Omaha Daily Bee Newspaper, May 2, 1909, Page 37

o ——————— R AN S S SR SRS MEXICO AS A HOBO RESORT Tourists Find Life There Easy, with Drinks Cheap and Potent. JAIL SYSTEM IS UNPLEASANT Native Beverages that Are as Dy and Liguid Fire—Samples of American Tramps Who Infest Mexican Capital. MBXICO CITY, April 10—~The tourlst season In Mexico Is gradually waning, and the citizen of the United States living here, while regretting the departure of the sometimes trylng but always opulent tourist, Is happy In the thought that his exodus will also mark the flight of the American hobo. No spot on the globe s safe from the invasion of the tramp If It be accessible by rall, and Mexico City, although many lJeagues from the border of the United Btdtes, 18 no exception to the rule. He crosses the Rio Grande at El Paso, Bagle Pass and Laredo. A knowledge of Span- ish, while helptul is by no means & neces- sity, as his vietim is invariably one of his own countrymen. The men in charge of the train crews are usually Americans, and few of them are ®0 flinty hearted as to ditch him in a forelgn country. Arriving at the capital he of course finds many people Who speak .Bnglish. San Juan de Letran, San Fran- cisgo and Independencia streets are in- fésted with American tramps and the dis- bursement of the tourlst on this account is a considerable item of his travelling sxpenses. “’Bcuse me, mister, I'm a ‘Merican clti- sen. Kin yer stake me to & plece of change?” This is 'his usual salutation, and you turn and discover a scarecrow that puts to shame oven the Mexican peon. The sartorial offects achieved by the hobo in his own country are often wonderful to behold, but after a thousand mile trip through the cactus of the Mexloan plateau ,he has Weary Willle backed up against the wall and strangled to death. Sacrilege in Sigms. Hand him a little change and follow him. e will lead you into the native quarter end disappear into a saloon bearing per- haps the Insoription over the door, #Bueno Tiempo de Jesus,” and this ls likely to be on Holy Ghost street. Here he may obtaln for less money than anywhere else on earth a:varled as- sortment of drink that will make a man £0 home and rob his own trunk and think he Is getting away with it. For Mexico is undoubtedly the paradise of the thirsty man. There is a wonderful plant Indigenous to Mexico which s responsible for this state of affairs, called the maguey, & large variety of the cactus family, whioh when they get it up in the states they dub the century plant. This plant will grow anywhere appareMtly without help from man or water. The more uninviting the 1and the more It flourished and it will not be denled exlistence even where a scorplon or a contipede would scorn to abide. And this plant s the fountainhead of Mexican Antoxicants, than which there are no more terrific under the sun. When the plant has reached the age of B years the large central stalk 1s cut away, leaving a hollow holding approximately from three quarts to a gallon. Each morning this will be found filled with a pweet, nutty lquid called aqua miel (sweet water), non-intoxicating and yery refreshing. J In twenty-four hours, if removed from the cavity, It will ferment and this fer- mented. liquid fs oalled pulque, resembling in appearance and tasting somewhat like sour buttermilk. Our friend the tramp can get a drink of this much larger than anything the Bowery or South Clark street has to offer for threo cents Mexi- can. It Is possible to get a beautiful souso on by means of this stuff, but a man needs all the seven stomachs of a camel to hold it Palque Pufts 'Em Up. Pulque when distilled Is known as mescal. A whisky glasstul of this dyna- mite and the tramp wants to go out to the bullring and show the toreros some Dew stunts; two of them and he starts to remodel Don Porfirlo's Government; three and he'll head a revolutionary party for Central Amerlca, and four, the finish, lands him in the comisaria. A redistillation of mezcal gives a dia- bolleal liquefied fire known as tequila. A Mexican can handle tequila to a mild ex- tent and it has cost centuries of applica- tlon and constant practice to bring him to this state of perfection, but an American— pever! Each ounce of this is guaranteed to contain six disputes, three fights, two head- sches and a Jall eentence. A jall sentence In Mexico, by the way, 18 not exactly a delighttul diversion, They have an institution here known as Belem. When Mr. Tramp goes to Belem he 18 placed In ‘a room.which for simplicity 18 a sure winner. It is slmply a cell coutalning #bsolutely nothing but a floor, a ceiling, four walls and « bad smell. Here he must stay for saventy-two hours, strictly incommunicado, which means that in all that time he speaks to no one, In fa dots not even hear a human volee. 