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?mt outljron THE SUMTER W Establish ed April? i S S O. "Be Just and Fear not-Let all the Ends thou Aims't at, be thy Country's, thy God's .and Truth's." Consolidated Aug. 2,1881. SUMTER, 3. G-, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22, 1894. THE TRUE SOUTHRON, Established Jone. 1366 New Series-Vol. XIV. No. 4. &k lib?ra: amit ?^OM?ijron. Published ggacy Wednesday, -BY STOTERy C. TERMS : Two Dollars per an o am-io advance. ADVESTISBMKXT: One Square first insertion.......Si 00 Every subsequent insertion. 50 Contracts for three months, or longer will be made at reduced rates. All communications which subserve private interests will be charged foras advertisements. Obituaries" and tributes, of- respect will be charged for.**"' ' oorvRfONT, an, mr YUK AUTHOR. ! jj CESLPXKE TTTTT j '?BGS??S BECOMES A GOD? * Little did L plain Thomas Wingfield, gentleman, know when I rose that morn? ing that before sunset I should be a god, *. and, after Montezuma, the emperor, thc moss honored man, or rather god, in the City of Mexico. It came about thus: When I bad break? fasted with the household of thc Prince Guatemoc, I was led to thc hall of justice, which was named the "tribunal of God." Here on a golden throne sat Montezuma, administering justice In such pomp as I cannot describe. About him were his counselors and great lords, and before him was placed a human skull crowned with emeralds so large that ablaze of light went up from them. In his hand also he held an arrow for a scepter. Certain chiefs or ca z?ques were on their trial. *for*treasori, nor were they left long in doubt as to their fate, for when some evidence had been heard they we^asked?what they had to ch of them told . sho?tfe ?p3h?Bj| nad sa?d ai?c^ ?nte&?crbU of their mdicta??t? and^e?ked it with the arrow in bis hand where the picture of each prisoner appeared upon thc scroll. Thenjtbey were- led away to death, but how they coed l ao not know. When this trial was finished, certain priests entered the hall clothed in sable robes, their matted hair hanging down theirbecks ^JThexwerjufie^ ."w?i eyed men of great dignity, and I shivered when I saw them. I noticed also that they alone made small reverence to the majesty of Montezuma. The counselors and no? bles having fallen back, these priests en? tered intS talk with the emperor, and presently two of them came forward, and taking me from the custody-of the guards led me forward before the throne. Then of a sudden I was commanded to strip my? self of my garments, and this I did, with no little shame, till I stood naked before, them all Now the priests: came forward ' and examined every part of me closely. On my arms were the scars left by De Gar? cia's sword, and on my breast the scarcely healed marks of the puma's teeth and claws. These wounds they scanned, ask? ing how I had come by them I told them, and thereupon they carried on adiscussion among themselves and out of my bearing, which grew so warm that at length they appealed to the emperor to decide the poin t He thought awhile, and. I beard him say: I "The blemishes do hot come from with? in the body, nor were they upon it at birth, but have been inflicted by the violence of man and beast." Then the priests consulted together again, and presently their leader spoke some words into the ear of Montezuma. He nodded, and rising from his throne came toward me, who stood naked and shivering before him, for the air of Mexi? co is keen. As. he advanced he loosed a chain of emeralds andi gold that hung about his neck and unclasped the royal cloak from his shoulders. Then with his own hand he put the chain about my throat and the cloak upon my shoulders, and having humbly bent the knee before me, as though in adoration, he cast his arms about me and embraced me. "Hail, most blessed," he said, "divine son of Quetzal, holder of the spirit of Tez? cat, soul of the world, creator of the world What have we done that you should honor TIS th us with your presence for a season* What can we do to pay the honor back? You created us and all this country; behold, while you tarry with us, it is yones, and we aie nothing but your servants! Order and your commands shall be obeyed; think and your thought shall be executed before it can pass your Mps. O Tezcat, L Montezuma, your servant, of? fer you my adoration and through me the adoration of all my people, ' ' and again he bowed the knee. "We adore you, O Tezcati" chimed in the priests. Now I remained silent and bewildered, for of all this foolery I could understand nothing, and while I stood thus Montezu? ma clapped his hands and women entered, bearing beautiful clothing with them and a wreath of flowers. The clothing they put upon my body and thc wreath of flow? ers on my head, worshiping me the while and saying: "Tezcat, who died yesterday, is comoaga|n. Be joyful; Tezcat has come again in the body of the captivo Teule. " Then I understood that I was now a god and the greatest of gods, though at that moment within myself I felt more