on their dealings—and many of their habitations are romantic and beautiful. This, however, is only one side of the picture: the neighbourhood immediately adjoining the south side is most forlorn and miserable. Houses and churches are lying in ruins; weeds and parasite plants have overgrown what once were pleasant terraces; and faded and shrunken foliage droops neglectfully over the scene. Fields that ought to be cultivated are covered with rubbish or untended aloe plants; stagnant pools have formed themselves in the various hollows; and tribes of large and bloated insects buzz about your head in the air. It is, all things considered, one of the most unenviable spots in all Mexico to remain in, even for a short time—to say nothing of living there.
The commerce of the port in some articles is considerable. Great quantities of the scented vanilla are transported thence; and half a million of arrobas of sugar (an arroba is 25 lbs.) have passed the harbour in one year. Almost all European merchandise enters the country by Vera Cruz or Tampico. A stagecoach, or diligence, runs occasionally from this city to the capital; but it is often more unsafe to travel in it than with a caravan so fre-
