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PORFIRIO DIAZ

PRESIDENT OF MEXICO

THE MASTER BUILDER OF A GREAT
COMMONWEALTH

JOSE F. GODOY

Author of " A Few Facts About Mexico," " The Legal and
Mercantile Handbook of Mexico," etc.

WITH 60 ILLUSTRATIONS, MAPS AND DIAGRAMS

G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS
NEW YORK AND LONDON

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1910

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PREFACE

"T LOOK at Porfirio Diaz, the President of
A Mexico, as one of the greatest men to be
held up for the hero-worship of mankind." These
words, uttered by Senator Ehhu Root, when in
1907 and as Secretary of State of the United
States, he visited the Mexican RepubHc, fully
justify the publication of any work which, con-
taining reliable data, may give an impartial and
truthful account of the life of President Diaz.

The wonderful career of this great man, both
owing to his military achievements and to his
great success as a statesman cannot fail, and has
not failed up to now, to claim the attention not
only of his countrymen, but also of the whole
civilized world.

In the English speaking countries, the desire to
have a thorough knowledge of the past deeds and
present achievements of General Porfirio Diaz, is
frequently manifested. The writer of this work,
therefore, thinks that a book prepared like the
present one and based upon accurate information,
a great deal of which has been obtained through
personal observation, will prove interesting to the
reading public of the United States and England.

Preface

It may be here stated that, in order to present
the facts, as they really happened, and with
preciseness and accuracy as to dates and some
other circumstances, the President himself, some
members of his family and his chief advisers and
many of his friends, have been consulted : thereby
correcting any misstatement, that unintentionally
might have crept into the narrative.

The illustrations which accompany this work, it
is to be hoped, will add some attraction to it, and
the charts and maps, which have been especi-
ally prepared for this biography, will greatly aid
the reader to grasp and better understand some
of the incidents in the life of President Diaz.

Still another feature of this work, which we
think will give it more weight and importance,
consists in the characteristic opinions that appear
herein, regarding the President's life and career,
which many prominent men residing in the United
States and Canada have especially prepared for
this biography.

Our heartfelt thanks are extended to all those
who have kindly aided in the preparation of the
work, which we submit with diffidence to the
English speaking people, fully aware that it can
lay no claim to great literary merit, but knowing
also that its contents are reliable, accurate, and
exact.

J. F. G.

New York, January, 1910.

CONTENTS

PAGE

CHAPTER I

Birth and Parentage — School and College

Days ....... i

CHAPTER II
The War of Reform ..... 5

CHAPTER III
The War of French Intervention . . 12

CHAPTER IV
The Restoration of the Republic . -23

CHAPTER V
First Administration of President Diaz . 30

CHAPTER VI
His Marriage and Travels . . -35

CHAPTER VII
New Presidential Term from 1884 to 1888 . 41

CHAPTER VIII
From 1888 to 1892 ..... 49

vi Contents

PAGE

CHAPTER IX
From 1892 to 1896 ..... 56

CHAPTER X

From 1896 to 1900 ..... 66

CHAPTER XI
From 1900 to 1904 ..... 74

CHAPTER XII
From 1904 to 1910 ..... 85

CHAPTER XIII
Private Life of President Diaz ... 97

CHAPTER XIV
The Past, Present, and Future . . . 106

CHAPTER XV

Opinions of Prominent Men Regarding Pres-
ident Diaz as a Soldier and Statesman 124

APPENDICES

I. Summary of the Message Read by Presi-
dent Porfirio Diaz at the Opening of
the Mexican Congress on September 16,
1909 197

II. List of Battles and Sieges in Which Gen-
eral Porfirio Diaz Has Taken Part . 203

Contents vll

III. Medals and Decorations Received by

President Diaz .... 206

IV. Banquet of the Chamber of Commerce of

the State of New York Held at the
Waldorf-Astoria in New York City
on Thursday Evening, November 19,
1908 ...... 209

V. The Meeting of Presidents Diaz and Taft

at the Frontier . . . .219

VI. Mexican Finances and Commerce in 1909 232

Index 235

ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

PoRFiRio Diaz . . . Frontispiece

The National Palace on Independence Day 4

The Battle of Miahuatlan ... 8

The Battle of La Carbonera ... 12

Escape of Porfirio Diaz .... 16

The Battle of San Lorenzo ... 20

The Taking of Puebla — April 2, 1867 . 24

One of the President's Reception Rooms —

National Palace . . . . .28

General Porfirio Diaz .... 32

Carmen Romero Rubio de Diaz, Wife of

President Diaz ..... 36

Ignacio Mariscal, Secretary of Foreign Re-
lations ...... 40

The Post-Office — City of Mexico . . 44

Views of the Post-Office — City of Mexico . 48

President Diaz — From a Painting . . 52

Mrs. Diaz 56

X Illustrations

PAGE

Children's Asylum — City of Mexico . . 60

Jose Yves Limantour, Secretary of Finance 64

President Diaz in the Executive Chair . 68

National Legislative Palace ... 72

National Geological Institute ... 76

Ramon Corral, Vice-President of the Re-
public AND Secretary of the Interior . 80

Views of General Hospital ... 84

The Dry Dock at Salina Cruz ... 88

Mrs. Diaz 92

Amada Diaz de la Torre — Daughter of Pres-
ident Diaz ...... 96

Porfirio Diaz, Jr., Wife and Children . 100

Luz Diaz de Rincon Gallardo — Daughter

of President Diaz .... 104

Some Members of President Diaz's Family . 108

Chapultepec Castle . . . . .112

Production of Gold and Silver in the Mexi-
can Republic (Diagram) . . .116

Chartered Banks in the Mexican Republic

(Diagram) ...... 120

Manuel Gonzalez Cosio, Secretary of War

AND Navy ...... 124

Foreign Capital Invested in the Mexican

Republic (Diagram) . . . .128

Illustrations

JuSTO Sierra, Secretary of Public Instruc-
tion AND Fine Arts . . . .132

President Diaz — from a Recent Photograph 136

Post-Offices, Telegraph Lines, and Wire-
less Stations in the Mexican Republic
(Diagram) . . . . , .140

The Monument of Mexican Independence —

City op Mexico ..... 144

Justing Fernandez, Secretary of Justice . 148

Some Harbor Works in the Mexican Re-
public ....... 152

Astronomical Observatory near City of

Mexico . . . . . .156

President Diaz ...... 160

National Opera House — Front View . 164

National Opera House — Side View . . 168

Olegario Molina, Secretary of Public Pro-
motion ...... 172

Department op Communications and Public

Works . . . . . .176

Leandro Fernandez, Secretary of Commu-
nications and Public Works . . 180

President Diaz on Horseback at Chapulte-

PEC ....... 184

Exports and Imports in the Mexican Re-
public (Diagram) . . . . .188

xii Illustrations

PAGE

National Medical Institute . . . 192

President Diaz ...... 196

Increase of Mining Properties in the Re-
public (Diagram) . . . . .200

Battles and Sieges in which President Diaz

has Taken Part (Map) . . . 204

President Diaz ...... 208

Railroads in the Republic in 1876 and 1909

(Map) . . . . . . .212

Department of Public Instruction and Fine

Arts ....... 216

Presidents Diaz and Taft . . . .220

Views of the Meeting of Presidents Diaz

AND Taft AT the Frontier . . .224

Views of the National GeologicalInstitute 226

Views of the Children's Asylum — City of

Mexico . . . . . .228

The City of Mexico, in 1876 and 1910 (Dia-
gram) ....... 230

Surplus in the Treasury of the Republic . 232

PORFIRIO DIAZ

CHAPTER I

BIRTH AND PARENTAGE — SCHOOL AND COLLEGE
DAYS

IT is a remarkable coincidence that Porfirio
Diaz should have been born on the anniversary
of the Mexican independence. His birth took
place on the 15th of September, 1830, just twenty
years after the great Hidalgo proclaimed, with a
handful of patriots, that Mexico should be free.*

He was bom at the city of Oaxaca, where so
many distinguished Mexicans have first seen the
light of day; among whom may be mentioned
the great President Benito Juarez, the late diplo-
mat and financier Matias Romero, and the able
Secretary of Foreign Relations Ignacio Mariscal.

The parents of Porfirio Diaz were Jos6 Faustino
de la Cruz Diaz and his wife, whose maiden name
was Petrona Mori.

> Although historically, and as a matter of fact, Mexican
independence was proclaimed on the morning of September
16, 1 8 10, tradition and custom have made the celebration
of the event to be held on the evening of September isth.
I I

2 Porfirio Diaz

He lost his father at a very early age, and as
his family, consisting of his mother and several
brothers and sisters, was not in affluent circum-
stances, he had to assist with his labor in attending
to their necessities, while he was at the same time
acquiring his education.

Like the mother of Washington, like the mother
of Garfield, and like the mothers of other great
men, Petrona Diaz devoted all her time, her
energy, and her labor to the rearing and education
of her children, unmindful of the great stress,
suffering, and work that beset her path. A
mother's love triumphed over all obstacles, and
at the end she saw her incessant labors rewarded,
for she gave an education to her children, started
them on the road to success, and thoroughly pre-
pared them to meet the vicissitudes of their re-
spective careers. The character of this noble
woman, her perseverance and her self-abnegation
indelibly impressed themselves on her son, and
have formed some of the traits that have distin-
guished Porfirio Diaz during his eventful life.

He received his primary instruction in one of
the municipal schools of his native city, and there
he showed from the first a desire of obtaining
knowledge and of taking part in all kinds of athletic
sports.

Afterwards he entered the National and
Pontifical Seminary of the city of Oaxaca, and
remained there from 1845 until 1849. Although
his mother at first intended that he should become

School and College Days 3

a priest, she yielded to his desires, so that he
pursued the studies then required to qualify a
student for a lawyer's career. It is said that he
was always found in the front rank of the best
scholars of the seminary.

At that time a student had, in order to attain a
degree, to meet great expense, and was obliged
to contribute to the outlay necessary for the
public exercises to be held in the institution. The
pecuniary circumstances of Porfirio Diaz pre-
vented him from meeting such expenses, and he
therefore had to forego the attainment of a degree.

While pursuing his studies, the invasion of the
national territory by the American troops oc-
curred, and young Porfirio Diaz, with other fellow-
students offered his services to the then Governor
of the State of Oaxaca. The Governor accepted
their patriotic offer, but did not require the young
students to go into the battle-field.

It was in 1849 that he entered the Institute of
Sciences and Arts of his native state, in order to
complete his law studies. In all his classes he
showed a desire to master the intricacies of that
science and to give heed to the advice and teach-
ings of his professors, one of whom was the
renowned Benito Juarez.

It may be said that ever since the time when he
offered his services as a volunteer against the
invaders of his country, and while he was scarcely
seventeen years of age, the young man who was
to become one of Mexico's greatest military

4 Porfirio Diaz

leaders, showed tendencies and desires towards
army life. We cannot say that the study of law
was distasteful to him, and he undoubtedly would
have been received at the bar, if it had not been
that subsequent events led him to take part in
public affairs and forego a lawyer's career; still
it is certain that the dangers and glory of a
soldier's life greatly attracted him.

However, there is no doubt that the training
that young Diaz had in the study of jurispru-
dence not only served him greatly afterwards,
but has enabled him, when at the head of the
government, to understand fully the legal aspect
of controversies, the necessity for the reign of
law in his country, and the propriety of framing
adequate legislation for the attainment of peace
and advancement in the Republic.

We can further say that, while pursuing his
professional studies, there were instilled in him
the true principles of republican and liberal ideas,
whether because his professors advocated such
principles and his fellow-students likewise admired
them, or because his character, his aims, and his
pursuits led him into the ranks of the Liberal
party, which had already entered into a death
struggle with the Conservatives.

It was in the year 1853 that he abandoned the
attainment of a lawyer's profession, the lack of a
title being the only thing wanting in that career,
and he then entered public life.

T3 o

-5

:2;

CHAPTER II

THE WAR OF REFORM

IT is not our purpose to enter into political con-
troversies, it is not our aim to describe fully
the political conditions existing in Mexico during
the early years of the life of President Diaz;
therefore, we will merely say that, while he was
pursuing his studies in the Institute of Sciences
and Arts of Oaxaca, the "irrepressible conflict"
between the two great political parties was taking
place. Those who advocated one set of political
principles had to endure the persecution of the
other party, and it was owing to this circumstance
that some of the professors, who were teaching
young Diaz, incurred the displeasure of the Con-
servative authorities. They were dismissed from
their posts and otherwise subjected to indignities,
and many of the students who professed their
political tenets left the institution and joined the
ranks of the opponents of the state government,
that had fallen into the hands of the Conserv-
tive party.

Porfirio Diaz was one of the most active of the
young students who took sides with the deposed

6 Porfirio Diaz

professors. Orders were issued for his arrest, but
he eluded them, and fought his way through his
assailants, in December, 1854; finally he joined
the forces of the Liberals, who were struggling
against the Conservative troops in the mountain-
ous districts of the state. As the opponents to the
government were comparatively few in number
at that time, they were dispersed after an in-
effectual struggle, and Porfirio Diaz was compelled
to remain hidden during the months of July and
August, 1855, in order to escape the vigilance of
his enemies.

It was then that the Liberal party gave its
unqualified support throughout the Republic to
the "Ayutla Plan," which was, or became, the
platform ratified by the Liberal leaders and
embodied the principles that received the support
of all the members of that party in every district
of the country.

The contest between the Liberals and Conserv-
atives, which is known in Mexican history as the
"War of Reform," was then carried on with great
fierceness, bringing about much bloodshed and
suffering. Porfirio Diaz from the first took a
most prominent part in that struggle, and in
December, 1855, he was appointed subprefect of
the district of Ixtlan in his native state. As
such he reorganized the public administration of
that district, and raised troops to oppose the
Conservative forces, which, under the command of
the prefect of the department, were sent to crush

The War of Reform 7

him. Speaking of that period of his life, the
President himself has said^: "In my youth
stern experience taught me many things. When
I commanded two companies of soldiers, there
was a time when for six months I had neither
advice, instructions, nor support from my govern-
ment. I had to think for myself. I had to be
the government myself."

It was then that Porfirio Diaz for the first time
showed, in a limited degree, his great qualifi-
cations as a military leader and as a public
official.

It would take too long to describe the vicissi-
tudes of the campaign in which he took part. It is
sufficient to say that in all the various encounters
with his opponents he showed great military skill,
unfaltering courage, as well as commendable
humanity towards his enemies. While defeating
a large body of the Conservatives on the 13 th of
August, 1857, he was severely wounded, but as
soon as he was able to be on his feet again, and
even before he had fully recovered, he re-entered
the field and fought bravely against the enemy.

Finally in January, 1858, the power of the Con-
servatives in the State of Oaxaca was thoroughly
crushed, for the time being, and the capital was
taken by the Liberal forces, among whom the

> All the quotations in this work, which are autobiographic
in form, are taken from the Personal Memoirs of President
Diaz, published in Spanish some years ago by Hon. Matias
Romero, late Mexican Ambassador at Washington.

8 Porfirio Diaz

troops led by Porfirio Diaz took a most prominent
part. He had not yet been entirely cured, but
insisted in leading his soldiers to the assault.
Afterwards he was placed at the head of affairs
in the district of Tehuantepec and joined in the
pursuit of the Conservatives who had not sur-
rendered: they were met at Jalapa, near the
capital of the district, and were routed.

Soon after the city of Tehuantepec itself fell
into the hands of the Liberals. Porfirio Diaz then
acted as governor and military commander of the
department. As the majority of the inhabitants
of that district were at the time hostile to the
Liberal cause, and Porfirio Diaz did not have
sufficient pecuniary resources and troops at his
command, he had to display great tact, administra-
tive ability, and courage to hold that district in
the hands of the Liberals, and on more than one
occasion, and especially at Las Jicaras on July
2 2, 1858, he had to meet his opponents in the
open field, being successful in every instance.

During that period in his military career he
fell ill, and, while in such condition, his enemies
assaulted the post entrusted to his care. He
hastily rose from his bed and, sword in hand, by
word and action encouraged his soldiers, who
seemed to be faltering, and personally led the
charge against his opponents. Finally a vertigo
seized him and he fell suffering intensely from the
fever. His soldiers lifted him from the ground,
and he was again removed to his sick bed, but

rrt §

The War of Reform 9

not before he knew that his enemies had been
defeated.

By that time he had already attained the rank
of commandant, or major in his mihtary career.
His splendid victory, against great odds and
superior forces, at La Mixtequilla on the 17th
of June, 1859, gave him the title of Colonel in the
National Guard. Upon his taking the city of
Tehuantepec on the 2 5th of November of the same
year, he was made colonel in the regular army.

During the years 1858 and 1859 the Conserva-
tives had gained the ascendency throughout the
Republic and had established their government in
the City of Mexico, while President Benito Juarez
remained at Vera Cruz, upholding the principles
of the Liberal party. The Liberal leaders had
met with many reverses, but at last, towards the
summer of i860, the fortunes of war changed and
the Conservatives sustained many defeats. It
was then that their power in the State of Oaxaca
weakened to such a degree, that they may be said
to have governed and extended their authority
only in the capital city and through the country
surrounding it.

The Liberals attacked that city and captured it
on the 3d of August, i860. Porfirio Diaz had a
prominent part in that siege and assault, and was
severely wounded in the leg, but this wound did
not prevent him from accepting and actively
performing the duties of chief of staff.

During the period we refer to, and for several

lo Porfirio Diaz

years afterwards, his younger brother Felix fought
by his side with great bravery, and later on
met an untimely death.

Towards the end of October, i860, Porfirio Diaz
left Oaxaca with a brigade that was sent to aid
General Jesus Gonzalez Ortega, commander-in-
chief of the Liberal forces; but that brigade
arrived too late to take part in the great victory
obtained by Gonzalez Ortega at Calpulalpam
against the Conservative forces led by General
Miramon, but not too late to participate in the
triumphal entry of the Liberal troops in the City
of Mexico, which was followed soon after by the
restoration of President Benito Juarez.

Porfirio Diaz then returned to Oaxaca in
January, 1861, and shortly afterwards was elected
a deputy to the Federal Congress by the Ixtlan
district of his own state. He left for the City of
Mexico and entered Congress. His labors as a
legislator were of short duration, because while
the power of the Conservatives appeared to have
been thoroughly crushed, many of them gathered
together, and in June, 1861, had even the hardi-
hood of trying to attack the capital of the
Republic, so that Porfirio Diaz considered it his
duty to leave the halls of the legislature and again
enter military life.

At the head of the brigade of Oaxaca, he was
successful in thwarting the attack made by the
Conservatives along one of the causeways of the
capital; and then with the same brigade he joined

The War of Reform 1 1

the army corps commanded by General Gonzalez
Ortega, that had been sent in pursuit of the Con-
servative forces.

With this brigade alone, he overcame the troops
led by General Leonardo Marquez, near the
village of Jalatlaco, and totally crushed his
opponents. It was in that battle that Porfirio
Diaz came near losing his life at the hands of his
enemies, owing his safety to the instinct of his
horse, that brought him back safely from the
ranks of the Conservatives, which he had entered
alone, leading the assault, unattended. That
glorious victory was the means of his attaining
the rank of brigadier-general.

The Conservatives had yet to make a final stand,
and they did so near the city of Pachuca, when
they met with a signal defeat at the hands of the
Liberals on the 20th of October, 1861. Porfirio
Diaz took a most prominent part in that victory,
which may be said to have given the death-blow
to the power of the Conservatives in Mexico, and
to have put an end to the War of Reform.

CHAPTER III

THE WAR OF FRENCH INTERVENTION

WE now come down to the most important and
glorious period in the military career of
Porfirio Diaz.

The unjustifiable intervention in the domestic
affairs of the Mexican Republic by France, Eng-
land, and Spain, towards the end of the year 1861,
led to the invasion of the country by the forces
of those three foreign governments. Spain and
England soon withdrew, and it was only France,
then governed by Emperor Napoleon III, that,
assisted by a few Mexicans, led the onslaught
against republican institutions in Mexican soil.

The army that was sent by President Juarez to
oppose the invaders, in the early part of 1862,
comprised the Second Brigade, which was com-
manded by General Porfirio Diaz.

The very first encounter between the French
forces and the Mexican patriots took place at
Escamela, between Orizaba and Cordoba. A
portion of the brigade of Porfirio Diaz met the
enemy there, and afterwards, being reinforced
at Acultzingo, gallantly held its own against the
invaders.

o
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The War of French Intervention 13

All the Mexican army then retired towards
Puebla, where it arrived on the 3d of May, 1862,
and there the general-in-chief , Ignacio Zaragoza,
decided to make a stand against the foe.

On the 5th of May the glorious battle, which
resulted in a crushing defeat of the French, took
place. This brilliant victory is still celebrated
every year throughout the Republic. On that
occasion Porfirio Diaz commanded his brigade
and fought gallantly, and towards the latter part
of the day led the pursuit of the vanquished
French troops. In his official report of the bat-
tle the commander-in-chief of the Mexican army
highly praised the bravery displayed by General
Diaz.

Thereafter he took charge of the administra-
tion of the State of Vera Cruz, as well as of the
military operations carried on there against the
French forces. These received fresh reinforce-
ments, sent by Napoleon III, and again advanced
towards Puebla. General Zaragoza had died, and
General Gonzalez Ortega was at the head of the
Mexican troops, who held their ground in that
city for a period of two months. The heroic
deeds achieved by the Mexican defenders in the
daily struggles against the besiegers, and in which
General Diaz took a prominent part, make a
glorious page of Mexican history.

Finally the city had to surrender, and General
Diaz fell a prisoner in the hands of the invaders of
his country. He and other Mexican officers re-

14 Porfirio Diaz

fused to sign a document, binding themselves not
to endeavor to escape, nor to write to or correspond
with their families or friends. On that account a
sentinel was especially placed to guard him, but
Porfirio Diaz succeeded in eluding the vigilance of
his guard and finally reached the City of Mexico.

President Juarez wished to appoint him Secre-
tary of War, but as he considered that an older
and higher ranking officer should be appointed,
Diaz declined the honor proffered him, and merely
accepted the command of a division of the army.

When President Juarez decided to leave the
City of Mexico, and that city fell into the hands
of the invaders, General Diaz continued defending
the independence of his country and valiantly
fought in the states of Guerrero, Oaxaca, and
Puebla. Notwithstanding that, when Archduke
Maximilian became head of the so-called empire,
proposals were repeatedly made to him to abandon
the struggle and receive high honors and emolu-
ments from the Archduke's administration, such
offers were always indignantly rejected.

One of his great military feats during the cam-
paign above referred to was the taking of the city
of Taxco, where superior forces, well equipped and
with abundant ammunition, were not able to cope
with the strategy and valor of General Diaz, who
led the assault. Very soon after that event, he
received the full rank of major-general in the
regular army.

We now come down to the period when Field

The War of French Intervention 1 5

Marshal Bazaine assumed command of the Im-
perial troops and laid siege to the city of Oaxaca,
where General Diaz, then acting as governor of
the state, made a most brilliant defence. The
siege lasted several weeks, and when all food and
ammunition were exhausted, Porfirio Diaz, seeing
that further resistance and sacrifice were useless,
surrendered, and then had to endure a long period
of imprisonment.

In spite of the renewed efforts of his enemies
who offered him liberty and power, he continued
to refuse to give his promise not to take up arms
again in favor of his country. To one who, at that
time and in the name of the so-called empire,
offered him high honors and large rewards if he
would forsake the Liberal cause, he answered for
himself and his fellow soldiers in these noble words :
"We are resolved to go on with the struggle
unceasingly, and decided to conquer or die in our
endeavor, so as to leave to the coming generation
the same republic, free and sovereign, that we
inherited from our forefathers."

During his imprisonment, he spent several
months digging a tunnel from the cell where he
was immured. Unfortunately he was removed
to another building where, with redoubled vigil-
ance, he was kept confined. Notwithstanding
the precautions taken, he contrived to escape.
It is interesting to know the manner in which
he made his escape, and we will herein insert a
translation of his own account of that exploit :

1 6 Porfirio Diaz

On the afternoon of the 20th, I rolled together three
ropes, which I placed with another rope and a dagger
under my bedclothes. The dagger was well sharp-
ened and it was the only weapon I had at my disposal.

When the bell rang for the retirement of all in the
prison, I stepped upon an open balcony, close to the
roofs which overlooked an inner court -yard. I had
with me the ropes concealed in a gray cloth, and when
I noticed that nobody was near-by, I threw them on
the neighboring roof. I then tied my last rope over
a projecting stone gutter above, thinking that it was
very strong. The light around me was not sufficiently
bright to enable me to discern distinctly objects near
me. Having tested the strength of the rope and
gutter, and becoming satisfied that the latter could
support me, I climbed to the roof. There I united
this rope to the other three, that I had previously
flung overhead.

I had selected as the point where I would make my
descent to the street, the corner of San Roque, but
the walk to that corner was very dangerous. Near
me was the roof of a neighboring church which over-
looked all the convent where I was confined, and a,
picket of soldiers was stationed there, a sentinel being
on guard whose sole duty was to watch the prisoners.
I started and soon came to a portion of the roof which
had many windings, owing to the fact that the con-
vent cells were built between the corridors and several
rows of arches. I wended my way along, concealing
myself every time I could, and often having to crawl
on my hands and knees. I went on slowly and
as a matter of course towards the sentinel, while
seeking the place from which I had to make my
descent.

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Escape of Porfirio Diaz, Puebla, September, 1865

The War of French Intervention 17

I had to cross two sides of the court-yard, and this
I had to do carefully, in. order to make no noise while
stepping on the loose pieces of tile and glass, which
were scattered over the roof. While I was doing this,
the lightning at times brightened the sky, making it
possible that my presence would be revealed.

Finally I came to that portion of the wall, where
the sentinel, standing on the church parapet, could no
longer see me, unless he looked down very low. I
continued walking erect and slowly, trying to find out
if any alarm had been raised. It was then that I
encountered the greatest danger, for the masonry
sloped and was very slippery, especially after the
heavy rains that had fallen. In fact once my feet
slipped, and I was carried along towards some window
panes, which could have offered little resistance to
my weight; but fortunately I did not fall.

In order to reach the roof on San Roque Street,
where I wished to descend, I had to go over to the
side of the convent where the chaplain resided. This
chaplain some time before had denounced several
political prisoners who, while trying to escape, had
cut their way through his rooms, and owing to his
evidence they were taken out and shot soon afterwards.

I came to the roof of the chaplain's residence almost
out of breath. Just then a young man, who resided
there, opened the street door and entered ; he seemed
to have come from the theatre, for he was hum-
ming a lively tune. He went into his room, and then
came out with a lighted candle and started to walk in
the direction where I was. I hid while he was passing,
and fortunately he did not see me; finally he went
again into the house. All this probably took a few
minutes, but those minutes seemed to me hours.

1 8 Porfirio Diaz

When it appeared to me that he had been in his room
some time, and had gone to bed and perhaps was
sleeping, I stealthily went along the roof opposite to
the place where I had ascended, and finally reached the
San Roque corner.

There was at that comer of the roof a stone statue
of Saint Vincent Ferrer, and it had been my intention
to secure my ropes around it, but unluckily when I
touched the statue, it seemed to be about to fall.
Although I imagined that it might have an iron
support to make it stand erect, I thought it safer to
secure the ropes around the base of its pedestal, which
formed the corner of the building and appeared to be
strong enough to bear my weight.

Fearing that if I went down directly at the corner
of the street I might be seen by some passer-by, I
decided to descend by the side of the house which
was further from the main street, thereby having the
advantage of being in the shadow. Unfortunately,
when I got to the second story, my foot slipped from
the side wall, and I fell quite a distance into a pigs'
sty in a garden. My dagger dropped from my belt
and fell among the pigs, and when I stumbled over
them, they set up a terrible squealing, as perhaps one
of them had been wounded. This circumstance might
have led to my discovery if anybody had been aroused
by the noise they made. I concealed myself again
as soon as I got up, but had to wait until the squeal-
ing had subsided, before venturing out of the garden.
I went over a low fence and reached the street, but
had to beat a hasty retreat, as a policeman was just
passing by in his round, to see whether the doors of
the houses were properly fastened. Much to my
relief he went away and then perspiring and nearly

The War of French Intervention 1 9

exhausted with fatigue, I hastened to a house where
I knew I would find my horse, a servant, and a guide.
Having arrived safely there, we three loaded our
pistols, jumped on our saddles, and after avoiding a
mounted patrol which was passing by, we went to
the outskirts of the city. I was nearly sure that we
would be stopped at the city gates by the sentinels,
and it was my intention to fight my way out. How-
ever, we found the gate open, the guard seemed to
be asleep or away, so that we went through at full
trot, and then galloped along the road.

We have given a detailed account of this re-
markable escape of President Diaz from his foes,
both because we consider it interesting reading,
and because it is a sample of the various hair-
breadth escapes that he had during his military
career.

While his enemies set a price on his head and
were vainly endeavoring to recapture him, General
Diaz gathered fourteen cavalrymen, and with them
began his third campaign against the Imperialists.

By June, 1866, he had already quite a small
army under his orders. Then followed the bril-
liant victories he obtained at Nochixtlan, on
September 23d, at Miahuatlan on the 3d of
October, and at La Carbonera on the i8th of the
same month; the latter being such a well earned
and glorious triumph over the enemy, that
General Diaz thereafter was often styled "the
hero of La Carbonera."

We cannot forbear making more than a passing

20 Porfirio Diaz

reference to these last two victories, won by
General Diaz in a most brilliant manner. At
Miahuatlan he had only 900 poorly armed soldiers
and lacked ammunition, whilst the enemy con-
sisted of 1400 men, well equipped and having
two pieces of artillery. The moral effect of that
battle was great, and it served to raise the spirits
and the patriotic ardor of all Mexicans throughout
the Republic. At La Carbonera, although the
opposing forces were nearly equal in number, the
Imperialists were regular troops, consisting of
French, Austrians, and Hungarians and some
Mexican auxiliaries, and had six field pieces;
whilst the patriot army was made up of less
efficient troops and fewer guns. This victory left
in the hands of General Diaz 700 prisoners and
five cannon, while all the infantry officers of the
enemy were captured.

Thereafter he besieged the city of Oaxaca, and
during a period of twenty days there were incessant
encounters with the besieged, who at last surren-
dered on the 31st of October, 1866. The number
of prisoners then taken was iioo, and a large
amount of ammunition and thirty cannon fell into
the hands of the victors.

During the month of December, he defeated the
enemy in different localities near Tehuantepec,
and then he prepared his forces for the onslaughts
on the so-called empire, which were to take place
at the cities of Puebla and Mexico, while the final
and last act of the tragedy of the French interven-

!? -'""v^-

- r-f

The War of French Intervention 21

tion in Mexico was being enacted at the city of
Queretaro, and terminated with the execution
of Maximilian and his two generals, Miramon
and Mejia, at the Campanas hill near that city.

We do not wish to use language that might be
considered exaggerated in any degree, but the
taking of the city of Puebla by General Diaz on
April 2, 1867, must ever remain one of the most
brilliant pages in Mexican history.

Two circumstances render the surrender of
Puebla at that time as most remarkable and
interesting. In all other instances when that
city had been besieged, it had fallen into the hands
of the victors after incessant and daily combats,
lasting through weeks and months, but in this
case Puebla, after a few days of siege operations,
was taken by the energetic and vigorous onslaught
of the Mexican patriots led by their leader General
Diaz, and a few hours of bloody struggle brought
about the unconditional surrender of the garrison.
The other circumstance to which we may refer is
that, although the Imperialists, about the time
when the taking of Puebla occurred, had cruelly
shot many of the prisoners who had fallen into their
hands in various encounters, General Diaz, with
his customary humanity and magnanimity, spared
the lives of all those who surrendered.

Without loss of time he gathered his forces and
fell like a thunderbolt on the hosts of the enemy.
He thoroughly routed his opponents, who were
under the command of General Leonardo Marquez,

22 Porfirio Diaz

at San Lorenzo, on the loth of the same month,
April, 1867.

Immediately he marched on towards the City of
Mexico, to which he laid siege. At first he had not
sufficient forces to thoroughly establish the field
operations and surround the capital ; but gradually
fresh troops came, and with the guns and ammu-
nition captured at Puebla and San Lorenzo, he
was able to prevent any successful sortie from the
capital. The capture of Maximilian and his
generals at Queretaro on May 15th, became known
to the besieged and proved most disheartening
news. Still General Marquez would not surrender,
and on the morning of June 9th he tried to cut his
way through the lines of the besiegers, but General
Diaz ever watchful thwarted his purpose.

Finally the city capitulated. The siege had
lasted from the 12th of April till the 21st of June,
1867.

CHAPTER IV

THE RESTORATION OF THE REPUBLIC

UPON entering the capital of the Repubhc
with his forces, General Diaz avoided adopt-
ing any harsh measures towards his enemies,
established proper police administration for the
city, preserved public order, and safeguarded the
lives and property of its inhabitants. He ad-
ministered its municipal affairs, until President
Juarez and his Cabinet returned on July 15, 1867,
to assume the full administration of the Republic.
General Diaz, during his brief stay at the head of
the city government, elicited the commendations
of all classes of society; the municipality through
its Common Council tendered him a vote of
thanks, and he was able to turn over to the
general government a surplus of $300,000, over
and above all the expenses incurred, while he had
been at the head of affairs.

He was offered the office of Secretary of War,
or the command of one of the divisions of the army,
but as he considered that the Republic was fully
restored, and his services could be spared, he
preferred to retire from public life, and he did so,

24 Porfirio Diaz

like Cincinnatus of old, going to live on a small
farm, called La Noria, in his native state.

Later events brought him again into public
life, and he was acclaimed by a large portion of
his countrymen as a presidential candidate. The
triangular contest then ensued between the
partisans of Diaz, Juarez and Lerdo de Tejada.
The elections were held and political dissensions
began, which gave rise to civil war.

During that fierce contest General Diaz suffered
great hardships, but he never flinched nor deserted
his friends and partisans, who at all times followed
him on to victory, and never were cast down by
defeat. The political principles which he then
sustained were embodied in a document, called
"Plan de La Noria," having been prepared and
given out to his countrymen at the country place,
where he was residing at that time as already
stated.

The sudden death of President Juarez termi-
nated the fratricidal struggle, and thereafter Lerdo
de Tejada was elevated to the chief magistracy of
the nation, with the acquiescence of the followers
and admirers of General Diaz.

During Lerdo's administration and in the year
1874, Porfirio Diaz was elected a member of
Congress. His friends again looked upon him as
the presidential candidate for the coming election,
and public opinion began to manifest itself in his
favor.

It was then that President Lerdo de Tejada,

bJO

'rt

PL,

<-!-.

The Restoration of the Republic 25

through a mutual friend, proposed to him the post
of Minister Plenipotentiary at Berlin, which he
declined.

Soon after the electoral campaign began. The
attempt to re-elect President Lerdo de Tejada
against the will of the majority of the people, and
other causes which it would take too long to re-
hearse, led to the breaking out of civil war; the
opposers of the administration upholding the
"Plan of Tuxtepec,"! which embodied the party
program or platform of those who supported
General Diaz for the presidency.

As Daniel Webster has expressed it: "There are
enterprises, military as well as civil, which some-
times check the current of events, give a new turn
to human affairs and transmit their consequences
through ages." Such an enterprise was the one
that General Diaz undertook at the time referred
to.

If it were possible in this work to relate the
incidents of the new contest, the resourcefulness,
activity, and tenacity of General Diaz in upholding
the political principles or platform that had been
proclaimed at Tuxtepec, and afterwards modified
at Palo Alto2 on the 21st of March, 1876, would
still further be made patent and manifest. Suffice
it to say, however, that he and his followers fought

» Tuxtepec is a small town in the northern part of the State
of Oaxaca.

2 A small farm in the northern part of the Republic, not
far from the city of Matamoros.

26 Porfirio Diaz

bravely In various states of the Republic, and
had their ups and downs in the fortunes of war.

At one time President Diaz left the country and
went over to the United States, and, after having
been in New York and other cities, embarked at
New Orleans for Vera Cruz. During that trip one
of his many hair-breadth escapes occurred. He
entered the steamer in disguise, because the ports
of Vera Cruz and Tampico, for which it was bound,
were in the hands of the partisans of Lerdo de
Tejada. While at the latter port some govern-
ment troops took passage for Vera Cruz. Several
of the officers recognized him, and began to watch
him closely. He therefore decided to elude their
vigilance and threw himself overboard, providing
himself with a dagger as a defence against sharks.
His escape became known, and thereupon boats
were lowered and started in his pursuit. He swam
with great skill, but the boats at last gained on him
and he was captured. When taken on board he was
well-nigh exhausted. Thereupon the officer com-
manding the government troops attempted to
court-martial him on the spot, but the ship's
captain would not consent to this inhuman and
arbitrary proceeding, and merely permitted that
he should be held a prisoner until the steamer's
arrival at Vera Cruz, there to be delivered to the
authorities of that port. A close watch was set
upon him, but during the next night, which was
very dark, and while a storm was threatening,
he left his cabin unperceived, and sought refuge

The Restoration of the Republic 27

in the office of Mr. A. K. Coney, the purser, who
had befriended him.

Thereupon he threw a Hfe preserver into the
sea, and this led the government officers to believe
that he had again jumped overboard. A fruitless
search in boats then ensued, while he hid in the
locker or wardrobe of the purser's cabin. There
he had to endure great suffering, having to remain
crouched and not being able to sit down. He
even experienced the immediate fear of being
discovered, as on more than one occasion Lerdo's
officers entered the purser's cabin, stayed con-
versing there, and even played cards. His self-
imprisonment lasted several days, during which
time he lived on some crackers and water, which
the purser gave him from time to time.

At last Vera Cruz was reached, but there he was
still in great danger, as the city was in the hands
of the government forces. Fortunately one of the
friends of Porfirio Diaz was able to smuggle a
disguise for him on board, and in that costume he
contrived to leave the ship's side in a row boat,
which landed him far from the city, where some of
his followers awaited his arrival.

Thenceforward he continued the struggle with
greater success than theretofore. However a
further complication arose, inasmuch as the chief
justice of the supreme court, Jose Maria Iglesias,
having held that, owing to the illegality of the
elections, Lerdo de Tejada could no longer be
considered president, he, as the chief justice, who

28 Porfirio Diaz

under the Constitution was the vice-president of the
Republic, was entitled to be considered the .chief
magistrate of the nation.

Mr. Iglesias withdrew from the capital, formed
a cabinet and retired to the interior of the Republic,
proclaiming himself constitutional president. On
their side the supporters of General Diaz again
gathered in strength, declared that the elections
lately held were void, and that new elections should
be had. President Lerdo de Tejada prepared for
the coming struggle and collected troops, which
he sent under the command of a well experienced
military leader, General Ignacio Alatorre, to put
down his two opponents.

There is no doubt whatever that public opinion
and sentiment throughout the Republic were in
favor of General Diaz, and therefore well observing
persons considered that the final issue of the con-
test would be favorable to him.

The supporters of Chief Justice Iglesias melted
away and left him, as it were, alone with his
cabinet, and he then with his friends departed
for the United States, landing soon after in San
Francisco, California.

The troops led by General Alatorre were defeated
at Tecoac by the supporters of General Diaz, led
by himself and by General Manuel Gonzalez.
Thereupon President Lerdo de Tejada precipi-
tately left the Republic and went to New York
City, where he spent the rest of his life.

The inhabitants of the City of Mexico welcomed

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p-l

The Restoration of the RepubHc 29

the arrival of General Diaz, and soon after General
Juan N. Mendez, was placed in charge of the
executive power, and in December, 1876, new
elections were ordered to be held.

The large majority, which the candidacy of
General Diaz obtained, conclusively proved that
the people wished him to be at the head of the
administration of public affairs, and that they
considered him the statesman who could adopt
measures and carry out a policy that would pre-
serve peace and foster public improvements.

