454 THE TLASCALTECAS. 



LIB. vn. sodainely set vpon them, and the Chichimecas seeking to 

 defend themselves, they did want their armes, so as they 

 fled to the mountaines and forrests adioyning, where they 

 pulled downe trees as if they had beene stalkes of lettices. 

 But, in the end, the Tlascaltecas being armed, and march 

 ing in order, they defeated all the giants, not leaving one 

 alive. We must not holde this of the giants to be strange 

 or a fable; for, at this day, we finde dead mens bones of an 

 incredible bignes. 



When I was in Mexico, in the yeare of our Lorde one 

 thousand five hundred eighty sixe, they found one of those 

 giants buried in one of our farmes, which we call lesus del 

 Monte, of whom they brought a tooth to be seene, which 

 (without augmenting) was as big as the fist of a man ; and, 

 according to this, all the rest was proportionable, which I 

 saw and admired at his deformed greatnes. The Tlascalte 

 cas, by this victory, remained peaceable, and so did the 

 rest of the lineages. The six lineages did alwayes entertaine 

 amitie together, marrying their children one with another, 

 and dividing their limites quietly : then they studied with 

 an emulation to encrease and beautifie their common-weale. 

 The barbarous Chichimecas, seeing what passed, beganne 

 to vse some government, and to apparrell themselves, being 

 ashamed of what had passed : for till then they had no 

 shame. And having abandoned feare by their communica 

 tion with these other people, they beganne to learne many 

 things of them, building small cottages, having some pollicie 

 and government. They did also choose Lordes, whom they 

 did acknowledge for their superiors, by meanes whereof 

 they did in a manner quite abandon this brutish life, yet 

 did they alwayes continue in the Mountaines divided from 

 the rest. 



Notwithstanding, I hold it for certaine that this feare 

 hath growne from other Nations and Provinces of the In 

 dies, who at the first were savage men, who living onely by 



