xmmmmm
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
AT LOS ANGELES
MEXICO
NATIOX.VL FLAG OF MEXICO
Frontispiece
THE STORY OF THE NATIONS
MEXICO
BY
SUSAN HALE
47801
NEW YORK
G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS
LONDON: T. FISHER UNWIN
Copyright
By G. p. Putnam's Sons
i8S8
Entered at Stationers Hall, London
Bv T. Fisher Unwin
ttbe IRnicfcerbocljer pcesa. Wew lI?orl.
M 1^-
CONTENTS.
The Subject i-ii
View from a steamer, i — Seen by Fernando Corte's, 2 ; his
ambition, 3 — Inhospitable coast, 3 — Vera Cruz, 4 — Depart-
ure, 4 — Climate we leave, 5 — Climate we -are seeking, 5 —
Three climates of Mexico, 6 — Anahuac, 6 ; Tierra templada,
7 — Scenery of the plateau, 7 — Its early inhabitants, 8 — De-
stroyed by Cortes, 8 — Traditions of Anahuac, g — Teocallis
changed co cathedrals, 9 — The Conquistadores, 10 — Span-
ish rulers, 10 — Two emperors, 10 — Mexico a republic, 11 ;
its past and futuie, ri.
II.
Shadowy Tribes 12-23
Meaning of Anahuac, 12 — Tula, formerly ToUan, 13 — The
Toltecs, 13 — Cholula : its legends, 14, 15, 16, 17, iS, 19,
20 — Mound builders, 21 — Legends of the Nahuas, 21 —
Huehue-Tlapallan, 22 — Atlantis, 22 — Noah of the Mexi-
can tribes, 22 — Universal fable of the deluge, 23.
III.
Traditions of the Toltecs . . . 24-37
Their wanderings, 24 ; ruins of their capital, 26 ; their re-
sources, 26 ; language, 27 ; early faith, 27 — Cuernavaca, 28
— Toluca, 28 — Power of their ruler, 29 — Quetzalcoatl,
The Shining Snake, 29 ; legends of his career, 30 ;
possible facts, 32 ; mystery of his departure, 32 ; image in the
museum, 33 ; his attributes, 33 — Evil days of the Toltecs,
34 — The Agave Americana, 34 ; its properties, 35 — Maguey,
35 — Xochitl, 36 ; her beverage, 36 — Deterioration of the
Toltecs, 37 ; dates of their wanderings, 37.
iii
IV THE STORY OF MEXICO.
IV.
PAGE
Chichimecs ....... 38-44
A new dynasty, 38 — The Chichiniecs, 39 ; occupations and
customs, 39 — The mark of a warrior, 39 — The Serpent of
the Clouds, 40 — The invasion of Xolotl, 40 — Fall of Tol-
lan, 41 — Territory of Xolotl, 41 — New waves of emigration,
42 — Wise rulers, 42 — Texcuco, 42 — The Aztecs, 43 — War
with Atzcapotzaico, 44 — Kingdom of Texcuco, 44.
V.
Nezahualcoyotl ...... 45-52
The young prince, 45 ; in captivity, 45 ; a faithful friend,
46 — Tlaxcaza, 46 — The plateau to-day, 46 — The Malinche,
46 — The Land of Bread, 47 — A wise tutor, 47 — Maxtla,
48 — The homage of Nezahualcoyotl, 48 — Maxtla's plot, 48
— Open enmity, 49 — Nezahualcoyotl's escape, 49 ; his
hiding, 50 — Tyranny of Maxtla, 50 — The true prince
triumphant, 51 — Maxtla defeated and killed, 51 — The
kingdom of Texcuco Acolhuacan, 52.
VI.
Texcuco 53-(Ji
The Golden Age, 53 — The government, 53 — Council of
Music. 53 — Texcucan literature, 54 — Lost treasures, 54 —
A royal poet, 55 — The Laughing Hill, 56 — Artificial lakes,
56 — Ruins of Tezcotzinco, 56 — Baths of Montezuma, 57 —
A blot on Nezahualcoyotl's fame, 57 ; a Mexican Ilaroun
al Raschid, 58 ; his religion, 59 — From anarchy to civiliza-
tion, 59 — Nezahualpilli, 59— Decline of Texcuco, 60 — A
Texcucan historian, 60 — Legend or fact ? 61.
VII.
MiCHOACAN ....... 62-69
The Land of Fish, 62 — Lonely lakes, 62 — Patzcuaro, 63 —
The Place of Delights, 64 — The first settlers, 64 — Ire
Titatacame, 65 — A dusky princess, 65 — Tixiacuri, the first
king of Michoacan. 66 — The kingdom divided, 66 — Tzint-
zuntzan, 67 — The glorious reign of Zovanga, 67 — A city of
birds, 67 — Fruitless excavations, 68 — The Tarascans, 68.
CCA' TEXTS. V
VIII.
PAGE
Mayas 70-82
The first wave of migration, 70 — Traces of Mayas in
Yucatan, 70 — A great empire, 7; — Xachan, the town of ser-
pents, 72 ; its ruins discovered. 72 — Palace at Palenque, 72 —
Lofty chambers and strange bas-reliefs, 73 — The Temple of
the Cross, 74 — An emblem of Christian faitii, 75 — Meaning
of the tablets, 75 — Chichen-Itza, 76 — A religious centre, 77
— Paintings and bas-reliefs, 7S — Chaak ISIool, the tiger-
chief, 78 — The beautiful Kinich, 78 — Tomb of Chaak
Mool, 7S — Paved roads of Yucatan, 79 — Votan and Zamna,
80 — Mayan legends, 80 — Weapons and armor, 81 — War
with the Toltecs, 82.
IX.
■- V:2CzTECs S3-95
Best known of the Anahuac tribes, S3 — Aztlan, 83 — The
migration, 84 — Six centuries of wanderings, 84 — The name
Mexican, 84, — Their adopted home, 84— Chapultepec, 86 —
Driven to the islands, 87 — A wretched life, 87 — Valor of
the slaves, S7 — An abiding city, 87 — Tenochtillan, or
Mexico, 88 — Advances in civilization. SS — Results of mod-
ern research, 89 — A king chosen, 90 — Early years of the
kingdom, 91 — The Princess of Cloth, 92 — Canoas, 92 —
Chimalpopoca, 94 — The usurpation, 94 — Maxtla, 95.
X.
EXICANS ....... 96-110
Itzcoatl, 96 — Alliance with Texcuco, 96 — War with Max-
tla, 96 — Victory of the allies, 97 — Fall of the Tepanec
monarchy, 97 — " The Valley Confederates," gS — Reign of
Motecuhzoma, 98 — Height of the Mexican power, 98 —
Conquest of the Chalcas, 99 — Inundation and famine, 99 —
Raid upon neighboring provinces, 100 — Laws of Motecuh-
zoma, 100 ; his successor, roi — Tizoc, loi — The Drinking-
cup of the Eagle, lOi — Human sacrifice, 102 — Temple
built by Tizoc, 105 — Dikes, 105 — A despot, 106 — Extent of
the kingdom, 106 — Religious fanaticism, 108 — Doubtful
records, 109.
^
^
VI TFTE STORY OF MEXICO.
XI.
PACK
Aztec Character .• . . . . 111-123
Unreliable testimony, iil — Hieroglyphics, III — Paintings,
112 — " Wanderings of the Aztecs," 112 — Religion, 114 — A
future life, 114 — Funeral customs, 114 — Domestic life, 115
— Laws, 115 — Music, 115 — The Aztec calendar, 115 — Divi-
sions of time, 116 — Names of days, etc., 117 — Opinions of
antiquarians, 1 17 — The cycle, 118 — Unlucky days, 118 —
Agriculture, iig — Irrigation, iig — A gentle race, 120 — The
Priestesses, 12 r — Coatlicue, the goddess of the earth, 122
— Source of Aztec greatness, 122 — A fatal policy, 123.
^.
XII.
The Last of the Montezumas . . 124-134
Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin, 124 ; his character, 124 — A
coronation festival, 125 — Royal robes, 125 — The life of
an Aztec king, 126 ; his capital, 126 — Diaz's description, 127
— A life of pleasure, 12S — State correspondence, 12S — Cha-
pultepec, 129 — Montezuma's cypress, 129 — Clouds on the
horizon, 130— Sinister predictions, 130 — The coming of the
white men, 131 — An unhappy monarch, 131 —Landing of
the strangers, 132 — Velasquez de Leon, 132 ; hi; expedi-
tion to Yucatan, 133 — Grijalva visits Mexico, i33--Monte-
zuma's embassy, 133.
XIII.
Cortes 135-144
Birth, 135 ; enters the army, 135 ; visits C'uba, 135 — An
attractive portrait, 135 — Defects of character. 136 — Velas-
quez and Grijalva's expedition, 136 — .\ love story, 137 —
Cortes receives a commission, 137 ; his companions, 137 —
Jealousy of Velasquez, 137 — The squadron, 13S — Jerome
d' Aguilar, 138 — First conflict with the Aztecs, t39 — Palm
Sunday, 139— A happy people, 140 — Rumors of danger,
140 Presents to the strangers; 141 — Cortes as Quetzalcoatl,
141 — Easter, i-ii — A perplexed council, 142 — Mistaken
policy, 1-12 — \'era Cruz, 142 — Cortes visits Cempoallan,
143 — Tlaxcalla, 143 — The ships destroyed. 144.
CONTENTS. vil
XIV,
PAGE
Malintzi . 145-150
Her birthplace, 145 — The little duchess is made a slave,
145 — Life in Tabasco, 146 — Arrival of Cortes, 146 — Treaty
of alliance, 146 — The heiress-slave becomes a Christian, 146
— Marina or Malinche, 146 — A nevir interpreter, 147 — A
beautiful picture, 147 — Splendid gifts, 148 — Malintzi's
beauty, 149 ; her devotion to Cortes, 149 ; its result, 149.
XV.
Tlaxcalla 151-157
An isolated province, 151 — Exaggerated reports, 151 —
Efforts for the friendship of the Tlaxcallans, 152 — A trap
for the Spaniards, 152 — A battle, 152 — Defeat of the Tlax-
callans, 153 —Peace concluded, 153 — Christianity intro-
duced, 153— Cholula, 154 — Slaughter of the CholuJtecas,
154 — Alliance with Txtlilxochitl, 154 — Cacamatzin impris-
oned, 155— Cortes reaches Mexico, 156 — Cortes and Monte-
zuma, 157 — A lesson and a vow, 157.
XVI.
La Noche Triste 158-165
Overtures of friendship, 158 — Bold measures, 159 — Monte-
zuma in the power of the Spaniards, 159 — A rival in the
field, 159 — Alvarado, 160 — The feast of Huitzilopochtli,
160 — The Spaniards in danger, 160-;— Death of Montezuma,
161 —Mexican traditions, 162 — Cortes abandons the city,
163 — A desperate struggle, 163 — La Noche Triste, 164 —
The scene of the battle, 16-) ; the losses, 165.
XVII.
Conquest 166-179
An interval of peace, 166 — The new emperor, 166 — A
legacy of the Spaniards, l67^Cortes in extremis, 167 — The
Aztec army, r6S — Battle at Otumba, 170 — The Spaniards
\ictorious, 170 — Preparations for defence, 171 — The Span-
iards in Tlaxcalla, 171 — Ixtlilxochitl, 171 — Cortes at
Texcuco, 172 — A new army and a new fleet, 172 — The
campaign against Mexico, 173 — Suffering in the city, 174 —
VI 11 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Surrender, 174 — The city destroyed, 175 — Cortes at
Coyoacan, 175 — Search for treasures, 175 — The kings
tortured, 175 — Military rule, 176 — Subjugation of Michoa-
can, 176 — Later conquests, 177 — Death of the Aztec kings,
178 — Later life of Cortes, 178 ; return to Spain, 178 ; death,
178 ; burial in Mexico, 179.
XVIIL
Do^A Marina 180-183
Her position in the camp, 180 — After the victory, 180 —
Life at Coyoacan, 180 — Arrival of Dona Catalina, 181 ;
her death, 182 — Insurrection in Honduras, 182 — Marriage
of Marina, 183 ; her later life and her death, 183 — Cortes
visits Spain, 183 — A second marriage, 183.
XIX.
Indians 184-190
The conquest complete, 184 — Tlie name Indian, 184 —
Origin of the Nahuatl tribes, iSs — Distinguished from the
North American Indian, 1S6 — Military government, 1S8 —
The Ayuntamiento , 1S8 — The Audiencia, lS8 — Nuiio de
Guzman, i8g ; his cruelty to the natives, 189 — Guadalajara
founded, 189 — A second Audieucia, 189 — A viceroy ap-
pointed, 190 — Extent of New Spain, I90.
XX.
The First of the Viceroys . . . 191-202
Antonio de Mendoza, 191 ; his family and character, 191 —
Reforms instituted, 191 — Industries encouraged, 192 — The
Franciscans, 192 — Fray Pedro, 192 — Foundation of schools
and colleges, 193 — Guadalajara and Valladolid, 193 —
Michoacan and its people, 194 — The founding of a city,
195 — Spanish families in Mexico, 196 — Jews and Moors
banished, 196 — Vasco de Quiroga, 197 ; his life in Tarasco,
197 ; his church at Tzintzuntzan, 198 — A wonderful picture,
198 — The cathedral at Morelia. 199 — Cortes goes to Spain,
200 — Popularity of the viceroy, 200 — First Mexican book,
202 — Departure of Mendoza, 202.
CONTENTS. ix
XXI.
PAGE
Fray Martin de Valencia . . . 203-213
Don Luis de Velasco, second viceroy, 203 — New institutions
and industries, 203 — Puebla de los Angeles, 204; the
tradition of its founding, 204 ; the situation, 206 — The early
ecclesiastics, 207 — The worship of the Virgin, 207 — The
"twelve apostles of Mexico," 20S — Fray Martin of
Valenc a, 2o3 ; his life in Amecameca, 209 ; his death, 210
— Relics of Fray Martin, 211 — An object of reverence, 212 —
Death of Velasco, 212 — A well-regulated government, 213.
XXII.
Other Viceroys . . . . ; 214-223
Events in Spain, 214 — Philip II., 214 — The character of the
viceroys, 215 — The Inquisition, 216 — The Quemadero, 216 —
Death of Philip, 217 — Inundations, 217 — Martinez and his
canal, 218 — Successors of Philip, 2iy — Wars of succession,
220 — Revillagigedo, 220 ; anecdotes of his administration,
221.
XXIII.
Humboldt 224-232
A distinguished visitor, 224 ; he arrives in Mexico, 225 — Re-
marks on the carving, 225 — Academy of fine arts, 226 ; its
later history, 227 — The cathedral, 227 — Humboldt at
Chapultepec, 228 ; The market, 228 — Teotihuacan, 229 —
Mexican mines, 22g — Valenciana, 229 — At Patzcuaro, 230
— The birth of a volcano, 231.
XXIV.
Revolutions 233-237
Charles III. of Spain, 233 ; his successor, 233 — Branciforte
and the statue of Charles IV., 234 — Napoleon invades
Spain, 235 — A change of government, 235 — Juntas, 235 —
The Bourbons restored. 235 — Iturrigaray and his adminis-
tration, 236 — Revolt in the air 237 — The policy of Spain,
237 — Venegas, 237.
X THE STORY OF MEXICO.
XXV,
PAGE
Hidalgo 238-249
Birth and education, 23S — Colegio de San Nicholas, 238 —
He takes orders, 238 ; life at Dolores, 240 ; bold schemes,
240 — Ignacio AUende. 241 ; An important step, 241 — The
Grito de Dolores, 242 — A new army, 242 — Attack on
Guanajuato, 243 — A brave boy, 243 — The new viceroy,
243 — Hidalgo excommunicated, 244 — Valladolid taken,
245 — Monte de la Cruces, C45 — The insurgents defeated at
Aculco, 246 — Hidalgo declared Generalissimo, 246 — Battle
of Calderon, 247 — Capture and death of the chiefs, 24S —
End of the struggle for independence, 248.
XXVI.
MORELOS 250-257
Birth and family, 250 — Morelia, 251 — Muleteer and student,
251 — Morelos joins Hidalgo, 251 — Siege of Cuautla, 252 —
Acapuico, 252 — First Mexican Congress, 252 — Declaration
of independence, 253 — Attack on Valladolid, 253 — Mis-
haps, 254^Morelos a prisoner, 254 — Death of Morelos,
255 ; his character and aims, 255 ; his object achieved, 256.
XXVII.
Yturbide 258-271
The close of Calleja's administration, 258 — The insurgents
dispersed, 25S — Apodaca and Guerrero, 259 — Affairs in
Spain, 259 — Agustin de Yturbide, 2G0 ; early services,
260 ; meets Guerrero, 261 — " Plan of Iguala," 261 — The
" three guaranties," 261 — Advance of the insurgents 262 —
The viceroy deposed, 262 — A successful campaign, 263 —
O'Donoji'i, 263 — Treaty of Cordova, 264 — Yturbide enten>
the capital, 264 — The Regency, 264 — The Mexican Empire
founded, 265 — Work of the new government, 265 — Second
Mexican Congress, 265 — Yturbide proclaimed Emperor,
266 — Signs of dissatisfaction, 267 — Santa Anna, 267 — The
Casa-Mata, 263 — Yturljule banished, 268 ; his return to
Mexico. 270 , his execution, 270 ; character of Yturbide,
271.
CONTENTS. xi
XXVIII.
PAGE
Santa Anna 272-280
A confused story, 272 — Santa Anna, 273 ; his connection
with Yturbitle, 273 — The Constitution, 273 — " Guada-
lupe " Victoria, 273 — Expulsion of the Spanish, 274 — A
presidential election, 274 — Mutiny in the capital, 275 —
Colonization of Texas, 276 — Pedraza, 276 — A Spanish in-
vasion, 277 — Santa Anna made Commander-in-Chief, 277
— Bustamente, 27S — Guerrero betrayed and shot, 27S —
Santa Anna becomes President, 278 — Farias, 279 — Insur-
rection in Texas, 279.
XXIX.
Still Santa Anna 281-289
Louis Philippe, 281 — Reclamacion de los pasteles, 281 — The
French repelled, 281 — Santa Anna's home, 282 — Busta-
mente recalled, 282 — Trouble again, 283 — Mejia, 283 — A
revolution described, 284 — Bustamente resigns, 288 — Santa
Anna triumphant, 288.
XXX.
Society ....... 290-300
Madame Calderon's journal, 290 — An ambassador from
Spain, 290 — State of society, 291 — The Paseo, 291 — The
Viga, 292 — Women in Mexico, 292 — Good-Friday in
Mexico, 294 — Robbers, 297 — Guardias Ruraies, 298 — A
monarchy proposed, 299.
XXXI.
Rumors of War 301-310
Results of the Spanish rule, 301 — Playing at independence,
301 — The appeal to arms, 302 — The country exhausted, 302
— Misfortunes, 304 — The United States, 304 — Spread of its
territory, 304 — Colonization of Texas, 305 — Moses Austin,
304 — Revolt against Mexico, 305 — Houston and Santa
Anna, 305 — Texas independent, 305 — Annexed to the
United States, 306 — Herrera, Farias, and Paredes, 307 —
The Mexican army, 308.
XII THE STORY OF MEXICO.
XXXII.
PAGE
War Begun 311-322
The beginning of hostilities, 311 — Palo Alto and Resaca de
la Palma, 311 — The war carried into Mexico, 312 — Diffi-
culty of negotiation, 312 — " Indemnity for the past," 313 —
California, 313 — Policy of the United States, 313 — Monte-
rey taken, 314 — P'remont enters the capital, 316 — Taylor's
campaign, 316 — Siege of Monterey, 318 — Ampudia's proc-
lamation, 319 — Paredes and his " Plan," 319 — Santa Anna
again, 320 — Fall of Paredes, 321 — Santa Anna at the capi-
tal, 321 — A new army, 321.
XXXIII.
PuEBLA Lost 323-332
Scott before Vera Cruz, 323 — Buena Vista, 323 — Raising
money, 323 — The religious orders and their influence, 324 —
Wealth of the Church, 326 — Ecclesiastical property seized,
327 — Bombardment of Vera Cruz, 328 — The city surrenders,
328 — Cerro Gordo, 330 — Santa Anna at Puebla, 330 — Pue-
bla occupied by the Americans, 331 — Guadalupe and its
surroundings, 331 — Santa Anna as Dictator, 332 — Patriot-
ism aroused, 332.
XXXIV.
Chapultepec Taken .... 333-341
The approach to the capital, 333 — Churubusco, 333 — Docile
Indians, 333 — Another victory for the Americans, 334 —
Molino de Rey, 334 — Chapultepec taken, 336 — Occupation
of the capital, 336 — Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 338 —
Discovery of gold, 338 — Effects of the war, 339 — Attempts
to capture Santa Anna, 340 — Santa Anna retires to Jamaica,
341 — Grant in the Mexican war, 341.
XXXV.
Benito Juarez • . 342-347
Peace restored, 342 — Herrera and his administration, 342 —
Santa Anna again Dictator, 344 — An epoch of reform, 344
— Clerigos and liberates, 344 — Benito Juarez, 344 ; his early
life, 345 ; governor and exile, 345 ; restored to office, 346 —
A new Constitution, 346 — Juarez becomes President, 346 —
Foreign intervention, 347.
CONTENTS. xiii
XXXVI.
PACE
French Intervention .... 348-356
A foreign squadron, 348 — The pretext and the cause, 348 —
Spain and England withdraw, 349 — The policy of Napoleon
III., 349 — A proposed empire, 349 — Maximilian, 350;
dreams of " the right divine," 352 — The French troops
advance on the capital, 353 — Divisions in Mexico 353 —
The Cinco de Mayo, 354 — A bold attack, 355 — Defence of
Puebla, 356.
XXXVII.
The Empire under Protection . . 357-364
The sovereigns arrive, 357 — The imperialist party, 357 —
Reception of Maximilian, 358 — Relics of royalty, 359 —
Military affairs, 360 — The new government, 362 — Chapul-
tepec restored, 363 — Society at the capital, 363 — Apparent
prosperity, 364.
XXXVIII.
The Unprotected Empire . . 365-372
Action of the United States, 365 — Responsibility for the
intervention, 366 — The final word of Napoleon, 367 — Car-
lotta goes to Europe, 36S — Her interview with Napoleon,
369 — Maximilian leaves the capital, 370 — At Orizaba, 371 —
Father Fischer, 371 — The Emperor's manifesto, 372.
XXXIX.
Maximilian , 373~382
The French army withdrawn, 373 — Advance of Juarez, 374
— The Emperor and his attendants, 374 — Investment of
Queretaro, 375 — Marquez and Diaz, 375 — Personal appear-
ance of the Emperor, 376 — The treachery of Lopez, 377 —
Maximilian a prisoner, 378 ; his death" 380.
XL.
End of the Episode .... 383-385
General Vidaurri, 383 — The escape of Marquez, 384 —
General Diaz, 384 — Puebla, 385 — Vigor of the liberal gov-
ernment. 385.
XIV THE STORY OF MEXICO.
XLI.
PAGB
The Last of Santa Anna . . . 386-391
Juarez enters the capital, 3S6 — Peace established, 387 —
Santa Anna in retirement, 3S7 ; his exile and death, 3SS —
Character of Juarez, 389 — Civil war again, 390 — Death of
Juarez, 390 — Lerdo becomes President, 391.
XLII.
PoRFiRio Diaz 392-401
A new "Plan," 392 — Birthplace of Diaz, 392 — Scenery of
Oaxaca, 393 — The Zapotecas, 393 — Ruins of Mitla, 394 —
Early life of Diaz, 394 ; his military achievements, 395 —
An escape from hostile troops, 396 — Triumph of the oppo-
sition, 396 — Diaz proclaimed President, 397 — Presidency
of Gonsalez, 39S — Policy of Diaz. 399 — Chapultepec at the
present day, 399 — Hope for the Indian, 400 — Prospects of
development, 401.
XLIII.
Physical Advantages .... 402-411
Climate and vegetation, 402 — Mexican flora, 403 — The
market-place, 404 — A family group, 404 — Native pottery,
405 — The cargador^ 405 — Wearing apparel, 406 — Serape
and rebozo, 406, 407 — The cotton industry, 408 — The
source of Mexican wealth, 409.
XLIV.
Future 412-419
Influence of the Catholic Fathers, 412 — Extinction of
monasteries, 412 — The parish priest, 413 — The Mozarabic
liturgy, 413 — A missionary field, 414 — The policy of the
government, 414 — vSchools, 415 — Literature in modern
Mexico, 416 — The Mexican-Spaniard, 417 — Railways,4i8—
Brighter days to come, 419.
Index 421
^Pi
H
Wi
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Mexican Flag
Valley of Tula .
Column from Tula
Ruins found at Tula
quetzalcoatl
Portico at Kaboh
Vase in the National Museum, Washingt
Casa del Gobernador,Uxmal
Statue from Palenque
Tablet of Cross at Palenque
Mayan Bas-Relief
Statue of Chaak Mool
Zamna ....
Organ Cactus
Idol in Terra-Cotta .
Canal outside the City of Mexico
Stone of Tizoc ....
Sculpture Representing Human Sacrifice
Court of the Museum at Mexico
Vase. Museum at Mexico
Pyramid at Teotihuacan
Early Pottery .
Cathedral at Morelia
Puebla de Los Angeles
Temple of Xochicalco
Cactus Hedge
on
Frontispiece.
'5
24
25
31
43
63
71
73
74
77
79
81
85
89
93
103
107
113
120
169
187
201
205
225
239
XVI
THE STOR V OF MEXICO.
Panorama of Puebla .
Indian Hut in the Tierra Caliente
Cathedral, City of Mexico
The Viga
Valley of Mexico
Monterey, Mexico
General Taylor
General Scott .
Siege of Vera Cruz
Battle of Moling del Rey
Storming of Chapultepec
Benito Juarez
Archduke Maximilian*
San Luis Potosi ,
Chapultepec in the Time of Maximilian
Head-quarters of Juarez at San Luis de Potosi
The Convent of ('apuchinas
Zapotec Ornament
Image of a Zapotec Chief .
President Porfirio Diaz
Aqueduct in the City of Mexico
269
283
289
293
Z^Z
315
317
325
329
335
337
343
351
359
361
379
381
393
394
397
410
* From " The Fall of Maximilian's Empire." By permission of
the author, Seaton Schroeder, Lieut. U. S. N.
For a numljer of these illustrations the publishers are indebted to
the courtesy of Messrs. Hochette & Co., publishers of " Le Voyage
au Mexique," by Jules Leclercq.
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MAP OF
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THE STORY OF MEXICO.
THE SUBJECT.
The steamer stops, and wc are lying off Vera
Cruz, in the Gulf of Mexico. Half a mile off, the
long, low shore stretches north and south, with the
white town upon it, flat roofs making level lines on
the houses glaring in the morning sunlight, domes
and church towers rising above the rest ; glimpses of
bright green tree-tops are to be seen, but outside the
city all is barren and waste. The plain behind rolls
up, however, and the background is the peak of
snow-capped Orizaba, silent, lofty, 17,356 feet above
our level.
This is what we see to-day, leaning over the bul-
wark of our large luxurious steamer which has
brought' us, easih', from Havana in a few days, over
the smooth, green waters of the Gulf. Our only
anxiety has been the possible chance of a " Norther,"
which may break loose at any time in that region,
sweeping over the waters with fury and driving the
stoutest vessels away from the coast they would ap-
I
2' ' THE STORY OF MEXICO.
proach. Our only exertion has been to keep cool
upon the pleasant deck, and to take enough exercise
to be able to enjoy the frequent food provided by
the admirable chrf oi the steamer.
The scenery is the same that Fernando Cortes
looked upon, some three hundred years ago, when
he, too, cast anchor about half a mile from the coast,
and scanned the shore with an anxious eye, to find a
suitable landing. Orizaba rose before him, as now we
see it, stately, majestic, cold and forbidding, under its
mantle of snow.
We must envy the adventurer, in spite of our ad-
vantages in the way of ease and comfort. He stood
upon the cramped deck of his little vessel, sur-
rounded by a handful of men, with a limited amount
of provisions, and great uncertainty about the next
supply. No town stre,tched out its sheltering walls
before him ; there was scarcely harborage for his
ships. Yet he had the advantage of absolute novelty
in his undertaking from the moment he himself, with
his little band, led the way up the steep slope to
Anahuac.
Every true traveller has some of the instincts of
the explorer in him, and these instincts must make us
envy the prospect which lay before Cortes as he ap-
proached in the Bay of VeraCru.^ the real beginning
of his enterprise. There was the shore of the new
country, where he might plant his "rich city of the
true cross." There was the cold mountain which
might contain in its depths the treasure he was seek-
ing, and beyond it was the rumored Empire he
longed to conquer. At that moment, no fear, no
THE SUBJECT. 3
discouragement, held back the eager steps with which
he sprang into his boat, and beckoned his compan-
ions to follow him.
Cort6s fulfilled his ambition, achieved his task,
with what difficulties, through what straits and fail-
ures, we shall have later to see. He scaled the sides
of Orizaba, reached the lofty plateau, and seized the
ancient citadel of the Montezumas. Civilization has
trodden smooth the rough path he first opened, and
railroads now make it easy to climb the pass so ar-
duous for him. If our journey lacks the element of
constant discovery which belonged to his, we have
gained that of wonder and amazement at the diffi-
culties he surmounted. Moreover, he came in igno-
rance of what he was to find, with a blind desire for
conquest, investing the region he approached with
imaginary attractions. We know beforehand, as we
begin to explore the country, that its legends and
romances are as fascinating as its mines are deep ;
that its story is as picturesque as the lofty ranges
and deep rolling valleys which make the charm of its
scenery.
An inhospitable coast borders the treacherous,
though beautiful, Gulf of Mexico. Its waters look
smiling and placid, but at any season the furious
" Norther " may break loose, sweeping with fearful
suddenness over its surface, lashing its lately smiling
waves into fury, threatening every vessel with de-
struction. Low sand-bars offer little shelter from the
blast. Ships must stand off the coast until the
tempest shall be past.
The country offers nothing better to its landed
4 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
guests. Vomito lurks in the streets of Vera Cruz to
seize upon strangers and hurry them off to a wretched
grave. All the pests of a tropical region infest the
low lands running back from the sea. Splendid
vegetation hides unpleasant animals, and snakes are
lurking among the beautiful blue morning-glories
that festoon the tangled forests. Let us hasten
away from these dangers, and climb the slope that
leads to a purer air.
We have escaped the terrors of the custom-house
at Vera Cruz, from which, b\' the way, Cortes was
exempt, and after a doubtful night in the hotel,
serenaded by swarms of Vera Cruz mosquitoes, at
early dawn we creep stealthily from our chambers,
not to disturb the few misguided guests who mean
to stay a little longer, and follow the dusky carga-
dorcSy bearing our baggage on their backs, down into
the silent street. In Mexico there is no effort on
the part of an hotel proprietor to speed the parting
guest. He signs the bill overnight and betakes
himself to repose, undisturbed by the exodus in
early morning. The cargadores who have agreed to
attend to the luggage rouse their sleeping prey and
lead them through a wide, straight street to the
railroad station. There is no sign of breakfast at
the hotel. Nobody is stirring but one sleepy inn-
keeper. Hard by the station, as in every Mexican
town, is a cafe, where excellent hot coffee is fur-
nished, with plenty of boiled milk and good bread
in many and various forms. Here we may sit and
refresh ourselves with cup after cup, if we like, until
the short, sharp whistle of the steam-engine warns
THE SUBJECT. 5
US to take the train. Heavy baggage was, or should
have been, weighed and registered overnight.
It is but six o'clock as we move out of the station.
A big sun is slowly rising over the dr\-, hot clwppar-
r«/ outside the city. Although it is early April, all
is parched like midsummer. Soon, however, we
begin to climb, and, as we ascend, pass through
forests of wonderful growth. Sugar-cane and cofTee
plantations now appear ; and the trees are hung with
orchids, tangled with vines bright with blossoms,
many of them fruit-trees now in flower, one mass of
white or pink. The road crosses water-falls, winds
round ravines, under mountains, through tunnels,
climbing ever higher and higher, until Cordoba is
reached at an elevation of over 2,000 feet. This
town is surrounded and invaded by coffee plan-
tations and orange groves. At the station baskets
of delicious fruits are offered us — oranges, bana-
nas, grenaditas, mangoes. Here we bid farewell to
the tropics, and forget the snakes and the fear of
vomito.
The climate we are seeking is not a tropical one.
Whoever associates Mexico with the characteristics
of heat, malaria, venomous reptiles, has received a
wrong impression of it. Such places, with their
drawbacks, exist within the geographical limits of
the country, but it is wholly unnecessary to seek
them ; for the towns of historical and picturesque
interest are above the reach of tropical dangers, for
the most part, while there are seasons of the year
when even the warmer portions can be visited with
safety and delight. At Orizaba the climate is tem-
6 THE SIORY OF MEXICO.
pcrate, ffesh, and cool, beginning to have the ele-
ments of mountain altitudes. It is well to stop
here for a day or two to become accustomed to the
rarer air. It is a summer place of recreation for the
inhabitants of Vera Cruz, while in winter it is a
favorite excursion from the places higher up on the
plateau.
As we are travelling only in imagination, we may
safely, without pause, press upward to the great
plateau where most of the scene is laid of our stor}'.
For Mexico, with the exception of the narrow border
of sea-coast we have just crossed, is a lofty table-
land between two oceans, a mountain ridge continued
up from the Andes in South America, contracted at
the Isthmus of Panama to a narrow chain of granite,
to grow broad in Mexico as it stretches to the north-
west, until it spreads, at an elevation from 4,000 to
8,000 feet, almost from ocean to gulf. This is Ana-
huac, the so-called table-land of Mexico, a broad
plateau upon which the picturesque romantic drama
of Mexican history has been played. Upon this
high plateau, which is by no means level, rise the
crests of the great volcanic ridges, of which the
highest are Popocatepetl and Istaccihuatl. The
table-land rolls off northward at first, keeping its
high level, growing narrower, gradually sinking as it
approaches the Rio Grande, until at the boundary
line of the United States it has fallen to 3,000 feet.
Thus Mexico possesses three well defined climates,
due to variation in altitude : the iicrra caliente^ or
hot lands of the coast ; the tierra tcviplada, or tem-
perate region ; and the tierra fria, tiie cold regions
THE SUBJECT. J
of the mountain tops, more than 6,000 feet above the
level of the sea. These climates, moreover, are
modified by the latitude, so that between the cold
altitudes of the northern portions, and the warm
tropical levels of the south, there is a vast range of
atmospheric change.
Our story has its stage, for the most part in the
ticrra templada, where the year is divided into two
seasons: the dry season, from November to May;
the rainy one, from June to October. The pleasant-
er one is the rainy one, in spite of its name. The
rains are not continuous, but fall usually late in the
afternoon and during the night, leaving the morning
bright and clear, and the air deliciously fresh and
cool. All the year roses bloom in the city of Mex-
ico, and there are places where you may eat straw-
berries every day in the three hundred and sixty
five.
Spreading over the greater part of this lofty
region, there are broad, level plains of rich verdure,
bright with all imaginable wild-flowers growing in
profusion ; large lakes, as picturesque as those of
Northern Italy, surrounded by hills that are moun-
tains, reckoning from the sea level ; lofty mountain
peaks, eternally snow-covered, barren and rocky be-
low their snow-summits, then clothed with pine, and
nearer at hand with fine oaks and other trees of tem-
perate climates. Brawling streams water the valleys,
and at the edge of the plateau make deep barrancas,
whose depths reach to the lower level, their danger-
ous chasms hidden by rich growths.
On this elevated plateau, which with all its va-
8 TIJE STORY OF MEXICO.
riety seems a world of its own, until within the
period of modern inventions all but inaccessible to
the lower country and the ocean beyond, we find the
traces of an ancient civilization, reaching backward
until it is lost in legend. Long before the invasion
of Anahuac by Cortes, it was inhabited by intelligent
races of men. The mystery which hangs about
these people makes the search for their history full
of interest. In the present native population, we
seek to find some clue to the manners and customs
of the first inhabitants, by which to read the mean-
ing of the monuments they have left. They are
gone, their institutions overthrown by a power
strongei" than they were, by reason of the resources
of advancing civilization, their idols and temples
overturned by the zealots of another belief.
Outraged by the human sacrifices of the Mexican
tribes, Cortes destroyed, with a reckless hand, all the
evidences of what he regarded heathen worship. In
so doing, the records of the race were lost, together
with carved images of gods. It is unfortunate that
his zeal was not tempered with discrimination, for it
is now difificult, through the clouds of exaggeration
surrounding the Spanish Conquistadores, to find out
what sort of people they were, who preceded them
on Anahuac.
Empires and palaces, luxury and splendor fill the
accounts of the Spaniards, and imagination loves to
adorn the halls of the Montczumas with the glories
of an Oriental tale. Later explorers, with the fatal
penetration of our time, destroy the splendid vision,
reducing the emperor to a chieftain, the glittering
THE SUBJECT. 9
retinue to a horde of savages, the magnificent capi-
tal of palaces to a pueblo of adobe. The discouraged
enthusiast sees his magnificent civilization devoted
to art, literature, and luxury, reduced to a few hand-
fuls of pitiful Indians, quarrelling with one another for
supremacy, and sighs to think his sympathies may
have been wasted on the sufferings of an Aztec
sovereign dethroned by the invading Spaniard.
Yet perseverence, after brushing away the spark-
ling cobwebs of exaggerated report, finds enough
fact left to build up a respectable case for the early
races of Mexico. Visible proofs of their importance
exist in the monuments, picture writings, and, above
all, their traditions, which, at all events, remain a
pretty story, with a sediment of facts the student
may precipitate for himself. These traditions make
of the early settlers of Anahuac a very interesting
study, all the more from their shadowy nature, leav-
ing still much margin for fancy.
They were overwhelmed by the Spaniards, but not
destroyed, for the descendants of the conquered races
still form a large proportion of the population of
Mexico. Their tcocallis and hideous carved gods
gave way to Roman Catholic cathedrals and images
of the Holy Virgin. Spanish viceroys, after the first
atrocities of military discipline, ruled the gentle de-
scendants of the Aztecs with a control for the most
part mild and beneficent. The Catholic fathers who
crossed the ocean to labor for the spiritual welfare of
the natives, wisely engrafted upon the mysteries of
their own faith the legends and superstitions of the
older belief. Thus we find in many of the religious
lO THE STORY OF MEXICO.
ceremonies in Mexico, a wild, picturesque element,
which is lacking in the church festivals of the Old
World.
When the Conquistadores took possession of the
New Spain in the name of their royal master, the
Emperor Charles V., he was one of the most power-
ful of earthly monarchs. His son, Philip II., re-
ceived the country as a part of his inheritance, along
with realms which made him even greater than his
father. But the successors of Philip II. knew not
how to hold the possessions their fathers had won.
Piece by piece their distant provinces were lost to
them. Mexico, after two hundred years of neglect
and mismanagement, shook herself free from Spanish
rule ; since the early part of this century she has
called herself independent, with the exception of the
two brief periods when the ambition of two men,
differing widely from each other in their antecedents
and aims, caused them to attempt the role of " Em-
peror of Mexico." Iturbidc was the former of these;
the latter, the ill-advised Maximilian. For the last
twenty years, since the fall of Maximilian, Mexico
has been a republic, with all the varying fortunes
that attend a young institution struggling with in-
experience and difficulty. A native population with
an inheritance of superstition, prejudice, and oppres-
sion, mixed with a race whose traditions are all in
favor of arbitrary government, supplemented by
immigrants from every other nation who have come,
often with lawless intent, seldom with disinterested
motives, and never inspired by any feeling that
could be called patriotism, must wait long for that
THE SUBJECT. II
unanimity of public opinion and harmony of interest
which ensure good government.
At times it has seemed that no good could emerge
from such opposing elements ; yet nature has fur-
nished to Mexico material for a long siege ; broad
territory with a faultless climate, mountains rich in
every mineral resource, valleys well adapted for
cultivation and grazing, a land where every industry
may, under a stable government, be pursued with
success. The character of the descendant of the
Aztecs is mild and docile, capable, as many people
think, of high development by education ; such bad
qualities as Mexicans have developed from Spanish
inheritance are, it is hoped, giving way before the
progress of civilization and education.
The past of the people who live upon Anahuac is
wrapped in mystery. So is- their future. Both are
interesting problems, to be worked out from the
legends of old time, and the narrative of the
present.
11.
SHADOWY TRIBES.
Anahuac means " by the water," It is the ancient
name for the great tract of land surrounding the
lakes in the lofty valley of Mexico, — Chalco and
Xochimilco, which are but one lake, properly speak-
ing, the large Lake of Texcuco, and the smaller
ones Zumpango and San Christobal. At first the
name Anahuac was applied only to the neighbor-
hood of the lakes, but later it came to be applied to
the whole plateau.
The Conquistadores, according to their own glow-
ing account, found upon the shores of these lakes a
busy population, with all the evidences of industry
and prosperity. Temples, erected for worship, con-
taining the images of strange gods, stood in the
lofty places. Their monarch lived in a palace of
luxury, surrounded by his guards ; he controlled a
large army, which did battle for him against his
enemies. His swift-footed messengers, without
steam, without even horses, did his bidding even
to the shores of the distant sea. Without printing,
or telegraph, he received prompt information of
distant events 1)\' pictures made on the spot by his
speci.il artist. Here was a civilization which had rt-
12
SH A DO IVY TRIBES, 1 3
ceived nothing from the courts of Europe, whose
forms and ceremonies, while as rigid and as grand,
borrowed nothing from the traditions of the royal
house of Spain.
Whence came this proud people which had con-
quered for itself a place in that valley of the perfect
climate ?
About fifty miles from the city of Mexico is a
town named Tula, formerly Tollan, which means
perhaps " the place of many people." A road,
shaded by great ash-trees leads across the river Tula,
through a narrow pass to some ruins of an ancient
civilization, ruins already when the city of Monte-
zuma, which Cortes found flourishing, arose. A
building of ancient stone is still there, laid in mud
and covered with hard cement of a ruddy tint, with
which the floors are also covered. The largest room
in the building is not more than fifteen feet square.
Another building farther on, larger than the first, is
called the Casa Grande ; it contains about thirty
small rooms, connected by stairways, as their height
above the ground varies. The plaza of the little
town Tula contains the portion of a column and
the lower half of a colossal statue, which belong,
as well as the buildings just described, to the period
of the Toltecs, whose capital was the ancient Tol-
lan. Their city was abandoned a hundred years be-
fore the Aztecs entered it, and its founders scat-
tered. Whence came the shadowy race whose
history vaguely underlies that of later Mexican
races ?
The great mound which since Humboldt's time has
14 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
been called the pyramid of Cholula, of which every
child has seen a pic'^ure in his geography, has now
all the appearance of a natural hill. It is overgrown
with verdure and trees ; torrents of water in the
rainy seasons have cut crevices in its sides, and laid
bare wide spaces. A good paved road now leads to
the summit, where a pretty modern church looks
down upon the little town of Cholula huddled
round the base of the pyramid. The church and
the road leading to it are the work of the Spaniards,
but examination proves the whole mound to be
built by men out of earth, broken limestone, little
pebbles, and small bits of lava. Sun-dried bricks
were employed, of varying sizes and different make,
which aids the idea that the mound was built
slowly and by differing methods. On the platform
at the top, which was reached by five successive ter-
races, Cortes found a temple, which he caused to be
destroyed. The dates fixed for the erection of this
pyramid vary from the seventh to the tenth century
of our era. Conjecture only offers explanation of
the purpose for which it was erected. Legends
which the neighboring Indians preserve say that it
was built in preparation for a second deluge. An-
other version is that men dazzled by the splendor of
the scene sought to erect a tower which should reach
the firmament ; the heavenly powers, wroth with their
audacity, destroyed the edifice and dispersed the
builders. Cholula was one of the important cities
of the Toltecs, but its construction is attributed to
an earlier people.
Another monument of the ancient civilization is
1 6 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Xochicalco, seventy-five miles southwest of the city
of Mexico. In the middle of a plain rises a cone-
shaped height from three to four hundred feet
high, whose base has an oval form two miles in
circumference. Two tunnels piercing the side of
the mound open towards the north ; the first has
been explored only eighty-two feet. The second
penetrates the calcareous hill b)' a large gallery nine
feet and a half high, with several branches in differ-
ent directions. The ground is paved. The walls
are supported b\^ mason-work cemented and covered
with red ochre. The principal gallery leads to a hall
eighty feet long, whose ceiling is kept in place by
the aid of two pilasters. In one corner of this hall
is a little recess, excavated like the rest out of the
solid rock, with an ogival dome of Gothic aspect.
So much for the interior. Outside are five suc-
cessive terraces of mason-work sustained by walls
surmounted by parapets. At the summit stand
upon a broad platform the ruins of the temple for
which the mound was apparently destined ; it is a
rectangular building constructed of blocks of por-
phyritic granite placed on each other without the aid
of mortar, with sucli skill that the joinings were
scarcely visible. In 1755 the temple still preserved
five stories ; at the top was a stone, which might
have served as a seat, covered like the rest of the
building with strange ornaments carved in the5stone.
Works evidently for defence testify to the con-
stant fighting which must have been waged over
Anahuac. In the j)rovincc of Vera Cruz, at Iluatusco,
there are traces of fortifications stretching towards
SUA DO IVY TRIBES. 1 7
the north. Ceutla seems to have been one of the
chief points chosen for defence. The plain is cov-
ered with ruins. A forest conceals and at the same
time protects several pyramids of stone bound with
mortar. These pyramids arc the mo-t striking fea-
ture of this ancient architecture. The teocallis or
palaces at Palenque and Copan, ruins found in
Yucatan and Honduras, are erected on truncated
pyramids like those of Anahuac. They are all of
one primitive type, although differing in details of
material and form.
These ruins, still left to attest the power of the
great vanished nations who erected them, are rapidly
disappearing. The Spanish conquerors were amazed
at their size and importance — so much so that in
their description they often exaggerated their splen-
dor. Some of them Cortes destroyed ; whatever he
spared, gradually falls away, through neglect, theft,
or other ravage of time. Forests of tropical growth
have hidden the wonders of Palenque from destruc-
tion. Other such places may yet exist all undiscov-
ered ; and it is probable that the researches of sci-
entific explorers will in time bring to light much
information about the builders of these monuments.
Meanwhile we must again turn to conjecture, and in
the absence of facts to keep it within bound, we may
indulge our imagination, and play with legend.
Far away from some distant home, early in the
dim traditional annals of Anahuac, men came to
settle upon its plains. They found there a race of
giants — strange, fierce men, of immense strength,
— whose ancestors perhaps had struggled with pre-
1 8 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
historic beasts, of which the bones lie buried deep
below the present surface. This race of giants was
wild and rude ; they lived by hunting, and devoured
raw the flesh of the game they secured with bows
and arrows ; they were brave, daring, and agile, but
were given over to the vice of drunkenness.
We cannot stop to be very much interested in this
rudimentary people, called Quinames, who have left
us scarcely more than a name, and little even of le-
gend to charm us. The pyramid of Cholula and that
of Teotihuacan are ascribed to them, rather by way
of pushing back these monuments to an ancient pe-
riod. Their conception and execution show ambi-
tion, perhaps veneration, as well as determination
and perseverance.
Whence they came, therefore, it is vain to specu-
late : how long they were there, what manner of
men they were. A wave of life more civilized swept
down upon them from the north and exterminated
the whole race, so that we have nothing more to tell
about them. The tribes which have the credit of
destroying the giants bear the names of Xicalancas
and Ulmecas. They paused a while upon the pla-
teau, and passed on to people the coasts of the Gulf
of Mexico.
Next came the Mayas, still always from the north.
Although they left some traces upon Anahuac, they
too moved farther on, to establish in Yucatan and the
territory between Chiapas and Central America their
greatly advanced civilization. Of this great family
the many different branches speak dialects varying
from the mother tongue, but allied to each other.
SUA DO IV V TRIBES. 1 9
The Otomis, still with the same northern origin,
spread themselves very earh' over the territory which
is now occupied by the states of San Luis, Potosi,
Guanajuato, and Queretaro, reaching Michoacan, and
spreading still farther. These were a rough people
who lurked among the mountains, avoiding the Hfe
of large communities. They have left no record of
progressive civilization. Their descendants are still
traced in the regions which they chiefly occupied,
by peculiarities of dialect. Mixtecas and Zapotccas
are names of other peoples who came to occupy Ana-
huac, but the Toltecs are the first of these ancient
tribes distinguished for the advancement of their
arts and civilization, of which their monuments and
the results of excavation give abundant proof.
The legends of those tribes who came to Mexico
over the broad path leading down from the north
refer to an ancient home, of which they retained a
sad, vague longing, as the Moor still dreams of the
glories of Granada. They preserved the tradition of
their long migrations in their hieroglyphics and pic-
tured writings. These traditions bear a strong re-
semblance to each other, and the dialects of the suc-
cessive races which appeared in Mexico are so similar
that it is probable they all belong to the same lan-
guage, which is called Nahuatl. All these races are
generalized as the Nahuas.
One of the traditions relates that seven families
alone were saved from the Deluge. Their descend-
ants, after long and weary wanderings, fixed them-
selves at Hueh\ie-Tlapallan(the 01d,01d, Red Rock),
a fertile country and agreeable to live in, near a broad
20 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
and endless river, flowint;' from mountains far away
to an ever distant sea. On tlie shore of the river
were broad plains where cattle L;ra/ed. The moun-
tains, with summits reachiuL^ to the heavens, were
full of game. The winters were long, but the sum-
mers mild and agreeable. There the parents of the
Nahuas dwelt long and happily, but at last enemies,
whose attacks they had been obliged from time to
time to resist, overcame them, and drove them from
their homes. It was then they descended towards
the south, seeking a land which slundd remind them
of their favored home. Onl\' when they reached the
plateau of Auahuac, near the great lakes which
reminded them of their mighty river, could they rest.
Such legends as these, and the forms of the pyra-
mids found in Mexico and Yucatan, lead naturally
to the guess that these races were the descendants of
the Mound Builders of the Mississippi Valley, Ohio,
and Missouri. The monuments of these prehistoric
men are not unlike the teocallis and p)'ramids of the
Nahuas. The " mounds" are artificial hills of earth,
constructed with mathematical regularity, round,
oval, or square. They are finished at the top by
platforms, destined, apparently, to religious rites.
Like those in Mexico, the Mounds, in their form and
the great number of them, bear evidence to the pro-
longed existence of the race who built them, to long
years of labor, and thousands of workmen employed
in their construction. Excavation has brought to
light implements of war and household use, which
show both taste and skill, and these objects are
much alike in their general aspect, whether found in
SH A no IVY TRIBES. 21
the valley of the Mississippi or of Mexico. Such
conjectures are full of attraction ; but they have, as
yet, no solid foundation. As for the Mound Builders,
their name, by which we now designate them, is but
a modern label. Their own is effaced from the
memory of men. Their origin is equally lost, and
the time of their existence, the date of their monu-
ments, are vanished in a vague past.
To associate, then, these Mound Builders with
the early wandering tribes who descended to the
plateau of Anahuac, is no help, at present, to the
student of Mexican antiquit}'. Yet the idea is
pleasing to the imagination ; and it is even reason to
hope that future discoveries in either region may
throw light upon the early stay of the other.
Had we sure knowledge that the Mound Builders
and the Nahuas were of the same race, we should
still have to inquire whence came the)' all before
they settled in the Mississippi valley, were driven
out by their enemies, and migrated to the Mexican
plateau? Such speculations are the pastime of the
student of lost races. For him to dream of the pos-
sible homes of a set of people where traces are but
faintly to be discerned, is as fascinating as building
airy castles in Spain.
The theory of a submerged continent beneath the
Azores, opposite the mouth of the Mediterranean,
which might be the island described by Plato, At-
lantis, the region where man first emerged from a
condition like that of beasts to a constantly advan-
cing state of civilization, plays a part in the fancies of
those who are wondering about the origin of the
Nahuatl tribes of Anahuac.
22 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The distant home of which they all preserved llie
legend under one name or another, one of which was
Aztlan, the musical title given it by the Mexicans,
was, perhaps, Atlantis, the broad and mighty realm
where mankind in its childhood lived for generations
in tranquillity and happiness. Huehue-Tlapallan,
Aztlan, Atlantis, these names represent the universal
tradition of this early home. The world before the
Deluge, the Garden of Eden, the Garden of the
Hesperides, the Elysian Fields, Olympus, Asgard, —
all these are but different terms to express the vague
vision in men's minds of a happy past. If the
theory of Atlantis could be true, these were not
mere visions but traditions preserving a consistent
recollection of real historical events, of a populou?
and mighty cradle of nations which peopled the
shores of the Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi, tht
Amazon, and the Pacific coasts of South America,
as well as the older world.
Atlantis, according to the stor}-, perished in a ter-
rible convulsion of nature, in which the whole island
sank into the ocean with nearly all its inhabitants.
Only a few persons escaped in ships and rafts to
lands east and west of the catastrophe. Each of
these separate survivors became, in the legend of
his descendants, the solitary Noah or Coxcox of a
tradition representing the destruction of an entire
world. The Nahuatl legend helps out the theory of
Atlantis to willing minds. The Noah of the Mexi-
can tribes was Coxcox, who, with his wife Xochi-
quetzal, alone escaped the deluge. They took ref-
uge in the hollow trunk of a cypress {ahuehiicte),
SHADOWY TRIBES. 23
which floated upon the water, and stopped at last
on top of a mountain of Culhuacan. They had
many children, but all of them were dumb. The
great spirit took pity on them, and sent a dove, who
hastened to teach them to speak. Fifteen of the
children succeeded in grasping the power of speech,
and from these the Toltecs and Aztecs are descended.
Another account describes a deluge in which men
perished and were changed to fish ; the earth disap-
peared, and the highest mountain tops were covered
with water. But before this happened, one of the
Nahua gods, called Tezcatlipoca, spoke to a man
named Nata and his wife Nana, saying : " Do not busy
yourselves any longer making /?//^?^d', but hollow out
for yourselves a large boat of an aJiueJmete tree, and
make your home in it when you see the waters rising
to the sky." The Mexican historian, Ixtlilxochitl,
has conceived that after the dispersion of the human
race, which succeeded the attempt to build the
Tower of Babel, seven Toltecs reached America, and
became the parents of that race. Thus having learned
of the Tower of Babel from his Catholic instructors,
Ixtlilxochitl skilfully pieces the Hebrew legend upon
the Toltec fabric.
The friends of the Atlantis theory in like manner
seize upon the universal fable of the deluge to weave
into their tissue. It remains for every reader to
decide for himself whether to regard these theories
as the airy fabric of a vision, or made up out of the
whole cloth.
III.
TOLTECS.
A SOMEWHAT connected chain of events begins
with the traditions of the Toltecs upon the plateau
of Anahuac. Their farthest ancestors, they sup-
posed, founded the city of Huehue-Tlapallan far to
the north, perhaps on the shores of the Colorado
River. There they lived from genera-
tion to generation, nobody knows how
long, until great civil wars broke out in
their nation, and a part, deserting their
ancient homes, wandered down towards
the south. This was in the year 544 of
our era.
Guided by their great chief Huemat-
zin, the Toltecs wandered over the
sandy plains in the north of Mexico till
they came to the land " near the water,"
fertile and promising, and finally settled
in a place they called Tollanzinco. Not
far off, in the course of time, they found-
ed their great city of Tollan, now Tula,
which became the centre of the Toltec
nation.
These people built so well and so
COLUMN I'KOM
TULA.
84
26 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
much that the name became the word to mean
builders. The few ruins left of their capital attest
their skill. They felt themselves to be a superior
race to that they found in their new home. The
Toltecs were tall, robust, and well-formed, of light-
sallow complexion, with but little hair on their face.
They were wonderful for running, and coul'd run at
the greatest speed for hours. Their manners were
gentle and refined, as well as their tastes. Yet they
were cruel in war as well as brave.
Arrived in their new countr}', the\' set themselves
to work to till the ground and plant it with all the
crops the favorite climate permits. They had Indian
corn, q\\\\q, frijoles, the beans so beloved to this day
by the Mexicans, and other vegetables ; these they
cultivated with better processes than the former in-
habitants had known. Nevertheless, and although
the proud Toltecas must have looked down on the
native tribes, they took a step dictated by a wise
diplomac}-, in order to preserve harmony and good-
fellowship with their neighbors. They invited the
ruler of the Chichemecs, a tribe to the north of them,
to provide them a chief from his family, and, much
flattered, he sent them his second son.
Some Toltec Richelieu must have planned this
scheme, with the intention of keeping the real power
in his own hands.
Precious-stone-who-shines(Chalchiuhtlatonac),well
pleased to sparkle in a new setting, came to them
from the powerful neighboring tribe of the Chiche-
mecs, and governed peacefully for tlie space of fifty-
two years, while the Toltecs planted and reaped, and
pursued their gentle way.
TOL TECS. ' 27
They spoke the tongue NahuatI, giving to it their
own dialect. They wrote, and studied the stars, by
which they regulated their division of time. It is
said they were the first in all Anahuac who knew
geography. How much they knew we never shall
know, still less how little those before them knew.
They knew the properties of plants, how to heal the
sick by using them, how to keep well. They were
excellent carpenters; they worked precious stones
with skill ; they wove their garments out of strong
or delicate fabrics in many colors and designs, de-
manding and creating for themselves not only the
necessities of life, but the adornments of art and
taste. In fact, the Toltecs were a worthy people,
averse to war, allied to virtue, to cleanliness, courtesy,
and good manners. They detested falsehood and
treachery, and held their gods in reverence.
The early faith of the Toltecs was the adoration
of the sun, moon, and stars. Especially the power
{tecuhtli) which warmed the earth and made it fruit-
ful, giving them thus their chief blessings, they wor-
shipped under the name Tonacatecuhtli, to whom
they offered flowers, fruits, and sacrifices of small
animals. Polytheism, and the sacrifice of human be-
ings, which was later engrafted on this simple belief
by other tribes, had no part in the early religion of
the Toltecs.
At the end of the tenth century, when in England
the Danes were beginning to trouble the Anglo-Sax-
ons, and Ethelreds and Edreds were retreating before
Canutes and Ilardicanutes; when across the channel
Hugh Capet had put an end to the feeble dynasties
of the Carlovingian kings, and was taking for him-
28 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
self the crown of France, began to rule Tecpancalt-
zin, the ciL^^hth of the Toltec chiefs. We cannot
tell what manner of court he held, whether rude or
splendid. His territory stretched over large dis-
tances, and counted many flourishing cities, among
them Teotihuacan, Cholollan, Cuernavaca, and
Toluca.
Cuernavaca, " where the eagle stops," at an
elevation of nearly five thousand feet above the
sea, is built upon a headland projecting into a
valley between two sharp barrancas. The region is
richly watered, and produces now, as in the time of
the Toltecs, abundant crops. Fruits also abound
there. The winter climate is delightful. The place
was captured by Cortes before he laid siege to the cit\'
of Mexico. It became his favorite resort, and the
valley was included in ihe royal reward he received
for his Mexican conquests. It was here that he be-
gan in Mexico the cultivation of the sugar-cane, and
here the Conquistador passed the last x'cars of his
life. Traces of the ancient civilization are still to be
seen. Behind a house in the town called the Casa
de Cortes is a solitary rock u[:)on which are prehis-
toric carvings ; on the crest of a little hill near by is
a lizard about eight feet long carved in stone. Eigh-
teen miles from Cuernavaca are the ruins of Xochi-
calco, before mentioned.
Toluca is forty-five miles west of the city of Mex-
ico, at an elevation of 8,600 feet above the level of
the sea. The scenery all the way from Mexico is of
the finest description. The two volcanoes which dom-
inate the valley, covered with snow, are behind, and
TOL TECS. 29
before us is the equally beautiful Nevada de Toluca,
nearly as high as they. It is an extinct volcano, the
crater of which is now a lake with a whirlpool in the
middle of it. Here the Toltecs had a palace of
stone decorated with hieroglyphics. Such was the
broad territory over which ruled Tecpancaltzin. The
lakes in the valle}', much larger than the}' are now,
were his, and all the fertile valleys around them,
which his people knew well how to cultivate. His
swift runners brought him from sunny Cuernavaca
fruits of the tropics. Snow from the Nevadas, even
in the hot days of summer, was at his disposition.
His w^arriors kept his neighbors in proper aw^e, and
he lived at peace with all men.
It was then, according to some reckonings, that
the mysterious Quetzalcoatl appeared in Tollan. He
must have been a real personage, for the tale is deeply
rooted in the traditions of the country, of the white
man with a long beard who came from the East, and
disappeared as mysteriously as he had come, over the
Atlantic Ocean. The Toltecs w^ere dark, with scanty
beards and short ; this stranger was absolutely unlike
them. He remained with them twenty years, teach-
ing them the arts of a better civilization. Recent
study has busied itself with extinguishing the beams
which surround the bright image of this wonderful be-
ing. Before the traditions of his greatness are thus
swept away, we will preserve them for a little longer.
Quetzalcoatl (The Shining Snake) is sometimes de-
scribed as one of the four principal gods who shared
with the terrible Huitzilopochtli the work of the first
creation. Elsewhere he is represented as a man who
30 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
came to live among the Toltecs, and who disap-
peared as mysteriously as he came. Between the
two accounts of him, then, is every shade of matter-
of-fact and miraculous in the taleii that are preserved
of him. One, shown in an ancient painted writing,
now lost, depicted him a youth, fasting seven years
alone among the hills, and drawing his blood, be-
cause the gods made of him a great warrior, showed
how he became chief of Tula, selected by the inhab-
itants on account of his bravery, and how he built
them a great temple. " While he was doing this,
Tezcatlipoca came to him, and said that towards
Honduras, in a place called Tlapalla, he was to es-
tablish his home, and that he must leave Tula and
go thither to live and die, and there he should be held
to be a god. To this he replied that the heavens and
the stars had told him to go within four years. So,
after four years were past, he left, taking along with
him all the able-bodied men of Tula. Some of these
he left in the City of Cholula, and from these the in-
habitants are descended. Reaching Tlapalla, he fell
sick the same day, and died the following one.
Tula remained waste and without a chief nine years."
A legend adds that " his ashes were carried to
heaven by handsome birds ; the heart followed, and
became the morning star."
Baudelier concludes him to have been a prominent
gifted Indian leader, perhaps of Toltec origin, per-
haps Olmec. He suggests that his career began in
the present state of Hidalgo, in which are the ruins
of ancient Tula, and that his first stay was there, af-
ter which he left that people and moved farther
QUETZALCOATL.
32 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
south, and settled at Cholula ; perhaps founding
there the first settlement, perhaps elevating the tone
of the village Indians already settled there. The
beneficial effects of the coming of Ouctzalcoatl
were the introduction, or improvement, of the arts
of pottery, weaving, stonework, and feather-work ;
the organization of government of a higher t}'pc, and
the introduction of a mode of worship free from hu-
man sacrifice. Perhaps his aversion to this bloody
custom made him withdraw to the mythical Tlapal-
la, a place on no map and only known to tradition,
which puts it on the sea-coast, and generally on the
Gulf of Mexico.
The mystery of his departure and death led to his
deification, and the worshipof his person becamethe
leading feature of the religion at Cholula.
It is likely that The Shining Serpent developed, if
he did not originate, many of the gentle and grace-
ful forms of worship, which still have a great part of
the religion of the simple Indians of Mexico, of sac-
rificing the fruits and flowers of each season to its
appropriate divinity and festival.
In Holy Week, now, in the city of Mexico, the
shores of the canal leading to the town are decorated
with flowers. Native boats float over the water
heaped with bright blossoms, and the dark heads of
the Indian girls are crowned with wreaths of pop-
pies. They bring these blossoms in masses to dec-
orate the altars of Nuestra Sefiora in the churches.
Her image is the symbol of their divinity transferred
from the earlier idols their remote ancestors wor-
shippedc
TO L TECS. 33
In the National Museum in Mexico is an image in
the form of a coiled serpent in pyramidal form — its
body covered with feathers — carved of basaltic por-
phyry. This model, which appears in many of the
old monuments, is regarded as the symbol of the
mysterious Shining Serpent.
Whatever were his serious claims to distinction, his
worshippers invested him with wonderful attributes.
