# Mexican Archæology/Chapter 5

Table of Contents
CHAPTER V—MEXICO: SOCIAL SYSTEM, WAR, TRADE AND JUSTICE
IT is difficult to say with certainty what was the social organization of the wandering tribes which, one after the other, found their way into the Mexican valley, but from indications we may gather that there were two centres of authority. No doubt the principal of these was religious; most of the tribes are mentioned as being under the guidance of their god, and it may be inferred that the priest possessed tremendous influence in directing the tribal policy. If the priest were a fighting-man also, he probably became the sole leader, and it is not unlikely that this was often the case. The fighting-priest was no rarity in Mexico, and in later times there was a special set of insignia for priests who distinguished themselves in battle. But normally, it may be concluded, the tribe was led in fight by the best and most experienced warrior, whose authority was probably exercised only during military operations. As amongst practically all nomadic peoples, the heads of families probably constituted a tribal council. The Toltec, upon the ruins of whose civilization the ruder Nahua tribes established themselves, were admittedly a people of higher culture than the immigrants; and they were living a settled life under the rule of "kings" in whom the priestly aspect predominated. As has been seen above, the Toltec themselves contained an immigrant Nahua element, which presumably had imposed itself upon the prior inhabitants, but, when the later-comers arrived, material prosperity had diminished their warlike propensities, and they were known as a ​pre-eminently peaceful people. Probably two facts had combined to bring about this result, first that the valley was not at this early period so thickly populated as to render collision between the different cities inevitable; and second that war was not yet, as it was destined to become, the handmaid of religion. It would seem that the moral effect, upon each wave of rude invaders, of the more cultured, settled tribes whom they were destined to conquer, was enormous. Settlement, increased prosperity, expansion and conquest demanded some form of administration more elaborate than that which a general, a high-priest, and a council of elders could provide. The evolution of a complicated ritual based upon astronomical calculation provided the priesthood with too much work of a highly specialized character to leave it time to undertake temporal rule, especially as that rule now involved the superintendence of an elaborate military system. The result was that the general was replaced by a "king," and, owing to the moral ascendancy which each earlier body of settlers exercised over its successors the first ruler selected either was himself a descendant of some previous ruling house, or received as consort a daughter of such and held his office in virtue of that alliance. So we find that when the Aztec were at Coatlichan, before Tenochtitlan was founded, they elected as leader (he does not seem to have been counted among the "kings") Uitziliuitl, whose father was an Aztec of no particular rank, but whose mother was a daughter of the ruler of Tzompanco: while Acamapitzin, the first "king" of Tenochtitlan, was, by his mother, grandson of Coxcoxtli, ruler of Colhuacan, and might therefore lay claim to Toltec descent; also Quaquapitzauac, first king of Tlaltelolco, was son of the Tepanec ruler of Azcapotzalco. Moreover it was Toltec descent which really counted most, as may be seen in the fact that the Mexican "kings" were installed as the representatives of Quetzalcoatl. ​The importance of women as the channel by which rank was transmitted is obvious from the genealogy of the Mexican sovereigns. As a rule brother succeeded brother, and in any case it was only the sons of ladies of rank who were elected to the throne. Though, however, the priesthood thus became confined to the exercise of its own complicated profession, it never lost its influence upon temporal affairs. Naturally the degree to which that influence could be exercised depended to some extent upon the personal character of the king, but it was always a power behind the throne, and when the king himself had been trained as a priest, as was the case with the last Montecuzoma, it had few limits, as the history of the conquest shows. The association of the god Quetzalcoatl with the kingly office invested the ruler with a semi-divine character, and the subordination of war to religion gave the priesthood tremendous power in the direction of military policy. The power of the king, apart from his "divine right," was based upon his offices as commander-in-chief and supreme judge, the military aspect of his position being emphasized by the fact that, from the time of Chimalpopoca, only those of the ruling family who had held the position of general were considered as candidates for the throne. In Michoacan however, though here too the king was the chief judge, it was the religious aspect of his office which predominated. The idol of the ruling class was in his especial care, and one of his most important. functions was the, at least nominal, provision of sufficient fuel for the sacrificial fires. For the rest, he was supported by a hierarchy of military and religious officers similar to, but less elaborate than, that of the ruler of Mexico.
