History of Mexico (Bancroft)/Volume 3/Chapter 1

by Hubert Howe Bancroft

 

HISTORY OF MEXICO.

 

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CHAPTER I.

OPENING OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.

1601-1620.

Character of Viceroy Monterey — Vizcaino’s Exploration — Attempted Intercourse with Japan — Montesclaros' Firm Rule — Velasco Again Made Viceroy — Mexico under Water — The Drainage Work OF Huehuetoca is Begun — A Great Engineering Feat, yet Inefficient — Negro Revolt — Progress of Settlement in Nueva Vizcaya, Sinaloa, and Sonora — A New Policy for Conquest — Uprising of the Acaxées and Xiximes — The Tepehuane War — Protective Measures for Indians — Archbishop Guerra's Brief Rule as Viceroy — Pompous Funeral Ceremonies — The Timid Audiencia and the Pigs — Spilbergen at Acapulco — Increase of Corruption under Viceroy Guadalcázar.

We have learned something of the count of Monterey, of his character and abilities as a governor and representative of royalty; we have noted his policy with regard to the Indians and other affairs, and have seen how his name has been retained for the capitals of two provinces, namely, those of Nuevo Leon and of California, to both of which countries he despatched expeditions.

Little remains to be said in taking leave of him. We have found him on the whole a well-meaning man, and rather inclined to caution. He was deeply enough impressed with the duties of a ruler, and quite ready to carry out reforms. He fell into few serious errors, and these he was prepared to acknowledge and remedy so that even the Indians, the main sufferers by reason of his mistakes, recognized the benevolence of his motives. Certain measures toward the last, and the attendant vacillations, seemed to indicate less of that soundness of judgment and firmness which were at first ascribed to him. This verdict is sustained by his leniency toward those who by their corrupt dealings contributed to his failures. The absence of severity, and the neglect to enforce other needed reforms, may have been dictated by a prudential regard for powerful Spaniards, who had shown themselves so ready to retaliate in malignant letters to the home government whenever their interests were assailed. Nevertheless, the reports on the whole must have been rather favorable, for, the viceroyalty of Peru becoming vacant soon after the turn of the century, Monterey was advanced to this more lucrative place.^[1] His departure was generally regretted, and the Indians filled the air with lamentation. One reason for his popularity lay in a showy openhandedness which spared not even the royal coffers, as we have seen. He did not long survive the change, for he died in Peru in March, 1606.^[2]

Of the foundation of the capital of Nuevo Leon I have already spoken. California's capital was not established till nearly two centuries later, when it assumed the name of the bay discovered by Sebastian Vizcaino. This navigator, to whom the north-west latitudes were already somewhat familiar, had been despatched from Acapulco in May 1602, with three vessels carrying nearly two hundred men, having instructions to examine the coast of California for a suitable port wherein vessels from the Philippines might find shelter. He was also to explore generally and seek for the flitting strait of Anian, in which interest had been roused anew by mariners' tales. While the results of this expedition add little to the knowledge gained by Cabrillo, sixty years before, yet the records of Vizcaino's discoveries furnished for more than a century and a half the sole guide to the north-west. They name a number of points, islands, and inlets, including the bay of Monterey, and leave the impression that in latitude 42°, the extreme point reached, a great river had been discovered which students found little trouble to identify with Anian Strait.^[3]

Vizcaino sought in vain to promote a further exploration of this region, for the interest therein had subsided, but an opportunity presented itself in a different direction. Franciscans had reached Japan, and had succeeded after many tribulations in prevailing on the emperor to admit more missionaries and to send envoys to Spain in order to establish intercourse with the Spanish' people.^[4] They arrived at Mexico during the rule of the marqués de Salinas, and brought news also of some islands rich in gold and silver, which a drifting Portuguese vessel was said to have found in Japan waters. Whether this report proved the main incentive or not, the viceroy determined to respond to the advances made, and in 1611 Vizcaino was sent as embassador^[5] with instructions to establish commercial relations between the two countries, and to spend a winter in Japan examining the coast and harbors, and gaining information about the rich isles, which were then to be sought for. He was accompanied by six barefooted Franciscans, three being lay brothers, and the native members of the embassy from Japan,^[6] and set sail from Acapulco on March 22d with one vessel, the San Francisco.

He arrived in Japan three months later, and was favorably received, whereupon he proceeded to examine the coast and in the following year to seek for the rich isles, though in vain. Meanwhile jealous Hollanders obtained the imperial ear and denounced the Spaniards as seeking to add Japan to their extensive conquests. The result was that Vizcaino's embassy failed at the chief court. He prevailed, however, upon another ruler, called Mazamune, to assist him in fitting out a new vessel, to replace the damaged San Francisco, and to send therein an embassy to New Spain. With this he reached Zacatula in January 1614. During the following years other efforts were made to establish intercourse, and to obtain better treatment for the persecuted missionaries, but without avail.^[7]

While explorations in northern latitudes proved failures, or little short of them, expeditions from Peru had opened a new field for enterprise in the southern Pacific, under Mendana in 1595, and more successfully under Pedro Fernandez Quirós, the companion of Mendana, who in 1605-6 made important discoveries in the Australasian groups, and concluded his voyage in New Spain.^[8] The successor of Viceroy Monterey, Juan Manuel Hurtado de Mendoza y Luna, marqués de Montesclaros,^[9] arrived in September 1603, accompanied by his wife Ana de Mendoza, and was met at Otumba by the conde de Monterey, who had there prepared the most magnificent reception, attended by people from far and near. The festivities lasted eight days, and are said to have cost Monterey a whole year's salary.^[10]

If this reception was intended to propitiate Montesclaros, it probably failed, for on reaching Mexico and proclaiming the residencia of his predecessor according to instructions, he appears to have made no attempt to shield him. Monterey was condemned to pay the two hundred thousand pesos wantonly spent in the unfortunate attempt to gather the scattered Indians into settlements. Although the sentence was set aside by the king, the count felt it deeply as a reproach on his administration. Montesclaros showed himself possessed of an indomitable will and an ability which under more trying circumstances might have been of great value to his sovereign. As it was, nothing rose to disturb tranquillity, save the complaints of descendants of the conquerors, whose clamor^[11] for office he chose to disregard in favor of really meritorious applicants. His policy met with approval, and, the viceroyalty of Peru becoming vacant in 1606, he was promoted to it.^[12]

A successor had not as yet been selected, but soon after came the appointment, for the second time, of Luis de Velasco, whose previous rule had endeared him both to king and people. Weighted by years, he had shortly before retired from the government of Peru to spend the remainder of his life on his encomienda of Atzcapotzalco, near Mexico. Duty compelled him, perhaps not unwillingly, to forego retirement, and on July 2, 1607, he made his entry into the capital, after meditating for a week in the Franciscan convent of Tlatelulco over the suggestions imparted by his predecessor. This appointment was assumed by many to have been heralded by a beautiful comet which in the previous month appeared to hover above Atzcapotzalco. Besides the viceroy's inauguration, the year was made memorable by the ceremony of swearing allegiance to the prince of Asturias, the later Felipe IV., on a scale of grandeur surpassing any previous display of the kind.