of a fool than I had ever been before. And now men appeared, grave and rev? erend in appearance, bearing lutes in their hands. I was told that these were my tutors, and with them a train of royal pages, who were to be my servants. They led me forth from the hall, making music as they went, and before me marched a herald, calling out that this was the god Tezcat, soul of the world, creator of the world, who had come again to visit his people. They led me through all the courts and endless chambers of the palace, and wherever I went man, woman and child bowed themselves to the earth before me and worshiped me, Thomas Wingfield of Ditchingham, in the county of Norfolk, till I thought that I must be mad Then they placed me in a litter and car? ried me down the hill Chapoltepec and along causeways and through streets till we came to the great square of the temple. Before me went heralds and priests, af me followed pages and nobles, and ever we passed the multitudes prostrated the selves till I began to understand h< wearisome a thing it is to be a god Nt they carried me through the wall of s pents and up the winding paths of t mighty teocalli till we reached the su mit, where the temples and idols sto< and here a great drum beat, and the pries sacrificed victim after victim in my hon< and I grew sick with the sight of wickc ness and blood. Presently they invited i to descend from th? litter, laying rich a pets and flowers for my feet' to tread o and I was much afraid, for I thought th they were about to sacrifice mc to my? or some other divinity. But this was n so. They led me to the edge of the pyx mid, or as near as I would go, for I shrai back lest they should seize me sudden and cast me over the edge. And there ? ? high priest called out my dignity to thousands who were assembled beneat and every one of them bent the knee adoration of me, the priests above and tl multitudes below. And so it went on t: I grew dizzy with thc worship, and tl shooting, and the music, and the sights death, and very thankful was I when last they carried me back to Chapoltepec j Here new honors awaited me, for I w, conducted to a splendid range of apar ? men ts next io those of the emperor hil self, and I was told that all Montezuma ! household were at my command and th; he who refused to do my bidding shou die So at last I spoke and said it was n i bidding that I should be suffered tore ? awhile till a feast was prepared for me i the apartments of Guatemoc the prrac i for there I hoped to meet Otomie. My tutors and the nobles who attende ? me answered that Montezuma, my servan had trusted that I would feast with hu that night. Still my command should t done Then they left me, saying that the would come again in an hour to lead n to the banquet. Now I threw oif the en blems of my godhead and cast myself dow i on cushions to rest and think, and a ce tain exultation took possession of me, fe I was I not a god, and bad I not power a ! most, absolute? Still, being of a cautiot mind, X wondered why I was a god an how long my power would last. Before the hour had gone by, pages an nobles entered, bearing new robes, whic S were put upon my body, and fresh flowe: &> crown my nead, and I Was led away t 4hfe ?apartments of G?ste?pc^fair werne i||pi9K$efjfte ?ne who^lajpd^npon irt?rt mem'tsrbf music. J .' , -J , j Here Guatemoc the prince wai ted to r? t ceivo me, which he did as though I, hi captive and companion, was the first o kings. And yet I thought that I saw mei riment in his eye, mingled with sorrow .Bending forward, I spoke to him in ; whisper: 4'What does all this mean, prince?" said. ' Am I "befooled, or am T indeed ; god?" "Hush!" ho answered, bowing low an< speaking beneath his breath. "It mean both good and ill for you, my friend Teule Another time I will tell yon/' Then ht added aloud: "Does it please you, O Tez cat, god of gods, that we should sit a meat with you, or will you eat alone?" ''The gods like good company, prince,' I said Now, during this talk I had discoverce that among those gathered in the hail wa* the Princess Otomie. So when wc passet to the low table around which we were U sit on cushions I hung back, watching where she would place herself, and thei at once seated myself beside her. Thii caused some little confusion among th< company, for the place of honor had beer prepared for me at thc head of the table the seat of Guatemoc being to my right and that ofhis wife, th? royal Tecuichpo, to my left. ^ ' "**?our seat is yonder,'O Tezcat," sh( said, blushing beneath her olive skin as she spoke "Surely a god may sit where he chooses, royal Otomie," I answered. "Besides," j added in a low voice, ''what better place can he find than by the side of the most lovely goddess on the earth?" Again she blushed and answered; "Alas, I am no goddess, but only a mortal maid! listen. If you desire that I should be youi companion at our feasts, you must issue it as a command None will dare to diso? bey you, not even Montezuma, my father. " So I rose and said in very halting Aztec to the nobles who