# Mexico in 1827/Volume 2/Chapter 15

SECTION V.
I left Durango on the 19th of December, highly gratified by the kind reception which I had experienced there from a number of most respectable Creole families, to whom I was introduced during my short visit. Amongst these were two sisters of General Victoria, very lively, and most enthusiastic politicians, a talent for which in Durango there was unfortunately much scope. The town was divided into two parties, Liberales, and Serviles; the first, the friends and supporters of the Governor, eager in the promotion of every useful reform; and the latter arrayed in battle under the banners of the Cathedral ​Chapter, as the opponents of all innovation, particularly in matters connected with the Church. The struggle commenced by an attempt on the part of the State Legislature, to compel the Canons to apply to the purposes for which they had been specially bequeathed, certain funds appropriated by the Chapter; sunk in the mass of Church property, denominated Obras pias.
The Canons denied the right of interference on the part of the Civil Authorities, and for some time endangered the tranquillity of the State by the violence of their opposition. The dispute was, however, terminated amicably, a short time after my visit to Durango, the Chapter having consented to supply the money required by the Government as a loan, on condition that the proposed investigation should be dropped.
It was the intention of the Governor to employ these funds in the execution of a project, by which the appearance of the valley of Durango would be entirely changed. The town is now supplied with water by one solitary fountain, the spring (Ojo de Agua) of Los Remedios; and this, though sufficient for ordinary purposes, affords the inhabitants the means of irrigating only a very small portion of ground laid out in gardens in the vicinity of the town. It has been ascertained however, that, by bringing a canal from the river to the North-west of the valley, a sufficient fall might be obtained to distribute water to the whole plain beyond the ​capital; and this project has become the favourite scheme of the Governor, whose mind seemed devoted to its accomplishment. Its utility cannot be disputed, as it would bring into cultivation a large tract of beautiful land; but the city of Victoria derives such abundant supplies from the surrounding districts, that I know not whether the real importance of the plan is equal to that which the sanguine disposition of Mr. Ortiz induces him to attach to it.
I was much struck with the difference between the manner in which society is organized in Durango and in the Southern States. The women, instead of passing their days in languor and idleness, are employed, with bustling activity, in superintending the details of the menage, and even take a very efficient part in that most important department, the kitchen. The consequence is, that there is no part of the Republic in which the advantages of cleanliness are so highly appreciated, or the little comforts of life so well understood. My room at the Governor's was delightful, and I have still a lively recollection of the excellence of the Café au lait, which his kind and amiable wife brought me each morning with her own hands. I was told that this was general throughout the North, the Biscayan race and a system of good housewifery having spread together; and in Durango the general appearance of the women bespeaks more domestic habits. They are little seen in the streets, or at public places, and better educated at home. At a ball and ​concert, which the Governor was good enough to give me the evening before my departure, I heard several very respectable amateur performers, particularly two sisters who played a duet together on the pianoforte with great facility of execution. But the queen of the evening was a young professional singer from Gūārĭsămĕy, (the Pasta of Durango,) whose talents were undergoing the necessary cultivation to qualify her for sustaining the part of Prima Donna at the opera of the town. Her vocal abilities had been discovered by a friend of the Governor's, who recommended her to his protection; and though I cannot in reason be expected to be as enthusiastic in her praise as her "Apasionados" in Durango, I must confess that she had a most powerful voice, which, when modified by a little tuition, might possibly be rendered agreeable.
I reached Sŏmbrĕrētĕ without difficulty in ten hours; and after dining, and passing the night at Mr. Anitua's, I resumed my journey South on the following morning in the same manner; five relays of horses having been stationed for me on the road to Zacatecas—at the Rancho of Pancho Malo, Atotonilco, La Escondida, Rancho Grande, and Las Tortolas. At Fresnillo I expected to find my own horses, with which I intended to proceed direct to Zacatecas; but to my great surprise, I overtook Mrs. Ward and Mr. Martin there, the coach having been delayed a whole day at Atotonilco by a wheel giving way in passing a barranca a little to the ​North of the Hacienda. It was hardly possible for such an accident to be more ill-timed, for there is not a room in the house with a whole door; and yet, in addition to chance passengers, they are tenanted by myriads of habitual occupants, who resist most strenuously every encroachment upon their territory. Fortunately, the country about is rather pretty, for there is a stream below the house, with some trees, and a little cultivation: there are likewise some hot springs, very inviting as a bath, but usually occupied by a succession of Indian women, two or three of whom may be found at almost any hour of the day sitting up to their necks in water, and very much amused at the mauvaise honte of the strangers, who have any scruples about joining so sociable a party.
I reached Fresnillo at three o'clock, having left Sombrerete at six. The distance is not less than seventy or seventy-five miles; but sterility is the decided characteristic of the whole intervening space. There are some extensive fields of maize, however, about San Juan de los Troges, (between Pancho Malo and Atotonilco,) and in the vicinity of Rancho Grande, where Mrs. Ward was magnificently lodged in the Hacienda of the principal proprietor; but those who are fortunate enough to have it in their power to pass over this tract of country as expeditiously as I did, should not stay to examine its beauties in detail. Upon Mr. Martin its gloomy appearance had such an effect, that he often declared that he was indebted to "Vivian Grey," the first part ​of which we received at Sombrerete, for banishing a fit of the spleen, which might otherwise have endangered his life. The rapidity of my progress prevented me from feeling this in the same degree; and I was in such excellent condition for work, that after riding 150 miles from Durango in two successive mornings, I walked about Fresnillo all the afternoon, to make inquiries respecting the mines, none of which are now in activity. Some few were taken up in 1825 by the Mexican Company; but the contracts were so injudicious, and the terms so onerous, that they were abandoned, (not, I believe, without a considerable sacrifice,) as soon as public opinion with regard to mining speculations in England took an unfavourable turn. The town lies at the foot of an isolated hill, upon which the mines are situated; platforms for the erection of Malacates, and extensive excavations, are now all that is left to denote their former importance.
The road from Fresnillo to Zacatecas is excellent as far as Arroyo de en Media, (six leagues,) but the level country ceases at San Juan de la Calera, (two ​leagues farther;) and from thence to Zăcătēcăs a succession of steep ascents and descents announces the vicinity of one of the minor branches of the Sierra Madre. The town itself is not visible until you arrive within half a league of the entrance, when you see it below you, following the direction of a deep barranca, (ravine,) of which the mountain called La Buffa, with a chapel situated upon its curiously-crested summit, forms one side. The streets are narrow, and from the want of a good police, defiled with the remains of the "Matanzas," frequent in Zacatecas, where a great quantity of tallow is made. They swarm, too, with tribes of dirty children, whose appearance, like that of their squalid parents, is by no means prepossessing. But the distant view of the town is fine, from the number of churches and convents rising proudly above the other buildings; there are several excellent houses too in the vicinity of the great Plaza, where we were lodged, and the market before our windows presented both a busy, and a curious scene. It was abundantly supplied with fish, particularly "Bagre," (a large Tierra Caliente fish without scales,) as well as with vegetables and fruits. The quantity of Chile disposed of was really prodigious; waggons laden with it, drawn each by six oxen, were arriving hourly from Aguas Calientes, yet their contents rapidly disappeared, piles of Capsicum sufficient to excoriate the palates of half London vanishing in the course of a few minutes. ​We arrived at Zăcătēcăs on the 21st of December, and employed ourselves till the 26th, in visiting the establishments of the two Companies, who have made this district the scene of a part of their operations.
These are the Bolaños and the United Mexican Associations, between which the principal mines of Zacatecas are very equally divided.
As a mining district, Zacatecas differs materially from Guănăjūātŏ, for in lieu of one great mother vein, it contains three lodes nearly equal in importance, (those of La Qŭĕbrădīllă, San Bĕrnăbē, or Mălănōchĕ, and Veta Grande,) with a number of inferior Vetas and Vetillas, which may be considered as ramifications of the principal lodes. Upon these nearly 3000 pits or shafts have been opened: (mostly "catas" of very inconsiderable depth.) The course of the veins is distinctly designated upon the surface, by the elevation of the crests, and may be traced even by the most unpractised eye. The works of the Companies, now that the mine of Quebradilla has been abandoned, are confined entirely to the veins North of the town, Quebradilla, which lies to the South of Zacatecas, has yielded three successive "bonanzas," (each more remarkable for the immense quantity of ores produced than for their richness:) the first soon after the Conquest; the second when worked by La Borde, (who, after Tlalpujahua and Tasco, came to make his last fortune at Zacatecas;) and the third as recently as ​1810, when a Company, formed for the purpose in Zacatecas, divided upon its dissolution, in 1817, the sum of 75,000 dollars upon each "barr." But the mine was ruined in the course of their operations, and though contracted for by the United Company upon false representations, it was given up in 1825 by Mr. Alaman, who found, upon personal inspection, that the drainage could not be effected for a less sum than 400,000 dollars, while the accounts of the lower levels were too contradictory to afford any certainty that this large investment would be repaid.
On entering the mountains North of Zacatecas, about a league from the town is found the first of the two great parallel veins by which they are traversed. Upon this are situated the mines of San Bernabé, Malanoche, Pĕrĕgrīnă, and Rōndănēră, the three last of which are considered as one "negotiation."
San Bĕrnābĕ was the first mine denounced in Zacatecas. The vein was worked by the "Conquistadores," à tajo abierto, (by an open cut,) for the space of 800 varas; and the opinion then entertained of its productiveness is recorded by an old song still in the mouths of the lower classes at Zacatecas, and composed in commemoration of the marriage of its first proprietor Ibarra, with the daughter of the Viceroy Velasco. The Company ​has every reason to think well of this enterprise, for the amount of ores raised weekly in 1826 was considerable, the drainage nearly concluded, and the appearance of the new levels, which were about to be cleared, highly promising.
The shafts of Malanoche and La Rondanera lie about a mile and a half west of San Bernabe. The works extend over a space of nearly 800 varas, and the drainage was consequently proceeding very slowly; (about two varas in the week.) But the value of the ores raised, from the very commencement of the undertaking, had proved sufficient to cover one-third of the expence; and the produce was expected to increase rapidly as new levels were rendered accessible.
Not being a miner myself, I can only speak of the general mode in which the management of an enterprise of this nature is conducted, and of the feelings of the natives, (whom I always consulted,) respecting it. Nor must it be thought that, in this way, I could only view the favourable side of the question. There is so much rivality in mining matters in Mexico, that, by entering into communication with persons unconnected with a negotiation, I was sure to hear all the errors, (real or presumed,) that had been committed, and those too ​painted in the very strongest colours. It must be a satisfaction therefore to the shareholders of the United Company to know that their prospects at Zacatecas were rated very high, their contracts pronounced to be unexceptionable, and their mines excellent. All, however, added, that it was to be regretted that a second Anitua could not be found to undertake the management. The present Director, Don Joaquin Iparriguirri, is a skilful miner, but has lost much of his former activity by age; and, at the time of my visit, Mr. Schoolbred, who had been recently associated with him, was too new in office to give that impulse to the system, which it appeared to require. It was thought that, under Mr. Anitua, what had been done in a year and a half might have been accomplished in much less time.
The little mine of Lŏrētŏ, (like Sĕchō at Guanajuato, an entirely new undertaking,) borders upon that of Malanoche. It is situated upon a separate vein, and had, when I saw it, not only covered the advances made upon it by the Association, but began to yield a clear profit. The ores improved as the workings increased in depth, and they must now have reached the level at which the neighbouring mine of La Barguena, (worked to a much greater extent than Loreto,) was found to be extremely productive.
Besides the mines already enumerated, the United Company possesses that of San Acasio, situated ​upon the Eastern extremity of the Veta Grande, the second lode of importance. North of Zacatecas, nearly a league and a half beyond that of San Bernabé.
San Acasio belonged originally to La Borde, (whose operations chance always seemed to favour,) and yielded a bonanza famous in the annals of Mexican mining for its extraordinary duration. It lasted twenty-two years, (from 1765 to 1782,) and completely re-established La Borde's shattered fortunes, repaired by his success in the mine of Quebradilla, and restored to all their pristine splendour by this long series of successful enterprise. The mine is known to have been abandoned by his descendants when producing good ores in its "planes," or lowest levels; and in many of the upper workings the quantity of "Atierres" (heaps of poorer ores, not then thought to be worth raising,) is known to be so great, that an association was formed in 1823, by a number of native miners, to work the mine in the upper levels, merely in order to extract these atierres, the value of which is now better understood. The project was given up in consequence of the contract concluded by the owner with the United Company, whose operations embrace the whole mine.
San Acasio has four Pertinencias, at three of which Malacates were erected for the drainage, and the extraction of ore. In December 1826, the mine was producing weekly about six hundred cargas of ore, (principally "atierres") averaging seven marcs ​per monton of twenty quintals. An increase either in the quality, or the quantity, was required in order to cover the expences, which, in so extensive an undertaking, were of course considerable. It was calculated, however, that four hundred cargas more, (making 1000 in all,) even of the same poor ores, would not only cover the "Memorias," but leave 1,000 dollars profit weekly. The Miners of Zacatecas entertained little doubt with regard to the issue of the enterprise of the Company at San Acasio, for no mine in the district bears so high a character: but the time requisite in order to reap the full advantage of the investments made is uncertain, from the vast extent of the works, which occupy a space of 800 varas upon the course of the vein. Mr. Alaman seemed to be of opinion in 1826, that nearly the whole of 1827 would be required to bring his operations to a conclusion, and some allowance must always be made for additional delays. In the course of the present year, however, the result must be known.
