Singers and Storytellers Page: 67
v, 298 p. ; 24 cm.View a full description of this book.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
FOLKLORE AND HISTORY
be classified as a Mexican, the other as an American patriotic
song. Composed just nineteen years after the Nueces-Rio
Grande area had ceased to be Tamaulipas, they show the
strong ambivalence in the Texas-Mexican's attitude toward
Mexico and the United States, a state of mind that is important
in understanding the history of South Texas from the days of
Juan N. Cortina to the present.
In the song to Zaragoza we hear American citizens called
"sons of the Fatherland." Which one? Mexico or the United
States? Zaragoza's flag is saluted, and so is Grant's. It is not
easy to decide which Constitution the individual singer would
have in mind when he praised Grant as "defender of the
Constitution." Perhaps he thought of both: the American
Constitution, challenged by the Confederacy, and the Mexican
Constitution, threatened by the French.
Just what the Border Mexican's attitude was toward the
political and ideological issues of those two conflicts is a
debatable question. On the whole, northern Mexico was
pro-Juarez. With a few exceptions, such as that of the notable
Benavides family, Texas-Mexicans were not active supporters
of the Confederacy. But Matamoros and its port of Bagdad
served as an outlet for Confederate cotton; so that if the Border
Mexican did not give active military support to the Confed-
eracy, he did support it at times in an indirect way.
A view often expressed is that the average Border Mexican
cared nothing about the issues that had brought civil war to
both nations. But if these two songs have the long history in
oral tradition that we are justified in believing they have, then
the Border Mexican did have some knowledge of the more
abstract issues of the two wars in which he became involved.
The very fact that the songs have come down to us as a
pair indicates that the Border people were aware of a similarity
between Grant and Zaragoza, that they were the chief military
figures in defense of certain ideas. The more sophisticated mind,
in personifying the ideals of the American Civil War and the67
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This book can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Related Items
Other items on this site that are directly related to the current book.
Singers and Storytellers (Book)
Collection of popular folklore of Texas, including personal anecdotes about storytellers and singers, as well as folk songs, myths, and ghost stories. The index begins on page 295.
Relationship to this item: (Has Format)
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Book.
Boatright, Mody C. Singers and Storytellers, book, 1961; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc67655/m1/73/: accessed April 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Press.