130 



SIX MONTHS IN MEXICO. 



centre of which is the palace built by Cortez, 

 and now called the Casa de Stada ; and the 

 west has a range of buildings with a piazza 

 in front, consisting of many good shops, the 

 public offices, granaries, fee- 

 About the centre of the square is a, fine 

 equestrian statue of Charles V., erected by a 

 Spanish artist, Signior Tolsa, of Mexico, 

 about twenty years since, and it is highly cre- 

 ditable to his talents. It is doubtless the 

 finest specimen of casting in the New World, 

 and would not disgrace the name of Michael 

 Angelo, Cellini, or John of Bologna. At the 

 time of my arrival, the Ex-Emperor had 

 erected a temporary amphitheatre of great 

 size for the purpose of giving bull-fights; 

 and this statue, which formed the centre of 

 the arena, was enclosed in a large globe of 

 paper surmounted by a figure of fame. 



The pleasing effect of this grand square 

 is however much injured by the introduction 



