and peace in this district, I beg you to exert your good influence with the government of Puebla, to have Mr. Acevedo return to his post, and to have Mr. Ramon Vargas the present Judge, and also Mr. Sodronio Primo, stay in their positions. The presence of Mr. Felipe Ramirez, who still pretends to occupy the position of Judge in this District, is very harmful to public interests, as is also the presence of the Pinto brothers, so that although I harbor no feelings of personal enmity towards them for I do not know them except from hearsay, I beg to suggest the advantage of their being removed from this locality, in whatever way you may deem most appropriate. Kindly forgive the length of this letter, but I feel justified in giving you all these details, for the sake of the preservation of peace in this region, which has some importance due to its relations to Puebla and Mexico. Thanking you in advance for whatever you may deem fit to do in the interests of the honest citizens who have given me the above information, and which I transmit to you confidentially, I beg to remain, Very respy etc., etc., From Archbishop Mora to Urrutia. EULOGIO G. GILLOW, Mexico, July 12th, 1913. To the Minister of the Interior, Dr. Aureliano Urrutia, Present. You have said to me more than once, "Profit by the present times. Noone will give you more than ourselves" which to me signifies your good will towards the church. Therefore, counting on it, I beg to put before you, for your consideration, the following: 1. Violating the laws of disentailment, the Archbishop of Mexico was deprived of his palace in this capital, and same has not been put to any use for government offices. Could you not see that it was given back to me, so I could repair it and occupy it and then leave it to my successors? If this could be done, he whose servants we are would take account of your good action, and we would all be very grateful to you. I do not think this is an impossibility. 2. It also has occured to me that the Government might make to the Cathedral some restitution for which, even accepting the new laws as just, should have been respected and left, such as: Cash, sacred vases, such as chalices, shrines, lamps, articles of silver, jewels, all of which was taken from the cathedral. The cathedral was also deprived of the Seminary next door, and the houses of the chaplains, all of which is excepted in the laws of disentailment. All this amounts to a big sum, for in only gold chalices, there were eighteen lost. How is this to be repaid? I have an idea, which is: The expenses of the church, salary per month of the Archbishop, chaplains and priests, sacristains, amount annually to about Sixty Thousand Dollars. And you need not believe that the salaries are high, for the Archbishop has a salary of only $750 per month, and with this sum he has to attend the victualling, dress, servants, household expenses and alms, of which he has many as all the poor of the city go to him for help. The canons have a salary of $120 monthly, and the chaplains of the choir from $30 to $40. So that as you can well figure out, their living has to be very modest, for out of these salaries they have to pay house rent, food and dress. What is left out of the $60,000 mentioned, after paying expenses, is used for repairs to the house and ornaments. At present, we have a deficit every year, which deficit we of course try to keep as low as possible. The parishioners contributions, which is the only thing we can count on towards the support of the church, diminishes every year. and nothing else will be re-establishment of the Con reform of the division and the political organization of the states, is absolutely necessary. It will be said to you, military gentlemen, that In consideration of all the above, the Government could do us a great favor, by giving us a capital which should produce enough to be able to keep what we have now. This capital should be of ONE MILLION DOLLARS, and this would be less, much less than (even admitting the laws which at that time deprived the church of its property), was taken unjustly away from the Church. This capital could be handed over to the church in parts, from economies made on certain expenses, and the money could be put into shares, bonuses, etc., etc. This would enable the Cathedral to be better attended to, making the necessary reparations, and decorating it conveniently. Think this over well, my dear Minister, and act according to the dictates of your good heart of Christian and patriot, and we shall be pleased to call you our Great Benefactor. With all due respect, I remain, etc., etc., JOSE, Archbishop of Mexico. LETTER from the ARCHBISHOP of PUEBLA to URRUTIA. Puebla, July 12th, 1913. To his Honor Minister URRUTIA, Very Esteemed Sir: Your favor of the 9th inst. duly to hand and in reply I beg to say that I shall be very pleased to assist you by working along the lines suggested by you. I shall only wait now until I hear from Mr. Gillow so that we may come to an understanding on a matter as delicate and important as the one in question. May the Lord bless you in all your undertakings, and I beg to remain as always at your service. Very respectfully, etc., etc., RAMON, Archbishop of Puebla. LETTER from the ARCHBISHOP of OAXACA, to DR. URRUTIA. My Esteemed Friend: Oaxaca, July 24th, 1913. In view of the benevolence which you have always shown towards me, I now beg to address you regarding a subject which I consider of the utmost importance. Although it does not regard the department in your charge directly, it is nevertheless closely connected with it, and is a matter of universal importance to the republic. Before granting concessions for the international and inter-oceanic railways, General Porfirio Diaz organized a commission, consisting of a lawyer, an engineer and myself, to study and report on the already mentioned concessions which meant so much to the country. During two months I gave myself up to the study of this question, and the Commission presented eighteen reports embracing the different points of the subject, including a special statement by me, as I did not agree with the two others on certain points which I considered essential, and because I was of the opinion that a big reduction could be made in the subventions demanded by the grantees. Time has proved that my ideas were correct, relative to the delay in the construction of the interoceanic roads, and as to the advisability of building a broad-gauge railway from Mexico to Laredo right from the start. At that time, the Tehuantepec Railroad did not have the importance that it has now, and the Commission did not give any consideration to that point, taking it for granted that later on the interests of the nation would take up the question of connections with the Isthmus and the extension south to Guatemala, which would put us in communication with Central and South America. Just now, I cannot get it out of my mind, that of all the R. R. that are being planned for the