HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



7 



not the Tezcucans, under whofe orders the Zoltepechefe 

 had afted, were blameable for that; but, notwithstanding, 

 they would ufe every endeavour to make all be reftored 

 to him ; and having taken polite leave of the Spanifh ge- 

 neral, returned in hafle to Tezcuco with the news of the 

 near arrival of the Spaniards at that court. 



Cortes entered with his array into Tezcuco, on the 

 laft day of that year. Some nobles came out to meet 

 him, and conduced him to one of the palaces of the late 

 king Nezahualcojotl, which was fo large, that not only 

 the fix hundred Spaniards were lodged in it, but, ac- 

 cording to what Cortes fays, it could have accommodat- 

 ed fix hundred more. That general foon perceived the 

 concourfe of people in the ftreets remarkably diminiflied, 

 as he thought he did not fee the third part of the inha- 

 bitants which he had feen upon former occadons, and 

 particularly obferved that the women and children were 

 x)ut of the way, which was a manifeft token of fome evil 

 difpofition in that court. In order to leffen the diftruft 

 of the citizens, and avoid any accident to his own peo- 

 ple, he publifhed a proclamation, in which he forbad, 

 under pain of death, any of his foldiers to leave their 

 quarters without his permiffion. After dinner, they ob- 

 ferved from the terraces of the palace a great number of 

 people abandoning the city, fome withdrawing to the 

 neighbouring woods, and others to different places 

 around the lake. The night following, the king Coana- 

 cotzin abfented, tranfporting himfelf to Mexico by water, 

 in fpite of Cortes, who defigned to have taken him, as 

 he had formerly done, his three brothers Cacamatzin, 

 Cuicuitzcatzin, and Ixtlilxochitl. Coanacotzin could 

 not purfue any other meafure; for how was it poflible 

 he could think himfelf fecure among the Spaniards, after 



having 



