The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-12-28
MEXICO

Washington. D. c.-Pertinent geograph- ical facts about Mexico are given in the folling hullitin of the National Geographic society:
 Prior to 1896, Mexico, as a Spanish
 colony, and the United States covered approximately equal areas of North
 America, but the Texas secession and the
 result of the Mexican war added nearly
 million square miles to our territory,
 and the extent of Mexico now is less
 than one-fourth that of continental United States" says the bulletin. which is based on several communications to
 the society.
 But our neighbor republic still has territorial expanse equal to the aggre- gate of Austria, Hungary, Germany,
 France, Great Britain and Ireland.
 'The total area of the republic of Mex ico c67 coo square miles) is less than that
 of our five largest states-Texas, Cali fornia, Montana New Mexico and Ari- zcna-combined, all of these except Mon
 tana having been part of New Spain B years ago. None of the 31 political subdivisions of our neighbor is as large
 as any of the five states named, but four Mexican states contiguous to the United States aggregate an extent great CT than that of Texas.
 Chihuahua. the largest Mexican state approximates in area (S7,0O0 square
 miles) that of Utah, Sonora G7,000 square
 miles) of Nebraska, Coahuila (63,O00 square miles) of Georgia, and Durango 10000 square miles) of Kentucky. Nine subdivisions of the United States (ex- cluding A1aska) are larger than Chi huahua, 15 of greater magnitude than Sonora, and g larger than Durango. The rugged and desert character of the Mex ican border states support sparse popu- lations, except where mining exploitation and cities resulting therefrom have con centrated settlement.
 "The melting snows from the San Juan and Sangre de Christo ranges of the I Rocky Mountains in Southern Colorado | form the genesis of the Rio Grande, | which, after flowing south through New
 Mexico, bends southeast at the western ] extremity of Texas( courses between it and Mexico for a distance equal to that l of St. Louis from New York, and de- 1 scends in Hoo miles from an elevation of 1 4500 feet to sea level at the Gulf of Mex 1 ico.
 Except when in flood, the Rio Grande 1 is apparently an ltnimportant stream and readily crossed, for the normal flow is well utilized for irrigation in both coun- tries; but it has carved in part of it's course canyons difficult of exploration. The changes wrought by freshets, which
 shift the channel, demanded the atten- | tion of an international commission, which has adjusted the boundary along , the Rio Grande to meet the varying con diaions. The uncertainty of this is illus | trated by a claim some years ago that
 portion of the important city of Ei Paso. Tex, was Mexican soil The remaining | TOO miles of the international boundary
 to the west separating our neighbor re- public from New Mexico, Arizona, and California. is through an arid desert sec ! ton, much of which is mountainous. This | is not a direct line, but has five changes of alignment, which have been accu- l ratelyN surveyed and established by 25S | permanent monuments easily disdn- guishable.
 Mexico has an area approximately one-fourth of that of the United States, a fourth of whose area once belonged to Mexico. It has a coast line some 5000 miles long, although it's greatest length | is less than 20O0 miles, and it's greatest breadth only 750 miles. Although it's area is only one-fourth that of Brazil. 1 its population is approximately equal to that of the largest republic of the south ern continent.
 "Some 100000 souls live within its borders of@whom more than two-thirds can neither read nor write
 "Of the total population, only 19 per cent are white, 4S per cent are ot n1eu percentage, while SS per cent still maiu- tain their Indian blood uncorrupted. The foreign population in 1912 numbered lOo'- 900 souls, of whom 10000 were Americans, 1 90.00O Spanish and 5000 British. 'Mexico probably has a greater range of remarkable vegetation than any other country in the world.
 "No other country in the New World. south of the Rio Grande, was so well ] supplied with railroads as was Mexico prior to the Madero revolution. Then it | had 10000 miles of up-to-date American railroad At six different points lines crossed the frontier from the United 1 States, and Laredo, Eagle Pass and Ei l Paso getaways handled much traffic to I and from Mexico The Mexican rail- roads carried Il l0e0,00O passengers an nrally at that time, and handled about ] Il 000 900 tons of freight Their total rev enues amounted to about s4o.0ce.ooc Humboldt once pronounced Mexico 1 The treasure-house of the world Be- | fore the world war it produced one-third | of the worlds silver, a considerable per centage of it's gold, one-ninth of it's lead and one-twentieth of it's copper. The country's mineral production, exclusive | of iron. coal and petroleum, amounted 10 I S15S, ,0O0,000 in 1910. With the exception oi Compeche, Tabasco and Yucatan, every state in the Mexican republic possesses mines. of which there are. 2l0o0, cover | ing 633,0O0 acres of mineral lands. and giving employment to half million men. l Yet probably less than one-fourth of the mineral possibilities of the republic have
 been exploited. Prior to the outbreak of the Madero revolution, upward of 5Ooo
 mining claims were registered each year"
 National Theatre Next Year l Mexico City, December 15.-The Ma