Mexico--Procession of Nuestra Señora de los Remedios--Visit to the
Country--Society and Manners in Mexico--Climate.
20th June, 1825. Since our arrival on the 25th May, my occupations
have been such as to prevent my seeing many of the _lions_ of Mexico.
I have, however, walked through the principal streets, and visited
most of the churches, of which some are very rich and splendid--some
are ancient and venerable--others are fine and gaudy--while a few of
the more modern are extremely neat and handsome. The churches are
numerous: these, with the convents, occupy almost every alternate
square of the city; but with all this show of religion, there is a
proportionate degree of vice among its population.
The city is, indeed, magnificent; many of the buildings are spacious.
The streets are not wide, but well paved--clean in the most
frequented, but excessively filthy in the more remote parts, and
thronged with dirty, diseased, deformed, and half naked creatures.
Disgusting sights every moment present themselves. At the corners of
every street--each square is called a street, and bears a distinct
name,--at the doors of the churches which you must be passing
constantly in your walks--and sometimes in the areas of the private
residences, you are importuned by miserable beggars, some of whom, not
satisfied with a modest refusal, chase you into charity, which you are
not assured is well bestowed.
We meet in the streets very few well dressed people; the ladies seldom
walk, except to mass early in the morning, when some pretty faces are
seen.
Such is the character of the street-population of Mexico. So much
filth, so much vice, so much ignorance are rarely found elsewhere
combined. Those who have seen the lazzaroni of Naples, may form a
faint idea of the _leperos_ of Mexico.
The _leperos_ are most dexterous thieves--none can be more expert in
relieving you of your pocket handkerchief; it is unsafe to trust them
within your doors. I knew an American who had his hat stolen from
under the bench on which he was seated in the Cathedral listening to a
sermon![1]
[Footnote 1: A very ingenious theft by one of this class was mentioned
to me by an American who was present when it took place. At a fair in
the interior of the country, two Americans were seated on a bench
engaged in conversation, one of them having his hat by his side with
his hand upon it for its protection. Talking earnestly he occasionally
uplifted his hand from the hat. On his rising from his seat, he was
surprised to find in his hand not his own beaver, but an inferior one
which had been substituted for it. At an incautious moment he had
ceased to guard it; a hat was there when he put down his hand--but it
was not his own.]
They are superstitious, too, almost to idolatry. I may here include
with them the better class of people also. The recent reception of the
image of _Nuestra Senora de los Remedios_, (Our Lady of Remedies,) I
give as evidence of the justice of this remark. Her history is briefly
this. She is a deity of Spanish origin--the more highly esteemed Lady
of _Guadalupe_--the patron saint of Mexico, is indigenous. She
accompanied the conquerors to the city of _Muteczuma_[2]--was lost in
their disastrous retreat on the celebrated _noche triste_--was found
some years afterwards, in 1540, seated in a _maguey_, by an Indian,
_Juan de Aguila_, who carried her to his dwelling, and fed her with
_tortillas_, (Indian corn-cakes,) which were regularly deposited in
the chest where she was kept. Suddenly she fled, and was discovered on
the spot where her temple now stands--the place to which Cortes
retreated on the night of his flight from the city. It is an eminence
to the west of Mexico, distant about five miles.
[Footnote 2: Cortés, in his Letters, writes the name of the Emperor of
Mexico, _Muteczuma_. Humboldt says, I know not on what authority, that
_Moteuczoma_ was his name. The English historians always call him
Montezuma.]
This identical image, they say, still exists--it is about eight inches
in height--it is richly decorated. It is believed to possess the power
of bringing rain, and of staying the ravages of disease.
{11} For many days previous to her entrance into the city, great
preparations had been made. On the 11th inst. she was conveyed from
her sanctuary in the President's coach, which was driven by a nobleman
of the old regime, the _Marques de Salvatierra_, bare headed, and
attended by a large number of coaches, and crowds of people on foot,
to the _parroquia de Santa Vera Cruz_, a church just within the limits
of the city. Here, as is usual, she was to rest one night, and on the
following evening to proceed to the Cathedral. Before the appointed
time, the streets leading to it were covered with canopies of canvass;
draperies were suspended from every balcony, and strings of shawls and
handkerchiefs stretched across, were seen fluttering in the wind. A
regiment of troops marched out to form her escort, and thousands
flocked to join her train. But a heavy rain began to fall, and the
procession was necessarily postponed, the populace being delighted to
find that the intercession of Our Lady was of so much avail, and their
faith strengthened at the trifling expense of wet jackets. The
procession was now appointed for an early hour the next _morning_, (a
_prudent_ arrangement, for it rains, in course, every evening, the
rainy season having commenced,) and preparations were again made with
increased zeal, proportionate with the gratitude felt at so prompt a
dispensation of her Ladyship's favors. Two regiments of infantry and
one of cavalry now composed the escort. The concourse of people was
immense. Wax tapers, lanterns, candle-boxes, flags, and all the
frippery of the churches were carried to grace the occasion; children
dressed fantastically, with wings, and gay decorations upon their
heads, but barefooted, with tapers in their hands, were led by their
parents or nurses to take part in the pageant.
