Salazar And Chirinos Had Carried Their Point, And
Had Taken The Two Former Deputies And Many Of Their Friends Prisoners; And
As Discontents And Opposition Still Prevailed, They Had Confiscated The
Property Of Their Opponents, Which They Distributed Among Their Own
Partizans.
They had superseded Zuazo in his office of alcalde-major, and
had imprisoned Rodrigo de Paz; yet Zuazo had brought about a temporary
reconciliation.
During these disturbances, the Zapotecans and Mixtecans,
and the inhabitants of a strong rocky district named Coatlan had rebelled,
against whom the veedor Chirinos had marched with an armed force; but his
troops thought of nothing but card-playing, so that the enemy had
surprised their camp and done them much mischief. The factor Salazar had
sent a veteran captain, Andres de Monjaraz, to assist and advise Chirinos;
but Monjaraz being an invalid was unable to exert himself properly; and to
add to their distractions, an insurrection was every hour expected in
Mexico. The factor Salazar, constantly remitted gold to his majesties
treasurer, Don Francisco de los Cobos, to make interest for himself at
court, reporting that we had all died at Xicalonga. This report originated
with Diego de Ordas, who, on purpose to escape from the factious troubles
in Mexico, had gone with two vessels in search of us to Xicalongo, where
Cuenca and Medina had been slain as formerly mentioned, on learning which
misfortune he concluded it had been Cortes and his whole party, which he
so reported in letters to Mexico, and had sailed himself to Cuba. Salazar
shewed these letters to our several relations in Mexico, who all put on
mourning, and so universally were we all believed to be dead, that out
properties had been sold by public auction. The factor Salazar even
assumed to himself the office of governor and captain-general of New Spain;
a monument was erected to the honour of Cortes, and funeral service was
performed for him in the great church of Mexico. The self-assumed governor
even issued an order, that all the women whose husbands had gone with
Cortes, and who had any regard for their souls, should consider themselves
as widows and should immediately marry again; and because a woman named
Juana de Mansilla, the wife of Alonzo Valiente, refused to obey this order,
alleging we were not people who would be so easily destroyed as Salazar
and his party, she was ordered to be publickly whipped through Mexico as a
witch. One person from whom we expected better behaviour, and whose name I
will not mention, by way of flattering Salazar, solemnly assured him
before many witnesses, that one night, as he was passing the church of St
Jago, which is built on the site of the great temple of Mexico, he saw the
souls of Cortes, Donna Marina, and Sandoval burning in flames of fire:
Another person, also, of good reputation, pretended that the quadrangles
of Tescuco were haunted by evil spirits, which the natives said were the
souls of Donna Marina and Cortes.
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