They do not contrast favorably with the ladies of Cadiz and Seville.

The mixture of Aztec blood seems to have detracted from the beauty of the Spanish race; the dryness of the atmosphere spoils their complexions; and the monstrous quantity of capsicums that are consumed at every meal cannot possibly leave the Mexican digestion in its proper state.
We dined that day with Don Jose de A., who, though Spanish-American by birth, was English by education and feeling, and had known my companion's family well.

Our dinner was half English, half Mexican; and the favourite dishes of the country were there, to aid in our initiation into Mexican manners and customs.

The cooks at the inns, mindful of our foreign origin, had dealt out the red pepper with a sparing hand; but to-day the dish of "mole" was the genuine article, and the first mouthful set as coughing and gasping for breath, while the tears streamed down our faces, and Don Pepe and Don Pancho gravely continued their dinner, assuring us that we should get quite to like it in time.

_Pepe_ and _Pancho_, by the way, are short for Jose and Francisco.