THE

M A G A Z I N E

NOVEMBER, 1937 25 CENTS

GIVE...A Year of Pleasure...to your desert-loving friendsat Christmas time.. . . with a year's subscrip-tion to the

DESERT MAGAZINE

We are more than gratified at the enthusiastic and en-couraging response which you and your neighborsexpressed when the Desert Magazine was placed onsale for the first time last month. We are convinced thatyou are proud of the magazine and that you like toshow it to your friends.

Personality

Science

History

Travelogs

Development

Hobbies

Nature

Mining

Fiction

Homes

Books

Comment

. . . and many

other features

each month.

You can find no better gift expressing the spirit of the desert you love than asubscription to this magazine—sent to your friend at Christmas time.On receipt of your subscription remittance we will send an acknowledge-ment to you and we will prepare a gift card which will arrive at your friend'saddress at Christmas time.

Just print or typewrite the names on a sheet of paper, together with yourname as donor and send it with your check to the DESERT MAGAZINE,El Centre Calif.

ONE SUSCRIPTION (Regular rate), yearMailed in the United States or possessions.

TWO or more GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS, each one yearYour own subscription may be included in this combinationrate. Foreign subscriptions, add 40 cents each.

.$2.50

TH E "PiPlLm z i n E

DESERT

(2a.LenJ.cLtfor November

Civic groups in the desertarea are invited to use this col-umn for announcing fairs, ro-deos, conventions and otherevents which have more thanmere local interest. Copy mustreach the Desert Magazine bythe 5th of the month precedingpublication. There is no chargefor these announcements.

OCTOBER 27—Deer sea-son opens in Kaibab forest.Closes November 15.

OCTOBER 29, 30, 3 1 —California newspaper editorsassemble at Lone Pine in Inyocounty as guests at three-dayprogram marking the openingof the new Mt. Whitney-DeathValley highway.

OCTOBER 31—Nevada cel-ebrates its 73rd birthday.

NOVEMBER 12—Indianfestivities mark observance ofSt. James day at TesuquePueblo, New Mexico.

NOVEMBER 12—Fiesta ofSan Diego at Jemez Pueblo,New Mexico.

NOVEMBER 14—Seasonopens for quail hunters inArizona. Closes December 15.

NOVEMBER 15—Seasonopens for quail hunters in allCalifornia desert areas. ClosesDecember 31.

NOVEMBER 15—Open sea-son for deer, wild turkey andbear c loses in Arizona.(Opened October 15) .

NOVEMBER 16—Twenty-day season for Elk huntersopens in Arizona. Limited to300 resident and 50 non-resi-dent permits.NOVEMBER 17, 18, 19, 20—Spanish Fiesta days sponsoredby Elks lodge at Yuma, Ari-zona.

NOVEMBER 18, 19, 20, 21—Annual Helzapopin celebra-tion at Buckeye, Arizona.

NOVEMBER 22—Annualmeeting of Highway 66 asso-ciation at Amarillo, Texas.

NOVEMBER 27—Openingof 30-day duck season author-ized by Presidential proclama-tion.

Vol. I NOVEMBER, 1937 No. 1

COVER

CALENDARPOETRY

EDITORIALNATURE

SCIENCE

PERSONALITY

HISTORY

TRAVELOG

ART

PHOTOGRAPHER

TRAVELOG

MINING

DEVELOPMENT

LANDMARKS

FICTION

SNAP FANSHOMENEWSSENTIMENT

BOOKSCOMMENT

ADVERTISERS

Sunset photo of Sahuaro taken near ApacheJunction, Arizona 1

Current events in the desert country 3The Desert, God's Garden of Peace

NELLIE N. COFFMAN 4There Are Two Deserts 5No. 1 Adventurer of the Desert

DON ADMIRAL 6The Desert Under a Microscope

J. WILSON McKENNEY 7He Helps Keep the Chuckawalla Desert Dry

RANDALL HENDERSON 9"Bold Emory"

J. WILSON McKENNEY 10Looking Down from Nevada's 12,000-foot Oasis

RANDALL HENDERSON 12Navajo Shepherdess

PHOTO BY WM. M. PENNINGTON 14The Feel of the Desert

JOHN STEWART MacCLARY 15Lost Tree in a Lonely Land

LILLIAN BOS ROSS 16Luck—Plus Brains

JONATHAN BART 18For This Army—8000 Grubbing Hoes

LARRY D. WOLMAN 20Who Knows the Story of This Arizona Land-

mark?—Prize Contest 22Sez Hardrock Shorty

LON GARRISON 23Prize Photograph Contest 24Sandstone Home 25Here and There on the Desert 30The Prospector

JEFF WORTH 34Reviews with a Southwest Background 35Just Between You and Me

THE EDITOR 38(Bless 'Em) 21 to 40

The Desert Magazine is published monthly by Randall Henderson and J. Wilson McKenney, aco-partnership, at 597 State Street, El Cenrro, California. Application for entry as second classmatter is pending.

Title registered, contents copyrighted 1937 by the Desert Magazine. Permission to reproducecontents must be secured from the editor in writ ing. Subscription rate $2.50 a year. Copy 25 cents.

Editor: Randall HendersonBusiness Manager: J. Wilson McKenneyAdvertising Manager: Fred Kraft, Jr.

National Advertising Representatives: S. H. Williams & Co., Inc., Los Angeles, San Francisco,Chicago, New York.

Manuscripts and photographs submitted must be accompanied with full return postage. TheDesert Magazine assumes no responsibility for damage or loss of manuscripts or photographs althoughdue care will be exercised for their safety.

Subscribers should send notice of change of address with new and old address and should bereceived by the circulation department the first of the month preceding issue.

N o v e m b e r , 1937

God s Garden of Peace

God gave to mankind the beauties of earth,Of mountains, and lowlands and sea,Rivers and lakes, forests and glades,These wondrous gifts gave He.

But He kept for His own a GardenRugged, forbidding, austere,Surrounded by peaks uplifted—Snow-capped throughout the year.

And He draped it with marvelous colorsAt dawn and at set of sun,And hung high in the sky the wonderful starsTo light it when day is done.

And He walks in His Garden at twilightAnd all who would have surceaseFrom life's toil and struggle, may find itIn the Desert, God's Garden of Peace.

—NELLIE N. COFFMANPalm Springs.

PHOTO BY FRASHERS. INC.

(EDITORIAL)

O NE IS A GRIM desolate wasteland. It is the home ofvenomous reptiles and stinging insects, of viciousthorn-covered plants and trees, and of unbearable

heat. This is the desert seen by the stranger speeding alongthe highway, impatient to be out of "this damnable coun-try." It is the desert visualized by those children of luxuryto whom any environment is unbearable which does notprovide all of the comforts and services of a pamperingcivilization. It is a concept fostered by fiction writers whodramatize the tragedies of the desert for the profit it willbring them.

But the stranger and the uninitiated see only the mask.The other Desert—the real Desert-—is not for the eyes ofthe superficial observer, or the fearful soul or the cynic.It is a land, the character of which is hidden except to thosewho come with friendliness and understanding. To thesethe Desert offers rare gifts: health-giving sunshine—a skythat is studded with diamonds—a breeze that bears nopoison—a landscape of pastel colors such as no artist canduplicate—thorn-covered plants which during countlessages have clung tenaciously to life through heat anddrought and wind and the depredations of thirsty animals,and yet each season send forth blossoms of exquisite color-ing as a symbol of courage that has triumped over terrify-ing obstacles.

To those who come to the Desert with friendliness, itgives friendship; to those who come with courage, it givesnew strength of character. Those seeking relaxation findrelease from the world of man-made troubles. For thoseseeking beauty, the Desert offers nature's rarest artistry.This is the Desert that men and women learn to love.

. . . cne is grim, desolate

N o v e m b e r , 1937

. . . one is fascinating, mysterious . . .

N EARLY every creed and industry and locality hasits journal—except the Desert. Here, within the boun-daries of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico

and Utah resides a great family of human beings—thehighest type of American citizenship—with a common heri-tage of environment and interest and opportunity, yetresiding for the most part in regions that are remote fromthe so-called cultural centers.

This is the last great frontier of the United States. It willbe the purpose of the Desert Magazine to entertain andserve the people whom desire or circumstance have broughtto this Desert frontier. But also, the magazine will carry asaccurately as possible in word and picture, the spirit of thereal Desert to those countless men and women who havebeen intrigued by the charm of the desert, but whose homesare elsewhere.

* * *This is to be a friendly, personal magazine, written for

the people of the Desert and their friends—and insofar aspossible, by Desert people. Preference will be given to thosewriters and artists—yes, and poets—whose inspirationcomes from close association with the scented greasewood,the shifting sand dunes, the coloring of Desert landscapes,from precipitous canyons and gorgeous sunsets.

The Desert has its own traditions—art—literature—in-dustry and commerce. It will be the purpose of the DesertMagazine to crystallize and preserve these phases of Desertlife as a culture distinctive of arid but virile America. Wewould give character and personality to the pursuits ofDesert peoples—create a keener consciousness of the heri-tage which is theirs—bring them a little closer together ina bond of pride in their Desert homes, and perhaps breakdown in some measure the prejudice against the Desertwhich is born of misunderstanding and fear.

It is an idealistic goal, to be sure, but without vision theDesert would still be a forbidding wasteland—uninhabitedand shunned. The staff of the Desert Magazine has under-taken its task with the same unbounded confidence whichhas brought a million people to a land which once wasregarded as unfit for human habitation.

We want to give to the folks who live on the Desert—and to those who are interested in the Desert—somethingthat will make their lives a little happier and a little finer—something worthwhile. In the accomplishment of thispurpose we ask for the cooperation and help of all friendsof the Desert everywhere.

RANDALL HENDERSON,J. WILSON MCKENNEY.

Publishers.

A DVENTURING into lands so arid that no other shrubcan survive, the Creosote bush, or common greasewood,is entitled to carry the banner as No. 1 plant of the

desert region.While other members of the great family of desert flora

falter and shrivel before the merciless onslaught of heat andsandstorm and drought, the lowly greasewood wages aconstant battle of advance and retreat—and generally isthe victor.

To the Indians, the Creosote was a medicine for manyailments. But since the white man prefers to buy his heal-ing potions from the corner drug store in capsules andbottles, his arrival in the desert has left the Creosote un-molested except when it interferes with the clearing ofhomesteads or the building of roads.

Perhaps there should be one exception to this last asser-tion. The unfortunate motorist who finds himself miredin the depths of a desert sand dune finds the greasewooda rough but ready friend in time of need.

In the hot dry desert outposts the Creosote shrub is small,tough, wiry, and with but few leaves. In more favoredlocalities its vital strength brings forth a large stately bushof wand-like branches covered with shiny olive-green leaves,and in season a multitude of yellow blossoms. The petals,which are turned like the blades of a windmill, give wayto fluffy little balls of cotton in which the seeds are housed.

Under exceptionally favorable conditions the Creosotemay grow to a height of 12 or 15 feet. More commonly itis from five to eight feet.

Creosote bush, or greasewood as it iscommonly known, is the hardiest andmost common of all desert shrubs. Thisstory of the Creosote is written by DonAdmiral to give desert folks a more inti-mate acquaintance with one of theirneighbors of the plant world. Other desertshrubs will be described by Mr. Admiralin future issues of the Desert Magazine.

