CHAPTER XXIV.
The continued good fortune of the prince in evading capture was asource of great annoyance and aggravation to the evil disposed Maxtla.He was daily becoming more violent and overt in his conduct, rulingwith an arbitrary hand. He had terrorized his household, and the soundof his voice was sufficient to cause a flurry of trepidation to agitateits members. His subjects regarded him with fear and trembling, and hiscomportment toward his weaker neighbors was a growing menace. Hissoldiers seemed to partake largely of his evil tendencies, for, intheir search after Hualcoyotl, they became a dread to the inhabitantsof the valley and surrounding country in consequence of their flagrantand atrocious acts.
After weeks of determined but unsuccessful efforts to secure the personof the prince, Maxtla decided on a council with his advisers over thematter, and they were accordingly ordered to assemble in the councilchamber. The subject was duly considered, but without any definiteconclusion. As was customary, when a question of so much importanceproved unsolvable by the council, the oracles (high priests) werecalled upon for a solution of the matter, which resulted in theirdeclaring that the gods were favoring the fugitive prince as againstthe king, and must be propitiated. Agreeably to this decision, an earlyday was fixed for the sacrificial ceremony which was to mollify thewrath of the particularly offended deities, and the priests wereinstructed to have ready the necessary number of victims for theoccasion.
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The temples (_teocallis_) of the ancient Mexicans, which were numerous,were peculiar structures, usually rising in pyramidal form to variousheights, depending, doubtless, on the importance attached to thepresiding deities which they represented and to whom they werededicated. They were constructed solidly of earth, incased around withstone, or blocks of clay, which were hardened by some peculiar processof their own. The structure usually consisted of several stories--asmany as four or five--each of which rose twenty or more feet,terminating at a terrace of accommodating width, which extended cleararound the temple. Four or five of these terraces carried the structureup as much as a hundred feet, culminating in a broad, flat, paved area,on which were situated the sanctuaries of the gods, and in which agreat sculptured image of each was placed. In front of each sanctuarywas an altar, whereon the sacred fire was kept constantly burning, andwhich, not infrequently, was stained with human blood.
Near the altars stood the sacrificial block on which the victim wasimmolated in the horrible and sickening act of tearing the heart fromthe breast and laying it on the altar as a conciliatory offering to theoffended deity, while the organ was still pulsating.
The terraces were gained by steps on the outside, leaning at an anglewith the wall, which inclined toward the center.
The ceremonies were always public, and from the situation at the summitwere to be viewed from any part of the city.
The processions engaged in by the priests--a multitude in themselves,winding their way as many times as there were terraces around the great_teocalli_, from base to summit--were impressive spectacles, at whichthe people were expected to be present as witnesses; and, as one authorhas said, since a ceremony of some sort occurred almost every day, itis difficult to understand how the ordinary business of life could,under such conditions, go on.
The day appointed by Maxtla for the propitiating of the gods wasushered in by the sound of the doleful drum. The people, who wereassembled by thousands, arrayed in their most gorgeous attire--whenarrayed at all--filled the city's public places. A religious chant,accompanied with dancing and contortions of the body, and arepresentation of minstrelsy, in a multiplication of weird noises, wasbegun and continued throughout the procession and ceremony.
One by one the victims were led or borne to the sacrificial block, andif, perchance, they paused upon the area of the temple's summit, theiranointed bodies, which were shielded only by a girdle about the loins,glistened in the sun's intense light--a mollifying spectacle for Aztecgods.
When the ceremony had progressed to that point when all thebloodthirstiness which such sights must surely beget in the savage mindhad taken possession of the witnesses, a thought seemed to occursuddenly to Maxtla, who was a delighted spectator of the bloodycarnival, and he exclaimed:
"Bring hither Itzalmo, the traitorous friend and counselor ofHualcoyotl, and prepare him for the sacrifice. Let him die for theappeasing of the gods."
