Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1889-02-22


consumptive has sat for fear they will
take the disease. My tourist friends are
a young fellow from st. Louis, who is
Astounding with the enthusiasm of travel,
and mddle-aged American citizen, who
has perhaps an equal amount of the same
enthusiasm but more quietly directed. A
party of eleven New Workers left here
this morning. One of seven from Iowa
is to arrive IN the morning
CITY OF MEXICO,
GRAND HOTEL DEL JARDIN,
Jan. 26, 1889.
Here am at the city of the Aztecs. where
ever they came from. We have seen very
little of the city yet, but about all / want
to- ltmakes me sick. But have bought
this afternoon Mexican trophy for the
Bread Loaf, card table ingeniously en-
bellished with flowers. Much of this
Indian work, especially that called feath-
er work, is very nicely made. They are
ingenious, and said to be faithful work.
ers. | understand their average wages
are 20 cents a day, with which they board
themselves. The poems or slaves get
l21 cents. The duties in Mexico are
enormous. 1t will be readily seen how
effective they are to build up wages.
Prices of almost everything are very
high; wheat, So a bushel and upward;
coal, SlS ton and upward beef sells at
an average of l2t cents, which is not
high, and beans, very common article
of food, are cheap.
| think l wrote last at Monterey from
the Castle of the Doves. We left that
the two st. Louis travellers and myself
at the tranquil hour of three in the morn
ing. 1t was rainy night and quite cold.
Luckily near the depot was a saloon kept
by an American, who had small coal
stove with comfortable fire, and here
we waited until the train came. The party
of tourists, seven in number, whom had
met at San Antonio, and came on the train
with us as far as Laredo, got off into the
rain and we took their berths in the Pull
man car. 1t would have taken two or
three hundred yoke of oxen to have drawn
me out of that Pullman car again before
reaching Mexico. / surveyed its COM
forts with much satisfaction; a good fire
and good bed with everything neat, and
| shelled out seven dollars and a half of
Mexican silver, worth about 60 cents to
the dollar of our money, to the porter for
my berth with positive pleasure. 1t was
about 700 miles further to Mexico There
is quick rise from Monterey, about 100
feet above the sea to Saltilo, 500 feet
above; distance, IS miles. This run we
made at night. Judging from the out
look at Monterey it ought to be one of
the most interesting parts of the trip.
From Saltillo to Mexico, 604 miles, the
height above the sea is at no place less
than 5000 feet, and varies from that to
10000; Mexico being over 1000. There is
much similarity in this, especially the
first 400 miles, and this part greatly re-
sembles some of the Rocky mountain
scenery. You are on great plain, at
both sides of which are ranges of noun
tains. This plain would appear at some
places 100 miles long to 80 wide. The
railroad goes at about the center, east and
west. The plain itself is desolate to the
last degree, producing sage brush, which
is the emblem of sterility, and wandering
specimens of the palm and the cactus.
Occasionally there will be fertile spot
caused by some chance for irrigation
from the mountains, and there you will
see cattle, and perhaps some horses,
sheep and goats. The distant mountains
are bare and in no way especially attrac-
tive nor do they look very high, proba-
bly, from 1000 to 1000 feet above the
plain. Occasionally we approach quite
near the mountains, great barren rocks,
brown from the drought of Time, SCARED,
threatening. On top of them, or beyond
them, we are told, are some mines. When
we have gone several hundred miles south
the scenery improves. The valley, or
the plain, takes on more circular form.
The distant mountains look softer. They
are more prettily peaked and the clouds
lie down upon them more prettily. There
are larger pieces of fertile land more fire.
uuent droves of cattle, occasionally a
flock of sheep or goats. At about $50
miles from Monterey we see the first sign
of living stream, and this increases to
quite river. ! suppose ii TO be the river
Santander. that flows to the gulf. This
morning quite early we crossed over near
and high hills to another valley, and from
this last the water flowed to the Pacific.
We had come now to the region of rain,
aud the hills and mountains were covered
Al. l.l.l ,ll ~, III I.,1-