AFFAIRS IN HONDURAS.
1537-1549.
FRANCISCO DE MONTEJO APPOINTED GOVERNOR—REVOLT OF THE CACIQUE
LEMPIRA—DASTARDLY ARTIFICE OF THE SPANIARDS—ESTABLISHMENT
OF NEW COLONIES—CONDITION OF THE SETTLEMENTS—MINING IN
HONDURAS—RETURN OF PEDRO DE ALVARADO—MONTEJO DEPOSED FROM
OFFICE—ALONSO DE MALDONADO THE FIRST PRESIDENT OF THE
AUDIENCIA OF THE CONFINES—MALTREATMENT OF THE NATIVES—RIVAL
PRELATES IN HONDURAS—THEIR DISPUTES—LAS CASAS PRESENTS A
MEMORIAL TO THE AUDIENCIA—HE IS INSULTED BY THE OIDORES—HIS
DEPARTURE FOR CHIAPAS—MALDONADO'S GREED—HE IS SUPERSEDED BY
ALONSO LOPEZ DE CERRATO—THE SEAT OF THE AUDIENCIA MOVED TO
SANTIAGO DE GUATEMALA.
In answer to the petition of the settlers at Trujillo, the emperor
appointed as ruler of Honduras and Higueras Francisco de Montejo,
the governor of Yucatan. It is not recorded that he brought with him
either reënforcements or supplies in aid of the fast decaying colony.
On his arrival he found a small band of starving men, destitute of
all resources. The Spaniards who were able to make their way out of
the province had already taken their departure. Even Juan de Chavez,
appointed by Alvarado as his successor, not finding in Honduras any
profitable field for his enterprise, had abandoned the territory and
returned to Guatemala.[XVII‑1] The governor first proceeded to San Pedro
del Puerto de Caballos, where he at once annulled the repartimientos
granted by Alvarado, bestowing them on his friends or appropriating them
to his own use,[XVII‑2] and despatched an expedition to the neighboring
sierra for the purpose of pacifying the Indians. As no attempt was
made to enslave or maltreat them, many returned voluntarily to the
settlement. Montejo then visited Gracias á Dios, where he ascertained
that certain Spaniards, journeying from Comayagua toward Guatemala, had
been murdered by the natives in the province of Cerquin. He repaired to
the spot, and arresting the ringleaders caused them to be punished in
the presence of their caciques, who were then dismissed to their homes,
professing to be satisfied that their penalty was deserved.
[Sidenote: LEMPIRA AND HIS STRONGHOLD.]
But their satisfaction was only feigned, and the colonists, who
now imagined that they had established friendly relations with the
Indians, were quickly undeceived. The most warlike and implacable of
their enemies was the chief Lempira, a name signifying the Lord of the
Mountains. He had long been a terror to the settlers, and a warrior of
note among his own countrymen. With his own hand he was reputed to have
slain in a single conflict with a hostile tribe one hundred and twenty
of his foes. Such was the terror which his presence inspired that his
enemies fled before him as from one bearing a charmed life, for in all
the innumerable battles which he had fought he had never received a
wound. Occupying a stronghold, known as the rock of Cerquin, in close
proximity to Gracias á Dios,[XVII‑3] he had bid defiance to Alvarado
when on his way to the relief of Cereceda at the head of a strong party
of Spaniards and two thousand friendly natives. Juan de Chavez before
his return to Guatemala had attacked Lempira's fortress with all the
forces he could muster, but was foiled in his attempt, and the natives
now believed their position to be impregnable.
