The Ocala banner., 1914-08-28
WANDERING ISLANDS.
Those Of the Rio Grande Made Trouble
For Us With Mexico.

For Us With Mexico.
The wandering islands Of the Rio
Grande In their mi2ratiOnS from side
to side OF the water course have caused
years of dip omatic corre, ponden"e and
discussion between the United States
and Mexico. The refusal OF certain
small bodies of land to remain perlna-
nently attached to one or the other OF
the rivers banks deprived them OF a
fixed legal status as either Mexican or
American territory and brought about
their participation iii many illegal ad
ventures. which in turn led To miSun.
derstandings between the two coun-
tries.
In no river is spirit more evident
than in the Rio Grande. Along its
sinuous route below Rio Grande City
1t pushes its way through miles OF
level sand in it's final reach for the
gulf. twisting and doubling upon itself
like a sea serpent. In 1S4S it was fix
ed upon as the boundary line between
the United States and Mexico. The
boundary was TO be the middle OF the
river. following the deepest channel"
But the river possessed characteristics
that had not impressed themselves
upon the trainers Of the convention as
possible causes OF friction between the
people living along its banks. In ad-
dition to its erOding power. exercised
through long months Of low and mean
water. it could during food periods
leap with tOrrential force across
narrow neck Of land at the base OF one
of its long loops and cut for itself
new channel. Through such avuSive
action of the river Texas soil would
sometimes become Mexican. and on Oc-
casions plantation occupied by jacals
and Mexican citizens would overnight
find itself part of Texas
An example will serve to show both
the extraordinary actions Of the river
and the difficulties in the way of any
satisfactory adjustment OF conflicting
interests. A certain Josiah Turner be-
gan to farm the Galveston ranch. on
the Texas bank. Eight years later be
was surprised when pol acres Of Mexi-
can land came across the river and at
tached itself to his ranch. An arrange
ment was effected by which he became
the owner of this land Six years later
the river cut off piece OF Mr.. Tur-
ner's land and took it to Mexico. Twen-
ty-one years later the river made up its
mind to repay the farmer for what it
had taken from him and so carried
back into Texas a piece Of land far
larger than the tract originally lost.
The Mexican owners claimed possess
sion. and new convention dealing
came necessary.
Brigadier General Arson Mills. q.
s. A., appointed to represent the United
States. recommended that the ''cutoffs"
be forever eliminated from the bound
ary line. all those occurring on the
right Of the river to pass to the juris-
dictiOn of Mexico. those on the left to
that of Texas The inhabitants. IL any,
should retain their citizenship in the
country from which they had been so
suddenly and violently detached, or
they might acquire the nationality OF
the country to which they were now
attached. Any cutoff exceeding $50
acres in area and having a population
of over 200 souls was not to be consid-
cred a banco, and the old bed of the
river should remain the boundary. A
convention embodying his recommends
tions was finally ratified by both coun-
tries. Thus the great turbid. silt bear
ing river is left to pursue its way un-
trammeled, but the terrors so long syn.
onymous with it's name have through
the operation of this equable arrange
ment become a part Of the storied. ro-
mantle past.