EDUCATION AND FAMILY MATTERS AMONG THE MAYAS.
EDUCATION OF YOUTH--PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF GUATEMALA--BRANCHES OF
STUDY IN YUCATAN--MARRYING AGE--DEGREES OF CONSANGUINITY
ALLOWED IN MARRIAGE--PRELIMINARIES OF MARRIAGE--MARRIAGE
CEREMONIES--THE CUSTOM OF THE DROIT DU SEIGNEUR IN
NICARAGUA--WIDOWS--MONOGAMY--CONCUBINAGE--DIVORCE--LAWS
CONCERNING ADULTERY--FORNICATION--RAPE--PROSTITUTION--UNNATURAL
CRIMES--DESIRE FOR CHILDREN--CHILDBIRTH CEREMONIES--RITE OF
CIRCUMCISION--MANNER OF NAMING CHILDREN--BAPTISMAL
CEREMONIES.
The Maya nations appear to have been quite as strict and careful in
the education of youth as the Nahuas. Parents took great pains to
instruct their children to respect old age, to reverence the gods, and
to honor their father and mother.[933] They were, besides, encouraged
while mere infants to amuse themselves with warlike games, and to
practice with the bow and arrow. As they grew older, the children of
the poor people were taught to labor and assist their parents. The
boys were in their childhood educated by the father, who usually
taught them his own trade or calling; the girls were under the
especial care of the mother, who, it is said, watched very closely
over the conduct of her daughters, scarcely ever permitting them to be
out of her sight. Children of both sexes remained under the immediate
control of their parents until they were of an age to be married, and
any disobedience or contumacy was severely punished, sometimes even
with death. The boys in Guatemala slept under the portico of the
house, as it was thought improper that they should observe the conduct
and hear the conversation of married people.[934] In Yucatan, also,
the young people were kept separate from their elders. In each village
was an immense whitewashed shed, under the shelter of which the youths
of the place amused themselves during the day, and slept at
night.[935]
The various little events in a child's life which among all peoples,
savage or civilized, are regarded as of so great importance by anxious
mothers, such as its being weaned, its first step, or its first word,
were celebrated with feasts and rejoicing; the anniversaries of its
birthday were also occasions of much merry-making. The first article
that a child made with its own hands was dedicated to the gods.[936]
In Yucatan children went naked until they were four or five years old,
when the boys were given a breech-clout to wear and a piece of cloth
to sleep under; girls began at the same age to wear a petticoat
reaching from the waist downward.[937] In Guatemala children were left
naked till they were eight or ten years of age, at which time they
were required to do light labor.[938] As soon as a child reached the
age of seven years, it was taken by its father to the priest, who
foretold its future destiny and instructed it how to draw blood from
its body, and perform other religious observances.[939]
[Sidenote: EDUCATION OF CHILDREN.]
The Mayas entrusted the more advanced education of youth entirely to
the priesthood. In Guatemala the youths assisted the priests in their
duties, and received, in turn, an education suited to their position
in life. There were schools in every principal town, at which youths
were instructed in all necessary branches by competent teachers. The
principal of these was a seminary in which were maintained seventy
masters, and from five to six thousand children were educated and
provided for at the expense of the royal treasury.[940] Girls were
placed in convents, under the superintendence of matrons who were most
strict in their guardianship. It is said that they entered when eight
years old, and were not free until about to be married.[941]
In Yucatan, social distinctions seem to have been more sharply defined
than in Guatemala. Here, the schools of learning were only open to the
children of the nobility; a poor man was content to teach his son his
own trade or profession. The children of the privileged classes were,
however, very highly educated. The boys were initiated, we are told,
into the mysteries and strange rites of their religion; they studied
law, morals, music, the art of war, astronomy, astrology, divination,
prophecy, medicine, poetry, history, picture-writing, and every other
branch of knowledge known to their people. The daughters of the nobles
were kept in strict seclusion, and were carefully instructed in all
the accomplishments required of a Maya lady.[942]
In Yucatan, the young men usually married at the age of twenty
years.[943] In Guatemala, Las Casas tells us that the men never
married until they were thirty, notwithstanding he has previously made
the extraordinary assertion that the great prevalence of unnatural
lusts made parents anxious to get their children wedded as early as
possible.[944] Girls among the higher classes must have been married
at a very early age in Guatemala, since it is related that when a
young noble espoused a maiden not yet arrived at the age of puberty,
her father gave him a female slave, to lie with him until the wife
reached maturity. The children of this slave could not inherit his
property, however.[945]
The Guatemalans recognized no relationship on the mother's side only,
and did not hesitate to marry their own sister, provided she was by
another father.[946] Thus, if a noble lady married an inferior in
rank or even a slave, the children belonged to the order of the
father, and not of the mother.[947] Torquemada adds that they
sometimes married their sisters-in-law and step-mothers.[948]
[Sidenote: DEGREES OF KINDRED.]
Among the Pipiles, of Salvador, an ancestral tree, with seven main
branches, denoting degrees of kindred, was painted upon cloth, and
within these seven branches, or degrees, none were allowed to marry,
except as a recompense for some great public or warlike service
rendered. Within four degrees of consanguinity none, under any
pretext, might marry.[949] In Yucatan there was a peculiar prejudice
against a man marrying a woman who bore the same name as his own, and
so far was this fancy carried that he who did this was looked upon as
a renegade and an outcast. Here, also, a man could not marry the
sister of his deceased wife, his step-mother, or his mother's sister,
but with all other relatives on the maternal side, no matter how
close, marriage was perfectly legitimate. A Yucatec noble who wedded a
woman of inferior degree, descended to her social level, and was
dispossessed of a part of his property, and deprived of his
rank.[950] In Nicaragua no one might marry within the first degree of
relationship, but beyond that there was no restriction.[951]
The question of dowry was settled in Guatemala by the relatives of the
young couple.[952] The Yucatec son-in-law served his father-in-law for
four or five years, and the omission of such service was considered
scandalous;[953] while in Nicaragua the dower was usually paid in
fruit or land.[954]
Each of the Maya nations seems to have had a method of arranging
marriages peculiar to itself. In Guatemala the whole affair was
managed by the nearest relatives of the betrothed pair, who were kept
in profound ignorance of the coming event, and did not even know each
other until the day of the wedding. It seems incredible that the young
men should have quietly submitted to having their wives picked out for
them without being allowed any voice or choice in the matter. Yet we
are told that so great was their obedience and submission to their
parents, that there never was any scandal in these things. If this be
the case, what a strange phenomenon Guatemalan society must have been,
with no love affairs, no wooing permitted, and Cupid a banished boy.
But, for all that, many a Guatemalan youth may have looked coldly upon
his bride as he thought of another and, to him, fairer face, and many
a loyal young wife may have been sometimes troubled with the vision of
a comely form that she had admired before she saw her lord.
[Sidenote: PRELIMINARIES OF MARRIAGE.]
