Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1883-06-07

of Douglas county, Kansas, delivered to
the excursion party, his famous lecture
on New Mexico, which, under the cir
cumstances, was unusually interesting.
We are under obligations to Mr.
Greene for much valuable information.
After the lecture a ball was given III
honor of our party, several OF whom
acquitted themselves very gracefully In
the may labarynths of the dance.
In the morning we took breakfast at
Las Vegas, and pursued our way across
very barren and broken country
The soil is OF reddish brick color, be-
ing bare, with the exception OF sage
brush, scrubby pines and little grass
in the deep valleys. Crevices, or small
bitches interlace the landscape, and
sometimes a small stream of water is
seen, near which there is almost sure
to be a stock ranch. Presently to our
left appears the giant outlines of St0rv-
alton Peak. The legend is that years
ago the Indians drote party OF Span
iards upon this mountain and there
kept them until they actually starved
TO death while viewing the fertile
fields of their own homes. A large
wooden cross which commentaries
their sad fate, is plainly observable
upon the summit. Mrs. Allen, lady
artist in our party, sketched faithful
likeness of this mountain as we passed.
Near the summit of GlOrietta mount
aims, stop at a small station few
moments. This is a level plateau, here,
covered with beautiful grove of pin
ons. The ladies and gentlemen ramble
about for few moments in the shade
and gather pine cones. A little brown
Mexican boy is selling pinon nuts,
which grow upon trees Of the same
name, being about the size of a bean
and of a sickish sweet taste. For miles
below us lies the green, brown and red
landscape, rugged, broken and pictur-
eque.
''The hills were brown, the heavens
were blue,
A woodpecker pounded a pine-top
shell,
While partridge whistled the whole
day through,
For rabbit to dance in the chapparal,
And a gray grouse drum'd 'Al's well,
all's we'll y"
Finally as we climbed near the top of
the mountain, off to our right, we
caught glimpses of the ruins of old Pc
COS church and pueblo, q might here
explain that pueblo is the Indian name
for town. Hence the Pueblo Indians
were known as town lndians.) The
ruins of the adobe walls, church and
town, look something like an old de-
funct briek-kiln. There is very inter-
esting tradition connected with this
place. The old folklore is, that Monte
zeuma, the Culture God, was born at
this place; that his early years were
similar to those Christ; of that when he
arrived at the age of manhood he be-
came their prophet, priest and king;
that, sitting under an old pinOn tree
which he planted, he used to make
prophecies and talk parallels, warning
his people that the cOnquerers would
come from the south and make slaves
of them for 250 years, and then that a
powerful white race would come from
the east and hberate them, and that
the waters of heaven would fall and fer
tilize the wales, and the mountains
would give up its treasure OF gold and
silver; that one day a large white eagle
came and carried MOnteZuma away on
his back, and wherever he alighted at
night a church and pueblo was to be
built; and that where he finally lit upon
q cactus and devoured a serpent was
to be great town where a long line
of Montezumas would reign The old
City of Mexico is said to be on the
identical spot, where the MOntezumas
did reign until COrtez came with his
GALLONS, murdered the king, captured
the city and sent the rich treasure OF
the MOnteZumas across the ocean to
adorn and enrich the princely halls OF
the Alhambra.
One of the principal features of the
Aztec creed was to keep the sacred fires
1 burning upon the altar until the second
appearing of Monteznma the Culture
God. This they did at old Pecos
church until travel became so frequent
along the Santa Fe trail that they
feared irreverent and impiOus
hands might eXGnguish it and there
by prevent the coming of Montezuma,
so they removed it with great cerem ony
to Taos, where the eagle of MOntezumG
was supposed to have first alighted
and it is said to be still burning in q
, sacred estufa. But enough of the Aztec
myths. We live in the nineteenth cen
fury, when superstition and
misty romance of mideval ages, next
before the tide of progress and practica
! civilization.
, Passing. through the village of the
Lamy, we took the branch road and
finally reached the famous old town Of
Santa Fe.
r Let you Imagination picture a leve
5 plateau of almost white soil, with very
i, scant vegetation, long chain of mount
aims short distance away on the north
and east, some of them covered with
: snow, a broken. chain farther to the
| westward dim and vague through the
long vista, and an irregular towr
promiscuOusly composed of old adobe
and modern buildings, and you vii
S have a pretty good idea of Santa Fe
s the oldest city Ill tho United States.
: is said to have been occupied by thu
/ AZtecs in 1325-about three hundred
: years before the Plymouth Rock sensa
] ton, and how old it was then none cal
r tell. II was occupied by the Spaniards il
1 Al. =