THE INDIANS.
El Salto del Agua—Netzahualcoyotl—Noche triste—Historical
Jottings—Chapultepec—Indians—Chinampas—Legends—Anecdote—Mexican
Museum—Tizoc’s Stone, or Gladiator’s Stone—Yoke and
Sacrificial Stone—Holy War—Religious Cannibalism—American
Copper.
El Salto del Agua is the only monumental fountain in Mexico; it stands
in the centre of a low suburb removed from the chief thoroughfares, and
terminates the aqueduct which brings from Chapultepec (“grasshopper’s
hill”) an abundant supply of water to Mexico. El Salto del Agua is an
oblong building, with a very mediocre façade; a wide spread-eagle in
the centre supports the escutcheon bearing the arms of the city. On
each side twisted columns with Corinthian capitals bear two symbolical
figures, representing Europe and America, besides eight half-broken
vases.
According to historians of the conquest, El Salto del Agua, and
the Aqueduct which it terminates, replaced the ancient aqueduct of
Montezuma, constructed by Netzahualcoyotl, King of Tezcuco, between the
years 1427 and 1440. At that time it was brought through an earthen
pipe to the city, along a dyke constructed for the purpose, and that
there might be no failure in so essential an article, a double course
of pipes in stone and mortar was laid. In this way a column of water
the size of a man’s body was conducted into the heart of the capital,
where it fed fountains and reservoirs of the principal mansions.[8]
Since the name of Netzahualcoyotl has been mentioned, it may not be out
of place to give a brief account of a prince whose accomplishments,
character, and adventurous life, would make him a fit hero for romance
rather than the subject of sober history. He was descended from the
Toltecs, of whom we shall speak later. He ruled over the Acolhuans or
Tezcucans, as they were generally called, a nation of the same family
as the Aztecs, whom it preceded on the plateau, and whom it rivalled
in power and surpassed in intellectual activity. He was himself at
once king, poet, philosopher, and lawgiver, and was a munificent
patron of letters, and _Tezcuco_ was, in his time, the meeting-place
of all that was intelligent in Anahuac, as was Athens in the days of
Pericles, Florence and Rome under the Medicis. Netzahualcoyotl held a
conspicuous place among the bards of Anahuac, for the tender pathos
of his verse, the elegance and rich colouring of his style, and the
tinge of melancholy which pervades most of his writings. His large and
enlightened mind could not accept the superstitions of his countrymen,
still less the sanguinary rites of the Aztecs; his humane temper shrank
from their cruel rites, and he endeavoured to recall his people to the
more pure and simple worship of their forefathers. But he shared the
fate of men far in advance of their time, and had to yield before their
ignorance and fanaticism, contenting himself with publicly avowing his
faith and nobler conception of the deity. He built a temple in the
usual pyramidal form, to the “_Unknown God, the Cause of Causes_.”
Though Netzahualcoyotl was of a benevolent disposition, he was strict
in the administration of the laws, even against his own children;
indeed, he put to death his two sons for having appropriated other
people’s booty. Many anecdotes are told of the benevolent interest he
took in his subjects, amongst whom he delighted to wander in disguise,
and, like Haroun-al-Raschid, entered freely in conversation with them,
thus ascertaining their individual wants. His last days were spent in
the pursuit of astronomical studies and the contemplation of the future
life. He died full of days after a reign of nearly fifty years, during
which he had freed his country from a foreign tyrant, breathed new
life into the nation, renewed its ancient institutions, and seen it
advancing towards a higher standard of civilisation; and he saw his end
approach with the same serenity that he had shown alike in misfortune
and in prosperity. Such is the very imperfect account of a prince who
was the glory of his nation; whose muse, by turns, invited men to enjoy
the passing hour, or bade them beware of the vanity of all earthly
pleasures, teaching them to look beyond the grave for things that will
endure.
But before we go on to Chapultepec, we must call at Tacuba, and visit
the famous _Ahuahuete_, a kind of cypress, under whose shelter Cortez,
on the night of July 1, 1520, came to rest his weary limbs and mourn
over the cause which had so greatly imperilled his safety and that of
his troops, as to make imperative the evacuation of Mexico, in which
many of his most trusty veterans were sacrificed. The night was called
on this account _Noche triste_, “Melancholy night.”
[Illustration: TREE OF THE NOCHE TRISTE, AT POPOTLAN.]
But to explain. We will give a short sketch of the causes which
brought about this sad event, quoting largely from Father Duran,
Ramirez, and Sahagun:
“It was in the month of May, the Mexican _toxcatl_, when it was common
for the Aztecs to celebrate their great annual festival in honour of
their war-god _Huitzilopochtli_, which was commemorated by sacrifice,
religious songs and dances, in which all the nobility engaged,
displaying their magnificent gala costumes, with their brilliant
mantles of feather-work, sprinkled with precious stones, and their
necks, arms, and legs ornamented with collars and bracelets of gold.
Alvarado, whom Cortez had left as lieutenant of his forces, during his
expedition against his formidable enemy, Narvaez, was now petitioned
by the Indian caciques to be allowed to perform their rites. Alvarado
acquiesced on condition that on this occasion there should be no
human sacrifice, and that they should come without weapons; he and
his soldiers, meanwhile, attended as spectators, some of them taking
station at the gates, as if by chance. They were all fully armed,
but as this was usual, it excited no suspicion; but as soon as the
festival, which was held in the court of the great temple, had fairly
begun, and the Mexicans were engrossed by the exciting movement of
the dance, and their religious chants, Alvarado and his followers,
at a concerted signal, rushed with drawn swords on their defenceless
victims. Unprotected by armour or weapon of any kind, they were hewn
down without resistance by their pitiless and bloodthirsty assailants.
Some fled to the gates, but were thrust back by the pikes of the
soldiers; some were able to scale the walls; others, penetrating the
sanctuary of the temple, fell on the pavement and simulated death. The
pavement ran with streams of blood, ‘like water in a heavy shower,’
and the ground was strewn with the mutilated limbs of the dead.
