Roger was sitting in the evening, conversing with Maclutha and
Amenche on the probabilities of the battle that was expected to
take place on that day, when Cuitcatl suddenly entered. His robe of
bright feather work was gone. The panache of floating plumes was
shorn from his head. His white garment was stained with blood. He
was overcome by exhaustion and grief.
No words were needed to explain what had taken place. Impossible as
it had seemed, the Aztec army had been defeated. A cry broke from
the two ladies, as he entered.
"The white man's God has triumphed," he said, "and the Aztecs have
been defeated. You were right, Roger. Mere handful as they were,
the white men have gained the day. Even now, I hardly know how it
came about. Never did my countrymen fight more bravely. For hours,
the Spaniards stood as a wall which we, in vain, tried to break.
Thousands fell on our side, but not for a moment did we waver.
Others took their places until, as the hours went on, the Spaniards
grew weary, and victory seemed in our grasp. Their horsemen had
charged through and through us, but though many chiefs were slain,
it mattered little. The ranks closed up, and each time they fell
back on their infantry, having achieved nothing. Their horses were
weary, and their attacks grew more feeble.
"Already, our cries of victory were raised. An hour more, and not a
Spaniard would have remained on foot. Just at this time my command
had been ordered up, and we were fighting in the front rank.
"Suddenly I heard, from all parts of the field, loud cries. What
had happened I knew not. We stood for a moment, irresolute, not
knowing what had befallen us elsewhere. Then a panic seized my men.
In vain I shouted and ordered. They were deaf to my voice. They
were deaf to everything, save fear.
"I was swept away with them, as a leaf on a stream. When at last I
freed myself from the torrent, and looked round, I saw that the
whole army was in mad flight; while the whites and Tlascalans, like
hounds in pursuit of deer, were hanging on their rear, slaughtering
all they overtook.
"In vain I gathered a few men, and made a stand. It was useless. We
were beaten down and overpowered. With the greatest difficulty I
broke away and escaped; and had it not been for Bathalda, who
fought side by side with me, I should have been taken by two or
three fleet-footed Tlascalans.
"For the present, all is lost. The fight cannot be renewed
tomorrow, and before the sun sets the enemy will have reached the
borders of Tlascala, and will be safe there."
"But what was it that caused so sudden a panic in your ranks?"
Roger asked.
"It was the death of Cihuaca, our leader. The Spanish horse,
headed, as I hear, by their general himself, burst through our
ranks, cut their way to his litter, overthrew his bodyguard, and
slew him. His death would have mattered little, as the victory was
already won. We needed no further orders. We had but to keep on
fighting, and the end would soon have come. It was simply a panic.
None knew what had happened. The word passed from man to man, 'All
is lost!' and, like a herd of deer, our bravest soldiers fled. It
is not a thing to reason about--the gods deserted us, and we were
no longer men. That is all I can tell you about it."
And the chief flung himself down upon a pile of rugs. Wine and food
were brought to him, and his wounds dressed.
"Roger," he said presently, "you must leave us, tonight. Those of
my followers who have escaped will soon make their way back, and my
authority will be unable to save you. The priests would head the
movement against you. You would be bound and carried to Mexico, at
once.
"The whites, in their march tomorrow, will pass along the road four
miles to the north of this. Conceal yourself in a wood until
morning, and join them as they come along.
"As to the future, you can make no plans, now. You know not whether
Cortez will retire to the coast and take ship there; or whether he
will remain at Tlascala, till reinforcements arrive from across the
sea, and then again advance. When this is decided, you will know
what course to take.
"Bathalda will accompany you. I have already given him orders to do
so. He will bring down a message from you, when you know what
course has been decided on."
"And if you go, dear, I will go with you," Amenche said, rising and
putting her hand on Roger's shoulder. "Send for me, and Bathalda
will escort me to you. I will bring such gems and gold as we can
carry, so I shall not be a bride without a dower. You promise to
send for me, do you not, Roger?"
"Certainly I do," Roger said, pressing her to him; "if I quit this
land alive, you shall accompany me. I should be unworthy of your
love, indeed, Amenche, were I to prove faithless to you now. I
regard you as being as truly my wife, as if we were already
married."
