Most of it is hilly and clad in oaks and pines; but there are also extensive tracts of fine arable land, partly under cultivation, and fairly good tracks connect the solitary villages and ranches scattered over the district.

The country of the aborigines has been invaded and most of the descendants of the former sovereigns of the realm have been reduced to earning a precarious living by working for the white and mixed-breed usurpers on their ranches or in their mines.

The native language, religious customs, and dress are being modified gradually in accordance with the new regime.

Only in the less desirable localities have the Tarahumares been able to hold their own against the conquerors.
There is not much interest attached to the study of half-civilised natives, but the first pure-blooded Tarahumares I met on their little ranch about ten miles south of Temosachic were distinctly Indian and very different from the ordinary Mexican family.

There was a kind of noble bearing and reserve about them which even the long contact with condescending whites and half-breeds had not been able to destroy.