Cacama's prognostication was speedily verified; for in the course
of the next two or three days, all the nobles who had joined him in
preparations for a rising were, by Montezuma's orders, arrested and
sent in, in chains, and were placed with him in prison.
Bathalda came on the day after Roger's return, with the news that
the two ladies had reached Cuitcatl's house in safety and, as they
believed, without exciting observation. The queen was anxious to
know if he had seen Cacama, and whether her husband had any
instructions for her. Amenche simply sent him some flowers,
gathered by her own hand.
Roger gave Bathalda Cacama's message to the queen. While out in the
market, he purchased a large packet of choice and delicate
sweetmeats, of which he knew Amenche was particularly fond, and
gave them to Bathalda; with the message that he would someday teach
her to read and write, and then, when they were away from each
other, they could talk at a distance.
For some little time things went on quietly, but the Spanish greed
and bigotry gradually worked the Mexicans up to a point of fury. At
the suggestion of Cortez, Montezuma sent collectors to all the
principal cities and provinces, accompanied by Spaniards, and these
brought back immense quantities of gold and silver plate and other
valuables; and to these Montezuma added an enormous treasure that
had been accumulated and hidden by his father, amounting to a sum
which astounded even the Spaniards. The value of the gold alone was
equal to nearly a million and a half pounds sterling, in the
present day, besides a vast amount of gold ornaments and jewelry,
and feather work of excellent manufacture. A fifth of this was set
aside for the King of Spain, the rest divided among the officers
and soldiers.
Even the extortion of this vast sum from the people might have been
passed over in quiet, had the Spaniards been content to abstain
from interference with their religion; but during the weeks that
had elapsed since Montezuma had been a prisoner in their hands,
they had vainly endeavored to convert the emperor, and the nobles
and attendants on him, to Christianity.
They had listened attentively to the preaching and exhortations of
Father Olmedo; but their faith in their own gods was unshaken, the
bloody sacrifices were carried on as usual in the temples, and
these horrible spectacles naturally excited the wrath and
indignation of the Spaniards to the utmost; although they
themselves had, in Cuba and the islands, put to death great numbers
of the natives in pursuance of their own religious views.
Cortez with many of his leaders went to the emperor, and told him
that they would no longer consent to have the services of their
religion conducted in the palace, but wished to celebrate them
publicly; and therefore requested that the great temple should be
handed over to them, for their services. Montezuma was much
agitated. He was a devout believer in his gods; and his conduct
towards the Spaniards had been, in no slight degree, influenced by
the belief that their coming had been foretold by Quetzalcoatl, and
that they were the descendants of that god. However, after a
conference with the priests, he consented that they should occupy
one of the sanctuaries on the summit of the temple.
Great joy was caused among the Spaniards at this permission. They
at once took possession of the sanctuary, and thoroughly cleansed
it. They then decorated its walls with flowers, and raised an
altar, surmounted by a crucifix and an image of the Virgin. When
all was ready, the whole army moved up the winding ascent to the
summit, and a solemn mass was celebrated.
The result of this occupation of the temple of their god was soon
visible in the conduct of the Mexicans. Montezuma himself became
grave and distant towards the Spaniards; and a few days later sent
for Cortez, and informed them that they were in great danger, and
that they had best leave the country, at once. Cortez replied that
he should regret to leave the capital so suddenly, when he had no
ship to take him from the country; but that if he should be driven
to take such a step, he should feel compelled to carry the emperor
along with him.
Montezuma then agreed to send, at once, a number of workmen to the
coast, to build vessels under the instructions of the Spaniards;
and promised to use his authority to restrain his people, assuring
them that the Spaniards would leave, as soon as means were
provided. A large number of artisans were accordingly sent off at
once, with some of the Spaniards most skilled in ship building; and
on their arrival at the coast they began to fell trees, and to make
all preparations for building the vessels.
