HKB
obliged to surrender himself prisoner. For the moment a strong guard was put over him, until a cage was constructed of heavy beams, in which he was then securely fastened.
Thus ended the power of this man, and couriers were despatched in all haste to every town in New Spain, to spread the news. This change was hailed by some, but others again, on whom the factor had bestowed commendaries, seemed anything but pleased; and when intelligence of the factor's overthrow reached the camps at Coatlan and Oaxaca, the veedor was so excessively alarmed at the bad news that he fell ill, conferred the chief command of the troops on Monjaraz, who was suffering dreadfully from disease of the groins, and he actually sought refuge in the Franciscan cloister at Tezcuco. By this time, however, the new governors had despatched a number of Alguacils in search of him; when, therefore, they learnt whither he had flown, they entered the cloister without any ceremony, and carried him off prisoner to Mexico, where he was locked up in a similar cage to that which the factor inhabited.
Upon this, couriers were sent to Guatimala, to inform Alvarado of the fall of the factor and veedor. As the province he was then staying in was not very distant from Truxillo, the confederates also conveyed to him their letters to Cortes, containing an account as to how the whole affair had been managed, and that it was necessary for him to repair to Mexico in all haste. With these letters Alvarado was requested to set off in person for Truxillo, and when there he was to urge Cortes to leave without any further delay. The first thing which Estrada did was to restore Juana de Mansilla to honour, whom, it will be remembered, the factor had whipped for a witch through the streets of Mexico. The following was the method which Estrada adopted to honour this injured woman; the whole of the cavaliers were ordered to mount their horses, he himself placing Juana Mansilla on his saddle behind him, and in this way, at the head of the cavalcade, he paraded every street of the city. "This woman," he said, "had behaved like the Roman matrons of old, wherefore the insult which had been offered to her person by the factor, should now be made to exalt her in the estimation of all honest men." And, indeed, she could not be too highly honoured for the praiseworthy conduct she had pursued, and ever after she was addressed as Doña Juana de Mansilla. The factor could not induce her to form a second marriage, and, notwithstanding all his persecution, she had steadfastly maintained that her husband and all of us were still alive.