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Show 568 ~x. Doc. No. 41. ered with prickly cactus. The village of Sandia is an Indian p u e b 1 0 , a n o t h e y a p pea r . to own I a r g e he r d s o f c a t ~ l e ; ~ u t f r o m t h. e genuine Indian yells wl~Icb proceeded fr?m one of th~1r dances, It is plain they have. retaine? many of_ th_en ct~sto i~ S swce, as they have their color, in beconung Cathohc In the1r faith. Some mules were bought at forty dollars, and some fine horses exchanged for mules at our camp, one mile below Sandia; grass good; water from Sica· a fine cop per mine a few miles east of this camp in the hills; hear:l that the Navajoes ha<l committed some more mischief on the frontiers; volcanic signs, dykes, strata of lava, &c. September 28.-Remained in camp until noon, a waiting the arrival of the ox teall?s which had fall en behind. Many water fowl were fired at about camp, and few killed; soldiers are general1y bad shots; the game was tame, and showed that the Yankees had not often been among them. B Paver sl i ci es, and their work on the cotton -wood on the banks of the Del Norte, were seen in several places; they, too, will not rejoice at the change of government. The Spanish or Indian population have never turn ed their furs to advantage, else they would not have liv ed for hundreds of years in such a close neighborhood. The volc11nic appearance is less at camp; but the hill east is seamed with some ign eo us rock. .Broke camp at three o'clock, and marched three miles to the vicinity of the ranches of Albuquerque, through the deep sand on the banks of the Del Norte; one ox team did not get up until in the night; one of them broke the hounds, and was left. September 29.-Marched at 8; passed the ranch of Albuquerque when . the peop1e .w er.e jnst coming out of chur ch '· the women were carrymg some satnt In pro cess:on to lais hom e; some of them held a canopy over the santa, and four rarried the image ; the procession moved to the sound of a drum. The general's staff partook of some refreshment at two of the houses. It was remarked how delightfully co?! ~he houses were, a ft~r being in the hot sun. The pro cess of butldwg houses, make bn ck, dry them in the sun, build with mud mortar, lay over the roof beams which cotnc from the distant hills then boards or poI es, then earth and spout s, whitewash with gyp~ su~, smear th~ walls o_utside with mud, also the floors; the houses be~ng_ hung ~1th look1ng-glas8es and images, floors carpeted, no pam In walking a ?out-mode of building pe culiarly adapted to the country and eli mate. Passed A I b uq u crq uc and the genera I was pressed to stop, but declined all furth er ;ho~p itality; crossed the Del Norte at Albuquerque,.the ford being about two and a half feet deep, sandy, but not qu1cksand; marched eight miles be~ ow Albuquerque, and encamped on an open plain where the NavaJOe~ c~ossed the Del Norte at t_he time of their depredations a few da) s sm ce ~ after three com pames of vo] un te ers crossed the ri vcr ~~ 1y0 1 to_ ChibMollet_a, a party of Navajoes crossed at this point and 1 ec. eig t extcans on the east of the Del Norte. At this point there IS n ?t a tree growing within reach of us: the troops had to :pu~c·~tse fuel. The sand drifts in various places had ac.:umulatrd 1 ~ 1 8 ·. Sand seems to adhere on its own kindred material instead c covenng the surface of the land. It is fartunate it is so· this ' - .... .. I " .. Ex. Doc. No. 41. 569 I ( country would otherwise be impassable as well as uninhabitable. The inhabitable portion of New Mexico is confinecl to the immediate bordrrs of the streamR. The bottoms on the Del Norte are about one and a half miles wide on the average so far clown, and are elevated but a few feet above the level of the running water. QRI/I.NS GC'E:BOJ.t:TA .Al.OUQ(J£RaV£ SAND~ The Del Norte is rapid and regular, and its waters can be tapped at any point without a dam, so_ that irrigation ~s ca:ried on successfully . It remains for greater Improvements; In this r espect , to develope the resources of the country. A large canal along the base of the liills might carry all the water of the Del N orte, and be a means of transportat ion, while i_ts surp lus \~ater could be employed in the winter for filling res<' rvoirs, an d durwg the summer to carry water d1rectly upon the fields: in this way. the countrY: could ~e made to feed ten times the pre ·ent populat10n. The ra1ns of tlus country all fall upon the mountain tops, and the valJeys ar~ thus depend ent upon irrigation, a· the wat~ r only re~ches them 1n the big drains of nattae . At our camp durwg the night we could see upon the distant l1ills the camp fires of the shepherds who lead their flo cks afar from the habitations. Sept ember 30.-Marched at 10; the ox teams not having overtaken us, passed Paharito, Padillo, Isleta, Los Lcntes, and encampeJ at L os Lunas; pleasant camp in good grass, distance 14 L?ile~; during the clay had some pla<{es of deep sand through wh1ch It would be difficult to drive w~gons; the road generally good; some extensive groves of cotton-wood (pecan) on the river, o l ht~ rwise the country bare of trees or shrubs; volcanic rocks showed themselves on two small hills on the west of the Del Norte; the upheavement of the hill on the east of the D el Norte shows a force to the west, but at what point it has been exerted is not apparent. There is no hard 'vood in this country to mend wagons with-an oak bush occasionally, but generally not sound. Plantatio~s of trees would no doubt flourish. I asked Don Jose Luna's son If he |