1t's a great corrcctor for the everexuberant and a guaranteed panacea for all kinds of skates, tequila and otherwise. The tramp is not considered a citisen by his frat until he “has done his seventy-two. Not at All Cast Down, Some of the storles they hand out are an Insult to one's Intelligence. For Instance: “Hello, ole sport; guess I didn't see you before, hey? Say, I'm Pedestrian Pete. Know ‘bout me, don't you? No? That's tunny. “Why, I'm walkin' ‘round the world for the cup offered by the N'York Athletie club an’ & ten thousan' dollar purse. {'m payin' me respects to all the 'Merlcans goin' through. Got In from Guadalajara las' night an’' I gotter beat it fer Werry- erus termorrer to live up to me schedule. *“Me cantrac' pervides that I gotter go the whole hog on me nolve, an* It is sure a tough proposition. But I'm goin' ter be champeen if It kills me. “Bay, fer the honor of 'Merican athletics kin yer pass me some coin? I'm all fn." Pete, by the way, looks as much like an sthlete as a Mexican dime resembles a double sagle, and his wonderful globe trot- ting legs are trembling under him. When you inquire if he has any letters of iden- ltication he will tell you he left them with the mayor until ready to take the toad again, “as pervided in me contrac’” Another will tell you hé is an engineer and lost out through the merger of the Mexican Central and National lines, and turther inquiry will develop the fact that ke doesn't know the Injector of a locomo- dve from its firebox. YWhen you tax him with this lack of elementary knowledge of Ms alleged occupation he will probably awn up and plaintively complain: “Well, say, wot kin & guy do wot's t'ree Fousan' miles from Park row? I ain't no tginear, boss, but 1 uster break once on fo C. an' A, an' I ain't had nuttin’ ter Wt for two days" Hand him something for a cantina. Veteran Roughuecks. Then there is the genuine roughneck variety, who 18, if anything, dirtler and perhaps more Insolent, but plainly wetates his wants without the embellishment of fiction. This breed is composed of those who have been in the capital for some time. He will whistle to you from the doorway of a saloon, and if you are foolish enough to heed him he'll spring something like this: “Say, amigo, dig up an’' sport & drink, will yer? Say, commere; 1 wanta talk ter yuh. 1 betcha you come from Chieago. Didn't yuh? “Oh, Pittsburg, huh? Say, frien’. T know the old burg from the Frick bufldin’' tuh McKee's Rocks. 1 uster have money when T was in that town. Know Johnny Newell's dump, on Fift' av'noo? Sure thing! Johnny, he's an’ ol frien' o' mine. Wisht I had the money I spent in that joint. ‘Well, well, from Pittsburg, oh? Say, slip it in, o' timer. Seems llke home tuh meet a guy from there. Come on in an' buy a drink. T ain't got nuthin' today. Buy him the drink, he will then endeavor to kold you n conversation in order that you may purchase more, and he will re- mark to the bartender: “Say, Frenchy, this Is an ol frien' of mine; uster know me back home In good cle Pittsburg. Wisht T was walkin' down Smithfield street right now. I wouldn't want fer nuthin' there. Frenchy, shake hands with—with—what's you name? Ain't that funny! Never could remember names, but T remember your face, all right, ole sport.” Tell him you have some business to at- tend to, he will shake hands with you cor- aially and whisper, especlally if he has seen you change m bill: “Kin yuh lemme have a dollar till ter- morrer? Been expectin' a letter from Johnnie Newell. Might come any day now. Wrote him the ole sport was all in, down an' out In Mexico” Generous Men Marked. It you give him the money forever after that as long as you remain in the capital you are a marked man, and he will spot you on the street, learn your haunts and pester you to a point beyond endurance. Had you mentioned any other city than Pittsburg the result would have been the same, for these hoboes are generally ao- quainted with the principal thoroughfares of all cities of any consequence. On the other hand, had you paid no attention to his first advances he would probably have abused you, but you would have been safe from his pertinacity thereafter. Many Americans put up with this sort of tyranny because they have not sufficlent command of Spanish to invoke the ald ot & gendarme, and in addition to this when one makes a complaint to a Mexican po- liceman he gathers you in along with the accused and everybody else in sight, and the whole works goes to the comisaria, where you must make your complaint in Spanish or walt for the official interpreter, who may be two weeks in arriving at the station. They will tell you to call at 10 in the manana, and you will probably con- tinue to call at 10 in the manana, losing your tlme and patience, until you are heartily sick of the whole affalr. There is still another individual who in- fests the