Guatemoc

“ Now the Spaniards came in again and removed Guatemoc and the cacique of Tacuba, carrying them in their arms, for they could not walk, and indeed the cacique was in a swoon.
“Farewell, Teule,” said Guatemoc as he passed me; “you are indeed a true son of Quetzal and a gallant man. May the gods reward you in times to come for all that you have suffered for me and mine, since I cannot.” ”

“ An instrument of the devil it was indeed, for every time its doleful tones startled our ears, they were offering the hearts and blood of our comrades before their idols. Beset from housetop, canoes and causeway, we had not near accomplished our retreat when Guatemoc ordered the great horn to be sounded—the signal of the monarch that he permitted his troops no choice but victory or death. Echoings and re-echoings of this horn roused the warriors to terrific fury, and they threw themselves forward till they fairly ran upon our swords. ”

“ O god our hope, choose now a servant to succeed him, a man after thine own heart, who shall not fear nor falter, who shall toil and not be weary, who shall lead thy people as a mother leads her children. Lord of lords, give grace to Guatemoc thy creature, who is our choice. Seal him to thy service, and as thy priest let him sit upon thy earthly throne for his life days. Let thy foes become his footstool, let him exalt thy glory, proclaim thy worship, and protect thy kingdom. ”

“ Now when I heard this tale my anger overcame my reason, and I spoke fiercely, saying:
“I am sworn to your cause, Guatemoc, my brother, and I am married to your blood, but I tell you that from this hour it is an accursed cause; because of your bloodstained idols and your priests, it is accursed. That God whom you have desecrated, and those who serve Him shall come back in power, and He shall sit where your idols sat and none shall stir Him for ever.” ”

“ To this speech the priests added at once that three nights in succession they had sacrificed to their gods, who had promised victory. "If you will have it," answered Guatemoc sorrowfully. "Make the most of the maize and other food, and we will die fighting. From this moment let no man be rash enough to ask for peace. Him I will kill with my own hand." After this the Mexicans arranged with people of other towns to bring water in canoes by night, and they dug wells in Mexico. ”

“ After Guatemoc's capture we soldiers turned so deaf we could scarcely hear. We were like those standing in a belfry where many bells are ringing and then all of a sudden cease. I suggest this as comparison, for during the more than eighty days we were besieging the city, both night and day, our ears suffered great confusion of noises. In one quarter some of the Mexicans were yelling and piping war-whoops to muster their squadrons; in another warriors were calling to the canoes to attack the sloops, the bridges, the causeways ”

“ The beautiful monument and statue of Guatemoc is planted in this avenue, and is worthily deemed a successful embodiment of Aztec art sculptured by modern chisels. Upon Sunday morning—the fashionable time of serenata or promenade concert—the wealth and beauty of the capital foregather in carriages and upon foot and listen to the strains of the band. Here we may, from the seats of our victoria, observe the Mexican upper class at our—and their—ease. Hats off! A private carriage comes driving swiftly by ”

“ While these caciques were talking they drew from a bag they had with them some maize cakes, cherries and the leg of a fowl, and seating themselves began to eat in a leisurely manner so that Cortes might think they were not in want of provisions. To all this our captain answered that whether Guatemoc came or not was immaterial to him; he himself would soon pay their houses a visit to see how much maize and poultry they had.
For five days we made no attack; but many poor Indians, starving for lack of food, came to our camp every night. ”

“ I replied that though it was not the Aztec habit to march and fight at night, such things were common enough among white men as they had seen already, and that because the Spaniards knew it was not their habit, they would be the more likely to attempt escape under cover of the darkness, when they thought their enemies asleep. Therefore I counselled that sentries should be set at all the entrances to every causeway. To this Cuitlahua assented, and assigned the causeway of Tlacopan to Guatemoc and myself, making us the guardians of its safety. ”

“ In any Central-American republic, one notices a “homey” quality lacking in the larger territory of Mexico.
In these smaller nations, every one of any prominence knows every one else. The capital is something of a Latinized Main Street. This is more true of the little countries to the south, but Guatemala is not completely an exception. Its provincialism manifests itself particularly in the newspaper, which savors always of the local country weekly, although a flowery verbosity gives it a unique distinction. ”

“ Guatemala was the head of Spanish power in Central America under the general term of the Spanish Captain Generalcy for two centuries.
During the two hundred and fifty years following the Conquest the country had three capitals in turn, all named Guatemala City. The first, founded by Alvarado, was on the very spot where he fought the battle which made him conqueror. The Indian kings of the South having heard of the exploits of Cortez in Mexico, sent an embassy to him which he received with distinction. ”

“ GUATEMALA (sometimes incorrectly written Guatimala) , a name now restricted to the republic of Guatemala and to its chief city, but formerly given to a captaincy-general of Spanish America, which included the fifteen provinces of Chiapas, Suchitepeques, Escuintla, Sonsonate, San Salvador, Vera Paz and Peten, Chiquimula, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Totonicapam, Quezaltenango, Sololá, Chimaltenango and Sacatepeques,—or, in other words, the whole of Central America (except Panama) and part of Mexico. ”

“ Dominick, whose houses and presence makes that street excell all the rest of the City, and their wealth and trading were enough to denominate Guatemala a very rich City. The Government of all the Country about, and of all Honduras, Soconusco, Comayagua, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Vera Paz, Suchutepeques, and Chiapa, is subordinate unto the Chancery of Guatemala ”

“ In a few moments the great plain of Guatimala appeared in view, surrounded by mountains, and in the centre of it the city, a mere speck on the vast expanse, with churches and convents, and numerous turrets, cupolas, and steeples, and still as if the spirit of peace rested upon it; with no storied associations, but by its own beauty creating an impression on the mind of a traveller which can never be effaced. ”

