e he had not so soon been able to
collect the quantity of gold he was desirous of taking with him on this
voyage. It was in the year 1540 that Cortes thus, for the second time,
arrived in Spain; and as the empress Isabella, of glorious memory, died
in the month of May of the preceding year, the whole of Spain was still
in deep mourning for her; and I, in my capacity of regidor of the town
of Guacasualco, and as the oldest of the Conquistadores, had likewise
put on deep mourning on arriving at the imperial court.

At this same time Hernando Pizarro, with his suite, consisting of above
forty persons, all in deep mourning, likewise arrived in Madrid, where
the court was then staying. Cortes and his suite arrived in the city
almost at the same moment, was splendidly received by order of the
council of the Indies, and took up his abode with the comendador Juan de
Castilla. Upon the whole he was treated with the utmost respect, for
whenever he went to attend the sittings of the council of the Indies,
one of the auditors was sent to meet him at the door, and a seat was
given him on the same bench with the president and the auditors.

Cortes never afterwards visited New Spain, for notwithstanding the
admiral of Castile, the duke of Bejar, the comendador-mayor of Leon, and
Dona Maria de Mendoza used all their influence with his majesty, he
never could obtain leave to repair thither again. Each time these
distinguished personages solicited the emperor, his majesty answered,
"That all the investigations against Cortes must first be brought to an
issue before he could grant him permission to return." Yet no one seemed
to stir in the matter, and the council of the Indies would not say
anything until his majesty should have returned from Flanders, whither
he was gone to punish the town of Ghent. Neither was Nuno de Guzman
allowed to return to New Spain, and though he was condemned in a heavy
fine, he was allowed to retain possession of his commendaries in the
province of Xalisco; and he likewise, with his suite, went about the
town of Madrid clad in deep mourning. And as Cortes, Pizarro, Guzman,
and several other personages of New Spain and Peru, were continually
before the eyes of the public, we were derisively dubbed the mourning
Indians of Peru. It was no joke, however, for Pizarro, for he was
shortly after imprisoned in the Mota of Medina.

I myself returned to New Spain, and the first thing I heard on my
arrival there was, tha