grated from their lands, and retired into the interior, to the lake of Peten, and on one of its islands they established the capital of their new state. Such is the native tradition, and here it is certain they lived in their secluded territory, in a region between Yucatan and Guatamala, unknown and neglected by the Spaniards, and following the superstitions of their fathers, after the faith of Rome had been established throughout the rest of Yucatan for one hundred and fifty years. In the year 1608 two Franciscan monks made their way to the lake of Peten, and were civilly received by the Itzas, until, by a strange inversion of common sense, they first set about destroying the idols, before they had persuaded the Indians to abandon them; and, as a natural consequence, they were driven from the country. The Indians remained unmolested until 1695, when it was resolved to construct a road between Guatamala and Yucatan, a project which involved the conquest of the Itzas, near whose country the road had to pass. Into the details of the conquest we need not enter, it is more interesting to notice this, so to speak, living relic of an extinct form of society. The temples and buildings of the natives appear to have been similar to those whose ruins remain throughout Yucatan. On the island the Spaniards found twenty-one adoratorios, or temples. The principal one was of a square form, with a handsome breast work, and nine steps, all of wrought stone; each front was about sixty feet, and very high. The number of idols also appears to have been very great, as is proved by the following notice. The general himself set out, accompanied by the vicar and assistant; and we may form an idea of the multitude of idols and figures thrown down by the Spaniards, from the fact that the taking of the island having been at half-past eight in the morning, they were occupied, with but little intermission, in throwing down, breaking, and burning idols and statues, from that hour until half-past five in the evening, when the drum called them to eat, which, says the historian, was very necessary after so great a labour. This account, which we have greatly abridged, is very interesting, both on account of the singular fate of the Itzas, as well as from

its corroborating Mr. Stephens's views respecting the monuments of Yucatan.

Before entering into any speculations respecting the antiquity of these monuments, we shall make a few observations on the purposes to which they were applied; and here we have no hesitation in adopting the statements of Cogoleudo. The pyramidal buildings are, as we have seen, unquestionably a sort of altar, on which human sacrifices were offered, so that these cues of Yucatan were identical with the teocallies of Mexico. The chambers and apartments of the other buildings were, at least in part, used as nunneries, or convents, as Cogo. leudo assures us. He says, that near the temples were buildings for young women, who were nuns, and under the superintendence of an abbess ; their duty was, to keep the sacred fire perpetually burning, and they suffered the loss of life if they allowed it to be extinguished. All this is in harmony with what we know to have been the case in other parts of America: in Peru there were vestals consecrated to the sun, and in Mexico also a kind of monasticism existed. It is also pretty certain that the superstition of the Mayas of Yucatan was nearly the same as that of the Mexicans, and people of Central America and Chiapa. We find among them all, not only the same style or architecture, but the same astronomical system: their year divided into eighteen months of twenty days each, and the remaining five reckoned by themselves as void or unlucky, and instead of adding a day to every fourth year, the intercalation of thirteen days at the end of a cycle of fifty-two years. The tradition of four ages of the world, like the four calpas of the Hindoos, prevailed among all those nations. The tenure of land seems also to have been the same.

When we reflect on these and many other circumstances which might be quoted, it is obvious that all these nations drew their civilization from a common source, although from whence is at present beyond the reach of conjecture. jecture. From philological considerations already stated, we are inclined to suppose, that the Mayas, the Poconchi of Central America, the Huastecans, and people of Chiapa, are much more ancient than the Toltec

Mexican tribes; and it is a matter of inquiry, whether these nations, pushed aside by the Toltecs, were not already in possession of all their knowledge of astronomy and the arts. Even amidst the great mass of Mexican population, we find fragments of former nations, such as Olmecas and Otomics, few in number but retaining their national language with Indian tenacity, and remaining the memorials of ancient empires, and as distinct from their conquerors as the pebble from the block of ice within which it is frozen. Such traces of obsolete languages indicate that the formation of societies in the New World is not greatly more recent than in the old.

