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Show S4 APPENDIX TO PART III. governtncnt of the United States on these subjects. A few, and very few indeed, of those nations ha,·c been converted by tho missions, and these ar not in that state of vassalage in which the Indians further to the south arc held. Go·uen:nwnt aud Laws.- Perfectly military, except as to tJ1c c cclesiastkal jurisdiction. M omls and 111mznen;.--They being on the frontier, whe1·e btd'· falo and wild horses abound, and not engagcrl in any war with savag; cs who are powerful, have adopted a mode of living by following those animals, which has been productive of a more wandering· disposition round the capital (St. Antonio) than in any other of the provinces. Cordero, by rvstricting (by edicts) the buffalo hunts to certain seasons, and obliging every man of family to cultivate so many acres of land, has in some clegr~e checked the spirit of huntin ~ or wandering life, which had been hitherto so very prevalent, and has endeavored to introduce, by his example and precepts, a gene· ral urbanity and suavity of mallncrs, which rendered St. Anton~ o one of the most agreeable places that we met with in the pro-vmces. 11/illtary F o1·cr.-There was in Texas at the time I came through 988 men, from the actual returns of the troops which I have seen, five hundred men of whom were from St. Ander and New Leon, under the command of govcmor Ilerrara. The dispo· sition of those troops arc as follows: 388 at St. .Antonio, -1·00 at the cantonment of , on the Tt·inity, 100 at the Trinity, und 100 at N acogt~oches. The militia (a rabble) arc maclc somewhat respectable by a few Amc r.ican riflemen who are incorporated a111 o n g~t them and arc about 300 men, including bow and arrow men. R c/igion.-Catholic, but much relaxed. lliF.. t 01'1J.--To me unknown, oxccpt what can be extracted from various authors on that subject. G('ncral R ema1·ks on .1\"eczu Sj1ain.--To become acquainted with all the civil and politi cal institutes of a country, it requires a perfect knowled~e of the lan~uage, a. ft·ee ing1·e ss to the archives, and aresidence of some years: even then we can scarcely distinguish between the statute laws and common law, dct·ived from custom, morals, ancl habits. Under those circumstances it cannot be expected that I shall be able to say much on the subject, as I possessed none of the above advantages. I will, however, offl.!r a few observations. To a stranger it is impossible to define the limits of the military -anc.l ecclesiastical jurisdictions, in every ufl'air which relates to the APPENDIX TO PART III. e itizens, and in fact with the soldiery, the force of superstition is such that I am doubtful whether they would generally o:Jcy one of their offtcers in a direct violation of the injunction of their relig-ious pl'ofcssions. The audiences of Mexico and Guac.lalaxara were formed, no doubt, as a check on the immense powet· of the viceroy. The number of members composing each is to me unknown, but they are formed of the viceroy, as president, with two votes, !;ene rals, and bishops. To their jurisdictions the appeals f1·om the judgment of the intendants and all subordinate ofli.cers may be made iu civil cases; but the military and ecclesiastical decisions arc di::;tinct: yet notwltb~tanding all this semblance of justice, should an individual dare to make the appeal and not succeed in e stablishing the justice of his claim to redress, he is ccl'lainly ruined. \Vhcre justice is so little attended to, when opposed to power and wealth, as in the Spanish provinces, the appeal is a desperate remedy. This tribunal ot· legislative body enacts all the laws for the general re g·ulation~ or their divisions of the kingdom. The captain geucralcy of the intcmal provinces appeared to me to be much more despotic, fot· the laws or regulations were issued in the form of an order merely, without any kind of a preamble what::;oevcr, except sometimes he would say, "By ot·dcr of the king;" ancl such was the style of governors of provinces. Jllorals, 111anncr s, t9'c.--Fot· hospitality, generosity, and sobriety the people or N c w Spain exceed any nation p erhaps on the globe; l)llt in national energ-y, patriotism, cnte1•prise of character, or independen ce of soul, they arc perhaps the most defi cient: yet lhct·e arc men who have displayed br~ vct·y to a surprisi11g dcr;ree, <md the Europeans who arc there cherish with de lig ht the idea o f their gallant ance stry. Their women have black eyes and hai1·, line tee th, ancl arc ~eucrally brunettes. 1 met but one exception to this rult; at Chih n~\hua of a fait· lady, and she, by way of distinction, was callecl ' the girl with light hair·" They are all inclining a little to eubonpoint ; but none (or few) arc elegant figures. Their dn.:ss generally l'> short jackets and petticoats and high heeled shoes, without any head dress. Over the whole dress they have a silk wrappe r, which they t lways wear, and, when in the presence of men, afl'cct to bring it over their face s, but ft·um undct· which you frequ ently sec pcepin!l; a large sparkling black eye. As we appr()achcd the A tlantic and om· frontiers, we S' \W scvcr:\1 lad ies who wore the gown<> of our countrywomcn, which they conceived to be n1uch m o t·~ elegant than their C\ncicnt costume. The lower c h lS:l of the 'I |