A Friendship Across Cultures: Life and Challenges in 19th Century Arizona's Silver Mines
For the first in this series, see A-Tiny-Story-Romance-and-Savagery-in-19th-Century-Southwestern-Arizona
Installment 2:
/pache-Land-Travels-and-Surprises
Installment 3:
An-old-time-arizona-silver-mining-pioneer-adventure
Installment 4:
An-anglo-woman-and-her-hispanic-neighbor-in-18th-century-arizona-silver-country
Jack Returns Home
“Welcome home, dear Jack. Let me fetch water to wash your face. Supper's on the table, stew and bread. Did you manage well today? It seems rather late?”
It was 7PM, and Jack was dead beat. Besides the roof collapse at the mine, Jack went back in to clean up the muck that covered the mine floor. Shoring and all manner of rock had to be moved out to make for a clean path into the working area.
“Nell today was a rough one. Hit a stubborn seam of rock around noon, and it cost us hours. Fingers ache from pickin', lungs feelin' the dust. But found a small vein, might get some silver out of it. Then a piece of roof collapsed. Exhausted, but it’s honest work. Supper smells mighty fine, I can smell the meat we spoke of earlier.”
His weary steps had given her pause. She was reticent to share her news. With a faint smile, she placed his food, her words carefully chosen, omitting news of a newfound friend. "Let his mind rest from the grind and struggles of his life," she thought. His need for a brief moment of peace outweighed her need to share.
Nell had news of her own to share.
Nell's Earlier Explorations
Nell had walked up the road and across to another adobe casa. She had noticed a young woman wave at her when they had come into town. She was eager to learn about the desert area and longed for some female companionship.
When she approached the casa, she could see chickens roaming in the front of the house. To the left of the front door was a plot of land being tended for vegetables. She thought to herself, "These folks are doing well. With such a garden the woman of the house may be a good cook and have many recipes, especially local ones." As she approached closer, she saw a number of shovels and other tools on the front porch leaning against the wall.
A Canela Introduction
The closer she approached the front door, the more cautious a dog in the front yard seemed to get. His ears started to lower, and its head bowed just enough to reveal the white of his eyes. With a slightly quivering lower lip he cut loose.
"Ark, ark, ark, gr.................."
A woman opened the front door and yelled, "Canela!"
The dog immediately recognized her master's tone of voice. The woman's face was tight illuminating slight crow's feet to the side of her eyes. The dog's ears relaxed a bit as she turned. Then her tail began to beat at the air like a feather duster.
Cordial Greetings
"Hello, my name is Nell. I am your neighbor over there." She pointed with her arm turning slightly. The pleasing slight breeze made the white cotton sleeve on her blouse wave gently..
"Very nice to meet you," the woman responded while slightly lowering her head in a nod, as if to say she really meant it. "My name is Juanita."
"Your garden is so beautiful, and your vegetables look amazing. My husband and I would love to grow such wonderful food."
"Come, I will show you around. I would be glad to help you learn," Juanita was enthused with the conversation and seemed, perhaps proud.
They followed a path next to the boards that allowed the raised garden. Suddenly, there was a sound, "chicka-chicka-chicka."
Juanita threw her arm out to stop Nell. "Be still!" she demanded.
A Slithering Menace
Not 15 feet away a tight, spiraling shape with its body wound around itself in several loops, had a raised head saying, "Beware!"
"Don't move," was Juanita's command as she turned and ran to the porch snatching a hoe. Nel was frozen in fear completely still, almost as if paralyzed. Her muscles were tense and rigid, with her arms and legs locked in place. Her eyes were wide open, staring unblinkingly at the source of their fear, pupils dilated.
Nel could hear Juanita as she rushed to the side of the snake. It was concentrating on Nell. In a nearly complete motion, the hoe was elevated above her head and came down with crisp, resonant sound, followed by a dull thud as the blade sank into the soil.
It was then that the rattlesnake flipped, its coils writhing over and over, first the white underbelly, then the brown diamonds, then the white belly again. Juanita had severed the creature's head from its tangle of coils. Rather unbelievably, the snake continued to coil and roll for several minutes. Sometimes a rattler can move for up to an hour after being sliced by an object.
