BarbarousMexico JOHN KENNETH TURNER

300
BARBAROUS MEXICO
attribute to Porfirio Diaz the virtues of a superman,
even of a demi-god.
Were not the facts overwhelmingly to the contrary,
did not the easily provable acts of Porflrio Diaz tell an
entirely different story, I would not presume to question
the estimates of such men, especially when those estimates
agree and are accepted generally as correct. But when
the facts speak for themselves, it matters not how
obscure may be the individual who brings them to light.
It matters not, even, how distinguished the men who
disregard those facts, for facts are greater than men.
Current Literature, in calling attention to the new conception
of Porfirio Diaz that has of late been gaining
ground in America, refers to Diaz as a man of mystery.
"Is he a sublime statesman or is he a colossal criminal?"
it inquires. To which I would reply that we have our
ideals of statesmanship and our concepts of criminality;
all we need upon which to base an estimate are the facts
of the life of the man in question. Given the facts and
the mystery dispels itself.
In judging the life of a man, especially of a man who
has decided the fate of thousands, who has "saved a
nation," or wrecked it, small virtues and small vices
count for little; insignificant acts of good or ill are
important only in the aggregate. A man may have cornmittcd
grave crimes, yet if he has brought more joy to
the world than sorrow, he should be judged kindly. On
the other hand, he ma y be credited with laudable deeds,
yet if he has locked the wheels of progress for a time
to feed his own ambition, history will not acquit him of
the crime. It is the balance that counts; it is the scales
that decide. Will not Porfirio Diaz, when weighed in
the balance of his good and evil deeds, he found wanting—terribly
wanting? His friends may sing his praises,