New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1893-04-19
JUAN AND YSABEL.

In the rocky but pleasant little valley
CT the Rio Florido, in the state of Chi
huahua. not far from the station of Cor
falitos on the Mexican Central railway,
sss? }s ~ = = IS IS. '4 t.; F"Rz & IT.
manor house Or hacienda Of q large
rancho. There, too, were raised the
strong, black bulls for the arenas of Chi
huahua and the lower provinces Of
Mexico. The gateway to this once "a
nous place, although dilapidated and
thrown down, has not yet crumbled
into dust, but still shows the marks Of
its former splendor. On the left side Of
the entrance, about 300 feet distant from
the broad road which led to the stately
mansion, side by side, are two wooden
crosses roughly fashioned out of oak
logs, on both Of which with care may
still be traced a rudely carved inscrip-
ton. The words are in that crude
Mexico-Castilian language common to
the country. That on the right as you
face the line of what was once the fence
surrounding the grounds of the haci-
enda invites the passerby to offer:
Zone ave maria and pater noster for
the repose of the soul of Ysabel Mora,
who fell by the hands of the Indians on
the 18th day Of October in the year 1845,
in the flower Of her youth and beauty"
On the other:
Here lies Juan Maria Orteza, native
Of -, killed by the Indians on the 18th
Of October, 1915. Christian, for the sake
Of God, pray for him.
The story of the young girl and young
man who lie under these rudely hewn
crosses is sad one and absolutely true.
The rancho de Cadena is about half way
between the cities Of Durango and Chi
huahua. 1t fourished so years ago under
the careful management of it's owner, an
aged Mexican known all over the region
as lei Coxo' the game leg). He was a
widower, with a family Of eight sons.
each of whom was an expert in the ex-
citing games OF the Countrywide de
toros, or the more cruel and barbarous
pastime Of Eel gallo"
''Colea de toros'' in plain English is
bull tailing-that is, Selling the bull in
the ring by the tail and securing it I'M
der the right leg. The rider then, by
wheeling his horse suddenly outward,
upsets the bull in the midst Of his mad
career, the huge animal rolling over and
over in the dust, believing with pain
and fright. lei gallo" much more bru
tai. consists Of fastening a rooster by
the leg to q tree or to a picket driven into
the ground, with its head and neck well
creased. The game is played on horse
back, all, starting together, strive to
reach the bird first, and Selling it by the
neck try to break the strings that hold
it and ride off with the prize. The well
creased neck generally slips through the
fingers Of the first who grasps it, but as
soon as one finds himself in possession
he rides off pursued by the rest, whose
object is to rescue the fowl. Of course
in the exciting contest which ensues the
bird is torn to pieces. Then the fortu-
nate possessor of the bleeding morsels
presents them to his lady love as gage
damour.
The eight sons Of eel Coxo" were con-
coded to be the 5ravest, the handsomest
and the best i'll handling tho lasso of any
young men in the state of Chihuahua,
Their experience from boyhood as va
querOs or herdsmen OF their fathers vast
pastures had made them as used to sit
ting on horse as in a chair, and the
character of the fierce bulls which ware
raised on the ranch expressly for lie are
mas Of the City of Mexico inspired them
with the brave nature Of the famous AMI
mails themselves.
Residing with the family was a young
girl, a. ward of lei Coxo,' an orphan
and the daughter Of a friend and class
mate at school. Ysabel Mora was in
1916 but IS years old-a very pretty,
black eyed, black haired girl, the t'toast''
of both the valley Of Rio Florido and of
the. valley Of Nazos. Her extreme love-
illness even had been the talk of the great
fair held in San Bartolomo.
Escamilla, the third son of Eel Coxo. -
was just 20, stood feet 10 in his shoes.
was as straight as an arrow and as 1.-the
some as the reeds that grew on the mar
gin of the lagoons on the ranch. He was
better educated than the rest Of his broth
ers, both in a practical sense and in the
usages of the best society the republic
afforded, as he had attended two or three
terms at school in the City Of Mexico,
the great capital of the great nation to
which he belonged, and which he be-
ieved to be the best on earth. In his
first bull fight after his return from the
metropolis, he made his appearance in
the arena in most elaborate suit, fash
Toned from the reigning style at the cap
ital, creating a surprise among his own
sex that bordered upon jealousy and a
furore among those Of the opposite. He
distinguished himself further by throw
ing three bulls successfully.
Escamilla's rival in good looks and ex-
pertness in the bull ring. was his brother
Juan Maria lin fact, there were many
of the people Of the Rio Florido, both old
vaqueres and young maidens, who
thought Juan far surpassed Escamilla in
manliness at least if not in personal
beauty. He certainly equaled him in
Workmanship, simply lacking perhaps
some of that 'brilliancy Of execution
which E,scami11a had annr;rod e, %|,n