Page:Young Folks History Of Mexico.pdf/93

Rh and had added largely to that dread band of fanatics, the priests, who were engaged in hurrying this empire to its ruin.

The fifth King of Mexico, successor to Montezuma, was Axajacatl, a valiant general of the army. Having received news of his election he marched into the south upon the terrible mission of securing prisoners to grace by their sacrifice his coronation. In this expedition his troops penetrated as far south as Tehuantepec, many miles from the capital. Tehuantepec is the narrowest portion of Mexican territory, only about a hundred miles here intervening between the waters of the Gulf of Mexico and those of the Pacific. To-day, in our time, it is about to be opened by a railroad, and it has often been examined with reference to the cutting there of a ship canal, which may form a great highway between the seas of the two hemispheres.

The Mexican general defeated the inhabitants of Tehuantepec, after hard-fought battles, and dragged the wretched prisoners over all the long distance to Mexico, to mingle their blood with that of the thousands who had preceded them.

[A. D. 1466]. It is told that in this year, the famous causeway and aqueduct to Chapultepec was completed. It had been planned by Nezahualcoyotl and commenced by Itzcoatl. It supplied the Mexican capital with water, as that surrounding the city was salt and unfit to drink.

All the time, the people were working hard at the building of new temples, and many teocallis, or holy pyramids were built in the three allied capitals. The most noted one outside of Mexico was that constructed by Nezahualcoyotl, highly ornamented with gold and precious stones, and dedicated to the "invisible god of the universe"—not to an idol of stone.

[A. D. 1469]. The slumbering jealousy between the