Mexico, its ancient and modern civilisation, history and political conditions, topography and natural resources, industries and general development

Front matter

THE SOUTH AMERICAN SERIES

EDITED BY MARTIN HUME, M.A.

THE SOUTH AMERICAN SERIES

Preface

The purpose of this work is to treat of Mexico as a topographical and political entity, based upon a study of the country from travel and observation ; a method such as has found favour in my book upon Peru. The method of viewing a country as a whole, with its people, topography, and general conditions in natural relation to each other, is one which commands growing acceptance in a busy age. I have been able to observe much of the actual life and character of Spanish-American countries from considerable travel therein. Both Mexico and Peru ever lured me on as seeming to hold for me some El Dorado, and if I have not reaped gold as the Conquistadores did, there are nevertheless other matters of satisfaction accruing to the traveller from his journeys in those splendid territories of mountain and forest.

Mexico, superfluous to say, is not part of South America, although this book appears in this series. But it is part of that vast Spanish-speaking New World whose development holds much of interest ; and which may occupy a more important part in coming years than is generally thought of at present.

THE AUTHOR.

Contents

PAGE

BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . • , . xxi

INTRODUCTION BY MARTIN HUME . , . . XXV

Chapter I A First Reconnaissance . . . . .1

Romance of history — Two entrance ways — Vera Cruz — Orizaba — The Great Plateau — Fortress of Ulua — Sierra Madre — Topographical structure — The Gulf coast — Tropical region — Birds, animals, and vegetation of coast zone — Ticrra calicnte — Malaria — Foothills — Romantic scenery — General configuration of Mexico — Climatic zones — Temperate zone — Cold zone — The Cordillera — Snow-capped peaks — Romance of mining — Devout miners — Subterranean shrines — The great deserts — Sunset on the Great Plateau — Coyotes and zopilotes — Irrigated plantations — Railways — Plateau of Anahuac — The cities of the mesa central — Spanish- American civilisation — Romance of Mexican life — Mexican girls, music, and moonlight — The peones and civilisation — American comparisons — Pleasing traits of the Mexicans — The foreigner in Mexico — Picturesque mining-towns — Wealth of silver — Conditions of travel — Railways — Invasions — Lerdo's axiom — Roads and horsemen — Strong religious sentiment — Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl — Sun-god of Teotihuacan — City of Mexico — Valley of Mexico — The Sierra Madre — Divortia aquarum of the continent — Volcano of Colima — Forests and Ravines — Cuernavaca — The trail of Cortes — Acapulco — Romantic old haciendas — Tropic sunset — Unexplored Guerrero — Perils and pleasures of the trail — Sunset in the Pacific Ocean.

Chapter II The Dawn Of Mexico : Toltecs And Aztecs . . 20

Lake Texcoco — Valley of Anahuac— Seat of the Aztec civilisation — Snow-capped peaks — Pyramids of Teotihuacan — Toltecs — The first Aztecs — The eagle, cactus, and serpent — Aztec oracle and wanderings— Tenochtitlan — Prehistoric American civilisations —

CONTENTS

PAGE

Maya, Incas — Quito and Peru — The dawn of history— The Toltec empire — Rise, re^me, fall — Ouetzalcoatl — Otomies — Chichemecas — Nezahualcoyotl — Astlan — The seven tribes and their wanderings — Mexican war-god — The Teocallis — Human sacrifices — Prehistoric City of Mexico — The Causeways — Aztec arts, kings, and civilisation — Montezuma — Guatemoc — Impressions of the Spaniards — The golden age of Texcoco — Vandalism of Spanish archbishop — The poet-king and his religion — Temple to the Unknown God — Aztecs and Incas compared — The Tlascalans — The Otomies — Cholula — Mexican tribes — Aztec buildings — Prehistoric art — Origin of American prehistoric civilisation — Biblical analogies — Supposed Asiatic and I^Egyptian origins — Aboriginal theory.

