The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1880-11-04
WMEXlCO.

another Interesting Letter from Harvey
Safer owntains Scenery IN
cient City If Santa -Adobe-1'he
March Of the Yankee-Hon. W.. G.
Ritch.
SANTA FE, New Mexico,
Oct. IL, 1880.
EDITOR ADVANCE: Leaving Trini-
dad, Colorado, the A. T. & S. F. road
winds around through the Ration noun
tains in southerly direction, aud al
though you start at an elevation of {, 900
feet, the ascent to Ration pass is so
steep for many miles that it was diff
cult for the engine to draw one baggage
car, one coach. and an empty sleeper up
the grade. Sixteen miles from Trinidad
is tunnel cut through the solid rock
Of the mountains two thousand feet in
length, which has been APPLY termed the
Gateway to New Mexico" In passing
through this tunnel you cross the boun-
Diary line between Colorado and New
Mexico. AS you begin the ascent and
look up above you, it appears to be one
vast range Of rocky peaks, but after
reaching the top you find for several
miles beautiful rolling plateau with
here and there little stream and occa-
sionally small pond. 1t is covered
with short grass very like the buffalo
grass seen in western Dakota, although
some Of it is as beautiful looking land
as one might wish to see, yet, owing to
a lack Of sufficient water for irrigation,
it is only used for grazing purposes.
Flocks of sheep and occasionally house
may be seen all along the road.
A ride Of forty five hours, over $40
miles of railroad from Kansas City,
brings you to the venerable town of
Santa Fe; the city that was once the
capital Of the Atontezuma<, and 4 name
around which is clustered the romance
and poetry of more than two enturies;
a name that is older than 1.-THE Stars
and Stripes" Il town that is said to
have been founded before James the
First had waved his sceptre oyer Eng
land.
Yet with all its age and historic as
sociations the Santa Fe of to-day pre-
sents a very unromantic appearance.
The entire town is built of one-story,
f1at'roofed adobe commonly pronoun-
ced. do bay houses. The buildings are
all low, the streets are narrow, usually
without sidewalks, and nothing seems
to have been done to make it appear
pleasing or cheerful. Every thing a.
bout the place is old and dingy, except
ing the price of 4 shave, which is 25
cents. There is something rather
fresh about that.
These adobe houses are not exactly
the same thing as our Minnesota ''sod
shanties," but about as near it as the
circumstances and the material would
admit. The adobes are simply sort of
brick made of mud and straw. The
material is put into a wooden mould
with the hands or wooden shovel.
and with little pressing is turned out
to dry in the sun. They are generally
about 1Ox16 inches and 4 inches thick
The walls are laid in mud similar to the
manner in which mason would Il
brick wall in mortar. Adobes are said
to possess one advantage, inasmuch as
they are the coolest house in the sum-
mer and the warmest in the winter.
The Mexican has about the same idea
of ornamenting or identifying home,
as the Indian, but since the advent of
the white man into this country many
of these houses are built with much
taste. The better class are plastered
on the outside and then ''pencillpd" or
painted 80 as to initiate masonry. and
really make 4 very neat appearance
waving their propensity to look squat
ty.
Brooks old Gazetteer gives Santa Fe
population of 4, 1000 according to the
census returns Of 1880. 1t has not
grown much since. They now claim
between six and seven thousand. Many
of these Mexican towns are over hun.
bred years old. and Santa Fe, like I'LL
the rest, is built around Il hollow square
called 1.-THE plaza" This is supposed
to have been place of refuge where
they conld run their stock in case of an
attack from their enemies. Ordinarily
they are content to inhabt these towns
generation after generation without
setting out tree or making any effort
at improvement, but Santa Fe has 4
few nice shade trees around its plaza
which were set out by Mariana Marti-
nez. Governor in 1914.
What is to be the future of Santa Fe,
may be difficult to say, but it is under
going rapid change. The march of
progress that knows no ebb to Its i'm
perious flow is breaking down these old
barriers, opening up new world of
traffic, and revolutioniZing the manners
and customs of a peculiar people. The
Mexican is probably drifting on to the
same destiny as that of the American
Indian. He has no interests in common
with the white man. The Mexican
builds no railroads, establishes no insti-
buttons of learning, accommodates no
wealth. The only monument that he
has left behind him is the everlasting
one.stOry mud house. Here is coun-
try that they inhabited centuries ago
and they are leaving it just wi ere they
found it. Here is the most important
Mexican town In the United States,
and to-day it is owned by the white
man. Some of the merchants carry
stocks running into the hundreds of
thousands and they are all owned nv