The state is mountainous, with the great culminating peaks before
mentioned; but extensive plains and fertile valleys occupy much of its
area, with grassy uplands in the higher regions. The Lerma river is the
chief watercourse, born near the snows of Toluca, and after long
winding over several states it traverses the Western Sierra and falls
into the Pacific Ocean. The cold plains and temperate zone produce
abundant supplies of _maguey_ and cereals; oak and pine and cedar grow
freely in the mountain timber belts, whilst the list of agricultural
products and fruits, from sugar-cane and tobacco upwards, almost
exhausts the _flora_ of the country. Water-power is a valuable asset of
the state, the numerous streams furnishing power for the plant of
numerous manufactories--woollen, cotton, electric light, flour mills,
and others. The area of the state is 8,950 square miles, with a
population of nearly a million inhabitants. The fine _haciendas_ which
dot the state, and the important industries and cities, form a rich and
important centre of Mexican civilisation. All the main lines of railway
connect this state with the rest of the Republic.

The little State of Tlaxcala, which bounds that of Mexico on the east,
has an area of 1,700 square miles and population of 173,000--the
smallest of the political divisions of the Republic. Above the clay and
sand plains of this state rises the beautiful Malinche peak to a height
of 14,720 feet above sea-level, crowned generally with snow, which
fancy has pictured in the form of a woman. The principal agricultural
products are _maguey_ and cereals, from which a large revenue is
derived by the _haciendas_ devoted to the industry. The city of
Tlaxcala was the site of memorable scenes of the conquest of Mexico,
and its brave inhabitants were the fierce foes first, and the faithful
allies afterwards, of Cortes and his Spaniards, as has been described
in the historical portion of these pages. The ancient ramparts, built
by the Tlaxcalans, existed up to the seventeenth century.

Morelos is a small state lying south of Mexico, with an area somewhat
less than 2,000 square miles and a population of 160,000. This state
might almost be termed a vast sugar-cane plantation, as the greater
part of its cultivable territory is given over to this branch of
agriculture--grown under irrigation principally from the rivers which
flow from the perpetual snow-caps of Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl.
Correspond