VII. ALVARADO'S EXPEDITION TO PERU
1531-1536.
SHIP-BUILDING IN GUATEMALA—ALVARADO PREPARES AN EXPEDITION TO THE SPICE ISLANDS—BUT TURNS HIS ATTENTION TOWARD PERU—OPPOSITION OF THE TREASURY OFFICIALS—THE PILOT FERNANDEZ BRINGS NEWS OF ATAHUALPA'S RANSOM—STRENGTH OF ALVARADO'S ARMAMENT—HE LANDS AT PUERTO VIEJO—FAILURE OF HIS EXPEDITION—HIS RETURN TO GUATEMALA—NATIVE REVOLTS DURING HIS ABSENCE—THE VISITADOR MALDONADO ARRIVES AT SANTIAGO—HE FINDS NO FAULT IN THE ADELANTADO—BUT IS AFTERWARDS ORDERED TO TAKE HIS RESIDENCIA—ALVARADO IN HONDURAS.
One of the first matters which engaged Alvarado's attention on his return to Santiago was the discovery of a site adapted to ship-building, for he was now resolved to carry out his intended voyage in search of the Spice Islands. In accordance with the emperor's instructions, he sent parties to explore the seaboard for that purpose. At a distance of fifteen leagues from the city, near the modern port of Istapa, a suitable spot was found, in the vicinity of which was an abundant supply of excellent timber, and the work was at once begun.
[Sidenote: THE ARMAMENT.]
According to the terms of his commission from the crown, his discoveries and conquests were limited to the islands and mainland of that portion of the south sea bordering on New Spain, and thence in a westerly direction, and he was forbidden to form any settlement on a territory already assigned to others.[VII‑1] He was appointed governor and alguacil mayor for life, and until otherwise ordered was to be intrusted with full civil, military, and judicial powers over all new lands which he might find. During the royal pleasure he was also to receive a twelfth of all profits which might in the future result from his explorations. Whether the expedition was to be fitted out entirely or only in part at the adelantado's expense is a matter not easily determined;[VII‑2] but in a letter to Charles V. sent in 1532, wherein he states his intention to build and equip a fleet of twelve vessels and raise a force of four hundred men, he declares that the cost of his armament will exceed forty thousand castellanos, and that this outlay will exhaust his private means. He claims of course that he is thus expending all his resources solely with his usual desire of serving the emperor, and avers that he has information of rich islands near the coast from the discovery of which his Majesty must derive great benefit.
[Sidenote: FLATTERING PROSPECTS.]
While the construction of his fleet was yet in progress, rumors of Pizarro's conquest and of the fabulous wealth which had fallen to his lot were noised throughout the province. Alvarado was not over-scrupulous as to ways and means, as we well know. Already he had proved false to him through whose friendship and favor he had been raised to his high station; could he not now replenish his depleted purse, and also win glory in the land of the incas? Was it not better thus to employ his armament than go on a wild-goose chase for islands no one had ever yet seen? And surely with a few ship-loads of Peruvian gold, which it would not take him long to gather, he could serve his sovereign as well as with never a maravedí in his treasury. It was fortunate, it was indeed providential, that now, when the fleet was almost ready, and the men equipped and prepared to embark, this princely quarry should have been started to the south of him.
On the return of a vessel despatched for supplies to Panamá the reports of the immense treasures discovered in Peru were confirmed, and the enthusiasm knew no bounds. "Come," said Alvarado to the colonists, "come with me and I will make you so rich that you may walk on bars of gold."
* * * * *
Among Alvarado's numerous enemies the most powerful and active were the treasury officials of Guatemala, who, though frequently divided among themselves, were constant in their opposition to the governor. Already they had reported him to the home government, charging him with neglect of duty, with levying forced contributions, and with disobedience to the royal ordinances. They now addressed a letter to the emperor, informing him of Alvarado's designs, representing the evil consequences that must ensue from an invasion of Pizarro's territory, the danger of withdrawing from Guatemala so large a force of Spaniards, and requesting that there be sent out to the province some trustworthy person with power to prevent the departure of all who held repartimientos and to act as governor during the adelantado's absence. They also informed the audiencia of Mexico of his purpose, and of the strength of his armament. Though fully aware of these proceedings, Alvarado gave no heed to them. He calmly continued his preparations, informing the royal officials that Guatemala was too limited an area for his ambition, and that he must now seek elsewhere a wider field of action. Meanwhile he would insure the safety of the province by putting on board his fleet all the principal caciques, whom he had already secured for that purpose.
At this juncture came a mandate which even Alvarado did not dare to disregard. It was an order from the audiencia of Mexico forbidding him to sail until he had received his final instructions from the emperor.[VII‑3] Though sorely vexed at this interference, which he attributed to the machinations of Cortés, he must nevertheless submit to further delay. He again addressed a letter to Charles, asking permission to go to the assistance of Pizarro, assuring him that, from what he had learned of the difficulties encountered by that conqueror, he was convinced of his inability to complete unaided the conquest of Peru. In a previous despatch, wherein he had asked for his final instructions, he prayed that they be granted as speedily as possible. "For," he says, "after exhausting my private means, I have contracted heavy debts in order to save your Majesty all expense." The fleet, he informs him, is well provided with stores and provisions, the force of men almost complete, and, the better to insure the success of the expedition, he declares that he will take command of it in person, leaving a sufficient number of Spaniards in the province to guard against any possible uprising of the natives. He considers, however, that there is little danger of an outbreak, "for," as he remarks with refreshing assurance, "I have ever obeyed your Majesty's orders regarding the kind treatment of the Indians."[VII‑4]
* * * * *
Meanwhile Alvarado had found it necessary to remove his fleet for shelter to the bay of Fonseca, whence he despatched García Holguin with two ships to Peru for the purpose of ascertaining the actual state of affairs and the nature of the country.[VII‑5] The adelantado soon learned to his cost that the bay of Fonseca was no secure haven, and after losing two of his vessels there during a heavy gale, sailed with the remainder for Puerto de la Posesion in Nicaragua, the modern Realejo.[VII‑6] While here awaiting the return of Holguin, he fell in with the pilot Juan Fernandez, one who had long been engaged in fitting out vessels for the trade between Nicaragua and Castilla del Oro. While transacting business in Panamá, Fernandez had listened to the marvellous stories of Pizarro's conquest, and journeying thence to Peru had there conversed with men who had been present at the capture and ransom of Atahualpa. No wonder that the tidings which the pilot now brought from the land of the incas fired the imagination of these gold-loving adventurers. More than 1,300,000 castellanos! Not even the treasures of Montezuma had yielded such a harvest. If Pizarro, with his diminutive force, had secured such booty, what might not Alvarado now hope for with his powerful fleet and veteran army?
Neither king nor audiencia should now thwart his purpose; nevertheless he must have ready some pretext for entering Pizarro's territory, if indeed he could not obtain permission. This was soon furnished by Fernandez, who informed him that the province of Quito, believed to be the principal depository of the treasures of the incas, had never yet been visited by Spaniards. It was no difficult matter for Alvarado to persuade himself that this region lay without the domain granted to Pizarro, and the self-interest of Fernandez, now appointed pilot of the expedition, prompted him to encourage such a delusion.
Soon after the arrival of the fleet in Nicaragua, Holguin rejoined the adelantado at Puerto de la Posesion and confirmed the statements of the pilot. A year had almost elapsed since Alvarado despatched a letter to the emperor requesting his final orders, but still no answer came, and his patience was well-nigh exhausted. He had long since been compelled to mortgage his private estate in order to meet the expense of maintaining his large force, and the cost of his armament had been vastly increased during all these weary months of waiting, the total outlay reaching the sum of 130,000 pesos de oro.[VII‑7] Provisions were becoming scarce; the vessels were threatened with destruction from the teredo; and his followers, beginning to lose faith in the enterprise, were on the point of desertion. At last a messenger arrived bringing the long looked for despatches. The instructions made no change in the original capitulation except in regard to route. He was now authorized to explore the land lying to the south of Pizarro's territory, between the thirteenth and twentieth degrees of latitude.[VII‑8]
[Sidenote: THE PARTICIPANTS.]
The fleet now numbered twelve sail, eight being vessels of one hundred tons or more.[VII‑9] Three had been built on the shore of Guatemala; several had been purchased from the estate of Pedrarias Dávila; and the remainder were procured from the colonists of Nicaragua.[VII‑10] His troops consisted chiefly of well tried soldiers. Many of them, weary of an inactive life, or of the now tame and bootless warfare of the conquered provinces, were enthusiastic over the prospect of renewing their deeds of conquest in a new land of promise.
Among the many distinguished persons who took part in the expedition were Gomez and Diego de Alvarado, brothers of the adelantado, and Captain Garcilaso de la Vega, father of the future historian of Peru. The total number was little short of three thousand. Of these two hundred and seventy were infantry, and two hundred and thirty cavalry, all well equipped. The ships were manned by one hundred and forty sailors, and on board the fleet were two hundred negro slaves,[VII‑11] and two thousand natives, male and female. Experienced pilots were engaged, the services of a bachiller were secured, and several friars were added to the expedition, "in order," says Alvarado, "that through the influence of these holy men our consciences may be cleared of guilt." Final preparations were then made for departure.
During the absence of Alvarado his brother Jorge was again to be placed in charge of the province of Guatemala, and the cabildo of Santiago was enjoined to preserve harmony, and to render due respect and obedience to the lieutenant-governor. In a final letter to the emperor the adelantado, while repeating his assurances of devotion to the crown, dwells on the enormous expense of the expedition; but assures his Majesty that it has been willingly incurred in view of the vast importance of the undertaking, the success of which he promises shall eclipse all previous achievements. "God willing," he writes, "I set sail this very day, and my course shall be in accordance with your Majesty's wishes."
[Sidenote: EMBARKATION.]
On the 23d of January 1534 the largest and most powerful armament that had hitherto been equipped on the shores of the South Sea set sail from Puerto de la Posesion, and the following month entered the bay of Caraques, proceeding thence ten leagues farther south to Puerto Viejo. The adelantado afterward excused himself to the emperor for thus trespassing on Pizarro's territory by stating that contrary winds and currents prevented his sailing further toward the south, that the safety of his fleet was endangered, that his supply of water was almost exhausted, and that ninety of his horses had perished at sea.[VII‑12] His march across the sierra, during which he lost a large portion of his men, the transfer of a part of his ships and his entire force to Almagro and Benalcázar, the associates of Pizarro, have already been mentioned in these pages.[VII‑13] He had boasted that he would lead his army through the province of Peru and drive Pizarro from the city of Cuzco.[VII‑14] He was now glad to return to Guatemala after disposing of his armament for a sum that barely covered the cost of the fleet. To add to his mortification he found on arriving at Santiago, at the beginning of March 1535, that the silver bars given him in payment were one half copper.
* * * * *
No sooner had Alvarado sailed for Peru than the natives in many portions of the province rose once more in revolt. Bands of Cakchiquels, thirsting for the blood of their oppressors, roamed over the central sierra; in the districts of Sacapulas and Uspantan seven Spaniards and numbers of their slaves and servants were murdered; the Indians on the southern seaboard both of Guatemala and Salvador were in open rebellion; and war and war's turmoil again prevailed throughout the land. The struggle was brief but desperate. Crushed though they had often been, the dreadful sufferings of these unfortunate people drove them to madness, and they fought with sullen indifference to life, but with the usual result. In January 1535 Gonzalo Ronquillo was sent with a sufficient force to quell the uprising in Salvador; in Guatemala the insurgents in district after district were again compelled to taste the bitterness of hopeless bondage; and by the time of the adelantado's return resistance was well-nigh ended.
* * * * *
Notwithstanding the ignominious failure of his expedition to Peru, the adelantado at once began preparations for further schemes of conquest and discovery. In a despatch to the India Council, dated November 1535,[VII‑15] he states that he has three vessels ready for sea and four others on the stocks, and that he has sufficient men both for his ships and for land service. "So many Spaniards," he says, "have returned from Peru in reduced circumstances that, if the expedition were only intended to furnish them with employment, it would be doing his Majesty a service."
Meanwhile the representations made to the emperor by the treasury officials had not been without effect. On the 20th of February 1534 a royal cédula was issued ordering that a visitador be at once despatched to Guatemala to examine into the condition of the royal treasury and the affairs of the government and church, and to hear complaints and rectify them when necessary. His authority fell short of that of a judge of residencia. He could not interfere with the ordinary jurisdiction of the governor or his lieutenant, nor was even the audiencia of Mexico allowed to decide in matters of graver import, but must apply for instructions to the India Council.
[Sidenote: MALDONADO AT SANTIAGO.]
Thus it was that about the middle of the year 1535 the oidor, Alonso de Maldonado, arrived at Santiago, and publicly proclaiming in due form the object of his visit, assigned fifty days as the limit of the investigation. No complaints, however, either of a civil or criminal nature, were preferred against the adelantado; and the visitador having reported to the royal council to that effect, returned to Mexico, the former remarking with much inward satisfaction, not unseasoned with a little venom, that the oidor had accomplished nothing by his visit.[VII‑16] But the emperor's ministers were not satisfied that justice had been done; and Maldonado, being ordered in the following October to take Alvarado's residencia in strict form, returned to Santiago, and on the 10th of May 1536 presented his credentials to the cabildo and took charge of the government.
* * * * *
At the time of the oidor's arrival the adelantado was absent on an expedition to Honduras. The condition of affairs in this province had now become so distressful that, as will hereafter be related, the settlers were compelled to apply to him for aid. Nor was the appeal disregarded. He had for some time been in correspondence, as to an exchange of territory, with Francisco de Montejo, who, though already appointed governor of Honduras, was still residing in Mexico. Could he but gain a foothold there, his schemes for transcontinental commerce with the Spice Islands might yet be realized. Nothing definite had yet been determined; but now that he had an opportunity of rendering a service which would give him almost a claim to the king's consent to such an arrangement, he did not hesitate to go to the relief of the troubled province. There we shall hear of him again, founding new settlements and infusing fresh life into a community that was on the very verge of dissolution.
VIII. THE ECCLESIASTICS IN GUATEMALA
1529-1541.
FRANCISCO MARROQUIN ARRIVES AT SANTIAGO—HE IS APPOINTED BISHOP—GODLESSNESS OF THE COLONISTS—THE PRELATE INVITES LAS CASAS TO JOIN HIM—MARROQUIN'S CONSECRATION IN MEXICO—THE CHURCH AT SANTIAGO ELEVATED TO CATHEDRAL RANK—DIFFICULTY IN COLLECTING THE CHURCH TITHES—THE MERCED ORDER IN GUATEMALA—MIRACULOUS IMAGE OF OUR LADY OF MERCED—BIBLIOGRAPHICAL.
When Pedro de Alvarado was laying waste the fair province of Guatemala with fire and sword during the early years of the conquest, he paid little heed to the presence of the priestly order. One of the friars, named Pontaz, of whom mention has before been made, took up his abode at Quezaltenango, and there lived in security, instilling faith and hope into the native heart,[VIII‑1] while another, Juan de Torres, for a time at least, labored in the vineyard under less easy circumstances at Patinamit. The spiritual wants of the Spaniards themselves were ministered to by the army chaplains and parish priest. But the clerical staff was not large enough to attend to the religious welfare even of the colonists. On the 5th of November 1529, the cabildo of Guatemala represented to the royal officers that half the colonists, being usually engaged in war, required the services of the clergy during their campaigns, while the population of the city at that time was such that two friars at least ought to reside there. They requested, therefore, that a suitable number of ecclesiastics and a sacristan be appointed with fixed salaries, and that the necessary church furniture and ornaments be supplied. This demand was made with some urgency, and the treasurer and auditor were given to understand that, if it were not complied with, the tithes would be retained and devoted to that purpose; whereupon his Majesty's officers declared that they were willing to grant the tithes for the year then current, but that future necessities must be provided for in accordance with the orders of the king.
[Sidenote: MARROQUIN.]
The spiritual needs of the community were partially relieved by the arrival, in 1530, of the licentiate Francisco Marroquin, who accompanied Alvarado on his return to Guatemala during that year. A few months later he was appointed to the benefice of Santiago, and after he had taken the customary oaths the cabildo assigned to him an annual salary of one hundred and fifty pesos de oro per annum.
Of patrician birth, and possessing talents of no common order, the licentiate gave promise during his early manhood of a useful and honorable career, and not until in after years he had dwelt long among communities where lust of power and greed for wealth permeated all classes of society, did the darker phase of his character appear. After receiving an education befitting his rank and ability, he graduated as professor of theology in the university of Osma, and was ordained a priest. Meeting with Alvarado at the court of Spain, he was so impressed with his glowing descriptions of the marvels of the New World that he requested permission to accompany him on his return to Guatemala. On arriving at Santiago he at once assiduously applied himself to the study of the native languages, and soon became especially proficient in the Quiché tongue.[VIII‑2] Marroquin's appointment was confirmed by the bishop of Mexico, by whom he was also made provisor and vicar general of the province, and such was the zeal and capacity with which he tended the spiritual and material needs of his flock that in 1533 he was appointed by the emperor to the see of Guatemala. In December of the following year his appointment was confirmed by his holiness Paul III.[VIII‑3]
The chief anxiety of the newly appointed prelate was to provide a sufficient number of ecclesiastics for the requirements of his extensive diocese. The secular priests residing in Guatemala at this period as we have seen were inadequate to the great work of conversion which he contemplated, and he felt the necessity of aid from those of the established orders. Besides those who first came, a few friars had, indeed, visited the province, but found there no abiding-place.[VIII‑4] In 1529, or possibly at an earlier date, a convent was founded near Santiago by the Dominican friar, Domingo de Betanzos,[VIII‑5] who travelled on foot from Mexico with a single companion. At the beginning of the following year however he was recalled, and as there was no one of his order qualified by rank to take his place he locked up the building and intrusting the keys to the padre Juan Godinez retraced his steps.
Thus Marroquin was left to contend almost alone with the idolatry of the natives and the godlessness of the colonists. The work was difficult and progress slow. The settlers were too absorbed in other matters, in house-building, gambling, and drinking, to give much heed to religion. The church was unattended, the church rates were unpaid, and the neglect became so general that eventually laws were passed to enforce due observance of religious rites. In May 1530 it was publicly cried in the streets of Santiago that, by order of the governor and the cabildo, all the artisans of the city must, on the day of Corpus Christi, walk in procession before the holy sacrament, as was customary in Spain. The penalty for non-compliance was fixed at thirty pesos, one half of the amount being assigned to the church and the remainder to the city. In February 1533 a law was passed making attendance at divine service compulsory, every citizen being required to attend mass on Sunday, under penalty of three days' imprisonment or the payment of three pesos de oro. This measure of course served but to widen the breach between the bishop and his flock, and in June of the same year we learn that the regidor Antonio de Salazar stated to the cabildo, that there were no means of paying Marroquin the stipend allotted to him. Notwithstanding all discouragements, however, he resolved that the settlers should not lack for spiritual guidance.
[Sidenote: LAS CASAS.]
At the beginning of the year 1536 Bartolomé de Las Casas was residing at Leon, there engaged in a controversy with Rodrigo de Contreras, the governor of Nicaragua, the story of which will hereafter be related. In 1531 he had passed through Santiago on his way to the South Sea, and Marroquin had then an opportunity of making the acquaintance of the great apostle of the Indies. In common with the more enlightened of the colonists he would fain have had him take up his abode in their midst. But Las Casas was bound on one of his many missions of mercy, though his efforts were destined to prove futile. He was journeying toward Peru, armed with a royal cédula forbidding the conquerors in that land, and all their followers, to deprive the natives of their liberty under any pretext whatever. No entreaties could induce him to abandon his undertaking, and embarking at Realejo he reached his destination at the end of the year. There, what man could do, he did; but such were the political disturbances then prevailing that his efforts were lost. Urged by members of his own order, he reluctantly abandoned the field and returned to Nicaragua.
To him the prelate now applied for aid, representing the sore need of a larger force of ecclesiastics, and begging him to come to Santiago and reopen the deserted convent. The invitation was accepted, and Las Casas with his fellow Dominicans established their order permanently in Guatemala.
But Marroquin was not yet satisfied. At this early period in his career he was an enthusiast in the missionary cause, and he now resolved to go to Spain and beg assistance of the emperor. But first he must proceed to consecration, and on the 12th of January 1537 he set forth for Mexico, where, about two months later, the ceremony, the first of the kind that occurred in the Indies, was conducted with due solemnity and splendor.[VIII‑6]
[Sidenote: ORGANIZATION OF THE DIOCESE.]
The bishop's labors were now directed to the elevation of the parish church of Santiago to cathedral rank. He therefore proceeded to frame the constitution and complete the establishment of his diocese in accordance with the commission granted to him by Paul III. He prescribed that the dignitaries of the church should include a dean, an archdeacon, a precentor, a chancellor, and a treasurer. He established ten canonries and six prebendaries. He defined the church revenues; ordained that preferment to minor benefices should be open to those born in the country, whether of Spanish or native race, and that the appointments to them should pertain to the bishop. Divine services were to be celebrated in the manner observed in the cathedral of Seville. Prebendaries were to have a vote in the chapters, and these were to be held on Tuesdays and Fridays. On Tuesdays general church matters were to be discussed, and on Fridays internal discipline was to be considered.[VIII‑7]
When on the point of departing for Spain, the bishop was advised by his friends that the journey would be attended with great risk; for already the North Sea was infested with pirates, and a large number of Spanish vessels had been captured by French corsairs. Moreover the expenses he had incurred in Mexico had drawn heavily on his slender purse, and he did not wish to return to his native country wholly destitute of means. Resolving therefore to abandon his voyage, he forwarded his power of attorney to Juan Galvarro, the procurador of Santiago at the court of Spain, instructing him to send to Guatemala a number of ecclesiastics and to pay their passage and outfit. He also addressed a letter to the emperor,[VIII‑8] informing him of the great need of missionaries, and stating that he had asked aid both from Mexico and Santo Domingo, but had received none, although it had been promised.
During the early part of the year Charles had already appointed the cathedral prebendaries. Marroquin remarks that his Majesty was somewhat hasty in the matter, and not sufficiently considerate toward those who had so long shared with himself the labor of supporting the church at Santiago. These, he declares, it would be unreasonable for him to dismiss, though he is at a loss to conjecture whence the means to support his diocese would be derived. He well knew the perverse temper of the colonists and their antagonism to the cause of the church. Nevertheless he forwarded to the cabildo a provision handed to him by the viceroy Mendoza ordering the church tithes which were usually paid in kind to be delivered by the natives direct to the bishop at places where their value would be real and available.[VIII‑9] His mind was full of doubt as to the manner in which this regulation would be received by the encomenderos. The tone of his letter indicates misgiving, united with a rare spirit of self-negation, and he appears rather as a pleader than as a claimant for his rights.[VIII‑10] "You will pay," he says, "what is due in a proper manner; if not, I command that no scandal be raised about it."
Nor were his apprehensions unfounded. The settlers in Guatemala were a stiff-necked people. They would not go to church, and they did not intend that the delivery of the tithes should cost them anything if they could avoid it. They could not spare their Indians to carry the tithes a distance of many leagues to the places appointed. The bishop must send for them. They and not the ecclesiastics had conquered the province, and they did not see that either God or the emperor had any claim upon it. The cabildo immediately appealed to the viceroy, and meeting with no sympathy in that quarter addressed themselves directly to the emperor.[VIII‑11] Their representations gained for them some concessions, whereupon they pressed the matter further and protested against paying tithes at all. Though the bishop was now at a loss whither to turn to obtain the means for carrying out his various plans, he none the less labored with unceasing perseverance,[VIII‑12] and on his return to Guatemala, at the end of 1537, brought with him two friars of the order of Merced, Juan Zambrano and Marcos Perez Dardon.[VIII‑13]
[Sidenote: THE FRIARS OF LA MERCED.]