A short time afterwards Bathalda entered, and said that a number of
soldiers were gathering in the courtyard, that some priests were
among them, and that they were talking loudly about carrying the
white man to Mexico, as a sacrifice to appease the wrath of the
gods.
"There is no time to be lost," Cuitcatl said. "You had best go,
Roger, before they surround the house and make escape impossible. I
will fetch you a dark-colored robe, so that you may escape, unseen,
by anyone who may be approaching the house on this side."
So saying, he left the room. Maclutha signed to Bathalda to follow
her, and they went out, leaving Roger alone with Amenche.
The girl's firmness deserted her now, and she threw herself,
weeping, into Roger's arms. He consoled her by his assurances that
their parting would not be for long; and that the next time they
met, whatever the circumstances, he would make her his own.
"If we retire, and you join me in Tlascala," he said, "we will be
married by Father Olmedo, in Christian fashion. If I return hither
to you, we will be married at once, in Mexican fashion, and go
through the ceremony again, when we join the Spaniards."
A few minutes later Cuitcatl returned, as did Maclutha and
Bathalda, the latter bearing a basket with some provisions. The
parting was brief, for the servants had brought news that the
soldiers were becoming more and more clamorous; and were
threatening to force an entrance, if the white man were not handed
over to them.
Bathalda and Roger left by a small door at the back of the house
and, passing through the garden, took their way across the country.
An hour's walking brought them to a wood, near the road by which
the Spaniards would travel in the morning, and there they sat down
and awaited daylight.
It was not until some hours after sunrise that the little army was
seen approaching. On its flanks were large bodies of natives; who,
however, contented themselves by hovering at a distance; except
where the ground was impracticable for the action of cavalry, when
they approached near enough to discharge their missiles at the line
of troops. As the head of the column approached, Roger threw on
his Aztec cloak and, accompanied by Bathalda, issued from the wood
and ran towards them, and in two or three minutes reached the
horsemen who rode in the van.
"Why, Sancho!" Cortez exclaimed, as Roger ran up. "Is it you? We
all thought you had fallen in the fight on the causeway. I am glad
to see that you are safe. How did you escape?"
"I was, like many others, your Excellency, seized by the Aztecs,
pulled down the causeway, and thrown into a boat. I should have
been taken to Mexico and sacrificed, had it not been that the
commander of the boat was a young cazique, who had been my closest
friend while dwelling in Tezcuco. He directed his men to row me
across the lake, and took me to his house, which is but four miles
away from here. There I have remained, having my wounds cared for,
until now. He took part in the fight at Otompan, and returned last
evening with the news of your wonderful victory, and that you would
pass along here this morning.
"I had a narrow escape, last night, for some of the Aztec soldiers
would have seized me and taken me a prisoner to Mexico; but the
cazique aided me to escape, and gave me this follower of his, as a
guide. He is the same man who accompanied me in my flight from
Tezcuco, and brought me to join you at Tlascala."
"I am right glad that you have escaped, Sancho. Firstly, because
every stout arm is sorely needed. Secondly, because Marina has
grieved much for your loss. Truly, had you been her brother she
could not have been more affected. She is in the center of the
column. You had best tarry here until she comes along, and then
join her. She will be rejoiced to see you again."
Marina was indeed delighted, when she caught sight of Roger's tall
figure, and greeted him with much emotion. As they walked together,
she heard how he had escaped; and she related to him how she, under
the guard of the Tlascalans, had survived the terrible fight on the
causeway; and then gave him a full account of the great battle, on
the previous day.
"And what are we going to do now?" Roger asked, when she had
finished her narration. "Think you that we shall proceed to the
coast, and take ship for Europe?"
Marina tossed her head scornfully.
"You do not know Cortez," she said, "or you would not ask such a
question. He is already thinking how he can return, and capture the
capital."
"But unless he receives large reinforcements, that would seem
impossible," Roger said. "You have yourself told me that, had it
not been for the fall of the Mexican leader, nothing could have
saved you from destruction. The Aztec loss was heavy, no doubt; but
they can fill up their ranks and take the field again, in a week or
two, with a force as large as that which fought at Otompan. They
will not be dispirited, for they will know that it was but an
accident which deprived them of victory, and will no longer deem
the Spaniards invincible."
"It matters not," Marina said, carelessly. "Cortez will manage
things. Whatever he undertakes, that he will carry out."
