New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-11-08
LIFE IN NEW-MEXICO.
NATIVE MEx,cANs AND INDIANS.

1
FIRST TREATY WITH THEM WAS MADF-ilii"
NOBLE APPEARANCE AND MANLY CHARACTER.
lrroY 4 STAFF CORRESPONDENT or III TWBuNEI
SAINT, FF y NJ Aug. 3i.-The native Mexican
population Of this Territory partakcs moro OF the
character of its Indian thu OF its spanish ancestry.
The Pueblos. who have probably changed as htte
as any of the aborigines Of this country who have
lived in constant contact with European civllizl-
ton although that civiiiz iloH has been of rude
kind taught the Spaniards, with whom their women
Intcrmarricd. how to bWld mud hon es ana the ant
OF lrrgatag the arid feds, while the latter in re-
turn gave o the In lians their language and re-
igion ard the two peoples have, for the las 200
years lived side by side, pursuing substantially the
same occupations and occasionally al war with
each other, until ahout forty years ago, remaining
distinct in spi Of tseir frequent inicrnarraGos.
he people Of thr Indian towns apparently, are 10
day as purc-blOoaed a. Their ancestors two centu-
ri,s ago. although they have. in the meantime lus-
uishcd wives for generations of Spanarts and Mex
leans
pre-. ume that there is no town in the United
States certainly none o. equal with Santa re.
in the streets of which az many Indians may be
seen every day in The week a, in tins The Pueblos
have not adop ed European costumes but ,lll dress
in blankets md leegngs with brglt-coiored hand
kcrcliefs tied I'D jut Their heads They 1--we chiefly
by agriculture ana StOck-laSln3, anu contribute
not a liitlc 10 the supply OF the city with meat
fruit and vegetables Il Is a daily occurrence for
Pueblo Indi ms to come f. Santa Fc from distance
of twenty or thirty miles bringing quarter of beef,
addressed sheep. hundred pounds OF kitcle
garden sauce" iile-Vood app'eS peaches or grapes
or a few pieces Of Indian pottery upon their bu~ros.
They pcddc thCir wares about the streets drive
very sharp bargains with their customers. As
rule they look as intelligent as the Meyicans. AM
some Of the latter could not be dsiingui he1 from
them if they did not wear the garments OF cvza-
ton. have seen starllngly strong faces
among the Indians-fices upon which the lines de-
noting character are very deeply drawn, and faces
that would arrest attention wherever they might be
seen.
RELICS OF OLD PUEBLO CITIES.
| Tie Pueblo Indians, although not numerous
rs when this country discovered, are not now,
| believe, diving ont. What the effect of the build
ing of railroads and the intro uction of American
civilization may be, no one can tell.
The ruins of their former cities are fire.
quenty stumbled upon travels over the
country and 1t is by no means uncommon to find,
far from any present settlements mounds that seem
TO be almost entirely composed of the fragments OF
ancient Indian pottery. At San Marco Spring,
about twenty miles south Of Santa Fe, there are
some of these mounds. in which every spadeful of
earth that is turned mp contains half dozen such
relics, and friend who walking them
with me the other day found a fragment of all old
bell as large as mans hand upon which remained
some of the OrnamentatIOn cast upon 1t sharp III
outline as though it had only yesterday come from
the mould. We also saw the foundations of the old
cOrrals, and gathered many fragments Of pottery,
the character OF which is entirely different from
that now made. 1t may be that an Indian village
has existed on the spot since the Spanish reconquest
in 1892 and that the bell of which found frag
ment was once upon a Pueblo church or chapel
The more probable theory, thought If the ancient
character of the pottery picked mp near it Is estab
lished is that the bell was taken from one Of the
Spanish towns after the Indian revolt of 1GS0 for
history records that the Pueblos at that time de-
sroyed the churches aud earned away and broke
ND the bells, and IT may be that tine Indian town
itself was torn down when the Spanish returned or
in some subsequent
THE NAVAJO INDIANS OF TO-DAY.
In addition to the Pucblos, small bands of Nay.lo
Indians are frequently IA the streets Of Santa
Fe selling blankets Of their own manufacture.
They are larger and nob,er-ooi,ng Indians than The
Pueblos, and are rich in ponles sheep and cattle.
Their reservation IS i'll the western part of the lei
ritory, but as they are pcaceable they are allowed
to visit the towns for tine purpose OF traffic. nave
seen only one small company of the Navaios about
the city since | came 10 Santa Fe, and the reason,
as | have been told, is that the present is their
hunting season, and they are IN the mountains in
search of game. The Navajos. as | brve already
said, are now a. peace with the white people, and ii
Is to be hoped that they will never again be pro-
voked to hostility. They are described by those
who know them best as noble specimens OF red men,
brave, honorable and proud. They have gwen
much trouble, both to Mexicaus and Americans.
l.,
to their wealth in hocks and herds they are experts
in the chase, an carry a considerable trade
in blankets and skins with the merchants of Santa
Fe and other towns Of New Mexico.
met i'll Colorado, recently, General 4. W. DOui-
phan. VINO commanded the 1st Missouri Volunteers
during the Mexican War, and accompanied General
S W KeaIncy III 1S1G, when the latter made tie |
conquest of New-Mexico. General Doniphan had !
about LOO troops under his command, and !
these, with the 800 regulars brought ont By Kcar- |
ney composed tue army Of invasion. They Left Fort
Leaveuwortl and marched to Gloreta summit, |
which j, the only practicable pass over the SantaFc
range Of mountains, and on thcir appearance There
the Mexic3ns who outnumbcrol them more than /
two one and who had taken possession Of the pass
and fortified It, retreatcd without firing shot ana
started for Chihuahua.
Colonel D1niphan was q lawyer, ana at General |
Kcarncfs request, drew up form Of civil govern |
nout for the newly conquered territory. When |
Kcarncy started Tor California lac left Douiphan ia
command as Military Governor OF Ncw-NeNico and |
the latter. WHO j. now ore Of tnc most genial old |
men | ever met, describes many interesting lnci- |
dents Of ms official intercourse with the McXlcaus
and Indians The Nayaios at that tine had long /
been at war with the NJ Xcans, and took advantage |
of the unsettled condition Of affairs during the |
American invasion to commit some mos, horrible |
oufragcs upon he people who were unprotected III /
their ranches and small villages. Some of these |
depredatons came under the notice of General Kcar-
ney alter he lef; Santa r. fjr tie West and he sent
back messenger with "A request that Colonel DOM