72 
now in progress in the chief town of the district, as well as 
by the flourishing plantations of cotton and tobacco, not one 
of which existed at that time, but which have since acquired 
some importance. 
The topographical knowledge of these regions is necessarily 
very limited where forests of immense extent and almost im- 
penetrable thickness render the work of exploration difficult. 
It is, however, particularly characterised by the course of the 
Coatzacoalcos, which the Commission examined, and it is 
known that the ground on both sides of this river is tra- 
versed by streams of scarcely less importance, the waters 
of which might be advantageously employed to facilitate the 
commmiication between this fertile territory and the adjacent 
districts. 
After the river Coatzacoalcos, the ' next in importance is 
the Uspanapan, which according to Ortiz "runs through a 
*' pleasant and picturesque region of temperate climate, and 
" once thickly populated. " This region, he thinks, is that 
which Cortes and Clavijero called Chimatlan and Quiexula. 
" It is very probable, " says Ortiz, " that this district, 
" which is now deserted, may afford a short and regular tran- 
" sit to the beautiful plains in the centre of the Isthmus, as 
"the conquerors penetrated through it into the Upper Tabasco 
' ' and Guatemala. " 
Besides the Uspanapan, the rivers Coahuapa, Coachapa, 
San Antonio, Tancochapa, and Zanapa, water also the plains 
lying on the right of the Coatzacoalcos : all of them are more 
or less navigable, and the latter discharges itself into the At- 
lantic, about 25 miles eastward of the mouth of the Coatza- 
coalcos, through the bar of Toneladas, which the mariners of 
old mention in their writings as a frequented port, and which 
is well worthy the attention of modern navigators. 
The territory west of the Coatzacoalcos is also intersected 
by large rivers, among which the Jaltepcc and the San Juan 
are the most remarkable. The former, which as we have seen 
ioins the Coatzacoalcos, runs through a country remarkable 
for its magnificent vegetation ; and Ortiz is of opinion that a 
great portion of its course might be navigable for steamers. 
