QUIROGA: a MEXICAN MUNICIPIO — BRAJSTD 



31 



here was one of the several fugitive Santiago pueb- 

 los which cannot be located from historical records 

 or tradition. 



La Tirimicua is situated in a hanging valley, at 

 an elevation of 2,350 meters, about 2.6 miles north- 

 east of Quiroga. The actual settlement straddles 

 the depression or joya, between the Mesa de Santi- 

 ago and an outlier of the Cerro Azul, through which 

 waters pass on their way from the valley through 

 a precipitous barranca to become the eastern af- 

 fluent of the Arroyo de Quiroga. The best lands 

 are in the Joj'a and Plan de Tirimicua, within the 

 valley, but cultivation is carried on over the Mesa 

 de Santiago, and the slopes of the Cerro Chino, 

 Cerro de la Pulga, La Pulguita, Cerro Azul, and 

 Cerro de la Muneca, which surround the valley. 

 The name of the rancho is derived from four shal- 

 low wells of sweet cool water located a few rods 

 upstream from the settlement. Tirimacua means 

 either "in the well of water" or "the wells." Dur- 

 ing the dry season these wells of Tirimicua must 

 supply not only the residents of La Tii-imicua but 

 also those of Icudcato and El Tepamal, and there 

 is barely enough water for drinking, cooking, wat- 

 ering animals, and laundering. As a consequence 

 there has been no development of irrigated crops 

 in the Joya de Tirimicua. Because of the re- 

 stricted ownership of lands the population appar- 

 ently never has been very large ia. modern times. 

 It was 98 in 1945; 88 in 1940; 87 in 1930; 55 in 

 1921; and 101 in 1900. The community consists 

 of 19 families who live in 17 house groups. Ail of 

 the heads of family are tenant farmers or share 

 croppers (agricultores medieros) excepting two re- 

 cently arrived peones and one woodman or lenero. 

 The crops planted in 1945 were: maize (544 liters 

 by all 14 tenants), wheat (930 liters by 11 farm- 

 ers); habas (585 liters by 7 farmers), and kidney 

 beans (36 liters by 3 farmers). According to our 

 1945 census there were 80 hens, roosters, and pul- 

 lets; 17 turkeys; 32 pigs; 81 sheep and 1 goat; 

 • 9 horses and 9 burros; 12 cows, 2 calves, and 25 

 work oxen; 21 beehives; 22 dogs, 8 cats, and 1 pet 

 rabbit. However, we are positive that many 

 rented animals (work oxen) and animals run on 

 shares (cows, sheep, and goats) were not included 

 in these figures for fear that we were some sort of 

 assessors or tax collectors who might include such 

 animals in their personal property. As it was, 51 

 of the sheep, 5 of the cows, and 6 of the beehives 

 were listed as "on shares" (a medias), and 18 of 



the work oxen were "rented." From our own ob- 

 servations it is certain that there were many more 

 animals than listed above, especially sheep, goats, 

 cows, and turkeys. This lack of confidence was 

 not noticed hi the other ranchos where the farm- 

 ers were owners of both land and livestock. The 

 chief areas farmed in La Tirimicua go by the names 

 of Agua Azul, La Canada, La Capilla, Los Conejos, 

 La Joya, La Ladera, La Mantequilla, Mesa Chica 

 and Mesa Grande de Santiago, El Plan, La Pul- 

 guita, La Pera, La Ringlera, El Sumbido, and Las 

 Viboras. 



The houses of the settlement are in two groups 

 separated by the highway (only a burro trail) 

 which goes from Quu'oga to Chucandiro tlu-ough 

 La Tirimicua, Icuacato, and Sajo Grande. On 

 the slopes of the Mesa de Santiago is the two- 

 story ranchhouse of adobe walls and tile roof, and 

 an accompanying jacal or barn. One renter, the 

 mayordomo for the landlord, occupies the ranch- 

 house, and 15 other households are in the same 

 area, arranged in a fairly rectUinear pattern. 

 On the other side of the arroyo and highway is 

 1 household in three 1-room Sierra-type trojes 

 with a separate kitchen house or shed, and there 

 is 1 unoccupied troje. All of the houses excepting 

 the ranchhouse are of 1 story, and all but 5 trojes 

 with 4 roof slopes have roofs of dos aguas. The 

 trojes are buUt of planlvs, and the remainder are a 

 hodgepodge of adobe, stone, and wood walls, 

 with roofs of tiles or grass thatch, and floors of 

 tamped earth. Two-room houses predominate, 

 with either 1 or 2 doors and no windows. About 

 half of the houses are whitewashed or mud- 

 plastered. The settlement area is dusty, grown 

 over with wild composite slu-ubs and hoarhound, 

 and relieved of its barren appearance only by its 

 setting. Cultivated vegetation is scarce in the 

 settlement, there being only 44 peach trees, 6 

 capulines, 3 ashes, 3 tejocotes, 3 agaves, several 

 wUlows by the weUs, 1 magnificent yucca, and a 

 few other trees and shrubs. Because of its posi- 

 tion in tierra Jria there are no chupires, colorines, 

 castor-bean shrubs, or bougainviUaea to add 

 vivid greens and reds to the vegetation color. A 

 few women keep some flowers in macetas (chiefly 

 5-gaUon kerosene cans), and these arc mainly 

 "geraniums." As mentioned, all of the water 

 comes from the wells. Cooking fuel is principaUy 

 oak sticks, with some pine wood and the occa- 

 sional use of corncobs. Five households use 



