tion and mode of government of the ancient Mexicans," for further
details concerning the duties respectively filled by Montezuma and his
coadjutor, I shall only explain here the conclusion I have reached that
the former was the high priest of the cult of the sun and heaven, the
visible ruler, the war lord, and the administrator of justice. As stated
in a native harangue: "the supreme lord is like unto the heart of the
population ... he is aided by two senators in all concerning the
administration of the government: one of these was a 'pilli' and was named
tlaca-tecuhtli; the other was a warrior and was entitled tlacoch-tecuhtli.
Two other chieftains aided the supreme lord in the militia: one, entitled
tlaca-teccatl, was a 'pilli' and warrior; the other, named
tlacoch-calcatl, was not a 'pilli.' Such is the government or
administration of the republic ... and these four officers did not occupy
these positions by inheritance but by election" (Sahagun, book VI, chap.
20).

The following account of the republic of Tlaxcalla throws further light
upon the form of government which prevailed throughout Mexico and Central
America at the period of the Conquest. "The Captains of Tlaxcalla, each of
whom had his just portion or number of soldiers ... divided their soldiers
into four Battails, the one to Tepeticpac, another to Oco-telulco, the
third to Tizatlan and the fourth to Quiahuiztlan, that is to say, the men
of the Mountains, the men of the Limepits, the men of the Pinetrees, and
the Watermen; all these four sorts of men did make the body of the
Commonwealth of Tlaxcallan, and commanded both in Peace and War ... The
General of all the whole army was called Xico-tencatl, who was of the
Limepits ... the Lieutenant General was Maxix-catzin...." (A new survey of
the West-Indies ... Thomas Gage, London, 1655, p. 31). In Mexico we find
that the four executive officers were the chiefs or representatives of the
four quarters of the City of Mexico. In each of these quarters there was a
place where periodical offerings were made in reverence of one of the
signs: acatl, tecpatl, callii and tochtli, which were the symbols of the
cardinal-points, the elements, and served as day and year signs in the
calendar (Sahagun, book II, chap. 26).

An interesting indication that the entire dominion of Mexico was also
divided into four equal quarters, the rule administration of which was
attended to by four lords, inhabiting towns situated within a