86

This station is the junction of the El] Moro
Branch, 49 miles south of Pueblo, 169
miles from Denver, 87 miles from El
Moro and 100 miles from Garland.

Let us now “change cars’? and, while
taking a run, note the results.

Crossing the Cuchara River, and on,
over a broad prairie—with the Spanish
Peaks on our right—10 6-10 miles bring
us to

Sanra CriarRa—on the creek of that
name. Just 9 4-10 miles further is

ApiIisHapa—a small side-track on the
river of the same name. Then, over a
broad plain, 9 4-10 miles, is

Cuicosa—and 7 38-10 miles more bring

s to

Ex Moro—the end of the track. This
place is one destined to be a point of great
importance. It is situated on a plain near
the eastern base of the Raton Mountains,
and although the town was laid out in the
spring of 1876, it now has a population of
over 700, and is doing a large and rapidly
increasing business. The forwarding of
goods for the southern country is one that
centers a large amountof business at this
new town; and stores, hotels, restaurants
and shops of all kinds are springing up
daily. A bank has been estabiished, and a
newspaper soon will be.

Near the town is located extensive coal
mines. One vein that is now being
worked is a horizontal 14-foot vein, so situ-
ated that cars are run to the mouth of the
mine and the coal is dumped, by a shute,
into the cars. One great feature of this
coal is its adaptability for coking.

The railroad hauled away from E] Moro
during the year 1877, 700 tons of coke;
some was shipped as far as Salt Lake City,
to be used in the smelting of ores, but the
greater portion was taken to the furnaces
at Black Hawk, Golden and Boulder.

There are now in operation 32 coking
ovens—and still the demand exceeds the
supply.

Prof. Gardner, of the U. 8. Geological
Survey, made a number of careful experi-
ments with this coal in 1875, and as a re-
sult of his tests in reverberatory furnaces,
he says:

“Tn afew minutes both furnaces were en-

U

veloped ina sheet of burning gases, that

went roaring up the flues. Heat became
so intense that the ores had to be pulled
back to the chimneys, for that left near the
bridge melted down and ran like water.
The flame and great heating power were

CROFUTT’S NEW OVERLAND TOURIST

now too evident to be mistaken.”

El Moro is 86 miles from Pueblo, 206
miles from Denver, five miles north of
Trinidad, 65 miles to Cimerron, 105
miles to Fort Union, 150 miles to Las
Vegas, and 205 miles to Santa Fe. Stages
run daily to the last four named places;
fare averages 15 cents per mile.

TRinipAD—the county seat of Las Ani-
mas county—is five miles south of El
Moro, and is an old settled place; the

reater proportion of the people are of
Spanish or Mexican descent; stock rais-
ing is the principal source of income.
Coal mines are extensive—but until a rail-
road is built to the town the demand can-
not extend beyond home consumption.

Returning to Cuchara, “change cars,”
and we are off again—this time up the
west bank of Cuchara River.

Wasens—is the first station—6 7-10
miles from Cuchara. It is tastefully laid
out—having been settled by a colony of
Germans, who are ey in agriculture
and stock: raising. From this the grade
will be heavy, until we reach the summit
of the mountain.

In passing along up the creek, it will
be observed that all the settlers are Mex-
icans or Spanish, and they observe all the
old customs of Spanish countries, particu-
larly in their cultivation of the soil. They
ignore the usual implements of husbandry
to a great extent. They tickle the ground
with a wooden plow; cut their grain with
hand knives; thrash it out with goats,
clean in the wind by dropping it to the
ground from an elevated position when
the wind is blowing. Then when the
grain is gathered and cleaned it is pounded
to a powder between large flat stones.
Goats and sheep are their stock in trade.
Their houses are of adobe, or, at best,-logs
—and the number of children is only
equaled by the number of dogs; but all
seem happy, and we are inclined to say
with the poet:

“ Rustic ease and true content

Are in this valley sweetly blent—
And comfort smiles, and plenty reigns;
Here peace has undisturbed domains;
And here a rural, peaceful race

Has found a fair abiding place;

Its homes and plazas, simple, rude,
The walls of stately pine trees hewed,
Or rough adobes, crudely piled,

The roofs with “ dirt’? recurely tiled,
Are primitive. and cool and warm,
Secure against the winter’s storm,

And ’gainst the sun’s devouring rays
When with the summer’s heat ablaze.”

[There, that is the first poetry I ever