The Company is in possession of two Haciendas de beneficio; that of San José in the town of Zacatecas, with fourteen Arrastres, and Cinco Señores, ​without the town; which formerly belonged to La Borde. In his time it contained sixty arrastres. Only twenty-six are now in repair, but the number will be augmented as the produce of the mines increases.
The works of the Bolaños Company, (contracted for in 1825, as a desirable addition to the principal mines of the association, situated at Bolaños, in the neighbouring state of Jalisco,) are all upon the Veta Grande, to the Westward of San Acasio. They comprise fourteen shafts, (including the Tiro-General,) originally separate mines, but now connected with each other, and worked as one negotiation. These occupy a space of 1,200 fathoms upon the vein. Few exceed 300 varas in depth; all have been productive; many remarkably rich; and none have given reason to imagine that the vein was exhausted even in the deepest levels.
The two contiguous mines of Urīstă and Mĭlănēsă rank highest amongst those comprehended in the negotiation of Veta Grande. The first produced the capital out of which the fortune and title of the Counts of San Mateo (now united by marriage with the Marquisate of the Jărāl) proceeded; and to the second, the wealth of the Condes de Santiago de la Laguna was due. During the last forty years they have been worked, with the adjacent shafts, by the Fagoaga family, and have yielded (as stated in Table, No. 9, annexed to the first Section of the fourth Book) 2,088,425 marcs of silver, (16,832,400 dollars.) ​But during the last ten years the produce has barely covered the expences, and the proprietors have derived little or no profit from the concern, although the establishment has been kept up in the hope of discovering a "clavo rico," and obtaining another bonanza. Captain Vetch having convinced himself by a long and patient investigation, that the system of management was susceptible of great improvements, and that by reducing the establishment the receipts might, even in the present state of the mines, be made to exceed the expenditure, while the extent of vein yet unexplored afforded the fairest opening for new works, entered into a contract with the proprietors, to whom he paid 130,000 dollars on the part of the Company, for the transfer of the negotiation. He likewise took fixtures and property to the amount of 207,000 dollars more, to be paid by quarterly instalments in three years; but a part of this property consisted of "tortas," and ores already in the Hacienda, which might, consequently, be regarded as silver.
The reforms contemplated by Captain Vetch met with considerable opposition amongst the native miners; and although the Company took possession of the mines in April 1826, in December the expences still exceeded the value of the silver raised. Eleven thousand dollars were coined weekly, but the charges were nearly twelve; the underground work alone averaging seven thousand dollars, and the costs of the Hacienda five. From eighty-five to ​ninety-five "campos" (pairs) of barreteros (common miners) were in daily employ; and the number of "cargas" of ore reduced varied from fifteen hundred to two thousand in the week, which yielded, upon an average, thirty-five or thirty-six ounces of silver per "monton," of twenty quintals. Within a short time after my visit, Captain Vetch succeeded in carrying all his plans into execution, and in June and July, 1827, a weekly profit of 3,000 dollars was the result.
The Bolaños Company possesses a magnificent Hacienda, (La Saūcĕdă,) built by La Borde, and purchased by the Fagoagas of his family, when the mine of San Acasio was abandoned. It contains seventy-four ărrāstrĕs (called in Zacatecas, tăhōnăs), with furnaces for smelting, a very perfect lavadero, (assemblage of washing vats,) and a patio (amalgamation court,) capable of containing twenty-four "tortas," of sixty "montones" each. The process is conducted nearly in the same manner as at Guanajuato, with the exception of the "molienda" (the process of grinding), which is more rapid, and less fine; each "tahoana" in Zacatecas grinding ten arrobas of ore in sixteen hours, in lieu of six arrobas in twenty-four hours, which is the maximum at Guanajuato.
There are seven "morteros" (stamps) at La Sauceda, it being calculated that one mortero will keep twelve arrastres in constant work. Salt and măgĭstrāl are abundant and cheap. The latter is brought ​from the copper-mines at the Asientos de Ibārră, two short days journey from Zăcătēcăs.
The costs of reduction in the Hacienda amount to twelve ounces of silver per ton, which may be taken as equivalent to the monton of twenty quintals. In very favourable times, when agricultural produce is abundant and cheap, ores may be worked as low as twenty-four ounces per ton; but they ought to reach forty ounces to cover all contingent expences, and yield a reasonable profit.
The richest ores known in Zacatecas have never exceeded forty-five or fifty marcs per monton.
The Hacienda is situated beyond the ridge of mountains traversed by the veins of Veta Grande and Malanoche, upon the verge of an immense plain, very productive in maize, but presenting as arid and melancholy an appearance as if it were entirely destitute of vegetation. There are neither trees nor water to diversify the scene, which wears, throughout, the same reddish-brown colouring; while even the mountains in the back-ground have not the beauty of outline that distinguishes those of Mexico in general, but are monotonous and uninteresting.
The whole of the machinery is put in motion by mules; and the stabling for these animals forms a very considerable addition to the size of the establishment. In 1826, the Hacienda was under the superintendence of Mr. James, who resided at La Sauceda, as Dr. Coulter did at the Tiro General of Veta Grande. To both these gentlemen we were ​indebted for the greatest kindness and attention during our stay at Zacatecas, where they, in conjunction with Mr. Schoolbred, gave us every assistance in our inquiries; and, by providing us beforehand with most excellent lodgings, enabled us to prosecute them with comfort.
One of the principal advantages of Zacatecas, as a mining district, consists in the superiority of the mint, (Casa de la Moneda,) to those of the surrounding States. Three hundred people are employed in it daily. The machinery is ponderous, and a great deal of labour is wasted in filing down and weighing each dollar separately; an operation that would be rendered unnecessary by the adoption of a series of cylinders calculated to reduce the bars at once to the necessary size and thickness, as in England. But notwithstanding these defects, sixty thousand dollars have been struck off at Zacatecas in twenty-four hours: and the total coinage, according to the Governor's report to the Legislature (of January 1827), has amounted, from the 1st of January 1821 to the 31st of May 1826, to 2,067,269 marcs, five ounces and seven-eighths, or 17,571,789 dollars and four reals.
The profits of the establishment, during this time, were 126,941 dollars two reals and six grains; yet the miners and rescatadores received dollars for their bars in the short space of four days. As the funds of the mint augment, the facilities for this operation will increase likewise; while mining enterprises, which always receive an impulse in proportion to ​the means of converting produce, at a fair and fixed price, into the ordinary circulating medium of the country, will undoubtedly prosper in the same ratio as the mint itself.
The whole of the machinery now in use is of brass, and made in the town. There are three flies for stamping, each worked by eight men, who are paid according to the number of dollars struck off, at the rate of two reals each, the talega, or thousand. They often earn sixteen or twenty reals per diem, so that the coinage by each fly, in the working hours, must be from eight to ten thousand dollars. The dies are cut by an Italian, and the coinage is exceedingly good, though disfigured by the cap of liberty; which, however discredited in Europe, is still supposed in America to be emblematic of all that man holds most dear. Besides dollars, one and two Real pieces are coined, which are much wanted in other States.
The ores of Zacatecas have no Ley de Oro, and the mint no Casa del Apartado, in consequence of which the rich ores of Guarisamey were sent through Zacatecas to the Capital, where alone the separation of the gold from the silver could be effected. This has led, (as stated in the preceding Section,) to the establishment of an Apartado in Durango, where, probably, the gold ores from the whole of the North will, in time, be concentrated.
The State of Zacatecas contains a registered population of 272,901 souls. Of these, 22,000 are ​assembled in the capital, and 6,000 in the village of Veta Grande, in its immediate vicinity. The rest are distributed throughout the eleven "partidos," or districts, into which the territory is divided; viz. Zacatecas, Aguas Calientes, Sombrerete, Tlāltĕnāngŏ, Villanueva, Frĕsnīllŏ, Jĕrēz, Măzăpĭl, Nīēvĕs, Pinos, and Jŭchĭlīpă.
Many of the towns, as Sombrerete, Fresnillo, Jerez, Pinos, and Nŏchĭstlān, have a population varying from fourteen to eighteen thousand souls; and in the highly cultivated district of Aguas Calientes alone, (South of the Capital,) 35,000 inhabitants are registered. But North and East of Zacatecas, the country is divided into vast breeding estates, like Sierra Hermosa, the Mezquite, and others, which we visited on the road to Sombrerete. There, the population is thinly scattered over an immense tract of country, and a few spots of cultivation are lost amidst the deserts that surround them. Yet the total agricultural produce of the State is very considerable. By the statistical tables annexed to the Report of 1827, it appears that 18,084 fanegas of maize are sown annually, and 670,956 reaped; 19,933 cargas of wheat are raised from 1,396 cargas sown; 24,346 fanegas of frijol (haricots,) from 2,071 fanegas sown. The crop of Chile is usually about twelve thousand arrobas. By this statement, which is compiled from reports transmitted by the different Ayuntamientos, it appears that the increase of maize is as thirty-seven to one, ​and that of wheat only fourteen and a fraction; a ratio of increase very much below the average of the corn and maize lands in the more Southern Provinces.
Zacatecas contains one hundred and twenty Haciendas de campo, with six hundred and sixteen Ranches, most of which consist, however, of three or four wretched hovels. There are eleven convents of friars in the State, containing in all one hundred and ninety-eight individuals; four nunneries, with thirty-one professed nuns; and four hospitals. Manufactures there are none, except in the Capital, where there are a few cotton-spinners, and at Aguas Calientes: mining and agriculture furnish occupation for all the rest of the population. A little Maguey brandy, (Vino Mescal,) is distilled at Pinos; but every thing else requisite for the consumption of the inhabitants is imported from other States.
The Constitution of Zacatecas was completed as early as January 1825. The Legislature consists of one chamber. The religious Article is as uncompromising as might be expected from the influence exercised in the Capital, until very recently, by the friars, mostly old Spaniards; who, in conjunction with a numerous body of Spanish residents, have certainly contrived to preserve the lower orders in a very primitive state of ignorance and brutality. The Government has done little as yet towards correcting this pernicious influence, and its indifference is the ​more to be blamed, as, from the very flourishing state of the revenue, its interference would have been attended with double effect. The expenditure of the State, from the 1st of May 1825, to the 30th of November 1826, (a period of nineteen months,) amounted to 340,469 dollars, and the receipts to 414,483 dollars, leaving a surplus of 74,014 dollars in favour of the State.
Amongst the most productive branches of the revenue, the Governor points out that of tobacco, which had yielded a clear profit to the State of 75,437 dollars; and he conceives that this sum may be doubled, by a system of administration sufficiently vigorous to enforce the observance of the monopoly with as much strictness as before the Revolution. The debt of the State to the Federation for tobacco amounted, on the 30th of November, 1826, to 217,176 dollars; but the "existencias," (tobacco on hand, wrought and unwrought,) for the ensuing year, were calculated at 358,598 dollars; and there would consequently be a considerable balance in favour of the State, when the realization of its own stock in trade, (for to this the tobacco revenue, organised as it now is, amounts,) should enable it to meet its engagements with the Federation. Time is necessary for the regulation of this complicated machinery in the first instance, but when the movements of all the parts are combined, the result of the partial experiments tried, hitherto, tends very much ​to confirm the opinion expressed in the Fourth Section of the Third Book, respecting its probable future productiveness.
I have little to add to the details given above, except the fact that Zacatecas is the only part of Mexico, in which I am aware that, at the end of 1826, a bad feeling towards foreigners in general prevailed. We had violent prejudices to surmount in many parts of the Federation upon our first admission into the country; but those prejudices gradually disappeared, and in most places were replaced by feelings of a very different nature. In Zacatecas alone they seemed to retain all their original violence.
This circumstance may be attributed partly to the influence of the regular clergy, and partly to the different circumstances under which our mining operations in the State commenced. The working classes had never felt in Zacatecas that distress, from which they were relieved in other districts by the introduction of foreign capitals. The mines of Veta Grande continued in activity during the whole Revolution, and several other mines belonging to old Spaniards were in bonanza up to a very late period. The Companies, therefore, did little more than occupy the places of the former proprietors. Many of the changes introduced by them consisted in reforms, very necessary, but very unpalatable; and although they brought a considerable capital into circulation, the want of it had not been ​sufficiently felt before to make the people duly sensible of the importance of this service.
