by Lew Wallace
CHAPTER I.
OUR MOTHER HAS A FORTUNE WAITING US YONDER.
The Spanish Calendar is simpler than the Aztecan. In fact, Christianmethods, of whatever nature, are better than heathen.
So, then, by the Spanish Calendar, March, 1519, had about half spentitself in the valley of Anahuac, which was as yet untrodden bygold-seeker, with cross-hilted sword at his side, and on his lips aCatholic oath. Near noon of one of its fairest days a traveller camedescending the western slope of the Sierra de Ahualco. Since the dawnhis path had been amongst hills and crags; at times traversing baldrocks that towered to where the winds blew chill, then dipping into warmvalleys, where were grass, flowers, and streamlets, and sometimesforests of cedar and fir,--labyrinths in which there reigned a perpetualtwilight.
Toilsome as was the way, the traveller, young and strong, marchedlightly. His dress, of the kind prevalent in his country, wasprovincial, and with few signs of rank. He had sandals of buffalo-hide,fitted for climbing rocks and threading pathless woods; a sort of whitetunic, covering his body from the neck to the knees, leaving bare thearms from the shoulder; _maxtlatl_ and _tilmatli_--sash and mantle--ofcotton, blue tinted, and void of ornament; on the wrist of his left armhe wore a substantial golden bracelet, and in both ears jewelledpendants; while an ebony band, encircling his head, kept his straightblack locks in place, and permitted a snow-white bird's-wing fordecoration. There was a shield on his left arm, framed of wood, andcovered with padded cloth, and in the left hand a javelin barbed with'itzli; at his back swung a _maquahuitl_, and a quiver filled witharrows; an unstrung bow in his right hand completed his equipments, andserved him in lieu of staff. An ocelot, trudging stealthily behind him,was his sole companion.
In the course of his journey he came to a crag that sank bluffly downseveral hundred feet, commanding a fine prospect. Though the air wascold, he halted. Away to the northwest stretched the beautiful valley ofAnahuac, dotted with hamlets and farm-houses, and marked with the silvertracery of streams. Far across the plain, he caught a view of the freshwaters of Lake Chalco, and beyond that, blue in the distance and faintlyrelieved against the sky, the royal hill of Chapultepec, with itspalaces and cypress forests. In all the New World there was no scenecomparable with that he looked upon,--none its rival for beauty, nonewhere the heavens seemed so perfectly melted into earth. There were themost renowned cities of the Empire; from that plain went the armieswhose marches were all triumphs; in that air hovered the gods awaitingsacrifices; into that sky rose the smoke of the inextinguishable fires;there shone the brightest suns, and lingered the longest summers; andyonder dwelt that king--in youth a priest, then a warrior, now theterror of all nations--whose signet on the hand of a slave could fillthe land with rustling of banners.
No traveller, I ween, could look unmoved on the picture; ours sat down,and gazed with brimful eyes and a beating heart. For the first time hewas beholding the matchless vale so overhung with loveliness and full ofthe monuments of a strange civilization. So rapt was he that he did notobserve the ocelot come and lay its head in his lap, like a dog seekingcaresses. "Come, boy!" he said, at last rousing himself; "let us on. OurMother[2] has a fortune waiting us yonder."
And they resumed the journey. Half an hour's brisk walk brought them tothe foot of the mountain. Suddenly they came upon company.
It was on the bank of a considerable stream, which, pouring in noisytorrent over a rocky bed, appeared to rush with a song forward into thevalley. A clump of giant oaks shaded a level sward. Under them a crowdof _tamanes_,[3] tawny, half-clad, broad-shouldered men, devoured loavesof cold maize bread. Near the roots of the trees their masters reclinedcomfortably on _petates_, or mats, without which an Aztec trader'soutfit was incomplete. Our traveller understood at a glance thecharacter of the strangers; so that, as his road led directly to them,he went on without hesitation. As he came near, some of them sat up toobserve him.
"A warrior going to the city," said one.
"Or rather a king's courier," suggested another.
"Is not that an ocelot at his heels?" asked a third.
"That it is. Bring me my javelin!"
"And mine! And mine!" cried several of them at once, all springing totheir feet.
By the time the young man came up, the whole party stood ready to givehim an armed welcome.
