Page:Pictures of life in Mexico Vol 1.djvu/131

Rh the ancient Mexicans, to which he had alluded, the bishop continued thus:—

"In the ancient Aztec temples, there were many sanctuaries erected to the gods of war, with staircases and numerous altars, upon which human sacrifices were offered. The doors of these sanctuaries were often shaped in imitation of the heads of serpents and wild beasts, with mouths into which the entrails of birds, beasts, and men were continually thrust; and in the gardens set apart for the culture of holy flowers, horrible towers and mounds were formed of the skulls of human victims sacrificed.

"Thousands of priests, in divisions both for day and night, sang impure song's in honour of the idols; their hair died black, and their bodies anointed with spices and burnt flesh, and the ashes of scorpions and spiders. They had gods of Peace and War, of Earth and Air, of Fire and Water, of Corn and Flowers, of Night and of the Sun. In the hollow of the Stone of Sacrifices (which is still preserved), victims were laid, and priests, dressed in feathers of the toto, or sacred bird, held them down while the chief priests cut open their breasts, extracted their hearts, and offered