When a man of rank wished to marry his son, he sent a number of his
friends with presents to the parents of the young girl upon whom his
choice had fallen. If the presents were refused it was a sign that the
offer of alliance was declined, and no farther steps were taken in the
matter; but if they were accepted it showed that the match was thought
a desirable one. In the latter case, a few days having elapsed,
another embassy, bearing more costly gifts than before, was dispatched
to the parents of the girl, who were again asked to give their consent
to the marriage. Finally, a third deputation was sent, and this
generally succeeded in satisfactorily arranging the affair. The two
families then commenced to treat each other as relations, and to visit
each other for the purposes of determining the day of the wedding and
making preparations for the event. Among the lower classes the father
usually demanded the bride of her parents in person.[955] It was
customary among the Pipiles of Salvador for the father of the boy,
after having obtained the consent of the girl's parents to the match,
to take her to his house when she was twelve years of age, and his son
fourteen, and there educate and maintain her as if she were his own
child. In return he was entitled to her services and those of his son,
until they were able to sustain themselves, and of a suitable age to
marry. The parents of the couple then jointly made them a present of a
house and gave them the means to start in life. Thereafter, if the
young man met his father-in-law in the street, he crossed to the other
side of the way, and the girl paid the same courtesy to her
mother-in-law.[956]
In the greater part of Nicaragua matches were arranged by the parents,
but there were certain independent towns in which the girls chose
their husbands from among the young men, while the latter were sitting
at a feast.[957]
I have already alluded to the fact that if in Guatemala or Yucatan a
young man married into a rank lower than his own he lost caste in
consequence, hence his parents were the more careful to select for him
a bride from among the maidens of his own standing in society. Among
the Mayas of Yucatan when the day appointed for a marriage ceremony
arrived, the invited friends assembled at the house of the bride's
father, where the betrothed couple with their parents and the
officiating priest were already waiting. For the joyful occasion a
great feast was prepared, as it was customary to incur a large expense
in food and wine for the entertainment of invited guests. When all
were present, the priest called the bride and bridegroom with their
parents before him and delivered to them an address concerning the
duties of the wedded state. He then offered incense and certain
prayers to the gods, concluding the ceremony by asking a blessing from
heaven for the newly wedded couple.[958] No ceremonies took place when
a widow or widower was married; in such case a simple repast or the
giving of food and drink one to another was deemed sufficient to
solemnize the nuptials.[959]
[Sidenote: MARRIAGE CEREMONIES.]
It was customary in Guatemala, when all preliminaries of a marriage
had been settled and the day fixed for the wedding, for the
bridegroom's father to send a deputation of old women and principal
men to conduct the bride to his house. One of those sent for this
purpose carried her upon his shoulders, and when they arrived at a
certain designated point near the bridegroom's home, she was met by
other men also chosen by her father-in-law, who offered incense four
or five times before her and sacrificed some quail or other birds to
the gods, at the same time giving thanks for her safe arrival. As soon
as she came to the house she was seated with much ceremony upon a
couch covered with mats or rich carpets; immediately a number of
singers began a song suited to the occasion; musicians played on their
instruments; dancers came forth and danced before her.[960] The
consent of the cacique had to be obtained to all marriages that were
celebrated in his territory; before the ceremony the priest desired
the young man and his bride to confess to him all the sins of their
past life. No person was allowed to marry in Yucatan until the rite of
baptism had been administered.[961] In Guatemala, if the betrothed
belonged to the higher classes of society, the cacique joined their
hands and then tied the end of the man's mantle to a corner of the
woman's dress, at the same time advising them to be faithful and
loving toward each other. The ceremony ended, all partook of the
wedding feast and the bride and bridegroom were carried to the house
intended for them, upon the shoulders of some of those who had
assisted at the marriage; they were then conducted to the bridal
chamber and, as Ximenez tells us, received instructions from two of
the most honored old women respecting certain marital duties.[962]
The marriage ceremonies of the Pipiles were simple and unique; matches
were made by the cacique and carried into effect under his direction.
At the appointed time the kinsfolk of the bride proceeded to the house
of the bridegroom, whence he was borne to the river and washed. The
relatives of the bride performed the same act of cleansing upon the
person of the bride. The two parties with their respective charges
then repaired to the house of the bride. The couple were now tied
together by the ends of the blankets, in which they were enfolded
naked and laid away--married.[963] After the ceremony an interchange
of presents took place between the relatives of the newly married
couple and they all feasted together.
Among the civilized nations of Nicaragua, when a match was arranged to
the satisfaction of the parents, some fowls were killed, cacao was
prepared, and the neighbors were invited to be present. The father,
mother, or whoever gave away the bride, was asked in presence of the
assembled guests whether or not she came as a virgin; if the answer
was in the affirmative, and the husband afterwards found that she had
been already seduced, he had the right to return her to her parents
and she was looked upon as a bad woman; but if the parents answered
that she was not a virgin, and the man agreed to take her for a wife,
the marriage was valid.[964]
When they were to be united the cacique took the parties with his
right hand by the little fingers of their left hands and led them into
the house set apart for marriages, leaving them, after some words of
advice, in a small room, where there was a fire of candlewood. While
the fire lasted they were expected to remain perfectly still, and not
until it was burned out did they proceed to consummate the marriage.
The following day if the husband made no objection in respect to the
girl's virginity, the relations and friends assembled and expressed
their gratification with loud cries of joy, and passed the day in
feasting and pleasure.[965]
[Sidenote: DROIT DE SEIGNEUR.]
Notwithstanding the disgrace attached to a woman who had lost her
virginity before marriage and concealed the fact, we are assured by
Andagoya that in Nicaragua a custom similar to the European 'droit du
seigneur' was practiced by a priest living in the temple, who slept
with the bride during the night preceding her marriage.[966]
A widow was looked upon as the property of the family of her deceased
husband, to whose brother she was invariably married, even though he
might have a wife of his own at the time. If she had no
brother-in-law, then she was united to the nearest living relative on
her husband's side.[967] In Yucatan, the widow could not marry again
until after a year from her husband's death.[968]
Monogamy seems to have been the rule among the Maya nations, and many
authors assert positively that polygamy did not exist. It was only in
the border state of Chiapas that the custom is mentioned by Remesal.
To compensate for this, concubinage was largely indulged in by the
wealthy. The punishment for bigamy was severe, and consisted, in
Nicaragua, of banishment and confiscation of the entire property for
the benefit of the injured wife or husband, who was at liberty to
marry again, a privilege which was not, however, accorded to women who
had children. Landa tells us that the Chichen Itza kings lived in a
state of strict celibacy, and Diaz relates that a tower was pointed
out to him on the coast of Yucatan, which was occupied by women who
had dedicated themselves to a single life.[969]
With their loveless marriages it was fortunate that divorce could be
obtained on very slight grounds. In Yucatan, says Landa, the father
would, after a final separation, procure one wife after another to
suit the tastes of his son. If the children were still of tender age
at the time the parents separated, they were left with the mother; if
grown up, the boys followed the father, while the girls remained with
the mother. It was not unusual for the husband to return to the wife
after a while, if she was free, regardless of the fact that she had
belonged to another in the meantime.[970] In Guatemala the wife could
leave her husband on the same slight grounds as the man, and if she
refused to return to him after being requested to do so, he was
allowed to marry again; she was then considered free, and held of no
little consequence. In Nicaragua the husband decided whether the
children were to remain with him or the divorced wife.[971]
[Sidenote: INTERCOURSE OF THE SEXES.]
