THE FEDERAL DISTRICT
Mexico has reached the pinnacle of her glory as a metropolis, with her
palatial buildings, her public offices and her illustrious men in whose
hands rests the administration of a great nation. It is an established
fact that there are many circumstances which powerfully contribute
both toward the development of a country’s material resources and its
advancement on the high road to civilization, but at the same time
it must not be denied that there are necessary men whose character
and ability determine a marked progress on a city’s history and whose
brilliant career and worthy deeds impress their seal on the historical
period that witnesses their success.
In 1893, the Superior Council of the Government of the Federal District
was formed. The important offices were appointed by the President and
are held by three distinguished statesmen to whom the Capital City owes
much of its progress and advancement: Honorable Guillermo De Landa y
Escandon, the President of this Council, which gives him the title of
Governor; Señor Guillermo Beltran y Puga, Director General of Public
Works; and Señor Doctor Eduardo Liceago, Director General of the Board
of Health.
This Superior Council is the principal factor in bringing about the
actual improvement of the city. Public parks and gardens, noble
buildings, modern lighting equipment, sewerage, streets and avenues,
and order and discipline have made Mexico the best regulated city in
the world. It is Paris with its beauty and light, London with its
busy thoroughfares, Madrid with its color and picturesqueness, and
Mexico City alone with its unique characteristics that stand out like
a glowing banner of triumph. The population of this city has greatly
increased within the past decade. The French, German, Italian, English
and American colonies are steadily growing. The modern residential
section is very beautiful, homes being erected in a new and pretty
style, with gardens of flowers, while the streets are paved and double
rows of trees make the avenues on which they are built very attractive.
Little parks intersperse and fountains surrounded by tropical plants
dot the city, giving it a picturesque appearance.
While Mexico is a modern city, it is not without its charms as a former
Aztec capital. With all its marked advancement from centuries of
paganism it still holds some of the marks of those times. The aqueduct
built in the time of Montezuma, while no longer needed in the vast
city, is still retained in part as a _recuerdo_ of former days.
There is a romantic side of the nature of all Mexicans, who never
forget the influences of ancient times, and have kept many relics of
the oldest civilization of the continent, that enshroud this modern
city with a poetic drapery of antiquity, giving it a charm that is
irresistible. It has been said that nowhere in the world can a more
splendid scene be presented than the first view of Mexico City. Against
a magnificent sky that defies all attempts of the painter’s art are
outlined domes and spires. Belfrys and towers mark the numerous
churches and palaces and the background of tall sierras and lakes all
make a picture never to be forgotten. Switzerland furnishes no more
grandeur, England and France show no more beautiful villages, all
typical of this great wonder-country. The wide, handsome streets are
clean, electric lights and street cars are in every part of the city,
the busy thoroughfares are alive to public interests, the fashionable
districts with their flow of stately carriages, the people in their
Parisian as well as native dress, the Indian with his pack or his wares
to sell, the call of the vendor as he passes the doorway--all go toward
adding interest and charm.
The Castle of Chapultepec, one part of which is a National Military
Academy, and the other part the summer home of the President, towers
two hundred feet above a grove of ancient cypress trees. It was built
in the time of the Viceroy Galvan in the fifteenth century, and stands
on a mass of rock on which remain signs of Aztec carvings. From this
point the great valley of Anáhuac unfolds itself to view, the noble,
snow-capped volcanoes rise majestically above the clouds in the
distance; lakes, outspreading villages, fields of green and domes of
multi-colored temples lie beneath the vision. The great cypress trees
of the Bosque de Chapultepec stand stately and solemn, hoary with the
flowing moss, and adorn the deep solitude.
It was here that the great Aztec chieftains met, held their councils
and determined on their plan of defence. Here, beautiful Indian
princesses kept their tryst with sturdy braves and in the springs
that bubble in every nook and corner they sported in all their glory,
unaware of the changes soon to come to their primitive lives.
[Illustration: SEÑOR DON GUILLERMO DE LANDA Y ESCANDON,
GOVERNOR OF THE FEDERAL DISTRICT.]