His sojourn in their land marked its most prosper-
ous period. In his time the seasons were the fairest,
the earth the most productive. Flowers blossomed,
fruits ripened without the toil of the gardener. The
cotton in its pod turned blue, red, or yellow without
the trouble of the dyer, so that the fabrics lightly
woven and without fatigue took on rich and har-
monious tints. The air was continually filled with
perfumes and the songs of sweet birds. Every man
loved his neighbor, and all dwelt in peace and har-
mony together. These were the halcyon days of
Anahuac. For twenty years the Toltecs knew no
disaster, but flourished and spread under the influ-
ence of their strange protector. And then, one day
the strange god disappeared from among them, de-
scending to the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, where
he bade farewell to the crowd that had followed him,
promising, as he did so, that in the fulness of time
his descendants, white men like himself, with full
beards, should return and instruct them. Then he
stepped into a magic bark made of the skins of
serpents, and sailed away over an ocean unknown
to these simple men towards the fabled land of
Tlapalla.
34 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
So Lohengrin vanished to the upper air, and as
with those he left behind, all their good luck was
over for the Toltecs.
They did their best to preserve the memory of
Quetzalcoatl. On the top of the pyramid of Cho-
lula, which perhaps their fathers found standing
when they reached the haven of their pilgrimage,
the Toltecs raised an image of their deity, with fea-
tures of ebony, although he was white; with a mitre
on its head waving with plumes of fire ; with a re-
splendent collar of gold around its neck, turquoise
ear-rings, a sceptre all jewelled in one hand, and in
the other a strange shield. Such is the description
of the Conquistadores, who saw it ; and as they de-
stroyed it, and tumbled it down from its lofty site,
they should know.
Evil days were coming to the Toltecs.
The traveller in Mexico to-day sees growing all
along the sides of the railway huge stiff bunches
of the Agave Ainericana. The leaves are long and
pointed with prickles along the edge, growing in a
tuft like huge artichokes. Their blue, rather than
green, surface has a whitish bloom over it, which
makes the plants look as if they had been made of
tin and painted some time ago. Sometimes the
leaves are very large, and the bunches enormous.
When the time comes a stem shoots up from the
heart of the tuft to a great height, putting out
branches at the top, which blossom in a cluster of
yellowish flowers. These branches are symmetrical,
and the effect is like a lofty branched candlestick,
sometimes forty feet high. The blossoms fade ; the
TO L TECS. 35
dying stalk, like the framework of last year's fire-
works, remains a long time ; and when these plants,
as they often are, are set along the railways, the line
of tall bare stems looks not unlike a row of telegraph
poles. The blue tin leaves are ever green, and last
through many a year.
This agave, or American aloe, is the century-plant,
so called from the popular error that it blossoms
only once in a hundred years. It is only true so far that
each plant blossoms only once and then dies. In
tropical regions this process proceeds rapidly; in
colder countries, where it is raised artificially, it
takes a long time to complete its perfect growth.
The agave is native in the whole region between
the tropics of America, where it flourishes from the
sandy soil by the sea to table-lands and mountain
altitudes. From its natural region it has been trans-
planted everywhere, and even in cold climates it is
cultivated as a green-house plant. In Spain, where
it was early transplanted, among the other novelties
which the Conquistadores introduced from their new
land, it is absolutely at home. Its lofty candelabra
are an ornament to Andalusian roadsides, and a bar-
rier for wandering cattle. In Spain it is called ///«,
which must be a different variety, if not a totally dis-
tinct genus from the common plant of Mexico, for
the use of its juices for a beverage is totally unknown
in the old country, and this certainly would have
been discovered there if such properties had not
been wanting in the Spanish plant.
For the agave of the Mexicans is their maguey,
from which they extract pulque, the national bever-
36 THE STORY OF MEXICO,
age. The agave has served them for many other
purposes, from the earHest times. Its bruised
leaves, properly dressed and polished, make a sort of
paper; its leaves furnish a strong protecting thatch
for the roofs of houses ; thread can be drawn from its
long fibrous texture ; the thorns furnish a fair sub-
stitute for the pin and needle ; and the root, well
prepared, is nutritious and palatable as food.
Of all these properties of the agave the Toltecs
were cognizant. If their wise friend, The Shining
Serpent, knew of other attributes it had, he kept si-
lent. It was reserved for a woman to reveal to her
race the fatal gift which lay hidden in the blue-preen
stubborn leaves of the prickly plant.
Xochitl was the name of the woman who showed
to the king, Tecpancaltzin, how to extract from the
heart of the maguey a sweet honey to drink, which,
from that time to this, has been the delight and the
curse of Mexicans. The plains of Apan are cele-
brated for the production of the finest pulque, in it-
self a thoroughly wholesome drink, suited to the
climate of high regions, and beneficial when taken
in moderation. From the root of the maguey, how-
ever, strong distilled liquors can be made, called
mezeal and tequila and of these it is best not to
drink to much.
The new beverage fouiid favor with the chief of
the Toltec tribe, and spread its cheerful inflacnce
over his people. He married Xochitl, the woman
who had offered him honey extracted from maguey.
The result of th's disco\'ery, and the consequence
of the marriage, were ruin and dispersion for the
proud race of the Toltecs. Meconetzin, (Son of
TOL TECS. 37
Maguey) ruled at first with prudence and practical
wisdom, but his habits deteriorated little by little;
he became vicious, and revealed himself to be an in-
supportable tyrant. The honey in the maguey had
begun to ferment.
The Toltecs thenceforth deteriorated in the moc*-
disastrous manner. Famines and pests fell upon
the land, and invasions of strange peoples. The
population was thinned, harried, scattered. Its last
chieftain was Topiltzin-Meconetzin (Son of Maguey),
who, with his wife, Xochitl, was slain in a sanguinary
battle against overpowering enemies. And this was
the end of the Toltecs. This may have been in the
year 1 1 16 of our era, after a duration of about five
hundred and fifty years.
Some historians consider that the Toltecs were
not a great race, but simply a tribe of sedentary
Indians, more advanced than their neighbors, whose
traditions hav^e become with time exaggerated into
the tale of a great and powerful nation. How this
may be, the tourist at Tula may judge, according to
his disposition, romantic or prosaic, by the import-
ance of the ruins left b*y the vanished race.
The excellent compcndios of history written by
Payne and Zarate for the use of schools in Mexico
still give the dynasties of the kings of Tula, as well
as of the other early tribes, as if they were sovereigns
of a well-established monarchy, accompanied by a list
of the royal succession. According to this, the king-
dom of the Toltecs lasted from 720 A.D., the date fixed
for the end of their wanderings from Huehue-Tlapal-
lan to Tollan, until 1 1 16 A.D., when their destruction
was accomplished and their people dispersed.
47801
IV.
CHICHIMEC.5.
According to the old version of Anahuac story,
the proud, brilliant dynasty of the Toltecs shone
like a jewel upon the background of the savage
tribes surrounding it, who remained during the pe-
riod it flourished in the same condition as when the
Toltecs came. It was from one of these less culti-
vated races that the Toltecs took their first chief,
Chalchiuhtlatonac, son of the so-called Emperor of
the Chichimecs, to whose account is attributed a
line of fourteen monarchs, and a duration of over
two hundred years, but all this is very uncertain
and vague; on the other hand, Baudelier is of opin-
ion that there was no Chichimccan period in Mexico.
The word Chichimccatl signifies indiscriminately a
savage, a good hunter, or a brave warrior. The far-off
region from which they immigrated like the other
tribes upon Anahuac, called by them Amaquemecan,
like the Huehue-Tlapallan of the Toltecs, was a
fertile country of their dreams, pleasant to work in,
and free from earthly disasters.
Probably they came from the same region as the
Toltecs; their language is classed with the Nahuatl,
though their dialect was their own. They called
38
CHICHIMECS. 3C;
themselves the Eagles. They not only had no cul-
ture, but scorned it, preferring the advantages of bar-
barism. Their occupation was hunting, which was
fully furnished them by the game in the mountain
regions, which they found unclaimed, and took
possession of. They lived upon the flesh of wolves
and pumas, — their smaller dishes were weasels, moles,
and mice, without objecting to lizards, snakes, grass-
hoppers, and earthworms.
The Chichimecs seem to have wandered about
completely naked, with skins of beasts to protect
them from the occasional cold of their mild climate.
Their houses were, for the most part, caves or cracks
in the rocks, but they knew how to build rude huts,
roofed with palm leaves. Gourds were their drink-
ing vessels, and they could make a rude sort of pot-
tery, out of which they fashioned jugs, and also little
balls used for bullets in war, which could make dan-
gerous wounds. They were always at war with their
neighbors, and protected their own territory from in-
cursions with their bows and arrows, and clubs,
which they handled with great vigor.
Each warrior of the Chichimecs wore a bone at
his waist, which carried a mark for every enemy he
had killed. Competition was sure to keep these
bones well marked, as it was a distinction to bear the
record of the most victims. Their battles were
bloodthirsty. Prisoners were scalped upon the field
of battle, and their heads carried in triumph back to
camp, while dances of victory were performed. They
had the reputation of eating the flesh and drinking
the blood of their victims.
40 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The several tribes of the Chichimecs acknowl-
edged no authority, other than obedience to the war-
rior they themselves selected to lead them to battle.
Their wives were their slaves ; and though they lim-
ited themselves to one wife at a time, they reserved
to themselves the liberty of changing one for another
at any moment. The women prepared the food, cut
down trees, brought wood and water, and made the
pottery — bullets as well as pots and pans. The Chi-
chimecs feared and worshipped the sun as a supreme
deity, and the spirit of the thunder and lightning,
whom they rudcl}^ depicted with bolts in his hands,
like Jupiter, and called Nixcoatl, (the Serpent of the
Clouds).
These were the people who lived side by side with
the Toltecs, their better-behaved neighbors, despised
as inferiors, and regarded with disgust for their
coarseness and horror for their bloody practices. By
these, the Toltecs were conquered and destroyed.
Xolotl, the leader of the Chichimecs, to use the
greatly exaggerated reports gathered from historic
paintings, which depicted these things, came to in-
vade the realm of the Toltecs with a million warriors
under six great chiefs, and twenty thousand or so
of inferior officers. He had under his command
more than three million men and women, not count-
ing tlie children who came along with their mothers.
The Toltecs were much deteriorated since their
proud days. Allies whom they had oppressed had
deserted them ; a religious sect A\hich differed from
the prevailing belief had sought elsewhere a place of
independent worship ; the sovereign and his favorites
CHICHIMECS. 41
were delivered over to dissipation. But even the
royal family gave proof of energy and resolution
when the hour of danger came.
An old chief, named Ayaxitl, called the country to
arms, inspiring them with tales of the deeds of their
ancestors. Old men and young boys took up arms ;
and old Xochitl herself, the mother of the inefificient
king, led forth to battle a legion of Amazons, and
was slain at their front. But all this show of bravery
came too late. The Toltecs were entirely defeated
after a prolonged conflict, which was renewed for
several days. Tollan was taken, the whole country
surrendered, and its ruling race entirely exterminated.
The Toltecs were no more, and the Chichimecs
ruled in their stead. But these people, recovering
from their barbarism in a measure, took on the ad-
vanced customs of their conquered enemies, entered
into their palaces, and enjoyed the fruits of their
civilization.
Xolotl took the title of Chichimecatl Tecuhtli, the
great chief of the Chichimecs ; and his descendants
added to this the name Huactlatohani (Lord of
the Whole World). The territory claimed for him
included a large part of the present Mexico, the
states Morelos and Puebla, a portion of Vera Cruz,
the greater part of Hidalgo, the whole of Tlaxcalla,
and the valley of Mexico. He strengthened his
power by marrying his son to a daughter of the late
Toltec sovereign, saved from the destruction of the
race, and altogether showed wisdom and judgment
not to be expected from the antecedents of his
people. Such conduct inclines students of this re-
42 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
mote period to think that these Chichimecs were
not the barbarous tribe who lived in caves and
ate Hzards, but a later arrival from the mysterious
north.
During the reign of Xolotl new tribes came wan-
dering down from these remote regions. These
successive waves of emigration give the idea of a
constantly renewed struggle for supremacy far off in
the unknown Amaquemecan, resulting in the migra-
tion of the conquered side. Xolotl received these
new arrivals with benign hospitality, gave them
lands to plant, and encouraged them to settle in his
realm. Among these were the Aculhuas and Te-
panecs, who founded the kingdoms, afterwards
important, of Atzcapotzalco and Tlacopan.
Xolotl had the credit of reigning from 1 120 to 1232,
when he died. This would make him at least one
hundred and twenty years old at his death. And
some people from this imagine that there were sev-
eral Xolotls that succeeded one another. Let us
believe that he lived to this great age. The name
means " Eye of great vigilance."
For three generations his immediate successors
ruled the kingdom with firmness and judgment, com-
pelling their people to cultivate the land, thus pro-
tecting agriculture, which was their chief source of
wealth, and building towns to put an end to wander-
ing habits inherited from the men who lived in caves
on the mountain side.
Quinatzin, in the beginning of the thirteenth
century, established the capital of the kingdom of
the Chichimecs in Texcuco. It was during his
CHICHIMECS. 43
reign that the Aztecs, or Mexicans, whom we now
hear of for the first time, established themselves in
Tenochtitlan, which was on the site of what is now
the city of Mexico, though their arrival made but
PORTICO AT KABOH.
little stir in the neighborhood. The Chichimecs
were troubled by quarrels with the new kingdom of
Atzcapotzalco, but for a century they maintained
their good standing, always advancing in civilization
and the arts of peace, and it was not until 1409 that
44 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
one of their kings, Ixtlilxochitl, found these rising
neighbors too strong for him. The Tepanecs and
the Aztecs united, and swore together a conspiracy
to overvvhehn him. He was assassinated, and his
throne was usurped by Tezozomoc, tlie king of
Atzcapotzalco.
The Chichimecs may be said to come to an end
here; for, after the return of the legitimate line,
their reahn was called the kingdom of Tcxcuco,
where their capital was already established. This
city was occupied b}' the invaders, who made it their
principal seat. The usurper at his death was suc-
ceeded upon his stolen throne by his wicked son
Maxtla. The adventures of Nezahualcoyotl, the
rightful heir, are told by a native historian descend-
ed in a direct line from the sovereigns of Tcxcuco,
Ixtlilxochitl, whose writings, though probabl\' not
over accurate, are more tangible evidence than the
faint reports of previous legends.
V.
NEZAHUALCOYOTL, THE HUNGRY FOX.
When the city of Texcuco was seized, the young
prince Nezahualcoyotl, the heir to the crown, was
but fifteen years old. He fled before the turbulent
crowd of Tepanecs as they rushed into the palace
gardens, and hid himself in the branches of a tree
which most luckily happened to come in his way.
From his hiding-place among its thick leaves he saw
his father, Ixtlilxochitl, left alone for the moment
turn and face his furious enemies. They seized and
killed him on the spot, and the frightened boy saw
the bleeding body carried off, a victim, as he well
knew, for future sacrifice. Filled with horror and
burning with thoughts of vengeance, he fled from
the spot, seeking safety for the moment, with the
firm resolve of turning later upon the assassins of
his father and the usurpers of his inheritance.
As the country was full of the triumphant army,
in a few days the young prince fell into the hands of
his pursuers, who knew too much to leave him at
large. He was seized and imprisoned temporarily,
until some decision should be taken as to his fate.
The prison was a strong place guarded by the same
governor who had held it in the previous reign, for
45
46 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the new government had not yet had time to change
such offices. This old man knew the prince well,
and was devoted to his line. He helped him to es-
cape and took his place in the dungeon cell. It was
long enough before the change was discovered for
the prince to be far out of reach of pursuit. The
good old governor lost his head, but Nezahualcoyotl
found shelter in the neighboring province of Tlax-
calla, whose rulers were for the moment friendly to
his famil)-.
This is the place which later offered to Cortes pro-
tection and aid in his enterprise of conquest. Pres-
cott calls it a republic in the midst of many small
monarchies, dwelling apart on a system of govern-
ment wholly independent.
Climbing by rail the ascent from Vera Cruz, the
modern traveller, after reaching the barren plateau
of the cold region, and crossing a dreary, dismal
country, strikes an insensibly downward grade,
which gradually leads him to the central basin of
Mexico. The Malinche presides over the landscape,
an isolated peak, which all the year conceals beds of
snow in the crevices of its summit, though unseen
below, rising more than thirteen thousand feet
above the level of the sea. Less majestic than the
two great volcanoes, it yet has wonderful beauty of
outline, and from its solitary position gains im-
portance.
This mountain was long the object of worship for
the tribes who lived around its base, among them
the Tlaxcallans, whose home lies to the northwest
of it, in a deep valley surrounded by barren ridges.
NEZAHUALCOYOTL, THE HUNGRY FOX. 47
Their so-called social organization and mode of gov-
ernment, which have given their country the name
of a kind of Mexican Switzerland, is now thought to
have differed little from those of their neighbors.
Their chiefs were elected from an hereditary house
of rulers, and two of them formed the nominal head
of the tribe, while the true power lay in a council.
Their territory consisted of narrow valleys spreading
into fertile fields, w'here they maintained long their
independence, subject to the attacks of neighboring
tribes. Tlaxcalla means "the land of bread." Its
rich products naturally were tempting to the neigh-
boring tribes, whose limits included land woX. so
good for cultivation. Their next neighbors were
the Cholulans, who dwelt under the great pyramid.
The Tlaxcallans had the reputation of triumphing
over their foes in battle, for they were both bold
and strong.
It was with the friendly Tlaxcallans that the wan-
dering prince lived, unmolested in the companion-
ship of a brave man who followed the fortunes of his
young master. He had been the family preceptor
ever since the birth of the prince. This tutor was
wise as well as learned; although he was strongly
prejudiced in favor of the legitimate family and
against the usurpation of the fierce Tepanec, he coun-
selled restraint and patience, and caused his pupil to
lead a quiet life without attracting attention, while
he was giving him lessons in the art of governing
and training in all the qualities good for a monarch
to possess.
Meanwhile, the son of the usurper grew up un-
48 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
trained and indulged in the ro)'al palace, humored
but feared by all who surrounded him. IVIaxtla was
born of a race of no gentle attributes ; he cared little
for study, and knew no discipline. He knew the
rightful prince, and hated him on account of his bet-
ter claim to the throne, while he despised his reserve
and modesty, which he set down to weakness, knowing
nothing of the qualities of self-restraint and reserved
force. When Tezozomoc died, he bequeathed his
empire to his son IMaxtla. On the accession of the
new sovereign, all the great families hastened to do
him homage, and among them came Nezahualcoyotl,
then twenty-three years old, with a present of
flowers, which he laid at the feet of the young king.
Maxtla sprang up and spurned the flowers with his
foot, and then turned his back upon the true
prince, who had self-control enough to withdraw
quietly, admonished by signs from all the royal
attendants, with whom he was a favorite. He lost
no time in leaving the royal palace, and hastened
back to the deserted one at Texcuco.
But Maxtla could not fail to see that the sympa-
thies even of liis own followers were with his rival,
whose manners, indeed, were those to win, while his
own repelled the affection of courtiers and inferiors.
He resolved to do away with him, and formed apian
which failed through the vigilance of the wily old
tutor. When the prince was invited to an evening
entertainment by Maxtla, the tutor was sure that
more was meant than a friendly attention. He
could not permit his pupil to go, but accepted the
invitation for him, and sent in his stead a young man
NEZAHVALCOYOTL, THE HUNGRY FOX. 49
he had at hand who singuhirl\- resembled Nezahual-
coyotL This }'outh, perhaps, was pleased to attend
a royal feast, dressed in the rich robes which the son
of a king, even if lacking a throne, might wear; but
there must have been a moment, just as he felt the
deadly /;://Mveapon at his throat, when he perceived
the game was not worth the candle; for the guest
was assassinated as he came to the table, before the
substitution could be perceived ; and thus the true
prince escaped. His descendant, who tells us the
stor\', does nt)t let us know whether Nezahualcoyotl
was a party to the deception. We will leave the
blame on the shoulders of the wily old tutor, in
order to preserve the honor of our hero unsullied.
When Maxtla found that his rival was not dead,
like a prince in a fairy tale, he gave up secret plots,
and boldly sent a band of armed soldiers to the old
palace at Texcuco, to seize the young man whose
popularity he feared. The tutor, always on the watch,
arranged everything as usual, and when the emissaries
of Maxtla arrived, they found the prince playing ball in
the court of the palace. He received them cour-
teous!}', as if he thought they came on a friendly
visit, and invited them to come in, while he stepped
into a room which opened on the court, as if to give
orders for refreshments for them. They seemed to
be seeing him all the time, but, by the directions of
the old tutor, a censer which stood in the passage was
so fed and stirred by the servants that it threw up
clouds of incense between the guests and their host,
between which Nezahualcoyotl disappeared into a
secret passage which communicated with a great
50 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
])ipe made of pottery, formerly used to carry water
into the palace. He stayed there till after dark,
when he could escape without being seen, and found
safety in a cottage belonging to an old subject loyal
to his father's name. A price was set upon his head,
and a reward offered to him who should take him
dead or alive, in the shape of a marriage with some
lady of birth and broad possessions. This bride
never came to her wedding, for the prince was not
found. Too many faithful vassals watched over him,
in spite of the temptation of such a brilliant match ;
they hid him under heaps of magueys, and furnished
him with every means of escape. They turned their
heads away when they saw him pass, lest they should
be forced to betray the knowledge ; they put food
for him in places where he might steal forth and find
it. They hid him once in a large thing like a drvim,
around which they were dancing as if to amuse them-
selves. In fact, no one would give him up; the
whole population connived to protect him and hide
him from his half-hearted pursuers, forced to the
task by their sovereign. It was a poor sort of life
he led, and his own sufferings were increased by his
tender heart for the difficulties these caused his loyal
protectors.
Most of the chiefs of the regions round about
were, from policy, allied to the usurper, but the de-
throned prince had friends, and the party on his
side grew large as the tyranny of Maxtla and his op-
pressions caused defections among his followers.
When the time came for a general rising, Nezahual-
coyotl found himself at the head of a courageous
NEZAHUALCOYOTL, THE NUIVGRY FOX. 5 1
band which gained in size and strength, until it
seemed safe to attack the regular forces of Maxtla.
In the battle which took place the tyrant was
routed, and the true prince triumphant. As soon as
this was known all the chiefs flocked to do him
homage, and he entered his capital in triumph,
crossing to the sound of military music the spot
where he had passed an evening under a drum, and
entering by the royal gates the palace he had left
through a water-pipe. Horses were not known in
Anahuac until after the advent of the Conquista-
dores. The young victor was borne in a sort of
palanquin by four of the chief nobles of the kingdom.
Thus did Nezahualcoyotl return to the throne of
his fathers. The Mexicans, who had helped his
former enemies to overthrow the rule of his father,
now joined forces with him, abandoning without
hesitation Maxtla, whose oppression and exaction
made him an uncomfortable ally. A league of the
other neighboring tribes, combining with the Mexi-
cans, under the lead of the true prince of Texcuco,
utterly routed the forces of Maxtla, and this tyrant
who himself assassinated the father was slain by the
hand of the son.
Maxtla was killed in 1428. The usurpation of
the throne of the Chichimecs by Tezozomoc first,
and afterwards by Maxtla, his son, had lasted ten
years. By this event the kingdom of Atzcapotzalco
came to an end, having lasted not more than two
hundred and sixty years.
The kingdom which Nezahualcoyotl regained
from the usurpers, whose kings traced their lineage
5-^
THE STORY OF MEXICO.
back to the Chichimec Xolotl (Eye of great
Vigilance), now became the kingdom of Texcuco
Aculhuacan, by which it was known when Cortes,
with his conquering legions, appeared on the plains
of Anahuac,
VI.
TEXCUCO.
Now followed the Golden Age of Texcuco. The
Fox, no longer hungry nor hunted, proved himself a
very Lion, a King of Beasts; he ruled his kingdom
with wisdom, as he had fought with bravery, and
endured adversity with patience.
On coming to the throne, he proclaimed a general
amnesty, pardoned the rebels, and even gave some
of them posts of honor. He repaired the ruin
wrought by the usurper, and revived what was worth
revival in the old form of government. He made a
code of laws well suited to the demands of his time,
which was written in blood. It was accepted by
the two other powers with whom he now entered
into alliances, Mexico and Tlacopan. His adjust-
ment of the different departments of government
was remarkable for the time, or indeed for any time,
providing councils for every emergency; of these
the most peculiar was the Council of Music, de-
voted to the interests of all arts and science. Its
members were selected from the best instructed
persons of the kingdom, without much reference to
their ranks. They had the supervision of all works
of art, all writings, pictorial or hieroglyphic, and had
53
54 THE STONY OF MEXICO.
an eye on all professors to keep them up to their
work. This Council of Music had sessions when it
listened to poems and historical compositions recited
by their authors, who received prizes according to
the merit of their work.
The literary men of Texcuco became celebrated
throughout the country, and its archives were pre-
served with the greatest care in the palace. These
records, which would have told us all we want to
know of the early story of the people of Anahuac,
were, for the most part, inscribed upon a fine fabric,
made of the leaves of the American aloe, the maguey
which also gave them their favorite beverage. The
sheets made from it were something like the Egyp-
tian papyrus, and furnished a smooth surface like
parchment, upon which the picture-writings were
laid in the most brilliant tints. These manuscripts
were done up in rolls sometimes, but were often
folded like a screen, and enclosed in wooden covers,
not very unlike our books. Quantities of such
manuscripts were stored up in the country, not only
by the Texcucans, but by all the inhabitants of the
different kingdoms. Probably no race has made
better provision for handing down its traditions and
history than these people who wandered from the
mysterious North. All this is lost to us by the in-
fatuation of the Spanish Conquistadores, as we shall
see later on.
As if barbarians, ignorant of types and bindings,
should descend upon the British Museum or Biblio-
teque Nationale, and, perceiving therein countless
parallelograms of calf containing wicked little dots
TEXCUCO. 55
upon countless white leaves, should order them to
be destroyed, as foolishness or blasphemy. So the
first priests of the Christian religion arriving in New
Spain destroyed these playthings of the idolaters,
which they conceived to be probably precious, but
at all events useless.
Only chance specimens of these wonderful pic-
ture-writings escaped the general destruction, and
from which is gleaned whatever is surmised of the
earliest life of the tribes of Anahuac.
. Texcuco led all the other nations in its literary
culture, or rather pictorial skill, since letters were
unknown. The Texcucan idiom was the purest of
all the many dialects from the Nahuatl root.
Among its poets, the king himself, Nezahualcoyotl,
was distinguished. He not only belonged to the
Council of Music, but appeared before it with other
competitors. Perhaps some folded screen enclosing
an ode by his hand lies hidden yet somewhere in
Mexico, or even among the dusty archives of Old
Spain. Some few have come to light, and one
of them exists in Spanish, translated by a Mexi-
can. It is hard to be sure of the import of
the original through the change of expression in-
evitable in translating, but we may guess something
of it.
"Rejoice," he says, "O Nezahualcoyotl, in the
enjoyable, which now you grasp. With the flowers
of this lovely garden crown thy illustrious brows,
and draw pleasure from those things from which
pleasure is to be drawn."
This garden of the no longer hungry Fox was a
56 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
wonderful Place of Delights, and the remains of it
may be seen to this day. About three miles from
the capital rises the Laughing Hill of Tezcot-
zinco. Here are left the remains of terraced
walls, and stairways wind around the hill from the
bottom to the top. In shady nooks among the rocks
seats are hollowed out of the stone, and ingenious
contrivances can be traced on all sides for enhancing
the natural advantages of the situation. The most
curious of all the vestiges of Nezahualcoyotl's gar-
den is a round reservoir for water at an elevation of
eighty or one hundred feet. It is about five feet
across and three feet deep. Channels led from it in.
all directions to water and refresh the terrace-gar-
dens below.
The country all about is full of artificial embank-
ments, reservoirs and aqueducts for leading water
about, and developing the attractions of the place.
A magnificent grove of lofty akuckuetes, at some
distance from the central part of the grounds, sur-
rounds a large quadrangle, now dry, which was prob-
ably an artificial lake in the time of the great king,
for whose pleasure these things were planned. He
was rich enough to pay for all the costly works he
commanded, by reason of successful wars and judi-
cious management of domestic industry, and so was
justified in indulging his taste for magnificence in
architecture. The ruins of Tezcotzinco faintly at-
test the truth of the descriptions of this royal resi-
dence, which tell of hanging gardens approached by
steps (A porj)hyry, reservoirs sculptured with the
achievements of the monarch, and adorned with mar-
TEXCUCO. 57
ble statues. There stood a lion of solid stone more
than twelve feet long, with wings and feathers
carved upon them. He was placed to face the east,
and in his mouth he held a stone face, which was the
very likeness of the king himself. This was his
favorite portrait, although many other representa-
tions of him had been made in gold, wood, or
featherwork. On the summit of the hill was the
carved representation of a coyotl, the hungry fox
which gave to the monarch his name so tedious to
us to pronounce.
The remains of Tezcotzinco are now shown as the
Baths of Montezuma; but this is a purely modern
application of the title of a chief more commonly
known. The baths belonged to Nezahualcoyotl,
and if by chance any Montezuma made use of them,
it was only as a passing guest.
Nezahualcoyotl, this wise, good, aesthetic king,
committed a deed which his descendant and histor-
ian regards as a great blot upon his fame. He
remained unmarried for a long time, on account of
an early disappointment in love, and was no longer
young when he conceived a violent passion for a noble
maiden whom he met at the house of one of his
vassals. This vassal wished the fair lady for his own
bride ; he had in fact brought her up with that in-
tent, but the king, regardless of the laws of honor,
caused the old man to be killed by his own men in a
battle with the Tlaxcallans, which he set on foot chief-
ly for this purpose. The young princess was then
invited to the ro}'al palace, where she received in due
form and time an offer of marriage from the monarch.
58 TJIE STORY OF MEXICO.
The wedding was celebrated with great pomp, not
long after the funeral of the vassal.
This is the only anecdote that reflects discredit
on the monarch, and there are many which tell to
his advantage. It was his custom, as with the East-
ern Khalif, to go about in disguise among his people
to find out their wants in order to alleviate them.
One day as he was walking through a field with one
of his friends he met a small boy picking up sticks
here and there. " There are many more in the forest
yonder," he said ; " why do not you go there to get
them ? "
"The forest belongs to the king," said the boy,
*' and it would be worth my life to take his property."
The king advised him to disregard the law and go
and take what wood he wanted, as nobody would
find him out, but the boy was too honest or too cau-
tious to follow the advice, and steadily went a glean-
ing as he could in the open field.
When the king returned to the palace he sent for
the boy and his parents. The parents were praised
for bringing up such a boy, the boy was praised and
rewarded, and the king passed a law allowing unlimi-
ted picking up chips.
In short, Nezahualcoyotl was a model monarch.
He pardoned all his enemies, was humane and clem-
ent ; he formed a code of wise and just laws, and
instituted tribunals for the prompt administration of
justice; he established schools and academies for the
diffusion of all sorts of knowledge, and generously
encouraged science and art. As for his religious
belief, he abjured the barbarous creed which pre-
TEXCUCO. 59
vailed at the time, and announced his conviction of
the existence of one God, author of the universe.
He erected a superb temple to this deity, and com-
posed hymns in his praise.
Nezahualcoyotl died in 1472. It was nearly half
a century since he had rescued his throne from the
usurper. He had raised his kingdom from the anarchy
in which he found it to a brilliant station, and saw it,
at the close of his life, growing stronger and going
farther in the path of advanced civilization. He had
brought this about by his wise and judicious rule
and might well contemplate with satisfaction the
results of his wisdom and judgment.
His only legitimate son was about eight years old
at the time of his father's death. His name was
Nezahualpilli. He became as learned as his father,
was liberal and charitable ; even more severe in the
administration of justice, going so far as to condemn
to death two of his own sons who had infringed the
law. In his time he was held to be the wisest mon-
arch of the epoch, and amongst his subjects he had
moreover the reputation of being a magician.
He reigned forty-four years, and died in 15 16,
leaving the kingdom to the oldest of his four legiti-
mate sons.
The reign of Nezahualcoyotl is the most glorious
period of the kingdom of Texcuco, and of all the
kingdoms of Anahuac.
Its splendors have been confounded with those
of the Aztec Court, and, as we see in the names now
given to the ruins of the king's garden, even the
name of the Montezumas is mixed up with the Tex-
6o THE STORY OF MEXICO.
cucan annals. It is well, however, to keep the
different dynasties distinct, in order to understand,
when wc come to the Conquest, the various parts
these distinct peoples played in that exciting drama.
Texcuco maintained for some time its place and
distinction, but never surpassed the height it reached
in the fifteenth century. After that it began to
diminish ; family dissensions in the royal house, and
external warfare, together with too much prosperity
and the relaxation that comes with it, were preparing
this nation for the tempest and change already
gathering afar off.
This glowing account of the splendors of Texcuco
is gathered by Prescott from the writings of Fer-
nando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl, who traced his descent,
in direct line, from the royal house of Texcuco. He
lived in the sixteenth century, occupying the position
of interpreter to the Viceroy, beingfamiliar with the
Indian dialects, and of course with the Spanish
language.
He was in other respects a man of cultivation
and learning, had a library of his own, and pursued
diligently the study of the picture-writings, hiero-
gh'phics, and legends of his ancestors, with the
object of throwing light on the obscure places of
their story. He wrote, in Spanish, various books
about the primitive races of Anahuac, among them
the •' Historia Chichimeca," which has been used as a
source of authority since it was first written.
As a Christian, Ixtlilxochitl has given to the
legends of the Ouet/.alcoatl and other mysteries of
the early Mexican races, a color evidently borrowed
from the light of Christian traditions, and the author
TEXCUCO. 6 1
has cast over his picture of the Golden A<je a
glow which is hardly justified by the cold light of
modern research. His story is now regarded as
unreliable in many particulars. Yet as a legend
it retains its charm ; and as history the graceful
fabric need not be utterly destroyed while the monu-
ments at Texcuco and the manuscripts of Nezahual-
coyotl attest the existence of such a king and such
a court. Until the diligent research of those ex-
plorers who are now busy in searching for the facts
of early Mexican history, have fully established
them, we may enjoy the tale of past magnificence
upon the plateau of Anahuac.
The period of the Golden Age of Texcuco is as-
cribed to the fifteenth century; the date assigned
to Nezahualcoyotl's accession being 1430. The
Spanish invasion took place in 15 16 A.D.
During that century the red rose of Lancaster
was warring with the white rose of York ; Joan of
Arc, in France, grew up in her village home, to win
back for the French king his lost provinces. Isa-
bella and Ferdinand, by uniting the two houses of
Castile and Aragon, made Spain the powerful king-
dom, which was to discover the New World.
All these princes and potentates, busy with their
own wars and marriages, lived their lives without
thought of any form of high civilization across an
untravelled ocean. Even Columbus, as he urged upon
the queen his longing to cross that ocean to find out
what was beyond it, did not suggest to her the
vision of a cultivated court with a king who wrote
poetry in an unknown tongue, and had carved lions
upon his marble stairways.
VII.
MICIIOACAN.
West of the city of Mexico and the state of the
same name lies Michoacan, one of the largest of the
present divisions of the country. It begins on the
plateau, but stretches down the steep western slope
to the shores of the Pacific Ocean, seamed with
deep barrancas between the upper and the lower
portions, so steep and impassable that the railway
which is already engineered to connect the capital
with Colima on the western coast, waits long to
gather courage for the leap. On the higher land
mountain-peaks divide fertile lofty valleys, in which
large lakes sparkle in the soft light of the climate.
Michoacan signifies in Tarascan Land of Fish.
These broad sheets of water are even now as still
and lonely as when the early wanderers from the
unknown North settled upon their borders, except
when the shriek of a modern steam-engine disturbs
their silence, and frightens the many birds who live
there. As the train passes along the edge of Lake
Cuitzao, eighteen miles long, clouds of winged crea-
tures start up surprised, but not much frightened
from the rushes by the water. Perhaps a rose-col-
ored flamingo may be seen standing on one leg,
62
MICHOACAN. 63
undisturbed by the noise, because he is unaccus-
tomed to fear. Across the lake glows a brilliant
scarlet behind graceful mountain outlines. By the
many curves of the road these forms appear, vanish,
and recur, till the day has faded.
VASE IN THE NATIONAL MUSEUM, WASHINGTON.
Farther from the capital, Patzcuaro and its lake
have hidden their charms still longer. It was only
in 1886 that the railroad penetrated to them. They
are nearer the middle of the upper part of Micho-
acan, at an elevation of seven thousand feet above
64 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the sea. Tlic heights in this retjion, though they
seem hills, because their base is on so high a level,
attain tt> numbers of measurement belonging to
mountains. The Place of Delights, as the name of
Patzcuaro is translated from the Tarascan language
of its old inhabitants, is a lonely little city now, con-
taining no more than eight thousand natives, many
of whom are descended from the first inhabitants,
and speak the Tarascan tongue. The town is built
on hill}' broken ground, with narrow crooked streets,
from which glimpses are constantly to be had of
the beautiful lake stretching out below. Abundant
springs water the town and flow through the fountains
in the market-place, an open square surrounded by
noble ash-trees. Just outside the town stone seats
have been placed at a point overlooking a lovely
view of the clustering town, the long irregular lake
with jutting points clothed throughout the }'ear
with verdure, and dotting islands upon its surface.
This place of delights was long the seat of the
native chiefs of Michoacan, who, though they did
not attain such a reputation for learning and culti-
vation as Ixtlilxochitl the Texcucan narrator has
given his ancestors, had yet taste and intelligence
enough to enjoy the beauty of their home.
In the beginning, wandering tribes may have set-
tled on the borders of the lake for the mere casual
advantages of satisfying their hunger, for the lake
abounds with fish, and feathered game frequent ii.^
fhorcs from time immemorial. The first have been
supposed to be Chichimecs, either before or after
t'-eir dealings with the Toltecs. The region was
MICHOACAN. 65
too attractive for one tribe to possess it unmolested.
Other men, perhaps fresh from the same mysterious
North, perhaps driven out by force or discontent
from former homes upon Anahuac, came to dispute
the fruitful territory. Such contests were decided by
the triumph of the stronger ; intermarriages healed
the wound, and brief peace settled on the shore of
the lake, to be broken by and by with similar in-
cursions, followed by similar results. Out of such
sequence, a name and date emerge as pegs to hang
some facts on, in the hitherto accepted story.
Ir^-Titatacame was this first chief of this first people
with a name which could last. He made friends
with a neighboring chief, and married his daughter,
the Princess of Naranjan. We may imagine her,
like her remote descendants, a dusky maiden, rather
small, with straight black hair, which she knew how
to braid in two long tresses to hang along her back.
Did her grandmother learn the art from the same
coiffeur that prepared the mother of Ramses for her
morning care ? Her eyes were intelligent, piercing,
but soft, two rows of brilliant white teeth lighted
her face when she smiled, as she gathered herself pop-
pies for a wreath on the borders of the Lake of De-
lights.
This princess became the mother of Sicuiracha,
who was born in 1202, they say, about the time
that the little English prince, Arthur, was being mur-
dered at Rouen by the order of his wicked uncle.
The little prince of Naranjan-Chichimeca was not
ten years old when a tribe ofTarascans assaulted his
father's city, and slew that monarch. He grew
66 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Up to console his mother, avenge the deed, and to
control his own subjects and the conquered tribe,
which however impressed its language and dialect
upon the nation, so that in that region, Tarascan
survived.
Sicuiracha lived to a good old age, and in peace.
He died at the close of the thirteenth century, leav-
ing two sons.
One of these married an island woman of the lake,
and her son preserved the royal line ; for his father
and uncle were put to death by a chieftain of the
neighborhood who desired the fair Place of Delights
for his own. But Tixiacuri was hidden by priests,
who taught him the great art of war, so that in due
time he came forth at the head of armies, destroyed
his enemies, took to himself all the territory of the
king who slew his father, and extended his own
even bc}'ond these, thus first really governing the
wide kingdom of Michoacan, which goes down to
the sea.
Tixiacuri, at his death, divided the territory, giv-
ing parts of it to two nephews, one of whom, Hicux-
axe, got Patzcuaro, and called himself king of it.
Tangoxoan, the son of the late. king summoned his
court to Tzintzuntzan, fifteen miles up the lake. He
is counted the fifth of the chiefs of Michoacan. and
leaves no other record but that all his sons died
violent deaths.
In the next period the provinces given to Ti.xia-
curi's nephews came together again under one head,
and the tribes thus united grew and prospered.
Zovanga, the seventh ruler, held sway over the whole
MICHOACAN. 6y
extent of Michoacan. Its capital was Tzintzuntzan,
and its fullest limit touched the waters of the
western ocean. This king constructed the cele-
brated walls of Michoacan to shut in his terri-
tories ; he advanced agriculture, and brought his
army to such excellence that it triumphed over
his enemies, even the Mexicans, who, by this
time powerful rivals, undertook an expedition into
Michoacan in 148 1. In a bloody battle which
lasted two whole days the Mexicans were utterly
routed.
The reign of Zovanga is described as long and
glorious, and he left his country in a state of peace
and prosperity when he died, near the beginning of
the sixteenth century. The eighth and last Taras-
can monarch of Michoacan, Tangoxoan II., was
the contemporary of Montezuma; like him, un-
fortunate enough to live to see the invasion of the
Conquistadores. He was called by them Calzonzi,
which is only the Tarascan word for any chief or
leader.
His capital was at Tzintzuntzan, a city with a
population of forty thousand inhabitants, it is said,
at the time of the conquest. Its name is an imita-
tion of the noise of humming birds, which, in the
Tarascan days, as now, darted in multitudes over the
gay flowers that border the lake in profusion. This
people loved birds as they did flowers, and excelled
in the delicate feather-work still practised in Mexico,
in which bright-colored plumage is daintily made to
serve instead of paints. The monarch of Michoacan
held court at Tzintzuntzan, but his pleasure-house
68 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
was at Patzcuaro, eighteen miles away. Legend says
that when he chose to have a collation there, a line
of serv^ants was stationed all along the way between
the two palaces, to pass the dishes from the royal
kitchen to the royal table. However this may be,
there are traces of a subterranean passage which per-
haps connected the capital with the other town.
Some years ago an excavation was attempted at
Tzintzuntzan, with the hope of discovering this
passage, but the natives quietly resisted this work
by always filling up the place as soon as it was dug
out. From generation to generation these people
transmit the traditions of the ancient grandeur of
their race, and silently preserve what they can of its
traces. They have no written language of their
own, and no orators. What they know of the past
they do not wish to tell to outsiders : but their vil-
lages are full of legends, which the old people hand
down to the younger ones in their strange Tarascan
speech. They are tenacious of their manners and
customs, and preserve in their church festivals the
forms and rites which the early priests allowed them
to transfer from their old religion to the ceremonials
of the newly acquired Catholic faith. The Taras-
cans are skilful in carving in bone. They make tiny
boxes, neatly fitted with lock and key, of wood.
Their canoes are dug out of tree-trunks, and they
kill the wild fowl which swarm and herd in quantities
upon their lake, with a long wooden javelin hurled
with skill. Their pottery, like that of all the Mexi-
cans, is simple in design, graceful in form, and taste-
ful in color. From time immemorial they have
MICHOACAN.
69
possessed the knowledge of handling clay and
making their utensils of it.
Such are the descendants of the old Tarascan
tribes, little changed as yet by the changes of gov-
ernment that have swept over their country since
the invasion of the Conquistadores.
VIII.
MAYAS.
There is another race of which something must be
said before we begin upon the Aztecs, that branch of
the Nahuatl family which took the leading part in
the struggle with the Conquistadores.
Although the Mayan civilization was established
outside the limits of the present Mexico, it is neces-
sary to know something of it in connection with the
other tribes who built up the civilization of Ana-
huac.
The Mayas are thought to have been the earliest
of the Nahuatl family to migrate from their northern
home. Their language differs from the other Nahua
dialects, and so do their traditions, monuments, and
hieroglyphics, but these differences were probably
caused by the difference in time in the departure of
these races from their common starting-point. The
resemblance outweighs the disparity, and we can
only imagine that the deviations were caused by a
long separation from the original stock. Their
descendants live in Yucatan, and the early monu-
rtients of the Mayas are found in that country and
its neighborhood.
They are supposed to have migrated from the
70
MAYAS.
71
shores of the Atlantic to the region now the state
of Chiapas, the farthest south of all the states, ad-
joining Guatemala, in the midst of a rich and fertile
country. Their empire grew to be one of great im-
CASA DEL GOBERNADOR, UXMAL.
portance, so that at one time even the proud Tula
was tributary to it. It extended over the greater
part of Central America. Mayapan and Copan were
the other chief tribes of their confederacy, of which
"Jl THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Nachan, or Town of Serpents, was the capital or
chief.
This great city was already in ruins, buried in the
thick wilderness, its site and very existence forgot-
ten before the arrival of the Conquistadores. Cortes
must have marched close to it once when he was on
his way to Honduras, but he probably had no notion
of its existence. The ruins were discovered by chance
in the middle of the eighteenth century, by a curate
of the little town Palenque in theneighborhood.
In 1764, the Spanish government sent explorers to
visit these ruins, and since then the)' have been care-
fully studied. The importance and extent of the
buildings seem to show that the ancient city was
once the capital and centre of the ancient state of
Mayapan. Traces of streets extend for a length of
six leagues or more, following the course of moun-
tain streams, which doubtless furnished the inhabi-
tants with water.
The most important building at Palenque is the
Palace. It rests on a truncated pyramid about fifty
feet high, of which the base measures three hundred
and ten feet by two hundred and sixty. Subter-
ranean galleries penetrated the interior of the pyra-
mid. It is made of earth, with external faces of large
slabs; steps lead up to the top, on which is the chief
building, a quadrilateral of two hundred and twenty-
eight feet b)' one hundred and eighty ; the walls are
from two to tiiree feet thick, ornamented with a frieze
between two double cornices, covered with painted
stucco, either red, blue, black, or white. There are
fourteen entrances in the eastern front, which is the
MAYAS.
73
principal one, separated by
pillars ornamented with
figures more than six feet
in height. Over their heads
are hieroglyphics which
contain the key to their
meaning, still hidden to us.
The inside of the palace
corresponds with the out-
side, galleries run all round
the court, and the lofty
chambers are decorated
with strange bas-reliefs in
granite thirteen feet high
or more, strange and gro-
tesque to us, but full of
meaning and expression
to the race which under-
stood them.
Over the palace rises a
tower of three stories, thir-
ty feet square at the base,
decorated profusely with
symbols no longer sug-
gestive. A strange thing
about the palace is that
the staircases look new,
the steps whole and un-
worn, as if the people who
built it had suddenly taken
flight soon after they erect-
ed their chief buildings.
STATUE FROM PALENQUE.
74 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
One other of the monuments of Palenque should
be mentioned, the Temple of the Cross. It rises
from a truncated pyramid, and forms a quadrilateral
separated by pilasters, ornamented with hieroglyphics
and human figures. The openings lead through an
inside gallery to three little rooms, of which the mid-
dle one contains an altar, ornamented with a frieze.
Above this altar until recently stood three marble
slabs, of which one is now in the Smithsonian Insti-
tute at Washington, the central stone at the National
Museum in the city of Mexico, and the third still
remains at Palenque. They are six feet four inches
in height, four feet wide, and six inches thick, of
cream-colored stone of a fine grain. The central
stone now in Mexico gives a striking representation
of the Christian cross on a pedestal in the midst of a
tangle of hieroglyphics, with a priestly figure, nearly
life size, which in the stone still at Palenque is con-
tinued by another figure of a priest and six rows of
hieroglyphics running from top to bottom. The
piece at Washington is covered with similar rows of
hieroglyphics, and contaiiis ornaments to match the
human figure on the left of the central stone. The
startling resemblance to a cross on this tablet has
excited mucii discussion ; it is said that the presence
of the emblem of the Christian faith caused it to be
torn down and cast forth into the forest, which
crowds around the ruins of the ancient city. But
such representations of the symbol of an earlier date
than the Christian era, have been found elsewhere
in America. The cross was looked upon by the
Mayas as the sign of the creative and fertilizing
MAYAS.
75
powers of nature, and has no affinity with the Chris-
tian one. Some attempts have been made to deci-
pher the meaning of the Palenque tablets, consider-
TABLET OF CROSS AT PALENQUE.
ing the three pieces as a whole. The figure on the
left (still at Palenque) is said to be the Sun with his
grand mitre. He presents an offering in his hand,
76 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
and appears to be blowing with his mouth or breath-
ing incense. At his back are two astronomical signs,
representing, one the four phases of the moon, and
the other the great Period of the Sun. The figure at
the right (in the museum at INIexico) is larger than
the other. It stands erect with outstretched arms
offering a child before the cross. This priest differs
from the other in being without the sacred mask and
the robe of occlotl skin. Both figures open their lips
in prayer to the deity, the cross, here united with
the sign AcatI, an arrow thrust through the upper
half making another smaller cross. At the right of
the cross are the signs of the four seasons of the
year, vernal equinox, summer solstice, autumnal
equinox, and winter solstice. The bird above the
cross is the star of the morning, and the strange fig-
ure below may be a skull, to represent the star of the
evening. According to this explanation the famous
tablet of Palenque, with its accidental likeness to
the Christian cross, was dedicated to the Sun as the
great creative power, and to the Year with its four
seasons, and change of morning and evening. Pa-
lenque is by no means the only monument of the
ancient people in this region. Yucatan is covered
with interesting ruins, the remains of different
branches of the mighty Mayan race. It can hardly
be doubted, moreover, that extensive ruins lie yet
hidden in the unexplored regions of the peninsula.
Chichen-Itza is one of the few towns which has pre-
served its ancient Mayan name, from cJiicJien, open-
ing of a well, and Itza, one of the chief branches of
Mayapan confederacy. Itza maintained its inde-
MAYAS.
77
pendence, after the destruction of the confederacy,
for two centuries after the Conquest. It was then
taken by the Spaniards and completely destroyed.
Over an extent of several miles are seen masses of
rubbish, broken sculptures, overturned columns, of
which nearly five hundred bases have been counted.
Chichen was one of the religious centres of Yuca-
MAYAN BAS-RELIEF.
tan, which accounts for the number and mag-
nificence of its temples. The walls, in many cases,
are covered with paintings, in black, red, yellow, and
white ; they represent processions of warriors or
priests, with black heads, strange head-dresses, and
wide tunics on their shoulders. The faces on the
bas-reliefs are remarkable as giving a different type
78 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
from the pointed heads and retreating foreheads
of those at Palenque. The heads on the Yucatan
monuments as those of the present inhabitants are
better developed. The sculpture is rich ; the bas-
reliefs give an idea of the head-dress of the natives.
A flight of steps is ornamented with a balustrade
of interlaced serpents.
Chaak Mool, also known under the name of Balam,
the tiger-chief, was one of three brothers who shared
between them the government of Yucatan. He was
married to Kinich Katmo, a woman of marvellous
beauty.
Now Aak, the brother of Chaak Mool, fell in love
with the fair Kinich, the wife of his brother. In
order to possess her, he caused her husband to be as-
sassinated, hoping thus to win the hand of the widow.
But Kinich, far from yielding to the persuasions of
Aak, remained faithful to the memory of Chaak, and
out of conjugal devotion caused his statue to be
made. Moreover she caused her palace to be adorned
with paintings representing the chief events in the
life of her departed spouse, and the sad scene of his
death. In one of these paintings we may see the
wicked Aak, holding in his hand three spears, to
symbolize the three wounds, by means of which his
brother was despatched.
The painting is accompanied by hieroglyphics,
which an explorer in 1875, Dr. Le Plongeon, suc-
ceeded in deciphering far enough to learn that the
tomb of Chaak Mool was to be found at a place some
four hundred yards from the palace. He at once
set about excavations at this spot. At first were
MA YAS.
79
found several bas-reliefs representing cats and birds
of prey ; about twenty feet lower down was an urn
of stone containing ashes, and last of all the statue
of a man reclining upon a slab of stone. This statue
is now in the National Museum of Mexico, under
the title of Chaak Mool, as if it were the image made
by order of the devoted Kinich Katmo ; but the
type of the face, the costume, head-dress, and sandals
STATUE OF CHAAK MOOL.
are altogether different from the usual Yucatan
models, and moreover other little Chaak Mools have
been found in different parts of Mexico, so that the
wise are led to suppose that it represents some un-
know divinity.rather than a king of Yucatan.
The Spaniards found throughout Yucatan roads
made for the convenience of travellers, probably to
the religious centres of the country. Some of these
8o THE STORY OF MEXICO.
roads are cahadas, like those of which traces exist
in many parts of Mexico, dating far beyond the
Spaniards. The remains of one of these were used in
buiUling the modern city of Merida in Yucatan.
This highway measured from between seven and
eight yards in width ; it was made of blocks of stone
covered with mortar, and a layer of cement about
two inches thick. Solid bridges of masonry spanned
the rivers of ]\Iexico and Yucatan, of which the
massive piers have been seen standing during the last
centur)'.
Such are the monuments "of the Mayan people,
of whom not many facts are to be disentangled
from the early legends. Like the traditions of the
Mexican tribes, the Mayas tell of a supernatural
being, who came from the other side of the Carib-
bean seas, from a land of shadows. His name was
Votan, in the Mayan tradition. He found a people
in the extreme of barbarism living in caves, feeding
upon the bloody flesh of animals they killed in
hunting; he taught them many things, so that by
his example, and for generations after he left them
by his precepts, they advanced to high civilization.
According to his instructions, the only sacrifices
offered to the gods were the flowers and incense,
sometimes birds and animals. Votan is described
as a great warrior, leading his people to one triumph
after another. Votan, it would seem, had a com-
panion and disciple called Zamna, to whom also the
inhabitants of Yucatan ascribe their ancient prog-
ress. It was he, tiiey say, who invented liieroglyphics,
and he was the first to attach names to men and
MAYAS.
8i
things. He was buried, according to the account of
the natives, at Izamal, one of the sacred towns of
Yucatan, beneath three different pyramids. Under
one is his right hand, the head under another, and
the heart is beneath the third. A huge head carved
in stone has been found at Izamal, which perhaps
represents the Prophet Zamna.
The Mayas used copper and gold. Their weap-
ons were slings, spears, and arrows with points
made of obsidian or bone. Their warriors wore
armor of well-padded cotton, their shields were
round and decorated with feathers, or the skins of
animals. They made boats by hollowing out the
trunks of trees, large enough to hold fifty people,
which they guided with great skill. Votan was re-
82 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
garded as a god after his death, Hke Quetzalcoatl,
with the Toltecs. Fierce wars waged between vo-
taries of the two as time went on. The Mayan
legends and the few manuscripts preserved tell of
nothing but w^ars and conquests, struggles and de-
feats. The confederation invaded by other tribes
who triumphed over it declined. Their religion de-
teriorated, as the traditions of Votan and his pre-
cepts faded away, and the people returned to the
custom of human sacrifice, as bloody and terrible
with them as with the other American races.
In their monuments we can trace these evi-
dences of their civilization ; they are remarkable for
number and dimension, and the taste and skill shown
in their ornamentation implies a condition above
that of savage tribes warring against each other to
defend the necessities of mere existence.
IX.
AZTECS.
We now come to the tribe best known among those
who Hved on the great plateau of Anahuac, the
Aztecs, also called Mexicans. The latter name has
come so generally to include the inhabitants of the
whole countr)'', that a distinction must be made.
This people was one of those which formed the
great family of the Nahuas ; its emigration from the
mysterious regions of the northeast towards Ana-
huac, like that of the other tribes which recognize
the same traditions, rests on the same authority.
Their origin is no clearer than that of the rest. It
seems certain that previous to migrating they dwelt
in a land far to the northeast of Lake Chapala.
This region, hallowed in their traditions with all the
memories and all the attractions of a far-off, long-
lost home, they called Aztlan, and from this name
were they called Aztecs.
Why they abandoned this delightful home is en-
tirely unknown, except to conjecture and the proba-
bilities of human life ; the date is equally uncertain,
but to it has been assigned the middle of the seventh
century, and even the year 648 of our era is given.
The Aztecs having left their old habitations wan-
83
84 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
dcrcd vaguely off towards the southwest, guided by
the inspirations or indications of their priests. They
paused whole )'ears in different places, building in
each houses and temples, of which traces are still
found to mark their path. They left behind them,
indeed, settlements which still exist. But the great
body of these emigrants had not yet found a perma-
nent resting-place. They continued to move on,
with intervals of pause, from generation to genera-
tion, alwa}'s impelled by the restlessness which
caused their first fathers, and the priests, their guides,
to leave Aztlan. It was six hundred years after the
date commonly given for their exodus that the
Aztecs came to their final resting-place in 1243.
The tribe was already called Mexicas as well as
Aztec, because the priests received an order from
one of their gods, Mexitli, that they should receive
a name like his. From Mexi or Mexicas was derived
the word Mexican. This name has attached itself,
not only to the town they founded, but to the
broad valley in which it lies, and to the whole coun-
try stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific ; yet
when they came there the ancient tribe of the Tol-
tecs already possessed the land, and farther south
the Mayas had attained a high degree of civiliza-
tion. They themselves were but a handful of men,
despised by surrounding races for the customs of
their religion, even then regarded as barbarous and
horrible b)^ the older inhabitants. They gained and
maintained a foothold in the place they had chosen
against many enemies and countless difficulties,
triumphed over all these, and established themselves
;^ °
86 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
SO firmly as to imprint a name upon the whole
region.
It is no wonder that the broad, lofty valley where
they found themselves made so strong an impression
upon them that they at once decided to adopt it ;
though the exact spot they selected for their capital
has been often condemned by posterity.
They saw a vast oval of more than forty leagues'
circumference, surrounded, like an amphitheatre, with
a girdle of mountains. On the east rose the two
proud volcanoes, Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl,
covered with perpetual snow, their sides clothed
with forests. When the Aztecs came, one vast lake
occupied the basin of the broad plateau, too wide to
be called a valley, as well as too elevated, for the low-
est part is more than six thousand feet above the
level of the sea.
They saw a rocky height rising above the wet soil
near the lake, out of which were doubtless even then
growing huge cypress-trees, ahiicJmetl, making a
dense and pleasant shade ; a large spring of water
flowed constantly from the rock. Here they stopped
and named the place Chapultepec, which means the
Hill of the Grasshopper. In the picture-writings of
the Aztecs it is depicted as a small hill with a huge
grasshopper standing all over it.
Here the Mexicans, or Aztecs, remained for a few
years, but their place was contested by the neighbor-
ing tribes, who also all of them saw the merits of the
site, and valued as much as the new-comers the
spring of sparkling water. The Mexicans made
themselves odious by their religious practices, and a
AZTECS. 87
combined array of Chichimecs and other tribes dis-
possessed them of the Grasshopper Hill. They be-
took themselves to a group of low islands in the
lake, and there led a miserable existence for many
years, covered with rags, living on such fishes and
insects as they could lay hold of from the lake, and
dwelling in wretched huts made out of reeds and
rushes. They were nothing more than the slaves of
the Tepanecs and Culhuas, surrounding tribes, and it
is extraordinary that from such a life they roused
themselves to any thing better. In the course of a
battle between two of their tyrant tribes, they, the
miserable slaves, the despised eaters of insects, gave
such proof of unconquerable valor on the side of
their masters, that these were terrified and gave them
their liberty. This was nearly one hundred years
after they had been driven from Chapultepec. They
now shook off the yoke of their oppressors, gathered
themselves together, and leaving the wretched island
where they had languished so long, set forth once
more in search of a permanent dwelling-place.
The story has often been told of the way in which
they fixed upon its position. The priests declared that
their great god, Huitzilopochtli, had decreed for the
situation of their abiding city, a nopal growing from
a rock, upon which should be sitting an eagle with a
snake in his beak. The nopal is one kind of cactus.
When they suddenly came upon this very combina-
tion of objects, the priests declared it to be the pre-
ordained spot, and there they settled themselves
after all the long wanderings of their race, far from
the shadowy Aztlan. The situation is low, and too
88 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
near the lake, which in those early days extended
much farther than at present. It has now been made
to subside, leaving much territory formerly under
water spread out as barren marsh-land. Several lakes,
divided by low lands have taken the place of the
broad inland sea overlooked by the Mexican capital.
Here the Mexicans built their capital city, which
in time grew to be the centre of a great confederacy.
They called it Tenochtitlan, which means Place of
the Stone and the Nopal. Its name was also Mexico
early in its history, from the old god Huitzilo-
pochtli, who was also called Mexitli.
Tenochtitlan covered about one fourth of the
ground now occupied by the city of Mexico. Its
founders divided it into four quarters or divisions, to
which were given the names of Cuepopan, Atzacu-
alco, Moyotla, and Zoquipan. In the centre rose the
great teocalli dedicated to the god Huitzilopochtli.
The cathedral of the present city of Mexico stands
on the site of this ancient temple, but not a trace of
the Aztec town is now visible. The names of the
quarters above given remain in those of the suburbs
of the modern town.
Little by little smaller islands were united to the
larger ones by means of stone- and earth-works.
From a life of misery, by industry and energy the
Mexicans advanced their condition. They devoted
themselves to fishing and hunting, and exchanged
the product of these labors with the neighboring
people for wood, stone and such things as they
wanted.
Up to this time they had obeyed their priests, or
AZTECS. 89
certain chiefs who controlled them. The last of these
was Tenoch.
The rulers who followed have been called kings,
their government a monarchy, their homes palaces,
their places of worship, temples. The Conquista-
dores described the civilization they found upon Ana-
huac with such wealth of words, that the Halls of the
IDOL IN TERRA-COTTA.
Montezumas have been ever since the type of all that
is rich and magnificent. Their realm was an empire,
their sway was absolute, their lives were one ot
luxury and ease.
Later investigations take away from the early
Aztec dynasty all its splendors, one by one, until the
poor Mexican kings have scarcely a shred of regal
dignity left them. Even their warfare is reduced to
90 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the pitiful raids of one savage tribe against another,
their title of Emperor, no longer hereditary, although,
it is admitted, kept in one family, is reduced to that
of chief ; their capital city is a pueblo, their palaces
as low buildings of adobe, their teocallis are mounds.
For the sake of preserving the succession hitherto
accepted, and to avoid confusion in the mind of the
reader, we will continue the narration of the kings
of Mexico, as if they still retained that title, shorn
as it is of its rays.
Tenoch died in 1363, thirty-eight years after the
foundation of the city. As his name forms part of
the word Tenochtitlan, some authorities give, as
explanation, that the city was named after the chief,
rather than for reason of the nopal, the eagle, and
the snake. But the valuable legend remains, and is
preserved on the national banner of the Mexicans
to-day.
Mexitzin succeeded Tenoch in command, who, as
by this time the people had greatly grown in im-
portance, counselled them to follow the example of
the nations round about them, and choose a ruler
to rule over them, after the manner of their neigh-
bors, the Tepanccs, and those of Texcuco, across
the lake. The proposal was favorably accepted, and
Acamapichtli was made king — the first monarch of
the Mexican dynasty, in Tenochtitlan, in 1376, fifty
years after the foundation of the city. He was
Mexican upon his father's side, Chichimec, through
his mother's family. He was, according to the ac-
count of his chroniclers, one of the most prudent
and illustrious personages of his time. He mar-
AZTECS. 91
ned a daughter of a most noble Aculhuan, and as
all the monarchs of the valley practised polygamy,
allowed himself two other wives. Of one of these
wives the son Huitzilihuitl was the immediate suc-
cessor to the throne, and his half-brother, son of
another wife, reigned next, named Chimalpopoca.
A third son, born of a slave to the king, lived to
reign in his stead after the death of the half-brothers.
But the father of these sons lived himself to reign
for twenty years, if reigning it can be called, to
keep in hand a handful of poor Indians just escaping
from barbarism and degeneration of the lowest sort.
Their one city was but fifty years old. They had no
capital, no resources beyond the toil of their hands
in fishing and hunting. They were regarded as in-
terlopers by the petty kingdoms which surrounded
them, and their lives were made miserable by the
tyranny of any one of their neighbors who felt him-
self strong enough to exact tribute. Yet some great
vital force was in them to hold them together and
bring them increase.
Their belief in their old god, Huitzilopochtli, was
strong as ever; probably their fortunes rose and fell
with the intelligence or the lack of it in the priests
who transmitted to the people the will of this deity.
Through them it was decreed that the tribute de-
manded by the Tepanecs should be paid. These
neighbors were pacified, and the Mexicans could go
on unmolested in their work of improving their city,
which they did by building temples and houses, and
cutting canals through their island that the water of
the lake might circulate freely.
92 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
In tlie next reign, Huitzilihuitl, son of the first
king, not onl}- followed but improved upon tlie ex-
ample of his father in marrying a daughter of some
rival monarch. He sent ambassadors to various
courts asking the hand of each princess in marriage.
