"THE MYSTERIOUS CITY;" STORIES AND RUMORS CONCERNING IT.--ACCOUNTS OF
STEPHENS AND MORELET.--FATE OF TWO YOUNG AMERICANS.--DON PEDRO
VELASQUEZ.--CARMEN AND CAMPEACHY.--UNDERGROUND CAVES.--HOW LOGWOOD IS
GATHERED; ITS COMMERCIAL IMPORTANCE.--THE QUEZAL AND ITS WONDERFUL
PLUMAGE.--SNAKES AND SNAKE STORIES.--TRAVELLERS' TALES.--PROGRESO AND
SISAL.--HOW THE YUCATAN RAILWAY WAS BUILT.--_AGAVE SISALANA_.--DISCOVERY
AND CONQUEST OF YUCATAN.--A FEROCIOUS POPULATION.--REBELLIOUS INDIANS IN
YUCATAN; HOW THEY TREAT VISITORS.--TOWNS AND VILLAGES DEPOPULATED.
While considering the accounts of the ruins of ancient cities in Mexico
and the countries bordering it, our young friends came upon allusions to
a "mysterious city," somewhere in the unexplored region of tropical
forests lying to the southward. Their curiosity was excited, and they
wondered if such a city really existed.
[Illustration: IN THE FOREST.]
They found that two explorers, Stephens and Morelet, believed in its
existence, and though they tried hard to reach it were unable to do so.
Stephens learned of it from the _cura_ of Quiche, a native town of
Guatemala, who claimed to have looked upon the city from the wall of
rock surrounding the valley where it stands. He had heard of it many
years before at the village of Chajul. He was then young, and had
climbed to the top of the ridge which the Indians indicated, and from
his elevated stand-point looked down upon the plain and the white walls
and towers of the city glistening in the sun. It covered a large area,
and its people were advanced in the arts and capable of making a
vigorous defence against all intruders.
[Illustration: JOHN L. STEPHENS.]
"Wouldn't that be an expedition worth making?" said Frank to Fred, after
they had read the account in Mr. Stephens's book. "Just think of it! to
be able to discover the mysterious city which no white man has ever
returned from!"
"Yes, that's the tradition concerning it," was the reply. "Several white
men have gone there, but no one has ever returned from it to tell the
story of what he saw."
"Writers on the subject are not very encouraging," said Frank, "as they
assert that the Indians in this mysterious city murder every white man
who comes within their boundaries. Not even the Spanish _padres_ are
permitted to enter, and they are usually able to go where no other white
man dare try to penetrate."
Frank read and reread all the attainable descriptions of the mysterious
city, and his imagination was fired almost to the degree of explosion.
"The inhabitants understand," he remarked, "that a white race has
conquered the rest of the country, but they are determined not to be
conquered. They have no coin or other circulating medium, no horses,
cattle, mules, or other domestic animals except fowls, and they keep
these underground so that the crowing of the cocks will not be heard."
Probably Frank's belief was largely influenced by the circumstance that
such a careful explorer as Stephens accepted the story as true; in
speaking of it he uses these words: "I conceive it to be not impossible
that in this secluded region may exist, at this day, unknown to white
men, a living, aboriginal city, occupied by relics of the ancient race,
who still worship in the temples of their fathers."
[Illustration: SEEKING THE MYSTERIOUS CITY.]
In writing an introduction to the narrative of the travels of Arthur
Morelet, who spent several years in that country, and evidently believed
in the existence of the mysterious city, Mr. E. G. Squier says as
follows:
"There is a region lying between Chiapas, Tabasco, Yucatan, and the
Republic of Guatemala, and comprising a considerable portion of each of
those States, which, if not entirely blank, is only conjecturally filled
up with mountains, lakes, and rivers. It is almost as unknown as the
interior of Africa itself.... Within its depths, far off on some unknown
tributary of the Usumasinta, the popular tradition of Guatemala and
Chiapas places the great aboriginal city, with its white walls shining
like silver in the sun, which the cura of Quiche affirmed he had seen
with his own eyes from the tops of the mountains of Quezaltenango."
