354 SUBSEQUENT CAREER OF CORTÉS. [Book VII.

would sail to the Moluccas, and subdue the Spice-Islands for the Crown of Castile! 31

This spirit of knight-errantry might lead us toundervalue his talents as a general, and to regardhim merely in the light of a lucky adventurer. Butthis would be doing him injustice; for Cortes wascertainly a great general, if that man be one, whoperforms great achievements with the resourceswhich his own genius has created. There is prob-ably no instance in history, where so vast an enter-prise has been achieved by means apparently soinadequate. He may be truly said to have effectedthe Conquest by his own resources. If he was in-debted for his success to the cooperation of theIndian tribes, it was the force of his genius thatobtained command of such materials. He arrestedthe arm that was lifted to smite him, and made itdo battle in his behalf. He beat the Tlascalans,and made them his stanch allies. He beat thesoldiers of Narvaez, and doubled his effective forceby it. When his own men deserted him, he didnot desert himself. He drew them back by de-grees, and compelled them to act by his will, tillthey were all as one man. He brought together

31 “ Yo me ofresco á descubrirpor aquí toda la especería, y otrasIslas si huviere cerca de Moluco,6 Melaca , y la China , y aun dedar tal órden que V. M. no aigala espejería por via de rescate,como la ha el Rey de Portugal ,sino que la tenga por cosa propria,

y los naturales de aquellas Islasle reconoscan y sirvan como á suRey y seflor natural, porque yome ofresco con el dicho addita-mento de embiar 4 ellas tal arma-da, 6 ir yo con mi persona pormanera que la sojusge y pueble.”Carta Quinta de Cortés, MS.