# Appleton's Guide to Mexico/Section 2

SECTION II.
The Mexican Railway Company (Ferrocarril Mexicano).
FROM VERA CRUZ TO MEXICO.
263¼ miles, or 424 kilometres. Fares, first class, $16; second class, $12.50; third class, $7.25. Time, 14½ hours.
This route will be described as follows: 1. From Vera Cruz to Orizaba. 2. From Orizaba to Esperanza.
3. From Esperanza to Puebla via Apizaco.
4. From Puebla to the City of Mexico.
1. From Vera Cruz to Orizaba, 82 miles.
The tourist is advised not to proceed directly to the lofty table-land, but to remain a few days at some intermediate point, e. g. , at Cordoba or Orizaba, in order to become accustomed to the rarefied air. The latter city is preferable as regards hotel accommodations, and it presents besides some objects of interest to the sight-seer. There is only one through passenger-train daily, which at present (1883) starts at 6 a. m. Leaving the railway-station, which is six and one fifth feet above the Gulf of Mexico, the road traverses a broad plain, which is barren near the city of Vera Cruz. The tourist soon encounters a dense growth of cactus and chaparral, with a few palms interspersed.
A branch road leaves the main track about three miles from Vera Cruz, and runs to Medellin, six miles distant. ​In the tierra caliente (hot land) the hovels of the natives are of one story, and are generally thatched with palm-leaves.
Three lines of telegraph are seen by the side of the track. One of them belongs to the National Government, another to a private corporation called "The Commercial," and the third to the Mexican Railway Company. The last uses imported poles of cast-iron, with white china insulators.
Passing the station of Tejeria (9½ miles), whence a branch tramway leads to Jalapa, 60 miles distant, the surface of the ground continues flat, and affords good grazing all the way to Soledad (26 miles); elevation, 305 feet. Here the train stops ten minutes. Coffee and bread are for sale, at the price of one real. The majestic, snow-clad peak of Orizaba now rises into full view. For a hundred miles the eye follows the crest of the sierra forming the eastern boundary of the table-land.
The plain of the State of Vera Cruz is about thirty miles in width. After crossing the Soledad River, the ascending grade becomes perceptible. At many of the railway-stations cakes of compressed coal are piled in large masses. They are imported from Great Britain, as there is no coal near the line of the road, and wood being scarce and dear, except in the vicinity of the volcano of Orizaba.
The next station is Camaron (39¼ miles). The road now crosses a plateau covered with basaltic bowlders. The so-called Spanish moss, or lichen, hangs from the trees, reminding the American tourist of the forests of Georgia and Florida.
Paso del Macho (47¼ miles) is the next stopping-place. Here the train begins to ascend a heavy grade. The track makes a wide curve around the base of the thickly-wooded Chiquihuite Mountain, and soon comes in sight of the cascade of the Rio de Atoyac. The adjacent region is covered with a dense tropical jungle, in which many species ​of flowers and trailing vines grow luxuriantly. The matted forest extends to the summits of the neighboring hills. Perhaps no other part of Mexico possesses a richer vegetation than this portion of the route. It forms a striking contrast to the dreary plains which the traveler will soon reach.
The train now arrives at Atoyac (53½ miles); elevation, 1,512 feet. The line crosses a bridge over the Rio de Atoyac. This, like the other bridges along the route, is built of iron, with stone piers. Proceeding farther, several tunnels are passed, and both tobacco and sugar-cane are seen growing in the vicinity.
The next station is Cordoba (65¾ miles), which lies at the altitude of 2,713 feet above the level of the Gulf. This town has about five thousand inhabitants, and is one mile distant from the railway. It is reached by horse-cars, and it has a small hotel. Cordoba is famous for its coffee-plantations, and the stranger will have no better opportunity in Mexico for visiting one of them.
A day may be spent to advantage at Cordoba. Various kinds of fruit grow plentifully, and are sold at a very low price. A basket of two dozen oranges costs twenty-five cents, whereas the usual price on the table-land is three oranges for a medio (six and a quarter cents). Mexicans en route to the capital often lay in a large stock of pineapples, bananas, and oranges at Cordoba, and take them to their homes, as the extortionate rates of freight on this railway render fruit very expensive in the City of Mexico.
​Most of the coffee consumed in Eastern Mexico grows in the vicinity of Cordoba. There are many valuable plantations, and a few Americans have established themselves here. It may be remarked that the State of Vera Cruz produces more coffee than any other State in the Republic.
