The arrival of the new members of the royal court of audience in Mexico.
I have above mentioned the orders which his majesty issued with respect to the formation of a new court of audience, which was solely composed of men of intelligence and strict justice, and choice was made of the following persons: Don Sebastian Fuen Leal, as president, who at that time was bishop of St. Domingo; auditors, the licentiate Maldonado, of Salamanca; Francisco de Cainos, of Toro or of Zamora; Vasco de Quiroga, of Madrigal, subsequently bishop of Mechoacan; and Salmeron, of Madrid. The auditors arrived in Mexico before the president, and they, as well as the latter, who came a few days after, were received with great splendour.
These gentlemen immediately instituted a general inquiry into the government of the late auditors. Numbers of the inhabitants, with the procuradores from every town of New Spain, besides several Indian chiefs, repaired without delay to Mexico, and brought such a mass of accusations against the late auditors, of oppression, extortion, and of injustice, that the present auditors were utterly astounded. Cortes' agents also complained of the illegal manner in which Nuño de Guzman and his colleagues had seized part of the former's property, and sold it by public auction to the highest bidder. The agents then claimed damages to the amount of 200,000 pesos. As Nuño de Guzman refused to appear in Mexico at the summons of the auditors, obstinately refusing to leave the province of Xalisco, Delgadillo and Matienzo had alone to answer all these accusations; they, however, threw all the guilt on the shoulders of Guzman, who, in his capacity of president, they said, had acted on his own authority, and therefore was the only responsible person.