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Show XXVI ACCOU NT OF THE WRITERS OF THE can we be permitted to affirm? And why not doubt alfo of the exiil:ence of Montr:.::uma ? If we are permitted to affirm this, as it is afcer tair~ ecl by the tcfl:imony of the Spaniards who faw that king, we find the attcfi::ttion of the fame Spaniards to a vaft many other things belonging to th an cient hi fi:o ry of Mex ico which were feen by them, :md fur ther confmncd by the dcjJo1it ions of the Indians themfdves. uuch particubrs therefore may be :ctlirrm:d, as pofi tively as the exifl:encc of Mont e7.umo, or we ought aHo to entertain a doubt of it. If there is rcafon, however, to doubt of all the ancient hifi:ory of the Mexicans, the antiquity of lll Ofi: thcr nations in the world will come equally in quc!l·ion; for it is not eafy to l1nd another hifi:ory, the events of which hav been conf1rmed by ~l greater number of hifl:orians than thofe of the Mcxiuns ; nor do we know that any people ever publifhed [o feverc a !.1 w a r-ain fl: falfe hifiorians as that of the Aco/lmas meruioned in v our eighth book . Dr. Robert{on, though more moderate th an Raynal, in his di.fh:u.fl: of thl!ir hifl ory, ancHumiOlcd with more Spni01 Looks and manufcripts, bas f. dlen into more errors and contradictions while he endeavoured to pen trate further into the knowledge of i\merica and the AmcricaJ;S. To make us defpair of being able to obtain any tolerable knowledge ·of the infl:itotions and cufl:oms of the Mexicans, he exaggerates the nc·rligencc of the conqu-:: rors, and the ddl:ruCl:ion made of the hifiorical monuments of that nation by the fuperll:i tion of the firil: millionaries . " In confequence," .C1ys he, " of this fanatical zeal of the " monk , we have totally lofi: every intelligence of the mofi: remote ' 4 events contailled in thefe rude monuments, and there does not rcu main ajiJ1gle trace of the policy and ancient revolutions of the em" piic, except ing thofc which are derived from trad it ion, or from fome :: frng;mnts of their hifiorical piR:urcs which cfcapcd the barbarous fear h of Zumara :>·a It aJ1pe"I'S ev'dc t fi ] · f 11 " • " • • " 1 n rom t 1e cxpcnence o a na-twns that the mcmor f fl ' . . Y o pan events cannot be long prefervcd, " nor tr.ln[mltted With fi. k lity by traJition r 1 M . . , . .() .. " h' J r. • 1C CX!C.ll1 pl\... LUICS, " w 1c. 1 arc lllj1pofcd to ha' verJ.< ...:I vcc l as an ra1s o f t11 c1.r emp.J.r e, are few :n numl cr, and of ambiguous meaning. T hus from the uu- "" c~">' rtam.t y of t1 1e one, an d t1 br. 1e o JCurity of the others, we are oblig~d to avail ourfclvcs of fuel · Jl' , · · l mte I,;,cncc as can be gleaned from the " impt:r- ANCIENT HISTORY OF M EX I CO. " imperfe[l: materials which arc found fcatt red in th "pani{h wriu ters." Dut in thcfc am~rt ions this autbor i · grievouf1y d.::ccivcd; for, 1. The materials which we fi.11d in Spa ni01 hifl:o r~an arc not ((• imperfeCt, but we may form from the1n a probabk, tlv ugh not :.!!together an authentic hifiory of the Mexicans ; which will appear evident to any one who imparti ally confults them; all that i- neccffary is to make a fdceti.on. 2. Nor in the wri ting fuch a hillory i it ncccfrary to nfc the matcr.i:1ls of the Spani!h write! s, whi!e there arc [o many hifio rie ancl men oirs writ ten by th\.: In 1i:m tl e :1id~::s , of whi h P obe1tfon hall no knowledge. 3· Nor are the lull:on ca l piCtures fo few in llll!nbcr, whi h ck:tpcJ th\.: fe~rch .of tl c ~r(l: mill ion· ri es, nnl cfs we compare tb oft.: whi h rcm:un wtth the tn- · c i·ediblc qna.ntity th at j(mnedy ~ x i fh:J ; as m.1y calily be unJ er{hJ J from this hifl:ory, T orqueinacb, and other writers. 4.. either arc fu el) piCtures of ambiguous 111ean ing, e:~ce· t to Rob...rtfon .al!J t bo(c~ who do not undcr{hnd the t.:haracl rs and figures of the 1.\tlcxic::m:..;, •w• know th m tbod they ufcd to repr ·{i nt thin; s. )m w. iting arc ()f doubtful !ignific.1tion to thofe who have not learned to re:d th m. At the tim<.: th<.: mit1iona ri:..s made tha.t ur1fo rtun ate bumin3' of the pic tures, many Acolhuan , 1\tlcxic:m, Tcp.mecan, Thfcalan, and other biO:orians were living, and employed tbemfclves to repair the lofs of thcfe monuments. T his th y ill f art ac ·ompli fhcd by paintin _j new piCtu res, or making ufc of ou · char.: B.c rs whi 'h tk~ h:cd I. :tr,J ed and infiru cting, Ly word of mou th, their f rc.: ·Lcr Iil th cJ r ;~n ti~ ui ty, th at it migh t bc prefc rved in their ri in <>·s, wl ich l\1otolinia, Olmos, and Sahagun have J on . It is therdor abfo lutcly f.dfe, that every k nowledge of the mofl: remote events ha. bc.C'J~ to tally lolL .r.t is falfc, bdicles, that there is not a fin glc trace r m <llllill6 of the poht1cal !)overnmen t, and :u1eient revolutio ns of the empire, c. -c,:pti ng vhat is derived from traditi n, &c." In this hill:ory, and ch id ! in the J it1crtation , we {hall deteCt fume of tl c . any !lliCrc rdl:n ta tions which o~ - ur in the hiftory of the above n .c tion d anth r, :tllll i1 the ' ork, of ther foreign writers, which w mi ht {\\'ell into larg ' v >hmcs. Some au thors not con tented with in t ·odu ·i:1g rror , tritlcs, anJ lies, into the hi.fl:ory of Mexico, have confounded it wi h h lfc i tn ~,_;es an l i~gures, fuch as thofe of the famOLl'S T hcodorc Bry. 1 n G atjt: ~ wvrk, m d 2 the XXVH |