206 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 102 



they have very good horses and fine rodeos ; they perform their 

 evolutions with reed spears and hoops with such skill that they might 

 very properly appear at His Majesty's court. 



579. This Indian village of Chiapa is built on the King's Highway 

 from Mexico City to Guatemala, on a high point near a large river 

 which abounds in fish ; on its banks they raise good melons. This 

 river runs into the Atlantic near Tabasco, becoming an estuary. 

 The village of Chiapa is 12 leagues approximately to the W. of 

 the royal city of Chiapa. Its climate is hot and salubrious, like that 

 of the province as a whole. There is a fine Dominican convent here, 

 for the catechizing and instruction of the Indians, and the admin- 

 istration of the Holy Sacraments. There are some Spaniards living 

 among the Indians in this village. In the center of the plaza is an 

 excellent and very artistic fountain. The region is very fertile and 

 supplies are cheap and abundant. Every day they hold tiangues, 

 i.e., markets, where every afternoon they sell all sorts of fruit, food- 

 stuffs, and other necessities. They maintain a good administration 

 in their communities, and they are charitable to poor travelers who 

 have to pass through ; they have special persons in their communities 

 for the dispensing of charity. As for the penniless Spaniard who 

 has nothing with which to pay them for the provisions they give him 

 and the horse for his further progress, they give him all this for the 

 love of God, and an Indian to guide him to the next village, and 

 ask him merely to enter it in the community record book so that 

 the amount may be made good by the stewards (mayordomos) in 

 whose province that falls. And they give everything necessary to 

 the priests for their services in saying Mass, and treat them with 

 great kindness. It appears that these provinces excel among all the 

 number and surpass the others in these services. 



580. In this village of Chiapa grows the tree which gives the 

 excellent laxative known as royal tamarinds. They have many varie- 

 ties of excellent bananas, large gardens or plantations of pineapples, 

 quantities of delicious fruit, jocotes (which are the plums of the 

 Indies), excellent poultry, as in all those regions, game, deer, pigeons, 

 doves, quail, and other game birds. This Province of Chiapas is 

 bounded on the S. by the Province of Soconusco. 



581. The Province and State of Soconusco comes within the 

 district of this Diocese. It lies on the Pacific coast and is highly 

 productive of cacao ; it has a very hot climate. Every year many 

 caravans of mules come here from New Spain, Mexico City, and 

 Puebla, with flour and other native and Spanish products, to load 

 cacao. This province is more than 40 leagues square. It begins, as 



