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HALLS OF THE MONTEZUMAS: Mexico; m ANCIENT AND MODERN TIMES: CONTAIlftNG A CONCISE HISTORY OF THE ANCIENT AND MODERN RACES, ANTIQUITIES: AND ESPECIALLY ITS SPLENDID PALACES AND HALLS OF STATE; ALSO / ITS GEOGRAPHY, GOVERNMENT, INSTITUTIONS, MINES, MINERALS, AND CHURCHES: TOGETHER WITH THE CONQUEST BY CORTES AND A SKETCH OF THE LATE WAR WITH THE UNITED STATES: INCLUDING THE TREATY OF PEACE. ILLUSTRATED WITH TWENTY BEAUTIFUL ENGRAVINGS. C' NEW- YORK: J. C. BURDICK, 162 NASSAU-ST. 1848. f\ Entered, according to Act of Congie,,^, in tli.- your lH4ri, BY J. C. BURDICK, Id the Clork'» Office of the District Court for the Southern Districl of New-Yort* NOTICE The Publisher respectfully intimate, that any corrections or alterations that may l>c sug- gested in regard to this work, will be gratefully received and attended to in .subsequeat editions. INTEODUCTOHY REMARKS. The expression, which sei'ves as the title of the following pages, has become proverbial, and excites vague, though pleasing ideas. Many re gard those "Halls''' as magnificent palaces, sparkling with gold and pre cious stones, and fall of riches of every kind; indeed, they have almost rivalled tlic splendors of ancient Hahylon in Tier highest glory ! As our armies have been rioting in those "Halls," it is time that they should be particularly described. We have endeavored to present all which is exciting in reference to them, and at the same time give a faithful, but concise view of the ancient and modern history of the city of Mexico, and of that beautiful and charm ing country. Her ancient monuments and evidences of early cultivation are truly as- tonishing ! The conquest of the country by the hero of Spain, in accord- jmce with the superstitious expectations of the natives, was wonderful indeed ! Finally, to complete the misfortunes of that Eden of America, the triumphant arms of our soldiers have subjugated the land, and, strewed its luxuriant fields with blood and death ! ! In the latter part of this book we present a concise view of the Republic of Mexico, in its physical features and moral aspects. Its geography, ag- ricultui-e, mines, people, military resources, government, churches, and public men, ai'e treated in a manner thought to be the most concise and intelligible. In doing this the author has consulted all the standard au- thorities on the subject, and selecting there from what he has deemed true, has added the same to the knowledge which he himself has acquired by his own observation. He therefore ventures to say, that no other single work contains so full and so accurate an account of Mexico as this. On the whole, it is hoped that this book will meet the desire of the public for information relative to the wide-spread and important regions of which it treats. Almost every thing relating to the history of that un- foitunate country, is, at the present time, fraught Avith peculiar interest and importance to every American citizen. THE AUTHOR. SOURCES OF INFORMATION. Sources of Information. Previous to the publications of Robertson, the Scottish historian, little more was known of the Spanisli American colonies than the history of their discovery dnd conquest. For two hundred years, with the exception of UUoas' travels and discourses, and the narratives of Bouger and Condamine, no satisfactory intelli- gence had been communicated to the world relating to any of the principal Spanish settlements. But at the commencement of the present century, wiih '.he change of system adopted by the Spanish government, the scene changed. Travellers were no longer refused admittance to her colonies. In consequence, much additional information has been given to the public, by the various publi- cations of Molina, Alcedo, Estallo, Depons, Antillon, and, above all, by Hum- boldt, whose work yet remains our main authority on the geography of those regions. His remarks, however, embrace only that part of Mexico which lies to the south of the 24th deg. of N. latitude. The deficiency was in some mea- sure supplied by General Pike, of the American army, who, in 1805-7, traversed the country from Santa Fe to Chihuahua, and thence east to Louisiana. Of late years there has been no want of writers. Of these the most credible and intelligent are the following, to all of whom are we more or less indebted for the succeeding sketches. Waddy Thompson's Recollections. New-York, 1846, Gilliabi's Travels in Mexico. Pliiladelphia, 1S4.5. Life in Mexico. By Madame Calderon de la Banca. 2 vols. Boston, 1843. General Green's Texan Expedition. New- York, 1845. Brantz Maver's Mexico ; as it Was and Is. New-York, 1842. Prescott's History of the Conquest of Mexico. 3 vols. New-York, 1844, Kendall's Santa Fe Expedition. 2 vols. New-York, 1844 Bernal Diaz' History of the Conquest of Mexico. Translated by Lockharl. 2 vols, bvo. London, 1844. Mexico in lS-27. By A. G. Ward. 2 vols. London, 1828. Latrobe's Rambler in Mexico. 2 vols. London, 1836. Bullock's Six Months in Mexico. 2 vols. London, 1825. Cullen's History of Mexico. 3 vols. Philadelpliia, 1S17. De Solis's History of the Conquest of Mexico. 2 vols. London. 1738, Edwards' History of Texas. 1 vol. Cincinnati, 1S3G. Alexander vo:i Humboldt's Essay on New Spain. 4 vols Svo. London, 1811 Kerinedy's Texas; its Geography, &,c. New-York. 1844. Newell's History of the Revolution in Texas. New-'-'ork, 1838, Poinsett's Notes on Mexico. Philadelph'a. 18«'4, Farnham's Travels in California. Svo. New- York, 1844. Forbes' Hisiorv of California. 1 vol. Loti 'on. Life in California. 1vol. New-York, IS IG. Texas and the Tcxaiis. 2 vols. Philadelphia, 1S41. Texan l-".tnigra;it. Cincinnati, 1838. Mrs. HoUey's Travels in Texas. Baltimore, 1S30. HALLS OF THE MONTEZUMAS. CHAPTER I. FOUNDING OF THE "HAL LI To ascertain their origin, we must go back far into antiquity. They must have been founded by the sovereigns, from whom they received their name. Who then were the Montezumas? They were emperors of Mexico in ancient times. One of them was upon the throne, when Cortes invaded the country, a little more than two centuries ago, in 1519. The origin and history of these monarchs, we shall briefly narrate in the course of this work. They were of the Aztec race, concerning whose origin, there are various opinions among the learned. Situation of the Country. It seems that the country of the ancient Mexicans, or Aztecs, included but a small part of what is now called Mexico. At first, its' limits were circumscribed, but in the latter days of the Empire, it was gi-eatly extended. The exact limits cannot be ascertained with certainty. When largest, the country was probably about twice the size of New England, It was so situated, however, that its inhabitants enjoyed every variety of climate, and feasted on the fruits of the equator and arctic circte. This was caused by the different degrees of elevation. In some places on the coast, it is sickly, and hundreds are annually destroyed by the vomito ; but generally the country is healthy, and on the whole, presents some of the loveliest rural scenery which can be found upon the globe. The table lands, in the time of the Aztecs, were covered with enormous oak, birch, cypress, and other forest trees, not to be compared with those of modern times, as their remnants show to this day. The celebrated Valley of Mexico is situated nearly seven thousand eight hundred feet above the level of the ocean, is about twelve miles in circumference, is surrounded by a lofty rampart of porphyry, and five beautiful lakes cover one-tenth of its surface.* * See page — TOLTtCS, CUICIIEMECS, ACOLHl'ANS OR TEZCUCAN8. 14 CHAPTER 11. THE T I) 1. T E C 8 . Tm;: people oume tVoin unknown regions of the North and entered the territory of Aniihuac,* before tlie close of the seventh century. Their written records have perished and are only known to us by the traditionary lei^ends of tlie nations that succeeded them. The Toltecs understood iiijriculture. numy useful mechanic arts, were nice workers in metals, iuveuted the ingenious method of keeping time used by the Aztecs, and wore the foundation of later civilization t>n that part of the continent. Aficiint Ruins. They had a magniticieut capital at Tula, north of the Mexican Valley, and when the Spaniards conquered the countiy, ruins of spacious build- ings were to be seen. In various parts of New Spain, there are ruins of costly, religious and other edifices, probably erected by this people. After a period of four centuries, as Ixtlilxochitl, a distinguished Mexican historian, informs us, the nation, having become greatly reduced bv famine, pestilence, and war, disappeared from the land as silently and mysteriously as they had entered it. Most of them probably went to Central America and the neighboring islands, though some few remained in Anahuac. The splendid ruins of Mitla and Palenque are considered as tlie work of this remarkable people. THE C H I C H E M E C S . Near the close of the twelfth century, a numerous and rude tribe, called the Chichemecs, came into the country from the North Western wilds. They were followed by other tribes more civilized. It is proba- ble that they had a similar origin to the Toltecs, whose language they spoke. The most distinguished of these were the Aztecs or Mexicans and the Acolhuans. THE A C c'i L H U A .\ S O R T E Z C I" C A X S . The last are better knowii by the name of Tezcucans, from their capital, Tezcuco,''' situated on the eastern border of the Mexican lake. They had a mild religion, their manners were not very rude, and they were easily influenced by the civilization of the few Toltecs that remained in the country. The Tezcucans, in turn, exerted a great influence upon the Chichemecs and they finally became united with the new settlers into one nation. t The Acolhuans, or Tezcucans, extended their empire, at length, over the ruder tribes in the North and their- capital was the centre of refine- * Anahanc. sigoifies near the tcon after the death of his victim. He opened a correspondence vriti her through a female relative, and expressed his deep svmpathv for her loss. At the same time, he tendered the best consolation in his power, ijy an offer of his heart and hand. Her former lover had been too well stricken in years for the maiden to i"emain long inconsolable. She was net aware r.f the perfidious plot against his life : and, alter a decent time, she vras re-idy to comply with her "duty, by placing herself at die dispceal of her royal kinsman. It >vas arrang-ed bv the krug", in order to ^ve a more natu- ral aspect to the affair, and prevent all suspicion of the unworthy part he had acted, that^the princess should present herself in his grounds at Tez- 16 ' ANECDOTES OP NEZAHUALCOYOTL. cotzinco to witness solno public ceremony there. Nezahualcoyotl was standing in a balcony of the palace, when she appeared, and inquired, as if struck with her beauty for the first time, " who the lovely young creature was, in his gardens." When his courtiers had acquainted him with her name and rank, ho ordered her to be conducted to the palace, that she might receive the attentions due to her station. The intei"view was soon followed by a })ublic declaration of his passion; and the marriage was cele- l)rated not long after, with great pomp, in the presence of his court, and his brother monarclis of Mexico and Tlacopan.* This story, which furnishes so obvious a counterpart to that of David and Uriah, is told \vith great circumstantiality, both by the king's son and grand- son, from wliose naiTatives Ixtlilxochitl gives it. + They stigmatize the action as the l^asest in their great ancestor's life. It is indeed too base not to leave an indelible stain on any character, however pure in other respects, and exalted. The king was strict in the execution of his laws, though his natural disposition led him to temper justice with mercy. Many anecdotes are told cjf the benevolent interest he took in the concerns of his subjects, and of his anxiety to detect and reward merit, even in the most humble. It was common for him to ramble among them in disguise, like the cele- brated caliph in tlie " Arabian Nights," mingling freely in conversation, and ascertaining their actual condition with his own eyes. On one occasion, when attended by only a single lord, he met a boy who was gathering sticks in a field, for fuel. He inquired of him why he did not go into the neighboring forest where he would find a plenty of them. To which the lad answered, " It was the king's wood, and he would punish him with death if he trespassed there." The royal forests were very ex- tensive in Tezcuco, and wei'e guarded by laws full as severe as those of the Norman tyrants in England. " What kind of a man is your king 1 " asked the -monarch, willing to leani the effect of these prohibitions on his own popularity. "A very hard man," answered the boy, "who denies his peo- ple what God has given them." Nezahualcoyotl urged him not to mind such arbitrary laws, but to glean his sticks in the forest, as there was no one present who would betray him. But the boy sturdily refused, bluntly accusing the disguised king, at the same time, of being a ti'aitor, and of wishing to bring him into trouble. Nezahualcoyotl, on returning to his palace, ordered the child and his parents to be summoned before him. They received the orders with aston- ishment, but, on entering ^is presence, the boy, at once, recognized the person with whom he had conversed so unceremoniously, and he was filled with consternation. The good-natured monarch, however, relieved his ap- prehensions, by thanking him for the lesson he had given him, and at the same time, commended his respect for the laws, and praised his parents for the manner in which they had trained their son. He then dismissed the parties with a liberal largess, and afterwards mitigated the severity of the forest laws, so as to allow persons to gather any wood they might find on the ground, if they did not meddle with the standing timber. Another adventure is told of him, with a poor woodman and wife, who had brought their little load of billets for sale to the market of Tezcuco. The man Avas bitterly lamenting his hard lot, and the difficulty with which he earned a scanty subsistence, while the master of the palace, before whom they were standing, lived an idle life, without toil, and with all the luxuries of the world at his command. * Hist. Chich., MS., cap. 43. tidem, nbi sapn. THE AZTECS OR MEXICANS. 17 He was going on in his complaints, when the good woman stopped him, by reminding him he might be overheard. He was so, by Nezahualcoyotl himself, who, standing screened from observation, at a latticed wandow, which overlooked the market, was amusing himself, as he was wont, with obsei'ving the common people chaffering in the square. He immediately ordered the querulous couple into his presence. They appeared trembling and conscience-struck before him. The king gravely inquired what they had said. As they answered him truly, thsy should reflect, that if he had great treasures at his command, he had still greater calls for them ; that, far from leading an easy life, he was oppi'essed with the whole burden of government ; and concluded, by admonishing them, to be more cautious in future, as walls had ears. He then ordered his officers to bring a quan- tity of cloth, and a generous supply of cacao (the coin of the countiy) and dismissed them, " Go," said he, " with the little you now have, you will be rich; while with all my riches I shall be poor." It was not his passion to hoard. He dispensed his revenues munificiently, seeking out poor but meritorious objects on whom to bestow them. He was particularly mindful of disabled soldiers, and those who had in any way sustained loss in the public sei'vice ; and, in case of their deaths ex- tended assistance to their surviving families. Open mendicity was a thing he would never tolerate, but chastised it with exemplary rigor. CHAPTER IV, THE AZTECS OR MEXICANS. This race came from the remote regions of the North and arrived upon the borders of Anahuac near the commencement of the thirteenth century. For a long time they led a migratory life, moving from one place to an- other in the great Mexican Valley. They were once enslaved by a foreign tribe ; but they were so warlike that«their piasters were afraid of them. Finally they settled upon the southwestern borders of the principal lake, in 1325, Founding of the City of Mexico. They saw, one day, on the stem of a prickly pear, which sprung from the crevice of a rock, washed by the dashing billows, a royal eagle of im- mense size and beauty with a serpent in his talons, and his wings opened to the rising sun. They hailed this as a favorable omen, and decided to build their city of Mexico upon that spot. They sunk piles in the shal- lows for its foundation, and on these, at first, erected light fabrics of reeds and rushes. The place was called Tenochtitlan (signifying, tunal [a cac- tus] on a stone) in token of its singular origin. It was known to Europeans, however, by its other name, Mexico, derived from their war-god Mexitli. 1§ TUE AZTECS OK MEXICANS. The legend of its foundation is still commemorated 1/y the device of the eagle and cactus, which form the arms of the Mexican llepublic. The learned Mexican historian, Clarigero, says that the Tultecs ar- rived at Analmuc A. D. . . . . . . 648 They left the country . . . . . 1051 The Chichemecs arrived ..... 1170 The Acollmans arrived about .... 1200 The Mexicans reached Tula ..... 1196 They founded Mexico . . . . • 1325 Formation of the Empire. The Aztecs distinguisiied themselves for bravery, and soon became ter- rible to the other tribes of the Valley. Finally, after much fighting be- tween tribes, a remarkable league was formed, which is unparalleled in history. The states of Mexico, Tezcuco, and Tlacopan, agreed that they would mutually support each other in all of their wars offensive and de- fensive, that Tlacopan was to have one-fifth of the spoils, and the remain.-, der divided between the other two states. Thus a powerful empire was,, formed. The fact should make civilized nations blush, that during a century of continual war, there was never an instance in which the parties quar- relled over the division of spoils. These powers soon crossed the moimtains of porphyiy, which limited their valley, and, by the middle of the fifteenth century, under the first Montezuma, they had extended their authority down to the Gulf of Mexico. The frail tenements of Tenochtitlan were soon supplanted by elegant buildings, the tribes gradually united, and by the commencement of the sixteenth ccutui-y, just before the Spaniards came to desolate the country, the Aztec dominion had extended from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Under their bold leader, Ahuitzotl, they earned their arms into the remotest re- gions of Guatemala and Nicaragua. The Aztecs were certainly an energetic and brave people, to extend their dominions, in so short a time, over the numerous warlike races of so large a tract of country. They seem to have resembled, in some respects, the ancient Romans. The Govermnent of the Aztecs. The government of the Aztecs and Tezcucans was monarchical and nearly absolute. It was an elective and yet hereditaiy monarchy. At the decease of the sovereign, four of the principal nobles, as electors, chose one of the brothers or nephews of the deceased prince, to fill that high station. At the coronation the blood of captives freely flowed, to grace the triumphal entry of the prince into the capital. Immense "Halls" of State. Towards the close of the dynasty, particularly, the Aztec emperors lived in great splendor. In their palaces they had immense "Halls," elegantly decorated, where the monarch and his courtiers attended to the affair*; of state. In the royal buildings there were also accommodations for a large body guard. The nobility were very powerful, many of them being immense landholders. They could muster (some writers say) each a hun-d THE AZTECS OR MEXICANS. 19 dred tbousand vassals on theii- estates. The monarch, However, was su- preme, and there was no appeal from his sentence. When a capital one was given there was a great parade. Says the national chronicler, in de- scribing the ceremony, at Tezcuco : " In the royal palace of Tezcuco was a court-yard, on the opposite sides of which were two halls of justice. ''Hall of the Trihimal of God." " In the principal one, called the ' Tribunal of God,' was a throne of pure gold, inlaid with turquoises and other precious stones. On a stool in front, was placed a human skull, crowned with an iiumense emerald, of a pyra- midal form., and surrounded by an aigrette of brilliant plumes and precious stones. The skull was laid on a heap of military weapons, shields, quivers, bows, and arrows. The walls were hung with tapestry^ made of the hair of different wild animals, of rich and various colors,, festooned by gold rings, and embroidered with figures of birds and flowers. Above the throne was a canopy of variegated plumage, from the centre of which shot forth resplendent rays of gold and jewels. ''Hall" of the King's Tribunal. " The other ti'ibunal, called the ' King's,' was also sui'rounded by a gorgeous canopy of feathers, on which were emblazoned the royal arms. Here the sovereign gave public audience, and communicated his dis- patches. .But when he decided important causes, or confirmed a capital sentence, he passed to the tribunal of God, attended by fourteen great lords of the realm, marshalled according to their rank. Then putting on his mitred crown, incrusted with precious stones, and holding a golden arrow, for a sceptre, in his left hand, he laid his right upon the skull, and pronounced judgment." It is no wonder that our soldiers wei'e desirous to revel in such " Halls " as are here described. All of the cities were obliged to pay tribute and fill the national "Halls" with all kinds of riches, such as cotton dresses; mantles of feathei'-work, richly wrought ; ornamented -armor; vases and plates of gold ; gold dust; bands and bracelets ; crystal, gilt, and varnished jars and goblets ; bells, arms, and utensils of copper: I'eams of paper; grain, fruits, copal, amber, cochineal, cacao, wild animals and birds, timber, lime, mats, golden dia- dems, lip jewels of amber ornamented with gold, rich scarlet feathers, tiger skins, and numerous other things. Thus the monarch and his lords were surrounded with every luxury and immense wealth. When any important event occurx-ed news of it was sent by couriers very rapidly oyer the country. Fresh fish, caught in the Gulf of Mexico, were frequently sei^ved at Montezuma's table, a distance of two hundred miles, in twenty-four hours from the time they were taken from the water. Armor and Dress of Warriors. The dress of the more important wai-riors was showy and rich. Some-' of the chiefs wore cuirasses of gold and silver, and over them a surcoat of gor- geous feather-work. Their helmets were frequently made of silver in the shape of the head of some wild animal, on the top of which waved a panache of variegated plumes, sprinkled with precious stones and orna- 80 THE TK7.CUCANS. ments of gold. These warriors were also adorned with golden collars, bracelets, and ear-rings. "Their mail, if mail it may bo called, was woven Of vegetable down, like finest flux, Bleached to the whiteness of new-fallen snow. Others, of hif^her oflice, were arrayed In feathery breast-plates, of more f^orgeous hue Thau the gay plumage of the moinitaiii cock. Than the pheasant's glittering pride. Hut what were these, Or what the thin, gold hauberk, when oj)po8ed To arms like ours in battle ? " * • The national standard was embroidered with gold and feather work. The different companies with their chiefs hud banners and plumes of dif- ferent colors, so that their armies, marching to battle, made a brilliant ap- pearance. They rushed on to the attack with great ferocity, singing and shouting their war ciies. They did not seek to kill their enemifs, but tfo take them prisoners. Evidences of Civilization. There are indubitable evidences that the ancient Aztecs or Mexicans were considerably advanced in the arts of civilization, nearly as much so as our Saxon ancestors under king Alfred. Their cultivation was very similar to that of the ancient Egyptians. If it be asked why tbe modern Mexicans do not manifest the same energy and enlightened policy, we an- swer. They are a conquered race. They have been crushed by op- pressors, and rent by factions until they are entirely a different people from their noble ancestors. CHAPTER V. "halls" op the tezcucans. The "Halls" of Prince Nezahualcoyotl, in the city of Tezcuco, were almost as splendid as those of the Montezumas. The Prince filled the city with palaces for his nobles. The building, containing his "Halls" of State, extended from east to west 3,670 feet, and from north to south 2,934 feet. It was surrounded by a wall six feet wide and nine high for one-half of the circumference and fifteen feet high fpr the other half. There were two courts, the outer one of which was used for a public market even till after the conquest, if not until the present time. The interior court was surrounded by the council chambers and " Halls" of justice. Hei'e were spacious apartments for foreign ambassadors, ele- gant saloons under the marble portico, for poets and men of science. Here were the public archives and, near by, the apartments of *the king and the royal harem. The walls were incrusted with alabaster and richly tinted stucco, or hung with costly tapestries of variegated feather-work. * Madoc, P. 1, Canto 7. THE TEZCUCANS. 2l These splendid walls led through long arcades and intricate labyi-intb of shrubbery, into beautiful gardens, where tall groves of cedar and cy- press trees overshadowed baths and sparkling fountaiBS. Fish of vari- ous kinds were seen jumping, in the basins of water, and birds of every plumage raising their sweet notes, on every side. When the Montezumas and other monarchs visited this palace, they were received in piincely style. In this v.'hole building, there wei'e 300 rooms, and some of them 150 feet square. It is said that 200,000 work- men were employed in building it. Immense rmns are now to 'he seen of the once magnificent capital. Palace, and Hanging Gardens of Tezcotzinco. The king's favorite residence was at Tezcotzinco, a conical hill^ six miles from his capital. It was laid out in teiTaces or hanging gardens, having a flight of 500 steps hewn in natural porphyry. On the summit was a reservoir of water, brought many miles on huge buttresses. In the centre of this reservoir was a rock, on which was sculptured in hiero- glyphics, the achievements of Nezahualcoyotl. On a lower level were three other reservoirs, in each of which stood a marble statue of a wo- man, emblematic of the three states of the empire. Another tank con- tained a winged lion, cut from the solid rock, having in his mouth the portrait of the emperor. The water was distributed in numerous channels through the gardens, or tumbled over rocks, forming beautiful cascades and shedding refreshing dews on the flowers below. Here are exhibited to this day the baths of Montezuma, cut from the solid rock. Near the bottom of the hill, rose the i-oyal villa, in the midst of tower- ing and shady cypress trees, with its light arcades and airy " Halls," where the emperor could drink in the sweet perfumes from the gardens. Religious Views and Death of Nezahualcoyotl. Nezahualcoyotl lost his confidence in idols, and said "these idols of wood and stone can neither hear nor feel ; much less could they make the hea- vens, and the earth and man, the lord of it. These must be the work of the All-powerful, unknown God, Creator of the universe, on whom alone I must rely for consolation and support."* He endeavored to per- suade ills subjects to forsake their superstitions. He built a temple in the usual pyramidal form and on the top a tower, nine stories hio-h, to represent the nine heavens. The tenth story was sunnounted by a roof painted black and gilded with stai's on tlae outside and incnisted with metals and precious stones within. He dedicated this to " the un- known God, the Cause of catises." About 1470 this monarch gave up the ghost, in the seventy-third year of his age and the forty-third of his reign. Could the comforts of true religion have been presented to him, ho would probably have embraced them cordially. * M. S. de Ixtlilxochitl. d2 TEMPLES AND KEMGIOUS RITES OF THE AZTECS. TEMPLE OF THE SUN. CHAPTER VI. TEMPLES AND RELIGIOUS RITES OF THE AZTECS, The Aztecs had numerous religious temples in every city. Some of them were very large and extensive, having many altars near them. Temjilc of the Sun. Within the enclosure of the gi'eat temple of Mexico there were said to be six hundred altars. When it was consecrated nearly 60,000 human beings were sacrificed. It was built about IdSO by the immediate predecessor of Montezuma. Its fro^\■ning battlements, wide terraces, and flights of steps were almost ■constantly covered with the blood of human victims. This stately edifice occupied the large tract of land where now stand.'* the Cathedral, part of the market place, and some of the adjoining streets. It stood in the midst of a vast area, surrounded by a wall of stone and lime, eight feet high, ornamented on the outer side by figures of serpents, raised in relief, which gave it the name of coatepantli, or "wall of ser- pents." The wall was quadrangulai-, pierced by huge battlement gate- ways, opening on the four principal streets of the capital. The temple itself was a solid pyramidal structure of earth and pebbles, coated on the ©utside with hewn stones. It was square, facing the cardinal points, and TEMPLES AND RELIGIOUS RITES OP THE AZTECS. 23 five stories liigh, each story diminishing in size. The ascent was by a flight of steps on the outside, which reached to the narrow terrace or platform at the base of the second story, passing round the building. Thus by a winding stairway the top was reached by passing round the structure four times. It is thought that the temple was 300 feet square at the base, and about 100 feet high. The top was a vast area paved with broad flat stones. There was a large block of jasper on which the bodies of the victims were stretched for sacrifice. At the other end of the area w&re two towers or sanctuaries, three stories high, in which were placed the images of their gods, sacred utensils, and the ashes of some of their kings. Lights were here kept continually burning. Here also was the huge cylindrical drum, made of serpents' skins, and struck only on important occasions, and could be heard for miles. Human Sacrijices. Early in the fourteenth century they began the wicked and barbarous custom of appeasing the anger of their gods by human sacrifices. At first they were few, but soon were very frequent, occurring at almost every festival. One of their most important festivals was that in honor of the god Tezcatlipoca. A year before the intended sacrifice, a captive, remai'ka- ble for beauty and without a blemish on his body, was selected, instructed in the mysteries, splendidly dressed, and surroufided with flowers and incense. He was honored as a representative of the god, was allowed four beauti- ful girls for his use, and feasted at the banquets of the nobles, who wor- shipped him. When the fatal day arrived, he was stripped of his rich apparrel, and bid adieu to his friends. A royal barge cai'ried him across the lake to a temple on its margin, three miles from the city. The peo- ple flocked around to see the sacrifice. As the victim ascended the pyra- mid he thi-ew away his flowers and broke in pieces his musical instruments. At the top he was received by six priests, with their long and matted locks and mystic, hieroglyphical robes. They led him to the jasper stone ■of sacrifice. On this the captive was stretched and five priests secured his head and limbs, and the sixth, clad in a scarlet mantle, opened his breast with a sharp razor of itztli (a volcanic substance hai-d as flint), and inserting his hand in the wound tore out his palpitating heart, held it up to the sun, and then threw it at the feet of the deity of the temple. It would seem that such heaven-daring practices would bring down the vengeance of an incensed God upon the nation. Sometimes children and even females were thus sacrificed. As they were led along to the place •of execution their terrible cries and tears excited the pity of the most hard-hearted, while the diabolical priests (for they must have known bet- ter), chanted aloud to drown the cries of their victims. Finally, to close this infernal scene, the body of the person sacrificed was given up to the person who took him captive, and being cooked, was served in an enter- tainment to his friends ! From 20,000 to 50,000 were annually sacrificed throughout the country. How surprising that such an enlightened and civilized people should adopt a custom so barbarous ! How they needed the genial influence of Christianity ! But this bar- barity did not equal that practised by the Inquisition in Spain, by a pro- fessedly civilized, refined, and Christian people ! 24 DISCOVERY OF MEXICO BY THE SPANIARDS. These sacrifices ha^ a ruinous effect upon the character of the Aztec race. They lost human sympathy and sunk down into a melancholy a.s- pect, bound down by the tyranny of a cruel, relentless superstition. This smtrulav people had considerable knowledge of anthmetic, chro- nology, astronf)my, agriculture, and mechanics. T})ey understood the pnuciples of trade, and had something of refinement hi their mannei-s. FERNANDO DE CORTES. CHAPTER VII. DISCOVERY Of .MEXICO BY THE SPANAIRDS. This beautiful countiy was early discovered and coveted by the Span- iards. Heraandez de Cordova sailed from Cuba, February 8, 1517 on an expedition to some of the Bahama islands, and was blown, by adverse •winds, upon the coast of the New World. He proceeded as far as Cam- peachy, and then returned to Cuba. May 1, 1518. a fleet sailed from St •Jago de Cuba to make discoveries, under Juan de Grijalva. He pene- trated farther than his predecessor, and touched at San Juan de Uloa and DISCOVERY OF MEXICO BY THE SPANIARDS. 25 at the Isla de los Sacrificio, so named by him from the bloody remains of human victims found in one of the temples. He is the navigator who first stepped upon Mexican soil and opened a communication w^ith the Aztecs. He received siDlendid presents of gold and silver, which were supposed to be sent by the emperor. This caused another fleet to be fitted out, commanded by Fernando de Cortes. It sailed Februaiy 18, 1519, for the coast of Yucatan. Battle of Tabasco Cortes passed up the river Rio de Tabasco early in March. Here he was opposed by a large number of the natives, with bows and arrows, and various implements of warfare. Cortes asked permission to land; but the Indians brandished their weapons and answered only by gestures of angry defiance. Cortes withdrew, and prepared for an attack in the morning. He landed a detachment of one hundred men, under Alonso de Avila, lower down the stream, and oi'dered them to mai'ch to Tabasco and attack it, while he would advance in front. He sent a proclamation to the natives, stating that he only wished a peaceable passage to Tabasco and that if blood was shed tlicy would be to blame. It is a matter of course, that all generals or nations, who commence a war, justify themselves whether right or wrong. It was very unjust and cruel for Cortes thus to force his way through the country by slaughtering thousands of the inno- cent inhabitants. Indeed, his whole eiTand was one of robbery and out- rage. The Spanish general's proclamation was answered only by menaces and a volley of arrows. Cortes brought his, boats alongside of the Indian canoes. They grappled fiercely together, and both parties were soon in the water, fighting; but the Europeans drove the natives back to the shore. Large numbers of the natives lined the banks of the river, and threw darts and billets of wood upon the invaders, aiming their blows especially at the leader. The Spaniards soon gained the bank, and their fire-arms caused the enemy to retire towards the town. Then Avila came up from the opposite quarter, and the natives yielded. Cortes proceeded into the town and encamped in the court of the temple. In the morning, going out of the town, he was attacked again by the natives and came near being overcome by them; but finally the Tabascans were forced to retire. 'Battle of Ceutla. Cortes ascertained that the country was in arms, and that the natives were determined to exterminate the invaders ; but he had engaged with the enemy and must surmount all obstacles, or give up at once. He sent back to the vessel those who were disabled by their wounds, and ordered the remaining forces to join the camp. Six of the heavy guns and all the horses were taken from the vessels. Mesa commanded the artillery, Diego de Ordaz led on the infantry, and Cortes took charge of the cavalry, the most dtJstinguished of whom were Alvarado, Velasquez de Leon, Avila, Puertocarrero, Olid, and Montejo. At break of day, the Spaniards, though few in number, sallied out of the "town to meet the enemy. They were encamped on the plain of Ceutla. ?6 LANDING OF COUTES AT VERA CRUZ. Ordaz waB onlcrcil to attack them in front, and Cortos was to pass round and attack tlicin in the rear. Tlic troops advanced more than a leagu,*; before they saw ihe enemy. Finally, they saw immense ntimbers of them, who Hoon commenced their hideous war-cries, which were folhjwed by vollics of arrows, stones, and other missiles. Many of the Spaniards were severely woimded before they could pre])arc their guns to open upon the enemy. At last they poured a destructive fire into their thi(-U masses, and mowed down the poor creatures in a dreadful maimer, but the natives, un- dismayed, fought desperately and pressed upon the Spaniards so closely, that they had scarcely room to work tiieir guns. This was a critical time for the little band of invaders. They looked for the arrival of the horse under Cortes. Finally they observed confusion in the farthest ranks of the enemy, which soon spread through all of the masses. It was noi long before the shout of ">Sa« Jaao,''' and "San Pedro I " was heard, and Cortes, with his brave companions, dashed through the ranks of the enemy apreadiiig dismay in every direction.' Tlie natives supposed that the hin'se and rider were both one being, and were exceedingly tei'rified. Many of them threw down tlieir arms and fled withcjut attempting farther resistance. The number of Indians engaged in this battle, is su])posed to have been about 40,000. Several prisoners were taken by the Spaniards, and among them two chiefs. Cortes gave them their liberty, and told them to inform their cotmtrymen that he would put man, woman, and child to the sword un- less they immediately submitted to him. They soon sent in their submis- sion, and a friendly relation was formed, and presents made on both sideh. The natives presented some golden ornaments to the Spaniax"ds, and, on being asked where they obtained them, they pointed to the west and an- swered " Culhua," " Mexico." The Spaniards formed a solemn procession, before leaving, with which many Indians united, marched round the principal temple, pulled down the heathen god and erected the image of the Virgin with the infant Savior. The Spaniards endeavoi-ed to convert the natives to the Christian faith, after having killed as many of them as they could ! Out upon such Christianity! It is worse than heathenism. After these ceremonies,, the Spaniards returned to their ships and sailed for the city of Mexico. CHAPTER YIII. LANDING OF CORTES AT VERA CRUZ. Thk Spaniards landed at the island of San Juan dc U/oa (so named by the Spaniard Grijalvti). Crowds of the natives soon came down to the water, ehot oft* in boats from the continent, and came on board the Spanish ves- sels, in a friendly manner. Cortes learned, by an interpreter, that they were subjects of the great Mexican Empire, a country ruled by a power ful monarch, called Moctheuzoma,, or, as the Europeans pronounce it. Montezuma. He resided on the mountain plains of the interior, moi^ than two hundred miles from the coast. LANDING OP CORTES AT VERA CRUZ. 27 MONTEZUMA. April 21, 1519, the Spaniards landed at what is now called Vera Cruz, and formed a tent. Multitudes of the natives flocked in, bringing gold trinkets and presents of Ya.rious kinds. Finally the governor (whose name was Teuhtlile) with a large train, visited the camp and asked Cortes for what purpose he had come across the waters? Cortes an,swered, that he was sent by a powerful monarch as a.n ambassador to Montezuma and asked when he could see him. Teuhtlile, in a haughty manner, replied, " How is it, that you, have been here only two days, and demand to see the Emperor?" He said, howevei*, that he would send to the Emperor and see whether he wovdd admit him into his presence. His slaves then brought in splendid presents of wrought gold and beautiful feather- work. The cavalry, the ships, and especially the sound of the trumpets and roar- ing of cannon, astonished the Mexicans, and even made the govenior tremble as he retired from the Spanish camp. Much wonder was excited at the capital on account of these strangers. The Aztec throne was filled, at this time, by Montezuma the Second, nephew of the last, and grand-son of the preceding monarch. He was elected, according to Prescott, to the regal dignity in 1502, in preference to his brothers, on account of his superior endowments as a soldier and a priest. His name, Montezuma (meaning " sad or severe man"), was ap- propriate to his character. He received the announcement of his election to the throne with humility, while passing down the stairs in the great temple of the national war-god. His relative, Nezahualpilli, king of Tez- cuco, addressed him thus : — 38 CIIAUACTKll OF MONTKZUMA. Reinarkahlc Addrtss of NczahualpUli. " Wlio can tloubt, lh;it tlio Aztec Empire has reached the zenith of its g-roatnesri, since the Ahuighty has placed over it one whose very presence tills every l)eliolder with reverence f Rejoice, hap^iy people, that you have now a sovereign, who will be to yoii a steady ccjlumn ot' support; a father in distress, a more tluiu brotlier in tendcrntjss and sympathy ; one whose aspiring soul will disdain all the profligate plesisures of the senses, and the wasting indulgence of sloth. And thou, illustrious youth, doubt not that the Creator, who lias laid on thee so weighty a charge, will also give strength to sustain it ; that He, who h;is been so liberal, in times past, will shower yet more abundant blessings on thy head, and keep thee firm in thy royal seat through many long and glorious yeai"s." Montezuma melted into tears, and expressed his unfitness for the respon- sible oflice. Character and AcJdevements of Montezuma. He manifested much energy in administering his government, and braveiy in his expeditions against i-evolted tribes. His coi-onation was gi-aced (or rather disgraced) by the bleeding aacrifice of many captives. Games and religious ceremonies continued several days. Montezuma led in person, his victorious armies to the farthest provinces on the Gulf of Mexico, and even to Nicaragua and Honduras. Towards the latter part of his reign he became haughty and assumed a pomp attended with great expense, imknown to his predecessors. This alienated gradually the aftections of his people, and their heavy taxes caused them to rise in opposition to the government. There were frequent insuiTections, and the more the Aztec Empire was enlarged, the weaker it became. Tn 151G, Nezahualpilli, the Tezcucan king, in whom INIontezuma had the greatest confidence, died, and the succession to the crown was contested by his two sons, Cacama and Ixtlilxochitl. A cWA war ensued and a com- pi'omise was made by which the kingdom was divided between the two. Ixtlilxochitl hecame the enemy of Montezuma as the latter opposed him. The republic of Tlascala, between the Mexican Valley and the coast, was also a foe of the great Montezuma, which weakened, to some extent, hie power. This was the condition of the Aztec monarchy when Cortes anived. Ancient Tradition. There was a tradition that a certain deity, who had left the countrj- upon the waters of the Atlantic, would soon return. The appearance of the white men, with their thunder and lightning, was in accordance Avith the general expectation. They wei'e to Subdue the country. This idea, and the gradual declining of Montezuma's power, caused him to tremble upon his throne. He called together immediately his principal counsellors, in- cluding the kings of Tezcuco and Tlacopan, and consulted with them. Emhassij of Montezuma to Cortes. He finally concluded to send an embassy to the Spaniards, and In seven or eight days it appeared before the strangers. Two Aztec nobles and the BATTLES BETWEEN THE SPANIARDS AND INDIANS. 