CHAPTER VII.
The laws by which the nations of Anahuac were governed werecomprehensive as well as very severe. Every subject was expected tohave knowledge of them, and the people were, accordingly, instructed inthem by means of hieroglyphical paintings.
Crimes against society were punished with slavery or death, accordingto the magnitude of the offense. Theft and robbery were placed in thiscategory, and met with the severest punishment. If the accused wasfound guilty, his fate was sealed; there was no escape from thepenalty, so rigidly were the laws enforced.
These conditions, together with the strict surveillance of the militarypolice, made it hazardous for any one to be abroad at night, unlessadequate reason for it could be made apparent.
Protected in this thorough manner, the people had no fear ofdepredators, and took no precautions against them. No bolts, bars orother fastenings, as a protection, were to be found on their doors,when doors were used; in fact, more times than otherwise, only acurtain shielded the privacy of a home from the outside world. Theyfelt as secure with an open door as the most enlightened Christiancitizen would amid the highest order of civilization, behind his locksand bolts, supplemented by the latest improved burglar-alarm.
We now return to Zelmonco villa. We find it wrapped in deepest silence;the inmates are lost in the oblivion of sleep; the birds that make gladits environs under the light of day are perched in confidence andsecurity on their chosen limb. The hour is that in which Nature wrapswith sleep her children closest 'round about--the midnight hour, silentand solemn.
At this unseemly time two shadowy forms steal noiselessly into the parkat the foot of the hill, and pause in an attitude of listening. Nosound is heard, save the beating of a heart by each. After satisfyingthemselves that no living thing is astir within their hearing, theymove cautiously up toward the house; and presently, when near itsentrance, pass within the protecting shadow of a thickly foliaged treeand stop.
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Before leaving the weaver's cottage, Hualcoyotl had decided to stop atZelmonco villa, where he purposed remaining over one day, while Ozawould be sent on to communicate with a good friend--a loyal Tezcucanwho lived a short day's journey toward the mountains--to inform him ofthe prince's perilous situation and desire to find shelter andconcealment with him for a few hours.
The night was not dark, for the stars were shining very brightly, asthey always seem to in the clear sky of that sunny clime. To thefugitives their luster appeared to be remarkably brilliant, causingthem to shun the roadways for fear of discovery and arrest; as aconsequence, halts and frequent change of course made their progressslow, and the hour of their arrival at the villa late.
The reader has, no doubt, guessed who it was that entered Zelmonco parkat midnight, and, passing up to the villa, paused in the shadow of atree near its entrance.
The prince's breathing, when they stopped--for it was he and hisattendant--was somewhat labored. The long and arduous walk from thecity, and the effort required to gain the summit of the hill on whichthe villa stood, had severely tested the strength of his wind; which,from long confinement and inactivity, had become, in some degree,ennervated. He quickly regained his composure, and, while they yetstood within the tree's shadow, his thoughts turned upon himself andhis peculiarly discouraging situation. He mentally soliloquized: "Likea rudderless boat on yonder lake, left to the caprice of the elements,tossed hither and thither by wind and wave, I am out in the world, afugitive, condemned, driven, I know not whither! Oh, would that I couldforecast my destiny and know it, though the worst should be revealed!"After a moment's pause he continued: "Yet, perhaps, it is better as itis: The Great Unseen will keep me if there is a purpose in my life!"Turning to Oza he said, in a subdued voice:
"There is safety in this house, the home of Euetzin, for a short time,if we might enter. Stand you here, while I endeavor to secure theattention of someone." He cautiously advanced to the door, which hefound ajar, and gave two or three raps. No answer being obtained, theraps were repeated a little louder.
"Who raps?" suddenly inquired a voice from within.
"A friend of tzin Euet, who would communicate with Teochma, hismother," answered the prince, with caution.
"Stand inside, I will call her," returned the voice, and its owner, asthe prince entered, went to summon his mistress.
The person who answered the prince's knock was a slave, whosesleeping-place, for convenience, was near the door.
In a few minutes the tzin's mother appeared, bearing a lighted taper.When she saw the muffled figure near the entrance, she paused andinquired:
"Who seeks to communicate with Teochma?"
"One who is a fugitive, with a price upon his life, comes to ask ofTeochma shelter for a short time, until the way is made clear for himto go on," was answered.
"Prince Hualcoyotl!"
"Sh! Have a care, O Teochma; speak not that name so loud, even here,beneath this friendly roof. Walls do not always confine the voice'ssound, and the winds are treacherous. Should that name be borne totraitorous ears, and my presence in your house be made known to mypursuers, desolation would surely come upon it, and distress to thoseit shelters."
The prince had dropped the mantle from about his face, and while he yetspoke Teochma saw that it was indeed the royal friend of her son. Fromcustom she was about to offer him obeisance, but he quickly interposed,and said entreatingly:
"No, Teochma, do not so. Let the good mother of Euetzin treat as aservant, rather, him who stands in her presence. When the winds ceaseto bear upon their wings the cry of my enslaved and degraded people fordeliverance, which rises hourly from a thousand homes, then, and nottill then, may he to whom you would do honor receive the homage due hisstation!" He bowed himself before her in salutation, and continued:"Thus may it be in this hour, good mother of my friend--and mine, Icould wish, O Teochma!"
"Rise, my son; it is not fit that you should humble yourself in thismanner. Teochma is grateful for your condescension, and is pleased towelcome you to a shelter in her home." Hualcoyotl arose, and shecontinued: "But come, enter here and be seated," saying which, shemotioned for him to pass to an adjoining room.