Chapter III The Strange Cities Of Early Mexico . . '37

Principal prehistoric monuments — Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan — Pyramids of Teotihuacan — Toltec sun-god — Pyramid of Cholula — Pyramids of Monte Alban — Ruins of Mitla — Remarkable monoliths and sculpture — Beautiful prehistoric stone-masonry — Ruins of Palenque — Temple of the Sun, and others — Stone vault construction — Tropical vegetation — Ruins of Yucatan — Maya temples — Architectural skill — Temples of Chichen-Ytza — Barbaric sculpture — Effect of geology on building — The Aztec civilisation — Land and social laws — Slavery — Taxes, products, roads, couriers — Analogy with Peru — Aztec homes and industries —War, human sacrifice, cannibalism — History, hieroglyphics, picture-writing — Irrigation, agriculture, products — Mining, sculpture, pottery — Currency and commerce — Social system — Advent of the white man.

Chapter IV

Landing of Cortes — Orizaba peak — The dawn of conquest — Discovery of Yucatan — Velasquez and Grijalva — Life and character of Cortes — Cortes selected to head the expedition — > Departure from Cuba — Arrival at Yucatan — The coast of Vera Cruz — Marina — Vera Cruz established — Aztec surprise at guns and horses — Montezuma — Dazzling Aztec gifts — Messages to Montezuma — Hostility of the Aztecs — Key to the situation — The Cempoallas — Father Olmedo — Religion and hypocrisy of the Christians — March to Cempoalla — Montezuma's tax-collectors — Duplicity of Cortes — Vacillation of Montezuma — Destruction of Totonac idols — Cortes despatches presents to the King of Spain

CONTENTS xi

PAGE

— Cortes destroys his ships — March towards the Aztec capital — Scenery upon Hne of march — The fortress of Tlascala — Brusque variations of cHmate — The Tlascalans — Severe fighting — Capitulation of Tlascala — Faithful allies — Messengers from Montezuma — March to Cholula — Massacre of Cholula — The snow-capped volcanoes — First sight of Tenochtitlan.

Chapter V The Fall Of The Lake City . , , ' 1^

The Valley of Mexico — The City and the Causeways — The Conquistadores enter Mexico City — Meeting of Cortes and Montezuma — Greeting of the Aztec emperor to the Spaniards — Tradition of Quetzalcoatl — Splendid reception — The Teocalli — Spanish duplicity — Capture of Montezuma — Spanish gambling — News from Vera Cruz — Forced march to the coast — Cortes defeats Narvaez — Bad news from Mexico — Back to the capital — Alvarado's folly— Barbarous acts of the Spaniards — The fight on the pyramid — Destruction of Aztec idols — Death of Montezuma — Spaniards flee from the city — Frightful struggle on the Causeway — Alvarado's leap — The Noche Triste — Battle of Otumba — Marvellous victory — Spanish recuperation — Cuitlahuac and Guatemoc— Fresh operations against the capital — Building of the brigantines — Aztec tenacity — Expedition to Cuernavaca — Xochimilco — Attack upon the city — Struggles and reverses — Sacrifice of Spaniards — Desertion of the Allies — Return of the Allies — Renewed attacks — Fortitude of the Aztecs — The famous catapult — Sufferings of the Aztecs — Final attack — ^Appalling slaughter — Ferocious Tlascalans — Fall of Mexico.

Chapter VI

General considerations — Character of Viceroy rule — Spanish civilisation — Administration of Cortes — Torture of Guatemoc — Conquests of Guatemala and Honduras — Murder of Guatemoc — Fall of Cortes — First viceroy Mendoza — His good administration — Misrule of the Audiencias — Slavery and abuse of the Indians — The Philippine islands — Progress under the Viceroys — Plans for draining the Valley of Mexico — British buccaneers — Priestly excesses — Raid of Agramonte — Exploration of California — Spain and England at war — Improvements and progress in the eighteenth century— Waning of Spanish power — Decrepitude xii CONTENTS

PAGE

of Spain — Summary of Spanish rule — Spanish gifts to Mexico — The rising of Hidalgo — Spanish oppression of the colonists — Oppression by the colonists of the Indians — Republicanism and liberty — Operations and death of Hidalgo — The revolution of Morelos — Mier — The dawn of Independence — The birth of Spanish-American nations.