Fired with the ambition to deliver his country, the cacique assembled
the neighboring chieftains—their followers mustering in all some
thirty thousand warriors—and invited them to join him in an effort
to exterminate the invaders. He pointed out the disgrace of allowing
themselves to be held in subjection by a handful of strangers, urged
them to take arms against the Spaniards, and offering to place himself
at their head promised to lead them to victory or lay down his life in
the attempt. It was resolved to open hostilities at once, and a number
of settlers were killed before any tidings of the revolt reached Gracias
á Dios. Captain Cáceres with a well equipped force was despatched
by Montejo to quell the insurrection, whereupon Lempira retired to
his stronghold and put to death the messengers sent to require his
surrender, stating that he acknowledged no master and obeyed no laws
other than those of his own people.
Cáceres then laid siege to the place, but although assistance was
summoned from Comayagua and San Pedro del Puerto de Caballos the Indians
made good their defence. For six months the Spaniards beleaguered the
fortress, their numbers rapidly diminishing from want, exposure, and
ceaseless encounters with the natives. So untiring were the latter in
their efforts that the besiegers, who were divided into eight parties,
found little time to rest, being harassed day and night by sorties
from the garrison. At length Cáceres, seeing no prospect of taking the
stronghold, resolved to gain by a base stratagem the success which he
had failed to win by force of arms. A horseman was ordered to approach
within arquebuse-shot of the rock and summon Lempira to a colloquy
under pretence of opening negotiations for peace, while a foot soldier
who accompanied him, screened from view by the mounted man, was bid
to take deliberate aim at the cacique and fire upon him when sure
of his mark. The artifice succeeded only too well. The unsuspecting
chieftain came forth to meet the messenger and while held in parley
was brought to the ground by a shot from the arquebusier. His lifeless
body rolled over the rock, and his followers, panic-stricken, made no
further resistance, most of them taking to flight, and the rest giving
themselves up to the Spaniards.[XVII‑4] It is but just to add that the
captives were well treated and that the governor, who does not appear to
have been responsible for this outrage, succeeded by his humane policy
in pacifying many of the fugitives and inducing them to return to their
abodes and till the soil.
During the administration of Montejo the settlers of Honduras
again enjoyed an interval of repose,[XVII‑5] though his conduct was
distasteful to many of the colonists, who still remembered with regret
the time when slave-hunting was permitted throughout the territory.
The arrival at Gracias á Dios, in 1538, of the licentiate Cristóbal de
Pedraza, bearing the title of protector of the Indians, was of material
service to the governor in settling the many difficulties that arose
with the encomenderos. He was cordially welcomed and received every
assistance in the discharge of his duties.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: INTEROCEANIC HIGHWAY.]
Montejo now turned his attention to the construction of roads and the
development of the resources of his province which had already given
promise of a prosperous future. Wheat had been successfully cultivated
and the prospects of a largely increased production were encouraging,
while the same favorable results had attended the planting of the
vine. In 1539 the governor addressed a letter to the emperor, urging
the expediency of constructing a road for pack-animals between the
bay of Fonseca and Puerto de Caballos, by way of Comayagua. The whole
distance was but fifty-two leagues, and it was pointed out that the
road might afterward be improved, so as to be available for wheeled
vehicles. It was claimed that this would prove a more favorable route
for the transport of merchandise between Spain and Peru than that by
way of Nombre de Dios and Panamá, the harbors on either side being
safe and easily accessible. The country through which it was to pass,
moreover, possessed an excellent climate, rich mines, a fruitful soil,
good pasturage, and many fine streams of water. His Majesty was asked
to furnish negroes for the prosecution of the work, as the natives were
not to be relied on for such labor. A few of the colonists were soon
afterward induced to form a settlement near the spot abandoned by Gil
Gonzales Dávila and Sandoval's party.[XVII‑6] To this was given the
name of San Juan del Puerto de Caballos. The site was in many respects
favorable for a commercial emporium, but its sickly climate was already
too well known to the Spaniards.