At the time of the Spanish conquest the Mexican rulers maintained an elaborate court ceremonial and their appointments were truly magnificent. Diaz describes how the lord of Tezcoco came to meet the ​Spaniards in a litter richly worked in green feathers, with many silver borderings and rich stones set in bosses of gold. Later, Montecuzoma arrived in a similar vehicle, and after alighting advanced supported by four high chiefs "beneath a marvellously rich canopy of green-coloured feathers with much gold and silver embroidery, and with pearls and chalchiuites suspended from a sort of bordering which was wonderful to look at. . . . He was shod with sandals . . . the soles were of gold and the upper part adorned with precious stones." Cloths were spread before him to tread upon, and all his suite kept their eyes lowered except the four who supported him, who were his nephews. In his palace,his antechamber was kept by a large body-guard, and even the most important chieftains, when they came to visit him, exchanged their rich mantles for garments of poor material and entered his presence barefoot. The magnificence of his service, state apartments and general entourage, his aviaries and collection of wild beasts, have often been described, and by none better than by Prescott, so that it is hardly necessary to enter into detail on this subject. Two quotations will suffice, both from eye-witnesses, one relating to the practice of smoking, the other to the dimensions of the palace. After his meal, which was served on Cholulan pottery, "there were also placed on the table three tubes, much painted and gilded, which held liquidambar mixed with certain herbs which they call tabaco; and when he had finished eating, after they had danced before him and sung and the tables were removed, he inhaled the smoke from one of these tubes, but he took very little of it, and with that he fell asleep."
Of the palace, the "Anonymous Conqueror" writes, "Several times I entered the residence of the king, simply to see it; each time I walked about there until I was tired, nevertheless I have never seen the whole of it." The various ornaments and ceremonial dresses of ​the king have been described at length by Seler, and consisted chiefly of mantles decorated with embroidery and feathers, feather back-devices, lip-plugs and necklaces of particular patterns, and the like, many of them being divine insignia or costumes adopted from other tribes by right of conquest. The list is too formidable to be included here, but two are worthy of mention. One ornament worn by royalty and high officials at festivals Fig. 17. A. The Tlacochcalcatl in festival dress. B. Warrior with insignia denoting that he has taken five prisoners. (Mendoza MS., Oxford) consisted of a band twined round the hair, to each end of which a large bunch of feathers was attached; this is shown in Fig. 17, a, where it is worn by the Tlacochcalcatl. Diaz mentions an ornament of particular interest in the words "Montecuzoma took from his arm and wrist the sign and seal of Uitzilopochtli, which was only done when he gave an important and weighty command which was to be carried out at once." Unfortunately nothing more is known of this interesting bracelet. The most distinguishing sign of royalty was a diadem of turquoise mosaic, rising to a peak in the front, rather after the fashion of a mitre. This was known as the xiuhuitzolli, and a plainer pattern was worn by the highest rank of judges.
At the time of the conquest there were several independent states in the neighbourhood of Mexico, of which the most important were Michoacan, Quauhtitlan, Tlaxcala, Uexotzinco, Cholula and Meztitlan; the sovereigns of which held positions very similar to ​those of Mexico, though their courts were of course considerably less magnificent. 'The two other states of the Mexican confederacy, Tezcoco and Tlacopan, were similarly administered, and the court of the former was only less brilliant than that of Tenochtitlan. The Tlaxcalan state:is often erroneously mentioned as a republic, but it was in fact a confederation of four cities, built, as the population expanded, in the following order: Tepeticpac, Ocotelolco, Tizatlan and Quiauitztlan. Coyoacan, Xochimilco and Chalco were always more or less in a state of revolt against Mexican authority, and must be regarded as quasi-independent; at any rate they possessed rulers of their own.
When the Mexican throne fell vacant, the nobles and principal officials of the kingdom appointed four electors, usually of royal blood, to select the sovereign from the members of the ruling family. As stated before, in normal cases the choice fell upon a brother of the late king, or on a nephew belonging to an elder branch. The kings of Tezcoco and Tlacopan also acted as electors, but probably only in name.
The election usually took place on the day 1. itzcuintli, and the candidate was conducted in silent procession, clad only in a waist-cloth, to the temple of Uitzilopochtli, where he was clothed in a robe with a design of skulls and other insignia, and offered incense to the god. 'The offering was repeated at other shrines, namely those of the earth-goddess, Xipe, and Tezcatlipoca, and again at the edge of the lake (probably to Tlaloc), and the king, after receiving the homage of his subordinates, retired to an apartment in the temple where he fasted for four days. At the end of this period he was escorted back to the palace, and a great feast was held. At Tezcoco and Tlacopan the rulers were elected by the nobles on similar lines, and the kings-elect were invested by the king of Mexico. In Michoacan the proceedings were similar, save that the king designated his ​heir during his lifetime and at once admitted him to a share in the government. At Tlaxcala, Uexotzinco and Cholula, the heir-presumptive was overwhelmed with insults to prove his patience and then taken to a temple where he spent one, or even two, years observing a strict fast and performing penance. Finally a day was fixed for the installation ceremony, which must be an uneven number of days from the date of his birth, and his time of trial was over. 'The final ceremony included the boring of the candidate's nose for the reception of a gold ornament, the badge of his rank. A similar period of penance was endured by the heirs of Mixtec lords before their admission to office.
