From the earliest times New Mexico’s prospective mineral wealth has been recognized, and there has hardly ever been a year, perhaps never a decade, in which a few mines of some sort have not been worked. The early Spanish workings, never successful on a large scale, have left traces at many points; but, as elsewhere fully explained, have been habitually and grossly overrated in modern times. Practically, nothing but prospecting was ever done by the Spaniards or Mexicans, and very little more by the Americans for many years after their occupation of the territory. Their small numbers, isolation, and lack of capital, the general apathy of the native population, the heavy cost of transportation, and frequent Indian troubles, afford sufficient explanation of the slight progress made, while each year’s operations furnished additional foundation for faith in ultimate success.

Such work as had been previously undertaken was for the most part suspended, on account of the confederate invasion of 1861-2 and the ensuing Indian wars; though at Pinos Altos, in the south-west, a nucleus for future operations still remained; in Santa Fé county preparations for active work were being pressed forward at the Old and New Placers; and each year the natives washed out a considerable quantity of gold in the wet season at many different points. The annals of New Mexican mining in 1864-79 would consist of a long series of detached items, not without interest in themselves, but entirely too bulky for presentation here. I append some general notes and references. The yield of gold and silver has been estimated at $125,000 to $250,000 per year down to 1868, $500,000 annually in 1869-74, and $400,000 in 1875-80. The total deposit of gold in United States mints and assay offices down to 1867 was only $85,459. The chief developments during this period were in the districts of western Colfax and Taos counties, where gold placers were profitably worked whenever water could be obtained, where ditches were constructed and hydraulic methods introduced to some extent, and where, at intervals, stamp mills were running after 1868; in Santa Fé and Bernalillo counties, at or near the old and new placers, where the customary washing operations were supplemented by several not very successful experiments in quartz-mining, though the veins were rich, where a mica mine was worked to some extent, and where a bed of pure anthracite coal was opened; in the Sandía and Manzano ranges of Bernalillo and Valencia, where nothing beyond prospecting was practically effected; in the Magdalena Mountains of Socorro, where rich deposits of silver and lead were found; in the region of Fort Stanton, or the Mescalero reservation, Lincoln county, where were rich gold placers and numerous quartz veins; in the Organos Mountains of Doña Ana, the silver ores from which were smelted without much real success at Las Cruces; and above all, in the counties of Grant and the later Sierra in the south-west, where the old copper mines were for the most part unworked, but where gold was washed from many gulches, and where many silver mines were developed and many more discovered, especially in the districts of Pinos Altos, Silver City, Burro Mountains, Hillsborough, and Lone Mountain. This was the most prominent section, having several mills at work and producing more silver bullion than all the rest of the territory.

