Page:Letters of Cortes to Emperor Charles V - Vol 2.djvu/107

 with the remaining people, advanced on the street to Tacuba. We captured three bridges which we filled up, and, because it was already late, left the others for another day, when it could be better done, for I wished to occupy that street so that the people of Pedro de Alvarado' s camp might communicate with ours, and go from one camp to the other, and the brigantines the same. That day was one of great victory, both on water as well as land; and some plunder was obtained from the city. In the camps of the alguacil mayor and Pedro de Alvarado there was also great victory.

The next day, I again entered the city in the same order as before, and God gave us such a triumph that, in the parts where I penetrated, there seemed to be  Disastrous Operations of Alvarado no resistance at all, and the enemy retired so rapidly that it appeared we had captured three-fourths of the city. The division of Pedro de Alvarado also attacked them briskly, and, undoubtedly on that day and the day before, I was positive they would sue for peace, in favour of which, with or without victory, I made every demonstration I could. Nevertheless, we saw no sign of peace in them, and we retired that day to our camp, very gladly, although we were grieved to our very hearts to see their determination to die. In these past days, Pedro de Alvarado had captured many bridges, and, in order to hold and defend them, he placed a guard of foot soldiers and horsemen on them throughout the night, while the remainder of his people returned to camp, three-quarters of a league from there. As this labour was unendurable, he determined to move his camp to the end of the causeway leading to the market place of Temixtitan, which has a square much larger than that of Salamanca, all surrounded by arcades, to reach which it was necessary to capture only two or three more bridges, but as they were very broad and dangerous, he was occupied in it some days, during which he