In the meantime, at Mexico, every precaution was taken by the
Spaniards. Since Montezuma had been in their hands, they had felt
in perfect security, had wandered about the city and neighboring
country as they chose, fished upon the lake, and hunted in the
royal preserves. Now the utmost vigilance was observed, strong
guards were mounted, the soldiers slept in their armor with their
arms beside them, and were no longer permitted to leave the palace.
At this moment news arrived that filled the mind even of Cortez
with consternation. The expedition that he felt sure Velasquez, the
Governor of Cuba, would dispatch against him, had arrived on the
coast, and had landed. It consisted of eighteen vessels, carrying
nine hundred men, of whom eighty were cavalry. So large a fleet had
never before been collected in the Indies. It was commanded by a
Castilian noble, named Panfilo de Narvaez.
Until they arrived at the coast, they had learned very little of
what was happening in Mexico, as the vessels which Cortez had
dispatched had avoided touching at the islands. They now learned,
from the Spaniards left on the coast, all that had taken place; and
Narvaez found, with indignation, that Cortez was the conqueror of a
great empire, and that the honor and wealth had been reaped by a
man whom he considered as an insolent adventurer, instead of by
Velasquez. He therefore at once proclaimed his intention to march
against Cortez, and to punish him for his rebellion; and the
natives who had flocked to his camp soon comprehended that the new
army had arrived as enemies, and not as friends, of the white men
who had preceded them.
A small body of the troops of Cortez, commanded by Sandoval, were
in garrison at Villa Rica; and he at once dispatched a messenger
with the news to Cortez, and prepared for a vigorous defense. A
priest, a noble, and four Spaniards who arrived from Narvaez,
ordering him to surrender, were bound, placed on the backs of
Indian porters, and sent off to Mexico under a strong guard.
When the news of the arrival of the force of Narvaez reached
Mexico, the soldiers were delighted, believing that means were now
at their disposal for their return home; but when they heard, from
their officers, that the newcomers were sent by the Governor of
Cuba, and had assuredly arrived as enemies, the troops declared
that, come what might, they would remain true to their leader.
On the arrival of the prisoners, Cortez received them with the
greatest courtesy, apologized for the rough conduct of Sandoval
and, loading them with presents, converted them into allies. He
learned from the priest that the soldiers of Narvaez had no
hostility towards them, and that the arrogance of their leader
caused much discontent among them.
When he was sure of the good offices of the priest, Cortez sent him
back with a friendly letter to Narvaez, whom he adjured to lay
aside his hostile designs which, if persisted in, might cause the
loss of all the conquests he had made. He was ready, he said, to
greet him as a brother, and to share with him the fruits of his
successes. The priest fulfilled his mission, and added his own
advice that the offers of Cortez should be accepted.
Narvaez rejected the counsel with scorn, but the accounts of the
priest of the splendor of the country, the rich spoils won by the
soldiers, and also of the generosity and popularity of Cortez,
exercised a great influence over the soldiers.
The priest was followed by Father Olmedo, with some more letters.
These were similarly rejected by Narvaez; but Olmedo, during his
stay at the camp, contrived largely to add to the feeling in favor
of Cortez, by his eloquence and the numerous presents he
distributed among the officers and soldiers.
Cortez had, some time before, dispatched Don Velasquez de Leon, one
of his trusted officers, with a hundred and fifty men, to plant a
colony near the mouth of one of the great rivers. He was a kinsman
of the Governor of Cuba, and Narvaez had, on landing, sent to him
begging him to quit the service of Cortez, and march with his
troops to join him. Velasquez, instead of doing so, set out at once
for Mexico; but on his way was met by a messenger from Cortez, who
ordered him to stop at Cholula for further orders.
Cortez summoned a force of two thousand natives from the distant
province of Chinantla and, leaving Pedro d'Alvarado in command of a
hundred and fifty Spaniards in Mexico, marched with the remainder
of his force, consisting of some seventy men only, for Cholula.
Here he was joined by Velasquez, with his hundred and fifty men.
