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Show . .. '. ' ' I t I : : " ••• o', t 11 t 0 0 If • ' , • •• •• t •• :'... ' . ...~.~. ...:..~..:: .:.. :~ ·..··: · . . . . .•. . . . : ·. . .. • • ' t • . .. I I I I .. . ... . . .. ' ... t t I I f t ... . . . fl f t t I I f I I ' I t • • .. • f ' ' .. o f Ito I> I I " I I I t o o 1 f f I ol I f I f tt o f ... .. ... . .. . .... .. .. .. • 't :··It .. . .... f f. .. • ..• • 4 II I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0. BOOK vm. fiunous and fki!ful pitofs of rhar ci'me-, and then veering to fhe foufhward, ~ difcovered, m the begi-FH'li-t.).g Qf M::rrch,. the eafiem ea·pe of the peninfnla of Yucatan, which they called Capo Ca'toche. They coafi:cd •1long a part of that country, admiring the beautiful edifices and lofty towers which appeared upon the c6afi', and the (a) different coloured habits which the Indians wore; objeCts never before feen in the New World. The Y lllCatanefe, 0n thei.r p:u't, marvelled at the fize, the form, and decorations of their vefiels. At rwo places where the Spaniards landed, they had fome ikirmilhes with the Indians, in which,~ and by other diil:rdfcs that attended them, they loft the half of their foldiers, and their captain himfdf received twelve wounds, which in a few days occafioned his death. Having returned precipitately to Cuba, with the accounts of their etpedition, a·nd fome gold which they ha:d robbed from a temple and brought with them for fhew, they awok-e the avaricious paffions of Diego de Velafquez, formerly a conqueror, and then governor of that i!land; upon which he next year fitted out his relation Juan de Grijalva, with four vefiels, and two hund.red· and forty foldiers. This commander, after having difcovcred the i!land of Co~ umcl, a few miles difl:ant from ~he eafiern fhore of Yucatan, coafi:ed along all that country, which lies from thence to the river Panuco ,. C:<iC~angi~g' }ittl~ glafs D'alls, a'nd fuoh like trifling Wares, for gold, whtch they anxtou!ly fought, and the provifions they required. (a) Dr. R~hortfon fay.s. in b~k iii. that the Spnninrtls lnndul, 1111,/ nrlvm~<ing ;1110 tb~ ~outry (of 2 umt~ll), objtrotd, 'I.Vtth ttm11u mrnt, lnrgt boufn built of jlo11e. Thus he fpcaks whe!re he reco~~ts the ,·oya~e of Hernandez. But a few pnges after, fpeaking of the vo~agc of GraJ:alv:a •. be wmes thus : Many villagn ~Vtl't fi ·nfttrtd nlong the foore, mnon 'I.VI.Hrh, l~ry ( the Spn111nr,ds) 'oultl tl{ft'trn ho~tfls of jlone, ~vhicb at 11 dijla11ce appem·ttl <tvhi~ llnd mn,fl;t''.f!~Nlt. h1 the IH.at nf their imnginntion, tiJty rrprrjellltd to tbm!fi·lvn lhnt tbr.fo '!vert fo fllnl') ' '11/fJ ndonutl ~Vttb lootl'C1'J n11d ot;olas. Among nll the hi!lorians of M • · · have not found oa h 1 . c · d h· . . . · CX1co, we 'fl' . 1 lC w 0 MS :II • t .at the Spanwrds tmagmctl th ere were cupohs in y 11 • catan. 11s u ca belon<rs to Robcrtfon 11ot to tl ', 'fh 1 1 1 'r · o ' ICnl. cy t IO ttg It t 1cy 1aW hag-h. ~owcra and ~r~e ~oufcs, as~ in f:u..'t, they were. The temples of Yucatan like thofc of At;.,_ unc, ~ere f ut 1 t · r the mofi part in the form of tOI~crs , nut! were very l~rty. 13crnal J)i·1~ nn nutnor o 1 1e t1tmon veracity 1 • , • ' • ,. th rir firfi vo. , ' nnl ·Ill C) c-wJtn, fs of all that happened to the Spnninrds in fi ll yugcs to Yucatan, when he fpcaks of the difcanbarkmcnt they made in their r voyage to the coa!l of C·ampc·achy ( 1 <r'Z 1. •r :. 