Late in the afternoon, the army arrived at the barrier across the
road that marked the boundary of the Tlascalan territory. As they
passed it, the native allies burst into cries of gladness; and the
Spaniards joined in the shout, for to them, too, it seemed that
their dangers were at an end, and that they had reached rest and
abundance.
Cortez and the leaders, however, were by no means sanguine as to
the reception they should meet with. Their alliance had brought
misfortune upon the Tlascalans. Little more than one thousand out
of the eight thousand men who had marched with them had returned to
tell the tale. The rest had fallen in the defense of the palace, in
the fighting in the streets of Mexico, in the passage of the
causeway, or in the battle of Otompan.
What would the Tlascalans think, when they saw the broken remnant
of the army, which had marched out so proudly, and knew that they
brought on themselves the bitter enmity of the whole of the people
of Anahuac? Might they not well be tempted to avert the wrath of
the Aztecs, by falling upon the strangers, whose alliance had cost
them so dearly?
At the place at which they halted for the night, a town of some
fifteen thousand inhabitants, they were so kindly received by the
natives that these apprehensions were somewhat laid to rest. The
people came out to meet them, invited them to their houses, and
treated them with the greatest hospitality. Here they remained
three days, resting after their terrible fatigues.
They were visited here by Maxixca, the most influential of the four
great chiefs of the Tlascalans. He had been their most cordial
friend, on their first arrival; and his sentiments were in no wise
changed by the misfortunes that had befallen them. Indeed, his
admiration for them was heightened, by the manner in which they had
withstood the whole power of the Aztec nation.
The cordial greeting, given to them by one whose counsels were of
the highest authority in the Tlascalan nation, restored the
confidence of Cortez; and he accepted the invitation to continue
his march, at once, to the capital, which was some fifteen miles
away. The sick and wounded were placed in hammocks, which were
carried on the shoulders of the friendly natives; and as the army
approached the capital, crowds of people flocked out to meet them,
with cries of welcome, and escorted them into the city.
Cortez and his officers took up their abode in the palace of
Maxixca, and the rest of the army were quartered in that part of
the city over which he exercised special authority. Here they
remained for some weeks, during which the wounded recovered from
their injuries, the sick regained their strength in the bracing
mountain air, and the whole army shook off the effects of the
terrible hardships they had undergone, while retreating from
Mexico.
Cortez, during this time, was confined to his couch. The wound on
the hand, which he had received in the conflict in the capital, had
been so inflamed and aggravated that he had lost the use of two
fingers; and he had, in the retreat, received two severe wounds in
the head, one of which became so inflamed from inattention, and
from the fatigue and excitement he had gone through, that a portion
of the bone had to be removed; and the general lay, for some time,
at the point of death.
The news came, in a day or two after the army reached its resting
place, that a party of five horsemen and forty foot, who had gone
forward in charge of invalids and treasure from Tlascala, had all
been massacred; and twelve other soldiers, marching in the same
direction, had also been killed. Upon the other hand, they heard
that all was quiet on the coast; and the friendly demeanor of the
natives, there, was in no way changed.
Roger, seeing that for a time nothing could be done, and that the
troops were all eager to retire to the coast, dispatched Bathalda,
a few days after his arrival at Tlascala, to Amenche; to say that
he considered it certain that the Spaniards would retire; and that,
if she would come up to him in charge of Cuitcatl, whose safety he
could guarantee, while in Tlascalan territory, they might be
united; as Malinche had promised to obtain the consent of Cortez,
who always encouraged marriages between his followers and the
natives.
Before leaving, Bathalda handed to Roger a small bag.
"This," he said, "Maclutha gave to me, for you. It was for that
purpose she drew me aside, before you started. She bade me not
deliver it to you, unless I was compelled to part from you. It
contains some of the principal jewels taken from the treasure
house; and she said they might make you and the princess rich, when
you reach home.
"They are useless to her. She has no children and, now that Cacama
has gone, it is naught to her who rules over Tezcuco. Moreover,
these are but a small portion of the treasure in her possession."
Roger sent his warm thanks to Maclutha and, after Bathalda had
started, examined the contents of the bag, which he saw at once
were very valuable--consisting of large pearls, diamonds, and other
gems.
On the evening of the second day after starting, Bathalda returned,
alone.
