End of Journey in this Direction.--Lake of Peten.--Probable Existence
of Ruins in the Wilderness.--Islands in the Lake of Peten.--Peten
Grande.--Mission of two Monks.--Great Idol of the Figure of a
Horse.--Broken by the Monks, who in Consequence are obliged to
leave the Island.--Second Mission of the Monks.--Sent away by
the Indians.--Expedition of Don Martin Ursua.--Arrival at the
Island.--Attacked by the Indians, who are defeated.--Don Martin takes
Possession of Itza.--Temples and Idols of the Indians.--Destroyed
by the Spaniards.--Flight of the Indians into the
Wilderness.--Preparations.--Illness of Mr. Catherwood.--Effects of
Gambling.--From the Church to the Gaming-table.--How People live at
Iturbide.--Departure.--Rancho of Noyaxche.
Our journey in this direction is now ended. We were on the frontier of
the inhabited part of Yucatan, and within a few leagues of the last
village. Beyond was a wilderness, stretching off to the Lake of Peten,
and that region of Lacandones or unbaptized Indians, in which,
according to the suggestion made in my previous volumes, lay that
mysterious city never reached by a white man, but still occupied by
Indians precisely in the same state as before the discovery of America.
During my sojourn in Yucatan, my account of this city was published in
one of the Merida papers, and among intelligent persons there was a
universal belief that beyond the Lake of Peten there was a region of
unconverted Indians of whom nothing was known. We had been moving on in
the track of ruined cities. A venerable ecclesiastic in Merida had
furnished me with an itinerary of the journey through the wilderness to
the Lake of Peten, and I had some hope of being led on from place to
place until we should reach a point which might unravel all mystery,
and establish a connecting link between the past and present; but this
hope was accompanied by a fear, and, perhaps fortunately for us, we did
not hear of ruins beyond. If we had, we should not have attempted to go
in search of them, and it would have been painful to turn back. I am
far from believing, however, that because we did not hear of them none
exist. On the contrary, it may well be that wrecks of cities lie buried
but a few leagues farther on, the existence of which is entirely
unknown at the village of Iturbide, for at that place there was not a
single individual who had ever heard of the ruins at Labphak, which we
had visited just before, until they heard of them from us.
As yet, however, our face is still set toward the Lake of Peten. In
this lake are numerous islands, one of which is called Peten Grande,
Peten itself being a Maya word, signifying an island; and before
turning back I wish to present this island for one moment to the
reader. It now belongs to the government of Guatimala, and is under the
ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Bishop of Yucatan. Formerly it was
the principal place of the province of Itza, which province, for one
hundred and fifty years after the subjugation of Yucatan, maintained
its fierce and native independence. In the year 1608, sixty-six years
after the conquest, two Franciscan monks, alone, without arms, and in
the spirit of peace, set out to conquer this province by converting the
natives to Christianity. The limits of these pages will not permit me
to accompany them in their toilsome and dangerous journey, but,
according to the account of one of them as given by Cogolludo, at ten
o'clock at night they landed on the island, were provided with a house
by the king, and the next day preached to the Indians; but the latter
told them that the time had not yet come for them to become Christians,
and advised the monks to go away and return at some other day.
Nevertheless, they carried them round to see the town, and in the
middle of one of the temples they saw a great idol of the figure of a
horse, made of lime and stone, seated on the ground on his haunches,
with his hind legs bent, and raised on his fore feet, being intended as
an image of the horse which Cortez left at that place on his great
journey from Mexico to Honduras. On that occasion the Indians had seen
the Spaniards fire their muskets from the backs of the horses, and
supposing that the fire and noise were caused by the animals, they
called this image Tzimin Chac, and adored it as the god of thunder and
lightning. As the monks saw it, one of them, says the author of the
account, seemed as if the Spirit of the Lord had descended upon him;
and, carried away by zealous fervour, seized the foot of the horse with
his hand, mounted upon the statue, and broke it in pieces. The Indians
immediately cried out to kill them; but the king saved them, though
they were obliged to leave the island.
