In this wise method of civil service regencies were never needed, and each king had fitted himself, by exercise of subordinate but important offices, for the supreme rule. If any one of these dignitaries proved his unfitness for advancement, he was passed over, and the next in rank chosen; and thus through a long series of offices. The corrupting influences of so-called popular elections, which are usually manipulated by a few conscienceless politicians who use the “dear people” simply as cat’s-paws, are certainly avoided; but was it not possible to hasten the succession, or to have a sort of “commission of lunacy” condemn an unpopular candidate, and so advance another unrighteously? The insignia of the four chief dignitaries were feather canopies, of which the king had four, and the others in descending series. A council of the chief families advised the monarch in his government. The judges, who were also tax-gatherers, were appointed from the noble families, and held office during good behavior; death was the penalty for impeding these magistrates in their office. Capital punishment was rendered more bitter by the confiscation of the victim’s possessions and the enslavement of his immediate relatives. Breaches of trust ranked first among crimes, and homicide, adultery, confirmed robbery, larceny of sacred things, witchcraft, rape, were all capital crimes; and the strangers who hunted or fished in the forests or rivers of the country, as well as the slaves who ran away the second time, were punished with death. There were laws against polygamy, and only the first wife was legitimate; but, as among the most civilized nations of modern times, there were many concubines. In Guatemala perhaps this practice was more open and honest than in modern states and times. Only the children of the lawful wife could inherit, and the man who died without lawful issue was buried with his wealth, consisting generally of cotton cloths, ornaments, feathers, and cacao, which served as money. The laws of all the Central American tribes were severe, and differed somewhat from those of the Quichés. But it has not seemed desirable to discuss these here; we will rather consider some of the customs common to most of the inhabitants of the kingdom of Guatemala, and so pass beyond the walls of Utatlan, to which, however, we shall presently return.