Page:Vol 3 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/501

Rh Another source of dissatisfaction among the officials of the capital was the viceroy's order that a letterbox should be placed in one of the halls of the palace, into which any person having cause for grievance might deposit a written statement of the facts for his information. He knew well that the complaints of the people seldom came to the ears of the ruler, and that the abuses committed by those who surrounded him, were carefully concealed by the courtiers whose interest it was to represent everything in the most favorable light for themselves. This matter exposed the viceroy to insult through anonymous communications, and many an honest official was wrongfully accused by some hidden foe. This, however, Revilla Gigedo had undoubtedly anticipated. Wise enough to disregard vilifications of this kind, he received, on the other hand, many important suggestions from well meaning and loyal citizens, who denounced actual abuses, and disclosed the true state of affairs in the kingdom. The secret information no doubt enabled him to inaugurate many useful measures, of which the instructions to his successor give ample proof, and which otherwise might not have been suggested. The officials, however, who were thus attacked from an unknown quarter, and often with sufficient cause, continued loud in their denunciation of the practice, as directly favoring a system of espionage unworthy of the high station and dignity of a viceroy. Though it may have been a dangerous practice, Revilla Gigedo made good use of it.

The dispositions of the viceroy made necessary a change in the system of arranging, classifying, and preserving official documents, which had received little or no attention on the part of his predecessors, the secretaries generally using their own judgment