312 



HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



felf in obferving the heavens, and for that purpofe had 

 conftrufled, on the terrace of his palace, a little obferva- 

 tory, which was preferved for a century after, and was 

 feen by fome Spanifh hiflorians who mention it. He. 

 there not only fludied the motion and courfe of the 

 ftars, but converfed with thofe who were intelligent in 

 aftronomy : that fcience having always been in efteem 

 among them, they applied ftill more to it when excited 

 by the examples of the great Nezahualcojotl, and his 

 fon and fuccelTor. 



After living fix months in this private manner, he re- 

 turned to his court, ordered his beloved Xocotzin to re- 

 tire with her children into the palace of Tecpilpan^ and 

 fliut himfelf up in the palace of his ufual refidence, with- 

 out letfing himfelf be feen by any perfon but one of his 

 confidents, defigning to conceal his death in imitation of <, 

 his father. Accordingly, neither the time nor the cir- 

 cumftances of his death have ever been known. All 

 that is certain is, that he died in 1516, and that before 

 his death he commanded his confidents who were about 

 him to burn his body fecretly. From hence it happened 

 that many of the vulgar, and even feveral of the nobles, 

 were perfuaded that he was not dead, but had returned 

 to the kingdom of Amaquemecan whence his anceflors 

 fprung, as he had frequently refolved to do. 



In matters of religion he was of the fame opinion with 

 his great father Nezahualcojotl. He fecretly defpifed 

 the worfliip of the idols, although he appeared to con- 

 form to it with the people. He refembled his father alfo 

 in his great zeal for the laws, and in the rigorous admi- 

 niftration of juftice, of which he afforded a ftriking ex- 

 ample in the lad years of his reign. There was a law 

 which forbid, on pain of death, the fpeaking of indecent 



words 