The Mayas seem to have dealt more leniently with adulterers than the
Nahuas. In Guatemala, the married man who committed adultery with a
maiden was, upon complaint of the girl's relations, compelled to pay
as a fine from sixty to one hundred rare feathers. It generally
happened, however, that the friends of the woman were careful to keep
the matter secret, as such a scandal would cause great injury to her
future prospects. If a married man was known to sin with a married
woman or a widow, both were for the first or even the second offence
merely warned, and condemned to pay a fine of feathers; but if they
persevered in their crime, then their hands were bound behind their
backs, and they were forced to inhale the smoke of a certain herb
called _tabacoyay_, which, although very painful, was not a fatal
punishment. The single man who committed adultery with a married woman
was obliged to pay to the parents of the latter the amount which her
husband had paid for her; doubtless this fine was handed over to the
injured husband, who, in such a case, repudiated his wife. It
sometimes happened, however, that the husband did not report the
matter to the authorities, but gave his unfaithful wife a bird of the
kind which was used in sacrifices, and told her to offer it to the
gods, and, with her companion in crime, to confess and be forgiven.
Such a husband was regarded as a most virtuous and humane man.[972] A
noble lady taken in adultery was reprimanded the first time, and
severely punished or repudiated for the second offence. In the latter
case she was free to marry again.[973] It was a capital crime to
commit adultery with a lord's wife; if he who did so was a noble,
they strangled him, but if he was a plebeian, they flung him down a
precipice.[974]
Cogolludo says that among the Itzas the man and woman taken in
adultery were put to death. The woman was taken beyond the limits of
the town to a place where there were many loose stones. There she was
bound to a post, and the priest who had judged her having cast the
first stone, and the injured husband the second, the crowd that was
never missing on such occasions joined so eagerly in the sport that
the death of their target was a speedy one. The male adulterer,
according to the same account, was also bound to a post, and shot to
death in the same manner with arrows.[975]
[Sidenote: ADULTERY AND FORNICATION.]
In Vera Paz, incorrigible adulterers were enslaved.[976] In Nicaragua,
the faithless wife was repudiated by her husband, and not allowed to
marry again, but she had the right of retaining her dowry and effects.
The adulterer was severely beaten with sticks, by the relations of the
woman he had led astray. The husband appears to have taken no part in
the matter.[977] In Yucatan, adultery was punished with death.
According to Cogolludo, offenders of both sexes were shot to death
with arrows; Landa tells us that the man was killed with a stone by
the husband of his paramour, but the woman was punished with disgrace
only. It is said that in more ancient times adulterers were impaled or
disemboweled. But so great was the horror in which the Yucatecs held
this crime, that they did not always wait for conviction, but
sometimes punished a suspected person by binding him, stripping him
naked, shaving off his hair, and thus leaving him for a time.[978]
Among the Pipiles of Salvador he who made advances to a married woman,
and did nothing worse, was banished, and his property was confiscated.
The adulterer, if we may believe Palacio,[979] was put to death;
Squier says he became the slave of the dishonored husband.[980]
Simple fornication was punished with a fine, to be paid in feathers of
a certain rare bird, which, by the laws of Vera Paz at least, it was
death to kill without express permission, as its plumage formed a most
valuable article of trade with the neighboring provinces.[981] But if
any complaint was raised, such as by a father in behalf of his
daughter, or by a brother for his sister, the seducer was put to
death, or at least made a slave.[982] In Yucatan, death seems to have
been the inevitable fate of the seducer.[983]
In Guatemala and Salvador, consummated rape was punished with death.
He who merely attempted rape was enslaved.[984] In Nicaragua, the
penalty for this crime was not so severe, since he who committed it
was only obliged to compensate pecuniarily the parents of his victim;
though if he could not do this he became their slave. He who ravished
the daughter of his employer or lord was, however, always put to
death.[985] Incest is said to have been an unknown crime.[986]
Public prostitution was tolerated, if not encouraged, among all the
Maya nations. In every Nicaraguan town there were establishments kept
by public women, who sold their favors for ten cocoa-nibs, and
maintained professional bullies to protect and accompany them at home
and abroad. Parents could prostitute their daughters without shame;
and it is said, further, that during a certain annual festival, women,
of whatever condition, could abandon themselves to the embrace of
whomever they pleased, without incurring any disgrace.[987] It was no
unusual thing for parents of the lower orders to send their daughters
on a tour through the land, that they might earn their marriage
portion by prostitution.[988]
[Sidenote: UNNATURAL VICES.]
All the old writers appear anxious to clear the civilized aborigines
from the charge of sodomy, yet the fact that no nation was without
strict laws regarding this unnatural vice, combined with the
admissions reluctantly made by the reverend fathers themselves, seems
to show that pederasty certainly was not unknown. Thus, Las Casas says
that sodomy was looked upon as a great and abominable sin in Vera Paz,
and was not known until a god,[989] called by some Chin, by others
Cavil, and again by others Maran, instructed them by committing the
act with another deity. Hence it was held by many to be no sin,
inasmuch as a god had introduced it among them. And thus it happened
that some fathers gave their sons a boy to use as a woman; and if any
other approached this boy he was treated as an adulterer.
Nevertheless, if a man committed a rape upon a boy, he was punished in
the same manner as if he had ravished a woman. And, adds the same
writer, there were always some who reprehended this abominable
custom.[990] In Yucatan certain images were found by Bernal Diaz which
would lead us to suppose that the natives were at least acquainted
with sodomy,[991] but here again the good father[992] takes up the
cudgels in behalf of his favorites. In Nicaragua sodomites were
stoned to death.[993]
The desire to possess children seems to have been very general, and
many were the prayers and offerings made by disappointed parents to
propitiate the god whose anger was supposed to have deferred their
hopes. To further promote the efficacy of their prayers, the priest
enjoined upon man and wife to separate for a month or two, to adhere
to a simple diet, and abstain from salt.[994] Several superstitious
observances were also regarded; thus, among the Pipiles, a husband
should avoid meeting his father-in-law, or a wife her mother-in-law,
lest issue fail them.[995] These observances tend the more to
illustrate their longing to become parents, since the women are said
to have been very prolific. The women were delivered with little
difficulty or pain,[996] yet a midwife was called in, who attended to
the mother's wants, and facilitated parturition by placing a heated
stone upon the abdomen. In Yucatan an image of _Ixchel_, the goddess
of childbirth, was placed beneath the bed. Among the Pipiles and in
Guatemala, the woman was confessed when any difficulty arose, and it
not unfrequently happened that an officer of justice took advantage of
such opportunities to obtain criminating evidence. If the wife's
confession alone did not have the desired effect, the husband was
called upon to avow his sins; his maxtli was besides laid over the
wife, and sometimes blood was drawn from his tongue and ears, to be
scattered towards the four quarters with various invocations.[997]
After delivery a turkey hen was immolated, and thanks rendered to the
deity for the happy issue. The midwife thereupon washed the child,
placed a bow and arrow in its hands, if a boy, a spindle, if a girl,
and drew a mark upon its right foot, so that it might become a good
mountaineer.