By DON ADMIRALDesert scientist of Palm Springs

A/o. I -@dventu.tet

Like most desert plants, the Creosote is a rugged indivi-dualist. It never crowds its neighbors, nor permits themto invade its own little domain. Visitors on the desert oftencomment on the comparatively uniform spacing betweenthe plants—almost as if they had been planted. There arescientific reasons for this, having to do with the root sys-tems and moisture supply. We humans might learn some-thing from this desert plant.

Bearing out the assertion that the Creosote is the No. 1shrub of the desert, the Arizona State Planning board haspublished a botanical table showing that this bush growsover 37 per cent of the state's area. Sage ranks next witha total area of five per cent. There are some areas of coursein which the two plants intermingle. Creosote is found inArizona from sea level to an elevation of 3,000 feet andis dominant over about 27 million acres of the state.

Larrea divaricata is the scientific name given by Munznow quite generally accepted. The genus name Larrea is inhonor of a Spaniard, de Larrea. The species name divaricatarefers to the twined characteristic of the leaves. Previousclassifications include Larrea glutinosa, Engelmann; Co-villea glutinosa, Rydberg; Larrea Mexicana, Moric; Larreatridentata, Coville.

Creosote bush is the generally accepted common name.Greasewood is also used but is not so distinctive for thereason that this term is also applied to other desert shrubs.Among the Mexicans it is Hediondilla, and Father Fontfrequently refers to it by this name in his diary of theAnza expedition.

Prehistoric dwellers on the desert found many usefulpurposes for the shrub. The gum from its twigs was usedto cement arrows and to mend ollas. Tea brewed from itsleaves was regarded as a cure for stomach disorders andrheumatism, and as an antiseptic for wounds.

Recently, a cowman in the Vallecito region told me thathe had seen the old Indians use a concoction brewed fromthe foliage as a hair tonic. "And did you ever see a bald-headed Indian?" he asked by way of clinching his point.

The DESERT MAGAZINE

AticzoicopeDr. Forrest Shreve and his staff at the Desert

Laboratory near Tucson are prying into the

secrets of desert plant life.

H ERE, THOUGHT I, is where I canunloose all those stored-up ques-tions about desert life. Here be-

fore me is the man who knows all theanswers. Questions came flying to mylips.

"Why doesn't the giant sahuaro growwest of the Colorado river?" I heardmyself asking.

I had heard this matter of the sa-huaros much debated and had alwaysbelieved that the giant cactus grew onlyon Arizona soil until I had stalked afew lonely specimens north of Picachoand others along the Riverside moun-tains on the California side of the river.But as a general rule this picturesquecactus, bearing Arizona's state flower,marches down to the edge of the Colo-rado River and there abruptly halts.

"They just don't like the Californiaair," the Wise Man answered with amischievous twinkle in his eye. Thenafter a short pause during which Iblinked my eyes in astonishment, headded, "And then again, it may be thatefficient California border patrol."

This was too much. I had come toTucson to talk with a scientist, scholar,

By J. WILSON McKENNEY

musty pedagog, and here I found a tall,friendly out-of-doors man with a senseof humor. I began to be very glad Ihad come to see Dr. Forrest Shreve inthe Desert Laboratory on the slope ofTumamoc hill.

"But seriously", the Director con-tinued, "we believe Cereus giganteuswill not thrive in the Colorado and Mo-jave deserts because these regions donot have sufficient rainfall in the hotsummer months to germinate the seeds.Some desert plants germinate in thewinter, but not the sahuaro. Its seedmust have both heat and moisture. InArizona we have an average of twelveinches of rainfall a year, over half ofit in the hottest summer months, whileCalifornia desert regions get less thanfour inches a year, very little of whichfalls in summer. The river simply addsa final deciding barrier over which fewof the sahuaros can hurdle."

A friendly vibrant voice this man had—Forrest Shreve, scientist of the desert,who for more than 30 years has record-

ed his findings on Sonoran plant lifein this massive stone house on Tu-mamoc hill. Tall and thin, he has thehead of a scholar and the bearing of anout-of-doors man: he seems somehowto combine the roles of philosopher andprospector.

Dr. Shreve turned from his study ta-ble at the far side of a large well-lighted room and advanced toward mequickly. Cordially he seated me and re-sumed his place before the orderly ta-ble, lighting his ancient pipe leisurely,suggesting comfortably that we shouldhave lunch with his wife and the staffbefore we got down to the serious busi-ness of discussing his work at thelaboratory.

Arizona sunlight poured through themany windows, falling on orderly rowsof bookcases, charts, graphs, photo-graphs, and scientific instruments. No-where was there evidence of the cob-webby mustiness which, in the lay-man's mind, is an essential element ofthe pedagog's workshop.

I turned toward the spacious win-dows to look down on the roofs andspires of Tucson and the brown bulk ofthe Santa Catalina mountains beyond.

Buildings of the Car-negie Institution'sDesert Laboratory atTucson are located ona hillside in the midstof a great expanse ofdesert, high plateaus,and mountain wood-lands.

In a brown stone building on the slope of Tuma-moc Hill, men of science have been solving thedesert's riddles for the past three decades. Hereis an interview with one of the men who knowsmost of the answers.

What a beautiful site for the Desert la-boratory! There before me, less thantwo miles away, lay the cultural capi-tal of the Southwest and stretching inall directions from its borders lay thebeautiful arboreal desert now famousthroughout the world.

And this brown stone building—theDesert Laboratory of the Carnegie In-stitution of Washington—had housedthe men who had done most, in a quietunheralded way, to make these desertsfamous. This much every desert dwellerhas heard. But the idea of a desert la-boratory is remote and hazy to most ofus. If we give it a second thought, weprobably regard the place as a sortof cactus garden where super-gardenerstend their neatly-spaced plots of spinyplants.

But as I came up the steep grade tothe buildings on the hill I saw no well-

tended gardens. In fact the terrain look-ed just a little wilder than the desertaround it, a sort of refuge where cotton-tails, quail, and lizards frolicked in un-molested freedom and the native plantlife seemed more abundant. And thisman before me—the director of thisfamous laboratory—certainly did notlook like a gardener.

We had lunch—the laboratory staff,the little lady with the gray hair andvoice of a girl, and the reporter. As Dr.Shreve described with the language of ascientist the pecularities of a certain de-sert plant, I wondered whether thelittle woman was following him. I hadbecome lost about two courses back.I thought she must be a very bravewife to have lived with this man solong and to have suffered these undeci-pherable descriptions so well. My doubtchanged to admiration when I learned

The members of the first major Pinacate expe-dition of November, 1907. Photograph taken byGodfrey Sykes. Left to right, Dr. D. T. MacDougal,leader of the expedition; Jesse D. Jenkins, as-sistant cook, story-teller and jester; Charles Fos-ter, Mexican guide; Jeff Milton, U. S. Immigrationinspector; John M. Phillips, iron manufacturerand expert sportsman and photographer; Win.T. Hornaday, zoologist and chief taxidermist, authorof "Campfires on Desert and Lava," and above,George Saunders, camp helper; and Frank Coles,wagon master and cook. This group of men broughtback from barren Pinacate the first scientific ac-count of the botany, zoology, and geography ofthis arid region.

that Mrs. Shreve is a distinguished scien-tist in her own right and that she is theauthor of one of the most widely quotedpapers listed by the institution!

He Knows Most of the Answers"What is the Desert Laboratory?

Who started it and why? Why was itplaced out here so far from the so-called centers of culture? What do theydo here? Who works here?" These andother elementary questions I fired atDr. Shreve.

"Of course you are familiar with thestory of Andrew Carnegie," he began,"the immigrant boy who became one ofAmerica's richest steel magnates andwho left a fortune "to encourage in thebroadest and most liberal manner in-vestigation, research, and discovery, andthe application of knowledge to the im-provement of mankind." Before he diedCarnegie had established an institutionwhich divided its scientific investiga-tions into twelve departments in wide-ly separated parts of the country. TheDesert Laboratory became one of theoutposts of the Division of Plant Bio-logy. The total Carnegie benefactiontotaled about $25,000,000."

The late Dr. F. V. Coville, chief bo-tanist of the U. S. Department of Agri-culture for more than 40 years, broughtto the attention of the Institution theneed for investigation in the field ofplant life. He and Dr. D. T. MacDou-gal, then assistant director of the New

Turn to Page 28

^

/

"Desert Steve" Rqgsdale of Desert Centeris the subject of this sketch. He opened aservice station on Highway 60 when onlytwo cars a day were traveling that route.But eventually Desert Center prosperedand now Steve's son runs the businesswhile he lives on the top of a mountainoverlooking the desert and writes badpoetry for recreation. Here's the story ofone of the most colorful desert rats in the

arid Southwest.

By RANDALL HENDERSON

ES MA'AM! We used to havelots of rattlesnakes here. Thecountry was alive with them.

They crawled around in armies and ateeverything in their path. Few peopleever got out of the desert alive in thosedays.

"But they are all gone now. Haven'tseen one for years.

"What became of them?"Well, Henry Ford is responsible.

When he got to making all those littlecars a few years ago this road acrossthe Chuckawalla valley became socrooked that a cow pony couldn't followit. Nothing but Fords ever tried to crossthis way. They zig-zagged along throughthe sand and when the rattlers wouldstart chasing them the blankety snakeswould break their backs making theturns. They're all gone now."

This is Steve Ragsdale's yarn—'Des-

Steve and Mrs. Ragsdale at theirSanta Rosa mountain cabin.

ert Steve' of Desert Center. Nearlyevery one who has traveled Highway60 across the Chuckawalla desert inSouthern California has heard of De-sert Steve.

He has a story for every occasion.This is the one he told in the earlydays when timid folks from Eastern cen-ters of tenderfoot culture would stopat the Ragsdale service station to in-quire about the danger of Indians,outlaws and rattlesnakes.

The California link in Highway 60is paved now and thousands of motor-ists roll along its smooth surface everyweek without thought of the hazardswhich once beset the desert traveler.

Broke on 6-Cent CottonSteve Ragsdale is one of the pioneers

along this highway. He was doing verywell as a cotton rancher in the PaloVerde valley until the post-war slumphit the cotton market. He couldn't feedhis wife and four children with six-centcotton, and so he turned the ranchover to the tax collector and announcedthat he was going to open up a servicestation at Gruendyke's Well, midwaybetween Blythe and Mecca on the oldChuckawalla road.

Folks laughed at Steve, and felt sorryfor his family. The road across theChuckawalla in those days consistedof two rather uncertain ruts across 90miles of blow sand and cross-washes.It required nine hours of hard drivingto cover the 90 miles. Only the hardiestof motorists would attempt the trip.

There were many days when not a sin-gle car was to be met along this route.Six automobiles in 24 hours was heavytraffic.

But Mrs. Ragsdale was willing, andthe four children were too young tovote on the question—so they loadedup the furniture and went out to re-build the little cabin which Old ManGruendyke had left when he proved upon his homestead.

That was in 1921. During the nextfour years they stuck to the job throughsummer heat and sandstorms. A littlework had been done on the road, andtravel was increasing. The Ragsdaleshad begun to feel that perhaps theirpioneering would be rewarded.

Highway Route Is ChangedThen the state took over the highway

and engineers decided that the Chuck-awalla road should be rerouted to avoidthe heavy sand. Gruendyke's Well wasto be a mile and a quarter from thenew highway.

This was heart-breaking news to theRagsdales, but they took it like truepioneers. Instead of crying about theinjustice of the government and clamor-ing for damages, Steve went out andhelped the engineers locate the newroad.

Then he began preparations to movehis service station. The main problemwas water. It is a scarce commodityin the Chuckawalla valley. With a handwindlass and the help of his family

Turn to Page 26

N o v e m b e r , 1937

11 Gold l-moty. . . that's what they called him at militaryacademy. But to the world he is known asLt. W. H. Emory, diarist and mapmaker

extraordinary.

