State journal & flag., 1846-06-19
The City of Mexico.

est built city on the American continent. In some respects it certainly is so. In the principal streets the houses are all construc. ted according to the s'rictest architectural rules. The foundations of the city were laid. and the first buildings were erected by Cores, who did every thing we'll winch he aitempted--from building houses or wri ing couple: to couquering ar empire. Many of the finest buildings in Mexico are still owned by his descendants. The pub lic square is said to be unsurpassed by any m the world; II contains some twelve or fifteen acres paved with stone. The ca thedral covers one entire side, the palace another, the western side Is occupied by a row of very high and substantial houses. the second stories of which project into the street the width of the pavement ,he low. CT stories are occupied by the principal re. ial merchants. of the city. The most of these houses were built by Cortes, who. with hls characteristic sagactv and an ava. rice which equally characterized him in the latter part ot his life, selected the best DOT. lion of the city for himself.
 The Presidents Palace, formerly the pal. ace Of the vceroys, is an immense building ot three stories high, about five hundred feet in length, and three hundred and fifty wide it stands on ihe site of the palace of Montezuma. IL Is difficult to conceive of so much stone and mortar being put 10. geiher in less tasteful and imposing shape; ,t has much more the appearance of a cot. ton factory or peniientiary than what it really Is; the windows are small, and parape. wall runs the whole length of the building, wllh nothing to relieve the monot ony oi its appearance except some very in. different ornamental work in the centre there are no doors in the front either of tn !, second or third stores-nothng but dispro- portionately small windows, and too many of them; the three doors, and there are only three Tn lhe lower story, are destitute of all architectural beauty or ornament. Only a very small part of this palace is appropria. ted 10 the residence of the President; all the public officers are here, including those of the heads of the different departments {; ministers of war, foreign relations, finance and justice, the public treasury, &c. The halls of the house of deputies and of the senate are also in the same building, and last and least, the botanic garden. After passing through all sorts of filth and dir, on the basement story you come 10 dark mar. row passage which conducts you to mas- sive door, which when you have succeeded m opening, you enter an apartment enclo. sed with high walls on every side but open at the top. and certainly not exceeding eigh. l nd ;.,, ,h r.. den of the palace of Mexico a few shrubs and plants and the celebrated manita tree, are all that it contains. have rarely in my lite seen a more gloomy and desolate
 looking place. IL is much more like pris- on than garden. A decrepii, palsied old man, said 10 be mo more than q hundred years old, IS the superintendani of the es. tablishmeDt no one could have been se. lected more in keeping with the general dilapidation and dreariness of this Inelan
 choly affair.
 Bot the caihedria, which occupies the sIde of this great idol temple of Monlezuma offers striking contrast. It is i've hun. dred feet long by four hundred and twenty wide. It would be superfuous to add aro,h CT to the many descriptions of this famous building which has already been published. l. Ike all the other churches tn Mexico. il is built in the Gothic style. The walls, ol several feet thickness gre made of unbewn stone and lime. Upon entering it. one is apt to recall the wild Actions of the Arabian Nights 1t seems as if the wealth of empires was collected there. The clergy in Mexico do not, for obvious reasons, desire,hat their wealth should be known to it's full extent {; they are, therefore, not disposed to give very full information upon the subject, or to exhibit the gold and silver vessels, vases, precious stones, and other forms of wealth, quite enough is exhibited to strike the behoI. der with wonder. The first object that presents itself on entering ,he cathedral is the alter, near the centre ot inc building {; it Is made of highly wrought und highly polished silver, and covered with proflIsion of ornaments of pure gold. On each side of this alter runs a balustrade, enclosing space about eighty feet wide and eighty or hundred feet long. The baIusters are about four feet high. and four inches thick
 In the largest part, the handrail from six 10 eight inches wide. Upon lhe top of this handrail, at the distance of six or eight feet apart, are human images, beautifully wrought and about Two feet high. All of those, the balusirade, handrail, and images, are made of compound of gold, silver. and copper-more valuable than silver. l was to6 that an offer had been made to take this balustrade, snd replace it with another of exact the same size and work. manship of pure silver. and to give half million ui dollars besides. There is much more of the same baustrade in other parts of ihe church should think, in all of it. not less than three hundred feet.
 As yon walk through the building, on either side ih' re are different apartments, all filled from the floor to the ceiling, with paintings, statutes, vases, huge candIesticks, walters, and Il thousand other articles, made of gold or silver. This too, is only the every day display of articles of least value {; the more costly are stored away in closets and chests. What must it be when all these are brought out, with imrnence qunn. titles of precious stones which the church is known to possess And thls only one of the churches of the city of Mexico, where there are between sixty and eighty others, and some oftbem posstssng little less wealth than the cathedral; and 1t must also be