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Chapter 6: Listening Actively
Matching
Match the concept, term, or theory with its correct response or definition.
action-oriented listeners
aggressive listening
attending
back-channel cues
content-oriented listeners
eavesdropping
feedback
hearing
listening
listening styles
long-term memory
mental bracketing
mnemonics
narcissistic listening
paraphrasing
people-oriented listeners
provocateurs
pseudo-listening
recalling
receiving
responding
selective listening
short-term memory
time-oriented listeners
understanding
1. Behaving as if you are paying attention when you are really not.
Ans: pseudo-listening
Question Type: Matching
Chapter: 6
Section: Pseudo-Listening
Bloom’s Level: Remembering
Difficulty: Easy
2. Listeners who prefer brief, concise encounters and follow strict schedules.
Ans: time-oriented listeners
Chapter: 6
Section: Four Listening Styles
Difficulty: Easy
3. The second step of the listening process, during which one pays attention to information.
Ans: attending
Chapter: 6
Section: Attending
Difficulty: Easy
4. Devices that aid memory during the listening process.

Ans: mnemonics
Chapter: 6
Section: Recalling
Difficulty: Easy
5. The fourth step of the listening process, during which the listener communicates attention
and understanding back to the speaker.
Ans: responding
Chapter: 6
Section: Responding
Difficulty: Easy
6. The fifth step of the listening process, during which one remembers information.
Ans: recalling
Chapter: 6
Section: Recalling
Difficulty: Easy
7. Summarizing others’ comments after they have finished speaking.

Ans: paraphrasing
Chapter: 6
Section: Paraphrasing and Clarifying
Difficulty: Easy
8. The use of verbal and nonverbal communication to signal attention and understanding while
others are talking.
Ans: feedback
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
Difficulty: Easy
9. Verbal and nonverbal messages, such as nodding your head and saying “uh-huh.”
Ans: back-channel cues
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
Difficulty: Easy
10. The process of receiving, attending to, understanding, responding to, and recalling sounds
and visual images.
Ans: listening
Chapter: 6
Section: Listening: A Five-Step Process
Difficulty: Easy
11. Habitual patterns of listening behaviors.

Ans: listening styles
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
12. A form of ineffective listening that involves listeners engaging in self-absorbed listening.
Ans: narcissistic listening
Chapter: 6
Section: Narcissistic Listening
Difficulty: Easy
13. Attending to what others say solely for the purpose of identifying opportunities for attack or
ambush.
Ans: aggressive listening
Chapter: 6
Section: Aggressive Listening
Difficulty: Easy
14. Listeners who prefer brief, accurate messages that can be used to make decisions or take
actions.
Ans: action-oriented listeners
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
15. Listeners who prefer to be intellectually challenged by messages.

Ans: content-oriented listeners
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
16. The first step of the listening process, during which one sees and hears.
Ans: receiving
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
Difficulty: Easy
17. When a listener takes in only salient bits of information.
Ans: selective listening
Chapter: 6
Section: Selective Listening
Difficulty: Easy
18. The action of intentionally and systematically setting up situations in order to listen to
private conversations.
Ans: eavesdropping
Chapter: 6
Section: Eavesdropping
Difficulty: Easy
19. The third step of the listening process, during which one interprets the meaning of
information communicated by comparing new information against past knowledge.
Ans: understanding
Chapter: 6
Section: Understanding
Difficulty: Easy
20. People who post online messages designed solely to annoy others.
Ans: provocateurs
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
21. The process in which vibrations travel along acoustic nerves to the brain.
Ans: hearing
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
Difficulty: Easy
22. The systematic process of putting aside irrelevant thoughts while listening.
Ans: mental bracketing
Chapter: 6
Section: Elevating Attention
Difficulty: Easy
23. People who view listening as an opportunity to establish commonalities with others.
Ans: people-oriented listeners
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
24. The part of one’s mind that temporarily houses information while one seeks to understand
its meaning.
Ans: short-term memory
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
25. The part of one’s mind devoted to permanent information storage.

Ans: long-term memory
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
True/False
Please select whether the following statements are true or false.

26. Selective listening is the greatest challenge to active listening.
Ans: T
Question Type: True/False
Chapter: 6
Section: Selective Listening
Bloom’s Level: Understanding
Difficulty: Moderate
27. A listener can improve the salience of communication by reminding himself or herself of
the importance of the exchange.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Attending
28. If you misunderstand information while attending, you are likely to make flawed decisions
while recalling.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Recalling
29. Listening is our most primal and primary communication skill.

Ans: T
Chapter: 6
30. In a collectivistic culture, people-oriented and content-oriented listening styles are valued
over other styles.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Culture and Listening Styles
31. Listening is a process that involves both auditory and visual cues.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Difficulty: Easy
32. Long-term memory is used in the receiving stage of the listening process.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
33. Both seeing and hearing constitute receiving, the first step of the listening process.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
Difficulty: Easy
34. Noise pollution has caused hearing impairment in more than 75 percent of college students.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
Difficulty: Easy
35. Both internal and external factors can impact one’s attention level for listening.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
36. We should avoid mental bracketing because we can easily fall prey to our wandering
attentions.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Section: Attending
37. Provocateurs bait online responders by posting messages and then attacking their responses.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
38. Back-channel cues are effective for offering negative feedback to a speaker.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
39. Responding loudly with “amen” or “hallelujah” in response to a Catholic priest’s sermon is
an appropriate use of positive feedback.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
Bloom’s Level: Applying
Difficulty: Difficult
40. Recalling, the fifth step of listening, is crucial because we judge others’ listening skills by
their ability to recall what we said.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Recalling
41. When communicating with a man, you should assume that he will only use either a people-
oriented or a content-oriented listening style.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Section: Gender Differences in Listening Styles
42. In recalling information, we tend to remember our own behavior as more positive and
constructive than the behavior of others.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Recalling
43. One simple method for bolstering memory is to incorporate as many of the five senses as
possible.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Recalling
44. Those with an action-oriented listening style prefer brief, to-the-point communication and
become impatient when communicating with those who are long-winded.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
45. If your partner has trouble focusing on your conversations and seems easily distracted, he or
she may be having trouble practicing mental bracketing.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Attending
46. Women are more likely than men to use time-oriented and action-oriented listening styles.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Section: Gender Differences in Listening Styles
47. In an individualistic culture such as in the United States, time-oriented and action-oriented
listening styles are valued over other styles.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Culture and Listening Styles
48. Multitaskers have been shown to perform their tasks better than those who focus their
attention on only one task at a time.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Section: Limiting Multitasking Online
49. Brain plasticity refers to the alteration of brain function in reaction to behaviors such as
multitasking online.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
Section: Attending
50. According to research, we can train our brains to sustain attention by focusing upon only
one task without technological distractions.
Ans: T
Chapter: 6
51. Brain plasticity suggests that our brains are fully formed in adolescence and cannot be
retrained later in life.
Ans: F
Chapter: 6
Multiple Choice
Please choose the correct response to the following statements.
52. Unlike hearing, listening