[Sidenote: CHILDBIRTH AND CIRCUMCISION.]
The birth of a son was celebrated with especial rejoicings, and
extensive invitations issued for the feasts that took place on or
about the day when the umbilical cord was to be cut,[998] a ceremony
which seems to have borne the same festive character as baptism among
the Nahuas and other nations. The _ahgih_, astrologer, was asked to
name a favorable day for the rite. The cord was then laid upon an ear
of maize to be cut off with a new knife and burned. The grains were
removed from the cob and sown at the proper season; one half of the
yield to be made into gruel and form the first food of the child aside
from the mother's milk, the other half to be sent to the ahgih, after
reserving a few grains for the child to sow with his own hands when he
grew up, and make an offering thereof to his god. At the same time a
kind of circumcision may have been performed, a rite which could not,
however, have been very general, if indeed it ever existed, for
Cogolludo positively asserts that it never was practiced in Yucatan,
and Landa thinks that the custom of slitting the foreskin, which the
devout performed before the idol, may have given rise to the report.
Palacio asserts that certain Indians in Salvador are known to have
scarified themselves as well as some boys in the same manner.[999]
[Sidenote: NAMING THE CHILDREN.]
The naming of the child was the next important affair. Among the
Pipiles it was taken to the temple on the twelfth day, over a road
strewn with green branches,[1000] and here the priest gave it the name
of its grandfather or grandmother, after which offerings of cacao and
fowl were presented to the idol, and some gifts to the minister. In
Guatemala the child was named after the god to whom the day of its
birth was dedicated, for it was not thought desirable to call it after
the parents; other names were, however, applied afterwards, according
to circumstances.[1001] Las Casas adds that the parents lost their
name on the birth of the first son and daughter, the father being
called 'father of Ek,' or whatever might be the name of the son, and
the mother receiving the cognomen of 'mother of Can,' etc.[1002] The
Itzas gave their children a name formed of the combined names of the
father and mother, that of the latter standing first; thus, in Canek,
_can_ is taken from the mother's name, _ek_ from the father's. In
Yucatan, the former home of this people, the custom was almost the
same, except that _na_ was prefixed to the names of the parents; thus,
Na-Chan-Chel denoted son of Chel and Chan, but as the name of the
father, according to Landa, was perpetuated in the son only, not in
the daughter, it follows that the girl could not have been named in
the same order; it is possible that the mother's name was placed last,
and served as surname in their case. In later years this name was not
usually imposed until the time of baptism; but in earlier times a
distinctive name was given by the priest at the time of taking the
horoscope, shortly after birth. The name of the father was borne till
the marriage day, the names of both parents being assumed after that
event.[1003] On the conclusion of the above ceremonies, the Guatemalan
or Pipile infant and mother were taken to a fountain or river, near a
fall if possible, to be bathed, and during the bath incense, birds, or
cacao were offered to the water, apparently with a view of gaining the
good will of the god of that element. The utensils which had served at
the birth, such as warming stone, cups, and knife, were thrown into
the water at the same time.[1004]
The mothers were good and patient nurses, suckling their infants for
over three years, for the habit of taking warm morning drinks, the
exercise of grinding maize, and the uncovered bosom, all tended to
produce large breasts and an abundant supply of milk. Otherwise the
children received a hardy training, clothing being dispensed with, and
the bare ground serving for a couch. When working, the mother carried
them on her back; in Yucatan, however, they were usually borne across
the hip, and for this reason a large number became bow-legged. Landa
also mentions another deformity, that produced by head-flattening,
which is to be noticed on the sculptures of the Maya ruins.[1005]
[Sidenote: BAPTISMAL CEREMONIES.]
It is related by all the old Spanish historians, that when the
Spaniards first visited the kingdom of Yucatan they found there traces
of a baptismal rite; and, strangely enough, the name given to this
rite in the language of the inhabitants, was _zihil_, signifying 'to
be born again.' It was the duty of all to have their children
baptized, for, by this ablution they believed that they received a
purer nature, were protected against evil spirits and future
misfortunes. I have already mentioned that no one could marry unless
he had been baptised according to their customs; they held, moreover,
that an unbaptised person, whether man or woman, could not lead a good
life, nor do anything well. The rite was administered to children of
both sexes at any time between the ages of three and twelve years.
When parents desired to have a child baptised they notified the priest
of their intentions. The latter then published a notice throughout the
town of the day upon which the ceremony would take place, being first
careful to fix upon a day of good omen. This done, the fathers of the
children who were to be baptised, selected five of the most honored
men of the town to assist the priest during the ceremony. These were
called _chacs_.[1006] During the three days preceding the ceremony the
fathers and assistants fasted and abstained from women. When the
appointed day arrived, all assembled with the children who were to be
baptised, in the house of the giver of the feast, who was usually one
of the wealthiest of the parents. In the courtyard fresh leaves were
strewn, and there the boys were ranged in a row in charge of their
godfathers, while in another row were the girls with their
godmothers. The priest now proceeded to purify the house with the
object of casting out the devil. For this purpose four benches were
placed one in each of the four corners of the courtyard, upon which
were seated four of the assistants holding a long cord that passed
from one to the other, thus enclosing part of the yard; within this
enclosure were the children and those fathers and officials who had
fasted. A bench was placed in the centre, upon which the priest was
seated with a brazier, some ground corn, and incense. The children
were directed to approach one by one, and the priest gave to each a
little of the ground corn and incense, which, as they received it,
they cast into the brazier. When this had been done by all, they took
the cord and brazier, with a vessel of wine, and gave them to a man to
carry outside the town, with injunctions not to drink any of the wine,
and not to look behind him; with such ceremony the devil was
expelled.[1007] The yard was then swept clean, and some leaves of a
tree called _cihom_, and of another called _copo_, were scattered over
it. The priest now clothed himself in long gaudy-looking robes,
consisting, according to Landa, of a jacket of red feathers with
flowers of various colors embroidered thereon; hanging from the ends
were other long feathers, and on his head a coronet of plumes. From
beneath the jacket long bands of cotton hung down to the ground. In
his hand he held some hyssop fastened to a short stick. The chacs then
put white cloths upon the children's heads and asked the elder if they
had committed any sins; such as confessed that they had, were then
placed apart. The priest then ordered the people to sit down and be
silent; he next blessed the boys, and offering up some prayers,
purified them with the hyssop with much solemnity. The principal
officer who had been elected by the fathers, now took a bone, and
having dipped it in a certain water, moistened their foreheads, their
features, and their fingers and toes.[1008] After they had been thus
sprinkled with water the priest arose and removed the cloths from the
heads of the children, and then cut off with a stone knife a certain
bead that was attached to the head from childhood; they were then
given by one of the assistants some flowers to smell, and a pipe
through which they drew some smoke, after which they were each
presented with a little food, and a vessel full of wine was brought as
an offering to the gods, who were entreated to receive it as a
thanksgiving from the boys; it was then handed to one of the
officials, who had to drink it at one draught. A similar ceremony took
place with the female children, at the conclusion of which their
mothers divested them of a cord, which was worn during their
childhood, fastened round the loins, having a small shell that hung in
front. The removal of this signified that they could marry as soon as
their parents permitted.[1009] The children were then dismissed, and
their fathers distributed presents among those who had assisted at the
ceremony. A grand banquet called _emku_, or 'the descent of god,' was
then held, and during the nine succeeding days the fathers of the
children fasted, and were not to approach their wives.[1010]
[Sidenote: DOMESTIC DISCIPLINE.]
