PORFIRIO DIAZ.

BY A. W. IVINS, MANAGER MEXICAN COLONIZATION AND AGRI

CULTURAL COMPANY.

General Porfirio Diaz has been again inaugurated president of the Mexican Republic. Five times in the past have these same ceremonies been observed, but never before has enthusiasm for the man who guides the destiny of his people been characterized by the spontaneous and universal outburst which has attended the present inauguration.

To the Mexican people Porfirio Diaz is the embodiment of patriotism, courage, statesmanship and honor. To them he is the peer of any ruler, be he czar, emperor, king or president, of the present day, an estimate which may appear extravagant to those who are ignorant of the great transition which has taken place in Mexico under his administration, and the remarkable statesmanship he has displayed in providing for the future.

A man may be patriotic, may comprehend the necessities of his country, and conceive proper ideas for the emancipation and advancement of his people, and at the same time be without courage to lead them in the struggle for liberty, or genius to apply the theory of reform which his own philosophy has worked out. He may lead them bravely in defense of the principles which he advocates, only to find himself entirely incompetent, after the victory has been gained, to organize and control in civil affairs, and thus perpetuate the ideals for which his life has been offered. He may be a brave soldier and a wise organizer, only to tyrannize and oppress those who have trusted him, using his courage and genius to achieve personal ends and satisfy unchecked ambition. In either

case, he cannot be said to be truly great. But if he be imbued with patriotism, if he love his native land as Tell loved the lakes and valleys of the Alps, if he is willing to lay down his life for the liberty of his countrymen as did Emmet or Kosciusko, if after liberty is achieved through his effort he demonstrates his ability to legislate for the present and future welfare of the state he has helped to form; and above all, if he be incorruptible and wise in the development of the industry and commerce of his people and handling of their revenues, if for poverty he brings affluence, for ignorance and superstition, intelligence, progress and independent thought, he may consistently be called great.

All of this Porfirio Diaz has done for his country and people, why should he not be classed among the most devoted patriots, bravest soldiers, and wisest statesmen of the day?

Born in the state of Oaxaca, the state which gave to Mexico her greatest of all patriots, Benito Juarez, on the fifteenth day of September, 1830, Porfirio Diaz, if he lives till that time, will be seventy-one years old on the fifteenth of September next. His parents were descendants from Spanish ancestry on his father's side, while his mother was a creole of Spanish and Mixteca (Indian) descent.

For twenty years, beginning in 1855, Porfirio made war his trade. During this time, he fought in forty-one battles, was twice wounded, and rose from the ranks to be commander-in-chief of the Mexican army.

From May 10, 1810, when Miguel Hidalgo declared the independence of Mexico from the yoke of Spain, there had been an almost ceaseless war. At times a republic, and again an empire, the resources of the country were neglected, her industries paralized and credit ruined.

These conditions offered the pretext, which had long been sought, for foreign intervention in Mexican affairs, and in December, 1861, the Spanish squadron took the initiative by seizing the port of Vera Cruz. England and France joined the compact, the former reluctantly and for a brief period only, the latter with the avowed intention of remaining until a stable government should be established.

The United States was engaged in civil war, the clerical party

On the 5th of May, 1862,

Diaz at this time was a

of Mexico, which controlled the wealth and resources of the country, invited intervention, the time seemed opportune to carry into effect the long cherished dream of reducing the American republics again to a condition of colonial dependency, and, as part of the plan, Maximilian was sent by Napoleon to Mexico, with an army under command of Bazaine, to install him as emperor. To this army of foreign mercenaries, the clericales added theirs, under command of Mejia and Miramon, a powerful force having for its avowed purpose the destruction of the republic, the establishment of an empire, and the maintenance of the Cotholic church as the dominant factor in both civil and ecclesiastical affairs. Against this array stood the constitutional party, with Benito Juarez, an Indian of pure descent, their legally elected president, a small army which made up in patriotism and courage what it lacked in numbers and equipment, determined to maintain the independence of their country and people in what appeared to be a hopeless struggle. But the God of battles was with them. the French were defeated at Puebla. division commander, and it was largely due to his generalship and enthusiasm with which his personal courage inspired his followers that the victory was gained. From the battle of Puebla to the surrender of Maximilian at Queretero, Diaz became daily more popular with his countrymen, and at the close of the war, he was recognized as the foremost soldier of his country. But now other and entirely different qualifications were required. Herculean as had been the task in maintaining the republic and driving out the foreign usurper, that which remained to be accomplished was far more difficult. For three hundred years Mexico had been dominated by the Catholic church. By persuasion, by coercion, by every means that Jesuit or Franciscan could devise, the supremacy of the church had been established and maintained. Under the law of reform, Juarez had seized hundreds of millions of church property, convents had been converted into schools, and churches into barracks, and the church restricted to its proper and legitimate sphere. Juarez only lived to inaugurate these reforms, but he left a worthy successor, and it is the statesmanship displayed in the reconstruction of the government on constitutional lines, and the harmonizing of the discordant elements with which he has con