Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-12-12
FROM MEXICO.
A sacramentan Returns-His Ideas OF the
Country A Struggle with Yellow
Fever.

A sacramentan Returns-His Ideas Of the
Country A Struggle with Yellow
Fever.
Ex.Secretary of State d. NJ. Burns. who
recently arrived home from Mexico, was
found by RECORD U MON reporter at the
residence of George Gale, $40 Fourteenth
street, yesterday. MIR. Burns is yet weak
from two attacks of yellow fever, contracted
while at Cosala, State of Sinaloa, but he ex-
poets to be able to return to Mexico by the
LIST of February. He arrived at Mazatlan
from San Francisco on the 18th Of June, and,
packing his assaying furnace and apparatus
on mule, started for the interior. He trav-
eled through the mining districts of Sinslos,
chihuahua and Durango. and the recital OF
his adventures among the silver mountains
and the rich valleys OF the Sierra
Madre is very interesting. As the mineral
features OF the country were the causes OF his
pilgrimage there, he FIRST turned his attention
to the mines, and sought to test the stories of
Mexico's stored millions. He finds the ore
veins of an average greater breadth and of
greater depth than il California and Nevada.
The principal mines are furnished with new
and improved machinery. though In many
paying leads the ore is worked up with the
old rude arastrs, the Mexican being satisfied
with an easy income from his mine. even if
half of the mineral is wasted. Americans
operating the mines hsve no trouble In
the employment of laborers, as the ma.
tives prefer working for foreigner
week in hard money, while a Mexican will
often give his hired help q few pounds Of
corn, and tell him to clear out and be salts
fed "until the bullion returns come home"
And many bullion return never comes
home" The Guadalupe de los Reyes mine
at Cosala has now been in operation for So
years, and has yielded its lucky owners the
comfortable sum of S120. 100000. Its work.
men are tapping the silver treasure 2, 600 feet
down in the earth, and the average length of
the paying chute is about 5000 feet. The
average width of the vein is 80 feet, and value
of the ore $50 per ton. The mine produces
500, 900 per month, at an expense of $50, 900,
using two 20.stamp mills, and employ
ing 400 men, the wages ranging from
81 to five bits per day, the men boarding
themselves. While mining is carried on me-
chanically and scientifically. agriculture is
yet in its primitive form. The climate is IA
vorsble and the soil is the richest in the
world, but the people have no enterprise in
that direction. They are TOO shiftless to plant
o good crop and if the farmer does raise an
abundance he will sell all the crop at cent
per pound, and in a short time. when he
awakes to the fact that he is cut of bread and
seed, he will buy back his own corn at about
four cents per pound. They never look
ahead, never learn from experience, and never
will be anything but courteous and lazy and
happy. Potatoes can be raised which very
readily bring from one to two bits per pound,
but the seed must be renewed every
year from the United States. AS there is no
duty on seed this is not very expensive. Mr..
Burns thinks that Mexico is Just the field
for men of some neans-no others should
apply as the country is full of penniless
people that no country in the world yields
to invested capital such magnificent returns;
that money sent out in any direction comes
back with twofold increase. The cost Of
transportation is comp aratively cheap; from
San Francisco to Mazatlan So per ton, and
from Mazstlsn to C0sala. distance of $50
miles, $50 per ton. The freight is carried
on mules that travel from twelve to twenty
miles day but mules and miles are nothing
in Mexico. Whether a mule travels one
mile per day or twenty, ne is not hurried,
and neither is his lot any harder. At night
he is turned out TO rough it among the
shrubs on some CRASHES hillside until morn
ing, when he Is clnched up again, to climb
with his heavy load above the clouds.
Sugar-making IS becoming an important
industry in the country. One
mill at Cuiiacan is clearing $50 900 per year.
Sugar sells st the factory at bit, and at re.
tail twenty-five cents, pound. Mr.. Burns
says that violence in this country is almost
unknown that he would feel safer in Mexico
unarmed than he would in California with
his clothes full of firearms. The criminal
laws are excellent and well administered.
Murder and repeated robberies are punished
with death. The Government is a strongly
centralized one. Ali power lies in the City
of Mexico, but this republican despotism just
suits the people, as they are hardly able to
govern Themselves In their political matters
party spirit does not run very high,
as there is hardly ever more than one
ticket in the field. The campaign is so ad.
mirably planned at the Capital, and the
soldiery now so skiIlful in quelling revolu.
lions, and the people so patriotic and lazy,
that everything glides smoothly along unop
posed. Mr.. Burns spoke of his intense suf-
ferings during the period he was battling
with the yellow jack. At first he had
what is called the third phase, which
was light; but coming down to the sea
coast he & took relapse into the "second
phase" then it was fight for life. At this
stage of the disease the muscular contrac.
ton takes place, and the pain is so great
that reason gives away and the sense Of
everything but awful agony is lost.