An interesting variety of government is presented by the constitution of the Matlatzinca district in the days before its conquest by Axayacatl. Here there were three chiefs, the Tlatauan, the Tlacochcalcatl and the Tlacatecutli, ranking in that order. At the death of the first, the second succeeded to his office, and was himself succeeded by the third. The vacant post of Tlacatecutli was then filled up by selection of the most capable son or brother of the deceased, or, if he had no relations, of a prominent noble. Each of these officers was supported by the tribute furnished by particular local clans, similar to the Mexican calpulli described below.
Each ruler confirmed the succession of his sub-chiefs, and they of their inferiors, but in these cases it was usually a son who inherited, failing sons, a brother, or failing brothers, a nephew. But a very large proportion of the office-holders were merely appointed for life, and their posts at their death became vacant and at the disposal of the king, though in actual fact a relation was often appointed as successor in such cases.
When the Mexicans first adopted settled life, they were brought face to face with a question which they had not before been forced to consider, the land ​question. In the city itself land was extremely restricted, and the growing importance of agriculture led to an elaborate system of intensive cultivation of the territory around. Land was seized by right of conquest, and assigned by the conqueror to his followers. Thus we read of the Chichimec leader Xolotl giving cities to immigrant chiefs to whom he married his daughters, or whose support he wished to conciliate. In this way certain territories passed into the hands of certain great lords, who apportioned it amongst their dependents, and reclaimed it as they wished. But there was another class of landowner, probably having its origin in later times, consisting of men to whom the ruler made grants of land in return for eminent services, especially in war; such land was neither alienable nor hereditary, but lapsed to the crown at the death of the holder. Of great interest was the land held in common by the local clans, called calpulli, composed of the descendants of the different families of the invaders, and of the tribes who attached themselves to the latter in early days. The calpulli, which were twenty in number, were the offshoots of the four original tribal divisions, each of which formed a "ward"? of the city at its foundation. 'These wards, named Moyotlan, Teopan, Aztacalco and Cuepopan, survived as administrative divisions in later times, though their functions as holders of land in common were taken over by their sub-divisions, the calpulli. They were even maintained in Spanish times, becoming transformed into the "barrios" respectively of San Juan, San Pablo, San Sebastian and Santa Maria la Redonda. Land belonging to a calpulli was inalienable, though under certain circumstances it could be let to another calpulli; it was vested in the calpulli-chiefs, whose office was nominally elective, but who in fact were usually chosen from one family. Members of a calpulli obtained land sufficient for their needs from their chief, and held it as long as they continued to keep it under ​cultivation, failing which their tenure lapsed. Land so apportioned was in practice hereditary, but only on these terms, and the man who changed his residence lost his holding. The clan-chiefs possessed considerable power, since they represented the calpulli in all ex- ternal business, being in fact the descendants of the heads of families who formed the old tribal council, and regulated the inner life of the clan. A land system somewhat similar to that of the Mexican calpulli ex- isted among the Mixtec in so far as land appears to have been hereditary in families but could not pass outside the local group. Below the members of the calpulli ranked certain freemen who farmed the lands of the lords on payment of a rental (in kind), and, finally, a class of serfs who were bound to the soil and prob- ably represented the remnants of the early agricultural population. ‘The Mexican social system therefore comprised a landed aristocracy who paid no definite taxes, but owed service to the king; associated with them was a military nobility who held lands at the king’s goodwill, and whose tenants paid royal taxes. Lower in rank were the calpulli freemen, who paid taxes in com- mon; still lower, the tax-paying rent-holders, and finally the serfs, who paid taxes only to their feudal lords. In addition to these there was the official class, their sons and descendants, who, ranking as warriors and noble, paid no definite taxes, but contributed their personal services and formed the suite of the ruler. The office-holders were known by the generic name of Tecutli, and the positions which they occupied were essentially military in origin ; four of them were placed as overseers of the four districts into which the city was divided for administrative purposes, and acted as repre- sentatives of the Tlacatecutli, or ruler. Besides these there were the judicial officials, treasurers, and a whole host of overseers, of whom the lowest in rank, as in Peru, exercised supervision over a few families only. The ​travelling merchants constituted a peculiar and privileged class, and will be considered later when the subject of trade is discussed. The expansion of the power of Mexico brought many other cities under its influence, and these were obliged to furnish tribute in kind, and were also liable to military service. In important cities
