The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1883-05-24

Att santa Re.
At Lamy we took q branch road for
Santa Fe eighteen miles distant, where
we arrived about 10 O'Clock a. m, and
where we remrined till $50 p m. The
time was spent in hurriedly visiting the
points OF interest. There is a large
American population here and the town
is rapidly assuming American customs.
One of the leading objects of interest
here is the old adobe church which was
built between 1882 and 1896, and the old
adobe house close by the age of which
is not known. The church lsstill used as
place of worship, though it looks
delapidated. The root was destroyed ia
1880 by the Pueblo Indians and restored
by the Spaniards in l7l0 The age of
the gallery and beam over the chancel is
III years. The age of some of the pic
lures which decorate the walls Is I'M
known, but they are probably older han
the church. We were disappointed IN
the Santa Fe plaza of which we had read
so many brilliant descriptions. 1t is
simply small enclosure surrounded by
very ordinary pailing fence. and is
ornamented with cottonwoods and
alfalfa. In the center is monument
about twelve feet high erected by the
territorial legislature 10 memory of the
soldiers who fell in the late war in the
fights in New Mexico, and to those who
I'll - "a T..
said to be the Oldest city in the United
st ties. There is evidence to show that
it was occupied by the AZtecs in 1926
nearly three hundred years before the
Plymouth Rock event--and how old it
was then not even. tradition can tell. 1t
was occupied by the Spaniards in 1888,
800 years ago, and in July next
will celebrate the Spanish settle
ment with elaborate ceremonies and
an exhibition OF the antiquities and
resources of the territory. Santa Fe
was primeval stronghold before the
Spanish conquest, fiourishIng city be-
fore Plymouth had a name, and town
of importance when Pennsylvania was a
wilderness. Santa Fe is the capital of
the territory, as our readers sknow, and
another object of interest is the guberna-
torial palace. 1t is related that some
Irreverent tourist says it has more the
appearance of rope factory than a
palace. 1t is said. to. have been first
built in 1881 by the Indians, from ma
terial taken from an Indian pueblo; it
is one story high, with porch in front,
and occupies one side Of the plaza, OF
publicisqnare. Some of the walls are five
feet thick. 1t lad been the palace of the
PueblOs before the holy name of Santa
Fe had been given in baptismal blood
by the Spanish conquerors; palace ofthe
Mexicans after they broke away from
the crown of Spain; palace during its
occupation by FL Gringo; the palace of
the territorial governor, Gen. Lew. Wal
lace, while he wrote "The Fair God"
and "Ben Hur;" and now the palace of
Gov. Lionel A. Sheldon. In the stormy
scenes of the 18th century it withstood
several seiges, was repeatedly lost and
won as the white man
or red held the victory.
Santa Fee has one daily and four weekly
papers, three hotels, two banks, Catho-
lie, Methodist, Presbyterian, Congrega-
tional and Episcopal churches; the
schools include the University of New
Mexico, with four associate teachers,
Christian Brothers college, Sisters of
Loretto academy, orphan asylum and
Santa Fee academy. One quarter of the
entire tax of the territory is devoted to
school purposes. The population of
the place is between 1000 and 5000.
Many of the buildings are large and
elegant, especially the new hotel. Ex-
tensive preparations are now being mazda
for the Booth anniversary of its set
Element Large buildings and
sheds are being erected for
the purpose. Santa Fe is growing
and is destined to be large town.