waited on me, "It is my will that my place shall always be set by thc side of the Princess Otomie" At these words Otomie blushed even more, and a murmur went round among the guests, while Guatemoc first looked angry and then laughed. But the nobles, my attendants, bowed, and their spokes? man answered: 'Th? words of Tezcat shall be obeyed. Let thc seat of Otomie, the royal princess, the favored of Tezcat, bc placed by the side of the god" Afterward this was always done, except when I ate with Montezuma himself. Moreover, the - Princess Otomie became known throughout the city as* "thc blessed princess, thc favored of Tezcat," for so strong a hold had custom and superstition upon this people that they thought it thc greatest of honors to her, who was among the first ladies in the land, that ho who for a little space was supposed to hold the spirit of thc soul of the world should deign to desire her companionship when ho ate. Now thc feast went on, and presently I made shift to ask Otomie what all this might mean. "Alas!" she whispered, "you do not know, nor dare I tell you now. But I will say this, though you who arc a god may sit where you will today an hour shall come when you must lie where you would not. Listen. When we have finished eat? ing, say that it is your wish to walk in the gardens of the palace, and that I should accompany you. Then I may lind a chance to speak." Accordingly, when thc feast was over, I said that I desired to walk in thc gardons with the Princess Otomie, and we went out and wandered under the solemn trees that are draped in a winding sheet of gray moss, which, hanging from every bongil as though the forest had been decked with the white beards of an army of aged men, waved and rustled sadly in the keen night air. But, alas! wc might not bc alone, for after us at a distance of 29 paces followed all my crowd of attendant nobles, together with fair dancing girls and minstrels, arm ad with their accursed flutes, on which they blew in season and out of it, dancing as they blew. In vain did I command them to be silent, telling them that it was writ? ten of old that there is a time to play and dance and a time to cease from dancing, for in this alone they would not obey me. Sever could I bc at peace because of t then or thereafter, and not till now d learn how great a treasure is solitude. Still we were allowed to walk toge under the trees, and though the clame music pursued us wherever wo went) were soon deep in talk. Then it was 1 I learned how dreadful was the fate wi overshadowed me. "Know, O Teule," said Otomie, for would call me by the old name when tl was none to hear, "this is the custon our land-that every year a young cap t should be. chosen to be the earthly im of the god Tezcat, who ?reatea the wo Only two th ings are necessary to this c tive-namely, that his blood should be ble and that his person should be bea g ful and without flaw or blemish. The? that you came hither, Teule, chanced be the day of choosing a new captive personate the god, and you have b chosen because you are both noble i more beautiful than any man in Ariah u ; and also because, being of the people of Teules, the children of Quetzal, of wh 1 so many rumors have reached us, i whose coming my father, Montezm < dreads more than anything in the woi it was thought by the priests that you n avert their anger from us and the ange] the gods." I Now Otomie .paused as one who 1 something to' say that she can scarcely ? words to fit, but, I remembering only wi had been said, swelled inwardly with i sense of my own greatness and beca this lovely princess had declared tha was the most beautiful man in Anahu I, who, though I was well looking enouj had never before been called "beautifi by man, woman or child. But in t case, as in many another, pride went fore a fall. "It must be spoken, Teule," Ot?n continued. "Alas, that it should bc who am fated to tell you. Fora y< you will rule as god in this city of T. noctitlan, and except for certain ceremon that you must undergo and certain a which you must learn.none will trout you. Your slightest wish will be a la and when you smile on any it shall be omen of good to them, and they will bli . you. Even my father, Montezuma, w treat you with reverence as an equal more. Every delight shall be yours exec that of marriage, and this will be wit held till the twelfth month of the jet Then the four most beautiful maidens the land will be given to you as brides. ' "And who will choose them?" I askec "Nay, I know not, Teule, who do n meddle in such mysteries," she answer hurriedly. "Sometimes the god is judg and sometimes the priests judge for hil It is as it may chance. Listen now to t! end of my tale, and you will surely forg the rest. For one month you will li with your wives, and this month you w pass in feasting at all the noblest nous in the city. On the last day of the mont however, you will be placed in a roy barge, and, together with your wives, pa died across the lake to a place that named Melting of Metals. Thence ye will be led to tho teocalli, named House < Weapons, where your wives will bid far well to you forever, and there, Teule-ala that I must say it!