The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1910-05-01
Has Five Generations About
His Wheel Chair.
HE IS A PUREBLoOD AZTEC
Resident of San Antonio Desires to
Live to See Celebration of Texan
Independence-A Remarkable Old
Man Descended from Men Com
quered by COrtez I'm Mexico.

age. probably the Oldest man in the
United States, that he may be spared TO
see the 10th of September, the day on
which Mexico will celebrate the Tooth an
|niversary OF her independence.
To that date he would like TO live and
smoke a few cigarettes. FOR life without
the weed 10 tho true Oaxaquena IS UNI
thinkable. After that the old man will
rot care what happens. There is so lit
lie. says he. that can keep one OF his age
and infrmitles interested in life and its
Kaleidoscope changes.
For years Juan Vargas has lived In
this city. and before that no spent forty
four years IN his native Mexico. in OaXa-
ca. the country 20 which the Aztecs fed
after they had been conquered and dis
persed by the Spanish under fernando
Cortez. old Juan is an Aztec, for II Is
doubtful whether he would otherwise
have reached the great age that is his.
Down In Oaxaca the mothers raise none
but pure bloods. and even the slightest
infusion Of Spanish or other foreign blood
Is looked upon as a pollution. The Ma
van Indian, as they are now called are
as race proud to-day as they were when
the Nontezumas held court in the city IN
the middle Of the lake and when thou
sands Of them on the great feast days
assembled the teocani 70 have their living
hearts torn from qulvering bodies with
out a sound 20 punctuate the drama.
Juan Born in 17O6.
In the mountains of Oaxaca. where
President Diaz comes from, as the old
man remarks with a great show of pride.
Juan Vargas was born on January l,
1886. In early youth he became a warrior,
although he did at first no more than
carry provisions for the men. The old
Magyar Indians and the Znpotecans were
still at war with the Aztecs, who had IN
vaded their territory. and against whom
they owed many grudges. for on these
people the Montezumas had made war FOR
centuries. and thousands Of them had
been carried OF 20 end their lives on the
, sacrificial stone at tho feet OF Huitzl.
War was the only training Juan had
Schooling he did not have. for the last
thing the Spaniards would DO would be
% establish a school in OaxaCa
But Juan's early training served him
and his country in good stead To the
nrtle Oaxacan pueblo there came rumors
that the hated Spanlards would be at
last driven from the country and that
the Aztecs might once more come into
power. Juan went 10 Mexico City IN 1905
and In the following year he was one OF
the patriots who served TO fan the fires
OF revolution and Of freedom under Padre
Hidalgo. He was one Of those who shout
ed viva Mexico. viva libertad" when
Padre Hidalgo raised aloft the banner Of
revolt in the pulpit OF the little chapel ar
Dolores on September Is. 1910,
Goes Back to Ouxaca.
After Padre Hidalgo had been shot
Juan decided to return to his evergreen
hills IN tropical Oaxaca. The revolu-
tionary fervor IN him had subsidized, prin-
cipalIy because libertad and Mexico stood
nor for a regime purely Aztec, but for
that OF n race OF men who had been pro-
dUced by the contact OF the natives and
the Spanish conquistadores. Juan real
lied that tho old days OF glory would
never return and for that reason there
was no special need for him TO assist IN
the creation OF a new order Of things
that might and might not benefit his
people. But on his way home he was
seized by the troops Of the Spanish king
and pressed into service. As soon as he
could he escaped. was recaptured sub
seQuently, escaped again. and was once
more pressed into the Spanish forces.
A few years later he fought now for. then
against Iturbide. as exigencies demanded.
and returned again to his mountains IN
OaxaCa in 1891, when Iturbide had estab-
lished himself as Emperor I'm Mexico
Nine years later he came 70 San Antonio,
and in 1896 he heard there the shout
/ ''Muerte a los Tejanos"' death 10 the
Texans) and saw the city deserted and
the Alamo in ruins after its Texan de-
tenders had been put 20 the sword by
Santa Anna, March 6, 1886 Again he
had been pressed into service, this time
10 serve as a mental.
Since then Juan Vargas has lived IN
San Antonio. He has never Travelled on a
railroad, only twice on a street car. and
has always had his quota OF Cruel and
corn mush, the only things he has eaten
now for many years. Peppery food and
fiery liquor he no longer consumes. and
the only stimulant he now takes is
coffee. He says that he has never been
abstemious in either eating, drinking. or
smoking. and that his long life is due 10
racial rather than individual traits.
contention supported by the fact that the
Indians Of Oaxaca are remarkably long
lived
Poor Like His People.