MEXICO
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MEXICO
six women teachers, and in 1534 he himself brought six had to go to the universities of Spain, as the Mexican
more. Later on, the viceroy, D. Antonio dc Mendoza,
founded an asylum for lialf-caste t;irls, which at first was
hampered liy hiclv of fund-, Imi ilir kiim midowcd it
and directed' tluit all llin-,r who «i,lir,l lo marry the
i^irls should be provideil with c'Tii[i|iiyrii
schools afforded no facilities for taking university
courses. To remedy this the colonial authorities de-
termined to establish a local university.
ITniveksity of Mexico. — The viceroy, D. Antonio dc Mendoza (1535-50), to whom New Spain owed so
When the missionaries landed, in 1521, they did not much for his interest in public instruction, petitioned
find a single Inilian who could read ; nothing had been the Emperor Charles V for the establishment of a uni-
done in tliis direction for them by the army of con- versity suitably endowed. The petition, supported
quest. Twenty years later, 1544, Bishop Zumarraga by the city, the prelates, and the religious orders, was
wanted to have the catechism of Fray Pedro de Cor- favourably received, and although the project was not
doba translated into the Indian tongue, which was carried out until after D. Antonio de Mendoza had re-
finally done, as he believed so much good would result signed the governorship of New .Spain, in 1550, to as-
from it, "for", as he said, "there are so many who sume that of Peru, the credit of having begun the work
know how to read". Contemporary writers bear is due to him. The university was founded during the
witness to the rapitl progress of the Indians in writing, term of his successor, D. Luis de Velasco (1550-64).
music, and even in Latin. The one who distinguished The decree of foundation signed by the prince who
himself most in teaching the Indians was the lay later reigned as Philip II, was issued by the emperor
brother Pedro de Gante, kinsman of the Emperor at Toro on 21 August, 1551, and the university was
Charles V. He gathered together about a thousand opened 3 June, 1553. A yearly endowment of one
children in the convent of San Francisco of Mexico and thousand dollars in gold from the mines was conferred
taught them, beside:
their religion, music,
singing, snd Latin.
He also started a
school for adults and
founded a school of
fine arts and crafts.
With no resources
but his indomitable
energy, born of his
ardent charity, he
raised from the
foundations and sus-
tained for many
years, a magnificent
church, a hospital,
and a great estab-
lishment which was
at one and the same
time a primary
school, a college for
higher studies, anil
an academy of fine
arts and crafts — in
short, a centre of
civilization. The
upon it, and all the
faculties and privi-
leges of the Univer-
sity of Salamanca.
The first chairs
founded, with their
respective professors,
were as follows:
Theology, Fray Pe-
dro de la Pefia, Do-
minican, afterwards
Bishop of Quito,
whose successor in
the Faculty was the
learned Juan Ne-
grete, professor of
the University of
Paris: Sacred Scrip-
ture, Fray Alonso de
la Veracruz; Canon
Law, Dr. Morones,
fiscal of the Audien-
cia; Civil Law, Dr.
Melgarejo; Institutes
and Law, Licentiate
Frias de Albornoz;
Our Lady of GirAOALUPE. Aguas Calientes
Showing wall-belfry and double dome
missionaries spared nothing to unite secular learning Arts, Canon Juan Garcia; Rhetoric, Dr. Cervantes
with religious instruction, and, having in mind the Salazar; Grammar, Bias de Bustamante. Some years
fondness of the Indians for the frequent solemnities later the chairs of medicine and of the Otomic and
of their blooily worship, introduced religious dramas. Mexican languages were added. At first there was
Ancient chronicles have preserved excellent accounts of only one chair of medicine, but towards the close of
the skill displayed by the Indians acting these dramas, the sixteenth century the division known as prima
Bishop Zumdrraga, who aspired always to higher and visperas was introduced, the former including
things for the Indian, managed to open for them the anatomy and physiology, the latter, pathology and
famous college of Santa Cruz, at Tlaltelolco, on 6 therapeutics.
January, 1534. This foundation began with sixty The title of Royal and Pontifical was conferred on students, the number rapidly increasing. Besides re- the new university and all the doctors then in Mexico, ligion and good habits, they were taught reading, writ- including Archbishop Montiifar, were attached to it. ing, Latin grammar, rhetoric, philosophy, music, and The professorships were divided into temporary and Mexican medicine. The college of Tlaltelolco sent perpetual ; the first were for four years and were com- forth native governors and mayors for the Indian petitive, the second were affected only by the death or towns, teachers for the Indians, and at times for the resignation of the incumbent. When a chair was won young Spaniards and Creoles. Some of them were a Ijy competiton the recipient paid the fees or dues, great help to the missionaries in their philological swore to fulfil his duties well, and promised to take no work. In 1553 there were in Mexico three principal part in balls, theatres, or public demonstrations. Ac- colleges: the one at Tlaltelolco for the Indians, San cordingtotheinstruetionsleft bythe Duquede Linares Juan de Letrdn for the mestizos, both under the care to his successor the Marques de Valero, the award of of the Franciscans, and another for the Spaniards and professorships was voted on by the senior auditor rep- creoles who did not wish to mingle with the others, resenting the Audiencia, the dean as representative of This last was under teachers with bachelor degrees the Church, an official of the Inquisition, the dean and from Spain, until the Augu.stinians founded their great the rector of the university, the magister scholarum college of San Pablo, 1575. They were the first to and the archbishop, who presided and in whose house establish a school to be frequented by both Creoles the voting took place. So much stress was laid upon and Spaniards. Shortly afterwards the Jesuits founded the study of the Indian language that in the private the college of San Ildefonso in Mexico with the same instructions which the Marquds de las Amarillas idea in view. For all higherstudies, however, students brought from Madrid he was directed to consider the
