Page:Travels in Mexico and life among the Mexicans.djvu/554

546 made about two metres in length and one in breadth, nearly always with a short fringe at either end, and generally colored in bright stripes with native dyes. It is, in fact, a long, gay-colored blanket, with a slit in the middle, always parallel to its longer sides, which is the centre of a pattern-work more or less ornamental, according to its nature and price. I have noticed that there is a similarity of pattern in all the sarapes which have come under my observation, the ornamentation of the centre being always in certain zigzag lines, which reminded me of the grecques on the walls of the palaces of Mitla.

We did not adopt the extreme Mexican costume, as worn by our guide, Don Santos, with leather breeches, or shaggy goatskin chaparreros, nor deck our heels with enormous silver spurs,—which, though often several inches in diameter, are less cruel than the needle-pointed English ones; nor were our jackets of embossed and silver-braided leather, nor our pantaloons ornamented with silver buttons adown their seams. For we had assumed the garb of the Mexican only as it should contribute to our comfort, and were not intending to lay siege to any fair señorita,—if perchance any such existed in the sierras,—or to display ourselves otherwise than as caballeros en viage, or gentlemen on a journey.

Coming down from our third and last trip into the hills, on the 8th of September, it was found that the next steamer for the United States would sail from Vera Cruz on the 13th. To reach the nearest point on the railroad to the coast necessitated a horseback ride of one hundred and seventy miles, clear through to Tehuacan, over an extremely rough mountain road, and with scant three days to do it in. Don Santos, who had been a most active courier in the Franco-Mexican war, and had served in various pronunciamientos, volunteered to place me in connection with the railroad within three days, or kill his best horse in the attempt. And he did it, without damage to his gallant stallions, but at an expense to myself of a fever, which has racked my bones at intervals ever since.

My good guide left me at the station in Tehuacan, where, after placing in my hands the bridle of the horse I had ridden