The Spaniards, not content with slaughtering their victims, rifled
them of their precious ornaments. On this sad day were sacrificed
more than six hundred men, the flower of the Mexican nobility; not
a family of note but had to mourn the loss of a near relation. The
tidings of this horrible butchery filled the nation with stupefaction
and dismay; they could hardly believe their senses. Every feeling of
long-smothered hostility and rancour now burst forth in a cry for
vengeance. The respect for the person of their sovereign made them
desist from further attempts to storm the fortress. But they threw up
works around the Palace to prevent the Spaniards from getting out.
They suspended the market, to preclude the possibility of their enemy
obtaining supplies. This accomplished, they quietly sat down, waiting
for the time when famine would deliver the hated foreigner into their
hands. The situation of the Spaniards seemed desperate, when they were
relieved from their gloomy apprehensions by the return of Cortez, who
with his comrades had succeeded in utterly crushing Narvaez. It was
not too soon: a few days more and the garrison must have surrendered
from lack of provisions, and still more from want of water. Alvarado
was subjected to a cross-examination by Cortez, who contented himself
with administering some words of reproof, and ordering him to his
post; for the city again rose to arms. In this terrible strait, Cortez
sent to the Aztec Emperor to request him to mediate with his subjects.
Meanwhile the Spaniards endeavoured to effect a retreat out of a city
thoroughly roused against them. This they accomplished under cover of
a dark, drizzling night, after a fearful carnage and much bloodshed,
lasting over several days; when the Spanish troops, accompanied by
their Tlascalan allies, abandoned a city which had been so lately the
scene of their triumphs, and each soldier, loaded with as much gold
and jewels as he could carry, made for the gates. All was hushed in
silence; no danger seeming to arrest their march, they were beginning
to hope that a few hours would see them beyond the missiles of the
enemy. But, as they drew near the bridges of Tlascopan Street, they
were assailed by thousands of Mexicans, and amidst a fearful tumult
and destructive confusion, followed by shouts of impotent rage from
the combatants and moans from the severely wounded, in which the best
among the Spaniards lay buried in the murky waters of the canals, or
fallen under the axes of the Mexicans, the Spanish leaders, followed
by the disordered remnant of their troops, were allowed to defile to
an adjacent village called _Popotla_, where Cortez, on beholding their
thinned ranks and deplorable condition, gave vent to the anguish of his
soul.
Cortez’ fame has been much overrated; he was fortunate rather than
great, for he was powerfully assisted at the very outset by the
friendly attitude of the Indians, who welcomed in him the Deliverer
long foretold in their legends, who was to rescue them from the
thraldom and heavy burdens imposed upon them by the Aztec monarchs,
to enable them to carry on their warlike enterprises and policy of
annexation. He was helped, moreover, by two intelligent interpreters,
Aguilar and Marina, in his intercourse with the natives; Marina
proving subsequently a devoted friend, and a faithful and skilful
negotiator with the Indians. It is equally certain that, from purely
selfish motives of personal convenience and policy, as also to gratify
the cruel rapacity of his followers, he not only allowed, but even
ordered acts of bloodshed and treachery which must for ever stain
his character. His courage cannot be doubted; yet his conduct in the
expedition to Honduras, his pusillanimity on his return, argue a poor
politician; whilst the revolting massacres at Cholula and Mexico sink
into shade when compared with the murder of Guatemozin. Las Casas, who
knew him well, calls him “that fellow;” which term of reproach is more
opprobrious than a worse epithet.
But these things have detained us too long already; let us now proceed
to Chapultepec, one of the most delightful spots in the Mexican valley.
Two roads, the Paseo Nuevo and the tramway, lead to it; we will take
the latter as shorter and cheaper, which, starting from the Place
d’Armes, goes through Belen gate, and sets us down at the very entrance
of the Castle. Chapultepec, “grasshopper hill,” is a volcanic hill some
1,625 feet long, and 100 feet high, covered with luxurious vegetation,
crowned with groves of cypresses, _ahuahuetes_, some of which are
seventy-five feet in diameter, and seem to defy the decay of ages.[9]
The view from the windows of the Palace, which stands on the top of
the hill, embracing the valley of Mexico, is one of the finest in the
world. In the highly rarefied atmosphere of these upper regions, even
distant objects have a brilliancy of colouring and a distinctness of
outline which enables one to take in the details of this marvellous
panorama, studded with towns and hamlets, the white walls of which,
together with the tops of porphyry rocks, glimmer in the rays of the
sun. Stretching far away at their feet are seen noble forests of oak,
sycamore, and cedar, whilst beyond, cultivated fields, beautiful
gardens, lakes, and lagoons, girdle the valley around. Looking towards
Mexico, the spectator has behind him the low chain de las Cruces; on
his right, to the south, Pedregal and the Ajuscean hills; before him,
to the east, the grand snowy tops of Popocatepetl, “the hill of smoke,”
and Iztaccihuatl, “White Woman,” from its bright robe of snow; on his
left to the north, Cerro Gordo, and nearer, the Sierra Guadalupe, where
stands the most celebrated sanctuary of Mexico, dedicated to the Virgin.
This chapel rises on the site once occupied by the famous temple of
Toci—the mother of a god—whose altars were thronged all times by
multitudes of devotees. To induce the Indians to welcome the Virgin
Mary as their tutelar divinity, the priests took care to represent her
with a dark complexion and the courtly robes worn by noble Mexican
maidens in their time of prosperity. The story of the Aztec Virgin is
so characteristic of the sanguinary instincts of the people who raised
her to the rank of a deity, that we will tell it.
The Mexicans, after a series of wanderings and adventures, during
which they endured all the hardships of a migratory life, succeeded at
length in establishing themselves on the muddy islets of the principal
lake, in the year 1325. Here they raised a temple to their war-god,
Huitzilopochtli, on whose altars human sacrifices were offered.
