Note 269 — Chapter VIII · NAHUA FEASTS AND AMUSEMENTS.

Veytia, Hist. Ant. Mej., tom. ii., p. 107, says that the ball had to be kept up in the air a long time, and he who let it drop lost, which is unlikely, since the point was to drive it against the opponent's wall; it is possible, however, that this trial of skill formed a part of the play, at times. He also states that in the centre of the play-ground was a hole filled with water, and the player who sent the ball into it lost his clothes and had opprobrious epithets hurled at him, among which 'great adulterer' was the most frequent; moreover, it was believed that he would die by the hand of an injured husband. A hole filled with water does not, however, seem appropriate to a nice play-ground; besides, the ball would be very likely to roll into the pool, for the opponents would not prevent it. Camargo, Hist. Tlax., in Nouvelles Annales des Voy., 1843, tom. xcviii., p. 196, and Brasseur de Bourbourg, Hist. Nat. Civ., tom. i., p. 123, say that nobles only were allowed to play the game, which can only refer to certain play-grounds or occasions, for the number of the balls paid in taxes proves the game too general to have been reserved for nobles.