perfectly careless of consequences: and he met the objurgation and vociferous upbraidings of the dark-eyed and dark-haired female whose arrangements he had invaded, with the same recklessness with which he braved the sullen scowl of hatred from her swarthy mate.
The heat of noon brought comparative silence. Multitudes had departed; and those who maintained their stand were dozing: but a little later, the old alguazil, with uplifted staff and voice, might be seen at his unwelcome labours: goading bipeds and quadrupeds; twitching the hair of the one, and the tails of the other; and dispensing execrations upon both. Unfortunately, I must allow, that at this hour, there was some reason for his interference; as the numberless pulquerias in the vicinity of the market, to which many of the males had retired in the morning, while their wives carried on the business, now poured forth their inebriated occupants; and many a family group which had entered the city in harmony, was seen retiring to their canoe amid violence and lamentations.
The shops in Mexico do not make any great figure; they are in general open, and of small dimensions. Certain quarters are devoted to distinct lines of business. Thus the jewellers have their street; the sellers of mangas theirs; and so forth. Coachmaking is among the most important mechanical trades of the capital; and, perhaps, the most lucrative after that of the gold and silver smiths; but no trade can be very bad, if we consider the price asked for almost every article. Saddlery, confectionary, millinery, and tailoring flourish. The vender of medicines seems to have a stirring business. The Parian, which I have before named, forms a depository of a great proportion of the home-manufactured goods; and the hire of the stalls brings in a large revenue to government. This alone can be pleaded in defence of its maintenance, to the destruction of the beauty of the Plaza Mayor. It is also the principal resort of the evangelistas, writers of letters, memorials, and billets-doux, for the unlearned of the city. Many foreign arti-
