The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1916-03-21

anu OlllpES ODIdlnCQ DIV Sll SOGtS OF
criminal devices
This trade was carried on and these
houses run mostly by Cubans who
seemed 10 have a monopoly in the bust
ness. They lured a good many girls here
from the United States on one preteXt or
another. a life of dissipation in this hot
climate soon killed them
1t must ne remembered that Merida was
very wealthy city. In its population OF
$1,000 there were one hundred millonaires.
There are not as many as that here now
because the revolution drove 8 good
many away to stay abroad until political
conditions become absolutely settled
again. Others will never come back for
various very good reasons.
OF course. when there was much
wealth and money being sQuandered right
and left vice stalked openly and the
white-slave trade was a prosperous one.
Gen. Alverado put an end to II in his
usual characteristic and forceful manner.
He raided every house. closed ii up and
eNiled the propriCtors from the country.
The inmates he treated kindly and in
stead of locking them up or sending them
away. he found places for them to work
II they wished to reform and lead a de-
cent life. otherwise he allowed two girls
to live together 10 be company for ga CHI
other and so they would not get lonesome
and become respondent. They are kept
under strict supervision. however. and
must report twice a week. The police
have no control over them so long as
they behave and commit no crime. | am
told that these girls are all grateful for
this new order of things. and at being
freed from the bondage they lived I'M
der
One Mans Good Work.
Co will hn hat Ip
is reformer, who does things and is
not content simply to talk about them.
j have never been so impressed by a
mans uprightness and energy as I have
by his, and so | can't help but frequently
refer to the great work he is doing. He
has certainly made Merida a very pleas
ant city to live in. Crime and violence
are almost unknown. The people arc
happy and busy and all doing we'll
The financial situation is the big obsts-
Gle to Merida's prosperity, The deprecia-
| ton of the currency is the same all over
| the republic; and it has reached a very
/ serious stage.
The peso, or Mexican dollar. which was
always formerly rated at 90 cents in gold
| Is now worth less than 5 cents in Ameri.
I can money At the time of writing this
the exact exchange here is twenty-foul
| FOR one. 1t makes the prices of things
seem ridiculous. A cigar for which you
! pay a Mexican dollar really costs IL
American money only little more thar
! cents. A g tip to your waiter is con.
sidered a big one. but it is really only
| cents. The best seats at the opera ART
81 but that only means q cents.
/ gave a bootblaCk a dollar for shinin,
my shoes and felt like a millionaire AL
| this cheap money and prevalence O
ihundred-dollar bills give one a great ali
OF affluence. hundred dollars in golt
invested in constitutional money give
you a roll like a munition makers. Tn,
unfortunate part of it is that you hav,
to watch this money carefully. IN,
country is flooded with counterfeits snt
so the government to protect itself ha
ito keep restamping the backs of genuin,
bills to identify them. A lot more coun
torfeits have been found and an orde
has Just gone forth that all bills mus
be restamped in the next three days
It's inconvenient. for find mysel
loaded with a lot of perfectly good bill
that in two DAYS will be no good at al
unless l somehow get them to the treas
Jury department to be validated.
! No silver or gold coins Of any kin,
are to be seen. All the fractional cur
rcncy Is represented by little cardboar r,
| tickets, like milk tickets. Red is fv,
cents, blue ten cents and yellow twent,
cents. It's queer money condition
Still. as Mr.. Solomon Rchani, hi,
merchant here, said to me, ut "a none,
and II does buy things. That's all none,
can do SO why worry