Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1919-1980, 1922-03-18
COAST OF
MEXICO IS
DESCRIBED
l.. Fl. McMahan Tells
of Conditions AS He
Found Them In Trip
Thru Western Area
By L. H. McMahan.

The west coast OF Mexico has
more undeyeloped resources than
any other country of like area
have ever seen. The mountain
range paralleling the Gulf OF Cali
fornia and extending further
south than the lower end of Low
er California is one of the richest
mineral ranges in the world. 1t
is practically unprospeeted and
undeveolped, although it has some
OF the richest ledges in the world
now being worked by Americans.
The valleys. extending from the
foothills to the gulf, have a po-
teRtial wealth beyond practical
computation. Practically all OF
this land is exceedingly rich, but
most of it will have to be irrigated
and one American company is now
expending S9,000,000 IN one val
ley for this purpose. Rice. corn,
wheat, barley, fruits and vegeta-
bles can be grown. Two crops OF
corn can be raised a year and
when | was there strawberries,
peas, ETC., were and for some time
had been ripe.
The Southern Pacific company
has a road through there and the
gulf affords water transportation,
while the freight rates to the mid
die west are no greater from
Maitland, $50 miles from Ari-
zona, than they are from the bor-
der.
In none of these valleys is the
summer heat as bad as it is in the
Imperial valley and along the
coast, for about nine months in
the year the climate is about like
our best days in June, with our
necessity for blankets each night.
The ability of that country to
produce is beyond the comprehen-
sion of those used to the temper
ate zones. In tie middle of Feb
ruary | saw wheat headed and
corn in the dough. The wheat
looked like it ought to yield fully
40 bushels to the acre, possibly
more. Since Christmas, tomatoes
have come this way in carload lots
and there are 5000 acres now in
vines. The profit varies accord
ing to the markets in this coun-
try, 1t being from 10 cents tc
$1.25 on a 30-pound box. Either
one person or many must have al
least 500 acres in order to load
cars and the cost of producing and
packing Is about $40 an acre
Sometimes insects bother, but
spraying and dusting machinery
reduce this risk to the minimum
Cantaloupes are grown eXten-
siyely and they arrive a full
month ahead of those raised in the
Imperial valley, while one ener-
getic, speculative American ship
ped out carloal of cucumbers and
cleared S24bO on 1t.
Grape fruit, as sweet as nave
oranges, can be bought from ped
dlers 3 for cents; ripe pineap.
pies 3Ia cents each. This and
other fruits are not allowed t.
cross the border TO interfere with
California and Florida monopolies
Tamalies sell for " cents eacl
and these tamalies have sure
enough chicken in them. Oysters
can be picked up, or bought fol
rs cents two bushel sack. have
seen oysters, minus the shell, sil
inches long and they are equal t
the best Toke points. IL one wants
birds to eat or venison, all one
needs is a 22-calibre rifle. The
Mexican does not hunt and there
are no game laws, no policemen
no preachers, no courts, no preda
tory lawyers and few doctors
Wherefore, a man has a chance
there to live like a Christian, long
and happily.
Labor is cheap-a Mexican will
work for from so to rs cents q
day and, contrary to the genera
idea prevalent here, he is good
worker. The girls will work IL
your home for So a month. And
here am going to try to correct
q popular, but entirely erroneous
impression about the Mexicans.
have roamed in many different
countries, but l have never founC