Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1897-11-21

Indian women, many or whom are not
bear large families of children. and all
their lives carry heavy burdens on their
backs. but they never grow overstout and
%corpulent as do their more favored sisters
who ride in carriages.
Mexican money is coined on the decimal
system just. as 1t is in the United States,
tons. The basis for figuring the price and
change from 3 cents to several dollars is
bit of the Southern United States. A
half real is a media, and 3 cents is a Guar
tillo; The common. classes have just as
. cents Is as the average visitor does In de,
termining what 6 reals amount to. A real
Is Y cents, but 2 reals are mostly counted
as . cents and s reals as 81 for convenience
sake.
There Is an indescribable feeling of SOL
leo" wrote a traveller fifty years ago. "a
VaStness, n desolation. such as l never
experienced In the most lonely dwelling In
other countries. II is not sad-the sky is
too bright. and nature too smiling. and the
air We inhale too pure for that. 1t is a
sensation Of beng entirely out of the world;
and alone with a giant nature, S~urrounded
by faint traditions of a bygone race: ana
the feeling is not diminished when the
silence is broken by the footstep of 4 pass
ing Indian, the poor and debased descend
ant of that extraordinary and mysterious
people who came. We know not whence.
and whose posterity are now 'heWers Of
wood and drawers of water on the soil
where they once were monarchs."
Says an old writer: "One circumstance
must be observed by all who travel in Mex
being or passing object to be seen that is
not in itself a picture, or which would not
form a good subject for the pencil. The
Indian women with their plated hair. and
the little children SllIlr to their hacks
their large straw hats. and petticoats Of
two colors-the long strings Of arrieros with
ing faces-the chance horseman, who passes
with his serape of many colors, his high,
ornamented saddle, Mexican hat. silver STIR
rups and leathern boots-all is picturesque.
Salvador Rosa and Hogarth might have
travelled here together to advantage, hand
in hand. Salvador for the sublime and Ho-
e snrsh r iiddklhg nim up where the sublime re be be-
that the only fault of the climate consists
In its being monotonously perfect, which is
versation: The evening deluge is but a
periodical watering of the earth, from
which. it rises. like Venus from the sea,
more lovely and refreshed than ever
On June rs last a decree was issued
whereby the general postoffice was organ
ized into seven sections and three depart
Htents. The movement of ordinary internal
correspondence during the last fiscal year
was; approximately. 23.2l6. 600 letters. ana
communications ana the NUMBER OF
registered letters was 1.I5s,o 600. In the for
eisn service the quantity of correspondence
handled was $4,000 ordinary letters and
l6l,CiS registered packages. The cash re-
ceipts of the postofice during the half year
from January to June of the present year,
compared with the corresponding period in
fiScal year 1886. postal money orders were
issued to the value of s541, 7O9. and in the
fiscal year 1869. orders were issued to the
value of $92i, 40G. which is equivalent to an
Increase of more. than so per cent In the
lapse of one year. At the universal postal
efforts of the Mexican delegates contrib
uted in no small degree to secure. after
twenty-five years of unsuccessful endeav-
ors of other congresses, a rebate in transit
dues.
As the general works for the drainage of
the valley of Mexico are about completed,
the sanitation of the City of Mexico. which
is the Indispensable complement of those
works. has been actively undertaken. The
been completed. and all the offices. shops
and warehouses looking to the systemati-
zation Of the work; AYE been provided:
erergetically pushed. and work is going
forward on the gates for the regulation Of
the connection between the drainage sys-
TEN of the city and the general drainage of
the valley. At the same time the boiler
and pump houses are being erected. The
been completed. it is thought probable that
before two months have expired. the entire
plant will be in readiness, as the machin-
cry is now in Mexico.
President Diaz recently said: There Is
no ground for Encouragement, but rather
fairs OF the government and with them
the entire country have followed. Pubic
wealth has been on the increase and that
increase has brought about an enlarged
thing 10 be regretted is that n circumstance
totally beyond our control should threaten
lie and embarrass the prosperous condition
of the treasury. Up to the present the de-
cline of silver. which. If it were to increase
in intensity and duration, might cause Sc
to expectation and domestic industries, and
the transient character , ascribed to the
latest decline of the metal by several COM
petent authorities affords ground for hop
ing that a favorable solution of the pres
ent situation will soon be brought about,
and, besides. the treasury Is in the present
Instance thoroughly prepared to meet the
difficulty"
of Mexico have any love for anarchy or its
emissaries. The French anarchist. Ventre,
quickly deported by the authorities aft
er he was discovered on Mexican soil, and
short work was made of the fanatic who
dared to raise his hand against their be-
loved president on Independence day.
European capitalists have not lost faith
in Mexico. and apparently not entirely in
silver. One of the most encouraging signs
during the recent heavy drops in the price
of the white metal was the fact that every
day the same cables that brought the news
of a further decline also brought large Or
ders from London and Amsterdam for Mex
lean 5 per cent silver bonds.
Mexican fruits are fast making a place
for themselves in the markets of the United
States. The value of fruits and nuts ex-
ported to the States during 1896 was double
what 1t was the year before.
Tourists and visitors who come to Mex
leo now feel very rich. Their money is
Immediately more than doubled and they
can live or their exchange and have the
principal for extras.
The Mexicans' appreciation of the Amer
lean bicycle is shown in the fact that they
imported Just three times as many in the
vious year.
The cotton mills of Mexico at present
consume manufactured cotton imported
from the United States to the extent of
100000 a year
alive to the fact that there has never been
a time in the history of Mexico when this
country offered them so inviting a field.
tension of. railroads and transportation
facilities of all kinds is making it possible
to utilize splendid water power that has
heretofore been unavailable. Within the
last few months contracts for great e~lectri-
cal installations lave been made amount
ing to hundreds of thousands of dollars and
the impetus given to home production by
reason of falling silver has just begun.
Foreigners who have interests in Mex
leo need have no fear that the men who
have charge of the finances of the repub-
lie will lose their heads or VIII TAKE any
rash ster that would unsettle all values
because of the decline in silver. The Mex
lean people are not eNcitable. they are