CHAPTER V

FIRST ADMINISTRATION OF PRESIDENT DIAZ

ELECTIONS were held for members of Congress,
and on the ist of April, 1877, that legislative
body met, and a month thereafter formally de-
clared that General Diaz had been elected president
of the Republic by the nearly unanimous vote cast
in 200 electoral districts. Although in some
districts elections were not held, owing to various
causes, the omission thus occurring would not
have in any way altered the result. As this elec-
tion was considered a ratification of the former
one, the term of office of President Diaz was held
to extend until the 30th of November, 1880.

He immediately inaugurated the plan which he
has always followed, of living unostentatiously.
He therefore declined to reside in the National
Palace, and dwelt in a house of very modest
appearance in Moneda Street, going to the Palace
every day to transact business and to be present
at all public functions.

One of the first tasks of his government was the
re-establishment of friendly relations with foreign
countries ; but at the inception of his administrative

First Administration 31

labors, he encountered some difficulties with the
American Government, which refused to acknow-
ledge that his authority over the Republic was
thoroughly established. It may be said, there-
fore, that for some time the relations between
Mexico and the United States were somewhat
strained.

Another branch of his administration to which
he gave at once particular attention, was the
fostering of enterprises with foreign capital,
especially the construction of railways. It is
from that time that the great railroad era for
Mexico commenced.

It may be supposed that the partisans of Lerdo
de Tejada and Iglesias did not look with favor on
the new administration, and therefore it is no
wonder that conspiracies and plots for the over-
throw of the new government were initiated.

Among these the most serious one was to have
led to an outbreak in Vera Cruz in June, 1877, and
the conspirators who had followers in other states,
and even in the capital of the Republic, thought
that the success of their plans was assured. Some
of the garrison were made to join in the machina-
tions of the enemies of the Diaz administration,
and even the crews of the war despatch boats In-
dependencia and Libertad rose in mutiny. Prompt
measures were adopted, and although through
some misunderstanding several of those who were
considered ringleaders were hastily condemned to
death and executed, the severity and promptness

32 Porfirio Diaz

of their sentence struck terror among their fellow
conspirators, and the revolution was smothered
at its very birth.

It was also during the first year of the new
administration that General Mariano Escobedo
invaded the Republic from Texas, but both he and
the other partisans of Lerdo de Tejada who had
risen in arms in the states of Tamaulipas and
Sinaloa were defeated. They were magnani-
mously pardoned by the President, who then
inaugurated his far-seeing and able policy of
attracting his enemies to his side and making them
his friends; and thus we see that all Mexicans
thereafter, irrespective of party affiliations, worked
in common accord under his guidance, for the
establishment of peace throughout the Republic.

Measures were then enacted and carried into
effect for the increase of the public revenue, for
the proper and honest administration of all public
funds, for the encouragement of agricultural and
mining enterprises and for the adequate adminis-
tration of justice throughout the country.

In 1880 General Ulysses S. Grant, whose friendli-
ness towards Mexico was well known, visited the
Republic, and was extended a most cordial and
enthusiastic reception by the government and
the people. This courteous treatment of one
of the greatest American military chieftains,
served to strengthen the bonds of friendship
between both countries, and marked, as it were,
the beginning of the great popularity that Presi-

General Porfirio Diaz
In his earlier administrations

First Administration 33

dent Diaz enjoys in the United States, and which
soon after was exemplified by his own cordial
reception in that country, to which we will refer
hereafter.

During the period of the first administration of
President Diaz, the salaries of all public employees
were paid, the instalment due yearly to the
United States Government, by virtue of the award
made by the Mixed Claims Commission, was
punctually cancelled; the importations and ex-
portations notably increased, the latter being
about $24,000,000 in 1879, ^^^ $32,000,000 in
1880, and railroad and telegraph lines were
inaugurated and other public improvements es-
tablished. In point of fact, all branches of the
public service were attended to properly, and a
degree of prosperity was experienced throughout
the country.

At the beginning of 1880, the question of the
presidential succession, that had been agitated,
was at fever heat, and several candidates were in
the field. General Manuel Gonzalez was the one
who had the larger and more important fol-
lowing, and although many people wished that
President Diaz might be re-elected, as at that
period there was a constitutional prohibition with
regard to the re-election of the president, he
would not allow his name to be put forward,
and at the same time abstained from exerting a
direct influence in support of any of the leading
candidates.

34 Porfirio Diaz

General Gonzalez received a large majority of
votes, and Congress duly declared him the suc-
cessor of President Diaz.

On the first of December, 1880, General Gon-
zalez assumed the reins of government, and for
the second time in Mexican history there occurred
the peaceful transmission of power from one pres-
ident to his successor.

President Diaz could justly say, at the termina-
tion of his first administration, that his policy had
been from the first, in the words of the martyred
President Abraham Lincoln: "To do all which
may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace
among ourselves and with all nations."

CHAPTER VI

HIS MARRIAGE AND TRAVELS

WHEN President Diaz turned over the ad-
ministration to General Manuel Gonzalez,
he expressed himself in the following words:

My aim has been to attain peace through the strict
observance of the Constitution: and as peace cannot
be lasting without prosperity, or the sure and proxi-
mate hope of obtaining it, all my efforts have tended
towards its promotion, especially by giving due im-
petus to interior, as well as to foreign, commerce.
The result of my labors is just beginning to be noticed,
and I have no doubt that you will know how to con-
tinue a work that is so greatly desired by the people
at large.

Privately he assured his successor that he could
command his services, should he consider them in
any way necessary or proper for the success of his
administration. President Gonzalez immediately
accepted that offer, and appointed General Diaz
Secretary of the Department of Public Promotion.
The latter devoted to that department all the
energy and talent, that he has always shown in
all public positions he has held.

36 Porfirio Diaz

The first work he accomplished in that depart-
ment was his inspection of the port of Tampico,
where, accompanied by the celebrated engineer,
Captain Eads, he laid the foundations for the
great improvements to be carried on in that im-
portant port of the Republic. He accomplished
other labors in the department under his charge,
and initiated various public improvements; but in
May, 1 88 1, he noticed that some of his colleagues
in the Cabinet, or several of the most ardent
partisans of General Gonzalez seemed to be jealous
of the influence he exerted, or that they thought
he did exert, over the President; he also noticed
the continued affection and popularity that he
seemed to enjoy, and not desirous of being an
impediment or obstruction in the path of the ad-
ministration. General Diaz resigned his post as
Secretary of Public Promotion.

Soon after, however, he was elected a member
of the Federal Senate, as well as Governor of his
native State of Oaxaca. It seemed to him that
he could be of greater service to his country in the
latter capacity, and therefore he accepted the
governorship.

He did not find the administration of the state
in a very flourishing condition : the public treasury
was exhausted; many public schools had been
closed, owing to the lack of funds for their support;
the public expenses were unnecessarily high and
the public revenues were unfortunately very low.

He commenced his administration under these

Carmen Romero Rubio de Diaz
Wife of the President

His Marriage and Travels 37

unfavorable circumstances, and immediately set to
work to correct the abuses then existing, to im-
prove the financial condition of the state and to
promote public improvements. One of these,
and a most important one, was the construction
of a railroad across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec
which, in later years, was to be justly considered
one of the greatest feats of engineering in the
Republic, if taken in connection with the most
important harbor works afterwards carried on
at Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos (now Puerto
Mexico). Great strides were made in the state
in the Department of Public Instruction, as he
reopened the public schools that had been closed
and also inaugurated three hundred additional ones
and an institute for manual training.

After having placed the administration of the
state on a sound basis, he asked leave of absence
from the Legislature, and went to the capital of
the Republic to enjoy a well needed rest.

General Diaz had been married to the daughter
of Doctor Ortega Reyes, and after a happy union
with her, she died during his first administration.
At the time when he returned to the City of Mexico
he had been a widower for some years.

It was then that he renewed the acquaintance
of the noted statesman and lawyer, Manuel
Romero Rubio, who had been a member of the
last Cabinet of Ex-President Lerdo de Tejada, and
who therefore had been his political opponent. It
was soon noticed that the frequent visits of General

38 Porfirio Diaz

Diaz to Mr. Romero Rubio's house, were mainly
due to his love towards the eldest daughter Carmen,
whose beauty and accomplishments, as well as her
charming disposition, made her one of the most
popular and beloved young ladies in the best
society circles of the capital. He became engaged
to her and in 1882 they were married, their
marriage being one of the most important social
events at the time.

During their honeymoon they visited the United
States, where they were most cordially and
enthusiastically received. They went to Wash-
ington, New York and other leading cities of the
American Union, and although General Diaz
would have wished to avoid all public manifesta-
tions, he could not prevent the government and
people of the United States from showing him and
Mrs. Diaz the high esteem in which they were
held. There were balls, banquets, and numerous
other entertainments and excursions given in their
honor.

Highly pleased with their trip, and grateful
to the American people and officials for their
kindness and real affection shown them, General
and Mrs. Diaz returned to the City of Mexico,
and went to live unostentatiously at their new
home in Humboldt Street, which is now occupied
by his son Lieutenant Colonel Diaz and family.

Even before his return the voters of the country
in general looked to him as the probable successor
of General Gonzalez. Some of the friends of the

His Marriage and Travels 39

latter statesman would have wished to have him
continue in office, in spite of the then existing
constitutional prohibition as to the re-election of
the chief magistrate of the Republic, but public
opinion seemed opposed to this plan. During
the last year of President Gonzalez's administra-
tion it was plain to all that his logical successor
would be General Diaz. It must be said that
President Gonzalez himself became convinced of
that fact and did not antagonize the trend of
public sentiment, which finally, in the summer of
1884, brought about the election of General Diaz
by an overwhelming majority.

The last public office that General Diaz held
during the administration of President Gonzalez
was that of Commissioner General of the Mexican
Department to the International Exposition held
at New Orleans, La., during the winter of 1884-85.

It was mainly due to his popularity, to his
untiring energy, and to his well directed efforts,
that the Mexican Department attained such great
success at that exposition. It was then really
that the people of the United States had the first
opportunity to get a thorough knowledge of the
great natural resources of Mexico and of the
condition of its manufactures, which promised to
attain higher development. The Mexican exhibit
elicited most favorable comments from the
American press, ever ready to render Mexico due
praise for its advancement.

The last months of the administration of Presi-

40 Porfirio Diaz

dent Gonzalez were rather unfortunate, inasmuch
as the over-issue of nickel coins, the proposed
settlement of the so-called "EngHsh Debt," the
issuance of certain stamp taxes and other measures
which were considered impolitic and unwise,
aroused public opposition in the press and in
Congress.

The stormy sessions held by the Chamber of
Deputies in the winter of 1884, and the bitter
denunciations of the government by the news-
papers, it is considered by many, might have led
to a public outbreak, or even to a revolution, had
it not been known that in the elections lately
held, General Diaz had been the successful candi-
date, as already stated, and the thorough con-
viction that the opponents of the administration
had, that under the new government public abuses
would be abolished and proper measures adopted
to correct all errors made, to restore public con-
fidence and to dispel any fears of public disorder
or discredit.

On the ist of December, 1884, General Gonzalez
turned over the reins of government to President
Diaz, and the latter again took charge of the
administration of the nation.

Ignacio Mariscal
Secretary of Foreign Relations

CHAPTER VII

NEW PRESIDENTIAL TERM FROM 1884 TO I

BESET with great difficulties, especially as
regards finances, President Diaz began his
new term of office by appointing as members of
his Cabinet, the following well known and public
spirited statesmen, namely: Ignacio Mariscal,
Secretary of Foreign Relations; Manuel Romero
Rubio, Secretary of the Interior; Joaquin Baranda,
Secretary of Justice and Public Instruction;
Carlos Pacheco, Secretary of Public Promotion;
General Pedro Hinojosa, Secretary of War and
Navy, and Manuel Dublan, Secretary of Finance.

President Diaz found the Treasury in a depleted
condition, heavy debts were outstanding, the
salaries of public employees were greatly in arrears,
and much difficulty was experienced in the col-
lection of sufficient revenue to pay in part current
expenses. The financial question was, therefore,
the one that necessarily first claimed the attention
of the Executive.

In desperate cases it is necessary to use des-
perate remedies, and therefore on the 2 2d of
June, 1885, and thereafter, stringent measures
were adopted for the funding of the public debt,

42 Porfirio Diaz

the proper collection of the revenues and their
possible increase, the diminution of unnecessary
expenses in all departments of the government and
even the taxation of salaries of public employees,
such salaries, however, being paid with due
regularity.

The policy pursued by President Diaz at this
time may well be described in the words of
Macaulay: "The real statesman is he who, in
troubled times, keeps down the turbulent without
unnecessarily harassing the well affected ; and who,
when great pecuniary resources are needed, pro-
vides for the public exigencies, without violating
the security of property and drying up the sources
of future prosperity."

It was at the beginning of this presidential term
that serious difficulties arose, with regard to the
relations between Mexico and Guatemala, owing
to the plan adopted by President Rufino Barrios
to assume the control of the administration of
the five Central American republics, against the
express wishes of the inhabitants and governments
of Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Costa Rica. Mex-
ico could do no less than protest against the illegal
acts of President Barrios. However, the death
of that leader in the battle of Chalchuapa put an
end to those difficulties, as the new administration
of Guatemala nullified all the acts of its former
Executive and peace was restored in the Central
American republics. During that agitated period
an army corps of 18,000 men was stationed at the

Term from 1884 to 1888 43

Guatemalan frontier, which was promptly with-
drawn when all danger of international conflict
disappeared.

The reference made by President Diaz in one
of his messages to Congress in 1885 to the
Guatemalan incident, is worth quoting, as therein
he reaffirms the wisdom of well known principles
of international law.

He said :

Congress may remember the attitude assumed by
the Executive, when General Justo Rufino Barrios
decreed by his own will the union of the five Central
American republics. The policy we so pursued met
with the approval, not only of a large majority in our
country, but also among other nations that uphold
the theory that the old right of conquest should not
prevail among the free peoples of America. General
Barrios' death in the battlefield of Chalchuapa,
and the repeal of the measures of that ill advised
President, as adopted by the Provisional Govern-
ment of Guatemala, put an end to the war, and
to the difficulties that thereby ensued to us. The
heroic bravery of the patriots who defended their
autonomy and the immediate signing of the peace
treaty brought about a satisfactory solution of
that conflict, to which solution the whole civil-
ized world could not forbear to give its approval ;
and what has occurred has served to again demon-
strate the principle that the respect for the sovereignty
of nations, however small and weak they may be,
must lie at the basis of international law.

President Diaz, as in former times, gave all

44 Porfirio Diaz

encouragement to the fostering of new mining
enterprises, to the construction of new railroads,
and to the establishment of new steamship lines,
while, as far as it was possible, the telegraph lines
and the mail facilities in the Republic were duly
increased. It was also during this period that new
impetus was given to the important works of
drainage of the valley of Mexico.

In the State of Sonora the Yaqui Indians, and
in the State of Yucatan the Mayas rose in arms
in some outlying districts, but government forces
soon put an end to their incursions. A local
disturbance occurred in the State of Zacatecas,
which some feared might assume greater propor-
tions under the leadership of General Garcia de
la Cadena, but his death put an end to such illegal
agitation.

The credit of Mexico abroad attained a most
satisfactory condition, and from that time, it may
be said, with perfect truth, that Mexico's public
credit in Europe and in the United States has
been considered first class, and that the name of
President Diaz has given to all Mexican obliga-
tions, during his successive administrations, the
seal of honesty and solvency on the part of the
nation, which formerly did not enjoy any credit
in the financial markets of the world.

It was during this presidential term that Mexico,
recognizing the importance of its diplomatic
mission in the United States, built and furnished
an appropriate residence for its Minister.

k tttm

P^-

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Term from 1884 to 1888 45

A passing reference may be made here to the
once celebrated Cutting case, which was a contro-
versy arising from the sentence by a Mexican judge
of an American writer accused of having Hbelled
at El Paso a Mexican citizen, and of having caused
such libel to be circulated in Mexican territory.
That case gave rise to annoying controversies in
the press of both countries, and to the interchange
of very able and interesting notes between both
governments, which finally led to the satisfactory
termination of this disagreeable incident.

The success attained by President Diaz in this
period of his administration made all patriotic
Mexicans consider it necessary to have the Federal
Constitution amended in such a way as to per-
mit his re-election. This was done by the express
vote of the legislatures of all the states, and in
due compliance with constitutional enactments.

In order to give a further outline of the ad-
ministrative work done in this period, we will
quote some paragraphs from the last message of
President Diaz to Congress, which he delivered on
the 1 6th of September 1888, after the presidential
elections had been held, and he had been almost
unanimously re-elected Chief Magistrate of the
Republic.

After stating that public order and peace pre-
vailed throughout the country, and that the
international relations of Mexico with all foreign
countries were most friendly and satisfactory, he
said:

46 Porfirio Diaz

The elections held for the renewal of the federal
authorities have taken place, under the peaceful
conditions existing in our territory. No political
question, not even of a local character, has disturbed
during the recess of Congress, the public order and
harmony fortunately existing between the federal
and state governments. These favorable circum-
stances have allowed all to devote their attention to
public and administrative improvements, to the
progress of public instruction, and to daily strengthen
public security, and all these factors have proved of
great influence and still continue to give a good
reputation to the Mexican nation."

With reference to public improvements, the
President stated that the aggregate extent of
railroad lines in the Republic amounted to 7500
kilometers, that the telegraph lines had been
increased by 950 kilometers, and that the works
of improvement in Vera Cruz harbor were being
carried on with due regularity.

With regard to the Department of Finances,
the President said in part as follows :

The work of reorganizing the public finances is go-
ing on, but like every other administrative reform of
importance, it will require some time to have it carried
out to a satisfactory conclusion. Nevertheless it
may be stated that, although the financial situation
is not entirely prosperous, there are circumstances
which rightly make us hope that it is continuing along
the road of improvement ; because the Republic shows
at the present moment an extraordinary development
of the elements which constitute national wealth.

Term from 1884 to 1888 47

The Treasury has been able to fully meet all payments
decreed in the appropriation bills, thanks to the
increase in the federal revenues. This is due to
the enhancement in the value of private property, the
development of commerce, and the greater exporta-
tion of Mexican products, as well as to the favorable
condition of our credit, which never has been as high
as it is now.

Farther along in his message he says: "The
exportations of national products rose during the
last fiscal year to $48,745,560. . . . The revenues
continued to improve. During the last fiscal
year which ended on the 30th of June, the total
revenues amounted to $32,508,564."

The closing paragraph of the message of Presi-
dent Diaz is well worth quoting in full:

Since November, 1884, the development of the
country, which at first was difficult, became after-
wards more rapid and has had a continuous increase,
in perfect accord with the development of the public
administration whose advancement, although labori-
ous has been sure, and to which I made reference in
my former message. Public improvements, such as
railroad and telegraph lines, as well as all the ele-
ments of public wealth which then existed have had a
most satisfactory increase: and public credit which,
owing to inveterate errors, as well as to unfortunate
circumstances, had made it entirely nugatory, has
become favorable to Mexico both at home and abroad,
and every day has been consolidated and served to
attract foreign capital and industry, which formerly
seemed to avoid our country.

48 Porfirio Diaz

Although President Diaz, with his customary-
modesty, ends his message by saying that the
results attained at the end of his presidential
term, were not due to his own unaided efforts, but
to the assistance that he received for such labors
from the people at large and his advisers, there is
no doubt that his name, his tact, his activity and
his well devised plans were the leading factors in
the success of his administration.

j|- /''iflMfliff

Upper Stories

Staircases
Post-Office — Mexico City

CHAPTER VIII

FROM 1888 TO 1892

THE elections held throughout the Republic
resulted overwhelmingly in favor of the
candidacy of President Diaz, and after the due
ratification of such election by Congress, he was
again inaugurated on the ist of December, 1888.
The public rejoicing over this event plainly
showed that the people at large gave the seal of
their approval to the administrative acts of his
government, and that they desired that his
policies should be continued.

From the beginning of this new term, it was
manifest that President Diaz wished to extend
the influence of Mexico abroad, and to let his
country be known in all the leading nations of the
globe.

It was with this end in view, that a treaty for
the establishment of an International Boundary
Commission between the United States and
Mexico, was entered into, the negotiations for a
new extradition treaty between the two countries
were commenced, and treaties of friendship, com-
merce and navigation with Great Britain and
4 49

50 Porfirio Diaz

Japan were concluded, while other international
pacts with various nations were being negotiated.

Among the countries that at that time entered
into friendly relations with Mexico, we may-
mention Brazil, Japan, Russia, and the Argentine
Republic.

In October, 1889, the first Pan-American Con-
ference opened its sessions at the city of Washing-
ton, D. C. Mexico took part in that international
gathering and was ably represented by Minister
Matias Romero and General Enrique A. Mexia,
both now deceased. It is needless to say that
said Conference was as greatly advantageous to
the United States Government and its people
who promoted the meeting, as to the govern-
ments and countries which took part in the same.

We may make here passing reference to two
incidents that occurred in 1890, which showed that
the friendly relations between Mexico and the
United States could not be disturbed through
slight causes.

When presenting his credentials to the Costa
Rican Government, the American Minister to
that country uttered some phrases, which rightly
wounded the susceptibility of the Mexican Govern-
ment. Upon the proper complaint being made in
Washington, the Government of the United States
rebuked its diplomatic representative for his
conduct in this case.

The other incident refers to the ill-advised pro-
posed purchase of the territory of Lower Califor-

From 1888 to 1892 51

nia. President Diaz in his message to Congress,
on April 18, 1890, alluded to this matter in the
following words:

It seems that a happy termination has been had
regarding the disagreeable incident initiated by the
Chamber of Commerce of Los Angeles, in California,
and seconded by the government of that state,
with reference to their proposition to negotiate with
us the sale of Lower California; since lately, owing
to a report of the American Secretary of State,
wherein he showed the impossibility of such negotia-
tion because it was entirely opposed to the unanimous
sentiment of the Mexican people and Government,
the Senate of that Republic unanimously resolved
not to take such proposal into consideration. Thus,
disagreeable discussions on that subject will be
avoided, although at all events the resolution of the
Mexican Government in regard to this matter would
have been the same, because it never could be other
than that approved by the universal sentiment of our
people.

It was also at the beginning of this term of
office that due attention was given to the improve-
ment of public hygiene, the construction of a
national penitentiary was rapidly pushed on,
while the survey and sale of public lands were
duly attended to.

The death of Ex-President Lerdo de Tejada in
the city of New York having occurred, his remains
were brought to Mexico City and an imposing
funeral was held there, at which President Diaz,

52 Porfirio Diaz

all the members of his Cabinet, and the leading
statesmen of the Republic were present.

Mexico was well represented at the Universal
Exposition held in Paris in 1889, and the number
of premiums obtained by its exhibitors showed
the importance of a Mexican exhibit at that fair.

Towards the end of January, 1890, the last in-
stalment of the debt due the United States,
growing out of the award of the Mixed Joint Claims
Commission, was paid.

It was also in 1890, that the harbor works in
Tampico were inaugurated, while those of Vera
Cruz were rapidly being pushed forward.

That year also witnessed the beginning of the
construction of the General Hospital at the cap-
ital, which, when terminated some years after-
wards, deserved the encomiums of all foreigners
who visited it.

During the beginning of the year 189 1, the De-
partment of Communications and Public Works
was established, and thereby one more member
was added to the Cabinet.

It was then also that the Sanitary Code was
issued, as well as a new custom-house ordinance
and tariff.

Mexico having been invited to take part in the
World's Fair to be held at the city of Chicago in
the year 1893, the invitation was accepted, a
commission was appointed that gathered a large
variety of exhibits and it afterwards successfully
presented them at that exposition.

President Diaz

(From a Painting)

From 1888 to 1892 53

During the year 1892, the fourth centenary of
the discovery of America was duly celebrated
throughout the Republic, while a commission,
sent expressly by the government, worthily repre-
sented Mexico at the festivities held in Madrid on
that occasion.

The total loss of the crops, the high rate of ex-
change due to the depreciation of silver, and the
economic crisis which then ensued, brought about
a reduction in the revenues of the government;
but President Diaz, acting with foresight, adopted
measures which brought about the satisfactory
result of increasing the permanent revenues of the
government. He furthermore obtained a loan
abroad, which served to avoid and overcome all
financial difficulties encountered by the federal
administration.

As the Constitution of the Republic had been
amended, so that it permitted the re-election of
a president for one term only, it was plain that
President Diaz could not again assume the reins
of government for another term of office. As all
thoughtful men and patriotic citizens became con-
vinced that, in order to continue to enjoy the
blessings of peace, to strengthen Mexico's credit
abroad and to keep up the material advancement
of the Republic, the presence of President Diaz at
the head of the government was indispensable, an
amendment of the Constitution was adopted in
strict conformity with law, permitting the re-elec-
tion of the President, without any restriction as to

54 Porfirio Diaz

the number of times that he might be re-elected.
It was then that the candidacy of President Diaz
for the term of 1892 to 1896 was presented,
and was enthusiastically received throughout
the country. His election soon followed, by
nearly the unanimous vote of the electoral
college.

In reviewing the acts of his administration,
during the term then ended, we may properly
make reference, as we did in the preceding chap-
ter, to the message he read to the Federal Congress
on September 16, 1892, which was the last of this
term of office.

He begins that message by stating, as in former
ones, that peace and order existed throughout
Mexican territory, and that the relations of Mexico
with foreign nations were cordial and friendly.
He then gives a succinct, but fair statement, of
the progress attained by the Republic in all the
various departments of the administration, show-
ing, among other things, that great strides were
made in the Department of Public Instruction,
that the mining and agricultural resources of the
country at large were being developed, that tele-
graph and railroad lines continued to be built,
that the harbor works of Vera Cruz and Tampico
and the drainage works of the valley of Mexico
were duly attended to, and that the necessary
measures for the improvement of the financial
status of the nation were being adopted.

It was therefore proper and just for President

From 1888 to 1892 55

Diaz to close his message with the following
phrases :

As on former occasions, and with the same frank-
ness and truthfulness, I have given you an account of
the administrative acts performed since the date of
my last message, without concealing from you any-
thing that might serve to give you a right under-
standing, not only of the advancement made, but also
of the difficulties at present existing. As you may
have observed, the latter refer to the financial con-
dition of the country, which is due to causes that are
not subject, in any way, to the influence or authority
of the government; it is therefore proper to modify
some of its effects by the adoption of prudent meas-
ures relative thereto. Furthermore the advancement
which commenced some years back in the Republic
has not encountered, nor is it to be feared that it will
encounter, a considerable setback, and the potent
influence of peace, which is now fortunately consol-
idated, will undoubtedly be of great service to the
Republic in its progressive advancement.

Even if during the presidential term that is about
to terminate, no other advantage should have been
secured, but this inestimable benefit, my aspirations
would have been satisfied, because the obtainment
of greater happiness for the Mexican people is princi-
pally to be due to the virtues which have preserved
them in the critical period of their history and to their
love of order, economy, and labor, which shall place
them some day among the nations most apt to gather
the fruits of our modern civilization.

CHAPTER IX

FROM 1892 TO 1896

THE same manifestations of joy and satis-
faction were shown upon the inauguration
of the new presidential term. The same policies
that had guided his former administrations were
continued in the one that commenced on the ist
of December, 1892.

President Diaz carried on through the Depart-
ment of Foreign Relations the promotion of closer
ties with those countries to which Mexico had sent
diplomatic representatives, and at the beginning
of his new term of office he initiated negotiations
for the establishment of friendly and diplomatic
relations with the Chinese Empire.

Certain boundary questions between several
states of the union had caused some friction and
displeasure between such states, but the friendly
action and advice of President Diaz led to the
proper adjustment of those difficulties. In the
State of Guerrero some local disturbances occurred
in October, 1894, but they were quickly suppressed,
and did not affect in the least the peace and order
of the rest of the Republic.

'i V:*l,.CK«>:>,-/;'?'5-"">''

^ksms^E;

Mrs. Diaz

Wife of the President

From 1892 to 1896 57

The new laws adopted with the view of raising
more revenue by means of new and additional
taxation and through foreign loans, began to give
satisfactory results, and it was noticeable that
the economical crisis that had threatened the
country during the last year of the preceding term,
had nearly passed away.

Mexico continued to take great interest in all
international gatherings, and Mexican delegates
were sent to various congresses held in the United
States and Europe; the policy of sending such
delegates, having proved most advantageous, as
it has given Mexico a standing among the pro-
gressive nations of the world, and spread within
its borders the knowledge made in all the branches
of science and art.

It proved most satisfactory to the Mexican
people to know that, according to the official re-
port published with reference to the World's Fair
held at Chicago in 1893, the number of premiums
granted to Mexican exhibitors was 1777, thus
showing the great merit and importance of the
Mexican Department at that exhibition. It may
be stated here that the policy of President Diaz
has ever been to spare no expense and to devote
great energy and labor in the participation of
Mexico at all international expositions. It is
dtie to this policy that the Mexican Republic has
had the satisfaction of being so well represented
at all those expositions, and of attaining in the
succeeding international fairs held at Paris, Buffalo,

58 Porfirio Diaz

and St. Louis (Missouri) , the same success as at the
Chicago Exposition.

At the beginning of the year 1894, the boundary-
questions pending between Mexico and Great
Britain, relative to the State of Yucatan and the
province of BeHze, were satisfactorily adjusted by
treaty, thus putting an end to vexing and danger-
ous controversies between the Mexican and British
governments.

During the latter part of the same year, some
difficulties arose with the Guatemalan Govern-
ment, regarding some illegal acts committed by
officials of that government within Mexican terri-
tory. The excitement among the people due to
those difficulties rose to fever pitch, and the patri-
otic sentiments of the citizens led them to desire
war with the neighboring Republic. President
Diaz and his advisers had to act most wisely and
prudently at this juncture, and it was due to this
prudence and wisdom that an international conflict
was avoided, thus preventing the shedding of
blood and destruction of property in both repub-
lics. All questions pending were finally settled
on the ist of April, 1895, by means of an agreement
entered into on behalf of Mexico by its Secretary
of Foreign Relations, Mr. Ignacio Mariscal, and on
behalf of Guatemala by Mr. Emilio de Leon, its
diplomatic representative at the City of Mexico.

A great stride was made during the year 1894
in regard to public hygiene, by the promulgation
of the new Sanitary Code, whose wise provisions,

From 1892 to 1896 59

properly carried out by the efficient head and
members of the Superior Board of Health, may
be said to have eradicated yellow fever from dis-
tricts which formerly suffered greatly from that
dreaded epidemic, and to have prevented bubonic
plague and other contagious diseases from entering
the Republic.

In the same year, 1895, the public debt was
definitely arranged, without impairing in any way
thereby the credit of the country.

In October, 1895, the International Congress of
Americanists was held at the City of Mexico, and
thereafter other international gatherings have
selected the capital of the Republic as a place for
their deliberations; the honor thus conferred on
the City of Mexico being indicative of the high
credit and reputation that the country now enjoys
abroad.

In the message that President Diaz read to
the Federal Congress on the ist of April, 1896,
that is, during the last year of the administration
to which we are referring, he made most important
declarations on what is styled the "Monroe Doc-
trine," which we cannot forbear from quoting in
extenso, because they give a clear and precise
understanding of that doctrine by General Diaz
and by the Mexican Government.

His statement and the phrases that comprise
it, attracted so much attention in both countries,
that some considered it a new departure in inter-
national law, or rather the reaffirmance of well

6o Porfirio Diaz

settled principles with reference to the question
under discussion.

The portion of President Diaz's message in
question, was as follows: .

Among the events referring to that great Republic
[the United States], that, since my last message have
greatly claimed the attention and interest of all
American nations, there is one regarding which I shall
say a few words, impelled thereto by reasons of
national decorum and convenience. Owing to an
old boundary dispute between Venezuela and the
territory called British Guiana, which question
recently became acute, on account of causes which it
is not necessary to examine, the President of the
United States of America sent a message to the
Congress of that nation bringing to its consideration,
as applicable to said controversy, the famous opinion
or doctrine which was presented by President Monroe
in a similar document, and that since 1823 has been so
well received by the American people. It was very
natural that the reference to that doctrine, which
opposes every attempt of European usurpation and
every monarchical tendency to change the republican
institutions of the New World, should be enthusiasti-
cally received by the free nations of this continent,
and bring forth manifestations of sympathy by the
peoples and even by the governments of America.

The Mexican Government was invited through
international channels to express at once its opinion
on that most serious question; but the Executive
considered that it ought not to give a hasty opinion
on a matter which at that time not only comprised
the Monroe Doctrine, but also referred to the applica-

.!:r o

.-I D

From 1892 to 1896 61

tion of its principles to the case of Great Britain in its
controversies with Venezuela. As we did not know
that question, perhaps, as well as the United States
knew it, for it had received special information on the
subject from the Venezuelan Government, we could
not be in a position to assume that what England
pretended to do could constitute an attempt at usurpa-
tion. Neither could we believe that every boundary-
question in its very nature, and even when relating to
questions still under dispute could give rise to an
application of that wise doctrine.

Furthermore, the mere fact that England should
refuse to submit to arbitration its rights to a portion
of the disputed territory — since it admitted it with
reference to the balance — could not in our judgment
be sufficient cause for that unfavorable opinion, since
the Mexican Government itself has declared, on more
than one occasion, that it will not submit to arbitra-
tion certain territorial questions which, according to
its judgment, affect the national honor. It was for
this reason that I personally avoided making any
manifestations through the press, regarding a question
which directly related to the interests or the finer
sentiments of three nations for which we had similar
regard; and I merely said that naturally I was a par-
tisan of the Monroe principles when well understood,
but that I did not know whether they were applica-
ble to the special case to which reference had been
made.

But now that fortunately, and as it was to be
expected, the critical period has passed, which it
was thought might lead to war between the two
great nations into which the Anglo-Saxon race is
divided: now that our sister republic Venezuela is

62 Porfirio Diaz

continuing at Washington its peaceful negotiations
with its powerful adversary, it seems that it would
not be improper to yield to the desire of those who have
asked the Mexican Government to express its opinion
with regard to the Monroe Doctrine. Without
entering into disquisitions as to the origin and the
historic moment which gave rise to its proclamation;
without entering into details as to the proper limita-
tions which its own author set to it, and which were
referred to so skilfully by President Cleveland, the
Mexican Government can do no less than be in favor
of a doctrine which condemns as unjust any invasion
made by monarchical Europe against the American
republics, against such independent nations which
to-day are administered by that popular form of
government. Our general history and especially the
struggle of our people to shake off the yoke of a foreign
empire of European origin, form and elements, and the
torrents of blood, shed in that terrible struggle, testi-
fied before the world our love of independence and our
hatred of all foreign intervention.

But we do not consider that in order to attain the
object that we desire it is sufficient that the United
States alone, notwithstanding the greatness of its
resources, should have the obligation to aid the other
republics of this hemisphere against the attacks of
Europe, — if such are yet considered possible, — but
that each one of them, by means of a declaration
similar to that issued by President Monroe, should
proclaim that any attack from any foreign power,
which may be directed to injure the territory or the
independence, or to change the institutions of any
one of the American republics, should be considered
by the nation making such declaration as an offence

From 1892 to 1896 63

against it, if the other nation which sustained the
attack, or to which a threat of that character
is directed, should ask its aid at the opportune
moment.

In this way the doctrine, now styled Monroe Doc-
trine, would become the American Doctrine in its
most ample sense, and if it is true that it has had its
origin in the United States, it could form a part of
the international law of all America. What are the
means of attaining this result in a practical and con-
venient manner, is a question that cannot be discussed
in this message.

Long before the end of the term of office of Presi-
dent Diaz to which we are referring, public opinion
again demanded his re-election. It was at the
urgent solicitation of all parties, that the President
allowed his name to be brought again before the
voters as a presidential candidate. We may
say that the canvass in his favor in this in-
stance, was as successful as it had been on former
occasions.

Before the close of this term, he read before
Congress on the i6th of September, 1896, his last
message, which showed a most satisfactory condi-
tion of affairs all over the Republic in all branches
of the public service. It was during this term to
which we refer that the public revenues exceeded
the public expenses, the former amounting to
$50,000,000, and that there was left a balance in
favor of the nation of about $4,500,000; a most
satisfactory result, for which due praise must be
given, not only to the President, but also to Mr.

64 Porfirio Diaz

Jose Ives Limantour, who was at the head of the
Treasury Department.

President Diaz rightly and properly concluded
the message to which we refer in the satisfactory
phrases that he addressed to the members of the
Senate and Chamber of Deputies, as follows:

As you may have been able to infer from the facts
that I have briefly stated, the nation has not halted
on its onward advance, and every day all the branches
of the public service are improving, even in spite of
some obstacles which might retard that progress.
So we have seen that the national revenues, whose
excess over the public expenses was such an agreeable
surprise upon the termination of the first half of the
last fiscal year, increased so materially in the second
half and in the months that have clasped since then,
that to-day we have at our disposal a larger balance,
and this has been done notwithstanding that new
taxes had to be levied, causing thereby some in-
convenience, in order to substitute the revenues
heretofore obtained through interstate imposts.
Furthermore, the very noticeable advance in our
mineral products, shown by the increase in the expor-
tation of minerals ; the registry of property amounting
to $30,000,000 in a single period of three months, and
many other data that we have at hand regarding
public wealth, tend to prove its growing advancement
within the last few years. In order that this era of
prosperity, which has for its basis the present existence
of peace and public order, may continue without any
interruption, we must rely undoubtedly not only on
the good sense of the Mexican people, but also on the

Jose Yves Limantour
Secretary of Finance

From 1892 to 1896 65

patriotic efforts which have been shown by the
members of Congress.

We cannot close this chapter without making
reference to the abolition of interstate imposts,
mentioned in the last paragraph of President
Diaz's message, because the suppression of such
imposts was one of the most beneficial measures
initiated and carried out by the administration of
President Diaz, and has proved to be a great in-
centive and means of developing the resources of
the Republic, and of attracting foreign capital to
aid in the progress of all industries.

CHAPTER X

FROM 1896 TO 1900

THE beginning of the presidential term of
General Diaz, which commenced on the ist
of December, 1896, showed that the increase in
public revenues was such that the tax on the
salaries of public employees could be done away
with.

Various financial measures marked the first
months of that term, such as the issuance of the
general law regulating institutions of credit,
the provisions regarding the collection of taxes
on precious metals and the amendments to the
tariff regulations. During that period of time,
large amounts of money were spent in the prose-
cution of important public improvements, such
as the National Penitentiary, the General Hos-
pital, and the drainage works of the valley of
Mexico.

The banking facilities of the country were in-
creased during this term of President Diaz's ad-
ministration, by the establishment of various
state banks, and certain modifications of impor-
tance were introduced in the Department of War

From 1896 to 1900 67

and Navy ; the army having been newly equipped,
its efficiency was thereby improved.

During the year 1898, the war between the
United States and Spain occurred, and President
Diaz maintained the strictest neutrality towards
the two contending nations, and thus prevented
any controversy arising with either of the bel-
ligerents, on account of any act performed by the
Mexican authorities.

A passing reference may be made to the submis-
sion to arbitration of a claim presented against
Mexico by Charles Oberlander and Barbara Mes-
singer, owing to the imprisonment of the former
by the Mexican authorities of the territory of
Lower California, as it shows the policy already ini-
tiated by the Mexican and American governments
of appealing to arbitration for the settlement of
controversies regarding pecuniary claims. It may
be added that this case was submitted to the
Argentine Minister at Madrid, who decided that
Mexico was not liable in any way and rejected
the claim in its entirety.

It was at the beginning of the year 1899 that
Mexico and the United States resolved to raise the
rank of their diplomatic representatives to that of
ambassador, and Mr, Matias Romero, whose long
and successful services were highly appreciated,
was appointed Mexico's first ambassador to the
American Government. Unfortunately, death
claimed as its own that distinguished diplomat,
and as a matter of fact, the able Sub-Secretary

68 Porfirio Diaz

of Foreign Relations, Mr. Manuel Azpiroz, who
was appointed successor to Mr. Romero, was the
first Mexican diplomat who presented his cre-
dentials as ambassador in Washington.