Prisoners were generally reserved for this purpose, but in times of
public calamity the god required the best of the land. It is told how
on one occasion, the oracle of Huitzilopochtli demanded that a Royal
Princess should be sacrificed to him; and how the Aztec monarch sent
to one of his vassals, the King of Colhuacan, to petition for one of
his daughters to become the mother of the tutelar god—and as such share
with him divine honours. The King of Colhuacan, flattered by the honour
reserved for his daughter, unable besides to refuse, confided the young
Princess to the care of the Aztec envoys, who escorted her with great
pomp to the city where she was sacrificed, her skin being taken off
after death to clothe the young priest who was to represent the deity
in this solemnity. The cruelty was carried so far as to invite the
father to be present at the bitter mockery of his child’s deification;
he came, penetrated the sanctuary, but at first the gloom of the temple
did not let him see anything, until he was given a copal-gum torch, the
flame of which bursting up suddenly revealed the horrible picture of
the young priest standing close to the idol and receiving the homage of
the multitude. The skin fitted so tightly that the monarch recognised
his daughter’s mask, and almost mad with grief he fled the temple to
mourn for his murdered child.[10]
[Illustration: CHAPULTEPEC.]
The Mexican valley was occupied successively by various tribes, which
advancing from the north and north-west, entered the country towards
the end of the seventh century. The first and most remarkable of these,
both from the mildness of their character and the degree of their
civilisation, were the Toltecs, who occupied Chapultepec as early as
the eighth century, and established their capital at _Tula_, north of
the Mexican valley, whose name _Toltec_ was synonymous with architect.
After a time, a rude tribe, the _Chichemecs_, entered the territory and
were soon followed by other races, amongst which were the _Aztecs_ or
_Mexicans_, and the _Acolhuans_ or _Tezcucans_. Some of these obtained
leave from Xolotl, King of the Chichemecs, to settle on Chapultepec,
which in the course of time became a royal residence, and a royal
burial-place, whilst its rocks were made to transmit to posterity the
features of the Mexican monarchs, Azayacoatl and the two Montezumas,
together with the sons of the last Aztec emperor; two statues of this
monarch and his father were to be seen as late as the last century,
when they were destroyed by order of the Government.
[Illustration: CHARCOAL AND BATTEAS VENDORS.]
Father Duran tells how Montezuma I. had himself and his first minister
sculptured. Feeling that his end was drawing near, he summoned the
doughty warrior Tlacael, who for three reigns had shown his valour on
the field of battle and his wisdom in council: “Brother Tlacael,” said
the monarch, “it would be well that our names and persons should be
graven on the rock of Chapultepec, and thus pass to posterity.” “Your
wish, most noble king, shall instantly be obeyed.” And calling together
the most renowned sculptors, Tlacael imparted to them the royal
command. In a few days two bas-reliefs were executed, so striking in
resemblance, and so exquisite in workmanship, as to surprise Montezuma
himself.
The Castle, which was built by the Viceroy Galvaez at the close of the
seventeenth century, was transformed into a Military School by the
Government in 1841; Maximilian during his short reign altered it, and
made it his favourite residence. The Palace is once more occupied by
the Military College, whose pupils have shown themselves worthy of it,
by their heroic defence at the time of the American war. An observatory
has been lately built, at the expense of the Government.
But it is time to return to Mexico, where we shall find the Indian
pretty much what he was three or four hundred years ago. This arises
from his having been subjected, from the earliest times, to Aztec rule
and the severe discipline of its priests and afterwards to the still
more cruel and unjust yoke of the Spaniards, who, by depriving him of
civil rights and all his goods, degraded him to the low rank he now
occupies. Before the conquest the people was divided in three distinct
and almost equally honourable classes, land proprietors, warriors, and
merchants; but the conquerors, reserving for themselves all these good
things, restricted the Indians to the occupations of _macehual_ (tiller
of the ground), or _tamene_ (porter), that is, a beast of burden, used
by marching armies or merchants in their distant expeditions; and,
although all careers are now opened to him, he is slow to avail himself
of his newly-acquired privileges.
As an _aguador_, he still conveys water to every household, in jars,
which he carries one behind, the other in front, supported by leather
thongs covering his head; as a vendor he brings coals in nets made of
aloe strings; his earthenware, poultry, eggs, vegetables, in _huacales_
or cases made of twigs, kept together by strings; and, indeed, his
tools, kitchen utensils and the like, are the same as he formerly used.
The only alteration he has made in his costume has been to adopt nether
garments, but in the Uplands he dispenses with this and is satisfied
with his _maxtli_, “broad band.” He has not varied his diet, nor the
manner of preparing it; the staple of his food is still Indian corn,
which he grinds with a _metate_, granite roller, or bakes into flat
cakes, _tortillas_, in _comals_, or baking ovens. His vegetables he
seasons highly, and on days of festival he adds to this simple fare
a turkey when he is well-to-do, a piece of pork when poor; his drink
is the _pulque_, the invention of which dates nearly four hundred
years back; his _jacal_, or hut, composed of sticks lined with clay,
roofed with aloe leaves, measuring at the basement some seven or ten
feet square, is exactly the jacal of ancient chroniclers, without any
pavement, hardly any furniture, save some few images of saints, which
have replaced the terra-cotta household divinities.
In former times, when he lived on the lagoons, with no right to the
land, which was held by his enemies, he satisfied his hunger with
frogs and serpents, to be found in the marshes, salamanders, flies
and flies’ eggs, _ahuatli_, which latter were made into cakes, a dish
which was adopted by the Spaniards; and, when further pressed by want
and dearth, he invented _chinampas_, those floating gardens which so
much surprised the conquerors. Chinampas were rafts of reeds, rushes,
and other fibrous materials, which, tightly knit together, formed a
sufficient basis for the heaps of black mud which the natives drew
up from the bottom of the lake. Gradually islands were formed, some
reaching two or three hundred feet in length, and three or four feet in
depth, with a very rich soil, on which the thrifty Indian raised maize
and vegetables for himself and flowers for the market, his prince, and
his gods. Some of these chinampas were firm enough to allow the growth
of small trees, and to have a hut for the owner, who, with a long pole
resting on the sides or the bottom of the shallow basin, could change
his position at pleasure, whether to move from an unpleasant neighbour
or take his family on board, and moved on like some enchanted island
over the water. In later times these floating gardens increased to such
an extent that they completely girdled the city around with flowers and
verdure, when every morning early numbers of boats, richly freighted,
would be seen to glide through the canals and file out towards Plaza
Mayor.[11] Mexico, since the diminution of the lake, has become a high
and dry city of the main land, with its centre nearly a league distant
from the water; chinampas are no more; small flower-beds, divided by
narrow causeways, where the Indian still mans his canoe, are all that
remain of the floating gardens of olden time. Should the traveller wish
to study the natives, he should go on market days toward the road which
leads out of S. Cosme, by which great numbers both of men and women
enter the city, their legs and backs bent under burdens heavier
sometimes than an animal could carry. Indian women wear a dark woollen
petticoat, striped with yellow, red, and green, and a piece of the
same stuff, with an opening for the head, covers the bust and completes
the costume. Notwithstanding their rags, some are not wanting in good
looks, whilst most are well made, and were they cleanly and better
dressed, many would be found strikingly pretty.
