SOME RECENT OBSERVATIONS IN MEXICO.

BY LESLIE F. GAY, JR.

(Note. The subject-matter contained in this article is based upon first-hand information gained from extensive travel and careful study of actual conditions throughout the Republic of Mexico. During the summer of 1911 the writer visited the states along the West Coast and again, during the winter of 1912-13, the eastern, central, and extreme southern sections of the country-twenty states in all-were traversed. On both occasions investigations extended to out of the way places and into the rural and mountainous districts far removed from the regular lines of transit and where the ordinary traveler seldom penetrates. A knowledge of the vernacular was an invaluable asset. It is thus from a rather close contact with many varied conditions and diverse popular elements extending over wide territorial bounds that my observations have been drawn.L. F. G.)

Our interest in Mexico is most engaging and especially is this true at the present time. Obviously, a variety of reasons contribute to this result. Natural geographical proximity; the constant flow of population across our southern border; the close financial and commercial relations; the connections, more or less vital, of a social and political character; and, historically, the indissoluble bond which unites the two countries; all these combine to give us a lively and immediate concern in Mexican affairs.

The southern republic exhibits a wonderful variety and contrast. This can be seen in many different lines, as in physical features, climatic conditions, natural products, material development, linguistic and racial elements, manners and customs, and general habits of life. Between the semi-arid and desert regions of the north and the marvellously fertile and productive lands of the tropical south there is an infinite diversity. Millions of acres now barren and unproductive if placed under irrigation could be made to yield in abundance. Potentially, Mexico could easily sustain several times. her present population. In fact, her natural resources, as yet scarcely touched, present immense possibilities for future develop

ment.

There are two distinct seasons, the dry and the rainy; the former extending from about October to May and the latter from June to September. The climate is hot, temperate or cold, according to the elevation. The torrid heat of the tropics is found in the Tierra

Caliente, or hot belt which lies along the coast. Moderate or temperate weather is obtained at an altitude of from 2,500 to 4,500 feet, while the cool climate is found on the great central plateau, ranging from 4,500 to 8,000 feet in elevation. In a very short time one can rise from extreme heat to perpetual cold and thus secure any temperature that is desired. The Valley of Mexico enjoys a delightful climate, having an altitude of about 7,500 feet.

The natural products of the country are as varied as the climate and correspond to the three distinct zones. In the hot lands the rubber, cacao, tobacco, sugar-cane and a wealth of tropical fruits, including the banana and pineapple, flourish in abundance. Coffee and henequin, or rope-fiber, and fruits such as oranges, lemons and limes are raised in the temperate region. At the higher altitudes wheat and a variety of grains, together with apples, pears, peaches and strawberries, find their natural habitat.

In race and language Mexico also contains many diverse elements. The population of the republic is divided roughly into three main groups. Of the total about nineteen per cent are pure or nearly pure white, about forty-three per cent are mixed, and the remaining thirty-eight per cent are practically pure Indian. Altogether among these several groups throughout the country there are over sixty different languages and dialects spoken. To weld these diverse and heterogeneous elements into a homogeneous and united body politic is one of the largest problems that confronts the leaders of Mexico today. The customs and habits of the people throughout the length and breadth of the country are as widely different as the linguistic diversities. To observe the peculiar characteristics and to note the striking contrasts which are to be found in the various types of the population is a study intensely fascinating.

The dwellings range all the way from the rude one-room adobe hut with palm or dirt roof to the magnificent palatial homes on the boulevards and in the fashionable suburbs of the Capital City. Business blocks even of modern steel and concrete construction are rarely over five stories in height. The larger dwellings always have an inner patio or court. No provision is made for heating the houses even in the cooler altitudes. As for transportation facilities, all forms are to be found, from the peon trudging along with a heavy pack on his back and the primitive ox-cart to the speeding automobile and the fast overland express. Old-fashioned diligencias or stage coaches are used in the rural districts where the roads will permit. These are drawn by four mules generally hitched abreast. Hacks are common in all the towns and in smaller places frequently horse-cars are run. In the larger cities the electric car system has been installed. The City of Mexico has a magnificent

urban and interurban electric system. The power which supplies the capital is brought from the great Necaxa Falls, a distance of ninety miles. Gambling and cock-fights are the customary diversions among the lower classes, especially in the country districts, while the bull-fights in the cities represent the typical national sport. Every Sunday afternoon and on other special occasions the immense bull-ring in Mexico City is filled to overflowing with the patrons of this degrading sport.

Life in the small pueblos in the country districts, where few, if any, of the common necessities of modern civilization are found, is far from inviting. The lower classes are almost wholly ignorant of the simplest principles of hygiene and many places exhibit a shocking disregard of cleanliness and sanitation. It is little wonder that, under such conditions, the ravages of disease are so widespread and so frequently attended with fatal results. The scourges of the tropics, such as yellow, typhus, typoid and malarial fevers, are still more or less prevalent in the towns of the hot belt. In the mountainous regions, on the other hand, epidemics of smallpox are rather of frequent occurrence. These often work terrible havoc, sweeping away at times from one-half to two-thirds of the inhabitants of whole villages. The natives are perfectly helpless in the face of disease and succumb very readily.

