by V. V. Vide
CHAPTER IX.
FESTIVITIES AT THE COURT OF GUATIMOZIN--THE NEW HYMENEAL VOW.
~Heaven gave to Adam one, and so proclaimed Her full equality to man. He who Can ask for more, knows not the worth of one, And so deserves not any--~
The imperial court of Tenochtitlan was now again the radiant centre ofattraction to the confederated and tributary nations of Anahuac. Theterror of Guatimozin's arm was even more dreaded than that of Montezuma.He was a mighty man of valor, of that impetuous courage, and that bolddirectness of action, which executes at a blow the purposes and plans,which, with common minds, would require time and deliberation. He was atthe same time of a generous magnanimous disposition, open, frank,unsuspecting, and won the affectionate regard, as well as the promptunquestioning obedience of his people. He had too much good sense, andtoo wise a regard to the dignity of those who should attend upon theperson of majesty, to require of his nobles, the officers of his courtand household, those humiliating attentions which were exacted byMontezuma. He saw that the only effect of such exactions was to weakenand effeminate the character of some of his greatest chieftains,reducing them from proud and powerful friends to fawning cringingslaves. They were no longer shrouded in the sombre _nequen_, as theyentered the royal presence, nor did they go barefoot, with their eyescast down to the earth, when they bore the monarch in his luxuriouspalanquin. Arrayed in all their costly finery, with golden or silversandals, and with a bold, manly, cheerful bearing, as if they gloried inthe precious treasure which it was their privilege, more than theirduty, to protect and to care for, the imperial palanquin seemed rathertheir trophy than their burden, which they were far more ready to bear,than their master was to occupy. He was too active and stirring aspirit, to submit often to such a luxurious conveyance. He was ever inthe midst of his chiefs, consulting and acting for the public good. Hefreely discussed with them the great measures of defence, which he putin progress, and evinced the remarkable and rare good sense, to adoptwise and politic suggestions, however humble the source from which theyemanated, and to change his opinion at once when it was shown to bewrong. He superintended, in person, the repairing and enlarging of thefortifications, and the improvement of the tactics and discipline of thearmy. By a frugal expenditure of the vast revenues of the crown, and acareful preservation of the treasures left by his predecessors, heaccumulated an amount more than equal to the exigencies of a long andwasting struggle with all the combined foes of the realm.
Meanwhile, the gay saloons of the palace of Montezuma were gayer thanthey had ever been. For a brief season, the clouds that had so long hungover the fate of the lovely Tecuichpo seemed to be dissipated. The skieswere all bright above her, and every thing around her wore a cheerfuland promising aspect. Attracted by her resplendent beauty, theunaffected ease and graciousness of her manners, and the queenlymagnificence of her court, the youth, beauty, wit, talent and chivalryof the nation, gathered about her, and made her life a perpetualgala-day, rivalling in brilliancy and effect the best days of the gayestcourts in Europe.
Conspicuous among the gay multitude that flitted about the court, wasNahuitla, Prince of Tlacopan, a young chief of the Tepanecs. He was justripening into manhood, of an uncommonly lithe and agile frame,exceedingly fair and graceful, and gifted with unusual powers ofintellect. He was one of the rarest geniuses of the age, and astonishedand amused the court with the variety and beauty of his poems, and otherworks of taste. Nor did his intellectual accomplishments exceed hisheroism and loyalty. Guatimozin had not an abler or more devotedchieftain in all his realm. It was he who fought side by side with theEmperor in all his after conflicts, endured with him the horrors of thewasting siege and painful captivity which followed, and finally sharedhis cruel and shameful martyrdom, at the hands of the thenterror-stricken and cowardly Cortez, declaring with his last breath,that he desired no better or more glorious lot, than to die by the sideof his lord.
Nahuitla, like all good knights and brave soldiers, to say nothing oftrue poets, had a heart warmly susceptible of tender impressions, andcould not resist the bright eyes and witching smiles, that illuminatedthe saloons and gardens of the imperial palace. Promiscuous flirtationwas less hazardous in Tenochtitlan than in most of the capitals ofChristendom. The wealthy nobles being allowed to marry as many wives asthey could support, the young prince could win the affections of all thebright daughters of the valley, without at all apprehending a suit forbreach of promise, or a conspiracy against his own life, or that of hisfavorite, by some disappointed rival. How many conquests he made in onebrief campaign, does not appear in the chronicles of the day. Atlacan, aprincess of Tezcuco, was his first trophy. She was very fair and highlygifted, resembling in many points of person and character, the guardiangenius of the young Empress, the talented Karee.
