Page:Campbell's new revised complete guide and descriptive book of Mexico (IA campbellsnewrevi00camp).pdf/19

13 Agriculture and Forests--The lands of Mexico, with its diversified climate, grow the vegetable products of the world--corn, wheat, rye and barley, of the temperate zone, on the uplands; sugar cane, coffee, the finest in the world, vanilla, cotton, indigo, rubber, tobacco, jalap and cocoa in the hot lands, while every variety of cactus produces something of use, from the fibre of the ixtle to the pulque, tequila and mescal of the maguey.

The Maguey, the American Aloe, is probably the most popular plant that grows in Mexico; from the various branches of the maguey family are produced the intoxicating drinks of the country, pulque, tequila and mescal. The maguey is what we call the Century plant, from the idea that it blooms once in a hundred years--which is correct--it blooms but once in its life. Tequila and mescal, both transparent liquors, are obtained by a distillation of the root and the lower leaves after roasting; the liquor is very strong,

GATHERING PULQUE.

having a large percentage of alcohol. Pulque is the fermented sap or juice of the maguey. When the plant is about to bloom the stem that would in a few days run up to a height, is cut out, forming a bowl, into which gathers the sap that would otherwise produce this long stalk; this juice or sap, called agua miel, honey water, is gathered a gallon or two each day till the plant is exhausted, when it dies and another one is put in its place that will not produce for eight or ten years. A peon and a burro laden with empty hog-skin bags or bottles go through the fields; finding a plant that is ready the peon takes a long slender gourd that has a small hole in each end; one end in the bowl of sap in the plant the other in his lips he draws the sap into the gourd until it is full, then empties it into the hogskins, and when they are full they are emptied into a cask on a near-by cart, taken to the hacienda, fermented overnight and taken to the City in the