THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC
A trip from Vera Cruz to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec takes the traveller
into the very centre of the tropics in Mexico. It is a most interesting
ride. The entire journey is within the _tierra caliente_ region and
throughout the whole distance of two hundred and fifty miles there are
only slight undulations that could hardly be truthfully called hills. It
is not all jungle for there are plains that are sometimes several miles
in width which furnish rich pasture for great herds of cattle. Here again
is seen the picturesque Mexican cowboy riding his pony and carrying the
ever-present lasso. The heavy saddles in this hot climate and especially
the twisted bits which are universally used upon the horses in Mexico
seem like a cruel imposition upon their faithful steeds. With this
combination of rings and bars a rider could almost break the jaw of a
horse. It is absolutely impossible for an animal to drink with this bit
in his mouth.
This leads me to remark that the finer sensibilities with regard to the
treatment of domesticated animals and fowls are generally absent among
Mexicans. The poor burros which are obliged to travel day after day with
great sores on their backs that are continually chafed by the loads they
are carrying, and saddle mules with similar sores, excite no compassion
from the average Mexican. No doubt many of these animals are obliged
to work for months and possibly years, when every step under a load or
the weight of a man must cause them suffering. They are seldom shod,
and many an animal is obliged to travel over the rough trails until his
hoofs are worn down to the sensitive part. Cruel spurs are jabbed into
his sides until they are raw. I have already spoken of the bull-fight and
cock-fighting. From a book “On the Mexican Highlands” I quote another
form of cruelty:—“The stocky, swarthy Indian woman calmly broke the thigh
bone of each leg and the chief bone of each wing, so that escape might be
impossible, and proceeded right then and there to pick the chicken alive.
She was evidently unconscious of any thought of cruelty. The legs and
wings were broken in order that the bird might not run or fly away. The
sentiment of pity and tenderness for dumb things had not yet dawned upon
her mind, and the fowl destined for the pot received no consideration at
her hands.”
There are many villages along this route but no cities. Several broad
rivers and innumerable small streams are crossed. The engines burn
wood, and it is necessary to stop on several occasions and load up the
tender with fuel. At Tierra Blanca are located the shops and division
headquarters of the road. As the Isthmus is approached the tropical
swamps become more frequent and the train passes through miles of
territory where “still stands the forest primeval,” a jungle of trees
and shrubs intermingled with countless varieties of palms; impenetrable
forests with creepers and parasites hanging from the boughs of trees,
and replanting themselves in the moist earth. Within these jungles
the “tigre” roams and beneath the heavy undergrowth, horrid, venomous
snakes crawl. Overhead fly noisy parrots and paroquets in couples and
flocks with all of the colours of the rainbow reflected from their gaudy
feathers. Then in the waters of these streams live hundreds of repulsive
alligators.
At certain seasons of the year the Indians live almost entirely upon
the wild products of the forest. Nature furnishes fruits, and with the
blow-gun or other weapon enough game can be killed to fill the larder.
With a natural laziness and in an enervating climate the natives prefer
existence of this kind to the more artificial one made necessary by
labour.
The Vera Cruz and Pacific Railway connects with the Tehuantepec railway
at Santa Lucrecia, a small village with a poor hotel. Here it was my lot
to be obliged to spend Christmas Eve and the greater part of Christmas
day. My companions were an Englishman and a Scotchman. The Englishman
rummaged around in the little store and found a canned plum pudding,
which rather cheered him and his compatriot and I was invited to share
in their good fortune. However the heavens seemed to open up and let the
water pour down in torrents and the mud was apparently bottomless so
that our explorations were confined to the hotel porch. In spite of the
plum pudding my spirits were rather low and I was reminded of Touchstone
wandering in the Forest of Arden, when he says:—
“When I was at home I was in a better place,
But travellers must be content.”
It was a real pleasure to step into a fine American coach drawn by an
American engine and run by an American crew bound for the chief town of
the Isthmus and the one that gave it its name.
[Illustration: THE MARKET, TEHUANTEPEC]
Tehuantepec is a place where some twenty thousand souls are trying to
solve the problem of existence under favourable skies. In this city of
a hot midday sun and little rain the strenuous life has few disciples.
It is situated on the Pacific slope of the Cordillera on both banks of a
broad river and only a few miles from the ocean. It is composed of low,
one-storied buildings, many of which show cracks that are the result
of the earthquake shocks which sometimes visit here. The streets are
narrow and the centre of the town is the market plaza. Until the opening
of the railroad, which runs through the centre of the town, strangers
were almost unknown and the quaint customs, costumes and habits still
remain. The market and the river furnish the only life. The latter
is always made lively and interesting to the stranger because of the
crowds of bathers in the stream and washerwomen on the banks. It is an
animated scene and has an air of naturalness devoid of any false ideas
of modesty. These Indians belong to the Zapotec tribe and they are among
the cleanest people in the world, as a race, as the long lines of bathers
of both sexes from early dawn until nightfall attest. Woman’s rights are
recognized and undisputed among these people. The women run the place
and do ninety per cent. of the business. The wife must vouch for the
husband before he can obtain credit. In the market place where most of
the bartering is done she reigns supreme.
