CHAPTER CXVIII

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_How Cortes reviews the whole of his troops, and we are supplied with two hundred and fifty very long new lances, by the Tchinantecs._

As soon as Cortes was apprized of Narvaez's arrival in New Spain, and had received every information respecting the magnitude of his armament, he despatched a soldier who had served in the Italian campaigns, and who possessed an extensive knowledge of weapons and of the best method of fixing points to lances, into the province of the Tchinantecs,[78*] where some of our men had gone in search of gold mines. The Tchinantecs were deadly enemies to the Mexicans, and had only a few days previously made an alliance with us. This people used a species of lance, which was much longer than our Spanish lances, and furnished with a sharp double-edged point made of flint.[79]

Cortes had heard of this weapon, and sent word to the Tchinantecs to forward him three hundred of such lances, from which however he desired they would take off the flint points and substitute a double one of metal, as they had abundance of copper in their country. The soldier who was despatched with these orders took a pattern of the point required with him. Cortes' wishes were readily complied with, and as the inhabitants of every township of that province set diligently to work, the lances were soon finished and they turned out most satisfactory. Besides this, Cortes desired the soldier Tovilla to ask the Tchinantecs to send 2000 of their warriors, all armed with similar lances, on Easter day, into the district of Panguenequita,[80] and there make inquiries for our camp. The caziques willingly complied with our request, and they also gave Tovilla above 200 of their warriors, all armed with the same lances, to accompany him now on his return to our camp. The rest were to follow with another of our men, called Barrientos, who had been despatched into their country in search of mines, and he may have been from forty to forty-eight miles further inland. The lances which Tovilla brought with him proved most excellent, and he immediately taught us how to use them, particularly against the cavalry.

Upon this Cortes reviewed the whole of his troops, and we found, including all the officers, drummers and pipers, without father Olmedo, our numbers amounted to 260 men, among whom were five cavalrymen, a few crossbow-men, less musketeers, and two artillerymen. Considering the smallness of our numbers we reposed our greatest hopes in the use we intended making of our lances, in which fortunately we were not disappointed, as will afterwards be seen.

[78*] The real name of this province was Chinantla, but our author calls the inhabitants Chichinatecas. (p. 310.)

[79] Hierro is the Spanish word for iron, and Bernal Diaz always uses Hierro for the point of a lance; otherwise one would suppose,--when he says of the Chinantecs, "Hizíeron los hierros muy mas perfetamente," etc., i.e. "they made the irons (points) much more perfect;"--that the working of iron was known in the country long before the arrival of the Spaniards; but it is evident, from what he says four lines below, that these points were made of copper. (p. 311.)

[80] Panguenequita, probably another name for Tapanigueta. (p. 311.)

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