ure the noise of
carriages upon pavement. The houses--large and spacious, palaces in
appearance--are built in a particular manner, calculated to withstand
the earthquakes and hurricanes so frequent in this part of the
world. They have all one story, with a ground-floor; the upper part,
generally occupied by the family, is surrounded by a wide gallery,
opened or shut by means of large sliding panels, the panes of which
are thin mother-of-pearl. The mother-of-pearl permits the passage
of light to the apartments, and excludes the heat of the sun. In the
military town are all the monasteries and convents, the archbishopric,
the courts of justice, the custom-house, the hospital, the governor's
palace, and the citadel, which overlooks both towns. There are three
principal entrances to Manilla--Puerta Santa Lucia, Puerto Real,
and Puerta Parian.

At one o'clock the drawbridges are raised, and the gates pitilessly
closed, when the tardy resident must seek his night's lodging in
the suburb, or mercantile town, called Binondoc. This portion of
Manilla wears a much gayer and more lively aspect than the military
section. There is less regularity in the streets, and the buildings
are not so fine as those in what may be called Manilla proper; but in
Binondoc all is movement, all is life. Numerous canals, crowded with
pirogues, gondolas, and boats of various kinds, intersect the suburb,
where reside the rich merchants--Spanish, English, Indian, Chinese,
and Metis. The newest and most elegant houses are built upon the banks
of the river Pasig. Simple in exterior, they contain the most costly
inventions of English and Indian luxury. Precious vases from China,
Japan ware, gold, silver, and rich silks, dazzle the eyes on entering
these unpretending habitations. Each house has a landing-place from
the river, and little bamboo palaces, serving as bathing-houses, to
which the residents resort several times daily, to relieve the fatigue
caused by the intense heat of the climate. The cigar manufactory,
which affords employment continually to from fifteen to twenty
thousand workmen and other assistants, is situated in Binondoc; also
the Chinese custom-house, and all the large working establishments
of Manilla. During the day, the Spanish ladies, richly dressed in
the transparent muslins of India and China, lounge about from store
to store, and sorely test the patience of the Chinese salesman, who
unfolds uncomplainingly, and without showing th