From 1879-80 there was a veritable ‘boom’ in the New Mexican mines, the railroad bringing a large influx of prospectors, and, what was still more essential, of capitalists, from abroad. So numerous and complicated were the new developments that only the briefest résumé can be presented here. Numerous as they are, these developments are confined for the most part to the old regions, which, however, cover a very large part of the territory’s area. Every county has proven rich in mineral wealth, and in only a few—Rio Arriba, Mora, Valencia, and San Miguel—has this wealth not been extensively developed. The south-western counties of Grant, Sierra, and Socorro have produced nine tenths of all the bullion, and have to some extent drawn attention from the northern region; though Santa Fé county mines are very numerous. The bullion product of gold and silver is given as $1,300,000 in 1880, $815,000 in 1881, $1,950,000 in 1882, $3,125,000 in 1883, and $3,660,000 in 1884, most of which was produced in a few districts and a few mines of those districts. The results seem small in view of the rosy-hued reports of 1880-2, after which years there was a noticeable reaction from the somewhat extravagant boom. There was much exaggeration of mining values in most sections, for speculative purposes, much mismanagement, and especially much effort to work mines without sufficient capital. The surface deposits were wonderfully rich and complicated; and much expensive machinery proved useless when more rebellious ores were reached. Very few mines reached a depth of over 300 feet. The low price of copper and lead, with which the gold and silver were largely mixed, had a very depressing effect. While the Lake Valley mines and some others have shown large bodies of ore whose richness has rarely, if ever, been equalled, it must be confessed that no deep mines at all comparable to the Comstock, Leadville, or Tombstone have been developed. Yet there is nothing, so far as I know, to indicate that such developments may not be confidently expected. New Mexico among the states and territories in 1880 ranked eighth in the production of silver and thirteenth in gold, being tenth in production of the precious metals in the aggregate, per square mile, and per capita of population. There are no definite statistics of the copper and lead production, though these metals are found in immense quantities in many parts. There is hardly any metal or mineral not found in the territory. Mica and turquoise are mined successfully not far from Santa Fé. Coal deposits extend in all directions, though extensively worked only at Amargo and Raton in the north; and near the capital are the only beds of anthracite to be found west of Pennsylvania. Iron ore is reported as abundant, and in close proximity to iron and limestone, a fact that cannot fail to have a deep significance for the future. Gravel deposits of gold are found in most of the counties, so rich that they have paid fair returns to miners who brought water in barrels or carried the dirt long distances in a dry season; and while hydraulic mining has not yet been largely remunerative in the few trials that have been made, there can be little doubt of ultimate success. No country has a climate better adapted to the mining industry; wood and water are amply sufficient in most districts for deep mining; ores are rich and widely distributed; practically, what has been done in the past is mere prospecting; and there seems to be no good reason to doubt that in the future, when land-grant difficulties are settled, the best methods ascertained, transportation facilities secured, and capital invested, this territory will rank among the first in the production of gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, and coal.

The whole number of private land claims filed in the survey or general’s office down to 1886, exclusive of the earlier pueblo Indian claims, was 205. Of these 13 were originally rejected and 141 approved, leaving 51 not acted upon. Of the approved claims 46 were confirmed by congress, leaving 95 still pending before that body; while patents were issued for only 15 of the confirmed claims. By instructions from the land-office, dated July 23,1885, however, 35 of the claims originally approved were re-examined by Surveyor-general Julian before March 1887; and of these 23 were disapproved, six approved as equitable, three approved in part, two fully approved, and in one case a new survey ordered; so that of approved cases only 62 are now pending before congress. Meanwhile, all the approved claims but 13 have been surveyed, and found to embrace an area of 13,128,581 acres, the pueblo claims containing in addition 1,092,266 acres.

It will be noticed that only eight claims were confirmed during the whole period, and only one after 1870; that down to that date only five claims were filed and one approved; and that down to 1876 only four had been surveyed. From 1871 many claims were filed and approved, and from 1877 surveys were pressed forward, the law that required claimants to pay the cost of survey having been repealed. Of the 128 claims surveyed, however, only 46 have been confirmed by congress.

On the general subject there is little to be added to what has been said in an earlier chapter. All the claims should have been confirmed and surveyed long before 1864. Then, and for ten years later, there was no fraud or serious temptation to fraud. The claims were perfectly valid under the treaty and laws. The urgent necessity of a prompt settlement was continuously urged by the people, the legislature, the governor, and the surveyor-general; but always in vain, for the government did nothing, neglecting even to fix a limit date for filing claims. No change was made in the system. The surveyor-general was confessedly and obviously unable to do justice to the investigation, taking as a rule only ex parte testimony and forwarding it to Washington, where congress had even less facilities for an impartial examination. The claimants, confident in the validity of their claims, and noting the slow action of the government, were apathetic about filing their titles. From about 1874 frauds began to be discovered and suspected; and the danger of fraud constantly increased with delay. Twenty-three claims, originally approved, have recently been rejected on reexamination. I have neither space nor data for a fair presentment of special cases; but that many spurious claims or genuine ones fraudulently changed or extended have been presented successfully, there can be no question. One reason, and perhaps the only intelligible one—beyond a vague feeling that providence might one day show some way to annul all such iniquities as rights under Mexican or Spanish grants—for the inaction of congress, was the fact that minerals, not originally included with the land, could not under United States laws be reserved after a patent or quit-claim had been issued. As to the validity of the Mexican colony grants made after the treaty of 154-5, I am not aware that any final decision has been made. One of them—the Santo Tomás de Ituroide—has been rejected by the surveyor-general, though new evidence has since changed his opinion.

