The next morning early father Olmedo said mass. A regulation was also made that in future the copal of this country should be used instead of our usual incense, and the inhabitants were taught to make wax candles from the wax of the country; of which, up to this moment, they had made no manner of use: these candles were always to be kept burning on the altar. The principal caziques of the district and village attended mass. But the chief ornaments there were the eight Indian females, who in the meantime had remained with their parents and relatives. These were now baptized after an edifying discourse had preceded the ceremony. The niece of the fat cazique, a very ugly woman, was named Doña Catalina, and presented to Cortes, who accepted her with every appearance of delight. The daughter of Cuesco, on the other hand, was most beautiful for an Indian female, and received the name of Doña Francisca, and fell to the lot of Puertocarrero. The six remaining young women, whose names I have totally forgotten, were given to some other of our soldiers.
The mass and baptismal ceremony being concluded, the caziques and principal personages took their leave, and from this moment the best feeling subsisted between us, for they were highly delighted that Cortes had accepted their daughter. We, therefore, returned to our new town Vera Cruz amidst the most joyous professions of friendship, and we shall soon see what happened there.
The good reader, however, may feel assured that nothing of any consequence further took place at Sempoalla than what I have related, and that herein Gomara and the other historians have completely erred.
CHAPTER LIII.
How we arrived in our town of Vera Cruz, and what happened there.
We arrived at Vera Cruz, in company of the most distinguished personages of Sempoalla, on the same day that a ship had run in there from Cuba. The captain's name was Francisco de Saucedo, but we always called him the gallant, from his extravagance in beautifying his outward person, being altogether a perfect fop. He was said to have been at one time butler to the admiral of Castile, and was born at Medina de Rioseco. Along with him were ten soldiers, and a certain Luis Marin, a most distinguished officer, who afterwards became one of our chief commanders in the Mexican campaigns. Both the former had horses, one a stallion, and the other a mare. These men brought us intelligence that Diego Velasquez had obtained authority from Spain to trade and found colonies wherever he liked, and was appointed adelantado of Cuba. All this pleased his adherents excessively, in particular the latter preferment.
The building of the fortress having solely occupied us for a length of time, and now in such a forward state that we could lay the woodwork, we began to grow tired of doing nothing. Almost the whole of us, therefore, addressed Cortes in a body: representing to him, that we had now been three months in this country, and high time we should just convince ourselves how much truth there was in the boasted power of Motecusuma, of which so much had been said: we would gladly risk our lives in it, and therefore begged he would make preparations for this expedition. But, previous to commencing our march, we ought first to give some proof of our most humble submission to his majesty our emperor, by forwarding him a complete account of everything that had befallen us since our departure from Cuba. We also proposed that all the gold we had bartered for, and the presents sent by Motecusuma, should be forwarded to his majesty.
In answer to which Cortes said, that our ideas accorded exactly with his own, and that he had already spoken to the same effect to several of the cavaliers. There was merely one circumstance which caused him to hesitate, namely, that if each person took the portion of gold which fell to his share, too little would remain to be worthy of his majesty's acceptance. For this reason he commissioned Diego de Ordas and Francisco de Montejo, who were thorough men of business to see what they could make out of those men whom they might expect would demand their share. This was accordingly done, and they represented to every one that we were desirous of sending his majesty the emperor a present in gold, which, considering it was the first, ought indeed to be something valuable. In order, however, to make this possible, nothing remained but that each one should give up his share of the gold which had been made up to this moment. A great number of officers and soldiers had already signed their hands to that effect; yet every one was at liberty to act herein as he thought proper. Here was the paper, which every one who chose could put his hand to.
Every one, without exception, signed his name to the document, and agents were chosen to be despatched to Spain. These were Alonso Puertocarrero and Francisco de Montejo, to whom Cortes himself had already given above two thousand pesos. The best vessel of our squadron, furnished with the necessary provisions and manned with fifteen sailors, was selected to convey them. The charge of the vessel was given to two pilots, one of whom was Anton de Alaminos, from his being so well acquainted with the passage through the Bahama channel, and the first who had ventured that road. Upon this all of us, in common, drew up an account of our adventures expressly for his majesty, relating everything that had happened to us, and Cortes himself, as he assured us, likewise wrote a very circumstantial narrative, which, however, was not given us to read.[18] The account was signed by all the authorities of the new town and ten soldiers, of which I myself was one. But there was likewise another account drawn up by all the officers and soldiers, the contents of which will be fully explained in the following chapter.