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Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
THE STORIES OF EL DORADO
* * * * * *
Printed and
Engraved by
Sunset Press
San Francisco
* * * * * *
THE STORIES OF EL DORADO
by
FRONA EUNICE WAIT
Happiness is found only in El Dorado, which no
one yet has been able to reach.
--Spanish Proverb
Copyrighted 1904, by Frona Eunice Wait
San Francisco, California
This book is dedicated to dear little Jack Morgan
Gillespie, with the most affectionate and sincere regards of
his devoted friend,
FRONA EUNICE WAIT
Preface
"It has only recently been recognized as a fact," says Prof. A. F.
Bandelier, "_that on the whole American continent_, the mode of life
of the primitive inhabitants was formed on _one_ sociological
principle, and consequently the culture of these peoples has varied,
locally, only in _degree_, not in _kind_. The religious principles
were fundamentally the same among the Sioux and the Brazilians, and
physical causes more than anything else have been at the bottom of the
local differences." Such has been my own experience in studying the
stories of El Dorado which form the subject of this book, and in
presenting a man--a culture hero--who came by sea from the East, I am
justified by a more complete set of records than is known to the
superficial student. As this man's principles of life were the same,
we are forced to the conclusion that all the heroes were one
conception, handed down by oral tradition, but widely separated as to
locality, by the lapse of time, by migrations and commercial relations
of the different tribes.
As to where these myths originated, or how old they are, I have
nothing to suggest, since in presenting these simple variants, it is
no concern of mine. It is sufficient for my purpose to know that they
exist. To me they lend a dignity to our country by investing it with a
misty past, replete with a mythology as rich and sublime as that of
any of the races of antiquity. Not only will the study of them
inspire patriotism and make us better acquainted with the inner lives
of the red men, but it will tend to create an interest in our sister
republics which cannot fail to be of lasting practical benefit. We
know much more of Europeans than we do of the peoples of this
continent.
If mythology is to be taught in the schools at all, surely our own
should have consideration, and in familiarizing ourselves with the
traditions of El Dorado, we shall have one more incentive for higher
living. We shall learn that the great souls of the races that have
preceded us, in the Americas, have faced the same problems of life,
which are the heritage of our common humanity; that within its dark
shadows they too have struggled, hoped, and prayed.
No words incorporated into the English language have been fraught with
such _stupendous consequences_ as El Dorado. When the padres attempted
to tell the story of the Christ, the natives exclaimed "El Dorado," or
what the imperfect translations have made El Dorado--the golden. As
the ignorant sailors and adventurers had been kept from mutiny by
Columbus' promise of gold, it is no wonder that they seized upon the
literal meaning instead of the spiritual one.
The time, being that of Don Quixote and of the Inquisition, accounts
for the childish credulity on one side and the unparalleled ferocity
on the other. The search for El Dorado, whether it was believed to be
a fabulous country of gold, or an inaccessible mountain, or a lake,
or a city, or a priest who anointed himself with a fragrant oil and
sprinkled his body with fine gold dust, must always remain one of the
blackest pages in the history of the white race. The great heart of
humanity will ever ache with sympathy for the melancholy and pitiful
end of the natives, who at the time of the conquest of Mexico were
confidently expecting the return of the mild and gentle Quetzalcoatl,
the Mexican variant of this universal myth. None of the cruelties
attributed to the Indian had its origin in resistance to the
acceptance of a new faith. On the contrary he fought solely in defense
of his home, and from Patagonia to Alaska was always willing to listen
to the Christian ideas of God and the hereafter.
I have devoted the first seven variants to the original myth, while
the others pertain to the transitions to, and misconceptions of, the
name El Dorado. A lust for gold acquired by conquest was the
underlying motive of the discoveries and explorations made in the
western hemisphere, and is the beginning of all American history. We
have unconsciously added some variants to it in California, where the
mythical kingdom of Quivera became the land of gold of the '49 epoch.
El Dorado has long been a household word for anything rich and golden.
I begin by bringing the Golden Hearted from an island in the east, the
Tlapalla, from whence he came, and to which he returned in the legend.
In all variants he gave a distinct promise of return. This accounts
for the awe inspired by Europeans in the minds of the natives, causing
them everywhere to fall easy victims to the unscrupulous adventurers
swarming into their country. That there should have been confusion
seems unavoidable under the circumstances, but certainly Fate never
played a more cruel prank than to have one race of men speak and act
constantly from the standpoint of tradition and religious belief,
while the other thought solely of material gain.
Only in Hiawatha and the Pueblo Montezuma have I taken liberty with
the original. The former is based on the recent researches into
Algonquin and Chippewa myths of Michabo, the great White Hare. In the
Pueblo Montezuma I have followed Prof. Bandelier as to the latest
conceptions of the Wrathy Chieftain. My authority for making the
Amazon Queens degenerate priestesses of the sun, is J. A. Von Heuvel,
the defender of Sir Walter Raleigh's connection with the South
American version of the El Dorado legend. To Hubert Howe Bancroft's
abridgement of Father Sahagan's translation of the Popol Vuh am I much
indebted.
