The Republican journal., 1888-01-12
Matters in Old Mexico.

| PER CURRENCY.
| Correspondence of the Journal
| CITY OF MENlCo, Dee. 3Oth, 1887. The
| principal issue in Mexican politics this year
seems to be los .imericdnos-juIging from
the preronderance given by the Mexican press
| to the question of American immigration aud
colonization. The intolerance exhibited hy the
| anti American faction will DO more toward
| bringing about that nightmare of their exist
ence -anneXation, or an American protector
| ate,-;han any other influence that could be
| brought to bear.
| The United States may have no desire to eX
! tend her borders south Of the Rio Grande, but
| shc must insist that her citizens who settle in
Mexico shall not be oppressed or ill-treated, so
long as thoE behave themselves If they can
| not enjoy the same rights and liberties in
| Mexico that accorded to MeXicans in the
L. s, Uncle Samuel should demand the reason
why.
| The Daz party are intelligent enough to
| knew that there is no danger of American
| interference with Mexican affairs if Americans
| are properly treated. and that the closer the
| connection between The two countries. the
| better for 10th. BY his enlightened friendship
| for the nited States and cultivation of more
| intimate relationship between the ''Sster Re-
puhiics," President Diaz has done more for
| the material progress of Mexico than any half
| dozen of his predecessors.
| Never before in the history of Mexico has
| there been SO much
| ACTIVITY IN MINING
as at present. This is largely due to the fact
| that MeNicails are being aroused from their
constitutional etlargy by the great success of
| the many Americans who have invested their
money in mines here. Last week. from Tie
| little southern harbor of Mazatlan alone. the
sum OF Sll3,42S.99 was exported in silver bars.
| hunih:r of northern mines are reported in
bonanza: In the state Of Nuevo Leon. the
| mines of ''Santo Miro of the Carralyo group.
the san Antonio OF Santa Catarina, "Du-
| ra>lio, and La Americano,' {all owned and
| operated by AmericanS), are yielding as never
| before.
| In the States OF Coahua chihuahua and
| Durango are thousands of Americans, all busy
a> bees. digging wealth from the hills or reap
| in9 it from the plains. Several new mines
| have lately been discovered in the Sierra
| Ma'sre: and so great is the rush thereto that
| the stages have been doubled Gil the lines and
all are crowded. At Zacatecas also. new
| American companies are taking hold of some
of the oldest mines and contracting to put in
new machinery The san Vicente" near the
| city of Zacateci's. is now paving dividends Of
S24,000 per month.
| was talking the other day with Hon. }. B.
| Grlnncl. of lowa.-ln ext congressman and
. the author of several bookS-who came down
! to Mexico city and has since gone to Nalifor-
nia. Said he: 81 know millions of dollars
| that have cone into Mexican lands within the
last few months. What is catching the eyes of
capitalists is the magniicenee of the corn and
| cotton lands. | have seen thousands of acres
| in Mexico that have been constantly farmed
! for hundred years. and yet this very year
| produced
100 BUSHELS Or CORN To THE ACHE!
Mr.. Grinnell himself invested largely in
! Mexican lands during his trip.
| Though gold in the ore is SO rich and pIenti-
| ful i'll Mexico. it has been proved beyond qlIes-
! ton that C"rtez did not find much Of it during
| bis day. aEl that be lied ah0minably in his re-
| ports to the Spanish Enpero!-prouhly with
= view TO th:is enhance the value of his jli>cov-
! erie, and win more power for himself. At the
! time of the invasion the Azecs had never
| learned any better method of obtaining gold
| than by sitting it from river sands. Monezu-
| ma told CorteZ,-so saws that industrious
! chronicer, Bernal Daz-tha the gold of his
| people WAS obtained from the province of
| Iacatua where the earth Which contained it
| was washed in wooden vessels, and the gold
dust sank to the bottom" 1t was also said to
exist in Tustepcc. "where il was collected
! from the beds of rivers In speaking of the
! various expeditions sent out by Cortez in
| search of ngincs, niaz tells us that Gonzao
| de t'mhra, who went to Zacatua. found the
natives there washing gold out of the sand in
! small t'ou@lis.