Soon after the Indian revolt, which terminated with the death of
Lempira, the governor determined to establish a settlement in the
district of Comayagua, and with that view despatched Cáceres to find a
suitable location midway between the two oceans. A spot was selected in
the centre of a fertile valley, distant about twenty-six leagues from
either sea, and connected by a good road with an Indian village, whence
a navigable river flowed northward toward Puerto de Caballos. Here was
founded, in 1539, the town of Comayagua,[XVII‑7] and so prosperous were
the affairs of the new colony that a few years later[XVII‑8] it was
raised to the rank of a city.
The settlements founded by the early colonists of Honduras were slow
of growth. In a letter addressed by Pedraza to the audiencia of the
Confines, dated May 1, 1547, he states that the seven Spanish towns
which the province then contained[XVII‑9] "were always increasing as
were the villages;" and yet we find that Trujillo, which had then become
the largest of them, contained but fifty settlers, while none of the
others numbered more than thirty. The absence of communication with the
South Sea, and the distance from the highways of commerce between Spain
and the new world, no doubt retarded greatly the increase of population;
for the agricultural and mineral resources of the territory were not
inferior to those of other provinces which contained more than ten times
the number of inhabitants. The want of good roads and of facilities for
travel was also a serious drawback; and it is probable that to make a
tour of the different settlements in Honduras, all lying within a radius
of less than forty leagues, occupied, in the middle of the sixteenth
century, almost as much time as would now be required to accomplish the
circuit of the globe.[XVII‑10]
[Sidenote: GOLD-MINING.]
The mines of Honduras had already begun to yield a moderate amount of
treasure, and but for the wholesale destruction of the natives and the
want of negro labor could have been made to produce far greater returns.
As far back as the days of Pedrarias Dávila it was known that those in
the Olancho valley were extremely rich, but for want of the necessary
tools they could not be worked. With only their stirrup irons the
Spaniards in two months scraped up gold to the value of sixteen thousand
pesos de oro, and "with proper implements," Herrera states, "they might
have taken out two hundred thousand pesos." The early prosperity of
Gracias á Dios was due to the discovery of rich mines in its vicinity,
and it soon became one of the most prosperous settlements in the
province. The richest one was that of San Andrés de Nueva Zaragoza, in a
mountain west of the town and east of the Copan valley. Gold could here
be scratched out of the earth with a stick. In another mine, belonging
to one Bartolomé Martin de Sanabria, more than a pound of gold was daily
collected by himself and a single slave. Later the yield became so large
that alcaldes mayores were appointed to collect the royal fifth, with
power to compel one fourth of the Indians within a circuit of twelve
miles to labor in them. "Near Comayagua," says Oviedo, "they took out
and smelted ore which yielded sixty thousand pesos de oro, and forty
thousand more were supposed to have been stolen."[XVII‑11]
While Montejo was engaged in various projects for promoting the welfare
of the province, Pedro de Alvarado arrived at Puerto de Caballos
in command of his powerful and well appointed force,[XVII‑12] and
proceeding thence to San Pedro del Puerto de Caballos, soon afterward
despatched a messenger to Gracias á Dios to notify the governor of
his arrival. Montejo was at a loss how to conduct himself under this
changed aspect of affairs. As ruler of Yucatan his career had been
unsuccessful, and in Honduras he found himself unpopular. With his few
and scattered followers ill-fed, ill-clad, and obliged to maintain a
constant struggle with the natives, he was in no position to cope with
a powerful rival. Although holding his authority by appointment from the
crown, he was ignorant as to what extent the visit of Alvarado to Spain
affected his government. He knew not what representations had been made
to the emperor by his rival and had every reason to fear that the worst
construction had been placed on his conduct. He had indeed never felt
quite secure in his position. More than a year before it had been the
intention of the crown, in answer to the petition sent from Trujillo, to
place Honduras under the jurisdiction of the audiencia of Española. This
measure had been abandoned only on account of the great distance and
infrequency of communication; and now after some previous negotiation
for an exchange of territory[XVII‑13] Alvarado had landed in person to
demand the annexation of his province to Guatemala. He had long before
expressed his opinion that Honduras could not stand alone, but that if
joined to the adjacent province it would contribute to the emperor's
treasury a hundred thousand castellaños yearly, whereas at that time it
yielded almost nothing.[XVII‑14] Montejo on the other hand had ridiculed
the other's views. "In the hour of trial," he said, "when the whole
country was overrun by hostile natives, he sent many urgent requests
to Guatemala for help, but aid was refused him, although he asked only
for the assistance of two hundred friendly Indians, and he had to fight
his battles as best he might." He declared his belief that if Honduras
were annexed to Guatemala, not an Indian would be found in the province
in a few months, and that in less than two years the territory would be
beggared.