They are, therefore, not unnaturally regarded as interlopers, come merely to share in advantages which the natives considered formerly as their patrimony; and as this feeling has been fomented by those who might have given it a better direction, it has more than once been upon the point of leading to very serious results. I had been prepared for this state of things by the reports of Captain Vetch and Captain Lyon, who, at a time when the safety of the individuals employed by the Bolaños Company was thought to be endangered, had very properly solicited, through me, the protection of the President. But my communications with the Governor of the State, upon my arrival in Zacatecas, inspired me with a belief that these angry feelings had subsided, until I was undeceived by the treatment which my own party experienced. Mrs. Ward usually employed her time in drawing while I was visiting the mines; and, though always surrounded by a crowd, she never experienced the slightest incivility upon such occasions, except at Veta Grande. In general, people were much delighted with the novelty of the performance; and I have seen Indians standing round her for an hour together, watching every motion of the pencil, and holding in turn an umbrella to shelter her from the sun. At Guanajuato, where fifty or sixty people were collected, while she was taking a view of the town from the ​Valenciana mine, we were much amused at the astonishment expressed on seeing her inquire the names of the principal points, and write them down upon the margin of her sketch. "Pinta, y escribe tambien!" (she draws, and writes too!) was the general exclamation; and such an accumulation of talents in the same individual excited universal respect. But at Veta Grande she was surrounded by a sullen and gloomy mob, who purposely put themselves in her way, so as to prevent her from seeing the mines; and were only compelled to give her a little room, by the exertions of Don Rafael Beraza, who mounted his horse, and rode in amongst them until by degrees they were fairly driven back.
They did not quit the scene of action, however, without honouring us repeatedly with the appellation of Judios, (Jews); and two days afterwards, when we took our leave of the town altogether, and commenced our journey towards Guadalajara, so violent a spirit of hostility towards us was displayed, that we were for some moments apprehensive that we must have had recourse to fire-arms in self-defence. There was a great crowd in the Plaza, before the windows, where the market was held; and this increased so rapidly, as the prepations for our departure proceeded, that at ten o'clock, when we mounted our horses, there must have been at least six or seven hundred idlers assembled. By these we were received with a volley of hisses and ​abuse; nor do I believe that the matter would have rested there, had we not drawn our pistols, and assured the leaders of the mob that the very first stone thrown should be instantly followed by a volley. They gave us credit for some sincerity in our intentions, and confined themselves to a wordy war, which continued until we had quitted the Plaza, beyond which no one attempted to follow, or to incommode us. We did not, however, feel quite at our ease until we had got clear both of the town, and the "Palmares," (woods of dwarf palms extending for some miles around, and noted as the scene of many a robbery,) where we almost expected an attack, and were fully prepared to meet it.
In justice to the inhabitants of Zacatecas, I must add, that the inhospitable treatment of which we had so much cause to complain, is confined exclusively to the Capital, and, even there, does not extend beyond the working-classes; an ignorant and brutal race, sunk in low debauchery, and guilty of excesses amongst themselves, which the Government has too little energy to repress. The agricultural population is kind and hospitable; and from the landed proprietors, the authorities, and the more respectable citizens, we received every proof of the most friendly disposition.
We quitted Zacatecas on the 26th of December, and slept at San Jacinto, (twelve leagues from the town;) a fine Hacienda belonging to the Marquesa ​de Ruhl, where the cultivation for which the district of Aguas Calientes is celebrated, may be said to commence. On the 27th, we reached that town, about three in the afternoon. The road from San Jacinto was quite an interesting scene, for Ranchos multiplied around us at every step. We saw on all sides immense crops of maize, and met huge ox-wains, laden some with Chile, others with Zacate, and others again with the ears of Indian corn: horses, cows, and oxen abounded in "potreros," regularly enclosed with walls, and deep ditches, and every thing seemed to denote a thick and flourishing population.
In the midst of plenty, however, we ourselves were nearly starved; for having imprudently lost sight of the coach on leaving the Hacienda, and taken a different route, we found ourselves separated from our provisions, and without any prospect of rejoining them until we reached Aguas Calientes, where the two roads again met. Under these circumstances, having set out, as usual, without breakfasting, we were most happy, about one o'clock, to meet with a man carrying a large dish of frijoles and tortillas to some shepherds in a neighbouring field. Upon these we laid violent hands; a gourd was filled with water at a spring not very far off; a tree of unusual size afforded us protection from the sun; and notwithstanding the simplicity of our fare, we agreed, when we had completely cleared our dish of haricots and chile, into which we dipped alternately with ​Montezuma's spoons, that we had seldom made a more delicious meal.
We found a very tolerable inn at Aguas Calientes, but were not allowed to remain in it long, the Marquis of Guădălūpĕ, whom we had known in the Capital, having insisted upon our immediate removal to his house, where we passed the whole of the following day.
The conduct of this gentleman may serve as an example to all the great proprietors of New Spain. He possesses fourteen Haciendas, which, in 1813, when they first came into his possession, were in such a state of dilapidation, that the whole income derived from them did not exceed three thousand dollars per annum.
He immediately gave up the capital, and devoted ten years to the personal superintendence of his estates, which have become the most valuable in the whole surrounding country. The reservoirs and farming buildings have been repaired, and the live stock, destroyed during the first years of the Revolution, replaced; so that the Marquis already derives from his possession an income of 75,000 dollars per annum (15,000l.), and looks forward to a considerable increase. His stock of horses and brood mares at Cienega de Mata, and other breeding estates, amounts to eighteen thousand; and in 1826 ​he sold to the Bolaños Company alone fifteen thousand fanegas of maize. He is likewise working the mines of Asientos de Ibarra, of which he appears to entertain a very high opinion. The vein is of immense width (nearly twenty varas), and the ores extremely abundant, though poor. This renders it necessary to build reduction-works upon a very large scale, and as the Marquis wishes the mines to defray a part, at least, of the expences, the progress of the establishment is slow.
The town of Aguas Calientes is prettily built and situated; some of the houses are very handsome, particularly that of the Guădălūpĕ family, which occupies half one side of the great Plaza. In the vicinity of the town are the warm mineral springs from which it takes its name. The water is beautifully clear, and the temperature delightful. Mineral springs abound in the whole district. Some few are used for irrigation; but the generality are found inapplicable to this, or any other farming purpose, from the quantity of alum contained in the water, which, after a time, leaves a thin white coating upon the soil, and renders it totally barren. It requires some years in these cases to bring the land round again.
Aguas Calientes produces nearly one-fourth of the maize, and one-third of the frijol and Chile grown in the State of Zacatecas; the average annual crop of the first being 140,952 fanegas; of the second, 7,293 fanegas; and of the third (which is sold by ​the weight), 4,291 arrobas. The wheat raised averages 4,749 cargas (of 300 lbs.), but this is much exceeded by the annual produce of Fresnillo, where 7,230 cargas are the registered return.
The town likewise contains the largest manufactory of coarse cloth that I met with in Mexico. It is called the Obrage de Pĭmĕntēl, and gives employment to 350 men and women within the walls of the establishment. Five thousand arrobas of wool are consumed in it annually; and the cheapness of this essential article (which seldom rises above twelve reals the arroba, and may often be purchased as low as seven), enables the proprietor, whose principal business consists in a Government contract, to deliver his cloth in Queretaro at the same price as the manufacturers of that town, who can seldom obtain wool under fourteen reals the arroba.
The colours principally used are red, green, yellow, and blue. For the first, cochineal is employed as a dye, at the rate of about 4½1bs. for a piece of cloth forty varas in length, and weighing 60lbs.; such being the quality and dimensions fixed by the terms of the contract. Indigo produces an excellent blue. For the yellow, two dyes are employed; one, extracted from the seed of a parasitic plant, found in abundance upon the Peruvian pepper-trees in the Baxio, and called Săcătlăscāl; the other, Pālŏ Mŏrălētĕ, a Tierra Caliente tree, brought principally from Amătlān de las Cañas. The Săcătlăscāl is much the strongest dye of the two, only 6¼lbs, ​of it being required for each piece of cloth, (the pound is worth two and a-half reals,) while of Moralete, an arroba and a quarter must be employed, at seven reals per arroba, in addition to which there is the expence of pounding it. Mŏrălētĕ is, nevertheless, more generally used, in consequence of the difficulty of ensuring a regular supply of Sacatlascal. Either of the two with indigo, dissolved in sulphuric acid, makes a very good green.
The prices are (per vara) scarlet, twenty-four reals, green eighteen, blue sixteen, and yellow fifteen. The dearness of cochineal, which is brought from Oaxaca, and costs there three dollars the pound, and the scarcity of indigo, are the causes of the difference in the price.
At Aguas Calientes we first perceived that difference in the climate, which becomes so striking as you approach the Western Coast. The harshness of the North wind disappears, and is replaced by a soft and balmy feel in the air, unknown even in summer in the Capital, where the evenings and mornings are generally chilly. Nothing could exceed the kindness, and unaffected politeness, with which our hosts did the honours of their house. The Marquesa, a sister of Madame de Regla's, with all the beauty, and all the cleverness, for which the family, on the mother's side, is celebrated, was earnest in her solicitations to prolong our stay, but we were too much pressed to return to Mexico to allow ourselves to be tempted, and on the 29th of ​December we quitted Aguas Calientes, and took the direct road to Guadalajara, by La Villita (ten leagues distant), where we slept.
Humboldt has committed an error in his map (which has been since copied by every one else), in comprehending Aguas Calientes in the Province of Guadalajara, and not in that of Zacatecas, to which it belongs. He likewise omits almost all the towns on the road to Guadalajara, and the rivers are very erroneously laid down; that over which the Bridge of Calderon is thrown being entirely left out, and the Rio Grande brought close to Guadalajara, which it does not approach within six leagues. The boundary line between the two States lies, in reality, between Aguas Calientes and La Villita. The first part of the road is level; the last two leagues hilly; the town itself is situated in a barranca, as are most of those on the way to Guadalajara; I suppose, for the convenience of water. We found the inn tolerable, and, in addition to the ordinary supply of provisions, we procured a quantity of iced milk, seasoned with vanilla and sugar, which after a hot ride was very agreeable.
Dec. 30.—San Juan de los Lagos, eight leagues.
This town is famous for its annual fair, commencing on the 8th of December, and for a church dedicated to the Virgin, which would be regarded in any part of the world as a fine building. In its present situation, the impression is perhaps increased by the contrast with the mud-houses and wild scenery ​around. I am not acquainted with the circumstances that first gave celebrity to the image of our Lady, in honour of which the church was built; but it is supposed still to possess the power of working miracles, and medals, invaluable to all who believe in their efficacy, are sold at the door of the church for a mere trifle.
The town lies in a deep ravine, almost upon a level with the river of the same name: the inn is built of stone; it is very spacious, and during the fair, proves a most valuable possession, each room being let for ten dollars a-day. I was sorry not to have been able to visit San Juan during this period, for the scene is said to be exceedingly curious. Thousands of horses and mules assemble upon the hills around, and every room in almost every house is full of merchandise of foreign or domestic manufacture, from which the merchants of the North make their selections, and lay in their supplies for the year. Diversions of all kinds are intermixed with the business of the day. Cock-fighting, Monte, and balls, occupy the leisure hours; and as the fair is a rendezvous for all the proprietors of Haciendas within a hundred leagues of the place, with their families, there is perhaps no spot in the Federation where the national manners may be seen in such purity. The fair is now declining in importance, for so many channels have been opened of late for the importation of foreign goods, that they are becoming accessible to all classes of the inhabitants ​in their respective States; but the meeting will probably long be kept up for the purposes of pleasure, although no longer essential to the supply of absolute wants.
Dec. 31.—La Venta, fourteen leagues.
We left Săn Jūān a little before seven, and at eleven reached Jălŏs, where we breakfasted. The distance is called five leagues, but is in reality seven. At Jălŏs we passed two hours, the greater part of which was occupied in negotiating the purchase of two horses, for one of which I gave forty-three dollars, and for the other twenty-six dollars, and a carga-mule, that could go no farther. We made an unfortunate exchange of mules at Zacatecas, where we got rid of several miserable animals with sore backs, and received in return some fine-looking creatures, so little fit for work that they every one dropped off before we reached Guadalajara. There is a disease peculiar to Mexico, called the Asoleado, to which both horses and mules are subject when exposed, while too fat, to the violent action of the sun. It is in fact a coup de soleil, but in lieu of the head, it affects with them the action of the heart. The blood circulates with tremendous rapidity; and even before the disease arrives at its climax, the pulsation is so violent that it may be felt, shaking the whole frame of the animal at each throb. In this state bleeding almost to exhaustion is the only efficient remedy. Palliatives are much used by the Mexicans, but the horse usually remains subject to ​a return, on the slightest exertion; and this fact is so well known, that one of the first trials to which a horse is subjected, when brought for sale, is to gallop him a hundred yards in the sun, and then to ascertain, by pressing the hand upon the withers, that he has not that peculiar throb which is indicative of the complaint. We had neglected this precaution with our Zacatecas mules, and they every one failed us. One died upon the road, and three others were exchanged in part price for horses, as the only mode of avoiding a total loss.
From Jalos we proceeded to La Venta, (seven leagues more,) a wretched Hacienda, sans meat, sans maize, sans milk, sans every thing, where we were nevertheless compelled to sleep.
