caused a fifth to be laid aside for his majesty; _secondly_, a fifth for himself, as had been agreed upon; _thirdly_, a portion to reimburse the naval expenditure incurred by Velasquez, the destruction of the s.h.i.+ps, and all the expences of the expedition from Cuba; _fourthly_, for the expences of the agents whom we had sent to Spain; _fifthly_, for the shares of our companions who were in garrison at Villa Rica; _sixthly_, for the value of the horses which had been killed; _seventhly_, for the reverend Father Olmeda and our captains; _eighthly_, double shares for the cavalry, musketeers, and crossbow-men. When all these deductions were made from the stock, the shares which remained for each soldier were hardly worth acceptance, not exceeding 100 crowns a-man. We were obliged to submit, having no one to appeal to for justice; yet many were very clamorous, whom Cortes secretly endeavoured to appease, giving a little to one and a little to another in private, and feeding all with fair promises.

Our captains got chains of gold made for them by the Mexican workmen, Cortes did the same, and had a superb service of gold plate made for his table. Many of our soldiers, who had been fortunate in secreting plunder, had golden ornaments made for their use, and gave themselves up to deep gaming, for which purpose they made cards from drum-heads; and thus we pa.s.sed our time in Mexico. One Cardenas, a pilot, who had a wife and children, seeing that all the immense treasure of Montezuma had dwindled down to paltry shares of a hundred crowns, made loud complaints of the injustice he and all of us had experienced. On this coming to the ears of Cortes, he called us together, and gave us a long honied speech, wondering how we should be so clamorous about a paltry sum of gold, as the whole country, with all its rich mines, would soon be ours, by which we would all have enough to make us lords and princes, and I know not all what.

After this he distributed presents secretly among the most clamorous, and promised Cardenas to send home 300 crowns to his wife and children.

All men are desirous of acquiring riches, and the desire generally increases with the acquisition. As it was well known that a great many valuable pieces of gold had been abstracted from the treasury, suspicion naturally fell upon several persons who appeared to have more gold than their shares amounted to. Among these, it was noticed that Velasquez de Leon had some large chains of gold, and many trinkets and ornaments of that metal, in the hands of the Mexican workmen, which the treasurer Mexia claimed as having been purloined. De Leon resisted this, alleging that it had been given him by Cortes before the gold was run into bars. Mexia replied that Cortes had concealed enough, and had already taken too much from the soldiers, without giving him so great a quant.i.ty, and insisted on rest.i.tution. Both were valiant men, and their quarrel rose to such a height, that they drew their swords, and each of them received two wounds before they could be parted. Cortes ordered them both under arrest and to be put in chains; but spoke privately to De Leon, who was his intimate friend, to submit quietly, and released Mexia in consideration of his holding the office of treasurer. Velasquez was a strong active man, and used to walk much in the apartment where he was confined, and as Montezuma heard the rattling of his chains, he inquired who it was, and interceded with Cortes for his liberation. Cortes told him that Velasquez was a mad fellow, who would go about robbing the Mexicans of their gold if not confined. Montezuma replied, if that were all, he would supply his wants, and Cortes affected to release him as a favour to the king, but banished him to Cholula, whence he returned in six days, richer than before by the king's bounty.

About this time, the king offered to give Cortes one of the princesses his daughter in marriage. Cortes received this offer with much grat.i.tude, but suggested the propriety of having her in the first place instructed in the Christian religion, with which Montezuma complied, though he still continued attached to his own false wors.h.i.+p and brutal human sacrifices.

Cortes and his captains were much scandalized by this persistence of Montezuma in idolatry, and thought it their duty as Christians, to run even the risk of occasioning a rebellion of the Mexicans by destroying the idols and planting the true cross in their place; or if that could not be now accomplished, to make a chapel for Christian wors.h.i.+p in the temple. On this determination, seven officers and soldiers attended Cortes and Father Olmedo to wait upon Montezuma, to whom they communicated their wish, and their resolution to employ force if necessary. The king was much alarmed, and earnestly begged leave to consult with his priests on the subject.