Thus reinforced, they marched to Tlascala, where six hundred native
troops joined him.
But his allies soon fell off. They had had too severe an experience
of the fighting powers of the white men to care about taking part
in a battle with them, and so many deserted on the way that Cortez
dismissed the rest, saying that he would rather part with them,
then, than in the hour of trial. On reaching Perote they were
joined by Sandoval with fifty Spaniards, which brought their number
up to two hundred and sixty-six, only five of whom were mounted.
On their march towards Cempoalla, where Narvaez had now established
his headquarters, they were met by an embassy from him, requiring
the acknowledgment by Cortez of his authority, offering at the same
time that all who wished to leave should be transported in his
vessels. By liberal presents Cortez won over the members of the
embassy, who returned to Cempoalla to inform the soldiers there of
the liberality of Cortez, and of the wonderful array of gold
ornaments and chains worn by his soldiers.
Narvaez advanced to meet Cortez but, the weather proving bad, again
fell back on Cempoalla. Cortez, on the other hand, took advantage
of the weather, and in the night fell upon the garrison, and took
them completely by surprise.
Sandoval, with a small band, had been told off to attack the temple
occupied by Narvaez, and to take him prisoner. The general, with
the troops in the temple, defended himself bravely, until seriously
wounded by one of the long spears with which Cortez had armed his
men. The thatched roof of the temple was set on fire, the defenders
were driven out by the smoke, and Narvaez was seized and made
prisoner.
Another division, under Olid, fell upon the guns, captured them,
and turned them upon the temples in which the troops were
quartered; when the soldiers, whose loyalty to their commander had
already been sapped, accepted the offer of Cortez of an amnesty for
the past, and a full participation in the advantages of the
conquest of the country. Having sworn allegiance to Cortez as
captain general, they were incorporated in his little army.
In the morning, when they saw how small had been the body of men
who had defeated them, many regretted the course they had taken,
but in the course of the day the two thousand native allies from
Chinantla arrived, and their military appearance, and the proof
afforded by their presence of the influence of Cortez with the
inhabitants of the country, put a stop to the murmuring; especially
as Cortez ordered all the spoils taken from them to be returned,
and distributed among them considerable sums of money--exciting,
indeed, murmurs of discontent among his own veterans, who
considered that they had been deprived of the spoil they had
rightfully won.
The eloquence of their general, however, as usual, was successful
in pacifying them; but to prevent further difficulties, he broke up
his force, and sent off two hundred men under Diego de Ordaz, and a
similar number under Velasquez de Leon, to form settlements on the
coasts and rivers; and two hundred men to Vera Cruz, to dismantle
the fleet of Narvaez.
Scarcely had these parties left when a messenger arrived with
letters from Alvarado, saying that the Mexicans had risen and
assaulted the Spaniards in their quarters, and had partly
undermined the walls; and that, in the fighting, several of the
garrison had been killed, and a great number wounded.
Cortez at once dispatched messengers after Velasquez and Ordaz, and
ordered them to march to join him at Tlascala; recalled a hundred
men from Vera Cruz, and then set forward. The troops suffered much
in their march across the low country to the foot of the hills,
beneath a sun of terrible power. However, they reached Tlascala,
and were there joined by Ordaz and Velasquez. They were most
hospitably entertained by their allies, and a number of levies
joined them; and with these and eleven hundred Spaniards, of whom a
hundred were cavalry, they marched towards Mexico.
They took a more northern route than before and, crossing the
mountains, held their way on to Tezcuco. Upon their route through
the plains the peasantry held aloof, and the greater portion of the
population of Tezcuco withdrew before their arrival; and even its
new lord, although appointed at the instigation of Cortez, was
absent from the city. Dispatches arrived from Alvarado saying that
the Mexicans had, for the last fortnight, ceased their attacks; but
were blockading him in the palace.
