Page 68 - Cooke's Peak - Pasaron Por Aqui

specifically had used physical locations, such as the city and the Rio Grande rather than invisible lines on a piece of parchment, to preclude this contention. If the Disturnell map were to be used to locate El Paso del Norte, the advantages to Mexico and the disadvantages to the United States would be great, including possession of a major portion of Cooke’s road and 6,000 square miles of territory (Figure 20).
In their meeting on Christmas Day, 1850, the Com- missionersworkedouta“compromise.” Tosatisfy Conde, the Initial Point for departure from the Rio Grandewasfixed42milesnorthofElPaso,rather than 8, and to satisfy Bartlett, the line was then to run 3° west from that point before turning northward to the Gila River. With Gray still absent, Bartlett ap- pointed Second Lieutenant Amiel Weeks Whipple Surveyor ad Interim and persuaded Whipple to sign thenecessarydocuments.16 HadBartlettinitiated the surveys of the Rio Grande and Gila rivers, it
might have prevented the impending dispute, rendered the subsequent Gadsden Purchase un- necessary, and possibly saved Bartlett’s reputation as Commissioner.17
It is always easy to conclude what should have been doneafterthefact. Ifthecommissionhadwaitedfor Gray’s expert opinion or pursued the river surveys, it would have been evident that a line running west 3° from 104° 39’ west (the location of El Paso del Norte per the Disturnell map) and thence north, could not intersect the Gila River! Had this fact come to light, it would have proved (as should the location of Cooke’s Wagon Road) that the treaty negotiators indeed meant to use physical references and not lines placed on the inaccurate map.
On January 13, 1851, with the major question of how to establish the Initial Point on the Rio Grande apparently settled, Bartlett rode by way of Las Cruces to Dona Ana to meet Lieutenant Colonel Louis S. Craig whose Third Infantry would provide
1
the Commission’s military escort.
was preparing to go to the Santa Rita copper mines to assess the location as a main base camp for the
20
Boundary Commission.
Thomas H. Webb (secretary), George Thurber (botanist), and John Carey Cremony (interpreter), that they go along with the troops for protection and assess the area for water, wood, grass, and buildings. Bartlett loaned them his sumptuous carriage for the trip. Twenty large wagons, belonging to Hart, loaded with corn and provisions for the escort, also
went along. Bartlett noted that the men assigned to
the wagons would open a road wherever neces- 21
sary.
On the fourth day of the trip, Cremony, who was
riding his horse, had outdistanced the carriage and military escort. He entered Cooke’s Canyon in pur- suit of antelope and suddenly found himself sur- rounded by approximately two dozen Apaches led by Cuchillo Negro. Aware that the carriage was not farbehind,hedrewoneofhisfourrevolversandtold the Indians to come no closer or he would shoot the chief. TheApachesdoubtedhimbutthoughtthey had nothing to lose by waiting, and within 15 minutes the vehicle rumbled into sight, accompanied by some troops. Cuchillo Negro expressed^his friendship to Cremony, turned, and rode away.
After examining the area at the copper mines for about three weeks, Dr. Webb returned through Cooke’s Canyon (presumably with an escort) to in- form Bartlett of his findings. He made such a favorable report, including the fact that there were abandoned adobe houses that could be easily oc- cupied, that Bartlett decided to move the Commis- sion headquarters. The military also found good quarters in the old triangular Spanish fortress and were actively engaged in repairing it for occupancy. Bartlett described the Presidio or fort at the copper mine as of triangular form, about 200 feet on each side, with circular towers on the corners and built of adobewithwalls3to4feetthick. Henamedthe
combined civilian and military complex Cantonment Dawson, s Conditions were not to everyone’s liking, however, because during this time seven of Colonel Craig’s soldiers deserted.
At this point Bartlett was in a hurry to establish the
Initial Point on the Rio Grande because he had
tarried at El Paso del Norte for five months and
wanted to visit the Pacific shore before returning to
23
El Paso.
Commission assembled at the Initial Point. With Lieutenant Whipple’s appointment to act in Gray’s place, the group held some ceremonies and buried a bottle containing a list of the Commission mem- bers, a copy of the signed agreement, and a fragment of the Washington monument. They also erected a marker on the 24
The Joint Boundary Commission
Colonel Craig
Bartlett suggested to Dr.
54
On April 24, 1851, the Joint Boundary
The citizens of Mesilla, many
site.
of whom had moved there to avoid becoming part of
the United States, held a celebration upon learning of the agreed-to location, which would leave them in Mexico.