The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1884-09-14

word. whom Cortsz landed At Vera Crss more
was no empire In Mexico. nor had thaso been
any within the memory Of man. There wns
simply loose oonfederacy. weakened ~ rae
jsalousies and antpathies As to tbe svilisa-
tlon. that had long boon In state Of dscadence.
and its moro humane. refined. and admi-
rabls traditions and aptitudss tASsrod only In
. fow Tolteo towns.
That the native civilizations OF Central Amer
lea and Of Mexico were In the strfctest sense
indigenous the lecturer IL convinced. In these
simllitudes and analo9ies Of customs and
smblsms he sees no erouAd for the assumption
that prehistoric America owes anything to
Europe or to Asia. On this head he insists
that 'Givon human nature anywhere. Its re-
ligious development b reared on the same
bases and passes through the same phases."
And again: All those curious rssemblances
amidst the differences. which We shall also
bring out. betweeu tho religious history OF the
New World and that OF the Old. are not 1t bot
tom any more Extraordinary than tho fact that.
IN spite OF the differences Of physical type
which separated tho natives from their con-
ouerors. they mono tho less saw with eyes.
walked on feet and dgestod with the stomach
Prof. Rivile manifestly holds that the nara
tives Of the Spanish conauerors are essentially
u
them on the Aztec civilization was. on the whole.
deserved. lie points out. indeed. that even the
most civilized Of Mexican aud Central American
peoples were ayerss to navigation. wore isno-
rant OF the use OF iron. knowing only OF gold.
silver. and copper. that thoy had no boast of
traction or burden not even the llama OF Peru;
that they were without writing. for although a
kind OF hieroglyphic Is found on tho monu-
monts. yet the graphic system does not seem to
have been OF any avail for ordinary life. and
that finally they had no money except an in
considerable number OF silver crosses and cacoa
berries. the mass Of exchanges being effected
by barter. Nevertheless. Prof. Eevillo acknowl-
edges that the Aztecs had developed their
civilization In Its political and material aspects
in y way that does tho greatest credit to their
sagacty. Property was organized on tho indi-
vidual and hereditary basis for the noble fami
lies and on tho collective basis for tho people d.
vided into communities. The taxes were raised
In kind. according to fixed rules. Numbers OF
slaves wcro charged with tho most laborious
kinds of work. Tho native artisans
worked in stone with tho most admirable skill.
In their knives and lance and arrow heads.
made Of obsidian. they achieved remarkable
perfection. and they evcslled in the art OF sup
plying tho place OF writing by pictures painted
on kind Of aloe paper. or OH cotton Stuffs.
representing the persons or things "a to which
thoy desired to convey information.
Tho merchants assembled in the cities formed
q veriabie fers-ttat. which exercised growing
political influence. There were markets. the
abundance and woil..h Of which stupened the
Spaniards The luxury of the court and Of the
great families was dazzling The CITY OF
Tenochtitlan. afterward called Mexico had
boon joined to the mainland by cnuseways along
which an aaueduct conveyed the pure waters
Of distant streams to the city. The irrigation
works In the country wero humorous and IN
good repair. The streets were oleansed by day
and lighted at night. advantnges'in which none
OF tho European capitals rejoicod in the six
teenth century. Finally. lot us note the oxoel-
lent roads that stretched from Mexico to the
limits Of the Aztec empire. Along these roads
leagues. courier posts for the transmission Of
important n0ws. and Montezuna heard OF tho
disembarkme OF Cortez throo days after 1t
took place."
We have confined ourselves to the lectures
dealing with tho Mexican civilization. because
1t Is the Spanish narratives dealing with this
subject whose trustworthinoss has been most
stronuousy impugned. Prof. R6vlie puts
equal faith In the spanish accounts Of tho Inca
civilization. which also he deems competely
indigenous for no cnn iind no indication that
either OF tho civilizing nuclei. Cuzco Chimu. or
Quito. borrowed anything from Central Amer
ica much less from Europe or from Asia