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El Paso 1918 - about 100 years ago - immigration still a problem

HPmatt

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 18, 2013
Messages
1,467
Location
Dallas
With all of the reporting on police calls, and the journalistic niceties, it is interesting to read about how things were 'back in the good old days' before political correctness. Wife's family is from El Paso, but this predates most of them by a few years. The location of the shootout is now where the railroad yard is in downtown El Paso.

Here's a little bit of the description of the carnage the perp did after he had been drinking and went crazy - article doesn't go into any reason 'why he did it'. Also interesting to read about the various weapons brought to bear on the 'accused' murderer....

http://elpasotimes.typepad.com/morg...sed-to-dislodge-murderer-who-killed-four.html

Beside the shattered outhouse, on the west side and in front of the door was the body of Juan M. Garcia, an employe of the city tax collector's office. He had followed Alvarez to the door of the building when the earliest engagement occurred before midnight, shooting as he went. His body was covered with brick dust and mortar, but was not mangled by the shock of the explosion. Officers who had been near him when he fell, but who did not know his identity until after Alvarez had been killed, had seen him fall.

"The blankety-blank got me right through the guts," Garcia called as he dropped to the ground. The bullet had penetrated his abdomen, and death had followed soon. Papers on his body served to identify him.​
 

skidmark

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Jan 15, 2007
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10,444
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Valhalla
He backed off, fired again, and the ball pierced Loepr's coat, penetrated his trouser and brazed hardship.

What's a "brazed hardship"? Is that Texican for some otherwise unmentionable body part?

Now that I've gotten that out of the way -

What makes you suggest that this was an immigration issue? "Mexican" has been, and still is, applied to anyone of Mexican ancestry no matter how many generations of full citizenship preceeded them. The same as "Swede", "Dutch" (usually referring to someone of German extraction), or "Frenchy" are used.

IIRC most of the folks living in what became the Texas Republic were Mexican, and they stayed there when the political switch took place. Also, lots of Mexicans moved north to Texas for political reasons - there was no welfare back then to draw them and Texas was about as dirt poor as the parts of Mexico they came from.

But more importantly - was it a real brick outhouse, or was it made out of adobe? Real brick would suggest some serious wealth was squatting there.

stay safe.
 

HPmatt

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 18, 2013
Messages
1,467
Location
Dallas
Skid, no you've got it all wrong - El Paso was cleared out of Mexicans on this side of the Rio Grande by John Wayne & Dean Martin in Rio Bravo.
The only ones over on this side are properly referred to as 'His-panics'. This happens when you get to drinking too much tequilla and accidentally swallow a few of those mezcal worms...

Being around 1900, I would assume it was not built like a brick....out-house, but adobe.
 
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