By J. WILSON McKENNEY

HALF CHOKED in the dust raisedby Kearney's dragoons, a grimyoung lieutenant rode in silence.

He saw no visions of rich cities to beconquered nor was he composing prettyspeeches to be flaunted before the van-quished heathen. He was more con-cerned about his precious instruments.

Jim Early had nearly allowed theinstrument wagon to tip over in thatlast barranca. Confound these drivers!Why must they all drink so long of thisNew Mexican wine? He could hardlyblame the fellow, though. What withthe poor grub he gets in this army,the sight of good food and drink inthe villages is enough to drive any manto excess. One consolation is that fel-low Bestor—he guards the transit andchronometer with his very life.

Thus Lt. Emory mused as he rode inthe dust cloud kicked up by the rem-nant of the Army of the West.

First Lieutenant William HemsleyEmory, chief engineering officer andacting assistant adjutant-general of theArmy of the West was his full nameand title. His classmates back at theU. S. Military Academy in 1831 hadcalled him "Bold Emory" and he hadliked that. Few people called him"Bill," not even Matilda, his wife. Hisdignity and calm discouraged familiar-ity. But his associates knew Emory tobe sympathetic and generous. Proba-bly too much for his own good. So hecovered up with a false front.

There was small time for quiet think-ing on this expedition. New problemswere always coming up. The biggest

troubles seemed to find their center inthe head of the General. Not that hewould permit himself the slightest dis-respect of his superior. But the bluntman so frequently irritated his staffthat he moved always in an atmos-phere of friction and discord.

After all, this might be an oppor-tunity for a young man. Here he was35 years old and so far he had not madea distinguishing mark in the army ser-vice. This expedition offered a chancefor original scientific observation, a lotof high adventure in an unbroken coun-try, and a brevet if he did a good job.And Matilda would be proud of him ifhe ever reached home again. He for-got for a moment it was his idea makingthis western trek—not Matilda's. Theyhad been married eight years ago andhe had had a difficult time providingfor the great-granddaughter of Ben-jamin Franklin in the style he wouldlike to offer. But here it is time againto rush ahead and spot a campsite. Andhe must set up for a lunar observation;the General would probably order afull calculation tonight.

Drought on the DesertWater was hard to find. It was early

October and the tributaries of the RioGrande were nearly dry. The summerof 1846 had been a severe drought sea-son, the grass was a crisp brown, andthe scant water holes were stagnant.It was indeed a bad year for an armyof 1,660 untrained infantry and badlymounted cavalry to attempt the conquestof New Mexico and California. But the

young chief engineer was expected tofind campsites near water every night.So far his luck had held. But the Mexi-cans had told him about terrible waste-lands between the Rio Grande and theColorado where he would search invain for water.

The Army of the West, as motley agathering of volunteers and regularsas ever graced a military expeditionon this continent, had mustered atFort Leavenworth in May and hadcrossed the prairies of Kansas and eas-tern Colorado during the summer. Thebrawny young United States govern-ment had declared war on Mexico andwas seeking to lay its protective handon the vast uncharted area known asNew Mexico.

The Yankee Dons in far-off Califor-nia had also proven that the climateand natural resources of the great coas-tal empire were worth wresting fromthe hospitable Mexicans. So Kearneyand his motley army were ordered west-ward on a double mission.

Invaders Wined and DinedThe conquest of New Mexico was a

farce. After vain sputterings and emptythreats, General Armijo had flown southwith his tiny army and a sizeable bitof property acquired during his lordlygovernorship. Kearney entered thte cityof Santa Fe with all the pomp anddignity he could muster from his raggedand weary army. Then followed amonth of grandiose good-will speechesfrom roof-tops, a task which the Gen-eral apparently assumed with relish.The vanquished residents welcomed the

10 The DESERT MAGAZINE

-WMnuriHia,

soldiers, offered barrels of wine andflocks of young bullocks.

Kearney concluded his short gover-norship by dividing his army into sev-eral columns, leaving a garrison atSanta Fe, ordering Capt. Cooke's Mor-mon Battalion to follow westward asquickly as possible, and assuming thelead of Maj. Sumner's 300 dragoonstoward ihe conquest of California.

Here Lt. Emory's real work began.He looked forward to the march witheagerness. Thus far he had made obser-vations in territory much of whichhad already been described by path-finding parties. Now he had much newwork to do. He was official astronomer,draughtsman, geologist, meteorologist,botanist, diarist, and reporter of theexpedition. His maps would give thegovernment at Washington its first au-thentic information of the deserts andmountains of the great southwest. Hissketches and specimens would givescientists their first knowledge of theIndians, animals, plants, and mineralsof this vast unexplored region. He pre-pared himself thoroughly, determinedto do a good job, without prejudiceor error.

Insubordination was not in Emory'scharacter; he was a good army man.No hint of his private thoughts abouthis chief crept into his reports. Con-troversial reports of Kearney at SanPasqual and of the Kearney-Stockton-Fremont incident were never given biasby the engineer. His work was with theimmutable laws of Nature, the undispu-table position of the stars in relation tohis westward journey, and the thrillingdiscovery of new botanical classifica-tions.

Let the General get red in the faceall he wished. After all, a man who hadserved in the War of 1812 about the

. time the young engineer was first see-

Junction of the Gila and Coloradorivers, as sketched by Emory's art-ist in 1846. Picacho Peak is in thebackground. Taken from Emory's

report.

San Diego as seen by Emory in1846, at a point where Oldtownstands now. Reproduced from Em-

ory's Reconnaissance report.

ing the light of day was entitled, byvirtue of his long military dictator-ship on the western frontier, to hisrages. Kearney was essentially a strictdisciplinarian but his letters to hiswife revealed he had another, gentlernature.

Let modern historians debate on thequarrel between Kearney and Stockton,let them speculate on the guilt or in-nocence of Fremont, let them argueabout the relative merits of the Califor-nia lance in the hands of expert horse-men and the musket in the hands ofweary and half-drunken dragoons. Notone of the recorders of history will ques-tion the trustworthy contribution whichobscure Lt. Emory made to the lore ofthe southwest. In fact, few even mentionEmory except to quote a sentence or twoof his colorful language. For who isinterested in the quiet plodding of ascientific man when there is a battleof tycoons in the offing?

Two weeks out of Santa Fe, nearthe village of Socorro, the company of

dragoons met Kit Carson and party,enroute east with dispalches telling ofthe subjugation of the Californians.Commodore Stockton was reporting thatthe empire had surrendered without lossof blood and "the American flag floatedin every port." Stockton's extravagantoptimism caused Kearney to send 200 ofhis dragoons back to Santa Fe, a thirdof his original force continuing west-ward.

Much against Carson's will, GeneralKearney pursuaded the famous scoutto turn back and guide the party toCalifornia, a happy accident which ex-tended Kearney's life another two yearsand saved Emory's reminiscences forthe world. Kit Carson's spectacularfeat—with Lt. Beale—in bringing res-cue to the butchered Americans at SanPasqual is an epic of California history.

Emory's keen powers of observationare evident in his report to the govern-ment, a book now difficult to find inprint, which was published in Washing-ton in 1848. The title of the narrativeis "Notes of a Military Reconnaissancefrom Fort Leavenworth in Missouri toSan Diego in California." No diary eversparkled more with humorous incident

Turn to Page 26

rN o v e m b e r , 1937 11

JLookina "&own fitom A/evada 5

12,000- foot O&5I5. . A hiker's story of thetrail to rugged Charles-

ton peak . .

C LIMBING desert moun-tains in summertime isa vacation idea which

may have some drawbacks. Andyet, when the trail leads at lastto a refreshing snowbank fromwhich one can look down andwatch the heat devils stagetheir mid-summer dance on thefloor of Death Valley, such atrip has its compensations.

It was my good fortune lastsummer—the Fourth of July tobe exact — to accompany aparty of California's SierraClub hikers to the summit ofCharleston Peak in SouthernNevada.

For the information of thosewho do not already know,Charleston Peak, elevation 11,-910 feet, is listed as Nevada'sthird highest mountain. It isone of the few peaks in thatarea known as the "GreatAmerican Desert" where snowremains on the sheltered northslopes through all or nearly allof the summer season.

Charleston literally is asnow-capped oasis in the desert. Fromits summit, the view is the same inevery direction—a pastel tinted desertwhose outermost boundaries are lostin the haze of a distant horizon. PerhapsI should mention one exception to thislast statement. On clear days the dimoutline of Mt. Whitney and the highSierras may be seen far off across theDeath Valley basin on the west.

The desert land which is to be seenfrom a snow-upholstered gallery seat atthe top of Charleston is rich in Indiantradition and scenic charm. Not farfrom the Eastern base of the mountainthe blue waters of Lake Mead slowlyare creeping higher up the desert slopestoward a new shoreline which will estab-lish this as the world's largest artificiallake.

Some miles to the northeast is thatcolorful jumble of rocks known as theValley of Fire, and the prehistoric In-dian ruins of Lost City where M. R.Harrington and his associates of the

By RANDALL HENDERSON

i Southwest museum have been laboring\ diligently since 1933 to salvage what

they can of Indian artifacts and historybefore the old pueblo sites are sub-merged forever beneath the waters ofthe newly formed lake.

Las Vegas and Boulder City are meredots on the desert plain which extendsaway to the southeast, and far off acrossthe California boundary to the southare the Providence mountains where J.E. Mitchell's weird caverns of stalac-tites and stalagmites are to be found.

The trail to the top of Charlestonmountain is long, but not difficult.The distance from the Public Campground in Kyle canyon is nine miles.It is no ordinary trail, engineered totake the hiker to the summit by theshortest route. I do not know the nameof the man who selected this route—

. . From the top, in alldirections — a pastel col-

ored desert. .

but I know that he was a ran-ger with the soul of an artist.I have been on many mountaintrails, but never before onewhich offered such a variety ofpanoramas as this one. Itseems to me that a landscapeartist could spent a life-time ofpainting along that trail—andin the end report to St. Peterthat his job was only half done.

The trail which we tookleaves the camp ground nearthe end of the paved road inKyle canyon. For the first twomiles there is a gentle ascentthrough a dense thicket ofshrubbery which borders a lit-tle mountain stream fed by thesnowbanks above.

Then a precipitous wall ofrock several hundred feet inheight closed in on the southside of the canyon and here weencountered our first snow. Atthis point the trail leaves thefloor of the canyon and zig-zagssharply upward into a coolforest of pine and fir.

There is no monotony in thistrip. At frequent intervals during theentire distance up to the main ridgewe would emerge abruptly from theshadows of the timberland and find thetrail leading for a few steps along thecrest of a ridge from which we couldlook down into a snow-filled gorge onone side, and the green slopes of Kylecanyon on the other. Always the desertis to be seen far off in the easternbackground.

Eventually we reached the main ridgeand here we got our first glimpse of thegreat Mojave desert that lies betweenthe Charleston mountains and the SierraNevadas of California. It is a gorgeousview at sunset.

I could never do justice to that three-mile trail which leads along the crestto the final summit. We were on therim of a giant escarpment which dropsoff abruptly to the floor of Kyle can-yon on one side, and rolls away in apicturesque series of meadows on theother. Wild flowers were everywhere

12 The DESERT MAGAZINE

Sierra Club hikers from California rest on the cairn at the top ofCharleston peak before starting down the trail.

and the trail alternately led across thelittle meadows and through the fringesof timber which surround them.