The result was good. B\' marrying a daughter of
the king of the Tepanecs he relieved his people of
the heavy tribute they had been forced to pay. His
other wife, Cuauhnahuac, brought with her the
knowledge of cotton for making wearing apparel, for
the district she came from produced it in abundance,
and her people understood the use of it. It is due
to her, therefore, that the Mexicans became well
clothed. Specimens of the wearing of their early
times are preserved in the National Museum at
Mexico. Her son was the famous Motecuhzoma
Ilhuicamina, better known to us as Montezuma I.
This king, who married the Princess of Cloth, greatly
advanced his nation. He compiled laws, regulated
religious ceremonies, systematized the army, with
his brother at its head, thus establishing a custom
which was always afterwards followed, that a brother
of the monarch should be general-in-chief. In his
day canoas, hollowed from trunks of trees, were put
into general use for war as well as for trafific. The
system thus introduced madeliis army a valuable
accession to his neighbors when the\' went to battle.
B)' the service they rendered to the Aculhuans in
such a case, the Mexicans gained a high reputation
as dangerous warriors. They were still tributary to
the Tepanecs of Atzcapotzalco, then in the hands of
the tyrant Maxtla, whom careful readers will remem
CANAL OUTSIDE THE CITY OF MEXICO.
94 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
ber. This usurper, jealous of the j^nowing power of
his vassal, and afraid of its results, caused the death
of the little son and daughter of the Mexican mon-
arch. "The king, Huitzilihuitl," says the authority,
" dissimulated this cruel offence, considering that
this was no time to expose his people to open war
with the Tepanecs, thus giving proof of a patriotism
equal to personal sacrifice."
This was however not the end of the matter for
after the death. of his father, Chimalpopoca, who
reigned in his stead became implicated in a con-
spiracy against Maxtla. It was discovered, and the
punishment that the young king had to endure was to
assume certain garments of the style worn by women
sent him b}' Maxtla, as signs of effeminacy and cow-
ardice, while Maxtla carried off and took to himself
one of his wives. Chimalpopoca, waited to avenge
these insults, and life being insupportable to him,
resolved to sacrifice himself to the great god of his
fathers, Huitzilopochtli ; but Maxtla anticipated his
intention, and seizing him, shut him up in a wooden
case, such as was used for common criminals. The
Mexican king, however, succeeded in his intent, by
hanging himself from a bar of his disgraceful prison.
This chief had reigned but ten years ; during this
time he had an aqueduct constructed to bring clear
water from Chapultepec to the city, and built a fine
calsada, or paved road, to make direct communica-
tion between Tenochtitlan and Tlacopan.
This was the period of the usurpation of Tezozo-
moc, king of Atzcapotzalco, who wrested the
throne of the Chichimecs from Ixtlilxochitl, and
AZTECS.
95
killed this brave but unfortunate prince. Maxtla,
the tyrant, was the son and heir of Tezozomoc, and
as we have seen he poured his wrath upon Nezahu
alcoyotl, the legitimate heir to the throne of the
Chichimecs, the monarchy of Texcuco or Aculhua-
can.
X.
MEXICANS.
After the death in prison of their king Chimalpo-
poca, the Mexicans did not hesitate to elect as his
successor, Itzcoatl, the third son of their first sov-
ereign, brother to their last, and general-in-chief of
their armies, in which capacity he had shown him-
self of great force and valor.
When Maxtla heard of this he was full of wrath,
having vainly imagined that the murder of the late
king's children would have put an end to that line
forever. He immediately began to make prepara-
tions to destroy utterly the Mexicans, still nominally
his vassals.
Itzcoatl at once sent messengers to Nezahual-
coyotl, the rightful heir of the Texcucans, proposing
an alliance for the overthrow of the tyrant. Neza-
hualcoyotl, as we have seen, had already recovered a
part of his inheritance, and feeling himself strong
enough for the effort, he accepted the proposals of
the Mexican sovereign.
Maxtla, to anticipate this step, sent open com-
mands to his vassals, the Mexicans, that they should
hold themselves in readiness to join his whole army
in an attack upon Texcuco, since, as he announced,
96
MEXICANS, 97
he was determined now to possess himself of the
whole of the ancient kingdom of the Chichimecs.
The chronicles say that the Mexicans were greatly
terrified, so intense was the terror inspired by Maxtla
and his cruel warriors. The people burst into tears
and lamentations at being forced into so unwelcome
a war.
Itzcoatl, with the greatest skill, calmed their agita-
tion, and summoned them to another combat, which
should decide the fate of the still youthful monarchy
of the Mexicans.
A great battle was fought against the Tepanecs
with Maxtla at their head. Opposite him were ar-
ranged the united forces of the Mexicans, the Chi-
chimecs, and their allies, of the neighboring little
state of Tlatelolco, as well as a great body of auxil-
iary troops, which ranged themselves on the side of
justice and against the terrible tyrant. The allied
army sallied forth to the encounter, but was driven
back, and the city of Tenochtitlan was about to fall
into the hands of Maxtla, when the three chiefs,
Nezahualcoyotl, Itzcoatl and Motecuhzoma, fol-
lowed by their bravest warriors, plunged into the
thickest of the fray, and by the fury of their attack
caused the Tepanecs to flee with all haste.
The battle was continued the next day, victory
declaring itself for the allies, who pursued the Te-
panecs even into their own capital Atzcapotzalco,
where they set fire to the houses, sacking them first,
and killing the inhabitants. The king Maxtla
himself fell under the stroke of Nezahualcoyotl,
who thus avenged the murder of his father. The
98 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
taking of the capital city was the end of the king-
dom of the Tepanecs. This took place in 1428.
B\' the downfall of this monarchy, Nezahualcoyotl
was reinstated upon the throne of his ancestors, at
Texcuco, henceforth called the kingdom of Acolhua-
can ; a small new kingdom arose, upon the ruins of
the old, called that of the Tepanecs of Tlacopan ;
these two formed with the Mexicans a triple alliance
which lasted for more than a century.
This alliance is called that of the " Valley Confed-
erates," who by their united strength could crush
the surrounding isolated tribes with perfect success.
Itzcoatl died in 1440, much lamented by his peo-
ple. His obsequies were performed with great so-
lemnity. He was justly celebrated for his great gifts,
and the services he rendered his country. An old
author says of him that he was "a man so excellent
that there is no language sufHcient for his praises."
On the death of this ruler, the Mexicans again
came together to choose a king, and unanimously
selected Motecuhzoma Ilhuicamina, brother of the
late king, and son of the first one. His election
was received with enthusiasm, because he was a
great general, who had filled the minds of the peo-
ple with his brilliant deeds in emancipating them
from the tyrant control of the Tepanecs.
Under this king the fortunes of the Mexicans
reached their height. He was a great warrior, and
by force of arms he subdued many surrounding
tribes, and extended the power of his kingdom. He
was an intense fanatic in religion, and a true despot,
and carried his convictions to an extreme which,
MEXICANS, 99
while it extended his power, ahenated the other
peoples of Anahuac, so that in the dark days of the
future, they were ready rather to be against the Mex-
icans than for them.
His first act, having resolved to erect a great tern
pie to the god Huitzilopochtli, in gratitude for thr
success of the recent conflicts, was to send message,
to all the country round about, summoning the
neighbors to come and lend their aid in bringing
the great work to an end. All obeyed with alacrity,
except the Chalcas, a little tribe upon the lake, who
entirely refused to contribute aid. The king in-
stantly made war upon these people, and after
bloody contests took possession of Amecameca,
their capital, an ancient town at the very base of the
volcanoes. Other towns fell into the hands of the
Mexicans. Meanwhile, the influence of the Tex-
cucan court, aided by the natural development
that comes with success, had much advanced the
Aztec from the pitiful state of squalor in which his
race made their entrance into the Valley of
Anahuac only a century before. Without be-
lieving the exaggerated accounts of the Spaniards
describing the splendors they found in Mexico, we
may at least allow the Aztecs a degree of intelligence
and cultivation on a level with the civilization of
their time.
In the middle of the fifteenth century, the Mexi-
cans suffered from an infliction which has since many
a time caused trouble to their capital. Abundant
rains so swelled the lake that the city was inundated,
many buildings destroyed, and inhabitants drowned.
100 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The king of Texcuco advised the building of a great
dike, so thick and strong as to keep out the water.
The next year the chronicles relate that a heavy
snow fell for six days and nights, destroying all vege-
tation, and a great number of human beings and
animals. The loss of crops for these years caused
such a famine, that in spite of the great liberality of
the king and his grandees, many people emigrated
to the south.
These disasters furnish but a poor excuse for the
human sacrifice with which the Aztecs sought to
appease the wrath of their god. The Mexican king
used to sally forth at fixed intervals to battle with
the sole object of seizing prisoners for sacrifice, with-
out laying any claim to lands or kingdoms. He ex-
tended these raids as far as the valley of Tlaxcalla,
and the neighboring city of Cholula, carr}'ing off
victims, but leaving the government of these prov-
inces as he found them. This explains the cause of
the continued independence of these provinces, in
spite of their constant warfare with Mexico, and
also shows what reason these people had for hating
a neighbor who made himself so disagreeable. Mote-
cuhzoma made the power of his arm felt even to the
shores of the Gulf, and enlarged his territory in all
directions. He framed a code for repressing crime,
made laws regulating the dress and ornaments of his
subjects, invented any number of new religious rites
and sacrifices hitherto unheard of, built many temples,
and strove to establish the principles of his religion
throughout Anahuac. Thus the poor and miserable
little tribe of a century before, at the death of Mote-
MEXICANS, lOI
cuhzoma Ilhuicamina had greatly gained in strength
and extent.
Three sovereigns followed Motecuhzoma, in due
course, and in practice of the same methods of gov-
ernment. They extended their depredations all over
the country, sometimes meeting with resistance, as
in the case of Michoacan, in 1479, "^^'^^en the Mexi-
cans were utterly routed by the Tarascos in a bloody
battle which lasted two days. The king at that time
was Axayacatl, who died soon after his disastrous
defeat. He left two sons destined to play a part in
the last scene of the history of Mexican monarchy —
Motecuhzoma the Second and Cuitlahuac.
The immediate successor of Axayacatl was his
brother, Tizoc, who, as was the custom, left the
position of general-in-chief to become king. He was
a brave warrior, stern and uncompromising in char-
acter, zealous in gathering victims to sacrifice to his
gods.
In the museum of Mexico is a monument which
preserves the name and deeds of this great warrior
king. It is a large carved stone, which was found in
the course of excavation for a sewer, almost a hun-
dred years ago in the principal plaza of the city of
Mexico. It is called the Cuauhxicalli of Tizoc, which
means the Drinkingcup of the Eagle. On its upper
face is carved an image of the sun. On the carved
sides are fifteen groups, each group of two persons,
the conquering warrior grasping by the hair a prisoner.
The warrior is in each the same figure repeated. The
fifteen prisoners represent fifteen conquered tribes.
The conqueror is Tizoc, seventh king of Mexico, who
I02 THE STGRY OF MEXICO.
occupied the throne from 148 1 to i486. There is a
theory that these carvings have a further allegorical
meaning. The evening star and the moon are rep-
resented as two warriors engaged in a struggle, in
which the former makes the attack, and the latter
defends himself. Tizoc is intended by the morning
star, and the moon represents the conquered nations.
The evening star wears ihe sacred mask ; the part of
his face left uncovered, as well as his hands and feet,
are smeared with a black ointment peculiar to priests
and gods. His body is covered with a tiger skin,
which is always an attribute with the natives of the
morning rtar, which draws captive after it all the
other stars, so that the sky spotted with light seemed
to them typified by the spotted skin of the tiger.
The warrior has in one hand a sword of obsidian,
and in the other a shield bearing the symbols of the
planet. The face and garments of the vanquished
warrior are white like the ra}'sof the moon. His feet
are bound, but in one hand he holds high his sword of
obsidian, while the other grasps the standard and
mirror of the moon.
The use to which the stone was applied by Tizoc
was less purely fanciful. In his time, among the
Aztecs, there existed an order of nobles whose title
was the eagles. The sun was their patron saint.
During certain ceremonies they sacrificed to the sun
a human victim, upon this stone, the drinking-cup
of the Eagles. This victim was chosen from the
prisoners taken in war. He was brought forward, at
the sound of music, surrounded by illustrious noble-
men. His legs were painted with red and white
..y .^s -
I04 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Stripes, and half his face was painted red ; a white
plume was stuck in his hair. In one hand he carried
a walking-stick, gay with ribbons and plumes ; in
the other, a shield covered with cotton. His thighs
were bound round with little bundles containing
gifts. He was led to the bottom of the grand stair-
case of the temple and thus addressed :
*' Sir, what we desire is that thou goest before our
god, the sun, to salute him for us. Tell him that his
sons and chief gentlemen here supplicate him to
remember them, hoping he will accept the small
reciierdo we send him. Give him the walking-stick,
the shield, and the other things in the little bundle."
The victim then went slowly up the steps, receiv-
ing fresh instructions as to what he should say to
the sun. At the top was the drinking-cup, and tow-
ards this he advanced. In a loud voice, addressing
at once the real sun and its image carved upon the
stone, he delivered the message just given him.
Then came four attendants, who seized him by hands
and feet, and having taken away the cane, the shield,
and little bundles, they ascended with him the
four steps of the stone, where the high-priest cut his
throat, commanding him thus to go with his mes-
sage to the real sun in the other life. The blood
flowed down the basin in the stone through a canal
to the side where the image of the sun was carved,
so that this was quenched with blood. Meantime,
the sacrificador opened the breast of the victim and
plucked out the heart, holding it aloft until it be-
came cold, thereby offering it to the sun. Thus
went on his way the luckless messenger.
MEXICANS. 105
Tizoc began the construction c>f a great temple in
honor of HuitzilopochtH, a superb edifice, according
to the chronicles, the most lofty in the city, cover-
ing all the site of the present cathedral, and moreover
extending over much of the ground now occupied
by the Plaza Mayor. Tizoc was poisoned, at the in-
stigation of some neighboring kings, by women who
brought him a fatal drink. He died suddenly, after
a brief reign of four years.
Ahuitzotl, his brother and successor, hastened to
bring the great teocalli to completion, and its dedi-
cation was the occasion of a great feast and cele-
bration. Kings and caciques of the allied people
came, bringing rich offerings to the Mexican mon-
arch, who displayed the greatest magnificence in
receiving his guests. The chief feature of the occa-
sion was the great slaughter of four da\-s of victims
made prisoners of war on purpose for the sacrifice
to the god to whom the temple was reared.
Ahuitzotl was troubled with inundations of the
lake, and by the advice of Nezahualpilli the Wise,
he caused huge dikes to be constructed, which averted
the danger. The monarch himself was overtaken
by water bursting into one of the lower chambers
of his palace. As he rushed suddenly out of the
room to avoid the flood, he received a blow on the
head by striking a beam, which caused his death a
few years after.
This monarch was passionately devoted to war,
and by his conquests he extended widely the domin-
ions of the crown. He was violent, vengeful, and
cruel, the terror of the people he conquered, jealous
io6 nil-: STORY of Mexico.
to preserve untouched his authority, pitiless in exact-
ing tribute and collecting taxes ; in a word, a des-
pot, holding absolute control over the lives and
actions of his subjects. In compensation for these
unattractive characteristics his historians give him
credit for greatly embellishing his capital city. He
was fond of music, liberal to the needy, and gener-
ous to such soldiers as distinguished themselves in
his wars.
At the death of Ahuitzotl the kingdom ruled of
his ancestors had reached the height of its extent,
splendor, and power. Oil the north, its frontier ex-
tended to the 2 1st degree of latitude. On the east,
with the exception of the kingdom of Texcuco, and
the independent tribes of Cholula, Tlaxcalla, and
Huexotzinco, it reached the Gulf of Mexico, includ-
ing all the shore, from the semi-independent Cuexte-
cas to the border of the Coatzacoaico River. On the
southeast the kingdom extended to Xoconochco,
towards the south its boundry touched Mexcalla, and
on the west its barrier was the haughty kingdom of
Michoacan, against which the armies of the Mexi-
cans fought always in vain.
Such a point of power had reached the Aztec tribe
in the course of one hundred years. From their
small beginning as a handful of hunted creatures,
hiding in the rushes of a swamp, they had grown to
bean all-powerful nation, carrying a triumphant war-
fare tiiroughout the land, and enlarging their boun-
daries with every triumph. The shocking features of
their sanguinary religion make them odious to our
minds. It is difficult to accommodate it to the (jcntle
^
ir
y\
a
:<^'
Pl9*-_
.&
mSM.
SCULPTURE KEPR£SENTIiNG HUMAN SACRIFICE.
I08 THE STOR Y OF MEXICO.
traits of the Aztec character, which shows them to be
of domestic tastes, affectionate and mild in temper.
Such a stain upon the nation is only to be explained,
not excused, by the power of religious fanaticism.
Other religions in other parts of the world, were
exercising a control as arbitrary, with results the
same in quality though not in degree. In 1480, in
Spain, the Holy Inquisition was established against
apostates, that is, persons converted from any other
religion to that of the Roman Catholic Church, who,
after baptism, reverted to Judaism or the faith of
Islam. The tribunal of Seville, alone, between 1480
and 1520, consigned four thousand victims to the
flames.
Louis XI. of France wore little images of saints
and angels in his cap, while he did not hesitate to
shut up his enemies for life in a wooden cage. As
his death drew near in 1483, he shuddered at the
thought of the victims, more than five thousand,
whom he had caused to be put to death, for his own
ends, without the plea of religious ardor.
Richard III., in England, during a short reign
of two years from 1483 to 1485, not only murdered
his young nephews, but put to death his brother, the
Duke of Clarence, Lord Hastings, Jane Shore, and
his own friend and ally the Duke of Buckingham.
It is of course idle to compare the civilization of
the two continents at that period ; widely separated
as they were, and each ignorant of the very existence
of the other. European society emerged from the
barbarism of the dark ages was, according to its in-
terpretation of them, based upon the teachings of the
MEXICANS. 109
faith of Christ. No such advantages, as yet, had
reached the plateau of Anahuac. The most elevate
ing influence shed over its people was from the tra-
ditional Quetzalcoatl, whose teachings of mild and
gentle manners left a deep and prevading impression.
Otherwise, the struggle for life, rude contact with the
lower instincts of the less developed with the better
informed, gave an always downward tendency to the
institutions of their society.
It is all very obscure, now more than ever, be-
cause new information is disturbing the accepted
theory of Aztec culture given by writers of Mexican
history up to nearly the present time. For a true
knowledge of early life in Mexico, we must wait till
explorers and archaeologists have fully established
their discoveries by facts. Such an exposition,
which is pretty sure to come, will be of great
importance to those interested in the future, as well
as the past, of the native races of Mexico.
Meanwhile, in a book like this, which is permitted
to gather up legend as well as fact, in order to pre-
sent the attractive, even romantic, side of its subject,
it would be a pity to wholly set aside the accounts
of the Aztecs, as they have hitherto been given in
current history, as worthless and superseded. This
would be to leave a gap at the very beginning of
authentic story, to take aAvay the lowest step of the
ladder we wish to climb. If the " Last of the Mon-
tezumas " is to be reduced to a chieftain of a seden-
tary tribe, we, in this story of Mexico, may regard
him as one once invested with the glories of an em-
pire. Our chief object in examining the early periods
no THE STORY OF MEXICO.
written of in the preceding chapters, is to gather
clear impressions of the character of the people we
are reading about. For this end it is of vast import-
ance to know whether the native races now forming
a large part of the population of Mexico, are de-
scended from a cultivated line of kings, or whether
they merely inherit the manners and customs of
illiterate tribes. The reader must for himself create
from the stories drawn from Spanish accounts, and
evidences given by picture-writings, and the descrip-
tion of monuments and ruins, his own idea of the
Aztec character, giving due weight to the substance
of the legends about Mexican greatness, while he
brushes off with modern ruthlessness the cobwebs
which obscure the truth of the story, however
brightly they may sparkle, and adorn the tale.
XL
AZTEC CHARACTER.
It is impossible with our present knowledge to
form an estimate of the civilization of the Aztecs at
their highest point. The reports given by the
Spaniards at the time of the conquests are not to be
relied upon, as they paint in the exaggerated colors
they thought most likely to give glory to their own
achievements. Unfortunately they felt called upon
to destroy most of the picture-writings they found,
which would have been as valuable in forming an
opinion of the manners and customs of the race they
depicted, as the volumes we find in European libra-
ries are to enlighten us upon the manners and
customs of contemporary races in Europe.
The Aztecs knew no alphabet, but instead of
letters they used certain signs or hieroglyphics by
which they wrote on every subject — religion, history,
geography, poetry, feasts, famines, wars, and the
arts of peace. This fashion of writing was handed
down from father to son, and taught in colleges or
by the priests. The artists who executed the manu-
scripts were treated with general consideration, and
the sovereign even paid them honor. They worked
on paper made of the fibre of the maguey, or on
112 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
linen cloth, with a sort of pen like the stylus of the
Romans. The colors were procured from vegetable
dyes, in general. Tliey had little variety of tint, but
were vivid and permanent.
These paintings, of which several of the small
remnant in existence of the great quantity destroyed
by the Conquistadores are in the museum at Mex-
ico, are extremely interesting, both as works of art
from a point of view entirely different from our
European prejudices, and also as recording events
with wonderful simplicity and directness.
The one called the Wanderings of the Aztecs, is
absolutely authentic, and is wholly interpreted. It
is forty-eight feet long and nine inches wide done
on maguey paper, all in black, with no other colors,
except that the line of travel is marked in red.
This painting gives the route of the Aztecs, from
their departure from Aztlan until their arrival in the
valley of Mexico. On an island, in the land of
Aztlan, stands a teocalli, like the temples of worship
in Mexico. The chronology year by year is given,
and the various halts made by the wanderers, with
the principal events that befell them. A short piece
at the end is torn off and missing, which probably
depicted the founding of Tenochtitlan.
Another painting depicts a range of mountains
among which is one pouring forth smoke from its
summit. On the left is a city entirely surrounded
by water, with tlie cactus growing on the rock, which
always signifies Tenochtitlan. The mountain doubt-
less in Popocatepetl, which by its name signifies
Hill that gives Smoke. Another painting gives
J14 THE STORY OF MEXICO,
the chronology of the kings of Mexico and Tex-
cuco ; it is long, stretching half across the large
room of the museum in which it is exhibited.
If we only had more of these paintings, the daily
life of the Aztecs would be before us, just as we can
read on the Egyptian monuments every detail of
such remote living.
In the usual accounts of the religion of the Az-
tecs, more stress is laid upon the horror of their
human sacrifice than upon its other features, which,
however, deserve notice. They firmly believed in a
future life. While some of the Nahuatl races im-
agined that after death the common people would
be transformed into insects, the chiefs into birds, the
Aztecs conceived of graduated stages of happiness for
mankind. Warriors slain in battle were immediately
to dwell in the house of the sun ; less distinguished
souls went to live in the various planets. But these
starry houses were only temporary. For four years
after the death of a relative the friends offered meat,
wines, flowers, and perfumes to the dead in certain
months of the year, one of which was dedicated to
dead children, and the other to warriors killed in
battle.
When a chief died among the Aztecs great care
was taken in ornamenting the body, as if preparing
it for a long journey. Several papers are presented
to the corpse : one as a passport across the defile be-
tween the two mountains ; one with which to avoid
the great serpent ; the third was to put to flight the
alligator ; the fourth would give a safe crossing over
the eight great deserts and the eight hills. A little
AZTEC CHARACTER. \l%
red-haired do^j was killed, a leash put about his
neck, and he was buried near the corpse. Always
the little dog, for rich or poor, warrior or slave, to
guide his master across the nine great torrents which
every departed soul must encounter.
Domestic life, we may infer, was happy with the
Aztecs. Every man was bound to marry when he
reached the age of twenty years. Polygamy was
not forbidden ; a man could have as many wives as
he could afford to support. There were no patro-
nymic names. Mothers chose names for their chil-
dren as soon as they were born ; these names were
generally connected with the month in which the
child was born, or some circumstance connected with
the event. When each boy grew up, he was given
a name by the medicine man, and by an act of espe-
cial bravery he might gain a third name.
The laws against stealing and other crimes were
strictly enforced, although unwritten, the penalties
probably assigned in accordance with ancient cus-
toms.
The Aztecs were essentially musical, as their de-
scendants are now. Their songs and hymns trans-
mitted the traditions of their race, and are carefully
taught in the schools. They had a sort of theatrical
exhibition, in which the faces of the actors were hid
with masks representing birds or animals.
The relic which gives the best testimony of the
mental powers of the Aztecs is their calendar, pre-
served for centuries from destruction, and now built
into the cathedral of the city of Mexico. It was
carved in the year 15 12 A.D., and brought to the
Il6 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
ancient Tenochtitlan from the spot where it was
made. When it had nearly reached its destination,
it broke down the floating bridge on which it was
loaded, and was precipitated into the lake. The
priest superintending the moving, and many of his
assistants, were drowned, but it was raised with great
difficulty from the water, and brought to the great
temple located by Tizoc and Ahuitzotl, where it was
inaugurated with human sacrifices.
Not many years later this temple, like many
others, was destroyed, and the huge calendar with
other objects of heathen worship were buried in the
surrounding marshes as the best way to get rid of
them, by the order of the Christian priests. It lay
hidden for two centuries, until the 17th of Decem-
ber, 1790, when the grade of the pavxment in front
of the cathedral was lowered, and it came to light.
The Spanish Viceroy then controlling Mexican affairs
allowed the commissioners of the cathedral to build
it into their sacred edifice, on condition that it should
be always preserved and exposed in a public place.
It is now, however, considered as the property of
the National Museum.
This zodiac or calendar is twelve feet in diameter,
made of a piece of basalt of immense weight. It
gives a clear exposition of the division of time un-
derstood by the Aztecs, into cycles, years, and days.
Fifty-two years constituted a cycle, the year had
three hundred and sixty-five days, with five very un-
lucky intercalary days, wholly devoted to human
sacrifice. Each year had eighteen months af twenty
days each, and these months four weeks of five days
AZTEC CHARACTER. II7
each. The days had delightful names, such as " Sea
Animal," "Small Bird," "Monkey," "Rain,"; not
recurring every week, but different for the twenty
different days of the month. The cardinal points
were named " Reed," " House," " Flint," " Rabbit,"
for east, west, north, and south. Thus an Aztec
might say, " I am going House on Sea-Animal,"
which would merely mean that he was starting for
the west on Monday. The months likewise had de-
scriptive names : thus the third month, which might
correspond to our March, was called " Victims flayed
alive," while the more agreeable title for the sixth
month, which we call July, was " Garlands of corn
on the necks of idols." As their writing was by pic-
tures instead of by combinations of letters selected
from an alphabet, they could give a long name in
brief space with a few adroit turns of their writing
instrument.
The Mexican archaeologist, Leony Gama, considers
the stone not only to be a calendar, but a solar clock,
which by means of shadows cast in a certain manner
gave eight intervals of the day between the rising
and setting sun. He adds that the stone clearly
shows the dates of the vernal and autumnal equi-
noxes, summer and winter solstice. On the other
hand, the antiquarian Chavero is of opinion that the
stone could not have been used as a calendar on ac-
count of lacking certain indispensable elements for
the computation of time. He considers it a gigantic
votive monument to the sun, above which sacrifices
were offered. Whatever was the original intention
of the sculptures of this great stone, it has survived
I 1 8 THE STOR Y OF MEXICO.
them to bear testimony to their attentive notice of
the movements of the earth and heavenly bodies, of
their interest in astronomy, and their accuracy in
arithmetical calculation, as well as their skill in carv-
ing and design, and their power to overcome the
mechanical difificulty of moving so huge a mass of
stone.
The cycle of the Aztecs was a period of fifty-two
years. They believed that some great catastrophe
would occur at the end of one of these cycles, and
therefore approached the termination of each one, at
the interval of fifty-two years, with terror and dismay.
On the arrival of the five unlucky days at the close
of the year when the end of the cycle recurred, they
abandoned themselves to despair. They broke in
pieces the little images of their household gods,
lighted no fires in their dwellings, and allowed the
holy fires in the temples to burn out. They
destroyed every thing they possessed, and tore their
garments, as if there was to be no further use for
earthly comforts.
On the evening of the fifth day a procession
moved from the city to the top of a hill six miles
south of the city. There, at midnight, just as the
constellation of the Pleiades reached the zenith, a
new fire was kindled b)' rubbing sticks over the
breast of a human victim. The body of this victim
was thrown to the flames which sprang up from the
new-born fire. Shouts of joy and delight burst forth
from the surrounding hills, the housetops, and ter-
races, which were crowded with the populace watch-
ing for the result. Torches lighted at the blazing
AZTEC CHARACTER. 1 19
pile were carried to every home, and kindled with
fresh flame every hearthstone. The sun rose, the
new cycle commenced, and the Aztecs felt safe for
fifty-two )'ears more.
Then came the house-cleaning. All the destroyed
pots and pans were replaced by new ones. New
clothes, prepared, we must fear, beforehand, took
the place of the old ones. The people, gayly
dressed and crowned with flowers, thronged to the
temples to ofTer up their thanksgiving. All was joy
and merriment ; dances and songs were the order of
the day, gifts exchanged. The last celebration of
this festival was in 1506.
While the warriors of the Mexicans were engaged
in ceaseless raids upon neighboring tribes, the true
occupation of the people was agriculture, which in
their delightful climate well repaid their toil and
skill. All the inhabitants, even in the cities, culti-
vated the soil, except the soldiers and the great
nobles. The men did all the heavy work, the wo-
men helping them by scattering seed, husking maize,
and such light matters. Canals were cut through
sterile lands, for they fully understood the import-
ance of artificial irrigation, to aid the influence of
their rainy season. The forests which covered the
country were preserved by severe penalties. Ample
granaries were provided to contain their harvests.
Such crops, etc., as were available for their lands
were known to the Aztecs, and developed to their
full extent. They thoroughly appreciated and en-
joyed the wealth of flowers which nature scattered
over the soil. Flowers were to them an important
120 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
part of their religious ceremonies ; their soft, bril-
liant, or gaud}' colors had each its peculiar signifi-
cance. Out of them the women wove wreaths for
the head, and long festoons for decoration, heaping
blossoms in greatest profusion wherever was festiv-
it\^ and rejoicing. In fact in the Aztec disposition
is found an inheritance of gentleness and mildness,
brought with them from Aztlan, sliown in. their con-
VASE. MUSEUM AT MEXICO.
sideration for women, their industry, their taste in
ornament, and their devotion to flowers. The fe-
rocitN' of their religious sacrifices has nothing in com-
mon with these other traits cf character. It is as if
this dismal feature of their creed were picked up
somewhere on the wa}' tluring their long wanderings,
a dark, bloody thread interwoven in the soft, tender
fabric of their composition. The women were not
oppressed, but ruled their homes peaceably, assisting
in the lighter work of the field, and taking care of
AZTEC CHARACTER. 121
the children, preparing food, and all household re-
quirements.
Among the Aztecs was an order of priestesses,
who withdrew from the world for one or more years
at the age of twelve or thirteen, and went to live
shut up within the inner courts of the teocalli. Their
hair was cut in a set fashion, common to all, but
they were allowed to let it grow again after one
cutting ; they were draped in white, without any
decoration or ornament, and always slept in their
clothes, " in order to be ready for work in the morn-
»ng." The life was one of abstinence and toil ; they
carried their eyes always cast down, and bore them-
selves with great modesty of deportment, always
watched by the sharp eye of a lady-superior within
the walls of their retreat, and outside by vigilant
old men who stood guard by day and night. Their
food was plain and sparing, only at feast-time were
they allowed meat, and then because their accus-
tomed routine was interrupted by unusual exertion.
They assisted at the religious dances of these festi^
vals, their feet and hands adorned with feathers, and
their cheeks painted red. On days of penance they
jjricked their ears, and put the blood on their cheeks
'■ as a religious rouge," says the account ; washing it
oft in a particular basin destined for that purpose.
The slightest variation from the path prescribed to
them was punished by death. Some of the Nahuatl
deities are goddesses, which shows that the sexes
were not unequally reverenced. An important god-
dess, Coatlicue, or She of the Skirt of Serpents, has
a statue in the court of the museum at Mexico,
122 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
which is regarded as one of the best specimens of
Aztec workmanship. Like the calendar, it was
found buried in the Plaza Mayor, not far from the
cathedral, doubtless tumbled there by the Spaniards
when they destroyed the great teocalli. It is not
beautiful according to ideas of symmetry formed
from the Venus of Milo ; it is strange and interesting
on account of the quantity of symbols by which it is
overwhelmed. Coatlicue, or Cihuatcotl, or Cihua-
coatl, is the serpent woman, mother of the first
human pair in the world ; she is the goddess of the
earth, in the night-time, after sunset. She is, there-
fore, the mistress of the dead. And tiien she is the
mother of Quetzalcoatl, the god and hero of the
early Nahuatl. This sounds better than it looks.
The upper part is the head of a serpent, whose body
is entwined with that of a woman. The skirt is a
web of snakes, adorned with tassels and feathers.
The figure has many hands, as a symbol of the pro-
duction-giving power of the earth. The skull at the
girdle shows that on her breast repose her children
after death in eternal slumber.
Such were the Aztecs in 1500, after little more
than a century of life in their new land. Much of
their civilization, many of their customs, they must
have caught from the older, longer established, re-
fined court of the Texcucans, their neighbors at the
other end of the lake, whose dynasty was much
older, and whose traditions came down unimpaired
from the cultivated Toltecs, whose remote ancestors,
if they came from the same stem as the Aztecs and
wandered to Anahuac from the same shadowy Az-
AZTEC CHARACTER. 1 23
tlan or Huehue-Tlapallan, had yet the advantage of
a couple of centuries of development, and a longer
abstinence from the bloody rites of a savage religion.
The Mexicans were in some sort parvenus on the
plateau. They won their way by their valor in bat-
tle, and insisted on recognition by the other tribes,
by superior force or ferocity conquering to them-
selves a large portion of the happy land. The neigh-
boring people made way for them, a few to be their
allies; but their ferocious warfare had made them
detested by those who feared them in all the sur-
rounding country, so that these other kingdoms,
republics, or sedentary races saw not unwillingly the
downfall of the haughty Aztec house, even if they
did not actively help its invaders.
In the end, this policy was fatal to all. Once they
had gained a foothold on the plateau, the Conquis-
tadores stopped not until the whole country was
within their grasp.
XII.
THE LAST OF THE MONTEZUMAS.
AhUITZOTL died in 1502. His successor was
Motecuhzoma II., the son of the famous warrior
King Axayacatl. Motecuhzoma took the surname
of Xocoyotzin to distinguish him from the first king
with his name.
He was thirty-four years old when he came to the
throne. He had been general-in-chief of the armies,
as was usual with the heir-apparent to the throne,
and when he was elected king he was fulfilling the
ofifice of high-priest, which was unusual. His de-
meanor was grave, calm, and taciturn. He was in-
flexible in his determination, and admitted no con-
tradiction, stern and cruel in exacting obedience to
his commands ; but extremely credulous and timid
to cowardice when his suj^erstitious fears were
aroused.
He is said to have been handsome, of a fine form,
slight rather than robust, with great dignity of man-
ner. His well-formed features wore an habitual
expression of sadness or gloom, even in the early
days of his reign, when the shadow of his destiny
had not to all appearance yet fallen upon him.
When his election was announced to him, he was
124
THE LAST OF THE MONTEZUMAS. 125
found sweeping down the stairs in the great teocaUi.
He received the message with assured humility, as
one unfit for so high a station. The usual great
preparations were made for his coronation, which
was more splendid than those of his predecessors,
graced by the sacrifice of a horde of captives, won
by the young monarch in battle for this purpose.
Nezahualpilli, the wise king of Texcuco, the valued
relative and adviser of the Aztec royal house, made
an address at the coronation which has been pre-
served.
" Who can doubt," he exclaimed at the close,
" that the Aztec. empire has reached the zenith of its
greatness! Rejoice, happy people, and thou, happy
}'outh, doubt not that our Great Deity will keep thee
safe upon thy throne through many long and glori-
ous years."
Now let us try to imagine this young heir to a
splendid kingdom, just ascending the steps of the
throne, clothed in all the majesty which the customs
of his country allowed. Soft robes of well chosen
colors hung about him, and over all the beautiful
mantle of feather-work which the Aztecs knew how
to make out of the plumage of all the brilliant trop-
ical birds within their reach. There was no stint of
splendor in his ornaments, neck, wrists, ankles en-
clasped with gold, and set with precious stones. A
superb head-dress, over which waved a bunch of
feathers, stuck with sparkling jewels, added dignity
to his haughty carriage and grave features.
One hundred years of successful government had
made the Aztecs proud. Their enemies feared them.
126 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Surrounding nations sought their friendship for the
sake of peace. The great house of Texcuco had
alHed itself with their king in marriage. Mingled in
the veins of Montezuma with the savage blood of
the worshippers of Huitzilopochtii, the terrible god
of war, was a gentler strain of the delicate culture of
the family of Nezahualcoyotl. The career of the
young monarch seemed clear before liim ; it was to be
a life of stirring excitement in battle, — a warfare not
for conquest or slaughter on the field, but a holy en-
terprise to bring back the necessary material for sacri-
fice to the gods, in whom he believed so firmly that
the horror of such wholesale destruction of life made
not the slightest impression. In the Aztec wars their
enemies were seldom killed in battle ; the great ob-
ject was to save prisoners alive, in order to lay them
upon their altars.
But these fearful raids upon surrounding popula-
tions were only episodes in the life he proposed
to himself. He inherited a splendid palace in a
great city; for although we are now taught to con-
sider the accounts of Tenochtitlan given by the
Spaniards as grossly exaggerated, we must accept
the assumption that in the estimation of himself and
his people his palace was splendid, and that the city
w^as great, and upon this foundation, since the Span-
ish statements are unreliable, and accurate informa-
tion is lacking, we may draw upon fancy to fill up the
picture.
All splendor is comparative ; the halls of the
Montezumas, never in contact with the palaces of
the Old World, were to be judged upon a scale of
THE LAST OF THE MOXTEZUMAS. 12/
their own. Tcnochtitlan was, undoubtcdl\', tlic rich-
est city upon Anahuac. It was built, like Venice, in
the midst of waters, upon an island intersected with
canals, and cornmunicating with the mainland by
means of four broad causeways. An aqueduct from
Chapultepec brought fresh water, as the lake was
brackish. The streets were laid out in straight lines
and at right angles, following the direction of the
causeways ; some of them were the intersecting
canals themselves, with houses facing at once upon
the water, and on the other side the street. Upon
the canals floated canoas for pleasure or business,
coming from the suburbs laden with food, vegeta^
bles, and fruit, the cargo heaped always with a pro-
fusion of flowers, bright-hued poppies, sweet peas,
and the deep-red blossoms of clover. Above the
houses, which were not high, with flat roofs, or
acotcas, rose the lofty teocalli, and the walls of the
royal palace which dominated the other buildings.
Bernal Diaz, the companion of Cortes, who is
charged with much garrulity and exaggeration, says
that when the Spaniards arrived at the great cause-
way leading to the capital they paused, struck with
admiration on seeing so many cities and villages ris-
ing from the soil, with the splendid highway, perfectly
level, stretching on to Mexico. They compared the
scene to the enchanted castles described in " Amadis
of Gaul," and as they gazed at the lofty towers, the
great temples, and the white buildings gleaming in
the sun and reflected in the waters of the lake, they
asked each other if it was not all a dream. The old
chronicler ends his account with this brief remark:
128 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
" Now, the -whole of this city is destroyed and imt a
bit of it left standing."
The life that Montezuma proposed to himself was
one of enjoyment and pleasure. Upon his people he
wasted little thought. The country was prosperous
and they were happy, always a docile and domestic
population busy with agriculture, their crops, and
their families. It is said that he used to go out
among them like the Sultan in the " Arabian
Nights," disguised, to see what the occupations
of his subjects were, and hear what they talked
about. But this must have been chiefly to fill up
his time, for there was no danger of sedition or con-
spiracy among the citizens of his capital. A walk
incognito outside its walls, through the lanes of any
one of the surrounding pueblos would have revealed
to him a state of hostility and a longing for his over-
throw which might have taught him something for
the future.
In the palace was luxurious living; fruits of the
warmer climate, and even fresh fish from the Gulf,
it is said, were brought by swift-footed runners up
the steep path that the steam-engine now requires
fourteen hours to climb ; music and the enjoyment
of society, occupied leisure hours. The state corre-
spondence of the Aztec court consisted m picture
writings brought by messengers from all parts of
the country, depicting in realistic forms the events
requiring attention. Montezuma could go to the
lovely Grasshopper Hill over the fine causewa}' under
the aqueduct built by his ancestors ; not as the gay,
fashionable world now makes the excursion on horse-
THE LAST OF THE MONTEZUMAS. 1 29
back before breakfast, for air and exercise, but car-
ried in a palanquin by four strong bearers. It has
been thought that the Aztec kings had a royal villa
at Chapultepec ; but the wise men have given that
up now, because they find no traces of any. Lately,
however, have been discovered fragments of the
efifigy of Ahuitzotl, Montezuma's uncle and prede-
cessor, who was doubtless buried there. It was
carved in half-relief, a full-length figure life-size,
stretched out on a ledge of natural rock. The carv-
ing is much mutilated, the top having been blasted
ofT apparently, but beneath, distinctly visible, is the
date corresponding to 1507, with the name, Ahuit-
zotl.
This chieftain died in 1502. The monument was
erected therefore by the direction of his successor,
Montezuma, in the spot well-beloved by all genera-
tions of Aztecs, under the trees protected and
guarded by them.
There is now standing an ancient cypress, or
aJmcJmete^ huge among the other great trees of the
grove, which goes by the name of Montezuma's
cypress. Its gnarled trunk must measure more than
ten feet across, and its branches themselves are as
big as trees. The leaves of this great tree are small
and delicate, like those of the acacia ; they hang
from slender stems drooping over the great limbs
down to the ground. Long trailing gray moss now
droops from the branches, which, with the dense foli-
age, shuts out the rays of the sun, so that a gloomy
half-light pervades the place. Perhaps it was more
cheerful in the heyday of Mexico, or did coming
130 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
events cast their shadows before, as Montezuma
paced those silent alleys?
It may well have been, for misfortunes began to
obscure the sky of his prosperity like little clouds
coming up on the horizon. His almost constant
wars were not always successful. Each victory left
behind it bitterness and discontent, so that the same
field had soon to be fought over again. In 1516,
Nezahualpilli, the wise sovereign of Texcuco, who
had always been a safe and strong adviser of the
Aztec king, during his long reign of forty-four
years, left the kingdom to the eldest of four sons,
Cacamatzin ; the honor was coveted by another son,
Ixtlilxochitl, who contested the throne. Montezuma
took the side of Cacamatzin, as rightful heir, in a
civil war. The matter was settled by a division.
Cacamatzin kept that part of the kingdom of the
Aculhuas which stretched south of the capital Tex-
cuco ; while his rebellious brother obtained the part
towards the north, among the mountains. This di-
vision of the kingdom becomes important to us by
and by.
About this time all minds in Anahuac were occu-
pied by sinister presages, constantly repeated, of
dreadful events soon to occur. Temples were in
flames, comets appeared unexpectedly ; there u ere
inundations, earthquakes all over the land, and the
people dreamed strange dreams.
Above all hovered the rumor that men of great
stature, white and with beards, were on their way to
subjugate all the nations of the earth. This rumor
was perfectly in accordance with the universal tradi-
THE LAST OF THE MONTEZUMA S. 131
tion about Quetzalcoatl (the Bright Shining Serpent),
the bearded white man, clothed in raiment covered
with crosses, who had taught the Toltecs awe, indus-
try, and skill. He predicted with supreme authority
before he disappeared from them, the arrival of men
white and bearded as he was, who would take pos-
session of the country, and destroy their temples
and their gods.
This event was a part of the Mexican belief, a
something in the future to be hoped for in a certain
way, yet dreaded as the inception of great changes
in the manners of the people. The races subjugated
by the power of Montezuma might look forward to
the coming of the strangers as to deliverance ; but
that monarch himself became penetrated with the
conviction that his wealth and prosperity were to
disappear in the course of his lifetime.
This foreboding took possession of his mind and
undermined its peace ; he became unhappy and
brooded over his fate as he wandered among the
gloomy cypresses of Chapultepec. He had con-
sulted the wise Nezahualpilli before his death upon
the meaning of the portents which pervaded the air,
but from him he had received no consolation. The
sage shook his head gravely, and when urged, con-
firmed his fears by translating these prodigies as
warnings of the downfall of empires.
It might well be that these things pervaded the
air, for it was twenty-five years at the time of Neza-
hualpilli's death since Columbus had set foot on
American soil. The strange apparition of white
men armed with thunder and lightning, would be
132 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
sure to spread from mouth to mouth and from nation
to nation. The fleet-footed messengers of the Mex-
ican king would be sure to bring such news along
with fresh fish and fruit up from the shores of the
Gulf. And while these things were more and more
weighing upon the king's mind, there came the
report, swift, certain, and not to be denied, that men
in boats had landed by the river Tabasco.
Twenty years after the discovery of the Antilles
by Columbus, these islands were fully under the
control of the Spanish. Cuba, the most important
of them, was a flourishing colony, under the admin-
istration of Diego Velasquez de Leon.
In 1 5 17, three Spanish adventurers armed three
vessels of discovery at Cuba. The governor Velas-
quez joined himself to this enterprise. These ex-
plorers discovered the eastern point of Yucatan,
which they named Cape Catoche, after a wood which
they heard spoken of by one of the natives. They
were filled with amazement at the civilization of the
buildings and the costumes, and hastened to land,
but being received by a shower of arrows they as
quickly went back to their boats. At Campeche
they were received more kindly, and exchanged
gifts with the natives. Later, Cordova, the leader
of this expedition, was wounded in an encounter
with the natives, and returning to Havana died ten
days after. Velasquez heard from the others such
an account of the wealth and resources of Yucatan,
that he resolved to take possession of it.
He sent out a little squadron in the charge of
Juan de Grijalva, one of his relatives, to make
THE LAST OF THE MONTEZUMAS. 1 33
further explorations. They coasted along the shore
of Yucatan, admiring its fertile fields and the cities
and villages in the midst of them, soon arriving at
the mouth of the Tabasco River. At first the
natives seemed inclined to give them a rough recep-
tion, but Grijalva propitiated them by friendly
messages, and on disembarking met a brilliant recep-
tion. Green copal was burnt before him, in the way
of incense, and the natives brought him game, fish,
and corn-bread. The prince made him a present of
some gold necklaces and ornaments carved in the
shape of birds and lizards.
Grijalva and his followers came next into the coun-
try belonging to the Mexican crown, and saw for
the first time the royal standard of Montezuma, with
the nopal and the eagle. They now for the first
time began to hear of this great prince, and of the
riches of Anahuac.
Such were the tidings brought to the poor Monte-
zuma, already depressed by vague forebodings. He
received the news with positive anguish, as he con-
templated the evidences of their power. Reporters
at Tabasco had already prepared on great maguey
canvasses graphic pictures of the ship of the
strangers, their costumes and arms, which were hur-
ried with telegraphic promptness to the great sov-
ereign in his capital.
The council was assembled. It met in dismay.
Finally they decided to send to the shore an embassy
laden with gifts of gold, feathers, and splendid stuffs,
but bearing messages urging them not to penetrate
farther into the country, where they would be ex-
134 '^'^e: story of Mexico.
posed to constant danger. The messengers were
charged to lay great stress on the difficulties and
perils of travel in these regions. Thus, while they
tempted with one hand full of gifts, they repulsed
with the other. Temptation and warning were for
the moment unheeded. When they reached the
coast, Grijalva, who had no authority from Velas-
quez to involve him in negotiations with the Aztec
monarch, had sailed away.
XIII.
CORTES.
Fernando Cortes was born in 1485 at Medellin,
the principal town of the province of Estramadura,
in Spain. His father was a gentleman of old blood,
but poor. He sent his son to the University of Sal-
amanca, but Fernando had no taste for study, and of
his own will entered the army, with the intention of
serving under the great captain Gonsalvo of Cordova
in the campaign of Naples, but an injury caused by
falling from a roof prevented his starting with the
fleet. As soon as he was well enough he set off in
quest of adventure for the West Indies, then a new
and tempting discovery, and joined a relative in St.
Domingo, who happened to be governor there. This
was in 1504. He passed several years there, and in
151 1 accompanied Diego Velasquez to Cuba when
the latter was appointed to colonize that island.
The contemporaries of Fernando Cortes draw an
attractive portrait of him. He was well built and
skilful in all manly exercises. The wonderful beauty
of his glance enhanced the charm to his fine and
regular features. With unequalled bravery he com-
bined wonderful penetration which never failed him.
He was eloquent and persuasive, with the faculty of
135
136 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
making himself beloved and respected by all who sur-
rounded him, over whom he exercised an irresistible
influence. His conceptions were vast ; he never re-
nounced a project after he had recognized it as prac-
ticable, but he tempered his audacity of design with
an extreme prudence in execution. Reverses he en-
dured with heroism, while he never suffered himself
to be made giddy by his successes. The inviolable
fidelity which Cortes preserved towards his legiti-
mate sovereigns tempered his personal ambition,
great as it was, and his love of money though
great did not prevent his showing liberality when
the interest of his glory demanded it.
This is the bright side of the picture ; great defects
of character tarnish it. His acts of cruelty towards
his enemies, and his greed of plunder arc not to be
overlooked in forming an estimate of this wonderful
man.
Velasquez had already sent an expedition of dis-
covery towards the west, and Grijalva, its leader, had
entered the river of Tabasco, where he disembarked,
but, feeling he had no authority to treat with the na-
tives, he returned to report what he had seen and ask
further instructions.
Velasquez was displeased with Grijalva for this
moderation, without appreciating a loyalty which he
regarded as stupidity ; and excited by the accounts
of tliC new country, he resolved upon another under-
taking in the same direction. He sent to Spain to
ask for wider powers, and to obtain for himself the
government of the lands he expected to conquer.
He offered the command of this expedition to sev-
courts. 137
eral of his relatives. They all refused it. It was
then that he addressed himself to Fernando Cortes.
There is a story that Cortes was in love with a
young lady named Doiia Catalina Juarez, who after-
wards became his wife, and that the governor, Velas-
quez, also devoted to the Doiia, subjected his bril-
liant rival to a terrible persecution, and even had him
seized and put in prison, that Cortes escaped and
took refuge in the church, a few days afterwards he
was again seized, and then incarcerated in a ship
with a chain about his foot. Escaping in a skifT and
afterwards by swimming he reached the shore and
again hid himself in a sanctuary. In the end he
married Doiia Catalina, goes this tale, was recon-
ciled with the governor, and made Alcalde of San-
tiago de Cuba.
However this may have been, Cortes received and
accepted the commission now offered. His reputa-
tion for bravery and great popularity gathered about
him young and old, the bold spirits of Cuba, some
among them former companions of Grijalva in his
expedition ; Bernal Diaz, the first historian of the
Conquest, Olid, Alvarado, and other men of the
greatest bravery, destined to play great parts in the
epic of the New World.
Velasquez, even before the departure of his com-
mander, began to distrust him, jealous again of his
great powers, but they parted on good terms, and
Cortes embarked at San Jago de Cuba on the i8th
November, 15 18. He had not gone far when an
emissary of Velasquez was sent after the expedition
to arrest Cortes, but encouraged by his companions.
138 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
who urged him to remain at their head, he sent
off the messenger and started without taking any-
further notice of the jealousy of his chief.
The squadron of Cortes was composed of eleven
small vessels. There were 1 10 sailors, 553 soldiers, of
which thirteen were armed with muskets, and thirty-
two with arquebuses, the others with swords and
pikes only. There were ten little field-pieces, and
sixteen horses. Such were the forces with which
the bold adv^enturer set forth to conquer a vast em-
pire, defended by large armies, not without courage,
according to the report of Grijalva. But the com-
panions of Cortes were unfamiliar with fear. Cortes
followed the same route as Grijalva. At Cozumcl,
an island off Yucatan, he learned by signs from the
natives that white captives, with beards, had been
lately seen by them. Cortes left a letter for these
men with a boat and some soldiers, and the result
was their finding a white man named Jerome d'
Aguilar, whom they restored to liberty. He told
them that he was a native of Ecija, in Spain, ship-
wrecked in 151 1, seven years before. Thirteen of
his companions escaped drowning and starvation,
only to be exposed to the danger of being eaten by
Mayas, from which also they escaped by the tolera-
tion of a cacique, who treated them well. All the
rest died but one, and this one refused to join Cor-
tes, having a wife and children, his face tattoed, and
wearing car-rings. He preferred to continue in the
way of life first forced upon him, but Aguilar gladly
joined the adventurers, and proved a valuable acqui-
sition, for though he knew but little of the country,
CORTES. 139
he had much to tell of the manners and customs of
the people, and moreover served as interpreter, of
which the commander was in sore need. During his
long captivity, Aguilar had acquired the language of
the country, and could now bring Cortes into com-
munication with its inhabitants.
At the Tabasco River, which the Spanish called
Rio de Grijalva, because that explorer had discovered
it, they had a fight with some natives who resisted
their approach. These natives fought bravely, but
the fire-arms, and above all the horses, which they
conceived to be of one piece with their riders, caused
them extreme terror, and the rout was complete.
According to Spanish tradition, the Christian sol-
diers saw at the opening of the battle their patron,
Saint James, mounted on a white horse, and fighting
for them. This not only inspired them with bravery,
but their adversaries with fear, so that they fled in
alarm. The native prince, overcome, sent gifts to
the conqueror, and, without much knowing the ex-
tent of his agreement, acknowledged himself as vas-
sal of the king of Spain, the most powerful monarch
of the world.
Cortes passed in this place Palm Sunday, urging
Aguilar, who called himself a deacon of the church,
to explain to the prince and the lords of the land the
mysteries of religion, and to make them comprehend
the vanity of worshipping idols. The anniversary
was then solemnized, with high mass, received with
grave reverence by the natives, much impressed by
the ceremonies of the strange religion.
Meanwhile a brief calm had settled over the court
I40 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
and capital of Mexico. The white-faced strangers
had left the coast, and it was to be hoped they
might never come back. The nobles took up their
train of pleasure and the common people went on
with their peaceable, happy lives, floating over the
canals with their produce-laden, flower-heaped boats,
singing low chants of the past in a melancholy, minor
key, peculiar to the Mexican music.
But one day, in the end of March, 15 19, swift
messengers came up the steep ascent between the
tropical flat shore and the cool plateau of Anahuac,
and demanded instant audience with the king. Mon-
tezuma knew well what was coming. , During the
interval since the departure of the white men, he
had felt that it was only a respite, and that the terror
of their presence was only a premonition of worse
things to come. So he received the messengers with
a calm smile, and simply said to them : " Speak."
These messengers were wonderfully well informed.
Without giving the precise details we now know,
they could describe the conflict, the terror of the
Tabascans, and above all the strange animals, unlike
any thing they had seen before, which bore their
riders into battle, perhaps, in fact, a part of the same
machinery, turning, plunging, advancing as if by
magic, and, as they thought, invulnerable to all
weapons. Also the thunder and lightning of the
new-comers was something supernatural, destructive
flashes of fire under their control, accompanied by a
bursting sound, and followed by instant death.
These tidings appeared incredible, yet must be
believed, and, what was more, acted upon. The
CORTES. 141
king, after due counsel with his advisers, resolved to
send envoys, as before, to the strangers. The pres-
ents prepared for Grijalva, which had reached the
shore too late, were, alas ! all ready. To these were
now added the ornaments used in the decoration of
the image of Quetzalcoatl, on days of solemnity,
regarded as the most sacred among all the possess-
ions of the royal house of Mexico.
Cortes accepted the role of Quetzalcoatl and al-
lowed himself to be decorated with the ornaments
belonging to that god without hesitation. The
populace were convinced that it was their deity
really returned to them. A feast was served to the
envoys, with the accompaniment of some European
wine which they found delicious.
The adventurers landed on Good Friday, and
celebrated Easter on shore with great pomp and
solemnity. The intendant of the province brought
ofTerings to the great stranger, and presents were
exchanged. Cortes sent to Montezuma a gilt helmet
with the message that he hoped to see it back again
filled with gold. During the feast native painters
were busy depicting every thing they saw to be
shown to their royal master. The bearer of this
gift and communication, returning swiftly to the
court, reported to the monarch that the intention of
the stranger was to come at once to the capital of
the empire. Montezuma at once assembled a new
council of all his great vassals, some of whom urged
the reception of Cortes, others his immediate dis-
missal. The latter view prevailed, and the monarch
sent, with more presents to the unknown invader.
142 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
benevolent but peremptory commands that he should
go away immediately. Having sent off the messen-
ger, poor Montezuma retreated to the depths of his
palace and refused to be comforted, foreseeing that
the great empire of Anahuac was about to fall.
Meanwhile the Spanish camp was feasting and re-
posing in huts of cane, with fresh provisions, in great
joy after the weariness of their voyage. They ac-
cepted with enthusiasm the presents of the emr^eror,
but the treasures which were sent had an entirely
different effect from that hoped for by Montezuma ;
they only inflamed the desire of the Spaniard to have
all within his grasp, of which this was but a specimen.
It was now that the great mistake in policy was
apparent, by which the Aztec chieftain had for years
been making enemies all over the country, invading
surrounding states, and carrying off prisoners for a
horrible death by sacrifice. These welcomed the
strangers, and encouraged their presence, thinking
they might be valuable allies against the oppressive
power of the tyrant. They made a dreadful mistake
of course, for Cortes ruined all the native populations
of Mexico, while he grasped at the wealth of Mon-
tezuma ; but the extent of his daring and powers
Were little imagined at his first coming.
Cortes made himself captain-general of his forces,
and established the site of Vera Cruz, the rich city
of the True Cross. While reposing here, he was de-
lighted to receive an invitation from the cacique of
Cempoallan, " a very fat man, and an enemy of
Montezuma," says the chronicle, to enter his do-
mains as a friend, and visit his capital city.
CORTES. 143
The site of this city, a pueblo, is now unknown,
one or two places being attributed to it. In fact,
the route of Cortes from the coast to the interior has
never been thoroughly traced. The account of the
place and his reception in it by Cortes, is now
thought to be greatly exaggerated ; doubtless the
satisfaction of finding himself in a place of any com-
fort, and in hospitable hands, led him to depict the
place with glowing colors. He accepted the invita-
tion with alacrity, set forth for Cempoallan, delighted
as well as were his men to leave the hot and sandy
shores of the Gulf of Mexico for higher ground,
fresher air, and finer climate. The next day they
entered the city, where they were received as the
avengers and liberators of an oppressed country.
The first lords of the court, richly dressed, bearing
superb bunches of flowers in their hands, came to
meet them outside the town, begging Cortes to ac-
cept the excuses of their sovereign's health, who
would receive them at home, being obliged to give
up the pleasure of coming out on account of his
extreme fatness.
The reporters of the time of the conquest describe
Cempoallan as they do every thing else, with the
glow of enthusiasm. They represent themselves
amazed at the beauty of the streets, the dazzling
whiteness of the houses, and the magnificence of the
gardens. All the population came forth to await
them, throwing flowers at their feet, presenting gar-
lands and sometimes more valuable gifts.
At Cempoallan, during his visit, Cortes learned of
the existence of the republic of Tlaxcalla, hostile to
144 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Mexico, and immediately resolved to avail himselt
of these people if necessary. He determined, in
spite of the repeated requests of Montezuma that he
should go away, to march to Anahuac, and person-
ally visit the monarch, and he set forth from Cem-
poallan on the i6th of August, 15 19, on his way to
TIaxcalla, — probably taking the road to Jalapa.
Jalapa is an old town, over four thousand feet above
the level of the sea, with a superb view of the lofty
peaks of Orizaba and the Cofre di Perote, covered
always with snow, rising behind hills and valleys and
lesser mountains ; it is probable that the Spaniards
regarded less the splendor of the prospect than the
difficulties it presented to their passage.
Before leaving the sea-coast, Cortes with great
resolution destroyed the greater part of his ships by
beaching them. This was to put an end to any
scheme of retreat which might have sprung up in the
breasts of discontented members of his party. Three
months had now passed since he arrived in Mexico.
The ships, with the exception of one of the smallest,
were destroyed. There was no chance to turn back;
and the conqueror boldly prepared for his enterprise.
The body of men which he called his army was
composed of 415 infantry, and 16 horses ; they took
with them 7 cannon. With this handful of men
he risked himself in a hostile country, inhabited by
people wholly unknown to him in manner and lan-
guage. He began by destroying his only means of
escape, in case of defeat ; relying only on his own
courage, and the devoted bravery of his little band.
XIV.
MALINTZI.
While Cortes and his followers are resting them-
selves at Cempoallan, while Montezuma is awaiting
their approach with superstitious dread, we will stop
to make the acquaintance of the gentle woman who
was so important to the daring invader of the heights
of Anahuac.
She was born at Painala, now a picturesque village
buried in forests on the borders of the Coatzacoalco
River, about 1502, This pueblo, as well as others
in its neighborhood, belonged, it is said, to her
father, one of the great vassals to the crown, then
worn by Montezuma 11. Thus the little duchess,
for so she might be called, lived until her eleventh
year, in ease and comfort. Then her father died,
and her mother, marrying again, transferred all her
maternal care and affection to a boy, the child of the
new union. In order that this boy should inherit
the family wealth and estates, reports were spread
of the death of the other child. The body of a
slave who had just died was substituted for the
heiress, and the funeral celebrated with pomp.
Meanwhile the disinherited girl was given over or
145
146 THE STORY OF MEXICO
sold to travelling merchants, who in their turn trans-
ferred her to the chief of the Tabascans, to whom
she became a slave. In the Tabascan kingdom she
grew up, and with her great intelligence acquired
readily the Mayan language used at Tabasco with-
out forfeiting her native tongue, that spoken at the
Aztec court.
Like the Aztec maidens of good birth, she had
been carefully trained up to the time when she was
abandoned to slavery. Her new position did not re-
duce her to humiliating tasks, or forced labor, and
she probably led a happy life in the soft climate of
her new home, surrounded by trees always blossom-
ing, rich vegetation, and new friends, who, although
her keepers, were gentle and indulgent after the
manner of the Mayan tribes.
In 1 5 19, just as the pretty maiden was reach-
ing her seventeenth year, Cortes arrived at Ta-
basco. After the first fright of their coming was
over, followed by futile efforts at resistance, the
Tabascans were willing to make peace. A treaty of
alliance was concluded, as we have seen, and with
the gifts of the chief to the conqueror, came twenty
young slave-girls, whose business it was to grind the
corn to make bread for their new masters. Cortes
at once ordered that these women should be taught
the truths of the Christian religion, and among the
rest the heiress of Painalawas converted by Aguilar,
and baptized by her new name, Marina. Marina, for
the Indians became Malina, as their tongues do not
accept the R. Afterwards Cortes himself acquired
the nickname of Malintzin, that is, the master of
MALINTZI. 147
Malina, and with thern the word Mah'iitzi, or Mah'n-
che, has attached itself to her as well
When the Spaniards again landed, a grave diffi-
culty presented itself. Aguilar, the interpreter,
knew Mayan, but not one word did he understand
of the Aztec dialect now spoken. Suddenly one of
the )-oung women presented by the Tabascan chief
was seen conversing fluently with the visitors who
crowded round the boats of the new-comers. She
was instantly summoned by the commander, and at
once became very important as interpreter, translat-
ing for Aguilar what he could easily render into
Spanish. Through her was transmitted the first
message of Montezuma to the dreaded white woman.
It makes a pretty picture — this graceful Aztec girl
standing between the two parties: on one side the
Indians, richly dressed, to impress the stranger, in
robes of gay colors, adorned with feathers and orna-
ments ; on the other Cortes, in the armor of the
time, assuming all the haughtiness of demeanor
possible ; grouped about him his band of stalwart
followers, curiosity on their features, making up by
their eyes for the uselessness of their ears, which
were of no use to them for understanding what was
going on. The Aztecs speak and announce the will
of their monarch. Marina, with intelligence in her
glance, listens attentively, then with her grave smile
reports the matter to Aguilar. Aguilar must have
been in rags, for his long sojourn with the Indians
had brought him to a low estate. He gathers the
Mayan message from the lips of Marina translated
from Nahuatl, and gives it in good sound Spanish to
148 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the cajitaiii. His reply is conveyed by the same
double interpreting back to the messengers. The
substance of the colloquy is, on the part of Monte-
zuma, a welcome, and lavish offering of gifts, through
which appears his unconcealed anxiety to speed the
parting guest. From Cortes the reply of scanty
thanks for benefits received, and the determination
to press on to the plateau.