[Sidenote: ALVARADO AND MONTEJO.]
After more than a month had elapsed since the despatch of his message
without any reply being received, Alvarado determined to set forth
toward Gracias á Dios; and, collecting his forces, marched in the
direction of the capital. Montejo meanwhile was ill at ease. He
knew well that any attempt at intimidation would but work his own
destruction, and yet was unwilling to throw himself on the generosity
of his rival. Acting on the advice of his friends, however, he resolved
to receive him courteously, and on his approach to the settlement went
forth to meet him. At a spot distant about fifteen leagues from the city
the rival governors met, and Montejo found that his worst fears were
more than realized. "His Majesty had been informed," said the conqueror
of Guatemala, "of the manner in which he had entered Honduras and of his
subsequent career, and was further advised that Alvarado had at great
cost and labor saved the province from destruction. It was therefore
ordered that Montejo should immediately deliver up all the property
which he had wrested from the people of the province and all revenues
received by him since his assumption of office."
* * * * *
Among the ecclesiastics then resident in Honduras was one already
mentioned whom Montejo styles "The padre Cristóbal de Pedraza, the
protector of the Indians, and calling himself bishop." His official
appointment to the see of Honduras Alvarado brought with him on
his return from Spain. When Pedraza first arrived in the province,
the governor received him cordially, placing at his disposal his
own residence and a large number of slaves. To him he now appealed
for aid in this his dire distress, and through the prelate's
intercession[XVII‑15] with Doña Beatriz matters were adjusted without
further dispute. The revenues derived from lands and mines during
the governor's term of office were estimated at twenty-eight thousand
ducats,[XVII‑16] and "of this sum," says Herrera, "Alvarado without
solicitation immediately remitted a moiety, and two months later was
easily persuaded to forgive the other half." It was agreed that Montejo
should surrender to him all claim to the government of Honduras and
Higueras, and that Alvarado should cede in return the Ciudad Real
de Chiapas and the town of Suchimilco in Mexico, giving also a money
compensation of two thousand castellanos.
[Sidenote: ALONSO DE CÁCERES.]
In a despatch to the emperor, written soon afterward, the ex-governor
complains bitterly of the wrongs which he had suffered through the
machinations of his enemies; but, as he himself remarks in his letter,
"a little favor at court is of more avail than the most faithful
service." The agreement was ratified by the crown, and about the close
of 1539 Montejo departed from the province after a brief and somewhat
inglorious career, while about the same time Alvarado returned to
Guatemala, leaving Alonso de Cáceres as his representative in Honduras,
and Pedraza a year or two later took ship for Spain where, after
some delay, he received the papal bull of confirmation and was duly
consecrated, occupying his time meanwhile by making contracts for negro
slaves in the name of the crown, with a view of utilizing their labor
in the development of the mines.[XVII‑17]
On his return to the province in 1545, the bishop[XVII‑18] undertook
a pastoral tour through the province, lasting eighteen months. He
complains bitterly of the hardships which he endured and of the
demoralized and poverty-stricken condition of the colonists. "The
natives," he says, "have nearly all fled to the mountains, being in
terror of the Spaniards, who have continued to enslave them for so many
years. Many Portuguese, Italians, and other foreigners have propagated
disease and vice among them so that even Indian maidens of tender age
are corrupted to a sad extent, while bigamy and polygamy are of frequent
occurrence." Valdivieso, who was residing at the time at Gracias á Dios,
awaiting consecration as bishop of Nicaragua, also relates that the
church was held in contempt, that the Spaniards were as a rule extremely
lax in their observance of all religious duties, and that they led a
more vicious life than had ever been known among Christians.
