GUATEMALA. 
234 
considering the work of creation. Know that this water 
will retire and give place to land, which shall appear 
everywhere; there shall be light in the heaven and on 
earth: but we have yet made no being who shall respect 
and honor us. They spoke, and the land appeared 
because of them.” 
After the mountains and plains and rivers and all 
animals of the forest had been created, the gods proceeded 
to form man. First they made him of mud; but the rains 
descended and beat upon that being, and he dissolved. 
Not being able to make man according to their desires, 
they called to their aid the mysterious powers of Xpi- 
yacoc and Xmucane, magic adepts, and by incantation 
learned that man should be made of wood, and woman of 
the pith of bulrush. This second edition of the human 
species was little better than the first, although more dur¬ 
able. The stiff, wooden images had neither fat nor blood; 
they could speak and beget children, but lacked intelli¬ 
gence. Their eyes were never turned to heaven, and their 
tongues never glorified Huracan. Then there fell from 
heaven a torrent of bitumen and pitch on these ungrate¬ 
ful children, a bird named Xecotcovuch tore out their 
eyes, another, named Camulotz, cut their heads, while an 
animal called Cotzbalam ate their flesh, and the Tucurn- 
balam crushed their bones. The poor wretches climbed 
their roofs to escape the flood; but the walls crumbled 
beneath them, and the trees fled from them, and when 
they sought refuge in the caves of the mountains, the 
stone doors shut in their faces. Of all the numerous 
progeny of this wooden couple, only a few were pre¬ 
served, and from them have descended the apes of the 
present day. 