Beautiful avenues lead to the Castle, winding around the ascent, and
from salient walls and parapets the bugle call echoes throughout
the forest. It is on these avenues that automobiles and magnificent
liveries are seen in the afternoon social parade.
Tenochtitlan, which was afterward changed to Mexico, after the God of
War, Mexitla, was described by Cortés as being a very large and well
populated city. There were imperial palaces, temples of high priests,
important public buildings, and many handsome dwellings.
From a razed city of the reign of Montezuma, Cortés and the nobles of
Spain had great ambition to make it a beautiful metropolis and some of
the buildings now form a most interesting feature of the Capital. On
the site of the Aztec monarch’s palace, with its hundred rooms, was
laid the foundation of the Cathedral, which stands to-day a magnificent
structure of pinkish-gray stone, with marble altars, priceless
paintings and rich tapestries. It is five hundred and twenty feet long,
and four hundred and twenty feet wide, and the plan is a Latin cross.
It was estimated by a Spanish historian that over sixty thousand men
had perished in human sacrifices upon its site. When these massive
foundation stones were laid, Elizabeth was Queen of England; Philip II.
reigned over Spain, Charles IX. in France, Cervantes was writing _Don
Quixote_, Titian and Paul Veronese were painting their masterpieces;
the Turks were over-running the Plains of Hungary with the intention of
wiping Christendom out of existence.
Poland was a mighty empire extending from the Baltic to the Black Sea.
Sir Francis Drake was just beginning his career as a navigator. The
first pipe-full of tobacco had not been smoked in Europe; there were
no telescopes; Shakespeare and Spenser, Beaumont and Fletcher, Ben
Johnson and Bacon, were in their prime; and Russia was a savage and
insignificant power.
Passing through the Cathedral, on either side there are different
apartments filled from floor to ceiling with paintings, statues, vases,
huge candle-sticks, waiters and a host of other articles of gold and
silver. This too, is only the everyday display of articles of least
value; the more costly ones are stored away in chests and closets.
[Illustration: HOME OF GOVERNOR LANDA Y ESCANDON.]
The National Palace is a relic of the days of Cortés and was improved
in the course of time by the Count De Revillagigédo and others who
reigned after him did much toward beautifying it. It is now the
official home of the President and other Government Officials; the
Secretary of Finance, the War Department, Federal Treasury, and
Public Archives. The Central Meteorological Observatory is on the
_Azotea_, and the National Museum and Academy of San Carlos form
another part of this great edifice. In this palace the President of the
Republic receives his Ministers and the people and on the days of his
public receptions the poorest persons meet with a courteous and patient
audience.
The Municipal Palace is a splendid remodeled structure where the
Governor of the Federal District has his executive office. Its halls
and salons contain priceless paintings of the viceroys and Mexican
patriots. It is here that all the affairs pertaining to the City
Government are conducted, and the Honorable Governor holds his public
receptions, and where petitions are heard. Governor De Landa has
proved himself an able governor and conducts the City Government with
extreme rigor. He has caused many reforms and controls with an iron
will everything that comes under his régime. He takes the interests of
the people to heart, he makes his city a noted metropolis, condemns
and wipes out vices, corrects irregularities. The sanitary conditions
of the shops and the excellent police force, said to be the best
regulated in the world, owe their reputation to the indefatigable
work of Governor De Landa y Escandon. He has a system of controlling
traffic to such an extent that the busy hour finds the streets clear
of congestion, an example set by this official in the government of a
city that could well be imitated by others. In his splendid reception
hall the Governor receives all classes of people. Here great ladies and
military men rub elbows with the laborer, and his reception of them
all is characterized by exceeding good fellowship and courtesy.
He receives the poorer classes who fall at his feet with petitions
of mercy, perhaps on the imprisonment of a son or father, and he
reassures and consoles, many times giving aid from his own purse,
and makes personal investigation of cases brought before him, when
others of his exalted position might casually pass them by unheeded.