If we were allowed to believe good old Bernal
Diaz, the visible testimonials of the conference
needed no interpreter. The gifts of the messengers
are described as splendid — shields, helmets, cuirasses
embossed with pure gold ornaments, sandals, fans,
crests of gaudy feathers interwoven with gold and
silver threads, and strewed with pearls and precious
stones. The helmet sent back by Cortes had come
again filled to the brim with grains of gold.
Two round plates of gold and silver, as big as
carriage wheels, excited the most delight. The gold
one represented the sun, and was richly carved with
plants and animals. Where are all these things
now ? So utterly disappeared that many people
believe they only existed in the imagination of the
chronicler of the Conquest.
No wonder that such startling treasures proved
an invitation more potent than the twice translated
prayer to go away which accompanied them.
The Spaniards were impatient to move at once.
Cortes, charmed with the grace and intelligence of
the young interpreter, encouraged her by every sign
of favor, and she, young, forlorn, deserted, expanded
under the warmth of his kindness and flattery. In
MA LIN TZ I. 149
a very short time she acquired enough Spanish to
interpret directly for her lord and master, who be-
came the object of her intense adoration.
Marina was very beautiful, according to the de-
scription of the Spanish chroniclers. If she were at
all like the descendants of her race, she wore, doubt-
less, a white loose garment, embroidered in the
square neck and sleeves with red ; her black hair was
braided in two long tresses interwoven with pearls
and coral. Her slightly copper-colored tint was
clear enough for a soft play of rose in her cheeks ;
her large soft eyes beamed, and her white teeth
flashed as she smiled ; while, for the most part,
her oval face remained grave, almost sad, in its
expression. She was slight, graceful, with small
hands and feet.
From this time forward Malintzi was always at
the side of the conqueror, aiding him not only as
interpreter, but with her surprising vigilance, and
perception of the tendency of events due to the
knowledge of the natives. She was always full of
courage, and had the endurance of a man, sharing
all the sufferings of the little army with patience
and even gayety. In fact, she had never been so
happy before, and the hardships of the camp were
nothing compared with the trials of her earlier life. -
She witnessed the slaughter of her countrymen with
grief, and interceded always in favor of the con-
quered ; but no thought of patriotism troubled her
mind as she deliberately surrendered the land to the
hands of its enemies.
Later. Malintzi lived to contemplate the ruin she
ISO
'J HE STORY OF MEXICO.
had helped to make, in a time when she had outlived
the brief happiness of her sojourn with the Conquis-
tadores. But we will leave her now, full of joy,
affection, courage, the proudest, most useful of
petted interpreters, in order not to anticipate the
current of the story.
XV.
TLAXCALLA.
As we have seen, the Httle province of Tlaxcalla
was situated in an isolated position among the moun-
tains, holding itself independent, and always hostile
to the Confederates of the Valley, as the Mexicans
and their allies are now called. The Conquistadores
describe it as a formidable state, bearing the name
of a republic, of ancient origin and advanced civili-
zation. They speak of its capital as a splendid city,
divided into four quarters, each governed by an
hereditary chieftain, who exercised his authority
over a number of dependent villages assigned to
him. They give to the little republic, which con-
tained scarcely fifty square miles, the dignity of a
confederacy of four separate states with one common
head.
In this constant exaggeration we must remember
that Cortes was in the hands of the interpreters, one
of them Malintzi, who may have used the word for
republic when she meant tribe, and splendid city
instead of pueblo. We may allow ourselves to think
that.
The Tlaxcallans were an orderly, excellent peo-
ple ; to gain the friendship of such a tribe was highly
important to the Spanish conqueror. To their
151
152 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
loyalty and good faith he applied the arts of his
eloquence and bravery, and awaited at a distance
the results of an embassy which he sent forward.
There was a stormy discussion in the councils of
Tlaxcalla, between the chiefs who welcomed allies
against their great enemy, Montezuma, and those
who feared the intervention of unknown warriors,
come from afar, of whose intentions the}' had no
means of judging. Those which prevailed were for
a third course, by which a trap was laid for the Span-
iards without implicating at first the Tlaxcallans.
Cortes, impatient of delay, pressed forward with-
out waiting for his answer, and found himself, Sep-
tember 2, 1 5 19, before an army of Otomis, a tribe
friendly to the Tlaxcallans, whom they had persuaded
to attack the strangers, without mixing in the fight
themselves. Cortes easily repulsed this savage band,
and without pressing his advantage, again attempted
negotiations with the republic ; but by this time a
haughty message was returned to him that " the
strangers which the sea had thrown up could come
if they chose to the great city, to become sacrifices
to the gods and served up at a sacred festival."
Cortes, of course, Avas firm, and on the 5th of Sep-
tember, 1 5 19, took place the first real struggle
between the army of the old world, which in this
case appeared the new one, and the brave descend-
ants of an ancient race.
The Tlaxcallans, led by the young and brave Gen-
eral Xicotencatl, fought bravely, but the result was
in favor of the little band of Spaniards, after a hot
contest of but four hours. The Tlaxcallans returned
TLAXCALLA. 153
to their city, and consulted their oracle. The head
priest pronounced that their enemies were children
of the sun, and invincible during the day, while their
father was shining in the sky, but that by night they
would lose their strength and be like other mortals.
The next night, encouraged by this divine decree,
an attack was made, but Cortes was on his guard. The
enemy, who, relying on their priests, had imagined
they were marching to certain victor}', took flight,
in abject terror.
After this, the Tlaxcallans made no further re-
sistance. Peace was solemnly concluded, and the
republic recognized as a vassal to the crown of Cas-
tile, pledging itself to sustain Cortes in all his ex-
peditions. Mass was celebrated, and the conclusion
of the treaty was an occasion of great joy. This
alliance was absolutely important to Cortes. The
Tlaxcallans remained to the end faithful to it ; later
on, without their support, and their chief city to fall
back upon, the conqueror must have inevitably
failed in his enterprise.
The Tlaxcallans consented to accept the God of
the Christians, but were unwilling to give up their
old protecting divinities for fear of appearing un-
grateful to them. Cortes insisted upon the abolition
of human sacrifices, and himself made a chapel in the
palace assigned to him and erected in it the cross.
The first mass celebrated there attracted immense
crowds, and many natives, especially young girls of
good birth, were voluntarily baptized.
The Conquistadores entered Tlaxcalla the 22d of
September, receiving demonstrations of the greatest
154 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
friendship. Here Cortes rested awhile, but only in
order to cement his good relations, and to obtain in-
formation how best to proceed. He himself is said
to have been so ill from fever that he could hardly
keep his seat in the saddle, but this man of iron
habitually disregarded the troubles of the flesh.
His next step was to Cholula, where he was re-
ceived with apparent cordiality ; but Malintzi's vigi-
lance discovered a plot for the destruction of the
Spanish army. Cortes resolved to punish this treach-
ery by an example. He collected all the principal
Cholultecas in a large court, accused them of perfidy,
and, without listening to explanations, put them to
general slaughter, so that " in two hours," according
to the letter of Cortes describing the affair, " per-
ished more than three thousand natives." The body
of the Tlaxcallans who had joined themselves to this
expedition, gathered rich booty from it, and returned
home well content with the prowess of their new
ally.
Cortes then issued a general pardon. Calm re-
turned to the streets of Cholula, and the people of
the surrounding villages poured in to do honor to
the terrible conqueror. Emissaries from Mexico,
who witnessed this bloody triumph, were not slow to
describe it to their sovereign, who became more and
more frightened and despairing.
Cortes stayed two weeks in Cholula, before setting
out again for Mexico. It was thus early that he re-
ceived overtures of alliance from Ixtlilxochitl, king
of a portion of Texcuco, who was in constant war-
fare with his brother Cacamatzin. These young men,
TLAXCALLA. 155
it will be remembered, were nephews of Montezuma,
who, in the quarrel between them had defended the
cause of Cacamatzin, so that the neglected brother
detested him. Like all the rest of Montezuma's
kindred who played into the hands of his enemy,
Ixtlilxochitl had later reason to regret his hasty
recognitition of the stranger, who came to seize and
adopt f^jr his own every thing, regardless of small
quarrels and petty animosities. This early alliance
with one of the neighboring chiefs was of great ad-
vantage to Cortes though he scarcely understood
then its importance.
Ixtlilxochitl sent ambassadors as far as TIaxcalla
to invite Cortes to pass through his territory on his
way to Mexico. Cacamatzin, on the other hand, in-
dignant at the disregard shown to the wishes of his
royal uncle by the Europeans, hastened to Texcuco,
resolved to collect an army and declare war against
them, but Montezuma, with a faithlessness not to be
excused by his terror, himself set an ambuscade for
his nephew, and handed him over to Cortes, who had
him loaded with chains and imprisoned.
Through the influence of Montezuma, Cortes al-
lowed a third son of the late King Nezahualpilli to
occupy his throne. This was Cuicuicatzin, twelfth
king at Texcuco. He was loyal to the Spaniards.
It would seem that he stayed by them even through
the terrors of the noche triste ; and that returning
to Mexico after that sad night, being considered,
with some reason, to be a spy of the Spaniards,- he
was killed by the order of the successor of Monte-
zuma.
156 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Followed by a horde of Cholulans and Tlaxcallans,
Cortes set out on his difficult journey across the pla-
teau, impeded by tempests and sandstorms. The
view they got of the fair valley of Mexico made
them forget all their fatigues. At their feet were
noble forests ; farther on they saw cultivated fields,
and in the centre of an immense fertile basin the
lakes, bordered with cities and villages ; in the middle
of the panorama was the city, Mexico the Proud,
resting upon its waters, and crowned with towers and
pyramidal temples. Above the capital rose, on the hill
Chapultepec, the favorite resort of the Mexican mon-
arch, surrounded by its great cypresses. Farther ofT
was seen Texcuco, not less fair than Tenochtitlan,
and, round about all, the girdle of irregular moun-
tains which enclose and form this incomparable
picture.
Cortes was seized with enthusiasm at the sight.
This was his promised land. Boldly he pressed on-
ward to success, in spite of his feeble means.
At Ayotzinco, Cacama came forth to meet the
strangers, King of Texcuco, loyal to Montezuma, a
splendid young man of twenty-five, richly dressed.
He brought presents for the invaders, but urged them
even then to turn back. Cortes replied with cour-
tesy hut firmness that nothing would deter him from
entering Mexico. " In that case," replied Cacama,
" I will return to the court " ; and without any thing
which could be considered an invitation, he withdrew
with his suite.
On the 8th of November the Spaniards found
themselves on the great avenue leading to the capi-
TLAXCALLA. 1 5/
tal. Here Montezuma came to meet thcni with the
'greatest splendor, of costume and retinue. Magnifi-
cent carpets were spread on the ground, the monarch
descended from his palanquin with a bouquet in his
hand, supported on either side by his brother and
nephew. Cortes approached him with respect and
put about his neck a chain of gold ornamented with
paltry colored beads.
Montezuma, calm and dignified at this critical mo.
ment, welcomed Fernando to his capital, where the
gods had long announced his coming. Then he en-
tered his palanquin again, leaving the two princes to
escort the Spaniards to the palace he destined to re-
ceive them.
The adventurers followed with their eyes the royal
cortege as it vanished along a wide street which they
describe as lined with sumptuous palaces. No one
was looking, on in the streets, and the silence of
death reigned in the city. By royal command the
whole population abstained from coming out to wel-
come these audacious intruders.
Cortes understood the lesson, and it is said that
he then and there made a vow, that if he should
escape safely from this enterprise he would erect
a church upon that very spot.
He built in fact later the hospice and church of
Jesu-Nazareno — in compliance with this vow.
XVI.
LA NOCHP: TRISTE.
The ancient palace of Axayacatl was prepared to
receive the strangers, within whose walls were ample
accommodations for the leaders of the little host.
Cortes proceeded at once to explore the capital, its
paved causeways and lagoons. He devoted himself
to gaining the friendship of Montezuma, and strove
':o incline him to embrace the Catholic religion and
become a subject of the king of Spain. The bewil-
dered king listened to these persuasions, transmitted
to him through the lips of Malintzi-Marina, with
amazement and dread. He scarcely understood
the import of the words, and the doctrine of the
Cross, thus suddenly presented to him, was only a
puzzle. Cortes had but little patience with his pu-
pil. His own situation was full of peril, in the midst
of a large population who showed no cordiality tow-
ards the Spaniards. He resolved upon the bold
measure of seizing the person of Montezuma.
Having found a pretext for a visit, Cortes waited
on the monarch in his palace. An audience was
readily granted. He was graciously received by
Montezuma, who entered into light conversation
through the interpreters, and gave little presents
158
LA NOCHE TRISTE. 1 59
to the Spanish general and his attendants. He
readily listened to the complaints brought by Cor-
tes against certain caciques who had killed some
Spaniards. Cortes then coolly suggested that it
would be better for Montezuma to transfer his resi-
dence to the palace occupied by the Spaniards, as
a sign to his people of his perfect confidence, as well
as a proof to the king and master of Cortes that he
was loyal to the strangers.
Montezuma listened to this proposal with looks of
profound amazement. He became pale under his
dark skin, but in a moment his face flushed with
resentment ; and he utterly declined the proposal.
The visit was prolonged in discussion and persua-
sion, always gentle on the part of Cortes, but one of
his companions, Velasquez de Leon, to cut short the
matter, 'proposed seizing the king, with such fierce
note and gesture, that Montezuma, alarmed, asked
Marina what had been said. She strove to explain
the exclamation in a gentle fashion, and besought
him so tenderly to yield, that the poor king finally
consented to quit his own palace and allowed him-
self to be led away. With their sovereign thus in his
power, Cortes, with his wonderful tact and resource,
might have succeeded in his plan of peaceably subju-
gating the Mexicans, but unfortunately at that time
he had to leave the capital for Vera Cruz, where Nar-
vaez, an emissary from the governor of Cuba, had
just landed, with directions to dispossess Cortes of
his command. The affair took only a little while,
for Cortes surprised the new-comer in his own quar-
ters at Cempoallan, routed him entirely, and carried
l6o THE STORY OF MEXICO,
off to join his own troops the forces sent against
him from Cuba, a very timely addition, especially
the horses, of which he was greatly in need.
This despatched, he returned in all haste to Mex-
ico, which he had left in the hands of Don Pedro de
Alvarado, whose unflinching bravery was spoiled by
his cruel and sanguinary temper. Entirely lacking
the good judgment of Cortes, he had in his absence
involved the Spaniards in ruin. The month of May
had arrived, in which the Mexicans were accustomed
to hold a great festival in honor of Huitzilopochtli.
By this time, the supremacy of the Spaniards had
become so established, through the weakness of
Montezuma that they asked the permission of Alva-
rado to have it. He consented, but in the middle of
the night, when they were all assembled in the tem-
ple, unarmed and carelessly engaged in dancing and
the festive ceremonies of the occasion, Alvarado en-
tered with fifty Spaniards and in wholesale destruc-
tion killed them all. The population arose, and
when Cortes came back he found Alvarado and the
army besieged in their quarters and at the point of
being overcome by the enraged populace.
Cortes, in dismay, disgusted with the folly of his
lieutenant, knew not how to escape from its result.
For several days the Mexicans attacked the Spaniards
in their head-quarters. Cort6s made several sallies
and engaged in terrible combats with compact masses
of the natives, but always had to retreat to his quar-
ters, with losses that daily diminished his small army.
At last he persuaded Montezuma to ascend to the
azotea, a flat roof of the palace, in order there to ad-
LA NO CUE TRISTE, l6l
dress his subjects and exhort them to suspend the
attack. With repugnance the humbled monarch
yielded, and emerged on the parapet. Opposite to
him, he could easily discern animating the crowd who
surged below, Cuitlahuatzin, his own brother, ac-
cording to custom the general in chief, and probable
successor to the throne.
Montezuma was clothed in his imperial robes ; his
mantle of white and blue flowed over his shoulders,
held together by a rich clasp of green stone. Emeralds
set in gold profusely ornamented his dress. The
royal diadem was on his brow, and golden sandals on
his feet. He was preceded by the golden wand of
office, and surrounded by a few Aztec nobles. His
presence was instantly recognized by the people, and
a sudden change came over the scene. A death-like
stillness pervaded the whole assembly, so that the
voice of the monarch was distinctly heard. He ad-
dressed the people mildly, but when they found that
he was urging mercy toward the stranger, the calm
was turned to fury, the populace redoubled its cries
and threats, and arrows and stones were aimed even
at the Emperor, one of which wounded him fatally
in the head.
The unhappy prince was borne to his apartment
below. He had tasted the bitter cup of degradation.
It may have been the simple effect of the wound, or , ,
his despair, which determined him to tear ofT the I y
bandages, or, as the Aztecs think, a Spanish dagger
which finally despatched him. Not many days after
this supreme insult by his people, he died on the
30tli of June, 1520.
1 62 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Due respect was shown to his memory ; his body
was committed to the charge of his subjects, and
borne by nobles, it is said, to Chapultepec, to be laid
among the tombs of his ancestors, under the sad
ahnchiictes. At least, this is the received account.
A Mexican story says that on the night of the de-
parture of the Spaniards the corpse of the monarch
was dashed to pieces, by his enraged people, upon a
tortoise of stone which stood in a corner of the pal-
ace of Axayacatl. And here, say the indios, wan-
ders the melancholy spirit of Montezuma, under the
gloomy cypress, restless and unable to sleep the
sleep of death, lamenting the lost Tenochtitlan and
the happy days of the Aztecs. Here comes also,
Malintzi, whom, when she meets him, the sad shade
accosts : " Why, Malintzi, didst thou betray me to
the stranger, why didst thou plead with me for his
cause ?"
And the other sighs and wrings lier hands and
asks herself the same vain question.
There are other shadows, too, that frequent the
moss-hung alleys of Chapultepec, but these are creat-
ures of a later day and unheeded by the sorrowful
phantoms of the victims of the Conquest.
As this is the story of the Mexicans, and not of
the Conquest only, and as moreover that period of
Mexican history is fully elsewhere described, we
must pass slightly over the continued adventures of
Cortes.
When the adventurer saw that the presence of the
monarch had produced no good effect upon his sub-
jects, he withdrew to head-quarters, and after a con-
LA NOCHE TRISTE, I63
sultation with his captains, resolved to abandon the
city and to cut a passage for himself and his army,
through the enraged assemblage of his enemies.
This difificult and dangerous task was effected on
the night of July i, 1520.
It was impossible to conceal so great a movement
from the Mexicans. As soon as they became aware
of it, they attacked the little army on its march, de-
stroyed bridges before them, while suddenly the
lagoons were covered with canoas from which show-
ered arrows upon the Spaniards. Many soldiers were
killed or drowned. They set out loaded with booty
which they had seized in their palace, and their treas-
ures impeded their progress, so that every Spaniard
had to choose between abandoning these precious
objects or saving his life. Quantities of gold and
precious things according to the report, were thrown
into the canals.
Cortes, himself under a thousand dangers, suc-
ceeded in effecting his escape from the city to a spot
where, under a large tree, he threw himself down to
rest, and there reviewed the whole extent of his mis-
fortune, recognized the loss of his most faithful and
bravest companions, and faced the maimed condition
of the last of his army. Tears came to the eyes of
the bold commander, and for a moment all his vigor
and energy abandoned him.
Some few of his companions, however, were left to
him. Alvarado,'on whom rests the real blame in this
disaster, had escaped by a miraculous leap across a
breach in the causeway which it was necessary to
pass. Pressing his long lance firmly on the bottom
164 T}iE STORY OF MEXICO.
of the shallow lake, strewed with wrecks of every
sort, he sprang across the chasm to the amazement
of the beholders. Several others were there, and
above all, Marina was safe in the hands of some
Tlaxcallans who had faithfully protected her.
This fearful escape is called universally the Noche
triste. The tree under which Cortes sat and wept is
a venerable cypress still alive. It has been in per-
fect health until a few years ago, when a fire was
lighted underneath it, by some foolish pic-nic party,
which burned into its huge trunk. Since then an
iron railing has been put up to protect it. The pic-
turesque old Church of San Esteban stands near it.
It is at Popotla, a suburb of the modern city easily
attained by tram-cars, through crowded modern
streets, where nothing is to be recognized of the
calzadas of the Aztecs. The line of houses is broken
in one place on the way to Popotla by a space shut
in with a low wall and iron grating. Here, says tra-
dition, is the very point in the causeway where
Alvarado leaped the breach. As there is no indica-
tion nor tradition of the actual width of the chasm,
our wonder is without any limit.
Cortes did not allow himself time to repose or
despair. As the dawn broke he mounted his horse,
and gathering together such stragglers as he could
find, he led them out into the country to the Cerro
of Otoncalpolco, now the Sanctuary de los Remcdios.
Here, weary and discouraged as he was, he attacked
with his little band the natives who were defending
the teocalli there was there, and drove them out. In
this shelter he took care of his wounds and those of
LA NOCHE TRISTE. 165
his men, and united the dispersed remnants of his
army.
This sanctuary is now the abode of an image of
the Holy Virgin, of which the legend is that it was
brought to Mexico by one of the soldiers of Cortes,
and that during the first stay of the Spaniards in
Tenochtitlan it was permitted to be set up in a shrine
of the great teocalli among the Aztec gods. It was
carried thence on the fatal NocJie tristc, by its pos-
sessor, when he sought shelter in this very temple
with the rest of the shattered Spanish army. And
there he left it hidden under a maguey, being too
sorely wounded to carry it farther, where it was
found and made an object of veneration.
The accounts of losses in this conflict are varying.
According to our present authority, the Spaniards
lost four hundred and fifty men, twenty-six horses,
and about four thousand allied Indians. On the
Mexican losses it is impossible to speculate, but the
artillery and firearms of their enemies must have
made frightful havoc in the crowds of people who
swarmed through the streets during the nis^ht.
XVII.
CONQUEST.
The Mexicans drew a long breath after the de-
parture of the enemy. It is true their emperor was
ignominiously slain, covered with the contempt and
scorn of his own subjects. His two sons, whom Cortes
carried with him as prisoners, perished in the flight.
The streets ran with blood and were strewn with
corpses. The beautiful city was defaced, the cause-
ways shattered, the bridges destroyed, and many of
the houses burnt down. But it was freed from the
odius presence of the stranger, who they imagined
would never return. In fact the Aztecs conceived
him and his army to be absolutely annililated. They
set about restoring their tumbled down gods to their
places, and contemplated appeasing Huitzilopochtli
for the indignity with which he had been treated,
by a new course of sacrifices.
Cuitlahuatzin, brother of Montezuma, was elected
emperor. He had fought valiantl}' in the struggle,
and shown heroic courage in driving Cortes from the
capital, which it was his determination to enforce.
He began the slow task of gathering the army to-
gether, and bringing order out of confusion, but a
few days only after the great battle, he was attacked
1 66
CONQUEST. 167
by small-pox. This disease, never before known
among the Aztecs, was one of the misfortunes be-
queathed to them by the Spaniards. A negro, who
had just come up with Cortes, on his return from
Vera Cruz, one of his recruits belonging to Nar-
vaez, had the malady, and died of it, spreading con-
tagion in the capital.
Cuahtemoc succeeded, the thirteenth and last
king. He was of a different stock, the sons of Axa-
yacatl all being destroyed, of the family of the
friendly kings of the little neighboring state of
Tlaltelolco. He embraced with enthusiasm the
cause of his country, and attacked vigorously the
work of restoration. He was but little more than
twenty years old.
The tranquillity of the capital was but brief. In
less than a week rumors came that the terrible white
warrior was not killed, but alive, strong and deter-
mined as ever. Many of the Aztecs conceived him
to be immortal, and it is scarcely to be wondered at.
Cortes had gathered together the little remnant of
his army, who crept along a winding route north of
the city absolutely ignorant of their way, and what
they might encounter. When light came, so that
they were observed, stones and arrows w^ere aimed
at them by chance natives from above. For several
days and nights they slowly advanced, living on the
few ears of maize they found ; for all provision was
carried off from the deserted villages they passed
through by the inhabitants as soon as they saw them
approach. Cortes was always brave, cheerful, and
even encouraging in these dark days. In this toil-
1 68 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
some march seven days were passed, and then they
came upon the strange pyramid of the sun and
moon, at San Juan Teotihuacan, supposed to be the
work of the earhest dwellers upon Anahuac, older
than the Toltecs. These they make no mention of
in their narrative, and we may well suppose they
scarcely noticed them, for a sight more impressive
and awe-inspiring soon after met their eyes, as they
turned the crest of a ridge they had been cHmbing,
— a full-fledged army stretched out before them,
filling up the valley of Otumba, and giving it the
appearance of being covered with snow, for the
warriors were dressed in white cotton mail.
Cuitlahua had lost no time. As soon as he heard
of the survival of the invader's army, he wasted not
a moment. No puerile fear, no fatalistic paralysis
restrained his understanding. Ably seconded by
the warriors of the army, now roused to the import-
ance of the occasion, he gathered a noble army.
Every chief took the field with his whole force, and
in a wonderfully short space of time a large army
was collected and marched against the fugitives,
having learned their course among the mountains.
The Spaniards were but a handful, and the few
Tlaxcallans who were with them increased the force
but little. Gathering themselves together, they
dashed directly into the midst of the Aztec army, on
their horses, with the intention of cutting themselves
a path through the ranks. Flight, and not conquest,
was their only thought. They were soon surround-
ed, but defended themselves desperatel)'. Several
hours had passed, when the chief of the army was
I/O THE STJRY OF MEXICO.
seen advancing on a litter, richly dressed, with
plumes upon his head, a mantle of feather-work, and
the banner of Tenochtitlan floating from his shoul-
ders. Around him, to protect his sacred person, were
a body of young warriors, richly dressed. It was a
shining mark, and Cortes sprang towards it on his
charger. Coming down upon the prince, and over-
turning his bearers, he struck him through with his
lance and threw him to the ground. One of his
men sprang from the saddle, seized the banner, and
gave it to Cortes quick as a flash. It was all over
in a moment. A panic ensued. The whole Mexi-
can army fled in confusion, convinced that they
fought against odds too great, human skill against
the power of the immortals.
The Spaniards followed up the flying army, killing
right and left, and then returned to the battle-field
to gather up booty from the rich costumes of the
dead and wounded left upon the field. This was
the famous battle of Otumba, one of the most extra-
ordinary in history, fought on the 8th of July, 1520.
This encounter at Otumba is regarded by Baudelier
as grossly exaggerated. He reduces the number of
the attacking army to a much smaller proportion,
but does credit to the bravery of Cortes and his men.
He considers the episode, the fall of the standard-
bearer deciding the fight, as completely in accord-
ance with Indian modes of warfare.
Whatever remained to tell the melancholy tale
came back to the capital. The inhabitants were
filled with their old terror, but Cuahtemoc retained
his courage, and only made more vigorous exertions
CONQUEST. 171
than before, seeing that his work was not only to
restore the capital, but to prepare the country for
another conflict. He collected great stores of corn
in the warehouses, fortified all the places he consid-
ered exposed to attack, shattered the calzadas, or
causeways, and got ready a large fleet of canoas.
He worked with all diligence, for he was kept well
informed of the proceedings of the enemy, and knew
that Cortes had arrived safe within the boundaries
of Tlaxcalla. And, indeed, before the end of the
year the renewed attack began.
The distance from Otumba to Tlaxcalla was short,
and the Spaniards were not further interrupted. The
returned Tlaxcallans were received at home with
great honors, and in spite of the disasters of the
Spaniards, they remained faithful to the stranger.
Cortes reposed among them, recovering from his
own wounds, and giving his companions time to
rest and refresh themselves. Meanwhile, he was
forming new projects and drawing closer the bond
of friendship with his hosts. " The wise old Maxix-
catzin, his first friend and constant supporter, died
at that time, but the other Tlaxcallans continued
their favor.
By December, only six months from his return to
Tlaxcalla, Cortes had succeeded in making a new
army of respectable proportion. Ixtlilxochitl now
ruled undisturbed over the whole of Texcuco, after
the death of his brothers, who had resisted the cause
of the invaders. He was the fourteenth and last
monarch of his country, of which he was the greatest
enemy, fatal to it as well as to his own race and
1^2 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
family. From the beginning a prudent ally of Cor-
L^s, after the retreat of the Spanish army to Texcuco,
he sent him renewed offers of aid, and raised a large
troop of soldiers for the invading army. Without
them and other indigenous bands Cortes would have
been badly off. Thus increased, his new army reached
the reputed number of two hundred thousand men.
With these he came to Texcuco, by two days' march,
halting at a little village at the base of Iztaccihuatl,
the companion volcano of Popocatepetl, which,
stretched like a corpse in its shroud of everlasting
snow, bears the name of the White Woman. The
Spanish army entered Texcuco on the last day of
the year, December 31, 1520, and here was con-
ducted to the palace of Nezahualpilli, a building
spacious enough to accommodate all the Spaniards.
The town, as on his first entrance 'at Tenochtitlan,
was deserted, and Cortes learned that whole families
were leaving in boats and by the mountain paths.
A weaker heart might have sunk at the repetition
of such intimations of dislike, but the Spanish con-
queror's heart was inflexible. Ixtlilxochitl received
him with all cordiality, and presented to him the body
of fifty thousand men he had raised, a substantial
gift, which was in itself encouraging.
It was a great advantage to Cortes to have Tex-
cuco for his head-quarters. He had caused to be
made in Tlaxcalla thirteen brigantines for crossing the
lake. These were put together after his arrival and
launched upon the water, through a little stream
which had to be enlarged by the work of thousands
of Indians, which led from the gardens of Nezahual-
CONQUEST. 173
coyotl to the lake. These brigantines, constructed
in part of the timbers of his own ships which he had
left scuttled at Vera Cruz, supplemented by quanti-
ties of native canoas, made a respectable fleet. Dur-
ing these preparations Cortes was bringing the whole
neighborhood into his control, either by conquest or
negotiation. As we have seen, the Mexicans were
by no means beloved by the smaller powers. It was
not until the latter part of May, 1521, that the reg-
ular siege of the city of Mexico began. The first
division of the army was given to the formidable
Pedro de Alvarado, called by the Mexicans Tona-
tiah, which means the sun, or all powerful. The sec-
ond division was assigned to Christobal de Olid, and
the third to Gonzalo de Sandoval. These three were
all his trusty companions, who had shown them-
selves from the first as daring, as enduring, as in-
vincible as himself. Only in the characteristics of
superior forethought, judgment, and tact did Cortes
exceed them. To himself he reserved the conduct
of the brigantines upon the lake.
The whole campaign against Mexico lasted eight
months, while the siege proper was maintained for
eighty days. The Spaniards attacked time and
again with their artillery, and slew thousands of
Mexicans. They penetrated even to the heart of the
capital but were driven back. Cortes himself, and all
his captains, ran several times great risk of being slain
or taken prisoners. The native allies could not be,
or were not, restrained from plundering and burning
houses and killing men, women, and children.
Upon the lake the brigantines besides assisting
174 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the land attack, mastered and sank the canoes of the
enemy in great numbers. The temples were burned ;
the new images of the gods, put in place since the
first sack of the teocalli, were thrown down and hus-
tled into the lake ; whole streets were demolished,
and with their ruins the canals were filled up.
Cortes made various propositions of peace to
Cuahtemoc, but the brave young monarch, in spite
of the hunger which reigned in the besieged city, the
multitude of corpses heaped in the streets, although
he saw before him the inevitable ruin of his kingdom,
was unwilling to surrender until the supreme mo-
ment came when further resistance was impossible.
On the 13th of August, 1521, Cuahtemoc was con-
cealed in a piragua, or boat, leaving the attack, in
order to command elsewhere. His presence there
was suspected and the boat followed. Just as the
pursuers were aiming their cross-bows, a young war-
rior, fully armed, rose and said, " I am Cuahtemoc,
lead me to your chief." On landing, he was escorted
to the presence of Cortes, who was stationed on an
asotca where he could survey the combat. Marina
was by his side as interpreter. Cuahtemoc ap-
proached with a calm bearing and firm step, a noble,
well-proportioned youth, it is said, with a complexion
fair for one of his race. Without waiting to be ad-
dressed he said : " I have done my best to defend
my people. Deal with me as you will," and touch-
ing the dagger in Cortes' belt, he added, " Despatch
me at once, I beseech you."
The wife of the captive king was now sent for ;
she was one of the daughters of Montezuma, and of
CONQUEST 175
wonderful beauty it is said. The captive pair were
treated with kindness, rest and refreshment offered to
them.
It was the hour of vespers when the Aztec mon-
arch surrendered. This was the end of the contest.
During that night a tremendous tempest burst on
the fallen city of Tenochtitlan. Thunder and light-
ning shook the shattered teocallis and levelled them
to the ground. The elements finished what the Con-
quistadores had begun, — the ancient city of the Az-
tecs was in ruins.
After the surrender of Tenochtitlan, Cortes with-
drew to Coyoacan, still a picturesque old town in the
suburbs of the modern city. There he remained
while the capital was rebuilt. It is said that he gave
a banquet to his captains in honor of the victory
they had achieved, an occasion made genial by some
good wine which opportunely arrived just then at
Vera Cruz. The house he occupied with Marina, is
still to be seen on the northern side of the plaza of
the little town. Over the doorway are carved the
arms of the conqueror, much obscured by repeated
coats of whitewash. In the church-yard is a stone
cross set up on a little mound, said to have been
placed there by Cortes himself. His first labor was
to cleanse the city and dispose of the dead, then to
clear away the ruins in order to erect new buildings.
The Spaniards were greatly disappointed not to find
vast treasures belonging to the Aztec crown, which
they were convinced were somewhere concealed. To
his everlasting dishonor Cortes allowed Cuahtemoc
to be tortured by putting his feet in boiling oil, in
17^ TlfE STORY OF MEXICO.
order that he might reveal where such treasure was
to be found. The king of Tlacopan was tortured
also for the same object, but with no result. Roth
victims were of opinion that the precious objects so
coveted by the Spaniards, if they existed at all, must
have been thrown into the lake, but the Spaniards
explored in vain the bottom of the shallow expanse
and found nothing. If such treasures were there,
there they still remain.
The country was put under military rule, although
the Mexican chiefs were allowed to retain their titles
and nominal authority. Cortes assumed the titles
of Governor, Captain General, and Chief-Justice, in
all of which he was later confirmed by the King of
Spain. He had next to make sure of the subjuga-
tion of the other tribes of Anahuac. He organized
expeditions and embassies to all the peoples there-
abouts, and among others to Michoacan, where, as
we have seen, was a kingdom of strength and power,
which had never surrendered to the Aztecs. Tan-
gaxoan H., when he heard of the conquest of Mex-
ico, awaited his own turn with terror. Cortes at first
sent a peaceful ambassador, led by a soldier named
Montano, who returned after some dangers with a
detailed account of the wonders of Calzonzi — the
name given this monarch by the Spaniards. Shortly
afterwards Christobal de Olid was sent out with sev-
enty horses and two hundred foot soldiers; this force
was sufificient to subjugate the monarch and make
him swear allegiance to the King of Spain. After-
wards Calzonzi came to Mexico on a visit to
Cortds ; he beheld with amazement the ruins of the
CONQUEST. 177
great cit)' which he had never seen in the days of its
splendor. The destruction of his hereditary rival
gave him much to reflect upon, and hastened his
wilhngness to accept the religion of the Conquista-
dores. In his ancient capital of Tzintzuntzan there is
a pathetic picture, crude and of course not ancient,
which depicts the Tarascan king accepting the cross.
During the rule of Cortes, Tangaxoan lived peace-
fully, enjoying the nominal control of his vast king-
dom. In the course of three years, Cortes greatly
extended the dominion of Castile in New Spain, as
it was then called ; for all his conquests were of
course referred to his sovereign, Charles V. of Spain,
to whom from time to time he sent presents of gold,
specimens of the wealth of the new possessions. His
power extended as far as Honduras, where Christobal
de Olid was put in power. At a safe distance from
his chief. Olid conceived the foolish idea of asserting
his personal control, and made himself king of the
colony. Olid lost his life in this attempt ; and Cortes
determined to go himself to Honduras. It was on
this expedition that, without knowing it, he passed
close to the ruins of the serpent city, Nachan, now
Palenque. But, as we have seen, Cortes was more in
the way of making ruins on his own account, than of
regarding the mighty ones wrought by time; and
had he known of the existence of the city, it is doubt-
ful whether he would have stopped to cut away the
massive growth in which it was concealed. In Izan-
capac, a Tabascan town, Cortes suddenly ordered the
death of the three royal captives of Anahuac, whom
he had brought thus far with him, perhaps for this
178 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
purpose. On the charge of a conspiracy to restore
the Aztec rule, they were hung upon a ceyba tree, —
Cuahtemoc, and the kings of Tacuba and Texcuco, —
all denying any thought of conspiracy.
This was the sad end of the life of Cuahtemoc, the
last of the Aztec kings. The rest of the native chiefs
died off gradually, so that in a few years, all the old
governments of the country were obliterated. Few
of the other states discovered by the Spaniards made
resistance, and none of them any thing like that of
the Mexican. Remains of various uncivilized tribes
retreated to the sierras or the deserts of the north,
where they continued for generations in perpetual
war with the white race.
During the remainder of his life, Cortes made sev-
eral voyages to Spain to defend his interests and
arrange his affairs. In Mexico he employed the
greater part of his time and fortune in the discovery
of new lands in the neighborhood of Jalisco and the
western coast. Finally, considering himself neglected
and overlooked, he returned to Spain to make one
more attempt at recognition at court. He was but
coldly received by his sovereign. His time had gone
by. The wonders of Peru had eclipsed the glory of
the Mexican Conquest. He was taken ill, perhaps
as much of disappointment as disease, and withdrew
to Seville ; afterwards to a small town in that neigh-
borhood, Castilleja de la Cuesta, where he died on
the 2d of December, 1547. His body was carried
thence in great state and buried in the chapel of
the Dukes of Medina Sidonia. But Cort<^s had
ordered in his will that his bones should be brouirht
CONQUEST.
'79
in ten years time from his death to Mexico, and this
wish was fulfilled, and the remains were interred at
Texcuco. On the 2d of July, 1794, the bones of the
great Conquistador were placed in a marble sepulchre
which had been prepared for them in the church of
Jesu-Nazareno, which he had founded himself.
Even then they did not rest, for in the first years of
the revolution, so great was the popular hatred of
everything Spanish, safety required that they should
be hidden ; they were secretly removed, by the or-
ders of the heirs of Cortes, and by last advices, they
are now at rest in Italy, in the vaults of the Dukes
of Monteleone, his descendants.
XVIII.
doNa marina.
During the two years occupied, with varying
fortunes, in the conquest of Mexico, Cortes was
always accompanied by Malintzi, who was indeed
indispensable to him as interpreter. Her tent was
always near that of the commander. His lieutenants
treated her with consideration and respect, always
giving her the title of Dofla.
Through his reverses, and on the terrible NocJie
iriste, it is said, that Malintzi never lost her courage.
She was put in charge of some brave Tlaxcallans, by
Cortes, who could not have her with him at the
head of the fray, and their devotion brought her
through the wild confusion of flight.
The long struggle over, Cortes, as we have seen,
went to live at Coyoacan. Dona Marina was with
him.
Now she is happy. Her hero rules triumphant
over millions of men. She lives in a palace, with
her guards, her maids of honor, her pages, and es-
quires. The long, sad days of her youth of slavery
are at an end, she has resumed her rank. She has a
son, baptized under the name of Martin Cort(5s,
whom she tenderly loves, and with this child and
1 80
DO^A MARINA. l8l
his father, now at peace with all the vast empire
he has conquered for his sovereign, she passes a
tranquil, happy life.
Suddenly, to break in upon this dream, comes the
news that Dofla Catalina Juarez Cortes has landed
at Vera Cruz, and is approaching the capital.
Very likely Cortes had forgotten to mention his
marriage to Marina. Perhaps he had forgotten it
himself. But the reader will remember Doila Cata-
lina, the cause of the jealousy of Velasquez in the
early days of Fernando's career. It is said that his
first ardor for her cooled off after a time, and that
the marriage would never have taken place but for
the persistence of the Dona. It was not happy, and
the adventurer sailed away, without regret for the
cheerless home he left behind in Cuba.
Her name was never mentioned during the long
period which passed between the landing of the
Spaniards and their successful establishment in
Mexico. But the deeds of Fernando Cortes were
known to all the world, and especially sounded
about in the island whence he set out. Dona Cata-
lina, with every right on her side, set out to join her
recusant spouse, encouraged by Diego Velasquez,
who saw with no pleasure the continued triumphs of
Cortes.
Bernal Diaz says that Cortes hated his wife, but he
dared not bring down upon himself the wrath of the
Church by ignoring her, and Dona Catalina was re-
ceived on her arrival with all the honors due to the
wife of the great conqueror. She made a splendid
entrance into the capital, and at once stepped into
1 82 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the position of head of his household, and succeeded
to the homage of maids of honor, pages, and es-
quires.
Mahntzi withdrew, persuaded of the necessity by
the good father Ohnedo, who baptized her, trained
her in the Christian faith, and now, in the hour of
trial, stood by her side.
Dofia Catalina was not destined to enjoy long her
new state. The air of the lofty plateau did not suit
her constitution, accustomed to the lower atmosphere
of Cuba. She died suddenly.
At Coyoacan there is a tale that Dona Catalina was
drowned by her husband, and the well is even
shown to tourists into which she is supposed to
have been thrown. This legend is probably of later
date than the time of her death, but even then
rumors arose that it had been a violent one, and re-
ports were rapidly circulated about Cortes likely to
injure his reputation and, moreover, that of the
Malintzi.
At that time Cortes was thinking of a return to
Spain. He was thirty-five, still young enough to
thirst for a full recognition at home of his great
deeds. While making his preparation for departure,
he heard of the insurrection of his lieutenant Olid in
Honduras, who had declared himself independent.
It was necessary for him to hasten at once to chastise
his boldness. Aguilar, the interpreter, was dead, and
Cortes, who had never troubled himself to acquire
the Mexican dialects, had to send for Marina to ac-
company him, as interpreter only. This caused the
rumors about the death of his wife to circulate more
DOi^A MARINA. 1 83
than before. Cortes, warned of the danger, took a
decisive step to silence all such insinuations. At
Orizaba, he caused the sudden marriage of Marina
with one of his officers, Don Juan de Jaramillo.
Poor Marina was required to carry her devotion,
her absolute obedience to her chief, to the extreme
point of marrying a man she scarcely knew. She
yielded. It is said that she never lived with her
husband, but withdrew at once to her birthplace, at
Painala, where her own family still lived ; that her
guilty relatives threw themselves at her feet, afraid
that she would have them destroyed by the Spaniard.
She forgave them, and passed the rest of her life
far away from the capital, in obscurity. She died
young, when Cortes was yet at the height of his
fame, before he had suffered the mortification of
seeing himself overlooked by the court of Spain.
Not long after the expedition to Honduras, Cortes
carried out his intention of crossing to Spain. On
this first visit he was, as we have seen, received with
acclamations, and loaded with praise and honors.
When he again entered Mexico, with the title of
Marquess of the Valley of Oaxaca, he brought with
him a Spanish bride, Dona Juana deZuniga, .daughter
of the second Count of Aguilar, and niece of the
Duke de Bejar.
So Malintzi, if her shade returns to wander under
the ahueJmetes of Chapultepec, has her own grief to
mourn, in addition to the ruin she helped to bring
upon her people.
XIX.
INDIANS.
The Conquest was complete. Tenochtitlan was
no more, and the Aztec kings with their dynasty
were blotted out. So were all the other independ-
ent states of Anahuac, for if here and there a petty
chieftain were allowed still to call himself lord of his
domains, it was a mere form, to keep him and his
people contented, while in reality the Spaniard con-
trolled every thing throughout the conquered land.
The terrible war gods were overthrown, their tem-
ples and images thrown down and hidden under
ground. Even the annals of the country, the
picture-writings, which the Spaniards imagined to
be impious scrolls connected with the heathen belief
of the savages, were destroyed. Before long distinc-
tive names of the separate tribes were wiped out, as
details of no importance, and all the native races of
the country went by the common title of Indios.
This of course is the Spanish word for Indians, with
the same source. Columbus in seeking a new world
believed that when found it would be India, little
thinking that the earth he had rightly guessed to be
round, was big enough to contain a whole continent
between the western shore of Europe and the Indies,
184
INDIANS. 185
a remote land almost fabulous for its riches and
preciou > stones.
The first natives Columbus encountered in the
Western World, he therefore naturally called Indios,
and this name attaches to all the indigenous tribes of
America. So the first settlers farther north, on the
shores of the Atlantic, called the red men who came
to meet them Indians. But the Red Men of the
north are a distinctive race from the Indios of Ana-
huac. If allied at all, they are but distant relatives.
Their color, their skulls, their brains, their manners
and customs are all different. As we have seen, the
Nahuatl tribes that migrated from Aztlan belonged,
with scarce a doubt, to a people antecedent to the
Red Indians of North America.
Nevertheless, the word Indian is so fixed in the
minds of most of the people of the United States, as
belonging to the savage of the tomahawk and war-
whoop, that it is rather common to fancy the Mex-
ican Indios to be of the same stock. Many a reader
of Prescott's " Conquest " has been surprised to find
that the natives who were terrified at the approach
of Cortes on his war-horse, were not first cousins to
the Mohawks and Algonquins w^hom Parkman has
described.
It is necessary to dwell on this, in order that any
fair opinion should be formed of the native races of
Anahuac, belonging to the different tribes of Indios,
descendants of Tarascans, Otomies, Zapotecs, Mex-
tecs, Mazahuans, Popolocs, Zotzils, Mayas, etc.,
which now form a large part of the population of
Mexico.
1 86 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Whatever are or have been their virtues, they are
whollydifferentfromthoseof theNorth AmericanRed
Man. Whatever their vices, they are equally so, or if
similar, similar on account of like conditions of life.
Climate, inheritance, and the vicissitudes of their for-
tunes, would have caused them to be somewhat dif-
erent by this time, even if they had come from a com-
mon stock, but this is absolutely not the case, and long
before the time of the Conquest, the characteristics
of the Nahuatl race, which still cling to their present
descendants, were as strongly marked as those of the
Red Man, while they were widely remote from them.
The indigenous inhabitants of Mexico, however,
have as good a right to the name, wholly unappro-
priate in either case, of Indian^ as the " North Amer-
ican Savage " has. This latter title would be totally
misapplied in connection with the native Mexicans,
because for long generations, these have been above
the level of wild men. After the Conquest, for years
the Spaniards were disturbed by remaining savage
tribes who, resisting civilization, had retreated to the
woods and mountains ; but these tribes have been
long exterminated. Their successor, the highway
robber of roads and mountain passes, was of another
breed, imported, with other products of civilization,
from old Spain.
The Aztec dynasty, then, was extinct, but the
Aztec nation, a large population, even after the
great diminution in the wars of the Conquest, re-
mained on the plateau to begin a new life under the
influences of Christian rulers. The horrid rites of
their old religion were utterly done away with, relin-
155 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
quished, it would seem, with no great regret, by the
common people. To them there had been no glory,
no gratification, in the wholesale slaughter of the
sacrifices to Huitzilopochtli. The part of their cere-
monies which appealed to their source of enjoyment
was the feasting and dancing, and general rejoicing
on such occasions.
The first government of the Spaniards was a mili-
tary one, whose chief was Fernando Cortes. He
had wisely surrounded himself by a body of advisers
or approvers, in the early time of founding Vera
Cruz when he established the Ayunlainicjito, com-
posed of his companions of the voyage. This organ-
ization was maintained during the time of Cortes'
administration. Its duties were to found new cities,
parcel out lands and farms among the colonists, es-
tablish markets, regulate sanitary conditions, and en-
force the laws ; thus standing between the natives and
new settlers, who began to enter the country. Many
of the rules and ordinances of the early A\'unta-
mientos are still in force.
On account of complaints which reached the court
of Spain, against the rule thus established by Cortes,
the king resolved to put the new country in the
hands of a body of magistrates who should be obeyed
by all the governors of provinces, representing the
person of the monarch and enforcing his authority.
The members of the first Audicncia arrived in Vera
Cruz on the 6th of December, 1528. There were
five of them ; their president was Nuflo de Guzman,
a cruel and sanguinary man, whose despotism left
the most bitter recollections throughout the country.
INDIANS. 189
With his oidorcs, as the other members were cahed,
he displayed the greatest cruelty toward the Indians,
in direct disobedience to his instructions, which were
to treat them witli the greatest gentleness ; he con-
tinued the traffic in slaves, by which he and his
Audiencia expected to enrich themselves. They
quarrelled with the ecclesiastics and religious orders,
so that they were excommunicated by the bishop, in
return for which they broke up by force a religious
procession in the streets of the capital. In short,
they made themselves intolerable alike to natives
and colonists. Nufio de Guzman, finding himself
thus unpopular, went away from Mexico in 1529, and
paid a visit to Michoacan, where he strove to extort
quantities of gold from Calzonzi, who, as we know,
had hitherto escaped the violence of the invaders,
and was living happily in his palaces of Tzintzuntzan
and Patzcuaro, nominal sovereign of his Tarascans.
Calzonzi could not or would not satisfy the greed
of the cruel Guzman, whereupon he was burned
alive, as is shown in the same picture where he em-
braces the cross, in the town-hall of Tzintzuntzan.
Nuilo went away without any treasures or precious
stones, and made war upon the natives of Jalisco,
founding in that country a town which he called the
Holy Ghost. This afterwards became Guadalajara,
now one of the finest cities in the whole of Mexico.
This career of destruction and tyranny came to an
end by the arrival of the second Audiencia, sent in
response to the volume of complaints which reached
the court of Spain. This second body had for its
task to undo all that the first had done.
igO THE STORY OF MEXICO.
It published a royal decree which declared all the
Indians free, and condemned to death all those who
had made slaves of them. It had the care of diffus-
ing instruction among the natives, and establishing
the teaching of Latin in a college founded for the
education of the natives. Its authority was used
only for beneficial ends, and was of good effect in
calming the agitation caused by its predecessors.
The archbishops and bishops, by their religious
character, also exercised a great influence over both
colonists and Indians, with whom they were objects
of veneration arid respect.
Complaints, however, still reached the court of
Spain, which, weary of so much dissension, resolved
to send a viceroy as the supreme head of the colony,
to represent in every thing the person of the king,
subject only to the orders received from home, and
controlling all affairs, civil and military, connected
with the government. Difficulties often arose from
quarrels between the viceroy and the Audiencia, and
in extreme cases the will of the latter prevailed,
while advices from the parent government were on
their way from Spain ; but in general the functions
of the Audiencias were from this time limited to the
simple administration of justice.
The country of New Spain, at the time of the
the arrival of the first viceroy, had a wide extent ;
large tracts at that time unknown, were afterwards
explored and included in its territory, through colo-
nization by settlers. These lands extended over the
immense prairies of the north, and included Texas,
Alta California, Louisiana, and New Mexico, which
now belong to the United Slates.
XX.
THE FIRST OF THE VICEROYS.
Antonio DE Mendoza, Conde de Tendilla, was
the first viceroy sent by Charles V. to New Spain.
He arrived in the autumn of 1535.
He belonged to the great Spanish family of
Mendoza, which counted twenty-three generations,
and claimed descent from the Cid himself. Better
than this, he had a well-balanced and moderate char-
acter, and governed the country with justice and
generosity combined. He had no intention of
enriching himself by his position, but at heart put
the interests of the Spanish colonists before ever)'
other consideration, except those of the Indians, for
whose welfare he had from the first a genuine re-
gard. It would seem that Charles V., harassed as
he was with the intrigues and difficulties of his own
empire, already revolving the design which he put
in practice later, of retiring from the world, had
himself selected for his first representative in the new
country a man whom he knew personally to be
equal to the task, one not only of noble blood, but
honorable character.
Mendoza set himself to reform the abuses which
had already appeared, protected the Indians from the
19X
19- THE STORY OF MEXICO.
humiliations which the newly arrived Spaniards were
disposed to put upon them ; lie stimulated all
branches of agriculture, and finding the natives were
already well informed in the cultivation of land, he
encouraged them in this pursuit by all possible
efforts.
In order to develop the growth and manufacture
of wool he caused sheep of fine breed to be brought
from Spain ; he encouraged the silk industry, and
all employments coming from the productions of the
earth, which the climate of Mexico greatly favors.
Before his arrival the Franciscan brotherhood had
founded several convents. As early as 1521 Cortes,
after the conquest of Tenochtitlan, had sent home
an urgent request that priests should be sent from
Spain to convert the heathen in the new province.
For Cortes, through all his undertaking, earnestly re-
garded his mission as a crusade against the unbe-
liever ; he never hesitated to destroy the temples
and gods of the Aztecs, and his first step after vic-
tory was to forcibly baptize all his prisoners and
the inhabitants of conquered cities into the Christian
religion.
As soon as the knowledge of so wide a field was
noised abroad, five missionaries of the Franciscan
order started for New Spain. One of them was Fray
Pedro, of Ghent, a nation of Flanders, who of all the
early missionaries in Mexico was the most able and
zealous. He was especially endeared to the Em-
peror Charles V. on account of the holiness and
usefulness of his life, and from him he was greatly
aided in his work by grants of land and sums of
THE FIRST OF THE VICEROYS. 193
money. Later twelve missionaries were sent out by
order of the Emperor, and protected by a Bull from
the Pope. These " twelve apostles of Mexico," as
they are usually called, arrived in 1524. Their
leader was Fray Martin de Valencia, who bore the
title of Vicar of New Spain.
To the religious orders in Mexico is due in great
measure the firm base upon which the government
of Spain was established there. The new vice-
roy fully recognized this, and encouraged the foun-
dations of colleges and schools already undertaken
by them.
In every way he promoted the prosperity and
growth of the country, and had the satisfaction in
the course of his government, which lasted fifteen
years, to see every thing bear the marks of his judg-
ment and enterprise.
It was he who founded two cities which have
reached great importance. The first was Guadalajara,
near the site where Nuno de Guzman had estab-
lished a town under the name Espiritu Santo, in the
state of Jalisco. Mendoza removed it from its first
situation to the one it now occupies. It has become
one of the largest and most flourishing cities in
Mexico, and at the present time it is one of the
most interesting, because, as it has been until very
lately remote from railroad communication, it has
preserved all the early characteristics of Spanish-
Mexican civilization which attended its foundation
and first growth. There may still be seen many
customs and peculiarities of old Spanish life, which
are fast disappearing from the Peninsula. The citi-
194 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
zens are well educated, highly cultivated, with the
manners of the pure hidalgo, and the houses contain
relics and mementos of the past of Mexico, such as
are nowhere else to be found.
Mendoza also founded the city of Valladolid, in
the late kingdom of Michoacan, of which the poor
King Calzonzi had lately been sacrificed to the
greed of Nuflo de Guzman. This latter received the
just punishment for his cruelty. He was imprisoned
in 1537, and shortly after died, "in misery and ob-
livion," says the chronicle.
The large province of Michoacan, now one of the
states of Mexico, called by the same name, stretches
from the state of Mexico to the Pacific ocean. It
contains some of the most beautiful scenery to be
found in the whole country, now revealed by the
National Railway, which runs from the city of
Mexico to Morelia, the capital of Michoacan, and
farther on to Patzcuaro. The ultimate destination
of the road is Colima, near the Pacific coast. The
country of Michoacan was peopled by Tarascans,
who, as we have seen, preserved their kingdom until
after the Conquest. They have always been known
for their sturdy independence, like other moun-
taineers, for their state is traversed by ridges of lofty
hills, making picturesque effects of scenery. It was
in suppressing the Indians of Michoacan and the
neighboring Jalisco that the ferocious Pedro de Al
varado received a blow, from which he died in 1541.
Mendoza the better to civilize these turbulent
tribes, chose a site for a city in the midst of their
population. The royal parchment exists, sent from
THE FIRST OF THE VICEROYS. I95
Spain by Queen Juana, under the date of October
27, 1537, in which permission is given to the vice-
roy — " Insomuch as I am informed by the relation
you have made to me, that in these lands you have
found or discovered a most beautiful site towards
the part of the Chichimecas, in the Province of
Michoacan, in which, as it is a place both attractive
and convenient, you wish to establish and found a
city with more than sixty Spanish families and nine
religious advisers, for this purpose acknowledging
t^e service of God and of the Royal Crown, we give
and concede faculty and license to the viceroy, Don
Antonio de Mendoza, to establish and people the
said city."
The day being fixed for the ceremonial of found-
ing the city, all the pueblos in the neighborhood
were summoned, and a great conference of people,
both Indians and Spaniards, assembled to listen to
the royal mandate, which was read aloud. Then the
commissioners and the governors of the Indios
kissed the parchment in sign of obedience ; a mass
was celebrated upon an altar, which had been im-
provised for the occasion under a canopy made of
the branches of trees, for the ceremony took place
in the open air. Thereupon followed festivities,
which lasted several days ; the plan of the city was
laid out, and lots assigned to the " more than sixty
families," who took possession at once.
Among the lists of these families, of which the
names remain, is Don Diego Hurtado de Mendoza,
a connection, we may assume, of the viceroy. Other
noble families were later sent to occupy the new
196 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
city, so that Valladolid had every reason to hold
itself high as a town of distinction.
It was named Valladolid after the birthplace of
Mendoza in Spain, and called always Valladolid de
Michoacan, in distinction from the town in the old
country, until the name was changed, in this century,
to Morelia, for reasons we shall understand better
further on in the story.
It is hard to account for the presence in Mexico
of the "more than sixty families," and many, many
more which served as nucleus for all the cities
founded by the Spaniards. In the prosperous con-
dition of Spain at that time, when the empire of
Charles V. was at the greatest period of glory, it is a
question to solve why any noble families took the
trouble to risk a perilous voyage, in those days long
and, to say the least, uncomfortable, in order to
make a new life in the recently conquered colony.
Doubtless the reports given by t'he Conquistadores
of the great wealth of the new land attracted many
adventurers, who left their country for their country's
good, thus seizing a short cut to wealth ; but this
does not account for whole families, in numbers
sufificient to settle city after city over the newly
grasped possessions in the hands of the viceroy.
Religious liberty was not the motive, for here the
strong arm of the Church was stretched as firmly as
at home. As early as 1527 a royal order was issued,
by which all Jews and Moors were banished from
New Spain. The Inquisition was established in 1570,
but although the auto da f^ was of frequent occur-
rence during two centuries, the institution never
THE FIRST OF THE VICEROYS. 1 97
flourished with the vigor it acquired in the old
country.
The city of Valladolid flourished exceedingly. Its
native population to this day has the reputation of
being industrious, docile, and self-restrained. While
moderate, at the same time true to heroism, jealous
of independence and liberty, restless under oppres-
sion, but easily led by gentleness and reason. The
character of the Spanish families is hospitable, their
manners open and attractive, while at the same time
they are exclusive and tenacious of their birth, posi-
tion, and religious belief.
The church of Michoacan was created by a bull of
the Pope Paul III. in 1536. The queen of Spain de-
creed that a cathedral should be constructed in a
suitable place, to be selected by the viceroy and the
good Bishop Vasco de Quiroga, who was known as a
friend of the Tarascans.
Among the members of the second Audiencia,
which retrieved by its wisdom the evil deeds of
Nuno and his assistants, was an eminent lawyer,
the Licenciado Vasco de Quiroga. As the proceed-
ings of Guzman were fresh in everybody's mind, he
heard of them, and at once went into the neighbor-
hood of Tzintzuntzan to relieve, if possible, the con-
dition of the people of Calzonzi. They had fled in
terror from their homes, deserting the towns and
hiding in the mountains. Quiroga, with great per-
severance and gentleness, found them out, and pre-
vailed at last upon the poor Tarascans, who came to
love him with passionate devotion. He lived among
them until 1536, when he was made their bishop,
igS THE STORY OF MLXiCO.
having been quickly passed through the successive
grades of promotion necessary for that purpose, for
he was, to begin with, a Liyman and not under
orders. While still oidor of the Audiencia he as-
sumed the cares of his office ; by the end of the
same year he had received all the necessary orders,
from the tonsure to the priesthood.
The city of Tzintzuntzan was first selected for the
foundation of the cathedral, as the pueblo of the
largest population thereabout. It is now a forlorn
Indian village, with straggling rows of adobe huts
running down a slope towards the lonely Lake
Patzcuaro. Pottery is made there by the simplest
methods from clay which abounds in the neighbor-
hood ; the people are ignorant, gentle Indians, pur-
suing their humble lives with the content which
characterizes the native Mexican. But behind an
orchard of large old olive-trees neglected and decay-
ing, is the parish church, which contains aw-onderful
picture, so wonderful as to be startling among such
incongruous surroundings. In the sacristy, and
lighted by one little window with small panes of
glass, is a large and impressive canvas, representing
the entombment of our Saviour. Surrounding the
dead Christ are the Virgin, the Magdalen, St. John,
and other figures, all life size. One of the figures in
the background is said to be the bishop of Philip II.,
and tradition asserts positively that the picture is by
Titian. The composition, grouping, and treatment
are certainly like Titian, especiall)' the introduction
of a bit of landscape in the upper left-hand corner.
It is possible that the picture is b}- the great master;
THE FIRST OF THE VICEROYS. 1 99
even if not, the interest attaching to it is great, for
it is beautiful, whoever painted it, and far beyond, as
well as utterly different from, many of the altar
pieces and " old masters " which abound in Mexico
without any value whatever. It is possible that
Philip II. sent the picture, or more likely that before
his time Charles V., who personally knew Quiroga,
and possibly loved him, caused the picture to be
sent him for his Indians by reason of his devotion
to them, and the eloquence with which he reported
their cause to his royal master. This would account
for its being in the little church at Tzintzuntzan,
where the documents say Quiroga was bishop only
for one year. If Charles sent the picture, the like-
ness of Philip was taken before he had come to the
throne, and was only Prince Imperial. As for its
remaining at Tzintzuntzan, instead of finding a fit
place in the cathedral of Morelia, the Indians have
in every generation absolutely refused to have it re-
moved. It would be a brave archbishop, or secular
authority who should endeavor now to take it away
from them. Unguarded, it hangs in the bare little
sacristy, safe and uninjured by irreverent touch.
The cathedral was begun at Patzcuaro, and was to
be, says the account, " so magnificent that it has en-
tirely filled the imagination of all those who can re-
member it." But it was decided that the ground it
was on was too near the lake to support so great a
structure. In 1550 the king of Spain sent to com-
mand a suspension of the works, and it was finally
built at Valladolid, where it now stands, a beautiful
building, superior to the cathedral in the city of
20O THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Mexico. It was only completed in 1744. It stands
in an open space between two plazas, where the ef-
fect of the two lofty well-proportioned towers is
uninterrupted by other buildings. The Mexicans
delight in church bells, and the towers of the Mo-
relia cathedral are well provided with them, great and
small, for all occasions. On a feast-day of the Church
these bells are ringing continuoush', filling the air of
the town with their joyous clangor.
Cortes was away when the Vicero}' Mendoza
arrived in Mexico. He still retained his title of
governor, with the same powers always conferred
upon him ; but his long absences from the capital
made it necessary, as he fully recognized, that some
other strong authority should be established there.
Nevertheless, he never got on very well with such
other authorities, and on his return soon became at
odds with Mendoza, who, in his opinion, interfered
with his prerogatives. It was then that Cortes bade
farewell to his family, and taking with him his eldest
son and heir, Don Martin, then eight years old, he
embarked for Spain, leaving Mendoza undisturbed
in the execution of his office.
It is evident that the rule of the viceroy was
judicious and well adapted to grafting a new civiliza-
tion upon the old. The native tribes were made
peaceable without a great deal of contention, and by
the adroit and gentle management of the viceroy,
ably helped by the religious orders who came to his
assistance, readily transferred their old beliefs to the
mysteries and miracles of the Roman Catholic faith.
There was genuine enthusiasm for the viceroy on
CATHEDRAL AT MORELIA.
20I
202 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the part of the Indians. On the Central Railway,
about five hours out from the city of Mexico, is a
station called Cazadero, which means "place for pur-
suing game." The name clings to it since 1540,
when an immense hunt took place there upon the
broad plain which stretches out in all directions.
This hunt was a pleasant attention from the Indians
to the viceroy to express their approval of his ways
with them.
In 1536 was issued the first book printed in Mex-
ico, on a press imported by Mendoza, and put into
the hands of one Juan Pablos. In the same year
both silver and copper coins were stamped, the lat-
ter in the form of an irregular polygon. In 1550
this good ruler sailed away from Mexico, where he
had done so much. to advance the interests of his
royal master. He passed on to take charge of the
government of Peru, by a practice which came to be
quite common— a sort of diplomatic succession by
which the viceroys of New Spain were promoted to
the post at Peru.
