The Sun.
London, England, 1862-10-25 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, OCTOBER 25, 1862.

NORTHERN PROVINCES OF MEXICO.

The subjoined communication on the wealth and
resources of the northern provinces of Mexico, from
a most careful and well-informed source, will awake
a sense of the peculiar interest with which every
movement bearing on the political future of that
country should be watched by the commercial
world:—

" There are many interesting circumstances connected
with the northern provinces of Mexico which are yet but
little known, and deserve particular notice at this period.
I allude more particularly to Lower California, Sonora, and
Chihuahua,

"The Spanish Government were often accused of hav-
ing studiously kept those wealthy provinces secluded from
the rest of the world, and the wonderful treasures disco-
vered in California as soon as it was annexed to the United
States corroborated the charge. The same remark might
be made even now with respect to the Mexicans if it were
not well known that their indolence is still greater than
their inveterate jealousy of other nations. Though they
are aware of the prodigious wealth to be found in their nor-
thern provinces, similar in every respect to California, they
have made no effort to derive any benefit from that portion
of their territory, which remains almost virgin to this day;
nor is this fact to be accounted for by the revolutions which
have harassed the country, for the northern provinces have
generally remained strangers to such disturbances, espe-
cially within the last few years.

"Like many other portions of the Mexican Republic,
Lower California is extremely deficient in water, but the
favoured spots which enjoy the advantage of irrigation are
remarkable for their fertility. The country is for the most
part mountainous, and abundantly provided with metals,
particularly gold and silver. Large deposits of coal are said
to exist near the western shore, towards the north. The
population is so scanty that five years ago the capital of the
province, La Paz, only contained about 300 inhabitants.
The climate is mild and healthy, and very similar to that
of Higher California. The rapid progress and astonishing
prosperity of the latter, however, form a strange contrast
with the half-barbarous and forlorn condition of the former.
It stands isolated, as it were, from the rest of the world,and
almost forgotten, unless it be by the Americans, who na-
turally look upon it as an easy and sure prey, to be seized
at no remote period. Nature seems to have paved the way
for such an event; for, as Lower California consists of a
comparatively narrow peninsula, it really forms an appendix
of its prosperous neighbour. The only practical access
from the Mexican Main being by sea, and the Mexicans
having no navy, it follows as a natural consequence that
all intercourse with that part of their territory is difficult
and rare, and this fact accounts to a certain extent for the
neglect of Lower California and for its being so little known.
But though that region is almost unexplored, the remark-
! able mineral we .dth it contains is a well-established fact.
A mining company was formed in Mexico a few years since
with a view to export silver ore from Lower California
under a spacial privilege granted by Government for that
purpose, but, however good in itself, the scheme proved
aborti?e for reasons foreign to the subject.
" In a geographical point of view Lower California is no
less interesting; it contains many very good harbours both
on the eastern and west coast, and the latter will no doubt
be made available hereafter for the China and East India
trade, which is even now beginning to assume serious pro-
portions in San Francisco. There are many islands belong-
ing to Lower California. some of which are well provided
with guano and others with salt ; the island of Carmen
especially, in the Gulf of Cortes, is notorious for its deposits
of salt, which are said to be almost inexhaustible.

" In the province of Sonora, all along the western de-
clivity of the Sierra Madre' (as the lofty chain of the
Andes is styled in Mexico) the gold and silver mines are
equally remarkable for their number and for the rich texture
of their ores. Nor are the mines limited to that mountainous
region ; the whole province abounds in deposits of the pre-
cious as well as other metals. The gold deposits known to
exist on the bed and bands of various rivers clearly indicate
that the metal has been washed down from the mountains ;
and this natural inference is confirmed by the traditions of
the natives. A glance at the map is sufficient to explain
why Sonora, as well as the adjoining province of Chihuahua,
should be thus rich, for they are both but the simple con-
tinuation of the contiguous territory of California.
" It is not generally known in Europe that the filibuster-
ing expedition headed a few years ago by Count Raousset
de Boulbon, which ended by the execution of the latter,
was connected with a mining project, the object of which
was to obtain possession of the Arizona district in Sonora.
Two rival companies having been formed in Mexico for that
purpose, one of them engaged the services of those French
adventurers, but the whole scheme proved abortive.
" Sonora is separated from Chihuahua by the Sierra
Madre, which forms the limit between the two provinces,
and the sinuosities of which are full of gold and silver
mines on either side.

cc During the Spanish dominion Chihuahua used toto t'
the
nish about one-third of the treasure sent to mother
country from Mexico, and that fact alone is sufficient
con-
vey some idea of the mineral wealth of the province. All
over its vast territory gold and silver mines are to be found
in every direction ; but yet it was not to the number of
mines worked, but to the rich quality of the ore, that Spain
was indebted for such a plentiful production of the precious
metal, silver particularly. Among Mexican miners it is a
well-known fact that the richest silver mines discovered
hitherto are in Chihuahua. Occasionally large pieces of
native silver are found there, one of which is said to have
weighed 1501b.—i.e., about six arrobas.But thwatitph most
tosft
thtY;Mexican Republic is equally well provided
of the useful metals, particularly iron, lead, tin, and cop-
per, the latter being very plentiful, and generally aurife-
rous. There are also in its northern districts considerable
deposits of sulphur, and in various places table salt is
found, either alone or in combination with carbonate of
soda: the compound of these two salts, called by the
liMexicans ' tequesquite,'is the spontaneous production of
t
thesoil in various marshy places, and particularly on the
borders of the lakes. In consequence of the rapid evapora

tion which takes place during the dry season, a consider-
able surface becomes dry round these lakes, upon which the
tequesquite' crystallizes in large quantities. The natives
make use of that produce for various purposes—such as the
manufacture of soap, glass, table salt, Sm., and then there
is no doubt that the sphere of its utility will be consider-
ably enlarged as the country becomes more cultivated.
"The natural produce of Chihuahua is as varied as it is
plentiful ; its rich soil yields such crops as would appear
fabulous in Europe, and owing to the peculiarity of the
climate, it is easy to grow cotton and tobacco as wheat,
maize, and, in fact, every species of grain. The hop is said
to grow spontaneously in both countries. Owing to its
proximity to Texas, and to the comparative facility it pos-
sesses for communicating either with the Atlantic or the
Pacific Ocean, it is reasonable to suppose that a country so
rich and so well adapted for Europeans will not remain
much longer in that condition."