Chapter VII The Evolution Of Modern Mexico • . .113

Monarchical regime of Iturbide — Great area of Mexican Empire — Santa Anna — The Holy Alliance — Execution of Iturbide — The Monroe doctrine — British friendship — The United States — Masonic institutions — Political parties — Expulsion of Spaniards — Revolution and crime — Clerical antagonism — Foreign complications — The " pie-war " — The Texan war — The slavery question — Mexican valour — American invasion of Mexico — Fall of Mexico — Treaty of Guadalupe — Cession of California — Gold in California — Benito Juarez appears — Conservatives and Liberals — Massacre of Tacubaya — The Reform laws — Disestablishment of the Church — Dishonest Mexican finance — Advent of Maximilian — The English, Spanish, and French expedition — Perfidy of the French — Capture of Mexico City by the French — Crowning of Maximilian — Porfirio Diaz — Rule of Maximilian — Fall of his empire — Death of Maximilian — The tragedy of Queretaro — Diaz takes Mexico City — Presidency of Juarez — Lerdo — Career and character of Diaz — First railways built — Successful administration of Diaz — Political stability — Forward policy.

Chapter VIII Physical Conditions : Mountains, Tablelands, And

FLORA AND FAUNA . . . . -134

Geographical conditions — Tehuantepec — Yucatan — Boundaries and area — Population — Vera Cruz — Elevations above sea-level — Latitude — General topography — The Great Plateau — ^The Sierra Madres — The Mexican Andes — General structure — The coasts — Highest peaks — Snow-cap and volcanoes — Geological formation — Geological scenery — Hydrographic systems — Rivers — Navigation — Water-power — Lakes — Climate and temperatures — The three climatic zones — Rainfall — Snowfall — Flora and fauna — Soil — Singular cactus forms — The desert flora — The tropical flor-i — Forest regions — Wild animals — Serpents, monkeys, and felidse — Sporting conditions — Birds.

CONTENTS xiii

Chapter IX Page

THE MEXICAN PEOPLE ..... I54

Ethnic conditions— Spanish, Mestizos, Indians — Colour-line — Foreign element — The feones — Land tenure — The Spanish people — The native tribes — The Apaches — The Mexican constitution — Class distinctions — Mexican upper class — Courtesy and hospitality — Quixotism of the Mexicans — Idealism and eloquence — General characteristics — Ideas of progress — American anomalies — Haciendas — Sport — Military distinctions — Comparison with Anglo-Saxons — Republicanism — Language — Life in the cities — Warlike instincts — The women of Mexico — Mexican youths — Religious observance — Romantic Mexican damsels — The bull-fights.

Chapter X The Cities And Institutions Of Mexico . . I78

Character of Mexican cities — Value of Mexican civilisation — Types of Mexican architecture — Mexican homes and buildings — The Plaza — Social relations of classes — The City of Mexico — Valley of Mexico — Latitude, elevation, and temperature — Buildings — Bird's-eye view — The lakes — Drainage works — Viga canal and floating gardens — General description — The cathedral — Art treasures — Religious orders — Chapultepec — Paseo de la Reforma — The President — Description of a bull-fight — Country homes and suburbs — Colleges, clubs, literary institutions — Churches and public buildings — Army and Navy — Cost of living — Police — Lighting and tramways — Canadian enterprise — British commercial relations — The American — United States influence — ^A general impression of Mexico.

Chapter XI Mexican Life And Travel .... 2&j

Travel and description — Mexican cities — Guadalajara — Lake Chapala — Falls of Juanacatlan — The Pacific slope — Colima — Puebla — Cities of the Great Plateau — Guanajuato — Chihuahua — The Apaches — The peones — Comparison with Americans — Peon labour system — Mode of living — Houses of the peon class — Diet — Tortillas and frijoles — Chilli — Pulque — Habits of the peon class — Their religion — The wayside crosses and their tragedies — -Ruthless political executions — The fallen cross — Similarity to Bible scenes — Peon superstitions — The ignis fatuus, or relation — Caves and buried treasure — Prehistoric Mexican religion — The Teocallis — Comparison with modern religious systems — Philosophical considerations.

xiv CONTENTS

Chapter XII Page

MEXICAN LIFE AND TRAVEL {continued) . . . 23O

Anthropogeographical conditions — The Great Plateau — The tropical belt — Primitive villages — Incidents of travel on the plateau — Lack of water — Hydrographic conditions — Venomous vermin — Travel by roads and diligencias — A journey with a priest — Courtesy of the peon class — The curse of alcohol — The dress of the working classes — The women of the peon class — Dexterity of the natives — The bull-fights — A narrow escape — Mexican horse equipment — The vaqiiero and the lasso — Native sports — A challenge to a duel — Foreigners in Mexico — Unexplored Guerrero — Sporting conditions — Camp life — A day's hunting.

