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When the Spaniards had sought refuge in that republic after their expulsion from Mexico he had advised the senate to seize the opportunity for ridding their territory of such dangerous allies, being one of the few wise enough to foresee the evil they would bring upon them. It seems more in accordance with what we know of Cortez and his band to believe that there was no treachery intended, except by the Spaniards themselves, and the massacre was committed in order to strike terror into the hearts of all the inhabitants of the Mexican valley, and to secure the rich booty that would fall to the share of the victors. The coming of Maximilian had found him an exile in Cuba and the island of Saint Thomas. The Mexicans had fortified the naturally strong position of Cerro Gordo. At a town called Chiahuitzla, situated upon a steep and rocky hill, about three miles from the coast, the lord of that town and the lord of Cempoalla held conference with Cortez as to the advisability of throwing off the yoke of Montezuma.
This was the year in which he had brought to Mexico a new sacrificial stone. Among those who eloquently advocated the passage of this measure was a young lawyer, named Juarez. The intelligence that guided their operations seems to have been one superior to that which guided the Spaniards. About this time a conspiracy was formed against the life of Cortez, a party having resolved to assassinate him while at dinner, but this was discovered in season and the chief conspirator hanged. It has been said by at least one historian that the Spaniards were assisted by one of the saints that day, the war-like apostle St. James, who rode a dappled horse, and charged the unregenerate heathen right valiantly. These animals were very stiff from their long confinement on board the vessels, but in the course of the day they recovered their spirits and agility. The yellow fever, the dreaded vomito, carries off its thousand victims yearly. Intrigue was always welcome to the Spanish commander, and he promised them assistance in throwing off the Mexican yoke, and to shortly visit their town of Cempoalla.
In addition to the profits derivable from the more staple products, bananas, sarsaparilla, lemons, nuts, guavas, pine-apples, tamarinds, citrons, dates, indigo, plantains and arrowroot, rice, coffee and sugar were raised in large quantities in the terra caliente region, while beans and barley were harvested in big crops in the tierra templada. This place, Chapultepec, became famous in later years as the resort and the burial-place of the Mexican kings, and just about six hundred years later a decisive battle was fought there between the soldiers of two nations that at that time had not been heard of, —the troops of the Republic of Mexico and the United States! By this act the Chalchese were so enraged that they slew all the Mexicans with darts. This lord represented to Ahuitzotl that the attempt would be dangerous to the safety of the city, as at times the fountain overflowed its banks, and if it were diverted into the valley in a stream it might cause great damage to be done. He was said by some to have been born of a woman named Coatlicue, whose children prepared to kill her before this last child should be born. The inflexible Xicotencatl was evidently determined to attempt the utter destruction of the Spaniards on the following day, the battles heretofore having been merely skirmishes to feel the force and strength of his enemy. They were a very civilized race, these Mound Builders, very different from the savages who surrounded them, or who have since swept over the country they once occupied. The whole sum collected amounted to only three hundred and eighty thousand crowns, and, after deducting the shares belonging to the king and the officers, that falling to the soldiers was so small that few of them would take it. The feast of Mictlanteuctli, the god of hell, was celebrated in this month, by the nocturnal sacrificing of prisoners, and another feast, the second, to the god of the merchants. Desiring to remove from the sight of the Indians every vestige of their former arts, and especially of their idolatry, this infamous bigot ransacked the library vaults of Tezcoco and Mexico, and piling the hieroglyphic paintings in a great heap destroyed the whole by fire. Though common crimes were punished with terrible severity and the ordinary citizen was closely hedged about by rules, the transgression of which was death, he seems to have had periods of hearty enjoyment. Fear that the Spaniards might make an alliance with the Mexicans, when they would then be able combined to sweep the Tlascallans from the face of the earth, caused Xicotencatl to yield to the wishes of the senators and treat for peace. The cathedrals—notably those of Mexico, Puebla, and Guadalajara, —were ablaze with gold and jewels, the spoils of centuries of oppression of a superstitious people. He commenced life as a poor muleteer.
