The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-10-09
THU SPANISH PIONEERS.
BY CHARLES F. LUMMIS.


these and other like things, which seemed
to them the highest personal ambitions,
they thought must likewise be most pleas.
ing to those above. SO they spent most OF
their time and anxiety in buying on these
strange gods, who were even more DREADED
than savage neighbors.
Their ideas CT q god are graphically OK.
pressed in the hideous great stons IDOLS OF
which Mexico was once full. and some or
which are still preserved in the museums.
They are often of heroic sizs. and are
carved from the hardest stone with great
rainstaking, but their faces and figures ars
in~describably dreadful. Such an lido IA
that of the grim Huitzilopoohtli was as
no, ribls q thing as human ingenuity ever
invented, and the same erotesqus hideous-
ness runs through all the long list OF Aexi-
can idols. 4.
These idols we're attended with the most
so, vile care, and dressed in the richest or
naments known to Indian wealth. Great
strings of torquoiss-the most precious
GEM of tho American aboriginss-and
really precious mantles of the brilliant
feathers of tropical birds, and gorgeous
shells we're hung lavishiy upon these great
stone nightmare. And thousands OF men
devoted their lives to the tending OF these
dumb deities, and humbled and tortured
themselves unspeakably to please them.
But gifts and care were not enough.
Troachsry to his friends and worshlpers
was still to be feared from such a god. he
must be still further bought off. Every
thing that to an Indian seemed valuable
was proffered to the Indians god to keep
him III good humor. And since human life
was the most precious thing an Indian
could understand, it became his most I'M
portant Offering and finally lis most fire.
uuent. To the Indian ii seem sd no orlne
to take a life to please a god. He had no
idea of retribution after death. and he
came to look upou human sacrifice as leg
itimate moral and even a divine Institution.
So in time such sacrifices became OF almost
daily occurrence at each of the numberless
temples of the host of gods. 1t was the
most important and the most valued form
of worship. The importance was 30 great
that the officers or priests OF these savage
rites had to go through a more onerous
t aiming than any minister Of q Christian
faith. They could reach their positions
only by pledging themselves to unceasina
and awful p%enanoes and the most dreadful
self-tortures and self-mutilation; and these
t%ortures they had to maintain.
Human lives were offered not only to ono
or two principal idols of each community,
but each town had also many minor fe-
tiches to which such sacrifices were offered
on stated occasions. So fixed was the GUS
tom of sacrifice that the Indians of Cempo-
hual desired to make their Welcome of Cor
tez more cordial by otfet ing up human vic
Tins to him. These rites were mostly per-
formed on the teoealli or sacriioial mounds
of which there one or more in every Indian
town. These teooalli wore huge artificial
mounds of earth built in the shape of trun-
Gated pyramids and faced all over
with stones. They were from fifty
to two hundred feet high, and
sometimes many hundreds Of feet