The prison-keeper, who had charge of Itzalmo's dungeon, took thenecessary assistance and proceeded to execute the order of the king.
When the dungeon to which Itzalmo had been consigned was reached by theprison-keeper and his assistants, the door was thrown open, and theyentered to secure the prisoner, but a surprise awaited them which theywere not anticipating--the cell was empty; Itzalmo was not there.
The prison-keeper was speechless with amazement at the discovery, and,on contemplating the consequences to himself of the prisoner's escape,became horrified at the thought of the fate which certainly awaitedhim. He returned to the presence of the king, fully realizing the awfulstrait in which the situation put him. Prostrating himself at Maxtla'sfeet, he cried out, in accents of despair:
"Woe is come to thy servant, O King, and he is undone; for Itzalmo, theprisoner, is gone! He has fled his prison cell."
Maxtla looked for a moment, in menacing silence, on the prostrate manbefore him, his face becoming, as he did so, livid with rage. When hespoke, his accents were inhuman--demoniacal.
"Miserable dotard!" he exclaimed. "Thy cowardly, cringing body is fitonly for sacerdotal hands. A heart for a heart it shall be--notItzalmo's, but thine, shall fall to-day, to assuage the offended gods.Take him hence to the block, and let his blood condone his offense."Thus did the keeper of Itzalmo's dungeon become, innocently, the victimof Maxtla's ferocity.
The sacrificial ceremony was at last concluded. The sanguinary rites,in compliance with the demands of the offended deities, had beenformally observed, and Maxtla, according to the declarations of theoracles, was thereby restored to favor. The assembled multitudedispersed, self-satisfied with its part in the bloody festival, andquiet once more prevailed in Azcapozalco.
Maxtla was not a man to be thwarted in his designs without a supremeeffort to accomplish them. Itzalmo had escaped, but the whole Tepanecempire should be called to the support of the king, that his purposesmight be made good. Pursuant to this end an edict was issued, to theeffect that Itzalmo was outlawed, and, furthermore, his delivery to theTepanec authorities, dead or alive, would be amply rewarded.
Unfortunately for Maxtla, in his purpose to not only retake Itzalmo,but to discover his abettors, who, if taken, would suffer equally withthe escaped prisoner, he had, in sacrificing his prison-keeper, removedthe only person who might have found a clue to the party concerned inthe liberation. By his destruction the security of the liberators, ifnot Itzalmo's, was assured.
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When it was learned by the friends of Itzalmo, who were members of theking's retinue, and who, during his imprisonment, had looked well tohis comforts, that a sacrifice to the gods was contemplated, theybecame alarmed for his safety, and at once set about arranging for hisescape. The necessary preparations were effected, and the night priorto the day on which the sacrifice was to take place was fixed upon asthe time to deliver him from his imprisonment.
Agreeably to arrangements, about the hour of midnight two men enteredthe passage which led to the stairway down which they had to go to beon the same ground as was Itzalmo's dungeon. They were not unacquaintedwith the locality, and quickly gained the avenue leading to the cell.One of the party carried a lighted taper, which greatly facilitatedtheir movements. When the cell was reached, the fastenings were removedand the door thrown open. As it swung back on its hinges, one of theparty inquired:
"Are you ready, Itzalmo?"
"Yes, I am ready. Lead on," he answered, and walked forth a free manonce more.
When he was outside of the dung
eon the fastenings were replaced, andthe party moved silently and cautiously to the stairway, and up. Herethe taper was extinguished, making their progress from this pointnecessarily very slow. They finally emerged upon the narrow court atthe rear of the palace, and from there into the great inclosed court,where one of the conductors turned aside, leaving the other toaccompany Itzalmo alone.
Leaving the great court, Itzalmo and his conductor came out onto a widestreet, feeling somewhat apprehensive as to the outcome of theirundertaking. The city was thoroughly policed by the soldiers of theking, who were supposed to be, without exception, his adherents.However, Itzalmo was a stranger to all of them, whether friends orfoes, which was greatly in his favor.