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XXI.
FRAY MARTIN DE VALENCIA.
Don Luis DE Velasco, second viceroy of New-
Spain, made his entrance into the capital with great
pomp, at the end of the year 1550. He, Hke his
predecessor, had been selected with care by the or-
ders of Charles V., if not from his personal knowledge,
and he brought to his new position qualities as ad-
mirable. His first decree was one liberating one
hundred and fifty Indians from slavery, who were
working chiefly in the mines, and when the objec-
tion was raised that this industry would be para-
lyzed by the step, he stated that the liberty of the
Indians was of more importance than all the mines
in the world, and that the rents due tp the crown
were not of such a nature that for them must be
interrupted laws human and divine.
He established in Mexico, for the security of trav-
ellers upon the highway, the tribunal of the Holy
Brotherhood, instituted in Spain for the same pur-
pose in the time of Isabella. He founded the Royal
University of Mexico, and the Royal Hospital for
the exclusive use of the natives. He recognized
the capacity of these Indians for developing lands
hitherto uncultivated, and, in fact, favored them
203
204 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
by every means in his power, while he encouraged
the development of all the resources of the country,
especially the mines, of which some important discov-
eries were made in his time.
The building of the cathedral at Puebla was
pushed with great activity under this viceroy, al-
though the building was not finished until the mid-
dle of the next century.
Puebla de los Angeles, second in importance in all
Mexico to Guadalajara onl}-, receives its name from
the tradition that before the light of Christianity
was shed on New Spain, the heathen used to see
visions of angels marshalled in mighty hosts in the
heavens above the spot where the city stands. It is
in the Prov^ince of Tlaxcalla, where Cortes found his
first friends and stanch allies, on the highway be-
tween the coast and the capital.
Of the founding of the city a local chronicler
writes that the illustrious Fray Julian Garces, the
first bishop who came to Tlaxcalla, fully shared the
project for establishing a town somewhere in these
parts that might be a resting-place in the long and
weary walk from the coast to the city of Mexico ;
yet he was uncertain in his mind as to where the
town had best be, until one night in a vision he be-
held a most lovely vega, a plain, bounded by the
slope of the great volcanoes on the west, broken by
two little hills, and dotted by many springs, and cut
by two rivers which gave abundant water, and made
all things fresh and green. And as he gazed in
pleased amazement, the dream revealed two angels,
who with line and rod were measuring boundaries
-hiA:^B,
206 THE STORY OF MEXICO,
on the ground, as if they were marking out the
place for streets and squares, and for the founding
of great buildings.
Upon this the bishop awoke, and luckily coming in
his search upon the very site that his vision had
shown him, chose it for the place of Puebla de los
Angeles.
The city is beautifully situated with fine views of
the volcanoes ; the pyramid of Cholula is eight miles
from it. It is a purely Spanish town, founded at
the earnest request of the Franciscan friars, who en-
treated to be allowed to make a town of Spaniards,
who should cultivate the earth in the manner and
fashion of Spain, without the assistance of Indian
labor or the unworthy practice of Indian slavery,
thus giving employment to many Spanish good-for-
nothings who were going about the country without
finding any thing for their hands to do.
The second Audiencia, in whose time the request
was made, readily granted it, and the city was
founded in 1532. Forty families of Spanish birth
assembled, and the plan of the city was marked out,
accompanied by the celebration of mass, as at Val-
ladolid. The Indians of the surrounding towns wil-
lingly helped the Spaniards in great multitudes,
bringing them materials for the first houses, and
singing joyfully as they gave their assistance.
Puebla is so placed with regard to the capital that
in the frequent battles of the country it has been
time and again fought for or invested. During
these periods it is to be feared that its angels have
been sometimes compelled to avert their faces. Its
FRAY MARTIN DE VALENCIA. 20/
present name is Puebla de Zaragoza, in honor of the
brave general who defended it against the French,
on the 5th of May, 1862.
Thus the efforts of the viceroys were ably sec-
onded by the zeal of the first ecclesiastics of the
church of Mexico. Fray Juan de Zumarraga was
the first bishop presented by the emperor to Pope
Clement VII., in 1527. The next year he arrived at
Vera Cruz, bearing the titles of bishop-elect and
protector of the Indians, honors which he fairly
earned by his interest in them and his devotion to
their cause.
These holy men worked zealously with the natives
and by adroitly substituting for their heathen super-
stitions, the legends and miracles of the Catholic
Church succeeded in engrafting the new faith upon
the old without violence. The Indians accepted
readily the narration of the life of the Saviour, his
miraculous power, his spotless life, his death upon
the cross, but their favorite object of worship and
reverence was from the first the Holy Virgin, the
mother of Jesus. To her they transferred all the
fervor of their idolatry. Her image has always
been to them most sacred, her shrine the constant
place for votive offerings of flowers, ribbons, and all
small objects of familiar use. To the superstitious
minds of these people, it was possible to introduce
every form of miracle without danger of incredulity;
they were soon closely bound to the Church by their
faith in the supernatural interference of the heavenly
powers, and above all of the Virgin. These supersti-
tions still remain in Mexico, and are so closely held
208 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
by the Indians, that no government, however " ad-
vanced " in rehgious thought, has dared to interfere
with certain rites and ceremonials, pieced upon theii
ancient garment of faith, in the earHest time of the
first viceroys and bishops. The " twelve apostles,'
godly men who devoted their lives to Christianizing
the Indians, have themselves become objects of
tradition, and their deeds, as handed down from
generation to generation, are as miraculous as any of
those they revealed in their day to the simple and
credulous Aztecs.
Of all the Apostles the memory of good Fray
Martin de Valencia is most highly valued, and many
are the traditions concerning his life and works.
An early history of the Indians of New Spain,
written in 1541, tells of his life in Amecameca, an
Indian village several hours by rail south of the
capital, which still preserves all the simplicity of its
earliest days. It was in existence long before the
Conquest. The Spanish army stopped there a couple
of days on their first approach to the city, kindly
received by the Cacique in " large commodious stone
buildings." Of these latter we must doubt. Near
here, Fray Martin loved to dwell " because," as the
narrative relates, " it is a very quiet place, most appro-
priate to prayer, for it is in the side of a little moun-
tain, and is a devout hermitage. Close to this house
is a cave devoted to and very suitable for the service
of God. In this he used at times to give himself
to prayer; and at times he used to go out of the
cave into a grove, and amongst those trees there was
one which was very large, under which he went to
FRAY MARTIN BE VALENCIA. 209
pray early in the morning ; and it is asserted that as
soon as he placed himself there to pray, the tree
swarmed with birds which by their songs made sweet
harmony, through whicli he felt much consolation,
and praised and blessed the Lord ; and when he went
away from there the birds went also ; and so, after the
death of this servant of God nevermore gathered
there in this manner. Both these things were noted
by many who used to hold converse there with the
servant of God, as well seeing them come and go
before him, as their not appearing after his death, I
have been informed by a monk of good life that in
this hermitage of Amecameca, there appeared to
the man of God Saint Francisco and Saint Antonio
who leaving him much comforted departed from his
presence."
" Just outside Amecameca, is a hill, rising abrubtly
from the plain and closely covered with a growth of
ancient trees, some of them aJmehiietes which rival
those at Chapultepec in size and venerable aspect.
This hill is called the Sacro Monte ; there is room for
thinking that it was sacred to the Aztec deities even
before the coming of the Spanish priests, and that
they adopted it to carry on the traditions belonging
to it. However, this may be, it was one of Fray
Martin's favorite retreats for retiring sometimes
to an oratory which he had made in a cave on
the mountain, to give himself to special exer-
cises of the highest contemplation and rigor-
ous penance. He continued to labor in teaching
the Indios, especially boys, for whom he mani-
fested singular love ; he remained there but little
2IO THE STORY OF MEXICO.
time, because in the following year, 1533, he was
attacked with the pneumonia which caused his
death. This was accompanied by very particular
circumstances. A few days before he fell ill, with a
few brief words, being in Amecameca, he manifested
to his companion that now had arrived the term of
his life ; and he not having understood this, very
soon believed it by seeing the calentura of the serv-
ant of God. As the illness increased he was forced
to conduct him to the convent of Tlalmanalco, where
the evil having declared itself, the holy sacraments
were administered. The holy man seeing this case,
resolved to bear him to the infirmary of Mexico ;
and, in fact, upon shoulders of Indians, with much
toil, they bore him to the shore at Ayotzinco, two
leagues from the pueblo, and laid him in a canoa to
carry him by the lake. Scarcely had he entered it
when, feeling his hour arriving, he begged them to
bring him to land. Yielding to his entreaties, they
disembarked, although he was in a dying state, and
putting himself upon his knees and causing them to
recommend his soul to God, his spirit joined the
Lord, falling into the arms of his companion, St.
Antonio Ortiz, verifying the prophecy he had made
many years before, in Spain, that he was to die in
his arms in the middle of a field. As soon as the
monks had notice of his death they took his corpse,
and with millions of tears of their own and the
Indians, gave it sepulture in the church in bare
ground, without any precaution to preserve relics so
precious. After some time the custodian learned
this, and hastening to Tlalmanalco, had him ex-
FRAY MARTIN DE VALENCIA. 211
humed, and finding liini in as good condition as
when alive, putting the corpse in a box and separate
sepulchre, had a great stone put over it with a cor-
responding epitaph.
" The body was afterwards secretly moved to the
Cave of Amecameca, where it awaits the glorious
day of triumph for saints and confusion to repro-
bates. Many miracles are related of the saint,
but more than for these his name will be forever
glorious in our country for his great virtues, and
above all for the grand services which the order he
founded for the glory of God had given to the Mex-
icans during more than three hundred years."
A further account confirms the devotion with
which the Indians, encouraged by the padres, pre-
served the relics of the holy father.
" In this cave are guarded, night and day, by the
Dominican monks, certain relics of this friar : a
leather cclicio, a coarse and rough tunic, and two
chasubles of native linen cloth, in which the servant
of God said mass ; and on the other side is a great
box, locked, which serves as the sepulchre of a wooden
Christ. . . . This sainted man died in the year 1534
and was buried in the convent of Tlalmanalco, where
his body remained untouched for the space of more
than thirty years, since when it has not appeared,
nor does any one know where it is nor who disturbed
it." In fact, for fifty years the Indians of Ame-
cameca guarded the relics with great devotion, but
in secret, passing them from hand to hand, but
without giving them up either to Franciscans or
Dominicans, until in 1884 they were discovered by
212 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the vicar, who collected them and put them in this
chapel of the Sacro Monte.
The Indians of Amecameca and of all the surround-
ing pueblos greatly reverenced, with strange ceremo-
nies, an image of Christ made by the Indians of Ame-
cameca, and carefully preserved by them year after
year. A legend states fhat long ago certain muleteers
who were carrying this image to a southern town,
missed the mule upon whose pack it had been placed.
When the mule was discovered he was standing
quietly in the cave upon the sacred mountain, sur-
rounded by all the people of the town, who, conceiv-
ing the Christ had chosen their cave for his abode,
purchased the image from the muleteers, and con-
structed for it in that spot a shrine, where it still re-
mains after three centuries. A great pilgrimage is
made to the shrine on the top of the sacred Mount.
Every year, in Holy Week and on Ash Wednesday,
the image is brought down to the parish church.
The annual fair is held at this time in the Market
Place, doubtless a continuation of some ancient Aztec
festival in honor of the return of the Sun. All the
country around assembles, and the culmination of
the feast is on Good Friday, when the Christ is re-
turned to his shrine on the mountain.
The good Viceroy Velasco died in 1564, having
governed the country for fourteen years. Both
Mexicans and Spaniards sincerely mourned his loss,
p-ivino; him tlie affectionate title of the Father of the
countr}'.
During the government of this ruler and his pred-
ecessor all the administration of New Spain, politi-
FRAY MARTIN' DE VALENCIA.
213
cal, civil, and religious was established upon so firm a
foundation that it could go on in daily action like a
well regulated nnachine. An interregnum occurred,
owing to the death of Velasco, which was filled by
the government of the Audiencia, always on hand to
come to the surface on such occasions. There were
two years in which they had the management, but
they did not succeed in very much deranging the
harmony so well inaugurated by the two viceroys.
XXII,
OTHER VICEROYS.
Events in Spain underwent great changes during
these years. On the 25th of October, 1555, Charles
v., executed an instrument by which he ceded to his
son, PhiHp 11. , the sovereignty of Flanders. It was
in Brussels that the ceremony took place, with all the
pomp and solemnity suited to it. On the following
i6th of January, in the presence of such of the
Spanish nobility as were at the court, the emperor
gave up also the sovereignty of Castile and Aragon,
and then retired to the Convent of Yuste, weary of
the cares of government.
By this act, Philip became master of the most
widely extended and powerful monarchy in Europe.
He was king of Spain, comprehending under that
name Castile, Aragon, and Granada, which, for centu-
ries independent states, had been brought under one
sceptre in the reign of his father, Charles V. He
was king of Naples and Sicily, duke of Milan,
lord of Franche Comt^ and the Low Countries ; he
had important possessions in Africa; in the true
Indias he owned the Philippine and Spice Islands;
and in America, besides his possessions in the West
Indies, he was master of Mexico and Peru.
In all this multiplicity of affairs entailed upon the
214
OTHER VICEROYS. 21 5
sovereign, Philip II, has maintained the reputation
for admirable management, constant attention to
public affairs, and the strictest sense of justice. It
may well be believed, however, that he had not the
same interest in the remote acquisition to his terri-
tories which his father had. Charles knew Cortes
personally; received the first exciting reports of the
discovery of the new country and the rich gifts
which were sent him as trophies and specimens of
the advantages to be derived from the conquests.
Philip had had no part in these things. Much of
his early life was passed elsewhere, absorbed in other
more closely personal events.
By the time he became king the exciting days of
the Conquest were over. Cortes was dead. The
government of New Spain was established. The
vital interest to the monarch of Spain in his Ameri-
can colonies was to secure the large sums of gold
and silver that were expected from them, and the
mines of Peru by that time so far exceeded those of
Mexico, that the latter had to take a second place.
Rumors of discontent that rose to him from the
distant colony sounded to him " like a tale of little
meaning, though the words were strong."
Under these circumstances, the character of the
viceroys was lowered from the high standard adhered
to when Charles the Emperor selected them himself.
To follow the long list of them would be most tedi-
ous and useless, as they passed in rotation, governing
according to the best of their lights for several years
in Mexico, and then passing on, either by death or
by promotion to Peru.
2l6 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
In 1 571 the Inquisition was fully established, the
period marked, by the way, with a formidable erup-
tion of Popocatepetl, and the next year the Jesuits
arrived.
The matter of the Inquisition had been under
discussion for many years, a council, as early as the
year 1529, having solemnly declared it to be " most
necessary that the Holy Ofifice of the Inquisition
shall be extended to this land, because of the com-
merce with strangers here carried on, and because of
the many corsairs abounding upon our coasts, which
strangers may bring their evil customs among both
natives and Castilians, who, by the grace of God,
should be kept free from heresy."
The full fruit of the declaration ripened only in
1570, when Don Pedro Moya de Contreras was ap-
pointed Inquisitor-General, with head-quarters in the
city of Mexico. The Indians were especially ex-
empted from its jurisdiction, only heretics from
other nations falling under the ban.
The Qucinadero, a burning place in the city of
Mexico, upon land since included in the Ala-
meda, was a square platform in a large open space,
where the spectacle could be witnessed by the
population. The first auto-da-fe y^diS celebrated in
the year 1574, when, as its chronicler mentions
cheerfully, " there perished twenty-one pestilent
Lutherans."
From this time such ceremonies were of frequent
occurrence, but the Inquisition never reached the
point it did in Old Spain. Although large numbers
undoubtedly perished in these, autos-da-fe, the num-
OTHER VICEROYS. 21/
ber of those actually burned to death was compara-
tively small and insignificant compared to that of the
victims to this religious fury in Europe. Early in
the present century the Holy Office was suppressed
throughout Spain and all Spanish dependencies, and,
although the Inquisition was again established, it
was only for a short time.
Philip II. died just before the end of the century.
With him ends the greatness of Spain, which from
that time declined rapidly. Naturally the remote
provinces felt the loosening of the firm hand which
had controlled them, yet it is to be observed that
the viceroys of New Spain under Philip III. were,
for the most part, men of judgment and moderation.
While the government at home, in the hands of
profligate favorites, was growing weaker and weaker,
that of Mexico was becoming more firmly established.
Spanish blood had descended into a new generation,
with Mexican habits, thoughts, and impressions.
The national character, as always happens with
colonists remote from their origin, was becoming
modified into a new shape by change of climate and
environment. Meanwhile the Indians were undoubt-
edly greatly improved by the genial influence of
their new religion. They were like children, for it
was not the intention of the Church to teach them
to think, as they were only too ready to acquire the
knowledge of how to obey.
In the beginning of the sixteenth century the city
of Mexico was overwhelmed by inundations such as
had from time to time caused the Aztecs great
trouble. Their works were quite ineffectual against
2l8 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the floods which invaded the city, and it was evident
that some vigorous measure must be taken. There
was question, once more, of removing the wliole city
to the soHd ground of Tacubaya ; but this plan was
open to great objections.
The engineer Enrico Martinez offered a plan for
the rescue of the city which was accepted. It was
to reduce the highest of the several lakes belonging
to the network in the valley of Mexico, by diverting
its waters elsewhere, and thus prevent its overflow.
Work was begun in 1607. Fifteen thousand Indians
were set to sinking shafts at intervals in order to
bore a tunnel, to lead off the water, more than four
miles long, and eleven feet wide by thirteen in
height. It was completed in eleven months, and
the event was celebrated by the presence of the vice-
roy himself with great pomp, who gave the first
stroke with his spade. Mass was said, and there
were great rejoicings. This cut was call the desague
of Huehuetoca, a small village near the hills of
Nochistongo.
The canal proved too small, and several schemes
were tried for enlarging and strengthening it, with
varying and moderate success. The novelty of the
enterprise having worn out, people began to think,
during a series of dry years, that the peril from the
lakes after all was not so great. The engineer
Adrian Boot was sent from Spain to visit the canal
of Huehuetoca ; having done so, he qualified it as
insufficient, in which he shared the opinion of those
who had not come so far. He failed in making it
more efficacious, for, in 1629, came another inunda-
OTHER VICEROYS. 219
tion. In 1614, the rainy season having set in with
unusual violence, Martinez, the engineer, himself
gave orders to close the rnouth of the tunnel, per-
haps to rouse the people to its importance, and the
importance of not neglecting it. The result was
frightful. The whole city was instantly under water,
and for five years it was converted into an unwilling
Venice, during which the streets were passable only
in boats.
Martinez, who was put in prison for blocking the
tunnel, was released in order to open it again. This
he did, and erected a strong dyke which afforded
some relief, but inundations were always recurring
at intervals, until the whole plan of the work was
altered by an open cut to replace the tunnel. This
work was undertaken vigorously in 1767, and pressed
to a conclusion by 1789. The tajo of Nochistongo,
as it is called, can be seen from the Central Railway,
whose track runs through it, at an elevation of fifty
feet or more above the stream.
Owing to such drainage, and the process of evap-
oration, the large lake of Texcuco has greatly sub-
sided, and the waters which surrounded Tenochtit-
lan have given place to nothing more than a marsh.
The lovely river Lerma, which winds through the
valley of Toluca, with fine views of a beautiful
mountain, the Nevada de Toluca, bears the name of
the worthless favorite of Philip III.
This Philip died, and his son, Philip IV., succeeded
him, continuing the line of royal favorites, and
spending the imported wealth of Mexico and Peru
in the extravagances of his court, and the exhaust-
220 THE STORY OF MEXICO,
ing demands of frequent wars with England, Hol-
land, and I'Vancc. He left the crown to his son,
Charles H., who died without an heir in 1700; and
then began the troublous wars of the Succession,
which involved the whole of Europe. This ended
the reign of the house of Austria. The king whose
cause triumphed was a Bourbon, Philip V., and
Bourbons continued to reign in Spain until the latter
half of the present century.
Mexico took no part in the war of succession.
When Charles H. died, the ruling viceroy was. the
Conde de Moctezuma, whose title was from his wife,
the great-great-great-granddaughter of the last em-
peror of the name. Events in Europe caused no
disturbance in his mind ; he quietly went on ruling,
and awaited the result. It has been said that Philip
r.he Bourbon at one time thought of running away
from his difficulties at home, and taking refuge in
Mexico.
Only one more of the viceroys need be mentioned,
the Conde de Revillagigedo, Don Juan Vicente de
Giiemes Pacheco de Padilla, whose deeds are worth
remembering. He found the city in 1787 in a
wretched condition, unlighted, undrained, unpaved.
Even a part of the viceregal palace was useless, be-
ing occupied by the stalls of Indian women selling
things to eat, such as tortillas, and mole. Tlie vice-
roy corrected all these disorders, both in the ac-
counts and the morality of the metropolis.
Revillagigedo was honored for his justice, re-
nowned for his energy, and feared for his severity;
at the same time he was extremely eccentric, and
OTHER VICEROYS. 221
many anecdotes survive of his day. It is said he had
the habit, Hke Montezuma and Haroun al Raschid,
of going about incognito, with one or two aides-de-
camp, to detect abuses in order to correct them.
Walking one evening in the Calle San Francisco, he
met a monk taking his pleasure much after the hour
permitted for monks to be abroad. The viceroy
went directly to the convent, where, on making him-
self known, he was received by the abbot with all
due respect.
'' How many monks, father, have you in your con-
vent? " he asked.
" Fifty, your Excellency."
" There are now only forty-nine. Call them over
and see which is the missing brother, that his name
may be struck out."
The list was produced, the roil was called, and
3nly forty-five monks presented themselves. By the
order of the viceroy, when the five appeared they
were refused admission to the convent, and never
permitted to return.
A poor Indian came to the viceroy and told him
he was in dif^culty, reproached with stealing some
vnoney. He said he had found a bag full of golden
ounces in the street, and seeing an advertisement
containing the promise of a handsome reward for the
finder, he carried them to the person therein men-
tioned as the owner. The Don received the bag, and
counted the ounces. In doing so, not unobserved
by the Indian, he slipped two into his pocket, and
then accused the poor man of having stolen a part
of the money, and turned him out of the house as a
thief and a rascal.
222 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The viceroy kept tlie Indian while he immediately
sent for the Don, and asked him to relate the cir-
cumstances.
" May it please )'our Excellency, I lost a bag of
gold. This Indian brought it to me in hopes of a
reward, but he first stole part of the contents, and I
drove him from my house."
" Stay," said the viceroy, " there is some mistake
here. How many ounces did you have in your bag?"
" Twenty-eight."
"And how many are there here?"
" Twenty-six."
" Count them down. I see it is as you say. The
case is clear, we have all been mistaken. Had the
Indian been a thief he would never have brought
back the bag and kept two ounces ; he would have
kept the whole. It is evident this is not your bag,
but another which this poor man has found. Con-
tinue to search for yours. Good-morning,"
And sweeping up the gold pieces he gave them to
the Indian to keep for himself.
Many such tales are still current of this kind, ec-
centric viceroy. He rendered substantial services
to the country, and especially to the city of Mexico,
which continued to maintain the better standard for
cleanliness and order he introduced. Revillagigedo
was calumniated and persecuted by certain enemies,
and withdrew to Spain in 1794.
Mexico during the sixteenth and seventeenth cen-
turies offers no picturesque situations to describe at
length. In fact, the history of the country is like
some pictures with admirable background and sky
OTHER VICEROYS. 223
full of clouds and light, the foreground crowded with
emotional detail, all of great interest, but absolutely
lacking in middle distance.
The early study of Mexico is, to those who can
view it from its romantic side, and put up with its
troublesome, unpronounceable names, as attractive
as the landscape of the plateau, where the two lofty
volcanoes, snow-capped, are enhanced by the move-
ment of heavy clouds, and the play of sunshine on
their lineaments. In the foreground may be seen
well-built cities, with the domes and towers of many
a church, regular streets, pleasant plaznc/as shaded
with trees, bright and perfumed with flowers. Be-
tween, there is nothing but a level plain, its monot-
ony scarcely relieved by rows of maguey with stiff,
bristling leaves We will hasten over the uninter-
esting plain, and come to the emotional foreground.
There were in all sixty-four viceroys, beginning
with Don Antonio de Mendoza, 1535, and ending
with Juan O'Donojii in 1822. For nearly three cen-
turies they ruled New Spain, and ruled it pretty
well, according to their lights and those from whom
they received their authority.
XXIII.
HUMBOLDT.
In the time of Iturrigaray, very near the close of
the viceregal period, a little while before Napoleon
invaded Spain, Alexander von Humboldt visited
Mexico. He was a close observer of men and cus-
toms, as well as of the natural phenomena belonging
to his scientific explorations. His account of the
country gives a good idea of the state of society in
Mexico' at the time he was there, and records the
progress it had reached under Spanish rule, in the
hands of the viceroys. The revolutions, then so
soon about to begin, destroyed much of this civi-
lization ; from the ruin brought by many a battle
and riot, the country is yet but slowly recovering.
We may study the description of Humboldt as we
might an old daguerreotype, somewhat faded, but
preserving forms and images in reality passed
away.
Humboldt and his friend, Bonpland, a botanist,
left Europe in the early summer of 1799, armed
with all sorts of scientific instruments, with letters
and passports to admit them everywhere, for an ex-
tended journey of scientific exploration in America.
After nearly three years in South America., they left
224
HUMBOLDT.
22$
it for Mexico, arriving by water at Acapulco at the
beginning of 1803. Acapulco is on the Pacific
Coast in the state of Guerrero. Humboldt had
letters from the court of Spain, which gave him
every facility then accessible for travelling in Mexi-
TEMPLE OF XOCHICALCO.
CO. They passed through Cuernavaca, stopping to
see the monument of Xochicalco in its vicinity,
Humboldt notes the heads of crocodiles spouting
water carved among the ornaments of this temple,
with the comment that it was strange to find such
figures employed on a plain four thousand feet
226 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
above the sea and away from the haunts of these
creatures, instead of the plants and animals belong-
ing to the neighborhood.
Without delay Humboldt and his companion
reached the capital, where they were delighted
with all they saw. The Academy of Fine Arts
was then in a flourishing condition. Government
had assigned it a spacious building, and it had a
collection of casts, finer, Humboldt says, than was
at that time to be found in Germany.
A small school of engraving was opened in the
Mint, as early as 1779, by royal order. General in-
terest in this school became so great as to lead the
Viceroy Mayorga to project an academy of the three
fine arts, painting, sculpture, and architecture. In
1783, under the rule of the good Galvez, royal ap-
proval was granted, and license was given for the
existing institution under the name of : " Academia
de las Nobles Artes de San Carlos de la Nueva
Espana."
The academy was formally opened with suitable
ceremony in 1785, removed a few years later to the
building it still occupies. Charles HI. himself sent
the collection of casts admired by Humboldt. For
twenty years it flourished in the hands of competent
artists sent from the mother country. Then the
end of that protection, and the turbulent days of
civil war, disturbed its even tenor.
Humboldt says that every night in its spacious
halls, well illumined by Argand lamps, hundreds of
young men were assembled, some sketching from
plaster-casts or from life, others copying designs of
HUMBOLDT. 227
lurniture, candelabra, and bronze ornaments; ad-
mission was free to all ; class, colors, and races were
mingled together ; the Indian beside the white boy,
the son of the poorest mechanic beside that of the
richest lord. In 1839 ^'^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ changed. Ma-
dame Calderon described the casts as mutilated, the
engravings injured, and the building in disorder
and abandoned. In this state it remained until
the return to power of Juarez, since when, with an
annual allowance of $35,000, the institution is doing
fairly well. The name is changed to the " National
School of Fine Arts " ; prizes are given for good
work ; all teaching is free.
The equestrian statue of Charles IV. was com-
pleted just at the time of Humboldt's visit. He
was present when it was cast, and saw it on its way
to the plaza.
The Cathedral was then new, and its massive tow-
ers, with the fine plaza in front of it, excited the ad-
miration of the enthusiastic traveller, A few years
only before his visit, the great idol, Teoyamiqui,
had been discovered, in the time of the eccentric
Viceroy Revillagigedo ; he would have placed it in
the University, but the professors there were un-
willing to have it seen by Mexican youths, and
they buried it again in one of the corridors of the
Colegio. They were persuaded to dig it up in or-
der that Humboldt should see and make a sketch
of it.
The Aztec calendar, the stone of sacrifice, and the
manuscripts in hieroglyph much interested the great
man, but more the natural attractions of the city.
228 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
One of his favorite haunts was Chapultepec, then in
good order, as it was left by the Viceroy Galvez, who
first made a pleasure-house there, where Humboldt
delighted in the broad view of plain and volcano.
He loved to go, as every one does now, to the market-
place, to see the stalls of the Indians all hung with
verdure. No matter what they sell — fruit, roots,
pulque — their booths are ornamented with flowers.
He describes the hedge a yard high of fresh herbs
and delicate leaves built around the fruit-stalls, and
the garlands of flowers, which divided the alleys of
the market, spread upon the ground with little nose-
gays stuck at intervals, making a sort of carpet of
flowers. The fruit, in small cages of wood, was orna-
mented on top with flowers. He describes the pretty
sight, at sunrise, of the Indians coming along the
Viga Canal in boats loaded with fruits and flowers,
from Istacalco and Chalco ; and gives an account of
the chinanipas, or floating gardens, on the marshy
banks of these lakes. This invention is attributed
to the early Aztecs, who cultivated the ground on
loose tracts of earth, bound together by roots which
were either driven about by the winds or moored to
the shore. Similar ones, he says, are to be met with
in all the zones. In our day the chinampas do not
float, but have the appearance of low, wet gardens,
intersected by many channels of water ; they are,
however, pretty patches of gay flowers cultivated,
with vegetables, for the city market, and a trip to
Santa Anita, over the still waters of the Viga, must
not be omitted from the excursions around Mexico;
the scene is charming in itself, and haunted more-
HUMBOLDT. 229
over by the long succession of gentle Indians, who
for centuries have heaped their boats with flowers,
and floated over the dark water chanting low songs.
Humboldt went to inspect the pyramids of the
sun and moon at Teotihuacan, and afterwards gave
a prolonged study to mines, visiting first Moran and
Real del Monte, northeast of the capital, and after-
wards Guanajuato. Long before the arrival of the
Spaniards, the natives of Mexico were acquainted
with the working of subterranean veins to find metal.
Cortes says that gold, silver, copper, lead, and tin
were all sold in the markets of Tenochtitlan. They
either collected grains of native gold in small baskets
of slender rushes, or melted the metal into bars, like
those now used in trade, represented in Mexican
paintings. Humboldt found the methods of mining
not advanced from the sixteenth century, without any
of the improvements known in his time. The hard
work was performed by Indians, the beasts of burden
of the mines. They carried out the metal in bags
on their backs, going up and down thousands of
steps, in long files of fifty or sixty, men of seventy
years old, and children of ten or twelve.
The mine of Valenciana, in Humboldt's time the
most celebrated of Guanajuato, and the richest then
known in Mexico, was not much wrought until the
end of the eighteenth century, although it had been
somewhat worked by the early Indians and the first
Spanish settlers. In 1760, a poor man named Obre-
gon, a Spaniard, began to explore a new vein. As he
was a worthy man, he found friends willing to ad-
vance small sums from time to time to carry on his
230 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
work. For several years the cost was much greater
than the produce, but the pit grew rich as it became
deep, and at last yielded quantities of sulphuretted
silver. When Obregon, or, as he came to be called,
the Count of Valenciana, began to work the vein,
goats were browsing over the hill-tops all about the
ravine of San Xavier. Ten years after, on the same
spot, the climbing streets of Guanajuato sheltered a
large population ; and at present it is a flourishing
city, surrounded by a region all .rich in minerals.
The produce from the mine at Valenciana has fallen
behind that of other later veins, and scarcely covers
the outlay.
Humboldt went from Guanajuato to Valladolid,
which had not yet changed its name in honor of the
mule-driver, Morelos, who had, however, already be-
gun to study in the Colegio of San Nicholas. Valla
dolid was a small city of eighteen thousand inhab
itants. Humboldt says it contained nothing worthy
of notice, but an aqueduct and a bishop's palace.
He could not fail to admire the lofty picturesque
arches of that aqueduct of warm yellow stone, whose
long lines vanish in perspective, shaded by great ash
trees. He does full justice to the beauty of Patzcuaro,
which he declares would alone have repaid him for
his voyage across the ocean. Humboldt spent soroe
time there, and his memory of his visit is still pre-
served in the name of a lofty hill overlooking the
lake, named Humboldt's mountain. The hospitable,
courteous citizens of Patzcuaro still point out with
pride his favorite points of view. They fully appre-
ciate, as he did, the attractions of their lovely lakes.
HUMBOLDT. 23 1
The volcano Jorullo, twenty leagues south of Patz-
cuaro, was first made known to men of science in
Europe by Humboldt's account of it.
In the middle of the eighteenth century the site of
this volcano was covered with peaceful fields of sugar-
cane, cotton, and indigo, watered by artificial means,
belonging to the plantation of San Pedro de Jorullo.
In June, 1759, for the first time, hollow noises from
under the ground began to make themselves heard,
and in September a tract of ground three or four
square miles in extent humped up like a bubble.
Thick vapors, smoke, and flames were seen to issue
from this area, which rose and fell like the ocean.
Large masses of rock and earth sprung up as if from
a chasm, and the highest of these developed into a
volcano, which burned steadily, throwing up lava
and hot ashes for several months.
The Indians were greatly terrified by such a spec-
tacle, as well they might be. P'lames were seen at Patz-
cuaro, and even at Qiier^taro, many miles away. The
roofs of houses were covered with ashes, and the rich
plantations of San Pedro reduced to a barren plain.
They believed that some missionary monks who
were ill received at the plantation poured out horrid
imprecations upon the fertile spot, and prophesied
that it should be swallowed up by flames rising out
of the earth. Whether these vindictive monks had
anything to do with it or no, the hacienda of Jorullo
was destroyed, all the trees thrown down and buried
in sand and ashes from the volcano. The field and
roads were covered with sand, crops destroyed, and
flocks perished, unable to drink the infected water.
232 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The eruptions grew gradually less and ceased dur-
ing the following year, but the mountain, with its
extinct crater, remains in the place of the once fer-
tile hacienda.
Humboldt and his companion inspected also the
great volcano, the pyramid of Cholula, and the pic-
turesque town of Jalapa. They left Mexico by the
port of Vera Cruz, and went to Havana, spending
nearly a year in the United States.
XXIV.
REVOLUTIONS.
Mexico could not always remain indifferent to
the current of events in Spain. Changes which
shook Europe to its uttermost limit raised a tempest
whose waves broke with violence even on the remote
shores of the province.
Spain, after Philip V., was governed by three of
his sons in succession, the last of whom, Charles III.,
held the throne until 1788. He was a prince of ex-
cellent intentions and blameless morals, and through
his ministers he brought the country to a degree of
prosperity to which it was little accustomed since
the days of Philip II.
His good works extended as far as Mexico, where
he caused to be founded, in the capital, the Acad-
emy of Fine Arts, still in existence. His memory
in the days of the viceroys was preserved in New
Spain as that of the greatest and wisest of mon-
archs. His son, Charles IV., succeeded him. It
must not be forgotten that the Emperor Charles V.
was Charles I. of Spain — fifth Charles only of those
of Austria.
Charles IV., in no sense a relative of Charles V.,
being a Bourbon with instincts and traditions wholly
233
234 Tfi^ STORY OF MEXICO.
different, was a weak and pitiful sovereign. During
his reign came the French Revolution, following
close upon the Declaration of Independence of the
United States of North America, events which gave
cause for reflection to all vassals of crowned heads,
and especially to all colonized provinces remote
from their heads. Yet Mexico remained loyal in
spite of the petty tyranny of the viceroy sent from
the court of Charles, Branciforte, an Italian adven-
turer of low bearing and reputation, who obtained
his appointment through the interest of the royal
favorite Godoy, " Prince of Peace." This viceroy
requested permission to erect a statue of his royal
master in the Plaza Mayor of the Mexican capital,
nominally himself assuming the charges of the work,
though nearly the whole expense finally came upon
the city and private individuals. It is an equestrian
statue cast in bronze. The king is dressed in classic
style, wearing a laurel wreath, and in his hand he
holds a raised sceptre. Thus a pretentious statue
of a sovereign for whom they cared nothing was
forced upon the Mexicans, while his predecessor,
Charles III., was left without such honor.
In 1822 the statue was inclosed in a great wooden
globe painted blue, so that the sight of a tyrant in
his robes need not offend the new-born patriotism of
the city. But such feelings have now passed away,
and it stands in the plazucla for the observation of
loyalist or rebel.
Charles had a son, P^erdinand, with whom, as is
fre(]ucnt in the history of crown princes, he could not
agree. Thus when Napoleon Bonaparte, who, pass-
RE VOL U Tl ONS. 2^%
ing from conquest to conquest, turned his attention
to Spain, botii father and son sought the aid, or at
least sympathy, of the great conqueror in their fam-
ily quarrel. Accepting this pretext for intervention,
Napoleon carried his armies into the peninsula in
1808. The king and court fled from Madrid, with
the intention, very decided for a short time, of seek-
ing refuge in Mexico. This project fell through.
Charles abdicated in favor of his son, Prince Ferdi-
nand, who became Ferdinand VII. But Napoleon
wanted no Ferdinand VII., and made him renounce
the crown. French troops took possession of the
capital, and Joseph Bonaparte governed Spain under
the title of king until 18 13. But the Spanish people
resisted the French invasion. Councils were assem-
bled, assuming royal authority, to govern in the
name of Ferdinand. This was the beginning of the
Juntas which have since played so important a part
in Spanish affairs at home and in her colonies.
We will not follow the matter in Spain further than
to add that she was freed from the burden of the Bo-
napartes by the aid of the English in 18 14. A year
after, the power of Napoleon was at an end.
The Bourbon dynasty was restored in Spain, as
well as in France, and Ferdinand VII. was rein-
stated, with limited powers, however, for in the course
of this period of agitation the Spanish people had
tasted the cup of independence, and the ancient ar-
bitrary rule of monarch and favorite was no longer
tolerated by them. The Marquis of Branciforte, no
longer viceroy, declared himself in favor of Joseph
Bonaparte, and emigrated to France. His Mexican
236 THE STORY OS. MEXICO.
property was confiscated later and handed over to
the authorities.
Here we must leave Spain to fight her own battles.
In the beginning of the new century, Don Jose de
Iturrigaray took possession of the vice-regal seat.
He was a man of public spirit, and an excellent
ruler. He greatly improved the highroad from Vera
Cruz to the capital, built the Puente del Rey, since
called the National Bridge, protected commerce, and
encouraged home industry. He organized a militia,
greatly developed the army, and showed himself
devoted to the interests of his charge.
But the audiencia then existing, and many Span-
iards, as soon as the news of Napoleon's invasion of
Spain reached them, imagined that Iturrigaray, who
had thus brought the army to an available condition,
had conceived the idea of seizing Mexico, and as-
suming an independent crown for himself. Acting
upon this idea, they rose in revolt, took possession
of the palace and seized Iturrigaray and all his family,
shutting him up in the fortress of San Juan de Uloa,
until opportunity offered to send him back to Spain.
An old marshal of the army, Garibay, was made
viceroy in his place, but he ruled but a few months,
when the central Junta of Spain ordered him super-
seded by the Archbishop of Mexico. Whatever
were the rights of this question, the act of revolt set
an example persistently followed in Mexico through
the first half of this century. In this experience it
was discovered how easy it was to overturn a govern-
ment ; the Mexicans, delighted with their success,
wondered why they had never done it before. In
RE VqlL UTIONS. 237
this first case, it was the Spaniards, of pure blood,
who took the matter into tlieir own hands.
RevoK. independence, were in the air. The poHcy
of Spain liad been rigorous in the extreme. Enor-
mous taxes oppressed the people, the colonists had
no voice in th^xmaking of the laws, which were arbi-
trary ; and their exaction depended on the cruelty
or generosity of the reigning viceroy. These rulers,
constantly changing, had no oppcktunity to incor-
porate themselves with the people. At the best, it
was a rule of strangers, in which the individuality of
the colony had no chance. Pure Spaniards alone
constituted society in Mexico ; those of mixed
blood were regarded with contempt ; while the In-
dians, native to the soil, counted for nothing.
It was inevitable, then, that revolutions in Mexico
should follow those in the rest of the civilized world,
but it was hard upon the public-spirited Iturrigaray
that its first outburst should fall upon his head.
Great agitation followed, and the Archbishop of
Mexico had hard work to make good his title received
from the Junta Central. He was superseded by the
Regency established at home, and Don Francisco
Venegas entered the capital as viceroy in 18 10.
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XXV.
HIDALGO.
Miguel Hidalgo was born in the rancho of San
Vicente, between the eastern shore of the river
Turbio and the hacienda of Cuitzeo de los Naran-
jos, in the jurisdiction of Penjamo in Guanajuato,
on the 8th of May, 1753, the day of the archangel
Miguel, whom we call Saint Michael. His father
was a well-to-do farmer, Christobal Hidalgo y Cos-
tilla, and his mother, Ana Maria Gallega. Miguel
was baptized on the i6th of the same month of the
year, in the chapel of Cuitzeo de los Naranjos, and
passed his childhood at home with his parents. At
a proper age he was sent to school in Valladolid,
at the Colegio de San Nicholas, where he pursued
his studies until he came to be head of the institu-
tion. This school was founded by the good Bishop
Quiroga, at the time the Cathedral was transferred
from Tzintzuntzan, and was therefore one of the first
in the country. This fact, and the greater one, that
the Benemerito cura Hidalgo not only taught but
lived within the walls, where no doubt he first formed
his ideas of independence, makes Morelia very proud
of its seminary.
Miguel went to Mexico in 1779 to take sacerdotal
238
240 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
orders and the degree of bachelor in theology. This
was but three years after the declaration of indepen-
dence in the United States. He served as curate
in several places, and on the death of his brother
Joaquin received the curacy of the little pueblo of
Dolores.
He was a man of intellectual gifts, and good in-
struction. He knew French, which was uncommon
at that time in his class, and his opinions on all sub-
jects were advanced beyond the average of the
period.
His predilection was the pursuit of agriculture,
and at Dolores it was his pleasure to cultivate the
vine and the mulberry. He established a manufac-
ture of bricks and earthenware in the place, and
made himself generally beloved by his gentle and
affable deportment, notwithstanding his radical
ideas, which were regarded as extreme by his people.
In the year 1800, he was denounced before the
Committee of the Inquisition for maintaining dan-
gerous opinions, without, however, any serious result.
Bold schemes he formed for the rescue of his coun-
try from the bondage in which she was held by
Spain. In the solitude of his pueblo his strong, well-
trained glance fixed itself upon the light which was
flooding the world from the rising republic on his
own continent. This man, sprung from the people,
dared to think of a government by the people. He
longed to throw off the yoke, not only of an alien
government, but of a haughty class. He wanted
Mexico to be Mexico, and not a helpless dependency
of a rapidly deteriorating Spain.
HIDALGO. 241
Such dreams and ideas Hidalgo imparted to a few
other persons, and they became plans. Those who
talked these things fell under suspicion, and in
Queretaro, an attempt was made to seize a small
knot of such men. They were warned, and fled or
concealed themselves. Hidalgo, hearing of this,
instead of following their example, determined to
delay no longer, but to declare independence at
once. In this resolve he was supported by another
patriotic spirit.
Ignacio Allende was born in San Miguel el Grande
the 20th of January, 1779. His father was a
Spaniard, Narciso Allende, his mother, Mariana
Uraga. Of a noble family, with wealth and good
position, he was destined for a soldier, and reached
the grade of captain of dragoons.
Fired by the ideas of independence which were
smouldering everywhere, Allende made frequent
visits to Hidalgo, and with him planned the details
for the important step they were meditating. Two
officers in the regiment of Allende were of his
opinion, and became confidants of the plan.
On the night of the 15th of September, 1810,
roused by Allende or Aldama, another of the
plotters, Hidalgo rose from his bed, dressed himself
quietly, and calling his brother to his aid, with ten
armed men, besides their few friends, went straight
to the prison and liberated certain men, arming
them with swords. This was Saturday night, or
rather the dawn of Sunday. At early mass, all the
parish were informed of what had happened, and
every countryman in the neighborhood took the
242 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
side of Hidalgo, who thus became the leader, if not
of an army, at_least of a respectable force of Mexi-
cans. The little band hastened to San Miguel el
Grande, which they reached before nightfall the
same da}-.
This movement, started by Hidalgo, is called the
Grito de Dolores. The little body of eighty men,
which soon increased to three hundred, bore for a
banner a picture of the Holy Virgin of Guadalupe,
belonging to a little village church. Their cry, the
Grito, w^as " Up with True Religion, and Down
with False Government." ^
Nothing like this had happened ever before in
Mexico. That common men, not appointed by the
court of Spain, should dare to have an opinion
about letters, religion, or government was a thing
unheard of. For a while amazement prevented any
vigorous steps against them. At San Miguel, the
regiment of Allende joined the little band, and a
crowd of laborers from the field, armed with slings,
sticks, and spades. Out of this raw material Hidalgo
organized an army, with himself at its head under
the title of general, and Allende as his lieutenant.
At Celaya, their numbers had increased to fifty
thousand men — some say more. With such a force
and supported by the enthusiasm which prevailed,
Hidalgo resolved to march upon Guanajuato, an
already rich and flourishing city, the capital of the
second largest mining state in Mexico. It is built
in a deep, narrow ravine, the houses crowded in
steep streets like stairways.
Its inhabitants saw with terror and astonishment
HIDALGO. 243
a mass of men advancing towards it, armed with
strange weapons, but holding the order and disci-
pline of an organized army. The Spaniards, that is
the representatives of government, resolved to de-
fend the town, and prepared for the attack.
The Independents were driven back several times.
The besieged had entrenched themselves in the
strong place, Alhondiga de Grenaditas, used for stor-
ing grain, with the governor of the town at their
head ; and there defended themselves so well that
things were going badly for their opponents, until a
little boy, called Pipita, on all fours, with a lighted
brand in his hand, shielding himself with a flat tile
torn up from the pavement, succeeded in reaching
the great gate and setting fire to it, in spite of the
bullets which fell about him. Amidst the blaze, tbe
insurgents seized the stronghold by force of arms,
and killed or made prisoners all within it. The
populace of Guanajuato rose, rushing about the
streets and sacking houses and shops. Hidalgo,
however, succeeded in restoring order by severe
edicts. He established himself in this his first
stronghold, to collect supplies of arms and money
for his volunteer host. The whole province of
Guanajuato declared in his favor, and three squad-
rons of the regiment del Principe swelled the num-
bers of his troops.
Just before, on the 13th of September, a new vice-
roy had arrived in the city of Mexico, little thinking
what the nature of his new duties were to be, or that
he should be so soon called upon to execute them.
Don Francisco Javier Venegas, lieutenant-general of
244 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the Spanish forces, had distinguished himself in the
war between the armies of Spain and Napoleon. He
sailed away from confusion at home, and imagined,
very likely, that he was going to settle down to the
peaceable monotony of a life in the provinces. He
began by calling a Junta of prominent persons in the
capital, and among other things proclaimed to them
that the Regency of Spain begged the aid of money
from their loyal Americans to sustain the war J
against Napoleon. .j
Three days afterwards independence was declared
in the Grito de Dolores. The viceroy learned that
Mexico was not behind the age in revolutions, and
that he must call upon his military skill to suppress
a formidable rising in its cradle. He ordered all the
troops then in garrison at Mexico to Queretaro, in-
creased these forces with rural troops, and sent for
marines to Vera Cruz, while he summoned forces
from San Luis Potosi, at the north, and even those
of Guadalajara, in the west, to hold themselves in
readiness.
He further published a decree of the Regency,
liberating all Indians from taxation, and put a
price upon the heads of Hidalgo, Allende, and
Aldama of ten thousand dollars, promising also
indulgence to such Independents as should at once
lay down arms.
The Mexican clergy allied themselves with the
civil authorities on this issue ; the bishops excom-
municated Hidalgo and his companions, and furious
sermons were preached against them in the churches.
The Inquisition renewed all the charges against
HIDALGG. 245
Hidalgo which they had found in 1800, and cited
him to appear before them. Yet his cry was not
against religion, but bad government. The Bishop
of Michoacan also excommunicated him, and set at
once upon preparing the defence of Valladolid as
soon as he heard the echo of the Grito de Dolores.
In fact, excomunication from various dioceses rat-
tled round the heads of the insurgents, who kept on
their way little heeding so much mighty sound.
On the 17th of October the Independent troops
entered Valladolid without resistance, the valiant
bishop having fled to Mexico at the first sign of his
approach, together with the civil and military author-
ities, and many Europeans settled in that hitherto
peaceful town. Hidalgo compelled the canons in
the absence of the bishop to remove the excommu-
nidtion fulminated against him and his companions.
He established his authority in the place, and in ten
days, with his ever-swelling army, took the bold step
of advancing upon the capital.
As this terrible band approached, the inhabitants
of Mexico, remembering Guanajuato, were filled with
fear. Some hid their plate in the convents ; others
hid themselves ; many fled the city. The brave and
military viceroy sent his army forward, commanded
by Trujillo. Upon the Monte de la Cruces, outside
of the city, the forces met, and a terrible battle
ensued. The insurgents were swept by the fire of their
opponents' artillery ; but their immense numbers bore
up against all resistance, inspired by enthusiasm
in the cause, and triumphed completely, the soldiers
of the viceroy abandoning the field with many losses.
246 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The commanding general, Trujillo, owed his hfe to
his excellent horse, which bore him swiftly back to
Mexico. Had Hidalgo marched immediately upon
Mexico, then in a state of panic and confusion most
advantageous to his cause, it might have been for
him the victorious end of the struggle. Unfortu-
nately, he decided to withdraw towards Quer^taro,
fearing the approach of reinforcements from the
capital.
In fact, at Aculco he was vigorously attacked by
the division of Calleja arriving from the north, and,
after a hot combat, the insurgents were overcome,
losing all their artillery and many men. The huge
army melted, and Hidalgo went back to Valladolid
with but a handful of men.
Calleja followed Allende to Guanajuato, where he
attacked him with the same vigor, so that he was
obliged to abandon the city and retreat to Zacatecas,
which had already proclaimed independence. A
cruel retaliation was taken by Calleja upon the
inhabitants of Guanajuato.
Hidalgo again assembled an army, and went to
Guadalajara, where the Independents had already
declared themselves. No sooner had he left Valla-
dolid than it was again occupied by royalist troops.
In Guadalajara Hidalgo organized a government,
taking for himself the title of Generalissimo, and ap-
pointing ministers. He sent immediately a com-
missioner to the United States Government ; but
this emissary had not gone far before he was seized
and made prisoner by the Spaniards. Hidalgo
exerted himself vigorously to collect arms and
HIDALGO. 247
means for reorganizing his army. But the royal-
ists, with equal energy and resources far better, had
their forces ready to advance under the orders of
Calleja, while Hidalgo's army were still in the rough.
Nevertheless he resolved to attack without waiting
for the royalists, against the opinion of Allende and
others, who thought the risk too great. He sallied
from Guadalajara with his large but undisciplined
force on the i6th of January, to the Puente de Cal-
deron, whence at the fall of evening could be discerned
the regular troops of Calleja, to the number of ten
thousand men, in the best discipline, and perfectly
armed and equipped. The next day was fought the
battle of Calderon.
The result was a foregone conclusion. The insur-
gents fought bravely; the battle was undecided for
some hours, but the rout was complete, the van-
quished Independents retreating in all directions.
Calleja entered Guadalajara. The insurgents
were put down in various places, and the revolution
for the time was suppressed.
Hidalgo set forward towards Zacatecas. On the
way, he encountered Allende, Jimenez, and other
chiefs of the insurrection, who had escaped with
many perils from the fatal Puente de Calderon. It
is said that their differences of opinion concerning
the plan of campaign caused dissatisfaction among
them. They agreed, however, to hasten towards
the United States with such troops and money as
they had left, there to recruit and discipline an
army with which to return and conquer.
With a large convoy of mules and baggage, some
248 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
pieces of artillery, and a considerable escort, they
were overtaken and surprised by the Spanish troops
not far from the frontier they longed to cross, and
were made prisoners in a dismal desert spot called
Las Norias de Bajan, in the state of Coahuila which
borders upon the Rio Grande. The chiefs of con-
spiracy were secured and conducted under a strong
escort to Chihuahua, where they were tried and
condemned to death.
On the 26th day of June, 181 1, Allende, Aldama,
and Jimenez were shot in Chihuahua, and upon the
31st of July perished Hidalgo, showing in his last
moments great bravery and self-possession.
The heads of these four illustrious chiefs were
carried to Guanajuato, and nailed upon the four cor-
ners of the Alhondiga de Grenaditas, where they re-
mained for ten years. Later the remains, as those of
martyrs, received solemn burial beneath the altar of
the sovereigns in the grand cathedral of Mexico.
The execution of these men closed the first period
of the struggle for independence in Mexico. The
royalist troops had everywhere triumphed ; the
voices which had uttered the Grito de Dolores were
silent. Order might now resume its course, and
Venegas, the viceroy, settle into that quiet living
he had proposed for himself in the provinces.
It is interesting to wonder what Avould have hap-
pened if the insurgent chief had succeeded in cross-
ing the frontier into the vague regions of the West,
under tne protection of the American flag. The
Government of the United States in 181 1 was
scarcely in a condition to render efificient aid to
(
4
►
HIDALGO. 249
straggling patriots from other countries. Moreover,
the lands between the Rio Grande and the new re-
public were but a wilderness, in which a little hand-
ful of men, however brave, however independent,
might easily have perished by starvation or cold.
The death that came upon them was martyrdom to
their cause, more efificient as an incentive to future
patriotism than lives of prolonged incomplete
effort.
The Alh6ndiga de Grenaditas is now used for a
prison. In its walls is still to be seen the spike
from which for ten years hung the head of Hidalgo.
Before the entrance stands a bronze statue of the
first liberator of his country.
XXVI.
MORELOS.
The Independents were not all destroyed. Before
the end of the year which witnessed the execution
of the three chiefs, the name of Morelos began to
be noised abroad.
The father of Morelos was a carpenter living in
Valladolid with his wife J nana Pavon. They were
of low birth and poor. On the 30th of September
J nana Pavon, on her way to the market-place, was
obliged to enter a house on the corner of the street
where she chanced to be, in order that her sou
should be born immediately. This house now has a
stone inserted over the doorway thus inscribed :
The inwtortal
Josd M. Morelos was born in this house
on the "i^otJi of September 1765.
\6th of September i88t.
In 1 801, this son, then a curate in the neighbor-
hood, bought another house in the town, which he
rebuilt and made comfortable. This house remains
in the hands of the relatives of the hero, who also
possess his portrait and a piece of the cloth with
250
MORELOS. 251
which his eyes were bandaged on the 22d of De-
cember, 181 5. OVer the door is inscribed :
Morclos the illustrious !
Lniuortal Hero.
In this house, honored by thy presence,
Salute you the grateful people of More Ha.
For the grateful people of his birth-place changed
the time-honored name of their city to Morelia in
honor of their patriotic citizen, thus paying a wor-
thy tribute to his memory, although slighting that
of the good viceroy who established its foundations.
The parents of Morelos dedicated him to the
career of a muleteer, as the local history expresses
it, and a muleteer he remained until he was thirty
years old. At that advanced age he had the cour-
age to enter the Colegio de San Nicholas, where
Hidalgo was then superintendent. It is easy to see
that other lessons were taught there besides. those
of the school curriculum ; Morelos made rapid
progress in all branches of education, was ordained
to the church, and obtained several successive cura-
cies. Thus employed, when the Grito de Dolores
sounded over Anahuac, he offered his services to the
Generalissimo Hidalgo on the side of independence.
He was sent to raise the standard of liberty on the
Pacific coast, and starting from his village with
twenty-five men, arrived at Acapulco with a thou-
sand.
In various encounters with the royalists, Morelos
and his men were successful. He showed great per-
ception in the management of troops, and marched
252 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
from one triumph to another as far as Cuautla, a
picturesque town eight}'-five miles southeast of the
city of Mexico. Its lower level makes it tropical and
picturesque, with lanes winding about among the
adobe huts of the Indians, hedged with banana and
orange trees, and hung with all manner of wandering
vines and brilliant blossoms. Water trickles every-
where, and across the broad valley rises toward the
north the peak of Popocatepetl.
Here Morelos sustained a siege against the well
trained army of Calleja, still in the field, and ripe
with the honors of victory in the campaigns at
Hidalgo. The Independents held out from the 19th
of February to the 2d of May, with great valor and
endurance, repulsing three assaults, and sustaining
daily attacks, while their sufferings w^ere great from
lack of food and water. The fame of Morelos,
heroic defender of Cuautla, spread far and wide.
After sixty-two days of steady resistance, Morelos,
recognizing that he must abandon the place, suc-
ceeded in coming out at night without molestation,
retiring in order towards the north.
Until the end of the year 1812, Morelos was en-
gaged in leading his army from one victory to
another, and gathering everywhere additions to his
forces. The next year he ventured as far as Aca-
pulco, scene of his first expedition. The garrfson
there capitulated, and he took possession of the for-
tress of San Diego in August, 1813.
On the 14th of September, Morelos called together
the first Mexican Congress, at Chilpantzingo, not
very far from the Pacific coast. Among its members
MO RE LOS. 253
were many whose names have since been repeatedly
before the Mexicans as Hberals. The first act of
this Congress was to nominate Morelos Captain-Gen-
eral of the Independent forces. It was thought sig-
nificant that on the same date, September 15th,
three years before, Hidalgo had placed himself in
the same post of honor and difificulty.
The declaration of independence issued by this
Congress was as follows :
" The Congress of Anahuac, lawfully installed in
the city of Chilpantzingo, of North America, sol-
emnly declares, in the presence of God, arbitrator of
kingdoms and author of society, who gives and takes
away according to the inscrutable designs of his
providence, that, through the present circumstances
of Europe, it has recovered the exercise of its
sovereignty, hitherto usurped, its dependence upon
the throne of Spain being thus forever disrupted
and dissolved."
During this year the viceroy, Venegas, was recalled
by the regency, and the office conferred upon Cal-
leja, who had so valiantly defended the royalist
cause.
The plan of Morelos was to take Valladolid, and
establish there the seat of Congress. Bringing to-
gether all his forces, he approached the capital of
Michoacan on the 23d December, and demanded its
surrender. But the city was now occupied by the
royalist forces of two commanders, one of whom was
Agustin de Yturbide, already renowned for his re-
peated victories over the insurgents and the unrelent-
ing vigor with which he pursued them. These forces
254 ^-^^ STO/<; V OF MEXICO.
attacked the army of Morelos, and completely routed
it on Christmas eve.
Morelos escaped, and with a few soldiers returned
to Acapulco. The prestige of his army was lost ;
apparently his star was declining. One mishap after
another followed, and the royal forces pursued him
with unrelenting vigilance, which he evaded several
times with very narrow escapes. The campaign of
Yturbide was vigorous ; several of the best captains of
the Independents were captured, and paid with their
lives for their devotion to the cause of liberty.
Among them was Matamoras. Meanwhile the first
Mexican Congress, like many another, was not har-
monious ; divisions arose between its deputies and its
general. The patriot was learning that it is harder
to keep a government well in hand than it is to seize
it by force.
In 1815 this Congress decided it would like to
move to Tehuacan, and assigned to Morelos the task
of escorting it thither with all the troops he held at
his disposition. This strange march set forth in mys-
tery and concealment on the 29th of September ; but
in spite of the stratagems of Morelos, the royalist
forces discovered its route, and intercepted it. More-
los gave front to the enemy, that the honorable
deputies and members of his Congress might have a
chance to escape. His force was routed, he himself
betrayed by a deserter.
Morelos was taken to Mexico ; the ecclesiastical
tribunes covered him with ignominy, and he was
handed over to the military authorities. By them
he was at once sentenced to death, and on the 22d
MORE LOS, 255
of December, 181 5, he was shot In tlie small town
San Cristobal Ecatepec, dyins^ with the bravery of
a hero.
This was the end of the dark period, called the
second, of Mexican independence. Its life was in
its chief, the darintj, patriotic Morelos.
There is no doubt that Morelos had many of the
great qualities for a successful leader of men. He
was born in poverty, with no antecedents of great-
ness ; untaught, even in the rudiments of learning,
until he was thirty ; up to that time patiently driving
mules along the steep paths of his native state.
Whoever has watched the slow, though sure, prog-
ress of these animals, and the enforced loitering in
the pace of him who accompanies them, must be
impressed with the idea that patience is a virtue
likely to be developed in such training.
Great ideas then pervaded society. It is probable
that Morelos was more than dazzled by the brilliancy
of Napoleon's career. Military success inflamed
many hearts and turned many heads in those days.
There was the making of a military commander in the
stuff of which Morelos was compounded. With the
opportunities of Napoleon for creating large armies,
well equipped with all the appurtenances of warfare
developed by the skill and science of the time,
Morelos might have arrived at his object, the liberty
of his country.
There is no reason to suppose that a personal
ambition animated him. He made himself general-
in-chief of his army, but that was a necessary step
for the furtherance of his designs. His fixed idea
256 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
was that of an independent Mexico. So little was
he tempted by the trials of prosperity, it is im-
possible to say whether success, the sparkling foam
of flattery, would have turned his head, as they did
so many others, in the supreme hours of attainment.
As it was, he died the death of a hero, leaving
behind him a reputation pure and unsullied by the
taint of personal ambition.
His career was in no sense a failure. The object
of his sacrifice was achieved in efTect ; the indepen-
dence of Mexico, although not within his own grasp,
was sure. Another idea of great importance was
impressed upon the Spanish in Mexico, the Spaniards
in the mother country and the world looking on:
that the blood of the native Mexican was capable of
great deeds, that the descendants of the Aztecs
were something better than pcoiics, slaves without
the name. The lower class of the population of
Anahuac raised their heads and listened. Low mur-
murs, as of a distant ocean, told them that the tide
of their destiny was turned, that the day was coming
when it would break with force against the bulwarks
built up against it.
Morelos could die content. He had achieved for
himself no proud seat on the throne of the Monte-
zumas ; he asked no such reward.
He had forcibly impressed upon his country the
ideas first given to him and them by the Curate
Hidalgo. The impression was not washed out, but
made fast by the blood he caused to be shed, and
his own.
If glory was his aim, that he has attained. The
MO RE LOS. 257
Mexicans adore Morelos. His native town is bap-
tized anew with his name, and the state bears the
name of Morelos, which contains Cuautla, the town
he defended for sixty-two days with the patience of
the muleteer and the obstinacy of his animals.
If the subsequent leaders of Mexican independence
have not been always true to the example he gave
them, of unselfish devotion to his cause, the great
population has never wavered in its devotion to his
memory.
In the public square of Morelos, capital of the
state which also bears his name, is a marble statue of
the hero, set up during the French occupation, on
September 30, 1865, the one hundredth anniversary
of the birth of Morelos. The Emperor Maximilian
presided on the occasion.
XXVII.
YTURBIDE.
Calleja remained several months at the head of
government and then returned to Spain, having
taken vigorous measures to extinguish forever, as
he thought, the flames of insurrection. In the last
days of his administration he arrested and sent to a
convent two women distinguished for their devotion
to the cause of independence ; one of them. Dona
Josefa Dominguez, the wife of the man who began
with Hidalgo the agitation of the subject.
Calleja returned to Spain, where he was made
Conde de Calderon. He was cruel and despotic,
and has left in Mexico a name much detested.
The struggle for independence continued in sev-
eral parts of the country, but the Spanish govern-
ment, with good troops and ami)le resources, either
dispersed or routed the rebellious forces. Some of
the chiefs of the insurrection abandoned the cause,
accepting the indulgence offered them by the vice-
roy, while others retired to the mountains, like
Pelayo in the early days of Spain, when the Moors
swept over the Peninsula, to keep active for happier
days the sacred fire of liberty.
The successor of r.alleia, Apodaca, by his concili-
YTURBIDE, 259
atory and humane conduct, did much to tranquillize
society near the capital, but ideas of independence
were still working all over the country. Guerrero,
who must be counted among the heroes of the move-
ment, showed an unwearying activity in the cam-
paign. Many times his forces were routed ; many
times they triumphed ; neither success nor defeat
made him waver. He was covered with wounds, but
heeded them not ; he was deaf to proposals of clem-
ency from the royalists. In the mountains of the
south, to which he retired, he kept up constant war-
fare upon the Spanish troops, and even set up a new
national government. This he continued without
falling into the hands of the royalists until 1820,
when the course of Yturbide put a stop to a warfare
which had lasted ten years and soaked in blood the
soil of Anahuac.
