PUEBLA
It is not mere acreage or population, nor public institutions or
monuments of any kind, however imposing, historic, or beautiful, that
constitute a state. It is the men of thought and action who have
brought Mexico from under the yoke of the Spaniard, who in three
hundred years wrung so much treasure from a suffering people, and made
of the down-trodden province a free and independent country among the
nations of the globe.
[Illustration: MONUMENT TO NICOLAS BRAVO.]
The State of Puebla is eminent in the annals of the Republic, alike
for the great resources it has yielded from the time of the Conquest
and its participation in the history-making of the nation and not
less so for the distinction gained by its people. Puebla is the
capital city; it was founded soon after the Conquest by Cortés, and
at that time was one of the social centres. Its location near the
Federal capital has brought the city into intimate acquaintance with
the affairs of the world. It is finely laid out, with every modern
improvement, and is exceedingly picturesque with alamedas and public
squares. Its ancient palaces have been turned into offices for the
chief officials. It is considered one of the most attractive cities in
the republic. The people are noted for their refinement and culture,
having many splendid public institutions of learning. There are over
sixty churches and theological schools, charity schools, hospitals and
benevolent establishments. It is one of the oldest cities in America,
founded in 1531, and is considered, next to the Federal District, the
most important. It is the cradle of manufacturing industry in Mexico,
being one of the first to establish spinning and weaving factories. In
addition to being an industrial centre, Puebla is connected with all
parts of the republic by railroads which traverse the rich district
of sugar plantations and other industrial centres. The climate is
delightfully mild and agreeable and the country around is green with
fertile fields. The view of the great volcano of Popocatepetl, seen at
sunrise, is unrivalled. The snowy top and sides stand out like a great
dome of alabaster and then the sun, rising higher and higher, from the
radiant brow sheds its glory on all below. Puebla is a beautiful city
with handsome houses built in the finest style of architecture, with
broad and remarkably clean streets and avenues. It has a population
of more than a hundred thousand; is the seat of an archbishop; and its
historical associations make it exceedingly interesting. Some of the
buildings are relics of the days of the viceroys. The architecture,
distinguished by its Spanish influence, is very picturesque, with its
multi-colored tiles of Talavera, for which the city was famous. This
pottery ware was manufactured in this city in the seventeenth century
and some of the wonderful relics are still found, though very seldom.
[Illustration: GENERAL MUCIO MARTINEZ.]
The character of the citizens is marked by conventionality,
conservatism being the keynote to everything in which they participate.
The influence of the Catholic church prevails and one is often
impressed at the sight of the people, from the poorest to the highest
in society, kissing the hand of the archbishop or kneeling as the
angelus is rung. From a military point of view, Puebla is considered
the key to the national capital and during several foreign wars
suffered many vicissitudes. Its history is very interesting, although a
stormy one, and it has suffered more, perhaps, in the cause of war than
any city in the republic. Augustin Iturbide, who proclaimed himself
Emperor of Mexico, captured the city in August, 1821. In 1847, it was
occupied by the United States forces. In 1862, it was the scene of
Zaragoza’s victory. It was occupied by the French in 1863, and on April
2, 1867, General Porfirio Diaz gained the most notable victory of his
military career by driving out the French. In spite of the ravages
of warfare and some of the relics of the war that exist, the city of
Puebla still retains its beauty of former days embellished by the art
of modern architecture. One of the most magnificent edifices in the
world is the Cathedral. It is noble and inspiring. A pretty legend
regarding the rapid progress of the building tells us that it was
owing to the assistance of two angels, who descended nightly and added
to its height, so that each morning the astonished workmen found their
labor incredibly advanced. From this legend Puebla derives its name,
“The City of the Angels.” This beautiful church is elegant and simple,
and in excellent taste. The floor is of colored marble; the rich and
artistically attractive high altar, of different varieties of Puebla
onyx; and the beautiful iron work and wood carving about the choir make
an interior which equals that of the Cathedrals of the old world. A
great amount of wealth exists in Puebla, principally in connection with
its churches, some of which are three hundred years old.