He has established houses of correction, one for boys at Tlalpam, and
one for girls at Coyoacan, and the results of this benevolent work
have been most encouraging to Governor De Landa. In years gone by,
drunkenness and vice were rampant in the city through the excessive use
of _pulque_, which was sold extensively, and many crimes resulted
from this, but since his election as Governor all of this has been
stamped out, and the drink that stimulates the mind of the laborer
is now sold in moderation; and the Anti-Gambling Act, passed and put
into execution in the early days of his administration, has proved
a great blessing to the middle class. An intimate knowledge of this
Governor’s character proves that all this interest in the welfare of
his people and his city is inspired not by love of notoriety, for he is
very modest in his work of reform. The poor and lowly worship him, the
mighty respect him, and it is to this man that Mexico owes much of its
greatness.
The Museo Nacional is in point of antiquarian value the place of chief
interest in the capital. Here are preserved the principal discovered
records of prehistoric Mexico; the story of the original inhabitants in
stone and on paper of the Maguey plant; here too are very many relics
of the periods of the conquerors and the viceroys.
The museum collection originated in a department of the university,
which was closed in 1865. The interest taken by the government in the
archæology of Mexico has led to many important discoveries during the
last twenty years, and by virtue of the law of national ownership in
all antiquities found within the republic the museum is gathering all
discovered records of the ancient people and country.
Among the Aztec relics of chief interest are the sacrificial and
calendar stones. There are here also many monoliths of large size,
types of deities worshipped by the ancient Mexican. Of these the
idol known as the Goddess of Water is colossal being eleven feet
high and weighing nearly twenty tons. It came from Teotihuacan, near
the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon. Another hideous idol is that
of Huizilopochtli the War God which is ten feet high and three in
diameter. The sculptures on these idols are very elaborate. Chacmol,
the God of Fire, claimed also as the Toltec Deity Tlaloc, is a
symmetrical figure in stone, recumbent, lying on its back and holding
in both hands that meet on the stomach a circular disk emblematic
of the sun. There is a colossal head in serpentine said by some
authorities to be the Goddess Centeotl, by others to be related to the
Aztec calendar as evidenced by the shell sculptures, of which there
are thirteen in front of the cap and twenty at the back respectively
indicating, perhaps, the thirteen sacred days and the twenty civil days
of the month.
[Illustration: THE NEW LEGISLATIVE PALACE.]
The great temple of Tenochtitlan was surrounded by a stone wall in
which was the wall of serpents, or _cohuatepantli_. Two of the
heads of these serpents, colossal in size, are among the relics of
the ancient Aztec; so is the “feathered serpent,” or Quetzalcoatl, a
sculpture clearly indicating a coiled reptile. Of this latter many
smaller examples have been found in various parts of Mexico. The
tradition of Quetzalcoatl, the good teacher, who was fair of complexion
and wore a long beard, and who prophesied the coming of the white men
is elsewhere mentioned. Aztec arms, and missiles and armor and domestic
articles and implements offer object lessons of prehistoric life of
great service to the student and of fascinating interest to all. Here
is a shield worn by Montezuma made of carefully quilted cotton; there
the strange drum _huehuetl_, whose sinister sounds carried fear to
the Spaniards; here the vicious looking sword with four long blades set
in the wooden staff on each of its faces, blades of obsidian, so keen
that as Bernal Diaz wrote, they cut off a horse’s head clean.
Then there are the _pinturas_ or picture writings, of which many
are preserved. One of the most curious is an ancient Mexican painting
of the Deluge, and the dove is there with the olive branch; their
tradition of this event largely agreeing with the Scriptural narration.
Of the Spanish period, there is the armor of Cortés--a very precious
treasure, priceless indeed, for it was worn by him in all his wonderful
battles--the banner of the Conquistadores, arms of soldiers, a helmet
and cuirass of the _Tonatiuh_--Pedro de Alvarado--and portraits of
viceroys. But the exhibit most venerated among such memorials is the
Banner of our Lady of Guadalupe, which Hidalgo took from the Santuario
of Atotonilco on that morning of September 16th, when he started out on
his war of independence with his ragged patriot army and raised as his
standard this banner. His musket and some other personal possessions
are here; also, contrasting with these are the state chariot of the
Maximilian period and the magnificent and costly dinner service of the
same period, which latter was permitted to be used at Juarez on the
occasion of the meeting of President Taft and General Diaz in October,
1909.