capital in large numbers and s also a hobo, but his work I trifle smoother. He Is better dressed and does not drink mescal or tequila. His appear- ance is shabby genteel, and he Always has some important job which he is about to enter upon next week. The lobbies of the hotels affected by Americans are his hunting ground, and he daily scans the register to keep himself informed of the arrivals. He will see, for instance, on the register that John Smith of New York is stopping there. He notes the number of the room and watches for Mr. Smith to Inquire for his key and thus indentify himself. This preliminary attended to, he bides his time untll he catches Mr. Smith up- stage In the bar having his morning's morning. This 18 the moment he selects for his opening attack. About the time the barkeep has danced up the bottle he will stroll up and remark casually: “Excuse me, but are you not Mr. Smith?" Mr. Smith answers in the affirmative. “I thought wo. Heems to me I met you in New York at one time. I have a very g0od memory for names and faces, but a poor idea of locality. Seems to me it was in New York. Mr. Smith, with bottle poised in his hand, thinks it must be ®0, too, and asks his interrogutor to have something with him. With great reluctance at firet Mr Booze Grafter agrees to this proposition, and when Mr. Smith, warming to an &p- parently respectable fellow townsman In a forelgn land, proposes another drink Mr, Booze Grafter regrets that he will not recelve his check until the first of the month. “Just got In yesterday,” Smith, after the fourth drink. “Been work- Ing hard for some years and deelded to take & holiday. Going to be here a week, though, and see all I can. By the way, know the town pretty well?"" " Yes, Mr. Booze Grafter knows the town all right and would be pleased to afford Mr. 8mith the benefit of his knowledge, to protect him from the rapacity of ignorance and Incompetent guides. Will Mr. Booze Grafter jump in a taxicab and show Mr. Smith some of the city? Yes, Mr. Booge Grafter will, as he has no appointment until 3 o'clock in the afternoon. After a drive and lunch Mr. Smith begs his new found friend.if possible, to forego his appointment. Mr. Smith is in & mellow and receptive mood by this time, so Mr. Booze Grafter says: “Well, 1 tell you, old man, you see this appointment means a ten-dollar bill to me, and ten-dollar bills are not so plentiful nowadays that I can afford to overlook a bet.” Oh, well, It that is ®il. why, Mr. Smith will be glad to let his friend have the tri- fling sum in order to retdin his company “You can pay me when you meet me in New York,” he explains, with a jovial laugh and a slap on the back to relleve $Mr. Boose Grafter's embarrassment at the offer and overcome his reluctance. Thus Mr. Booge Grafter works his game and flourishos thereby buy the old confides Mr. Men's Fashion Notes, Stick pins having miniature pictures un- der crystal are as popular as ever they Were and just now dogs’ heads In colors in these little crystal “cages’ are being featured in some of the smart shops A new fold collar has a dark blue ed, about an eighth of an inch wide. This s variant of the collar that recently made Its appearance in some of the shops, the collar with the colored silk stitching. Already fancy hat bands are being sold for wear on soft hats and there are in- dications that there will be more of them seen than ever before. An enormous va- riety of colors and designs ore ghown, and’ there is practically nothiig 1n the Way OF color or combination of colors that one cannot find Green, blue, pink and gray madras made of solid color material, but piped with white plque along bhoth sides at as well as on the cdges re belng shown agaln in and_close-lock folding col- me material and also edge; of the cuffs youse me AIRSHIPS BUSY A Dozen of Them Are Now at Work Up at Morris Park. SOME HARD PROBLEMS TO SOLVE Machines of Varied Types Are Under etion, but Difculty of & Engines One of Troubles En: tered. NEW YORK, April 17.~It is poesible that the early days of summer will see the thrilling spectacle of suburbanites In al ships on thelr way home from busine performing figures of elght over the city. But, however that may be, there will be plenty of attempts at flying up at the old racetrack at Morris park, where would-be aviators are busy with aeroplanes, helicop- tors, gliders and other air craft. “An enthusiast? Not a bit of it sad ohé of them the other day. He was lying on his back under his alrship engaged In tightening a bolt that had worked loose und spoke through the spars of the aero- plane. “I'm not an enthuslast; I'm the sanest man on earth. *1 know my machine will fly rigbt enough as soon as I get everything tuned up properly. This game takes time. One has a lot to learn. “I tumbled the first time I got on a bke. Do