The Isthmus of Tehuantepec is the narrowest neck of land in Mexico
between the two great oceans and, with the exception of the Isthmus of
Panama, is the narrowest point on the continent. The soil is extremely
rich and the natural products and resources of the Isthmus are numerous
and varied. All products indigenous to the tropics grow here. Different
sections, according to elevation, are especially adapted to the
cultivation of corn, cacao, tobacco, rice and sugar cane. Medicinal
plants, spices, all tropical fruits, vanilla, indigo and cotton also will
grow profitably in this climate. Cochineal dye has for a long time come
from the Tehuantepec region, but this industry has been displaced by the
more recent chemical dyes.
The forests abound in game and the rivers and lagoons in fish. The
forests yield useful timbers, such as mahogany, also dyewoods and trees
producing gums and balsams. Oil in paying quantities has been discovered
in several places and the Tehuantepec National Railway, which crosses
the isthmus, is one of the few roads in the world that uses oil for
fuel. There are also profitable salt deposits. A great deal of American
and European capital has been sunk in unsuccessful plantations along
this route. This has been due to illogical and dishonest promotion.
The fertile soil will produce immense crops of the things adapted for
cultivation. With this fact in view it seems strange to see one abandoned
plantation after another as you journey over the two hundred miles
separating Coatzacoalcos and Salina Cruz, the two termini of the Isthmus
of Tehuantepec trans-continental and inter-oceanic railroad route. In the
matter of climate the Mexicans claim a great superiority for Tehuantepec
over Panama, because of the strong winds that blow constantly from ocean
to ocean.
For centuries this isthmus has attracted a great deal of attention from
explorers and engineers in the effort to discover or provide the most
convenient and economical route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
Cortez first realized the necessity of such a route and explored this
whole section in the hope of finding a natural strait. It is even claimed
that he conceived the idea of a canal across this narrow strip of land.
Failing in these projects he planned a carriage road from coast to coast,
which was finally constructed by the Spaniards. Many of the miners who
flocked to California during the gold excitement went by this highway.
Later civil engineers proposed and advocated a canal by this route even
before the Panama route was seriously considered. The distance from ocean
to ocean is only one hundred and twenty-five miles in a bee line. The
land is comparatively level and the rise on the Atlantic side is very
gradual culminating in the Chivela Pass at a height of seven hundred and
thirty feet. From here to the Pacific the descent is more abrupt. A ship
railway was at one time seriously considered and liberal concessions
were granted by the Mexican government to the American engineer James B.
Eads and his associates. This project although considered feasible by
engineers has never been able to enlist capital for its construction.
The Panama Canal under French control was a colossal failure. A project
which for a time seemed to promise a solution of the problem for a quick
and economical route between the East and West ended in lamentable
disgrace and for a long time remained in what one of our former
presidents would have called, a condition of “innocuous desuetude.” When
the United States undertook this great enterprise, the completion of this
desirable waterway was placed at ten years or even less. Now at the end
of four years we are credibly informed that little has been done except
the completion of plans, surveys, purchase of machinery and necessary
sanitation. All of these preliminaries were essential and will greatly
facilitate the real work when once started. All loyal Americans believe
in the ultimate successful completion of this great undertaking. Yet,
instead of ten years, we can see that fifteen years, or even twenty years
would be a more accurate statement of the time necessary to complete the
severing of the two continents. In the meantime, what?
While other countries have been planning, the Mexican government with
the characteristic foresight shown by President Diaz has been quietly
preparing to meet the problem of a short and economical route between
the two oceans. This has been done without the blowing of horns and few
people were aware until recently of what was being done and what had
really been accomplished. The government of Mexico decided upon the
plan of constructing a railway across the Isthmus from Coatzacoalcos,
on the Gulf of Mexico, to Salina Cruz, on the Pacific Ocean, a distance
of one hundred and ninety-four miles. Most railroads in tropical lands
are narrow gauge but this line is constructed of standard width and was
completed in 1895. When first opened to traffic the road was in a very
imperfect condition. In 1899 a contract was entered into between the
government and the English house of Pearson and Sons whereby the two
parties became joint owners of the road for a period of fifty years and
the net earnings should be shared on an equitable basis.
The construction was of a difficult character because the route passed
through some cañons, rocky cuts and a great deal of swampy soil. The work
has been well done and it is one of the best roads in Mexico to-day, with
good equipment and traffic managed in an up-to-date and business-like
manner. Already large orders for equipment have been placed and plans
for double-tracking the entire road have been drawn. The headquarters
and general offices are at Rincon Antonio, which is at the highest point
and has the appearance of a typical new English town with its red brick
terraces. This town receives the full benefit of the winds constantly
blowing across the isthmus and enjoys a pleasant and salubrious climate.
The shops and roundhouse for the railroad have been built at this place
also and the employees are all comfortably housed. Some of the officers
have built very commodious homes of their own, with every possible
convenience. This town is in marked contrast with the old Mexican towns
and villages along the route.
