The door, which the prince had closed, was quietly opened, and Oza directed to enter.

The Anahuacans of the fifteenth century were well skilled in art, both mechanical and decorative. With tools of bronze, made from an alloy of tin and copper, they were enabled, by the use of a flinty powder, to shape the hardest substances into articles of use and adornment.

Vessels of gold and silver were moulded and fashioned by them, having upon them representations of birds, animals, flowers, and other objects; and it is said of their goldsmiths that they could blend the metals in such a manner as to represent the feathers of a bird or the scales of a fish, alternately, in gold and silver.

With their natural fondness for display, and the inexhaustible supply of material for its indulgence at their command, it is not surprising that the homes of the n.o.bility and wealthy were gorgeously magnificent in furnishment, especially in the matter of adornment. And, withal, though none of the modern appliances for the promotion of elegance and ease, which now distinguish the mansions of the opulent, were then at hand, their abodes were not without comfort for the physical man.

As in this age, a reception, or drawing-room was an indispensable apartment in the dwellings of the higher cla.s.ses, and the completeness of its design and arrangement usually indicated not only the wealth and position of the owner, but, also, the taste and accomplishments of the occupants.

The room into which the prince and his attendant were conducted was a model apartment of its kind, and deserves from us at least a pa.s.sing notice.

The floor was almost hidden under a profusion of mats and gaily wrought rugs. Fancy stools and comfortable divans were placed about the room in a kind of orderly disorder, relieving it from any appearance of disuse or exclusiveness. Across one corner of the room stood an especially attractive divan, over which was a glittering canopy, suspended from the beak of a dead _quanhtli_ (eagle.) From its elevated perch the bird's appearance was so natural that the first glance at it would cause the observer to hesitate before taking a seat beneath it. A second thought, however, would dispel the momentary delusion. Spread out on this divan was the preserved and decorated skin of a Mexican tiger-cat.

The walls were adorned with gorgeous and beautiful hangings, the scintillating glimmer of the reflected light of the taper upon them, as they were gently moved by the force of a pa.s.sing draught of air, producing a very agreeable effect.

In every nook and corner were to be seen vases of odorous flowers, and images of animals or birds.

On a wall-shelf, at one side of the room, was a peculiarly attractive pot of flowers, over which, suspended by a thread of gold so fine that it required a sharp eye to detect it, was poised a golden-hued hummingbird, apparently about to thrust its prying nib into the unexplored recesses of a half opened flower just below it.

In a conspicuous place on the wall was a showy piece of feather-work, in which was blended the plumage of many birds. There were in it the changeful hues of the parrot, the brilliant colors of the pheasant, and others less attractive, all woven into a perfect representation of beautiful mosaic.

As the prince took a seat his quick eye observed the exquisite surroundings; and through it all he saw Teochma's experienced hand. His mind reverted quickly to other times--his boyhood, and the home where once ruled a beloved mother, not less accomplished than Teochma. After a moment's silent contemplation of the apartment and its attractions, some of which were still familiar to him, he turned to his hostess and said:

"The span of years which separate this hour from the past, when--a joyous, happy boy--I stood within this room, with no visible cloud upon the bright horizon of my future to warn me of the approaching storm and subsequent night of sorrow and despair which has followed, seems but a delusion--a horrible dream, from which I have only this moment awakened. And yet, O Teochma, my waking may be likened to a lucid interval in the mind of one crazed by delirium or the confusion of reason; for soon the gloom of my impending doom will hold and wrap me about, and this sweet reflection of the happy past be obscured in the blackness of darkness again."

He paused, and, taking advantage of the pause, Teochma said:

"Your presence here at this hour, and the purport of your words, tell me that you are in trouble. Hualcoyotl the boy is lost in Hualcoyotl the stately prince; and our love for the former in profound esteem and respect for the latter. Teochma is your loyal subject and friend; no a.s.sistance which is within her power to render shall be withheld from you. Speak, good friend, as would my own son Euet, and make your wants known, that we may serve you."

"I was sure of your sympathy and a.s.sistance, else I had not come this way. The fidelity of Teochma, and hers, to the cause of the unfortunate Hualcoyotl is a source of deepest grat.i.tude to him. May the hour come when he can express his grat.i.tude more fittingly than by weak words!"

Here followed a narration of as much of his late experience as was necessary to make his situation known.

Teochma's sympathies were much excited, and the prince was a.s.sured of a welcome shelter and concealment at the villa for as long a time as he desired.

"I can only risk a stop of a few hours," said he; "just long enough for my attendant to make arrangements for me a few leagues ahead. The emissaries of Maxtla may yet consider it worth while to pay you a visit in their search for me. Should they do so, no knowledge of my having been here at this time must reach them; for they are heartless, and might cause you serious trouble, if nothing more."

