1895 
El Chioo 
(Hidalgo) 
Irolo 
(Hidalgo) 
Puebla 
may make 50 cents a day. The workmen in the mines make from 50 cents 
to #1,00 $ day, 
March 29 x I came on to this place which is on the western border 
-- ' . * 
of the Plain of Apam, the centre of a great pulque making district. 
It is just east of Talley of Mexico and in the same general climatic 
zone, I found here a species of Perodlpus common besides other common 
tableland birds and mamals. 
April 4thi I sent my assistant on to Apixaeo in Tlaxeala while I 
went on to the City of Puebla to get a circular letter from the Govern- 
\ 
or to the local authorities. Pound the $over nor formally polite and 
was turned by him over to the Secretary of State, who talks English, 
i 
and who was directed to prepare me the letter I desired and furnish me 
such other assistance in the way of information, etc,, as he could- 
Learning from the Secretary that the State College possesses a 
small museum I had him give me a letter to the Director of the College 
and paid it a visit. 
It contains various badly labelled or unmarked Mexican and North 
American birds, A few local mammals and a number of expensive tar- 
ported mammals such as a Bengal tiger and other species bearing the 
tag of a Paris taxidermist. In a country full of interesting birds and 
mammals the local authorities in Mexico seem possessed with the idea 
that they must spend thousands of dollars on a lot of foreign stuff 
when a small part of such expense would make a creditable showing. To 
a great extent this is due to lack of knowledge but more cannot be ex¬ 
pected where there are scarcely any naturalists and few of the natur¬ 
alists who are in the country have knowledge enough to form or label a 
collection in the proper manner. They follow slavishly after the work 
164 