In all accessories I have utilized the products or characteristics of
localities visited by the mythical hero, but have avoided investing
him with a religious character or surrounding him with supernatural
phenomena. It will be wise to make a distinction between the purely
mythical, and that which led to history.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
THE HAPPY ISLAND 11
ZAMNA, THE EYE OF THE SUN 18
VOTAN, THE PEOPLE'S HEART 31
LORD OF THE SACRED TUNKEL 39
THE STARS' BALL 45
THE NATIONAL BOOK 52
MANCO-CAPAC, THE POWERFUL ONE 61
BOCHICA AND THE ZIPA 71
THE SONG OF HIAWATHA 78
MICHABO, THE GREAT WHITE HARE 80
THE BIRTH OF CORN 90
THE WRATHY CHIEFTAIN 99
QUETZALCOATL, THE PLUMED SERPENT 109
CHOLULA, THE SACRED CITY 117
TULLA, THE HIDING NOOK OF THE SNAKE 125
DEPARTURE OF THE GOLDEN HEARTED 132
EL DORADO, THE GOLDEN 140
BIMINI, THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH 151
MONTEZUMA AND THE PABA 161
THE CHILD OF THE SUN 176
THE GILDED MAN 189
THE WHITE SEA OF THE MANOAS 197
THE MOUNTAIN OF GOLD 207
THE AMAZON QUEENS 219
THE SEVEN CITIES OF CIBOLA 228
THE KINGDOM OF QUIVERA 240
THE LAND OF GOLD 250
THE NEW EL DORADO 262
APPENDIX 271
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
LEAVING THE HAPPY ISLAND (Drawing by Xavier Martinez) 17
"EACH STITCH MUST BE COUNTED" (Painting, The Weaver,
by Amadee Joullin) 21
THE BALL PLAYER (Drawing, Xavier Martinez) 30
"WHO ART THOU?" (Painting, Alexander Para, Mexico City) 35
"AN OLD-FASHIONED ALMANAC" (Photograph, Calendar
Stone, Mexico City) 48
"BEHOLD THE FIRST WORD" (Painting, The Hieroglyph
Maker, A. Joullin) 55
THE TAPIR (Tail-piece) 60
A SUSPENSION BRIDGE (Drawing by Xavier Martinez) 64
"THE PEOPLE SHOUTED 'HAILLE'!" (Painting, The Sun
Worshippers, E. Narjot) 69
"THE FLOWER-LADEN BALSA" (Tail-piece) 77
"THE HOUSE OF WUNZH" (Tail-piece) 89
THE WRESTLING MATCH (Tail-piece) 93
"THE WRATHY CHIEFTAIN" (Painting by J. W. Clawson) 104
THE POTTERY MAKER (Drawing, X. Martinez) 107
"THE HUMMING-BIRD ALIGHTED" (Drawing, X. Martinez) 111
"THE SNAKESKIN CANOE" (Drawing, X. Martinez) 124
"HERE IS MEDICINE FOR YOU" (Drawing, X. Martinez) 129
"A SONG OF FAREWELL" (Drawing, X. Martinez) 137
THE TORCH BEARERS (Tail-piece) (Drawing, X. Martinez) 139
"ON, AND ON THE CARAVELS SAILED" (Official photograph) 147
"LAND! LAND AHEAD!" (Official photograph) 148
"THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH" (Drawing, X. Martinez) 159
"THEIR NAKED BODIES HACKED TO PIECES" (Drawing, X.
Martinez) 185
DRYING INDIA RUBBER 201
"THE OLD WITCH, MONELLA" 214
"A FLOWER OFFERING" (Sketch by X. Martinez) 224
"ONE OF THE SEVEN CITIES" (Sketch by X. Martinez) 235
"FRAY MARCOS" 239
"AN OLD COMMUNITY HOUSE" 249
"DISCOVERY OF SAN FRANCISCO BAY" (Painting, Arthur
Matthews, by courtesy of S. F. Art Association) 253
"A PRAIRIE SCHOONER" 261
The Happy Island
A long time ago there was a beautiful island close by the place in the
east where the sun rises. The sea was all around it, and at noonday
the sun in the sky seemed to slant just above it. Being near the
equator and in a tropic clime the winds were soft and warm and full of
the odor of sweet flowers. Sometimes the sea was smooth and clear as
glass and then the goldfish and sea mosses floated near the surface
and glittered in the sunlight.
At night the moon came out big and round like a silver ball and the
stars shone very clear because there was no smoke nor fog in the air.
In the moonlight the queer little flying fish would jump up out of the
water and dart forth and back in the funniest way as if they were
playing some kind of game. Their tiny wet wings glistened like silver
gauze, and, when everything else was still, made a peculiar whirring
sound by all flapping at once.
The beach was strewn with quantities of conch and abalone shells, also
other species of all shapes and sizes and they were as dainty in color
as it is possible to imagine. The children of the Happy Island often
held the larger ones to their ears to listen to the murmurs and
complaints of the insects and other forms of life living inside them.
This was only a fancy, but many sea shells do have a soft musical
cadence if we care to hear it. Some poets believe that they were the
first musical instruments, and that the inhabitants of the sea send
messages ashore in this manner.
