Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
VOL. 11.
Shortli) wili be puhlis/ied.
SIX VIEWS
of the great
Towns of Zacatecas, Sombrehete, Catok ce,
Tlalpujahua, Guadalajara and Valladoliu.
not
included in the present Work. Drawn upon the spot,
and engraved by Mr. Pye.
MEXICO IN 1827.
BY
H. G. WARD, ESQ.
IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOL. II.
LONDON:
HENRY COLBURN, NEW BURLINGTON STREET.
1828.
j:
V''2/^
CONTENTS
BOOK IV.
SECTION I.
BOOK V.
PERSONAL NARRATIVE.
SECTION
....
I.
SECTION 11.
SECTION III.
Second Visit
scription of
Amilpas
to
.....
Mexico in 1
Huehuetocaand Tczcuco.
825. State of La Puebla.
Route to
De-
Cuautla
256
CONTENTS. V]l
Page.
SECTION TV.
SECTION V.
BOOK VI.
SECTION I.
SECTION II.
of that District
SECTION
....
San Luis Potosi.
Road to Catorce,
III.
Hacienda del
and Mines
4C4
SECTION IV.
Tabasco .....
matlan and Tlalpujahua to the Capital.
SECTION VI.
Some Account
of States of Mexico, Veracruz, Oaxaca, Yucatan, and
612
VOL. II.
MEXICO IN 1827.
BOOK IV.
First Section.
Second Section.
Third Section.
Whether the large Capitals which have been
remitted to Mexico, and invested in the Mines, by
British subjects, and on British account, are likely
Fourth Section,
Some general Observations upon Mexico as a
Mining Country, with an enquiry as. to the proba-
bility of her being enabled, by her mineral treasures,
to multiply her commercial relations with Great
Britain, and to acquit the interest, of whatever loans
she may have contracted there.
SECTION I.
exercised no control.
Nor do the returns of all these establishments
combined, lead to a more satisfactory result ; for
Total . 141,485,000
On Merchant's account . .
-
9,432,333 2
On King's account . . . 8,340,667 3
Dollars. Rs.
calculation.
Dollars.
In Mexico . 111,551,082
In Guadalajara 4,868,760
In Diirango . 6,917,652
In Zacatecas . 30,659,518
In Chihuahua 1,216,000
proceeded.
Without regular Returns, it is difficult to show
to what extent the effects of the Revolution were
felt in each ; but, in those Districts where records
were kept, (extracts from most of which I have been
enabled to obtain), the difference between the Pro-
duce of the fifteen years, before, and after, the com-
mencement of the Civil War, appears to have been
enormous.
In Guanajuato, the amount of the precious metals
raised, diminished from 8,852,472 Marcs of Silver
and 27,810 Marcs of Gold,* (the produce of the
fifteen years preceding the Revolutionf) to 2,877,213
Marcs of Silver, and 8109 Marcs of Gold ; (or some-
thing less than one-third of the original amount of
both,) which appears, by the annexed Table (No.
VIII.) to have been the produce of the whole Dis-
trict from 1811 to 1825.
From Zacatecas, I ha-ve been able to obtain but
partial accounts : it does not appear, however, by
these, tliat any very great falling off took place in
the early part of the Civil AVar, the Mines of Veta
were kept.
The amount of the Silver known to have been
raised since 1810, is, therefore, as follows :
Dollars.
.
. .
.
300,000
400,000
14,285
Guarisaraey, San Dimas (included in
....
of Peru, as given by Humboldt, in
5,317,988 dollars.
Buenos Ayres
New Grenada .... Essai Politique, Livre IK
4,212,404
2,624,760
Chap. XI.
t I am induced to adopt Humboldt's estimate of the amount
of the circulating medium of Mexico in 1803, not because I
MEXICO IN 1827. 27
Total 68,291,206
The Exports of
( Dollars 8,353,178
1821 were
|^y^,o^^ght gQ^e^ 67,488
(Dollars . 7,489,780
1822
1 Wrought Silver 81,237
(Dollars . 1,293,823
1823
t Wrought Silver 30,779
1824 .... . . 2,854,936
1825 ... . (about) 6,000,000
Total 94,284,020
Dollars.
