The Canon City record with which is consolidated the Canon City cannon., 1916-07-06
MEXICO
PROMINENT FACTS ANO DATES I'M rs HETORY---BYGU U. H.


make the life Of Capt. Kidd pale into
Sunday School paper story by COM
parison, read simply a good history
of Mexico. Frescott's is the best. per-
haps, but it is long. Any little his
tory of Medco will interest you, if
you like adventure, romance, conquest.
brigandage. pillage. revolutions and
the many little thrills that go there
with
Some fiction reads like history. But
the history of Mexico reads like fic-
tion-fiction with a punch from its
first page and rapid action all the way
thru like good modern-day motion
picture stuff.
All his tory has wars and conquests
and ira ged es and nerve thrillers,
but even so, the history of Old Mexi-
CO, from start to finish. will make the
histories of the United States or of
Canada ever afterwards read like a
last years copy of the Christian Sci
ence Monitor.
But read it for yourself. Ny pur-
pose in this little story is not to give
you much history. but merely few
prominent facts and dates to help you
to letter understand Mexico and the
news of the day.
In ancient times the Aztecs, the lead
ing tribe of Mexico. had tradition
that a sign would be given them
when and where to build the govern
ment capitol. This sign WIS to be
the finding of an eagle sitting on a
cactus eating a snake. 1t seems that
that is not common place for an
past.
Anyway in 1925 the eagle was found
eating a snake while resting on cac-
tus shallow Lake of Tezcoco. And
here and then the City of Mexico
was founded.
The new capitol grew rapidly in
size and importance. 1t assumed
large proro tons under Aztec rule.
When Cortez and the Spanish came,
nearly 200 years later, the City of
Mexico. known then by an unpro-
nounceable name, however, was a city
of $4,000 or 10000 houses and pop
ulation estimated at 100000. The pop
ulation today is about the same as it
was 400 years ago.
The people were ruled by cruel
monarch and cruel priesthood.
They were little better perhaps than
the slaves they became under Span
ish rule.
Cortez came in 1919. After two
years of demon-like fighting and whole
sale slaughter he conquered the city
in 1921.
Cortez set up. new temples, changed
the order of priesthood. Christianized
the people with the sword. and he
and succeeding Spanish governors
merely proved to be a change in mas
ters to the enslaved people. History
recites that "the people we're Chris
tianized that they might be worked in
the mines"
For three hundred years the Span
ish ruled and mined and sent the
spoils to Spain. The cross became
a common sight in Mexico. Churches
were erected everywhere. The COVER
nors and the priests were richly sup
ported. The condition and servitude
of the people remained about the
same. The complexion of the peo-
ple-of great proportion of the peo-
ple-became a few shades lighter as
the centuries rolled by, and the Mexi-
can came into existence.
After three hundred years of Span
ish tyrrany the politicians of Mexico
arose and threw of the Spanish yoke,
and the people had new set Of mas
ters,- not much unlike the former,
perhaps, but a shade darker in COM
plexion. The new rulers were Mexi-
cans-military politicians.
Mexico became an independent ma
ton in 1921 with Iturbide as emperor.
His reign did not last long, however,
as the politicians soon decided to
change the form of government to a
republic and Emperor Iturbide was
taken out and shot, to remove all
future objection on his part.
This was the starting of the habit
of frequent changes in the form of
governments in Mexico. and that pre-
cedent in manner of removing the
chief executive has been followed of
ten since.
From 1921 to 1851 years, the
form of government was changed ten
times; fifty different presidents or