The general officers of the road and head men in the port works at both
termini are all English and Americans. Formerly they were English, but in
recent years the Americans have been replacing the English, as they have
been found more satisfactory and better adapted for the work.
The government soon learned that the railway without good harbours was a
poor proposition. The plans of the government were then made to include
immense port works and safe, commodious harbours at Coatzacoalcos and
Salina Cruz. At the former place the river forms a natural harbour of
an average depth of fifty feet at low water. The only problem here was
to remove a sand bar and construct piers. The work of removing the bar
has been completed and several large steel wharves and warehouses have
already been constructed and others are in course of construction.
The total frontage of the wharves when completed will be over three
thousand feet. It is intended to have a minimum depth of thirty-three
feet alongside of the wharves which will be equipped with every modern
contrivance for unloading cargo quickly and economically from ships, and
transferring to the railroad and vice versa.
The work at Salina Cruz presented far greater problems. It has demanded
the maximum of engineering skill and an immense sum of money. Here nature
had aided in no way and everything had to be done by human effort. On
account of severe wind storms it was deemed necessary to construct both
an outer and an inner harbour in order to make a perfectly safe anchorage
at all times and the work was begun in 1900. The outer harbour is being
formed by thrusting two massive breakwaters like immense arms out into
the bay with an entrance six hundred feet wide. The longest of these
breakwaters will be three thousand feet, consisting of three sections, of
different angles, with the convex sides toward the sea. The other is only
one-half as extensive. The foundation for these breakwaters is started
thirty feet below low water mark and in some places is two hundred
feet in width. Upon a rubble foundation immense blocks of concrete and
natural rock are placed at random. Then on top are placed regular rows of
forty-ton concrete blocks. The amount of material already used and needed
to complete this work is almost inconceivable. More than three-fourths
of the largest breakwater is already completed. The inner basin will be
wholly artificial and will occupy in part the site of the old town of
Salina Cruz with an entrance ninety feet wide. Immense dredges are now at
work on this basin which will be large enough to accommodate whole fleets
of the largest vessels afloat. From two thousand to four thousand men
have been and are still employed, the majority being natives.
Although the harbour at Salina Cruz is still incomplete, this route was
formally opened on January 23rd, 1907. In the presence of a great throng
of notables, including the representatives of twenty nations, President
Diaz touched a lever which set in motion a steam winch that was used to
carry the first load of cargo from a steamer to a freight car. After this
car had been loaded it was transferred to Coatzacoalcos and the President
touched another lever that set in motion the machinery for unloading the
car and transferring the freight to a waiting steamer. In this manner was
opened a route that is destined to take a prominent part in the handling
of the world’s commerce, and which has cost the Mexican government more
than $25,000,000 in gold, and the end is not yet. After four hundred
years the dream of Cortez has come true and the isthmian highway is open
to the world.
What advantages are claimed for this route? The benefit to Mexico is
self-evident. It will greatly facilitate the commerce between the two
long coast lines of the republic. This great undertaking was not begun
for the national trade alone. It is intended to compete for all that
traffic which has heretofore gone around Cape Horn, through the Straits
of Magellan, or across the Panama railroad. The Tehuantepec route is
one thousand, two hundred and fifty miles shorter between New York and
San Francisco than the Panama route. The average freight steamer would
require from four to five days to cover this distance. The managers of
the Tehuantepec National railroad propose to unload a cargo, carry it
across the isthmus and reload it in two days. It will probably require
one day for a vessel to pass through the Panama canal. This would make
a net saving of from three to four days for the Tehuantepec route. The
extra cost of loading and unloading would be made up by the saving of
canal dues and expenses of the ship for that period. Thus there will be
a net saving of three to four days in shipment, which might be quite a
feature with many classes of freight. In cheapness of transportation, the
continental railroads of the United States could not compete. Already
contracts have been made with a line of steamers which have heretofore
run between San Francisco, Hawaii and New York via Cape Horn to transfer
their freight by this route. The government claims to have more freight
in sight for 1907 than the Panama railroad has ever carried in a single
year.
This route has been lost sight of in the enthusiasm over the Panama
canal. It will be completed several years before the canal, and will
during that interim, at least, have a great advantage over the present
Panama railroad route. The same necessity of transhipment exists there,
but without the fine, safe harbours, modern and commodious docks, and the
quick loading and unloading machinery with which the Tehuantepec route is
equipped.
NOTE TO REVISED EDITION. The success of the Tehuantepec
National Railroad has greatly exceeded expectations, and it
was found necessary to double track the entire length of the
road. The improvements at Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos (now
officially called Puerto Mexico) have been completed. Both
cities have been made ports of call for all lines of steamers
passing near. Through Pullman service is now maintained between
the City of Mexico and Salina Cruz. Since writing the original
edition of this book the writer has visited Panama and gone
over the canal route with Colonel Goethals, the engineer in
charge. It is a pleasure to record an appreciation of this
great work, and to know that it will be ready for the world’s
fleets by 1915, and probably a year earlier. There will still
be a wide field of usefulness, however, for the Tehuantepec
National.