1821 . . 7,245,052
1822 . . 3,723,019
1823 . . 3,913,092
1824 . . 12,082,030
1825
^
(No returns, therefore taken at the > 12,082,030
same amount as 1824)* . )
Total 39,045,223
coincided.
Having premised this, I shall annex the results of
Years.
32 MEXICO IN 1827.
Dollars.
vol.. II. D
34 MEXICO IN 1827.
Total . 167,404,273
D 2
.SG MEXICO IN n\2i.
.y"o
38 MEXICO IN 18-27.
Capital alone.
In 1820, the Revolution in Spain, and the ap-
MEXICO IN 1827. 39
Years.
42 :mexico in i»-27.
No. III.
No V.
In 1821 - - - - -
Inl822- -
In 1823- - - . -
In 1824- - - -
In 1825- - _ - -
Total
44 MEXICO IN U;27.
No. VII.
No. XI.
Account of the
MEXICO IN 1927. 4)7
SECTION II.
VOL. II. E
50 MEXICO IN 1827.
Capi-
tal.
MEXICO IX 1U27. 65
TLALPUJAHUA COMPANY.
Director, Mr. De Rivafinoli.
Caoi.
tal.
O
o"
o
"^
66 MEXICO IN 1827.
Capi. Invest-
tal. ed.
Teojomulco.
IMines of La Bomba, Santa Ana, Las
Papas, San IMiguel, San Antonio, and
Santa Rita, at El C/iico.
CATORCE COxMPANY.
Present Director, Mr. Stokes.
AMERICAN COMPANIES.
COMPANY OF BALTIMORE.
Director, Mr. Keating.
Capit.il
Invested.
68 MEXICO IN 1827.
of her Mines. A
war with Great Britain generally
caused a reduction of nearly one-third in the Mint
Returns ; but then the first years of peace brought
with them a corresponding increase, so that the
average was never materially affected. A similar
not from any fault of the author's, but from the con-
clusions imprudently drawn from the facts which he
has recorded.
Humboldt never asserted, or meant to assert,
voi.. II. G
82 MEXICO IN ia-i7.
of advantage.
Besides, however good the Mines, the price whicli
G 2
84 MEXICO IN 1827.
* I cannot urge ihis point too strongly, for although the mass
of silver already raised from some mines, undoubtedly diminishes
the probability of their continuing equally productive for a long
term of years, yet, where the richness of the Vein continued
unimpaired in 18J0, it affords almost a certainty of the repay-
agents to effect.
At Bolaiios, (which, thongh a distinct company^
was likewise under the direction of Captain Vetch,)
the rest.
The outlay of the United Mexican Company is
must be worked.
In the Autumn of 1826, fifty yards of the great
Gallery had been driven, (from the mouth,) and the
air-shafts, Nos. 1, 2, 3, 10, 11, and 12, commenced.
Some of these had already attained a considerable
depth, but the panic of the Shareholders in England
has, I believe, rendered the farther progress of the
SECTION III.
them; and,
2ndly. The probability of the general produce of
the country being so increased by these returns, (or
by any other causes,) as to equal, or ultimately to
H 2
100 MEXICO IN 1P,'27.
113
Total 13,000,000
I 2
116 MEXICO IN 1827.
intercourse ?
The above observations are merely matters of
private opinion, but as such I leave them to the con-
deserve.
I come now to the probaliility " of the annual
average produce ultimately c.vcecdiiig the Twenty-
four millions of dollars, which were drawn from the
mines before 1810."
mp:xicc) in 1827. 125
else.
natives, undoubted.*
K 2
132 MEXICO IN 1«27.
300 lbs.)
custom.
MEXICO IN 1827. 135
1736.
This correspondence I have seen, and I have in
my possession a certified copy of a Decree of Philip
the Fifth, dated Aranjuez, S8th May, 1741, the
object of which was to terminate a prosecution,
instituted by the Royal Fiscal, against the disco-
verers of Arizona, for having defrauded the Treasury
of the duties payable upon the masses of pure silver
found there.
The Decree states the weight of the Balls,
promote.
