The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1907-06-08

took from the priests, they purchased rifles and
ammunition from American Adventures and Mex
lean renegades, and made for the mountains. In
their fight for the hills they carried with them
one of the mission priests and four of the sisters
of charity, holding them captives for six months
This happened on July 81 1897"
Pardon me- general" I interposed "but the
most of who are interested in the Mexican
tribes believe the Yaquis to be Catholics"
They have vamish of Christianity, it is true,
but this religious wash only helps to conceal deep
substratum of paganism; at heart they are heath
ems and hold to their old superstitions and pagan
practices"
$50 that since 1S97-that is to say for ten
years, the Mexican government has been at war
with the Yaquis.
ARE NOT FIELD FIGHTERS.
That is not the right word. The Yaquis do
not fight in the open, so that no real battles are
fought. In detached commands we have to follow
them into the mountains and as they know every
foot and tree of the Bacateles we are pursuing
ghosts"
How many Yaquis are there Don Lorenzo!"
There are now some 1000 left in Sonora. The
majority of these are peaceful, but sympathize
with the outlaws and assist them in many ways
They all speak Spanish, dress like poor Mexicans
and as the neutral Yaquis aid and give shelter to
the fighters we must regard them all as enemies
of the republic"
$50, then, there is no solution to the Yaqui
problem?"
ooh, yes, there is. We are sending them to
Yucatan, Tabasco and Chiapas with theirfamilies
There they work in the henequin or hemp fields
ported 2,O00 and unless the other 1000 how here
behave themselves we will ship them to- Yucatan
also The state of Sonora is as large as England
and cannot be covered by military troop{ and pa
trolls without great expense. The Yaqui (problem,
as you are pleased to call it, will be solve in due
time, and Sonora, when fully developed, Will amaze
the world with its riches and resources"
This expression of hope and faith broAght my
visit to close. [ shook hands with the general
and took my leave of distinguished soldier and
most courteous gentleman.
WAR OF DIFFERENTIATION. I
The war between the Mexican government and
the Yaquis is not conducted according to methods
or practices which govern civilized natibns 1t
partakes more of the nature of Corsican vendet-
ia Kentucky feud 1t is war of shoot on
sight by the Mexicans and of treachery, cunning,
adjustment and midnight slaughter by the va
quis 1t is war of determination.
In 1861 Governor Pesquira of Sonora, III pro-
clamatlon offering 500 for every YaqK scalp
brought IN, calls them human wolves" ghlcarnate
demons" who deserve to be skinned ali Ne'
There is only one way" writes Sigho Camille
Diaz, ''to wage war against the Yaquis II We must
enter upon a steady, persistent campagh, following
them to their haunts, hunting them to ihe fasness
of their mountains. They must be surrounded,
starved surprised or inveighed by while flags, or
by any methods human or diabolic, andI then-then
put them to death man might as wei have sym
pathy for rattlesnake or tiger!
And now let me end this rather longI dissertation
On This singular tribe by citation fr m Velasco.
the historian OF Sonora 1 ought, how Ever, to add
that the Yaqu has yet to be heard in This defense