you suppose I'm to be dis- heartened because I came a topper the first time I tried to fly? “All the same there are some enthusi- asts I've heard of who say they will alight in the great white way before the sum- mer s through. But sooner or later it will come; oh, yes, 1t will come sure enough. Not that I would say stop bullding new subways. The subways will be usetul enough; they'll probably be transformed into & pneumatic system for the express- age of parcels. Motors the Great Need. *You may think I am joking when T tell you that It is not a want of machines or pluck, but only a lack of motors that is holding us New Yorkers back. But that's a fact. You don't need to go to Parls to see aeroplanes belng built. Here is this factory in full swing right in New York City. But the difficulty now is to get motors. “The other day a New York man with a big, bankroll spent the entire afternoon in automobile row trying to buy a motor and couldn’t. He got 8o In the end that he would have taken almost anything in the shape of a motor. Hls maching 1s com- plete all but for his engine. The one he first bought isn’'t any good. “He wanted to pay spot cash, too. But he couldn’t succeed. ‘The best thing you can do Is to buy an automobile and take the motor out.’ That's what he was told.” Then the same man crawled back out from under his aeroplane and again walked around the apparatus trying things. If any one wants to see flying machines being bullt there Is no call to go to Paris, Five cents on the West Farms subway to 177th street and then another nickel on a Morris Park avenue trolley, about forty- five minutes ride altogether from Brooylyn bridge, brings you right to the spot where there are élx or seven machines on the stocks. Aero Factory on Race Track. The aero factory is situated on the lawn of the old racetrack at Morris park, now the aviation grounds pf the Aeronautic so- clety. In front is the octagonal bullding, which I8 the lecture theater of the Interna- tional School of Aeronautics and in which hang models made to scale and beautifully finlshed of every airship and flylng ma- chine that has successfully accomplished flight, and where the novice can begin with the A B C of aviation and go on till he 1s actually flylag In the skies outside. In the foreground the other day were two men working upon an aeroplane not very dissimilar from that with which Wilbur Wrlght has been astounding old Burope. In the middle distance was a man practicing with a glider preparatory to at tempting fllght with a power driven ma- chine, Away to the right stretched the grounds which the Aeronautic soclety hopes scon to make famous. Near by the grand stands of the old race- track days, which may sometime be thronged with spectators watching races such as untll & few months ago no man dreamed of witnessing. A consplouous ob- ject in the infield is the catapult, the mechanleal contrivance which some aviae tors, among them the Wrights, use in launching themselves into the air, On pleasant days most of the machines are moved outside of the workshops for the added pleasure of working In the sun- shine, Those are the nearly completed ones. Others in thelr earlier stages are inside, some, in fact, under lock and key, for their inventors have not yet settled their applications for patents and so keeping their new ideas as secret as possi- ble. Fiying Machines in the Raw. The blg outer workshops present & curi- ous spectacle. Ranged up under one of the walls on the day of the writer's visit was the New York No. 1, waiting for some changes that early experiments showed were necessary. Further along, not yet assembled, lay all the parts of another machine, sald to be one of the | blwgest and heaviest yet designed. Its l"rnmework 1s to be entirely of steel tub- ng. Slung from the roof were other strange looking machines of all sorts and in all stages of comstruction. In a big pile at the farthest end lay a quantity of wreck- go—the wreckage of efforts to solve *he secret of aviation. Out in the center of the shop a couple of men were putting the finishing touches on a big glider Five minutes' chat with them showed that, In its early stages at any rate, fly- ing is not half so easy & stunt as it seema to be to those who have had the oppor- { tunity to see the Wrights sailing through | the alr with apparent unconcern. A glider, |1t might be explained for the uninlated, is an aeroplane without & motor or any driving power appliance The operator either sits in it and lets himself be shot out of the catapault, or he hangs on to the center with his arm- pits and springs off the top of a bank or some such elevation. This exercise may be a little alarming and violent, but it is said to be excellent fun, and with practice long glides through the air can be made, To the aviator the chief use of the