THE ROMANCE OF MEXICO
To quell the tumult he had himself aroused was no easy task even for the iron will of the conqueror, but at last both Spaniards and allies were gathered under their banners, the streets were cleansed, the dead buried. For fourteen days Cortes remained in Cholula, giving up all his time, with statesmanlike foresight, to the work of reconstruction. The country people were brought in to open the shops and carry on the daily work which was at a standstill for lack of hands. The cacique had been among the slain, so another was appointed in his place. The victims for sacrifice were freed, their cages demolished, and in the temple of Quetzalcoatl a cross was planted. But Cortés could not wipe away the traces of the terrible massacre. Black and smoking ruins showed their unsightly scars where shining temples had so lately stood, and never did the sacred city regain her former glory.
There has been much controversy as to the necessity for this wholesale slaughter. On ethical grounds it is of course unjustifiable. But it must be judged by the standards of that age, when even in Christian Europe towns were sacked without mercy, and the inhabitants, regardless of age or sex, put to the sword. In the New World, where human sacrifice prevailed, life was still less valued. As to the expediency of the deed there is no doubt. Throughout Anahuac the Spaniards gained in prestige, the most valuable of all aids to a small body of invaders.
In the capital consternation reigned. The gods were indeed come, and who could stay their onward march? To propitiate the dread beings Montezuma