A. is automatic
B. is a physiological process
C. requires no conscious effort
D. is merely an external process
E. involves conscious, deliberate thought and effort
Ans: E
Question Type: Multiple Choice
Chapter: 6
53. Hearing impairment is a problem with

A. seeing
B. receiving
C. attending
D. understanding
E. none of the options are correct
Ans: B
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
54. If Kayla moves closer to a couple so she can hear their gossip about her friend, even though
she has not been invited to join the conversation, she is engaged in
A. narcissistic listening
B. eavesdropping
C. pseudo-listening
D. aggressive listening
E. selective listening
Ans: B
Chapter: 6
Section: Eavesdropping
55. If your colleague begins a conversation by saying, “We only have 10 minutes to talk,” she is
displaying
A. time-oriented listening
B. empathic listening
C. action-oriented listening
D. people-oriented listening
E. passive listening
Ans: A
Chapter: 6
56. If Vic, who is concerned his girlfriend might still be angry with him after a recent fight,
carefully listens not only to the words she is saying but also to how they are said, he is
A. listening to support
B. listening to appreciate
C. listening to discern
D. listening to comprehend
E. listening to analyze
Ans: C
Chapter: 6
Section: Listening to Discern
57. If Jayson, when listening to his interpersonal communication professor’s lecture, actively
seeks to interpret and understand the information, he is
A. listening to discern
C. listening to support
D. listening to analyze
E. listening to comprehend
Ans: E
Chapter: 6
Section: Listening to Comprehend
58. If your friend Bryan spends time posting messages on online discussion boards that are
designed to bait readers’ responses so he can attack the readers, he is acting as
A. a provocateur
B. an action-oriented listener
C. an eavesdropper
D. a pseudo-listener
E. a narcissistic listener
Ans: A
Chapter: 6
59. Which of the following is true of feedback?

A. can be positive
B. can be negative
C. occurs while others are speaking
D. occurs after others speak
E. all of the options are correct
Ans: E
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
60. When a professor in a public speaking class listens to a student speech in order to grade it,
which listening function is she demonstrating?
Ans: D
Chapter: 6
Section: Listening to Analyze
61. You go to your coworker’s violin recital because you enjoy music and think it might be
interesting. What listening function are you demonstrating?
Ans: B
Chapter: 6
Section: Listening to Appreciate
62. When a friend or family member turns to you for comfort, the best listening style to apply
would be
A. selective listening
B. time-oriented listening
C. people-oriented listening
D. content-oriented listening
E. passive listening
Ans: C
Chapter: 6
63. Active listening involves

A. controlling factors that impede attention
B. providing clear, timely feedback
C. devoting effort to improve recall
D. developing awareness of listening functions and styles
Ans: E
Chapter: 6
64. Jon says, “I am so upset—I can’t believe I was fired today.” His roommate, Omar, responds
by saying, “Wow, it sounds like you are disappointed that you lost your job.” Omar is using
A. mental bracketing
B. passive listening
C. paraphrasing
D. pseudo-listening
E. narcissistic listening
Ans: C
Chapter: 6
Section: Paraphrasing and Clarifying
65. You sit toward the front of your classroom, maintain eye contact with your instructor, and
nod in agreement with her remarks. However, your mind is drifting, so you are not actually
focused on the content of the lecture. You are exemplifying
A. passive listening
B. active listening
C. selective listening
D. narcissistic listening
E. pseudo-listening
Ans: E
Chapter: 6
Section: Pseudo-Listening
66. People who consistently use aggressive listening may also

A. engage in eavesdropping
B. think less favorably of themselves
C. experience less violence in their relationships
D. achieve more success in their personal goals
Ans: B
Chapter: 6
67. Your friend Lorie talks a lot, often ignoring what you have to say; in fact, she regularly
focuses the conversation on her issues, problems, and interests. What type of listening is she
displaying?
A. pseudo-listening
B. passive listening
C. narcissistic listening
D. active listening
E. action-oriented listening
Ans: C
Chapter: 6
Section: Narcissistic Listening
68. Which of the following listening styles is the most likely to be concerned with others’
emotions?
A. selective listening
B. action-oriented listening
C. content-oriented listening
D. time-oriented listening
E. people-oriented listening
Ans: E
Chapter: 6
69. Which of the following is NOT an example of noise pollution?

A. thoughts
B. music
C. construction
D. crowds
E. traffic
Ans: A
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
70. If you listen to your friend’s new band perform and then offer feedback that contains praise
but withhold any actual judgment, what listening function are you demonstrating?
Ans: C
Chapter: 6
Section: Listening to Support
71. Who or what has primary control of the salience of a message?

A. listener
B. speaker
C. context
D. environment
Ans: B
Chapter: 6
Section: Attending
72. Which of the following is an example of an internal factor that can impact one’s attention
level?
A. illness
B. stress
C. fatigue
D. hunger
Ans: E
Chapter: 6
Section: Receiving
73. What listening strategy would you recommend to your friend Ron, who says he can’t pay
attention in his interpersonal communication class because his mind often wanders?
A. eavesdropping
B. pseudo-listening
C. narcissistic listening
D. mental bracketing
E. back-channel cues
Ans: D
Chapter: 6
Section: Elevating Attention
74. Which of the following is true of long-term memory?

A. it is a temporary storage place for information
B. it is the place where new information is stored
C. it plays a minimal role in the understanding stage of listening
D. it is related to permanent information storage
Ans: D
Chapter: 6
75. When your friend Sheila listens to you recount your day, she often responds with nonverbal
and verbal cues including “uh-huh,” “yes,” and “okay.” What listening strategy is Sheila
using?
A. feedback
B. mental bracketing
C. back-channel cues
D. paraphrasing
E. mnemonics
Ans: C
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
76. To use positive feedback effectively, one should make it

