The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1851-04-06
INTERESTING FROM MEXICO.
The New President OF Mexico and his Cabinet
The Character OF the Men-Ini isortant
Reforms, &c.


Reforms, sc.
| OUR MEXICAN CORRESPONDENCE
CRY OF MEXICO. March 4, 1851.
Agreeably to my promise, | will now give you
brief notice of some Of the most prominent of the
public men Of this country.
General Don Mariana Arsta is President of the
republic, recently elected He had several compe-
titors in the election He holds his office four years
Amongst them was Don l.. de Ia Rosa. the Mi
mister Of this country to the United States. General
Arsta is about forty-eght years old, and was born
! at San Louis Potosi. His father was merchant OF
respectability, intelligence and wealth, originally
from one of the Basque provinces, in Spain, but
settled in Mexico in early life, and married Mexi-
can lady Of one Of the first families Of the country.
President Arista commenced his career MS a military
cadet, and was educated principally ut Vera Cruz,
for military life In lS3 in consequence Of his be
| ing active in pronunciame,uo, he was compelled
| by Gomez Farias to expatriate himself tempo
rarily; and he went to the United States, where he
| stad some four or five years. During part of the
term Of his sojourn in the United States, he sup
ported himself as a timer in Cincinnati, Ohio
his pecunary circumstances being much depressed,
and his family in Mexico requiring all his means
there Upon the election Of his friend General Bus
tamente, President, he returned to Mexico, and
was forthwith appointed, in 1897, Inspector General
Of the active militia Of the republic lie was SUBJ
sequenly despatched to the Rio Grande country as
the commanding General Of the Northern Division
of the army, which place he held without intermis
till Santa Anna displaced him. and put Ampudia
in his stead though he was restored just before the
battles Of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma. Had
General Aristas sagacous and patriotic advice been
needed by the Mexican government, or had the adj
mnistration then in power in the United States, or
the officers Of the United States army in Texa lis
tened to his just eounsels and met his Wishes there
would not have been any war between the two coun-
tries, and all their differences would have been ami
eaby adjusted, and upon just and honorable terms.
His courage, moral and physical is of the highest
order.
General Arsta possesses the most sterling quail
ties of the head and of the heart truer rcpubli-
can patriot, and one more wholly unsefsh doe not
live. Had he pursued the example Of other mill
tary and civil chiefs Of this country, (and some of
our own also occc Signum the Galphinites) he could
have been rich; but he preferred honesty to wealth,
and consequently remains comparatively poor. His
principal estate ia beautiful and highly impro scd
hacienda near Monterey, well known to those who
were with Gen. Taylor ut the surrender Of that city
by Ampudia. General A. is, beyond all question,
the hest man that could have been selected for the
chief magistracy of Mexico at this crisis. lie il
not eminent as literary man, and he makes
false prctensions. In this respect, he is unlike
Of our would-be great men in the United States,
who fancy themselves to be great dabstcrs with the
pen ''natural born" authors, orators, and writers;
and who are eternally making fools of themselves
by scriblng long and ridiculous cpistlcs with their
names at the end, whenever they have either good
or q bad excuse for appearing in print Gen. Aris-
tn has fund of good sense, Of the kind western
country people call I" hard horse sense" and what
in England is styled ''pract.al wisdom, equal to
any man on the continent of North America. He
is in this respect greatly like General Jackson. lie
is a democrat, and as completely progressive as
could be desired by any reasonable democrat in the
United States. lie is no 'smte,' no transcen-
dentalist or socialist-but q practical uttarian
His residence in the United States enlightened his
views; and with strong and abiding love for his
native country, he has devoted himself to the OBJ
ject ofimproying and eleyating her in the scale Of
\ nations.
General Arsta was Minister Of War under the
last administration, and ex-offcio President of the
Society Of Statistics and Geography Of Mexico, and
while IN Office devoted himself to the procurement ofa
full and perfect geographical and typographical sur
vey of all the different districts Of the country, aad
the condensation of the same into a capacious map
Of the republic, and the making of an atlas of about
sixty smaller maps of the different States, Sc,
i which, learn, have all been sent 10 the United
states TO be engraved and publishcd,'
General Arsta will IL IL believed, attempt several
snuary reforms In this country, and IL Il unersto ood
that his administration some months since de.-
PATCHED highly respectable aud intelligent gentle
man Of this city TO the United States for the purpose
ofobtainiug information and details to ndry mat
! tiers important TO know in efecting such reforms.
Among the subjects upon which information viii be
sought by the gentleman referred to- are rs to the
trial by jury aud the different regulations in relation
tc IT, In the different states Of the Union The trial
I by jury has never been introduced here. Ii il H.
introduced, IL must be with notifications, securing
jury men the better classes, the lower cles
not by any means intelligent enough to act in either
I civil or criminal cases.
Tie rcntentiary system. and the mode ofcnploy-
| ing convict labor in the United states, l. another
branch cfinquiIy. Ia this city, In times past, there
I have been some two or three hundred vagahunds
and loacfs arrested in each mouth, and put in the
/ calaboOsc, and from thence sent to the army, and
forced 10 become soldiers This decterous practice
viii be changed for the employment OF the Naga'
bonds and cOryicts for yenial offences, in working
for tie public either in state prisons or in com-
pclliug them 10 labor in the construction Of public
roads, canals, forts, other public works, always
away from the section Of the country in which they
/ may be arrested.
1le municipal police Of the cities Of the United
States i another subject Of examination. II Is to
be hoped that the gentleman employed viii not se
lect your city as the 'mOdc city in this respect.
/ From what have seen since | have been in this
country, do not think there u town in this re-.
public in which, for every consideration that should
have weight, greater reform and rctrcnchmcnt l.
needed than IN your city The people of the city OF
/ NV y ok do not know how poor n show they make
inComrarison with othcrcities in the United states,
even ia this republic, in every particular consi-
tutirg good city government The municip Al
/ cit n
more cffcient-have less corrupton--havc less aEi-
ness. less extravaganza, aud vastly less pretencc
and humbug. II will doubtless surprise You and
other of my Gothamite friends, TO hear me say this
Of my old residences but il Il the honest and Impair
tia truth. Nor i there in any city have visited In
Mexico anything like the vice aud liccntiousness,
and misery that there Is in New York; and with
sll my prsiudiccs once entertained against the