The messages read by President Diaz in the four
years of the term of his administration to which
we are referring, plainly showed how satisfactory
the financial condition of the country was, and
what great strides had been made and improve-
ments effected in all the branches of the public
service.

In the month of May, 1899, Mexico took part in
the great Peace Congress, which was held at The
Hague, upon the invitation of the Emperor of
Russia; it lasted a period of three months and
was fruitful in beneficial results. It may be stated
here that Mexico and the United States were the
only American republics that were invited and
took part in that important Congress.

Speaking of its work, President Diaz in one of
his messages to the Federal Congress says:

The fruit of its labors, during the period of its
sessions, consisted of three conventions, and as many
declarations, all signed by the delegates of Mexico;
the former referring to the peaceful settlement of
international controversies, to the laws and customs
of war by land, and to the application in wars by sea
of the principles that had been adopted since 1864
by the Geneva Conference. The declarations relate
to the prevention of the use of certain kinds of
projectiles.

President Diaz in the Executive Chair

From 1896 to 1900 69

The convention for the peaceful settlement of inter-
national conflicts is most remarkable, both on account
of its essential characteristics and the manner of
procedure therein described. By virtue thereof a
permanent court of justice, with its administrative
council is established, which either by the issuance of
sentences that shall bind the nations making the
agreement, or by the signing of opinions, supported
by the moral prestige of those who prepare them,
shall act as a means to peacefully settle any inter-
national conflict, which does not relate to the honor or
to the essential interests of the nation.

As a consequence of our participation in the Peace
Conference, Mexico as well as the European powers,
the principal nations of Asia, and the United States
of America, shall have its international judges in that
permanent court. We will also take part in the
administrative council of said court, which shall
consist of the ministers accredited at The Hague.

In the same message to which we have just re-
ferred, some paragraphs are found which fully
explain the successful financial operations carried
on in Europe by the government, through its
Secretary of Finance, Mr. Limantour, and we
cannot forbear making the following quotations
from the same:

In strict compliance with the prescriptions adopted
by Congress in the law which authorizes the executive
to convert the national debt payable in gold, adequate
arrangements therefor have been made, through the
Secretary of Finance, while that functionary was in
Europe on a temporary leave of absence. Detailed

7o Porfirio Diaz

information of that operation will be sent to Congress
at the proper time ; but I can at once point out the
principal advantages which it will have for the public
treasury. They consist in the reduction of one per
cent, in the rate of interest, which will be quite an
economy in the annual payment of the same ; in the
suppression of the deposits and assignments of certain
funds, agreed to be given as guarantee of the former
loan contracts, which will permit their disposal or
their use hereafter in the manner that might be more
advantageous to the public treasury; in the cancella-
tion of the mortgage of the Tehuantepec Railroad ; and
finally, in the unification of the foreign debt.

During the beginning of the year 1900, the great
harbor works at Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos
were commenced. These works, with those under
way in Vera Cruz, Tampico, Mazatlan and Man-
zanillo, were ultimately bound to convert those
ports into the safest harbors of this continent.

It may now be both interesting and important
to take notice of two incidents referred to in Presi-
dent Diaz's messages of 1900, which gave rise to
manifestations of good-will towards Mexico on
the part of the United States, and of the upright
manner in which American courts have dealt with
matters wherein the Mexican Government was
concerned.

We refer first to the action taken by the At-
torney General of the United States, at the request
of the Mexican Embassy at Washington, under
instructions from the Mexican Government, to

From 1896 to 1900 71

discontinue two suits brought against Mexico in
the courts of the State of New York on alleged
claims against that government, thereby reaffirm-
ing the principle of international law that a
sovereign nation cannot, without its consent, be
sued in the courts of another country.

The other incident is the dismissal by the Su-
preme Court of the United States of the appeal of
the claimants in the celebrated La Abra and Weil
cases, against the decision of the Court of Claims,
setting aside for fraud the award made in favor of
such claimants by the Mixed Claims Commission.
We may add that thereafter the Senate of the
United States declined to intervene in any way in
favor of the claimants, and that the American
Government not only refused to collect any
further part of the award, but went even further
and reimbursed Mexico the part already collected
by the United States and paid over to the owners
of those fraudulent claims.

The success attained by President Diaz in all
branches of the administration was even more
marked and conspicuous, if possible, during this
period than in any of the former ones ; and there-
fore it was nothing but natural that public opinion
with great unanimity should demand his re-elec-
tion. This event took place in the customary
manner, there being no opposing candidate, and
the votes cast showing an overwhelming majority
in his favor.

On the 1 6th of September, 1900, he presented

72 Porfirio Diaz

to Congress his final message embracing that term
of his administration.

The following is the closing paragraph of that
message :

I have terminated this brief statement, which, like
those of former years, shows not only the advance-
ment made by the government in all its branches,
through its constant efforts to improve the public
service, but also the continuous development of the
elements of wealth which are so abundant in our
country, and which merely await further labor to
bring about greater results, in the midst of the peace-
ful conditions that have existed in Mexico for about
a quarter of a century and which fortunately are now
assured. On an occasion like the present one, it is
but natural that we should congratulate ourselves
over such a prosperous condition and pay a just
tribute to the Mexican people and their worthy
legislators, who have so efficiently contributed to
establish and maintain such a flourishing state.

Of course in a work which is devoted to the
description of the life of a statesman, and which
therefore is more of a biographical than of a his-
torical character, a great deal has to be left out
which would really pertain to the history of the
country to which that statesman belongs. And al-
though it is true that the biography of President
Diaz during the last fifty years, and especially during
the thirty years last past, may be said to be nearly
identical with the history of the Mexican Republic
during that period, we are compelled, nevertheless.

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From 1896 to 1900 73

to pass by and omit many matters, which are
rather historical than biographical in their nature,
with the further object of devoting some portion
of this work to the private life of President Diaz
and the traits of his character as a private citizen.
It is for the reasons above stated that we have
merely sketched, as it were, the leading acts of
the various periods of his administration, and
this is the course that we will also pursue in the
remaining chapters of this book.

CHAPTER XI

FROM 1900 TO 1904

DURING President Diaz's new term of ojffice,
the improvements made in the capital of
the Republic were numerous and of great impor-
tance. As the great works of the drainage of the
valley of Mexico had been terminated, those in
the interior of the city were commenced.

If it is true that in the preceding years many
improvements have been carried on in the City of
Mexico, it may be said that they greatly increased
in value and extent, as we have already stated,
since the year 1900. The establishment of ex-
cellent drainage, the construction of good asphalt
pavements, the improvement in the electric light
service and in the tramway system, the increase
in the number of private dwellings, especially in
those portions of the city known as Colonia Juarez
and Colonia Roma, and the erection of handsome
public buildings, such as the City Post Office, the
National Geological Institute, and the Children's
Asylum, and those being built, as the National
Opera House, the National Legislative Palace, the
Department of Public Works and Communications,

From 1900 to 1904 75

and others, have rendered and still render the City
of Mexico, a most beautiful, healthy, and con-
venient place for residence.

The official census of the Republic having been
taken in 1900 and published later on, showed that
the population was 13,546,700 inhabitants, giving
an increase of 914,340 inhabitants, as compared
with the census taken in the year 1895.

At the beginning of the year 1901, diplomatic
relations were re-established with the Government
of Austria-Hungary, which had been severed since
the war of French intervention.

It was during the year 1901 that the Department
of Justice and Public Instruction was divided, so
that it had to devote itself merely to the judicial
branch of the service, leaving the new department
to conduct all matters regarding public instruction.
A new Cabinet officer was appointed. This new
member of the Cabinet was the well known littera-
teur and statesman, Mr. Justo Sierra, whilst the
able Secretary of Justice, Mr. Justino Fernandez,
remained at the head of that department.

During the same year, the Second Pan-American
Conference was held at the City of Mexico, and
delegates from every one of the American repub-
lics assembled there to discuss important matters
of policy and international law relating to those
countries.

President Diaz, in advance of that conference
had appointed a most able commission on behalf
of Mexico, which was presided over by the late

76 Porfirio Diaz

Senator Genaro Raigosa, and had for its secretary
Mr. Joaquin D. Casasus, who afterwards became
Mexican Ambassador at Washington. Both of
these gentlemen, upon the meeting of the con-
ference, were appointed president and secretary
general of the same, and their able and painstaking
work, taken in connection with the labors of their
fellow-members in the Mexican commission,
greatly contributed to the success of that inter-
national congress.

The strained relations existing between some
South American republics at the time when the
conference was held, lengthened its labors, and
rendered it necessary for the Mexican delegation
to exert great skill, forbearance, and tact, in order
that such labors should not prove fruitless. How-
ever, with the aid of President Diaz and the mem-
bers of his Cabinet, as well as with the assistance
of all the able delegates from the other American
republics, the success of the conference was
assured and it closed, after having signed several
important treaties, declarations, and resolutions.

The conference was likewise a great success
socially, and all the delegates declared that they
had been most royally entertained by President
and Mrs. Diaz, by the personnel of the federal and
city governments, as well as by the governors
and committees appointed by them, in the states
which were visited by the members of that inter-
national gathering.

We may also refer here to the co-operation of

'c^

>-.

From 1900 to 1904 77

Mexico in the Pan-American Exposition held at
the city of Buffalo in 1901. This exposition was
unfortunately not as successful as was anticipated,
owing to the dastardly assassination of President
McKinley, which occurred at its Music Hall on
September 6, 1901. The Mexican department at
that exhibition was highly praised by all visitors
and the number of premiums that Mexican ex-
hibitors obtained was most gratifying.

The improvements made in the Tehuantepec
Railroad, as well as the signing of the contract for
the construction of a railway line to terminate at
the Guatemalan frontier, and the building of
other railroads throughout the Republic, showed
plainly that the policy of inaugurating and es-
tablishing public improvements, and connecting
by rail the most important parts of the Republic,
was to be continued.

It was during this term of office that permanent
legations were established by the Mexican Govern-
ment in the republics of South America, one of
said legations being accredited to the countries
lying on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, and the
other to those lying on the shores of the Atlantic
Ocean.

During the year 1902, a controversy existing
between Mexico and the United States, regarding
certain claims of the Catholic Church of California,
was submitted for decision to the permanent court
of arbitration, held at The Hague, and though
its decision was adverse to Mexican interests,

78 Porfirio Diaz

President Diaz will always be praised for having
adopted the policy of peacefully solving a contro-
versy, under the terms of existing treaties and by
submission to a high court of arbitration. That
was the first case of importance presented before
that international tribunal.

In the same year, Mexico established diplomatic
relations with the Cuban Republic, and at the be-
ginning of the year 1893; a diplomatic representa-
tive from the Shah of Persia was received by
President Diaz, a treaty of commerce and friend-
ship having been signed between the two countries
in the preceding year. Soon after that a Mexican
minister was sent to Persia.

As Venezuela had signed several agreements
for the settlement of certain claims against said
country, the Mexican Government availed itself
of this opportunity to enter into an arrangement
of that character, with the object of settling certain
demands of Mexican citizens against that Re-
public. It is satisfactory to state that thereafter,
when the case was submitted to arbitration, a
judgment was obtained in favor of the Mexican
claimants.

As the financial situation of Mexico was most
satisfactory, it was considered convenient to take
some steps in order to establish the gold standard
in the Republic. Mr. Limantour, the efficient
Secretary of the Treasury, acting under advice of
President Diaz, and aided by a commission com-
posed of skilful financiers, well versed in economic

From 1900 to 1904 79

questions, made thorough and laborious investi-
gations on the subject, which thereafter resulted
in the establishment of the gold standard, under
conditions highly satisfactory to the financial
interests of the Republic, and which have greatly
aided in the development of the resources of the
country at large.

The year 1903 marked the termination of the
drainage works of the City of Mexico, which served
to improve considerably the sanitary conditions
of the capital; and it was also in that year, that
the bubonic plague which had appeared in Mazat-
lan and other Pacific coast ports was stamped out,
while yellow fever, which again made its appear-
ance in Tampico and Vera Cruz, was finally likewise
eliminated as an epidemic.

During this term of ofHce, President Diaz,
through his Secretary of Public Instruction, gave
considerable attention to the increase of educa-
tional facilities throughout the Republic, many
new schools having been established. Archaeolo-
gical research likewise received an impetus, due
to which many important discoveries have been
made in the rich field that Mexico presents in that
branch of human knowledge.

As the end of this term of administration of
President Diaz approached, it was plain to all
rightly thinking men that it was necessary for
the continuous prosperity of the country, not only
that President Diaz should be re-elected, but
that his term of office should be extended to six

8o Porfirio Diaz

years, and that, instead of the cumbersome con-
stitutional provision existing regarding the ap-
pointment of a vice-president, such officer should
be elected at the same time as the chief magistrate
of the nation, and that his term of office should,
as a matter of course, also be of six years' duration.

Accordingly, and in strict compliance with the
provisions of the Constitution, that instrument
was amended so as to extend to six years the
presidential term and to provide for the election
of a vice-president.

Several statesmen of high reputation were
mentioned as candidates for the vice-presidency:
these were Mr. Ramon Corral, Secretary of the
Interior; Mr. Ignacio Mariscal, Secretary of For-
eign Relations; Mr. Jose Ives Limantour, Secretary
of Finance, and General Bernardo Reyes, former
Secretary of War, and who was then Governor of
the State of Nuevo Leon.

The leading political party decided in favor of
Mr. Corral, and in the spring of 1904, when President
Diaz was re-elected by a nearly unanimous vote,
Secretary Corral was proclaimed vice-president.
He had theretofore been Governor of the State of
Sonora, and Governor of the Federal District, and
in those posts, as well as during the time that he
had been at the head of the Department of the
Interior, he had shown high administrative ability
and a steadfast desire to follow the lead and pursue
the policies so successfully carried out by President
Diaz.

Ramon Corral

Vice-President of the Republic and Secretary of the Interior

From 1900 to 1904 81

At the beginning of 1904, a portion of the State
of Yucatan was segregated, and duly established
and organized as a territory under the name of
Quintana Roo.

President Diaz read his last message to Congress,
relating to the acts of his administration during
the term of office which was to terminate on the
ist of December, 1904, and in that message he
stated that the friendly relations existing between
Mexico and foreign nations had not been inter-
rupted, excepting with reference to Guatemala.
The following quotation from that message will
give the full details of the disagreeable incident
which occurred with that country:

By the documents published last month in the
Official Journal, you may have learned that, while
some soldiers were passing in front of the Mexican
Legation in Guatemala conducting a prisoner, the
latter escaped and entered the vestibule of the build-
ing, when his custodians, without asking permission,
also entered and took him away by force. The Mexi-
can Minister, as soon as he knew what had occurred,
presented a protest, as was proper, wherein he asked
due satisfaction for the insult and the punishment of
the offenders. The Guatemalan Government ordered
an investigation of the incident, and undoubtedly
being misinformed as to what had happened, refused
at first to grant what was demanded, although it
stated that it was sorry that such an incident had
taken place. Owing to the friendly feelings that have
always guided our intercourse with Guatemala, my
government did not wish to go very far in showing

82 Porfirio Diaz

its displeasure, and merely recommended our diplo-
matic representative to insist on his demand, since
through various persons who had witnessed the inci-
dent, he had no doubt that an outrage had been
committed. I have the satisfaction to state that this
firm and likewise prudent conduct brought about the
result that was to be expected, as the Guatemalan
Government gave satisfaction to ours and granted
what had been demanded, namely, a statement to the
effect that it was sorry the incident had occurred and
that punishment would be meted out to those who
were directly implicated in the same.

The message to which we have referred also
shows that in the Departments of the Interior,
Justice, and Public Instruction, as well as in those
of Public Promotion, Communications, and War,
great advancement had been made and due atten-
tion had been given to all branches of those
services.
i^ The purchase of the so-called Vera Cruz to the
Pacific Railroad, during this term of office, was
the initiatory step taken by President Diaz and
his Cabinet, to obtain the control of the leading
railroad lines of the Republic, and thus bring
about more satisfactory, better, and more uniform
service in such railroads. --

A portion of the message on the subject of
finances and public credit is so important and
interesting in itself, that we will quote it in its
entirety :

I am glad to communicate to Congress that the

From 1900 to 1904 83

results of the fiscal year, which terminated on the 30th
of June last past, have been satisfactory, in spite of
the scarcity of money and available capital in the lead-
ing cities of the Republic during the greater part of
that fiscal year, and even though the taxes and im-
posts levied on taxpayers, had as a general rule been
diminished, when the federal impost was reduced
from thirty to twenty-five per cent.

The total revenue of the year exceeded the sum
of $85,000,000, and although all the accounts have
not been audited, there is no doubt that such revenue
exceeded by $8,000,000 that of the preceding year.
It must be stated, nevertheless, that the proceeds from
all municipal sources in the Federal District, which
for the first time constituted a part of the federal
revenues in 1 903-1 904, represent a sum amounting
to nearly $4,000,000.

Referring especially, as it is customary, to the
two great sources of revenue which represent more
than eighty per cent, of the total income of the
Federation, I have the honor to inform you that the
importation duties, without the additions authorized
by the law of November 25, 1902, have increased
by nearly $2,000,000, and that a proportional in-
crease has been noticed in exportation duties and
port dues. As far as the aggregate revenue from
all imposts which are classified as internal revenue
taxes is concerned, such revenue was more than
$1,000,000 in excess of that obtained in the preceding
year.

The foregoing we think fully justifies the con-
clusion of President Diaz's message, when he said
to the senators and deputies:

84 Porfirio Diaz

Although the information which I have given you
does not offer any novelty, it does show clearly the sit-
uation of our country, with reference to those branches
whose administration is in charge of the Executive.
They fully justify the opinion, which is now generally
entertained in the whole civilized world, that this
Republic has fully entered on the high-road to sure
progress. Peace and legal order, attended by good
judgment, which is now a trait of character of the
Mexican people, are the well known causes that have
brought about such a favorable condition in Mexican
history. The permanency of these benefits and their
growing development, shall hereafter be dependent
on the same causes, since all obstacles which formerly
ran counter to public prosperity have been removed,
and in order to preserve and increase it we shall not
have to appeal to other means but to the labor and
industry of all good citizens, and to the opportune
and patriotic efforts of their representatives, when
exercising the powers that the Constitution has
vested in them.

o "S

CHAPTER XII

FROM 1904 TO 1910

RARELY have the inhabitants of the City of
Mexico witnessed such enthusiastic mani-
festations and such interesting festivities as those
which took place in December, 1904, and January,
1905, to celebrate the inauguration of President
Diaz in his new term of office. Similar festivities
were likewise held in all the leading cities of the
Republic, and they plainly showed how well
satisfied the people were that he should remain
at the head of the administration.

We will not describe those festivities, but refer
incidentally to the grand banquet held at the
School of Mines, in honor of the President, at
which the members of his Cabinet, many of the
governors of the states, all the members of the
diplomatic corps, and other notable persons were
present. The illuminations and the grand review
and parade of the artisans and manufacturers,
with allegorical cars, were also a great feature of
those feasts, which terminated with one of the
most elegant and brilliant balls ever given at
the City of Mexico, dedicated to Mrs. Diaz, the
President's wife.

86 Porfirio Diaz

The events that have taken place during the
present administration of President Diaz, and
the measures which he has carried out in that
period, are so recent, so fresh still in the memories
of all those who take an interest in Mexican
affairs, that it does not appear necessary to give
detailed information concerning them. Still, pass-
ing reference may be made to the most interest-
ing of those events and to the most important
of such measures. We may add also that the
same success that his former administrations
attained, has been the lot of the present one.

Two great financial operations have been carried
out to a successful issue during President Diaz's
present term of office, namely: the establishment
of a gold standard, and the consolidation of most
of the railroad lines of the Republic to be con-
trolled by the government.

President Diaz was ably assisted in the carrying
out of these measures not only by Mr. Limantour,
Secretary of the Treasury, but also by the leading
financiers and economists of the Republic, such as
Messrs. Joaquin D. Casasus and Enrique C. Creel,
both of whom have held the post of Mexican
Ambassador in Washington, Mr. Pablo Macedo,
and others. It was fortunate that the compli-
cated scheme to effect the change of standard was
carried on at the most opportune time, when the
financial conditions of the country permitted it,
and when the fall of silver made it easier to be
put into effect. Financiers throughout the world

From 1904 to 1910 87

have praised the manner in which this most im-
portant fkiancial change was accomplished, and
there is no doubt that it is one of the measures
that has evoked more encomiums abroad for the
administration of President Diaz.

The other great measure to which we have
reference is the consolidation of railroad lines to
be under government control. The difficulties
encountered in dealing with railways in Mexico
by the Federal Government were not as great as
those met by other governments, especially by
the United States ; still in order to protect the in-
terests of the public in general, to prevent abuses
on the part of the companies, and to be able to
fully regulate fares and freights, it was considered
most important to have the greater part of the
railroads under absolute control of the govern-
ment. The operation was effected by the aid of
foreign capital, and many of the leading railroad
lines from the American frontier, and from the
Pacific and Atlantic coasts, passed into govern-
ment control under one consolidated company.

Regarding foreign affairs, we may say that one
of the most important events relative to them
arose in connection with the republics of Central
America.

The dastardly assassination at the City of Mex-
ico of Ex- President Manuel L. Barillas, in which
men in high authority in the Republic of Guate-
mala seemed to be implicated, brought about the
demand for their extradition by the Mexican

88 Porfirio Diaz

Government. The refusal of Guatemala to grant
that demand led to difficulties and nearly to a
severance of relations between the two govern-
ments. The attitude assumed by President Diaz
and Mr. Mariscal, Secretary of Foreign Relations,
resulted, if not in a satisfactory solution of the
question, at least in the resumption of friendly
relations between Guatemala and Mexico.

A change of government in the Republic of
Honduras, the difficulties which led to a war be-
tween Salvador and Nicaragua, and the threatening
measures adopted by Guatemala, brought about,
at the request of all the Central American re-
publics, the friendly interposition of Mexico and
the United States in their domestic affairs. A
preliminary protocol was signed at the city of
Washington by the diplomatic representatives of
the five Central American republics, in the pres-
ence of the Assistant Secretary of State of the
United States and the Charge d'Affaires of Mexico,
on the 17th of September, 1907, and thereafter, and
by virtue of the provisions of such protocol, a
Central American Peace Conference was held at
Washington in November of that year, when each
Central American country was represented by
two or three delegates; the deliberations of said
conference and the signing of the protocols and
treaties agreed to being effected in the presence
of the then Mexican Ambassador, Enrique C.
Creel, and of the late W. I. Buchanan, Special
Commissioner of the United States.

From 1904 to 1910 89

The signing of a treaty, providing for the or-
ganization of a High Court of Justice at Cartago,
Costa Rica, to decide all matters of controversy
between the Central American governments, was
one of the most important measures adopted by
said Conference. That Court was duly organized
a few months afterwards and has already acted
upon controversies arising among the Central
American republics.

Further trouble in Central America has brought
about the friendly interposition of Mexico and the
United States, at the request of the governments
affected by the same, and it is to be hoped that
the signing of the treaties above referred to, and
the friendly offices of the Mexican and American
governments, may, if not put an end to, at
least tend to diminish the gravity of, many
controversies that hitherto have led to the
shedding of so much blood and destruction
of valuable property in the Central American
republics.

At all events, even if this satisfactory result is
not brought about. President Diaz and President
Roosevelt must receive due meed of praise for
their well directed endeavors to assure the peace
and public order in the five Central American
republics.

The visit of Secretary of State Elihu Root to
the City of Mexico towards the end of the summer
of 1907, and the magnificent and enthusiastic
manner in which he was received, undoubtedly

9© Porfirio Diaz

served to bind closer the ties of friendship exist-
ing between the two republics.

It was during that visit that Mr. Root delivered
the following remarkable eulogy on President Diaz :

It has seemed to me that of all the men now living,
President Porfirio Diaz of Mexico was best worth see-
ing. Whether one considers the adventurous, daring,
chivalric incidents of his early career; whether one
considers the vast work of government which his
wisdom and courage and commanding character ac-
complished; whether one considers his singularly at-
tractive personality, no one lives to-day whom I would
rather see than President Diaz. If I were a poet,
I would write poetic eulogies; if I were a musician,
I would compose triumphal marches; if I were a
Mexican, I should feel that the steadfast loyalty of a
lifetime could not be too much in return for the bless-
ings that he has brought to my country. As I am
neither poet, m^usician, nor Mexican, but only an
American who loves justice and liberty, and hopes
to see their reign among mankind progress and
strengthen and become perpetual, I look to Porfirio
Diaz, the President of Mexico, as one of the greatest
men to be held up for the hero-worship of mankind.

It was also during that visit that Mr. Root, at
a banquet tendered to him by President Diaz,
made the following significant and interesting
remarks :

I cannot keep my mind from reverting to a former
visit by an American Secretary of State to the Re-
public of Mexico. Thirty-eight years ago Mr. Seward,

From 1904 to 1910 91

a really great American Secretary of State, visited
this country. How vast the difference between what
he found and what I find. Then was a country torn
by civil war, sunk in poverty, in distress, in almost
helplessness. Now I find the country great in its
prosperity, in its wealth, in its activity and enter-
prise, . in the moral strength of its just and equal
laws, and unalterable purpose to advance its people
steadily along the path of progress. Mr. President,
the people of the United States feel that the world
owes this great change chiefly to you. They are
grateful to you for it, for they rejoice in the pros-
perity and happiness of Mexico. We believe. Sir,
that we are richer and happier because you are
happier and richer, and we rejoice that you are no
longer a poor and struggling nation needing assistance,
but that you are strong and vigorous, so that we can
go with you side by side in demonstrating to the
world that our two republics are able to govern them-
selves wisely — side by side — in helping to carry to
our less fortunate sisters the blessings of peace.

The disturbances caused by some evil-inten-
tioned Mexicans along the border in the years
1906 and 1907, and their ill advised and illegal
attempts to bring about public turmoil in some of
the northern states of the Mexican Republic,
thereby hoping to gain booty and plunder, have
proved once more the friendship of the United
States Government towards that of Mexico, as
the American authorities promptly arrested the
ringleaders, who violated the neutrality laws, and
had them convicted.

92 Porfirio Diaz

Attention may be called to the holding of the
Second Peace Conference at The Hague and to the
Third Pan-American Conference which met at Rio
Janeiro in 1906, in both of which international
meetings Mexico took an important part, thereby
reaffirming its policy of goodwill, conciliation, and
friendship towards all foreign nations.

Although not as important as other interna-
tional exhibitions, the one held at Jamestown,
Virginia, in the summer and autumn of 1907,
presented some interesting features, among which
may be mentioned the Mexican exhibit and the
daily concerts given by the Mexican military band.
The enthusiastic way in which the anniversary
of Mexican Independence was celebrated at that
Exposition clearly demonstrated once more the
kind and friendly feelings entertained by the
American people towards their southern neighbor.

Another instance of a similar character, and of
the high regard in which President Diaz is held in
the United States, was evidenced at the banquet
given at the city of New York in November,
1908, by the Chamber of Commerce of that great
state, which was in part dedicated to him and to
Mexico, and where prominent men from all parts
of the Union were present and applauded and
evinced great enthusiasm whenever his name was
mentioned.

Still another manifestation of regard toward
Mexico's Chief Executive was the important
meeting held at the frontier on October 16, 1909,

Mrs. Diaz
Wife of the President

From 1904 to 1910 93

between President Porfirio Diaz and President
William H. Taft.

The great strides in all classes of public improve-
ments in Mexico have been intensified during the
present term of administration by the completion
of the magnificent harbor works at Salina Cruz,
Manzanillo, and Coatzacoalcos (now Puerto Mex-
ico) , the inauguration of the new post-office at the
City of Mexico, and the activity displayed in the
erection of other public buildings, already referred
to, as well as the opening of the railroad to Man-
zanillo, establishing a new all-rail route between
the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and other pub-
lic works of great importance throughout the
Republic.

As the time draws near for the celebration of the
centenary of Mexican independence, the govern-
ment and people are striving to do their utmost to
commemorate that great event. No one is more
interested than President Diaz in making that
celebration a notable one, and judging from the
preparations so far made, we augur a great success
for the Mexican Jubilee.

During the period to which we are referring the
local campaigns against the Yaqui Indians in
Sonora and against the Maya Indians in the new
Territory of Quintana Roo were successfully term-
inated, and the same thing occurred with reference
to the strikes in Orizaba, State of Vera Cruz, and
in the Cananea Mines, State of Sonora, due to
economic causes and labor agitation, but not

94 Porfirio Diaz

having any political character whatever, and
which were similar in effect to the strikes that
have taken place in the United States during
the past years; these events, however, in no
way altered or disturbed the peace prevailing
throughout the Republic.

The trips undertaken by President Diaz in the
last few years to Guanajuato, Puebla, Merida,
Chihuahua, and other cities for the purpose of
inaugurating public works of great importance,
and the enthusiastic manner in which he was
received everywhere, served to make patent the
affection and high regard in which he is held by
the nation, and to show how united are the
Mexican people and what little sectional feeling,
if any, there exists in the Republic.

During the year 1909, there was some political
agitation in various portions of the country,
owing to the preliminary canvass for the presiden-
tial elections to be held in the summer of 19 10.
Although President Diaz most emphatically had
shown his disinclination to run again for office,
or continue at the head of the government, and
his desire to retire from public life, and had even
expressed that desire through the public press,
the Mexican people with a unanimity almost un-
precedented signified the wish to have him again
at the head of public affairs. He reluctantly
consented thereupon to be once again the standard
bearer of the voters of his country.

A great many of these voters considered that

From 1904 to 1910 95

Vice-President Corral should hold anew the sec-
ond place in the government, as he had shown
great tact, administrative ability, and was in full
accord with the policies pursued by President
Diaz. There were other persons, however, who,
without the consent of General Bernardo Reyes,
Governor of the State of Nuevo Leon, presented
his name as a vice-presidential candidate.

The political agitation which ensued, in no
ways greater or more virulent than that which
takes place in the United States during some
presidential, and even in many state, elections, led
to slight perturbations of public order in some
cities which, through sensational reports of a few
correspondents, were exaggerated and magnified
abroad.

Soon, however, that agitation ceased, and Gen-
eral Reyes himself withdrew his candidacy, or
rather stated that he had not aspired to the vice-
presidency, and in order that this might be well
understood, he withdrew from the governorship
of the State of Nuevo Leon, and went abroad to
study the military systems of foreign governments.

It may be interesting to state that, while on his
way to Europe, General Reyes was interviewed
in New York City, on November 13, 1909, by a
representative of the New York Herald and in that
interview he is quoted as saying:

I expect to leave on the George Washington next
Tuesday, for a prolonged stay abroad to inquire into

96 Porfirio Diaz

the European recruiting system, and to study military
conditions.

I want to emphasize the fact that I am not a rival
of President Diaz in Mexican affairs. He is my friend
in politics, and I am his friend. I know that of his
own will he does not care to be President, and never
would accept office again if his wishes were consulted.
But the people want him, and like a true patriot he
will serve his country.

As for myself, I am only too glad to assist in help-
ing to make Mexico more patriotic and devoted to
manufactures, education, and good government. The
next election will be held on the second Sunday in
July, 1 910. The people are already preparing to
re-elect Diaz as President.

The day is past for the Napoleonic form of govern-
ment, with strictly military rule. No man could have
achieved more for a country than President Diaz.
I know that the people are anxious for him to serve
them as President again, and beyond question he will
be re-elected.

Undoubtedly any one who knows the temper and
desires of the Mexican people will agree with
General Reyes in saying that President Diaz will
be again elected to the presidency by an almost
unanimous vote.

J^f*-*

Amada Diaz de La Torre
Daughter of President Diaz

CHAPTER XIII

PRIVATE LIFE OF PRESIDENT DIAZ

THE foregoing pages have given our readers, we
hope, a sufficiently clear idea of the serv-
ices rendered by President Diaz to his country,
as a soldier and a statesman. In this chapter we
intend to devote our attention to his life as a
private citizen.

From his childhood he gave evidences of being
active, energetic, and hard working. Two of his
principal qualities and traits of character are his
memory and his ability to judge and pass upon
the qualifications and aptitudes of other men.
It is stated that General Ulysses S. Grant never
forgot a face. The same may be said of President
Diaz. Any one who knows him, who has met him
several times, will really wonder at his remarkable
memory. Incidents of apparently no importance,
facts that to others may be deemed unnecessary
to be remembered, will be recalled in all their
details by the President, many years after the
events to which they refer may have happened.
His clear insight into the character of men has
7 97

98 Porfirio Diaz

enabled him to choose his chief advisers and those
who have aided him in his governmental work
from persons who he knew would be most apt to
ably perform the services required.

Another of the most prominent traits of his
character is sincerity. As Carlyle has rightly ex-
pressed it : " No man adequate to do anything, but
is first of all in right earnest about it : what I call
a sincere man. I should say sincerity, a deep,
great, genuine sincerity is the first characteristic of
all men in any way heroic."

His astonishing good health and his strong
constitution are also distinctive of this wonderful
leader of men. At an age when most people would
be incapacitated from work, either through dis-
ease or the impairment of some of their faculties.
President Diaz attends to his business, takes
violent exercise, goes out hunting, endures great
fatigue, and does a vast amount of work. Un-
doubtedly his regular and abstemious habits
greatly contribute to attain the result to which
we refer.

He generally rises at six o'clock in the morning,
and after his bath he takes a slight repast, and is
ready for work. He then devotes one or two
hours to his private correspondence and to the
reading of the press, sometimes noting with pencil
some of its most striking passages.

All the winter and spring he remains in the City
of Mexico at his private residence in Cadena Street,
while he spends the summer at Chapultepec

Private Life of President Diaz 99

Castle, although then he comes down to the city
regularly, on the days set aside for public recep-
tions or for any private or public functions at
which he may have to be present.

When in the city, he is usually at the Palace
at nine o'clock, and at that hour either there or
at Chapultepec he attends to his private corre-
spondence with his efficient private secretary,
Mr. Rafael Chousal, whose many years of con-
stant service at the side of the President pe-
culiarly fit him for the prompt despatch of his
correspondence. At ten or half-past ten o'clock,
he begins to confer with his ministers, each
one of whom has separate days of the week
to meet the President for the resolution of
public matters entrusted to the appropriate de-
partment, although he usually receives daily
for such purpose the Secretaries of Finance and
War.

At about half-past one in the afternoon, he
returns as a general rule to his private residence
on Cadena Street, and takes lunch with his wife
and some members of his family, and afterwards
enjoys a slight rest.

He returns to the National Palace at four
o'clock on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays,
to receive all persons with whom he may have
a special appointment, and whose names have
been inscribed in a register. From the list thus
made, he selects the names of those whom he is
able to receive according to the time that he may

loo Porfirio Diaz

have at his disposal. He does this also when
residing at Chapultepec Castle.

It is sometimes eight and even nine o'clock
when his task of receiving visitors is terminated,
and then he returns to his home, and after supper,
when not going to the theatre or to fill some other
engagement, he converses with his family and
receives a few friends who perhaps may bring some
public matter to his attention.

On the afternoons when he does not receive the
public, he visits some public establishment or at-
tends to some other matter of importance.

He usually devotes Sunday afternoons to visit-
ing his intimate friends.

He rarely ever takes a vacation of more than
a few days at a time; generally devoting that
period to his favorite pastime of hunting. Of
late years he has gone to Lake Chapala, where
he has spent his few days' vacation in boating
and riding.

As before stated. President Diaz has been
married twice, his first wife having died during
his first term of office.

The present Mrs. Diaz is, as mentioned in a
former part of this work, the eldest daughter of
the late Secretary of the Interior, Honorable
Manuel Romero Rubio.

The marriage of President and Mrs, Diaz took
place on the 7th of November, 1882, at the house
of the bride's father, No. 5 San Andres Street,
City of Mexico. As it is customary in Mexico

Porfirio Diaz, Jr., Wife and Children

Private Life of President Diaz loi

there was a church ceremony and a civil one; at
the former Archbishop Pelagio A. de Labastida
officiated, while the civil contract was signed before
Judge Felipe Buenrostro,

On the same date in the year 1907 President
and Mrs. Diaz celebrated their silver wedding,
or 25th anniversary of their marriage. The cel-
ebration of that event was simple in its nature,
there being a breakfast for the family and intimate
friends and an excursion to a country place near
the volcano of Popocatepetl. As is customary on
these occasions they were recipients of many and
elegant silver presents.

Mrs. Diaz is a most accomplished woman, knows
and speaks several languages, and was educated at
home and abroad. Her great charm of manner
and her kindness of heart have made her most
popular, and she is designated by all classes of
society by the endearing term of "Carmelita,"
Not only does she perform her duties in society
gracefully and well, but her charitable instincts
continually make her devote her leisure mo-
ments to most worthy objects. One of these is
the promotion and maintenance of the "Casa
Amiga de la Obrera" (Working Woman's Home),
an institution established by her and that, as its
name implies, renders great benefit to the working
classes of the Republic.

President Diaz has had no children by his
second marriage. His son and daughters are
Amada, married to Mr. Ignacio de la Torre,

102 Porfirio Diaz

Lieutenant-Colonel Porfirio Diaz, Jr., and Luz,
married to Mr. F. Rincon Gallardo.

The eldest daughter has taken a most prom-
inent part in social functions, and is greatly ad-
mired for her beauty and sympathetic nature;
her resemblance to her father is most remarkable.
Lieutenant-Colonel Porfirio Diaz, Jr., is a civil en-
gineer by profession, and besides devoting part of
his time to the exercise of that profession, he also
acts as a member of the President's staff. He is
active, open-hearted, and fond of study. He is
married to the daughter of the late Senator Genaro
Raigosa, who was President of the Second Pan-Am-
erican Conference. Although the son of one who
has been at the head of the government for so many
years, he has never endeavored to owe his advance-
ment in military life to his father's favor, but to
his own meritorious service. The second daughter,
owing to illness and to her having quite a large
family, has not taken part as actively as one would
suppose in social functions, but has devoted her-
self to her home life.

Mrs. Diaz has two charming sisters, one being
the widow of the late Senator Teresa, who for some
time served as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister
Plenipotentiary from Mexico to Austria. She
has a son Jose, who has been partly educated in
the United States. Her other sister is Sofia,
married to Mr. Lorenzo Elizaga, a prominent
lawyer and Congressman; they have one child
only.

Private Life of President Diaz 103

President Diaz has several grandchildren, the
sons and daughters of Lieutenant-Colonel Porfirio
Diaz, Jr., and of Mrs. Rincon Gallardo. Air the
members of the family are thoroughly united, and,
though living apart, they see each other daily and
take part in their mutual joys and sorrows. They
all look up to the President with reverence, love,
and admiration, not only as the Executive of the
nation, but as the kind and affectionate head of
the family.

Both President and Mrs. Diaz, although charmed
with their home life and loving their beautiful
surroundings and their kind friends in the City of
Mexico, do not dislike travelling, and they have
visited great many of the states of the Mexican
Republic and of the American Union. Although
on various occasions a proposed trip to Europe
has been talked of, so far they have never left
the American continent.

President Diaz knows thoroughly his own
country, because, both before and after becom-
ing President, he made himself acquainted even
with some of the outlying districts and places,
which other Mexican statesmen have never visited.
This knowledge of his country has been most use-
ful to him for the proper administration of the
public affairs of the nation.

Perhaps there is no man living who has been
shown such honors and received so many marks of
distinction from foreign sovereigns. In the Ap-
pendices we shall endeavor to give as complete a list

I04 Porfirio Diaz

as possible of the medals and decorations received
by him from all the leading countries of the world,
besides those that have been bestowed on him at
home for his military feats.