The path is located just far enoughbelow the crest of the ridge to affordshelter for the hiker during those per-iods when biting winds are blowingacross the top. Here again the men ofthe forestry service had in mind thecomfort and the enjoyment of theirguests.

Many of those who start for the topof Charleston reach the colorful mea-

dows on this gentle sloping plateau—and never go beyond. There is rewardenough for the arduous labor of climb-ing this mountain, in the serene mag-nificence of this natural mountain park.

I did go to the summit, but that wasjust sort of an after-climax. The realthrill of the Charleston climb was alongthe ridge and in those flower-strewnmeadows.

I hope they never build a road to thetop of Charleston. It would be a crimeagainst heaven to have that mountain

park cluttered up with honking automo-biles and discarded lunch boxes. Thatis one spot which should be preservedfor those who have earned the right toenjoy its charming seclusion.

The Charleston Peak recreationalarea is not well known to the public.Many Las Vegas residents have summercottages in Kyle canyon but it was notuntil last January that the forestry serv-ice started an intensive program ofdevelopment of the resort area. TheKyle canyon road was paved in 1933,but it was a year later before the trailto the summit was opened.

Boulder dam is situated almost inthe shadow of Charleston mountains—and therein probably lies one of thereasons why the scenic attractions ofthis new Southern Nevada mountainpark resort have received so little publicnotice. The spotlight has been on theBoulder project, and paradoxically,Charleston has remained in the shadow.

The Charleston Mountain division ofthe Nevada National forest is under thesupervision of Ranger R. C. Andersonand a group of assistants who are con-tributing to the popularity of the areaby extending every possible courtesy tovisitors.

The Public Camp ground in Kylecanyon has an elevation of 7500 feet,and is reached from Las Vegas by 37miles of well-paved road. There are

Turn to Page 33

Sketch shows roadsleading to interest-ing points in LasVegas recreational

area

N o v e m b e r , 1937 13

NAVAJO SHEPHERDESS Photo by Win. M. Pennington

DEPENDENCE

ONE WORD expresses the "feeling"of this Pennington masterpiece. Tothe desert-wise that one word tells

the story.The helpless sheep, frightened by ap-

proaching s t o r m , instinctively dependupon the shepherdess for protection fromthreatening danger . . . The shepherdessand her family depend upon the sheepfor the necessities of life . . . Both shep-herdess and sheep depend u p o n thedesert grass and water holes . . . Shep-herdess, sheep, grass and water holesdepend upon moisture from the cloudsabove.

Dependence implies confidence. Con-fidence must be mutual. The desert isharsh toward those who abuse it.

Twentieth-century Navajos d e s i r e d

more sheep than their reservation landscould support. Overgrazing destroyedthe grass roots when animals became toonumerous . . . sheep and goats, withoutgrass and water, either faced or met star-vation . . . Navajo Indians—without sheep,goats, water, or grass — faced starvationand the extinction of their race. Moisturefrom the threatening clouds then becamea land-destroying menace.

That is the lesson which Governmentengineers are pointing out to the NavajoIndians. Millions of Federal dollars arebeing spent in the effort to restore, in reallife, numberless reproductions of the scenephotographed years ago by William M.Pennington . . . Competent critics havedeclared it his best desert photograph."Just a lucky shot," asserts Bill Penning-ton.

14 The DESERT MAGAZINE

7eel ofi the Ve5ettBy JOHN STEWART MacCLARY

H IGH UP on the Walpi mesa aring of wide-eyed Hopi young-sters gathered around us in the

darkness as we tinkered and coaxed ina fruitless effort to bring life to ourdead motor.

There was plenty of gas in the tank.The wiring all appeared to be in order.But the pooled mechanical skill of thefour of us had brought forth nothingmore enlivening than a dying gasp fromthe starter. Even the lights would notglow.

Our audience—the little brown chil-dren of stone-age parents, did notlaugh at our steel-age predicament.They were the sons and daughters ofa proud line of primitive Americanswhose training would not permit themto jeer at another's misfortune.

With courtesy which is characteristicof their parents, they offered to pushour stranded automobile. That was theonly way they knew how to help usalong the trail.

Eventually we discovered the causeof our trouble. A mechanic had for-gotten to put water in the battery.

This merely was one of the incidentsin a week of adventure in Hopi-land,high up on the mesas of northeasternArizona. We had come out here fordiverse reasons. Will Evans, for manyyears a trader on the Navajo reserva-tion in northwestern New Mexico, hadnever crossed the blue mountain rangewhich hid Canyon de Chelley and theland of the Hopis. He wanted to visitthese places. My object was the gath-ering of material for the writer's mark-ets. My brother accompanied us, justfor a vacation.

Seeks Rare PhotographsOvershadowing the interests of the

rest of us, was the desire of the artist-photographer William M. Penningtonto obtain some rare camera studies ofa tribe of Arizona desert Indians whoheld a superstitious dread of the whiteman's box-with-the-evil-eye. If there hadbeen no other reward for the otherthree of us the trip would still havebeen worth many times the hardships,for the companionship of so genuine aman as Bill Pennington.

And that brings us to the purpose ofthis story—to present to the readers ofDesert Magazine the unusual characterof a man whose exquisite photographywill occupy an important place in fu-ture issues of this publication. If youknow this man vou would love him—•

as you will love the rare artistry of hisphotographs.

In 1908, Bill Pennington—young inyears, following the then adolescent artof photography—unpacked his equip-ment and opened a studio in Durango,Colorado. He was a slender youngKentuckian who had come west by wayof Texas where he had received pains-taking instruction in the finest methodsof his profession from an English pho-tographer.

Sixty air-line miles from the city ofDurango is the one spot in the UnitedStates where four states corner in asingle point. Locally the adjacent areais known as the Four Corners. Animaginary circle, drawn from the cor-ners as a center, would include an equalquadrant each of Colorado, Utah, Ari-zona, and New Mexico.

Land of Ancient TribesIf the radius of the mythical circle

were extended to 100 miles, it wouldinclude some of the most picturesqueand historically fascinating desertscenery in all of North America. Thedeserted ruins of Mesa Verde, PuebloBonito, Chaco Canyon, Aztec nationalmonument, and Ruin Canyon nationalmonument, all made accessible by stateand federal governments, are but themost spectacular examples among theinnumerable ancient ruins which dot themesa and line the canyons of the FourCorners region.

But ancient ruins are not the onlypicturesque subjects to be found. Thesetribes af modern Indians are quarteredon Government reservations within thewide circle: Piutes in southeastern Utah,Southern Utes in southwestern Colo-rado, Navajos in northwestern NewMexico and northeastern Arizona.

Kentuckian Bill Pennington under-stood neither customs nor the speech ofthe desert Indians. But he quickly rec-ognized the artistic values displayed intheir handicraft and in their primitiveliving conditions. Still alive when theartist first came into the desert wereindividual Indians whose exploits hadcontributed to Southwestern history.Some day the portraits of such wouldbe of value to accurate historians. Buthow was a timid white "tenderfoot" togain the confidence of recently-mur-derous savages who exhibited supersti-tious terror of the camera's lens?

Mr. Pennington explains the answercasually:

"I reached the Indians through li-

WM. M. PENNINGTONArt photographer

This picture was taken in the nat-ural cavity at the base of Window

Rock in northeastern Arizona.

censed traders in whom they placed 1confidence, and by employing as inter-preter a young Indian boy who had Ibeen to school.

•'The natural poses were achieved byobserving the postures and habits ofthe Indians at times when they did notsuspect that I was watching them.They are very self-conscious people andhave to be handled very much as chil-dren. When you once get their confi-dence they are congenial and co-opera-tive. But don't try to take picturesagainst their will. One act of that kind

I will turn the whole tribe against you.\ /

Here is His SecretAfter all. it simmers down to a lan-

guage which requires no interpreter—/ and of which Bill Pennington is master:

patient understanding. The eyes andvoice and manner of the man reveal thatquality to all who chance to meet him.The subtle feel in desert photo-portraits,which were made by the artist, is ex-perienced by those who appreciate visi-ble artistic expression and those whoknow and understand the desert.

In recent years Pennington has madehis home in Alhambra, California.

Rights to many of his cherisheddesert views have been secured for theDesert Magazine. Short sketches ex-plaining each of the series are to bewritten by John Stewart MacClary, in-timate friend of Pennington and hiscompanion on many photographic ex-peditions. The first of the Penningtonseries appears on the opposite page.

N o v e m b e r , 1937 •'. i 15

Elephant trees were reported onthe Colorado desert of Californiamany years ago, but the original lo-cation as published was erroneous.It was not until last January that Dr.E. M. Harvey of the U. S. Depart-ment of Agriculture and Don Ad-miral, Palm Springs naturalist, re-discovered the trees and furnished adefinite record of their location. Dr.Harvey (left) and Mr. Admiral arepictured here standing beside the dis-covery tree in the Borego area.

Jloit I tee In a Jlonelu JLandLv W 7 H E N YOU think you have

\ \ found it, just stab it with aknife. If it bleeds red, you

can be sure!"We had stopped our car at the Dry

Lake Gas Station, on the Julian-KaneSprings highway. Another car, coveredwith dust and desert water-bags, hadbeen filled up, and the driver was hav-ing a little friendly visit with Mrs. Ben-son, wife of the service station owner.

We had been half-drowsing, but, hear-ing those strange words "stab it witha knife," we were wide awake. My hus-band nodded "Yes!" and we were outof our car and into the conversation.

The man who had sounded so blood-thirsty was quite courteous. He musthave been amused, but he was helpful.He made us a small map of the routeto the place, and also a sketch of theElephant Tree.

We had heard rumors of a strangetree, high up on an alluvial fan, some-where on the Colorado Desert of Cali-fornia. It had been reported by aprospector some years before—just anunnamed tree, a different tree.

The rumor had been relayed to theUniversities, and a group of botanistshad come down to look at the find, butthe prospector had already driftedalong and no one knew where he hadseen the strange specimen.

The tree remained a rumor, nameless,until January, 1937. At that time Dr.

By LILLIAN BOS ROSS

E. M. Harvey of the United States De-partment of Agriculture and Don Ad-miral, the Palm Springs naturalist,were exploring the Borego Desert to seewhat they could find that was different.They had the amazing good fortune tofind and identify the Elephant Tree.

I had read a short announcement ofthis discovery in a Los Angeles paperand wondered what an Elephant Treewould look like, in what sort of silentvalley it spread its branches, lived itsionely life. Now I was really to see!

"It's a hard trip. You have to walkthe last three miles up hill to the tree.Park your car on Fish Creek Wash.You know where that is?"

"Yes," said Dickon, "that's the bigWash leading into Split Mountain."

For two months we had been explor-ing the odd places in the Borego desert.And so, when our informant warned usthat we would encounter some heavysand, we thanked him with that superiorair of a tenderfoot motorist who alreadyhas had his initial experience in diggingout.

We left Fish Creek arroyo and dashedup Elephant Tree wash with all theconfidence of veterans. But we didn'tdash far. Then we backed down thewash and tried that firm steady ap-proach which will work in any ordinarysand. The result was the same—threecar-lengths up the wash equals one car-depth down in the sand.

We didn't want to give up. For twostubborn hours we battled that wash.It got to be a game. We gathered greatstacks of brush and put it under thewheels and built a runway of it aheadof the car—and only got a little closerto China.

My dripping husband looked at thehub-deep car and grinned.

"Well, what do you think?" he asked."I think it's three o'clock. If we can

get back to Fish Creek wash by three-thirty, let's hike up and find the Ele-phant."