Leaving Cordoba, the road makes a long bend and crosses the bridge of Metlac, built over a river of the same name. The scenery is magnificent, and the ravine, or barranca, of Metlac contains one of the most skillful pieces of engineering to be found in the country. The general plan of building the Mexican railways has been to wind around the bases of the several mountains, rather than to drive long tunnels or construct large bridges. Passing the hamlet of Fortin (70¾ miles), the next station is Orizaba (82 miles).
ORIZABA.
Population, 17,000; elevation, 4,028 feet. Hotels.—A la Borda (German), Diligencias, and Cuatro Naciones. Baths.—De Santa Rita on the main street; very good. Horse-cars from the station to the hotels; fare, a medio (6¼ cents). Hacks, 6 reales ("75 cents) an hour.
Orizaba is the present capital of the State of Vera Cruz. It lies in a broad and very fertile valley. There is excellent pasturage in the vicinity, and fine cattle are raised. The staple products of the valley are tobacco and sugarcane. There are several haciendas of the latter, the largest of which is at Jalapilla. Tobacco grows in the outskirts of the city in large quantities. Even church-yards have been turned to use for planting this article. During the Spanish domination, when the restrictions on trade were so oppressive, the cultivation of tobacco was confined by law to the district including Cordoba and Orizaba, and the Government employed inspectors to pull up any leaves of the plant that were found growing outside of it.
Places of Interest.—1. The Parroquia and other churches. 2. The Paseo. 3. The Cerro (hill) del Borrego. 4. Jalapilla (sugar-mill). 5. The cascade of Rincon Grande. 6. The cascade of Barrio Nuevo.
The Paseo is one of the most beautiful parks in Mexico. It is about a half-mile from the principal hotels.
The Cerro del Borrego should be ascended. Its summit commands a magnificent view. During the invasion, the French defeated the Mexicans here on June 13, 1862, and the remains of the fortifications are seen to this day. There is a limestone-quarry at the base of the mountain.
Jalapilla is a hamlet about a mile and a half south of the city. It lies in the midst of rich fields of sugar-cane. There is a large sugar-mill here, belonging to Señor Bringos, and the tourist will have an excellent opportunity of seeing how sugar is manufactured. We may add that a much larger quantity of sugar could be produced in the valley of Orizaba than is now yielded, because only a small part of it is occupied by the sugar-cane. This remark would also apply to the greater part of the arable land in the State of Vera Cruz in regard to crops of other articles.
This State ranks second in the annual production of sugar, Morelos being the first. The Emperor Maximilian resided a short time at Jalapilla after the French army had evacuated the capital. Here he held the famous council to determine whether he should abdicate or not.
The cascade of Rincon Grande is about a mile east of Jalapilla. There are several waterfalls about forty feet in height, which are surrounded by very luxuriant vegetation. There is another cascade (Barrio Nuevo) of smaller dimensions on the north side of the valley of Orizaba.
Owing to the scarcity of rain in Mexico, waterfalls are very highly regarded. They are found chiefly in the tierra templada and in the "foot-hills " of the Sierra Madre. The ​majestic peak of Orizaba is visible only from the eastern end of the city. An intervening ridge prevents the observer from seeing it in other quarters of the town. If the tourist will leave his hotel early enough to see the sun rise on the mountain, he will behold one of the grandest sights in Mexico.
Most of the houses in Orizaba are one story high, with overhanging red-tiled roofs. The traveler will have a chance to examine the class of dwellings occupied by the poor people. They are constructed of all kinds of rubbish, such as old boards, sugar-cane stalks, barrel-staves, sun-dried bricks, and pieces of matting. These huts are generally thatched with palm-leaves or with dried strips of the maguey, and the solid ground serves as a floor. The climate of Orizaba is temperate but very moist. Bull-fights take place on Sunday afternoons, the bull-ring, or plaza de toros, being in an old convent. Another large church is now used as a barracks for the garrison. There is a Masonic lodge in the upper part of the same edifice.
The stranger, by visiting the registrar's office (oficio publico mas antiguo), can inspect some of the old Spanish deeds written on parchment, with many abbreviations, during the time of Cortes. The mediæval Spanish contains so many contractions as to be almost incomprehensible to the Mexican of to-day. For example, instead of writing q-u-e for the word que, meaning "which," in those days they wrote simply the letter q, with the addition of a semicircular curve, which was carried over to the first letter of the next word, giving the two words the appearance of a single one. Notwithstanding the age of these manuscripts, they are still in an excellent state of preservation.
