TLALPAM. 



93 



Besides the two principal products, the estates about 

 Mexico furnish a large quantity of European grain, Mex- 

 ican and European wheat, and abundance of beans, peas, 

 Chili pepper, and vegetables, in addition to most of our 

 European fruits. 



Surely there is not on the face of the earth a country 

 more highly favoured by nature than New Spain. You 

 can hardly name a mineral product which it does not 

 hide within its bosom, or a vegetable one, of whatever 

 zone, which it might not, under proper management, be 

 made to bring to perfection in one part or another of its 

 varied surface. Yet how little has man hitherto done to 

 improve these advantages ! 



But to return for an instant to the hacienda. It may 

 be remarked, that in common with all its neighbours of 

 the same class, there are signs of interior decay observ- 

 able, consequent upon the altered circumstances of the 

 country : and the general magnificence of the plan and 

 the dimensions of the apartments, contrast disagreeably 

 with the scanty character of the furniture. These 

 country seats were once palaces, but they are no longer 

 so ; still there was a feudal air about the great hall of 

 San Antonio, which for size and noble proportions might 

 almost rival the ritter-saal of a German castle. The 

 church had been completely despoiled of its ornaments 3 

 and now seemed to be utterly deserted. 



From the hacienda of San Antonio, the route con- 

 tinues to run, in nearly a straight line, to Tlalpam or San 

 Augustin de las Cuevas, a town with a large church and 

 plaza, most delightfully situated among gardens and 

 groves, at the very foot of the hills in advance of the 

 Ajusco. It is a favourite resort of the citizens of all 

 classes from the capital, many of the wealthier of whom 

 have country seats here, to which they repair to enjoy 

 fine air and verdure, in exchange for the heat and glare 

 of the city. 



Among these, the country seat and gardens of the 

 exiled General Moran are particularly beautiful. The 



