The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1915-07-03

Porfrio Diaz was president of Mex
leo from 1873 to 1911 except between
1880 and 1884, when Gen. Gonzales
ruled His power was unquestioned
and unimpaired until the successful
Madero revolution of 1911 which ex-
lied him.
With the cries of the Mexican mob
rising to the windows of the palace
the aged dictator superintendent the
packing of the few possessions he
could take; with him and after two
days of rioting dashed for the rail
road station and took train for Vera
Cruz. After a perilous ride he ar
rived at the seaport.
Flowers were strewn in his path
as he walked between rows of bayo-
nets of his guard to the steamer
Ypiranga. 1t was on May 81, 1911
that he sailed never to return.
Diaz went to Havana first, his fam
lily accompanying him, and there took
ship for England. He journeyed
through France, Spain, Italy and up
the Nile and then returned to Paris,
where he spent most of his last days.
1t was reported from time to
time that he would return to Mexico,
that offers of an army command had
been made to him and that many felt
he was the only one who could re
| unite the battling factions under an
iron rule, but the reports never ma
terialized
1t has been reported several times
recently that he was i'll and once that
| he had died. Before he left Mexico
| he was a sufferer from arterio scle-
rosis and gave evidences on his fight
of being broken down physically
A Soldier by Circumstances.
Diaz was born Sept IA, 1880, in a
little inn at Oaxaca, Mexico He was
intended for the church, bat his
early inclinations turned him to the
law. The condition of affairs in Mex
leo made it inevitable that he should
become a soldier
The first 80 years of his manhood
were spent in almost continuous fight
ing, the remaining years in construc,
tive craftsmanship whose stern meas
ures for the upbuilding of Mexico won
the respect and confidence of the
world
Diaz was of mixed blood His ia
Their, Jose de Ia Cruz Diaz. was of
full Spanish blood, while his mother
was the daughter of Mariana Mori,
of pure Andalusian strain, who mar
rled Maria Tecla Cortes, an Indian
girl of the Mixteco race Diaz was
therefore one-fourth Indian and three
fourths white
When he was Is Diaz met Juarez.
the great Indian, who was later to
be president of the republic. ,Juarez
made deep impression on the bow,
who soon after turned from divinity
to the law and entered the Institute
of Arts and Sciences, where he studied
for five years. During this time Diaz
was supporting himself and helping
his family by teaching and doing cler-
zeal work
After Juarez was elected president
but Gen. Zuloaga was declared Presi-
dent Diaz fought for Juarez, and was
raised to the rank of lieutenant col
onel He was then % years old. The
revolution was beaten down and
Juarez firmly seated as President. Col
Diaz subsequently was twice elected
to represent Ixtlan in the Mexican
congress-
The Macmillan Campaigns.
When Napoleon III made his at
tempt to establish an empire in Mex
leo with the Austrian Archduke Max
imilian at its head, Diaz, after taking
part in the famous battle of the Fifth
of May 1862), in which the French
lost 1000 men, was made military
commander of the state of Vera Cruz.
where the French army had establish
ed itself. Gen. Diaz, not yet 32,
found himself in command of the
Second Brigade of the forces facing
the French General Forey and 10000
crack troops.
In the long drawn out fighting at
Puebla Diaz distinguished himself
again and again for personal bravery
and military intelligence. He was
made a brigadier- general in the per-
manent army in recognition of his
gallantry at the Santa Ines fight He
was taken prisoner when the Mexi-
can forces were defeated and scatter