Page:Our Sister Republic - Mexico.djvu/74

68 and change the entire system to that of New-York which they highly approve.

At 2, of our last day in Colima, the party repaired to an old Spanish church to assist at the christening of the two youngest children of Consul Morrill. Mr. Seward, the elder, acted with Mr. Buckley as godfathers for one, and Mr. Fred Seward, wife, and Mr. Buckley, as godfathers and godmother for the other The ceremony was soon over, and as we reached the portal, there came a rush of men, woman and children of the poorer class to receive bright, clean rials called "bolos" as mementoes of the christening. The term comes from the response of the godfather during the ceremony "Yo bolo!" (I consent!) It is the custom for each of the godfathers and godmothers to give every person present a bolo, and it took about a quart to go around. Then, at the residence of Senor Huarte, trays filled with these pieces —twelve and a-half cents each—punched and adorned with red, green and white ribbons, were brought out, and were presented by the "Compadres," to each of the army of servants and children in the place. It is an odd and peculiar custom.

Having been left out in the cold, as it were, personally at the christening, I got even by distributing some dollars worth of American dimes among the highly appreciative audience, on behalf of the next candidate for ordinance, whether it should be a girl or boy, Mr. Buckley kindly promising to act as my proxy at the ceremony, as a few thousand miles, more or less, would be pretty certain to intervene between us before that interesting event could take place.

On the afternon of Wednesday the 13th of October Colonel Sabas Lomeli, commander of the State Guard