, 1921-08-19

town" he said. ARE the Santa Fe de
pot, a frame structure. the public
school. a succeed adobe building, and
the frame shack OF tho reclamation
service. These arc all standing in
water.
over zoe people have been rem
dered homeless by the Hood and they
are suffering.
The Salvation Army sent repre-
sentatives here las night from III
Paso. They arrived with some bread
on the night train.
Eve heed somebody to take charge
of the sitution who is not a resident
OF this district. for there are MANY
families of M~exicans living about here
who will come in for food when the
distribution is started. who are not
sufferers.
I'VE must have food and bedding
from the outside. for u people were
unable TO say little of anything when
they had TO flee.
The houses here were almost all
adobe and they crumbled rapidly
when h water came down from the
foothills and flooded the town.
The water is standing in the town
several feet md has only receded a
few inches in the last "a hours Two
irrigation bitches are holding It on
the town. both between us and the
river. The ditch between Hatch and
Rincon has been out. to allow the
water to flow into the river near
Rodey. a settlement IL the foothills.
but owing to the weeds and trees in
the valley, the water flows very slow.
ly and it looks as II 1t might be sew.
eral days before 1t recedes.
Residents OF Ell Paso's upper val.
ley. mostly small Mexican settlers,
needing the warning of night mes.
sengers of the United States rcclama-
ton service were busy all night NOV
ing TO higher territory.
Hundreds of persons drove their
stock from the lowlands into the foot
hills. There was n continuous all.
night procession of wagons moving
from the valley into Tho hills. carry.
ing load after load of provisions and
household furniture.
Persons without vehicles put flour,
potatoes and other provisions into
sacks and blankets which they carried
on their backs to higher ground, Mex
leans were seen carryin bundles OF
clothes and God on their backs, also
carrying a child in their arms, and
leading another child by the hand,
while the wife followed leading other
children. Sometimes a burro was led
along with them. his back weighed
heavily with stuff the family wanted
to have. Many slept on the hillsides
and along the high roadways without
any bedding.
Ordinarily Brazito. n small village.
is one of the dryest looking places
on earth. Located on the side OF Bar.
rem foothills. the only nearby vege.
tation the greasewoods. common TO
desert country. 1t biisters in the hot
sun and looks to the average passer
as II it would be the last place on
earth to furnish a flood of water that
would wipe away n whole town.
oftentimes in n few minutes a tor.
rent of water many feet high win
roll down a perfectly dry. dusty can
yon, sweeping everything before 1t.
The flood at Brazito was of this
'haracter. Clouds had been hanging
over the "Mesa'-table land-and
foothills above Brazito. but clouds
arc frequent at this time OF the year
in this section.
Suddenly there ramc a louI clap Of
thunder, a brilliant flash of lightning
and the natives say that these were
followed Immediately by a solid sheet
OF water hat began to fall. The
hillsides. composed of hard. white
clay, known locally as "caliche," do
not soak up any of tho wafer. but
shed it like concrete. The water
flowed off the hillsides and the mesa
into the -a".nes and into Hatch can
yon.
Residents of Brazito a that Miles
canyon. so feet wide. was carrying a
head of water 20 feet deep. This
water spread out as IT hit the valley,
but Hatch was in its direct path,
with irrigation bitches barring its
way to the river after 1t passed Hatch.
Striking the banks of these elevated
bitches the water formed into n lake
ana began to rise. As it rose, Hatch
received the full force of the damage.
Graually the water climbed about
the adobe homes of the tow substan.
tial in appearance, but weaker than
ordinary mud as Don as the water
had penetrated the outside coating OF
cement in cases where this treatment
had been given. Many OF the houses
had no outside coating and they SOC
lmelted and crumbled
From the hills tie flood victims
could look back upon the homes and
the places of huri=css as they had
abandoned. ons 9: Ell another. the
houses crumbled In the sight Of the
owners. destroying in many instances
the accumulation Of a lifetime.
Not a building is standing today
where the thris;ts valley ;oNr WIS
standing three dn.s ago.