192 THE DESERT AND THE ROSE 



unprovoked !" And to this day the rightful bound- 

 ary between the two States "is a subject of dispute, 

 and still before the Courts. At a date not too far 

 removed from the present to render the telling" of it 

 inapt the following incident occurred: a prominent 

 New Mexico attorney was cross-examining a wit- 

 ness in a murder case. Having asked a few ques- 

 tions he suddenly put the one — "Where did you say 

 you came from?" "From Texas." "That is all. You 

 can sit down," said the lawyer. And in his argu- 

 ment to the jury he more than hinted that as the man 

 came from Texas he was not trustworthy ! On the 

 other hand it may be remarked that as the Lone 

 Star State is large enough to absorb all the New 

 England States without winking, there is room for 

 variety in Texans. Despite such altogether reason- 

 able surmise, however, it was often asserted that 

 Texan jealousy and obstinacy not only hindered 

 the development of the Mesilla Valley but retarded 

 the building of the Dam. El Paso wanted the Dam 

 down the Valley instead of up, and on the Govern- 

 ment finally deciding for itself the hatchet was per- 

 force buried. 



And now once again the present hour looms 

 large ; for we are nearing El Paso. The last of the 

 Rockies are on the left, the ranges of Mexico on 

 the right, and so — inaccurately enough from a topo- 

 graphical, geological and geographical standpoint — < 

 we are no longer in New Mexico. Here the rear- 

 guard of the Rockies make their final stand — senti- 

 nels resting on their arms after eons of restless- 

 ness, alternating periods of volcanism and sub- 



