HISTORY OF THE SPANISH CONQUEST OF YUCATAN AND OF THE ITZAS

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Montejo's Preparations and Sacrifices. The expedition numbered some
four hundred soldiers, in addition to the crews who manned the four
ships. The expense, all borne by Montejo, was heavy. To furnish the
necessary arms, horses, and munitions the Adelantado found himself
obliged to sell a Mayorazgo (entailed estate) yielding one thousand
ducats a year ($2500, equal to about $10,000 of modern money). The
seamen received pay, but the rest of the expedition received no money,
depending on their fortune in the New World for remuneration. Only one
cleric, Francisco Hernandez, accompanied the expedition; he was its
chaplain. He later attributed the failure of the expedition to the lack
of priests.


He Sets out. Setting out in 1527, the expedition arrived at Cozumel,
where a landing was effected. There, as elsewhere, the Spaniards found
themselves at a great disadvantage in having no interpreter. By various
makeshifts, however, they made themselves understood, and poor Montejo,