d replace them whenever they wish; and there are
many such bridges in different parts of the city, as Your Highness will
perceive hereafter from the particular account I shall give of it.

"When we had passed the bridge, the Senor Muteczuma came out to receive
us, attended by about two hundred nobles, all barefooted, and dressed
in livery, or a peculiar garb of fine cotton, richer than is usually
worn; they came in two processions in close proximity to the houses on
each side of the street, which is very wide and beautiful, and so
straight that you can see from one end of it to the other, although it
is two-thirds of a league in length, having on both sides large and
elegant houses and temples. Muteczuma came through {164} the centre of
the street, attended by two lords, one upon his right and the other
upon his left hand, one of whom was the same nobleman who, as I have
mentioned, came to meet me in a litter, and the other was the brother
of Muteczuma, lord of the city of Iztapalapa, which I had left the same
day; all three were dressed in the same manner, except that Muteczuma
wore shoes, while the others were without them. He was supported in
the arms of both, and as we approached, I alighted and advanced alone
to salute him; but the two attendant lords stopped me to prevent my
touching him, and they and he both performed the ceremony of kissing
the ground; after which he directed his brother who accompanied him to
remain with me; the latter accordingly took me by the arm, while
Muteczuma, with his other attendant, walked a short distance in front
of me, and after he had spoken to me, all the other nobles also came up
to address me, and then went away in two processions with great
regularity, one after the other, and in this manner returned to the
city. At the time I advanced to speak to Muteczuma, I took off from
myself a collar of pearls and glass diamonds, and put it around his
neck. After having proceeded along the street, one of his servants
came bringing two collars formed of shell fish, enclosed in a roll of
cloth, which were made from the shells of colored prawns or
periwinkles, held by them in great esteem; and from each collar
depended eight golden prawns, finished in a very perfect manner and
about a foot and a half in length. When these were brought Muteczuma
turned toward me and put them around my neck; he then returned along
the street in the order already described, until he reached a very
large a