Cortez marched down the lake shore on the following day, and
crossed the causeway to the city. Not a native was to be seen near
the line of march, not a boat was visible on the lake, and an air
of gloom and solitude hung over everything; showing but too plainly
the altered feelings with which the natives regarded the whites.
The streets were similarly deserted. When the head of the column
reached the palace, the gates were thrown open and the garrison
rushed out to greet the newcomers, with joyful shouts.
Cortez now learned the reason of the rising of the Mexicans. It was
the result of a hideous act of treachery, on the part of Alvarado.
In the month of May was the great festival of the war god, which
was held in his great temple; and the caziques asked permission of
Alvarado to use, for the day, that portion which had been handed
over to the Spaniards. He agreed to the request, on the condition
that the Aztecs should celebrate no human sacrifices, and should
come unarmed.
At least six hundred nobles attended, in their most gorgeous robes,
and Alvarado and his soldiers were present as spectators. While the
Aztecs were employed in a religious dance, Alvarado gave the
signal, his men rushed upon them with their arms, and every one of
them was massacred unresistingly, not a single soul escaping.
Various motives were assigned for this most foul massacre. Some
writers have ascribed it solely to the desire for plunder; others
to the desire of Alvarado to strike a blow that would intimidate
the Mexicans from making any insurrectionary movement. Alvarado
himself declared that he had information that the Mexicans intended
to rise, but he gave no proofs, whatever, to justify his
suspicions. The affair, indeed, seems to have been utterly
indefensible, and must ever remain a foul blot upon Spanish honor.
Cortez was extremely angry at hearing what had taken place and,
after listening to Alvarado's explanation, said:
"You have done badly. You have been false to your trust! Your
conduct has been that of a madman!"
It was, however, no time for quarrels; and as it was the impolicy
of the deed, rather than its treachery, that angered Cortez, he
speedily forgave the offender, who was one of the most popular
officers in his army.
The blow Alvarado had struck had a contrary effect to that which he
had expected of it. No sooner had the news of the massacre spread
through the city than the whole population rose, and at dawn next
morning they attacked the palace, with desperate fury. Volumes of
missiles were poured upon the defenders. The walls were assaulted,
and the works set on fire, and the palace might have been taken had
not Montezuma, yielding to the entreaties--and perhaps threats--of
the garrison, mounted the walls, and urged the people to desist
from the attack, as his own safety would be imperiled did they
continue it.
They obeyed him as usual, and withdrew from the assault; but threw
up works round the place, and proceeded to starve the Spaniards
out. The latter had considerable stores of food, but suffered
severely from thirst until they were fortunate enough to discover a
spring, and were thus enabled to hold out until the arrival of
Cortez.
The latter refused to comply with the request of Montezuma to see
him. He had some reason to doubt the good faith of the emperor, for
he had discovered that the latter had sent envoys to Narvaez; and
he had, upon his arrival at Tlascala, been informed that the rising
at Mexico had been, to a great extent, prepared beforehand by the
orders of Montezuma; and even the assurances of the officers of the
garrison, that they owed their safety to the emperor's intervention,
did not pacify him.
The real reason, no doubt, of his anger was that he found he had
overrated the advantages he would gain from Montezuma being in his
hands; but for this he himself, and not the emperor, was to blame.
At first the capture had all the success that he had expected from
it. The people had obeyed their emperor as implicitly, when a
captive, as when his power had been supreme. They had sent in their
nobles, prisoners and bound, at his orders. They had built ships
for these strangers. They had suffered them to go unmolested
through the country.
But there was an end even to Aztec patience. The avarice of the
white men had drained the country of its wealth. Their arrogance
had humiliated their pride. Their occupation of their holiest
temple and the insults to their gods had aroused them to fury; and
the massacre, in cold blood, of six hundred of their nobles, while
engaged in religious devotions, had been the signal for an
explosion. Their emperor, formerly so venerated, they now regarded
with contempt as the creature of the Spaniards; as the betrayer of
his country; and the thought of his safety no longer restrained
their thirst for vengeance.