A. obvious
B. appropriate
C. clear
D. immediate
Ans: E
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
77. If you learn that you are expected to remove your shoes upon entering the home of your
Japanese friend—and do so when you visit—what rule of giving positive feedback are you
displaying?
A. negativity
B. obviousness
C. immediacy
D. appropriateness
E. clarity
Ans: D
Chapter: 6
Section: Feedback
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More generous were the caciques of two towns at the other end
of the valley, who brought a few golden trifles and eight female
slaves.[278] The revelations of the Cempoalans and of Marina
concerning the wonderful power of the Spaniards, and the honors
paid them by Montezuma’s envoys, had the effect of making Olintetl
also more liberal with provisions at least. Being asked about the road
to Mexico he recommended that through Cholula, but the
Cempoalans representing the Cholultecs as highly treacherous, and
devoted to the Aztecs, the Tlascalan route was chosen, and four
Totonac chiefs were despatched to ask permission of the republican
rulers to pass through their lands. A letter served as mystic
credentials, and a red bushy Flemish hat for a present.[279]
After a stay of four days the army proceeded up the valley,
without leaving the customary cross, it seems, with which they had
marked their route hitherto; the reason for this was the objection of
Padre Olmedo to expose the emblem to desecration in a place not
wholly friendly to them.[280] The road lay for two leagues through a
densely settled district to Iztacmixtitlan, the seat of Tenamaxcuicuitl,
a town which Cortés describes as situated upon a lofty height, with
very good houses, a population of from five to six thousand families,
and possessing comforts superior to those of Xocotlan. “It has a
better fortress,” he writes, “than there is in half Spain, defended by a
wall, barbican, and moats.” The cacique who had invited the visit
made amends for the cold reception of the previous chief, and the
Spaniards remained for three days waiting in vain for the return of
the messengers sent to Tlascala. They then passed onward,
reinforced by about three hundred warriors from the town.[281] Two
leagues’ march brought them to the boundary of Tlascala,
conspicuous by a wall of stone and mortar nine feet in height and
twenty in breadth, which stretched for six miles across a valley, from
mountain to mountain, and was provided with breastworks and
ditches.[282]
Between latitude 19° and 20° ranges of hills cut the plain of
Anáhuac into four unequal parts. In the centre of the one eastward
stood the capital of Tlascala. The state so carefully protected was
about the same small territory which we now see on the map,[283]
with twenty-eight towns, and one hundred and fifty thousand
families, according to the rough census taken by Cortés.[284] A
branch of the Teo-Chichimec nation, the Tlascaltecs had, according
to tradition, entered upon the plateau shortly before the cognate
Aztecs, and, after occupying for a time a tract on the western shore
of Tezcuco Lake, they had tired of the constant disputes with
neighboring tribes and proceeded eastward, in three divisions, the
largest of which had, late in the thirteenth century, taken possession
of Tlascala, ‘Place of Bread.’ The soil was rich, as implied by the
name, but owing to the continued wars with former enemies,
reinforced by the Aztecs, they found little opportunity to make
available their wealth by means of industries and trade, and of late
years a blockade had been maintained which deprived them of many
necessaries, among others salt. But the greater attention given in
consequence to agriculture, had fostered temperate habits and a
sinewy constitution, combined with a deep love for the soil as the
source of all their prosperity. Compelled also to devote more time
and practice to warfare for the preservation of their liberty than to the
higher branches of culture, they presented the characteristics of an
isolated community, in being somewhat behind their neighbors in
refinement, as well as in the variety of their resources.
In government the state formed an aristocracy, ruled by a senate
of the nobility, presided over by four supreme hereditary lords, each
independent in his own section of the territory. This division extended
also to the capital, which consisted of four towns, or districts,
Tizatlan, Ocotelulco, Quiahuiztlan, and Tepeticpac, ruled respectively
by Xicotencatl, Maxixcatzin, Teohuayacatzin, and Tlehuexolotl.[285]
It was before this senate that the messengers of Cortés
appeared, informing them in the name of the Cempoalan lord of the
arrival of powerful gods from the east, who having liberated the
Totonacs from Montezuma’s sway, now desired to visit Tlascala in
passing through to Mexico, and to offer their friendship and alliance.
The messengers recommended an acceptance of the offer, for
although few in number the strangers were more than equal to a
host. They thereupon depicted their appearance, their swift steeds,
their savage dogs, their caged lightning, as well as their gentle faith
and manners. The messengers having retired, the senate proceeded
to discussion. Prudent Maxixcatzin, lord of the larger and richer
industrial district, called attention to the omens and signs which
pointed to these visitors, who from all accounts must be more than
mortal, and, if so, it would be best to admit them, since resistance
must be vain. Xicotencatl, the eldest lord, replied to this that the
interpretation of the signs could not be relied on. To him these beings
seemed monsters rejected by the sea-foam, greedy of gold and
luxuries, whose steeds devoured the very ground. To admit them
would be ruinous. Besides, should the invincible Tlascaltecs submit
to a mere handful? The gods forbid! It was further argued that the
amicable relations of the strangers with Montezuma and his vassals
did not accord with their protestations of friendship. This might be
one of the many Aztec plots to obtain a footing in the country. Nor
did the destruction of idols at Cempoala increase the confidence of a
people so jealous of its institutions. The discussion waxing warmer,
senator Temilotecatl suggested the middle course of letting the
Otomí frontier settlers, who were thoroughly devoted to their
Tlascaltec patrons, make an attack on the invaders, aided by their
own general Axayacatzin Xicotencatl, son of the old lord, and known
by the same name. If successful, they could claim the glory; if not,
they might grant the victors the permission they had desired, while
casting the blame for the attack on the Otomís. This was agreed to.
[286]
As the Spaniards halted before the great wall, speculating on the

