The Washington times. (Washington [D.C.]) 1901-1902, 1901-08-21
IN A MEXICAN PRISON.
A Newspaper Mans story of Injus-
ttce to Americans.

ly in the Star about the treatment OF
American railroad men in Mexico re-
minds me- said a Newspaper man In the
lobby of the Midland Hotel last night, ''of
case In which was myself concerned.
Down there. you know. nearly all the
trouble is caused by the ignorance or the
stubbornness Of the alcaldes or justices
of the peace and the jefes politico, who
are the equivalent there TO our chiefs of
police. When you get one of the alcaldes
after you the time has come to leave the
country. if you can.
II was in Mexico just after the Mexican
Central had been opened to the City of
Mexico, and we used to have some pecu-
liar experiences. 1t was no unusual thing
for peon to stand on the track in front
of an approaching train and stay there
till knocked out of the way. Sometimes
the train would be stopped and the crew
would forcibly remove the headstrong In
dian. But the poems were not alone in
this sort of foolishness; plenty of Next
cans We're killed in the same way.
I've seen more than one locomotive
chained to the track and held evil
dence, and I've seen it done. not on a
siding. but out on the main line, where
an accident had happened. l know of
numerous prisons in Mexico where Amer
out trial, some of them railroad men, 9TH
ers men who had committed some offence
against the law in some town or city.
There is a prison about twenty-five miles
southeast of Jimulco within whose walls
are four or five Americans who never will
see their own country again unless some
thing be done soon None of them ever
was tried so far as / could learn. ten
years ago. The old prison at Matamoras
too, could tell a story to make the blood
boil in the veins of every American citi-
zen. Protection? It's all rank nonsense
to talk about protection from the State
Department. I've lived all over Mexico
and have seen all manner of trouble at
one time or another. I've seen Americans
apply time and again to their minister
for protection, and invariably they were
given the same reply, We must go slow
ly in such matters; diplomacy, my dear
sir, demands it, This is not wild talk:
it's the actual truth, and every American
in Mexico who is not hunting for a con-
cession will bear me out in the state
ment. Why Is it you see so few English
men or Germans or French in prison in
Mexico? Simply because when one
of those ,nationalities is unjustly
treated or is kept without trial beyond
d
man or the French minister goes to Mr.
Diaz and has short talk. Just what they
say I don't know, but 1 do know that in
all my travels down there I never found
an Englshman imprisoned unjustly
Their motto seems to be, Get the man out
and talk later
Yes. I'm coming to my story. l shall
not tell you the name of the man who
suffered, because he is now in business in
California. In 1850 this man-Jones will
do-went 10 Mexico TO work in the silver
mines that lie under the city of Zacatecas.
One night he drank too much mescal or
aquadiente and started to knock the
Mexicans and poems out of his way. Final
ly he killed one and that settled it Five
or six policemen took him. almost mani
ac, to the penitentiary, that grim, white
pile of masonry not far from the mint
Anyone that has visited Mexico knows
what aquadiente Will do for a European
or an American. 1t sets them crazy.
Jones went crazy and stayed that way for
months. When he regained his senses he
found himself In filthy stone cell with
one little window high up. fitted with
of Jones punishment. When he asked for
a trial his keepers laughed at him. When
he requested paper and pencil he was
jeered at.
The Years went by and Jones changed
from n brown-haired man of sunny dis
position to grave and silent prisoner
whose locks We're white as snow. He
spoke to no one. not even his jaiers.
From his window he could look across at
the mint and the postoffice department;
he could see people passing and occa-
sionally he thought he saw an American.
But this only made him cry like a boy,
for he was far away, it might have been
hundreds of miles, and none could hear
his voice. AS he grew older Jones began
to lose hope Then he began to catch
himself acting queerly at times and al
ways he talked TO himself. He told me
afterward that this was all that kept
him from forgetting his mother tongue.
| for he never saw a book or a newspaper.
I'm the summer of 1887 / went to the
| State of Zacatecas to write up the silver
| mines that were Just then having
| BOOM. ] chose the capital of the State
| as headquarters and put up at the Fac
atecano Hotel not two blocks from the
| old penitentiary. AS l walked daily to
| the postOfiice ] took to watching the win
| dows of the big prison and tried often to
| determine whether the faces l saw
through the bars were white or copper
| colored. and one day / was ready to
| swear that | saw hand waving through
| the bars in one OF the fourth-story win
| dows Long ! watched to assure my
| self of the truth of this and then / hast
ened to the hotel Tor my heid glasses
| holding my hat aloft as l ran.
| with my glasses ! saw countryman
| at the prison window signaling me to
| come to him. 1t didn't take me long to
| act. My paper was power in that coun-
| try Just then, for through its columns
many of the State officials hoped to ex-
| plot their mining enterprises. The Gov
| ernor old Rodriguez, was especially anx-
| ious to keep in with the press and what
| was more he belonged to the Casino, one
| of the wealthtest clubs in the State and
| / had been his guest there. This means
| a great deal in Mexico. Mexican Will
| do very nearly anything for his guest.
| Il called on the Governor that evening
| at the palace. He was just starting for
| the club as | expected. and invited me
| TO accompany him. l needn't go into the
| whole thing. It's enough to say that /
| visited the penitentiary the next day with
! n letter that passed through every door
| in the place. So far as / could learn l
| was the first visitor seen within those
! walls for many years. The officials were
| dumfounded They looked from my let
| ter to me and then at each other Then
| they nut their heads together ana talked
| After a few minutes one OF the suafus
started with me through the prison
| ~ found Jones in a little cell on the
| fourth story. When ne saw me and heard
my voice he acted like wild man and
would not be satisfied until had been adj
| mitted to his cell There he fell on my
| neck and wept like child. II was TWEEN
| ~ minutes before the poor fellow was
| able TO talk and even then he spoke slow
| IN and haltinglv. like one who uses a IAN
| pttnge almost forgotten. Jones story was
The most pitiahle recital ever listened to.
| He had never go much as been before 4.
| Justice on the word of few poems ne
had been locked up and kept for over sew
| en- years without any semblance or tfl-
| al He had never written letter IN sew
| en- wears; had never seen Il newspaper or
! a magazine nor had he ever spoken Il
| word of English except TO himself
From Jones story / know that in his
| own home in California he had been a
person of some note and this de cided me
In laying out my future plans. The first