Excerpt from Recollections of Mexico It is equally true of nations as of individuals, that those who are not entirely assured Of a well-established and unquestioned position, are peculiarly sensitive to criticism, however kindly meant or respectfully expressed. Of no people in the world is this more true than of the Mexicans. They understand perfectly their true position in the estima tion of the world, notwithstanding their characteristic vaunting and gasconade. I think that it is generally true that men are most apt to boast of qualities which they are conscious of not possessing. The Mexican character has much that is good in it, but very much also that is bad. In bearing testimony to the former, I cannot be silent as to the latter - for indiscriminate praise is in its effects censure. My fault has been much more that of extenuation than setting down aught in malice - the latter cum, for I was treated with so much kindness by people of all classes, from the lepero in the streets up to the President, that it would be a source of deep pain to me to know that I had wantonly wounded the feelings of any one person in the broad circumference of the Republic. I assure them in all sincerity that I take a deep interest in their continued advances in the great career Of civil liberty, and 'their ultimate success in establishing Repub lican institutions on a permanent basis. God grant them success, both on their own account as well as for the great cause in which they have so long struggled, and under circumstances so discouraging. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.