"And as he was such a valiant and brave and powerful captain, I will not call him by those words of valiant or brave or Marchis of the Valley, just Hernán Cortés, because the simple name of Cortés was so celebrated and well regarded, both in the Indias as in Spain, that just like that was the name of Alexander in Macedonia; among the Romans, Julius Caesar and Pompey and Scipio; among the Carthaginians, Hannibal; and in our Castile, Gonzalo Hernández, the Great Captain."
—Chapter 19
"And another day at morning we reached the road and went way of Iztapalapa. And as we saw so many cities and villages built over the water, and in the mainland other great settlements, and that road so straight and well directed to Mexico, we were amazed, and we said it looked like the things of magic that are told in the book Amadís, due to the great towers and cúes and buildings they had in the water, and all of them of masonry. And some of our soldiers wondered whether what they saw was dream or reality. And it is no wonder that I write it so, because there is so much to ponderate about it that I do not know how to tell it: to see things never heard or seen, not even dreamt, as we were seeing!"
—Chapter 87
"Let's return to our battle, as Our Lord was obeyed in that, having killed that captain that carried the Mexica flag and many other who died here, it cooled down, and we all who rode horses chased them, and we suddenly had no hunger or thrist, looking like we had suffered no pain or fatigue, and we followed on our victory killing and hurting. Our friends from Tlaxcala fought like lions, and with his swords and longswords and other weapons that they captured there gave battle very well and bravely. When the horsemen returned from finishing the victory, we all thanked God that we escaped from so great a host, because we have never encountered in all the Indies, in battle fought, such a number of warriors all together, as they were the best of Mexico and Tetzcuco and all the other villages around the lake and many other of their countrymen, and those of Otumba and Tepetezcuco and Saltocan, with intention not to leave a piece of us."
—Chapter 128
