Weekly national intelligencer., 1854-01-14
NEW MEXICO.


letter dated at Santa Fe on the 50th of Novem-
ber addressed to the Ohio State journal by Mr..
GREINER, the late Indian Agent:
1t may appear strange to many that there should be
any thing fascinating in living in country where per-
is deprived Of nearly all the comforts which he has
been accustomedwhere he knows that his life is in
tinual danger. And yet there is something aroused
within him. after living in the mountains the prai
ries few years. that renders him unhappy and discon
tented If he is any where else Il is probably the free
dom from all restraint the consciousness of being able to
protect himself the proud feeling Of independence that
constitutes the charm.
Although the Jicarllas Apaches have more enemies
among our own people than any other Indians, have
never since have known them been unwilling to trust
my life with them. is true they beggars; but they
beg because they poor and hungry, and
went to their camp hungry that found them unwilling to
divide their last morsel with him. 1t their
country that some pastor boys about two years ago. dis
covered small gobules Of quicksilver oozing up it
were from the ground shining they described it, like
silver dew They gathered it up in small vias and know
ing but little about its they kept it curiosity to
show their neghbors Whether the ground itself is sau
rated with quicksilver whether there cnabar in the
neghborhood from which the metal is extracted or whe-
her is produced from other causes questions that
remain as yet undecided All that knowis, that after
rain or the melting Of SHOWS it appears in globules
the surface Of the ground under rocks in the tracks
animals, and when the ground becomes hard and dry it
disappears After some experiments which are now in
progress shall have been completed we shall probably be
able to form more correct opinion.
Many OF our poorest people would consider their lot
hard one they were compelled to live upon the fosd
that Mexicans live upon who considered pretty well
of. Goats milk, mush, and beans are their principal
articles of food few of them meat more than once
week. and fewer still know any thing Of coffee tea or
sugar Some years ago q friend of mine who used to
travel over the country great DEAL being fond of coffee
provided himself with little bag full of the article
ground and ready for use thinking he would have but
little trouble in getting it made wherever he might STOP
One night tired wet and hungry he stopped house,
her If she could make him coffee. 'sSi Senor
said She After waiting little time the supper was
brought in Among the dishes was one that attracted
his attention great deal As he thought he had
seen any thing like before he refused touch it, think
ing he would make his supper bread and coffee As
the coffee did not make its appearance he yentured to
inquire Of the landlady what had become of it. 7Here
it is SIR said she very politely handing him the dish
that had excited his curiosity And there was his coffee
sure enough all stewed up in mutton allow After that
time when he wanted any coffee he made it himself
Knives and forks are seldom in Mexican house. as
food is mostly boiled hashed up SO very soft as
to be eaten with spoon The spoons are made of tor
tas, something like buckwheat cake which is doubled
between the hngers each fold being devoured with what
conveys to the mouth thus having the advantage Of
new spoon for every mouhful. Tables and chairs are
equally dispensed with at meals they sit upon the
floor, and take their dishes upon their knees The wo-
men never eat with the men, seldom in their presence
but by themselves mostly around the chimney corner
the kitchen Butter is an article of which they know
nothing except what little they may have seen Americans
use The e1travagant Of red pepper chde colorada
IN oil their meals has often been related by travellers
They use 1t as sauce for almost every thing; and al
though Americans at first repent having tasted it with
tears in their eyes, they become accustomed to it.
and relish it as highly as the Mexicans.
Since the arrival of Bishop L. Amy MANY of the abuses
that formerly existed have been swept away The
bitant fees exacted by the priests for performing the
vices at marriages. bapsms and funerals have been re-
duGed greatly and the people no longer remain
rd, unbdptzed and unburd for want of money to pay
the clergy The rates eight dollars for burying
sx dollars for marrying and two dollars for christening
and where the people too poor pay the services
performed gratis The Bishop is Of the bodest and
most energetic men have ever scen He has reformed
many OF the abuses tolerated his predecessors senced
and deposed some of the corrupt priests the hazard Of
his has brought from the States of the Sisters
OF Charity who have fine school Of about thirty young
girls, whom they educating There are also about
forty scholars in the male department The Bishop was
for nine years priest in Ohio, located, believe
Mount Vernon, and brought under the protection
Bishop Purcell Of Cincinnati He leaves here in January
to make tour in Europe where he goes after help
and more money.
There are at present four Baptist Missionaries located
in different parts of the Terrory-Messrs Smith Santa
Fe, Reed at Albuquerque, German Laguna and Shaw
in the Navajo country two Methodist Missionaries, Mr.
Nicholson at Santa Fe and Mr. Hanson at Tucoote and
Padre Cardenas. A lamentable fact however must be
told which is that Of them have any professors Of
religion in their congregation and believe single
member. These Missionaries are all good men, labor
with much ZEAL and it no fault Of theirs that members
are not added to the church Each of them have schools
and all are alive to the Importance of attending to the
training Of the rising generation.
The people of New Mexico pay no taxes, and will
not tax themselves. There is dime in either the
territorial or county treasures probability Of
ever being any There is not single Jail strong enough
to hold prisoner and only short time ago Mexi
can prisoners were confined on charge OF murder at
Santa Fe Becoming dsgused with the accomm odations
they concluded to leave and in neatly written card to
the sheriff they returned their thanks to him for his ntten
ton and watchfuness, trusting that circumstances might
soon arise that would change their relative positions
and they would gladly recprocate the many favors they
had received at his hands They escaped, and still
at liberty Gov LANE placed in the predicament Of
either turning the prisoners loose letting them sarve
advancing money out of his pocket to feed them he
preferred the latter and will probably have to pay for
his humanity by losing all the money he advanced Gov
CALHOUN also suffered from the same cause
am sorry to say that the small pox prevailing to
great extent in the western part Of the Territory One
of the Pueblo villages of Moqui has been depopu
lated It has also made its appearance in AL ausrque
and is spreading rapidly.
settlement Of twenty-five thirty families will leave
Taos next spring for the Huerfano river being near
where the railroad is to be located as they suppose
being the western boundary of Nebraska Territory
FROM TEXAS.
CORPUS CHRISTI, DECEMBER 23.-Gen. P. F. SMITH,
Major CHAPMAN, and Capt GIBBS arrived safe at head
quarters the Goth from tour of inspection along the
Rio Grande and by the way Son Artop;o Tbay sra