glider Is practice In manipulating the ma- chine. It answers to him something of the same purpose as the o0ld school bieycle did in the days he learned to ride the wheel. It is best to get through the first tumbles on & machine the loss of which will not amount to much If it should chance to get damaged in the spills. Yet great forethought appears to be necessary In making even a glider. It looks stmple enough, just & slight wooden frame covered with sheeting and a smaller one fixed on behind with rods. Its die mensions, though, have to be carefully thought out. There are intricate little questions of whether the surfaces shall be flat or whether they shall both comvex upward or whether the upper ome alone shall convex upward and the lower ome be curved in the opposite way. Standing around were several different . All of these things will receive special attention in the future articles, No one can be well posted unless they know their own state. Your friends, elsewhere, will be glad to receive 2 copy of the issue containing the account of your home county. Next Week---Dixon County THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: MAY 2, Know your own State Everybody knows that Nebraska is prosperous. ever, even in Nebraska, do not know the source of its prosperity, except in their own neighborhood. Neither is it always understood in the cities, as to the cause of the general prosperity of the farmer, and the farmer may not be familiar with what has been most essential in bringing about the prosperity of our towns and cities. In the coming articles, descriptive of the diferent counties of the stats, the Commercial Club and their good roads campaign will receive attention; from what the state has been develop and the place it bolds today in the industrial world; the advantages Nebraska offers to those who may come here; what the farmers of today have accomplished, and the possibilities for the farmer of the future; what the stock-breeders and stock-feeders have developed and what they are trying to develop; what the dairy, industry has to offer and how it is being received or rejected by the average farmer. The fruit industry, has added to the pleasure and profit of the home; the corn grower has learned and is learning, and his knowledge of improved methods are of immense value to himself and his neighbors. The railroads have done much for the state and have receivd much in return from the people. Thrify towns and cities of the state are growing, and how they are making progress will be told. The county schools, the school teacher and county superintendent of schools are entitled to notice and will be touckied upon. 1909. Many people, how- sorts. Most of them were of the simple form. Others were more ambitious and contrived so that the operator can make certain variations of flight during his glide. . In the Inner workshop, or the toolshop, as it 18 called, another Interesting process was golng on, the making of aeroplane propellers. In this each man follows his own ideas. One man uses metal for the blades and mounts them on steel arms. Another uses wood for the blades, but has it cut in tiny narrow strips and mounted on metal, perhaps brase or bronze, while others cut the whole, blades and arme complete, out of one plece of wood, giving it the necessary twist as he goes on, Others again face thelr wood with thin sheets of metal, while others wrép the blades with canvas, and still others, per- haps to make sure of being right, do ‘both. And each has a good and substan- tial theory for his method. Art in Making Serew. Put whatever method s favored there appears to.be much aft In the making of the screw. The blades must have a wonderful twist which runs throughout their length. But just what that twist is to be Is one of the problems, for every- thing depends on the thrust against the air that that twist causes, In some mysterlous way the amount of the twist has to depend on the length of the blades and also upon the speed re- quired. But just how is what eaoch ex- perimenter is trying to find out, for it ap- pears to be varied also by each partioular design or ise of apparatus and fs inti- mwately mixed up with problems of the relation of speed to the total amount of supporting surface. It 18 demonstrated thae the faster you fly the smaller the apparatus need be. But whatever size the apparatus is it has got to travel at some certaln speed of it won't fly at all. This explained the use of that secming instrument of terror, awdy dut In the Infleld, the catapult, wiich shoots the mechines into the alr. It i not yo much the shooting Iyto the air that is necessary as the initial speed. Hardly any machine, ohe is told, ean fly at all at a less speed than about thirty milee an hout, and It must get that speed scmehow before It can begin. 