Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-12-05
UNCLE SANS BACK YARD.
Shifting Course Of Rio Grande Causes
Trouble.

which has served to keep the TWO
countries ut odds along the leSaS
| border is that Of the constant SMILING
of the international line along the no
| Grando. How much troubles over ms
putoc property rights caused by the
changes in the line have had 10 90
with the present outbreak III h'Aie'
against Americans is Of course Only
lconjcctural, bat these disputes, WHICH
| have long been going on 1or MANY
years, are doubtless responsible lor
much Of the bad feeling existing pc
Tween, citizens of the two republics.
'rhc International boundary commas
| sion is stin wrestling with the per
picking trou blcs arising from the Eas-
aries Of the Rio Grandc. ii - conf
uoscd of General Arson Mills, for the
United States, and Senior ferhalioo
Reltran Puga for Mexico. 1t mas
jurisdiction over all matters affecting
| the international line between me
United States and our southern nciSh-
Dor. and has been working ior 10 years
| trying t. Straightcn out the numerous
|tangl,s constantly arising.
| West # III Paso, Ten, the Inc was
|culnpletcd about 10 years ago. iron
monuments now mark at regular IN
teryals the imaginary line drawn
across the arid plains and mountains
Of New Mexico. Arizona and Califor-
MIA on the north, and Chihuahua and
Sonora On the south. which dchnt Inc
area of sovereignty of the two ma
tionS Bat east Of FL PaSo the PROB
lem confronted has been not q simple
| one. Iron monuments stay whore thcF
arc put. but the Rio Grandc Is as
changcable as the mind OF q woman
and has played FRANKS with htr banks
from the very beginning Of white set
Elements in that region.
| Very little difficulty has been cX-
p"ricnccG over marking boundaries
i a.Cng the three Western states Now
| and then additional monuments have
to b. erected where the growth of
| cities neccssitatcs closer definition oil
the line. The overflow Of the Salton
sea washed away several of the monu-
rcnts. which We're replaced. Along
| the Rio Grande, however. the troubles
| are almost constant and, property
rights having been affected by the
| changing of the rivers course, bad
| feeling has been engcndcred on both
| sides of the stream. An American
citizen today may awake tomorrow
morning TO find his ranch under the
| Mexican Gag and himself and property
subject to the laws of Mexico.
| The Rio Grande runs through its
entire course of 1900 miles along the
boundary between banks of sandy
loan. with but few exceptions where
|
| stone CANYONS. There is a SAYING
| along the border that SO easily is the
river bed changed that q man may
divert The stream flow by throwing
his hat into the water. The stream
at various points, because Of the ma
ture Of -he banks. begins eating into
the land on one side OF the stream
and depositing it upon the other. II!
time this process forms a loup Then.
without warming, tile river cuts across
the neck Of the loup. which some
times is scarcely wide enough 20 per
nit the passage OF horse ana team
makes new channel and leaves ali
island il the middle of the stream.
These islands are called "bancos,'
which is q ]ocalism. derived from
neither die English nor the Spanish
but from the ''SreasGrs, who probably
made it by adding the Latin &c" 70 the
American word bank believing
bang % be the word for island
However. tho word has been officially
adopted.
These "bancos are the principal
subject of dispute. Frequently they
are Of considerable size, ranging from
two to more than 1000 acres in area:
ono is at least 40Oo acres in extent, ana
comprises whole small Texas town.
Generally speaking. these "bancoS"
are not of great interest intcrnation-
ally. but they are OF grca. local inter-
est sometimes an American who's
'and mas been deposited upon the Mex
lCin side Of the line accepts the sit.
uauon, takes title under the Mexican
| laws, and either becomes IL Mexican
citilcn or preserves q residence upon
the American side, filling his land
upon the other. Frequently the own
ers OF the land thus tossed about Ct
feet q compromise and sell out
| \ treaty for the elimination of Tho
"hancos' in tn" Rio Grande was rati-
fed in 1906 ard under it the commits
sion is now 1T work. II guarantees
|
same. regardless Of the shifting from
SIDE to side Of the river The average
formation of these "baucos' is abou,
three year; they require about 20
| years to form.
| The most important dispute nov
| pending is known as the lcl CHANNEL.
involving the ownership of about 200
or 500 acres included in the CITY of
III Paso, ard valued at s., 0OD. 900 Much
bad blood has been caused BY this
dispute, and threats of killing and yio-
| ichce nave nc: been unknown along
the border N consequence OF this dis
pute IS well as Of Others FL ChamizcI
case was heard in 1897, but no agree
ment could be reached 1t then be-
came the subject Of international ne
Sotialon, without success. Las; limo
a treaty was signed for the settlement
| OF the dispute by arbitration. tho arbj-
tiers 20 be the two members of thc
present boundary commission. anil ,
llird, neutral American or Mexican
IL IS believed that this dispute viii he
fiha!H adjusted next spring.