The old Tezcucan's friends had taken the precaution to furnish him witha suit of priestly attire, making it an easy matter to offer a pretensefor being on the street at so unseasonable an hour. Under suchconditions the liability of detection was greatly lessened.
The avenues of the royal city being broad and extensive, Itzalmo andhis conductor could hardly expect to travel them, even at the late hourof midnight, without being discovered, and, in all probability,stopped. So the bold plan of moving nonchalantly through the streetswas adopted.
An exhibition of nonchalance does not always indicate unflinchingbravery, and is never assumed by a brave man, except as a means to anend.
Though men of the dare-devil stamp, who are nonchalant, and appear tobe careless of consequences, may not, under such circumstances assurrounded the old Tezcucan and his escort, feel in any degreeapprehensive, it is not always the result of true courage, but moreoften lack of consideration. Such men are not to be classed in anysense with the conscientious, considerate man, who, anxious andexpectant, steps into the unexplored and doubtful breach, uncertain asto what awaits him there--the man who, realizing that danger, andperhaps death, may be just ahead, sets hard his teeth, and, with palingcheek, goes bravely forward to meet it. The latter is the man who winsbattles, and, if needs be, dies a hero, while the former far too oftenproves himself a blustering braggart, who, when death stalks forth,forgets all else save his own safety, and ignominiously becomes aturn-tail.
We have seen Itzalmo, with dauntless courage, face the tyrant Maxtla,the most cruel and heartless man in all the Anahuac; still, he was nota dare-devil, but a conscientious, unswerving friend, who could die inthe performance of a duty, as only such men can. His courage, however,was not a feelingless one. His heart, no doubt, beat quicker, while hisface grew less florid; yet, in the consciousness of well-doing, and thestrength of an unyielding faithfulness, he was capable of heroicaction.
When the distance of about two squares had been gone over, they werechallenged by the demand:
"Who goes there at this late hour?"
"A priest and escort, on their way to visit the sick," was the quickreply.
"Ah, Melca, is that you?" questioned the guard, who recognized anacquaintance in the voice of Itzalmo's companion.
"Yes, it is me," he answered. "I am seldom out at this hour,"apologetically, "but the call of a friend in distress must needs beanswered, even though it be at midnight."
The escort was not a little disturbed at his sudden recognition by theguard, though, on second thought, saw security in Itzalmo's perfectdisguise. The old man made a venerable representative of the characterhe had assumed, which the soldier could easily discern in thesemi-darkness; and as great reverence for that class of citizens wasgenerally entertained, there was hardly a possibility of detection.After a brief scrutiny of the priestly appearing Itzalmo, the guardsaid:
"It is well, Melca. Pass on; and may your friend find consolation fromyour visit."
Since he had succeeded without difficulty in deceiving an acquaintance,Melca was assured that they would have no trouble in passing out of thecity, and so it proved. They met with several guards, who readilypassed them along when informed of the mission they were on. Thus theygot safely beyond the city's limits and out into the country, where aconsultation was held as to where they should go.
It was wisely concluded to keep away from Tezcuco, as it wouldundoubtedly be the first place visited by the emissaries of Maxtla intheir search for the condemned Itzalmo. They decided, accordingly, toget out of the tyrannical king's dominions as quickly as possible, andseek concealment in some secluded locality. A road leading to thesouth, along the western border of the lake, was taken and followeduntil Tlacopan was reached, where a stop of one day was made to giveItzalmo a resting spell; after which they went on around the lake untilthey came to a small, isolated hamlet, situated on the lake's border,among the trees which grew there, and by which it was almost hidden,where the old man found refuge with some loyal countrymen, with whom weleave him for the present, in company with Melca, his escort, whodecided, after being recognized by the guard, that it might not be safefor him to return to Azcapozalco.
A Prince of Anahuac: A Histori-traditional Story Antedating the Aztec Empire Page 26