on, as is the case in
the capital of Mexico.

Our hotel, the Iturbide,--pronounced Eater-beady,--situated on the Calle
de San Francisco, and called after the emperor of the same name (Don
Agustin de Iturbide), is probably the best, as it is the largest in the
city; but this is faint praise. Hotel-keeping is one of the arts which,
at its best, has not yet been introduced into this country. Iturbide's
aspiration led him to assume the imperial crown, in consequence of which
he fell. After reigning for a twelvemonth, he was banished from Mexico
on parole never to return. This parole he broke, landing from Europe at
Vera Cruz in 1824. He was seized, thrown into prison, and was shot by
orders of the government, as a traitor, July 19 of the same year. The
old flint muskets used for the purpose hang beside the modern arms, in
the national armory, with which was performed a like sentence upon
Maximilian. Thus the two men who essayed the role of emperor of Mexico
ended their career. The Iturbide is spacious and well situated, being
within a few rods of the Plaza Mayor, and having once served as the
palace of the emperor whose name it bears. It is entered, like the
Palace Hotel of San Francisco, and the Grand Hotel of Paris, by an
archway leading into a spacious area or court, on whose four sides rises
the elaborate structure. Upon this patio the several stories open, each
with a line of balcony. This broad area, open to the sky, is paved with
marble, and has spacious stairways of the same material. The windows are
of the French, pattern and open down to the floor, so that the occupant
of each room steps out upon the balcony by passing through them. The
windows are the same on the public street side. The house is fairly well
furnished so far as comfort is concerned, and the beds--well, they might
possibly be worse,--domestic comfort is not the strong point in the
Iturbide, where cleanliness is also one of the lost arts. All the
chambermaids here, as in Japan, are men, and very good servants they
are, according to their light and the material which is furnished to
them. The fact that three fourths of them bear the name of Jesus is, it
must be admitted, a little confusing when it is desired to summon any
particular one. In the selection of a sleeping apartment the visitor
should be sure, if it is possible, to obtain one facing east or south,
thus securing an abundance of sunshine. Rooms situated otherwise, in
this climate particular