Imperial (2 page)
Authors: William T. Vollmann
Chapter 143 - THE SALTON SEA (1944-1986)
Chapter 144 - MARKET PRICES (1975)
Chapter 145 - SAN DIEGO (1975)
Chapter 147 - “THE LANGUAGE SEEMS TO BELONG SO TO THIS COUNTRY” (ca. 1960-2003)
Chapter 148 - LOS ANGELES (1975)
Chapter 149 - EL CENTRO (1975)
Chapter 150 - THE INLAND EMPIRE (1875-2004)
Chapter 151 - SUBDELINEATIONS: ORANGESCAPES (or, “It Could Be Called Ambrosia I ...
Chapter 152 - CALICHE (1975-2005)
Chapter 153 - IMPERIAL REPRISE (1754-2004)
Chapter 154 - THE PROHIBITED BALLADS (1913-2005)
Chapter 155 - THE MAQUILADORAS (2004)
Chapter 156 - SUBDELINEATIONS: WATERSCAPES (1975-2005)
Chapter 157 - AS PRECIOUS AS THIS (2003)
Chapter 158 - ONE ACRE-FOOT (1903-2003)
Chapter 159 - OPERATION GATEKEEPER (1994)
Chapter 160 - THE FARM WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT PLAN (2003)
Chapter 161 - PRIVATIZING THE EJIDOS (1992-2006)
Chapter 162 - ASSETS FORFEITURE (2003)
Chapter 163 - WE SHOULD HAVE HAD A BETTER NEGOTIATING POSITION (2002-2003)
Chapter 164 - YOU MIGHT AS WELL GET OUT OF THE WAY (2006)
Chapter 165 - WATER IS HERE (A VIEW FROM ARIZONA) (1985-2007)
Chapter 166 - WATER IS HERE (A VIEW FROM IMPERIAL) (2003)
Chapter 167 - RAIN (2005-2006)
Chapter 168 - PROBATE (1901-2003)
Chapter 169 - SUCH A GOOD LIFE (2006)
Chapter 170 - STILL A GREAT FARMING COUNTY (2004)
Chapter 171 - IMPERIAL REPRISE (1975-2005)
Chapter 172 - IF MEXICO WERE ITALY (2004)
Chapter 173 - WHERE DOES LOS ANGELES END? (1834-2005)
Chapter 174 - MEXICANS AND AMERICANS (1901-2007)
Chapter 175 - STILL A MYSTERY (2003)
Chapter 176 - THE LINE ITSELF (2003-2006)
Chapter 177 - SUBDELINEATIONS: MARSSCAPES (2004)
Chapter 178 - RANCHO ROA (2004-2005)
Chapter 179 - BROCK FARMS (2004)
Chapter 180 - SALVATION MOUNTAIN (1996-2005)
Chapter 181 - SIGNAL MOUNTAIN (2003)
Chapter 182 - BETWEEN THE LINES (2003-2005)
Chapter 183 - SUBDELINEATIONS: MONEYSCAPES (1989-2005)
Chapter 184 - SUBDELINEATIONS: MONEYSCAPES (2003-2006)
Chapter 185 - PRESENT AND FUTURE SUCCESSES (2003)
Chapter 186 - MARKET PRICES (2000)
Chapter 187 - IMPERIAL BEACH (2005)
Chapter 188 - SAN DIEGO (2003-2006)
Chapter 189 - TIJUANA (2003-2005)
Chapter 190 - TECATE (2003-2006)
Chapter 193 - EJIDO NETZAHUALCÓYOTL (2004)
Chapter 194 - SAN LUIS RÍO COLORADO (2006)
Chapter 196 - THE INLAND EMPIRE (2003-2004)
Chapter 197 - COACHELLA (2003-2004)
Chapter 198 - INDIO (2003-2004)
Chapter 199 - DUROVILLE (2003-2006)
Chapter 200 - SALTON CITY (2006)
Chapter 201 - HOLTVILLE (2003)
Chapter 203 - EL CENTRO (2002)
Chapter 204 - YELLOW CAB DISPATCHING PRICES, CITY OF IMPERIAL (2003)
Chapter 205 - LOS ANGELES (2002-2005)
Chapter 206 - HOLTVILLE (1914)
Chapter 207 - IMPERIAL REPRISE (1901-2004)
Chapter 208 - THE CONQUEST OF ARID AMERICA (1905)
ALSO BY WILLIAM T. VOLLMANN
You Bright and Risen Angels (1987)
The Rainbow Stories (1989)
The Ice-Shirt (1990)
Whores for Gloria (1991)
Thirteen Stories and Thirteen Epitaphs (1991)
An Afghanistan Picture Show (1992)
Fathers and Crows (1992)
Butterfly Stories (1993)
The Rifles (1994)
The Atlas (1996)
The Royal Family (2000)
Argall (2001)
Rising Up and Rising Down:
Some Thoughts on Violence, Freedom, and Urgent Means (2003)
Europe Central (2005)
Uncentering the Earth:
Copernicus and the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres (2006)
Poor People (2007)
Riding Toward Everywhere (2008)
VIKING
Published by the Penguin Group
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Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published in 2009 by Viking Penguin, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Copyright © William T. Vollmann, 2009
All rights reserved
Grateful acknowledgment is made for permission to reprint excerpts from the following copyrighted works:
“Cartography” by Antonio Deltoro, translated by Christian Viveros-Faune, and “Arcana IV: The Emperor” by Veronica Volkow, translated by Margaret Sayers Peden, both from
Reversible Monuments: Contemporary Mexican Poetry,
edited by Monica de la Torre and Michael Weigers. Copyright © 2002 by Copper Canyon Press. Reprinted with permission of Copper Canyon Press.
www.coppercanyonpress.org
.
Poem by Nezahualcoyotl in
Native Mesoamerican Spirituality: Ancient Myths, Discourses, Stories, Doctrines, Hymns, Poems from the Aztecs, Yucatec, Quiche-Maya and Other Sacred Traditions,
edited by Miguel Leon-Portilla. Copyright © 1980 by Paulist Press, Inc. , Mahwah, New Jersey.
www.paulistpress.com
.
“Portami il girasole” by Eugenio Montale, translated by Chris Glomski. Used by permission of Chris Glomski.
Acknowledgments for permission to reproduce copyrighted images appear in the credits section on pages 1301-1302.
Photographs and map illustrations are by the author unless otherwise cited.
While the author has made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers and Internet addresses at the time of publication, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors or for changes that occur after publication. Further, the publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Vollmann, William T.
Imperial / by William T. Vollmann.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
eISBN : 978-1-101-10448-4
1. Mexicans—California—Imperial County—History. 2. Mexicans—California—Imperial County—Social conditions. 3. Immigrants—
California—Imperial County—History. 4. Immigrants—California—Imperial County—Social conditions. 5. Migrant agricultural labor
ers—California—Imperial County—History. 6. Migrant agricultural laborers—California—Imperial County—Social conditions.
7. Imperial County (Calif.)—Social conditions. I. Title.
F868.I2V65 2008
304.8’7949907208624—dc22 2008029532
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
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As long as a farmer has an abundance of water, he almost invariably yields to the temptation to use it freely, even though he gets no increased returns as a result.
—Yearbook of the United States Department of Agriculture, 1909
In memory of
SERAFÍN RAMÍREZ HERNÁNDEZ
unknown, missing, illegal,
Mexican
