Page:Vol 5 History of Mexico by H H Bancroft.djvu/657

Rh his moral energy and determination presented the only formidable check to the ambitious designs of the dictator, and reminded him of his obligations to those who had installed him. The restraint was further loosened by the demise shortly after of J. M. Tornel y Mendibil, the war minister, a man of erudition and experience; and although a devoted Santanist, he was swayed to some extent by federalist ideas. And now Santa Anna gave freer reins to his actions, with the coöperation of more pliant ministerial creatures, headed by Diez y Bonilla. He moved to Tacubaya immediately after Alaman's death, and lived there in regal state, with imposing pageantry and guards of honor in glittering uniforms. The palace, with its dazzling interior of tapestried and mirrored walls, costly furniture and statuary, and alcoves decked in choice flowers, became the frequent scene of balls and soirées; and here congregated the beauty, wealth, and influence of the country, forming a veritable court of sycophants and hangers-on, bending to his every whim.

It pleased him, this homage, and he deigned to recognize it by exerting his sovereign powers to adorn his courtiers with a fringe of nobility. He restored the Guadalupe order of Iturbide's ephemeral empire, an act explained to boorish republicans as required to perpetuate the glories of the independence, to reward