

^34 Mexican Notes. \zo¥. 



make the most of it. Nor often do they see a "Gringo's" face 

 behind the frayed stage curtains, and they make the most of 

 that, too. At length the stage stops. There is no hotel in the 

 " eye," and only two places that a stranger can get anything to eat 

 or a place to sleep. His bedding he brings with him or else goes 

 without. As I stood at the door of the miserable room and looked 

 at the crowd of natives without and then at the uninviting quarters 

 within, I felt more isolated and alone than ever before in my life. 

 But matters are not so bad as they seem. A comely woman, her 

 mother and three lads were inside, and with unusual intelligence 

 soon understood my wishes, and I was made at home. The boys 

 brought in my impedimenta, and room was made for me generally, 

 so that after the six mules had been led through the room into the 

 safe corral in the rear I was given cordial welcome, and during my 



stay these people were generous and unfailing in their kindness and 

 good-will. 



One of my first discoveries was a lizard of formidable dimensions, 

 some three or four feet long, at least it appeared so to me. It 

 scampered rapidly off to its hole under a tree, and if it had not done 

 so, doubtless I should have scampered in the opposite direction, for, 

 as I understand things, a butterfly man has no use for four-foot liz- 

 ards Close by I saw something that I had use for-a three-tailed 

 FapUio, such as are never seen in the United States-but before I 

 could reach the place it had business elsewhere and floated off to 

 the music of my regretful cry, and I saw it no more, nor even its 

 Ike again in Mexico. The forested slopes of the higher ridges of 

 the mountains were full of birds, among them many trogons-large 

 birds with mconveniently long tails, which wave up and down In a 

 ludicrous way as they slowly flap their wings in flight. In the 

 valley also many birds were wintering. Boat-tail grackles were 

 abundant and very tame-I could almost catch them in my butter- 

 fly net-and blackbirds of every stripe were represented by immense 



rhk WVlf""'- '°' . "'^"^ '^^''"' ^^^^^* magnificent bird, the wood 

 flti^t ^ •'''"^' ^"^"^'^ '^ '' ^PP-'-^ntly wholly white, but in 

 wle V""^' ^'' ^'^^ J'* ^^^^^- They appeared nearly as 

 Zlt Z r T-"''- ^^'^^times a flock of twenty would be In 



w!o wt'h "":■ u^ ''"'\'' '"""• ^"^ ^^y I encountered a native 



Li? Tnd fr ;;^. r' ^^ ^^^ ^^ ^^^^ *^^ ^^Ins for a dollar and a 

 half, and then had the meat to eat. His gun was a broken thing. 