In the early years of Indian troubles and slight immigration, there was no demand for public lands, and no surveys were made in 1864-6; but from 1867 the work of surveying was carried on as fast as the snail appropriations would permit, the amount being greatly increased from 1874. The fact that the irritable—and therefore the only desirable—land lay in narrow strips along the streams caused the regular township surveys to cover many unsalable tracts, prompting many demands for a change of system, which were not heeded. These surveys also extended over more than a million acres of unsurveyed or unfiled private grants. Another difficulty was the custom of the natives to live in settlements for protection, which custom interfered with the requirement of actual residence on homestead or preemption claims. Down to there had 1882 there have been surveyed about 21,000,000 acres of public lands, making the total surveys, including private and pueblo grants, with Indian and military reservations, nearly half of the territory’s whole area of 77.568,640 acres. For later years I have no exact figures, but the increase in public lands has been very large. Sales and entries of public lands under the different acts amounted to about 415,000 acres, besides the mineral claims. A second land district was created for the south at Mesilla in 1874.

 

AGRICULTURE IN NEW MEXICO.

 

Agricultural progress has been slight in comparison with that of other regions. All the valley lands susceptible of irrigation will produce in fair quantity and excellent quality nearly all the crops of temperate and semi-tropical latitudes; and there are limited tracts in the mountain parks that are productive without irrigation; but the quantity of agricultural land in proportion to the whole area is much smaller than in most other states and territories. Statistics from the census reports of 1870 and 1880 are appended, requiring no explanation or comment. Experience in the period of 1864-86 has done little more than confirm what was well enough known in past centuries respecting the country’s fertility. Farming is still conducted for the most part by the old methods of irrigation and tillage; and practically nothing has been done to increase the water supply or prevent waste. Floods occur occasionally, but the climate is remarkably healthful and well adapted to agricultural pursuits. A living is easily gained, and that is all that the natives desire. There has been little or no exportation of products, and such will perhaps always be the case, unless wine, grapes, and certain fruits—in the production of which New Mexico seems to have some advantages over California—may prove an exception; yet the home market furnished by the mining camps and towns is, and is likely to be, excellent for a vastly increased production; and with the settlement of land titles, storing and proper use of water, and adequate tillage of small farms, agriculture in the future should be a remarkably prosperous industry.

A very large part of the territory, consisting of dry mesa and mountain land unfit for farming, is available for grazing, producing in large quantities the most nutritious of wild grasses; while the climatic and other conditions are all favorable for stock-raising. This industry has therefore, as shown by the appended statistics, far excelled that of agriculture or any other, except perhaps mining, and is likely to retain its precedence in the future. Yet success in raising cattle and sheep has by no means been commensurate with the country’s natural advantages. Here the land laws have worked against the industry. The land is worthless for farms, but cannot be sold in tracts sufficiently large for grazing. By owning 160 acres about a spring a few men have control each of an immense range, thus monopolizing the business, very much to the disadvantage of the territory. If the government would permit the taking-up of ‘pastoral homesteads’ of 15,000 acres, sufficing for the support of a family as 160 acres are supposed to suffice as a farm; if it would offer liberal areas for the finding of water by wells, with the privilege of buying more; or if the grazing lands were simply offered for sale at reasonable prices in large tracts—many of the obstacles to a grand success would apparently be removed, and at least the lands would pay their part of territorial taxes. But all the numerous efforts to secure these reforms have thus far failed.