Chapter XIII Mineral Wealth. Romance And Actuality . . 255

Forced labour in the mines — Silver and bloodshed — History of discovery — Guanajuato — the veta Madrc — Spanish methods— Durango — Zacatecas — Pachuca — The patio process — Quicksilver from Peru — Cornish miners' graves — Aztec mining — Spanish advent — Old mining methods — Romance of mining — The Cerro de Mercado — Guanajuato and Hidalgo — Real del Monte — Religion and mining — Silver and churches — Subterranean altars — Mining and the nobility — Spanish mining school— Modern conditions — The mineral-bearing zone — Distribution of minerals geographically — Silver — The patio process — Gold-mining and production — El Oro and other districts — Copper — Other minerals — General mineral production — Mining claims and laws.

Chapter XIV Natural Resources, Agriculture, General Conditions 282

Principal cultivated products — Timber — The three climatic zones — General agricultural conditions — Waste of forests — Irrigation — Region of the river Nazas — Canal-making — Cotton and sugar-cane — Profitable agriculture — Mexican country-houses — Fruit gardens — Food products, cereals, and fibrous plants — Pulque production — India-rubber and giiayule — List of agricultural products and values — Fruit culture and values — Forestry and land — Colonisation — American land-sharks — Conditions of labour — Asiatics — Geographical distribution of products — The States of the Pacific slope — Sonora — Lower California — Sinaloa — Tepic — ^Jalisco — Colima — Michoacan — Guerreo — Oaxaca — Chiapas.

CONTENTS XV

Chapter XV Page

NATURAL RESOURCES, AGRICULTURE, GENERAL CONDITIONS

Central and Atlantic States — Chihuahua and the Rio Grande — Mining, forests, railways — Coahuila and its resources — Nuevo Leon and its conditions — Iron, coal, railways, textile industries — Durango and its great plains and mountain peaks — Aguascalientes — Zacatecas and its mineral wealth — San Luis Potosi and its industries — Guanajuato, Queretaro and Hidalgo, and their diversified resources — Mexico and its mountains and plains — ^Tlaxcala — Morelos and its sugar-cane industry — The rich State of Puebla — Tamaulipas, a littoral state — The historic State of Vera Cruz, its resources, towns, and harbour — Campeche and the peninsula of Yucatan.

Chapter XVI Mexican Finance, Industries, And Railways . , 328

Financial rise of Mexico — Tendencies toward restriction against foreigners — National control of railways — Successful financial administration — Favourable budgets — Good trade conditions — Foreign liabilities — Character of exports and imports — Commerce with foreign nations — Banks and currency — Principal industries — Manufacturing conditions — Labour, water-power, and electric installations — Textile industry, tobacco, iron and steel, paper, breweries, etc. — Railways — The Mexican railway — The Mexican Central railway — The National Railroad — The Interoceanic — Government consolidation — The Tehuantepec railway — Port of Salina Crur — Other railway systems.

Chapter XVII General Conclusions ..... 350

Mexico's unique conditions — Her future — Asiatic immigrants — Fostering of the native race — Encouraging of immigration — The white man in the American tropics — Future of Mexican manufactures — The Pan-American Congress — Pan-American railway — Mexico and Spain — The Monroe doctrine — Mexico, Europe, and the United States — Promising future of Mexico.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

