CHAPTER XXII.
To those invaders who had not yet witnessed with their own eyes thepeculiar wonders of the interior, the approach to Tlascala was full ofsurprise and interest. As the sun sank, the four hills on which lay therepublican city, and the pyramids and towers that crowned them, senttheir long shadows over the plain to the feet of the cavaliers; and inthe gloom, they beheld a vast multitude,--the armies of the four tribeswhich composed the nation, under their several banners, glittering withfeathers, and marching in regular divisions to the sound of wild music,as well as a host of women and children waving knots of flowers, anduttering cries of welcome,--advancing to do them honour. Don Amadorforgot the valiant appearance of the warriors of Chinantla, while gazingon the superior splendour of the armed Tlascalans. These warlike people,in imitation of their Christian confederates, had learned to dividetheir confused throngs into squadrons and companies, ranked underseparate leaders, and now approached in what seemed well-orderedcolumns. Bunches of red and white feathers waved among their longlocks, and ornamented their wickered shields; the short tunic of_nequen_, a coarse white cloth of the maguey, left their muscular andwell-sculptured limbs free for action; and as they strode along,brandishing their swords of obsidian, (the _maquahuitl_,--a heavybludgeon, armed on either side with blades of volcanic glass,) orwhirling in their slings those missiles of hardened copper armed withsharp horns, which were capable of piercing the toughest armour,--andever and anon, mingling their fierce cries with the savage sound of drumand flute, they made a show not more remarkable than glorious. At thehead of each division, under his peculiar standard, (the image of somebird of prey, or wild beast, very gorgeously decorated,) marched eachchieftain, with the great plume of distinction, or _penacho_, as it wascalled, rising full two feet above his head, and nodding with a morethan barbarous magnificence. Thus appareled and thus displayed, theyadvanced to the head of the Christian army, and dividing on either side,so as to surround the Spanish host with a guard of honour, eachindividual, from the naked slinger to the feather-crowned chief, didhomage to the Christian general, by touching the earth with his hand,and then kissing the humbled member; while at the same moment, a numberof priests with black robes and hair trailing almost to the ground,waved certain pots of incense before him, as if to a demigod; a mark ofdistinction which they afterwards extended to the cavaliers thatsurrounded him. The religious ire of Don Amador de Leste was inflamed,when it became his turn to receive this fragrant compliment; and lookingdown fiercely upon the innocent censer-bearer, and somewhat forgettingthat Castilian was not the language of the realm, he cried;--
"What dost thou mean, thou pagan dog! to smoke me in this idolatrousmanner, who am neither a god nor a saint?"
"Senor," said De Morla, who sat at his side, "be not offended at thismark of reverence, which the customs of the country cause to be renderedto every man of dignity; and which is a harmless compliment, and noidolatrous homage, as was first thought among us. Thou wilt presentlysee them smoke their own generals and senatorial lawgivers, the last ofwhom thou mayest see yonder approaching us in a group;--those old menwith the feather fans in their hands."
As De Morla predicted, the priests were no sooner done smoking theirChristian visiters, than they turned to do similar reverence to theirown dignitaries; and Don Amador's concern was soon changed to admirationto behold with what lofty state these noble savages received the tributedue to their rank.
"This fellow with the red plume, and the sword that seems heavy enoughfor a giant's battle-axe," he cried,--"the knave over whom they hold agreat, white bird like an ostrich?--He must needs be a king! He bends toCortes, like an emperor doing courtesy to some brother monarch."