New Mexico can hardly be said to have as yet any manufacturing industry; that is, the only establishments of this kind in existence, as shown in statistics of the census in 1870-80, are the few and ordinary ones that naturally spring up in any community to supply in part local needs and furnish a livelihood to those engaged. Flouring and lumber mills take the lead, followed by the carpenter and blacksmith shops, which can hardly be rated as manufacturing establishments at all. It will be noted that the list includes no woollen mills, though one was in operation in 1870, and one or more have, I think, been established since 1880. And there were then no tanneries, notwithstanding the abundance of cattle and the existence of a native plant, the canaigre, thought to be well adapted to take the place of oak and hemlock. It would seem that the manufacture of woollen fabrics and leather should assume some importance; and the possibilities of future developments in the extensive working of iron have already been noted.

New Mexican trade consists, as in Arizona, of the bringing-in and distribution of merchandise required for the supply of mining camps and towns, and for the consumption of the people generally, no satisfactory statistics being obtainable, and no comment on methods needed. The advent of railroads put an end to the famous old Santa Fé trade, carried on by wagon-trains across the plains, a trade which amounted in 1876 to over $2,000,000. There is no exportation of products, except those of the mines and flocks; the immense quantities of freight carried through the territory to the Pacific states and Mexico form, of course, no element of New Mexican trade proper; and I find nothing in the distribution of goods from railroad centres or the operations of the ordinary mercantile establishments of the different settlements that calls for remark.

 

RAILROADS OF NEW MEXICO.

 

Of railroads the territory has over 1,200 miles, built in 1878-85. They were not built with any view to the benefit or business of New Mexico, but to complete transcontinental connections between the east, the Pacific, and Mexico. Therefore, I do not deem the annals of the various companies, projects, and complications as belonging in any important sense to the history of New Mexico, even if there were space in this chapter for such matter. I append, however, a few miscellaneous notes. The first passenger train entered the territory in February 1879, bringing the Colorado legislature to Otero over the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fé line; work was rapidly pushed forward, and for the most part completed in five years. The Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fé line, known also as the New Mexico and Southern Pacific, enters the territory at the Raton tunnel, sending out a short branch to the coal-beds; in 1879 reached Las Vegas, whence a branch extends to the Hot Springs; in 1880 reached Santa Fé by a branch of 95 miles from Lamy; and in 1881, branching at Rincon, reached Deming and El Paso. It has short branches in Socorro county to the mines of Magdalena and Carthage; a narrow-gauge extension of 46 miles from Deming to Silver City; and has in all 680 miles of track. The Atlantic and Pacific line, virtually a part of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fé, began building at Alburquerque in 1880, on the completion of the former line to that point, and was rapidly pushed westward until in 1883 it reached the Colorado River, opening a new and favorite route to California. This road has 179 miles in New Mexico, including a five-mile siding to the Gallup coal mines. The Southern Pacific from California and Arizona has 232 miles in New Mexico, including 50 miles of the Lordsburg and Clifton narow-gauge road; joins the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fé line at Deming and El Paso; and thence extending eastward through Texas forms another overland line. The Denver and Rio Grande road from Colorado in the north enters New Mexico near Antonito, whence one division extends southward 79 miles to within 28 miles of Santa Fé, and another division 60 miles west through the San Juan country to the Amargo coal mines, and thence northward into Colorado. This road has 164 miles of track. Some work has been done on an extension of the road from Española to Santa Fé, and an extension to the Pecos and to Galveston is projected. Other prominent projects are the Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fé road, and an extension of the Atlantic and Pacific eastward to Indian Territory. Numerous branch lines are projected and will be built in time; meanwhile, the territory, most fortunate in its position on the great overland lines, must be regarded as well supplied with railroads.

A military telegraph line from the north-east was in operation from 1868; and ten years later the line had been extended to all the forts except Wingate and Stanton, and telegraphic communication was opened with California by way of Tucson. Subsequently, telegraph construction progressed with that of rail­roads, until all the more important settlements are in communication with the east and west.

