48 



HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



happening. Every morning they prepared the offering 

 of provifions which was prefented to the idols, and fwept 

 the lower area of the temple, and the time which was 

 not occupied in thefe, or other religious duties, was em- 

 ployed in fpinning and weaving beautiful cloths for the 

 drefs of the idols, and the decoration of the fan&uaries. 

 Nothing was more zealoufly attended to than the chaflity 

 of thefe virgins. Any trefpafs of this nature was un- 

 pardonable ; if it remained an entire fecret, the female 

 culprit endeavoured to appeafe the anger of the gods by 

 fading and aufterity of life ; for me dreaded that in pu- 

 nifliment of her crime her flefli would rot. When a vir- 

 gin, deftined from her infancy to the worfhip of the gods, 

 arrived at the age of fixteen or eighteen, at which years 

 they were ufually married, her parents fought for a huf- 

 band to her, and after they found one, prefented to the 

 Tepanteohuatzin a certain number of quails in plates 

 curioufly varniflied, and a certain quantity of copal, of 

 flowers and provifions, accompanied with a ftudied ad- 

 drefs, in which they thanked him for the care and atten- 

 tion he had fhewn in the education of their daughter, 

 and demanded his permiflion to fettle her in marriage. 

 The Tepanteohuatzin granted the requeft, in a reply to 

 the addrefs, exhorting his pupil to a perfeverance in vir- 

 tue, and the fulfillment of all the duties of the married 

 ftate. 



Amongft the different orders or congregations both of 

 men and women, who dedicated themfelves to the wor- 

 fhip of fome particular gods, that of Quetzalcoatl is wor- 

 thy to be mentioned. The life led in the colleges or 

 monafteries of either fex, which were devoted to this 

 imaginary god, was uncommonly rigid and auftere. The 

 drefs of the order was extremely decent ; they bathed 



regularly 



