166 



INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL. 



we reached the top. The scenery was wild and grand, 

 I have no doubt ; but the fact is, it rained very hard all 

 the time ; and while I was floundering among mud- 

 holes I would have given the chance of the sublime for 

 a good Macadamized road. Mr. Catherwood, who 

 crossed on a clear day, says that the view from the top, 

 both ways, was the most magnificent he saw in the 

 country. Descending, the clouds were lifted, and I 

 looked down upon an almost boundless plain, running 

 from the foot of the Sierra, and afar off saw, standing 

 alone in the wilderness, the great church of Esquipulas, 

 like the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, 

 and the Caaba in Mecca, the holiest of temples. My 

 muleteer was very anxious to stop at a collection of 

 huts on this side of the town, and told me first that the 

 place was occupied by Carrera's soldiers, and then that 

 he was ill. I had a long and magnificent descent to 

 the foot of the Sierra. The plain reminded me of the 

 great waste-places of Turkey and Asia Minor, but was 

 more beautiful, being bounded by immense mountains. 

 For three hours the church was our guide. As we ap- 

 proached, it stood out more clearly defined against 

 mountains whose tops were buried in the clouds. 



Late in the afternoon we entered the town and rode 

 up to the convent. I was a little nervous, and pre- 

 sented my passport as a letter of introduction ; but 

 could I have doubted the hospitality of a padre ? Don 

 Gregorio's reception made me feel more deeply the 

 welcome of the cura of Esquipulas. None can know 

 the value of hospitality but those who have felt the want 

 of it, and they can never forget the welcome of stran- 

 gers in a strange land. 



The whole household of the cura turned out to assist, 

 and in a few minutes the mules were munching corn in 