The French had been driven from Spain in 18 14,
and Ferdinand VII. was again upon the throne, but
there was a revolution in 1820, by which he was com-
pelled to surrender much of the authority which he
had taken upon himself in spite of his oaths and
promises. He was obliged to convoke the Cortes,
to change his ministers for liberals, to abolish the
Inquisition, free the press, and re-establish the na-
tional militia.
Such events awoke again the demand for a liberal
government in Mexico. It was then that an ofificer
in the royalist army, a native Mexican, who had hith-
erto distinguished himself on that side, now changed
his allegiance, and took up the cause of independ-
ence.
26o THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The concessions forced on King Ferdinand were
celebrated in Mexico on the 31st of May, 1820, the
suppression of the Inquisition and the Hberty of the
press being subjects of great rejoicings. The inde-
pendent party saw in these reforms an opportunity
to avail themselves of the new element to realize
their most ardent visions. A great division was pro-
duced among the resident Spaniards of the country,
for while some of these declared in favor of the con-
stitution, the greater part showed themselves hostile
to it, still clinging to ideas of absolute power, and
foreseeing that so great a political change would
hasten the independence of Mexico.
Agustin de Yturbide was born in the city of
Valladolid, not then re-named Morelia, on the 27th
of September, 1783. His parents were of native
Mexican blood, Joaquin de Yturbide, born in Pam-
plona, and Ana Ardmburu.
He had entered a royalist regiment before he was
sixteen years old, and until 1808 he showed himself
a vigorous opponent of the liberal party, serving with
his troops in different parts of the country, always
signalizing himself by his valor, his activity, and his
adroit combinations to bring about the defeat of the
cause opposed to his own. Through the interven-
ing grades he passed to be colonel, and held com-
mands of importance at Guanajuato and Valladolid.
In the diversity of opinions of 1820, Yturbide was
r;imong those who accepted the idea of a complete
separation for Mexico from the Peninsula. Just at
that time the viceroy conferred upon him the grade
of brigadier, and gave him command of a body of
YTURBIDE, 261
troops destined to operate against the insurgents of
Guerrero in the south.
Yturbide left the capital in November, and a month
later found himself confronted by an enemy of some-
thing like three thousand men. After several en-
counters unfavorable to his command, Yturbide
entered into an active correspondence with the op-
posing chief, the result of which was an interview
for friendly conference. Both generals found them-
selves in accord, for, to the surprise of Guerrero, his
opponent revealed an ardent desire to proclaim in-
dependence. Guerrero, without personal ambition,
willingly handed over the command to the renegade,
who announced, on February 24th, the so-called
" Plan of Iguala."
Three essential articles made up this proposal: (i)
the preservation of the Roman Catholic Church, with
the exclusion of other forms of religion ; (2) the ab-
solute independence of Mexico under the govern-
ment of a moderate monarchy with some member of
the reigning house of Spain upon the throne ; and (3)
the amicable union of Spaniards and Mexicans.
These three clauses were called the " three guaran-
ties." When the national Mexican flag was devised
later, its colors represented these three articles of the
national faith — white for religious purity, green for
union, and red for independence. The army of
Yturbide was known as the army of the three guar-
anties.
Upon this basis the contest was resumed. It found
favor in many parts of Mexico, and the independent
troop ;, with their chiefs, very generally gave in their
adherence at once to the Plan of Iguala.
262 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
As soon as the viceroy could recover from his
surprise on waking up one day to find a brigadier of
his own troops concerting a revolution, he issued
manifestoes against the undertaking, and at once set
about raising an army of six thousand men, which
advanced but slowly to the field of action in the
south, where the troops of the late brigadier had
joined the insurgent forces. This gave time for the
Independents to collect together the various forces
of Bustamente and other chiefs of their way of
thinking. Valladolid was compelled to capitulate
for the third or fourth time in twenty years ; after-
wards Queretaro, and, finally, Puebla, which, besieged
by the troops of Bravo and Herrera, surrendered to
Yturbide, who made a triumphal entry into the city
on the 2d of August, 1821. This was the first of the
sieges which the City of the Angels has sustained, its
position with regard to the capital exposing it to
every ill wind that blows in that direction.
The viceroy, Apodaca, hearing of the rapid
triumphs of the insurgents, adopted defensive meas-
ures. He established a permanent Junta of war,
stopped the liberty of the press, and decreed the en-
forced enlistment of all men between sixteen and
sixty. But desertions were constant, the public
spirit was aroused against government, and except
that the pure Spaniards were in favor of it, all
social classes were decided to overthrow the old
regime. Even the garrison of Mexico, losing faith
in the viceroy, conspired against him. A meeting
inspired by these discontented troops invaded the
viceregal palace, and informed Apodaca that his
YTURBIDE. 263
charge was at an end. Francisco Novella, sub-
inspector of artillery, was hastily set up into his
place ; the deposed viceroy left the capital next
day with his family, and returned, with such haste as
they could bring to pass, to Spain.
The sub-inspector of artillery went to bed in the
palace of the royal viceroy ; when he rose the next
morning he found little or nothing to do. Like his
deposed predecessor, he went on dictating measures,
which nobody noticed, to check the revolution ; but
this had advanced too far for sub-inspectors to lay
hands upon.
Not only the old insurgents came to the front, but
the greater part of the chiefs of the royalists,
Spansh as well as Mexican, declared for indepen-
dence, Santa Anna, at Vera Cruz, among others.
Yturbide placed himself at the head of all, and with
such resources the campaign was swift and success-
ful. Thus passed the month of July. On the 30th
arrived at Vera Cruz a new viceroy, sent in advance,
before insurrection was dreamed of at home, to re-
place Apodaca, the last governor ever sent from
Spain, Juan O'Donoju, sixty-fourth viceroy since
the coming of Mendoza.
He disembarked, took the oath of office before the
governor of Vera Cruz, and assumed the position of
governor and captain-general.
Yturbide hastened to meet him at Cordova on his
way to the capital, and convinced him by the elo-
quence of his arguments and the proof of his power,
visible in the ample number of troops within his
control, that discretion was the better part of valor.
264 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The Treaty of Cordova, then and there settled be-
tween these two men, dechired the independence of
Mexico, with Ferdinand Vll. or some other for its
independent sovereign, establishing a Junta of gov-
ernment, to which O'Donoju stipulated to belong,
provisional until a king should be found.
These things settled, Yturbide and O'Donoju,
hand in hand, as Yturbide and Guerrero had come
before, approached the capital. Sub-inspector
Novella was summoned outside the city to a con-
ference, and not unwillingly surrendered his brief
authority to the two harmonious chieftains, v
Yturbide paused at Toluca to collect all his forces
and to draw in such Spanish troops as were now
ready to accept him. On the 27th of September,
his birthday, he made a triumphal entry into the
capital with the army of the Independents, consisting
of some sixteen thousand men, with sixty-eight
pieces of artillery. They were received with im-
mense enthusiasm, and great demonstrations of re-
joicing signalized the end of Spanish domination,
which had lasted three hundred years.
On the next day, the 2Sth of September, the pro-
visional Junta met, and declared itself installed
under the presidency of Yturbide. Its thirty-eight
members accepted by oath the Plan of Iguala and
the Treaty of Cordova, and further issued an Act of
Independence of the Mexican Empire, subscribed to
by all the Junta. A government was formed, called
the Regency, composed of Don Agustin de Yturbide,
president, and five other members, among them
Don Juan O'Donoju. The latter died the next
YTURBIDE. 265
month, and thus ended his very brief career in
Mexico ; his phice was taken by the Bishop of
Puebla.
Thus was formed, at a stroke, the Mexican Em-
pire, whose wide territory extended from Guate-
mala on the south, over lands now included in
Texas, the two Californias, and New Mexico at the
north.
Many Spaniards, disgusted with this turn of affairs,
returned to Europe with their families. Others con-
cluded to accept the situation, and remained to
watch the course of events.
The new government set to work in good earnest
to .strengthen its foundations and extend its influ-
ence. The province of Chiapas, on the Pacific coast,
declared its emancipation from Spain, and of its
own accord withdrew from Guatemala and incor-
porated itself with Mexico. It still remains a Mexi-
can state. Guatemala also declared its wish to join
the Mexican Empire, and the Guatemalian repre-
sentatives accordingly took their seats in the first
Mexican Congress ; but the next year this province
concluded to become an independent nation on its
own account, and took itself away from the empire.
The solemn installation of this second Mexican
Congress took place in February, 1822. Its first act
was to interfere with the proceedings of the Regency.
Ill-feeling, produced by want of harmony, increased
daily, forming parties which strongly adhered either
to one side or the other. Of these, the original In-
dependents, and such Spaniards as sincerely desired
the fulfilment of the Plan of Iguala, by which a
266 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Spanish prince was to be chosen their ruler, mani-
fested more and more their disapproval of the Presi-
dent of the Regency; while the other party, com-
posed of the army, the clergy, and some Spaniards,
had already accepted the idea of elevating Yturbide
to a throne.
A ferment of discordant opinions, conflicting inter-
ests, and personal ambitions arose, in the midst of
which came the news, naturally to be expected, that
the Cortes of Spain declared null and void the Treaty
of Cordova, concerted by Yturbide and O'Donoju.
This gave Yturbide his opportunity. On the night
of the 1 8th of May, a movement was begun by a
sergeant of one of the regiments, echoed imme-
diately by various garrison corps, proclaiming Ytur-
bide Emperor. The leader modestly referred these
applicants to the decision of Congress, and this body,
the next day, with soldiers all around, in the highest
state of impatient excitement, declared, by a vote of
sixty-seven against a minority of fifteen, the Em-
peror, under the title of Agustin I.
Thus by rapid steps had Yturbide climbed from
the position of a simple soldier without rank to the
throne of the Montezumas. Wholly different from
Morelos, he cannot be called a patriot in the highest
sense. Probably his motive from the very beginning
was personal ambition, in which loyalty to a king
or to a cause had no part. He too, doubtless, had
watched the career of Napoleon Bonaparte, at that
time a dangerous light shining in the eyes of all
men. Yet it must not be forgotten that if Yturbide
worked for himself, he yet achieved, at the same
YTURBIDE. 267
time, the independence of his country. His throne
was an unsteady one, but the dais erected for it to
rest upon became the soHd platform of hberty.
Agustin I. took the oath of ofifice before the
Mexican Congress, which proceeded to pass decrees
estabhshing the succession to the throne, the titles
and forms of address to be held toward the mem-
bers of the imperial family, as well as their endow-
ments, corresponding to their rank, details which
turned out to be of no permanent value.
On the 2 1st of July, Yturbide and his wife were
anointed and crowned in the Cathedral, with all the
solemnities and forms which have been observed in
Europe on such occasions for centuries.
But the Emperor was not firmly established upon
his throne. As soon as they had recovered from
their fright and surprise, many of the deputies, who
had voted unwillingly with the majority, began to
impede the course of Yturbide. All parties who
had any reason for discontent made common cause
against the Emperor. Signs of dissatisfaction reached
Yturbide, who invited the struggle by dissolving
Congress. In place of this assembly he established
a Junta more under his own control ; and, rid of the
troublesome Congress, proceeded to issue edicts,
and make forced loans to carry on his empire.
Suddenly, on the 6th of December, the Republic
was proclaimed at Vera Cruz. Yturbide happened
to be in Puebla at the time. He hastened to Mexico,
and sent a division of troops to Vera Cruz to defend
his title and put down the insurrection.
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was at the head of
268 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
this movement, a general in the Spanish army, who
had lately come into the views of the revolutionists.
At Vera Cruz a plan was formed called the Casa-
Mata, approved of by Bravo, Guerrero, and other
generals, which, in substance, proclaimed the deposi-
tion of Yturbide ; everywhere it was accepted by the
generals of armies throughout the country, so that,
by the end of a month, Yturbide found himself alone
in the city of Mexico. Unwilling to light the fires
of civil war, he acknowledged himself vanquished,
and abdicated, retiring from the capital with his
family. Congress closed in behind him, pronounced
the whole episode of the Empire a work of violence
and force, so that the hereditary succession was null.
Yturbide was declared banished from the country,
while,at the same time, a life annuity was voted to him
of $25,000 in recognition of his services to the nation.
Thus disappeared, as suddenly as it had risen, the
phantom of a second Empire in the realm of the
Aztecs.
Yturbide left the country with his family upon an
English vessel bound for Leghorn. A few months
later he wrote from London to the home govern-
ment, warning them of European schemes to restore
Spanish rule in Mexico, and offering his services to
his country should such an attempt be made.
The ruling powers were afraid of a popular revul-
sion in his favor, and regarded it as altogether safest
to keep him at a distance. The reply of Congress
to this letter was to pass a decree declaring Yturbide
a traitor to his country, as such to be put to death
whenever he should return to Mexico.
270 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Wholly in ignorance of this decree, and sanguine
of the good effect his letter might produce, the un-
suspecting ex-Empcror did return to Mexico with
the intention of fulfilling his offer of usefulness — it
may be in the hope of a return to favor. On the
14th of July, 1824, Yturbide, with all his family,
arrived at the little port of Soto la Marina in an
English sailing-vessel. He was recognized by the
general of the troops of Tamaulipas, the state in
which he was, and disembarked. A few moments
afterwards an oflficial presented himself, with hesita-
tion, saying it was his duty to inform him that he
must prepare to die, in conformity with the decree
issued against him in the month of April.
In vain Yturbide protested he was utterly ignorant
of the decree. He was taken to Padilla, where the
Congress of the state of Tamaulipas was summoned
to an extraordinary session to deliberate upon his
case. A hot discussion resulted in the decision that
Yturbide mOst be shot, and without the slightest
delay this decree was executed close to the church
in the streets of Padilla.
His last words were: "Mexicans! in the very
moment of my execution I recommend to you the
love of our country and devotion to our holy re-
ligion, that thus we shall be led to glory. I die be-
cause I came to help you. I die gladly, because I
die among you. I die with honor, not as a traitor.
I leave no stain of treason to my children. No. I
am not a traitor ! "
It is impossible not to pity the hard fate of
Yturbide and his violent death. He was not a
YTURBIDE. 271
traitor to his country in the worst sense of the term,
and deserves the title less than many another of his
contemporaries who have met a milder judgment.
Although he turned the government into an Empire
for the sake of his own personal ambition, he had in
his short career as Emperor done it no harm ; on the
other hand, he resigned quietly for the sake of peace.
Doubtless a little delay would have averted the
tragedy, as those who wished him out of the way
were well aware. His life might have promoted the
future welfare of his country; his death certainly
produced no good result. Too many hands were
grasping at the prize he had coveted for his to be
missed when it was forcibly beaten off.
He was personally brave and active, handsome,
fond of display, and full of vanity, which caused him
to delight in the splendor of state. He was at the
height of his ambition when he was proclaimed
Emperor, the horses taken from his carriage, and the
crowd, drawing him along the streets, shouting
vivas for the new Emperor. He forgot, at a time
when it is easiest to forget, how cheap are such
manifestations of enthusiasm from an easily excited
and mobile population. He forgot that as he had
conspired against others, others in their turn not
only could, but would, seek to pull him down.
Whatever his faults or failings, it is nevertheless
true that his act freed the country from the control
of Spain. This is fully recognized in his birthplace,
Morelia, where the house of his birth bears the
inscription :
"LIBERTADOR DE MEXICO."
XXVIII.
SANTA ANNA.
The story of Mexico becomes so confused after
the fall of the Empire of Agustin I. that it is dififi-
cult to understand. " Plans," pronunciamentos, rev-
olutions, restorations, followed each other in quick
succession. Generals, dictators, presidents, sprang
from the soil ready-made, to exercise for a few days
their brief authority, and vanish as quickly.
A few prominent names constantly recur, cling-
ing to the wheel of fortune, which turned at that
time in Mexico with singular swiftness. Each of
these went down one day and the next up. Still
with pertinacity they held on, each rejoicing in his
own turn at the top, not only on his own account, but
in the satisfaction of seeing the others beneath him.
In their wild merry-go-round they seem to have lost
sight of the value of the position itself, which made
the object of their revolutions. Was it a crown, a
dictator's chair, the simple dignity of a president's
wand of office, they heeded little. The thought of
establishing a genuine republic was far enough from
anybody's mind in the early days of the century. To
guldens through the puzzling labyrinth at this period
in Mexican affairs, we will follow the thread of one
272
SANTA AMNA. 273
career — the life of a man who, without the highest
characteristics of a real hero, was mixed up in every
event whicli took place on the plateau of Anahuac,
from the beginning of the struggle to the end.
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna was born in Jalapa,
Feb. 21, 1798, sixty-six years to a day after the birth
of George Washington, whose footsteps, if he followed
at all, it was in an erring manner. He first made his
appearance in public, as we have seen, fighting in
the war of independence; it was he who, in 1821,
expelled the royalists from Vera Cruz, and took
possession of the city. Yturbide thus owed to him,
in part, his success, but it was no intention of Santa
Anna's to make an emperor of him, and he applied
the same vigor in pulling him down from the throne,
that he had to smooth the way to it. This effected,
lie withdrew to his estates in Jalapa, accepting the
federal government decreed by Congress the 4th of
October, 1824.
This Constitution, wisely drawn up in accordance
with the best models, provided an excellent system
of government, if it could be adhered to. Don Felix
Fernandez Victoria, an army general, called by the
people Guadalupe Victoria, on account of the inter-
vention in his favor against the Spanish, as they
believed, of the patron saint of Mexico, Our Lady
of Guadalupe, assumed office in 1824, and kept it for
two years without any commotion. He is described
by Madame Calderon as a plain, uneducated, well-
intentioned man, brave and enduring. She gives
an anecdote to his credit. When Yturbide, alone,
fallen, and a prisoner, was banished from Mexico,
274 ^^^^ STOJ^Y OF M EX ICC.
General Bravo, who had the charge of conducting
him to Vera Cruz, treated him with every species of
indignity. Victoria, on the other hand, who had
been tlie sworn foe of the Emperor during his pros-
perity, now, when orders were given him to see
Yturbide embarked, surrounded him with respectful
attentions; so that Yturbide himself, after express-
ing his warm esteem for the General's generous
conduct, presented him with his watch, as a memorial
of his gratitude.
During his term, the legislature decreed the
expulsion of the Spanish from Mexico. Many
military chiefs were violently anxious for this meas-
ure, and it became a law before the end of the
year. In consequence of this arbitrary decision,
worthy of an earlier century and of Philip III., who
drove out of Spain the Moriscoes to the lasting
injury of the country, many families left Mexico,
taking with them their wealth, and the source of
income caused by their requirements. It is said
that a great many Spaniards settled in Bordeaux
which thus increased in size and prosperity. Be-
tween two countries, of which neither claimed them,
although to each they had a claim, these exiles are
to be regarded as victims of the injudicious legis-
lation of the first republican Congress of Mexico.
The close of Victoria's term was disturbed by one
or two conspiracies, civil wars, pronunciamentos, and
" Plans." The presidential election of 1828 was
marked by formidable divisions. The extreme lib-
erals and the conservatives formed two great politi-
cal powers, which, with others representing every
SANTA ANNA. 2/5
shade of possible opinion, kept the country in a
state of disturbance. The unfortunate precedent of
appeaHng to arms after an election, instead of sub-
mitting to the result of the ballot, became so estab-
lished that the elections were little more than a
farce. Pedraza, the conservative candidate, was
chosen against Guerrero, liberal, by a majority of
two. Santa Anna upon \.\\\% pronounced in Perote,
declaring the election of Guerrero valid. Attacked
by the troops of the regular army, if such it may be
called, he entrenched himself in Oaxaca, in the Con-
vent of St. Domingo, where he defended himself
with the greatest bravery and ingenuity, until events
made it useless to contest him any longer, and he
was released.
A mutiny broke out in the capital, Pedraza
fled to Vera Cruz and thence to New Orleans ;
flames burst forth all over the city, threatening its
destruction, while the populace ran about crying
" Viva la Libertad ! " The Parian, where great wealth
of gold, jewels, and rich stuff were stored, was ut-
terly destroyed. From December 3d for several
days the town was given over to pillage, the doors
of the warehouses were driven in, and every thing
seized. The greatest confusion, anarchy in fact,
reigned in the capital, beyond any effort on the part
of the revolutionary leaders to restrain the disorder.
For more than a month afterward stolen goods from
the Parian were openly sold in the public squares.
The desolation of the city on the night after the
first outburst is described by one of the principal
actors. The sack, which had begun in the morning
276 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
of the 3d, had ceased for the night. Sepulchral
silence reigned in the vast city In the palace was
General Victoria, alone, abandoned even by his
servants. The shops and warehouses stood open
and empt)', with shattered doors, their contents
carried ofY and strewn about the streets. Not a
voice was to be heard but the sound of the hour an-
nounced by the screno, from time to time breaking
the silence which had fallen upon the inhabitants of
the capital.
Thus closed the year 1828, and the government of
the first President. During his term Texas was col-
onized by Austin, with three hundred families, an
event to be remembered on account of its connec-
tion with the war of the United States. In the same
year the government of the United States recog-
nized the independence of Mexico.
Manuel Gomez Pedraza, by virtue of his majority
of two, assumed the of^ce of President. As an
ofificer in the Spanish army he was distinguished for
his severe discipline and strict moral conduct. He
had supported Yturbide, who made him Commander-
General of Mexico. He was Minister of War under
Victoria, in which office he was distinguished for his
great activity.
The ferment which succeeded the election was in-
creased by the reports of Santa Anna's conduct at
Oaxaca. The army besieging him melted and ran
off. Both Pedraza and Guerrero disappeared.
Pedraza left the Republic. After another revolu-
tion, hearing that " the Constitution and laws were
established," he returned to Vera Cruz, but was met
SANTA ANNA. 2//
by an order which forbade him to enter the country,
and he withdrew to New Orleans, to bide his time,
while Congress declared in favor of Guerrero, who
ventured to return and try his hand as President.
Santa Anna distinguished himself by resisting the
troops sent by Spain, somewhat la.te, after the
manana methods of both countries, to resent the
secession of their dependent colony. A Spanish
force from Cuba, by royal mandate of King Ferdi-
nand, landed at Tampico. This invasion aroused
the patriotism of the country. Santa Anna, with-
out waiting for any orders, fitted out a force in Vera
Cruz and advanced against the invaders, combining
on his way with the troops of government. Their
action was vigorous, and the Spanish commander,
Barradas, capitulated after two days, and returned
to Cuba with what was left of his army. This was
the only attempt made by Spain to win back her
lost province. The wealth which Cortes had poured
into her coffers had long ceased to flow with regu-
larity, and its source was now shut off from her.
In reward for this good service, Santa Anna was
made Minister of War and Commander-in-Chief by
President Guerrero, but instead of being grateful,
he turned his powers against him, and with the
army overthrew his government and put Bustamente
in his place. This general was already Vice-Presi-
dent ; he and Santa Anna pronounced the Plan of
Jalapa, at that place. Guerrero set out at the head
of a few troops, but scarcely had he left the city
when the garrison \.\\qxq pronounced in favor of one
Bocanegro. Between two pronunciamentos, Guer-
278 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
rero once more withdrew to the mountains of the
south, where he took arms against his enemies, and
Bustamente became President, It was under his
government that a disgraceful method was taken to
get rid of Guerrero. Persuaded that they could not
conquer him in open field, the ruling party bribed a
Genoese sailor to decoy Guerrero on board his lit-
tle bark, Colombo, in the bay of Acapulco. The Gen-
eral was invited to dinner as a guest, and accepted
in good faith. No sooner was the meal over than
he was told of the plot. Without power to resist, he
saw the sails set, and was carried forcibly to the little
bark, on which he was forcibly detained, heading
towards another port, where he was handed over to his
enemies. A few officials went through the form of
a military trial and condemned him to death. He was
shot, in the pueblo of Cuilapa, on the l^th of Feb-
ruary, 1831. Guerrero is regarded as one of the
martyrs of the country, and two monuments in his
honor adorn the city of Mexico.
Bustamente did not long enjoy his repose. Santa
Anna pronounced ^gTiin in favor of his former oppo-
nent, Pedraza, who, in the opinion of many, had
never stopped being President. But early in 1833
our Mexican Warwick, yielding to popular pressure,
consented to be President himself. He now left the
radical party and, like many another reformer in
office, became conservative and joined the Central-
ists. He was a favorite with the army, who after a
time made him Dictator, in spite of the distrust of
the nation, who believed that he aimed at imperial
ditinities.
SANTA ANNA. 279
The Vice-President at this time was Valentin
Gomez Farias, whose merits deserve notice. He
was a native of Guadalajara, born in February, 1781.
He studied medicine, and made good advances in
the scientific discoveries of his time. He was ap-
pointed to the Cortes of Spain ; but organized in-
stead a battalion in aid of Hidalgo in the cause of
independence, sacrificing to it his career and his per-
sonal fortune. He was elected deputy to the Con-
gress of Morelos, and afterwards made governor of
the state of Zacatecas. In 1833 he was chosen
Vice-President, and, events afterwards bringing him
to occupy the first place in the government, he dis-
played great capacity for business and the cares of
office, repressing pronunciamentos, unmasking in-
trigues, and preserving always an honorable reputa-
tion. Forced to abandon the presidency, he escaped
to the United States to avoid assassination, selling
his ample library to raise funds, thus leaving Santa
Anna in full possession of the field. The Federal
Constitution was done away with, state legislatures
abolished, and the governors of the states became
dependent upon central power.
The insurrection in Texas now broke out into
open rebellion. Santa Anna took the field in
person, reaching the Rio Grande del Norte with an
army of six thousand men in February, 1836. He
at first was successful, but after one or two triumphs
his army was completely routed, and he himself
made prisoner by the Texan army under Houston.
Santa Anna was taken to the United States by his
conquerors. During his captivity he made a treaty
28o
THE STORY OF MEXICO.
with the Texans, which amounted to nothing at all,
as his functions were suspended by the Mexican
government. The next year he was set at liberty
and returned to his native country. He was coldly
received, and at the presidential election that year
received only two electoral votes out of sixty-nine.
He again retired to his estate near Jalapa, twenty-
seven miles from Vera Cruz ; and, we may suppose,
contemplated with content a period of repose after
action, and an opportunity to renew the acquaint-
ance of his family, from which a life of such variety
had separated him.
XXIX.
STILL SANTA ANNA.
The Bourbons had regained possession of the
government of France, and Louis Philippe, under
the title of King of the French, was upon the
throne. He was the head of the younger branch
of the Bourbons, Duke of Orleans. Military glory
was a requisite to his security upon the throne ;
among other enterprises the government sent an
expedition to Mexico to settle by force a long-
pending discussion of demands due them since their
civil wars, as damages incurred by French citizens.
One of the items of this claim was sixty thousand
dollars demanded by a French cook for pastry stolen
from him by revolutionists. The claim received the
name of the rcclainacion dc los pasteles, a claim for
pie. It was denied in toto by the Mexican govern-
ment. The French squadron, commanded by the
Prince de Joinville, captured the fortress of San
Juan de Uloa, and occupied Vera Cruz on the 5th
of December.
Out came Santa Anna and offered his services, and
taking command after the fall of the castle, he re-
pelled the French from the city and forced them to
return to their ships. In this encounter he received
281
282 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
a wound in the leg, which made it necessary to
amputate it, and afterwards he always wore a
wooden leg. Mexico in the end consented to make
a treaty of peace by paying the sum demanded, —
and the French fleet sailed away.
Madame Calderon describes the home of Santa
Anna at Manga la Clava, twenty-seven miles from
Vera Cruz, approached through a wilderness of trees
and flowers, the growth of the ticrra caliente, and
passing over leagues of natural garden, the property
of Santa Anna.
The house was pretty and in nice order. General
Santa Anna was a gentlemanly, good-looking,
quietly dressed, rather melancholy-looking person,
with a wooden leg. Knowing nothing of his past
history, he might have been thought a philosopher,
living in dignified retirement, one who had tried the
world and found it all vanity, one who had suffered
ingratitude, and who, if he were ever persuaded to
emerge from his retreat, would only do so, like Cin-
cinnatus, for the benefit of his country.
It was only now and then in conversation that the
expression of his eye was startling, especially when
he spoke of his leg, which was cut off below the
knee. He gave an account of the wound, and in
alluding to the French his countenance assumed an
alarming appearance of bitterness.
In 1837 Bustamente was recalled. On the succes-
sion of Pedraza to the presidency, he had been ban-
ished, and went away to pursue his medical studies in
France ; for he, like Farias, had received a diploma
as doctor of medicine, and had been the family phy
STILL SANTA ANNA,
m
sician of the viceroy Calleja. He returned to Mexico
on the outbreak of the Texan revolution, was made
President, and filled the office with dignity and re-
spectability, whenever he was allowed to, by his untir-
ing enemy, or rival, Santa Anna, who, however, was
sometimes on h's side. In 1840 there was trouble
INDIAN HUT IN THE TIERRA CALIENTE.
again, with Santa Anna at the head of the govern-
ment forces. Against him was arrayed General
Mejia, a Mexican known for his valor, which amount-
ed to rashness. He was a rival and personal enemy
to Santa Anna, and the struggle between them was
284 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
a duel a la Diort. Fate was against Mejia and he
perished. Taken prisoner on the field of battle at
the hacienda La Blanca, he was shot. It is said
that, being informed of the sentence of death passed
upon him, he asked when he was to be shot.
" In three hours," answered the ofificial.
"If Santa Anna had fallen into my power, I
should have given him only three minutes," was his
repl}'.
There have been other generals of the same name
and family who have shown equal bravery in death.
In September, 1841, occurred another brief revo-
lution, so fully described by Madame Calderon, that
it may serve as a specimen. She says :
"This revolution is like a game of chess, in which
kings, castles, knightSj and bishops are making differ-
ent moves, while the pawns are looking on and
taking no part whatever.
" To understand the state of the board, it is neces-
sary to explain the position of the four principal
pieces, — Santa Anna, Bustamente, Paredes, and Val-
encia. The first move was made by Paredes, who
published his ' Plan,' and pronounced on the 8th
of August, at Guadalajara. Shortly after a news-
paper of Vera Cruz, entirely devoted to Santa Anna,
pronounced in favor of the ' Plan ' of Paredes, and
Santa Anna, with a few miserable troops, and a
handful of cavalry, arrived at Perote. Here he re-
mains for the present, kept in check by the govern-
ment forces. Meanwhile Paredes, with about six
hundred men, left Guadalajara and marched upon
Guanajuato, and there a blow was given to the
STILL SANTA ANNA. 285
government party through the defection of General
Cortazar, who thought fit thus to show his grateful
sense of having just received the rank of general of
brigade, with the insignia of this new grade, which
the President put on with his own hands. Another
check to the President. Once begun, defection
spread rapidly, and Paredes and Cortazar, having
advanced upon Oueretaro, found that the General
there had pronounced just at the moment he was
expected in Mexico to assist the government.
" Meanwhile General Valencia, pressed to declare
his ' Plan,' has replied that he awaits the announce-
ment of the intention of the Generals Paredes and
Santa Anna, and for his ow!i part he only desires the
dismissal of Bustamente.
"This, then, is the position of the three pro-
nounced chiefs, on this second day of September of
the year of our Lord, 1841 : Santa Anna in Perote,
li'esitating whether to advance or retreat, and in fact
prevented from doing either ; Paredes in Queretaro,
with the other revolted generals ; Valencia in the
citadel of Mexico with his pronunciados ; while Bus-
tamente, the mark against which all these hostile
operations are directed, is determined, it is said, to
fight to the last.
" Mexico looks as if it had got a general holiday.
Shops shut up and all business at a stand. The
people with the utmost apathy are collected in
groups talking quietly ; officers are galloping about,
generals in a somewhat party-colored dress, with
large gray hats (sombreros), striped pantaloons, old
coats, and generals' belts, fine horses, and crimson
286 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
. velvet saddles. The shopkeepers in the square have
been renioxini; their ^oods and mone}'. An occa-
sional shot is lieard, sometimes a volley, followed by
Si dead silence. The archbishop shows his reverend
face now and tlien upon the balcony of his palace,
looks out a little while, and then retires. The chief
effect so far is universal idleness for man and beast,
the soldiers and their quadrupeds excepted.
" It is said that the Federalists are very much
elated, hoping for the eventual triumph of their part\-^
in consequence of a proclamation by Valencia which
appeared two days ago. Since then the revolution
has taken the name of liberal and is supported by
men of name, the Pedrazas, Bclderas, Riva Palacio,
which is of great importance to Valencia. Besides
this it is said that certain rich bankers, on the side of
\.\\Q. proniinciados are constantly supplying the citadel
with cart-loads of copper.
" The conduct of the people is a constant source of
surprise. Left entirely uncurbed, no one to direct
them, thousands out of employment, many without
bread, they do not complain, and scarcely seem to
feel any interest in the result. How easily might
such a people be directed for their good ! It is said
that all their apathetic sympathies are in favor ol
Bustamente."
Several days later she describes the army of the
proniinciados on their way to the capital : " The in-
fantry, it must be confessed, was in a ragged and
rather drunken condition ; the cavalry, better clad,
have borrowed fresh horses as they went along,
which, with their high saddles, bronzed faces, and
STILL SANTA ANNA. 28/
picturesque attire, had a fine efTect as they passed
along under the burning sun. The sick followed on
asses, and amongst them various masculine women,
with scrapes and large straw hats, tied down with
colored handkerchiefs, mounted on mules or horses.
The sumpter-mules followed, carrying provisions,
camp-beds, etc., and Indian women trotted on foot
in the rear, carrying their husbands' boots and
clothes. The game is nearly up now. Check from
two knights and a castle — Santa Anna and Paredes
in Tacubaya, and Valencia in the citadel.
"The end of this, after some little firing on both
sides, was a capitulation. Bustamente renounced the
presidency, and Santa Anna was triumphant. He
made his solemn entry into the capital, with the
Generals Valencia and Canalizo at the head of the
forces. Not a solitary viva was heard as they passed
along the streets, nor afterwards, during his speech
in Congress. Immediately after the ceremony
Santa Anna retired to the archbishop's palace, in
Tacubaya, in a splendid coach, drawn by four beau-
tiful white horses, a retinue of other carriages,
brilliant aides-de-camp, and an immense escort of
cavalry.
"Thus ended the revolution of 1841 : but no one
felt that its results were going to be permanent.
" On the 4th of November a great function was
given in the opera of the capital in honor of his Ex-
cellency. The theatre was brilliantly illuminated
with wax lights. Two principal boxes were thrown
into one for the President and his suite, and lined with
crimson and gold, with draperies of the same. The
288 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Staircase Icadini^- to the box was lighted by rows of
footmen all the wa}' up, in crimson and gold livery.
A crowd of gentlemen stood waiting in the lobby for
the arrival of the hero of the fete. He came at
last, in regal state, carriages and outriders at full
gallop, himself, stafT, and suite in splendid uniforms.
As he entered, the libretto o^ the opera was pre-
sented to him, bound in red and gold. His expres-
sion was resigned and rather melancholy, his man-
ner grave but agreeable ; surrounded by pompous
officers, he alone looked quiet, gentlemanly, and
high-bred.
"The theatre was crowded to suffocation — boxes,
pit, and galleries. There was no applause as he en-
tered. One solitary voice in the pit said : ' Viva
Santa Anna ! ' but it seemed checked by a slight
movement of disapprobation, scarcely amounting to
a murmur.
"The generals, in their scarlet and gold uniforms,
sat, like peacocks, surrounding Santa Anna, who
looked modest and retiring, as if quite unaccustomed
to public gaze."
General Bustamentc, as usual, resigned his power
to Santa Anna without further struggle, and with-
drew to Europe, where he remained several years.
After the fall of Santa Anna in 1845, ^^ returned to
his country, establishing his residence in the in-
terior. He died a natural death in San Miguel de
Allende in 1853.
We will leave Santa Anna in his opera-box, sur-
rounded by brilliant officers and fair ladies spark-
ling with diamonds, until the time comes to take up
his story again.
XXX.
SOCIETY.
A CLEAR picture of the state of society in Mexico,
at this period is given in the journal, before quoted,
of Madame Calderon de la Barca, published without
her name in 1843, with a preface by Prescott, the
historian.
For some time after the violent separation of the
colony from the mother country, Spain made no ef-
fort to recognize her truant, grown-up Mexico. It
was not until 1839 ^^^^^ its independence was finally
acknowledged, and its right to be regarded as a
friendly state, by Spain. In that year Senor Don
Calderon de la Barca was sent by Ferdinand VII. as
accredited Ambassador to the Republic of Mexico
where Bustamente was then President. The occa-
sion was hailed with satisfaction by all parties as a
signal of peace between the two countries ; the re-
maining Mexicans of Spanish blood especially hailed
the arrival of such an agreeable accession to society
as Madame Calderon, a very accomplished woman,
whose lively letters, not at all intended for publica-
tion, give an account of Mexican scenery and man-
ners, useful to help us in our knowledge of them at
that time, a sort of interregnum between the old
SOCIETY. 291
Spanish influences and the present full-fledged con-
dition of the Republic. Civil war had already much
disturbed the old Spanish landmarks, but much re-
mained of the customs of provincial society, espe-
cially among the higher class in the capital. Balls,
receptions, the opera, were kept up with something
of the splendor of viceregal days, their revival stim-
ulated by this fresh arrival from a European court.
Madame Calderon loved to wander under the cy-
presses of Chapultepec. In her day the viceregal
apartments were lonely and abandoned, for the gov-
ernor, in whose hands they then were, did not care to
live there. The walls were falling to ruin, the glass
of the windows and the carved work of the doors
had been sold, so that the interior was exposed to
every wind that blew around the lofty height.
She describes the gayety of the Paseo, a long, broad
avenue planted with trees, with a large stone foun-
tain, whose sparkling waters were cool and pleasant,
ornamented by a gilt statue of Victory. Here, every
evening, but more especially Sundays and fete days,
were to be seen two long rows of carriages filled with
ladies, crowds of gentlemen on horseback riding
down the middle between them, soldiers at intervals
keeping order, and multitudes of common people
and beggars on foot. The carriages were for the
most part extremely handsome — European coaches
with fine horses and odd liveries, others in the old
Mexican fashion, heavy and covered with gilding.
Hackney-coaches drawn by m.ules were seen among
the finer equipages. Most families had both horses
and mules in their stables, the latter animal requir-
292 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
ing less care than a horse, and capable of enduring
more fatigue. Carratelas, open at the sides, with
glass windows, were filled with ladies in full toilet,
without mantillas, their heads uncovered and gen-
erally coiffc'es with flowers as jewels. Equestrians,
on fine horses and handsome Mexican asses, passed
and repassed the carriages without stopping for con-
versation. Her favorite promenade was the Viga,
where, as in Montezuma's time and long before, in
Humboldt's, in our own, the Indians, early in the
morning, brought flowery and vegetables to market
by the canal. There was profusion of sweet peas,
double poppies, blue-bottles, stock gilly-flowers and
roses. Each Indian woman in her canoa looked as if
seated in a floating flouer-garden, crowned with gar-
lands of roses or poppies. "Those who sit in the
market," she says, " selling their fruit or vegetables,
appear as if in bowers formed of fresh green branches
and many-colored flowers. In the poorest village
church the floor is strewed with flowers, and with
flowers are adorned the baby at its christening, the
bride at the altar, the dead body upon the bier."
In answer to questions about the society women
of Mexico, Madame Calderon writes: "I must put
aside exceptions, which are always rising up before
me, and write en masse. Generally speaking, the
Mexican senoras and senoritas write, read, and play
a little; sew, and take care of their houses and chil-
dren. When I say they read, I mean they know how
to read ; when I say they write, I do not mean that
they can always spell, and when I say they play, I
do not assert that they have a general knowledge of
294 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
music. The climate inclines every one to indolence,
both physical and moral. One cannot pore over a
book when the blue sky is constantly smiling in at
the open windows." She says that there are no
women in the world more affectionate in their man-
ners than the Mexicans, and that they invariably
make excellent wives, if they are settled at home
with their husbands.
Madame Calderon describes the appearance of the
Plaza on Good-Friday:
"The most beautiful and original scene was pre-
sented towards sunset in the great square, and it is
doubtful whether any other city in the world could
present a coup cCoeil of equal brilliancy. The' Plaza
itself, even on ordinary days, is a noble square, and
but for its one fault, a row of shops called the
Parian, which breaks its uniformity, would be nearly
unrivalled. Every object is interesting. The eye
wanders from the Cathedral to the house of Cortes
(the Monte de Piedad), and from thence to a range
of fine buildings, with lofty arcades to the west.
From a balcony we could see all the different
streets that branch out from the square covered
with gay crowds pouring in that direction to see a
great procession which was expected to pass in front
of the palace. Booths, filled with refreshments and
covered with green branches and garlands of flowers,
were to be seen in all directions, surrounded by a
crowd quenching their thirst with orgeat, lemonade,
or pulque. The whole square, from the Cathedral
to X.\\e portalcs, was covered with thousands and tens
of thousands of figures, al' m their gayest dresses,
SOCIETY. - 295
and as the sun poured his rays down upon their gaudy
colors, they looked like armies of living tulips. Here
was to be seen a group of ladies, some with black
gowns and mantillas, others, now that their church-
going duty was over, equipped in velvet or satin,
with their hair dressed — and beautiful hair they have ;
some leading their children by the hand, dressed —
alas, how they were dressed ! Long, velvet gowns
trimmed with blonde, diamond earrings, high French
caps befurbelowed with lace and flowers, or turbans
with plumes of feathers. Now and then, the head of
a little thing that could hardly waddle alone, might
have belonged to an English dowager-duchess in
her opera-box. Some had extraordinary bonnets,
and as they toddled along, top-heavy, one would
have thought they were little old women, without a
glimpse caught of their lovely little brown faces and
blue eyes. The children here are very beautiful ;
they have little color, with swimming black or hazel
eyes, and long lashes resting on the clear pale cheek,
and a mass of fine dark hair plaited down behind.
" As a contrast to the senoras, with their over-
dressed beauties, were the poor Indian women, trot-
ting across the square, their black hair plaited with
dirty red ribbon, a piece of woollen cloth wrapped
round them, and a little mahogany baby hanging
behind, its face upturned to the sky, and its head
jerking along, somehow, without its neck being dis-
located. The most resigned expression on earth is
that of an Indian baby. All these groups are col-
lected by hundreds, the women of the shop-keeper
class in their small white embroidered gowns, with
296 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
white satin shoes and neat feet and ankles, rebosos,
or bright shawls, thrown over their heads; the peas-
ants and countr\-womcn, with short petticoats of
two colors, generally scarlet and yellow, thin satin
shoes and lace-trimmed chemises, or bronze-colored
damsels, all crowned with flowers, strolling along,
tingling light guitars.
" Add to this motley crowd, men dressed a la Mcx-
icaine, wath large ornamented hats and scrapes, or
embroidered jackets, sauntering along, smoking
their cigars ; leperos, in rags, Indians in blankets, of-
ficers in uniform, priests in their shovel hats, monks
of every order ; Frenchmen exercising their wit
upon the passers-by ; Englishmen looking on, cold
and philosophical ; Germans gazing through their
spectacles, mild and mystical ; Spaniards, seeming
pretty much at home, abstaining from remarks;
a id it may be conceived that the scene, at least,
presents variety.
"Suddenly the tinkling of a bell announces the
approach o^ Nuesiro Amo (the Host). Instantly the
whole ^.owd are on their knees, crossing themselves
devoutly. Disputes are hushed, flirtations arrested,
and to the busy hum of voices succeeds a pro-
found silence, filled only by the rolling of coach-
wheels and the sound of the little bell."
This scene is almost the same to-day in the pub-
lic square on Good-Friday. The costumes of the
higher class have now surrendered to conventional
Paris models, but there is a tendency to gaudiness
and display, defying fashion, which makes a Mexi-
can crowd brisjht with varie^jated color.
SOCIETY. 297
Madame Calderon's accounts of the unsettled
state of the country are comforting, as showing the
immense advance in this respect, in the forty years
since she was in Mexico.
Describing an hacienda not far from the capital,
she says : " It is under the charge of an adminis-
irador, who receives from its owner a large annual
sum, and whose place is by no means a sinecure, as
he lives in perpetual danger from robbers. He is
captain of a troop of soldiers, and as his life has
been spent in persecuting robbers, he is an object of
intense hatred to that free and independent body.
He gave us a terrible account of night attacks from
these men and of his ineffectual attempts to bring
them to justice. He lately told the President that
he thought of joining the robbers himself, as they
were the only persons in the Republic protected by
government."
" This pestilence of robbers," she says, " which
infests the Republic, has never been eradicated.
They are, in fact, the outgrowth of the civil war.
Sometimes, in the guise of insurgents, taking an
active part in the independence, they have inde-
pendently laid waste the country, robbing all they
met. As expellers of the Spaniards, these armed
bands infested the roads between Vera Cruz and
the capital, ruined all commerce, and without any
particular inquiry into political opinions, robbed
and murdered in all directions. Whatever meas-
ures have been from time to time taken to eradi-
cate this evil, its causes remain, and the idle and
unprincipled will always take advantage of the dis-
298 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
organized state of the countr}' to obtain by force
what tliey miglit gain b)' honest labor."
Frequent crosses by the roadside were marks of
murders committed by these highwaymen, yet the
Mexican robbers had the reputation of being kind
and considerate bandits. She relates, as a proof of
their occasional moderation, that some ladies "were
travelling from Mexico with a padre, when they
were met by a party of robbers, who stopped the
coach, and seized every thing, amongst other articles
of value, a number of silver dishes. The padre ob-
served to them that as the plate did not belong to
the ladies, but was lent them by a friend, they
would be obliged to replace it, and requested that
one might be left as a pattern. The reasonable
creatures instantly returned one dish and a cover.
" Another time, having completely stripped an
English gentleman and his servant, and tied them
both to a tree, observing that the man appeared dis-
tressed at the loss of his master's shoes, they polite-
ly returned and laid the shoes beside the gentle-
man."
This drawback to Mexican travel, the terrible bug-
bear which still deters many timid people from ven-
turing themselves in the country, has ceased to
exist since the establishment of real law and order
in the Republic, and especially since railroads have
penetrated all the important parts of the country.
The Gnardias Rnrales, a mounted troop of patrols, is
now one of the finest militarx- organizations in the
world. It is said tliat (icneral Diaz sent for the
chiefs of brigandage, notorious leaders of pillaging
SOCIETY. 299
bands, and after inquirin^^ how much they earned
on an average by their profession, asked them if they
had any objection to receiving that sum honestly,
in a settled income. The result was the organiza-
tion, out of this material, of a body of guards to
protect the rural districts. They are stalwart men,
with splendid leather suits and gray sombreros, all
ornamented with silver. Their horses are beautiful
animals, all of the same color in one band, hand-
somely caparisoned. The men ride well, and the
effect of this strong body, united in the defence of
order, instead of lurking apart in defiance of it, is in
the highest degree reassuring. The result is satis-
factory. Tales of highway robbery are relegated to
the same shadowy region as the legends of Aztec
atrocities. In the northern, desolate regions of
Mexico, murders and robberies are still perpetrated.
It is often the case that these are committed by
other races than Mexicans, and very seldom, in pro-
portion, can they be charged upon Indians.
Elsewhere is quoted Madame Calderon's observa-
tion of a pronunciamcnto. The following note has
an importance further on in our story, of which she
was at the time unconscious :
" The whole world is talking of a pamphlet writ-
ten by Sefior Gutierrez Estrada, which has just ap-
peared, and seems likely to create a greater sensa-
tion in Mexico than the discovery of the gunpowder
plot in England. Its sum and substance is the pro-
posal of a constitutional monarchy iri Mexico, with
a foreign prince (not named) at its head, as the only
remedy for the evils by which it is afflicted. The
300
THE STORY OF MEXICO.
pamphlet is written merely in a speculative form, in-
culcating no sanguinary measures, or sudden revo-
lution ; but the consequences are likely to be most
disastrous to the fearless and public-spirited au-
thor."
XXXI.
RUMORS OF WAR.
We now come to the disastrous period of the war
with the United States. Nothing more unfortunate
could have befallen the struggling Republic of
Mexico than to become involved in a foreign quarrel.
For three centuries the country had been under
the hands of the Spanish government which though
arbitrary, oppressive, and sometimes tyrannical, was
in general firm and equable, and above all, safe.
Laws, such as they were, were enforced. Personal
property, perhaps ill-gotten, was respected. In spite
of plenty of abuses and defects, the daily life of the
inhabitants of Anahuac under the viceroys was com-
fortable and secure.
Suddenly, imbued with the ideas of the centuries,
the Mexicans began to play at independence, like
children lighting matches. At the instigation of a
few leaders, some of them it is true with high aims,
actuated by the desire of doing good for their coun-
try, they drove away their viceroys, rejected the
strong arm of the Spanish authority, and undertook
the difficult task of governing themselves. The
trouble was, not one of them understood the rudi-
ments of the art. There were plenty of applicants
302 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
for the highest post of ofBce. Many were tried, but
all were found wanting. Some gave it up them-
selves ; others returned again and again to the futile
task of making stable the shifting sands of popular
opinion.
The only appeal was to arms. Blood was shed,
powder and ball were spent, and a crop of military
heroes sprung up, full of ardor, ready to /rc«^/^«f^
at the slightest occasion, and bring an army to the
field at a moment's notice. The sound of rolling
cannon was familiar to every ear in Mexico. The
smell of powder had nothing alarming about it. The
very children were satiated with the sight of soldiery,
and scarcely troubled themselves to run to the door
to see a regiment go by.
But this was not warfare, real and serious. These
armies were not thoroughly trained to the discipline
of battle, and the generals were not educated in the
science of war. Brave they undoubtedly were, and
familiar with scenes of danger and bloodshed ; too
familiar, it may be, to value at its proper cost the
waste of life and property caused by so much fight-
ing. Exaggerated ideas of honor and glory, inherent
to the Latin race, pervaded society, and the impres-
sion prevailed throughout the country that the
Mexican arms were invincible, because every regi-
ment and every general had, in turn, put to rout
every other in the country.
In this game of independence, the Mexican peo-
ples had exhausted their resources, destroyed in a
great measure the industries of the country, spent
their money, and wasted rivers of blood. Many
304 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
of their best generals were either driven from the
country, or dead upon the field. They might have
gone on, it is irnc, pronouncing Viwd killing each other
indefinitely, but for the sharp lesson that was taught
them by the cruel exigencies of a foreign war.
That some lesson should come was perhaps inev-
itable, like a quick, sharp box on the ears, to bring
such naughty children to their senses, and stop their
foolish trifling with life and reputation. But it was
hard that the blow should come from the hand of a
nation which ought to have taken the place of an
elder brother to these foolish and heedless children,
— a hand which should have gently led them to
peace and reconciliation instead of promoting dis-
cord.
The Mexicans, undoubtedly, helped to bring upon
themselves the misfortunes that came swiftly upon
them. Like all people whose own folly has put them
on the wrong track, they were sure to do the wrong
thing. They were heavily punished accordingly.
The United States had in a hundred years spread
over the great western lands of North America with
surprising rapidity, and now approached the regions
which Cortes had laid claim to three centuries before.
This claim was but vague, for the deserts and plains
of the north were not accessible or inviting; still
some posts were established, while the boundary
line which should put a stop to the encroachments
of either country was still unsettled. The terri-
tory west of the Sabine River and east of the Rio
Grande came under discussion.
Moses Austin, born in Durham, Connecticut, a
RUMORS OF WAR. 305
southwestern pioneer, applied to the Mexican Com-
mandant-General in Monterey in 1820 for permis-
sion to colonize three hundred families in Texas.
Without waiting for his answer, he set out towards
the Sabine River, was robbed and abandoned in that
deserted waste, and died of the disease he caught by
exposure soon after finding his way back to Louis-
iana. The grant was made, and given to his son,
who had it confirmed in the city of Mexico, and it
was he who founded the colony which has since be-
come the capital of Texas, named Austin after him.
More grants of land were willingl\' made by the
Mexican government, wlio thought well of encour-
aging settlers as protectors against the savage
hordes that infested the northern part of their
country; and colonization went on, chiefly by peo-
ple of the United States, until these emigrants to
Texas far outnumbered the Mexicans, The differ-
ence of race and education was strongly marked
between these sturdy settlers of Anglo-Saxon origin,
and the chance stragglers from Mexico, not the best
specimens of the Latin race. This population had
no sympathy with the pronunciamentos and jeal-
ousies of the capital, and the result, as we have seen,
was a revolt against Mexican rule in 1835, in conse-
quence of the acts of the Federal government.
Santa Anna hastened to the scene with his army,
but the rebellious forces, under the brilliant command
of "Sam" Houston, General, Governor, and after-
ward President, were everywhere triumphant, and
Texas declared herself an independent Republic,
which maintained its separate existence between
306 THE SrORY OF MEXICO.
the two great powers on each side of it till 1844,
recognized not only by these, but by the European
states.
The subject of the annexation of Texas to the
United States began to be spoken of and strongly
urged by the Texans themselves ; but the movement
was wholl}' disapproved by the party in that country
opposed to the extension of slavery, since by the
agreement then existing, all new territory south of a
certain line permitted slavery, while the States north
of it abjured it. In spite of the opposition of the
North, however, Texas was admitted into the Ameri-
can Union by an act ratified in Congress in March
1845.
This act was regarded by the Mexicans as an act
of aggression. As Texas was at the time wholly in-
dependent of Mexico, its right was undoubted to an-
nex itself to anotiier country ; but on the part of the
United States the act is scarcely to be justified ac-
cording to the laws of honor and international good
faith. It was at any rate approved only by one sec-
tion of the country, the other regarding every addi-
tional step leading to a foreign war with a neigh-
boring government hitherto friendl}', with regret and
displeasure.
The party which favored the measure began to
make preparations for hostile demonstrations with
alacrity. The American Republic had now long
been at peace. Prosperous, safe from enemies
abroad, peaceful at home, with plenty of money
in her treasury, her military schools training a small
body of officers in the latest science of the art of war,
RUMORS OF WAR. 30/
she was in perfectly good condition to resist an at-
tack, and had the cause been a popular one, every
State in the Union would have offered with alacrity
volunteer troops for the field.
The correspondence between the two countries
grew embittered, and as time went on more and more
unfriendly. During the negotiation of the treaty for
annexation, war was permitted to go on in Texas ;
the government of the United States protested. In
the war of words which followed, the Mexicans made
and unfortunately reiterated the declaration that
they should consider the ratification of the treaty
as equivalent to a declaration of war.
During this period of agitation and irritation, the
Mexicans went on with " Plans " and pronunciamen-
tos. Herrera was President during 1844, during
which short period Congress decreed the destruc-
tion of Santa Anna. Farias returned to the Repub-
lic from a voluntary exile abroad. General Paredes
on his way to the north with an army to check the
approach of United States iorcQS pro>iounced a revo-
lution and " Plan " at San Luis, and returned to
Mexico to enforce it. He was made President, and
remained in office six months, giving way then to
a pronunciamento against him which resulted in put-
ting General Don Nicholas Bravo at the head of
government.
In all this confusion, hurrying to and fro to find a
government, there was no true leader of affairs to
dictate wise and moderate steps in such an emer-
gency. Santa Anna, the military genius of the coun-
try, was ready to serve it in his own way, by placing
himself at the head of an army.
308 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Troops were not wanting, for popular indignation
was roused, and popular vanity stimulated by the
idea of a war with the powerful neighboring Repub-
lic. It was pretty generally thought in the cities and
towns that the result of the combat would be an easy
victory. The one thing Mexicans were sure of about
themselves was that they could fight, and the popu-
lar impression about the United States on the other
hand, was that they could not. They had long been
at peace, and without practice in arms, while it was
Mcll known that the war was unpopular in the
Northern States.
The Mexicans therefore rushed to arms with their
usual alacrity, little fearing the result. The Indians,
all unconscious of the horrors of an invading army
swarming over their villages and devastating the
countr\', saw armies marching towards the north
through their pueblos with indifference. Their eyes
and ears were but too familiar with the sound of
drum and the frying colors of the national flag.
Their interests, their liberty, had little to do with
the tempests that raged over them.
The Mexican army was characterized by many of
the necessary qualities of good soldier}'. Patient
and suffering, requiring but little subsistence, with
great capacity for enduring fatigue, and with enough
physical courage to enable them to encounter danger
without fear, the Mexican soldiers when properly led
compared well with the troops of other nations. But
corruption existed among their officers froni the high-
est to the lowest grade ; commissions were sometimes
given by the functionaries of government as rewards
RUMORS OF WAR. 309
for private services, discreditable to the giver and
recipient. The army included, besides the troops of
the line, the active battalions of the different states
and the local national guards of the cities.
The cavalry had a high reputation, both at home
and abroad. Many other corps were well disciplined,
and the men were expert in all feats of horseman-
ship, since riding is now a universal accomplishment
in the country where, three hundred years ago,
the horses of the Conquistadores were regarded
as supernatural creatures. Those of Mexico are
considered inferior in speed and power, though
possessing endurance in a remarkable degree. The
carbines with which the cavalry were armed were,
for the most part, of a model behind the times, and
useless when accuracy of aim was necessary.
The Mexican artillery contained many foreigners
among its officers ; its juniors were the pupils of the
Military College at Chapultepec, where they were
well taught the theory of arms. Mexican revolutions
had given them plenty of practice, and in gunnery
they were exceedingly proficient. Their guns were
fine, but clumsily mounted, and therefore hard to
move. Light artillery, as practised by modern
troops, was but little known or used among the
Mexicans until it was taught them by the enemy.
The infantry was in many respects tolerably well
drilled, and severe discipline was enforced with the
privates. Ceremonious etiquette and detail duties
were punctiliously observed. The muskets of the
infantry were inferior, and the men were by no
means proficient in their accurate use.
3IO
THE STORY OF MEXICO.
The organization of the staff depended much on
the general who happened to be in command. There
existed an enormous disproportion of generals, and
their number was so great that it was said at the
time they had rather a brigade of generals than
generals of brigade. The country was full of arms
and munitions of war, such as they were, of ancient
manufacture ; but for replenishing the supply, Mex-
ico had no resources, beyond the repair of partial
damages. Such an establishment as a national
armory was unknown in the country.
Of maritime power Mexico was and is utterly
destitute. A few steamers and sailing-vessels were
on her list at the beginning of hostilities, but they
were not put upon a war footing, and no attempt
was made at naval warfare.
XXXII.
WAR BEGUN.
In the spring of 1846, General Taylor of the regu-
lar army of the United States was sent to the mouth
of the Rio Grande, or Rio Bravo del Norte, as it is
also called, with a small force. Mexican troops also
assembled there, and a conflict was precipitated by
a Mexican ambuscade on the Texas side of the
river, which attacked a small party of dragoons,
reconnoitring. In this skirmish sixteen Americans
were killed or wounded, and the whole force was
captured. This was the beginning of hostilities.
The Mexican army crossed the Rio Grande, and on
the 8th of May the battle of Palo Alto was fought,
and that of Resaca de la Palma on the next day.
Both of these places are on the Texas side of the
river. The Mexicans were defeated in each engage-
ment, and they left the field with a better opinion of
the capacity of American troops than the one they
held before. The rout of the Mexicans was com-
plete ; their pieces of light artillcr)', their camp, and
five hundred pack-mules and saddles remained in the
hands of their enemies. General Arista, the com-
mander of the Mexican force, lost his personal bag-
gage, plate, and public correspondence. The number
311
312 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
of killed and wounded was estimated at more than a
thousand.
After this action, both parties crossed the river,
and Mexico became the theatre of warfare. The
Mexican army withdrew at first to Matamoras, at the
mouth of the Rio Grande, and afterward to San
Luis de Potosi ; Arista was deprived of his com-
mand, and brought to trial before a council of war.
This was the opening of the conflict, and this
might well have been the end, if Mexico had been
capable of rational negotiation. But there was no
government long enough in place to be negotiated
with. The special envoy sent from Washington,
agreeably to an intimation on the part of one Presi-
dent, that negotiations would be cordially entered
upon, was refused an audience by the new President
who had usurped the place of the other one. Such
weakness in Mexican high places furnished an ex-
cuse to the American government for continuing the
war, while this same weakness on the part of their
antagonist made it almost discreditable for the
United States to continue an aggressive warfare
upon forces so unequal.
However, the war was begun. Hostilities had
been opened by Mexico, and the American people
of all parties were aroused. Bills were promptly
passed in Washington providing men, money, and
munitions with alacrity, as if there were but one
opinion of the justice of the cause. The President
was authorized to call for volunteers, in any number
not exceeding fifty thousand, to serve for the period
of one year, or during the war, and volunteers read-
ily answered the appeal to arms.
fFA/i BEGUN. 313
" Indemnity for the past and security for the
future," is the watchword of the United States in its
wars with foreign nations. As indemnity for the
wrongs inflicted by Mexico,— that is, her objection
to the admission of Texas to the Union, it was de-
termined to cross her boundary Hue and seize upon
her territory.
Cahfornia, then sparsely settled, and comparative-
ly unknown, at a long distance from the central and
civilized part of Mexico, had been explored already
by American travellers, who brought back accounts
of its climate, fertile soil, and mineral resources that
showed it to be worth having. The harbors on its
coasts were known to be the only good ones on the
shores of the Northern Pacific Ocean. California
lay immediately south of the United States terri-
tory of Oregon, with no defined natural boundary
between them. Many Americans were already set-
tled there, and altogether it seemed well to transfer
this goodly region to the keeping of the United
States. New Mexico, another department of the
Mexican Republic, lying upon the direct route to
California, and in great part included in the boun-
daries claimed by Texas upon her admission to the
Union, was also another territory that claimed at-
tention.
It would be too much to say that the United
States began hostilities with a neighboring republic,
shaken by internal discord, its government little
better than anarchy, and weak from continuous
civil war, for the sake of snatching from that country
a large part of its territory to enlarge its own already
314 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
wide proportions. But since the Mexicans, foolishly
and wickedly, had given fair pretc^xt for quarrel, and
afterwards, with the obstinacy of naughty children,
refused to recede, and persisted in resorting to arms,
actually making the first attack, it seemed well to
the United States government to call this the inev-
itable, and accept it with all the benefits arising from
such a course.
Their general plan of operations was to seize and
occupy the coveted territories as " indemnity for the
expenses of war," while an army invading the heart
of Mexico should force an agreement to terms of
peace.
In pursuance of this plan, an American squadron
appeared before the fort of Monterey, on the Pacific,
in Alta California, on the 7th of July, two months
after the first shots of warfare on the Rio Grande.
This Monterey must not be confounded with the
other Mexican town of the same name. The Mexi-
cans evacuated the place with the few soldiers who
constituted the garrison. On the same day two
hundred and fifty seamen landed, and took posses-
sion, and hoisted the American flag. This course
was in pursuance of instructions from tiie Secretary
of the Navy to the commander of the Pacific
squadron, thus expressed in a letter, written as early
as June 24, 1845: "It is the earnest desire of the
President to pursue the policy of peace, and he is
anxious that you, and every part of your squadron,
should be assiduously careful to avoid any act which
could be construed into an act of aggression. Should
Mexico, however, be resolutely bent on hostilities,
3l6 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
}'ou will be mindful to protect the persons and inter-
ests of citizens of the United States, and should you
ascertain beyond a doubt that the Mexican govern-
ment has declared war against us, you will employ
the force under N'our command to the best advan-
tage. The Mexican ports on the Pacific are said
to be open and defenceless. If you ascertain with
certainty that Mexico has declared war against the
United States, you will at once blockade or occupy
such ports as your force may admit."
Other ports were taken with equal ease ; and the
navy having joined forces with the army of Colonel
Fremont, the Americans entered the capital of Alta
California, on the 13th of August, and took posses-
sion of the government house without a show of op-
position, issuing at once a proclamation announcing
the conquest of the department.
Meanwhile General Taylor, greatly reinforced by
volunteer troops sent from the United States, ad-
vanced into the interior of the country though the
state of Nueva Leon, bordering upon the Rio
Grande and the Gulf of Mexico, and approached its
capital, the other Monterey. It lies at the eastern
base of a range of hills, in a valley of great fertihty,
which is capable of supporting a large population.