strength of the people who had erected it, and upon the possible
traps it might hide, their late hosts again besought them to take the
Cholula route, but Cempoalan counsel prevailed. Waving aloft his
banner, Cortés exclaimed: “Behold the cross! Señores, follow it!” And
with this he led the way through the semicircular laps of the
entrance. The wall was not provided with sentinels, and the army
met with no obstacles.[287] Attended by ten horsemen, the general
advanced to reconnoitre. After proceeding about four leagues he
caught sight of fifteen armed Indians, who were pursued and
overtaken. A fight ensued, in which the natives, nerved by despair,
fought so fiercely that two horses were killed, and three horses and
two riders wounded.[288] Meanwhile a force of Indians came up,
estimated at from three to five thousand, and a horseman was at
once sent back to hurry forward the infantry, while the rest boldly
charged the enemy, riding through their ranks, and killing right and
left without being injured themselves. On the approach of the foot-
soldiers, and the discharge of a volley, the natives retired with about
sixty of their number slain.[289] Shortly afterward two of the
Cempoalan messengers returned with some Tlascaltecs, who
expressed their sorrow at the attack made by a tribe not belonging to
their nation. They offered to pay for the horses killed, and invited the
Spaniards in the name of the lords to proceed. The army advanced
for a league into more open country, and camped among some
abandoned farms, where dogs proved to be the only food left. Thus
ended the first day in Tlascalan territory, the first of September,
according to Bernal Diaz.
In the morning the Spaniards met the two other messengers
returning from their mission to Tlascala, who told a harrowing story
of their seizure for the sacrificial stone, and of their escape by night.
It is probable that their detention by the Tlascaltecs for messenger
purposes had frightened them into believing that they were destined
to be sacrificed, for envoys enjoyed the greatest respect among the
Nahuas.[290] Shortly after a body of over one thousand warriors[291]
appeared, to whom Cortés, in presence of the notary Godoy, sent
three prisoners, with a formal assurance of his friendly intentions.
The only reply being showers of arrows, darts, and stones, Cortés
gave the “Santiago, and at them!” and charged. The enemy retreated
with the face to their pursuers, enticing them toward some broken
ground intersected by a creek, where they found themselves
surrounded by a large force, some bearing the red and white devices
of Xicotencatl. Missiles were showered, while double-pointed spears,
swords, and clubs pressed closely upon them, wielded by bolder
warriors than those whom the Spaniards had hitherto subdued.
Many were the hearts that quaked, and many expected that their last
moment had come; “for we certainly were in greater peril than ever
before,” says Bernal Diaz. “None of us will escape!” exclaimed
Teuch, the Cempoalan chief, but Marina who stood by replied with
fearless confidence: “The mighty God of the Christians, who loves
them well, will let no harm befall them.”[292] The commander rode
back and forth cheering the men, and giving orders to press onward,
and to keep well together. Fortunately the pass was not long, and
soon the Spaniards emerged into an open field, where the greater
part of the enemy awaited them, estimated in all, by different
authorities, at from thirty thousand to one hundred thousand.[293]
How long was this to continue, each new armed host being
tenfold greater than the last? Yet once again the Spaniards whet
their swords, and prepare for instant attack, as determined to fight it
out to the death, as Leonidas and his brave Spartans at the pass of
Thermopylæ. The cavalry charged with loose reins, and lances fixed
on a range with the heads of the enemy, opening a way through the
dense columns and spreading a confusion which served the infantry
well. Bernal Diaz relates how a body of natives, determined to obtain
possession of a horse, surrounded an excellent rider named Pedro
de Moron, who was mounted upon Sedeño’s fine racing mare,
dragged him from the saddle, and thrust their swords and spears
through the animal in all directions. Moron would have been carried
off but for the infantry coming to his rescue. In the struggle which
ensued ten Spaniards were wounded, while four chiefs bit the dust.
Moron was saved only to die on the second day, but the mare was
secured by the natives and cut into pieces, which were sent all over
the state to afford opportunity for triumphal celebrations. The loss
was greatly regretted, since it would divest the horses of their
terrifying character. Those previously killed had been secretly buried.
The battle continued until late in the afternoon, without enabling the
Indians to make any further impression on the Spanish ranks than
inflicting a few wounds, while their own were rapidly thinning under
the charges of the cavalry and the volleys of artillery and firelocks.
The slaughter had been particularly heavy among the chiefs, and
this was the main reason for the retreat which the enemy now
began, in good order.[294] Their actual loss could not be ascertained,
for with humane devotion the wounded and dead were carried off the
moment they were stricken; and in this constant self-sacrificing effort
the Tlascaltecs lost many lives and advantages. Robertson regards
with suspicion the accounts of the great battles fought during the
conquest, wherein Indians fell by the score while the Spaniards
stood almost unscathed, and Wilson ridicules the whole campaign,
reducing the Tlascalan population, for instance, to about ten
thousand, with a fighting force of less than one thousand men. Such
remarks certainly show a want of familiarity with the subject.[295] We
have often seen, in the New World wars, a thousand naked
Americans put to flight by ten steel-clad Europeans, and I have
clearly given the reasons. When we look at the Indians, with their
comparatively poor weapons, their unprotected bodies, their
inefficient discipline and tactics, whereby only a small portion of their
force could be made available, the other portion serving rather as an
obstruction, their custom of carrying off the dead, and other weak
points, and when we contrast them with the well armored Spaniards,
with their superior swords and lances, their well calculated
movements, and their concerted action carried out under strict and
practised officers, and above all their terror-inspiring and ravaging
fire-arms and horses—how can we doubt that the latter must have
readily been able to overcome vast numbers of native warriors? It
was soon so understood in Europe. For once when Cortés was in
Spain he scoffed at certain of his countrymen for having fled before a
superior force of Moors, whereupon one remarked: “This fellow
regards our opponents like his, of whom ten horsemen can put to
flight twenty-five thousand.” In the retreat of the Ten Thousand, who
under Cyrus had invaded Persia, we have an example of the
inadequacy of numbers against discipline. Though for every Greek
the Persians could bring a hundred men, yet the effeminate Asiatic
absolutely refused to meet the hardy European in open conflict.
Æschylus was inspired by personal experience in his play of the
Persians when he makes the gods intimate to the wondering Atossa,
the queen-mother, that free Athenians, unwhipped to battle, could
cope successfully with the myriads of despotic Xerxes. The poor
Americans had yet to learn their own weakness, and to pay dearly
for the knowledge.
“It well seems that God was he who fought for us to enable us to
get free from such a multitude,” says Cortés. He attempted no
pursuit, but hastened to take possession of Tecohuatzinco, a small
town on the hill of Tzompachtepetl,[296] where they fortified
themselves upon the temple pyramid, and proceeded to celebrate
the victory with songs and dances, a performance wherein the allies
took the leading part. The following day[297] Cortés sallied forth with
the horses, one hundred infantry, and seven hundred allies, partly to
forage before the enemy appeared, but also to inflict some damage,
and to show that they were as fresh as ever. “I burned five or six
small villages,” he says, “each of about one hundred families, and
returned with four hundred prisoners.”[298] After being consoled with
food and beads, the captives, including fifteen taken during the late
battle, were despatched to the camp of Xicotencatl, two leagues off,
with a letter to serve as credentials, and a message assuring him of
the friendly intentions of the Spaniards, although they had been
obliged to resort to severe measures. By no means impressed either
with his defeat or with the assurances, Xicotencatl replied that peace
would be celebrated at his father’s town with a feast on the
Spaniards’ flesh, while their hearts and blood were delighting the
gods. They would receive a more decisive answer on the morrow.
With this defiant message came the report that the Tlascalan army,
largely reinforced, was preparing to march on and overwhelm them.
“When we learned this,” says Bernal Diaz, “being men, we feared
death, many of us; and all made confession to the Merced father,
and the clergyman Juan Diaz, who all night remained present to
listen to the penitent; and we commended ourselves to God, praying
that we might not be conquered.” Cortés applied himself
energetically to supervise preparations and give the enemy a
welcome. A fresh supply of arrows, and of Indian shields of plaited
cane and cotton, were made, and the arms and accoutrements
inspected. He impressed upon the soldiers the necessity of keeping
close together, round the banner to be carried well aloft by Alférez
Corral, in order that they might not be cut off. As for the cavalry they
were to make repeated charges, without losing time in delivering
thrusts.
Early in the morning of September 5th the Indian army could be
seen extending far over the field, terrible in war-paint, plumed
helmets, and gaudy shields, with their double-edged flint swords and
many-pointed lances gleaming in the sun, while the air resounded
with shrill yells, mingling with the melancholy tones of their drums
and the doleful blasts of conchs and trumpets.[299] It was the largest
and finest army yet seen by the Spaniards, numbering, according to
Gomara, one hundred and fifty thousand men, but according to
Bernal Diaz only fifty thousand,[300] in four divisions, representing
Tizatlan, Ocotelulco, Quiahuiztlan, and Tepeticpac, each
distinguished by its own banner and colors, the latter noticeable also
in the war-paint of the common soldier and in the quilted armor of the
officers. Far in the rear, indicative of hostile sentiment, rose the
standard of the state, bearing a bird with wings extended.[301]
Gomara relates that, confident of success, the Tlascaltecs sent
messengers to the camp with three hundred turkey-cocks and two
hundred baskets of tamales, each of one hundred arrobas, so that
they might not be taunted with having fought starved men, or having
offered such to the idols.
But this story, adopted by Herrera, Clavigero, Robertson, and
nearly every other writer, implies a generosity altogether too impolitic
for an enemy who had already suffered two severe defeats. It is
probable, however, that Xicotencatl may have sent small presents of
food in order to obtain an opportunity for his spies to examine the
camp.[302]
The Indians advanced in several columns up the sides of the hill,
and, despite the resistance offered, pressed onward into the very
camp, but were soon obliged to yield before murderous bullets and
cutting blades. Cortés allowed the Indians to become tired and
discouraged with repeated charges, and then with a ringing
“Santiago!” the Spaniards, followed by the allies, sallied forth,[303]
driving them in confusion to the plain, where the cavalry followed up
the advantage, leaving bloody paths in all directions. Checked and
reinforced by the reserve, the enemy turned with fresh courage on
their pursuers. The shock was overwhelming. The tired Castilians
yielded; their ranks were broken, and all seemed lost. Even Cortés
was seized with a terrible misgiving, but it was only for a moment.
Leading the cavalry to the rescue, he raised his voice above the din
of battle, and called on all to rally. Nerved by his words and deeds,
the men plied lustily their swords, and, driving back the enemy,
formed anew. “So ably and valiantly fought the horsemen,” writes
Bernal Diaz, “that next to God who protected us, they proved our
strength.” Following up their advantage, the Spaniards hewed down
the enemy in great numbers.
Victory might yet have turned against them but for a quarrel
between Xicotencatl and another captain,[304] one accusing the
other of mismanaging the late battle. The latter not only challenged
the other, it seems, but withdrew his troops, and induced another
division to follow him.[305] Thus left with only half his army, and that
shattered and discouraged, Xicotencatl retired before the handful on
whom his every effort seemed to have made no impression. He
retreated in good order, carrying off most of the dead, for the
opponents were too exhausted to pursue. Indeed, all the horses
were wounded, and fully sixty men, of whom it appears several must
have died soon after, though Cortés admits of no dead, and Bernal
Diaz of only one.[306]
FOOTNOTES
[265] ‘Y todos â vna le respondimos, que hariamos lo que ordenasse, que echada
estaua la suerte de la buena ò mala ventura.’ Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 40.
[266] Bernal Diaz states, 65, that on reaching Mexico City ‘no llegauamos á 450
soldados,’ intimating that they must have amounted to fully this figure on leaving
Villa Rica. This would allow fully 120 men to Escalante, which appears a large
garrison, even after making allowances for the old and infirm. Gomara places the
force at 400 Spaniards, with 15 horses, 6 guns, and 1300 Indians, including
Cubans and carriers. Conq. Mex., 67; Herrera, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. i.; Torquemada,
i. 411, 517. Ixtlilxochitl increases this to 7 guns, 1300 warriors, and 1000 carriers.
‘Con quince de caballo y trescientos peones.’ Cortés, Cartas, 52. Cortés refers
later on to 400 Cempoalans. He mentions merely 200 carriers. Clavigero has 415
Spaniards, a figure resulting from a misreading of his original. Storia Mess., iii. 36.
Solis, Hist. Mex., i. 216-17, followed of course by Robertson, changes the figures
to 500 men, 200 carriers, and 400 Indian troops. A page, twelve years old, was left
with the lord of Cempoala to learn the language. ‘Tomaron un indio principal que
llamaban Tlacochalcatl para que los mostrase el camino,’ taken from the country
by Grijalva, and brought back by Cortés. Sahagun, Conq. Mex., 16. Shortly before
beginning the march, says Duran, a messenger arrived from Mexico in the person
of Motelchiuh, sent by Montezuma to serve as guide, and to provide for the proper
service and hospitality on the way. Being told that no guide was needed, he
returned, leaving orders with the caciques en route to tender good reception to the
strangers. Duran, Hist. Ind., MS., ii. 405-10.
[267] Meaning ‘Spring in the Sand.’ Rivera, Hist. Jalapa, i. app. 7. ‘Y la primera
jornado fuimos â vn pueblo, que se dize Xalapa.’ Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 41.
But the road was too long for one day’s march. I may here observe that Bernal
Diaz is remarkably faulty in his account of this march and of the campaign into
Tlascala, and this is admitted by several writers, who nevertheless follow him
pretty closely. The place is known the world over for its fairs and productions,
particularly for the drug bearing its name, and is famous in the neighboring
districts for its eternal spring and beautiful surroundings.
[268] Identified with Naulinco. Lorenzana, Viage, p. ii.
[269] Cortés refers to a friendly chat with the governor, who mentioned the orders
he had received to offer the Spaniards all necessities. Cartas, 57.
[270] ‘Por ser el primero que en estas tierras habíamos pasado. El cual es tan
agro y alto, que no lo hay en España otro.’ Cortés, Cartas, 57. ‘Hoy se llama el
Paso del Obispo.’ Lorenzana, ubi sup. ‘Ay en ella muchas parras con vuas, y
arboles cõ miel.’ Gomara, Hist. Mex., 68.
[271] ‘Hoy se nombra Ixhuacán de los Reyes.’ Lorenzana, Viage.
[272] ‘De Nauhcampa, quatre parties, et tepetl, montagne.’ Humboldt, Vues, ii.
191. Equivalent to the Spanish name of Cofre de Perote.
[273]Lorenzana believes it to be the later Sierra de la Agua. A map with profile of
the route is given in Carbajal Espinosa, Hist. Mex., ii. 201; and a still better map by
Orozco y Berra, Itinerario, in Noticias Mex., 233.
[274] The name must not be confounded with Zacatlan, as Ixtlilxochitl calls it, for
this lies north of Tlascala. ‘Este valle y poblacion se llama Caltanmi.’ ‘Tenia las
mayores y mas bien labradas casas que hasta entonces ... habiamos visto.’
Cortés, Cartas, 58. Lorenzana says, ‘the present Tlatlanquitepec,’ in the lower
lying portion of which stood the palace of Caltanni, ‘house below;’ and there
stands the big tree to which the natives say that Cortés tied his horse. Viage, pp.
iii.-iv. ‘Llamase ... Zaclotan aquel lugar, y el valle Zacatami.’ Gomara, Hist. Mex.,
68; Oviedo, iii. 260. Cocotlan. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 41.
[275] Gomara intimates that the Spaniards were well received, and had 50 men
sacrificed in their honor. Hist. Mex., 68. The native records state that bread
sprinkled with the blood of fresh victims was offered to them, as to idols, but this
being rejected with abhorrence, pure food was brought. Before this sorcerers had
been sent to use their arts against them, by spreading diseases, casting spells to
prevent their advance, and otherwise opposing them. But everything failed before
the magic influence shed perhaps by the banner of the cross. Duran, Hist. Ind.,
MS., ii. 401-8; Sahagun, Hist. Conq., 14; Acosta, Hist. Ind., 518; Torquemada, i.
417-8.
[276] ‘Tenia Montezuma en este pueblo, y su comarca, cinco mil soldados de