29 governor, Teuhtlile, accompanied by a hundred slaves, approached the Spanish tent, bearing the rich presents from Montezuma. The ambassa- dors touched the ground with their hands, and then raised them to their heads, and clouds of incense arose from the censers in the hands of their attendants. The presents consisted of shields, helmets, cuirasses embossed with plates and ornaments of pure gold, collars and bracelets of the same, sandals, fans, panaches, and crests of variegated feathers, intermingled with golden thread, and sprinkled with pearls and precious stones. Also images of birds and animals in wrought and cast gold and silver ; curtains, cover- lets, and robes of cotton, fine as silk, of beautiful colors, interwoven with feather-work. The Spanish helmet, which had been sent to the capital, was now returned, filled with grains of gold. The most remarkable pre- sents were two circular plates of gold and silver, as large as carriage wheels, wrought in an elegant manner. The Spaniards were, of course, delighted to know that they were approaching such wealth. The ambas- sadoi's presented, in a polite manner, the refusal of their sovereign, to ad- mit the Spaniards into the capital. After ten days another embassage was received from the Emperor, re- newing the order for the Spaniards not to approach any nearer thecapital ; but to return to their own country. Cortes, however, was not to be put off in this way. He was determined to proceed into the interior at a suitable time. He soon formed a colony and established Vera Cruz. Visit to Ccmpoalla. He was invited to visit a neighboring city, called Cempoalla, which was hostile to the Emperor. He complied, and formed an alliance with the inhabitants. To make his comrades more desperate he caused the fleet to be destroyed, and prepared for a mai-ch to Mexico. From Cempoalla, Cortes proceeded towards Mexico, with four hundred foot soldiers, fifteen horse, and seven pieces of artillery. The cacique of Cempoalla also furnished him with 1,300 Indian warriors, 1,000 tamanes, or poiters, and forty principal men of the town as hostages and guides. Cortes, a robber as he was, addressed his soldiers, saying that "the blessed Savior would carry them victorious through every battle." What blasphemy, to say that the Savior would assist them on such an errand of rapine and murder as that ! Battle of TIascala. August 16, 1519, the little army marched, and after a few days, reached the land of the Tlascalans, on lake Tezcuco. Here they were opposed by a formidable array from thousands of the natives, who attacked them with great ferocity, fatally wounding one cavaher and killing two horses ; but the roar of the Spaniards' cannon soon caused the natives to flee. Cortes had added many Indians to his ranks, so that his army now num- bered 3,000. As they went on they were met at another place by 1,000 Indians. A smart battle ensued, and the Indians retired into a pass and the Spaniards after them, and, tui-ning a corner, the Spaniards were met by an immense army of more th|n 30,000, who came rushing on uttering a shrill and hideous war-cry. The Spaniards moved in a steady column and received the attacks of the foe with firmness. One Spaniard, however, was mortally 30 PROGRESS Ol' THE SPANIARDS TOWARDS MJ3XICO. wouiuled, and one Inirije killoil. As soon as they got through the pab8, cutting their way through the thick masses of the enemy, tliey bi'oughi their cannon to bear and madii dreadful havoc among the natives. They wore soon obliged to retire, eight of their chiefs having fallen. As Cortes advanced towards the Tlascalan capital lie met an immense army, Septem- ber 5, lol9, on a vast plain. They rushed on to the attack with a horrid yell, and darkened the sun with a tempest of arrows and stones. There was a very severe contest, and the Spaniards were nearly overcome; but finally, after being nearly all wounded, they gained the victory. Soon after, a night attack was made on the Spaniards, who were thought to be the chihlren of the sun; but they were ready for the foe, and dis- persed them Avith terrible slaughter. Finally the enemy sued for peace, and the invaders entered the city of Tlascala in triumph, September 23, 1519. Montezuma sent another embassy to Cortes, forbidding him to go to th< capital, and afterwards another, inviting him to go, by way of Cholula. It was thought that some plot was laid- to dcsti'oy the invaders. Destruction of Cliolula. Cortes finally moved on to Chokila, which lay sixty miles south-eat", of Mexico, having received into his ranks 6,000 warriors from Tlascala. At Cholula, a plot had been laid, by Montezuma, to destroy the Spaniards ; but Cortes discovered it, and commenced a slaughter of the innocent in- habitants almost unparalleled in history. It is said that 6,000 were slaii?, and the city laid in ruins. What fine Christians these Spaniards were ! Arrival at Tezcvco. The army moved on, and soon came in sight of the lofty heights upt.i. which stood the " Halls of the Montezumas," or, as it was called, " J/ot^,- tezuma^s Mountain Throjiey The monarch trembled in his palace as the invaders gradually approached. He shut himself up in despair, refused to take food, and soizght aid in prayer and sacrifices. Afterwards, he sent an embassy, with the king of Tezcuco at its head, to welcome the Span- iards into the capital. The prince went, attended with great pomp, borne in a jjalanquin or litter, decorated with plates of gold and precious stones, having pillars elegantly wi'ought, supporting a canopy of green plumes. After vaiious ceremonies, tlie invaders went on and soon entered the royal residence of Iztapalapan, governed by Cuitlahua, the Emperor's brother. The lords of some neighboring cities, of the royal house of Mexico were present, and served a splendid collation to the Spaniards in one of the grand "iJa/^s" of the palace. The architectui-e was fine. The roofs were of odorous cedar-wood, andfj the walls tapestned with fine cottons, stained with brilliant colors. The .. gardens were exceedingly beautiful, and rich in flowers of every hue and fruits of every clime. Here was also an aviai-y, where birds of the moet gaudy plumage were raising their notes of music. A canal was cut, so that barges could sail from lake Tezcuco directly into the heart of this garden. Here was also a reservoir for fish of the most beautiful colors. It was 1,600 paces in circumference, built of stone, and surrounded by a stone walk wide enough for four persons to go abreast, the sides being cuiiously sculptured. RECEPTION OF THE SPANIARDS BY MONTEZUMA. 31 .November 8,-1519, the Spaniards marclied on towards the great capital, '■i. few miles distant, with less than seven thousand men including nearly four hundred Spaniards. At the distance of one and a half miles from the city, they came to a solid Avork or curtain of stone, which passed across the dike on which they were marching. It was twelve feet high, with towers at each end, and a battlement gate-way in the centre, which was opened for the Spanish troops to enter. Reception of Cortes hy Montezuma. Several hundred Aztec chiefs met them and announced the approach of Montezuma to welcome them to the capital. They were elegantly dressed with fanciful sashes around their loins, broad mantles of feather-embroideiy ilowino- over their shoulders, bracelets and collars of turquoise mosaic on their arms and necks, with delicate plumage curiously mingled, while their ears, under-lips, and sometimes their noses, were ornamented with precious stones or crescents of fine gold. After the formalities were over, the army moved on to a bridge near the gates of the city. As they crossed the bridge they saw the brilliant retinue of the emperor moving towards them through the great street of the city. Among a crowd of Indian nobles, preceded by three officers of state, bearing golden wands, they beheld the royal palanquin blazing with burnished gold, and canied by nobles. The canopy was gaudy featherwork, powdered with jewels and fringed v/ith silver and was supported by four nobles of the highest rank. They walked barefooted with a slow pace, and stopped as they came near the strangers. Montezuma descended from the palanquin and advanced, leaning upon the anns of the lords of Tezcuco and Iztapalapan, his nephew and brother. As he approached under the canopy, his attendants covered the gi'ound with cotton tapestry that he might not step on the naked earth. Montezuma wore the girdle and large square cloak of his nation. On his feet were sandals, whose soles were solid gold, and the leather thongs which bound them to his ankles were embossed with the same metal. The cloak and the sandals were covered with precious stones and pearls. His head was ornamented simply by a panache of plumes of royal green, which floated dowai his back. The army halted, Cortes dismounted and advanced, attended by a few cavaliers, to meet the emperor. They congratulated each other, and Cortes threw around the neck of Montezuma a sparkling chain of colored crystals, and was going to embrace him, when two Aztec lords restrained him, being shocked at the idea. The emperor appointed his brother to direct the Spaniards to the quar- ters assigned them in the southern part of Tenochtitlan. As they passed through the great street of the city they were surprised ut the elegance of the nobles' houses and of the temples. Where the. great cathedral of Mexico now stands rose a huge pyramidal pile dedi- cated to the patron war-god of the Aztecs, covering a large area.* Facing the western gate of the enclosure of this temple, stood a range of stone buildings covering a lai'ge space, * See page — ^^^ THE HALLS OF THE MONTEZCMAS. Halls of Axayacatl. It was the palare of Axayacatl, Montezuma's father, built oy that mon- arch fifty VL^'Us befoi-e. The Spaniards were allowed to reside there and " mr/" in those splendid " HaJh." The emperor was in the court-yard waitinf^ to receive them as they approached the palace. Montezuma took from a vase of flowers, a massy collar, in which the shell of a species of craw-fish was set in jrold, and connected by heavy links of the same metal. From the chain U\iu\r eiarts of the temple. That night, they followed up their advantage and burned 300 houses. After this, Cortes addressed the Mexicans from the walls, and endeavored to bring them into subjection, but in vain. They said they were willing to lose a thousand lives for every Spaniard that they could destroy, and closed with a volley of missiles. Thus the battle went on for several days. In the meantime, the innocent and broken-hearted Montezuma, expired in the arms of his nobles on the 30th of .lune, 1520, aged 41 years, in the 18th year of his reign. On the night of .Tuly 1st it was determined to leave the city, and accord- ingly the Spaniards moved their forces from that dangerous place. They proceeded quietly until they reached a break in the causeway and were placing do^vn their aitificial bridge, when some Mexican sentinels gave tlie alarm, and thousands of warriors were upon the Spaniards. The battle was fierce and awful. The Spaniards seemed to be overwhelmed by the swarms of the enemy, and came very near being totally destroyed. A few, however, after encountering the greatest perils and sufferings, escaped. Aboizt 450 Spaniards and 4000 Indian allies, more than two thirds of Cortes' whole force, were killed and missing. CHAPTER XI. RETREAT OF THE SPANIARDS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, BATTLES, ETC. Battle of Otmnba, or Otompan. As the little band came in sight of the valley of Otompan, they were astonished to find it filled with immense multitudes of the enemy, sent by Cuitlahua, the successor of Montezuma. The Spaniards marched on and met the foe. They were obliged to fight their way through the thickest masses of the enemy every step that they took. The natives fell back and opened their ranks for the passage of the Spaniards ; but soon pressed again upon them with renewed energy. The vollies of missiles darkened the air, and the war-cries were truly terrific. The Spaniards finally began to be weary, and the barbarians, noticing it, fought more fiercely, and it was probable that very soon the little band would be swallowed up by the enemy. At that moment Cortes observed, at a distance, a great chief, the leader of the host, and said to his cavaliers, "that is our mark." They dashed through the crowd with desperate bravery, cutting every thing before them. They soon came up with the chief, threw him from his litter and killed him. This caused the greatest consternation among the natives, and they began to dis^perse on all sides The Spaniards pursued them and made dreadful slaughter. Finally they ENTRANCE OF THE SPANIARDS INTO THE CAPITAL. ^9 returned and found the field of battle covered with many chiefs and thousands of privates slain, and riches of almost every description. Thus ended one of the most terrible battles on record, July 8, 1520. It is believed that there were 200,000 Indian wan'iors in the field, and that 20,000 of them were slain. Cort&s made vai-ious excursions against different tribes, and finally de- termined to march the second time against the Aztec capital. Cuitlahua had died with small-pox, and Gautemozin had been appointed emperor. Cortes, with about 600 Spanish and more than 100,000 Indian allies, set out for the capital. He sacked Iztapalapan, after a terrible battle, and after slaughtering more than 6000 of the poor natives. He destroyed Cuernavaca, burned Xochimilco, (where he actually fell into the hands of the enemy, but was rescued by his brave comrades,) and gained pos- session of many other towns. Capture of Mexico. Finally, the brigantines, which had been built at Veru Cruz and con- veyed across the country, arrived and were launched April 28, 1521, upon the lake, which separated the Spaniards from the capital. By the last of May, the siege of Mexico was commenced. The Spaniards were obliged to fight their way step by step. They gained possession of the avenues to the city, and finally reached the great street of the capital. The Mexicans were gradually driven back, though they fought with despera- tion. The Spaniards rushed into the old palace of Axayacatl where they formerly had their quarters, and soon it was in flames. They made frequent attacks by sallying into the city, and then returned to their quar- ters without. Guatemozin, the emperor, was not like Montezuma. He was determined to resist the strangers to the last moment, and the mosl. determined opposition was made. The Spaniards were frequently driven back with great loss. At one time 62 of them., with a large number of their allies, fell into the hands of the enemy, and were reserved for sacri- fice. They could actually see from their camp the immolation of their brave companions upon the heathen altars. Finally Cortes determined to advance slowly, and destroy every dwell- ing as he passed on. He commenced, and soon reached the palace of Gautemozin, formerly that of Montezuma, and those splendid " Halls," where now stainds the President's Palace, were demolished and set on fire. The carnage went on. Famine was doing its dreadful work of death, and the pestilence was numbering its hundreds of Aztec victims, when Cortes rushed again on the foe, and slaughtered 40,000 of almost stai-ved natives before they would yield. At last, after more than seven-eighths of the city was laid in ruins, and the most awful havoc made of its brave citizens, Gautemozin, in an attempt to escape, was taken captive. This completed the triumph of the invaders, and the enemy yielded. It is estimated that more than one hundred and twenty thousand perished during this siege, which is almost unparalleled in history. After the fall of the capital, the conquest of Mexico was complete, and the avaricious Spaniards commenced immediately to seek for gold. As they foimd very little of the precious metal in the city, they supposed Guatemo- zin had concealed quantities of it, and put him to the torture, to induce him to reveal the place where it was hidden. The monarch stated that it had been thrown into the water. Some was found there ; but not as much as was expected. 40 MODERN MEXICO. CHAPTER XII. M O I) E K N MEXICO. Rehuilding of the City. Cortes sooti l)t'g;in to rebiiikl the city, and in less than four years a new metropolis arose, far suj)erior in rn<'i<^nificence to the ancient capital. What is now called the " Grand Pluza,"* stands whore the great Temple of the Sun and the palace of Montezuma displayed their splendid domes. Great improvements were made in various parts of the empire, and the Roman Catholic religitm was established. Cortes, being afraid of the infliience of C-ruateinozin, and pretending that a conspiracy was formed against the Spaniards, caused the unfortunate monarch to be hung. The coimtry was called, by the Spaniards, New Spain. The govern- ment which Cortes formed was maintained essentially for three centuries. Since 1S12, there have been numerous changes, and the country has been rent by internal feuds. There has hardly been a settled state of afi'airs from that time until the forces of the United States took possession of the land. Mexican War. The late war between this country and Mexico, originated fiom various circumstances. In the first place the Government of the United States bad cextain claims against Mexico, acknowledged by the latter, but not cancelled. Next, the people of Texas, having formed themselves into an independent govern- ment and maintained that independence eight years, were desirous of being annexed to the United States, In order to accomplish this object, as Mexico was opposed to it, it was agreed between our Government and that of Texas, that the former should send upon the borders of Texas, an armed force sufficient to put down any opposition from Mexico. Accord- ingly Zachary Taylor, Colonel of the 6th Regiment of Infantry, was ap- pointed to take command of these foi'ces. April, 1845, two companies arrived from Fort Leavenworth, making 25 companies in all of what was called the " army of observation." July 23, a part of the force set sail for Corpus Christi, (generally called "Kinney's Ranch," situated on the Avestern shore of Corpus Christi Bay,) and arrived July 31 . The army was now called the " array of occupation." In August the aspect of affairs began to be menacing, and it was exjiected that Mexico would soon declare war. Battle of Matamoras. April 9.^, General Arista arrived at the scene of action. April 28, Captain Walker's camp was attacked by Generals Torrejon and Canales. being stationed midway between Point Isabel and Matamoras. Five of his men were killed and four missing, he having gone out with some of his force on a scout. * See eneravins. WAR BETWEEN MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES. 41 GENERAL TAYLOR. May 3, the batteries from Matamoras opened upon our camp at day- break with great energy. The battle was fierce for a while, and in thirty minutes all the heavy gun-batteries of the enemy were silenced by our artillery. The enemy threw many shells; but without effect. . Battle of Palo Alto. Our army-moved on with fi^-mness to meet the enemy, and when with- in 700 yards the enemy opened their fire from a battery on the right. Ringgold's and Duncan's batteries advanced and commenced firing. The enemy fired continually, but not with much precision. Their cavalry moved on the left and then three batteries were placed in a line at a con- siderable distance from each other and bodies of infantry between, making a long line of battle. Ringgold's battery made dreadful havoc, cutting down almost whole platoons at once. The two eighteen pounders roared tremendously and the cavalry of the enemy soon began to retire, at first in a trot and then in a gallop. When the enemy saw the 3d Infantry ad- vancing in column by division, they fled with rapidity. On the left, Dun- can cut them down in great numbei'S, and the shout of our men could be heai-d above the cannon's roar. The firing commenced at 3 P., M. and ceased for a time at 4 P. M. The firing soon commenced again, and Dun- can poured a tremendous fire into their right flank and threw it into the greatest confusion. As night approached the firing gradually ceased on both sides. The enemy had been driven from his position and forced to 42 WAR BETWEEN MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES. BATTLE OF PALO ALTO retire, and our army were left victors upon the battle ground. , We had only nine killed, fifty-four wounded, and two missing. Our wounded suf- fered much during the night. General Arista commanded the enemy, having 6,000 men, and our force consisted of 2,211. Thus ended the fa- mous battle of Palo Alto. Battle of Resaca de la Pahna. Captain McCall's command were ordei'ed to advance and draw the fire of the enemy. The latter were on the opposite bank of a ravine, concave towards us and their batteries were so arranged as to sweep the road and every approach through the chaparral. McCall received the fire of the enemy and Lieut, llidgely, successor to Ringgold, was ordered forward with his battery. The battle commenced with fury. Frequently were bayonets crossed, they were in such close -proximity. The' enemy gave way slowly, but fought like tigers, for every inch of the ground. But the victory was ours. The rout was general and complete, though our force consisted of 1,700 men, the other being required to guard the train. Two thousand of the best (jf Mexico's troops came over to join in this battle of the 9th, called "Resaca de la Palma." Our loss was three officers and thirty-six meu killed, twelve i:)fficers and fifty-nine men wounded. Battle of Monterey. September 21, 1846, at 7 A. M., the first and volunteer divisions were ordered to advance towards tho city. Our mortar and howitzer batteries opened. We were fired upon from the citadel. Our men,, in the midst of these shots, pushed rapidly onward five himdred yards and rushed into the streets. Captain Backus drove the enemy from this. Two companies of the 4th Infantry (90 strong) moved forward under a terrible fire, and determined to storm a work defended by 500 men. WAR BETWEEN MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES. 43 STORMING OF MONTERKY. This was severe fia^htino^. Major Lear was severely wounded, Lieut. t). S. Irwin killed, C'apt. G. P. Field killed by lancers, Lieuts. Hoskins and Woods were killed, and Lieut. Graham mortally wounded. Major Abercrombie and Capt. La Motte were slightly wounded. Lieut. Dill- worth lost a leg, and Lieut. Ferret was taken prisoner. A body of men. from the 3d and 4th Infantry, of one hundred and fifty, were now ordered to enter the city and take possession of a work of the enemy, apparently a few streets distant. They wei-e exposed to a most destructive fire ; but moved on, taking advantage of every shelter in their way. Capt. L. N. Morris, 3d Infantry, v.-as commander. At last,- our cartridges being nearly exhausted, we were commanded to retire, in order, to our captured works. Our men marched round nearly two miles to the west end of the town, under a heavy fire from "Independence Hill," situated west of the palace, and from "Federacion Hill," between which heights the Saltillo road runs. The 2d Brignde form.ed and advanced amid a shower of balls, and when within a hundred yards, m_ade a charge at double quick step. The enemy fled in all directions. Worth's attack upon the height, commanding the Bishop's Palace, at day-break, (Sept. 22.,) was fierce and successful. The enemy, at the castle, being checked so that they could not aid their flying forces, the height was carried with little loss. About noon, the Mexican cavalry deployed before the palace and en- deavored to charge upon our skii-mishers. Our men pursued them, under Vinton, with terrible effect. Many of the enemy were kept from entering the castle again, as our men rushed in through every opening, and drove the enemy befoj'e them. It was now expected every moment, that the city would capitulate; but they held out and fought like tigers. ~ During the day (23d) the enemy sent in a flag of truce, requesting a cessation of hostilities, that the women and children might be removed. 44 Vr.\n EKTWEKN MtXKO AND THE ITMTED STATES. Old Kout!;li unil Itoiuly said, " No, it was too late." Finally the city capitu- lated, and was given up to the forces of the United States. Several naval battles were fought near Tuspan, Tampico, and several other towns. BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. Battle of Buena Vista. On the 5th of February, 1846, Gen. Taylor, having heard reports-of the advancement of Santa Anna with a large force, it was evident that there must be a terrible conflict, and Gen. Taylor selected a pass two miles in advance of Buena Vista, as his position. On the morning of the 22d the enemy approached, and Gen. Taylor re- turned immediately to camp. Tremendous clouds of dust announced the advance of the enemy, who arrived in position, with immense masses, be- tween 10 and JLl o'clock A. M. All was silence, waiting for the attack, when a white flag was brought into our camp, by Surgeon-General Lin- denberger, with the following message from Santa Anna : "You are surrounded by twenty thousand men, and cannot, in any hu- man probability, avoid suffering a rout, and being cut to pieces with your troops; but as you deserve consideration and particular esteem, I wish to save you from a catastrophe, and for that purpose give you this notice, in order that you may surrender at discretion, under the assurance that yoa will be treated with the consideration belonging to the Mexican character, to which end you will be granted an hour's time to make up your mind, to commence from the moment when my flag of truce arrives in your camp." Old Rough and Ready said : " I beg leave to say, that I decline acced- ing to your request." Skirmishing commenced and continued until after dark, with slight loss on our side. On the morning of the 23d, the action was renewed, and the fighting was WAR BETWEEN MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES. /45 SANTA ANNA. iiow veiy severe upon the enemy : but they poured upon our men volleys Df grape and cannister. Our left giving way, encouraged the enemy, and large masses of them pressed forvv^ard and forced our light troops, on the side of the mountain, to retire, and many of them could not be rallied Until they reached the depot at Buena Vista. The 2d Illinois Regiment, to which a section of Shennan's battery was attached, were driven before the enemy. The Mexican Infantry and cavalry poured in so rapidly that our rear was in danger. Thus far evidently, every move went against us. But General Taylor now arrived and took a commanding position on the elevated pla- teau. His presence was enough to animate our troops. The Mississippi Regiment, under Davis, was ordered to the left, and came in contact, im- mediately with large portions of the enemy, who had turned our flank. The struggle was severe, but in favor of our troops. Our forces were pouring upon the enemy a terrific fire from different sections and pieces, under O'Brien, Bragg, Sherman, Thomas, Kilburn, Reynolds, French, and Bryan, forming a line. The thick columns of the enemy were made to stagger, fearful inroads were made in their ranks, and they were finally, after many desperate struggles, obliged to give way. Their success was short, and thfeir shouts of triumph were soon at an end. Just as they began to give way a little, Lieut. Rucker, with his squadron of 1st dragoons, was ordered to dash in among them, which was done vnth great effect. The enemy endeavored to charge once or twice, but were driven back every time in confusion. Filing had nearly ceased ; but one sti'uggle more 46 WAR KETWEKN MEXICO AND THE UNITED STATES. was to come. vSauta Anna, buing reinforced by cavahy, under cover of ar- tillery char""ed our line in a most desperate maimer, by horse and foot. Gruat masses came rushing on, and poured among us a deadly fire. Our batteries, however, finally turned the tide. Their fire was so fiini, pre<'.ise, and awful, that tlie enemy could not resist, and fell back in disorder. Tliore was dreadful carnage on both sides. Our artillery turnei shell.. «-as mingled will, .l.eroa,- of arfllerj. ■'^vo iu Jro/k a ..i„ctee„ Mexicans ^vore kil e-1, and three imndre. I; L ed wl.ile on,- own loss w,!s only one fled and one wou,,ded expecUtioii.bad ia^uea i^gaiast our troops. ..,..i.,. ... , .tt -».,fi/ The detachment, con^sting of' ^^&M^'^^^'^''^T^ "xnand of Gen. Lane, left Mexico on the 18th ^ ^'^^^•J^'^^^i^:^^ Hays and Capt. Crittenden, accompanied It.- Pa.sm-Cha\co and Kio i lu , Se'blndtoolf a circuitous route to 1^-^^^' -^-M^^/; J^ 'd to Leavino- Puebla at dark the same day, the company '^^^^^^ '^^^J^^r V^ Vera Cruz as far as Amazoque, v/here Gen. Lane took a road entirely Iknow to anyle but himself and the guide. It was little better thdn a 'Culeuath over rocky hills, and after a forty mile march, the troops arrived •?ext n^o in'at thelaciemla of Santa Clara. They were then inherited th-^t thlir obiect was to take Santa Anna, who was then at 1 ehnacan, dis- an fo t - nUes with 150 men. Inorder that the Mexican cbieftam might rno obtaL information of the presence of our troops ^-^^^^^^^ rountrv the General ordered every Mexican m the hacienda, and eveiy ^nr/ound on tS c road during the day to be arrested and kept close.Until ^'^:f l!: ;!;:.rSenda at dark, they ca^^ upon a;pai.y of moused M^^'^ans with a carriac^e, whose occupant bore a passpoH ft-om Gen. Imkh to tra 4l to Orizaba He was, pennitteA to pass with his attendants At davvn our arm^ were within half a mile of Te liuacan. I^o report of a soSy^n of 'the enemy, gave hope that the ^^^T"^^^^ can-ed. Our dragoons and riHemen dashed ^^S^ ^^^'^'[f^^VT^ ondef while the rangers, with cpcked revolvers, galloped ,to^valc. , the P ^iotiure their p?ey but their am.zeme,t^and m^rtificaU^ maybe i....^ined, when they Earned that, two hpuys before, ^^^^ '^^ so-irchhand fled to Oaiaca, with seventy-five .men. With chagun, iney a soVearaed that the Mtxican, whose coacli was .stopped the evening be- ^::.S^£; atched a messenger a,ros3 the --ntain to^^tSSti^^ Anna that the American troops were on the road, with the J^^^^^ making him prisoner. Had it not been for this treacheiy, ,die ,6ugtise would have been complete. ;H^f ■■ T Occiqmtifin, ^ ,C?r^*?P^- ' '> ■' Leaving Tehuacan, on the 23d; tb'e'ti^ops, afefer a -^^fP^^^^'^^, J;:, came down, February 26, 1848, on the -^^l^J^^^ ..^^/^i rivinc^ at the gates, the authorities delivered np the keys ^^f ^^J'^'^^^^l thec'itv thev discovered the white flag, at the ^vlndow of every house, ^ fo^d SeXJdre population .a,senj,l,dtc^,^y?tne,s,rtieir,en^^ ap^: PTthin'ilrim^'irtance occurred afterwards, until Feb.S, 1848, when-the Tx^aty f PeaTe'wL s^^^^ by the American and Mexican Governments jx 3. n T ;*. K "i- TREATY OF PEACE, FRIENDSHIP, LIMITS, AND SETTLEMENT, BETWEEN THE UMITED STATES OF AMERICA AMD THE MEXICAN REPUBLIC Concluded at Guadalupe Hidalgo, February 2, and Ratified, with the Amendments, by the American Senate, March 10, 1848. .,■; In the name of Almighty God : The United States of America and the United Mexican States, animated by. a sincere desire to put an end to the calamities of the war which unhap- pily exists between the two Republics, and to establish on a solid basis re- lations of peac^e and friendship, which shall confer reciprocal benefits on the citizens of both, and assure the concord, harmany and mutual confidence wherein the two people should live as good neighbors, have, for that pur- pose, appointed their respective Plenipotentiaries ; that is to say, the Pre- sident of the United States has appointed N. P. Trist, a citizen of the Uni- ted States, and the President of the Mexican Republic has appointed Don Lo..ui.s GoNi^AGA CuEVAS, Don Bernardo CoNTO, andDon Miguel Atristain, citizens of the said Republic, who, after a reciprocal communication of their respective powers, have, under the protection of Almighty God, the Author of Peace, arranged, agreed upon and signed the following Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Limits and Settlement, betv/een the United States of America and the Mexican Republic. A E T I C L E I . , There shall be a firm and nBiversal peace between the United States of America and the Mexican Republic, and between their respecti\e countries ,tfcn-itorie5, cities, towns and people, without exception of places or persons. ARTICLE II. Immediately on the signature of this Treaty, a Convention shall be entered into between ji Connmissioner or Commiissioners appointed by the General-in-Chief of the forces of the United States, and such, as may be appointed by the iS'Iexican Government, to the end that a provisional suspension of hostilities shall take place ; and that in the places occupied by the said forces, constitutional order may be re-established, as regards the political, administrative and judicial branches, so fi^r as this shall be permitted by the circumstances of military oc- cupation. - ., AETICLEIII, Immediately upon the ratification of the present Treaty, by the Goremment of the United States, orders shall be transmitted to the Cfrnmandcrs of their land and naval forces, requiring the latter (provided this Treaty shall then have been ratified by the Government of the Mexi- can Eepubiic), immediately to desist from blockading the Mexican ports ; and requiring the former (under the same condition) to commence, at the earliest moment practicable, with- drawing all troops- of the United States then in the interior of the Mexican Eepublic, to points that shall be sclbcted by common agreetb^a't, at a distance from the seaports not ex-i 54 THETRKATT. c«eding thirty leaifties ; and each evncuation of the interior of the Hepnhlic shall be com- pleted with the least possible delay ; the Mexican Govemment hereby binding itself to afford every futility in it« power for reiiJeriiig the same convenient to the troops, on their march, and in their'ncw positions, and fur yroLioting a good undergtanding between them and the inhabitants, n like manner, orders shall be dispatchtd to the jiersuns in charge of the Cus- tom Houses at all ports occupied hy the forces of the United States, rc(iuiring them (under the same condition) immediately to deliver possession of the same to the persons authorized by the Mexican tiovernmcnt to receive it, together with all bonds and evidences of debt for dutia on importations and on exportaiions, not yet fallen due. Moreover, a faithful and exact ae- connt shall be made out, showing the entire amount of all duties on imports and on exportc, eollec'ed at such Custom Houses, or elsewhere in Mexico, by authority of the United States, from and after the day of the ratification of this Treaty by the Government of the Mexican Republic ; and also an account of the cost of collection ; and such entire amount, deducting only the cost of collec^on, shall be delivered to* the Mexican Government, at the City of Mexico, within three months after the exchange of ratifications. The evacuation of the Capital of the Mexican Republic by the troops of the United States, in virtue of the above stipulation, shall be completed in one month after the orders there stipulated for shall have been received by the Commander of the said troops, or sooner if pofieible. ARTICLE IV. Immediately after the exchange of ratifications of the present Treaty, all castles, forts, terr- itories, places anu possessions, which have been taken and occupied by the forces of the United States during the present war, within the limits of the Mexican- Republic, as about to be established by the following article, shall be definitely restored to the said republic, togeth- er with all the artillery, arms, apparatus of war, munitions and other public property, which were in the said castles and- forts when captured, and which shall remain there at the time when this Treaty shall be duly ratified by the Government of the Mexican Republic. To this end, immediately upon the signature of this Treaty, orders shall be despatched to the American oflScer commanding such castles and ports, securing against the removal or de- stmction of any such artillery, arms, apparatus of war, munitions, or other public property. The City of Mexico, within the inner line of intrenchmcnts surrounding the said city, ie comprehended in the above stipulations, as regards the restoration of artillery, apparatus of war, &c. The final evacuation of the territory of the Mexican Republic by the forces of the United States shall be completed within three months from the said exchange of ratifications, or sooner if possible ; the Mexican Republic hereby engages, as in the foregoing Article, to use all means in its power for facilitating such evacuation, and rendering it convenient to the troops, and for promoting a good understanding between them and the inhabitantsj If, however, the ratification of this Treaty by both parties should not take place n time to allow the embarkation of the troops of the United Stales to he com]>leted before the com- mencement of the sickly season, at the Mexican ports on the Gulf of Mexico, in such case a friendly arrangement shall be entered into between the General-in-Chief of the said troops and the Mexican Government, whereby healthy and otherwise suitable places, at a distance from the ports not exceeding thirty leagues, shall be designated for the residence of such troop* as may not yet have embarked,'until the return of the healthy season. And the space of time here referred to as comprehending the sickly season, shall be understood to extend from the first day of May to the first day of November. All prisoners of war taken on either side, on land or on sea, shall be restored as soon as practicable after the exchange of the ratifications of the Treaty. It is also agreed that if any Mexicans should now be held as captives by any savage trihe within the limits of the United States, as about to be established by the following article, the Government of the said United States will exact the release of such captives, and cause them to be restored to their country. ARTICLE V. The boundary line between the two Republics shall commence in the Gulf of Mexico, three leagues from land, opposite the mouth of the Rio Grande, otherwise called Rio Bravo del Norte, or opposite the mouth of its deepest branch, if it should have more than one iiranch emptying directly into the sea ; thence up the middle of that river, following the deepest channel, where it has more than one, to the point where it strikes the southern boundary •f New Mexico ; thence wcstwardly, along the whole southern boundary of New Mexico Which runs north of the town called Paso.) to its western termination ; thence northward along the western line of New Mexico, until it intersects the first branch of the River Gila; or if it should not intersect any branch of that river, then to the point on ihc said line near- THETREATY. 55 est to snch branch, and thcuce in a direct line to the same) thence down the middle of the said branch and of the said river, until it empties into the Rio Colorado ; thence across the Rio Colorado, following the division line between Upper and Lower California, to the Pacific Ocean. The southern and western limits of New Mexico, mentioned in this article, are those laid down in the map entitled " Map of the United Mexican States, as organized and defined by various acts of the Congress of said Republic and constructed according to the best authori- ties. Revised edition. Published at New York in 1847, by J.-Uisturnell." Of which map a copy is added to this Treaty, bearing the signatures and seals of the un- dersigned Plenipotentiaries. And in order to preclude all difficulty in tracing upon the ground the limit separating Upper from Lower 'California, it is agreed that the said limits shall consist of a straight line, drawn from the middle of the Rio Gila, where it unites with the Colorado, to a point on the coast of the Pacific Ocean — distant one marine league due south of the southernmost point of the port of San Diego according to the plan of said port, made in the year 1782, by Don Juan Pantojer, second sailing master of the Spanish fleet, and published at Madrid in the year 1802, in the Atlas to the voyage of the schooner Sutil and Mexicana, of which plan a copy is hereunto added, signed and sealed by the respective Plenipotentiaries. In order to designate the boundary line with due precision, upon authoritative maps, and to estj^blish on the ground landmarks which shall show the limits of both Republics, as described in the present article, the Governments shall each appoint a Commissioner and Surveyor, who, !>efore the expiration of one year from the date of the exchange of ratification of this Treaty, shall meet at the port of San Diego, and proceed to run and mark the said bounda- ry in its whole course to the mouth of the Rio Rravo del Norte. They shall keep journals and make out plans of their operations ; and the result agreed upon by them shall be deemed a part of this Treaty, and shall have the same force as if it were inserted therein. The two Governments will amicably agree regarding what may be necessary to these persons, and also as to their respective escorts, should such be necessary. ■ The boundary line established by this article shall be religiously respected by each of the two Republics, and no change shall be made therein, except by the express and free consent of both Nations, lawfully given by the General Gcvernment of each, in conformity with its own Constitution. ARTICLE VI. The vessels and citizens of the United States shall, in all time, have a free and uninter- rupted passage by the Gulf of California, and by the river Colorado ; and not by land, without the express consent of the Mexican Government. If, by the examinations that may bo made, it should be ascertained to be practicable and advantageous to construct a Road, Canal, or Railway, which should, in whole or in part, run upon the river Gila, or upon its right or its left bank, within the space of one marine league from either margin of the river, the Governments of both Republics will form an agreement regarding its construction, in order that it may serve equally for the use and advantage of both coufitries. ARTICLE VII. The river Gila, and the part of the Rio del Norte lying below the southern boundary of New Mexico, being agreeably to the Fifth Article, divided in the middle between the two republics, the navigation of the Gila and ftf the Bravo, below said boundary shall be free and common to the vessels and citizens of both countries; and neither shall, without the'consent of the other construct any work that may impede or interrupt in whole or in part, the exer- cise of this right — not even for the purpose of favoring new methods of navigation. Nor shall any tax or contribution, under any denomination or title be levied upon vessels or persons navigating the same, or upon merchandise, or eff*ects transported thereon, except in the case of landing upon one of their shores. If, for the purpose of making said rivers navigable, or for maintaining them in such a state, it should be necessary or advantageous to establish any tax or contribution, this shall not be done without the consent of both Govern- ments. The stipulations contained in the present article shall not impair the territorial rights of either republic, within its established limits. ARTICLE VIII. Mexicans now established in territories previously belonging to Mexico, and which remain for the future, within the limits of the United States, as defined by the present Treaty, shall k« free to continue where they now reside, or to remove, at any time, to the Mexican &epnb' 56 T H E T R E A T Y . lie, retnininfj the pri^icrty which tliey possess in the said tcnitories. or disposin(j thereof^ and rciiioviii(» tiic |MOceciis wlicrcver thoy please, without their being subjected, on this account to luiy eontnbuiioii, or tux wlmlevcr. TliD.se whu" -sliiill pri'ler to reinain in said territories, mny either retain tlic title and righto i of Mexiean eiti/eiis, or acquire those of citizens of the United States. But they siuiU be under the obliiration to inalic iheir selection within one year from the date of tlie exchange of raiiticutions of this Treaty ; and those who shall reinain in tiie said territories, iifier the expiration of that year, witjioiit liaving declared their intention to retain the charaeter of Mexieans siiall be considered to have elected to beeunie citizens of the United States. In the said territories, property of any kind, now beloni;inf( to Mexicaiis not established there siiall be inviolably respeetcd. The present owners, the heirs of these, and all Mexicans who may hereafter aeipdre said property by contract, shall enjoy, with respect to it, guaranties equally ample as if the same belonged to eii;izens of the United States. [In place of the follov/ing Article, the Senate has inserted the third Article of t!ie Treaty betwoen Franee and the United States, for tiie I'.ession of Louis-iana, which provides that the inhabitants of the ceded territory shall be admitted to all the rights and privileges of citi- zenship, ii\ ai-cordance with tlic principles of the Constitution, as soon as Congress shall determine; and that in the meantime, tliey shall be protected in the enjoyment of their liber- ty, property and religious belief.] AETICLE IX. The ^Mexicans wlio in the territories aforesaid, shall not preserve the character of citizens of the Mexican Republie, conformably witli what is stipulated in the preceding artiele, shall be incorporated into the Union of the United States, and admitted as soon as possible, ac- cording to the principles of the Federal Constitution, to the enjoyment of all the rights of citizens of the United Slates. In the meantime they shall be maintained and protected in the enjoyment of their liberty, tiieir property, and the civil rights noiv vested in them, according to the IMe.xican laws. With respect to political rights, their condition shall be pn an equality with that of the inhabitants of the other territories of the United States, and at* least equally good as that of the inliabitants of Louisiana and the Floridas, when these prov- inces, by transfer from the French Kepublic, and the Crown of Spain, become territories of the United States. The most ample guarant}- shall be enjoyed by all ecclesiastics and religions corporations, or communities, as well in ilie discharge of the offices of their ministry, as in the enjoyment of their property of every kind whether individual or corporate. This guaranty shall em- brace all temples, houses and edifices dedicated to the lioman Catholic worship ; as well as all property destiiied to its support, or to that of schools, hospitals or other foundations for charitable or benelicent purposes. x\o property of this nature shall be considered as. having become the property cf the American Government, or as subject to be by it disposed of, or diverted to other causes. Finally, the rclatJons and communications between Catholics living in the territories afore- said, and their respective ecclesiastic authorities, shall be open, free and exempt from all hindrance ■whatever, even although such authorities should rcsiile within the limits of the Mcxici)n refjublic, as defined by this Treaty ; and this freedom shall continue so long as a new debarcation of ecclesiastical districts shall not have been made, conformably with the aws of the lioman Catholic Church. ARTICLE X. (exi'uxged.