stantly the whole group, as by one impulse of artistic taste, seized
the idea, and resolved to array him as a flower-god. The magnificent
cactus flashed among the plumes of his helmet--a pair of splendid
magnolias, tastefully adjusted on either shoulder, supplied the place of
the silver epaulette--a rich cluster of unfading _forget-me-not_,
covered and eclipsed the gilded star upon his breastplate; while every
joint in his armor, and every loop and button of his doublet, was set
with its appropriate garden gem. Long wreaths of a blossoming vine were
dexterously intertwined with flowers of every brilliant hue, and hung
like a gorgeous sash over his right shoulder, its gay streamers waving
in the gentle breeze, or winding themselves about the scabbard of his
sword. His hands were gloved with a moss of the most delicate green
velvet, dotted with golden stars, and his boots transformed into buskins
of the most approved classic pattern, by alternate bands of jessamine
and scarlet lobelia, crossed and plaided with strings of anemone and
hyacinth.

Thus arrayed, his face skilfully masked with the flowering wax-plant
despoiled of its leaves, he was conducted into the presence of the
Queen, under a continually increasing escort of bright girls and fair
dames, where, with due reverence to her majesty, and with the gallantry
becoming a true knight, he begged, by significant looks and signs, to be
permitted to lay all his bright honors at the feet of the lovely
Tecuichpo.

The signal being given at this moment, he offered his arm to the
Princess, and led the way into the banqueting hall, where the luxuries
of all the climes of earth seemed to be spread out in endless profusion,
and where, the native song of the Aztec alternating with the martial
strains of the Castilian band, the night wore away with feasting and
revelry.

The day had almost dawned, when the strangers, laden with presents of
inestimable value, returned to their quarters, burdened with the weight
of their treasures, and deeply impressed with the more than regal
munificence of their host, and the unimagined loveliness and grace of
the fair beings, who gave life and beauty to his magnificent court.

"If these white gods can be bought, dear father," the Princess naively
remarked, as they took their leave, "you have surely paid a price worthy
of the ransom of the proudest monarch on earth."

"The more you bribe them," interrupted Guatimozin, "the less you bind
the