CLUBS AND SOCIAL LIFE
Mexico, with majestic and snow-capped mountains, opens to the view of
the traveller who has hitherto followed the beaten paths a rich mine of
unexpected delight. A wonderful country where nature has been so lavish
that she causes to grow upon its surface a vegetation so varied that it
includes every plant of tropical lands, together with the sturdy firs
of the farthest north. Some strange magic seems to hold one within its
gates: the dreamy poetic strain of old Spain whose traditions still
tinge the country with the romance of the Cid, Manriques lays and the
last of the Moors. Echoes of the Alhambra still linger in the graceful
Moorish arches of the public buildings, while the gardens of King
Boabdil live again in the beautiful alamedas with their stately trees,
luxuriant vegetation, gorgeous flowers, graceful monuments and cool
and shady walks. In every city of any size is the alameda, a meeting
place for the people. The one in Mexico is especially artistic in
arrangement by the profusion and beauty of its flowers. Side by side
with the pushing needs of civilization and progress are to be seen
evidence of the artist’s instinct, which finds expression in splendid
forms of architecture, not of the solid unsightly blocks of stone which
so disfigure our large American cities. The progress of Mexico has been
wonderful in the last fifteen years.
The social distinction of the city is prominently marked by its
magnificent clubs. The principal of these is the Jockey Club, whose
sumptuous home is in “The House of Tiles,” on San Francisco Street.
The building is one of the finest in the capital; it was built early
in the eighteenth century and was formerly the palace of the Conde
del Valle de Orizaba. Its massive form in Moorish style and Venetian
ornamentation gives it a character wholly individual and irresistibly
attractive. The façade is entirely finished with white and blue tiles,
hence the familiar name of the building. The building is entered by a
richly carved portal of massive proportions; the great doors of cedar
are ornamented with unique copper ornaments. As the great _patios_
are reached their ample stretch suggests that one is in the precincts
of a vast deserted Andalusian palace. In the court-way stands a
memorial of the days of the founder of the palace, a fountain of
marvellous beauty, delicately and gracefully chiseled in the best style
of that day.
The first floor is carried on richly decorated cylindrical columns. At
the left is the library, an exquisitely adorned apartment with every
appointment that luxury can suggest for such a room and a special
literature befitting the establishment, complete in every respect.
As little change as possible has been made in the structural character
of the old Count’s palace. On the grand stairway, the great lamp with
its alabaster globes casts its soft light on the old walls, just as it
did when the assassin struck down the original owner. Splendid Venetian
mirrors reflect the beauties of decoration and deep set windows of
octagonal shape with their oddly designed panes of richly stained glass
serve to add decorative strength and to heighten the effect of the
curious ceiling tiled with alternate rows of porcelain and cedar.
The corridor on the main floor is also a masterpiece of tile work, like
the façade, in white and blue. A striking feature of this corridor is
the railing of _tumbago_, a bronze composite brought by Spain’s
galleons from China, which is splendidly wrought and is of great value.
Of the same metal are the club’s balconies facing San Francisco Street
and Callejon Condesa. In the main floor corridor and on the landing of
the grand staircase still remain the graved coat-of-arms of Del Valle,
and everywhere white and blue tiles, costly as silver, and unmarred by
the touch of centuries; a bit of old time splendor preciously cherished
both as being old and as reminders of the high proficiency of the art
of earlier days.
On the main floor is the little-changed chapel of the Conde del Valle
which was once the depository of the sacred relics and art treasures of
his family, but is now devoted to games of _tresillo_. Here still
is the richly carved quaint cedar portal and the fine sculptured arch
of the former oratory.
The history of the famous club begins with 1881, and its founding is
due to the late General Pedro Rincon Gallardo and Señor Francisco
Somera, who obtained the co-operation of the municipal council. On
June 8, 1881, the first president, Señor Somera, was elected. The
second was Señor Manuel Romero Rubio. At his death in 1895, General
Gallardo succeeded. Señor Yves Limantour is now the president and Señor
Sebastian Camacho, the vice-president.