Velasco's path was smoothed in several respects by the licentiate Landeras de Velasco, late oidor of Seville, who came as visitador, and proceeded with great strictness to investigate charges against the audiencia and departments in connection with it. At the entrance to his house a box was placed for those who wished to make secret complaints and memorials. The result was that Oidor Marcos Guerrero and Doctor Azoca, alcalde of the court, were suspended and subsequently sent to Spain. The visitador's strictness evoked hostility in several quarters, but this served merely to render him more imperious. A sermon by Martin Palaez, rector of the Jesuit college at Mexico, appearing to reflect on his course, he caused his arrest and sent him off toward Vera Cruz in charge of two negroes. Although his departure was suspended, indignities were continued till the royal cédula came with excuses for the hasty action of Landeras.^[13] This may have been one cause for the recall of the visitador, in 1609, to the relief of the officials, who had sought to hasten his removal by charges of bribery and other misconduct. Torquemada condemns his opponents, and lauds him highly as a man of unimpeachable rectitude, a friend of the Indians, and one who returned poorer than he came.^[14]

In the first year of Velasco's rule was begun the famous drainage work of Huehuetoca, already projected by Enriquez, whereby Mexico hoped to obtain relief from the inundations which had caused such oft-repeated misery. The rains in the autumn of 1604 had been so heavy as to inflict great damage, and leave some parts of the city under water for a year. In the midst of this suffering a Franciscan spread terror among the people by preaching in the public square against the prevailing wickedness, and declaring that the city deserved to be destroyed. Quite a panic fell on all classes, and the churches were crowded all night by penitents. No cataclysm followed; but three days later an earthquake was felt, which frightened several persons to death.^[15]

So discouraged were the people that they seriously considered the expediency of removing the capital to the hills of Tacubaya;^[16] but property-owners, who had over twenty millions of pesos at stake, succeeded in preventing the movement. Montesclaros, then ruling, favored the drainage undertaking, but so many objections were raised that he turned his attention wholly to repairing the dike of San Lázaro and the causeways of San Antonio and Chapultepec, while he finished that of San Cristóbal, in addition to constructing the causeway of Guadalupe.^[17] Notwithstanding all these measures the city was again submerged in 1607, and in a council held by Velasco drainage was agreed upon as indispensable.

The valley of Mexico lies, as is well known, more than seven thousand feet above the sea-level, in a vast basin enclosed by porphyritic ranges, from whose slopes a number of rivers unite to form four groups of lakes, the Chalco-Xochimilco, Tezcuco, Cristóbal, and Zumpango. The first was a fresh-water body, lying two varas higher than the salt Tezcuco, above whose level the last two also rose to the north in their terrace beds four and ten varas respectively. Zumpango received the two largest streams, notably the Quauhtitlan, which contributed a larger volume than that of all the other valley rivers combined. During the rainy season the excess of water overflowed into the Cristóbal lake, which again discharged into the Tezcuco, causing its waters to rise considerably. At certain periods, once in twenty-five years on an average, this overflow proved destructive, especially to the capital, whose main square lay barely four feet above the lake. Taught by experience, the Aztecs had sought to stem the waters with dikes, not only round the city but on the northern lakes. Both of these were, besides, divided into two sections by transverse causeways. Although strengthened and extended under Spanish rule the barriers proved ineffective, as we have seen, and drainage was at last declared to be the only means.

One natural outlet from the valley existed in the small stream of Tequisquiac, but measurements showed that the cost of making it available for drainage would be too great, and that the only practicable point for an outlet was near the village of Huehuetoca, as demonstrated already in 1580 by Licenciado Obregon and Arciniega. By means of a tunnel between the mount Sincoe and Nochistongo hill the ever threatening waters from most elevated northern lakes of Zumpango could be carried through the Tula tributary of Rio Pánuco to the gulf of Mexico. This being decided upon, Enrico Martinez, a Hollander,^[18] and the Jesuit Juan Sanchez^[19] submitted plans for the work, one of which embraced also a partial drainage of the middle lakes, while another proposed merely to divert the waters of Rio Quauhtitlan from the Citlaltepec section of Zumpango Lake. The latter was adopted as the speedier and cheaper, and on November 28, 1607, the viceroy broke the first sod in presence of a vast concourse of officials and citizens. The work was intrusted to Martinez,^[20] who displayed great energy, and set an immense number of Indians to the task, at different points. The expense was covered by a tax of one and a half per cent on the city property, and a levy on wine.^[21]

A canal conducted the waters from the Citlaltepec section of Zumpango Lake, or rather from its great tributary, Rio Quauhtitlan, to Huehuetoca, and thence they passed through a tunnel more than a league in length, and four by five varas in height and width, followed by a canal to Rio Tula.^[22] On May 15, 1608, the first canal was completed, and on September 17th water passed through the tunnel in presence of the viceroy, amidst the rejoicings of the colonists who had reason to be proud of an engineering feat so rare at that time. It was not long, however, before the inefficiency of the work became apparent, the conduit being too small, on too high a level, and so poorly vaulted and faced as frequently to choke with its own debris. The efforts to remedy the latter defect proved of no avail,^[23] and it was even proposed to construct another channel, for which, in 1611, Alonso de Arias made surveys. Martinez could not well be held to answer, for he had submitted other more thorough plans than the cheap and speedy one adopted.^[24] Three years later the celebrated Dutch engineer. Boot, reported in favor of the ancient Aztec dike system for the capital, on the ground that the southern lakes were fully as dangerous as the northern. Martinez agreed to some of his views, but insisted that it was above all necessary to maintain the tunnel outlet.^[25] The value of either plan was disputed till Viceroy Gelves, in 1623, caused the tunnel to be closed in order to test the effect of the Quauhtitlan and Pachuca tributaries on Zumpango Lake and consequently on the Tezcuco. The rise proved considerable, and in December came unexpected rains which so increased it that the city was endangered, and the Huehuetoca tunnel had again to be opened;^[26] and work was renewed upon it in accordance with a neglected royal decree of 1516, although not without much discussion and numerous reports.^[27]

In 1609 occurred a serious revolt among the negroes in the Vera Cruz district. Tired of their masters' yoke, a number of slaves had escaped from different towns and plantations, to unite with their free brethren near the present town of Córdoba, and ensconce themselves among the rugged hills in that vicinity, whence they would pounce upon travellers and settlements. Their leader was an aged man named Yanga, who for thirty years had been seeking to stir his race to united action against the colonists.^[28] The raids had been endured for some time, attended by the defeat of escorts and improvised troops, under cruel circumstances; but finally the insecurity of the road to Mexico called for stringent measures against the bands, which were growing both in number and daring. Pedro Gonzalez de Herrera of Puebla was commissioned to subdue them, and set forth toward the end of January 1609 with one hundred soldiers, as many volunteers, and a number of native archers, to whom some two hundred Spaniards and half-breeds were added from settlements on the way.

