MINERAL WEALTH OF NEW MEXICO. 
49 
the sea. Afterwards they visited the gold mines, and thence proceeded as far as Santa Fe. 
The results of their examinations prove interesting. Indications of coal appeared in the canon; 
jurassic fossils were found near the summit of the mountain, and they obtained many specimens 
of precious metals. Mines have been worked in other localities of this Territory ; the principal 
are the gold placers near Taos, the copper mines of Santa Rita, and the silver mines of the 
Organ mountains near Fort Fillmore. The latter will probably be found the most valuable.* 
* For a full and accurate description of this country, T would refer to a “Memoir of a Tour in Northern Mexico in 184G and ’47, 
by A. Wislizenus, M. D.,” published by order of the U. S. Senate, in 1848. This document presents so clear a view of the general 
character and resources of the Territory, that it seems unnecessary to add further details. A few extracts bearing more particu¬ 
larly upon the subject under consideration, are subjoined : 
“ New Mexico is a very mountainous country, with a large valley in the middle, running from north to south, and formed by 
the Rio del Norte. The valley is generally about 20 miles wide, and bordered on the east and west by mountain chains, continu¬ 
ations of the Rocky mountains, which have received here different names, as Sierra Blanca, de los Organos, oscura, on the eastern 
side, and Sierra de los Grullas, de Acha, de los Mimbres, towards the west. The height of these mountains south of Santa Fe 
may, upon an average, be between six and eight thousand feet, while near Santa Fe, and in the more northern regions, some 
snow-covered peaks are seen that may rise from 10,000 to 12,000 feet above the sea. The mountains are principally composed of 
igneous rocks, as granite, sienite, diorit, basalt, &c. On the higher mountains excellent pine timber grows; on the lower, cedars, 
and sometimes oak ; in the valley of the Rio Grande, mezquite. 
“ The main artery of New Mexico is the Rio del Norte, the longest and largest river in Mexico. Its headwaters were explored in 
1807 by Captain Pike, between the 37° and 38° north latitude; but its highest sources are supposed to be about two degrees 
farther north in the Rocky mountains, near the headwaters of the Arkansas and the Rio Grande, (of the Colorado of the west.) 
Following a generally southern direction, it runs through New Mexico, where its principal affluent is the Rio Chamas from the 
west, and winds its way then in a southeastern direction through the States of Chihuahua, Coahuila and Tamaulipas, to the Gulf 
of Mexico, in 25° 56' north latitude. Its tributaries in the latter States are the Pecos, from the north; the Conchos, Salado, 
Alamo, and San Juan, from the south. The whole course of the river, in a straight line, would be near 1,200 miles; but by the 
meandering of its lower half, it runs at least about 2,000 miles from the region of eternal snow to the almost tropical climate of 
the gulf. The elevation of the river above the sea near Albuquerque, in New Mexico, is about 4,800 feet; in el Paso del Norte 
about 3,800; and at Reynosa, between three and four hundred miles from its mouth, about 170 feet. The fall of its water ap¬ 
peared to be, between Albuquerque and El Paso, from two to three feet in a mile, and below Reynosa one foot in two miles. The 
fall of the river is seldom used as motive power, except for some flour mills, which are oftener worked by mules than by water. 
The principal advantage which is at present derived from the river is for agriculture, by their well managed system of irrigation. 
As to its navigation in New Mexico, I doubt very much if even canoes could be used, except perhaps during May or June, when 
the river is in its highest state, from the melting of the snow in the mountains. The river is entirely too shallow, and interrupted 
by too many sand-bars, to promise anything for navigation. On the southern portion of the river the recent exploration by 
Captain Sterling, of the United States steamer Major Brown, has proved that steamboats may ascend from the gulf as far as 
Laredo, a distance of 700 miles. Although said steamboat did not draw over two feet of water, yet the explorers of that region 
express their opinion, that ‘by spending some $100,000 in a proper improvement of the river above Mier, boats drawing four 
feet could readily ply between the mouth of the Rio Grande and Laredo.’ Whenever a closer connexion between this head-point 
of navigation and New Mexico shall be considered, nothing would answer but a railroad, crossing from the valley of the Rio 
Grande to the high table-land in the State of Chihuahua. 
“ The soil in the valley of the Rio del Norte, in New Mexico, is generally sandy and looks poor, but by irrigation it produces 
abundant crops. Though agriculture is carried on in a very primitive way, with the hoe alone, or with a rough plough, made 
often entirely of wood, without any particle of iron, they raise large quantities of Indian corn and wheat, beans, onions, red pep¬ 
pers, and some fruits. The most fertile part of the valley begins below Santa Fe, along the river, and is called ‘ Rio Abajo,’ or 
(the country) down the river. It is not uncommon there to raise two crops within one year. The general dryness of the cli¬ 
mate, and the aridity of the soil in New Mexico, will always confine agriculture to the valleys of the water-courses, which are as 
rare as over all Mexico—such, at least, as contain running water throughout the year. But this important defect may be reme¬ 
died by Artesian wells. On several occasions I remarked on the high table-land from Santa Fe south, that in a certain depth 
layers of clay are found, that may form reservoirs of the sunken water-courses from the eastern and western mountain chain, 
which, by the improved method of boring, or artesian wells, might be easily made to yield their water to the surface. If experi¬ 
ments to that effect should prove successful, the progress of agriculture in New Mexico would be more rapid, and even many 
dreaded ‘ Jornadas’ might be changed from waterless deserts into cultivated plains. But at present, irrigation from a water¬ 
course is the only available means of carrying on agriculture. The irrigation is effected by damming the streams and throwing 
the water into larger and smaller ditches ( acequias ) surrounding and intersecting the whole cultivated land. The inhabitants 
of towns and villages, therefore, locate their lands together, and allot to each one a part of the water at certain periods. These 
common fields are generally without fences, which are less needed, as the grazing stock is guarded by herdsmen. The finest 
fields are generally seen on the haciendas , or large estates, belonging to the rich property holders in New Mexico. These hacien¬ 
das are apparently a remnant of the old feudal system, where large tracts of land, with the appurtenances of Indian inhabitants 
as serfs, were granted by the Spanish crown to their vassals. The great number of human beings attached to these haciendas 
are, in fact, nothing more than serfs; they receive from their masters only food, lodging, and clothing, or perhaps a mere nominal 
pay, and are therefore kept in constant debt and dependence to their landlords; so that if old custom and natural indolence did 
not prevail upon them to stay with their hereditary masters, the enforcement of the Mexican laws against debtors would be suffi¬ 
cient to continue their servitude from generation to generation. This actual slaverv exists throughout Mexico, in spite of its 
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