In the beginning of October, 1619, the same two monks, undaunted by
their previous ill success, again appeared on the island; but the
people rose up against them. One of the padres remonstrated; an Indian
seized him by the hair, twisted his neck, and hurled him to the ground,
tearing out his hair by the roots, and throwing it away. He was picked
up senseless, and, with his companion and the accompanying Indians, put
on board a bad canoe, without anything to eat, and again sent away.
With all their fanaticism and occasional cruelty, there is something
soul-stirring in the devotion of these early monks to the business of
converting the souls of the Indians.
In the year 1695, Don Martin Ursua obtained the government of Yucatan,
and, in pursuance of a proposal previously submitted by him to the
king, and approved by the council of the Indies, undertook the great
work of opening a road across the whole continent from Campeachy to
Guatimala. The opening of this road led to the conquest of Itza, and we
have a full and detailed account of this conquest, written by the
licenciado, or lawyer, Don Juan Villagutierres, a native of Yucatan. It
is entitled, "A History of the Conquest of Itza, reduction and
progress of that of Lacandon, and other barbarous Nations of Gentile
Indians in the Mediacion of Yucatan and Guatimala." It was published at
Madrid in the year 1701, and, what gives it great value, within four
years after the events referred to took place.
The work of opening the road was begun in 1695. In prosecuting it, the
Spaniards encountered vestiges of ancient buildings raised on terraces,
deserted and overgrown, and apparently very ancient. These, it is true,
may have been abandoned long before the conquest; but, as the Spaniards
had now been in the country one hundred and fifty years, it is not
unreasonable to suppose that the terror of their name may have made
desolate many places which their arms never reached.
On the twenty-first of January, 1697, Don Martin de Ursua set out
from Campeachy to take command of the expedition in person, with a
vicar-general and assistant, already nominated by the bishop, for the
province of Itza. On the last day of February he had timber cut on the
borders of Peten for the construction of vessels which should convey
them to the island. He sent before a proclamation, giving notice that
the time had come when they should have one cup and one plate with the
Spaniards. "If not," says the proclamation, "I will do what the king
commands me, but which it is not necessary now to express." The
thirteenth of March was appointed for the day of embarcation. Some of
the Spaniards, knowing the immense number of Indians on the island, and
the difficulty of conquering it, represented to the general the
rashness of his undertaking; but, says the historian, carried away by
his zeal, faith, and courage, he answered that, having in view the
service of God and the king, and the drawing of miserable souls from
the darkness of heathenism, under the favour and protection of the
Virgin Mary, whose image he carried on the royal standard, and engraven
on his heart, he alone was sufficient for this conquest, even if it
were much more difficult.
He embarked with one hundred and eight soldiers, leaving one hundred
and twenty, with auxiliary Indians, and two pieces of artillery, as a
garrison for the camp. The vicar blessed the vessel, and as the sun
rose she got under way for the island, two leagues distant The vicar
offered up a prayer, and the Spaniards cried "Viva la ley de Dios!"
Half way across he encountered fleets of canoes filled with warlike
Indians; but taking no notice of them, and moving on toward the island,
the Spaniards saw assembled immense numbers, prepared for war; Indians
crowded the tops of the small islands around; the canoes followed them
on the lake, and enclosed them in a half moon between themselves and
the shore. As soon as within reach, the Indians, by land and water,
poured upon them a shower of arrows. The general, Don Martin Ursua,
cried out in a loud voice, "Silence! let no one begin fighting, for God
is on our side, and there is nothing to fear." The Spaniards were
enraged, but Don Martin still cried out, "Let no one fire, on pain of
death!" The arrows from the shore were like thick rain. The Spaniards
could scarcely be restrained, and one soldier, wounded in the arm, and
enraged by the pain, fired his musket; the rest followed; the general
could no longer control them, and, without waiting till they reached
the shore, as soon as the oars stopped all threw themselves into the
water, Don Martin de Ursua among them. The Indians were thick as if
collected at the mouth of a cannon; but at the horrible noise and
destruction of the fire-arms they broke and fled in terror. The vessel,
with twenty soldiers, attacked the canoes, and those both in the canoes
and on the land, from the king to the smallest creature, all leaped
into the water, and from the island to the main nothing was to be seen
but the heads of Indians, men, women, and children, swimming for life.