"I have very bad news," he said, "so bad that I hardly like to tell
it. Four days since, an officer and guard arrived from Mexico, with
orders to arrest Cuitcatl, who was reported by the priests in the
neighborhood to have harbored a white man, and to have permitted
him to escape. Maclutha and Amenche were also arrested, and though
treated with every personal courtesy, were conducted to Mexico,
where the official said they were, for the present, to remain in
seclusion, in the royal palace."
Roger was stupefied by the news. What was to be done, he knew not.
To desert Amenche was not to be thought of, and yet he saw no way
of rejoining her, still less of rescuing her. In the present
excited state of the Aztec population, it would be certain death to
venture beyond the frontier of Tlascala.
He regarded his height, now, as the greatest misfortune. Had he
been short and slight, he would have disguised himself as a
Mexican, and under the guidance of Bathalda, have made his way to
the capital; but with a figure which would be instantly remarked,
wherever he went, this would be impossible.
He entered the palace, and sent in an urgent message to Malinche,
who was nursing Cortez. She listened patiently to his narrative.
"I pity you, Roger," she said, when he had finished; "but there is
nothing to be done."
"But I cannot march away and leave her," he said. "Rather than
that, I will disguise myself and take all risks, even though I know
that I must fail."
"You must have patience, Roger," she said. "Cortez will, I feel
sure, recover."
"But if so, it will only be to march down to the coast," Roger
broke in. "The whole army are eager to be off, before the Mexicans
can gather their forces and be ready to fall upon them."
"The army may think what it likes, and wish what it likes,"
Malinche said, quietly. "I am sure that Cortez will not go down to
the coast; and what he wills, he does. The others may grumble, but
Cortez leads them like tame deer. When he is well enough to speak
to them, they will listen and obey him. His thoughts, ill as he is,
are all of a fresh march to Mexico."
Hitherto, Roger had been as desirous as any of his comrades of a
return to the coast. It had seemed to him that there was no
possibility of success, and he longed to be on his way to Europe,
with his Indian bride.
But now everything was changed. He had come to have a faith in
Cortez, almost as absolute as that entertained by the general's
devoted followers; and he well knew that, if he still thought there
was a possibility of a successful march to Mexico, that march would
be made. He now, therefore, waited with impatience for Cortez to be
on his feet again.
But the waiting was long and tedious. Four weeks passed before the
general was again himself.
As soon as he became convalescent, the regulations which he issued
for the army, and the orders that he sent to the coast, for every
available man to be sent up to reinforce him, showed the soldiers
that he had no intentions of retiring; and a remonstrance was
signed, by a large number of officers and soldiers, against a
further stay in the country. But Cortez was not shaken. He prayed
them not to discredit the great name they had won, nor to leave
their glorious enterprise for others, more daring, to finish. How
could they, with honor, desert their allies who, at their
persuasion, had taken up arms, and had shared their fortunes, and
so leave them to the vengeance of the Aztecs? To retreat now would
be but to proclaim their weakness, and give confidence to their
foes.
If, however, there were any who preferred going home to the glory
of this great enterprise, then in God's Name let them go. He would
feel stronger, with but a few brave spirits with him, than if
surrounded by a host of false or cowardly men.
The troops of Narvaez had been the loudest in their complaints, but
they were silenced now by the enthusiasm with which the soldiers of
Cortez responded to the appeal of their leader; and all agreed to
postpone their departure, for the present.
A fresh source of danger speedily arose. Six Aztec ambassadors
arrived, bearing presents, and inviting the Tlascalans to forget
old animosities, and to enter into a treaty with them. All the
nations of Anahuac, they urged, should make common cause in defense
of their country; and they conjured them, by their common religion,
not to allow the white men to escape from their hands; but to
sacrifice them, at once, to their gods. These proposals were made
at a solemn council, called to receive them.
There had, even before the arrival of the ambassadors, been a
strong party in Tlascala who viewed the Spaniards, with hostility,
as the authors of the heavy losses they had suffered; and as
becoming, by their continued stay there, a burden to the state. The
head of this party was the young chief Xicotencatl, who had led the
Tlascalan armies in the desperate resistance they offered to the
Spaniards, on their first coming. When the ambassadors had made
their offers, he rose and urged his hearers to assent to the
proposal; saying that it were better to unite with their kindred,
and those of their own language, faith, and custom, than with these
fierce strangers.
