The road taken by us to Zacatecas has been described by former travellers. There are two routes : the most direct is about 700 miles through Durango ; and the longest and most indirect was taken by us. The places at which we successively stopped were : -- El Ojito, Huachimba, the town of San Pablo, Saucillo situated in a mining district, Cruces, the town of Santa Rosalia on the junction of the rivers Conchos and Florido, hacienda of Ramada, Saucillo, the hacienda and town of Huaquilla, La Com-munidad near Atlotoloco, hacienda on the Rio Florido, La Noria, town of Cerro Gordo, hacienda of La Sarca, Palo Chino, town of El Gallo, hacienda of Dolores on the river Nares near to Cinco Sefiores, the mining town of Noria Perdisiera, the town of Cuencame, Atotonilco, hacienda of Juan Perez, hacienda of Estanthuela, San Sebastian, Santa Catalina, the town of Saenes, Rancho Grande, the town of Fresnillo, Calela, Zacatecas. From Zacatecas we took the road described in the Journal of Captain Lyons to San Louis Potosi, and hence to Guanajuato. The places from Guanajuato to Queretaro and Guatitlan are noticed in the Memoir of Chevalier Lowenstein, in the Journal of the Society for 1841. We were very well treated by the Mexican officers; and were permitted, on our parole, to wander where we pleased in nearly all of the towns we arrived at. Ordinary travellers, in the present state of the country, do not obtain greater liberty.

At Guatitlan we turned from the direct road to Mexico, through a cultivated district among the mountains, to San Cristobal de Ecutipic, which lies opposite to that part of the plain between the lakes Cristobal and Tezcuco, where we arrived the last day of January, 1842.

Here, a few hours after my arrival, I left my companions. They were afterwards divided: part were taken to Puebla, and the others to the castle of Perote. Those who had preceded us were confined in the convent of San I ago de Tlaltelolco, in the city of Mexico; and in consequence of some of the party having escaped, they were kept in chains for some months, and were then released. Before they left the country, above sixty of the men who had left Austin had either been killed or had died of disease.

Through the great and unexpected kindness of Mr. Pakenham, the British minister, I remained with him some weeks, and had ample opportunity to visit the country in the neighbourhood of the city of Mexico.

Our journey, from the commencement to its termination, was greatly favoured by the weather. A few nights of rain enabled us to traverse the great plains of the north; but from the time we left Austin we saw only seven days of rain, three of which were during our stay at Zacatecas. The rainy nights during this period, including the snow-storm at Fray Cristoval, were not more than eleven. The roads were consequently in a good state.

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Adapted from Thomas Falconer
"Notes on a Journey through Texas and New Mexico, in the Years 1841 and 1842"