The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo Vol. 2

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1/25/22, 8:50 PM The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo written by himself, containing a true an… Our troops in the brigantines had now a great advantage over us inmaking booty, for they were able to get at all the houses that lay in thelake, in which the Mexicans had concealed all their wealth; and alsoto those places in the lake which were thickly grown with reeds, andwhither those Mexicans, whose houses were pulled down during thesiege, fled with all their property; besides which, they had had frequent opportunities, while foraging in the country, to plunder severaldistinguished Mexicans, who had fled to seek refuge among the Otomies.We other soldiers, who fought away on the causeways and mainland,derived no such benefits; all we got were severe wounds from arrows,stones, and lances. Whenever we did penetrate into the houses, theinmates had already escaped with their valuables; for we were unableto get at the houses without first filling up a canal, or throwing a bridgeacross, which took up a considerable time: and this was my reason for observing in a former chapter, that the troops whom Cortes selectedfor the service of the brigantines fared better than those who were stationedon the mainland. There was not the slightest doubt about this; for when Cortes asked Quauhtemoctzin after Motecusuma's treasure, he and his generals declared that the greater part of it had been carriedoff by the crews of the brigantines. As the atmosphere of the town had become perfectly pestiferous, from the decomposed bodies, Quauhtemoctzin requested Cortes to allow the whole of the inhabitants, with the remaining part of his troops, to leave the city. This our general readily granted, and the causewayswere crowded for three days and nights with men, women, and children,on their way to the mainland. These poor beings were quite emaciated, and had a death-like appearance; their bodies covered withfilth, and they spread around them so abominable a stench, that wegrew miserable at the very sight. As soon as all the inhabitants had left the city, Cortes sent somepersons there to see how things looked in general. The houses were found crammed with dead bodies, and among them several poor peoplewere found still alive, though too weak to stand, and lying in their ownfilth, like those hogs which are fed upon nothing but grass. Everyspot of earth in the town looked as if it had been ploughed up, for thefamished inhabitants had dug up every root out of the ground, and hadeven peeled the bark from the trees, to still their hunger; neither did we find any fresh water, for that in the wells was of a salty flavour; and yet during this horrible famine the Mexicans had not eaten the flesh of their countrymen, though they so greedily devoured that of the Tlascallans and Spaniards. [28] Certainly no people ever suffered so much in thisworld from hunger, thirst, and the horrors of war, as the inhabitantsof this great city. [Pg 113] After we had thus subdued the great, the populous, and the celebrated city of Mexico, a solemn service was performed, to offer up our thanks to the Almighty. After this Cortes ordered a banquet to be prepared in Cojohuacan, to celebrate the conquest with a joyous feast,at which the wine which had come with a vessel recently run into VeraCruz, and the hog's meat from Cuba, were not spared. To this banquet all the officers and soldiers were invited; but whenthe guests arrived there was scarcely sufficient room at the table forone third of them, which occasioned a good deal of ill-will, and it wouldhave been better if Cortes had never given the banquet at all; for many curious things happened on this occasion, and Noah's tree gave rise to many foolish pranks. There were some folks who, when they had eaten and drank too much, instead of leaving the table, sicked all over it; others declared that they possessed gold enough to buy themselveshorses with saddles of gold; and the crossbow-men swore they wouldfor the future not shoot another arrow unless its point was made ofpure gold; some kept stumbling about, and many rolled headlongdown the steps. After the banquet we had a ball, in which the ladies joined who hadaccompanied our army; and nothing could be more ridiculous than tosee the leaps which their gallants took who were accoutred in fullarmour. The ladies who danced were only few in number, and Iwill https://www.gutenberg.org/files/32475/32475-h/32475-h.htm 80/282
1/25/22, 8:50 PM The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo written by himself, containing a true an… not mention their names, nor should I like to repeat the satires which appeared at their expense on the following day; but I must not forget to mention that father Olmedo expressed his disapprobation aloud at the scandalous conduct of the men during this banquetand dance, and observed to Sandoval, that this was not the way toreturn thanks to God, or to obtain his assistance for the future! Sandoval mentioned this to Cortes, who, as he was always discreetin what he did, instantly sent for this pious man, and said to him:"Excellent father! it is impossible to restrain the soldiers when theyare enjoying themselves after their manner. I certainly should havedone better if I had withheld this inducement from them. It is, however, in the power of your reverence to put a stop to all this, by orderinga solemn procession to the church, where, in a sermon, you can giveus a severe reprimand from the pulpit. Then you will also have a good opportunity of commanding the men not to rob the Indians of theirdaughters, or of anything else, and in future to discontinue their frequentdisputes among each other, and to comport themselves as goodCatholic Christians, that the Lord may prosper their lives." [Pg 114] This proposal was highly approved of by father Olmedo, and he thanked Cortes for it; though the idea had, in fact, originated withAlvarado. A procession was therefore instantly ordered, which we joined with flying colours and a few crosses, the image of the Virgin Mary being carried in front, and we sang supplicatory hymns as wemoved along. The day following father Olmedo preached a sermon, and manysoldiers, with Cortes and Alvarado, made the communion, and we againoffered up our thanks to the Almighty for the victory. There are several circumstances relating to this memorable siegewhich I have omitted to mention, which, though they may appear outof place here, I should feel loth to pass by in silence. Above all things I have to notice the great courage which our friendsChichimeclatecl and the two younger Xicotencatls displayed in our battles with the Mexicans, and altogether what efficient services theyrendered us. The same I must say of Don Carlos, brother of the kingof Tezcuco, who proved himself a man of extraordinary bravery andvalour. There was also another chief, from one of the towns lying in the lake, but whose name I have forgotten, who showed astonishingfeats of heroism; and many other chiefs among our allies signalisedthemselves in this siege; for which reason Cortes addressed them atconsiderable length in an eloquent speech, bestowing the highest praiseson them, with thanks for their powerful assistance, and dismissed them with the promise that he would shortly present them with extensive territories, and numerous vassals, so as to make them all great caziques.As they had made a rich booty of cotton stuffs, gold, and other valuablematters, they returned highly delighted to their several homes; neitherdid they forget to carry away with them large quantities of the flesh ofthe Mexicans they had slain, which they had salted down and smoked,for their relations and friends, to regale them with it at their feasts. [29] It is now a long time since we fought these terrible battles, which continued without intermission day and night, and I cannot be too thankful to the Almighty for my preservation; and now I must relatesomething extraordinary which befel myself. The reader will remember above that I stated how we could see theMexicans sacrificing our unfortunate countrymen; how they rippedopen their breasts, tore out their palpitating hearts, and offered themto their abominable idols. This sight made a horrible impression on my mind, yet no one must imagine that I was wanting either in courageor determination; on the contrary, I fearlessly exposed myself in everyengagement to the greatest dangers, for I felt that I had courage. It was my ambition at that time to pass for a good soldier, and I certainlybore the reputation of being one; and what any of our men ventured,I ventured also, as every one who was present can testify; yet I mustconfess that I felt terribly agitated [Pg 115] https://www.gutenberg.org/files/32475/32475-h/32475-h.htm 81/282
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The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo Vol. 2

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