On the 1st of January, 1827, we reached Tĕpātĭtlān, a pretty town, eleven leagues from La Venta, built upon an eminence, at the foot of which a little stream winds through the plain, with a belt of cypresses designating, as usual, its course. Tepatitlan is a Pueblo Ranchero, the head of a very fertile district, containing a population of 25,524 souls, and rich in maize, barley, horses, and horned cattle. The amount of grain sown is calculated at 3,553 fanegas annually; and the ratio of increase averages, in the crop of maize, sixty, and in that of barley, twelve fanegas for each one sown.
We found the inn good, and provisions abundant. I had been remarkably successful, too, in my morning's sport, having shot, besides hares, of which we ​were getting rather tired, several quails, and a number of ducks of various kinds, which were abundant in the rio, or arroyo, below the town; so that we ushered in the new year by a very sumptuous repast. The weather was so mild that we placed our table in the open air, under the porch of the inn, and sate there till a late hour in the evening, talking over past adventures, and future prospects, with Mr. Martin, whom I had first known in Sweden in 1816, and wondering, since chance had thrown us together in two such distant points, in what part of the world it would be our lot again to be brought into contact.
Jan. 2.—We left Tĕpātĭtlān at seven o'clock, and reached Zăpōtlān, or Zăpōtlănējŏ, at two. Distance twelve leagues.
Upon the "Mesa," or high Table-land, which extends as far as Cerro Gordo, I shot a number of birds called by the natives Gordillos, but resembling our woodcock in eye, plumage, and general appearance. They are nearly double the size, and of equal delicacy of flavour.
Zăpōtlănējŏ, at a distance, appears quite a mass of verdure: the situation is extremely sheltered to the North and East, and the supply of water abundant; but the descent from Zăcătēcăs, which must be considerable, had been so very gradual, that, notwithstanding the increasing mildness of the air, we were not prepared to find ourselves suddenly transported into Tierra Caliente, and surroimded by a ​vegetation worthy of the Vega of Cuautla itself. All the fruits of which Jălāpă can boast, are to be met with in this isolated spot; and we saw with astonishment, as we approached it, the dark foliage of the Ăguăcātĕ and Chĭrĭmōyă contrasting with the light green of the sugar-cane and the brilliant yellow of the orange. During the afternoon, we feasted upon Zăpōtĕs, and other delightful fruits, of which we had been long deprived; and on the following morning, we laid in a stock of oranges for the road, the value of which is never so fully appreciated as after a dusty ride beneath a burning sun.
About four leagues North-east of Zăpōtlănējŏ, we passed the Bridge of Căldĕrōn, celebrated in the annals of the Revolution for the action which proved so fatal to Hĭdālgŏ, and gave Căllējă his title. It is thrown across a river, with banks precipitously steep, and presents a position highly favourable for defence, if attacked only in front, but disadvantageous if turned, as it was, by the Royalist cavalry. On the hill, upon the Guădălajāră side, there is still a mound of stones, covered with an infinity of little crosses, which denote the spot where the slaughter is said to have been greatest.
Jan. 3.—From Zăpōtlăn to Guadalajara, ten leagues.
The moment that we left the barranca in which Zapotlan lies, we lost sight of the luxuriant vegetation by which the Pueblo is surrounded. The fields resumed their old broun colouring; maize stubbles ​followed each other in endless succession; and the Table-land, with its usual characteristics, extended once more around us.
We breakfasted at the village of Puente Grande, a magnificent bridge with twenty-six arches, thrown over the River Lerma, or Rio Grande de Santiago, six leagues from Guadalajara, and four from Zapotlan. The breadth of the river at this point is very considerable, and the volume of water in the rainy season great; but during six months of the year the greater part of the bed is dry; and from this uncertain supply, as well as from the masses of rock brought down by the waters during the periodical rains, I should conceive that any attempt to render the Rio Grande navigable would be attended with much difficulty. Many, however, regard it as the future medium of communication between the Băxīŏ and the Pacific, and look forward confidently to the time when Mexican flour, exported by this channel, will replace that of Chile in the markets of Lima and Gūyăquīl. Without deciding upon the practicability or impracticability of this plan, it is only necessary to say, that Mexico must be in a very different state from that in which it now is, before its execution can be attempted. The work must be the work of a highly prosperous and populous country, and not of one in which the elements of prosperity are only beginning to develop themselves. It, therefore, certainly does not belong to the period embraced in my present work, although, in 1927, ​its advantages may perhaps be descanted upon by some future Mexican historian.
I remained a long time at the Puente behind the rest of my party duck-shooting, and should probably have passed the morning there, had I not received a letter from Mr. Ritchie, an English merchant of great respectability established at Guadalajara, who had had the goodness to offer us lodgings in his house during our stay in the town—written in haste, to inform me that the principal authorities of the State were coming out with him to meet us at the village of San Pedro. I instantly took the road to that place, but did not reach it until long after the carriage, and found a numerous party assembled, who had been waiting some time for us. Zacatecas had spoiled us for such civilities, or, at least, left us totally unprepared to meet them; and I was not a little ashamed of our appearance, as we took our places covered with dust in the gay carriages brought out for our reception.
The approach to Guadalajara lies across a flat, but rich vega: the town covers a great extent of ground, and the view of it from the Hacienda de Batres (to the South-east,) is very picturesque, although there is no range of mountains for the eye to rest upon in the background. Mr. Ritchie's house, where we arrived between two and three o'clock, is situated in one of the principal streets, and, large as our party was, his hospitality found means to provide a lodging for us all. The servants ​and mules alone were sent to an inn, which, from what I saw of it, appeared to be particularly bad.
The State of Jalisco, or Guadalajara, commences, as has been already mentioned, a little to the Westward of Aguas Calientes, and occupies the whole intervening space from that town to the shores of the Pacific.
This extensive territory is divided into eight "Cantones," or districts; (Guadalajara, Lagos, La Barca, Sayula, Etzatlan, Autlan, Tepic, and Colotlan;) and these, again, are subdivided into twenty-six departments, (departamentos,) containing in all 318 Pueblos, 387 Haciendas, and 2,534 Ranchos, with a registered population of 656,830 souls. Before the separation of the district of Colima, which has chosen to become a Territorio de la Federacion, (that is, to place itself under the immediate inspection of the Supreme Government,) Jalisco contained eight hundred thousand inhabitants. The number does not now exceed that given by the census; as the Government, convinced of the inexactitude of the returns transmitted by the Ayuntamientos, has added to them one-sixth for unavoidable deficiencies.
The population of the Capital, in 1823, was 46,804; but it has increased materially since that time, and in 1827 was supposed to amount to nearly sixty thousand souls. The town itself ranks as the second city in the Republic, and although its claim is disputed by La Puebla, it is, I think, fairly entitled to the appellation. The streets, however, are ​melancholy and deserted, most of the lower orders being occupied in their own houses, where they exercise various trades in a small way, as in San Luis. They are good blacksmiths, carpenters, silversmiths, and hatters, and are famous for their skill in working leather, as well as in manufacturing a sort of porous earthenware, with which they supply not only all Mexico, but the neighbouring States upon the Pacific. This is made partly in Guadalajara, and partly in the two villages of San Pedro and Tŏnālă, where the inhabitants have no other occupation. Rebozas and Tapalos, (shawls of striped calico, much used by the lower orders,) are made in considerable quantities; as were formerly Mantas (blankets); but this branch of trade, after suffering much in 1812, when the port of San Blas was opened by General Cruz, has been destroyed entirely by the late importations from the United States, smuggled in through Tampico, Soto la Marina, and Refugio, on the Eastern coast.
Guadalajara derives at present little or no advantage from its foreign trade, San Blas being nearly abandoned as a port, in consequence of its natural inferiority to Măzătlān and Gūāymăs, as well as of the vexatious conduct of the Custom-house officers there; upon which subject I have already given all necessary details in Section V. Book III.
Foreign goods are introduced overland from San Luis or Mexico. There is but one foreign mercantile house in the capital, (that of Mr. Ritchie,) and ​three at Tĕpīc; and it is probable that even these will soon be obliged to seek an establishment farther North, unless the opening of the ports of Manzanillo and Navidad, (hitherto little frequented,) should give a new impulse to the direct trade.
With so large a population, the revenues of the State of Jalisco might be very considerable; they have not, however, proved sufficient to cover its expences. This is owing chiefly to the abolition of the Alcavalas, in lieu of which a Contribucion directa, or income-tax, was established by the Congress, at the suggestion of the late Governor, Don Prisciliano Sanchez. The measure was so unpopular, that the amount raised never exceeded 230,000 dollars; and to supply the deficit, some of the old alcavalas were re-established in addition to the income-tax: even with this, the contingent, amounting to 365,000 dollars a year, is not covered, and the State is 108,000 dollars in arrear with the Federation. The annual expences of the Government are 200,000 dollars, including the salaries of the Governor and vice-Governor, with eight Gefes Politicos, who preside over the eight Cantons, thirty deputies, and eight senators, each of whom receives a salary of 3,000 dollars.
To cover these charges, there are, in addition to the branches of the revenue already mentioned, the fourth of the tithes, which averages annually from 85,000 to 90,000 dollars: the produce of the tobacco manufactory, not yet well organized, and the municipal duties, which are large, besides the three per ​cent, on foreign goods. These altogether produce only 500,000 dollars; though the revenues from 1812 to 1821 amounted to four millions annually. At that time, however, San Blas was the only port in the whole Mexican territory, besides Vera Cruz, open to foreign trade; and consequently the duties upon goods intended for the consumption of the Northern States, which now supply themselves through their own ports, accumulated in Jalisco.
The mines of Guadalajara, with the exception of those of Bolaños, which I was very sorry not to be able to visit, are of less importance than those of the other Central States. Bolaños is situated in a barranca, the lowest part of which is only 3107 feet above the level of the sea. Of the works carrying on there, I have already given a description (Book VI. Section II.), to which I can make no additions. At Comanja, another district, between Lagos and Leon, the United Company has contracted for the mines of Diamantillo and Guardarraya, which, from Mr. Alaman's account, may be regarded as a mere experiment. The principal vein of Cŏmānjă is considered to be a prolongation of the Veta Madre of Guanajuato; but since the expulsion of the Jesuits, who worked the famous mine of Los Remedios there, it has been little explored. The Sierra of Comanja is partly volcanic and partly trapp. Besides silver, it abounds in magnetic iron, lead, and tin; but the Pueblo itself was entirely destroyed during the war, ​and the mineral riches in its vicinity are seldom explored.
In the Tierra Caliente, between Guadalajara and Tepic, there are likewise some "minerales" hitherto but little worked. Of these, the only one of importance appears to be Tlōstŏtīpăqūillo, where the mines of Colonel Jose Chiafino appear by papers, with which Mr. Ritchie was so good as to furnish me, to have yielded from 1806 to 1810 a clear profit of 234,932 dollars, and from 1820 to 1824, 268,143 dollars. They are now abandoned, in consequence of the death of the proprietor.
Jalisco is undoubtedly the State in which Republican ideas have made the greatest progress, but I doubt whether the violence of the attacks directed against every thing connected with the former system has not produced in some respects a detrimental effect. The liberty of the press has degenerated into licentiousness; and the wish to weaken the influence of the clergy, (all powerful in a city so long the seat of a wealthy Bishoprick,) led the late Governor into a contest, in which he appeared at last as the avowed advocate of atheism.
As in Durango, the intervention of the Supreme Government was found necessary, in order to prevent the too great eagerness with which ecclesiastical reforms were pushed by the liberal party, from being productive of very serious consequences. By the seventh Article of the Constitution of Jalisco, the ​State sequestered the whole property of the church, and undertook in return to make an adequate provision for the ministers of religion. This measure was strenuously resisted by the Cabildo, which even went so far as to threaten the Congress and Governor with excommunication, if they persevered in their attempt to enforce it. The point of right was referred, at last, to the General Congress, which decided that the ecclesiastical authorities could not legally be called upon to take the oath of fidelity to the new code, upon conditions so detrimental to their own interests. The Constitution was accordingly sworn without the Seventh Article, (which, however, is still retained as a part of the printed text,) and this prudent resolution put a stop, for the time, to all farther innovation. Enough had been done, however, to excite a spirit of inveterate hostility between the Ecclesiastical and Civil Authorities, and, up to this day, the contest has been continued. The Governor, Don Prisciliano Sanchez, died a short time before I reached Jalisco, in a state of excommunication, as one of the editors of the Astro, the paper in which the doctrines, to which I have already alluded, were promulgated; and his successor, Don Antonio Cumplido, is, I believe, involved in the same sentence. All the advocates of moderate church reforms in Mexico regret this state of things in Guadalajara. The authorities, by their conduct, have given the Cabildo but too fair a plea for crying down every attempt at ​innovation as a Heresy; and although I am inclined to think that the influence of the Church is decreasing rapidly, it has still a great hold upon the minds of the people, and might, if driven to extremities, prove a dangerous enemy to the tranquillity of the country.
On every point not connected with religion, the Government of Jalisco has shown a most laudable anxiety for the improvement of public education. Schools have been established in every part of the State, and placed under the immediate superintendence of the Political Chiefs. By an article of the Constitution, those, who, after the year 1840, are not able to read, will lose the right of voting at the elections. In the capital, a college is established at the public expence, upon the most liberal footing. Professors of anatomy and modern languages (both Frenchmen, and clever men,) have been engaged at a salary of 2,000 dollars per annum. A professor of mineralogy from Freiberg is shortly expected, and Mr. Jones (son-in-law of Mr. Lancaster) has been appointed to superintend the Lancasterian system throughout the State, with a similar return for his services. A magnificent building is set apart by Government for this new institution, and lectures were to commence there the week after my departure.