Cortes seemed touched with his situation, and made a signal to the officers and soldiers to retire, leaving him and Olmedo with the king. He then told him, that he would endeavour to prevail on the officers to be satisfied for the present, if a part of the great temple was appropriated for the reception of an altar and crucifix, by which his majesty would soon be convinced of the falsehood of his erroneous wors.h.i.+p[10]. To this proposal Montezuma reluctantly consented, with the appearance of much agitation and deep sorrow; and, an altar and crucifix being erected, ma.s.s was solemnly celebrated in the new chapel, for the care of which a proper person was appointed.

The whole time of our stay in this city was one continued series of alarms, sufficient to have destroyed us if we had not been supported by divine interposition. By this last measure, through the representations of the priests, acting on the prejudices of the people, our dangers were much increased. Their G.o.ds, as the priests alleged, threatened to desert them, unless we were destroyed for this violation of the temple, and an universal determination was formed to obey this manifestation of their commands. This resolution of the people was conveyed to Montezuma by the priests, and all his princ.i.p.al warriors; who, besides this subject of complaint on the score of religion, made many other representations respecting our misconduct, ever since our arrival in the empire. The page Orguetilla communicated many alarming circ.u.mstances which he had observed, to Cortes, respecting frequent secret conferences between Montezuma and his priests and n.o.bles, and the angry and melancholy appearances which he had frequently seen the king a.s.sume on these occasions. Cortes was alarmed by this intelligence, and immediately waited on the king accompanied by his interpreters and five of his captains. Montezuma seemed much distressed during this conference, and declared to Cortes that he was extremely grieved at the manifestation of the will of his G.o.ds that we should all be put to death or expelled from Mexico: He therefore, as our sincere friend, earnestly recommended that we should not run the risk of incurring the indignation of his subjects, but should save our lives by a retreat whilst that remained within our power. Cortes and the rest were naturally much alarmed at this; but Cortes answered that he was princ.i.p.ally concerned, because in the first place, he had no vessels for returning into his own country, and in the next place he would be under the necessity of taking Montezuma along with him, that he might present him to our emperor. He therefore entreated Montezuma to use every influence to restrain his priests and warriors from proceeding to violence, until we had time to build three s.h.i.+ps for our conveyance, and offered immediately to send our s.h.i.+p-builders to fell timber and construct the vessels on the coast, requesting the king to order the a.s.sistance of his carpenters for this purpose, that there might be no delay. He repeated his request, that Montezuma would employ all his influence to prevent any insurrection in the city, and his endeavours to appease his priests and G.o.ds, providing that no human sacrifices were resorted to for that purpose.

Martin Lopez, our princ.i.p.al s.h.i.+p-builder, was immediately dispatched to Villa Rica to commence building the three s.h.i.+ps, which were put on the stocks without delay. During this interval, we remained in Mexico full of terror of being attacked by the whole force of a numerous and warlike people, exasperated by the insults we had heaped on their sovereign and their religious belief. Our apprehensions were continually kept alive by the information we received from Donna Marina, and the page Orteguilla; who, by understanding the language, obtained much information which must otherwise have escaped our knowledge. We kept however constant guard over Montezuma, and the strictest military discipline in our quarters, sleeping always in our armour, and having our horses saddled and bridled every night. Without meaning it as any boast, I may say this of myself, that my armour became as easy and familiar to me as if it had been a soft down bed.

And so habituated am I to this, that now in my old age, when I make the circuit of my district, I never take a bed along with me, unless attended by stranger gentlemen, when I do so merely to avoid the appearance of poverty or avarice. Yet, even when I have one, I always sleep in my clothes; neither can I rest throughout the night, but get up to contemplate the stars, walking about without hat or cap, as I used to do on guard; yet thank G.o.d I never get cold, nor am I the worse for this practice. This is to be a true soldier! My readers must pardon this digression, which does not proceed from vanity, but to let him know what kind of men we were, the real conquerors of Mexico[11].

[1] Clavigero calls this the G.o.d of providence, the soul of the world, the creator of heaven and earth, and the master of ill things, the rewarder of the just and the punisher of the wicked.--E.

[2] Along with the work of Bernal Diaz, and in the history of Mexico by Clavigero, there are representations of ancient Mexican temples. In both they consist of six frustums of truncated pyramids, placed above each other, having a gallery or open walk around at each junction, and straight outside stairs reaching between each gallery, not unlike the representations that have been ideally formed of the tower of Babel.--E.