-you are doomed to 1 offered as a sacrifice to the god whose spi it you hold, the great god Tezcat, for yoi heart will be torn from your body, an your head will be struck from your shou ders and set upon the stake that is know as 'post of heads. ' " Now, when I heard this dreadful doon I groaned aloud, and my knees tremble so that I almost fell to the ground. The a great fury seized me, and forgetting m father's counsel I blasphemed the gods c that country and the people who worshij ed them, first in thc Aztec and Maya lar guages, then, when my knowledge of thes tongues failed me, in Spanish and goo English. But Otomie, who heard some c my words and guessed more, was seize with fear and lifted her hands, saying "Curse not the awful gods, I beseec! you, lest some terrible thing befall you a once. If you are overheard, it will b thought that you have an evil spirit am nota good one, and then you must di now and by torment. At the least th gods, who are everywhere, will hear you. ' "Let them hear, " I answered. "The; are false gods, and that country is accursei which worships then*. They are doomed I say, and all their worshipers are doomed Nay, I care not if I am heard-as well di< now-by torment as live a year in the tor ment of approaching death. But I sha! not die alone., All the sea of blood thai your priests have shed cries out for veDge ance to the true God, and he will avenge. ' Thus I raved on, being mad with fea: and impotent anger, while the Princes? Otomie stood terrified and amazed at m j blasphemies, and the flutes piped and thc dancers danced behind us. And as I raved I saw that the mind of Otomie wandered from my words, for she was staring to? ward the cast like one who secs a vision. Then I looked also toward tho east and saw thc sky was alight there, for from t hc ??c'?e of the horizon to the highest parts of heaven spread a fan of pale and fearful ligh t powdered over with sparks of fire, the handle of the fan resting on the earth, as it were, while its wings covered the ?istern sky. Now I ceased my cursing and stood transfixed, and as I stood a cry of terror arose from all the precincts of the palace, and people poured from every door to gaze upon the portent that flared and blazed in thc east. Presently Montezuma himself came out, attended by his great lords, and in that ghastly light I saw that his lips worked and his hands writhed over each other. Nor was thc miracle done with, for anon from the clear sky that hung over the city descended a ball of fire, which seemed to rest upon the points of the lofty temple in the great square, light? ing up the teocalli as with tho glare of day. It vanished, but where it had been another light now burned, for the temple of Quetzal was afire. Now cries of fear and lamentation arose from all who beheld these wonders on the hill of Chapoltepec and also from the city below. Even I was frightened, I do not know why, for it may well be that the blaze of light which we saw on that and after nights was nothing but the bright? ness of a comet, and that the fire in tho temple was caused by a thunderbolt. But to these people, and more especially to Montezuma, whose mind was filled already with rumors of the coming of a strange white race, which, as it was truly prophe? sied, would brinp his empire to nothing? ness, tho omen seemed very evil. Indeed, if they had any doubt as to their meaning, it was soon to Ix; dispelled, in their mind at least, for as we stood, wonder struck, a messenger, panting and 6oiled with trav? el, arrived among us, and prostrating him ? messenger, panting and soiled with travel, arrived. self before tbe majesty of the emperor he drew a painted scroll from his robe and handed it to an attendant noble. So de? sirous was Montezuma to know its con tents that, contrary to all custom, he snatched the roll from the hands of the counselor, and unrolling it he began to read the picture writing by the baleful light of the blazing sky and temple. Pres? ently, as he watched and he read, Monte? zuma groaned aloud, and casting down the writing he covered his face with his hands. As it chanced, it fell near to where I stood, and I saw painted over it rude pictures of ships of the Spanish rig and of men in the Spanish armor. Then I un? derstood why Montezuma groaned. The Spaniards had landed on his shores! Now some of his counselors approached him to console him, but he thrust them aside, saying: uLet me mourn-the doom that was foretold has fallen upon the children of Anahuac The children of Quetzal muster on our shores and slay my people Let me mourn, I say." At that moment another messenger came from the palace, having grief written on his face. "Speak," said Montezuma. "0 king, forgive the tongue that must tell such tidings. Your royal sister Pa pantzin was seized with terror at yonder dreadful sight," and he pointed to the heavens. "She lies dying in the palace!" Now, when the emperor heard that his sister, whom