Connected with this subject there is one extraordinary line of speculation, a favourite one with the old Spanish ecclesiastics, and in defence of which a strange book has recently been published in England. We mean the notion that St. Thomas had preached the Gospel in America. On this subject we may remark, that none of the usages or rites of the Indians lend the smallest countenance to the notion that a knowledge of Christianity existed in any part of the New World; that analogies existed between the Romistic and Indian superstitions is very possible, in the same manner as many things in the popish faith have been derived from Roman paganism, and even from Buddhism. As the whole of this interminable discussion is merely a chapter in the history of human folly, and may well seem strange to Protestant ears, we shall give some account of it. In the first place, we believe the fable of St. Thomas's preaching to the Indians is easily explained. It is merely Fluellan's syllogism, that there is a river both in

Macedon and Monmouth. An ancient tradition says St. Thomas preached in India; that is, in the East Indies the natives of America are called Indians, ergo the argument is completed. The grounds on which the Spanish priests believed that St. Thomas preached in Mexico, are certainly very curious. According to them the Indians practised auricular confession, adored the cross, had fasts of forty

It

days, and monastic orders; nay, Ramesal, in his history of Chiapa, goes so far as to assert, that the Îndians knew the seven sacraments. is obvious, that if all this be true, it could not have been taught by the early Christians, who were ignorant of such uses; and if they were really known to the Americans, they were as good papists as the Council of Trent. The force of folly could go farther than even this; and we are informed that the Indians possessed picturebooks, recording the chief events of Scripture history. Soloranzo, a learned Spanish jurist, in his work "De Jure Indiarum," or the title of the kings of Spain to the Indies, rests it on the papal bull, and also on the teaching the Christian religion to the natives. When he treats of the preaching of St. Thomas, he gets into a difficult position, between risk of offending the church or the king, and compromises the matter in the following characteristic manner. He does not call in question the early apostolic preaching, but the devil had so corrupted every thing, that the rights of his most catholic majesty were left untouched. This ridiculous question has occupied a good deal of attention in Spain, and none anywhere else, and we fully agree with the decision of the learned Doctor Traggia, that if we had a tenth of the evidence that St. Thomas was in America, to prove that St. James was in Spain, we might sing pæans.

Where there is so much smoke, however, it is but fair to infer that there must be some sparks, and it is worth while to find where they may be concealed. That the Indians practised fasts, and had monastie institutions, is most true, but in as far as such things are to be considered, the Lama of Thibet might put in as good a claim as his western brother. Something analogous to auricular confession was also very general throughout America. It existed in Peru and Yucatan, as well as in Mexico. In the latter country, however, it was made to the chief, and not to the priest, and only once in a life. This confession appears to have been merely a sort of privilege, which for once

We

saved the Indian from the legal punishment which the offence merited. believe we have read in Sahagun, who lived at the time of the conquest, that the poor Indians very naturally confounded the Romish confession with their own ancient usage; and after committing a crime, the Indian would confess to the priest, then present his certificate of confession in court, under the idea that it would procure for him an acquittal. The use of the

symbol of the cross is another of the notions of the Spanish ecclesiastics, who seem to have found the characteristic marks of their superstition everywhere and in every thing. Of these crosses, none was more famous than that said to be found at Cozumel, and now preserved in a church in Merida. Mr. Stephens, however, found no crosses in that interesting island. Among other and older ruins, ́ however, he found those of a Spanish church, and he concludes that the cross now in Merida was taken from that edifice.

As the Merida cross is of stone, it could not be the one erected by Cortez, which was of wood, as we are assured by Bernal Diar, who saw the carpenters at work upon it, and then worshipped it. Although this case is a doubtful one, several others are mentioned by Clavigero as occurring in other provinces. The most conclusive evidence of the existence of crosses in America, is afforded by Mr. Stephens himself, who has, in his former work, figured the beautiful cross of Palenque. The evidence of the Inca Garcilasso is also very clear on this point; he tells us the Incas, his ancestors, had a beautiful cross of crystal, which they kept in a sacred place; and that it was afterwards placed in the sacristy of the great church of Cuzco. Notwithstanding all this, it does not follow that it was an object of general adoration, any more than its occurrence on ancient medals of Sidon do with respect to the ancient world. The more probable opinion is, that as the Mexican year was represented by a circle, and of course, two lines cutting its centre at a right angle would divide it into four equal parts, the cross with them was, in some degree, accidentally venerated, being an astronomical emblem. At all events, these topics must be cleared up, and better illus

trated, before they become matters of rational inquiry.

