Page:Vol 5 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/303

Rh of the republic, especially in the central part bordering on the southern range of the valley of Mexico. Xochimilco suffered extremely, and in the capital a number of buildings were ruined, involving also several lives.

All these circumstances added fuel to party spirit, now stirred also by approaching elections. Federalists and Santanistas grew vociferous, and even the persecuted monarchists ventured to wag their tongues, under the protecting folds of clerical gowns, and partly by virtue of the government's invitation to send in suggestions for constitutional reforms, a task which now mainly occupied the attention of the chambers, as required by the late revolution. The chief projects were those from the assemblies, and as these existed in virtue of the actual centralist constitution, it may be seen that the demand for a federal organic law could not prove overwhelming. The proposal to change the system was therefore rejected, partly also on the ground that a new appeal to the nation might place the issue at the mercy of army and mob leaders, with perhaps another dictator. The Santanistas had been watching the progress of the