by Lew Wallace
CHAPTER VIII.
A BUSINESS MAN IN TENOCHTITLAN.
Xoli, the Chalcan, was supposed to be the richest citizen, exclusive ofthe nobles, in Tenochtitlan. Amongst other properties, he owned a houseon the eastern side of the Tlateloco _tianguez_, or market-place; which,whether considered architecturally, or with reference to the business towhich it was devoted, or as the device of an unassoilzied heathen, wascertainly very remarkable. Its portico had six great columns of whitemarble alternating six others of green porphyry, with a roof guarded bya parapet intricately and tastefully carved; while cushioned lounges,heavy curtains festooned and flashing with cochineal, and a fountain ofwater pure enough for the draught of a king, all within the columns,perfected it as a retreat from the sultry summer sun.
The house thus elegantly garnished was not a _meson_, or a cafe, or atheatre, or a broker's office; but rather a combination of them all, andtherefore divided into many apartments; of which one was for the sale ofbeverages favorite among the wealthy and noble Aztecs,--Bacchicinventions, with _pulque_ for chief staple, since it had the sanction ofantiquity and was mildly intoxicating; another was a restaurant, wherethe _cuisine_ was only excelled at the royal table; indeed, there was astory abroad that the king had several times borrowed the services ofthe Chalcan's _artistes_; but, whether derived from the master or hisslaves, the shrewd reader will conclude from it, that the science ofadvertising was known and practised as well in Tenochtitlan as inMadrid. Nor were those all. Under the same roof were rooms for theamusement of patrons,--for reading, smoking, and games; one in especialfor a play of hazard called _totoloque_, then very popular, because apassion of Montezuma's. Finally, as entertainments not prohibited by the_teotuctli_, a signal would, at any time, summon a minstrel, a juggler,or a dancing-girl. Hardly need I say that the establishment wassuccessful. Always ringing with music, and of nights always resplendentwith lamps, it was always overflowing with custom.
"So old Tepaja wanted you to be a merchant," said the Chalcan, in hisfull, round voice, as, comfortably seated under the curtains of hisportico, he smoked his pipe, and talked with our young friend, theTihuancan.
"Yes. Now that he is old, he thinks war dangerous."
"You mistake him, boy. He merely thinks with me, that there is somethingmore real in wealth and many slaves. As he has grown older, he has grownwiser."
"As you will. I could not be a merchant."
"Whom did you think of serving?"
"The 'tzin Guatamo."[23]
"I know him. He comes to my portico sometimes, but not to borrow money.You see, I frequently act as broker, and take deposits from themerchants and securities from the spendthrift nobles; he, however, hasno vices. When not with the army, he passes the time in study; thoughthey do say he goes a great deal to the palace to make love to theprincess. And now that I reflect, I doubt if you can get place withhim."
"Why so?"
"Well, he keeps no idle train, and the time is very quiet. If he weregoing to the frontier it would be different."
"Indeed!"
"You see, boy, he is the bravest man and best fighter in the army; andthe sensible fellows of moderate skill and ambition have no fancy forthe hot place in a fight, which is generally where he is."
"The discredit is not to him, by Our Mother!" said Hualpa, laughing.
The broker stopped to cherish the fire in his pipe,--an act which theinexperienced consider wholly incompatible with the profound reflectionhe certainly indulged. When next he spoke, it was with smoke wreathinghis round face, as white clouds sometimes wreathe the full moon.
"About an hour ago a fellow came here, and said he had heard thatIztlil', the Tezcucan, had challenged the 'tzin to go into the arenawith him to-morrow. Not a bad thing for the god Quetzal', if all I hearbe true!"
Again the pipe, and then the continuation.
"You see, when the combat was determined on, there happened to be in thetemples two Othmies and two Tlascalans, warriors of very great report.As soon as it became known that, by the king's choice, they were thechallengers, the young fellows about the palace shunned the sport, andthere was danger that the god would find himself without a champion. Toavoid such a disgrace, the 'tzin was coming here to-night to hang hisshield in the portico. If he and the Tezcucan both take up the fight, itwill be a great day indeed."
The silence that ensued was broken by the hunter, whom the gossip hadplunged into revery.
"I pray your pardon, Xoli; but you said, I think, that the lords hangback from the danger. Can any one volunteer?"
"Certainly; any one who is a warrior, and is in time. Are you of thatmind?"
The Chalcan took down the pipe, and looked at him earnestly.
"If I had the arms--"
"But you know nothing about it,--not even how such combats areconducted!"
The broker was now astonished.
"Listen to me," he said. "These combats are always in honor of some oneor more of the Aztecan gods,--generally of Huitzil', god of war. Theyused to be very simple affairs. A small platform of stone, of the heightof a man, was put up in the midst of the _tianguez_, so as to be seen bythe people standing around; and upon it, in pairs, the champions foughttheir duels. This, however, was too plain to suit the tastes of the lastMontezuma; and he changed the ceremony into a spectacle really honorableand great. Now, the arena is first prepared,--a central space in a greatmany rows of seats erected so as to rise one above the other. At theproper time, the people, the priests, and the soldiers go in and takepossession of their allotted places. Some time previous, the quarters ofthe prisoners taken in battle are examined and two or more of the bestof the warriors found there are chosen by the king, and put in trainingfor the occasion. They are treated fairly, and are told that, if theyfight and win, they shall be crowned as heroes, and returned to theirtribes. No need, I think, to tell you how brave men fight whenstimulated by hope of glory and hope of life. When chosen, their namesare published, and their shields hung up in a portico on the other sideof the square yonder; after which they are understood to be thechallengers of any equal number of warriors who dare become champions ofthe god or gods in whose honor the celebration is had. Think of theapproved skill and valor of the foe; think of the thousands who will bepresent; think of your own inexperience in war, and of your youth, yourstature hardly gained, your muscles hardly matured; think of everythingtending to weaken your chances of success,--and then speak to me."
