Page:Pictures of life in Mexico Vol 1.djvu/229

Rh wretchedly clad corpse was lowered into the meanest portion of the ground, in silence, only broken by the sobs of the bearers; and I turned, with mingled feelings of compassion and indignation, from the sight.

The occurrence reminded me of another and more appalling scene of death, which I had once beheld in the city of Mexico; and as it is particularly characteristic of the country, and not altogether foreign to the present subject, I will relate it here.

It is a fact not generally known, I believe, in England (so contrary is it to the usages of the Romish clergy in other countries), that priests in Mexico are frequently in the habit of living with favourite wives or concubines, and of bringing up their families in their own sanctified abodes. The practice entails upon them no disgrace, and their claims to mix in the best company are as eligible as before. But, in this instance, a padre, named Miguel, had ventured a step further: after living many years with a very amiable and well-conducted lady, he basely deserted her and her children. This circumstance had very properly diminished the reverence with which his character had been previously regarded in the