Читать книгу The Autobiography of Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo - Bernal Diaz del Castillo - Страница 74

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How we again sent messengers to the caziques of Tlascalla in order to induce them to make peace, and the resolution they came to upon this.

The two chief caziques to whom our messengers addressed themselves were Maxixcatzin and the elder Xicotencatl, father of the captain-general of the same name, who was commonly termed the younger. They fulfilled their commission, and the caziques remained for a time silent and undecided, when the Almighty inclined their hearts to conclude a peace with us. They called a meeting of all the caziques and chief personages who had weight in the townships, as also of their friends from the province of Huexotzinco. All having met in the township of Maxixcatzin and the elder Xicotencatl, which held the first rank, the latter who were men of good understanding addressed the meeting to the following effect. Though we may not, perhaps, give the exact words, yet, from what we afterwards learnt, it was to this effect: "Brothers and friends! You yourselves know how often these teules, who are now in our country, ready to fight at a moment's notice, have offered us peace, and assured us that they have come as friends to our assistance. Nor can you have yet forgotten the numbers of prisoners they have taken, though they never do them any harm, but always restore them to liberty. Thrice have we attacked them with the whole of our forces, both by day and by night, but we have not been able to conquer them. On the contrary, they have killed many of our subjects, numbers of our sons, relations, and chiefs in these battles. They now again request us to come to terms of peace, and those of Sempoalla who are encamped with them, assure us they are enemies to Motecusuma and the Mexicans, and have commanded them and the tribes of the Totonaque mountains not to pay any more tribute to him. We all very well know that the Mexicans for a space of more than one hundred years have annually made incursions into our country. Indeed, they have completely shut us up within our own territory. We cannot get beyond to fetch salt for our victuals, nor cotton for our clothing. If any one of us ever ventures beyond the mountains, he very seldom returns home alive. The treacherous Mexicans and their allies kill all our people that fall into their hands, or at least make slaves of them. Our tacalnaguas, soothsayers, and papas have told us their opinion of these teules; that they are very powerful and courageous we have experienced ourselves. We feel, therefore, inclined to make peace with them. Whether they are men or teules, in both cases an alliance with them will be useful to us. Let us, therefore, despatch four of our chiefs to their camp with good provisions, and show them love and an inclination to make peace, that they may assist and protect us against our enemies. We will invite them into our country, and present them with females from among our countrywomen, that we may become one people with them; for, according to the assurance of the messengers whom they have sent to offer us peace, they have women with them." The caziques upon hearing this proposition all declared they were agreeable to it, and resolved that a treaty for peace should be set on foot, and the captain-general Xicotencatl and the other commanders should be ordered to stay all hostilities; for which end they instantly despatched messengers. The younger Xicotencatl, however, would by no means listen to these orders, but evinced excessive grief and used harsh language. "As affairs stood there was no need of sueing for peace," he said. "Many of the teules were already killed, besides one of their horses; he would fall upon us the night following and destroy us all."

When the elder Xicotencatl, Maxixcatzin, and the other caziques received this answer, they were so exasperated, that they immediately sent orders round to all the officers and the whole army not to obey Xicotencatl in anything which related to an attack upon us, and altogether to stay all hostilities against us. Neither would Xicotencatl submit to these orders, so that it was found necessary to send the four old men, who were appointed to make a treaty of peace between us, the Tlascallans and inhabitants of Huexotzinco, to these refractory fellows in order to bring them to reason. These four men, however, stood in such awe of the young hothead that they neglected to fulfil their commission.

As two or three different occurrences took place at the same time, I must relate what comes first in order, and give an account of our excursion to another township which lay in the neighbourhood.