A tiresome march brought him near the haunts of the insurgents, though without knowing where or how to meet them. From this dilemma he was relieved by the arrival of a message from Yanga and his military lieutenant Matosa, brought by a captive, who had been defiantly instructed to guide the troops to the foot of the negroes' stronghold, so that they might measure arms with them. Herrera gladly availed himself of this vaunting challenge, to which the chieftain's companions had objected, and in the last week of February he came in sight of the negro camp, on the summit of a mountain. Regardless of the missiles showered upon them, the Spaniards climbed the rugged slope, and though many a one was felled, now by a dart, now by some thundering rock or beam which crushed everything in its path, they persevered and gained the camp, which contained fully three score houses, with church, public edifices, and newly planted fields. The negroes retired to several strong points around, with the loss of quite a number, including several leaders, yet still defiant. Their spirit failed, however, with succeeding reverses, and, as they saw their families falling captive, their houses burned, and their effects seized or destroyed, they submitted terms of capitulation to the viceroy. On condition that Yanga and his free companions be given a site for a new settlement in the neighborhood, they promised to surrender all fugitive negroes in the camps, and thereafter to assist, if duly rewarded, in the capture of any who took refuge in that region. This was agreed to; and soon after they founded the village of San Lorenzo, remaining thenceforth comparatively faithful.^[29]

In the following year a more extensive campaign had to be undertaken against Indian rebels in Durango. This region was frequently disturbed by one tribe or another, abused as the natives were by miners, and favored by the physical features of their country, which on one side presented rugged ranges, and on the other plains and deserts. The private explorations of Francisco de Ibarra in this direction had revealed vast agricultural and mineral resources, and aided by his influence with the viceroy he had secured a commission as governor and captain-general to conquer and rule the still unsubdued country to the north. He entered with a strong force, and laid claim to all the region beyond the line now dividing Jalisco and Zacatecas from Sinaloa and Durango, applying to it the name of Nueva Vizcaya, a term which soon became confined to the district east of the Sierra Madre range, embracing, for a while, a part of Coahuila. In 1563 he formally established the still existing settlement of Nombre de Dios as a villa,^[30] and beyond, in Guadiana Valley, he founded as his capital Durango, known also by the name of the valley. In 1621 this was made a city and the seat of a new diocese extending over all of Ibarra's government.^[31] He pursued his discoveries as far as San Bartolomé Valley, in southern Chihuahua, and thence westward into northern Sinaloa, where he founded San Juan de Sinaloa, laying claim also to the two southern districts of Culiacan, with the settlement of San Miguel, and to Chametla, with San Sebastian, which had maintained a precarious existence since Guzman's time.

The tribes of Sinaloa proved very hostile, and San Juan had to be abandoned. It was refounded in 1583 under the name of San Felipe, but only after 1596, when it became a presidio, was the permanency of this settlement secured. In 1610 the border was advanced to Rio del Fuerte, so named after the fort of Montesclaros there erected; and now the Jesuits began the conversion of Mayos and Yaquis. Thirty years later San Juan Bautista was founded in Sonora Valley, already made known by expeditions which had passed into the northern regions. All this country west of the Sierra Madre was ruled by a military captain appointed by the viceroy, but subject in civil matters to the governor at Durango. In Coahuila, Saltillo was formally founded in 1586, and Parras in 1598, partly by Tlascaltecs, while in Chihuahua it was not till 1631 that a presidio rose at Parral in the rich mining region, and permanent missions in 1639 among the Tarahumaras.^[32]

Side by side with settlers and miners strode the friars, in this region, notably the Jesuits, whose aim was not alone to convert, but to pacify and prepare the natives for the yoke of Christ and the colonists. It was cheap and effective, this subjugation by the cross. Warfare against the wilder tribes of the north proved quite different from that against the more cultured and settled communities encountered by Cortes. Here the capture of a capital, the treaty with a ruler, generally sufficed to control the people; but among the northern tribes treaties availed little with the petty, irresponsible chieftains unless they were specially commissioned by the people, and to ravage their villages was seldom effective. Hence, after many and costly military operations. Viceroy Velasco had toward the close of the preceding century found it necessary to adopt a different course, and stoop to what may be termed humiliating concessions. But he stooped to conquer, for under shelter of this purchased peace missionaries crept forward to fasten a gradually tightening bond, secured at different points by military colonies. This policy did not succeed.in every quarter, nor was it effected elsewhere without occasional struggles. The resolute opposition of the Sinaloa tribes to the encroachments of the Spaniards served to animate also adjoining peoples who had already submitted and found just cause for discontent in the oppression and outrages practised by miners and others.

In 1601 the Acaxées, who occupied the mountain regions of Topia and San Andrés,^[33] rose to the number of five thousand, with a solemn determination to kill or drive away every Spaniard. They swooped down with unexpected suddenness on the villages and mining camps, whose number may be estimated from the statement that over forty churches shared in the destruction. The first effective resistance encountered was at San Andrés, where the small garrison managed to hold out for a fortnight, till Governor Urdiñola learned of their strait and came to the rescue with sixty men. The warriors now withdrew to the mountain fastnesses, and kept the pursuing troops constantly engaged in toilsome marches and sharp skirmishes, ever on the alert to entrap them into ambuscades, though with little success. What arms failed to achieve was accomplished by means of Urdiñola's generous treatment of a number of captured Acaxée women. This touched the hearts of the husbands, and with the gentle persuasion of Father Santaren they submitted and began to rebuild their churches.^[34] The Sabaibos held out for a while longer under the guidance of a sorcerer who proclaimed himself bishop, and even God, and proceeded with the aid of associated apostles to carry on a peculiar spiritual and political administration. His rule was soon cut short, and with him disappeared the last trace of the revolt.

This submission appears to have either irritated or emboldened the Xiximes, a tribe of cannibalistic tendencies, who adjoined the Acaxées on the south, and ranked as their bitter foes. The neighbors soon bean to appeal for aid against their onslaughts, and with intercession of friars they were in 1607 induced to relent; but three years later they broke out in open revolt, and an expedition of two hundred Spaniards and eleven hundred Indians marched against them. Their two strongholds were quickly reduced, and after the execution of the ringleaders the excuses of the remainder were accepted with a readiness that served only too often to encourage hostilities, as may be seen throughout the history of this frontier region to the present time. Had the same policy been pursued by Cortés and his contemporaries, Spanish domination might have been deferred for years. This temporizing was owing in part to a change in the character of the settlers, and a diversion of public interest from the career of conquest, and partly to actual weakness and indecision; but under the circumstances it was dangerous to display it so freely.

Of this an instance may be found in the more serious outbreak in the same province, in 1616, among the Tepehuanes, for no outrages or other good reason appear to have afforded the pretext. This tribe covered a wide-spread area in Durango, extending into southern Chihuahua and bordering east and north on Topia, and had yielded good fruit to the Jesuit missionaries. Dismayed by the downfall of their influence, the native sorcerers strove hard to combat the new religion; and encouraged by the example of the Sabaibo bishop, one of them proclaimed himself a messiah divinely appointed to free his people from the foreign yoke. This character he sustained by a number of cleverly executed miracles, and by alluring prospects disseminated by active agents.

His plans succeeded, and his people rose almost en masse. At Atotonilco nearly two hundred Spaniards, men, women, and children, were massacred; at Papasquiaro a number were lured to destruction by treachery; at Zape ninety persons fell. Durango city, the seat of government, might also have been surprised but for the premature outbreak on the part of certain greedy chieftains, which gave the alarm, and enabled measures to be taken against the great simultaneous attack on the 21st of November. These measures extended also to the Acaxées, Xiximes, and other tribes who were prevailed upon to withhold at least active cooperation in the revolt.

