no 



STX MONTHS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER VII. 



Chollula. — Its Pyramids. — St. Martin's. — Rio Frio Ayotla. 



We arrived at Chollula after a pleasant ride 

 over plains covered with corn-fields, inter- 

 spersed with plantations of the Agava Ame- 

 ricana. This city was, before the Conquest, 

 one of the most considerable belonging to the 

 Ancient Mexicans. It was famed for its 

 idols, its sanctity, and its pagan worship. 

 The Teocalli or Temple is composed of 

 alternate layers of clay and sun-burnt brick, 

 forming an immense pyramid, divided into 

 regular stages, or platforms; but time, and 

 the growth of the prickly pear, the tuna, or 

 nopal, and other vegetables, have left but 