^ All grants of lard made by the Mexican Government, or by the competent anthorities,ioi Territories previously appertaining to Mexico, and remaining for the (iiture within ibo limits of the United States, shall be respected as valid, to the same extent that the same grants would be valid if the Territories had remained witliin the limits of Mexico. But the gran- tees of land in Texas [lut in possession thereof, wlio by reason of the circumstances of the country, since the beginning of the troubles between Texas and the Mexican Government, may iiave been preveuted iVom fultilling all the conditions of their grants, shall be under the obligation to fulrtl the said conditions within the peiiods limited in the snnie respectively, such; periods to be now counteil Irom the date of the exchange of ratifications of this Treaty ; in default of which, said j;rants shall not be obligatory on the State of Texas, in virtue of the sti-- pulations contained in this Article. The foregoing stipulation in regard to grantee^ of land in Texas, is extended to all gran'.ees of land in the territories aforesaid, elsewhere than in Texas, put in ])ossession under such grants ; and in default of the fulhlhnent of the conditions of anysuch grant, within the new pe- riod which, as is above stipulated, Ijcgins with the day of the exchange of ratifications of ihi»' treaty, the same shall be null and void. Jtun vva xinii rutiw nuaitaoa «i ;»>'ild4 T H E ' T R E A T Y >J» ■ 57f The Mexican Government declares that no grant whatever of lands in Texas has been made since the second day oF March, one thousand eight hundred and thh-ty-six ; and that no grant whatever of lands in any of the territories aforesaid, has been made since the thirteenth day of May, one thousaDd eight hundred and forty-six. ARTICLE XI Considering that a great part of the territories which, by the present Treaty, are to he com- prehended for the future within the limits of the United States, is now occupied by savage tribes, who vyill hereafter be under the control of the Government of the United States, and whose incursions within the territory of Mexico would be prejudicial in the extreme, it is so- lemnly agreed that all such incursions shall he forcibly restrained by the Government of the United States, whensoever this maybe necessary ; and that when they cannot be prevented,. they shall be punished b3^the said Government, and satisfaction for the same shall be exacted — all in the same v/ay, and with equal diligence and energy as if the same incursions were.^j committed within its own territory, against its own citizens. It shall not be lawful, under any pretext whatever, for any inhabitant of the United States to purchase or acquire any Mexican, or any foreigner residing in IMexico, who may have been captured by Indians inhabiting the territory of either of the two republics, not to pur chase or acquire horses, mules, cattle, or property of any kind, stolen within the Mexican territory, by such Indians : nor to provide such Indians with fire-arms or ammunition by sale or otherwise. And in the event of any person or persons captured within IMexican territory by Indians, be- in? carried into the territory of theUnited Sates, the Government of the latter en gages and binds ' itself in the most solemn manner, so soon as it shall know of such captives being within its ^ territory, and shall be able so to do, through the faithful exercisijof its influence and power to rescue them and return them to their country, or deliver them to the agent or representative of theMexican Government. The Mexican authorities will, as far as practicable, give to the Government of the Unitcd'Statcs notice of such captures ; and its expenses incurred in the maintenance and transmission of the' rescued captives ; who, m the mean time, shall be treat- ed with the utmost hospitality by the American authorities at the place where they may be. But if the Government of the United States, before i-eceiving such notice from Mexico,; should obtain intelligence, through' any other channel, of the existence of Mexican- captives-* within its territory, it will proceed fonhwith to effect their i-eleasc and delivery to the -Mexican ■ agent, as above stipulated. For the purpose of giving to these stipulations the fullest possible efficacy, thereby afford- ing, the security and redress demanded by their true spirit and intent, the Government of the United States will now and hereafter pass, without unnecessary delay, and always vigilantly enforce, such laws as the nature of the subject may require. And finally, the sacrcdnessof this obligation shall never be lost sight of by the said Government, v.'iicn providing for the removal of Indians from any portion of said Territories, or for its being settled by the citi- i.ens of the, United, States ; but. on the contrar^^ special care then shall be taken not to place its Indian occupants under the necessity of seeking new homes, by committing those invasions' which theUnited States have solemnly obliged themselves to restrain. ARTICLE XII. In consideration of the extension acquired by the boundaries of the United'States, as de- fined in the fifth article of the present Treaty, the Government of the United States engages to pay to that of the I^iexicun Republic the sum of fifteen millions of dollars in the one or^ the other of the two modes below specified. The Mexican Government shall at th^time of ratifying this treaty, declare which of these- two modes of payment it prefers; and the mode so selected by it shall be conformed to by ■ that of the United States. Tirst mode of payment — Immediately after this Treaty shall have been duly ratified by the Government of the Mexican Republic, the sum of three millions of dollars shall be paid to the said Government by that of the United States, at the City of Mexico, in the gold or silver- coin of Me.x.ico. For the remaining twelve millions of dollars the United States shall create a giock, bearing an interest of six per centum per annum, commencing on the day of the rati- fication of this Treaty by the Government of the Mexican Republic, and payable annually at the City of Washington; the principal of said stock to be redeemable there, at the pleasure of the Government of the United State?, at any time after tw^ears from the exchange of ratifications of this Treaty; six months' public notice of the intention to redeem the same being previously given, Certificates of such stock, in pro]ier form, for such sums as shall be specified by the' Mexican Government, shall be delivered, and transferable- by the said Govern- ment to the same by that of the United States. ■ ■ ■ . i -, : , '-■ i. ' ■ ' '<".;,:.>, 58 THETREATY. Second nitxic of payment — IinnieJiatcIy afier this Treaty tthull have been duly ratified by the Govcrnnicnt of the Mexican Kepii!jiic, tlic .sum of tlirue iniliions of dollars sball Ijc paid to the said Governniunt by that of the United iStutes, at the City of Mexico, in the gold or sil- ver coin of Mexico. The remaining twelve millions of dollars shall be paid at the »anie place and iti the same coin, in annual instalments of three millions of ilollars each, touelher with in- terest on the same, at the rate of six per centum per annum. Tiiis mtere>-t shall begin to run upon the whule sum of iweive millions Ironi the day of the ratification of the present Treaty by the Mexican Government, and the first of the installments shall be paid at the expiration of one year from the same day. Together with each annual instalment, as it falls due, the whole lutercsc accruing on such installment from the beginning shall also be paid. [Certificates in the proper form for the said instalments, respectively, in sums as shall be desired by the Mexican Government, and transferable by it, shall be delivered to the said Government by that of the United States.] [N. B. The "first of these modes is rejected. The latter is adopted, with the exception of the last paragraph, in brackets.] ARTICLE XIII. The United States engage, moreover, to assume and pay to the claimants all the amounts now due them, and these hereafter to become due, by reason of the claims already liquidated and decidei' against the Mexican Republic, under the Conventions between the two republics severally concluded on the eleventh day of April, eighteen hundred and thirty-nine, and on the thirtieth day of January, eighteen hundred and forty-three; so that the Mexican Republic shall be absolutely exempt, for the future, from all expense whatever on account of the said claims. ARTICLE XIV. The United States do farthermore discharge the Mexican Republic from all claims of citi- zens of the United States, not heretofore decided against the Mexican Government, which may have arisen previously to the date of the signature of this Treaty; which discharge shall be final and perpetual, whether the said claims be rejected or be allowed by the Board of Commissioners provided for in the following article, and whatever shall be the total amount of those allowed. ARTICLE XV. The United States, exonerating Mexico from all demands on account of the claims of their citizens mentioned in the preceding article, and considering them entirely and forever canceled, whatever their amount may be, undertake to make satisfaction for the same, to an amount not exceeding three and one-quarter millions of dollars. To ascertain the validity and amount of those claims, a Board of Commissioners shall be established by the Government of the United States, whose awards shall be final and conclusive; provided, that in deciding upon the validity of each claim, the Board shall be guided and governed by the principles and rules of decision prescribed by the (hst ajid fifth articles of tlie unratified Convention, concluded at the City of Mexico on the twentieth day of November, one thousand eight hundred and forty- three; and in no case shall an award be made in favor of any claim not embraced by these principles and rules. If, in the opinion of the said Board of Commissioners, or of the claimants, any books, records or documents in the possession or power of the Government of the Mexican Re- public, shall be deemed necessary to the just decision of any claim, the Commissioners, or the claimants through them, shall, withiu such period as Congress may designate, make an appli- cation in writing fur tiie same, be assessed to the Mexican Minister for Foreign Afiairs, to bt transmitted by the Secretary of Siaie of the United Slates; and the Mexican- Government engages, at the earliest possible moment after the receipt of such demand, to cause any of the books, records or documents so specified, which shall be in their possession or power (or au- thenticated copies or extracts of the same) to be transmitted to the said Secretary of State, who shall immediately deliver them over to the said Board of Commissioners: provided, that no such application shall be made by or at the instance of any claimant, until the facts which it ia expected to prove by such books, records or documents shall have been stated under oath or a£5rmation. ARTICLEXVI. ^ Each of the contracting parties reserves to itself the entire right to fortify whatever point within its tetritory it may judge proper so to fortify for its security. THETREATY. 59 ARTICLE XVII. The treaty of amity, commerce, and navip^ation, concluded at the City of Mexico on the 5th day of April, A. D., 1831, between the United States of America and the United Mexican States, except the additional article, and except so far as the stipulations of the said Treaty may not be incompatible with any stipulation contained in the present Treaty, is hereby re- vived for the period of eight years from the day of the exchange of ratifications of this Trea- ty, with the same force and virtue as if incorporated therein ; it being understood that each of the contracting parties reserves to itself the right, at any time after the said period of eight years shall have expired to terminate the same by giving one year's notice of such inten- tion to the other party. ARTICLE XVIII. All supplies whatever of troops of the United States in Mexico, arriving at ports in the oc- cupation of such troops previous to the final evacuation thereof, although subsequently to the restoration of the Custom- Houses at such ports, shall be entirely exempt from duties and charges of any kind; the Government of the United States hereby engaging and pledging its faith to establish, and vigilantly to enforce all possible guards for securing the revinue of Mexi- co, by preventing the importation, under cover of this stipulation, of any articles other than such, both in kind and in quality, as shall really be wanted for the use and consumption of the forces of the United States during the time they may remain in Mexico, To this end it shall be the duty of all officers anl agents of the United States to denounce to the Mexican «,athorities at the respective ports any attempts at a fraudulent abuse of this stipulation which they may know of or may have reason to suspect, and to give to such autho rities all the aid in their power with regard thereto; and every such attempt, when duly proved and established by sentence of a competent tribunal, shall be punished by the confiscation of the property so attempted to be fraudulently introduced. ARTICLE XIX. With respect to all mercjiandise, effects and property whatsoever, imported into ports of Mexico while in the occupation of the forces of the United Stales, whether by citizens of either republic, or by citizens or subjects of any neutral nation, the following rules shall be observed: 1. All such merchandise, effects, and property, if imported previously to the restoration of the custom- houses to the Mexican authorities, as stipulated for in the third article of this treaty, shall be exempt from confiscaion, although the importation of the same be prohibited by the Mexican Tariff. 2. The same jjcrfect exemption shall be enjoyed by all such merchandise, effects and pro- perty, imported subsequently to the rsstoration of the Custom -Houses, and previously to the sixty days fixed in the following article for the coming into force of the Mexican Tariff, at such ports respectively; the said merchandise, effects, and property, being, however, at the time of their importation, subject to the payment of duties, as provided for in the said follow- ing article. 3. All merchandise, effects, and property described in the two rules foregoing, shall. during their continuance at the place of importation, or upon their leaving such place for the inte- rior, be exempt from all duty, tax or impost of every kind, under whatsoever title or deno- mination. Nor shall they be there subject to any charge whatsoever upon the sale thereof. 4. All merchandise, effects, and property, described in the first and second' rules, which shall have been removed to any place in the interior while such placo was in the occupation of the forces of the United States, shall, during their continuance therein, be exempt from all tax upon the sale of consumption thereof, and from every kind of impost or contribution, un- der whatsoever title or denomination. 5. But if any merchandise, effects, or property, described in the first and second rules shall be removed to any place not occupied at the time by the forces of the United States, they shall, upon their introduction into such place, or upon their sale or consumption there, be subject to the same duties which, under the Mexican laws, they would be required to pay in such cases if they had been imported in time of peace, through the maritime custom-houses, and and had there paid the duties conformably with the Mexican Tariff, 6. The owners of all merchandise, effects or property described in the first and second rules and existing in any port of Mexico, shall have the right to reship the same, exempt from all tax, impost, or contribution whatever. With respect to the metals, or other property, exported from any Mexican port while in the occupation of the forces of the United States, and previously to the restoration of the Custom House at such port, no person shall be required by the Mexican authorities, whether general or State, to pay any tax, duty, or contribution upon any such exportation, or in any manner to account for the same to the said authorities. 60' THE TRKATY, AliTICLE XX. Throuph consideration for the interests of commerce generally, it is agreed that if lcs3 tbiw sixty drtvs should elapse between tlic dutc of the si.ii;n;ituro of this Treaty and the restora- tion of tlie fiisioiii-liousus, fonlurmnl.ly with a stiimlaiion in the third Article, in Fuch case, all nierc!i:!iidise,eftecis, and property whatsoever, nrrivitif; at the Mexican ports after the restoration id' iliesaid custom- liouses, and previously to the expiration of sixty dnys after the si"nHture of this Treaty, shall he admitted to entry; arid no other duties shall lie levied thereon ihan the duties established by the Taritf found in I'orce at such custom-houses at the time of the restoration of the same. And to all such merchandise, effects and property, the rules <'.stablishcd in the preceding Article shall apply. ARTICLE XXI. If nrhappilv, any disajrreement should hereafter ajise between the Governments of the two Republics", whefhar with resjicct to the interpretation of any stipulation In tliis treaty or with respect to any other particular conccrniii;j; the political or commercial relations -orkl, to observe the following rules, absolutely, where the nature of the subject permits, and as closely as possible in all cases where such absolute observance shall be impossible. 1. The merchants of either Republic then residing in the other shall be allov.ed to remain twelve months, (for those dwelling in the interior,) and six months (for tho^■e dwelling at the seaports.) to collect their debts and settle their affairs ; during which periods, they shall eiij'iy the same protection, and be on the same footing, in all vcspcc!:s, as the citizens or subjects" of the most friendly nations ; and, at the expiration thereof, or at any time before, they shall have full liberty to depart, carrying o(F all tiieir effects without mo'cstatidn or hindrance ; conforming therein to the same laws, which the citizens- or subjects, of the ;n03r friendly nations are required to conform to. Upm the entrance oT the armies of cithvir na- tion into the territories of the other, women and children, ecclesiastics, scholars, of every facul- ty, cultivators of the earth, merchants, artisans, maintfacturers, and fishermen, unarmed, and inhabiting unfortified towns, villages or places, and in general all persons M'hose occupations aroforthe commcm subsistence and benefit of mankind, shall be allowed to continue their respective employments unmolested in their persons.. Nor shall their houses or goods Ic burnt or otherwise destroyed, nor their cattle Laken, nor their fields v-asted, by the armed force into whose power, bv the events of war, they may happen to fall ; but if the necessity arise to take anvtiiin'g from them for the use of such armed force, the same shall be paid for at an equitable i)rice."' All (hurches, hospitals, schools, colleges^ libraries, and other establish- ments, for charitable and beneficent purposes, shall be respected, anf Natural Divisions. from the merirli-m nf Q^ ri<,,v • i . • ^^^^^'^^ ren^ion. The second extends onThe ear afiT.f N l !^" 'Y '"^'"^ ''"^ ^^ ^^^ "^°"'J^ °f ^he Eio del Norte If ^ e»..rolniter^ ttir;^— f:r.h:ztr:^--„^rort:^^ L ■ • T/^e Eastern Region. . Jl'hVxr'.^' Tei^z:!;::'' t'h "'"".r' ''"^"'""' "■=. p'^'" "^ ^obasco ef Yucal-,n „»-. r n P, ■. "onh-eastern extremity of the isthmus AnS'r',h" i,^^'':^ ^X Th '""■"'>■,"'■'- ">- 150 •niles from Cape S. on me is.and 0. Cuba. Through .ho s.ra.l formed by .hesc headlands, PHYSICALFEATTTRES. 63 A current, with considerable velocity, sets in to the north. The northern and western shores of the peninsula have no harbours, but only roadsteads, which during the northern gales are very unsafe, but along the eastern shores there are several harbours. The shores are sandy and flat. The level country ex- tends to a considerable distance inland, whilst the centre of the peninsula is occu- pied by a range of low hills. The hilly district in the interior, as well as the flat country on the northern coast, has a sandy soil, and no spring water is found from Cape Catoche to the mouth of the Rio de St. Francisco, which empties itself in Campeachy Bay. Its vegetation is scanty ; the trees are stunted, and the plants of a languid growth, except during the rainy season, (from May to September ;) but as the climate, though exceedingly hot, is healthy, it is much better inhabited and cultivated than the eastern shores. Plain of Tohasco, The plain of Tobasco begins on the east at some distance east of Lake Ter- minos, and extends westward to Patrida Rock, a moderately elevated cape on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, (98 deg. W. long.) This plain is more than 250 miles long, and extending inland from 50 to 120 miles. Its surface is a dead level, and the soil alluvial. Being very fertile, it is covered with a thick forest of heavy growth, but is little cultivated on account of its being subject to inunda- tions, and generally under water for several months during the rainy season. It seems that this part of Mexico suffers as much from the superabundance of water as other parts for the want of it. To this circumstance, and the great heat of the summer, is the unhealthiness of this tract to be attributed. The Plain of Tobasco is watered by a considerable river, the Rio de Tobasco, and its two branches, the Usumasinta and the Grijolva. Isthnvus of Tektmntepec. The plain of Tobasco occupies the northern portion and about one half of the isthmus of Tehuantepec. It has a very hot, but rather dry climate, and the soil, though not distinguished by fertility, is capable of producing several tropical plants. It is supposed that an easy line of communication may be established across the isthmus of Tehuantepec between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific, as the two seas are only 130 miles distant, and the plains adjacent are watered^ by navigable rivers, "^his was a favourite idea with Santa Anna. Anahuac. The central region of Mexico, commonly called Anahuac, exhibits great variety in its natural features. The eastern coast, which is low and sandy, runs on in a continuous line without being broken by inlets or bays ; and consequently it contains no harbours except those formed by the mouth of the river ; and even these are only unsafe roadsteads, as the rivers of this coast, with the exception of the Rio Alvarado, have only water enough in the rainy season. North of 22 deg. several rivers of considerable size fall into the sea, but except at their mouths, the coast cannot be approached by vessels, as it is lined by long, low and narrow islands, which lie parallel to, and from two to six miles from it. The channels by which these islands are separated are too shallow to admit even boats. The country adjacent to the shores, and from three to ten miles inland, is very low, but is defended from the sea by sand hills rising from 50 to 200 feet high. The soil is sandy and quite destitute of vegetation. At the back of this low sandy tract the country rises gradually to the foot of an extremely steep ascent, which imstitutes the eastern ridge of the extensive table-land farther west The coun- 64 .(f^»-SICAL FEATURE 6. ^try which lies between the shores and tlie steep ascent varies in widih. At Vera gl-Cruz it is only.Oy miles vvidd, Furthor north it widens till it becomes, nearly 180 miles across. This tract is comprehended in whut is called the " hot coUEn- tries." The seasons are divided into the wioter,, or the season of the iicuth winds, and the summer, or season of 'the breezes. .The fbrmer lusts from Qeto- J^er to April, enuring, which time the north winds are prevalent,. and frequentlv ^;|fdftw wjtli the.forpe pf » hurricane, sometimes for days .together : they are. the •terror of,navig;;UorSfOlr those) shores.. .During those periods the coas't is. healthy . j^nd the yQ/nito, pi- yelloAv fovpr, peases. The mean heat pf this, ss-apon js-71t U^-vM^y lijir ^, , On the side of the Pacific, the. table-land of Anahuac- approaches, .yer^y near ,• the, sea. In some places the high mountain masses advance to the very shores ; f,^ others, a, narrow level tract intervenes; but the table land. is divided from the •■„Gulf of Mexico by a low plains called^ the Plain of ,Cuetlach,tlan,'..\t;hich ext^^s about 100 miles inland. , . ,. ;■ - .v ..^ i., - : ■ . H r. The surface of the table-land of ^4nahuac, .yi^ki^hi.is.reached./roni the Plain^of Cuetlachtlan by, a very rapid ascent, consists of a coasidei'able' number of pla?ins with a level or undulating surfoce. These plains are generally of considerable Client, measuring in length from 40 to 200 miles and more ; and in width from 20 to 100 miles. These plains are t;eparated from each other by ranges of hills, which rise to 500 or 600 feet above their level ; but the plains themselves vary in their elevation ; the most extensive being from 5000 to 9000 f^et above the sea-leyel, whil^,t,SiOjDe smaller ones are jnuch low.Qii, RIVERS, LAKES, BAYS AND GULFS. ^'^ That portion of the table-land, which spreads from the Plains a»f Tlascala and Mexico, south and south-east, and which, as far as the isthmus of Tehuantepec, is called the table-land of Mixtecapan, appears not to rise more than 5,000 feet on an average. Towards the Pacific, however, it is indented by wide valleys ^vhich extend nearly north and south, and open towards the sea; but even these valleys are of considerable height. The town of Oaxaca, which lies in the principal valley, is 4,800 feet above the sea, and the adjacent higher ground, on which the ruins of the Palace of Mitla are found, is 5,300 feet high. But as wie proceed along the sea to the N. W. and approach the harbour of Acapulco, the table-land is broken by deep valleys, which extend east and v^rest. The level of these valleys declines as they approach the Pacific, and at the same time they become narrower. The road from Mexico to Acapulco passes through, four of them. The valley of Istla, nearest to the plain of Tenochtitlan, is 3,226 feet, the valley of Mescala 1,696 feet, that of Papagallo 627, and that of Pere- grino, nearest the Pacific, is 525 feet above the level of the sea. The Plain of Chihuahua, which extends along the eastern base of the Sierra Madre, may be considered as a continuation of the table-land of San Louis de Potosi, not being separated from it by a range of mountains or any other marked boundary-line, except that the northern part of the table-land of Potosi (between 23o and 24o N. lat.) gradually assumes that aspect of sterility which character- ises the Plain of Chihuahua. This plain extends from south-soufti-east to north-north-west more than 600 miles, and is terminated on the north by a line drawn from the Presidio de S. Bernardino to the Paso del Norte, near the paral- lel of 32o, Its width varies from 150 to 200 miles. At its southern extremity, where it is contiguous to the table-land of San Louis de Potosi, it may be nearly 6,000 feet above the sea-level ; but it lowers towards the north. This immense tract of country may be compared with some of the steppes of Asia. We do not know its elevation above the sea, but Humboldt estimates that of the country along the banks of the Rio del Norte at about 2,000 feet, an estimate which ap- pears rather too low than too high. But towards the south the country certainly rises to a much greater height, a fact which is shown by the course of the riv- ers, which here run in the opposite direction to those of Sonora — namely, from, south to north. The surface of this plain is nearly level. The soil is strongly impregnated with nitre, muriate of soda, and carbonate of potash. It is entirely destitute of trees, except along the water-courses, which are skirted by poplars. In the rainy season it is covered with grass, Avhich affords pasture for sheep ; in the dry season it is without verdure, except along the rivers. Some portions are covered with small sharp stones. In those districts which are at some dis- tance from the rivers, there are numerous dry salt-lakes, from which large quan- tities of salt are collected by the inhabitants. These salt lakes render the coun- try excessively unhealthy ; for whenever there is any wind, the air is filled with, saline particles and dust, which oppress respiration and cause numerous diseasesL The rivers, along which alone the cultivated tracts occur, run in beds several feet under the surface of the plain, and all terminate (with the exception of the Rio Conchos) in lakes without outlets, like those in the steppes of Asia. The most remarkable are the Rio de las Gasas Grandes, the Conchos, and the Rio Grande of the Plain. MouTitains. The steep ascent above described constitutes the outer edge of the elevated plams ■>f Anahuac, which extends westward to a great distance. The edge itself is lined by a continuous series of hills, rising in general only to a moderate eleva- tion above the. table-lands ; but some of them attain a great height, as the Coffre de Perote, near the. road leading from Vera Cruz to Mexico, which is 13,415 fee* 5 ■ . 66 RIVERS, LAKES, BAYS AND GULFS. above the level of the sea, and the peak of Origida, which attains a .lei^ht ui 17,373 feet. It is in strict geography improper to denominate the mountains of Mexico a prolongation of the Andine chain of South America. So far is this from being the case, that long before the Andes have reached the isthmus of Panama, they have dwindled into inconsiderable hillocks ; and in Verragua, the Sierra de Caii- tagua runs in an opposite direction to the Andes, as if to interrupt their exten sion into North America. In the Mexican province of Oaxaca, the chain occu- pies the centre of the isthmus. On this part of the chain there is a point so elevated that both the Atlantic and Pacific are visible from it. This would indi- cate an elevation of 7700 feet above the sea. From eighteen and a half to twenty- one degrees the Cordillera stretches from north to south. Of this chain " the mountain of smoke," a volcano covered with perpetual snow, is one of the most elevated summits in all Mexico. Humboldt estimates it to be 17,735 feet above the level of the sea. There are many other peaks of nearly an equal altitude. The mean elevation of the whole range, of which these summits make a part, is 9842 feet of absolute elevation. The " star mountain," which is the highest peak in all Mexico, and which is visible from Vera Cruz, is 17,876 feet above the level of the sea, and is the first part of the continent which is visible to navi- gators. From the north-eastern part of the intendency of Mexico, the chain assumes the name of Sierra Madre, and then leaving the eastern quarter, it runs north-west to Guanaxuato. North of this city it becomes of an extraordinary breadth, dividing immediately into three branches, of which the most eastern runs in the direction of the coast, and is lost in the province of New Leon. The western branch passes to the north as far as the source of the Rio Gila. From its western side many lateral chains stretch south-west to the Gulf of California. The middle branch of the Sierra Madre, which may be viewed as the central chain of the Mexican Alps, stretches northwardly into the province of New Mexico, and finally terminates in latitude 41 deg., where it divides the waters which flow into the Pacific from those which flow into the Atlantic. From this other ranges of mountains meet from different directions, and again spread out northwardly, under the appellation of the Rocky Mountains. No mountain ridge connects the Sierra Madre with the Rocky Mountains. CHAPTER II. SIVERS, LAKES, B A 1 S AND GVhTS. Considering the extent of Mexico, its large rivers are very few. The table land of Anahuac is nearly destitute of rivers on account of the dryness of the atmosphere and the aridity of the soil. The few streams are only navigable for a short distance from the sea. They descend from great heights, in a compar-» atively short course, and are very shallow. Rio Bravo, or Rio Grande del Norte. This, the chief river in Mexico, rises in lat. 40 d. 12 m. N., and 111 d. 30 m. W. long., immediately west of the sources of the Platte and Arkansas. It has several large tributaries. For two hundred miles above Santa Fe, it runs through a valley bounded on both sides by snowy mountains. The whole course of the Rio del Norte is at least 2000 miles, 540 of which are to the N. W. of Santa Fe. It is not navigable in any part of its course, owing to sand-bars in the flat cotmtry, RIVERS, LAKES, BAYS AND GULFS 67 and to mountains in the upper part of its course. Small boats can ascend only about 200 miles from the Gulf. There is a bar at its mouth with only seven I'eet of water. Small schooners, however, can ascend to Matamoras. The author of •' Commerce of the Prairies," thus speaks of this river : — " The famous Rio del Norte is so shallow for the most part of the year, that Indian canoes can scarcely float in it. Its navigation is also obstructed by fre- quent shoals and rippling sections, for a distance of more than a thousand miles below Santa Fe. Notwithstanding the numerous tributary streams which would be supposed to pour their contents into the Rio del Norte, very few reach their destination before they are completely exhausted. The most considerable, Rw Puerco, although at least a thousand miles in length, is dry at its mouth for a portion of the year. It is, then, no wonder that this ' Great River of the North ' decreases in volume of water as it descends. In fact, above the region of tide- water, it is almost everywhere fordable during most of the year. Its banks are generally very low, and yet, owing to the disproportionate width of the chan- nel, (which is generally 350 yards,) it is not subject to inundations. Its only rises are those of the annual freshets, caused by the melting of the snows in the mountains." Rio Sacramento. This river empties into the Bay of San Francisco, in Upper California. One of its principal branches rises in the Sierra Nevada, about 300 miles N. E. from the Bay ; another large branch has its source in the same range, about 200 miles N. of the Bay. The Colorado. This river empties into the Gulf of California. It is made up of several small ones. It is a little above 600 miles in length. It receives the appellation of Colorado or coloured river, from its waters being coloured by the rains falling on a soil of red clay, through which it passes. It is a deep and copious stream, capable of being navigated by square-rigged vessels, for but about 30 miles Through out its whole course, its banks are said to be entirely destitute of timber ; and it is doubtless true that for 300 miles there is not a tree growing near it of ten inches in diameter. Rio Grande — called also the Rio Santiago. This is one of the most considerable rivers in Mexico. It rises to the east of the volcano of Toluca, and in the first part of its course is called Rio Lerena. It passes through the lake of Chapala, and pursues a rapid course to the Pacific, forming an Estuary at its mouth in which there are several islands ; on its south- ern side is the well known port of San Bias. The whole length of the river is lising 500 miles. Rio Panuco. This river may be considered as rising in the lake of Zumpaugo, adjacent to the city of Mexico. In its upper course it is so very swift, and so frequently in- terrupted by shoals and rapids, that it is said to be navigable for boats only in a few places. In the upper part it is called Tula. It becomes navigable, however about 170 miles from its mouth. Ten miles lower down it is joined by the Rio Lamoin, which flows from the west, and is then called the Rio Panuco. Vessels drawing not more than twelve feet of water may go up to Panuco, eighty milet (.g CIVIL DIVISIONS CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. .^ Tt pnters the Gulf of Mexico at Tampico, after a winding from ^^%^^X^^-^^\XT The port of Tampico is formed by its mouth, but is course of about 4lK^m>le.-^ Generally not more than twelve feet of water. "T^o'^r r'^rrSlexicolre noLf much importance. None of them are navigable for any considerable distance. and from 12 to IS miles wide. BAYS AND GTILFS. The chief Bavs or Gulfs are .hose of Tehuan.epec and .he •» J M-^^'ff^ ,f California. The first lies on .he Pac'fi'=, " 6^- N. la., a d .s U. '^ 'E.'ofn. o°f CaUfornia and .he ™ou.h of .he El Rnso o^^^^^^^^^ 5»:ir.1™:iaolf;:ntr.h™^\T' 'et:d1.'i.don. e.ceeds 60 mile- The printed maps of this Gulf are all sadly erroneous. Gulf of Mexico. This Gulf extends between the 13th and 30th parallels of north latitude and ihis l^ult ^^}^''^l"^' , somewhat elongated from east to west. In the s nearly o a ^\rc"^ar form bu ^omewha ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ -^ ^^ ^^out 930. latter direction It IS ll^f Jf ^^^^^^^^^ i,,,Ua of Yucatan and Florida, It opens m a S. E. ^^^^T^' ^^^^^^^^^ Sable Avhich are about 465 miles distant or between the Capes of ^a^^che a d ba ^^^^^ channels; f.om each o^e. J^-^l^^ticatfng^^ of'the Antilles, and the other ^thTVEwUkleirnZ by means of the straits of the Bahamas or Flor- Hn Lfh f om Ae mouth o the Rio del Norte round about to the mouth of Ida. bou h irom me muuiu ^^^ present a single l'^lt^Z'^:rZ:"^ of the £ulf, the whids blow regu- Tarfy from tlfc N. E.. bSt they vary considerably on approaching the shore. CHAPTER III. CIVIL DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. The territory of Mexico is made up of nineteen states, and the territories oi New Mexico, California, Colima and Tlascala. CIVIL DIV SIGNS, CITIES TOWNS, KTC. 69. I. — Yucatan.^ This is the most easterly state of Mexico. The isthmus which connects it with the continent of North America, is but 120 miles wide. Its population is about 500,000. The soil is very fertile, and when under proper cultivation, produces great crops of cotton, indigo, tobacco, pepper, sugar cane, Indian corn, and other kinds of grain. The scarcity of water in the central parts ot the state renders the crops variable ; and years occur in which the poorer classes are driven to seek subsistence on roots. Cattle, fowls and bees are very nume- rous; wax and honey plentiful; but there are no mines. The forests abound with wild beasts. The principal article of commerce is logwood. Merida, the capital, is about twenty-four miles from the sea, on an and plain. Ir carries on some commerce in agricultural produce, by means of tiie small harbour of Sisal, which has but little depth of water. Population, 32,000. Campeche, on the bay of the same name, has a harbour, but which is not safe. It exports a considerable quantity of wax and Campeche wood. Popula- tion, 19,000. 11. — Tabasco. The State of Tobasco extends from the Rio Pacaitun to the Rio Huasacualco, more than 200 miles atong the shore, and about 50 or 60 miles inland. The surface is level, and mostly subject to inundations. , r i, x.- Victoria, or Tabasco, the capital, is built on an island at the mouth of the Kio Tabasco. It has a harbour, and carries on some trade in the prpduce of the coun- try. The population is 4000. III. — Chiapa. The State of Chiapa, until the year 1825, belonged to Guatemala ; in that year it joined the confederation of the States of Mexico. Chiapa is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by Tabasco. The population consists principally of Indians, who speak five different languages. Ciudad de las Casas (formerly Ciudad Real,) the capital, is situated in a ier tile valley : it has a university, and 3S00 inhabitants. At the north-eastern angle of this state, near the boundary of Yucatan and Tabasco, in a thick forest, are ruins, apparently those of a large city. The character of the building, as well as of the ornaments, differs greatly from that of all other ancient edifices in America. These remains are called the rums of Palenque, from a neighbouring village of that name. It was here that Messrs. Stephens and Cathervvood made most of their ingenious researches. IV. — Oaxaca. The State of Oaxaca comprehends the southern portion of the isthmus of Tehuantepec and the table-land of Mixtecapan : it extends along the Pacific, with a coast line of more than 360 miles. It is one of the best cultivated and most populous parts of Mexico, and produces, in addition to cochineal, great quantities of indigo and cotton. Silk is got from a species of wild silk-worm. _ Oaxaca, the capital, situated in a fertile valley, 4,800 feet above the sea, is well built, and contains some fine squares and public edifices ; it has also an aqueduct. • For an account of the Political revolution that has lately occurred in Yucatan, see Ap- pendix. 