The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1905-03-02
VISIT TO OLD MEXICO
Ianofense Abroad Goes TO Laredo and
Sees ! Bull Fight.

vineyard Is redeeming itself so far
as the weather Is concerned Since
last Sunday, February 10, the sun
has been shining. and the ladies here
and at Laredo carried umbrellas
when they went on the streets.
Laredo is one hundred and sixty
one miles west from this place and
is reached by the Mexican National
railroad which was built in here ten
or twelve years ago. My brother-in-
law, Col. Simmons, a Mexican girl
who speaks English fluently, myself
and wife bought round trip tickets
to Laredo last Sunday for the small
sum of $3.50 each. The trains on
this road are somewhat like the Mexi-
cans in their movements Wood is
still burned in their engines and the
| trains stop at all ranches, depots and
| byways. We left here at eight
O'Clock and reached Laredo at 6:30
that evening. We did not pass as
many farms on the route as there
are between Waxahachie and Boyee.
| 1t is one continual cattle range and
| is owned in large bodies by cattle
men. We passed through the heart
of the Bob Driscoll ranch. II is a
| magnificent body of land and is
nearly all a deep black soil. with a
hog wallow surface This ranch con-
sists of several hundred thousand
acres and Mr.. Driscoll has only two
children, the young lady now famous
/ for saving the Alamo, and son.
| The cattle on the ranch looked fat
and sleek. Robston is twelve miles
| from Corpus Christi and is where the
| Brownsville road branches off for
| Brownsville, one hundred and fifty
miles TO the southwest of this place.
| This road was only completed last
year and 1T looks like the one We
| travelled over. II passes through a
range country. We had jolly
crowd of excursionists, most of them
being visitors like ourselves, and al
| though the train travelled slowly the
fat cattle and the pretty country kept
our spirits up. In the 161 miles
travelled we only passed through
| Nueces and Duval counties and across
a short strip of Webb county, of
which Laredo is the county seat. We
passed through Santiago, the county
seat of Duyal county, and here there
are few cotton farms. We were
| told that in the fields near here the
| boil weevils first made their appear
ance in Texas 1t must be one hun
dred miles to Old Mexico from here.
| and the superstition Is that some
| Mexican brought the weevils from
| his native heath in his bedding For
| fifty miles this side of Laredo the
| country is covered with cactus and
| brush and the country is fit only for
a goat range. Many of them are kept
| In this region We were agreeably
| surprised at Laredo. Away off here
on the Rio Grande in almost the ex-
| treme southwestern part Of the state.
we did not expect TO find such an up
| to-date city. Street cars run by
electricity speed in every direction
| There are many splendid brick build
ings, large and elegantly furnished
| hotels, and a population of ten or
| twelve thousand more than half be-
| ing Mexicans The Laredo Times Is
a sprightly daily and weekly issued
! by Mr. Penn, a cousin of Lee Penn
/ of Waxahachie We got in Monday
night before the carnival in ceiebra-
| ton of Washington S birthday was
| TO begin on Tuesday. and had hard
| time finding a lodging place. Every
body in this section of Texas and
/ thousands from Old Mexico. like us.
were on the ground ia time TO see
! the last roping contest In Texas. The
| bull fight came off TO the queen 3
| taste and also TO the taste of the
most brutal Mexican on the ground
! Il was a sight on Tuesday TO see
| Mexicans unload from trains which
came from the interior of Mexico
| The Rio Grande river here is the
dividing line between the two repub-
lies. Hundreds of the Mexican ex-
eursionists brought their children.
dogs, cats aud baskets of tamales
for food. AS they came supplied with
quilts and blankets they had no
trouble finding lodging places
When hunger overlook them they
would squat right down anywhere
and feast an tamales. At night
when they grew tisad and sleepy
they would unfold their blankets in
some out of the way place. roll up
in them and go TO saving Eourds.
They are a great race for festivals
| do a circus. The first day, Tuesday.
there was music Oy four or five diff
ferent bands in the different parks.
or plazas. as they are called here.
"Wednesday. Washington birthday
there was grand street parade and
band Of Indians all dressed and
painted in their war eoiors Ia a
sham battle guns aud pistols cracked
as though IL vas a sure enough waT.
and finally the Indians captured the
city hall. secured the key TO the city
delivered them 10 their queen squaw
Pucahontas. who was mounted on
magnificent horse. Then they pro-
eceded through the streets with "A
hurrah. All this VAS Just splendid
and very exciting In The afternoon
Che COW boys ropsd wild steers and
rode pitching outlaw horses. A train
load Of people came down from AUS
Sin and quite a number az the las
makers we're among them In the
party we're State Superintendent
Cousins and wife. John stephens aud
~ife. Representative u r James aud
wife, sebe Newman. Remberf Wat.
son, Albert Singleton and many
{ mi MWM Fegss4s s4tFFAwmnt s.ses4x..~. a..