8o the cata- pult glves It & thifty miles an hour push. These are some of the aifficulties that cause these disappointing delays. As soon as a flylng machine Is assembled 1t is confidently expected that it fs going to fly. But in truth it seems that the completion of the machine s only the beginning of it. Bit by bit the problem has to be con- quered for each particular machine. And it may be that the machine will be made over agaln once or twice before it is got ocrrect. First, the screws prove to have a wrcng plitch, and the slightest alteration means new screws. Then the engine proves too weak or perhaps only too skittish. A hundred little things crop up that have to be altored even to allow of the first ele- mentary stage of flylng, setting into the alr, Of the aeroplanes, themselves, they are an interesting study, for no two of them are alike, and each lllustrates some prin- ciple or idea. Most of them are aeroplanes of the biplane, or two surface type, but one 1s a triplane, and the parts are also there of a monoplane, which is of the helicopter | type, that is, it lifts with its propellers as well as travels with them, and therefore has to have horizontal propeliers as well as vertical ones. The different machines n the aerofac- tory reveal the many different ways by which the varlous Inventors expect to make turns to right or left and steer up and down, Some have rudders tar out be- hind, acting like helms of a ship. Others have the little vertical planes used for this purpose close up to the main body. | But the greatest problem of all ls what le called stability; machine from turning .turtle, over backward. On & bleycle one has only to balance sldeways, that which keeps the or toppling but on & flylng machine one lance both ways, back and front, as sideways. The danger of tiiting sldeways 18 averted by little weights on the ends of the big planes, and which are worked with the rapldity of thought by a lever. Ancther meronaut believes that the lever casnot be quick enough so he tries to make It automatic by having the operator's seat pivoted and connected with the winglets, so that when the aviator feels himself going dangerously over to one side he instinotively throws himself in thée oppo- site direction, and working the winglets by that act will pight the machine A RICH HARVEST CAN ONLY BE REALIZED FROM THOROUGH CULTIVATION 10 MANURACTURERS: F you wished to det the bigdest harvest from a diven tract of land you would not blow seed to the winds thinly scattered over the country. You would plant it regularly and sys- tematically in a section no largder than you could have properly watched and cul- tivated. You would then det the richest crop possi- ble, and if you were wise you would not overwork your land and thus shorten its productive life, but you would produce this year what would help the income from your land next year, and the year after, and so_on. t is just so in advertising. The use of so-called “national me- diums,” of deneral circulatian, is scattering your seed too thinly over too great a territory. You may det valuable general publicity in this way but you cannot expect it to do any thorough cultivating. This is no disparagement of general mediums, for space in them is well worth what it costs, but you must not expect them to yield anything like maximum results for a given territory. You can only obtain maximum results and profit from any gdiven locality by the means of Daily Newspaper Publicity. The newspaper will cultivate the local field as no other medium can possibly do it. It goes to the home. It takes the news of the day to the home fireside. It is the messengder between the outer world and the reader you seek to reach. It sells things. By selecting any section of country which best appeals to you for the purpose, you can in a short time and at practically no cost, demonstrate the value of this great cultivating agency—the daily newspaper—to your entire satisfaction. If you have been a user of space in general mediums, then you are all the more able to det the best value from local cultivation. Take akmost any one of the general mediums for an example. It may have 200,000 or even 500,000 circulation, but you will not find a great number in any one city or town. You can only det the maximum pub- licity by the use of the local daily newspaper. Take for example a cer- tain city in Michigan of 100,000 pop- ulation. A canvass of 21,132 homes showed that 19,781 of them took IHQ{ some daily newspaper. Can there be W\ § any other way to thoroughly cultivate il ‘ the home field which can approach ) the messenger of the day — the u ’ \ newspaper ! It stands supreme in power to cultivate trade locally and if you do not recognize you are not awake to your own best interests. For Information address THE DAILY CLUB 901 World Building, New York City e Sk K