70 IVIL DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. Tehuanlepec, situated at the mouth of the Rio Chimalapa, has a harbour, the entrance of which is very dangerous, and not deep enough for large vessels. The population is 7,000 persons. There are remains of ancient buildings in •everal parts of this state. V. — Vera Cruz. The State of Vera Cruz comprehends a small portion of the isthmus of Tehu- antepec, and the greater part of the plain of Cuellachllan, with the eastern declivity of the table-land of Anahuac ; a small portion of the table-land, and also the mountains of Orizava and Cofre de Perote belong to it. Vera Cruz is the principal port in Mexico. It lies on a low sandy shore, inter- sected with marshes which extend for miles along the coast. The port is, prop- erly speaking, an open road-stead, protected only by a shoal, and is very dan- gerous in winter, when the north winds blow. It is very small, and can contain but about 30 vessels. The little island of San Juan de Ulloa, which is entirely covered with the fortress, is some five or ?ix hundred yards from the mole or quay at Vera Cruz, between which points a., ihe commercial shipping enters. A very narrow chan- nel atfords the only passage for vessels of war, which must of necessity pass immediately under the guns of the fort. The fortress of San Juan de Ulloa has always been looked upon as one of the strongest in the world. When it was blown up, in 1839, by the French, the armament was in a most wretched condi- tion, and as to scientific engineers and artillerists, there were none. Even then it would have been no holiday affair had it not been for the accidental explosion of the magazine. But Vera Cruz is much more eflfectually protected than by all her fortifica- tions, by the northers and oomito (yellow fever.) The former have been the terror of all seamen since the discovery of the country. The latter prevails on all the Atlantic coast of Mexico during the whole year, and with the greatest malignancy for two thirds of the year ; and it so happens that the few months of comparative exemption from the ravages of the yellow fever, are precisely those when the northers prevail with the most destructive violence. To illus- trate the ferocity of these northers, we quote the following incident from a recent traveller. " Soon after my arrival," says he, " I gave to a servant some clothing to be washed ; but he soon returned with my bundle and informed me that the washer-woman refused to take the clothes unless I would release her from all responsibility if a norther should carry them away : whereupon assuming the hazard, on the following day, upon short notice, the winds came and scattered my clothing like kites in the air, and I never saw it more." The inhabitants, on the first coming of the storm, are compelled immediately to tightly bar their doors and windows, stopping up the key-holes and every other crevice, to pre- vent light articles in the house from being disturbed, as also their eyes from being put out by the sand. The health of Vera Cruz is perhaps worse than that of any other place on the habitable globe, and it is calculated that one-fifth of its inhabitants annually per- ish. The sickness of Vera Cruz is attributed to the increased intensity of the sun's heat, reflected from the high white sand-hills that overlook the town, as also from the poisonous vapour which arises from the stagnant waters of tha lakes and swamps which surround the city. The venomous insects that infest that hot region, aid likewise in no small degree, by never leaving the inhabitants to repose, and constantly causing feverish excitement and irritation to promote disease. The city of Vera Cruz is enclosed by a continued wall of coral-stone and brick. The streets are paved with stone shipped from Quincy, Mass. Th CIVIL DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC 71 town is laid off in squares, and the houses are a solid mass of buildings covering the whole squares. Many of the houses are large, some three stories high, built in the old Spanish or Moorish styles, and generally enclosing a square court with covered galleries. They have flat roofs, glass windows, and are weU adapted to the climate. The whole town, as well as the castle, is built of coral, and the lime that forms the cement, is of the same material. There is one lolerablv Rood square, of which the government-house forms one side and the principal church the Other. The foot-paths are frequently under piazzas, a great accommodation to travellers, protecting them from the sultry heat of the sun and the heavy rains, which descend in torrents during the wet season. Sixteen cupolas ire counted from the sea, but only six churches are now in use. Indeed, nearly all the churches, nunneries and monasteries have been abandoned since the place has been lost to the Spaniards. Nothing is more repulsive to strangers accus- tomed to the bustle of American cities, than the death-like appearance of the place Of any other city it would be a disgrace to say the grass grows m the Streets, but here it would be considered a compliment, for no vegetation is to be observed even for miles around, and fish is the only article of provision not brought from a distance. The only water fit to drink is what falls from the clouds, and is preserved in tanks. Living at the hotels is very expensive. Milk is scarcely to be had, as not a cow is kept within many miles, and what perhaps is peculiar to Vera Cruz, there is not a garden even near it. Society here is ex- tremelv confined, and morality at a very low ebb. Few of the European merchants are married. The streets are filled with carrion vultures, and act as scavengers for the place. The population does not exceed 6,500. It was here that Cortes landed to commence his ever-memorable expedition, although this is not the town which he founded of that name, which was about six miles distant. Xalafa, or Jalapa, the capital of the state, is situated on the steep declivity of the table-land, about 4,340 feet above the level of the sea. It is a pleasant town, and the depot between Vera Cruz and Mexico. An annual fair is held here, which is much frequented. It contains eight churches, a good school for draw- inff, and 13,000 inhabitants. ^ i. .i -u Perote, situated on the edge of the table-land, 8,300 feet above the sea, has a ooDulation of 10,000. It contains one of the four castles or fortresses erected by the Spanish government in Mexico. A portion of the prisoners taken in the recent Santa Fe expedition, were sent to tks place. Alvarado, at the mouth of the Rio Alvarado, has a small harbour, some little trade, and 1,600 inhabitants. Yl.—Puebla. The State of Puebla comprehends a large portion of the table-land of Tlascala, and of its southern declivity, having only a low and comparatively narrow tract along the coast of the Pacific, about 65 miles long. La Puebla de los Angelos, the capital, contams between 60 000 and 70,000 inhabitants. It is well built, with straight and wide streets, and contains many fine houses. The cathedral, which stands in a large square, is a magnihcent edifice, and is rich in gold and silver ornaments. Yll.— Tlascala. The territory of Tlascala is enclosed by the state of Puebla. It contains a population of Indians, and of mixed races which, even under the Spanish dominion, enjoyed several privileges which had been granted to them for having aided the Spaniards in the conquest of Me^cico under Cortes. Their privileges 72 CIVIL DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. and independence have been confirmed by the republican government. Th« inhabitants are chiefly occupied with agriculture. Tlascala, or Tlaxcallan, the capital, contains a population of 4,000 persons The walls were erected long before the arrival of the Europeans. VIII.— Mexico. The State of Mexico lies between 16 d. 34 m. and 20 d. 10 m. N. lat. The best cultivated portion is the table-land, where wheat and the fruits of Europe are grown, as well as the maguey and the Indian corn. The southern districts are very thinly peopled. In these fertile valleys the tropical productions succeed. Tezcuco, the capital, is situated on the plain of Tenochtitlan, on the east side of the lake of Tezcuco, and about thirty milss from Mexico. It has some man- ufactures of cotton, and about 5,000 inhabitants. Acapulco is the sea-port of Mexico on the Pacific. It was the seat of the Spanish trade with the Phillipine Isles, and the store-house of immense wealth. Its port is a basin cut from the solid rock, and is capable of receiving the largest vessels. It is very hot and unhealthy, and contains about 4000 inhabitants, chiefly negroes. IX. — The Federal District. The Federal District is surrounded by the State of Mexico, and comprehends only the environs of the metropolis, in the centre of the plain or valley of Te- nochtitlan. The Valley of Mexico. Midway across the continent, somewhat nearer the Pacific than the Atlantic, at an elevation of nearly 7800 feet, is the celebrated valley of Mexico. It is of an oval form, about 120 miles in circumference, and is encompassed by a tower- ing rampart of porphyritic rocks, which nature seems to have provided, though inefTectually, to protect it from invasion. The appearance of the valley is that of an oval basin surrounded on all sides with mountains of every degtt-e of eleva- tion, and of every variety of appearance, from a little rugged promontory to Pococatopetl, as some say, the highest mountain in Mexico, and even the highest upon the continent, covered with perpetual snow, 10,400 feet higher than the city itself. No less than five lakes spread over the valley, occupying at least one-tenth of its surface. " Thus at one view," remarks a late writer, " bursts upon the astonished traveller, village, city, lakes, plains, and mountains, alto- gether forming a tout ensemble of the most imposing character. I could only admire the extensive fields spread out before rhe, for the valley of Mexico is justly renowned for its fertility. Thus, while I might upon the right hand be attracted by an extensive meadow appropriated for grazing, on the left, I would be greeted by ihe pleasing prospect of miles in extent, and as far as the eye could reach, of lands cultivated alone in maize or Indian corn. And while now I would arrive at verdant nooks, with acres of land cultivated in chili or red pepper — of which some individuals, from a single crop of chili alone, realize the immense sum of $50,000, — and then I would come upon the green and flowery fields, cultivated to feed the cochineal insect." " The view of the valley of Mexico is certainly beautiful and grand, and but for the painful absence of timber, and the vast sterility of much of its territory, might perhaps be the most magnificent sight anywhere to behold upon the face of the globe. As I progressed, I was soon brought in bold view by my close contact with the lake region. One of these lakes, near the city of Mexico, I was in CIVIL DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. ^o former, was thirty miles in length, and has the appearance of a bay or port to the ?reat city. There is bn the border of the lake hot springs the waters of which are used for bathing purposes. As the diligencia entered on the great cause- way which separates Lake Cholco from Xochicalo, a passenger informed me that this bridge was not only made by the Aztecs, but was the same i^^^^ical track which Cortes and his travellers passed on the 8th of November, 1519, the day on which they first set foot in the city of Mexico." Description of the City. The city of Mexico is said to be the finest built city on the American conti- nent In the principal streets the houses are all constructed on the strictest ar- chitectural rules. The first buildings were erected by Cortes who did every thino- well, from writing a couplet to conquering an empire. Many pt the fanest buildings in Mexico are still owned by his descendants. The public square is said to be unsurpassed by any in the world; it contains some twelve or fifteen acres paved with stone. The Cathedral covers one entire side, the Palace an- other ; the western side is occupied by a row of very high and substantial houses, the second stories of which project into the street the width of the pavement; the lower stories are occupied by the principal retail merchants of the city." The most of these houses were built by Cortes, who, with his characteristic sagacity, and an avarice which equally characterized him in the latter part of his life, selected the best portion of the city for himself. _ _ ;. The President's Palace, formerly the palace of the viceroys, is an immense building of three stories high, about five hundred feet in length, and three hun- dred and fifty wide ; it stands on the site of the palace of Montezuma, which^ was destroyed by Cortes. It is difficult to conceive of so much stone and mor- tar beincr put together in a less tasteful and imposing shape. It has much more the appearance of a cotton factory or a penitentiary, than what it really is. Only a very small, part of this palace is appropriated to the residence of the President. All the pubUc offices are here, including heads of the ditierent de- partments, ministers of justice, treasury, &c. The halls of the deputies and ot the Senate, are in the same building, and also that of the botanic garden. The Cathedral, which occupies the site of the great idol temple of Montezuma, is five hundred feet long by four hundred and twenty wide. : Like all the other churches in Mexico, it is built in the gothic style. The walls, of several teg in thickness, are made of unhewn stone and lime. , . ,3 ■ The streets of Mexico are uncommonly wide, much more so than is neces- sary, considering that they are not obstructed, as in our city, by drays and wa^ (Tons. The side-walks are uncommonly narrow. The streets are all paved with round stones ; the side-walks with very rough flat ones. The houses on the principal streets are all two and three stories high. The walls are built ot rough stones, of all shapes and sizes, and large quantities of lime mortar, ihe streets cross each other at right angles, dividing the whole city into squares Each one of these squares is called a street, and has a separate name. Instead of designating the street in its whole extent by one name, each side of every square'^has a different name, and names which sound to Protestant ears very mu6h like a violation of the third article of the decalogue, such as the street^ of Jesus, and the street of the Holy Ghost. In most of these streets there is a church, which gives name to the street on which it stands. In many instances these churches and convents cover the whole square, not with separate build- ings, but one single edifice, with the usual court or open space in the centre- There is not, I believe, a house in the city without this court, of greater or less dimensions, in proportion to the size of the building. There is only one door on the lower story, aud that high enough for a coach to pass through. It opens 74 CIVIL DIV SIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC into the court through which you pass to the steps leading to the upper story where alone every body lives, except the lowest classes. In all the establish- ments of the better classes, the basement story is only occupied by the servants, and as lumber rooms, and what appears very strange, as stables. There is not in the whole city such a separate building as a stable. " In visiting Count Cer tuna," says Mr. Thompson, " whose whole establishment is altogether princi^ly, I fourkl this court on the ground floor used as a stable, and passed through towh of horses and carriages, to make my way to the most spacious halls, filled with fine paintings of the great masters, and furnished throughout in a style altogeth- er gorgeous." In some of the large private buildings, thirty and forty different families reside ; each one having rented one or two rooms, all entering at the only outside door into the court, which is the common property of all, and from which each one has an entrance into his own rooms on the ground floor or the gallery above, which runs all around the building. The area of Mexico does not exceed two miles in length and a mile and a half in width, a very small space to be occupied by a population of nearly 200,000. But it is not at all surprising, when you see thirty or forty families all huddled away in one house, and consider what a large number sleep in the open air in that delightful cli- mate. How pure must be the atmosphere when Mexico is so remarkably healthy, notwithstanding such a crowded and filthy mode of living, and with a tropical sun shining upon the moist surface of the whole valley ! It is a little curious, that whilst the buildings and population of Mexico are thus crowded into so small a space, and that rents are three times as high as in New-York, yet all around the city there is a vacant ground, and as dry as the city itself, which may' be had almost for the taking. " I was riding out with a friend one evening," says Mr. Thompson, " when he showed me a square con- taining between five or six acres, just on the outskirts of the city, and not more than half a mile from the public sqaare, which he had just purchased for four hundred dollars !" The city is partly supplied with provisions and vegetables by small boats, which bring them over the Lake of Tezcuco ; but as the lake is very shallow in January and February, the supply is then generally stopped, and the city de- pends, especially for vegetables, on the supply by the canal of Iztapalapan, which leads from the Lake of Xochimilco to the town. This canal is narrow, but always covered with small canoes loaded with fruits and vegetables : it passes through the chinampas, or floating gardens, which, in their present state, are long nar- row strips of ground, redeemed from the surrounding swamp, and intersected by small canals. They are well cultivated, abound in fine vegetables, and their edges are planted with poplars. It is stated that they originally consisted of wooden rafts, covered with earth, and floated about in the lake when it was full of water, whence their name is derived. At present they are stationary, but it is said that there are still some floating gardens in the Lake Xochimilco. The Halls of t/ie Moniezumas. Montezuma IT. ascended the Mexican throne A. D. 1502, at the age of 23, before Mexico had been discovered by Europeans. He died 30th June, 1520, In the 42d year of his age, of wounds inflicted by the Spanish discoverers, whora he had invited to his royal palace. Historians agree in admiring his character. On ascending the throne, not content with the spacious residence of his father he erected another, much more magnificent. So vast was this great structure, that, as one historian informs us, the space covered by its terraced roof, might have afforded ample room for thirty knights to run their courses in a regular toumay. His father's palace, although not so high, was so extensive that the visitors were too much fatigued in wandering through the apartments ever to CIVIL DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. see the whole of them. The palaces were huilt of red-stone, ornamented witV marble, the arms of the Montezuma family (an eagle bearing a tiger in his talons)\ being sculptured over the main entrance. Crystal fountains, fed by great reser- voirs" on the neighbouring hills, played in the vast halls and gardens, and sup- pHed water in hundreds of marble baths in the interior of the palaces. Crowds of nobles and military chieftains were continually sauntering through the halls, or loitering away their hours in attendance on the court. Rich carvings in wood adorned the ceilings, beautiful mats of palm-leaf covered the floors. The walls were hung with cotton richly stained, the skins of wild animals, or gorgeous draperies of feather-work, wrought in imitation of birds, insects, and flowers, in o-lowing radiance of colours. Clouds of incense from golden censers diffused intoxicating odours through splendid apartments, occupied by nine hundred and eighty wives and 5,000 slaves of Montezuma. This building was totally destroyed by Cortes, and the President's Palace now stands on its site. X. — Queretaro. The State of Queretaro, lying between 20 d. and 22 d. N. lat., comprehends a great part of the table-land of Queretaro, which, within the state, is about 6,300 feet above the level of the sea. It is comparatively populous and fertile, producing all the grains and fruits of Mexico. Queretaro, the capital, is distinguished by its fine buildings and its aqueduct. The population amounts to about 40,000, of which number one third are Indians XT. — Guanaxuato. The State of Guanaxuato extends over a portion of the table-land of Quere- taro, which, within its limits, has an elevation of about 6000 feet. It is the smallest of the Mexican states, but the most populous, and probably also the richest. Guanaxuato, the capital, is situated in a ravine in the midst of the mines, 7,294 feet above the sea. It contains a mint and many fine buildings. XII. — Michoacan. The State of Michoacan was formerly the intendencia of Valladolid ; but this name was changed at the time of the union of the Mexican states, into that of an ancient Indian kingdom, which existed here before the Spanish conquest. Vailadolicl, at present called Morelia, in honour of the Mexican general More- los, is the capital. It is situated in a plain 6,434 feet above the sea ; and con- tains 18,000 inhabitants. Some of the public buildings are very good ; among others the college, which is esteemed one of the best in Mexico : the cathedral is a magnificent edifice, and the acqueduct, by which the town is supplied with good spring-water, is handsomer than that of Mexico, and built of stone. , XIII. — Colima. The territory of Colima is situated on the shores of the Pacific, where it oc- cupies a coast line of about 100 miles. Its surface, properly speaking, is not mountainous, but a plain, on which there are several high hills and ihe elevated volcano of Colima. The climate is consequently hot ; and, as the soil is fertile, it yields many tropical products, particularly cotton of excellent quality. Nearly all the inhabitants are Indians, who, at their own request, have a gov 'J^^ CIVIL DIVISIONS, CITIKS, TOWNS, ETC. riunent independent of that of the state of Xulisco, to which they formerly be- longed. Coliuia, the capital, is situated at the foot of the volcano of the same name; in a very fertile plain. XIV. — Jalisco or Xalisco. The State of Jalisco or Xalisco was formerly the province of Guadalaxara. The low country north of the river Santiago, consists of extensive plains, and contains very few hills. The countries along the shores of the Pacific are more covered with forests than any other part of Mexico. Guadalaxara, the second city in Mexico, is situated in a fertile plairi not far from the banks of the Rio Santiago, below the great cataracts. It contains about 60,000 inhabitants. It has a fine cathedral, many churches and convents ; and the streets are lined by colonnades. The commerce of Guadalaxara with the adjacent countries and the port of San Bias, is considerable. San Bias, or San Blasio, is a good harbour at the mouth of the Rio Santiago, oil a rock, surrounded by low marshes, which render the climate very unhealthy. During the rains it is almost entirely abandoned by the inhabitants ; who, at other times, amount to about 3,000 in number. Vessels are built here ; and much salt is collected in the neighbourhood. The trade is considerable, but has lately much decteased. XV. — Zacatecas. The State of Zacatecas comprehends the northern portion of the table-land of Queretaro, and the southern part of the plain of Chihuahua ; the boundary line between them running some miles north of the town of Zacatecas, and thence to Sombrerete. Both portions have a very arid soil, but the table-land of Quere- taro contains many fertile districts. Zacatecas, the capital, stands in a ravine between high hills, all of which con- tain veins of silver. Its churches are large buildings, the stone work of which is richly decorated. The number of inhabitants is estimated at more than 30,000. A great portion of the jalap exported from Mexico is collected in the neighbouring hills and valleys. XVI. — San Luis Potosi. The State of San Liiis Potosi comprehends the southern portion of the plain of Chihuahua, and its declivity towards the gulf of Mexico and the plain of Monterey. The surface is in many places uneven and rugged, and little culti- vated. The numerous mines produce silver, copper, tin, and brimstone. San Luis Potosi, the capital, is situated in a pleasant valley near the sources of the river Tamoin, a branch of the Rio Panuco. It contains 16,000 inhabi- tants, who carry on some trade. XVII. — Durango. The State of Durango occupies the highest and widest part of ^he Sierra Madre, and also a considerable portion of the plain of Chihuahua. The eastern declivity of the Sierra Madre is the more fertile district, and it is better cultivated and more populous than the plain, which is nearly a desert, except along the courses of the rivers. Durango, at present called La Ciudad Victoria, is a regularly built town, situ- ated on a plain more than 6,848 feet above the sea. In winter the thermometer 77 CTIJ. DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWKS, ETC. descends many degrees bcbw the f-ezing po,£ l^^^^^^^-^jtl to 22,000, are industrious, and are partly occup^d in *e manuka ^^ ^^^ rn:l:t\ntJrrNZLus^X;?:Sr.rgSfronr.he plain to the a mint m the town, market of Durango XYllL— New Leon. ThP State of New Leon (Nuevo Leon) extends over a large P^^^°^ ^'?y^^"' ^f^^L^TeVan^the nUain ^^^ ^:::2:\r^^^^^^^ The plain is very httlek^^^^^^^ ^^,.,.^^ .^ ^^^, ,,,, ,, and there intersec ed by hills ot moaer j^ ^^tant mines in the moun- ^!^^Z^:t:^ llJ^rie^sf a ieVreon..ep,ains. The -c:re;:rca^^^^^^^^^^^ - --- - --- ^'= - portauce from the neighbourhood of the mines. XIX. — Tamauhpas. The State of Tamaulipas extends along the coast of lhe_ gulf of Mexico from r '° ^'^TttiU bn.Iewfh : tanTll'^te Wand it is of conside^- S: toility and P^^?°<=overed with foresL Other portions are praine land without trees. t • •, .^^ «n « npninsula or neck of land about four Tampico de Tamauhpas is -^-f^r^pPX^on one side, and the Laguna hundred yards wide, formed by ^« ^^J^ ^^^^^ f^,^ ,he sea. At the mouth del Barpintero on he other. It is f ^o^t "^^ ^'^''% ^^^^^ or four old guns, more of this river there is an ^^«^f ^^^.^^^j/X^'X/ hoge a^^^^ whoSi they are nertretrltt^mtfhTthe^S^^^^^^^^^ ^-ing from trttnil1eerwlr,acc^^^^^^ Tampico is susceptib e « ^emg made a very strong mUUryp ^^j^ moderate expense, by ^^P^^ ^"^^t town and% renTheni^^^ the breast-work the neck of land above and b^low the town and stren tne ^^ ^^^ by bastions at either extremity of the line ^^^^^^.^^^^^f j;,^, the neck a canal sJuth-eastern side, or nearest the «^^'J^;^\fl^4^7'|ht3 could readily be has been cut, which unites the „^7J^^^^ ^^^f ^JXt side On the upper side or made to ^f-j'f,^^:[^l\J^^^^^^^ Ito some remarka&'y fine sites rSn!: of thaT^^^^^^^^^ .-ly Woach that could be used by an enemy not having comniand of the river. ^^ ^^^^^^ 4r '^ iMbuKft^Sghtom tt hifew the town on the oppo- an effective point blank .hot, tnoug south-eastern pajt :;r.£tin=itV;pote Pr an extensive salt-»arsh and la.e prevent any approach of an enemy's force. 78 CIVIL DIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. In its present state of defence, Tainpico could make little or no resistance against a force of two thousand men, whilst the same number as a garrison could — when the defensive works above mentioned were completed — by having the command of the river, hold it against any force that could be brought against it. Nuevo Santauder, with a population of 3,000, is situated on the banks of the Rio Swntander, about thirty miles from the sea. The harbour is at Soto la Ma- rina, further down the river, which has only from six to seven feet water on the bar at its mouth. Matamoras, on the Rio Grande del Norte, has a harbour for small vessels, and is a new and thriving commercial town. Population, 10,000. XX. — CohahuUa. The State of Cohahuila is between Nuevo Leon and Chihuahua, entirely on the plain of Chihuahua. The southern distric's have a level surface, interrupted by a few hills of moderate elevation, which occur at great distance from each other. The soil is very arid, and the vegetation scanty. These southern dis- tricts serve only as a pasture-ground for sheep, and are nowhere cultivated to any extent. The northern districts surrounding the river Sabinos, an affluent of the Rio del Norte, have a hilly and broken surface ; the hills seem to form ranges, running parallel to the Rio del Norte, and connecting the Bolson de Mapimi with the mountains north of Monterey. This tract appears to contain a large portion of fertile and cullivalable land. There are some silver mines near Santa Rosa. Texas, or the country between the Rio del Norte and the Sabine river, formerly belonged to this State. Horses, mules, and wool are exported to the United States. Saltillo, the late capital, is situated at the southern extremity of the State, on an arid plain. The only carriage-road by which the plain of Chihuahua can be reached from the shores of the gulf of Mexico, passes through this place. It contains about 12,000 inhabitants, and has several good streets communicating at right angles with the Plaza, in the centre of which is a large reservoir, which supplies the town with water. Monclova, the present capital, with 3,600 inhabitants, has some trade with the adjacent countries. XXI. — Chihuahua. The State of Chihuahua comprehends a large portion of the plain of Chihua- hua, and likewise the mountain-ridge of the Sierra Madre, between 26 d. N. lat. and its northern extremity. The plain is not fertile, but it ajffords spacious sheep-walks, and wool is the staple article of the State. The pastures are cov- ered with coarse grass ; wheat, Indian corn, and cotton are raised on the lands along the rivers which are irrigated. The Sierra Madre abounds in silver, and contains many rich mines, such as Parral, Batopilas, Cosiquiriachi. Other mines, also said to be rich, have lately been opened in the mountainous tract •which is called the Bolson of Mapimi, and which occupies the eastern districts contiguous to the State of Cohahuila. The northern district of the State and part of the Bolson de Mapimi also are still occupied by Indians, among whom the Camanches are excellent horsemen, and much dreaded by the white settlers. Chihuahua, the capital, stands in an arid plain, on the banks of a small rivulet which falls into the Rio Conchos, about 700 miles from the city of Mexico. The houses are well built, and the streets regular. The cathedral is a very large edifice. A good aqueduct brings the water of a river, which is about eight milef distant, to the town, and is so judiciously contrived that even the highest parts of the city are supplied. The ore procured from the mines to the west, in the CIVIL UIVISIONS, CITIES, TOWNS, ETC. 79 Sierra Madre, is brought to Chihuahua, where the metal is extracted. The population amounts to 25,000 inhabitants. XXII. — New Mexico. The province of New Mexico, of which Santa Fe is the capital, was one of the iirst establishments of the Spaniards in the Mexican portion of America. By some tradition, it is related that a small band of adventurers proceeded thus far north shortly after the capture of the city of Mexico. One of the early Spanish historians, writing of the events of 1550, mentions New Mexico as a known province, though as yet only inhabited by aborigines. But the only paper found in the archives of Santa Fe, which gives any clue to its first settlement, bears date September 21, 1595. This is a petition to estab- lish a colony on the Rio del Norte, which we infer was carried into effect during the following spring. The territory of New Mexico, or of Santa Fe, is situated in the north, bound- ing on the unsettled territory of the United States. It comprehends only the valley of the Rio del Norte, from 32 d. N. lat. to its source. It contains only two fertile tracts along the banks of the river, and these are separated by a des- ert, which spreads out 170 or 180 miles between 32 d. 30 m. and 35 d. N. lat» The northern and larger of these extends above 150 miles to the north of 35 d. N. lat., and the climate is very cold : it produces wheat and corn and the fruits of northern Europe ; it affords a great abundance of pasture for cattle and horses. This portion is the district of Santa Fe. The southern tract of fertile land is of very moderate extent, lying between 32 d. and 32 d. 30 m. N. lat.: it is called the district of the Paso del Norte. It abounds in excellent fruit, especially grapes, which, as well as the wine made of them, are in high repute all over Mexico. Wheat and maize also are grown extensively. The inhabitants are whites, but on the mountains and deserts, which extend on both sides of the valley, there are several independent Indian tribes, which are at enmity with the settlers. Santa Fe, the capital, is a sinall tow^n, with 3,600 inhabitants. This is the first place that the caravans from St. Louis, in Missouri, come to after travers- ing the plains on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains. It has of late years become a great mart of trade, which is carried on by the caravans of mules and horse waggons loaded with goods of various kinds from the United States. It is 1,020 miles west of New Orleans, and 1,131 miles north of the city of Mexico. Albuquerque is a thriving town. Paso del Norte, the only town in the southern district, contains about 5,000 inhabitants. XXIII. — Occidente. The State of Occidente, or of Cinaloa and Sonora united, comprehends the low plain which extends, along the Pacific, from 23 deg. north latitude north- ward to the banks of the Rio del Fuerte, and, in addition, the whole of the hilly region which lies north of it. The former once constituted the province of Cin- aloa, and the latter that of Sonora. The country along the coast is generally low and flat, with a sandy soil, which, however, yields good crops of corn and wheat when it can be irrigated. The principal products in the interior districts are wheat, Indian corn, and sugar ; cochineal is collected in small quantities. The mountains contain abundance of gold and copper. South of the Rio del Fuerte, the population chiefly consists of whites, the number of Indians being inconsiderable : but to the north of the river the whites form only a small part of the population, the Indians being as fifteen to one of the white inhabitants. The most numerous tribes are the Yaquis, the Mayos, Opatas, and the Apaches 80 CLIMATK — SOIL VEGETABLE PRODTTCTIONS ANIMALS. They inhabit towns and villages of their own, separate from the whites, and n a governed by their own magistrates. Villa del Fuerte, the capital, situated on the banks of the Rio del Fuerte, con- tains about 4,000 inhabitants. Guaymas, (28 d. north latitude) is the best harbour in Mexico, being protected on all sides by high hills, and capable of sheltering a large number of vessels. The water abreast of the pier is about five fathoms deep, and there are still deeper soundings farther ofT. The climate is healthy. The population is upwards of •^.000. CHAPTER IV. CLIMATE — SOIL VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS — ANIMALS. CLIMATE. j«F climate were to be regulated by the mere circumstance of latitude, all the southern portion of Mexico would feel the heat of the torrid zone ; whilst the internal provinces — the Californias and Texas, would enjoy a moderate tempe- rature. But this is not the case. Climate is affected by a variety of causes, and is regulated more by elevation than by latitude. Of this truth Mexico affords a striking exemplification. The whole of the coasts possess a warm climate, adapted for West Indian productions ; the temperature of the plains, elevated not more than 984 feet above the level of the sea, is about 77 deg. Fahrenheit. These regions are denominated tierras ccdientes, and produce in abundance sugar, indigo, cotton, and bannanas. On the declivity of the table-land of Mexico,' at an elevation of about 4000 feet, there reigns a perpetual soft spring temperature, which never varies more than four or five degrees Fahrenheit. The extremes of heat and cold are thus equally unknown. This region is denominated the " temperate regions," where the mean heat for the whole year is from 68 to 70 degrees. The third temperature is that of the table-land of Anahuac, or elevated plains of Mexico, and denominated the "cold regions." This elevated tract, compre- hending upwards of 176,000 square miles within the tropic of cancer, and whose altitude is more than 709 feet, has a mean temperature of 62 degrees. In the city of Mexico the thermometer has been known to fall several degrees below the freezing point ; but this is a very rare occurrence, and the winters are usu- ally as mild as at Naples. The climate of what are denominated the internal provinces, especially that of New Mexico, differs essentially from that of the capital. Here severe win- ters succeed warm summers. The reason of this is plain. New Mexico is a long and not very wide valley, bounded on all sides except the south, by ranges of great and lofty mountains, covered with eternal snows, especially to the north. of Santa Fe. In the peninsula of California the climate is generally sultry and the sky for months in the year cloudless, except a line of mist about the western horizon at evening, giving the most brilliant sunsets conceivable. The remainder of the year, the winter season, is ramy and oftentimes tempestuous, with winds that frequently assume the character of terrible tornadoes. Upper California has a most delightful climate. A dry and rainy season — continual breezes in the winter from the S. W., and in the summer from the N. W., with only .30 d variation of climate during the twelve months. CLIMATE — SOIL — ^VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS — ANIMALS. 81 SOIL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. Were the soil of Mexico watered by more frequent rains, no country cultiva- ted by human industry could exceed it ; but unfortunately, however fertile the soil, the want of water diminishes the abundance of the harvests. Only two seasons are known as far north as 28 degs., namely, the rainy and the dry season ; the former commencing in June or July, and continuing till the end of September. The farmer has seldom to complain of too great humidity, and from 24 to 28 d., the rairis are still less frequent, and of shorter duration. The droughts compel the inhabitants to have recourse to artificial irrigation. The variety of indigenous Mexican productions is immense ; indeed, there hardly exists a plant on the face of the globe which is not capable of being cul- tivated in this country. Those which are most generally cultivated may be divided into two kinds : those which serve for home consumption, and those which furnish raw materials for manufactures and comrtierce. The Baiiana. The banana is to all the inhabitants of the tropics what the variety of graiu IS to Europe, and what rice is to the inhabitants of Hindustan and China. Wherever the mean heat exceeds 75 degrees, the fruit of the banana becomes one of the most important objects of cultivation for human subsistence. Maize, or Indian Corn. Maize is the principal food of the Mexicans. When the maize harvest is poor, either from want of rain or premature frost, famine is general ; but of all the gramina sown, none is so unequal in its produce as maize. The price of maize varies from fifty cents to four dollars the hundred pounds. In a country where there are no magazines, and where the inhabitants live merely from hand to mouth, the people suffer terribly when there is a short crop of Indian corn they dien feed fin unripe fruits, berries and roots. Wheat. Of European Cerelia, wheat ho''> tJie first rank in Mexico, and was intro- duced by a negro slave of Cortes, who found three or four grains of it among the rice that was served to maintain the Spanish army. These grains were sown before the year 1530. The wheat harvests are rich in proportion to the quantity of water procured from the rivers by means of irrigating canals. In lands thus artificially cultivated, the produce of wheat is astonishing. Hum- boldt gives 25 bushels to one as the annual produce of the whole average crop of Mexico; but when irrigation is properly conducted, and the year is good, from 60 to 80 bushels for one have been frequently produced ; yet, notwith- standing this astonishing productiveness, wheat in Mexico is considerably dearer than it is in the English market. Potatoes. ■ The potatoe, though a native of Mexico, was not known there at the time of Montezuma. It is much cultivated in the highest part of the central land, and is admirably adapted for these elevated and dry regions. The Mexi- cans, like the Peruvians, preserve their potatoes for whole years by drying them in the sun. They grow to an enormous size, often to more than tweive inches in diameter. ^ S2 CLIMATE SOIL VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS ANIMALS. OtJier Vegetables. All the garden stuffs of Europe are now cultivated in Mexico in addition to vhose peculiar to the climate. Orange and citron trees flourish vigorously in the central regions; olive groves are numerous ; the cultivation of grapes is most successfully prosecuted in some districts, where large quantities of wine are made. The figs of Lower California form a considerable article of export to the other states of the Republic ; and the dates which grow there are much esteemed. Lemons pomegranates, quinces, and pine-apples, abound in Sonora, and other districts. The most important beverage of the Mexican Indians, is the juice of the Agave, a plant which is extensively cultivated there. This plant, which is scarcely five feet in height, yields a honey-like juice at the time of the effervescence of the plant. At this period, an incision is made, from which a juice exudes, which continues running for three months. This juice ferments in three or four days, and is then called pulque ; the liquor resembles cider in taste, and is esteemed an excellent and nutritive drink. The consumption of this liquor is immense. A very intoxicating brandy called mesical, is formed from the pulque. The agave shrub also supplies the place of the hemp of Asia, and the papyrus of Egypt, as all the Mexican manuscripts sent to Europe are written on paper made of the fibres of agave leaves. Sugar. The cultivation of sugar has made rapid progress in Mexico within the pre- sent century. " The possibility," says Ward, " of cultivating a sugar cane be- neath the tropics by a system of free labour, has often been canvassed ; but I know no country except Mexico where the experiment has been fairly tried upon a large scale. The plantations were all worked, in the first instance, by slaves who were purchased at from three to four hundred dollars each. The difficulty of ensuring a sufficient supply during a war with a maritime nation, and the number of slaves who perished from the sudden change of climate on the road to the coast, induced several of the great proprietors to endeavour to propagate a race of free labourers, by giving liberty to a certain number of Haves annually, and encouraging them to intermarry with the native Indians, which they soon did to a very great extent. The plan was found to be so economical, that on many of the large estates there was not a single slave in 1808. Such is the fer- tility of equinoctial Mexico, that Humboldt estimated that all the sugar con- sumed in France, say 44,140,000 pounds, might be produced on a surface of 55 square miles. As it is, the greatest part of the sugar is consumed in Mexico itself. The crop is estimated at about 50,000,000 pounds. Cotto7i. Although the soil is highly favourable to the cultivation of cotton, yet th« quantity cultivated is comparatively small. Cotton of the finest quality is culti- vated all along the coast from Acapulco to Guatamala, but two circumstances operate as obstacles to the cultivation : the want of machines, and the high price of carriage. The Eastern coast might supply the commerce of Vera Cruz with an enormous quantity of cotton, were it occupied by a people of energetic and industrious habits. The quantity exported to Europe in 1830, was less than 1,000,000 pounds. Coffee, Chocolate, ^c. The cultivation of coffee is almost unknown in Mexico, the quantity con- sumed not exceeding 500 quintals annually. The cultivation of the cocoa-tree CLIMATE SOIL VEGETABLE PKODUCTIONS ANIMALS. 