The strumming guitar... the lilting tune of "La Cucaracha"... a dark-eyed beauty dancing El "Jarabe Tapatio", the famed "Hat Dance" of Old Mexico - these will enliven your trip to Chicago's "Little Mexico" today!

The "Land of La Cucaracha" nestles in the center of the city's population here in that district surrounding Hull House on So. Halsted Street. It is one of the gayest and most colorful of Chicago's foreign colonies. Here one finds Mexican Stores where you can buy Aztec pottery, yerba mate from South America, and delicacies from Spain. There are music stores which keep the latest phonograph records and songs from the Spanish-speaking countries.

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There are restaurants where you can dine on the national dish of Mexico, "Gallina en Mole Poblano", or where you can get real hot tamales, chili or enchiladas. You can find your Mexican tequila here, too, the drink, made from the Mexican century plant and which is drunk with a little lemon and salt. Spanish newspapers from all over the world can be bought in this section.

RAVEN-HAIRED AND BLACK-EYED BEAUTIES

On the streets you see the raven-haired and black-eyed beauties for which the country below the Rio Grande long has been noted. And there are little Mexican children going to or returning from school.

While the Mexicans greatly outnumber those of other Spanish-speaking people in Chicago, they did not really begin to colonize here until around 1917. The Spaniards, of whom there are only several hundred here, have had their own little colony on the near North Side for nearly 60 years.

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Mother" Rose Pino, a native of Madrid, came here then with her three children. The name of "Mother" Rose is revered in the Spanish Colony. There are people here, too, from Cuba, South America, Porto Rico and Panama, as well as other Spanish-speaking countries. They are scattered throughout the city. Many of them live in the Mexican Colony.

The 15th of September is the Mexican fourth of July. In 1810 Mexico gained its independence from Spain, and the local colony celebrates this date every year.

The Mexicans have their own churches here, chief of which is La Iglesia de San Francisco at Roosevelt Road and Newberry Avenues. Father Zapatero is the pastor. In conjunction with the church is the A.C.J.M. or the Asociacion Cristiana de Jovenes Mexicanos. Here Mexican boys and girls meet for their religious and educational activities.

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There are some 25 clubs and societies here. The Sociedad Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla is one of the most important social societies. The Alianza Fraternal Mexicana with headquarters 1515 Roosevelt Road, ia one of the biggest fraternal organizations in the city. Fernando Moreno is the president. The Club Anahuac, so-called from the old Indian name of Mexico City, has headquarters at 850 Lake Shore Drive., and boasts a membership of some of the most prominent Mexicans in the city. Eugenio Pesqueira, the Mexican General is president of this club, which was organized a few months ago to foster Mexican-American friendship.

Some of the old Mexican settlers here, who have spent nearly a quarter of a century in Chicago, are Jose Barregan, Ismael Reyna, Antonio Pena, Francisco Huerta and Jesus Araiza. In the Mexican Colony are many well-known professional men, including Dr. J. B. Medina, Dr. S. G. Meixueiro and Dr. E. G. Trevino, the latter the official speaker at patriotic celebrations.

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Jesus Martinez, only 24 organized the outstanding orchestra, "Los Mayas" in the Mexican colony here in 1931. The first Mexican brass band was organized by Francisco Calderon in 1925. Rafael and Efren Garcia and Justino Sanchez are the leading musicians of the colony, while Lupe Plaza and Chiquita Rangel, Herlinda de la Vega, Maria de la Vega, Leopoldo Escobarete and Antonio Lopez Chavez are outstanding singers. Also among the artistic group are Paco Perafan dancer and teacher; Efren and Eva Racha, now dancing at the Paramount Theater in New York City; Nacho Vallarra and Tina Noriega, exponents of the tango; Alex Patino nationally known cartoonist, and Ricardo Valles A, Luis M. Vaca and Antonio Brieno, photographers.

On your tour in "Little Mexico", you will find your Spanish records and music at La Mundial, 907 So. Halsted Street, where J. J. Cortez, the manager, also carries a full line of Spanish newspapers and magazines. If you are looking for typical Mexican store you will stop in at the place of S. Esterio y Cia, 1024 So. Halsted Street. Senor Esterio imports from Spain, South America as well as Mexico.

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This probably is the only place in the city, too where you will find a full line of South America Yerba mate. Mate pronounced "mah-tay" is a healthful and invigorating tea made from the ilex tree of South America. It is brewed in a gourd and sipped through a bombilla, or a little pump of silver. You can read about it in your encyclopedia.

At the Vallarta bakery, 738 So. Halsted Street, La Gloria, a bakery, at 1009 W. Polk Street, and at el Chico, a store at Oak and Clark Streets, you will find Mexican pasteries and Mexican chocolate.

The gathering place the young artistic group of Mexicans, however, is El Puerto de Veracruz, 813 So. Halsted Street, just oppisite Hull House. Antonio J. Ladra Spanish born, and a former student at the University of Indiana, is the proprietor. Senor Ladra, affectionately known as "Tony" is a man of parts. He is an authority on bull-fighting and manufactures his own "banderillas" for decorating purposes only. He imports the barks from Spain.

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Over Tony's door hangs the fighting cape of his friend, Ortega, the highest paid torero, or bull fighter, in the world. If you are fortunate to be in Tony's for supper some night when Luis Catarelo, known in the bull-ring as "Silveti Chico", and Alfredo Velasco are there you will see an interesting exhibition of a mock bull-fight.

INTERESTING EXHIBITION OF A MOCK BULL-FIGHT

Catarelo will don the pom-pommed bull-fighter's hat and wave the cape of Oretga, while Velasco, carrying a chair in front of him so that the lege forms the horns, will play the part of a charging bull. Herlinda Rodriguez, a former actress of Mexico City, will become so excited that she will cry, "Banderilla el toro"! She wants the banderillas placed in the toro Velasco's neck, and Catarelo will oblige- by waving the banderillas. Both of these toreros have fought in various American exhibitions of bull-fighting and will tell you that it is more dangerous than fighting against bulls in Mexico or Spain. Each has received several cornadas, or horn wounds, from bulls who had all the advantage.

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Because in this country the bullfighter can not even slap the bull, but the bull can gore the fighter. They will tell you this work is "muy malo". After the "bull fight" and while you are eating your tacos in Tony's - a dish for which he is famed you may witness "El Jarabe Tapatio" or the Mexican Hat Dance, if Senorita Herlinda Rodriguez gets excited over the singing of "La Cucaracha" which you can rest assured she will. She will toss a sombrero on the floor and dance around the rim as girls in Mexico. After you have heard it once you will start humming it. And after you have heard it several times you will sing it in your sleep. The song which has many verses as our own "Frankie and Johnnie", is about a quarter of a century old in Mexico. But it is generally known as "Pancho Villa's theme song". Villa's soldiers marched to this tune and they made up many verses to disconcert the Carranzistas. Notably among these verses is the one where they were going to weave a hat band from the whiskers of Carranza to place about the sombrero of "Valiente Pancho Villa." Other verses can't even be hinted at.

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The chorus of "La Cucaracha" goes like this in Spanish:

"La Cucaracha La Cucaracha,

Ya no puede caminar;

Por que no tiene porque le falta

Marihuana que fumar."

It was started, according to the old story by a group of young men who once pitied a poor cockroach. While they enjoyed themselves they saw the cockroach limping across the floor. So they sang that he was not able to walk, "because he did not have, because he lacked, Marihuana to smoke." Marihuana, or Mexican "loco weed" would make even a cockroach walk! Anyway, you will leave "Little Mexico" with the strains of "La Cucaracha" ringing in your ears - so, Hasta luego!