The Nicaraguan husbands are said to have been so much under the
control of their wives that they were obliged to do the housework
while the women attended to the trading. The latter were, moreover,
great shrews, and would on the slightest provocation drive their
offending husbands out of the house; we are told that it was no
unusual occurrence for the neighbors to be suddenly called in to
appease some unfortunate man's Xanthippe.[1011] The women of Yucatan
were renowned for their modesty and conjugal faithfulness. Landa, one
of the first bishops of Yucatan, relates an anecdote illustrating this
trait. Alonso Lopez de Avila, during the war against Bacalar, took
prisoner a very beautiful Indian girl. Struck by her beauty the captor
endeavored by all means to induce her to gratify his desires, but in
vain. She had promised her warrior-husband, who during those perilous
times was constantly face to face with death, that none but he should
ever call her wife; how then, while perhaps he yet lived, could she
become another's mistress. But such arguments did not quench the
Spaniard's lust, and as she remained steadfast, he ordered her to be
cast among the bloodhounds, who devoured her--a martyr at the hands of
the men who pretended to preach Jesus Christ, and him crucified.[1012]
FOOTNOTES:
[933] They were taught, says Las Casas, 'que honrasen á los padres y
les fuesen obedientes; que no tuviesen codicia de muchos bienes; que
no adulterasen con muger agena; que no fornicasen, ni llegasen á
muger, sino á la que fuese suya; que no mirasen á las mugeres para
codiciarlas, diciendo que no traspasasen umbral ageno; que si
anduviesen de noche por el pueblo, que llevasen lumbre en la mano; que
siguiesen su camino derecho, que no bajasen de camino, ni subiesen
tampoco del; que á los ciegos no les pusiesen ofendiculo para que
cayesen; á los lisiados no escarneciesen y de los locos no se riesen,
porque todo aquello era malo; que trabajen y no estubiesen ociosos; y
para esto desde niños les enseñavan como havian de hacer las
sementeras y como beneficiallas y cogellas.' _Kingsborough's Mex.
Antiq._, vol. viii., p. 132. Brasseur de Bourbourg remarks that the
respectful term of _you_ instead of _thou_, is frequently used by
children when addressing their parents, in the Popol Vuh. _Popol Vuh_,
p. 96. The old people 'eran tan estimados en esto que los moços no
tratavan con viejos, sino era en cosas inevitables, y los moços por
casar; con los casados sino muy poco.' _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 178.
[934] 'Dormian en los portales no solo cuando hacian su ayuno, mas aun
casi todo el año, porque no les era permitido tratar ni saber de los
negocios de los casados, ni aun sabian cuando habian de casarse, hasta
el tiempo que les presentaban las mugeres, porque eran muy sujetos y
obedientes á sus padres. Cuando aquestos mancebos iban á sus casas a
ver á sus padres ... tenian su cuenta de que no hablasen los padres
cosa que fuese menos honesta.' _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, p. 181.
[935] _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 178.
[936] _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apologética_, MS., cap. clxxix.; _Brasseur
de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 569.
[937] _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 180.
[938] _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. xiv.;
_Juarros_, _Hist. Guat._, p. 195.
[939] _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 569.
[940] _Juarros_, _Hist. Guat._, p. 87; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 569.
[941] _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, p. 194; _Juarros_, _Hist. Guat._,
p. 195; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 569.
[942] _Landa_, _Relacion_, pp. 42-4; _Carrillo_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog.,
Boletin_, 2da época, tom. iii., p. 269; _Morelet_, _Voyage_, tom. i.,
p. 191; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., pp.
61-2.
[943] _Dávila_, _Teatro Ecles._, tom. i., p. 203; _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 52; Herrera, _Hist. Gen._,
dec. iv., lib. x., cap. iv., says that in later times they married at
twelve or fourteen.
[944] _Las Casas_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. viii., p.
135.
[945] _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, p. 208. This is the same passage
that Brasseur de Bourbourg, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 572, cites
as _Roman_, _Rep. Ind._, tom. ii., cap. x.
[946] 'Los Indios de la Vera-Paz muchas veces, segun el Parentesco,
que vsaban, era fuerça que casasen Hermanos con Hermanas, y era la
raçon esta: Acostumbraban no casar los de vn Tribu, ò Pueblo, con las
Mugeres del mismo Pueblo, y las buscaban, que fuesen de otro; porque
no contaban por de su Familia, y Parentesco los Hijos que nacian en el
Tribu ò Linage ageno, aunque la Muger huviese procedido de su mismo
Linage; y era la raçon, porque aquel Parentesco se atribuìa à solo los
Hombres. Por manera, que si algun Señor daba su Hija à otro de otro
Pueblo, aunque no tuviese otro heredero este Señor, sino solos los
Nietos, Hijos de su Hija, no los reconocia por Nietos, ni Parientes,
en raçon de hacerlos herederos, por ser Hijos del otro Señor de otros
Pueblos y asi se le buscaba al tal Señor, Muger que fuese de otro
Pueblo, y no de el proprio. Y asi sucedia, que los Hijos de estas
Mugeres, no tenian por Parientes à los Deudos de su Madre, por estàr
en otro Pueblo, y esto se entiende, en quanto à casarse con ellas, que
lo tenian por licito, aunque en lo demàs se reconocian. Y porque la
cuenta de su Parentesco era entre solos los Hombres, y no por parte de
las Mugeres. Y por esto no tenian impedimento, para casarse, con los
tales Parientes; y asi se casaban con todos los grados de
Consanguinidad, porque mas por Hermana tenian qualquiera Muger de su
Linage, aunque fuese remotisima, y no tuviese memoria del grado, en
que le tocaba, que la Hija de su propia Madre, como fuese havida de
otro Marido, y por este error se casaban, con las Hermanas de Madre, y
no de Padre.' _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 419.