83 IS now much more neglected in Mexico than at the time of its conquest. At that time the Mexicans prepared a beverage called choclatt, whence the modern term chocolate is derived. All the vanilla used in Europe, comes from Mexico by way of Vera Cruz, and is produced on a surface of a few square leagues of ground in the intendencies of Vera Cruz and Oaxaca ; the annual exports amount to about $40,000. Sarsaparilla is also produced on the same east- ern slope where the vanilla is produced. The quantities of red-pepper raised in all parts of the country is almost incredible. The Mexican would rather go without bread, than lack chili, as he calls it, v/ith his meat. Both in its green and dried state the amount consumed is incredible. When mashed and mixed with a little water, it is the universal sauce on the tables of the great, while with the poor it forms a component part of their diet. The famous medicinal purga-^ tive called Jalap, from Xalapa, in the vicinity of which it is cultivated, vege- tates at an absolute height of from 4 to 5000 feet on the whole mountainous slope. The whole annual quantity of what is exported from Vera Cruz is about 5000 pounds, or more than one half of what is consumed in Europe. Tobacco, ^c. Tobacco grows luxuriantly throughout large districts in Mexico, and the quantity consumed there is enormous, although the Indian population make no use whatever of this noxious weed. The cultivation of indigo is much neglected in Mexico, although there are great opportunities for its cultivation. Animals. With the exception of the cochmeal insect, the most valuable animals known in Mexico have been introduced by Europeans. The Mexicans have not even re- duced to a domestic state the two species of wild oxen, which wander in immense herds near the plains of the Rio del Norte ; they were unacquainted with the lama of the Cordilleras ; and made no use of the wild sheep of California, or of the wild goats of Upper California. Since the conquest, the domestic animals imported from Europe, as oxen, sheep, horses, and hogs, have multiplied amaz- ingly. Immense numbers of horned cattle feed on the ever-verdant pastures of the coast. The natives, like the Chinese, care very little for milk, butter or cheese, but the two latter are in much request among the castes of mixed ex- traction. The horses of the northern provinces are as celebrated for their excellent qualities as those of Chili ; both said to be of Arabian extraction. Many Mexi- can families possess from 30,000 to 40,000 head of horses and cattle. The mules would be still more numerous, if so many of them did not perish on the highways from over labour. The commerce of Vera Cruz alone employs 70,000 mules and 5000 are employed in the carriages of the city of Mexico. The rearing of sheep has been dreadfully neglected in Mexico. None of the merinos have been introduced. Of wild animals peculiar to Mexico, the gigantic stags of Upper California are the chief. All tlie forests and plains are filled with droves of this animal, which is justly affirmed by every traveller to be the most beautiful quadruped of America, and is quite different from the elk of the United States. They are of a brown colour, smooth and without spot. Their antlers, of which the branches are not fiat, are four and a half feet long ; some have been seen whose branches were nine feet long. No horses are capable of outrunning them. The other wild animals are the tapir, which is extremely fierce and voracious, and whose skm will resist a musket-ball ; great numbers of monkeys, bears, wolves, foxes, and wild cats ; all these, except the tapir, are common to both continents. The 84 AGHICTJLTURE, MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE jaguar is met with in the lower part of Mexico. Of the hog, t'nere are only two varieties in Mexico, the one introduced from Europe, and the other from the Phillippine Islands. They have multiplied amazingly on the table lands, and in some parts an extensive commerce is carried on in bacon. Birds. The feathered tribes are so numerous, and of such various appearances, that Mexico has been called the country of birds as Africa is of quadrupeds. Or- nithologists describe more than 200 species of birds as peculiar to Mexico. Aquatic birds are very numerous, and of great velocity. There are, at least, twenty species of ducks, and vast numbers of geese. Mexico has furnished" Europe with the largest of domestic birds, the turkey, which is found wild on the banks of the Cordilleras, from the Isthmus of Panama to Canada. Insects.^ As wax is an obje»t of great importance in a Catholic country, the rearing of bees has been always a principal concern. Bee-hives are extremely pro- ductive in the province of Yucatan. The rearing of the cochineal insect is of great antiquity in Mexico, but was formerly more general than now. It seems to thrive only between the tropics, and there at an elevation of 5000 feet above the sea. In the intendency of Oaxaca alone there is annually exported upwards of 100,000 pounds weight. The attending this insect forms the chief occu- pation of a large part of the Indian population. Fisheries. The Mexican fisheries are of no importance. The pearl fisheries of Cali- fornia were much more productive anciently than now ; but they have been long since abandoned. The western coasts of Mexico abound with spermaceti whales, but the fishery is almost entirely in the hands of the Americans. CHAPTER V. AGRICULTURE, MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE. AGRICULTURE. Of the agriculture of Mexico, very little can be said. They have 'cultivated almost every thing, more than their soil, hence they have no system of agricul- ture. The plough in universal use, is the same that was used two thousand years ago, and is simply a wooden wedge, sometimes without a particle of iron. The hoe is a wooden staff, with an iron spike in the end ; the only animal used in plough- ing, is the ox, although the planter may have thousands of horses and mules. The grains chiefly cultivated are wheat, barley, and Indian com. Rye and cats are not cultivated at all, or at least, very little, and many travellers have asserted that they have never seen either in any part of Mexico. Barley is the only grain used as "food for horses, and wheat straw is the fodder. Wheat is used for bread by the better classes, whilst Indian meal forms the only bread used by the masses ; yet, notwithstanding this, there is not, up to this hour, a corn-mill in all Mexico ; but as a substitute, the corn is soaked in water, and is then ground on a smooth stone with a long roller, made also of stone. AGRICULTURE, MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE. 85 MEXICAN PLOUGH. (a) The handle ; (b) the beam to which the oxen are.attached ; (c> pin by which the beam is at- tached to the yoke ; (d) wedges, &c., by which the beam is ele- vated or lowered, as occasion requires; (e) the main-piece or sole; (/) the shoe affixed to the main-piece — this is made of iron, and is the only part of the plough composed of that mate- rial ; (ff) section of the sole. The cultivation of the maguey alse, or Argave Americana, is conducted with great profit, and there are, throughout the country, vast plantations of it. This plant is one of the most useful in Mexico. It makes an excellent fence while growing. After it arrives at perfection, which is usually about seven years, pzdque (a beverage in common use) is extracted from its stalk ; the leaves are then either cut up as food for animals, or are manufactured into rope, twine, coarse Indian cloth, or wrapping paper of unequalled toughness. The importation of raw cotton is positively prohibited ; in consequence of which many persons have been induced to commence plantations ; but it is doubtful whether the agricultural habits of the people will permit them to flourish. Hitherto the cotton crop of this republic has not greatly exceeded in value the sum of $1,750,000. Its value is quite variable. At Tepic, on the west coast, it has been as low as $15 per quintal; at Vera Cruz, on the east coast, $22 and $34; while at Puebla, and in the capital, it has risen to $40 and even $48. The culture of silk is just beginning to attract attention. A company has just been formed for operating upon a large scale, and have sent an agent to France as preliminary to that object. Mexico would be 'a glorious country for the silk- worm, and the business could not fail to be profitable. The Morics Multicaulis would supply food for the worm, at least ten months in the year, so that three or four crops could be raised annually. MANUFACTURES. The Government of Mexico has steadily persevered in fostering her domestic manufactures, despite the efforts of foreign capitalists. The administration of Santa Anna was very energetic in protecting the manufacturing interest, both by a high tariff, and by his efforts to suppress the smuggling of English and American fabrics. Such, however, has been the uniform policy of every admin- istration, so that the manufacturers regard their establishments as perfectly safe, and their future success as certain : the manufacturers have already outstripped the production of the cotton planters of Mexico, but notwithstanding this, the importation of the raw material is prohibited. In 1842, some foreign merchants induced the President to consent to the admission, on more favourable terms, of coarse cotton goods ; but the united opposition of the manufacturers defeated the arrangement. Cotton goods which sell in the United States for six cents per yard, are worth thirty cents in Mexico. This results from the high price of the raw material, which sells at from forty to fifty cents per pound, and from the circumstance that all the machinery is imported and transported by land at an enormous cost ; and also to the difSculty and delay of repairing it, when it gets out of order. The annexed table, obtained from the most authentic sources, by Mr. Mayer exhibits the number of manufactories, &;c., in each Department, in 1843. 8G AGRICULTURE, MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE. STATISTICS OF MEXICAN FACTORIES. No. of Fkctories in each dopartmeat. Spindles estublii>liod. SpiuJlc^j iu erection. Total. 30,156 .... 30,156 35,672 - 12,240 - 47,912 17,860 - 5,200 - 23,060 11,312 - 6,500 - 17,812 7,620 - - . - 7,620 2,520 - . - . 2,520 1,200 .... 1,200 1,000 .... 1,000 In Mexico, - 12 In Puebla, 21 In Vera Cruz, 7 In Guadalaxara, 5 In Queretara, - 2 In Durango, 4 In Guanajuato, 1 In Sonora, 1 53 107,340 23,940 131,280 It must be remarked that there are three manufacturing establishments in Durango, the number of spindles in which are inchided in the above table, be- cause no definite information concerning them had been received. They mav, however, be calculated at about 4000, which, added to the 131,280, will give a grand total of at least 135,000. The number of looms also in the republic is not presented, because data have been furnished only in relation to those moved by machinery. An immense number of hand-looms are in constant operation throughout the republic. The value of the Mexican manufacturing establishments may be stated, in round numbers, at $10,000,000. The number of persons employed in every way in manufactories, cannot be short of 30,000. There are two paper factories near the capital ; one at Puebla, and one in Guadalaxara. Their productions are said to be very good, but by no means adequate to the consumption of the country : immense quantities of paper is used in the manufacture of segars. Glass factories are numerous in Mexico and Puebla, where large quantities of window glass and common tumblers are made. Their produce, however, is not sufficient for the wants of the country. Woollen blankets, and coarse woollen cloths are also manufactured in Mexico. There are several manufactories of cotton balls, or thread, in Mexico, but they are not of much importance. The manufacture of tobacco and gunpowder occupy a considerable number of persons ; but the Government has reserved to itself these branches of industry, which it finds an abundant source of revenue. Soap is very extensively manufactured, and the country possesses great advan- tage for this business. Tallow is very cheap, owing to the great number of cattle. The carbonate ot soda abounds on the table-land of Anahuac, and in the plain of Chihuahua, as well as in many other places. Soap is made not only in the large established manufactories in Mexico, Puebla, and Guadalaxara, but also in many other places. Even from the poor and thinly inhabited country of Lower California, soap forms one of the most important articles of export. The power made use of for the movement of the factories, is water, which is abundant for that purpose all over the country, proceeding from small streams falling from the mountains into the neighbouring plains. COMMERCE. A nation engaged in the pursuits of war, whether foreign or domestic, soon loses its relish for the cultivation of the peaceful arts: Agriculture, Manufac- tures, Commerce, and all other industrial pursuits of the country, which aw AGRICULTtJKE, MANTJFACTURES AND COMMERCE. 87 essential to its greatness and power, are sacrificed upon the altar of blood. Such is the condition of Mexico ; her continual revolutionary disturbances have decreased the wealth of the people — involved them in pecuniary embarrassments —arrested the business pursuits of the enterprising, and turned the public mind into a channel adverse to the occupations of peace :' it is not surprising, there- fore, that Mexico has but little commerce. In 1832 and 1833, the Custom House receipts amounted to about twelve millions of dollars per annum. In 1839, on account of the French blockade, they fell to near three millions ; in 1840 they rose again to seven millions, and in 1841 they fell to about five, which sum may be divided among the diiTerent ports as follows, to wit : — Vera Cruz 83,329,802 Tampico 883,039 Matamoras 312,403 Guyamas --__--- 55,814 Monterey 96,853 Acapulco - - 17,182 San Bias 208,845 Total $5,287,097 This corresponds to about twelve millions three hundred thousand dollars of importation annually, divided (according to an estimate) in the following manner : — From England - - - - - $4,500,000 « France - - - - - 3,000,000 « Hamburgh 1,500,000 « China 1,000,000 « United States 800,000 " Spuin 500,000 " Grtioa and other ports - - - - 1,000,000 Total $12,300,000 The expense to the government for the collection of this revenue, was |!148,290. The Exports from the Kepublic, chiefly its own productions, may be rated at— Specie, through Vera Cruz - - - - $4,000,000 do do Mazatlan and San Bias - 3,500,000 Silver and gold through other ports, - - 5,000,000 Silver through Tampico - - - - 7,000,000 Cochineal, Jalap, Vanilla, Sarsaparilla and Hides 1,000,000 Sundries - - - - "- - - 500,000 Total $20,000,000 From these tables it appears that the whole export from Mexico in 1842 amounted to $20,000,000, of which the gold and silver amounted to $18,500,000, which leaves a balance of other products of only $1,500,000, which is all that can be fairly set down as the result of Mexican industry, the precious metals being produced by foreign enterprise almost entirely. 88 AGBICULT0RE, MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE. Commerce of the different Forts. Vera Cruz. — From the 1st of January to the Isi of July, 1842, there werr 102 arrivals at Vera Cruz, and 169 departures, of which 19 were American and «6 English, 20 Mexican and 13 French. Tampko. — During the year ending 31st December, 1841, there were 91 arri- vals and departures at Tampico, of which 19 were British men-of-war and packets, 9 British merchantmen, 24 American, and 18 Mexican, Matamoras. — In 1841, the whole trade of this port was carried on in vessel* from the United States, 32 in number. The exports consisted of: — Specie - $3-52,766 Hides 117,334 Wool - - 15,943 Horses and Mules 800 Total $486,843 The imports from the United States amounted to $426,945, and of the follow- ing articles :— Silks valued at $3,380 ; Woollens, do $29,194 ; Cottons, do $205,451'; Linens, do $71,312; Hardware and Machinery, do $19,311 ; Paper, do $1,680; Jewelry, do $452; and sundries, amounting in value to $96,165. Santa Fe Trade. The overland trade between the United States and the northern provinces of Mexico, and more especially with Santa Fe, commenced about the year 1804 • its origin having been rather the result of accident than of any organized plan. It appears that a man of the name of James Pursley, after wandering over the wild and unexplored regions west of the Mississippi, finally fell in with some In- dians on the Platte river, near its source in the Rocky Mountains ; from them he obtained information respecting the settlements in New Mexico, and finally se- out with a party of these savages for Santa Fe, which he reached in 1805, wher^ he remained until his death. He is supposed to have been the first Avierican tha ever crossed the desert plains into the Spanish provinces. It is said, hovvevei that a merchant of Kaskaskia, narned Morrison, had obtained some informatior of the trappers, in relation to Santa Fe, and that as early as 1804, he bad dis patched a French Creole up the Platte river, with directions to push his way mto Santa Fe. He was successful in his enterprise, but he never returned to his employer, or accounted to him for the proceeds of his adventure, but with the capital thus acquired he set up business for himself, raised a large family, and after some twenty years died a very wealthy man. In 1806, Capt, Pike, who was afterwards promoted to the rank of General, and died in the achievement of the glorious victory at York, Upper Canada, in 1813, was sent, in 1806, on an exploring expedition up the Arkansas. He finally, after much suffering, descended upon the Rio del Norte, with his party, then but fifteen in number ; and believing himself within the bounds of the United States, erected a small fortification for his company, until the opening' of the spring of 1807 should enable him to continue his way to Natchitoches. As he was in the Mexican settlements, he was discovered, and a force sent to lake him to Santa Fe, which was accomplished by treachery. His papers were seized, and he and his party were sent under an escort to the United States. Upon his return he published a narrative, in which he gave the most glowing- descriptions of this new region. His narrative created great excitement in the western country ; and in 1812, a regular expedition was fitted out under the auspices of Messrs, M' Knight, Beard, Chambers, and others, who, following the AGKIOULTURE, MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE. '89 directions of Capt. Pike, finally reached Santa Fe in safety ; but they were destined to experience severe disappointments and trials. A revolution had jusi taken place, and they were seized as spies, their goods confiscated, and them- selves thrown into prison, where they remained for nine years, when another revolution placed Iturbide in the ascendant, and they were released. In 1821, two other expeditions set out, and not only reached Santa Fe, but their homes in safety, after having realized a very handsome profit on their adventure. This stimulated others, and from the year 1822, we may date the virtual commencement of the Santa Fe trade. At the present time, the inter- course is conducted on a systematic plan, a large capital being invested in the trade. As the route leads over a vast desert, where the traveller is exposed to the depredations of roving savages, those engaged in this trade find it necessary to unite their forces, and to travel in large companies, like the caravans of the East, well provided with the means of defence. Their goods are transported in covered waggons drawn by horses, or on the backs of mules, and usually consist of a great variety of merchandize for the supply of the Mexican markets, such as cotton and woollen stuffs, tobacco, spirits, jewelry, &c*, for which returns are made in specie and bullion. The caravans generally take their departure from tb'- town of Independence, on the Missouri river, 379 miles above St. Louis, and on the western borders gf the state of Missouri. The length of the route from that place is 877 miles, and the time consumed by the journey is from two to three months. The Santa Fe trade, though more or less fluctuating from its origin, continued to present an average increase down to 1831. During the same period the price of goods continued to go down in a more rapid ratio. Since 1831, the sales have continued steadily to fall, to the latest period of the trade. Medium cali- coes average about 37 1-2 cents, and plain domestic cottons 31 cents per yard. 100 per cent upon United States cost is now considered as yielding excellent profits, which generally leave a net profit of 30 or 40 per cent. In 1822, the amount of merchandize sent to Santa Fe was estimated at $15,000, and it gradually increased up to 1843, when it amounted to $450,000. The following estimate for the year 1846, was made by Mr. David Waldo, an energetic merchant, who has been for twenty years engaged in the overland trade : — The trade to Santa Fe, this year, will be 175 large mule waggons, 1,700 mules, 500 men, 200 large ox waggons, 2,000 oxen, 1,000 yokes. Value of goods (first cost) - - - $937,500 Do waggons - - - - 75,000 Do 1,750 mules - - . - 70,000 Do 1,000 yoke of oxen - - - 35,000 Hire of 500 men for the trip - - - 75,000 . Expenses of freight, insurance, &c., to Indepen- dence (10 per cent) - . - - 93,750 Harness &:c., for 2,000 mules and horses - - 15,000 Provisions — bacon, flour, &c., on the trip out — 550 men, at $20 each _ - . . 11,000 Small outfit 50,000 -1,352,250 The reiiurn for this is exclusively bullion. The net profits will be - - - - - 400,000 Total - - - - - - $1,652,250 90 MINESAND MINERALS. The Indian trade, exclusive of the Missouri river, employs about 200 men, at $200 a year each $40,000 Capital invested, ----- 300,000 Oxen, mules, waggons, &c. _ . . - 30,000 Total .-.--- $390,000 N. B. This does not include the numerous outfits and parlies from Arkan- sas and Texas, nor any of the extensive trade among the civilized and locat^yl Indians. To Oregon, this year, I estimate there will be — 500 waggons, value $50,000 1,500 yoke of oxen 45,000 5,000 loose cattle, at $5 - - - - 25,000 Mules and horses 10,000 Outfit, provisions, &c. ----- 25,000 Total $155,000 25,000 persons. To California much the same as to Oregon, but one quarter less — $110,250 4000 persons. Grand total of Property. Mexican trail _ - - _ . $1,752,250 Indian country, ----- 390,000 Oregon 155,000 California 116,700 Total $2,413,250 In this I make no mention of the arms, equipments, money, and personal effects of the great number of persons, emigrants, travellers, and others passing across the plains. These added to the above, will swell the amount beyond $3,000,000. The number of persons of all kinds who will pass out through the Indian country will exceed 5,000. Remember that these statements refer exclusively to the country and trade carried on within it, which is beyond the military establishments of the frontier, and out of the beat of the troops. Self-protection is all that we have to rel> upon for the safety of our lives and property. CHAPTER VI. MINES AND MINERALS. The Mineral wealth of Mexico is very great ; her mountains contain almost every mineral in use in agriculture, manufacture and the fine arts. But the mines of iron and lead have been almost wholly neglected, while those of silver and gold have been sedulously wrought. Copper is found in considerable quantities, and tin is abundant ; extensive iron mines exist in the internal provinces, bui coal is very rare. Among the precious stones a few diamonds are found, with *methysts, and turquoises. The mountains produce jasper, m-arble, alabaster MINESANDMINEKALS. "91 magnets, steatite, jade quicksilver and talc ; but it is the xnines of silver and gold which constitute the chief wealth of this country. It is not known at what period the mines of Mexico began to be worked, or were first discovered. It is well known, however, that the natives did not content themselves with those minerals which they found in their native state, on the surface of the earth, and particularly in the beds of rivers and ravines formed by torrents, — but applied themselves to subterraneous operations in working veins, cutting galleries, and digging pits, of communication and ventilation, and that they possessed instru ments adapted for cutting rocks. All the Mexican mines are situated between the extreme points of 14 d. and 86 d. N. lat., none having as yet been discovered to the south or north of these latitudes. Within this space are contained about 350 reals, or places celebrated for mines in their vicinity ; and the number of mines comprehended in these reals is nearly three thousand. In 1804, about 500 of these mines were worked in different places. Under the old regime, the mines were divided into 37 districts, over which were placed the same number of councils, called Diputaciones de Mineria. The following table exhibits a view of the mining districts and reals in Mexico, according to Humboldt : — Intendencies. Districts. Reals 1. Guanaxuato - - - 1 - 19 2. Zacatecas _ - - 4 - - 14 3. San Louis Potosi - - 5 - 28 4. Mexico - - - - 7 - - 60 5. Guadalajara - - - 3 - 44 6. Durango ... 5 - - 61 7. Sonora - - - - 7 - 68 8. Valladolid - - - 4 27 9. Oaxaca - - - - 1 - 17 9 37 337 In the intendencies of Puebla, Vera Cruz and Old California, there were no Diputaciones, as in other intendencies ; but the number of reals amounted to 12, making a grand total of 349. The mines of Mexico are geologically divided by Humboldt into eight groups, almost all placed either on the ridge, or on the western side of the Cordillera of Anahiiac, the whole forming a surface of 12,000 square leagues, or 100,000 British square miles. These groups are not to be considered as forming one connected and continuous surface, but as so many distinct localities, with vast tracts of intervening spaces, almost totally destitute of metalliferous veins. Of these eight groups, that which contains, within a surface of 16,000 square miles, the mines of Guanaxuato, Zacatecas, and Catorce, is by far the richest, and when Humboldt wrote, supplied more than one half of the metallic produce of New Spain. The principal rocks which at present furnish almost all the silver of Mexico, are porphyritic, reposing on beds of primitive slate, grey-wacke and Alpine lime-stone. The most celebrated mines are situated at absolute heights of from 5904 to 9842 feet above the sea. Mines of Gkianaocuato. These are the richest mines now known in Mexico. They were discovered in the middle of the sixteenth century, and have alone produced to the amount of about $300,000,000 ; and from 1786 to 1803, a period of eighteen vear^s, the annual average was $4,731,624, which is six and a half times more 92 MINESANDMINERALS. than the annual product of all the veins of Hungary and Transylvania put toge ther. The mine of Valencia, in Guanaxuato, oiiginally belonged lo two indi- viduals, namely, the Count de Valenciana and M. Otero. It was not worked till 1760, and then by a solitary adventurer. In 1776 the works were already 262 feet in depth, and the expenses greatly exceeded the value of its produce- In 176S it began to pay, in proportion as the pit grew deeper. From 1771 to 1S04, this mine never yielded less than §2.900,000 annually to the two proprie- tors, and in some years the profits, clear of all expenses, amounted to 81,200,000. This mine is now wrought to the depth of 16S5 feet. Mines of Zacatecas. The value of the annual produce of the mines of Zacatecas is about $3,000,000 The mines of Sombresefe, in this intendency, are celebrated for the immense riches of their veins, which in the space of a few months left to the family ol Fagoago a net profit of four millions of dollars. Mines of Catorce. These mines, in the state of San Louis Potosi, are at present the richest ia Mexico, except those of Guanaxuato. They were discovered in 1778. Several of them were discovered in 1773 by two poor individuals, and begun to be wrought, but the produce was small and variable. In 1778, a Spanish minei named Zepeda, examined for three months this mountainous district, and finally found the surface of the great vein, on which he iromediately dug the pit of Guadaloupe. He drew from it an immense quantity of muriatic silver and colo- rados mixed with native geld, and gained, in a short time, more than 8500,000. From that time it was vigorously wrought. The famous mine of Pitrissim/i. has almost constantly yielded since 17SS, a net annual profit of 8200,000, and its produce in 1796 amounted to 81,200,000, while the expenses of working onlv amounted to SSO.OOO. Since 1S02 these rich mines have been filled with water. Mines of Pachuca. These mines are famed for their antiquity, wealth and proximity to the cap- tal. Terrible fires have occtirred in some of them, which caused them to be wholly abandoned. Biscaina Vein. This vein, though not so extensive as that of Guanaxuato, is perhaps still richer, and was successfully wrought from the 16th to the beginning of the 18th century. In 1726 and 1727 the two mines oi Biscaina and Xacol still produced together 356, 1S2 lbs. troy of silver. — valued at 84,672,950. The mining ope- rations, however, were abandoned from the great quantity of water, and the igno- rance of the methods of drawing it ofTj instead of using pumps, they drew up the water in bags suspended to ropes. Mines of Zimapan. The produce of these mines, and of the others m the intendency of Mexico, is valued at 81,120,000 annually. Mines of Durango. The mineral district of Duranjo yieids annually silver to the amount of $3,825,000. The groups of Chikuahua, and Oaxaca, are estimated to produce annually, 81.115.000. In the vicinity of Chihuahua, according to Pike, are Jiirteen silver mines, one of gold, and one of copper ; and at Maiepernie, seven silver mines and one gold mine. MI NESAXD MINERALS. 93 Baron Humboldt gives the gross produce of tlie mines of Mexico, from 1690 :o 1S06, both years mclusive, as amouming to S1;429,36I,717, averaging alout S12.216.766 per annum. The hisrhest amount, which v/jjs in the year 1796, was S2o,644,o66. The produce of the year 1S04 he states at 824,000,000. Mr. Ward estimates the annual produce for a few years prior to 1510, at $24,000,000, After that period, in consequence of the revolutionary condition of the country, it dwindled to almost nothing — in one year to three and a half millions of dollars. Hon. Waddy Thompson says, that " the official returns for the year 1S42 •ixhibit an exportation of gold and silver as registered in the Custom Houses, amounting to SlS.oOO.OOO. The facilities with which large values of gold may be concealed, and thus clandestinely exported, and the temptation to do so from the high duty of six per cent, on exportation, caused a very large amount to be smuggled. That this was extensively practised was known to every one in Mexico. To form any accurate estimate of the amount of the exports of specie, a ven,' large addition must be made on this account. Three or four millions would scarcely cover it. Add to these the amount retained in the country, and it wnll be very safe to assume the present produce of the mines at from twenty- two to twenti,--four millions of dollars per annum. " The whole amount coined at the mint in the city of Mexico, since the Con- quest, is 8443,000,000 ; since 1690, 829.5.965,750.'' The produce of the mines of Mexico, (says Mr. Thompson) " is quite as large, or larger, now than at any other period, taking an average of ten years, but not so profitable to the proprietors, owing to the immense investments in machinery, and the greater labour of raising the ores now compared with the rude and unexpensive machinen,- hitherto used, and the comparatively small labour of taking out the ores. The company, which now owns the great mine of Real del Monte, have, in the last few years, expended in machinery and other ways, several millions of dollars. The shaft of that mine is nearlj- a thousand yards deep. " Not one fiftieth of the mines are worked, which is attributed, in a great degree, to the high price of quicksilver. This is caused by the monopoly, by the Rothschilds, of the quicksilver mines of Spain, from which the article is chiefly supplied. The silver extracted in the thirty-seven districts of mines was deposited in the provincial treasuries of the intendencies ; and it is from these receipts that we must judge of the quantity of silver furnished by the different mines. From 1785 to 1759, there were received in the deposits of eleven provincial treasuries, the folloTs-ing quantities of silver, valuing the marks at S 1-2 dollars : — Marks. Dollars. Guanaxuato - • 2.469.000 - - 20.956,500 San Louis Potosi - 1.515.000 - - 12.577,500 Zacatecas - - - 1,205.000 - - 10.242.500 Mexico - - - 1.055,000 - - 5.967.500 Durango - - - 922.000 - - 7.535.775 Rosario - - 665.000 - - 5,675,000 Guadalajara - - 509,000 - - 4,326.500 Pachuca - - 455.000 - 3.567.000 Bolanos - - 364.000 - - 3.094.000 Sombreste - - 320.000 - 2,720,000 Zimapan - - 215.000 - - 2,105,000 Total - - 9,730,000 - - 82,705,000 94 MINES ANDMINERALS, Gold Mines. The Mexican gold is, for the most part, obtained from alluvial grounds, by means of washing. These grounds are common in the State of Sonora. la the plain of Cineguiella, grains of gold of such a size were found at the depth of nineteen inches from the surflice, that some of them weighed nine marVj each, equivalent in value to more than SIOOO. In several other places large pieces of gold have been found. Gold is also found in the veins which inter- sect the mountains of primitive rock. These veins have been found a foot and a half thick. This metal is also found either pure or mixed with silver ore, and there is scarcely a silver mine in Mexico which does not contain some gold. The principal vein in the mine of Villalpando, is intersected by a great number of small rotten veins of exceeding richness. The argillaceous, or clayey slime, with which these veins are filled, contain so great a quantity of gold, dissemina, led in impalpable parcels, that the miners are compelled, when they leave the mine nearly naked, to bathe themselves in large vessels to prevent any of the auriferous clay from being carried off by them on their bodies. Inferior Minerals. Having given a brief account of the precious metals, we will now notice some of the more common metals. Copper is found in a native state, and in great abundance in the mines of Ingora, and at San Juan Guetamo, in the province of New Mexico. The intendency of Guanaxuato produced in 1802 abou* 230,000 lbs. of copper, and 10,000 lbs. of tin. Tin is also abundant in the internal provinces, where a number of valuable mines of this mineral are situ ated, in the vicinity of Durango. The iron mines are .very abundant, in Valla- dolid, Zacatecas and Guanaxuato, but especially in the internal provinces. Lead abounds in the calcareous mountains, especially in the district of Zimapan, and in the province of Santander. Zinc, Antimony, and Arsenic, are also found in abundance. About 100 miles south of Chihuahua, an entire mountain of load- stone, or magnetic iron, has been lately discovered. The strata are as regular as those of limestone. In 1S21 and 1822, the Mexicans determined to restore their mines to their former importance, but to that end, fresh capitalists were necessary, and to secure them, an Act of Congress threw the door open to foreigners, who were allowed to become joint proprietors with natives, on terms highly favourable to the adventurers. This Act, as favourable to foreign speculation, was eagerly taken advantage of by British capitalists, and for a time there was a general mining mania in England ; a large number of companies were formed, but up to 1827 there were only seven great English companies, besides one German and two American companies employed in working mines in different parts of the coun- try. These companies were as follows : — The Real del Mo7ite Co.— Capital, $4,000,000— all invested. Mines located in the states of Mexico, Zimapan and Valladolid. Hon. Waddy Thompson says that this company have within a few years past, expended in machinery and in other ways, several millions of dollars. The shaft of the Real del Monte mine is nearly a thousand yards deep. Bolanos Company. — Capital, 8200,000. Mines located in Guadalajara and Zacatecas. Tlalpujahua Company. — Capital, $2,000,000. Mines located in Mexico and Valladolid. MINES AND MINERALS. 95; Angio'Mezica7i Company. — Capital, $5,000,000. Mines located in Guana- juato, Lueretaro, San Louis Potosi, and in two districts in Mexico. United Mexican Co. — Capital, $6,000,000. Mines in Guanajuato, Guadala- jara, Zacatecas, Chihuahua, Oaxaca, and a large number in Mexico. Mexican Co. — Capital not known. Mines located, Vera Cruz, Zacatecas and Oaxaca. Catorce Co. — Capital unknown, some $300,000 invested. Mines in Mexico, Queretaro, and San Louis Potosi. German Co. of Eberfeld. — Capital unknown ; $637,760 invested. All their mines are in the State of Mexico. New York Co. — Capital unknown — investment small. They had a small number of mines in Mexico. Baltimore Co. — Capital unknown — a few mines in Mexico. Director, Mr. Keating. Method of working the Mines. Mr. Poinsett, who visited the mines of Guanaxuato in 1823, gives the following interesting account of their appearance, and the method of working them : " The excavations extend from south-east to north-west, 1600 yards, and 800 yards in a south-west direction. There are three parallels or plains, worked on ramifications of the principal vein. The veta madre, or mother vein, was here found, not more than 22 feet wide, and without any ramification from the surface of the soil, to the depth of 557 feet ; at this depth, it divided into three branches, and the entire mass, from 165 to to 195 feet thick ; of these three branches, not more than onj is in general very productive. " They have all the same angle, (45 d.,) but vary in thickness from nine to forty yards. Four shafts descend to these parallels, the first called San Antonio, of 744 feet perpendicular depth — the cost of this shaft was $396,000. The square shaft of Santo Christo, 492 feet deep, cost $95,000. The hexagon shaft of our Lady of Guadeloupe, 1131 feet perpendicular depth, cost $700,000. San Jose, an octagon shaft, of more than 1800 perpendicular depth, and 300 feet in the direction of the veta madre, which is an angle of 45 d., cost $1,200,000. " To understand the necessity of sinking so many shafts of different depths, it ' may be necessary to explain, that in following the dip of the vein, which is first discovered on the surface, and is almost invariably an angle of 45 d., the work is impeded after a certain depth by water. A shaft is then sunk, so as to inter- cept the vein at the termination of the gallery, in order to free the mine from water. The work is then continued until it becomes necessary to sink another shaft still deeper, to clear the lower galleries. At the termination of each shaft a great many parallel galleries branch out on ramifications of the mother vein. " From these parallels a vast number of smaller galleries branch out, worked to a greater or less distance, as the ore proved to be of good or bad quality ; and many of them were pierced with a view of discovering other veins. Besides the . shafts, there are two descents by steps, winding down to the last parallel. On leaving the house of the a;dministrador, we were conducted to the first flight of steps ; and preceded by four men carrying torches, we descended to the first Darallel, and stopped where four galleries branch off. " Our torch-bearers were sent off to the extremity of these galleries, that we might form an idea of their extent in a straight line. They are both extensivB and solid ; the vaults are of porphyry, and the bottom of gray slate. In some places where the ore proved very rich, it has been taken from the sides and Yaults, and the voids filled up with masonry, and beams worked in so as to form a firm support to the sides and roof. These galleries have been blasted ouf 96 MINESAND MINERALS. and must have cost great labour, for the whole mountain is of porphyry to a great depth. . '• The exterior is covered with a crust of brescia, which extends not more than four or five feet from the surface. The ore is for the most part extracted by drilling and blasting; sometimes, but very rarely, the wedge can be used. On our return, we plodded painfully up these stairs, which the cargadores (porters) nscend with ease, with a load of ten or fifteen arrobas on their shoulders. They are paid according to tlie quantity they bring up; and some of these men will ascend, as we were told, from the perpendicular depth of 500 yards, carrying the enormous weight of 24 arrobas (600 pounds). In the court-yard into which we entered from the gallery, and where the workmen are searched, there was a large heap of ore, accumulated by each workman being obliged to bring a stone up in his hand every time he ascends, and throw it on this heap. There are about 1000 workmen at present employed, and in the course of a week a large pile is formed. The product of this belongs to the mine, and forms a fund for contingent expenses. The matrices of these ores, which we had here a good opportunity of examining, are principally quartz, amethyst, and rock crystal, horn stone, calcareous spar of a dark brown, and of pearl colour. The metals are pyrites of iron, arsenic, yellow copper, galena, gray and yellow blend, virgin gold and silver, sulphate of silver, both brittle and ductile, and rosicler, a rich silver ore of a bright rosy colour, which we did not see. This ore is so rare, that I could not meet with a specimen during my residence in Mexico. There are likewise veins with copper, lead, tin, cinnabar, antimony, and manganese; and the crystals of the carbonate of lime, that are found in this mine, are very large and perfect. We next visited the principal shaft, San Jose, an octagon, the diameter 11 yards, and the perpendicular depth 600. This gTcat work, which cost upwards of a million of dollars, is in some places blasted through solid rock, and in others, walled up with hewn stone : the masonry»is admirably well executed. The workmen threw bundles of lighted hay down the shaft, which blazed as they descended, and which we saw fall into the water, now not more than 250 yards from the summit, and rising every day. After failing in his attack on the city of Guanaxuato, Mina caused the machinery of the mine of Valenciana to be burnt, and the owners have not funds to renew it. From these mines we went to a shaft called Guadeloupe, where we found two malacates in operation. These machines are used to free mines from water, and to draw up the ore. A malacate is a drum of about ten feet in diameter, attached to a vertical spindle, a shaft of 15 feet long, which is shod with steel, and turns in steel sockets. Poles project at right angles from the shaft, to which the horses are harnessed. Two ropes are passed round the drum, and over pullies supported by poles twelve feet high, and about 10 feet apart, and leading to the well. As the drum turns, one rope descends, and the other is wound up, and raises a large skin full of ore, or buckets of water, by what the French call a chapelei. At the principal or octagonal shaft, eight malacates were kept constantly at work, night and day. Each malacate was moved by 12 horses, and drew up, by a succcession of buckets, 73 arrobas (975 quarts) every nine or ten minutes. 95,000 arrobas, or 31,800 cubic feet of water, might be raised by this means every 24 hours. It happened to be a sale day, (Wednesday,) and in the same court where the mala- cates were at work, we saw three or four hundred people collected ; some exposing the ore to the best advantage, and others examining its quality. This mme is now worked by halves — the workmen receiving one half of the profits, and the owners of the mine the other. The workmen were busily employed in arranging the pieces of ore in parallelograms, composed of small circular heaps of ore. They were very careful to place the richest pieces at top, and the fairest side in aisfht. ROADS TKAVELLED ROUTES MODES OF TRAVELLING. 