"I am very sorry to have disturbed you," he said, quietly findinghimself obliged to stop.
"You seem friendly enough," answered one of the older men; "but yourcomrade there,--what of him?"
The traveller smiled. "See, he is muzzled."
The party laughed at their own fears. The old merchant, however, steppedforward to the young stranger.
"I confess you have greatly relieved me. I feared the brute might set onand wound somebody. Come up, and sit down with us."
The traveller was nowise disinclined, being tempted by the prospect ofcheer from the provision-baskets lying around.
"Bring a mat for the warrior," said the friendly trader. "Now give himbread and meat."
From an abundance of bread, fowl, and fruit the wayfarer helped himself.A running conversation was meantime maintained.
"My ocelot? The story is simple; for your sakes, good friends, I wish itwere better. I killed his mother, and took him when a whelp. Now he doesme good service hunting. You should see him in pursuit of an antelope!"
"Then you are not a warrior?"
"To be a warrior," replied the hunter, modestly, "is to have been inmany battles, and taken many captives. I have practised arms, and, attimes, boasted of skill,--foolishly, perhaps; yet, I confess, I nevermarched a day under the banner of the great king."
"Ah!" said the old man, quizzically, "I understand you. You have servedsome free-trading company like our own."
"You are shrewd. My father is a merchant. At times he has travelled withstrong trains, and even attacked cities that have refused him admissionto their market."
"Indeed! He must be of renown. In what province does he live, my son?"
"In Tihuanco."
"Tepaja! old Tepaja, of Tihuanco! Are you son of his?" The good mangrasped the young one's hand enthusiastically. "I knew him well; manyyears ago we were as brothers together; we travelled and traded throughmany provinces. That was the day of the elder Montezuma, when the Empirewas not as large as now; when, in fact, most gates were closed againstus, because our king was an Aztec, and we had to storm a town, then turnits square into a market for the sale of our wares. Sometimes we marchedan army, each of us carrying a thousand slaves; and yet our tasks werenot always easy. I remember once, down on the bank of the Great River,we were beaten back from a walled town, and succeeded only after a fourdays' fight. Ah, but we made it win! We led three thousand slaves backto Tenochtitlan, besides five hundred captives,--a present for thegods."
So the merchant talked until the hunger of his new acquaintance wasappeased; then he offered a pipe, which was declined.
"I am fond of a pipe after a good meal; and this one has been worthy aking. But now I have no leisure for the luxury; the city to which I ambound is too far ahead of me."
"If it is your first visit, you are right. Fail not to be there beforethe market closes. Such a sight never gladdened your dreams!"
"So I have heard my father say."
"O, it never was as it will be to-night! The roads for days have beenthronged with visitors going up in processions."
"What is the occasion?"
"Why, to-morrow is the celebration of Quetzal'! Certainly, my son, youhave heard the prophecies concerning that god."
"In rumors only. I believe he was to return to Anahuac."
"Well, the story is long, and you are in a hurry. We also are going tothe city, but will halt our slaves at Iztapalapan for the night, andcross the causeway before the sun to-morrow. If you care to keep uscompany, we will start at once; on the way I will tell you a few thingsthat may not be unacceptable."
"I see," said the hunter, pleasa
ntly, "I have reason to be proud of myfather's good report. Certainly, I will go a distance with you at least,and thank you for information. To speak frankly, I am seeking myfortune."
The merchant spoke to his companions, and raising a huge conch-shell tohis mouth, blew a blast that started every slave to his feet. For a fewminutes all was commotion. The mats were rolled up, and, with theprovision-baskets, slung upon broad shoulders; each _tamane_ resumed hisload of wares, and took his place; those armed put themselves, withtheir masters, at the head; and at another peal from the shell all setforward. The column, if such it may be called, was long, and not withouta certain picturesqueness as it crossed the stream, and entered a tractcovered with tall trees, amongst which the palm was strangelyintermingled with the oak and the cypress. The whole valley, from thelake to the mountains, was irrigated, and under cultivation. Full ofwonder, the hunter marched beside the merchant.
FOOTNOTES:
[2] The goddess Cioacoatl, called "Our Lady and Mother." Sahagun, Hist. de Nueva Esp.
[3] Carrier slaves, or porters.