Though Pedraza brought with him from Spain a number of friars, they do
not seem to have been very zealous in the work of reforming the settlers
or converting the natives. At times many days passed during which no
divine service was held, and the cabildo attributed the omission to
the neglect of the bishop, "who," they said, "was too busy with his
worldly affairs to attend to his duties properly." The ecclesiastics
appear, however, to have been very successful in selling papal bulls
among the Indian villages, a practice which was continued till 1547,
when a royal cédula put an end to this shameful traffic. Their charges
for saying mass or for funeral services were exorbitant. To confess a
person residing at a distance of one league cost thirty castellanos,
and to watch for a single night by the bedside of a deceased cacique,
one hundred and thirty xiquipilli of cacao. Desirous of making at least
some show of missionary zeal the prelate recommended that a cathedral
be erected and schools established in all Indian towns which were in
the neighborhood of Spanish settlements. The former recommendation was
adopted, and notwithstanding the protestations of the audiencia of the
Confines, the site selected was at Trujillo,[XVII‑19] the bishop's
salary being fixed at five hundred thousand maravedís, though soon
afterward he petitioned that his stipend be increased to two thousand
ducats.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: AUDIENCIA DE LOS CONFINES.]
When the new code of laws abolished the audiencia of Panamá and
appointed the audiencia of the Confines,[XVII‑20] Alonso de Maldonado
was elected its first president[XVII‑21] through the recommendation
of Las Casas, the remaining oidores being the licentiates Diego de
Herrera, of whom mention has been made in connection with the province
of Nicaragua, Pedro Ramirez de Quiñones, and Juan Rogel. Maldonado was
directed to establish the seat of government at Comayagua, which was
thenceforth to be known as Nueva Villa de Valladolid, but finding that
location unsuitable he selected as a more favorable site Gracias á
Dios, where in 1545 the first session of the tribunal was held.[XVII‑22]
The arrival of Maldonado was celebrated with much rejoicing among the
settlers; but their joy was short-lived, for one of the first measures
of the audiencia was the publication of the new code of laws which,
they declared, was to be strictly and immediately enforced so far as it
related to the manumission of the Indians.
In Honduras the new code was regarded with no less disfavor than in the
other provinces, and it was probably due only to the sparse population
of this territory that we read of no such outbreak among the colonists
as that of Gonzalo Pizarro in Peru, and of the Contreras brothers in
Nicaragua. The settlers were fain to content themselves with making
ineffectual protests, and with sending procurators to advocate their
cause at the court of Spain. It does not appear that the natives were
at all benefited by the regulations enacted in their favor; for a
year or two later, on the arrival at Gracias á Dios of Las Casas and
Valdivieso, the former declares that despite all the royal ordinances to
the contrary, the Indians placed under the protection of the crown were
so grossly maltreated that they preferred to return to the service of
their former masters rather than enjoy their new and doubtful liberty.
* * * * *
On the first of June 1549 a royal cédula was issued ordering that the
natives should not be used as pack-carriers, except in cases of extreme
necessity, and that all employed in whatever capacity should receive
payment for their services. These regulations appear, however, to have
made their lot still more grievous, for the Spaniards, no longer owning
them as human chattels and caring not for their lives, treated them
even more harshly than before. At Gracias á Dios we learn that they were
offered for hire at public auction, and after being disposed of to the
highest bidder were sent to the mines or to the sea-shore forty miles
distant. They were driven together, Las Casas tells us, within a circuit
of ten or fifteen leagues, and a guard being placed over them, were
enclosed in a corral like cattle. They were then divided by an alguacil
among the settlers, and after working hard for a month received two
reales, sometimes being required to serve an entire year for a single
peso. When used as beasts of burden they were compelled to carry a load
of seventy-five or one hundred pounds through a country abounding in
swamp and forest. Their food consisted of a few hard cakes of maize, and
at night, their blankets being taken from them to prevent their running
away, they were often left to sleep in the open air almost naked and
without shelter.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: CHURCH AND STATE.]