The mystery of the ancient peoples, traces of whose culture invest
them with uncommon interest; the romance of the conquest of powerful
and well organized nations by a mere handful of invaders who were
absolutely cut off from all communications and means of home support,
yet who overthrew vast armies defending their own territories; the
wonders of the land opened to the knowledge of the old world; the tale
of its treasures transcending the exaggeration of fable; and finally,
perhaps of greater interest than all else, the greatness of the
republic established by patriot martyrs maintained by the prowess of
heroes and at length cemented by a patriotism and wisdom that are the
wonder, admiration and illumination of the world; these are among the
thoughts aroused in the minds of the musing visitor to this wonderful
museum.
The calendar stone was originally set in the great temple of
Tenochtitlan, but on the destruction of the latter it remained buried
beneath the ruins. On its discovery it was placed in one of the towers
of the Cathedral and later, in 1860, was removed to the museum. It is
a circular stone of porphyritic character about ten feet in diameter.
Tradition asserts that this stone was one of a second pair prepared,
the first having broken down the bridge of Xoloc and lost in the lake.
The stone was engraved by order of Axayacatl, and at its dedication
seven hundred and twenty-eight victims were sacrificed. The hieroglyphs
that cover its surface are still only a matter of surmise, though the
numeral system of the earlier races has been determined and great
steps and considerable advance has been made in determining the order
in which the glyphs are to be read. The year was divided for civil
purposes into three hundred and sixty-five days, eighteen months of
twenty days and a supplemental month of five days after the eighteenth.
Puzzling as seems the method of enumeration, the Maya priest could
correctly calculate, as Thomas shows in his _Study of the Manuscript
Troano_, a period of twelve million three hundred and eighty-one
thousand seven hundred and twenty-eight days, and determine the exact
year, month and day that will be reached in such calculation.
[Illustration: HOME OF VICE-PRESIDENT CORRAL.]
The general plan of this stone is as follows: A relief sculpture of a
human head with the tongue protruded is in the centre, about this are
five concentric circles of hieroglyphs, the symbols marking the various
divisions of time in the ancient Mexican calendar.
The sacrificial stone is not difficult to associate. Its shape and
sculptures around and upon it indicate its ghastly use. In shape it
is similar to the calendar stone, circular, eight feet in diameter
and four in height; but the sinister basin hollowed out in the top
and the canal leading therefrom to the groove at the edge also lead
to the conclusion that on this stone the victims of the Aztecs were
laid and killed by the priests in sacrifice. The sculptured figures
represent the victims of conquering chiefs being dragged by the hair to
the place of sacrifice. This monumental stone was found in 1791, near
the cathedral and was doomed for the pile of paving stones when its
archæological value was discovered and the vandal’s hand was stayed. It
is the best sculptured of the antiquities of Mexico.
Among the places of prominent interest is the Monte de Piedad, an
institution almost singular to Mexico, having regard to its methods
and the extent of its operations. This great national pawn shop was
founded in 1774, by the Conde de Regla. He endowed the institution with
a gift of over three hundred thousand dollars and the crown approving
the institution, business began in 1776, in the old College San Pedro
y Pablo. The plan was an eleemosynary one, complementary to the many
other charities of the Count. No interest was charged on loans; an
arrangement intended to protect the poor from the exactions of the
usurers; instead it was expected that the borrower on repaying his loan
would make some gift in aid of charity.
For three-quarters of a century the profits were appropriated to the
payment of masses for the repose of the soul of the founder, but for
the last half a century they have been used in establishing branch
institutions in leading cities.
It is a fine building and occupies the site of one of Cortés’s palaces.
The staircases are hewn out of huge blocks of lava from Popocatepetl
and ornamenting the windows and doors are the hideous heads placed by
Cortés in his earlier palace edifice.
