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Rh attention to the Orient; he had frequently to send arms and other aid to the Antilles; and while the government of Florida was subject to no audiencia, the authority of the viceroy could be exercised there, and so with Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Galicia, and Yucatan.

In the despatch of government affairs he was assisted by a secretarial department of royal appointment, and his dignity was sustained by prescribed court pomp and ceremonies, many of them being otherwise of exclusively regal character, such as the formal reception by the chapter and bishop on his first visit to the cathedral church. On certain feast days the audiencia had to accompany him to mass, but not even an oidor could take a seat beside him within the coach. Indeed the viceregal court was modelled on that of Spain, and the king in many ways encouraged the manifestation of respect toward his representatives.

The formalities connected with his arrival in the country were particularly impressive. Processions of brilliantly attired citizens with banners and other regalia, headed by official bodies, came forth to receive him at every town along the route, which usually passed from Vera Cruz through Jalapa, Tlascala, and