[Illustration: MEXICAN WATER-CARRIER.]
[Illustration: MEXICAN TORTILLERA AND STRAW MAT SELLERS.]
I only speak of young girls, for the old, covered with dirt rather
than rags, are generally to be seen reeling under the influence of
pulque. It is not too much to say that the Indian has retained all
his primitive vices, and has added thereto those given him by his
conquerors. Though he still preserves some of his popular legends, it
is quite a chance if he understands anything about them; for in olden
times, these were kept and transmitted by the upper classes, which have
long ceased to exist, and the modern Indian knows absolutely nothing of
his past history.
And here, to illustrate my meaning, I may be permitted to give an
example of this marvellous ignorance, even regarding recent events. I
happened to be in a village situated on Lake Chalco, when a number of
Indians of both sexes, dressed up in old, ludicrous European costumes,
got into boats and landed a short distance further, entering the
village amidst a population which came out to meet them, with cries,
hootings and blows, finally forcing them to re-embark. It was evident
to me that this represented an invasion, which had been successfully
repulsed, referring perhaps to the war of intervention, but though
I asked, no one was able to enlighten me, contenting themselves
with repeating “Francia, Francia.” At last an old man said that the
masquerade commemorated an incident in the Spanish war of 1808, during
the first empire. And on my expressing my astonishment at the ignorance
of the actors about a subject they represented every year: “Are your
common people much wiser when they sing their Latin Mass?” objected my
American friend. I felt that I was answered, and I was silent.
The Indian is fond of money, his delight is to hoard, yet he is no
better for it, as regards his daily life; he has all the instinct
of a miser without its benefit; for your miser enjoys his money, he
visits it by stealth, spends his time in counting, in contemplating it,
whereas the Indian buries his hoardings out of sight; the satisfaction
of knowing that he is rich is all-sufficient for him, and he does not
care for the things which his gold would procure. The Valley of Oaxaca,
which for generations supplied the world with cochineal, is supposed
to have millions of money buried underground. During my residence
there, I knew a man who, it was rumoured, was fond of hoarding; on one
occasion he received some £200 for ingots and cochineal, and two days
after asked me for the loan of four shillings. “Well, but what have you
done with the money you got two days since?” I asked. “Esta colocado,
Señor.” “It’s invested” (stowed underground). This secretive instinct,
however, is not confined to the Indian, it is to be found among all
conquered and persecuted races: serfs under Louis XIV. hid away both
their bread and their money; the inhabitants of Indo-China and others
only pay their taxes under pressure of the stick. It may be that the
thrifty habit of our own middle classes, their wish to hoard for the
mere sake of it, their aversion to part with it for any purpose of
public good, which forms such a striking contrast to our Transatlantic
fellow-citizens, is attributable to this instinct, which still survives
when the need for it has long ceased to exist. We are, alas, but
the freedmen of yesterday, whereas Americans have now long enjoyed
the blessings of free institutions, and have besides the enormous
advantage of trying them in an entirely new country. Untrammelled alike
by traditions or the bonds which still fetter us, they are able to
work out their benevolent or brilliant schemes, confident that their
intelligence and their industry will lead them to new paths of progress
and prosperity.
With the Indian this same instinct borders on fanaticism: the man who
finds a treasure covers it up again carefully, not dreaming of making
use of it; should he have a confidant, the latter will starve, nay,
go through torture, rather than betray his friend. And here I cannot
resist the temptation of telling an anecdote related to me by a Mexican
friend bearing on the subject: A well-to-do Indian, who lived not far
from Mexico, had a daughter whom a Frenchman was willing to marry, in
the hope of inheriting the old man’s fortune, which was supposed to
amount to some £20,000. Like most Indians, he died intestate, when
a search was made for his money, but none could be found. His only
available property was his cottage and garden. The deceased was known
to have had a wretchedly poor friend, the confidant of all his secrets.
He was immediately applied to, and subjected to numerous questions
by the heirs regarding the money, and to induce him to speak, they
offered the quarter, nay, the half of the hidden treasure, but he
still refused; at last they thought of making him drunk, hoping that
what they had been unable to obtain would be effected by pulque. He
was made comfortable, when he became very confiding, so confiding that
the expectant heir fully believed that a moment more would see him
the happy recipient of the long-treasured-up secret, but the poor man
suddenly stopped, horrified at what he was going to say, seeming to see
his friend’s ghost before him, reproaching him for his disloyalty.
We shall not be taking leave of the Indian if we pay a visit to the
Museum, where Aztec pottery, Aztec jewellery, Aztec kings, and Aztec
gods will remind us of him everywhere. The Mexican Museum cannot
be called rich, in so far that there is nothing remarkable in what
the visitor is allowed to see. After reading the glowing accounts
regarding Mexican manufacture and their marvellous objects of art,
it was natural that I should be anxious to see the jewels, stuffs,
manuscripts, and above all the paintings made with birds’ feathers,
representing domestic scenes, and the portraits of Aztec monarchs, but
I saw nothing in the two large rooms devoted to Mexican antiquities.
