inspecting the potter's work, a slight shock of earthquake, almost too
gentle to be noticed, passed through the place.

At Cuquila, we found that we should not meet Senor Cordova at Tlaxiaco.
He had passed through the town the night before, on his way to
Juxtlahuaca, with a band of soldiers to assist his neighboring _jefe_ in
maintaining order.

Leaving our Cuquila reprobates in friendly and gentle mood, we started
for Tlaxiaco, where we arrived at half-past two. Something after four
o'clock, we heard a violent ringing of the church-bell and saw the
people flocking out onto the streets; looking up at the church-tower,
although we did not feel the shock, we saw that the whole church was
being violently shaken, and that the ringing bells, which we had heard,
were not moved by human hands. This third shock of the day was more
strongly felt in other districts, than with us. In the City of Mexico,
three hundred miles away, it was the most severe of the day.

The whole town was in commotion; people threw themselves upon their
knees in the streets and prayed to the Virgin for protection. Later
in the day, we saw a priest and a saint's figure passing through the
streets, and as they passed the people paid reverence. Surely the little
procession, illegal though it was, must have been successful, for there
were no further shocks. We found here a most interesting superstition,
which we had not met before, but which we heard several times later, in
other districts. We were assured that the earthquake was but one of many
signs that the world was coming to an end. We discovered that thousands
of the people expected the ending of the world in 1900, and when we
asked why, were reminded that this was the last year of the century.
This is certainly a survival of ancient superstition. The old Mexicans
did not count their years by hundreds or centuries, as we do, but by
cycles of 52 years each. It was believed that the world would come to an
end at the close of a cycle, and important ceremonies were conducted
to avert such a catastrophe. It is clear that the old idea, of the
destruction of the world at the close of a cycle, has been transferred
to the new mode of reckoning time.

[Illustration: VIEW AT CHICAHUASTLA]

From Tlaxiaco to Teposcolula, there was a cart-road, though it was
possible that no _carreta_ ever passed over it. It presented little good
scenery. We passed the pueblos of San Martin Jilmeca, San Felipe, and
San Miguel.