ebook img

The haciendas of Mexico : a list of plantations and principal farms in the Republic of Mexico together with the names and post-office addresses of their owners PDF

1886·11.1 MB·English
Save to my drive
Quick download
Download
Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.

Preview The haciendas of Mexico : a list of plantations and principal farms in the Republic of Mexico together with the names and post-office addresses of their owners

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, Shelf . UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. UNIVERSITYOFN.C.ATCHAPELHILL 00013486603 DATE DUE MMM AUG 1 6 2002 9W mi Q 9 PRINTEDINU.S.A. THE ' HACIENDAS OF MEXICO: A LIST OF PLANTATIONS AND PRINCIPAL FARMS IN THE REPUBLIC OF MEXICO, TOGETHER WITH THENAMES AND POST-OFFICE ADDRESSES OF THEIR OWNERS. COMPILED BY rA JORls COOHEAN. (J. PUBLISHED BY ROOT & TINKER, 1886. The tlbnary Th« University oi North Gmftr* Enteredaccording to Act of Congress, in the year 1886, By JOHN C. COCHRAN, in the office of Librarian of Congress at Washington. PREFACE. fT^HIS work is the result of a vast amount of correspondence, supple- mentedbya personalcanvassofmuchoftheterritoryof the Republic of Mexico. The final revisions of the various reports received have been made within the present year, and the correctness of each fully attested to by Mexican government officials, whose signatures and seals they bear. The object ofthiswork is to provide manufacturersandothersdesirous ofcultivating trade relations with Mexico, the means of addressingthem- selves directly to the wealthy landlords of that country. In the compilation of this work no published directories of anykind have been referred to, and in fact none of this kind exist. Every name has been obtained directly from correspondents whose position and long residence in their respective communities higldy qualified them to give us We trustworthy reports. can assert without fear of contradiction that this is the only list of the kind extant, and it may be relied upon as correct as itis possible to make such a work. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill http://archive.org/details/haciendasofmexicOOcoch THE REPUBLIC OF MEXICO. 1\ /TEXICO embraces all the territory of North America south of the United States. It stretches away from the southern borders of Texas and California 2500 miles to Central America, has an area of 750,000 square miles, and a population exceeding 10,000,000 souls. The great table-land comprises the greater portion of this vast territory. Itlies be- tween the two great chains of the Cordillera mountains, which enter the country at the south, and expanding with its coast-lines, run the whole length of the republic. This plateau slopes to the northward and has an elevation varying from 4000 to 9000 feet above the level of the sea. It is diversified by lofty mountain peaks, beautiful valleys, lakes, rivers, and ranges of lowmountains. Within the borders of Mexico may be found a greater variety of scenery, climate, and vegetation than in any other ter- ritory of equal area in the world. Its geographical position gives tropical climate and scenery to its low lands, and to the higher country all the ad- vantages of the temperate zone. The soil alongthe coast is generally rich and fertile, but the climate is not so genial as that of the interior. Some parts of the greattable-land to the north are dry and uninteresting; and the seeminglyarid plains areintersectedbyrangesof low, rockymountains such as maybe seen alongthelineoftheMexican Central Railwayin pass- ing from Paso del Norte southward several hundred miles. To the west of the Sierra Madre range, which forms the backbone of the country, the soil is rich and vegetation more abundant, making the western slope one THE REPUBLIC OF MEXICO. viii ofthe best agricultural districts iu the republic. Mexico has butfew navi- gable rivers, and during the dry season the whole country is very deficient in water for agricultural and mining purposes. While the natural resources of Mexico are unsurpassed in wealth and variety they are as yet undeveloped. Our modern system of soil culture and our improved labor-savingmachinery and implements of all kinds are almost unknown. This, in a measure, may be attributed to the natural conservatism of the inhabitants, and to their ignorance ofthe advantages to be gained from the use of such articles. The chief cause of this condi- tion of things, however, may be found due to the prejudices, jealousies, and fears ofthose classeswithin the country who have heretofore monopo- lized the trade, and who have done all in their power to retain the same by discouraging such native enterprise and progress as were likely to at- tract the favorable attention of American business men. During the past few years these trade prejudices and obstructions have been largely over- come. Since the establishment of railway communication between the United States and the interior country of Mexico, enterprising business houses in the United States have made a peaceful invasion ofthat country and have convinced many of the people of the necessity of changing their industrial and trade methods. The time is evidently not far distant when American labor-saving machinery will be universally employed by the newly enlightened people of Mexico. Wherever our farming implements have been introduced, and workmen properly instructed how to usethem, primitive contrivances have been discarded. For instance, the planter finds that his men can do more and better work with a modern plough, and that the products of his land are materially increased in quantity and quality thereby. In every department of industry, our machinery is being used with equally satisfactory results. For this reason the demand for American machinery and tools is rapidly increasing, and the prospects for the future are ex- tremely good. As agriculture is the chief industry of Mexico, the demand for all

See more

The list of books you might like

Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.