Being brought up as a soldier, President Diaz
did not devote himself to public speaking during
his early life, but since he assumed the presidency,
he has become a fluent and eloquent speaker,
ready at any time to give his views clearly and
with proper effect on any question brought before
him, and with relation to any event or circum-
stance.

Although in the main chapters of this work some
reference has been made to the battles and sieges
in which he took part, these have been so many
that we have mentioned only those of great im-
portance, but in the Appendices will be found a full
list, together with a map that may serve to give
a proper understanding as to the places where
they occurred and to locate them.

Despite the fact that he has been wounded in
battle and that he has led and is still leading a
most active and strenuous life. President Diaz
is to-day hale and hearty, strong and ruddy,
and in the full possession of all his mental
faculties.

Gladstone, speaking of Macaulay, said: "One of
the first things that must strike the observer of
this man is, that he was very unlike any other
man." Those who have met President Diaz will
agree that this remark is applicable to him and

..^'pf^'

Luz Diaz de Rincon Gallardo
Daughter of President Diaz

Private Life of President Diaz 105

that he strikes one as an extraordinary man, as one
different from and superior to most men, and in
every way as a man whose face and bearing can
never be forgotten.

CHAPTER XIV

THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE

BEFORE closing this sketch of the hfe of one of
the leading statesmen of this continent now
living, it is perhaps proper, and it may also prove
interesting, to summarize in a few pages what he
has accomplished for his own country, what is its
present condition, and what the future probably
has in store for the Mexican Republic.

As we have seen. President Diaz is one of those
men who have begun life without any special
advantages over their fellow-men; he started at
the foot of the ladder of fame and has reached
its very top. Under the most discouraging
circumstances and overcoming what appeared
to be insurmountable obstacles; without great
influence, family connections, wealth, or powerful
friends at the start, he has attained the highest
public position in his own country and by the
unanimous consent of his countrymen, as it were,
he has remained there at the head of its affairs
for over a quarter of a century, and those country-
men still express their desire that he may con-

io6

The Past, Present, and Future 107

tinue to hold the reins of government for years
to come.

It is difficult to tell accurately what are all the
causes and circumstances that have brought about
his most brilliant career. Those who have read
the foregoing pages can form their own judgment,
and in the succeeding chapter we give the opinions
of many of the most prominent men in the United
States and Canada regarding Mexico and its
present Executive. We think that all will agree
that, taking into consideration the traits of his
character and what he has done for his country,
he well deserves the place and station he holds
among the Mexican people.

The life of this great leader may be divided into
two periods : the one devoted in its entirety to mili-
tary achievements; the other to statesmanship.

As a soldier we have seen him start as a volun-
teer, when quite a young man, and then, through
his bravery and tact, win his military degrees one
by one, until he reached the very highest rank.
In that military career, besides having performed
the usual exploits of those who follow it, he had
in various instances narrow escapes from death
that are extraordinary and romantic in the
extreme, and everywhere he displayed great valor,
forethought, and perseverance.

In order to review his public life as a statesman,
we would merely have to examine the official
records of the Mexican Government, as there
we would find it fully described. The most

io8 Porfirio Diaz

interesting part of his life as such is undoubtedly
that which began in 1884, when for the sec-
ond time he assumed the reins of government.
With a depleted treasury, with everything ad-
verse to him, and with Mexico's credit abroad
at the lowest ebb possible, President Diaz
began one of the most brilliant and impor-
tant administrative campaigns ever recorded,
and initiated a most sound policy, which has
brought about great and satisfactory results.
Although, in former pages of this work, we have
referred to his administrative acts, they are so
interesting and so necessary to the proper under-
standing of the present condition of Mexico and
to get a correct idea of the far-seeing statesmanship
of General Diaz, that we cannot forego summariz-
ing them here. And for that purpose we shall
refer not only to the messages which he presented
to the Mexican Congress at the beginning of each
session, and to other public documents, but also
to his official reports, addressed to his country-
men, published at the end of each presidential
term, although there was no requirement on the
part of the Constitution or the laws for his so doing.
On the last day of his first administration, that
is, the one that preceded the term of President
Gonzalez, he said in his report or statement then
issued to his countrymen :

On this solemn day, the last of my constitutional
period, I am not required by law to give an account

, <~I

t-,

->;

;-i

cti

E-

^ o

"^ rr-l

The Past, Present, and Future 109

to the legislature of the condition in which the country
is left by me : but my own conscience, frankness, and
good faith, and other circumstances, well known to
all, and which appeal to me especially, make me con-
sider as a sacred obligation the necessity of address-
ing myself to my fellow-citizens, so as to inform them
how and in what degree I have been able to pay the
debt which I contracted when they placed in my
hands the executive power that to-morrow I shall
deliver to the successor whom they have legally
designated.

I am very far from pretending that I can be con-
sidered the only and exclusive factor in the advance-
ment made by the nation during the small portion of
its history which has occurred during my administra-
tion. It is a very common error to attribute to one
man alone the events of importance which take place
in his country during his lifetime. Those events are
always the necessary results of many circumstances,
some of which are logically and slowly combined, while
others occur suddenly and by chance. The man that
the public looks to as the most visible point is but an
incident in the aggregate results, and if it were
possible at any one moment to eliminate one circum-
stance or cause alone of those that surround him, the
events would follow a very different direction that
perhaps might defeat his best laid plans.

In the present case, the desire for peace, tranquillity,
and progress which the nation felt, the substitution of
former functionaries, whose activity had been ex-
hausted through lack of faith, by others who were
vigorous and active; the powerful aid imparted by
the Federal Congress; the measures initiated by the
states ; and, finally, the efficacious co-operation of the

no Porfirio Diaz

members of the cabinet, were the principal elements
which brought about the improvements that during
the last four years we have been able to introduce in
all the branches of the public service.

The above words of President Diaz, like many
that we will find in other documents emanating
from him, show clearly his modesty and his desire
to attribute to others his successful acts, the
credit to which he is rightly entitled.

To obtain a clear idea of what progress and ad-
vancement Mexico has had during the last thirty
years, while most of the time President Diaz has
been at the head of the administration, it would be
well to compare the conditions existing in the
Republic in the year 1876 with those at the present
moment,

Mexico had then few diplomatic representatives
accredited to other countries, while to-day all
the leading nations of Europe and America, as
well as China, Japan, and Persia, have ministers
or charges d'affaires at the City of Mexico, and
Mexican diplomats reside in all the capitals of
those nations. The consular corps of Mexico
has likewise increased and proved most effi-
cient; and the diplomatic and consular services
are established under permanent and proper
regulations.

FurtheiTnore, since the first administration of
President Diaz treaties of commerce and friend-
ship, extradition, and others of various kinds have

The Past, Present, and Future m

been entered into with the leading nations of the
globe.

The annoying and difficult boundary questions
with Guatemala and Belize have been satisfactorily
arranged by means of conventions which settled
the rights of all; and in our northern border, all
questions likewise arising from boundaries and
other similar subjects are in the hands of a
competent commission, while the difficulties
due to the changes in the current and bed of the
Rio Grande and Colorado rivers are being at-
tended to.

Our friendly relations with all foreign countries
are closer than ever, and the participation of
Mexican delegates at The Hague conferences,
at the Pan-American conventions, and at other
gatherings of international character, as well as
the valuable exhibits sent to the universal ex-
positions held in Europe and the United States and
to which we have already referred, have given
Mexico a high standing and lasting influence
among the civilized countries of the world.

We may add here that besides the congresses
already mentioned, Mexico has taken part very re-
cently in the International Agronomical Institute
held at Rome; in the Fourth International Con-
gress of Fisheries, in the Conference for the Con-
servation of the Natural Resources, and in the
International Tuberculosis Congress, all of which
were held at Washington, D. C. ; in the first Pan-
American Scientific Congress held at the city of

112 Porfirio Diaz

Santiago, Chile, and in the Pan-American Sani-
tary Convention held in December, 1909, at the
City of San Jose, Costa Rica.

President Diaz has been most successful in his
dealings with all questions relating to the inter-
course between the Federal and State govern-
ments, and difficult questions of boundaries,
privileges, and rights have been equitably settled;
while controversies arising from election contests,
which in two or three instances might have given
rise to difficulties of a serious character, have
been arranged through the vigorous, prompt, and
well directed action of the Federal Executive.

We may here remark that most of the statistical
data that we give in this work refer to what has
been undertaken and performed by the Federal
Government. We may also add that the same
march of improvement that is noticeable in federal
affairs has likewise been carried on in the various
states of the Mexican Republic, as well as in
the municipalities of the same. Nevertheless, the
character of this work precludes us from making
more than this passing reference to such improve-
ments and progress, which do not refer directly to
the life and work of President Diaz.

One of the subjects to which great attention
has been given while President Diaz has been in
power, is that of public hygiene, and under the
able direction of the Secretary of the Interior,
Vice-President of the Republic, Mr. Ramon Corral,
actively assisted by the eminent physician Dr.

CI.

The Past, Present, and Future 113

Eduardo Liceaga, the sanitary conditions of the
RepubHc have been greatly improved, a Sanitary
Code is being rigidly enforced, and the extirpation
of yellow fever and the prevention of epidemics
have very properly called forth the plaudits of
foreign nations.

The improvements effected in the rural police,
the amelioration of the jails and houses of de-
tention, and the inauguration of a large and well
built penitentiary in the Federal District, in con-
formity with the most approved methods of prison
management, have shown that the Department
of the Interior has given due attention to those
subjects. Likewise the inauguration of the gen-
eral hospital in the City of Mexico, introducing
therein all modern improvements in hospital
service, has undoubtedly contributed to the
diminution of the number of persons afflicted with
disease and to their cure. To those who have
visited the blind, the deaf, and the orphan asylums
at the capital, the progress made in such estab-
lishments has been plainly visible.

The embellishment and improvements notice-
able in all the cities of the Republic and especially
at the seat of the Federal Government, such as
sewerage, lighting, and other municipal services,
as well as the extension of the area wherein
modem buildings have been erected, clearly
testify the prosperity of the nation and the well
directed efforts of the Government on the subject
of municipal reform and improvement.

114 Porfirio Diaz

Notable advancement has been made in the
Department of Justice. The courts have better
and more commodious quarters, and modifications
of an important nature have been made in the
administration of the law, so as to insure prompt-
ness and despatch in judicial matters, as well as
to render less costly and complicated the con-
troversies brought by litigants before the federal
courts.

Owing to the separation effected between the
administration of the Departments of Justice and
Public Instruction, the latter being now under a
new member of the cabinet designated as the
Secretary of Public Instruction and Fine Arts,
special attention has been given to the latter
branch of the public service in the Federal District
and the territories.

The educational establishments for provisional
studies have also greatly improved, and all those
institutions in the City of Mexico are to be con-
solidated into a great university, to be inaugurated
during the centenary of Mexican Independence.

The Department of Public Promotion, now
under the able direction of Mr. Olegario Molina,
former Governor of the State of Yucatan, has
done valuable and important work during the
period to which we make reference.

The survey of public lands, as well as the sale
of the same, proceeded at a rapid rate, and the
mining industry developed to a great extent.
Thus, during the fiscal year of 1 908-1 909 the

Chapultepec Castle

The Past, Present, and Future 115

total production of gold and silver in the Republic
amounted to $125,894,089.33. Of course, silver
represents the larger amount, and Mexico now
is considered as the first silver-producing country
in the world. The notable increase in the pro-
duction of gold is most remarkable, as in the
fiscal year of 1877-78 it was $1,473,912.32, while
in the fiscal year of 1 907-1 908 it reached the sum
of $40,527,185.20. Another metal whose produc-
tion has increased in a remarkable manner, is
copper, and at present there are two enterprises
in Mexico for the exploitation of that metal, viz.,
El Boleo, a French company in the territory of
Lower California, and that of Cananea in the State
of Sonora, which can compare favorably, in every
respect, with any similar enterprises in any other
part of the world. Gold, silver, and copper are
the mineral substances whose production is of
greater importance in Mexico; yet, iron, coal, and
other minerals are being exploited on a large scale
in the Republic.

Agriculture has received an impetus, especially
since the inauguration of great irrigation works
in various states.

Industrial enterprises, especially those organized
for the manufacture of textile fabrics and cigars,
have been making most wonderful progress, and
companies having several million dollars of
capital have been established within the last few
years with machinery of the very latest patterns.

During the year 1900, the official census was

ii6 Porfirio Diaz

carried into effect, and it showed, as before stated,
that the total population of the Republic aggre-
gated 13,546,700 inhabitants, while in 1878 it
amounted to 9,384,193 inhabitants.

We need not here refer again to the success
attained by Mexico at various universal exposi-
tions, such as those held at Chicago, Buffalo, Paris,
and St. Louis, Mo.

As during the administration of President Diaz
a new department was organized especially devoted
to communications and public works, we may also
glance at the satisfactory results attained by that
department, which has been at various times under
the direction of General Manuel Gonzalez Cosio,
General Francisco Z. Mena, and at present under
Mr. Leandro Fernandez. One of the most im-
portant labors of that department is that relating
to railways. And here, since the policy pursued by
President Diaz regarding railroad construction
can be considered pertinent to this subject, we
may be allowed to quote the following from the
interesting work of the late Mexican Ambassa-
dor Mr. Matias Romero, entitled Mexico and the
United States.

President Diaz deserves a great deal of credit for
his efforts to promote in Mexico material improve-
ment, especially in railroad building. When he came
into power in 1877 public opinion was very much
divided as to the policy of allowing citizens of the
United States to develop the resources of the coun-
try by building railroads, working mines, etc. Our

The Past, Present, and Future 117

experience of what took place in consequence of the
liberal grants given by Mexico to Texan colonists
made many fear that a repetition of that liberal policy
might endanger the future of the country by giving a
foothold in it to citizens of the United States who
might afterward, if circumstances favored them,
attempt to repeat the case of Texas. President Lerdo
de Tejada seemed to share such fear, judging by his
policy in this regard. But President Diaz, as a broad-
minded and patriotic statesman, believed that the
best interest of the country required its material
development, and that it would not be advisable to
discriminate against citizens of the United States,
as that country was more interested than any other,
on account of its contiguity to Mexico, in developing
the resources of our country by building an extensive
system of railways, and would, therefore, be more
ready than any other to assist in building it. He
trusted at the same time that, when the resources
of the country should be more fully developed, it
would become so strong as to be beyond reach of the
temptations by foreign states or individuals. The
results of the work done in Mexico so far show that
General Diaz acted wisely, and proved himself equal
to the task before him.

The extension of railroad lines in the Republic
in 1877, when President Diaz first came into power,
was 578 kilometres, while in 1909 it was over 24,160
kilometres.

Among the railways built there are lines of
international importance, such as the Mexican
Central, the Mexican National, and the Mexican

ii8 Porfirio Diaz

International, connecting the leading cities of the
Republic with the frontier towns of the United
States; the Tehuantepec Railroad and the branch
of the Mexican Central connecting the Pacific
Ocean with the Gulf of Mexico, and the Pan-
American Railroad that reaches the Guatemalan
frontier. Another important railroad lately com-
pleted is the extension of the Southern Pacific
from the American frontier to the port of Mazatlan,
State of Sinaloa, which was inaugurated in April,

1909-

It would take too much space to give in detail

the progress attained by Mexico during the last

few years in the extension of its telegraph and

railroad lines and in the improvement of its

mail service, but the tables and maps which form

part of this work will give our readers graphic and

precise information on those subjects.

Wireless telegraphy has also been introduced in
the Republic and at present there are several sta-
tions in operation, while others have been planned
or are in course of erection.

We have already had occasion to speak of the
wonderful work done by the Department of Fi-
nance and Public Credit. Its labors have been
praised and highly commented upon by all foreign
financiers, and have brought about the greatest
confidence regarding all financial operations under-
taken by Mexico, placing her credit abroad as high
as that of any nation. Whenever a loan has been
issued, it has immediately been taken up by the

The Past, Present, and Future 119

leading bankers of the world, even when the
Government shall have merely guaranteed its
payment, as was the case in the winter of 1908,
when bonds for irrigation purposes, upheld by
the credit of the Mexican Government, were con-
siderably over-subscribed, both in the United
States and in Europe.

The banking facilities of the country have been
greatly increased, as is shown by the following
figures: On June 30, 1897, there were ten banks
in the Republic under concessions of the Federal
Government, and their total assets amounted to
$146,746,108.36, while on the 30th of June, 1908,
the number of such institutions of credit was
thirty-four, and their total assets amounted to

$756,527.309-So-

If we now examine the figures referring to foreign
commerce, we will readily understand the great
advancement made in Mexico in that regard. In
the fiscal year of 1875-76 the total value of ex-
ports was $27,318,188 silver, and the importations
amounted to a little over $37,586,987; while in
the fiscal year 1908-09 the total exportations
amounted to $231,101,795 silver, and the impor-
tations to $156,504,447.

The large amount of revenue now obtained has
permitted the Government to correspondingly in-
crease its expenses ; and thus we see that while dur-
ing the fiscal year of 1876-77 the appropriations
authorized by Congress amounted in the aggregate,
in round figures, to $25,000,000 silver, that aggre-

I20 Porfirio Diaz

gate for the fiscal year 1909-10 is $97,871,750.96.
And it may be here added that, while formerly
there always was a deficit, during the last few
years there has always been a balance in favor of
the treasury amounting to several million dollars.

We may finally say that among the commend-
able labors of the Department of Finance and
Public Credit, reference should again be made to
the abolition of all internal imports as between the
states, to the change so skilfully effected in the
monetary system of the Republic to a gold basis,
and to the consolidation of most of the railroads
in operation to be under the control of the Federal
Government.

President Diaz has paid great attention to the
work of the Department of War and Navy which
is now under the able direction of General
Manuel Gonzalez Cosio. Accordingly we find that
the efficiency of the army has been increased, hav-
ing been supplied with new guns and cannon, most
of which were manufactured in the Republic,
some being made under the patent of General
Mondragon, a member of the Mexican army.

The National Military School at Chapultepec has
been greatly improved and so has the National
Arms Factory. Although strictly the rural guards
do not form a part of the regular army, we may
here make reference to them, and say that their
bearing and discipline and good service deserve
the praise that is generally bestowed on them.

The Mexican navy consists merely of a few gun-

The Past, Present, and Future 121

boats ; two of them, the Tampico and Vera Cruz,
were recently built in the United States and two
others, the Bravo and Morelos, in Italy.

The economic crisis experienced in 1908, through-
out the United States, as well as in Mexico; the
continued depreciation of silver; the earthquakes
occurring in the State of Guerrero ; the floods in
the states of Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas, and
the failure of the crops in many other states of the
Republic due to frosts in 1909, have not halted the
march of progress and advancement of Mexico,
but have really served to prove how readily the
nation can recuperate its losses and continue on-
ward along the pathway of peace and prosperity.

After this cursory review, we think that the
friends of Mexico and its people ought to feel
gratified and pleased at the condition of the
Republic, under the peaceful and well regulated
administration of Porfirio Diaz.

There never was a period in its history when
Mexico's relations with other countries were as
friendly and as close as at present. This is the
case with reference to the United States as evi-
denced in more ways than one, especially in the
mutual respect and regard towards each other
manifested by President Diaz on the one hand,
and Ex-President Roosevelt and President Taft
on the other, both through public documents
and in private conversations and interviews
published by the press.

President Diaz can well apply to the policy he

122 Porfirio Diaz

is pursuing, to his administrative acts, and to the
present condition of his country, the eloquent
words of Daniel Webster:

Let our age be the age of improvement. In a day
of peace, let us advance the arts of peace and the
works of peace. Let us develop the resources of our
land, call forth its powers, build up its institutions,
promote all its great interests and see whether we also,
in our day and generation, may not perform something
worthy to be remembered. Let us cultivate the true
spirit of union and harmony. . . . Let our conceptions
be enlarged to the circle of our duties. Let us extend
our ideas over the whole of the vast field in which we
are called to act. Let our object be our country, our
whole country, and nothing but our country.

Many who acknowledge and admire the satis-
factory condition of Mexico at the present time
express the fear that it may not continue when the
present honored head of the Government shall no
longer direct national affairs.

The late Matias Romero, in the work already
quoted, answers the above in the following words :

Mexico for nearly twenty years [now thirty ypars]
has been free from political disturbances and enjoying
all the advantages of a permanent peace. Those who
took part in former revolutions have either died off,
disappeared, or are now interested in the maintenance
of peace, because they are thriving in consequence
of the development of the country. Even in case
President Diaz's guidance should fail Mexico, I am

The Past, Present, and Future 123

sure peace would still be preserved, because there are
very strong reasons in its favor. Railways and
telegraphs are great preservers of peace. In case of
insurrection it was not long ago that it took months
before the government could reach the insurgents,
and in the meantime they could organize and fortify
themselves and make considerable headway before
they were confronted by an enemy. Now the Govern-
ment can send troops at once to quell an insurrection.
Peace in Mexico is as assured as it is in any other
country, and life and property are as safe there as
anywhere else. Public opinion seems to share this
view, and capital, especially foreign capital, which is
so conservative and timid, is now freely invested in
Mexican enterprises.

President Diaz's health and vigorous constitu-
tion lead us to hope that he may yet rule the
destinies of the Republic for many years to come,
in compliance with the unanimous wish expressed
by his countrymen through the press, through
public manifestations and in all conceivable
ways.

Still, should anything prevent his guiding the
ship of state, as he has laid the foundations of
peace and order deep and indestructible, we may
rest assured that, under the conditions existing at
present in the nation, and brought about by his
foresight and administrative skill, Mexico will
continue to be a progressive, enlightened, and
peaceful Republic.

CHAPTER XV

OPINIONS OF PROMINENT MEN REGARDING

PRESIDENT DIAZ AS A SOLDIER AND

STATESMAN

IT would take too long to quote at length the
opinions and commentaries of noted men and
important publications in the English-speaking
countries, regarding the life and career of Presi-
dent Porfirio Diaz. It would also occupy too
much space to give even a slight resume of the
occasions of a public nature, occurring in the
United States and Canada, wherein a passing or
elaborate reference has been made to such life and
character. In the appendices to this work we give
a description of two of the most recent public
festivities or events, in which special reference has
been made to his deeds and administrative acts:
one being the annual banquet of the Chamber of
Commerce of the State of New York, held in
November, 1908, on which occasion the name of
President Diaz evoked great enthusiasm, said
banquet having been partially dedicated to him
and to his country; and the other the memorable
interview held at the frontier on the i6th of Oc-

124

Manuel Gonzalez Cosio
Secretary of War and Navy

Opinions of Prominent Men 125

tober, 1909, between the Presidents of Mexico and
the United States.

We have also the pleasure, which we deem a
high honor, to insert in this chapter the opinions
and commentaries especially written for this
work, by some of the most noted men in the
United States and Canada, including most eminent
statesmen, diplomats, governors, federal officials,
army and navy leaders, presidents of universities,
literary writers, newspaper editors, successful
bankers, and in fact men from all leading walks
of life, all of whom are cognizant of the facts that
constitute the life of President Diaz and of the
services he has rendered to his country, and
many of whom personally know him or have
visited or resided in the Mexican Republic, and
whose impartial and unbiased views we know will
be received by our readers with pleasure and great
weight will be given to them.

The following are the opinions to which we refer,
written especially for this work, as before stated,
and that we present in alphabetical order, accord-
ing to the names of their noted authors.

Adee, Alvey a.. Second Assistant Secretary of
State of the United States:

I have always felt a repugnance to seeing any
personal expression of my opinion on public subjects
put into cold type.

I may, however, truthfully say that my admiration
for President Diaz's high qualities has steadily grown

126 Porfirio Diaz

year by year, as he himself has grown in the experience
and abihty which are so indispensable to his high office.
His career is one especially fitted to serve as a model
for all those who aspire to rise in the world by merit
and by their own sheer effort. Coming from the
people and knowing the needs of the people, his
course in rising from one high plane to another has
always obeyed his keen sense of what the people of
his country need, — stability and the opportunity for
healthful advancement. Keeping these vital condi-
tions in view, it is no cause for wonder that he, aided
by the cordial support of his countrymen, has made his
people, his country, and himself, what they are to-day.

Bailey, J. W., United States Senator:

I am pleased to know that you are preparing a
biography in English of President Diaz, for such a
publication will be both valuable and interesting.
Of course, I understand that no one outside of Mexico
can fully appreciate the great work which President
Diaz has done for his country and his countrymen;
but I know enough of his services to consider him
entitled to a high place among the great statesmen of
the world. In common with all other intelligent
people of the United States, I feel the deepest interest
in the progress and prosperity of Mexico, and I shall
feel a sense of personal obligation to you for pre-
senting to our people a history of a man who has
contributed so much to both.

Barrett, John, Director of the International
Bureau of American Republics:

President Diaz undoubtedly stands out as one of

Opinions of Prominent Men 127

the monumental characters of Pan-American history.
The historian who writes in the near future, or a
thousand years from now, will not fail to place him
in a unique position of prominence, influence, and
character. There are few names in the development
of the Western Hemisphere from the time of Columbus
until now, which are better known from Canada south
to Argentina. Throughout the United States there
is a profound and sincere respect and admiration for
his personality and his power of administering the
affairs of his country, forcefully and yet kindly.
The material, social and educational advancement
which Mexico has made during his incumbency as
President is not surpassed by the record of any presi-
dent or ruler for a corresponding time in the history
of the world. This observation is in no sense ful-
some praise, nor is it prompted by any desire to say
kind things of the head of one of the nations belonging
to the International Union of American Republics : it
is inspired, on the contrary, by thoughts growing out
of a careful study of what President Diaz has accom-
plished and of his personal mental and moral traits.
A biography, therefore, written by such an able
authority as Mr. Godoy, should be widely read by
those who wish to be thoroughly informed about the
leading characters of contemporaneous Pan-American
history.

Bartholdt, Richard, United States Represen-
tative :

President Diaz of Mexico will go down in history
as one of the grandest figures of the Western Hemi-
sphere. He is regarded by the outside world as a

128 Porfirio Diaz

benefactor of his country, and as the embodiment of
law and order as well as of all peaceful achievements,
and he is almost as popular in the United States as
he justly is in his own country.

Bates, E, A., General (retired), United States
Army :

I have watched the career of this great soldier
statesman from the beginning to this time and always
with the greatest admiration. His early exploits as
a soldier proved his power and ability in that line,
which taken together with his sincere patriotism
naturally brought him to the head of affairs, when
his success had contributed so greatly to establish
the real independence of his country. His amazing
executive ability, his far-sighted statesmanship, his
liberal views, so in accord with his times, his firmness
and honesty in dealing with the great problems of
state he has had to solve, has enabled him to organize
the Government of Mexico on a permanent basis, and
to guide it in its progress upward until now we have
reason to believe it will continue its stable course,
after his strong controlling hand has been taken
from the helm.

Many men have been "Father" of their respective
countries, but few have had such an unquestiona-
ble right to that title as Porfirio Diaz, President of
Modem Mexico. I regard him to-day as being one
of the greatest, if not the greatest living statesman.

Bell, J. Franklin, Major-General, Chief of
Staff of the United States Army :

It affords me very great pleasure to avail myself of

Opinions of Prominent Men 129

this opportunity to express my admiration for the
magnificent qualities and achievements of President
Porfirio Diaz — in some respects the most remarkable
ruler of the age. Every one at all versed in history
will concede, I think, that President Diaz is a states-
man and executive who, seems to have been specially
raised and developed by fate to meet certain condi-
tions and to occupy a particular place in the affairs
of our great sister Republic, Mexico. Certain it is
that no one else could have filled that place so well
as he.

But it is upon his abilities as a soldier that my in-
terest has been naturally most centered, and I like to
honor the profession by referring to him, in this
connection, as General Diaz. In all of his public
endeavors, from the time when he first entered upon
a m.ilitary career, through the turbulent years that
intervened until his election to the presidency, and
since then in suppressing occasional disorders during
his very prosperous administration, General Diaz has
exhibited that force, energy, and indomitable courage
which go to make up the ideal soldier. Nothing has
been impossible of accomplishment, and obstacles
only served to make him more earnest and deter-
mined. His is a strong character, indeed^ and he will
tindoubtedly go down in history as one of the world's
greatest leaders.

Bliss, C. N., Ex-Secretary of the Interior:

The remarkable work of President Porfirio Diaz in
the establishment of modern and efficient government
in the Republic of Mexico is well known and appre-
ciated in the United States and throughout the world.

130 Porfirio Diaz

The great progress in establishing good government,
education, and financial stability in the Republic,
during the past fifty years, is proof of the ability
with which the government has been administered and
also of the patriotism and intelligence of the Mexican
people. Citizens of the United States are greatly in-
terested just now in the event about to occur of the
meeting of the Presidents of the United States and
Mexico at El Paso. May that happily planned meet-
ing be a visible proof of the pleasant, kindly feeling
that exists between the two peoples, and evidence
that such good feeling will always continue, to the
mutual benefit and progress of the peoples of the two
republics.

Bone, Scott C, Editor of the Washington
Herald and President of the Gridiron Club:

The strong character of Porfirio Diaz, and his re-
markably successful career as President of the Re-
public of Mexico, have long challenged the admiration
of Americans. They have watched with great interest
the wonderful development of the country under his
wise administration and been deeply impressed with
the freedom from strife throughout it all. He has
ruled wisely. The president of no other republic
has ever so stamped his personality upon a country,
for such a length of time. The beneficial effects
of his governmental policies, and the lesson of his
personal life will endure forever. The press of this
country has paid tribute to him many times in the
past and rejoices in paying tribute to his greatness
to-day.

Opinions of Prominent Men 131

Brewer, David J., Justice of the United States
Supreme Court:

Evidently President Porfirio Diaz of Mexico is one
of the strong men of the day, and has accomphshed a
great deal in securing peace and order in that country
and in developing its civilization.

Brooks, Bryant B., Governor of the State of
Wyoming:

Four years ago, while visiting Mexico City, I had
the great honor and pleasure of meeting President
Diaz on three different occasions, and I can state
frankly that I consider him one of the greatest gen-
erals, scholars, and statesmen that I have ever met.
Both republics, as well as the entire civilized world,
stand indebted to President Diaz for his marvellous
reorganization and successful administration of affairs
in Mexico.

Broussard, Robert F., United States Repre-
sentative :

Mr. Diaz, in my judgment, is one of the fore-
most statesmen of the age. His position, for so
many years, as head of the Republic of Mexico has
been a trying one, requiring the highest skill of states-
manship, great firmness of character, and good judg-
ment to successfully carry it out. He has met every
difficulty, and promptly solved it; he has placed
Mexico in a position to advance very rapidly and to
develop her natural resources, which, to me, seem
scarcely to have been touched.

There can be no doubt that a continuance of a

132 Porfirio Diaz

policy he has pursued will, in a short while, bring
Mexico to the front as one of the richest nations of
the world. Her timber, her enormous mineral
wealth, and her agricultural possibilities are matters
little known to investors.

The stable government which he has maintained
in the Republic, if continued, must inevitably bring
out the very best there is in the development of these
resources, and when that time comes Mexico will take
a prominent place.

Brown, Elmer Ellsworth, Commissioner of
Education of the United States:

As Americans, we take pride in the great contri-
bution to civilization which President Diaz has made
in his long administration of the affairs of our Sister
Republic of Mexico. The interest in his great work
is widespread in this country. In particular, the
attention of American educators has been directed
to the great progress which education has made in
Mexico during President Diaz's administration, cul-
minating in the organization of the great National
University, which is to be opened in the near future.

Brown, H. B., Former Justice of the United
States Supreme Court:

I never met President Diaz but once — at a public
reception given by him in the City of Mexico. I was
much impressed by the gravity and dignity of his
face and could well understand his power as a states-
man and his popularity with the people.

It will always be said to his credit that he was the

Justo Sierra

Secretary of Public Instruction and Fine Arts

opinions of Prominent Men 133

first to establish a stable government in Mexico, since
the Republic was proclaimed, and that his adminis-
tration has not only commanded the affections of his
own people, but the admiration of all foreign powers.

Brown, Philip, American Minister to Hon-
duras:

I consider it a great privilege, though I hesitate
to venture any comments concerning a man of such
heroic mould, a man of the century, whom one in-
stinctively classifies with Bismarck, Cavour, and Lin-
coln. It is a task which should only be undertaken
by men of special talents and a profound knowledge
of public men and affairs.

I desire simply to state that I have always had the
greatest admiration for the splendid statesmanship
and colossal strength of character which President
Diaz has unfailingly shown in the face of immense
difficulties and unreasoning criticism in directing the
destinies of Mexico.

Whenever the opportunity has presented itself in
my diplomatic relations with the statesmen of Cen-
tral America, where, as you know, the most baffling
and discouraging problems have to be confronted, I
have always taken satisfaction in holding up as a
model General Porfirio Diaz, who in a large-minded,
courageous, and patriotic spirit has faced and solved
in large measure the problems of his native land.

Bryan, William J., Presidential Candidate of
the Democratic Party of the United States, and
Editor of The Commoner:

President Diaz has left an indelible impress on his

134 Porfirio Diaz

country. His administration covers an area of great
and permanent improvement in the condition of that
nation. When I was in the City of Mexico I was
especially impressed with his interest in education,
and to education the people of Mexico must look for
the laying of that broad foundation which is necessary
to stable government. I need not comment upon
the executive ability of President Diaz. He has
won a place among the great executive officers of
the world. As one who feels deeply interested in
the future of the Republic of Mexico I rejoice in the
progress that the country has made under Porfirio
Diaz.

Bryce, James, British Ambassador to the
United States:

No one who knows the history of Mexico during
the last half century, and has followed, however im-
perfectly, the career of the present head of that
Republic can fail to have been impressed by the
extraordinary talents, both military and political,
which have given lustre to that career. Under the
administration of Porfirio Diaz, as its President,
Mexico has grown to be a great state, second in the
Western Hemisphere to one other only. Her mineral
and agricultural resources have been developed with
amazing rapidity. A network of railways has now
covered her surface, where before there were practi-
cally no lines of swift or easy communication. Order
and public security have been established everywhere
throughout the country. An effective army and
police have been created. The different elements of
the population live peacefully together and the tran-

opinions of Prominent Men 135

quillity of the community is but rarely and slightly
disturbed. The national finances have been skil-
fully regulated, and while the revenue is expanding,
and is regularly collected, capital flows freely in from
many quarters and industries grow apace. Magnifi-
cent public works, including the construction of
great harbors, have been executed. The capital has
not only become a handsome and well appointed
city, but has been rendered much more healthy
than it formerly was. Foreigners are welcomed and
perfect religious liberty is assured, not only by the
law, but by the enlightened policy of the President's
government.

Whoever remembers the vicissitudes and troubles,
the revolutions and civil wars which fell to the lot of
Mexico in the fifty or sixty years which followed the
attainment of her independence, will regard with
admiration the achievements I have mentioned, and
will honour the man to whose energy and capacity
they are so largely due.

President Diaz stands out to-day as one of the
foremost men in this age of the world.

Burleson, Albert S., United States Repre-
sentative :

Porfirio Diaz has given the Republic of Mexico a
place in the galaxy of progressive nations of the world.
His administration of her affairs has drawn his coun-
try into terms of lasting friendship with the dominant
country of the Western Hemisphere, and in my
opinion history will write it that his term as president
was the beginning of a glorious era of Mexican national
life.

136 Porfirio Diaz

Burton, Theodore E., United States Senator:

Porfirio Diaz has won for himself a most notable
page in the world's history. Nature is chary with
her gifts and it is allotted to but few men to achieve
distinction in more than one line of endeavor. Fam-
ous as a warrior, President Diaz has won yet greater
glory as a statesman. With military sword and
epaulettes he pacified his country in the distressing
years of civil strife. With peace restored, he laid
aside the accoutrements of war to assume the duties
of civil leadership.

Possessing the love and respect of his countrymen,
President Diaz soon won for himself and his nation
the confidence and esteem of the world. Prosperity
spread her magic wand over the land. The material
advancement and industrial prosperity of Mexico,
coincident with his presidency, have aroused the
admiration of all nations. His life marks a splendid
era in Mexican history.

Burrows, J. C, United States Senator:

President Diaz is, in my opinion, one of the most
eminent statesmen of this or any other time in the
history of the world. He has exercised his wonderful
genius in enhancing the wealth and power of his na-
tion, and this he has accomplished to an extent that
will excite the wonder and admiration of mankind
through all future ages.

Cannon, Joseph G., Speaker of the House of
Representatives of the United States:

In my opinion, President Diaz is the wisest and
safest man who has ever been the executive of any

President Diaz

(From a recent photograph;

Opinions of Prominent Men 137

country on the American Continent south of the
United States.

Carnegie, Andrew, Philanthropist:

One of the most pleasing recollections of my life is
that I was received in the City of Mexico in special
audience by His Excellency President Diaz, one of
the greatest rulers in the world, perhaps the greatest
of all, taking into consideration the transformation
he has made in Mexico, for he is at once the Moses
and the Joshua of his people. He was pioneer and
led them upon the path to civilization, and in the
late years of his life he beholds the entire civilized
world taking Mexico by the hand as a sister nation.

History is to class President Diaz with the few
leaders of nations — most of whom have fallen in the
hour of victory, while he almost alone has been spared
to live and rejoice in the elevation of his people.

Carter, Thomas H., United States Senator:

President Porfirio Diaz is entitled to full credit for
the establishment of stable government in Mexico
with all the advantages and blessings incident thereto.
In a broader and larger sense he is entitled to special
consideration for his vast contributions to peace and
good order throughout Latin- America. By common
consent this great man is accorded a place in the
front rank of the world's constructive statesmen.

Clark, Champ, United States Representative:

I am delighted to know that you are preparing a
biography of President Porfirio Diaz to be printed in
English.

I regard him as one of the greatest men now living

138 Porfirio Diaz

or who has lived in the last hundred years. The
work which he has done in Mexico is little short of
marvellous and gives him a place with Lord Clive,
General Washington, and Prince Bismarck as an em-
pire builder.

Clayton, Powell, General, Former American
Ambassador to Mexico :

My residence 01 over eight years in Mexico, as the
American diplomatic representative, gave me un-
usual opportunities to study the character of the
soldier and statesman who, during an exception-
ally long period, has ruled supreme in that Repub-
lic, — a supremacy not based on arbitrary force,
but freely accorded by a grateful and confiding
people.

Physically, General Diaz is endowed with great
bodily strength and constitutional vigor, each well
preserved by daily exercises and abstemious habits.
His many-sided mentality, like his body, is strong
and vigorous. Remarkably quick to perceive, he is
equally prompt to act. His power to measure quickly
the moral and intellectual stature of men seems in-
tuitive. Firmness, courage, persistency, zeal, and
untiring industry in the public service are his promi-
nent traits.

He knows Mexico from capital to border, and his
watchful gaze reaches all parts of the Republic.
His doors and ears are open to all who come with
just complaints.

Though a soldier, his constant exertions are for
peace. Liberty -loving, he is the unrelenting adver-
sary of licence.

Opinions of Prominent Men 139

To him Mexico owes her wonderful development
and high standing among civilized nations.

When his bright star shall have set, may its after-
glow continue to light Mexico's pathway.

CocKRELL, F. M., Interstate Commerce Com-
missioner and Ex-United States Senator:

I am a great admirer of President Porfirio Diaz.
His long, illustrious, and honorable career as Presi-
dent has demonstrated his wisdom, his statesmanship,
and wonderful executive ability, and has proved a
blessing to Mexico and her people.

CoRTELYOU, George B., Ex-Secretary of the
Treasury :

The career of Porfirio Diaz is certainly one of the
most striking in modern times. Coming to the head
of the State at a critical period in the history of his
country, he has remained for over a quarter of a
century a dominant figure in Spanish America,
guiding his country with a firm and wise hand in the
ways of progress and civilization. Fortunate it is
for Mexico that such a man arose, under whose
leadership she has been enabled to attain her present
high place in the family of nations.

