our chiefs should accept their daughters in marriage, offering his own to
Cortes, who thanked him for these marks of friendship. The chiefs remained
with Cortes a whole day, and as Xicotencatl was blind, Cortes permitted
him to examine his head, face, and beard with his hands, which he did with
much attention.

Next day the chiefs brought five daughters of their principal caciques,
who were much handsomer than the other women of the country, each attended
by a female slave. On this occasion Xicotencatl presented his own daughter
to Cortes, and desired him to assign the others among his principal
officers. Cortes thanked him for the mark of regard, but that for the
present the ladies must remain with their parents, as we must first obey
the commands of our God, and the orders of our sovereign, by abolishing
human sacrifices and other abominations, and by teaching them the true
faith in the adoration of one only God. He then shewed them a beautiful
image of the holy Mary, the queen of heaven, the mother of our Lord by the
power of the Holy Ghost, conceived without sin, adding, That if they
wished to become our brethren, and that we should marry their daughters,
they must renounce their idolatry, and worship our God, by which they
would not only benefit their temporal concerns, but would secure an
eternal happiness in heaven; whereas by persisting in the worship of their
idols, which were representations of the devils, they would consign
themselves to hell, where they would be plunged eternally into flames of
fire. This and a great deal more excellently to the purpose, being well
explained to them by our interpreters, the chiefs made answer to the
following effect: That they readily believed all they had now heard
respecting the excellence of our God and his saints, and might in time be
able to understand the subject of his exhortations; but that if they were
now to renounce the religion of their ancestors in their old age to please
us, the priests and people would rebel against them; more especially as