El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-03-25
n EXICo CITY, Mex, March Is
MI Wrapped in ignorance so pro-

NJ Wrapped in ignorance ssoi' aas's 50 pro-
found as to preclude all desire
for knowledge; satisfied with a lot
which makes him almost a brother to
the OK; content with an existence
which enables him to exc out only a
bare living; the lot of the Mexican
peon is not a pleasant one, viewed
fEom an American standpoint Edu-
cation he might have if he desired it,
actual freedom he might possess if he
knew how to gain it: but to large
degree he has neither. Born without
virtue, possessed of a defective men
tality, he is a bundle OF inconsistency
He is untrustworthy to a degree; yet
no honest man accus ed of a crime was
ever more mortally grieved and af-
fronted than he. Well paid, he imme-
diately throws up his position. Dress
him well and he becomes a caballero-
a Mexican gentleman who would feel
disgraced were he found at honest toll
Give him money enough to get silver
spangled sombrero and he returns your
good intentions by throwing up his
job on the spot
Love First, Then Debt.
Inc average 4ncAlCdA PCOA OSA0-A-
gets into debt shortly after he falls
in love, and from that time on he is
reduced to a state of servitude which
enables the lender to command his ser
vices practically as long as he desires
In this country the ceremonies Incl
dent to the kind Of marriage the peon
heart Graves, cost anywhere from 10
to SO pesos.~Usually the prospective
benedict goes to his employer and
asks for loan of that AMOUNT This
loan is seldom repaid in fun, for with
a family to support and wages THAT
permit of a bare existence, there's
little to be lad aside for the satisfac-
ton of back debts or for future rainy
days. So long as the peon stays in
the debt of his employer, just so long
that employer is permitted, under the
policy of the Mexican government, to
keep him at work Sometimes the peon
will conclude that he is in-used by his
employer. and goes out and finds an
other. master. who is willing to pay
off the old obligations and assume the
loan himself
Poems Number 5000, 900.
There are about 100000 adults in
the republic who can neither read nor
write, and they constitute the peon
class. The majority Of them are in
dams. although a million are half
BRET breeds. In Mexico they are known
as genie sin razon"-people without
reason AS a rule they are deferential
! but quick to resent what they con-
slider an affront to their rights. They
may be compelled to work a lifetime
at pitiful wages. and will never com
plain about 1T, but the minute anyone
treats them discourteously. he is like
ly to hear from them. The man who
calls one of them a greaser had better
be prepared for trouble
The begging class. Of course. is
made up Of poems. Almost the first
phrase a foreigner learns in Mexico is
"perdcneme por Dios"-pardon me in
the name of God--for wherever he goes
he is confronted with the lame. the
halt the blind and more especially the
good for-nothing. with an appeal for
"un centavo. senior" Many of them
invoke the blessing of God and the
saints upon the person OF whom they
beg, and the foreigner in Mexico has
denomin ated that class the ''for-God-
sakers" Dozens Of poor. bedraggled
boys and girls are to be found on the
streets of every town ard city and at
every railroad station in the republic,
each of them usually carrying a baby
wrapped in a reDosa. They accost the
stranger with appeals for a centavo.
When they get it, it usually goes TO
some pulque-Sodden peOn. who uses it
to replenish his supply Of the favorite
beverage.
The Dress of the Poems.
The dress Of the peon and his family
is usually of the cheapest kind. cotton
being the favorite material. TShe men
wear a cotton shirt and trousers and
a straw sombrero. AS a wrap they
wear the serape. which serves as cloth
ing by day and bedding by night. The
women wear very simple clothing and
wrap their head and shoulders in the
rebosa, which is sort of shawl. They
have a unique way OF wrapping their
babies on their back. with the rebosa,
and one often sees a peon woman car
rying baby on her back, a basket on
her head and bundle in each hand.
Sometimes she reverses this and wraps
the baby in front of her. straps her
load on her back and carries q bundle
In each hand They often travel for
miles so laden without seeming to tire.
The children present an amusing spec
tacle. The little girls dress exactly
like their mothers and look like pigmy
women and the boys dress in precisely
the same style as their fathers.
Are the Burden Bearers.
Moving vans are practically unknown
in Mexico. Household goods and al