2. From Orizaba to Esperanza (29 miles).
Leaving Orizaba, the railroad traverses the flat plain, and passes the village of Horales, which boasts of a small ​cotton-factory. The next station is Enurial (88½ miles). A Fairlie engine, which is constructed of two locomotives, with the tender on top, is now attached to the train. The grade soon becomes very heavy as the iron horse climbs the cumbres, or summits. Passing through several tunnels, the Barranca del Infiernillo is reached. This locality affords the most magnificent scenery along the entire route. The track is built on the edge of a precipice, and a roaring torrent is seen at the bottom of the rocky canon, six hundred feet below. The tourist may now look back on the broad valley, and trace the course of the winding railway, interspersed with bridges, and see the old diligence road in the distance, which is today given up to pack-animals. Trains of burros, or donkeys, still transport the wares of the peasant to the neighboring villages.
The next station is Maltrata (944½ miles), where the elevation is 5,550 feet. The volcano of Orizaba is visible from this point. It is, however, generally covered with clouds, except in the early morning. There are so many curves, and the ascending grade is so steep, that the train only makes about seven miles an hour in this part of the journey. Some maize is grown beyond Maltrata, but the country is barren for the most part.
Bota (97½ miles) is the next station. The line now makes another great bend around the steep slope of the mountain, and comes to Alta Luz (103 miles), a hamlet of several houses. If the observer will look back, he may see the village of Maltrata, with the track meandering across the plain, and, far in the distance, a glimpse of the valley of Orizaba may be obtained.
The traveler has reached the tierra fria, or cold zone. The flora reminds one of the Rocky Mountains. Dwarf pines, spruces, and deciduous trees, with a few Alpine flowers, take the place of the luxuriant tropical vegetation of the ”hot country" that has recently been traversed.
​Blue limestone covers the country from Orizaba westward, and the region is adapted to grazing to some extent. The next station is Boca del Monte, or "mouth of the mountain” (107½ miles), where the elevation is 7,924 feet.
The tourist has now attained the level of the great table-land of Mexico. This point, however, is not the highest This cut shows the zones of vegetation in going from the sea-level to the summit of the snow clad peaks. on the line, the summit being near Guadalupe, about eighty miles distant. The traveler crosses a flat plain for several miles, and arrives at Esperanza (111¼ miles).
The train stops thirty minutes for dinner. The eastward and westward passenger-trains meet here. The respective escorts of soldiers change cars, and are carried back to the termini of the road. A high wall surrounds the station, and a guard stands at each entrance. A small but well-kept hotel lies within the inclosure. It belongs to the railway company, and a French restaurateur is employed as manager. The nights and early mornings are very cool on the table-land, the thermometer usually falling to 40° Fahr., and occasionally below the freezing-point. The plain of Esperanza, which has an area of about forty-five square miles, is quite fertile. Wheat, barley, and Indian corn are grown in abundance. If the tourist will stop over for a day, he may visit a fine hacienda, or farm, at San Antonio de Abajo, about two miles distant. It belongs to Don Andres Gutierrez, and is valued at $200,000. The hacienda contains houses for the peons, or ​day-laborers, barns, stock-yards, blacksmith and carpenter shops, etc. There is also a quaint little church, which bears the date of a. d. 1773 on the belfry. The hacendado, or proprietor, employs a priest to officiate, and also to teach the children of his peons, who number several hundred. There are a great many horses, mules, cattle, and sheep on the farm, and the owner uses plows of American manufacture.
The traveler has an excellent view from Esperanza of the volcano of Orizaba, which rises behind the Sierra Negra. The mountain can be ascended from this point. It is difficult, however, to procure horses here, and accordingly the tourist is recommended to make the ascent from San Andres, about six miles distant by trail, but fifteen miles by the railway.
The peak of Orizaba is 17,200 feet above the sea-level, and is the highest mountain in Mexico, with the exception of Popocatepetl. There were violent eruptions in 1545 and 1566, but the volcano has been quiet ever since. It was reported to be smoking in April, 1883. There is no difficult climbing on the mountain, but the ascent is exceedingly laborious on account of the steepness of the snow-clad cone. It is almost impossible for the traveler coming direct from Vera Cruz to ascend Orizaba. He should spend several days on the table-land, and accustom his lungs to the rarefied atmosphere, before starting out for the summit of the peak. The tourist can ride to a cave just below the timberline, which is about 13,500 feet above the level of the sea, and pass the night there. Guides, blankets, and provisions for two days must be taken. As the clouds rise and often cover the mountain early in the forenoon, the traveler should leave the cave by 4 a. m. if possible. About five hours will be required to reach the summit. Very few persons thus far have climbed Orizaba.
