46 



INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY PUBLICATION NO. 13 



a greater or lesser degree, elsewhere in Toto- 

 nacapan. 



The laws of colonization and the activities of 

 the survey commissions did not terminate until 

 1902, Avhen a new law nullified preceding ones. 

 But until 1915, no measures were taken to recover 

 holdings which had been acquired contrary to the 

 spirit of the law of 1856, and which had been pro- 

 cured in 1876, or subsequently, when the surveys 

 affected the property of native pueblos. 



Current forms of land ownership in Toto- 

 nacapan are a direct outcome of the laws of reform 

 and of colonization, followed by the agrarian laws 

 of the Revolution. In short, communal property 

 has disappeared; and side by side, are private 

 holdings as well as lands held under the new ejido 

 system. Among the Taj in Totonac, land is pri- 

 vately owned, although several adjacent commu- 

 nities operate under ejido organization. 



OIL EXPLOITATION 



The rich petroleum deposits in parts of coastal 

 Totonacapan attracted attention relatively early. 

 About 1868, Autrey explored the Papantla area, 

 and in 1869, wells were drilled on the ancient 

 hacienda of Congas, now known as Furbero, since 

 an Englishman, Furber, was in charge of the enter- 

 prise (Mexico, El petroleo de Mexico, p. 13). 



In 1901, Government concessions were extended 

 to oil companies and exploitation began on a large 

 scale. At this time, activities centered farther to 

 the north, in the Huasteca. However, in the early 

 1930's, with the discovery of rich deposits in the 

 Poza Rica district, the Papantla-Coatzintla zone 

 was invaded by major oil operations. In Taj in 

 itself, several tests were made ; a well was drilled ; 



and roads were opened to permit passage of heavy 

 machinery from Papantla and Coatzintla. After 

 7 years, the Tajin zone was abandoned, although 

 the federally owned oil company still holds title to 

 two parcels of land in the community. Moreover, 

 during 1949, two wells were drilled in San An- 

 tonio, on the very fringes of Tajin, and it seems 

 likely that oil operations will make further inroads 

 into Totonac territory in the vicinity of Papantla 

 and Coatzintla. 



SUMMARY 



The most visible results of the laws of coloniza- 

 tion, of the land surveys, and of oil exploitation 

 are related to the chronic problem of Totonaca- 

 pan — that is, to the dispersal of population toward 

 the heart of the zone. With the passage of years, 

 each dispersal faced a progressively more limited 

 area in which to take refuge and, as a consequence, 

 less attractive terrain. 



One undoubted result has been major accultura- 

 tion, especially in the realm of property, and in 

 political and social organization. As we have seen, 

 the system of communal lands current during co- 

 lonial times was essentially a continuation of 

 pre-Conquest conditions. Its decadence and dis- 

 appearance, during the first century of independ- 

 ence, caused the demise of associated forms of 

 political and social structure. Moreover, Totonac 

 groups which had remained aloof from Spanish 

 contact came more and more into the sphere of 

 Mexican influence, particularly in political and 

 social aspects. 



The present situation in Tajin may be consid- 

 ered typical of the cross which has resulted from 

 all these influences, to which were added further 

 influences emanating from the Revolution of 1910. 



THE TAJIN TOTONAC 



ENVIRONMENT 



The State of Veracruz includes a long, narrow 

 strip of coast along the Gulf of Mexico and part 

 of the adjacent highlands to the west. Just north 

 of the central part of the State is the provincial 

 center of Papantla, and 6 or 7 km. southwest of it 

 lies Tajin (map 5) . The elevation is low ; Papantla 



This is rugged terrain, which lies between the 

 itself is about 300 m. above sea level, and Tajin 

 probably is close to a hundred meters lower. 83 



83 We took a small series of readings, over a period of time, 

 with a Pnulin altimeter. Naturally, these varied widely, ac- 

 cording to temperature and storm conditions. Our guess at 200 

 m. for the elevation of Tajfn is based partly on these readings, 

 partly on the fact that the trail from Papantla to Tajin descends 

 sharply. 