The town of Guadalajara is handsome, the streets airy, and many of the houses excellent. There are fourteen plazas, or squares, twelve fountains, and a ​number of convents and churches, the principal of which (the cathedral) is still a magnificent building, notwithstanding the destruction of the cupolas of both its towers in the great earthquake of 1818.
The Alameda, or public walk, is very prettily laid out, for the trees, instead of being drawn up in battle array, in straight lines, intersecting each other at right angles like the streets, are made to cover a large tract of ground in irregular alleys, while in summer the whole open space is filled with flowers, particularly roses, which give it a very lively appearance. There is a fountain, too, in the centre, and a stream of water all round. Within the town, the Portales are the principal rendezvous, as, besides a number of handsome shops, well provided with European and Chinese manufactures, they contain a variety of stalls covered with domestic productions, fruits of all kinds, earthenware from Tŏnālă, shoes in quantities, mangas, saddlery, birds in cages, "dulces" of Călăbăzātĕ, and a thousand other trifles, for which there seems to be an incessant demand. As each of these stalls pays a small ground-rent, the convents to which the Portales belong derive from them a considerable revenue. They are the counterpart of the Părĭān in Mexico, but infinitely more ornamental, being built with equal solidity and good taste.
Guadalajara possesses a mint, and four printing-presses, all established since the Revolution. The mint is under the direction of an Englishman, Mr. ​Murray, whose history is a curious instance of the unexpected turns which a man's fate may take in life, without his own free agency being at all consulted. He was taken prisoner at the siege of Gibraltar, as a midshipman in the British service, and conveyed by the vessel which captured him direct to Lima, where, according to the usual policy of the Spanish Colonial Government, he was kindly treated, but desired to give up all idea of ever seeing Europe again. Being very young, he changed his religion, and finding escape impossible, he worked his way in the Spanish service, until being transferred from Peru to Mexico, he obtained his present situation, which he has held since 1812. He is much respected, and in very comfortable circumstances: of his former connexions he knows nothing, and he has so nearly forgotten his native language, that he thinks it useless to institute inquiries which might bewilder and perplex him, without adding in any way to his prospects of enjoyment during the remainder of his life.
We remained at Guadalajara from the 3d to the 7th of January, during the whole of which time we met with every sort of civility and kindness from the authorities, as well as the principal inhabitants of the place. The Gefe Politico, Don Francisco Duque, and Don Joaquin Parres, the military Commandant, furnished me with a great deal of useful information, as did Don Antonio Gutierrez y Ulloa, a most intelligent and gentlemanlike Spaniard, for many ​years Intendant of the State. It was under his administration that the receipts amounted annually to four millions of dollars, (from 1812 to 1818,) out of which the whole expences of the army of General Cruz were covered, and all other charges defrayed.
Of the Canons, (mostly old Spaniards,) we saw nothing. Their influence is thought to be upon the wane, and the "Liberals" of the capital declare, that had they not been fettered by the decrees of the Supreme Congress, Jalisco would have given a memorable example to the rest of the Federation, and humbled the pride of the clergy at once. Upon this subject I have already expressed my doubts. It must be admitted, however, that their authority is by no means what it was. Iturbide threw himself into the arms of the high church party, which could not prevent him from being driven from the throne; and amongst the middling classes of society, a disposition to question the authority of the church, even in spiritual affairs, is daily gaining ground. In temporal matters, we have seen that it is rejected altogether. If you ask any young man of the present day in Guadalajara what his religious principles are, he will tell you that he is a "naturalista," that is to say, of no religion at all. Nor is it surprising that such tenets should spread, when the disgraceful mummeries are taken into consideration, by which the friars in particular endeavour to maintain their influence over the minds of the lower orders. At ​Zacatecas, we saw, on Christmas eve, a figure of our Saviour paraded through the streets, dressed in a green silk robe, with a pañuelo del sol, fastened across the shoulders; while the Virgin Mary followed, adorned with a fashionable French hat, put on a little on one side.
These images the poor are taught to worship: the rich, or rather the well-informed, may bow the knee indeed, but they deride in private the superstition with which they are compelled outwardly to conform; and religion itself shares in the feelings, which such disgusting exhibitions are but too well calculated to excite.
On the 7th of January we quitted Guadalajara, and slept at Ătĕqūīză, a Hacienda eleven leagues from the town, very prettily situated, near a vast plain of sembrados de trigo, (young wheat,) which had been just laid under water, and was of the most delicate green that it is possible to imagine. The Hacienda contains thirteen "sitios," and the lands are mostly "de riego," (irrigated,) but the increase of wheat seldom exceeds thirty to one, and does not average more than twenty-five. We were received with much hospitality by the proprietor, an acquaintance of Mr. Ritchie's; and remained till late in ​the evening seated in an open corridor, enjoying a temperature unknown in the central provinces even during the hottest months.
On the following morning, (January 8th,) we left the high road to La Barca, by which our carriage and baggage mules proceeded to Ŏcŏtlān, and struck across the mountains nearly due West, to the camp of Tlăchĭchīlcŏ, (four leagues from Ătĕqūīză,) upon the borders of the Lake of Chăpālă. This magnificent lake is laid down in Humboldt's map as little known, and the distance from Guădălajāră is likewise made to appear much greater than it really is. It is therefore easy to reach Tlăchĭchīlcŏ in one day, the distance not exceeding thirty, or at most thirty-five miles. A little above this place, which was a military station during the Civil War, the immense basin of Chăpālă opens upon the view. It is from thirty-six to forty leagues in length, and varies from five to eight leagues in breadth: the surrounding mountains are barren, but bold, and descend at once to the water's edge, while the Island of Mĕscālă, nearly opposite Tlachichilco, serves as a point of repose, upon which the eye rests with pleasure in traversing this vast expanse of deep blue water. This island, which is now used as a Presidio, or public prison, was occupied during the years 1811, 1812, and 1813, by the Indians from the surrounding villages, who, headed by their Curas, declared in favour of the Independent cause, and maintained themselves in this strong position against all the efforts of General ​Cruz (then commanding in Guadalajara) to dislodge them. They were well provided with canoes, and made frequent incursions from their stronghold into the surrounding country, cutting off isolated detachments of the royal troops, and returning loaded with provisions to the lake, before a force could be assembled to attack them. Nor was their reduction effected until 1814, when a number of gun-boats having been built at Tlachichilco, all communication with the shore was cut off; and after repulsing several assaults, they were compelled by famine to capitulate.
We embarked on board one of these gun-boats, which is still in good preservation at the camp, after breakfasting with the wife of the Commandant (La Señora Rodriguez) upon the Pescado Blanco, for which Chăpālă is celebrated. This fish is found in most parts of the Table-land, but it does not attain so large a size in the lakes about the Capital, as in those of Pāscuărŏ and Chăpālă, from whence, upon great occasions, it is sent express to Mexico, slightly sprinkled with salt, or preserved in snow. I was glad to be able to furnish Madame Rodriguez in return, with a quantity of the water-fowl, which abound upon the edges of the lake, but are seldom tasted by the natives, as they have no guns that will kill a duck at fifty yards from the shore.
We sent our horses to San Pedro, an Indian village three leagues from Tlăchĭchīlcŏ, and proceeded there ourselves by water, stretching half across the ​lake, in order to get a better view of Mĕscālă, where we regretted not having time to land. San Pedro is situated upon the steep ridge which separates Chăpālă from the Valley of Ŏcŏtlān, through which the Rio Grande pursues its course. The view of the lake from the height called La Coronilla, is almost equal to that of the Lake of Geneva from the mountains above Vevay. Its vast extent, its form, the bold outline of the surrounding mountains, and the clear blue of the sky above, render it a very striking scene, and one to which few pencils could do justice.
From San Pedro to the banks of the Rio Grande, at the point where it reissues from the Lake of Chapala, which it enters near La Barca, we calculated the distance to be about five leagues; the two first mountainous, the three last over a level plain, which we crossed at a rapid passo. Even at this pace we could hardly keep our guide (an Indian runner, from San Pedro) in sight. He continued at a very fast trot over every sort of ground, now disappearing in a barranca, and now half seen, in the obscurity of the evening, fifty yards before our horses' heads, until we reached the ferry, to which he had promised to conduct us. Ŏcŏtlān is situated upon the Southern bank of the river, a broad and rapid stream. We found the passage not unattended with danger; for, as we had but one servant with us, Mrs. Ward, Mr. Martin, and I, were seated in a punt just large enough to contain us, guided by a man with a pole not sufficiently long to reach the bottom in the ​deepest parts. We each held a horse by a lasso, while the saddles and bridles were piled up between us; the servant remained upon the bank to force the animals to enter the water, which, as it was dark and cold, they did with great reluctance; and when they got into the middle, not discovering the opposite bank, they began to swim in different directions, and very nearly upset the boat. More than half an hour elapsed before we were all landed; and Mr. Carrington, who had gone on in the morning to superintend the passage of the baggage mules and the coach, told us that it had taken nearly four hours to accomplish it. I had bought at Sŏmbrĕrētĕ sixteen Durango mules, from the Hacienda del Ojo,—beautiful creatures, but perfectly unbroken, and so nimble in all their motions, that if they chose to separate from their companions, we had hardly a horse fast enough to come within lassoing distance of them while in full career. Frightened at the water, these beasts spread on every side; and it was only by collecting some rancheros to assist the servants, that Carrington was enabled at last to force them into the stream, which was done by closing gradually in upon them with loud cries, and lassos whirling in air, until one more courageous than its companions plunged in, and was followed instantly by the rest.
I know few instances in which the utter inutility of English servants for Mexican travelling would have been better exemplified than in the attempt to ​break these mules. Not one of them had ever been in harness before, yet they drew our coach the whole way from Sŏmbrĕrētĕ to the capital. The first few days, the operation of catching them was really tremendous. The mules were driven into a corral, or large inclosure, and two lassos affixed in turn to each, one to the neck, and the other to one of the hind legs. Each of these was held by two men, while, after allowing a little time for the animal to exhaust itself in unavailing efforts, a fifth approached, and with infinite precautions placed a leather bandage (the Tapa ojos) over the eyes, and then proceeded to put on the rest of the harness. During this whole process, the struggles of the mule are fearful; and, even when convinced of the impossibility of escape, I have seen them groan and bellow in an agony of impatience, and try to destroy, with their teeth and fore-feet, whatever came within their reach.
One by one, however, they were led forth and attached, still blindfolded, to the coach, the wheelers and leaders being always steady old mules, while the four new comers occupied the intervening space; the Tapa ojos was then raised, and they went off usually at full speed, until the nature of the road, or the resistance of their more prudent companions, induced them to moderate their pace. We never met with an accident of any consequence in the course of these proceedings, or in the operation of ​breaking the mules for the saddle, which was conducted in a similar manner.
The bad riders amongst the servants used to get some terrible tumbles, and they were occasionally carried up and down a barranca in rather awkward places, but no limbs were broken; and as each was laughed at in turn, the most perfect good humour prevailed; while the mules were so far subdued by constant work, that between Valladolid and Mexico they gave us comparatively but little trouble.
We rejoined our party at the Hacienda of Săn Ăndrēs, three miles from the river, where Mr. Carrington had got a lodging for us, there being no inn at Ŏcŏtlān; and, on the following morning, (Jan. 9,) we proceeded to La Barca, where we arrived at an early hour, the distance being only eight leagues.
La Barca is the head of a "Canton," containing four "departamentos," with 96,178 inhabitants. The town is uninteresting, and only worthy of remark as being the last place visited by us in the State of Jalisco, which is divided there by the Rio Grande from the neighbouring States of Guănăjūātŏ and Văllădŏlīd. Our road lay through the last of these, and we consequently sent our carriage and mules over in the evening of our arrival. During this process, which occupied four hours, I went to shoot in the great Cienega, or marsh, which commences a little to the Westward of La Barca, and extends in a line with the river almost as far as the ​Lake of Chăpālă. I found there a prodigious variety of every species of water-fowl,—wild ducks, geese, swans, bitterns, and herons, some of enormous size, with many others, the notes and plumage of which were equally new to me. I tried in vain to get within shot of some of the larger kind, for my progress was interrupted, at almost every step, by deep canals, or impassable swamps. At last, however, by the advice of my Indian guide, I embarked upon a large bundle of rushes, which, though soon water-logged, still supported my weight very tolerably, for a considerable distance, while he accompanied me upon another equally primitive conveyance. By this means I contrived to shoot several ducks and a couple of wild geese; but when I wished to return with my booty, I found the attempt by no means easy. A strong current was setting towards the lake, and every attempt to propel our rush rafts in a contrary direction had the effect of immersing them still more deeply in the water; until at last, wet up to my middle, and with every prospect of sinking still lower from the quantity of water that my rushes had imbibed, I was forced to land, and to take a round of nearly two leagues, in order to avoid the marsh, and to reach La Barca, where I did not arrive until a very late hour.
