The Wichita tribune., 1898-09-24

and fauna. there must remain many
localities destined by their inhospitaoio
to continue practlcally
unknown save to the plainsman anu
nioneer. Papagueria-"the Lana OIL
the Papago"-is one of those unlh'ie-
ing spots that hold out no inducements
to settlers. and are seldom visited save
bv the explorer and the ethnologlst'
The name conveys no sense OF locallts
to the mind of the general reaoer' "
whom it is terra incognita. 1t IS
term bestowed by the priestly pioneers
of Mexican colonization upon the aliu
regions beyond the Sierra Mau,e
Mountains. a district south OF the Glla
river. in what is now the terrlIory VI
Arizona and Sonora, bounded on 'he
southwest by the Gulf of California anu
on the south by that ill-dehned reslon
known as Seriland. 1t has an eAtene
Of over $4,000 square miles, or about
the area of New York or Iowa. n0
larger part of the district lies In MeA-
leo. though most Of the aDorlglnal
population is gathered in the northern
norton above the southern boundary
of Arizona. ;,
Papagueria is, perhaps, the most aria
region on the continent. The surIacs
stones to the southwest from the Sierra
Madre. and as the vapor-laoen an
drifts from the Pacific and the gull
over the sun-parched land it is heated
to dryness. Consequently the average
rainfall in Papagueria falls short OF
five inches. The greater part OF the
district is practically desert, tnougn
animal and vegetable life maintain a
feeble existence. The high Sierra is
scantily clothed with pines; at lower
; levels thorny thickets OF oak ano
| chaparral occur sparingly. In the val
, leys the deep-rooted mesquite dots tine
, surface. whilc cacti are abundan'
among the foothills. The distributor
Of life, in short, conforms to the dis
' tribution of water, and the struggle O
animal and vegetable life against In
organic nature and alien organisms
t severe and continuous.
n The Papago Indians, who 1nhaoi
a this tract. In distinctiveness and per
, sistence of character If not In popu
i, lation. are the leading branch OF tn
= Piman family and claim relatlonshl
"a to the Manhattan of Mexico, the grea
family of the Montezumas Thoug
the Piman family includes sewers
II tribes. the Papagos alone remain oil
nm tinct. and though small numper a.
~ domiciled in the San Xavier reserv
~ tion near Tucson, the greater part
- the tribe, which, according to the ce
= sus of 1890, then numbered 5,163 i
dividuals, retain their independen
us and essential autonomy.
VS. In the August number Of the
Is tional Geographic Magazine w. G. M
90 Gee, Of the Bureau OF Amerlc
90 Ethnology, and associate editor OF t
la, magazine, gives an exhaustive
valuable as we'll as very entertain
- account Of these children of the desc
showing how remarkably they have
iusted their habits, food, clothing,
dustries and social organization to
peculiar and extremely unfavorable
semblage of conditions.
Three centuries ago, according
Mr.. McGee. Spanish explorers came
contact with the Papago Indians, fl
\ ing them fearless and dignifled,
1. kindly and hospitable-a charac
- they still maintain. The Spaniards {
the Papagos acquired from the inv
ers burros, goats, cattle, sheep
dogs, some garden and field plants,
costume of civilization, the ad
architecture and a few of the &C
= monials Of the Catholic religion.
they utterly refused to attach the
= selves to Spanish households, to I'M
marry with whites, to submit to
form Of bondage, or to surrender tt
primitive philosophy. They have ms
tanned, almost without exception,
purity of their blood. They are inc
trious and virtuous; brave, going
to meet their chief foe, the Apa
even in greatly superior numbers,
have protected their fatherland aga
all marauders. They are known
Mexico for their stubborn avoids
of peonage, to which neighbo
tribes are subject. The tribe is G
acterized by exceptional force and
bility of character, yet 1t is sai(
them that their habits and mode
thought are little changed since
white man came.
lLu There Is every reason, says Mr..
Gee, for considering the Papagos
scendants from a people of sup'
aboriginal culture. Throughout 4
ldO' of Papagueria there are abundant
les Of a prehistoric population ane
riculture. These relics comprise
ed houses and villages, extensive
quias and other irrigation works,
. rails containing reservoirs, and
ments of finer pottery than now
by the Papagos. with well-shaped
axes, pestles. mortars, etc. The
cient villages are much more nu
GUS and extensive than the mo
Indian, Mexican and American vii
together; and the ancient ace'
were much larger than the me
ditches-that in Arivaca valley
Arizona, the chief prehistoric ace
being $50 feet wide, raised so
food the whole bottomland, and i
lined almost continuously with he
About a hundred families of Pa
now occupy the reservation at
Il Xavier. nine miles south of tt
'IIldlA and are under the control Of an
want of the Indian bureau. Though tn
tain their primitive mode OF b
building. cooking and other dor
onarations their habits and moo
thought have so altered that the
regarded as alien or semi-alien I
majority of the tribe. Another
,1eo. ter Of the tribe are located sol
the Rio Altar or its tributarlt
Mexico. in scattered rancherias
M La fl1l1r a