"That," said De Morla, "is Xicotencal, of the tribe of the White-Bird,the most famous general of the Tlascalans, and, in fact, thecaptain-in-chief of all their armies. He is not less valiant thanfamous, and not less arrogant than valiant; and at this moment, beshrewme, I think he would rather be knocking his bludgeon over our heads, outof pure love of war, than kissing his fingers in friendship. This is theman who commanded the armies which fought us on our first approach; andtruly I may say, he fought us so well, that had he not been commanded bythe senators, who are the civil rulers of Tlascala, to make peace withus, there is much suspicion we should have seen heaven sooner than thevale of Mexico. For, senor, after having supplied us with food, asscorning to be assisted in his victory by famine, which was somewhatpressing with us, he fell upon us to win it in person; and I mustconfess, as will be recorded in history, he quite broke and confounded,and would have utterly destroyed us, had it not been for a providentialmutiny in his camp in the very midst of his triumph; whereby we had timeto rally, and take advantage of his distresses. The same good fortunemight have been his, another time, without so inconvenient aninterruption. But it seems the senators of Tlascala only made war on us,to prove whether or not we were valiant men, and worthy to be receivedas their allies, according to our wish; which being now proved to theirsatisfaction, they ordered the war to be ended, and welcomed us asfriends. There never were more valiant men than these soldiers ofTlascala."
"Of a surety," said Don Amador, "I begin to think the captain Gomez ofthe caravel was somewhat mistaken as to the courage of thesebarbarians."
"Thou seest the second chief,--he of the green penacho, with whom Cortesconfers so very courteously! That is Talmeccahua, chief of the tribeTizatlan, a very young warrior, but second in fame only to Xicotencal;and being more docile and friendly, he is much a favourite with ourgeneral, and doubtless will be selected to accompany us to the greatcity. Of those reverend old senators I could also give you an account;but we who are soldiers, care not for lawgivers. It is enough to assureyou, that they are the rulers of Tlascala; and that though these proudpeople, the commoners, call themselves free republicans, they are to allintents and purposes the servants of many masters; a sort of freedomsomewhat more questionable than that of a nation governed by one king.Thou seest, they kiss their hands to us, as we enter their city. For mypart, I think them rogues to love us, their truest enemies, better thantheir domestic rivals, the people of Tenochtitlan. Wo betide them, whohelp us to conquer their foes, when their foes _are_ conquered!"
As De Morla spoke, Don Amador found himself entering the city ofTlascala. Twilight had darkened over the hills, and in the obscurity,(for the moon had not yet risen) he perceived long masses of houses,not very lofty, but strong, on the terraced roofs of which stood manyhuman beings, chiefly women and children, who waved a multitude oftorches, and, as they sung what De Morla told him were songs of welcome,threw flowers down upon their guests.
Flambeaux were also carried before them in the streets; and with thissort of pomp, they were ushered to a great building with extensivecourts, sufficient to lodge the whole army, which was assigned them fortheir quarters.
While the cannoniers were arranging the artillery, the officers of theguard choosing their watchmen, and preparations were made to hold aconference with the chiefs of the republic, the neophyte was invited byDe Morla to accompany him to a pyramid on one of the four hills, whence,as he assured him, was a noble prospect of those huge mountains whichseparated them from the valley of Tenochtitlan. Don Amador looked abouthim for his kinsman. He had retired with the chaplain of the army, insome sudden disorder of spirit, for prayer or confession; and Don Amadorsighed, as he bethought him that yearly, about the time of midsummer,the knight's disease seemed to reach its intensest point.
"If thou couldst but sing to him that holy song of the Virgin, writtenmany years back by the priest of Hita,
Quiero seguir a ti, Flor de las flores!"
said Don Amador to the Moorish page, (for it was Jacinto who gave himthis information,) "I have no doubt thou wouldst do him more good thanthe reverend father Olmedo; for, though I know not why it should be so,he ever seems to me more troubled than relieved by confession."
"It was a song chanted the evening before that had thrown the knight'sspirit into disorder; and Baltasar h
ad commanded him never to singagain;" so said Jacinto.
"Baltasar is an ass! though very zealous for his master," said theneophyte in a heat, "and thinks there is nothing comforts my kinsman'sheart, save the clanging of swords and bucklers; whereas, I know verywell, thy ditties are true medicine to him; and, with heaven's blessing,thou shall sing him very many more."