Cortez, however, was in no mood to reflect.
"What have I to do with this dog of a king," he exclaimed, "who
suffers us to starve before his eyes?
"Go, tell your master and his people," he said fiercely to the
Mexicans, "to open the markets, or we will do it for them, at their
cost!"
The chiefs, who were the bearers of Montezuma's message, left his
presence in deep resentment; and reported to the emperor, and to
the people outside, the manner in which Montezuma's request for an
interview had been refused. Cortez, however, thought it politic to
release Cuitlahua, Montezuma's brother, who had been among those
imprisoned for taking share in Cacama's league; and allowed him to
go into the city, thinking that he would allay the tumult.
But Cuitlahua was a man of different spirit from his brother. He
was heir presumptive to the throne, and a bold and daring prince.
The people welcomed him, at once, as Montezuma's representative;
and chose him to represent the emperor during his confinement.
Cuitlahua accepted the post, and immediately set to work to
organize the fighting men, and to arrange a plan of attack.
Roger had not been with the party that accompanied Cortez on his
expedition against Narvaez; but, with his two companions, remained
to form part of the garrison of the palace.
"You are out of spirits, young fellow," Juan said, on the day after
Cortez had marched away. "You are changed, very much, since you
first joined us."
"I have much to make me so, Juan," Roger replied, in his broken
Spanish. "You see, I am white by blood, but I have dear friends
among the natives. What do I see? As a white, I perceive that our
position here is one of the gravest danger, and that destruction
may fall upon us all. As a friend of the natives, I see the country
plundered, the people trodden down and, sooner or later, the ruin
and misery of the whole people."
"You mean we are in danger from Narvaez' people," Juan said. "I
have faith in Cortez. He will either fight them or bring them over.
He is a wonderful man, and will find some way out of the
difficulty."
"I do not mean that, entirely," Roger replied. "I mean that there
is danger from the natives."
"Pooh!" the old soldier said, disdainfully. "The natives are no
better than so many women."
"But even women may be serious opponents, when they are fifty to
one, Juan; and you mistake these Mexicans. They have been friendly
and submissive, because it has been the order of the emperor; but
although physically not strong, they are brave. The Aztec army has
spread the dominion of Mexico over a wide extent of country. They
have conquered many peoples, and are by no means to be despised. It
is true you beat the Tlascalans, but that was not because you were
braver than they were, but because of your superior arms and armor,
and above all by the terror inspired by your horses--but this will
not last. The Mexicans now know that you are but men, like
themselves; and when they fight, inspired both by national spirit
and the memory of their wrongs, I tell you that you will have hard
work to hold your own."
"Ah well," Juan grumbled. "If it must come, it must. It will not
disturb my appetite."
When Roger learned that orders had been given for the massacre at
the temple, he determined firmly that he would take no part in the
deed, whatever it might cost him to refuse. Fortunately, he found
no difficulty in persuading one of the soldiers, told off to act as
a guard at the palace during the absence of the rest, to change
places with him, as the man wanted to have his share in the
expected plunder. Had Cacama been at liberty, Roger would not have
hesitated a moment, but would have left the Spaniards and thrown in
his lot with the Mexicans; but now it was impossible to do so. The
frenzied population would have seized any white man they came upon,
outside the walls of the palace, and would have carried him to the
altars of their gods. It would be hopeless to endeavor to explain
that he was of another race. All white men would be alike, in their
eyes.
He bitterly regretted, now, that he had returned from Tezcuco. Had
he, at that time, gone with the queen and princess to the house of
his friend Cuitcatl, he could have remained there in quiet; and the
natives would have seen that he, at least, had no part or share in
this horrible massacre. Now it seemed to him that there was nothing
to be done, save to share the lot of the Spaniards, whatever that
might be.
