130 



HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



fixty-one years from the foundation of it to the begin- 

 ning of the laft century: fo that they imagined it to 

 have been founded immediately after the death of our 

 Saviour ; but the error of this opinion appears manifeft, 

 from the hiftories of other nations, which make the Te- 

 panecas little more ancient in Anahuac than the Mexi- 

 cans, and alfo from the feries itfelf of the chiefs of Az- 

 capozalco, whofe portraits were preferved unto our time 

 in an ancient edifice of that city. They did not count 

 more than ten princes from the foundation of their city, 

 unto the memorable deftru&ion of their ftate, occafion- 

 ed by the combined arms of the Mexicans and Acolhuas, 

 which happened, as we mall find, in the year 1425 : on 

 which account it would be neceffary to allow to each of 

 their fovereigns one hundred and forty years of reign to 

 fill up that period. 



The Totonacas, on their part, reported themfelves 

 more ancient than the Chechemecas ; for the boafl: of 

 antiquity is a weaknefs common to all nations. They 

 relate, that having been at firft, for fome time, eftablifh- 

 ed on the banks of the Tezcucan lake ; from thence 

 they went to people thofe mountains, which took from 

 them the name of Totonacapan ; that there they were 

 governed by ten lords, each of whom governed the na- 

 tion precifely eighty years, until the Chechemecas hav- 

 ing arrived in Anahuac, in the time of the fecond lord 

 of that nation, named Xatoncan, at length fubje&ed 

 them to their dominion ; and that tartly they were the 

 fubje&s of the kings of Mexico. Torquemada, who re- 

 lates this account of the Totonacas, in the third book of 

 his Indian Monarchy, adds, that this is certain and con- 

 firmed by authentic hiftories worthy of faith ; but what- 

 ever he may fay, it is certain that the time of the arrival 



of 



