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STEAMBOAT DISTANCES ON THE MISSOURI,

FROM THE MOUTH OF THAT RIVER TO COUNCIL BLuffs.

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Probable extent of Steam Navigation on the Western waters, including the rivers, bayoux, &c., connected with the Mississippi by channels navigable for steamers: 16,674 miles. By COL. LONG, Top. Eng., U. S. A.

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Receipts from Revenue excluLoans and sive of Loans & Treas. Notes. Treas. Notes. $3.791,112 36.... $4,418,913 19.... $3,287.949 70 124 565,079,306 46.....3,669,960 21.....7.263.603 09 1.067/701 14.....4,652,923 14.....5,819,239 4,509,196 78. .5,431,904 87.....5,801.578 39 1.205.268 20.....6,114,834 59.. 6,084,411 6. 362,400 00.....8,377,549 65.....5,935,846 44

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Present debt, including the amount to be realized on the 1st of May, 1848, of the Loans of 17 and 1818, $65,787,008 92

StRY DEPARTMENT,

lice, August 5, 1848.

DANIEL GRAHAM, Register,

• Estimated returns not completed.

THE UNITED STATES OF MEXICO.

THE Republic of Mejico, or Mexico by the treaty of 1848,* has been much curtailed in its dimensions, and the secession of Texas, and the cession of California, &c., to the United States, have confined it to the narrow strip of land between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific. Its present boundaries are the Rio Bravo or Rio Grande del Norte and the Gulf of Mexico on the east and north-east; the State of Guatemala on the south-east : the Pacific Ocean on the west and south-west; and the Rio Gila, &c., on the north. Within these boundaries the superficial area is estimated at about 1,100,000 square miles :-the extreme length is about 1,400 miles from northwest to south-east, and the greatest breadth about 650 miles. With reference to its geographical position, Mexico lies between the latitudes of 15° 20′ and 33° 30′ North, and between the meridians of 90° and 117° West from Greenwich.

Nothing can be more unsatisfactory than our acquaintance with this country. Few even of the principal towns and rivers are correctly laid down, except indeed, within the small circle personally visited by Humboldt, or those regions explored by the officers attached to the invading army of the United States of America, so that even the elements of a good map do not exist; and with respect to population and other statistics, the unsettled, disorderly and almost lawless state of the country makes enquiry useless and all but nugatory.

That portion of the country lying south of the tropic of Cancer is the most populous and rich, both in vegetable and mineral productions, and nearly all the information gained respecting Mexico has been collected in that part, to which, consequently, it is primarily applicable. The regions lying north of the tropic become less populous as we proceed northward, and many large districts claimed by the republic and divided into states and territories, are almost unknown, being inhabited only by wild Indian tribes, baffling all the attempts of their nominal masters to subdue them.

The surface of Mexico is very varied, and to this circumstance must be attributed, as much as to the difference of latitude, that singular variety of climate which distinguishes it from almost all other countries. The great

The northern boundary of Mexico, according to the treaty of 1848, commences" in the Gulf of Mexico, three leagues from land, opposite the mouth of the Rio Grande, otherwise called Rio Bravo del Norte, or opposite the mouth of its deepest branch, if it should have more than one branch emptying directly into the sea; from thence up the middle of that river, following the deepest channel, where it has more than one, to the point where it strikes the southern boundary of New-Mexico; thence westwardly, along the whole southern boundary of New-Mexico (which runs north of the town called Paso.) to its western termination; thence northward along the western line of New-Mexico, until it intersects the first branch of the River Gila, (or if it should not intersect any branch of that river, then to the point on the said line nearest to such branch, and thence in a direct line to the same); thence down the middle of the said branch and of the said river, until it empties into the Rio Colorado, following the division line between Upper and Lower California to the Pacific Ocean.

chain of mountain plateaux which commences in the Isthmus of Panama and runs northward, diverges, after leaving Central America, into two great arms, like the upper part of the letter Y, following the coast on either side. The western arm has some very high summits, and preserves its mountainous character until it reaches the Rocky Mountains; the eastern arm begins to subside after reaching the 21st or 22d parallel, and is subsequently lost in the vast plains of western Texas. The whole of the vast tract between these mountains forms the high table-lands of Mexico-the Plateau of Anahuacelevated from 6,000 to 8,000 feet above the ocean's level. Hence, though a large portion of this plain is south of the tropic, it enjoys a moderate climate-inclining, indeed, more to cold than an excess of heat. Some very high culminations are dispersed over the surface of these table-lands, and in some parts well-defined ridges are recognized, which divide it into sub-plateaux, which are known under a variety of local names. But few vallies, however, interrupt the general level, and in some districts it is quite unbroken by depressions or hills.

The most remarkable tract in this elevated region is the plain of Tenochtitlan, (in which is the capital) surrounded by porphyritic and basaltic rocks. It is of an oval form, 54 miles long and 37 miles broad, occupying an area of 1,700 square miles, of which about 160 square miles are covered with water. More elevated on the south-east side, here are seen towering above the plain, the volcanos of Popocatepetl, 17,735 feet, Iztaccihuatl, 15,700 feet, Cittalapetl or Orizaba, 17,388 feet, and Nauhcampapetl or the Coffre de Perote, 13,514 feet above the sea.

