The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1883-09-28

oxen. driven four abreast three abreast, tan
dem. hap-hazzard, and always with
heavy, wooden Jokes tied by the horns
bowed nearly to the ground by the weight Of
wood upon them, and their eyes wear look of
suffering pitiable to behold, while the driver
amuses himself by constantly prodding them
with q long pole, in ths end Of which is q sharp
iron spear. Oh! for q Bergh in Mexico is our
daily cry If the theory Of transmigration Of
future state" in the form Of oxen or donkeys
SUGAR AND FRUIT. "a
The sugar factory aforesaid is rustic mill
standing in the open field worked by one de-
crepit mule, and "tended'' by solitary Mexi-
can-the only human being beside ourselves in
sight Judge Golindo's methods and maohin-
cry are primitive as compared to commodious
manufactures in the United States; but per-
haps he is wiser, as expenses are less and his
gains correspondingly greater. The cane
stalks serve double purpose, for. after hav-
thrust into the furnace for fuel The sap runs by
rude trough from the mill into tin vat. under
which is the mud oven digniied by the name of
furnace. When sufficiently boiled, the syrup
ls cooled and nodded in tiny earthen pots, ex-
aotly like our smallest plant-jars, only trife
deeper. Each little cake is then separately
wrapped in dried leaves of the cane, and is
ready for shipping The skimmings of the
boiling sap ar utilized in making a popular
beverage resembling cider, called aqua miel
(honey water, or miel de cana. The pilonoille
syrup 10 BY no means as pleasant to the taste
as our maple, but it is more like Chinese sor-
ghum.
In this part Of Mexico. as well as farther
southward, the orange tree grows luxuriantly
In Texas, where great quantities of the fruit
are shipped, Mexican oranges are considered
superior to those from any other point Figs
arc as plentiful as the blackberry briers before
fry ~ Ma
England, and so cheap that few consider them
worth picking to SELL An establishment for
drying, packing and shipping them could not
fail to realize handsome returns. The princi-
pal exports from Monterey are silver and lead
from the mines, hides, goat skins and textile
fiber called in Attic dialect
11TLE,
which is extensively used in the United States
in the manufacture of ropes. An endless
quantity of this valuable fiber could be OBJ
tanned if machines were invented to separate
it from the pulp. From time immemorial this
BY separating. it, leaf by leaf. with knife
The price of ixtle in Monterey is $1.25 per
arroba or twenty-five pounds In the neigh
boring State - Coahuila great quantities
az and gprps p p.ras mua both VIM WHITE
made, of . superior quality-a sor: Of cross
between port and claret, aud another variety
which tastes much like sherry When rail IA
ci!ties are fairly established NO doubt this also
will form an important item of export-not to
mention the many strange tropical fruits with
which lnquisitive Americans would like to be-
come acquainted. Pomegranates grow to great
SIZE here, also ahuacates, like those of Cuba,
which are considered such luxury that they
sell for So apiece in New York. Even tbs
despised cactus. like adversely, is not without
its uses Indeed, I don't know what the coun-
try would do without it. In the long, dry sum-
mers, when water is scarce, countless flocks of
sheep and goats are kept alive by splitting the
broad. fiat leaves of the prickly pear variety
and allowing the creatures to suck the natural
moisture contained inside. The favorte diet
OF American donkeys is said to be tin cans and
thlstles. but their Mexican cousins fare better.
on toasted cactus, which their owners prepare
by holding branches of it on stick lit is inn
possible to handle otherwise) over a Glow fire
till the thorns are burned of. Each variety of
cactus bears its fruit, all "gooi for man and
beast, and more or less palatable-whether
pale green, blood red or black when ripe
OF late the mines Of this section have been
attracting almost as much attention US the more
celebrated ones of Sonora and other portions
of Mexico Several companies of American
capitalists have recently been organized, aud
are now working at Villsdama, Salinas, Vic
toria and other points in the immediate vicin-
ity Of Monterey. Though the memory OF man
goeth not to a time when these mines have not
been worked-Mexican fashion-it is ex-
pected that now, with improved machin-
cry, and Yankee enterprise, their yield
Will roc. 6e greatly Aha improved When
cold and silver possessed by the early Aztecs,
Tlascaus and Teczucans in the morning
twilight Of Mexican history-in the days Of
Montezuma, Ixtlazihuatl, Nezahualpitii, X
tolxoehitl, and other ancient worthless with
jaw-breaking names-we wonder if there was
no bottom created to these mines, or if nature
is buster here than elsewhere.
CHANCES FOR ENTERPRISE.
Near Monterey are three factories, run by
water power, for the manufacture Of cotton
cloth. Two of them make bleached goods,
and have been so successful that they have
doubled the number of looms within the last
year. The cheapest calico, which in St. Paul
retails for 4 cents yard, here sells for 25 or
80 cents per vara. which is about three-quar-
ters of . yard. AS the duty on prints amounts
to more than the cost of the cloth itself, it
would well repay capitalists to establish print
factories in this section, especially as the duty
on raw cotton is simply nominal, and the price
Of labor less here than anywhere else on
the continent OF course. the Importance Of
these factories will increase with the OPEN
ing Of facilities to reach other portions
Of Mexico. Formerly all goods had to be trans
ported in carts or on pack mules, but the rail-
roads will soon do away with such slow transit.
Machinery of all kinds goes free of duty, and
right here is an idea for enterprising agents,
viz: The most cheaply gotten no sewing ma
chimes sell readily in Mexico for 1925 and
upward A paper mill erected near Monterey
would be fortune for somebody. Paper
costs So por ream in the United States, but by
the time it has crossed the border and paid the
duties, has advanced to $3.50 per ream.
The refuse Of tho cotton mills, which ia
burned as of no value, could no doubt be
utilized in this new industry. A soap factory,
ALEC, ought to yield bonanza here. We pay
so cents in Mexico for cakes Of ordinary toilet
soap, which sell elsewhere for 10 cents, and
from 81 to 81. so for ssLubin's best" Com
mon brown bar soap is sold in thin slices-re-
sembling boarding school sponge cake-for q
madie Is cents) slice, or IS cents per bar.
As may be- inferred, the Mexican poor
seldom indulge in such an expensive
luxury as soap, but use instead amole,
the root Of the mountain shrub Lechuguilla,
which answers the purpose Is well. except that
1t roughens the skin like cactus leaf One
would think that soap-making materials might
be readily obtained in land where wood only
is used for fuel and much fat for food-except
for the fact that the national appetite for the
latter leads to the consumption of all those
portions Of pork, ETC., which we consider 1T
only for soap grease In my opinion another
fortune hes in potato raising and market garden
ing. During six months residence IN Mexico
have scarcely seen an Irish potato. Although
they grow readily in this soil, nobody seems TO
have thought Of planting them-simply because
it Is not ''the custom" They are imported from
the States, and sold at exorbitant prices by
the piece or pound-for you would be as
likely to buy calico by the quart as anything
by the peck or bushel in Mexico. Many straw
berries are grown in Coahulla; but as they arc
not readily transported long distances, over
mountain roads on mule back-except in the
form Of '.jam"-thoy are never seen in this
market Neither are such small fruits as
cherries, raspberries, plums-or asparagus,
etc,-though fruits aud vegetables Of all kinds