330 



INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL. 



mg. He had no architect to consult, and planned 

 and constructed it himself. Twice the arches gave 

 wdij, and the w^hole building came down. The 

 machinery was imported from the United States, 

 accompanied by four engineers, two of whom died 

 in the country. In 1835, when Mr. Burke arrived, 

 the factory had yielded but seventy pieces of cotton, 

 and eighteen yards had cost eight thousand dollars. 

 At this time the office of acting governor of the 

 state devolved upon him, but by a political revolu- 

 tion he was deposed ; and while his workmen were 

 celebrating the grito de Dolores, which announced 

 the outbreak of the Mexican revolution, they were 

 arrested and thrown in prison, and the factory was 

 stopped for six months. It was afterward stopped 

 twice by a failure of the cotton crop, and once by 

 famine ; and all the time he had to struggle against 

 the introduction of smuggled goods from Belize ; but, 

 in spite of all impediments, it had gone on, and was 

 then in successful operation. 



In walking about the yard, Don Pedro led us to the 

 wood-pile, and showed us that the logs were all split 

 into four pieces. This wood is brought by the In- 

 dians in back-loads at a medio per load, and Don Pe- 

 dro told us that at first he had requested the Indians 

 not to split the logs, as he would rather have them 

 entire, but they had been used to doing so, and could 

 not alter their habits ; yet these same Indians, by 

 discipline and instruction, had become adequate to 

 all the business of the factory. 



