Jalapa Nov 20^th 1847
My dear Cousin
I received your kind letter
while at New-York and take this opportun-
ity to answer it. It is more than three
months since we have seen each other,
during that time I have been thrown
by the hand of fortune a great dis-
tance form home. You undoubtedly
have moved into your new house by
this time, Mother wrote me you intended
doing so this fall; it is now getting well on
towards Winter at home but I shall see
nothing but Summer here. My passage
from New-York was long and boisterous
but the ship finally entered Vera-Cruz
safe & sound, we remained at this
place about two weeks, it is quite a
pretty city containing about eight thousand
inhabitants, with a wall around it
which terminates the suburbs and does
away with that appearance of strag-
ling which is so common in our
cities and villages, the building’s being
as close together on the outskirts as
in the centre; the houses are generaly
well built being composed of a kind of 2

2 stucco or cement which the Mexicans
use for making every thing. I myself was
not in the city but encamped about four
miles from it on the sand beach but had
a chance of seeing it several times. When
the order came for us to march I was quite
glad being ra[ th ] er tired of laying
among the sand-hills; the train com-
menced moving at ten in the morning it
consisted of 3,000 men and 300 wagons;
it was dusk wh[ e ] n I got started being
on the rear-guard that day, I marched
until ten that n[ i ] ght and then had the
pleasure lying in the road the res[ t ]
of the night as it was necessary that
the rear-guard should keep behind
every-thing in the train and some
of the wagons breaking down placed us
in this rather unpleasant position.
We got up however at break of day
and succeeded in getting the wagons
into camp which was about ten miles
distant from Vera-Cruz the place is called
e Sante Fe it is just at the commence-
ment of the high lands in Mexico
and country heretofore barren and
sandy becomes more fertile and pleasing
to the eye. We remained here three days
when we commenced our march again

The most imposing sight to us during
our marches was the mountain Orizaba
about 50 miles to the south of us, it’s
peak is always covered with with
snow; while we were weltering under
a hot tropical sun it really appeared
tantalizing to see it [ rize ] before us in
the beautiful clear sky. The National
bridge is another imposing spectacle,
it is a bridge of an enormous height
across a deep ravine at the bottom of
which runs a cold pure stream direct
from the mountains of Mexico, the
bridge connects two narrow passes between
high mountains on either side, the
pass is commanded by an old Spanish
fort on the highest point, which
is now in our possession. After a
march of 6 days from Sante-Fe we arriv-
ed at this place where we have remain-
ed ever since but shall soon be on our
march again. The country about here is
a perfect paradise any-thing will grow
by simply sowing it without any attention
being paid to it thereafter. You must excuse
me if my letter is rather dull, to day has been
a dull rainy day and may have [ impresed ]
some of it’s sprit into me generally well con-
tented and in good spirits. Give my love to

Aunty. You must write yourself and
tell Aunty to do so, news-papers rarely reach
farther than Vera-Curz on account of
encumbering the trains, so that letters are
the only way that I can hear what is going
on at my old home.
Your Affectionate Cousin
A H Seward
direct your letter
AH Seward
8^th Inf Mexico
Miss Frances Worden
Canandaigua
State of New-York
U S
hA H Seward
VERA CRUZ
MEXO DEC 17
1847