Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1892, volume 3).djvu/516

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JUAREZ
JUAREZ

northern states. To avoid the appearance of aban- doning the national soil, which, according to the constitution, would cause his forfeiture of the presidency, he frequently refused friendly invita- tions from the commander of the U. S. troops at Port Bliss to visit hinu On 20 Nov., 1865, when Chihuahua had been evacuated by the French troops, Juarez transferred his government to that city, but had to retreat before the returning ene- my, on 9 Dec, to Paso del Norte, arriving on 18 Dec. Early in June, 1866, the Republican arms obtained the first decided success. Chihuahua was finally evacuated by the Imperialists, and on the 17th Juarez established his government again in that city. Henceforth the tide of war turned in favor of the Republican arms, the northeastern states were gradually wrested from the Imperial- ists, and as the victorious army of Escobedo ad- vanced southward. Juarez transferred his govern- ment, on 26 Dec, 1866, to Durango, and on 22 Jan., 1867, toZacatecas, where, on 27 Jan., he barely es- caped falling into the hands of Miramon's forces, and was obliged to fly to Sombrerete. After Miramon's defeat at San Jacinto, Juarez finally established himself in San Luis Potosi early in February, while Maximilian's forces began to con- centrate at Queretaro. After the fall of Maximilian and the capture of Mexico by Diaz on 21 June, Juarez entered the capital again on 5 July, 1867. After the execution of Vidaurri without trial, milder counsels prevailed, and the Imperialist chiefs and political followers, who had been im- prisoned to the number of over 200, were regularly judged by the courts, and only nineteen executed, among them Gen. O'Horan and Gen. Severo Cas- tillo. On 14 Aug., Juarez called for general elections. Congress met in December, and on 25 Dec. proclaimed Juarez elected constitutional presi- dent over Porfirio Diaz. His term of office was disturbed by the constant revolutionary attempts of Diaz, Garcia de la Cadena, Negrete, and others. Even Santa-Anna invaded the republic, and was caught and sentenced, but escaped execution. When the electoral campaign of 1871 approached, Juai'ez was advised by his best friends to decline a re-election: but, either owing to his ambition or because he thought his presence in the govern- ment necessary for the good of the nation in an abnormal period, he accepted the candidacy against Sebastian Lerdo de Tejada and Porfirio Diaz. Congress met on 16 Sept., 1871, and on 12 Oct., Juarez was declared re-elected, as the votes of the opposition were divided between Lerdo and Diaz. This re-election, although at that time it was per- mitted by the constitution, was generally unpopu- lar, and in consequence there were numerous revo- lutionary attempts. Diaz proclaimed the plan de la Noria, and numerous officers pronounced against the government, including Trevino in Monterey, Garcia de la Cadena in Aguas Calientes, Donato Guerra in Zacatecas, and Martinez in Coahuila. With indomitable energy Juarez confronted every new attempt with new military forces, notwith- standing the complete exhaustion of the treasury, the military alone being paid ; and even repeated reverses could not discourage him when, after a short illness, he died near midnight of 18 July of heart-disease, or, as some have hinted, of poison. This extraordinary man has been judged differ- ently by admirers and enemies. Although only of medium talent and defective education, he supplied these defects by perception and judgment, and his distinct characteristics were a will of iron and the cold impassibility of his native Indian race in the presence of danger. He has been accused of cruelty for not commuting the sentence of death of Maximilian and his principal followers ; but it must be remembered that, according to Juarez's view, a terrifying example was needed to discourage forever future attempts against the national in- tegrity, and after the first and perhaps necesaart executions, only those persons that were guilty of common crime, or officers deserting active service, were condemned to death. He was a constant

enemy of the retrograde church party and heartily hated by its members, and while he could pardon his political opponents, he followed with relentless hate his personal enemies, and even those political followers who by chance had offended him. His supreme and redeeming quality was his thorough honesty, and perhaps in this character alone he deserves the name of the Mexican Washington, which some have bestowed on him in his country. His funeral took place on 22 July, 1872. The body, after lying in state at the government palace for two days, was carried in procession to the cemetery of San Fernando, where a group in white Carrara marble has been erected, of which the accompany- ing picture is an illustration. It is the work of the brothers Isla of the city of Mexico.


JUAREZ, Jos§ (wah'-reth), Mexican painter, lived in the 17th century. The information re- garding his birth and death is very uncertain, nor is it known whether he was a relative of Luis, the elder painter of that name. Two of his paintings are signed in 1642 and 1698 respectively. His works are noted for the elegant position of the figures, vigorous tone, and delicacy of execution. The two most noteworthy are in the academy of San Carlos, and are " The Adoration of the Three Magi " and " The Martyrdom of St. Justo and St. Pastor." There is also at the above-mentioned academy another of his paintings, " Heavenly Vis- ion of St. Francis," which, although not equal to the others, is an excellent work. — His nephews, Juan and Nicolas Rodriguez, who lived toward the end of the 17th and the beginning of the 18th century, were painters, but never reached the fame of either their uncle or Luis Juarez. Nicolas Rod- riguez, a priest of some means, never exercised his art as a profession. His best painting, marked 1690, is a " Saint Gertrude " kneeling before an altar, offering her heart to God, and has rich col- oring worthy of the Venetian school.


JUAREZ, or XUAREZ, Juan (wah-reth), Spanish missionary, b. in Spain ; d. probably on the banks of the Mississippi river late in 1528. He entered the reformed order of Franciscans, and when Cortes applied for missionaries to undertake the conversion of Mexico, was one of those who sailed from Sanlucar, 15 Jan., 1524. He landed at Vera Cruz on 13 May, and was appointed superior of the mission at Huexotzingo. Here the missionaries assembled the Indian children for instruc-