I was told that the Museum was not in working order, that nothing was
classified, that more space was being prepared in which the precious
objects now shut up in numerous cases would be laid out for the benefit
of the public. It may be so. For the present, we have to content
ourselves with a collection of obsidian, marble, and porphyry heads; a
number of large yokes, beautifully carved, besides several pieces of
jade, rock-crystal, and bars of gold. As for the long rows of so-called
“ancient vases,” there is not one that is not imitation. This I know to
my cost, for with a credulity which subsequent events hardly justified,
I no sooner was told that these vases were of great antiquity, than I
immediately ordered three hundred to be cast from them, which I caused
to be placed in the Trocadéro during the Paris Exhibition; but on an
expert in such matters seeing them, he at once detected and exposed the
fraud, and in my disappointment it was not much comfort to reflect,
that with half the money expended on these comparatively worthless
objects, I might have bought, close to Mexico, a whole collection
of vases of undoubted antiquity. It is a curious circumstance, that
Mexicans, even the best informed among them, as well as foreigners,
should so often be victimised by vulgar forgers of antiquities, who
trade on the passions of the collector and the gullibility of the
public; and that such things cannot be done in Europe without immediate
detection, can only arise from the superior knowledge of our savants,
and the greater facility afforded them of observing, classifying, and
comparing the productions of all the civilised nations of the world,
in the numerous collections with which our museums, both public and
private, abound. In my own case, after my excavations, I never could
have been so grossly imposed upon by pottery modern in shape, over
which ancient bas-reliefs had been incongruously reproduced, forming
a monstrous medley of things old and new, without any originality
whatever. Their history is this: the manufacture was carried out on a
large scale at Tlatiloco, a Mexican suburb, between 1820 and 1828, and
the author must have realised an enormous fortune, if we are to judge
from the quantity which he sent broadcast into the world—most museums,
nearly all private collections are infested with them, whilst a great
number are even now bought by the unwary. The thing was done in this
way. Vases of every shape were chosen, without much thought or care,
relying on the ignorance and the stupidity of the public; every form
was used, whether a common water-jug, a flat or round vase, a rude or
shapely jar, and by means of ancient moulds found in vast quantities in
the whole area of the valley, heads, images, tiny figures, whistles,
geometrical designs, palm-leaves, etc., were inlaid on the object,
which had a simple, double, or treble twisted handle according to its
size; it was a tripod with a gaping mouth, or topped with arabesque,
when the occasion served. Variety was its distinctive merit; and when
completed this fine work of art was buried some twelve months or more
to impress upon it the hand of time, and thus prepared was launched on
its course.
[Illustration: COURT IN THE MEXICO MUSEUM.]
I trust that these few observations will serve as a warning to people,
and save them from experience as costly as my own. Having now relieved
my conscience, we will go back to the Museum and look at what I
consider the finest portion, namely the court, planted with beautiful
palm-trees, shrubs, and flowers, amongst which may be seen the most
interesting specimens of the whole collection. First and foremost
is a statue of a man lying on his back, holding a cup with both hands
and pressing it against his body. It was found at Chichen-Itza, in
Yucatan, by Leplongeon, an American explorer, who was obliged to
part with it in favour of the Mexican Government, in virtue of the
law which declares all antiquities to be national property. Next to
this in interest come two other statues, like it in all respects: one
discovered at Tlascala, the other marked “unknown.” This similarity of
objects of art found among the populations of the plateaux and those of
the Yucatan peninsula seems to point to identity of worship among those
tribes. Sanchez, the director of the Museum, believes this statue to be
Tetzcatzoncatl, god of wine; but Perez and Dr. Hamy are of opinion that
it represents Tlaloc, god of rain, in which view I coincide. However
that may be, we will speak of it at greater length when we come to
Chichen-Itza, where it was unearthed. On the second plan, to the left,
stands the Tlascalan Tlaloc, and behind it Quetzalcoatl, “the feathered
serpent,” tutelar deity of the Toltecs, and worshipped by all American
tribes; he came to have many names, and was represented under various
forms, according to his multifarious attributes. He was the Zoroaster
of Anahuac; “under him the earth produced fruits and flowers of its own
accord. An ear of Indian corn was as much as a man could carry. The air
was filled with perfumes and the sweet melody of birds,” etc.
[Illustration: TEOYAOMIQUI, GOD OF DEATH AND WAR.]
[Illustration: THE STONE OF THE SUN, OR OF TIZOC, MEXICO MUSEUM.]
At the extremity of the court, to the left, we find a block of
serpentine with a magnificent head beautifully sculptured, marked in
the catalogue as “the rising moon,” but which Bustamente thinks to be
Temascaltoci, the goddess who presided over ablutions, and Chavero, one
of the many forms under which Quetzalcoatl was represented. In the same
line with these stands a huge block, having a hideous figure of Death,
Teoyaomiqui (a goddess), besides a vast number of divinities, ranging
over the whole Indian Olympus, collected under the gallery at the
furthest extremity of the court, most of which are frightful, and would
give a poor idea of Aztec talent, did we not know that they are all
specimens of hieratic art, and as such were not permitted to vary in
shape or design. And now we come to _Tizoc’s_ stone, or _Temalacatl_,
the sun’s stone, one of the most interesting in the collection, and
connected with a bloody episode which is reported by most historians.
It would have been broken up for paving the square, like many other
monuments of this kind found on the same spot and about the same time,
had not Canon Gamboa arrested the work of destruction, and caused the
stone to be placed in the north-west side of the churchyard, where
it was left undisturbed until 1824, when it was transferred to the
University for a short time, and finally placed in the middle of the
court of the New Museum. This monument is a block of trachyte, oblong
in shape, measuring over eight feet in diameter, thirty-one feet in
circumference, and some two feet six inches in depth. The surface is
ornamented with two figures, portrayed in fifteen different attitudes,
recalling the victories of the Emperor Tizoc. Two women are seen among
the vanquished, from which it would appear that the Salic Law was
not in force among the Indians. In every one of these groups Tizoc is
represented holding by the hair the vanquished, who, in a supplicating
posture, seems to ask for mercy. Over each figure may be seen a
hieroglyph, expressive of the conquered city represented by her chief.