"Let the boy follow with us," said De Morla: "I like his piping well;and methinks, if he have not forgotten that tender love-song about theChristian knight who adored a pagan Morisca, I can listen to it againwith much good will, as I look towards the mountains of Montezuma."
"I am loath to have him away, for perhaps my good knight may call forhim when the confession is over; and there is something raw in thisnight air, that may be prejudicial to the youth."
"_Yo seguire a mi senor_--I will follow my master," said Jacinto, withsimplicity. "My lord the knight bade me this night to remain by the sideof my lord, lest some evil should happen to me among the infidels."
"Take up thine instrument then," said the neophyte, "for thou seemestto-night to remain by me in good will; and I am ever glad to have thyfoolish company, when such is the case. If thou wilt carry a torch also,'tis very well: 'twill be some half hour yet ere moonrise."
The two cavaliers, followed by the page bearing a torch, as well as hislute, strode through the streets, which were still thronged with theirsavage allies, as in a gala-day, singing and shouting; many of whom,from affection or curiosity, seemed disposed to add themselves to thelittle party. Nevertheless, such inquisitive individuals were easilyrepelled by De Morla pointing in the direction he was pursuing, andpronouncing a few words in their language, the effect of which, as DonAmador observed, was always to check their ardour, and cover theirvisages, when these could be seen, with sadness and awe.
"I tell them," said De Morla, in answer to the inquiries of theneophyte, "that we are going to the hill to look upon thefire-mountain, Popocatepetl; and why they are so stricken withsuperstition at the name, I will explain to thee when we reach thetemple."
The temple was soon reached. The city,--a congregation of cabins andrude stone dwellings, of vast size,--lying on the prolonged base of agreat mountain, reared its principal sanctuaries on the spurs of thiselevation, on the highest of which stood that consecrated to the god ofthe air. This was an earthen pyramid, huge and lofty, surmounted bytowers such as Don Amador had seen at Zempoala. As the friendsapproached this, the deep silence that surrounded it was broken by thevoices of men speaking vehemently in a strange tongue; and as theyadvanced, they beheld two or three figures glide behind the pyramid, asif to escape observation. This would not perhaps have attracted thenotice of the neophyte, had not his companion exclaimed,--
"Sidi, the cannonier, again! plotting his knaveries with the two Moorishslaves of Cortes! There is some villany in the wind: I have twice orthrice seen Abdalla in close conference with these two varlets, and heis often seen talking with his other countrymen that we have in thearmy. I will represent this matter to the general; for there can no goodcome of such secret proceedings.--I have all along distrusted thatinfidel cannonier to have some mischief in him."
"Please my lord, my father is no infidel," said Jacinto, trembling,perhaps as much at his presumption in contradicting a noble hidalgo, asat the presumed danger of his parent,--"no infidel, but a ChristianMoor; as the good padre Olmedo will witness to my lord."
"Young page," said De Morla, pleasantly, "I should not have said sogrievous a thing of thy father, but that I forgot thou wert in hearing.I will grant thee Abdalla to be a good Christian, if the padre say so;but, if thou art as much of a wit as a singer, tell me, how is it thyfather is found so often skulking about by night, in company with theMoorish slaves, who are yet unbelievers, instead of resting withChristian soldiers?"
"Though the Moors be slaves and Mahometans," said the page, with much ofthe submissiveness of his father, though recovering from histrepidation, "they were born in the same land with my father, and arehis countrymen. As for the Christian soldiers, they will not forget,that though a Christian, he was born of the poor Moriscos: and, my lordknows, it is hard to rest with those who hate us."
"I should give thee a ducat for thy argument," said De Morla,good-humouredly, "but that I know thou art so unsophisticated as toprefer sweet praise to gold; and I intend soon to bestow some of thatupon thee. Thy oration has utterly persuaded me I have wronged Abdalla;in token of my penitence for which, I will relieve thee of the burthenof the torch, whilst thou art climbing up these steps, which are none ofthe smoothest nor shortest."
