The Howard union. (Glasgow, Mo.) 1865-1866, 1865-10-12
For the Union.
LETTER FROM MEXICO.

Gen, THos. j. BARTHoLow, formerly Of this |
city, but now engaged in mining in Mexico,
70 his friend, Mai JAMES w. Lewis, oil
will be read with interest, We
are grstiied to note that the writer and his
partners have before them such fattering
Of fortune from their enterprise,
md hope their anticipations may be fully
realized.-[ED.
STATE OF DURANGO, Mexico,
HACIENDA OF LA ALvA SILVER MINING Co.,
TAYoLTtTh, August 10, 1865.
JAMES; returned on the lst inst, from
my trip TO Mazatlan, which think was the
most uborious and fatlguing, as well as the
most interesting, l ever made. For eight
or nine months in the year, (during the
dry season, the usual road from here to
Mazatan for the first forty or fifty miles is
down the bed Of the Piastla river, crossing
and recrossing it some sixty or seventy
times in going that distance the crossings
being made wherever the mountain forma-
tion on either side will permit man or
mule TO ascend and descend the mountain
spurs. Many Of these thought when |
first crossed them, were giant mountains.
But in my late trip to the, sea'coast, which
was made in the midst Of the rainy season,
the road down the river was impossible,
owing to the high water and the terribly
swift current. Therefore, our party went
by what is called the mountain route- and
it is properly named. To reach point
which is an easy days ride by the river,
required on the mountain road two days and
a half, ascending and descending some Of
the highest peaks Of the Sierra Madre
range by serpentine and, in many places,
almost perpendicular trail, and over these
very high and steep mountains our mules
had not the strength and endurance requi-
site 10 carry their riders, and we had not
The physical ability TO make the ascents on
foot. But where there's will there's a
way and when we became so much ex-
haustsd that we could go no further, we
drove our mules ahead, and taking hold oil
their tails, were thus drawn, or rather
dragged, up to the summit. Mr.. Burson,
a lawyer Of California, who accompanied
us, declared that the tail hold was q mag.
nificent hold, and that patent ought to be
claimed for the invention Under ordinary
circumstances, we would have been afraid
to take hold of mules tail, les, he nigh,
resent the familiarity with kick. But as
it was reduced to this mode Of travel or
come 10 halt on the side of mountain
without water, and we at the same time
suffering from thirst, we took hold regard.
less of consequences. AT first, the mules
objected to the arrangement, and stopped
still in the road, but procuring some small
sapIings, about the size of hoop poles, we
soon persuaded them TO ascend the ascent.
The view from the submits of some Of
these peaks, extending over vista of many
miles, was awfuly grand and truly sublime.
On one or two occasions we were above
the clouds, which were shedding corious
showers of rain upon the mountains base,
whilst we upon its summit, were sweating
beneath the vertical rays of a tropical sun
How regretted my inability TO transfer the
scene 10 canvas, and much more my inability
adequately to describe its grandeur and
sublimiy. These mountains are now COW
cred with timber and underground, clothed
with deep green tropical foliage which the
copious rains that now fall daily, have
caused to spring into life. Cotton, Tobac-
co and Indigo are indigenous, growing wild
in the mountains and canons. Besides
there is cotton free some twenty or more
feet in height, which produces hollis of Q
diameter of six by three inches, maturing
cotton of fair staple, which the native:
gather and make into many fabrics by hand
Amongst the great quantities OF timber here
are pine, cedar, oak, ash, live oak, mahoga
ny ebony, rosewood and logwood' Wher
the latter was more an article of colnmerct
than it now is, large quantities of it wa,
cut and shipped to all parts of the world
but now ain informed that the demand i.
limited and the value so low that IT is n,
longer profitable TO collect it. The suppl,
is inexhaustable.
In travelling over these mountains, thu
mineral wealth seen is astonishing. Gold
silver, copper and iron is almost everywher,
visible; the first is always found in combina
ton with the silver. When not separated in
the process of benefcaing, the proportion
Of gold in the silver is from ten to firteer
per cent Of the money vIaue. The silver
mines in this section even these which have
been worked by the Spaniards and Mexi
cans for an hundred years, are yet unde
veloped; the rest now opened have scarcel,
been prospected, whilst there are thousand
in which pick has never been struck,
have been down IN La Alva mine abou
four hundred feet and still the bottom is on
hundred and fIiu nr nora fact furtba. !;