The ferns grew almost as tall as the trees and there were hundreds of
birds skimming through the air, or flitting through the branches
singing and chattering and having a very happy time. They were not
afraid because no one threw stones at them or tried to frighten them.
Everybody was glad to see them put up their little bills and ruffle up
their throats in singing, or else spread out their wings and splash
water all over their backs while they stood on a pebble or twig taking
a morning bath. The people said that when the birds were twittering
and chirping they were talking to each other. When they were singing
they were telling God how thankful they were for the warm sunshine and
plenty to eat.
There was a wonderful city in the center of the island named the City
of the Golden Gates because it was surrounded by a high wall of very
thick stones, with a great number of gates of gold through which the
animals and people passed in and out. Here lived the Old Man of the
Sea, as the king was called, and his son was a beautiful youth known
as the Golden Hearted because he was so gentle and kind. He was a
swift runner and could shoot well with a bow and arrow and was strong
enough to wrestle with a big man, but he preferred to make gold
ornaments and vessels for his father and was often permitted to go
into the king's treasure house to watch the workmen polish the
precious gems which they found in great abundance by digging into the
mountains near the city.
The people knew all about white and black pearls and how to get them
from the bed of the ocean. In full sight of the island was a large
reef of pink and white coral and the young prince went there many
times to see the curious little insects building their graceful, airy
houses over some rock hidden by the water. He sometimes imagined that
he heard the mermaids calling to him. What he really did hear was the
wind dashing the waves in and out of the coral chambers as if it were
determined to wash them away. The reef was an excellent place to fish,
and the Golden Hearted and his companions had many a fine day's sport
there while the divers were searching for the pearl oysters. He fished
with a drag-net made by himself, and he could let it out and haul it
in again like a regular sailor. He never killed any of the fish, and
the divers would not give him the pearls they found because they were
compelled to kill the oysters to get them, and this they said made the
pearls unlucky and was the reason why they are round and shining like
tear drops. The miners brought him all the emeralds they could find,
because this was the happiness-bringing stone. Its color is like the
soft grass in the springtime, and they wanted him to be always young
and have everything his heart desired.
The royal gardens were his special care and in them he was allowed to
cultivate any kind of tree or plant or grain. Then from them he must
learn the names and habits of the trees producing the best wood for
building houses, what plants were good to heal the sick, and all about
the grains useful for food either for man or animals. Every flower
that had a perfume grew in a separate part of the garden, and those
shedding their fragrance at night only were in a bed by themselves. He
was required to know the difference between single and double species
and why there is such a difference in the same family of plants.
Honey bees, big-winged butterflies, crickets and beetles hid in the
flowers or flew above them, and these all taught a lesson to the young
prince who had no other books. The honey bee was an industrious little
fellow continually building a piece of comb or else filling it with
honey. The butterfly, on the other hand, did not work at all but
changed from an ugly grub into a caterpillar and finally into a
gorgeous butterfly with spotted wings and bright eyes. The king told
his son that the butterfly was like a soul--the immortal part of
ourselves--and he wished him to be as busy as the bee, and to do no
more harm to other creatures than does the pretty butterfly.
The cricket was a cheerful, merry chap, usually singing at the top of
his voice, and the beetle tried to push all of the dirt out of the
garden. If he found anything he did not like he would roll and tumble
with it, even if it were much bigger than himself. This amused the
Golden Hearted very much, and when he grew tired of his own
occupations he would run out into the garden and watch the beetles.
One day he went into the splendid throne-room where his father was
giving audience to some wise old men who were foretelling what was
going to happen to the king and the people of the Happy Island. They
urged the king to send some member of his household to the strange
land over the sea, toward the setting sun, where the people were in
barbarism.
The Golden Hearted was much interested and thought here was an
opportunity to do some good for the weak and helpless. Springing
forward he said:
"Dear father, let me go. I am able to sail the seas and am willing to
devote my life to teaching these poor people how to live like
brothers."
The king felt proud of the young prince, but he loved him so dearly
that it was hard to let him go, and also hard to refuse such a noble,
manly request.
"Do you know, my son, this will entail a great deal of hardship and
self-denial?" he asked.
"Yes, father, but God intends us to earn all the good things in life;
He will not give them to us for nothing. That is His good law, which
makes us healthy, happy and wise--three of the most precious
possessions in the world."
"Go, my Golden Heart, and may God bless and keep you always," said the
king. "Take a green-throated humming-bird for your guide, and when you
find the land, journey on until you come to a place where a cactus
grows at the base of a rock and there is a golden eagle soaring in the
air above it. Halt there and found a city, and name it in honor of the
sun."
Then all the wise men begged to go with him, and for days after there
were great preparations made for the departure of the king's son. At
daybreak one morning he set sail in a snake-skin boat, and all the
inhabitants came with the king to throw flowers and emeralds into the
sea because they wished to show respect to the Golden Hearted. It was
their method of blessing him and wishing him good luck. The whole
shore line, as far as he could see, was lighted up by bonfires where
the people burned resin and perfume to commemorate his going.
