Show I Mormons are Prosperous and Progressive L A H HINTON IN MEXICAN HERALD The wonderful success of the Mor Mormon Mormon Mormon mon colonies In The northwestern part of and In northwestern So Sonora Sonora Soflora nora flora is little appreciated In Mexico where they alone of all foreigners have accomplished their aim alm colonization tion They Th y how now number fully souls In Chihuahua and in Sonora They are prosperous to a high degree have beautiful homes splendid school houses and an educational educational educational system good farms and orchards orchards orchards ards good cattle horses and hogs and andIn andIn andin In every way their settlements would pass muster with the thrifty farming settlements In the th western part of the United States and are an object lesson In Mexico V Quiet and The Mormons in Mexico are an ex example example example ample of the best in a quiet ing people It Is exceedingly seldom that the authorities a have any trouble with a Mormon and they ther pay their taxes for tor the support of the govern government government ment better than the Mexicans them themselves themselves themselves selves do For thrift and Industry they are proving what can be done In i building up the country materially and andare andare are arc thereby an example to all with i whom they are arc in contact Came Twenty Years Ago These Mormon Mormon colonies begun a little over twenty years ago when people of that faith began coming overland in hi wagons from Utah Ari An Arizona Arizona Anzona zona and other parts of the United States to settle in Chihuahua at what Is now Colonia Juarez and Colonia Diaz the latter about forty miles south of the New Mexico line and Co Colonia Colonia lonia Juarez Juanez about fifteen miles from Nueva Casas Grandes Grandest on the Rio Illo Grande Sierra Madre Pacific rail railroad railroad railroad road But there was no railroad in those days nearer than Deming Doming N M They came Into the country with nothing to help them but the conces concession concession concession sion of the Mexican government for some public lands and exemption from federal and state taxes for ten years for each and every colonist as he came in Their land was bare and these rugged pioneers set to work to take takeout takeout takeout out canals for irrigation and to build mUd their houses as best they could A Land Company All lands were acquired by the Mex Mexican ican lean Agricultural Colonization com corn company company pany Incorporated under the laws of ot Colorado Members of the colonies c and andin an jh Utah are the stockholders in this company compan which is headed by A AV AV Wi Ivins as president It Is principally due to his exceptional business abil ability abilIty ity that the success of ot the colonies is due supplemented as it always has been by the hearty cooperation of the colonists collectively and Individually I The company Is In no wise vise a speculative speculative concern but is a method of pro providing providing viding a perpetual and fund for the acquisition of more lands and ind nd a practical business organization The plan is to acquire lands and sell them out in small lots to colonists at ata ata ata a slight advance on easy terms and low interest To be a colonist requires a certificate of good moral mO character only The Mormons have at least acres of land Many Individuals have made purchases of lands from the Mexicans Sierra Madre Railroad All of these colonies are arc tributary to the Rio Grande Sierra Madre Pacific railroad completed over oer nine years ago from El Paso and Juarez on fn the international boundary to Nueva Casas Grandes Chihuahua a distance of miles mies Only one of the colo colonies colonies cob nies Colonia Dublan a little over a amile amie amile mile mie from Nueva Casas Grandes Is on this road roat Up to the time of the con construction construction construction of the road the colonists had practically no market at all al and even now tty cannot reach reh the rest of the state by rail rai except by the roundabout way of Juarez and the Mexican Cen Central Central Central The extension of the road southward by Colonel W C Greenes Sierra Madre Pacific Railroad company the con construction construction of which is already begun will give the colonies an outlet to Chi Chihuahua Chihuahua Chihuahua by a connection with the Chi Chihuahua Chihuahua Chihuahua Pacific road also by the former road rad with wih the great new lum lumber lumber ber her town of Madera and the mining districts in the Sierra Sier Madres as that road is projected on to the te Pacific coast coastin in ill Sonora This road rad assures the fu future future future ture prosperity of the thrifty colonies which have made all al of their wonder wonderful ful fut progress even without much In the way of an outlet by rail Only a visit to those these thee colonies can bring a proper realization of what the Mormons have hae accomplished so quiet quietly ly In twenty years The writer wrier made mado a visit recently to Colonias Colonia Dublan and Juarez and he has no hesitation In saying that the state government the Mexican people and the foreigners none of them thoroughly realize what these people have accomplished be beginning beginning beginning ginning with wih nothing almost Their Work Try to Imagine a bare dry country in the semiarid region of Chihuahua and these Mormons locating in it i over twenty years ago after the long hard trip tip in wagons from Utah Arizona and other states As stated the first colo cob colonies colonies nies were Diaz and Juarez Now there are Colonias Dublan Pacheco Garcia and in Chihuahua and Morelos in Sonora besides several small smal settlements which not yet have sufficient population to give the dig dignity dignity of the name colonia if i nnA me tho Dublan v u nn and Juarez colonies he will wi feel that he has suddenly been set sot down In a thrifty American settlement for the streets are lined Ined with wih trees tho the houses houss housson on either side are arc one and brick structures tures built buit In the American style Fine school houses good barns flowers fruit and ornamental trees nice farms fars and alfalfa pastures and good horses cattle catte and hogs can be seen on every hand bland Everywhere are the signs of thrift and the people look the sigs picture of health happiness and contentment In their homes hospitality reigns and one sees see furnishings in modern but simple good taste tate with books book and newspapers In evidence and often ofen of en an organ and sometimes a piano in the parlor Every family owns Its Is own home or Is paying for