It is the early traveler in a country who knows the real need of a guide and descriptive book, from the fact that his journeys are made, perforce, without one, and he is compelled to find the places and things as best he can. To find these places and things, of which one may have only heard, is not unattended by difficulties. The native does not always regard them as out of the ordinary, or of special interest, and, however courteous and willing he may be, is not always able to show the way to objects of even considerable importance. I have known these difficulties as an early traveler in Mexico, and, while I rejoiced in seeing what others had not seen, I have wished for the book that might guide me over untraveled roads, till I have come to believe that he who writes the book leaves a legacy to him who comes after. The Guide and Descriptive Book of Mexico is written after the experiences of a decade of travel in that country, and an exploring expedition made expressly to secure a better acquaintance with the country, these have given a knowledge of its cities and towns, of its mountains, valleys and spreading plains, and of its history and legend, impossible from reading or hearsay. The Historical and Clerical data have been carefully culled from the best authorities and from the records of Church and State. The Legends are from the country's books and from the fascinating folklore of its people. • Statistical and tabulated information is compiled from the latest data and from the most reliable sources. The Maps are from the latest surveys, comprising the extension of railways and routes of travel to the year of the date of the book.

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"The Illusion of Ignorance examines the cultural politics of the American encounter with Porfirian Mexico as a precursor and model for the twentieth-century American encounter with the world ... The Illusion of Ignorance argues that American ignorance of the experience of other nations is not so much a barrier to better understanding of the world, but a strategy Americans have chosen to maintain their vision of the U.S. relationship with the world."--Back cover.

This study of American travel to Mexico from 1884 to 1911 examines how the influx of tourists and speculators altered perceptions of US influence. When railroads connected the United States and Mexico in 1884, travel between the two countries became easier and cheaper. Americans developed an intense curiosity about Mexico, its people, and its opportunities for business and pleasure. Indeed, so many Americans visited Mexico during the Porfiriato—the long dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz—that observers on both sides of the border called it a “foreign invasion.” This, as Jason Ruiz demonstrates, was an especially apt phrase. In Americans in the Treasure House, Ruiz argues that this influx of travelers helped shape American perceptions of Mexico as a logical place to exert its cultural and economic influence. Analyzing a wealth of evidence ranging from travelogues and literary representations to picture postcards and snapshots, Ruiz shows how American travelers constructed an image of Mexico as a nation requiring foreign intervention to reach its full potential. Most importantly, he relates the rapid rise in travel and travel discourse to complex questions about national identity, state power, and economic relations across the US–Mexico border.