Safe on the solid sand of Fish Creek,we took long drinks of water and filleda quart flask. I carried it, because I

16 The DESERT MAGAZINE

don't drop things. And we set outeagerly on the last lap of our adventure.

In half an hour I was giddy withheat and fatigue, but buoyantly happy.Beauty, uncanny but positive, is in thatwild canyon—somehow as moving asthe thought of the world's creation.Strange in that burning place is thewealth of fragile and exotic flowers, lur-ing you on from boulder to boulder.We toiled on, mopping our brows, andtaking turns at tipping up the water-bottle.

The first mile we had possibly fivelittle sips of water. That is all youneed, a sip; but you feel that you musthave that taste of water, your lips andmouth get so dry. It was 104 in theshade, with a hot wind blowing.

We made the second mile before aboulder rolled, threw me, and I droppedthe glass flask on another boulder!Dickon was encouraging. "It doesn'tmake a bit of difference. We are al-most there, and it won't be so hot com-ing back."

We started climbing again, unwillingto pass any bench that could have shel-tered an Indian camp site. The nat-uralist had said the Elephant Tree mighthave been used by the Indians. We

found a few crude flint chips and a fewbits of broken pottery, but no evidenceof villages. Dickon got one prize, how-ever, a fine specimen of flint knife.

I was very thirsty, my mouth dry,lips stiff and queer. I gave up, andsaid, "I'm tired, it's late, let's go backto the car and try again tomorrow."

I looked around for Dickon, and sawthat he had his newly found flint knifein his hand, and was cutting off the topof a barrel cactus.

"I'm getting us a drink," he said.He was irritatingly cheerful. I said

crossly, "I don't believe you could wateran ant with what juice you can get outof that thing!"

"Well, prospectors and writers havesaid you can." With a smooth stone hewas pounding the pulp in the cactus,and it began to make a sloshing sound.He folded a paper trough out of anenvelope, and cut a narrow groove inthe side of the cactus.

"I'm using the same sort of knife theIndians used for this job," Dickon said,"but this paper is easier than the In-dians had it."

He held a paper cup hopefully at theend of his trough, and water really didtrickle out of the living water jar.

I was cowardly and said, "You tasteit first."

He said it was cool, and wet; I fin-ished the few drops. Immediately theshort rest, the finding of water in thearid desert, and the little drink of sweetflat wetness, set me up amazingly.

Fifteen more minutes, and my feetwere faltering again. I would go as faras a big rock that loomed just ahead ofus. But when we got to the rock Iwanted to see what was in the valley be-yond it.

The Elephant Tree was beyond it!My feet were suddenly as light as my

heart, as I leaned against the rock andlooked at the strange tree.

But my husband had a light in his eyeas he fingered his flint knife. He hadto be sure!

"When you think you have found it,stab it with a knife; if it bleeds red,you can be sure."

Dickon cut a small sliver of bark.The sap was red as beet juice!

We sat down and looked carefully tosee why it was called Elephant. Thick-ness, strength, solidity, massiveness,were the words it suggested.

Turn to Page 24

Split Mountainr Canijon

MAPShodnq location

of lke>ELEPHANT TREES.Sore go l

California

>strict of IkeBorep Desert.(Jrees areihree

rom and Dunes.

Car canbe drivento Slephanb-Jfee tJashs.

SmwhuMmikf. '•*

N o v e m b e r , 1937 17

Jluck

, T GUESS we'll pour a $10,000** J_ brick this week," young Kenneth

Holmes told me after showing methrough the modern gold reductionplant he and his partner, Ed Nichol-son, have erected in southeastern Im-perial county, California.

I could feel the cool chills chasingeach other up and down my spine. Whatkind of genii, thought I, could extractten grand from that mass of clankingchains, swirling mud, and howling crush-ers in a week? Yet that, apparently,was a regular habit. The circulatingcyanide plant has been running upscores like that almost every week formore than two years. And there are bet-ter scores to come, young Mr. Holmesdeclares with enthusiam.

Kenneth Holmes is worth anybody'sobservation. Here is a young man of 35years, graduate of University of Sou-thern California, technical and prac-tical miner of no mean ability, notat all hard to look at, with no lessthan a million of Uncle Sam's ironmen salted away for a rainy day. Here,I repeat, is a man with all this whoprefers to wear greasy overalls andlive in a shack beside his rumbling min-ing machinery. Here is a man withsomething on the ball.

If you keep up on mining news you

have seen the name Holmes runningin big letters these past few years. Butit is Brother George who gets the pub-lic notice, for it was George who foundthe boulder which led to the discoveryof the Silver Queen at Mojave. And theSilver Queen became a bonanza, sell-ing for $3,170,000 five months afterits discovery. So George, by the luckyturn of a pick, was awarded the head-lines.

Others, however, helped develop thegreat mine, among them George's fa-ther, younger Brother Kenneth, andexperienced old Ed Nicholson. All ofthe men drew rich stakes when themine was sold and they wisely contract-ed to leave their forwarding addressesfor regular royalty remittances. Butgold fever was in their blood. Insteadof retiring to a mansion in BeverlyHills and an estate at Palm Springs,they set out for new rock to blast.George rigged up a portable assayoutfit and compressor unit, gatheredtogether a crew of mining experts andset out to make a systematic modernsearch for the Golden Fleece.

Holmes Is Described

Glenn Chesney Quiett in his book"Pay Dirt" describes George Holmesas a born prospector. To quote from

Kenneth Holmes, young mining en-gineer, keeps Ids miner's garb eventhough he liad already made some

handsome "strikes."

By JONATHAN BART

the book: "He says he is like the legen-dary miner who was refused admittanceto heaven because the miners alreadythere were causing trouble by diggingup the golden streets. "If you let mein," he said to St. Peter, "I'll get rid ofthem for you." "All right," replied theguardian of the pearly gates as he ad-mitted him, "let's see what you cando." In a few minutes swarms of min-ers began to rush to the gates, demand-ing to be let out, and soon there wasnot one miner left in Heaven exceptthe newcomer. "How did you do it?"asked St. Peter. "Oh, I just told themthere was a new strike down in Hellthat made this one look like a worn-outplacer." So the miner acquired hishome in Heaven and the streets wereagain safe. But in a few hours he wasback at the gates. "Let me out," he said."Why?" asked St. Peter. "I just letyou in." "I know it," replied the pros-pector, "but I've been thinking it over,and maybe there's something in thatstrike down in Hell after all."

It was late in 1933 when George

Holmes and Nicholson plant nearWinterhaven, Imperial county,

California.

18 The DESERT MAGAZINE

Holmes chipped a piece of rich ore offa boulder near Mojave in Kern county,California. The new year had hardlybegun when it was sold for a fortune.Late in 1935 Kenneth Holmes and EdNicholson had bought a string ofmodern ore trucks and a flock of richclaims in the Cargo Muchacho moun-tains of eastern Imperial county. Theyhauled ore a few miles south to U. S.Highway 80, where they built a modernreduction plant near the site of theall-American canal.

Huge tubs were placed on a hillside.New machinery was placed on themand connected in a maze of pipe andplatforms known technically as the"flow plan." To the layman it lookslike a pile of junk kept in constantturmoil by some mysterious power.But to Holmes and Nicholson and the 35men who work for them, the plantrepresents the most modern, most scien-tific, and most economical method oftaking pure gold from quartz rock.

A massive maw with a digestive ca-pacity of 40 tons an hour crushes theore into small pieces. It is permittedonly a light breakfast, however, for itprepares in a half hour enough fodderto keep the plant operating the restof the day. While the plant now takescare of about 25 tons a day, a few sim-ple changes would step up the capacityto 100 tons a day.

Since the Desert Magazine is not des-tined to competition with the imminentMining Journal, it is not essential thatthis reporter disclose, even if he could,the technical construction and operationof the Holmes-Nicholson plant. But toyou and me the personalities and ach-ievements of these men are far moreimportant.

Amazing CareersThey are not ready yet to write their

memoirs; meteoric as has been theirrise in the mining world, they are stilllooking for new placers to work, newquartz to blast, new records to break.And perhaps, even before your eyemeets this print, you will have heardabout some amazing new strike whichthe Holmes brothers and their asso-ciates have made.

There should be a moral in the storyof the Holmes's which could be usedwith satisfaction by every school tea-cher in the land. For these boys havemore than luck: they first studied allavailable science on mining and thenwent out to apply their knowledge in thesearch for gold. That understanding,coupled with my secret belief that theyhabitually carry rabbit's feet and goodluck pennies, is probably the reasonfor their amazing success.

Come to

EL CENTROIN THE SCENIC IMPERIAL VALLEY

Land of Barbara Worth—and winter sunshine

CENTEROF THE

LARGESTIRRIGATIONENTERPRISE

INAMERICA

"AMERICA'SWINTER

GARDEN"

PICTURESQUE PAINTED GORGE

Visit El Centro, center of a rich valley which produces thousandsof carloads of table produce in seasons when eastern sections areunder snow . . . . indeed sufficient evidence of El Centro's delightfulwinter climate.

Within short motoring distance from El Centro's comfortablehotels and auto courts are the scenic wonders of the ColoradoDesert—scores of geological and historical points of interest. Seethe Imperial Dam and All-American Canal under construction. VisitSalton Sea, the ancient beachline, prehistoric oyster beds.

El Centro merchants and hotel keepers extend every effort toassure the comfort and convenience of tourists and motorists.

TRAVEL

ALLURING

DESERT

TRAILS

OUT OF

IMPERIAL

VALLEY

FAMOUS MUDPOTS AT MULLET ISLAND

For further information write the secretary of the

EL CENTRO CHAMBER OF COMMERCEEL CENTRO. CALIF.

N o v e m b e r , 1937 19

T HERE has been a lull in homesteaclands have become scarce, and ir| tlwithdrawn from entry until waterU\

however, the stage is being set for a |BT;In the great basin of the Colorado riveWashington, and on other projects, work:of acres of virgin soil to new settlement,river the all-American canal nears comp!half million acres of land which have mpanying article, the Desert Magazine prethis new project.

• - * * • " • '

7ot tki5

By LARRY D. WOLMAN

the IVeit—8000 oe5

OUT on the California desert, afew miles from the Coloradoriver, "Red" Davis spends eight

hours a day pulling levers and pressingbuttons in the cabin of a huge draglinedredger.

Out in front of "Red" on the end of a150-foot boom is a gigantic shovel, andeach time the boom swings around thehalf circle from the bottom of a newly-excavated ditch to the high sand bankon the opposite side of the dredger, the$30,000,000 All-American canal is 16yards of sand and gravel nearer com-pletion.

During the last two years there havebeen more than a score of "Red"Davises strung out along the 80-mileroute of the new canal. They have beenworking in shifts, 24 hours a day. Theirjob is nearly finished. The contractorsexpect to have the excavation work inthe canal completed before the end ofthis year.

There still remain several months ofwork to be done on the new diversiondam in the Colorado river, the desiltingplant and minor structures. But accord-ing to present schedules the "seasoning"of the new canal preparatory to puttingit in service will be underway by the endof 1938.

Then the Colorado river will beturned into the new channel, and thepioneer residents of Imperial Valleywho have been looking forward formore than 20 years to the time when

20

their irrigation and drinking water willflow through a canal located entirelyon American soil—rather than Mexico—will no doubt stage a glorious jubileeto celebrate the fulfillment of thdirdream.

