*

ican nobles, whose duty it was to bear his litter, came at his bidding, and prepared themselves, barefooted, with their accustomed humility, and with more than their accustomed affection, to place the litter on their shoulders. But, as all pomp and state, even in the mightiest monarchies, requires some time for arrangement and preparation, it appears that the equipage itself was but a poor one. And so, in a sorry manner, borne on by his weeping nobles, and in deep silence, Montezuma quitted his palace, never to return, and moved toward the Spanish quarters. On his way he encountered throngs of his faithful subjects, who, though they could hardly be aware of what the transaction meant, would, at the slightest nod of the monarch, have thrown themselves upon the swords of the Spaniards, in all the plenitude of devotion of a people who believed in their king as the greatest of men, and as the vicegerent of their gods on earth.

But no such signal came. Slowly and silently the litter passed onward; and it must have been with strange misgivings that the people saw their monarch encompassed by those whom they had long known to be their enemies, the Tlascalan allies of Cortez, and by a strange race of bearded, armed men, who seemed, as it were, to have risen from the earth to appal their nobles and to affront their religion.

This is an unparalleled transaction. There is nothing like it, I believe, in the annals of the world.

The completeness of the despotism of Montezuma was a great part of his ruin. It was noticed by the Spaniards as they entered Mexico that his grandees did not dare to look him in the face. To use the ex

* “Trahian unas Andas, no muy bien aderezadas, llorando, lo tomaron en ellas, con mucho silencio."-LORENZANA, p. 86.

pressive words of the chronicler, "they did not, in thought even, look up at him, but kept their eyes fixed on the wall."* It was very natural, therefore, for Cortez to think that striking a blow at the head would paralyze all the body politic in Mexico. He would hardly have thought of seizing any one of the chiefs of Tlascala, where there was a senate and men of nearly equal authority. In such a case the indignity is felt by all, and the power to avenge it is scarcely lessened by the forced removal of any one.

In a short time the officers who had been sent for by Montezuma's signet were brought to Mexico. They were, in all, seventeen persons. Being asked if they had made the attack on the Spaniards by Montezuma's orders, they said no; but upon their sentence being carried into execution, which was that they should be burned,† they all confessed that it was by Montezuma's orders they had acted. Cortez thereupon added to the inhumanity of this atrocious sentence upon these unfortunate men the cruel indignity to Montezuma of putting him in irons during their execution, which took place in front of the palace. Terror was evidently what the Spaniard throughout relied upon, and in doing so he appealed to an influence which had long been predominant in the mind of every Mexican. One who loved them well,‡ and who devoted his life to their conversion, owns that their character was servile. They had been taught, he says, to do nothing * "Todos estos señores ni por pensamiento le miravan á la cara.”BERNAL DIAZ, cap. 88.

+ Very justly had Cortez displayed the blue and white flames upon his banner. PETER OF GHENT.

"Ils sont bien disposés à accepter notre religion; mais ce qui est mal, c'est que leur caractère est servile; ils ne font rien s'ils n'y sont forcés; on ne peut rien obtenir d'eux par la douceur ou la persuasion. Cela ne vient pas de leur naturel, c'est le résultat de l'habitude. On

for the love of good, but all things solely from the fear of punishment. To appease their gods they would sacrifice their own children. In truth, though taking many forms, terror was their god; and now a greater terror than they had hitherto known—a terror amenable to none of their priests-had come among them. Premature decay is ever inherent in a one-sided cultivation of the powers, the intellect, or the affections of mankind.

les a accoutumés à ne rien faire pour l'amour du bien, mais seulement par crainte des châtiments. Tous leurs sacrifices, qui consistaient à tuer leurs propres enfants ou à les mutiler, étaient le résultat de la terreur et non pas de l'amour que leurs dieux leur inspiraient."-Lettre du Frère PIERRE DE GAND, en date du 27 Juin, 1529. TERNAUX-COMPANS, Voyages.

CHAPTER VI.

CONSEQUENCES OF THE CAPTURE.-MONTEZUMA BECOMES A VASSAL OF THE KING OF SPAIN.-PAMPHILO DE NARVAEZ ARRIVES UPON THE COAST.-CORTEZ QUITS MEXICO AND DEFEATS NARVAEZ.

THE pretext of Montezuma's capture being disposed of, we naturally turn to consider the consequences of the capture itself. We may imagine the rumors which ran through the city after Montezuma had been seen to accompany the Spaniards to their quarters—what a fervid noise rose up from the thronged market-place as the news was bruited there; how it was re-echoed in the gay streets, where the boatmen exchanged news with the passers-by on dry land; what fierce intonation was given to it in the sacred precincts of the temple, in the colleges, and the convents; and with what subdued and stealthy voices the matter was discussed in the palaces of grave and powerful nobles.

The wary Cortez strove to make the imprisonment look as much like a visit as possible. The Mexican king received embassadors, directed judges, held his court, and continued to fulfill the functions of royalty nearly after the same fashion that he had been accustomed to. He was not restricted in his amusements, not even in the chase; and the slightest indignity shown to him by any Spaniard was severely punished by Cortez.

Meanwhile, what were the thoughts, the plans, the hopes, and the fears of this captive monarch? His