The main road from the Rio Grande to the city of
Mexico leads from the east through a cultivated
country, directly through the city, and continues by
a pass through the Sierra, by Saltillo, and on to a
desert region between Saltillo and San Luis de
Potosi. A rivulet, the San Juan de Monterey, rises
in this pass and crosses the vallc)-. Monterey stands
GENERAL TAYLOR
317
3l8 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
on the northern bank of this rivulet, and extends
along the stream. At the time of the battle it con-
tained about two thousand inhabitants. A spur of
the mountain Sierra juts out above the city to the
west, and on this is perched the picturesque Obis-
pado Viejo, or Old Palace, built by a bishop of the
last century for his pleasure-scat.
General Ampudia had the charge of the defence
of the place, with over ten thousand men. The
town was plentifully supplied with ammunition, and
in the various batteries forty-two guns were mounted.
Subsistence for some days, beef, cattle, and sheep,
had been introduced into the city. The attacking
force was known to be too small to completely invest
the town.
The American army made a vigorous onslaught
which was bravely resisted by the Mexicans. The
siege lasted for four days, during which the position
of the bishop's palace was keenly contested by both
parties. This was stormed on the morning of the
22d, and carried by a brilliant attack; but the fate
of the siege was not decided until the 25th, when
the Mexican garrison evacuated the citadel, and
retreated to Saltillo.
The force with which General Taylor had marched
on Monterey was about six thousand five hundred
men. The loss to the American army was twelve
ofificcrs and one hundred and eight men killed, and
thirty-one officers and three hundred and thirty-
seven men wounded. The number of Mexicans who
fell was probably over one thousand.
Both sides fought with great bravery, and the
WAR BEGUN. 319
Mexicans contested the occupation of their town
with determination, during the long and unceasing
conflict. The result was terribly discouraging to the
soldiers of the Mexican army, who were discovering,
with every new essay, that the United States
soldiers could fight.
General Ampudia, after the defeat, issued a procla-
mation announcing it frankly, with humble apologies
for his capacity. He gave a short account of the
operations, highly extolling the valor of his troops,
and attributing the defeat to a series of accidents,
concluding with the assurance to his countrymen
that the loss of Monterey was of little importance,
and would soon be forgotten in fresh triumphs ot the
Mexican arms.
He soon received orders to march his troops to
San Luis de Potosi, on the backward way towards
the capital.
The operations at Monterey, in spite of the opin-
ion of the Mexican general, had nevertheless a great
effect on the progress of the war. It must have been
discouraging to the Mexican people; on the other
hand, it made the war more popular in the United
States, where the bravery of the troops was a subject
of national congratulation.
The officers in the army of General Taylor becaipe
heroes, and their military glory was everywhere
sounded.
During these events Don Maria Paredes was
President of Mexico. His " Plan " for his country
was a monarchy, and apparently heedless, or at any
rate indifferent, to the approach of hostile troops
320 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
toward his capital, he occupied liimself with forming
a ministry favorable to his scheme, with the intent
of making sooner or later a radical change in the
political institutions of the country.
Such intentions had aroused a violent opposition
to his administration, Santa Anna, apparently
amusing himself at Havana, but always well in-
formed by his ;. artisans of what was going on at
home, sent home letters declaring himself in favor of
the Constitution of 1824, and ready, as usual, to serve
his country. The American government, hearing of
this, thought it well to encourage Santa Anna, in
opposition to Paredes, for they looked with no favor
on the idea of a monarchy in Mexico, and moreover
saw that all negotiations for peace were futile dur-
ing the stay of Paredes in power. The Gulf of
Mexico was already blockaded by an American
squadron, but orders were issued to permit Santa
Anna to come in, if he wanted to. This order was
given before the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de
la Palma, and must be taken as a sign of willingness
on the part of the United States for a pacific accom-
modation.
But Santa Anna's gifts were those of a military
nature, not for peaceful solutions. If he was to
serve his country, it must be by waving the battle
flag and not the olive branch.
The defeats of the army reminded Paredes of the
need of regaining his prestige. He began to put
forth some energy in raising men and money, and
gave out that he should repair to the field of action
himself to conduct operations against the invaders
IVA/? BEGUN. 3-1
in person. Raising money with great difficulty, and
assembling a large army, he made ready to leave the
capital on the 31st of July. On that day the garri-
son of Vera Cruz pronounced in favor of Santa
Anna, the whole garrison of the city of Mexico
joined in the pronunciamento and seized upon the
citadel. Farias, whom we have known as a patriotic
man, lent all his influence to support this rebellion.
The Vice-President, Bravo, and the old ministry,
made some opposition on paper, but it was fruitless,
and Paredes was made prisoner. He was soon lib-
erated and left the country.
Jack-in-the-box Santa Anna was still at Havana,
whence he popped up at once and sailed for Mexico
with his suite. He landed at Vera Cruz on the i6th
of August, having passed the blockading squadron
without question or delay. Of course he issued a
manifesto denouncing the monarchical schemes of
Paredes and the course of the United States, and
explaining the merit of his own conduct. He then
retired to his box to await the course of events,
while he sent interested allies to the capital for the
purpose of controlling them. State after state de-
clared in favor of Santa Anna.
Every nerve was now strained to raise money and
troops for the war. Santa Anna approached the
capital, and was met by offers of the supreme power
from the provisional government. They were de-
clined on the ground that Santa Anna willed to
serve his country in the army. He declared that
he would not abandon the post of danger for the
post of power, and closed his answer with assurances
322
THE STORY OF MEXICO,
of his disinterested patriotism. This paved the way
for his reception at the capital. He was received
with a show of enthusiasm worthy of the regenera-
tion of his country.
This parade of military ardor took place on the
15th of September, while General Ampudia was
strengthening Monterey for the attack. A week
later it had come, and on the 25th the city had
capitulated.
On the 8th of October General Santa Anna ar-
rived at San Luis de Potosi with the troops which
had marched from Mexico. He at once set about
organizing the large army called into the field,
pledging a part of his private property as one
means of raising mone)-, which was softly needed
and hard to "et.
XXXIII.
PUEBLA LOST.
On the 1 8th of February, 1847, General Win-
field Scott presented himself before Vera Cruz
with a formidable army of American troops. On
the 22d Santa Anna lost the battle of Angostura, or
Buena Vista as it is better known by Americans, and
was forced to retire with his troops upon San Luis.
On the 28th the American forces in the north met
the Mexicans at Sacramento and beat them, soon
after occupying the important town of Chihuahua,
These events following close upon one another
filled the Mexicans with alarm, but their determina-
tion held out, and all the opportunities for peace
offered them by the American government were
waived as an indignity to their national honor.
To raise money was the great difficulty. Calls
were made upon the separate states and upon indi-
viduals. The government journals adopted the
motto Ser ?io ser (" to be or not to be," literally
rendered), and were filled with articles urging the
hearty support of the war. One plan for raising
money was the sequestration of Church property.
As the various religious orders came over to New
Spain from the old country they built churches,
323
324 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
monasteries, convents, and hospitals ; in the early
period after the Conquest their work and influence,
as we have seen, were most favorable to the establish-
ment of the colony. To the Franciscans, in great
part, belongs the honor of establishing the power of
Spain on a firm basis in the new country. Their
wise course with the Indians, establishing a cordial
and even affectionate intercourse with them, en-
grafting gently the tenets of the new religion upon
whatever was good and healthy of the old stock,
gave them a strong hold upon their converts, and
thus confirmed by love and reason the position won
in the first place by arms and superior force. The
several orders of Hospitallers established all over the
country houses of shelter for the sick, admirably ap-
pointed and administered conscientiously with the
greatest zeal.
The Jesuits encouraged learning in Mexico,
founded colleges and schools, and inspired even
the lowest class with the possibility of raising them-
selves by developing their mental faculties. The
Dominicans, by their furious zeal for the Inquisition,
doubtless hastened the end of the Spanish rule, for
the soil of the New World has never been favorable
for the taking root of this institution.
" Broadly speaking," Mr. Janvier says, in his ad-
mirable " Mexican Guide," " the influence of the re-
ligious orders upon the colony was beneficial during
its first century, neutral during its second, harmful
during its third." It must always be remembered
that Cortes, with all his personal ambition and greed
of gold, was deeply religious, and that he never lost
GENERAL WINFIELD SCOTT
325
326 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
sight of his highest aim in conquering New Spain,
which was in all sincerity to plant the cross upon its
soil. The impulse given by his determination lasted
a long time, but in another century this had lost its
force, while with the decline of the power of the
Church at home, the ambassadors from Spain had
less religious fervor. In the last century all institu-
tions of the Church had deteriorated to a degree
fatal to her interests, as well as to those of the
country.
By this time so much of the wealth of Mexico had
come into the possession of the Church that this
locking up of capital really blocked the channels of
trade. Money accepted, or extorted, by the priests
stopped circulating, and was lost in the coffers of
churches, or converted into superb ornaments for
altars. The practical thought of the time, in the
stress for money required to pursue the war, turned
to the scheme of converting all this splendor into
funds for the equipment of armies.
The clergy became alarmed at the first sound of
such proposals, and used all their powerful influence
against them. For this course they were accused by
the government journals of want of patriotism, of
aiding and abetting the monarchists, and fomenting
[he discords which were daily becoming more
dangerous.
This was not without reason, for althougli the
priests feared and hated the " Northern heretics,"
as they called the enemy, they feared and hated
still more the loss of their property. The monarchi-
Ccd preferences of the great dignitaries of the Church
PUEBLA LOST. 327
aie well known. They have never favored the inno-
vation of the Republic in Mexico.
In spite of the strong opposition of the priests, an
attempt was made to carry the plan into effect.
Government required a contribution from the prop-
erty of the clerg}' to the amount of two millions of
dollars, and issued drafts amounting to that sum on
the different bishops of the country. These prel-
ates really were not able to pay immediately in
ready money, even if they had inclination ; they
begged for delay, and meantime incited the clergy
to defeat further measures in Congress. Neverthe-
less a bill was passed in January, 1847, " to hypothe-
cate or sell in mortmain Church property " in
amounts necessary to obtain fifteen millions for the
support of the national war against the United
States. Government, determined to carry the matter
through, took the first step by seizing a priest who
was stirring up an insurrection in the capital, and
casting him into prison. Such acts stifled the gen-
eral outcry, and the clergy were compelled to work
in secret. But the property consisted almost en-
tirely of real estate, and, even when seized or mort-
gaged, it was dif^cult to raise money on it, for the
clergy made it unsafe for individuals to encourage
the government by purchase. No great quantity of
money was raised at that time, and Congress was
induced to consider ways of making the law less ob-
noxious. In the middle of their conference they
broke up, and left government to obtain resources
as it might.
Thus the first szreat blow was struck at the accu-
328 THE SrORY OF MEXICO.
mulation of Church wealth ; the wedge admitted
which must weaken the structure in time.
On the 22d of March General Scott, having landed
his troops, began to bombard the city of Vera Cruz.
At the time of the attack the city was but scantily
supplied with subsistence. The governor of the
state had endeavored to provide it with provisions,
in the little time he had after the appearance of
American vessels in the harbor, but amid the clamor
at the capital his small voice was unheeded. Gen-
eral Morales, the Commandant, with good courage
resolved to keep up the defence as long as possible,
trusting for aid to the coming of the voniito, which
early every spring makes Vera Cruz unhealthy, rather
than to any hope of a relieving army.
On the day General Scott summoned the city to
surrender. General Morales returned a peremptory
refusal, saying that he would make good his defence
to the last, informing his E.xcellency that he could
commence operations in the manner which he might
consider most advantageous. Soon after, the bom-
bardment began. For four days a shower of shells
poured upon the city, and the violence instead of
diminishing daily increased. The inhabitants for
protection crowded upon the mole, and into the
northern part of the town. For twelve days the
place was closely invested. Many poor people who,
without the necessaries of life, were prowling about
the streets in search of food, fell before the American
fire, as well as women and children, who were not
safe even in their houses. On the 28th the city sur-
rendered. The Mexican troops were permitted to
330 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
march out of the city with the honors of war, to the
field where the surrender of arms was to take place,
and to salute their flaij when it was struck. The
civil and relii^ious. rights of Vera Cruz were guaran-
teed to its inhabitants. The troops laid down their
arms, and General Worth's command entered and
took possession of the city and the neighboring
Castle of San Juan d' Uloa.
B\' this capture. General Scott obtained a base of
operations for direct advance upon the city of
Mexico, and, moreover, inflicted another blow upon
the courage of the Mexican nation.
Santa Anna, who, by the way, had been made
President, leaving political affairs in the hands of
Governor Farias, Vice-President, hastened from the
defeat at Buena Vista to the encounter of another
American army, met General Scott between Jalapa
and Vera Cruz, and sustained a new defeat at Cerro
Gordo. He himself escaped and fled to Orizaba,
where he made strenuous efforts to assemble anevv an
army, for his troops were utterly dispersed, and not
a barrier remained between the enemy and the capi-
tal. The Americans, in fact, slowly advanced, occu-
pying the country as they went towards the capital.
Santa Anna arrived first at Puebla \\\\.\\ all the force
which he had collected at Orizaba. He found the
Poblanos indifferent, and tried to rouse their patriot-
ism, telling them, with good reason, that he knew
they, could fight if they chose, for not three years
before they had beaten him, Santa Anna, off the town
although he was backed b}- an army of 12,000 men.
Notwithstanding his eloquence, the American army
PUEBLA LOST. 33 1
marched into Puebla without any fighting at all. The
Ayuntamiento of the city met General Worth out-
side the city, and favorable terms were agreed upon.
The American troops arriving in Puebla were
quartered at first in the Plaza Mayor, where they
stacked their arms, and laid themselves down to
rest. They had passed the night in the open air in a
pouring rain, and were tired and dirty with a long
march all the morning. The Poblanos could not
uiKierstand that these ill-conditioned soldiers were
the terrible conquerors who were invading their
homes. Some one expressed the belief that five
hundred good men could cut them down, as they
lay at their ease in the Plaza, but the attempt was
not made.
Puebla was thus quietly occupied, but the inhabi-
tants showed no good-will to the invaders.
Fort Loreto, on the hill of Guadalupe, was occu-
pied by a part of the American command. This hill
is famous in the annals of Mexican history. In the
old times when it was crowned by the Church of
Guadalupe, religious processions used to go up and
down on the days of sacred ceremony. The fort was
destined to a glorious triumph later, but at the time
of the American investment it had not yet won its
reputation. Then, as now, from the heights was to
be seen one of the great views of the world : three
snow-covered volcanoes, with Malintzi rising 13,000
feet above the level of the sea, and the lofty crest
of Orizaba, and nearer at hand the pyramid of
Cholula. The city of Puebla spreads out below
like a map. It is very pretty, built like all the
Mexican cities, with streets running at accurate
3^2 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
right angles, straight and regular. Many churches
are scattered over the city ; the frequent use of
colored tiles in building furnishes a great many
colors, for red, yellow, and blue are employed in
the domes, which glow with bright tints or glitter
in the rcOcction of the sun.
The American troops had full opportunity to en-
joy this scene while they occupied Puebla, awaiting
at first the arrival of General Scott, and afterwards
reinforcements sufficient to warrant an advance.
Santa Anna returned to Mexico, where, as usual
-with beaten generals, liis reception was the reverse
of cordial. He took what measures he could to win
back popularity, and as one step towards this,
resigned the presidency. Pending a new election,
Congress created him Dictator until the next year,
and armed with this authority he began the work of
fortifying the capital, since this was evidently the
next and last point of attack for the enemy, Gen-
eral Taylor's army finding no hindrance in coming
from the north, and General Scott close at hand in
the City of the Angels.
Patriotism, the desire to defend the capital, was
fully aroused, and battalions poured in from the dif-
ferent cities and states of the Republic ; each sent
its guns to contribute to the defence, and by the end
of June the Mexican Dictator had at his disposal
over 25,000 men and si.xty pieces of artillery. Pro-
nunciamentos ceased for the time, and the spirits of
the Mexicans again rose, leading them to hope that
the final struggle would be successful, and that tlie
troops (»f the United States would meet with an
overwhelming defeat at the gates of their capital.
XXXIV.
CHAPULTEPEC TAKEN.
Early in August the American army left Puebla
and took up its quarters outside the capital, having
approached by a route south of Lake Chalco.
Santa Anna, having learned these movements,
began fortifications at the Bridge and Church of
Churubusco, four miles south of the city. There is
no town here, only a few little scattered houses ; in
the time of the Aztecs, however, it was an important
place, which clustered round the temple of their old
god of war, Huitzilopochtli, of which the modern
name is a derivation, having come a long way from
its root. " The place," says an old chronicler, " was
the dwelling and diabolical habitation of infernal
spirits" until the priests of the Church cast them
out. When the artillery of the American army
rattled about their ears, the poor inhabitants may
have fancied there had entered in devils worse than
the first.
The Mexican general ordered a barricade to be
erected in the road over which the American army
must pass. This was done, but when Worth arrived
he set the same Indians who had thrown up the
barricade to level it again. These docile natives saw
333
334- ^^^^ STORY OF MEXICO.
but little difference between one army and another,
and they set to work with the same patient alacrity
they had used to build the barricade, on the business
of tearing it down again.
On the 1 8th the battle of Churubusco was fought,
the Mexicans defending with great bravery a con-
vent to which they had retreated. In this battle,
lost by the Mexicans, many of their distinguished
men perished. Gorostiza, a poet and dramatist,
some of whose plays still hold the stage, lost his life
valiantly commanding his battalion, although he
was old and infirm.
It was all in vain. The Americans gained the
convent and the town, in spite of the valor of the
defenders and the bravery of General Anaya, who
was in command. The Mexicans left alive were
taken prisoners, and the Americans triumphed. The
day of Churubusco is regarded by the Mexicans as a
glorious one, in spite of their defeat. A monument
stands in the Plaza in memory of the heroes who
died there defending their country.
Closer and closer drew the lines of the hostile
force. There was an armistice after the battle of
Churubusco; fighting began again at Molino del
Rey, a range of stone buildings under the fire of the
heavy guns of the Castle of Chapultepec. General
Scott was informed that a foundry was in operation
at that place, and that bells from the steeples of the
city had lately been dismounted, probably to be re-
cast there for cannon. This turned his attention to
the place. It was attacked on the night of Septem-
ber 8th, and taken the next day after furious resist-
336 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
ance. Inside the Molino were some few old cannon
moulds, but no evidence of recent founding. The
Americans were now close under the fortifications
of Chapultepec, whose guns had played incessantly
upon them from daylight throughout the action.
This also is regarded by the Mexicans as a brilliant
action, as it undoubtedly was on their part, as well
as that of the daring invaders. During the battle,
the bells of the city were ringing a continuous joyful
peal, as if to assert a victory beforehand. The city
was wholly confident in the impregnability of its
stronghold, the Castle of Chapultepec.
Yet on the 13th this difficult fortress was attacked
by General Pillow, scaled and taken by the Ameri-
can troops. General Bravo was in command of the
castle, while Santa Anna was occupied with other
exposed places. Under him were eight hundred
men, among them the pupils of the Military College
established there. The General was taken prisoner;
many of the brave young fellows, before they had
gone beyond the first lessons of military science,
were taught its last and most bitter one, — death, in
the defence of their citadel. The American soldiers
rushed in at the many different doors of the college;
it is said that they showed unusual ferocity, made
savages by the custom of slaughter among the Mex-
icans in former engagements. Quarter was rarely
given, a practice learned of the Spaniards themselves ;
for a few moments the struggle was fearful, and the
bloodshed unrestrained. Parties of American offi-
cers found their way to the Azotea, and tore down
the Mexican colors, while the standards of two
i
f
» .^
? 4
^ »
? 5
r. 5
» J
^ i
t i
1^1
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^ f ^
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338 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
United States regiments were displayed. The
shouts of the victors announced to the city that lier
stronghold had fallen.
The taking of Chapultepec was practically the end
of the war. The city of Mexico was shortly after
occupied, and although the negotiations for peace
were long and tiresome, the end was obvious.
On the 2d of February, 1848, a treaty was
confirmed, called that of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, from
the name of the little suburb city where it was
signed. Mexico received fifteen millions of dollars,
by way of indemnity; but lost the territory of Alta
California, New Mexico, Texas, and a part of her
state of Coahuila, by the agreement to consider the
windings of the Rio Bravo del Norte, or Rio Grande,
as the boundary between the two nations, as far as it
goes; that is, to a direct line parallel with San Diego
on the coast of California.
No sooner had California fallen into the hands of
the Americans, than it turned out to be full of gold.
In that very year, 1 848, began the gold fever of Cali-
fornia, and emigration poured in from all parts of the
States, so that rapidly the territory, unknown and
neglected by the Mexicans, grew to be a most im-
portant State. San Francisco, then a little straggling
Mexican port, is now a large and flourishing city.
This is a result of the war which must be viewed
with impatience, to say the least, by the Mexicans,
who saw themselves, at the time, forced to relinquish
this large amount of territory without the power of
refusal. On the other hand, there is loom for think-
ing that California, left in the hands of that people,
I
CHAPULTEPEC TAKEN. 339
might have remained to this (hi\' undiscovered, with
its wealth still hidden in the earth. Whatever com-
fort this may be, is open to the losing side.
The war left them disgraced and humiliated, with
ruined cities and desolated homes scattered over
the land. It is probable, however, that the perma-
nent effect of the war was beneficial. It taught the
Mexicans, for one thing, to distrust the prestige of
their army, and humbled the pretensions of a crowd
of military men, who, while they aspired to the
highest offices of government, proved themselves not
only incapable of serving their country thus, but in-
competent in the field. High praise, however, is
always to be assigned to the courage and bravery of
the army, its commanders, and private soldiers, es-
pecially in the defence of their capital when the
struggle reached its last agony.
The United States by the war acquired an im-
mense extent of territory, by many of its citizens,
however, even at the time, regarded as a questionable
good. The acquisition of so much slave territory'
without doubt hastened the crisis which called for
the civil war of 1861. The experiences of the Amer-
ican army in the Mexican war, and the glory, exag-
gerated perhaps, which attached to their feats of
arms, stimulated the taste for military pursuits, be-
fore very moderate in a peaceful and industrious
land. The heroes of the campaign of Anahuac were
transferred to the field of politics. General Taylor
became President of the United States, and General
Scott narrowly escaped it. The defects of the army
were recognized and in great measure remedied, so
340
THE STORY or MEXICO.
that when the civil war did come, both armies, on
the two contending sides of that unfortunate con-
flict, were in a state of readiness much in advance of
the condition of the national troops before the cam-
paign in Mexico, while a crop of officers, heroes of
the so-called glorious victories of Palo Alto, Buena
Vista, and the rest, responded to the call of loyalty,
or rebellion, with the alacrity of experience.
After the evacuation of Mexico an attempt was
made by the Americans to capture Santa Anna,
General Lane, w^ho with a small force was engaged
in driving guerrillas from the roads, received infor-
mation that this general was at Tehuacan, not very
far from Puebla. After marching all night in that
direction, he occupied two large haciendas in that
neighborhood, where his men and horses were con-
cealed during daylight, and the Mexican residents
held close prisoners. When evening arrived the
command marched on towards Tehuacan. About
five miles out they met a carriage with an escort of
ten or twelve armed men. They were stopped, but
the occupant of the carriage produced a written safe-
guard over the signature of an American general, and
upon this the whole party was allowed to proceed.
General Lane arrived at Tehuacan just at daylight,
and entered it at once. But the bird had flow^n,
Santa Anna had been there ; but, warned by a
breathless messenger on horseback, who rode back
from the carriage the soldiers had met, to give him
news of the approach of the soldiers, had just time
enough to make his escape, with his family, leaving
all his effects, which were quickly plundered by the
troops of Lane's command.
CHAPULTEPEC TAKEN.
341
On Friday 1st, before the treaty of Guadalupe-
Hidalgo, Santa Anna informed the Minister of
War and the American Commander-in-Chief that he
desired to leave I/Texico and seek an asylum on a
foreign soil, where he " might pass his last days in
that tranquillity which he could never find in the land
of his birth." This permission was granted, and he
went to Jamaica, leaving his country at peace, but
not forever.
Ulysses S. Grant, then a young soldier in the
army of the United States, took part in the Mexican
war. He went into the battle of Palo Alto as
second lieutenant, at the age of twenty-six, and
entered the city of Mexico sixteen months later
with the conquering army.
In his personal memoirs General Grant expresses
his opinion that the Mexican war was one of the
most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a
weaker nation. " It was an instance," he says, "of
a republic following the bad example of European
monarchies, in not considering justice in their dnsire
to acquire additional territory."
XXXV.
BENITO JUAREZ.
Peace was restored, and with it revived commerce
and industry ; the coffers of government were full,
thanks to the fifteen millions of pesos received from
the United States to heal the wounds of war.
General Herrera took possession of the presiden-
tial chair, and Mexico, after twenty years of warfare,
civil and foreign, took a respite of as many months.
Herrera became President on the 3d of June, 1848,
and fulfilled the appointed time of ofifice until Jan-
uary, 185 1, when he handed over the control to his
successor, when for the first time in the history of
the Republic this change was effected without
violence.
His administration was economical and moral, and
so was that of his successor, General Arista, who
continued the reform of the army, bringing order
into the financial condition of the country. These
two terms may be regarded as models of good gov-
ernment.
Before the close of Arista's term the Mexicans
took up their old practice oi pronouncing, and rather
than create a disturbance, the President, finding
himself unpopular, secretly retired from the capital.
342
BENITO JUAREZ,
344 ^^^^ STOJiV OF MEXICO.
Resolutions began, and Santa Anna, hearing their
echo afar, returned to the country once more, to be
made Dictator.
But Mexico was not to fall back into the hopeless
anarchy of the period before the American war. The
better class had learned to desire peace, and there
were leaders among them strong enough to restrain
the mobile desires of the multitude, and lead them
to better things. The epoch of the reform began ;
and although this reform was signalized by blood-
shed, it was a war for definite objects and princi-
ples, and not a squabble, setting up and putting
down incompetent presidents, which used to prevail.
The great struggle arose ov^er the question of the
sequestration of Church property, begun during the
United States war, but then, as we have seen,
treated injudiciously, hastily dealt with, with but
temporary and inefBcient results. Later the dis-
agreement between the clcrigos, or Church party,
and the liberales, or those demanding the surrender
of the property of the Church, became wider and
wider, until two great parties divided the country.
For half a century these parties have disputed the
power under their two political standards. It must
not be inferred that the party opposed to the
clerigos has been opposed to religion. The liberals
have been as good Christians, and not only this, as
devout Catholics, as the so-called Church party. The
question has not turned upon matters of doctrine,
but upon those pertaining to the goods of the Church.
Benito Juarez was of pure Aztec birth. It has
even been said that the blood of the Montezumas
BENITO JUAREZ. 345
was in his veins. Be that as it may, his family was
of the lowest order of the Indians, living in a vil-
lage of the state of Oaxaca. They were poor, and
it is said that at twelve Benito knew neither how to
read nor write.
He found a protector in Don Antonio Salanueva,
head of a rich family of Oaxaca, who became inter-
ested in him, and kindly helped him to an education.
In him, as in many other cases less known, the fa-
cility of the Indian intelligence to acquire knowledge
was shown. He learned rapidly to read and write,
and advanced so far as to study law, in which he
afterwards distinguished himself, elected first a mem-
ber of the legislature of Oaxaca, and afterwards
climbing all the steps to legal fame until he became
the presiding judge of the courts there.
During the war with the United States, Juarez wa?
at the capital, as deputy to Congress. He took a
vigorous part in the demand for the loan upon
Church property to supply money for the war, and
thus ranged himself with the opponents to the
Church party, although himself preserving the de-
vout faith of the Catholic religion, which the In-
dians almost invariably cling to.
He was made Governor of Oaxaca, and devoted
himself to establishing schools for the Indians, to
benefit his race, while he managed affairs wisely and
economically for all.
During Santa Anna's dictatorship, he was banished
from the country, and stayed in New Orleans until
the turn of the wheel brought his way of thinking
to the top, when among other offices he resumed
346 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
that of Governor of Oaxaca. He became afterwards
Secretary of State, and President of the Supreme
Court of Justice.
On the 17th of February, 1857, a new Constitution
was promulgated by the enlightened Congress. It
declared that national sovereignty resides essentially
in the people, and adopted the republican form of
government, representative, democratic, and federal.
It proclaimed each state free and sovereign within
its limits, and introduced many reforms and im.
provements in the old code. It was received with
great applause by the liberal party, but with little
disguised disapproval by the army and clergy, who
set themselves from its birth to combating its suc-
cess. Great disturbance arose, excommunication of
the liberals, promulgations, pronunciamentos, arrests,
uprisings. Fram the midst of all the confusion
Juarez took possession of the presidency by right of
his position as head of the Supreme Court, since
Comonfort, the legitimate President, \\2iA pronounced,
been condemned, and forced to leave the country.
Juarez and his party held their own through much
adverse circumstance. On his side were ranged, in
the defence of the Constitution of 1857, Doblado,
Ortega, Zaragoza, Guillermo, Prieto, and other im-
portant men ; on the side of the clcrigos were the
Generals Miramon and Marquez, and the greater
part of the chiefs of the regular arm}'. Civil war
waged over the land ; there is reason to believe that
moderate principles and the Constitution of 1857
would ha\'e triumphed, had it not been for the
strange and certainly unexpected events of the for-
BEN I TO J UA REZ. 347
eign intervention, which occasioned an episode in
Mexican affairs as cruel and unnecessary as it was
dramatic. So foreign indeed was it to the national
life of the Mexican people, that it in reality scarcely
formed a part of their history. The Indian in his
hut of adobe saw the princely pageant pass, he
scarce knew why.
XXXVI.
FRENCH INTERVENTION.
In 1 86 1, four years after the declaration of the
Constitution of 1857, on the 8th of December,
there appeared in the waters of Vera Cruz a for-
eign squadron, over which floated the colors of three
European powers. It was a combined expedition
from the governments of Spain, England, and
France. The commissioners from these three pow-
ers were accompanied by a body of Spanish troops,
a smaller force of French ones, and some English
sailors. Why were they there ? Did they come to
demand something? Had they an ultimatum to
present ?
The three powers had signed a treaty in London
by which they agreed to send this threefold expedi-
tion to Mexico to demand guaranties for the safety
of their subjects living there, and further to urge
their claim to sums borrowed by the Mexicans
during their difficulties, on which a law had been
lately passed suspending payment. This was the
pretext for the expedition ; its real cause was below
the surface.
The commissioners took possession easily of Vera
Cruz, and then proceeded to Orizaba, where a confer-
348
FRENCH INTERVENTION. 349
ence was opened with Juarez. The demand for pay-
ment was readily acknowledged, and the commis-
sioners for Spain and England at once withdrew
their troops. But the French remained. The proc-
lamation issued by the commissioners, declaring
their presence in Mexico was for no other purpose
than that of settling vexed questions, had served as
a reason for introducing their troops. The expe-
dition was undertaken in good faith by the English
and Spanish governments, but when their commis-
sioners found that a deeper question was involved,
they extricated themselves and their governments
from the affair and went away.
A plan had been formed in the court of the Tuil-
eries, by Napoleon III., encouraged and even insti-
gated by Mexican refugees who had sought the
court of France, disgusted with the liberal turn of
affairs in their own country. Among these were
Gutierrez de Estrada, the ex-President Miramon, and
others of the clergy party, who were opposed entirely
to the supremacy of Juarez, and wanted above all
things to bring back a monarchy to Mexico. At the
same time the Archbishop of Mexico, robbed as he
said of the property of his Church, warmly advocated
the same cause at Rome.
The plan was to select a prince of some European
house, and place him upon the throne left vacant
since the abdication of Agustin I. in the capital of
the Aztec Emperors. Estrada, indeed, was living in
exile, on account of his pamphlet proposing this
scheme. Napoleon III. accepted these overtures with
alacrity, and at once furnished troops, money, and
350 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
influence to the alluiin*; idea of " opposin;^ the Latin
race to the inv.isioii of Y\ns^h:)-Saxons " in the New
World — that is, to check the sui)remacy of the United
States upon the western continent, and estabhsh an
Empire in Mexico, which, nominally independent,
would be under his own control, and thus add to
the glory of the French nation.
The time was opportune, for the United States
were then engrossed in a civil war, which absorbed
all tlieir resources. The government at Washington
could not give its attention to affairs in Mexico,
and Napoleon hoped, in the not improbable event of
the success of the Southern States, that there would
be no danger of interference from that quarter.
The deinands of the commissioners, therefore,
were but an excuse for entering the country. Rel}'-
ing on the representatives of the Mexican emigres,
which promised cordial support from the clerical
party at home, the French advanced towards the
capita! of Mexico.
Meanwhile, the future Emperor had been found.
Ferdinand Maximilian Joseph, Archduke of Austria,
of the house of Hapsburg Lorraine, accepted the
proposition secretly made him by Napoleon, to be-
come Emperor of INIexico.
He was brother of the reigning Emperor of Aus-
tria, and they were descended from the royal house
of Charles V. of Germany and L of Spain. Maxi-
milian was born in 1832 ; in 1857 ^^ ^'^'^ married the
daughter of the King of Belgium, Carlotta Maria
Amalia. These two young persons, for the prince
was but little over thirty, were at Miramar, their
351
ARCHDUKE MAXIMILIAN.
35^: 7V//; .s'7"('A'i- of jfj-:.\7co.
palace lUMf riiosto. where thc\- leeeixed the o\er-
tiires oi the Mexie.m eonspir.itors. \'o\ n\an\ months
the Archduke hesitKitcd over so startUuL; ajMoposal ;
tinally he decided to accept the crown which was ot"-
tered him. but "on the condition that h'tance atul
Kni;land should sustain him with their i^uarantw
moral and material, both on land and se.i." I'aiL^land.
as we ha\e seen. earl\' witluliew Iront the alliance,
with a lo}-alt\' to honorable principles *;re.itly to its
credit, well aware that the Uniteil States would Knik
upon the scheme with no ta\or. .uul less contuient
than the blench l^mperor in the success ot the
Southern Cont'ederacy.
Maximili.m was .i (.Ireamer. The scion ot the
stock of kini;s. he belie\'ed lun\l\- in the " riL;ht
divine," which he persuailed himselt to tanc\ , b\
tortuous wa)-s miL;ht now be hoverin_»;" oxer him.
Artlentl)' relii;ious. he attaclu'd the highest imptut-
ance to the preservation of the Church, anil believed
tiiat he was an instrument to tiiis end. The \ision
ol Mexico snatcheil fri>m the hanils of impicnis rebels
and restored to the prestii^e of an ancient I'.mpiri.',
fascinated him. and with a vivitl imaL;ination, he
pictured himself, ami his C'arhUta. wluMn he de.u-ly
loved, as the central fii^ures of the i^reat rcstor.ition.
His exjiression of this thoui^ht at Naples, in 1S57, so
often iiuoted. pio\es how far he was carrieil b\' the
\i\idness o( his dreams.
"The monumental stairwa\' of the palace oi Ca-
seita is wiirth)' of majesty. What can be fmertlKin
to imai;ine the sovereign placeil at its he.id, resplen-
di-nt in the midst of those marble pill. us, to fancy
FRENCir fNTf-.kVl'.NTfO^. 353
this monarcli lik': a t^od graciously permitting the
afiprr^ach of human h'.inj^s. The crowd surges up-
ward. 'Ih*; kin^ vouchsafes a j^racious glance, but
from a lofty elevation. All powerful, imperial, he
makes one step towards them with a smile of infinite
condescension.
"Could Charles V., could Maria Theresa appear
thus at the head of this ascending stair, who
would not bow the head before that majestic power
God-given I I too, poor fluttering insect of a day,
have felt such pride throb in my veins, when I have
been standing in the palace of the Doges of Venice,
as to think how agreeable it would be, not too often,
but in rare solemn moments, to stand thus at the
height of such an ascent, and glancing downward
over all the world, to fee-1 myself the First, like the
sun in the firmament."
All this had been arranged, as is now known by
the dates of the preliminary correspondence, before
the French commissioners were sent to Vera Cruz.
The conciliating attitude of Juarez towards them
took away the pretext under which they had entered
the country, but they had no orders to retire. On
the contrary, reinforcements soon arrived, and the
Mexican President found himself obliged to put an
army in their way.
The expedition, whose object, no longer concealed,
was "the triumph of the Latin race on American
soil," advanced towards the capital. Mexico was
divided hy its two great parties for and against the
invasion. The ultra-clcrigos, .secretly aware of the
action of their party abroad, encouraged it ; but
354 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
there were many amongst them who paused before
the innovation of a foreign ruler on Mexican soil.
French troops under the command of General Lo-
rencez advanced upon Puebla, joined before they
arrived there by a strong Mexican force of the cleri-
cal party under Marques, so that they had a large
and effective army. The resisting force in Puebla
was much smaller, not more than two thousand
strong, but the defence under General Zaragoza was
brilliant against a vigorous attack. The French were
driven off and had to retire to Orizaba.
This is the victory of the Cinco de Mayo, or 5th of
May, which the Mexicans celebrate as one of their
best holidays. The battle was not in itself very im-
portant, but its moral effect upon the Mexicans was
great, encouraging them to continue their gallant
defence of their country. They fought to resist
foreign intrusion. At that time they scarcely knew
why it was thrust upon them, and could not have
dreamed of the extent to which imperial audacity
on the other side of the ocean had dared to go. To
impose upon a free and able-bodied people a sov-
ereign of foreign birth, without the slightest sign of
inclination on their part, was hardly justified by the
argument that this party constituted an important
minority. The extent of the enterprise dawned
upon the people gradually, as the scheme of the
French Emperor unfolded itself. Meanwhile, there
was fighting in Puebla, and the long-suffering Mexi-
cans again took up arms.
The Indians, over whose villages peace for a few
years had stretched her fostering wing, once more
FRENCH INTERVENTION. 355
heard the noise of cannon and tlie call to arms.
The old troubled life had come back again. Repose
ivas only a dream.
On the 5th of May, every year, there arc great re-
joicings all over Mexico, but especially in the capi-
tal, where a broad handsome street, well paved and
lighted, is called the Cinco de Mayo. All the
troops are reviewed on that day by the President.
The buildings are hung deep with flags and decora-
tions, and the streets crowded with a joyous popula-
tion swarming to and fro, crying Vivas ! over the long
procession of regiments marching through the city
to the stirring sound of the Mexican national march.
An adventure of which the French are very proud
occurred in the following month. After retreating
from Puebla, the army of Lorencez was quartered in
Orizaba where they were closely watched by Zarago-
za's men. A body of four or five thousand Mexican
troops placed themselves upon the Cerro de Borrego,
high above the town, whence they threatened to bom-
bard it. The condition of the French within the
town grew more and more uncomfortable, food was
giving out, and the presence of the overlooking
enemy was, to say the least, annoying.
A young captain, lately promoted, watched and
followed a Mexican woman whom he saw day by day,
as she climbed a steep path to the height, carrying a
water jar upon her head to supply the Mexican army.
The French ofificer entreated permission of his gen-
eral to attempt the dislodgement of the enemy. This
granted, in the deep darkness of night one hundred
and fifty soldiers crept cautiously up the narrow path,
unconsciously betrayed by the Indian won^an, close
356 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
to the edge of the cliff. Suddenly, as they arrived
at the top, the officer called out '^ A nioi Ics Zouaves ! "
"/i moi laLdgion ! " giving such a volley of directions
that the Mexicans imagined the whole French army
was upon their traces. Startled from secure slumber,
they were easily overcome. The French claim the
destruction of three hundred men, a general, three
colonels, and two lieutenant-colonels, with all the
arms and the colors of the Mexicans, who, if they
survived the weapons of the small attacking party,
fled and were lost in the steep slopes of the precipice.
Fresh troops came from France, and by the
beginning of another year the army of invasion,
commanded by Marshal Forey, numbered forty
thousand men, not counting the Mexicans on that
side, whose numbers increased as the magnitude of
the enterprise became known.
Puebla again was the scene of the struggle. For
two months General Ortega defended it obstinately,
but food became scarce. A convoy bringing pro-
visions, under charge of General Comonfort, was
seized by the French under Marshal Bazainc, and
on the i/th of May the besieged army was obliged
to succumb, without capitulating. The French ad-
vanced towards the capital, and the Mexicans aban-
doned it, Juarez withdrawing towards the north,
where he re-organized his government at San Luis
dc Potosi. He never relinquished his office during
the whole of the French intervention, and remained
all the time, in the minds of loyal Mexicans, and
also in the language and opinion of the government
of the United States, President of the still existing'
Mexican Republic-
XXXVII.
THE EMPIRE UNDER PROTECTION.
On the 28th of May, 1864, to the great joy of the
Cabinet of the Tuileries, who had been much in fear
that their scheme might fall through, the new sover-
eigns arrived at Vera Cruz. They were but coolly
received by the merchants of that port, and passed
through it without ceremony, followed by the large
suite they brought with them. But the priests had
aroused tne Indians en masse to welcome new rulers,
who wouid, they were promised, restore their liber-
ties and raise their condition. Crowds of these
people in serapes and rebozos, with dark eyes full of
questions, stood along the route of the imperial
cortege as it left Vera Cruz.
Nor was enthusiasm elsewhere wanting ; a real
imperialist party sprang up from the soil, spon-
taneously, on the appearance of the young prince
and his consort. Had they known how to secure
this popularity and make it permanent, these im-
ported sovereigns might have reared for themselves
a realm in the hearts of the impressionable people
of Anahuac. Maximilian formed his idea of sover-
eignty upon the absolute rule of the Middle Ages.
Ke would not stoop to make popularit}' ; he expected
357
358 THE STORY OF MEXrC(h<
it to be freeh' offered. Indeed, he had assented to
come onl\' when he was summoned b}' the voice of
the whole Mexican people. This voice was the re-
luctant vote of a Junta got tOj;ether by the clerical
party on purpose to satisfy his demand. But the
charm of his presence, which was dignified and
princely, and the winning manner of Carlotta, well
fitted to play the part of gracious sovereign to an
adoring people, won all hearts for the moment.
A s[)lendid reception was prepared in the capital.
Triumphal arches spanned, the principal avenues to
the cit\', inscribed with the names of the personages
who had brought about the glorious intervention.
The streets, especially San Francisco and Plateros,
were hung with banners of every color, set with ex-
quisite flowers and plants. Rows of citizens and
troops, dressed in their best, lined the way through
which the open carriage of Maximilian and Carlotta
made its way, preceded by the ofificers of state, and
followed by a long retinue of public functionaries
and persons of the highest aristocracy. Balconies
and azoteas were crowded with curious gazers, and
vivas were not wanting ; yet it is said that the
populace kept away from the solemnity, or looked
on coldly, at the advent of the foreign intruders.
Maximilian was accompanied by a crowd of fol-
lowers, — his escort, household servants, and retinue;
and brought with him all the material for establish-
ing in a new country a throne of the " right divine."
Quantities of these things, for want of lumber-room,
are now stored at the National Museum at Mexico,
where one may see in glass cases much heavy silver
360 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
plate with the imperial arms, destined for the feasts
of this descendant of Charles V. ; the decorations of
the Emperor; and below in the courtway stands the
^jreat glass coach in which he sat with the Empress,
as once sat Cinderella in a similar one. All these
insignia of royalty they brought to impose upon
their new thralls.
And so the young sovereigns set about organizing
their ideal court. All society was at their feet, and
the society in Mexico at that time, if more pro-
vincial than that of Paris or Vienna, yet had for
Maxiniilian and Carlotta the merit of being their
own domain. They were monarchs of all they
surveyed. It was indeed a romance. All their
debts paid by a generous Napoleon in the back-
ground, a French army full-fledged to protect them,
a throne, a court, a people ready-made to order, — all
they had to do was to enter in and enjoy them.
Marshal Bazaine, at the head of military affairs, set
about the restoration of the arsenal, and repairing
the damages made by the United States war. On
his arrival he found the service of artillery entirely
disorganized. Molino del Rey he restored to its
functions of a foundry, so that it could furnish arms
and munitions for the country.
Napoleon had promised that the French troops
should remain about Maximilian for six }'ears, or
until his own national army should be on such a
footing as to be a proper protection to its Emperor.
Bazaine was therefore occupied with the recon-
struction of the army, with an eye to the distant day
when he and his force mi^^ht be recalled.
CHAPULTEPEC IN THE TIME OF MAXIMILIAN.
361
362 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Meanwhile, ]\Iaximilian began to govern, accord-
ing to his Hghts, which were hberal as far as the
limit of absolute monarchy allowed. He sought to
gain the friendship of the party allied to Juarez,
holding the idea that this native chief, of a half-
civilized people had been driven off the field for
good, and that it was to be an easy task to replace
his crude government with one based on loftier
planes. He paid no attention to the new code "of
the reform, but began to impose his own regula-
tions, and to legislate on all matters as if Mexico
were still in its natural and primitive state. He
readily listened to all sorts of j^lans for the construc-
tion of telegraphs, railways, and other enterprises
for the improvement of the country, with little heed
to their vast expense.
Ainong these was the restoration of the palace at
Chapultepcc, then in dismal ruin since the attack of
the Americans. From their first glimpse of it the
new sovereigns decided that here should be their
home, the chosen dwelling which should recall the
delights of Miramar ; recognizing it as the loveliest
spot in all the broad valley of Anahuac. So thought
the Aztec chiefs who sought its shade in their leisure
moments ; so thought the viceroy, Galvez ; and so
thinks every one now who drives from the city over
the broad Paseo, built in the time of Maximilian, as a
fit approach to the charmed palace.
It stands (mi a height of two hundred feet above
the valley ; a winding road from the avenue below,
shaded by huge trees, leads to a platform where are
the great stone buildings of the lower terrace be-
THE EMPIRE UNDER PROTECTION. 363
longing to the Military Academy. On these build-
ings, which form its basement, is all the range of
Maximilian's palace, including not only a suite of
state apartments and smaller rooms, but, planted on
soil brought up from below, a series of hanging gar-
dens, surrounded by galleries with marble columns.
From the tangle of shrubbery and climbing masses
of neglected roses, can be seen below, stretching far
and wide, the extensive landscape, and from the
terrace the incomparable view of the volcanoes, with
the broad interval between.
The interior decoration of Maximilian's palace was
in imitation of Pompeii. It was furnished in the
French taste with light stufifs and gold, very well
suited to its sunny height and the pure atmosphere
of the valley of Mexico.
Fetes, receptions, dinners, and dances, every form
of gay life, ruled the home at Chapultepec. The
young Empress, animated and brilliant, was the
centre of her court. For a time no shadow fell upon
the bright prospect of the new Empire.
The capital presented an unusually lively aspect.
The French garrison filled the city with well-dressed
regiments ; business received a new impulse from
foreign merchants of all sorts, who came, at-
tracted by the demands of a court for luxury ;
the rich families of tb.e capital displayed their wealth
in all the splendor of luxurious living. After many
years of discord and depression, the reaction brought
about by this burst of prosperity pervaded the cap-
ital. It was true that this satisfaction was felt only
by high society. There was no real improve-
364 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
ment as yet in the resources of the country ; the
middle class, with no greater facilities for living than
before the new order of things, were poor and dis-
contented, and murmured at the sight of rejoicing
and luxury they could not share. Carlotta, with an
open hand, distributed alms, drawn from the fortu-
nate purse at her disposition ; but this, without
method or definite aim, had no great effect upon the
general prosperity.
In fact it was by no means the purse of a benevo-
lent French Emperor that furnished funds for so
much expenditure. A heavy loan was negotiated
by the crown in 1864, in Paris and London, which
brought to its use plenty of ready money, but en-
tailed upon the nation a debt, of which it is not yet
free. The cities and separate states of Mexico, at
first readily surrendered to the troops of Maximilian,
small foreign garrisons being left in each of the prin-
cipal ones to maintain his authority by their presence.
It was necessary to maintain military rule, however,
for fear of relapse towards the Republic, and on ac-
count of vast guerrilla bands, espousing the liberal
cause, which infested roads and small villages, where
constant encounters and actions took place with
imperial troops.
But the gay court of Maximilian little heeded
these things. They left the army to Bazaine, and
the government to the ministers. Never was Mex-
ico so brilliant, so triumphant, so apparently at the
zenith of prosperity, as during the brief time of the
French intervention.
XXXVIII.
THE UNPROTECTED EMPIRE.
But there came a day which put an end to all
these festivities.
The civil war in the United States was over, leav-
ing the government at Washington at leisure to
attend to outside affairs ; moreover, leaving at its
disposition an army of well-trained troops, and a
treasury well-filled, in spite of the drain on both of
these through a protracted and destructive war.
On the 7th of April, 1864, the Secretary of State
wrote thus to the United States Minister in Paris:
"Sir: — I send you herewith the copy of the
unanimous resolution passed in the House of Rep-
resentatives the 4th instant. It comprises the op-
position of this body to any recognition of a mon-
archy in Mexico. . . . It is scarcely necessary,
after what I have previously written you, to say
that this resolution sincerely expresses the unani-
mous sentiment of the people of the United States."
The will of the United States government settled
the question, and this will was most distinctly made
manifest. The French Emperor could not involve
his people in a war with the United States, nor did
365
366 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
he himself, already somewhat weary of his own
scheme for establishing the supremacy of the Latin
lacc upon the western continent, regard it as worth
the risk of such a war. He readily assented to any
proposition of the government at Washington,
whose imperative demand was the withdrawal of
French troops from the continent of North America.
Louis Napoleon has been much blamed for his con-
duct in the matter of the French intervention, even
execrated. It is not easy to defend it, but it may be
said that from the European point of view, the plan
of intervention was not such a bad one. Undoubt-
edly it originated in the minds of the royalist
refugees from Mexico, who sincerely saw no better
way of serving their country, torn in pieces with
internal dissensions and civil wars, than to furnish
her with a ready-made crown from the continent
where such articles are furnished.
The Church party, which saw with genuine horror
the sequestration of their property, ascribed it to the
progress of so-called liberal ideas. They were warm-
ly encouraged by good Roman Catholics in Europe,
and among them by the Emperor at Versailles, who
professed himself an ardent adherent of the Pope,
The scheme was possible, because the powerful
neighbors of Mexico were occupied in quarrelling
among themselves. That quarrel might last until
the Latin race had firmly taken root. Napoleon
never intended a permanent French occupation of
the country. It was his whim to plant the little
monarchy, water it and dig about its roots, and then
go away to attend to other affairs.
THE UNPROTECTED EMPIRE. 367
The American quarrel did not last, nor did the
monarchy take root. The French troops were with-
drawn before the government of the Empire was in
any sense fully established. The national army
which Bazaine sought to establish on a firm footing
was not strong enough or loyal enough to uphold
the Emperor, and he was sacrificed.
Everybody wished him to abdicate. Napoleon
sent a special messenger to Mexico to urge this
course; Bazaine urged it, and it seems now as if
Maximilian himself must have perceived that there
was nothing else left for him. But he was very slow
to admit such an idea. Neither he nor the Empress
in any sense realized their perilous position.
At the end of June, 1866, came the final word of
Napoleon, in reply to an appeal sent to him from
Maximilian, upon which he, and still more Carlotta,
had founded great hopes. The message of the French
Em.peror was short, its tenor distinct, hard, making
it clear that no further support w^as to be furnished
by the Tuileries to the Mexican project ; the condi-
tions were hard, asserting that the troops must be
immediately withdrawn. Maximilian at last under-
stood that but one course was left to him — abdica-
tion. On the 7th of July he took up his pen to
sign away the Mexican monarchy ; but the Empress
stayed his hand. Carlotta, of a will stronger than
that of her husband, with a determined ambition,
offered to go herself to Europe to make a personal
appeal to Napoleon and another at Rome. On the
very next day she left the capital in haste, never to
-eturn.
368 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
It is said that on arriving at Vera Cruz the Em-
press could find nothing at the quay but a small
French boat to carry her out to the great steamer in
the offing. She absohitely refused to place herself
under the PVench colors which floated at the stern
of the boat, so bitterly she felt the insult offered to
her interests by the French nation.
She arrived at Saint-Nazaire early in August, to
the surprise of the local authorities, and, still more,
of the court of the Tuileries. The report of the
arrival of the Empress of Mexico produced a sensa-
tion at Paris, for public opinion there was already
interested in the Mexican drama. When Carlotta
landed she was the object of a large crowd assembled
on the docks. She appeared dressed in deep mourn-
ing, with great sadness of demeanor. Her face was
pale and haggard, and her eyes burned with fever.
She was accompanied only by a few ladies and
gentlemen of her house. No preparation, of course,
had been made for her; 2i covavaon voiture de place
took her to the hotel. Her Mexican servants, with
their large sombreros trimmed with gold braid, made
a sensation in the French port.
The next day she arrived in Paris, and went to the
Grand Hotel, refusing to ask hospitality at the
Tuileries. The imperial family was at Saint Cloud.
She at once sent to request an immediate interview
with Napoleon HI.
The Minister of State paid her a visit immediately,
and she passed part of the day in conversing with
him. The next morning she went to the palace,
although the Emperor had sent word tha* he was
THE UNPROTECTED EMPIRE. 369
indisposed. Finally he concluded to see her. She
eloquently demanded, on the part of Maximilian,
continued aid, in money and troops. The interview
was long and violent, it is said, and full of recrimina-
tion. The Empress, as all the fair structure of
hopes she had raised since her departure from
Chapultepec crumbled before lier, gave way to bitter
emotion. She declared that she, a king's daughter,
of the blood of Orleans, had made a terrible mistake
to accept a throne from the self-made Emperor of
the French, a Bonaparte.
From this scene at Saint Cloud the madness of
the new Empress is thought to have begun. She had
scarcely the force left to continue her course to the
Vatican, where she found no more redress than she
had done at the Tuileries. The whole of Europe
had soon to shudder at the news that she had lost
her reason. She never returned to Mexico.
It was by way of the United States that Maxi-
milian first heard of the failure of the interview at
Saint Cloud. He kept silent, still hoping better
success from the negotiations of the Empress with
the Pope; but meanwhile he quietly made prepara-
tions for his departure from Mexico, giving out that
it was his intention to meet the Empress at Vera
Cruz on her return. Much household baggage had
been already transferred thither, and the rumor
spread abroad, of the probable departure of the royal
household, producing a lively sensation throughout
the country.
The time was drawing near. Maximilian, at
Chapultepec, under the melancholy boughs of the
370 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
cx'presscs, glooinil}- paced llic allc}'.s, dreaming of
liis shattered hopes. A telegraphic despatch was
put in his hands, sent through the United States. It
announced that the Empress Carlotta was mad.
Maximilian at once gave orders for departure, and
wrote to Bazainethat he was about to leave Mexico.
The societ}' of the capital w^as struck with grief at
the news of Carlotta's state, for the}' had an ardent
adoration of their brilliant Empress.
The Emperor went first to Orizaba, where he was
obliged to delay the many necessar}' final arrange-
ments. There was no railway then, and the journey
was made in a carriage. Maximilian preserved a
gloomy silence all the way. As the little party ap-
proached Orizaba early in the morning, having passed
a night in a little village on the way, Maximilian
alighted to walk down the zig-zag way which leads
from the plateau towards the tierra calicntc. He
walked swiftly and silently, wrapped in a long gray
coat, a broad-brimmed sombrero on his head, some-
times turning to glance back at the heights he might
never see again. While they were stopping at noon
for rest and refreshment, the eleven white mules
which drew their carriages were stolen ; it was a long
time before other animals could be found to take
their places. Finally, the sun was setting as they
reached the pretty village of Ingenio, outside of Ori-
zaba. There awaited the little party a group of
horsemen, inhabitants of Orizaba, and several curates,
who had come out to greet the Emperor, followed
by a crowd of Indians. Bells were rung, guns fired,
and his welcome was universal.
THE UNPROTECTED EMPIRE. 37 1
Tlic r'.mperor stayed a week in Orizaba, dur
ing which Bazaine impatiently awaited in Mexico
his final announcement of departure. But Maxi-
milian was still hesitating. He was approached and
surrounded by certain members of the clerical party,
who felt sure that the fall of the monarchy would be
their ruin. Among these was Father Fischer, to
whom Maximilian accorded the greatest confidence.
This man, of German origin, emigrated to Texas
about 1845, and afterwards, in search of gold, to
California. He was at first a Protestant, but con-
verted, received orders somewhere in Mexico, and
obtained the post of secretary to the Bishop of Dl;-
rango. He was introduced to Maximilian, who was
attracted by his appearance, which betrayed great
intelligence ; he became one of the most trusted
advisers of the Emperor. He succeeded in surround-
ing Maximilian with agents of the reactionary, or
clerical party, who urged him not to abandon them
at this dark hour, at the same time assuring him of
the hidden force of the party, and its resources. At
this very time the city of Oaxaca, deff nded by Mex-
ican imperial troops, was obliged to capitulate and
open its doors to Porfirio Diaz, the general of liberal
forces. Yet Maximilian wavered. It was difficult,
even yet, for him to renounce the crown of his
visions. Moreover, honor,, fidelity to the Church,
prompted him to remain, even to perish for that
cause. Just then, to reinforce the eloquence of
Father Fischer, two generals, devoted to the clerical
cause, who had been in exile in Europe for two years,
disembarked at Vera Cruz, and instantly offered their
372 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
services to the Emperor ; these were Miramon and
Marquez, eager, as they declared, to open the cam-
paign again under the imperial banner. Maximilian,
inspired by their discourse and their promises of
arms and money, hesitated no longer, but pledged
his word to the clerical party to return to his station,
and resume its dignities. Miramon hastened to
Mexico to rouse the ardor of all the partisans of the
Church, and to set on foot a new army.
The Emperor issued a manifesto to the Mexican
people, and returning to Mexico, instead of going
back to the palace of Chapultepec, took up quarters
in a modest hacienda outside the capital, called La
Teja.
i
w
il^
m^
#i^,i
XXXIX.
MAXIMILIAN.
General-in-Chief Bazaine, the envoy from the
Tuileries, and all true friends of the Emperor, heard
with dismay his resolution to remain. His peaceful
abdication had been hoped for by all parties. Bazaine
sought to withdraw his troops, since withdraw they
must, in as orderly a manner as possible. Overtures
had even been made with the liberals, in regard to
a successor to Maximilian, that all parties might be
harmonized if possible, so that the country should
find itself under firm hands, just as if there had been
no French intervention, as soon as the Republic was
clear of French troops. But the manifesto of the
Emperor rendered all such hopes vain. The in-
sistance of the United States and repeated orders
from France made it necessary to remove the French
troops without delay. French steamers awaited
them off the coast of Vera Cruz, and the hour of
departure was fixed.
At the end of the month of January, 1867, the
French army, in full retreat, rolled out its long course
" like a ribbon of steel " over the dusty route between
the capital and Vera Cruz. Cannons were broken
up, horses were sold for almost nothing, to reappear
373
374 ^"^^^" STORY OF MEXICO.
later in the ranks of the Hberal army. On the 5th
of February the tri-colored flag of France, which had
floated over French head-quarters, ivas lowered ; the
capital was freed from the occupation of the French.
Moreover, the Belgian and Austrian troops went too,
for the Emperor was unwilling to retain them, re-
solving to trust himself wholly to the arms of his
Mexican subjects.
Meantime Juarez, much encouraged b}- the aspect
of things and by intimations of approval from the
government of the United States, had advanced
from the north, where he had been lying in wait for
better times, and fixed his residence, with his Cabinet,
which he always kept about him, in Zacatecas.
General Escobedo, chief of his armies in the north,
had reconquered that ix)rtion of the country as far
as San Luis de Potosi, and the greater part of the
cities and states, abandoned by the French, fell at
once into the hands of the liberals.
It was thought best by the imperialists to advance
towards the enemy as far as Oueretaro, and there the
army established itself, Maximilian with it, while
Miramon advanced towards Zacatecas and surprised
it, almost taking Juarez prisoner with his whole
government.
The Emperor was accompanied almost wholly by
Mexicans, only a few Europeans being about him.
He was determined to excite no jealousy in the
minds of his subjects by apparent preference for those
of his own country. As for the French, they were no
longer desired by him. General M.ircjuez was his
quartermaster-general ; his aides-de-camp u ere Mexi-
MAXIMILIAN.
375
can ; his ph}-sician accompanied him, Dr. Basch, who
was a worth}^ and devoted friend up to his last mo-
ments. Personally attached to the Emperor was the
young Prince Felix of Salm-Salm, who had been
fighting in the civil war of the United States, and
came to Mexico, for want of other occupation. He
attached himself to the cause of Maximilian ^\'ith a
devotion which became ardent before the end. Re-
sides these gentlemen, the Emperor had with him a
Hungarian cook and four Mexican servants.
Thanks to the vigorous measures of Miramon and
the clerical party, Maximilian found himself at the
head of an army of more than eight thousand men.
Among these were found the most active and valiant
chiefs of the old regular army, who showed great
bravery, as did their trained soldiers, but nearly half
the troops were raw Mexican recruits, ready to run
away at a moment's notice.
Queretaro was soon invested by the army of the
north under General Escobedo. Daily skirmishes
took place, which showed great daring on both sides.
The troops of the Emperor sallied out for provi-
sions, of which there was soon sore'need within the
besieged city, returning after each attack to their
quarters, around which the liberals were drawing
their lines closer and closer. The investment lasted
two months, during which General Marquez was
sent by Maximilian to the capital for those forces
and funds which had been so confidently promised
him by the clergy. Marquez succeeded in avoiding
the liberal army, but never returned, and no rein-
forcements whatever were sent to Queretaro. He
376 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
made use of the troops and funds he was able to
raise in the capital in order to attack General Diaz
who was advancing upon Puebla. Diaz captured
Puebla, after a siege of twenty-five days, and then
turned round and utterly routed Marquez, who, tak-
ing refuge in flight, returned almost alone to the
capital under cover of the night. Had he brought
back his troops to the succor of Oueretaro, the imme-
diate result might have been different, but the fall of
the Empire could not be long delayed. During this
long and trying siege, the conduct of Maximilian was
admirable. He won everybody by the gentleness
and cheerfulness of his bearing, brave to a fault, and
exposing himself fearlessly to the fire of the enemy.
Several plans of escape were formed, by which the
Emperor, with a few guards, was to disappear from
the city and place himself at the head of his troops
elsewhere, but these were generally frustrated at the
last moment by the unwillingness of Maximilian to
abandon his brave companions, from a delicate sense
of honor.
Maximilian, at Queretaro, is described by the
Prince of Salm-Salm, as generally in citizen's dress ;
but when he stood at the head of his troops he wore
the uniform of a general of division.
He was about six feet high, of a slender figure.
His movements and gait were light and graceful,
his greeting especially genial. He had fair hair, not
very thick, which he wore carefully parted in the
middle. His beard was fair and very long, and he
nursed it with great care, parting it in the middle,
and frequently stroking it with his hand. His skin
MAXIMILIAN, I'j'j
was pure and clear, and his eyes were blue. His
mouth had the unmistakable stamp of the Hapsburg
house, but not so strongly marked as with some of
his illustrious family. The expression of his face was
kind and friendly, and so was his bearing; even with
his intimate friends he was never familiar, but pre-
served a certain dignity of manner. He was true to
his friends and loyal to a fault, for he never could
suspect treachery in those who surrounded him. His
love of beauty and harmony was so great that he
was easily captivated b}' handsome people with pleas-
ing manners, and he could not divest himself of the
idea that a fine human form must contain a noble
soul. The strength of mind and moral dignity he
displayed when his misfortunes came upon him, and
the sadness of his fate, silence whatever criticisms of
his course may be suggested by the events of his
brief career in Mexico.
The condition of the foreign army shut up in
Queretaro became more and more painful. Provi-
sions grew scarce. Maximilian, with the greatest
serenity, accepted the coarse, tough food which was
all that could be had. The only hope of the garri-
son was in Marquez, and day after day brought only
disappointment, as no troops appeared from the
capital.
On the night of the 14th of May, Gen. Lopez, who
had the charge of the most important point in
Queretaro, the Convent de la Cruz, betrayed his
trust and admitted two battalions of the enemy into
the citadel. From this point they advanced to other
parts of the city, where all became at once terror
378 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
and confusion. Lopez had been won by the hb-
erals, but he had not intended that the Emperor
should be captured, and indeed gavx him ample
warning that he might escape. With his aides-de-
camp Maximilian passed, untouched, by some liberal
soldiers and gained a little hill just outside the town.
Here he surrendered to a detachment of the victo-
rious army and delivered up his sword. The horse
of the Emperor was brought to him, and the little
party rode to meet Escobedo, the victorious general.
Generals Miramon and Mejia were also then taken
prisoners. Mendez, another imperialist, succeeded
in lying concealed for a few days, but being found,
he was shot at once.
For a month Maximilian and his generals lemained
prisoners in Queretaro, while their fate hung unde-
cided in the hands of Juarez. Even then there wqxq
propositions for the escape of the Eniperor, boldly
planned and helped by ample funds ; but he alwa)'s
failed at the last moment to avail himself of them.
