The Squatter and the Don
The novel begins with William Darrell explaining to his wife what makes him a settler and not a squatter, in his eyes, as an American citizen. From there Darrell heads to Southern California to acquire lands to "settle", build a homestead, and bring his family down south with him. His wife makes him promise not to settle on lands belonging to others and that if he does, pay the rightful owner of that land. Don Mariano Alamar was the man on whose land Mr. Darrell had squatted, along with several other American settlers. About this time people were investing heavily in city blocks expecting a huge payoff when the Texas Pacific Railroad was punched through to San Diego. Mr. Darrell's son Clarence had fallen for Don Alamar's daughter, Mercedes, which began the love story in the novel. Mercita's mother was objectional to this since Clarence was of a squatters family, so she sent Mercedes to New York to avoid Clarence. One problem- Clarence sought the Don's permission to follow her to New York, in which he did. Corruption in the government was a revolving door regarding Don Alamar's land title. The Attorney General had dismissed the squatters appeal on Alamar's land, only to have a subordinate attorney overturn the appeal so
Clarence returned to California and married Mercedes and offered to buy the Alamar ranch for a huge sum to lift the burden of the costs off of Dona Josefa's back. The failure of the Texas Pacific Railroad to come to San Diego broke Don Mariano economically and mentally. This could have easily been done, but by doing so it would have taken the focus off of what she was trying to accomplish in telling the plight of the native Californios. Darrell to confront Don Mariano which led to a sickening rift between not only the Don and Darrell, but between Darrell and Clarence, as well as tearing Mercedes and Clarence apart. Much is also known about how much injustice the government did to the Native American indigenous population, but little known about how the US government handled the Mexicans. This is where Maria Amparo Ruiz de Burton steps in to tell a story that a society governed by race and class wouldn't necessarily be exposed to. As a woman born from Mexican-bloodlines, Ruiz de Burton embodies everything about being apart of the previously mentioned minority that was used as a stepping stone. Perhaps this may have been a motivating factor in getting her work published. The imperialistic dominant white culture was in no position to see what exactly they were doing to the natives, other than sugar-coating their conquering and settlement to the world. Her intended audience wasn't solely to be that of her own racial ethnicity, specifically because she spoke kindly of the people she must have abhorred the most. They in turn have created history books full of admiration towards the dominant white race, as the saviors of all beings, the reason we are what we are today. Being a minority allowed her to witness firsthand the atrocities that began to happen to the native Californios after the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hildago. The Squatter and the Don was written to appeal to a wide audience of people, no matter their color, class, or ethnicity. A person that isn't interested in a romance novel, quickly became interested in following the path of Clarence and Mercedes, making the novel run smoothly and quickly.
Common topics in this essay:
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Treaty Guadalupe-Hildago,
Don Alamar's,
Don Mariano,
Mexicans Ruiz,
Francisco History,
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Acceptance Essays