Nevertheless the outlook became so serious that appeal for aid was sent to the viceroy, who gave orders upon the royal coffers at Zacatecas and Durango for funds, wherewith to raise more troops. The Tepehuanes generally avoided an encounter. With the spring of 1617 the revolt was practically ended. Deserted by their messiah, who mysteriously disappeared, the still rebellious bands took refuge in the mountains, there to be exposed to repeated attacks from different quarters, to which a price upon their heads gave incentive. After suffering heavy losses they were induced gradually to rejoin their submissive brethren. As it was, the outbreak had caused a drain on the royal treasury of several hundred thousand pesos, besides losses in revenue and to settlers, and retarded material progress in the province for a number of years.^[35]

A lenient policy characterized more and more the attitude of the government toward the natives, and experiments were continually tried for promoting their welfare. In 1602 came a cédula recommending a system of public hiring of Indians, to take the place of repartimientos. A fair was accordingly established in the principal squares at Mexico^[36] under supervision of a judge, where employers might come to engage laborers. As usual, corruption crept in to counteract the intended benefits. Speculators found it lucrative to engage, with connivance of the judge, a large number of the Indians, and hire them to others at higher rates. This abuse became so great that the system had to be abandoned.^[37]

In pursuance of this step, and with a view to remove cause for revolt, an important decree appeared in 1609, commanding that provisions and clothing must be sold to Indians at reasonable prices, and that those who attempted to defeat this measure should be punished. In the mining districts the Indians were to be gathered into villages and given land to cultivate, and churches and hospitals. Those who settled in these villages were to be exempt for six years from the usual repartimientos; but they must not leave the place. Since it was necessary to encourage work and progress among all classes, repartimientos must be maintained till the increase of slaves and voluntary workers allowed them to be reduced or abolished. Not more than one seventh of a village population should be called away at a time, in due turn, nor must they be sent to a very distant place or one differing greatly in temperature from that to which they were used. The pay must be fair, and cover the time for coming and going to work. The time and nature of labor should not be exceeded or changed. None could be condemned for crimes to personal service, nor could encomenderos exact it in lieu of tribute. The carrying of loads was restricted, particularly where beasts of burden could be introduced.^[38] Not long before this a law had been issued exempting from encomiendas, and from tribute for ten years, all hitherto unsubdued Indians who voluntarily gave allegiance to church and king.^[39] It was a measure well calculated to aid the missionaries and to promote a peaceful conquest. In the settled regions on the other hand we find a contrast in the confirmation of encomiendas to the third and fourth life.

The execution of reform measures was by no means easy, but Velasco sought to do his duty, and though exercising no undue severity he brought upon himself the hostility of a large class. His friendly feeling toward the natives is displayed in several recommendations, notably that of giving to them all the land required, leaving only the balance to Spaniards.^[40] His zeal was not overlooked, for in 1609 he received the title of marqués de Salinas, and two years later promotion to the presidency of the India Council.^[41] So distinguished a preferment could not be refused, and he set sail for Spain June 12, 1611,^[42] leaving behind the reputation of a wise and humane ruler, against whom the only objection may be an excessive leniency which served well for the time, but left the seed of future troubles.^[43]

As his entry into the government had been preceded by a comet, to which his successful rule lent a favorable significance, so his departure was attended by an eclipse of the sun; and the terror which this phenomenon inspired received fresh impulse two months later from an earthquake whereby a number of buildings were destroyed in different parts, notably at Mexico, involving the loss of several lives.^[44]

Although Velasco ruled until the day of his departure, the successor to the viceroyalty was already to be found at Mexico in the person of Archbishop García Guerra, a Dominican, born about 1560 at Fromesta, near Valencia, of a noble house.^[45] As prior at Valladolid he managed to gain favor in the eyes of Felipe III., and a first result was his appointment to the vacancy caused by the death in October 1606 of García de Santa María y Mendoza, archbishop of Mexico. This prelate had been prior of the convent at the Escorial, general of the Jeronimite order, and a great favorite of Philip II., who named him one of his executors. The successor to the throne extended this favor by conferring on him the archdiocese in New Spain which he administered in a satisfactory manner, living ever the humble life of a friar, yet staining his memory by the bigoted act of defacing native sculptures. While the destruction was not so serious as that caused by the iconoclast Zamárraga,^[46] Santa María deserves even greater condemnation than this earlier bishop, whose vandalism finds excuses to a certain extent in the conversion-zeal of his period, and in its inferior enlightenment.

Guerra made his entrance into Mexico as prelate September 29th, and by his wise rule confirmed the royal choice to such extent that with the promotion of Velasco came his own appointment as twelfth viceroy. It was the second time that the supreme political and ecclesiastical power had been vested in one man, and, as the benevolence and sagacity of Guerra were recognized, his inauguration June 19, 1611, created wide-spread joy.^[47] This was not to be of long duration, however. Guerra had for some time been an invalid, a fall from his carriage being one of the causes, and soon a cold caught during an exposure to rain laid him low with fever. The phlebotomy so prevalent among doctors of the time tended to weaken him; and when an operation was demanded on an abscess he sank under it February 22, 1612, at the age of fifty-two.^[48] Manifestations of grief were both general and profound, and the obsequies surpassed in solemnity any that had so far been conducted in New Spain. A description may prove interesting.

The embalmed body, arrayed in pontifical robes of purple taffeta garnished with gold and silver, rested in the chapel on a catafalque, covered with black gold-bordered velvet, and surrounded with candles. The interior of the chapel was draped in black. The head of the corpse reclined on a black velvet cushion, ornamented with gold and silver, and bore on the brow a mitre. Close to it rose the guidon of the captain-general, a rank held by the deceased in virtue of his office as viceroy. At the left shoulder rested the pastoral staff, and in the right hand the archiepiscopal cross; at the feet were two royal maces of gilt silver, and between them the prelate's hat.

For three days a constant stream of visitors appeared at the chapel to give a last look at the beloved face, while friars and clergy held vigils, masses, and chants here as well as at other temples. The bells tolled solemnly all the while, and nearly every person exhibited some token of mourning, especially officials and men of means.

On the 25th a vast concourse gathered at the palace to escort the body to the cathedral tomb. First marched the school children with white lighted tapers; then came thirty-eight brotherhoods, according to age, with standards, crosses, and other paraphernalia; the different. monastic orders, closing with the Dominicans, to whom belonged the deceased, followed by over four hundred members of the clergy, the prebendaries of the chapter being last. Then came the coffin, having at the feet the prelate's hat, and a cap with white tassel, the insignia of a master of theology. Behind were borne the cross and guidon, draped in black, between two kings-at-arms. On either side of the coffin strode the viceregal guard, while halberdiers assisted in keeping back the crowd. Following the guard came the deacons; the commercial court; the university representation, with sixty-four of its graduated doctors bearing the insignia of the faculty; the municipality, preceded by their mace-bearers; the audiencia, with three nephews of the deceased; the royal officers, bearing a black standard with royal arms in gold; three companies of infantry in lines of seven, with arms reversed, marching to the sound of four muffled drums and two fifes; the maestre de sala of the viceroy, bearing aloft on a half-pike the arms of the deceased, gilded on a black surface; the master of horse and chamberlain, leading a steed in deep mourning with a long train; another gentleman of the court, on horseback, bore the guidon of captain-general, with royal arms on crimson velvet. The procession closed with the servants of the palace, led by the majordomo.

Between the palace and the cathedral five catafalques had been erected, to serve as resting-places for the coffin as it was transferred to different bearers. The oidores bore it from the chapel to the first station; then the cathedral chapter, the municipality, the university corporation, and the commercial representatives carried it successively, the oidores taking it from the last station into the cathedral, where it was placed in a lofty position, amid a blaze of lights. As the alféreces approached they lowered the standards, and placed them at the foot of the coffin. On the left rested Guerra's coat of arms; on the right were the cross and the guidon. After service the coffin was buried at a late hour by the high altar, on the evangel side. It was a grand and glorious casting-forth.