guarnicion.’ Herrera, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. ii.
[277] Conq. Mex., 42. ‘A muchos valientes por ventura desmayara,’ says to the
contrary Gomara, Hist. Mex., 69.
[278] Cortés, Cartas, 59. Bernal Diaz assumes that Olintetl was persuaded by the
Cempoalans to conciliate Cortés with four slaves, a few paltry pieces of jewelry,
and a load of cloth.
[279] Camargo sends the letter from Cempoala, together with a sword, a
crossbow, and a red silk cap. Hist. Tlax., 145. But it is not probable that Cortés
would deprive himself of such needful articles, not overabundant with him, even if
he had no objection to let Indians examine them. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 42-3,
despatches two Cempoalans from a later station, and this on hearing that the
Tlascaltecs had risen to oppose them.
[280] Still Gomara, in his sweeping way, declares that Cortés ‘puso muchas
cruzes en los templos, derrocãdo los idolos como lo hazia en cada lugar.’ Hist.
Mex., 70; Tapia, Relacion, in Icazbalceta, Col. Doc., ii. 567. Twenty leading
warriors were taken from here, says Bernal Diaz.
[281] Clavigero calls them ‘un competente numero di truppe Messicane del
presidio di Xocotla,’ Storia Mess., iii. 41, which is unlikely.
[282] See Native Races, ii. 568, et seq.
[283] Fifteen leagues from west to east, ten from north to south, says
Torquemada, i. 276. Herrera extends it to 30 leagues in width.
[284] ‘Hay en esta provincia, por visitacion que yo en ella mandé hacer, ciento
cincuenta mil vecinos.’ Cortés, Cartas, 69. In the older edition of these letters by
Lorenzana, it reads, 500,000 families, a figure which in itself indicates an
exaggeration, but has nevertheless been widely copied. Gomara, Hist. Mex., 87.
[285] For further information about Tlascala, see Native Races, ii. and v.
Torquemada gives a detailed history of the state in i. 259-78. See also Prescott’s
Mex., 411-19; Soria, Istoria y Fundacion de la Ciudad de Tlaxcala, MS. in Aztec,
sm. 4o of 48 leaves.
[286] Herrera, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. iii., confounds the two Xicotencatls, and
Torquemada, in seeking to correct him, applies the title of general to Maxixcatzin,
i. 416, supposing besides, with Clavigero, that Temilotecatl may be another name
for Tlehuexolotl. Storia Mess., iii. 40; Brasseur de Bourbourg, Hist. Nat. Civ., iv.
133. Jealous of the honor of his countrymen, and eager to vindicate them against
the charge of duplicity or enmity toward the Spaniards, Camargo lets the
messengers go back with a friendly invitation. After they had started on this
mission the idols were consulted, but remained mute; the temples were
overthrown by earthquakes, and comets appeared, creating a general panic. Hist.
Tlax., 144-6. The account of the conquest by this author is particularly interesting
since Diego Muñoz Camargo was a native of the valiant little republic of Tlascala,
a mestizo, says Veytia, Hist. Ant. Méj., ii. 91, who calls him Domingo, while
Clavigero gives him nobility. Storia Mess., i. 10. Born shortly after these events,
and in contact with the very men who figured therein, his stories are reproduced
from their lips, though colored with the spirit of a convert and patriot who, like
nearly all of his countrymen, was only too eager to curry favor with the dominant
race. This is apparent in nearly every line of his text, wherein the terms of praise
bestowed on the conquerors become not unfrequently absurd from the
contradictions implied by other passages. Nor does he neglect to hold forth on his
own people for their bravery and exploits in fighting the detested Aztecs, and their
unswerving devotion to the Spaniards. In the pursuit of this pleasing theme he
scruples not to sacrifice truth when it proves a stumbling-block. He leaves the
impression, for instance, that the Tlascaltecs never raised sword against Cortés.
Many of the misstatements are due to a non-critical acceptance of tales, for
Camargo was as simple and superstitious as any of his contemporaries. Although
acting as interpreter in the province, Torquemada, i. 523, he exhibits a not very
thorough acquaintance with Spanish, which is the cause of errors and repetitions.
The conquest forms but a portion of his narrative, which treats chiefly of aboriginal
history and customs, and touches lightly the events that passed before his eyes. It
was written in 1585, and lay for some time in the Felipe Neri convent archives,
where it was consulted by Torquemada. Taken afterward by Panes to Spain, it was
deposited by Muñoz with the Royal Academy of History at Madrid, from which
source copies were obtained, among others one by Ternaux-Compans, and a
faulty translation was published in the Nouvelles Annales des Voyages, xcviii.-ix.
[287] A short distance further they passed through a pine grove, wherein threads
and papers were fixed and scattered across the path, the work of Tlascaltec
sorcerers, who thus sought to cast a spell upon the invaders. Herrera, dec. ii. lib.
vi. cap. iv.
[288] ‘Segun algunos que lo vieron, cortaron cercen de vn golpe cada pescueço
con riendas y todo.’ Gomara, Hist. Mex., 71. ‘Io viddi che cõbattẽdosi vn dì, diede
vn Indiano vna cortellata a vn cauallo ... nel petto, che glielo aperse fin alle
ĩteriora, et cadde icõtanẽte morto, & ... che vn’ altro Indiano diede vn’ altra
cortellata a vn’ altro cauallo su il collo che se lo gettò morto.’ Relatione per vn
gentil’huomo, in Ramusio, Viaggi, iii. 305. According to Duran two warriors
stepped forth from a vast Tlascalan army before the regular battle, and issued a
challenge, which was accepted by two horsemen. After a short combat the
Indians, by deft movements, killed both horses, cutting off the neck of one, and
wounding the other in the pasterns. Hist. Ind., MS., ii. 411-20; Tezozomoc, Hist.
Mex., ii. 255-6. This attack is the only resistance admitted by Camargo. The
assailants were all Otomís, who killed one Spaniard and two horses. Hist. Tlax.,
146.
[289] ‘Hirieron á quatro de los nuestros, y pareceme que desde alli á pocos dias
muriò el vno de las heridas ... quedaron muertos hasta diez y siete dellos.’ Bernal
Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 43; Cortés, Cartas, 61; Lorenzana calls the scene of this battle
the plain of Quimichoccan. Viage, p. viii.
[290] See Native Races, ii. 413; Solis, Hist. Mex., i. 230. According to Bernal Diaz
the messengers are met before the Tlascalan border is reached, and they deliver
the announcement that the Tlascaltecs will kill the Spaniards and eat their flesh, in
order to test their reputed strength. The Cempoalans shall suffer the same fate,
since they are assumed to be plotting in behalf of the Aztecs, loc. cit. Sahagun
supposes that the Cempoalan guide had treacherously led the Spaniards against
the Otomís. Conq. Mex. (ed. 1840), 40; Clavigero, Storia Mess., iii. 42-3.
[291] Bernal Diaz says 6000.