"Take thou my hand, Jacinto," said the novice, benevolently; "for, as myfriend says, these steps are indeed very rugged; and I am willing toshow thee, that though thou art of Moorish blood, I myself do by nomeans either hate or despise thee."
The page humbly and hesitatingly placed his hand in the grasp of DonAmador, and ascending at his side, soon stood on the summit of thepyramid.
Here, besides two towers of stone that reared their lofty bulk overhead, the novice perceived in advance of them, two great urns of rudeworkmanship, each apparently carved out of a solid block of stone, andeach glowing with the remains of a fire not yet extinguished,--though nopriests stood by, to guard and replenish them.--They had forsaken theiraltars, to join in the festivities of the evening.
"Let us break these idolatrous censers!" said Don Amador, "for my bloodboils to look upon them."
"Nay," said the moderate De Morla, "let us wait for heaven's own time,as is strenuously advised by our wise and holy chaplain, who must knowbetter than ourselves how to attack the impieties of the land. We haveever found these heathens more easily converted by gentle persuasionsthan by violent assaults on their prejudices; and father Olmedo hasshown us how persecution strengthens instead of overturning an abusedsuperstition. He has also proved to the satisfaction of most of us, thatit is our bounden duty to subdue the arms of the pagans, and leave theirfaith to be conquered by the good priests who will follow in ourpath.--Turn, senor, from these pigmy vases to the great censers, whichGod has himself raised to his majesty!"
As De Morla spoke, he turned from the altars, and Don Amador, followingwith his eyes the direction in which he pointed, beheld a spectaclewhich instantly drove from his mind the thought of the idolatrous urns.Far away in the south-west, at the distance of eight or ten leagues,among a mass of hills that upheld their brows in gloomy obscurity, acolossal cone elevated its majestic bulk to heaven, while the snowswhich invested its resplendent sides, glittered in the fires thatcrowned its summit. A pillar of smoke, of awful hue and volume, rose toan enormous altitude above its head, and then parting and spreading oneither side through the serene heaven, lay still and solemn, like afuneral canopy, over its radiant pedestal. From the crater, out of whichissued this portentous column, arose also, time by time, great flameswith a sort of lambent playfulness, in strange and obvious contrast withtheir measureless mass and power; while ever and anon globes of fire,rushing up through the pillar of vapour, as through a transparentcylinder, burst at the top, and spangled the grim canopy with stars. Noshock creeping through the earth, no heavy roar stealing along theatmosphere, attested the vigour of this sublime furnace; but all insilence and solemn tranquillity, the spectacle went on,--now darkling,now waxing temporarily into an oppressive splendour, as if for theamusement of those shadowy phantoms who seemed to sit in watch upon theneighbouring peaks.
"This is indeed," said Don Amador, reverently; "if God should require analtar of fire, such a high place as might be meeter for his worship thanany shrine raised by the hands of man. God is very great and powerful!The sight of such a spectacle doth humble me in mine own thoughts: forwhat is man, though full of vanity and arrogance, in the sight of Himwho builds the fire-mountains?"
"Padre Olmedo," said his companion, "will ask you, what is thisfire-mountain, though to the eye so majestic, and to appearance soeternal, to the creeping thing whose spark of immortality will burn on,when the flames of yonder volcano are
quenched forever?"
"It is very true," said the neophyte, "the mountains burn away, the seawastes itself into air, but the soul that God has given us consumes not.The life of the body passes away like these flames; the vitality that isin the spirit, is a gift that heaven has not extended to the stars!"
