Page:The Annals of the Cakchiquels.djvu/27

Rh one where the possession of the leadership was merely an act of grasping by the strongest arm.

Of the four nations, the Quiches were the most numerous and powerful. At times they exercised a sovereignty over the others, and levied tribute from them. But at the period of Alvarado's conquest, all four were independent States, engaged in constant hostilities against each other.

There is no means of forming an accurate estimate of their number. All early accounts agree that their territory was thickly populated, with numerous towns and cities. The contingent sent to Alvarado by the Cakchiquel king, to aid in the destruction of Quiche, was four thousand warriors in one body, according to Alvarado's own statement, though Xahila puts it at four hundred. There are various reasons for believing that the native population was denser at the Conquest than at present; and now the total aboriginal population of the State of Guatemala, of pure or nearly pure blood, is about half a million souls.

The capital city of the Cakchiquels is referred to by Xahila as "Iximche on the Ratzamut." It was situated on the lofty