UNIVERSITY MARKET CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES. 247 



the several secretaries of state ; the general treasury and tribunal of 

 accounts ; the supreme court ; the headquarters of the general-in- 

 chief ; the two chambers of deputies and the senate, both of which 

 are elegant apartments, and, especially that of the deputies ; — two 

 barracks for infantry, cavalry, and a park of artillery ; — two 

 prisons ; some shops ; a botanical garden ; and the mint. South of 

 the National Palace, but not fronting the plaza, are the University, 

 containing the National Museum, in front of which is the magnifi- 

 cent modern market, built during the administration of Santa Anna 

 in 1842. 



THE CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES. 



Directly opposite the facade of the cathedral, in the south-eastern 

 corner of the plaza, is the Casa Municipal, or City Hall, which is oc- 

 cupied partly by the corporate authorities, and partly by the mer- 

 chants' Lonja, or exchange. On the western side of the square 

 there are no public buildings ; but the palace of Cortez, which was 

 erected by the conqueror and rebuilt and still owned by his de- 

 scendants, covers a portion of its front and deserves to be mentioned 

 for its associations if not for its architectural beauty. The whole 

 of the side walks on the southern part of the plaza, and a portion of the 

 2f 