The waters of the valley of Mexico are deposited in five principal lakes, situated on different levels:-that of Tezcuco, which is near the centre of the valley, and covers 70 square miles, is the least elevated. Further north are the lakes of St. Christoval and Tonanitla-while south is the lake Chalco, occupying an area of 51 square miles; and these three are five feet higher than that of Tezcuco. The most elevated, however, of the whole, though the smallest, is Zimpango, the level of which is 30 feet above that of Tezcuco. These lakes are fed by numerous small rivers, and having no natural outlet, are drained by the Desague of Huchuetoca, an artificial canal cut through the rock, 12 miles in length, 150 feet deep and 300 feet wide-having its embouchure in the River Panuco, which flows eastward to the Gulf of Mexico. This great work, completed in 1789, at an expense of £1,292,000, was undertaken to obviate the frequent inundations, some of which did great damage to the capital. The water of Lake Tezcuco is salt, that of the rest is fresh; but from those to the south sulphuretted hydrogen is copiously disengaged, the stench of which is often perceptible in the city of Mexico.

Beside the volcanoes already mentioned, those of Tuxtla, Jorullo and Colima, in the table land, are at present in a state of activity, and there are several others now extinct. Jorullo, which rises west of the capital, first broke out in 1759, when a tract of land three or four miles square, swelled up like an inflated bladder, emitting flames and fragments of rock through a thousand apertures These active volcanos seem to be connected with others parallel to them, and obviously of similar origin. Earthquakes are frequent in Mexico, but it is seldom they create much mischief.

The geological characteristics of the mountains of Mexico are essentially different from those of the great ranges of Europe and Asia, in which granite is overlaid with gneiss, mica and clay-slate-for here we seldom meet with

granite, as it is covered with porphyry, green-stone, amygdaloid, basalt, obsidian and other rocks of igneous origin. Granite, however, appears on the surface in the Pacific chain, and the port of Acapulco is a natural excavation in that species of rock. The plateau of Anuhuac, from the 14th to the 20th parallel, is a mass of porphyry, characterized by the constant presence of horn-blende and the entire absence of quartz, and in it are deposited large quantities of the ores of the precious metals. These ores, however, are found in various rocks;-in the mines of Comanja, rich veins of silver occur in sienite; in those of Guanaxuato, which are the richest in Mexico, the metal lies in primitive slate-clay, passing into talc-slate; and those of Real del Cardonal, Xacala, and Somo del Toro, are situated in a bed of transition limestone. Humboldt says that, at the time of his visit, there were 3,000 mines of gold and silver in Mexico; but the ignorance and misrule which prevail in the country have greatly diminished their importance as a source of wealth.

The mineral wealth of Mexico is not altogether confined to the precious metals. Iron is found in great abundance in Guadalajara, Mechoacan and Zacatecas:—but no mines of this metal were worked before 1825. Copper is raised in Mechoacan and Guanaxuato. Tin is obtained partly from mines, but principally from the washings of the ravines. The lead mines, though rich, are entirely neglected. Zinc, antimony and arsenic have been found, but neither cobalt nor manganese. A quicksilver mine is wrought in the State of Queretaro, but the greater quantity used in the extraction of the precious metals, is obtained from Spain, and, in a great measure, the quantity of the metals produced depends on the supplies of quick-silver from that country. At the present time, these are under lease to the Rothschilds, and consequently, they are able to regulate the production of gold in Mexico, which frequently acts banefully on the interests of the country. Carbonate of soda, used in smelting the silver ore, is found in great abundance, crystallized on the surface of several of the lakes.

The theory of mining is little understood in Mexico, the oldest modes of working being still generally practised, notwithstanding the improvements introduced by the English-and the machinery for draining the mines and raising the ore is of the most primitive character. Indeed, many of the mines have been abandoned on this account, which, under more favorable circumstances, might again be worked advantageously. The ignorance of the miners is only equalled by their obstinate adherence to exploded practices. But this should not be a matter of surprise, when the condition of the Mineria, or School of Mines, is taken into account. Without necessary implements, with bad regulations, and the minerals unclassified, and all in a deplorable state of disorder, this splendid institution, which cost upwards of $600,000 to erect, is irretrievably lost to the interests for which it was founded.

Compared with the vast extent of Mexico, her rivers are few and unimportant, and great disadvantages are suffered for want of water communication. The Rio Grande del Norte, which separates the United States from Mexico, has a long course, but the trade on that river must ever be sequestered by the superior ability and energy of the Americans. The Rio Grande de Santiago, called by the natives Tolototlan, rises in the centre of the republic, not far from the capital, and, after traversing the Lake Chapala, falls into the Pacific at San Blas. The Balsas or Zacatula, and the Yopez, are the only other rivers on the west side of the plateau,

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