Jan. 10.—To Chĭrĭnghūichărŏ, fourteen leagues.
We crossed the river early, and proceeded by Buena Vista (a large Hacienda) and the Pueblo of Tăngūāto to Chĭrĭnghūichărŏ, having been led to believe ​that by avoiding Zămōră (the usual road), we might reach Văllădŏlīd one day sooner. From the time that we approached Tăngūāto, we began to remark a sensible improvement in the appearance of the country: there was more variety in the shape of the mountains, more wood, more water, and a richer vegetation. The cottages too, though small, were neat; the people cleanly and civil. A little beyond Tăngūāto, we found a very pretty lake, extending, with occasional interruptions, for nearly two leagues; it was full of little islands, covered with acacias, and abounding with wild-fowl of every description, while large herds of cattle occupied the potreros in the vicinity of its banks.
Having loitered with Mrs. Ward behind the rest of the party, which had struck into a different road, we stopped at a small hut to breakfast, where a pretty Indian woman, with a beautiful set of teeth, gave us some tortillas, with eggs, frijoles, chile, and a little meat for ourselves and two servants, for four reals. She was exceedingly communicative, and told us that her house, on setting out in life, had cost her four dollars, and her marriage fees twenty-two: that her husband had paid this, but was still in debt to the Padre for the baptism of a child, the fees for which he was then endeavouring to raise. We gave her a few reals towards so laudable a purpose, and left her highly pleased with our visit, as we were with her simple manners and conversation.
We found only the remains of a house at ​Chiringhuicharo, the Hacienda having been burnt during the Revolution: we, however, fitted up two very tolerable apartments in the corridor with blankets and cloaks, in which, as there was not much wind, we passed the night without discomfort.
Jan. 11.—To Tlăsĕsālcă, ten leagues.
This day's experience effectually convinced us of the folly of taking cross-roads with a carriage. It was our intention to sleep at Cĭpĭmēŏ, another Hacienda, put down in our route as a very feasible distance; but after reaching, about two o'clock, the Hacienda of Chāngĕtīrŏ, we found our farther progress impeded by a succession of inclosures, through which it was necessary to force our way by opening breaches in the thick stone walls large enough to admit the carriage. Fortunately, Mexicans have a great talent for demolition; and the servants, who all went to work con amore, soon opened us a passage; but after continuing the work till six o'clock, during which time we had made our way through six or seven inclosures, we found ourselves at dusk upon the top of a hill immediately above the Pueblo of Tlăsĕsālcă (ten leagues from Cĭpĭmēŏ), where we resolved to pass the night. To reach it was no easy task, as the descent consisted entirely of fragments of rock, over which it seemed impossible that a carriage should find its way unbroken. From this dilemma we were extricated by a Vaquero, who offered to show us a winding path, through which he had once conducted the Insurgent artillery during the ​Revolution. We gladly embraced the proposal, and arrived safely in the Pueblo, by a very circuitous route, about seven o'clock, where we succeeded in obtaining accommodations for the night.
On the following morning (Jan. 12) we pursued our journey, and reached Cipimeo (ten leagues) at an early hour in the afternoon. The road was very rugged, but the country exceedingly pretty, the vast plains of the Interior being replaced by a pleasing variety of mountain scenery. The weather however was cloudy, and in the pine-forests we all felt the cold severely. The central part of Valladolid is raised above the level of the surrounding country—being situated upon that part of the Sierra Madre where the descent to the Western coast commences, and where a succession of broken and lofty ridges interrupts the uniformity of surface peculiar to the Table-land. The valleys between these ridges abound in water, and are exceedingly fertile; while the mountains that environ them are covered with a fine growth of timber. In one of these valleys the Hacienda of Cipimeo is situated, formerly one of the most valuable in the State of Valladolid, but now only just beginning to recover from the effects of the Civil War. The present proprietor, Don José Maria Torres, was an officer in the Creole army in 1810, and his father was instrumental in saving the lives of twenty Europeans residing in Patzcuaro, against whom Hidalgo had fulminated one of his iniquitous decrees of proscription. These offences ​drew upon the family the ill-will of the first Insurgents; and the estate was so continually laid waste, that for some years it was entirely abandoned.
The Hacienda possesses a great extent of wood-land,—ground sufficient for sowing 400 fanegas of maize, the whole of which is irrigated—rich and abundant pastures—and a plentiful supply of water. A river passes through the estate, and Cienegas, or marshes, (very valuable for cattle during the dry season,) extend for some leagues around. In front of the house there is a singular volcanic mountain, the crater of which forms an "Alberga," or natural lake. The water commences about 200 feet from the edge of the crater; it is salt; and no attempt to find a bottom has yet proved successful.
The basin in which it is contained is perfectly circular, and the descent to the water's edge almost precipitous: the distance across must be 200 or 250 feet. From a little above the "Alberga" we had a fine view of the surrounding countries; and Mr. Torres pointed out to us the marsh, in the centre of which the fort of Jāūxīllă stood, once the seat of the only independent government of which Mexico could boast.
Jan. 13.—From Cĭpĭmēŏ we proceeded to Tĕcāchŏ, (twelve leagues,) a Hacienda and Venta, which was to be our last stage on the way to Văllădŏlīd.
The road continued to be exceedingly picturesque, being surrounded by hills, some of the most fantastic shapes, while others, though isolated, looked ​as if they had been cast in the same mould. In passing the marshes I killed nine ducks, and brought down two wild geese at a double shot, as they rose out of some rushes near the road. We found them most excellent eating, and regretted that it was not possible to add them more frequently to our bill of fare; but, except by a chance shot, it is extremely difficult to obtain so great a prize. In the lakes of the valley of Mexico they are seldom seen, though ducks, snipes, and bitterns, are found there in prodigious numbers. I have frequently shot twenty and thirty snipes in a morning; and a great tiro de patos near Mexico is one of the most curious scenes that it is possible to witness. The Indians, by whom it is principally conducted, prepare a battery composed of seventy or eighty musket barrels arranged in two rows, one of which sweeps the water, while the other is a little elevated, so as to take the ducks as they rise upon the wing. The barrels are connected with each other, and fired by a train; but the whole apparatus, as well as the man who has charge of it, are concealed in the rushes, until the moment when, after many hours of cautious labour, one of the dense columns of ducks, which blacken, at times, the surface of the lake, is driven by the distant canoes of his associates sufficiently near to the fatal spot. The double tier of guns is immediately fired, and the water remains strewed with the bodies of the killed, and the wounded, whose escape is cut off by the circle of canoes beyond. ​Twelve hundred ducks are often brought in as the result of a single tiro; and during the whole season they form the ordinary food of the lower classes in the Capital, where they are sold for one, or at most two reals each.
In the North I saw no such masses of ducks, but they were replaced by wild geese, swans and cranes, with herons of a prodigious size, in flocks that covered a vast extent of country when they alighted, and filled the air with discordant screams when on the wing. I never could succeed, however, in securing any of the larger birds, as they were so extremely wary that it was difficult to approach them even within rifle shot.
Jan. 14.—We left Tecacho at seven, and reached Valladolid (twelve leagues) at half-past three.
There was nothing on the way to announce that we were either upon a high road, or approaching the Capital of a flourishing State. A few wretched hovels, at one of which we stopped to breakfast, and two or three miserable arrieros, were the only objects that reminded us of the presence of man. The forest scenery, however, was fine, and we saw occasionally some stupendous masses of lava, looking as fresh as if they had been produced by a very recent eruption. The frequent recurrence of these volcanic remains is a singular feature in New Spain; for since the Conquest there has not been a single eruption of any consequence, (excepting that of Jorullo,) and most of the volcanoes now known are ​extinct. Yet masses of scoria, and districts covered with lava, are found in every part of the Federation; in the vicinity of the Capital, on the road to Guanajuato, in parts of San Luis, between Sombrerete and Durango, throughout Valladolid, and on the ascent from Veracruz, between Jalapa, Jilotepec, and Las Vigas, as well as in the plains of Tepeyagualco; while everywhere their vast extent proves that the convulsions which produced them must have been fearful indeed.
I know few places the approach to which is so tedious as that to Valladolid. For more than two hours you see the city apparently below you, while the road continues to wind amongst the surrounding hills. At length, a rapid descent conducts you to the plain, where a long causeway built across a marsh forms the entrance to the town. The suburbs are poor and insignificant, but the high street is fine, and the Cathedral, standing alone and unconcealed by any subordinate buildings, produces a very imposing effect.
Not having any acquaintances in Valladolid, we took up our quarters at the inn of Nuestra Señora de la Soledad, where we obtained very decent apartments, with tables, chairs, and a number of other luxuries, not at all general as yet in the Mexican Republic.
The State of Michoacan comprises the territory formerly belonging to the Tarascos, a powerful Indian nation, first allies, and afterwards rivals of the ​Aztecs, whom they are said to have followed in their emigration from the North. Their capital was situated upon the banks of the Lake of Pātzqŭarŏ, called by them Tzinzunzan, from the number of humming birds (Tzinzun) in its vicinity, with the feathers of which the statues of their gods were adorned. Driven into the mountains by the persecutions of their conquerors, the Indians led a wild and barbarous life, until they were reclaimed by the exertions of Vasco de Quiroga, first Bishop of Valladolid, who devoted thirty years of his life to the mitigation of the evils, which the ambition of his countrymen had brought upon the aboriginal race. The Bishopric was created in 1536, and held by Quiroga until 1565, during which time the valleys were once more filled with inhabitants, and the natives distributed into villages, where they have continued ever since to cultivate the lands assigned to them by their protector; and, in some instances, to exercise the trades, in which he caused them to be instructed.
The registered population of the State in 1822, was 365,080 souls. It may be calculated at 450,000 at the present day, adding one-sixth for omissions, and making some additional allowance for the inhabitants who have returned to their homes ​since the re-establishment of tranquillity, Valladolid being one of the provinces that suffered most during the Civil War. It has been justly termed the cradle of the Revolution; most of the proprietors are old Insurgents; and, with the exception of the Congress assembled by Morelos at Oaxaca, all the governments successively established by the Independent leaders (the Junta of Zitācŭarŏ, the Congress of Apătzīngăn, and the Junta of Jāūxīllă) sought a refuge in the territories of Mīchŏăcān. The result was almost universal desolation, and many years will still be required to repair the wide-spread ruin, which so protracted a struggle has occasioned.
Valiadolid contains two cities, (Ciudades,) (Pātzcŭarŏ and Văllădŏlīd,) three towns, (Villas,) 256 Pueblos, 333 Haciendas, and 1356 Ranchos, distributed into eighty-three parishes, and twenty-one "Partidos," or districts.
The legislature consists of one chamber, composed of eleven deputies, who receive a monthly salary of 150 dollars, during the sessions only. The whole expences of the Government do not exceed 120,000 dollars. The contingent amounts to 175,000 dollars, of which one-half remained due for the year 1825. The reduced contingent of 1826 was paid.
From the universal distress occasioned by the Civil War, the revenue of Michoacan, in 1827, was still very inconsiderable. The former riches of the State consisted almost entirely in its agricultural ​produce, the most ordinary manufactures being introduced from the neighbouring towns of the Băxīŏ. The Pueblos have now so little to give in exchange for these supplies, that the Alcavalas (or excise upon home-made goods) yield little or nothing. A contribucion directa, calculated at two reals a-head, has never yet produced 20,000 dollars; and even for tobacco the demand is very trifling. The tithes, one moiety of which belongs to the State, formerly produced 500,000 dollars; they now yield only 200,000 dollars; nor is there any immediate prospect of an increase, as their falling off is attributed not only to the depressed state of the agricultural interests, but to the dissemination of ideas unfavourable to the rights of the Church, which are gaining ground every day.
The only mines now in activity in Michoacan are those of Tlălpŭjāhuă, Ozūmătlān, and Angangeo. There are many other districts said to be rich in the Sierra Madre, and the mines of Huĕtāmŏ, amongst others, have excited the attention of some of our Companies; but it does not appear that their value is sufficient to compensate for the disadvantages of a scanty population, and a very unhealthy climate. The whole Western declivity of the Sierra Madre comprehended within the province of Michoacan is remarkable for its insalubrity. Agues of the most dangerous kind prevail there during a great part of the year, and the inhabitants are afflicted not only with wens, (as in parts of Sonora,) but with ​the disease called Quiricua, a sort of leprosy, which discolours the face and body with large blue splotches, without otherwise affecting the health of those attacked by it. The principal seat of the disorder is in the valleys between Tĕmăscāltĕpēc, Huĕtāmŏ, and the Coast, where nearly the whole population is composed of "Pintos;" the affection is said to be contagious, and spreads gradually towards the interior, so that a mottled race may probably be propagated into the very vicinity of the Capital.
The Tierra Caliente at the foot of the Cordillera, which is fertilized in part by the Rio Balsas, is rich in all the ordinary productions of the tropics; and even in the more elevated valleys, sugar was grown before the Revolution to a very considerable extent. The best sugar lands are now about twelve leagues South of Pāscuărŏ, where the proprietors of almost all the sugar estates reside; but only a small portion of the machinery destroyed during the war has been yet replaced. At the foot of the mountain of Jŏrūllo, there are some plantations of cacao and indigo belonging to General Michilena, but they have not yet attained any considerable value, or extent.
