( H7 ) 



■germ, and origin of all created things, and was the god of harveil, and 

 ifuuits. The walls and altars were bellained like the reft, and fo ofFen- 

 Cive, that we thought we never could get out foon enough. 



In this place they had a drum of moft enormous fize, the head of 

 which was made of the fkins of large ferpents : this inftrument when 

 ilruck refounded with a noife that could be heard to the diftance of two 

 deagues, and ib doleful that it deferved to be named the mufic of the in- 

 fernal regions; and with their horrible founding horns and trumpets, 

 their great knives for facrifice, their human victims, and their blood 

 jbefprinkled altars, I devoted them, and all their wickednefs to God's 

 vengeance, and thought that the time would never arrive, that I fliould 

 efcape from this fcene of human butchery, horrible fmells, and more 

 deteftable fights. 



Cortes, half in jeft, addrefling himfelf to Montezuma, expreffed 

 his wonder how fo wife a prince could worfhip fuch abfurd and wicked 

 powers; and propofed to him to place on the fummit of that tower a 

 erofs, and in thefe adoratories the image of the holy Virgin, and he 

 alTured him that he fhould then be foon convinced of the vanity and de- 

 ception of his idols. Montezuma (hewed marks of difpleafure at thefe 

 expreffions, faying, that he would not have admitted us into the temple, 

 had bethought that we would have infulted their gods, who w^ere kind 

 to them, who gave them health and feafonable rains, good harvefts., 

 fine weather, vid:ories and whatever elfe they defired, and whom they 

 were in duty, and in gratitude, bound to worfliip. Cortes dropped 

 the difcourfe, obferving /that it was time for us to go; and Montezuma 

 affenting, faid, it was necelTary for him to remain, to expiate by fa- 

 crifice the fin which he had committed, in admitting us there. Cortes 

 then took leave, and thus we concluded our vifit to the great temple of 

 Mexico, defcending the fteps with much pain to our invalids. 



I will now proceed to relate other matters, in which, if I am not 

 fo corre<5l as I ought to be, let it be remembered that my fituation was 



U 2 that 



