ALONG OUR SIDE OF THE MEXICAN BORDER 



70 



through a flat, productive cotton country, 

 and then crosses back into California just 

 west of the Colorado River, near Yuma, 

 where it joins the Southern Pacific sys- 

 tem. 



Such is life along the Mexican border. 

 All kinds of men live here, except poor 

 white men. Few are vastly rich and few 

 are dissatisfied with the country. Immi- 

 grants come, conquer the desert, and 

 build comfortable homes. Few ever go 

 back East. Something in the spell of the 

 hazy mountains, the charm of bright 

 skies, and the lure of open ranges holds 

 them here. 



And there is no leisure class ; every- 

 body works. I know one miner worth 

 thirty millions. Last summer he sneaked 

 off alone — dodging mail, telegrams, and 

 directors' meetings — to work with his 

 hands for a month, incognito, on the 

 homestead where he'd ln^ed as a boy. 



UNCLE SAM'S WORK ON THE BORDER; 

 WHO DOES IT, AND HOW r 



Uncle Sam's interests along the border 

 are cared for by three branches of the 

 government — the War, Treasury, and 

 Labor Departments — working through 

 the army, the customs, and the immigra- 

 tion services respectively. The State De- 

 partment is also represented by consuls 

 at the larger Mexican border towns of 

 Matamoras, Laredo, Juarez, Xogales, 

 and Mexicali ; but they are concerned 

 only with affairs on Mexican soil. 



Since the Diaz regime passed into his- 

 tory, we have kept troops at all our bor- 

 der towns, with cavalry patrols between 

 stations. These forces assist local civil- 

 ian authorities in preserving order and 

 checking the violation of our neutrality 

 laws. They aid in preventing gun-run- 

 ning and the entry into Mexico of expe- 

 ditions organized in the Lnited States 

 and bent on crossing the line and taking 

 the field against the government of Mex- 

 ico. About 20,000 of our men, of all 

 arms, are now scattered along the border 

 from Brownsville to San Diego. 



The border is divided into three cus- 

 toms districts — the Texas, the Xew Mex- 

 ico - Arizona, and the California — and 

 the collectors are stationed at El Paso, 

 Xogales, and Los Angeles. Deputy col- 

 lectors are stationed at smaller towns, 

 like Brownsville, Laredo, Columbus, 



Douglas, Xaco, Yuma, Calexico, Tecate. 

 etc. 



The collectors have wide discretion. 

 Besides the routine duties of their offices, 

 they keep the Treasury Department in- 

 formed as to economic conditions on the 

 Mexican side of the line. 



Then there are the "line riders," a 

 group of mounted customs inspectors. 

 They are a brave, hardy, and resolute 

 class ; they know and watch all the cattle 

 trails and smugglers' passes through the 

 remote border sections. Mostly bow- 

 legged, saddle - born, southwesterners, 

 frequently ex-rangers, these solitary men 

 often spend a whole week in the open, 

 sleeping, perhaps, on the ground in bad 

 weather, on a still hunt for the equally 

 capable smuggler. 



Frequently enormously valuable car- 

 goes of opium are landed on the Mexican 

 west coast and finally spirited into the 

 United States. A short time ago as much 

 as eighty thousand dollars' worth of 

 "canned hop" is known to have been 

 landed and stored within 60 miles of the 

 line. The profits in this trade are so 

 huge, the tins of opium are so small and 

 easily carried, that the traffic tempts 

 many a crafty man to have a try at quick, 

 easy money. Small- fry smugglers resort 

 to such amateurish expedients as carry- 

 ing opium over the line in bicycle tires, 

 "trick" suit-cases, or in the tool-boxes of 

 motor cars ; but the daring gangs, who 

 "run hop" on a big scale, usually work in 

 armed bands, at night, taking a chance 

 on dodging the line-rider or "shooting it 

 out" with him. 



THE MOST DIEEICULT BORDER TASK 



Our immigration inspectors have the 

 most difficult task on the border. Thev 

 must meet, question, and make a record 

 of every alien man, woman, or child that 

 crosses the border. They collect certain 

 head-taxes, and can refuse admission to 

 certain classes (who may appeal). 



Many aliens sneak into the country 

 without inspection, crossing the border 

 at lonely, remote points. Certain orien- 

 tals are very clever at this, and there are 

 known channels of illicit "underground" 

 traffic. Many Chinese are smuggled in. 

 negro porters on trains coming out of 

 Mexico at one time doing a hustling 

 trade. American smugglers have for 