As far as the owners of the 500,000acres of land now under cultivation inImperial Valley are concerned, the ar-rival of water in the All-Americancanal will mark the end of a long strug-gle to secure an adequate water supply.

But that merely is one phase of theproject. "Red" Davis and the otheroperators on those big Bucyrus-Monig-han dredges are digging a canal tocarry 10,000 second feet of water—enough for a million acres of land.Imperial Valley will use only half ofthe canal's capacity.

What of the other half million acres?Where is it located? Who owns it?When and how will the additional acre-age be brought under cultivation—andwho will be the farmers on the land?

Not all of these questions can beanswered with mathematical precision atthis time. But some of the answers areknown, and it is possible, in the lightof reclamation history, to make a fairlyaccurate guess as to the others.

First, where is the land located?According to estimates prepared by

the engineers who originally plannedthe construction of Boulder dam and theAll-American canal, the acreages to beserved are as follows:

Imperial Irrigation district 521,600Coachella Valley 152,930Dos Palmos area 8,942West mesa, adjoining Impe-

rial Valley 139,549East mesa, adjoining Imperial

Valley 217,471Pilot Knob area 20,815

Total acres 1,061,307

ALL AlSH(

TO BEI SEF

KAY MONO e: BC£1}/M

^ g activities in recent years. Goodhe desert area large tracts have been\ras available for cultivation. Today,rival of opportunity for homesteaders,ir, and in the Grand Coulee area inis in progress which will open millions. jln the basin of the Lower Coloradoletion. It will carry water to nearly aever known the plow. In the accom-ssents some interesting facts regarding

Insofar as prospective homesteadersare concerned, the land in the ImperialIrrigation district is out. Most of it washomesteaded many years ago. Also, avery large portion of the CoachellaValley acreage is now patented or sub-ject to prior claims which will make itunavailable for new entry.

Of the remaining area, the greaterpart of it is still in the public domain.Sections 16 and 36 in each townshipwere deeded to the State as school lands,and have largely passed into privatehands through sale. The federallyowned public lands within this projectwere all withdrawn from entry by orderof the Secretary of Interior, acting forthe President, in April 1909. There area few entries made previous to that datewhich may be revived as valid priorityclaims when the land is again restoredfor public settlement. For the mostpart, however, the 400,000 acres whichremain ofter the Imperial Irrigationdistrict and deeded land in Coachellavalley are subtracted, are still in thepublic domain and subject to entrywhen the Secretary of Interior lets downthe bars.

Not all of it is good land. Some of it

MERICAN CANAL SYSTEMOWING PUBLIC LANDS=IVED FROM COLORADO RIVER

A \ l , I F Q R

Yurrm.

2222 PUBLIC LANDS

canal, however, will be governed byreclamation law under which the Secre-tary may determine the size of the farmunit to be allotted to one person.

Turn to Page 32

C. A. Colon, ail-American canalconstruction foreman, inspects arelic of the days when a trip fromEl Centro to Yuma was a night-mare—and this was the only 'water-

hole' on the route.

can be watered from the new canalonly through pump lifts. There aresand dunes and barrancas in some sec-tions which would make the cost of re-clamation almost prohibitive. Makinga liberal discount for these areas it maybe estimated that there will be between300,000 and 350,000 acres of fertile andtillable land available for new settlers—8,000 forty-acre farms, perhaps.

So much for the location and pres-ent status of the land. And now wecome to a phase of the question whichis largely speculative: When and howwill these lands be made available forsettlement ?

The Secretary of Interior will deter-mine the date, acting under the autho-rity of the President. One point is quitecertain—there will be no land openinguntil water is available for settlers.According to present estimates waterwill be flowing in the All-Americancanal some time during 1939.

It is also quite certain that when thewater supply has been assured therewill be a tremendous pressure on theSecretary to hasten the opening date.This pressure will come not only fromwar veterans and others who are eligibleto file on the land, but from agenciesinterested in the profits which will ac-crue through widespread commercialchannels from a colonization projectwhich will create many thousands ofnew farms in Southern California.

Under the general land laws a home-stead is 160 acres, or in special in-stances 320 or 640 acres. The publiclands to be served by the All-American

SUMMARY OF VETERANS'HOMESTEAD RIGHTS

Circular 1264, General Land Of-fice, explains the preference rightsof war veterans in the followingparagraph:

"On the opening of public orIndian lands to entry or restora-tion to entry of public lands here-tofore withdrawn from entry, offic-ers, soldiers, sailors, or marineswho have served in the Army orNavy of the United States in war,military occupation or military ex-pedition, and have been honorablyseparated or discharged therefromor placed in the Regular Army orNaval Reserve are accorded a pre-ferred right of entry under thehomestead laws, if qualified there-under, except as against prior ex-isting valid settlement rights andpreference rights conferred by ex-isting laws or equitable claims sub-ject to allowance and confirmation,for a period of 90 days before thegeneral opening of such lands todisposal."

Veterans with not less than 90days' service may deduct all or partof their enlistment period from the3-year residence requirement neces-sary to prove up on a homestead.Rules governing these deductionsare set forth in General Land Of-fice Circular 302, and are sum-marized as follows:

An ex-serviceman with 19 monthsor more military service must re-side on the land 7 months duringthe first entry year.

With more than 12 and less than19 months, he must reside on theland 7 months of the first year andsuch part of the second as, addedto his excess over 12 months' serv-ice, will equal 7 months, and mustcultivate one-sixteenth of the areathe second year.

With 7 and not more than 12months' service, he must reside onthe land not less than 7 monthsduring each of the first and secondyears, and cultivate one-sixteenthof the area the second year.

With 90 days and less than 7months' service he must reside onthe land 7 months during each ofthe first and second years, and suchpart of the third year as added tohis service will make seven months.He must cultivate one-sixteenth ofhis area the second year and one-eighth the third year.

The 90-day service requirementdoes not apply to veterans dis-charged for disability incurred inline of duty, and the entire enlist-ment period of such veterans maybe deducted from residence re-quirements.

The above also applies to RedCross workers who were identifiedwith the military and naval forces.

21

KING'SCENTRO

THE DEPARTMENT

STORE OF THE

DESERT

BOYS AND GIRLS—Earn extra moneyin spare time by introducing this maga-zine to your friends and relatives. Lib-eral commissions for subscriptions. Callor "write Circulaton Manager, the DesertMagazine, El Centro, Calif.

Hardy Shrubsand Plants . . . forDesert Sections

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Who Knows the Storyof this Arizona Landmark?

How Well Do YouKnow Your Desert?

O NE OF THE objectives of theDesert Magazine is to help Desertfolks become better acquainted

with their own land of fascination andmystery.

Scattered over the desert countryfrom California to New Mexico andfrom the Mexican border to Nevadaand Utah are literally thousands ofscenic and historic objects—picturesquecanyons, crumbling ruins of historicbuildings, relics of Indian civilization,weird natural formations, and obscureoddities.

In order that these places may be-come better known and that the factsand history of them may be availablefor our readers, the Desert Magazineeach month will print the photograph ofone of these mystery spots together witha prize offer to the person who is mostthorough and accurate in identifyingand describing the subject of the photo-graph.

Above is reproduced the first picturein the series. This illustration shows animportant building in Arizona. Do youknow its story and location? Let ushear from you.

PRIZE OFFER

T O THE FIRST person who sendsto the Desert Magazine an accurateidentification of the above land-

mark, together with the best story ofnot over 300 words telling the location,the rail and highway routes by whichit might be reached, and the historicalfacts surrounding its construction anduse, a cash prize of five dollars ($5.00)will be paid.

To be eligible for the prize, answersmust be in the office of the Desert Maga-zine at El Centro, Calif., by November20, 1937. The name of the winner to-gether with the text of the prize-winningreply, will be printed in the January is-sue of the magazine.

Writers should give the source oftheir information, stating whether thefacts quoted are a matter of authorita-tive record or merely hearsay.

Answers should be written only onone side of the page and addressed toLandmarks Department, Desert Maga-zine, El Centro, California.

22 The DESERT MAGAZINE

Sez

Hard RockShorty

OF DEATH VALLEY

By LON GARRISON

44 HUCKS, I must be gettin' old,"gloomed Hard Rock Shorty, ashe asphyxiated a passing bug

with a cloud of pipe smoke and thenleaned back on the porch bench waitingfor more victims.

"I was just thinkin' about it today,an' it's twenty-five year ago this Julythat old Bags Bagoon froze to deathover on Freeze Up Gulch. Seems justlike last week! Old Bags was an old-timer in the Panamints, but he'd beengettin' kind o' childish, dreamin' aboutMinnysota or some heathen place. Thenone fourth of July as he was hikin'into town, why a regular buster of awindstorm come up. Old Bags knowedenough to get out o' the wind an' coverup his head, but he hadn't rightly fig-gered on the Pilgrim with the load o'popcorn. This newcomer was headin'into the town of Inferno with this littledab o' corn figgerin' to sell it to usboys to while away the long wintereven in s with when this storm catched'im.

"He dumb out under the wagon allright, but the sun was so hot she poppedall the dang corn an' the wind blowed'er away. Old Bags woke up an' foundhimself buried about seven foot deep inthe stuff an' them dreams 0' Minnysotablizzards got 'im. He froze to death!We like to never got 'im thawed outenough to bury proper."

YUMA, ARIZONA—Norval Enger has been transferred from the

Pine View dam project near Ogden to as-sume the post of division engineer for theGila river project. He takes the place ofPaul Jones, who was transferred to Glen-dive, Mont.

LANCASTER, CALIFORNIA—Antelope Valley has just celebrated its sev-

enth annual Alfalfa festival, acclaiming a$2,000,000 industry on the southern edge ofthe Mojave desert. The celebration markedthe fifth and final alfalfa harvest of the sea-son—a 16,600-acre crop.

In the Desert

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. . , , , , , . , Magazine of themountains, lakes, forests and streams, birds „ ° ~ 'and wildlife, with information on our National ^reat OutdoorsParks, National Forests and dude ranches, andthe trails that lead through the wilderness. Saysone reader, "Surely lovers of the Great Out-doors will revel through the pages." And so 5 Y e a r s fio* $Z.OOwill you. 15 cents at NewsstandsSign, Tear off this Coupon and Mail with Money or Check to

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N o v e m b e r , 1937 Mention the Desert Magazine to Advertisers 23

Lost Tree in a Lonely LandContinued from Page 17

While virtually unknown to the aver-age amateur botanist, the Elephant Treehas been known for many years by sci-entists. Although its California habitatis limited to the Borego and Vallecitoareas in the Colorado desert, it has alsobeen found in Arizona, Baja California,and Sonora. It is, however, a rare tropi-cal plant.

W. L. Jepson, famous California bot-anist, had the tree classified as Burseramicrophylla in his "Manual of Flower-ing Plants of California" in 1923.Other botanists also credit JoachimBurser with original classification of thetree.

J. H. Rose, eminent cacti authority,is responsible for the more descriptiveterm Elaphrium microphyHum.

The massive main trunk of the tree isonly about four feet high, but it is al-most as broad. The main branches arecuriously twisted and interwoven, verylike an elephant's coiled and upraisedtrunk, and these branches are them-selves the size of a good big tree. Offthe main branches come limbs such asan ordinary tree of good growth wouldput out. These secondary branches are

not the leaf carriers. The dainty ovalleaf, about an eighth of an inch long,grows in fern-like clusters on yet a sub-branch. These cover the tree so close-ly that one does not at first realize themassive dignity of this desert rarity.

