The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-11-04

1T is most wonderful. Nay, more, 1t
is marvellous, miraculous Why,
hundred burros could not draw so great
a load! No, not even hundred Of the
- best horses of Las Delicias! Come, my
friend let us instantly depart. OF truth
1t Is the work of the Evil One himself
and to REMAIN longer would be to endan-
ger the welfare of our souls. Let us
N yAever have railroads in our N4exico!"
Don Enrique was a provincial Mexican
gentleman. who had journeyed in that
good, old-fashioned conveyance. a rat
tle-trap of a dihgencia, from his far
away rancho to the frontier town of
Paso del NGrte, where he had been per
suaded not little against his will to ac-
company friend to lei Paso, on the
Texas SIDE OF the Rio Grande, there to
view the wonders wrought by the Amer
leans. The first Railroad TO enter FL
Paso had just been completed and he
saw Tor the first time in his life that
wonderful machine, a steam locomotive
Its strange noises filed him with alarm:
the foul smoke pouring from it's stacks
almost stfangled him; and, awe-stricken
by its miraculous strength. he finally
gave expression to his emotions. as
shown above. He turned a deaf ear to
the laughing renOnStranceS of his friend
neanWh While plouSly crossing himself. and
INSISTED upon Immediately returning TO
Tue Mexican side of the river; there he
nallt influence of the diabolical machine
And upon arriving in Paso del Norte
ne lost no time in starting back home
out 1t was with a heavy heart; he was
oppressed with the fear that he hal
committed a hienous sin.
A few months later he was Informed
mat a concession for the construction of
railroad in Mexico had been granted
10 an American company, Whereupon he
held up his hands IN spcechless horror.
ReSalninS Use of his tongue. he de-
noUnced the impiOUS government of his
country in terms both vigorous and pic
turesque, bat that accomplished nothing;
and when the engineers who located the
me Of the road entered the bounds of
Las Delcas he used all the diplomacy
at his command 10 turn them aside but
TO no effect, Tor the road was surveyed
10 pass within a mile of his house
In due time the graders came a mot
icy crowd OF rude, rough men, who
s1auShed in his face, and with MANY an
outbust Of impoJent rage he saw them
tear an ugly trench across the breadth
OF Las Dalicias, Then came the track
layers, and he raVed and stormed like
one beside himself as the lines of Gilt
tering rails crept UP to and past his
nome; and he crossed himself in pous
horror at the sight of the telegraph
wires He was not In the least modified
"heh the railroad company paid him
across his property, and rejected with a
superb gesture Of scorn, the annual pass
Lhlt was also rendered him.
NO, no, senOr!" he exclaimed indig-
hanlly; l was powerless to prevent this
observation of my beloved country, but [
uia what L could. AS Yet the infamous
government has not enacted laws com
pelling me to patrOnize your railroad. and
until that be done neither / nor my fam
lIy' nor yet my servants shall inlperiI
+. thelr souls by going near your trains
rake back the pass to those who sent it,
and tell them that I, Enrique del Toro,
do eXecTate it and them"
Don EnriQue's opposition gave tho Of
nclals OF the road but little concern; his
was only one of many cases Never
the less, II was decided to propitiate him
by establishing d station convenient 20
ms use, and neat frame building was
erected not far from his house When
the time arrived to select a man to have
charge Of this station, Bob" Evans a
man who was a thorough railroader ana
with a reputation for GOODNESS and nerve.
Dut VINO was utterly lacking in respect
Tor MeMC2ns, was chosen. He was NOT
the man to make OVertures OF friend
snip TO Don Enrique, most decidedly not
and Don Enrique would have repealed
such overtures had they been made
Weeks passed, with each seeming to be
tnsensible Of the others existence, but
there We're agencies a work that were
destined soon TO break down the barriers
between them
One morning a vaquero gallOped madly
TO the hacienda, bringing Don Enrique
the terrifying news that large war par
ty Of Apache Indians had swept down
from the neighboring mountains, killing
and burning, and We're making for the
hacienda. Many years had passed since
the Indians had raided that country, and
so Don Enrique was utterly Unprepared
10 meet them
GOD of my soul what am I to doG'
he groaned. I'VE are too few to resist
them. We must fly but where? Oh, MY
wife, my daughter! Truly it is an evil
that has come upon US. We must fly
from Las Delicias, but where can we
tind safety? There are no soldiers nearer
than Chihuahua, and of truth the In
dams would overtalIe us before we could
30 so far" And the poor man wrurg
his hands in despair
You forget the railway, Don Enrique"
the YaQuerO answered. Let US hurry
to the station; train may come at any
moment. and all the Aapaches of the
Sierra M2dre could not OVertake that it
moves with such great swiftness'
"The railway is q device Of Satan for
entrapping our souls, Don Enrique
lsternly replied.
''And are not the Apaches Satan's own
amps! ire NaQuerO reJOlned, with re-
5pectful insistence.
Don Enrique was 10th to surrender his
cherished policy of non-intercourse with
fhe railroad, but his wife and daughter
promptly champiOned the vaqueros sug-
gestion, and when two women beset one
poor man that man has but one course
to follow. He yielded, and Immediately
the household began its flight. Pellmell,
- shriekinS and gesticulating, they pour
ed into the station, surprising Evans into
speechlessness; and Don Enrique, his
simple mind agitated no less by his
fears of the clicking telegraph fnstru-
ments than by his apprehension of the
blood-curdling horrors of an Apache raid
attempted to explain Inc cause of their
coming He spoke Spanish, the only
language ne knew, and, his excitement
- raused his words to pour out in an IN
broken stream that was wholly uninteli-
gible to Evans, who could understand
spanish only when it was spoken SLOW
ly and with careful enunciation
MeEicans always amused Evans-when
they did not disgust him. Their theat-