Perth Amboy evening news., 1921-10-18
Learn One New Thing Every Day

BULLETINS BY THE
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY

Americans who saw prices sky
rocket at home and who saw them
selves and their neighbors nearly
lose their sense OF money values,
would have felt thoroughly at home
in Tampico, the great Mexican oil
town during the last few years."
says a bulletin issued from the
Washington, ID. c., headquarters of
the National Geographic~Society
This was the port to which Unit
ed States gunboats were sent re-
Gently when the closing down of
American oil wells and refineries be-
cause of heavy Mexican taxes threw
thousands of men out of work, and
disorders were feared.
F1Oated to Prosperity on OIL
"Tampico, long a port of great
importance, has had a mushroom
growth in the last fifteen years."
continues the bulletin, "its popula-
ton increasing from less than H.
600 in 1906 10 well over 100, 900
today. And the explanation for this
great stride forward a be given in
one word-oil. The biggest 'gusher'
the world has eve known was drill
ed near Tampico in 1908 and scores
or other huge streams of oil have
been opened up in the same vicinity
since. Hundreds of millions of gall
Ions OF oil have passed through
Tampico, and the town has been
the financial and business headquar-
tiers for fields many miles away.
Money flowed easily into the
pockets of a large number of Amer
lean managers and technical work.
ers who were brought in, and into
4 tAA Ho-l. " AE-- -
merchants and day laborers. The
World War raised the demand for
liquid fuel to unheard of heights
and it seemed that everyone in Tam
pico was becoming wealthy. Condi-
tons closely paralleled those in the
oil towns of the United States. Silk
shirts were not the vogue that they
were among the loungers along ev-
cry American Main street, but in
their way Tampicans became
equally as proficient spenders. There
was little inclination to count the
change The cost of all articles of
food and apparel rose tremendously.
Rents soarded until ordinary ac-
commodations for Americans could
not be obtained for much under
5000 to $500 per month.
Because the after-the-war indus
tries VI the NOIlu Ttlulitu DtlTO-
leum no less than did the navies of
the fighting nations during the war,
Tampico's prosperity continued af-
ter most other communities whose
business was nuickened by the war
were experiencing a setback. Now.
belatedly the city is undergoing
the reimbursement that came to the
reese of the world.
Handles More Freight Than Vera
Cruz
although Tampico owes its
prosperity predominantly to oil, il
has other factors hat contribute to
its importance. Thanks to a rail-
road from Monterey. connecting
with the mining region of north
central Mexico. and to excellent har-
Dor improvements h town is an
important port of entry and export.
II has surpassed Vera Cruz in the
bulk of commodities handled,
though the latter city probably is
the port of entry for products of
greater aggregate value.
""The city Of Tampico is not di-
rectly on the seacoast but is sit
uated a few miles up the Panuco
river, which is broad and deep and
affords anchorage for a large num-
her of ocean going ships. At the
mouth of the stream at La Barra is
a supplemental harhor. Near the
latter place is one Of the finest sea