After the conquest of Mexico, certain members of this order obtained the royal permission to proceed to the newly discovered countries for certain charitable purposes. When the subjugation was completed many of them settled in towns built by the Spaniards, but no convent of their order existed in New Spain at a very early date. To Bishop Marroquin they are indebted for the establishment of their first monastery in North America. This was founded in 1537[VIII‑14] at Ciudad Real in Chiapas, and in the following year frailes Zambrano and Dardon organized a similar institution in Santiago.
When, as will be hereafter told, the city of Santiago was almost destroyed by inundation in 1541, the friars of La Merced, then six in number, were compelled for a time to remain amid the ruins of the deserted city, for such was the indifference of the settlers that no land was assigned to them in the site afterward chosen. Finally, through the efforts of the bishop, an allotment was granted, and in the erection of their new convent they were greatly assisted by the Dominicans, who subsequently transferred to them several of the Indian towns under their charge. From this time they increased in number, gradually extended the field of their labors in Guatemala, and having districts assigned them by the bishop were enabled in after years to found convents in various parts of the country.[VIII‑15]
* * * * *
In the church of their order at Santiago was an image of Our Lady of La Merced, for which miraculous properties were claimed. The story as related in documents in the archives of the convent is as follows: As a westward-bound vessel was about to sail from the port of Santa María in Spain, a person dressed in the garb of a traveller approached the captain, and placing in his hands a closed box charged him to deliver it unopened to the superior of the convent in Guatemala. The aspect and bearing of the man impressed the seaman, and he faithfully discharged the commission. On receiving the casket, the superior carried it to the church, accompanied by the friars, and having opened it in their presence, the sacred effigy was disclosed. Great was their rejoicing at this unexpected boon; but their happiness was complete when they marked the divine serenity of the countenance, and perceived that an exquisite fragrance was exhaled from the holy image. Ere long one of their number noticed that from a wound in the right side a strange fluid oozed. Divine manifestation was recognized, and many of the afflicted were cured of their diseases by the application of the ichor.[VIII‑16]
* * * * *
Domingo Juarros may be considered the leading Guatemalan historian of modern times. He was born in the old city of Guatemala in 1752, and died in 1820. He wrote very fully on the subjugation of his country by the conquerors. Although his work is called the history of Guatemala city, it gives in reality the history of all Central America, and provides lists of all prominent officials, civil and ecclesiastical, and biographical notices of leading men, whether soldiers, priests, or rulers. The first volume treats of geography, settlements, church matters, and the history of Guatemala city. The second is devoted to the ancient records of the country, its conquest and settlement. The author was a secular presbyter and synodal examiner, and quite an able and intelligent man. His connection with the clergy and his rank gave him access to both ecclesiastical documents and government records. His work is full and clear, and displays considerable research, but unfortunately he follows Fuentes too closely, and this latter author's partiality to the conquerors renders him too biassed to be faithful as an historian. Yet Juarros frequently displays compassion for the Indians, is always ready to retract an error when he detects himself making one, and is ever cautious against dogmatic assertion. He draws largely from Remesal and Vazquez, and quotes several other of the earlier authorities; but strangely enough, while mentioning the manuscripts of Gonzalo de Alvarado and Bernal Diaz, and of writers in the Quiché, Cakchiquel, and Pipil tongues, he does not allude to Alvarado's letters to Cortés. This omission, and his numerous direct disagreements with Alvarado's own statements, lead to the inference that neither Juarros nor Fuentes consulted these despatches. Juarros' work is remarkably free from church bias. Though a priest he censures undue zeal or carelessness on the part of friars. Miracles receive attention, however, and so do stories of giants and other marvels. His arrangement with regard to the order of events is bad, and the want of logical sequence gives the work an appearance of incompleteness. The first edition was published in Guatemala by Don Ignacio Betela, and the two volumes appeared respectively in 1808 and 1818. A later issue was published in the same city in 1857. J. Baily translated the first publication into English, in a slightly abridged form, which was issued in London by John Hearne in 1823. In this edition omissions and inaccuracies may be noticed.
[Sidenote: FRANCISCO VAZQUEZ.]
Francisco Vazquez, the author of the Chronica de la Provincia del Santissimo Nõbre de Jesvs de Gvatemala, was a friar of the Franciscan order, retired lecturer, calificador del Santo Oficio, and synodal examiner in the diocese of Guatemala. His work was published in the city of Guatemala in 1714, and according to the title-page and preface there was, or was to have been, a second volume, consisting of two books, the existing one containing three. This work, which is rare, although mainly devoted to chronicling petty details of the labors of obscure friars, throws much light upon the early history of Guatemala during the conquest and subsequently down to the end of the sixteenth century. The author, having had access to the city archives at the early date at which he wrote, was able to avail himself of documents which have since disappeared. Fortunately he quotes such evidence frequently, thus enabling the historian to establish historical facts which otherwise, in the face of conflicting assertions of chroniclers unsupported by evidence, he would be unable to do. Vazquez has undoubtedly borrowed much material from Remesal, giving him little or no credit, while he mercilessly exposes his real or supposed errors. The jealousy which existed between the Franciscan and Dominican orders was the cause of this unfairness. In his opening declaration the author protests that, when he applies terms of praise to any who figure in his history, he is but giving the common and general estimation. This will hardly apply to his adulation of Alvarado and other conquerors, and his eager defence of their actions. It is not easy to find in the old chroniclers, clerical or secular, an uncompromising champion of their conduct, in face of the reliable and varied evidence of the cruelties practised by them. In defence of the conquerors he asserts that the vices and cruelties of a few were attributed to all; and without one symptom of feeling for the natives, maintains that their refusal to receive the faith was the cause of the incessant warfare. On this subject he writes: "It causes me much pain, disgust, and affliction to read some books which attempt, with artificial piety, to persuade us that the Indians were innocent and inoffensive lambs, and that the Christians were cruel furies, it being certain that these races while in a condition of paganism were greater butchers than blood-thirsty wolves, more cruel than lamiæ, harpies, and infernal furies, and, were it not for subjection and fear, they would neither have become Christians nor now remain so." 29-32. The matter contained in his work is badly arranged; the sentences drawn out to a puzzling length, a fault which, in addition to a lack of proper punctuation, renders the recital of facts frequently confusing. Information of the neighboring provinces can, in a less degree, be obtained from this volume.
IX. AFFAIRS IN HONDURAS
1527-1536.
DIEGO MENDEZ DE HINOSTROSA APPOINTED LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR—SALCEDO RETURNS TO TRUJILLO—HIS OFFICE USURPED BY VASCO DE HERRERA—DEATH OF SALCEDO—THREE RIVAL CLAIMANTS FOR THE GOVERNORSHIP—EXPEDITIONS TO THE NACO AND JUTIGALPA VALLEYS—DIEGO MENDEZ CONSPIRES AGAINST HERRERA—ASSASSINATION OF THE LATTER—A REIGN OF TERROR—ARREST AND EXECUTION OF THE CONSPIRATOR—ARRIVAL OF GOVERNOR ALBITEZ AT TRUJILLO—HIS DEATH—ANDRÉS DE CERECEDA AT THE HEAD OF AFFAIRS—DISTRESS OF THE SPANIARDS—EXODUS OF SETTLERS FROM TRUJILLO—THEY ESTABLISH A COLONY IN THE PROVINCE OF ZULA—CERECEDA APPEALS FOR AID TO PEDRO DE ALVARADO—HE IS ROUGHLY USED BY HIS OWN FOLLOWERS—ALVARADO ARRIVES IN HONDURAS—HE FOUNDS NEW SETTLEMENTS—HIS DEPARTURE FOR SPAIN.
[Sidenote: RIVAL CLAIMANTS.]
When Salcedo set out for the Freshwater Sea, hoping to gain possession of the province of Nicaragua—an expedition which, it will be remembered, resulted only in his humiliation and imprisonment[IX‑1]—his lieutenant, Francisco de Cisneros, left in charge of the government with a force entirely insufficient to uphold his authority, was overpowered by his enemies, and for a time anarchy prevailed throughout Honduras. Captain Diego Mendez de Hinostrosa, despatched by Salcedo from Leon to quell the rebellion, succeeded in restoring order, but only for a time. Before many months had elapsed Diego Mendez was placed under arrest and the regidor Vasco de Herrera appointed in his stead. The new ruler, of whom it is related that, being guilty of sedition, he had fled from Spain to avoid punishment, soon gave the settlers cause to repent of their choice. His first undertaking was to organize a raid to the Olancho Valley, where without cause or pretext he made war on the caciques, kidnapped and branded their subjects, and returned with three shiploads of slaves.
In February 1529 Salcedo returned to Trujillo. Before his departure from Nicaragua he had sent his nephew to Spain, to justify before the emperor his conduct in the dispute with Pedrarias, but was answered only by a severe reprimand for his cruel treatment of the natives.[IX‑2] Shattered in health and broken in spirit, he did not venture to depose the usurper from office, and contented himself with merely ordering the release of Diego Mendez, who at once lodged a criminal complaint against Herrera and his accomplices. Salcedo endeavoring to please both parties pronounced the arrest of the former illegal, but inflicted no punishment on the wrong-doers. Herrera thereupon appealed to the audiencia of Panamá, and Diego Mendez awaited an opportunity for revenge, declaring himself meanwhile to be hugely disgusted with the governor's pusillanimity.
To appease the popular discontent the governor promised to conduct the settlers to the Naco Valley, where rich gold-mines were believed to exist. The expedition was delayed as long as possible, for he had nothing to gain by such an undertaking; but at length moved by the clamor of the colonists and the warning of his spies, who informed him that the people were again ripe for revolt, he ordered preparations to be made. One hundred and twenty foot and sixty horse with a number of natives sufficient for working the mines were soon in readiness to embark, with instructions to sail for Puerto de Caballos, and thence proceed inland a distance of twenty leagues to their destination. The journey was to be accomplished as far as possible by sea in order that the natives might be spared the fatigue of a long overland march, and, to create the impression that they were no longer to be maltreated, orders were given that the branding-irons be destroyed. But before Salcedo had time to give further proof of his humane intentions, his death occurred at Trujillo on the 3d of January 1530,[IX‑3] and the proposed expedition was deferred.
There were now three rival claimants for the governorship—the treasurer Andrés de Cereceda, who a few months before the governor's decease had been nominated as his successor, and also appointed guardian to his infant son; Herrera, who, though he held no valid claim to the office,[IX‑4] had the support of the regidores; and finally Diego Mendez, who urged that the authority conferred on him by Salcedo at Leon had never yet been legally revoked. Cereceda, knowing that he had the good wishes of all peaceably disposed colonists, demanded his recognition from the cabildo, but was strenuously opposed by Herrera and his faction. After much wrangling it was finally agreed to submit the matter to arbitration; and it was decided that the two should rule conjointly, with the condition that the latter should hold the keys of the royal treasury. Arrangements were also made for a partition of the late governor's property; and each bound himself by oath not to lay his cause before the authorities in Spain. Meanwhile Diego Mendez was silenced with threats of death and confiscation of property.[IX‑5]
Thus for a time a truce was declared between the rival factions; but Cereceda had neither the firmness nor the capacity to oppose his colleague, and soon submitted in all things to his will. Even in the distribution of the slaves which belonged of right to Salcedo's son,[IX‑6] Herrera demanded for himself the lion's share, and compelled the child's guardian not only to consent, but to take oath that he would not report the matter to the emperor.[IX‑7] Each, however, feared that the other might secretly despatch letters to Spain. A ship then happened to be lying at Trujillo ready for sea, and Cereceda, suspecting that his rival would send despatches, ordered all her canvas to be withdrawn. He was outwitted, however, by his more astute colleague, for a caravel which arrived in port during the same night was seized by unknown persons, and her sails transferred to the other vessel, which immediately set sail for Spain. Cereceda, openly charged the trick upon Herrera, who of course indignantly denied it. The event proved that the ship carried letters from the cabildo, recommending Herrera's appointment as sole ruler, together with a missive from Herrera himself, in which he claimed that he had rendered good service to the crown and had only admitted a colleague in order to prevent discord and riot. Moreover he represented the affairs of the province in a most favorable light, stating that the mines were exceedingly rich and asking for ships and supplies with which to complete the exploration of the territory and more fully develop its resources.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: ENCARNACION FOUNDED.]
The proposed expedition had meanwhile been despatched to the Naco Valley, and a settlement founded there named Nuestra Señora de la Encarnacion. A party of sixty men, under the command of Captain Alonso Ortiz, had also taken possession of the valley of Jutigalpa, some twelve leagues distant from Trujillo, a region of which the governor remarks in his letter that "there is no river or ravine where gold does not abound."[IX‑8] The natives of the latter district gathered their crops, and removing all their provisions fled to the mountains, there to await the effect of starvation on the Spaniards. Ortiz, however, sent messengers assuring them that he came not to make war but to settle peaceably in their midst, and by kind treatment induced them to return to their habitations, thus affording one of those rare instances where the commander of a military expedition forbore to enslave or plunder the natives who fell into his power.
[Sidenote: BLOODY FACTIONS.]
Although Herrera and his partisans now held almost undisputed control at Trujillo, they were far from being satisfied with the situation. They well knew that their old enemy, Diego Mendez, was awaiting revenge; while Cereceda, though quietly watching the course of events, was ready for action when the proper moment should arrive. Their greed for wealth and lust of power had brought them into disrepute among all the colonists, except those of their own faction, and even certain members of the cabildo were numbered among their enemies. Fearing that the settlers would break out into open revolt, Herrera proposed to abandon Trujillo and establish elsewhere in the province a new and independent colony. Cereceda, knowing that such a measure would be fatal to the prosperity of the settlement, strove to prevent it by encouraging intermarriage between the families of the rival cliques and dividing among them a portion of the slaves which had fallen to his share at the division of Salcedo's property.[IX‑9]
A revolt which occurred about a year afterward, among the tribe of the cacique Peyzacura, afforded Herrera an opportunity to carry out his intention. The Indians of this district were employed in working certain mines not far distant from Trujillo, and had long endured their bondage without murmur, but the rigor of their taskmasters, who, "with one foot in the stirrup," as Oviedo tells us, "ready to abandon the province," cared only to enrich themselves as speedily as possible, at length drove them to rebellion. Several Spaniards were murdered, and as the insurrection soon spread through the adjoining territory, it became necessary to despatch a strong armed force to restore order. An expedition was prepared of which Herrera insisted on taking charge, inviting his associates, and all others who were inclined to join him, to enroll themselves under his command. A feeling of discontent and unrest pervaded the community, and many of the leading colonists gathering together their effects cast in their lot with the governor. But instead of marching against the hostile natives he led his followers to the territory of a friendly chieftain, and there for several months they wasted their time and substance in revelry and ostentatious display, leaving Trujillo unprotected and the rebels unpunished.
Meanwhile Diego Mendez had not been idle. Soon after Herrera's departure it chanced that Cereceda was called away from Trujillo, and taking advantage of the absence of both governors he presented himself before the cabildo, and demanded that some means be devised for protecting the province against the evil effect of their divided authority. Both rulers were notified of this measure on their return to the settlement. Cereceda gave no heed to the matter, knowing that it was not intended to affect himself, but Herrera at once accused his old adversary of plotting against him, and induced the cabildo to forbid him, under pain of death, to make a second appeal. But Diego Mendez had already won over many of the most powerful adherents of his opponent, and resolved on yet more decisive action. Having regained the certificate as lieutenant-governor, which had been given to him by Salcedo, and taken from him upon his arrest at Trujillo,[IX‑10] he boldly appeared a second time before the cabildo, and claimed recognition of his office. Herrera now caused sentence of death to be pronounced against his rival, who thereupon took refuge in the church. After some attempt at negotiation, which terminated only in mutual abuse, the governor threatened to disregard the right of sanctuary, and eject him by force.
[Sidenote: HERRERA'S DEATH.]
But the administration of Vasco de Herrera was drawing to a close. By promise of reward to those who should join his cause, Diego Mendez had secured the alliance of at least forty of the citizens of Trujillo, while the former could muster but twenty or thirty men, most of his followers being engaged in quelling an Indian revolt in the Olancho Valley. None felt secure so long as the governor was alive, and they resolved to assassinate him. Within the walls of the church the conspirators met by night to arrange their plans, and on a Sunday evening, the 8th of October 1531, about two hours after sunset, rushed into the public square, and began shouting their vivas. Cereceda, who as yet had no information of the plot, was at his own dwelling in consultation with certain of the friars, as to the best means of restoring harmony in the province and reuniting the several factions. On hearing the noise they seized their arms and, hastening to the plaza, were met with cries of "Long live the king and his chief-justice who comes this way." Forcing a passage through the crowd they beheld Herrera lying wounded from a dagger-thrust in his side, while round his neck the rabble had fastened a rope, for the purpose of dragging him through the streets. The governor and his companions bore him to a place of safety; but he was beyond human aid, and in a few hours he breathed his last within the walls of the sanctuary from which he had threatened to drag forth his rival to execution. The mob was then ordered to disperse, but refused to obey, shouting "Long live the king and the community."
Finding himself unable to control the rioters, who now began to show signs of hostility toward himself, Cereceda made his escape, though with much difficulty, and attempted to regain his house; but was intercepted by Diego Mendez, who, armed with lance and dagger, demanded his own recognition as lieutenant-governor. He refused to listen to him, whereupon the latter, who was on horseback, barred his passage and insisted on explaining that he had conspired not against his lawful ruler, but against a tyrant, who had usurped his office and defied the law. As he still refused to give any satisfactory answer, Mendez, being surrounded by a throng of rioters, began to assume a threatening attitude. Now, for the first time during his administration, Cereceda displayed a little firmness, and still refused to grant to the assassin the office which he claimed at the point of the dagger. Many of the by-standers then urged that Cereceda be at once put to death in order to avoid all future danger. Seeing that his life was in peril, he replied to Diego Mendez, "What I request of you, sir, and I ask it as a favor, is that you let the matter rest until to-morrow, that it may be decided what is best to be done for the interests of his Majesty." He was then allowed to retire to his dwelling.
The leader of the revolt construed this vague answer into a full concession of his authority, and arraying himself in the habiliments of the man whose corpse lay yet warm in the church of Trujillo, he paraded the streets at the head of his ruffian gang, and on the following day, over the grave of his murdered victim, bid defiance to the governor, telling him to discharge the members of the cabildo and appoint reliable men in their place. Fearing to provoke an attack by gathering an armed force around him, Cereceda returned to his house, accompanied by a single friend. During the night he sent a letter to Diego Diaz, a brother of Vasco de Herrera, then engaged in quelling the insurrection in the Olancho Valley, informing him of what had transpired, but in language so carefully worded that, if his letter were intercepted by his enemies, they would find nothing on which to base a charge against him. The usurper meanwhile threatened to hang all who refused to obey him, and summoning into his presence the caciques of the tribes which had been enslaved by Herrera, demanded their submission.
On the following day Cereceda ordered the cabildo to assemble in secret at his own residence, in order to devise, if possible, some means of bridging over the present crisis. None could offer any practicable suggestion; but it was remarked by one of the regidores that, since Diego Mendez refused to obey the governor, it would be advisable that Cereceda should accept the office of lieutenant-governor.[IX‑11] While yet in session, the chief of the conspirators, informed by his spies that the cabildo had been convened, presented himself at the head of an armed band and demanded admittance. The governor had not courage to refuse, and the meeting soon afterward broke up, having accomplished nothing.
[Sidenote: CAPTIVITY OF CERECEDA.]
Diego Mendez now unfolded the royal standard in the public square, and compelled the people to swear allegiance to him as their lawful ruler. He declared all the edicts issued by Herrera and Cereceda since the death of Salcedo illegal, and enjoined the latter from exercising authority. He dissolved the cabildo, appointed new members from the ranks of his own partisans, obtained possession of all the books and papers belonging to the municipality, and took the oath of office. He then seized the register in which the appointment of Salcedo and the nomination of his successor had been recorded, imprisoned the royal notary, and bid him, under threat of torture, declare the latter appointment invalid; but to the credit of that official it is recorded that he persistently refused compliance. Finally he ordered the arrest of the governor; but through the intervention of friends allowed him to remain a prisoner at his own house, in which, relieved of his shackles, the notary was also confined. Such was the dread and anxiety of Cereceda that, during his captivity, which lasted thirty-seven days, it is related that his hair and beard turned from a glossy black to silvery white.
* * * * *
Before the arrival of Cereceda's messenger, an emissary despatched by Diego Mendez arrived at the Olancho Valley and with little difficulty persuaded the followers of Diego Diaz, who were already disaffected toward their commander, to join the standard of the usurper. Finding himself thus deserted by his men, the latter at once returned to Trujillo, intending to claim the right of sanctuary; but was arrested while dismounting at the church door, by six armed men stationed there for that purpose.
At length Cereceda and his officials, finding that their pusillanimity was bringing them into general disfavor, resolved to strike a decisive blow against their common enemy. Their partisans were secretly assembled, and among them were found eighteen loyal and resolute citizens, who swore to arrest the pretender or die in the attempt. It was resolved that the effort be made at once, before those of the opposite faction could be apprised of it, and on the same night, after a sharp struggle, in which half of the governor's men were wounded[IX‑12] and one of their opponents killed, Diego Mendez was captured, and on the following day sentenced to be beheaded and quartered. Most of the conspirators were then induced by offer of pardon to return to their allegiance, but though their lives were spared, they were punished by loss of office, imprisonment, or confiscation of property. Two of the leading accomplices, who had been present at the assassination of Herrera,[IX‑13] fled from the city, and with the assistance of some of the natives made their escape to a small island near the coast; but returning to Trujillo some two months later, on hearing of Cereceda's clemency, took refuge in the church, whence they were dragged forth to execution by order of the governor.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: DISTRESS AT TRUJILLO.]
On receiving news of the seditious tumults which had so long vexed the settlers of Honduras, the emperor appointed as ruler of the province Captain Diego de Albitez, a veteran officer who had done good service in many a hard-fought battle with Indians. The new governor arrived off the coast with two vessels on the 29th of October 1532, but his ships were driven on shore by a storm, when six leagues from port, and thirty of those on board were drowned. Albitez escaped by swimming, but with the loss of all his effects. Assistance soon arrived from Trujillo; and on the following day he was received and duly recognized by the authorities amid the rejoicings of the citizens who now hoped that tranquillity would be restored. But the province was yet destined to undergo a period of misrule; for nine days after his arrival, the new governor, advanced in years, died at Trujillo, leaving Cereceda still at the head of affairs.
The feeling of dissatisfaction which had long prevailed was intensified by this new disaster. Exaggerated reports of the great wealth of the neighboring provinces had been noised abroad, and many of the colonists now threatened to abandon the territory, hoping to better their fortunes elsewhere. For several years they had been living in extreme discomfort, often bordering on destitution. They had neither flour, oil, wine, nor any other of the commodities usually imported from Spain. For three years no Spanish vessel had arrived at Trujillo. The men were almost without clothing and the horses without shoes. Many of the settlers had neither shirts nor beds; and so great was the scarcity of all articles required for the common needs of life, that a sheet of paper sold for a peso, and a needle was worth as much.[IX‑14] To add to the distress of the Spaniards epidemic diseases broke out among the Indians, spreading from house to house and from town to town, and swept away at least one half of the native population.[IX‑15] There was neither physician nor medicine; and though the settlers escaped the visitation, so great was their loss in slaves that many were compelled to abandon their usual avocations.
