Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1905-08-02

l-slAN NtHAAA 50 AAANh7 ~
aud 10 the towns ot Clmarron. Sprlpg'
er Maxwell city. Gardner and Van
Hautun The last named are active
mining towns. Ration Is the seat OF
Colfax county. aud has a population OF
$500.
The Maxwell grant originally cost
It's present owners $1,000 oon, and the
Dgtchmen have lost at least a million
more in litigation. e%Strayagant man
agemeur and swindles, but the invest
ment " finally proving very profitable,
They are getting their money back
with large advances, The grant has
been twice 10 the supreme court OF
the United States. and the titles are
| thus better than those ot most real
| estate. About 100, 1000 acres have been
sold of during the past five years 10
| ranchmen and mining companies. The
| Colorado Fuel and Iron company pur'
| chased 100000 acres OF coal deposits;
Mr.. Bartlett OF Chicago, OF whom |
| spoke above, bought 10000 acres for
a ranch: Captain French. an English
| man. bought l20, 900 acres, and Is now
| grazing about 5000 head OF cattle upon
IL; Frank Springer bought l0o,00O
acres and is raising cattle also; the
Red River Cattle company, a Las We
| gas outfit, has 100000 acres. and
! about $4,000 acres have been sold to
small farmers.
The most important sale took
place only a few days ago. when the
| Rocky Mountain and Pacific company.
a ST. Louis corporation with a CAPT.
tai OF sll. 900 900 supposed TO repre-
sent Phelps-Dodge L company. New
York merchants. who have large in
terests here) purchased the mining
rights Of $4,000 acres-more than 500
square miles-the largest body OF
coal under a single ownership in the
world, The purchasers propose 10
build and equip 20 miles OF railway
TO develop the property. and will run
their tracks through the Cimarron
canyon. which crosses the Great Di.
vide TO the Taos Valley and Is claim
Ell 10 be the only pass in the Rocky
Mountains available for a railroad
that is not already occupied by the
transcontinental lines.
The officers OF the coal company
are: President. Henry Koehler. Jr.;
vice president. Hugo Fl. koehler,
both of ST. Louis: secretary and
treasurer. William Fl. Irvine OF New
York, who will also constitute the
directory with the addition Of o. H. b,
Turner. Max Koehler and Thomas B.
Harlan Of ST. Louis and George V.
Mullan of New York.
The Maxwell Grant company reser-
yes the timber and the surface OF the
land. The company buys only
the mining rights-whateyer they a
find under the soil. 1t is rumored
that they will Immediately erect a lot
OF coke ovens and a smelter.
The Maxwell grant got its name
from Kit Carson old partner. II
was originally given by the Mexican
government to a couple OF Frenchmen
-Besubein and M~iranda-for the pur-
pose Of colonization, and. c~uriously
enough. they agreed to raise large
tracts of beets and manufacture sugar.
The Mexican government wanted to
build a human barrier between its
territory and the United States and
to settle the frontier as a protection
agains the Indians. Beaubein and
Miranda. however. did nothing toward
colonization, and Maxwell inherited the
property from his fatherin-law. Carlos
Beaubein. 10 whom Miranda had sold
his interest.
Maxwell was one Of the earliest
pioneers in this part of the country,
and his life was full of stirring events.
With Kit Carson he was scout for
Fremont and other early military ex-
plorers, but he died a poor man. with
nothing but a law suit to leave his
two sons and daughter. Pete. one OF
the sons. was V anything more
than a sheep herder, but Lucian, the
other. was a ranchman. miner, con-
tractor and Spectator. and built a sec
ton of the Texas and Pacific railroad.
He sold the grant for $500, 900 and
lost all the money In speculation.
Maxwell's daughter eloped with Lieut..
Reyes OF the United States army
when she was a mere girl. and her
daughter was the wife of Macmillan
Luna, captain OF the Rough Riders,
who was killed in the Spanish war.
Kit Carson left no sons but several
daughters. One Of them is Mrs.
Thomas Boggs Of Clayton. N. NJ: an
other is Mrs. Susan Nelson, of Higbee.
Colo; another Is the wife OF a mar
by the name Of Allen. who ran a
livery stable at Las Vegas for several
years, while the fourth. Josie Carson
Squires, died in the insane asylum at
Las Vegas three or four years ago.
Kit Carson is buried at Taos, the
most primitive II the Indian pueblos,
where the Aztec sacred fire is kept
in an estufa by a group Of priests.
This fire, according to tradition. has
| not been extinguished for a thousand
years. 1t was removed to Taos from
the old village of Pecos, the birthplace
! of Montezuma. in 1887, and the Child
rem of the Sun believe that as long as
1t continues To burn there Is hope OF
the coming Of our Messiah, who will
| return as he left them. on the back OF
| an eagle. at dawn. Hence the pious
caciques climb to the housetops every
| morning at sunrise and, shading their
| ewes with their hands gaze anyiously