He believed that the Mexicans would storm the palace, and slaughter
all within it, long before the return of Cortez; and he by no means
shared the confident anticipation of the soldiers, that the
general, on his arrival, would very speedily put down any
insurrection that might occur; and would, with the assistance of
the soldiers of Narvaez, soon bring all Mexico into subjection.
It had happened that both Juan and Pedro had also been on guard,
during the massacre. This was a great satisfaction to him, for he
felt he could no longer have remained in intimate communion with
them, had their hands been drenched with innocent blood. When, upon
their being relieved at their posts, they joined each other in the
chamber they shared in common, the old soldier held up his hand and
said gruffly:
"Do you hold your tongue, Sancho. I know what you are thinking,
lad, as well as if you said it; and maybe I do not disagree with
you; but least said, soonest mended. These rooms without doors are
not places for a man to relieve his mind by strong language, if he
happens to differ from his superiors. It is a bad business, and a
shameful one. At Cholula there was some excuse for it. Here there
is none. I am an old soldier, and have taken many a life in my
time, but never in cold blood like this. Say nothing, lad, at any
rate until you get a chance of being outside this city; or on the
lake, where none can get near you--then pour it out, as much as you
like."
"It is like enough," Roger said, "that none of us will ever go out
of the city alive; and it will serve us thoroughly right. If this
is to be a Spaniard and a Catholic, let me be a Mexican and a
heathen."
"There, there, that is enough," Juan interrupted. "Now let us have
our supper."
"I can eat nothing," Roger said, throwing himself down on the
couch, where he remained in silence until a sudden outburst of wild
shouts and cries, followed instantly by the trumpet, calling every
man to his allotted place on the walls, aroused him.
"The work of vengeance has begun," he said gravely, as he put on
his thick padded jerkin and helmet, and took up his pike. "I only
hope I may see Alvarado, the author of this massacre, killed before
I am."
Juan shook his head as Roger left the room, and he followed with
Pedro.
"In faith, I do not blame him. He has been brought up among these
people."
"He is quite right," the young soldier said. "It is a shameful
business. Had I known that we were coming here to be butchers, I
would never have taken service under Cortez. What should we have
said if, on our first arrival here, when Montezuma entertained
Cortez and all the cavaliers, his people had slain them at the
feast?"
"Hold your tongue, you young fool!" Juan muttered angrily. "The
thing is done, and you cannot undo it. What we have to do now is to
fight for our lives. Even if these poor devils have right on their
side, it is not a matter to stop and discuss, now. So keep your
breath for fighting. I doubt not that we shall soon scatter them
like chaff."
But this was by no means the case, and it was only the intervention
of Montezuma that saved the garrison from destruction.
The time until the arrival of Cortez had passed slowly. The
soldiers, weakened by hunger and thirst, muttered angrily against
the officer who had so rashly brought them into this strait. Few of
them regretted the deed for its own sake, but simply because it had
brought on them peril and misfortune.
Roger had borne his share of the fighting on the walls. He was
defending his life, and although at first he had fought with little
ardor, the pain given by two arrows which pierced his cotton armor
heated his blood; and he afterwards fought as stoutly as the rest.
During the period of inaction he had, more than once, tried to
obtain an interview with Cacama; but the prisoners were jealously
watched, and no one was allowed access to them on any pretext, and
two officers always accompanied the men who took in their daily
rations. They were regarded as hostages, only less important than
Montezuma himself; and as most of them were very rich and powerful
caziques, they might offer bribes which might well shake the
fidelity of any private soldier.
When the news arrived that Cortez, with the whole of the army of
Narvaez, was at hand, the depression that had reigned gave way to
exultation; and the soldiers believed that they would now take the
offensive, and without loss of time put an end to the insurrection.
Marina had accompanied Cortez on his expedition, for she was still
necessary to him as an interpreter, and her influence with the
natives was great. Roger obtained an interview with her, a few
hours after her return. She had evidently been crying passionately.