At the water's edge stood the old sea king with his long white hair
and beard blowing in the wind. By his side was a cream-white horse
with three plumes in the top of its bridle reins and a square, red
blanket edged with deep fringe on its back. Crowns and moons and stars
of gold and silver were scattered over the blanket to show that the
horse belonged to the royal prince. Back of the king was a long line
of young warrior priests mounted on white horses, with red blankets,
and carrying reversed spears in their hands. They bowed their heads
when the poor old father leaned over on the horse's neck and cried as
if his heart would break as the boat with his only son in it pushed
off from the shore. Snatching a torch from the hand of an attendant,
the Golden Hearted waved it on high. Fire with them was a symbol of
wisdom, and when the king saw it, he answered the signal by waving a
torch, and the warrior priests flashed their spears in the bright
sunlight, and the people sent up a deafening shout.
This meant that they were willing to sacrifice their future king for
the good of a strange race of men who needed a teacher to show them
how to cultivate the land and how to build cities and live civilized.
The people of the Happy Island would not send a common man for a
teacher. No, indeed; they gave the best they had--their dearly loved
prince with the golden heart--to help their less fortunate neighbors.
And he gave up all luxury and comfort because he would rather be
useful, than live in ease as a king. The name of the island was
Atlantis, and the new country was our own--America.
[Illustration: LEAVING THE HAPPY ISLAND]
Zamna, the Eye of the Sun
"Ho There! Who comes to us in a canoe?" cried the people
in the strange land when the Golden Hearted and the wise men arrived
from the Happy Island. Many of the natives ran away and others hid in
the bushes because they were afraid they were going to be killed. None
of them were ever so badly frightened in their lives, and none had
ever seen white men before.
"Do you come to fight us? Are you warriors?" they asked.
"I am your friend, not your foe," answered the young prince kindly,
and holding a white flag high over his head. "To be a warrior is to
have been in many battles, and I never marched a day under the banner
of the king, my father. I come wholly in peace."
"He is only a lad. Surely we need not fear him," said the people
coming back to crowd around him on shore and to examine his boat and
clothes with much curiosity. "Why, then, are you here?" they finally
asked.
"I am sent by my father to teach you the Good Law."
"We already know how to shoot an arrow through the heart of an eagle.
We have taken many captives in battle, and are a scourge to our
enemies," they answered proudly. They were still suspicious of their
visitors.
"You crush a worm without mercy, never thinking it has the same right
to live as you have, and that in itself it is more wonderful than all
these things," said the Golden Hearted, reprovingly.
The natives were greatly astonished. Never had they heard any one
speak like this, and they could not imagine what sort of young man he
was. If he did not like the chase, and was not a warrior, and did not
believe in killing things, they could not understand him at all.
"What do you mean by the Good Law? What is it anyhow?"
"It is to be gentle and kind to all creatures, and to treat your
neighbor as if he were your brother. You must be just to the plant, to
the bull, to the horse and to the dog. The earth too has a right to be
cultivated. Neglect it, and it will curse you; fertilize it, and it
will show gratitude in a thousand ways. May your fields bring forth
all that is good to eat, and may your countless villages abound with
prosperity."
The Golden Hearted was so modest and sincere in speech and so well
mannered that they were pleased with him, and were beginning to feel
quite friendly. The wise men also said many nice things to them and
did all they could to make the situation pleasant.
To show appreciation and to welcome the young prince, the natives gave
him a handful of fireflies, because light with them was a symbol of
order, peace and virtue. This was a delicate, pretty compliment and so
delighted the Golden Hearted that he scattered them all over his head.
When they lit in his soft, wavy, yellow hair, their bulging eyes and
gauzy wings sparkled like diamonds and they did not try to fly away
because he sang to them:
"Firefly, firefly! bright little thing, Light me to bed and my song I
will sing. Give me your light as you fly o'er my head That I may
merrily go to my bed. Give me your light o'er the grass as you creep
That I may joyfully go to my sleep. Come little firefly, come little
beast, Come and I'll make you tomorrow a feast; Come, little candle,
that flies as I sing, Bright little fairy bug--Night's little king.
Come, and I'll dance as you guide me along, Come, and I'll pay you, my
bug, with a song."
Each fly has four spots, one back of each eye and under each wing
which it can make as bright as candle light when it chooses. Its body
is about an inch and a half long.
[Illustration: "EACH STITCH MUST BE COUNTED"]
When the prince put the fireflies in his hair, the natives present
touched the ground with their right hands and placed them over
their hearts in token of respect. He, in turn, gave them the white
flag he carried because it was an emblem of peace, friendship,
happiness and prosperity, as well as purity and holiness, and he
intended to bring them all of these things.
"What is your wish?" asked the natives of each of the wise men.
"We desire to bathe in the warm surf of these shores and then to make
a thank offering for our safe arrival and your kindly greeting," they
answered.
Criers with shrill trumpets and drums ran up and down the beach to
call in the fishing boats.
"The men wearing skirts are coming into the sea," they shouted, and
the Golden Hearted and his followers looked at each other with a smile
when they heard what the criers said. The natives wore only breech
clouts and feather and shell ornaments, much like the Indians of
today. Never before had they seen men wearing long white robes, beards
and high-crowned hats without rims, and having a square black cloth
hanging over the shoulders in the back like a veil.
"Is there something else needed to make you more content and
comfortable?" asked the criers when the fishermen had all come ashore.
