en commanded us to ascend and storm the
enemy's fortresses. The first ensign Christobal del Corral and the other
ensigns were to lead the way, and all the remaining foot to follow them.
Cortes, with the cavalry, stationed himself in the plain beneath, to
cover our rear, and protect the baggage against other bodies of
Mexicans. As soon as we commenced this laborious ascent, the Indians
began rolling down large stones and huge lumps of rock upon us, and it
was terrible to behold how these heavy masses rebounded as they
thundered down the rugged steeps. It was a miracle that we were not all
crushed to pieces; and certainly Cortes had, in this instance, not acted
as a prudent general when he ordered this perilous attack. At my very
feet a soldier named Martinez, a native of Valencia, and who had been
butler to a gentleman of distinction in Castile, was completely smashed
by a piece of rock, and died without a single groan or sigh. Two other
soldiers, one of whom was named Gaspar Sanchez, a nephew of the
treasurer of Cuba, and the other, Bravo, met with a similar death from
the rolling masses of stone. We, nevertheless, continued the ascent with
great intrepidity: but scarcely a few moments had elapsed before another
brave soldier, named Alonso Rodriguez, with two of his companions, were
crushed to death, and most of us were struck on the head by the pieces
of stone which were split off the rock by the tumbling masses.

At that time I was still an active young fellow, so that I kept up close
with the ensign Corral, and we reached some hollows in the rock, along
which we continued to advance for some time, but at the imminent risk of
our lives, until Corral could proceed no further, and held himself fast
by one of the thick trees with prickly thorns which grew in these
hollows; his head was wounded all over, his face covered with blood, and
his colours torn into rags. Here he turned round to me, and said, "Alas!
Senor Bernal Diaz, it is impossible to advance further this way; for
even if the tumbling masses of rock do not crush us, we shall scarcely
be able to hold fast by our hands under these projecting masses." As we
were thus clinging to the rock by our hands, I espied Pedro Barba, who
commanded the crossbow-men, with two soldiers, likewise clambering up to
this projection, and I cried out to him, "Captain, don't give yourself
any further trouble; there is neither place here to put your hand or
foot, unless you wish to rol