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" Oh good uncle let us return. 



Forward, dear nephew forward, 

 *' Truft in God and never heed auguries. 



Quitting the fubjedt of our fador and his delicate fpecches, I have 

 now to mention how a marriage took place on the arrival of the party 

 at the town of Ojeda, which is near that of Orizava, between our lin- 

 guift Donna Marina, and Juan Xaramillo. The next place they came 

 to was Guazpaltepeque, in the diftrid: of Sandoval. As foon as intel- 

 ligence reached Guacacualco of the advance of Cortes to Guazpaltepeque, 

 all the Spaniards of that fettlement came thirty three leagues to receive 

 him. This I mention that the reader may fee what fear and refped he 

 was held in by us. Proceeding beyond the place laft mentioned, incrof- 

 ing a large river, fortune began to frown upon us, for three of our ca- 

 noes overfet, whereby fome plate and other valuables were loft, for 

 that river is fo full of alligators that there was no recovering any thing. 

 Faffing Illuta, when we came to the river by Guacacualco we found 

 three hundred canoes faflened two and two to carry us over ; here wc 

 were received under triumphal arches, and with various feflivities repre- 

 fenting fkirmifhes of Chriflians and Moors, together with fireworks 

 and other (hows of that kind. 



Here Cortes remained fix days, during which time the fador was 

 continually founding in his ears the burthen of his old fong. He alfo 

 told him of fecret pradices of the contador and the treafurer, who boaft- 

 ed that he was the fon of his catholic Majefly, and in Oiort a number 

 of ftories, the drift of all which was, to induce Cortes to fupercede the 

 prefent deputies, and put him, and the veedor, in their places. In this 

 he too well fucceeded ; for by his arts he obtained from the general a 

 deputation for himfelf and his affociate the veedor, to hold the govern- 

 ment of Mexico, in cafe they fhould judge that the prefent deputies 



Eee 2 faifed 



