Down El Paso Way (1952)

[Music] Cowboys come on along down El pasaway down in the extreme Western corner of Texas El Paso sixth largest city in the Lone Star State its name perpetuating the old Spanish phrase El Paso Del nor for the pass to the north where Rio Grande breaks through the mountains 3 miles Northeast of El Paso lies the historic Army Post Fort Bliss some of the finest Horseman Uncle Sam ever trained the Troopers of the first Cavalry division learn the fundamentals of fighting a war in the saddle at Fort Bliss its strategic importance was dramatized when Cavalry units set off in pursuit of the Mexican Bandit Chief panchovilla back in the early 1900s since that time the horse has taken more and more of a back seat to the tank and truck today Uncle Sam's Army is mostly mechanized but down here in El Paso they still believe there's nothing to equal the horse cavalry there's no question about it many of the Sand Hills in this section would bark any gasoline Steed ever met made but not these babies the troopers from Fort Bliss had a reputation of being able to go anywhere and they did hell bent for leather there's another product of the Rio Grande country wild and Willie that can go anywhere goats by the thousands vast herds of them finding the rugged country ideal for their Nimble feet and prodigious climbing ability all that fresh exercise must be good for the Wooly critic is cuz their coats are in great demand the finest mohare is made from the clippings they eat plenty of green grass and grass contains chlorophyll but still it's probably a good thing the section is well air conditioned and no butts about it nobody would ever mistake the aroma hereabouts for Chanel number five but then it doesn't seem to worry the goats any times have changed in this city noted for four seas of climate cattle copper and cotton but El Paso still remembers its past with fond memory and with fond attention to Dramatics a little drama such as making folks welcome when they arrive strangely in contrast to the city's modern dress is this reenactment of the old shoot them up wild Western Days the ran cheros ride again as colorful a band of official greeters as ever voiced a city is welcome they're a businessman organized as a sheriff's Cy sallying for to meet the train and give the visitor a rip snort and welcome wouldn't you get a bang out of a reception like this you bet you and you can bet these new arrivals will never forget the rip roaring howy they receive from the Rancheros when they get off the train in El Paso down on the Rio Grandy the first white man a Spanish explorer reached these parts way back in 1536 we won it from Mexico after the war of Liberation 300 years later in 1836 the influence of both old and new are quite apparent in the architecture of historic landmarks and in Modern Skyscrapers when a cowboy sings the old song about boots and Saddles he's right in key when he comes to El Paso in this land of horse lover and life in the saddle the art of boot making flourishes and he's soon all set to step out all he needs now is the saddle saddle you bet guess how much a fancy one costs 5 Seconds well sir for a fancy one like this Saddler is making all embellished and handtooled you could buy a new automobile for the same amount of money the art of tooling leather was a proud accomplishment of the ancient Moors they carry the art with them into Spain and then fire the conquistadoras into the new world boots and Saddles and what a saddle one that speaks of colorful romance down El Paso way where the river breaks through the mountains El Paso that hospitable town where a modern America meets the Mexico of old back in the good old days of the horse and buggy it was a rail Farm indeed that didn't have a carriage shed yes in the good old days when a could drive with one hand with no greater risk than a slap in the face Carriage making was a knot as well as a business it's not much of a business anymore but the art still flourishes at Kramer's Carriage shop in a small Pennsylvania town a visit here is like turning back the pages of time and peering into history The Village Blacksmith hasn't had a flat tire yet his tires are strips of iron Riv to the wheels in recent years the only customers have been Pennsylvania arish people who still believe that Autos are the work of the devil here's the Chassy what part do you suppose comes next the shaft that's the part hitched up to the engine oops I mean the horse well here's the finished product all set for leisurely ride down a Country Lane it didn't get you there very very fast but it got you there and back but now stand by for a trip to Ireland the cloth of kings that would be referring to linen of course linen the cloth of kings and we visit a bit of the old sard Island to see linen made the hills of isand the Emerald Isle are Misty in the distance there's a shimmering softness that makes this the land of elves old island with its people of the oil it's two- wheeled cart and top of the mon what else will we find here in Ireland children of course waiting in a tuneful little stream but faith and Bora I'm after forgetting about the number of this story linen so let's visit a field where they're harvesting a crop as Irish as potatoes flax it is also called lint which ties in with that word linen when was flax first Grown we can only guess we know it was used by men of the Stone Age Swiss Lake dwellers used it as rope for their boats the ancient Egyptians cultivated it and historians believe the Phoenicians brought it to Island at the dawn of History primitive ways then primitive ways now the flax is pulled by hand never cut they're always pulling never cutting when linen is made flax has been treated like this ever since man learned to spin the fiber into cloth the Primitive dissolves the Stone Age becomes the Machine Age flax grown and prepared in the The Peasant way of old today passes through all the technique of modern science to become Irish linen the inner fibers are separated from the stock in the grinding mill those inner fibers which are a textile treasure and the fiber is combed and combed again linen is a beauty queen with flax and hair whose stresses are groomed with constant devotion no halfway measures will do as man learned long year ago as I said before they're always pulling never cutting a pulling machine with Nar a knife breaks the flax if cut the ends of the fibers would not weave into thread the Tresses of flax would be lost here is the Machine Age modern science dedicated to the traditional fabric of old the vestments of Joseph in the Old Testament the purple and fine linen the sacred fabric of ancient Egypt for long centuries linen was the dominant textile today of course cotton is the cloth but linen ranks as the lordly fabric of tradition the cloth of Kings with Irish linen the most renowned Irish colines come from a long line of folk whose tradition is linen draw the warp as the flax fiber is turned into cloth a study in complicated technique and a study in human types the human equation that in field or factory is Island they're setting up the warp those threads which are extended lengthwise in the loom then there are the threads that run crosswise to the warp and they have a distinctive little name of their own maybe you'd like to take time off and recall what those Crossing threads are called will five [Music] do wolf is the answer sure now you've heard about those two textile twins warp and Wolf the mutton Jeff of making cloth the patterns for l put you in mind of a player piano these plates are the equivalent of a player piano rooll the arrangement of punch holes directs the weaving threads just as in the piano role they govern the Striking of notes this is the music of linen and it sings many a song of six pant for those who hit the right key we're getting toward the end of our story for here are the Looms at work and the finished fabric appearing as if by Magic this is husk the pattern made by the different directions of the threat white on white Fest of linen many people still speak of linen as white goods and here we are at the climax of linen technology the Machine Age reaches its climax at this stage of the linen game but it doesn't do everything can't take the place of old soul for only the sun can bleach the delicate cloth properly now another question you gal should know the answer you men can guess what is cambri you have the usual 5 seconds cambrick is a kind of linen too very thin and very white so our story of linen is about done linen as Irish as Patty's Pig and as old as the Emerald Hills the machine Ages come it may go who knows but linen is still made in the a way and we like to think of a picture of unchanging ways in a changing world so top of the morning to until next time we're all going places together [Music]