HIDALGO, an inland plateau, State of Mexico. Pop. (193o) 676,972. Area, 8,063 sq. miles. The northern and eastern parts are elevated and mountainous, culminating in the Cerro de Nay ajas (Io,528ft.). A considerable area of this region on the eastern side of the State is arid and semi-barren, being part of the ele ' ated table-land of Apam where the maguey (American aloe) has been grown for centuries. The southern and western parts of the State consist of rolling plains, in the midst of which is the large lake of Metztitlan. Hidalgo produces cereals, maguey, coffee, beans, sugar, cotton and tobacco. Maguey is cultivated for the production of pulque, the national drink. The chief industry, how ever, is mining, the mineral districts of Pachuca, El Chico, Real del Monte, San Jose del Oro and Zimapan being among the rich est in Mexico. The mineral products include silver, gold, mercury, copper, iron, lead, zinc, antimony, manganese and plumbago. Coal, marble and opals are also found. Railway facilities are afforded by a branch of the Veracruz and Mexico line, which runs from Ometusco to Pachuca, the capital of the State, and by the Mexi can Central. Among the principal towns are Tulancingo (pop. 16,58o in 1930), a rich mining centre 24m. E. of Pachuca, and Mineral del Monte (pop. 1930, 13,164).