A Guatemalan gentleman, Don Pedro Velasquez, claims to have accompanied
two young gentlemen of Baltimore, who succeeded in reaching the
mysterious city a few years after the account of Stephens was published.
Having once reached the city they were not harmed; but when they
attempted to escape they were seized, and one of them was sacrificed on
the altar of the Sun, after the manner of the Aztec sacrifices already
described. The other made his escape, but was so badly wounded that he
died in the forest. Don Pedro and a few Indians who accompanied the
young gentlemen managed to get away with their lives, but only by
running great risks. The account he gives of their adventures is not
very clear, and it has not secured a prominent place in the history of
scientific explorations.
A few years ago an enterprising American naturalist, Mr. F. A. Ober, was
on the borders of this unexplored region, and was greatly tempted to
venture alone in search of the mysterious city, and particularly to
learn about the fauna and flora that abound in its vicinity. It would
have been madness for him to have undertaken the journey, and he wisely
refrained from doing so; he is still of opinion that the examination of
this unknown and unconquered region offers a fine field for the
naturalist, and for societies engaged in promoting scientific
investigation.
After mature deliberation Frank and Fred concluded that the exploration
of this unknown region was not practicable just at that time, but they
would keep it in mind, and perhaps might lead an expedition thither at
some future day.
Doctor Bronson suggested that in the mean while they could amuse
themselves by reading "The Phantom City," a romance based upon the
stories told by Stephens and others. He thought that the romance might
contain hints which would be useful in case they should fit out their
expedition. "At all events," said he, "it is an interesting story, and
will well repay perusal."
The steamer made a brief halt at Carmen, an insignificant town on an
island on the coast, and then proceeded to Campeachy, where she anchored
about five miles from shore. There was quite a ground-swell on the sea,
which would have made a journey to the shore somewhat uncomfortable,
with the possibility, in case the wind increased, of being detained
there until the next steamer happened along. So our friends concluded to
acquaint themselves with Campeachy by looking at it from the deck of
the vessel; all day they lay there, and long before the sun went down
the youths were impatient to be on their way.
As they looked upon the white walls of the city glistening in the sun,
it was no great stretch of the imagination for them to believe they were
repeating the experience of the cura of Quiche, and gazing from the top
of the mountain chain which he claims to have ascended. They learned
that Campeachy was once of more importance than it is to-day; it has a
population of 20,000, and is built of a white limestone that is very
abundant in the neighborhood. Its houses are nearly all of but one story
in height, and the city is surrounded by walls which were built by the
Spaniards when they founded a settlement here.
An interesting feature of Campeachy is the great number of subterranean
caves in the hills on which it stands, some of them natural and some
artificial. These caves were made by the Indians long ago; most of them
have been explored in search of treasure, of which very little was
obtained. Numerous skulls and skeletons were found there, and it is
evident that the caves were used as burial-places, and are much like the
catacombs of Oriental countries. A few of them have been utilized as
cellars by the inhabitants, but only a few; the Indians of to-day have a
good many superstitions concerning the caves, and look with an
unfriendly eye upon any one who desecrates them.
[Illustration: CAMPEACHY TOBACCO.]
A lighter came alongside with some cargo for the steamer, and Frank made
a note of what it brought. There were hides of cattle, deer-skins, sugar
in bags made of the _pita_ plant, bales of that textile product,
beeswax, and a considerable quantity of Campeachy cigars. The tobacco
grown in the States of Campeachy and Tabasco is of very good quality,
and the cigars are often sold for "Havanas" in foreign markets.
Frank learned that logwood is an important article of trade on this part
of the coast, but it is mostly shipped on sailing-vessels, on account of
the lower charge for freight. Carmen has a considerable commerce in
logwood, which grows so extensively that there is no immediate danger of
the exhaustion of the supply, especially as its cultivation has extended
to other countries by planting the seed or transplanting the young
trees.
"Logwood is used for dyeing purposes," wrote Frank, after he had
informed himself concerning it, "and also in medicine. There is a belief
that it is used by wine-makers in coloring claret quite as much as for
dyeing cloth or leather. The tree is usually about twenty-five feet high
and fifteen inches in diameter. Only the 'heart' of the trunk contains
the dyeing substance, and this is the part exported, the outer sap-wood
being cut off in the forest as soon as the tree is felled. The
logwood-cutters have a hard life, and their business is less profitable
of late years, owing to the extensive use of aniline dyes."
