We had not gone far before there was an odor of musk, and directly a plunge in the water. We stopped short, but one of the urchins waved his hand contemptuously, and said “Lagartos!” And sure enough, glancing through the bushes, we saw two or three monstrous alligators slowly propelling themselves through the water. “Devils in an earthly paradise!” muttered B——, who dropped into the rear. The urchins noticed our surprise, and by way of comfort, a little naked rascal in advance observed, looking suspiciously around at the same time, “_Muchas culebras aqui_,”—“Many snakes here!” This interesting piece of intelligence opened conversation, and we were not long in ascertaining that but a few days previously, two men had been bitten by snakes, and had died in frightful torments. It was soon concluded that we had gone far enough, and that we had better defer our walk in the woods to another day. It is scarcely necessary to observe, that it was never resumed. Returning, we met my colored friend, who informed me that there was a quantity of hides stored in the house selected for my accommodation, but that he would have them removed that evening, and the house ready for our reception in the morning. Regarding ourselves as guests, whom it became to assent to whatever suggestion our host might make, we answered him that the arrangement was perfectly satisfactory, that we could sleep that night comfortably on board the vessel—a terrible fib, by the way, for we knew better—and that he might take his time in making such provision for us as he thought proper. We then sauntered through the town, looking into the door-ways, catching occasional glimpses of the domestic economy of the inhabitants, and admiring not a little the perfect equality and general good understanding which existed between the pigs, babies, dogs, cats, and chickens. The pigs gravely took pieces of _tortillas_ from the mouths of the babies, and the babies as gravely took other pieces away from the pigs. B—— observed that this was as near an approach to those millennial days when the lion and the lamb should lie down together as we should probably live to see, and suggested that a particular “note” should be made of it for the comfort of Father Miller and the Second-Advent Saints in general. There was one house in which we noticed a row of shelves containing sundry articles of merchandise, among which long-necked bottles of various pleasant hues were most conspicuous, and in front of which was a rude counter, behind which again was a short lady of considerably lighter complexion than the average, to whom our colored friend tipped his hat gallantly, informing us at the same time that this was the “Maison de Commerce de Viscomte A. de B—— B—— et Co.;” the “Et Co.” consisting of the Viscomte’s wife, two sons, and five daughters, whose names all appeared in full in the Viscomte’s circulars. Had we been told that here was the residence of