After having said so much on Mr. Stephens' antiquarian researches, we shall make a few remarks on the past and present state of the people of Yucatan, which will illustrate the slow but sure workings of political and priestly despotism in involving both conquerors and Indians in one common degradation. The Mayas of Yucatan were, at the period of the discovery of America, with the exception of the Araucans of Chili, the bravest people of the New World. The conquest of this peninsula was undertaken by Montejo, one of the companions of Cortez; but he met with a more energetic resistance than was experienced in Mexico. Scarcely any of the natives joined the invaders, and sixteen years were required for the subjugation of the people. Cogolludo and the other Spanish writers say little of the cruelties which were inflicted on the vanquished. The following quotation from Bienvenida will give a graphic view of the conduct of the early Spanish settlers in the New World. The author was a priest, and the memorial, written in 1548, is addressed to Philip the Second, and is characterised by that frank boldness which distinguished the Castillians of those days :

"The Spaniards," he says, "are the greatest obstacles we have to the propagation of the faith. Many of them send the Indians into the woods before the priests arrive. As for me, I hold those who give such orders as worse than the Indians themselves. I will make known to your highness, that three and a half years ago the adelantado bestowed the gift of a captaincy on Gaspar Pachero, on condition that he should conquer the provinces on the Golfodolce. By misconduct this captain stopped in a friendly province called Cochua, one of the greatest in the country, and even the finest within thirty leagues. It had a numerous population, divided among the settlers in the town. He consumed the provisions of the natives, plundered them, and forced them to carry his baggage. The Indians fled, and he made the women carry the burdens. The greater part died of hunger, and the captain could not advance as he had no carriers. He returned, and the captaincy was given to his nephew. Alonzo Pacheco

Nero was not more cruel than he was. He advanced into a peaceful province called Chetemal, and although the natives were peaceable he plundered them and eat up their provisions. The Indians fled to the forests, and when one was captured he was given to be worried by the dogs. The Indians, abandoned their fields and died of hunger. I say all, for there were villages of five hundred and a thousand houses where at present there is not more than a hundred. The captain exercised his cruelties in person; he killed many with a little club; and when he killed them his expresssion was, I have given it well.' He cut off the breasts of the women, and the hands, noses, and ears of the men. He had calabashes to the feet of the women, and threw them into the water, drowning them as a pastime. He committed other horrible cruelties, which I will not relate, lest I be tedious; in short, he ruined all the province. As a reward for these cruelties he was sent into the province he had devastated, and the best Indians that remained were given to him. He did not even receive a reprimand. Such is the way justice is rendered in this country."

This is but a sample of the numberless instances of the most wanton and

heartless cruelty that might be quoted, and unfortunately they were not exceptional cases. The influence of the priests was less mischievous than that of the conquerors; they only waged war upon the national traditions, and were satisfied with the destruction of every thing which recalled the memory of the past. It must also be admitted that while many of them were very objectionable characters, their reputation was deservedly far superior to that of their successors of the present day, and not a few, of whom Las Casas is a noble specimen, were men of sincere and availing humanity. These men became the natural protectors of the Indians, and stood to them in the relation of their ancient chiefs, and became the protectors of the conquered race; and as their consequence and emoluments depended on the number of their parishioners, they exerted a salutary influence in controlling the rapacity of the conquerors. This good, however, was accomplished at a high price: to the national and political prostration, induced by the conquerors, the clergy superadded intellectual degradation, or at all events infused no activity and gave no motives for exertion.

At the present day the Indians of Yucatan, although sufficiently degraded, are upon the whole in a better condition than their brethren in most parts of America; the country is peaceful, and although in a condition similar to that of the serfs of Russia, they are mildly treated; and by a strange inconsistency they are free electors of the republic of Yucatan. In Yucatan, however, the democratic principle is in safe keeping, and universal suffrage has been divested of all its turbulence; the electors on a hacienda or estate are merely so many votes of the proprietor. The working of the democratic principle in this real native American party, as Mr. Stephens calls it, is very simple:-

"All they have to do is, to put into a box a bit of paper, given to them by the master or major domo, for which they are to have a holiday. The only danger is, that in the confusion of greeting acquaintances, they may get their papers changed. When this happens, they are almost invariably found soon after committing some offence against hacienda discipline, for which these independent electors are pretty sure to get flogged by the major domo."

