Puebla

Puebla, a state of Mexico, occupying the south-east angle of the great central plateau, or that part of it known as the Anahuac table-land. It is bounded N. and E. by the state of Vera Cruz, S. by the states of Oaxaca and Guerrero, and W. by the states of Morelos, Mexico, Tlaxcala and Hidalgo. Area, 12,204 sq. m. Pop. (1900), 1,021,133, largely civilized Indians. Lofty mountains overlook the plateau from the north-east and west, three of the highest peaks, Orizaba, Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl rising above the permanent snow-line, while another, Malinche, lifts its isolated mass nearly to that limit. In the south the table-land breaks away and long fertile valleys lead downward toward the warm southern plains. The central table-land forms part of the watershed between the eastern and western drainage systems, some of the streams in the north and south-east emptying into the Gulf of Mexico, while the Atoyac, which has its source in Tlaxcala, crosses the state and discharges into the Pacific through the Mescala. Puebla has a temperate, healthful climate, one of the best in Mexico. The soil is generally fertile and the rainfall abundant. Agriculture is the principal industry. The Mexican, Interoceanic and Mexican Southern railways cross the state and afford ample transportation facilities.