| Births,— | males, | 14,709 | Deaths— | males, | 7,012 | Births, | 28,795 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| females, | 14,086 | females, | 6,846 | Deaths, | 13,858 | ||
| 28,795 | 13,858 | Increase, | 14,937 |
The most valuable agricultural district lies in the district of Aguas Calientes. The best cultivation begins at the hacienda of San Jacinto, 12 leagues from the town of Zacatécas, and in this region it is reckoned that the farmers annually gather from their harvests, 140,952 fanegas of Corn (of 150 lbs.); 4,719 cargas (of 300 lbs.) of wheat; 7,293 fanegas of frijoles or beans, and 4,291 arróbas (of 25 lbs. each,) of chile.
The mainspring of the wealth of Zacatécas is its mineral production. The vein of the Veta Negra of Sombrereté has been the most productive in the new or old world. El Pavellon, La Veta Grande, San Bernabé, and the isolated hill of Proaño at Fresnillo constantly yielded in former times the most extraordinary results for the labor bestowed in working them. Their present value may be estimated from the chapter on Mines in the preceding book.
The chief cities, towns and villages of this State are the capital, Zacatécas, containing from 25,000 to 30,000 inhabitants. It lies in 22° 47´ 19´´ of north latitude and 164° 47´ 41´´ west longitude, at an elevation of 7,976 feet.
The town itself is not visible until the traveller approaches within a mile and a half, when it is seen below following the turns of a deep barranca or ravine, of which the mountain of la Bufa, with a chapel on its crest, forms one side. The streets are narrow and dirty, and swarm with uncleanly children, whose appearance, like that of their squalid parents, is by no means prepossessing. But the distant view of the city is picturesque from the number of religious edifices which rise above the roofs of the other buildings. In the vicinity of the plaza there are some fine houses, and the market place presents a curious and busy provincial scene.