97 CHAPTER VII. ROADS TRAVELLED ROUTES MODES OF TRAVELLING (1.) Vera Cruz to Mexico. OcTY OF Mexico, 7548 feet. I Barranca DE Joannes 10,660 feet. PuEBLA, 7,319 feet. Castle of Perote, 7,752 feet. Las Vigas, 7,849 feet. Xalapa, 4,407 feet ^ V. ElEncero, 3,094 feet above the sea, and limit of the yellow fever. PUENTE NaCIONAL. Vkba Cruz. From Vera Cruz to Mexico is a distance of 290 miles. The route over v>^hich the road now passes is the same through which Cortes passed on his ever- memorable expedition. The road is broad and paA^ed with round stones precisely as the principal streets are in our American cities. It was built in the year 1804, Humboldt, who was in Mexico at the time, compared it to the roads over the Simplon and Mount Cevis. The numerous bridges spanning ra- vines and water-courses are all of arched masonry, and of the most substantial workmanship. The road has for its protection against the invasion of foreign foes, castles erected on the most commanding eminences and passes. There is a very good line of stages, making three trips every week, between Vera Cruz and Mexico. The fare is enormous- ly high — $50 for a single seat, and to ensure the safety of bag- gage, it is usual to forward it by a separate conveyance, the cost of which is $10 per trunk. The line of stages was establish- ed by an American some j'^ears ago, but is now owned by a rich Mexican. The stages are built at Troy, N. Y., and the drivers are all Americans. Seven horses are usually driven ; two at the wheels, three abreast, and two more in the lead. The stage leaves Vera Cruz at eleven o'clock at night, and arrives the next evening about three o'clock, at Jalapa, a dis- tance of ninety miles. For the first few miles the road passes along the sandy beach ; it then 08 RO\DS — TUAVELLED ROUTES — MODES OK TUAVELLING. bciiis to ascend by ;i jTradually inclined plane. It soon enters tlie mountain ofors^es by a deep dell of lofty and perpendicular rocks, all of which it may be observed" command the pass and make it easily tenable by a small body o) troops a2:ainst a vastly larger force. The defenders might be scattered over a variety of point?:, where they would remain entirely secure from the assaults o^' an invading army. For about one hundred miles, until you reach Las Vigaf. there is one continual ascent, among defiles, until the height of 7,849 is reached above the level of the sea. Here the steepest portion of the road ends ; but thence to Perote, and so onward to Puebla, it passes over an uninterrupted series- of abrupt descents and ascents, and through an exceedingly broken country. At Perote there is a strong fortress or castle, which completely commands the pass. Between Puebla and Mexico, there is another steep mountain, (see en- graving) and the traveller must reach the height of 10,660 feet before he begins to descend into the valley of Mexico. The entire journey is usually performed in about sixty-three hours of travelling time. " Travelling from Vera Cruz to Mexico," says Mr. Thompson, '■ you art scarcely ever out of sight of caravans of muleteers going and returning. It i^ the mode of transportation universal in this country. A Frenchman some few vears since established a line of waggons on the route, and died whilst I was in Mexico, leaving a fortune of some four hundred thousand dollars — all of which he had made from a very small beginning. Yet after his death no one was dis-j posed to continue the business. The load of each mule is 400 pounds, for the! freight of which, from Vera Cruz to Mexico, is S20. The mules subsist on the coarsest and scantiest food. The drivers are a class of hardy men, who are never robbed, and are always faithful and honest. " Although the whole road, from Vera Cruz to Mexico, passes through a coun- try inexpressibly picturesque and beautiful, yet the ignorant, idle and degraded population, the total absence of cultivation and improvement, and a genera? appearance of wildness and desolation, produced within me feelings partaking of gloom and melancholy. Neither in going nor returning did I see one human being, man, woman or child, engaged at work of any sort. The great mass of population doze out their lives with no higher thoughts or purposes than the beasts that perish." (2.) Tampico to Mexico. The distance from Tampico to Mexico is 312 miles. The road leads ovei precipitous mountains, and is altogether unfit for carriages. A traveller who passed over this route in 1S22, describes the country as level for 48 miles from Tampico, with a rich black soil, few trees except palms, and thinly inhabited. This was followed by a broken and hilly region for a distance of nearly 100 miles, possessing a deep soil, but destitute of water during the greater part of the year. The traveller now encountered a steep and rugged mountain, be- longing to the great chain of Sierra de Madre. The ascent was difficult and fatiguing, and occasionally frightful precipices showed themselves at the feet of his mules. After a long ride up the mountain, he began to descend on the other aide, which was so steep that hi;; party conceived it safer to take to their feet fastening the bridles to the mules' heads, they sent the beasts in advancGv followed with great difficulty for three quarters of an hour, until they reached the Indi-in village of Clacalula. The succeeding nine miles were travelled h) the bed of the river Canada, (it being the dry season;) upon leaving Avhich, they commenced the ascent of Mount Penulco, which consumed two hours; thi? mountain exceeded in height any eminence they had yet passed, and I he road, though wide and free from impediments, was winding in its course, and at every tarn approached the edge of a precipice. For the next two days of their journey ROADS TRAVELLED ROUTES MODES OF TKAVELLIIfG. 99 they continued to ascend on a good road, and passing over several hills, at last began to descend to the rich and fertile valley of the Santiago, or the Rio Grande of the west. Here they found in plenty, bananas, oranges, and the avocate or alligator pear. But a formidable mountain height still rose before them ; this was the mountain of San Ammonica, the dread of muleteers. Near the summit there is a pass of a peculiar character ; as it is approached, a perpendicular precipice of about 150 feet presents itself, at the foot of which a narrow road is finally perceived, which in eight short, steep and desperate turns, conducts the a-aveller to the top, shuddering at every turn as he looks down and beholds the vast abyss below. A plain 22 miles in extent succeeds, which is crossed by good roads leading to the celebrated mining district and town of Real del Monte. In one hour after leaving this place, the road descends into the table-land of Mexico, and continues its course over a level plain for sixty miles to the capital. This journey occupied twelve days, or eighty-six hours actually on the road. It is a remarkable fact that the only route through which a carriage can pass from the low-lands of the coast to the upper country, w^ith the single exception of the road from Vera Cruz to Mexico, is through a pass leading from Monterey (288 miles west of Matamoras) to Saltillo.* These, then, are the only two routes by which an invading army can reach Mexico. A Mr. Phillips, who ■was sent out from England, in 1822, with some machinery for the mines of Catorce, (lat. 23 d.) gives an account of the method he was compelled to adopt to get it to its place of destination, which we transcribe. His machinery was loaded at Tampico, as being the nearest port to the miney of Ca.lorce, and he left Altamira (a few miles from Tampico) on the 16th of May, with fourteen four-wheeled carriages or waggons, well loaded, drawn by oxen. In order to reach Catorce, which is situated on the table-lands, it was necessary to take a circuitous route, leading first in a northerly direction from Altamira to Monterey, thence west to SaltiUo, over the carriage-road to the table-land, and thence south- erly to the mines. The journey consumed several months, being protracted by various mischances and the bad state of the roads and bridges. " On the 15th of October," says Mr. Phillips, " we entered the city of M'onterey, situated in a large bahia, or plain, surrounded by mountains, (part of the Sierra Madre ; it lies in about 26 d, N. lat. The climate is most delightful ; fruit abounds all the year round, and provisions of all kinds are cheap and plentiful. It contains 15,000 inhabitants, among whom are a great many old Spaniards, extremely wealthy. We ''*'^pped there a day or two to load four carls with four tons of castings for Saltillo, and left on the 17th, proceeding for three leagues Qver a most excellent road. Our route from Altamira to Monterey lan north by west- lialf-north, or nearly so, with trifling variations ; on leaving Monterey, we prO" ceeded due west. We started early on the 18th, and although our road was a continual ascent, we performed three leagues. On the 19th we descended over a rough broken road about three leagues ; and on the 20th, yoked our cattle early in the morning and drove to Rinconada. Our road in the morning lay through a barrenca [ravine], which conducted us to a hill ; the road is good, but the steepest, I believe, in the world for a carriage. We soon reached, however, El Puerto de los Muertos, [the gate of the dead,] the summit of the mountain, tvhich derives its name, the Indians say, from a bloody battle fought there by ihe first conquerors and the natives. We stopped, a little on the top of the hill lo rest the bullocks, and in the evening yoked them again, and reached a ran- cho [village] about a league and a half distant from El Puerto. " The next day we drove on smartly, and by twelve o'clock were three leagues on the road, when we halted opposite a large farm-house, the people of which were astonished at the sight of the boilers, and came running to know the use oi' • Mexico in 1342, by Hon. George Folaor: 100 ROADS — TaAVELLED ROUTES — MODES OF TRAVELLING. such tremendous things. The proprietor of the hacienda [farm-house] also came out to us, to whom Col. Martinez thought proper to mention our distressed situation, which he was no sooner acquainted with than he rode off" to his house and in about an hour afterwards we received a sufficient quantity of provisions for two days, consisting of beef and mutton, (boiled and roasted,) vegetables, bread, &c. &c. At four o'clock we left this abode of hospitality, and drove t\vo leagues farther, and during the night felt the cold more sensibly than we had hitherto done since leaving the coast. On the 23d we arrived at Saltillo, nven- ty-five leagues from Monterey. Saltillo is situated on the side of a hill ; the country around presents very different features from those of the tierra caliente, where the land is so fertile, and the herbage so luxuriant. On this side of the Sierra Madre there is nothing but barren mountains and plains destitute of vege tation. Saltillo contains about 12,000 inhabitants, and has several good streets, communicating at right angles with the Plaza [public square,] in the centre of which is a large reservoir, which supplies the town with water. We had gen- erally from the coast to this place met with great civility and attention, but the inhabitants here showed us every possible mark of kindness and politeness. On the second day after we arrived, we dined, by invitation, with a cousin of Itur- bide's, and met all the principal people and authorities' of the town ; the dinner was most splendidly served up in the Spanish style, and to us who had fared badly during five months before, was no ordinary sort of treat. We contracted for several carts to take all our castings, except the cylinder, to Catorce, which latter, together with the boilers, were all that remained for our own carriages. We left Saltillo on the 26th of October, and proceeded four leagues ovor an excellent road, then stopped for the night at a small rancho. Our bullocks by this time began to fail us ; we consequently here contracted with a man to drive us to Catorce with his own cattle, which we reached without much difficulty in about ten days. (3.) Texas to Mexico. In former times it was not unusual to travel by land from New Orleans to the city of Mexico. The road led from Natchitoches, on the Red River, through the province of Texas by Nacogdoches, San Antonio de Bexar, and Presidio de Rio Grande, where it crossed that river about 500 miles from its mouth, to Mon- clova, Saltillo, or Monterey ; thence through the interior of the country to the capital. The length of the whole route is stated by Humboldt to be 540 leagues, or 1620 miles ; he adds that " it presents very few obstacles until it reaches the Rio Grande, and the ascent to the table-lands begins only from Monterey, where the declivity is by no means rapid. Captain Pages, of the French navy, travelled over this route to Mexico, and thence to Acapulco, in 1767; and the late General Pike, of the United States army, marched with a small party along a portion of it in 1S07. The French traveller, having arrived at San Antonio de Bexar, pursued a direct course to Saltillo, crossing the Rio Grande at Laredo ; and thonca continued his route to the city of Mexico. He reckons the distance from San Antonio to Saltillo 160 leagues, and from Saltillo to Mexico 220 leagues, in all 3S0 leagues, or 1,050 miles. Pike, who had been surprised by a Spanish force while explorinof the head-waters of the Arkansas, and taken to Santa Fe, returned to the United States by the way of Chihuahua and Monclnva, and thence through the province of Texas to Natchitoches, crossing the Rio Grande, (above Laredo) and passing through San Antonio de Bexar, then the capital of the province. According to the journ-al of this ofRcer, he consumed five days in the march from Monclova to Presidio Rio Grande, averaging 20 miles per day, and about the same length of time in going from Presidio Rio Grande to San Antonio de HOADS — TRAVELLED ROUTES MODES OF TRAVELLING. 101 Bexar, averaging 30 miles per day. The road from San Antonio to Saltillo, crossing the Rio Grande at Laredo, is shorter and more direct than the upper ]"oute by the Presidio. For information respecting the portion of the route, from Saltillo to the mines of Catorce, see the account of Mr. Phillips' journey on a preceding page. From Saltillo to Catorce is 164 miles. After leaving Catorce, the travelled route passes along a good carriage-road along the base of a mountainous range. For a long distance of country after leaving this place, water is obtained with so much difficulty at certain seasons of the year, that travellers are obliged to pay for it. It is supplied from wells of great depth, which are brackish and unplea- sant ; and even then is only to be obtained for money, at intervals of twenty miles distance, the keepers of the wells living hard by in miserable huts. Mr. Ward, (the British envoy,) who visited the Catorce mines in November, 1826, describes the country on this part of his route as dreary and deserted, without Vv'ater or cultivation ; and adds, that at Guadaloupe his party paid two dollars for permission to water their animals at the tanque belonging to the estate. From Catorce to San Luis Potosi is 156 miles. San Luis, including the barrios or suburbs, is stated by Mr. Ward to contain between fifty and sixty thousand inhabitants, and it is supposed that as many more are concentrated within a circle of six leagues in its immediate vicinity. The town is well built, the streets intersecting each other at right angles. The houses in the Plaza, or public square, and on the principal avenues leading to it, are of stone. This city is the centre of one of the richest mining districts in Mexico. It also derives great advantages from its situation as the natural depot for the trade of Tampico with the northern and western states of the republic, which receive through this channel a large proportion of their foreign imports. The distance from San Luis to Tampico is about 200 miles, in a direct line to the coast. Mr. Poinsett passed over the route in thirteen days, in the autumn of 1822, and Capt. Lyon in about the same length of time, in the spring of 1827. Both travellers describe the intermediate country as interesting and agreeable for the most part, although destitute of good roads suitable for carriages. Leaving San Luis Potosi for the- capital, the first stage is 16 leagOes to the hacienda and village of Jaral ; thence to the town of San Felipe 10 leagues crossing a branch of the Sierra Madre by a long and difficult ascent and descent very inconvenient, says Mr. Ward, but not absolutely dangerous for carriages. From San Felipe the road leads over an elevated plain for six or seven leagues; it then becomes steep and mountainous for four leagues to the hacienda of La Tlachlquera, situated in the centre of a ridge of mountains, and about midway 'between San Felipe and the city of Guanaxuato. These mountains maybe avoided by a circuitous route after leaving San Luis, passing to the west through the town of Leon. Guanaxuato is situated in the midst of a rich mining and agi'icultural district. The mine of Valenciana alone, between the years 1766 and 1803, yielded silvet to the amount of 165,000,000 dollars. The adjacent country, comprehending an extensive territory under the name of the Baxio, forms an immense plain, highly cultivated, and producing in great perfection all the fruits of Europe, and many of those indigenous to the tropics. Thus situ- ated, Guanaxuato has long been considered one of the most opulent and flourishing cities in Mexico. It is 220 miles from the capital. The next places on the route are Irapuato, 11 leagues ; Salamanca, five leagues ; Zelaya, nine leagues ; Que- retaro, 10 leagues ; all of which are populous towns, situated on the fertile plains of the Baxio. The aqueduct by which the town of Queretaro is supplied with water from a spring in the mountains, at a distance of nearly nine miles, is very picturesque. Its arches are lofty, light and bold, and its extent gives it an air of great magnificence as it stretches across the plain. It contains 40,000 inhabi- tants, and is distant 120 miles from the capital. The next town is San Juan 102 ROADS — T15AVELLED ROUTES — MODES OF TUAVELLING. del Kio, wliicli siaiids in a rich ;inJ liiglily cuhiviUed valley, ei one of those ships, on his arrival from New Orleans via the city of Mexico, the 2d of April, 1768. The cargo, among other things, comprised three millions of piastres in specie, destined in part to defray the expenses of government in the Philippine islands ; and of the hundred passengers on board, at least forty, says Pages, were monks. The harbour of Acapulco is one of the finest in the world. Capt. Basil Hall, who visited it in 1822, expresses the highest profes- sional admiration of this celebrated port. He says, " it is easy of access ; very capacious ; the water not too deep ; the holding ground good ; quite free from hidden dangers ; and as secure as the basin at Portsmouth dock-yard. From the interior of the harbour the sea cannot be discovered ; and a stranger coming to the spot by land, would imagine he was looking over a sequestered lake." The Mexican muleteers reckon the distance from Acapulco to Mexico at 116 leagues ; other itineraries make it five or six leagues less. ROADS TRAVELLED ROUTES MODES OF TKAVELLING. 105 (6.) Mazatlan to Mexico. The route from Mazatlan, on the Pacific coast, to the city of Mexico, passes through some of the chief provinces and cities of tlie republic, and is thus very graphically described by Dr. Wm. Maxwell Wood, who performed the journey in company Avith our Consuls, Messrs. Dimond and Parrot, since the com- mencement of the present hostilities between the United States and Mexico. The most convenient point of departure is at the town of San Bias, a little south of the mouth of the Gulf of California, and one day's ordinary sail from Mazatlan. Starting from San Bias instead of Mazatlan saves five days' labori- ous land-travel. The village on the beach consists of a collection of thatched huts, inhabited by a sallow, unhealthy looking population, and particularly rich in musquitoes and sand-flies. About a mile back of the beach stands the old town of San Bias, on a rocky eminence, rising like a castle from the swampy verdant plain surrounding it; it is now but the mouldering gravestone of past prosperity. Both San Bias and Tepic, the city of which it is the port, are losing themselves in the flourishing town of Mazatlan, which has risen rapidly out of that smuggling commerce which the benighted policy of Mexico has rendered the systematic, if not the legitimate, commerce of the country. With the Span- ish style of architecture, Mazatlan has the freshness, newness, and, disdaining the limitation of walls, the independent, straggling character of a new town in the United States. At San Bias an arrangement had been made with an arriero, or muleteer, to convey us to the city of Tepic ; and accordingly on the morning of May 4th, v/e found the requisite quantity of beasts on the beach, all caparisoned for the journey. It is necessary that each traveller on this journey should have at least one baggage mule ; for, besides his ordinary luggage, he must carry all his bed- ding, and, with a just discretion, a good store of provisions. Upon this occasion we had handsome and convenient brass bedsteads, stowed compactly in trunks and boxes, and at night, when they were put up, their glittering posts and can- opy frames formed a strong contrast with the ruds unfurnished rooms in which we lodged. Our party consisted, including the muleteers, of seven persons, and ten horses and mules ; each of us equipped with a formidable battery of carbines at the saddle-bow, pistols around the waist, and the Mexicans wearing long rusty owords which had lost their scabbards. All this war-like equipment was, I pre- sutTie, upon the principle of scarecrows in a cornfield, more than with any design of bloody conflict. kW preparations being completed, at seven o'clock we took our departure from the shore of the Pacific ocean, and passed into a dense, luxuriant, bottom-land thicket or jungle. This bottom is only passable in the dry season, and we noticed the elevation of the water during the wet season marked six feet high on the trees. From this bottom we ascended by a gentle rise to some good cultivable land, upon which was here and there a Mex- ican farm or rancho, and occasionally a new clearing, such as are seen in our west. At twelve we reached the half-w^ay house, a plain farm-house, where we found clean and comfortable provision. Resting until half past ^iree, we again got under way, and now commenced the ascent of the mountains. Our waylay through a dark forest of gigantic trees, up and down precipitous declivities, until about sun down, we eme'i^ged upon a naked and desolate mountain summit, from which, looking back over a vast region of country below us, we had our parting view of the Pacific losing itself in the distant horizon. The road now passed over hills of white and red clay, a sterile and lonely country ; the moon rose upon us long before our day's journey came to its close in the city of Tepic, just as the serenos, or watchmen, were whistling on their sharp calls the hour of ten, lOiJ OAUS rnAVELLliD .H0UTE3 MODES OF TKAVELLrjXl.. and giving forth iliiir devotional cry oC " Ave Maria purissi.n:>." Wc were received in the cleyanl mansion of Mr. Forbes, a Scotch gcnlknian, whose warir hospitality allows no stranger to pass Tepic withont a iionie, wliich was j)arlic ularly agreeable after an unaccustomed ride of lifty-fivc miles. Tepic is a handsome and well-built city, of about eight thousand inhabitants but i;i a state of decay — its population having fallen oll'.in a few years four thou- sand. The only thing refreshing, prosperous, and un-Mexican 'about ii, is the cotton factory of the Messrs. Forbes. The situation hs pretty and picturesque, where they have the water-power of a mountain-stream, and the buildings, both of the factory and residences of the persons connected with it, are in a showy and appropriate architectural taste. The factory makes eighty pieces a day, and it sells for twenty-five cents the vard — something less than a yard. Most of the raw material is brought from New Orleans, although a little is grown in the country. In the neighbourhood of Tepic are some fine sugar estates, where refined sugar is made at a cost of three or four cents, and sells at ten cents a pound. At Tepic we made a new contract with an arriero, for himself, his mozos, or boys, horses, mules, carbines and swords, to carry us to Guadalaxara, a five-day iourney. The necessary arrangements being completed, on the afternoon of May 6th our cavalcade was on its way to Guadalaxara, reaching that night the village of San Leonel. Don Ramon, our chief arriero, instead of taking us to the fonda, lodged us in the farm-house of a friend of his. The lady of the establishment was particularly cautious in locking the doors and securing the windows before retiring; and, as a reason of her care, she showed an enormous scar extending the whole length of her arm, which had been inflicted by the knife of a robber, some years before, who, at the same time, laid two others of her household wounded on the floor. The usual mode of travelling is to start at thi*ee or four o'clock in the morning having first taken the desayureo, a cup of tea, cofTee, or chocolate, with a smaL cake or rusk ;' then travelling until eleven or twelve o'clock, when breakfast, in our sense of the word, is taken, and a rest of three or four hours enjoyed, the day's journey being completed in the cool of the evening, at which time the traveller dines. This order and period of meals is that common to all Mexico, , The first part of our journey from Tepic was among a succession of smooth, rounded hills, rising from the surrounding dry, barren plains, like Indian mounds, the plains themselves intersected by long stone fences, but entirely destitute of cultivation. Soon after leaving San Leonel on the morning of the 7lh, the country assumed a rather more cheering appearance. A few thinly-scattered pine trees covered the hills, and an occasional small stream of water ran at their base. In the valleys were fields of barley ; here and there we passed an Indian village of thatched huts, and mules treading out barley on a ground threshing- floor. Our halt for the day was at the village of Santa Label. Leaving this place, our road conducted us, during the afternoon, over a singular volcanic for- mation. As we approached this region, there appeared to be a lofty dark wall extending across the country from the base of a mountain on the left. This wall formed the boundary, or outer edge of a widely-extended mass of craijgv rocks .rising some twenty feet above the country over which they were spread. They lay, far as the eye could see, tossed in all tr.anner of confused shapes, like rocky waves with ragged summits, grown black with age, and had the appearance of a tempost-lost sea of molten iron, suddenly congealed in all its wild confusion. In conteiTiplating the probable force producing the phenomenon, it presen's the idea of the explosion of a mountain and the masses tumbling into their disorder. Ry night we arrived at the pretty town of Aguacatlan, of some five thousand inhabitants, having a fine plaza surrounded by shade trees, and a conspicuous ROJ.DS TRAVELLED ROUTES MODES OF TRAVELLING. 107 church and convent. The porada of Aguacatlan is one of nnore pretension than any on the route, having a large corridor in front, over which is announced, in large letters, " Here may be found every convenience for persons of good taste." The offices surrounding the court-yard were each labelled, and it was very grat>- ifying to notice over one, " Here the bread is made with the greatest cleanliness." On the following morning our route from Aguacatlan to Isdan lay for ten or twelve miles through the most fertile and best cultivated valley we had yet seen, and better covered with farm-houses and villages; still the culiivation is care- less, antique, and barbarous, the plough in use being no more than a sharpened log of wood. The afternoon of this day brought us to the Barrancas, the wildest and most picturesque scene on the whole route from the Pacific to the Atlantic. The barranca is a gorge several thousand feet deep, separating two ranges of mountains, and the descent is by a zig-zag road along the face of the left-hand range, with this tremendous gulf on the right ; the bottom of this gorge being reached, a Uttle advance shows that we are still on the summit of a mountain, for another opening of still greater depth appears on the left hand, the bottom of which has also to be reached. The road there continues in this deep and shady valley, along the banks of a rocky stream, and beneath overhanging precipices for some miles. In this wild and difficult pass, by some capricious impulse is seen the only evidence of national energy, or internal improvement which came under my notice. A broad, handsome, well-made, paved carriage-road is being cut from the face of the mountain, descending it in a succession of inclined planes, turning one upon another, and much of the road is already completed. Ascending from these shady depths by a precipitous road, we reached, a little after night, the miserable village, but good porada of Mochotitli. Leaving this village early in the morning, we entered upon the lonely, desolate table-lands of Mexico; but although uncheered by shrubbery or cultivation, we had the advantage of a good level road, which towards evening brought us rather sud- denly upon a different scene. From the brow of the elevated plain upon which we had been travelling, we looked down upon an extensive green valley, spread over with fields of the maguey plant, from which the brandy of the country is distilled. Immediately beneath us was the town of Tequila, with its houses and church domes shooting from amid groves of trees. Tequila, although constructed with handsome houses and regular streets, owed much of its effect to distance ; for, in passing through it, the appearance of the whole place was onn of poverty, dilapidation, and decay. Sleeping that night at the village of Amelatan, on the following morning, (Sunday,) May 10th, under a broiling sun, in clouds of dust, and amid troops of mules, at 11 o'clock we entered the truly beautiful city of Guadalaxara, but not without seeing something of the benighted policy, con- structed to faciUtate robbery, and sustain a rapacious soldiery, the system which scarce permits an article to move from one part of the country to another, without taxation. Although we had now advanced so far in the inferior, at the warita, or interior custom-house, one of our mules was selected to be unloaded, while a slovenly epauletted fellow — some Mexican general or colonel, undoubtedly^ overhauled the baggage to see that we were not smuggling. Had we really been loaded by contraband articles, it would have given us no annoyance, as he was only stationed there to make his living by taking bribes. However, we had no favours to ask, and did not chose to piy him to release us from the detention. Guadalaxara is a very showy city, of palace-like houses, and enormous churches ZLvA convents, covering many squares of the city ; concealing in their recesses a vast population lost to life and usefulness. Flowers and girdens seemed to be a prevalent taste, and the verandahs or iron balconies projecting from the second stories were so filled with vases of flowers as to give along the length of eleo^ant streets the appearance of hanging flower-gardens. A broad and shaded paseo extends for a mile and a half along one side of the city, and terminates in a 108 ROADS TRAVELLED IIOUTES — MODES it F TRAVELLING. handsome rose-hedged park and garden. Fountains of stone and bronze, bub- bling fortli clear cold water, are seen in every direction. But these are all rem- nants and splendours of the past — the present is in strong contrast. Povcny, vice, and wretchedness are its characteristics; beggars fortning the great popu- lation of the streets, and the prisons thronged with criminals of the vilest char- acter, and existing in the most disgusting filth. From Guadalaxara a line of diligences runs to Vera Cruz, and this line h worthy of all commendation. The conveyances are good Troy-built coaches ; the horses and mules are in fine order, and the coachmen possess great skill and dexterity. Originally, the coachmen were all Yankees ; but now they are Mex icans who have grown up on the road, and among ihe coaches and horses. The fondas (hotels) are regulated by a system extending along the whole route, pre- scribing what shall be given, and the hours of meals, and also regulating the charges. These rules also direct that every passenger shall be furnished with clean sheets and pillow-case, which no one has used, at every lodging-place on the route. The hours of travel are from three to four in the morning to the same hour in the afternoon. Leaving Guadalaxara at half-past three in the morning, our first day's jour- ney was over a desolate-looking rolling table-land, in many places rocky ; the soil was a stiff blue clay, here and there broken by the plough and ready for corn, but the general face of the country was covered by a short yellow dried grass. The road (thanks to Nature !) was generally good ; but where she had left any impediments, art had disdained to remove them; and in some places, for short distances, our strongly-built coaches had terrible encounters. Over thirty leagues of such a country, by 4 o'clock in the afternoon, we reached the wretched little hamlet of San Jose, and the diligence coming in the opposite direction not having arrived, we were compelled to await its arrival for dinner. The delay became unusual, and the sun was going down, leaving San Jose and the desolate country about it to the additional gloom of night, when the expected stage rattled into the court-yard ; one solitary passenger leaped from it, with his dress all loose and disordered ; his trunk being taken from the boot, he gave it a kick of ineffable disgust, and which betrayed its lightness and emptiness. While we had been awaiting his arrival to dinner, he had been lying under the coach with his mouth to the ground, and a carbine at his head, and a band of robbers had been appropriating his property ; they stripped him even to his sus- pender buckles, and asked what he was, where he was from, &c., concluding by beating him with their swords. The robbers — three in number — were masked. The minuteness of their inquiries caused us to feel somewhat appre- hensive, as, in case of their ascertaining our nationality, they might think they rendered the state some service by taking our lives ; and consequently no choice was left us but to fight in case of an attack. The Mexican servant accompany- ing us being called into the council expressed his willingness and ability to handle a gun. In addition to the arms in our possession, two fowling-pieces were obtained from the manager of the fonda ; and as it was more than proba- ble the robbers were from the village itself, and had their agents about us at this time, we gave some little publicity to our preparations. I discharged a Oolt's pistol, and reloaded it, in presence of this respectable public. Having made these preparations, and arranged our plan of defence, we started at four in the morning, and were upon the look-out, finger on trigger, for two or three hours ; after this our uneasiness somewhat subsided, and we made the day's journey safely, and to our own satisfaction, if not to that of the robbers. Through most of this day the country was very much the same as that of yesterday ; destitute of population, water, or any growth but the nopal, or prickly pear, and a few scattering acacias. Late in the afternoon it was quite refreshing to come upon a fine valley prairie, watered by a small stream, and covered with wheat-field* ROADS — TRAVELLED ROUTES — MODES OF TRAVELLING. 109 '•eady for the harvest. Our stopping-place for the night was a town of about eight thousand inhabitants, called Lagos, rather a neat place, with the usual share of enormous churches. From Lagos our road on the following morning continued through the same beautiful prairie and waving wheat-fields, upon which we had entered the preceding evening, and this was the character of the country until our arrival in the afternoon at the mining town of Guanajato. This city has a very picturesque situation, climbing up the sides and over the sum- mits of a range of hills ; the streets are exceedingly intricate and precipitous. For miles before reaching the city there are a succession of immense establish ments for reducing the metals from the ore. Viewed from one of the surround' ing elevations, it appears as though there was a separate town on each hill as far as the eye can see, the church crowning each summit. Here we sat down to table with some more unfortunate fellows, who had been robbed the preceding evening in the stage approaching us. In this case there were eight robbers ; and not feeling it to be necessary to go far, or take much trouble in the matter they iwbbed this stage in sight of the gates of the city of Queretero — a city of 20,000 inhabitants ; not even taking the precaution to mask themselves ; and one of the robbers on the following day, near the door of our hotel, asked a gentle- man whom he had relieved of his purse and watch, for the light of his cigar. No one acquainted with the country would take the responsibility of denouncing a robber ; to do so would take nothing from his impunity, and would insure the assassination of the informer. Soon after leaving Guanajato, we passed from^ the rugged mountain region in which it is situated, to a continuation of the fer- tile valley upon which we had been the preceding day, and continued along this our whole day's journey of forty leagues, to the handsome city of Queretero, passing on the way several pretty towns of five or six thousand inhabitants each. Just before reaching the town of Celayo, we fell in with a group of half-naked peasants, some on foot and some on donkeys, being driven in by a few Mexican soldiers to form part of the army destined for Matamoras. The stage stopped one day, being Sunday, in Queretero, and on the first night of our arrival the house of a curate nearly opposite to us was entered by a band of robbers, and stripped of all its portable valuables, with five thousand dollars in specie. As an evidence of the facilities of Mexican civilization in this handsome and populous city of Queretero, having occasion to receive six cents in change, I was compelled to take it in four cakes of white soap, the common currency of the country. Before leaving this city on Monday morning, we called a council of war to determine whether we should defend ourselves or yield, in case of an attack. There were eight of us, but one was a priest, the other an old man of seventy, two were invalids, and none would entertain for a moment the question of war. They had no arms ; we therefore laid ours aside and determined to submit quietly to any fate. We fortunately entered Mexico on the evening of the second day from Queretero without any interruption. (7.) Matamoras to Monterey and SaltiLo. For the following very interesting description of this route, and of the country through which it passes, we are indebted to Mr. Wm. P. Stapp, who was cap- tured by the Mexicans at Mier, in December, 1842, and in company with his ill-fated companions, was marched over this road, to Mexico, and thence to the castle of Perote. This route is now occupied by the invading army under Gen. Taylor. Leaving Matamoras, our route bore off for a few days in a northwesterly direction, through a level and fertile valley, interspersed with numerous beauti- ful ponds and lakes. We then struck the ascent to the central plains, or table- lands of Mexico, and continued our march at stages varying from twenty-fi" ■> > ■» 110 ROADS — TllAVKLLED ROUTES — MODES OF TRAVELLING. thirty-Sve miles a day, until having completed a distance of near two hundred miles, we reached the little village of Sacata, on the river San Juan. Three days' march from Sacata, brouglit us to Catareta, the most beautiful village wiiliir. the confines of Mexico. Perched upon an emerald knoll, swell- ing rently up from the river San Juan, which girds its base, its miniature forti- fications, steeples, towers, and surrounding gardens, lent it a witchery of look, that sunk upon all our souls with the magic of a fairy spell. It seemed we were not entirely unexpected either, as a band of delicious music met us at thf water's edge, and in strains of enchanting harmony, welcomed us through its massive archway. Its bells rung out their sweetest peals, whilst numerou.s rockjts careering through the air. kindlefl the very atmosphere above into a luminous blaze. In the midst of its m.irble square, a murmuring fountain sung untiring lullabies; and lofty pyramid.? distributed around, held groups of youth- ful pyrotechnics, as jocund and brilliant as the sparkling messengers they sent up. Fronting a rostrum overhung by a raised pavilion, was assembled a gay and holiday multitude, listening to an orator, who, in the purest Castillar/, and with the most graceful elocution, was there to welcome and congratulate our party. A heavy and unintermitted rain detained us in this village through the fol- lowing day and night, and on the morning of the 2Sth, we resumed our march for the neighbouring city of Monterey. The valley of Monterey, or the San Juan, as it is indifferently termed, through which we now pursued our way, is unsurpassed in the world for its fertility, the brilliancy and luxuriance of its vegetation, the salubrity of its cli- mate, and the picturesque character of its scener}^. Narrowing as it extends westward, its breadth, for near a hundred miles below Monterey, varies 'from fifteen to twenty miles, the lands sloping with the most gentle descent from the low mountain on either side to the river. From the sides of these hills burst innumerable springs of the most delicious water, furnishing convenient means of artificial irrigation during the protracted droughts to which these regions are subject. Here, in friendly neighbourhood, are to be found, the oak and the pecan tree, the plantain and the orange, the pine-apple and. banana, whilst fields of wheat and maize stretch down from the mountain's base, to extended plantations of sugar and maguey. The latter crops are by far the most profitable of any branches of agriculture pursued in Mexico. Many of the sugar estates are reputed to yield above a million of pounds of refined sugar, with molasses sufficient to pay the entire expenses of their cultivation, and the cost of preparing the crop for market. The cultivation of the maguey, (the Agave Americana,) from whose saccha- rine juices pulque is made, is still more extensively carried on, yielding enor- mous returns, and being besides indigenous to every variety of Mexican climate and elevation of soil. Whole tracts of country are to be found where the face of nature presents one unvaried field of this sharp and thorn-leafed plant. We continued our way along the banks of the river that intersects this beau- tiful valley, crossinof and re-crossing it at distances of every ten miles. Monterey (the city of the mountains) is the capital of New Leon, and amongst the largest towns in Eastern Mexico. It is an old Spanish city, and is situated on the head-waters of the San Juan, between two lofty inountains, built in a style of considerable taste and splendour, and cotitains between five and six thousand inhabitants. It is about 2SS miles from Mataraoras, and 200 from Camargo. Six miles from Monterey there is a splendid hot spring; and about twenty miles distant southwardly, three hundred yards from a large cave, there is a vein of solid silver in the rock, which the Mexicans get out, in small quantities, with a cold chisel. The silver is said to be pure — the vein is seen shining in the rock. POSITION AND ROUTE OF THE AMERICAN ARMY. HI Horses performing the journey from Matamoras to Monterey are deemed unfit for further service, so completely are their feet destroyed by the nature of the road ov-er which they pass — nor does shoeing protect them from this injury. In the summer season, the thermometer at Monterey ranges from 85 to 105 m the shade. It was in this city where Santa Anna, then a wayward cadet of sixteen, acquired his knowledge of military tactics, under Gen. Arredondo. The region round about is wild and romantic beyond description; bold and rugged hills towering peak above peak, whilst spread out along their base creep wooded and smiling valleys, robed in beauty and adorned with cultivation. At twelve miles' distance, the loftiest summit, fifteen hundred feet high, takes the name of the Camandie Saddle, from its striking resemblance to the peculiar form of that cavalry equipment in use amongst those Indians. To the south, in the same range of hills, is also to be seen the famous Puerto de los Muertos^ (or gate of the dead,) being a gloomy gorge or pass in the mountain, through which, alone, from Jalapa to Monterey, wheeled carriages can ascend from the coast to the table-land. Descending again into the beautiful valley of the Monte- rey, we continued up the river, passing through unfenced plantations on our route, walled in on either side by parallel ranges of mountains, that from, crag and cavern flung back the strains of our bugles in a thousand weird and mockinor echoes. A march of thirty miles brought us to Rinconada, a large ranch near the river San Juan, running up for several thousand acres into 'a cove in the mountains. On Sunday, the 5th of February, we entered Saltillo, a Heat and populous city, of some ten thousand inhabitants, situated in the extreme southern part of Coahuila, and on the head waters of the San Juan. The grounds in its imme- diate vicinity, with the numerous gardens of the city, are irrigated by beautiful fountains of water, springing up in various parts of the town. The valley here is broad and filled with the most luxuriant herbage, whilst at no great distance to the north, rise dreary mountains from the midst of desolate and barren-looking plains. Such contrasts of mountain and meadow, fertility and barrenness, beauty and deformity of landscape, are frequent in the Northeastern States of Mexico ; every diversified aspect of soil and production being found grouped within the narrovv^est compass. An antique and massive-looking church adorns the public square of Saltillo, and many private residences of size and pretension, indicate a high degree of opulence and taste in i\.s owners. POSITION AND ROUTE OF THE ABIERICAN ARMV. The plan of the city of Matamoras, which is at the present time (July, 1846) the head quarters of the American Army, under Gen. Taylor, is very similar to that of Savannah. The streets are not wide, but run at right angles, and there are several public squares,, which give an airy appearance to the place. Most of the houses are built of clay and twigs. The population was, in 1834, about seven thousand. Prior to that time a considerable trade in dry goods had been carried on with the interior towns, Durapgo, Monterey, &c., and with the Indians. In this business, several Americans have amassed considerable fortunes. Since 1834, the trade of the place has fallen off', and the population diminished. It is now mainly sustained by the income from the sale of cattle, hides, tallow, mules, wool, specie, &c. The ground in the rear of the «;ity is subject to inundation during the wet season to the depth of several feet. The water of the Rio Grande is very similar to that of the Mississippi. The soil is universally sandy. From iis loose nature, the river frequently changes its channel — but thirteen years ago the city of Matamoras bordered upon the river, now it is at the distance of nearly a mile from the city. General Taylor's head-quarters and staff occupy a very beautiful position. 