Wichita eagle., 1888-07-13
THE OLD SANTA FE TRAIL.
The Route and the Country it Travers.
Down Among the -Aztica
To the Editor Of the Eagle.


Down Among the Azticl
To the Editor Of the Eagle
In my last l said that we stepped into
Santa Fe over the old Santa Fe trail
Some may say: Well, what of it: Well,
in the first place the old Santa Fe trail
was wonderful road, built a long while
ago-over forty years-running from
st. Joe and Leavenworth to Santa Fe,
and was used by the United States to
haul their supplies over that went to
New Mexico, until finally it became the
only road for emigrants and traders.
There is but little of it to be seen in
Sedgwick county, but it is claimed that
it ran through Delano township, but it is
fenced up in some counties. Still after
leaving Kansas it becomes palmer and is
the best and most practical route through
the country through which it passes. In
Texas we We're told to go south until we
struck the old Santa Fe trail, that would
take Us to Springer, and it did, and by
that time we could recognize it by its
deep and wide wheel ruts. We went to
Ocate and found the trail, then to Las
Vegas and it was still like some old man
to point out the way. When we left
Fort Union inquired the way, when
man pointed to road and said that's
the old Santa Fe trail, follow that.
and so whenever we got off the track all
we had to 60 was to hunt up the old trail
and we were all right. We noticed that
there has been but few changes from its
original route. Few countries can boast
of a road as long as the Santa Fe trail.
England nor Ireland, that makes SO
much fuss in the world, has got room
enough for one. Another wonderful
thing about it is that there has been so
few changes in it, showing that there
must have been a man of uncommon
energy and ability that laid out the road
But we arrived at Santa Fe all right:
we were strongers in a strange land, but
a person can content himself there as
every one is friendly and sociable with
They don't like the Americans as they
by the United States, and are not to
blame for their dislike Yet like Santa
Fe, for it is the oldest place in the United
Notwithstanding. | like it because they
boilu houoCo do tICy Uid TWO littuoeiilu
years ago. They make brick the same
were in bondage and made brick
for their masters. l like it be-
cause it has a historical room
in which one can see all kinds of ancient
pottery from different parts of New
Mexico, fine paintings. ancient flags,
blacksmith bellows that have been in
use for over goo years, ancient firearms
bows and arrows, ancient books, all
kinds of ores from the different mines,
some natural coke and hundreds of curl
osities. l like the fine plaza, also the |
military band that plays so finely in the |
plaza every night. like it because they |
can keep so quiet and civil after drinking
SO much poor whisky. l like it because
it has not got a steam engine of any |
kind in the place, but everything goes |
back to first principles. | like its narrow
Mexican streets and adobe houses. We |
met sixty-four burros packed with |
stove wood one day. like the burros, |
as they are just the thing for the Mexi- |
cans. They are the most patient, gentle |
animals in the world and are used for |
packing everything. Any person can
own pair of burros, but not every one |
can own pair of horses and wagon.
The burro is a very ancient animal; we |
read of them in the Bible, but under a |
different name.
There is another thing that I find |
this year, that is large amount of fruit |
growing in Santa Fe. We saw apricots
peaches, apples, cherries and currants |
growing in a large number of gardens. |
and in one large cherry tree l observed |
the usual bad boy hooking cherries, so |
that fruit will grow if properly cared
for.
When we left Santa Fe we took the
road leading to Espanola. We stopped /
at Poiuaque (be sure to pronounce it |
right with Mr.. John Boquet. He has
lived there about fifty years. | noticed |
he had some fine fruit growing in his
garden, and at other places between
Santa Fe and Espanola we saw some
fine lots Of fruit. Apricots seem to -four
sh remarkably well. 1t is about thirty
miles from one place to the other, SO
that there is not much to be seen on the |
trip. The country is very barren. ex
cepting where irrigation can be had.
With that exception the mountains are
dead, no vegetation. the trees all cut off
and mountains are crumbiing and wash
ing into every conceivable shape.
1t does not require a great stretch of
the imagination 10 see castles, gatewayS
and in some places we could see columns
standing out isolated from everything.
hat looked grand and imposing. On
his trip to Espanola we have to walk
through the aroya, or the dry bed of a
liver; in this case it is about four miles;
he sand and gravel Is ankle deep, max
ng the walking very tedious. These
liver beds that are SO dry and innocent
low are turned into channels for noun
ain torrents when they have some heavy
showers up in the mountains, but in
ew hours the waters run off leaving the
anne dry, gravelly aroya as before.
When we arrived at the Rio Grande
We found it much lower than last year;
Ilso quite clear. We crossed to Espanola
md camped for the night. The next
morning we started up the Santa Clara,
# which l viii tell about in my next.
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