f the wall, the
stones of the upper tier sloping inward. On this base is erected a kind
of framework of large, hewn blocks with perfectly plain, unsculptured
fronts, which divide the surface of the wall into oblong panels of
different dimensions."<43>

Illustration of Ornamentation at Mitla.------------

It would, then, seem as if the panels were thickly coated with clay.
Into this clay was then driven small, smoothed blocks of wedge-shaped
stones, in such a way as to cover them with geometrical ornamentations,
which, though not absolutely symmetrical, present a striking and
agreeable appearance. Each section of the wall presents a different
pattern, but this difference is so slight that the general effect is
harmonious.<44> This mosaic ornamentation is found in some of the inner
facings of the walls as well. In general, however, the walls on the
inside were covered with mortar and painted.

Illustration of Hall at Mitla.-------

Some of the blocks of stone forming the basement, the framework of the
panels, and the lintels of the door are of great size, and the lintels
were in some cases sculptured. One of the largest rooms at Mitla is
represented in the preceding cut. The peculiar feature about it is the
range of columns seen in the drawing. The inner plastering has fallen,
exposing the rough wall. The columns are simple stone pillars, having
neither chapter nor base. It is generally supposed that these pillars
supported the roof. As in the pueblo buildings to the north, as well as
the Toltec house at Tulla, the roof was probably formed of the trunks of
small-sized trees laid close together and covered with clay and cement.

We have as yet not seen any thing in these ruins sufficiently striking
to justify the somewhat extravagant assertion made about them. The
ornamentation is indeed peculiar and tasteful, but aside from that, we
see no reason to speak of them as magnificent structures. The buildings
are low and narrow; the rooms are small, dark, and illy ventilated.
"Light could only have been admitted from one side, and the apertures
for this purpose were neither lofty nor broad." Mr. Bandelier fittingly
characterizes the ruins as the "barbaric effort of a barbarous people."
Those scholars who think we have in Mexico the ruins of a highly
civilized, powerful empire, regard these ruins as in some way set aside
for mourning purposes of the royal family. "According to tradition,"
says Mayer, "They were... i