New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1921-11-11


Prepared by the National Geog ra phic So
ciety. Washington, D.. c.
No region in all North America Is
more frequently mentioned or more
widely misunderstood, perhaps, as re-
CARDS places, routes, distances, inc
the customs Of the people, than the
Mexican border. The name itself
brings to mind a blending of modern
Americanism and the of the
old frontiers. II hints at turmoil and
intrigue, at wild night rides by cavalry
patrols, mt g~un-runners and smugglers.
1t suggests, too, brOwn-faced, snappy-
eyed senoritas I'm red skirts n man
tillas. peddIing tongue-blistering ta-
males and mild dulces; of Mexican
women washing clothes, babies and
dishes in irregular bitches; Of burros,
hens and pigs fOraging about the door
ways of ~tiat-topped, squatty adobe
huts.
In many ways the social cleavage Of
this border is sharp and startling. 1t
cuts us off abruptly from another peo-
pie. showing an odd, interesting cross
section Of diverse civilizations.
Nor are all the people along this
line either Yankees or Mexicans. Thou
sands of Chinese are settled there on
the Mexican side; and beside them
are Turks and Japanese, and 20 Indian
tribes speaking 20 of the babel OF
tongues heard In Mexico.
Thousands of settlers migrate to this
torderlnnd each year, losing them
selves in the vast, hazy-blue stretches
of its open country but they are
Americans all, mostly from the Middle
West and the South. The h0rdes OF
Firms, Slavs and Neapolitans that po,if
into our Atlantic ports never get this
far; they stop IN the manufacturing
centers of the East. In Texas and
California, OF course, n%ative-born gen.
erations are found in the newer states
Of Arizona and New Mexico most of
the residents (barring children) have
come from other states.
Rough and Difficult Trip.
Adventurous, cOlorful and full OF
contrasts as II Is, the 1,SOO-mlle trip
along this crooked historic line Is
rough and difficult and has been made
by few people.
Some of the widest and least known
regions OF our country are piled up
against this border. Ask any dough.
boy, of the many, many thousands who
have done q hitch" on the Mexican
border, what he thinks, for instance,
OF Ajo or the Yuma sector.
From the gulf up to Ell Paso, along
the Texas frontier. the Rio Grandei
forms the boundary between the
United States and Mexico: thence to
the Pacific the line Is marked by stone
or iron monuments (save q short break
at the Colorado, so set that one 10
supposed to he visible from the other.
The Rio Grsnde part Of this border
has caused both Uncle Sam and Mex.
leo much work and mental anguish.
During bad foods the line ~ formed
by the river sQuirms around In 20 a.
tonishing and lively a manner that
what Is Mexican soil me day may b
In Texas the next. and vice versa.
Then, too. there Is the overcoming
problem Of dividing the waters Of the
river for irrigatIng purposes Around
such places as Laredo, Tex. this stu.
alton affords many an acrimonious In
ternationsl argument.
No spot on the whole border affords
more Of impressive grandeur than the
region about the mouth Of the Pecos.
This yellow, turbulent stream roars
into the Rio Grande near the town Of
Del Rio. foamlng along the bottom Of
q steep-walled canyon worn hundreds
OF feet deep In the solid rock.
Relic Of Camel Experiment.
At the old fort at Camp Verde. north
Of Uvalde, In q relic of one Of the old
est experiments ever made by our gov
eminent. II IL an Arab khan. In ruins
now, but In Its time an exact replica
Of the rectangular adobe caravansaries
built along such caravan trails as that
from Bagdsd 10 Teheran. This khan
was built back In 1856. when jefferson
Davis was secretary Of war and the
famous experiment was made with
camels for army transport use between
Texas and California.
As you follow the border west, oaks.
pines and underbrush decrease. aridity
Increases. and cacti lift their thorny
heads. Cattle. goats and sheep are
p~astured In large numbers; but. except
for irrigated areas along the river. the
country Is thinly settled and undevel-
oped. Border counties like Brewster.
Preside and Fl PasO are Of amazing