During the novenary each religious order came to chant masses, assisted by ecclesiastic and civil bodies. On March 7th the members of the procession marched in the same order as before to the cathedral, where the vigil was chanted, and a funeral oration delivered in Latin. The following day the funeral sermon was preached by the dominican provincial.^[49]

The government now passed into the hands of the audiencia, and the senior oidor, Pedro de Otalora, a pious man,^[50] took possession of the palace. Affairs were by no means such as to require a strong hand at their head; yet the loss of the recognized chief seems to have created an unsettled feeling, and the revelation of an intended uprising among the negroes so alarmed the capital that on Monday and Thursday the customary religious processions of the week did not take place. On the evening of Thursday a trampling of feet was heard, with much grunting and yelling, and the cry spread that the negroes were upon them. The panic-stricken people either closed their doors or fled for protection toward the palace, and terror reigned until morning, when the cause of the uproar appeared in a drove of pigs for the Saturday slaughter, which had been mistaken for a negro advance.^[51]

This play upon the feelings of people and audiencia could not be allowed to pass unavenged, and thirty-three unfortunate blacks were convicted on doubtful evidence and hanged.^[52] As during a previous interregnum, the government sought to cover its weakness under a mask of cruelty. A measure against outbreaks on the part of negroes was attempted by means of a decree ordering free persons of their race, including mestizos, who possessed no trade, to enter the service of known masters and take up their abode with them.^[53]

The audiencia's rule terminated with the entry into Mexico, on October 28, 1612, of the thirteenth viceroy, Diego Fernandez de Córdoba, marqués de Guadalcázar, and his consort Maria Rieder.^[54] His rule proved exceedingly quiet, though at one time a cloud appeared in the form of a freebooter. The Dutch had for some time struggled for a foothold in the Moluccas, and to promote this effort their East India Company in 1614 despatched a well-equipped fleet of six vessels, under Joris Spilbergen,^[55] with instructions to do what damage he could to Spanish shipping and interests on his way, notably to the fleet between Manila and Acapulco. He left Texel in August, touched at the Brazilian coast, passed through Magellan Strait in April 1615, and began a series of petty and cautious raids on the Pacific coast of South America. In this occupation he was interrupted by a fleet of eight vessels under Rodrigo de Mendoza, who had vowed to capture the Hollander. Fortune favored the latter, however, and the Peruvians retired with a loss of two vessels, one of them under command of the vice-admiral, who preferred to go down with his ship rather than surrender.

On the 10th of October Spilbergen appeared before Acapulco, sadly in want of fresh provisions and anti-scorbutics for his sick crews. He would probably

Port of Acapulco.

have helped himself but for some well-timed shots which intimated that the place was prepared.^[56] "Hanging out a flagge of peace, two Spaniards came aboord, and they agreed to exchange Prisoners for Sheep, Fruits, and Prouision, which was accordingly performed. On the 15th Melchior Hernardo came aboord, to take view of the fleete, which had vanquished the Kings. He was Nephew to the Vice-Roy of New Spaine, and was kindly entertained of the Admirall." The squadron left Acapulco on October 18th and cruised off the coast for some time, capturing a California pearl-fishing vessel with two friars.^[57] A consort vessel, under Iturbide, proved more fortunate in bringing safe to port a cargo of pearls, including one valued at the then high price of four thousand five hundred pesos.^[58]

Spilbergen now proceeded to Salagua, or Santiago Bay, where several of his men, while in quest of fresh provisions, were killed and captured by an ambuscaded party which is said to have been commanded by the navigator Vizcaino. The fleet passed on to Santiago, and to Navidad, where a captured monk procured lemons on being promised his liberty. When the time came to fulfil the promise, the crews objected to lose so valuable a prisoner, and Spilbergen had to quell a mutiny to keep his word with the monk.

Toward the end of November sail was set for Cape San Lúcas, there to watch for the Manila galleon; but the wind proving unfavorable the prows were turned for the Ladrones and Moluccas, and after staying here awhile Spilbergen completed the circumnavigation of the globe with a portion of his fleet. While falling short of the anticipated results of the voyage, he confirmed the opinion of his ability as a navigator.^[59]

While disaster was averted from Acapulco, it overtook the opposite port of Vera Cruz in another guise. New Vera Cruz, as it was called, to distinguish it from the old town on Rio Antigua, which still lingered, had rapidly risen from a landing-station, known by the name of Buitron, the chief settler, to receive in 1615 the title of city. But the buildings were hastily and irregularly constructed, chiefly of wood, and when, in December 1618, a fire broke out in the barracks, the flames spread under a strong north wind, and consumed the best part of the place, inflicting a loss of over two million pesos.^[60] Prompt aid was given toward rebuilding on a safer and more regular plan.

On February 13th the whole country was startled by an earthquake which lasted for a quarter of an hour, and extended from Central America far northward. "It demolished buildings, rent hills and mountains, disclosed deep caverns, and brought forth new lakes. Rivers flowed with black waters. At sea terrible sights were seen, and many vessels went under. Fish sought refuge on land from their natural element."^[61]

Owing to the insecurity of the road between Vera Cruz and Mexico, infested by robber bands, the town of Córdoba was in April 1618 founded in the foothills, on the more southern route later followed by the railroad to the capital. Its prosperity was soon assured by extensive sugar and tobacco plantations, and it received also a share of health-seekers from Vera Cruz,^[62] as did the more important town of Orizaba, to the west, where sanitary facilities still attract people.^[63] Córdoba received its name from the viceroy, whose title of Guadalcázar was also perpetuated in that of a mining town founded in 1614 north-east of San Luis Potosí.^[64] Another town rose about the same time, on the lake of Toluca, under the name of Lerma, in honor of the favorite minister of Felipe III.^[65] The same rule was signalized at Mexico by the completion of the new aqueduct begun by the previous viceroy. It brought additional water from Santa Fé by way of Chapultepec, and rested for a long distance on arches, nine hundred in number. ^[66]

After a government of eight years Guadalcázar was promoted to the viceroyalty of Peru. Yet not from any merit as a ruler, for although his reign had proved peaceful, corruption had spread fast in almost every department, until both social and economic interests were so seriously imperilled as to rouse the attention of the crown. Guadalcázar, in truth, was a mild man, easily imposed upon, and not much disposed to sacrifice his comfort and peace of mind by inquiries into matters with which subordinates and associates were intrusted. The oidores had not been slow to take advantage of such neglect to extend their own importance, and even openly interfered in affairs not pertaining to their jurisdiction, violating the laws intrusted to their watchful care.

On a small salary^[67] they lived in the style and luxury of the great lords of Spain, surrounded by relatives and friends, to whom the most desirable offices were given, and who were protected by their benefactors from what should have been the results of frequent and glaring malefeasance. In the audiencia the causes of the rich were despatched promptly, while the calendar was encumbered by the innumerable suits of the poor. For the decision of a case it was sufficient that an oidor should signify his wishes in the matter, and he was allowed also to sit in judgment of questions wherein he was directly interested. As a body they sent judges in commission to districts where ordinary justices existed, this having been expressly forbidden.^[68] They went further than this, and released at will even malefactors condemned to death or to the galleys of Terrenate. All that seemed to be lacking to them was the investiture and titlè of viceroy. The minor officials and the very lawyers of the supreme tribunal committed excesses with insolent impunity in the assurance that their respective patrons would shield them from harm. Imitating an example so plainly set before them, the minor tribunals throughout New Spain, each in its microcosm, perverted justice at their will.

