Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 276, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 November 1915 — COZUMEL A MEXICAN BIAND [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

COZUMEL A MEXICAN BIAND

nN. the Caribbean sea, about twelve miles from Yucatan across the channel of that name, lies Mexico's most easterly outpost, the island of Cozumel. The name comes from the ancient Mayan and means “The Isle of Swallows.” It is included tn the I northern division of the territory of Quintana Roo, the capital of which is j Santa pruz de Bravo, named for the rugged old warrior who, during the Diaz regime, administered all that part es Mexico, mainland and island, which lies to the east of Yucatan, The foreign port nearest to Cozumel is Belize, British Honduras, distant about 165 miles southwest. Off to the northeast, some 210 miles away, lies Cuba. From extreme points north to south the island, which is rhomboidal in form, measures a little under 50 miles, and from east to west about 14 miles. Cozumel occupies a very prominent place in Mexican history. It was the first land sighted by Hernando Cortez when, in 1519, he sailed westward from Cuba on that famous voyage which had for its object the quest of gold and for its result the conquest of an empire. Cortez, however, was not the first Spaniard to set foot on Cozumel’s shores. The year before he'landed .it was visited by Grijalva, the discoverer of Tabasco; and Bancroft, the historian, mentions others who touched there during the earlier cruises of the Castilians among the Antilles. It is a matter of record that from the deck cf his “flagship”—a little vessel of less than 100 tons burthen —Cortez counted 14 towers on the north and northwest coasts of the island. These he found, when he landed, surmounted as many temples, erected for idolatrous worship. When he disembarked with half of his followers (all told the expedition numbered only 617 men), leaving the others on board his small fleet to repel possible attack, Cortez’ first act was to dismantle these temples. Fired with religious zeal, he pushed his way through the crowd of Indians who had come down to the beach to receive him, and, mounting the steps of the principal place of worship, where the high priest, and his attendants were grouped, he harangued the natives on the sinfulness of their idolatry, using an Indian who had been captured off the coast of Yucatan by Grijalva and who had acquired a working knowledge of Spanish in Cuba, as an Interpreter. After thus giving vent to his religious fervor, and Cortez’ worst enemies could never truthfully assert that he was not sincere in his faith, he ordered his soldiers to tear down the altars dedicated to the false gods and in their place set up a cross. No arguing, no reasoning. Prompt, aggressive action, without regard to odds, and such action was Cortez’ main characteristic at all times when dealing with the natives wherever he went. Doubtless much of his remarkable success with them was due to ft. Although the Indians were obviously docile, the invaders were- taking big chances in thus desecrating the sacred groves. But nothing happened. The audacity of the proceeding was sublime, and so great that it simply dazed the natives and left them incapable of protest When Cortez was at Cozumel the island had apparently several thousand inhabitants; but when Stevens, a prominent American archeologist and traveler, went there in the early forties of the last century he found not a single soul. The crowds seen by the Spaniards were probably transients, for, as a matter of fact, Cozumel never had a large resident population. It was a sacred place to the Mayas of Yucatan and Centre! America, their Mecca, and a vast number of pilgrims went periodically to worship at its shrines During the intervals between pilgrimages the priests, with their servants and retainers, were doubtless the only residents. When the Spaniards became firmly established in Yucatan they forbade the pilgrimage to Cozumel, their reasons for this course being that they needed the uninterrupted services of the Indians as laborers. The church also took a hand in prohibiting festivals on the Island. They carried the mind away from the doctrine which the mission fathers were propagating, and although the Indian had without very great difficulty been induced to accept the cross in place of the graven image, he would, when visiting the familiar scenes, be sure to associate with them the tenets of his old belief, still strong within him. Notwithstanding that the religious peregrinations ceased, Cozumel was not entirely deserted until long after the invasion. Of course, it is more than likely that those whose homes were on the island continued to reside there after the main body stopped coming. For the greater part 'they were spiritual councilors and medicine men, <Tl d it is very probable that they were forbidden to leave. It would be decidedly to the interests of the conquerors, both lay and clerical, to keep them away from the masses of the people. That there was a settlement, and that Spaniards lived