The surface of the stone is occupied by an image of the sun, having in
the centre a hole some six inches deep, which is connected with a tube
terminating on the upper circumference. This hole is supposed to have
been made by the Spaniards in their attempt to split the stone, which
was so fortunately stopped by Canon Gamboa, but not before they had
mutilated every face of the different groups. This supposition seems
borne out by the fact that it was not likely the original makers would
have bored a hole right through the bassi-relievi, and thus deface
their own work.
The _Temalacatl_, or “gladiatorial stone,” as it was called by the
Spaniards, must not be confused with the _Techcatl_, or “stone of
sacrifice.” The former was always to be found in the courts of the
Temple, placed over a basement varying in bulk according to the size of
the stone, from which the captive, particularly if he happened to be a
man of distinction, was allowed to fight against a number of enemies in
succession; but, besides the inequality of numbers, he was furnished
only with a wooden sword ornamented with feathers along the blade,
whereas his adversaries had weapons of obsidian, “as sharp as steel.”
If he succeeded in defeating them all, as did occasionally happen, he
was allowed to escape, but if vanquished he was dragged to the stone,
the upper surface of which was somewhat convex to receive the victim;
on this the prisoner was stretched, five priests securing his head and
his limbs, while a sixth, clad in a scarlet mantle, dexterously opened
the breast of the victim with a sharp knife, and inserting his hand
in the wound, tore out the heart, and holding it up first towards the
sun—a god common to all—cast it at the face or the feet of the divinity
to whom the temple was dedicated, whilst the multitudes knelt in
humble adoration at the foot of the stone or pyramid ready to receive
the body, which was hurled down by the priests, and which the people
divided among themselves, to have it served up in an entertainment in
honour of the particular god they were celebrating.
[Illustration: THE TEMALACATL, OR GLADIATORIAL STONE, FROM RAMIREZ MS.]
The sacrifice ceremonial, whether from the summit of the Temple or from
the gladiatorial stone, was exactly the same, save that the latter,
standing but a few feet from the ground, allowed the whole city to
witness the ghastly details of the sight. These stones were perfectly
plain or beautifully sculptured, like the one under notice, according
to the teocalli it was destined for, or the degree and importance of
the donor. The temalacatl or stone of Montezuma I., which up to the
present time has not been found, is supposed to lie buried under the
“Plaza de las Armas” in Mexico. Besides these, there was a smaller
circular stone, the _Cuauhxicalli_, “eagle’s cup,” so called from
the hearts of the victims being thrown into the hole situated in the
centre, and which now, by a curious contrast, is used as a drinking
trough by pigeons and small birds.[12]
The last Montezuma would have also erected a Temalacatl, for which a
huge block of stone was transported from Aculco, beyond Lake Chalco,
but in crossing a bridge which traversed one of the canals, the
supports gave way, and the gigantic mass was precipitated into the
water, where it still lies.
A military point of honour, as understood among the western nations of
Europe, was so deeply rooted in the Indian warriors that they would
suffer death rather than be guilty of any act that could lower them
in the estimation of their fellow-citizens. With the Mexicans and
Tlaxcaltecs, a soldier, if unfortunate enough to be made a prisoner,
was reserved for sacrifice, especially if he happened to be of superior
rank; to be ransomed was deemed unworthy and a disgrace. A few years
before the arrival of the Spaniards, the Uexotzincas, the Tlaxcaltecs
and the Mexicans were at war with each other. In one of the frequent
skirmishes between the rival nations, it happened that a Tlaxcaltec
chief, by name Tlahuicole, was captured. His fame as a warrior had
spread far and wide; his prowess was so well known that few cared
to measure their strength with his, or feel the weight of his huge
tomahawk, which a man of common stature could hardly lift. But one
day, in the heat of pursuit, he got far ahead of all his companions,
when he was waylaid in a morass, immediately surrounded, placed in a
cage, and conveyed to Mexico amidst the rejoicings of the enemy. He
was brought to the Emperor Moteuhçoma, who, on hearing his name, not
only spared his life but offered him his liberty, and treated him with
marked distinction. But Tlahuicole refused everything, and besought
the Emperor to devote him to the gods according to custom. Seeing that
he could not be prevailed upon to accept any offer, however brilliant,
Moteuhçoma gave orders that he should be tied on the gladiatorial
stone and that some of his best soldiers should fight him, whilst he
himself, with a numerous retinue, witnessed the scene. Tlahuicole
killed successively eight men, and wounded upwards of twenty; but he
succumbed at last, and was carried off to be offered to the war-god
Huitzilopochtli.[13]
But to return: this temalacatl clearly belongs to Tizoc, for his
portrait is seen on the edge of the stone, whilst a speckled leg (he
is supposed to have had varices) is sculptured above his image. The
monument, however, like the great temple, may have been completed by
his successor Ahuitzotl between 1484-1486.
