. Mexico, a history of its progress and development in one hundred years. rs, with itsrich carvings and decorations of gold,dazzled the eyes and exalted the hopesof the small Spanish force, with itsintrepid leader, and its six thousandTotonac and Tlascalan allies, as theSacred City of Choiula was. ap-proached. The ruler of the beautifulcity was ready to welcome Cortes, untilhe learned that their enemies, theTlascalans, were among his forces, andbecame suspicious and unfriendlytoward the Spaniards and refused topermit them to enter unless the Tlas-calans were left outside of the his u
. Mexico, a history of its progress and development in one hundred years. rs, with itsrich carvings and decorations of gold,dazzled the eyes and exalted the hopesof the small Spanish force, with itsintrepid leader, and its six thousandTotonac and Tlascalan allies, as theSacred City of Choiula was. ap-proached. The ruler of the beautifulcity was ready to welcome Cortes, untilhe learned that their enemies, theTlascalans, were among his forces, andbecame suspicious and unfriendlytoward the Spaniards and refused topermit them to enter unless the Tlas-calans were left outside of the his usual promptitude of actionCortes notified the ruler that he wouldleave the city the following day andrequested that the caciques furnishhim with two thousand guides. Pur-suing this plan, apparently, he drewup the greater part of his troops withinthe court of one of the temples, andranged the rest without, with a fullcommand of the avenues; then heissued orders that at a given signalthe Tlascalans should enter. Thethe noche triste tree; caciques arrived at the appointed. THE CONQUEST 21 hour with the number of men requested, who no1 realizing the strategy of the Spaniard came unarmed and nut prepared for any unfriendly attack. Cortesordered an attack upon this body of men, and for several days a horribleslaughter of the unprepared Cholulans lasted, until at least six thousand weremassacred. Their own peril and the right of self-preservation could not justifysuch an act of treachery on the part of a Christian invader. Men who practisedthe sublime teachings of Christ, and were horrified at finding in Mexico pagansand idol worshippers, still felt they could by a lawless disregard of what was reallyright, slaughter human beings in their greed for conquest. This is one amongmany blots on the history of Spain. On November 1st, the ambitious con-queror resumed his determined march to the Aztec capital. The success he hadachieved over the Cholulans proved to Montezuma that the intrepid
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookpublisheretcetc, bookyear191