In order to distract the attention of the colonists from their forlorn condition, Cereceda set about establishing a settlement on the road to Nicaragua, with a view of opening communication between the two seas. He despatched into the interior a company of sixty men, with orders to halt, at a certain point, until joined by himself with an additional force. His departure was however delayed by the arrival of two messengers from Alonso de Ávila,[IX‑16] contador of Yucatan, who was on his way to Trujillo, having been obliged to flee with the remnant of his band from a settlement which he had formed in the interior of that province. On the arrival of the party at Trujillo, Cereceda afforded them all the assistance in his power. He then set forth to join the expedition awaiting him on the road to Nicaragua. After proceeding but a short distance he was overtaken by a messenger bringing news of the arrival of two vessels from Cuba, and of the intention of Diego Diaz de Herrera to take this opportunity of making his escape in company with others at Trujillo.[IX‑17]
[Sidenote: OVERLAND ROUTE.]
Cereceda returned in time to prevent the depopulation of the city, but such was the general discontent that the question of removal was universally discussed and the governor was at length compelled to give up his settlement. After much deliberation it was resolved to depart for the Naco Valley, leaving at Trujillo a garrison of fifty men. The remainder of the citizens, mustering in all about one hundred and thirty,[IX‑18] leaving with them a good supply of horses and live-stock, set forth on their march through the wilderness. On reaching a spot where a river flows through a narrow defile, they found their passage obstructed by a barricade erected by the cacique Cizimba, who thought thus to prevent the invasion of his territory. The natives were routed at the first onset, and those who were taken captive suffered mutilation, their hands being cut off, and were suspended with cords from their necks. The Spaniards then pressed forward, suffering many privations, though always buoyed up with the hope of finding abundant stores of provisions on reaching their destination. But in this they were doomed to disappointment. Arriving at Naco, wayworn and famished, they found the place abandoned by all except a few infirm natives unable to escape by reason of illness. Cereceda then put on the mask, and changing his policy toward the natives, who throughout all that country had fled at his approach, he strove to win them back by kindness, and at length succeeded in causing the return of a number sufficient to plant a considerable tract of land.[IX‑19] The harvest however failed, and, being reduced to the last extremity, the Spaniards were compelled to move to the foot of the mountains, where they hoped to obtain food among the natives who had fled there for refuge. Taking their departure from Naco, therefore, they proceeded to the province of Zula, where they founded a settlement which they named Buena Esperanza.[IX‑20]
Such was the position of affairs when, in the year 1535, Christóbal de la Cueva was sent by Jorge de Alvarado, to discover a route to the northern coast by means of which communication might be opened between the province of Guatemala and Spain. While passing through the province of Zula, Cueva's men were observed by a party of natives, who informed Cereceda of the presence of Spaniards in that vicinity. The latter thereupon despatched Juan Ruano, with a small band, to demand of the intruders whence they came, and by what authority they ventured within his territory. The messenger was first met by the advanced guard of twenty men under Juan de Arévalo, who informed him that his commander, with the main force, was but two leagues behind, and that their object was to search for the best route for a government road from Guatemala to Puerto de Caballos.
When Cueva was informed of the condition of the colonists at Buena Esperanza, he requested an interview with Cereceda, and proposed that the men of Honduras should coöperate with him in his explorations, promising in return to assist them in their mining enterprises, and to protect them from the natives. The governor gladly accepted this offer, and took command of a force composed of a portion of Cueva's troops together with all his own available men.[IX‑21] It was proposed first to march against a powerful cacique, who had for ten years held captive a Spanish woman,[IX‑22] and after subduing him and demolishing his stockade, to explore the country in the neighborhood of Golfo Dulce, and examine the harbors of San Gil de Buenavista and Puerto de Caballos, in conformity with his instructions.
But the time had not yet come when harmony was to prevail in Honduras. Wars with the savages and contentions among themselves had been the fate of settlers in that territory from the beginning; and the quarrelsome followers of Cereceda were little disposed to join hands in peaceful fellowship with the members of a rival colony. Cueva was not satisfied to settle at Buena Esperanza, nor on the Golfo Dulce, nor at Puerto de Caballos; but he wished to plant a colony in the interior of Honduras, midway between the two oceans. To this proposition Cereceda of course raised objections. The other persisted, and being the stronger, withdrew from the alliance and moved inland. Thereupon Cereceda complained to the India Council, and begged the arrest and execution of Cueva for trespass and violation of contract. He also petitioned the emperor for men, arms, ships, and flour, and wine for sacramental purposes. He affirmed that some of his men had not tasted salt for three months, and lay ill in consequence. He requested that the king's fifth of the product of the mines should be reduced to one tenth. He also asked that a boundary line between Guatemala and Honduras be established, and that a road be opened between the two seas, from Puerto de Caballos to the bay of Fonseca, stating that it would serve as well for the trade of San Salvador and Nicaragua, the distance being only fifty leagues, and the ground favorable, requiring only that the trees be cut away and the earth levelled in places. To this petition of Cereceda the emperor and his council listened with favor, and granted the greater part of his requests.
[Sidenote: GOVERNOR WANTED.]
Meanwhile the remnant of the Honduras colonists who remained at Trujillo also clamored for an increase of population, and for a governor. They claimed that the city possessed a good harbor, and a dry and wholesome situation; that rich mines lay undeveloped in its vicinity, and that the soil was fruitful and well watered.[IX‑23] They attributed their past misfortunes to bad government, and charged Cereceda with abandoning the settlement without sufficient cause. They were now so few in number, being reduced to thirty capable of bearing arms, that they were in constant fear of attack from the natives. Their stock of weapons consisted of but twenty swords and fifteen pikes, the governor having taken with him all the cross-bows and arquebuses. As they were not in communication with Mexico they requested to be placed under the jurisdiction of the audiencia of Española. They asked moreover for two brigantines for the purpose of trading with the Islands and also for one hundred negroes to work their mines, for all of which they promised to pay liberally. They promised that if a capable governor were sent out to them in command of two hundred men, they would establish a settlement near the Desaguadero and open the rich gold-mines which lay in that vicinity. Finally the municipal council declared that unless relieved within a year they would disorganize the government and give the people liberty to go whithersoever they might desire.
If the colonists of Honduras could barely sustain themselves when united and living at Trujillo, it was not to be expected that their condition would be improved when divided and scattered throughout the country. One good man, who could have held in check the spirit of lawlessness, and have ruled the factious populace with a determined hand; a man with the principles and temper even of a Pedrarias, would have given peace and prosperity to Honduras; but internal dissensions, and finally open disruption, had brought disaster upon all concerned, and had reduced the people, both of Trujillo and Buena Esperanza, to the verge of ruin and starvation.
[Sidenote: APPEAL TO ALVARADO.]
Humiliating as it must have been, Andrés de Cereceda was at last compelled to appeal for aid to Pedro de Alvarado. In the petition which he drew up, he craved protection from the natives, failing which, he feared the depopulation of the whole province. Dire indeed were the necessities of the people,[IX‑24] and the adelantado was besought "for the love of God and their Majesties," to come to their succor.[IX‑25] The royal treasurer, Diego García de Célis, was sent in company with Juan Ruano[IX‑26] to Santiago, where Alvarado then resided, and representing to him the deplorable condition of the people of Honduras, received assurance of relief. As soon as possible an armed force was assembled, consisting of Spaniards and friendly Indians, and with the adelantado at their head set forth to the relief of Cereceda.[IX‑27]
During the delay which occurred before the arrival of Alvarado in Honduras, the settlers who remained at Buena Esperanza, being unable or unwilling to bear their sufferings any longer, were on the point of abandoning the colony, and on the 5th of May 1536 a formal meeting was held before the notary Bernardino de Cabrenas,[IX‑28] to take the matter under consideration. Cereceda, addressing the alcalde and regidores, stated that they were aware of the condition of affairs in the province, and of the impracticability of holding it much longer, on account of the small number of the Spanish colonists and the want of supplies. He had therefore, he said, despatched Diego García de Célis, the royal treasurer, to solicit aid from the governor of Guatemala, and had also asked the assistance of the emperor and of the audiencia of Mexico. Seven months had elapsed since the departure of Célis, and nothing had been heard from him. He demanded therefore, in the name of the crown, their opinion as to what should be done. All present recommended that the country be abandoned, and the Spaniards allowed by the governor to proceed whithersoever they pleased. To this Cereceda assented, and orders were issued accordingly; the alcalde and regidores ratifying and confirming the governor's acts and their own, in the presence of the notary.[IX‑29]
[Sidenote: CERECEDA'S COMPLAINTS.]
The resolution was at once carried into effect; but within four days after leaving Buena Esperanza the colonists were met by Célis with a letter from Alvarado promising speedy relief. Had the envoy returned but a single day later it is not improbable that Cereceda would have lost his life, for he had become extremely unpopular among the men of Honduras. They had indeed gone so far as to drive him from his home, though through fear of the consequences they afterward recalled him.
His answer to the adelantado's despatch shows the detestation in which he was held by those whose duty it was to obey him. "They expelled me," he says, "from my house and from the settlement, although I was not in a condition to rise from my bed, to which I had been confined for days on account of a boil that prevented my sitting down, except in a chair which had been made specially for my use, and then only for a short time. In spite of all this, they hustled me out of my abode with the greatest coolness, ordering me to go, unattended as I was, in the direction of the coast, where they would provide me with an escort to Trujillo. This was, however, only a pretext in order to get rid of me, their object being to carry off as slaves all the Indians who had served in the district, which they had attempted to do before proceeding to expel me from the village. Fearing they might kill me, I made a virtue of necessity, and abandoning what few effects I had, proceeded to Naco. From this place they soon recalled me, and I returned on horseback, but with great difficulty, suffering so much from my enforced ride that it will, I fear, be at least three months before my health is reëstablished."
Cereceda and Célis were far from being on good terms. The treasurer was suspected by the former of a desire to supplant him, and perhaps not without reason, as he had been appointed by the emperor, and was next in rank to the governor. In his letter to Alvarado, Cereceda takes the opportunity of venting his spleen against the treasurer. He accuses him of endeavoring to produce the impression that he, and he alone, had it in his power to procure for the adelantado the governorship of Honduras, and of taking to himself the credit of being the only one having at heart the welfare of the country, and of being a faithful servitor of his Majesty. "But," he continues, "in order that you may see that there are others who desire the welfare of the province, I resign in your favor the governorship with which I have been intrusted, believing that, in so doing, I am performing a service to his Majesty."
[Sidenote: ALVARADO'S RESIDENCIA.]
Alvarado, on his arrival, was well received by the settlers, who were fain to believe that there were better days in store for them. The astute Cereceda, seeing himself virtually without authority, again pressed him to accept the governorship, so that the province might not go to ruin. By this artifice he hoped not only to escape punishment, but to confirm the impression in the adelantado's mind that it was to him and not to Célis that he was indebted for the offer. Alvarado accepted the governor's resignation, and assumed the reins of power, to the great joy of the colonists. He at once set about pacifying the country, sending out a strong force, stationing guards at the mines, and bringing the province into a condition of safety and prosperity. In the name of the crown, he assumed the title of captain-general and chief-justice, and without loss of time proceeded to establish new colonies.
He built at Puerto de Caballos the town of San Juan, and on the site of the village of Thaloma, seven leagues from this settlement, founded the city of San Pedro del Puerto de Caballos. He determined the limits of its jurisdiction and distributed among the Spaniards the natives and native villages in its vicinity.[IX‑30] Captain Juan de Chaves was ordered to explore the province toward the south and west and to select a favorable site on the proposed line of intercommunication between Honduras and Guatemala. After a toilsome journey he arrived at a fertile and well watered valley, where he established a settlement, naming it in token of his thankfulness "Gracias á Dios."[IX‑31]
But while the adelantado was winning fresh laurels and gaining new adherents in Honduras, he was informed that his residencia had been taken by the oidor Maldonado, and soon afterward received an order from the viceroy instructing him to proceed to Spain and appear before the throne, as his Majesty's interests would be thereby advanced. This was unlooked for. He had already petitioned the king for permission to return for the purpose of fitting out an expedition on a large scale for South Sea explorations;[IX‑32] a summons to appear at court, while his residencia was to be taken during his absence, made an intricate matter of it. There was no alternative, however, but to obey; and once more Alvarado set out for Spain, first addressing to the cabildo of Santiago a letter wherein he states the reasons for his departure, and remarks that although he does not return to his native land rich in gold, having spent all that he had gained during his career in Mexico and Guatemala, he has no doubt that his services will recommend him to the favor of the court.
X. ADMINISTRATION OF AFFAIRS IN NICARAGUA
1531-1550.
MALEFEASANCE OF CASTAÑEDA—DIEGO ÁLVAREZ OSORIO THE FIRST BISHOP OF NICARAGUA—A CONVENT FOUNDED AT LEON—LAS CASAS ARRIVES—CASTAÑEDA'S FLIGHT—ARRIVAL OF CONTRERAS—PROPOSED EXPEDITION TO EL DESAGUADERO—OPPOSITION OF LAS CASAS—DEPARTURE WITH ALL THE DOMINICANS—THE VOLCANO OF EL INFIERNO DE MASAYA—FRAY BLAS BELIEVES THE LAVA TO BE MOLTEN TREASURE—HIS DESCENT INTO THE BURNING PIT—EXPLORATION OF THE DESAGUADERO—DOCTOR ROBLES ATTEMPTS TO SEIZE THE NEW TERRITORY—CONTRERAS LEAVES FOR SPAIN—HIS ARREST, TRIAL, AND RETURN—HIS SON-IN-LAW MEANWHILE USURPS THE GOVERNMENT—ANTONIO DE VALDIVIESO APPOINTED BISHOP—FEUD BETWEEN THE ECCLESIASTICS AND THE GOVERNOR—ALONSO LOPEZ DE CERRATO TAKES THE RESIDENCIA OF CONTRERAS—MISSIONARY LABORS IN NICARAGUA.
[Sidenote: CASTAÑEDA GOVERNOR.]
The sense of relief which was felt by all the colonists of Nicaragua, when death at last put an end to the administration of Pedrarias Dávila, was of brief duration. A new taskmaster soon held them in bondage almost as grievous as that of the great despot who now lay buried in the church-vaults at Leon. Francisco de Castañeda, who then held office as contador, and some months previous had been alcalde mayor,[X‑1] claimed that he was legally entitled to the vacant governorship.[X‑2] The cabildo knew of no valid objection, and upon Castañeda's promise to rule with moderation and fairness he was appointed and duly recognized.[X‑3]
Before a month had elapsed the colonists found themselves still doomed to oppression and misrule. Without regard to the rights of the settlers, and with an effrontery equalled only by that of his predecessor, the new tyrant refused to convene the cabildo except at long intervals, and then only to discuss matters agreeable to his own wishes. The decision of pending lawsuits was neglected; loans were demanded, and those who refused to contribute were harassed so unmercifully that they abandoned their property and fled the country, leaving their encomiendas to be confiscated.[X‑4] Slave-hunting, with its attendant horrors, was common throughout the province. None were forbidden to kidnap, nor was any limit placed on their capture; the only restriction was that the governor should receive a share. The king's tithes were fraudulently rented.[X‑5] Castañeda was even suspected of making fraudulent entries in the books of the treasurer Tobilla, whose death had recently occurred; nor had he even given himself the trouble of taking an inventory of the contents of the treasure-chest.
At length certain of the regidores met in secret council and petitioned the king to send them a judge of residencia, stating that unless relief were afforded the province would soon be depopulated. Castañeda was presently informed of his danger, but gave no heed to the warning. He had but one aim in life, to gather riches by whatever means,[X‑6] and this object he pursued with unshaken purpose. The natives did not regard the Spaniards with greater dread than did the Spaniards their chief magistrate. Many of them departed for the newly conquered regions of Peru, and even the friars, who had faced the hardships of the wilderness, and the peril of torture and death at the hands of savages, were compelled to abandon their labors.[X‑7]
* * * * *
Until 1531 the vicars of the church of Panamá held ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the province of Nicaragua.[X‑8] In that year Diego Álvarez Osorio, a precentor of the cathedral of Panamá, holding the title of Protector of the Indians, was appointed the first bishop of Nicaragua. His elevation was due to his eminent services in the church and probably also to the fact of his being, as Remesal remarks, "a noble cavalier of the house of Astorga, learned, virtuous, and prudent, with much experience in wholesome government measures."[X‑9] The prelate was ordered to found a Dominican convent at Leon, and the treasurer was commanded to furnish the necessary funds. The royal tithes which were formerly appropriated by the diocese of Panamá, were now to be increased,[X‑10] and applied to the support of the churches and hospitals of Nicaragua.
[Sidenote: RODRIGO DE CONTRERAS.]
Under the rule of Castañeda it was indeed difficult to collect the tithes, the greater portion of them being stolen by his officials. But a true friend to humanity and religion was now on his way to the province. Bartolomé de las Casas,[X‑11] after his earnest though ineffectual labors in Mexico, returned to Nicaragua in the year 1532, and was received with open arms by Osorio, who invited him to remain, and to aid him in establishing the Dominican convent, and also in his labors on behalf of the natives; but above all to use his authority in putting an end to the malefeasance of Castañeda. Las Casas cheerfully consented. A convent was founded; residences were built for the friars; preparations were made for the erection of a cathedral, and converts by the thousands were gathered into the fold. But neither threat nor persuasion had the least influence on Castañeda, who had been trained in the school of Pedrarias, and now bid fair to better his instruction. Relief came at last. News arrived at Leon that Rodrigo de Contreras had been appointed governor of Nicaragua, and was now on his way to the province. Castañeda thereupon gathered up his stolen gains and fled to Peru; passed thence to Española; was there arrested and sent to Spain; but death closed his career before any earthly tribunal awarded to him the meed of his iniquity.
* * * * *
Contreras was a noble cavalier of Segovia, and the son-in-law of Pedrarias, whose daughter, María de Peñalosa, formerly betrothed to Vasco Nuñez de Balboa, now accompanied him to the province, together with her infant children, Hernando and Pedro. His administration meets the hearty approval of Oviedo; a refreshing circumstance, as it is the first instance in which that historian speaks in praise of a governor in a Spanish province.[X‑12] His conduct is at least in strong relief with that of his two predecessors, and apart from certain accusations brought against him by the ecclesiastics, with whom he was ever at variance, the annals of his time portray him as a just and humane ruler. He at once began the task of establishing law and order in his territory, thus gaining the confidence of the settlers, and all traces of evil wrought by the absconder Castañeda were speedily effaced.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: INTEROCEANIC COMMUNICATION.]
The project for opening up communication with the North Sea by way of El Desaguadero, as the Rio San Juan was then termed, and of taking possession of the native towns on its banks, had long been discussed by the colonists. The new governor though averse to such an enterprise was anxious to retain the good-will of the people, and despatched to the court of Spain Juan de Perea to obtain the emperor's consent.[X‑13]
But the subjugation of the natives was too often followed by their enslavement, and Las Casas was still in the province[X‑14] laboring in his favorite cause. In the pulpit, in the confessional, and in places of public resort the padre denounced the expedition. He even threatened to refuse absolution to the vecinos and soldiers should they dare to take part in it.[X‑15] The colonists were sorely perplexed. Las Casas undoubtedly held direct instructions from the emperor which justified his interference, while the governor had not yet received the sanction of the crown. Which side should they take? On the one hand was prospect of gain, on the other the threatened ban of the church.
Contreras was resolved that the project should not be thwarted by the intermeddling of a priest; but, on setting out at the head of a band of fifty men, he found that his own officers would not obey him, for they were forbidden to plunder or maltreat the natives. He was compelled therefore to return to Leon and acknowledge himself defeated. Las Casas now used all the weight of his influence to undermine the governor's authority,[X‑16] while Contreras caused depositions to be taken before Bishop Osorio with regard to the conduct of the padre. At this juncture the death of the prelate solved the difficulty. After losing his support Las Casas found himself unable to oppose, single-handed, the authority of the governor, who still had the tacit sympathy of most of the colonists. He therefore determined to abandon a field where his exertions were of little avail, and accepting an invitation which it has already been stated was extended to him by Francisco de Marroquin, bishop of Guatemala, to take charge of the convent of Santiago, departed from Leon taking with him all the Dominicans.[X‑17]
[Sidenote: EL INFIERNO DE MASAYA.]
In 1537 certain of the ecclesiastics are again connected with the history of the province, but in a manner not altogether consistent with the dignity of their profession. While travelling through Nicaragua three years previously, Fray Blas del Castillo heard strange rumors concerning a volcano situated near Lake Nicaragua, and known as El Infierno de Masaya. In the crater at a depth of a hundred fathoms was a molten lake incrusted with cinders, through which fountains of fire sometimes rose far above the surface,[X‑18] lighting up the South Sea by night, and plainly visible to mariners twenty leagues from shore. Concerning this spot a legend was related to Oviedo during his residence in the province by the aged cacique Lenderi, who had several times visited the place in company with other chieftains of his tribe. From the depths of the crater came forth to commune with them in secret council a hag,[X‑19] nude, wrinkled, and hideous, with long sharp teeth, and deep-sunken, flame-colored eyes. She was consulted on all important matters, determined the question of war or peace, and predicted the success or failure of every enterprise. Before and after these consultations, were hurled into the crater human victims who submitted to their fate without a murmur.[X‑20] When the Christians made their appearance the genius of the burning pit denounced the intruders, threatening not to show herself again till they were driven from the land, and as the natives were not strong enough to expel them, she soon abandoned her votaries.
The worthy friar concluded that the molten mass in the depths of the crater must be gold, or at least silver, in a state of fusion. He was then travelling toward Peru by order of his superiors, but kept his own counsel until two years later, when we hear of his journeying on foot from Mexico, a distance of more than four hundred leagues, intent on exploring the mysterious crater. He now took into his confidence a Franciscan friar, Juan de Gandabo, and the two agreed to impart the great secret to a few of the wealthier Spanish settlers, in order to obtain means for carrying out their project. Rumor was soon rife throughout the province. At Granada and Leon men assembled in the streets and plazas to discuss the matter. Some few conceded that Fray Blas was probably in the right. Others asserted with a credulous shrug that the molten mass consisted of iron or of sulphur, the latter theory being most in favor, from the fact that specimens of native sulphur were common in the vicinity. But while expounding, in the realms of the Atahualpas and the Montezumas, the doctrines of him who sent forth his disciples without purse or scrip, the ecclesiastic could never banish from his mind the conviction that providence had reserved this treasure for him and his fellow-laborers,[X‑21] and now after his long and toilsome journey, he was not to be turned aside from his purpose. The necessary implements were secretly prepared. Chains, pulleys, iron kettles, and other apparatus were made ready in a native village four leagues distant from the volcano. A huge derrick and a cage were manufactured by the friar's own hands at a safe distance from the Spanish settlements,[X‑22] and dragged up by natives to the mouth of the volcano. Guides were procured, and it was agreed that Fray Blas himself should first descend into the pit in order to avoid all dispute as to right of discovery. Should he return to the surface in safety, his comrades were to follow. Stipulations were made as to the division of the treasure, the friar claiming for himself the largest share, though contributing nothing to the expense.
On the 13th of April 1538,[X‑23] the ecclesiastic and his comrades rise betimes, and after confessing their sins, attending mass, and partaking of a substantial breakfast they climb the steep mountain side and stand on the verge of the crater. Grasping in his left hand a flask of wine, in his right a crucifix, and gathering up the skirts of his priestly robe, his head protected by an iron cask, the daring friar takes his seat in the cage, is suspended in mid-air, and slowly lowered into the burning pit. The natives who are present flee in terror, having no faith in his assertion that the evil genius of the fiery lake will vanish at the sight of the cross. As he lands on the floor of the crater a fragment of falling rock strikes his helmet, causing him to drop on his knees and plant his cross with trembling fingers in the haunted ground. Turning his eyes upward, after much groping and stumbling among shelves of rock, he beholds the cage in which he had descended swinging far overhead. Nevertheless his heart fails not. Catching the guide-rope he drags up his portly person to a spot from which he can give the appointed signal, and at length is brought unharmed to the surface.