[292] Herrera, dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. v. A pious conquistador who was present, says
Duran, told me that many wept, wishing they had never been born, and cursing
the marquis for having led them into such danger. Hist. Ind., MS., ii. 417.
[293] Tapia gives the higher and Herrera the lower figure, while Ixtlilxochitl makes
it 80,000.
[294] During the battle one of the late Cempoalan envoys recognized the captain
who had bound him for sacrifice, and with Cortés’ permission he sent him a
challenge. The duel was held in front of the armies, and after a tough struggle the
Cempoalan, with a feint, threw his opponent off guard, and secured his head,
which served as a centre-piece during the Cempoalan victory celebration. Herrera,
dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. vi. This author also relates that one of the final acts of the battle
was the capture by Ordaz, with 60 men, of a pass. ‘Les matamos muchos Indios, y
entre ellos ocho Capitanes muy principales, hijos de los viejos Caciques.’ Five
horses were wounded and fifteen soldiers, of whom one died. The other chronicles
admit of no dead. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 44.
[295] Robertson, Hist. Am., ii. 38-9; Wilson’s Conq. Mex., 360-70; Benzoni, Hist.
Mondo Nvovo, 51. It is seldom that I encounter a book which I am forced to regard
as beneath censure. He who prints and pays the printer generally has something
to say, and generally believes something of what he says to be true. An idiot may
have honest convictions, and a knave may have talents, but where a book carries
to the mind of the reader that its author is both fool and knave, that is, that he
writes only foolishness and does not himself believe what he says, I have not the
time to waste in condemning such a work. And yet here is a volume purporting to
be A New History of the Conquest of Mexico, written by Robert Anderson Wilson,
and bearing date Philadelphia, 1859, which one would think a writer on the same
subject should at least mention. The many and magnificent monuments which to
the present day attest the great number and high culture of the Nahua race, and
the testimony to this effect offered by witnesses on all sides, are ignored by him
with a contempt that becomes amusing as the pages reveal his lack of
investigation and culture. Indeed, the reader need go no further than the
introduction to be convinced on the latter point. Another amusing feature is that
the work pretends to vindicate the assertions of Las Casas, who, in truth, extols
more than other Spanish author the vast number and advanced culture of the
natives. In addition to this mistaken assumption, which takes away his main
support, he states that Prescott worked in ignorance of his subject and his
authorities, and to prove the assertion he produces wrongly applied or distorted
quotations from different authors, or assumes meanings that were never intended,
and draws erroneous conclusions. Thus it is he proves to his own satisfaction that
Mexico City was but a village occupied by savages of the Iroquois stamp, and that
Cortés was the boastful victor over little bands of naked red men. As for the ruins,
they were founded by Phœnician colonists in remote ages. Another tissue of
superficial observations, shaped by bigotry and credulous ignorance, was issued
by the same author under the title of Mexico and its Religion, New York, 1855,
most enterprisingly reprinted in the disguise of Mexico: its Peasants and its
Priests, New York, 1856. In common with Mr Morgan, and others of that stamp, Mr
Wilson seems to have deemed it incumbent on him to traduce Mr Prescott and his
work, apparently with the view of thereby attracting attention to himself. Such men
are not worthy to touch the hem of Mr Prescott’s garment; they are not worthy of
mention in the same category with him.
[296] Lorenzana, Viage, ix., wherein the appearance of the hill is described as the
bishop saw it. Ixtlilxochitl, Hist. Chich., 292; Camargo, Hist. Tlax., 146. Other
authors differ. ‘Teoatzinco, cioè il luogo dell’acqua divina.’ Clavigero, Storia Mess.,
iii. 44. Duran assumes that the battle was for the possession of this place, which
he calls Tecoac. Hist. Ind., MS., ii. 418, 422; Tezozomoc, Hist. Mex., ii. 256. ‘Aldea
de pocas casas, que tenia vna torrezilla y tẽplo.’ Gomara, Hist. Mex., 74.
[297] So Cortés distinctly says. Bernal Diaz writes, however, that this day was
devoted to rest. Still, a later observation indicates that Cortés is right.
[298] Id. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 44, admits only twenty captives, and blames
the allies for firing the villages; but Cortés is frank enough about it.
[299] Prescott, Mex., 438-42, gives a pretty description of the army, but is so
carried away that he dons it with helmets glittering with gold and precious stones,
etc.; and this in spite of the efforts of the chroniclers to exhibit the Tlascaltecs as
very poor in anything but rude comforts.
[300] Under five captains, to whom he applies the names of the four lords, as he
understands them, and of the ruler of Huexotzinco. Hist. Verdad., 45; Gomara,
Hist. Mex., 75. 149,000 men, says Cortés, in his second letter, 62, but this
exactness is probably due to a printer’s mistake.
[301] For colors and banners, and how carried, see Native Races, ii. 411-12, and
Torquemada, i. 436.
[302] He was detected in this trick afterward. ‘Lo qual fue gran refrigerio y socorro
para la necesidad que tenian.’ Gomara, Hist. Mex., 76. Oviedo increases the gift
to 700 baskets. iii. 495. Gomara proceeds to relate that in sign of contempt for the
small number of the enemy, whom it could be no honor for his large army to
overcome, Xicotencatl detached 2000 warriors—200 says Oviedo—to seize and
bring him the strangers bound. They attacked, and were routed with an almost
total destruction of their number. ‘No escapo hombre dellos, sino los q̄ acertaron el
passo de la barranca.’ loc. cit. 76.
[303] Bernal Diaz states that they did not wait for the enemy to attack, but
marched forth and met them one eighth of a league from camp. Hist. Verdad., 45.
But Cortés says distinctly, ‘Otro dia en amaneciendo dan sobre nuestro real mas
de ciento y cuarenta y nueve mil hombres.’ Cartas, 62. Gomara and Herrera also
allow Indians to attack the camp first. Cortés is too fond of announcing when he
takes the initiative to have failed to say so had he done it in this case.
[304] ‘Son of Chichimeclatecle,’ says Bernal Diaz, a name which should read
Chichimeca-tecuhtli.
[305] That of Guaxolcingo—meaning Huexotzinco. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 45.

