In this anthology, Professor Gil has selected twenty-seven excerpts from contemporary travelers’ accounts and histories, journal articles, philosophical treatises, and monographs which describe attitudes and conditions during the Díaz regime in Mexico. There is also a brief introduction by Gil and a bibliographical essay by Anthony Bryan. The underlying theme of the book is that the Díaz era set the stage for Mexico’s modern economic and political development. Unfortunately, the book suffers from the uneven quality of its selections. The last and longest section, Society,” provides an excellent description of social and economic life. But the first four sections are weak. Some of the excerpts are too brief to convey the points intended. The editor has chosen to use ten percent of the text to deal with the rurales, while short-changing other more important subjects, such as the decline of the peso, the export economy, and foreign policy. Inordinate space is devoted to descriptions of army and police uniforms. Professor Bryan’s concluding piece is outdated. In summary, this book is of little help to specialists, although it may be of value in an undergraduate survey.