The Artillery Museum is under the Department of War, and is a
depository of all historic relics of Mexico’s great events. It was
founded fifteen years ago and is full of interesting data. The patio is
roofed with steel and glass and is converted into an exhibition hall.
The high walls are ornamented with alto-reliefs of the Aztec kings.
These bronzes are the work of the artist, Jesus F. Contreras, and are
said to be the finest in Mexico.
There is a large picture of Hidalgo with the flag used in battle, and
a large faded flag used by Cortés. Here you can see the gold pen with
which General Escobedo wrote the death sentence of Maximilian, the
sword of the Emperor and the brilliant uniform of General Escobedo,
complete with helmet and sword. There is also a splendid library which
contains many volumes devoted to military science.
The School of Mines, _La Minera_, occupies a palatial structure
erected at a cost of two hundred thousand dollars in 1813. The school
was founded in 1777, through the munificence, chiefly, of Señor
Velasquez de Leon and Lucas de Lasaga. The splendid edifice is the
work of Manuel Tolsa whose master hand is seen in the great columned
galleries, the noble pillars, stairways and patios. The chapel is
an exquisite work, here is a magnificent bronze altar and the lofty
ceilings are richly ornamented with frescoes by Rafael Jimeno. The
collection of minerals is very valuable and extensive and varied, and
forces on the most thoughtless visitor a sense of the immense mineral
resources of Mexico. An exhibit of much interest is the meteoric
stones, some of which weigh tons that rest under the front portal.
These uncanny visitants reached earth in various parts of the republic.
[Illustration: THE PALACE OF MINES.]
The Plaza de la Constitucion, or Zocalo, as it is called, is the centre
of the great city. On this spot stood one of the great Aztec temples,
erected to the deity Huitzilopochtli, where human sacrifices were daily
offered. One of the fiercest battles ever fought between the forces of
Cortés and the Aztecs took place on this spot. It is surrounded by most
pretentious buildings. Fifty years ago this was the social centre of
the city and a principal place of gathering in the evening for families
who, as they do now, in the smaller cities, donned their most becoming
toilettes, promenaded and met their friends, and enjoyed the sweet
and soulful music for which the Mexicans are so noted. Now the poorer
class enjoys this privilege with the military band discoursing the same
beautiful strains as if the gayer and higher world was the audience.
Starting from this point one can drive straight to the Castle of
Chapultepec, a distance of three miles, passing through the principal
thoroughfare of San Francisco, with its array of wonderful old churches
and time-stained palaces now turned into business houses.
Here stands in its solemn dignity the old Palace of Iturbide, richly
carved and retaining much of the beauty of the days when it was built
by the Emperor Augustin I. This is now one of the principal hotels
of the city, a rendezvous for tourists and students of the country.
The Alameda, with its grand old trees, its beautiful walks and its
fountains dancing in the sunlight and shade, was once a fashionable
park. On Sundays and days of _fiesta_ it was the custom of
Mexican society to meet there after church, and enjoy music and social
intercourse. Many a charming love affair has grown out of these
meetings and Mexico is full of beautiful romances.
Amusement is varied and Mexicans freely embrace the opportunity for
diversion. The theatres are numerous and of considerable importance,
as well in the life of the people as architecturally. The chief are
the Teatro Principal and the Virginia Fabregas; the latter enjoyed the
distinction of being the most fashionable theatre until the New Opera
House was constructed. It was the home of Italian and French opera
and on its stage have been presented the best of Spanish and Mexican
dramatic productions.
The Folies Bergères is a new theatre lately opened, and is one of the
best in Mexico.
The Arbeu is one of the popular playhouses. The New National Theatre
is the work of the noted Italian architect Adamo Boari, and in beauty
and design will equal any playhouse in the world. It is of a modern
steel construction and the first national theatre absolutely fireproof.
The site is one of great historical value as it was on this spot that
Cortés retreated on the Noche Triste. It covers a square on Avenida
Juarez and is built next to the Alameda and made to harmonize with it.