[Illustration: STATUE OF GENERAL ZARAGOZA.]
Other churches which claim attention are those of San Cristobal,
founded in 1532, and rebuilt in 1667; San José, the Templo de la
Compania, San Marcos, Nuestra Señora de la Soledad and Santa Catarina.
In the interior of all these one finds a collection of paintings and
beautiful carvings. The general effect is bewildering. In all these
churches, silver railings, candelabra and rich tapestries are found and
the domes and steeples of glazed Talavera tiles make the city flash in
the sun.
During the celebration of the Centennial, schools and public
institutions were dedicated and the city was festive with
entertainments of all kinds. The venerable Marqués de Polavieja was the
guest of the government, and was given the freedom of the city. Puebla
probably had more reason to celebrate the Centenary than any other
city as it was the centre of all the historical events of the Spanish
period.
Music and opera have a charm for the Mexicans, and Puebla is a musical
centre. There are some good theatres and one of the largest bull rings
in the republic is here. Hundreds of people swarm into the city from
other towns and nearby villages to witness a bull-fight and on the
occasion of this performance everyone makes it a gala holiday.
[Illustration: STATE COLLEGE.]
The oldest theatre in America is the Teatro Principal, which was
inaugurated in 1760, by the Viceroy Ahumada. It was known in those days
as the “Teatro de los Arrieros,” being the favorite amusement place
of the mule drivers who came in from the country on feast days. For a
while it was patronized by the best class of society, but is now given
over to a cinematograph. The interior was completely destroyed by fire
a few years ago. This old theatre is unusually interesting on account
of its early Spanish architecture.
The Guerrero Theatre was built in 1868, and stands on the site of the
old city prison. It is owned by the city and has been greatly improved
with modern scenery and stage fittings. Visitors are attracted to
this theatre on account of its beauty of proportion and its artistic
decoration.
The principal buildings of the city are imposing gray stone structures
with an atmosphere of the historical past surrounding them. The more
modern ones are built on the most approved plan. The penitentiary
is one of the most modern and sanitary prisons existing in the
republic. It is built on the general plan that characterizes all these
institutions and merits great attention. The Casa de Maternidad is one
of the splendid institutions that stamp the Mexican nation as the most
charitable in the world. Here, without a question being asked, a poor
unfortunate woman may find a haven of refuge.
[Illustration: CATHEDRAL.]
The Municipal Palace is a modern structure. It is situated opposite
the Cathedral and is built in the Spanish Renaissance style, and
occupies the site of the original palace, which was erected in 1536.
A fine _salon_ on the second floor is of the French Renaissance,
with allegorical paintings on the ceiling, done by native artists. The
Government Library is in the palace and comprises a large collection
of books. The entrance to this remarkable chamber is inspiring in the
greatest degree. It is noted for its marvellous carvings. The reception
rooms of the officials are exceedingly imposing and the military
atmosphere lends color to the scene.
The bronze equestrian statue of General Ignacio Zaragoza was erected
by the State of Puebla in 1896. This is a most imposing monument. At
the base of the pedestal appear the names of the generals who aided
this great soldier in his expulsion of the French troops during their
intervention. The Paseo Nuevo is a splendid avenue, which is the
pride of the Pueblans. One of its attractions is a handsome bronze
group of statuary erected to the memory of the heroes of the war for
Independence by the State of Puebla. Other statues on the Paseo are
those of Gabino Barreda and Esteban de Antuñano, founder of the cotton
industry. At the south end of the Paseo is an imposing monument erected
to General Nicolas Bravo, who was one of the heroes of the war and was
one of the members of the Council of Notables which promulgated the new
constitution for Mexico. He was president of Mexico for a short time in
1846.
[Illustration: LA MATERNIDAD, PUEBLA.]
In one of the squares is the beautiful fountain of San Miguel,
constructed in 1777.
