Photos by Dr. C. William Beebe Iguanas in Mexico can be approached closely by a person on horse- The nests of giant tropical orioles, or caciques, in Mexico are Photo by Dr. C. William Beebe The Mexican mot-mot is perhaps the only bird in which the tail- Next to the parrots, the long-tailed crested jays of Mexico are VIEW FROM IXTACCIHUATL, WITH POPOCATEPTL IN THE DISTANCE Photo from Alberto L. Godoy Standing guard over Mexico City are the great volcanoes, Popocateptl and Ixtaccihuatl, their summits perpetually covered with snow. From their heights, "the most imposing spectacle of all is the formation of the clouds below you' A MEXICAN HACIENDA Life on one of the Baronial Estates of our Southern Neighbor E BY J. E. KIRKWOOD Professor of BOTANY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA XTENDING southeastward from the Rio Grande, between high sierras on the east and west, is the Mexican plateau. About 250 miles in width, this area extends from Juarez to its southern extremity, about a thousand miles. Throughout an arid land, it lies under a clear sky and has few streams and little rain. The Its extensive plains are traversed at intervals by more or less isolated mountain ranges, mostly trending in parallel course with the Sierra Madre, which form its eastern and western walls. mountains rise from 8,000 to 10,000 feet, but in the interior of the country they appear much lower, owing to the elevation of the plain itself, which increases in altitude from about 3,700 feet at Juarez to over 8,000 feet near the City of Mexico. The topography of this region is very similar to much of that of Arizona, New Mexico, and western Texas. Though seemingly desolate, the land abounds in life, and the representatives of its fauna and flora occupy places in widely differing families of animals and plants. The country supports, however, a meager and scattered population, which, outside the cities, is concerned chiefly with mining and stock-raising. While physically capable of a larger development agriculturally, this has not been possible under the system of land tenure which now obtains and has existed in Mexico from the early times of the Spanish occupation. The creation of enormous private estates, devoted to mining or grazing, and the domination of large sections of the country by the interests of a single individual or family have greatly hindered the growth of agricultural industry. FEUDAL AND ARISTOCRATIC The Mexican estate known as a hacienda is in some respects a remarkable institution. Feudal in its traditions and aristocratic in its management, it reminds one of the old-world baronies of the middle ages. Consistent with political conditions in a country little more than nominally democratic, it is, nevertheless, so at variance with American ideals of liberty and equality that not the least of the interest in the system lies in the fact that such medievalism has flourished at our own doors up to the present time. The story of the haciendas is one of romantic interest. Each, largely a law unto itself, developed its own institutions, had its life and activities apart from the rest of the State, and to all intents and purposes constituted a distinct social and economic unit. The writer, not long ago, enjoyed the opportunity of a year's sojourn upon one of these haciendas. This estate. the Hacienda of the Cedars, is 70 miles long by 60 wide, a domain about equal in area to the State of Connecticut. Although much smaller than some of the other haciendas, it nevertheless constitutes a considerable property, being 21⁄2 million acres in extent. From center to circumference is a day's journey or more, and the proprietor, when he visits the outlying portions of his estate, prepares for a journey of days or weeks with coach-and-six and attendants and much of the air of a petty ruler. The Hacienda de Cedros, or, in more exact terms, the Hacienda de San Juan Bautista de los Cedros (the Hacienda of St. John the Baptist of the Cedars), lies in the northwestern corner of the State of Zacatecas. Mr. Charles T. Andrews, writing of life on a Mexican hacienda, says of this place: "There are several traditions in regard to the early history of the Cedros hacienda. One is that the original grantee obtained the land as a sort of subsidy for a missionary propaganda for 'the conversion of the Indians PEONS SHELLING CORN ON THE HACIENDA DE CEDROS Ears are rubbed on blocks made by binding together corn-cobs. "One observing their farming in the outlying districts might imagine himself living in the days of the Pharaohs. The field is plowed with a crooked stick drawn by oxen, with the yoke tied to the horns. Grain is cut with sickle and threshed by the hoofs of cattle, and corn is planted and shelled by hand. Rough and heavy home-made carts or the backs of men or burros are the most common modes of conveyance. The people seem to have no appreciation of improved farming implements. Often when improved implements are provided the laborers they discard them for more primitive methods" (see text, page 573). and the glory of the church.' There still remains indeed in the archives at Mexico a map of the hacienda with a sketch of the church building he proposed to erect. According to these plans, the sacred edifice would cover about five acres. The result was like some modern schemes for public aid to private enterprise. The promoter got 22 million acres of land and the church got a building 40 by 60 fect. "With less pious pretense, but by equally dishonest methods, a second purchaser obtained the property at a later period. For some reason, either through escheat or confiscation, the crown again came into possession of the hacienda and offered it for sale. An official in Mexico, taking advantage of the ignorance of the home government, represented the prop |