AN IDYLL OF MEXICO : INDIAN CARRIERS, RUINED CHURCH, AND

SNOW-CLAD PEAK OF ORIZABA . . . Frontispiece

FACING PAGE THE ATLANTIC SLOPE : TUNNEL AND BRIDGE OF THE INFIERNILLO

CANON ON THE MEXICAN RAILWAY, IN THE STATE OF VERA CRUZ . 4

THE GREAT PLATEAU : NIGHTFALL IN THE DESERT . . .J

ON THE GREAT PLATEAU : VIEW OF THE CITY OF DURANGO . . 9

ORIZABA, CAPPED WITH PERPETUAL SNOW ; VIEW ON THE MEXICAN

RAILWAY AT CORDOBA . . . . . '14

PINE-CLAD HILLS FORMING THE RIM OF THE VALLEY OF MEXICO,

8,000 FEET ELEVATION ABOVE SEA-LEVEL , . . . I6

TYPICAL VILLAGE OF THE PACIFIC COAST ZONE, STATE OF COLIMA . 18

THE FINDING OF THE SITE FOR THE PREHISTORIC CITY OF MEXICO

BY THE FIRST AZTECS . . . . . .21

{From the painting in Mexico.)

PREHISTORIC MEXICO : TOLTEC PYRAMID OR TEOCALLI OF THE SUN

AT SAN JUAN TEOTIHUACAN . . . . . .24

{Exploration and restoration work being carried on.)

THE VALLEY OF MEXICO ; VIEW ON LAKE TEXCOCO ; THEl MODERN

CITY OF MEXICO IN THE DISTANCE . . . . .26

THE LAND OF THE AZTEC CONQUESTS : MAIZE FIELDS NEAR ESPERANZA,

STATE OF PUEBLA . . . . . . . 3I

PREHISTORIC MEXICO : RUINS OF EL FOLOC AT CHICHEN-YTZA,

PREHISTORIC MEXICO : THE PYRAMID OF THE SUN AT TEOTIHUACAN IN THE VALLEY OF MEXICO, SEEN FROM THE PYRAMID OF THE MOON . . . . . . . . .38

I* »vU xviii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE PREHISTORIC MEXICO : RUINS OF MITLA ; FACADE OF THE HALL OF

THE COLUMNS . . . . . . . -41

(The ste-ps have been " restored" by the photographer.)

PREHISTORIC MEXICO : RUINS OF MITLA ; HALL OF THE MONOLITHS

PREHISTORIC MEXICO : RUINS OF MITLA ; THE HALL OF THE GRECQUES 48

PREHISTORIC MEXICO: RUINS OF TEMPLE AT CHICHEN-YTZA, IN

PREHISTORIC MEXICO : RUINS OF " THE PALACE " AT CHICHEN-YTZA

THE LAND OF THE CONQUEST : STATE OF VERA CRUZ ; VIEW ON THE MEXICAN RAILWAY ; THE TOWN OF MALTRATA IS SEEN THOUSANDS OF FEET BELOW . . . . . . 68

THE LAND OF THE CONQUEST : A VALLEY IN THE STATE OF VERA

CRUZ, ON THE LINE OF THE MEXICAN RAILWAY . . -74

THE LAKES OF THE VALLEY OF MEXICO AT THE TIME OF THE

CONQUEST, SHOWING THE CAUSEWAYS TO THE AZTEC ISLAND- CITY OF TENOCHTITLAN . . . . . '7^ {Front Prescott's " Conquest of Mexico.")

THE CONQUEST OF MEXICO : CORTES AT THE BATTLE OF OTUMBA . 87 {From the painting by Ramirez.)

GUANAJUATO, AS SEEN FROM THE HILLS : THE HISTORIC TREASURE- HOUSE OF MEXICO ....... 104

STATUE OF HIDALGO AT MONTERREY ..... I08

THE CASTLE OF CHAPULTEPEC ...... 121

CITY OF OAXACA : SPANISH-COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE ; THE PORTALES

OF THE MUNICIPAL PALACE AND PLAZA .... 127

THE PRESIDENT OF MEXICO, GENERAL PORFIRIO DIAZ , . . I32

MEXICO'S ARTIFICIAL HARBOURS ON THE ATLANTIC : THE NEW PORT

WORKS AT VERA CRUZ, A SOLID AND COSTLY ENTERPRISE . I36

ASCENDING THE MEXICAN CORDILLERA, OR EASTERN SIERRA MADRE :