he loved, was dying, he said nothing, but covering his face with his royal mantle he passed slowly back to the palace. And all the while the crimson light gleamed and sparkled in the east like some monstrous and unnatural dawn, while the temple of Quetzal bumed fiercely in the city beneath. Now I turned to the Princess Otomie, who had stood by my side throughout, overcome with wonder and trembling. "Did I not say that this company was accursed, princess of the Otomie?" "You said it, Teule," she answered, "and it is accursed." Then we went into the palace, and even in this hour of fear after me came the minstrels, as before. CHAPTER XIV. THE AKISISG OF FAPAKTZIN. On the morrow Papantzin died and was buried with great pomp that same evening in the burial ground at Chapoltepec, by the side of the emperor's royal ancestors. ! But, as will be seen, sho was not content j with their company. On that day also I learned that to be a god is not all pleasure, ' since it was expected of me that I must master various arts, and chiefly the horrid art of music, to which I never had any de ? sire. Still my own wishes were not allow? ed to weigh in the matter, for there came to me tutors, aged men who might have found better employment, to instruct me j in the use of the lute, and on this instru? ment I must learn to strum. Others there were also who taught me letters, poetry and art, as they were understood among the Aztecs, and all this knowledge I was glad of. As to this matter of my sacrifice I was at first desperate. But reflection told me that I had already passed many dangers and come out unscathed, and therefore it was possible that I might escape this one also. At least death was still a long way off, and for the present I was a god. So I ' determined that, whether I died or lived, ! while I lived I would live like a god and take such pleasures as came to my hand, and I acted on this resolve. During the days that followed the death of Papantzin the palace and the city also were plunged in ferment The minds of men were shaken strangely because of the rumors that filled the air. Every night the fiery portent blazed in the cast, every day a new wonder or omen was reported, and with it some wild talc of thc doings of thc Spaniards, who by most were held to be white gods, thc children of Quetzal, come back to take the land which their forefathers ruled. But of all that were troubled none were in such bad case as the emperor himself, who during these weeks scarcely ate, drank or slept, so heavy were his fears upon "him In this trait he sent messengers to his an? cient rival, that wisc and severe man, No? za, the king of the allied state of Tezcuco, begging that ho would visit him This king came, an old man with a fierce and gleaming eye, and I was witness to the in terview that followed, for in my quality of god I had full liberty of the palace and even to be present at the councils of the emperor and his nobles. When the two monarchs had feasted together, Montezu- , ma spoke to Neza of thc matter of the omens and of the coming of the Teules, asking him to lighten the darkness by his wisdom. Then Neza pulled his long gray beard and answered that heavy as thc heart of Montezuma might be it must grow still heavier before the end. "See, lord,"he said, *lI am so sure that the days of our empire aro numbered that I will play you at dice for my kingdoms which you and your forefathers have ever desired to win. " "For what wager?" asked Montezuma "I will play you thus," answered Neza. "You shall stake three fighting cocks of which, should I win, I ask the spurs only. I set them against all tho wide empire of Tezcuco." "A small stake," said Montezuma. "Cocks are many, and kingdoms are few. " "Still it shall serve our turn," answer- ? ed the aged king, "for know that we play against fate. As the game goes, so snail the issue be. If you win my kingdoms, all is well; if I win the cocks, then goodby to the glory of Anahuac, for its people will cease to be a people, and strangers shall possess the land." 1 'Let us play and see, ' ' said Montezuma. And they went down to the place that is called tlachco, where the games are set. Here they began the match with dice, and at first all went well for Montzeuma, so that ho called aloud that already he was lord of Tezcuco. "May it be so, " answered the aged Neza, and from that moment the chance dian ged, for, strive as he would, Montezuma could not win another point, and presently the set was finished, and Neza had won the cocks. Now the music played, and court? iers came forward to give the king hom age on his success. But he rose, sighing, and said: "I would far sooner lose my kingdoms than have won these fowls, for if I had lost my kingdoms they would still have passed into the hands of one of my own race. Now, alas! my possessions and his must come under the hand of strangers, who shall cast down our gods and bring our names to nothing. ' ' And having spoken thus, he rose, and taking farewell of the emperor he departed for his own land, where, as it chanced, he