[3] Clavigero pretends that the defeat and death of Escalante were known to Cortes and his followers while at Cholula. This is highly improbable, both from the narrative of Diaz, and because Cortes would not certainly have put himself entirely in the power of Montezuma, after this unequivocal demonstration of resolute enmity.--E.

[4] In the original of Diaz they are said to have retreated to Almeria, but this is an obvious mistake. Almeria, according to Clavigero, II.

55, was the name given by the Spaniards to Nauhtlan, a city on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, thirty-six miles north of Villa Rica, which was governed by Quauhpopoca for Montezuma, and by whom the Mexican detachment was commanded by which Escalente was defeated.--E.

[5] It is obvious from a circ.u.mstance in the sequel of this story that Diaz and other soldiers attended Cortes on this occasion. Clavigero, II. 77. says there were twenty-five soldiers besides the five captains, who repaired two by two to the palace, and joined Cortes there as if by accident. This daring transaction took place eight days after the arrival of Cortes in the city of Mexico.--E.

[6] Diaz calls this Tuzapan; but as Nauhtlan was in the country of the Totonacas, called Totonacapan by the Mexicans, we have chosen here and everywhere else that this could be done with certainty, to adopt the orthography of Clavigero.--E.

[7] According to Clavigero, II. 82. Quauhpopoca, his son, and fifteen other n.o.bles were cruelly put to death on this occasion. Diaz names the princ.i.p.al chief Quetzalpopoca.--E.

[8] Diaz says that he a.s.sumed the name of Don Carlos on this occasion; but does not allege even that he had been baptised. This name was probably merely imposed upon him by the Spanish soldiery; or he may have acquired it on becoming a Christian after the conquest of Mexico was completed.--E.

[9] It is impossible now to say what were these jewels so much valued by the Mexicans. Clavigero, I. 422, enumerates among their precious stones, "Emeralds, amethysts, cornelians, turquoises, and others not known in Europe." In another pa.s.sage, I. 424, he mentions many small red stones similar to rubies, as among the Mexican curiosities transmitted to Charles V. by Cortes.--E.

[10] We are duly sensible of the divine super-excellence of Christianity, and the gross barbarism of idolatry joined with abominable human sacrifices. Yet, the mere change of two crossed sticks and the images of Saint Somebody or Saint n.o.body, for the idols of the Mexicans, under pretence of introducing the pure religion of the meek and holy Jesus, seems in our humble opinion a mere _qui pro quo_; and, when taken in conjunction with the proposed conversion by military execution, and the introduction of the b.l.o.o.d.y tribunal of the Inquisition, not one iota less idolatrous or less barbarous.--E.

[11] Bernal Diaz neglects to accommodate his readers with the very useful appendage of dates; it therefore may be proper to remark that the Spaniards entered the city of Mexico for the first time on the 8th November 1519; and as Cortes left it in the beginning of May 1520, in his march against Narvaez, he had now spent about six months in the capital of a mighty empire, with hardly 450 soldiers.--E.

SECTION IX.

_Expedition of Narvaez to supersede Cortes in the command, and occurrences till the Defeat of that Officer by Cortes at Chempoalla_.

The Bishop of Burgos, who was president of the council of the Indies, bore unlimited sway in that department of the Spanish government during the absence of the emperor in Flanders. Owing to the representations of Velasquez against Cortes, he sent orders to him to seize and make us all prisoners at every hazard, as rebellious subjects. Velasquez therefore fitted out a fleet of nineteen s.h.i.+ps from the Island of Cuba, in which he embarked an army of fourteen hundred soldiers, eighty of whom were cavalry, eighty musketeers, and eighty crossbow-men, with twenty pieces of cannon, and all necessary ammunition and appointments, giving the command in chief to Pamphilo de Narvaez. Such was his animosity against Cortes and us for having thrown off our dependance upon him, that he made a journey of above seventy leagues from the Havanna on purpose to expedite the preparations.