MEXICO IN 1827. 139
TABLE No. I.
Produce and Ex
MEXICO IN 1827. 141
Produce and E:
142 MEXICO IN 1827.
TABLE, No. V.
MEXICO IN 1827. 143
SECTION IV.
doubt.
Mining in Mexico has, hitherto, been confined to
VOL. II. M
I62t MEXICO IK 1827.
ADDITIONAL REMARKS.
am enabled to rectify.
For instance : I have not included in my general
Table of Coinage, the Mints of Guanajuato and Som-
brerete, not being in possession of any returns from
those places, and conceiving, consequently, that, while
they remained in the hands of the Insurgents, (by
whom the Mints were first established,) no account
had been taken of the money coined in each, during
viz. :
Dollars.
Total . 159,255,840
and this again, (with the deductions specified in the
unregistered silver.
168 MEXICO IN 1827.
tered Coinage is :
Dolla
In Gold 03 365,400.
.^^^
In Silver 1,318,853,130 > ' ' '
GUANAJUATO.
From Dec. 1812, to May 15,
1813 - - - 311,125
From April 1821, to June /^ 3,024,194
1820 - - - 2,713,009
ZACATECAS.
From Nov, 24, 1810, to June 1820 - - 32,108,185 1
GUADALAJARA.
From 1812, to June 1826,
In Gold - - 225,032 » ,-^ , .^ „ «
'''^^^'''^-^ '
^
In Silver - - 5,433,527 7 9 S
DURANGO.
From 1811, to June 1820 -, 7,483,620 4
CIIinUAIIUA.
From 1811 to 1814, Avhou the Mint
was suppressed - - - 3,603,660
SOJIBR.ERETE.
From Oct. 16, 1810, to July 10, 1811,
when tlie Mint was suppressed - - 1,561,249 2
Total 1,435,058,611 2 3
BOOK V.
PERSONAL NARRATIVE.
BOOK V.
PERSONAL NARRATIVE.
SECTION I.
picture of desolation.
Nor was there any of the military bustle which
usually attends a siege, to enliven the monotony of
the scene. The garrison of St. John of Uloa was
so small, and the climate of Veracruz so dangerous,
that the Mexican force consisted merely of men
enough to work the batteries, which had been con-
structed in the hope of making some impression
upon the Castle, the bomb-proof casemates of which
would have bid defiance to any such attempt, had
not hunger ar.d disease lent their powerful assistance
to the besieging force without.
* The trees were all cut down, when Santana and Victoria
were besieged in Veracruz by Iturbidu's army, under the orders
of General Echavarri. — /Vr/c last Section of Book II.
MEXICO IN 1827. 177
VOL. II, N
178 MEXICO IN 1827.
poured forth.
existence.
We found the Old Veracruz causeway in a suf-
ficiently good state of preservation between Jalapa
and Las Vigas, to afford an easy passage even for
carriages ; the horses and mules, however, suffer
produce.
Our host at Acocotlan was a most respectable
man ; one of the numerous class of minor proprie-
VOL. II. P
210 MEXICO IN 1827.
SECTION II.
tain that they are now all fixtures : they are sur-
rounded, however, by a broad ditch full of water,
oV'Cr which a little drawbridge is thrown, to keep
MEXICO IN 1B27. 225
Q 2
228 MEXICO IN 1827.
SECTION III.
VOL. II. T
274 MEXICO IN 1827.
*
Humboldt proves the possibility of such an event, by stating,
that when at Guyaquil, on the coast of the Province of Quito,
in 1802, he himself saw the cone of the mountain of Cotopaxi,
(superior in height to Popocatepetl) so thoroughly heated in a
single night as to be entirely divested of its enormous coating of
snow, (io» enonne calotte de veige).
MEXICO IN 18-27. 293
those of Chapoltepec.
