Estado de el “Old Spanish Archive”en 1917
Report of the Executive Secretary. Report of the Governor of Porto Rico. 1917. P. 67-68.
Old Spanish Archive
During the fiscal year 1916-17 the work of classifying and indexing the documents of the archives belonging to the Spanish times has been continued without interruption, although very slowly as only two employees are specially devoted to such a work, and the amount of the business of this office has so largely increased that it has been nesessary to assign frequently one of them to other work of a more urgent nature.
In spite of this handicap of lack of personnel, 4,400 expedientes were carefully examined in the twelve months of the fiscal year, and 13 files were formed containing 1,606 classified expedientes, the remaining 2,800 having been set aside as unworthy of classification, due to their little importance.
The total number of the new files of the Spanish archives is now 324, containing 26,260 expedientes. As these archives are composed of about 8,400 bundles of paper which include more than 400,000 expedientes and more than 2,200 books and registers, the work of classification and indexing is going to last, at the present annual rate, about 80 years. Of course, it is possible that at the end of that period, or much before, nothing may be left of those archives, due to the rapid destructive work thereon of moths and the “comejen.”
This office has been constantly urging, year after year, the adoption of the necessary measures to remedy this lamentable situation, but all our efforts have been of no avail.
I think I should quote here what I said in my annual report for the year 1913-1914:
“Several rooms of the ground floor of the executive mansion were assigned for the keeping of said books and documents, and some wooden shelves were erected therein. for the purpose, but those rooms are really inadequate for the preservation of papers. They are not sufficient in size to have all the books and documents properly af•commo dated, and the darkness and dampness make them a very suitable place for the breeding of destructive insects, such as the moth and the “comejen.” which multiply themselves with a marvelous fecundity and rapidly destroy every kind of paper and soft wood found within their reach. Unless a proper remedy is promptly applied to avoid such a peril the books and documpnts of the old archives will be all destroyed in a relatively short time, which will constitute a great loss, taking into account that many of said books and documents are of considerable value, at least for the hiHtory of the events which happened in this island during the last centuries of the Spanish sovereignty, and for all comparative statistical works that may be made in the future.
“In 1913 a last attempt was made to secure from the legislature a remedy by the creation of a bureau of archives, with sufficient and competent pesonel to go ahead with the work of classification and indexing up to its complPtion, and by the making of an appropriation large enough to put the quarters where the archives are now stored in the necessary condition to make them completely free from insects and adequate to preserve such valuable public records; but the bill introduced to that effect did not become a law, and the lamentable condition in which these important documents are still continues.”
It is the opinion of the undersigned that these old archives should properly belong to the insular library, and that a suitable place should be assigned in any government building to keep and preserve them in good condition.
Therefore, I would recommend as a measure absolutely necessary to prevent the total loss of those valuable old records, that legislation be enacted for their removal to another building, and their being placed under the custody of the board of trustees of the insular library; also, that a sufficient appropriation be made for said removal, for the keeping and preservation of such books and documents and for bringing to a prompt termination the work of classifying and indexing them.
New Files
The general files of this office, since the year 1898 up to date, are composed of 44,276 cases and 256,875 index cards. In these files are included the records of the United States military government. the executive mansion, secretary’s office, and some records of municipalities relative to annual reports, budgets. insular advances and loans, etc.
The files for corporations. trade-marks. franchises. and pardons are each kept separately, and papers in reference to these matters are not included in the figures ahove inserted.
According to the report of the record clerk about 28,000 documents were received during 1916-17 and about 9,300 index cards made to cover such documents.