We Were Received With Much Politeness, Saying He Would Have Done
Every Thing In His Power For Us, If So Authorised, But Every Thing Having
Been Referred By De Leon To His Majesty, He Was Unable To Make Any New
Arrangements.
At this time Diego de Ordas arrived from Cuba, who was said to have
circulated the report of our deaths; but he declared that he had only sent
an account of the unfortunate catastrophe of Xicalonga as it really
happened, and that the misrepresentation proceeded entirely from the
factor Salazar.
Cortes had so much business on his hands that he thought
proper to drop this affair, and endeavoured to recover his property which
had been disposed of under the supposition of his death. A great part of
it had been expended in celebrating his funeral obsequies, and in the
purchase of perpetual masses for his soul; but, on his being discovered to
be alive, had been repurchased by one Juan Caceres for his own benefit
when he might happen to die, so that Cortes could not recover his property.
Ordas, who was a man of much experience, seeing that Cortes was fallen
much into neglect since he was superseded from the government, advised him
to assume more state and consequence to maintain the respect due to him:
But such was his native plainness of manners, that he never wished to be
called otherwise than simply _Cortes_; a truly noble name, as glorious as
those of Cesar, Pompey, or Hanibal among the ancients. Ordas likewise
informed Cortes of a current report in Mexico, that he intended to put
Salazar privately to death in prison, and warned him that he was
powerfully patronized. About this time, the treasurer Estrada married one
of his daughters to Jorge de Alvarado, and another to Don Luis de Guzman,
son to the Conde de Castellar. Pedro de Alvarado went over to Spain to
solicit the government of Guatimala, sending in the meantime his brother
Jorge to reduce that province, with a force chiefly composed of the
warriors of the different nations that were in our alliance. The governor
also sent a force against the province of Chiapa, under the command of Don
Juan Enriquez de Guzman, a near relation to the Duke of Medina Sidonia:
And an expedition was sent against the Zapotecan mountaineers, under
Alonzo de Herrera, one of our veteran soldiers.
Having lingered about eight months, Marcos de Aguilar died, and appointed
by his testament Alonzo de Estrada the treasurer to succeed him in the
government: But the Cabildo of Mexico and many of the principal Spaniards
were very solicitous that Cortes should be associated in the government;
and on his peremptory refusal, they recommended that Sandoval, who was
then alguazil-major, should act in conjunction with Estrada, which
accordingly was the case. The incompetence of Estrada for conducting the
government in the present conjuncture, particularly appeared from the
following circumstance. Nuno de Guzman, who had held the government of
Panuco for two years, conducted himself in a furious and tyrannical manner,
arbitrarily extending the bounds of his jurisdiction on the most frivolous
pretences, and putting to death all who dared to oppose his commands.
Among these, Pedro Gonzalez de Truxillo, having asserted truly that his
district was dependent on Mexico, Guzman immediately ordered him to be
hanged.
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