The death of the Licenciat Luys Ponce.

TOC

The Licenciat comming one day from Saint Frances abbay from seruice, fell into an extréeme burnyng feuer, and lay him downe in his bedde, where he remayned the space of thrée dayes, as a man out of his wittes, and the feuer stil encreasing, so that on the seuenth day he yéelded vp the ghost. In the time of his sickenesse he receyued the communion, and made his laste will & testament. He left for substitute in his office, the bacheler Marcus de Aguillar. Cortes made as greate sorrow for his death, as if he had bene his owne father, his funeralles were celebrated with great pompe.

A madde daunce.

The enimies of Cortes published, that he died of poyson. But the Licenciat Pero Lopez, and Doctor Hoieda, who were his Phisitions, swore that he died of a burnyng feuer, and shewed a further consequence, that the euenyng before he deceased, he desired them to play the measures vpon a lute, and as he lay in his bedde, shewed with stirryng his féete the compasses and pointes of the daunce. It was a thing which diuers persons saw, and forthwith he lost his speach, and that night towarde the dawning of the day he yéelded vp his spirite. I thinke that fewe men do die daūsing, as this Lawier did. The number of a hundred persons came out of Spayne with the Licenciat, whereof the moste parte died by sea and on the lande. It was suspected to be a pestilence, for one of them infected another. There were in his company many Gentlemen & ech of them had an office. There was a Frier who was a very slaunderous fellow, & reported that Cortes had poysoned the Licenciat, and also that the Licenciat had an expresse order from the Emperour to cut of Cortes his head, as sone as he had taken the Vare of Iustice from him. The subtle Frier, had thought to haue gotten money of the one, and thankes of the other, and at the ende had nothyng.