[Illustration: THE QUEZAL.]
A passenger who came on board the steamer at Campeachy had as part of
his baggage a cage containing a bird of remarkable plumage. It presented
a variety of colors--green, golden, red, and white--and its tail
feathers were so long that they seemed out of all proportion to the size
of the creature's body. Frank and Fred were immediately attracted to it,
and asked what it was.
"It is a _quezal_, or _quetzal_," was the reply, "which was at one time
the sacred and imperial bird of Mexico. The one you see here is not a
fine specimen. Sometimes you find these birds with the tail feathers
four feet long; and in ancient times none but the emperors were
permitted to wear them. Perhaps you saw the feather cloak of Montezuma
in the museum at the capital? Well, the feathers that adorn that cloak
came from the quezal, and the bird is so rare that it takes a long time
to gather feathers enough to make a single garment.
[Illustration: DIFFICULTIES OF TRAVEL IN CAMPEACHY.]
"The quezal is still regarded with much respect by the Indians of this
part of the country and of Central America, but less so than in the days
of the Montezumas. As it darts through the forest its feathers flash
like a moving rainbow, and remind us of the accounts that Eastern
travellers have given of the bird-of-paradise. It is rarely taken alive,
and is so shy that the hunter can only approach it with difficulty.
"This region abounds in birds," continued his informant, "and also with
less pleasing things to meet--snakes. Some of the serpents are large and
others are venomous. It is a fortunate thing for travellers in the
forest that the snake seeks safety in flight when he can do so, and does
not voluntarily attack man. Birds and small animals are his prey, and he
takes them after the same fashion as the serpents of the rest of the
world."
Fred asked what was the most dangerous of the serpents of this tropical
region.
"The worst I know of," was the reply, "is the _vivora de sangre_, which
causes the blood of man or beast to sweat through the pores of the body
until the veins are exhausted and the victim dies in a state of utter
weakness. It is literally a case of bleeding to death, though not in the
ordinary way of opening the veins."
Then he told of another serpent called the _mica_, or whipping-snake,
which when irritated flattens its head upon the ground and seems to
fasten it there. Then it lashes on either side with its tail like a
whip, and it strikes a blow of wonderful force when its size is
considered.
Then followed an extended conversation upon the natural history of
Campeachy and the regions bordering it, but the youths did not take
further notes, and so we are unable to repeat what was said. Some of the
stories of the traveller were impressed on the mind of Frank more on
account of their improbability than for any other peculiarity.
He told about serpents thirty feet long that suspended themselves from
trees which overhung path-ways, and swooped down upon cattle, sheep, and
other animals that came within their reach. Frank asked if human beings
were exempt from their attacks, and the stranger replied that those who
ate plenty of _chili colorado_ with their food were not disturbed, or at
any rate the snake would not swallow them, as he wasn't fond of red
pepper. He might kill them before finding out the fact, but as soon as
he had done so he would respectfully turn aside and seek other game.
Then followed a story about another variety of snake that kills a bird
on its nest and then proceeds to coil affectionately about the eggs and
hatch them out. When the young birds appear he cares for them tenderly,
bringing them food in the daytime, and at night nestling over them to
protect their unfeathered bodies from the cold and dampness.
"And I suppose," said Frank, "that when he has reared them to a suitable
size he proceeds to eat them up."
As to that the stranger could give no information, and accordingly the
youth concluded that the narrative was not based upon personal
observation.
From Campeachy the steamer held her course to Progreso, the principal
port of Yucatan. That honor formerly belonged to Sisal, but the
advantages of Progreso caused it to be preferred, and now it is the seat
of commerce. Not that the harbor amounts to much, as the shallow coast
prevents vessels of more than a few feet draught from coming anywhere
near it. The passengers were landed in a large row-boat that danced
very uneasily upon the waves and disturbed the digestion of some who
thus far had borne the movements of the sea without objection. It was a
long pull to the shore, but they reached it in safety and resigned
themselves to the custom-house officials who were waiting at the
landing-place.