The State College is also an imposing edifice and is a well-conducted
institution. Among the other public buildings the Library containing
about fifty thousand volumes, the Academy of Fine Arts, the Normal
School, and several hospitals all go toward demonstrating the great
progress and advancement of the people.
[Illustration: MONUMENT OF INDEPENDENCE, PUEBLA.]
General Mucio P. Martinez, Governor of the State, is one of the most
distinguished soldiers in the republic. His name is enrolled among the
other great leaders of warfare. He is the hero of a hundred battles
and has been the trusted friend and companion of General Diaz for many
years. He entered the army when a young boy in 1861, and displayed
such great bravery in many actions that in 1863 he was assigned to the
cavalry and promoted to the rank of lieutenant. He has fought in all
the wars that have taken place in his country since he enlisted and his
services have been of such great value to his country that the grade
of brigadier-general was conferred on him in 1884, which is his rank
at the present time. He has been the Governor of Puebla since 1892,
and has done so much to encourage all enterprise and progress in his
state that he has the reputation of being one of the wisest and most
intelligent administrators. The Governor has taken special interest in
the public school system, and through his efforts it is supposed to be
the best regulated in the republic. There are a number of institutions
of higher education, preparatory schools, schools of law and medicine,
and a most efficient school of engineering. Manual trades are taught
and even in the penitentiary the prisoners have the benefit of a good
common education.
The Governor is noted for his charming personality, his kindness of
heart, and his protection for all enterprises that are worthy of the
attention of an official who is interested in the welfare of his
state. He has surrounded himself with intelligent progressive gentlemen
as State officials, and through their enterprising and intelligent
administration, Puebla has been raised to the rank of second state
in importance in the republic. Licenciado Augustin Fernandez, the
Secretary of State, is an important factor in its government; he is a
scientist and linguist and a man of great ability.
[Illustration: RIM OF THE CRATER OF POPOCATEPETL.]
Industry is animated in various branches and is being actively
developed, particularly the textile manufactures; and the products of
the numerous and well-equipped mills for weaving and spinning cotton
and wool, scattered through the State, rival the foreign products,
for their variety and excellence. Commerce is very active and the
culmination of its operation is guaranteed by the complete abolition
of duties, as there are no more domestic custom houses. Merchandise
circulates freely through the state, and the industrial establishments
and mercantile houses are subject only to the payment of taxes, which
have been advantageously substituted for the odious system of excise.
The hotels in Puebla are particularly good. They are thronged with
visitors from all parts of Mexico, attracted by the beautiful climate
and noted sulphur baths that are in the suburbs. Some of these waters
are boiling as they bubble from the ground and the odor can be detected
quite a long distance away.
In this state the onyx, famous all over the world, is quarried,
near Puebla, and exquisite specimens are seen in some of the public
buildings.
[Illustration: AN OLD CHURCH DOOR.]
Few tropical localities in Mexico equal the privileged section of
Northern Puebla. Here nature has lavished its profusion ungrudgingly,
and for the man of energy, success and prosperity are assured. The
natural products are many and diversified. Building woods and those
suitable for making furniture exist mostly in dense forests, while
dye-woods and a species of wild indigo abound. Various fibres suitable
for the manufacture of brooms and brushes as well as those for ropes,
etc., clothe forest, meadow and hill. There is plenty of wild game
and large quantities of fish are found in the limpid streams. Along
the western section long stretches of natural grass well-adapted
for pasture and stock-raising bring very satisfactory results. The
cultivated products are coffee, corn, sugar cane, tobacco, pineapple,
banana and rubber. Corn yields here four hundred bushels for one;
cane produces without irrigation. Rubber and coffee yield to the
industrious planter a rich reward for his enterprise. The climate is
very acceptable for farming; fruit growing, especially the tropical
products, is a profitable occupation. Bee culture, in connection with
vanilla, is now a source of wealth. The district of Atzlan lies at the
base of the Sierra Madre Range in the State of Puebla and comprises the
extreme north end of the rich and fertile country of Huachinango. It
is located at a distance of eighty miles south of the port of Tuxpan
and one hundred and forty miles northeast of Mexico. This district
takes in an area of over one hundred and sixty square miles of the most
excellent tropical land. A large English-speaking colony has settled
in this district. The soil is a rich dark loam finely adapted for the
cultivation of every vegetable, fruit and fibre and capable of yielding
prolific products. The temperature in summer, though high at mid-day,
is low in the mornings and evenings and the winter months are generally
delightful. The lands are undulating slopes abounding with fine forests
and inviting streams while the well-drained plains are covered with
perennial grass. Every section of these lands is of easy access. The
Ward Line steamers call at Tuxpan from Vera Cruz or Tampico every week
and the Mexican mail boats every few days. The Valley of Atlixco is
noted for its fertility and its abundant crops of vegetables as well as
for the fineness of its fruit.