The young warriors enthusiastically agreed; but, happily for the
Spaniards, the four great chiefs, one of whom was the father of
Xicotencatl, were opposed to the proposal. Maxixca especially
combated the idea.
"The Aztecs," he said, "are always false in speech, and false in
heart. It is fear that drives them, now, to offer their friendship
to the Tlascalans; and when the cause for fear has passed, they
will again be hostile. What? Are we to sacrifice the white men to
the gods--the men who have fought with us side by side against our
enemies, and who are now our guests? Were we to act thus, it would
be an act of the grossest perfidy."
Xicotencatl replied; but Maxixca, losing his temper, seized him
and, with sudden violence, thrust him from the chamber. So unusual
a step so astonished the assembly that it silenced all opposition,
and the alliance with the Mexicans was unanimously rejected.
Confident now that the Tlascalans were to be trusted, Cortez sent
out expeditions, composed of his own men and bodies of the allies,
and inflicted terrible punishment on the districts where the
isolated parties of Spaniards had been cut off and destroyed; and
defeated the natives in several hardly fought battles, capturing
their towns and enslaving the inhabitants.
Having thus restored the confidence of his followers and allies, he
prepared for a forward movement. Martin Lopez, ship builder to the
expedition, had escaped the slaughter on the causeway; and he now
ordered him to build at Tlascala thirteen ships, which could be
taken to pieces and carried on the shoulders of the Indians, to be
launched on Lake Tezcuco. The sails, rigging, and ironwork were to
be brought from the coast, where they had been stored since Cortez
had sunk his ships.
The Tlascalans placed a great number of men at the ship builders'
disposal. Timber was cut from the forest. Pitch, an article unknown
to the natives, obtained from the pines. New arms were manufactured.
Powder was made, with sulphur obtained from the volcanoes. And the
work, heavy though it was, was rapidly brought to a conclusion.
While it was going on, however, a terrible scourge swept over the
country. Smallpox, a disease hitherto unknown there, broke out on
the seacoast and swept across Mexico, carrying off great
numbers--among the victims being Maxixca, the faithful friend of
the Spaniards; and Cuitlahua, Montezuma's successor.
The latter was succeeded by Guatimozin, nephew of the two last
monarchs, who had married his cousin, one of Montezuma's daughters.
Like Cuitlahua he was a gallant prince, and had distinguished
himself greatly in the attacks on the Spaniards, in Mexico. He
continued the preparations Cuitlahua had begun for the defense;
but, like him, was greatly hampered by the fact that a large
proportion of the tribes recently conquered by the Aztecs had
seized the opportunity, caused by the confusion in the empire, to
throw off their allegiance; the royal orders being really obeyed
only by the population of the Valley of Mexico, itself.
Before starting on his march towards Mexico, Cortez permitted
several of his companions, who were disinclined to face a renewal
of the trials and hardships they had suffered, to leave; placing
his best ship at their disposal. Their loss was more than made up
by the capture of two vessels sent by Velasquez, who was ignorant
of the fate which had befallen Narvaez; and who considered it
certain that Cortez was a prisoner in his hands. The ships sailed
into port, where the captains and crews were at once seized, and
were then easily persuaded to join Cortez. Two ships fitted out by
the Governor of Jamaica also put into port, to repair damages after
a storm; and their crews were also persuaded, by the liberal
promises of Cortez, to abandon their service and join him. He thus
received a reinforcement of at least a hundred and fifty well-armed
men, together with fifty horses.
But this was not the end of the good fortune of Cortez. A merchant
ship, laden with arms and military stores, touched at Cuba; and the
captain, hearing of the discoveries in Mexico, thought that he
should find a good market there. He therefore sailed to Vera Cruz,
where his ship and cargo were purchased by Cortez, and the crew
swelled the force under him.
By Christmas everything was ready for the advance. The army now
amounted to six hundred men, forty of whom were cavalry, with
eighty musketeers and crossbow men. It had also nine cannon taken
from the ships. The force of the native allies which joined them
was estimated at from one hundred and ten thousand, to one hundred
and fifty thousand; and consisted not only of the Tlascalan troops,
but of those of Cholula, Tepeaca, and other neighboring towns; who,
after their defeat by Cortez, had submitted themselves to the
Spanish rule.
