299 
some dispersed families, who, restrained by the 
love of their native soil, had not thought proper 
to share the chances of the emigration. 
The annals of the Aztecks begin, according to 
Gama, at an epocha corresponding to the year 
1091 of our era; a period at which, by order of 
their chief Chalchiuhtlatonac, they celebrated the 
festival of the renewal of the fire at Tlalixco, 
called also Acahualtzinco, situate probably under 
the parallel of thirty-three or thirty-five north 
latitude. It is only since the year 1091, in 
which as the Indian historian Chimalpain ex- 
pressly says, they tied for the first time the years 
after their going forth from Aztlan, that Mexican 
history presents the greatest order, and an asto - 
nishing minuteness in the recital of events. 
Conformably to what we have hitherto stated 
of the rechoning of the Sun^ and the uniform di- 
vision of the year into eighteen months of equal 
duration, it would have been easy for the Mexi- 
cans, to denote the periods of historical events 
by recording the day of the month, and reckon- 
ing the number of years which had passed since 
the famous sacrifice of Tlalixco. This simple 
and natural method would without doubt have 
been followed, if the annals of the empire had 
not been kept by the priests, teopixquL We 
sometimes find, it is true, the hieroglyphic of a 
month, to which are added round points, placed 
in two unequal rows, proving by their disposi- 
