Page:Our Neighbor-Mexico.djvu/134

 124 A. Skilton, who won large repute for courage and skill in our war, and none the less for his sagacity and courage as a reporter of the New York Herald during the close of the French occupation. Whoever comes to Mexico will be sure of a handsome welcome in this American home.



A Mexican house is all beautiful within, if anywhere. It is not so, certainly, without. You enter through a large high door, wide enough to admit your carriage, into a patio, or open paved court. Around this are rooms for servants and horses, on the first floor. Handsome stairs lead to the upper stones, light balconies run around them, and rooms open into them. They are not allowed to open on neighboring estates, so they must open on court or street. The last commands usually only one of the four sides; so most houses have three-fourths of their light from the court.