CHAPTER III.
IN THE MARKET-PLACE OF TENOCHTITLAN
On the morning of the last and greatest day of the festival by whichthe mighty calendar stone was dedicated, the rising sun shone from anunclouded sky upon the fair city of Tenochtitlan. All night long athousand slaves had been busy sweeping and watering its streets, untilnow their smooth pavements of cement fairly shone with cleanliness. Asthere were no horses nor other beasts of burden in all the land, asall heavy traffic of the city was carried on in boats by means of thenumerous intersecting canals, and as water was everywhere abundant, thecleansing of the ancient city of Tenochtitlan was a much easier taskthan is that of Mexico, its modern successor.
From earliest dawn troops of country people had thronged the threegreat causeways leading from the mainland, and poured over them intothe city. Fleets of canoes from Tezcuco, on the opposite side of thelake, and from various smaller cities and villages on its border, wereconstantly arriving laden with parties of expectant sight-seers. Thusthe avenues, streets, and squares, as well as the enclosures of thesix hundred teocallis or temples of the city, were filled, soon aftersunrise, by an eager and joyous multitude.
Especially animated was the scene in the tinguez, or greatmarket-place, of Tlateloco. Here, displaying their wares in itsshaded porticos, under booths of green leaves, or beneath awningsof gayly-striped cloth, were gathered traders from all parts of thekingdom, each in the quarter allotted to his particular class ofgoods. Among them were the goldsmiths of Azapozalco, the potters ofCholula, the weavers of Tezcuco, the stone-carvers of Tenojocan,the hunters of Xilotepec, the fishermen of Cuitlahuac, the matand chair makers of Quauhtitlan, the florists of Iztapalapan, thefruit-dealers of the _tierra templada_, and the skilled artisans infeather-work of Xochimilco. Here were armorers displaying arrows,darts, and javelins, headed with an alloy of copper and tin as hardas steel, and tougher, heavy maquahuitls, resembling somewhat botha battle-axe and a sword, with keen blades of glistening itztli orobsidian. Escaupils, or doublets of quilted cotton which no arrow mightpenetrate, fierce-looking casques, fashioned like the grinning headsof wild animals, and shirts of golden mail, which only nobles mightwear. In other places were quantities of meat, poultry, bread of maize,cakes, pastry, confectionery, smoking bowls of chocolate, flavoredwith vanilla, which, with the intoxicating pulque, shared the nameof national beverage. Barber-shops, and booths for the sale of drugsand herbs abounded. Nor were book-stalls wanting, though the booksdisplayed in them bore slight resemblance to those of modern times.They were formed of broad sheets of cotton cloth, parchment, or a papermade from the leaves of the agave, folded in the shape of fans, andcovered with the minute colored pictures by means of which the Aztecs,ignorant of letters, reproduced their ideas on paper. Thus all Aztecwriters were artists, and in the education of youth drawing was taughtinstead of reading and writing. To name all the commodities offeredfor sale in this vast market-place would be a tedious task, for in allTenochtitlan were no stores, nor shops, nor places for trade, savethis. The money used was in the shape of quills of gold-dust, smallbags of cacao beans, and rudely stamped bits of tin.
Besides being a market-place, the tinguez was the centre where all newswas exchanged, and to it came all those who wished to hear or tell somenew thing. On this particular day two subjects of intense interestagitated the multitude who thronged it, to the exclusion of all othertopics. One was the appearance on the coast of the white strangers, whowere invariably spoken of as gods, and the other was the spectacle withwhich the great festival was to conclude that afternoon.
"They do say," exclaimed one portly individual, clad in a flowingtilmatli, or robe of purple cotton cloth, belted at his waist with abroad yellow sash, to the armorer whose store of obsidian daggers hewas inspecting, "that the white gods are coming this way, and have evennow set forth from Cempoalla."
"So I have heard," replied the other, "but I care not. If the king sowills, they may come. If he forbids, they may not."
"But," continued he of the purple robe, "they do say that the king hasalready forbidden their advance, and that the strangers pay no heed tohis words."
"Then will Huitzil, the all-powerful, awake, and destroy them with abreath."
"But they do say that some of them are gods mighty and terrible inthemselves, having the forms both of men and beasts greater and morefrightful than ever were seen. And they do say," he almost whispered inhis earnestness, "that they breathe fire and smoke like Popocatepetlhimself, and that their weapons are thunderbolts."
"Aye, and they do say truly," interrupted a book-seller who hadoverheard these remarks, "for here it is pictured out in detail, a copymade from one of the reports sent to the king himself."