Nell had held her breath altogether. Now breathing more rapidly, she had a cold sweat forming on her forehead. Then she took a step toward the snake at death's door. The hoe handle was quickly placed across her chest.
"No, it is still dangerous," Nell's guardian said, "No!"
Juanita grabbed a Palo Verde branch she had trimmed and used to disturb any grasshoppers that might be munching on her maize. She approached the head of the snake carefully with the outstretched branch tip nearly in its mouth. As soon as the stick touched the mouth, the rattler bit down hard. Juanita lifted it to show Nell how firm the snake held the wood.
When a rattlesnake is decapitated or seriously injured, its nervous system can still send reflexive signals to the body for a period of time. With a very serious look, Juanita interjected, "They do not die easily or quickly."
We Will Leave It
"Let us go into my house, but first I must get Canela," the words came slowly, as if a tragic afterthought. Heading across the yard, she snagged Canela and pulled her to the back of the house with orders to stay. Canela lay on the ground by a back door. Walking around to the front, Juanita motioned for Nell to come in. Her hands at the doorway made a motion as if to say, "Please, come and visit awhile."
Just inside the warm abode, a calf cowhide rug lay on the floor. Nell walked gingerly around it, as the skin was far too beautiful to walk on. Its fur was splashed with brown and white splotches from head to tail.
"Please have some pan de elote, I made it this morning." Made with fresh corn kernels, sugar, and milk, giving it a moist and slightly creamy texture, the corn cake is a delicacy. Nell and Juanita approached a small table where a cake pan, fluted all the way around sat invitingly. The rectangular tin-coated iron was covered with a white cotton cloth. The table with small floral carvings on the sides spoke of an older time.
Lifting the cover from the metal bake tin, Juanita raised a portion of the corn cake and placed it on a saucer, a wooden spoon to the side.
A Crumb, and an Amazing Awareness
Nel turned to find a seat and saw a campeche chair. With embossed leather for a back and a cane seat, the chair looked very elegant. In fact, it looked a bit out of place in Juanita's modest home. Simple curved wooden arms added to the graceful look.
Sitting down and conservatively savoring the pan de elote, a morsel fell to the side just missing the arm of her chair. She looked down to recover the tidbit and was intrigued by a low wooden chest. Its surface was dark and scarred yet polished in places from years of care. On top of the chest was a stack of aged papers, corners curling from the dry Arizona air. Among them, a particular document caught her eye—a brittle parchment with rough edges and faint traces of faded ink. Part of it protruded from beneath a ledger. As light fell on it, the unmistakable outline of a map revealed itself. The ink marks depicted jagged mountains, a river, and an “X” in bold strokes.
A Doggie Disturbance
Suddenly there was a loud bark at the door. Canela was acting up and Juanita went to the door. On opening the door, she saw Canela sitting proudly outside the door. The lifeless body of a rattlesnake, sine head, was hanging from her jaws. With the snake's scales gleaming slightly in the fading sunlight, Canela's demeanor was one of triumph.
Juanita demanded that the dog drop the carcass immediately. "No! Drop it!" Canela obeyed swiftly.
Picking up the body, Juanita threw it to the side of the yard. She would talk to her husband when he arrived home from work in the mines. She closed the door and returned to the living area.
Nell, on hearing the disturbance, gathered herself. She knew not what to think of all that had just transpired. Thoughts raced through her mind. Was the parchment she just surveyed of importance? Raising her head on hearing the back door close she saw a small painting of a Madona. Mary's robe was blue, the reds were sparingly used as an accent on her robe, while her halo seemed of gold leaf. Again, this image was so wonderful, and yet, with Nell's Baptist upbringing, veneration would be a sin. The painting, once more, seemed out of place.
Nell Confides at Home
Jack had just heard of Nel's day. He had a pensive look about his face. Even though tired from a hard day's work, his face revealed an intrigued look.
"Hmm.., did you meet Juanita's husband?"
Nell's response was quick. "No, he had yet to come home, but Juanita was going to tell him about the snake she threw near the fence."
Sources
Gontar, Cybelle T. (May 2009). The Magazine ANTIQUES. The American Campeche chair - The Magazine Antiques
Solly, Meilan (2018, June 8) Meilan Solly is Smithsonian magazine's senior associate digital editor, history. Why Rattlesnakes Are Just as Dangerous Dead or Alive | Smithsonian
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