But Cortez had no idea of taking all these with him, as it would be
difficult to obtain provisions for such a host; and he left them
behind, to bring on the vessels when completed, and to aid in
further operations. He himself marched with the Spaniards and a
small body of allies, and reached Tezcuco without opposition. The
prince whom Montezuma had appointed to succeed Cacama, fearing the
vengeance of the population, had fled to Tlascala; but returning,
in hopes of finding a party there in his favor, was seized and put
to death by Coanaco, another brother, who had been recognized as
king by the Tezcucans.
When the Spaniards approached the city, they found it almost
entirely deserted, the inhabitants having fled across the lake to
Mexico. Their ruler had accompanied them, and Cortez appointed
another brother in his place. This prince lived but a few months,
and was succeeded by another member of the royal house--the prince
who had, during Cacama's lifetime, obtained a large portion of his
dominion; and who proved a valiant and faithful ally of the
Spaniards, in their struggle with his countrymen.
The Tezcucans gradually returned after Cortez had nominated a new
sovereign, and Cortez at once set a large number of them to dig a
canal from the town itself to the lake, so that the men putting
together the ships could labor under his very eye.
Several of the cities round sent in to make their submission; and a
week after his arrival Cortez marched, with a body of Spaniards and
allies, against Iztapalapan, a town of fifty thousand inhabitants,
lying near the narrow tongue of land dividing the great lake from
that of Xochicalco.
The natives came out to meet them, and fought bravely, but were
driven into the city. The greater part of those who could not
escape were slaughtered. While engaged in the work of plunder, the
Spaniards were alarmed by a rush of water; the natives having
broken the bank of the great lake. The troops with the greatest
difficulty escaped with their lives, many of the allies being
drowned.
The fate of Iztapalapan excited consternation among the other
cities, and many sent in to make their submission, among them
Otompan and Chalco. Not only had the Mexican Empire fallen to
pieces, by the detachment of its distant provinces; but even near
home long smoldering rivalries broke into flame. The Aztecs were
but a small portion, even of the people of the Valley of Mexico;
and the greater portion of these were glad to take advantage of the
distress of the capital to break up the union that had so long
existed. Cortez, by promises and presents, assisted the work.
After some weeks' stay at Tezcuco, the news came that the ships
were all completed, and ready to be carried down; and two hundred
foot and fifteen horse, under the command of Sandoval, were sent to
escort them. But scarcely had he reached the frontier of Tlascala
than he saw a vast procession advancing. The ships had already been
put together, and tried on a lake among the hills; and were now
being brought down in pieces by an immense number of porters, with
a great military escort. Sandoval sent the larger portion of the
Indian escort home, but kept twenty thousand of the best warriors.
After four days of painful labor, the host of porters and fighting
men reached Tezcuco. It was, indeed, an immense undertaking that
had been accomplished; for the whole of the wood and iron work, of
thirteen ships, had to be carried for upwards of sixty miles, over
a difficult and mountainous country.
A few days later, Cortez took half of his Spanish force and the
whole of his allies, and started on an expedition to reconnoiter
the capital, and to punish some of the towns which had returned
insolent answers in reply to his summons.
The town of Xaltocan, standing on an island, was first attacked.
The dike leading to it was found to be cut through; and the
Spaniards, for a time, suffered greatly. They found a ford,
however; reached the town, and put all who resisted to the sword.
Three other towns, which had been deserted by their inhabitants,
were occupied and sacked. They then marched against Tlacopan and,
after a battle outside the town, occupied the suburbs. Another hot
fight was necessary before the town was fully taken.
Here the Spaniards halted for some days, fighting almost daily with
the Aztecs. In one encounter, Cortez allowed himself to be decoyed
on to the great causeway, upon which he had before suffered such
disaster. When he was halfway across the Aztecs turned,
reinforcements arrived from the city, swarms of canoes attacked the
Spaniards in flank; and it was only after desperate fighting, and
some loss, that they regained the mainland.
Having accomplished their object, the force returned to Tezcuco,
greatly harassed on the march by the enemy. Other expeditions were
undertaken. During these events the work of putting together the
vessels was continued and, to the great satisfaction of the
Spaniards, news reached them from the coast of the arrival of three
ships, with reinforcements: two hundred men, seventy or eighty
horses, arms, and ammunition.