Nearly all the public edifices, not immediately connected with the Government, in Valladolid, are due to the munificence of the bishops of that See, most of whom have contributed to enrich, or adorn, the town. The cathedral, the hospitals, and the aqueduct, are all the works of the Church. The first is a magnificent building, and wealthy, though ​despoiled of a large proportion of its treasures by the Royal Commandant Trŭxīllŏ, during the Revolution. The massive silver balustrades around the principal altar escaped the fate of the lamps and candelabras, (melted down as a loan to the Royal Treasury,) by being painted the colour of mahogany, which they retain to the present day.
The bishoprick of Mīchŏăcān has been vacant for many years; but I know no place where the recollection of the long line of Prelates who have occupied the episcopal chair, seems to be preserved with such respectful and affectionate regret. Indeed, I have often heard Mexicans, but little disposed to speak well of Spain in any other respect, admit that the conduct of the great dignitaries of their Church has been in general most exemplary. Amongst the Parochial clergy in New Spain, the distance of the livings from each other, and the absence of all control, have led occasionally to a very relaxed state of morals, and converted religion into a cloak for the greatest excesses; but the bishops, in general, have been men of great simplicity, and benevolence, whose primitive habits, and unambitious lives, their Creole successors will do well to imitate.
We left Văllădŏlīd on the l6th of January. The view of the town from the Mexican side is really beautiful: gardens and orchards form the foreground, while the lofty aqueduct, the gorgeous churches, and a bold range of mountains behind, fill up the remaining space. Our road lay through Chārŏ, and ​Indăpărāpĕŏ, to Sĭnăpēcuărŏ, where Mrs. Ward and the rest of the party slept. This town is the head of a Partido, or district, containing 25,174 inhabitants, and abounding in the ordinary productions of the Table-land. The name is derived from the Indian word "Tzĭnāpŭ," which, in the language of Ŏtŏmīs, or Tărāscŏs, signifies Obsidian, a great abundance of which is found in the vicinity of the town. By a grammar of the Tarascan tongue in my possession, the language appears to be very far from simple. The alphabet consists of only twenty-one letters, five vowels and sixteen consonants. F and L are not known. The L (as already observed) is particularly prevalent in the Aztec language, while the R, rejected by the Aztecs, is almost universal amongst the Ŏtŏmīs. Yet the two tribes emigrated from the North together, and continued allies, until, from too close a neighbourhood, they became enemies, and were both overwhelmed by the common foe. A pure breed of the Ŏtŏmīs still exists in many parts of Valladolid. They live chiefly in the mountainous districts, and never intermarry with any other tribe.
At Indăpărāpĕŏ, I quitted the high road to the Capital, and struck off across the mountains to Ozūmătlān, a little isolated district, where the Real del Monte Company is working the mines of San Pedro Barreno, Los Apostoles, and La Machorra.
Ozūmătlān is exceedingly difficult of access, the mountains being intersected by immense ravines, and ​the paths so little frequented that all trace of them is frequently lost. I succeeded however, with an excellent horse, in making my way to the mouth of a Barranca more than a league in length, towards the upper part of which the village and mines are situated. The mountains on either side are lofty, and clothed with a fine growth of oaks and firs, while a rapid, though shallow, stream occupies nearly the whole of the intervening space. The road winds alternately from bank to bank, until, at a sudden turn, a little platform is discovered, upon which the village stands. The only air-tight house in it is that occupied by the Company, close to the Socabon of San Pedro. The Hacienda built by them stands a little below. It is in the establishment of the reduction works that the principal expence of the Company at Ozumatlan has consisted, for the goodness of the mines had been ascertained by Mr. Dollar, (who had laid out 22,000 dollars upon them,) before they were contracted for. The Hacienda has cost about 35,000 dollars more. It contains a large water-wheel for stamping the ores, and every other requisite for a smelting establishment; this being the only process used in Ozūmătlān, where the ores contain a quantity of lead: and where amalgamation in the Patio would be doubly tedious, on account of the total absence of sun, there being only three or four hours out of the twenty-four, in which its rays can penetrate into the lower parts of the Barranca. At the time of my visit, nine ​hundred cargas of very rich ore were already in the magazines; and it was the opinion of the miners, that, as soon as the Hacienda was completed, seven hundred cargas more might be raised weekly from the Socabon of San Pedro alone. The principal vein is nearly four varas in width, and presents every indication of being both abundant, and durable in its produce. The richest ores however, containing massive crystallizations of lead and silver, (some fine specimens of which I saw at Real del Monte,) were raised from a little side vein, which was abandoned after a short trial, being found to continue such a mere thread, (hilito,) that the ores, though exceedingly valuable, would not pay the costs of extraction.
Workmen are easily procured at Ozūmătlān; provisions are abundant, and, from its vicinity both to Valladolid and to the Tierra Caliente to the South and West, supplies of all kinds may be obtained with facility. But as a residence, the place is dreary beyond description, being completely shut out from the world. The result of the speculation to the Company does not appear to be doubtful; for the ore already on hand in 1827, was thought to be sufficient very nearly to cover the outlay, as soon as the completion of the Hacienda should afford the means of converting it into bars.
Jan. 17.—From Ozūmătlān, I proceeded across the mountains to Sĭnăpēcuărŏ. The road, after emerging from the Barranca, is good for about three ​leagues, when an almost precipitous descent leads from the edge of this elevated platform into the valley of Sinapecuaro below. I thought that I should never reach the town, for during a whole hour I saw it below me without being apparently any nearer to it than I was when I commenced the descent. At last we arrived, and, after dismissing my guide, I followed at a rapid passo the road to Mărăvătīo, by which the coach had proceeded, about three hours before me. I overtook the party at Ăcāmbarŏ, (six leagues from Sĭnăpēcuărŏ, and eleven from Ozūmătlān,) and, after taking some refreshment, and changing my horse, we continued our route towards Mărăvătīo, where it was our intention to sleep. We were imprudent enough to loiter some time at Ăcāmbarŏ, in order to see the town, which, though now nearly in ruins, was a place of importance before the civil war; and the consequence was, that we were benighted on our way to Mărăvătīo, (the distance being ten leagues,) where, after losing our road, and wandering over the plains for some hours, we did not arrive till near eleven o'clock. To add to our misfortunes, the cook, who had been sent on in the morning to lay in provisions, and get some rooms ready for our reception, seemed to have experienced the same fate. He was not heard of for three days, when he rejoined us at Tlalpujahua, very nearly starved, his horse having thrown him in the mountains, and made his escape, leaving him to find his way, as he could, to some ​Pueblo, or village, in search of which he wandered about for thirty-six hours. As a proof of the honesty of the people, I may add that the horse, being known by some of the accoutrements to be English, was brought to me at Tlălpŭjāhuă by order of an Alcalde, to whom he had been safely delivered.
A case of preserved meat saved us from absolute starvation at Mărăvătīo; without it, we must inevitably have gone supperless to bed, as, at so late an hour, not even bread was to be procured.
Jan. 18.—Early on the following morning we set out for Tlalpujahua, accompanied by Mr. Moro, the principal engineer of the Company, who had been good enough to undertake to pilot us across the mountains. The carriage-road leaves the elevated ridge upon which Tlalpujahua stands to the right, and winds almost round it into the valley of Tepetongo, where it resumes the direction of the Capital, while the road to the Real branches off, for about two leagues, up the valley, or Cañada, of Tlalpujahua, which is impassable for any thing but horses and mules.
At the Hacienda of Tĕpĕtōngŏ we were met by Monsieur de Rivafinoli, with a number of Mexicans, and other gentlemen in the service of the Company, They brought us a supply of fresh horses, with carga mules for the baggage, by whose assistance the contents of the coach were speedily transferred to Mr. de Rivafinoli's hospitable house. The children were carried on horseback by two servants; the maids ​were mounted in a similar manner; and after a very little delay, the whole cavalcade took the road to Tlalpujahua by the new Hacienda of the Chĭmāl, where we stopped to breakfast. Nothing can be prettier than the approach to the Real upon this side. The scenery varies at every turn in the Barranca, while the abundance of water, and the fine vigorous vegetation of the forests on the surrounding mountains, form a most delightful contrast to the monotonous plains of the Interior, by the recollection of which we were long haunted.
We remained at Tlălpŭjāhuă two whole days, and I found everywhere proofs of the unwearied assiduity with which the labours of the Association had been carried on. Only four months had elapsed since my preceding visit, yet a sensible improvement had taken place in every direction. Buildings were completed, which I had left uncommenced; machines erected, of which I had only seen the first sketch upon paper; and mines brought into activity, the working of which in September could hardly be said to have begun. The great Hacienda of San Rafael was likewise concluded; and though the amount of valuable ore raised was not yet considerable, the most sanguine expectations were entertained by the natives with regard to the result.
In these expectations, I confess that I myself fully share. I have always regarded Mr. de Rivafinoli's system of management as a model: his activity is unceasing, and his influence over the natives, as well ​as over the officers of the Company, unbounded; while the publicity with which every thing connected with the pecuniary concerns of the establishment is carried on, renders it impossible that this influence should be ascribed to any but the real cause; that is, a conviction, on the part of the Mexicans, of the advantages which the whole country has derived from the able manner in which the works of the Association have been conducted. More time has indeed been required to bring the mines into a profitable state than was at first thought necessary; but I trust that the details, of which the preceding books are full, will have had the effect of convincing my readers that, in undertakings upon so large a scale, where the issue is liable to be affected, not only by unforeseen difficulties, but by so many other circumstances, for which, though foreseen, no remedy can be provided, time is not the only criterion by which a judgment ought to be formed, either of the probable result of an enterprise, or of the ability displayed in its prosecution. I see, at present, no reasonable motive for discouragement amongst the Tlalpujahua adventurers. Their outlay is moderate; their mines are known to have yielded rich ores; and do so still, wherever the lodes are accessible; and although the district was abandoned for nearly sixty years, (after the removal of La Borde,) it must be recollected, that during those very years the great Bonanzas of San Acasio, (at Zacatecas), and the Păvĕllōn, with the discoveries of Catorce, Guarisamey, and the ​Valenciana mine, (at Guanajuato, and in the North, naturally diverted into other channels the capitals usually invested in mining discoveries.
The question is not, whether there are richer districts than Tlalpujahua, but whether that district, now that capital and science are employed upon it, will repay the labours of those by whom the investment is made? And to this there is every reason to imagine that, within a reasonable time, a very satisfactory answer will be given.
On the 19th of January we visited the Hacienda of San Rafael, one of the most ingenious and complete establishments, now existing in Mexico. The stamping wheel has been already described. Its effect was really beautiful, and its construction does the more honour to Mr. Moro, because he persevered in his original plan, notwithstanding the discouraging predictions of those, who pronounced its execution to be impracticable.
There was rather a scanty supply of water when we saw it; but this was an evil not to be guarded against in a year, when the maize crops throughout the country had perished for want of rain.
On the 20th we assisted at the "Bendicion" of a new machine for raising the water in the mine of Arevalo, invented by Mr. Seidenstucker, a German "machiniste," who had already given proofs of much ingenuity in his department, and materially improved the machinery of the Company. In the present instance, by inverting the ordinary mode of ​applying steam power, and making a rotatory motion produce a vertical one, he expected to put in motion, with one horse, a pump capable of performing the work of two Mălăcātĕs. Monsieur Martin and I had the honour of standing godfathers upon this occasion, for which the Galera was fitted up with a profusion of green boughs, and other decorations. An altar was raised, surrounded by flags of various colours, with all the silver candlesticks of the Church ranged on each side; and the Cura, in full canonicals, pronounced a solemn blessing upon the machine, sprinkling holy water upon every part of it; while the godfathers, with huge wax flambeaux, weighing at least six pounds each, were in close attendance upon his steps. The ceremony concluded by a distribution of wine and cakes, and a general discharge of fireworks, (cŏhētĕs) in the noise of which the Indians take a peculiar delight, although, at mid-day, their effect, as they hiss through the air, is entirely lost in the splendour of the sunshine.
We suffered severely from cold during our stay at Tlălpŭjāhuă, and not less so on our return to the Capital. We set out on the 21st, and rode across the mountains to the Hacienda of Tĕpētĭtlān, (about seven leagues,) where we were most comfortably provided for by the Administrador and his wife, who welcomed us with that easy politeness of manner, which certainly distinguishes the Spanish race, wherever its descendants are found. The children ​performed this long journey on horseback, without experiencing the least inconvenience, so inured had they become to every possible mode of travelling during their three months' wanderings. For their great "Coche" they had formed an attachment, which remains in full force to the present day. They looked upon it quite as their home, and were impatient, in the morning, for the hour to arrive at which they were installed in it, and released from the dulness of a dark and dirty room. Nor had they suffered in any other respect: the eldest little girl, a sad invalid when we quitted the Capital, recovered her health and strength while away; and as to the youngest, she was so fortified by living constantly in the open air, that her fat and rosy cheeks were the admiration of all beholders. Even at Zăcătēcăs, where no kindly feelings were entertained towards the parents, she was visited by a number of friars, who made interest with the Indian nurse to let them kiss her, and carry her about in their arms; and at several other places she and her sister were sent for by people of the town, whose desire to see them Chapita always complied with,—for fear, as she told us, that they might cast an evil eye upon the children, if refused.