The Spaniards entered the deserted town, and hoisted the royal standard
on the highest point of Peten. With a loud voice they returned thanks
to God for his mercies, and Don Martin Ursua took formal possession of
the island and the territory of Itza in the name of the king. The vicar
claimed it as belonging to the bishopric of Yucatan, and in stole and
bonnet blessed the lake. This took place on the thirteenth of March,
1697, one hundred and fifty-five years after the foundation of Merida,
and but one hundred and forty-five years ago.
We have, then, accounts of visits by the padres sixty years after the
subjugation of Yucatan, and a detailed account of the conquest of Itza,
one hundred and fifty-five years afterward; and what did they find on
the island? The monks say that, when taken to look over the city, they
went to the middle and highest part of the island to see the kues and
adoratorios of the heathen idols, and that "there were twelve or more
of the size of the largest churches in the villages of the Indians in
the province of Yucatan, each one of which was capable of containing
more than one thousand persons."
The Spanish soldiers, too, almost before they had time to sheath their
blood-stained swords, were seized with holy horror at the number of
adoratorios, temples, and houses of idolatry. The idols were so
numerous, and of such various forms, that it was impossible to give any
description of them, or even to count them; and in the private houses
of these barbarous infidels, even on the benches on which they sat,
were two or three small idols.
According to the historical account, there were twenty-one adoratorios,
or temples. The principal one was that of the great false priest
Quin-canek, first cousin of the king Canek. It was of square form, with
handsome breastwork, and nine steps, all of wrought stone, and each
front was about sixty feet, and very high. It is again mentioned as
being in the form of a castillo, and this name, perhaps, makes a
stronger impression on my mind from the fact that in the ruined cities
of Chichen and Tuloom, which will be presented to the reader hereafter,
there is an edifice bearing to this day the name of El Castillo, given
to it by the Spaniards, doubtless, from the same resemblance to a
castle which induced General Ursua to apply that name to the adoratorio
in Peten. On the last step at the entrance was an idol in a squatting
position, sitting close to the ground, in human form, but with a very
unprepossessing countenance.
Another great adoratorio is described, of the same form and similar
construction, and the rest are mentioned only with reference to the
number and character of the idols they contained; but, probably, if
there had been any material difference in form or construction, it
would have been mentioned, and there is reason, to believe that they
were all alike. These descriptions are brief and general, but, in my
opinion, they are sufficient to identify the adoratorios and temples on
this island as being of the same general character with all the ruined
buildings scattered over this country; and this presumption has great
additional interest from another important consideration, for we have
clear and authentic historical accounts, perhaps more reliable than any
others relating to the aborigines of this country, of the very people
by whom and the very time within which these kues, adoratorios, and
temples were erected.
According to both Cogolludo and Villagutierres, who drew their
conclusions from occurrences of such late date as to leave but little
room for error, the Itzites, or people of Itza, were originally from
the land of Maya, now Yucatan, and once formed part of that nation. At
the time of the insurrection of the caciques of Maya, and the
destruction of Mayapan, Canek, one of the rebellious caciques, got
possession of the city of Chichen Itza. As it is sometimes said, on
account of the foretelling of the arrival of the Spaniards by one of
their prophets, but more probably on account of the insecurity of his
possessions, he withdrew with his people from the province of Chichen
Itza to the most hidden and impenetrable part of the mountains, and
took possession of the Lake of Peten, establishing his residence on the
large island which now bears that name. This emigration, according to
the history, took place but about one hundred years before the arrival
of the Spaniards. It follows, therefore, that all the adoratorios and
temples which Don Martin Ursua found on the island must have been
erected within that time. The conquest took place in March, 1697, and
we have the interesting fact, that but about one hundred and forty-five
years ago, within the period of two lives, a city existed occupied by
unbaptized Indians, precisely in the same state as before the arrival
of the Spaniards, having kues, adoratorios, and temples of the same
general character with the great structures now scattered in ruins all
over that country. This conclusion cannot be resisted except by denying
entirely the credit of all the historical accounts existing on the
subject.