I can add nothing to the description of the py-
ramids given by Humljoldt, whose work contains
infinitely more than is known respecting them by
the natives at the present day. The first, (Tonatiuh
Ytzaqual,) the House of the Sun, has a base of 682
feet in length; its height is 180 feet. The second,
(Metzli Itzaqual,) the House of the Moon, is thirty-
six feet lower than the other, and its base is much
smaller. Both are truncated, like the pyramid of
Cholula, and are of Toltec origin : they are com-
posed of stones, and clay intermixed, and, although,
the form of the exterior is now almost lost amidst
the quantity of aloes, cactuses, and thorny brush-
wood, by vhich it is covered, there are parts where
the steps, or terraces, which rose gradually to the
summit, can be still distinctly traced.
rites.
K 2
308 ,
MEXICO IN 1027.
SECTION IV.
shown.
The place contains about 4000 inhabitants, and is
Y 2
324 MEXICO IN 1827.
to the Capital.
iiSO MEXICO IN 1827.
SECTION V.
hours' travelling.
The plains of San Pedro led us to another Pe-
dregal, or stony district, of still greater extent than
the first, in the midst of which, five leagues from the
Hacienda, stands a solitaiy venta, where we had
MEXICO IN 1827. 331
name from the church that was built out of its pro-
ceeds ; and from Cerro Colorado the family of Bus-
tamante derived its fortune. There are many others
which it is unnecessary to enumerate.
The only mine regularly worked at the time of
my visit was that of Santa Rita, belonging to the
German Company. They were driving a level upon
the vein, which they had just cut, and were only
waiting for the completion of the Hacienda de los
Tolimanes, situated in a ravine below the mine, in
order to reduce seventy cargas of rich ore, which
had already been extracted.
This Hacienda was formerly an old convent : it
out.
last operation.
SECTION VI.
that of Veracruz.
The mines of Tepantitlan, which lie far to the
Road to Angangeo.
Extraction.
Dollars. Reals.
Peones
.12
. . .
Tools, &c. . . .
8
390 MEXICO IN 1827.
MEXICO IN 1«27. 391
to gather strength.
MEXICO IN 1827.
SECTION I.
was long since tlie inn there had opened its gates
to such a cavalcade as ours ; but, bad as the accom-
modations were, we determined always to stop at
the Ventas, in lieu of private houses, except in places
where we intended to pass some days, on account of
VOL. II. 2 D
402 MEXICO IN 1827.
ing Rancho.
We did not leave San Juan till the morning of
the 8th. The vicinity of the town abounds in gar-
did five.
41 MEXICO IN 1827.
twenty-four hours.
Tuesday, Nov. 14. — We visited the mine of Si-
rena, in which the Anglo-Mexican Company holds
ten Barras in perpetuity, and had acquired four
more for twelve years, by an additional advance of
100,000 dollars. The mine had been nearly drained
by Malacates in six months, and from the levels
see it.
specting it.
( )
k
MEXICO IN 1827. 4.'35
2 F 2
436 ]\ii:xico in Ui-21.
all the earthy particles are got rid of, when the
amalgam, which remains at the bottom of the vat,
be ^^
emborrascada,''' or destitute of mineral riches.
shaft had been sunk, but the Marquis was too much
impoverislied by the Revolution to carry on so
would be superfluous.
The necessity of fitting up these Haciendas, and
of l)ringing all the larger timber employed in them
from the Sierra of Maravatio, (in the vicinity of Tlal-
piijahua,) a distance of nearly forty-eight leagues,
has been one of the great drains upon the Compa-
nies ; this has now ceased, and, the works having
been well executed, they will require but few repairs
during the remainder of the term for w hich the con-
tracts arc held.
MEXICO IN 1827. 459
take.
A great part of the landed property both in Gua-
najuato and in the neighbouring States, likewise
belongs to mining families.The Countess Ruhl
has large possessions near Aguas Calientes. The
estates of the Perez Galvez family occupy no incon-
siderable portion of San Luis Potosi ; ^nd the Obre-
gones, (descendants of the first Conde de Valen-
ciana,) possess some beautiful Haciendas near Leon,
with many others of less importance, which it is
needless to enumerate.
From the Governor of the State, Don Carlos
Montesdeoca, a man of liberal and enlightened views,
the Foreign Companies have received every encou-
460 MEXICO IN 1827.
be apprehended.
The State Constitution of Guanajuato was sworn
in April 1825. Since the fall of Iturbide, public
tranquillity has not been in any way disturbed there,
SECTION II.
lars) each.
hundred pounds.
