ILLNESS OF THE CURA OF TICUL. 339 



other good advice, he concluded by telling them 

 that they were to execute the laws and obey their 

 superiors. 



At nine o'clock we returned to our quarters, 

 where, either by reason of our exertion, or from the 

 regular course of the disease, we all had a recur- 

 rence of fever, and were obliged to betake ourselves 

 to our hammocks. While in this condition the pa- 

 drecito came in with a letter he had just received 

 from Ticul, bringing intelligence that the cura had 

 passed a fatal night, and was then dying. His min- 

 istro had written to us at the ruins, advising us of 

 his continued indisposition and inability to join us, 

 but, until our arrival at Nohcacab, we had no inti- 

 mation that his illness was considered dangerous. 

 The intelligence was sudden and most afflicting. 

 It was so short a time since we had parted with him 

 to meet again at Uxmal, his kindness was so fresh in 

 our recollection, that we would have gone to him 

 immediately, but we were fastened to our ham- 

 mocks. 



His illness had created a great sensation among 

 the Indians of Ticul. They said that he was going 

 to die, and that it was a visitation of God for dig- 

 ging up the bones in San Francisco ; this rumour 

 became wilder as it spread, and was not confined 

 to the Indians. An intelligent Mestizo lad belong- 

 ing to the village came over with the report, which 

 he repeated to gaping listeners, that the poor cura 

 lay on his back with his hands clasped on his breast, 



