In this country there is no better place to find the
preservation of the old Spanish ways than New Mexico, as this
state is well known for having been isolated hundreds of years
by vast rugged distances and warring Indians. So well preserved
are the origins of the American West that even the 15th century
"foundation" livestock scarcely available in other parts of the
world thrive in New Mexico. You can still find descendants of
the rugged, enduring, power house-in-a-small-package Spanish
Barb horses, Churra sheep, and Corriente cattle. You can hear
cowboy history in the old, spoken Spanish. Although these old
vaqueros are increasingly hard to find, there remain a few
smaller than average, more rugged than average Onate colony
decendents who will speak to you in the 15th century Spanish of
the conquistadores preserved through fifteen generations of oral
tradition. Happily, to this day, the romance of wide open
western spaces lives on in New Mexico. The Spanish caballero,
already sporting a legacy of proud hors