The argument.
The sun had now gone down, and the short twilight was fading away into the darkness of the night, when, at a given signal, every cannon was discharged. The awful roar rolled through the streets of the metropolis, and froze the hearts of the people with terror. Were these strange beings, they inquired among themselves, who thus wielded the heaviest thunders of heaven, gods or demons? Volley after volley, in appalling peals, burst from the city, and resounded over the silent lake. Dense volumes of suffocating smoke, scarcely moved by the tranquil air, settled down upon the streets. Silence ensued. The voice of Cortez had been heard in tones never to be forgotten. The stars came out in the serene sky, and a brilliant tropical night enveloped in its folds the fearless Spaniard and the trembling Mexican.
Achievements of the Spaniards.
It was the night of the 8th of November. But seven months had elapsed since the Spaniards landed in the country. The whole Spanish force, exclusive of the natives whom they had induced to join them, consisted of but four hundred and fifty men. They were now two hundred miles from the coast, in the very heart of an empire numbering many millions, and by sagacity, courage, and cruelty, they had succeeded in bringing both monarch and people into almost entire submission to their sway. The genius of romance can narrate few tales more marvelous.
Chapter VII.
The Metropolis Invaded.
The ride through Tenochtitlan.
The next morning, Cortez, with a showy retinue of horsemen, prancing through streets upon which hoof had never before trodden, called upon the emperor. The streets were lined, and the roofs of the houses crowded with multitudes gazing upon the amazing spectacle. The Spanish chieftain was kindly received by the emperor, and three days were appointed to introduce him to all the objects of interest in the capital. Tenochtitlan was the native name by which the imperial city was then known.