“ Guatemala is a republic modelled in form after the United States. It is made up of twenty-two provinces, termed departmentos, whose chief officer is called a jefe politico and who is appointed by the president. The departmentos are again subdivided into municipal districts, of which there are three hundred and thirty-one, at the head of which is one or several alcaldes, or mayors. Again, for political purposes, the country is divided into thirty-eight electoral districts. There is a congress of deputies elected by the people on the basis of one deputy for each twenty thousand inhabitants. ”

“ Leaving the disgusting scene, we walked around the suburbs, one point of which commands a noble view of the plain and city of Guatimala, with the surrounding mountains, and suggests a wonder, that, amid objects so grand and glorious, men can grow up with tastes so grovelling. Crossing the plaza, we heard music in a large house belonging to a rich muleteer; and, entering, we found a young harpist, and two mendicant friars, with shaved crowns, dressed in white, with long white mantles and hoods, of an order newly revived in Guatimala, and drinking agua ardiente. ”

“ Antiquarians, deep delvers in the majestic monuments of the long forgotten past, seek in the myths, the traditions, the temples and the ruins the riddles of prehistoric civilization. Modern tourists traveling as they will be able to do within a short time by railway from New York or San Francisco to the very heart of Guatemala may lose themselves in admiration of the sublime scenery, the lovely landscapes of valley and mountain lake and forest (the Indian name for Guatemala means abounding in trees) , volcanic caps, giant outlines, and cloud-clad craters. ”

“ From the time of the conquest Guatimala had remained in a state of profound tranquillity as a colony of Spain. The Indians submitted quietly to the authority of the whites, and all bowed to the divine right of the Romish Church. In the beginning of the present century a few scattering rays of light penetrated to the heart of the American continent; and in 1823 the kingdom of Guatimala, as it was then called, declared its independence of Spain, and, after a short union with Mexico, constituted itself a republic, under the name of the United States of Central America. ”

“ Guatemala, or the "Republic of Central America," is the most southern point or portion of the North American continent, exclusive of the isthmus. It has an area of one hundred and eighty-five thousand square miles. It is composed of five states, which are sub-divided into districts, and of the federal district, which contains the seat of government.
The soil of the country is in general good, and exhibits the same variety as in Mexico, with similar productions. In portions of it, Guatemala is subject to tremendous convulsions [Pg 831] of nature. ”

“ Guatemala began to make progress from the very beginning of the rule—and I say rule, not administration, advisedly—of Barrios. A new constitution was adopted by the national assembly convened for that purpose, and he was re-elected president in 1880 by popular suffrage, which was really the only constitutional election ever held in the country up to that time. With all the energy of his nature he fostered education and endeavoured to uplift the masses by improving their condition and cultivating their understanding. ”

“ Introduction Guatemala Background: The Maya civilization flourished in Guatemala and surrounding regions during the first millennium A.D. After almost three centuries as a Spanish colony, Guatemala won its independence in 1821. During the second half of the 20th century, it experienced a variety of military and civilian governments as well as a 36-year guerrilla war. In 1996, the government signed a peace agreement formally ending the conflict, which had led to the death of more than 100,000 people and had created some 1 million refugees. ”

“ Tourists and commercial salesmen are going there in greater numbers, and each one comes back enthusiastic over the possibilities of development of that country.
Guatemala is the most important of the Central American republics and is the nearest to the United States in geographical situation. It is a short journey for the traveller in search of new and novel sights, and should not be overlooked by the merchant or manufacturer on the lookout for new fields of conquest. The near-west is just as good a field as the far-east and the exertion is less. ”

“ Inhabitants.—The inhabitants of Guatemala, who tend to increase rapidly owing to the high birth-rate, low mortality, and low rate of emigration, numbered in 1903 1,842,134, or more than one-third of the entire population of Central America. Fully 60% are pure Indians, and the remainder, classed as Ladinos or “Latins” (i.e. Spaniards in speech and mode of life) , comprise a large majority of half-castes (mestizos) and civilized Indians and a smaller proportion of whites. ”

“ Government and Constitution of the Federation.—Origin and Progress of the Revolution.—Foreign and Domestic Relations.
The present political government of Guatemala, like those of the other new republics of the Western Hemisphere is, more or less, founded on the principles of the constitution of the northern United States. It is a representative federal republic. The legislative power of the nation resides in the federal congress, composed of representatives chosen by the people; and it is in their province to enact laws touching the direct interest of the whole republic ”

“ He told me that my zeal in the cause of their independence was as well known at Guatemala as at Mexico; that he had anticipated the probability of my commission for many months before it was made public in that capital; and, after many other observations of a kind and complimentary nature, observed that, in my future intercourses with him at Guatemala, I should consider him in a double capacity; as president of the republic, and, to use his own expression, "as Juan d'Arze, your friend." ”

“ The Republic of Guatemala, which name is derived from the Indian word "Quanhitemallan," signifying "land covered with trees," has been described as the privileged zone of Central America. This is because of its resources, its climate, and its accessibility.
The country is easily reached from all directions through its seaports on both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and through its rapidly growing system of railways. From California, from the neighboring ports of other Central American countries and from Panama there is regular and reliable steamship service on the Pacific coast. ”

“ Lofty mountains rise on every side, with deep ravines on the edge of the tablelands upon which the city stands. The houses have been kept of one story, as a measure of security. The general beauty and prosperity of Guatemala city has earned for it the name of the Paris of Central America. We may reach it by the railway which, starting from Puerto Barrios on the Atlantic coast, winds upwards to the elevation of 5,000 feet, which is that of the plateau on which it stands, 190 miles from the sea, and continues for a further 75 miles to San José on the Pacific. ”