on
the heads; red vests and kerchiefs, crossed at the neck, completed the
costume. One player, who seemed to be a leader, carried a tri-colored
flag; another represented a man on horseback, by creeping into a frame
of sticks, covered with cloth, in the shape of a horse. They danced in
the full sunlight for hours; their movements were varied and pretty,
quite different, too, from the figures in the _danza de la Conquista_.
Two outside characters played the clown. One of these was a little lad
dressed in a garment representing a tiger-skin, while over his face he
wore a heavy, old wooden mask, imitating an animal's head. The other
was older, dressed in a leather suit, with a wooden mask like a
vacant-looking human face. These two were very popular, and indulged
in many acts that bordered on the obscene. We got no satisfactory
explanation of this whole performance. The _cura_ said that it
represented the conflict between Christ and the Jews; this we greatly
doubted.

Mixe roads avoid no mountains, and usually go straight up one slope and
down the other. The Mixe villages are set upon the very crests, or upon
little terraces a few hundred feet below the crest, or the summit of
some spur that juts out from the great mountain mass, of a long and
narrow ridge. The road from Juquila, by Ocotopec to Quezaltepec was
beautiful and typical. The ascent, just before Quezaltepec, was
magnificent. We had a letter of introduction from the _cura_ at Juquila
to the schoolteacher at Quezaltepec, and therefore rode directly to the
school. The four boys who were in attendance were promptly dismissed and
the _maestro_ was at our disposition. He was a _mestizo_, and possessed
the art of lying in a fine degree, like so many of his kind. This man
set us an excellent supper, having asked us beforehand what we would
like. We replied that we would be glad to have fresh meat, if there was
any to be had. He replied, "There is always fresh meat here; someone
kills every day." It really appeared in the dinner, but, as we ate it,
our host remarked--"Gentlemen, it is indeed lucky that you arrived here
just now, because to-night we have fresh meat, and like enough a month
will pass before anyone in town kills again." Our teacher friend fully
appreciated his opportunity, and we paid a large price for our meal,
with its fresh meat, our beds on the school benches, and the fodder
supplied our horses. The next day being Saturday, the _maestro_ offered
to acc