created the belief that the dog stood in some special
relation to the kingdom of the dead. It may also be that, simply because
it was the practice to burn the dead, the dog was looked on as the Fire
God's animal and the emblem of fire, the natives got accustomed to speak
of him as the messenger to prepare the way in the kingdom of the dead,
and thus eventually to regard him as such. At the time when the
Spaniards made their acquaintance, it was the constant practice of the
Mexicans to commit to the grave with the dead a dog who had to be of a
red-yellow color, and had a string of unspun cotton round his neck, and
was first killed by the thrust of a dart in his throat. The Mexicans
believed that four years after death, when the soul had already passed
through many dangers on its way to the underworld, it came at last to
the bank of a great river, the Chicunauhapan, which encircled the
underworld proper. The souls could get across this river only when they
were awaited by their little dog, who, recognizing his master on the
opposite side, rushed into the water to bring him over." (Sahagun, 3
Appendix, Chap. 1.)

As might be expected from the foregoing, there are abundant evidences in
the manuscripts of the presence of the dog in the various religious
rites and especially those which have to do with the other world, the
Kingdom of the Dead. In Tro-Cortesianus 35b, 36b, 37a, 37b, the pages
showing the rites of the four years, the dog appears in various
attitudes. In 35b and 36b, it bears on his back the _Imix_ and _Kan_
signs, in 37a (Pl. 37, fig. 8) it is shown as beating a drum and
singing, in 37b (Pl. 36, fig. 2) it is beside a bowl containing _Kan_
signs. In all of these places, the dogs seem to be represented among the
various birds and animals which are to be sacrificed for the new years.
Landa (1864, p. 216)[361-*] states that in the _Kan_ year a dog was
sacrificed. In the _Muluc_ year, Landa (1864, p. 222)[361-[+]] records
that they offered dogs made of clay with bread upon their backs and a
_perrito_ which had black shoulders and was a virgin. It has already
been noted that two of the dogs represented in Tro-Cortesianus 35b and
36b have a _Kan_ and _Imix_ sign fastened to the back. Moreover, we have
also pointed out that the _Kan_ sign frequently seems to have the
meaning of maize or bread. It will be noted that in Tro-Cortesianus 36b
two human feet are shown on each of which is a dog-like
animal.[361-[++]] These m