ABSTRACT
Cortes returned to Cempoalla, with the addition of half-a-dozen able-bodied recruits, and, what was of more importance, relieved in his own mind from the apprehension of interference with his operations. The arguments of his Indian allies prevailed with the Spanish commander, who resolved to propitiate the goodwill of the Tlascalans by an embassy. He selected four of the principal Cempoallans for this, and sent by them a martian gift—a cap of crimson cloth, together with a sword and a crossbow, weapons which, it was observed, excited general admiration among the natives. The season in which the Spaniards were there, the rainy months of summer, was precisely that in which the vomito rages with greatest fury; Cortes recommended theTotonac chiefs to apply to this officer in case of any difficulty, assuring them that so long as they remained faithful to their new sovereign and religion they should find a sure protection in the Spaniards.