He turned to Oza, and gave him the necessary instructions regarding what he was expected to do; and told him to go at once, and perform the mission quickly as possible. The man cheerfully acquiesced in his master's plans, and, after partaking of refreshments, set out on his journey.

The prince was conducted to an apartment in a retired portion of the villa, where he soon found forgetfulness in sleep.

CHAPTER VIII.

The morning broke over the beautiful Anahuac in loveliness and splendor. Nature, in all her forms, sent forth anthems of praise to the Almighty Creator. The forests rang with a medley of happy sounds, which rose from myriads of living things--the warbling of the inimitable mockingbird, and the trill and coo of its less melodious neighbors; the chirp and bark of the frisking little animals, together with the incessant whir and hum of the insect hosts--a grand chorus of thanksgiving, spontaneously rendered by an indiscriminate mult.i.tude of G.o.d's inferior creatures, all filled with the unalloyed happiness of an unconsciousness of evil, an unconsciousness which is denied to man, who is created in the image of his Maker, and endowed with that supreme attribute, the power to reason.

Such was the morning, and the waking it brought, of the day which followed the arrival of Hualcoyotl at Zelmonco villa.

The summons of a servant awoke the prince to a realization of his surroundings. Sounds of joy and life fell upon his ear from without, and stirred his soul with an emotion of sadness.

"Why should I be so environed," he soliloquized, "while all the rest of the world are happy and free? No, not all; my people are neither," he quickly added, as they rose up before his mind's eye in reproval.

"Yet," he further added, "their lot is preferable to mine."

Shaking off his unhappy feelings, he performed his morning ablutions and clothed himself preparatory to going into the presence of his hostess.

When he appeared at the door of his apartment he found a servant there, who had been sent to conduct him to the eating-room, where breakfast was waiting, and, better still, the little girl, now grown to woman's stature, with whom he had romped and raced the hillsides over a hundred times in the years of his happy boyhood, also waiting to receive him.

But how different were their positions and circ.u.mstances at this meeting. Not children, but man and woman, stood face to face.

"Itlza!" exclaimed he, with surprise and admiration depicted on his countenance and expressed in his voice, advancing toward her at the same time.

A momentary confusion came over the maiden, and she stood undecided how to act. The last time she saw him he was only a youth and she scarcely more than a child. Now he was a great, strong man, with intellectual superiority stamped on every feature, and dignity in every motion, while she had bloomed into a coy and blushing young woman, a sufficient cause for confusion in one so little acquainted with the world as she.

He saw her embarra.s.sment, and coming close to her, said:

"Has the little girl I once knew so well, and for whom I held a most tender regard, but who has now grown away from me, no word of welcome for her childhood friend?"

This gave Itlza time to recover, and she began a reply by saying:

"Our n.o.ble prince--"

"No, no; Itlza! address me not thus," he said, quickly interrupting her, and speaking earnestly. "I pray you, call me anything but that in this hour of a renewal of our friendship. I like it not, coming from your lips."

"Hualcoyotl, then, if it please you," she replied, smiling at his earnestness.

"That is better, for it has in it the echo of a friendship I do not forget," said he, interrupting her again; "a friendship, the memory of which is very dear to me."

"You are very good, not to have forgotten your little friend after so long a time," she replied. "Since I realize the change which has come to both of us, it seems like a dream to have known you. Hualcoyotl, who stands before me now, is not the Hualcoyotl I remember; he was only a boy. When I saw you enter, confusion came upon me; I knew not whether I should salute you as our prince, or greet you as an old friend."

She had recovered her composure, and spoke with ease.

"Your surprise was not greater than my own when I beheld, not my little girl friend of other years, but a pretty young woman waiting to receive me," was his gallant reply.

"There, now, don't let the breakfast spoil because of too many fine words. Come, sit you down, my son; and you, my daughter, order the chocolate," said the mother, not at all displeased at the gallantry shown her child by the distinguished guest.

"Yes, mother," returned Itlza, going to execute the command, at the same time looking very happy.

The eyes of the prince followed her admiringly as she left the room, and he remarked:

"The years have, indeed, wrought changes in us all, but in Itlza the greater. She has grown into an admirable woman."

"Yes," replied the gratified mother. "She has changed much in the last few years."

The return to the room, at this moment, of the object of their remarks, cut off further allusion to her. She took her seat at the board, and, after customary formalities, the morning repast was begun.

The prince had made no reference to his friend, the tzin; but was, nevertheless, much concerned about him, and, without further delay, inquired: