Note 765 — Chapter XXIII · UPRISING OF THE AZTECS. May-June, 1520.

Cortés describes first a brief attack, then a sally, succeeded by a fresh assault on the fort, while Bernal Diaz and Herrera let a force advance against the Indians before they reached the palace. I follow Cortés as the chief guide, because his account of all this period was written while quite fresh in his mind, and appears the most sensible and correct, while the other versions depend more or less on faint recollection and hearsay. Cortés as a rule did not wait till the enemy approached, but he may not have been prepared for the sudden attack. Yet it is probable that he wished in his report to lay the responsibility of the attack upon the enemy. I do not think Cortés inclined to misrepresent in general or without an object.