The front is magnificent with statues, flowers and fountains. On each
side terraces lead up to the entrances. The theatre is surrounded by
lawns and gardens to be kept always green and beautiful. On each side
of the theatre is a carriage entrance. The balconies are supported
by great marble pillars and columns representing the lyric muse. The
interior decorations are exquisite and harmonious in effect. Italian
marble and Mexican onyx are seen everywhere.
[Illustration: SAN FRANCISCO STREET.]
The _Frontons_ located in many parts of the city are devoted to
the favorite Mexican ball game. This sport is ancient in Mexico, it was
a favorite pastime of the Aztecs; it was almost a religious custom as
the places devoted to the games were consecrated by the priests and the
victors were held in very high regard.
Racing is a favorite diversion in Mexico. There are two fine tracks at
Indianilla and Penon. Stakes and purses are furnished by the Jockey
Club and prizes are provided by the _Ayuntamiento_ and the Department
of Fomento of the federal government.
The characteristic, popular national sport is the bull-fight, which in
spite of spasmodic efforts to displace it still continues to chain the
interest and arouse the enthusiasm of the people.
[Illustration: POLICE HEADQUARTERS.]
The Paseo de la Reforma, once a country road, was improved by the
Emperor Maximilian. On this avenue a glittering wealth of equipages,
spirited horses and automobiles, are seen morning and evening. The
glowing sunshine, the contrasting nature-colors in the parks and along
the sidewalks add a permanent charm and nothing is more pleasing
than seeing Mexican society on días de fiesta, passing back and
forth, vivacious, beautiful and elegant. Leading into this avenue are
beautiful streets of fashionable homes and in no city of the world
are seen more beautiful residences than are found here. Elegance
and simplicity, no gaudy display, the Mexican’s home is his palace,
and while the exterior is sometimes very simple, the interior, with
its courtyard of beautiful flowers and palms, its _salas_ with
magnificent appointments and paintings from great masters is not to
be excelled anywhere. The exquisite taste of the Mexicans is always
in evidence. The women are gowned in the latest Parisian toilettes,
their jewels are as precious as those of crowned heads and their
entertainments are a glittering and beautiful display of wealth and
elegance.
The General Lunatic Asylum is situated in La Castaneda, very near
the little suburb of Mixcoac. It is one of the most picturesque
spots in the Federal District. Its construction was directed by
Lieutenant-Colonel Porfirio Diaz, Jr., son of the President. It has
all the advantages of a luxurious home and has many large pavilions.
These are modern structures of white stone and cement. The grounds
are beautifully laid out with parks, making it one of the attractive
features of the little village.
In Mixcoac the Working Man’s Colony is also a monument to the
enterprise of Colonel Diaz. He has built modern, sanitary homes at
nominal rentals, gives each man a certain amount of land to till,
offers prizes of free occupancy to the most successful and in this way
the improvident peon is taught a way to earn a living for himself and
family. These houses are built on a most attractive plan; bathrooms,
bedrooms, parlors and kitchens, unlike the squalid huts that most of
the poverty-stricken Indians occupy. It is a plan that has met with
great success and the products of some of the gardens have demonstrated
the fact that the Mexican Indian is a farmer by nature, and it is
thought that this movement will grow and be a valuable aid to that
class.
San Angel, Coyoacan and San Augustin, are extremely pretty villages in
the vicinity of the lake.
Coyoacan is almost a continuation of San Angel. Both villages serve as
a popular summer resort for the rich dwellers in the City of Mexico.
It was at this place that Cortés took up his residence for several
months after the total destruction of the ancient Tenochtitlan. Here he
founded a convent, too; and in his last will and testament he expressed
a desire to be buried here, in whatever part of the world he should end
his days. This request was not complied with.
[Illustration: AMERICAN EMBASSY.]
Coyoacan was always Cortés’s favorite village, and it is even now
one of the prettiest in Mexico, having one of the handsomest village
churches in that country.
The Penon baths are one of the great attractions of Mexico.
These boiling springs are said to contain sulphate of lime, carbonic
acid, and muriate of soda, and the Indians make salt in their
neighborhood much as they did in the time of Montezuma, with the
difference, as Humboldt informs us, that they use copper caldrons,
while their ancestors used vessels of clay. The solitary-looking baths
are ornamented with odd-looking heads of cats and monkeys, which grin
upon you with a mixture of the sinister and facetious that is rather
appalling.
