[56] "The boats towed our ships, one after the other, through the midst of the sunken rocks, which makes this port one of the most dangerous that I have seen in all my voyages in the north or south seas.... We cast our anchors in the haven, but as they were not sufficient to assure our vessels in so dangerous a port, we added the assistance of many cables, which were fastened to great rings of iron, fixed expressly in the walls of the castle to guarantee ships thereby from the violence of the north wind."--Gage's _Voyage_. The said port is only two hundred paces in width, and two hundred and fifty in length. The place is only kept for the convenience of the galleons which come, as it has been said, from Spain, to load with the merchandise, and gold and silver, which are drawn from New Spain. On the other side of the castle, and about two thousand paces from it, on terra firma, there is a small, but very trading town, called Bouteron. At four leagues from the said Bouteron, there is also another town, named Vera-Crux, which is in a very fine situation, and two leagues from the sea. Fifteen days after our arrival at the said St. Jean de Luz, I went, with the permission of our admiral, to "Mechique" (Mexico), distant from that place one hundred leagues, always going inland. It is impossible to see or desire a more beautiful country than this kingdom of New Spain, which is three hundred leagues in length, and two hundred in breadth. Making this journey to "Mechique," I admired the fine forests, filled with the most beautiful trees that one could wish to see, such as palms, cedars, laurel, orange, and lemon trees. Palmistes, gouiave, accoiates,[57] good Bresil,[58] and Campesche wood, which are all trees common to the country, with an infinity of other kinds, that I cannot recite on account of their diversity, and which give such contentment to the sight, with the quantities of birds of divers plumage, which are seen in the forests, that it is not possible to feel more. Next are met large level plains as far as the eye can see, with immense flocks of cattle, such as horses, mules, oxen, cows, sheep, and goats, which have pastures always fresh in every season, there being no winter, but an air very temperate, neither hot nor cold. It only rains twice in the year, but the dews are so heavy at night that the plants are sufficiently watered and nourished. Besides that, the whole of the country is ornamented with very fine rivers and streams, which traverse almost the whole of the kingdom, and which, for the greater part, are navigable for boats. [57] See forward, pages 28 and 29.