Fortunately for Cortes, one of Narvaez’ men deserted his camp, and informed him of what was done. Narvaez had drawn up his whole army in a large plain near Chempoalla, and determined there to wait for him. Cortes was not so imprudent as to meet him there with his little handful of men. He kept quiet, therefore, on the other side of the river Canoas, which runs near Chempoalla, determined to wait for some better opportunity. A heavy fall of rain now set in, and the soldiers of Narvaez, unaccustomed to hardships, began to murmur and complain. It was idle, they said, to remain in such a storm; Cortes and his few followers would not dare to approach them at such a time. Some of the officers joined with them, and persuaded Narvaez to take them back to their quarters in Chempoalla. Having carried them back he posted two sentinels at the ford of the river to watch the enemy, and sent a number of horsemen to keep a lookout upon the road leading to the town, and to move around his quarters. In the mean time, Cortes and his little army stood drenched in the rain without a murmur; every man seemed happy and contented. Naturally supposing that Narvaez and his men would be weary and unsuspicious of his approach after such a day, he determined to attack them at midnight, while they were all in their quarters. Accordingly, he called his little band around him, told them of his design, and made a stirring speech to them. He spoke of the sufferings and dangers they had borne, the victories they had won, and the glorious prospects before them; and now he said they had been declared rebels and traitors by their unnatural countryman Narvaez. As he went on, he was interruptcd by the shouts of the soldiers; and when he finished, they all declared that they would follow such a leader for ever. Some went so far (it is said) as to swear they would kill Cortes if he tried again to make peace with Narvaez. He thanked them for their love, and warmly praised their courage. His little army was now divided into three parties. The command of the first was given to Sandoval. This had the most difficult duty to perform: it was to seize the artillery of the enemy, and Cortes placed in it, therefore, some of his picked men. The second division was intrusted to Christoval de Olid: he was to storm the town, and take possession of Narvaez. Cortes himself led the third party: this was to act as a body of reserve, and rush to the support of either party that required it. The rain had swollen the river so much, that it was dangerous to pass it; yet, with the waters rising to their breasts, they all crossed the ford. Every man being armed with his sword, dagger, and spear, they now moved on silently and in regular order. The guard in advance fortunately caught one of the sentinels, but the other fled to the city and gave the alarm. This caused Cortes to move on more rapidly. But Narvaez would not believe the sentinel; he