HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



181 



to defcend to the bottom. This garden, agreeably to 

 the tefiimony of Cortes and Diaz, who faw it, was 

 planted, or rather extended and improved by Cuitlahu- 

 atzin, the brother and fuccefibr in the kingdom to Mon- 

 tezuma II. He caufed many foreign trees to be trans- 

 planted there, according to the account of Hernandez, 

 who faw them. 



The garden of Huaxtepec was ftill more extenlive 

 and celebrated than the lad. It was fix miles in circum- 

 ference,, and watered by a beautiful river which croffed 

 it. Innumerable fpecies of trees and plants were reared 

 there and beautifully difpofed, and at proper diftances 

 from each other different pleafure houfes were erected. 

 A great number of flrange plants imported from foreign 

 countries were collected in it. The Spaniards for many 

 years preferved this garden, where they cultivated every 

 kind of medicinal herb belonging to that clime, for the 

 ufe of the hofpital which they founded there, in which 

 the remarkable hermit, Gregorio Lopez, ferved a num- 

 ber of years (/>). 



They paid no lefs attention to the prefervation of the 

 woods which fupplied them with fuel to burn, timber to 

 build, and game for the diverfion of the king. We have 



formerly 



(p) Cortes, in his letter to Charles V. of the 15th of May, 15Z2, told him, 

 that the garden of Huaxtepec was the moft extenfive, the moft beautiful, and 

 moft delightful which had ever been beheld. Bernal Dias, in chap, cxlii. of his 

 hiftory fays, that the garden was moft wonderful, and truly worthy of a great 

 prince. Hernandez frequently makes mention of it in his Natural Hiftory, and 

 named feveral plants which were tranfplanted there, and amongft others the 

 balfam-tree. Cortes alfo, in his letter to Charles V. of the 30th of October, 

 1520, relates, that having requeued king Montezuma to caufe a villa to be 

 made in Malinaltepec for that emperor, two months were hardly elapfed when 

 there were erected at that place four good houfes ; fixty fanegas of maize fown, 

 ten of French beans, two thoufand feet of ground planted with cacao, and a vaft 

 pond, where five hundred ducks were breeding, and fifteen hundred turkies 

 were rearing in houfes. 



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