The herald., 1895-03-03
OF Bernal Dia. del Castillo. the Herod-

OF Bernal Diaz del Castillo. the Herod-
otus of the Expedition of the ConQuista-
dores, not much is known. Contemporary
historians say nothing OF his birth or Of
his death.-few Of them even mention his
name. When he himself welded the pen,
lie wrote not Of what he was, but OF what
he did. And the writings he left are
the record of the downfall OF strange
old dynasty, the supplanting of yet
stranger religion and the final extinction
of q race which counted its members by
millions.
He was born at Medina del Campo,
Spain, about 1893, and died in Guatemala
about 1898. He was soldier and author.
He went to Darien with Pedro Arias de
Avila in 1914, thence crossed to Cuba
was with Cordoba in the discovery of
Yucatan in 1917, and with Grijalva in
1913. He subsequently joined Cortes,
served through the conquest of Mexico,
1921, and went to Guatemala with Al
varado in 1924. In all these campaigns
he was a common soldier. or at most q
subaltern officer. Diaz settled in Guate-
mala, at Santiago de los Caballeros, where
he began writing his "Historia de la
Conquista de Nueva Espana' in 1858.
It was first published at Madrid in 1882,
and has remained a standard historical
authority for the conquest of Mexico.
Bernal Diaz left CASTLE, as he says in
his memoirs, in 1914 for TERRA Firma."
also called the New World. In due time
he reached Cuba, and from that place
proceeded as one of few hundred cav
aliers to the discovering of new countries
impelled thereto by an Unsuitable thirst
for gold and still more intense determ-
ination to carry to strange peoples the re-
ligion of God and Our Lady the Mother OF
Christ.
Bernal Diaz constituted himself the
historian of the expedition, even as Her.
nando Cortcs made himself Captain GEN
eral; for though the company, at first, had
certain authority conferred npon its Off
GERS and certain general directions given
by the Governor of Cuba. the commissions
to the officers wore withdrawn and the
directions ignored. He was Captain who
had the inherent faculty of commanding
men, and the route followed was that
which commended itself to them from
day to day.
The story of the progress through Mex
CO 10 one infinitely varied, yet strangely
monotonous. 1t is story of WEAKNESS
and hunger, of disappointment and suf-
fering, of battles with savages in hordes
innumerable, actuated by bitter hate; of
courage undaunted, and an unconquered
and the unconquerable faith that the Lord
fought with them, that in His own good
time He would give to his servants
riches and honor and the glory OF bring
ing great people within the folds of the
True Church.
AS the fame of Semiramis was spread to
the utmost confines of Assyria, so the
greatness of Montezuma was known even
to that place where the waves of the sea
washed the sands of Yucatan. To the
City OF Montczuma, Mexico, the Con-
quistadores turned their faces and after
many days the first glimpse ''of the
grand city and all the lakes was gained
by Diego de Ordas, who. from the summit
OF Mount Popocatapetl, looked out across
the wide country.
Later the city was reached. OF the city
and Of what was done there let Bernal
Diaz tell as in the history which he has
written.
Prescott quotes no authority in his His
tory Of the Conquest Of Mexico as often as