At this time, the royal audience of St Domingo and the brethren of the order of St Jerorimo, being satisfied of our loyalty and great exertions in the service of G.o.d and the emperor, sent over the oydor Lucas Vasquez de Aillon to Cuba, with positive injunctions to stop the sailing of the armament against us; but as Velasquez was confident in the support of the bishop of Burgos, he gave no heed to the orders communicated to him by Aillon, who therefore went along with the armament, that he might endeavour as much as possible to prevent injury to the public service by his mediation and influence, and be at hand if necessary, to take possession of the country for the emperor, in virtue of his office.

Narvaez arrived safe with his whole fleet in the harbour of St Juan de Ulua, except that he lost one small vessel during the voyage. Soon after his arrival, the soldiers who had been sent by Cortes to that part of the country in search of mines, went on board, and it is said gave thanks to G.o.d for being delivered from the command of Cortes and the dangers of the city of Mexico. Finding them in this mood, Narvaez ordered them to be plentifully supplied with wine, to make them more communicative. Cervantes the jester, who was one of these soldiers, under pretence of facetiousness, exposed to him all the discontents of our soldiers respecting the distribution of the treasure we had obtained, and informed him also of the bad state of the garrison in Villa Rica under Sandoval. The arrival of this new armament was soon communicated to Montezuma, who concealed the intelligence for some time from Cortes, and opened a private correspondence with Narvaez, to whom he sent many rich presents. Narvaez, in his correspondence with Montezuma, said every thing that was bad against Cortes and his troops, representing the whole of us as outcasts and robbers, and that the emperor, hearing of our evil conduct, and that we detained the great Montezuma in custody, had sent the present expedition for the express purpose of liberating him and putting us all to death. This intelligence gave great satisfaction to Montezuma, who thought we must necessarily be all destroyed, as he had got an exact account of their force represented to him in paintings: He accordingly transmitted very magnificent presents to Narvaez, and could ill conceal the satisfaction he had derived from the intelligence. Montezuma concealed the news of this armament from Cortes, who observed and was astonished at the alteration which it had produced on the kings manners and behaviour. At length however, from the circ.u.mstance of Cortes making him two visits in one day, Montezuma became apprehensive of the general procuring intelligence from any other quarter, and told him the news, pretending only to have just heard of it himself. Cortes expressed the utmost joy at the intelligence, and Montezuma shewed him the representations which had been transmitted to him, by which he learnt every thing he wished to know on the subject. He immediately left the king and communicated the intelligence to the troops, who got immediately under arms, and fired several vollies in token of our joy. We soon noticed, however, that Cortes was exceedingly pensive when alone, of which we could not divine the cause; till he soon afterwards convinced us, and explained that the armament was evidently designed against us; and he now, partly by promises and partly by gifts, as from his bounty of what was ours by good right, made interest with us to stand firmly by him in the approaching contest with Narvaez.

From what had been told him by Cervantes and our other deserters, Narvaez was induced to send a deputation to Sandoval, demanding him to surrender the port of Villa Rica. He appointed three persons on this errand, Guavera a clergyman of abilities, Amarga, a relation of Velasquez, and one Vergara, a scrivener. Sandoval had received information of the arrival of the armament, and prepared to defend his post, as he rightly guessed that it was destined to act against us. He sent off all his invalids to an Indian village at some distance, and exhorting his soldiers to stand by him, he erected a gibbet, and placed a guard on the road to Chempoalla. On the arrival of the deputation from Narvaez at Villa Rica, they were astonished to meet none but Indians, as Sandoval had ordered all the soldiers to remain in their quarters, and remained at home himself; they knew not well how to proceed, but at length guessing by the appearance of the house that it belonged to the governor, they went in. Guavera immediately began the conversation, by representing the greatness of the force under Narvaez, and its object, which was to arrest Cortes and all his followers as traitors, and concluded by summoning Sandoval to surrender himself and his post to general Narvaez. Sandoval was much displeased, and told him, if it were not for the protection of his holy function, he would punish his insolence in calling those traitors who were more faithful subjects than either Narvaez or his employer Velasquez. He desired him to carry his demand to Cortes at Mexico, who would settle the business with him at that place. Guavera insisted to execute the commission on which he was sent, and ordered the scrivener Vergara to produce the authority under which they acted. But Sandoval stopped him, saying, "I know not whether your papers be true or false; but if you attempt to read any here I will order you to receive a hundred lashes." On this, Guavera exclaimed, "Why do you mind these traitors? read your commission." Sandoval, calling him a lying rascal, ordered them all to be seized: On which a number of Indians, who had been previously instructed, came in and threw nets over them, and instantly set out with them on their backs for Mexico, to which they were carried post by relays of Indians, through the several large and populous towns by the way, with a rapidity that confounded them, hardly knowing whether they were alive or dead, the whole seeming as if done by enchantment. Sandoval sent Pedro de Solis to accompany them, by whom he wrote a hasty letter to Cortes, giving him an account of all he knew. When the general got notice of their arrival in Mexico, he ordered us all under arms, released them immediately from their trammels, and made an apology for the rudeness of Sandoval, whom he greatly blamed. He entertained them with great hospitality and respect, giving them plenty of gold, and sent them back in a few days as gentle as lambs, who had come out against him as furious as lions.

