Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-08-14
THE TAOS CORRESPONDENCE
A Visit to the Fiesta of the Picuris
Indians at RincOnes.
l VETERAN OF THE MEXICAN WAR
Hon. Juan Andres Romero, Ex- Member
of the Territorial Legislature,
Thrown from His Horse
and Injured.
Special Correspondence.

Special Correspondence.
Taos, Aug. 13.-Last Tuesday visited
Rincones and took in the fiesta of the
Picuris pronounced pick. er-eece) Indians
at their pueblo.
1t is possible if not probable, that in
time past when these Indians were more
numerous, their sports on this, the 10th
day of August, in honor of their patron
saint, San Lorenzo, we're worth journey
ing miles to see, but having dwindled to
population of only $50, (there are ebout
35 heads of families left) there ia not
much enthusiasm manifested except that
induced by copious libations of whiskey
Many Taos Indians were present who We'd
with their Piouris friends in their attem pit
to get full in as short time as possible.
Rincones has a population of about
1000, divided among the following VII
lagos, of which the first named is the
center: Penasco, Real del Pueblo, Santa
Barbara, Las Trampas, Llano Largo,
Llano San Juan, Ojo Zarco and Ohami-
sal. Wheat, oats, vegetables, corn and
fruit grow exceedingly we'll The second
crop of alfalfa is now being harvested.
Frost is almost an unknown quantity
An abundant water supply is obtained
from the following streams: Rio del
Pueblo, Rio de Santa Barbara, Rio de Las
Trampas.
In Mr.. David Struck, the postmaster at
Ranches de Taos, we have the only naval
pensioner of the Mexican war in the ter
ritory, At the age of 70 he is as active
and hearty as the average man of So.
Davey, as be is familiarly called, was born
in New York City May IA, 1924. In 1888
he entered the navy as apprentice and
served until he attained his majority.
During his apprenticeship he visited
Cuba, Vera Cruz. Mexico, and was for Q
long time ON the coast of Africa.
In 1916 he was discharged at Charleston,
s. o., but in 1S47 rejoined the navy and
shipped in the sloop of war Boston for
service in the Mexican war. The Boston
was wrecked on Elithura island and he
returned on coaster to Norfolk, Va,
where he remained on the receiving ship
Pennsylvania until transferred to the
sloop of war jamestown, which carried
$50 soldiers and marines and an armament
of "a guns. As land force the soldiers
and marines took part in the engagements
of Tuxan and Tabasco. In l848, on his
return to Norfolk, Va, he was discharged.
In the winter of 1849 he went "round
the Horn" on the sidewheel steamboat
Senator, the only vessel of her class which
ever made the trip, and was on her when
she made her first trip from San Fran
cisco to Sacramento. All old Oalifornians
remember the Senator. Out of a job he
made "round trip, from San Francisco to
Honolulu and Hawaii, for a cargo of sugar
and molasses. Returning to San Francisco
he got the gold fever and went to the Yuba
river placer mines, where in eight months
Ire amassed $4,000. Returning to San
Francisco he took passage for New York,
but going ashore at San Diego got things
a little mixed and the steamer left without
him.
After prolonged vacation he obtained
employment as government teamster
from San Diego to Yuma across the Colo
RADIO desert; he held this job down year
and then for 18 months was pony express
rider over the same route enduring hard
ships and making escapes, surprising be-
lief, from the Yuma Indians, which tribe
was at that time numerous and dangerous
These Indians became 80 dangerous that
in 1858 a special draft was made at San
Diego and war of determination begun.
In 1854 he engaged az government
teamster with the boundary line commits
sion surveying the line from San Diego,
Cal, to Ell Paso, Tex. From Ell Paso he
came to Albuquerque and served as gov
ernment teamster until 1858 when he went
to Salt Lake under General johnson dur.
ing the Mormon excitement. In 1861 he
came to Ranches de Taos where he for IL
years clerked for ID. Webster who con-
Quoted general merchandise store.
When A. Gusdorf succeeded to the busi-
ness and built large -four mill Davey
entered his service and remained until
the mill burned in 1896, when he became
postmaster.
Hon. Juan Andres Romero, ey-member
of the territorial Legislature and for many
years one of the most prominent mec in
public life in the county, was injured by
being thrown from his horse. The animal
shied while crossing bridge, and the old
gentleman who is 7S years of age, lost his
balance, the fall injuring his right leg.
BY the death of Jose Ma. Gonzales,
Canon loses one of its most popular resi-