1. 1 l ' ' ' 11Y5 tHIS : J oty•, the !lldinlls, crmdul 7etl us to rome NOI(J<S, 'I.VIJ/CtJ ~ \'trc nrge a11d lolernbl II b 'I f jl r the not onl faw the buildi ' , . 'Y, 'tl'r "' I ~ nlll " " " limr. From which it :appc:~rs \lft •y f 1. . 1~ . . I r ngs '11 '1 l.!tOancc, bu t f\ ppa:o:achcd 10 them :tnd Ct1tca•ed them. The c o ame J.tvmg 1ccn •o common ·tmo . 1 r · · · of whitca · 1 11. · 11 !1: 1 10 e nataons,. tt ts not wonde rful that the J'ra t'l icc· 1•ng t 1em n o was common S· · c, 1 1 k prehend1 how a houfc at a. di.ft , fi '1.c1 1c our cv.e n~ 1 .) OC• • At nny r~t c we cannot com-ancc IOU fccm whttc 1f 1t really w:as not fo •. When •• H I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0. When they arrived at that little ifland, which they called St. Juan de U/ua (b), little more than a mile difi:ant from the fhore of Ch:tlchiuhcuccan ; the Mc:xican governors of thofe coafi:s, confounded at the fight of vcffels fo large, and men of fo firange an afpeCl: and ·figure, confulted together what they fhould do on the occafion, and determined to repair in perfon to the court to give intelligence to the king of fo extraordinary an occurrence. But in order to convey to him a more perfeCt idea of the particulars, they caufed the veffels, artillery, arms, drefs, and appearance of the new people to be reprefented in fome meafure by their painters; after which, they fet off without farther delay to the court, to relate what had arrived upon the coaft, prefenting to the king, along with the paintings, fame little balls of glafs, which they had got from the Spaniards. Montezuma was extremely difi:urbed on hearing their account ; but, to avoid any rafh fiep jn an affair of fuch confequence and alarm, he held a council with Cacamatzin, kiog of Acolhuacan, his nephew, Cuitlahuatzin, Jond of Iztapalapan, his brother, and other · twclwe perfonages, his ordinary counfellors. After a long conference they concluded unanimoufly, that he who had landed upon that fhore, with fo great an army, could be no other perfon than ff<.!Jetzakoatl, the god of air, who had for many yea·rs been expeCted in that country; for there prevailed among thofe nations, as we have already mentioned, an ancient tradition, that fuch a deity, after having, by his beneficence and innocence of life, acquired the efi:eem and veneration of the people in Tollan, Cholula, and Onohualco, had dif.1.ppeared to them, promifing to return after a certain period, to govern them in peace, and render them happy. The kings of thofe countries confidercd themfelves the viceroys of that god, and trufi:ees of the crown, which they were to cede to him whenever he made his appearance. This immemorial tradition, a variety of (b) They gave to this ifland the name of S. }laan; becaufe they nrrivcd there on the day of S. Prcc urfor, and becaufe this wa~ the name of the ·omm:anJcr. They called it Ulua alto, bcc:lufc they found there two human vi[ tims recently facrificcd, and upon dcm:\nding, by means of figns, the rcafon of fuch barbarity, the Indians pointing towards du: country of the well, anfweretl ./lt-olbua, A t·olbua, meaning- to be under lloud, that they Jid it by order of the ~ex ican s ; as nil the inhabit:lnts of the Mexican vale w· rc c~ll c d Acolhuas by the people :~t n d1!lnncc from the capit:al. On this lirt'lc ifland the re is at prc fent a good fortreli to de· fend the entry into the port of Ytra Cruz . B 2 marks |