Human sacrifices were made even more revolting by cannibalism, which
from the Aztecs spread among all the surrounding nations, and were
adopted by the populations with which they were at war by way of
reprisals. The more humane chiefs, such as Netzahualcoyotl, king of
Texcuco, tried to oppose this barbarous custom; but they were obliged
to yield before the ignorance of the people and the fanaticism of
the priests, who seeing that the supply of prisoners of war began to
fail, clamoured for more, and urged on the monarchs the necessity of
sacrificing their own subjects, on the ground that they would be more
easily obtained; that they would be fresher, more acceptable, and
in the same condition as children and slaves. In the year 1454, the
country was visited by a horrible famine, and the priests declared
that the celestial wrath could only be appeased by regular and numerous
sacrifices; to obtain which a treaty was entered into by the three
allied kings of Mexico, Texcuco, and Tlacopan with the three republics
of Tlascala, Huezotzinco, and Cholula, by which they agreed that their
troops should engage to fight on the first days of each month, on the
territory between Cuantepec and Ocelotepec, and thus supply themselves
with human victims. The men engaged in these encounters received
the terrible name of “enemies of the house,” whilst these monthly
affrays are known in history as the “Holy War.” It was not on the
circular Temalacatl that victims were sacrificed, but on the dreadful
_Techcatl_, “stone of sacrifice,” which was 6 ft. 6 in. long by 3 ft. 3
in. wide, and about 3 ft. high, so as to enable the officiating priests
to have a thorough command over their victim. At the dedication of the
great temple of Huitzilopochtli in 1486, the prisoners who for some
years had been reserved for this solemn occasion, were drawn up and
ranged in files, forming a procession along the narrow causeways two
miles long, when the number sacrificed is almost beyond belief, and
is variously estimated at 80,000 and 200,000. The massacre lasted four
days, and was begun by the kings of Mexico, Texcuco, Tacuba, and the
Minister Tlacael, until they were relieved by the priests. However, the
number of victims immolated has no doubt been much exaggerated.[14]
It is difficult to reconcile these revolting usages with a people
that had made great advance in civilisation. American writers have
tried to palliate the abominable practices of their ancestors, on the
ground that they shared them in common with every other nation in
the early stage of their history. In their eyes the Aztecs, if not
commendable, were at least pardonable, and Orozco y Berra says that
“human sacrifices originate from an error of the mind rather than from
evil disposition; that it is the result of an exaggerated religious
feeling, and not a real desire to do evil. That this institution,
if philosophically considered, is not deserving of the intempestive
lamentations of a few sentimental moralists.”[15] “The horror I feel,”
he adds, “for the revolting abuse of human sacrifice, yields to what I
feel for utter impiety; I will go further, and say that I prefer human
sacrifice to atheism, as I prefer the ignorant negro who bows before
his fetish, to a free-thinker.” Obviously Orozco is animated with the
same spirit as his ancestors. An Aztec of the olden time would have
adduced better reasons, for he held that to be sacrificed on the altar
of his god was even more glorious than to die in battle, since it
ensured him a speedy passage into paradise; and as the enemy was never
slain if there were a chance of taking him alive, the number of those
who disappeared was a fixed quantity. The same argument is urged in
favour of cannibalism, but it is at least doubtful if it ever existed
as an institution among other civilised nations. Men, however cruel,
do not feed on one another, unless obliged by an absolute necessity;
and cannibalism, which no doubt existed with all primitive populations,
only continued among those who were deprived of sufficient space
where they could hunt and feed their flocks, and who were reduced to
a scanty supply of roots and herbs for their subsistence. This was
observed among the Caraïbs at the time of the Conquest; in the islands
of the Pacific, in Australia, where the soil is so poor, that although
cannibalism prevails, the increase of population has to be kept down,
and the recent introduction of pigs in the islands has diminished but
not eradicated this ancient practice, which has never flourished with
races provided with bears, reindeer, horses, and herds. This usage,
which at first was a necessity, became a sacred tradition with the
Aztecs, with whom religion was all-powerful; it directed the State,
presided over the minutest details of domestic life, and as the
influence of the priests was unbounded, peasants and princes had to bow
their necks to their tyranny. They cannot be called cannibals, however,
in the coarsest sense of the word, for they did not feed on human flesh
to gratify their appetite, but as a duty, and in obedience to their
religion; and during the long and terrible siege of Mexico not a single
case of cannibalism is recorded against them by ancient authorities.
Whence did they derive this religious practice? Not from the nations
of the ancient continent with whom they have so much in common, for
at that time cannibalism was no longer practised among the nomadic
tribes of Eastern Asia; nor from Japan or China, where the people had
always lived on the produce of the soil; it is probable that they
received it from the Caraïbs of the Antilles and the Polynesian races
of the Pacific, who made them forget the mild teachings and higher
civilisation of the Toltecs.
[Illustration: WRONG SACRIFICIAL COLLAR.]
[Illustration: RIGHT SACRIFICIAL COLLAR.]
We give the drawings of two yokes: No. 1 is the yoke which up to the
present time has been universally accepted as that used for securing
the victim during the sacrifice, of which several specimens are to be
seen in Mexican museums and in our own Trocadéro, but which, owing
to the cylindrical shape of the arch, measuring some sixteen inches
in height by about seven in width, we maintain could never have been
used for the purpose assigned to it; whereas No. 2, which we claim to
have unearthed, answers in our opinion exactly to the requirements of
a yoke for such a purpose. It is almost the width of the Techcatl,
and is concave on its lower surface, which makes it a perfect fit
for a convex stone; it has, moreover, a round hollow in the centre,
sufficiently large to steady a man’s neck, so that the priest had only
to apply this yoke to prevent any movement, when, to use Father Duran’s
expression, he let fall his sharp silex knife and the victim opened
“like a pomegranate.”[16]
Notwithstanding the assertion of most historians respecting the work
of the Aborigines, it is difficult to account how with the tools they
were acquainted with they could cut not only the hardest substances,
but also build the numerous structures which are still seen in Mexico
and Central America, together with the sculptures, bas-reliefs,
statues, and inscriptions like those we reproduce. These monuments
were innumerable, of all dimensions, and according to Leon y Gama,[17]
there was no town or settlement which did not possess on the stones of
its walls, on the rocks of its mountains, the year of its foundation,
its origin, and the history of its progress engraved in symbols and
characters which could only be read by the Indians themselves. It
is all the more inexplicable that they should have only used stone
implements, that copper was abundant, and that they knew how to temper
and make it nearly as hard as steel. The method employed by stone
sculptors, however, has in all probability been lost.
Clavigero[18] says that stone was worked with tools of hard stone; that
copper hatchets were used by carpenters, and also to cultivate the soil
and to fell trees; and Mendieta writes that both carpenters and joiners
used copper tools, but that their work was not so beautiful as that of
the sculptors on stone who had silex implements.[19]
Some historians have proved to their own satisfaction that copper
was unknown to the Indians; but had they taken the trouble to read,
however slightly, any authority on the subject, they would have paused
before they advanced a theory which is entirely at variance with all
writers, both ancient and modern. It is an ascertained fact that very
rich copper-mines have been worked since the Conquest;[20] and in 1873,
whilst sinking a shaft in a copper-mine at Aguila, in the State of
Guerrero, the miner lost suddenly the vein; and on examining the cause
of the accident an excavation was found 4 ft. 4 in. long, 4 ft. 9 in.
deep, and over 3 ft. wide, in which was a rich copper vein from 2 to 4
in. in thickness. The engineer, Felipe Lorainzar, could see no sign of
iron or powder having been used, but the walls showed marks of fire;
and both the copper ore and the rock in which it was embedded, were
shattered and split in various places. In the rubbish were found 142
stones of different dimensions, shaped like hammers and wedges, the
edges of which were blunt or broken; these stones were of a different
substance from the surrounding rock, clearly indicating that the mine
had originally been worked by the natives.[21]
Copper was likewise found in Chili, Columbia, Chihuahua, and in New
Mexico. Before the Conquest, the Indians procured lead and tin from
the mines of Tasco, but copper was the metal used in mechanic arts.
