224 Ten Years of my Life. 



Luis assembled, who came, also to pray for the lives of the 

 three condemned — Maximilian, Miramon, and Mejia. They 

 were received, but had no more success than myself Later, 

 Madame JMiramon came, leading in her hands her two little 

 children. The President could not refuse to receive her. Mr. 

 Iglesia afterwards told me that it was a most heartrending 

 scene to hear the poor wife and the innocent little ones praying 

 for the life of their husband and father. The President, he 

 said, suffered equally at that moment from being under the 

 cruel necessity of taking the life of a noble man like 

 Maximilian, but he could not do otherwise. Madame 

 Miramon fainted and was carried out of the room. 



The trying scenes through which the President had gone 

 that day were too much for him. He retired for three days 

 to his room and would not see anyone. I could not close my 

 eyes that night, and went with many other ladies of our party 

 to church to pray for the condemned. 



In the course of the morning the telegraph conveyed the 

 sed news that the execution had taken place, and that all was 

 over. 



In the evening I went to see Madame Miramon. She was 

 so much changed that I scarcely recognised her. She told me 

 that she would stay a few days quietly at San Luis, until she 

 had recovered strength enough to travel to Queretaro and 

 receive the body of her husband. I much desired to return to 

 that city also, and gave a great deal of trouble to Mr. Lerdo 

 and Mr. Iglesia, for scarcely one day passed that I did not 

 importune them by my visits. 



Mr. Lerdo was the right-hand man of Mr. Juarez, and enjoyed 

 not only his perfect confidence, but had also the reputation of 

 being a great politician. He does not look at all like a Mexican, 

 for he is fair and has blue eyes. He is a very refined gentleman 

 and most exquisitely polite. I had written to my husband to 

 ask the permission of Escobedo for my return, and as he granted 

 it, the President yielded to my repeated request, but I had to 

 give him my word of honour that I would not engage in any 

 enterprise to assist in the escape of my husband or any other 

 prisoner. 



On July I, I arrived in Queretaro, and went again to the 

 nouse of Madame Vicentis, tliough she was absent. My hus- 

 band looked thin and pale, and was, as is almost always the 