Our general was one whose resources were never exhausted, and it must not be concealed that his officers and soldiers supported him through all his difficulties by our valour in the field and our wisdom in council. On this occasion, we determined that it was proper to send letters to Narvaez and others of the new army, which they might receive previous to the return of Guavera. In these, we earnestly urged that no rash steps might be taken to endanger our general interest, by inciting the Indians to rise upon us; and held out every inducement of interest and friends.h.i.+p to the followers of Narvaez to bring them over to our party, not forgetting to treat secretly with such as we thought might be easiest wrought upon, as both Guavera and Vergara had informed Cortes that Narvaez was by no means on good terms with his officers, among whom gold well applied would work wonders. In his letters to Narvaez, Cortes adjured him by their former friends.h.i.+p, not to give encouragement to the Mexicans to rise and destroy us, seeing that they were ready to have recourse to any extremity to liberate Montezuma, whose dispositions were much altered for the worse since the arrival of this new armament, and the opening a correspondence between him and Narvaez. He was convinced, he said, that the expressions which Narvaez had been reported to use, could never have come from so wise a man, but must have been fabricated by such wretches as the buffoon Cervantes; and he concluded by offering an unlimited submission to the authority of Narvaez. Cortes wrote also to the secretary Andres de Duero, and Lucas Vasques the oydor, taking care to accompany his letters with valuable presents of gold. On receiving the letter from Cortes, Narvaez turned it into ridicule, handing it about among his officers, speaking of us all as traitors whom he would put to death without mercy. He declared he would cut off and eat the ears of Cortes, and a great deal of such braggart nonsense, and of course made no answer to the letters. Just at this time Father Olmedo arrived, bringing with him the private letters and presents. He went in the first place to wait upon Narvaez, intending to a.s.sure him that Cortes would be proud to serve under his command; but Narvaez would not listen to him, and did nothing but abuse both Cortes and him. He accordingly desisted from that part of his commission which related to an agreement with Narvaez, and applied himself to the distribution of presents among the officers with so much judgment and success, that he soon won over all the princ.i.p.al officers to our party.

If the oydor Vasques was originally disposed to favour Cortes, he was entirely so on seeing the magnificent presents which were now distributed with so much liberality; which formed a striking contrast with the avarice of Narvaez, who used to enjoin his major domo to take heed that not a mantle were missing, as he had marked down every article committed to his charge. This penuriousness set all his officers against him, which he attributed to the intrigues of Vasques; and as there was a difference between them, because Narvaez neglected to inform him respecting every thing sent in by order of Montezuma, of which he ought to have been informed as oydor, an irreconcileable quarrel ensued; and depending on the favour of the bishop of Burgos, Narvaez caused the oydor to be arrested, and sent prisoner to Cuba or Spain, I know not which. But during the voyage, Vasques prevailed on the captain of the s.h.i.+p to land him in Hispaniola, where he so represented the treatment he had received to the Audience and the Jeronimites, that they complained to the council of Castile, but ineffectually, owing to the influence of the bishop of Burgos in favour of Narvaez. About this time too, a gentleman named Oblanco, made remonstrances to Narvaez respecting his violence, saying a good deal in favour of Cortes and his troops, with which Narvaez was so much offended that he threw him into prison; which Oblanco took so much to heart that he died three days after.