Balbino Dávalos

Balbino Dávalos was a poet, translator, and teacher from Colima whose literary work continued throughout his diplomatic career. He helped introduce French and English language writing to Mexican readers, contributed to Revista Azul and Revista Moderna, and translated authors including Théophile Gautier and Maurice Maeterlinck. His own poems appeared in Las ofrendas, and he translated Carl Lumholtz's account of Mexico. ¹

At the Washington embassy he served in secretarial and acting chargé capacities. In June 1906 he asked Secretary of State Elihu Root to return Antonio Martínez, also known as Juan Puebla, who had been removed from Mexico through deception and brought before an American court. Dávalos argued that the extradition of the man responsible for the abduction acknowledged the illegality of the removal. ²

His later diplomatic work included London and Lisbon, alongside assignments elsewhere in Europe. Teaching remained another profession: he taught at the National Preparatory School and later at universities in the United States. In 1920 he briefly held the National University's rectorship nominally, during the upheaval at the end of Carranza's government, before José Vasconcelos took over. He also directed higher education institutions and belonged to the Mexican Academy of Language. ^{3, 1}