"The observation which we have made above, that the ecclesiastics were not encouraged to communicate what they knew from intercourse with the natives and the perfect knowledge which they had acquired of the Mexican language, and of the religion and antiquities of the American natives is as strange as that the American Chronicle of Las Casas and the Universal History of New Spain by Sahagun, should never have been published. The former of these works must have been of enormous magnitude, if we may judge of the size of the whole, from only having seen that part of it which is preserved in the British Museum, which includes the preface to the first books. Las Casas explains in the preface, which is very long, the reasons which induced him to undertake the work, which were primarily of a religious nature, although it would appear that he was also desirous of opposing a true history to the many false relations and misrepresentations which he complains that writers on the affairs of America had unblushingly published. It is extraordinary, considering the ability of the Author, and the many years which he devoted to the composition of his History, and the consequently well-known fact of the existence of such a work, that it should have been carefully preserved from every eye."

not

"Nicholas Antonio and Pinelo both name it; but it does appear that the former saw any of it, or the latter more than a part. That portion of the work, containing an account of the religion, manners, and customs of the new world, was termed apologetical, because he must have endeavoured to palliate in it some manners and customs which were used as a plea, by the greedy proprietors of encomiendas, to press the crown to deprive the Indians of all civil rights, and to reduce them to the condition of absolute slavery. And how could that learned prelate have

set up a stronger defence for the Indians, than by shewing that their institutions were derived from the Hebrews; however, time, through the perversion of traditions, might have corrupted them?"

"That the Apologetical History treated of the religion of the Indians is evident, since Torquemeda says that Las Casas asserted in his Apology, in M.S. that "Quetzalcoatl went from Tula to Yutican," &c. A Spanish writer, giving a sketch of the life of Las Casas, says, speaking of his history, "Las Casas himself, in the year 1556, added a note to it, with his own hand, saying that he bequeathed his History1 in confidence, to the College of the order of Friars, Preachers of St. Gregory, in Valladolid, requesting the prelates not to allow any layman, nor the collegiates to read it during the period of forty years; at the expiration of which it might be printed, if it was for the advantage of the Indians."

BERNARD DE SAHAGUN.

2

“Bernard de Sahagun, one of the first preachers in New Spain, says that he found it to be a universally received

1 "This work consisted of six decades, each of which comprised the history of ten years, except the first, which, beginning with the events of 1492, ended in 1500. The learned prelate declared that he had employed thirty-two years in the composition of this work, which comprised the History of the W. I. Islands and Continent, the American Chronicle of Peru and Yutican, as well as of Nicaragua, Chiapa, Guatamala, Mexico, and the other kingdoms of New Spain; we need not feel surprised that it should have extended to six folio volumes; but that no portion of a work so interesting should ever have been published, either by the Order to which he bequeathed it, or by public authority, or by private individuals, cannot be ascribed to accidental causes. Torquemeda remarks, "Las Casas had many powerful enemies because he spoke great truths."- p. 265.

2 Bernard de Sahagun, a laborious Franciscan Spaniard, having been sixty years among the Indians, made great proficiency in the knowledge of their language and history. Besides other works, he composed, in twelve large vols. a Universal Dictionary of the Mexican Language, containing what related to the geography, religion, political and natural history of the Mexicans. This work

tradition amongst the nations, confirmed by the testimony of their historical paintings, that a colony had arrived long before the Christian era, on the coast of America, from a region situated to the north-east, called Chicomoztoc, first touching on the shores of Florida. The Archbishop of Mexico, Cardinal Lorenzana, afterwards Archbishop of Toledo, who published an edition of Cortez' Letters in Mexico, in the year 1770, would have derived some instruction from the perusal of the History of Sahagun, and certainly would not have assumed it as an undeniable fact, that America had never been colonized from the north-west; neither would he have put a different construction on that passage of the speech of Montezuma to Cortez, where he declares that his ancestors were from the east, than the words of that Monarch fairly admit. The Archbishop says, in a note subjoined to Montezuma's speech. "Los Mexicanos por tradicione viniron por el Norte de la Provecha de Quevera y se Luben ciertamente sus mansiones." This information he perhaps obtained from the examination of some of the confiscated papers of Boturini, which remained in Mexico, in the vice-regal archives, some of which he says were submitted to his inspection."

"Sahagun, in the prologue to the Universal History of New Spain, expressly says that he was impeded in the progress of his work, by the great discouragement he met with from those who ought to have forwarded it. He states in his second book, that amidst the commendation bestowed upon it, in the Chapter of his Order, which was held in 1569, it appeared to some of the Definitors, that it was contrary to their vow of poverty to expend money on writing such

of immense erudition and labour was sent to the royal historiographer of America, resident at Madrid, by the Marquis Villamanrique, viceroy of Mexico. He wrote also the General History of New Spain, in four vols.--Clavegero Disser.

histories; and that they therefore obliged the author to discharge his amanuensis, (as he was more than seventy years old, he could not, on account of the trembling of his hand, write at all) and his writings remained for more than five years, without any thing further being done to them. In the mean time, the Provincial deprived the said author of them all, and scattered them over the province. After the lapse of some years, brother Miguel Navarro, came as commissioner to those parts, and recovered, by ecclesiastical censures, the said works at the request of the author. Grateful for the assistance which he had received from the commissioner, Rodrigo de Segura, he dedicated it to him, overwhelming him with eulogies for having redeemed it !— "rescuing it" as he declares," from beneath the earth, and even from under the ashes." (265) Sahagun further complains, that he was forcibly deprived of a very valuable painting, representing the great Temple, with the court by which it was surrounded, which he says was sent to Spain. It is very evident that every thing in Mexico, calculated to draw attention to the ancient history of the country, more especially if connected with religious recollections, was carefully removed from notice, immediately after the conquest. Pieces of sculpture were mutilated or buried,paintings were burned,-temples and edifices, which, from their size, it was impossible to destroy, were suffered to fall into oblivion; and magnificent monuments of ancient art, such as the temples of Pelenque, and the palaces of Mitlan, were passed unnoticed by Spanish authors."

66

Sahagun, when engaged in the compilation of his history, after it had been taken away from him and again restored, received three cautions :--First, to write nothing to prove that the Hebrews had colonized the new world; Secondly, to be guarded in what he said of the Devil's having imitated

God, in taking to himself a chosen people in the new world, and counterfeiting the rites and ceremonies of the Jews; and, Thirdly, not to advance the hypothesis that Christianity had ever been proclaimed to the Indians, or to treat too largely on the history of Quetzalcoatl."

"The Bibliotheca of Pinelo, a work, the express object of which was to illustrate the History of America, by extracts from, and references to, valuable and unpublished M.S. preserved in the most famous libraries of Spain and the public archives, especially those of Simancos, to which the author, through the interest of the Duke of Medina de las Torres, obtained access, exists only in an epitome; and of the larger work, a learned writer has observed, "not a leaf has been found."-Garcia's History of the Peruvian Monarchy is also unknown.-Siguenza's Mexican Cyclography is stated to have been lost through the negligence of his heirs, and many other interesting works are said to have perished, or been lost in a similar manner. It has been remarked before, that the office of royal historiographer of the Indies does not appear to have been instituted solely for the purpose of promoting the cause of truth, and the increase of knowledge and it may be further observed that the council of the Indies, which took cognizance of all writers treating of America, requiring that they should be, previously to publication, submitted to a strict censorship, with the power of recalling or prohibiting, even after the publication, any work they thought fit, proceeded in a diametrically opposite spirit."-Mex. Antiq. vol. vi.