"We need wood and stones to build an altar for our sacrifice," replied
the Golden Hearted.
While the newcomers were splashing in the surf, the porters brought
arms full of wood, and stones large and small and piled them near the
boat and waited to see what the visitors would do with them.
"Why do you wear skirts like women?" they next inquired, as the
bathers were putting on their robes after a long swim.
"Because we work for humanity," said the young prince. "No man is
really great who has not developed a woman's tenderness in his heart,
and that our fellows may know that we have this quality, we wear
skirts and robes."
This is why in our day the king and priest and judge wear long gowns.
The king rules men, women and children alike; the judge administers
the law for all of them, and the minister prays for the good as well
as the bad. For this reason we should respect their robes when we see
them.
The natives did not know the name of the young prince but when they
saw him take a piece of mica and hold it over a bit of cotton until
the sun set it on fire, they exclaimed "Zamna!" meaning "Eye of the
Sun," and this was what they called him while he lived in that
country. The wise men had placed some copal on top of the altar they
had made of wood and stone and it was not long before the cotton and
copal began to burn. As it did so, the Golden Hearted pointed with his
finger to a ray of the midday sun. First he and his followers held
their arms high overhead, then they sat in a squatting position and
recited all the incidents of their journey. Finally they all
prostrated themselves on the ground and returned thanks for their
safety and good health. Rising to their feet, the wise men began to
chant with bared heads and faces turned toward the east.
The natives thought this a very strange performance and debated among
themselves whether it could be part of the Good Law they were soon to
learn.
"Do you come to destroy our old faiths, and to bring us a new god?"
they asked as the wood on the altar burned low and the chanting
ceased.
"To attack any form of worship is like fighting darkness with a stick.
The only way to overcome the blackness of night dwelling in men's
hearts is to kindle a light--and the light of the world is love,"
responded the Golden Hearted as he slipped his arm through that of the
native who had asked him the question. "I did not come to quarrel with
you. I want you to think of me as a brother ready and willing to serve
you always. In my father's kingdom, the man who serves faithfully in
any capacity is the one most honored. Take this cross to the chief of
your village and say to him that He who is the Dew of Heaven, Lord of
the Dawn, and of the Four Winds, sends his only son with a message of
peace and good will to all his people. Show him the red hand painted
in the center and tell him that it is not meant to convey strength,
power and mastery, but that it is raised thus as an act of
supplication."
As the swiftest courier in the group was girding a red sash tightly
around his waist making ready for a quick run, the fishermen came up
from their huts and invited the travelers to come and share their
humble noonday meal. The Golden Hearted was glad to accept the
extended hospitality, not because he had no provisions of his own, but
because he valued their good opinion and was ready to do whatever he
thought would please them.
They were a gentle, kindly folk, these simple fishermen. Not only were
they industrious, but they were polite and reverential to their
superiors and as happy as a lot of children when they found the
strange prince under their roof. In all the after years they would
have been willing to die for him.
The wise men of his company were so strict in their habits that they
refused to eat the flesh of any animal, and their simple meal was soon
finished. But while every one else was at the table they performed a
sacred dance in a pompous and solemn style, circling around the Golden
Hearted who sat by himself. They had green palms in their hands and
every once in a while they would bow to the prince. In a peculiar
sing-song way they chanted a long poem telling about the history of
the Happy Island.
Imagine how funny they must have looked whirling round and round with
their long robes, black veils and wide sleeves filled with the wind.
They kept on their high hats and with their long beards and hair
flying in every direction, it was no wonder that the fishermen and
other people laughed and thought it was some kind of game. The dancers
were not at all offended, and when the natives asked if they knew how
to play ball, they answered good naturedly:
"No, but we would like very much to learn."
"Come out here into the alley and we will teach you. By and by you may
give us lessons in many things, but we are going to give you the first
one."
Then they all laughed, and so did the young prince and the wise old
men.
The alley where they played ball was one hundred feet long and had
smooth, white-washed walls about twelve feet high in the center, but
lower at each end where there was a rectangular nook for the players
to rest. The walls were quite thick at the base but tapered toward the
top which was finished with battlements and turrets.
Before the game began, the oldest player among them threw the small,
solid, India-rubber ball four times around the alley muttering some
words to himself all the time. The owner of the ground made the old
man a trifling present, and then the game began in good earnest.
The rule was to hit the ball only with the knee, elbow or shoulder,
not with the hands nor feet. The wise men with their long gowns and
veils had a hard time keeping up with the native players, who wore
very little clothing and were quick and sure footed. Two on each side
played at a time, and the great point was to send the ball against
the opposite wall or else over it as often as possible without
allowing it to touch the ground. There were two referees; one being
the Golden Hearted and the other, the oldest player.
Everybody shouted and laughed at the clumsy playing of the wise men
who tried ever so hard to imitate the things they saw the others
doing. It was a great effort for them and they panted and blowed as
they ran. Very often they tumbled heels over head by stepping on their
skirts in front. Then they would all go down together in a heap, one
on top of the other, and the referees would have much to do before
they could get them all straightened out again. It was jolly good fun,
but required considerable time and patience even for an expert player
to send the ball over the wall with either his elbow, knee or
shoulder.
