Page:Vol 2 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/518

498. It pained him to see bravery becoming bravado; Alvarado's men were but lately enlisted, and could not be compared with those so recently defeated at the Mixton. "I am sorry to see you depart alone," he said, "for I assure your worship there will be trouble. Had you but awaited the viceroy's reënforcements, we might have jointly pacified the country without much risk." More determined than ever, Alvarado replied: "The die is cast; I trust in God!" Thereupon he set out from Guadalajara with his forces, horse, foot, and Indians, toward Nochistlan. He stirred within his men their vanity and their valor; it was absurd to think of waiting for more men; the fewer the number the greater the share of plunder. Thus was opened the last campaign of the dashing adelantado, one of the most reckless, and one of the most cruel.

Unable to remain inactive, Oñate followed with twenty-five horsemen. Should his fears be realized, he would be near to render aid; and in case of a hopeless rout he might return in time for the protection of Guadalajara. He crossed the Rio Grande and marching through the mountains of Nochistlan toward Juchipila stationed himself on a height from which he could witness the attack.

On the 24th of June Alvarado arrived at the peñolpeak [sic] of Nochistlan, which was protected by seven walls of stone, earth, and trees, and defended by a multitude of warriors. After a short and fruitless parley he pushed forward to take the breastworks by assault. A human flood opposed his progress. Ten thousand Indians, men and women, poured down upon the aggressor like a torrent. The sky was dark with arrows, darts, and stones, and at the first shock twenty Spaniards fell dead. The ferocity of the enemy was such that they tore the bodies of the slain to pieces, threw them into the air, and then devoured them. Consternation seized the Spaniards. Nevertheless Alvarado rallied, and in a second onslaught ten more