Document text
Marie Carter
Anthony, N. U.
1700 wards
OLD TIMERS STORIES
Bertha Mandell Candler (Husbands Jeff Candler)
Interviews June 27, 1937.
Then I oalled on Mrs. Bertha Mandell Candler, principal
of the La Mesa grade sohool, she was taking her vacation at
hose with Jeff Candler and the three little Candler?.
"I love to be at home with Jeff and the kiddies," she raid.
It beats going to California, the mountains or anywhere else."
"How long have you lived in New Mexico?" I inquired.
"Why all my life," she said, "I was born in old yesitlla.
yi parents came from Santa Ana, California in a oovered 'wagon
in 1g74. My grandfather Was Thomas °stead, the man responsible
for the first mowing maohine in the varey. In 1e76 he built
the first flouring mill at Iesilla. he building iv still stand.
ing, thougb no longer used for milling purposes, it was operated
by water. uy grandfather was the first farmer to attempt to
grow fruit on a oommercial scale in the valley. He vet out about
forty aores in apPlee, pears, peaches and grapes. About the time
the trees began to bear the coddling worm arrived and destroyed
the whole orchard.
"Grandfather also introduced the first pure bred &agora
goats and the first reTiaterees Paland.China hogs into this region.
He drove the goats from El Mora, New Mexico and hauled the hoge
in wngonp. Fe WPM so sucoerpful IV a 7ive stock man that he
follored that burineer the rest of hir life. He raised the Mex.
Jeans' wager from twenty-five to fifty cents, and in lg74 he
planted the fir -t field of alfalfa in the valley.
The firpt rchool I attended was at Mepilla Park, Vyrtle
Bailey, a onurin to May Bailey, or Mrr. Royal Jaokman, was my
teacher. I finished my education at State College and then taught
school, a prefoppion I have continued to follow for almost twenty
years. My first venture in teaching war at La !Triton in 1911.
With the exception of one or two, my manila were all Spanish Am.
erican children. I had over seventy ounile in half of my echool-
room and pipter JOSPift had ar many more in the other half.I taught
the primer, first and pecond grades while she taught the third and
fourth grades. We had practically no equipment with which to woek,
and the common drinking pail, containing a tin dipper stood on a
box in the corner. 4y -,ager 'mare fifty dollarp per month out of
which I aid for board and room. WO stayed at the home of Mrs.
Alvarez. crus, istella and Edurado AlvpIe? were my nupils.
"I have always liked the ,panish American children and their
parents. They were always very nioe to Ixe and eapy to get along
with. Mrs. Alvarez and Mrs. Valdez, were alwayp doing pomething
for up. Robert Valdez waft alto one of my nunile. And my pupils
always felt rmieved if 'teacher, 1r they called me, didn't share
their candy. r,very mornin y leek .7ar fairly loaded with donations
of all sorts. They were generous to a fault, but I loved
every one of them and never gave up a retool without Abed..
ding bushels of tears. I seldom found a Spanish child lack.
ing in artirtio ability. Svery one of them could sing,dance,
recite or draw, and they were invariably good in penmanship.
On Pan Joe* day they would take the little Santo, or statue
of their natron saint and virit every houre where they had a
ron by the name of Jove. Ire always alona end rere of-
fered refreehmentp of nine and other good thingr to eat ,-Ind
drink. They aelebrate here in La vet* too, but they only
Pernde around the church. The La Hepa mirrion, which bears
the ilee of San Toe ras built in 1M53, a yenr before the
eardea Purchape war pined. The walls are eight feet thick
the 1,,re, end it iv nretty well peepered with bullet holes,
f -r in the early daye it war need ap a fort. Thir house we
live in WRP sleet built in 1853. Whenever you see adobe ralle
PP thick ne ours and the oeilings made with la tillae and
viear, you will always know that they are very old.
*In the old days there were no bridge, across the Rio
Orende so we paid the Mexicans to ferry nv earner in their
skiffs, which they kert ready for that pur,,ore. If,however,
we were going to a party or a (game somewhere, we would ford
it with a horre Ind buvgy. One evening a young man offered to
take up girlr to s dance over at Anthony. We made it across
without any trouble, arrived at the dance in good order, and
had a good time. Following the dance we discovered that the
river had come up. None of us wanted to remain in Anthony
all night po we decided to risk the Rio Grande. Now I won,
der how we happened to escape with our liver, for the old
buggy was cradling up from one side to the other and it was
all we could do to hold on and keep from slipping into the
water. The poor old horre finally ptruggled through it how-
ever, and landed UP pafely on the western bank.
