Grande, whilst the principal mountain ranges are offshoots of
the Eastern Sierra Madre. Agriculture is carried on mainly under
irrigation from canals fed from the torrential streams which occur
sparsely in the state, and great quantities of cotton are grown. The
cotton belt and industry are most important, and the wines of Parras
are famous in the country. Coahuila, in common with others of its
neighbouring states, possesses some peculiar topographical
conditions--portions of it consisting of plains or valleys with no
hydrographic outlet, as shown in the chapter dealing with the orography
of the Republic. These in some cases form fertile valleys, and, in
others, sun-beat deserts, uncultivated and uninhabited.

Notwithstanding its partly sterile nature this state is a very
prosperous commercial section of the country, due largely to its
excellent railway system, five different lines of which traverse it.
These are the Mexican Central, the International, the Northern, the
National, and other lesser systems. In addition there are some fair
roads, upon which the traveller may journey by _diligencia_ or on
horseback. The capital, Saltillo, with a population of about 25,000, is
a pretty and interesting old Spanish town, and a valuable commercial
centre. Manufacturing industries have increased rapidly of late years
in this state, especially those producing textile fabrics from the
native cotton. Metal and coal mining are both developing in this
region; and new towns, of which Torreon is an example, are springing
up. The state contains one of the principal points of entry to the
Republic from the United States--Eagle Pass, or Ciudad Porfirio Diaz,
on the International Railway, whilst Laredo, on the National, is near
its border.

Nuevo Leon, which also borders upon the Rio Grande and Texas, is much
smaller than its neighbouring states--23,750 square miles in area--but
has a larger population of some 350,000 inhabitants. The state is
traversed by the Eastern Sierra Madre, the highest summits of which are
snow-covered. The region consists topographically of small plains and
well-watered, fertile valleys. Its orography gives rise to the presence
of numerous rivers and streams, all of which are upon the Atlantic
watershed. These productive valleys, copious streams, and the
picturesque scenery of the varied landscape, afford striking contrast
with the appalling deserts which the neighbouring States of Coahuila
and Chihuahua contain