CuLLOM, S. M., United States Senator:

I have long considered Porfirio Diaz, President of
Mexico, as one of the great men of his day and genera-
tion. He is a great ruler and his country owes to
him a debt of gratitude which it never can repay.
It will be a great misfortune for Mexico when the

I40 Porfirio Diaz

time comes for him to lay aside the burdens of his
high office.

Curry, George, Governor of the Territory of
New Mexico:

The Republic of Mexico, in the person of Porfirio
Diaz, has evolved the highest type of statesman
known to the present age. The story of his life
should be placed in the hands of every American
school-boy as an incentive to patriotism and true
manhood.

Diaz has arisen from peonage to the throne of a
monarch. For the past thirty years he has been the
uncrowned king of a great nation and the savior of
the Mexican Republic.

The world is familiar with Diaz's desperate en-
gagements on the battle-fields of Mexico, when do-
mestic as well as alien foes were relentlessly crushed,
when he led his people to victory and lifted the nation
from a state of ruin and degradation to peace and
prosperity, restoring it to the respect and confidence
of other world powers. While he is just and merciful,
he rules with an iron hand. He exhorts his people to
be industrious, law-abiding, and to pay their debts.
He is in the highest sense of the term a king, but scorns
the worldly trappings of the position. He is a man
of simple habits and an unblemished private life. He
is not a man of wealth, though he could possess millions
were he not truly a great man and a great ruler.

Curtis, William E., Ex-Director of the Inter-
national Bureau of American Republics and Cor-
respondent of the Chicago Record-Herald:

Opinions of Prominent Men 141

President Diaz is a man of broad views, and during
his long and uninterrupted administration has fol-
lowed a definite policy of progress for the develop-
ment of the resources of the country and its elevation
to the position to which it is entitled by territory,
population, and wealth among the nations of the
world. The success of his endeavors can be measured
most accurately by a comparison of the conditions
which existed in Mexico in 1876, when he first as-
sumed control of the Government, and in 1909.
When he came into power on December i, 1876,
Mexico was in a state of political, commercial, and
industrial chaos; life and property were of compara-
tively little value and had no protection from the
courts or the police. To-day no country is more
peaceful or secure for strangers as well as citizens.

General Diaz is now seventy-nine years old and is
serving his seventh term as president. He has full
consciousness of his power, and his policy is as fixed as
the movement of the stars. He has become accus-
tomed to the exercise of power; he is so keen in his
perceptions that he can read the motives of the men
he has to deal with. Those two qualities are, doubt-
less, responsible for his success.

Daniel, John W., United States Senator:

President Porfirio Diaz of Mexico is universally
recognized as a great man. His work for his country
has been eminently successful and characterized by
his great qualities.

Davis, Henry G., Ex-United States Senator:
I count among the most interesting and fortunate

142 Porfirio Diaz

occurrences which have come to me the opportu-
nities I have had for a personal acquaintance with
General Diaz, As chairman of the Delegation of
the United States to the Second Conference of Amer-
ican Republics, which met in the City of Mexico in
the winter of 1901-1902, I met General Diaz both
officially and socially, and it was a great pleasure to
renew an acquaintance I had made with him a few
years previously, when visiting Mexico. General
Diaz is a striking and commanding figure in modern
times. Probably no country during the past century
has felt the influence of any one man more than
Mexico has of General Diaz. Although a soldier
both by profession and nature, whose military ser-
vices had been of the highest order, yet his greatest
victories have been in the direction of peace and
tranquillity. He has brought out of turmoil and
unrest a compact and stable nation, and has turned
strong and impulsive elements of population from
industrial indifference and defiance of law and order
to commercial activities and defence of governmental
authority. He has quelled the spirit of insurrection
among the people, and set an example to the countries
of Central and South America. Under his forcible
and effective administration of affairs, the people
have advanced in all lines of domestic and commercial
welfare, and the Republic has been brought to a much
higher plane in the sisterhood of nations. His per-
sonal character and executive strength have been a
guaranty of the safety of foreign capital, the intro-
duction of which has done so much to aid in the
development of the country's wonderful mineral and
other resources. One may speak of almost any country
of the world without any one man predomina,ting

Opinions of Prominent Men 143

therein, but Mexico and Diaz are inseparable. He
has built so well that I am sure the foundation he
has laid will endure, and that Mexico will continue
under his successors in the march of progress in which
he has so masterfully led it. The citizens of Mexico
in grateful remembrance will always hold him in the
same pride and affection that the people of the United
States have for their immortal Washington.

Day, William R., Justice of the United States
Supreme Court and Ex-Secretary of State:

The great career of President Diaz has attracted
the attention of the world, and demonstrated his
superior qualifications in leadership and those great
qualities as a statesman which have given to his
country a long period of peace and advancement.

Your proposed biography cannot fail to be highly
interesting, and give to the reading public a more
intimate acquaintance with those eminent traits of
character and conduct which have marked the great
career of President Diaz.

Denby, Edwin, United States Representative:

I find myself somewhat at a loss to give you any-
thing regarding President Diaz, worthy of reproduc-
tion in your forthcoming book. I share with the
people of the world its great admiration for the long
and splendid service of this distinguished Mexican.
We of the United States really owe him a debt of
gratitude for the great works he has wrought in Mex-
ico and the peace and good order which under his
strong but benign rule have prevailed in our sister
republic. How much of the present friendly and

144 Porfirio Diaz

satisfactory relations between the two republics may
be due to President Diaz, it is impossible to say,
but certainly he has contributed greatly to that desir-
able result. May he have many years of active life
ahead of him.

De Young, M. H., Editor of the San Francisco
Chronicle :

If the object of government is to secure for the
people governed peace and prosperity, President
Diaz must be regarded as a great ruler. When he
assumed the guidance of the affairs of Mexico, it was
a turbulent country in which life and property were
not always safe ; by his wisdom and firmness he suc-
ceeded in replacing disorder by order, and through his
administrative ability he put the finances of the
Republic in such shape that its credit stands very
high. To his energetic efforts must be attributed the
fact that Mexico, which a quarter of a century ago
was in an extremely backward state, is now one of the
most progressive nations in the world. His policy
of encouraging the investment of foreign capital has
given a great impetus to the development of the
resources of the Republic. Foreigners who find their
way to Mexico, without reference to the country of
their origin, are all admirers of Diaz, a fact which
speaks volumes. If a man is to be judged by his
achievements, and not by finical notions respecting
forms of government, Diaz is a great man; so great
indeed that his countrymen fear that they cannot
find a fit successor to him and therefore, although
professed republicans, they do not hesitate to main-
tain him in office indefinitely. In this way they show

The Monument of Mexican Independence

City of Mexico

(To be inaugurated September, igio)

Opinions of Prominent Men 145

their wisdom, even though a ruler for life seems an
anomaly in a republic.

DoLLivER, Jonathan P., United States Senator:

I believe that General Diaz is recognized through-
out the United States as a great constructive states-
man and a popular leader, whose policies lie at the
base of the development and progress of the Mexican
people.

Egan, Maurice Francis, United States Minis-
ter to Denmark :

From the point of view of statesmanship there can
be, it seems, no question that posterity would regard
Porfirio Diaz as one of the greatest reconstructors
of the world. The difficulties which he met and over-
came in his work can only be guessed by even the
most intelligent student of the results of that work.
The processes by which he united a divided country —
processes which often seem drastic and even radical
to those who looked at Mexico from the point of view
of men already politically educated — can only be
analyzed by experts who can realize the tremendous
problems he had to meet. With the sympathy of a
Lincoln for his people, with the knowledge of a
Disraeli of the influences outside his country, with
his power of compromise in political crises worthy
of a Gladstone, and the insight into the internal
needs of his country of a Castelar, he stands before
the world to-day as a Caesar who has resisted all
temptation to despotism, and a Napoleon who has
learned that the greatest thing in conquest is to
know its limits.

146 Porfirio Diaz

Elkins, S. B., United States Senator:

For twenty- five years or more I have been interested
in the people and familiar with the affairs of the
Republic of Mexico. During this time I have had
opportunities of learning something of President Diaz
and his great services to his country.

I knew President Juarez, having met him at El
Paso, when he was driven to the frontiers of the
Republic by the French and Austrian soldiers. He
was highly educated, an able and remarkable man
and a great lawyer, but different in many ways from
Diaz and not his equal.

I regard Diaz as one of the greatest men of his
time. I say this after following his career closely
and a limited personal acquaintance made while
visiting Mexico. General Diaz is not only a great
soldier and leader, but he is a statesman of the highest
order. He stands amongst the greatest rulers of the
world. During his service as president he has brought
order and respect for law out of confusion and chaos.
He has given the Republic of Mexico peace and pro-
tection to life and property, such as it never before
enjoyed. He has promoted the progress and devel-
opment of the resources of Mexico and started the
country on the high-road to progress and prosperity.
He has elevated Mexico and her people until she is
recognized as one of the leading nations of the world.

Under his administration, the people of Mexico
have become law-abiding, law-respecting, and pro-
gressive, and are making advance in every direction
towards a better civilization. Before Diaz came into
power, Mexico was subjected to constant revolutions;
there was but little respect for law ; life and property

Opinions of Prominent Men 147

were not secure. These results it may be said are due
largely to the genius and ability of this wonderful man.

General Diaz is a man of lofty courage, great exec-
utive ability, and fine judgment, modest and retiring,
just, generous, and fair. In many ways he reminds
me of General Grant.

President Diaz's services to Mexico, Mexican civili-
zation, and Mexican progress in every direction cannot
be overestimated.

Englebright, W. F., United States Repre-
sentative :

The people of California with feelings of warm
friendship have viewed with pleasure the continued
prosperity of their mother country, Mexico, and
congratulate her on having had for many years such
a president as Porfirio Diaz — a most able ruler and
one of the great statesmen of the times, whose patri-
otism, united to his great force of character and his
marked executive ability, has brought his country to
its great position as one of the great nations of the
world.

Fisher, Sydney, Minister of Agriculture of
Canada :

I regret extremely that I have never had the honor
or advantage of meeting the President of Mexico.
Personal friends of mine, who have met him, have
spoken so highly of him that it is my ambition and
intense desire to take the first opportunity of making
his personal acquaintance.

His work in Mexico is such as to place him among
the great statesmen of the day and of the time. We

148 Porfirio Diaz

in Canada feel the utmost interest in him and his
country, it being a portion of our own continent,
the conditions there being somewhat similar to the
conditions here in Canada.

I have had the good fortune to meet a number of
leading Mexicans and they have shown a devotion to
their country and to their work which explains the
great success of their government and their people.
I have no doubt that the President has been an
example and model for these men in their public
careers, and that his influence as a leader has been
great all over Mexico.

A work such as you speak of will be eagerly looked
for by all the English-speaking world, who look upon
your President as one of the greatest men, and of the
most interesting career of the present day.

Flint, Frank F., United States Senator:

The close commercial and social relations that
have existed between the Republic of Mexico and the
State of California, for many years, by reason of the
proximity of the two countries and the strong racial
ties of their people, have enabled the citizens of Cali-
fornia to acquire more than the average knowledge
of economic and political conditions in Mexico and
to become familiar with the high character and
remarkable career of that country's President.

Our people have long been great admirers of Presi-
dent Diaz. His acknowledged statesmanship, his
patriotism and love for his people, and his devotion
to their interests, have won for him universal com-
mendation. All these qualities, together with his
courtesy to the people of other countries visiting or

Justino Fernandez
Secretary of Justice

Opinions of Prominent Men 149

residing in Mexico, and his fairness and liberality in
dealing with foreign capital seeking investment in the
Republic, have made him almost as popular in the
United States, and particularly along the border
states and territories, as he is in his own country.
His repeated re-election, without serious opposition,
demonstrates his popularity there.

Foster, John W., Fonner Secretary of State
and Ex- American Minister to Mexico and Spain :

During my seven years' residence in Mexico, from
1873 to 1880, I became well acquainted with the
military career of General Porfirio Diaz, and was
brought into intimate official and personal relations
with him during his first presidential term. Since
that period I have made several visits to Mexico, and
have been enabled to note the development and
progress of the country under his administration.
I have no hesitation in pronouncing him the great-
est statesman of the Latin-American states in any
period of their history, and one of the most dis-
tinguished statesmen of the world in his generation.

His military career during the French Intervention
showed him to be a soldier of a high order of ability,
and his achievements in defence of his country greatly
endeared him to the Mexican people. The value of
his services as president, and his ability as a states-
man, may be estimated in various ways.

From the establishment of its independence to the
time that Diaz assumed the presidency, the history
of the country had been one series of disorders and
revolutions. Bloodshed and anarchy had been the
rule rather than the exception. Immediately after

150 Porfirio Diaz

Diaz came into control of the government, order pre-
vailed throughout the Republic and the life and
property of every inhabitant was assured. Speedily
the courts were re-established and the civil adminis-
tration of the law became supreme. In the past
thirty-three years, during which Diaz has been prac-
tically at the head of the government, there has been
no serious disturbance of public order in any part of
its territory. Within the same period, the other Latin-
American countries, almost without exception, have
experienced revolutionary changes of administration,
or have been rent by civil war.

In 1876 the public credit of Mexico was at the
lowest possible ebb. The public debt had been
either repudiated or in default of interest payment
for many years. Its government bonds were of no
value in the money markets of the world. Its rev-
enues were in a demoralized condition, the budget
showing a yearly deficit in the expenses. The first
act of the Diaz government was to meet a pay-
ment of about $150,000 due the United States. The
public treasury was empty, and a resort was had
to private bankers to raise the sum, for which twelve
per cent, interest was paid. Within a few years the
public debt was recognized and refunded at a lower
rate of interest, and is now in process of gradual
redemption. The government bonds command a
higher price abroad than those of any other of the
Latin-American states. The annual receipts are
greater than the expenditures, notwithstanding
the large outlays for the national debt and public
improvements.

Mining and agriculture early experienced new
life and enlargement, and foreign capital from the

Opinions of Prominent Men 151

United States and Europe poured into the country
for their development. The wonderful railroad con-
struction which has taken place was only made
possible through the aid and protection of the Diaz
administration .

These are some of the evidences of the statesman-
ship and beneficence of Porfirio Diaz, which entitles
him to a first place among the rulers of his generation.

Fox, Williams C, American Minister to Ecua-
dor:

I consider it as one of the most interesting occasions
of my life to have met and known well General Diaz.
He is undoubtedly one of the great figures in the
world to-day and every item in regard to him, justly
recorded, will be a distinct addition to the history of
the Western Hemisphere.

Frye, Wm. p.. United States Senator and
President pro tempore of the Senate:

A biography in English of President Diaz is a work
well worthy of the best efforts of any writer, and I
am glad that you are to undertake it. It cannot
but prove of intense interest, not only to the student
of history but to the lover of romance. A mere
recital of the experiences of this great soldier, patriot,
and statesman during his long and eventful life will
make a tale as fascinating as a Kipling novel.

Gallinger, J. H., United States Senator:

The progress and development of the Republic of
Mexico during the last quarter of a century have

152 Porfirio Diaz

challenged the attention and excited the admiration
of the people of the United States, there being a close
bond of sympathy and good-will between the two
nations. The part that President Diaz has played
in the material and moral welfare of his country is
well known and recognized, not only in the United
States but also in Europe. Nothing exceeding it
has been accomplished by any statesman, and the
great work that he has done for the elevation and
advancement of the people of Mexico will be a theme
for future historians. His high character, patriotic
achievements, and illustrious career will form a bright
page in the world's history, and will be an inspiration
and incentive to all lovers of constitutional and rep-
resentative government.

Gardiner, Asa Bird, President Rhode Island
State Society of the Cincinnati, and Secretary
General of the Order:

In the closing years of the 19th century and be-
gining of the 20th, history presents as one of its
very greatest public men in that period, His Excel-
lency Porfirio Diaz, President of the Republic of
Mexico.

As a general in the field he was particularly dis-
tinguished in restoring the independence of his
country.

As President of the Republic, no chief executive in
any nation ever exhibited more ability in that ca-
pacity, wisdom, prudence, sagacity, or love of peace
and order. Guided by this great man, his country
has made wonderful advances in all that makes a
nation great and respected.

Some Harbor Works in the Republic

opinions of Prominent Men 153

Garfield, James R., Ex-Secretary of the In-
terior, son of the late President Garfield :

With your other American friends, I am glad you
are writing in English the biography of President
Diaz. I am sure the book will be most interesting.

President Diaz is one of the great figures in the his-
tory, not only of Mexico, but of our continent. His
statesmanship has always been of the highest con-
structive type. While maintaining peace and order
at home, thus making possible Mexico's progress, he
has gained the friendship and respect of other na-
tions. His friendly spirit of co-operation in the
consideration of problems affecting Mexico and the
United States aided the settlement of many difficult
questions, and has laid the foundation for an endur-
ing peace between our countries. In a very striking
way this was shown at the Conference, of which he
was a member, between the representatives from
Mexico, Canada, and the United States, held during
last March, for the consideration of the conservation
of the natural resources of this continent.

Goodrich, Caspar F., Rear-Admiral United
States Navy:

It is a great honor to be asked to express my
opinion of the character and work of so distinguished
a;statesman and so wise a ruler as President Diaz.

What his labors have accomplished in general
is known to all. Personally, I have witnessed the
effects of his consistent and dignified administration
of affairs in the universal atmosphere of contentment,
in the good order, and in the safety of persons and

154 Porfirio Diaz

property in the ports of Mexico, which it has been
my good fortune to visit during my cruises.

President Diaz will go down in history as one of
the ablest, broadest minded, and most revered leaders
of his era. His reputation can be no exclusive
possession of his own country, for all Americans,
from the Arctic Ocean to Cape Horn, will insist upon
claiming him as of their own.

Grant, Frederick D., Major-General of the
United. States Army:

My father, General U. S. Grant, was a great per-
sonal friend of President Porfirio Diaz, and I have
inherited for this distinguished general and states-
man the admiration felt by my father for him. I
also have had the honor of meeting and being the
guest of President Diaz in Mexico.

No man has ever done more for his country than
President Diaz, during whose administration Mexico
has enjoyed greatest prosperity and made wonderful
strides forward.

In fact, words are inadequate to express my
admiration for this great and distinguished Mexican.

Greely, a. W., Major-General of the United
States Army (retired) :

My first knowledge of Mexico came from a visit
to the Lower Rio Grande Valley in 1865, when the
country was overrun by a victorious enemy. I was
again in this section in 1873, and in 1875 bailt three
hundred miles of telegraph in the American valley,
and so became familiar with the prevalent lawless,

Opinions of Prominent Men 155

revolutionary conditions which so distressed Northern
Mexico at that period. Later I visited time and
time again not only the whole frontier, from Cali-
fornia to Texas, but also journeyed to the City of
Mexico by one route and returned by another. I
have, as a university professor, studied the develop-
ment of the country, the progress of its institu-
tions, and the improvements in the status of its
people.

I have thus followed the growth of the Mexican
states from revolutionary and unsettled conditions
into their present proud position of a nation, com-
posed of united, thriving, and well governed states.
Great as has been the development of the resources
of Mexico, they have been paralleled by its progress
in education, arts, and sciences, and by its adoption
and application of industrial and transportation
facilities. To me, yet greater has been the transition
to habits of peace and of amenability to law, whereby
rights of person, property, and life have been wonder-
fully improved and generally conserved.

These astounding changes have, in my opinion,
been wrought through the energy, wisdom, genius,
and administrative ability of President Porfirio
Diaz, whose career I have followed with increas-
ing surprise and admiration from decade to decade.
President Diaz was absent when I visited the City of
Mexico, and so my judgment is not warped by
personal relations.

My opinion is wholly based on study, observation,
and reflection, which cause me to consider Porfirio
Diaz as one of the great men of the past half-century,
I honor him as a man, who has raised up Mexico,
made it a great nation, instituted peace and law, and

156 Porfirio Diaz

above all made possible the progress of his fellow-
countrymen.

Hadley, Arthur T., President of Yale Uni-
versity :

The work of President Diaz has been so great, and
the existing position and prosperity of Mexico is
such a monument to his ability, that any words of
commendation which I might attempt to offer would
seem commonplace and superfluous.

Hay, M. E., Governor of the State of Wash-
ington :

I consider President Diaz one of the truly great
men of this age. The great work he has done for his
country and his people ranks him abreast with Wash-
ington, Hamilton, and Jefferson of our own country.
His management of the affairs of Mexico has been safe
and conservative and yet as progressive as could
be with safety to the nation.

I had the pleasure of spending a few weeks in the
Republic some five years ago, and was greatly im-
pressed with the love, affection, and respect the people
of that country have for their President. Seemingly,
all classes are commencing to see what a great work
President Diaz has done for their nation.

Hayes, E. A., United States Representative:

I regard President Diaz of Mexico as among the
greatest of the constructive statesmen of this age.
That he has accomplished wonders for Mexico must
be the opinion of all who are at all familiar with its

Astronomical Observatory
Near City of Mexico

opinions of Prominent Men 157

recent history. He is a world-wide character, and
must be counted among the greatest men of this age.

Hill, David J., American Ambassador to
Germany:

I have never had the honor to make the personal
acquaintance of President Porfirio Diaz, and I know
him only through the reports of his public life in the
administration of his high office during many years
as president of the Republic. I am, therefore, able
only to express my great admiration for the inter-
nal policies which have so efEectively promoted the
development of Mexico socially, economically, and in
all that makes progress in the growth of civilization,
and also my appreciation of the wisdom, moderation,
and spirit of friendliness with which the Republic
has managed its foreign relations, and above all
the manifest friendliness toward the United States,
whose people I think are happy in witnessing the
prosperity and development of Mexico.

Hill, James J., of the Great Northern Rail-
way Company:

For many years prior to the advent of Porfirio
Diaz to the presidency of the Republic of Mexico,
the various states of that country seemed to lack
co-operation, growing out of efforts and ambitions of
local politicians. The administration of President
Diaz has unified the Mexican nation and greatly
strengthened its position among the nations. His
work as the head of the Mexican Republic during
his long administration of its affairs has advanced

158 Porfirio Diaz

his native country more than the work of any other
ten of her sons.

Howry, Charles, Judge of the United States
Court of Claims :

Porfirio Diaz is generally regarded by the Ameri-
can people, not only as a very able administrator
of public affairs, but as a great man. That he is
powerful, his long tenure in office proves and goes
without saying. That he is masterful, is demon-
strated by the success which has attended his efforts
to rule his country in peace and without disorder.
That he is wise and justly entitled to be called one of
the foremost men of his time is acknowledged by
those familiar with the progress of his country in
everything that makes for social life and civiliza-
tion.

Porfirio Diaz has proven his right to govern.
Without knowledge of the means employed for the
perpetuation of his power, or that these means have
been at all inconsistent with the rights and free will
of his countrymen, I should say that his place in
history is secure as a ruler. But more than that.
During his administration, Mexico has prospered as
never before and made rapid strides among the
republics of the Western Hemisphere to a conspicuous
place in the family of nations.

Jordan, David Starr, President of the Leland
Stanford, Junior, University:

I regard President Diaz as one of the ablest and
most efficient rulers in any country within the last

Opinions of Prominent Men 159

century. He has had clearly in mind the possibilities
of Mexico, and has brought it from a position of
scattered and warring tribes, to be the beginning of
a great nation. I once said to President Diaz that
he had made of Mexico "una gran nacion," "No,"
he said, "el germinillo de una gran naci6n"; but the
little germ is already on the way to fullest develop-
ment, and one cannot speak too highly of the strength
of mind and persistent devotion of President Diaz.

Kahn, Julius, United States Representative:

I am glad to learn you are writing the biography of
President Porfirio Diaz of Mexico, as I consider him
one of the greatest men of the nineteenth century.
He has given his country stable government and has
brought to Mexico an era of prosperity, such as was
never known in all the years of her history. He has
cemented the bonds of friendship between the United
States and Mexico, and has done much to promote
industrial relations between the manufacturers and
producers of the two countries. He will rank in
history as one of the wise statesmen of the world, and
I trust he will be spared many years to continue his
work of advancement.

I believe the life of such a man must be an inspira-
tion to the youth of all countries, and I wish you every
success in your undertaking.

Landis, C. B., Ex-United States Representa-
tive:

We speak the name of Mexico, and think of Diaz.
In the United States, for many years, the man and
the country have been one and inseparable. Diaz is

i6o Porfirio Diaz

Mexico and Mexico is Diaz. As long as language is
spoken and history written, he will be included among
the world's great men. In the fullest meaning of the
term his career has been that of "a nation builder."

Lane, Franklin K., of the Interstate Com-
merce Commission of the United States:

After a visit to Mexico a few years since, I delivered
an address upon Mexico and its president, in which
I said: "President Diaz is one of the two or three
great men of our time. Neither the President of
the United States nor any monarch in Europe has
the personal power that the President of Mexico
exercises. His rise to the presidency is not remarka-
ble, but his ability to sustain himself in that position
for nearly thirty years is the achievement of nothing
less than genius. He is the most remarkable man
who has risen in all Spanish America during nearly
four centuries of occupancy. I found him respected,
admired, and loved. His people are proud of him
and personally attached to him, — and well they
might be, for his policy has been national, his impulse
is patriotic, and the history of his regime is one of
tranquillity and unprecedented prosperity."

I can add no more to this expression of opinion,
nor would I take one word from it to-day.

Lodge, H. C, United States Senator :

To do justice to such a career as that of President
Diaz in a few words would be impossible. He is
one of the remarkable men of our time and the great
work which he has done for the peace and prosperity

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President Diaz

Opinions of Prominent Men i6i

of Mexico constitutes an enduring monument. You
may rest assured that nowhere is his work more
appreciated than in the United States. I had the
pleasure of meeting President Diaz many years ago
in Boston and I well remember the great impression
he made upon me as a man of the most exceptional
force and ability.

LooMis, Francis B., United States Commis-
sioner to the Tokio Exposition and Ex-Assistant
Secretary of State :

It was my good fortune to be in Mexico when Mr.
Root, as Secretary of State, visited that country in
1907 and to participate as a guest in the series of
memorable and sumptuous entertainments given in
his honor.

I met President Diaz many times, and upon one
occasion had the honor of a long interview with him,
lasting quite an hour and a half. Our talk was dis-
cursive, covering a wide range of topics, but centered
mainly on international politics and practical ques-
tions of economic policy bearing upon the material
development of Mexico and the United States. I
have talked at some length with several of the con-
spicuous "rulers of the world," but I have never
known the head of a great nation who conveyed to
his listener a more convincing sense of virile char-
acter, of moral, mental, and physical fitness than did
President Diaz. He explains himself and his won-
derful career, and after half an hour's talk with this
uncommon man one ceases to marvel at the versatility
and importance of his achievements. He is the per-
sonification of Ef&ciency. At seventy-eight he has the

1 62 Porfirio Diaz

resilliency, the flexibility, the endurance, and the
psychic power of a forceful man of forty-five.

Early in life General Diaz learned, like the late
President McKinley, that the man who can master
himself is greater than one who can take a city.
President Diaz is the ruler of himself, — a model of
self-control. The great qualities of Porfirio Diaz are
moral qualities.

It now seems probable that historians will be dis-
posed to agree that prior to this century the New
World has produced no more competent ruler than
General Diaz. Those who have really adequate
knowledge of the difficulties and of the magnitude of
the task which has confronted him for nearly twenty-
five years will readily understand why just and
thorough students will be inclined to assign President
Diaz a very lofty place in the chronicles of his time.

It is true that General Diaz is a successful sol-
dier: it is true that he is a remarkable organizer: it
is true that he has turned an impoverished, feeble,
and slightly amalgamated federation into a closely
knitted, progressive, and prosperous republic — but
his real victory, the resplendent and crowning tri-
umph of his career, is to be found in the substantial
fact that throughout the length and breadth of Mex-
ico he has instilled into the hearts, minds, and lives of
the people an earnest abiding desire for peace and
genuine loyalty to law.

President Diaz seeks to educate his people in pa-
triotism and in civic righteousness. He strives to
indoctrinate them with high and imperishable prin-
ciples. In a large measure he has already uplifted
and enlightened them. When he passes away much
of the good that he has wrought will remain, for it is

opinions of Prominent Men 163

not small or specious in quality, or in any sense
ephemeral.

I believe him to be one of the most useful men the
world has known.

Low, Seth, Ex-President of Columbia Uni-
versity and Ex-Mayor of New York City:

The career of President Diaz marks him as a man
of commanding ability. Under his long adminis-
tration as President of the United States of Mexico,
that country has made steady and remarkable prog-
ress. Good order has been maintained and the cur-
rency and finances of the country have been placed
upon a sound basis. As a result, the great natural
resources of the country have been made available
as never before, so that Mexico has enjoyed under
the administration of this remarkable man a greater
degree of prosperity than ever. The relations of
Mexico and the United States have never been more
friendly than during the incumbency of President
Diaz. The two countries gave to The Hague Tri-
bunal the opportunity of exercising its functions for
the first time in the settlement of an international
dispute. So that externally, as well as internally,
President Diaz has led his country successfully along
the paths of peace. History will accord to him a
distinct place among the great administrators of the
American Continent.

Lyman, Hart, of the New York Tribune:

The Tribune has often expressed its admiration of
the far-sighted wisdom with which President Diaz has

164 Porfirio Diaz

for many years directed the Government of Mexico.
It seems as if the ancient dictum that no man is
necessary were refuted in his case.

MacArthur, Arthur, Lieutenant - General,
United States Army (retired) :

The fulfilment of your purpose to publish in
English a biography of President Diaz will be a most
fortunate event, for the large audience that is re-
stricted to that language as its only literary medium.
By this means precise knowledge will be imparted
to the English speaking world of the great man,
through whose flexible and master-mind, the ideals
and aspirations of the Mexican people have found
adequate expression.

Endowed with military and political perceptions of
lucidity and range, Diaz has at critical moments been
enabled to contribute all of his great abilities to the
good government and welfare of his country. En-
riched with rare gifts of understanding, rendered acute
and comprehensive by observation and study, he
has thus impressed himself indelibly upon the politi-
cal life of Mexico, and upon the intellectual life of the
age.

Hundreds of very great men have passed through
the world without leaving any visible trace of their
existence. Enlarged scope of thought in respect of
national interests, broad conceptions in behalf of
patriotic purposes, therefore, are not in themselves
always sufficient to impress contemporaries.

Fortunately, in this instance the right man syn-
chronized with the right moment, and as a conse-
quence, Mexico is now one of the seminating powers

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Opinions of Prominent Men 165

of the earth : and Diaz himself must be placed in the
small class of constructive workers of the nineteenth
century which embraces Cavour, Lincoln, Bismarck,
and Ito.

Discreet statesman, sagacious diplomat, patient
administrator, loyal soldier, and patriotic citizen,
long may he live to inspire the best aspirations of his
own country and to enjoy the respect of mankind.

Macfarland, H. B. F., President of the Com-
missioners of the District of Columbia :

President Diaz deserves his unique distinction
among the rulers of nations. No one has had a more
difficult task; no one has discharged his duty more
efficiently; no one has had more appreciation of his
achievements; no one has had greater affection and
admiration from his own people or more respect
and regard from those of other countries. We of
the United States, and especially we who live in the
National Capitol, share in a peculiar degree the
general sentiments of the world respecting President
Diaz, because of all that he has done to strengthen
the close and friendly relations between the United
States of Mexico and the United States of America.
We realize that he is not only one of the greatest of
men but one of the best of friends. We congratulate
Mexico that he is still willing to direct her affairs, and
wish for him continued health, and evengreatersuccess.

Magoon, Charles E., former Provisional
Governor of Cuba:

That the demand creates the supply, is an aphorism
that, while it may hold good in commercial matters,

1 66 Porfirio Diaz

is not always borne out in the affairs of state. It is
true that Russia had its Peter the Great, and Germany-
its Frederick Barbarossa, but they were conquerors
rather than statesmen, and even Switzerland with
her William Tell presented an instance of successful
rebellion much more than the evolution of a power
that had its victories in peace as well as war.

The combination of the qualities of the soldier and
the statesman, moreover, seems to be the distinct
product of American soil. The United States found it
in her hour of need, in George Washington and subse-
quently in Abraham Lincoln, while later still, a most
striking example is to be found in President Diaz,
the present President of Mexico.

What that Republic owes to him cannot be over-
estimated. For more than twenty-seven years he
has governed Mexico with a strength and power hith-
erto unknown under a democratic form of government,
and yet with the wisdom that finds its vindication in
a march of improvements which is unequalled in the
histories of nations.

He found Mexico bankrupt, divided against itself,
infested with bandits, and a victim, of all sorts of
maladministration and corruption. Under his watch-
ful eye millions upon millions of dollars have been
honestly expended on harbor improvements, drainage
works, and engineering projects; not the least of
which was the boring of a tunnel through the Eastern
mountains, thus draining the valley of Mexico into the
sea, through a system of canals and sewers that cost
more than twelve millions of dollars.

When General Diaz first assumed control, there
were only two small railroad lines ; one connecting the
capital with Vera Cruz, the other connecting it with

Opinions of Prominent Men 167

Queretaro. At the present day there are more than
15,000 miles of railroad. So, too, with the mail
service: in the primitive time it was dependent on
stage-coaches, which were frequently held up and
robbed, while now there is a safe and rapid service with
twenty-nine hundred post-offices, and, in addition,
there are upwards of forty-five thousand miles of
telegraph wires in operation.

Meanwhile he has been steadily reducing the public
debt, putting the national finances on a gold basis,
and managing the business affairs of the country with
such sound monetary ability, that the nation has a
surplus of seventy-two million dollars in the Treasury.

What the debt of the whole world is to this wonder-
ful leader, to his magnetic personality, to his pro-
found statesmanship and his superb military genius,
cannot be computed. It was from his example and
achievements that the seed of progressive improve-
ment was sown in the sister republics, until by the
action of the Pan-American alliance it can be safely
said that Central and South America have been
remodelled and regenerated.

As to the United States, the proximity of Mexico in
its present state has proved to be an unmixed and
unchallenged blessing. The opportunities for the
employment of labor, the openings for the investment
of capital, the extension of new interests, have added
to the general prosperity of the nation while the con-
fidence reposed in the stability of Mexican affairs,
under the present administration, has fostered and
increased it.

The niche of President Diaz in the temple of fame
is an assured position. To the peon, to whose interest
his life has been devoted, he is already more of a god

1 68 Porfirio Diaz

than a man, and while republics are proverbially
ungrateful, yet surely educated Mexico can never
cease to honor and admire the genius, whose hand,
though it has been of iron in its inflexibility for the
public weal, has yet been gloved with the velvet of
justice and honor.

Marcil, Charles, Speaker of the House of
Commons of Canada :

I regret that I have not the time at my disposal to
give you a full appreciation of President Diaz of
Mexico, as I should like. I may say, however, that
his name has been so familiar to us here in Canada
for the last forty years that we rarely ever mention
Mexico without an allusion to its Great Citizen. He
is uncontested! y one of the great men of the American
Continent and deserves well all the honours that have
been heaped upon him. A country and a democracy
that can produce such a man must necessarily have
a great future in store for it. The relations between
Canada and Mexico are becoming more important
every day and we know that President Diaz has not
been a stranger to this. For this we are grateful and
all Canadians will join in wishing him long life in the
interest of his country.

McClung, Lee, Treasurer of the United States:

One of the marvels of the nineteenth century and
the early part of the twentieth has been the substan-
tial growth and development of our neighboring
republic, Mexico. Conditions in that republic, at
the time of accession to the chief executorship of
Porfirio Diaz, were in such a chaotic state that it

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opinions of Prominent Men 169

required a man of iron nerve and steady hand to
govern the country's affairs, and such demand met
fulfilment in the person of the new ruler. Since
that time Mexico's progress has been not only sure,
but rapid, and the credit due President Diaz for the
wonderful development and substantial prosperity
of our sister republic can hardly be overestimated.
He has known his people, has realized their points of
weakness as well as their points of strength, and has
adapted himself accordingly. The recent meeting
between President Taft and President Diaz at El
Paso was a fitting expression of the appreciation and
cordial good feeling that each republic thus repre-
sented entertained for the other.

McCreery, Fenton R., Ex-Secretary to the
American Legation in Mexico and American
Minister to Santo Domingo:

Every American at home and abroad should honor
the name of Porfirio Diaz, the Chief Executive of
Mexico, who has fostered development, furthered ad-
vancement, practised and encouraged industry, until
he is universally recognized as the Master Builder of
a Mighty Commonwealth.

McGee, W. J., Secretary of the United States
Inland Waterways Commission :

While Ethnologist in charge of the Bureau of
American Ethnology, I had occasion to visit the
Republic of Mexico repeatedly, and on one occasion
to spend some time in the City of Mexico, where I
had the honor of meeting His Excellency, Porfirio
Diaz. Both as a visitor to his city and country and

I70 Porfirio Diaz

as an anthropologist I had occasion to form opinions
concerning your great President, which opinions have
more than once been expressed in a public way.

After observing the development of the Republic
of Mexico under his leadership, I felt compelled a de-
cade ago to class President Diaz as in the front rank
among world leaders. To my mind the actual world
leaders of to-day form a small class, including Diaz
and Roosevelt of the Western Hemisphere, and the
German and Japanese Emperors of the Eastern
Hemisphere; while those of past times comprise
Washington, Cromwell, Napoleon (whose leadership
was out of the main line of human progress, and
hence futile), Peter the Great, Julius Caesar, Alexan-
der the Great, and perhaps a dozen others. Not
only in this class but well forward within it do I
rank Diaz; for he, within half of his own lifetime and
despite the ever-increasing complexity of interna-
tional relations and other human affairs, took vir-
tually raw material and made of it a great nation.

May I note a coincidence which greatly impresses
me and which you must have observed with interest:
i. e., the striking physical similarity between Por-
firio Diaz and Theodore Roosevelt? They must
be almost alike in stature; and they are quite alike
in impressing beholders as of heroic height, though
they are hardly above the average. In form and
expression of face, in shape of head, in manner of
movement, in the appearance of unlimited reserved
strength, in physical vigor and intellectual bright-
ness, they might be twins. Seldom have I seen two
men not akin so much alike; never when the two
were of distinct ethnic stock. Allowing for the dif-
ference in age, they are as if cast in the same mould.

opinions of Prominent Men 171

Metcalf, Victor H.. Ex-Secretary of the Navy
of the United States :

President Diaz is one of the most remarkable and
striking figures of modern times. He has always
been an inspiration to the Mexican people, and it
is due to his broad statesmanship, his elevated
character, his high integrity, and bis thorough
knowledge of his country and its resources that
Mexico owes her present position among the World
powers.

Mills, Anson, Brigadier-General, United States
Army (retired) :

I am glad to learn that you are writing in English
a biographical history of President Diaz, for in the
first place, I do not believe that there is a person
whose biography will be more interesting to the
English-speaking race; in the second place, I know
of no one better able to write such a history than
yourself.

President Diaz has been to his people what our
General Grant was to ours, each having brought
his country out of comparative chaos to a condition
of good order and good government.

I feel gratified to make the above statement for
the reason that as a boy, in 1858-9, 1 went to the bor-
der, settling on the Rio Grande at El Paso, and have
been more or less connected with the Mexican people
ever since, and know that the subject of your bi-
ography has conferred upon his people as great a
betterment in government as any man of modem
times.

172 Porfirio Diaz

Money, Hernando D., United States Senator:

The character and career of Senor Porfirio Diaz
will go down in history as one of the most remarkable
of the great men of the nineteenth and twentieth
centuries. I have not the good fortune to be per-
sonally acquainted with this distinguished man,
but have greatly admired him from my slight know-
ledge of his life. To accomplish what he has done
proves that he is gifted with genius, common sense,
and tact which have enabled him, moved by a high
spirit of patriotism, to harmonize conflicting elements
among his countrymen and guide their destinies
peacefully, honorably, and prosperously for so long
a time. To his contemporaries his figure looks
large: to later generations, it will appear of heroic
size. The great Mexican Republic is to be con-
gratulated on so wise, so good, and so successful an
Executive.

