Page:Vol 2 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/445

Rh At first the relations between Mendoza and Cortés were not of an unfriendly nature, but the extreme punctiliousness which presently arose indicated a growing jealousy, and the regulations defining certain formalities which for the sake of harmony they agreed to observe, were ineffective to prevent a rupture; and now when men became wild over the rich realms to be found in the north, each wished the other in the foul pit. Cortés, determined that the exclusive right of northern exploration to which he laid claim should not be wrested from him, hastened his preparations, and in spite of the viceroy's attempts to prevent him, succeeded in despatching a portion of his fleet from Acapulco, under the command of Francisco de Ulloa. But Mendoza threw every possible obstacle in the way, seizing upon the captain-general's remaining vessels at Tehuantepec, forbidding any one to leave New Spain without his permission, and sending a strong force up the coast to prevent the entrance of Ulloa's ships into any of the ports. A messenger despatched to Cortés from Santiago in Colima was seized and tortured, that information might be obtained from him; and shortly afterward, one of the vessels putting into Guatulco under stress of weather, the pilot and sailors were made prisoners. All future efforts of the marquis to prosecute