almost invisible. This, of course, necessitated infinite time
and patience--both of which were at the disposal of these prehistoric
builders. It is to be recollected, in this connection, that each stone
was generally an individual and not a counterpart, and so often had to
be fitted to its fellows in the wall, by the laborious method of
continually placing and removing. The remarkable and intricate nature
of the mosaics and carved blocks at Mitla call forth the admiration of
the observer. A vast number of separate stones have been employed, each
requiring its respective forming, shaping, and placing, and one of the
halls alone shows more than 13,000 such stones in its walls. The stone
doorways to these halls are chaste, massive, and effective. The stone
lintels in some cases are more than 12 feet long, and nearly 4 feet
thick. Indeed, there exist at Mitla nearly a hundred examples of great
monoliths, whether columns, lintels, or roof stones, some weighing as
much as 15 tons, and up to 20 feet in length.

[Footnote 9: See the "Andes and the Amazon."]

The earliest account of the ruins of Mitla, by Francisco de Burgoa, a
priest of Oaxaca, who visited them in 1674, states that these beautiful
halls were the scene, in prehistoric times, of the most diabolical
rites. To-day the ruins are surrounded by a rude native population,
most of whom dwell in wretched _jacales_, in a waterless and sun-beat
valley--an environment in striking contrast to the antique splendour of
these halls of the earlier occupiers of the land.

The ruins of Palenque, in the State of Chiapas, are situated at the
base of the picturesque foothills of Tumbala, which border upon
Guatemala, in a true tropical environment of luxuriant forest and
brimming streams. From this setting the ruined temples and pyramids
stand forth like a vision of a charmed or fabled story. Dense tropical
undergrowth covers them, and grows again as soon as explorers, who have
removed portions of Nature's persistent covering, leave the place. The
main structures take the form of great truncated pyramids built up of
earth, stones, and masonry, with temples and palaces of masonry upon
their summits. Twelve of these pyramids have been discovered so far,
and eight are crowned by buildings, the principal of which are known
respectively as, the "Temple of the Sun," the "Temple of the Cross,"
"Temple of the Inscriptions," and the extensive group of ruins termed
"The Palace." These temples