After the procession was formed, a discharge of artillery announced
the departure of the holy image from the church, in which she had
until now rested. The advance was a corps of cavalry, followed by
flocks of ragged Indians, by respectable citizens and the civil
authorities, all bearing lighted wax tapers; then followed the
numerous religious orders, each order preceded by an Indian carrying
on his back a huge mahogany candle-box; the higher dignitaries of the
order, with their hands meekly folded on their breasts, each attended
by two assistants, bringing up the rear of Carmelites, Augustines,
Franciscans, Dominicans, and Mercedarians; next these were other
Indians, followed by the _angelic_ little children, who strew roses
before the object of their adoration, _La Santa Virgen de los
Remedios_, who stands majestically under a canopy, richly clothed, and
surrounded by gilded ornaments, supported by four men. As she passed,
the people who crowded the streets, and all who fill the windows under
which she is carried, knelt, and roses are showered upon her from the
roofs of the houses. Next her was another canopy, under which the Host
was carried, to which the people also knelt. The troops brought up the
rear, escorting Our Lady to the Cathedral, where she remains nine
days. If it rain during this time, it is ascribed to her influence. If
rain precede her entrance, it is because she was to be brought into
the city; and if it follow her departure, it is the consequence of her
late presence. The miracle, of course, never fails. After the rainy
season has set in, she is introduced annually for the idolatrous
worship of this ignorant, superstitious people--not only the
_canaille_, but also the most respectable portion of the community.
14th August, 1825. I returned to the city yesterday after an excursion
of a week in the vicinity of _Chalco_, about twenty-five or thirty
miles distant. We were invited by an acquaintance to his _hacienda_,
where he promised fine sport with our guns. Not content with abundance
of deer, we were to return with the spoils of sundry wild animals,
such as wild-cats, bears, panthers, wolves and tigers. Prepared for
ferocious contests, we set out with all the eagerness of huntsmen who
feast in their imagination on their slaughtered prey. But in fact,
though to hunt was our ostensible object, from which we expected
little, although entertained by our friend with extravagant hopes, we
left the city chiefly for the purpose of exercise, of viewing the
country, and avoiding the water, which, at this season of the year,
impregnated with the soda which the heavy rains disengage from the
soil, deals sadly with strangers.
A ride of five or six hours brought us to the _hacienda_. This, I have
elsewhere said, is a country seat, generally of large extent, with a
chapel forming a part of the building, and surrounded by the reed or
mud huts of the Indians, who are the laborers, or, as it were, vassals
of the estate. A plain, thickly strewed with these _haciendas_,
presents the appearance of numerous villages, each with its steeple
and bell. The buildings are hollow squares, extensive and commodious,
and embracing in their several ranges the usual conveniences of a
farm, such as stables, and yards for poultry, sheep and cattle. They
all have a look of antiquity, of strength and durability, which, at a
distance, is imposing; but on nearer view, they are commonly found
dilapidated, and devoid of neatness, and destitute of the garden and
the orchard, which give so much the appearance of comfort to the
country houses of the United States.
This is their general character, as far as I have seen them, and such
was the commodious dwelling to which we were now hospitably invited.
It bore the air of tattered grandeur--in its dimensions and in its
ruined state showing marks of pristine elegance. It was partially
fortified, as were most of them, during the revolution, for protection
from lawless depredation, and from the numerous bands of banditti who
then roamed through the country, and were royalists or republicans, as
was most expedient to accomplish their designs. Even at this time,
these defences are esteemed necessary to ensure safety from the
robbers who have escaped the vigilance of government by concealing
themselves in the adjacent mountains.
On the day of our arrival nothing occurred particularly to attract our
notice, except that, after the conclusion of dinner, the tall Indian
waiter fell upon his knees in the middle of the room and gave
thanks--a custom common, I am told, in the country. To our surprise,
this was not repeated. He was either told that we were heretics, (as
all foreigners are designated) or was deterred because some of our
Catholic friends were less devout on the occasion than was to be
expected from them.
It may not be amiss here to mention, that the dinner table of the
Mexicans is of indefinite length, always standing in the eating room.
