caught their dogs when they returned at night to the houses, and made a
comfortable supper of that unusual fare. Next day, after recommending
ourselves to God, we resumed our march against the Tlascalan army; both
cavalry and infantry being duly instructed how to act when we came to
battle; the cavalry to charge right through, and the infantry to preserve
a firm array. We soon fell in with the enemy, to the number of about 6000
men in two bodies, who immediately attacked us with great spirit,
discharging their arrows, shouting, and sounding their martial instruments.
Cortes halted the army, and sent three prisoners to demand a peaceable
conference, and to assure them we wished to treat them as brothers;
ordering at the same time the notary Godoy, to witness this message
officially. This message had no effect, as they attacked us more fiercely
than before, on which Cortes gave the word, _St Jago, and on them_. We
accordingly made a furious onset, slaying many with the first discharges
of our artillery, three of their chiefs falling on this occasion. They now
retreated to some uneven ground, where the whole army of the state of
Tlascala, 40,000 in number, were posted under cover, commanded by
_Xicotencatl_, the general in chief of the republic. As the cavalry could
not act in this uneven ground, we were forced to fight our way through as
well as we were able in a compact column, assailed on every side by the
enemy, who were exceedingly expert archers. They were all clothed in white
and red, with devices of the same colours, being the uniform of their
general. Besides the multitudes who discharged continual flights of arrows,
many of them who were armed with lances closed upon us while we were
embarrassed by the inequality of the ground; but as soon as we got again
into the plain, we made a good use of our cavalry and artillery. Yet they
fought incessantly against us with astonishing intrepidity, closing upon
us all around, so that we were in the utmost danger at every step, but God
supported and assisted us. While closely environed in this manner, a
number of their strongest warriors, armed with tremendous two-handed