Morris, Martin F., Ex- Justice of the Court
of Appeals of the District of Columbia.

If successful accomplishment, combined with bene-
ficial result, be the test of true greatness, no greater
or abler man than Porfirio Diaz, President of Mexico,
has arisen within the last one hundred years. Por-
firio Diaz found Mexico rent by factions ; he has made
it a great, prosperous, and united Republic: he has
placed it in the front ranks of civilization. And
all that he has done has redounded, not to his own
benefit, but to the benefit of a peaceful and pros-
perous and happy people.

Olegario Molina
Secretary of Public Promotion

opinions of Prominent Men 173

Morton, Levi P., Ex-Vice-President of the
United States :

Without any personal acquaintance, I can only
say that President Diaz, in point of character and
career, will, in my opinion, rank in history with
Washington and Lincoln as the greatest Presidents
in Mexico and the United States.

Needham, Charles W., President of the George
Washington University :

The life and career of President Porfirio Diaz has
been so eventful and brilliant, and so full of patriotic
service to his country, that it is difficult to speak
appreciatively of it in a few lines. There are a few
men that come out of the centuries who seem to be
capable of filling both military and civic positions
with wonderful efficiency, although it would seem
that the disposition and talents required for these
two lines of service are so different that both services
could hardly be rendered by one man. President
Diaz's military career is one which shows that he has
power to command and to direct military operations
with success. As the Chief Executive, where many
complex activities make the greatness of a nation,
he has shown a breadth of sound knowledge, a prac-
tical statesmanship and patriotism that can hardly
be excelled. His name will always rest among the
very few in the world's history who have served
their country in peace and war as great generals and
executive officers with marked success and unselfish
patriotism.

174 Porfirio Diaz

NoRRis, Edwin L., Governor of the State of
Montana :

I have for many years followed the career of Presi-
dent Porfirio Diaz with the keenest interest and high-
est admiration.

His acts demonstrate that he has loved his nation
and her people and their progress shows that he has
served them faithfully and well.

His brilliant statesmanship, splendid ability, and
patriotic performance of duty mark him as one of
the truly great men of the age.

NoYEs, Theodore W., Editor of the Evening
Star of Washington, D. C. :

I think that President Diaz is one of the world's
great leaders and rulers of men. I met him in 1896
when I visited Mexico, and in a letter printed in the
Star after my return to Washington, I said:

"There was a time when heavy investments of
American capital in Mexico would have been viewed
as impossibilities, rendered such by local hostility
towards foreigners, and especially Americans, and
by the lack of a settled, organized government to
repress lawlessness and to guarantee security to
invested capital. That stage in the country's his-
tory is happily passed, Diaz, one of the world's great
men, rules the Republic with a strong yet tactful
hand. He is at once a soldier and a diplomatist.
He welcomes the foreigner without losing his hold
upon his countrymen. He has checked the revolu-
tionary tendencies of Mexico, formerly a sort of
Ferris wheel among nations, notable for the magnifi-

opinions of Prominent Men 175

cent impressiveness of its periodical revolutions.
The army is back of him, and through the railroad
and accompanying telegraph which his policy has
sent everywhere in Mexico he can, as I have al-
ready suggested, drop soldiers upon the backs of
conspirators as soon as they have fairly begun to
conspire. He has, to a great extent, broken up
the elements which threaten revolt, conciliating or
crushing possible conspirators.

"He gives the impression of a man of great force,
but with powers under perfect restraint. He seems
what he is generally considered to be, 'The right
man in the right place.' "

Page, Carroll S., United States Senator:

I note with gratification that you are engaged in
the preparation of a biography of President Diaz,
and heartily commend a purpose at once so laudable
and so patriotic.

President Diaz is one of the most striking figures
in modern history. For more than a generation he
has stamped his influence upon the national life of
our sister Republic on the south to a most unusual
degree. In him she saw and realized the hope of
autonomy.

The greatest general in Mexican history, his genius
brought peace to a troubled nation. A far-seeing
and patriotic statesman, he created and has main-
tained for Mexico a financial credit of which her
people may well be proud. His broad-minded
philanthropy has gained for his administration of
Mexican afiairs the respect of the civilized world,
and, by a private life as wholesome as that adminis-

176 Porfirio Diaz

tration has been pure, he has endeared himself to
those thoughtful and patriotic men everywhere who
are working and praying for the uplift of humanity.

It is both a privilege and a pleasure to offer an
appreciative tribute to a man so noble and to a career
so notable.

Parker, Alton B., Judge, Democratic Candi-
date for the Presidency in 1904 :

Our people will welcome the biography of Presi-
dent Diaz, and will receive it with entire confidence
in its accuracy because written by you.

During his incumbency of the ofhce of president he
has rendered to the people of Mexico a greater service
than it has been permitted any other statesmen in
the world to contribute to his country during the
same period. Mexico sorrily needed a constructive
statesman and found one without peer in Porfirio
Diaz.

Rejoicing as we do in his success, and in Mexico's
good fortune, we will follow with exceeding interest
the tale of his life work for the people he loves so
dearly and serves so brilliantly.

Perkins, George C, United States Senator:

I am more than glad to here indicate my high
respect for the ability, honesty, and patriotism of
that great man, President Diaz. Under his adminis-
tration of affairs in Mexico, that country has, I have
had reason to learn through business and other con-
nections, had vigorous and able administration of
good laws, which have made life, liberty, and property

opinions of Prominent Men 177

as safe there as in the United States. In thus inau-
gurating and maintaining a system of government
under which our Sister Republic has thriven and
progressed as never before in its history, President
Diaz has performed a work in the interest of general
civilization and advancement, as well as for the
immediate benefit of the Mexican people. His
great work is especially recognized by the United
States by reason of the rapid advancement of that
great Republic which adjoins us on the south, whose
peace and prosperity are nearly as great concern to
us as our own, through the intimate commercial and
social relations which exist between us. No one
could have done the great work better than Presi-
dent Diaz: probably there is no one who could have
done it so well. The result of his long and success-
ful public career is the establishment of relations of
the most friendly character between his country and
our own, and the opening up to business enterprise
a land which presents opportunities that can scarcely
be found in other parts of the world. I am very
glad indeed to express my appreciation of the work
of President Diaz and my admiration of his character.

PiNCHOT, GiFFORD, Chief of the Forestry Service
of the United States : \y

In brief, the impression made upon me by Presi-
dent Diaz when I saw him last winter was of a man
of great natural force, kindliness, courage, and pur-
pose, keen to do for his people the best that could
be done for them; sensitive to the opinion of the
civilized world; and carrying forward the work that
lay ahead of him with foresight and great intel-

178 Porfirio Diaz

ligence, and a complete knowledge of the materials
with which he is compelled to work. I thought him
a great man doing a great work, with the aid of a
most unusual physical and mental equipment. Until
I saw him I had never seen a man of his age, in whom
vigor seemed to be so complete, and purpose so
undimmed. He seems to me to have done more for
his people than any other ruler now living has done
for any nation.

Post, Regis H., Governor of Porto Rico:

Let me express the deep admiration which I think
every one feels for President Diaz — a man who has
sacrificed so much for his country, and has made it
one of the foremost nations of the world.

RoDGERs, James L., American Consul General
at Havana, Cuba :

It gives me great pleasure to learn that you are
about to publish a biography of the distinguished
and illustrious President of the United States of
Mexico, Porfirio Diaz. Of all the men who have
contributed great and everlasting good, not only to
their people but also to those of the world at large,
it has always seemed to me that President Diaz is
among the foremost in history. Under difficult
conditions he welded a people into a national unity
which has stood the test of time, which is constantly
expanding in all ways for the common good, and
which will ever remain as an imperishable memorial
testifying to the genius, the patriotism, and the char-
acter of its creator.

Ryan, Thomas, Ex- American Minister to Mexico,

Opinions of Prominent Men 179

United States Commissioner to the Five Civ-
ilized Tribes :

During the four years I had the honor to represent
my country at the Mexican capital, my official and
personal relations with the Mexican President were
such as enabled me to form very definite opinions of
his character, abilities, and motives as man and Presi-
dent, and I was profoundly impressed that his state-
craft and patriotism entitled him to be classed with
the greatest and best rulers of his time.

Always delightfully dignified, frank, courteous,
and impressively instructive in his intercourse with
men, it was in his home life and in his neighborly
relations that he daily revealed the qualities of
character that reflected in a remarkable degree nobil-
ity of manhood.

It is hard to conceive of more adverse and embar-
rassing conditions than those under which President
Diaz entered upon his marvellous reign of power
more than thirty years ago. The public affairs of
Mexico had been reeking with corruption more than
half a century; during that period the people had
been chiefly occupied with the horrors of revolution
and the ways of lawlessness; a powerful banditti, well
mounted, thoroughly equipped, and skilfully com-
manded, swarmed in the mountains from which they,
at will, swooped down upon and looted the valleys,
the mines, the haciendas, the towns, and the high-
ways, with friends everywhere to furnish them infor-
mation and protection.

There is ample reason to believe that it was his
whole ambition to establish a stability and character
of government that would guarantee to his country-

i«o

Porfirio Diaz

men, irrespective of class or condition, under salu-
tary laws and wholesome administration, absolute
enjoyment of the rights of citizenship, full security
of life, limb, and property, and command the respect
and confidence of all nations.

To this mighty problem he at once dedicated all
his powers and all his genius, with the result that the
people of Mexico were long since diverted from the
ways of disorder and for many years have been de-
voted to the pursuits of peace; the once formidable
and terrible banditti disappeared in the earlier
years of his administration; life and property are
everywhere secure; corruption in public affairs is
minimized to conditions no worse than prevail in
other civilized and well governed countries; foreign
capital by the millions has been for a considerable
period annually pouring into the country and em-
ployed in development; all industries are active and
prosperous; a network of railroads and telegraph
lines covers all sections and her harbors are filled with
the vessels and commerce of the world.

In the Mexico of to-day Porfirio Diaz has attained
to the very fulness of his noble ambition; in the hearts
of his people his great name will be forever sacredly
cherished and the pages of immortal history will
record his name high among the world's great and
good rulers, whose fame will grow brighter and
brighter with passing time.

Sanford, Edward T., Judge of the United
States District Court at Knoxville, Tenn., and ex-
Assistant Attorney-General of the United States:

I regret to say that I have not an intimate acquaint-

Leandro Fernandez
Secretary of Communications and Public Works

opinions of Prominent Men i8i

ance with the facts of President Diaz's career, but
from my general knowledge on the subject I have
regarded him as a statesman of the greatest ability
and extraordinary force of intellect and of will,
possessing in a remarkable degree the qualities of
constructive statesmanship which have enabled
him to accomplish such splendid results in the uni-
fication, development, and upbuilding of Mexico.

Schley, W. S., Admiral of the United States
Navy (retired) :

I am glad to add my opinion to that of others re-
specting your great President Diaz, whom I regard
as one of the great men of his time. His govern-
ment of your splendid country has been most wise,
most beneficial to his people, and the peace, pros-
perity, and happiness under his continued selection by
the people has placed his name and fame high on the
roll of distinguished rulers for all time. Few men
have done so much for their country, and none could
have done more than Porfirio Diaz for Mexico.

Scott, Nathan B., United States Senator:

I have met President Diaz personally and esteem him
very highly. I think he is one of the great men of Mex-
ico and one of the great men of the day. Under his ad-
ministration Mexico has advanced rapidly in thematerial
development of her vast resources. Peace and quiet have
been maintained and his life has been a most useful one.

Sherman, J. S., Vice-President of the United
States :

President Diaz is a statesman of progress ; a master

I«2

Porfirio Diaz

of diplomacy; an executive of the higher type; a man
of whom any country would be proud and who is in
thorough touch with advanced ideals of government
and civilization. His long and, it is to be hoped,
continued administration of the affairs of Mexico
carries with it the confidence of nations in its up-
rightness, strength, and purity.

SiFTON, Clifford, Ex-Minister of the Interior
of Canada:

President Diaz is unquestionably one of the great-
est men of the age.

He has given Mexico a strong, orderly, and efficient
administration. He has made life and property
safe, he has promoted laws under which the Mexican
people have been enabled to peacefully develop the
great natural resources of the country and achieve a
high degree of domestic comfort and prosperity.

Under his administration Mexico has become a
modem and progressive country commanding the
respect and confidence of the world.

The highest testimony that can be paid to President
Diaz is the hope which is everywhere expressed by
those interested in the future of Mexico that the
future government of the country may be carried
on with the same wisdom and far-sighted statesman-
ship which is displayed at present.

Simmons, J. Edward, President of the Cham-
ber of Commerce of the State of New York :

I am honored by your request for a few lines to be
included in your biography of President Diaz. I
congratulate you on the brilliant opportunity which

Opinions of Prominent Men 183

such a task presents. You have an inspiring sub-
ject: and I have no doubt that you will produce a
biography worthy of your theme, and one that will
remain through the coming years a standard authority
on one of the most important lives in the development
of the North American Continent.

Elihu Root has so completely summed up the life
and character of Porfirio Diaz, that it is difficult to
add anything to his splendid pen portrait of him as
"one of the greatest men to be held up for the hero
worship of mankind."

You will perhaps recall that, in introducing you
to the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New
York at its annual banquet held November 19, 1908,
I quoted from Senator Root's eulogy of President
Diaz, and the most I can do now is to refer to that as
the best expression of American opinion regarding
the head of your government.

The high estimate that the Chamber of Commerce
of the State of New York, of which I am president,
puts upon his achievements was shown v^T'hen, at that
banquet, it placed the portrait of Diaz beside that of
Washington. Like Washington, Diaz has been a
nation builder : and he has laid the foundations of Mex-
ican order and credit and liberty so deep and strong,
that they will endure for ages after his life work is
ended. The confidence of the citizens of the United
States in him has been signally demonstrated by the
large investments made by our capitalists in Mexico.
The magnitude of his achievements can be adequately
measured, only when the immense difficulties which
he had to overcome are taken into account.

May your biography serve to keep ever clear
the memory of his dauntless courage, his genius

184 Porfirio Diaz

for leadership, and his vast work in reconstructing
a nation, so that through the coming centuries
mankind can enjoy the inspiration and uplift of
his character,

Slayden, James L., United States Represen-
tative :

It is indeed pleasant news to hear that we are to
have a biography in English of that very remarka-
ble man, Porfirio Diaz, President of the United States
of Mexico.

I know no one so fit as you to write that book.
You know the man, and while you will do the work
con aniore I am sure you will do it as a just and criti-
cal historian.

I look upon President Diaz as the most extraordi-
nary man of the century. He exactly fits the place.
His genius has made Mexico a great, strong, vibrant
nation. A progressive statesman, he yet has the
essential balance of conservatism, a soldier, he stands
for peace, a patriot, he studies other countries and
does not hesitate, because they may be foreign, to
catch every valuable suggestion and apply it for the
benefit of Mexico and the Mexicans.

Stephens, John H., United States Represen-
tative :

I regard President Diaz as the greatest statesman
and patriot that Mexico has ever produced.

I represented for several years the El Paso District in
Congress, and during this time many vexed questions
arose between our country and Mexico, and I always
found the Diaz Administration willing to meet us

President Diaz on Horseback at Chapultepec

Opinions of Prominent Men 185

on a half-way ground, and to satisfactorily adjust
all differences; one of these questions was "The
Equitable Distribution of the Waters of the Rio
Grande River"; another was the Free Zone question
which was a continuous source of trouble and friction
between the two governments.

The wise policies of President Diaz have put new
life and energy in the Mexican people, and I firmly
believe that he has placed Mexico on the great high-
way of national peace and prosperity.

Stevenson, Adlai E., Ex- Vice- President of the
United States:

I am gratified to learn that you are soon to publish
a biography of President Diaz. Your book will be
of deep interest to the people of the United States.

President Diaz is an eminent statesman, — one of
the really great men of the century. His marvellous
capacity as an executive has been displayed in the
government of his country. Under his efficient
leadership Mexico has become one of the stable,
progressive governments of the world.

It is my earnest wish that he may long live to
preside over the destiny of our Sister Republic.

Stoddard, Henry L., Editor of the Evening
Mail of New York City:

Opportunity, continuity of tenure, and the signal
confidence of his countrymen have all worked in
behalf of Porfirio Diaz and the man has measured up
to them. Under his generation-long rule the Re-
public of Mexico has moved out of a state of halted
development and administrative instability and

1 86 Porfirio Diaz

taken its rank among the strong, progressive nations
of the world. No living ruler save the Mikado has
witnessed so great a transformation in his own
domain or has so largely contributed to it. Diaz
is of the great ones of his country, and his is one of
the large figures in new world history.

SuLZER, William, United States Represen-
tative :

In my opinion General Porfirio Diaz, President of
Mexico, is one of the greatest patriots, and one of the
most liberal and enlightened and progressive ad-
ministrators in all the world. I know him; I know
his career; and I know whereof I speak. He has
done great things for Mexico. He has lifted the
Mexicans to a higher plane, and has pushed his people
forward in giant strides in the great march of civili-
zation. He is a great soldier, but a greater civilian,
and combines in his magnetic personality many of
the remarkable traits and characteristics of the
great Napoleon. Take him all in all, he is a most
energetic and remarkable man from every standpoint
— the greatest man Mexico has ever produced — one
of the great, far-seeing men of the time — one of the
great heroic figures of the world. He will occupy a
large niche in the Mexican temple of fame, and the
future historian will give him a brilliant chapter in
the annals of the Western World.

SwANSON, Claude A., Governor of Virginia:

I have always been a great admirer of President
Diaz. I consider him one of the forceful characters
of this century. His great intellect and will force

opinions of Prominent Men 187

have made him pre-eminently successful and clearly-
designate him as one of the great men of our times.
His successful administration of affairs in Mexico
has been striking, and the advance of the nation under
his direction has been wonderful. His career has
been so striking, and so continuously successful that
it has given him a deserved reputation far and wide.

Thompson, David E., American Ambassador
to Mexico :

In cheerfully sending you in brief my opinion of
your most worthy President General Diaz, I quote
from a speech recently made by me at a banquet
given in Mexico at the American Club, on which
occasion a likeness of the President was unveiled:

"As I look back over the thirty-three years since
my first visit to Mexico, the evolution has been such
that in all history there is no parallel. All this change
can be accredited to the guiding master-mind of this
one man: and the work of this master in war and
civil life does not end thirty years back, as is generally
reasoned, but more than thirty years beyond that — •
over sixty years of self-sacrificing life devoted to one
effort, the welfare of his country.

"Self with this man has never been first. His
youth was spent as one of the poorest of the poor,
and after more than sixty years of the hardest work
known to man, his country has all that his efforts
have brought: he is still what may be called a poor
man : a living example for all men of all nations, from
the highest to the most lowly: an example of patri-
otism and honesty never to be overreached."

The thoughts I have expressed were formed through

i88 Porfirio Diaz

my intimate acquaintance, covering a long period
of time, with the country and the man. I am con-
fident they are right, even though largely from the
heart, which holds deep affection for the man.

Tracewell, R. J., United States Comptroller
of the Treasury :

I know, as do all reasonably intelligent persons,
that President Diaz has proven himself one of the
great men of the present century and has given Mex-
ico a stable government, under which it is prospering,
as it never prospered before. He recognized condi-
tions as they were in his country, not as he probably
would have had them, and has been instrumental in
moulding a form of government suited to the intel-
ligence and needs of his people. He has extended
liberty of thought and action, where it could be
extended without anarchy or revolution, and has
remained at peace with his neighbors. He is entitled
to the gratitude of his people and the respect and
confidence of the civilized world.

Walcott, a. D. , Secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution of Washington, D. C. :

I have always had a great admiration for Presi-
dent Diaz, particularly in his recognition of the prac-
tical value of scientific investigation in the material
development of Mexico. He has encouraged investi-
gation in every field of scientific activity and, thus
fostered, these researches, especially in connection
with geological and geographical surveys, have ad-
vanced with such remarkable rapidity as to call
forth the praise of men of science everywhere.

Opinions of Prominent Men 189

Warren, Francis E., United States Senator:

The career of Porfirio Diaz as citizen, soldier, and
President affords a wonderful example of the transi-
tion of a revolutionist into the ideal presiding au-
thority of a republican form of government.

With Diaz as President, the Republic of Mexico
has enjoyed a stable form of republican government
during a period of the world's history when such
stability has enabled Mexico to keep pace with other
great countries in the progress of the world.

Mexico has great natural resources: it is rich in the
fertility of its lands, and unsurpassed in the diversity
of its crops: its mines are the marvel and the envy
of the capitalist of every land ; — and these beneficial
resources, combined with the progressive and yet
conservative methods of the wonderful administra-
tion of President Diaz, have placed Mexico in the class
of great nations of the present day.

With many others I believe that the cause of repre-
sentative government on the Western Hemisphere
has been strengthened and advanced by the great
career of President Diaz, and I believe also that he
is entitled to the confidence and respect of all who
stand for free government.

Wetmore, George Peabody, United States
Senator:

I have not the honor of a personal acquaintance
with Porfirio Diaz, but it seems to me that no one can
withhold a tribute of admiration from the man under
whose direction the resources and wealth of his
country have been so wonderfully developed, and

190 Porfirio Diaz

the stability of the Government of Mexico assured for
so many years.

Wheeler, Benjamin I., President of the Uni-
versity of California :

I regard President Diaz as a great man. His has
been an eminently successful life. He has put con-
crete foundations under the Mexican State. He
was exactly fitted to the emergency of his times, and
created out of chaos a government definitely suited
to conditions. It has been seldom in the history of
mankind that a personality has risen so exactly suited
to the needs of a people.

WiLLSQN, Augustus E., Governor of the State
of Kentucky:

I have for many years read with the greatest in-
terest the wonderful history of President Porfirio
Diaz, from his youth, bom as one of the common
people and come to power and honor by his great
ability, his splendid courage, his true patriotism, and
his strong common sense. He is a wise man, a brave
man, a patriot, and a great President, and the honors
which have come to him have come not by favor or
chance, but by splendid usefulness and great achieve-
ments.

WiNTHROP, Beekman, Assistant Secretary of
the Navy of the United States :

President Diaz is deserving of the greatest praise
for what he has accomplished in Mexico. The
unification of Mexico, the strengthening of the coun-
try's finances and credit, and the establishment of

opinions of Prominent Men 191

its peace and prosperity, all of which have been
accomplished through the untiring efforts of Presi-
dent Diaz, have been important factors in placing
Mexico in the position she now enjoys among the
nations of the world. His patriotism and devotion
to his country have deservedly won for him the
admiration and love of his people, and his long
tenure of office, his election to which has in one or
two instances been practically unanimous, is a strik-
ing example of the confidence and esteem in which
he is held. In the history of the past half-century,
President Diaz will occupy an enviable and leading
place as an able administrator, a clear-sighted states-
man, and a loyal and devoted friend of the Mexican
Republic.

WoTHERSPOON, W, W., General, President of
the United States War College :

History has again and again shown that when a
nation is most in need of a great leader, destiny
seems to furnish the man.

In 1876, when the integrity and future welfare of
Mexico called for a strong, wise, and honest man to
guide the ship of state, a worthy son of our sister
Republic stepped forward in the person of General
Porfirio Diaz. He is a man of the people, by instinct
and training a soldier, a veteran of two wars, in both
of which he fought and distinguished himself.

The history of Mexico for the past thirty-three
years is the greatest monument to the honesty, patri-
otism, and wisdom of this great man, who in the so-
ciety of nations will always be considered the right
man in the right place.

192 Porfirio Diaz

Wyman, Walter, Brigadier-General, Surgeon-
General of the United States;

It is a satisfaction to express in writing the senti-
ments I have so often expressed verbally — sentiments
of respect and admiration for President Diaz inspired
by a study of his career and by three personal inter-
views with him on matters pertaining to the public
health. It is not alone Mexico that has been bene-
fited by his splendid achievements ; the United States
also has profited by the firmness and intelligence of
his administration.

Others will doubtless comment on his great military
and political record, but it is my especial privilege to
testify to his active interest in the advancement
of human welfare through broad measures of hygiene
and sanitation.

This has been demonstrated by the great sanitary
improvements in the chief maritime port of Mexico,
Vera Cruz, and elsewhere, and also by the adminis-
trative support he has given to the Superior Board
of Health. This support has shown its results in the
effectiveness of the Board, whose radical and suc-
cessful measures to root out the bubonic plague in
Mazatlan in 1902 and 1903 was one of the most
signal victories ever achieved against this epidemic
disease.

It has always been most gratifying to the visiting
sanitarians from the United States to receive the
personal greetings of President Diaz and to observe
his manifest interest in the objects of the various
sanitary conventions.

The encouragement he has given to Doctor Liceaga,
the President of the Superior Board of Health, is

^ o

opinions of Prominent Men 193

noteworthy, and when it was announced at the Third
International Sanitary Convention of American Re-
publics, in the City of Mexico, in 1907, that yellow
fever had practically been eradicated from the Repub-
lic, and the same forces which had been successfully
utilized against this diseiase were then being em-
ployed in the eradication of malaria, comments were
freely made by the delegates laudatory of an enlight-
ened public policy that has placed Mexico in the
front ranks of the nations which are emphasizing
their civilization and cultivation by sanitary reforms.
I am glad of the opportunity to pay this just trib-
ute to President Diaz.

With the presentation of the foregoing com-
ments of representative men from the United
States and Canada, we terminate our task. This
task has been to us highly inspiring and attractive,
as thereby we have been able to lay in detail
before our English-speaking friends the facts and
circumstances which make up the biography of
a man, whose great military deeds are well worth
recording, and whose triumphs as a constructive
statesman entitle him to be called "The Master
Builder of a Great Commonwealth."

APPENDICES

195

President Diaz

SUMMARY OF THE MESSAGE READ BY PRESIDENT
PORFIRIO DIAZ AT THE OPENING OF THE MEX-
ICAN CONGRESS ON SEPTEMBER l6, I909

Taken from the Bulletin of the International Union of
American Republics, November, 1909

The conventions negotiated at the Second Peace
Conference have been ratified, and the Government,
on September 6th, subscribed to the international
agreement concluded in Madrid in 1891 with regard
to the registration of trade-marks. The conven-
tions on public hygiene, signed at Paris in 1903 and
at Rome in 1907, have also received the formal
adherence of Mexico.

Immigration statistics show that during the six
months, January to June, 1909, the number of persons
entering the Republic was 24,300. Public health
reports are satisfactory, and a sanitary station has
been equipped at the port of Salina Cruz, at which
point the bulk of Asiatic immigrants enter the country.

Improvements at the capital are progressing
steadily, 72,000 square meters of asphalt pavement
having been laid down, streets widened, and other
measures taken in the interests of the inhabitants
of the city.

197

iqS Porfirio Diaz

The heavy losses of life and property occasioned by
earthquake and floods have been met by government
aid, and in response to the necessities of the times
relief has poured into the stricken sections from all
parts of the country.

The compilation of laws undertaken by the De-
partment of Justice has been brought up to date
and the work of revising the Penal Code is nearly
completed.

Transactions entered in the public registry of the
capital from January to June, 1909, aggregated
971,218,938 pesos, exceeding by over 300,000,000
pesos similar entries in the corresponding period of
1908.

Scholastic reforms have been introduced and new
schools established, prizes offered for technical re-
search, and archaeological investigations continued
with interesting results. Mexico was represented
at the International Congress of Musical History,
which was held at Vienna in May, 1909; the Fourth
Latin-American Medical Congress of Rio de Janeiro
in August, 1909; the Medical Congress of Budapest
during the same month ; the Leprosy Congress held
in Norway in September, and the Congress at Rome
for the discussion of labor accidents, held in May.
A delegate of the Department of Public Instruction
and the National Medical Institute was present, in
July, at the celebration of the three hundred and
fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the University
of Geneva.

In regard to internal development. President Diaz
stated that during the period between January i and
June 30, 1909, the Department of Promotion issued
715 title deeds for lands transformed from national

Message of September i6, 1909 199

into private property, yielding receipts to the Treasury
in the amount of 117,087 pesos.

The Geographical Exploration Commission contin-
ued surveys and completed maps of many sections of
the Republic. The Nazas River region is at present
being studied with a view to determining its cultivable
areas as effected by the development of irrigation prob-
lems. Measures are being perfected for the connection
of the Mexican Geodetic Survey with that of the United
States, and for the establishment of such stations as
are required for the completion of the meteorological
service.

Deeds to mining properties during the period
under review were issued to the number of 2072.

Ninety-six applications have been presented look-
ing to the utilization for various purposes of 500,000
litres of water per second from bodies of water
subject to federal jurisdiction. Concessions have
been granted for the use of water for irrigation, motive
power, domestic and industrial purposes and nineteen
title deeds have been issued authenticating new
rights or confirming old ones. Special subventions
have been granted for the irrigation and colonization
of 130,000 hectares of land situated in the states
of Sinaloa, Chihuahua, and Tamaulipas; agricultural
and dairy industries have been fostered and forestry
preservation has been provided for, through the or-
ganization of a technical staff and practical schools.

In the half year under consideration 603 patents
of invention were granted and 429 trade-marks reg-
istered. Commercial names and announcements to
the number of 68 were also registered.

At Tampico, Vera Cruz, Puerto Mexico, and Salina
Cruz structural and sanitary works were carried on,

200 Porfirio Diaz

canals and waterways were improved, and in various
sections roads extended.

The total extent of railways in the Republic is
24,161 kilometres, federal lines aggregating 19,321
kilometres and those under jurisdiction of states 4840
kilometres. Between January and June, 1909, rail-
ways under federal jurisdiction increased by 250
kilometres. The chief contributions to this increase
were made by the Cananea, Yaqui River, and Pacific's
line from Alamos to Guadalajara, which has been
completed between Navajoa and Culiacan and Mazat-
lan ; the Inter-California Railway ; and the line between
Chalco and Rio Frio, the two last-named roads hav-
ing been completed. "

Post-offices on July i, 1909, numbered 2964, and
during the year the amount of correspondence handled
was represented by 184,000,000 pieces. Interior pos-
tal money orders were issued during the twelve
months to the amount of 50,110,000 pesos, of which
25,210,000 pesos were credited to the last half of the
year. Postal money orders abroad were drawn up
between January and June, 1909, in the sum of
2,287,000 pesos.

Owing to a modification in the equivalent of Mexi-
can currency, the rates of postage on parcels sent
from Mexico to Great Britain and to other countries
through the intermediary of the British service were
doubled. For this purpose a supplementary con-
vention was entered into. The system of advice of
payment was introduced in the postal money-order
service with Germany, Canada, France, Great Britain,
and Salvador, and on August ist a convention went
into effect establishing a money-order service for a
maximum amount of 200 pesos per order between

iii''''-''-'i^i'iji '

FISCAL YEARS 1899-00 igoQ-Ql 1901-OE l'302.-05 1903-04 1904 -OS 1605-06 1506-01 190T-08 FISCAL YEARS

W? OF MI"NL5 10.376 lL8fc5 14.533 17.4^6 19.548 ZOAIZ ££.554 26.353 31.194 N?0FM1KE5

• INCREASE •
INNUMBLR OF MmiNG PROPE,RTIE,S ITSl THE, REPUBLIC
• FKOt^ 1Q9S TO 190a •

?aggsy

Message of September i6, 1909 201

Mexico and Austria, including the Austrian post-offices
in the Levant,

A parcels-post convention with Canada was con-
cluded, to go into operation on October ist, and a
modification of the postal money-order service be-
tween Mexico and the United States was entered
into.

Additions to federal telegraph lines were made
between January and June to the extent of 3383
kilometres (2 1 1 4 miles) . Wireless stations were estab-
lished at Payo Obispo and Xcalac, in the Quintana
Roo Territory, bringing the number of such stations
in the Republic up to six. The improvement in
receipts from the telegraph service during the half
year are noted as compared with the preceding six
months.

Total revenues for the fiscal year 1908-9 sufficed to
meet all budget expenses, the economies exercised
in expenditures occasioned by ^:usiness conditions
having been made without detriment to the public
service.

"While both import and export duties declined as
compared with the preceding fiscal year, in the case
of the latter the diminution is more apparent than
real, being less than the amount formerly obtained
from export duties on henequen and dyewoods, on
which export duties were not collected during 1908-9.

Many improvements have been made in the mili-
tary and naval equipment of the Republic. The
British-built General Guerrero, a. gunboat of 1800
tons displacement, has been placed upon the Pacific
coast and modem guns mounted on the training cor-
vette Zaragoza. The smokeless-powder factory has
been thoroughly equipped with new and adequate

202 Porfirio Diaz

machinery, a new rolling plant added to the National
Gun Foundry, and the regulation armament of the
Mexican Army has been augmented.

In concluding his message, President Diaz sums
up the internal affairs of the Republic in the following
terms:

"In the foregoing review you will have observed
that nothing has occurred in the administration of
public affairs of a nature to impair the confidence
of the Executive in the future of the Republic, seeing
that both in our foreign relations and in the vital
matter of our finances, notwithstanding transient
difficulties, as well as in other departments, we may
note all the evidences of that prosperity and progress
which for years past have been characteristic features
of our situation. Happily the Government has be-
hind it the force of public opinion, which upholds it
in its efforts to stimulate the country's progressive
development and to maintain its credit abroad at
the high standard to which it is entitled, both by the
excellent sense of its people and the exalted wisdom
and patriotic sentiments of their representatives. "

LIST OF BATTLES AND SIEGES IN WHICH GENERAL
PORFIRIO DIAZ HAS TAKEN PART

i8S7

Ixcapa, Oaxaca, battle of; August 13th.
Oaxaca, Oaxaca, siege of; December 26th.

1858

Oaxaca, Oaxaca, assault of; January i6th.
Jalapa, Oaxaca, taking of; February 25th.
Las Jicaras, Oaxaca, battle of; April 13th.

1859

Mixtequilla, Oaxaca, battle of; June 17th.
Tehuantepec, Oaxaca, battle of; November 25th.

i860

Mitla, Oaxaca, battle of; January 21st.
Fortin de la Soledad, Oaxaca, battle of; February 2d.
Marquesado, Oaxaca, battle of; March 9th.
Ixtepeji, Oaxaca, battle of; May 15th.
San Luis, Oaxaca, battle of; August 5th.

203

204 Porfirio Diaz

1861

Jalatlaco, Mexico, battle of; August 13th.
Pachuca, Hidalgo, battle of; October 20th.

1862

Acultzingo, Vera Cruz, battle of; April 28th.
Puebla, Puebla, battle of; May 5th.
Orizaba, Vera Cruz, battle of; June 14th.

1863

Puebla, Puebla, siege of; March i6th to May 17th.
Taxco, Guerrero, taking of; October 28th.

1864

Nanaguatipam, Oaxaca, battle of; August loth.

1865

Oaxaca, Oaxaca, siege of ; January 8th to February 9th.
Tehuitzingo, Puebla, battle of; September 22d.
Piaxtla, Guerrero, battle of; September 23d.
Tulcingo, Guerrero, battle of; October ist.
Comitlipa, Puebla, battle of; December 4th.

1866

Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca, battle of; January 6th.
Lo de Soto, Oaxaca, battle of; February 25th.
Pinotepa, Oaxaca, battle of; March 28th.
Putla, Oaxaca, battle of; April 14th.
Huajuapam, Oaxaca, battle of; September 5th.
Nochixtlan, Oaxaca, battle of; September 23d.
Miahuatlan, Oaxaca, battle of; October 3d.

MAP

SHOWIKG WHERE, aKtrlE Or 1 CAi 'LOi
AltD SIBaS OF >/,^.TA>-rOROS
TOOKT'E.AAB'*' JU.SO RXUVmfi
PQStTlOrt OF LAROSr MAF

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G ?7 L
TEH U A

F F uCcj^
NT E P E\C

LO DE SOTO

MAHQUESADO OAXACA
MATAMOROS TAMAULIPAS

MEXICO CITY noERMjDiscnn
MIAHUATLAH OflXACA

MITLjA OAXACA

MlXTEOUtLLA. OAXACA

II
NAMftHOATIS'AK OAXAE.A.
NOCHDCTLAH Ofl-XACA.

O
OAXACA OAXACA

(3 SIE.GES KW) IBATTLt)
OKIZAE>A VEEACRUZ

P
PACHUCA
PIAXTLA
riNOTEPA
PUEELA

(3 s ICQXiS
PUT I- A

HIDALCiO
GUE.K.BE.BO
OAXACA
PUESLA
BftTTLEO
OAKACA

saniimio Ncramo tlrxcala

SAX LQREUZO HIDALGO
SAN LUIS OAXAOA

TAXCO GUEETtEEO

TECOAC TLAXOAl-A

te,h:]aktei>ec OAXACA

tehuitzingo puebla

te.i5uisistlan oaxaca

tlaxiaoo oaxaca

tulcingo puesla

Battles and Sieges 205

La Carbonera, Oaxaca, battle of; October i8th.
Oaxaca, Oaxaca, taking of; October 31st.
La Chitova, Oaxaca, battle of; December 19th.
Tequisistlan, Oaxaca, battle of; December 26th.

1867

Puebla, Puebla, siege of; March 9th to April 2d.
Puebla, Puebla, assault and taking of; April 2d.
San Diego Notario, Tlaxcala, battle of; April 6th.
San Lorenzo, Hidalgo, battle of; April loth.
Mexico City, Federal District, siege and taking of;
April 12th to June 21st.

1876

Matamoros, Tamaulipas, taking of; April 2d.
Icamole, Nuevo Leon, battle of; May 20th.
Tecoac, Tlaxcala, battle of; November i6th.

Ill

MEDALS AND DECORATIONS RECEIVED BY PRESIDENT

DIAZ

From Foreign Governments

1886, August 26. Knight of the Grand Cross of the

Royal and Distinguished Order of Charles III
(Spain) .

November 20. Knight of the Grand Cross of
the Order of the Sword (Norway and
Sweden).

1887, April 25. Grand Cross of the Tower and
Sword, of Courage, Loyalty and Merit (Por-
tugal) .

May 2. Order of the Liberator — First Class
(Venezuela) .

1888, April 26. Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor

(France) .

1892, April 12. Grand Cross of the Chrysanthemum

(Japan).

1893, April 24. Grand Cross of the Order of St.
Maritius and St. Lazarus (Italy).

1895, October 25. Grand Cross of the Order of
Military Merit (Spain) .

1896, October 7. Grand Cross of the Order of
Leopold (Belgium).

206

Medals and Decorations 207

1896, October 26. Grand Cross of the Order of the
Red Eagle (Prussia).

1 901, September 30. Grand Cross of the Royal
Order (Hungarian) of St. Stephen (Austria-
Hungary) .

1902, December 11. Decoration of the First Class
with the Grand Cross of the Order of the Lion
and the Sun (Persia).

1905, April 22. Decoration of First Degree of the
First Class of the Imperial Order of the Double
Dragon (China),

June 29. Grand Cross of the Most Honor-
able Order of the Bath (Great Britain).

1908, April 21. Grand Cross of the Netherland Lion,

conferred by the Queen of the Netherlands.

1909, April 16. Decoration of the Order of Alexander

Newski (Russia).

From the Federal Government of Mexico (Military)

Special decoration for the taking of the City of

Puebla on April 2, 1867.
Honorary Plaque for the War of Reform.
Honorary Medal for the battle of Pachuca.
Honorary Medal for the battle at Acultzingo.
Honorary Medal for the battle of the 5th of May,

1862.
Cross for the siege of Puebla in 1863.
Cross of the First Class for having fought during the

War of French Intervention.
Cross of Constancy of the Third Class.
Cross and Plaque of Constancy of the Second Class.
Cross and Plaque of Constancy of the First Class.
Grand Cross of Military Merit.

2o8 Porfirio Diaz

From the State Governments of Mexico (Military)

Decoration granted by the Legislature of the State
of Guerrero for having fought against the
Intervention and Empire.

Honorary Medal granted by the State of Chihuahua.

