Part 8 (1/2)
CHAPTER XII.
WELSH BLOOD IN THE AZTECS.
Mexico and Peru were the most civilized parts of the continent when the Spaniards arrived. If it had not been for the bigoted zeal of the Spanish priests, and most signally that of Zumarraga, the abundant and astonis.h.i.+ng national picture-writings which were the historical records of the Aztecs might still be in existence, and serve to reveal the successive links in the mighty chain of migrations of the early peoples, so that much of the mystery that still lingers in regard to their settlement and civilization could be removed. But these priests looked upon those writings as the memorials of pagan idolatry, and, having collected them together, committed them to the flames, thus extinguis.h.i.+ng in a day, as it were, the history of a once powerful empire. The historian is consequently forced to rely upon whatever fugitive pieces escaped the hands of those infamous ravagers, the study of the monumental remains, and the broken and scattered remnants of this people, scarcely recognizable, found on the Mexican plateau and in the various parts of the American territories.
According to the most authentic records which remain, the Aztecs came from the regions of the North, ”the populous hive of nations in the New World, as it has been in the Old.”
Clavigero, the patient and voluminous historian of New Spain, a.s.signs the following dates to some of the most important events in the early history of Mexico:
A.D.
The Toltecs arrived in Anahuac 648 They abandoned their country 1051 The Chichemecs arrived 1170 The Acolhuans arrived about 1200
The Aztecs or Mexicans reached Tula 1196 They founded the Mexican Empire 1325
Conquest by Cortez 1521
Zurita, a celebrated jurist, whose personal experience and observation among the Aztecs extended over a period of nineteen years, and who returned to Spain in 1560, was indignant at the epithet _barbarian_ as applied to the Aztecs,--an epithet, he says, ”which could come from no one who had personal knowledge of the capacity of the people or their inst.i.tutions, and which in some respects is quite as well merited by the European nations.”
Their high degree of civilization, their remarkable advance in the knowledge and practice of the arts and sciences, so wondrously displayed in their architecture, their causeways, their temples, their homes and their adornments, their agriculture and systems of irrigation, their floating gardens and beautiful feather-work, their strange religion and military displays, must have produced an impression upon the Spaniards which they never forgot. The vast wealth of the Aztecs so excited the spirit of avarice in them, however, that, for a time, each one planned how best to enrich himself.
In complexion they were much lighter than the common American Indians.
Their style of dress, which was often the most elaborate, and made from the finest materials of their own weaving, more nearly approached that of Europeans,--trousers, jacket, surtout, cloak, and cap or hat ornamented with fine feather-work. The same dress is worn by their descendants in Mexico at the present time. Their treatment of their women was not Asiatic, but resembled more that which is accorded to them by the civilized nations of the world. Their duties were domestic, and they were not degraded by servile bondage. Throughout the different cities were barber-shops, where the men a.s.sembled to have their beards shaved. No such thing was known among the American Indians.
”Quetzalcoatl, G.o.d of the air,” says Prescott, ”instructed them in the use of the metals, in agriculture, and the arts of government. It was the golden age. For some cause he was compelled to abandon the country.
On his way he stopped at the city of Cholula, where a temple was dedicated to his wors.h.i.+p, the ma.s.sy ruins of which still form one of the most interesting relics of antiquity in Mexico. When he reached the sh.o.r.es of the Mexican Gulf, _he took leave of his followers, promising that he and his descendants would revisit them hereafter_, and then, entering his wizard skiff made of serpents' skins, embarked on the great ocean for the fabled land of Tlapallan [are there not here the Welsh words _lla_, place, softened into _tla_, and _pell_, distant, meaning ”distant place”?] He was said to have been tall in stature, _with a white skin, long dark hair, and a flowing beard_. The Mexicans looked confidently to the return of this benevolent deity; and this remarkable tradition, deeply cherished in their hearts, prepared the way for the success of the Spaniards.”
Their religion was a compound of Christianity and mythology, of spiritual refinement and ferocity. Indeed, so much was this the case that the most intelligent and judicious historians of the Aztecs could not resist the conviction that one part of their religion emanated from a comparatively refined people, while the other sprang from barbarians.
Everything pointed to the doctrine that their religion had _two distinct sources_.
Some historians have erred in supposing that they indiscriminately sacrificed human beings. Their sacrifices were criminals collected from all parts of the country, kept in cages, and slain upon the same day to make a religious exhibition. This ought to be stated, so that, if possible, there might be some mitigation of their dark and b.l.o.o.d.y practices.
They recognized the existence of one G.o.d, Supreme Creator and Lord of the Universe. In their prayers they addressed Him as their G.o.d, ”by whom they lived, omnipresent, who knoweth all thoughts and giveth all gifts, without whom man is as nothing, the incorporeal, invisible, one G.o.d, of perfect perfection and purity, under whose wings we find repose and a sure defence.”
They made confession but once, and that usually was deferred to a late period of life. The following was the language of the confessor for the penitent: ”O merciful Lord, thou knowest the secrets of all hearts, let thy forgiveness and favor descend like the pure waters of heaven, to wash away the stains from the soul. Thou knowest that this poor man has sinned, not from his own free will, but from the influence of the sign under which he was born.” He then teaches charity: ”Clothe the naked and feed the hungry, whatever privations it may cost thee; for, remember, their flesh is like thine, and they are men like thee.”
The ceremony of naming children shows a wonderful coincidence with what are called Christian rites. The lips and bosom of the infant were sprinkled with water, and ”the Lord was implored to permit the holy drops to wash away the sin that was given to it before the foundation of the world, so that the child might be born anew.”
Their prayers, too, inculcated Christian morality: ”Wilt thou blot us out, O Lord, forever? Is this punishment intended not for our reformation, but for our destruction? Impart to us out of thy great mercy thy gifts, which we are not worthy to receive through our own merits.”
”Keep peace with all.” ”Bear injuries with humility. G.o.d who sees will avenge you.” ”He who looks curiously on a woman commits adultery with his eyes.” What parallels with Scripture teachings!
The Aztec n.o.bles had bards in their houses, who composed ballads suited to the times, and sang and played on instruments in honor of the achievements of their lord. In this is discovered a resemblance to the customs of Welsh minstrelsy.
They had also musical councils, held on special days in the presence of large public a.s.semblies, for the trials of historians, poets, and musicians, in their respective compositions, before the monarchs of Mexico, Tezcuco, and Tlacopan. These were exactly identical with the Welsh Eisteddfods,--bardic and musical contests, which have long been and are still held in Wales, and in other countries where the descendants of the people of that country reside. They had also a complete system of orders and badges resembling those in Europe. By a study of their stone calendars, they are known to have had regular divisions of time; and their years consisted of three hundred and sixty-five days. Historians relate that in the first interview of Cortez with Montezuma in his palace, the latter said that his ancestors were not the original proprietors of the land. They had occupied it but a few ages, and had been led there by a great Being, _who, after giving them laws and ruling over the nation for a time, had withdrawn to the region where the sun rises_. He had declared upon his departure that he or his descendants would again visit them and resume his empire. The wonderful deeds of the Spaniards, their fair complexion, and the quarter whence they came, led him to believe that they were his descendants.