In the center of the wall on each side was a huge stone carved with
images, having a hole in the center barely big enough for the ball to
go through. Whoever was skilful enough to make a drive through one of
them, not only won the game for his side, but was entitled to the
cloaks of all those present. Of course, this was a very difficult feat
to accomplish and made quite a hero of the man who succeeded, so every
player tried for the honor.
This day the young native who first hailed the Golden Hearted when he
landed, by a lucky toss of the elbow sent the ball flying through the
hole on the wise men's side. In a moment the spectators scrambled
down from their seats and ran away as fast as they could go. The wise
men stood looking after them in wide-eyed astonishment, and before
they had time to get out of the alley the victor stripped them of
their veils and then their tall hats looked like a piece of stove pipe
with a cover over one end of it.
The Golden Hearted insisted that each man should give back whatever he
had won in a bet on the game, and for each loss of this kind he gave
both winner and loser a present, and promised to teach their sons and
daughters how to weave cloth having figures in it. In such a way he
taught them how to count, and to this day they have no other method of
reproducing a pattern perfectly. Each stitch must be counted and only
a certain number of each color put in, and all this must be carried in
the head. The weavers are not allowed to write it down.
At nightfall the runners came in breathless with haste to say that the
chief of the village was sending a councilor and official guide to
welcome and escort the strange white men to his dwelling. But the
Golden Hearted was not in a hurry to leave the fishermen and common
people with whom he had spent the day, except for a short visit. When
he returned he taught them how to make sun-dried bricks with which to
build houses, also to shape the round water jars of brown pottery and
how to ornament them and the gourds they drank from. The wise men
assisted him in all this, and in time, the natives not only built
comfortable houses for themselves but learned how to fashion many
pretty designs of cornices and wall decorations out of stucco which
they tinted many colors.
The first thing he did when he went to the village was to make the
chief king, and then he ordered some of the wise men who were
architects and engineers to lay out a splendid city and help the
natives to build it. Before he came there were nothing but trails from
one part of the country to the other and the simple tradesmen did not
know how to exchange their wares. The Golden Hearted became the patron
of the builders and traders and lived many years with the people of
Aztlan.
While in that country, he occupied himself with the building of a
sacred temple dedicated to those who served the Good Law. It had four
beautiful halls facing the four cardinal points of the compass. That
on the east was the Hall of Gold and its walls were almost covered
with plates of the precious metal having delicately-chased pictures
over its shining surface. To the west was the Hall of Emeralds and
Turquoises where many gems were studded into the plaster. The south
hall was finished in silver while the northern hall was made of jasper
stuck with colored shells in curious patterns. In each room there was
a tapestry of yellow, blue, white and red feather mosaic that was as
fine as a painting and in some cases perfectly represented men and
animals. In front of the main entrance for many years stood a winged
lion cut out of granite holding an image of the Golden Hearted in his
mouth.
The name of the city was Mayapan and the king who had been merely a
village chief was the celebrated Cocomes of the olden times.
[Illustration: THE BALL PLAYER]
Votan, the People's Heart
One evening the Golden Hearted saw a ball of fire rise in the East
just about where the Happy Island was located, and it followed the
course of the sun. Then he knew it was time for him to take some of
the wise men and go into a new place, so he lay awake long into the
night and thought how best to begin to get ready. He knew the people
loved him very much, but he remembered his oath to his father, the
king, and though he was sad at heart, he determined to leave the next
day but one. He had not yet spoken to anybody about his intention, but
it must have been right else it would not have happened that a whole
lot more wise men came to the city that very day.
[Illustration]
"Now," he said to himself, "I can leave these wise men to help the
poor natives, and I will take seven of their families with me."
Seeing that it was daybreak and the sun about to rise, the Golden
Hearted sprang out of bed and hastily washing his face and hands,
threw the window wide open and lifting his arms high overhead said:
"Hail! Beauty of the Day! Homage to thee who riseth above the horizon.
I come near to thee. Thou openest the gates of another day. Great
Illuminator out of the golden, place thyself as a protector behind me.
Guide and keep me safe on the journey that I am about to undertake."
Then he dressed himself as quickly as possible and went out to find
the wise men and tell them what he was going to do. They were willing
to go with him, but King Cocomes was greatly disappointed, though he
felt more contented when the Golden Hearted promised to come back
again.
"Quiet thy heart, great king, and trust in my love," was what the
young prince said to him.
The travelers had to pass through the country of the Quinames who were
a very wild people. They went about naked with long matted hair
hanging over their shoulders, and they ate raw meat, fruits and herbs.
They knew nothing about cooking, but could make pulque, a kind of
beer, out of maguey plant, a cousin of the cactus family. On this they
often got very drunk. Then they were fierce and quarrelsome. At all
times these people were proud of their strength and cunning in battle
and in hunting the ferocious beasts roaming over the hills and plains.
The Quinames were really a dreadful set of men, but the Golden Hearted
was not afraid of them. He heard all kinds of stories about their
cruelty and savage ways of living, but he went quietly among them and
parceled out the land and showed them how to cultivate it. The
Quinames lived entirely by hunting and fishing and had no houses. When
one place did not suit them any longer, they moved to another, and
would never have learned how to live civilized except for the coming
of the prince and the wise men.