At his first encounter with the Tezcucan princess, Nahuitla was deeplyimpressed with a peculiar expression of thoughtfulness, shading abrilliantly beautiful countenance, and imposing a kind of constrainedawe upon the stranger. This shadow gradually disappeared upon a furtheracquaintance, till the whole face and person were so lighted up with thefire of her genius and wit, that it seemed as if invested with asupernatural halo. Their intercourse was a perfect tournament of wit,and their brilliant sallies and sparkling repartees, were the theme ofuniversal admiration.
The princess Atlacan was always attended by a very prudent, watchful,anxious chaperone, of a fair exterior, and pleasing manners, who hadpassed the meridian of life, and begun to wane into the cool of itsevening. She had also a brother, Maxtli, considerably older thanherself, who, from a two-fold motive, seemed to delight in disappointingher expectations, and thwarting her plans. He was a cold, mercenary,selfish man, who sought only his own aggrandizement. The princess was aspecial favorite of her father, who was a prince of the highest rank,and nearly related to the reigning king of Tezcuco. She had alreadyreceived many substantial proofs of parental partiality, which heravaricious brother would fain have claimed for himself. Her brilliantqualities and growing influence made her an object of jealousy, asseeming to stand in the way of his own preferment. He had used everyexertion to dispose of her in marriage to some of her numerous suitors,and had particularly advocated the cause of a wealthy young merchant ofCholula, who rejoiced in the euphonous name of Xitentloxiltlitl, fromwhom Maxtli had received large presents of gold and jewels.
Atlacan despised the merchant, who fondly imagined that his gold couldpurchase any jewel in the realm. She would not listen to his proposals.It was not pride of family, for in Anahuac, under the Aztec dynasty, themerchant was a man of note, scarcely inferior to the proudest noble. Butthe merchant was _only_ a merchant, a man of one idea, and that wasgold, without refinement, without sentiment, without heart, like themajority of the same class of mere money mongers all the world over.
Maxtli was enraged by his sister's refusal of this alliance, which, ifit had been consummated, he would have made subservient to his owninterests. He determined, from mere revenge, to throw obstacles in theway of her alliance with the gifted prince of Tlacopan. The annoyanceshe invented, and the frequent prudential interposition of her cautiouschaperone, who was in the pay of Maxtli, made her position rather adifficult one, and often put her disposition to the severest test. Itchanced, one lovely evening, that the lovers had stolen a march uponboth their tormentors, and found, in the royal gardens, a few moments ofthat unwatched uninterrupted conference, which only those in the samedelicate relation, at the same period of life, know how to appreciate.Their absence from the saloons was soon noticed. The duenna was severelycensured, and sent in pursuit of the fugitive. Karee, who was in thesecret of the escape, led her a long and wearisome chase, through thenumberless halls and corridors of that immense pile, and finally lefther, at the furthest extremity of the building, to find her way back asshe could. Then, returning to Maxtli, who could scarce restrain his ragethat they had so long eluded him--
"My lord," said she, "can you tell me where I shall find your sister? Iha
ve a message for her, which I can only deliver to her personally."
"I know not," he replied angrily, "but she is probably flirtingsomewhere with that fool fop, the royal bard of Tlacopan. But from whomdoes your message come?"
"That can only be made known to herself. I saw her some time since, inthe garden, leaning upon the arm of this same royal bard, the only youngprince in Anahuac worthy of such a jewel."
The prince bit his lip with vexation, and Karee ran off toward thegarden. In a few moments, the poor old chaperone came blustering along,out of breath and out of humor.
"Fie upon the giddy girls of this generation," she exclaimed, "they knownothing of propriety. I wonder what would have been thought of suchactions when _I_ was young!"
"Hasten to the garden," said Maxtli, impatiently, "your hopeful pupil isthere, and that rhyming fop is with her."
He might as well have sent her to the labyrinth of Lemnos or Crete.Covering an immense area, and traversed in every direction by serpentinewalks, shaded lanes, and magnificent avenues, one might have wandered upand down there a week, without finding one who wished to elude pursuit.She obeyed his directions, however, and was soon lost in mazes moreintricate and perplexing than those of the palace.
