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Show UOOK VIL ~ S r-: c-T. XLili. Mexican rheatrc. - • • . II I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C o·. took lelve of the world in fo tender and pathetic a manner, that the mulici.ms of the palace, who were his friend s, advifed him to fing it to the king; the king heard it, and was fo much affecred, that he granted the culprit a pardon. This was a fingular event in the hifiory of Acolhuacan, in which we read in general, examples of the greateil: feverity of government. We .lhould be happy, if it were in our power, to produce here fo n1e fragments which we have fcen of the poetry of thofe nations, to fatisfy the curious among our readers ( t'). Dramatic, as well as lyric poetry, w~ts greatly in repute among the Mexicans. Their theatre, on which thofe kind of compofitions were reprefented, was a fquare terras uncovered, raifed in the market- place, or the lower area of fome temple, and fuitably high, that tbe 'actors might be feen and heard by all. That which was conftruCl:ed in the market-place of Tlatelolco, was made of fi:one and lime, and . agreeable to what Cortes affirms, thirteen feet high, and thirty paces in length every way. Cav. Boturini fays, that the Mexican comedies were excellent, and that among the antiques which he had in his curious mufeum, were two dramatic cornpofitions on the celebrated apparitions of the mother of God to the Mexican Neophyte Gio. Didaco, in which a particular delicacy and harmony in the expreffions was diicernible . . We have never feen any compofition of this nature, and although we do not doubt of the delicacies of the language of them, wt: cannot readily believe that their comedies were much according to the rules of the drama, or dcferving of the excefilve praife of that annaliil:. The defcription which Acoil:a has left us of their theatre and reprefentations, in which he ·mentions thofe which were made at Cholula at the great fcftival of the god ff<..!jl!tzalcoatl, is much more worthy of credit, and more confi.ftent with the charaCter of thofe nations : " There was," he fays, " in the " area of the temple of this god a fmall theatre, thirty feet fquare, . " curioufi~ whitened, which they adorned with bough s, and fitted up " with the utmofl: neatnefs, furrounding it with arches made of flowers " and feathers, from which were fufpendcd many birds,, rabbits, and . (c) P. ~ mzio .Car?cci, ~learned Milancfc jcfuir, publi01cd fomc elegant vcrfcs of the nn· c1ent Mexican s, 111 lm adnmablc grammar of the Mexican lnngu ag~, JJrinled in Mexi o about. the mid<llc of the !aft ccmmy, · 9 " · other . ' • • II I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0. " other pleafing objeCts; where, after having dined, the whole of the " people aifemblcd, the aCtors appeared, and exhibited burlefque cha- . " raCl::ers, feigning themfel ves deaf, .fick with colds, lame, blind, crip" led, and addrcf1ing the idol fpr a return of health : the deaf people " anfwering at crofs purpofcs, thofe who had colds, coughing, and " fpitting, and the lame halting; all recited their complaints and mif" fortLmes, which produced infinite mirth an1ong the audience. O~hers " appeared under the names of different little animals, fame in the dif" guife of beetle , fome 1ike to;1ds, fome like lizards, and upon en" countering each oth r, reciprocally explained their employments, " which was highly fatisfatl:ory to the people, as they performed " their parts with infinite ingenuity. Several little boys alfo belong" ing to the temple,. appeared in the difguife of butterflies, and birds " of various colours, and mounting upon the t rees which were fixed " there on purpofe ; the priefts threw little balls of earth at them ·ith " ilings, occafi.oning incidents of much humour and entertainment to "thefpetl:ators. All thefpeCl::ators then madeagranddancewhich tenni" nated the feil:ival. This took place at their principal feftivals only (.f) ." The defcription which Acofia here gives; calls to our recollettion the firfl: fcenes among the Greel· s, and we doubt not, that if the Mexican empire had endured a century or two longer, their theatre would have been reduced to a better form, as the Grecian tl1t:atrc improved itfelf but flowly and by degrees. The firft religious miffionaries who announced. the go(pd to thofc nations, ob(erving their attachment to mufi~: and po...try, and the fnperfl: it:ous notions which characterifed al l their native compofitions as pagans, compofed many fangs and odes ill tbc Mexican language in praife of the true God. The laborious Francifcan, Bernardino Sahagun, compofcd -in pure and elegant Mexican, and printed at Mexico, three hundred and .fixty-five hymns, one for each day of the year (g) , and the Indi:u1s themfdvc~ compofed many others in praife of the true God. (.f) Acofla Stor. N~t. a Mor. delle TnJic, lib. v. c ~ p. 29. (.~) Sah:lglm 's work w;LS pri11tcd, ;lccording to the bcfl: of our knowledge, in I SfO• D.r • Eguiara complains i11 his B ibiiotcca ]I(J~fficmur, that he was never able to fi11.cl one copy of 1.1. W.: faw ouc in a library of the collt!gc of St. Franccfco Savcrio of rhc JcfullS of Angclopo!J .. Botu.- 397 BOOK. vn. ~ |