That of Tlehuexolotzin. Clavigero, Storia Mess., iii. 46. Solis exaggerates this into
an actual battle between the leaders and their followers. Hist. Mex., i. 255-8.
Herrera intimates that a secret arrangement had been formed between Cortés and
the seceding captain, the latter appearing with his officers at the camp, the
evening after the previous battle, and, declaring himself convinced that the
Spaniards were invincible, offered not only to remain neutral, but to aid them in
entering Tlascala. Cortés agreed. When the captain returned to Xicotencatl’s
camp he was so badly beaten that he came back to Cortés for medical treatment.
Certain signs were to be worn, so that the Spaniards might respect the neutral
troops. dec. ii. lib. vi. cap. vi. He also relates that one Tlascaltec maintained
himself so long and bravely against two Spanish soldiers that Láres, the smith,
rushed up, cried shame upon the twain, and lanced the warrior. Id., cap. vii.
[306] This soldier himself received two wounds, which did not prevent him from
fighting, however. ‘Nos mataron vn soldado,’ he says, and a few lines further
down, ‘y enterramos los muertos ... porque no viessen los Indios que eramos
mortales.’ Hist. Verdad., 45. Thus even the ‘True Historian’ reveals the common
weakness. Hazart, Kirchen-Geschichte, ii. 512-14; West-Indische Spieghel, 224-
35; Franck, Weltbuch, ccxxix.
CHAPTER XIII.
ENTRY INTO TLASCALA.
September, 1519.
Native Chiefs Sent as Envoys to the Tlascalan Capital—Their Favorable