died very shortly without living to see the fulfillment of his fears. On the morrow of his departure came further accounts of the doings of the Spaniards that plunged Montezuma into still greater alarm. In his terror he sent for an astronomer noted throughout the land for the truth of his divinations. The astronomer came and was received by the emperor privately. What he told him I do not know, but at least it was nothing pleasant, for that very night men were commanded to pulldown the house of this sage, who was buried in its ruins. Two days after the death of the astron? omer Montezuma bethought h rm that, as he believed, I also was a Teule and could give him information. So at the hour of sunset he sent for me, bidding me walk with him in the gardens. I went thither, followed by my musicians and attendants, who would never leave me in peace, but he commanded that all should stand aside, as he wished to speak with me alona Then he began to walk beneath the mighty cedar trees, and I with him, but keeping one pace behind. "Teule," he said at length, "tell me of your countrymen and why they have come to these shores. See that you speak truth." 4* They are no countrymen of mine, O Montezuma," I answered, "though my mother was one of them." "Did I not bid you speak the truth, Teule? If your mother was one of them, must you not also be of them, for are you not of your mother's bone and blood?" "As the king pleases," I answered, bow? ing. Then I began and told him of the Spaniards-of their country, their great? ness, their cruelty and their greed of gold, and ho listened eagerly, though I think that he believed little of what I said, for his fear had made him very suspicious. When I had done, he spoke and said: t4Why do they come here to Anahuac?" "I fear, O king, that they come to take the land, or at the least to rob it of all its treasure and to destroy its faiths." "What, then, is your counsel, Teule? How can I defend myself against these mighty men, who are clothed in metal and ride upon fierce wild beasts, who have instruments and make a noise like thun? der, at the sound of which their adversa? ries fall dead by hundreds, and who bear weapons of shining silver in their hands? Alas, there is no defense possible, for they are the children of Quetzal come back to take the land! From my childhood I have known that this evil overshadowed rae, and now it is at my door." "If I, who am only a god, may venture to speak to the lord of the earth," I an? swered, "I say that the reply is easy. Meet force by force. The Teules are few, and you can muster 1,000 soldiers for every one of theirs. Fall on them at once; do not hesitate till their prowess finds them friends, but crush them." "Such is the counsel of one whose moth? er was a Teule," the emperor answered, with sarcasm and bitter meaning. "Tell me now, counselor, how am I to know that in fighting against them I shall not be fighting against the gods; how even am I to learn the true wishes and purposes of men or gods who cannot speak my tongue and whose tongue I cannot speak?" "It is easy, O Montezuma," I answered. "I can speak their tongue. Send me to discover for you." Now, as I spoke thus, my heart bounded with hope, for if once I could come among the Spaniards perhaps I might escape the altar of sacrifice; also they seemed a link between me and home. They had sailed hither in ships, and. 6hips can retrace their path, for though at present my lot was not all sorrow it will be guessed that 1 should have been glad indeed to find my- ] self once more among Christian men. Montezuma looked at me awhile and answered: "You must think me very foolish, ! Teule. What, shall I send you to tell my fears and weakness to your countrymen 1 and to show them tho joints in my bar Thcy began the match with dice. ness? Do you then suppose that I do not know you for a spy sent to this land by these same Teules to gather knowledge of the land? Fool, I knew it from the first. Highest of all in Leavening Poi and, by Huitze?, were yon notvowe?Tto Tezcat your heart should smoke tomorrow on the altar of HuitzeL Be warned and, give me no more false counsels, lest your end prove swifter than you think. Learn that I have asked these questions of you i to a purpose, and by the command of the gods, as it was written on the hearts of those sacrificed this day. This was the purpose and this was the command that I might discover your secret mind, and that I should shun whatever advice you chanced to give Y' i counsel me to fight the Teales; therefore I will not fight them, but meet them with gifts and -fair words, for I know well that you would have me to do that which would bring me to my doom." Thus he spoke very fiercely and in a low voice,- his head held low and his arms crossed upon his breast, and I saw that he shook with passion. Even then, though I was very much afraid, for god as I was a nod from this mighty king would have .seat me to death by torment, I wondered at the folly of one who in everything else . was sc wise. Why should he doubt me thus and allow