The club membership is extremely exclusive; there are but a few foreign
members and introductions are very limited.
The University Club is most comfortably housed in Calle Bucareli.
Occasional introductions are permitted by members, and entertainment is
accorded as guests to visiting university men on the request of members.
The Country Club is near Tacubaya, in one of the finest club buildings
in America, being of Spanish mission style. Its hospitality is
generously extended to non-residents of the Federal district. Visitors
may be introduced in person, and two weeks’ privileges are granted on
request of members. It has a splendid tennis court and a fine golf
link. The dining room is finished in Old Flemish. This is the favorite
meeting place of distinguished Americans.
The home of the British Club in San Francisco Street is handsomely
appointed, and in great favor. The membership is, of course, chiefly
British, with a few colonists from other places and a sprinkling of
Mexicans. Visitors are entertained for two weeks on request of members.
The French Clubs, the Cercle François and the University Club, are both
noted for their attractions.
The American Club on Calle Independencia is the chief social foyer of
the leading American residents in the capital. The provision made for
accommodation of members and guests, though extensive, is often taxed
to its capacity. The privilege of guests of the Club is accorded on
request to members for the accommodation of their visiting friends.
The German Club has a fine new building and a splendid gymnasium.
The Casino Espanol Club is domiciled in a mansion, and has a membership
of eight hundred. This Club is famous for its magnificent balls. During
the Centennial it gave many _fiestas_ of note. Señor Sanchez y
Ramos, a son-in-law of Benito Juarez, is the distinguished president.
The Diplomatic Corps, which is quite large, is an important element in
the social life of the Capital, and is composed of many distinguished
representatives. The Spanish, the French and the Japanese are among
the best entertainers. The British government is represented by His
Excellency, the Honorable Reginald T. Tower. Soon after his arrival in
Mexico, he presented General Diaz with the Grand Cross of the Bath,
which was conferred on the President by His Majesty, King Edward.
[Illustration: HISTORICAL STAIRWAY OF JOCKEY CLUB.]
The American Colony in the City of Mexico is composed of many
distinguished representatives. Their social life, while in a measure
confined to themselves, is delightful. The American Ambassador,
Honorable Henry Lane Wilson, and his charming wife have endeared
themselves to everyone. Honorable Arnold Shanklin is the United States
Consul General. He is a popular favorite and has won many friends and
admirers in Mexico.
The Christmas customs of Mexico are uncommonly pretty and touching. The
Christmas-tree is not a native institution, though it gives indications
of becoming naturalized. In its stead the Mexican children have what
they call a pinata, which affords them just as much fun. The pinata is
a large earthenware jar, which is covered with colored tissue-paper.
This jar is filled with all sorts of dainties dear to children and
is hung up in the corridor or courtyard of the house. Each of the
children is blind-folded in turn, and, after being turned around once
or twice, has a stick placed in his or her hand and is invited to break
the pinata. The wielder of the stick is generally, after being turned
around, quite out of his bearings, and often brings down it within an
inch of the head of one of the party. He is allowed three trials, and
if not successful the handkerchief is removed and another takes his
turn. At length a crash is heard--some one has made a true hit--the
pinata is broken and the good things fall in a shower to the ground.
The posadas are a characteristically Mexican celebration. They
commemorate the journey of Mary and Joseph from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
This journey, performed by Mary mounted on an ass, which Joseph guided,
is supposed to have occupied nine days. Each evening they naturally
approached some dwelling to beg a night’s shelter. It is this nightly
episode that is commemorated in Mexican houses by the posadas, or the
begging of the posada (_pedir posada_), meaning shelter, lodging,
or entertainment. In the patriarchal days of the viceroys the posada
was a strictly religious custom, and in a few old-fashioned families
it is so still. The ninth night of the posadas--that is, Christmas
Eve--is celebrated on the most extensive and luxurious scale of all,
and generally the wealthiest of the families that have clubbed together
gives the entertainment. In memory of the night when the Saviour was
born, the figure of an infant is carried in procession, and is placed
in a manger between the ox and the ass in a prettily adorned cave,
which is intended to represent the stable where Mary and Joseph took
refuge when they found that there was no room for them in the inns.