One end only is {12} commonly used. The seat of honor is at the head,
where the most distinguished and most honored guest is always placed;
the rest arrange themselves according to their rank and consequence;
the dependants occupying the lowest seats.
After a cup of chocolate at six o'clock the next morning, we went in
pursuit of game, and roamed through the hills and mountains which are
contiguous, meeting with very little success. At about twelve we
partook of our breakfast, which was brought to us more than two
leagues from the _hacienda_--after which we prosecuted our hunt. Our
sole reward was a heavy shower of rain--and between four and five we
returned to the _hacienda_, well wearied, having walked at least
twelve miles over steep mountains.
On the following day we set out with our mules, &c. to try our fortune
higher up the mountains, and after a ride of between three and four
hours, reached a herdsman's hut, where we were to lodge at night. We
were unsuccessful in finding game in the evening, and after a
laborious search for deer, sought our hut--a log building, about
fifteen feet square, in which twelve of us, men, women and children,
stowed ourselves. Annoyed by fleas, and almost frozen by the chill
mountain air, within two leagues of the snow-crowned _Iztaccihuatl_,
we passed a sleepless night.
Early next morning, whilst others of the party engaged in hunting for
deer, with two companions I ascended the highest peak of this range,
(except those covered with snow,) with great labor and fatigue; but we
were compensated amply by the grand view beneath and around us. The
adjoining peak to the south of us was the _Iztaccihuatl_, about a
league distant. We felt very sensibly the influence of its snow.
Beyond this, the _Popocatepetl_ raised its lofty cone, while far in
the southeast appeared _Orizaba_, around whose crest the clouds were
just then gathering. The plains of _Puebla_ and _Mexico_ are on
opposite sides of this seemingly interminable ridge on which we stood.
From the latter, the clouds, which we had been long admiring far
beneath us, hiding the world from our view, were gradually curling,
and disclosed the distant capital with its adjoining lakes and
isolated hills. The chilling wind drove us from our height, but in
descending we often rested to enjoy a scene which the eyes never tire
in beholding.
In the evening, we left the mountain for the _hacienda_, where we
spent another day. Our friends were extremely kind to us, and
regretted more than ourselves our ill success in quest of game. Being
little of a sportsman, to me it was a trifling disappointment. I
enjoyed abundant gratification in seeing the country, its people and
manner of living. Whatever may be said of the bad blood of the
Mexicans, I cannot but view them as a mild and amiable people--nature
has bestowed her bounties liberally upon them: for their state of
degradation and ignorance they are indebted not to any natural
deficiencies of their own, but to the miserable and timid policy of
their former Spanish masters. They are superstitious, but this arises
from their education; they are jealous of strangers--the policy of
Spain made them so; and they are ignorant, for in ignorance alone
could they be retained in blind subjection to the mother country. If
they are vicious, their vices arise from their ignorance of what is
virtuous--of what is ennobling. They are indolent because they are not
permitted to enjoy the fruits of industry, and nature supplies their
wants so bountifully, they are compelled to exert themselves but
little.
These are in fact serious defects, but the improvement of the Mexican
people is daily taking place. They are beginning to be enlightened
with the rays of the rising sun of liberty; and after the present
generation has passed away, the succeeding one will exhibit those
political and moral virtues, which are the offspring of freedom. The
effects of a daily increasing intercourse with foreigners are even now
perceptible, and lead me to believe, that, before many years roll
over, a wonderful change must take place. Society, too, will improve:
ladies will no longer gormandize or smoke--will discover that it is
vulgar to attend cock-fights, and will bestow, with increased regard
for their personal appearance, greater attention upon the cultivation
of their minds.
In Mexico, there are few parties, either at dinner, or in the evening.
None will suit but great balls, and these must occur seldom, else none
but the wealthy can attend them, so expensive are the decorations and
dresses of the ladies. They esteem it extremely vulgar to wear the
same ball-dress more than once. Society is cut up into small
_tertulias_ or parties of intimate acquaintances, who meet invariably
at the same house, and talk, play the piano, sing, dance, and smoke at
their ease and pleasure.
Sometimes I attend the Theatre. This is divided into boxes, which
families hire for a year. If the play be uninteresting, they visit
each other's box, and pass the evening in conversation. It is
diverting to observe the gentlemen take from their pockets a flint and
steel for the purpose of lighting their cigars, and then to extend the
favor of a light to the ladies; and sometimes the whole theatre seems
as if filled with fire-flies.
