Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1898-01-19
USES OF THE GIANT CACTUS.
The Ugly Plant Highly Valued by
Me1icans and Indians.
II Produces II Delicious Fruit and
from 1t the Intoxicating "rizwin"
"a Obtained - 4 Desert
Mystery.

| Southern New Mexico and Arizona
and southwestern Texas embrace a
region totally unlike any other Sec
ton Of the United States. This portion
of our country bears c,Cence Of its
Mexican origin in its swarihy popuia-
ton and its low-built adobe" houses,
while its bleak mountains hiding treas
urcs Of precious metal and its sandy
deserts, among whose greasewood and
| mesquite bushes live the poisonous
| 'tarantua, the venomous rattlesnakc
and the singing scorpion, seem but
part and parcel of our sister republic on
| the south.
That which strikes the traveller most
forcibly, however, in journeying
through the sandy wastes, is the won
derful luxuriance of the cactus family
which appears to grow everywhere
the lowly cholla (choy'yah), the reed
like oealilla (o-kah-lec'yah) and that
unsightly giant. the great sahuara
(sah-wah'-rah The dryer the sand
and the hotter the sun the better the
cactus seems to flourish. On some
mountain-sides the chollas grow so
thick one cannot pass through them, so
fierce are the sharp spines of the cholla
"balls." Curved at their ends like fish
hooks. these little spiDes pierce leather
and fasten upon the skin of the foot,
causing the most intense pain.
Rough and repulsive as these various
kinds Of cactus are, however, yet n use
has been found for most Of them. After
treating the stems of some of the small
er varieties. furniture is manufactured
from them-chairs, tables and other
small articles; the tall. graceful stems
of the ocalilla are gathered and woven
into fences, while the weird, uncouth
sahuara is put to number of uses
which will require a more detailed de-
scriptioi.
The sahuara, easily the king Of the
cactus family, is peculiar to Arizona,
its futed columnsf with its gaunt, up
ward-growing arms, covering the des-
crts. in some places, like n veritable
forest. 1t is often 20 feet in height and |
its heart is watery pulp protected by |
long parallel strips Of tough, fibrous |
wood reaching from base to top, the |
whole covered with thick, green skin |
which successfully turns the suns rays |
and prevents the evaporation of the wa |
ter within. Where the sahuara gets
this water is mystery since il grows in |
the dryest of places where rains come,if |
4. I. nt al NJ al n
walls. This water, however, is of no use
to man as many a poor prospector has
found to his sorrow. 1t is astringent
and bitter, serving only to increase
thirst.
The Indians of the country-Apaches,
Pimas, Papagoes, Maricopas use the
straight. flexible poles which form the
skeleton of the sahuara in the con
struclion of their huts. Like the
'prickly pear" the giant cactus also
bears n fruit which grows on the very
tips of the parent stall, and its branches.
This fruit is nearly the size and shape
Of a hens cgg When ripe il is Of
scarlet hue and splits open into four
lobcs, disclosing pulpy mass about the
Of fig and filled with
minute black seeds The MeXicans and
sndans are passionately fond OF this
'ruit-and so are the birds. The form
,r. if so fortunate as to get ahead of
their fcathercd rivals, take long poles
md knock the fruit from the top OF the
stalk. The Indian squaws dry it and
prepare it into a dish resembling fig
paste.
But there is use TO which tie squaws
put the fruit which is not so commend
bile. IT is pressed in wide. shallow
baskets and the Juice collected in pot
cry ollas (o'-yahs), vessels Of native
The ollas are then
stored in a small room whore a fire is
Kept burning until the appearance Of
White froth on the surface of the liquid
indicates that fermentation has COM
nenccd 1t is thena strong drink called
'tizwin." for which the Indians show
leplorable fondGcss. In former years
he government always expected
rouble from its red proteges in ''tizwin-
ime" and extraordinary precautions
we're taken to hold the savages in check
Turing those particular periods.-De-
rot Free Press