republic, there are two lines which shoulld have the preference, because they will be of the greatest importance in the future and because they complete our railway system across the country. I refer to the prolongation of the Oaxaca R. R. to Tehuantepec, and which, starting from the Isthmus R. R. would connect us with the different states of the Yucatan peninsula. I understand that this concession has already been granted, and that the plans were being made ready when the revolution started. The prolongation of the R. R. to Oaxaca or rather to Tlacolula, as the track is already laid up to that city, is that to which I wish to call your best attention, and also that of the President of the Republic. At present, to communicate from Mexico to Tehuantepec, the Government has to make use of three different railways: the Mexican RY up to Córdoba, the Vera Cruz Pacific up to Sta. Lucrecia, and the Interoceanic of the Isthmus. For any military mobilization, the inconvenience and delay occasioned by this system is evident, and, should one of these three lines be cut by the revolutionists, the Government would have no communication with the Tehuantepec and PanAmerican R. R.-which connects us with Guatemala. This proves the necessity of completing as soon as possible, the line from Mexico to Tehuantepec, via Puebla and Oaxaca, which line, though not the shortest, at least has not the inconvenience of the steep ascent and decline of the summits of Maltrata, but which instead, descends gradually from Puebla to the coast. The Isthmus of Tehuantepec has without doubt, a great future ahead, for it is, using Baron Humboldt's_expression, "the bridge of the universe" connecting on one side, Asia and Europe, and on the other North and South America. If it is true that the Isthmus of Panama is to give us a route by water, without having to trans-ship merchandise, one must not lose sight of the fact of the increased distance by water, between New York and San Francisco, and at the same time the inconvenience of passing the locks and the charges for same. Whereas, the Tehuantepec R. R. has already sufficient traffic assured to guarantee its existence, and the cost of transshipment can therefore be reduced to a minimum. The prolongation of this Railroad regards closely the department of Secretary of the Interior, for in time of revolution this would give them a firmer hold on-the State of Oaxaca. Lately it has been seen how, once the Southern Mexican cut, we have been without communications with Central Mexico for a long time, whereas, if the prolongation referred to existed, going round by that way to Tehuantepec, the State would be better off and the Federal Government would have the necessary means to successfully fight a rebellion. This is of greater importance in a state like Oaxaca, because it is so mountainous and because it has an outlet to both oceans, the Gulf and the Pacific. To finish herewith, I am greatly interested in the construction of the prolongation in question for the advantage of the people of my diocese. I have travelled through the state twice and I can assert that it is one of the richest in the republic, for its mining as well as for its agricultural products, but I consider it poor in spite of its having one million inhabitants because it lacks rapid and economical ways of communication. While waiting for the construction of railways along the Pacific coast and the coast of Tuxtepec to this capital, it is necessary to construct at least a central line which will traverse the State up to Tehuantepec. These valleys which surround the capital have an exuberance of inhabitants, and the products of their lands are hardly sufficient to supply their own needs. This explains the general poverty existing, there being no exports, and it is also explained by the emigration of oaxaquenos to other states, it having been calculated that only in Mexico City there are more than three thousand oaxa and nothing else will be re-establishment of the Con reform of the division and the political organization of the states, is absolutely necessary. It will be said to you, military gentlemen, that quenos, who would surely come back to their native state, could they make their living there. I hope you will excuse my having occupied your time with such a lengthy letter. I have read in the papers that the Government was negotiating the construction of some railways, I have thought it right to call your attention to the above, so that if possible, you might give them the preference. With the assurance of my profound respect, I beg to remain, Very truly yours, etc., EULOGIO G. GILLOW, LETTER from DR. URRUTIA to the ARCHBISHOP of Oaxaca. Very Illustrious Sir: August 2d, 1913. Your favor of July 24th received and I have read it over with great attention, and considering your suggestion relative to the construction of a Railroad from Oaxaca to Tehuantepec, of great importance, not only from the military point of view, but also for the convenience of the public in general, I shall take an interest and see that your suggestion is carried out as soon as circumstances permit, which I trust will be very soon, for we have good reasons to believe that peace will soon be established all throughout the republic. I beg to reiterate my appreciation and respects. URRUTIA. LETTER OF THE ARCHBISHOP of MICHOACAN to Minister URRUTIA. My dear Compadre: September 11th, 1913. The timely measures taken by you saved this city from being ravaged by the rebel gangs which have been concentrating in these localities to the number of over a thousand strong, but now, I think I can assure you that if the detachment which has just arrived, pursues them, this part of the State will soon be pacified. The principal object of this letter is to ask you to relieve me of a great anxiety under which I am laboring, and which has been caused by the aggressive and almost scandalous attitude taken in public by Mr. Calero and a small group of porristas, against your good self. I can well see that their object is to tarnish the glory which you have so justly won, and to alienate your adherents all over the Republic. But they will not accomplish anything, because all the sensible men know full well the envy and intrigues that animate these degraded people. Although I am at ease on that score, my profound sympathy and affection for you make me fear that these men's intrigues might put obstacles on the path that Our Lord and His Blessed Mother have put before you to climb to the culminating position of Chief Executive of the Republic, which position will require of you the greatest sacrifice, but will at the same time lay before you a vast field in which to exercise your activity for the glory and honor of God, and for the benefit of our beloved country. In the meantime I beg of you to tell me confidentially if this threat of Calero is to be feared, or whether you think it will be easy for you to humiliate the efforts of these upstarts. Your compadre, etc., JENARO MENDEZ. |