Protected by those in power, who not infrequently were partners in their gain, the rich had monopolized the very necessaries of life, and this during a time of great scarcity, when famine was raging in many parts of the country,^[69] so that the poor had to subsist on roots or die of want. The regidores of Mexico had seized and divided among themselves the annual subsidy of one hundred and thirty thousand reales granted by the crown in aid of the public granary, and they, in conjunction with a few wealthy men, had forced the price of maize, the staple food of the lower classes, from twelve reales the fanega to forty-eight. Even at this price the official in charge of the granary frequently turned away the starving poor, while to the servants of the rich and powerful he gave a superabundance which was disposed of to their own advantage. So, too, these imitators of their masters, lying in wait just without the city, forced the Indians who supplied the general market to give up, at a nominal price, the scant produce of their toil that the spoilers might receive the profit. Some of the meat thus obtained was retailed at an exorbitant price in a shop established in the palace of the archbishop.

The crown was robbed or defrauded of its dues by the royal officials and their friends. Shipments to Peru of prohibited goods brought from Manila were made openly, and were productive of great gain. The supplies sent by the king to the Philippines were purchased by his agents at twice their market value, and complaints came from that colony of their poor quality, or rottenness, as well as of scant measure. At the treasury it was the custom to receive for the payment of dues coin or silver bullion indifferently; the oidores and the treasury officials, substituting the former for the latter, divided among themselves a gain of three reales in such wares. In all the pueblos the tax-collectors speculated with the royal funds, which they withheld from the treasury, either without a shadow of excuse or on the ground that these sums proceeded from partial payments of taxes which were not due to the crown until those payments should be completed. By collusion of those in charge of the mines and the traders the king was defrauded of his fifth.

Religious ministers would not unfrequently meddle in these affairs, even when they concerned neither their interests nor their native protégés. On the anniversary of the fall of Mexico, 1618, a Jesuit spoke in his sermon rather scathingly of the conquerors and especially of their descendants, as corrupt, unfit to hold office, and tyrannical toward the Indians. The remarks were probably exaggerated by inimical persons, who caused such a stir in the matter that the archbishop was called upon to arrest the preacher. The provincial naturally objected to so stringent an interference, and caused testimony to be taken, which modified the expressions and induced the viceroy to release the Jesuit, only to embitter the already unfriendly relations between the civil and ecclesiastic chiefs, and to rouse fresh feeling against the society.^[70] Both clergy and friars were for that matter infected to a great extent by the general disorder, and engaged with anything but meekness in disputes concerning doctrines and other affairs, or in frequent and unseemly bickering concerning the election of prelates, in which respect the comparatively quiet Augustinians made themselves notorious for a time. Two oidores were accused by the visitador of the order with having harbored mutinous friars and sought to influence him by threats and bribes to promote the election of a provincial favored by them. In the report and counter report on this subject the leading men of the country, including the archbishop, were called on to testify.^[71]

As the natural consequence of all this iniquity among the rich and powerful, the lower classes gave themselves up to such wickedness as was attainable to them. Drunkenness, ever prevalent, had increased to a frightful extent, and was accompanied by its usual train of want and crimes. The church itself seemed powerless to check infractions of the law which to churchmen have ever seemed misdeeds more flagrant than murder. Led by vicious inclination or driven by want, idle men formed themselves into associations of bandits which infested the highways, and which made life and property insecure even in the precincts of the viceregal palace.^[72] Roused at times to some exhibition of interference, Guadalcázar succeeded only in arraying against himself now the church, now the oidores, or other officials whose power and influence may have been concerned. Their representations to the crown must have had some effect, for his promotion to Peru does not appear to have been accompanied by the customary privilege to govern until his departure. At any rate, the audiencia assumed control.^[73]

 

 