"My heart is broken, Roger," she said. "I had hoped that the white
men would have done great things for my country. They know so much,
and although I thought there might be trouble at first, for great
changes can never be introduced without trouble, I never dreamed of
anything like this. Cholula was bad enough, but there the people
brought it on themselves; and the Spaniards would have been slain,
had they not first begun to kill. But here it is altogether
different. It was an unprovoked massacre, and after this, who can
hope that the whites and Mexicans can ever be friendly together?
"I love Cortez. He is great and generous, and had he been here this
would have never happened; but many of his people are cruel, and
they are all greedy of wealth; and he, general though he is, has to
give way to them.
"I remember that, in the old days at Tabasco, you told me how
cruelly the Spaniards had treated the people of the islands; but
when I saw them first, I thought that you, being of a different
nation, had spoken too hardly of them. I see, now, that you were
right. I have, all along, done what I could for my people; and
though I am with the invaders, I am sure they recognize this, and
that they feel no ill will against me. But now I fear that they
will curse me, as they will curse them; and that, through all time,
my name will be abhorred in Mexico," and she again burst into
tears.
"I do not think so, Malinche. At Tezcuco it was always said that
you stood between the natives and the whites, and it was owing to
you that they were not more harsh than they were.
"As to this massacre, God forbid that I should say a single word in
defense of it! As a white man and a Christian, I feel it is an act
of horrible atrocity; but it should not make such an impression
upon your people, who make wars solely to obtain victims, whom they
may sacrifice at the altars of their gods; and who, every year,
slay in cold blood fully twenty-five thousand people who have done
them no wrong. By the side of such horrible slaughter as this, the
murder of six hundred, the other day, was but a drop in the ocean
of blood annually shed here."
"Had it been in battle, it would have been nothing," Malinche said.
"Had they offered them up at the altars of the gods, the people
would have understood it, for they do it themselves; but this was a
foul act of treachery. Who, after this, can believe in the promises
of the whites?
"I know the people. You whites despise them, because they have
hitherto allowed themselves to be subdued without resistance; but
now that their first awe of the Spaniards has died away, and they
have nerved themselves to take up arms, you will find that they are
brave. I see nothing but trouble before us. Cortez feels confident
that he can easily repulse any attack, and subdue the city and the
country round; but I do not think so."
"Nor do I, Malinche. No men could have fought more bravely than the
Mexicans, the other day. It is true that we were but in small
numbers, and that we are now many times stronger, and have Cortez
to command us; but on the other hand, the attack was but a hasty
one, and the next time we shall have the whole Mexican force upon
us."
"What will you do, Roger?"
"I must fight for the Spaniards," Roger said gloomily. "They are
not my countrymen, but they are white men as I am, and surrounded
by foes. Besides, I have no option. The Mexicans cannot distinguish
between Spaniards and Englishmen, and I should be seized and
sacrificed, were I to set foot beyond the walls. Were it not for
that I would leave the city, join Amenche, and leave the Spaniards
and Mexicans to fight out their quarrel as they might; but now,
whichever won, the result would be fatal to me. If the Mexicans
were victorious, I, like all other whites, would be sacrificed to
their gods. If the Spaniards won, I should be executed as a
traitor. Therefore, there is nothing for me to do but to remain
with the Spaniards, and share their fate, whatever it may be."
The next morning silence reigned over the city. Not a Mexican was
to be seen anywhere near the palace, within which the Spaniards
were virtually prisoners. Cortez hoped, however, that Cuitlahua
would soon persuade the people to return to their usual habits, and
to open the markets for provisions; but in any case, he felt so
confident of his power to overawe the city, that he sent off a
messenger with dispatches to the coast, saying that he had arrived
safely, and should soon overcome all opposition.
In half an hour, however, the messenger returned at a gallop,
wounded in a score of places. He reported that the city was up in
arms, the drawbridges were raised, and the Mexicans were marching
towards the palace. Scarcely had he arrived, when the sentinels on
the towers shouted that masses of men were approaching, by all the
streets leading to the palace; and immediately afterwards the
terraces and flat roofs of the houses near were darkened by throngs
of natives, shouting and brandishing their weapons.