| a. | Bale of cacao. | l. | Chest Chest of maize. |
| b. | Stone lip-plug. | m. | Ceremonial dress. |
| c. | Jadeite beads. | n. | Feathers. |
| d. | Mosaic ear-ornament. | o. | Basket of copal. |
| e. | Pink shell. | p. | Shield. |
| f. | Amber. | q. | Jar of honey. |
| g. | Salt. | r. | Bale of cotton. |
| h. | Cochineal. | s. | Textile with designs. |
| k. | Burden-frame. | | (Mendoza MS., Oxford) |
a governor, Petlacalcatl,was placed, with a tax-gatherer, Calpixque, under him; in less important districts a governor or a Calpixque resided in the principal city,and the tribute was collected in the surrounding towns by subordinate officials. Apart from a general supervision there was very little interference with the tributary cities; the original rulers were rarely displaced, but continued to govern according to the local laws, and, with the exception that certain lands were often reserved for ​the use of the Mexican crown, the property of the conquered was respected. The rather loose nature of the suzerainty exercised by Mexico over its dependents made revolt a frequent occurrence, but this was hardly regarded as a drawback, owing to the ceremonial nature of war and its function in providing victims for sacrifice. Tribute was generally paid by a town or district in common, and consisted of local produce and manufactures (Fig. 18). Produce-tribute, which was generally levied at harvest-time, was furnished by the common lands, and stored in magazines in the principal cities. Maize and other grain was contributed in large chests (Fig. 18,l), and cotton (r), cacao (a) and pepper in bales. Of manufactured articles, textiles (s) and ceremonial costumes (m) were the most common, but the tributelists show a great variety. Many of the town-names in these lists cannot now be located, but their geographical position can be roughly assumed from the nature of their contributions. From Soconusco came lip-plugs, cacao, feathers and hides, from Oaxaca province, gold and cochineal (Fig. 18, 4), from the Tlalhuica, paper and pottery. Other forms of tribute were honey (9), lime, wood, salt (g), copal (0), sea-shells (¢), amber (/), rubber, live eagles, copper axes, chalchiuitl beads (¢), turquoise (d), swords, shields (p), and canes filled with perfumes for smoking. Tax-gatherers were received with great ceremony and respect, and the arrival of these officers at the town of Quiauiztlan,in Vera Cruz, is described by Diaz. A special apartment decked with flowers was prepared for them, together with food and chocolate; they arrived dressed in richly embroidered cloaks and loin-cloths, their hair bound up on their heads, each carrying a crooked staff and a bouquet of flowers which he smelled from time to time. The Totonac it is true complained to the Spaniards of the harshness of Mexican rule, probably referring rather to the Aztec demands for sacrificial victims. Tribute on ​the whole seems to have been fairly assessed, and was remitted in years of famine.
While the first step in the evolution of the Mexican constitution is marked by the election of Acamapitzin as king, in place of the old tribal council under a president, yet it was the overthrow of Azcapotzalco which gave the hegemony of the valley to Mexico, and compelled it to provide for the administration of dependent cities. A number of officials bearing titles similar to those at home were sent to Coyoacan, and definite arrangements were made with the allied states of Texcoco and Tlacopan in accordance with which the rulers of these cities became, at least nominally, electors of the Mexican kings, and placed the direction of their military policy in the hands of the latter. It was only in military matters that the two confederate states deferred to Mexico; they had their own sovereigns, their own laws and provinces, and we are told that Tezcoco exercised dominion over no less than fifteen of the last-named in the direction of the Atlantic coast. Each ruler confirmed the election of their sub-chiefs, and they of their dependents. Of the booty won by the united armies, two-fifths was taken by Mexico, two-fifths by Tezcoco, and one-fifth by the small state of Tlacopan.
The final stage in the development of the Mexican constitution was marked by the conquest of Tlaltelolco by Axayacatl, and the appointment of a governor for this suburb in place of an independent sovereign. The military basis of Mexican hegemony coloured the whole of its domestic economy, and resulted in the formation and rise of a military aristocracy in the hands of which lay practically all the executive offices in the city.
