Smugglers' Argot in the Southwest

Abstract

THE LOWEST PASS TO THE NORTH, El Paso, Texas, has been a favorite rendezvous for smugglers since the time of the Spanish conquistadors. At this 'sensitive point' on the Texas-Mexico border there have been three peak periods of activity in the twentieth century: first, the turbulent days of the Mexican Revolution (19 0o-r4); second, the hectic years of Prohibition (191933); and third, the sensational present era of illegal traffic in narcotics (especially since 1950). Each of these periods has contributed special words describing its own characteristic activities. During the Revolution the rebel Pancho Villa rampaged up and down the Rio Grande, frightening the Mexicans into smuggling their cattle and anything else they had, including prostitutes,' across the border into Texas. They sold everything cheap, for they knew Pancho would confiscate whatever he ran into. During Prohibition El Pasoans went over to Juarez, not only to drink, but to bring home large supplies of contraband liquor. For a while it was sold in Juarez on the streets to motorists in the traffic lines bound for the Texas side. When Mexican authorities tightened down in 1930,2 rumrunners came into the picture and engaged the police in pitched gun battles while smuggling their merchandise over the river. Since the outbreak of the Korean conflict, smugglers have carried munitions unlawfully into Mexico and dumped numberless aliens and all types of narcotics into Texas. 'La Nacha,' queen of the Juarez dope ring, has stayed on her side of the border, but the impact of smuggled drugs has been felt throughout Texas and, indeed, in other parts of the nation. Smuggling at the Pass of the North today has both dangerous and relatively inoffensive aspects, because smugglers may be either professional criminals or petty offenders. Anybody who sneaks by the busy customs men at rush hours without paying duty on a taxable product becomes guilty of a crime thereby. Such petty border running is termed jam. The minor offenders are said to be men of the type who cheat on their income taxes or women of the sort who cannot resist a bargain or a sale. Women are rumored to be talented at selecting mannexations, quantities of merchandise to be taken over the border, and at concealing candy, small pieces of jewelry. When a female acts as a criminal lookout, speakers of the argot refer to her as bright eyes, whereas a male spotter might be called almost anything from an aguador (Spanish for