ing about four miles from the latter place.

Our march lay along the coast, and on our route we killed a large fish
which had been thrown on shore; we then came to a pretty deep river, on
whose banks the town of Vera Cruz at present lies: this we crossed by
means of some old canoes we found here, and by ferryboats; I, however,
swam across. On the opposite bank of the river lay several small
townships, subject to one more extensive called Sempoalla. This was the
home of the five Indians who came to Cortes in the character of
ambassadors, and who were called by us _Lopelucios_. We found the
idol-temples stained with spots of blood, the apparatus for perfuming
and sacrificing, a quantity of parrot feathers, and several packages of
paper stitched one over the other, resembling our Spanish linen. We
nowhere met any Indians; for as they had never before seen people like
unto us, nor any horses, they had all run away from fear, so that we
were forced to go hungry to bed. The next day we marched inland in an
easterly direction: of course we had not the least knowledge of the road
we were taking, and we turned at a venture into a beautiful meadow,
where we found wild deer grazing. Pedro de Alvarado chased one of these
on his brown mare, and managed to wound it with his lance; but the
animal escaped over some heights.

In the meantime twelve Indians made their appearance, inhabitants of the
district, where we were encamped for the night, bringing with them some
fowls and maise-bread, which, they told Cortes, by means of our
interpreter, had been sent us by their cazique, who had likewise desired
we should visit his township, which lay at a distance of one sun, say a
day's march, from our present station. Cortes returned them sincere
thanks for their great kindness, and we marched on until we came to a
small township, where a short time previous several human beings had
been sacrificed. As the kind reader would be disgusted with hearing of
the numbers of male and female Indians we found butchered along every
road and in every village we passed through, I will be silent on that
head, and merely add that a supper was provided for us in the small
village where we had arrived. Here we also learnt that the road to
Quiahuitzlan, which latter lay on a hill, passed through Sempoalla,
where we next arrive.

[17*] Costatlan, Bernal Diaz also adds here, "Y este nombre de Culua es
en aquella tierra, como si dixessen los Romanos hallados." A