Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-11-16

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GUAYMAs, Mexico, 1889.
In every town and village of the State
of Sonora there are public schools for boys,
and others for girls, all supported at Gov
eminent expense. Education is popularity
supposed to be compulsory, but, as in the
United States, the law in that regard is
not vigorously enforced. In these public
schools the elementary branches are taught
and in the female schools needlework is
made speciality, and sometimes drawing
and embroidery are added. At Hermosillo,
the State Capital; Guaymas, Alamos and
Ures are schools of higher grade, also con-
Quoted at Government expense, while in
many portions of the State are private in
stitutiOns of learnin0, whose teachers are
paid by their wealthy patrons.
A novelty in the way of theaters is this
one at Guaymas, without seat anywhere
inside of it, except line of benches in
the outer corridors, wherein soldiers and
servants lounge during every performance.
Everybody brings his own chair, or rather
his servant carries it for him, and the con-
sequence is that there are seats of all
nights, sizes and descriptions, from COM
mon rush-bottomed affairs to gorgeously
upholstered sofas. If you are a stranger
within the gates and have no chair to
bring, you may rent one for medic (six
cents of an old woman at the door-who
will ask you also for cigarette, ''Por dos
flor Gods sake, Senorp
There is good deal of wealth in Quay
mas, and some very good society, with even
pretensions to elegance. Bull-fghts are
not so common as of yore, and the cockpit
is almost deserted, except by the lower
classes; but Sunday is still the gala-day of
the week-everybody going religiously to
mass in the morning, to the public bath
and promenade in the afternoon, and to a
masked ball, or some other revel, in the
evening.
There is a telegraph line owned and
operated by the Federal Government, run
ming from Guaymas to Hermosillo, and
thence to Ures-ln all 100 miles The
Government line from the City Of Mexico
touches the Pacific coast at Mazat-
Ian, in the State of Sinaloa, and runs
thence to Alamos, in the southern part of
this State-thus connecting this odd little
II,
some corner of the Republic, not only d.
rectly with the national capital, but with
every portion of :he country. And besides
all that, one may send his words from
Guaymas to New York, or to any other
city in Uncle Sans domain in a very few
minutes, by using the telegraph line of the
Sonora Railroad, which extends via Her
mosillo to Nogales, on the Sonora and Ari-
IONA frontiers, connecting thence with all
the wires OF the United States or with the
Geographic and cable systems of the world.
SONORA
Has "seashoren of over 800 miles, lying
along the "Sea of Cortez," or California
Gulf. Before the completion of the Sonora
Railway all the imports came by sea, those
from the United States direct from Cali
fornia, but they are now brought by rail
direct from the commercial centers of the
Atlantic seaboard, as well as from the Pa
ci6c Coast. Nowadays Northern Sonora
is supplied almost exclusively from the
United States-with cotton, linen and
wooden goods, groceries, glassware, hard
ware, machinery, coal, beer and lumber.
A few years ago European goods had the
monopoly, but now, owing chiefly to the
Sonora road and the influence of Consul
Willard, goods of American manufacture
largely prevail.
By the way, it is stated on good author
ity that the amount of American COM
modihes Struggled into this place across
the Arizona frontier exceeds 100000 a
year in value although the Mexican Gov
eminent has established Gordon of officers
all along the boundary line in vain efforts
to suppress the illegal traffic. This free
booting" is practiced almost exclusively by
natives of the cactus country, and Court
records show that very few foreigners are
apprehended for contrabandism-n one
may be allowed to use the word. 1t is
said in Mexico that everybody smuggles
on opportunity-even the pillars of the
church and State and Custom House Of
fcers themselves. But then, you know,
laws are not made for the makers, but for
this people.
The gentlemanly Collector of the Port
tells me that the domestic trade of Quay
mas with the coast ports down below" as
far south as Manzanillo, amounts in value
TO the sum of S431, III 10 per annum. The
articles most commonly brought up from
the south are blankets, cotton cloth, to-
bacco, cigars, coffee, tanned hides, soap,
lard, rice, mescal, pottery, salt and oil.
Those exported are -four in sacks, mats.
baskets, peas and small red beans.
The project has long been agitated for
another railroad, to commence at a station
on the Sonora road forty miles above
Guaymas, to run a distance of 100 miles to
the coal fields of Los Br0nces and La Bar
ranca, and thence to the famous mines of
Trinidad, near the boundary line of Chi
huahua. 4 long time ago the Mexican
Government granted a franchise from
Guaymas to these coal fields, but 1t was
finally declared forfeited for non-fulfll-
ment of conditions.
THE CONTEMPLATED RAILWAY
From Port Lobos, on the Gulf of Califor
MIA, to the Arizona frontier Ia distance of
ninety miles, and thence to Tucson, sixty
miles further, for which the Mexican Gov
eminent has granted franchise with fat
subsidy-appropriating $4,000 per mile
in sllver-has not vet been begun; and 1t
looks as if Its franchise would 90 the way
of the majority and be declared forfeited.
The steamer Newborn, Of the California
and Mexican line, of San Francisco, under
a subsidy granted by the Mexican Gov
eminent, comes to Guaymas once month
on its regular voyage from Sn Francisco
down to Mazatlan, touching at all inter-
mediate points of consequence, both on the
main land and the peninsula. For years
it received from Mexicos treasury $4,000
for the round trip, in consideration of
carrying the mails free, and Government
employees, stores and troops at half rates
but new contract has recently been made,
reducing the subsidy to Sl,500.
Hermosillo distant by rail 81 statute
miles from Guaymas, lies in a gap which
the Sonora river has cut through the
western range Il IS perfect gem of
picturesque little city, surrounded by high
hills and empowered in orange groves, and