Year: 1877

turbance at San Elizario. The unscrupu-


lous plottcrs who have embarked IN this en-
terprisc count largely on the ignorance ana
gullibility Of the American public, for It IS
not possible that they should succeed In
duping anybody who is acquainted with the
geography Of the Rio Grande. II our peo-
pie knew as much OF our Southern
/ as they do of our Northern from
tier the abettors and accomplices OF
spectators in Mexican mines would not
venture on these bold experiments upon
popular ignorance. Macaulay once satir-
lied the dense ignorance of Eastern geog-
raphy which prevailed in his own country
! by representing an Englishman who fancied
all the people OF India to be next door
neighbors as inquiring of o person who had
just returned from Bombay after the health
of friends in Calcutta, which is more than
thousand miles distant i'll a straight line
and at least fifteen hundred in the usual
course of voyage. In like manner many
OF our people regard all the troubles on the
Bio Grande as occurring in the same neigh
borhood, not considering that that great
river is two thousand miles in length, and
that it is fourteen hundred miles from it's
mouth to San Elizario, where this local
squabble over salt pond is in progress
No illustration taken from our Northern
frontier can quite do justice to the alb
surdity of representing this salt pond
squabble as part and parcel Of the irrita-
tions growing out Of the cattle raids on the
Lower Rio Grande Some ten or twelve
years ago there was a Fenian raid into
Canada across the st. Lawrence. II Fenian
raids had become chronic, like the Mexican
cattle raids, and had continued to this
time, we presume nobody out OF lunatic
asylum would think of representing the
escape of Sitting Bull into the western ter
ritory Of the Dominion as part and parcel Of
the Fenian disturbances on theSt. Lawrence.
But the connection would be as close as the
fantastic one attempted to be imposed on
the American public between the cattle
raids on the Lower Rio Grande and the
mutiny in favor of free salt in tar-off re-
gion near the southern boundary Of New
Mexico The riot over that salt pond in FL
Paso county, Texas, has no more connection
with the cattle raids in another part OF
Texas than the cigarmakers' strike in New
York has with the Russo-Turkish war. It
will not quite do to reason about Texas as
Macaulay's stupid Englshmaa did about
India. Texas is more than five times as
large as the State of New York. From Mon
tauk Point to Niagara Falls is something of
distance, but it is short in comparison
with the longest diameter Of Texns
But one might imagine from the
representations of the crazy abettors Of
Mexican war that the Mexican town Of Mat
amoros and the Mexican town Of FL Paso,
both on the right bank Of the Rio Grande,
are near neighbors, whereas, in fact, they
are fourteen hundred miles apart.


Between the cattle raising parts of Texas
and the small, remote settlement at San
Elizario there stretches a wilderness of six
or seven hundred miles. The people Of
San Elizario are mostly Of Mexican descent.
They became Inhabitants of the United
States by annexation ut the close Of the
Mexican war. They raise no cattle and are
subject to no raids from the other side Of
the river. They are bound by ties of race,
religion and language to their Mexican
neighbors across the stream, and there is
no such hostility between the inhab-
itants OF the two banks as prevails seven or
eight hundred miles below. They are re-
mote and secluded people, seven hundred
miles from the nearest railroad and without
communication with the outside world by
}. ~ - Il, -
nearly thousand miles below this settle
ment. 1t is ridiculous to represent local
riot in that remote place, surrounded by a
vast stretch OF wilderness, as having any
connection with the troubles on the Rio
Grande which General Ord was sent to
watch.


The riot at San Elizario is Of purely local
origin, having been neither melted nor
fomented from the Mexican side Of the
river. For more than two hundred years
the people Of that region have had
free access 10 the salt pond or springs
in their neighborhood. Considering that
salt would cost them twelve or thirteen
dollars per bushel if transported from other
places through vast Wilderness without
roads it IS no wonder that they resent being
shut OIL from their usual source of supply
There is not community in the world that
would not act III the same manner under
similar circumstances. Although they are
resorting to violent method Of redressing
a local grievance their eiarue has no sort Of
connection with the matters in dispute on
the Lower Bio Grandc. The outcry inspired
by the reckless mining spectators who
would gladly push the country into war
with Mexico is equally sin against knowl-
edge and sin against justice, for they
know we'll enough that this affair near FL
Paso has no relation to the cattle raids.


The course Of Governor Hubbard, OF
Texas in this matter of tho salt pond or
salt pits does not raise that officer in public