A few days later another attempt is made, and after much difficulty a small quantity of the molten treasure is brought to the surface in an iron mortar. Reports of the great discovery spread through the neighboring settlements. Hundreds of eager spectators gather round the crater, but the adventurers keep their counsel. They take formal possession of the ground, move their machinery that none may share the imaginary prize, and for a time imagine themselves possessed of wealth which a thousand ships cannot carry.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: EXPLORATION OF THE DESAGUADERO.]
Soon after the departure of the Dominicans, Contreras resolved to carry out the exploration of the Desaguadero. Captain Diego Machuca,[X‑24] a veteran officer and one whose humane disposition gave assurance that the inhabitants of the native towns would not be maltreated, was placed in charge of the expedition. Two ships were fitted out on Lake Nicaragua and a force of two hundred men followed by land. The dangers encountered[X‑25] during the voyage are not recorded by the chroniclers of the age; but we learn that the vessels were borne in safety down the stream, passed thence to the North Sea, and sailed for Nombre de Dios.
News of their arrival was soon brought to Doctor Robles, then governor of Tierra Firme, and with his usual policy this covetous ruler attempted to gather for himself all the benefits of the enterprise. The men of Nicaragua were cast into prison, and an expedition despatched under Francisco Gonzales de Badajoz to take possession of the territory on the banks of the Desaguadero. After remaining in the province for six months, during which time a fort was built and treasure obtained to the value of 200,000 castellanos, the invaders were driven out by Contreras, and their leader sent back a prisoner to Panamá.[X‑26] A second expedition, despatched by Doctor Robles under command of Andrés Garavito, also failed of success.[X‑27]
* * * * *
A brief period of comparative quiet now occurs in the history of Nicaragua, and for the first time the inhabitants of one province at least are satisfied with their ruler. Nevertheless there exists among a clique of factious adventurers an undercurrent of ill-feeling, fostered by the ecclesiastics, who soon begin once more to interfere in the affairs of the settlements. After the passage in 1542 of the new code of laws, of which mention is elsewhere made, Nicaragua is placed under the jurisdiction of the audiencia of the Confines, and all who hold office under the crown are ordered to surrender their encomiendas. The governor thereupon transfers his slaves to his wife and children, and before the code goes into operation, sets forth for Spain, to prevent, if possible, disastrous results to his interests; for in common with most of his fellow-rulers his wealth consists mainly of human chattels. Arriving at the Isthmus he finds that secret advices from Pedro de Mendavia, the dean of Leon, have been sent to Panamá recommending his arrest, and he is compelled to continue his journey as a prisoner. The charges against him cannot be of a serious nature; for although his old opponent, Las Casas, is still in Spain, ready to testify against him, we learn that he is soon released, and retaining both office and property he returns in company with Vasco Nuñez Vela, landing in Tierra Firme in January 1544.
[Sidenote: PEDRO DE LOS RIOS.]
Meanwhile Pedro de los Rios, the royal treasurer,[X‑28] and son-in-law of Contreras, has usurped the reins of government, and commenced to persecute all whom he knows to be hostile to his own party. Mendavia, knowing that he may be the one to suffer most at the hands of Rios, determines to anticipate his measures, and proceeding to Granada, where he obtains the support of the cabildo, imprisons Rios in the convent.[X‑29] But the following morning the cabildo intimidated by the threats of Doña María, the governor's wife, repent of their conduct and are prevailed upon to issue an edict calling upon all the settlers, under penalty of death and confiscation, to rise in arms and demand the liberation of Rios, or, in case of refusal, to tear down the convent. The warlike dean is not prepared for this sudden change, but nevertheless determines to resist, assuring his adherents that all who may suffer death in this most Christian cause will surely be admitted into heaven. The people throng the convent, and the friars are soon engaged in deadly strife, during which two of them, together with four laymen, are mortally wounded. Unable to withstand the attack, Mendavia at last relents and sues for peace. A compromise is effected, by which Rios binds himself not to injure the dean or any of his party, either then or at any future time, whereupon the treasurer is released. No sooner is he outside the convent walls, however, than he forgets his promise, and arrests, hangs, quarters, and exiles indiscriminately. The dean himself is put in irons and sent to Spain, where for several years he is kept a prisoner without trial.[X‑30]
When the news of these proceedings reached the audiencia of Panamá, Diego de Pineda was despatched to Nicaragua as juez de comision, and with such tact did he reconcile the disputes between the two parties that order was quickly restored, and the quarrel between Rios and Mendavia was soon forgotten. A few months later Contreras arrived in the province,[X‑31] but his secret enemies were still at work, and one of the first acts of the newly established audiencia de los Confines was to commission the oidor Herrera to take his residencia, and also that of the treasurer Rios. Although the licentiate was ever an implacable foe to the governor and a stanch supporter of the clerical faction, he appears to have discovered nothing on which to base any serious charges against either of those officials, and soon abandoned his investigation.[X‑32]
* * * * *
[Sidenote: ECCLESIASTICAL AND CIVIL FEUD.]
A feud more bitter than that which was terminated by the death of Bishop Osorio and the departure of Las Casas now arose between the lay and ecclesiastical authorities. In 1544 Father Antonio de Valdivieso was appointed to the vacant see of Nicaragua.[X‑33] His appointment was duly confirmed by papal bull, and in November of the following year he was consecrated at Gracias á Dios by bishops Las Casas of Chiapas, Marroquin of Guatemala, and Pedraza of Honduras. The prelate, who professed to be an enthusiastic admirer of the great apostle of the Indies, insisted that the new code should be enforced, and spared no effort to rescue the natives from bondage, incurring by his policy such determined opposition from the governor and his officials that he deemed it best for his own personal safety to take up his residence at Granada rather than at Leon.
From the day of Valdivieso's arrival to the downfall of the governor some three years later, the history of the province contains little else than a series of mutual recriminations and intrigues. The colonists with a few exceptions favored the cause of the governor, declaring that "they wanted no prelate except to say mass, and preach to suit their fancy;" and when the bishop threatened to establish an inquisition in Nicaragua he was menaced with assassination.[X‑34]
[Sidenote: CONTRERAS CURSED.]
The complaints against Contreras appear to have been due mainly to the jealousy and self-interested motives of the ecclesiastical faction. His conduct had borne the scrutiny of the inquisition and of the audiencia. Notwithstanding the provisions of the new code he had been allowed to retain his encomiendas. Even his enemies could not accuse him of maltreating his slaves. It was not to be expected that he should surrender to the bishop the power and property which higher authority had permitted him to retain; and yet this seems to have been his chief cause of offence. Though Valdivieso and the Dominican friars were loud in their denunciations of those who held the natives in bondage, they were themselves by no means averse to holding property in slaves. They were the proprietors of at least one Indian village in Nicaragua, and when the right of ownership was taken from them by the audiencia of the Confines, they threatened to leave the province, and ceased not from their clamor until their property was restored to them.[X‑35] Even the members of the audiencia, whose special duty it was to enforce the observance of these new laws, had caused the cacique of Atitlan, and others who had rendered assistance to the Spaniards in their expeditions against Lacandon and Tuzulutlan, to be restored to their encomenderos, thus violating the very spirit of the code. The president and oidores even went so far as to express their opinion that to place the Indians under control of the priests in trust for the crown was a most objectionable measure. Slaves constituted the principal source of wealth throughout the province, and without slave labor the colonists would soon be reduced to beggary. Even now they suffered extreme privation and were sometimes threatened with actual famine. The tribute collected from the natives, which belonged by right to the governor and his officials, was distributed among the destitute settlers, but was found utterly inadequate for their maintenance.
The most serious accusation brought against Contreras, but one that rests on no sufficient evidence, is that he appropriated the estates of deceased encomenderos, leaving their wives and children destitute. It was alleged that he and his family owned more than one third of the province, and that the slaves and territory of the entire district of Nicoya, which were formerly divided among eleven different individuals, had passed into the hands of his wife. It was afterward even laid to his charge that he had compelled the settlers to take part in enterprises which he himself had in fact only been led to sanction by the clamor of the colonists or the urgency of the occasion, as was the case in the exploration of the Desaguadero and the expeditions against the forces of Doctor Robles.[X‑36]
Meanwhile the oidor, Herrera, was sparing no effort to insure the governor's downfall, and with that purpose sent private reports to the emperor and the council of the Indies. In one of these[X‑37] he recommended that no one should be allowed to rule who possessed Indians, either in his own name or that of his wife, children, or servants, and that the government be vested in the hands of a person whose duty it should be to visit, at frequent intervals, every settlement in the province. He also recommended that the children of the caciques should be placed in convents, there to be trained in the Christian faith, and that the adult Indians should remain in their towns for the same purpose.[X‑38] In short his object, like that of Valdivieso, whose cause he never ceased to advocate, was to place the entire native population under the absolute control of the ecclesiastics.
In the beginning of the year 1547 the bishop removed to Leon, and no sooner had he done so than the cabildo reported to the emperor "the great trouble they had in defending the royal jurisdiction on account of the opposition of the bishop, who insulted and maltreated the officers of justice, and held the laws in contempt."[X‑39] It was even thought necessary to send to Spain one Antonio Zárate to advocate their cause, whereupon Valdivieso despatched to the council of the Indies, some three weeks later, a communication in which he accused him of being a fugitive criminal, in order to destroy his influence at court. He also sent secret advices to Bishop Torres of Panamá, informing him of Zárate's purpose and recommending his arrest. The emissary was forewarned of his danger, and managed to make good his escape, but it is not recorded that he was successful in accomplishing the object of his mission.
[Sidenote: THE GOVERNOR'S RESIDENCIA.]
The struggle which Contreras had so long maintained against the machinations of his foes was now drawing to an end. In the beginning of the year 1548, the licentiate Alonso Lopez de Cerrato, formerly president of the audiencia in Española, and now appointed to that of the Confines, arrived at Gracias á Dios. One of his first acts was to take the residencia of the governor, whereupon finding that the transfer of his encomiendas had been made after the passage of the new code, though before its publication in the province,[X‑40] he declared them confiscated. Contreras at once repaired to Spain to seek redress, and for some time after his departure his enemies were in constant dread lest he should regain his authority and return to take vengeance on his accusers. The alcaldes and regidores of Leon, having now made peace with the bishop, ordered their secretary to prepare a list of accusations against the departed governor,[X‑41] but only one of their number had the courage to sign it, each official fearing that his signature might afterward cost him his life. It was even requested that the entire family of the fallen ruler be recalled to Spain, for of his sons Hernando and Pedro it was stated that they had committed many excesses, and of his son-in-law, Arias Gonzalo, the alguacil mayor, that he kept a public gambling-house. Finally the decision of the oidor was confirmed by the council of the Indies, and Rodrigo de Contreras returned no more to Nicaragua.[X‑42] His children, however, still remained in the province, soon to figure as the leaders of a revolt which threatened, for a time, the very existence of Spain's dominion in the western world.
* * * * *
Although the ecclesiastics were held in little respect by a majority of the Spaniards, there is sufficient evidence that they labored faithfully in their calling. When Fray Toribio de Motolinia came from Guatemala, in the year 1528, to join certain Flemish friars then resident in Nicaragua, he founded at Granada the convent of Concepcion,[X‑43] and having a knowledge of the native language, was successful in his efforts, giving special care to the baptism and conversion of children. His stay was of short duration; but by others the work of christianizing the natives was continued with vigor. Gil Gonzalez is said to have baptized thirty-two thousand.[X‑44] Hernandez and Salcedo also baptized large numbers. Pedrarias, inasmuch as this great work had been accomplished without his intervention, affected contempt for such summary methods of conversion, and ordered an investigation to be made by Francisco de Bobadilla, a friar provincial of the order of Mercy, and by the public notary Bartolomé Perez. Diligent search was made by these officials, but it was found that the barbarians had either forgotten or never understood the truths of Christianity, and Bobadilla was obliged to perform this holy work anew. This friar baptized twenty-nine thousand and sixty-three persons in the province of Nicaragua, during a space of nine days,[X‑45] and later, between the 1st of September 1538 and the 5th of March 1539, fifty-two thousand five hundred and fifty-eight were baptized, though, as Oviedo says, "by no means could they be called converted."
On the 29th of August 1540, Hernando de Alvarado and Fray Juan de Padilla started from Granada toward the South Sea by way of Coiba,[X‑46] and were everywhere well received. When crosses were erected the natives adorned them with roses, and brought offerings of whatever they valued most. Some years later Fray Lorenzo de Bienvenida and thirty others left Yucatan for the province of Costa Rica[X‑47] to continue the work of conversion in those parts, and many may have fallen victims to their pious zeal. I may mention the sad fate of the martyr Fray Juan Pizarro. While laboring in one of the most remote districts of Nicaragua, he was seized by drunken savages during the celebration of one of their feasts, dragged over the rocks, beaten till he was almost lifeless, and then hanged; his murderers completing their work by burning down a church which he had erected at his own expense.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: INDIAN BORDER TROUBLES.]
During the internal dissensions which have just been related, bands of hostile Indians taking advantage of the opportunity were continually committing depredations on the borders, robbing and slaughtering those of the natives who were at peace with the Spaniards, the cacique Lacandon being especially troublesome and refusing all overtures of peace. No progress could be made in forming new settlements or improving the condition of those already established. After the explorations conducted by Captain Machuca, we read of no important enterprise until the year of the governor's departure. In 1548 the contador Diego de Castañeda organized an expedition for the conquest of the district of Tegucigalpa.[X‑48] Through the treachery of the guides, his men were led into marshy and difficult ground, where they soon found themselves surrounded by hordes of savages. Repelling their attacks with much difficulty they made their way to the Desaguadero, and passing down that channel in barges landed on the shores of Costa Rica, where they founded the settlement of Nueva Jaen.[X‑49]
XI. EXPEDITION OF DIEGO GUTIERREZ TO COSTA RICA
1540-1545.
DIEGO GUTIERREZ APPOINTED GOVERNOR—DESERTION OF HIS SOLDIERS—HE PROCEEDS TO NICARAGUA—THE ADVICE OF CONTRERAS—THE EXPEDITION SAILS FOR THE RIO SAN JUAN—FRIENDLY RECEPTION BY THE NATIVES—HIS MEN DESERT A SECOND TIME—REËNFORCEMENTS FROM NICARAGUA AND NOMBRE DE DIOS—THE HISTORIAN BENZONI JOINS THE PARTY—GUTIERREZ AS AN EVANGELIST—HE INVEIGLES CAMACHIRE AND COCORI INTO HIS CAMP—HE DEMANDS GOLD UNDER PAIN OF DEATH—NOBLE CONDUCT OF THE CACIQUE COCORI—THE SPANIARDS MARCH INTO THE INTERIOR—THEIR SUFFERINGS FROM HUNGER—THEY ARE ATTACKED AND MASSACRED—BENZONI AND FIVE OTHER SURVIVORS RESCUED BY ALONSO DE PISA.
Between the Rio San Juan and the province of Veragua lay a territory whose rugged and densely wooded surface had hitherto proved a barrier to Spanish conquest and colonization. Costa Rica, or Nueva Cartago, by both of which names this region was known,[XI‑1] yet remained almost a terra incognita to Europeans. During his last voyage, in the year 1502, Columbus had touched at several points on its northern shore. At the Golfo Dulce, on its southern coast, it will be remembered that Gil Gonzalez and his band were glad to find shelter in the trees from storm and flood.[XI‑2] Vague reports of a settlement named Cartago, founded early in the sixteenth century by some band of roaming adventurers, are mentioned in several of the early chroniclers; but when and by whom it was established, is a question[XI‑3] on which there is no conclusive evidence.
[Sidenote: DIFFICULTIES OF GUTIERREZ.]
The exploration of the Rio San Juan, which had opened up a passage from the North Sea into the very heart of Nicaragua, awakened a more eager desire to possess this unknown region; and to the pride of conquest and discovery was added the all-pervading passion of the Spaniard, for it was believed that the armies of the great Montezuma had invaded the territory from a distance of more than six hundred leagues, and had brought thence many a rich specimen of gold. In 1540 Diego Gutierrez, a citizen of Madrid and brother to Felipe Gutierrez, who five years before had conducted the ill-fated expedition to Veragua, was appointed governor of this province, and soon afterward set forth on an enterprise which was destined to prove even more calamitous than the one conducted by his kinsman.
[Sidenote: MUTINY AND DESERTION.]
Gutierrez proceeded first to Española, where he raised a company of about two hundred men and sailed thence for Jamaica, the base of supplies for the colonies of Tierra Firme. Here a mutiny broke out among his men, causing the loss of all his military stores. Arriving at Nombre de Dios he fell sick, and while lying at the point of death his men deserted, and crossing over to Panamá took ship for Peru. Recovering from his illness he found himself with but five men and almost without means. He gathered courage, however, and fitting out a small barge sailed for the Rio San Juan, and so made his way to the city of Granada. Falling in with one Baena, a successful adventurer from Peru, he succeeded in borrowing from him three thousand castellanos with which he hoped to retrieve his fortunes.
Gutierrez now endeavored to enlist men in Nicaragua, but disputes between himself and Rodrigo de Contreras, the governor of that province, caused a further delay of two years. Contreras declared that his province extended to the border of Veragua and that there was no intervening territory for Gutierrez to colonize. Gutierrez on the other hand affirmed that the boundaries of Veragua and Castilla del Oro had been placed far south of those originally appointed, and that in consequence there existed a large domain of which he was appointed governor by a charter granted to him from the crown. Though the limits[XI‑4] of Costa Rica as set forth in this document were somewhat indefinite, Contreras at length admitted that his opponent was duly authorized to take possession of the newly created province. He then endeavored to dissuade him from his purpose, representing the country as rugged and his scheme as foolhardy and dangerous. "But if you persist in the occupation of that territory, take my advice," he said, "and keep one hundred well armed men upon the sea-shore, always ready to forage, sometimes in one direction and sometimes in another, for the people are rich in gold, and in this way only can you obtain food."[XI‑5]
The advice of Contreras was cruel, unjust, and contrary to law, but it was such alone as would lead to success, and the event proved that it was sound and politic. In a lofty strain that ill consisted with his future conduct Gutierrez replied: "The government of this province was conferred upon me by the emperor that I might people and not pillage it; and if fortune has been adverse to others, I trust in God that to me it may be more propitious."[XI‑6] It was fine doctrine, but doctrine that here would not win. Collecting a force of sixty men, he soon set sail with two vessels for the mouth of the Rio Surre.[XI‑7]
After ascending the river for about three leagues the party came in sight of some deserted huts, and there encamping, were visited by several caciques, who brought gold to the value of seven hundred ducats, and received in return some rosaries of beads, a few bells and trinkets, and an earnest exhortation to join the true faith. The native chieftains were well pleased with their visit, and on returning to their homes sent presents of fruit, fish, and the dried flesh of wild boars. A gleam of success thus at first attended Gutierrez' effort at colonization, but he was not destined to escape the disasters which seemed almost inseparable from the attempts of the Spaniards to establish settlements in the New World. He was a man of great tenacity of purpose, but irascible, and singularly deficient in power of control. At Jamaica his soldiers mutinied; at Nombre de Dios they deserted; at Costa Rica, suffering from hunger and the privations of pioneer life, they abandoned the enterprise, and stole away to the sea-shore, where they fell in with two vessels from Nombre de Dios and so made their way back to Nicaragua.
Left with only six followers,[XI‑8] his nephew Alonso de Pisa, one sailor, and four servants, Gutierrez had no alternative but to follow his recreant band. Digging a hole in the earth, he buried there several jars of salt, honey, and other stores not needed for his voyage, and embarking in a small river-boat descended to the sea. Soon he descried approaching the mouth of the river a brigantine, which proved to be in command of one Captain Bariento, with men, arms, ammunition, and provisions from Nicaragua. Thereupon he turned back, conducted the vessel to his settlement, and handing to his nephew all the gold that had been collected, amounting to eight hundred castellanos, bade him return with the ship to Nombre de Dios and there purchase arms and procure recruits. Girolomo Benzoni, the Italian chronicler of the New World, was at Nombre de Dios when Captain Pisa arrived early in 1545, and being, as he says, young and strong, filled with high aspirations, and desirous of enriching himself, he determined to return with the vessel to Nueva Cartago.[XI‑9] Other adventurers, lured by the promise of wealth, determined to join the expedition, and soon twenty-seven men were pledged for the new colony.
On the return voyage the brigantine encountered a gale near the entrance of the river and was driven to the islands of Zorobaro, a short distance from the coast. There they remained for seventy-two days, exposed to incessant rains, three of their number being killed by lightning. Such was the blackness of the storm that during all this time they did not see four hours of sunshine. The captain of the vessel went ashore on the mainland to obtain provisions, but after eight days' search midst forest, swamp, and mountain, during which time he subsisted on snails and berries, he returned empty-handed. Finally the men made their way to the encampment of Gutierrez, who, being determined at all hazard to people his territory, immediately sent the ship back to Nombre de Dios for more recruits, supplying funds to the amount of fifteen hundred castellanos. The number of the colonists was thereby increased to eighty men. Thus reënforced he began the exploration of his province. With four canoes he ascended the Rio Surre, and after making a distance of about ten leagues, landed at an Indian village to which he gave the name of San Francisco in honor of the saint on whose natal day the spot was reached. Here the party was met by certain caciques, who brought presents of fruit but no gold. The governor received them kindly, informing them through an interpreter that the strangers had in their possession a secret which was of the utmost value; that they had come a great distance, and some of them for no other purpose than to reveal it. In return for this the Christians must have gold.
[Sidenote: GUTIERREZ PREACHES CHRIST.]
The chiefs were then invited to a feast, the viands consisting of fowl and salt pork; but they had little relish for such food, and merely tasting it handed it to their attendants to be cast to the dogs. After the meal came an exhortation in which, as Benzoni relates, Gutierrez thus harangued his guests: "My very dear friends and brothers, I am come hither to free you from the chains of idolatry, by which through the influences of your evil spirits you have until now been bound. I am come to teach you the way to heaven, whence Jesus Christ, the son of God, descended to save you. With me I have brought holy men to teach you this faith, which to accept, and implicitly to obey our sovereign emperor Charles V., king of Spain and monarch of the world, and us his representatives, comprises your whole duty." To these words the chieftains bowed their heads, but without making answer, neither assenting to nor rejecting the munificent and disinterested offer of the Christians, who for a little yellow earthly metal gave in return the ineffable joys of heaven.
[Sidenote: GUTIERREZ ROBS AND TORTURES.]
Nevertheless, the savages were slow to bring in their gold, and the governor, forgetting the lofty sentiments with which he had regaled Contreras prior to his departure from Nicaragua, looked about him for some means by which to enforce his injunctions. Being informed that two of the caciques, named Camachire and Cocori,[XI‑10] who had before presented him with treasure to the value of seven hundred ducats, were now encamped on the opposite side of the river, he summoned them into his presence, at the same time pledging his word for their safety. Reluctantly the chieftains came, and no sooner had they placed themselves in the power of the Spaniards than Gutierrez ordered a strong iron collar to be fastened round their necks, and chaining them to a beam in his dwelling, taxed them with stealing the buried jars of salt and honey, and demanded restitution, or, as an equivalent, a large amount of gold. They answered that they knew nothing of the matter, and had no need to pilfer articles of which they possessed an abundant store. Camachire procured gold to the value of two thousand ducats, which was greedily appropriated by the governor, but served only to whet his appetite. In place of thanks, baptism, and restoration to liberty, the cacique was dragged before a burning fire; a large basket was placed beside him, and he was told that unless, within four days, he obtained gold enough to fill it six times he should be burned to death.[XI‑11] The trembling native promised to comply, and sent out his slaves to collect the treasure. Perceiving the Indian to be tractable, and believing him anxious to comply in good faith with the demand, Gutierrez permitted him to be led every day to the stream to bathe, as was his daily habit. Returning on one occasion from the bath, the soldier having the captive in charge neglected to secure him properly, and the following night he made his escape.
