The daily sentinel., 1908-06-13
FROM THE LAND
OF M0NTEZUMAS
Former Well Known Resident Of Grand Junction Writes
Most Entertaining Letter From Ancient
Mining City in Old Mexico
"At Mines, Rio Plata Company,
chihuahua, Mexico.
.ay On 1908

"ay 25, 1908.
Dear Sentinel:
"Would discourse from Mexico
have any interest for your readers? |
/ feel that l want to talk to the peo-
pie of Mesa county again through |
type. / have not had the opportun- |
ity to acquire as much information |
here as one about to instruct others
should possess, but it is impossible |
to be in Mexico three months as /
have been without appropriating a
certain amount of knowledge by
natural absorption. / arrived in the
city of Chichuahua the last days of
February, and only expended one
week seeing the sights there and get
ting acquainted with the American
colony. There is strong foreign
club here principally Americans.
THE cathedral is very fine to one
unaccustomed to cathe drals, though
suppose it does not rank very high
among the worlds cathedrals. The
night of my arrival the plaza in front
of the cathedral was thronged by a
eaily attired crowd of caballers and
senoritas promenading to the music
of delightful military band. 1t was
pleasant reception to one coming
out of the snow of the Uintah reser-
vatiop. The next day | found all
kinds of glorious fruits splendid ma
tive oranges. red bananas. chirimoyas
and various tropical fruits of which
did not learn the names. Chihuahua
| is a city of about 10000. and II
should say nearly half foreign. Amer
leans are everywhere. They have
electric lights and sewerage and are
now completing an electric railway
system. The cars will have to turn
some sharp corners however The
streets are very irregular and sener-
ally narrow. Chihuahua is mining
town. The state of Chihuahua Is a
mining state. / may say, regardless
of its considerable resources IN
ranches and herds. | left the city,
as / have said, after stay of few
days to come out to our company's
mine. the Rio Plata, southwest r~~-'
the city about 200 miles, and this
required a journey of one day by
rail and three days by mule. All
my mule journey was through the
mountains and altogether by trail,
(there are no roads,, and | will say
this that while / have seen as bad
trails in the U. s., have never seen
: as much bad trail in all my previous
travels from the Yukon to the equa-
tor. Our company packed about ten
car loads of machinery over this trail
quite a number of single pieces
weighing 500 pounus. The heavier
} pieces were carried by poems.
This trail | speak of is about Go
or rs miles and all through miner
allied mountains: but there is not a
. mine on the trail till this is reached.
, This mine was a prospect two years
ago. Now it is producing very hand
somely. My brother d. w. Shanks,
who was associated with me in the
10 in
1885 to 1890, found a Mexican hold
ing this prospect down bought him
out and now has a producing mine
for himself and associates that appar-
emily is good for fifty years. The
principal produce of Chihuahua
mines is silver, but | should say
roughly that 20 or 80 per cent of
the output is gold. | am not writing
this letter dear Sentinel to encourage
. any one to come here. don't know
whether It would be wise or not. They
have chills and fever here, in many
localities. Any one who has the right
kind and in sufficient quantity of
that valuable Mesa county real estate
has got an asset that will yield more
of the blessings for which civilized
man yearns than can be found in
Mexico. For those without property to
:, venture to Mexico would be very I'M
wise. For properly equipped pros
pector there is some chance. Mexico
is now feeling the same stringency
which is affecting business in the
United States, and there are many
unemployed great many more than
is usual. Every one Is much in. err
ested to know who is going to be
: president of the United States. This
: ms ans almost as much to Mexico in
: a business way as it does to the Unit
: ed States. Those of us here who are
! from Colorado are also interested in
! Colorado politics.
: ''Who is going to be the next gov
: ernor of Colorado? Can not Grand
: Junction furnish a dark horse? |
: know that some of Grand Junction S
: citizens are spoken of for the bench,
: and | hope this may mature. but
! there's no reason why she shouldn't
I have both. There are lot of Colo
: radoans down here: B. Clark Wheel
er and Mr.. Hallett from Aspen, and
! Senior George Robert de Beque of
J DeBeque Is now in Denver confer
\ ring with some of his associates in
! regard to enterprises they are con-
! ducting here. The Coloradoans do
! pretty well in Mexico The old motto.
Colorado Wants the Best" still
holds and we will hope that 1t always
! will Goodbye. Regards to all my
= friends. My paper is exhausted.
Yours,