252 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY fBiLL. 28 



fox* this purpose. The other seats were smaller, even when the king came to 

 visit him. The authority of this devilish ju'lest was so great that thei-e was no 

 one who dared to cross the court, and to avoid this the other three chambers 

 had doors in the rear, through which even the kings entered. For this purpose 

 they had alleys and passageways on the outside above and below, by which 

 people could enter and go out when they came to see the high priest. 



These priests never married, nor did they hold intercourse with women. 

 Only, at certain feasts, which they celebrated with great banqueting and nuich 

 drunkenness, the kings brought to them the unmarried daughters of the chief- 

 tains, and if one of these became pregnant she was taken to a retired spot until 

 her confinement, so that if a son should be born he could be brought up as the 

 successor of the priest in his office, for this succession always fell to the son or 

 nearest relative and was never elective. 



The second chiimber above ground was that of the priests and the assistants 

 of the high [)riests. The third was that of the king when he came. The fourth 

 was that of the other chieftains and captains, and though the space was small 

 for so great a number and for so many different families, yet they accommodated 

 themselves to each other out of respect for the place and avoided dissensions 

 and factions. Furthermore, there was no other administration of justice in this 

 place than that of the high priest, to whose unlimited power all bowed. 



All the rooms were clean and well furnished with mats. It was not the cus- 

 tom to sleep on bedsteads, however great a lord might be. They used very taste- 

 fully braided mats, which were spread on the floor, and soft skins of animals 

 and delicate fabrics for coverings. Their food consisted usually of animals 

 killed in the hunt ; deer, rabbits, armadillos, etc., and also birds, which they 

 killed with snares or arrows. The bread, made of their maize, was white and 

 well kneaded. Their drinks were always cold, made of ground chocolate, which 

 was mixed with water and pounded maize. Other drinks were made of pulpy 

 and of crushed fruits, which were then mixed with the intoxicating drink pre- 

 pared from the agave, for since the common people were forbidden the use of 

 intoxicating drinks, there was always an abundance of these on hand. 



This entire account of IMitla [the father adds in conclusion 1 was added to 

 his history that he might be faithful to his i)romise, and although these things 

 were, of course, full of superstition and impious eri'or, still they wei'e the most 

 important and intelligent manifestations of this nation which had fallen under 

 his observation. 



I have translated and quoted this passage at length because it con- 

 tains the account of an eyewitness who saw the moniunents when they 

 were still in a tolerably intact condition, furnished still with the roof, 

 which is now entirely gone; because this passage is the only one I 

 know of, dating from ancient times, which gives an explanation con- 

 cerning the purpose and significance of the diiferent buildings; and 

 because the book from which the quotation is taken is extremely rare. 

 In spite of much inquiry, I have heard of no library in Germany or 

 Austria which contains the work. 



The position of the buildings as they stand to-day is seen on the 

 plan given in plate xxii. This is drawn, according to a plan made 

 by the well-known architect, E. Miihlenpfordt, in the year 1831, with 

 the addition of some details which were added from the results of per- 

 sonal observations and after a recent drawing- bv Mr J. Leon. It is 