With this the new-comer unfolded a fan-like sheet of parchment, onwhich were drawn likenesses of white men in armor, some on horsebackand others on foot, of cannon belching forth fire and smoke, and ofmany other things so strange and wonderful to Aztec eyes that in a fewmoments the trio were surrounded by a gaping crowd, eagerly pushing andstruggling for a glimpse of the marvellous pictures.
Amid the excitement caused by these evidences that the rumors of thewhite gods, busily circulated for many months, were only too true, thearmorer remained calm and self-possessed. He even expressed a contemptfor the strange beings who, he declared, were but sea-monsters, afterall.
"Can such creatures harm the children of the sun so long as Huitzil,the god of gods, watches over them from his seat above the clouds?" hecried. "Not that he will be called upon to so much as lift a finger;for is not Montezuma, our lord and the lord of lords, able of hisown might to drive them into the sea, whence they came? Shall he whoovercame Tlahuicol, the greatest warrior of the age, forbid the advanceof men, monsters, fire-breathing beasts, or even of gods, in vain?Shame on you for thus belittling your own gods and your king! Alas!that I, in my poverty, am compelled to forge weapons for such as you!"
"They do say," here interposed he of the purple robe, anxious to changethe subject, "that Tlahuicol the Tlascalan, who is doomed to sacrificethis day, has demanded the privilege of a warrior who has never turnedback to foe, and that the king has granted it."
"Not the battle of despair?" exclaimed the armorer.
"Even so," nodded the other.
"Then will I at once put away my wares, and hasten to secure a placewithin the serpent wall, for if he meet with worthy foemen the sightof this battle will be worth all the other sights of earth, and Iwould not miss it, though with my right hand I was forced to pay foradmission within the sacred wall."
It was even so. Tlahuicol was to lend a crowning glory to the greatfestival of his enemies by fighting, for their entertainment, thebattle of despair. This was the poor privilege granted to any captivewarrior who had never turned back to foe, of fighting for his life andliberty, with a single weapon, and with one foot tethered, against anysix who might challenge him, and who might attack him singly or incouples, as they chose. In all Aztec history no captive had ever gainedhis freedom in this manner, and even so famous a warrior as Tlahuicolwas not supposed to have the slightest chance of victory in so unequala contest. It was well known that he had been out of practice, and hadtaken almost no exercise for a year. Thus it was held by many that hewas now no more than equal to a warrior of ordinary attainments. Asto his overcoming six, selected from the throng of young Aztec nobleswho eagerly sought this opportunity for acquiring fame and the orderof knighthood, which would be conferred upon him who should deal afatal blow to the redoubtable Tlascalan, the idea was unworthy ofconsideration. Nevertheless all agreed that Tlahuicol would make apretty fight, and even to witness the death-struggle of the warriorwhose name had so long been a terror to Aztec ears, was deemed so greata privilege that, hours before the time set for the battle, every inchof available space in the amphitheatre adjoining the great temple wasoccupied by the eager populace.
This amphitheatre was but a small portion of the vast area reserved inthe heart of the city, and enclosed by a stone wall eight feet high,
called the Coatapantli, or wall of serpents, for the temple of Huitzil,the war-god. Here were the dwellings of thousands of priests, andquarters for ten thousand troops, granaries, arsenals, seminaries forthe priestly education of youth of both sexes, and numerous monuments,the most notable of which was that constructed of one hundred thousandhuman skulls of victims sacrificed on Huitzil's altars. In the exactcentre of the whole towered the great temple, a lofty pyramid ofmasonry rising in five terraces, which were gained by as many flightsof stairs. Each of these gave access to a single terrace, and they wereso arranged that from the top of one the entire circuit of the pyramidmust be made ere the next flight could be reached.
The top of this mighty pyramid presented a flat surface of nearlyan acre in extent. On it, rising to a height of sixty feet, was ashrine sheltering a hideous image of the god and its bloody altar,on which was laid daily offerings of human hearts torn from livingbodies. Outside of the shrine stood another altar, on which burned thenever-dying fire. It was commonly believed that if by any chance thisshould be extinguished some dire calamity would overtake the nation.Near by stood the great war-drum of serpents' skins, which was onlystruck in times of emergency, when the awe-inspiring sound of itshollow boomings could be heard for leagues.
The only other object on the broad level space was a large blockof jasper, slightly convex on its upper side. It was the stone ofsacrifice, across which victims were laid for the greater convenienceof the priests in cutting open their breasts and tearing out the stillpalpitating hearts in which the blood-loving god delighted. The wholeplace bore the aspect of a shambles, and was pervaded by a sickeningstench. The priests who officiated here, and of whom Topil was thechief, were blood-besmeared from head to foot, and allowed theirlong hair, also clotted with blood, to hang in elf-locks over theirshoulders. Thus their appearance was more savage and terrible than canwell be imagined.