New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-03-20

ing - them TO the exclusion OF " more rehaole pu'
more accessible" authorities. This is precisely INC
soft of mistake into which Mr.. Bancroft himsei
appears TO have fallen. He is proud of his newly
amassed materials and therefore his estimate Oh
the importance of the corrections they enable MIN
10 make in previous accounts is enormously eAAs-
gerated.
1t is perhaps TO the employment of various
hands in the preparation of the volume 'ha'
we ought to ascribe an apparent lhocclslo"
and weakness in the judgment u Wv
character of COrtes and ms couq"''''
At times hero worship to be pushed 10 us I's'
extreme: at other moments Cortes Is a delaui'e''
pirate usurper renegade; traitor, Outlaw hSpo-
critic liar and bastard. The dreadful massacre per
petrated by Cortes at Choula is approved rs "lso
precaution: There was evidence enough to Jus
tify the General in a measure which he reHnNeu 'S
necessary for the safety of his men," OF the similar
massacre committed by AlvaradO under parallel cir
cumstances in the CITY of Mexico the author says; |
And now comes another Of those diab0lica deeds
which done in the name OF clynZauOn' |
or religion or any other entity or ldci |
fiji us with horror toward the gods ana
men for whom and by whom such acts are /
consummated;" next he proceeds to find for Ayafado
the same reasons of military necessity which he mas
accepted for Cortes at Cholula; ard finally he COM
plctes our bewdeiment by remarkng: All inns
discussion, however. as TO the minor motives
urompting dastartlly deed DO not regard as very
relevant Prescott having compared the massacre
of Cholua with European cIueltcs, and urged III It's
palaton the danger with which the Spaniards were
euconuassed Mr. Bancroft eXclams: "AlaS lor
honesty humanity dccency. when talented Amefl- |
can authors talk OF the right of one people 20 ron
and murder another people," Yet on the very next
page h, observes that "Outrages equally AZ cruel
are today exculpated throughout Chrstendom as
exigencies of war If we then overlook such deeds
how much more excusable are they in the more
bloody times of Cortes! 2" He draws rcpuiSiVe |
picture OF the brutality tyranny. and boody super
sttion of the MeXicanSy yet complains that the span
iards overthrow, with the Aztec monarchs, an adj
yanced intellectual culture, and fastened on body
and soul the iron letters of tyranny and supeTst-
tiOn' He iecrs AT Spanish civilizat OIL" ClvhZa-
ton! What fools are, plumlng ourselves !
in its radiance, tie radiance OF ghaslS
electrical lights. adopted instead OF the
glorious sun of nature. For Is not the
unartifcial nature, aud nature God, while aIti-
fce is rather OF the devil And yet we persist III
glorlfying artice and calling Il deity. Ihe human
sacrifice of the Aztccs horrible rite, but III the
hands OF the Spaniards is .J Christianity bloody
mistress ?" He declares that most men are rscals
at heart. and that the Spauiards were 10 worse
than other people in their day, and that We are 10
better than our predecessors fashions of sO-called
morality having changed, but not mans innate
wic6cdnesS. 81 hold" he adds, that Spanlards OF
the sixteenth century were no worse than Their
neghJors. II was bigotcd and cruel age; though
for that matter enough OF gOtry vet remains and
there is sufficient cruelty in our lattcrday ightiugS
to keep us humble. And while see much 10 con-
denm in the motives that brought hitler these ior-
eigncrs and much in their conduct tlat was cruel
AID unjust. yet we are constrained TO admit that
Il .I,o had, I'M tho
way of destiny. The conqucs' of the country, the
destruction OF it's barbarous and nhuman rites, and
the establishment OF the religon of Christ in their
place were the inevitable consequences of the DIS
cogerv of America. Once brought face to face with
the sacrcial stone and other brutal atrocities of
the AZecs and Christianity had 10 alternative but
10 eradicate these evils or be itself Oyerthrown."
Possibly Mr. Bancroft had neglected 10 read
this passage in bis book when he wrote in
his preface that the Aztecs were so far advanced
in arts, Industries and intellectual culture" that
the subst tuition of spanish civilization for theirs
must be called "disastr0us' IL is impossible to
reach any definition of his view OF the conquest be-
cause whenever he surveys it as whole II becomes
| evident that his ideas are but half formed and
| loosely held. Once, and only once. he laws down
something like a rule for measuring the conduct of
Cortcs; and that is equally remark bic FORTS gram
| mar and its ethics: with Cores. naught but the
| first steps assuming the dlll III uaulplHE
certain credit and can he regarded rs crimes
and The former of theso forced upon him II by
the circumstances of his age and surroundings.
Every project then conceived by HIM for the adj
yancement of his great undertaking mast rebound
| TO his genius ms a soldier and leader. OF course
| among these projects appear many which did not
| advance the great obi ct, and which mus be con-
| demned. But where do find greatness wholly
free from stain p SO then. in Mr.. BanciOits code
of conduct criminal end sanctllies criminal means,
and the true test of morality is success He cannot
really mean TINS; but what other meaning can be
| extracted from his proposition.
| We have still to consider the claim of Mr.. Ban
croft and his assistants to the final and all important
qualification OF the historian. namely, literary art.
Their claim can hardly be called modes for the
manner of tie book though, like the philosophy. 1t
vacillates a good deal, is often extremely preten-
| tious but we may say that their claim is very
slight. The style OF the pes ut volume is not a
| literary style. IT swings from very low common
| place TO very lofty pomp, decorated with the
crude rhetoric of country newspapers, and with
many schoolboy illusions to Greek and Roman
| heroes that we turn in amusement TO the list OF
"authOIities quoted" to if smiths Classical
Dictionary is not among them. II is hardly neces.
| sary TO cnticse the style of an author who calls
confederate chief a "tripartIte monarch, and de-
| cares that from line templetOp came a doubly in
spired avalanche" y; but we present specimen of a
sort of expansive fine writing which abOunds in the
| narative:
| So lately lax and frivolous youth, apparently Of
nept nature, wrought to SITTER consistency by
| wears of New World llneadIng. by stroke OF the
! rarest fortune he suddeay finds himself
mander Of men, in virgin field of enterprise fasc
mating beyond expression and Offering to the soldier
possibilities exceled by nothing within the century
AS the mind enlarges TO take In these possibilities
the hole being seems to enlarge with It, the uns IA
bic adventurer is thing of the past, and behold
mighty rock fills the place. Against il heads shall
beat unproftably. The mOmentOus question of TO
be or not to be Is forever determined it il affair
simply of life now Life and the power Of which he
f,,fa hitnanlf elnll rise fall