THE RAILWAY IS SEEN IN THE VALLEY FAR BELOW 138

THE PEAK OF ORIZABA ; PLAZA OF THE CITY OF CORDOVA . . I4O

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xix

FACING PAGE THE FALLS OF JUANACATLAN : THE NIAGARA OF MEXICO . . I44

THE PACIFIC COAST ZONE : GENERAL VIEW OF THE CITY AND

ENVIRONS OF COLIMA ....... 147

A RARE OCCURRENCE : SNOWFALL IN A MEXICAN TOWN ; VIEW OF

THE PLAZA OF LERDO, ON THE GREAT PLATEAU . . . I49

A ROAD IN THE TEMPERATE ZONE, WITH PALMS AND VEGETATION . 15I

VEGETATION IN THE TROPICAL FORESTS . . . . .153

THE MEXICAN PEONES : STREET SCENE AT CORDOVA . . . 160

TYPES OF MEXICANS OF THE UPPER CLASS : AN ARCHBISHOP ; A FAMOUS GENERAL AND MINISTER OF PUBLIC WORKS ; A FAMOUS MINISTER OF FINANCE, SENOR LIMANTOUR ; A STATE GOVERNOR . 164

MEXICAN LIFE : THE CATHEDRAL AND THE PENITENTIARY, CITY OF

THE FAMOUS MEXICAN " RURALES," OR MEXICAN MOUNTED POLICE . I72

SPANISH-COLONIAL CHURCH ARCHITECTURE : A TYPICAL MEXICAN

SPANISH-COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE : THE PORTALES OF CHOLULA . 180

A PUBLIC GARDEN IN TROPICAL MEXICO : VIEW AT COLIMA . . 184

THE VALLEY OF MEXICO : THE GREAT DRAINAGE CANAL . . 188

THE CATHEDRAL OF THE CITY OF MEXICO . . . . I9I

BULL-FIGHT IN THE CITY OF MEXICO, SHOWING THE SPECTATORS

OF THE "SOL," THE PICADORES, AND THE ENTERING BULL . 194

MEXICAN STREET SCENE : A PULQUE SHOP WITH ARTIST PAINTED EXTERIOR .....

MEXICAN ARTILLERY : A WAYSIDE ENCAMPMENT

CITY OF GUADALAJARA : INTERIOR OF THE CATHEDRAL

A TOBACCO-PRODUCING HACIENDA : STATE OF VERA CRUZ

MEXICAN PEON LIFE : TYPICAL VILLAGE MARKET-PLACE

THE PACIFIC COAST ZONE : COCOA-NUT PALMS AT COLIMA

CALLY-

. 198

. 202

. 208

• 213

. 215

. 230

LIFE AND TRAVEL IN MEXICO : MULES, PEON, AND CACTUS . 235

XX LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAGE NATIVE WOMEN OF TEHUANTEPEC : ORDINARY DRESS AND CHURCH- GOING COSTUMES . . . . . . • . 240

THE PACIFIC COAST ZONE : THE PLAZA AND ENVIRONS OF THE CITY

MEXICAN ARTIFICIAL HARBOURS ON THE PACIFIC COAST : THE NEW PORT WORKS OF SALINA CRUZ, TERMINUS OF THE TEHUANTEPEC RAILWAY ........ 306

GENERAL VIEW OF THE CITY OF MONTERREY, STATE OF NUEVO

LEON, UPON THE GREAT PLATEAU ..... 3H

TYPICAL SIDE STREET IN MEXICAN VILLAGE : THE TOWN OF AMECA

AND CLOUD-EFFECT ON POPOCATEPETL . . . .3x9

STATE OF VERA CRUZ : THE BARRANCA OR RAVINE OF MITLAC ; VIEW

ON THE MEXICAN RAILWAY . . ... 322

(Far below in the valley is seen the bridge depicted at p. 340.)

