The Yale expositor., 1910-06-10


having been
used before as the Casa de Moneda that 1t should
have library, to be formed from books owned by
the university and by the converts which had just
been abolished, and that the government would
provide the expenses of installation conserva.
ton, and development.
After the constitutional government triumphed
over Maximilian 1t appropriated, in the budget for
1S6I-1S6S, the sum of 1000 for the museum: half
OF which was for expenses and the other half for
the salaries of director, two professors of natu-
raj history preparador, clerk, an errand boy,
and porter. Unfortunately the poverty of the
public treasury at that time prevented the govern
ment for many years from increasing the appro-
prfations for the museum, which only reached S12-
100 during the fiscal year 1S761S77 for which rea-
son 1t had little opportunity to make any progress
When Gen. Porfrio Daz came into the supreme
magstracy of the republic, he the ndisputable re-
storer of the public peace and the first factor in
the actual progress OF Mexico, gave a great inn
pulse to all the federal educational establishments
The museum, which In 1S77-1S7S only had an ap-
preparation of $13,360, received an increase each
year, until in the year 1901 it reached the sum
of $24,79720 In this manner its development was
enabled to keep pace with the rest of the country
The progress of the museum has been very
rapid since Lie. Don Justo Sierra secretary of
public instruction, took charge of the educational
development of Mexico, and during the past three
years 1t has enlarged its collections until they con.
sist of nearly 10000 objects Such an abnormal de.
velopment made the space occupied by It too
small. and It divided into two departments
National Museum of History Archaeology and
Ethnology and National Museum of History The
former remains In the National palace and the
latter is being removed to a new building of SUI.
fcient size for its requirements
A striking proof of the efforts made by the
supreme government to perfect its educational es-
Adjustments is the fact that the present annual
appropriation for the museum Of 100000 is almost
ten times great was the appropriation of
1S67186S
The publication I'm which this sketch appeared
is of comparatively recent origin, I'm so far as its
actual Importance Is concerned. II was founded
in 1877, its director at that time being Prof Gu
mesindo Mendoza, his principal collaborators be-
ing Manuel Orozco Berra, and Lie Alfredo Cha
Vero. IL was not at that time printed in the mu-
scum, as IL is only since 1885 that the printing
plant of the museum, which had a very humble be-
ginning, got It's start, the nucleus of which was
small Colombine press, model 2, chiefly used for
running off cards, or classification slips for the
objects contained In the establishment From this
time on, however, the various directors who came
and went, each recognizing the Importance of hav-
ing well equipped print shop made important
additions, until the plant attained its highest de-
gre OF efficiency. year or ago with the acausi-
tion of an Optfmus press To celebrate its acoui-
sition two special studies written and run OF
the new press, one of which, entitled 'Porfrio
Diaz Sus Padres. Ninez Juventud" ("Porfrio
Daz, his parents, childhood and youth") was writ.
ten by Lie. Garcia, then professor of history in
the museum, and the edition, which was beautiful
ly gotten up, was Immediately exhausted
shortly after this, or about the middle Of 1907.