The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1896-07-14

throughout the country. 1t pays the
government and is a blessing to the
| people in all other countries, ard
shuld be so with US also.
Mexico is now offering great oppor-
tunities to capitalists, and the number
of Americans settling in the country
or investing there is evidence that our
people are alive to the fact. Il is not
yet a country for thelaboring man, for
the reason that the land, as I have said,
is still in large holdings, and the price
of labor has always been low, though
somewhat advancing, As their dollar
has not enhanced III value, there have
at least been no strikes to prevent
cuts" in wages SIS with US. TIE yield
of ali crops is large, and in the terra
cULieHte I saw corn crops which had
simply been planted by making q hole
in the ground and covering the seed
| with the foot, and never worked. The
| weeds and the corn come up together,
and the corn makes forty to fifty
bushels Go the acre. Three crops a
year csn be raised thus, the sole labor
being the planting and harvesting.
Humboldt, in his Cosmos" estimates
the average yield Of wheat il France
as sixty fold, and il Mexico rs twenty
5wO Tor one. Minerals of every kind
are abundant, Of course, in a country
scanned and furro we'd with mountains.
Pueblo is known as the onyx" town,
and = ieretaro as the opal town, The
latter place he's four c)tton factories,
one OF which, the Hercules" has
nearly or quite two thousand employ
ec5. TnafactOry is run by both steam
and water, and its steel ovorshot wheel
is sad TO be largest in the world.
Tee church bells are numerous aud
large and are rupg by being turned
over by hand, which is easily done, as
the bells weight is exactly BALANCED
by wood. When not being ruug, the
bells hang with the mouth part upper
most. In some towns, as Guadalaj IRA,
all the church bells seem to be ruog
every half hour. Tie CABS in the City
Of Mexico are divided into three classes,
designated by little coiorCd tin flags
which they carry. Tue blue flag ra.e5
are 81 so per hour, or seventy Eve
cents pec passenger; red flag. 81 per
hour, or ffsy cents per passenger; and
yellow flag. ftEy cents per hour. The
street-c cars are first and second; the
first class are painted buff, and the
others green. The street. lines also
csrry freight cars, box and fl It cars for
sheep and goats, and special cars also
&c be hired. B sides these, as already
said, ara funeral cars with a raised
dais and cltaEs'qle beneath a four
post, canopy, surm0unted by a cross
and painted black or white The street
railway system OF the City Of Mexico
has one hundred and sixty miles of
track, five locomotives, twenty ak
hundred mules ami horses, three nun
dred passenger : aud thirty funeral
cars, besides freight cars. Last year
it carried eighteen million passengers,
besides freight. Thu entire sy8tem /
with its equipments has very recently
been sold TO two Americans for about
SIS, 600 600 Toey propose to increase
the investment by extensions and put
ting in electricity to 8 total Of $50, 600,
coo. 1t is be regretted that the depres,
sion caused here by our financial sys
TEN forces such large quantities Of
American capital and such enterprise
to seek investment in a foreign c3un
try. As large as this TRANSACTION is,
it is but a small part OF the amounts
annually going from this country to
seek profitable employment IL a more
prosperous n
Tee markets in the Mexican towns
are large and roomy and we'll filled, IS
pecially with tropical vegetables and
fruits. They are we'll worth visiting /
in every town. In passing through
the canals of the fitting gardens or
Chinanp8s, as we were being roWed
along, q couple of young girls, evi-
IDENTIFY fresh from the country, we're so
overcome by curiosity that entirely
uLconscious to themselves, they stared
at our party Of foreigners. Starring at
strangers i5 exceeding unusual, for the
Mexicans are by nature a very polite
people. 10 recall them from their
Observation-Disclosures, one Of the party
remarked loud enough for the girls to
hear, "Muchac1 tOnjtu" p1etty gir).
Instantly the old man, evidently OF the
very lowest class, but with the in