anded to
say that an hour is given you in which to decide whether you accept or
reject them.'

'And if we reject them?'

'Then the Captain Bernal Diaz has orders to sack and destroy this city,
and having given it over for twelve hours to the mercy of the Tlascalans
and other faithful Indian allies, to collect those who may be left
living within it, and bring them to the city of Mexico, there to be sold
as slaves.'

'Good,' I said; 'you shall have your answer in an hour.' Now, leaving
the gate guarded, I hurried to the palace, sending messengers as I went
to summon such of the council of the city as remained alive. At the door
of the palace I met Otomie, who greeted me fondly, for after hearing of
our disaster she had hardly looked to see me again.

'Come with me to the Hall of Assembly,' I said; 'there I will speak to
you.'

We went to the hall, where the members of the council were already
gathering. So soon as the most of them were assembled, there were but
eight in all, I repeated to them the words of de Garcia without comment.
Then Otomie spoke, as being the first in rank she had a right to do.
Twice before I had heard her address the people of the Otomie upon these
questions of defence against the Spaniards. The first time, it may be
remembered, was when we came as envoys from Cuitlahua, Montezuma her
father's successor, to pray the aid of the children of the mountain
against Cortes and the Teules. The second time was when, some fourteen
years ago, we had returned to the City of Pines as fugitives after the
fall of Tenoctitlan, and the populace, moved to fury by the destruction
of nearly twenty thousand of their soldiers, would have delivered us as
a peace offering into the hands of the Spaniards.

On each of these occasions Otomie had triumphed by her eloquence, by the
greatness of her name and the majesty of her presence. Now things were
far otherwise, and even had she not scorned to use them, such arts would
have availed us nothing in this extremity. Now her great name was but
a shadow, one of many waning shadows cast by an empire whose glory
had gone for ever; now she used no passionate appeal to the pride and
traditions of a doomed race, now she was no longer young and the first
splendour of her womanhood had departed from her. And yet, as with her
son and mine at her side, she rose to address those seven councillors,
who, haggard with fear and hopeless in the grasp of fate, crouched in
silence before