lost after the noche triste, the military resources of Cortéz were really nothing, for his slender band was deprived of its most effective weapons, was broken in moral courage and placed on an equality, as to arms, with the Indians. The successes he obtained at Otumba, Tlascala, Tepeaca, and elsewhere, not only re-established the prestige of his genius among his countrymen, but affected even the Indians. The native cities and towns in the adjacent country appealed to him to decide in their difficulties, and his discretion and justice, as an arbitrator, assured him an ascendancy which it is surprising that a stranger who was ignorant of their language could acquire among men who were in the semi-civilized and naturally jealous state in which he found the Aztec and Tlascalan tribes. Thus it is that, under the influence of his will and genius, "a new empire grew up, in the very heart of the land, forming a counterpoise to the colossal power which had so long overshadowed it."
In the judgment of Cortéz, the moment had now arrived when he was strong enough, and when it was proper, that he should