The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1894-09-19
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CHAPTER XXI.
SUMTER, S. C.
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CHAPTER XXI
TIE NIGHT OF FEAR.
Long before awoke that day the COM
nnanas Of the council had been carried out,
and the bridges in the great causeways
were broken down wherever dikes crossed
the raised roads that ran through the wa
ters of the lake. That afternoon also
went, dressed as an Indian warrior, with
GuatemH and the other generals, to a par
ley which was held with Cortes, who took
his stand In the same tower Of the palace
that Montezuma had stood on when the
arrow of Guatemoc struck him down.
There is little to be said of this parley, and
I remembered it chiefly because it was
then, for the first time since had left the
Tabascans, that saw Marina close and
heard her sweet and gentle voice, for
now, asever, she was by the side Of Cortes.
translating his proposals of peace to the
Aztecs. Among these proposals was one
that showed me that De Garcia had not
been idle It asked that the false white
man who had been rescued from the altars
Of the gods upon the teocalI should be
given In exchange for certain Aztec pris-
oners, in order that he might be hung, ac-
co-ding to his merits, as spy and desert
er, traitor to the emperor of Spain.
wondered as heard it Marina knew when
she spoke the words that ssthe false white
man. was none other than the friend Of
her Tabascan days.
s.You see that you are fortunate in hav-
ing found place among Us Aztecs, Teule, -
an<>h
own people would greet you with rope. .
Then he answered Cortes, saying moth
ing of me, but bidding him and all the
Spaniards prepare for death.
Many Of us have perished, " he said.
You also must perish, Teules. You shall
perish of hunger and thirst; you shall per-
ish ON the affairs Of the gods. There is no
escape for you, Teules. The bridges are
broken
And all the multitude took up the words
and thundered out: 81 There is no escape for
you, Teules The bridges are brokenp'
Then the shooting Of arrows began, and
sought the palace to tell Otomie, my
wife, what / had gathered Of the state Of
her father Montezuma, who the Spaniards
said still lay dying, and of her two sisters,
who were hostages in their quarters.
Two days later came the news that Mon
tezuma was dead and shortly after it his
body, which the Spaniards handed over to
the Aztecs for burial, attired in the gor-
geous robes of royalty. They laid it in the
hall of the palace, whence it was hurried
secretly and at night to Chapoltepec and
there hidden away with small ceremony,
for it was feared that the people might
IL 1,a{,>
With Otomie weeping at my side, looked
for the last time on the face Of that most
unhappy king, whose reign, SO glorious in
its beginning, had ended thus. Otomie,
ceasing from her tears, kissed his clay and
cried aloud:
go my father, it is well that you are
dead, for none who loved you could desire
to see you live on in shame and seryitude!
May the gods you worshiped give me
strength to avenge you, or if they be no
gods then may find it in myself. Iswear
this, my father, that while man is left
to me T will not cease from seeking to
avenge you
Then, takingmy hand, without another
word she turned and passed thence. AS
viii be seen, she kept her oath.
On that day and on the morrow there
was fighting with the Spaniards, who sal
lied out to FILL up the gaps in the dikes Of
the causeway, task in which they sue
ceeded, though with some loss But it
availed them nothing, for so soon as their
backs were turned we opened the d1kes
again. It was on these days that for the
first time I had experience Of war, and
armed with my bow made after the Eng
lish pattern I did good service. As it
chanced, the very first arrow that drew
was on my hated foe, De Garcia, but
here my common fortune pursued me,
for, being out of practice or overanx-
ious, / aimed too high, though the
mark was an easy one, and the shaft
pierced the iron Of his casque, causing him
to reel in his saddle, but doing him no
further hurt. Still this craftsmanship,
poor as it was, gained me great renown
among the Aztecs, who were but feeble
archers, for they had never before seen an
arrow pierce through the Spanish mail
Nor would mine have done so had not
eollected the iron barbs of the crossbow
bolts Of the Spaniards and fitted them to
nv own shafts. I seldom found the mail
that would withstand arrows made thus
$1,000
good
After the first days fight, was ap-
pointed general over body Of 5000 arch
ers and was given banner to be borne
before me and gorgeous captain's dress
to wear. But what pleased me better was
chain shirt which came from the body
Of Spanish cavalier. For many years I
always wore this shirt beneath my cotton
mail, and It saved my life more than once,
for even bullets would not pierce the two
Of them.
I had taken over the command Of my
archers but 48 hours, q scant time in which
to teach them discipline, whereof they had
little, though they were brave enough
when the occasion came to use them in
good earnest, and with it the night Of dis
aster that Is still known among the Span
iards as the noche tr1ste. On the afternoon
before that night 9 council was held IN the