Next Day Being Good Friday, We Disembarked The Cavalry, Artillery, And
Infantry, On The Sand Hills Where The City Of New Vera Cruz Now Stands,
Where We Constructed Huts For The Troops, Posting The Artillery For The
Protection Of Our Cantonment, And Erected An Altar For Public Performance
Of Our Devotions.
Many of the natives came to visit us next day, bringing
hatchets with them, and assisted us in making
Our huts more comfortable,
more especially that of our general; they also brought a present of many
large cloths or mantles to protect us from the sun, and made us a
considerable present of fowls, bread, and plumbs, and some gold. The
bearers of this present informed Cortes that the governor of the province
intended to wait upon him on the second day after, being Easter Sunday,
the 24th of April. Accordingly Teuchtlile, the governor, came at the
time specified, accompanied by a chief named Quitlatpitoc[2], who was
afterwards named Ovandillo, with a great retinue bearing various articles
of provisions with much ceremony and respect. These men advanced, making
three profound reverences to Cortes and the soldiers who were with him;
and, after exchanging civilities, Cortes ordered mass to be performed in
their presence, after which he and the two Mexican lords with several
Spanish officers, sat down to dinner. When this was over, he informed the
Mexican chiefs, that he was the servant of the greatest king in the world,
who had sent him to visit their sovereign, whose fame had reached him, and
who had ordered him to communicate some affairs of the greatest importance.
To this Teuchtlile answered somewhat haughtily: "You are only just arrived
in this land, and yet speak already of seeing our king: receive in the
meantime this present which he has sent you, and we shall speak of other
things hereafter." He then took from a petlacalli, or basket of reeds,
many admirably wrought toys of gold, with various artificial works in
coloured feathers, which he presented to Cortes, together with ten loads
of fine garments of white cotton, and an abundant supply of provisions,
such as fowls, fruit, and roasted fish. There were many other articles in
the present made on this occasion which I do not now remember the
particulars of, as it is long ago. Cortes presented them in return with
artificial diamonds, and requested they would encourage the natives to
barter with us, which they engaged to do. We afterwards learnt that these
Mexican chiefs were the governors Cuetlachtlan, Tustepeque,
Cuetzpaltepec, Tlacatlalpan, and other districts, which had been
lately reduced under the Mexican empire. Cortes then produced a richly
carved and painted arm-chair, some artificial jewels called margajitas[3]
enveloped in perfumed cotton, a string of artificial diamonds, and a
crimson velvet montero cap ornamented with a gold medal of St George
killing the dragon; which he requested Teuchtlile to convey to Montezuma
as a present from the king of Spain, and to signify his request to be
permitted to wait upon him.
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