sevigne. The Senora S----. Dress of white satin, gown of white blonde,
white blonde mantilla, pearls, diamonds, and white satin shoes. Madame
S---r. Black velvet dress, white blonde mantilla, pearls, diamonds, short
sleeves, and white satin shoes. The Senora de A---d. Fawn-coloured satin
dress, black blonde mantilla, diamonds, and black satin shoes.

The Senora B---a, the wife of a General, extremely rich, and who has the
handsomest house in Mexico. Dress of purple velvet, embroidered all over
with flowers of white silk, short sleeves, and embroidered corsage; white
satin shoes and has _bas a jour_; a deep flounce of Mechlin appearing below
the velvet dress, which was short. A mantilla of black blonde, fastened by
three diamond aigrettes. Diamond earrings of extraordinary size. A diamond
necklace of immense value, and beautifully set. A necklace of pear pearls,
valued at twenty thousand dollars. A diamond sevigne. A gold chain going
three times round the neck, and touching the knees. On every finger two
diamond rings, like little watches. As no other dress was equally
magnificent, with her I conclude my description, only observing that no
Mexican lady has yet paid me her first morning visit without diamonds. They
have few opportunities for displaying their jewels, so that were it not on
the occasion of some such morning visit of etiquette, the diamonds would
lie in their cases, wasting their serene rays in darkness.

Last night an attempt was made to break into the house, but our fine little
bull-dog Hercules, a present from Senor A---d, kept his ground so well, and
barked so furiously, that the servants were awakened, even the porter, the
soundest slumberer amongst them; and the robbers escaped without doing
further mischief than inflicting a severe wound on the poor animal's paw,
which has made him for the present quite lame.

_A propos_ to which matters, a most cruel murder, of which I have just been