When these reached Tezcuco, Cortez felt confident that he should
now be able to overcome all opposition. On the fifth of April he
again started on an expedition. Passing through some deep gorges,
he attempted to carry a mountain fortress; but was repulsed, with
loss, from the volleys of stones and rocks rolled down upon the
assailants.
After several other battles they neared Xochimilco, one of the
richest of the Aztec towns. Like Mexico, it stood in the water, but
at a small distance from the edge of the lake. This was only
captured after desperate fighting, Cortez himself having a narrow
escape of his life. The next morning at dawn, great numbers of
Aztecs landed from canoes, and fell upon the Spaniards; and it was
only after a long and desperate struggle that the latter gained the
day.
They now continued their march to Tlacopan, the enemy following
closely, and striking whenever they saw an opportunity; and the
troops were glad, indeed, when they again reached Tezcuco. By this
time the canal was finished and the ships were put together; and
after discovering and punishing another conspiracy against his
life, Cortez gave orders for the fleet to advance. Solemn mass was
held, and then the vessels, in the sight of an enormous concourse
of people, dropped down the canal, one after the other, and reached
the lake.
Cortez mustered his men, and found that he had eighty-seven horse;
eight hundred and eighteen foot, of which one hundred and eighteen
were musketeers or crossbow men; three large iron field pieces, and
fifteen light brass guns. Three hundred of the men were told off to
man the ships.
The Indian confederates arrived punctually: fifty thousand
Tlascalans, and a vast number of levies from the other tribes.
The army was divided into three corps. One was to take up its post,
under Alvarado, at Tlacopan. Another, under Olid, was to aid in
capturing the causeway; while Sandoval had command of the third,
whose movements were to be determined by circumstances. Cortez
himself took charge of the fleet.
A quarrel arose between a Spanish soldier and a Tlascalan chief,
who was a relation of Xicotencatl; who at once left the army, and
started for Tlascala. He had always been bitterly hostile to the
Spaniards; and Cortez saw that, unless the movement was stopped, it
might become very serious. He sent a party of natives after him,
with instructions to prevail upon him, if possible, to return. He
refused to do so. Cortez dispatched a body of cavalry in pursuit,
arrested him in Tlascala, brought him down to Tezcuco, and there
hung him in the sight of his own countrymen.
The divisions of Alvarado and Olid met with no resistance in
establishing themselves at Tlacopan. They cut the reservoir that
supplied the city with fresh water, the great lake being salt. The
next day the two divisions marched on to the causeway to make
themselves masters, if possible, of the first bridge.
The natives pursued their former tactics, desperately defending
barricades thrown across the causeway, and attacking the invaders
with a crowd of missiles from canoes. After a long and obstinate
fight, the Spaniards and their allies were obliged to fall back,
with considerable loss; and Olid drew off with his division to his
station commanding the other causeway.
Iztapalapan having been again occupied by the enemy, Sandoval's
division attacked them by land; while Cortez, with his fleet, lay
off the shore. After capturing the town, Cortez turned his
attention to the canoes of the natives, which darkened the surface
of the lake. At this moment a fresh breeze sprang up; and the
ships, spreading their canvas, dashed amongst the canoes,
overturning and destroying great numbers; while the cannon tore
others to pieces, with discharges of bullets; and comparatively few
succeeded in regaining the city.
It was now getting nearly dark, and the fleet coasted along the
great southern causeway to the fort of Xoloc, where another branch
of the causeway joined the main dike.
The fort was feebly garrisoned. Cortez landed his soldiers and
carried it by storm. Here he established his headquarters, landing
some of the cannon from the ships to strengthen the position.
He was now within half a league of the city, and two out of the
three great approaches were already in his hands. Night and day the
natives attacked the garrison; but the ships, and the guns in
positions, repulsed their assaults.
After some days' delay, a simultaneous attack was made by the
Spaniards. Two of the ships, one on each side of the causeway,
advanced abreast of the army, sweeping the dike with their fire.
The enemy were driven back; and Cortez, passing gap after gap,
reached the island on which the city stood. Behind them, as they
advanced, the native allies filled up the breaches, and made them
practicable for artillery and cavalry; and as soon as the work was
completed, the Spaniards who had already passed were reinforced by
large numbers of their allies.