The trumpet instantly sounded to arms, and so strict was the
discipline that prevailed that, in an incredibly short time, every
soldier was at his post. The position was capable of being defended
against a very numerous enemy, unprovided with artillery; for the
wall round the great one-storied building, though low, was strong;
and the turrets, placed at intervals upon it, enabled the defenders
to command its face, and to pour missiles upon any who might be
bold enough to endeavor to effect a breach, by undermining it with
crowbars and levers. The garrison, too, were sufficient for its
defense; for there were not only some twelve hundred Spaniards, but
the eight thousand Tlascalan allies.
The Aztecs rushed forward, with the shrill whistle used as a battle
cry by the people of Anahuac; and, as they advanced, poured a rain
of missiles of all kinds upon the palace, to which were added those
shot from the terraces and flat roofs.
The Spaniards had pierced the walls with embrasures for their
cannon, and these commanded all the avenues. The gunners waited
until the columns were close at hand, and then their terrible
discharge swept lanes through the crowded masses in the streets.
For a moment the Mexicans paused, paralyzed by the terrible
slaughter; and then, rallying, rushed forward again. Three times
the cannon were discharged into their midst; but though broken and
disordered, they still pressed on until they swept up to the very
foot of the walls, pouring in a hail of arrows.
They were well seconded by those on the housetops who, from their
elevated position, were on a level with the Spaniards; and whose
missiles, arrows, javelins, and stones thrown with great force from
slings, galled the defenders greatly, and wounded great numbers of
them.
In vain did the Aztecs strive to climb the walls. These were of no
great height but, as they showed their heads above the parapet,
they were shot down by the Spanish arquebus men, or struck
backwards by the weapons of the Tlascalans. Failing to scale the
walls, they tried to batter down the parapet with heavy pieces of
timber. But the stonework was too strong, and they then shot
burning arrows into the palace, and hurled blazing torches over the
wall.
The palace itself was of stone, but some of the exterior works
which had been constructed were of wood, and these were soon on
fire. The defenders had no water with which to extinguish the
flames and, at the point where the new works joined the wall, the
fire was so fierce that they were afraid it would spread to the
palace; and, to extinguish it, were forced to adopt the desperate
expedient of overthrowing the wall upon the burning mass. The
breach thus made was guarded by a battery of heavy guns and a party
of arquebusiers, and these repelled every attempt of the Mexicans
to take advantage of the breach which had been thus formed.
The fight continued until night fell, and the Mexicans then drew
off. Cortez and his followers were astonished at the obstinacy with
which they had fought, and the contempt of death they had
displayed. They had obtained such easy victories, with forces but a
fourth of those which Cortez now commanded, that he had formed the
lowest opinion of the fighting powers of the Aztecs. But he now
found that a nation was not to be trampled upon with impunity.
However, he consoled himself with the thought that this was but a
temporary outbreak of fury; and he determined to sally out with all
his force, on the following morning, and to inflict a terrible
chastisement upon his assailants.
As soon as the morning broke, the Spaniards were under arms. Cortez
was speedily undeceived in his hopes that the slaughter of the
previous day would have cowed the Mexicans. The great square and
the streets leading to it were seen to be crowded with foes, who
appeared better organized than on the previous day, being divided
into regiments, each with its banners. These, the Mexican
attendants on Montezuma told them, were the cognizances of the many
cities of the plain, showing that the whole people were joining in
the movement commenced by those of the capital. Towering above the
rest was the royal standard of Mexico.
Among the crowd were numerous priests who, with excited gestures,
called upon them to avenge the insulted gods, and to destroy the
handful of invaders who had brought disgrace upon the nation, had
trampled it under foot, had made their sovereign a captive, and
murdered their nobles in cold blood. It was evident that, fierce as
had been the fighting on the previous day, the renewed assault
would be even more formidable.