And where are these kues, adoratorios, and temples now? In both my
journeys into that country, it was always my intention to visit the
island of Peten, and it has been a matter of deep regret that I was
never able to do so; but as the result of my inquiries, particularly
from the venerable cura who furnished me with the itinerary, and who
lived many years on the island, I am induced to believe that there are
no buildings left, but that there are feeble vestiges, not enough in
themselves to attract the attention of mere curiosity, but which may
possess immense antiquarian interest, as making manifest the hand of
the builders of the American cities. But even if these twenty-one kues,
adoratorios, or temples have entirely disappeared, not one stone being
left upon another, this does not impeach the truth of the historical
account that they once existed, for in the history of the Spaniards'
first day on the island we have an indication of what the same ruthless
spirit might accomplish in one hundred and forty-five years. General
Ursua took possession of the island at half past eight o'clock in the
morning, and, immediately after returning thanks to God for the
victory, the first order he issued was for each captain and officer,
with a party of soldiers, to proceed forthwith to different parts of
the city to reconnoiter all the temples, and houses of idolaters and of
individuals, and to hurl down and break the idols. The general himself
set out, accompanied by the vicar and assistant, and we learn
incidentally, and only as a means of conveying an idea of the multitude
of idols and figures thrown down by the Spaniards, that the taking of
the island having been at half past eight in the morning, they were
occupied, with but little intermission, in throwing down, breaking, and
burning idols and statues, from that hour until half past five in the
evening, when the drum called them to eat, which, says the historian,
was very necessary after so great labour; and if one day served for
destroying the idols, one hundred and forty-five years, in which were
erected a fort, churches, and other buildings that now exist, may well
have effected the complete destruction of all the native edifices for
idol worship.
I have asked where are the adoratorios and temples of Peten, and I am
here tempted to ask one other question. Where are the Indians whose
heads on that day of carnage and terror covered the water from the
island to the main? Where are those unhappy fugitives, and the
inhabitants of the other islands and of the territory of Itza? They
fled before the terrible Spaniard, plunged deeper into the wilderness,
and are dimly connected in my mind with that mysterious city before
referred to; in fact, it is not difficult for me to believe that in the
wild region beyond the Lake of Peten, never yet penetrated by a white
man, Indians are now living as they did before the discovery of
America; and it is almost a part of this belief that they are using and
occupying adoratorios and temples like those now seen in ruins in the
wilderness of Yucatan.
The reader will perhaps think that I have gone quite far enough, and
that it is time to come back.
The next on our list were the ruins of Macoba, lying on the rancho of
our friend the cura of Xul, and then in the actual occupation of
Indians. We learned that the most direct road to this place was an
Indian path, but the best way to reach it was to retrace our steps as
far the rancho of Senor Trego; at least, this was so near being the
best that the opportunity of passing the night with him determined us
to set out immediately by that route. We had our Indian carriers in
attendance at the village; but, unluckily, while preparing to set out,
Mr. Catherwood was taken with fever, and we were obliged to postpone
our departure.
We had another subject of anxiety, but more moderate, in the conduct of
Don Juan. He had not been near us all day, and we could not account for
his neglect; but toward evening Albino learned that the night before he
had lost sixteen dollars at the gaming-table, and had kept his hammock
ever since.
The next day it rained. On Sunday the rain still continued. Early in
the morning the ministro came over from the village of Hopochen to say
mass, and, while lounging about to note the prospect in regard to the
weather, I stopped under the shed where the gaming-table remained ready
for use, to which, when mass was over, all the better classes came from
the church in clean dresses, prepared for business.