"My friend," said De Morla, willing to pass to more interestingdiscussions, "will now perceive for what reason it was that theTlascalans were dismayed and sorrowful when I pronounced the name ofPopocatepetl. The name signifies the Mountain of Smoke; for this greatchimney, though ever pouring forth dark vapours, has not often beenknown to kindle into flames. The present eruption, beginning about thetime of our descent upon the coast, has ever since continued; and wasconsidered to have heralded our appearance. The Tlascalans, though assecurely fettered under the sway of their senators, as are the people ofAnahuac under their kings, are, as I told thee, very intolerant of suchchiefs as carry the open names of masters. Nay, so bitterly do theydetest all tyrants, that they have constructed a fable, which they nowbelieve as a truth,--namely, that the souls of such persons areconcocted and elaborated among the flames of yonder awful crater;whence, at the times of eruptions, they are sent forth, in the shape ofmeteors and fire-balls, to afflict and desolate the world. The globesthat fall back into the cavity, they think, are despots recalled bytheir relenting gods; whereas, those that fall beyond the brim and rolldown the sides of the mountain, are tyrants let loose upon them withoutrestraint. This being their belief, it may seem strange to you, theyhave conceived so preposterous an affection for ourselves, who are muchliker to prove their tyrants than any of the lords of Anahuac; but yet,so savage is their detestation of these native kings, that, thoughnightly terrified with the spectacle of so many fiery tyrants flyingthrough the air, they seem quite to have lost sight of the danger ofentrusting their liberties to our care."
"I hope," said Don Amador, "we have come to rid them of the bondage ofidolatry, not to reduce them to a new slavery."
"We will see that by-and-by," said De Morla. "We broke the chains ofsuperstition in the islands, but we followed them with more gallingfetters; and what better fate awaits the good Montezuma, is more than Ican tell."
"Dost thou call that savage emperor the good Montezuma?" demanded thenovice.
"I cannot do otherwise," said De Morla, mildly, "A thousand times mighthe have swept us from the face of the earth; for his armies arenumberless. A grain of sand from the hand of each of his warriors, wouldhave covered us with a mountain. But age has come to him with a disgustof blood; and all his actions have proved him rather a humane host thana barbarous destroyer. I must confess, we have repaid his gentleness andbeneficence both with perfidy and cruelty; yet, notwithstanding allthis, and notwithstanding that he is sorely afflicted by our harshness,such is the goodness of his heart, that he will not permit his people todo us any injury, nor, by any violence, rescue him out of our hands."
"I have heard another story from Don Hernan," said Amador: "and, truly,I thought these ferocious assaults upon the garrison left with the senorAlvarado in the city, were proof enough of his deceitful malice."
"I will not take upon me to contradict what is averred by Don Hernan,"said De Morla. "But, senor, we have had other representations of thesetumults, by envoys from Montezuma himself, which, if Cortes had notrefused to hear them, would have entirely changed the nature of ourbelief. I have myself spoken with these ambassadors," continued theyoung cavalier earnestly, "some of whom were sent to us at Zempoala, andothers have met us at divers places since, though without beinghearkened to,--and having no inducements to remain in a rage, likeCortes himself, I was very easily persuaded, to my shame, that the faultlay all on the side of the garrison.--Senor, for the sake of lucre, wehave done many unjust things! We were received with all hospitality byMontezuma, the great lord of Tenochtitlan; he gave us a palace to livein, supplied us with food and raiment, and enriched us with many costlypresents. We repaid all this kindness, by seizing him, in a moment ofconfidence, and conveying him to our dwelling, where we have kept himever since a prisoner, forcing him, by the fear of death, to submit tomany indignities unworthy his high rank and benevolent character; andonce even forcing him to sit in chains and witness the cruel executionof some of his own officers for a certain crime in which he could havehad no part. He forgave us this, as well as other insults, and, while wewere absent against Zempoala, preserved his promise sacred, to remain inward of Alvarado until our return. Now, senor, you shall hear the truthof the assault, of which so much is said