Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 120, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 May 1913 — Grip Ghroqgh Old Mexico [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Grip Ghroqgh Old Mexico

OUT of the land of the “Greaser” and into the domain of the descendants of Montezuma rode a party of American civil and mining engineers one day in December. From the Texas border the party went by rail to Mexico City where a week was spent in seeing the sights of the Mexican capital. . When the outfit of the party had been assembled, and servants hired, preparations were made to leave the capital over a narrow gauge railroad to Puebla, in the state of the same name. Like many of the prosperous Mexican mining towns tucked away in the mountains, the general public has heard very little of Puebla except through the dispatches of the “war correspondents.” It is a city of 92,000 Inhabitants. The shops ,cater to the love of finery which has descended to the natives from the Spanish don. Everywhere can be seen Americana, most of whom are interested in some mining venture in the nearby mountains. On the way to Puebla the famous Tehuacan Springs are passed and the drinking water furnished tourists for a hundred miles along the railroad is from the springs. No one seems to know just; why the water is healthful but popular opinion says it is. After leaving Puebla the party continued alonjl the railroad to Etla. Once the center of onyx mining, this little village has lost much of the snap and enterprise that foreign adventurers gave it in the past. It is a sleepy town now. Oaxaca, home of the Diaz family and center of innumerable revolutions, was reached early one morning. When within 10 miles or so of the city, runners frotti all of the hotels in Oaxaca came on board and tried to book the party for their respective houses. At the train muscular peons took charge of luggage which was heavy and numerous. These short, sturdy natives had no difficulty in slinging a trunk weighing 175 pounds onto a strap which they supported by a band around their foreheads. They carried the trunks up the rough mountain trail to the hotel, which was perched on a small peak overlooking the lowland. They didn’t stop when they had reached the crest, but continued to the second floor of the hotel before taking the trunks from their straps. Oaxaca and Vicinity. Oaxaca is the chief town of the state of Oaxaca. It is now a city of 32,000 persons. Juarez, revolutionist or savior—it depends upon your politics in Mexico —lived there. It is about 7,000 feet aboye sea level. Americans are numerous, as there are many silver and gold mines in the vicinity. Just south of Oaxaca are many plantations that raise cotton, sugar cane and coffee. At Oaxaca the travelers left the railroad and climbed the mountain trail to Mlahuatlan. This town, situated about 70 miles from Oaxaca, Aas an electric lighting system. The road kept getting rougher. Finally it was necessary to forsake the horses and hire ox carts. This plan worked fine until, thoughtlessly, the drivers were given some advance wages. Too much pttlque left the party without drivers, so an engineer was drafted as ox -driver. The next day all of the drivers returned for their jobs, and were hired of course. The engineer crawled 40 miles up lite mountains to the crest where a fine piece of timber land, 13,000 acres, was situated. Part of this timber, which was all white pine, had been operated for turpentine. The forsaken still of the operators was found and later it was learned that the venture had been a failure. There was no way to get the turpentine to market Several days were spent in this place of timber and during the time villagers made life unpleasant for the men, who were surveying the tract. They insisted, begged and threatened the engineers to give them the bettet of the deal. Disputes became frequent till finally a magistrate was found to settle them Ambrosio* Cortes, over

100 years old, a direct descendant of the Spanish conqueror, was the oracle. He is a fine, intelligent specimen of manhood with all the fiery hauteur of his noted ancestor in his glance. His judgment was fair and final. The timber here was magnificent. Some of the trees would cut out nine 16-foot logs without hitting a branch. They are as straight as many telegraph poles, and straighter than many others. Natives Are Poor. It was now that observation of the peons was most easily made. Little indications of any slavery were present. Of course they are very poor. A hut made of poles and thatched with, coarse grass forms the dwelling. Only one room is made in the house. Contrary to tradition and some recent writings, these peons are not “greasers.” They differ much from the cattle-roping Mexican of the border. They are straight and cleanlimbed. The muscles on both men and women are like those of an athlete. Wherever there is a mountain stream, there you may see men and women taking their dally bath. They wash clothes in the streams also. Even the servants which were hired, by the day for 50 cents “Mex” or 25 cents in American money, put on a spotless white cotton suit every morning before chopping wood for the breakfast fire. Everyone seems to dress in white cotton. The men wear loose trousers resembling pajamas, and shirt-like coats. The women have no set custom in dressing. Next to the corn tortillas, the natives like eggs better than any other article of food. Every hut is surrounded by a dozen or more chickens. Dogs are without number. The Mexican of the mountains is a vegetarian, as one could tell easily if he ever watched a whole family digging beans from an earthen vessel. The dishes of most families are limited to three or four rough earthen pots and every one eats out of these utensils. s During a stay ,of several weeks in the wildest part of Mexico the party did not meet a single wild animal. A frightened deer was seen once. Snakes are almost unknown in southern Mexico. The famed and dangerous tarantula of the plains was also absent Everpresent however, was the maguey plant which furnishes all classes of Mexicans with intoxicating drinks. Pulque and mescal are made from this plant The first is a fermented drink, the latter distilled one. Either is sufficiently fiery to pass as a substitute for alcohol. On the return trip a couple of days were spent at Oaxaca viewing the ruins of Mitla which have puzzled archeologists for years. It is said that Cortez found the ruins in 1520. Humboldt who traveled through Mexico in 1729, visited them. His name can still be seen carved in the bark of a tule tree. Some of the rooms in the ruined building are quite intact. On the walls are many finely executed carvings which resemble somewhat those of the Egyptians. No one, even in the vicinity, seems to have the threads of the tradition which sometime must have surrounded the pile of stone.

MEXICAN MARKET PLAZA