As commander-in-chief the king was of course the head of the fighting-men, and in some cases actually took the field himself, immediately after his installation, for instance, in order to procure the necessary ​sacrificial victims. He was supported by two principal officers, the Tlacatecatl and Tlacochcalcatl (Fig. 17, a; p. 113), of whom the latter was a purely military functionary, while the former exercised certain administrative functions also. The same titles were borne by the chief subordinates of each of these respectively. A propitious date was awaited for the proclamation of a campaign, the day 1. itzcuintli being considered especially favourable; the hostile country was explored by spies, called Tequihua, who brought back to the king various maps and other documents containing information likely to prove of use during the operations. War was formally declared by sending weapons, down and chalk, the insignia of sacrifice, to the enemy, and the expedition set forth, on a lucky day such as 1. coatl, in a prescribed order. First marched the priests with the idols of the gods, next the Mexican veterans, followed by the less experienced; following them came the forces of Tezcoco and Tlacopan, and finally the fighting-men of allied provinces. When the forces were drawn up, new fire was made by the priests, and the attack commenced. The actual combat does not seem to have been attended by great slaughter, since the chief object of each individual fighter was not to kill his foe, but to make him prisoner. The first captives were immediately handed over to the priests and sacrificed on the spot, while those taken subsequently were carried back to the city. The ceremonial nature of war is clearly shown in the fact that rewards were conferred upon those who succeeded in capturing prisoners, in proportion to the number of their captives, but no account was taken of those who merely slew their opponents. To this fact the Spanish conquerors owed a large measure of their success, since the foe were chiefly anxious to take them alive, and rather avoided inflicting mortal injuries than otherwise. Diaz comments upon the rapidity with which the Tlaxcalans removed their wounded from the ​scene of action, but without understanding that the reason was to prevent them from falling alive into the hands of the enemy. The Tarascan customs were similar; in time of war the priests offered herbs and tobacco at midnight, selecting a date when the position of the stars was favourable, and denounced by name the leaders of the opposing troops. The herbs, together with eagle-down and bloodstained arrows, were taken by spies and deposited within the enemy's territory, a proceeding which was intended as a declaration of war, but also possessed the magical significance of devoting the foe to death. A Mexican army in the field was an extremely gallant sight; the leaders and most distinguished fighters were brilliant in ornaments of gold and the feathers of tropical birds and embroidered tunics. Military insignia existed in great variety, each individual wore every decoration to which he was entitled, and the regimental and tribal standards of elaborate feather-work made a brave show. 'The Mexican standards consisted of an eagle and a jaguar; that of Tlaxcala was a white heron with outspread wings, and the four Tlaxcalan provinces had each their own badges, Tepeticpac, a wolf with arrows; Ocotelolco, a green bird on a rock; Tizatlan, a heron on a rock; and Quiauiztlan, a green canopy. Standards were fastened securely to the backs of certain officers, and the capture of one of them, or the fall of a general, was invariably the signal for a retreat. Diaz describes the Tlaxcalan levies as "brilliant with great devices, each regiment by itself with its banners unfurled, and the white bird, like an eagle, with its wings outstretched, which is their badge."
Children, as a preparation for military service, were entered in one of the schools called Telpochcalli, which were under the protection of Tezcatlipoca, and there underwent a rigorous training, in part religious, which was not, however, so severe as that of the Calmecac. On ​first entering they were charged with the duty of sweeping the building and attending to the fires, later of fetching wood and engaging in various constructional works. During this period they took their meals in their own houses, but returned to the Telpochcalli to sleep; their amusements consisted in attending the dances, in the building called Cuicacalco, which took place between sunset and midnight. The sons of the higher officials who intended to embrace the military profession received the superior education of the Calmecac, and accompanied experienced warriors to battle in the capacity of shield-bearers. As soon as the young man was of an age to go to war, the whole of his hopes centred upon the taking of a prisoner, so that the lock of hair which he wore at the back of his neck as a sign of his noviciate might be removed. If he performed the feat with the aid of several of his companions, all were permitted to wear a side-lock instead, but if single-handed he received at the hands of the king the privilege of wearing certain body-paint and embroidered mantles of particular designs. The capture of two, three, four or more prisoners was also rewarded with special insignia (Fig. 17, b; p.113), with promotion in rank, and the gift of privileges including the right to wear a lip-plug of a particular pattern and to sit on a particular seat. A distinction was made according to the nationality of the prisoners captured; one or more Huaxtec were of comparatively small account, but the taking of even a single warrior of Atlixco or Uexotzinco was regarded as a great feat and received a corresponding reward. 'Two "orders" existed, which were conferred upon the most prominent warriors, the "eagle" and the "ocelot"; those who obtained one of these coveted distinctions were allowed to wear dresses representing the animal from which their order took its name. Other dresses and back-devices, each conferring a definite status, existed in numbers, and constituted an important item ​in the tribute sent by the dependent cities. If after a few fights the would-be warrior had still failed to secure a prisoner, he was disgraced, and usually retired into private life rather than continue to wear the novice's lock, but he was for ever debarred from wearing garments of cotton or ornamenting his clothes with embroidery. Proved warriors were permitted to wear their hair in a lock on one side which they brushed so as to stand upright, while those of higher rank wore the lock above the forehead encircled by an ornamental band (see Pl. IX, 4 and 5).