The Metlaltoyuca colonization lands, which lie along the Gulf slope
on the Mesa de los Coroneles, are quite important. The journey there
from Mexico City is most interesting, leading across a deep chasm and
beautiful valleys. Sometimes a road clings to the shoulder of the great
mountain; sometimes it rushes suddenly into a lovely valley carpeted
with Mexican flowers or gay with ruby coffee or tasselled corn. Wide
fields of grain and banana spread for miles along the sides of the
road, leading to the colony lands. Here and there are great forests of
cedar, mahogany and rubber trees, interlaced with rich tropical foliage
and parasites. Bright winged birds and orchids of wonderful color light
up the recesses of the forests, and groves of luscious oranges and
lemons perfume the air. Shortly before the road reaches the outskirts
of the Metlaltoyuca lands it crosses the Pantepec River, swiftly making
its way to the Gulf. The crystal waters reveal a pebbly bottom about
sixty feet wide; and the entire stream forms one of the most beautiful
rivers in Mexico.
The prospects of this colony, composed of English-speaking people, are
very promising. Extensive fields of grain may be seen here; the warm
moist climate being particularly adapted to the raising of cereals.
Nature has been lavish in gifts to this region; the climate is mild;
the thermometer seldom going above eighty in the day time, while the
nights are cool. The houses are of bamboo and comfortable. Some of
them have rosewood floors, and little gardens around them make the
region homelike and pleasant. In this small village of a few hundred
inhabitants there is a spirit of association and friendship.
The warm springs of Cuautla are reached by the Interoceanic Railroad.
Surrounding this resort are mountains perpetually white, yet no snow
ever falls on this tropical town. The arrival here is full of greatest
interest, as the train pulls into the oldest railroad station in the
world. It was built in 1657, and was formerly a church, but finally
reverted to the government and was disposed of to the railroad company.
It seems strange that a once beautiful church should end in being the
scene of excitement that attends the arrival of a train. The sulphur
baths of this resort are a little way out of town but a drive through
the rustic scenery of a primitive region repays one for the trip. In
this old town, full of peculiar legends and romances, the natural
Indian folk mingle their ancient customs with the modern.
Tehuacan is called Mexico’s Carlsbad. It is one of the popular springs
that are splendid specifics for many ills. There are some modest
hotels here. The little town is very picturesque and retains the mark
of centuries, having been founded in 1524, by the Spaniards. The
antiquity of the town, the primitive manners of the people, lend more
attraction to the searcher for health than the more modern hotels of
the fashionable resorts. There are comfort and pleasure to be found and
accommodation for the most fastidious.
Cholula is an old city that dates from before the Conquest. It was a
commercial centre and was one of the most populous and flourishing
cities during the time of the Aztec Confederacy. It was the scene,
in 1519, of a fearful battle between the Spanish Conquerors and the
Cholulans, in which many of the inhabitants were massacred.
[Illustration: THE ARCADE, PUEBLA.]