Hualpa met the sharp gaze of the Chalcan steadily, and answered, "I amthought to have some skill with the bow and _maquahuitl_. Get me theopportunity, and I will fight."
And Xoli, who was a sincere friend, reflected awhile. "There is peril inthe undertaking, to be sure; but then he is resolved to be a warrior,and if he survives, it is glory at once gained, fortune at once made."Then he arose, and, smiling, said aloud, "Let us go to the portico. Ifthe list be not full, you shall have the arms,--yes, by the Sun! as thelordly Aztecs swear,--the very best in Tenochtitlan."
And they lifted the curtains, and stepped into the _tianguez_.[24] Thelight of the fires on the temples was hardly more in strength than theshine of the moon; so that torches had to be set up at intervals overthe celebrated square. On an ordinary occasion, with a visitation offorty thousand busy buyers and sellers, it was a show of merchants andmerchantable staples worthy the chief mart of an empire so notable; butnow, drawn by the double attraction of market and celebration, themultitude that thronged it was trebly greater; yet the order wasperfect.
An officer, at the head of a patrol, passed them with a prisoner.
"Ho, Chalcan! If you would see justice done, follow me."
"Thanks, thanks, good friend; I have been before the judges too oftenalready."
So the preservation of the peace was no mystery.
The friends made way slowly, giving the Tihuancan time to gratify hiscuriosity. He found the place like a great national fair, in which fewbranches of industry were unrepresented. There w
ere smiths who worked inthe coarser metals, and jewellers skilful as those of Europe; therewere makers and dealers in furniture, and sandals, and _plumaje_; at oneplace men were disposing of fruits, flowers, and vegetables; not faraway fishermen boasted their stock caught that day in the fresh watersof Chalco; tables of pastry and maize bread were set next the quartersof the hunters of Xilotepec; the armorers, clothiers, and dealers incotton were each of them a separate host. In no land where a science hasbeen taught or a book written have the fine arts been dishonored; and soin the great market of Tenochtitlan there were no galleries so rich asthose of the painters, nor was any craft allowed such space for theirexhibitions as the sculptors.
They halted an instant before a porch full of slaves. A rapid glance atthe miserable wretches, and Xoli said, pitilessly, "Bah! Mictlan hasmany such. Let us go."
Farther on they came to a platform on which a band of mountebanks wasperforming. Hualpa would have stayed to witness their tableaux, but Xoliwas impatient.
"You see yon barber's shop," he said; "next to it is the portico weseek. Come on!"
At last they arrived there, and mixed with the crowd curious likethemselves.
"Ah, boy, you are too late! The list is full."
The Chalcan spoke regretfully.
Hualpa looked for himself. On a clear white wall, that fairly glistenedwith the flood of light pouring upon it, he counted eight shields, orgages of battle. Over the four to the left were picture-written,"Othmies," "Tlascalans." They belonged to the challengers, and werebattered and stained, proving that their gathering had been in no fieldof peace. The four to the right were of the Aztecs, and all bore devicesexcept one. A sentinel stood silently beneath them.
"Welcome, Chalcan!" said a citizen, saluting the broker. "You are ingood time to tell us the owners of the shields here."
"Of the Aztecs?"
"Yes."
"Well," said Xoli, slowly and gravely. "The shields I do not know arefew and of little note. At one time or another I have seen them all passmy portico going to battle."
A bystander, listening, whispered to his friends,--
"The braggart! He says nothing of the times the owners passed his doorto get a pinch of his snuff."
"Or to get drunk on his abominable _pulque_," said another.
"Or to get a loan, leaving their palaces in pawn," said a third party.
But Xoli went on impressively,--
"Those two to the left belong to a surly Otompan and a girl-facedCholulan. They had a quarrel in the king's garden, and this is theupshot. That other,--surely, O citizens, you know the shield of Iztlil',the Tezcucan!"
"Yes; but its neighbor?"
"The plain shield! Its owner has a name to win. I can find you enoughsuch here in the market to equip an army. Say, soldier, whose gage isthat?"
The sentinel shook his head. "A page came not long ago, and asked me tohang it up by the side of the Tezcucan's. He said not whom he served."
"Well, maybe you know the challengers."
"Two of the shields belong to a father and son of the tribe of Othmies.In the last battle the son alone slew eight Cempoallan warriors for us.Tlascalans, whose names I do not know, own the others."
"Do you think they will escape?" asked a citizen.
The sentinel smiled grimly, and said, "Not if it be true that yon plainshield belongs to Guatamo, the 'tzin."
Directly a patrol, rudely thrusting the citizens aside, came to relievethe guard. In the confusion, the Chalcan whispered to his friend, "Letus go back. There is no chance for you in the arena to-morrow; and thisnew fellow is sullen; his tongue would not wag though I promised himdrink from the king's vase."
Soon after they reached the Chalcan's portico and disappeared in thebuilding, the cry of the night-watchers arose from the temples, and themarket was closed. The great crowd vanished; in stall and portico thelights were extinguished; but at once another scene equally tumultuoususurped the _tianguez_. Thousands of half-naked _tamanes_ rushed intothe deserted place, and all night long it resounded, like a Babel, withclamor of tongues, and notes of mighty preparation.
FOOTNOTES:
[23] _'Tzin_ was a title equivalent to _lord_ in English. _Guatamotzin_, as compounded, signifies _Lord Guatamo_.
[24] The great market-place or square of Tlateloco. The Spaniards called it _tianguez_. For description, see Prescott, Conq. of Mexico, Vol. II., Book IV. Bernal Diaz's Work, Hist. de la Conq.