Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-09-15
Its Gold History Goes Back of the
Landing Of the Puritans and
Sparkles with Great Riches.
THE FIRST LABOR STRIKE In AMERICA
Spaniards Shipped Millions of Wealth
to the Mother Country from
the Northern Part of the
Territory.
Territory.

| puoHSneu III tnat paper on rrlu8y la5b:
The story of New Mexico has been told
from many points in view. 1t is an in
teresting oountry-from its mouthless
rios, underground lakes and wonderful
mineral deposits of the broken sierras
and mesas in the southwest, a the recent
ly rediscovered riches of the Red River
country of the north.
Before the Puritans came across the
stormy Atlantic in search of place where
they could plant their religion, and cul-
tivate it with the dictates of conscience,
the Spaniard was engaged in plain
search for gold in which conscience
seems to have cut but little figure. They
employed the peaceful native population
to aid them in their search for gold, and
it is said oppressed them in their greed
for gold.
In their conquering march through
Mexico, the gold hunters of the wonder
full Spanish column followed up the Grand
river of the north, as they termed it, find
ing mines and deposits of gold along its
waters, from which they sent many mill
ions of wealth to the mother country.
They left but few maps of the country
they conquered ana the nerthern limit of
their march is not known. That they
entered what is now the confines of Colo
RADIO there is no doubt. Yet, then there
is little evidence that they mined much
gold; yet they left their language in the
names of streams and localities in south
ern Colorado, and some of their descend
ents.
Some place in the north they found
immense deposits of gold, and recently
for many years each section where min
eral has been found, has been heralded as
an "old Spanish working"
Recent discoveries in the Red River
country, New Mexico, lead mining men
who are conversant with the Spanish
mining, and with mining in Colorado to
think that the Spaniard obtained their
large shipments of gold from that sec
tion.
Gulch and placer deposits of immense
richness have been recently run into, as
it were, that excel Klondike. along some
of the tributaries of the Red river, to-
gether with the mineral in place among
the rocks-and out of place--for that
matter; for in some sections common
every day schist is full of gold.
But to recur, for some one who reads
the Mining Record may ask, "Why did
the Spanish abandon their workingsf"
All, my dear friend, people who claim to
have studied along moral and such lines,
the laws of retribution-greed for gold
and such things-unheeding conscience,
oppression, etc, heretofore mentioned,
will tell you. Well, it is history what
there is to tell and very dim at that, and
no good purpose will be answered by
dwelling on it, except lesson may be;
and this article is not written for that
purpose.
1t is facts mining men are after. 1t is
fact, that millions of gold in its virgin
state were shipped from away up on the
Rio Grande and del Norte, as before inti-
mated, back to Spain.
It is fact that the natives employed
by the Spaniards got tired of their job
or their wages or both, and went out on
strike. They struck hard, and the min
ing operators have not showed up since
seem to have gone into their shafts,
adits and inclines, and drawn the holes in
after them, for they are not to be found
even unto this day. Those who were left,
or their descendants, do not seem inclined
to talk about it, but it might be said in
passing that the descendants of these old
CO. 40 oistadores are among our best citi-
zens in point of intelligence and patriot
ism. One of them is the present govern
or of New Mexico, and many of them
have filled places of honor and trust in
our territorial, state and national coun-
oils,
But they have mostly followed the
peaceful avocation of agriculture; kind of
had to, suppose, and some of the large
flocks and herds and old orchards will at
test their success on that line. Fruit
trees a century old are not uncommon,
and the folks still live who saw them
planted. Healthy country, we'll, should
say!
Particularly ON the northern limit of
their march in search for gold, when they
were suddenly stopped by this labor
strike, twas ever thus, is the result of
their change of occupation well marked.
For while almost shut off from the world,
the country, of which Taos may be called
;he center, is one of the finest in the land.
So this march of empire to the north
west was stopped here. 1t was to be 80,
l suppose, for Bishop Berkeley says:
"Westward the star of empire wends its /.
way" How about Klondike? says some
one. Well that is cash vein.
1t was nearly two centuries before the
regular westward march came by way OF
Pixies Peak, and it has stuck. The foun-
dation of the real empire has been laid,
with Denver as the center. Let US lay
aside all sentimental politics, curse of
gold, and such. The Spaniards came for
gold; when they had it they were the
most prosperous nation on earth. The
Pixies Peak crusade was for gold, pure
and simple. Those pioneers came not for
homes, or place to plant religion.
Nor did the 49ers.
Yes, they CROSSED the plains for gold.
For gold we are striving. The Argonauts
and the Pixies Peak pioneers builded bet.
ter than they knew. Where would Colo.
RADIO and the entire western country in
deed be but for their mineral resources
Where would our country be; it's COM
merce, etc!
Let ut turn our attention to gold min
ing 1T is true that the mining of $1,000
600 of gold does not give employment
to as many men, as mining $l,000,00O in
silver, in the proportion of about l6 to
/, but it is not advisable to mine silver
now.
We have the world, the world wants it
even bimetallists want it. Let the game
20 on. We will keep silver, as kind Of
card up our sleeve. It will be higher in
price one of these days--later on.
We Of the Rocky Mountain country can
pile up yellow chips enough to take any
not that The ainala standar6 nlavars may