MEXICO AS AN ALLY

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 65, Issue 5493, 3 July 1942, Page 4

MEXICO AS AN ALLY

STRUGGLES FOR LIBERTY BATTLEFIELDS AND BARRICADES

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S.K.)

The recent declaration of war against the Axis Powers made by the President of Mexico may well bring a sense of unity to a nation sorely disunited in times past. Throughout an etxended period internal crises and political and financial depressions formed the normal course of life. Prosperity existed only for the chosen few. To-day Mexicans—rich and poor, natives, half-castes, and those of pure European origin—are following in the path of Benito Juarez, the great President of the United States of Mexico, a Sincere friend of North America, admirer of President Lincoln, and a devoted Pan-American. Francisco Madero, a revolutionary leader, was also an idealistic dreamer who fought against President Diaz in 1910, and gained power, but was not strong enough to maintain order and accomplish his reforms. His “ dream Mexico ” of equal rights, liberty, and justice may yet, however, come true. AN OLD-TIME FLAVOUR Pnuebla, “ The City of Angels,” one of the oldest and most famous cities in Old Mexico, is a wonderful place. In its well-built, tidy houses and clean streets there is no dust, such as abounds down on the Mexican plains. Andalusian architecture ornamented with Moorish tiles gives a flavour of the days of old to visitors of cultural and historical taste. Puebla, like so many other places in Mexico, is the city of churches—sixty of them—-and a magnificent cathedral, notable for its marqueterie and for pictures asscribed to Murillo and Velasquez. It is possible to travel by tram eight miles to Cholula, where there is the Pyramid of Quetzatcoatl, used in bygone days by the Aztecs for their human sacrifices. Pyramids are one of the main and most exotic features of the Mexican countryside. The twin volcanoes, Popocatepetl and Ixtaccinuatl, are to the west, but do not give much trouble. From Puebla a scenic road leads to Mexico City, 80 miles away, and stream-lined cars dash along it in great numbers. Even recently it was by no means easy to procure a visa to Mexico. First of all an identification card had to be obtained at the Mexican consular office, then finger-prints were taken; eight photographs were necessary, five full face and three profile. On top of that a vaccination certificate had to be obtained. When entering the country 50 dollars in Mexican currency, approximately £A4O, was required as a deposit and surety that the visitor would leave the country within six months.

Mexico City, the capital and commercial centre of the republic, lies 7434 feet above sea level, and has a population of 1,220,000. Contrary to South American capitals, there are hardly any tall buildings. Three and four-story houses are predominant all over the city. “ It is peculiar that you have so few sky-scrapers, while in Buenos Aires and Rio de Janiero there are so many,” it was observed. “ We could build plenty,” said the guide, “but it is very difficult. The whole city is built where swamps once were, and all the great and heavy buildings are gradually sinking into the ground.” The guide was a Mestizo with a very definite political opinion and extreme class consciousness. These half-castes tend much more toward the Indians than the Spanish. This is exceptional, for as a rule in the Dutch East Indies and in British India people who are a mixture of coloured and white races have only, one ambition, namely, to become fullyfledged Europeans. In Mexico it is different. The population, according to the latest census, was 18,513,870, out of which 60 per cent are of mixed races, 30 per cent of pure native blood, and only 10 per cent of white origin, mostly Spanish. There are approximately 160,000 foreign residents 13,000 Americans, about the same number of British, 7000 Germans, 5000 French, and 5000 Italians. PEACEFUL BUT IMPULSIVE

Mexicans in their wide-brimmed hats and shabby clothes, which are partly covered with a coloured sash, are peaceful and seemingly lazy human beings on the surface. But the moment politics are discussed they transform into fiery, agitated, and impulsive people. It is not only financial depressions and the questions of liberty that throw the people into violent struggles, but their temperament-

Mexico owes its name to the Aztec tribes, the Mexicans, who occupied the tableland and whose war god was Mexictli. In the mindfc of the people the age-old traditions, no matter how much the blood of the original inhabitants has mixed with the conqueror, still live. The country itself blends perfectly with the population. Mexico is the Egypt of the Americas. In Mexico City the hustle and bustle of daily traffic changes in the even-

ing to a gay and careless night life, when cabarets and hotels open their doors to give exotic entertainments. Theatres like the Palacio de Belles Artes, Arbeu, Ideal, Hidalgo, etc., provide the cultural background of the people. If you say “ theatre ” instead of “ cinema,” your Mexican friend will be highly offended if he belongs to the “cultural lot.” “Nd,” they say, “we have picture houses and theatres.” They are extremely proud of that, just as they are of their Spanish, which is the purest and most literary in the whole of America.

But real Mexico can be seen only in the countryside. In Michoacan one may watch the Tarascan potters devoted to their work to such an extent that they will ply their hereditary trade only on the feast days of St. Ursula and St. Martin. In Guerrero the ancient art of lacquering wooden bowls is revived, and the makers consider it a matter of honour to their trade not to manufacture two alike. In Oaxaca the Zapotec Indians weave fantastic toys of grass, and for amusement engage in tribal dances; the girls, splendidly built, bare-foot-ed, in brightly coloured skirts and ribbons and long lace petticoats; the men, all in white, with gay handkerchiefs, dance opposite them, with hands behind their backs. In all these dances the man hardly makes any movement, while the girl excitedly follows the rhythm of the strange and erratic music. Wine and dance in the world of Latin America seem indispensable. But the Mexico wine is expensive and the population substitutes beer.

The country is rich in natural resources. Her 10,000,000 head of cattle, 2,000,000 horses, 3,600,000 sheep, and 20,100,000 poultry indicate the wealth of the Mexican soil. Silver, gold, copper, and oil will be on Mexico’s behalf a valuable contribution toward the war effort of the United Nations. The investment of British capital, in Mexico is estimated at £179,645,905, while that of the United States is over 700,000,000 dollars. Practically every important industrial enterprise, including train lines, is in Anglo-Am-erican hands. During peace-time the Mexican army consisted of about 50,000 men, but this number has been gradually increased since the outbreak of the European war.