The distinguishing weapon of the Aztec was the bow, and it was no doubt the possession of this arm which contributed substantially to their success in their fights with the early population of the valley. Manuscripts relating the wanderings of the people before they reached their final home show the Aztec, skin-clad and armed with the bow, fighting with the valley-dweller clothed in cotton and armed with the macquauitl, or wooden sword edged with obsidian. The Chichimec were also wielders of the bow, as well as the Tarascans, but this weapon was especially associated with Uitzilopochtli, who was supposed to have given it to the Mexicans, saying "All that flies on high do the Mexicans know how to hit with the arrow." The bow was plain and of no great dimensions; the arrows were headed with fish or mammal bone or with flint or obsidian, and, to judge from the manuscripts, each had two feathers attached with the flat sides against the shaft. The macquauitl, a broad-bladed club along the edges of which were set flakes of obsidian set in resin, was carried by the ordinary soldier, and, wielded by an expert, was capable of decapitating a horse at one blow; however, it soon lost its edge. The early Nahua and the valley-dwellers seem to have employed the atlatl, or spear-thrower, rather than the ow. This implement, which is found both in North and South America, consists of a staff armed at the ​point with a hook, which fits into the butt of the javelin; Mexican specimens are usually provided with two rings of shell or other material near the handle through which the ringers are passed(Pl. XVII, i). This appliance gives length to the arm, and enables the javelin to be hurled with far greater force than by the hand alone. While Uitzilopochtli and Camaxtli are usually shown with the bow, most of the other gods appear with the atlatl, which is often richly ornamented with feathers. The javelins were pointed as the arrows,or the ends were simply hardened in the fire; some had two or more points, and were furnished with a cord like a harpoon by means of which they could be retrieved; these were especially feared by the Spaniards. The only mention of poison is found in Burgoa who states that the Mixtec applied it to their javelins. Spears were carried by those of higher rank, and were furnished with stone heads or set with obsidian after the fashion of a macquauitl. Long spears of this pattern, with a fathom of cutting edge, were used by the Zapotec. Slings were also employed, especially by the Matlatzinca, and though bows were found among the Olmec and Huaxtec, they must have been of quite late introduction. Diaz mentions "three blow-guns with their bags and pellet-moulds," which he saw in the treasury of Axayacatl, the blowguns themselves being incrusted with mosaic work, but these weapons were probably used only in hunting. Quilted cotton corslets, laced up the back and forming one with the breeches, were worn as defensive armour, and, according to one of the conquerors, could only be penetrated by a good arquebus. Nobles wore cuirasses of gold plates under their feather mantles. The Mexican bucklers were small and circular, usually made of wicker with a covering of feather-work (Fig. 18, p; p. 118) and sometimes gold plates; tortoise carapaces were also used, and among the Zapotec larger shields covering the whole body. Helmets were of wood, with ​hide and feather ornaments, and often represented the head of some animal, jaguar or snake, the jaws of which framed the face of the warrior (as Fig. 18, m). The defensive armour of the Mixtec was of hide. Clubs with heads of stone or wood were employed by the Tarascans. Defensive works were not very elaborate, though we read of palisades and walls; but the cities were usually built in some position which afforded natural protection. Thus Tenochtitlan and Xochimilco were situated on small islands in lakes, while the settlements of the Tlalhuica were amidst almost inaccessible barrancas. Of the various nationalities the Aztec were undoubtedly the most warlike, followed at no great distance by the peoples of Tlaxcala and Uexotzinco. Of the peoples of Oaxaca the Mixtec, though inferior to the Aztec, were superior to the Zapotec.
In connection with the military expansion of Mexico, mention must be made of the guild of travelling merchants, or Pochteca. The Pochteca were not peculiar to Tenochtitlan; similar guilds were found in Azcapotzalco, Uitzilopochco and Quauhtitlan, but those of Tlaltelolco were by far the most famous. Membership of the guild was a valued privilege, since the merchants stood high in the royal favour; only the sons of merchants could become merchants except by permission of the chiefs. Like the other calpulli, the Pochteca were under the direction of headmen, who represented the guild in external business, but they were privileged in so far as they were exempt from agricultural labour and from the ordinary judicial system, delinquents being judged by their own headmen. They worshipped special gods, chief of whom was the deity Yacatecutli, and joined in private ceremonies of a kind, as far as can be judged, far more elaborate than those of the other guilds. To some extent it is true that the importance of the guild grew with the expansion of Mexican power, but it would be almost equally true to say that Mexican power ​grew with the extension of the merchants' sphere of operations. They acted in fact as the pioneers of Mexican political influence, they penetrated fearlessly into hostile countries either openly and armed, or disguised, and for this purpose learned the speech of foreign nations. They acted as spies of the king, and in one case a body of Pochteca of Tlaltelolco were besieged in a town in Anauac Ayotlan, or the district around Tehuantepec, and, after four years, succeeded unaided in reducing the province to submission. For this deed they received special privileges and insignia from the king Auitzotl, including the right to wear lip-plugs of gold, while their captains bore military titles. At the time of the Spanish conquest these merchants made extended journeys far into Chiapas and Tabasco, and penetrated even to Guatemala. The gradual extension of their sphere of operations can be seen in the wares which they imported from time to time, and as this has a bearing upon Mexican history it is worth mention. In the reign of Quaquapitzauac, first king of Tlaltelolco, the imports were brilliant feathers from the low countries; under his successor, quetzal-feathers, turquoise, chalchiuitl and cotton textiles were added; in the next reign, lipplugs of precious stones, gold, skins, and a greater variety of feathers were introduced; and under Moguiuix, the last king, cacao became an article of merchandise. This information is from Sahagun, who, in a later passage, states that precious stones were collected especially in southern Vera Cruz and Tabasco, and quetzal-plumes from the region around the present San Cristobal in Chiapas.