And what a terrible journey it was! It was in a tropic country where
there was so much warm rain that everything grew rank and luxuriant.
For whole days the Golden Hearted marched in the shadow of ferns as
big as trees and the ground was covered with briers and nettles.
Sometimes he had to go around muddy swamps or right through bushes
filled with snakes. Then, too, he had to swim across wide rivers and
climb steep, rocky mountains. In the tangled leaves and vines hundreds
of parrots screamed and screeched at them, while on all sides the
monkeys threw sticks from the branches of the trees. Gnats and other
poisonous insects stung his hands and face.
He traveled like this many days. Whenever he went into camp, the
Golden Hearted would invite the Quinames to dine with him in order
that he might teach them how to eat cooked food out of dishes. They
could not understand the use of cups and basins, because they drank
out of cocoa-nut shells and had never seen a napkin or tablecloth.
They had always been in the habit of taking the food in their fingers
and pulling it apart, and were not very nice about keeping their hands
clean either.
Of course, all this was very disagreeable to the Golden Hearted, but
he was as patient and kind as possible and those fierce Quinames would
not have harmed a hair in his head. When they asked him where he was
going he always answered, "To seek my brothers, the Culebra, of whom
thou shalt know more by and by."
"And from where comest thou?"
"From the mountain of Little Descent, and where I tarry, there will I
build Nachan, the city of Serpents."
The ignorant barbarians did not know that the word serpent meant
wisdom in the language of the Happy Island, but the wise men were much
pleased because they knew that this city was to be a great seat of
learning and that they would have charge of the temples and schools
when it was completed.
"Who art thou and thy followers?" was often asked of them on the way.
"We are Chanes and the sons of Chanes," but this did not mean anything
to the savages either, because they did not know that "Chane" was the
name of the wise men in their own country.
One day a culprit was brought before the Golden Hearted accused of
stealing a curious looking stick with yellow grains fastened all
around it. The Quinames said it was good food and they pulled off its
green wrappings and held it before the fire until it was browned and
then ate it. The Golden Hearted and the wise men had never seen this
plant before and were very much interested in their discovery. But
they did not think it well to say so.
[Illustration: "WHO ART THOU AND THY FOLLOWERS?"]
"Dost thou say this man is a thief?" asked the Golden Hearted.
"Yes, yes; we knew where the bush grew, but we were waiting until it
should be more yellow before giving it to thee," said the captors.
"I will prove thee," said the Golden Hearted to the accused. He took a
piece of finely-polished black stone from his breast pocket and held
it up before the prisoner saying, "Look into its shining face and
beholding thine own image, swear by the Heart of Heaven to speak the
truth."
The poor savage nearly died of fright when he saw himself because he
thought it was an omen of instant death. He quaked and trembled and
his eyes were as big and round as walnuts.
"From whence came this goodly seed?" asked the Golden Hearted kindly.
"From the edge of the wood where a silver band of water rots an old
tree," answered the man, still pallid with fear.
"Take thy share, and leave me what thy accusers intended for me."
The prisoner stared at him stupidly for a moment then his better
nature spoke and he took only one grain, and would have fled into the
jungle if the Golden Hearted had not caught him by the mantle.
"Look again into the mirror of truth."
This time the savage was not so afraid and he gazed curiously at the
stone for some time. Its surface was perfectly blank.
"Tell me what thou seest?"
"Nothing but its own dark face speaks to the eye of thy servant,"
responded the accused.
"Then know, my brothers," said the Golden Hearted turning to the
astonished Quinames, "this man is innocent and must go free."
"Thou art welcome to my life," exclaimed the accused joyfully; "thou
hast saved it and it is thine to command."
"Use it to perfect the growth of this strange seed so that thy fellows
and all grain-eating creatures may profit by thy labors."
The grain found in this manner is known to the people of that country
to-day as maize. We call it Indian corn.
When the wise men heard about it, they begged the Golden Hearted to
let them build a white house where any one accused of crime would be
safe until the judges could decide whether they were guilty or not.
The prince thought it was a very good plan and said:
"I will put the black stone in it and will make a law that no man
shall be called guilty if the surface of the stone does not change
when he is made to look into it. And to commemorate our safe passage
through this wild country, I will order several white houses built,
and each one shall be called Refuges Against Fear."
In those days no one seemed to think it was wrong to kill a person who
was said to be a thief or had done anything his neighbors did not
like, so it was very necessary for the Golden Hearted to teach them to
be just to each other. He told the Quinames that they must be sure
about a thing before they acted harshly, and he cautioned them to be
careful about believing or repeating unkind remarks they heard. It was
quite a long time before the Quinames would even try to do this, but
finally they helped to build the houses and were honorable enough not
to harm any one once inside the walls. Many a useful life was saved in
this manner, but sometimes a poor refugee was overtaken and beaten to
death with clubs before reaching the house.
Because the Golden Hearted succeeded in persuading the warlike
Quinames to live peaceably with their neighbors and to treat each
other well, he was called in that and many other countries, Votan, The
People's Heart, to distinguish him from the Heart of Heaven which was
their name for God. His was truly a great work because it was done
without a selfish motive and for no reward except the good of his
fellow men.