Cocori, who yet remained a prisoner, had now to bear the brunt of the governor's wrath. After being frequently importuned for gold, which he always declared himself unable to obtain, he was led daily to a spot where blood-hounds were chained; bid to observe well their huge teeth and gleaming eyes; and threatened that unless gold were soon forthcoming he should be torn and devoured by these ferocious brutes. At length the indignation of the chieftain overcame his fear. "You lie, bad Christians," he exclaimed, "for often have you made the same threat and yet I live; besides I would rather die than live in bondage among such vipers which I greatly wonder how the earth can bear." The noble native was then reserved for use as a pack animal. Thus did Diego Gutierrez fulfil his promise to people the province and not to pillage it.
It was soon noised abroad that the strangers who had brought to the shores of Costa Rica the glad tidings of the gospel were more to be dreaded than the evil spirits which they had come to exorcise; and the neighboring caciques, fearing to attack the Spaniards, laid waste their own lands, destroyed their crops, burned their dwellings and withdrew to the mountains, until starvation should compel the intruders to abandon the territory. The governor soon found himself in evil plight; moreover he possessed a temperament singularly adapted to inspire distrust, discontent, and melancholy among his followers. Again they threatened to desert him and return to Nombre de Dios or Nicaragua, leaving him in sole possession of the boundless forests, sole ruler over naked and hostile natives. He had but one alternative—to push on boldly into the heart of the province in the hope of finding gold or at least a store of provisions. After some persuasion the men agreed to accompany him. The sick and disabled were sent back to the sea-shore, where Alonso de Pisa was stationed with twenty-four men, bearing orders that he should march through the forest along a track which would be designated by placing crosses along the route. Dividing a scanty stock of grain among his soldiers, now mustering but forty capable of bearing arms, Gutierrez plunged blindly into the wilderness.
[Sidenote: TERRIBLE SUFFERINGS.]
On setting out upon this hazardous raid, Benzoni, who affirms that he realized fully the situation, remarked to a comrade, "We are going to the shambles." Whereupon the other, a man of more sanguine temperament, made answer: "Thou art one of those who, we intend, shalt have a principality in spite of thyself."[XI‑12] For six days no human habitation was seen. Through dense woods they journeyed, climbing the mountain sides by clinging to the roots of trees, and making the descent by sliding down their steep declivities. Leaves were their chief food, and some half-picked bones, which the wild beasts had abandoned, furnished them a rich repast.
The temper of the governor was no more happy than his situation. Arriving at a spot where the path divided, Gutierrez demanded of an Indian belonging to the train which route to pursue in order to arrive at some native villages of which they were in search. He replied that he did not know; whereupon the governor taking it for granted that the answer was false ordered his head to be stricken off by a negro slave. The same question was then put to Cocori, who now served the Spaniards as a beast of burden;[XI‑13] and the same reply was made. Again the cruel governor gave the order to kill. As the executioner approached him the brave cacique instantly laid down his burden, bowed his head, and calmly awaited the expected blow. Struck by the noble bearing of the cacique and his own infamous conduct, Gutierrez countermanded the order, and the chieftain's life was spared to further misery. On the spot where these incidents occurred three soldiers were obliged from exhaustion to rest, while the company advanced. They were soon afterward massacred by the Indians. The dogs were now killed and their carcasses divided among the men, the governor refusing to share with them the more wholesome viands which he had reserved for his own use.[XI‑14]
But the career of Diego Gutierrez was well-nigh closed. The party was now upon the southern slope of the cordillera, on the banks of a large stream which flows into the South Sea[XI‑15] and the time was July 1545. A small band of disaffected men miserably clad, and destitute of food, had thus wandered far into the interior of a wilderness. Whither were they bound, and what the insane hope that urged them forward? Gutierrez who had been twice abandoned by his soldiers, was now resolved that these men whom he had brought with so much labor and expense from Nicaragua and Nombre de Dios should not escape him. Alarmed by their loud murmuring at the place called San Francisco, he had hastily departed, cutting off, as many other Spanish leaders had done before him, all hope of ever returning except as a successful man. Could he have pilfered from the natives and thereby obtained food and gold, thus keeping his men in heart until the arrival of Alonso de Pisa, all would have been well. But until reaching the southern declivity of the mountains the country was everywhere deserted. So rugged had been their path, and so toilsome their march, that they were now exhausted, and the natives whom before they had so much longed to meet and make their prey were now congregating to prey upon them.
A day or two later the Spaniards were approaching the verge of a forest. An Indian hidden behind the trees to watch their movements was observed running off at full speed to give the alarm. Next morning at daybreak they were attacked by a horde of natives who "advanced," as Benzoni relates, "with horrid howls and screams and noises with the buccinus—shells and drums—all painted red and black, adorned with feathers, and golden trinkets round their necks." "In one half of a quarter of an hour," continues the chronicler, "during which we killed and wounded a great many Indians, we made them turn their shoulders."[XI‑16] They soon returned, however, and renewed the conflict. The Spaniards, worn with toil and fasting, were quickly overpowered and all but six were slain. Gutierrez fell[XI‑17] mortally wounded, and his head, hands, and feet were afterward severed from his body and borne as trophies through the region which he had proposed to subjugate.
[Sidenote: GIROLAMO BENZONI.]
Benzoni stumbled upon the helmet of a dead comrade, but for which circumstance no history of the New World would ever have been produced by him. "For," says he, "the stones from the savages hailed upon it with such force that it looked as if it had been hammered by a smith." After some hair-breadth escapes on which the historian fondly lingers, he was rescued together with his five comrades by the timely arrival of Alonso de Pisa's detachment, and marching night and day the survivors made their way back to the Rio San Juan, and thence embarked for Nombre de Dios.[XI‑18]
XII. ALVARADO'S LAST EXPEDITION
1537-1541.
THE ADELANTADO'S MATCH-MAKING VENTURE—ITS FAILURE—ALVARADO'S COMMISSION FROM THE CROWN—HE LANDS AT PUERTO DE CABALLOS—AND THENCE PROCEEDS TO IZTAPA—HIS ARMAMENT—HE SAILS FOR MEXICO—HIS DEFEAT AT NOCHISTLAN—HIS PENITENCE, DEATH, AND LAST WILL—CHARACTER OF THE CONQUEROR—COMPARISON OF TRAITS WITH THOSE OF CORTÉS—WHILE ABOVE PIZARRO HE WAS FAR BENEATH SANDOVAL—HIS DELIGHT IN BLOODSHED FOR ITS OWN SAKE—THE RESTING-PLACE AND EPITAPH—ALVARADO'S PROGENY.
Of the events in Guatemala during the three years succeeding the arrival of Maldonado the chroniclers are somewhat silent. In a letter to the emperor, dated December 10, 1537, the viceroy Mendoza states that he had received from the oidor a report wherein the province is represented to be at peace and in a prosperous condition, and that other accounts had reached him representing the country to be well governed. If this were so Maldonado's character soon changed for the worse, for later we shall find in him much to his discredit.
[Sidenote: THEY WILL NOT MARRY.]
Early in 1538 a royal decree was received in the city of Santiago, ordering that all who held encomiendas were to marry within three years from the date of their notification, or to forfeit their Indians in favor of married persons.[XII‑1] This order met with general disapproval, and the cabildo petitioned the king to reconsider the matter. Eligible women, they said, could be found only in the city of Mexico, so remote from the province of Guatemala that the expense of the journey was beyond the means of most colonists. Many declined to marry because they would not link themselves with persons socially their inferiors,[XII‑2] while the small number of Indians assigned to some would prevent their supporting a family.
On his return from Spain in the following year Alvarado reports to the cabildo that, in company with his wife, come twenty maidens, well bred, the daughters of gentlemen of good lineage, and he expresses confidence that none of this merchandise will remain on his hands. But the venture does not meet with the success the adelantado anticipated. At one of the entertainments given in honor of his arrival, and at which, relates Vega,[XII‑3] many of the conquistadores were present, these damsels, who, concealed behind a screen in an adjoining apartment, were witnessing the festivities, commented on the appearance of their prospective husbands in the most disparaging terms. "They say," remarked one to her companions, "that these are to be our husbands." "What! marry those old fellows?" was the reply. "Let those wed them who choose; I will not; the devil take them! One would think by the way they are cut up that they just escaped from the infernal regions; for some are lame, some with but one hand, others without ears, others with only one eye, others with half their face gone, and the best of them have one or two cuts across the forehead." "We are not to marry them for their good looks," said a third, "but for the purpose of inheriting their Indians; for they are so old and worn out that they will soon die, and then we can choose in place of these old men young fellows to our tastes, in the same manner that an old broken kettle is exchanged for one that is new and sound."
Now it chanced that one of the 'old fellows' overheard what was said and told his companions. "Marry with them by all means," was his advice, and then he went and took to himself the daughter of a cacique.
* * * * *
During his residence in Spain Alvarado obtained under a commission from the crown, dated April 17, 1538, the grant of the twenty-fifth part of all islands and lands which he might discover, with the title of count, and the seignory and jurisdiction over them; he was appointed governor and captain general for life over all such territories, and was authorized to erect on them three forts; he was, moreover, made alguacil mayor in perpetuity, and exempted from all interference by judges or other officers in everything pertaining to the fitting-out of his fleets. The expedition was to be made at his own expense, and he was to take a westerly direction toward China and the Spice Islands.[XII‑4] From a letter of the viceroy of Mexico we also learn that he was authorized to extend his explorations northward,[XII‑5] and that the emperor directed all the principal officials of the New World to aid in the arrest and punishment of any of Alvarado's subordinates who, when discoveries had been made, should revolt, fail to fulfil missions intrusted to them, or disobey him under any pretext. No clemency would be extended by the crown to such offenders. These privileges were granted in consideration of his services in the conquests of Mexico and Guatemala.[XII‑6]
Early in 1539 the adelantado set sail from Spain, accompanied by his wife Doña Beatriz de la Cueva,[XII‑7] and on the 4th of April landed in state at Puerto de Caballos, with three large vessels well filled with provisions, materials of war, and all things needed to equip a second fleet on the shores of the South Sea. He was attended by a large retinue of cavaliers. Among his troops were three hundred arquebusiers all well armed and accoutred.[XII‑8]
[Sidenote: EXTENSIVE PREPARATIONS.]
Collecting a large number of natives he at once began the task of transporting his ponderous freight toward the coast of Guatemala. Anchors each weighing three or four hundred pounds, artillery and munitions, iron, chain cables, heavy ship tackle, and cases of merchandise were dragged along by Indians yoked together like draught-animals or carried on their naked shoulders, to be conveyed a distance of a hundred and thirty leagues across a mountainous and difficult country. Forty-three days were consumed in making the journey to Gracias á Dios.[XII‑9] Numbers of the unfortunates succumbed and dropped senseless, only to receive the curses of the commander as he ordered their burdens to be placed on the backs of others, who were constantly arriving in fresh relays from Guatemala. In this manner he pushed on toward the port of Iztapa, where the frames of a number of ships had already been constructed.[XII‑10] On his arrival Alvarado spared no expense in completing his armament, not only using all his own available means, but borrowing largely and purchasing vessels on credit.[XII‑11]
About August 1539, Friar Marcos de Niza, who had for some time past been travelling in the unexplored regions far to the north of Mexico, returned, with the marvellous tale of the seven cities of Cíbola and their wonderful wealth.[XII‑12] The news spread and the excitement became great. Half a dozen rivals claimed the exclusive right to the exploration of that country, and among them Alvarado,[XII‑13] who accordingly hurried forward the preparations for his enterprise.
Before the middle of 1540 his command had been reënforced by numerous recruits, and a fleet of at least twelve[XII‑14] vessels had been constructed, and equipped with everything that foresight could suggest. Leaving Don Francisco de la Cueva as his lieutenant-governor, the adelantado sailed from Iztapa,[XII‑15] and landing at Navidad in Jalisco proceeded to Mexico, where he entered into arrangements with Mendoza relative to the expedition, and their individual interests in it.[XII‑16] The agreement was not concluded without considerable wrangling as to terms, and Alvarado probably considered himself somewhat overreached by the viceroy.
[Sidenote: DEATH OF ALVARADO.]
Having remained five or six months in Mexico he was now prepared to set forth on his expedition,[XII‑17] when an insurrection having broken out in Jalisco his assistance in suppressing it was requested by the acting governor Oñate. Contrary to advice he entered the revolted province with his own troops, not waiting for other forces to join him, and attacking the peñol of Nochistlan met with the defeat which has already been described.[XII‑18] While covering the retreat at the head of the rear-guard, his secretary Montoya, in panic flight, so urged his exhausted steed up a steep ascent that the animal lost his foothold and rolling over struck Alvarado, who was toiling upward on foot leading his horse, and crushed his chest. His followers, hastening to his assistance, found him insensible, and as soon as he had somewhat revived carried him on a litter to Guadalajara. He suffered greatly, but his chief anxiety was to procure a priest to whom he could relieve his burdened soul. Borne along on this his last journey, his sins weighed even more heavily upon him than bodily torture, and it was with relief that he greeted the arrival of a friar who had been summoned from a neighboring town. To him, under some pine-trees on the roadside, the conqueror of Guatemala confessed, and lingering for yet a few days, received such consolation as the rites of religion could give.[XII‑19] It was the 4th of July 1541 that he breathed his last, having made a will by which he appointed Juan de Alvarado of the city of Mexico and Bishop Marroquin of Santiago his executors. His exhaustion did not permit full details, but he gave instructions that the will should be sent to the prelate with whom he had communicated concerning the performance of certain matters for the benefit of his soul. He ordered his body to be deposited in the church of Guadalajara, thence removed to the convent at Tiripitío, and finally interred in that of Santo Domingo, in the city of Mexico.[XII‑20] To meet the expenses of his funeral enough of his property in Guadalajara or Mexico was to be sold by auction; and he left strict injunctions that all his debts should be paid, subject to the discretion of Bishop Marroquin.[XII‑21] All his remaining property was bequeathed to his wife, and summoning before him the captains and officers of his vessels he ordered them to return to Guatemala and deliver them into her possession; but this injunction was never executed. After the adelantado's decease, his men dispersed in different directions, some remaining in Mexico, others returning to Guatemala or making their way to Peru, while the fleet which had been constructed at so great an expense and at the cost of hundreds of lives, was appropriated by Mendoza. His estate was so encumbered that the viceroy did not suppose that any one would accept as a gift the inheritance with its liabilities,[XII‑22] and in another letter stated that no one cared to do so.[XII‑23]
Duly authorized by Juan de Alvarado, his co-executor, to settle Alvarado's estate, Bishop Marroquin framed a will, bearing date of June 30, 1542, in accordance with what he represents were the wishes of Alvarado. It is quite voluminous and is, with the exception of the preamble, given in full by Remesal. Much is done for the relief of Alvarado's soul, which we grant was needful, and to be expected under the circumstances. The document further chiefly concerns the liberation of Indian slaves, the founding of chaplaincies and altars, the payment of his numerous debts, and the bequest of insignificant sums to his illegitimate sons.[XII‑24]
[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF ALVARADO.]
In a vault beneath the high altar of the cathedral of Guatemala the remains of Pedro de Alvarado were finally laid at rest. Comparing him with other conquerors of his age he was second as a commander only to Cortés, though in character and system of action he was his opposite. Cortés possessed a certain greatness and nobility of soul: Alvarado was mendacious, treacherous, and dishonest; his frank demeanor cloaked deceit, and favors heaped upon him were repaid with ingratitude. In the breast of Cortés beat an affectionate heart, stern though it was, and he seldom failed to win the true regard of his followers. The conqueror of Guatemala was void of affection even for women, and his choice of wife or mistress was inspired by ambition or lust. To govern by fear was his delight. Cortés was cautious and far-sighted; Alvarado impetuous, never anticipating other than favorable results. In versatility, as well as in mental and moral qualities, Cortés was far superior to the adelantado—instance the mutiny at Patinamit. Cortés would have suppressed it, had such a thing ever occurred under his command. Alvarado's career hardly affords the means of fairly estimating his qualities as a commander, for he never met his countrymen in the field. Nevertheless, though his victories were chiefly owing to superiority in arms and discipline, he displayed on several occasions genuine military skill, and his quick perception, coolness, and presence of mind, which no extremity of danger disturbed, ever enabled him to act promptly and rightly in the most critical positions. That he never sustained a reverse in arms, from the time he left Mexico in 1523 until the disaster which caused his death, indicates generalship of no mean order. As a governor he was tyrannical,[XII‑25] and his capacity for ruling was inferior to his ability in the field.[XII‑26]
Judged even by the standard of his age it must be said of him that, while ever proclaiming disinterestedness and loyalty to the crown,[XII‑27] none of his contemporaries were inspired by a more restless ambition, and few actuated by more thoroughly selfish motives. Success appears to have rendered him callous to any sense of shame, and in the last effort of his life he was prompted by boyish egotism and foolish pride, being spurred by jealous opposition to the man through whose favor he had been raised to his high station.[XII‑28] A perusal of the despatches written during his later years would without other evidence lead to the conclusion that he was the victim of a general attack directed against him by his countrymen, who denied his services to the emperor, misrepresented his motives, and decried his conduct. But his earlier letters addressed to Cortés during the days of their friendship, reveal more correctly the true character of the man. There we see portrayed his audacity, his presence of mind in danger, his capacity as a leader, his diabolic delight in bloodshed, blended with the superstition then strangely prevalent among his countrymen, that, while thus serving the devil to the uttermost, he was glorifying God, and winning for himself celestial favors.[XII‑29]
[Sidenote: THE ADELANTADO'S PROGENY.]
Alvarado left no legitimate offspring, for though he had two children by his second wife they both died in early childhood.[XII‑30] Numerous illegitimate children, however, survived him, among whom may be mentioned Doña Leonor, Pedro, and Diego de Alvarado, his offspring by a daughter of Xicotencatl, the lord of Tlascala.[XII‑31]
XIII. THE CONQUEST OF CHIAPAS
1520-1529.
ORIGIN OF THE CHIAPANECS—THEY SUBMIT TO THE SPANIARDS AFTER THE MEXICAN CONQUEST—BUT RISE IN ARMS WHEN REQUIRED TO PAY TRIBUTE—CAPTAIN LUIS MARIN UNDERTAKES THE CONQUEST OF THE PROVINCE—HIS BATTLES WITH THE NATIVES—THE PANIC-STRICKEN ARTILLERYMAN—CAPTURE OF THE STRONGHOLD OF CHIAPAS—THE CHAMULANS RISE IN REVOLT—THEIR FORTRESS BESIEGED—REPULSE OF THE SPANIARDS—BERNAL DIAZ IN PERIL—FLIGHT AND SURRENDER OF THE CHAMULANS—MARIN RETURNS TO ESPÍRITU SANTO—SECOND REVOLT OF THE CHIAPANECS—THEIR SUBJUGATION BY DIEGO DE MAZARIEGOS—THIRD REBELLION—THEIR SELF-DESTRUCTION—PEDRO PUERTOCARRERO IN THE FIELD—HIS DISCOMFITURE—FOUNDING OF VILLA REAL—JUAN ENRIQUEZ DE GUZMAN TAKES THE RESIDENCIA OF MAZARIEGOS—HIS MALADMINISTRATION.
For many centuries before the beginning of the Christian era, and probably for two or three hundred years later, the site where now stand the ruins of Palenque in Chiapas[XIII‑1] was the centre of one of the most powerful monarchies in the western world, the great Maya empire of the Chanes. To Votan, the culture hero, who, according to Maya tradition, claiming his descent from Chan, the serpent, first introduced civilization into America, and after his disappearance was worshipped as a god, is ascribed the foundation of this ancient dynasty about three thousand years ago.[XIII‑2]
It is related in the oldest records obtained from the archives of Mexican history, that the Tzendales, a tribe dwelling in the neighborhood of Palenque, shared with the Zoques the northern part of Chiapas, while the southern and central portions were occupied by the Zotziles and Quelenes and also by the Chiapanecs, who, though at first confined to a narrow strip of territory, finally overran the entire region.[XIII‑3] Whether the Chiapanecs came originally from Nicaragua, or were a detachment from the great Toltec swarm that swept southward into Guatemala, or were descended from the mythic Chan, is a question that is yet involved in some mystery. We know, however, that after their arrival they built a stronghold which proved impregnable until the advent of the Spaniard with his superior skill and weapons, and that here, for centuries before the conquest, they maintained their independence and extended their possessions.[XIII‑4]
It is probable that, as early as 1520, Spaniards penetrated into this region under the auspices of Montezuma, while friendly relations were still maintained between that monarch and Cortés. After the fall of the Mexican capital, dismay at the achievements of the great conqueror was so widely spread that many independent tribes sent in their allegiance, and among them the Chiapanecs.[XIII‑5] These different territories were soon portioned out in repartimientos, and Chiapas was assigned with other districts to the Spanish settlers in Espíritu Santo. No sooner, however, was the attempt made to render these repartimientos profitable by the exaction of tribute, than the natives rose in arms. Many settlers were killed, some offered in sacrifice, and all the efforts of the colonists to pacify the revolted districts were unavailing.[XIII‑6]
[Sidenote: EXPEDITION OF MARIN.]
In 1523 the settlement at Espíritu Santo was in charge of Captain Luis Marin, an officer who had fought under Cortés, and whom Bernal Diaz describes as a man about thirty years of age, bowlegged, but robust and of good stature, with russet beard and features marked with the small-pox, one excelling in horsemanship and conversational powers, of gentle disposition, and without a trace of ill-nature. Deeming it imprudent to march against the Chiapanecs with the slender force at his command, Marin repaired to Mexico to ask aid from Cortés, and was at once supplied with an auxiliary band of thirty men, and instructed to proceed to Chiapas with all the troops he could muster, and establish there a Spanish town.
Returning to Espíritu Santo, Marin lost no time in carrying out his orders. After some delay, caused by opening a road through the intervening forests and morasses, he arrived at the bank of the river Mazapan[XIII‑7] and slowly marched up the stream toward the stronghold of the Chiapanecs, then known to the Spaniards by the name of Chiapas. Before nearing this fortress the commander held a muster of his forces. According to Bernal Diaz, who accompanied the expedition, they consisted of 15 cross-bowmen, 8 arquebusiers, 60 foot-soldiers armed with swords and shields, 27 horse, about 80 Mexicans, and the caciques and other principal men of Cachula with their followers. Marin had also a field-piece in charge of one whom he supposed to be a competent artilleryman.[XIII‑8] The escribano Diego de Godoy was his second in command.
[Sidenote: THE ATTACK.]
The Spaniards now continued their march with much caution. As they approached the populated district, four soldiers, one of whom was Bernal Diaz, were sent to reconnoitre about half a league in advance of the main body, but were soon discovered by native hunters, who immediately spread the alarm by smoke signals. The army soon afterward reached cultivated lands with wide and well constructed roads. When within four leagues of Chiapas they entered the town of Iztapa, whence the natives had fled, leaving an abundant supply of provisions. While resting here the videttes reported the approach of a large body of warriors,[XIII‑9] but the invaders being on the alert placed themselves in position before the enemy came up. The battle which ensued was indecisive. The Chiapanecs, deploying with much skill, almost surrounded the small Spanish force, and at their first discharge killed two soldiers and four horses, and wounded Luis Marin and sixteen other Spaniards, besides many of the allies. The contest was maintained with great fury till nightfall, when the natives retired, leaving numbers of their men on the field so severely injured as to be unable to follow their comrades.[XIII‑10] Two of the captives, who appeared to be chieftains, gave information that the confederated bands of all the surrounding districts were prepared to renew the attack on the following day.