[Illustration]
The inspection was not very rigorous, as the passengers were from
another Mexican port and not from foreign lands; in fact it was nothing
more than a form, and was quickly over. Then the strangers had a
half-hour in which to inspect the town of Progreso; they inspected it
and had fifteen minutes to spare. The place is simply a shipping-point,
and nobody lives there except those whose business connects them with
marine matters. It is surrounded by swamps and is damp and unhealthy. It
was desirable to get away from it as soon as possible, as it seemed an
excellent spot for incorporating fever-germs into the system. The
population is less than 2000, not including the tenants of the
cemetery, which is said to be liberally patronized.
[Illustration: TROPICAL RAILWAY TRAIN AND STATION.]
Merida, the capital, is about thirty miles from Progreso, and connected
with it by railway. The train rolled slowly along, taking nearly three
hours for the journey; but as it has no competition it has no occasion
to hurry. Passengers sometimes complain of the snail-like speed, and are
told that they can possibly do better by getting out and walking. Our
friends made no complaint, as they realized that even at a pace not
exceeding ten miles an hour it was much better than no railway at all.
The engine and cars were of American make, and the conductor was a New
Yorker who had become so bronzed by the sun as to be readily taken for a
Mexican.
"This railway was built like a good many other lines in Mexico," said a
passenger on the train who fell into conversation with Doctor Bronson
and the youths. "All the material was brought from foreign countries and
landed at Progreso; it was then hauled in carts to Merida, and the line
was built _from_ Merida _towards_ the sea. The same ideas prevailed as
in the case of the line between Vera Cruz and the city of Mexico; the
peace of the country would be endangered if the railway should be
constructed from the sea-coast inland.
"The story goes that the contractor received a liberal subsidy from the
Government only on condition that he built from Merida, and as he began
to use the line as soon as he had five or six miles completed, he made
money by the operation. There is another story, that he was allowed to
charge a high price for passengers while the road was under
construction, but must come down to a low figure when it was completed.
"The result was that the contractor stopped work before reaching the
coast, and did not resume for a long time; there was a mile or so of
unfinished road, and this gave him an excuse for exorbitant rates for
passengers. Complaints were so numerous that the Government was obliged
to interfere and compel him to carry out the spirit as well as the
letter of his contract."
[Illustration: FLOCK OF PELICANS.]
Frank watched from one side of the train while Fred kept a sharp eye out
on the other. Soon after starting, the train passed a lagoon which
abounded in aquatic birds--duck, teal, egrets, herons, curlews, snipe,
pelicans, and the like. Were it not for the liability to fevers, owing
to the unhealthy miasmas rising from the lagoon, the region would be an
attractive one for sportsmen. Even with its drawbacks a fair number of
hunters find their way there, and some of them praise the locality in
glowing terms. After passing the lagoon the road reaches the coral rock
which is the foundation of Yucatan and supports a thin and rather dry
soil.
The youths thought they were again among fields of the maguey plant and
haciendas for pulque-making as soon as the solid ground was reached, but
their new acquaintance undeceived them.
[Illustration: SISAL-HEMP.]
"These fields that stretch for miles in every direction between the
coast and the capital," said he, "are not covered with the maguey from
which pulque is made, but with _henequin_. Henequin belongs to the aloe
family, as does the maguey, and it is from this plant that a variety of
fibre like hemp is produced. When Sisal was the seaport the product took
its name; it is known in commerce as sisal-hemp, though very little of
it comes directly from that place at present. It grows, like the maguey,
on rocks or very thin soil where nothing else can flourish, and it
requires no water or but very little. Take away the henequin plant and
the fibre made from it, and Yucatan would be seriously crippled in its
commerce. Considerable corn is raised, but it is mostly needed for home
consumption. The value of the sisal-hemp export is above three millions
of dollare annually, sometimes exceeding and sometimes falling below
that figure.
"Yucatan has no rivers," he continued, "and the planters depend entirely
upon rains for irrigation. These are supplied by the moisture from the
Gulf of Mexico, and if this should fail the country would soon become a
desert."