[Illustration]
Lord of the Sacred Tunkel
No one living can tell how many years ago it was that the Golden
Hearted built Nachan, the city of wise men, nor how many years it took
to do the work, but it has always been said to be a very beautiful
place. Anyhow, it was after he left the Quinames, and it was in a
country very much more civilized.
The Golden Hearted had many happy days there.
Even if he was a grown man and a great prince, he was very fond of
children and one day he visited the Temple of the Sun where the pupils
from school were having a holiday. They all had on their best clothes,
and their faces and hands were clean, but they were shouting, and
singing and playing games, very much like the boys and girls we know.
They felt sure that the Golden Hearted was their good friend and when
they saw him coming they ran out into the courtyard and crowded around
him as thick as flies.
"A story! a story!" they said; "Please, good Prince, tell us a story."
"What shall it be about?" asked the Golden Hearted with a pleasant
smile.
"Something very perfect and beautiful," they said.
"Let me think what we have in the world that is both perfect and
beautiful. Which would you prefer, something man has made, or that God
has made?"
The children were very much puzzled to know which to choose. They
tried hard to think what man had made that was without any faults and
could not be imitated or improved, either in appearance or quality,
but they were not satisfied with anything. Then they began to think
about the trees, the flowers, the precious stones, the sky and the
sea, and were getting more and more confused all the time when the
Golden Hearted laughed and said:
"I will tell you what we will do. We will send for the wise men and
ask them to choose."
The wise men thought it was great fun, so they hurried as fast as they
could and were quite out of breath when they got near enough to speak
to the Golden Hearted.
"Tell me something you know in the world that is both perfect and
beautiful," he said to the wise man who had charge of the Temple of
the Sun, and was first to arrive.
"The great, blazing, glorious sun," he replied.
"None but God could have made it, and we adore it and sacrifice to it
because it is the mask behind which God hides His ever-smiling face."
Many of the children shaded their eyes with their hands and took a
quick look at the sun overhead, and thought that was a good answer.
"What do you know in the world that is both perfect and beautiful?"
asked the prince of the next comer, who was a man wise in the art of
working metals. He had not heard the first answer, but, without
stopping a minute to think, said:
"Gold; because it is like the substance of the sun and cannot be made
by putting any metals together nor by any mixture of chemicals."
The Golden Hearted knew that was a correct answer but he wanted the
children to be satisfied, and he was not sure that all of them
understood it.
"Do you know that way down in the earth gold is created, and yet it is
shining and bright and yellow like the light of the sun? This accounts
for its beauty, and it is perfect because it is absolutely pure in
itself."
The next man that came along was wise, but he looked like a farmer.
"What have you seen in your life that cannot be improved or made
prettier?"
"Wheat," was his quick reply, "because it is not a blend of any of the
grains or grasses but grows out of the ground perfect. It is beautiful
in every phase of its life whether it waves in the wind like a sea of
emeralds or ripens into great sheaves of gold, or its plump grains
tempt you to satisfy hunger. It is the best friend man has, and it
would be very hard for him to live without it."
That was such a sensible answer, that the children all clapped their
hands with delight because they knew at once that it was correct. Just
then the Golden Hearted looked up and saw one of his best perfumers in
the group of wise men.
"Will you give us an answer to this question?" he asked.
"I should differ from all the others"--began the man.
"Never mind, tell us what in your line is the most perfect and
beautiful thing you know."
"A jasmine blossom," replied the perfumer, "because its delicate odor
cannot be imitated no matter what combination of oils or extracts we
make. I cannot say that of any other flower in the world."
The children could have answered that question themselves if they had
only thought quickly enough. They were quite familiar with the dainty
little white flowers and tender vine of the jasmine as well as its
sweet smell, because it grew wild in their country.
While the perfumer was talking, the Golden Hearted picked up a shining
pebble near his feet.
"Now, children," he said, "in this small rough stone I find something
perfect and beautiful. It is an opal, the only one of the precious
gems I do not know how to counterfeit. Join hands, as many of you as
can, and dance around me while I sing you a song about the birth of
the opal."
One of the wise men gave him a Sacred Tunkel, a kind of guitar which
he brought from the Temple of the Sun, and this was what he sang:
The Birth of the Opal
A dew drop came with a spark of flame
He had caught from the sun's last rays
To a violet's breast, where he lay at rest
Till the hours brought back the day.
The rose looked down with a blush and a frown
But she smiled all at once to view
Her own bright form with its coloring warm
Reflected back by the dew.
Then the stranger took a stolen look
At the sky so soft and blue,
And a leaflet green with its silver sheen
Was seen by the idler too.
A cold north wind, as he thus reclined,
Of a sudden raged around,
And a maiden fair, who was walking there
Next morning an opal found.
Some of the pupils were inclined to think that the singing of the
Golden Hearted was the most perfect and beautiful they had ever heard
and they all liked to listen to the low plaintive notes of the
Tunkel. Those that could not take part in the dance gathered around
their teachers and asked:
"What shall we do to honor the good prince and show him how much we
appreciate his efforts to amuse and please us?"