Page:Vol 4 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/511



The feeling in New Spain at the appointment of Calleja was by no means of unmixed delight. Spaniards naturally welcomed one from whose proved skill, energy, and experience they hoped to reach a speedy conclusion of the protracted civil war and attendant disorders, and the inhabitants of the capital could not object to a man whose fondness for ostentation promised to sustain the splendor of the court and the allurements of the metropolis. Society spoke of him besides as elegant in manners, with a conversation that revealed both wide reading and taste. Here the praise stopped, however, for there was something strongly repelling in his haughty disposition and sinister aspect, stamped by cold calculation and vindictiveness. Much of this was due to a bilious temperament, reflected also in his jaundiced complexion and cat-like face, with its greenish eyes and lowering glances.