In addition to Las Casas and Valdivieso, the latter of whom was
sojourning at the capital awaiting consecration as bishop of Nicaragua,
there were now present at Gracias á Dios the prelates Marroquin of
Guatemala, and Pedraza of Honduras.[XVII‑23] It was not of course to be
expected that all these dignitaries of the church should work in harmony
with each other, and much less with the members of the audiencia. While
Las Casas and Valdivieso strove to enforce the unconditional liberation
of all Indians, Marroquin and Pedraza, who themselves possessed several
encomiendas, were exceeding loath to part with them; and when Las
Casas threatened with excommunication all who should refuse to give up
their bondsmen, Marroquin assured the settlers that he would grant them
quick absolution. The removal of the latter was then demanded by his
opponents, who wrote to the emperor denouncing him as "one undeserving
of royal favor, having made his fortune at the expense of his honor
and that of the people, in violation of the law and the emperor's
orders." Pedraza, on the other hand, while discussing the question of
establishing schools in the native villages, exclaims: "Would to God
that to this purpose the efforts of Las Casas were applied, instead of
to the general perdition of the province, his discourse being like that
of one demented with rage, himself blindly covetous and ambitious of
honor profane. For thirty years was he striving for a bishopric until
at length he obtained one by the force of a hundred thousand lies."
The colonists of course had no sympathy with Las Casas, leaving
him to complain and sometimes almost to starve unheeded. Those who
were secretly his friends, through fear of exposing themselves to
persecution, were unwilling to minister to his necessities. The oidores
refused to listen to him or to afford him redress, and on one occasion
when a certain colonist threatened to assassinate the prelate he was
allowed to go unpunished.[XVII‑24] In a letter to the emperor Maldonado
states that "Las Casas has become so proud since his return from Spain
that it is impossible to deal with him, and the best place for him would
be in some convent in Castile." It was proposed by Marroquin to settle
the long-vexed Indian question by referring the matter to a commission
composed of the viceroy of Mexico, the audiencias, the bishops, and
other competent persons both lay and clerical, or to a committee to be
chosen by them, and that their decision be submitted to the crown for
approval; but Las Casas would admit of no such compromise and insisted
that the new laws be immediately enforced. It was finally agreed that
the bishops should present to the audiencia a memorial embodying their
grievances, asking for redress, and stating explicitly their demands
in reference to the treatment and disposition of the natives. Soon
afterward Las Casas read this document before the oidores, who, as
he now had the support of all his fellow-bishops, did not venture to
refuse him an audience. They were requested to render assistance to
the ecclesiastical authorities in the exercise of their jurisdiction,
and to aid them in punishing all who sinned against God and the church,
by committing sacrilege or holding in contempt the episcopal dignity.
It was demanded that the natives should not be forced to pay excessive
tribute, should not be used as beasts of burden, or required to render
any but voluntary service, and that all who were illegally enslaved
should be liberated and placed under the protection of the bishops;
for it was claimed that Las Casas and his colleagues were their
protectors and held the right of adjudication in all cases of alleged
maltreatment. It was urged that officials in charge of Indian villages
should be held strictly responsible for their trust and punished in
case of malfeasance as the new laws prescribed.[XVII‑25] The memorial
concluded by threatening the president, oidores, and other officials
with excommunication, should they neglect to obey these orders within
the space of three months.
[Sidenote: ILL-FEELING TOWARD LAS CASAS.]
