Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-01-23

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quarters, where he is heavily fined. on
the other had, If he cannot find vonr
residence, or there is mistake il The
directions, he takes the goods 10 police
headquarters. and you can find them
there. and discover the reasons vhv thew
we're not delivered
There are more public hacks and car
Tlages IN Mexico than tn any other CITY
~ the world Ia proportion 90 its popula-
ton, and few cities have worse nave
ments. Most of the vehicles are comes
but there are few victorias. There are
no hansoms. The. public carriages are all
under police regulation.and the rates are
nxed by law, according TO the condition
OF the vehicle and the horses. Each
carriage has small tin flag attached
70 the top. A green flag means
that you have to pay dollar and half
an hour, for the carriage is new, the
horses are good. and the harness is hand
somely trimmed. A blue flag means
dollar an hour, with little less stvle:
white flag scventy-five cents an hour,
and rcd flag fifty cents The latter
class are about the toughest-lonking out
hts that can be found anywhere
Each OF the better sort of carriages has
iootman as well as coachman, with
out additional price, although generous
people give him tip to the extent of q
real Twelve and one-half cents). The
footman is called mozo and acts as
sort OF apprentice or private secretary to
the cochero or driver. When vo1 hire a
hack the mozo rushes of to the nearest
store, looks at the clock, and brings you
back card upon which the hour is writ
ten. When youfi finish your ride he hands
you the card again, and you pay from the
time you started. On feasts days charges
are doubled, and as feast days are fire.
quent, when all the stores are closed. the
hackmen make good thing Of it. They
drive In most reckless manner, and as
the pavements are rough the passengers
are bounced about.
The city of Mexico has On excellent
police system. At nj yht there is po-
liceman at every corner. He never pa
trolls the streets, but has lantern which
he sets In the center of the intersecting
streets. and then retires to convenient
doorway and sits silent until relieved.
As a consequence there is row of Ian
terms in the middle of every street. Each
policeman carries club and revolver,
and wears blanket around his shout
ders. The roundsmcn who patrol the
streets are mounted, and carry carbines
and sabcrs, looking like cavalrymen
Policemen are invariably polite, and will
stop street car and assist lady to enter
it as calamity as the proudest Castilian.
There is a great deal of drunkenness in
Mexico, but very little fighting. The
poems drink pulque, the fermented milk
of the cactus. Itisqueer stuff, and costs
about three cents 8 quart. SO
that it is within the reach
OF the poorest. There are
said to be 80, 600 paLQue shops in Mexico,
and they are all profitable, even OF the
price of penny glass. Two glasses
will make peon happy, and three will
give him the blind staggers; but the
after effects Of putque intoxication are
not disagreeablc. for it leaves no head
ache.
The stranger in Mexico is always very
thirsty. The rapid evaporation makes
the mouth and throat dry, and water
furnishes only temporary relief. The
most refreshing drink is lime juice in
appolinaris water All the ice used in
Mexico comes sixty miles. from the top
of Popocatapetl, being brought down to
the railroad station on the backs of
natives, and costs ten cents pound.
From the top of the cathedral spire
you can see the entire city, and the most
striking feature of the view is the abb
sence of chimneys. There is not a
| chimney in all Mexico, not a stove, or q
CRATE or furnace. All the cooking is
done with charcoal in Dutch ovens, and,
while the gas is sometimes offensive, on
soon becomes used to it. Coal costs $50
ton, and wood SIC cord. The former
is imported from England, and the wood
| is all brought from the mountains.
Or the railroads mesquite is used for
| fuel. This shrub abounds on all the
hillsides, and is of very tough fibre.
Fuel constitutes about thirty per cent.
! of the entire cost of railway operation.
| A railroad manager repor6s that his pur-
chasing agent secured three hundred
wooden saints for fuel, which he bought
at fifty cents apiece from the natives who
stole them from the churches.
One of the most curious features of
Mexican life is the manner of conducting
| funerals. Some of the funeral process
sions go to the cemetery On the street
cars, coffin and all. The poorest people,
who cannot pay for carriages or even
street car fare, carry the dead through
the streets on their shoulders, and bcr-
row or hire a coffin for the occasion.
When the cemetery is reached and the
obsequies are over, the body is trans
ferred to q box, IL the friends are able to
buy one, or wrapped IN q blanket, and