Alexandria gazette & advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1822-1824, 1824-07-31
CITY Of MEXICO.

IN l0G4. Is Quilt Cd phee, Inc ehccle
suficiently wide, and run nesr Dortb
and south, east and west, iotersecting
each other at right angles; they are ali
we'll paved, and have sidewalks of fiat
stones. The public squares are spa
cious, and surrounded by buildings of
hewn stone, and of very good architec
ture. The public edifces apd churches
are vast and splendid, and the private
buildings being constructed either Of
porus amygdolid or of porphyry. have
an air of solidity. and even of magnii.
cence. They are of three and four sto-
ries high. with fat terrace roo!s. and
many of them are orDam epsed with
iron balconies. The houses Of Mexico
| are all squares, with open courts, and
the corridors, or interior piazsss, are
! ornamented with enormous China va.
sss, containing evergreens. They are not
| so we'll furnished as our houses in the
United States, but the apartments are
more lofty and spacious, and are better
distributed. The entrance leads thro'
large gate into an inner court, with
the stairs in front Of the gate. The
best apartments, which are generally
guadily painted, are frequently on The
| second story above The ground floor.
Our, large cities ace many OF them
neater than Mexico, but there is an APP
pearance Of soldity in the houses. and
an air of grandeur in the aspect of the
place. which are wanting IN the cities
of the United States. With Us how
ever, stranger does not see that strik.
ing and disgusting contract between
the magniSeence of the wealthy, and
the ssualid penury of the poor, which
constantly meets his view 10 Mexico.
have described the palaces of the rich
the abode Of poverty does not offend
the eye. 1t is beneath the chsrch por.
ches, in miserable barracks in the Sub.
urbs, or under the canopy of heaven
There are at least twenty THOUSAND in
hsbi.ants of this capital, the population
Of which does not exceed one hundred
and fifty Thousand souls, who have no
permanent place of abode, and DO os-
teDsibIe means of gaining livelihood.
After passing the nisbts sometimes un
der ever, sometimes in the open air,
,hsy issue forth in the morning like
dronss. to prey upon the community, to
beg, to steal, and in the last resort 10
work. If they are fortunate enough to
gain eaore than they require to sustain
themselves for day, they 60 to the
pulqueirs, and thsre dance, carouss,
and get drunk on pulque and vino me-
zeal, brandy distilled from the fer
mented juice of the agave. Around
and under the pulqaeriss are open sheds
covering a space Of from tiftyt to hun.
dred feet; men and women may be seen
in the evening stretched on the ground,
sleeping off the effects of their deep po-
tatiops. These people, called by Hum
boldt seregates and guachinangos, are
more generally known by the name
of Leperos. They are for the most
part Indians and Mestizos, lively, and
extremely civil, asking aims with great
humility, and pouring out prayers and
blessings with astonishing volublity.
They are most dexterous pick. pockets,
and / heared some instances of their
slight of han5, that surpass the happiest
efforts of the light.6ngered gentry Of
Paris or London.
From what l have said Of the lepe.
ros of Mexico, you will compare them
to the lazaroni OF Naples. The com.
parison will b. favorable to the latter.
who work more readily, steal less fire..
quently, and are sober.
We walked through the market
place, and / was surprised to see it SO
veil furnished. The markets of Phila-
delphia and New York display butch
er;s mestin greater quantity, and gen.
orally of bel,ec quality, but here we see
game in abundance. Wild ducks,
birds of various sorts, venison and
hsres, and the profusion and variety Of
fruits and vegetables, we're greater
than bad seen in any market in Eu-
rope or America. The following are
the prices Of some articles. and what
understood to be the usual rates: beef,
% ounce, twelve and half cents; NUT
ton and veal, twelve and half cents
per pound; eggs, twenty five cents do
gen; fish from the lakes, about nine or
ten inches long, one dollar per pound;
fowls, from fifty to twenty-five
cents pair; turkeys, from seventy five
cents TO dollar each; peaches, fifty
cents dozen; pears. seventy five
cents; the tuna, (fruit of tho cactus)
twenty-five cents, alligator pears, fifty
cents; oranges. thirty-three and three