! i This were the only means employed, (and
| 10 other j. anywhere mentioned as belonging
to that period.l it is certain that the statements
Of C,oricz and his crew We're grossly exaggcr-
ated: Another proof Of their vivid imagning>
lies in the fact that with the exception of few
small trinhets. net relic or trace remains,
either in Mexico or Spain. of the many mar
Ncilous things in wrought and beaten gold
which they so glowingly described.
Neither do the chronicles record that a very
great amount of treasure was actually gather
el by the capacous conquerer; Yet all the
schemes which his bold mind could invent
must have been directed 10 thi. one object
| not only to satisfy personal greed. but to meet
the expectations of the Emperor, to whom
when lie feared that he was to be deprived of
his command, he had promised untold wealth
and treasure
Though torture of the most baibarouS tics-
rrpt.on WAS used to induce the natives to re-
veal the riches they We're supposed to have
hidden. no more was obtained; and so in or
der that the Spanish sovereign might under
stand the absence of the promised treasure,
IorteZ cautiously wrote that it was all lost in
that disastrous revolution which frs. drove
him from the city. But if lost
WHAT BECAME OF IT:
Gold will not melt away and disappear like
salt or sugar; and if hidden never so securely.
il would surely have come to light before to-
day.
The Mexican Treasury Department has re-
Gently determined that the redtcs twelve and
1t idl cent pieces ana tilc menus (SlN centS).
50 long in circulation, shall he taken up and
coined anew. 1t has also ordered that Govern
ment officers shall not receive money which
has holes therein, CT is short in its legal weight.
soon after what was known as the ''nckel
riot" the Government sold the four million
| dollars worth of nickel coin stored in the
palace, at nominal value, to the London Bank,
acting As agent. The amount paid was $500, 900.
and the nickel went directly to England.
hen paper moi!ey was first issued in Mex
4 u In
and general that more formidable opposition
to its introduction was anticipated Business
men. ami those accustomed to handle large
| sums of money. had nothing 10 learn in regard
to the superior convenience of paper; but it
required some time fer the small traders and
the popuiace, whose preudces in favor of
| metal were deeply rooted. to discover that the
| new currency was safer, as well as more con-
VCnIent.
Already the circulation of the country has
been swcI'ed by fifteen millions of paper
| money, which is now received everywhere
with confidence, and the metallic coinage, that
had reigned supreme in Mexican commerce
since the days of the Conquest. has been
relegated to the secondary position it has SO
long occupied in the United States.
CouNTERFEITING SILVER CURRENCY
has always been an easy and prosperous busi-
tr>s iii Mexico. 1t required little skill and
less machinery TO initiate the artless coinage of
former days. That now in circulation lacks
the high finish of the L. S. mintage, and is eX-
tenSively cOunterfeited. Every silver piece
| that crosses the counter of merchant or the
palm of All Indian huckster is carefully rung
and inspected; yet, with the utmost care, it is
difficult for any one handling much silver
| money here to avoid taking certain proper
tion of bogus pieces.
In all the mints are museums of quaint and
ingenious machines, dies and crucibles cap
| tured by Government police from the deEs of
this class of public robbers. The imitation of
imperfectly finished silver and copper coins is
at best but Il barbaric art; but to falsify the
complicated devices and eXqui>itely artistic
productions of the American Bank Note Com
pany demands degree of criminal skill and
culture which does not yet exist in Mexico.
Hence the evident advantage of the bank note
in point of safety has fastened its popular
| acceptance. and the prejudces which were so
bitterly arraycd against its introduction have
disappeared entirely from the cities and lines
of commerce and retired TO the Indian villages
| among the mountains.
According to the last balance-sheet Of the
National Bank of Mexico, that institution has
on hand in cash $50 2G6 230 93, and in accounts
payable Sc, ,249 ,S33. 49, while the sum of $11 .91S,
GAS represents the value Of its bills in crcula-
ton. This
BANCO NAC!ONAL MEXlCANO
was established in Nov. of 1881, with capital
of eight millions and the privilege of ncreas-
ing it to twenty millions. For every million of
coin OR metal in its Golfers, it is authorized to
| issue three millions in paper for circulation.
| 1t is chartered for thirty years, and is exempt
| from taxation during that period. 1t issues