"The
Mexican Governor
and the California Journalist"
By Ruth Ross Merrimer
March 2003 Guadalajara-Lakeside Volume 19, Number 7
One of the great romantic stories of Mexico concerns Felipe Carrillo
Puerto, a governor of Yucatan, and Alma Reed, an American newspaper
columnist in San Francisco. Back in the early 1920s, Reed wrote a column
under the byline “Mrs. Goodfellow” that was devoted to answering
questions for people who needed legal advice but could not afford the
services of a lawyer. Reed began concentrating her efforts on helping
the poor Mexicans living in California when the mail that came into
the newspaper made it apparent they were the ones in the greatest need
of help.
As the weeks and months passed and Reed’s
reputation as a defender of the poor grew, she was contacted by the
family of a 17-year-old Mexican, who was on death row in San Quentin,
accused of murder. They asked for her help in getting his death sentence
commuted. Outraged at the idea of killing a young man, Reed began a
campaign to save him. As a result of her efforts, the laws were changed
and the adolescent’s life was saved.
When the Mexican press picked up the
story and it was brought to the attention of then-President Alvaro Obregon,
he invited Reed to visit Mexico as his guest. Accepting the invitation,
she boarded a train to Mexico and began a journey that would change
her life and bring her many honors. Reed’s lack of knowledge of
Mexico and its customs became apparent as she stepped off the train
in Mexico City. A group of mariachis had been hired to serenade
the wife of a rich Mexican who was traveling on the same train, and
as the train pulled into the station, the mariachis began singing
the love song, “Alma de mi Alma,” (Soul of My Soul.) Thinking
the song was meant for her, Reed was so touched she broke into tears,
alternately embracing the mariachis and President Obregon’s aide
who was there to greet her. Careful not to hurt her feelings, the Mexicans
did not tell her serenade had no relation to anyone named Alma.
Later, Reed traveled to Yucatan where
she met Governor Felipe Carrillo Puerto and it was love at first sight.
Felipe traveled with her throughout the Yucatan, introducing her to
the culture and history of the Maya. Seeing the ruins of the many buildings
and temples left by the Maya and hearing the stories of their accomplishments,
ignited a love and fascination for the Maya that remained with Reed
until her death.
At the end of her visit to Mexico, the
governor returned with her to San Francisco to meet her family and tell
them of their plans to marry. The family was as enchanted with Carrillo
as Reed was, and upon receiving their blessing for the marriage, he
made plans to return to Yucatan where the wedding would take place with
Reed to follow in three weeks. Alma Reed never saw Felipe again, but
one of the engagement gifts he gave her has survived in Mexico for over
seventy years. Having been told the story of her emotional reaction
to “Alma de Mi Alma,” Felipe, with the help of famous Mexican
musicians and composers Ricardo Palmerin and Luis Vega, wrote the song,
“La Peregrina” and dedicated it to her. The song tells of
a Yucatan governor who fell in love with a journalist from California,
who had traveled to Mexico to interview him.
Arriving back home in Yucatan, Governor
Carrillo faced a crisis. These were tumultuous times in Mexico. Revolution
that had blazed across the country for ten years and put eleven different
presidents in office, had broken out again, this time between the ruling
political power in Mexico and the poor farmers. Though Carrillo was
part of the hated government, the Mayas looked upon him as their savior.
Under his leadership, the Mayas were building schools for their children
and planting crops for themselves instead of the hated landowners. Realizing
the Mayas would never join their cause as long as Felipe was alive,
the revolutionaries began plotting his assassination.
On a bleak December day in Merida, capitol
city of Yucatan, Carrillo and ten of his followers were taken by force,
lined up against the wall of a cemetery and shot to death. Legend has
it that before the order was given, Felipe took a Maya wedding ring
from his pocket and asked the leader of the firing squad to see that
it was delivered to Alma Reed.
During this period, Mexico closed its borders to travelers and a year
went by before Alma Reed learned the fate of Felipe. When the trouble
was over, she returned to Yucatan, this time working as a journalist
for the New York Times. The discovery of King Tut’s tomb
in Egypt had created a worldwide interest in ancient civilizations,
and through Reed’s stories in the Times the world learned
about the Maya, whose achievements were equally as astonishing as those
of ancient Egypt.
During the 1930s Reed’s life took
a turn. She left Mexico for New York and ran with an arty crowd which
included the Mexican artist Orozco. Recognizing his talent, Reed is
credited with helping bring him fame through her writings. Leaving New
York, she lived for short periods in Greece and Lebanon. Ultimately
tiring of travel and life in the fast lane, Reed returned to Mexico
and again took up writing about the Maya. In 1950 Mexico awarded Reed
its highest civilian honor, The Order of the Aztec Eagle—one of
only three American woman to be so honored.
Alma Reed died at age 77 in a Mexico
City hospital, November 20, 1966, Mexico’s Day of Independence.
The exact day, many believe, she would have chosen had she the choice.
Her friends said she had finished writing her autobiography, and anticipated
going home from the hospital and sending the manuscript to her publishers.
Sadly, though intensive searches were made and inquiries about it went
on for months, the manuscript was never found.
The ashes of Alma Reed were laid close
to those of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, her only love. Her tombstone reads:
Alma Reed, prolific writer, emotive conversationalist, affectionate
friend of Mexico, who Mexico honored with the Aztec Eagle in recognition
of her merits as a promoter of art, in critique, as an historian, and
humanist.
(Ed. Note: This story is from a collection
now being assembled by Merrimer in a book titled Tall Tales &
True Tales of Mexico. She is also the author of Champagne &
Tortillas, a novel set in Mexico.)