Immediately on rising, a Mexican takes a small cup of chocolate with a
little bread and a glass of water. At ten, they take what they call
breakfast--it is in fact equivalent to a dinner, consisting not of tea
or coffee, but of meats, sweetmeats and wine. At about three, dinner
is served. At six or seven, they again take chocolate; and at ten, an
enormous supper is laid of hot meats, &c. equal to a third dinner. At
these meals, three or four dishes of meats, with very few vegetables,
are brought on in various courses--the _olla podrida_, a mixture of
meats, fruits, and vegetables boiled together--always constitutes a
part of the first course--_frijoles_--beans boiled--invariably precede
the sweetmeats, of which the Mexicans are extremely fond. Perhaps this
is the reason why good teeth are seldom seen in Mexico.
* * * * *
23d November, 1825. I have stated that few parties are given in
Mexico. Balls are sometimes held by the American and English
Legations. If, on these occasions, fifty ladies attend, it is
considered a prodigious number to assemble together. The expenses of
preparation which they incur are enormous, and deter many, however
devoted they may be to pleasure, from partaking in frequent diversions
of this kind. Society, too, has not acquired that equilibrium which
the democratical institutions of the country must produce eventually.
A powerful aristocracy, as may reasonably be supposed, still exists in
the capital--time alone will level this--it will die with the present
generation, taking for granted {13} that the republicanism of Mexico
will be permanent. Aristocracy, of course, reduces the highest class
of society to a limited number, so that a large assemblage of ladies
here would be thought small in the United States.
At whatever hour you invite company, it will not collect before nine,
and the most fashionable appear between ten and eleven. The music soon
invites them to the waltz, or to the Spanish country-dance, both of
which are graceful, and perhaps voluptuous, when danced, as in Mexico,
to the music of guitars or of bandolines. They dance upon brick
floors--there are none other in Mexican houses--generally bare, but
foreigners have introduced the more comfortable fashion of covering
them with canvass; and as the steps are simple, without the hopping
and restlessness of our cotillons or quadrilles, it is not so
unpleasant as would be supposed; they glide over the pavement without
much exertion. The dancing continues, not uninterruptedly as with us,
but at intervals, until twelve o'clock, when the ladies are conducted
to the supper table, which must be loaded with substantial as well as
sweet things. After supper, dancing is continued, and the company
begins to disperse between one and two in the morning, and sometimes
not until near daybreak.
None of the wealthy families have followed the example set them by
foreigners. They give no balls or dinners. Although I have now been
here six months, I have never dined in a Mexican house in the city.
Their hospitality consists in this: they place their houses and all
they possess at your disposal, and are the better pleased the oftener
you visit them, but they rarely, if ever, offer you refreshments of
any kind. It is said that they are gratified if you will dine with
them unceremoniously, but they never invite you.
31st December, 1825. I can scarcely persuade myself that to-morrow
will be New-Year's day. The weather is most delightful. We are now
sitting with our windows open--at night too. About a fortnight ago the
mornings were uncomfortably cool; but the sun at mid-day is always
hot. What a delightful climate! And we are now eating the fruits of a
northern mid-summer. We have always had fresh oranges since our
arrival. A week since we had green peas; and to-day five different
kinds of fruit appeared upon our table--oranges, apples, walnuts,
_granadites de China_, and _chirimoyas_--the last, _la reina de los
frutos_, (the queen of fruit,) tasting like strawberries and cream.
The markets contain numerous other sorts. Our friends at home are now
gathering around the glowing coals, or treading the snow without. We
see the former in the kitchen only--the latter on the valcanoes which
tower in the distance.
* * * * *
7th December, 1827. A letter from home affords me the satisfaction of
knowing that our friends generally continue to enjoy good health, and
are subject to none other than the ordinary ills of life, such as
cut-throat weather, squalling brats, or a twinge or two of gout or
rheumatism. These are evils which humanity is decreed to suffer
throughout the world; but in Mexico we are more exempt from most of
them than elsewhere. The sun now _shines_ twelve hours of every day,
and either the moon or stars give light to the other twelve. Such will
the weather continue to be until May or June, when the rains fall with
such regularity and certainty, that very slight observation enables us
to know when to go out, or to shelter ourselves. The mornings now are
only a little cool, although we are in mid-winter; and our tables are
supplied with fruit as bountifully as in the months of July and
August. Our other ills are in like manner trivial. We are sometimes
_ennuyés_ for want of society, but books, and sometimes a game of
chess, enable us to live without being driven to the commission of
suicide. And as a _dernier resort_, we throw ourselves into the arms
of Morpheus, this being the peculiar delightful climate for sleep--no
mosquitos, nor extremes of heat or cold. The thermometer ordinarily
ranges at about 70° of Fahrenheit.