Honorary decoration granted by the Legislature of
the State of Oaxaca for the battles of Miahuat-
lan and La Carbonera and for the siege and
taking of the City of Oaxaca.

Honorary decoration granted by the Legislature of
the State of Puebla for having fought against
the French Intervention.

Honorary decoration granted by the Legislature of
the State of Puebla for the siege and taking
of the City of Puebla on April 2, 1867.

President Diaz

BANQUET OP THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE OF THE
STATE OF NEW YORK HELD AT THE WALDORF-
ASTORIA IN NEW YORK CITY ON THURSDAY
EVENING, NOVEMBER 19, 1908

Extracts taken from the official publication of the
Chamber of Commerce

The One Hundred and Fortieth Banquet of the
Chamber of Commerce of the State of New York, was
held at the Waldorf-Astoria on Thursday evening,
November the nineteenth, nineteen hundred and eight.

The decorations, in coloring, design, and historical
significance, were more brilliant than even at the
former banquets of the Chamber, always distinguished
in this respect.

The controlling idea was that of the oneness of
the North American Continent in development and
destiny. In place of the seal of the Chamber, which
at former banquets had been placed above the chair
of the president, the portrait of Washington, by
Gilbert Stuart, had the place of honor, and was
surrounded by a beautiful cluster of American flags.
On the right of this was displayed a portrait of Presi-
dent Diaz of Mexico with the appropriate back-
ground of a merchant flag; while on the left was the
14 209

210 Porfirio Diaz

portrait of Sir Wilfred Laurier, the Premier of Canada,
surrounded by Canadian and British flags.

Around the banquet-hall, completely covering its
walls, were superb combinations of the flags of all
the principal nations with which the United States
enjoys commercial intercourse, together with banners
bearing the names of all the states of the Union,
and the coat of arms of the United States, New York
State and New York City. The Corinthian columns
around the room were surrounded by gilt eagles in
clusters of silk flags and pendent from them were
silk American banners. Rarely if ever this famous
dining-room presented as magnificent a scene as on
this evening, when, amid these brilliant decorations,
the four hundred and twenty-six members and guests
assembled, and the boxes were filled with ladies.

The guests of the Chamber were as follows : Right
Honorable James Bryce, British Ambassador; Senor
Jos6 F. Godoy, Charg^ d'Affaires of Mexico; Honora-
ble Clifford Sifton, P. C, lately Minister of the Interior
of Canada; Byron E. Walker, Esq., C. V. O.; Honor-
able ChaunceyM. Depew, Senator of the United States;
Rear Admiral Caspar F. Goodrich, United States
Navy; Lord Northcliff; James J. Hill, Esq.; Chan-
cellor Henry M. MacCracken, New York University;
Andrew Carnegie, Esq.; Reverend James M. Ludlow,
D.D.; J. Edward Simmons, President of the Chamber
of Commerce of the State of New York; J. Pierpont
Morgan, Esq.; Charles Stewart Smith, Esq., Ex-
President and honorary member of the Chamber of
Commerce of the State of New York; John S. Ken-
nedy, Esq.; Honorable John G. McCullough; Honor-
able Cornelius N. Bliss; Thomas H. McKittrick,
Esq.; Honorable F. C. T. O'Hara, Deputy Minister

Chamber of Commerce Banquet 211

of Trade and Commerce of Canada; Mitchell Innes,
Esq.; Honorable John Bane; Captain Frank W. Kel-
logg, United States Navy; Robert Gill, Esq.; Thomas
L. Willson, Esq.; St. Clair McKelway, Esq.; Charles
R. Miller, Esq.; Oswald G. Willard, Esq.; Hart
Lyman, Esq. ; John Foord, Esq, ; Samuel S. Fontaine,
Esq. ; and John W. Ewan, Esq.

The first toast of the evening "The President of
the United States" was drank, the entire assembly
rising.

With great enthusiasm the second toast to His
Majesty King Edward VII was drank, and then
Mr. Simmons introduced the British Ambassador,
Right Honorable James Bryce who was greeted
with cheers.

In the speech of Ambassador Bryce, the following
phrases are found :

"On this continent you have three great countries.
I see behind me here, flanking the portrait of your
never-to-be-forgotten first great president, the por-
traits of two distinguished statesmen, the President
of the Republic of Mexico (great applause), one of
the most remarkable figures of our time who has
for so long guided, and guided wisely, the fortunes
of that country; and on the other side the portrait of
the Prime Minister of Canada, Sir Wilfred Laurier
(great applause) who has shown a rarely equalled skill
in leading the legislature and in directing the policies
of Canada for a long period of years, a man also of the
highest gifts and of the highest character. We of
the British Empire appreciate, Mr. President, the
compliment which you paid Canada in asking these
Canadian gentlemen to come, and in honoring

212 Porfirio Diaz

Canada and ourselves by hanging the picture of Sir
Wilfred Laurier on the opposite side of that portrait
of the President of the Republic of Mexico (great
applause). Here are three great countries occupy-
ing practically the whole of this Continent, each
of them of great natural resources, — and especially
as regards Canada and Mexico, — of far greater re-
sources than have yet been fully developed. Each
was made to supply the needs of the other and to be
a market for the other, and thus the prosperity of
these three countries is naturally connected. The
more trade there is between them the better for all
(great applause). And that is true of all countries.
It is true of the United States and Great Britain; it
is true of Great Britain and Germany. The more
trade there is between countries, the more they send
to one another and take from one another the better
for each of them, and the stronger are the guarantees
for general peace and good will (applause).

" That is a subject, Gentlemen, that I could willingly
pursue, if I were not afraid that somewhere along
the length of the road I might come upon a notice
board telling me that I was approaching contro-
versial topics, because there are those who do not
prize as you and I do this abundant interchange
of commodities and do not recognize the benefit it
confers. So I pause. But this I will say, and this is
matter of no controversy, that there never were
four statesmen in this continent who were more
desirous of peace and good relations between all parts
of America than President Roosevelt, and Mr. Sec-
retary Root, representing your country (great ap-
plause). Sir Wilfred Laurier, representing Canada
(great applause), and President Diaz, representing

Chamber of Commerce Banquet 213

Mexico (great applause). I think it a great piece of
good fortune that the power of these four distin-
guished statesmen should have coincided. Thanks
to their good will and pacific sentiments as well as to
the actions of the British Government, the past
eight months have seen a treaty of arbitration con-
cluded between the United States and the British
Empire, a treaty which includes Canada, and also
one between the United States and Mexico (great
applause). These treaties, Gentlemen, express not
only the excellent purpose of the governments but
also the hearty desires of the three peoples. I need
not tell you that King Edward the VII and the
British Government and people entirely share those
sentiments. They rejoice to think that this conti-
nent is becoming and has become the home of what
we trust will be perpetual peace (great applause)."

President Simmons then proposed a toast to " The
President of Mexico," at the same time reading
Secretary Root's recent tribute to Porfirio Diaz as
one of the greatest men to be held up for the hero-
worship of mankind.^

The toast was responded to, with great earnestness,
by Senor Jos6 F. Godoy, Charg^ d' Affaires of Mexico :

"Mr. President and Members of the Chamber of
Commerce of the State of New York: Six years ago,
on an occasion like the present one, the following
words were spoken regarding you all: 'You belong
not merely to the city, not merely to the state, but
to all the country, and you stand high among the
great factors in building up that marvellous pros-

» Inserted at page 90 of this book.

214 Porfirio Diaz

perity which the entire country now enjoys.' These
words were uttered by that great and illustrious
statesman, who is now at the head of the adminis-
tration of this country, President Theodore Roose-
velt (applause).

" These words are indicative of the honor that I now
enjoy as I sit by your side and join you in celebrating
the anniversary of your important organization.
But the honor conferred on me is greatly increased
by the circumstance that it has fallen to my lot to be
designated by the chief magistrate of my country to
convey to you his greetings, his good wishes and his
appreciation for the kind invitation sent him to
attend this magnificent banquet (applause).

" I think the name, the achievements and the traits
of character of President Porfirio Diaz, the present
condition of the Mexican Republic, and the satis-
factory relations existing between our two countries,
are well known to most of you; but at the earnest
suggestion of some of you gentlemen, I shall speak
briefly on these subjects.

" No better introduction to my remarks could be
made than the eloquent and well-deserved tribute
paid to President Diaz by Secretary Root which
has just been read by your president. It makes
much for friendly and appreciative relations between
our respective states, when a high officer of your
country is able to speak with such warmth about
our great president.

" If we compare the Mexico of to-day with the
Mexico of thirty years ago, the justice of the encom-
iums of Secretary Root on the administrative ability
of President Diaz is apparent. And if we examine
the incidents of his career as a soldier and as a states-

Chamber of Commerce Banquet 215

man and his pure private life, we find likewise the
eulogy quoted fully justified.

" Mexico is to-day at peace with all nations of the
world; her credit abroad is first class, as you your-
selves can testify, since a few days ago bonds for
irrigation purposes, guaranteed by my government,
were considerably oversubscribed both in this
country and abroad ; public works of great importance
are everywhere under way or completed, some of
them, like the harbor works of Vera Cruz, Manzanillo,
and Salina Cruz, the drainage works of the valley and
City of Mexico, and the railroad that is to be opened
to traffic in a few days, making a new all-rail route
between the two oceans, may well arouse the admira-
tion and wonderment, even of those who, like you,
are daily viewing extensive subways and tunnels,
magnificent suspension bridges and lofty skyscrapers
{applause) .

"In the Mexico of to-day peace and tranquillity
reign supreme through the land, public instruction has
made great strides, sanitary regulations are strictly
adhered to, and public safety and the rights of all
foreigners, as well as all Mexicans, are rigidly safe-
guarded.

"In this connection, permit me to refer to the report
of the Special Agent of your Department of Com-
merce and Labor, Mr. Arthur B. Butman, who as late
as last June said: 'The growth and influence of the
Mexican Republic is daily becoming of more impor-
tance to the world at large. Its leaders in thought
and affairs, realizing the necessity for outside aid
in developing the natural resources of the country,
have wisely framed such laws as are a safeguard to
the commercial, financial and industrial interests, and

2i6 Porfirio Diaz

the constant increase in the foreign capital invested in
Mexico is the reflex of their action,'

" I may here add that the reports of the active and
intelHgent consular officers of the United States in
my country, have furnished full data regarding
the present conditions of Mexico and such informa-
tion was officially summarized on last September in
the following words : ' It reveals a continuous growth
and extension of the country's industrial and vital
interests, contemporaneous with the progress of the
United States and Canada. This is possible under
the sound, stable administration of the national
affairs of that country and is aided by its immense
natural resources.'

"All that I have said is sufficient to demonstrate
the flourishing condition of Mexico, and that we,
Mexicans, by placing General Diaz at the head of the
administration have, as you say, 'the right man in
the right place and at the right time ' {applause) .

"The commercial relations between Mexico and the
United States are at present most satisfactory, and
in that behalf I may say that the great State of New
York, as well as this metropolis, have powerfully
contributed to bring them about. And nothing less
could be expected from a state so enterprising and
resourceful; from a state that has at its northern
extremity Niagara Falls, one of the greatest marvels
of nature, and towards its southern boundary New
York City, one of the greatest achievements of man;
from a state that gave prominence to men like
William H. Seward, chief adviser of your great
President Abraham Lincoln, who always exhibited
friendship to my country; from a state that has
given a resting place to one of the greatest military

fe
^
3

2 '^

^ o

"-l-l

Chamber of Commerce Banquet 217

leaders of the age, and one of Mexico's best friends,
General Ulysses S. Grant {applause and cheers).

" The friendly and commercial relations between
both countries are being fostered by the wise policies
pursued by both governments, and I consider that
under the administration of President-elect William
H. Taft {applause) the same policy of amity, good
will and mutual respect put in practice by the
present Executive will be continued, not only be-
cause of the wise and far-sighted statesmanship of
the President-elect, but also because by so doing he
will give life and being to the express wishes of the
whole American nation {applause).

" And now I will close by expressing the hope, in the
name of President Porfirio Diaz, to which I may be
allowed to add my personal and humble desires,
that the succeeding years may bring greater pros-
perity to the Chamber of Commerce of the State of
New York; that those succeeding years may carry
still greater happiness to the citizens of New York
City and State ; that every recurring year may bring
in its train greater material and moral advancement
to this great nation ; and that every ensuing period of
time may render closer the commercial and friendly
relations between the peoples of our two independent,
progressive, and peace-loving sister republics {voci-
ferous applause)."

Senor Godoy's address was received with many
manifestations of enthusiasm, which were renewed
when Mr. Simmons on behalf of the Chamber, pre-
sented to Senor Godoy the life-sized portrait of
President Diaz hanging on the wall of the banquet-hall.

The last toast was to "The Prime Minister of
Canada, Sir Wilfred Laurier" which was eloquently

2i8 Porfirio Diaz

responded to by Mr. Walker, President of the Cana-
dian Bank of Commerce, Honorable Clifford Sifton,
P. C, Ex-Minister of the Interior of Canada, and
James J. Hill, Esq. The text of these toasts was
published in extenso in the account from which the
foregoing was taken.

THE MEETING OF PRESIDENTS DIAZ AND TAFT AT
THE FRONTIER

Details of the Interview and Festivities

The memorable meeting of Presidents Porfirio
Diaz and William H. Taft at the frontier of
Mexico and the United States, on October i6,
1909, is thus described in telegrams to the press
of the United States :

El Paso, Tex., Oct. 16. — The long-expected meet-
ing between President Taft and President Diaz of the
Republic of Mexico took place here to-day. Outwardly
it was attended with a display of soldiery, a flare of
trumpets, a boom of cannon, and a pomp of ceremony,
suggestive of supreme authority, but in the actual
handclasp of the two executives and in the exchange
of courteous words, there was simple but cordial
informality.

President Diaz was the first to speak. He assured
President Taft of his warm personal regard and his
high esteem of the man who had accomplished so
much in the Philippines, in Cuba, and elsewhere, and
who had now the honor to be the chief executive of
so great a nation as the United States. President Taft

219

220 Porfirio Diaz

declared he was glad to meet President Diaz and to
know the president of such a great nation ; especially
glad to know the present president, who had made the
nation great.

Both presidents dwelt upon the cordiality of the
relations existing between the United States and
Mexico. President Taft declared that to-day's meet-
ing was not necessary to make stronger the bonds of
friendship ; it merely typified the strength of the bonds
as they already exist. There were less than a score
of persons permitted to witness the meeting of the
two executives. Even these were excluded later
when President Taft and President Diaz withdrew
into an inner room of the Chamber of Commerce
building, where the historic meeting occurred, and
were only attended by Governor Creel, of the State of
Chihuahua, former ambassador to the United States,
who acted as interpreter.

The scene of the day's ceremonies shifted from
time to time from this thriving little American city
across the Rio Grande River to the typical Mexican
settlement of Ciudad Juarez.

In the customs-house at Juarez, President Diaz
received a return call from President Taft, and this
evening entertained the American President and a
large dinner party at a state banquet which, in all its
surroundings of lavish decorations and wealth of
silver plate handed down from the time of Emperor
Maximilian, probably was the most notable feast
ever served on the American Continent.

It was at this banquet to-night that the mere formal
and public expressions of regard between the two
executives as the representatives of the people of the
United States and of Mexico were exchanged. The

Meeting of Presidents 221

banquet also marked the end of the day of interna-
tional pageantry — a day of cloudless skies.

Toast of President Diaz

The culmination of the day's program came when
President Diaz arose in his wonderful garden banquet-
hall, and lifting his glass to the President of the
United States proposed this toast:

" Mr. President, Gentlemen : The visit that His Ex-
cellency President Taft to-day makes to the Mexican
territory will mark an epoch in the history of Mexico.
We have had very illustrious American visitors, such
as Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and the Hon. Messrs. Seward
and Root; but never before have we seen in our
land the chief magistrate of the great American
Union. This striking trait of international courtesy,
which Mexico acknowledges and appreciates to its
full value and significance, will henceforward estab-
lish a happy precedent for the Latin- American repub-
lics to cultivate unbroken and cordial relations among
themselves, with us and with every nation of the
continent.

"Actuated by these sentiments, which are also
those of my compatriots, I raise my glass to the ever-
lasting enjoyment by the country of the immortal
Washington of all the happiness and prosperity which
justly belongs to the intelligent industry and eminent
civicism that are the characteristics of the manly and
cultured American people and to the enduring glory
of its heroic founders.

"I raise my glass to the personal happiness of its
illustrious President, who has come to honor us with
his personality and friendship, an occasion which will

22 2 Porfirio Diaz

serve to strengthen the bonds existing between the
two neighboring nations, whose respective elements
of life and interests find in themselves reciprocal
complement and enhancement."

Toast of President Taft

In acknowledging this sentiment, President Taft
raised his glass to Mexico's President with this toast:

"Responding as befits the cordiahty of this auspi-
cious occasion, I rise to express, in the name and on
behalf of the people of the United States, their pro-
found admiration and high esteem for the great,
illustrious, and patriotic President of the Republic
of Mexico. I also take this occasion to pronounce
the hearty sentiments of friendship and accord
with which my countrymen regard the Mexican
people.

"Your Excellency, I have left the United States
and set my feet in your great and prosperous country
to emphasize the more these high sentiments, and
to evidence the feeling of brotherly neighborhood
which exists between our two great nations.

"The people of the United States respect and honor
the Mexicans for their patriotic devotion, their will,
energy, and their steady advance in industrial devel-
opment and moral happiness.

"The aim and ideals of our two nations are iden-
tical, their sympathy mutual and lasting, and the
world has become assured of a vast neutral zone of
peace, in which the controlling aspiration of either
nation is individual human happiness.

" I drink to my friend, the President of this great
Repubhc; to his continued long life and happiness,

Meeting of Presidents 223

and to the never-ending bond of mutual sympathy
between Mexico and the United States."

The Day's Ceremonies

The day's ceremonies began this morning when
President Diaz, in a state carriage, with gold hubs,
gold-mounted doors, black horses, and gay cockades,
crossed the international bridge with an escort of
soldiers. The main body of Mexican troops were
left behind at the bridge entrance. The Diaz car-
riage was driven at a smart pace through the Chamizal
territory, to be met at the boundary by the American
troops and by Secretary of War Dickinson.

A salute of twenty-one guns was fired as President
Diaz stepped from his own carriage into one provided
by the American authorities.

With an escort of two squadrons and three batteries
of American field artillery, the visiting President
was taken at double-quick time through the streets
of the city to the Chamber of Commerce building,
where President Taft awaited him.

President Diaz was in full dress uniform. Gold
lace was at his throat and his cuffs, and a broad gold
sash was around his waist. On his breast glittered
many decorations.

Loud Cheers for Diaz

All along the line of march President Diaz was
cheered by the crowds. With plumed chapeau in
hand, he acknowledged the greeting with bows to
left and right. Secretary of War Dickinson rode
behind him, and an aid occupied the forward seat in
the carriage. With President Taft when he greeted

2 24 Porfirio Diaz

Diaz were Secretary Dickinson and Postmaster-
General Hitchcock, Capt. Archibald W. Butt, Gen.
Albert Meyer, U. S. A., Assistant Secretary W. Michler,
and C. C. Wagner, of the White House staff.

President Diaz was accompanied by members of
his Cabinet and military staff. The private interview
between the presidents lasted for fifteen minutes. It
is officially stated that it consisted of but an elabora-
tion of their public utterances, and that no matters
of diplomacy were touched upon.

Formal Greeting to Diaz

Secretary Dickinson, in greeting President Diaz at
the boundary to-day, said :

" You are the first chief executive of a nation to
cross our border. In this act you are giving not only
to the people of your and our country but the whole
world the highest manifestation of the cordial rela-
tions existing between these contiguous sister repub-
lics and of your desire to make them, so far as you
can, perpetual.

"We fully appreciate the honor of your visit and
we realize the magnificence of the noble purpose that
inspired you. In behalf of the President and of the
people of the United States, I give assurance of their
cordial esteem for the Republic of Mexico and its wise
and beneficent president, and welcome you to their
country and its hospitality."

Those Present at Interview

Those present at the interview between President
Taft and President Diaz in the Chamber of Commerce
building, El Paso, were J. H. Dickinson, Secretary of

Meeting of Presidents 225

War; Frank H. Hitchcock, Postmaster- General ; Gov.
Campbell, of Texas, and other state officials; Capt.
Archibald W. Butt, President Taft's military aid;
John Hays Hammond, Dr. J. J. Richardson, Wen-
dall Michler and Charles C. Wagner, the President's
assistant secretaries.

The President of Mexico was accompanied by Gen.
Manuel Gonzalez Cosio, Minister of War; Olegario
Molina, Minister of Commerce, Industry, Colonization,
Mines, and Agriculture; Gov. Creel, of the State of
Chihuahua, formerly ambassador to the United
States; Col. Pablo Escandon, chief of the military
staff of President Diaz, and Ignacio de la Barra of the
Mexican Committee of Arrangements.

Exchanges between the Presidents

President Taft said :

"I am very glad to welcome you, sir; lam very
glad, indeed."

President Diaz answered:

"I am very happy to meet you and to have the
honor of being one of the first foreigners to come over
to give you a hearty welcome."

President Taft said: "It gives me not only great
pleasure to welcome the President of the great Repub-
lic of Mexico, but to welcome the present President
of the Republic of Mexico, who has made it so great."

President Diaz replied: "I am very proud to
grasp the hand of the great statesman who has made
such a record in his life — in the Philippines, in Cuba,
and at present at the head of the great nation, the
United States."

President Taft continued :

226 Porfirio Diaz

" I wish to express to you my belief that this meeting
is looked upon by both peoples with a great deal of
interest not as making stronger, but as typifying the
strength of the bond between the two countries."

President Diaz :

"My friendly relations and my personal acquain-
tance •^'ith you will make thousands and thousands
of friends of the American and Mexican peoples and
beneficial development will have to follow for the
good of the cotmtries."

President Taft :

" You have already met the Secretary of War and
the Governor of Texas; I shall be glad to have
the privilege of presenting to you the Postmaster-
General."

The Postmaster-General was thereupon presented
to President Diaz.

President Taft :

"I should be glad to have the privilege of meeting
your staff."

The Minister of War, Gen. Manuel Gonzalez Cosio
was thereupon presented to President Taft.

President Taft, addressing the Minister of War,
said:

" I have been Minister of War and therefore I have
sympathy with you."

The Minister of War said :

" You have been an excellent Minister of War, and
I have a good example in you."

Retire for Private Talk

President Taft:

"I should be very glad of having the pleasure of

-^I^IAIN STftlRS ^- Q

Meeting of Presidents 227

taking you and Governor Creel, who interprets so well,
and who is my personal friend, into an adjoining room
for just a few minutes."

Thereupon President Taft, President Diaz, and Gov-
ernor Creel retired to an adjoining room for a private
interview, which lasted about fifteen minutes. Less
than an hour after President Diaz had withdrawn, Mr.
Taft was on his way to Juarez to repay the call.

He was received at the Mexican end of the bridge
by all of the troops gathered there as an escort to
President Diaz, with the same honors and distinction
as had marked the visit of the Mexican executive to
this country.

Mr. Taft found the little Mexican frontier city a
veritable cloud of waving colors. The rough adobe
walls of all the buildings had been hung with the
national colors of Mexico and the United States.
The streets over which Mr. Taft journeyed from the
bridge end to the custom-house had been converted
into a continuous court of honor. Garlands of flowers
and varicolored banners were looped from one tower-
ing white pillar to another.

The interview between President Diaz and Presi-
dent Taft in the custom-house in Juarez, was as
follows :

President Diaz: "Your Excellency, the Mexican
people and I feel very proud indeed to have you on
Mexican soil. I believe that the personal acquain-
tance which I have made with you and friendly feel-
ings which already exist between the United States
and Mexico will be a guaranty of the continuance of
the friendly, cordial, and strong relations between
the peoples of the two countries, and that success and
pi'osperity will follow."

228 Porfirio Diaz

Breaking Traditions Significant

President Taft: "This is the first time so far as I
know that a president of the United States has stepped
beyond the border of the United States, either on
the north or on the south, and I esteeem it a great
privilege to be the President at the time when that
event has happened. I hope it is significant of the
tightening of the bonds between the two countries.
Railroads and other means of communication like
the telegraph have brought us closer to each other,
so that the City of Mexico and the City of Washington
are far nearer to-day than they ever were before.

"And that means a closer union of feeling between
the two peoples, a closer feeling between those re-
sponsible for the government of each country; and I
esteem it the greatest honor of my life to have the
privilege of representing the United States in such
a significant ceremony."

President Diaz: "I thank you very much."

President Diaz presented to President Taft his son,
Lieutenant-Colonel Porfirio Diaz, Jr., of the Mexican
army; also his nephew, Gen. Felix Diaz, chief inspec-
tor of the Mexican police.

Banquet at Cuidad Juarez

President Taft and President Diaz sat side by side
at the banquet.

The conversation was carried on partly in Spanish
and partly through the interpreter. Mr. Taft retains
much of the Spanish he gained in the Philippines.
He received from Mayor Felix Barcenas, of Juarez, a
cordial invitation to visit the city.

An interpreter began to translate the mayor's con-

Meeting of Presidents 229

versation, when President Taft said he not only-
understood, but greatly appreciated the compliments
of the mayor.

The Maximilian silver and gold service used to-night
at the presidential table is valued at $1,000,000.
More than $200,000 worth of cut glass also was used.

Three trainloads of flowers were gathered at Juarez
from different parts of the republic to decorate the
patio of the custom-house. A temporary room, con-
structed over the patio or open court where the dinner
was served, was to-night a mass of varicolored
blossoms.

A roof had been put on for the occasion, special
tables had been constructed to fit the table-linen
brought from Chapultepec, the national castle, and
other arrangements were on an equally elaborate
scale. The chef who prepared the feast was M.
Damont, who for many years cooked for King Al-
phonso XII of Spain, and who is now official caterer
in Mexico.

The ranges on which the food was cooked were
transported 1500 miles, from the City of Mexico. The
wines served were the oldest that could be found in
the republic. The silver and gold plate was shipped
to Juarez in twenty specially made boxes. The ser-
vice has been under a special guard ever since it was
brought to Juarez.

The two presidents, with their retinues of officials
and the newspaper men in both parties, occupied a
large centre table, while the remainder of the guests
were arranged about it. The atmosphere of the
room was heavy with the odor of Mexican gardenias
and jasmines. Electric lights were half hidden among
the petals of some of the flowers. Behind the two

230 Porfirio Diaz

presidents were large oil portraits of George Wash-
ington and Hidalgo, the Washington of Mexico.
Above the two portraits hung the Stars and Stripes
and the Mexican red, white, and green. Altogether
there were only 150 guests at the dinner.

President Taft Returns to El Paso

President Taft made his way back to American soil
to-night in a perfect blaze of artificial light, and with
an escort which changed at the international bridge
from Mexican to American.

In token of remembrance of their historic meeting
both presidents were presented at the dinner to-night
with goblets of gold, the gift of the city of El Paso.
Apart from the international significance of his visit,
President Taft was warmly greeted by the people of
El Paso, was entertained at a formal breakfast at the
St. Regis Hotel, reviewed civic and military parades
and spoke to a crowd of thousands in Carnegie Square.
He said, in part:

"El Paso has been the scene to-day of a function
that I hope may weld stronger than at present the
bonds of the great republic south of the United States
and the United States.

"It has been to me a pleasure and honor to meet
that great man to whom more than to any other one
person is due the greatness of the Mexican Republic,
Gen. Porfirio Diaz.

"For the first time in history, except one, and that
was when Theodore Roosevelt stepped over the
border in Panama, when we were so mixed up on
the Zone with Panama that it did not seem to be
quite stepping out of the country, a president of the

Meeting of Presidents 231

United States has stepped upon foreign soil and
enjoyed the hospitaUty of a foreign government.

"I am glad to have taken part in an event signifi-
cant of the union with our powerful neighbor. I know,
and you know better than I, that the prosperity
of the United States is largely dependent on the
prosperity of Mexico, and Mexico's prosperity de-
pendent on ours, and we wish for her all the happi-
ness and prosperity that can possibly come to a
republic, as she does for us.

"Therefore, an event like this that marks the
undying friendship of the two countries is one in
which any who takes part may well have pride."

Departure of the Presidents

President Taft returned from Juarez at 8:35 p.m.,
and left for San Antonio at 9 o'clock.

President Diaz late to-night is speeding back to
the City of Mexico.

MEXICAN FINANCES AND COMMERCE IN I909

From a report, presented by Mr. Jose Y.
Limantour, Secretary of Finance, to the Mexican
Congress at the close of its last session, on De-
cember 14, 1909, it appears that the surplus left
in the National Treasury at that date was about
$75,000,000 silver.

This surplus was made up from the balances
left on hand at the end of the fiscal years com-
mencing in 1 89 5-1 896, which were as follows:

1895-1896 $5,451,347.29

1896-1897 3,170,123.50

1897-1898 882,698.89

1898-1899 6,639,670.90

1899-1900 6,316,388.54

1900-1901 3.575.798.88

1901-1902 3.065,534.99

1902-1903 7,800,893.91

1903-1904 10,092,157.72

1904-1905 12,931,090.86

1905-1906 22,505,712.02

1906-1907 29,209,481.54

1907-1908 18,594,426.51

1908-1909 5,808,117.48
232

miPLUS SMTOE

NAT10HA.I- THEATRE, - MEXICO CITY ^^s^^^ DKMHACilL OF THE. VALLEV OF ME.XICO.

SURPLUS

^13fo.0OO.000.

SPE.WT TOR.

SUR-PLUS
AT PRESENT

7S,ooo. ooo.

Finances and Commerce 233

Thus, in the fourteen fiscal years mentioned,
the aggregate surplus amounted to over one
hundred and thirty- six million pesos. Seventy-one
million pesos of this surplus have been spent in
important public works, in conformity with legis-
lative enactments, leaving at present in the
National Treasury, as mentioned above, about
seventy-five million pesos.

The official report of the Statistical Bureau of
the Department of Finance of Mexico was issued
shortly before the publication of this work. That
statement shows that during the first three months
of the fiscal year, 1909-19 10, the total value of
imports was 39,873,936 pesos and of exports
60,928,122 pesos, thus showing a gain of 4,816,481
pesos for imports, and of 9,949,856 pesos for
exports over the corresponding period of the
preceding fiscal year.

The figures given above we think conclusively
show the flourishing condition of the finances
and foreign trade of the Mexican Republic.

INDEX

Acultzingo, battle of, 12, 204
Adee, Alvey A., opinion on

President Diaz, 125
Agriculture in Mexico, 115
Alatorre, General Ignacio,

sent against General Diaz,

28; defeated at Tecoac, 28
All-rail routes between the

Atlantic and Pacific, 93,

118
Amada Diaz de la Torre,

daughter of President, loi ;

married, 102
Ambassador, Mexican, to

United States appointed,

66, 67
America, centenary of dis-
covery of, 53
American cities visited by

President and Mrs. Diaz,

American Doctrme, as dis-
tinguished from Monroe
Doctrine, 63

American Government a t
first in strained relations
with Diaz Administration,
30; close relations with
Mexico, 44, 67, 70, 90, 92,
121, 228, 231

American invasion referred
to, 3

Americanists, Congress of, 59

Americans, prominent, opin-
ions on President Diaz, iv,
107, 124-193

Appendices, 194

Arbitration, in Oberlander
and Messinger case, 67; in
claim of Catholic Church of
California, 78; in claims
against Venezuela, 78

Archeological research in
Mexico, 79

Argentine Minister at Madrid,
arbitrator in claim against
Mexico, 67

Argentine Republic enters
into relations with Mexico,

Army, efficiency of Mexican,
120

Attorney General of the
United States acts on be-
half of Mexico, 70

Austria-Hungary, relations
re-established with, 75;
Mexican Minister to, 102;
decoration to President
Diaz by, 207

Ayutla plan, proclaimed, 6;
platform of Liberals, 6

Azpiroz, Manuel, Sub-Secre-
tary of Foreign Relations,
67; becomes Ambassador,

Bailey, J. W., opinion on
President Diaz, 126

Balance in treasury, 63, 64,
120, 232

Ball given to Mrs. Diaz at
Mexico City, 85

235

236

Index

Banks, laws regarding, 66,
119; number and assets of.

Banquet, to President Diaz
at City of Mexico, 85;
by Chamber of Commerce
of State of New York, 92,
124, 209-218; by President
Diaz to President Taft,
227, 228

Baranda, Joaquin, Secretary
of Justice and Public In-
struction, 41

Barillas, Manuel L., assassi-
nation of, 87

Barrett, John, opinion on
President Diaz, 126

Barrios, General Juste Ru-
fino. President of Guate-
mala, 42 ; plan to assume
control in Central America,
by, 42; protest of Mexico
against acts of, 42; death
of, 42, 43

Bartholdt, Richard, opinion
on President Diaz, 127

Bates, E. A., opinion on
President Diaz, 128

Battles fought by President
Diaz, 203—205

Bazaine, Marshal, commands
Imperial troops, 15; takes
city of Oaxaca, 15

Belgium, decoration to Presi-
dent Diaz by, 207

Belize, treaty between Mex-
ico and Great Britain re-
garding, 58, III

Bell, J. Franklin, opinion on
President Diaz, 128

Birth of Porfirio Diaz, i

Bliss, C. N., opinion on Presi-
dent Diaz, 128

Boleo, El, Company of, 115

Bonds for irrigation purposes,
119. 215

Bone, Scott C, opinion on
President Diaz, 130

Border disturbances stopped,
91

Boundary questions, between

Mexican states, 56, 112;
between England and Ven-
ezuela, 59-63 ; with the
United States, 1 1 1

Bravo, General, gunboat, 121

Bravo River, see Rio Grande
River

Brazil enters into relations
with Mexico, 50

Brewer, David J., opinion on
President Diaz, 131

Brigade of Oaxaca led by
Diaz, 10

Brooks, Bryant B., opinion
on President Diaz, 131

Broussard, Robert F., opin-
ion on President Diaz,

131
Brown, Elmer Ellsworth,

opinion on President Diaz,

132
Brown, H. B., opinion on

President Diaz, 132
Brown, Philip, opinion on

President Diaz, 133
Bryan, William J., opinion

on President Diaz, 133
Bryce, James, opinion on

President Diaz, 134; toast

at banquet of Chamber of

Commerce of State of New

York, 21 1-2 13
Bubonic plague, prevention

of, 59; in Mazatlan, 79, 192
Buchanan, W. I., witnessed

signing Central American

treaties, 88
Buenrostro, Judge Felipe,

performs civil marriage of

President and Mrs. Diaz,

lOI

Buffalo Exposition, 57, 77,
116; assassination of Presi-
dent McKinley at, 77

Bulletin of the International
Union of American Repub-
lics quoted, 197

Burleson, Albert S., opinion
on President Diaz, 135

Burrows, J. C, opinion on
President Diaz, 136

Index

237

Burton, Theodore E., opinion
on President Diaz, 136

Cabinet of President Diaz
in 1884, 41

Cadena Street, residence of
President Diaz, g8

Calpulalpam, battle of, 10

Canada, prominent men of,
opinions on President Diaz,
iv, 124-193; relations be-
tween Mexico and, 211, 212

Cananea, strikes at, 93 ; cop-
per production of, 115

Cannon, Joseph G., opinion
on President Diaz, 136

Capital, foreign, in Mexico,
123

Carbonera, La, battle of 19,
205; hero of, 19

Carlyle quoted, 98

Carmelita, popular name of
Mrs. Diaz, loi

Carnegie, Andrew, opinion on
President Diaz, 137

Cartago, High Court of Jus-
tice at, 89

Carter, Thomas H., opinion
on President Diaz, 137

Casa Amiga de la Obrera
(Working Woman's Home)
established by Mrs. Diaz,

lOI

Casasus, Joaquin D., member
of Second Pan-American
Conference, 76; appointed
secretary general, 76; Mexi-
can Ambassador at Wash-
ington, 76; takes part in
financial measures, 86

Catholic Church of California,
claim of, 77; settled at The
Hague, 78

Census of Mexico, 75, 115,
116

Centenary of discovery of
America, 53

Centenary of Mexican Inde-
pendence, 93, 114

Central America, difficulties
in, 42, 43; settlement of
same, 43 ; conference of
Republics of, 88; interposi-
tion of Mexico and United
States in, 88, 89

Central American Republics,
peace in, 87, 88; sign treat-
ies in Washington, 88; fur-
ther trouble to be averted
in, 89

Chamber of Commerce of the
State of New York, ban-
quet of, 92, 125, 209-218

Chapala Lake, 100

Chapultepec Castle, residence
of the President, 98,99,100;
National Military School
at, 120

Charg6 d' Affaires of Mexico,
present at signing protocol
of Central American dip-
lomats, 88; at banquet of
Chamber of Commerce of
the State of New York, 210,
212; toast of, 210-212

Chicago, World's Fair at,
52; success of Mexican
Department at, 57, 116

Chihuahua, visit of President
Diaz to, 94

Chinese Empire, relations
with Mexico, 56, no;
decoration to President
Diaz by, 207

Chitova, La, battle of, 205

Chousal, Rafael, private sec-
retary to President Diaz,

Cigars, manufacture of, in
Mexico, 115

Ciudad Juarez, meeting of
Presidents Diaz and Taft
at, 228; banquet at, 229

Claims against Mexico, Ober-
lander and Messinger, 67;
Weil, 71; La Abra, 71;
Catholic Church of Cali-
fornia, 77

Clark, Champ, opinion on
President Diaz, 137

238

Index

Clayton, Powell, opinion on
President Diaz, 138

Cleveland, President, mes-
sage as to boundary dis-
pute between Great Britain
and Venezuela, 59, 60, 62

Coal produced in Mexico,

115

Coatzocoalcos, see Puerto
Mexico

Cockrell, F. M., opinion on
President Diaz, 139

Code, Sanitary, issued, 52;
new one adopted, 58

Colonel, Porfirio Diaz ap-
pointed, 9

Colonization of lands, 199

Colorado River, changes in,
III

Comitipla, battle of, 204

Commission to aid in estab-
lishing gold standard, 79

Common Council of Mexico
City votes thanks to Gen-
eral Diaz, 23

Communications, see Depart-
ment of Communications

Coney, A. K., purser of
steamer, 26

Conference at The Hague,
First, 68; Second, 92

Conference for the Conser-
vation of National Re-
sources, III

Congress, Porfirio Diaz enters,
10

Congress of Americanists, 59

Conservatives struggle
against Liberals, 5-10

Conspiracy at Vera Cruz, 3 1

Constitution amended, 45,
54, 80

Consular service of Mexico,
no

Contagious diseases, preven-
tion of, 59

Copper production in Repub-
lic, 115

Corral, Ramon, Secretary of
the Interior, 80, 112; elect-
ed Vice-President, 80;

posts held by, 80; again a
candidate, 95

Cortelyou, George B., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 139

Costa Rica, opposes President
Barrios of Guatemala, 42,
43 ; address of American
Minister in, 51; takes part
in Peace Conference at
Washington, 89

Credit, institutions of, in
Mexico, 119

Credit of Mexico abroad,
118, 215

Creel, Enrique C, Mexican
Ambassador, 86 ; takes part
in financial measures, 86;
witnesses signing Central
American treaties, 88 ; Gov-
ernor of Chihuahua, 225;
present at meeting of Presi-
dents Diaz and Taft, 225