in it, is proved by the ruined church and a burial ground one sees a couple of miles to the north, of San Miguel, the principal town. Close by the church ruins is the site of an ancient village, now traceable only by its stone foundations. Whatever the cause may have been, it came about in the course of time that the island of Cozumel was abandoned as a place of residence. It must have remained unoccupied for several generations, for when Stevens touched there with the object of exploring its ruined temples, of which many are known to exist, the entire surface, with the exception of two clearings, was covered with a dense growth of dwarf but thick timber. Stevens satisfied himself that this forest covered the whole area. One of the open spaces referred to above was a clearing made by a man named Molas, a notorious character, half political refugee, half pirate, who had been exiled from Yucatan. Molas lived for many years in Cozumel, and doubtless would have “died in his bed” —the end most desired by all freebooters, we are told —had he never returned to the mainland, for his enemies were afraid to attack him in his stronghqld. One fatal day, however, he sailed his schooner across the channel and landed near to where the Valladolid trail comes down to the beach. Molas’ two sons—who had voluntarily shared their father’s exile —accompanied him on this trip, having in vain tried to dissuade him from making it. Molas insisted that his sons should remain aboard the schooner until he gave the signal that all was clear. The signal never came. Waiting so long for It that they felt sure all was not well, the lads went ashore at last to Investigate. The ever-vigilant foe had seen Molas’ boat making for the mainland. A short distance from the beach, yet hidden by the jungle, they found their father’s mutilated body. The boys returned to the island only to remove their personal belongings and what they could carry away of the family effects, and then went to live In a remote part of Yucatan, as far removed from Cozumel and its sad associations as they could get. Thus it came about that the "Isle of Swallows” was again without human inhabitants. The other clearing mentioned was the deserted ranch of a certain “Don Albino,” as Stevens calls him without revealing his surname. Stevens met Don Albino in Valladolid, and heard from the ranchman’s own lips why he left Cozumel. In Valladolid a cotton mill —famous in the annals of the town as the first to be erected in Mexico — had started Operations, and the owner, an enterprising Spaniard, was paying high prices for the raw material and offering enticing-premiums to encourage more extensive cultivation of the plant. Now, Don Albino possessed no land, nor had he the means wherewith to buy some; nevertheless he yearned to profit by the mill owner’s bounty. So he conceived the idea of going over to Cozumel, which by that time was regarded as a sort of “No Man’s Land,” to raise cotton. He could easily convey the lint across the channel in canoes, and although from the coast to the mill was a journey of several days for pack mules there would be sufficient margin in the price to. justify the expense of transportation. Full of enthusiasm, Don Albino gathered around him as many of the ifiore destitute natives as he could induce by the lavish use of glowing promises to accompany him and set sail for Cozumel. But the motley band soon tired of the monotonous life on the lonely island. They were restless spirits, who had lived by what was really little short of brigandage, tilling the land only to the extent of being sure of their staple food, maize and “frljoles” (beans). Sullen under the cravings for the comparative excitement obtainable tn their native pueblos, they before long picked a quarrel with their “patron” and, seizing the only canoe, returned to Yucatan.

Entirely alone, Don Albino could make no headway with his project of getting rich quickly and, taking advantage of a passing vessel, went back to Valladolid. The cotton he had succeeded in planting before his mozos deserted him was allowed to grow wild, and the Island once more was completely abandoned by man. It was not until 1848 that Cozumel was again inhabited. The revolution which caused Yucatan and Campeche to separate had deprived many citizens of the means of livelihood, and for material as well as political reasons it became necessary for them to seek pastures new. The federal government offered to help them, provided they would leave the peninsula. But to where could they be transplanted? Being Yucatecos, quick to resent the paternalism of the government, and always, suspicious of the party in office’s bona tides, they were of a spirit difficult to keep .junder restraint and more than likely to soon become unruly again. Therefore to allow them to migrate to the central states, or even to the regions bordering on the Gulf of Mexico, was out of the question; it was imperative that they be kept apart from the more docile peoples of the republic lest they Inoculate the latter with the political restlessness that had been their own undoing. Finally it was agreed that they should be taken to Cozumel. This arrangement was duly consummated, and everything necessary to enable the exiles to make a good start was furnished gratuitously by the government. After very many vicissitudes the colony thus launched gradually settled itself into place, becoming at the expiration of a decade or so firmly established, and Cozumel is today the “tierra” or homeland of as hardy and independent a set of islanders —half farmers, half fishermen —as can be found anywhere in the Antilles. The present population of Cozumel numbers some fourteen hundred souls. The capital, San Miguel, is credited with 900 and the village of El Cedral has about 150; the remainder are scattered among the numerous ranches. San Miguel is quite a thriving, well-formed town. It has several wide, clean streets; a plaza, a very presentable little church, one large general store and several small ones, an tan, and municipal offices and customhouse; it also boasts a sort of espjanade running along the entire sea front, at one end of which Is the lighthouse and at the other a landing jetty. Although most of the buildings are palm-thatched cottages, there are several strongly built stone houses and the main street has a two-story brick house and a modern bungalow. The only regular communication with the outside world is by government transport. These steamers call twice pack month to leave and collect mail when en route with troops and supplies to and from Vera Cruz and the military stations of Quintana Roo. Health conditions In Cozumel are extremely good, when the tropical climate of the island is taken tato account. The normal rate of mortality averages 14 per 1,000. Epidemics are very rare. Indeed, practically unknown. The great majority of the Cozumel islanders are poor, so far as possessing a surplus of this world’s goods Is concerned, being satisfied with a hand-to-mouth existence. Among the very few articles exported from the island are sponges, but the quantity is limited and the quality not very fine. More than one attempt has been made by foreigners to fully exploit the sponge business here, but all efforts to make-It profitable on a large scale have failed. There are very many ruins on 'the Island — some of which I saw and to the extent of my limited time and ability examined —the architectural beauty and general plan of which provide irrefutable evidence that the early inhabitants were intelligent and cultured to a degree more than surprising.