The feast day celebrated by the Catholic Church on November 1st, is
called All Saints’, and ranks as one of the most solemn of the year.
It was instituted at an early period in the history of the Church as a
means of doing honor to the many saints to whom it was impossible to
assign a separate feast. The feast which follows on November 2d, is
popularly known as All Souls’, and is the day for the commemoration
of the faithful departed. On this day masses are said and special
prayers offered by Catholics for the release of souls from purgatory.
The priests wear black vestments, and in some of the churches a huge
catafalque is erected in the centre of the nave.
The origin of the feast of All Souls’ dates back to the year 827
A.D., when Amalario, the Deacon of Metz, published the office
for the dead, but it was not until 998 A.D., that St. Odillon,
abbot of Cluny, instituted in his churches this feast in commemoration
of the faithful deceased. This feast soon prevailed in the Catholic
Church. It took a rather wider range in France in the eighteenth
century, when the laborers began to dedicate gratuitous work, for
the benefit of the poor of All Souls’ day, and offered to the Church
wheat, which, according to the Pauline designation, is the symbol of
resurrection.
The idea of these November feasts is not original with Mexico; it has
found root in nearly every religion.
[Illustration: THE JOCKEY CLUB.]
The feasts of All Saints’ and All Souls’ although not celebrated with
the _éclat_ of former years, are still very interesting in certain
portions of the republic, especially along the Gulf coast. There
the Indians are in the habit of placing upon the graves dulces, or
sweetmeats, prepared with _chilacayote_ and _calabazas_. The Indians
place these dulces with large jars of water upon the tombs of their
deceased relatives and friends during the afternoon of November 1st,
so that the dead--that night at least--can have something to eat and
drink. This latter arrangement is similar to some of the customs of
Germany and Central Europe.
The “ofrenda,” or offering, is, singular to say, of Aztec origin.
The Aztecs were in the habit of cremating their dead; and they kept
the ashes in an urn with fragments of precious metals, emeralds,
etc., also putting in food and catlis, together with bows and
arrows and a quantity of a great golden-hearted flower called the
_zempoalzoichitl_, which can be found growing in Mexico profusely
at this day. This flower is used to decorate the sepulchres in company
with white roses, the ruby “_flor de noche buena_,” and velvety
forget-me-nots, as well as violets, geraniums, and marguerites. In
the country districts the ofrenda is much more elaborate than in the
city. Candles are also used by thousands in the little _panteons_
or cemeteries of the country. Among the simple folk in these Indian
villages the local poets write up more or less readable “poetry,” which
is also included in the offering to the dead. In some isolated portions
of Mexico this custom prevails to such an extent that the children beg
money from their parents to buy fruit for that purpose, or else, they
say, the departed will come on Halloween and pull their little feet. It
is impossible to give an idea of all the curious customs and incidents
that prevail in the rural districts of Mexico with respect to the
observance of these holidays. Halloween in Mexico does not partake of
the mischievous and jocose character of the day in the United States
and England.
Among the characteristic sights of these days peculiar to Mexico are
the strange toys sold on the streets and in stalls. They consist of
skull and crossbones of sugar adorned with gold leaf, lath coffins
surrounded with priests and acolytes and containing a skeleton,
miniature catafalques, altars, etc. Many of the coffins are so arranged
that by pulling a string the lid opens and the dead man sits up. No
Mexican child is content without one of these toys. The mozos and
domestic servants also look at this time for their festival, to which
they give the name of _calavera_ (skull). It is a carnival of
death; a mingling of levity with sadness.
