We knew that the level of the lake of Tezcuco had been raised by a series of three very wet seasons, but had no idea that things had got so far as this.

Of course the ground-floors had to be abandoned, and the people had made a raised pathway of planks along tho street, and adopted various contrivances for getting dryshod up to their first floors; and in some places canoes were floating in the street.

The city looked like this some two hundred years ago, when Martinez the engineer tried an unfortunate experiment with his draining tunnel at Huehuetoca, and flooded the whole city for five years.

It was by the interference, they tell us, of the patroness of the Indians, our Lady of Guadalupe, who was brought from her own temple on purpose, that the city was delivered from the impending destruction.

A number of earthquakes took place, which caused the ground to split in large fissures, down which the superfluous water disappeared.