Although possessing abundance of theoretical freedom, the condition of the Indians is sufficiently degraded, both by slavery and superstition. The free electors are attached to the soil, and can be flogged with as little ceremony as negroes on a plantation in Carolina; but happily this discipline is used with mildness in Yucatan. This, however, results from the utter and complete degradation of this now timid people, as the following anecdote given by Mr. Stephens will prove

"The cura related to us a fact that indicates to us an abasement of character perhaps never found in any other people. In a village not far distant, they have a scenic representation called Shtol. The scene is laid at the time of the conquest. The Indians of the village gather within a large place enclosed by poles, and are supposed to be brought there by the invasion of the Spaniards. An old man rises and exhorts them to defend their country, if need be to die for it. The Indians are roused, but in the midst of his exhortations, a stranger enters in the dress of a Spaniard, and armed with a musket. The sight of the stranger throws them all into conster

nation; he fires his musket and they fall to the ground. He binds the chief, carries him off captive, and the play is ended." Vol. i. p. 146.

Occasionally indications of better things may be detected, which are pleasing as evidences that the condition of this unfortunate race is not hopeless, but that under good institutions they might yet be elevated to the rank of an industrious and improving people. The following example shows that the Indians can value independence; and is also curious, as the mode in which land is held in the present instance is the same as that which prevailed throughout America before the conquest, and it is not improbable that the little community inherit the lands which their fathers cultivated generations before the days of Cortez or Montejo :

"It seemed strange that any community should be willing to live where this article of primary necessity (water) was so difficult to be obtained; and we asked them why did they not break up their settlement and go elsewhere? But this idea seemed never to have occurred to them; they said their fathers had lived there before them, and the land was good for milpas (corn fields). They consider themselves better off than in the villages, where the people are subject to certain municipal regulations and duties, or those on the haciendas, where, they would be under the control of masters.

"Their community consists of a hundred labradones or working men; their lands are held and wrought in common, and the products are shared by all. Their food is prepared at one hut, and every family sends for its portion, which explained a singular spectacle we had seen on our arrival. A procession of women and children, each carrying an earthern bowl containing a quantity of smoking hot broth, all coming down the same road, and dispersing among the different huts. Every member of the community down to the smallest pappoose contributed in turn a hog. From our ignorance of the language, and the number of other more pressing matters claiming our attention, we could not learn all the details of their internal economy; but it seems to approximate to that improved state of association which is sometimes heard of among us; and as theirs has existed for an unknown length of time, and can no longer be considered thereby experimental, Owen

and Fourrier might perhaps take lessons from them with advantage."-Vol. ii. P. 14.

This little society is as much a relic of antiquity as the edifices around it, and exhibits a specimen of the Indian villages as they existed from the most remote period. Zurita, one of the best Spanish authorities, and who wrote soon after the conquest, describes the little communities or calpullis of the Mexicans. The lands of the calpulli belonged to the community, and not to the individual who had only a life interest in his portion. No stranger was admitted into a calpulli, lest the land should pass from one community to another. The existing usage described by Mr. Stephens, identical with the ancient one described by Zurita, is valuable as confirming the truth of the statements of older writers.

Passing from the relic of an ancient Indian community, we shall quote from our author an account of one who is probably the descendant of some Maya chief

"This proprietor was a full-blooded Indian, the first of this ancient but degraded race whom we had seen in the position of land-owner and master. He was about forty-five years old, and highly respectable in his appearance and manners. He had inherited the land from his fathers, did not know how long it had been transmitted, but believed it had always been in his family. The Indians on the rancho (farm) were his servants, and we had not seen in any village or on any hacienda men of better appearance or under better discipline. This produced on my mind a strong impression that indolent, ignorant, and debased as the race is under the dominion of strangers, the Indian even now is not incapable of fulfilling the obligations of a higher station than that in which his destiny has placed him. It is not true that he is only fit to labour with his hands; he has within him that which is capable of directing the labour of others. And as this Indian master sat on the terrace with his dependants crouching around him, I could imagine him the descendant of a long line of caciques, who once reigned in the city, the ruins of which were his inheritance. Involuntarily we treated him with a respect which we had never shown to an Indian before; but perhaps we were not far from the influence of feelings