Aztec Land

A railway holiday through Mexico gives Maturin M. Ballou the framework for observations on towns, landscapes, antiquities and daily life. His account begins with a party leaving Boston in a train equipped with sleeping accommodation, dining facilities and rooms for reading and writing. From this comfortable base, he surveys a country he believes American readers often misunderstand. The chapter headings range across silver mines, markets, cathedrals, mountain scenery and the history of Spanish rule.

The practical details can be as revealing as the grand sights. In Mexico City, Ballou describes the Iturbide Hotel's marble courtyard and balconies, then turns to sunlight in bedrooms, service and food. His preference for American hotel management also exposes the assumptions behind his judgments. Read today, this travel account offers both a record of places and amenities and a view of how a visiting writer interpreted another country's institutions and customs.