"Give me yet a moment, good Teochma. There is one without, anattendant, who waits to be called. If it please you, I will bid himcome in."
"Assuredly, my son, bid him come."
The door, which the prince had closed, was quietly opened, and Ozadirected to enter.
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The Anahuacans of the fifteenth century were well skilled in art, bothmechanical and decorative. With tools of bronze, made from an alloy oftin and copper, they were enabled, by the use of a flinty powder, toshape the hardest substances into articles of use and adornment.
Vessels of gold and silver were moulded and fashioned by them, havingupon them representations of birds, animals, flowers, and otherobjects; and it is said of their goldsmiths that they could blend themetals in such a manner as to represent the feathers of a bird or thescales of a fish, alternately, in gold and silver.
With their natural fondness for display, and the inexhaustible supplyof material for its indulgence at their command, it is not surprisingthat the homes of the nobility and wealthy were gorgeously magnificentin furnishment, especially in the matter of adornment. And, withal,though none of the modern appliances for the promotion of elegance andease, which now distinguish the mansions of the opulent, were then athand, their abodes were not without comfort for the physical man.
As in this age, a reception, or drawing-room was an indispensableapartment in the dwellings of the higher classes, and the completenessof its design and arrangement usually indicated not only the wealth andposition of the owner, but, also, the taste and accomplishments of theoccupants.
The room into which the prince and his attendant were conducted was amodel apartment of its kind, and deserves from us at least a passingnotice.
The floor was almost hidden
under a profusion of mats and gaily wroughtrugs. Fancy stools and comfortable divans were placed about the room ina kind of orderly disorder, relieving it from any appearance of disuseor exclusiveness. Across one corner of the room stood an especiallyattractive divan, over which was a glittering canopy, suspended fromthe beak of a dead _quanhtli_ (eagle.) From its elevated perch thebird's appearance was so natural that the first glance at it wouldcause the observer to hesitate before taking a seat beneath it. Asecond thought, however, would dispel the momentary delusion. Spreadout on this divan was the preserved and decorated skin of a Mexicantiger-cat.
The walls were adorned with gorgeous and beautiful hangings, thescintillating glimmer of the reflected light of the taper upon them, asthey were gently moved by the force of a passing draught of air,producing a very agreeable effect.
In every nook and corner were to be seen vases of odorous flowers, andimages of animals or birds.
On a wall-shelf, at one side of the room, was a peculiarly attractivepot of flowers, over which, suspended by a thread of gold so fine thatit required a sharp eye to detect it, was poised a golden-huedhummingbird, apparently about to thrust its prying nib into theunexplored recesses of a half opened flower just below it.
In a conspicuous place on the wall was a showy piece of feather-work,in which was blended the plumage of many birds. There were in it thechangeful hues of the parrot, the brilliant colors of the pheasant, andothers less attractive, all woven into a perfect representation ofbeautiful mosaic.
As the prince took a seat his quick eye observed the exquisitesurroundings; and through it all he saw Teochma's experienced hand. Hismind reverted quickly to other times--his boyhood, and the home whereonce ruled a beloved mother, not less accomplished than Teochma. Aftera moment's silent contemplation of the apartment and its attractions,some of which were still familiar to him, he turned to his hostess andsaid:
"The span of years which separate this hour from the past, when--ajoyous, happy boy--I stood within this room, with no visible cloud uponthe bright horizon of my future to warn me of the approaching storm andsubsequent night of sorrow and despair which has followed, seems but adelusion--a horrible dream, from which I have only this momentawakened. And yet, O Teochma, my waking may be likened to a lucidinterval in the mind of one crazed by delirium or the confusion ofreason; for soon the gloom of my impending doom will hold and wrap meabout, and this sweet reflection of the happy past be obscured in theblackness of darkness again."
He paused, and, taking advantage of the pause, Teochma said:
"Your presence here at this hour, and the purport of your words, tellme that you are in trouble. Hualcoyotl the boy is lost in Hualcoyotlthe stately prince; and our love for the former in profound esteem andrespect for the latter. Teochma is your loyal subject and friend; noassistance which is within her power to render shall be withheld fromyou. Speak, good friend, as would my own son Euet, and make your wantsknown, that we may serve you."
"I was sure of your sympathy and assistance, else I had not come thisway. The fidelity of Teochma, and hers, to the cause of the unfortunateHualcoyotl is a source of deepest gratitude to him. May the hour comewhen he can express his gratitude more fittingly than by weak words!"
Here followed a narration of as much of his late experience as wasnecessary to make his situation known.
Teochma's sympathies were much excited, and the prince was assured of awelcome shelter and concealment at the villa for as long a time as hedesired.
"I can only risk a stop of a few hours," said he; "just long enough formy attendant to make arrangements for me a few leagues ahead. Theemissaries of Maxtla may yet consider it worth while to pay you a visitin their search for me. Should they do so, no knowledge of my havingbeen here at this time must reach them; for they are heartless, andmight cause you serious trouble, if nothing more."
He turned to Oza, and gave him the necessary instructions regardingwhat he was expected to do; and told him to go at once, and perform themission quickly as possible. The man cheerfully acquiesced in hismaster's plans, and, after partaking of refreshments, set out on hisjourney.
The prince was conducted to an apartment in a retired portion of thevilla, where he soon found forgetfulness in sleep.
A Prince of Anahuac: A Histori-traditional Story Antedating the Aztec Empire Page 9