On one of the sites where these mineral springs are to be found still
stands a little church or chapel which dates back to the beginning of
the colonial period, and suggests that, like the Pocito de Guadalupe,
the Penon waters may have been used, with prayer and supplication, for
effecting miraculous cures.
[Illustration: POLICEMAN.]
La Viga and the floating gardens or markets form another diverting and
intensely interesting phase of life in this unique and poetic land.
The canal makes a circle of over eight miles, and presents a scene
of unequalled activity and unusual features. One need not look for
gardens, as the name suggests, but rather for an aquatic market-place.
The gardens are made up of countless boats in motion, filled with every
imaginable growth of farm, orchard and vineyard, with garden flowers,
fruits, chickens, birds, and all other living and growing things that
can be sold. As soon as one leaves the car the crowd surges around
imploring the hire of their boats.
The boatmen use only one long oar, with which they pole or scull the
craft along. In no other way can be gained so accurate an idea of the
varied population of Mexico; in no other way can so many charming
effects in costume and personal ornamentation be studied; and certainly
nowhere else can such a marvellous array of products of this most
marvellous of all countries be seen.
Santa Anita is a peculiar little spot, Mexican in every detail, and a
favorite pleasure-resort for the people of Mexico City. It is a town
of reed-thatched houses, and everywhere there is a tempting odor of
Mexican culinary dainties.
Pulque may be had in various wonderful and insidious styles in which
the original flavor is merged in something far more agreeable.
At Ixtacalco are chinampas, with less gayety. A fine old stone bridge
crosses the canal at this point, with the ruins of a chapel at the
water’s edge, where in the old days the passing boatman muttered an
_ave_ and deposited an offering to the patron saint, in the hope
that good luck would follow him on his voyage and that his vegetables
would sell for a few more _tlacos_ than usual. In front of the
church, which is dedicated to San Matías and which has a Franciscan
foundation more than three hundred years old, is the customary little
plaza with a fountain of running water.
[Illustration: MEXICAN LETTER CARRIER.]
There is a fascination about the capital of Mexico which is peculiar.
Western progress in science, art, life, fashions, architecture,
government, and facilities and attractions are linked with customs
foreign to the life of Europe and characteristics exclusively Mexican.
In its splendid avenues and boulevards, magnificent buildings, the
lighting and transportation, it vies with European and American
cities. It is most cosmopolitan, yet its own charm hangs over all. The
churches suggest the Moorish influence. Its floral beauties, in size
and color matchless, its rich and peculiar foliage, its wonderful sky,
its great guardian mountains, its lakes, that recall the most romantic
stories; the historic wonders of the city and its neighborhood; the
recollection of great struggles that overthrew successively the
cultures of the several peoples that dwelt in the Valley of Anáhuac
and whose characteristics are stamped on the people of the present
city; nowhere can the picture be duplicated. There is an inexpressible
imprint in nature and art that makes Mexico singular. It is found in
its buildings, solid, convenient and of even proportions, in styles
wonderfully varied but generally ornate. It is pointed out in its
flowers, shrubs and trees--the peculiar growth of the land; it is found
in the costumes, customs of the people; it is found in the wonderful
sky, the great mountains--a something unique in each feature and in the
combination of all.
The towering form of Popocatepetl fills the eastern view, its
glistening snow covered crest rising above the level of the city ten
thousand five hundred feet and almost eighteen thousand above the
waters of the gulf, and the magnificent Iztaccihuatl, sheltering and
protecting the Valley of San Martin which spreads out in wonderful
fertility at their base. Sublime grandeur is the most sober term
descriptive of the magnificent setting of Mexico City.
[Illustration: FEDERAL PENITENTIARY]
[Illustration: GREAT HISTORICAL PARADE, SEPTEMBER 15, 1910.]
[Illustration: EMPEROR MONTEZUMA IN HIS PALANQUIN IN THE
HISTORICAL PARADE.]