The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-04-27

war, while the best feelings of cor diality reigned among the subjects and monarchs of the three countries.
 It is not strange, therefore, that they had special amba ssadors whose business was the declaration of war, and com missaries posted permanently at various points along the roads and charged with furnishing the army with food when it passed by them, while the military schools were never filled, owing to the large contingents which they gave for the war.
 The declaration of war was very curious custom. When the nation which
 should give the propitiatory victims had
 been selected, the Aztec king sent word
 to his allies that they should be ready for anything that might happen. The chief of the ambassadors then chose those who should make the declaration of war, These at once departed and ar
 irving at the palace of the "tectuli'
 (king or lord) of the enemy told him
 that the lord of Mexico ordered that he should render tribute. If he did not
 comply they retired, to return in few
 days on the same mission, and if he per
 sisted in his refusal, they proceeded to
 stain his face with resin and to place on his shoulders symbolic adornment of feathers H. Sahagun). After the lapse of a certain period three ambas- sadors returned for the third and last tjme One represented the king or lord, by whom a gift of shields, arrows and darts was made, another for the old
 men and the women, and a third for the warriors all communicating the bad
 news to the enemy.
 On the entrance of the ambassadors into Tenoxtitlan (Mexico) the shell horns of the warriors, the "teponaxtles"
 (drums), and the funeral oboes were
 sounded, calling together the warriors of the 20 "calpulis,' or regiments, for
 the coming war. The priests of the great temple and of the "calmecac cross
 marked the meats with the spines of the
 maguey, sacrificed captives and offered "copalli," or incense, to the gods The supreme chief of the army ordered the
 delivery of the arms in the arsenal to the
 soldiers of the last class. and arranged matters with his confrere, the chief Of the conmissary department, regarding the victualing of the army.
 Army Organization
 The Aztec army numbered, including the allies, about 20000 men. and was organized in the following manner: One
 general-in-chief four guard chiefs 20
 secondary chiefs, captains of squadrons, captains of vanguard, chiefs of special service on the Hanks covered by the '.otonca' (warriors who had captured six enemies) and last the captains of the famous rear guard "quachic," formed of athletic and valorous warriors who had taken more than 10 captives. The arms
 used by the light infantry consisted of bows and arrows, slings for throwing
 stones. hand darts, and the "atlatl,"
 species of crossbow. The heavy infantry manipulated the heavy macanas, wooden
 clubs with two rows of flint teeth, maces
 made of various materials curiously worked, and the shields or bucklers which all the warriors used. The 20 chiefs corried, besides lances with points
 of copper, species of breastplate of re-
 sistant texture, the standard of the di- vision firmly attached to the Sody, and as distinguishing mark tail plume or
 rich feathers The soldiers stained their bodies with the same color as the plume
 of their chief, and their faces with red
 paint, to cause panic in the camp of the
 enemy.