by Cortes, as fully proving theiniquitous duplicity of the captive emperor. While we were gone, thereoccurred the anniversary of the great festival of Mexitli, the war-god,in which it is customary for all the nobles, arrayed in their richestattire, to dance on the terrace of the great pyramid, before theemperor. Alvarado, dreading lest such an assemblage of chiefs, heated,as we well knew them to be, on account of the imprisonment of theirking, might encourage them to rescue him from his thrall, refused to letthe _Mitotes_, (for so they call this ceremony,) be danced on thetemple; and, at his invitation, the Tlatoani assembled in the court-yardof the palace which Montezuma gave us for our quarters; and here therite began. Now, senor," continued De Morla, speaking indignantly, "youwill blush to hear, that our Christian garrison were so inflamed withcupidity at the sight of the rich and precious jewels, with which theirguests were decorated, that they resolved to possess them, though at thecost of blood-guiltiness; and falling upon these poor unsuspicious andunarmed revellers, when wearied with the dance, and calling out'_Treason!_' as if to justify themselves, though there was no treason,except that in their own hearts, they butchered all that could not leapthe high walls, and rifled the corses, even in the sight of the emperor.This, as you may well believe, excited the people to fury, and drovethem to vengeance. They assaulted the palace, killed many of theperfidious garrison, and would have destroyed all, but that Montezuma,whom they call the traitor and murderer, moved by the intreaties andexcuses of Alvarado, commanded them to retire; and such are their loveand subjection to this monarch, that they instantly obeyed him, and haveremained in peace ever since, waiting the return and the judgment of DonHernan.--And Don Hernan will doubtless command us to give them justice,by slaying as many as shall dare to demand it."
"By heaven!" said Don Amador, "if this be the truth, there are morebarbarians than those who worship pagan idols; and I vow to God, if Ifind thy narrative well confirmed, I will draw no sword, not even at thebidding of my knight Calavar, on the people of Tenochtitlan. Were I evensworn, like a vowed knight of Rhodes, to keep no peace with theinfidel, I could not fight in an unjust cause."
"I am glad to hear you say so," said De Morla, frankly; "for I haveoften, ever since I have been assured of the friendly and docilecharacter of the Mexicans, been persuaded it would be wiser, as well asjuster, to teach them than to destroy. Your favour will find the noblesvery civilized; and surely their daughters, if converted to the truefaith, would make more honourable wives for Spanish hidalgos than theMoorish ladies of our own land."
A sigh came from the lips of Jacinto, as he heard this narrative, towhich he had listened with boyish interest, terminated with a slur sodegrading to his people. But his mortification was appeased by DonAmador, exclaiming with great emphasis,--
"That these Mexican princesses may make very good wives, when trueChristians, I can well believe; but I have my doubts whether they haveany such superiority over the Moorish ladies of Granada, who possess thereligion of Christ. I have, once or twice, known very noble Moriscas,honoured among the wives of Granada as much as those who boasted thepure blood of Castile; and for myself, without pretending to say I shallever condescend to such a marriage, I may aver, that I have seen atleast one fair maiden, and she of no very royal descent, whom,--that is,if I had loved her,--I should not have scorned to wed. But these thingsgo by fate: a Christian Moor is perhaps as much regarded by heaven as aChristian Spaniard; and surely there are some of them very lovely tolook on, and with most angelical e
yes!"
The gentle cavalier smiled in his own conceits, as he listened to theargument of his friend; but, without answering it, he said,--
"While we have the authority of the Cid Ramon of Leon before our eyes, Iam much disposed to agree with Don Amador; for the Cid adored aninfidel, and why should not we love proselytes? Come, now, my prettypage: of all thy ballads, I like best that which treats of the loves ofCid Ramon; and if thou hast not forgotten it, I shall rejoice to hearthee chant it once more, while we sit under the tower and gaze on thefire-mountain, that looks down on Mexico."
The boy agreed with unusual alacrity, and sitting down at the feet ofthe cavaliers, on the flags that surrounded the sanctuary, with thetorch stuck in the earth near him, he tuned his instrument with awilling hand.