All night vigilant watch was kept. The soldiers slept under arms; and the horses, ready saddled and bridled, were tethered within reach of their riders. There was not one of the Spaniards who did not expect a night attack and dread it. Numbers of them were sorely wounded; their leader was faint from loss of blood; and the unflinching firmness of the Chiapanecs had dulled their self-confidence; but no call to arms aroused them from their fitful slumbers, and at sunrise they wearily buckled on their armor and prepared to renew the fight.
During the engagement of the previous day, the horsemen, disregarding the instructions of Marin and the advice of his veterans, had suffered severely from using their lances too early in the fray, their weapons being wrested from their grasp and turned against themselves. Orders were now given for them to charge in squads of five, to carry their lances poised out of reach, and not to use them until the enemy were fairly ridden down and their formation broken. The field-piece was loaded, and their preparations being now completed, the Spaniards advanced toward Chiapas.[XIII‑11]
Long before the invaders arrived in sight of the stronghold, the enemy appeared, formed in compact order, and advancing to the attack with deafening war-cries. They were armed with javelins, which they hurled from implements fashioned for the purpose; with bows and arrows, and weapons similar to toothed swords; with slings, also, and lances longer than those of the Spaniards; and wore as a protection aprons of twisted cotton reaching from head to foot, which, when in retreat, they could roll up and carry under the arm.[XIII‑12] Marin quickly put his men in array, and ordered the artilleryman to open fire. But the gunner, who had entertained his comrades during a long march with stories of his brave deeds in Italy, blanched before the coming onset. His legs trembled, and grasping his piece to support himself, he was unable either to train or fire it. At length the loud execrations and angry shouts of his comrades, heard above the clamor of the foe, roused him from his helplessness, and with shaking hand he discharged his cannon. But his clumsy work was worse than his inaction, for the only result was the wounding of three of his companions.[XIII‑13]
At this mishap Martin at once ordered his cavalry to charge, while the infantry were rapidly formed in column. After a long and obstinate contest the Chiapanecs were finally routed; but on account of the nature of the ground pursuit was impossible. Advancing toward the town the Spaniards unexpectedly discovered after ascending some hills on their line of march, a still larger host of the enemy awaiting them. The Indians had provided themselves with long ropes and deer-nets with which to entrammel and capture the horses. In the ensuing battle the invaders sustained unusual casualties. Several of the horsemen lost their lances; five horses and two cavaliers were slain; and so continuous and well directed were the discharges of javelins, arrows, and stones that ere long nearly all of Marin's command were wounded. At this juncture a hideous object appeared in the centre of the Chiapanec ranks. An Indian woman, nude, wrinkled, and obese, her body painted all over with ghastly designs rendered more effective by tufts of cotton, had arrived upon the battle-field. No Empusa could be more frightful. The creature—so ran the report—was regarded by the Chiapanecs as their divinity, and her presence she had predicted would insure them victory.[XIII‑14] But the native auxiliaries recognized the significance of her arrival, and drawn up by their leaders in a compact body, dauntlessly fought their way up to her, "and hacked to pieces the accursed goddess," as Bernal Diaz affirms.
[Sidenote: DISCOMFITURE OF THE EVIL ONE.]
Though disconcerted the natives do not yield, relying on their numbers and their courage; and the hard-pressed Spaniards, supported by the prayers and benediction of their priest,[XIII‑15] fight with renewed vigor. The cavalry again and again ride through the foe, crushing them down and trampling them under foot until their ranks are broken and scattered. At length the Chiapanecs seek safety, some on the neighboring rocks, and others by swimming the deep and rapid Mazapan.
After devoutly thanking God for the victory, and singing the salve regina, the Spaniards advance to a small village not far from the city itself, and pitch their camp for the night, great precaution being taken to prevent surprise. Assistance now comes from an unexpected quarter. About midnight ten Indians cross the river in canoes, and allow themselves to be quietly captured. Brought before Marin they state that they are natives of Xaltepec, and have been conquered and enslaved by the Chiapanecs, twelve years before. They offer to aid the Spaniards by supplying them with canoes to cross the river, and by pointing out a ford, and, moreover, inform Marin that many of the forces of the Chiapanecs, having been pressed into the ranks, are anxious to throw off the yoke, and that they will go over to him in the next engagement.
Marin at once accepts the offer, and it is agreed that twenty canoes shall be brought early in the morning. The remainder of the night is passed without further interruption, though the enemy is heard mustering on the other side of the river with noise of drums and conchs. At daylight the canoes arrive, and the army proceed to the ford. The crossing is effected with great difficulty, the water being breast-high and the stream rapid. As they approach the opposite bank, the enemy rains down upon them such showers of missiles that again hardly a man escapes unhurt.[XIII‑16] For some time they are unable to effect a landing, and Marin's position is critical, when fortunately their new allies cause a diversion by assailing the Chiapanecs in the rear. The cavalry are thus enabled to gain a footing on the bank, and the infantry soon follow; the natives are put to flight in all directions. This is their final struggle. The summons to surrender is immediately complied with, and the Spaniards enter the city without further opposition.[XIII‑17]
All the neighboring towns were now ordered to send in their allegiance, and such an effect had the subjection of the hitherto invincible Chiapanecs upon the different tribes that resistance was not even thought of, Cinacantlan, Gopanaustla, Pinula, Huehueiztlan,[XIII‑18] Chamula, and other towns tendering their submission. The conquest of the country was now considered complete, and Marin had already apportioned out certain repartimientos when harmony was interrupted by the conduct of one of the soldiers.
While at Cinacantlan, whither the army had proceeded, Francisco de Medina left camp without permission, and taking with him eight Mexicans went to Chamula, where he demanded gold of the natives in the name of Marin. A few trinkets were given him, but not satisfied with these he seized the cacique in the expectation of extorting a ransom. The Chamulans, however, rose to a man, and Medina was glad to get back to Cinacantlan, where he was arrested.[XIII‑19]
No overtures or explanations on the part of Marin availed to pacify the indignant people of Chamula, who had, moreover, induced those of Huehueiztlan to join them in the revolt. His messages of peace were received with defiance. On the 29th of March Godoy was sent into the disaffected district with a small force, but found the attitude of the natives so threatening that he deemed it best to avoid hostilities and returned to report. Marin was at this time encamped in a beautiful vale surrounded by pine groves, at no great distance from Cinacantlan.[XIII‑20] He now considered it necessary to reduce Chamula by force of arms, and demanded of the Chiapanecs a contingent of two hundred warriors, which was at once supplied. Messages were also sent to the friendly cacique of Cinacantlan[XIII‑21] soliciting an equal number.
[Sidenote: CHAMULAN STRONGHOLD.]
On the 30th of March, about ten o'clock in the morning, the troops arrived at the foot of the eminence on which Chamula[XIII‑22] was situated. The ascent, at the only point where attack was possible, was impracticable for horsemen. Marin therefore ordered the cavalry to take up a position on the level ground below, and to protect his rear while the assault was being made.[XIII‑23] The infantry and allies then scaled the height and were soon in front of the fortifications, which they found to be of a formidable character. A palisade of strong cross-timbers let deep into the ground and firmly bound together was the first obstacle to their entrance, and behind it was a bulwark of stone and mud nearly twelve feet high and four feet in thickness, into which were inserted strong beams. This again was surmounted, along its whole length, by a wall of heavy boards six feet high, supported by strong crossbars on both sides, all firmly lashed together, while at intervals loop-holed turrets had been erected commanding the approach. At the strongest part of this bulwark was the single entrance, which was approached by a narrow flight of steps leading to the top.
[Sidenote: HARD FIGHTING.]
Though astonished at the strength of these ramparts, the Spaniards did not hesitate to assault them; but during the whole of the day all they could effect was the destruction of the outer stockade. Repeated attempts were made to mount the steps, but at each effort the assailants were driven back by the long heavy spears of the defenders. Incessant volleys of missiles were directed against them; their ranks suffered severely; and it soon became evident that some other plan of attack must be adopted.[XIII‑24] The only practicable one which suggested itself was to break open the wall with picks and crow-bars under cover of wooden sheds. Natives were therefore despatched for implements to the valley where the baggage and wounded had been sent under the protection of ten of the cavalry; and the besiegers now constructed several strong frames, each capable of holding twenty men.[XIII‑25] These were pushed up to the wall, and under cover of them the Spaniards began to break through it. The Indians poured on them burning pitch, scalding water, firebrands, and hot embers,[XIII‑26] and finally crushed them with heavy rocks, making it necessary to withdraw them for repairs. Then in mockery and contempt they threw golden ornaments[XIII‑27] at the retreating Spaniards, and with taunting words derided them. "Is it gold you want? We have abundance of it; why come ye not in and take it?"
But their success was of short duration. The sheds were soon strengthened, and again the pick and crow-bar were plied against the wall, now almost pierced. About the hour of vespers[XIII‑28] two openings had been made, and the assailants, rushing through, engaged in a hand to hand encounter with the Chamulans, who bore themselves with such unyielding firmness that the cross-bowmen placed their weapons close to the breast of the foe and discharged them without taking aim. The contest was terminated by a furious storm of rain, and so murky became the sky that the combatants could barely distinguish one another. Marin withdrew his men under shelter, and, the storm abating in an hour, again advanced on the stronghold. No missiles were aimed at them as they approached the barricade, but a serried line of spears confronted them, and no orders were given to storm the position. At length Bernal Diaz with a single comrade crept up to one of the openings, and peering in found the place unprotected. Then mounting the ramparts he beheld the Indians in full retreat by a precipitous path leading to the valley below. The Chamulans had fled, but not all. The two Spaniards were soon attacked by a body of two hundred warriors still left within the enclosure, and but for the timely arrival of the Cinacantlan allies, Bernal Diaz had never lived to write the 'True History of the Conquest of Mexico.'[XIII‑29] The retreating host was at once pursued, and a number of captives were made, principally women and children. No gold or other valuables fell to the lot of the Spaniards, but they found in the town what was of more benefit to them—a store of provisions—for, as Godoy relates, the men had not tasted food for two days.[XIII‑30]
On the following day, the 1st of April, Marin returned to his camp, whence he sent six of his prisoners to the Chamulans summoning them to allegiance, bidding them to return to their stronghold, and promising that all the captives should be released if they submitted. These inducements had their effect, and the deserted town was soon again repeopled.[XIII‑31]
The Spaniards now advanced against Huehueiztlan, where the inhabitants, discouraged by the fall of Chamula, made but a feeble resistance, and then took to flight. Several of the towns in the sierra were then summoned to surrender, but no answer was returned, and Marin, not venturing to march against them with his slender force, returned to his camp near Cinacantlan. Here a warm discussion was held respecting the carrying-out of Cortés' instructions to found a town. Opinion was divided; but the final decision, supported by Marin, was that it would be dangerous to do so owing to the smallness of their numbers and the want of necessaries.[XIII‑32]
Marin now set his face homeward. Marching along the bank of the Mazapan he passed through a number of towns, in all of which he met with a friendly reception, and was greeted with offers of submission. While traversing a portion of Tabasco he encountered bands of refractory natives, but reached Espíritu Santo in safety at the beginning of April 1524.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: REVOLT OF THE CHIAPANECS.]
Between this date and the close of 1526 little is known of the events which occurred in Chiapas, and much confusion exists in the statements of the leading chroniclers. During the interval there is little reason to doubt that the natives again rose in revolt, but we have no particulars as to this outbreak, except that Diego de Mazariegos was sent against them from Mexico with a well appointed force, and quickly reduced them to submission.[XIII‑33]
[Sidenote: CHIVALROUS SELF-SACRIFICE.]
For a time the Chiapanecs yielded to their fate, but the exactions and cruelties of Juan Enriquez de Guzman, who had been appointed captain of the province by Marcos de Aguilar,[XIII‑34] drove them to desperation, and during the latter part of 1526 they once more broke out in rebellion. Again Mazariegos marched against them from Mexico, at the head of a powerful corps,[XIII‑35] supplied with five pieces of artillery. Retiring to the stronghold of Chiapas the Indians made good their defence for several days; but at last the Spaniards battered down their fortifications and advanced to the assault. Still the Chiapanecs flinched not, and fought until they could no longer wield their weapons.[XIII‑36] Then followed a tragedy as strange and appalling as any recorded on the page of history. The self-destruction of the Taochi was indeed akin to it; but this act of the Chiapanecs blanched the cheek even of these Spaniards, whose business was butchery, and whose pretensions were something more chivalrous than lay within the conception of any other people; here was something done by aboriginal Americans which in the way of chivalry, of lofty self-sacrifice, of determined deliverance from abasement, has few parallels. And what is most significant about it, had they known all, it was the best they could have done for themselves, to escape from Christian bondage at any cost. This is what they did:
Scorning to yield themselves as slaves, the entire population of the town rushed to the verge of a cliff, which overhung the Mazapan, and thence husbands and wives, parents and children, locked in close embrace, hurled themselves headlong, thousands of them, upon the rocks below or into the swift-running river. The Spaniards attempted to interfere, but of all the multitude only two thousand could be saved.[XIII‑37] These were removed to a plain a league down the river, and from this settlement sprung the town of Chiapas de los Indios, which became in time a populous city.[XIII‑38]
* * * * *
While Mazariegos was thus occupied at the stronghold of the Chiapanecs, he learned that a competitor had appeared on the field. Pedro Puertocarrero had invaded the province from the Guatemalan frontier,[XIII‑39] and Mazariegos regarding him as an encroacher, now marched against him. He found the interloper stationed at Comitlan, and his lamb-like followers would probably, by way of variety, have indulged in a conflict with their countrymen, had Puertocarrero been strong enough to meet them. But his forces were too few to hold out any prospect that it would terminate pleasantly to himself. Besides, Mazariegos was humane and prudent. He spoke the intruders smoothly and in a Christian spirit, represented to them how glad he would be to receive them as brothers, and generously offered them repartimientos in Chiapas. So no blood was shed. But many of Puertocarrero's men deserted him, and he retraced his steps in angry mood, having engaged in an expedition worse than profitless.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: ADMINISTRATION OF MAZARIEGOS.]
The control over the province was a matter of dispute on more than one occasion. That it was included in the governorship of Guatemala is evident from the provision extended by the king to Alvarado in 1527, but the fact that he took no part in its conquest would seem to invalidate his claim. That nevertheless he acquired a certain amount of control appears from a cédula issued April 14, 1531, and quoted by Remesal, in which he grants permission to the settlers to deal with escaped slaves as if they were branded. Again in 1532 we find that the cabildo furnished him with two cannon for his South Sea expedition, though the members confessed that they did so only through fear of his causing them fresh trouble.[XIII‑40] The country, being now subjugated and free from outside interference, lay ready to be portioned out to the conquerors in repartimientos. This process occupied some time, and the rest of the year was passed in reorganizing the province and arranging for its colonization. It was expedient to found a Spanish settlement, and on the 1st of March 1528 Mazariegos, with the aid of Indians, constructed a number of huts on a spot distant about a league to the east of the depopulated town of Chiapas. A meeting was then held at which the lieutenant-governor explained that the site he had selected was not necessarily intended to be permanent, and that if a more advantageous spot were found, the colony should be removed to it. In the mean time, in the name of his Majesty, he appointed municipal officers, and a few days afterward an enrolment of citizens took place, more than fifty names being recorded. The town was named Villa Real after Mazariegos' native city, Ciudad Real of La Mancha. The newly appointed cabildo then went into session and the appointments of Luis de Luna, as visitador general, and Gerónimo de Cárceres, as escribano, were recognized and accepted.[XIII‑41]
But it was soon discovered that the locality was unfavorable. It was hot, unhealthy on account of the neighboring swamps, and infested with mosquitoes and bats. The site was therefore removed to the plain of Huey Zacatlan,[XIII‑42] twelve leagues distant. Here were rich, arable, and pasture lands, while a winding river and numerous streams afforded an abundant supply of water. A town was formally laid out, lots were assigned to citizens, buildings begun, repartimientos granted, and the territory portioned in caballerias and peonias. It was afterward ordered at a session of the cabildo held on the 17th of August 1528, that all who desired to obtain land from the natives should do so by purchase. Protection was also extended to them by regulations framed to prevent the appropriation of their produce or its destruction by animals. Any Spaniard who sent his servant to gather maize from their fields was to forfeit ten pesos de oro for the first offence, and for the second to lose his servant, who was to be publicly flogged. Regulations passed during the early part of the following year required that all encomenderos should assemble the sons of the caciques at their residences to be instructed in the doctrines of the church. Christianized natives were to receive Christian burial, and others were to be decently interred outside the city.
[Sidenote: RULE OF GUZMAN.]
The administration of Mazariegos appears to have been based on humane principles and to have had in view the welfare of the settlers. But this condition of affairs was of brief duration. In 1529 Juan Enriquez de Guzman was ordered by the audiencia of Mexico to take his residencia, and appointed captain general and alcalde mayor of Chiapas. His investigation was conducted in a spirit of vindictiveness which can be accounted for only by the fact that the latter had previously been his juez de residencia. He stripped him and his friends of their repartimientos, and gave them to his own creatures; he appropriated his dwelling and town allotments, and when the man whom he thus despoiled soon afterward set forth for Mexico, gave further proof of his enmity by changing the name of the town to Villa Viciosa. By a royal cédula of July 7, 1536, its name was again changed to Ciudad Real.[XIII‑43]
Guzman now exercised his power without restraint, and laid the foundation of permanent evils. All official positions were filled by favorites of his own to the exclusion of those entitled to them; the encomiendas were taken from those to whom they had been assigned, and distributed among undeserving followers; and in a few months the whole colony was embroiled in dissensions. At a later date all offices except those of the two alcaldes, the procurador syndic, and the city majordomo became salable.[XIII‑44] The province was divided into numerous repartimientos, and in every principal town a lieutenant of the alcalde mayor was stationed. "Not," says Mazariegos, "for the administration of justice, but rather to superintend his large and scandalous repartimientos and to collect tribute dues." This system of government by encomenderos was oppressive and exhausting to the country, and to it the ruin of the towns of Chiapas is to be attributed. The province was subject to the captain general and the audiencia of Mexico; but their control was exercised with little attention to the improvement of the system. This state of affairs lasted until 1544, when the audiencia of the Confines was established, and Chiapas was included in its jurisdiction.[XIII‑45]
XIV. THREATENED DESTRUCTION OF THE INDIES
1526-1543.
DECREASE OF INDIAN POPULATION AT THE ISTHMUS—AND IN HONDURAS—TREATMENT OF SPANISH ALLIES IN GUATEMALA—TORTURE AND BUTCHERY OF HOSTILE NATIVES—TERROR INSPIRED BY ALVARADO—EARLY LEGISLATION—ITS NON-OBSERVANCE—THE NEW LAWS—THE AUDIENCIA OF PANAMÁ ABOLISHED—THE AUDIENCIAS OF LOS REYES AND LOS CONFINES ESTABLISHED—DISGUST CAUSED BY THE NEW CODE—THE FIRST VICEROY OF PERU ARRIVES AT THE ISTHMUS—HE TAKES CHARGE OF TREASURE ACQUIRED BY SLAVE LABOR—AND LIBERATES A NUMBER OF INDIANS.
[Sidenote: THE VEXED INDIAN QUESTION.]
The old Milanese chronicler, Girolamo Benzoni, mentions that during a journey from Acla[XIV‑1] to Nombre de Dios about the year 1541, his party entered some Indian huts to obtain a supply of provisions. The inmates thinking they were about to be enslaved attacked them savagely with hands and teeth, tearing their clothes, spitting in their faces, uttering doleful cries, and exclaiming guacci! guacci! which Benzoni translates as "the name of a quadruped that prowls by night in search of prey."[XIV‑2] Being at length pacified by signs they brought forth food, and one of them consenting to act as guide informed the travellers that there were no other Indian habitations on their line of route, for the Spaniards had either killed or made slaves of the entire population.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: SLAVERY AND DEATH.]
In Honduras slaves were still kidnapped, and sold by ship-loads among the islands or in Nicaragua, so that in the vicinity of Trujillo, where formerly were native towns with from six hundred to three thousand houses, there were in 1547 not more than a hundred and eighty Indians left, the remainder having fled to the mountains to avoid capture. At Naco, which a few years before contained a population of ten thousand souls, there were, in 1536, only forty-five remaining. At a coast town named La Haga, nine leagues from Trujillo, and containing nine hundred houses, there was but one inhabitant left, all having been sold into bondage save the young daughter of the cacique, who had contrived to elude the slave-hunters.[XIV‑3]
Cruel as was the treatment of the natives in every part of the Spanish provinces, nowhere was oppression carried to such an extreme as in Guatemala. Here little distinction was made between the allies and the conquered races; even the faithful Tlascaltecs, who, after the conquest, had settled with the Mexican and Cholultec auxiliaries at Almolonga, being enslaved, overworked, and otherwise maltreated, until in 1547 there were barely a hundred survivors.[XIV‑4] The natives of Atitlan, who had never swerved in their allegiance to the Spaniards, were treated with equal severity. After sharing the hardships of their military campaigns, they were compelled to supply every year four or five hundred male and female slaves and every fifteen days a number of tributary laborers, many of whom perished from excessive toil and privation. They were required to furnish, besides, a large quantity of cloth, cacao,[XIV‑5] honey, and poultry; and so grievous were the burdens laid upon them that even the caciques were impoverished, and their wives compelled to serve as beasts of burden and tillers of the soil.
If such was the treatment to which the most faithful allies of the Spaniards were subjected, what fell cruelties may we not expect to find inflicted on those who, undeterred by defeat, rose again and again upon their oppressors? No words can depict the miseries of these hapless races. Wholesale slaughter, hanging, and burning, torturing, mutilating, and branding, followed the suppression of a revolt. Starvation, exhaustion, blows, fainting under intolerable burdens, groans of despair, and untimely death, were their lot in time of peace. During Alvarado's time the waste of life was wanton and most sickening. In the field starving auxiliaries were fed on human flesh, captives being butchered for food; children were killed and roasted; nay, even where there was no want of provisions, men were slain merely for the feet and hands, which were esteemed delicacies by the anthropophagous races. Nor were the marital relations of the natives any more considered than if they had been by nature the brutes which the Spaniards made of them in practice. Households were rendered desolate, wives being torn from husbands and daughters from parents, to be distributed among the soldiers and seamen, while the children were sent to work at the gold-washings, and there perished by thousands. Thus the work of depopulation progressed, and it is asserted by Las Casas that during the first fifteen or sixteen years of the conquest the destruction of Indians in Guatemala alone amounted to four or five million souls.[XIV‑6]
None of the conquerors of the New World, not even Pedrarias Dávila, were held in such dread as Pedro de Alvarado. When the news of his landing at Puerto de Caballos was noised abroad the natives abandoned their dwellings and fled to the forests. In a few days towns, villages, and farms were deserted, and it seemed as if the whole province of Guatemala had been depopulated by enchantment.[XIV‑7] The plantations were destroyed by cattle; the cattle were torn by wild beasts; and the sheep and lambs served as food for the blood-hounds, which had been trained to regard the Indians as their natural prey, but now found none to devour.
[Sidenote: LAWS OF LITTLE AVAIL.]
As early as 1525 intelligence of the terrible rapidity with which depopulation was progressing reached the emperor, and on the 17th of November he issued a cédula for the protection of the fast decreasing races.[XIV‑8] In 1519 he ordered the council of the Indies to draw up regulations for the government of the provinces, and that body issued a decree regarding the treatment of natives, which, although the protection of the interests of the throne may be a somewhat prominent consideration, exhibits sympathy and enjoins moderation toward the oppressed races.[XIV‑9] Other cédulas were issued at brief intervals,[XIV‑10] but that all were inoperative is shown from many incidents which have already been related.
