Charlevoix county herald., 1910-07-09

lens which have for years been the despair of
the historian In fact, Mexico may today very
properly claim the title of THE Egypt of Amer
lea " Why, indeed, should the archaeologist go to
Egypt, when Mexico offers to him such rich and
ineXhaustible fields Militia, Monte Alban, Palen-
que, San Juan de Teotihuacan, the ruins of Tx
NAL, and of Chi Chen liza in Yucatan, and many
others which just being unearthed?
The museum located at the national capital is
generally the first place sought out by the thou
sands of tourists who pour into the country each
year And 1t is well worth visit for 1t offers GER
tain things which no other museum in the world
could offer to the eyes of the curious
The best brief sketch of its history is given by
its director, Lie. Genaro Garcia, himself notable
historian and archaeologst, in the introduction
of volume 1, No. /, of the annals of the National
Museum of Archaeology, History and Ethnology,
a most creditable publication which is issued
monthly by the institution. under the direct super
vision of Lie Garcia. In speaking of the founda-
tion of the museum which he has brought up to
such creditabe standard, Lie. Garcia says:
Under the Spanish domination there existed
only small collection of antiquities in Mexico
consisting, for the greater part, of the codexes
and native manuscripts which a cavalier of Milan,
Italy, Don Lorenzo de Boturini Benaduci, Senor
de la Tore Homo, had been able to collect, at
the cost of unheard-of sacrifices, and which were
confscated In the most unjust manner by the
vice-regal government in 1743. These antiquities
were first kept in the Office of the viceroys secre-
tary and afterward in the library of the Royal
and Pontifcal University Of Mexico, where they
were taken by order of His EXcellency Antonio
Maria de Bucareli Ursua vceroy of New Spain.
In one and another place they were greatly dam
aged by neglect humidity, rats and thefts.
Upon the consummation of Mexic0's indepen-
dence the national government not only directed
that the existing antiquities be kept at the same
university but assigned in addition, the sum of
81 S92 real and "grano" for the salaries of a
IF
expenses OF the garden
When this appropriation made the gov
ernment did not as yet have in mind the establish
ment of a national museum which, according to
Gen. Lucas Alaman, then secretary OF state and
foreign relations In a memorial presented to con
gress on January II, 1925, was to be a matter for
the future Notwithstanding all this, Don Sebas
tian Camacho successor to General Alaman, an
nounced to congress during the latter part OF the
same year that the National museum had been
established under the most happy auspices, with
a keeper intrusted with It's arrangement, safety
and development" and with many projects fol-
scientific trips discoveries, excavations, and
other operations" which were never made. The
museum. therefore. had no other end than thai
of the conservation of few antiquities unclas
sifed and in generally bad shape.
The museum proper had It's birth by virtue o.
the decree of November 81, which ordered its for
NAL creation and its division into three branches
-antiuiities, products Of natural history and In
dustry, and botanical garden
The chief executive of the republic proceeded
AZ once to the organization of the museum In ac
cordance with the foregoing decree, and appointed
as members of the directive board Messrs. Pab
de la Lave Isidro Ignacio lcaza, Miguel Busta
u.ante. Jose Mariana Sanchez Mora, lsnacio Gu