112 POSITION AND ROUTE OF THE AMERICAN ARMY. The Rio Grande, after toucliing Matamoras at its western extremity, runs round and forms a beautiful curve, and approaches within five hundred yards of the principal square, tlie streets running straight down to the river, as they do at the western extreme, where it approaches very near the buildings. In this circle, about thirty paces from the bank, on the Matamoras side, under a lone tree, stands the tent of the hero of many battles. The waggon-road between Point Isabel and Matamoras, is impassable for loaded waggons during the wet season. A gentleman who passed on this road in July last, says that from the river to the Palo Alto, some nine miles, there was not altogether half a mile of head road. The mud was generally a foot deep, and in some places two or three feet deep, and there was at least four miles of water, in many places hardly fordable for horses. A friend who accompanied him, captured a gar fish on " six miles prairie," between the battle-fields, which Avas nearly three feet long. He h«.d passed over the sjme place four or five times when it was perfectly dry, with no appearance of hav- ing ever been overflowed. At the Resaca de la Palma, where a road passe? between the ponds, there was but one pond, and that deep enough any where for a respectable sized steamboat to pass through it. Two-thirds of the Palo Alto battle-field was at the same time covered with water. The first American naval officer who visited Matamoras officially by water, was Captain U. P. Levy, of the U. S. corvette Vandalia. He ascended the river in his barge, in June, 1840, much to the astonishment of the natives. The current was very rapid, and the crew in the barge had to land and tack boat up at several points, notwithstanding they had a fine wind and twelve oars. On the 18th of June last, the steamer Aid, with provisions, &c., for the troops stationed at Reynoso, made the first attempt to ascend the river above Mata- moras. Messrs. Mead and Wood, topographical engineers, accompanied her for the purpose of making a survey and map of the river. Reynoso, by the river, is 180 miles from Matamoras, and about 80 by land. The distance from Matamoras by Reynoso and China to Monterey is about 275 miles. This is the most direct road, but it is seldom travelled, because of the scarcity of water. By the way of Capadero, the distance is 300 miles, and this is the route gen- erally travelled. By the way of Mier and Saralvo, the distance is about 350 miles, Avith the inconvenience of crossing a very difficult ford or ferry at Ca- margo — the ascent of which, on crossing the St. John's, where the traveller again takes up with the road to Saltillo, is exceedingly steep and formidable. To arrive at Saltillo, the army must pass through Monterey — the road between the two places winding along a deep ravine, between two deep moun- tains, the sides of which are steep, and covered with rock. Thd width of the valley varies from one to two miles. The distance is 80 miles, and the pass can be obstinately defended by good troops, with ample means. There is one farm-house on the road called the " Ricenda." Waggons travel over the road, and there is an abundance of water, contained in a natural creek, which con- tinues along some distance near the road, and in artificial ponds. These lust could be drained by an enemy. Monterey is about 230 miles from Matamoras, and 200 from Camargo. There is only one village between Monterey and Ca- margo, which is 35 miles this side of the former, and is called Caidereta, but there are occasionally ranches along the road, and plenty of fresh beef, water and musquit wood. In one instance, however, it is some 20 to 27 miles between ■watering-places, which could be avoided by taking some new route. This road is level, and heavy for waggons in wet weather. The distance from Camarga to Mier is 24 miles. Camargo is three miles from the Rio Grande, on the Ria Sah Juan. From Camargo to Matamoras it is about 110 miles, and on tha.; enemy's side of the river the road is good for waggons, but on this side the road ' is not cut out all the way for waggons. INHABITANTS, POPULATION AND GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO. 113 CHAPTER VIII. INHABITANTS, POPULATION, AND GOVERNMENT OF MEXH^! INHABITANTS The inhabitants of Mexico are generally divided into seven distinct races, 'hough there are various definable and indefinable intermixtures of all these. The first class are the Europeans. The second race consists of the Creoles, or native whites of the European race. In these were found the titled nobility. The third race comprehends the Mestizos, or the offspring of whites and Indians. They are as numerous almost as the Indians. They are almost white. The fourth race is that of the Mulattoes, or the offspring of whites and negroes. The fifth race is that of the native Indians. The sixth comprehends the African negroes and their descendants. They have straight hair, are few in number, and a^e all either free or under the protection of laws whose eventual operation is to liberate them. The seventh race is the offspring of negroes and Indians, called Zamboes or Chinese. The Indians form about two-fifths of the whole population. They have not only survived the process of civilization, but their number is on the increase. There are now hardly any other classes of people than the rich and poor. The titled nobility were always Creoles, and were the highest. The lawyers, merchants, and shopkeepers, are next in influence. The most numerous, and lowest, is the disorderly rabble that infests the cities, especially Mexico, where there are 20,000, who beg, steal, and, as a last resort, work for a subsistence. They resemble the Lazzaroni of Naples, and live much in the open air. They are partially fed by the convents, which have charitable funds for the daily dis- tribution ef food to the poor. Of the number of the inhabitants we cannot speak with certainty, as no census has been taken recently. — All writers, however, agree that the population fairly estimated is about as represented in the following table, which presents a view of the population of the states and territories, together with their capitals. States. Chiapas - Yucatan Tabasco - Oaxaca Vera Cruz Puebla Mexico - Mechoacan Queretaro Guanaxuato XaJisco - Zacatecas San Luis Potosi New Leon - Tamaulipas Cohabuila - Chihuahua Durango Sonora and C naloa Federal District Population. Capitals. 93,000 Chiapas 500,000 Merida 75,000 Tabasco 600,000 Oaxaca - 200,000 Vera Cruz - 900,000 Puebla - 1,500.000 Tlalpan 450,000 Valladolid 200,000 Queretaro - 450,000 Guanaxuato 800,000 Guadalaxara 272,000 Zacatecas 250,000 San Luis Potosi 100,000 Monterey 150,000 Aguayo 125.000 Monclova 112,000 Chihuahua 175,000 Durango 180,000 Villa Fuerte . Mexico - Population. 3,000 10,000 5,000 40,000 30,000 70,000 6,000 25,000 40,000 60,000 60,000 25,000 40,000 15.000 6,000 3,000 30,000 25,000 ^,000 180,000 114 INHABITANTS, POPULATION AND GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO. Tlascala New Mexico Colima Upper California Lower California Territories. _ Tlascala 150,000 Santa Fe 150,000 Colima 25,000 Monterey 15,000 Loreto small town 3,500 small town 2,500 M. de Mofras, in speaking of the population of Upper California, says that in \S42, the whole population, (exclusive of Indians) was only 5,000, distributed thus : Californians descended from Spaniards - 4,000 Americans from the United States - - 360 English, Scotch, and Irish - - - 300 European Spaniards . _ - - 80 French (including Canadians) - - 80 Germans, Italians, Portuguese, Sandwich-Islanders, and others - . _ - - 90 Mexican colonists - - - - 90 Total, 5,000 To these were to be added, at that time, 300 convicts and soldiers who had just arrived with General Micheltorena. Of the foreigners, the Americans were particularly concentrated at Los An- geles and Branciforte, the English and Spaniards at Santa Barbara and Monterey, and the French at Los Angeles and Monterey. Among the English and Americans were many discharged or runaway sea- men ; but the bulk of the latter consisted of emigrants from the West, the number of whom must have increased greatly in the last few years. This population was distributed as follows : District of San Diego - - - - 1,300 Do. of Santa Barbara - . - 800 Do. of Monterey - - _ . 1,000 Do. of San Francisco . - > 000 Scattered over the country among the Missions - 1,100 Total, spread over a territory of about 2,000 square leagues ----- 5,000 • The population of the whole confederacy is estimated at present to be about 7,000,000 souls, including about 3,000,000 Indians, and as mixed breed. GOVERNMENT. The government of Mexico is intended to be republican, but the frequent politica changes which have taken place, renders a brief history of them somewhat necessary to a proper understanding of its present political condition. Her history is deeply interesting, and from it the world may glean many lessons of instruction. Our own country, now commencing a neio era, would do well to study it. Mexico was subdued by the Spaniards under Cortes, in 1521. Montezuma was at that time emperor, and fell in defence of his capital. The inhabitants were considerably advanced in civilization ; they were acquainted with the arts of working gold, silver, and copper, and with a kind of printing ; and their cities IiraABITANTS, POPULATION AND GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO. 115 were adorned with temples and palaces, and regulated by a police. The country continued a province of Spain till 1810, when an insurrection commenced in Durango, and after a variety of revolutionary movements, Inturbide, a Creole, caused himself to be proclaimed emperor, in 1822. His imperial sway was brief, as his empire was overthrown in the following year, and he was banished the country. In 1824, the Mexicans adopted a constitution modelled on that of the United Stales. This constitution was not, however, sufficient to prevent civil dissensions, and the sword was too often appealed to, to decide the claims of rival chiefs or factions. But it preserved a nominal existence until 1835, when it was abolished by a decree of congress, suppressing the state constitu- tions, and establishing a central government. Several of the states opposed this measure, and the inhabitants of Texas, who were desirous of forming a separate state, having had their requests rejected, refused to acknowlecge the new govern- ment, and established a provisional government for themselves. In the following spring, Santa Anna invaded Texas, and was defeated at San Jacinto, and made prisoner. After his return to Mexico, he remained upon his estate until 18.39, when he made an attack upon the French who landed at Vera Cruz, in which he lost his leg, but recovered his reputation, and in the fall of 1842, overthrew and banished Bustamente. The chiefs of the army then assembled at a little village near Mexico, and established a provisional government, until a new con- stitution could be formed, for which purpose members were elected. They assembled, and after a free discussion, were about to adopt d, federal constitution, but this created so much dissatisfaction throughout the republic, that the work of the convention was denounced, and the President closed its session. A new convention assembled, the members chiefly nominated by the President. They adopted a constitution which went into effect in 1844, a very good synopsis of which follows, as given by Mr. Thompson Slavery is forever prohibited. The liberty of the Press is guaranteed ; a guarantee, however ■> purely theoret- ical; it is no freer than in France, nor as free. Equally theoretical is the provision that no one shall be arrested but by the authority of law. No taxes are to be imposed but by the legislative authority. Pi'ivate property not to be taken for public use, but with just compensation. Mexicans to be preferred for public offices to strangers, if their qualifications are equal — a qualification, by the way, of this provision which neutralizes it. Persons who have attained the age of eighteen years, if married, are entitled to the rights of citizens ; if unmarried, twenty-one years ; and those who have an annual income of two hundred dollars, either from labour or the profits of capital. After the year 1850, those only are to exercise the privileges of a citizen who can read and write. By becoming a domestic servant, the privileges of a citizen are suspended ; so, also, pending a criminal prosecution — being an habitual drunkard or gam- bler, a vagrant or keeping a gaming-house. The rights of citizenship are lost by conviction of an infamous crime, or for fraudulent bankruptcy, or by malversation in any public- office. The legislative povirer is composed of a house of deputies and a senate, one ;ieputy for every seventy thousand inhabitants ; a supernumerary deputy shall be elected in all cases to serve in the absence of the regular deputy. The age prescribed for members of Congress is thirty years. They must have an annual income of twelve hundred dollars. One half of the members to be re-elected every two years. The Senate is composed of sixty-three members, two-third? of whom are to be elected by the departmental assemblies, the other third by the House of 116 INHABITANTS, rorULATION AND GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO. Deputies, tlie President of the Republic, and the Supreme Court; each depart- ment to vote for twenty-three persons, and those having the highest number of votes of the aggregate of all the departmental assemblies are elected Senators. The judges of the Supreme Court and the President shall v He in like manner for the remaining third ; and out of the names thus voted /or by each of those departments of the government, the House of Deputies selects the proper num- ber' (twenty-one.) The first selection of this third of the Senators to be m:ido by the President alone. The President of the Republic and Judges of the Supreme Court are required to vote only for such persons as have distinguished themselves by important public services, civil, military, or ecclesiastical. Amongst others disqualified from being elected members of the House of Depvtties are the Archbishops, Bishops, and other high Ecclesiastical officers. The Senators elected by the Departments are required to be five agricultu- rists, and the same number of each of the following occupations — miners, mer- chants, and manufacturers ; the remainder to be elected from persons who have filled the office of President, Minister of State, Foreign Minister, Governor of a Department, Senator, Deputy, Bishop, or General of Division. The age of a Senator is thirty-five years, and an annual income of two thousand dollars is required. One-third of the Senate to be renewed every three years. All laws must originate in the House of Deputies. All treaties must be approved by both Houses of Congress. Congress has a veto upon all the decrees of the Departmental Assemblies which are opposed to the Constitution or the laws of Congress. Congress are forbidden to alter the laws laying duties on imports which are intended for the protection of domestic industry. No retrospective law or laws impairing the obligations of contracts to be passed. The Senate to approve the President's nomination of foreign ministers, con- suls, and of officers in the army above the rank of Colonel. Members of Congress not to receive executive appointments except with cer- tain limitations, amongst which is the consent of the body to which they belong. The other powers of Congress are pretty much the same as in our own and other popular Constitutions. The President must be a native of the country, and a layman, and hold his office for the term of five years. It is made his duty to supervise the courts of justice, and he may prescribe the order in which cases shall be tried. He may impose fines not exceeding five hundred dollars upon those who disobej'' his lawful commands. Certain large powers are conferred upon him in relation to Concordats, Bulls, Decrees, and other ecclesiastical matters. He possesses a very qualified veto upon the acts of Congress. He may call an extra session of Congress, and prescribe the only subjects to be considered. He cannot exercise any military command without the consent of Congress. He cannot leave the Republic during his term of office, nor for one year after its expiration, but with the consent of Congress, nor go more than six leagues from the Capital, without the like permission. He can in no case alienate, exchange or mortage any portion of the territory of the Republic. All his acts must be approved by the Secretary of tho Department to which it properly belongs. He cannot be prosecuted criminally except for Treason against the national independence or the form of government established by the Constitution during his term of office, nor for one year afterwards. During the temporary absence of the President, his functions devolve upon the President of the Senate ; if his absence continues longer than fifteen days a President ad interim shall be elected by the Senate. The other grants of power to the Executive seem to be pretty much copied from our own Constitution. The different Secretaries mav attend the Sessions of either branch of Con- INHABITANTS, POPTTLATION AND GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO. 117 gres. ., whenever required by them, or so ordered by the President, to give any explinations which maybe desired. The Secretaries are responsible for all acts of the President in violation of the Constitution and laws which they may have approved. The Council of the President consists of seventeen members selected by him- self. These Councillors must be thirty-five years old, and have served at least lea years without intermission in some public station. The Judges of the Supreme Court must be forty years old. The government may be impleaded in this Court by any individual (I think a wise and just provision) ; as may also the Archbishops and Bishops in particular cases. A permanent court martial is also organized, composed of Generals and law- yers, appointed by the President. Each Department has an assembly of not more than eleven, nor less than seven members. Their powers are to impose taxes for the use of the Depart- ment ; establish schools and charitable institutions ; make roads and keep them in order ; arrange the mode of raising troops which may be required of the De- partment ; establish corporations ; superintend the police, and encourage agri- culture ; propose laws to the Congress, and fit persons to the President for the office of Governor of the Department (from the persons thus recommended, the President, except in extraordinary cases, must make the selection,) establish judicial tribunals for their Departments, with many other powers of a similar character, and constituting the assembly a sort of state legislature, with juris- diction of matters appertaining strictly to the Department. The whole Republic is divided into sections of five hundred inhabitants. Each of these sections selects by ballot one elector. These electors in turn elec\ others in the ratio of one for every twenty of the electors thus primarily elected. These last constitute the electoral college of the Department, which again elect the deputies of the general Congress, and the members of the Departmental assembly. All persons who have attained the age of twenty-five years are eli- gible as primary electors. The secondary electors must also have an income of five hundred dollars a year. On the first of November preceding the expiration of the term of office of the President, each of the Departmental assemblies is required to meet and cast their votes for his successor. A majority of the votes of this assembly decides the vote of this Department. On the second day of Januaiy both houses of Congress assemble together and declare the election. If no one has received the votes of a majority of the Departments, the two houses of Congress make the election from the two who have received the greatest number of votes. If more than two have an equal number of votes, ihe election is made from those who have received such equal number. If one has received a high number, and two others have received a less and equal num- ber of votes. Congress selects by ballot one of these last to compete with him who has received a high number. This election is required to be finished in a a single session. In cases of a tie a second time in these elections, the choice is to be made by lot. Punishments shall in no case extend to confiscatjgn of property, or to attainder. No cruel punishment shall be inflicted in capital cases, only such as are neces- sary to take life. The Judges are responsible for any irregularities or mistakes in their official proceedings. They hold their offices for life. Am.endments of the Constitution to be made by a vote of two-thirds of hot): branches of Congress. The Catholic religion is established to the exclusion of all others. Most oi the other provisions of the Constitution seem to be almost exactly copied fron that of the United States. ^Ig THEARMY CHAPTER IX. THE A R M V . The unsettled state of Mexico, and the rapid succession of its political revo- lutions, have prevented the collection of statistical information of every sort ; a census of the country has not been taken since the revolution in 1810, not even for the purpose of arranging the ratio of representatives in Congress. It is there- fore impossible to give a correct statistical view of the Army and Navy. In 1827, Mr. Ward, the British Charge, had recourse to the public documents, and from them, gave the condition of the military and naval force of that period. Mexico was then divided into eighteen military districts, each under the order of a Commandant, who received his instructions from the Minister of War. The whole military force for that year, consisted of 58,955 men, of whom 32,161 were actually under arms; the remainder ready to be called out should their services be required. The troops of the line were composed of twelve battalions of Infantry, each of 823 men, (full war compliment, 1,223) ; twelve regiments of Cavalry, each of 559 men, (war compliment, 815) ; ,.and three brigades of Artillery, of 1,767 men in all. In addition to these, there were thirty-four Presi- dial companies, consisting entirely of Cavalry, and employed, principally, in the protection of the northern frontier ; and eleven companies of local Infantry and Cavalry, distributed upon different points of the coast. The first consisted of 3,317 men in all ; the second of 1,120; making a grand total of 22,788 regular troops under arms. Mexico possesses only five fortresses, St. Juan de Ulloa, Campeche, Perote, Acapulco, and San Bias — most of them in a state of decay. The following table, made up from the Government Report, exhibits the quan- tity of arms of all kinds, in the public magazines, or distributed among the troops. Most of the muskets, sabres, pistols, and lances, were purchased in 1824, and are in good order. The brass artillery are all of Sp'anish manufacture, and beautiful ; but many of the iron guns, twenty years ago, were unfit for service ; but since that time large additions have been made to their military stores: — QUANTITY OF ARMS IN POSSESSION OF THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT IN 1827. Brass cannon of different calibres _ _ _ 308 Iron do do - - - - 456 Brass culverines -.-__- 35 Mortars _.._-.- 17 Corranades, &c. _---__ 93 Cannon balls of from 36 to 6 - - - 210,145 Rounds of grape --_._. 19,913 Shells 38,644 Muskets 111,564 Rifles - - 2,000 Carbines - 15,280 Pistols (pairs) - 8,000 Sabres, &c. 26,500 Lances 6,000 Ball cartridges 3,701,113 Of the present actual condition of the military force of Mexico, we cannot for the reasons already stated, speak with any degree of accuracy; we must rely upon the personal observation of intelligent writers, whose residence in Mexico has given them some knowledge of its military and naval affairs. THE ARMY. ' H9 In 1840, according to Mr. Mayer, the Mexican Army was composed of 14 Generals of Division, 26 Generals of Brigade. Artillery — 3 Brigades, on hot, 1 do. mounted ; 5 separate companies. Engineer Corps — 1 Director Genc-ral, 3 Colonels, 6 Lieutenant Colonels, 1 Adjutant, 14 Captains, 16 Lieutenants, 10 sub-Lieutenants. Sappers — 1 Battalion. Permanent Infantry — 8 Regiments of 2 battalions each, each battalion of 8 companies, each company of 112 men, officers included— or, in all, 14,336 persons; each soldier is paid $11,93 3-4 per month. Active Infantry — 9 Regiments ; this body differs from the preced- ing, in being liable to service only when required by Governmeni, or in other words, it is a sort of national militia, well drilled. Total number, 16,128' Permanent Cavalry — 8 Regiments, each regiment composed of 2 squadrons, each squadron of 2 companies ; each regiment composed in all of 676 men — or the 8 of 4,056 men, under a nominal pay of 812,50 per month ; 35 separate compa- nies in various places throughout the Republic. Active Cavalry — 6 Regiments, of 4 squadrons, each squadron of 2 companies. The whole force amounting to about 40,000 : this has been increased since 1840, and is now estimated at 50,000. Each officer and soldier is his own commissary, no rations being issued. From a work, written by M. Duflot de Mofras, entitled " Exportation du Ter- ritoire de I'Or^gon, des Californies, et de la Mer Vermeille," and lately published ■in Paris, by order of the French King, under the auspices of the President of the Council, (Marshal Soult), and of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, (M. Guizot), we make the following interesting extract : — " The Mexican army is recruited in part by the/iid of countrymen and Indi- ans torn by force from their villages, and in part among the criminals shut up in the prisons and penitentiaries. I was myself informed by a Mexican colonel at Guadalajara, that, in order to supply the place of deserters, he had caused the eight hundred malefactors in the public prison to be paraded before him by squads, in order to choose from among them the best-looking and most robust men. This being done in the first place, he then inquired of each one the length of his punishment, and a convict, for instance, who had been condemned to imprisonment at hard labour for ten years, had the residue of his punishment remitted, on condition of his serving five years in a regiment. What could be •expected from such soldiers ? In Europe, the military uniform is, for him who wears it, an honourable distinction. The army is purified constantly by turning over the criminals to penitentiary establishments. In Mexico, the difference between the galley-slave and the soldier is almost null, since, as we see, thfl regiments are filled up by means of miserable bandits. " Desertion cannot fail to be very great in an army where no military disci- pline is exercised, where no authority is respected : the countrymen escape and regain their farms, while the malefactors rejoin their bands, or hide themselves in the suburbs of the cities. " In spite of the efforts of the new President (Santa Anna) to augment the military resources of Mexico, he has only succeeded thus far, in forming an effective force of twenty thousand soldiers, in rags, barefoot in great part, and armed with bad English muskets. " The regiments of infantry are commonly composed of two battalions, and are commanded by a colonel. Each battalion, under the orders of a lieutenant- colonel, and frequently of an honorary colonel, is at the most of three hundred men, and many of them do not count one hundred and fifty. The companies, of twenty-five to thirty men, have for commander a lieutenant-colonel or major, to whom are joined a captain, two lieutenants, and two sub-lieutenants, that is to say, one officer for four soldiers. There are the same disproportions and the same disorders in the cavalry, and squadrons of fifty men include six or seven officers , 120 THE ARMY. " The artillery would find it difficult to assemble thirty field-pieces, mounted and of the same calibre: as to siege, hill, and coast batteries, workmen, bridge- equipages, and artillery-train, they are things wholly unknown. Almost all th© powder, even, has to be bought in the United Slates or in England. " The engineer-arm, which is quite on a level with the artillery in regard to materiel, is composed of a battalion of two hundred men in garrisojn at Matamo- ras, and of a company occupying the barracks, ridiculously called the citadel of Mexico." " It will be perceived, that, judging from the number and composition of the etat-i-majors, the Mexican army ought to exceed that of all Europe united ; for though it has hardly twenty thousand soldieisM counts twenty-fo2ir thousand officers. " Besides, if mere individual courage is not wanting either to officers or soldiers, still it is not sustained by that ardour of patriotism, which enables men to bear up patiently under suflerings, privations, and reverses, and facilitates the greatest achivements." " Composed of six (seven) millions of inhabitants, Mexico is subjected to the intrigues of six or seven thousand officers ; and * * * this beautiful country, so prosperous and so opulent when it was called New-Spain, is now crushed beneath a military despotism. " At every point of the Mexican territory, the magnificent works of fortifica- tion, erected at great cost by the Spaniards, are falling into ruins. The frontiers of the North are stripped, and the northern provinces wasted by hordes of savages, who advance to within thirty leagues of the city of Mexico." Hon. Waddy Thompson, our late Mexican minister, in speaking of the Mexi- can army, says that they are generally collected " by sending out recruiting detachntents into the mountains, where they hunt the Indians in their dens and caverns, and bring them in chains to Mexico ; there is scarcely a day that droves of these miserable and more than half naked wreiches are not seen thus chained together, and marching through the streets to the barracks, where they are scoured, and then dressed in a uniform made of linen cloth or of serge, and are occasionally drilled, which drilling consists mainly in teaching them to march in column through the streets. Their military bands are good, and the men learn to march indifferently well, but only indifferently well; they put their feet down as if they were feeling for the place, and do not step with that erect and graceful air which is so beautiful in well-drilled troops. As to the wheelings of well-trained troops, or the prompt and exact execution of other evolutions, they know nothing about them. There is not one in ten of these soldiers who has ever seen a gun, nor one in a hundred who has ever fired one before he was brought into barracks. It is in this way that the ranks of the army are generally filled up. In particular emergencies the prisons are thrown open, which always contain more prisoners than the I'^my numbers, and these felons become soldiers, and some of them officers. Their arms, too, are generally worthless English muskets, which have been condemned and thrown aside, and are purchased at a low rate by the Mexican government. Their powder, too, is equally bad ; in the last battle between Santa Anna and Bnstamente, which lasted the whole day, not one cannon ball in a thousand reached the enemy; they generally fell about half way between the opposing armies." The Rancheros form an important part of the Mexican cavalry, and in the late contest on the Rio Grande, they bore a conspicuous part ; among their achievements was the murder of Col. Cross, before active hostilities comtnenced between the two armies. "Ran(;heros" is an appellation derived from their occupation and mode of life, and is common to a similar class of men who sub- ■sist on the pampas of South America, half Indian and half Spanish in their extraction, gaunt, shrivelled, though muscular in their frames, and dark and Hwarthy-visaged as they are, these men are the Arabs of the American continerxt THE A . 121 Living half of the time in the saddle, for they are unrivalled horsemen, with lasso in hand they traverse those vast plains in search of the buflalo and wild horse, who roam them in countless herds. The killing- of these animals, and the preparation and pale of their hides, is their solo means of livelihood, other than occasionally lending a helping hand to some of the partisans in the civil wars that are being continually waged around them. Their costume generally consists of a pair of tough hide leggins with sandals of the same material bound together with leathern thongs, over which is a blanket with a hole in the centre large enough to allow the head to be thrust out, and which falls not ungracefully over their shoulders, leaving ample room for the play of their arms. Add to this a broad straw sombrero, and the lasso hanging at his saddle-pummel, and you have the Ranchero as he appears in the time of peace, or in the pursuit of his occupation. Join to this a long lance with a sharp spear head, ornamented with a strip of red bunting, on a horse as savage and unmanageable as himself, and his belt plentifully supplied with pistols and knives, and you have the Ran- chero as a member of the troop of banditti, or as a soldier in a body of cavalry. Cowardly as they generalFy are in the open field, yet in a conflict among the chapparels of Mexico, or in an ambuscade, they are indeed a formidable enemy. Their power of enduring fatigue is almost inexhaustible, and a scanty meal per diem of jerked beef and plantain suffices them during months. Such are the Rancheros, and under disciplined control they would be rendered the best light troops in the world. These are the men who comprise the great body of the Mexican cavalry, and they are to the armies of that nation what the Cossacks are to the Russians — ever on the alert, never to be surprised, and untiring in the pursuit of the foe when plunder, no matter how trifling, i§ to be obtained. Such is the condition and character of the Mexican army ; but notwithstanding the materials of which it is composed, it contains some men as brave as ever fought upon a battle field. The gallant manner in which they conducted them- selves in the recent battles on the Rio Grande, has given the American people a high estimate of Mexican valour. All accounts represent the Mexicans as having fought, on the 8th and 9th of May last, with the courage and desperation which would have reflected credit on the troops of any nation. They were nearly in a state of starvation, and had been promised the ample supplies of the American camp, in case they should secure the victory. They met the charge of our troops manfully, and stood the destructive fire pouring in upon them without giving way, until the works were encumbered with the dead and wounded ; but notwithstanding their bravery, Mexicans cannot contend successfully against the superior skill and scientific knowledge of our officers, nor against the perfect discipline of our troops ; there^ fore, in all contests with American soldiers, they must be defeated. I T H E N A V Y . When the Spanish troops, after being driven from the capital and contment, occupied the castle of San Juan d'Ulloa, the necessity of driving them from this last stronghold, and the impossibility of effecting it without a naval force, induced the government to purchase six gunboats and two sloops of war in the United States, which, with one brig and two launches on the Pacific side, constituted, in 1823, the whole navy of Mexico. During the siege of the castle, which continued until November, 1825, this force gradually increased ; until, in 1827, it consisted of one ship of the line, two frigates, one corvette, four brigs, one schooner, four gunboats, four large launches, and two pilot boats. With a squadron composed of such materials. Com Porter attempted to blockade Ha- vana, but he was unable to keep the sei moment before Admiral Labordc' ' 122 REVENUt KtSOUKCtiS E\l'ivNiJiiTTK,ES — PUBLIC DEBT. squadron, and was forced to talce refuge in Key "West, whence he did not extri- cai ■> liiinself for some time. The present effective force consists of the steamer Guadalupe, 778 tons, two 68 shell gunfj, four of 12, and a machine for rockets ; steamer Montezuma, 1100 tons, one 63 shell gun, two long 32's, two 32 pound gunnades, two 32 pound carronades, and a machine for rockets; brig Mexican, one shell gun of 12, and fourteen gunniides of IS; brig Vera Cruzana Libre, one shell gun of 32, six gunnades of 18, and 12 pound carronades ; brig Tempoalteca, six carronades of 12 ; schooner Eagle, one shell gun of 32, and six 18 pound carronades ; schooner Liberty, one shell gun of 12 ; schooner Morelos, one shell gun of 12 ; and four gunboats, each mounting a long 24 pounder on a pivot. All these vessels are stated to be deficient in men ; and, with the exception of the two steamers and gunboat!, require repairs before they would be able to put to sea. It is uncertain whether the steamers Guadalupe and Montezuma now actually belong to the Mexican government. It is said that they were given as security by the Mexican government to an English firm in Vera Cruz, Messrs. M'Intosh tte Manning, for a loan of between 500 and $600,000. This firm having posses- sion of them, and being desirous of protecting their own interests, took advantage of the absence of the American squadron under Com. Conner, to send them to Havana, a neutral port, v/here they arrived under British colours on the 24th of May last. CHAPTER X. REVENUE, RESOURCES, EXPENDITURES, AND PUBLIC DEBT. The Revenue of Mexico is derived from duties on imports and exports : from imposts on internal commerce, from direct taxation, from the post office, stamped paper, tobacco, lotteries, cockpits, and playing cards ; from the excise on ice and pulque, which is the common beverage of the people, and from other sources of trifling importance. The tariff of du'ies on imports is constantly changing, but always high. A few years ago, the duty on all goods not prohibited, was 25 per cent, ad valorem ; on most articles, the value was fixed by the tariff, the residue was to be valued by appraisers. Tobacco, in leaf, snuffi and segars, paid a duty of $2 a pound. Raw cotton, cotton yarn below No. 60, cotton tapes, and twist, wrought wax, macaroni, vermicelli, gold, silver, and silk lace, and a few other articles, weitj entirely prohibited. The articles which may be imported freQ of duty are as follows : Scientific and surgical instruments, quicksilver, all unbound books, except those contrary to the Catholic religion, which are strictly prohibited, drawings, paintings, sculpture, models and designs for teaching different arts, useful machinery, printed or manuscript music, exotic seeds or plants, flax, raw or manufactured, and a few other articles. All produce of the country may be exported free of duty except cochineal, vanilla, gold, and silver. In 1840, (according to Mr. Mayer, who had recourse to the best sources of" information,) the revenues are stated, in the report of the minister of the treasury. as follows : Total $12,744,157 or the years ' 1841 and 1842. Tonnage Duty Net Proceeds. $31,032 $3,374,528 - 7,363 1,019,046 3,525 279,627 - 6,245 397,213 2,092 46,189 810 85,982 573 7,193 2,719 190,270 REVENTTE RESOURCES EXPENDITURES- -PUBLIC DEBT. 123 Net proceeds, after deducting expenses of coUectioa Imposts on foreign commerce - - $7,115,849 Do. on interior - - - _ 4,306,585 Do. on property, income, &c. - 466,061 Exchanges, &c. - - - - 307,427 Creditos actives - - - - 3,309 Balances of accounts - - - - 355 Enteros de productos liquidos - - 452,146 Extraordinary subsidy . - _ 103 Arbitrio estraordinario - - - 78,177 Capitacion - - _ - _ 483 Donations - . - . 13,662 Custom Houses. Vera Cruz - Tampico * Matamoras Mazatlan Guayamas Monterey Acapulco San Bias - Total, $55,259 $5,399,948 ■ Reports from the other custom-houses of the republic had not been received. A very large revenue is derived from internal commerce, as every article of commerce passing from one department to another, provided it has been opened, pays a heavy tax. The duty on money, for example, sent from Mexico to Vera Cruz to be exported, is five per cent., besides the six per cent, duty for its ex- portation. In 1840, the revenue from this source amounted to four millions and a half. Direct taxation is another fruitful source of revenue, for every thing is taxed, " from the splendid palaces, coaches, and plate of the wealthy, to the dozen eggs which the poor Indian brings to market." A large revenue is received from the product of the mines, as it receives about five per cent. The government enjoys a monopoly of the tobacco trade, the net proceeds of which is equal to about $600,000 per annum. The culture of tobacco is pro- hibited, except in the districts of Orizaba and Cordova, where it is limited to a certain number of acres. The tobacco thus produced, is sold to the government agents at a stated price, much below its real value, and by tkem manufactured into segars and snuff, and sold at a large profit. The Indians bring ice upon their backs from the mountains, a distance of some forty miles from Mexico, from which the government derives a large revenue, some years amounting to $50,000. A very considerable amount of revenue is received from special licenses given to merchants or private companies to import articles prohibited by law, for which a stipulated sum is paid. The following, although not pretending to minute accuracy, may be regarded as in some degree an approximation to a correct estimate of the present revenues of the government, and the sources from which they are derived. J04 KKVENUE RESOURCE? EXPENniT0RES PUB[/. ( DEBT. From maritime custom-houses - - $6,500,000 Tnlerior commerce .... 4.500,000 Direct taxes - - , - - 3,000,000 Per centagc on produce of mines - - 1,000,000 Profits of Mints . . - . 500,000 Tobacco monopoly . _ - 500,000 Post office, lotteries, manufactures of powder and salt - - - - 500,000 Tolls and all other sources - - 500,000 Total, $16,000,000 It is proper to add to this amount the taxes levied by the different departments which may be stated at four millions more, making an aggregate of twenty-one millions, to which an addition should be made of five or ten millions more, which is paid, but embezzled, and therefore does not find its way into the public treasury. In 1803, according to Mr. Poinsett, the government received for the sale of playing cards, $120,000; from cockpits, $45,000; for the sale of Papal indul- gences, $270,000 ! In 1829, the revenues amounted to $11,215,848. The income from the post office, was $178,738. In 1840, the lotteries produced $215, 437 ; the cost of iiifinaging them as $158,485, leaving a balance of $56,952. Expenses of the Government. In 1833, according to the report of the secretary of the treasury, the expenses amounted to $22,392,508. Of this sum, $16,466,121 was devoted to the army. In 1840, the whole expenses were $13,155,922; of the army, $8,000,000. The restrictions placed upon commerce, both internal and external, have given rise to an immense amount of smuggling, which the republic has no power to prevent; as the reader will at once perceive, when he learns the fact, that Mexico possesses a frontier of five thousand miles on the Pacific, three thou- sand miles on the United States and Texas, and above two thousand five hundred miles on the Gulf of Mexico ; making in all ten thousand five hundred miles of frontier to guard against illicit trade, without scarcely an individual on the whole space to give notice of any depredation that may happen. Public Belt. The public debt of Mexico is at the present time quite formidable. In 1841, Mr. Mayer says it was $84,150,000. Mr. Thompson gives it, in 1844, as a little less than $100,000,000 ; and as they are now engaged in the third war since that period, it is safe to say that the public debt is now more than $100,000,000. In 1842, the internal debt amounted to $18,550,000 ; for the payment of which the customs were mortgaged, and was to be paid in the following subdivisions : 17 per cent, of the customs devoted to a debt of $2,040,000 15 do. do. do. 410,000 12 do. do. do. 2,100,000 10 do. do do. 3.100,000 8 do. do. do. 1,200,000 10 do. do. Tobacco fund debt 9,700,000 16 2-3 do. Interest on English debt 10 do. Garrison fund 98 2-3 $18,550,000 1 1-3 balance, clear of lien, for the government ! 