[947] _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 572.
[948] _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 419.
[949] 'En lo que tocava al parentesco, tenian un arbol pintado, i en
el siete ramos que signifacava siete grados de parentesco. En estos
grados no se podia casar nadie, i esto se entendia por linea recta si
no fuese que alguno huviese fecho algun gran fecho en armas, i havia
de ser del tercero grado fuera; i por linea traversa tenia otro arbol
con quatro ramos que significaban el quarto grado, en estos no se
podia casar nadie.... Qualquiera que tenia quenta carnal con parienta
en los grados susodichos morian por ello ambos.' _Palacio_, _Carta_,
p. 80; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. viii., cap. x.;
_Squier's Cent. Amer._, p. 334.
[950] _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. iv.; _Landa_,
_Relacion_, pp. 134-6, 140; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat.
Civ._, tom. ii., p. 61.
[951] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 419; _Squier's
Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 343.
[952] _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 570.
[953] _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 53.
'Los dotes eran de vestidos, y cosas de poca sustancia, lo mas se
gastaua en los combites.' _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x.,
cap. iv.
[954] _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p. 50; _Squier's Nicaragua_,
(Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 343.
[955] _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, pp. 204-6; _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., pp. 569-71.
[956] _Palacio_, _Carta_, p. 78; _Squier's Cent. Amer._, p. 321.
[957] _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, fol. 263; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec.
iii., lib. iv., cap. vii.; _Squier's Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii.,
p. 343.
[958] 'Haziase vna platica de como se auia tratado, y mirado aquel
casamiento, y que quadraua: hecha la platica el Sacerdote sahumaua la
casa; y con oraciones bendezia a los nouios, y quedauan casados.'
_Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. iv.
[959] _Ib._; _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 142.
[960] 'Llegada á casa, luego la ponian y asentaban en un tálamo bien
aderezado, y comenzaban grandes bailes y cantares y otros regocijos
muchos, con que la fiesta era muy solemne.' _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind.
Guat._, p. 206; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii.,
pp. 570-1.
[961] 'Sin él ninguno se casaba.' _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant. Mej._, tom.
i., p. 183; _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yuc._, p. 191; _Juarros_, _Hist.
Guat._, p. 196.
[962] 'A la noche, dos mugeres honradas y viejas metíanlos en una
pieza, y enseñàbanlos como habian de haberse en el matrimonio.'
_Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, p. 206.
[963] Palacio says they were each wrapped in a new white mantle.
'Ambos los enbolvian cada qual en su manta blanca nueva.' _Carta_, p.
78. See also _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. viii., cap. x.;
_Squier's Cent. Amer._, p. 333.
[964] 'Si la tomo por virgen, y la halla corrompida, desecha la, mas
no de otra manera.' _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, fol. 263; _Oviedo_, _Hist.
Gen._, tom. iv., p. 49.
[965] 'Los novios se están quedos, mirando cómo aquella poca tea se
quema; é acabada, quedan casados é ponen en efetto lo demás.'
_Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p. 50. 'En muriendose la lumbre,
quedan casados.' _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, fol. 263; _Squier's
Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 343; _Boyle's Ride_, vol. i., p.
273.
[966] 'La noche ántes habia de dormir con la novia uno que tenian por
papa.' _Andagoya_, in _Navarrete_, _Col. de Viages_, tom. iii., p.
414; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. v., cap. xii. Oviedo
perhaps alludes to this custom when he says: 'Muchos hay que quieren
más las corrompidas que no las vírgenes.' _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p.
50; _Malte-Brun_, _Précis de la Géog._, tom. vi., p. 472.
[967] 'Comunmente estas gentes compraban la muger, y aquellos dones
que llevaban, era el precio, y así la muger jamas volvía á casa de sus
padres aunque enviudase; porque luego el hermano del muerto la tomaba
por muger _aunque él fuese casado_, y si el hermano no era para ello,
un pariente tenia derecho á ella. Los hijos de las tales mugeres no
tenian por deudos á los tales abuelos, ni á los demas deudos de las
madres, porque la cuenta de su parentesco venia por linea de varones,
y así no tenian impedimentos para casarse con los parientes de sus
madres, esto se entiende para contraer matrimonio; que en lo demas
amábanse y queríanse unos à otros.' _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, p.
207; _Las Casas_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. viii., p. 146;
_Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 388; _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., pp. 571-2.
[968] 'No se casavan despues de viudos un año, por no conocer hombre a
muger en aquel tiempo, y a los que esto no guardavan, tenian por poco
templados y que les vendria por esso algun mal.' _Landa_, _Relacion_,
p. 156.
[969] _Diaz_, _Itinéraire_, in _Ternaux-Compans_, _Voy._, série i.,
tom. x., p. 13. 'Todos toman muchas mugeres, empero vna es la
legitima,' says Gomara, _Hist. Ind._, fol. 263, in speaking of
Nicaragua. 'Comunmente cada uno tiene una sola muger, é pocos son los
que tienen más, exçepto los prinçipales ó el que puede dar de comer á
más mugeres; é los caçiques quantas quieren.' _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._,
tom. iv., p. 37. The word 'muger' evidently means women who lived with
the man, the wife and concubines, for, on p. 50, it is stated that
only one legitimate wife was allowed. The punishment for bigamy helps
to bear this out. _Villagutierre_, _Hist. Conq. Itza_, pp. 310, 499.
'Nunca los yucataneses tomaron mas de una.' _Landa_, _Relacion_, pp.
142, 341. This view is also taken by Cogolludo, _Hist. Yuc._, p. 193,
who adds, however: 'Contradize Aguilar en su informe lo de vna muger
sola, diziendo, que tenian muchas;' but this may refer to concubines.
Brasseur de Bourbourg, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 55, says: 'La
pluralité des femmes étant admises par la loi,' and gives _Herrera_,
_Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. iv., as his authority; but this
author merely refers to concubinage as being lawful.
[970] _Landa_, _Relacion_, pp. 138-40. 'Tenian grandes pendencias, y
muertes sobre ello,' says Herrera, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x.,
cap. iv., referring to their married life.
[971] _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p. 50; _Las Casas_, in
_Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. viii., p. 146; _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 572.
[972] _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apologética_, in _Kingsborough's Mex.
Antiq._, vol. viii., pp. 137-8.
[973] _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 572.
[974] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 387. 'Acontecio
quexarse vn Indio contra vn Alcalde de su nacion, que sin pedimento
suyo hauia castigado a su muger por ocho adulterios, y hechole pagar a
el la condenacion, de manera que aliende de su afrenta, le lleuaua su
dinero.' _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. viii., cap. viii.
'Cuando queria que la muger se huia y se iba con otro, ó por sencillas
se volvia en casa de sus padres, requeríala el marido que volviese, y
si no queria, él se podia casar luego con otra, porque en este caso
las mugeres eran poderosas y libres. Algunos sufrian un año
aguardándolas; pero lo comun era casarse luego, porque no podian vivir
sin mugeres, á causa de no tener quien les guisese de comer.'
_Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, p. 200.
[975] _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yuc._, p. 699.
[976] 'Quando las mugeres eran halladas en adulterio, la primera vez
eran corregidas de palabra; y si no se enmendaban, repudiábanlas; y si
era Señor, hermano ó pariente del Señor de la tierra, luego en
dejándola, se podia casarse con quien quisiere. Los vasallos hacian
tambien esto muchas veces, pero tenian un poco de mas paciencia,
porque las corregian dos y cinco veces, y llamaban á sus parientes
para que las reprehendiesen. Pero si eran incorregibles, denunciaban
ellas delante del Señor, el cual las mandaba comparecer ante sí y
hacianlas esclavas, y la misma pena se daba á las que no querian hacer
vida con sus maridos.' _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, pp. 208-9.
[977] Oviedo asserts that the husband avenged his own honor. The Friar
asks: '¿Qué pena le dan al adúltero, que se echa con la muger de
otro?' The Indian answers: 'El marido della riñe con él é le da de
palos; pero no lo mata.' _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p. 50. Squier,
_Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 343, says that the woman was
also severely flogged, but this does not seem to have been the case.
See _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, fol. 263; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec.
iii., lib. iv., cap. vii.; _Boyle's Ride_, vol. i., p. 273.
[978] _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yuc._, p. 182; _Landa_, _Relacion_, pp. 48,
176; _Ternaux-Compans_, in _Nouvelles Annales des Voy._, 1843, tom.
xcvii., p. 46; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. ii.;
_Fancourt's Hist. Yuc._, p. 117.
[979] _Carta_, p. 80.
[980] _Cent. Amer._, p. 334.
[981] _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apologética_, MS., in _Kingsborough's Mex.
Antiq._, vol. viii., pp. 137, 144; _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom.
ii., p. 387.
[982] _Las Casas_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. viii., p.
144; _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 388.
[983] _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yuc._, p. 182.
[984] _Las Casas_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. viii., p.
144; _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 388; _Herrera_, _Hist.
Gen._, dec. iv., lib. viii., cap. x.; _Palacio_, _Carta_, p. 82;
_Squier's Cent. Amer._, p. 334.
[985] _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, fol. 263; _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom.
iv., p. 51; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. iv., cap. vii.;
_Squier's Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 343.
[986] _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p. 51; _Squier's Nicaragua_,
(Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 343.
[987] _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. i., pp. 252, 316, tom. iv., pp. 37,
51; _Gomara_, _Hist. Ind._, fol. 263-4; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec.
iii., lib. iv., cap. vii.; _Müller_, _Amerikanische Urreligionen_, p.
663; _Squier's Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., pp. 343-4; _Boyle's
Ride_, vol. i., p. 273. 'Dado que e vido que en otras partes de las
Indias usavan del nefando peccado en estas tales casas, en esta tierra
(Yucatan) no e entendido que hiziessen tal, ni creo lo hazian, porque
los llagados desta pestilencial miseria dizen que no son amigos de
mugeres como eran estos, ca a estos lugares llevavan las malas mugeres
publicas, y en ellos usavan dellas, y las pobres que entre esta gente
acertava a tener este officio no obstante que recibian dellos
gualardon, eran tantos los mocos que a ellas acudian que las traian
acossadas y muertas.' _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 178.
[988] _Andagoya_, in _Navarrete_, _Col. de Viajes_, tom. iii., p. 414;
_Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. v., cap. xii.; _Squier's
Nicaragua_, (Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 344; _Boyle's Ride_, vol. i., pp.
273-4.
[989] A demon, Las Casas calls him, but these monks spoke of all the
New World deities as 'demons.'
[990] _Las Casas_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. viii., p.
138. Before this he writes: 'Y es aqui de saber, que tenian por grave
pecado el de la sodomia como abajo dirémos, y comunmente los padres lo
aborrecian y prohibian á los hijos. Pero por causa de que fuesen
instruidos en la religion, mandavanles dormir en los templos donde los
mozos mayores en aquel vicio á los niños corrompian. Y despues salidos
de alli mal acostumbrados, dificil era librarlos de aquel vicio. Por
esta causa eran los padres muy solicitos de casarlos quan presto
podian, por los apartar de aquella corrupcion vilissima aunque
casallos muchachos contra su voluntad y forzados, y solamente por
aquel respeto lo hacian.' _Id._, pp. 134-5.
[991] _Cogolludo_, _Hist. Yuc._, p. 180.
[992] 'Otro acerrimo infamador de estas naciones, que Dios Nuestro
Señor haya, en cuya historia creo yo que tuvo Dios harto poca parte,
dixo ser indicio notorio de que aquellas gentes eran contaminadas del
vicio nefando por haver hallado en cierta parte de aquella tierra,
hechos de barro ciertos idolos uno encima de otro. Como si entre
nuestros pintores ó figulos no se finjan cada dia figuras feas y de
diversos actos, que no hay sopecha por nadie obrarse, condenarlos
todos por aquello, haciendolos reos de vicio tan indigno de se hablar,
no carece de muy culpable temeridad, y asi lo que ariba dije tengo por
la verdad, y lo demas por falsos testimonios dignos de divino
castigo.' _Las Casas_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. viii., p.
147.
[993] _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., p. 51; _Squier's Nicaragua_,
(Ed. 1856,) vol. ii., p. 343.
[994] 'Que comiesen el pan seco ó solo maiz, ó que estuviesen tantos
dias en el campo metidos en alguna cueva.' _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind.
Guat._, p. 193.
[995] _Palacio_, _Carta_, p. 78.
[996] In Vera Paz 'las mugeres paren como cabras, muchas vezes a
solas, tendidas en el suelo: otras por los caminos, y luego se van a
lauar al rio.' _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x., cap. xiv.;
_Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 192.
[997] 'Le hazian dezir sus pecados i si no paria, hazia que se
confesase el marido, i si no podia con esto, si havia dicho i
confesado que conofia alguno, ivan á casa de aquel i traian de su casa
la manta é pañetes i ceiñola á la preñada paraque pariese.' _Palacio_,
_Carta_, p. 76; _Las Casas_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol.
viii., p. 139.
[998] It would seem that the child remained with the navel-string
attached to it until a favorable day was selected for performing the
ceremony of cutting it. 'Echaban suertes para ver que dia seria bueno
para cortar el ombligo.' And further on: 'Muchos tribus de indios de
Centro-America conservan hasta hoy al nacimiento de un niño el uso de
quemarle el ombligo; costumbre barbara de que mueron muchos niños.'
This would indicate that the cord was burned while attached to the
infant. _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, pp. 193-4; _Torquemada_,
_Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 448.
[999] In Cezori 'ciertos Indios idolatraron en un monte en sus
terminos, i entre ellos que uno se harpó i hendió su miembro, i que
circuncidaron quatro muchachos de doze años para arriba al uso
judaico, i la sangre que salio dellos la sacrificaron á un idolo.'
