have wondered at the army being in such a condition—–­in a country that had long been in a state of profound peace; but in Mexico a standing army had been maintained for years, at a great expense, and continual civil wars ought to have given people some ideas about soldiering.  We may judge, from the events of this war, that Mexico might be kept in good order by a small number of American troops.  The mere holding of the country is not the greatest difficulty in the question of American annexation.

One thing that struck our friends at Tisapan, among their experiences of the war, was the number of dead bodies of women and children that were found on the battle-fields.  A crowd of women follow close in the rear of a Mexican army; almost every soldier having some woman who belongs to him, and who carries a heavy load of Indian corn and babies, and cooks tortillas for her lord and master.  The number of these poor creatures who perished in the war was very great.

We spent much of our time at Tisapan in collecting plants, and exploring the lava-field, and the canada, or ravine, that leads up into the mountains that skirt the valley of Mexico.  I recollect one interesting spot we came to in riding through the pine-forest on the northern slope of the mountains, where the course of a torrent, now dry, ran along a mere narrow trench in the hard porphyritic rock, some ten or fifteen feet wide, until it had suddenly entered a bed of gravel, where it had hollowed out a vast ravine, four hundred feet wide and two hundred deep, the inlet of the water being, in proportion, as small as the pipe that serves to fill a cistern.

Such places are common enough in the south of Europe, but seldom on so grand a scale as one finds them in this country, where the floods come down from the hills with astounding suddenness and violence.  Mr. L. had experience of this one day, when he had got inside his waterwheel, to inspect its condition, the water being securely shut off, as he thought.  However, an aversada—­one of these sudden freshets—­came down, quite without notice; and enough water got into the channel to set the wheel going, so as to afford its proprietor a very curious and exciting ride, after the manner of a squirrel in a revolving cage, until the people succeeded in drawing off the water.

It was after our return from Tisapan that we paid a visit to Our Lady of Guadalupe, rather an important personage in the history of Mexican church-matters.  The way lies past Santo Domingo, the church of the Holy Office, and down a long street where live the purveyors of all things for the muleteers.  Here one may buy mats, ropes, pack-saddles—­which the arrieros delight to have ornamented with fanciful designs and inscriptions, lazos, and many other things of the same kind.  Passing out through the city-gate, we ride along a straight causeway, which extends to Guadalupe.  A dull road enough in itself, but the interminable strings of mules and donkeys, bringing in pig-skins full of pulque, are worth seeing for once; and the Indians, trudging out and in with their various commodities, are highly picturesque.