Distant legislation was of no avail. The branding-iron still seared the captive's flesh, the pine-torch was still applied to the rich victim's feet, and the lash still fell on the toiler's uncovered back. The encomenderos, bent only on amassing wealth, worked their Indians until they were on the verge of death, and then cast them forth from their houses or left them where they fell dead in the streets, as food for prowling dogs and carrion birds, until the odor of corruption infected the settlements.[XIV‑11] Nor did the homes of the living escape destruction or their property violent seizure. Their dwellings were pulled down to supply building materials, and the produce and wares which they brought each day to exchange in their market at Santiago were taken from them by the servants of the Spaniards, or by soldiers, who repaid them only with blows or stabs.[XIV‑12]
Thus notwithstanding the ordinances enacted by the emperor for the protection of the natives, and in the face of a papal bull issued in 1531 by his holiness Paul III.,[XIV‑13] restoring to the Indians their liberty throughout the provinces, their numbers rapidly decreased and the condition of the survivors grew worse as fresh taskmasters arrived in the New World. Few even of the poorer and none of the wealthier class of Spaniards expected to find there an abiding-place. Spain's boldest and most reckless left her shores and voyaged westward with the placid satisfaction of ruffians released from law's control, and now free from the check of an effectual executive power regarded themselves as masters of the position.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: BARTOLOMÉ DE LAS CASAS.]
In 1542 Bartolomé de Las Casas placed in the hands of the emperor the manuscript of his well known work on the destruction of the Indies, and through the exertions mainly of that never-tiring missionary a royal junta composed of ecclesiastics and jurists was held during the previous year at Valladolid for the purpose of drawing up regulations for the better government of the provinces. The great apostle of the Indies pleaded his favorite cause with all the fire of his eloquence, urging that the natives of the New World were by the law of nature free, and giving utterance to the now somewhat trite maxim "God does not allow evil that good may come."
It is somewhat singular, to say the least, to hear such doctrine from the lips of a Dominican,[XIV‑14] while yet the dark looming cloud of the inquisition cast, as from the wings of a fallen angel, the dun spectre of its huge eclipse athwart the hemispheres.
[Sidenote: THE NEW LAWS.]
The ordinances framed by the junta received the emperor's approval, and after being somewhat amplified were published in Madrid in 1543, and thenceforth known as the New Laws.[XIV‑15] The code contains a large number of articles, many of them relating almost exclusively to the enslavement and treatment of the natives. It was provided that all Indian slaves should be set free, unless their owners could establish a legal title to their possession.[XIV‑16] None were thenceforth to be enslaved under any pretext.
Proprietors to whom the repartimientos had given an excessive number must surrender a portion of them to the crown. On the death of encomenderos[XIV‑17] the slaves were to revert to the crown. All ecclesiastics and religious societies and all officers under the crown must deliver up their bondsmen or bondswomen, not being allowed to retain them even though resigning office. Inspectors were appointed to watch over the interests of the natives, and were paid out of the fines levied on transgressors. Slaves were not to be employed in the pearl-fisheries against their will under penalty of death to the party so employing them, nor when used as pack-animals was such a load to be laid on their backs as might endanger their lives. Finally they were to be converted to the Catholic faith, and it was ordered that two priests should accompany all exploring parties, to instruct the Americans that his Majesty the emperor regarded them as his free subjects, and that his holiness the pope desired to bring them to a true knowledge of him the spread of whose doctrines had in less than half a century been attended with the depopulation of the fairest portions of the New World.
* * * * *
Among the provisions of the new code were others almost as distasteful to many of the Spaniards as were those relating to the enfranchisement of the natives. The audiencia of Panamá was abolished and two new tribunals were to be established, one at Los Reyes, which now first began to bear the name of Lima, and was thenceforth the metropolis of the South American continent; the other termed the audiencia de los Confines, at Comayagua, with jurisdiction over Chiapas, Yucatan, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the province of Tierra Firme, known as Castilla del Oro. From the decision of these tribunals and from those of the audiencias of Mexico and Santo Domingo, there was to be in criminal cases no appeal. In civil suits the losing party might demand a second trial, the benefit of which is not apparent, as no new evidence was admitted, and the case was conducted by the oidores who rendered the first judgment. If the amount exceeded ten thousand pesos de oro, there lay right of appeal to the council of the Indies. Moreover, the oidores[XIV‑18] were empowered to inquire into the administration of the governor and other civil functionaries, and to suspend them from office, their report being sent to the council of the Indies for final action.
Such were the main features of the new code which sought to strike the fetters from a nation which was fast disappearing from the family of man. Tidings of this remarkable piece of legislation soon spread throughout the New World, and from Mexico to Los Reyes the entire population was in a state of ferment bordering revolution. To deprive the settlers of their slaves was to reduce them to beggary. Slaves constituted the chief source of wealth throughout the provinces. Without them the mines could not be worked, towns could not be built, lands could not be tilled. The soldier urged his right of conquest, and many a scarred veteran, worn with toil and hardship, threatened to defend by the sword which had helped to win an empire for his sovereign the estates now threatened by these vexatious regulations.
[Sidenote: VASCO NUÑEZ VELA.]
The colonists were soon to learn that the new laws were not to remain a dead letter as had been the case with the royal ordinances. In January 1544 Vasco Nuñez Vela, the first viceroy of Peru, arrived at Nombre de Dios, and finding there some Spaniards returning to their native country with stores of wealth acquired by the sale of their Peruvian slaves, ordered them to deliver up their treasure,[XIV‑19] and but for some doubt as to the legality of such a proceeding would certainly have confiscated it.
After crossing the Isthmus the viceroy liberated and sent back from Panamá at the expense of their proprietors, several hundred Indians who had been brought from Peru or were unjustly held in bondage. Bitter were the remonstrances against these high-handed measures, but Vela merely answered, "I come not to discuss the laws but to execute them." The condition of the natives was not improved, however, by their liberation, for we learn that numbers died on board ship from starvation and ill-usage, while others, cast ashore unarmed on a desolate coast, fell a prey to wild beasts or otherwise perished miserably.
A committee of the most noble and influential of the Spaniards waited on the new viceroy to gain from him, if possible, some concessions. They urged that, inasmuch as the Indians had been converted to Christianity, it would be a great loss to the church to enfranchise them, and that if enfranchised they would always be in danger of perishing from starvation. They dared not return to their own tribes, for the caciques inflicted the penalty of death on all who had become Christians. These arguments served but to rouse the wrath of the viceroy, who dismissed the deputation saying, "Were you under my jurisdiction I would hang you every one." Thenceforth none dared oppose him further. Even the oidores of the newly established audiencia of Los Reyes who had accompanied him from Spain made no protest, and on his departure for Peru remained for some time at Panamá before they could muster courage to follow.
In Tierra Firme and in the islands of the Spanish West Indies the new laws were partially obeyed, although complaints were still frequent of the ill-treatment of natives, of their being punished with stripes if they dared to complain, and of the arrival in Panamá of cargoes of slaves from Nicaragua. The priests were earnest in their protestations, and their reports to the emperor abounded in lofty expressions of concern for the cause of Christ and of humanity. The ecclesiastical and secular interests were ever at variance. Should the alcaldes render any decision that threatened to work adversely against the authority of the church, they were excommunicated, and thus rendered incapable, in the eyes of the people, of discharging the functions of their office. The governor and the bishop were continually at war, the latter cloaking under his pretended zeal for the conversion of the Indians, and the former under the pretext of upholding the dignity of the crown, the real purpose for which each was too often striving—that of gathering into his coffers the gold of his Majesty's vassals.[XIV‑20]
XV. PANAMÁ AND PERU
1538-1550.
ADMINISTRATION OF DOCTOR ROBLES—INTEROCEANIC COMMUNICATION—PROPOSED CHANGE OF THE SITE OF PANAMÁ—NOMBRE DE DIOS AND ITS TRADE—THE ISTHMUS THE HIGHWAY OF COMMERCE BETWEEN THE HEMISPHERES—VASCO NUÑEZ VELA LANDS IN PERU—GONZALO PIZARRO AT THE HEAD OF A REBELLION—DISSOLUTION OF THE AUDIENCIA OF LOS REYES AND ARREST OF THE VICEROY—HIS RELEASE—HIS DEFEAT AND DEATH AT AÑAQUITO—GONZALO'S DREAMS OF CONQUEST—HE DESPATCHES BACHICAO TO PANAMÁ—HINOJOSA'S EXPEDITION—HIS BLOODLESS CONQUEST OF THE PROVINCE—MELCHOR VERDUGO'S INVASION—PEDRO DE LA GASCA—HIS NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE REVOLUTIONISTS—GASCA LANDS IN PERU—EXECUTION OF GONZALO PIZARRO.
Of Pedro Vazquez, who succeeded Barrionuevo as governor of Castilla del Oro, little is known; but of Doctor Robles, the successor of Vazquez, under whose administration the government was continued till 1546, it is alleged, and probably with truth, that he wrought more harm to his fellow-man in a twelvemonth than the malign genius of a Pedrarias even could accomplish in a decade. In his greed for wealth he was rivalled only by the all-grasping Pedro de Los Rios, and in the astute cunning with which he cloaked his evil deeds he was without peer even in a community where the prevailing code of morals taught neither fear of God nor regard for man. Appointed oidor of the audiencia of Panamá, in 1538, he held office for several years, and the abolition of that tribunal was probably due in a measure to his malefeasance. There are no explicit details as to the precise charges which were brought against Robles, but we learn that in every instance he contrived to baffle the scrutiny of his judges. The licentiate Vaca de Castro was first ordered to bring the offender to justice, but called in vain on his fellow-oidores of the audiencia of Panamá to aid him in so doing. On the establishment of the audiencia of the Confines, the trial was yet unfinished, and as the aggrieved parties still clamored that it be brought to a conclusion, Ramirez, one of the oidores, and the first alcalde mayor of Panamá, was ordered to take his residencia. Robles appears to have escaped punishment, for he soon afterward figures as senior oidor of the audiencia of Lima. He returned before long to Panamá, and we learn that on the capture of that city in 1550, by Hernando and Pedro de Contreras, some of Gasca's treasure was captured at the house of Robles, who thenceforth disappears from the page of history.[XV‑1]
* * * * *
[Sidenote: ISTHMUS HIGHWAY.]
When Pedro de los Rios set out for Nicaragua he left orders with Captain Hernando de la Serna and the pilot Corzo to make a survey of the Rio de los Lagartos, now known as the river Chagre, for the purpose of facilitating communication between the two seas. They were directed also to examine the river Panamá, flowing in the opposite direction, and to explore the country between the highest navigable points on the two streams. This was done with a view of discovering the best route for a grand thoroughfare across the Isthmus, over which the tide of commerce might flow between Spain and the Spice Islands; and although this object was never realized, the discovery which reduced land carriage to a distance of nine leagues proved most useful in the subsequent intercourse of Spain and Peru.
The project for interoceanic communication by way of the isthmus of Panamá was first mooted more than three hundred and fifty years ago, and to Charles V. probably belongs the merit of its suggestion. The plan first proposed was to unite the Rio Grande with the Chagre, which except in seasons of drought was navigable for vessels of light draught as far as the present town of Cruces, and so make the connection on the Pacific side near the modern city of Panamá. Andagoya, who has already been mentioned as the one who in 1522 conducted an expedition to Birú, was directed to make a survey and to furnish estimates of the probable cost. His report was unfavorable; for in a despatch addressed to the emperor, about 1534, he expresses his belief that there was no monarch in all Europe rich enough to furnish the means to carry out such an enterprise.[XV‑2]
In the same despatch Andagoya also reports adversely on a question which had been for several years under discussion—that of moving to another site the population of Panamá. In a letter addressed to Francisco Pizarro in 1531, Antonio de la Gama declares his intention of making such a change; for ever since the city had been founded by Pedrarias, complaints had been made of its unhealthy climate.[XV‑3] A royal cédula was afterward issued ordering that the citizens should meet and discuss the question, and Andagoya states that the matter was decided in the negative; for, he tells us: "There is no other port in all the South Sea where vessels could anchor alongside the streets." Moreover he affirms that "God himself had selected the site."
The chronicler Benzoni, who travelled in Darien between 1541 and 1556, mentions that the road from Panamá[XV‑4] to Nombre de Dios was about fifty miles in length, and that during the first day's journey it was tolerably smooth, but the remainder of the route lay over rugged and difficult ground, through forest and through streams sometimes almost impassable during the rainy season.[XV‑5] Merchants doing business at Nombre de Dios usually resided at Panamá. At the time of Benzoni's visit to the former town, about the year 1541, it contained but fifteen or twenty wholesale merchants, the remainder of the population being principally small tradesmen, innkeepers, and sailors.
The trade of Nombre de Dios was extremely fluctuating. Fourteen or fifteen Spanish vessels of various sizes, the largest being about three hundred and sixty tons burden, arrived there annually, with miscellaneous cargoes, but laden principally with wine, flour, biscuit, oil, cloth, silk, and household merchandise. The prices obtained for goods depended altogether upon the supply. When the market was overstocked, prices frequently ruled lower than first cost in Spain, and cargoes were sometimes forfeited by the consignee as not worth the freight. On the other hand, when an article was scarce, an enormous price could be obtained for it, sometimes its weight in gold.
When a ship arrived at Nombre de Dios the cargo was discharged into flat-bottomed boats, and carried by way of the Chagre as far as Cruces, about six leagues from the South Sea. Here the merchandise was delivered to muleteers, who conveyed it to Panamá, whence it was shipped in various directions, though the greater part of the trade was with Peru.[XV‑6]
* * * * *
[Sidenote: IMPORTANCE OF PANAMÁ.]
About the middle of the sixteenth century the isthmus of Darien had become the gate-way between the two seas, and Panamá the most important city of America. Situated upon the world's highway and in the very centre of the Spanish colonial possessions, through its portals must flow the treasures of Peru from the south, the products of Mexico, Nicaragua, and Guatemala from the north, and the trans-oceanic traffic of the Spice Islands from the west. Thus Panamá became not only the metropolis of the two Americas, but the half-way house and toll-gate between western Europe and eastern Asia. There the raw adventurer who at the opening of his career pressed forward with eager expectation into a dark uncertain future met the returned fortune-seeker elated with success or broken-spirited through failure. Into the lap of this great central city poured untold wealth. Her merchants were princes; her warerooms were filled with rich merchandise of every kind and from every quarter of the globe. There were to be seen stacks of yellow and white ingots from the mines of Peru, the cochineal and dye-woods of Mexico, the richest wines of Spain and Portugal, the silks, velvets, and laces of France and Italy.
The establishment of this commercial metropolis on the shores of the southern sea was the means of winning for Spain many of those provinces whose wealth was thus exchanged for the luxuries of the Old World. Without Panamá Francisco Pizarro could never have conquered Peru,[XV‑7] and after his conquest it is more than probable that but for prompt assistance from Panamá the brave Manco Capac would have succeeded in exterminating the Spaniards within his territory. While a central position and a command of both the oceans gave to the city her wealth and importance, the same causes exposed her not infrequently to social and political convulsions, and to attack from foreign powers. An insurrection in Guatemala, a rebellion in Peru, a system of restrictions on Asiatic trade were immediately felt in Panamá, and upon that city fell the heaviest blows aimed by the English, French, or Dutch against the Spanish possessions in the New World. Between 1545 and 1671, at which later date the old city of Panamá was burned, it was sacked and partially destroyed no less than four times. In other chapters I shall bring together such facts as I have been able to find relating to the lives and fortunes of the Spaniards of Darien and Central America during the three centuries which elapsed between the conquest of that country by the Spaniards and their renunciation of allegiance to parental authority. This epoch opened and ended in attempted revolution. The first was futile, the last successful. The first was attempted by brave, strong, and daring men, but Spain and Charles were stronger. The last was attempted by weak, degenerate Spaniards, but Spain and Fernando were weaker.
* * * * *
Upon the death of Francisco Pizarro, the Almagrist faction maintained the ascendency in Peru,[XV‑8] until dispersed by Vaca de Castro on the plains of Chupas. Young Almagro then fled to Cuzco, where he was arrested and beheaded as a traitor.[XV‑9] Vaca de Castro had but just arrived in Peru. He brought with him a commission from the crown to arbitrate upon and settle the discords between the rival factions; and in the event of the decease of Francisco Pizarro, he was instructed to assume the government. Gonzalo Pizarro, who had been appointed governor of Quito, was at the time of his brother's murder absent on an expedition of discovery to the river Amazon. On his return, learning of Francisco's tragic fate, he offered his services to Vaca de Castro, but they were declined by that official, who was fearful lest the turbulent and overbearing disposition of the last of the Pizarros should interfere with his administration of the government. Gonzalo, angered at the rebuff, retired to La Plata and engaged in working the rich silver-mines in that locality.
[Sidenote: THE EMPEROR'S INDIFFERENCE.]
Up to this time Charles, occupied by the affairs of his vast empire at home, had paid but little attention to the welfare of the colonies. In general terms the Spanish government had set limits to the cruelty and oppression of the natives by the conquerors. The intentions of the sovereigns and their councils were from the beginning humane and praiseworthy as I have often observed. But as new issues were constantly growing out of these new conditions, and as very many of the royal decrees concerning the affairs of the Indies were impracticable and therefore inoperative, the conquerors were left in a measure to lay down their own rules of conduct according to their immediate necessities; or rather to act independent of all rule, being governed by the dictates of their judgment or interest. If success attended these lawless efforts, the misdeeds of these adventurers were obliterated by their gold. If unsuccessful, they usually fell victims to their cruelty or cupidity, and their bones were left to moulder in the wilderness; so that in the early history of the Spanish colonies it was only at rare intervals and in aggravated cases that any notice was taken of disobedience of the laws. To one crime, however—that of disloyalty—the Spanish monarchs were never insensible. So long as the prerogatives of the crown were strictly regarded, excesses were overlooked. The next most heinous offence was civil strife. Native Americans, a race midway between Castilians and brutes, might be slaughtered by the thousand upon slight cause;[XV‑10] but the lives of Spanish marauders were far too valuable to be given up to internecine strife.
In Peru, however, it was different. The passions of the populace had been roused by contending factions, and the license hitherto granted to the conquerors rendered them all the more impatient of restraint. Although the people were worse prepared for stringent measures than the more orderly colonists of Mexico, the person upon whom devolved the execution of the obnoxious laws lacked the wise and politic discrimination which governed the actions of Sandoval and Mendoza.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: VASCO NUÑEZ VELA.]
On the 4th of March 1544, Vasco Nuñez Vela landed at Tumbez on the Peruvian coast, and as the fame of his high-handed measures at Panamá had not preceded him, was accorded a loyal reception. His popularity was short-lived, for the viceroy immediately liberated a number of slaves and on his journey to Los Reyes would not even allow his baggage to be carried by Indians, or, if compelled to do so, he paid them liberally. Such conduct caused huge disgust throughout the province, but Nuñez was deaf to all remonstrance and even caused the arrest of some of the malecontents.
Many now bidding defiance to the vicegerent took up arms and urged Gonzalo Pizarro, the sole surviving brother of the conqueror, to place himself at their head. Nothing loath, Gonzalo proceeded at once to Cuzco, and having good store of wealth accumulated by mining and pillage soon mustered a numerous band.[XV‑11] The royal banner of Castile was planted before his quarters, and he loudly affirmed that he was a true and lawful subject of the king, that the viceroy had exceeded his instructions, and that he only aimed to hold in check his iniquitous purposes until the will of the emperor could be ascertained. Vasco Nuñez at length drew upon himself the indignation of his own partisans, who at the instigation of the bachiller Cepeda, a member of the audiencia, mutinied and decided to place the viceroy upon a vessel to be conveyed back to Spain.
Meanwhile the colonists flocked to the standard of Gonzalo from every direction, until he soon found himself at the head of twelve hundred brave and disciplined troops. On the 28th of October 1544, amidst the acclamations of the populace, he entered Lima[XV‑12] at the head of his army, and the royal audiencia was dissolved. Scarcely had the ship which was to carry Vasco Nuñez to Panamá set sail from Lima, when Álvarez, the official in charge, not daring to appear in Spain with a viceroy as a prisoner, threw himself at his feet, begged forgiveness, and placed the ship and all on board under his command. Being thus unexpectedly released, he disembarked at Tumbez, raised a small force, and marching northward as far as Quito, called upon all loyal subjects to rally for the protection of the king's authority. He then marched at the head of about five hundred men to San Miguel.[XV‑13]
Gonzalo Pizarro, who had been narrowly watching the movements of the viceroy, now determined to bring matters to an issue. On the 4th of March 1545, he departed from Lima and marched against his opponent. Vasco Nuñez, fearful of the result, abandoned the town and fled to Añaquito, whither he was followed by the revolutionists, and on the 18th of January 1536 a hotly contested battle was fought, resulting in the defeat and death of the viceroy.[XV‑14]
Even before this event Gonzalo Pizarro had assumed the dictatorship of Peru and resolved to make himself master of Panamá, his dreams of conquest extending even to the provinces north of Tierra Firme.[XV‑15] Enlisting in his service one Hernando Bachicao,[XV‑16] he placed him in command of six hundred men and a fleet of twenty-seven ships.[XV‑17] Arriving at Tumbez, Bachicao landed a hundred troops, whereupon Vasco Nuñez, though in command of two hundred well trained veterans, fled to Añaquito, a portion of his forces deserting him and joining the standard of the revolutionists. Proceeding thence to Puerto Viejo and elsewhere, he seized several vessels and enlisted a hundred and fifty recruits. Calling at the Pearl Islands he was met by two messengers from Panamá, sent to request that he would forbear to land an armed force in Tierra Firme. Bachicao replied that he intended but to land his passengers and revictual his fleet.
[Sidenote: DISRUPTION AND DEATH.]
The people of Panamá had been repeatedly warned by Vaca de Castro and others that their city was in danger of falling into the hands of Gonzalo Pizarro and had levied a force of seven hundred men, though ill-equipped and without experience or discipline. Thrown off their guard however by Bachicao's answer they allowed him to enter the harbor without opposition. He landed a portion of his forces and almost without resistance seized all the arms and ammunition in the arsenal and delivered up the city to pillage. The ship-masters in port were ordered to join his fleet, and those who refused were hanged at the yard-arm. A captain named Pedro Gallego was also executed for disobeying his order to shorten sail and cry Viva Pizarro![XV‑18]
All law and order were for the time at an end. Men were put to death without the formality of a trial, and it is even said that Bachicao beheaded some of his own officers on the merest suspicion of their disaffection or even for pastime.[XV‑19]
On receiving news of his lieutenant's misconduct accompanied with letters of remonstrance from the citizens of Panamá, Gonzalo at once deposed him from the command.[XV‑20] He was resolved, however, to gain control of the Isthmus, and despatched for this purpose Pedro de Hinojosa, at the head of two hundred and fifty men, with instructions to seize and hold both Panamá and Nombre de Dios. Hinojosa, who had first landed in Peru in 1534, and had done good service under Francisco and Hernando Pizarro, was a man of no mean abilities. Endowed by nature with a clear intelligence, honest of purpose and faithful to his trusts, with a judgment sharpened by long intercourse with the stirring scenes of the New World, he was eminently fitted for command, and enjoyed in no small degree the confidence of his soldiers.
The expedition sailed northward as far as Puerto Viejo, whence a vessel was sent in charge of Rodrigo de Carbajal with letters from Gonzalo to the principal residents of Panamá begging their favor and coöperation, disclaiming all connection with Bachicao's outrages, and stating that Hinojosa was now on his way with means sufficient to indemnify all who had suffered loss. If the force by which he was accompanied appeared to them somewhat large for the purpose, it should be remembered that Gonzalo's enemies were on the alert, and that it would be unsafe to navigate the ocean with a smaller fleet.
