The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1882-01-14
The Mexican Capital.

Mexico l. a serious and by no means a
gay city. There no no crowds npon the
sidewalks, no eating Of ices in public. no
cot;s oAaatoHfs, nothing Parisian. BY nine
or ten O clock the good people appear to
have retired already, to be UP betimes in
the morning for the work of the day. \
military band PLAYS three evenings IN the
week. but even this. except on Sundays, Is
50 sparsely attended that the men seem to
be discoursing their music fer their own
amusement Policemen are found stationed
At short intervals in the quiet streets, with
their lanterns set in the middle Of the r,ad-
way. They are obliged by the regulations
to signal their whereabouts every quarter
Of an hour. and the sound of their whistles.
which have shrill, ioleful note. Ike No
veu,her wind. may he heard repeated from
one 10 another an the night through
Here al length Is the great central plaza.
in which events Of much moment have been
transacted We may actually sit down
upon an iron bench az corner ct little
garlcn in the midst ii it. the Iocalo and
make ourselves ~ comfortable a. II vr had
always been used 10 IT, The imposing
cathedral piles mp pyramid d-shape from 'his
point Of virw on the spo, where siood the
pyramid Of the Ar,cc war god. These
stones should be ankle deep for all the blood
&c various sorts thar has been spjllci upon
ihem For the moment We arr fanatic rc-
acsienisss. one would gladly ss,e again for
a brief instant old Hairilopoiohh. the war
gcd. aloft on h. terrace. hear the beat of
the lagubrious wur-drum, and watch the
dismal procession IT captive, winding up
"a the sacrihcc. ministerci 90 hy the Wild
priests. with black locks ilowing upon their
shoulder Except thai q; the preei-e mo-
mens.-wc trus, vc srr mcrIful enough Tor
that--bcforc it Was tco late. w think We
should insist upon charging up the steEe us
the sdifice with COTteE, sword in hand 10
their delivery San JaEn and Spain
when was It ever known TIA, CassiliiaHs
turned their backs upoa 3 foe Down
gss- ola HHtxi.or-,icilii. broken ihso a dorsn
fragments. and, howl as oar AE'ec sdyer.
sarirs NAV at the unhearl 81 deevrstian
tlosc cap,ives arc saved
Bas really it Is hard to imagine le.pT
ale eoaairts in this bright sunshine. with
the uiultiiudes of prsisy, noyel sights and
sounds ahoai. At one SIDE Is a henehcyni
institution. the National isaa Establish
ment. where once vas the palacc II Carter
on another. she long white mon0soagas
National Palace which Is on the ste uf that
of MonterumA The cathedral. like most
ot the earlier architecture, Is of the RenaiS-
sanee ssyle. run far into the vagsTie-s Of
roeoeo but Il IS saved BIZ IT, massivene.~,
except in respect q the tcrninaitans % its
towers. which arr IN the shape II immense
bells, from any appearance os hnieality
Adjoining and forming now = part Of Is, =
another church, in 3 rich dark resi volcanic
stone, with frun, that recalls the fantastic
facados q Portuguese BelefR What a
wafer-ool0r the mass would make, and es-
pscially II il could b. taken on one oi the
perfect moonlight nights which bring au;
every liue:of the sculpture soitly, and dis-
play il al like a lovely vision Ther are
book stalls about the foot ot il, and gay
booths devoted 10 the sale Of refreshing
,lrinks-agsas nerrsIas The large simple
jars aud pitchers in which these are con
tanned are fine specimens Of ceramic ware
With a Characteristic taste IN decoraliuu
the Indian occupants frequently cover the
whole front with flowers Dusky .Iuauss
and .To.efas, with straight black brai,ls Of
hair down their backs. are seen forming in
seriptions in letters Of pink aud blue corn
flowers
Figures 20 by whose blankets one burns
to take from them for poFtiercs. The men
of the poorer sort wear or carry universally
the seraps-a blanket with a slit in the
centre for the insertion Of the head. Apart
from It's artistic patterns il IS useful gar
ment in many emergencies. Il Is not the
most improbable thing in the world that, in
the course of the Mexican revival, we may
vet see il introduced in the States, and run
ming the course Of popularity of the ulster
The corresponding national garment OF the
women Is the rebo=o shawl OF scarf, gen
erally of blue cotton which crossed over
the head and lower part Of the face, gives
Moorish appearance. The background
of life Is more ike opera than sober exist
ence. Two other sides Of the square are
occupied by long arcades, among the mer-
chants Of which protected from the sun
and rain one may wander by the hour
watching the shrewd devices of trade and
picking up those knick-knacks, trifing in
the country Of their origin, which are GER
tain To be curiosities elsewhere. From
time to time pass across the view, dark and
Egyptian-like in appearance, in a peculiar
dress of their own, and trudging under
heavy burdens, Indians who have best pre-
served the traditions of their race. These
have affected me as the most impressive of
all Followed to their homes, they are
found to dwell among ruined walls in the
outskirts, in adobe huts which can have
changed very little in aspect since the Con
quest.
These Indians have peculiar, pleas
ant voices, rather in contrast to the Spanish
voice, which is apt to be harsh. Their
manners. too. are above their surroundings.
1t is favorite Mexican expression to say,
This is your house, and have had them
on being introduced say, well, remember
number so-and-so of such a street is your
house So, in the same way, it happened
to me once, on looking with curiosity into
one of these abodes, to ask an elderly wom-
an who stood near by, by way Of making
her talk, if it were hers. "Yes, she replied
at once; ''and yours also, sir
The trees neither in the Zocalo nor the
Alamanda Ga park occupying somewhat the
position of the Common in Boston, have
the hoary antiquity one would expect in
such time-honored places But it appears
that the setting out of trees, and the for
nation of the Zocalo entirely, is largely of
modern date, and the work of Maximilian,
- L -. L. rhnrt Ill fntnd rninn