The outer bark of the tree is the colorand texture of fine parchment, one thinlayer over the other. This golden bark,as it dries, curls back in transparent thinlayers, and exposes a bright green barkunderneath. The leaves and twigs ofthe tree have an aromatic fragrancemuch like that of cedar. The seed-cones are ripe and very hard. Theyare about the color, size and shape ofa small blue huckleberry. I found oneberry not yet ripe. It was flame-coloredand had a waxy, flesh-like texture.

The Elephant Tree valley was assilent as the valley I had visioned, butnot lonely. It was filled with a vastwarm quiet—a majestic living silence.

We sat happily, left reluctantly.A white star burned above Split

Mountain. And the Elephant Tree,standing like a solitary prophet in thevalley, slowly became a dark silhouetteagainst the darkening sky.

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WANTEDDESERT PICTURES

Prize contestannouncement

TO THE amateur photographerwho sends in the best photo-graphic print each month the

Desert Magazine will pay cashprizes of $6.00 to first place and$4.00 for second place winners.

There is no restriction as to theplace of residence of the photog-rapher, but prints must be essen-tially of the desert.

Here are the subjects which willbe favored by the judges:

Close-ups of desert animal life.Close-ups of desert flora.Unusual personal or candid

camera pictures.Desert homes and gardens.Strange rock formations.Exceptional pictures of desert

water-holes and out-of-the-wayscenic places.

While other types of picturesare not excluded, the above willbe given the preference.

Rules governing the contest fol-low:

1—Pictures submitted in No-vember contest must be receivedin the office of the Desert Maga-zine by November 20.

2—Winners will be required tofurnish original negatives if re-quested.

3—Prints must be in black andwhite, 21/4x31

/4 or larger.4—No pictures will be returned

unless postage is furnished.For non-prize-winning pictures

accepted for publication $2.00each will be paid.

Winners will be announced andthe prize pictures in the Novem-ber contest published in the Janu-ary issue of Desert Magazine.

Address all entries to

CONTEST EDITOR, Desert MagazineEl Centro, California

FOR PLUMBING SEE

Blackman Plumbing Co.PHONE 1047

EL CENTRO, CALIF.

24 Mention the Desert Magazine to Advertisers The DESERT MAGAZINE

Sandstonea me

Just ordinary sandstone—the most worth-less member of the rock family. But thesedesert folks gathered a few truck loadsfrom the nearby hills and built a comfort-able and unique home. Here is their story.

Sketch by TOMMY TOMSON

BROWN desert sandstone, tons and tons of large flat slabs, werebrought from the nearby ancient beachline of vanished Lake Cahuillato build the unique desert home of Mr. and Mrs. T. M. Montgomery

at Niland, California.

Comfortable, spacious, and solid, the home demonstrates what can bedone with native materials, plus much labor and planning. Set in abackdrop of desert vegetation, the rough exterior walls harmonize withthe surroundings. The wide front porch identifies the house as earlyCalifornia style with modifications planned by the owners to make itan ideal desert home.

Although the house is built to accommodate a small family, a separateguest house provides sufficient additional sleeping quarters and empha-sizes the effect of spaciousness.

Foundations of concrete are deep and huge reinforced blocks supportit on bed clay. Walls are uniformly 18 inchef, thick. A huge eucalyptuslog supports rustic rafters on the front porch. The same wood is usedfor the rustic pergola terrace at the rear. An outdoor fireplace addscharm to the terrace. The same sandstone which went into the walls isused on floors of terrace and porch.

The roof is finished with hand-split cedar shakes. Heavy redwoodrailway ties were used for lintels, then antiqued. The beautiful interiorfireplace is topped with a polished ironwood mantelpiece. Windows arelarge, providing complete air circulation.

Floors are of three-width pegged mahogany on a pine subfloor.The ten-foot ceiling is antiqued with heavy beams and ironwork.

Walls are finished light and woodwork is stained dark. Theearly California motif is carried out in all interior finish.

In addition to the principal building, Mr. and Mrs. Mont-gomery have a two car garage, tool house, three-room guesthouse, laundry house, and corrals on the large lot, the wholesurrounded by a sandstone and redwood picket fence. Atholtrees and oleander form a conspicuous part of the landscapingplan. Young citrus trees are set out. Rocks line the graveleddriveways.

Total floor space is approximately 1800 square feet in themain house. A carload of cement and 20 barrels of lime wereused in the construction. Principal cost in this type of homeis consumed in labor.

Kenneth A. Gordon, Pasadena, was the architect.

N o v e m b e r , 1937

GUEST HOUSt

•

ti BOLD EMORY"Continued from Page 11

and quick grasp of essentials. Tablesof astronomical figures, of little interestto the average reader, are safely tuckedaway in the appendix, leaving the nar-rative free for lucid description andcrowning incident.

First Reporter of the Desert

A review of Emory's notes would bean exhaustive commentary on the man-ners, morals, and foibles of the peoplehe met, a vivid description of his com-pany and the land through which hepassed. He told a coherent story of ahistoric march without apparent at-tempt to draw biased conclusions. Hewas a reporter, not a critic. His re-ports of the battles fought in the "sec-ond conquest" of California are ac-cepted as authentic.

Emory was one of the busiest men inthe company during the ten weeks' jour-ney from Santa Fe to Warner's Ranch.The greater part of the trip was madein deserts which had never been map-ped. The motorist who now travels thesame distance in two days will findit difficult to understand the rigors ofdesert travel in 1846. Learning thatEmory had time to observe an oaktree which now bears the name Quercusemoryii and that he took voluminousnotes on other desert plants, the modernwill increase his appreciation ofEmory's talents.

The weary company finally passedthrough the California sierras and ar-rived at Warner's, sensing that its jour-ney was near an end. Emory joined thefestivities and welcomed the entertain-ment and hospitality of Sailor Bill.He woke long before dawn on the fate-ful morning of December 6, 1846, toride with General Kearney at the headof a battered column of fighters intothe camps of Andres Pico's Californialancers. Surviving the two-day slaughterwhich marked the Golden State's onlydisastrous military battle, he helpednurse the wounded and bury the dead.He carefully found time to take night-ly observations of latitude and longti-tude for his precious reports.

When Kearney was severely woundedin the first encounter, it was Emorywho led the charge on "Starvation Hill"in San Pasqual valley, the strongestposition held by the Americans duringthe battle.

Aid from San Diego

Carson and Beale slipped through theCalifornian's picket lines and broughtback aid from San Diego. The shat-tered remnants of the Army of the West

finally reached the edge of the Pacificand the end of their journey. Kearneyreported the death of 18 men and thewounding of 13 more in a battle withina day's walk of the port. And he hadtraveled more than eight months forthis inglorious humiliation!

After a little delay, CommodoreStockton accompanied General Kearneywith reinforcements of Navy men foran overland attack on the pueblo ofLos Angeles. Emory joined the move-ment to make observations of the sou-thern California terrain, reporting thetwo minor encounters with GeneralFlores' Californians.

Fremont signed a peace treaty withPico on January 13, to the discomfitureof Stockton and Kearney. Before thethree-cornered fireworks had sputteredtoward the explosion point, Emory hadcompleted his preliminary plans for afort in Los Angeles and had hurriedback to San Diego, where he took aship bound for the Isthmus, with hisnotes, sketches, and observations.

Five days after Emory embarked, theragged, exhausted Mormon Battalion,the company of 500 men under Capt. F.St. George Cooke, arrived in San Diego.Traveling on foot from Fort Leaven-worth as a part of the Army of theWest, the Mormons had been left farbehind and did not sight the land theyhad come to conquer until two weeksafter the ink was dry on the peacetreaty.

Emory Given PromotionLt. Emory's reconnaissance report

ended at San Diego but his achieve-ments in the southwest did not. Theyear his report was printed he was ap-pointed by the President as chief as-tronomer of the boundary survey. In1854 he received full power to establishthe international line under the GadsenPurchase. In three years he had com-pleted the survey of the 46,000 squaremiles of desert in southern Arizonawhich marked the extension of UnitedStates territory.

The engineer climbed in rank rapidlyafter that, receiving in succession com-missions as major, lieutenant colonel,brigadier general, and major general.He retired from the army in 1876 aftera service of 45 years.

No doubt as an old man of 75 years,W. H. Emory often reviewed the dra-matic and adventurous days with theArmy of the West. If he could havelived to see the agricultural wealth onthe upper Gil a, canals, highways, andrailroads traversing the deserts he cross-

ed, treacherous Salton Sink turned intoverdant Imperial Valley—he wouldhave been amazed and gratified.

The thousands who are now reclam-ing the desert areas he first mappedshould place the name of Emory highamong the men who "found" the south-west.

Steve Ragsdale—Continued from Page 9

Ragsdale dug nine holes—all of themdry. Then he brought in a well drillingoutfit and found water at 423 feet. Itcost $12,000 to develop the new well.His difficulties in raising the twelvethousand make a story more thrillingthan fiction.

A new location called for a newname—and so Desert Center was born.

Today an average of 500 cars a daypass through the little settlement onthe Chuckawalla desert. It is a one-man town. Desert Steve not only ownsall the real estate, but he is also the law.For many years he has been a deputysheriff not only in Riverside county,but also in San Bernardino and Im-perial counties.

No Cocktail Parties Here

At one time he thought of subdivid-ing his 700-acre homestead and sellingpart of it. But he wanted the deeds tocarry restrictions against liquor, gamb-ling and wild women. He wanted themdrawn so that a man could not even takea drink of his own beer on a lot boughtfrom Steve Ragsdale. The lawyers saidthat was going too far. It couldn't bedone. So the elegant plans which theengineers and architects had preparedwere shoved into a pigeonhole—andare still there.

Steve isn't a pink tea reformer. Thereare notches on his gun, put there underjustifiable circumstances. But he re-gards liquor, gambling and prostitutionas unnecessary vices, and they willnever be tolerated on his domain. Whenthousands of men came out to work onthe Colorado River aqueduct which isrouted near Desert Center, Ragsdalewas offered $5,000 for a beer gardenconcession.

"I turned it down," he explained,"because no person could afford topay so high a price for the privilegeof selling beer at Desert Center. I knewhow they intended to get their moneyback if they obtained the lease. I willnot have any honky-tonks at DesertCenter—not at any price."

Ragsdale's antipathy toward commer-cialized vice is natural. It is a carry-

26 The DESERT MAGAZINE

over from the days when he was a par-son. He was born in Coffeyville, Kansas,but spent most of his early life in Mis-souri where he went to theologicalseminary and became an ordained min-ister of the Methodist church.

That was in the old fire and brim-stone days—and Steven Ragsdale wasa young volcano in the pulpit. In hisinner heart, however, he never couldquite accept the idea that the mountainsand rivers and forests were made liter-ally in six 24-hour days. And since,in his time and place it was heresy tobelieve otherwise, he finally resignedhis pastorate and went into the leadmines to make his livelihood.

In 1908 he moved with his wifeto California and in 1909 filed on ahomestead in the Palo Verde valley.

Steve's Weakness Is Poetry

Despite his religious schooling, De-sert Steve has two vices. Those tallyarns with which he entertains thetenderfoot visitors at Desert Centerconstitute one of them. The other is—poetry. He writes the world's worstverse.

The irony of it is that while thereare countless numbers of fine poetswhose genius goes unrewarded, DesertSteve makes money out of his rhymes.He uses them for advertising purposes.There is a homely philosophy in Steve'sdoggerel which appeals to folks des-pite its bad technique.

One incident in Ragsdale's experiencethrows a great light on the character ofthe man. His life's desire was that hischildren should have a thorough educa-tion. Business in Desert Center hasprospered in recent years, and therewere ample funds to carry the youngRagsdales through college.

