The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-11-19
NATIVES OF MEXICO
ARE A ROUGH SET
BELONG TO DARK AGES-MAJOR-
ITY ARE THIEVES AND MUIR
DERERS.

Few Americans find the climate and
conditions of Southern Mexico congo
NAL, and therefore the number resid-
ing there is very small and their resi-
dences far apart. Among those who
have spent some time in that part of
the world Is T. G. Hume, of New York,
who represents New York capitalists
in the management OF copper mines at
Lazares.
Mr.. Hume is now in the United
States looking to the purchase of ma
chinery for the mines and arrived in
Seattle recently on his way to New
York. He is far from satisfied with
the country where he makes his home
and much less with the people with
whom he is forced to live. He classes
them as thieves of the worst character,
belonging to the savages, and the av-
! erage male, over the age of ten years,
he says, would as soon murder for a
few dollars as he would to sit down to
eat.
II have been in Lazares three years."
said Mr.. Hume, and when my five
years contract is up l will be satisfied
to- return to civilization. The climatic
conditions there are the worst. The
summer is dry and hot and there is a
great deal of fever Few Americans
come there, and those who do remain
but a short time. 1 have had three
American foremen since 1 have been
there and have been working a native
for over a year. 1 cannot get an Am
| erican to stay.
THE natives are the worst class of
thieves and cut-throats there is to be
found on any part of the globe They
are paid in Mexican money 81 a day,
which is better than they can get at
| any other kind of labor in that part.
Notwithstanding this, they will lay in
wait for one another and steal what
they can lay their hands on.
There is one redeeming feature
about them, and that is that they are
| temperate. During the time l have
been there 1 have never seen one of
them under the influence of liquor
However, this is the only good quality
| they have.
Murder is of frequent occurrence,
and when one is Investigated by ma
| tive authorities the foundation or cause
is usually found to be loot. Should the
victim happen to be an American, OF
any foreigner, for that matter, it is sell
dom there is anything done about the
case. Sometimes the guilty man is ar
rested, but in a short time he will be
liberated and is looked upon as d
| martyr.
AT the time of the Martinique dis
aster three volcanoes in Southern Mex
leo erupted, and are in that condition
still. The day of the disaster the sky
took on a dark hue and most of the ma
tives thought it was an eclipse of the
sun. During the night following the
Martinique eruptions, there was a hail
of ashes. Our local mountains were
steaming, but they were emitting nc
ashes, so that those that fell on our
ground must have come from the West
Indies. For three days we had severe
shocks of earthquake and there was
fear among the natives. 1t was all
blamed, in the beginning, to the local
| eruptions, but afterwards when we
learned of the horrors in the Indies
then we knew that our fires were only
a sequence. There was no damage
done to us other than by the ashes
which in some localities almost covered
the ground.
There is plenty of copper in a great
er portion of Southern Mexico. Nearly
all the properties have been known to
| the natives for many years, and in
fact have been worked. However. dur
Ing this generation there has been little
done with them and they are anyone's
properties who may choose to comply
with the laws and live in the country.
The mining laws of Mexico are not so
stringent as they are in the United
States They have been left so pur-
posely, for the reason that Mexicans
are anxious to have the mines worked
by Americans and are doing everything
In their power to encourage the invest
meht of American capital.
| southern Mexico is a good country
TO mine copper in, but it is an awful
country to have to live in, and 1 will
be glad when 1 am out of it."-Seattle
! Post-Intelligencer.