Page:Letters of Cortes to Emperor Charles V - Vol 2.djvu/123

 war upon them, and destroyed their land, burned a town, captured some of the people and were destroying everything they could, intending to come to our camps and attack us, so that those of the city could sally forth and overcome us. We gave credit to most of this, because, each time, for a few days past, that we had entered to fight, the Culuans had threatened us, with the people of this province of Matalcingo, which, though we had not much information, we well knew was large and twentyfive leagues distant from our camp. In the complaint these Otumies made of their neighbours, they gave us to understand that they wanted help, and, although they asked it at a very needy time, confiding in the help of God, and in order to break the wings of those of the city who daily threatened us with these people and hoped for aid, which could only come from them, I determined to send Gonzalo de Sandoval, alguacil mayor, with eighteen horsemen and one hundred foot-soldiers, amongst whom there was only one bowman: he departed with them and the Otumies, our friends; and God knows the danger which attended all who went as well as all who were left. But, as it was necessary to show more courage and valour than ever, and to die fighting, we hid our weakness from friends as well as from foes, and many and many times the Spaniards declared they hoped it might please God to leave them their lives and to see them victorious over the city, even though no other profits should come to them neither in it, nor in any other part of the country; by which the risk and extreme need in which we found ourselves and our lives may be judged.

The alguacil mayor left that day, and slept in a town of the Otumies which is on the frontier of Marinalco, and, the following day, he started very early, arriving at some small hamlets of the said Otumies, which he found deserted, and a good part of them burnt. Advancing more on to the plain, he found near a river bank