Page:Vol 2 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/779

Rh, established by the first viceroy, and which had been closed. This gave employment to hundreds of idle persons, and the benefits flowing from this industry were soon felt throughout the country. The consumers paid less for the home-made article, and the money remained in the country.

Then he thought it would be well to beautify the capital, one of the results of which was the alameda, for centuries the favorite resort of all classes in search of relaxation and recreation, and remaining such to-day, a beautiful certificate to the taste and liberality of this ruler. The city now contained about three thousand Spanish families, besides a numerous Indian and mixed population. During the successive decades it had slowly unfolded into magnificent proportions from the ruins of old Tenochtitlan. There were broad streets bordered by fine dwellings, with here and there temples and public buildings presenting a yet more imposing aspect.

Velasco also put laborers at work to strengthen the fortifications at San Juan de Ulua, and to erect new forts for the better protection of the harbor and approaches to Vera Cruz. This was but a preliminary step to the transfer of the city itself, in 1599, to its immediate vicinity, upon the very site where Cortés had nominally founded Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz four-score years before. The transfer had been several times recommended, owing to the unhealthiness of the site, its inconvenience for trade, and its exposure to floods and attacks. Few people indeed lived there