100 THE CHURCH ITS WEALTH AND INFLtJENCE. 125 The lureign debt is still larger ; and including the .ibove, the entire national responsibility, as it existed at the end of 1842, was as foliovvs : Internal debt - - - - |18,.550,000 Debt to English creditors - - 60,000,000 United claims and interest, say - - 2,400,000 Copper to be redeemed - - 2,000,000 Claims for Hilazo - - - 700,000 Bustamente loan _ . _ 500,000 $84,150,000 CHAPTER XL THE CHtTRC H 1 TS WEALTH A NB INFLUENCE. The Roman Catholic is the religion of Mexico, and is established by the constitution, to the exclusion of all others. The ecclesiastical establishment eonsists of one archbishop, (that of Mexico,) and nine bishoprics ; namely those of La Puebla, Guadalajara, Valladolid, Durango, Monterey, Oajaca, Yucatan, Chiapa, and Sonora. All of these, except Sonora, have cathedral churches and chapters, which, with the collegiate chapter of Guadaloupe, (in the environs of the capital,) contain 1S5 prebendaries and canonries, formerly in the gift of the king. The number of parishes is about 1200. In 1802, the number of eccle- siastics in the country, both secular and regular, was estimated at 10,000, or at 13,000, including the lay-brothers of convents, and other subordinates of the church. The secular clergy was composed of about 5000 priests ; the regulars, wearing the habits of different orders, of nearly an equal number, of whom 2500 resided in the convents of the capital alone. It appears from reports presented to the Mexican congress in 1826 and 1827, by the minister for ecclesiastical affairs, that the number of the secular clergy in 1826, was estimated at 3473, and in 1S27, at 3677. The regular clergy was divided into fourteen provinces, possessing 150 convents, which contained in all, 1918 friars. The following table shows the situation and number of convents, and othe-*- particulars, derived from the reports of the Mexican minister : Situation of Convents. Dominicans — Mexico 10 123 15 8 6 2. 18 Puebla 6 42 4 4 — 2 — Oaxaca 5 50 13 11 2 9 — CiudadReal 4 44 7 7 — 9 — Franciscans — Mexico 34 532 116 64 20 2 33 Queretaro 15 162 86 33 9 3 8 Potosi 11 125 20 12 8 4 19 Guadalajara 7 128 28 17 1 2 23 Merida 1 61 — — — 3 — 12<> THE CHURCH ITS WEALTH AND INFLUENCE. Augnstins — Mexico 11 143 49 18 12 2 Salamanca 11 92 34 28 4 2 Carmelites — Mexico 16 224 50 19 11 Mercedarians — Mexico 19 192 40 26 14 — 150 1918 462 247 87 40 101 There were at the same period six colleges in Mexico for the propagation of the faith, distributed as follows : Number of Number of Where. Religious. ]>Iission8. Mexico 66 21 Upper California. Queretaro 56 9 Sonora. Pachuca 42 9 Cohahuila and ) Tamaulipas. \ Orizava 35 Zacatecas 83 22 Las Tarahum- ) aras and Texas. ) Zapopan 25 307 61 The salaries of the bishops, in 1802, were supposed to be as follows The Archbishop of Mexico - - - $130,000 The Bishop of Puebla - - - . 110,000 100,000 - 90,000 35,000 - 80,000 20,000 - 18,000 6,000 Do. Valladolid Do. Guadalajara Do. Do. Do. Durango Monterey- Yucatan Do. Oaxaca - Do. Sonora Total, $439,000 The value of the church property is estimated at ninety millions of dcOaw according to the annexed valuation : — Real property in town and country - - $18,000,000 Churches, houses, convents, curates, dwellings, furniture, jez/W^, precious vessels, &c. - 52,000,000 Floating capital — together with other funds — and the capital required to produce the sura received by them annually in alms - 20,000,000 Total $90,000,000 This estimate, large as it is, is undoubtedly too small ; no one pretends to know the value of the coin, jewels, and ornaments, belonging to the various churches ; which have been accumulating ever since the estai)lishment of the Catholic religion ; and their real estate is constantly increasing. They own very many of the finest houses in Mexico and other cities (the rents of which THE CHURCH ITS WEALTH AND INFLUENCE. 127 must be enormous), besides valuable real estates all over the Republic. Almotjt every person leaves a bequest in his will for masses for his soul, which consti- tute an incumbrance upon the estate, and thus nearly all the estates of the small proprietors are mortgaged tO' the church. The property held by the church in mortmain is estimated at fifty millions. Mexico is the only country where the church property remains in its untouched entirety. Some small amount has been recently realized from the sale of the estates of the banished Jesuits ; but, with that exception, no President, however hard pressed (and there is no day in the year that they are not hard pressed), has ever dared to encroach upon that which is regarded consecrated property, with the exception of Gomez Farrias, who, in 1834, proposed to the legislative chambers to confiscate all the church property, and the measure would, no doubt, have been adopted, but for a revolution which overthrew the administration. Mr. Thompson says that he has heard intelligent men in Mexico express the opinion that one-fourth of the property of the country was in the hands of the priesthood, and instead of diminishing, it is constantly increasing. That the reader may have some idea of the magnificence and richness of the Mexican churches, we will transfer to our pages, the Hon. Waddy Thompson's description of the Cathedral at Mexico : — " The Cathedral, which occupies the site of the great idol temple of Monte- zuma, is five hundred feet long by four hundred and twenty wide. Like all the other churches in Mexico, it is built in the Gothic style. The walls, of several feet thickness, are made of unhewn stone and lime. Upon entering it, one is apt to recall the wild fictions of the Arabian Nights ; it seems as if the wealth of empires was collected there. The clergy in Mexico do not, for obvious rea- sons, desire that their wealth should be made known to its full extent ; they are, therefore, not disposed to give very full information upon the subject, or to exhibit the gold and silver vessels, vases, precious stones, and other forms of wealth ; quite enough is exhibited to strike the beholder with wonder. The first object that presents itself on entering the cathedral is the altar, near the centre of the building ; it is made of highly-wrought and highly-polished silver, and covered with a profusion of ornaments of pure gold. On each side of this altar runs a balustrade, enclosing a space about eight feet wide and eighty or a hundred feet long. The balusters are about four feet high, and four inches thick in the largest part ; the hand-rail from six to eight inches wide. Upon the top of this hand-rail, at the distance of six or eight feet apart, are human images, beautifully wrought, and about two feet high. All of these, the balustrade, hand-rail, and images, are made of a compound of gold, silver, and copper — more (Valuable than silver. I was told that an offer had been made to take this balus- trade, and replace it with another of exactly the same size and workmanship, of pure silver, and to give half a million of dollars besides. There is much more of the same balustrade in other parts of the church ; I should think, in all of it, not less than three hundred feet. «' As you walk through the building, on either side there are diferent apart- ments, all filled, from the floor to the ceiling, with paintings, statues, vases, huge candlesticks, waiters, and a thousand other articles, xnade of gold or silver. This, too, is only the every day display of articles of least value ; the more costly are stowed away in chests and closets. What must it be when all these are brought out, with the immense quantities of precious stones which the church is known to possess ? And this is only one of the churches of the city of Mexico, where there are between sixty and eighty others, and some of them possessing little less wealth than the cathedral ; and it must also be remembered, that all the other large cities, such as Puebla, Guadalajara, Guanajuato, Zacatecas, Durango, San Louis Potosi, have each a proportionate number of equally gorgeous estab- lishments. It would be the wildest and most random conjecture to attempt an 128 STATEOFEDUCATION. estimate of the amount of the precious metals thus withdrawn from the useful purposes of the currency of the world, and wasted in these barbaric ornaments, as incompatible with good taste as they are with the humility which was the mo.>t slriiiiiig; feature in the character of the Founder of our religion, whose cho- sen instruments were the lowly and humble, and who himself regarded as the highest evidence of his divine mission, the fact that '' to the poor the gospel was preached." I do not doubt but there is enough of the precious metals in the different churches of Mexico to relieve sensibly the pressure upon the cuirency of the world, which has resulted from ".he diminished production of the mines, and the increased quantity which has been appropriated to purposes of luxury, and to pay the cost of much more tasteful decorations in architecture and statu- ary, made of mahogany and marble." STATE OF EDUCATION. In a country where the people are oppressed by a military and religious des- potism, we are not to look for a very high standard of education. It is estimated that out of seven millions of people who inhabit Mexico, only 637,748 are able to read and write, and of these, 80,120 are Negroes and Indians. Education, which should receive the especial care of Republican governments, is least regarded in Mexico. In 1S40, $180,000 were expended for hospitals, fortresses, and prisons — $8,000,000 for the army, (without a foreign war) and only $110,000 were given to all the institutions of learning. In the city of Mexico, there are four collegiate establishments, one being under the immediate supervision of the Archbishop, and supported by a portion of the ecclesiastical revenues, and the other three are under the care of the Govern- ment. There is also a normal school supported by the Government, devoted to the instruction of the soldiers of the army ; improvement in this school is rewarded by advancement in rank. The city is also divided into parishes, in each of which there is established a school for boys and another for girls, sup- ported by the Town Council. In the former, the pupils are taught to read, write and calculate, and are also instructed in religious and political catechisms. The same branches are taught in the girls' school, and in addition they learn sewing and other suitable occupations. The instruction, books and stationery are all furnished without charge. There is also a Lancasterian Company, composed of the most wealthy and educated citizens of Mexico, who are extending their schools all over the Repub'ic ; they are already in all the principal cities, towns, and villages. In these schools, like those already described in the capital, the pupils are taught without charge. Schools have also been organized in the Prisons and House of Correction for juvenile delinquents, which are taught by the most respectable ladies of Mexico, who devote a portion of their time to this very benevolent object. Besides all these establishments, there are, in the city of Mexico, a large number of private or select schools, which are conducted by foreigners as well as natives, so that in the matter of education, the Mexicans are making great advancement. God grant that they may soon realize tha important truth — that man was created for a h gherand a nobler purpose than to waste his energes upon the battle-field. > MEXICAN CHAEACTEH, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. 129 CHAPTER XII. MEXICAN CHARACTEE, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. A NATION composed of such diversified materials, as that of Mexico, can scarcely be said to have a national character ; although the Mexicans do possess some traits, which are decidedly national. The India.ns, who are by far the most numerous class, are every where, with an occasional exception, the same poor, thriftless and degraded people, without cultivation, ambition or hope. They are a gentle, harmless race, grave and melancholy in their demeanor, and submit to the will of superiors without a murmur ; and hence they have long been grievously oppressed. They live mostly on barren and unproductive lands, and feed upon fruits of easy cultivation. It is not an uncommon sight in Mexico, to see scores of Indians, with panniers upon their backs, filled with ice, fruit, or vegetables, which they have thus brought from forty to sixty miles. They soon find a market for their merchandize, and then with the produce of their toil, hasten to a pulque shop, to enjoy the brutalizing pleasures of intoxication, or to the gaming-table, where they soon lose their hard-earned treasure ; when, if not chained to the street gang for drunkenness, or " forced to volunteer," they trot back to their mountain-homes, to prepare for a similar expedition. The Indians are allowed magistrates of their own race, who are called Ca- ziques ; but these cannot be distinguished by their superior dress or intelligence, the only difference being, that the Caziques do no work ; but they are all alike indolent and poor. The religion of the Indians, is that common to the country, but is so blended with their peculiar superstitions and mythology, that an American Catholic would scarcely recognize it as his own religion. They are fond of all the festivities of the church, and of its processions, and are delighted with the pageantry and show of their peculiar worship ; and it may be said with truth, that religion, gaming and intoxication, constitute their greatest enjoyments, and appear to be 9ie chief end of their existence. At the time of the conquest, the principal families perished, the priests were put to death, the manuscripts and hieroglyphical paintings were burnt, and the Indians who survived, fell into a state of ignorance and degradation, from which they have never emerged, and where they will remain until they are under the control or guidance of a race far superior to them in every essential element of civilization. That they are readily susceptible of improvement, there can be no question, f heir talent for drawing and carving in wood — their passion for flowers — their taste for music, and their sense of the beautiful, have all survived their political degradation; and whenever placed in circumstances favourable to the develop- ment of their talents, they give ample evidence of their descent from a superior race. We cannot judge correctly of their character by seeing them, in their native mountains, or in the filthy densamong the leperos of Mexico ; but to do so, we must see them under the care and protection of some wealthy planter, where a suitable reward for labour calls forth industrious exertion, and where their social faculties are brought into active exercise. A scene described by Mr. Mayer, is so characteristic and truthful, and so much like those I have wit- nessed, that I cannot forbear presenting it to the reader. He visited the hacienda, or plantation, of San Nicholas, where a number of Indians were em- ployed in the manufacture of sugar. He thus describes the scenes of the evening : — " At sunsei, all the Indians employed on the premises assembled under the corridor on the basement floor, to account to the administrador for their day's 9 130 MEXICAN CHAUACTER, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. labour and their presence. As he called their names, each one replied with Alabo a Dlos,' — ' I praise God,' and ranged himself against the wall in a line with those v/ho had already responded. When the whole list had been exam- ined, they Avere dismissed, and departed in a body singing an Indian hymn to ihe Virgin, the sounds of which died away in the distance as they plodded home over the level fields to their village. " At night we heard the sound of a clarionet, bass-drum, and flute, at some distance from the dwelling, and on inquiry, discovered that a band of musicians had been organized in an adjoining village, by the owner of the hacienda. We mustered a company and strolled over. The whole of a large hut had been appropriated for a musical hall, where the performers were just assembling ; whue others, who had already arrived, were engaged in tuning their instruments. The leader was quite a respectable-looking Indian, decently dressed, who played the violin ; the clarionet player was fortunate in the possession of cotton draw- ers and a shirt ; the bassoon had a pair of drawers but no shirt ; the serpent was the wildest looking Indian I ever saw, with long dishevelled black hair, and eyes worthy of his instrument ; the big drum was a huge portly old negro, who reminded me of many of our performers on it at home ; while the octave flute was an urchin of not more than twelve, the wickedest little devil imagina- ble, but a fellow of infinite talent and a capital performer. " The night was rather too hot to permit us to remain long in the apartment with an Indian crowd ; we therefore took our seats outside, where we were favoured by the self-taught. amateurs with several airs from recent operas, per- formed in a style that would not have injured the reputation of many a military band at home. " It may reasonably be argued from a scene like this, that the Indians have talents for one of the arts requiring a high degree of natural delicacy and refine- ment. If it had been the care of all Spanish proprietors gradually to bring forth their latent dispositions, as the Senores J. have done, Mexico would now pre- sent a picture ver};" different from that of the degradation which fills its valleys with a slothful, ignorant, and debased multitude." The Mestizos, descendants of Whites and Indians ; Mulntoes, descendants of Whites and Negroes ; and Samboes, descendants of Negroes and Indians — are scattered over the country as labourers, or live in the towns as artizans, work- men or beggars. The Europeans, the white Creoles, the merchants, and the lawyers — who are generally composed of the younger branches of chief families, or the sons of Europeans — constitute the good society of Mexico. No people in the world are more kind-hearted or hospitable than the Mexicans. They are free, frank and courteous ; and their social intercourse is characterised by politeness and warmth of manner, not by the dull, cold and unmeaning formalities which i? common in countries claiming a much higher standard of civilization. It is the usual custom, upon entering a parlor, for an intimate friend to cm brace every member of the family. This hearty welcome being over, he is entertained in the best possible manner, nothing being neglec'3d that will con tribute to his enjoyment ; and if the visitor smohes, as all Mexicans do, the lady of the mansion will take a delicate cigarritto from one of her golden cases, light it, touch it to her lips, and present it to her guest. At parting, says Mr. Mayer, the ceremony is very formal. You bid good bye with an embrace, or if less acquainted, with a profound bow to each indi vidual ; you turn at the door of the saloon, and bow again ; the master of the fiouse accompanies you to the head of the stairs, where you shake hands and bow again ; you look up from the landing of the first flight of stairs, and find him ready with another ; and as you pass through the court-yard below, (if he like you, or you happen to be a person of consideration,) you find him gazing MEXICAN CHARACTER, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. 131 from among the flowers over the balustrade, and still gracefully nodding farer well ! Before this Jinale it is not very safe to put on your hat. At the gaming-table, where the worst passions of our nature are brought into active exercise, good order and decorum always prevail, whilst kindness and tenderness of feeling are often strikingly manifested. Even the robbers will sometimes exhibit sorrow for the condition of the robbed, and give back a portion of their spoils. The following anecdotes, related by Mr. Thompson, strikingly illustrates this sentiment of kindness and goodness of heart : — " On the 16th of June, 1842, the Texan prisoners of the Santa Fe expedition were released by General Santa Anna, that being the birth-day, or rather the anniversary of his saint (Saint Antonio,) which is the day kept by all Mexicans instead of their own birth-day. I knew that they were to be released on that day, on the parade-ground near that city, and fearing that the immense populace which would be assembled might oifer them some violence, I went out, knowing that my official station would protect me, and might enable me to protect them. Never was fear more groundless, or a surprise more agreeable. Santa Anna reviewed on that occasion a body of more than 10,000 troops, and there were not less than thirty or forty thousand other persons assembled in the field. When the order for their liberation was given it was received with acclamation and shouts by the Mexican troops, which extended through the whole vast concourse. The officers and others threw pieces of money to the Texans, and/ as they passed through the crowd, instead of jeers and insults, every Mexican had a word of kindness for them, running up to them and shaking hands, and exclaiming, " amigo ! amigo !" my friend, my friend ! I saw one poor lepero pull off his blanket and offer it to a Texan who was rather more ragged than he was him- self. As they passed along the streets, men and women would run out from their shops and offer them bread and other articles. Let it be remembered that these men had invaded their country, and that they had been sedulously taught to regard them as their born enemies, los Texanos (the Texans) having all the associations with the Mexicans that the words los Moros (the Moors) had with their Gothic ancestors. I could not refrain from asking myself whether, if the people of any other country had invaded ours and been made prisoners, they would under like circumstances have passed through such a crowd not only without assault, but with such demonstrations of kindness and sympathy. " An incident occurred while the prisoners were confined in Tacubaya, which is characteristic, not onl3'- of the Mexicans of both sexes, but of women every where. On one occasion, and it was one of the very few exceptions to the remark which I have just made, a subaltern Mexican officer struck a Texan who was at work on the streets ; a young lady of one of the most respectable families, and I sincerely regret that I have forgotten her name, who happened to be pass- ing by, called the officer to her, and asked him if he was a Mexican by birth. He replied that he was not. She said, ' I am rejoiced to hear it, sir, and I did not suppose that you were, for I did not believe that any Mexican would be guilty of so cowardly an act as to strike a prisoner who dare not return the blow.'" The dress of the wealthy and fashionable classes Of Mexico, excels, in splen dour and costliness, that of any people in the world, whose style of costume, m any degree, assimilates to their own. From the breaking out of the revolution, the popularity of the army has been so ascendant as to leave but a limited por- tion of the lay gentry unentitled to the use of the uniform. Generals, colonels, majors, and captains, are more common here than in the United States ; and, besides, the number of those who have served and retired on pensions and offices, all who have ever held commissions, seem to arrogate the privilege of sporting the insignia of their former rank. Hence, uniforms, stiff with gold and em- 132 MEXICAN CHARACTER, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. broidery, encounter you at every step, whilst the fanciful and more gracefu. attire of the civic elegant, frogged, laced, bedizeaed, and tasselled, lose nothing by comparison with their martial rivals. MEXICAN WOMEN. The Mexican ladies are extravagantly fond of dress, and wear a greater profusion of ornaments than those of any other country. In speaking of this characteristic, Mr. Thompson refers to two ladies he saw at the President's bait, whose dresses, not including ornaments, cost one thousand dollars each ! The head-dress of another, which was thickly set with diamonds, cost twenty-five thousand dollars, besides other diamonds and pearls of corresponding value. " Standing in her balcony, attired for the holiday, the drive, or her devotions, the Mexican lady reflects the full power of the best combination of foreign and native costume. Her Parisien gown, falling short in its embroidered skirts of her well-turned ancles and feet, (delicate almost to deformity,) and clothed in the invariable satin slipper and silken stockings, her rich lace mantilla, revealing a border of her raven hair, and depending in graceful folds down the voluptuous line of her rounded proportions, her ears, neck, and fingers, shining with the blaze of diamonds, and her dimpled hand clutching the pictured fan, the wand of the fair enchantress, before whose coquettish wave all hearts sink subdued, are the outlines of a style, below which the opulent and tonnish never venture abroad. " At some other portal of the house may be seen her donzella, luxuriating in the freedom and fancy of the national dishabille. Her stinted petticoat of gaudy hue, challenges a more extended survey of her white clocked stockings and flowered slippers, whilst the moulded outline it drapes below, disdaining all restrainst above the waist, smiles through a snowy chemise of worked linen cambric, like pensive lights through silver mist. Her plaited hair hangs down between her round brown shoulders, and should she go out, a long figured shawl or reboso envelopes her person and features to the eyes, whose dazzling bril- liance and liquid tenderness it were profane to hide."* As to the beauty of Mexican women travellers do not agree. Madame Cal- deron says that some of the finest specimens of female beauty she ever beheld, were in Mexico ; she could see them every where — among the rich and poor, high and low, she found women of surpassing beauty. Mr. Thompson thinks there are no beauties in Mexico, and I regret to say that during all my travels in the country, I was so unfortunate as not to see a beautiful face. I do not mean to say that the Mexican women have no attractions or are destitute of per- sonal charms : far from it — they are universally acknowledged to be agreeable, fascinating, bewitching. Mr. Mayer says, that to confess the truth, he cannot say that the Mexican women " are beautiful according to our ideas of beauty in the United States. You do not see those charming skins, and rosy complexions, nor do you observe that variety of tint which springs from the mingling of many nations on our soil ; but there is, nevertheless, something in Mexican women, be they fair or dark, that bewitches you while you look at them : it is, perhaps, a universal expres- sion of sweetness and confiding gentleness. There is not so much regularity of features ; no ' Attic foreheads and Phidian noses ;' no ' rose-bud lips whose kisses pout to leave their nest ;' no majestic symmetry to compel admiration : but their large magnificent eyes, where the very soul of tenderness seems to dwell, and their natural grace, conquer every one. Their gait is slow, stately, majestic. The commonest woman of the middle ranks you encounter on the streets, with but a fanciful petticoat, and her shawl or reboso, struts a queen, • Strapp's Prisoners of Perote. MEXICAN CHARACTER, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. 133 There are few things more beautiful than the salutation of a Mexican woman. Among' themselves they never meet without embracing. But to men and strangers, on the street, they lift the right hand to near the lips, gently inclining the head toward it, and gracefully fluttering their fingers, send forth the recog- nition with an arch-beaming of the eye that is almost as bewitching as a kiss. The aristocratic or better sort of Mexican ladies seldom appear in the street. They rise late, dress, and take their station in one of their open windows, which extends to the floor, where they may be seen until about five in the afternoon, when they ride on the Paseo, after which, until a late hour of the night, they may be seen at the theatre, cock-pit, or gaming-table ; and when we add to this their religious observances, the reader will have a pretty good idea of the manner in which Mexican ladies pass away their lives. The women of the middling and lower classes may be seen in the street at any time, and in large numbers. Their ordinary dress consists of a chemise and petticoat, satin slippers without stockings, and a long shawl worn over the head and wrapped close around the chin, and thrown over the left shoulder. In speaking of the habits of the Mexican women, we should not forget to men- tion that odious practice, so universal among them, of smoking. This custom, which has so long prevailed, is now, we are happy to say, becoming unfashion- able, and in a few years, the offensive odour of burning tobacco will not be per- mitted to poision the atmosphere of a lady's parlour. I do not know that Mexican women are less virtuous than those of other countries, but they certainly possess some peculiarities which would be publicly condemned by their sex elsewhere, even though they were (privately) equally guilty. Mr. Poinsett says that the married ladies are very pleasing in their manners, and that they are said to be faithful to the favoured lover, and that a liason of that nature does not affect the lady's reputation. There are, perhaps, many married ladies who are faithful to their husbands, and who have no other lovers than their rightful lords. Mr. Thompson ttiinks that in this particular the Mexican women are slan- dered. He says he is quite sure that there is no city in Europe of the same size where there is less immorality ; and he cannot see how it is possible to be otherwise, because every house in Mexico has but one outside door, and a porter always at that, and because the old system of duenna and a constant espionage are observed by every one to an incredible extent ! These reasons are quite too superficial to need any argument to overthrow them. If Mexican women were not ardent in their love affairs, and if they had not the art and ingenuity com- mon to their sex, one door and a porter might be slight obstacles ; but, consti- tuted as they are, locks, porters and duennas are not worthy of the least con- sideration. Gambling. A love of gaming is one of the strongest traits of Mexican character ; and to it may be traced the hopeless poverty, and the moral and political degradation of the people. There is no distinct class in Mexico, known as gamblers or blacklegs, as in this country, but the vice is everywhere prevalent, pervading all circles, and is nowhere disreputable. It is no uncommon sight to see the Prosi(lent of the Republic and his chief officials gambling with priests and rag- ged Icperos. The Government has its card manufactory, and derives a large annual revenue from the sale of cards — from cockpits and other gambling devi- ces. The National, or favourite game appears to be Monte, which is played with cards, and always, necessarily, for money, as it cannot, like whist, be played merely for amusement. In the more chilvalric days of Mexico, buU- haiting was a favourite sport, but it is now comparatively rare, the meaner amusement of cock-fighting having usurped its place. Besides the usual every- 184 MEXICAN CHARACTEn, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. day, gaming, there is an annual festival celebrated by all sorts of ^fames, in hPQor of Saint Augiistin. The anniversary of tliii; saint is celebra'.ed at San \ugastin, a little village about twelve miles from the city of Mexico. The preparations for this event are made in advance, so that when the day arrives the bankers have everything prepared lo gratify the thousands who flock to their tables, to sacrifice their treasure upon the altar of this favourite saint. Mr. Thompson, who visited this gambling festival, says that when he entered the cockpit, Santa Anna and General Bravo, with a large number of the most (distinguished men in Mexico, and quite a largr'' number of ladies of the highest circles were there, and all of them were not only delighted with the cruel sport, but bet their money freely upon the issue of the battles. Madame Calderon also visited this festival, and, as she remained several days, she was enabled to give a graphic description of the scenes there enacted. She says : — " A good deal of play on a small scale goes on in the private houses, among those who do not take much part in the regular gambling; but all are interested more or less ; even strangers ; even ladies ; even ourselves. Occasionally news is brought in, and received with deep interest, of the state of the banks, of the losses or gains of the different individuals, or of the result of the vacas, (a sort of general purse, into which each puts two or three ounces) by different stragglers from the gambling-houses, who have themselves only .ventured a few ounces, and who prefer the society of the ladies to that of the Monte players. , These are generally fereigners and chiefly English. " On the third night of the fete, C n and I having left the ball-room about ten o'clock, walked out in the direction of the copper-tables which filled the middle of the square, and were covered with awnings. It is a sight, that once seen, can never be forgotten. Nothing but the pencil of Hogarth or the pen of Boz could do justice to the various groups there assembled. It was a gambling fete champetre, conducted on the most liberal scale. " On each table were great mountains of copper, with an occasional sprinkling of silver. There was a profusion of evergreens, small tin lamps dripping with oil, and sloping tallow candles shedding grease upon the board. Little ragged boys, acting as waiters, were busily engaged in handing round pulque and chia in cracked tumblers. There was moreover an agreeable tinkling produced fror' several guitars, and even the bankers condescended to amuse their guests wit soothing strains. The general dress of the company consisted of a single blanket, gracefully disposed in folds about the person, so as to show various glimpses of a bronze skin. Generally speaking, however, the head was uncovered, or cov- ered only with its native thatching of long, bushy, tangled black hair. " This might be out of compliment to the ladies, of whom there were several, and who ought in politeness to have been mentioned first. Nothing could be simpler than their costume, consisting of a very dirty and extremely torn che mise, with short sleeves, a shorter petticoat, and a pair of shoes, generally of dirty satin ; also a rebozo, and the long hair hanging down as Eve's goldcp locks may have done in Paradise. " There was neither fighting, nor swearing, nor high words. I doubt whether there he as much decorum at Crockford's ; indeed, they were scrupulously polite to each other. At one table, the banker was an enormousiy lat gentleman, one naif of whose head was bound up with a dirty white handkerchief, over which a torn piece of hat was stuck, very much to one side. He had a most roguish eye, and a smile of inviting benignity on his dirty countenance. In one hand ne held and tingled a guitar, while he most ingeniously swept in the copper with the other. By his side rat two wretched looking women, with long matted hair, their elbows on the table, and their great eyes fixed upon the game with an expression of the most intense anxiety. At another, the lanher was a pretty MEXICAN CHAKACTEE, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. 135 little Indian woman, rather clean, comparatively speaking, and who appeared to be doing business smartly. A man stood near her, leaning against one ot the poles that supported the awning, who attracted all our attention. He was en- veloped in a torn blanket, his head uncovered, and his feet bare ; and was glar- ing upon the table with his great, dark, haggard looking eyes, his brown face livid, and his> expression bordering on despair. It needed no one to tell us that on, the table was his last stake. What will such a man do but go upon the road ? ,'. "While 'high life below stairs,' is thus enacting, and these people are court- ing fortune in the fresh air, the gentlemanly gamblers are seated . before the green cloth-covered tables, with the gravity befitting so many, cabinet councils; but without their mystery, for doors and windows are thrown open, and both ladies and gentlemen may pass, in ap.d out, and look on at the game, if they please. The heaps of ounces look temptingly ; and make it appear a true El Dorado. " The fedifes who have- collected ounces and made purses, send their friends and admirers to the tablesto try their luck for them ; and in some of the inferior houses, the Senoras of a lower class occasionally try their fortune for themselves. "At the tables, few words are spoken. : The heaps 'of gold change masters, but the masters do not change countenance. I saw but one person who looked a little out of humour, and he was a foreigner. The rich man adds to his store, and the poor man becomes a beggar. He is ruined, but ' makes no sign.' ■ " One reason for this tranquillity, is the habit of gambling, in which they have indulged from childhood, and which has taught them that neither high words nor violence will restore a single dollar once fairly lost ; and in point of fairness, everything is. carried on with the strictest honour, as among gamblers of high degree. . ' " An anecdote was related to us this morning, by a member of the cabinet, a striking one amongst the innumerable instances of Fortune's caprices. A very rich Spaniard, proprietor of several haciendas, attended the fete at San Augustin, and having won three thousand ounces, ordered the money to be carried in sacks to his carriage, and prepared to return to Mexico along with his wife. His car- riage was just setting off, when a friend, of his came out of an adjoining house, and requested him to stay to breakfast, to which he agreed. After breakfast, there being a Monte table in the house, at which some of his acquaintances were playing, he put down two ounces, and lost. He continued playing and losing, until he had lost his three thousand ounces, which were sent for and transferred to the winners. He still continued playing with a terrible infatua- tion, till he had lost his whole fortune. He went on blindly, staking one haci- enda after another,, and property of all sorts, until the sun, Avhich had risen upon him a rich and prosperous man, set, leaving him a beggar ! It is said that he bore this extraordinary and sudden reverse with the utmost equanimity. He left a son, whom we have seen at San Augustin, where he earns his livelihood as croupier at the gambling tables." The evil tendency of this vice is everywhere the same ; it is. sure to beget poverty, ruin, and desperation, which naturally lead to the commission of crime ; and hence it is that every department in Mexico is infested with robbers, who • plunder with impunity, even within sight of the capital ; and men who have held high offices under the government, and who have distinguished themselves . jn the army, have been equally distinguished on the road. vV*- Travellers in Mexico find it exceedingly difficult to avoid robbers, and gene- rally travel prepared to encounter them. It not unfrequently happens that irip- Keepers and stage drivers are associated with robbers ; the former rendering valuable service by the information they are enabled to impart, and the latter by assisting in the consummation of the robbery. To show the impunity with which, robberies are committed, it is only necessary to state the fact that a great many robberies have been committed within a few huudred y.ards of the gates 136 MEXICAN CHARACTER, HABITS, MANNERS AND SUPERSTITIONS. of the city of Puebla. A band of a dozen men, armed, with their faces masked xisually stood wailing in the early dawn, for the diligence. If there wer« armed foreigners in the coach, they would look in, consult a moment, and then ride off. If the passengers were unarmed, and the boot of the vehicle looked heavy and tempting, the result was the perfect sacking of the whole company. Their persons were first robbed and stripped as they descended from the door ; they were then made to lie down with their mouths on the ground while their trunks were rifled. The prima donna of the opera in Mexico, lost $6000 in doubloons and jewels at this very spot, notwithstanding a guard had been pro- nised by the authorities, and paid for. Legend of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Among the many popular superstitions of the Mexican people, is the univer- sal belief in the following legend of the Virgin of (Juadalupe, as given by the illustrious Cardinal de Lorenzono, Archbishop of Mexico, in a sermon preached by him in the Collegiate church, in 1760. " In the year 1531, ten years and four months after the conquest of Mexico, the Holy Virgin of Guadalupe appeared on the mountain of Tepeyac. The matter occurred thus : On the 9th of December of that year the adventurous Indian, Juan Diego, a native of Quatititlan, went to Thaltelolco to study the Christian doctrine, inasmuch as it was there taught by certain holy Franciscan monks. Passing by the mountain, the Most Holy Virgin appeared, and told him to go, in her name, to the illustrious Bishop Don Francisco Juan de Zum- marraga, and say that she desired him to come and worship on that spot. On the 10th of the same month Juan Diego returned to the mountain, and the Holy Virgin again appeared, asking him the result of his commission. Diego replied, that notwithstanding his efforts, he could not obtain admission to the Bishop. Then, the Virgin answered, ' Return, and tell him that I, Mary the Mother of God, have sent you !' Juan Diego carefully executed the order, but the Senor Zummarraga refused him credence : his only reply being, that he must have some token to satisfy him of the verity of the annunciation. Again Juan Diego returned to the mountain with this message of the Bishop, and (lelivered it to the Holy Virgin, who appeared to him on the 12th of December for the third time. She ordered him then to ascend the mountain of Tepeyac, cut roses and bring them to her. The humble and happy messenger went, notwithstanding he knew full well that on the mountain there were not only no roses, but no vegetation of any kind. Nevertheless, he found the flowers and brought them to Mary ! She threw them in the tilma (a part of Indian dress) and said to him, ' Return once more to the Bishop, and tell him that these flowers are the credentials of your mission.' Accordingly, Juan Diego immediately departed for the episcopal residence, which, it is said, was then in the house called the Hospital del Amor de Dios ; and when he found himself in the presence of the prelate, he unfolded his tilma to present the roses, when lo ! there appeared on the rude garment that blessed picture of the Virgin, which now after centuries still exists, without having suffered the slightest injury ! Then the illustrious Bishop took the image and placed it in his oratory. It is now in this Collegiate church. The Virgin appeared again, a fourth time, to the Indian. She then restored to health his uncle, named Juan Bernardino, and told Diego — ' The image on thy tilma I wish called the Virgin of Guadalupe .'' " Such is the story of the sacred portrait, the original of which presides over the destinies of Mexico, whose name " Maria de Chiadalupe" is given to half the females of the Republic, and whose shrine is one of the wealthiest in the wor.d. A copy of this picture is hung in every hous^rn Mexico, and is cher- ished as a household god. \j ^ - ' : A^^' '^Z^, 0^ ;#''"%:' ^^:^^^ ^''' ^o ^' ^"^ 7- v° A ■ \^' .V - 1 •0 \ -; ^.<_ -'<■ <->-. C^^' •t^. '<* P' S /c \*^ -^-v*r. ^^' ** <'^. "'(' '^^._, ^^ *- "''-'' x^ ,'if.- '■>,'^o. c*-. . V' . - ' ^ '^ * .0 M ^^^^^^^^ ^ ^>. * S , A * x"\- * # '^/•, " c^ -n^^ . •!?»: -^ = V Oo. •->, ,0 •^ * 'I N l-l ^ . x^' ,^ ,0- z ^rZ//, \ 7/T^:v />5a,V r;^^^,^ ,\ I /i .0- ^ ''^^ -.% O 4 ^ li' -■ irb- '"i^ <■ ■" * " '• '"c- ■^ -,^^r'^,^ ,0 c r-^.. ,#' -^'