WHAT MEXICO HAS DONE—REVIEW OF HER CONDUCT AND CHARACTER.—MEXICAN OPINIONS—CLASSES—INDIANS—MESTIZOS—WHITES—ARMY—CHURCH.—DIVISIONS OF WHITES—WANT OF HOMOGENEOUSNESS.—WANT OF NATIONALITY AND OF A PEOPLE—REMEDIES—EMIGRATION—RELIGIOUS LIBERTY—POLITICAL ORDER—LABOR.
EVERY reader who has accompanied us thus far in studying the history, geography, resources, and character of Mexico, will scarcely require to be told why it is that the nation has continued disorganized and become impoverished in the midst of such abundance as has been lavished upon it by the beneficence of God. At the conclusion of our chapter upon the commerce of Mexico we described the remarkable geographical position of the territory, and have shown that, by the laws of nature, it ought to enjoy a controlling influence in the affairs of the world. And yet almost three centuries and a half have rolled over since Cortéz planted the Spanish banner on the palaces of Tenochtitlan, and still the question may be asked whether the region is more progressive under republican and royal rule than under Aztec sway? The world has advanced in commerce, manufactures, science, literature and arts, but Mexico has remained comparatively fixed in the midst of a stagnant semi-civilization. She has not exhibited a true warlike character either in her domestic broils or in her opposition to a foreign invader, though her soil has been converted into a camp for nearly forty years. She has confessed her manifold errors