We found our coach at Tĕpētĭtlān, to which place it proceeded by the usual coach-road from Tĕpĕtōngŏ the 22d, we started at five o'clock, (at which hour the ground was covered with a hard white ​frost, and the water with a coating of ice,) and proceeded by Īstlăhūacă to Lerma, where we arrived without any other accident than the loss of two mules, which, having got loose while we were changing the "tiro" of the carriage, made their way to the river, and actually killed themselves by drinking to excess when hot.
We left Lerma on the 23d, about six in the morning, and arrived in Mexico at three, having been much delayed by the carriage, which, I thought, would never reach the summit of Lăs Crūcĕs.
The delight of returning to our beautiful home, after an absence of nearly three months, was great indeed; and the contrast between San Cosme and the villainous abodes to which we had been so long confined, made us regard it as little less than a palace. We were all exhausted too by constant locomotion, having averaged thirty miles a-day during the whole time that we were upon the road. Our horses, which had commenced their expedition fat and flourishing, were reduced to mere skin and bone; yet they all returned; not one knocked up so entirely as to oblige us to leave it behind; and many, after two months of rest, and green forage, recovered their good looks completely, and enabled me to sell them, on my departure, at a very trifling loss. Amongst the mules the damage was more considerable, many of my new purchases having turned out ill; but my original stock returned ​uninjured, after carrying their loads the whole way, without a single day's relief.
I have endeavoured to comprehend in the preceding pages all the statistical details of any importance in those parts of the Federation which I visited during my mining tours, (La Pūēblă, Qŭerētărŏ, Guănăjūātŏ, Săn Luis Pŏtŏsī, Zăcătēcăs, Dŭrāngŏ, Guădălajāră, and Văllădŏlīd,) with such additions respecting the more Northern Provinces as I have conceived to be most worthy of attention, and best entitled to credit.
A few particulars respecting the States of Mexico, and Veracruz, Ŏăxācă, Tābāscŏ, and Yŭcătān, with some final observations upon the general prospects of the country, will comprise all that my present materials will enable me to subjoin, or indeed that the dimensions of my book will admit of.
The State of Mexico, with a population of nearly one million of inhabitants, is divided into eight districts, Ăcăpūlcŏ, Cūĕrnăvācă, Hŭĕjūtlă, Mexico, Tasco, Tŏlūcă, Tūlă, and Tūlăncĭngŏ.) These embrace a large proportion of valuable mines, as well as a number of districts celebrated for the richness of their agricultural produce. Real del Mōnte, Chīco, Căpūlă, Zĭmăpān, San José del Oro, El Cărdŏnāl, La Pĕchūgă, the Rancho del Oro, Tāscŏ, Tĕpāntĭtlān, Zacualpan, and Tĕtēlă del Rīo, are all in ​the State of Mexico; as are the valleys of Tŏlūcă and Cūāūtlă Āmīlpăs, the rich plains of Păchūcă, and the fertile Vega of Tūlăncĭngŏ. The capital of the State is Tĕzcōcŏ, Mexico having been declared a Federal City, and selected as the residence of the President, the Congress, and all the great authorities of the Federation. By this decision, the State was stripped of a very considerable portion of its revenue, which consisted in the municipal duties collected at the gates of Mexico; and the difficulty of raising an equivalent for these duties at once, has retarded the acquittal of its debt to the Federation, to which in 1827, 182,712 dollars were still due. But the resources of the State are so ample, that these embarrassments cannot be of long duration.
The Legislative Assembly is composed of nineteen deputies, elected in the ratio of one for every fifty thousand inhabitants. The districts are placed under the inspection of Prefects, and Sub-Prefects, one of whose duties it is to establish schools in every village, and to form a census, as well as a statistical survey, of the territory of the State. But the Constitution having only been published in February 1827, these provisions have not yet been carried into effect.
Veracruz is divided into four "departments," Veracruz, Jălāpă, Ŏrĭzāvă, and Ăcăyūcăn.
The department of Veracruz contains four "cantons," with a total population of 63,106 souls; (Veracruz 29,987, Tămpīcŏ 20,785, Păpāntlă 7,981, ​Mĭsāntlă 4,353,) distributed throughout the Tierra Caliente of the coast in fifty-three "Pueblos," Rancherias, or Congregaciones. The produce of these cantons consists in maize, frijoles, rice, cotton, sugar, woods of the most precious kinds, as mahogany, ebony, and cedar; salsapariila, pepper, wax ūlĕ, (Indian rubber,) and vanilla, which is particularly abundant in Misantla, where twenty thousand roots of it were planted in 1826.
The department of Jălāpă is divided into two cantons, Jălāpă, and Jălācīngŏ, containing forty-one Pueblos and 53,061 inhabitants.
Ŏrĭzāvă comprises three Cantons, (Ŏrĭzāvă, Cōrdŏvă, and Cŏsămăluăpām,) with sixty-three Pueblos, and 84,148 inhabitants. The population of Orizava and Cōrdŏvă is employed principally in the cultivation of tobacco and coffee. The towns contain likewise several distilleries, and a number of Colmenares, (bee-hives,) which are increasing daily in importance.
In the department of Ăcăyūcăm there are three cantons, (Acayucam, Tustla, and Nŭimanguillo,) twenty-three Pueblos, and 33,354 inhabitants. Cotton is the principal agricultural production, and twenty-five thousand "tercios" of it, (12,500 cargas,) were formerly the average annual amount raised. This is now reduced to about 800 tercios, there being no demand in the native manufactures, and the Cotton being without value as an export, until machines for cleaning, and compressing it, are erected, none of ​which are at present known. Of its probable future importance, I have expressed my opinion in the third Section of the first Book.
The total registered population of Veracruz appears by the above statements to be 233,705 souls.
The receipts, from October 1824, to December 1826, amounted to 650,657 dollars, and the expenditure to 350,796 dollars.
From the State of Ŏăxācă I have been unable to obtain returns similar to those given respecting other parts of the Federation. Agriculture is highly favoured by the mildness of the climate, which produces both cerealia and the sugar-cane; but of the mineral riches of the province very little is known. Mr. Glennie entertains a very high opinion of the new mines belonging to the United Mexican Company at Tĕŏjŏmūlcŏ; (forty leagues South of Oaxaca,) but, in general, the mines in that State have been worked with so little science, and distinguished by so few great Bonanzas, that I am unable to give any positive information respecting them. Had I remained another year in Mexico, I should certainly have explored the whole territory of Oaxaca, and particularly the Mīstĕcă, where the cochineal is raised. The Indians employed in its cultivation are said to be a race much superior to the other tribes upon the Table-land. The women are called ​the Circassians of Mexico, and most of the families are affluent, above a million of dollars being annually employed in the Misteca in the purchase of cochineal. Besides these attractions, Oaxaca possesses the famous cypress tree of Santa Maria de Tule, (a village three leagues East of the Capital of the province,) and the palace of Mitla. The first is ninety-three English feet and a half in circumference, yet does not show the slightest symptoms of decay; and the second may be regarded as the most curious monument of antiquity now remaining in the New World. I can add nothing respecting Mitla to the details given by Humboldt in the second volume of his work upon Mexico, and the engravings published in his American Atlas, except the dimensions of the stones which cover the entrances to the principal hall. According to Mr. Glennie's measurements, (to whom I am likewise indebted for the dimensions of the cypress of Tule,) the three largest of these stones are:—
| Length. | Breadth. | Thickness. |
| 1.—19 ft. 6 in. | 4 ft. 10 in. | 3 ft. 4 in. |
| 2.—188 | 410 | 36 |
| 3.—197 | 410½ | 39 |
They are all seven feet from the ground, and the ends of each rest upon slabs measuring eight feet six inches, by six feet nine inches, and four inches thick.
Yŭcătān and Tăbāscŏ are two of the poorest States in the Federation. The first comprises an ​area of 3,823 square leagues; on parts of which, maize, frijoles, cotton, rice, tobacco, pepper, and the sugar-cane, are grown, with die-wood, hides, soap, and other articles. But the scarcity of water in the central parts of the Peninsula, where not a stream of any kind is known to exist, and the uncertainty of the rainy season, render the crops very variable; and years frequently occur, in which the poorer classes are driven to seek a subsistence by collecting roots in the woods, when a great mortality ensues in consequence of their exposure to a very deleterious climate.
The population is estimated at one hundred and thirty souls for each square league, or 496,990 in all. The territory is divided into fifteen departments, Băcălār, Cămpēchĕ, Ichmūl, Izămūl, Isla del Carmen, Jequelchakan, Jŭnūcmă, Lerma, Māmă, Mērĭdă, Oxhūzkăb, Sēybă Plāyă, Sŏtūtă, Tĭzĭmīn, and Valladolid. Merida is the capital.
Yŭcătān contains no mines. An active intercourse was formerly carried on with the Havanna, which Yŭcătān supplied with Campeche wood, salt, hides, deer skins, salted meat, and the Jĕnĕquēn, a plant from which a sort of coarse thread (pita) was made, and worked up into sacking, cordage, and hammocks. This trade was cut short by the war; and as few foreigners have been induced to settle in Yŭcătān, the inhabitants have derived but little advantage from the late change of institutions. The receipts of the State, in 1826, amounted to 213,127 ​dollars. The expenditure was 207,199; so that a small surplus revenue remained.
Tăbāscŏ is divided into three departments, and nine "Partidos,"—Vīllăhĕrmosa, Ŭsŭmăcīntă, Năcăjūcă, Tĕāpa, Tăcŏtālpă, Jălāpă, Macŭspāna, Cūndŭacān, and Jālpa,—containing in all forty-eight Pueblos, sixty-three churches, five hundred and forty-three Haciendas, and 54,862 inhabitants. During the rainy season, a large proportion of the territory of the State is under water, and the communication between the villages effected by canoes. This circumstance is particularly favourable to the growth of cacao, which is supposed to have been an indigenous plant. It is now cultivated to a considerable extent, twelve thousand cargas, (each of 60lbs.) having been exported in the year 1825. With the cacao coffee is likewise grown, but the exportation has never exceeded three thousand quintals. Tabascan pepper, (Pimienta Malagueta òllainada,) is found in great abundance on the banks of the rivers. Indigo and vanilla grow wild, though very little attention has been hitherto paid to them; and the cultivation of tobacco, which seems to be the spontaneous produce of the soil, has been prohibited by the decree of the 9th of February, 1824, by which the privilege of raising this plant was reserved to the districts of Ŏrĭzāvă and Cōrdŏvă, in order to facilitate the organization of the tobacco revenue. ​The receipts of Tabasco in 1825, were 40,134 dollars, and the expenditure 29,879; but the estimate for 1827, including the Contingent, the establishment of a printing-press, and schools, amounted to 49,415 dollars, which it was hoped that the revenue might be made to cover.
* ↑ Many people have thought Captain Head's account of distances exaggerated; but in countries where it is the custom to ride post, one hundred miles a day is by no means an extraordinary performance. I have myself ridden from Madrid to Bayonne, (one hundred "Leguas del Rey," or four hundred English miles,) in forty-seven hours; and I once went from Seville to London, when sent, under very pressing circumstances, with despatches, by Lord Heytesbury, in eight days and a half, (partly on horseback, and partly in a cabriolet,) and returned in nine.
* ↑ So many curious fragments of Spanish history would be lost, were it not for the "Romances" in which they are recorded, that I may be allowed to draw from the same source the only remaining record of Ibarra's good fortune. The verses are.—"Si los metales de San Bernabé no tuvieron tan buena ley, no casaria Ibarra, con la hija del Virey."
* ↑ It must be recollected that profits depend upon two distinct causes, the great abundance of poor ores, yielding a given profit upon an immense mass of "Montones," or a less copious extraction of rich ores, raised by fewer hands, and "reduced" with less labour. It is in the first that the great riches of Zacatecas and Guanajuato have principally consisted.
* ↑ "Las cucharas de Montezuma" is a name frequently given to tortillas, which, from their flexibility, are constantly used as a substitute for a spoon by the lower orders.
* ↑ A large white handkerchief, worn, in the manner described, by the Rancheros, to protect the back from the sun. The impropriety, or rather impiety, of using it in a religious festival requires no comment.
* ↑ The Indians of Patzquaro are still famous for this art. They compose figures of saints with the feathers of the Colibri, which are remarkable both for the delicacy of the execution, and the brilliancy of the colours.
* ↑ Noticia Estadistica submitted to the Supreme Congress by the Governor of Veracruz, Don Miguel Barragan, 25th of January, 1827.
* ↑ Memorias de Estadistica remitidas por El Govº de Yucatan à la Camara de Senadores, 1826.
* ↑ Vide Estadistica remitida, &c., dated Villa Hermosa, 19th June, 1826.