tones back again of me if I had not quickly
secreted them. This small treasure proved afterwards of the greatest
value to me towards the curing of my wounds, and in procuring myself
food.

All matters being now properly ordered, and the mode of our retreat
settled, we began to move forward. It was about the hour of midnight,
and rather dark, a thin mist hung over the town, and a gentle rain was
falling.

The moment we began to move forward in the above-mentioned order, the
rear-guard being already in motion, and our moveable bridge fixed, and
Sandoval, with his body of horse, and Cortes, with those under his
command, and many other soldiers, had passed across, the wild war music
and loud yells of the Mexicans suddenly burst forth. "Up, up,
Tlatelulco!" they cried; "out with your canoes! The teules are running
away: cut off their retreat over the bridges!"

And before we had time to look about us, we were attacked by vast bodies
of the enemy, and the whole lake was instantly covered with canoes, so
that we were unable to move on any further, although many of our men had
already passed the moveable bridge. Now the most obstinate conflict
ensued for the possession of this, and, as misfortunes never come
singly, it happened that two of our horses should slide out on the wet
planks, become unmanageable, and roll over into the lake. This caused
the bridge itself to overbalance and fall down. A number of Mexicans
that instant fell furiously on us, and, though we exerted ourselves to
the utmost, and cut down numbers of the enemy, we were unable to recover
the bridge. As, however, those behind, kept continually pushing on those
in front, the opening in the canal was speedily filled up with dead
horses and their riders, who were inevitably lost if they were unable to
swim. The unmerciful enemy now attacked us from all sides. A number of
Tlascallans and our Indian female servants were carried off, with the
baggage and cannon; numbers of our men were drowned, and no less a
number, who were trying to save themselves by swimming, were taken
prisoners by those in the canoes. It was heart-rending to behold this
scene of misery, and to hear the moans and pitiful cries for assistance.
"Help! help! I am drowning," cried one here: "help me, they are killing
me!" cried another there. Here one called upon the name of the Virgin
Mary for assistance; and there another upon Santiago de Compostella!
Here another, who had managed to get to the