The Pochteca were careful to set out on their expeditions on a favourable day, such as 1. coatl, and before starting they made offerings to their god and the Earth; they also cut their hair and washed their heads, since custom forbade them to do either while on a journey. Their relations were also obliged to remain with head ​and face unwashed, except at intervals of eighty days, during their absence. They started out in a large body, merchants from various towns combining to form a caravan, as far as Tochtepec. There they divided, some going to Anauac Ayotlan, others to Anauac Xicalanco (southern Vera Cruz and Tabasco). When they returned, often after years of absence, they awaited a favourable day to enter their city, such as 1. calli, or 7. calli, when their home-coming was celebrated by a banquet and various religious ceremonies. Each merchant carried a staff, which was regarded as the image of the god Yacatecutli, and received offerings in his name. When on the march, the company of merchants at night tied their staves together, and offered incense before them, at the same time making blood-offerings from their ears and tongues.
The extraordinary facility with which nomadic hunting tribes adopt a trading profession has many parallels in Africa, where the interests of the wandering merchant are similarly guarded. Just as violence against one of the Pochteca inevitably resulted in a punitive expedition, so in times past the murder of a Bushongo trader by a Basongo Meno village would result in the extermination of the latter, and, at the present day, the death of a Badjok merchant would be similarly avenged by his compatriots. Mexican trade was for the most part carried on by means of direct exchange, and the result provides many difficulties to the archæologist. Once a town became famous for any kind of manufacture, the work of its artisans became spread far and wide, so that the discovery of objects of a particular style in a certain locality can by no means be taken necessarily to indicate that that style is characteristic of the site. Even pottery, which provides such valuable evidence in other parts, is not exempt from suspicion, since the ware of Cholula constituted an important article of export from that town. Certain articles ​formed a rough-and-ready currency in commerce, such as textiles and maize; cacao beans also were used as a kind of "small change," and copper axe-blades were employed in certain localities, such as Oaxaca. More than one of the contemporary historians mention quills containing gold-dust as being utilized for the same purpose. The great market in Tlaltelolco moved the wonder of the conquerors; it is described as being three times as large as that of Salamanca, and one estimate places the daily attendance at twenty or twenty-five thousand persons. One of the conquerors gives the following picture of it. "On one side are the people who sell gold; near them are they who trade in jewels mounted in gold in the forms of birds and animals. On another side beads and mirrors are sold, on another, feathers and plumes of all colours for working designs on garments, and to wear in war or at festivals. Further on, stone is worked to make razors and swords, a remarkable thing which passes our understanding; of it they manufacture swords and roundels. In other places they sell cloth and men's dresses of different designs; beyond, dresses for women, and in another part footgear. A section is reserved for the sale of prepared hides of deer and other animals; elsewhere are baskets made of hair, such as all Indian women use. Cotton, grain which forms their food, bread of all kinds, pastry, fowls, and eggs are sold in different sections; and hard by they sell hares, rabbits, deer, quails, geese and ducks. Elsewhere wines of all sorts are for sale, vegetables, pepper, roots, medicinal plants, which are very numerous. in this country, fruits of all kinds, wood for building, lime and stone. In fact, each object has its appointed place. Beside this great market-place there are in other quarters other markets also where provisions may be bought." Special magistrates held courts in the market-places to settle disputes on the spot, and there were market officials similar to our inspectors of weights and ​measures. Falsification of the latter was visited with severe punishment.