VERA CRUZ : SHIPPING IN THE NEW HARBOUR .... 324

BRITISH ENGINEERING WORK IN MEXICO : BUILDING A BREAKWATER . 336

THE MITLAC RAVINE : VIEW ON THE MEXICAN RAILWAY . . 34O

BRIDGES OVER THE ATOYAC RIVER : MEXICAN RAILWAY . . 342

THE SEAPORT OF VERA CRUZ ...... 344

NEW PORT OF SALINA CRUZ, ON THE PACIFIC : THE GREAT DRY DOCK 346 {See also page 306.)

The Author is indebted for some of the photographs reproduced in this book to The Mexican Financial Agency, Seitor Camacho ; The Mexican Information Bureau, Senor Barriga ; The Mexican Vera Cruz Railway Company, Ltd. ; Messrs, S. Pearson and Sons, Ltd.; The London Bank of Mexico and South America, Ltd. ; Arthur H. Enoch, Esq. ; " Modern Mexico " ; " Mexico at Chicago," Seitor Manuel Caballero ; Holmes : Ancient Cities of Mexico ; and others.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

HISTORY

The history of Mexico at the time of the Conquest rests upon an accurate basis ; the five letters of Cortes to the Spanish Emperor, Carlos V. These have been recently retranslated into, and published in, English in two excellent volumes :

The Letters of Cortes to Charles V. F. C. MacNutt. G. P. Putnam's Sons. London. 1908.

The most famous book on the Conquest is that of Prescott, the American historian, and this never loses its charm, although to the traveller who knows the country it may, at times, seem somewhat highly drawn.

Prescott's Conquest of Mexico. 3 vols. London. 1845,

The writers which, after Cortes, were the participators in the Conquest or contemporary therewith, and upon whose writings all other accounts are based, are those of :

Bernal Diaz, Author of the Verdadera Historia de la Conquista.

1858.

Ixtlilochitl, Aztec historian.

Other famous contemporary writers whose works also furnish material for historians were :

Bartolome de las Casas, Francisco Lopez de Gomara, Gonzalo Oviedo y Valdez, Bernardino de Sahagun, Motolinia, Peter Martyr, Antonio de Herrera. The works of all these writers are extant, principally in Spanish, and they were written in the sixteenth century.

In the seventeenth century Juan de Torquemada wrote, and in the nineteenth numerous works appeared upon Mexico. Among these may be mentioned those of Manuel Orozco y Berra, Manuel xxii BIBLIOGRAPHY

Icazbalceta Raminez, all modern Mexicans. Other authors, whether of historical or other books and at varying epochs, are :

Archaeological and Ethnological works are represented by the following :

Bancroft, Native Races of the Pacific States. 5 vols. New

York. 1874-6.

Bandolier, The Art of War among the Ancient Mexicans. „ Distribution and Land Tenure.

„ Social Organisation.

„ Archasological Tour.

„ Indians of the South-west, U.S.

Batres, Cuadro Arquelogico de la Republica Mexicana ; and

other works, including Teotihuacan.

Blake, Catalogue of Archsological Collection of the Museum

of Mexico, &c.

Brinton, The American Race.

„ Mexico a traves de los siglos.

Charnay, Ancient Cities of the New World. Garcia Cubas, Cuadro Geografico, &c. Holmes, Archaeological Studies among the Ancient Cities of

Mexico.

Maudsley, Biologia Centralia-Americana. Kingsborough, famous work on Mexican Antiquities, &c. Peiiafiel, Monumentos del arte Mexicano Antiguo. Berlin. 1890. Payne, History of the New World. Oxford. 1899. Starr, Maya Writing, &c. Chicago. 1895.

And many other pamphlets and books in English, Spanish,

French, and German.

For a fuller list of these, see the excellent volume on Mexico of the International Bureau of the American Republics. Washington. 1904.

Of books on mining an excellent volume for reference is :

Southworth's Mines of Mexico.

Of mining and natural resources generally, a large complete work has been issued in English, Spanish, and French, entitled :

El Florecimiento de Mexico. Mexico. 1906.

BIBLIOGRAPHY xxiii

This work is published in Mexico, written by various authors, under the patronage of the Government. It is a valuable book of reference, but somewhat prolix, and the type is small and the volume unwieldy. After the manner of books issued in Spanish- American countries, too much space is taken up with adulations of public men. There are no less than four full-page portraits of President Diaz in it.

