Liberty High School - Lion Yearbook (Brentwood, CA)

Page 10 text:

four legs. with rawhlde interwoven across the top. Three in such a bed as this would not have been at all comfort- able, lf we had not been tired out with our trlp. About ll o'cloclt at night we laid tarlma for a good rest, as we supposed. down on our untll 4 o'clock next morning. After a short while we were awakened by a heavy breathing and groaning. and with the sensation that someone was hunting among our belongings for any treas' ure they might be able to find. Cautiously lighting a lan- tern and more cautlously peering under the bed we found the Intruder-or intruders-a mother pig and her bables. Thls was something to which we became accustomed before the end of the journey. Although we started at a very early hour the next morning we took time to visit the ruins of a very fashion- able resort. The bulldlng was in ruins but there was still traces of grandeur about the old mansion. We vlsited the hot mineral springs also. The women had already begun to do thelr washlng at the sprlngs. The water was 7 hot In some places that they could boll the clothes nildtng ts boiler out of a wall of rocks. I Other parts of the springs, were cool enough for the washing to be done by There was also a bathing house over the springs. A -- After resuming our trlp for a short distance wel were compelled to take our mules owing to the lmpassablllty of the road for the carriage. arrlvlng that nlght at Cofredla. Cofreida ls nothing but a small collection of huts ln the mldat of a tlne cattle country. The corral fences. and some of the doorsteps of the houses. were made of the tlnest klnrl of mahogany. the more unclvllized Mexicans not knowing the value of the wood. The following day we entered what ls known through that country' as the Qnebrada, which is a canyon through which flows a rlver. ln the season I was there. the dry season. the rlver was passable, but it cannot be crossed during the rainy weather, from June to October. because lt ls So swollen. In some places the Quebrada rivals the Yosemite Val- ley ln splendor. For about one-thlrd of a mile the sides of the river bed are so high and steep that the sky is almost invisible to the traveler. This place is called Hell Gate by the Americans, as during the months that the river is swollen. the waters rushing through lt must surely repre- sent an inferno. The marks of the high water upon the walls of the canyon can be seen at least forty or fifty feet alzove the travelers' head. The next particular point that attracted our attention was an old quartz mill. The dura- blllty of the flne masonry ln the mlll was proven by the gcod condition of the cement wall which withstood the tre- mendous volume of water for over forty-tive or tlfty years. The aqueducts which brought the water to thls mill fol- lowed along the banks of the Quebrada for four or llve miles. and crossing the canyons on great arches that were made of cement and rocks cemented together. These aque- ducts were also ln a good state of preservation and th-- whole structure showed a very flue piece of work. After a day's travel we left the Quebrada. Now camo the roughest part of our journey. We traveled from 4

Page 9 text:

The stage was very similar to those of American thea- ters. but a prompter continually read the lines of the play in a monotone audible to the audience. The hotel at which we stayed- La Lonja -was di- rectly opposite the Plaza and Cathedral. Te Plaza was very beautiful, the walks being bordered with orange trees and shrubbery. Benches were placed around on the walks and grass. A band stand was in the center of the square and every Sunday a band would play. The Cathedral was also very interesting. It was very large and grand, the arch at the altar being upwards of ninety feet in height and it is said that in the structure of the Cathedral not a single nail was employed. The sound of the numerous bells, which ring at all hours, night and day. producing a confusion of sounds, is very striking to a for- eigner. We spent the next day watching the natives in the plaza, and making preparations for the most interesting part of our trip-eighty-seven miles mule back into the heart of the Republic. It was there that I first developed my love for equestrianism, but owing to my lack of ability, I rode the same mule as did my father. We used steamer trunks and telescope baskets for our belongings, as the only way of transporting our baggage through the mountains was on the hurricane deck of a mule. We sent eight pack and four riding mules ahead. about one o'clock in the afternoon. which were to wait for us at lmala. about four miles from Culiacan. lThe Mexicans speak of distances in so many hours mule back instead of in miles! About four o'clock that afternoon we started for Imala in a carriage, as the roads between there and Culacan were fairly good. lVery poor in comparison with Brentwood roads.J The mode of traveling in a carriage was somewhat dif- ferent than the American way. There were three mules in th lead and two at the wheel. One man ran alongside of the team with a whip and throwing stones while the other sat on the seat the lines in one hand and a whip in the other and both men were shouting as loud as they could. The blood was running from the backs and sides of the mules where they had beenpwhipped. While the drivers were shouting, whipping and throwing stones the mules kept up a comparatively good gait, but their legs and the noise al- ways ceased at the same time. Such clamor and brutality frightened me considerably and 1 made nearly as much noise crying as the drivers did with their shouting. The climax was reached when the mules Weill over a four-foot bank into a river bed, and the driver fell off the seat and was dragged by the mules. After that my father was -compelled to keep his hands over my eyes. Imala was red hot about eight o'clock at night and we were more than thankful to get off the jolting carriage and on terra firma once more. We had the usual supper of tortillas, frijolas and black coffee in a little hut. The rooms were so small and stuffy that we preferred sleeping in an open room something like a porch which was used for kitchen. parlor and sitting room. Cui' beds consisted of one small tarima. This tarimiu was a square wooden frame od

Page 11 text:

o'clock in the morning until about 10 at night, stopping at farm houses like the ones described before for our meals. Although the journey was rough it was very pleasant. From the mountain tops we could get a view of the whole country. In some places the trail was just wide enough for two mules to pass. We could lean from our saddles and see the farm houses hundreds of feet below us, while on the other side was the almost perpendicular side of the moun- tain. When we were making the trip the sides of the hills were covered with wild flowers. The wild flowers of Mexico are sometimes cultivated in California, such as the Japanese Moon Flower and the bigonia. The moon flowers grow to a monstrous size, and when they are in bloom, one can look across the valley from the trail and the mountains on the other side will be all colors of the rainbow. After traveling on this kind of a road for about a day or two longer we reached Molinas, which means The Mills. This place was really the quartz mills of an American com- pany whose mine was in Tepia, the ore being carried from the mine to the mill in a tramway. After resting ourselves and mules and meeting the superintendents of the mills we resumed our travel again to complete our journey. Our destination was about three miles away and was a little town called Topia. It took us about an hour to travel this three miles, but we had to climb some very steep places- the elevation at Topia being four thousand feet higher than that at Molinas. At last we reached Topia, one of the oldest towns of Mexico. We were the center of attraction while going through town. as Americans are not very common there, especially American women. Topia is situated on a mesa, or table land, and was sur- rounded by high mountains which were snow-capped dur- rounded by high mountains which are snow capped during the winter. It being a mining town, it was very much more lively than the other small towns through which we passed on our way. It was also the county seat of the Tamazula dis- trict. The town was laid off in blocks, the principal streets being narrow but paved with cobble stones and the side- walks made with large flat rocks. Three large stores, the school house, jail, church and La Salla de Justicia tHal1 of Justicel were built around the plaza. This plaza was similar to that of Culiahcan, only much smaller. The houses of the peons, or poorer classes. are usually rude huts of adobe with a thatched roof. The higher classes plaster their houses both inside and out The more common colors of the houses are pink, blue or white, and about three feet from the ground is a border of stripes going around the whole house. These stripes are usually of very gorgeous coloring-pink, blue, green ye!-A low and red. Sometimes these colors are used singly, or generally they. were combined, with two or three shades to each color. The doors of the houses were very large and heavy, the locks being great ponderous things made by hand. The