Maize averages usually from two hundred to two
hundred and fifty for one ; but the price, in ordinary
years, seldom rises above twelve reals the fanega.
From five to six thousand arrobas of Chile are
likewise produced in the vicinity of the Jaral. It is
teen leagues.
The road, on leaving the valley of El Jaral, passes
near a large pueblo called El Valle de San Fran-
cisco, four leagues from the Hacienda, and runs
from thence to Tierra Blanca three leagues. La
Pila three leagues. Real de los Pozos two, and San
Luis three and a half. La Pila and Los Pozos were
formerly amalgamation works, in which the ores
from the mines of the Cerro de San Pedro were re-
duced. These mines have been abandoned for many
years on account of the extreme poverty of the ores,
which, notwithstanding a " ley de oro," by no means
inconsiderable, will not defray the expence of work-
ing. Eighty thousand dollars were spent in a fruit-
immediate vicinity.
about fourteen.
Many of these Haciendas would be valuable from
the extraordinary fertility of the soil, but the Avant
of a market renders the agricultural produce a mere
drug. Maize sells, in ordinary years, for four and
six reals the Fanega, (one, or one and a half dollar
the carga of fiOOlbs.) and even at this price pur-
chasers are not always to be found.
In 1826, the dryness of the season had given an
unusual value to the stock upon hand, (nearly the
whole crop of the year being lost,) and maize was
selling at twenty reals the fanega in the vicinity
of San Luis, and at thirty, and thirty-six reals near
Catorce, where the demand was great, and the sup-
sured us that they had hardly seen the sun for forty
days, and the swampy state of the country around
demonstrated the correctness of the assertion. It
'^!Ji^'%^
_^i^,:t^'-
v^
^^«
VOL. II. 2 K
498 ]MEXICO IX 1827.
visible.
2 K 2
500 MEXICO IN 1827.
the water from the shaft, while the ores are brought
to the " despacho," or receiving-room, in carts.
paper.
VOL. II. 2 I.
514 MEXICO IN 18-27.
SECTION III.
workmen to walk
of sufficient solidity to allow the
upon it without giving way. The depth of water
beneath is very inconsiderable. The stock of te-
quesquite is laid up for sale in large conical hillocks,
MEXICO IN 1827. 531
MEXICO IX ia-27.
SECTION IV.
* Article XI. " The Religion of the State is, and shall ever
*'
clavos" have been discovered. This disadvantage
is compensated by the trifling expence at which they
may be reduced, from the cheapness of the animals
employed in the process, and the very abundant
supply of grain in the surrounding country. The
only article of high price is quicksilvei*. The salt
and one real being laid aside for each marc of silver
produced, a fund was formed, out of which the
cathedral of Chihuahua was built, and a fund of
582 MEXICO IN 1827.
for smelting.
remote districts.
cited in vain.
VOL. II. 2 Q
594^ MEXICO IN 1827.
very great.
From Guaymas, the road to the interior of So-
nora lies through Petic, a town of 8,000 inhabitants,
situated in a plain near the confluence of the rivers
Dolores and Sonora, thirty-six leagues from the
Coast. The intervening country is level, and ap-
parently destitute of water ; the rivers from the Cor-
dillera losing themselves in the sands between Petic
and the Gulf; yet it is covered with herds of
cattle and deer, and inhabited at intervals by In-
dians of the Seres tribe, of whose treacherous
character Colonel Bourne's Journal gives some cu-
rious details. P^tic is the depot for the trade of
Upper Sonora with the Gulf. Its inhabitants,
amongst whom there are a few foreigners, (three
reach.
I am willing to hope, however, that my present
undertaking may have the effect of directing the
attention of many of my countrymen to a field,
the importance of which has been hitherto but
little suspected. Many of the facts detailed in the
preceding pages are known in Mexico only by per-
sons immediately connected with the part of the
country to which they relate, but by them they
are unanimously confirmed.
Ml.XICO IN 11327. ^01
as evident, as it is innocuous.
The road from Arispe to the Villa del Fuerte, the
any importance.
