SENOR TREGO'S ESTABLISHMENT. 173 



son to believe that the honest padre had reversed 

 the custom of more poUshed lands, and that his pri- 

 vate advices had given a liberal interpretation to his 

 cautious open recommendation. At all events, Se- 

 nor Trego made us feel at once that there w^as to 

 be no reserve in his hospitality ; and v^hen he or- 

 dered some lemonade to be brought in immediate- 

 ly, we did not hesitate to suggest the addition of 

 two fowls boiled, with a little rice thrown in. 



While these were in preparation, Senor Trego 

 conducted us round to look at his establishment. He 

 had large sugar- works, and a distillery for the manu- 

 facture of habanera ; and in the yard of the latter 

 was a collection of enormous black hogs, taking a si- 

 esta in a great pool of mud, most of them with their 

 snouts barely above water, a sublime spectacle for one 

 interested in their lard and tallow, and Senor Trego 

 told us that in the evening a hundred more, quite 

 equal to these, would come in to scramble for their 

 share of the bed. To us the principal objects of in- 

 terest were in the square, being a welJ, covered over 

 and dry, dug nearly to the depth of six hundred 

 feet without reaching water, and the great seybo 

 trees, which had been planted by Senor Trego him- 

 self ; the oldest being of but twelve years' growth, 

 and more extraordinary for its rapid luxuriance than 

 that before referred to as existing at Ticul. 



At four o'clock we resumed our journey, and to- 

 ward dark, passing sonie misera,ble huts in the sub- 