The city of Mexico was soon invested by the Liberal troops, the valley filled with their armies, under the supreme command of General Diaz. By skilful strategy, Cortez soon got possession of the lords of the principal cities of the valley, the King of Tlacopan, and the high priest of Tlaltelolco. They were graciously received by the lords-in-waiting, and, after having been required to cover their garments with coarse wrappers and to put off their shoes, they were admitted into the royal presence. At another engagement the slaughter was so great that the waters of a small stream near which it took place were tinged with blood for the space of an hour. By September he had advanced as far as the neighborhood of Monterey, the capital of the State of New Leon. This town being the first of any extent, built of hewn stone and plastered with lime, that the Spaniards entered, they were greatly astonished at what they saw there. After a few ineffectual protests, the latter abandoned the field and left the usurper in possession. This is the reason why mankind are of different sizes, owing to their origin from different fragments. The people of these provinces all made a stubborn defence, in which they were greatly assisted by Mexican troops; but all to no avail; the Spaniards were soon masters of all the country about Tlascala, and opened unobstructed routes of communication, not only with the coast at Vera Cruz, but with the borders of the great lake of Tezcoco.
Thrown upon their own resources, the people found that they needed the support of no other country in the world. On the western slope of the mountains, more embassadors met Cortez with another present from Montezuma, and with earnest entreaties that he would reconsider his determination and desist from marching upon Mexico. He had with him but fifteen or twenty soldiers of the rear-guard, and they told Cortez it was vain to wait for more, as all had perished. Near the bridge of Calderon, on the 17th of January, 1811, the decisive battle was fought.
But though our gallant soldiers had gained a mighty victory they were not permitted to advance and occupy the country, but were compelled to remain idle, while the forces of Scott were marching on to final triumph. We will now take leave of the Toltecs and glance at the next tribe that occupied the valley. Hastily assembling an army of sixteen thousand, Comonfort met the rebels and routed them, in March, 1856, and again in October of the same year. It was more than this old reprobate deserved, for he had already many children by various concubines, the total number at his death being one hundred. They were only too glad to get back to the main body, this detachment under Captain Davila, which they only accomplished at the end of two years. The coronation ceremonies lasted many days, and abounded in all the barbarous pastimes indulged in by those people. From this plain and sober statement of the costume and ornaments of the higher classes, collected from a great number of writers, it will be seen that the Aztecs were something more than the "barbarians" some historians would have us believe them to have been.
The conquerors founded a city near Ocosingo (state of Chiapas), which they called Tulha, or Tula. This viceroy was distinguished for nothing that has made his name memorable, and it will be an idle task for the reader to burden his memory with even his name.. Some of these golden candlesticks required two men to lift them. King Maxtla was found hidden in a temazcalli, or vapor bath, and killed, and his body cast into the fields.
He built temples and great houses, and planted groves, some of which are in existence at the present day. A long while after, the wretched veterans of his army returned by way of Guatemala, having been, some of them, over two years absent from their homes. The favorite palace of Montezuma was built of stone, whitened with lime, and had twenty doors opening into the public square. The Spaniards and their allies could not resist this attack, and were at once thrown into confusion. The great opal beds on the hacienda La Esperanza later yielded gems of the annual value of $Ioo, 000. Such are Labna, Kahbah, Nohpat, and many others. This he did, after a desperate battle, and acting on the orders of Cortez, who sent an alcalde with legal instructions, he put to death many of the caciques, burning some and hanging others. The root, called the amolli, possessed excellent cleansing properties, not only when used upon the person but upon cotton and linen. At the presidential election which occurred in September, out of the 16, 462 votes cast, Porfirio Diaz received 15, 969, a victory made the more remarkable by the fact that his opponents resorted to every questionable method to compass his defeat.