Great was the indignation of the members of the audiencia toward the
prelate who thus dared place himself above the highest tribunal in the
land. They were accustomed to regard the ecclesiastics as men whose
presence must indeed be tolerated for appearance' sake, but whose
duty it was only to conduct religious services in which the wives and
children of the colonists might perhaps wish to participate, and to
make such progress as they could in the conversion of the natives.
That they should presume to interfere with their own schemes for
self-aggrandizement was not to be tolerated. Maldonado and the oidores
gave vent to their ire in such abusive language that three days later
Las Casas and Valdivieso addressed a letter to the emperor, stating
that neither in the days of Alvarado or Nuño de Guzman, nor during the
rule of any of the former tyrants, were the ministers of the church so
insulted and oppressed, nor were ever such enormous crimes committed
as under the present audiencia of the Confines. The bishops, moreover,
expressed their belief "that the devil had filled the oidores with
ambition and covetousness when they came to the country," and declared
that unless the enforcement of the new laws were intrusted to their
own hands the province must go to ruin.[XVII‑26] Meanwhile Marroquin,
who was in secret a bitter foe to Las Casas, also sent a despatch to
the court of Spain, wherein he speaks of him as one filled with pride,
envy, and hypocrisy, and denounces his assumption in daring to present
so offensive a memorial to the audiencia.[XVII‑27]
Las Casas waited in vain for an answer to his demands. Not discouraged,
however, by the studied inactivity of the oidores he pressed his claims
with untiring zeal, exasperating them by his pertinacity, and frequently
exposing himself to gross insult and contumely. On one occasion, while
entering the hall of the audiencia, he was greeted with shouts of
"Throw out that lunatic!" At another time he was coarsely affronted by
the president himself;[XVII‑28] and when, notwithstanding all rebuffs,
he made a final appeal, demanding compliance with the new laws, and
administering to Maldonado a public rebuke, the latter replied: "You
are a knave, a bad man, a bad priest, a bad bishop, one lost to all
shame and worthy of punishment!" Though stunned, for a moment, by this
answer from one whose appointment was due to his own recommendation, the
prelate meekly bowed his head, and with the words, "I very well deserve
all that your worship says, Señor Licenciado Alonso Maldonado," quietly
withdrew from his presence.
[Sidenote: EXCOMMUNICATION.]
All now expected that the president would be excommunicated. As the
consecration of Valdivieso was to take place two days later and none
could be present who were under the ban of the church, Maldonado
resolved to make some effort at reconciliation. To repair to the house
of the bishop and there tender an apology was a humiliation which his
pride would not tolerate, while it could not be expected that Las Casas,
after all the indignities he had suffered, would consent to visit the
other's residence. Through the intervention of friends it was finally
arranged that the two should meet, as though by accident, at the
president's dwelling. Uncovering, and speaking in a respectful tone,
Maldonado began to express his sorrow for what had occurred, but the
prelate at once burst forth: "Hence! Away! You are excommunicated!" and
took his departure without uttering another word.
While yet engaged in his controversy with the audiencia, Las Casas
received news from Ciudad Real that disorder was rife in his own
diocese, and, wishing to return to Chiapas as soon as possible, once
more urged the oidores to render a decision. In order to rid themselves
of his ceaseless importunity they at length compromised the matter
by conceding a portion of his demands, but refused to recognize him
or his colleagues as protectors of the Indians. As this was the main
point in his memorial, and without this concession the new laws must
be inoperative, or at least difficult of execution, the prelate found
that like other premature reformers, he had gained little, and had added
greatly to his unpopularity.[XVII‑29]
* * * * *
Toward the close of the year 1545 the bishops departed for their
several provinces. Of the oidores, Rogel accompanied Las Casas to Ciudad
Real;[XVII‑30] Quiñones was soon afterward engaged in levying a force
in aid of Gasca's expedition to Peru; and the president, who, together
with Herrera, still remained at Gracias á Dios, busied himself in
accumulating wealth, fearing that the day was not far distant when he
would be required to render an account. He met with little opposition,
for the remonstrances of the cabildo were entirely unheeded, and
Pedraza the bishop was a man too much after his own heart to throw any
serious obstacles in his path. Maldonado with his friends and relatives
already owned about one third of all the encomiendas in the province,
and received besides his share of the tribute obtained by the oidores
from the Indian villages, the ownership of which was for appearance'
sake placed in the name of certain alcaldes and alguaciles. The latter
received one third of the gross income, and those employed to collect
the tribute also received a portion and were permitted to wring what
else they could from their hapless victims, whom they hunted like
blood-hounds, day and night, enslaving all who were unable to contribute
their share.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: ALONSO LOPEZ DE CERRATO.]