It is the custom to visit on All Souls’ day the graves of relatives
and friends, to place wreaths and candles round about, and to offer
prayers. Any one of Mexico’s cemeteries offers an interesting scene
on that day. The French cemetery, where many of Mexico’s wealthiest
families have their vaults, is one mass of beautiful wreaths. The tomb
of Juarez, in the San Fernando cemetery, receives many mementoes from
admirers of the great Liberal statesman. The cemetery of Tepeyac, near
Guadalupe, where lie the remains of Santa Anna and members of many of
Mexico’s first families, is visited by a throng of devout mourners
bearing costly wreaths. The abundance of trees which darkens the
English cemetery even at mid-day makes it eminently harmonious with
the tendency to sober meditation. This cemetery contains the tombs of
the first Englishmen, almost the first foreigners, that ever came to
this country, away back in the twenties. The American cemetery is near
the English. There is a monument to the American soldiers who perished
in the Valley of Mexico in 1847. This receives its floral offerings
on Decoration Day. But if the tourist or resident wishes to see a
characteristically Mexican celebration of All Souls’, he should go to
the great Dolores cemetery. Except on very few tombs, he will find no
French creations in the way of wreaths, but an abundance of flowers.
[Illustration: SEÑOR DON SEBASTAIN CAMACHO, VICE-PRESIDENT OF
THE JOCKEY CLUB.]
Out beyond the southwestern limits of the city, on the boundary line
formed by what is known as the Calzada de la Verónica, is the little
patch of ground which possesses such peculiar interest for Americans,
and especially for those who reside in Mexico. Though on Mexican
soil, it is American in the fullest sense of the word, for the full
and perfect title therein is vested in the United States, and its
management and control are in the hands of the War Department at
Washington. Mexico is the only country on earth where the United States
possesses a title to land for such purposes, and exercises authority
over foreign soil. It was in 1873 that the cemetery was subjected to
the rules and regulations affecting United States national cemeteries.
It was established in 1851, under an act of Congress approved September
28, 1850.
The seven hundred and fifty soldiers who were killed on the plains of
Mexico are buried together in a single grave. In memory of these, a
simple granite shaft about six feet high has been raised.
To obtain the right to bury there it is necessary to secure a permit
from the United States consul-general, the permit being a voucher
for the citizenship of the deceased. In addition to this, another
permit has to be obtained from the civil authorities, which is a
mere formality, as Americans, living or dead, have always received
magnanimous treatment and the kindest consideration from district
authorities as well as from those of the general government. No graves
are sold, and the selection of the last resting place lies with the
superintendent. No charge is made and no expense incurred. The United
States government pays the employees and superintendent out of the
annual appropriation and the friends of the deceased are at liberty to
express affection by the adornment of the graves with monuments and
flowers.
The funeral customs of Mexico are a source of constant interest to
strangers in that land, as the burial of the dead is a ceremony of
great display. The poor rent handsome coffins, which they have not
the means to buy, and transfer the body from its temporary casket to
a cheap box before it is laid in the grave. Invitations are issued
by messenger, and advertisements of funerals are published in the
newspapers or posted at the street corners, like those of a bull-fight
or a play. Announcements in faultless Spanish are sent to friends in
big black-bordered envelopes, and are usually decorated with a picture
of a tomb.
There is a very pretty custom in Mexico by which all people who call
upon a mourning family must dress in deep black. This is but one of the
many pleasant ways the Mexicans have of paying honor to the memory of
their beloved dead.
During the month of November, in every village of Spain and her former
colonies, the traditional legend of Don Juan Tenorio, dramatized by Don
José Zorrilla, is put on the stage. The sentimentality of this piece
seems to have an irresistible fascination for Spanish taste. It is
impossible to understand the Spanish character without having read or
heard of this extraordinary play. It has been said that every youth of
Spanish descent would be a Don Juan, and every Spanish maiden a Doña
Ines. The exploits of Juan in a more prosaic age and country would
inevitably have qualified him for the gallows. The drama of Don Juan
is now, however, _color azul_ and is not attended by the _beau
monde_.