Hatchets, arms, and scissors were made of copper found in the mountains
of Zocatollan. The letters of Cortez tell us that among the taxes
paid by the conquered people, figured copper hatchets and lingots of
the same metal, which were paid every eighty days. Bernal Diaz[22]
says that in his second expedition with Grijalva, the inhabitants of
Goatzacoalco brought them upwards of six hundred copper hatchets in
three days, having wood handles exquisitely painted, and so polished
that “we thought at first they were gold.” Copper was also found in
Venezuela, where, at the present day, jewels of copper, or mixed
with gold, crocodiles, lizards, and frogs are found. We procured
some and placed them in the Trocadéro, having the same dimensions as
those in Central America. Those we found on our first visit to Mitla,
are thin, shaped like a _tau_, and hardly 4 in. long. Dupaix found
similar hatchets at Mitla, and he thinks they were used as currency, a
supposition all the more probable, that an Indian from Zochoxocotlan,
near Oaxaca, found an earthen pot containing twenty-three dozen of
these taus, but differing slightly from each other both in size and
thickness. We read in Torquemada,[23] that copper tablets, varying
in thickness and shaped like a tau, were used as currency in various
regions, and that they contained a large proportion of gold.
Gumesindo Mendoza mentions copper scissors in the Mexican Museum which
were found to contain 97·87 lead, 100 copper, 213 platinum, 100 tin,
and infinitesimal quantities of gold and zinc. On removing the oxide
which covered them the bronze looked like red gold, its density being
equal to 8.815; it is harder than copper and breaks under strong
pressure, the broken part showing a fine granulation, like steel; but
its hardness is less than carburetted iron and insufficient for the use
it was intended for.
Humboldt says that Peruvian scissors contained 94 lead, 100 copper,
6 platinum, 100 tin, and that their specific weight was 8·815; other
scissors analysed by Ramirez yielded 90 lead, 100 copper, 10 platinum,
and 100 tin. It seems almost impossible that the Indians should not
have used these admirable bronze scissors to build palaces, sculpture
their idols and the images of their kings, which are still visible on
the porphyry rocks of Chapultepec; and if it is denied that they were
able to carve such hard substances, they must be credited with having
easily worked the calcareous stones of Chiapas and Yucatan.
The American tribes had reached the transition epoch between the
polished stone and the bronze period, which was marked by considerable
progress in architecture and some branches of science. With them this
period lasted longer than in the old world, owing to their never having
come in contact with nations of a higher civilisation and possessed of
better tools. Their only scientific data in the past were traditions
which, if we believe their apologists, were carefully preserved and
developed; but they have nearly all been lost, and great uncertainty
must for ever rest upon the degree of their scientific progress; for it
is equally impossible to accept either the wild theories of the good
Abbé Brasseur, who sees in the Troano and Chilmalpoca codices, a whole
system of geology dating ten thousand years back, as it is impossible
to accept the childish dreams of Leplongeon, who credits the Mayas
with every discovery down to the electric telegraph; nor yet those
who maintain that without astronomical instruments (since they were
unacquainted with glass) the Aztecs had discovered the composition of
the sun and the transit of Venus. It seems as futile to make the Nahuas
the inventors of everything as to rank them with mere savages. The
religion of a people is a sure index of the degree of its culture; we
know that the moral code and religion of the Toltecs showed wonderful
growth towards all the essentials of a high civilisation, for religion
in its early stage is but a gross fetishism, of which the head of the
family is the priest, who performs before his household god the simple
ceremonies he learnt from his forefathers. But as the tribe rises
in importance his duties become more complicated, and he is willing
to lay down his priestly office in favour of a poet or prophet, who,
whilst the warriors are engaged in warfare and other avocations,
shall pray for the welfare of the tribe and expound the wishes of the
deity, receiving for his services part of the booty or the produce of
the chase, and later, have his share of the land under cultivation.
He soon adopts a dress so as to be distinguished from the warriors
and the people; and as the number of priests increases, offerings are
multiplied; a more imposing ceremonial replaces the simple worship of
former days, temples and chapels are built, the image of the god is
placed in the sanctuary, and only approached by the high priest, who
becomes the sole interpreter between god and man. The former is now
given numerous personalities, according to his various attributes, and
the simple fetish of an early epoch develops in process of time into
a mighty host, frequently numbering upwards of three thousand deities
like the Aztec Olympus, for whose service a numerous priesthood and
great wealth are required, implying a high degree of civilisation.
That there should be great uncertainty upon questions resting chiefly
on vague traditions is natural enough, but that the same should be the
case with matters that admitted of easy proof seems unaccountable; as,
for instance, the name of Montezuma, in whose intimacy the Spaniards
lived several months; yet of the twenty-three chroniclers who wrote
about him, two call him Motecuhzoma, three Montezuma, and the remaining
eighteen spell his name in as many different ways.
And here we will take leave of the Aztecs, whose history has been so
admirably written by Prescott. My object in writing about them was to
give some idea, however slight, of this people, in order to prepare
the reader to follow me in my investigations respecting the far more
ancient civilisation of the Toltecs—a civilisation which from them
passed to the Aztecs, the Nahua tribes, and the people of Central
America; the remains of which are still to be seen, whilst its stones
will compose, together with chroniclers and historians, the foundation
of our work.
[Illustration: HUMAN SACRIFICES.]
[Illustration: ANCIENT INDIAN POTTERY.]