The gentleman then gave some information relative to the cultivation of
henequin and the preparation of the fibre which we will reserve for a
later page, when the youths have had an opportunity to see the process.
Fred made note of the fact that the plant was indigenous to Yucatan, and
used for the production of fibre long before the advent of the whites.
Its exportation in large quantities is a matter of recent times, and is
steadily increasing.
Henequin is grown from shoots which are cut from the base of the old
plants. Three years after the shoots are set out the plant is large
enough for a first crop of leaves to be cut; the cutting goes on for
twelve or fifteen years, and in the mean time new shoots are set out
every year, so that a plantation is constantly being renewed. When the
plant is at its full size the leaves are four or five feet long. After
a plantation is fairly under way, and producing regularly, it requires
very little attention.
[Illustration: INDIANS OF YUCATAN.]
The scientific name of sisal-hemp is _Agave Sisalensis_ or _Agave
Sisolana_; properly speaking, it is not hemp at all, and reminds us of
the peddler of "hot mutton-pies" who replied, when a customer complained
that his wares were frozen, "hot mutton-pies is the name of 'em." The
true hemp is an annual plant, supposed to be a native of India, whence
its culture has spread through the world, and it has no resemblance
whatever to henequin, or Agave Sisalana.
While we have been talking on this and other topics the train has been
rolling on towards Merida. Frank recorded in his note-book that Yucatan
was first seen by the eye of a white man in 1506, and was first visited
and partially explored in 1517 by Hernandez de Cordova. The visit of
Cordova was not altogether encouraging, as the Indians killed or wounded
all but one of his companions, among the wounded being Bernal Diaz, the
historian of Cortez. Not discouraged by his injuries, Diaz came the
following year to Yucatan with Grijalva, and in 1519 with Cortez to the
same country and Mexico.
Mexico and its treasures attracted attention for the next decade or two,
and very little thought was given to Yucatan. In 1537 a settlement was
effected; but the Spaniards were opposed by a ferocious people, and
found time for nothing but fighting until 1540, when they defeated the
natives in a great battle on the present site of Merida. After
conquering the country they found they had achieved a barren victory, as
Yucatan contained neither gold nor silver, the object of all the Spanish
conquests in the New World.
After their defeat the Indians seem to have accepted the situation, and
acknowledged themselves vassals of the Spaniards. They became
Christians, like the people of Mexico, and though they may have been
somewhat perplexed in their endeavors to reconcile the precepts and
practices of the religion of the white men from beyond the sea, they did
not find it worth while to argue vigorously with their masters. From an
exceedingly warlike race they became a peaceable one, though they might
have been otherwise had their country contained gold and silver mines,
in which they would have been put to work as slaves.
According to history, they did not forget all the arts of war or lose
their instinct for it. In 1761, and again in 1847, they rebelled against
the Government and made a great deal of trouble; and even at the present
time there is a section of the country where the Indians are living in
open hostility to the authorities. A few thousand of them in the eastern
part of Yucatan have made a great deal of trouble, causing towns and
villages to be abandoned in consequence of the raids which they make at
irregular intervals. Several times they have come into the neighborhood
of Merida and caused a great deal of excitement.
Frank and Fred heard terrible stories about these Indians, and were
cautioned not to go anywhere near their country. "If they get hold of a
white man," said their informant, "they cut him to pieces immediately
without waiting for any explanation, or else they take him to one of
their villages and torture him in the most cruel manner for the
amusement of the women and children. They live among the hills, swamps,
and forests of the south-eastern part of the country, and though several
expeditions have been sent against them, it seems impossible to
penetrate to their retreats. They have a very little trade with the
English residents of British Honduras, but refuse to allow them to enter
their country; one Englishman who had dealt with them for several years
ventured to go there, and was never seen or heard of again.
"They are constantly making threats of destroying Merida, and as these
stories are circulated they greatly alarm the timid portion of the
inhabitants. It is not likely that they really intend anything of the
kind, as they would probably be defeated, but they know the value of
rumors and keep them constantly circulating. In this way they have
diminished the population and business of Valladolid more than one-half.
It was once a prosperous city, but is now languishing, and many of its
houses are in ruins."
[Illustration: RETREATING FROM HOSTILE INDIANS.]