May i, 1903.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



255 



RUBBER PLANTING ON THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC. 



Is Seen by the Editor of" Tin- India Rubber World." 



M 



FIRST I ETTER. 



Foreword — From New York to the Border — Over the Alkali Plains 

 — N uive Food — Mexican Opals — The Nochistongo Canal— Arriv.il 

 at Mexico City — Journev South of the < "apital — - Adventures at 

 Achotal — On Horseback Over Forest Trails — The Demarest and 

 Newmark Instates — Arrival at " I. a Ventura." 



Y journey to the Tierra Calient e, or " hot country," in 

 Mexico, was taken with the sole object of seeing for 

 myself cultivated rubber, planted by both individuals 

 and stock companies. I selected typical plantations 

 as far as I could, most of them in the state of Vera Cruz, on the 

 isthmus of Tehuantepec. The states of Tabasco and much of 

 Oaxaca and Chiapas I was forced to leave out of my itinerary, 

 although they too have large and successful plantings, which I 

 hope to visit later. I left New York quietly and alone, paid all 

 my own expenses for the whole trip, and carefully avoided ex- 

 ploiting either myself or those who have shares or land to mar- 

 ket. This statement seems necessary, because, since my return. 

 I have been asked in all serious- 

 ness whether this or that company 

 had me "under its wing" to use 

 later for advertising purposes. 1 

 wish also to add a word of thanks 

 for the courtesy, the generous 

 hospitality, and the Irank, helpful 

 cordiality extended to me by the I^^BKL 

 planters whom it was my good 

 fortune to visit. May I add that, / 



of the conclusions drawn from my / 



visit, while they prove to me that 

 certain procedure in clearing, 

 planting, care, etc., is vital in the 

 localities under consideration, it 



SA- 



NATIVE HUl' IN THE STATE OF VERA CRUZ 



CANE FIBER RAINCOAT. 



does not follow that, given a dif- 

 ferent locality, soil, and climatic 

 conditions, other methods might 

 not prove necessary. I have 

 chosen the narrative style for the 

 relation of my experiences, as it 

 is the easiest way to transcribe 

 my notes, and I would say further 

 that imagination has not entered 

 at all into this chronicle, as it is 

 in every respect the record of 

 facts as I saw them. 



In spite of an innate belief in 

 my own preparedness for the 

 Mexican pilgrimage, 

 when ready to start I 

 lost no time in consult- 

 ing persons who had gone before 

 as to material equipment for the 

 journey. The advice received re- 

 solved itself into the purchase of 

 a broad brimmed soft hat. neglige 

 shirts, light flannel underwear, a 

 " navy bag " (a dress suit case on 

 horseback being a source of worry 

 and a constant temptation to 

 landing on one's head), and a pair 



MY 

 OUTFIT. 



of long legged moosehide " snake boots." To this was added, 

 later, a Colts' revolver and holster, to be worn in the unsettled 

 country south of the City of Mexico ; a rubber poncho coat that 

 looked like a long tan colored nightshirt, a linen suit, and, for 

 medicines, a box of cascarets, a bottle of chloranodyne, and a 

 pint of two grain quinine pills. Had I appreciated the pertinac- 

 ity of the Mexican flea I should have added a blower and a 

 pound or two of Dalmatian powder. 



It was snowing when our train left Jersey City and started 

 for the southland. Nor did winter really forsake us until we 

 were well into the Indian Territory. As a matter of fact, I 

 do not really think I realized that I was on my way to the 

 land of the Castilloa until I awoke one morning and saw the 

 dwarf cactus that grew by the side of the track, and further on, 

 at San Antonio, Texas, began to note the picturesque Mexican 

 costumes and the subtle differences in architecture, climate, 

 and soil, that proclaimed our nearness to a land of strange peo- 

 ples, customs, and language. Fi- 

 nally we crossed the Kio Grande, 

 drew up on Mexican soil, had our 

 baggage examined by dark com- 

 plexioned officials who were polite 

 ;.;-,._ beyond belief, changed our money, 



I - - v getting I \ v " !"■ ea< h -1 oi 1 n< le 

 Sam's currency, and were at length 

 in the land of the Aztecs. 



The border town where we made 

 our entry is known as Cuidad Por- 

 firio Diaz — the first word 

 meaning "city.' Here 

 all was Spanish, or rather 

 Mexican, the adobe houses, the 

 half clad Indian children who 

 begged softly "un centavo Seiior," 

 and the placid care- free appear- 

 ance of the railroad men, who 

 had the air of having but little 

 on their minds and no cause for 

 hurry or worry— all 111 marked 

 contrast to the hustling, bustling, 

 atmosphere that is so much in 

 evidence on this side of the bor- 

 der. After pulling out of Diaz 

 we retired, slept soundly, and 

 waked to breakfast in Torreon, 

 3700 feet above the level of the 

 sea. It was a real Mexican break- 

 fast, although cooked and served 

 by Chinese, and eaten in a leis- 

 urely way that did not at all sug- 

 gest a waiting train. 



To digress a moment, when I 

 say we, I refer to myself and what- 

 ever chance acquaintance I 

 might at the moment be thrown 

 with. As far as Torreon I had 

 had three such — a sugar planter 

 who left at St. Louis, an army 

 officer home from the Philippines 



OVER THE 

 BORDER. 