The tradition of Quetzalcoatl and his life up among the great purple
sunlit hills is a most beautiful story. Never was there a more tender
spirit than Quetzalcoatl, who loved all living creatures and could
not bear that any should suffer or live in sin and ignorance. But the
people, while they loved him, feared the other powerful gods, who were
devoted to bloodshed and battle. They built temples and altars and
daily offered human sacrifices to the gods of war. This grovelling fear
filled the great heart of Quetzalcoatl with pity and deep sorrow, and
so he left his beautiful, peaceful home to teach these people, with
a wonderful eloquence, the gospel of love and charity. Such was his
influence that at last they deserted the altars of the cruel gods, and
instead of offering human holocausts, in which quivering hearts burned
upon the sacred fires, they climbed the hills to lay upon an altar of
Quetzalcoatl flowers and fruits.
The people of Cholula began the construction of the great pyramid
in memory of Quetzalcoatl. On the top of it they built the temple
of Cholula, and dedicated it to the worship of the “fair god.” For
generations they tilled and builded until more than a century afterward
the pyramid was completed, standing bold and distinct on the dust-blown
plain, the everlasting token of a nation’s faith. They believed that
this pyramid would stand until Quetzalcoatl should come back to them.
The view from the top of the great pyramid toward evening is almost
beyond description. With the softened light of the setting sun upon the
plains and the hills one can easily understand why it was that the gods
and the angels loved this region. Back from the soft tender lights in
the valleys the great mountains stretch up bold and distinct against a
background of the palest aërial blue that contrasts wonderfully with
the varying lights on the mountain side.
The perpendicular height of the pyramid is one hundred and
seventy-seven feet. Its base is one thousand four hundred and
twenty-three feet long--twice as long as that of the great pyramid of
Cheops. It may give some idea of its dimensions to state that its base,
which is square, covers about forty-four acres and the platform on its
truncated summit embraces more than one acre. It reminds one of those
colossal monuments of brickwork which are still seen in ruins on the
banks of the Euphrates, and in much better preservation on those of the
Nile.
“Nothing could be more grand than the view which met the eye from the
area on the truncated summit of the pyramid. Toward the west stretched
that bold barrier of porphyritic rock which nature had reared around
the valley of Mexico, with the huge Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl
standing like two colossal sentinels to guard the entrance to the
enchanted region. Far away to the east was seen the conical head of
Orizaba soaring high into the clouds, and nearer, the barren though
beautifully-shaped Sierra de la Malinche, throwing its broad shadows
over the plains of Tlaxcala. Three of these are volcanoes higher than
the highest mountain peak in Europe and shrouded in snows which never
melt under the fierce sun of the tropics. At the foot of the spectator
lay the sacred city of Cholula, with its bright towers and pinnacles
sparkling in the sun, reposing amidst gardens and verdant groves, which
then thickly studded the cultivated environs of the capital. Such was
the magnificent prospect which met the gaze of the conquerors, and
may still, with slight change, meet that of the modern traveller, as
from the platform of the great pyramid his eye wanders over the fairest
portion of the beautiful plateau of Puebla.” So wrote Prescott.
The great temple was afterward purified by Cortés’s orders and the
standard of the cross solemnly planted in its midst. From this pyramid,
it is interesting to know, Baron von Humboldt made many of his valuable
astronomical calculations.
The church now standing there is dedicated to the Virgin de los
Remedios. The popular tradition among the native Indians is that the
pyramid was erected by a family of giants who had escaped inundation
and intended to raise it into the clouds, had not the gods become angry
and sent down fire from heaven to stop them where it is truncated.
Cholula probably numbers now some five thousand people. But there is no
doubt that at the time of the conquest it was one of the largest towns
in Mexico.
But what a land of romance! How can busy twentieth-century people
realize that in 1519 such events were making Mexican history, and that
even then the pyramid dated far back of legend or tradition?
[Illustration: THE PENITENTIARY, PUEBLA.]
[Illustration: PORTALES, FACING THE PARK, TLAXCALA.]
[Illustration: AVENUE LEADING TO SAN FRANCISCO CONVENT.]