Other general works are :

Mexico and the United States. Abbott. New York. 1869. Guia General de la Republicas Mexicana. Mexico. 1899. Barrett, Standard Guide to Mexico. Mexico. 1900. Baedeker, The United States and Mexico. Leipzig. 1899. Bancroft, A Popular History of the Mexican People. London.

1887.

Bancroft, Resources and Development of Mexico. San

Francisco. 1893.

Brocklehurst, Mexico To-day. London. 1883. Chevalier, Le Mexique Ancien et Moderne. Paris. 1886. Congling, Mexico and the Mexicans. New York. 1883. Garcia, Mexico, &c. Mexico. 1893.

Lummis, The Awakening of a Nation. New York. 1893. Ober, Travels in Mexico. Boston. 1884. Martin, Mexico of the Twentieth Century. London. 1908. Gadow, Travels in Southern Mexico. London. 1908. Tweedie, Mexico as I Saw It. London. 190 ? Tweedie. Porfirio Diaz. London. 1905. A. H. Noll. A Short History of Mexico. Chicago. 1903. Romero, Mexico and the United States. New York. 1898. Statesman's Year-book. London.

Camp Fires on Desert and Lava. Hornaday. London. 1909.

And numerous others in French, German, and EngHsh,

including various guide-books and pamphlets, scientific

and otherwise.

The Mexican Year-book, London, 1908, is pubHshed by

McCorquodale & Co. The work is written under the

auspices of the Mexican Government. It is full of statistics

and information, and forms a very useful work of reference. Modern Mexico, a monthly illustrated paper of high-class,

issued in Mexico and St. Louis.

The Mexican Herald, a daily paper published in English in

Mexico, is an excellent journal of current events.

Introduction

" From what I have seen and heard concerning the similarity between this country and Spain, its fertility, its extent, its climate, and in many other features of it, it seemed to me that the most suitable name for this country would be New Spain, and thus, in the name of your Majesty, I have christened it. I humbly supplicate your Majesty to approve of this and order that it be so called." Thus wrote Hernan Cortes, the greatest natural leader of men since Julius Ciesar, to the sovereign whom he endowed, as he subsequently told him bitterly, with provinces more numerous than the cities he had inherited from his forefathers. From the first appearance of the Spaniards upon the vast elevated plateau upon which the Aztec empire stood the invaders were struck by its resemblance in climate and natural products to their European homeland. In his first letter to the Emperor Cortes wrote : " The sea coast is low, with many sandhills. . . . The country beyond these sandhills is level with many fertile plains, in which are such beautiful river banks that in all Spain there can be found no better. These are as grateful to the view as they are productive in everything sown in them, and very orderly and well kept with roads and convenience for pasturing all sorts of cattle. There is every kind of game in this country, and animals and birds such as are familiar to us at home. ... So that there is no difference between this country and Spain as regards birds and animals. . . . According to our judgment it is credible that there is everything in this country which existed in that from whence Solomon is said to have brought the gold for the Temple."

Here, for the first time, the Spanish explorers in their xxvi INTRODUCTION

wanderings had come across an organised nation with an advanced civilisation and pohty of its own. The gentle savages they had encountered in the tropical islands and the mainland of the isthmus had offered little or no resistance to the white men or to their uncomprehended God. The little kinglets of Hispanola, of Cuba, and of Darien, divided, unsophisticated, and wonder-stricken, with their peoples bent their necks to the yoke and their backs to the lash almost without a struggle. Their moist tropical lands, near the coasts, were enervating, and no united organisation for defence against the enslaving intruders was possible to them. But here in the land of the Aztec federation three potent states, with vast dependencies from which countless hordes of warriors might be drawn, were ready to stand shoulder to shoulder and resist the claims of the white demi-gods, mounted on strange beasts, who came upon giant sea-birds from the unknown, beyond the waste of waters. But the fatal prophecy of the coming of the avenging white God Quetzalcoatl to destroy the Aztec power paralysed the arm and brain of Montezuma, and rendered him, and finally his people, a prey to the diplomacy, the daring, and the valour of Cortes, aided by the dissentient tribes he enlisted under his banner.