A bureau of immigration, established by an act of the legislature in 1880, is an institution, which, under the presidency of Prince and Ritch, has done much to attract settlers, by the publication of information respecting the county’s resources and attractions. The county reports of 1881-2, as published in pamphlet form, have already been noticed; and of Hitch’s work on the resources of New Mexico some 27,000 copies, in six editions, under different titles, have been issued, and widely circulated from the central office through the railroad companies and at various fairs and expositions in the eastern states. It is estimated that nearly 20,000 immigrants have been drawn to the territory since 1880; and doubtless the bureau has exerted a beneficial influence. An annual territorial fair, or exposition, has been held at Alburquerque since 1881.

 

SCHOOLS OF NEW MEXICO.

 

Education has remained in a backward condition, notwithstanding the advanced views and earnest efforts of territorial officials and of many citizens. In 1880 there were only 162 schools, with an attendance of 3,150 pupils. By acts of the legislature a public school system was created and perfected at different dates from 1863 to 1884, when it assumed a tolerably effective form, in theory at least. One fourth of all taxes is devoted to education, but in the collection and application of the funds there have been great irregularities, on account of the apathy of the native population. The mixture of language and religion, with a great preponderance of Spanish and the catholic faith, have been the great obstacles; and the cause of education has been retarded also by all the causes that have hindered progress in other directions. With the increase of immigration, however, there is noted a constant though slow growth of a healthful sentiment in favor of schools; and encouraging progress is looked for in the future. There is, besides, a considerable number of fairly prosperous private institutions in the larger towns, including several catholic colleges under the direction of the Jesuits, Christian Brothers, Sisters of Loretto, and Sisters of Charity, supported largely by public school funds; and a few others under other religious denominations, supported by tuition fees and private contributions. The Jesuit college at Las Vegas, that of the Christian Brothers at Santa Fé, and the academies at Alburquerque and Las Vegas may be named as the most prominent educational institutions.

 

NEWSPAPERS AND CHURCHES.

 

Newspapers in 1850 were two in number, with a circulation of 1,150; in 1860 the figures had not changed; in 1870 there were five journals, but the circulation had only increased to 1,525; while the census of 1880 shows 18, with a circulation of 6,355. In 1885 the number was 39, of which eight were dailies, two semi-weekly, 27 weekly, and two monthly. A list of those published in 1882, not much changed since that date, is appended. Several of these newspapers are published in Spanish, and several others in English and Spanish. In quality they will compare favorably with similar publications in other territories. A Press Association was organized at Las Vegas in 1880.

The religion of the territory is naturally for the most part Roman Catholic. In 1870 that denomination had 152 of the 158 churches, with church property valued at $313,321. The census of 1880 contains no church statistics. In 1882 there were 72 priests, serving a catholic population of 126,000. New Mexico, with Arizona and Colorado, forms an archbishopric under John B. Lamy since 1865. The Jesuits—an act incorporating which society was annulled by congress in 1878—are active, especially in educational matters, as are the Christian Brothers and Sisters of Charity and Mercy. There has been some clashing between the old native priests and the new-comers introduced by Lamy, but under the bishop’s energetic management there has been a notable improvement in the tone of ecclesiastical affairs, and an almost complete weeding-out of the old-time laxity of morals that was remarked by early visitors. Here, as elsewhere, the church is slow to adopt sweeping reforms, and does not often favor educational advancement that it cannot entirely control; but a good work has been slowly accomplished, and there is a tolerably strong tendency to improvement, many of the catholic institutions of education and charity being well managed and effective. The Mormons, respecting whose proselyting schemes there has been some excitement, especially in 1875-7, as shown by the newspapers, have a few churches on the eastern border, but I 6nd no definite information or statistics. Of protestant denominations the episcopalians seem to have the lead, with six clergymen under George Kelly as primate in 1882, and three churches as early as 1870. The presbyterians and methodists are reported as having a dozen or more clergymen and 700 communicants; while the baptists, congregationalists, and southern methodists have each two or three clergymen, protestant influence is, however, weak, and is confined for the most part to the new and thriving towns, most of which have one or more church edifices.