The Indians observe a _fiesta_ on the 21st of August in memory
of the tortures to which Cuauhtemoc and his cousin Tlacopan, Prince
of Tezcoco, were subjected by Cortés, who endeavored to force from
Cuauhtemoc the secret of the hidden treasure. The monument dedicated
to Cuauhtemoc on the Paseo has a relief representing Cuauhtemoc and
Tlacopan standing upon stone slabs, with their feet hanging over flames
of fire. Around the tortured warriors are clustered the Spaniards,
anxiously awaiting the secret which Cuauhtemoc never disclosed. “Do
not be weary,” he said to his tormentors; “he who has resisted famine,
death, and the wrath of the gods is not capable of humiliating himself
now like a weak woman; the treasury of the kings of Mexico I submerged
in the lake four days before the siege of the city, and you will never
find it.”
One of the Easter customs is the hanging in effigy of Judas Iscariot,
which is done everywhere in the country, from the plazas of the large
cities down to the smallest hamlet. The Catholic citizens attire
themselves in deep mourning throughout all of Holy Week, and on
Saturday grotesque figures of him who betrayed his Lord are brought out
everywhere and hanged. After this they are burned with all the contempt
due to the betrayer of his Master.
[Illustration: FOUNTAIN IN THE PATIO OF THE JOCKEY CLUB.]
Mexican women of the better class are noted for their beauty; and
everywhere the young girls are exquisitely pretty. The slender oval of
the face, the rich olive of the cheek, the long, sweeping, dark lashes
over superb eyes, glowing at once with passion and tenderness, the low
forehead with its rippling mass of dusky hair, the slender neck, the
lithe form, the springing step, and the dainty foot make them like a
poet’s dream of darkly brilliant loveliness, and not to be measured by
any other type in the world.
Among the upper classes of Mexico will be found as high a degree of
social and intellectual refinement as exists in Paris; as quick a
reception and as cordial a knowledge of the arts and literature as
people of the busy cities of the United States have acquired. Their
wealth is lavishly displayed; their taste is exercised to a degree
equal to that of any other people in the world; and the interior of
many of their dwellings furnishes a glimpse of happiness and cultured
elegance that, with their less active temperament, they enjoy more than
do their northern neighbors. Yet these people, who receive the latest
Paris fashions and literature by every steamer, still cling to some
ancient customs. Social law restricts intercourse between the sexes,
as in the Latin nations of Europe. The people are noted for their good
manners, their politeness, and their courtesy to strangers. They make
excellent hosts, and they throw their houses open to their guests with
the most hearty generosity.
Such are some of the aspects of life in Mexico. Wander forth in the
morning almost any day in the year and you will find the blue sky
a free expanse above, with the foliage lazily swaying against it;
birds--yellow, or black with orange and crimson spots--singing or
chattering in wild freedom. There is a glimpse of water, into which
the sun drops beams through the foliage. Plants and trees of all sorts
break the scene into fascinating patterns. Flowers in bloom beautify
and scent the dream.
Or it is evening, and electric lights cast a half shadow silent as a
tomb: the trees and flowers and birds sleep, a mysterious quiet and
suggestion of luxuriant foliage that appeals to one in a certain mood;
but all is gay about. Then the old moon swings up from behind the
ragged wall, between the heavy arches of trees, and the scene that
you thought perfect is enhanced. The moon grows bigger and the scene
lighter, and this, you remember, is but one day in beautiful Mexico.
Everywhere the people are cheerful and simple in their ways of living.
They all attend church, and are devotional in habit. Doubtless more
prayers are said in Mexico in a single day than in all the United
States together; and yet some people in the latter country want to send
missionaries to Mexico!
In several different places including Guanajuato, Mexico has a display
of comparatively modern mummies and catacombs. The practice prevails,
as in some European cities, of renting tomb space for the use of a
corpse. In Mexico, if at the expiration of the original term there
is no renewal of the lease, the corpse is dumped into an extensive
underground chamber. If in the dry air the evicted mummifies, he
stands against the wall; if he tumbles to pieces, his bones join the
vast miscellaneous heap. The Guanajuato catacomb is ghastly enough to
satisfy the most exacting connoisseur of the gruesome and bloodthirsty.
In some of the mummies which have recently been examined jade teeth
have been found, which is thought to be a proof that the Aztec princes
used to be supplied by their dentists with handsome jade teeth whenever
their own pearly ones failed.
