Page:American Historical Review, Volume 12.djvu/417

 Sierra : Mexico : its Social Evolution 407 also been published in its completed form in French as well as in English. The original publication in Spanish was by installments, and though bearing date of 1900. its last entrcga was not finished and its bound volumes did not appear till 1905. The work was designed to commemo- rate, at the beginning of the twentieth century, the progress achieved by Mexico in the latter part of the nineteenth century, and its collaborators are men of politics or science who have been actively identified with this social and governmental progress, under the direction of Don Justo Sierra, formerly an under-secretary, now a minister of the Diaz cabinet, as head of the new Department of Education and Fine Arts. The subtitle sets forth the ambitious and comprehensive character of the work : " Synthesis of the political history, administration, military organisation and economical state of the Mexican Confederation, its advancements in the intellectual sphere, its territorial structure, growth of its population, means of communication both national and interna- tional, its achievements in the fields of industry, agriculture, mining, commerce, etc., etc." This implies a survey in each of these lines reach- ing back over the colonial period, and, so far as data are afforded, into the prehistoric period. As in all such works of collaboration, consider- able duplication is unavoidable, but each subject is thus treated from its own point of view. Practically all this work is historical in its scope, even where science, education, literature, trade and commerce, agriculture, etc., are treated, because of the method adopted of making a historical survey under each heading. The first volume of Tomo I., however, is largely occupied with what is called the " Political History " of Mexico. The section upon " Aboriginal Civilisations " is naturally more a scientific survey than political history proper. The colonial period and wars of independence are treated under one heading, and " The Republic " is a subject-heading whereunder the periods are treated as follows: (a) Anarchy, 1825-1848, (b) The Reform, 1848-1867. These classifications of recent Mexican history are necessarily somewhat arbitrary, and, as will occur to one noting the dates, the events prior to, during, and since the French inter- vention are naturally interpreted "from the viewpoint of ^Mexican Liber- alism. However, it is noteworthy that the day of rancorous partizan spirit has in large degree passed in Mexico, and the progressive Liberal historian of to-day is, if not ideally impartial in his interpretation of his country's history, at any rate not spiteful in his characterization of per- sons or measures of the old-time " opposition ". Finally, " The Present Era " is reviewed, in its political history, at the very end of the work, thus completing this survey to 1900. Neces- sarily, however, the other portions of the work (the army, science, edu- cation, literature, municipal organization and government, penal and charitable institutions, fundamental law and procedure, agriculture, mining, industry, trade, communications and public works, and finances) deal very largely with the accomplishments of the Diaz regime. And if