66 A NATURALIST IN MEXICO. 



the orange, lemon, banana, and almond growing at their 

 best, while the coffee, sugar-cane, and tobacco plantations 

 will compare favorably with any in Cuba. Sugar-cane land 

 can be had here for from forty to fifty dollars an acre, which 

 will compare favorably with Louisiana land which sells at 

 one thousand dollars an acre. Cotton is very extensively 

 grown in the State of Veracruz, and thrives up to an eleva- 

 tion of five thousand feet above the sea. According to 

 Mexican statistics, the average product is about two 

 thousand pounds to the acre; this is double the average 

 quantity produced in the United States. The modes of 

 cultivation are very crude, but the wonderful fertility of the 

 soil insures good and remunerative returns, even under 

 these disadvantages. Water is almost the only fertilizer 

 used, and irrigating facilities are excellent. 



On the west side of the town is an elevation known as 

 £/ Borrego, or The Goat, where five thousand Mexicans 

 were completely routed by a single company of French 

 Zouaves, during the French invasion. This was a night 

 surprise, wherein the French appeared suddenly among the 

 sleeping Mexicans, and cut them down as fast as they awoke. 

 The importance and superiority of disciplined troops was 

 never more clearly demonstrated than on this occasion. 

 Military discipline is not a characteristic of tne Mexican 

 army, as may be seen at any time when they are making a 

 parade. Orizaba, it will be remembered, was for a time 

 the headquarters of General Bazaines'army, and it was here 

 that the French General, finally, in 18G6, bade good-by to 

 Maximilian, whose cause he dastardly deserted. Stories are 

 still told here of the outrages committed by the French 

 soldiery. 



The streets of the town are in very good condition, 

 paved with lava. The gutters are in the middle of the 

 streets, and the sidewalks are but a few inches in width. 



