Page:About Mexico - Past and Present.djvu/133

Rh this place of doom he found that the keeper of the prison was one of his father's old friends. As the story goes, the old man, knowing that no ransom was possible in the case, offered to take his place in the cell—a kindness which cost him his life. After his release the boy found his way to the Aztec capital, and through the influence of friends there he was allowed to cross the lake to his old home in Tezcuco. Here he lived a quiet, studious life for eight years, watched, no doubt, by the eagle-eyes of the Tepanac deputy, who never forgot that some day the slain chief would be avenged by the hands of his son.

In time a new Tepanac chief was elected, more fierce and suspicious than the conqueror of Tezcuco, and congratulations on his accession to office seem to have been expected from all his tributaries. Our young Tezcucan came with others, bringing an offering of flowers; but a cold reception awaited him, and he was warned that his life was in danger. He returned to Tezcuco as soon as possible, only to find that his life was not safe there even in his capacity of a humble student. Maxtla, the Tepanac chief, had determined that he should die. Orders were given that he should be murdered while attending one of the religious festivals. His teacher, with fatherly care for the youth, put in his place a person who strongly resembled his pupil, and thus a second time was his life saved by the sacrifice of that of another.

Maxtla now sent a strong body of soldiers to Tezcuco, with orders to kill the young man wherever or whenever they found him. He was playing ball in the courtyard with a party of friends, and, desiring to finish the game, he ordered refreshments to be set before the soldiers. Without losing sight of their intended victim, the