_Palacio_, _Carta_, p. 84. 'Se harpavan el superfluo del miembro
vergonçoso, dexandolo como las orejas, de lo qual se engaño el
historiador general de las Indias, diziendo que se circumcidian.'
_Landa_, _Relacion_, pp. 162-3. 'Ni aquellos Religiosos Dominicos, ni
el Obispo de Chiapa, haziendo tan particular inquisicion, hazen
memoria de auer hallado tal cosa ... los Indios, ni estos tienen
tradicion de que vsassen tal costumbre sus ascendientes.' _Cogolludo_,
_Hist. Yuc._, p. 191. 'They are Circumcised, but not all.' _Peter
Martyr_, dec. iv., lib. i. Circumcision was 'un usage général dans
l'Yucatan, observé de temps immémorial: elle était pratiquée sur les
petits enfants dès les premiers jours de leur naissance.' _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 51. This positive and
isolated assertion of the Abbé must be founded upon some of his MSS.,
as usual.
[1000] 'Cortarban ramos verdes en que pisase.' _Palacio_, _Carta_, p.
76.
[1001] Brasseur de Bourbourg, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 568,
refers only to the first-born. 'Dabanle el nombre del Dia, en que
havia nacido, ò segun lo que precediò en su Nacimiento.' _Torquemada_,
_Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 448. _Ximenez_, _Hist. Ind. Guat._, p.
193.
[1002] _Hist. Apologética_, MS., cap. clxxix.
[1003] 'A sus hijos y hijas siempre llamavan del nombre del padre y de
la madre, el del padre como propio y de la madre apellativo.' The
pre-baptismal name was abandoned when the father's name was assumed.
_Landa_, _Relacion_, pp. 136, 194. Only the few who were destined to
receive the baptism obtained the distinctive name. _Medel_, in
_Nouvelles Annales des Voy._, 1843, tom. xcvii., pp. 44-5;
_Villagutierre_, _Hist. Conq. Itza_, p. 489.
[1004] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 448. Palacio,
_Carta_, p. 76, states that this ceremony was performed after the
twelfth day, and that the mother only was taken to be bathed.
_Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. viii., cap. x., and _Squier's
Cent. Amer._, p. 333; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom.
ii., p. 568.
[1005] 'Allanarles las frentes y cabeças.' 'Comunmente todos
estevados, porque ... van ahorcajados en los quadriles.' _Landa_,
_Relacion_, pp. 192-4, 112; _Juarros_, _Hist. Guat._, p. 195.
[1006] _Chác_ or _Chaac_, was the title given to certain laymen who
were elected to assist the priest in some of his religious duties.
Also the name of a divinity, protector of the water and harvests. See
_Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 485.
[1007] Who was selected to take the wine, brazier, and cord outside
the town, or what he did with it afterwards, we are not told.
Cogolludo says: 'Daban à vn Indio vn vaso del vino que acostumbraban
beber, y embiabanle fuera del Pueblo con èl, mandandole, que ni lo
bebiesse, ni mirasse atràs, con que creìan quedaba totalmente expulso
el demonio.' _Hist. Yuc._, p. 191. 'En un vaso enviaban vino fuera del
pueblo, con órden al indio que no lo bebiese ni mirase atras, y con
esto pensaban que habian echado al demonio.' _Veytia_, _Hist. Ant.
Mej._, tom. i., p. 183; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iv., lib. x.,
cap. iv.
[1008] 'Esta agua hazian de ciertas flores y de cacao mojado y
desleido con agua virgen que ellos dezian traida de los concavos de
los arboles o de los montes.' _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 150.
[1009] 'Los varoncillos usavanles siempre poner pegada a la cabeça en
los cabellos de la coronilla una contezuela blanca, y a las muchachas
traian ceñidas por las renes muy abaxo con un cordel delgado y en el
una conchuela asida que les venia a dar encima de la parte honesta, y
destas dos cosas era entre ellos peccado y cosa muy fea quitarla de
las mochachas antes del baptismo.' _Landa_, _Relacion_, pp. 144, 146.
[1010] Brasseur de Bourbourg says they feasted nine days: 'Tous
ensemble, prêtres et parents, festoyaient après cela, pendant neuf
jours, les pères étant obligés, durant cet intervalle, de s'abstenir
de leurs femmes.' _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. ii., p. 52. He appears to
have misunderstood Cogolludo, to whom he refers, since that author's
words are, 'acabando la fiesta en banquetes, y en los nueve dias
siguientes no auian de llegar à sus mugeres los padres de los niños.'
_Hist. Yuc._, p. 191. 'Allende de los tres dias que se avia, como por
ayuno, abstenido, se avia de abstener nueve mas y lo hazian
inviolablemente.' _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 154. See further: _Veytia_,
_Hist. Ant. Mej._, tom. i., pp. 182-3; _Dávila_, _Teatro Ecles._, tom.
i., p. 205; _Laet_, _Novus Orbis_, p. 272; _Ternaux-Compans_, in
_Nouvelles Annales des Voy._, 1843, tom. xcvii., pp. 44-5.
[1011] _Andagoya_, in _Navarrete_, _Col. de Viajes_, tom. iii., p.
414; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. iv., cap. vii., lib. v.,
cap. xii.; _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iv., pp. 39, 61, 103;
_Malte-Brun_, _Précis de la Géog._, tom. vi., p. 472; _Gomara_, _Hist.
Ind._, fol. 263. In Guatemala 'il est à remarquer ici que quand il
s'agit simultanément d'hommes et de femmes dans le discours, les
femmes ont presque toujours la préséance sur les hommes.' 'C'est
peut-être en mémoire de la mère de Hun-Ahpu que les femmes-chefs en
bien des contrées devaient leurs prérogatives.' _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Popol Vuh_, pp. 93-4. In Yucatan the women 'son zelosas y
algunas tanto que ponian las manos a las de quien tenian zelos, y tan
colericas, enojadas, aunque harto mansas, que solian dar buelta de
pelo algunas a los maridos con hazerlo ellos pocas vezes.' _Landa_,
_Relacion_, pp. 188, 190. The women of Yucatan had, however, their
duties to perform. 'Son grandes travajadoras y vividoras, porque
dellas cuelgan los mayores y mas trabajos de la sustentacion de sus
casas y educacion de sus hijos, y paga de sus tributos y con todo esso
si es menester llevan algunas vezes mayor carga, labrando y sembrando
sus mantenimientos. Son a maravilla grangeras, velando de noche el
rato que de servir sus casas les queda, yendo a los mercados a comprar
y vender sus cosillas.'... The women joined and aided one another in
the work, as weaving, etc. 'Elles avaient leurs saillies et leurs bons
mots pour railler et conter des aventures et par moment aussi pour
murmurer de leurs maris.' _Id._, p. 190.
[1012] _Landa_, _Relacion_, p. 186.