The Keota news., 1914-05-29

continuous chain Of pulque producer1
exist giving an inexhaustible supply
year after year. and an equally mex
haustible supply OF dinero to the own.
er Of tho hacienda No plant. however.
will gtve forth sap until its tenth
year. and then only upon the very eve
Of blossoming. II is rarely allowed
to bloom. ~ this destroys the sap.
The Mexicans have q favorite comp.
let extollinG tho virtue OF this plant.
which says:
comida. behada.
Casa. y vestido.
This means that the maguey plant
Is food. drink. house and clothing.
Such an assertion In q little exagger-
ated. but It Is . fact that from the
maguey ono can obtain pulQue. to.
quila, An intoxicant somewhat resem-
bling Scotch whisky: mescal, like
teQuila. but stronger: fuel. thatching
material for the adobe hut and needles
and thread. By carefully cutting OF
the sharp spike at the top Of each
maguey blade and following the strong
iiber which extends from 1t to the
AAO0AS "a VAC pA0A&p DC ~ AAA6 A0ASSSI1A N
a rude sort II obtained. The poverty
stricken Indians In the valleys Of Mex.
leo use this primitive needle and
thread extensively.
W.sn sap time comes the sap gath
erer cuts into the bulb from the top
and digs out the coraxon . few inches.
He then covers the cavity with q mag.
uey blade and goes to the next plant,
which he treat In . like manner.
Within two or three hours he returns
to the first plant and finds the bulb
filled with sap-aqua miel. or honey
water. 1t Is called. Into this he dips
the small end Of q queer receptacle
made from the Mexican gourd. It II
really a rude siphon. He sucks the sap
into the gourd. Then he opens . large
bag made from the skin Of pig. which
he carries on his shoulder. and pumpe
the sap into 1t from the siphon.
When newly taken from the bulb
the sap is thick. white and sweet and
tastes something like sweet cider. In
this state. while not yet pulque. 1t 10
very agreeable and not the least intox-
icating.
For three or four months repeated
visits are made to every plant tapped
and the sap withdrawn. When the last
drop has been taken from It the great
plant droops. its blades sag to the
ground and 1t becomes q dirty brown.
It is then dug up and hauled away to
be used as fuel and matching and.
perhaps, needles and thread.
One load after another Of this aqua
miel the gatherer gathers in the pink
pigskin to the building on the hacienda
where the pulque is made. 1t 10 poured
into vats made OF cowhide. The hair
side OF the hide Is uppermost, 80 that
the liquor is poured on the hair.
A small quantity Of fermented sap
is plated with the fresh. and soon a
great white foam forms on the top and
rises into sort Of pyramid as fe.-
mentation Is complete. It Is a thick.
sour liquid. sickening to one who has
not cultivated taste for It. There is
nothing that can be compared to the
taste of pulque, nor. for that matter.
to its smell. That Is usually enough
for most visitors to the country. But
it Is said that good pulque. after one
has grown accustomed to 1t. is an ex-
ceedingly agreeable beverage.
Once fermented. the pulque is load
ed on the hacienda's own trains and
shipped to its destination. Often q
peon will own few maguey plants
somewhere. and 1t Is common sight
q