The judicial system at Mexico was elaborate and efficient; justice was administered by a hierarchy of special officials, at the head of whom stood the Ciuacoatl or Chief Justice. This office, however, appears to have had its military aspect, in so far as the holder acted as commander of the Mexican contingent when the confederate forces went out to battle. The Tlacatecatl also acted as a high judicial functionary. The judges were selected by the king and highest: officials from past students at the Calmecac, men of middle age full of experience and of unimpeachable integrity, who were "neither drunkards, nor amenable to bribes, nor liable to be influenced by favouritism nor passion." They received state maintenance, and if convicted of taking bribes or of delivering unjust sentences were punished with death. Each of the subject provinces maintained two judges at the three confederate towns, to whom the rulers assigned lands and service, and the ordinary courts opened in the morning, as soon as the judges had taken their seats at the mat-covered tribunal. Their midday meals were brought to them in court, and, after a short rest, they remained sitting until two hours before sunset. The high court sat in an apartment in the palace called Tlacxitlan, and dealt principally with high affairs of state and matters affecting the higher ranks, though it also pronounced sentences upon the cases sent up by the lower court. The latter, composed of representatives of the calpulli, also sat in the palace, in a room called Teccalli, and dealt with the affairs of the general public, sending its decisions to the Tlacxitlan for pronouncement of sentence. Important and difficult cases were reserved for a special court of thirteen judges headed by the ruler, which sat every eighty days. In the provinces there were a number of ​local courts of limited jurisdiction, from which cases of any importance were sent to the capital for trial, and there existed besides in the capitals a number of small courts, such as the market court, which dealt summarily with small offences, but from which appeal could be made to the higher courts. In the case of offenders of high rank the case was sometimes tried in the home of the criminal who, if found guilty, was executed there in private. Important tributary towns, as stated above, were often allowed considerable independence as regards judicial matters, and the rulers were allowed to judge their own people according to the local laws. Below the judges were a number of minor officials, apparitors and the like, as well as a military town-watch which kept order at night. Penalties varied in proportion to the gravity of the offence, from fines, payable in textiles, and flogging, to mutilation and death by the rod, the strangling-cord or by stoning. At Tezcoco a celebrated code, invented by the king Nezahualcoyotl, was in force, and the Mexican and Tacuban codes were based on this to a large extent; moreover, cases were often sent to Tezcoco for trial. Condemned criminals were shut up in cages to await execution, which usually took place upon some day considered appropriate, such as I. quiauitl or 4. eecatl. Theft was punished in various ways; in unimportant cases the thief was compelled to make restitution, in cases more grave he became the slave of the complainant; if he had stolen gold or jewels, he was sacrificed to Xipe at the goldsmiths' festival. Stealing corn from the fields was punished with death, and though this sentence may seem severe, the crime was the less excusable because corn was planted along the roadsides for the use of wayfarers. The death penalty was also inflicted for wrongful assumption of the insignia belonging to the highest offices, for murder, adultery (by stoning), sorcery (by sacrifice), disobedience or desertion in war, injury to a ​royal messenger, or shifting a landmark. The laws against drunkenness were particularly strict; in the case of the young this offence was often punished with death, the accused, if of low rank, being publicly clubbed to death so that his fate might serve as an example. Rank could not save a man, though it gave him the privilege of being executed in private. Less aggravated cases were punished by degradation in the case of a noble, accompanied by public hair-cutting and the destruction of the culprit's house. Only the elderly were permitted the free use of octli, though men over thirty were allowed a moderate supply at festivals and when engaged upon hard manual labour. In other cases special permission had to be obtained from some official superior before the intoxicating liquor could be drunk without fear of punishment. These regulations, though severe, were extremely salutary, a fact which is proved by the outburst of drunkenness which took place after the conquest, when the old régime was swept away. Punishment was often inflicted upon a tributary town by demanding victims for sacrifice, as in the case of Quiauiztlan in Vera Cruz, the inhabitants of which were ordered to provide twenty men and women for this fate because they had received the Spaniards. The Tarascan ruler, at the time of the greatest development of the Michoacan peoples, was assisted in government by two ministers analogous to the Mexican Ciuacoatl and Tlacatecatl respectively. The judicial code was much the same, though little definite is known concerning it save that the death penalty was inflicted for the wrongful appropriation of land, the head of the criminal being set up on the violated boundary. Among the Chichimec, adultery was punished with death, each member of the tribal group shooting four arrows at the guilty couple. The Mexicans held slaves, or rather bondsmen, in some numbers, and the slave-class consisted of criminals, prisoners of war, and ​individuals sold into slavery. Persons in extreme poverty could pledge themselves or their children, and we read that in the reign of Montecuzoma many of the better-class families were reduced to such straits by a famine lasting two years that they fell into slavery. By orders of the king these unfortunates were sought out and ransomed by him at twice the price paid for them. It is said that the sale of a slave required two witnesses, and that slaves could not be sold without their own permission, except those who wore heavy wooden collars as runaways or insubordinate. A peculiar form of slavery existed, in accordance with which an indigent family could bind itself to supply one or more slaves perpetually to some lord, the individual in servitude being changed every few years. If a slave-woman died as the result of an intrigue with a free man, the latter became the slave of her master; but if a child was born and both survived, it became the property of the father and was free-born. Slaves were well treated on the whole, though they were liable to be sacrificed. They were considered as under the protection of Tezcatlipoca, and at one of his feasts were accorded absolute licence as at the Roman Saturnalia.