it f In all al the colonies the conditions are practically the same Farming stock raising and some manufacturing some lumbering and brick making are their principal indus I tries Agriculture Ag It ure As farmers the Mormons excel any anything anything anything te thing In Mexico Their apples and pears and other deciduous fruits ar are equal to the best In the United States They raise wheat corn and vegetables and splendid alfalfa alna In Irrigation they t ey also excel ecel At Colonia Dublan the colonists are pre preparing preparing paring to put in a dam on the th Cases Casas Cs Grandes river whence they will vIll run runa a canal to six natural reservoirs wHich will wi impound the flood food wafers of that I ee o river to irrigate acres of the te beautiful plain plin east of that colony and Nuevas Nueva Casas Cas Grandes These reser reservoirs reservoirs reservoirs used for the same purpose by some prehistoric people eople hav have capacity to Impound water enough to Irrigate acres of land if they had ha It The Tho Mormons have good grades of horses cattle and hogs fully up to what one would see In settle settlements settlements sette ments in the United States Recently some of ot them formed a company and imported four black stal stai stallions lions weighing 1800 to 2100 pound each and three tree fine French coach stal stallions stallions lions lons which were distributed n Juarez Dublan and Diaz Dias colonies for breeding reeding purposes Commercial and Manufacturing Colonia Dublan being on the rail railroad rl railroad road is the commercial center of the colonies Here a company called caled the Union Mercantile company composed principally of colonists as a stock stockholders stockholders stockholders holders maintains a general store equal to the best In Chihuahua It has a branch in Colonia Juarez and another in Colonia Diaz It I Is ably managed by b H E Bowman F D Haymore also als has a large general store with wih a branch in Colonia Mo Morelos Morelos robs and the Mexican town of San Miguelito These stores do an im immense immense immense mense business not only in the col cot colonies colonies onies ories but hut with wih tho the mining camps and Mexican towns and ranches in the surrounding sur country even far into Sonora An Au important industry is that of the Juarez Tanning Tannin Manufacturing com corn company company pany Junius Romney manager The colonists are the stockholders It I has two tanneries one at Juarez and the theother theother theother other near asas Grandes with also at Juarez a shoe factory and a harness and saddle factory This concern did a business in leather lether and leather goods for 1906 of Also at Juarez Daniel a Mormon has haq a modern roller roler process flour four mill mi which Is run day and night Proof Pr of of Thrift As a sample of thrift among the Mormons Colonia Juarez Juares made the following showing for 1906 1908 The Thee net per capita capit of this colony of people was Mexican money By the tithing tithing ing system for the support of their church they are able to furnish ac accurate a accurate curate statistics of exactly what every everyone everyone one ono Is doing industrially Uy The greatest work among these Mormons is in education and schools Their work In this line lne is done entirely by themselves without one cent of aid from the state nor do they ask it i In every colony or settlement is a graded school where there the te eight grades as ally seen een In the states are taught and at Colonia Juarez which Is the edu educational educational center Is what they term the Juarez Stake Stae academy which is a I high school modeled upon the tile lines of similar schools In the United Stats States and Is fully equal to any of them It prepares young men and women for forthe forthe forthe the colleges In the United States The schools are ar all al supported by a voluntary Income tax ta on each and ev every every ery cry colonist and they have cost as high as 8 per cent in some years when the colonists colonist were poorer than they are arc arenow arenow now The building of the Juarez Juarz Stake academy is a brick with wih stone trimmings and cost cos V Mexican It Is by far the best bet school schoolhouse schoolhouse schoolhouse house in the state of Chihuahua and was paid for entirely by the Juarez colonists with wih the aid of some philan philanthropic philanthropic Mormons Morons in Utah Tuition is free to the children In all al the colonies and to the Mexicans residing In the te colonies the schools school are also als free In some cases the boards of education have bought books for the children of Mexicans too poor to buy them The instruction in the te academy Is along practical lines Manual train training training i ing lag such as the th elements of carpen carpentry carpentry carpentry I try and agriculture Is V taught the I young men and dressmaking to the young women Professor Guy uy C Wil Wilson Wi son the tho principal and superintendent of all al the colonies schools Is a high class educator and the board of education education tion ton pays his expenses every sum aunt summer summer mer to visit educational as asand and Institutions in the United States so s as to help keep the colonies schools up to date Next summer he lie purposes visiting Booker Washing tons famous normal institute at Tuskeegee Tuskeegee Tuskeegee as It i Is Professor Wilsons plan to improve his schools along practical educational lines All instruction In the colonies schools Is in English but b t Spanish Is thoroughly taught and every Mormon Moron boy and girl can speak read red ald write Spanish i iA IA A drunken Mormon ormon is an exceeding exceedingly ly rare sight Temperance T is a part of their life and their religion Even the use of coffee and tea are strangely discouraged and tobacco Is not toler tolerated tolerated No Church Buildings In all the te Mormon colonies is not to tobe tobe tobe be seen a single church building as such With Wih them It I was the tile school schoolhouse schoolhouse schoolhouse house first and the church temples are areto ar areto to come later The Te school house houS is the public meeting house ho s as they call cal it There are arc no drones among these colonists All Al are workers and their young men are In demand among he the corporations operating In tills state t e on account of their temperate steady and Industrious habits From the tho highest to the lowest they all al work At Cab Calo Calonia Clo nia nm Juarez the writer wrier saw the P who is the local head of the colony J C Bentley Bentey out in his shirt sleeves putting up a new building |