An excursion to Oaxaca and Mitla may be made from ​Esperanza. A horse-railroad extends from the latter place to Tehuacan, thirty-one miles distant. A diligence is then run to Tecomabapa, about forty miles farther. Thence the tourist must travel by horseback via the villages of Teotitlan, Cues, Dominguillo, Joyacatlan, San Juan, and Etla, to Oaxaca, about ninety miles distant. Tehuacan (Hotels, Diligencias and Ferrocarril) has a population of 10,000. The traveler is advised to procure horses in this place. There is a meson (inn) at Tecomabapa, but the other settlements being very small are destitute of hotel accommodations. The nights must be spent in the huts of the natives. Parties making this trip are advised to carry provisions with them. The Mexican Southern Railroad will eventually connect Tehuacan with Oaxaca. The latter city is described in Section VII, and the reader is referred to the chapter on ruins in Part First for an account of Mitla.
3. From Esperanza to Puebla via Apizaco, 94¾ miles.
Leaving Esperanza, the' traveler sees the snow-capped summits of Popocatepetl and Iztacciliuatl on the left, and the pyramidal peak of Malinche on the extreme right. The landscape reminds him of the parks of Colorado. The railroad crosses the broad plain, and the station of San Andres (126¼ miles) is reached. Horse-cars run to the town, about five miles distant. It has already been stated that the volcano of Orizaba may be ascended from this point (p. 168). The summit is about fifteen miles distant.
The train now passes some maize-fields and the salt lakes of El Salado, and arrives at Rinconada (139 miles), elevation 7,731 feet. The country soon becomes fertile again, and the next station is San Marcos (150¼ miles). Another railway crosses the track here, extending to Puebla on the south, and to San Juan de Llanos on the north. It will be completed in the autumn of 1883. Proceeding farther, ​the train stops at Huamantla (161 miles). The traveler is now in the State of Tlaxcala, the former home of the great rivals to the Aztecs, whose services Cortes secured on the march from Vera Cruz to the valley of Mexico, thereby greatly increasing his forces. Much Indian corn is cultivated in the neighborhood, and the maguey, or aloe, and nopal, or cactus-tree, are used as fences. The picturesque mountain of Malinche lies behind the town. It was named The Nopal. after Doña Marina, the interpreter of the Spanish army under Cortes.
The next station is Apizaco (176¾ miles), elevation 7,912 feet. A branch line leads from this point to Puebla, 47 kilometres, or 29¼: miles. It was opened on September 16, 1869.
Leaving Apizaco, the road makes a long curve and runs southward to Santa Ana (10½ miles). The mountain of Malinche remains in full view. It is often snow-capped, and the natives bring the snow to the train and sell it in glasses mixed with lemon-juice. Maguey, maize, and wheat grow in large quantities along the line. The grade is downward all the way to Puebla.
Population, 64,588; elevation, '7,201 feet.
Hotels.—Espanol, Diligencias, Del Cristo, Del Recreo.
Restaurants and cafés on the northern and western sides of the plaza mayor.
Baths, adjoining the Paseo viejo (1 real).
Carriages, 50 cents an hour; on Sunday and feast-days, 75 cents.
Puebla was founded on September 28, 1531. The city is par excellence an old Spanish settlement. It is often called Puebla de los Angeles, or town of the angels. Since May 5, 1862, the city has been named Puebla de Zaragoza, after a general of that name, who defeated the French on the date above mentioned. The churches are finer than those of any other Mexican town, and the streets are well paved. The houses are usually built with two stories, and arcades are found on the plaza mayor. There are twenty-six public squares and two parks in Puebla.
The adjoining city of Cholula was the headquarters of Cortes for several months during the Conquest. Pictures of some of the battles between the Spaniards and the natives may be seen on the walls of the hotels. Blankets, or zarapes, hats of straw and felt, soap, thread, crockery, and glass are manufactured in large quantities in Puebla. Many fine stores are found in the city, and the traveler can purchase ornaments of the so-called Mexican onyx, or tecali, which occurs in the neighboring marble-quarries. It is composed chiefly of carbonate of lime.
