Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-12
FORTUNES IN MEXICO.
The Field For American Money
Across the Rio Grande.
A LAND OF GREAT PROMISE.
Manufacturing In Our Sister Republic-Amer-
leans Who Have Made Fortunes-The New
Coal and Iron Fields-The Cost of Living in
the Capital and Other Cities.
of The Evening Star.

MEXICO CRY. August So 1881.
..NNHAT DOES IT COST TO LIVE IN
w Mexico?''
asked this question Of a young American
DENTS who was practicing his profession in the
city of San Luis Potosi. This is a city of about
100, 900 people. 1t lies in the north central
part of Mexico and is in a rich farming coun-
try. The young dentist lives very nicely. Like
all of his kind in Mexico he is making money
and be is saving enough to make him rich
within the next ten or fifteen years. Said he:
II keep close account of my expenses and as
l figure ii it costs me just about S1l7 a month
My living costs me for table expenses % day
or $50 month. l pay S25 month for my
house. and have three servants. who average
81 a month apiece. l might get along with
less servants, but not very well. Here every
respectable fellow has to have a cook a man
and chambermaid. The cook won't go out
side the kitchen and you have some trouble
making the chambermaid wait upon the table
My boy tends to the front door, waters the
street in front of my house and runs my err
rands. he sleeps Ill front of the door at night
and does the most of my marketing. In
addition to the wages of the servants | have to
give them SO much day for food. Each OF
them expects . cents every morning for tOrtil-
las or the corn cakes. which constitutes the
they don It like my food but have "A sneaking
idea that they steal ii all the same. Then every
week have to give cents extra to them fox
soap. This is the custom and they want the
money and not the soap. L once bought
twenty-five pounds of soap and tried to dole it
out to them. but they wouldn't take it, Then
In addition to this. l have my washing and
ironing. This Is never done in the house in
Mexico. There are public washerwomen, who
pound and rub the clothes to pieces after wet
mo rhnrn a,,1l -. hYal. IL.
from public tanks or bitches. They wear out
the clothes in one-third the time that they
would be destroyed by the Chinese laundry
and pay them - month for doing it. My
butter costs me 10 cents pound. my milk II
cents day and 1 pay about cents a day on
me xico is done with charcoal and there is not a
cooking stove in Mexican family the country
over. Mexican houses have no chimneys and
our cooking utensils are all made of clay"
HOW THE MONEY GOES.
"How about incidental expenses?' asked.
They are very high, was the reply. Money
slips away here faster than you would think,
and would like to give you some of the items
An ordinary hand-me-down suit costs from
so to go Undertaking is very expensive.
Calico costs Is cents yard. A very ordinary
silk necktie sells for -. Linen cuffs are 30
cents pair, and collars are three for IL. Coal
oil costs 81 cents a gallon, good tea costs So so
a pound. and canned meats are expensive.
Take one Of these lucent cans of lobster or
salmon, which you can buy any place i'll Amer
lea. and 1t will cost 81 cents here and a cake
OF Pear s soap will cost you 70 cents. Canned
fruits are from 70 cents Up, coffee costs %
cents IL the bean unground and chocolate is
40 cents pound. Bread costs II cents a loaf.
You can buy the same at home for cents
Table salt costs 6 cents pound Flour is
a shilling pound and the better classes of i'm
ported articles are very high. l pay Is cents
for a mackerel and Goldfish costs 70 cents a
pound. American cheese is 80 cents pound
and lump sugar costs IA cents pound. l paw
70 cents pound for strawberries and We raise
these III some parts of Mexico all the wear
around. Ny claret costs me 80 bottle and
pay 10 cents a quart for potatoes. My wifes
dresses count up. can tell you, and a man has
to make good lot of money in Mexico in
order 10 live as well as he does at home"
HOW ONE DENTIST GOT RICH.
81 suppose you make it," said l.
Eyes, do was the reply. and any Ameri-
can dentist who will come here and stay can do
likewise. 1 made $1,000 the first wear and
have done considerably better right along
since that time. l can charge bigger prices
get from hundred to hundred and fifty
dollars for a full set of teeth on rubber. The
same thing In the states costs you SIS. When
ever administer gas charge : 10 for the pull
ing of a tooth. and when a number are pulled
l charge $40 for the first tooth and So for all
succeeding ones. For jerking out tooth
without gas l charge - and in the United
States you would only get 50 cents for this
work.
''As to filings. they range from SIS upward,
.- nd gold filings cost from Sl5 up into the hum
ureds, according to the size of the cavity and
to the size OF the bank account of the man who
has his teeth flied. l always get 600 for max
Ing u set of teeth or gold and all other business
Is done at proportlOnate rates. l know of
yuar1 -. no
and know of number who charge more than
do. often make II 600 Il month but dent
lists In Mexico City make more and l know u
man there VINO gets 80 a tooth for any kind of
u filling and WHO came to Mexico from south
America, where ne made $40 900 in single year.
He Is good dentist. but his charges are terri
bic. In the meantime | am investing all | save
In Mexico ana expect to make a fortune
LIVING IN MEXICO CITY.
There are about seven hundred Americans
living in Mexico City. Some of these are very
wealthy. A few own houses and quite num-
her have rented establishments. The Hon.
Thomas Brauniif, who was. I understand. born
Oh Staten Island, is said to be a number OF
times a millionaire. and his income must be
considerably over SlOU,OO0 u year. He Is pres
iient Of the Mexican railway which runs to
VEGA Cruz and lie has big plantation. cot .ou
factories ana Is one OF the leading owners of
tie Bank of London and Mexico. which is the
UlgStst DdAk Ill me country. he Is building
a house which viii cost 400. 0C0 on the Ia.ee
which Is a fashionable drive of Mexico Civ.
and he is the richest American in Mexico. Gen.
John B. Frisbie Is another rich American. Ee
owns some gold mines near Toluca. and he has
one o; the most comfortable homes in the cam
ital. lie tells me that living Is high in Mexico
The same Is the verdict OF thc other Americans
WHOM have met here. Rents are high and
iuxuries are very expensive. Everything thai
Is imported Is high. and great chance for
money making Is for the American to 90 TO
Mexico study the needs OF the people aud to
start factories in Ne xico for making the articles
that are now SO highly protected by the tariff
Take the matter OF nails for instance; these
cost from 10 TO % cents u pound and they are
30 exiel that great pa:t OF the building
of Mexico Is doue with ropes instead of nails
Here Ill Mexico City within "a stones throw of
the lturbide Hotel immense buiiding is be;u q
erected. The scaffoldiuS about this building is
tied together with ropes, the raiters beili;,
spliceG in this way.
Many OF the huts Of the southern part Of the
country have roofs OF tlIatch tied to rafters
With ropes. and some of these huts have not a
nali In them. In another part of Mexico TIE
nuts and houses are roofed with boards, but
| the boards are tied on and are held down with
stones or rocks placed upon them. Few wooden
buildings are known in Mexico. The average
house has neither cellar nor garnet, and the
iastenings, which We make with nails, are in
genlously constructed with brick and mortar
have seen fences where the boards and poles
were tied TO the posts and a crate that 1 got