It was a matter of some curiosity to me to know how these men lived;
none of them worked. Their only regular business seemed to be that of
gambling. On taking a seat among them, I learned the secret from
themselves. Each man had several outstanding loans of four or five
dollars made to Indians, or he had sold agua ardiente or some other
trifling commodity, which created an indebtedness. This made the Indian
a criado, or servant, and mortgaged his labour to the creditor or
master, by the use of which, in milpas or tobacco plantations, the
latter lived. By small occasional supplies of cocoa or spirit they keep
alive the indebtedness; and as they keep the accounts themselves, the
poor Indians, in their ignorance and simplicity, are ground to the
earth to support lazy and profligate masters.
We had not formed any very exalted opinion of these people, and they
did not rate themselves very high. Don Juan had told us that the
Indians were all drunkards, and half the white people; and the other
half had occasionally to take to the hammock; he said, too, that they
were all gamblers, and the alcalde, as he shuffled the cards, confirmed
it, and asked me to join them. He inquired if there was no gambling in
my country, or what people did with their money if they did not gamble,
and he allowed that to expend it in horses, carriages, dinners,
furniture, dress, and other particulars suggested by some of them, was
sensible enough; for, as he said very truly, when they died they could
not carry it away with them. I mentioned that in my country gambling
was forbidden by law, and that for gambling in the street, and on a
Sunday, they would all be taken up and punished. This touched the
alcalde in his office, and he started up with the cards in his hand,
and looking indignantly at the people under his charge, said that there
too it was forbidden by law; that any one who gambled, or who connived
at it, or who permitted it in his house, was liable to be declared not
a citizen; that they had laws, and very good ones; all knew them, but
nobody minded them. Everybody gambled, particularly in that village;
they had no money, but they gambled corn and tobacco and he pointed to
a man then crossing the plaza, who the night before had gambled away a
hog. He admitted that sometimes it was a good way to make money, but
he pointed to a miserable-looking young man, not more than two or
three-and-twenty, whose father, he said, had ranchos, and Indians, and
houses, and ready money, and was close-fisted, and had left all to that
son, who was now looking for seven and sixpence to make up a dollar,
and the young man himself, with a ghastly smile, confirmed the tale.
The alcalde then continued with a running commentary upon the idleness
and extravagance of the people in the village; they were all lazy, and
having illustrations at hand, he pointed to an Indian just passing with
three strings of beef, which, he said, had cost him a medio and a half,
and would be consumed at a meal, and that Indian, he knew, had not a
medio in the world to pay his capitation tax. One of the gentlemen
present then suggested that the government had lately passed an
iniquitous law that no Indian should be compelled to work unless he
chose; if he refused, he could not be whipped or imprisoned, and what
could be expected in such a state of things? Another gentleman
interposed with great unction, declaring that the alcalde of a
neighbouring village did not mind the law, but went on whipping the
same as before. All this time a dozen Indians, by the constitution free
and independent as themselves, sat on the ground without saying a word,
merely staring from one to the other of the speakers.
After this the conversation turned upon our own party, and finally
settled upon Doctor Cabot. I regretted to find that, in a community
which had patronised him so extensively, there was some diversity of
opinion as to his qualifications. There was one dissenting voice, and
the general discussion settled down into a warm argument between
the two brothers of Don Juan, the alcalde and the keeper of the
gambling-table, the latter of whom held up an ugly sandalled foot, with
a great excrescence upon it, and said, rather depreciatingly, that the
doctor did not cure his corns. The alcalde was stanch, and thrust
forward his cured child, but his brother shook his head, still holding
out his foot, and I am sorry to say that, so far as I could gather the
sense of the community, Doctor Cabot's reputation as a medico received
somewhat of a shock.
In the afternoon the rain ceased, and we bade farewell to the new
village of Iturbide. As we passed, Don Juan left his place at the table
to bid us goodby, and a little before dark we reached the rancho
Noyaxche of Senor Trego, where we again received a cordial welcome, and
in his intelligent society found a relief from the dulness of Iturbide.