1. Felipe III. fixed the salary at 30,000 ducats, due from the date of setting out for Peru. Montemayor, Sumarios, 158. That of the Mexican viceroy was 20,000, with a smaller guard of honor than was granted to the Peruvian. Monterey received 8,000 ducats to aid him in entering his new office, and 10,000 he borrowed. Calle, Mem. y Not., 55.
2. After a rule of a little over two years. Vetancurt, Trat. Mex., 12; Moreri. Gran. Dic., viii. 152. He was affable but slow to determine. 'Sino se huviera metido en estas Congregaciones. ...avia sido de los mejores, y mas acertados Governadores.' Torquemada, i. 726-7.
3. For a detailed account of the voyage see Hist. Cal., ii. 97 et seq., and Hist. North Mex. States, i. 153 et seq.
4. The embassy was headed by Friar Alonso Muñoz, and appears to have reached New Spain in 1610, accompanied by a number of Japanese. Vizcaino, Rel., in Pacheco and Cárdenas, Col. Doc., viii. 114.
5. In the narrative of this voyage Vizcaino is termed the son of the viceroy, Velasco the younger. Perhaps he was a hijo político, son-in-law; he certainly must have had high connections as he was 'encomendero de los pueblos de la provincia de Avalos.' Id., 102. Burney wrongly states that Vizcaino died in 1606. Hist. Discov. South Sea, ii 259.
6. Their leader was evidently a convert, to judge from his name, Francisco de Velasco, baptized at Mexico probably. They numbered 23 and the crew 50 or more. The names of friars and officers may be found in Vizcaino, Rel., 102.
7. Vizcaino's failure is also attributed to the indiscreet zeal of a friar. Id., 198, etc. This appears to have been Luis Sotelo who proceeded with a Japanese convert to Rome and Madrid and obtained more missionaries, two of whom, Bartolomé de Burguillos and Diego de Santa Catarina, were appointed envoys by Felipe III., and reached Japan in 1616. The feeling against Spaniards had meanwhile grown stronger and the friars were forced to depart without executing their commission. Japanese from a more friendly court accompanied them, and were favorably received at Mexico in 1617, but do not appear to have accomplished anything. Medina, Chron. S. Diego, 148-50. Cavo mentions an embassy in 1615 from I dates, probably identical with one of the above. Tres Siglos, i. 261, 254, 257-8. The rich isles long continued to be an object of search to Philippine navigators and others.
8. Whence he proceeded to Madrid with his report. Id., i. 244. The voyage is fully related in Burney's Hist. Discov. South Sea, ii. 273-317.
9. Knight of Santiago and gentleman of the bed-chamber. He appears to have been born at Seville, the posthumous son of the second marquis, and held the coveted office of asistente in that city. Pacheco and Cárdenas, Col. Doc., vi. 272; Moreri, Gran. Dic., vii. 362. Portrait and autograph in Rivera, Gob. Mex., i. 80.
10. Torquemada, i. 727. They entered Mexico October 27th. Vetancurt, Trat. Mex., 12.
11. Forty of them became quite turbulent, and the marquis, already on the way to Peru, was with difficulty restrained from turning back to inflict chastisement. Their complaints against him resulted merely in a decree favoring his policy. Cavo, Tres Siglos, ii. 240. His views on these points are given in Advertimientos de Montes Claros, in Instrucciones de Virreyes, MS., i. 254.
12. He was permitted to govern till his departure, and as a mark of distinction an oidor accompanied him to Acapulco. Torquemada, i. 737. He died October 9, 1628. Moreri, vii. 362.
13. Alegre, Hist. Comp. Jesus, i. 442-4, places this occurrence in the early part of 1607.
14. Monarq. Ind., i. 759. The papers of the visita were taken by the president of Guadalajara audiencia, Juan Villela.
15. The startling sermon was delivered on the eve of Santo Tomás, during a heavy rain, by Friar Solano, guardian of the Recollects. Id., 728.
16. Royal permission appears to have been granted to this effect. For other reasons see Icazbalceta, Vol. Doc., i. 506-7; Pacheco and Cárdenas, Col. Doc., xiii. 76-8.
17. The latter occupying nearly 2,000 Indians for five months. Torquemada, i. 728-9. Among the works attributed to him is the presa de Oculma. Inund. de Mex., MS., 356 Cepeda, Rel., 10, is less exact; and so is Humboldt, Essai Pol., i. 209. On the Mexicalzinco branch of the southern causeway two flood-gates were added. Nevertheless this construction proved prejudicial to Xochimilco and adjoining towns. He also began a new aqueduct. Cavo, Tres Siglos, i. 243-4, 264-5; Beltrami, Mexique, ii. 62-3.
18. Educated in Spain, it seems. He enjoyed the title of royal cosmographer and wrote Repertorio de los Tiempos y Historia Natural de Nueva España, Mexico, 1606; Antonio, Bib. Hist. Nova, iii. 564. Humboldt mentions a treatise on trigonometry, Essai Pol., i. 211, but it is probably embraced in the above.
19. Alegre intimates that the plans are due to him, and that he at first had chief control. Hist. Comp. Jesus, i. 438-9. Spanish writers of course prefer to keep the foreigner in the background. Among others connected with the surveys and plans were fathers Mercado and Santos and Doctor Villerino.
20. Sanchez, the associate, soon quarrelled and retired. Torquemada, i. 758. Cavo places the inaugural day on December 28th. Tres Siglos, i. 247.
21. The real estate, valued at 20,267,555 pesos, yielded over 304,000 pesos. Cepeda, Rel., 14. Wine was taxed 50 pesos for every pipe. The clergy were not exempt. Torquemada, i. 758; Recop. de Ind., i. 91-2. The laborers received five reals for seven days, an almud of maize every week, and a pound of meat daily. A hospital was erected for their sick. They came from different provinces, to the number of 471,154, with 1,664 female cooks. Cepeda, Rel. , 18. He adds that the actual money paid them between November 1607 and May 1608 was 73,611 pesos. The authoritative writer of Mex., Rel. Estad., 2, declares that 50,000 natives lost their lives during the work, while Cepeda and others maintain that quite an insignificant number perished. They had reasons, however, for hiding disagreeable facts.
22. Cepeda's figures, Rel., pti. 25, iii. 21, are 9,600 varas for the tunnel when first opened; afterward reduced by extending it into an open cut. Humboldt is not very exact in giving the tunnel a length of 6,600 mètres, a width of 3.5, and a height of 4.2.
23. Unbaked mud bricks were soon rejected for wood facings, and these for masonry, but instead of an elliptic arch a mere vault was constructed, resting on an insecure foundation, so that the walls were undermined and fell in. The extent of the different facings some years later is given in Cepeda, Rel., iii. 21 et seq.
24. Yet several writers seek to blame him, and assume that the rejected plans had been made by Sanchez. The canal project in 1604 was estimated to require a length of 6 to 9 leagues; now the length of a perfect drainage of the three lakes was placed at 70,000 varas, with a depth of 40. Cepeda, ubi sup.; Gemelli Careri, Giro, vi. 122. By this time the expenditure for the work according to official accounts amounted to 413,324 pesos out of 540,000 collected. In Mex., Rel. Estad., 2, the cost is placed at 1,140,000 pesos up to 1623. Instruc. Virreyes, 262. Gonzalez Dávila makes it 3,952,464 for the first few years, during which 128,630 laborers had been employed. Teatro Ecles., i. 2
25. Martinez prevailed on the authorities to let him perfect the tunnel, but he failed to carry out the agreement, probably because his estimate of 100,000 pesos appeared on closer inspection to be too low. Boot's reports, and the discussion thereon, are given in Cepeda, Rel., pt. ii. 1-17. His views were strengthened by troubles from the southern lake water. Cavo, Tres Siglos, ii. 249. Boot appears to have been retained as active or consulting engineer from 1613 until 1640, with 1,200 ducats pay. Fonseca, Hist. Hacienda, v. 358-9.
26. The statement of a December flood rests on Gemelli Careri, ubi sup., and has been disputed, but it finds confirmation in the report of a commission of 1624, showing that damage was done to the city by a sudden rise of waters. Cepeda, Rel., pt. ii. 19; Grambila, Tumultos, MS., 11; Ward's Mex., ii. 282-7. Early documents bearing on this subject are to be found in Dicc. Univ., ix. 146 et seq.
27. ln 1629 came disasters which gave energy to operations, as we shall see.
28. Torquemada, i. 759, intimates that at Mexico also a revolt was projected, for Epiphany, when a king would be elected 'y otros con Titulos de Duques,' etc. It was quickly suppressed.
29. An alcalde appears to have been appointed from among them, while a neighboring curate attended to their spiritual wants. Alegre, Hist. Comp. Jesus, ii. 10-16.
30. The control of this was long disputed by the government immediately south, and then seized upon by the viceroy; but in 1611 it was restored to Nueva Vizcaya,