I have endeavoured to compress into this Sectior
2 K 2
612 MEXICO IN 1B27.
SECTION V.
of a few minutes.
MEXICO IN 1827. 619
tions.
time.
The little mine of Loreto, (like Secho at Guana-
juato, an entirely new undertaking,) borders upon
that of Malanoche. It is situated upon a separate
vein, and had, when I saw it, not only covered the
advances made upon it by the Association, but began
to yield a clear profit. The ores improved as tlie
traction of rich ores, raised by fewer hands, and " reduced" with
less labour. It is in the first that the great riches of Zacatecas
and Guanajuato have principally consisted.
MEXICO IN 1827. 625
vol.. II. 2 s
626 MEXICO IN 1827.
But during the last ten years the produce has barely
covered the expences, and the proprietors have de-
rived little or no profit from the concern, although
ginal violence.
This circumstance may be attributed partly to
the influence of the regular clergy, and partly to the
different circumstances under which our mining
operations in the State commenced. The working
classes had never felt in Zacatecas that distress,
from which they were relieved in other districts by
the introduction of foreign capitals. The mines of
by the Rancheros, to protect the back from the sun. The im-
propriety, or rather impiety, of using it in a religious festival
requires no comment.
66^ MEXICO IN I«27.
two : that her husband had paid this, but was still
V,
MEXICO IN 1827. ()75
imposing effect.
2x2
(J7(i MEXICO IN 1827.
be instructed.
The registered population of the State in 1822,
was 365,080 souls. It may be calculated at
execution to be impracticable.
There was rather a scanty supply of water when
we saw it ; but this was an evil not to be guarded
against in a year, when the maize crops throughout
the country had perished for want of rain.
voi>. II. 2 Y
690 MEXICO IN lB-27.
us, that they might cast an evil eye upon the chil-
dren, if refused.
We found our coach at Tepetitlan, to which place
it proceeded by the usual coach-road from Tepetongo-
On the 22d, we started at five o'clock, (at which
hour the ground was covered with a hard white
MEXICO IN 1827. 691
January, lt327.
696 MEXICO IN 1827.
2.— 18 8 4 10 .'3 6
3.— 19 7 4 lOi .'3
9
They are all seven feet from the ground, and the
ends of each rest upon slabs measuring eight feet
six inches, by six feet nine inches, and four inches
thick.
SECTION VI.
duced for a long time, and did not entirely get over
derived.
The reputed members of this association, (which
is very ancient,) are mostly men of moderate prin-
ciples, and sincere advocates of the cause of Indepen-
dence. Many of them, however, belonged to the
Creole army, and consequently opposed the leaders
of the first insurrection, while others held situations
VOL. II. 3 A
722 MEXICO IN 1827.
sent day.
The Escoceses may more properly be assimilated
to the " Federalists" of the United States, who, on the
establishment of the Constitution in 1787, thought
the Government founded upon it too weak, and were
consequently reproached by their opponents, the
" Democrats," with aristocratical notions, and a de-
respective territories.
Their ability to support this system I have had
frequent occasion to investigate. To a certain ex-
tent it has been already demonstrated ; and the
journal of my visits to the Interior will prove that,
wherever a man of activity has been placed at the
head of affairs, a good use has been made by the
Provinces of the free agency with which they are
entrusted. In Guanajuato, San Luis, Durango,
Jalisco, La Puebla, and Veracruz, as well as in
some others of the Central and Northern States,
important changes have taken place, and much has
been done towards that gradual introduction of a
better order of things, from which alone permanent
improvement can be expected.
I am aware, that in giving this opinion, I expose
myself to the attacks of two distinct classes of
adversaries ; first, those who refuse to admit the
fact of any progress at all having been made ; and
secondly, those, who, from too enthusiastic an admi-
ration of the new institutions, are unwilling to await
the mild influence of time, and maintain that, by a
proper exercise of Republican energy, roads might
have been made, canals traced, rivers rendered
navigable, the whole jurisprudence of the country
reformed, a system of education generalized, and
the work of a century compressed into a twelve-
month !
MEXICO IN 1827. 729
VOL. II. 3 B
730 MEXICO IN 1827.
THE END.
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