In the larger cities, of course, better conditions prevail. In late years modern methods of municipal cleaning and sanitation have been installed, and, in consequence, disease has been lessened and living made more healthful and comfortable. In the Capital City itself the newer part and the foreign quarter present an excellent appearance. The large modern business blocks, the fine public buildings, the beautiful parks and wide paved streets, and the palatial dwellings of the upper class and the many foreign residents lend an attractiveness to the Capital of Mexico such as will bear favorable comparison with that of any American city. The famous Paseo de la Reforma, a wide boulevard extending from the Alameda to Chapultepec Castle, lined on either side with parkways and elegant shade trees, and adorned at intervals with marble statues and stately monuments, is one of the finest avenues in the world. This and many other features which have added charm and beauty to the city have been worked out in accordance with the artistic designs of Maximilian and Carlotta, formulated during the period of their rule.

But most of all is the Capital City of interest because of the historical associations which cluster around it. The monuments, buildings, churches, parks, street names, all are connected with some historic incident. Out in one of the suburbs the old adobe house used by Cortez as his headquarters at the time of the conquest is still stand

ing. The famous old conifer, "El Arbol de la Noche Trieste""The Tree of the Sad Night"-still lives, majestic with age. Standing beneath the venerable monarch, one can picture in imagination that memorable night when the broken and bleeding little band of conquistadores, with their heartsick but intrepid captain, gathered under its outstretched branches in bitter dejection and almost hopeless despair. The old churches and religious foundations dating from the sixteenth century; the structure which was used as the headquarters of the Inquisition; the stately establishment of San Augustin, which houses the great National Library; and the building occupied by Marshal Bazaine during the French occupation-all are of engaging interest. The Plaza has been the scene of many stirring events in Mexican history, and, just recently, was strewn with the bodies of the dead and wounded who fell with their leader, General Bernardo Reyes, in the atack on the National Palace. Above the balustrade, over the main entrance to the Palace, hangs the Liberty Bell rung by the Patriot Hidalgo in proclaiming the independence of Mexico. Always at midnight, on the 15th of September, the President rings the bell and repeats the famous "Grito" of Liberty. Facing the Plaza on the north is the great Cathedral, stately and grand.

Of special interest is the old San Fernando establishment, with which Junipero Serra was connected at the time of his departure for Alta California to lay the foundation for its spiritual conquest through the Mission system. Adjoining the church is the old cemetery where repose the remains of Mexico's illustrious dead. Here are the tombs of Juarez, Comonfort, Miramon, Mejia, Bravo, Guerrero, Zaragoza, and many others numbered among the immortals. The National Museum contains a wealth of archæological, ethnological and historical exhibits, among which are the great Aztec Calendar and Sacrificial Stones. On the walls of the Academy of San Carlos hang some of the finest paintings done by artists of the old world and the new. Just outside the city limits to the north, on the hill of Tepeyac, rises the magnificent Temple, the sacred shrine. of the Virgin Guadalupe, the patron saint of Mexico. What Mecca is to the Mohammedan, Benares to the Hindoo, Guadalupe is to the Mexican. Pilgrims from the far corners of the republic are constantly wending their way, in a steady procession, to this Holy of Holies. Close by is the spring to whose waters are attributed a miraculous healing power. Here the lame, halt, and blind, and such as are afflicted with divers diseases congregate in throngs. Hundreds of bottles of the holy water are carried away daily by the pilgrims back to their distant homes. Tradition affirms that whoever drinks of the waters of Guadalupe will perforce return to Mexico. It was within the sacred precincts of this shrine that the treaty

bearing its name was signed, which closed the Mexican War. The Capital City is truly interesting, enshrined as it is in historic memories, and yet today the very center of the life of the republic.

No land surpasses Mexico in the wealth of its antiquities, and particularly in the wonderful remains, so well preserved, of early primitive civilizations. Of these relics of the peoples of past ages none exceed in interest the famous ruins of Palenque, which are situated in Southern Mexico in the eastern part of the state of Chiapas. In the heart of a primeval and nearly inaccessible solitude, close to the little village whence is taken the name, lie these ruins of one of the famous pre-historic cities of the American continent. It forms one link in that chain of mysterious ruined cities which stretch all the way from Copan in Honduras to Casas Grandes in Chihuahua,—a chain of insoluble enigmas. Until the last century, entirely unknown, and to this day bearing no name save only that given it by the Indians, "Casas de Piedras" ("Stone Houses"), this ancient city, far from the beaten highways of the world, and which but few travelers have ever seen, lies in the midst of a trackless jungle, silent and alone. Only a portion of the ruins are visible, and these are reached by a single footpath cut out by a machete. What lies buried in the forest of giant trees and dense undergrowth is a mystery. One could penetrate within a few feet and yet not see the ruins. The palace and temples of stone and stucco, elaborately carved, painted and covered with petrotypes, are evidently the work of a polished and cultivated people, who reached their finest achievement in those humid forests, then perished unknown and left behind not even a name to distinguish their civilization. The many slabs upon which written characters are made, if only a key could he found to decipher them, would reveal a wonderful story and uncover long-hidden mysteries. But until then these ruins of antiquity will continue to remain baffling puzzles and insoluble riddles.

With her memorable past, her great material development in recent years, and her marvellous future possibilities,-why has Mexico fallen upon evil days? Why the present internal disorder? To these questions many answers may be found, but, fundamentally, the difficulty lies in the character of the Mexican people themselves and particularly of the upper or ruling class. The outside world, judging from external evidences, had come to believe that the Mexican people were rapidly becoming united into a homogeneous body politic and soon would be ready for complete democratic government. The truth as more lately revealed, however, seems to show that the Mexican nation, as a whole, is about where it was at the close of the Spanish regimé, over one hundred years ago.

Former President Diaz is entitled to great credit for the wonderful material development which took place during the period of his