Accompanied by fifteen men, Carbajal landed at Ancon, a small cove two leagues from Panamá. There he was informed by some planters residing in the vicinity that two captains of the viceroy, Juan de Guzman and Juan de Illanes, were in the city enlisting troops under a commission from their chief, who awaited their coming at Quito. They had thus far succeeded in raising a company of one hundred men and in collecting a considerable quantity of arms, including six pieces of field artillery. "But," continued his informers, "although they have been ready to sail for many days, they appear to be in no haste to depart, and it is now believed that it is their intention to remain and defend the city against the insurgents." Under the circumstances, Carbajal did not think it prudent to land. He therefore despatched an emissary secretly by night with the letters from Pizarro.
The citizens to whom they were addressed were not to be duped however, and at once placed them before the authorities. The messenger was arrested, and forced to disclose all he knew respecting Hinojosa and his visit. The guard of the city was increased, and two well armed brigantines were sent to capture the vessel then at Ancon. But Carbajal was too quick for them; suspecting from the delay of his messenger the true state of affairs, he slipped away, and hiding his vessel among the Pearl Islands, there awaited the approach of his commander.[XV‑21]
[Sidenote: HINOJOSA'S ACHIEVEMENTS.]
In the mean time Hinojosa continuing his course northward touched at Buenaventura. There he learned that Vasco Nuñez Vela was then engaged, with the assistance of Benalcázar, in recruiting his army in that neighborhood. Landing a party of soldiers, he captured eight or ten of the inhabitants, who gave information that the viceroy was at Popayan, and that owing to the delay of his captains, Juan de Illanes and Juan de Guzman, he had determined to send his brother, Captain Vela Nuñez, accompanied by efficient officers, to hasten the arrival of troops from Panamá. Moreover he had ascertained that the viceroy was building a brigantine, now almost completed, on board of which he intended to place his brother, in charge of all his treasure,[XV‑22] and to send to Panamá, in the hope of obtaining a heavy ransom from some of Hinojosa's partisans, an illegitimate son of Gonzalo Pizarro, then a captive in his hands. Vela Nuñez, together with his officers and a detachment of men in charge of young Pizarro, were then marching to the coast by different routes, to embark on board the vessel. By a clever stroke of strategy Hinojosa captured both parties, seized the treasure, and placed Vela Nuñez and his command as prisoners on board the fleet. Then taking with him young Pizarro, whom he liberated and treated with marked consideration, he set sail for Panamá, and after being joined by Carbajal, cast anchor in the bay with eleven ships[XV‑23] and the two hundred and fifty men already mentioned. This was in October 1545.
The city was divided as to the policy of admitting the insurgents. The merchants and all who derived profit from the Peruvian trade saw everything to gain by the arrival of a large and richly laden fleet. Many of them furthermore held property in Peru, and transacted business through their factors, upon whom Gonzalo Pizarro would not fail to inflict summary punishment if he heard of opposition at Panamá. On the other hand Doctor Robles, the governor, with his political adherents and all who derived place and profit from the crown, loudly disclaimed against the rebels, and called on the people to assist him in the defence of the city, under penalty of the royal displeasure.[XV‑24] In the end the governor's party prevailed, the opposite faction yielding in appearance at least, and the corregidor Pedro de Casaos receiving the appointment of captain general[XV‑25] marched forth to oppose the landing of Hinojosa. The entire forces of the royalist party now mustered, apart from some small reënforcements from Nombre de Dios, nearly eight hundred men, only ninety of whom were disciplined troops, the remainder being an ill-armed crew of citizen-soldiers. The army was well supplied with field artillery.[XV‑26]
Dropping down with his fleet to the cove of Ancon, Hinojosa disembarked two hundred men under cover of his cannon, landing them on a rocky projection of the shore, inaccessible to the enemy's cavalry. He then began his march on Panamá, ordering the fleet to keep him company at a short distance from the shore with guns trimmed ready for action.[XV‑27]
At this juncture the ecclesiastics of the city issuing forth in a body, with mournful chants and sad countenances, their garments covered with crosses and the insignia of mourning, began to expostulate with both armies. "Is it necessary," they cried, "for Christians to imbue their hands in each other's blood!" At length an armistice of one day was agreed on. Hostages were given on either side, and the efforts of the priests to bring about an agreement between the parties were redoubled.
Hinojosa declared that he could not see why he was denied entrance into the city.[XV‑28] He came not to make war but restitution. Gonzalo Pizarro harbored no evil design; but he was master of Peru, and he intended to be master of the only thoroughfare to Peru—that which traversed the continent from Nombre de Dios to Panamá. If the people of the Isthmus would resign themselves to the sway of Pizarro while he wielded supreme power in Peru, or until matters were settled by the crown, all would be well; otherwise war must inevitably follow.
[Sidenote: CASAOS LOSES GROUND.]
Pedro de Casaos and the men of Panamá were not satisfied.[XV‑29] They had just experienced a foretaste of what they might expect should another of Gonzalo's captains obtain possession of the city, but their only alternative was compromise, or the arbitration of the sword. It was finally agreed that the loyal colonists who had come over from Nombre de Dios to render assistance should return, and that Hinojosa should be allowed to enter the city with a guard of thirty men, there to remain for forty-five days.[XV‑30] His ships meanwhile were to retire to Taboga or to the Pearl Islands, to be revictualled and repaired. The articles of agreement were drawn up by a notary and signed by the respective parties who bound themselves by oath to adhere faithfully to the terms stipulated.
Although Hinojosa was thus restricted by the terms of his compact and for the moment could strike no blow for the conquest of Panamá, he was by no means idle during the interval. Maintaining a strict watch against surprise and assassination,[XV‑31] he took up his quarters in a comfortable well furnished house, loaded his table with choice viands, and throwing open his doors entertained all comers with lavish hospitality. His apartments soon became the resort of soldiers and adventurers of every clique. Gonzalo Pizarro and the affairs of Peru were discussed over brimming goblets. Brilliant stories concerning the discovery and opening of mines of fabulous richness[XV‑32] fired the cupidity of the listeners, while a free passage was offered to all, and liberal pay promised from the first day of enlistment.
[Sidenote: SUCCESS OF HINOJOSA.]
By these shrewd measures Hinojosa had the satisfaction of seeing his forces daily increase, while those of Pedro de Casaos proportionately diminished. The soldiers of Juan de Illanes and Juan de Guzman did not prove insensible to the wiles and genial hospitality of Hinojosa, and those captains, seeing themselves abandoned by the greater part of their recruits, secretly stole from the city and seizing a vessel attempted to make their escape to Peru. They were, however, captured by one of the watchful captains stationed in the harbor, and not long after voluntarily joined themselves to Hinojosa and became his faithful adherents. Such was the influence which Hinojosa acquired by his careless and apparently unintentional display of wealth, and by his skill in throwing tempting baits to men who never flinched from danger when they saw prospect of gain, that in a few weeks and by a silent and bloodless revolution he became master of the city. At the expiration of the forty-five days he seized the batteries and made a formal entry into Panamá at the head of his entire force, amidst the acclamations of the greater part of the inhabitants.
Hinojosa took no advantage of his easily won victory. He strove to maintain the strictest discipline among his followers, treated the citizens with the utmost liberality, and ordered that the soldiers should respect their rights and in no wise interfere with their affairs.[XV‑33] He then despatched his son-in-law, Hernando Mejía de Guzman, in company with Pedro de Cabrera, to take possession of Nombre de Dios and guard the interests of Gonzalo Pizarro in that quarter.
[Sidenote: MELCHOR VERDUGO.]
While the province of Panamá thus quietly passed into the hands of Hinojosa the partisans of the viceroy were not idle. Melchor Verdugo,[XV‑34] to whom as one of the conquerors of Peru had been assigned the province of Caxamalca, proffered his services to Vasco Nuñez Vela, on his first landing in Peru. Becoming afterward implicated in a plot devised by the royalist party to gain possession of Lima, he was arrested in that city by order of Gonzalo Pizarro. Escaping thence he proceeded to Trujillo, where he was fortunate enough to seize one of Bachicao's vessels, laden with the spoils of Panamá. With the proceeds of this capture, and with funds realized from his own estate, he enlisted a company in the service of the viceroy. He then sailed for Nicaragua and requested from the governor, as a loyal servant of the king, men and means to assist him in quelling the insurrection on the Isthmus. Failing to draw from him a hearty response he next applied to the audiencia of the Confines. With the magistrates of that tribunal he was more successful. Licentiate Ramirez de Alarcon, one of the members, took an active part in recruiting men and collecting arms and horses.
In the mean time tidings of Verdugo's doings in Peru and Nicaragua and his intended expedition to the northern coast of Darien reached Panamá. Hinojosa, fearing that Verdugo might raise a force sufficient to cause him trouble, sent Juan Alonso Palomino with two vessels and one hundred and twenty arquebusiers in pursuit. Arriving at Nicaragua Palomino captured Verdugo's vessel without difficulty, but on attempting to land found himself confronted by all the available men in the province arrayed under the royalist banner, under the command of Verdugo and the licentiate. After hovering about the coast for several days, watching in vain for a chance to disembark, he seized all the ships on the coast, and burning those which were unserviceable, returned with the remainder to Panamá, not knowing that his design was suspected. Verdugo made ready on Lake Nicaragua three or four frigates, and with two hundred choice and well armed troops[XV‑35] sailed through the river San Juan to the North Sea, and creeping stealthily along the coast, hoped to surprise the rebels before his presence in that quarter became known. At the Rio Chagre he captured a vessel manned by negroes, from whom he obtained valuable information as to the condition of affairs at Nombre de Dios, the number of men stationed there, the names of their commanders, and a minute description of the building in which the officers were quartered.
Hinojosa was on the alert, but not so his captains. Though warned of the approach of the loyal party, they were taken by surprise. Landing at midnight, Verdugo stole quietly to the house where Hernando Mejía, Pedro Cabrera, and other officers were peacefully slumbering, surrounded the premises, and fired the dwelling. The dilatory captains, maddened at thus being entrapped in their own beds, sprang up, and seizing their weapons rushed out of the blazing edifice, and cutting their way through the enemy made their escape to the woods and finally to Panamá.[XV‑36]
Had Verdugo thenceforth conducted his affairs with the skill and discretion which characterized Hinojosa's movements at Panamá he would have caused that commander no little trouble, but he had none of the tact or generalship of Gonzalo's officer. He imprisoned the alcaldes, levied arbitrary assessments upon the merchants, demanded heavy ransom for his prisoners, and soon made himself so obnoxious to the people that with one accord they petitioned Doctor Ribera, the mayor, to ask protection from Hinojosa. The appeal was not in vain. Ribera at once entered into negotiations with Hinojosa,[XV‑37] and it was agreed that while the former levied troops at Nombre de Dios, the latter should at once march from Panamá with a strong force. Verdugo impressed into his service every available man, and withdrawing from the town, took up a position on the shore, where he was to some extent covered by the guns of his vessels. There he awaited Hinojosa, who with a small but picked company of veterans[XV‑38] was now crossing the Isthmus to join battle with the royalist forces.
As soon as the rebel troops debouched from the woods surrounding Nombre de Dios, Ribera sallied from the town and opened a lively fire on the forces of Verdugo, the citizens taking fright at the first noise of the fray and scampering to a hill near by. Hinojosa's brigade advanced meanwhile with the steady measured tramp of trained soldiers, whereupon the men of Nicaragua, led by Verdugo, took to their heels also, leaving but one of their number wounded on the field,[XV‑39] and regained their ships, whence a brisk cannonade was opened on the town, but without visible result save loss of ammunition. The royalist captain then set sail for Cartagena, there to await a more favorable opportunity to serve his king. Hinojosa severely reprimanded Mejía and the other fugitive officers, and leaving them at Nombre de Dios in charge of a stronger garrison returned with Ribera to Panamá.
Nothing could have happened that would draw the attention of the court of Spain to the affairs of the New World more effectually than rebellion, as I have before intimated. The discovery and conquest of America cannot be classed as an achievement of the nation. It was a magnificent accident, in the busy reigns of Ferdinand and Isabella, and Charles. Those sovereigns, absorbed in wars and involved in ambitious intrigues at home, with a vast continent thrust upon them by a Genoese navigator, could scarcely find time to do more than grant permits to adventurers to subjugate, at their own cost, new territories in the western world, and to receive when remitted to them the royal fifth of the returns. But rebellion, of whatsoever magnitude or shape, is always distasteful to a sovereign. Therefore when tidings reached Spain that the emperor's representative in Peru had been maltreated, and that a powerful body of insurgents held possession of that province, the monarch and his ministers were aroused. The affairs of Peru occupied for a time their careful consideration. Lengthy debates and close councils followed. At first, the king's counsellors in their deliberations consulted only the honor of the nation and strongly advocated sending an armed force against Pizarro; but insurrection at home and insurrection in Peru were two very different things. The Spanish government could more easily make war against a hundred thousand men in Spain or Germany than against one thousand in the wilds of that distant province.[XV‑40]
[Sidenote: PEDRO DE LA GASCA.]
Pedro de la Gasca,[XV‑41] a counsellor of the inquisition, but a man holding no public office, was the one selected as the fit instrument for the occasion. He united a mild and insinuating disposition with remarkable firmness and tenacity, and a cool and bland exterior with a strength and sagacity but little suspected by most of his countrymen. None knew better how to combine a subtle humility and bold caution with unpretending manners and a pleasant address, and no man could have been found better qualified to undertake the task. He obeyed the summons of the court with reluctance, but once having engaged in the undertaking, his whole soul was absorbed in its execution. Before setting out he declined an offered bishopric; he would accept no salary, nor any title except that of president of the royal audiencia of Lima.[XV‑42] He was empowered with the authority of a sovereign, being allowed to levy troops, declare war, appoint and remove officers at will, make repartimientos, condemn to death, condone offences, grant amnesties, and might send back to Spain if necessary even the viceroy himself.[XV‑43]
[Sidenote: A CLEVER PRIEST.]
On the 26th of May 1546, Gasca set sail from San Lúcar with a small retinue, consisting of two oidores, and among other cavaliers the mariscal Alonso de Alvarado and the adelantado Pascual de Andagoya. Had the emissaries of Charles appeared off the Isthmus in warlike guise, the captains of Gonzalo Pizarro would have opposed them to the last, but what had they to fear from a humble priest with but a score or two of attendants? Nevertheless, Hernando Mejía was not without his suspicions of Alvarado.[XV‑44] He had but recently committed one blunder in allowing himself to be outwitted by Melchor Verdugo; but after some hesitation he decided that if the priest came armed with such a commission from the king as Alvarado affirmed, it were better to treat him with the respect due to a royal envoy. On the 17th of July Gasca intimated his intention to land, and Mejía gave him a loyal reception. Drawing up his men on the beach, he put out for the president's vessel with a guard of twenty arquebusiers, brought him ashore, and amid the roar of cannon and musketry conducted him to his own quarters within the town.
Mejía was not long in the company of the unpretending ecclesiastic before he became convinced that beneath his calm demeanor slumbered a power that would soon make itself felt in the land. Gasca explained the object of his errand and the scope of his authority. His purpose was peace, and his commission, which was dated after the battle of Añaquito and the death of the viceroy, authorized him to grant pardon for all offences, no matter how heinous.[XV‑45] It now therefore became all loyal subjects to oppose no longer the emperor's messenger. Mejía hesitated. At heart he was loyal, though in common with others he had espoused the cause of the chivalrous conquerors in opposition to the austere and unpopular rule of Vaca de Castro and Vasco Nuñez Vela. Not even Gonzalo Pizarro, much less his subordinates, admitted themselves to be rebels. Gasca did not press the matter. He soon read the honest soldier completely and knew his man. His policy was rather to throw around those over whom he desired to gain ascendency the subtle influence which a man of his keen, incisive penetration, invested with the garb of authority, and versed in all the wily craft and casuistry of his order, knew well how to exercise, than to force an unwilling assent to measures which were distasteful and might afterward be lightly disclaimed.
Mejía being left to draw his own conclusions and to act for himself, at length thus declared his resolution to Gasca: "I am a loyal subject of the emperor. If Gonzalo Pizarro is such he cannot question my course; if not, I choose not to follow the fortunes of traitors." He then placed himself and his men at the priest's disposal, gave him a correct statement of the military and naval strength under Hinojosa's command, and even offered to march on Panamá and seize the fleet.[XV‑46] The envoy congratulated him upon his decision, and assured him that the king would reward him for his loyalty, but declined any service from him, other than keeping his resolve for the present a secret.
On receiving news of the president's landing and of his courteous reception, Hinojosa was sorely displeased. His lieutenant had been placed in command at Nombre de Dios for the express purpose of guarding the northern coast against the approach of any expedition hostile to the interests of Gonzalo Pizarro; and now, after being surprised by a band of men from Nicaragua, and compelled to flee to Panamá, he welcomed with royal honors, and without even consulting his commander, a man commissioned to assume authority over all the affairs of Peru. Gasca shrewdly surmised that Mejía while clearing himself from the imputation of treachery would plead the cause of the king more effectually than he himself could do. He therefore ordered him to accompany Alvarado to Panamá and lay the whole matter before Hinojosa. The latter was pacified with no great difficulty. It was pointed out to him that, if it was the correct policy to allow the envoy to land, all would have the benefit of it; whereas, if an error had been committed it was a simple matter to order the priest and his comrades on board their vessels. Thus reassured he gave permission to his officer to return and escort the president across the Isthmus.
Melchor Verdugo, in the mean time, having tired of inglorious ease at Cartagena, had landed at Nombre de Dios, and there laid his humble duty at the feet of his Majesty's envoy. Gasca informed him that the best service he could render his sovereign would be to return to Nicaragua and there disband his forces. The meddlesome captain protested vehemently, but he was not of the metal with which the priest proposed to crush the rebellion. A band of blatant, dull-witted adventurers, whipped into fury by the superior generalship and soldierly qualities of Hinojosa and his veterans, could be of no assistance to him. Finding at length that the president was determined to ignore him, Verdugo withdrew his troops, and soon afterward returned to Spain, there to lay his grievances before the emperor.
[Sidenote: GASCA AND THE REBELS.]
On the 13th of August 1546 Gasca makes his entrance into Panamá, and is received with much ceremony by the commander-in-chief, the governor, and magistrates of the city. Hinojosa with all his keen penetrating common-sense, his practical experience, and his thorough knowledge of the world, is no more proof against the seeming candor and mild winning deportment of the unpretending priest than was Mejía. A downright foe is his delight. He will match his wit or skill in military or political affairs against those of any man in the Indies. But when the sovereign power of Spain appears in robes of sacred humility, and giving utterance in bland accents to doctrines worthy of the prince of peace, the sagacity of the soldier is at fault. The foe has become a phantom, powerful, nay invincible, but intangible. Opposition to the subtle influence of the priest is like waging conflict with the powers of air.
At length Hinojosa calls on the president, and begs him to specify the nature of the authority with which he is vested. Gasca replies that he is the bearer of glad tidings to the Spanish settlers; for his Majesty has been pleased to revoke the more obnoxious measures contained in the new laws, and to empower him to grant a full pardon for all that has occurred in Peru. Hinojosa then asks if Gonzalo Pizarro is included in this amnesty, and whether he will be confirmed in his position as governor. Gasca evades the question; whereupon the commander's suspicions being roused he at once orders a ship to be made ready, and sends a despatch to Gonzalo, giving an account of the priest's arrival, of his reception by Mejía at Nombre de Dios, and of the nature of the envoy's mission; assuring his former chieftain that he may rely on him to execute faithfully any instructions.
By the same vessel Gasca despatches a Dominican monk, Francisco de San Miguel, to proclaim throughout Peru the arrival of the royal commissioner, and his promise to condone the offences of all who return to their allegiance. He also addresses letters to many influential persons in whom he had confidence. Finally he forwards to Gonzalo a despatch from the emperor, accompanied by an epistle from himself, a perfect masterpiece of diplomacy, in which he touches but lightly on the overthrow of the viceroy, avows that if he be not loyal there is not a soul whom he can venture to trust, and begs him as a Christian and a true Spaniard to persist no longer in rebellion. Meanwhile, the crafty envoy sends a messenger to the viceroy of New Spain, urging him not to allow arms or horses to be sent to Peru, and to hold his navy in readiness for war.[XV‑47]
The arrival of this unwelcome news from Panamá caused no slight annoyance. A council of officers was summoned; the principal inhabitants of Lima were invited to attend; the letters were read in public; and all were invited to express their opinion. Gasca's despatch provoked much merriment[XV‑48] and many a threat, but they knew not the man they had to deal with. Some declared for killing him outright; others for sending him back to Spain; and only a voice here and there was heard in favor of admitting him to Peru. After long discussion it was finally determined to send an embassy to Spain and lay the matter before the emperor, and that a resolution, signed by seventy of the leading cavaliers in the city, should be forwarded to the envoy, stating that, civil dissensions having now terminated, the nation was enjoying the blessings of peace under the rule of Gonzalo Pizarro, and that the presence of his Majesty's representative would not only tend to distract the province but might cost him his life.
Aldana, one of Gonzalo's lieutenants, though secretly a traitor to the revolutionary cause, was despatched to Panamá with the missive. Arriving in that city on the 13th of November, he repaired to Hinojosa's house before calling on the president. There being allowed to read the governor's private despatches he threw them into the flames. Proceeding thence to the president's quarters he offered him his services, and it was agreed that Hinojosa should be openly invited to join the royalist party. Fernando Mejía also tried his powers of persuasion, arguing that as the emperor's will had been made known it was their duty to obey the president without awaiting the result of the appeal to the throne, that matters were now in a fair way for settlement, and that if this opportunity should pass unheeded they might wait long for another chance of escaping the consequences of their treason. Hinojosa was unwilling to accept this view of the case. He believed that the action of the revolutionary party was so far justifiable. He therefore replied that he had already informed the envoy of his intentions, that if his Majesty should not be pleased to grant the petition of Gonzalo Pizarro he would at once render his obedience to the crown. But Hinojosa was at length entangled in the net of the wily priest and in company with his lieutenant called at the president's house, meekly swore allegiance to his cause, placed his fleet at his disposal, and hoisted the royal banner of Spain from the mainmast of his flag-ship.
[Sidenote: GASCA'S SUCCESS.]
Gasca now answered the resolution signed by the seventy cavaliers, inditing his letter to Gonzalo, and expressing his wonder that such an insignificant clérigo as he should be refused admittance into Peru. He begged them to rid their minds of all apprehension as to any hostile intent on his part. Then binding his officers by oath[XV‑49] not to reveal his purpose, he impressed into his service every available man on the Isthmus, obtained loans of money, wrote to the governors of all the Spanish provinces for assistance, despatched powerful squadrons to secure the port of Lima and capture Gonzalo's vessels on the coast of Peru, and on the 13th of June 1547 landed at Tumbez in command of more than one thousand troops.[XV‑50]
"Surely the devil must be in their midst!" exclaimed old Carbajal,[XV‑51] as Valdivia receiving this compliment to his generalship put his army in array at Xaquixaguana, and Gasca withdrew to the rear with his train of ecclesiastics. The rout of the rebel forces could hardly have been more complete had his satanic majesty been present in person, and almost within sight of the capital of the incas the last of the Pizarros was handed over to the executioner, upbraiding with his last breath those who, grown rich by his brother's bounty and his own, had deserted to his enemies, and were now gathered around his scaffold,[XV‑52] while he himself was left without the means of purchasing a mass for the welfare of his abandoned soul.[XV‑53]