180 



CUERNAVACA. 



land, stretching into the bright haze as far as the eye 

 could penetrate. 



As we proceeded, the heat increased ; and, as we 

 wound along the edge of the ravines, the road became 

 almost impassable for the horses, from the quantity of 

 rock and stone with w 7 hich they were strewed: and 

 ri^ht glad were we, after passing through a picturesque 

 village, at the foot of the mountain, to find ourselves and 

 our train housed in a comfortable posada, in the town 

 of Cuernavaca, after an uninterrupted ride of sixteen 

 leagues, without halt or refreshment. 



I think we treated both ourselves and our quadrupeds 

 with unusual severity on the occasion. But there seemed 

 to be no alternative. 



In resolving to take the circuitous route upon which 

 w 7 e had now set out, we had a further end in view than 

 that of merely extending our observations a little, by see- 

 ing a part of the country which was less known and less 

 hackneyed, than the direct and ordinary one from the cap- 

 ital to Puebla. Ever since we had entered New Spain, 

 it had been a pet scheme to visit certain remarkable re- 

 mains, existing in the vicinity of Cuernavaca. I refer to 

 the fortified hill and palace of Xochicalco, or the u House 

 of Flowers," of which little was known, but what was to 

 be culled from a small pamphlet in Spanish, written many 

 years ago, from which Humboldt probably gives the few 

 facts mentioned in his Researches. He was unable to 

 visit Xochicalco himself. 



Our inquiries in Mexico with regard to the precise po- 

 sition and character of these ruins, were productive of 

 no kind of certain information. Among all our acquaint- 

 ances, European and native, we could not find more than 

 two or three who had ever heard of their existence ; and 

 further, " Quien sabe ?" was the answer to everything. 



However, hurried as we found we should be, if we in- 

 tended to leave Vera Cruz on the first of May, we kept 

 steadily to our purpose ; and, no sooner had w r e re- 

 freshed ourselves by ablutions and a hearty meal, fol- 

 lowed by a basin of excellent lemon ice, and had seen 