The stranger should ascend one of the towers of the cathedral for a view of the city. The scene is one of surpassing beauty. Malinche lies on the eastern side of the fertile plain, and the volcano of Popocatepetl rises about twenty-five miles to the westward. Tourists can ascend the latter mountain from Puebla. Guides, blankets, and provisions for three days, must be taken; but it will be more convenient to make the ascent from Amecameca, on the ​western side of the ridge. (This trip is described in the section on the Morelos Railway.)
Places of Interest.— 1. The Cathedral (observe the wood-carvings and Mexican onyx-work). 2. The Church of San Francisco. 3. The Church of La Compañia. 4. The Church of San Cristobal. 5. The Museum. 6. The College, or Colegio del Estado. 7. The Paseo Nuevo and Paseo Viejo. 8. The Pyramid of Cholula. 9. Fort Guadalupe.
There are several other churches, but they are hardly worth a visit. We have not space to describe all of the above buildings. The reader is referred to the chapter on ruins for an account of the pyramid at Cholula. At the time of the arrival of the Spaniards, Cortes states that the city of Cholula contained 20,000 houses and about 150,000 inhabitants. To-day the population is less than 10,000. ​A church built by Cortes, and containing some quaint historical paintings, is yet standing. Cholula can also boast of a park. The town has an altitude of 6,906 feet according to Humboldt, or about 300 feet lower than Puebla. It is reached by carriage and by horse-cars (fare, first class, twenty-five cents). The distance is seven miles. Maguey and wheat are grown to a large extent in the vicinity.
4. From Puebla to the City of Mexico. Distance, 115¾ miles. Two trains daily.
Leaving Puebla, the road has an ascending grade to Apizaco. The heaviest is near the latter place. From Apizaco the land rises slightly, and the track crosses a gently undulating plain covered with extensive maguey plantations.
Guadalupe (186¼ miles) is the next station. The highest point of the Mexican Railway is near by. It is 8,333 feet above the Gulf of Mexico. This is the most elevated station in the Republic, except where the Mexican National Railway traverses the sierra between Toluca and the capital. The summit of the latter route is 9,974 feet. At various points of the road the tourist will see soldiers, wearing gray uniforms, and armed with carbines and sabers. They are the Guardia rural, or mounted patrols, who accompany the diligences, and protect the smaller towns from the depredations of robbers.
Passing Soltepec (192¾ miles); and Apam (205¾ miles), which has an elevation of 8,226 feet, the train reaches Irolo (215½ miles). A tramway leads from the last station to Pachuca, thirty-seven miles distant. Pachuca is one of the oldest mining towns in Mexico, and many of its mines are worked at the present day; but, as the daily passenger-train from Vera Cruz and Apizaco does not connect with the tramway, the tourist is advised to proceed directly to the capital, and make an excursion to Pachuca, taking the outward morning train. (For description, see Section III.) ​Leaving Irolo, where the elevation is 8,046 feet, the roadbed descends gradually toward the City of Mexico. The next station is Ometusco (221¼ miles), following which comes La Palma (225¼ miles).
Tourists will observe that the houses in the villages on the table-land are built of large, sun-dried bricks, called adobe. The country is sparsely populated, and the natives live together in towns or hamlets. It is very rare to see a dwelling isolated from any settlement.
Passing Otumba (229 miles), famous in history as the scene of a battle in which the Spanish invaders defeated the Aztecs, on July 8, 1520, we reach San Juan Teotihuacan (236 miles). The latter place is celebrated for its two pyramids, that of the Sun and that of the Moon. They may be seen from the train, but a visit to these teocallis will repay the traveler. As the town lies about one and a half mile from the railroad, and as there is neither hotel nor restaurant in it, the tourist must continue the journey to the national capital, and make an excursion to San Juan Teotihuacan by the morning train, returning in the evening. (The pyramids are described in the chapter on ruins.) The next station is Tepexpam (243 miles), and the track soon enters the far-famed valley of Mexico. The road skirts the Lake of Texcoco, and presently the magnificent snow-capped mountains are seen on the south. Passing the town of Guadalupe, the traveler arrives at the railway-station of Buena Vista, one of the suburbs of the City of Mexico.
An express-agent meets the train, and will deliver baggage to any part of the city. He will also take charge of the keys, as trunks and boxes must be opened and examined for the purpose of ascertaining whether they contain taxable articles before being allowed to enter the city. The office of the express is in the Hotel Iturbide, and the charge is twenty-five cents (two reales) for each package.
* ↑ The diligence fare from Vera Cruz to Mexico used to be $50.
* ↑ Jalapa was formerly the capital.