31. The Augustinian, Gonzalo de Hermosilla, was the first prelate.
32. The history of Nueva Vizcaya, based on such standard authorities as Ibarra, Helacion; Durango, Doc. Hist., MS.; Sinaloa, Mem. Hist., MS.; Albieuri, Hist. Mis., MS.; Arlegui, Ribas, Alegre, Beaumont, Mota-Padilla, is fully related in my History of the North Mexican States, this series.
33. For particulars see Native Races, i. 614.
34. For a detailed account of the campaign with its interesting happenings, see Hist. North Mex. States, i., this series.
35. For a full account see Hist. North Mex. States, i., this series.
36. On Sundays. Caro, Tres Siglos, i. 237.
37. 'Clamaron los Indios. . .con instancia, bolver à lo pasado.' Torquemada, i. 726.
38. An earlier decree prohibited even voluntary carrying of goods, but this could not be obeyed. Those in charge of herds should not be held responsible for lost stock. Officials connected with repartimientos must be men well known for kindness and probity; they could accept fees only from the employer. Further minor regulations are given in Montemayor, Sumarios, 216-26, 14, 15; Órdenes de la Corona, MS., ii. 139. This important letter was dated May 26, 1609. In accordance with its tenor Velasco regulated the hours of labor and other matters.
39. This law was issued on November 25, 1607, and confirmed in 1671 and 1672. Montemayor, Sumarios, 2.
40. Advertimientos, in Instruc. Virreyes, 256.
41. Together with 20,000 ducats 'ayuda de costa.' He already received a pension of 6,000 at the end of his former rule in Mexico, and now his children were granted additional allowances. The title of marquis appears to have been issued in 1607, Calle, Mem. y Not., 55, though Vetancurt intimates a year or two later. Trat. Mex., 13.
42. Exercising the power of viceroy to the day of sailing. Torquemada, i. 767. Calle writes 17th of June.
43. His partiality for the Dominicans is spoken of in Dávila, Continuacion, MS., 202. Already very aged, he did not long survive his promotion.
44. The eclipse was total and lasted till 6 p. m. June 10th. Torquemada, i. 768. The earthquake occurred on August 26th. 'En ocasion que por mandado del Arçobispo Virrey. . . se corrian toros.' Sigüenza y Góngora, Carta, MS., 15; Id., Parayso Occid., 24. There were more than 40 shocks within 30 hours, says Father Franco. On December 27th a rain of ashes fell at Mexico, Dávila, Continuacion, MS., 203; and Mota-Padilla, who places the eclipse on April 15, describes a similar shower in Colima, caused by the eruption of the volcano. Conq. N. Gal., 271. In the same month of the following year another earthquake occurred. Cavo, Tres Siglos, i. 257.
45. Of the family of De la Vega Guerra. His parents were Andrés de Rojas and Maria Guerra. He professed as a Dominican in 1578, at Valladolid, where he became preacher and prior. Gonzalez Dávila writes his name De Enguerra. Teatro, i. 44; Dávila, Continuacion, MS., 198-200.
46. As Torquemada, iii. 208, regretfully points out.
47. He had been staying at the convent in Atlacubaya, and entered by way of Tlatelulco, under arches and amidst great pomp, on a Sunday. Dávila, Continuacion, MS., 202; Vetancurt, Trat. Mex., 13. Cavo dates his power from June 17th; and Lorenzana, from June 12th. Concilios Prov., 1556-65, 216, he counting no doubt Velasco's departure.
48. Gonzalez Dávila, Teatro Ecles., ubi sup. Cavo states that the carriage accident occurred while he as viceroy was inspecting certain public works, and this injured one of his ribs, giving rise to the abscess. Tres Siglos, i. 256. On the 29th of January a solemn procession had been held to implore restoration of his health.
49. Dávila, Continuacion, MS., 205-7; Sosa, Episcop. Mex., 52-4.
50. 'Hombre desinteresado de las cosas de esta Vida, y mui gran Ministro,' is Torquemada's estimate of him. i. 707. Among his associates are mentioned the licentiates Diego Nuñez de Mosquecho and Pedro Juarez de Molina.
51. Panes assumes that this false alarm served to defeat the intentions of the negroes by rousing the people. Monumentos Domin. Esp., MS., 94-5.
52. The bodies were exposed in different parts, till public health demanded their removal. Four of the victims were women. Vetancurt, Trat. Mex., 13. Torquemada makes the total number 36.
53. 'Pena de docientos açotes.' Decree of the audiencia April 12, 1612. Montemayor, Sumarios, pt. ii. 49.
54. Lorenzana writes Riedrer. Cortés, Hist. N. Esp., 21.
55. Also written Georg Spilberg, von Spilbergen, Spilberger. The flag-ship was the Zon, and the next, the Halve Maen, under command of Jansen. Two of the vessels were smaller, and built for speed. The force carried was 1,200 men besides sailors; so at least declares Osten, a member of the expedition who escaped to New Spain, and whose account appears to have been over looked by Burney and others. See Nicolai, Newe und Warhaffte Rel., 17-18. He, Purchas, and Gottfried differ on several points, about names, dates, etc.
56. 'The Castle had seuentie Brasse Pieces, hauing intelligence eight moneths before of their comming.' Purchas, His Pilgrimes, 1, pt. ii. 84.
57. Cardona, the captain, and a portion of the crew escaped by swimming ashore. The authorities differ as to whether the vessel was on the way from or to California. She was incorporated into the fleet under the name of the 'Pearlship,' says Osten, ubi supra.
58. Venegas, Not. Cal., i. 202-4; Cardona, Mem., 46; Mota-Padilla, Cong. N. Gal., 272-3.
59. For an account of the voyage, see, besides the authorities quoted, Gottfried, Newe Welt, 454 et seq.; Boss, Leben der See-Helden, 393-402; Kerr's Col., x. 157-8; Berenger, Col. Voy., i. 262, 288-93; Burney, Chron. Hist. Voy., ii. 330-53
60. Cavo, Tres Siglos, i. 263. In the beginning of 1619, says Alegre, Hist. Comp. Jesus, ii. 115. Panes, Veracruz, MS., 2; Lerdo de Tejada, Apuntes, 267. A decree was thereupon issued ordering government buildings to be separated from other edifices fully 15 paces, and urging the employment of night watches. Recop. de Indias, ii. 27.
61. 'Corrió quinientas leguas de Norte à Sur, y mas de sesenta de Este á Loeste.' Gonzalez Dávila, Teatro, i. 59. This author writes at 11:30 a. m. on February 14th.
62. In May 1714, an earthquake ruined many buildings. In 1850 it counted 4.500 inhabitants. Dicc. Univ., ii. 549. incited by the faulty accounts in Villa-Señor y Sanchez, Theatro, Dr Rodriguez, curate at Córdoba, prepared a full history and description of the town which was published at Mexico in 1759, under the title of Cartilla, Historica y Sagrada Descripcion de Cordova, 4to, 164 pp. He gives the names of the first 30 settlers, the coat of arms, and other interesting material. See also Cordara, Hist. Comp. Jesus, 175.
63. The order of San Juan de Dios erected here a hospital about this time.
64. Calle, Mem. y Not., 70.
65. Founded in 1613 says Alcedo, Dic., ii. 572. Cavo places the founding of both in 1620.
66. And 6 varas in height. The cost was fully 150,000 pesos. Cavo, Tres Siglos, i. 243-4, 264—5.
67. At this time an oidor of Mexico receives annually three thousand pesos.
68. It was again prohibited by the cédula of November 12, 1621. Ordenes de la Corona, MS., ii. 164.
69. In Querétaro 'congoxandose los Labradores, y vezinos oyendo las muertes de los ganados, y perdlda de las sementeras.' Medina, Chron. S. Diego, 55. Alegre relates similar misery in Yucatan. Hist. Comp. Jesus, ii. 136. See also Gelves, Rel. Estad., 1-2; Mex. Rel. Sum., 1. There are periodic records of famines in different parts of the country. In 1610, 1616, 1625, and 1629, they extended over a number of districts. Cavo, Tres Siglos, i. 254, 261, 277; Diario, Mex., v. 139.
70. The preacher was the learned and eloquent Cristóbal Gomez, who died in 1638. Alegre, Hist. Comp. Jesus, ii. 108, 207; Mex. Disturbios, MS., i, 669-76.
71. One of the oidores was the corrupt Gaviria, whom we shall soon meet. The voluminous testimony in this case is given in Mex. Disturbios, MS., i. 16-54, 289-91. The same order created trouble also at Ixmiquilpan by carrying off from the mine of Guerrero a miraculous image. Id., 55-119.
72. 'Tenia el alma en los dientes.' Grambila, Tumultos.
73. Licenciado Juan Paez de Vallecillo is named as presiding oidor, assisted by Galdos de Valencia and Gomez Cornejo, but Verzara Gaviria should be added. Mex., Rel. Sum., 1; Cavo, Tres Siglos, i. 265; Ribera., Gob. Mex., i. 108. It has been said that Guadalcázar left Mexico for his new post on March 14, 1621, escorted by the audiencia and other bodies. Vetancurt, Trat. Mex., 13; but several official reports show that he remained till Gelves arrived. Gelves, Rel. Estado, 1 etc. ' Virrey priuadamente retirado, todo este tiempo (nearly a year), fuera de Palacio, en vna casa particular.' Mex., Rel. sum., 1; Sigüenza y Góngora, Parayso Occid., 25-6. He ruled for seven years in Peru.