OUR NEIGHBOR, MEXICO 



By John Birkinbine 



Past President of the Franklin Institute oe Philadelphia and oe the 



American Institute of Mining Engineers 



With Photographs from the Author 



IN discussing the truly interesting 

 country which for 1,800 miles forms 

 the southern boundary of the United 

 States, the intention is to treat it in a 

 neighborly spirit and neither as cynic nor 

 apologist; to summarize some geographi- 

 cal and topographical features, indicate 

 the nation's present position in commerce 

 and industry ; to recall a few historical 

 facts, and tell of the people from an ac- 

 quaintance of nearly 30 years. 



The visits to Mexico, while far from 

 covering all of the Republic, have been 

 in connection with engineering problems, 

 and have included cities, towns, pueblos, 

 haciendas, ranches, or camps upon desert 

 or among mountains, presenting oppor- 

 tunity for acquaintance with the various 

 physical features, with the mineral wealth, 

 and with the activities and environment 

 of the people. 



In formulating opinions I have had the 

 benefit of an extended acquaintance in 

 Mexico, and also of investigations by 

 three sons who as business associates 

 have visited the Republic, one residing 

 in that country for the past five years. 



A resume must necessarily be general 

 which refers to territory practically as 

 great as that of the United States between 

 the Mississippi River and the Atlantic 

 coast, the Great Lakes- and Gulf of Mex- 

 ico, varying in altitude from sea-level to 

 18,000 feet above this datum ; its climate 

 affected by these elevations, and by a 

 range of 18 degrees of latitude. Twelve 

 hundred miles is the distance traversed 

 in passing south from Juarez, on the 

 northern boundary, to the Mexican capi- 

 tal ; and, to reach the southeastern bound- 

 ary, 900 miles more must be covered. 



To the coast line of 1,700 miles along 

 the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean 

 Sea is to be added 4,000 miles along the 

 Pacific Ocean and Gulf of California. 



MEXICO IS AS LARGE AS GREAT BRITAIN 

 AND IRELAND, TRANCE, GERMANY, 

 AND AUSTRIA-HUNGARY 

 COMBINED 



Prior to 1836, Mexico, as a Spanish 

 colony, and the United States covered 

 approximately equal areas of North 

 America, but the Texas secession and 

 the result of the Mexican War added 

 nearly a million square miles to our terri- 

 tory, and the extent of Mexico now is 

 less than one-fourth that of continental 



United States. But our neighbor Repub- 

 lic still has territorial expanse equal to 

 the aggregate of Austria-Hungary, Ger- 

 many, France, Great Britain, and Ireland. 



The total area of the Republic of 

 Mexico (767,000 square miles) is less 

 than that of our five largest States — 

 Texas, California, Montana, New Mex- 

 ico, and Arizona — combined, all of these 

 except Montana having been a part of 

 New Spain 75 years ago. None of the 

 31 political subdivisions of our neighbor 

 are as large as either of the five States 

 named, but four Mexican States contigu- 

 ous to the United States aggregate an 

 extent greater than that of Texas. Chi- 

 huahua, the largest Mexican State, ap- 

 proximates in area (87,000 square miles) 

 that of Utah, Sonora (77,000 square 

 miles) of Nebraska, Coahuila (63,000 

 square miles) of Georgia, and Durango 

 (40,000 square miles) of Kentucky. 

 Nine subdivisions of the United States 

 (excluding Alaska) are larger than Chi- 

 huahua, 15 of greater magnitude than 

 Sonora, and 32 larger than Durango, 

 The rugged and desert character of the 

 Mexican border States support sparse 

 populations, except where mining ex- 

 ploitation and cities resulting therefrom 

 have concentrated settlement. 