I taught at La Union for a year and then went to Las Crucee
to teach at the Central pohool where I remained from 1912 to
1916. In the latter part of 1916 I was married, but not to
the boy I loved. We had a quarrel and Jeff went away.
thought he wasn't coming back PO T accepted the other fellow.
But T. wasn't happy and I don't think he was. Finally we were
divorced and T. rap free again. Then my childhood sweethenrt
returned and we wee married. T have been very harry 1ith
Jeff landler and we have three healthy children. Hip father
war i. cattleman and Jeff war brought up on a cattle ranche.
kt the prerent time he's working on the Corralitap ranche
pixteen miler rept of Lap Crucer. The Corralitap hap three
hundred and thirteen rections. Harvey Biprell, Jeff's bops,
jurt naid twenty-eight thourand for some new rtock. Jeffie
people are from Georgia and related to Ara Candler the Coco
Cola Tan.
"After I war married I continued t2 teach beoaure I en,
Thy it. But following my recond marriage T repteA for two
years. From 1919 to 1924 I taught at Mesilla Park. Then I
returned to Las Cruces where I taught from 1924 to 1927. In
192g-29-10, I taught at Fair Acme, a suburb of Las Cruces.
Then I came to La esa where I am the principal.
"Thip pnring the teechere called et the homer of the
school children to get acquainted and to cement a better WA..
derrtanding between the narentr and teacherr. The American
mothere rere very gracious, but the Snaniph American mothers
were delighted, extended ur a hearty welcome and if they hap-
nened to be cooking, gave ur a prerring invitation to dine
with then. Their homer were remarkably clean and quite com-
fertable. 7e found tro families in need of appistance but
they aere from Oklahoma.
"The Mexican aeople take an optomistic view of life. A
little thing like a national 104 or how the future generation
is going to pay it wouldn't bother them like it doer the aver-
age American. They are great for credit; they like the rys-
tem of paying n little bit at a time on their bills. Some
timer a newcomer in bupinesr will have R. fit becauee some native
rune a bill on him and Milt to lay up in a hurry. They soon
learn, hoaever, that the exican ir a born inetallment manothat
he doern't mind aaying a little each reek or month, but to Illy
it all at once in a lump rum to any merchant seemp like highway
robbery. I have alwayp noticed that they have a. way of ptating
their troubles in a matter-of-fact 'ay, with no pelf pity. They
are alwaye ready to heln, pympathiee and grieve over otherp,but
as far as their own personal at faire are oonaerned, wellitn.
day may be pad but there iP always a brighter to -morrow-- a
manana or p000 tiempoi
"any things happen in a schoolroom to break the monm.
tony. One day I asked the ohildren how many of them owned a
toothbrush? So many bands were held up that I was amazed.
"Well, Roberto," I said to a large boy in the front row,
'why don't you hold up your band?'
"I no got wan brush,' be replied.
"The next day I noticed that Roberto was elated over some-
thing so I said:
"Well, Roberto did you get a brush?"
"The teeth be exposed for my inspection were gleaming white,
and I was proud to think that I bad something to do with the
transformation. Ris next words, however, brought as down from
the clouds where I'd been floating, with a jolt.
"I no buy the brush', he explained, 'set belong to my beeg
brother."
Bertha Vanden Candler rap born in 014 Mesilla, New Mexico;
')ecember 16, 1890; mother was Sara. Van '"Ankle Carad, daughter
of Thomas Casad, oioneer farmer of the ”esilla Valley, who
brought his family overland in a covered wagon from Santa Ana,
California and located in Old Mesilla in 1874; they were not
attacked by Indians but saw numerous fresh graves of people
whom they had murdered; Bertha Mandell Candler has taught school
in Dona An. County for the past twenty ',years; one of her former
nuoils ip Robert ValAez, a member of the Governor's staff nt
Pant a Fe; phe was educated in the public schools of Dona 4na
County ani finishen her education at tate College; Bertha
Vander Candler is the grinciral of La era Pchool; she is the
wife of Jeff Candler and the mother of three healthy children.