Page:Vol 4 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/91

Rh During the first six months of Garibay's rule no formal recognition of the Spanish juntas had been made. The decrees of the junta de Sevilla had been published and acted upon, but no oath of allegiance to it as representative of the king was ever taken. After the defeat of the French at Baylen, by Castaños, and their evacuation of Madrid, the juntas of the different provinces came to an understanding, and, the suprema junta central was installed at Aranjuez on the 25th of September 1808. In March 1809 its authority was recognized in Mexico, and the viceroy, audiencia, municipality, and tribunals took the oath of allegiance. The occasion was celebrated with salvoes of artillery and illuminations.

The mental and physical incompetency of Garibay, who possessed neither bodily activity nor intellectual vigor, soon made it apparent to the Yermo party that the political situation was daily becoming critical. Under the misrule of the oidores they observed that revolutionary principles were spreading instead of being suppressed, and there were those who foresaw the coming struggle. Warnings were whispered to the oidores, but passed unheeded, and the party which had overthrown Iturrigaray represented the true state of affairs to the junta central, urging the appointment of an able and energetic viceroy without delay. By such a measure only could the tranquillity of the country be maintained. The Spanish junta accordingly