Presently the truants returned, by a different path from that whichtheir pursuer had taken. The princess wore in her bosom a significantflower, which she had received and accepted from her admirer. With alight and joyous step, he led her through the crowded saloon, andpresented her to the queen, craving her sanction to the vows they hadjust plighted to each other. Gracefully placing a chaplet of white rosesand amaranths on their heads, the Empress gave them her blessing.Guatimozin, approaching at the same instant, confirmed it with heartygood will, and requested that the nuptials might be celebrated at anearly day, and in his own palace.
So distinguished a favor could not be refused. In the course of the nextweek the solemn ceremonies were performed; with all the imposing pomp ofthe Aztec ritual. A royal banquet was prepared, and the palace resoundedwith joyous revelry and music.
When the officiating priest had uttered the last solemn words whichsealed the indissoluble bond, Nahuitla stood forth, and publicly avowedhis belief, that the gods designed only one woman for each man, solemnlyrenounced the old doctrine of polygamy, and pledged to his young bride,in the presence of his royal master, and the brilliant throng that hadwitnessed his vows of love and constancy, an undivided heart, and anundivided house.
Struck with surprise and admiration at this unexpected scene, andimpressed with the truth and purity of the sentiments, and the soundnessof the conclusions, which the brave prince had proclaimed, the Emperorrose from his throne, and, with a bland but dignified and solemn air,addressed him:--
"You are right, Nahuitla, my brave prince; I feel it in my heart, youare right. I feel it in the claim which _your_ Empress and _mine_,(looking affectionately at Tecuichpo,) has in the undivided empire of myheart, and in that sacred bond of union which is so close, that itcannot be shared by another without being broken. In the presence ofthese holy men, and of these my witnessing people, I solemnly subscribeto the same pure vow which you have uttered, pledging my whole self, inthe marriage covenant to this my chosen and beloved queen, even as shehas pledged her whole self to me. And I ordain the same, as the law ofthis my realm, and binding on all my loyal subjects for ever."[D]
If the noble Guatimozin had been permitted to sway the Aztec sceptre inpeace, his name would be embalmed in the hearts of all the women ofAnahuac, and the anniversary of the nuptials of Nahuitla and Atlacanwould be celebrated, to this day, as the household jubilee of thenation.
The conclusion of this festival--the last of the kind that was evercelebrated in the halls of Montezuma--was a unique and magnificentspecimen of Aztec taste and luxury. At a signal from the master ofceremonies, the royal garden was suddenly illuminated by a thousandtorches, borne by as many well trained servants in white livery. Theywere so stationed as to represent, from different points of view, groupsof bright figures whirling in the mazy evolutions of a wild Indiandance. The harmony of their movements, and the picturesque effect oftheir frequent changes of position, was truly wonderful. It seemed morelike magic than any thing belonging to the ordinary denizens of earth.By continually passing and re-passing each other, approaching andreceding, raising and depressing their torches, the bearers were enabledto describe a great variety of fantastic figures. So well did theyperform their parts, that, to the crowd of spectators from the palace,it was a perfect pantomime of light.
At length the dance ended, and the figures of the various groups inlight, gathering around a high altar, all of fire, seemed waiting forsome sacred rite to be performed. Presently a tall princely figure wasseen, approaching with slow and solemn pace, leading a lovely female tothe altar. The high priest joined their hands in the indissoluble bond,and waved his wand of fire over their heads, in token of the divineblessing; upon which the dance of the torches was instantly renewed,accompanied with strains of the most joyous music, each group breathingout its peculiar airs and melodies, while the whole were beautifullyblended and harmonized by the master spirit of the fete. It seemed likethe bridal of two angels of light, witnessed and celebrated by all thestars and constellations of the celestial spheres.
The sudden extinguishment of these pantomimic stars, revealed to thesurprised revellers the presence of the dawn, before whose coming thestars of every sphere go out, and revelry gives place to the soberrealities of life.
[D] If this incident be deemed apocryphal, by the rigid historian, the fable is fully justified by the known state of public sentiment among the Aztecs at this time. Sagahun, according to a note in Prescott, states, that polygamy, though allowed, was by no means generally practised among them; and that the prevailing sentiment of the nation was opposed to it. One of the very few relics of their ancient literature, which were preserved in the general devastation of the conquest, is a letter of advice from a father to his child, on the eve of her marriage, in which he declares that it was the purpose of God, in his grand design of replenishing the earth, to make the sexes equal, and to allow only one wife to each man; and any deviation from this arrangement, was contrary to the plainest laws of nature.