78 THE GREEN RISING 



followers fought against hacendados." 3 The cause 

 of the war for Mexican independence is traceable to 

 the existing agrarian organization at the time. The 

 Spanish had established a feudal land system mod- 

 eled after existing systems of medieval Europe. 

 Cortez, for example, claimed for himself 25,000 

 square miles of land, which included twenty-two 

 towns with their communal labor and people. Pedro 

 de Alvarado received the district of Xochimilco with 

 all the inhabitants, numbering more than 30,000. A 

 favorite of the Spanish king was awarded the entire 

 state of Guanajuato. By 1572 there were 507 en- 

 comiendas. In some cases entire states were held 

 by one family. By this system of exploitation a 

 few Spaniards assumed ownership of practically all 

 of the inhabited part of Mexico. 



The war for Mexican independence from Spain in 

 1810 was fought to relieve this situation. Inde- 

 pendence was achieved after twelve years of blood- 

 shed and sacrifice, but the promised benefits of 

 independence were not forthcoming. Iturbide be- 

 came the first emperor of Mexico in 1822. He was 

 himself a feudal landlord. His first official act was 

 to declare that there would be no change in the 

 land system. The Indians were nominally released 

 from the land, but through a system of loans had 

 remained slaves. A peonage policy was adopted 

 which prevented them from leaving an estate until 

 all indebtedness was paid. As the Indian could 



* See the Survey Graphic, issue of May, 1924. 