superstition to drag him down to ruin? Today I see the answer. Montezuma did not these things himself, j but because the hand of destiny worked with his hand and the voice of destiny spoke in his voice. The gods of the Aztecs were false gods indeed, but I for one be? lieve that they had life and intelligence, for those hideous shapes of, stone were the habitations of devils, and the priests spoke truth when they said that the sacrifice of men was pleasing to their gods. To these devils the king went for coun? sel through the priests, and now this doom was on them, that they must give false counsel to their own destruction, and to the destruction of those who worshiped' them, as was decreed by one more power? ful than they. Now, while we were talking the sun had sunk swiftly, so that all the world was dark. But the light still lingered on the. snowy crests of the volcanoes Popo and Iztac, staining them an awful red. Never; before to my sight had the shape of the; dead woman whose everlasting bier is,' Ixtac's bulk seemed so clear and wonder? ful as on th?t night, for either it was so. or my fancy gave it the very shape and color of a woman's corse steeped in blood; and laid out for burial. Nor was it myi phantasy alone, for when Montezuma had* finished upbraiding me he chanced to look up, and his eyes falling on the mountain1 remained fixed there. "Look now, Teule!" he said presently, with a solemn laugh; "yonder lies the corse of the nations of Anahuao washed in a water of blood and made ready for burial Is she not terrible in death?" As he spoke the words and turned to go, a sound of doleful wailing came from the direction of the mountain, a very wild and unearthly sound that caused the blood' in my veins to stand still. Now Monte? zuma caught my arm in his fear, and we gazed together on Ixtac, and it seemed to us that this wonder happened, for in that red and fearful light the red figure of the sleeping woman arose, or appeared to. rise, from its bier of stone It arose slow-' ly, like one who awakes from sleep, and presently it stood upright upon the moun? tain's brow, towering high in the air. There it stood, a giant and awakened corpse, its white trappings stained with blood, and we trembled to see it. For awhile the wraith remained thus gazing toward the city of Tenoctitlan; then suddenly it threw its vast arms upward as though in grief, and at that moment tho; night rushed in upon it and covered it, while the sound of wailing died slowly away. ''Say, Teule," gasped thc emperor, "do I not well to be afraid when such portents as these meet my eyes day by day? Heark? en to the lamentations in the city; we have not seen this sight alone. Listen how the people cry aloud with fear and the. priests beat their drums toavert the coen. ? Weep on, ye people, and ye priests pray and do sacrifice! It is very fitting, for the day of your doom is upon you. O Tenoc? titlan, queen of cities, I sec you ruined and desolate, your palaces blackened with] fire, your temples desecrated, your pleas? ant gardens a wilderness. I see your high born women thc wantons of stranger lords and your princes their servants: the canals - run red with the blood of your children:. your gateways are blocked with their bones., j Death is about you everywhere; dishonor ? is your daily bread; desolation is yourpor I tion. Farewell to you, queen of the cities,. i cradle of my forefathers in which. I was ; nursed!" When Montezuma had made an end of crying his prophecies, I asked him hum? bly if I should summon to him the lords who were in attendance upon him, but who stood at some distance. "Nay," he answered, "I would not have, them see me thus with grief and terror upon my face. Whoever fears, at least I ? must seem brave. Walk with me awhile, Teule, and if it is in your mind to murder me I shall not grieve." I made no answer, bat followed him as he lcd the way down the darkest of the winding paths that ran between the ce I dar trees, where it would have been easy ! for .me to kill him if I wished, but I could I not see how I should be advantaged by ; the deed; also, though I knew tliat Mon ' tezuma was my enemy, my heart shrank ! from the thought of murder. For awhile ; or more he walked on without speaking, i now beneath the shadow of tho trees, and now through open spaces of garden plant? ed with lovely flowers, till at last we came j 'to the gates of thc place where the royal j dead are said to rest. Now, in front of these gates was an open space of turf on '. which the moonlight shone brightly, and in the center of this space lay something ? white, shaped like a woman. Here Monte j zuma halted and looked at the gates, then j said: "These gates opened four days since for ! Papantzin, my sister. How long, I won ! der, will pass before they open for me?" As he spoke the white shape upon the ! grass, which I had seen and he had not j seen, stirred like an awaking sleeper, j As thc snow shape upon the mountain had stirred, so this shape stirred; as it had ?ver.-Latest U. S. Gov't Report Baking 3 Powder ??1X PURE