Crisis, economical, 57, 121

Crops, failure of, 121

Cuba, diplomatic relations
between Mexico and, 78

CuUom, S. M., opinion on
President Diaz, 139

Curry, George, opinion on
President Diaz, 140

Curtis, William E., opinion
on President Diaz, 140

Custom House Ordinance,
new, 52

Cutting case, reference to, 45

Daniel, J. W., opinion on
President Diaz, 141

Davis, Henry G., opinion on
President Diaz, 141

Day, William R., opinion on
President Diaz, 143

Debt, public, see Public debt

Decorations given to Presi-
dent Diaz, 103, 206-208

De la Barra, Ignacio, present
at meeting of Presidents
Diaz and Taft, 225

Index

239

Democrata, mutiny on board

Denby, Edwin, opinion on
President Diaz, 143

Department of Communica-
tions and Public Works,
52, 93, 116-118, 200

Depreciation of silver, 121,

Deputy, Porfirio Diaz elected,
10

De Young, M. H., opinion on
President Diaz, 144

Diaz, Amada, see Amada Diaz

Diaz, Carmen Romero Rubio
de, wife of the President,
100; her marriage, 100;
entertains delegates t o
Second Pan-American Con-
ference, 76; her residence
after marriage, 100; her
character, 10 1; ball in her
honor in 1904, 85; silver
wedding of, i o i ; pro-
motes Working Woman's
Home, 10 1 ; travels of,' 103

Diaz, Felix, brother of Presi-
dent, 9; fights bravely, 10;
his death, 10

Diaz, Felix, nephew of Presi-
dent, present at meeting of
Presidents Diaz and Taft,
228

Diaz, Jos6 Faustino de la
Cruz, father of President,
I ; death of, 2

Diaz, Luz, see Luz Diaz

Diaz, Porfirio, birth, i ; par-
ents, 2; his education, 2;
receives primary instruc-
tion, 2 ; enters National and
Pontifical Seminary, 2;
offers his services in Ameri-
can war, 3 ; enters Institute
of Sciences and Arts, 3 ; in-
structed by Benito Juarez,
3 ; studies law, 4 ; abandons
that study, 4; joins Liber-
als, 6; appointed subpre-
fect of Ixtlan, 6; his first
battle, 7; is wounded, 7;
his personal memoirs, 7;

goes to Tehuantepec, 8;
battle of Jalapa, 8; battle
of Las Jicaras, 8 ; wounded
again, 8; battle of La
Mixtequilla, 9 ; appointed
colonel, 9; at siege of
Oaxaca, 9; enters Mexico
City with Liberals, 10; is
deputy to Congress, 10;
battle of Jalatlaco, 1 1 ;
battle of Pachuca, 11; in
War of Reform, 6-1 1 ; in
War of French Interven-
t i o n, 1 2-2 2 ; commands
Second Brigade, 12; fights
at Escamela, 12; battle of
Acultzingo, 12; battle of
May 5, 1862, 13; siege of
city of Puebla by French,
13; is taken prisoner, 13;
his escape, 14; declines to
be Secretary of War, 14;
takes city of Taxco, 14;
surrenders at city of Oax-
aca, 15; is taken prisoner
a second time, 15; how he
escaped, 14-19; his third
campaign against the Im-
perialists, 19; battle of
Nochixtlan, 19; battle of
Miahuatlan, 20 ; battle of La
Carbonera, 20; takes city
of Oaxaca, 20; assault of
Puebla, 21; his brilliant
victory, 21; wins battle
of San Lorenzo, 22; be-
sieges City of Mexico, 2 2 ;
enters the capital, 23 ; retires
to private life, 23 ; remains
at La Noria, 24; his con-
test for the presidency, 24 ;
isagain elected to Congress,
24 ; is offered post as Minis-
ter to Berlin, 25; is pro-
claimed presidential can-
didate, 25; his plan of
Tuxtepec, 25; goes to the
United States, 26; his
escape from a steamer, 2 7 ;
in new civil war, 27; battle
of Tecoac, 28; welcomed

240

Index

Diaz, Porfirio — Continued
at City of Mexico, 28; elect-
ed President, 29; his first
administration, 30-34;
lives without ostentation,
30, 38; end of his first
administration, 35; visits
the United States , 33, 38;
Secretary of Public Pro-
motion, 35; senator, 36;
Governor of the State of
Oaxaca, 36; withdraws
from public life, 37; mar-
ried to Miss Cannen Rom-
ero Rubio,38; his reception
in United States, 38; prob-
able successor to President
Gonzalez, 38; Commission-
er General of the Mexi-
can Department at New
Orleans Exposition, 39;
re-elected, 39; succeeds
President Gonzalez, 40 ; his
administration from 1884
to 1888, 40-48; his policy
during that term, 42; ac-
tion regarding Central
America, 43; financial
measures, 44; messages to
Congress, 45, 48; re-elected
in 1888, 45 ; new term from
1888 to 1892, 49-55; his
policy as to proposed pur-
chase of Lower California,
51; again re-elected, 54;
administration from 1892
to 1896, 56-65; encourages
Mexican exhibits at expo-
sitions, 57; difficulties with
Guatemala, 58; his state-
ment relative to the Mon-
roe Doctrine, 60 ; re-elected
in 1896, 63; his message
of September, 1896, 63;
his term from 1896 to 1900,
66-73 ! declares neutrality
in war between United
States and Spain, 67; re-
elected in 1900, 71; term
from 1900 to 1904, 74-82;
takes interest in Second

Pan-American Conference,
7 5 ; entertains its delegates,
76; receives diplomatic re-
presentative of Shah of
Persia, 78; acts regarding
gold standard, 78; re-elect-
ed for six years in 1904,
80; his messages during
that term, 83, 84; his
inauguration in 1904, 85;
festivities on that occasion,
85; establishes gold stan-
dard, 86; consolidates rail-
way lines, 87; his attitude
regarding assassination of
Ex-President Barillas, 87;
friendly offices in Central
America, 89; banquet of
Chamber of Commerce of
State of New York partly
in his honor, 92; interest
in Mexican centenary, 93 ;
trips in the Republic, 94;
declines at first to be re-
elected, 94; consents at
last to be again a candi-
date, 94; his private life,
97-105 ; his traits of charac-
ter, 97; his sincerity, 98;
his memory, 98; his habits,
98-100; his family, loi;
as a public speaker, 104;
how he began life, 106; as a
military leader, 107 ; his life
as a statesman reviewed,
107-123; statements
issued to his country-
men, 108; regard and es-
teem of Ex-President
Roosevelt and President
Taft for him, 121; peo-
ple wish his re-election,
123; opinions of promi-
nent men on his life and
career, 124-193; his mes-
sage to Congress in Sep-
tember, 1909, 197; list of
sieges and battles in which
he took part, 203-205;
medals and decorations
granted him, 206-208;

Index

241

Diaz, Porfirio — Continued
enthusiasm for him in
banquet of Chamber of
Commerce in State of New
York, 209-218; meeting
with President Taft at
frontier, 219-231; banquet
by him to President Taft,
200, 225

Diaz, Jr., Porfirio, son of
President, 102; a civil en-
gineer, 102; lieutenant-
colonel, 102; his marriage,
102; his family, 102; pres-
ent at meeting of Presi-
dents Diaz and Taft, 228

Dickinson, J. H., present at
meeting of Presidents Diaz
and Taft, 224

Diplomatic mission of Mexico,
in Washington, 44, 67;
in Austria-Hungary, 75;
in South American Repub-
lics, 77; in Cuba, 78; in
Persia, 78; in China and
Japan, no; in leading na-
tions, no

DoUiver, Jonathan P., opin-
ion on President Diaz,

145
Drainage works, of City of

Mexico, 79; of valley of

Mexico, 54
Dublan, Manuel, Secretary

of Finance, 41

Earthquakes in State of
Guerrero, 121, 198

Education, see Public In-
struction

Education of Porfirio Diaz,

3.4

Egan, Maurice Francis, opin-
ion on President Diaz, 145

Elections, Presidential, in
1876, 29; in 1880, 33; in
1884, 39; in 1888, 45, 49;
in 1892, 54; in 1896, 63;

in 1900, 71; in 1904, 80;
in 1910, 94, 96

Elizaga, Lorenzo, married to
a sister of Mrs. Diaz, 102

Elkins, S. B., opinion on
President Diaz, 146

El Paso, publication of libel
by Cutting at, 45; meeting
of Presidents Diaz and
Taft at, 225

El Salvador, opposes Presi-
dent Barrios of Guatemala,
42, 43 ; war with Honduras,
88; takes part in Peace
Conference, 88, 89

Empire, Mexican, Archduke
Maximilian becomes head
of so-called, 14

England, invades Mexico,
12; withdraws troops from
Mexico, 12; treaty o f
friendship and commerce
with Mexico, 49; treaty
with Mexico as to Belize,
58 ; dispute with Venezuela
as to boundaries, 60 ; postal
convention with Mexico,
200; Order of the Bath to
President Diaz by, 207

Englebright, W. F., opinion
on President Diaz, 147

English debt, settlement of
so-called, 40

Epidemics in Mexico pre-
vented, 113, 192

Escamela, battle of, 12

Escandon, Pablo, present at
meeting of Presidents Diaz
and Taft, 225

Escape of Porfirio Diaz, at
Puebla, 14; at Puebla, a
second time, 15-19; at Vera
Cruz, 26-27

Escobedo, General Mariano,
invades Republic, 32; de-
feated, 32

Europe, leading nations of,
friendly to Mexico, no

Exposition, at New Orleans,
39; at Paris, 52, 116; at
Chicago, 52, 57, 116; at

242

Index

Exposition — Continued

Buffalo, 55, 57, 77, 116;
at Jamestown, Virginia,
92; at St. Louis, Mo., 116

Federal District, revenues

of, 87

Fernandez, Justino, Secre-
tary of Justice, 75

Fernandez, Leandro, Secre-
tary of Communications
and Public Works, 116

Fifth of May battle, cele-
bration of, 13

Finance, Department of, 46,
54, 118, 120, 231

Finances of Mexico, 33, 41,
53, 54, 68, 78, 79, 82, 83,
118, 232, 233

First administration of Presi-
dent Diaz, 30-34

Fisher, Sydney, opinion on
President Diaz, 147

Flint, Frank F., opinion on
President Diaz, 148

Floods in Nuevo Leon and
Tamaulipas, 121, 198

Foreign governments, friend-
ly relations with Mexico
of, 30, 45, 54, 56, 81, 87,
91, 121, 202

Foreign Relations, Secretary
of, 41, 56

Foreign trade in Mexico, 33,
47, 87, 119, 201—203

Fortin de la Soledad, battle
of, 203

Foster, John W., opinion on
President Diaz, 149

Fourth International Con-
gress of Fisheries, 1 1 1

Fox, Williams C, opinion on
President Diaz, 151

France, invades Mexico, 12;
decoration t o President
Diaz by, 206

French Intervention, War of.

Funeral of Ex-President Ler-

do de Tejada, 51, 52
Future of Mexico, 122, 123

Gallinger, J. H., opinion on
President Diaz, 151

Garcia de la Cadena, General,
leads disturbers in Zacate-
cas, 44; death of, 44

Gardiner, Asa Bird, opinion
on President Diaz, 152

Garfield, James R., opinion
on President Diaz, 153

Garfield, President, reference
to mother of, 3

General Guerrero, gunboat,
201

Geodetic survey of Mexico,
199

Geographical Exploration
Commission, 199

Geological Institute, Nation-
al, 74

Gladstone quoted, 104

Godoy, Josd F., represents
President Diaz at banquet
of Chamber of Commerce
of State of New York, 213 ;
toast of, 213-216

Gold production in Mexico,

115

Gold standard in Mexico, 78,
86

Gonzalez Cosio, General Man-
uel, Secretary of Commu-
nications, 116; Secretary
of War and Navy, 120;
present at meeting of
Presidents Diaz and Taft,
225

Gonzalez, Manuel, fought at
Tecoac, 28; candidate for
the presidency, 33; elected
President, 34; assumes
office, 34; his presidential
term, 35-40; is succeeded
by Porfirio Diaz, 40

Gonzalez Ortega, victory at
Calpulalpam, i o ; in pursuit

Index

243

Gonzalez, Manuel — Cont'd
of Conservatives, 1 1 ; com-
manded at siege of city of
Puebla, 13

Goodrich, Caspar F., opinion
on President Diaz, 1 53

Government, Mexican, to
control railways, 86, 87

Grandchildren of President
Diaz, 102, 103

Grand crosses granted to
President Diaz, 206, 207

Grant, Frederick D., opinion
on President Diaz, 1 54

Grant, General Ulysses S.,
visits Mexico, 32; enthu-
siastic reception of , 3 2 ; per-
sonal friend of President
Diaz, 154

Great Britain, see England

Greely, A. W., opinion on
President Diaz, 154

Guanajuato visited by Presi-
dent Diaz, 94

Guatemala, difficulties with,
in 1885, 42; settled, 43;
President Diaz's reference
to, 43; Mexican troops in
frontier of, 43 ; difficulties
with, in 1894, 58; settled,
58; railroad to frontier of,
77; incident with, in 1904,
81; gives satisfaction to
Mexico, 82; demand of
extradition in Barillas case,
88 ; threatening m.easures
adopted by, 88; enters
into Peace Conference, 88,
89

Guerrero, disturbances m
State of, 56; quickly sup-
pressed, 56; earthquakes
in, 121, 198

Guiana, British, dispute re-
garding, 60

Hadley, Arthur T., opinion

on President Diaz, 156
Hague, The, First Peace Con-

ference at, 68, iii; settle-
ment of claim of Catholic
Church of California by
high tribunal at, 77; Sec-
ond Peace Conference at,
92, III, 197

Harbor works at Tampico,
54, 70, 199; at Vera Cruz,
54, 70, 199; at Salina Cruz,
70, 93, 199; at Manzanillo,
70, 93; at Puerto Mexico,
70, 93, 199; at Mazatlan,
70

Hay, E. M., opinion on Presi-
dent Diaz, 156

Hayes, E. A., opinion on
President Diaz, 156

Hero of La Carbonera, Presi-
dent Diaz so named, 20

Hidalgo proclaimed Mexican
Independence, i

High Court of Justice at
Cartago, 89

High Court of Justice at The
Hague, 69, III

Hill, David J., opinion on
President Diaz, 157

Hill, James J., opinion on
President Diaz, 157

Hinojosa, General Pedro,
Secretary of War, 41

History of Mexico nearly
identical lately with life of
Porfirio Diaz, 72

Hitchcock, Frank H., present
at meeting of Presidents
Diaz and Taft, 225

Honduras, change of gov-
ernment in, 88; enters
into Peace Conference, 88,
89

Hospital, General, at City of
Mexico, 52, 113

Howry, Charles, opinion on
President Diaz, 158

Huajuapam, battle of, 204

Hungarian decoration for
President Diaz, 207

Hygiene, improvement of
public, 51, 58, 112, 197;
conventions as to, 197

244

Index

Icamole, battle of, 205

Iglesias, Jos^ Maria, presi-
dential candidate, 2 7 ;
President of the Supreme
Court, 27; contest with
Diaz and Lerdo de Tejada,
28; his supporters leave
him, 28; lands at San
Francisco, Cal., 28; his
partisans at first dissatis-
fied with Diaz administra-
tion, 31

Imperialists, final defeat of,
21

Importations, increase of,
33, 83, 119, 201, 233

Imposts, internal, abolished,
65, 120

Independence of Mexico,
anniversary of, i ; c e 1 e-
brated at Jamestown, Va.,
92; centenary of, 93,
114

Independencia, mutiny on
board of, 31

Indians, Maya, rise in arms
and are defeated, 44, 93 ;
Yaqui, rise in arms and are
defeated, 44, 93

Industrial enterprises in
Mexico, 115

Institute of Sciences and
Arts of Oaxaca, 3; Diaz
studies in, 3, 5

Institutions of Credit, see
Banks

Instruction, Public, advance-
ment in, 54, 82, 198, 215;
Department of, 75, 82, 198;
Secretary of, 75

Insurrections in Mexico easily
quelled, 123

Interior, Department of, 79,
80, 82, 112, 113, 197; Secre-
tary of, 80

Internal imposts abolished,
65, 120

International Congress of
Americanists, 59

International Congresses, 59,
III, 198

International Exposition, at
New Orleans, 39; at Chi-
cago, 52, 116; at Paris,
52, 116; at Buffalo, 55,
77; at _Jamestown, 92;
at St. Louis, 116

International Tuberculosis
Congress, in

Intervention, of France, Eng-
land, and Spain in Mexico,
13; war of French, 12-22

Iron production in Mexico,

115
Irrigation in Mexico, bonds

for, 119, 2 1 5 ; works for, 199
Italy, Mexican gunboats

built in, 121 ; decoration to

President Diaz by, 204
Ixcapa, battle of, 203
Ixtepeji, battle of, 203
Ixtlan, Diaz subprefect of, 6

Jalapa, battle of, 8, 203
Jalatlaco, battle of, 11, 204
Jamestown, Virginia, Expo-
sition at, 92
Japan, enters into relations
with Mexico, 50, no; treaty
of commerce and friend-
ship with Mexico and, 50;
decoration t o President
Diaz by, 206
Jicaras, Las, battle of, 8, 203
Jordan, David Starr, opinion

on President Diaz, 158
Juarez, Benito, bom at Oax-
aca, 1 ; teacher of Porfirio
Diaz, 3; resides at Vera
Cruz, 9; enters City of
Mexico, 10; resists French
invasion, 12; appoints
Diaz to command a division
of army, 14; leaves City of
Mexico, 14; returns to City
of Mexico, 23; again is
presidential candidate, 24;
sudden death of, 24

Index

245

Jurisprudence, Diaz studies,
3,4

Kahn, Julius, opinion on
President Diaz, 159

La Abra claim against Mex-
ico rejected, 71
Labastida, Archbishop Pela-

gio A., married President

and Mrs. Diaz, 10 1
La Carbonera, battle of, 19,

20, 202, 205
La Mixtequilla, battle of, 9,

203
Landis, C. B., opinion on

President Diaz, 159
Lands, public, survey and

sale of, 51, 114, 199
Lane, Franklin K., opinion

on President Diaz, 160
Las Jicaras, see Jicaras, Las
Lawyer, Diaz trained as a,

Legations, Mexican, in South
America, 77; in America,
Europe, and Asia, 110

Legion of Honor of France,
President Diaz given deco-
ration of, 206

Legislative Palace, National,

Leon, Emilio de, signs for
Guatemala agreement set-
tling difficulties with Mex-
ico, 58

Lerdo de Tejada, Sebastian,
presidential candidate, 24;
elected President, 24 ; offers
Diaz post of Minister at
Berlin, 25; attempt to re-
elect, 25; struggles with
Diaz and Iglesias, 24-28;
his troops defeated at
Tecoac, 28; leaves Repub-
lic, 28; goes to reside at
New York City, 28; his

partisans conspire against
Diaz administration, 3 1 ;
death of, 51; funeral of,
52
Libel by Cutting at El Paso,

Liberals, struggle against
Conservatives, 5-11; Diaz
joins, 6 ; platform of, 6

Liceaga, Dr. Eduardo, active
in sanitary matters, 113

Limantour, Jos6 Yves, Secre-
tary of Finance, 63 ; suc-
cessful financial operations
of, 69; goes to Europe, 69;
arranges gold standard,
78, 86; candidate for the
vice-presidency, 80 ; aids
in consolidating railways,
86, 87; report on surplus
in Treasury by, 232, 233

Lincoln, Abraham, President,
quoted, 34

Loans, foreign, 53, 118

Lo de Soto, battle of, 204

Lodge, H. C, opinion on
President Diaz, 160

Loomis, Francis B., opinion
on President Diaz, 161

Lower California, proposed
purchase of, 51; El Boleo
Company in, 115

Low, Seth, opinion on Presi-
dent Diaz, 163

Luz Diaz de Rincon Gal-
lardo, daughter of President
Diaz, 102; married, 102

Lyman, Hart, opinion on
President Diaz, 163

MacArthur, Arthur, opinion
on President Diaz, 164

Macaulay, T. B., quotation
from, 42; reference to, 104

Macedo, Pablo, takes part in
financial measure, 86

Macfarland, H. B. F., opin-
ion on President Diaz,
165

246

Index

Madrid, festivities of centen-
ary of discovery of Amer-
ica in, 53

Magoon, Charles E., opinion
on President Diaz, 165

Mail facilities, increase of, 44

Major-G e n e r a 1, Diaz ap-
pointed, 14

Manufacture of arms, 120

Manzanillo, harbor works at,
70, 93 ; railroad to, 93

Marcil, Charles, opinion on
President Diaz, 168

Mariscal, Ignacio, born at
Oaxaca, i ; Secretary of
Foreign Relations, 41;
signs agreement settling
difficultieswith Guatemala,
58; candidate for vice-
presidency, 80; attitude
regarding Guatemala, 87

Marquesado, battle of, 203

Marquez, Leonardo, General,
defeated at Jalatlaco, 1 1 ;
defeated at San Lorenzo,
22 ; defends Mexico City, 22

Matamoros, taking of city of,
205

Maximilian, Archduke, head
of so-called Empire, 14;
proposals made to Diaz by,
14; capture and execution
of, 21, 22

Maya Indians, rise in arms,
44; are defeated, 44; cam-
paign against, 93

Mazatlan, harbor works of,
70; the Southern Pacific
Railroad reaches, 118

McClung, Lee, opinion on
President Diaz, 168

McCreery, Fen ton R., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 169

McGee, M. C, opinion on
President Diaz, 170

McKinley, President, assas-
sination of, 7 7

Medals given to President
Diaz, 206-208

Medical Institute, National,
192

Meeting of Presidents Diaz
and Taft at frontier, 92,
124, 219-231

Mejia, General, execution of,
21

Memoirs of President Diaz, 7

Mena, Francisco Z., General,
Secretary of Communica-
tions, 116

Mendez, Juan N., General, in
charge of executive power,
29

Messages of President Diaz,
43, 47. 55. 60, 64, 66, 68,
72, 81, 84, 108, 197-202

Metcalf, Victor H., opinion
on President Diaz, 171

Mexia, Enrique A., Mexican
delegate at First Pan-
American Conference, 50

Mexican Central Railroad,
117, 118

Mexican delegation to First
Pan-American Conference,
50; to Second Pan-Ameri-
can Conference, 76; to
Third Pan-American Con-
ference, 92; to various in-
ternational congresses, 1 1 1

Mexican exhibits, at New
Orleans Exposition, 39;
at Chicago, 52; at Paris,
52, 116; at Buffalo, 57;
at Jamestown, 91; at St.
Louis, 116

Mexican International Rail-
road, 118

Mexican National Railroad,
117

Mexico, at First Peace Con-
ference of The Hague, 68;
settles claims against Ven-
ezuela, 78; relations with
Guatemala, 88; visited by
Secretary of State Root,
90; interposition in Cen-
tral America, 88, 89; min-
ing in, 44, 64, 114, 199;
economic crisis in, 121;
advancement of, 108, 121,
126; revenues of, 63, 64, 83,

Index

247

Mexico — Continued

232; railroads in, 44, 46,
54, 77, 82, 116, 117, 200;
public instruction in, 46,
54, 79, 114, 198; future of,
123

Mexico and the United States,
work quoted, 116, 122

Mexico City, in hands of Con-
servatives, 9; entry of
Liberals in, 10; attack by
Conservatives, i o ; Presi-
dent Diaz leaves, 13; be-
sieged by General Diaz, 2 1 ;
surrenders to General Diaz,
21; Juarez returns to, 23;
welcomes Diaz, 28; Second
Pan-American Conference
S't, 75; great improve-
ments in, 74, 113, 197;
drainage works in, 79;
sanitary condition of, 79;
assassination of Ex-Presi-
dent Barillas of Guatemala
at, 87; new Post-Office at,

93
Miahuatlan, battle of, 19, 20,

204
Military decorations given

to President Diaz, 207
Mills, Anson, opinion on

President Diaz, 171
Mining in Mexico, 44, 64, 114,

199
Miramon, General, defeated

at Calpulalpam, 10; execu-
tion of, 2 1
Mitla, battle of, 203
Mixed Claims Commission,

award of, 33; payment by

Mexico of award of, 33 ;

last installment paid, 5 2 ;

awards in La Abra and

Weil claims, 71
Mixtequilla, La, battle of,

9. 203
Molina, Olegario, Secretary

of Public Promotion, 114;

present at meeting of

Presidents Diaz and

Taft, 225

Mbndragon, General, patent

for arms by, 120
Moneda Street, former home

of President Diaz, 30
Money, Hernando D., opin-
ion on President Diaz,

172
Money order service, 200, 201
Monroe Doctrine, statement

of President Diaz as to,

59-^63
Monroe, President, reference

to doctrine of, 59, 60
Morelos, gunboat, 121
Mori, Petrona, mother of

Porfirio Diaz, i, 2
Morris, Martin F., opinion

on President Diaz, 172
Morton, Levi P., opinion on

President Diaz, 173

Nanaguatipam, battle of, 204
Napoleon III., French Em-
peror, invades Mexico, 1 2 ;
sends reinforcements to
Mexico, 13
National Arms Factory, 120
National Military School, 120
Navy, Department of the,

66, 120, 121, 201
Navy, Mexican, 120, 201
Needham, Charles W., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 173
Netherlands, Queen of, deco-
ration to President Diaz
by, 207
New Orleans, International

Exposition at, 3 9
New York City, visited by
Porfirio Diaz as an exile,
26; becomes home of Ex-
President Lerdo de Tejada,
28; Diaz's second visit to,
38; death of Ex-President
Lerdo de Tejada at, 51;
banquet of the Chamber
of Commerce of the State
of New York at, 92, 209-
218

248

Index

Nicaragua, opposes President
Barrios of Guatemala, 42,
43 ; war with Salvador, 88 ;
enters into Peace Confer-
ence at Washington, 88, 89

Nickel coins, over-issue of, 40

Nochixtlan, battle of, 19, 204

Norris, Edwin L., opinion on
President Diaz, 174

Norway and Sweden, deco-
ration to President Diaz
by, 206

Noyes, Theodore W., opinion
on President Diaz, 174

Nuevo Leon, Governor of
State of, 80, 95; floods in,
121

Oaxaca, city of, birthplace
of Diaz, I ; birthplace of
other eminent men, i ;
taking of, in i860, 9; taken
by French, 15; taken by
General Diaz, 20; sieges
and battle of, 203, 204, 205

Oberlander, Charles, claim
against Mexico, 67; de-
clared not valid, 67

Opera House, National, 74

Opinions of prominent men
on Porfirio Diaz, iv, 107,
124-193

Orders, foreign, granted to
President Diaz, 206, 207

Orizaba, strikes at, 93 ; battle
of, 204

Pacheco, Carlos, Secretary

of Public Promotion, 41
Pachuca, battle of, 11, 204
Pacific Ocean, all-rail routes

to, 93, 118
Page, Carroll S., opinion on

President Diaz, 175
Palace, National, in Mexico

City, 30, 99

Palo Alto, farm of, 25; plan
of, 25

Pan-American Conference,
First, 50, 1 11; Second, 75,
76, 1 11; Third, 92, in

Pan-American Exposition at
Buffalo, 57, 77

Pan-American Sanitary Con-
vention, 112

Pan-American Scientific Con-
gress, III

Parcel Post Convention with
Canada, 201

Parents of Porfirio Diaz, i

Paris Exposition, 52, 116;
premiums obtained by
Mexican exhibitors at, 52

Parker, Alton B., opinion on
President Diaz, 176

Patents for inventions, 199

Payo Obispo, wireless station
at, 201

Peace Conference at The
Hague, First, 68; Second,
92, III

Peace in Mexico, 54, 64, 109,
121, 123

Penitentiary in Federal Dis-
trict, 113

Perkins, George C, opinion
on President Diaz, 176

Personal Memoirs of President
Diaz, 7

Piaxtla, battle of, 204

Pinchot, Gifford, opinion on
President Diaz, 177

Pinotepa, battle of, 204

Platform of Liberals, 6; of
partisans of General Diaz,
24, 25

Political agitation, 94

Population of the Republic,
75. 116

Porfirio Diaz, see Diaz, Por-
firio

Porfirio Diaz, Jr., see Diaz,
Porfirio, Jr.

Postage between Mexico and
Great Britain, 200

Post-Office, new, at City of
Mexico, 74, 93

Index

249

Post-offices in the Republic,
200

Post, Regis R., opinion on
President Diaz, 178

Preface, iii, iv

Premiums to Mexican exhibi-
tors at Paris Exposition,
52; at Chicago, 57; at
Buffalo, 77

President Diaz, see Diaz,
Porfirio

Presidents of Mexico and
United States meet at
frontier, 125, 219

President Taft, see Taft,
William H.

Primary instruction of Por-
firio Diaz, 2

Prisoner of French, Diaz, 13 ;
escapes first time, 14;
escapes second time, 16—19

Prominent men, opinions of,
on President Diaz, 124-193

Promotion, Department of
Public, 82, 114, 198

Protocol signed by Central
American diplomats, 88

Prussia, decoration to Presi-
dent Diaz by, 207

Public debt, funding of, 41 ;
arranged, 59

Public instruction in Mexico,
46, 54, 79. 114, 198

Public lands, survey and sale
of, 51, 114

Public Promotion, see Pro-
motion, Department of
Public

Public Works, see Depart-
ment of Communications

Puebla, city of, victory of
Mexican troops over
French, 13, 204; siege of,
by French, 13, 204; sur-
render to French army,
13 ; taking of, by General
Diaz, 21, 204; visit cf
President Diaz to, 94

Puerto Mexico, harbor works,

^ 70, 93, 199 ^
Putla, battle of, 204

Queen of Netherlands, deco-
ration to President Diaz
by, 207

Queretaro City, capture of,
22

Quintana Roo, new Territory
of, 81; campaign against
Maya Indians in, 93

Raigosa, Genaro, President
of Second Pan-American
Conference, 76; father of
Mrs. Porfirio Diaz, Jr., 102

Railroads, consolidation of,
86

Railroads in Mexico, 44, 46,
54, 77, 82, 116, 117, 200

Railroads, policy of President
Diaz as to building of, 31,
44,46, 54, 82, 87, 116, 117,
120

Reform, War of, 5-1 1; end

of, II

Revenues, Federal, 33, 47,
63, 64, 83, 119, 232

Revenues, measures for in-
crease of, 32, 47, 57, 77,
119, 120, 201

Reyes, Bernardo, Governor of
Nuevo Leon, 80, 95; candi-
date for Vice-President, 80;
again offered candidacy,
95; declines and goes to
Europe, 95 ; interview with,

Rincon Gallardo, F., mar-
ried to President Diaz's
daughter, 102

Rio Colorado, changes in, 1 1 1

Rio Grande River, changes
in, III

Rio Janeiro, Third Pan-
American Conference at,

92 . .

Rodgers, James L., opinion
on President Diaz, 178

250

Index

Rome, International Agro-
nomical Institute at, 1 1 1

Romero, Matias, bom at Oax-
aca, I ; publishes Personal
Memoirs of President Diaz,
7; Mexican delegate to
First Pan-American Con-
ference, 50 ; appointed Am-
bassador at Washington,
67; death of, 67; quoted,
116, 122

Romero Rubio, Manuel, mem-
ber of President Lerdo de
Tejada's Cabinet, 37; fa-
ther of Mrs. Diaz, 38, 100;
Secretary of the Interior,

Roosevelt, Theodore, Ex-
President, interposes in
Central America, 89; high
regard for President Diaz
of, 121

Root, Elihu, estimate of
President Diaz by, iii., 90;
visits Mexico, 89; eulogy
on President Diaz by, 90;
remarks on Mexico by, 90,

Rural Police improved, 113,
120

Russia, Emperor of, invites
Mexico to Peace Confer-
ence, 68; decoration to
President Diaz by, 207

Salaries of public employees
taxed, 42; tax abolished,
66

Salina Cruz, harbor works

of. 70, 93. 199

Salvador, see El Salvador

Sandford, Edward T., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 180

San Diego Notario, battle of,
205

San Francisco, California,
Chief Justice Iglesias lands
at, 28

Sanitary Code, issued, 52;
new one promulgated, 58;
rigidly enforced, 113, 199

San Jos6 de Costa Rica, Pan-
American Sanitary Con-
vention at, 112

San Lorenzo, battle of, 22,
205

San Luis, battle of, 203

Schley, W. S., opinion on
President Diaz, 181

Schools, public, increase of,

79. 198

Scott, Nathan B., opmion
on President Diaz, 181

Second Pan-American Con-
ference held in Mexico
City, 75

Seminary, National and Pon-
tifical, of Oaxaca, 2

Senate of the United States,
action of, regarding La
Abra and Weil claims, 71

Seward, Secretary of State,
reference to, 91, 216

Shah of Persia, sends repre-
sentative to Mexico, 78

Sherman, J. S., opinion on
President Diaz, 181

Sieges, of Oaxaca, 9, 15, 20,
203, 204, 205; of Taxco,
14; of Puebla, 13, 21; of
Mexico City, 22; of Mata-
moros, 205

Sierra, Justo, Secretary of
Public Instruction and
Fine Arts, 75

Sifton, Clifford, opinion on
President Diaz, 182

Silver in Mexico, production
of, 115; depreciation of,

121

Silver wedding of President
and Mrs. Diaz, 10 1

Simmons, Edward J., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 182;
remarks at banquet of
Chamber of Commerce of
State of New York, 213

Sinaloa, uprising of Lerdo de
Tejada's partisans in, 32

Index

251

Sisters of Mrs. Diaz, 102

Slayden, James L., opinion
on President Diaz, 184

S o n o r a, campaign against
Y a q u i Indians in, 93 ;
strikes at Cananea in, 93 ;
copper products at Cana-
nea in, 115

South American republics,
strained relations of, 76

Southern Pacific Railroad
reaches Mazatlan, 118

Spain, invades Mexico, 12;
withdraws troops from
Mexico, 12; war with the
United States, 67; decora-
tion to President Diaz by,
206

States of Mexican Republic,
improvements in, 112, 113

Steamship lines, new, for
Mexico, 44

Stephens, John H., opinion
on President Diaz, 184

Stevenson, Adlai E., opinion
on President Diaz, 185

St. Louis Exposition, 116

Stoddard, Henry L., opinion
on President Diaz, 185

Strikes at Orizaba and Can-
anea, 93

Sulzer, William, opinion on
President Diaz, 186

Superior Board of Health,
labors of, 59, 192

Surplus of revenues, 63, 120,
232, 233

Swanson, Charles A., opinion
on President Diaz, 186

Taft, William H., President,
meets President Diaz, 92,
93, 124, 210-231; reference
to, 217; banquet by Presi-
dent Diaz to, 225, 230;
toast and remarks of, 222,
230

Tamaulipas, uprising in, 32;
floods in, 121

Tampico, harbor works of,
52, 54, 70, 199; yellow
fever stamped out in, 79;
gunboat, 121

TarifE regulations, amend-
ments of, 66

Taxco, city of, taken by Gen-
eral Diaz, 14, 204

Tecoac, battle of, 28, 205

Tehuantepec, taking of city
of, 8, 203 ; Diaz prefect of,
8

Tehuantepec Railroad, im-
provements in, 77, 118

Tehuitzingo, battle of, 204

Telegraph lines increased, 33,
44, 46, 118, 201

Telegraphy, wireless, in Mexi-
co, 118, 199, 201

Tequisistlan, battle of, 205

Teresa, Mrs., widow of Sena-
tor, sister of Mrs. Diaz,
102; son of, partially edu-
cated in the United States,
102

Territory of Lower Califor-
nia, proposed purchase of,
5 1 ; President Diaz and
Mexican people oppose
purchase of, 51; United
States Government does
not consider purchase of,

Texas, General Escobedo in-
vades Mexico from, 3 1 ;
grants to colonists in,
117

Textiles, manufacture of, in
Mexico, 115

Thompson, David E., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 187

Tlaxiaco, battle of, 204

Torre, Ignacio de la, married
to daughter of President
Diaz, loi

Tracewell, R. J., opinion on
President Diaz, 188

Trade, foreign, in Mexico, 33,
47. 87, 119, 202, 233

Treasury, National, surplus
in, 63, 120, 232, 233

252

Index

Treaty, of extradition with
the United States, 49; of
commerce with Great Brit-
ain, 50; of commerce with
Japan, 50; setthng difficul-
ties with Guatemala, 58;
of friendship and com-
merce with Persia, 78; by-
Central American repub-
lics, 89; other treaties, no,
III, 197

Tulcingo, battle of, 204

United States, Porfirio Diaz's
first visit to, 26; Mexico
pays av/ard of Mixed
Claims Commission to, 33;
residence of Mexico's dip-
lomatic representative in,
44; Boundary Commission
of Mexico and, 49; nego-
tiation of a new extradition
treaty between Mexico and,
49; advantages of First
Pan-American Conference
to, 50; friendly relations
between Mexico and, 50;
Conduct of American Min-
ister in Costa Rica rebuked
by, 50; plan for purchase
of Lower California not
considered by, 5 1 ; last
installment of award of
Mixed Claims Commission
received by, 52; action in
boundary dispute regard-
ing British Guiana by, 60;
war between Spain and, 67 ;
good will shown towards
Mexico by, 70; contro-
versy as to Pious Fund
between Mexico and, 76 ;
settlement of said contro-
versy between Mexico and,
77; interposition in Central
American matters by, 87-
89; action on border trou-
bles by, 91; Mexican gun-
boats built in, 121; econo-
)

mic crisis in, 121; geodetic
survey by Mexico in con-
nection with, 199
University, National, inau-
guration of, 114

Valley of Mexico, drainage
works of, 44, 54, 66

Venezuela, boundary dispute
between Great Britain and,
60 ; Mexican claims settled
by, 78 ; decoration to Presi-
dent Diaz by, 206

Vera Cruz, gunboat, 121

Vera Cruz, President Juarez
stays at, 9; escape of
Porfirio Diaz at, 26, 27;
conspiracy against Presi-
dent Diaz at, 31; harbor
works of, 46, 52, 54, 70,
199; yellow fever stamped
out in, 79

Vera Cruz, State of, strikes
at Orizaba, 93

Vera Cruz to the Pacific Rail-
road, 82

Vice-President, election of,
79, 80; Ramon Corral elec-
ted, 80

Visit, of General Grant to
Mexico, 32; of President
and Mrs. Diaz to the
United States, 38; of Sec-
retary Root to Mexico, 90

Walcott, A, D., opinion on

President Diaz, 188
War and Navy, Department

of, 66, 120, 121, 201,

202
War, of Reform, 5-1 1 ; of

FrenchIntervention,i2-2 2 ;

between the United States

and Spain, 67
Warren, Francis E., opinion

on President Diaz, 189

Index

253

Washington, D. C, visit of
President Diaz to, 38; resi-
dence of Mexico's diplo-
matic representative in,
44 ; First P a n-American
Conference at, 50; first
Mexican Ambassador at,
67; Conference of Central
American republics in, 88;
international congresses
held in, iii

Washington's mother, refer-
ence to, 12

Webster, Daniel, quoted, 25,
122

Weil claim against Mexico,
rejection of, 71

Wetmore, George Peabody,
opinion on President Diaz,
189

Wheeler, Benjamin I., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 190

Willson, Augustus E., opinion
on President Diaz, 190

Winthrop, Beekman, opinion
on President Diaz, 190

Wireless telegraphy in Mex-
ico, 118, 199, 201

Working Woman's Home,
Mrs. Diaz establishes the,

lOI

Wotherspoon, W. W., opin-
ion on President Diaz, 191

Wounds received in battle by
President Diaz, 8, 9

Wyman, Walter, opinion on
President Diaz, 192

Xcalac, wireless station at,
201

Yaqui Indians, uprising of,
44; defeat of, 44; cam-
paign against, 93

Yellow fever, disappearance

of, 59. 79. 113. 192
Yucatan, State of, uprising
and defeat of Maya In-
dians in, 44; settlement
of boundary question be-
tween Belize and, 58, in;
Quintana Roo Territory
segregated from, 81

Zacatecas, uprising of Gen-
eral Garcia de la Cadena
in State of, 44; end of
uprising in, 44
Zaragoza, gunboat, 201
Zaragoza, Ignacio, General,
wins battle against French,
13; praises bravery 01
Diaz, 13; death of, 13

3l|.77

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