Reception—Xicotencatl Plans Resistance to Cortés—Sends out Spies
—Cortés Sends them back Mutilated—The Spaniards Attack and Defeat
Xicotencatl—Night Encounters—General Dissatisfaction and a Desire
to Return to Villa Rica—Envoys Arrive from Montezuma—Cortés
Receives Xicotencatl and the Tlascalan Lords—Peace Concluded—
Tlascala—Festivities and Rejoicings—Mass Celebrated—Cortés
Inclined to Extreme Religious Zeal—Brides Presented to the Spaniards
—Appropriate Ceremonies—Preparing to Leave Tlascala for Cholula—
Communications with the Cholultecs.
In the late battle three chiefs had been captured, and they
together with two others were sent, this time to the Tlascalan capital
direct, to carry an offer of peace, and to explain that the Spaniards
would not have harmed their warriors had they not been obliged to
do so. If peace was still declined they would come and destroy them
all. Meanwhile Cortés set out on another foraging and raiding
expedition, and “burned more than ten towns, one exceeding three
thousand houses,” retiring by the early afternoon, when the Indians
began to gather in aid of the raided neighbors.[307]
Tired of the fruitless fighting, attended with loss of life and
property only to themselves as it appeared, the peace party in
Tlascala had been gaining the ascendancy, with the efforts of
Maxixcatzin, supported as he now was by the powerful factions
which had quarrelled with the general. When the peace messengers
of Cortés arrived they were therefore received with favor. His
previous friendly offers were considered, also his kind treatment of
captives, so unusual with the natives, and the oracles and signs of a
coming race of rulers. Whether gods or men, they were evidently
invincible, and the friendship and alliance held out by them must be
desirable, and ought to be secured before the strangers, embittered
by further resistance, should pass on to join their enemies. An
embassy, headed by Costomatl and Tolinpanecatl,[308] was
accordingly despatched with provisions and some other trifling gifts
to open negotiations for peace. Humbly these men appeared before
Cortés, expressing the sorrow of the lords for the hostility shown,
and their desire for peace. With a grave reproval for their obstinacy,
Cortés said that he would admit their apology, and the envoys
departed, after leaving beside the other gifts a number of male and
female slaves.[309]
Smarting under the disgrace of his defeats, Xicotencatl had
meanwhile been laying plans to retrieve himself. Among other
counsellors he had summoned diviners to his aid, and they, calling to
mind the assumption that the Spaniards were children of the sun,
declared that as such the new-comers were invincible only when
animated by its beams, and at night, when deprived of this
invigorating power, they became mortals, who must bow to superior
force. Knowing the strength of the party opposed to him in the
Tlascalan capital, he does not appear to have submitted his projects
there, but to have ventured upon detaining the envoys as they were
returning from the Spanish camp until the result of his plans should
have been ascertained; and this in face of the command to desist
from hostility.[310] In order to make everything as sure as possible for
the intended blow, Xicotencatl sent fifty Indians to the camp, with
instructions to gather information concerning the approaches, the
condition of the soldiers, and other points. They appeared before
Cortés with the usual demonstrations of respect, and, placing before
him five female slaves, a quantity of food, and other presents, they
said: “Lord, behold these slaves! If you are fierce gods, eat their
flesh and blood, and more shall be brought; if gentle gods, take
these feathers and incense; if men, here are fowl, bread, and fruit.”
Cortés answered that they required no sacrifices of men. Had they
desired such they could have taken by force all the victims needed.
He rebuked their obstinacy and advised submission.[311] They were
then taken aside to receive the hospitalities of the camp, after which
they dispersed to satisfy their curiosity, and to question the allies.
This aroused the suspicions of Teuch, the Cempoalan chief, who
warned the general. Seizing the men he examined them singly, and
soon ascertained that their object was not only to spy, but to fire the
huts, and otherwise to aid the attack which would be made upon the
camp that very night. Finding that his friendly advances had been
scorned, Cortés resolved to inflict a lesson that would be understood
by a people so deeply intent upon war and sacrifices. This was to cut
off the hands of the leading spies, and the thumbs of others, and to
send them back with the message that this would be the punishment
of spies, and that the Spaniards were prepared, night or day, to face
their enemies.[312]
Fearing the confusion and danger of a night attack, when the
artillery and other means would be less effective, Cortés resolved to
anticipate the enemy by a counter charge, wherein the cavalry might
render particular service. Learning that Xicotencatl was hidden with
ten thousand or twenty thousand men behind a hill not far off, Cortés
did not despatch the mutilated spies till after dusk, in order to let him
approach nearer to camp.[313] When his messengers returned to
Xicotencatl and displayed their bleeding stumps, the general was
troubled, and throughout his army there was consternation, and

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4. Devices that aid memory during the listening process.

7. Summarizing others’ comments after they have finished speaking.

11. Habitual patterns of listening behaviors.

15. Listeners who prefer to be intellectually challenged by messages.

25. The part of one’s mind devoted to permanent information storage.

Please select whether the following statements are true or false.

29. Listening is our most primal and primary communication skill.

Please choose the correct response to the following statements.

52. Unlike hearing, listening

53. Hearing impairment is a problem with

59. Which of the following is true of feedback?

63. Active listening involves

66. People who consistently use aggressive listening may also

69. Which of the following is NOT an example of noise pollution?

71. Who or what has primary control of the salience of a message?

74. Which of the following is true of long-term memory?

76. To use positive feedback effectively, one should make it

As the Spaniards halted before the great wall, speculating on the

[268] Identified with Naulinco. Lorenzana, Viage, p. ii.

[271] ‘Hoy se nombra Ixhuacán de los Reyes.’ Lorenzana, Viage.

[276] ‘Tenia Montezuma en este pueblo, y su comarca, cinco mil soldados de

[282] See Native Races, ii. 568, et seq.

[291] Bernal Diaz says 6000.

[305] That of Guaxolcingo—meaning Huexotzinco. Bernal Diaz, Hist. Verdad., 45.

Native Chiefs Sent as Envoys to the Tlascalan Capital—Their Favorable

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