The Princess of Salm-Salm, an American by birth,
was as devoted to the cause of the unfortunate
Emperor as her husband. She showed great energy
and courage at Queretaro, visiting Maximilian and
carrying messages between him and the Prince,
from whom he was separated. She even went to
San Luis de Potosi to beseech the clemency of the
liberal chief, Juarez, or at least obtain a delay, but
her pleading was in vain.
The decision of the President, which nothing
could shake, was, that the traitors, as they were
called, should be tried b)' court-martial. The trial
ilii|lilliiiiiilli!lililliiiii!ilifej#^l
380 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
was but a farce, the result a foregone conclusiorij
although the cause of Maximilian was eloquently
urged by his counsel, Mariano Riva Palacios and
Rafael Martinez de la Torre,
Maximilian met his death with great composure
and heroism. He rose early on the fatal morning,
and at five o'clock mass was celebrated. With the
stroke of six o'clock a liberal officer came to take
him. He said " I am ready," and came from his cell,
where he was surrounded by his few servants, who
wept and kissed his hands. He said to them : " Be
calm ; you see that I am so. It is the will of God
that I should die ; against that we cannot strive."
Miramon and Mejia came forward, and he em-
braced them both. On arriving in the street he
looked round him, and drawing a deep breath, said :
" What a beautiful day ! On such a one I have
always wished to die."
The streets were crowded ; every one greeted the
condemned Archduke with respect ; the women wept
aloud. He responded to these greetings with his
usual gentle smile.
He made a short address to the Mexicans, of
which these were the last words :
" Mexicans ! May my blood be the last spilt for
the welfare of the country, and if more should be
shed, may it flow for its good, and not by treason.
Viva Independencia ! Viva Mexico ! "
Maximilian. Miramon, and Mejia were all shot at
the same moment.
Thus really closed the episode of the French inter-
vention in Mexico. The foreign intruder, encour-
> i
Q ^
582
THE STORY OF MEXICO.
aged b}' the short-livctl intention of a European
potentate to plant the Latin race upon the soil of
the New World, abandoned by his instigator, be-
trayed by his few remaining troops, was dead. There
was no longer question of a foreign prince upon the
Aztec throne.
XL.
END OF THE EPISODE.
The city of Mexico, after the departure of Maxi-
milian for Oueretaro, had remainedtranquil awaiting
events. The Emperor sent back immediately Gen-
eral Santiago Vidaurri, who had accompanied him
out of the capital, with full powers to govern the
cit}-.
This man had been one of the chiefs of the liberal
party, and had often fought, on the opposite side,
both Marquez and Miramon. As governor of the
state of Nueva Leon, he had brought its administra-
tion into such good order that it was an example to
the rest of Mexico. Disgusted with anarchy, and
disliking Juarez personally, he espoused the cause of
Maximilian as the best chance for his country of
regular government ; yet he always remained a lib-
eral, not joining the clerical party, and thus was dis-
trusted by Miramon and the rest, who kept him
away from the Emperor as much as they could.
Nevertheless Maximilian, recognizing his worth and
his capacity for organization, entrusted him with the
charge of the capital. But Marquez, when he
reached Mexico, after successfully evading the
enemy around Queretaro, instead of sending back
383
384 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
money and troops to succor that besieged place,
assumed the position of lieutenant of the Empire,
and proceeded to govern the capital. Vidaurri
withdrew from the scene, and from that time was
allowed no part in the affairs of the imperialists ; yet
he did not escape judgment from the liberals, and
was shot, among the first examples of their govern-
ment restored to power.
Marquez was intended for the same fate, but he
kept in hiding, and succeeded later in escaping to
the coast, where he embarked for Havana. He then
returned to Mexico, after travelling abroad under an
assumed name. He is described as a lively little
man with black hair and sharp black eyes. He wore
a full beard, which concealed a disfiguring scar on
his cheek caused by a bullet wound. His cruelty in
war won him the name of the " Mexican Alva," but
that stern old campaigner better deserves the re-
spect of posterity than such a namesake. Alva
would not have left a besieged city to fall a prey to
one enemy, while he led his troops to a futile en-
counter with another one more powerful than his
own force.
The brilliant capture of Puebla by General Por-
firio Diaz brought into prominence this name, which
has since been of the greatest importance in the
story of Mexico.
Puebla, after the departure of the French troops
from the country, was left in the hands of General
Noriega. It had been in the possession of the im-
perialists scarcely five years, and the courageous
repulse of the French troops on the 5th of May,
END OF THE EPISODE. 385
1862, was still fresh in every Mexican mind, as in-
deed it is to-day, an inspiring example of their
capacity for defending their homes. Yet the imperi-
alists held the city for twenty-five days, in spite of
the vigorous attack, at five separate points, by the
liberals. Diaz himself, wnth two companions, was
buried for a time underneath a falling roof, and
thought to be lost, but they were rescued after a few
moments without injury. It was General Diaz, with
his troops, who took possession of the capital for
the liberals on the 2ist of June, 1867. Assuming
military command, he at once introduced order into
the city, providing corn and food for the hungry
population, who stood in great need of it. No per-
secution visited the conquered imperialists, with the
exception of the active leaders, who were condemned
to be shot or imprisoned.
The vigorous action of the liberal government
towards Maximilian and the imperialist generals,
however, impressed the country with its inflexible
determination, as well as its power to execute its
intent. The Republic reinstated upon the ruins of
so brief an attempt at monarchy, Mexican rule, after
the bold effort to ingraft upon the country a foreign
potentate, proved to have a firmer grasp upon the
country than in all its previous essays.
XLI.
THE LAST OF SANTA ANNA.
On the 15th of July, Juarez made a solemn entry
into the capital. Many good citizens of Mexico,
who had watched gloomily the whole episode of the
French intervention, now emerged to light and re-
joiced conspicuously in the return of their legitimate
chief. Juarez, all this time, had never relinquished
his title of President, but wherever he found himself
had kept up the state due to the office, and retained
his Cabinet. He was received with genuine accla-
mations by the populace, while high society re-
mained within doors, curtains close-drawn, except
that the women took pride in showing their deep
mourning for the death of the Emperor. The reign
of French fashions and frivolity was over when the
troops of Bazaine marched from the town. There
are still lurking in the capital descendants of French
pastry-cooks and barbers, who shake their heads
mournfully over the good old days, all too brief, of
the imperial court. A French flavor still lingers
about the capital ; it is welcome in the excellent
cuisine of the Cafe Anglais, and is evident in the
handiwork of certain Parisian modistes.
Peace now came back to the country. A gen
THE LAST OF SANTA ANNA. 387
eral e'ection established Juarez as President, and
order and progress once more consented to test the
good resolutions of the Republic. The first days of
the new era were tranquil, and all went well, in spite
of the restlessness of generals of the liberals them-
selves, who could ill bear to forego their inherent
tendency to disputing and wrangling. Above all,
Santa Anna was still alive, and it was not to be
hoped that he would hold himself aloof from a sharp
in the prosperity of the nation.
He had retired to the Island of St. Thomas, and
was growing old. Yet he watched from afar every
turn of affairs in Mexico. No sooner had Maxi-
milian landed at Vera Cruz, than he received a let-
ter of congratulation from Santa Anna, expressing
his entire approval of the French scheme, and his
wish to further it. He even came to Vera Cruz tc
lend his services to the Emperor, but as no notice
whatever was taken of these overtures, he became
indignant and withdrew his countenance from the
new government. He went to New York, and fixed
his residence in Elizabethport, New Jersey, where he
published manifestoes against the Empire and the
French, and sought an alliance with Juarez. The
President, like the Emperor, ignored all overtures
from the Mexican king-maker, who instantly turned
his superabundant eneigies to conspiring against
the Republic, just as it was struggling to take up,
once more, the threads of order.
On the 1 2th of July, 1867, he was seized on board
a steamboat he had fitted out, charged with con-
spiring against government, and narrowly escaped
388 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
being shot on the spot ; but more moderate meas-
urer, prevailed, and he was allowed a legal trial by
a council of war. Doubtless influenced by all his
real services at the head of the national army,
which in time past he had conferred upon his
country, and through untiring efforts in his behalf
by his friends and family, this council did not con-
demn him to death, but a sentence was passed upon
him of exile for eight years. He returned to St.
Thomas, much impoverished by this last attempt
against good government, and broken with years
and failure.
At the end of his time of exile, or perhaps, in-
deed, before its expiration, he returned quietly to
the city of Mexico, and died there on the 20th of
June, 1876, in his house in the Calle de Vergaza.
He was over eighty years old, blind, lame, poor,
l^is last days were embittered by his sensitive con-
viction that his great deeds were not appreciated by
his country. He was buried in the city of Guada-
lupe, without honors or recognition by government,
who, naturally, it may be supposed, retained their
fear of rousing the populace even by so dead a lion.
A family connection of Santa Anna has written a
life of him, in which fulsome justice is done to his
good qualities. He says, and perhaps with reason,
that had he died immediately after the loss of his
leg in driving the French from Vera Cruz " this
bencmcrito imitilado had surely left not one single
personal enemy."
With great gifts of bravery and military skill, and
with a love of his country it is but fair to allow
THE LAST OF SANTA ANNA. 389
him, probably not possessing the black character-
istics ascribed to him by his enemies, he was at
the best a turbulent, troublesome creature, an ex-
ponent in his own person of all the dangerous
quahties of the Mexican character, which for so
long a time have kept the country far away from
the true path to prosperity.
The character of Juarez, on the other hand, rep-
resents precisely the opposite qualities of the
Mexican race, inherited from his Indian parentage, —
endurance, patience, imperturbability. Calm in the
midst of exciting elements, he knew how to stand
and wait for his turn. These qualities, so useful to
him in adversity were supplemented by executive
abilit}', good sense, and prompt action, which, when
he returned to power, enabled him to rule wisely
without losing his balance on the giddy height of
success, like many of his predecessors.
His seat was not secure, and peace was not con-
firmed in emotional Mexico. The restless popu-
lation, untrained to any permanent government,
wearied of his rule, and early in his administration be-
gan to clamor that he had been President long enough.
This people, scarcely yet freed from three hundred
years of foreign control, found four years of one
liberal leader enough to convert him in their eyes
into a tyrant. As the period of election approached,
in 1871, party lines became sharply divided, and the
question of his return to power was warmly con-
tested. A large body still advocated the re-election
of Juarez, as of the greatest importance to the con-
solidation of the Constitution and reform, but the
390 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
admirers of military glory claimed the honors of
President for General Diaz, who had done so much,
at the head of the army, to restore the Republic. A
third party represented the interests of Lerdo, min-
ister of Juarez all through the epoch of the inter-
vention, a man of great strength of character and
capacity for government. The argument of the
Lerdistas was that re-election was contrary to the
principles of democratic government ; of the Por-
firistas that their idol, Diaz, deserved the reward of
the highest gift of his fellow-citizens ; of the jfuaris-
tas, that things were very well as they were, and
had better so remain.
The campaign was vigorous throughout the
country. The press, the tribune, personal influence,
were all at work in every state for each of the great
parties. The election took place ; the Jiiaristas were
triumphant. Their party had a fair majority, and
Juarez was re-elected. But the Mexicans not }'et
had learned to accept the ballot, and a rebellion fol-
lowed. The two defeated parties combined, and
civil war began again.
Government defended itself with vigor and resolu-
tion, and in spite of the popularity of General Diaz as
a commander, held its own during a campaign of more
than a year. Its opponents were still undaunted,
and the struggle might have long continued but for
the sudden death of Juarez, on the 19th of July,
1872. At dawn of that day, the sound of cannon
from the citadel fired at slow intervals awoke the
population, who learned on inquiry that their
President had died during the night.
THE LAST OF SANTA ANNA. 39I
Juarez had a singularly robust constitution ; he
habitually worked eight or ten hours a day without
fatigue, but, unconsciously to himself, some organic
infirmity was affecting him. He was seized during
the night with great pain at the heart, and died very
soon in much suffering.
All society was deeply moved by the death of
this their faithful servant, who had given his life to
their service. Every party joined in the solemn
ceremony of his burial, which took place attended
by an immense concourse of citizens.
Don Sebastian Lerdo de Tejada, then President
of the Supreme Court, assumed the government,
was elected President, and the late agitation of
parties was at an end.
XLII.
PORFIRIO DIAZ.
For three years peace reigned in Mexico, and then
began another revolution. Towards the end of
1875, rumors of dissatisfaction were afloat ; in spite of
the present quiet, which seemed solid and durable,
distrust reigned, yet no one voice proclaimed the
nature of the malady. Early in the next year, a
" Plan " was started, one of those fatal propositions
for change which have always spread like wildfire
through the Mexican community. By midsummer,
the Republic was once more plunged in civil war.
Although he had apparently no hand in the " Plan "
of Tuxtepec, General Porfirio Diaz appeared at the
head of the army of the revolutionists. He had
been living quietly in the neighborhood of Vera
Cruz, but now he emerged to take an active part in
the general disturbance.
Porfirio Diaz was born in Oaxaca, on the 15th of
September, 1830. This state, the farthest of all the
states to the south, and except Chiapas, the limit of
the Mexican Republic, has many claims to distinc-
tion. Its northern part formed the Marquczado, or
grant, given in 1529 to Cortes, with the title of Mar-
ques del Valle de Oaxaca.
The scenery of Oaxaca is of the wildest and grand-
392
FOR Fin 10 DIAZ.
3c>3
est in Mexico. The Pass of Salomea, leading to the
city, recalls those of Switzer-
land. Wild animals, not only
deer, but pumas and even the
jaguar, roam over its slopes, cov-
ered with fan-palms and other ^^'^^■ff^HtUlI®
tropical growths, while higher
up is a forest of palms and oaks
growing together. At the sum-
mit is a grand view of the valley
of Oaxaca.
The city, like Puebla, is of
Spanish foundation, but at no
verj' great distance from it are
the ancient ruins of Mitia, still
a puzzle to archaeologists, since
nothing certain is known even
of the tribes found in that region
by the Conquistadores, — the
Zapotecas, or the traditions of
their origin. Their customs seem
to have been like those of the
Mexicans, but their language
resembled that of the Mayas.
They were subject to long
struggles with the Aztecs, and
at the end of the 15th century
their capital city, Mitla, was
taken and given over to pillage,
and the prisoners taken to
Mexico to be offered up on the altars of Hi
pochtli.
V
ZAPOTEC ORN./
394
THE STORY OF MEXICO,
The ruins stand in the midst of a gloomy, cheer.
less landscape, of stunted vegetation, sandy soil,
from which project dull gray rocks. No singing
birds or even insects frequent the place ; the turkey-
buzzard soars over the lonely tract under a gloomy
sky, and dismal si-
lence reigns around
the abandoned ar-
chitecture of a for-
gotten race. Even
the carvings of ge-
ometric ornaments,
without any human
or animal forms, add
to the gloom of this
solitary spot.
The present gen-
erations of Oaxaca
have the reputation
of being the steady,
independent moun-
taineers of Mexico;
like the Swiss, al-
ways ready to defend
their rights. Among
them, Porfirio Diaz
has been involved in every contest for his view of the
right, since he was old enough to bear arms. He
was, like many other of the Mexican generals, in-
tended for the bar, and studied with that object,
concluding the usual course in the seminary at
Oaxaca ; but in 1854 he served a campaign, returning
IMAGE OF A ZAPOTEC CHIEF.
PORFIRIO DIAZ. 395
again to his studies only for a time. In the so
called war of the reform he distinguished himself, and
during the intervention was conspicuous as a mili-
tary leader. In the disaster of Puebla, when, after
the brilliant repulse of the Cmco de Mayo, the Mexi-
cans had to give up the city to the French, Diaz
escaped being taken prisoner, and hastened to
Oaxaca, the city of his birth, which, with forces
raised by his own efforts, he succeeded in putting
in a state of defence. Bazaine himself marched
against the resisting city, and it was obliged to
capitulate. Porfirio was carried a prisoner to
Puebla, and there held ; but he managed to escape
after some months by letting himself down from his
window with a rope in the middle of the night.
This was in September. The next month, returning
with a new army, Diaz besieged his own town, now
in the hands of those who were lately its besiegers.
While his brother Felix held the siege, Porfirio
routed a column of French coming to the aid of the
troops within the city, and after two weeks he com-
pelled a surrender and entered it in triumph. Por-
firio, always successful in his contests with the
French, continued so after their support was with-
drawn from the imperialists. His military fame
reached its height after the taking of Puebla, which
was the last act in the French intervention, and the
peaceful occupation of the city of Mexico.
All these feats of arm.s gave to the general who
accomplished them a military prestige of great im-
portance in a country where military prowess means
so much as with the Mexicans. .The revolution of
396 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
the summer of 1S76 gained importance from the
arrival of Diaz at Vera Cruz. It is said that, alone
and disguised, he was hastening thither from New
Orleans in a steamer which, touching at Tampico,
took on board a body of government troops
destined for the same port. The favorite chief of
the liberals, seeing that he was recognized by one of
the Federal ofificers, and convinced he should be
arrested by him, jumped overboard and swam away.
He was seen and brought back to the steamer by
friends, under cover of the dark, and- so well con-
cealed that his hiding-place was not discovered, and
the impression was encouraged that he had either
reached the shore by swimming, or been drowned.
Disguised as a workman, he left the steamer among
the boxes and bales of its cargo, and landed at Vera
Cruz. Speedily furnished with horses and guards he
made his way to Oaxaca, where he took command
of the forces of the rebellion, hitherto scattered and
insufficient for lack of a head.
During the summer there was fighting and much
confusion, in the midst of which the election took
place for the choice of President for another term of
four years. The result was in favor of Lerdo de
Tejada, but he was so unpopular that he was obliged
soon after to leave the capital, on the 20th of
November, accompanied by his ministers and a few
other persons. The other Lcrdistas hid themselves,
Congress dissolved, and the opposition triumphed.
Thus ended the government of the Lerdistas, but
a few days before the expiration of its legal term.
On the 24th of November, General Porfirio Diaz
397
PRESIDENT PORFIRIO DIAZ.
398 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
made his solemn entry into the capital, and was pro-
claimed Provisional President.
After a good deal of fighting all over the country,
Congress declared him, in May 1877, to be Consti-
tutional President for a term to last until Novem-
ber 30, 1880.
It was just after this successful general grasped
the prize, that Santa Anna, forgotten, neglected, old,
and blind, died close by, in his house in the Calle
de Vergaza.
But little more remains to be said of the govern-^
ment of Mexico up to the present time. President
Diaz was able to consolidate his power, and to re-
tain his seat without civil war, although this has
been imminent at times, especially towards the end
of his term. In 1880 General Manuel Gonsalcz
was elected, and on the ist of December of that
year, for the second time only in the history of the
Republic, the retiring President gave over his ofifice
to his legally elected successor. 1 hat this was pos-
sible, is proo'" of great improvement in stability and
the growth of steadiness and good judgment among
the Mexicans. The administration of Gonsalez
passed through its four years without any important
outbreak, in spite of the difificult questions there
were to deal with, chief among them the huge debt
to England, contracted in the early days of the Re-
public, and ever increasing by reason of unpaid in-
terest.
At the end of that term, General Diaz was re-
elected and became President December i, 1884.
The treasury of the country was empty, the Repub-
PORFIRIO DIAZ. 399
lie without credit, yet he has, by heroic measures,
succeeded in placing his government upon a tolera-
bly stable financial basis, and done much to restore
the foreign credit of the Republic. President Diaz
is disposed and able to serve his country by an ad-
vanced and liberal policy. The result of his firmness
and judgment is already seen in the returning con-
fidence of nations and foreigners alike in Mexican
affairs, and with it the rapid development of the re-
sources of the country.
President Diaz, with his handsome wife, the
daughter of his Minister of the Interior, Manuel
Romero Rubio, has not been able to resist the
charm of Chapultepec, in spite of the melancholy
associations hanging about the spot Carlotta loved
and Maximilian adorned for her enjoyment. The
Pompeiian apartments are restored, and the hang-
ing gardens bloom with roses all the year, while
fountains sparkle in the sunlight. From the broad
terrace gleam in the distance the cold peaks of the
volcanoes, while Mexico spreads wide in the valley
its rectangular lines, every year stretching out far-
ther in all directions, a practical proof to the wise
chief of the administration, as he looks down upon
them from the now peaceful height of his terrace,
of the success of his schemes of improvement and
progress.
Let us hope that the tranquillity is permanent and
that a long season of peace and prosperity has come
to settle upon the long tormented, much enduring
valley of Mexico, and the broad plateau of Ana-
huac.
400 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Now, at last, may the Indians, descendants of the
Aztec chief, look up and hope for the development
of their race. For the first time in history they
have a chance to show whether they are capable of
taking a leading place among the races of the earth.
Poor fugitives, hiding among the rushes of the lake,
some centuries ago, their leaders knew how to build
up a powerful, warlike nation, but the people were
oppressed by the horrors of a bloody religion, de-
graded and kept down by the practice of human
sacrifice. The Spanish conquest brought them other
rulers, and priests who gave to them a kindlier faith ;
but their minds were little cared for, and they were
still oppressed, like slaves, by the new race which
came to govern them.
Spanish domination civilized the Indians, but
scarcely developed the powers which may exist in
their natures. That yoke thrown off, they have
seen their day of real freedom once and again post-
poned, through the personal ambition of their own
leaders, or the audacious interference of foreign
powers, while their own blood has been made to
flow freely for causes not really their own. In spite
of all this, the native character has asserted itself
with vigor wherever it has had a chance. Juarez,
the first successful ruler of Mexico of real Mexican
blood, by a true Indian trait of tenacity, held the
government through the dark period of the interven-
tion. Diaz, also of native descent, has kept the
country in a progressive path.
The true native character of Mexico has now a
chance to assert itself. The future will look on with
PORFIRIO DIAZ.
401
interest to see whether it has the capacity of self-
government which its friends fully ascribe to it. If
the Mexicans can profit by the sharp lessons taught
them by the events of the present century ; if they
can root out of their nature the savage instincts
which have given the national character its reputa-
tion for cruelty — instincts, not only inherited from
the bloody practices of the Aztec, but fortified by the
dark streak of ferocity which belongs to the Spanish
race ; if they can prove that the development of intel-
lectual powers is possible to the race as well as to
those individuals, then their country has before it
the prospect of taking an honorable place among the
peoples oif the western continent.
XLIII.
PHYSICAL ADVANTAGES.
The physical advantages of Mexico are favorable
to its future prosperity. Of its great range of climate,
the temperate one of the plateau may be said to
be almost perfect. By descending towards the coast
all the delights of the tropics may be enjoyed, while
its lofty peaks afford adventure for the enterprising
climber, ice for lower regions, and all the attractions
of mountain scenery. Large lakes enhance the
beauty of the landscape ; rivers, though not large,
answer the purposes of irrigation and boundary
lines ; an extended coast-line on the Pacific and that
of the Gulf of Mexico offer opportunities, not yet
much developed, for admirable harbors.
There is every variety of vegetation in this varied
climate. Forests of valuable woods, such as mahog-
any, ebony, and rosewoods, extend over the tierra
Calient e ; higher up, oak and pine in abundance furn-
ish supply for any demand. It is safe to say that
any thing may be cultivated somewhere in Mexico.
Corn, beans, wheat, rice, sugar-cane, tobacco, cotton,
cocoa, indigo, vanilla, are at present raised ; above all,
coffee, which has a high reputation — that of C6r-
dova and of Uruapam especially. The latter is con-
403
PHYSICAL ADVANTAGES. 403
sidered by experts to be not only equal to the best
Mocha, but similar to it in flavor. It is possible
that it belongs to the same variety, brought from
Arabia by unknown hands. The medicinal plants of
Mexico have long been well known. Spanish histo-
rians at the time of the conquest all speak of the
knowledge of herbs possessed by the native doctors.
They believed that all the ills that flesh is heir to,
might be cured by proper use of the herbs of the
field ; and they acquired in the course of generations
great skill in adapting the remedy to the disease.
Many of the drugs in general use all over the world
were made knov\Mi by Mexican research, such as sarsa-
parilla, jalap, and rhubarb ; the number of emetics,
antidotes, infusions, decoctions, ointments, balsams,
known to the Aztecs, was enormous. To be sure,
they attributed much of the power of these drugs to
the prayers and ceremonies they offered up while
they were applying them.
The flora of Mexico is equally varied and beautiful.
Growing by the roadside as common weeds, are to be
recognized blossoms which are the pride of northern
green-houses. Many ornamental Mexican plants
became first known in the United States, after the
war of 1848. Humboldt, half a century before, had
described the wealth and profusion of Mexican
vegetation. As for fruits, every variety may be cul-
tivated, in the hot lands ; many tropical kinds grow
wild. Any market in any Mexican town is a delight
by reason of the display of various fruits, heaped up,
to tempt the customer, in little pyramids, and made
bright with flowers.
404 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
Not only in the large cities, but even smaller towns,
travellers should be sure to visit the market-place.
Generally one day in the week is market-day, when
all the population swarms to the plaza, either to sell
or buy, or both. It is the same in many towns in
Europe ; but Mexico, at present, surpasses Europe
in the picturesque costumes of the common people,
the primitive fashion in which they display their sim-
ple wares, and the entertaining activity of the busy
population.
Each booth is a small enclosure, built of low
tables, shaded by a huge rectangular umbrella made
of matting with four sticks only. A whole Indian
family sits within at the receipt of custom. The old
grandmother, her white hair smoothed down over her
wrinkled old brown cheeks, with skinny trembling
hands, but a glance like a hawk's, is taking pay or
making change. Her daughter, the efficient business
woman of the establishment, is young and active. Her
long black hair is braided down her back, her eyes
are bright, her teeth flash white when you make her
smile by a joke about her prices. The father of the
family lolls against the central post of the booth,
tipping up his chair, after a custom not inherited
from the Aztecs, but borrowed from a neighboring
nation. The tables are heaped with little piles, like
cannon-balls, of red ciruelas, yellow apricots, oi
green abogatos ; in their season, delicious grcnaditaSy
whose cup-like rind contains a juicy draught of lus-
cious flavor. Oranges and bananas are on the table,
under the table, over the table, everywhere. If you
are very friendly, the old lady selects you as a gift
PHYSICAL ADVANTAGES. 405
the very best of all the bananas. Let not the wan-
derer from the north be surprised to find it is, ac-
cording to his estimation, far gone in decay. The
natives eat bananas only dead ripe, when they are
beginning to grow soft, — not as they are found in
the northern market, hard and indigestible after a
long voyage without ripening influences. Hens and
chickens are straying about, and a tough old rooster,
tied by the leg, awaits the pot, after his purchaser
shall have been found.
You select such little heaps of fruit as please your
inexperienced eye ; a small cargador, all eyes and
teeth, springs up from the earth at your feet, with a
big loose basket on his back. Every thing you buy
is tumbled into it ; he follows you from stall to stall,
accumulating such treasures as you select. You will
not be able to resist several specimens of native
pottery. This is generally spread out on the ground,
while the vendor sits behind it. Manufacture of
coarse pottery is carried on everywhere, and different
regions have their distinctive varieties, influenced by
different colored clays and methods of treatment.
The ware of Guadalajara is perhaps the most es-
teemed ; it is of a soft gray in tint, polished but not
glazed, and often delicately decorated with color and
gold. But every village has its characteristic pottery,
simple in form, pleasing in color, and although the
pots and jugs are so fragile that it is hopeless to
think of packing them securely, it is impossible to
resist their attractions compared with the trifling
sum demanded for them.
The basket of your cargador, well filled with fruit
406 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
and figs, and heaped high with sweet peas and pop-
pies, the httlc fellow runs before you to the hotel
where he deposits his burden, and goes away fully
content with a medio in his hand — 6^ cents.
A Mexican market is interesting, apart from such
simple purchases as the traveller may be inclined to
make on his own account, because the people are all
so absorbed in their own affairs. They scarcely give
a thought to the few foreigners with European
clothes and staring manners pok"ng about among
them. This good Indian mother has come to buy
the daily food of her family. Some dreadful viand
is dipped for her out of a deep dish, and transferred
to her little pottery bowl. A violent discussion
ensues about the price to be paid, and neighbors
gather round to offer their opinions. The rcbozos of
the women slip off their heads and show their white
shirts — not always white — and their brown well-
formed arms. The men look on idly and let their
better halves fight it out. A compromise is effected,
and the excitement subsides as suddenly as it rose.
The contested sum was probably a tlaco — small, but
much-beloved doin, worth one cent and a half.
Besides the manufacture of pottery, the Indians
make themselves all the wearing apparel they use,
such as cotton and woollen cloth, including serapes
and rebozos, the two picturesque garments in constant
use. The scrape is a woollen blanket which every
man winds about him whenever the air is a little
chilly. It serves him many a time for not only
blanket, but sheet and bed as well, since his sleeping-
place is often a sheltered door-way, and no more-
PHYSICAL ADVANTAGES. 407
Certain towns are famous for their serapes — those of
San Miguel are especially good, and some of them
are very pretty. Travelleis buy them and carry them
off to serve as portieres or afgJians at home. The
Indian taste for colors, though gaudy, is naturally
controlled by a good perception of harmonious effects.
Unluckily in late years, the aniline dyes of recent
discovery have brought into the country a (acility
for making intense purples, magentas, and violent
blues, which have dazzled their untrained eyes. For
this reason, many modern serapes are too violent in
coloring; and aesthetic collectors must seek for old
fabrics, among which some examples are lovely in
tone. The rebozo is a long broad scarf, generally
blue, worn by every woman over her head, instead
of hat or bonnet. It protects her shoulders also, and
conceals whatever deficiency of style or cleanliness
may exist underneath. It is made of cotton, but has
some warmth in its soft folds. The dexterity is
wonderful with which even little girls wind these
wraps around their heads, in such a way as to keep
firm, while the ends fall in not ungraceful lines over
one arm laden with a basket, a bundle, or a bab\',
while the other arm and hand are free. A large
quantity of cotton is gro'vn in Mexico, and upwards
of fifty thousand families, Mr. Janvier says, are sup-
ported in its manufacture. The cotton mills are pro-
vided with English machinery of approved type, and
the business is carried on by a few operators upon a
large scale. The Indians show ready intelligence in
understanding their work in the mills, and remark-
able aptitude in acquiring methods of handling what-
408 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
ever improvements in machinery may be from time
to time introduced.
A large establishment for the manufacture of
cotton cloth not far from the city of Mexico, which
has been in operation for years in the hands of an
English house, is like a little city in itself. Its large
enclosure is surrounded by strong walls, upon which
are still the cannon necessary in the troublous times
of the young Republic to protect the place. Paved
streets within the great gate of entrance lead to the
extensive buildings, the home of the families of the
proprietors, hung with vines and possessing a beau-
tiful garden, where superb roses blossom all the year
round, while from beneath the shade of ancient trees
one may look through a gate-way over fields of al-
falfa to the snow-peaks of the two volcanoes. More
than two hundred workmen are employed in this
establishment. They are all natives of Mexico, and,
for the most part, the superintendents as well as the
operators are of Indian blood. Every means is taken
to educate and improve the condition of these people
and their families, who lead happy, intelligent lives,
encouraged by the favor of their employers to do
their best for the success of the mill and the mutual
well-being of all. It is a little community of interests.
Of late, a large unoccupied room, by permission of
the owner, has been converted into a theatre ; and
here, wholly by the exertions of the operatives them-
selves, a stage has been erected, where plays are acted
once a week — the men themselves taking all the parts.
Among the audience are the families of the em-
ployers, readil)' giving encouragement to the exhi-
PHYSICAL ADVANTAGES. 409
bition, for whom a large box is reserved. The In-
dians of the neighborhood, on the opening night of
the new entertainment, flocked to see what it was
like, had free admission, and the house was crowded
with an amazed and dehghted audience. Enthusi-
asm was great, especially when the national banner
was waved to the stirring strains of the fine national
march of Mexico.
It is to such influences as these that Mexico will
owe her success. The native race requires good
masters, good examples, and the opportunity of
good intellectual training, to enable it, in future, to
walk alone up the steep path of national progress.
The great source of wealth in Mexico is her min-
eral productions, which have been renowned from
the early period when they allured Cortes and his
companions to endure hardship and risk defeat on
their difficult passage up to Anahuac. The most
sanguine dreams of the Spanish conquerors have yet
to be realized in the possible amounts to be yielded
from these mines in the future, when stable govern-
ment shall have increased the population of ihc
widespread mining districts to an extent capable of
developing all the riches they contain.
The mines of Guanajuato, which have been the
most worked, and which have already yielded enor-
mously, as yet give no signs of being exhausted.
The soil of the state of Guerrero has been pro-
nounced to be one extensive crust of silver and gold.
The northern states of the Republic contain inex-
haustible veins of gold and silver in their mountain
ranges. Silver and gold are the metals most worked,
THE STORY OF MEXICO. 4II
while other metals and mineral substances are al-
most neglected, although present in proportion.
The volcano Popocatepetl is said to be one vast
pile of sulphur. In every state there are quarries of
white and colored marbles — those of Puebla espe-
cially remarkable for their rich veins of variegated
colors, which, properly worked, would make beauti-
ful decorative columns and other architectural orna-
ments. At present, the specimens of this " Puebla
onyx" are limited to paper-weights, pen-handles,
and other small articles, which, without any solid
value, serve to show the variety and beauty of the
material. Precious stones are not unknown in Mex-
ico ; opals, with fickle rainbow hues, now brilliant,
now vanished, are found in many places, and coun-
terfeited in many others. Turquoise, garnet, topaz,
and amethyst are among the native jewels of the
Mexican mines.
XLIV.
FUTURE.
If it be conceded that the native races of Mexico
are capable of development, it is evident that what
is needed for their elevation from their present low
estate, is good religion, good government, and good
education.
The remnant of the Aztecs and other Indian tribes
owed every thing to the judicious treatment of the
first Roman Catholic priests. The wise teachings of
these men, as we have seen, changed, without vio-
lence, a barbarous superstition into a gentle belief in
the truths, and especially the miracles, of the Catho-
lic religion ; which through the epoch of Spanish
domination retained its good effect. But as time
went on, the Church became so powerful and so rich,
that the suppression of the religious orders became
a necessity; and finally Juarez, although under much
resistance, was able to institute this radical reform.
The final extinction of these orders, the suppression
of monasteries and nunneries, was not achieved until
1874; since when many of these deserted buildings
have been approj^riatcd to other uses. Others re-
main standing, sad monuments of a picturesque
past ; but many of them, interesting on account of
412
FUTURE. 413
their historic associations, have disappeared, torn to
the ground, to make way for modern improvements.
But the suppression of the orders was not accom-
panied, except in the case of the Jesuits in 1856, by
the expulsion of their members from the country.
On the other hand, these were still permitted to re-
main as individuals ; and to the present time, the
priests ministering to the churches formerly con-
nected with convents, are usually members of those
orders by which such churches were founded.
In any one of the smaller cities and towns the
parish priest, almost without exception, is a worthy
and faithful ciira, of devout and godly reputation,
leading among his flock a simple life, wholly occu-
pied in ministering to his charge according to the
best of his abilities. Since the enactment of the
laws of the reform there is nothing to tempt men
to adopt their calling but their love of God and gen-
uine interest in the welfare of their parish, often
composed, for 'the most part, of ignorant Indians.
These men are entitled to honor and reverence ;
their ample reward is the unwavering devotion of
their congregations, and the satisfaction they may
receive from observing the development of their
simple minds.
In the year 1770, the Bishop of Puebla published
there his form of the Mozarabic liturgy, the most
ancient religious service of the Church of Spain,
which flourished there until the eleventh century,
when it was supplanted by the Roman liturgy.
Even at the present time a chapel exists in the
cathedral at Toledo, in Spain, where this service is
414 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
habitually used, although in presence of but few if
any worshippers.
The revival of Mozarabic rites in Mexico met with
little attention ; but its introduction alone shows a ten-
dency towards independence of thought, very mani-
fest later in the action of Juarez in the sequestration
of Church property. Since 1868 a movement in favor
of the Protestant Episcopal Church has increased to
one of importance.- Other Protestant denominations
maintain missions in various parts of the country, —
the Presbyterian, Methodist, and Baptist missions.
There is still a wide field open in Mexico for
teaching the impressionable native of Anahuac the
simple tenets of the religion of Christ. Purity, hon-
esty, charity, the love of his neighbor, duty to him-
self, the knowledge of God, — these sure foundations
of life are only needed by him as his first foothold
in upward progress. As for the government, its
present action, its promises for the future, are for the
good of the native races. All persons born in the
Republic are free; and freedom of education, free-
dom to exercise the liberal professions, freedom of
thought, and the freedom of the press are guaran-
teed. That this government should prove itself
able to carry out its intentions, and thus encourage
in the vast area under its control the presence of
order-loving immigrants from other countries, who,
instead of creating and promoting disorder, as is
often the case, shall set the example of industry and
domestic living, is the result desired by all true
friends of Mexico. Although among the many
Germans, English, and Americans who have settled
FUTURE. 415
in the different cities and states of Mexico, there are
many who have done so in the intention of earning
honest Hvelihoods, without interfering with their
neighbors, and even with the higher motive of im-
proving the condition of those around them, it is not
yet possible to say that the example of the foreigners
settling in Mexico has been an advantage to its
natives. Many of the acts of violence ascribed to
Mexicans might be traced to men of other blood,
who have sought that territory because they were
not tolerated elsewhere. The general testimony of
such observers as civil engineers, telegraph men, and
others who in the development of the resources of
the country have penetrated remote parts of it, is
that the native Mexican is peaceful and quiet in dis-
position, leading a domestic life with his faithful
wife, fond of his children, and diligently toiling to
support his family. Of course there are exceptions
to this, especially when the pulque habit has brutal-
ized its victims ; but it is asserted that the drunken
quarrels in obscure places, often reported in news-
papers, resulting in pistol-shot or dagger stroke,
frequently arise less through the fault of the native
than of the adventurers from other lands.
Testimony to the good intentions of the govern-
ment of Mexico is in the improved condition of edu-
cation there. The system of public instruction is by
no means perfect, but it is certainly growing better
and better. Free schools, sustained by city or state,
are found in most towns and villages, even the
smallest. Moreover, private schools are numerous
in all the large towns and cities, and colleges and
4l6 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
professional schools are found. All of the Mexican
states (for such matters are left to the jurisdiction of
each separately) compel free primary instruction,
and appropriate annual sums to support it.
While these institutions promise much for the
future, Mexico is not without her living writers who,
in spite of the unfavorable atmosphere of disturbed
politics, have found time to devote themselves to
literature. Guillermo Prieto has a well deserved
fame in his own country, and outside of it wherever
he is known. He was born in i8io, and has passed
his life in devotion to the liberal cause, which owes
much of its success, to his personal bravery, the
boldness of his writings, and his sagacious manage-
ment of affairs. He has served in the higher of^ces
of government, and written upon political economy
and finance, but it is as a poet that he is honored
and beloved. Prieto is not alone as a writer of
prominence, but of others there is not room to
speak. It would be a mistake to suppose that Mex-
ico was lacking in the possession of fine minds, cul-
tivated intellects, and eloquent pens.
It will, of course, have been perceived by this
time that the Mexicans from whom so much is ex-
pected in the future are the descendants of the
Aztec and other native tribes. These form a large
part of the population of the country, — the portion
which their remote origin, and the vicissitudes of
their stay upon Anahuac, make the most interesting
to the romantic lover of picturesque history.
The country is occupied also by those descendants
of Spanish families who avoided the decree of exile
issued in the early days of independence. Inter-
FUTURE.
A^7
marriages with Indian blood have crossed this stock,
so that many good families in Mexico have Indian
ancestors among their Spanish ones, and it would
probably be rare to find a family wholly unmixed
with this strain. What effect this grafting of Cas-
tilian character has had upon the native stock, is a
subject interesting to students of national character-
istics. Cruelty upon cruelty, superstition upon big-
otry, might be pronounced a dangerous repetition
likely to result from the mixture of the two races
which established the Inquisition and revelled in the
custom of human sacrifice. On the other hand, the
lofty pride of the traditional Spaniard might find its
match in the inherited love of splendor of the de-
scendant of the Aztecs. However these things might
be, the Mexican-Spaniard has not attained a high
reputation among other nations for honesty, gen-
erosity, or elevation of character. Whatever maybe
the fairness of the prejudices against him, partly due
to the disadvantages he has been under by being
judged always by enemies who have invaded his coun-
try for his destruction and their own profit, it is less
to this race than to that of the pure Indian blood of
the country, that Mexico looks for the regeneration
of her future history.
Vast tracts of profitable land in Mexico are still
unsettled. As the government becomes more and
more stable, it is probable that these will be occu-
pied with emigrants from all other nations, eager to
develop the great natural resources. There are at
present many Germans engaged in all the branches
of industry; and Englishmen, attracted by the great
mining and other capabilities of the country, are
41 8 THE STORY OF MEXICO.
yearly investing more and more capital in these en-
terprises. To the skill of English engineers is due
the successful achievement of the Mexican railway,
the first built of the great lines that now mark up
the map in all directions. Many a Mexican company
had faced the chasm between the capital and the
gulf, but baulked before the leap. No government
lasted long enough to ensure the success of the enter-
prise, until, in 1868 republican stability and English
capital combined to push it forward, and in 1873
the road was opened to the public.
Two great lines connecting Mexico with the United
States — the Mexican Central and the National Rail-
way — are essentially American enterprises. The
Yankee pervades Mexico — not, as many of its in-
habitants fear, with the deep design of absorbing all
its territory into the already large domain of the
United States, but with his characteristic instinct
for doing a good thing for himself. He finds a per-
fect climate, a productive soil, a land rich in metals
and minerals, unlimited space for future railroads,
telegraphs, towns, shops, business. There are in-
stances, no doubt, where he thinks he has found a
simple n,iti\'c population, easily imposed upon, whose
ignorance he ma\' work to his own advantage. But
there is no doubt that Yankee liberality, intelligence,
conscience, and capital have already done much, and
will do far more, to advance the civilization of the
country, and lift the spirit of the Aztec, kept low
down by centuries of life at the very base of the
social pyramid, so that it may ascend higher and
higher towards its apex.
FUTURE.
419
The darkest clays of tlie Mexican Republic are
over. Its members have learned sharp lessons from
adversity; they have suffered every thing that their
own headstrong conduct, their vain-glorious ambition
could bring upon them — civil war, anarchy, invasion
by the army of a neighboring government — their
natural friend perverted to an enemy partJy by their
own folly, — the unwarranted intervention of a foreign
potentate, the difficulties of debt, want of public
faith, a low state of public honesty.
Out of all these troubles they have bravely emerged,
and now take their stand, heavily weighted still, in-
deed, with the burdens of past mistakes, among
them the lingering distrust of other nations, but
young, full of promise, with all the elements sur-
rounding them of a possible great future. This
future must depend for the most part on their own
exertions. The children of to-day must be reared in
such enlightened fashion that they may avoid the
mistakes and crimes of the generation before them ;
they must learn to long for honorable peace, and
must resist the pull there is to their blood for change
and military renown. They must seek glory in the
permanence of their institutions and the develop-
ment of their great resources, thus slowly winning
the confidence of other nations.
Then they will find these other nations, and es-
pecially the powerful one next them on their own
continent, ready to perform the neighborly part of
protecting their interests, sympathizing in their
prosperity, generously willing to share with them
the growing fame of the civilization of America.
INDEX.
Aak, 78
Academy of Fine Arts, 226
Acamapichtli, 90
Acapulco, 225
Acatl, 76
Acolhuacan, gS
Aculco, 246
Aculhuas, 42
Agave, 34
Aguilar, Jerome de, 138
Agustin I., see Yturbide
Ahuehuete, 22, 56
Ahuitzotl, 105
Aldama, 248
Allende, Ignacio, joins Plidalgo,
241; denounced, 244; attacked
by Calleja, 246 ; forced to re-
treat, 247 ; captured and shot,
248
Alta California, igo ; see also
California
Alvarado, 137, 160, 163, 173, 194
Amaquemecan, 38, 42
Amecameca, gg, 208
Ampudia, General, 318, 3ig, 322
Anahuac, 6, 8, 12, 17, 33
Anaya, General, 334
Angostura, 323
Apan, 36
Apodaca, Viceroy, 259, 262
Arista, General, 311, 342
Atlantis, 21
Atzacualco, 88
Atzcapotzalco, 42, 43, 51
Audiencia, 184
Austin, Moses, 304
Axayacatl, lOI, 158
Ayaxzitl, 41
Ayotzinco, 156
Ayiintamiento, 184
lAzoteas, 127
jQAjtecs, 43 ; emigration of, 83 ;
.B Tvanderings of, 84 ; settlement
' at Chapultepec, 86 ; driven to
the islands, 87 ; found Tenoch-
titlan, 88 ; their civilization,
8g ; extent of the kingdom,
glyphics, III ; paintings, 112 ;
religion, 114; • domestic life,
115 ; laws, 115 ; calendar,
116; cycle, 118; agriculture,
119 ; character, 120 ; priest-
esses, 121 ; policy of the na-
tion, 123
Aztlan, 22
B
Bajan, Las Nonas de, 248
Balam, 78
Barradas, 277
Basch, Dr., 375
" Baths of ]SIontezuma," 57
Baudelier, quoted, 30, 38, 170
Bazaine, Marshal, 356, 360, 367,
371. 373
Bocanegro, 277
Bonaparte, Joseph, 235
Bonpland, 224
Boot, Adrian, 218
Branciforte, Marquis of, 234, 235
Bravo, General Don Nicholas,
262, 268, 274, 307, 321
421
422
INDEX.
Buena Vista, 323
Bustamente, 262, 277, 278, 285,
287, 288
Cacamatzin, 130, 154, 156
Calderon, battle of, 247
Calderon, Conde de, see Calleja
Calderon, Madame, 290 ; quoted,
227, 273, 282, 284, 293
Calderon, Sefior, 290
California, 313, 316, 33S
Calleja, General, 246, 247, 252,
258
Calzadas, 80
Calzonzi, 67, 176, 1S9
Campeche, 132
Canoas, 92, 127
Cargadores , 4, 405
Carlotta, Empress of Mexico,
350 ; her character, 358, 364 ;
goes to Europe, 367 ; inter-
view with Napoleon, 368 ;
her madness, 369
Carratelas, 292
Casa de Cortes, 28
Casa Grande, 13
Casa-Mata, 268
Catholic P'athers, 9, 412
Cazadero, 202
Cempoallan, 143
Cerro de Borrego, battle at, 355
Cerro Gordo, 330
Ceutla, ruins at, 17
Chaak Mool, 78
Chalcas, 66
Chalchiuhtlatonac, 26, 38
Chalco, Lake, 12, 333
Chapparral, 5
Chapi'ltepec, 86, 127, 156, 291,
338. 3^2, 399
Charles V., 10, 177, 214
Charles II., 220
Charles III., 226, 233
Charles IV., 227, 233
Chavero, quoted, 1 17
Chiapas, 18, 71, 265
Chichimecatl Tecuhtli, 41
Chichen-Itza, 76
Chichimecs, 26, 38-44, 64, 87
Chihuahua, 323
Chilpantzingo, 252
Chimalpopoca, 91, 94
Chinampas, 228
Cholollan, 28
Cholula, pyramid of, 14, lOO,
106, 206
Cholultecas, massacre of, 154
Churubusco, 333, 334
Cittco de Mayo, 354
Clerigos, 344
Coahuila, 338
Coatlicue, 121
Coatzacoalco River, 106
Colima, 62
Colorado River, 24
Columbus, 131
Comonfort, General, 356
Conquistadores, 8, 12, 89
Contreras, Don Pedro Moya de,
216
Copan, 17, 71
Cordoba, 5
Cordova, 132
Cordova, treaty of, 264, 266
Cortazar, General, 285
Cortes, Fernando, alluded to,
2, 3 ; birth of, 135 ; character
of, 136 ; commissioned by
Velasciuez, 127; his squadron.
13S ; at the Tabasco River
139 ; worshipped as Quetzal-
coatl, 141 ; sends gifts to
Montezuma, 141 ; visits Cem-
j)oallan, 143 ; destroys the
ships, 144 ; interview with
Montezuma, 147 ; conquers
Tlaxcalla, 152 ; at Cholula,
154 ; arrives in Mexico, 156;
meeting with Montezuma,
157 ; seizes Montezuma, 159 ;
expedition to Vera Cruz, 160 ;
abandons Mexico, 163 ; re-
treat from the city, 164 ;
gathers a new army, 171 ;
campaign against Mexico, 173;
at Coyoacan, 175 ; conquers
Michoacan, 176 ; expedition
to Honduras, 177 ; voyages to
INDEX.
423
Spain, 178 ; death of, 178 ;
burial in Mexico, 179
Cortes, Martin, 180
Cotton, 92, 406
Council of Music, 53
CoXCOX, 22
Coyoacan, 175
Cozumel, 138
Cuahtemoc, 167, 170, 174, 175,
178
Ciiauhnahuac, 92
Cuautla, 252
Cuba, 132
Cuepopan, 88
Cuernavaca, 28, 225
Cuextecas, 106
Cuicuicatzin, 155
Cuitlahuac, loi
Cuitlahuatzin, 161, 166
Cuitzao, Lake, 62
Culhuacan, 23
Culhuas, 87
D
Diaz, Bemal, 137 ; quoted, 127,
148, 181
Diaz, Porfirio, takes Oaxaca, 371 ;
takes Puebla. 376, 384 ; a can-
didate for the presidency, 390;
at the head of the revolution-
ists again, 392 ; his earlier
life, 394 ; in the war of the
reform, 395 ; campaign against
Oaxaca, 395 ; an escape from
government troops, 396 ; presi-
dent, 398 ; re-elected, 398 ;
his home, 399
Doblado, 346
Dolores, 240
Dominicans, 324
Dominiguez, Dona Josefa, 258
" Drinking cup of the Eagle,"
loi
E
Escobedo, General, 374, 375,
378
Estrada, Gutierrez, 299, 349
Farias, Valentine Gomez, 279,
282, 307, 321, 330
Ferdinand VII., 234, 259
Fischer, Father, 371
Forey, Marshal, 356
Franciscans, 324
Fremont, Colonel, 316
Frijoles, 26
Galves, Viceroy, 226, 228
Garces, Fray Julian, 204
Garibay, Viceroy, 236
Ghent, Fray Pedro de, 192
Gonsalez, General Manuel, 398
Good-Friday in Mexico, 294
Gorostiza, 334
Grant, Ulysses, quoted, 341
Grenaditas, Alhondiga de, 243,
248
Grijalva, Juan de, 132-134
Grito de Dolores, 242
Guadalajara, 193, 246
Guadalupe-Hidalgo, treaty of,
338.
Guanajuato, 19, 243, 409
Giiardias Ruraies, 298
Guatemala, 71, 265
Guerrero, 259 ; joins Yturbide,
261 ; joins in the Casa-Mata,
268 ; a candidate for the presi-
dency, 275 ; president, 277 ;
his government overthrown,
277 ; captured and shot, 278
Guillermo, 346
Guzman, Nuno de, 1S4, 185-194
H
Herrara, General, 262, 307, 342
Hicuxaxe, 66
Hidalgo, Manuel, birth and edu-
cation, 238 ; life at Dolores,
240 ; declares independence,
241 ; Grito de Dolores, 242 ;
takes Guanahuato, 243 ; takes
Valladolid, 245 ; defeated at
424
INDEX.
Aculco, 246 ; defeated at Cal-
deron, 247 ; captured and shot,
248
Hidalgo, state of, 41
Historia Chichimeca, 60
Holy Brotherhood, tribunal of,
203
Houston, General, 305
Huacllatohani, 41
Huatusco, ruins at, 16
Huehue-Tlapallan, ig, 24
Huehuetoca, 218
Huematzin, 24
Huexotzinco, 106
Huitzilihuitl, 91, 92, 94
HuitzilopochtH, 29, 87, 88, 99,
105
Human sacrifices, 102
Humboldt, Alexander von, visits
Mexico, 224-232
I
" Iguala, Plan of," 261
Indian, the name, 184
Indies, 1S4
Inquisition, 196, 216
Ire-Titatacame, 65
Istaccihuatl, 6
Iturrigaiay, Don Jose de, 224,
236
Itzcoall, 96, 97, 9$
Ixtlilxochitl, Fernando de Alva,
23, 44, 60, 64
Ixtlilxochitl, king of the Chichi-
mecs, 44, 45, 94
Ixtlilxochitl, of Texcuco, 130,
154- 155, 171
Tzamal, 81
J
Jaramillo, Don Juan de, 183
Jesuits, 324
Jimenez, 247, 248
Joinville, I'rince de, 281
Jorullo, 231
Juarez, Benito, his descent, 344 ;
governor of Oaxaca, 345-;
president, 346 ; withdraws
from the cajntal, 356 ; ad-
vances to Zacatecas, 374 ;
enters the capital, 386 ; presi-
dent, 3S7 ; character of, 389 ;
re-elected, 390 ; death of, 39O
Juarez, Dona Catalina, 137, l8l,
182
Juntas, 235
K
Kinich-Katmo, 78
L
Lane, General, 340
Leon, Diego Velasquez de, 132,
135. 137
Leon y Gama, quoted, 1 17
Le Plongeon, Dr., quoted, 78
Lerdo, Don Sebastian de Tejada,
391. 396
Lerma, River, 219
Le Teja, 372
liberales, 344
Lopez, General, 377
Lorencez, General, 354
Loreto, Fort, 331
Louis Philippe, 281
M
Maguey, 35
Malinche, mountain of, 46
Malintzi, birth and early life,
145 ; in slavery, 146 ; given to
Cortes, 146 ; becomes inter-
preter, 147 ; appearance of,
149 ; escape of, 164 ; life with
Cortes, 180; marriage of, 183 ;
death of, 183
Marina, see Malintzi,
Markets in Mexico, 228
Marques, General, joins the cler-
is^os, 346 ; joins Maximilian,
372 ; becomes quartermaster-
general, 375 ; sent to the capi-
tal. 375 i his escape, 384
Martin de Valencia, Fray, 208,
211
Martinez, Enrico, 218, 219
INDEX.
425
Maximilian, emperor of Mexico,
350 ; his character and aims,
352 ; arrives in Mexico, 357 ;
his reception, 358 ; life at
court, 360 ; poHcy of, 362 ;
appeals to Napoleon, 367 ;
prepares to leave Mexico, 369 ;
goes to Orizaba, 370 ; influence
of the clerical party, 371 ; re-
turns to Mexico, 372 ; at
Queretaro, 374 ; his appear-
ance described, 376 ; a prison-
er, 378 ; death of, 380
Maxixcatzin, 171
Maxtla, 44, 48-51, 92-97
Mayapan, 71, 72
Mayas, 18, 70-S2
Mayorga, Viceroy, 226
Meconetzin, 36
Meija, General, 373, 378, 380
Mendez, 378
Mendoza, Antonio de, character
of, 191 ; his administration,
192-202
Merida, 80
Mexcalla, 106
Mexicans, 51
Mexico, climate of, 5 ; relief of,
6 ; early races of, g ; govern-
ment of, 10; natural resources
of, II, 402 ; roads in, 80 ; na-
tives of, 185 ; mines of, 229,
4tg ; society in, 290 ; women
of, 292 ; soldiers, 308 ; vege-
tation, 402 ; flowers, 403 ;
market-place, 404 ; schools of,
415 ; literature of, 416 ; rail-
ways in, 418
Mexitli, 84
Mexitzin, 90
Mezcal, 36
Michoacan, 19, 62-69, io6» i?^,
194
Mines of Mexico, 229, 409
Miramon, General, joins the
clerigos, 346, 349 ; joins Maxi-
milian, 372 ; advances to Za-
catecas, 374 ; raises troops for
Maximilian, 375 ; taken pris-
oner, 378 ; shot, 380
Mitla, 393
Mixcoatl, 40
Mixtecas, 19
Molino del Rey, 334, 360
Monasteries, suppression of, 412
Montafio, 176
Monte de la Cruces, 245
Monteleone, Dukes of, 179
Monterey, 317
Monterey (in California), 314
Montezuma I., 92, 98, 100
Montezuma II., loi, 124 ; coro-
nation of, 125 ; court of, 128 ;
interview with Cortes, 147,
157 ; a prisoner, 159 ; death
of, 161
Montezuma, Conde de, 220
Montezuma's Cypress, 129
Morales, General, 328
Moreha, 194, 251
Morelos, Jose Manuel, birth of,
250 ; education of, 251 ; joins
the Independents, 251 ; de-
fends Cuautla, 252 ; calls first
Mexican congress, 252 ; ap-
pointed captain-general, 253 ;
defeated at Valladolid, 254 ;
captured, 254 ; shot, 254 ; his
character, 255
Morelos, state of, 41
Mound Builders, 20
Moyotla, 88
Mozarabic liturgy, 413
N
Nachan, 71
Nahuas, 19, 20
Nahuatl, language, 19, 27 ; le-
gends, 22 ; family, 70
Napoleon I., 235
Napoleon III., 349, 360, 366,
368
Naranjan, Princess of, 65
Nata and Nana, legend of, 23
National Museum of Mexico, 33
Nevada de Toluca, 29
New Mexico, 313, 338
New Spain, extent of, 190
Nezahualcoyotl, 44-61, 96, 98
426
INDEX.
Nezahualpilli, 105, 125, 130
Noche Triste, La, 163
Nopal, 87
Noriega, General, 384
Northers, I, 3
Novella, Fraacisco, 263, 264
Nueva Leon, 316
O
Oaxaca, 275, 392
Obregon, 22g
O'Donoju, Don Juan, 223, 263-
266
Oidores, 185
Olid, Chnstobal de, 137, 173,
176, 177
Olmedo, Father, 182
Orizaba, I
Ortega, General, 346, 356
Otomis, tribe of, 19, 152
Otoncapolco, 164
Otumba, battle of, 168, 170
I'
Painala, 145, 183
Palenque, ruins at, 17, 72-76
Palo Alto, battle at, 311
Paredes, Don Maria, 2S4, 285,
307. 319
Parian, The, 275
Paseo, 291
Patzcuaro, 63, 68, 194, 230
Payne and Zarate, quoted, 37
Pedraza, Manuel Gomez, 275,
276, 278, 282
Peoncs, 256
Philip II., 9, 199, 214, 219
Philip III., 219
Philip IV., 219
Philip v., 233
Pillow, General, 336
Pita, 35
Popocatapetl, 6
Popotla, 164
Pottery of Mexico, 405
Prieto, Guillermo, 346, 416
Princess of Cloth, 92
Puebla. 204, 206, 262, 330, 333,
354, 356
Puebla, state of, 41
Pulque, 23, 35
Qiiemadero, 2 16
Queretaro, 19, 246, 262, 374, 375
1 Quetzalcoatl, 29 ; legends of,
A 30, 33. 131 > influence of, 32;
statue of, 34
Quinames, 18
Quinatzin, 42
Quiroga, Vasco de, 197, 238
R
Railways in Mexico, 418
Rehozos, 296, 406
Reclatnacion de los Pasteles, 281
Revillagigedo, Don Juan Vicente
de Guemes Pacheco de Pa-
dilla, Conde de, 220-222
Robbers, 297
Royal University, founded, 203
Rubio, Manuel Romero, 399
.Sabine River, 305
Sacramento, 323
Salanueva, Don Antonio, 345
Salm-Salm, Prince of, 375 ; Prin-
cess of, 378
Salomea, Pass of, 393
Saltillo, 316
San Chnstobal, Lake, 12
San Diego, 252
San Juan de Uloa, 137, 236,
281, 330
San Juan Teotihuacan, 168
San Luis, 19
San Nicholas, Colegio de, 230,
238, 251
Sandoval, Gonzalo de, 173
Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez de,
267 ; his connection with
Yturbide, 273 ; at Oaxaca,
275 ; defeats a Spanish force,
277 ; becomes president, 2"8 ;
in Texas, 279 ; a prisoner.
INDEX.
427
280 ; defeats a French squad-
ron, 281 ; his home at Manga
la Clava, 2ri2 ; rivalry with
Pedraza, 283 ; with Meija,
2S4 ; president again, 287 ; at
the head of the army, 308 ;
returns from Cuba, 3^0 ; in
the war with the United
States, 330-338 ; retires to
Jamaica, 340 ; made Dictator,
344 ; conspires against the
government, 387 ; banished,
388 ; death of, 388, 398
Schools of Mexico, 415
Scott, Winfield, 323, 324, 328,
330, 337, 339
Serape, 406
Shining Serpent, see Quetzal-
coatl
Sicuiracha, 65
Small-pox among the Aztecs,
167
Spanish, expelled from Mexico,
274
St. Domingo, 135
Sun, sacrifices to, 102
Tabasco River, 133, 139
Tamaulipas, 270
Tangoxoan II., 67, 176
Tarascans, 65 ; customs of, 68
Taylor, General, 312, 316, 337,
339
Tecpancultzin, 28, 36
Tehuacan, 254
" Temple of the Cross," 74
Tenoch, 89, 90
Tenochtitlan, 43, 88, 126, 175
Teocallis, 9
Teotihuacan, pyramid of, 18 ;
city of, 28 ; visited by Hum-
boldt, 229
Tepanecas, tribe of, 43, 44, 87,
y^ .
Tequila, 36
Texas, revolts against Mexico,
305 ; annexed to the United
States, 306 ; in the treaty of
Guadalupe-Hidalgo, 338
Texcuco, Lake, 12, 219
Texcnco, kingdom of, 44 ; gold-
en age of, 53 ; literature of,
54 ; decline of, 60 ; the king-
dom divided, 130
Tezcatlipoca, 23, 30
Tezcotzinco, 56
Tezozomoc, king of Azcapot-
zalco, 44, 94
" Three Guaranties, The," 261
Tierra caliente, 402
Tixiacuri, 66
Tizoc, reign of, loi
Tlacopan, kingdom of, 42
Tlatelolca, 97, 167
Tlaxcalla, subject to the Chi-
chimecs, 41 ; the name, 46,
47 ; Cortes goes to, 144 ; posi-
tion of, 151 ; resists the Span-
iards, 152 ; forced to make
peace, 153; head-quarters of
Cortes, 172
Tollan, see Tula
ToUanzinco, 24
Toltecs, legend of their origin,
23 ; traditions of, 24 ; appear-
ance of, 26 ; customs of, 27 ;
duration of the kingdom, 37 ;
wars, 40 ; defeated, 41
Toluca, 28
Tonacatecuhtli, 27
Topiltzin-Meconetzin, 37
Trujillo, 245
Tula, 17, 24, 41, 71
Tzintzuntzan, 66, 67, 198
U
Ulmecas, tribe of, 18
United States, result of the war
with Mexico, 339 ; action of,
regarding the Mexican Em-
pire, 365
V
Valencia, Fray Martin de, 193
Valencia, General, 284, 287
Valenciana, Count of, see Obre-
gon
428
INDEX.
Valenciana, mines of, 229
Valladolid, 194, 196, 230, 24.5,
246, 253, 202
■' Valley Confederates," gS.
Velasco, Lui:; de, second viceroy,
203
Velasquez de Leon, Diego, gov-
ernor of Cuba, 135 ; sends
Grijalva to Mexico, 136 ; is
jealous of Cortes, 137
Venegas, Don Francisco, 237,
243, 248, 253
Vera Cruz, I, 4, 41, 142, 321,
32S
Viceroys, 9 ; number of, 223
Victoria, Don Felix Fernandez,
.273, 274
Vidaurri, General Santiago, 383,
.3S4
Viga Canal, 228, 292
Votan, 80
W
" Wanderings of the Aztecs,"
picture of, 112
Worth, General, 323, 330, 331
Xicalancas, tribe of, 18
Xicotencatl, 152
Xochicalco, pryamid of, 16, 28,
225
Xochimilco, 12
Xochiquetzal, 22
Xochitl, 36, 41
Xoconochco, 106
Xolotl, chief of the Chichimecs,
40, 42
Yturbide, Agustin de, 260 ; an-
nounces " Plan of Iguala,"
261 ; takes Valladolid, 262 ;
enters the capital, 264 ; ma/Je
president, 265 ; proclaimed
emjieror, 266; crowned, 267;
deposed, 268 ; leaves the
country, 26S ; declared a
traitor, 268 ; returns and is
executed, 270 ; his character,
271
Yucatan, 18, 70, 132
Zamna, 80
Za])otecas, tribe of, 19, 393
Zaragoza, General, 346, 354
Zoquipan, 88
Zovanga, 67
Zumarraga, Fray Juan de, 207
Zumpango, Lake, 12
Zuniga, Dona Juana de, 1S3
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