Page:Life in Mexico vol 2.djvu/385

Rh should be much in a provincial town; besides, this city has the pretension of being divided into cliques, and there are "first people" and "second-rate people" and "families in our set," and so on; so that some of the ladies being musicians, one set will get up a concert, another a rival concert, and there not being a sufficient musical society to fill two concerts, both fall to the ground. There is a neat little theatre, but at present no company. Some of the houses are as handsome as any in Mexico, but there is no city which has fallen off so much since the Independence as Morelia, according to the accounts given us by the most respectable persons.

We had a visit from the Bishop, Señor Portugal, one of the most distinguished men here, or in fact in the whole Republic of Mexico, a man of great learning, gentle and amiable in his manners, and in his life a model of virtue and holiness. He was in the cabinet when Santa Anna was President, concerning which circumstance an amusing story was told us, for the correctness of which I do not vouch, but the narrator, a respectable citizen here, certainly believed it. Señor Portugal had gone, by appointment, to see the President on some important business, and they had but just begun their consultation, when Santa Anna rose and left the room. The Minister waited—the President did not return. The time passed on, and still the Minister continued expecting him, until at length he inquired of an aid-de-camp in waiting if he could inform him how soon the President might be expected back. "I hardly know," said the officer, "for His Excellency has gone to visit Cola de plata,"