The condition of affairs in the province of Honduras soon became known
to the council of the Indies, and by the recommendation of Las Casas the
licentiate Alonso Lopez de Cerrato was appointed judge of residencia
and president of the audiencia of the Confines. For several years he
had presided over the audiencia of Santo Domingo, and had there made
the acquaintance of the bishop, who well knew his worth and the zeal
with which he labored in behalf of the Indians. It was one of his
principles always to suppose them to be in the right until the contrary
were proven, and little cared he for the good or bad opinion of the
Spaniards. Neither threat nor promise nor supplication could divert
him from the execution of his purpose. Being himself a priest he was
of course a good friend to the ecclesiastics, and assisted them in
their endeavors to alleviate the sufferings of the natives; so that the
settlers exclaimed, after he had been a short time in the province: "Our
day has passed and that of the friars has begun."[XVII‑31]
In 1548 the licentiate arrived at Gracias á Dios, and at once proceeded
to take the residencias of the president and of the oidores Rogel and
Herrera. After concluding his investigation he reports to the emperor
that since the establishment of the audiencia no royal decree nor any
of the new laws have been executed or enforced. On the contrary, the
president and oidores have been the first to disregard them in order
to ingratiate themselves with the settlers; they have never thought of
liberating any slaves or of abolishing the use of the natives as beasts
of burden.[XVII‑32]
Cerrato had undoubtedly expected to find matters in a better
condition, for he brought with him none to supersede the oidores who
might be displaced. Maldonado, however, appears to have escaped all
punishment other than loss of office.[XVII‑33] Herrera, although Las
Casas and Valdivieso had previously declared that he alone among the
oidores was worthy of his position, was the only one that was fined,
and with the exception of the president, the only one that was not
reinstated.[XVII‑34]
Although Cerrato was accused by the settlers of partiality in the
administration of justice, he enjoyed the full confidence of the
emperor,[XVII‑35] who gave orders that all matters of grave import
pertaining to the government of Honduras, Nicaragua, and Guatemala
should be referred to his decision. Moreover, the bishops of Nicaragua,
Guatemala, and Chiapas showed their appreciation of his worth by begging
him to visit their dioceses and aid them in their labors on behalf
of the natives, as the oidores sent to those provinces were unable to
enforce the new laws. During the brief term of Cerrato's residence in
Honduras nothing occurred that is worthy of note, with the exception of
a revolt among the negro slaves at San Pedro del Puerto de Caballos,
which was promptly quelled by a force despatched against them by the
audiencia.
In 1549 the seat of the audiencia of the Confines was removed from
Gracias á Dios to Santiago de Guatemala. The former town, now containing
but eighteen settlers, was situated in a neighborhood where food for
man and beast was difficult to obtain, and was far remote from the more
important colonies. In other settlements the condition of affairs was
little more prosperous. In Honduras, as elsewhere in Spain's western
dominions, the apathy of the Spanish monarch and the disorders caused
by the ceaseless struggle for wealth, or the craving for insignificant
authority, added greatly to the misery and privation which the early
history of colonization throughout the world seldom fails to present.