Puebla, the misgoverned—Justice under Colonel Cabrera—Royal Family of Chihuahua—Tampico—Presidents Diaz and Madero.

In 1909 I went to Puebla, to take charge of a large contract there, and came in contact with another kind of governor from our old friend Don Miguel Ahumada. He also was an old-time soldier (friend and supporter of Diaz), General Mucio Martinez, but as different from Colonel Don Miguel Ahumada as night is from day. Puebla was the most misgoverned state in the country, and the barefaced robbery and oppression openly carried on was a revelation to me. All the butcher business, public coaches, the best of the liquor business, and the theatre were in the hands of a clique headed by the governor. The Jefe Politico had bought from the state the right to all fines. The effect of this was twofold; habitual offenders, drunks, thieves, ladies of the Vida Alegro, &c., were turned loose as soon as their friends paid the fines, and never got jail sentences because they were such a profitable source of revenue. They would soon err again, be 301rearrested, and fined once more. I was told that any policeman who did not make a certain number of arrests in the month lost his job. On the other hand, the casual offenders (more especially those with a trade) always got jail sentences, which they worked out on private jobs or contracts of the Jefe Politico. This man made a fortune in less than six years, and skipped for France when the revolution broke out.

The Jefe’s assistant, Colonel Cabrera, was the chief of police till killed by one of the members of the Serdan family at the outbreak of the revolution. I found this was the man who could either be of much assistance or annoyance to me on the contract, and I went to call on him to find out what could be arranged. I told him, in the course of conversation, that I needed three watchmen on the job, and he at once offered to get them for me. He asked as to pay, &c., and then sent me three of the city’s secret-service men, and, I presume, pocketed their pay, as he was more than friendly to me during the time I was there. On one occasion a man of some importance in the city walked across the fresh asphalt and one of my men spoke rather rudely to him about his lack of brains and culture. He promptly had my foreman arrested, and in the argument that followed two or three more of the men got arrested for taking the foreman’s part. 302As I was riding down the street I met them all on the way to the commissaria, and had the matter explained to me. I rode on ahead, and went to see Colonel Cabrera. When I had finished explaining the matter to him he called an assistant and told him to go down and tell the judge to turn my men loose as soon as they arrived without further investigation. I thanked him and went down to see the order carried out. When we arrived in the court-room the complainant was in the middle of his speech, and the assistant, instead of going up and whispering the order in the judge’s ear, said, in a loud voice, "Colonel Cabrera’s compliments, and you are to turn these men loose without further investigation." Such was the justice one could get under these men; but it was really comical to see the complainant’s face at such summary methods.

On another occasion I went to see him about one of my men that I had discharged, and who had gone up to my office and scared my clerk nearly into a fit by waving a pistol and saying he wanted to kill me. Cabrera asked me if I had a pistol, and on my replying in the affirmative he said, “Then it is very simple, you shoot him the first time you see him near your office, before he can shoot you.” I told him that was all right, but I did not want to get into jail. “No,” he said, “that need not bother you, as he has 303threatened your life before witnesses.” I happened to meet this man a day or two later on the street, and went up to him and said I had heard he was looking for trouble, and that Colonel Cabrera had told me to shoot him if he came near my office. But he denied all enmity, &c., &c. I have always found it best to tackle these cases at once, for if you do not treat them with a high hand you are liable to get shot in the back some night.

From Puebla I went to Chihuahua to take charge of a contract there. The town and state of Chihuahua used to be run by what was known as the Royal Family. The head of the family is Terrazas, who owns in ranches almost the entire state, and the balance of the family consists of the Creels, the Munoz, and the Quilty, and I was told that there were 116 first cousins. All these, of course, had to have a living, and they were all provided for. One of them was building a large edifice at the time I was there, and was using one of the principal streets as his stoneyard to cut the stone for the building. He had the street closed to traffic, and was getting along very comfortably; unfortunately, this street was one that was in our contract to be paved. When we had completed nearly all the other streets we asked him to please move out and let us in, and his answer was, “I wish to get my work completed by a certain date. 304Naturally it will inconvenience you, but that cannot be helped. Of course if ............