Then there are street scenes of a strange and foreign aspect, such as
black street car hearses. There are also curious street signs, rude
but vigorous and highly colored pictures depicting scenes suggestive
of the business conducted within, and in appropriate names in staring
letters as trade-marks, so to speak, of the different stores. Imagine,
for instance, “The Last Days of Pompeii” as a business sign, of “The
Sacred Heart of Jesus,” which is the name of a score of establishments,
and names of streets--“Crown of Thorns Street,” “Fifth of May Street,”
“Holy Ghost Street,” “Blood of Christ Street,” “Body of Christ Street,”
“Mother of Sorrows Street,” “Street of the Sacred Heart,” “The Heart of
Jesus Street,” “Street of the Love of God,” “Jesus Street,” and “John
the Baptist Street.”
[Illustration: SEÑOR JOSÉ SANCHEZ RAMOS, PRESIDENT OF THE
SPANISH CASINO.]
Other governments might well take pattern from the Mexican parliament.
No other government in the world has one like it in point of courtesy
and dignity. The Mexican legislature holds its sessions in the
evenings. The seats of the members are arranged in semicircular
rows, and the presiding officer and officials of the house sit upon
a large dais, or platform. At each side of the platform is a sort
of pulpit, from which very formal addresses are delivered; but
unpretentious discussions taking a conversational and unimpassioned
form are conducted on the floor of the chamber. The orchestra and the
galleries are divided into boxes, which are reserved for spectators;
but it is only a rare occasion that brings outsiders to listen to
the deliberations of their lawmakers. There is much etiquette in the
parliament: members appear in evening dress; there is no confusion;
there is seldom any rude or improper language like that which so often
disgraces other deliberative assemblies. Speakers are courteous,
even-tempered, and apparently conscious of the dignity of their
position. Extreme dignity and decorum mark the proceedings, which are
always short and practical. The legislature meets twice in each year,
in the spring and in the fall. The House of Representatives has one
member for every forty thousand inhabitants, and the Senate has one
Senator for each state in the republic.
Mexico was christened by the conquerors “New Spain,” and to this
day it has many Spanish characteristics. The City of Mexico is as
large as Madrid or Barcelona, and far surpasses both in novelty and
interest. Outside of its wonderful picture gallery, the finest in the
world, Madrid is only an imitation Paris, while Barcelona is a bright,
attractive modern business city. Mexico is all these, and in addition,
interests with Oriental scenes and suggestions. It has many of the
sight-seeing attractions of Madrid, Barcelona, and gay Seville, with
touches of scenes from the streets of Cairo. Guadalajara and Puebla
are nearer the size of Seville, and each has manifold attractions.
Guanajuato is the Mexican reminder of Toledo and Granada, perched on
the rocky hillsides, terraced, quaint and picturesque. You hear the
same language spoken as in Spain; in both countries you pay separately
for each act at a theatrical performance; while in no other country
except old Spain is the bull-fight so popular an institution.
And, after all, bull-fighting seems more or less appropriate to the
peculiar civilization of Mexico. The picturesque setting that is given
there calls up vaguely the bouts in the amphitheatre in the days of
Roman glory.
The new bull ring in Calle Oaxaca, with a seating capacity of twenty
thousand was during the Centennial a scene of wonderful animation
when a corrida de luxo was offered by the government to the visiting
ambassadors.
Among the higher classes, social life in the republic is most charming.
While there is great ceremony and conventionality, refinement, culture,
unfailing courtesy, and delicate gallantry prevail. The scholar, the
artist, and the _litterateur_ may all find congenial society.
Hospitality is as generous as it is proverbial. One has only to be
properly introduced to be the recipient of lavish attentions. Often
gifts of flowers, birds, curios, and even valuable relics are offered
with princely generosity.
[Illustration: STAIRWAY LEADING TO LOUNGING-ROOM IN SPANISH
CASINO.]
[Illustration: BY SEÑOR JORGE ENCISO]
[Illustration: “THE MENDICANTS.” BY SUAREZ.]