Mexico weekly ledger., 1915-09-16
ELKs ENJOY SMOKER AND
ENTERTAINING SPEAKERS
Minister to Bolivia John D. 0'Rear
Tells of South America and His
Experiences.

The Elks' smoker, Friday evening,
given in honor Of Minister from the
United States to Bolivia, John D. o.
Rear, was not only n of the most
delightful, but one Of the largest at
tended sessions Of its kind ever held
by the local lodge. Three candidates,
Nisbet Livingston, Carter Norris and
Harry Kunkel were initiated, two
bonds were drawn and the lucky hold
ers were W. F. Atkinson and Sam Har-
rison, of Auxvasse, and a delicious
lunch was served TO close the evening.
The lunch was in the gymnasium,
in the basement. Exalted Ruler W.
W. Fry, Jr., presided and made an
especially clever toastmaster. Be
sides Minister O'Rear, whose address
is given in full further on in this ar
ticle, the following were among the
speakers: DIR. j. G. Moore, F. A.
Morris, W. ". Fry, Chas. Peyton, of
Martirsburg; Lester Jennings, Of
Centralia; j. W. Burlington, Thomas
Rainey, Fred Reed, Of Vandalia, and
E. A. Lawrence.
Minister ORear, III his address said:
"Bolivia is about the same size as
Iall the United States east Of the Mis-
sissippi River. The western half con-
tains two high ranges Of the Andes
Mountains with a high table-land of
about $4,000 feet elevation between.
Upon this table-land are the larger
cities of Bolivia.
"La Paz, the capital, is a beautiful
lefty of 10000 population, situated at
the bottom of a deeply hollowed-out
gulch, at an elevation of 10000 feet.
which gives to it a climate of perpet-
ual spring, flowers blooming there
every day of the year.
"In the eastern half of the RepSb-
lie are immense stretches of rich prai-
RE land, but at present little used.
This will doubtless some day all be
. highly cultivated and developed.
! "The mountains Of Bolivia are very
rich in minerals, Bolivia producing
now about 1-3 of the tin of the whole
! world, and also contains rich mines Of
q copper, wolfram, anthony and other
baser metal. Gold and silver have
I been obtained in Bolivia for more
I than $50 years. The richest silver
mine in the world was discovered near
q Potosi in 1916 by an Indian, whose
9 lambs had strayed up into the noun
tain. He went up late in the even
i ing to look for them and, night com
, ing on, he built up a fire against the
! face of the bluff and remained there
1 all night. The next moning he dis
q covered that the fire had melted the
silver in the rocks and there wa a
4 pool of it now at his feet. There is
now in the Plaza at Potosi a statute
erected to this Indian who made the
discovery. At this time Bolivia was
IA province Of Spain and upon all sill
i, yer and gold exported from Bolivia
# there was an export tax paid to thu
! Spanish government. The records il
n Bolivia show that there was takei
4 from this one mountain and exported
II over three billion dollars worth of sill
yer. Silver and gold are still beint
n mined and, as in the other metals
m still offer wonderful inducements II
k. the miner.
NJ Bolivia is the home of the llam'
- and alpaca. These are animals abou
W. four feet high and about four time
nd as large as sheep. They both pro
w duce wool, that from the alpaca be
in ing especially fine.
he "Taken as a whole, Bolivia ha
Ia, hardly been scratched, and will be !
he the near future doubtless the scene 0
great activity.
SITUATED upon the high platea
there can be seer today the ruins Q
ancient cities, and of a civilizatio
thought by some students Of thes
matters to be the oldest ruins in tn
world. At Tihunaqua, about rs mile
Y from La Paz and neal the edge {
Lake Titicaca, there is the ruins of
great city. In some places there "
n remains the foundation and part
y the walls of a temple about ON
fourth Of a mile square, compose
largely of stones so large engineer
Of today know Of no way in whie
eff they were moved, many obelisks al
Ill carved images, and upon the wal
hieroglyhics,, which speak in a la
ex- guage unknown and so far impossib
Don to find out.
"What architect planned these il
Ver mense temples? Whose hands mo
the ed these immense stones and build
'ed' these walls? In whose honor we
these images made? What history
anv portrayed by the hieroglyphics {
eel the walls? What Gods, if any, we
str w~orshiped in the temple? There
no answer to these things"
,ear The Graft" committee Of the lod
per- brought the following bonds and !
of tired them with money raised fro
the recent automobile contest: W..
Fry, Jr., John Graham, I'D. William
II Chas. Claybrook, ]. W. Gallaher a
Chas. Carpenter.
just Delaware Pig Sells for $1,000.