s and Development of Mexico. San Francisco. 1893.

Baianconi, Le Mexique. Paris. 1899.

Brocklehurst, Mexico To-day. London. 1883.

Chevalier, Le Mexique Ancien et Moderne. Paris. 1886.

Congling, Mexico and the Mexicans. New York. 1883.

Garcia, Mexico, &c. Mexico. 1893.

Lummis, The Awakening of a Nation. New York. 1893.

Ober, Travels in Mexico. Boston. 1884.

Martin, Mexico of the Twentieth Century. London. 1908.

Gadow, Travels in Southern Mexico. London. 1908.

Tweedie, Mexico as I Saw It. London. 190?

Tweedie. Porfirio Diaz. London. 1905.

A. H. Noll. A Short History of Mexico. Chicago. 1903.

Romero, Mexico and the United States. New York. 1898.

Statesman's Year-book. London.

Camp Fires on Desert and Lava. Hornaday. London. 1909.

And numerous others in French, German, and English, including various
guide-books and pamphlets, scientific and otherwise.

The Mexican Year-book, London, 1908, is published by McCorquodale & Co.
The work is written under the auspices of the Mexican Government. It is
full of statistics and information, and forms a very useful work of
reference.

_Modern Mexico_, a monthly illustrated paper of high-class, issued in
Mexico and St. Louis.

_The Mexican Herald_, a daily paper published in English in Mexico, is
an excellent journal of current events.

INTRODUCTION

"From what I have seen and heard concerning the similarity between this
country and Spain, its fertility, its extent, its climate, and in many
other features of it, it seemed to me that the most suitable name for
this country would be New Spain, and thus, in the name of your Majesty,
I have christened it. I humbly supplicate your Majesty to approve of
this and order that it be so called." Thus wrote Hernan Cortes, the
greatest natural leader of men since Julius Caesar, to the sovereign
whom he endowed, as he subsequently told him bitterly, with provinces
more numerous than the cities he had inherited from his forefathers.
From the first appearance of the Spaniards upon the vast elevated
plateau upon which the Aztec empire stood the invaders were struck by
its resemblance in climate and natural products to their European
homeland. In his first letter to the Emperor Cortes wrote: "The sea
coast is low, with many sandhills.... The country beyond these
sandhills is level with many fertile plains, in which are such
beautiful river banks that in all Spain there can be found no better.
These are as