When the time came for Stanley, theyoungest boy, to take his advancedtraining, he rebelled. Before the firstsemester was finished at Riverside Jun-ior College, he returned home and toldhis parents that he had enough. Hewanted to go to work and "do somethinguseful."

Steve and the boy's mother urgedand pleaded—but that was that. Finallythe elder Ragsdale called his oldestson, Therman, into the conspiracy tohelp put Stanley back in school.

"Dad, why don't you go to college?"This was Therman's suggestion. Dad

did not know whether to laugh or getmad. It is not pleasant to be ridiculedby one's own children.

"I mean it," insisted Therman. Andhe finally convinced his father that hedid mean it, and that the suggestionoffered a possible solution to the pro-

Turn to Page 37

visit CALEXICOON THE BORDER

Palms in Nearby Canyons

Just across the interna-tional line is Mexicali,capital city of Baja Cali-fornia, Mexico. Here iscolorful Mexican life, fed-eral buildings, and en-chanting cantinas andcafes.Accommodations of allclasses are available fortourists in Calexico, fromfirst class hostelry to eco-nomical trailer camps.

For further information write to

Save miles and see more inter-esting desert wonders on the newcutoff road through Calexico.This route is the shortest distancefrom Yuma to San Diego and of-fers a variety of tourist attractions.Travel westward on U. S. 80highway, see the great Ail-Ameri-can Canal along the interna-tional border, sample the touristaccommodations and entertain-ment at Calexico.Calexico is the center of a pic-turesque desert area. Sunshineand mild temperatures make it anincreasingly popular winter play-ground. Dozens of scenic pointswithin easy motoring distancehold enchantment for the lover ofthe desert.

Hunters find dove and quailabound during open season innearby areas, while plentiful duckand geese on the river delta landshave made it a sportsman's para-dise. The famed totuava fishingon the Gulf of California annuallydraws hundreds of fishermen toCalexico.

Fishing at San Felipe, on the Gulf

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N o v e m b e r , 1937 27

DESERT UNDER A MICROSCOPEContinued from Page 8

York Botanical garden, were appointedto make an investigation of sites for astudy of vegetation in arid lands. In1903 they recommended Tucson be-cause of the richly diversified characterof desert vegetation in the vicinity andbecause of its accessibility to otherdesert areas.

Dr. MacDougal was named directorof the Desert Laboratory but during thethree years required for him to finishhis work at New York, Dr. W. A. Can-non was made resident investigator atTucson. Other scientists who have madevaluable contributions to the world'sknowledge have spent some time at thelaboratory, but Dr. MacDougal wasfor twenty years the driving force, in-spiring projects of scholarly brilliance.

Retired from the laboratory ten yearsago, Dr. MacDougal is now a residentof Carmel, California, where he is con-tinuing his work with the Division ofPlant Biology. Short of stature, solidlybuilt, Dr. MacDougal has the brusqueforcefulness of his Scotch ancestors.Yet he inspired unflinching loyalty andrespect from the men who worked withhim on the desert.

29 Years at LaboratoryDr. Shreve came to the Desert Labor-

atory in 1908, two years after Mac-Dougal took charge, and was placed incharge when MacDougal retired. YetDr. Shreve is not a commandant; he israther a fellow student and colleagueto the men who work under him.

Asked abruptly about the rankingof the four men now working at thelaboratory, Dr. Shreve said, "We don'twant a man here who doesn't knowwhat he is doing. Each man has hisown interest and he can usually keepbusy without specific direction fromme."

There is earnest-eyed young Dr. T.D. Mallery, who at 36 has the highestscholastic degree as a result of hisstudies on the osmotic movement of sapin Larrea (creosote bush). The factorshe has formulated have a bearing onall desert plant life. With a physicalbuild along the lines of a varsity half-back, this youthful scholar is humanand practical in his attitude toward lifein general and his work in particular.Twice a year "Tee Dee" takes a trekof several hundred miles over the de-sert to inspect his "string" of rain gau-ges. These gauges, located in isolatedplaces, hold the secret of importantdata on rainfall and climate.

Then there is another young fellow,W. V. "Bill" Turnage, who has no

Dr. Forrest Shreve reading an in-strument which records changes incircumference of cacti trunks towhich it is attached. Daily and sea-sonal variations are due to changes

in water-balance.

scholastic degree but uses the scientificvernacular like a veteran. And a veteranhe really is, because he has been study-ing at the laboratory for seven years.Starting as a laborer on a concretegang nearby, this young fellow wholooks like a college sophomore readhis own paper on desert climate to adistinguished session of the AmericanAssociation for the Advancement ofScience at Denver this summer. Andjust to fill in time while he worked "onthe hill" these past seven years, Turnagecompleted his university course andcrammed in a few graduate courses. Hecan squint at a cloud, tell you howhigh it is, where it came from, whetherit will bring rain and any other datayou may request. I concluded he wouldbe a good man to have around on a sum-mer camping trip in Arizona.

There have been as many as four orfive men—and occasionally a womanscientist—working at the laboratory atone time. But for several years Dr.Shreve "held the fort" alone. Specialinvestigators, men whose work is sup-ported by a scientific foundation orgreat university, sometimes spend froma few days to a few years at the labora-tory. They each work independent of theother, yet each is aware of the other'scourse.

Casual Visitors Not EncouragedOf the thousands of winter visitors

who come to Tucson annually there maybe a dozen or so who will inquireabout the way to the Desert Laboratory.Chances are they will have to ask a

half dozen Tucsonians before they se-cure correct directions for the two-mile drive. Obviously, casual visitorson Tumamoc hill are not encouraged.The scientists prefer comparative iso-lation in order to preserve the finebalance of plant and animal life with-in the 800-acre tract.

It may be pertinent at this point toinquire why the layman, the averageAmerican citizen, should be interestedin the work of the Desert Laboratory.Dr. Shreve admits frankly he does notbelieve his work of any interest tothe layman. "But to the super-laymanand interested student," he added, "wehave a unique institution, designed andintended for investigation of desertplants and conditions which surroundthem. There may be no immediate prac-tical utility in the work we are doingbut we are laying the groundwork for anew science, a mass of knowledge con-cerning a large portion of the earth'ssurface about which we have hithertoknown very little.

"This laboratory is unique in thatthere is no other like it in the world,"the director said. "Although there aremore than 200 marine laboratories inthe world, created for the study ofoceanic life, there are only three desertlaboratories. One established and main-tained by the Russian government atRepetek, Turkestan, has for its principalpurpose the study of sandy soils fromthe standpoint of agricultural use. Ano-ther, maintained by the French govern-ment at Beni Unif, Algeria, is interestedonly in date culture. This Carnegie In-stitution Laboratory, then, is the onlyplace where desert vegetation is studiedin its native state from a purely scien-tific standpoint."

Yet, while Dr. Shreve minimized thecontribution of the laboratory's workto the improvement of the desert dwell-er's way of living, a perusal of thetitles of the many papers prepared bythe staff is evidence enough that thereis great practical value there. For in-stance, Dr. Shreve wrote for the Head-waters Engineering Conference at Wash-ington last year a paper describing theconditions and patient labor necessaryto improve grazing on desert lands.His knowledge of the keen balance oflife, of soil moisture, rainfall and run-off, climate and wind movement all con-tribute to a basic understanding of soilerosion. Indirectly, many of the otherstudies pursued at the laboratory willeventually aid agriculture and stock-raising and improve living conditions onthe desert.

28 The DESERT MAGAZINE

Information Given to WorldMore than 360 papers (a scientist's

term comparable to the newsman's"story" and the magazine man's "ar-ticle") have been produced by staffmen at the laboratory. These articlesdescribing work at the laboratory ap-pear in magazines, scientific journals,school textbooks, Carnegie Institutionnews releases and books, and govern-ment publications. They are not alwayspurely technical but they are usually"slanted" well above college essays.

For instance, one of the first workspublished by the Institution was a largevolume by MacDougal and Covillecalled "Botanical Features of NorthAmerican Deserts" which embraces 115printed pages in describing areas of thesouthwestern deserts. The findings re-corded in this book emphasized thetimely and strategic location of theDesert Laboratory at Tucson.

Another monumental scientific workby MacDougal and associates was abook published in 1914 describing theSalton Sea Basin. And Shreve publisheda large volume describing the vegeta-tion of a mountain range as conditionedby climatic factors. These and similarstudies are the result of patient physi-cal labor and ardous mental toil.

One of the productions in which Dr.Shreve displays much pride is the four-volume work by Britton and Rose on"The Cactaceae" which gives "descrip-tions and illustrations of plants of thecactus family." This monumental con-tribution has become the cornerstonefor a nation-wide cactus and succulenthobby and the foundation for all workson the classification of cacti.

Many of the papers deal with waterrelations in desert plants, the rate ofintake and loss of moisture and themechanism of control which makesit possible for plants of arid lands towithstand years of drought.

Time Means Nothing on Desert"Desert plants know how to mark

time," Dr. Shreve said. In that one shortstatement is a world of wisdom. "Theplants we study have so adapted them-selves to conditions that they can re-main dormant during unfavorable con-ditions and then take advantage ofevery opportunity when moisture doescome. These plants are so constitutedthat they can radically change theirresponse to wide ranges of light, mois-

\

. ture, and temperature conditions. In factthe plants of our southwestern deserts

| have no descent relationship with theplants of any other desert in the world;they are the product of their own en-vironment."

"Our job, then, is to find out wherethese plants came from. If they are

Dr. T. D. Mattery reading the long-period rain guages. Light oil isused in the guages to prevent evap-

oration of captured rain-water.

found in no other part of the world,they must have come from surroundingadvantageous areas and gradually creptinto the arid lands as they were able toadapt themselves to the more extremeconditions. What changes took placewhen they came from their originalhome? What physiological adjustmentstook place? We are gradually linkingthe evidence togther to give us an in-creasingly coherent answer to thesequestions."

The scientists of the Desert Labora-tory are not stay-at-home bookworms.Much of their time is spent in the field,traveling several thousand miles a yearin studying desert vegetation from thegreat basin of Nevada and Utah tothe high plains of the Mojave region,into the rocky fastnesses of the Chihua-huan desert, and into the arid regionsof northwestern Mexico and BajaCalifornia.

Trip to PinacatesOne of the first great expeditions of

the laboratory staff was taken into thePinacate region of northern Sonora in1907. Dr. MacDougal was leader of theparty of nine men, which included God-frey Sykes and Dr. W. T. Hornaday.Sykes remained with the laboratory formany years and although he formallyretired from active service in 1929, heis still actively pursuing hydrologicinvestigations along the Colorado andother southwestern streams. Dr. Horn-aday died last March after a life dedi-cated to wild life conservation. He wasthe author of a penetrating and humanbook, "Campfires on Desert and Lava,"

which is an account of the expeditioninto the Pinacate region.

This still partly unexplored area,named for a small beetle of the desert,embraces about 700 square miles of lavaflow and more than a hundred cratersof extinct volcanoes. Several craters,which now bear the names of membersof the party, are more than a mile indiameter and have steeply precipitoussides. From this weird and fascinatingdesolation the party of explorersbrought a story both novel and startling,one of the treasures of southwestern de-sert lore.

Since this memorable expedition,scientific parties have gone into theregion a number of times, the mostrecent led by Dr. Shreve in the springof 1936. Perhaps one of the reasons whythe area remained unexplored for solong—and is incidentally an indexof its aridity—lies in the fact that inan area of seven thousand square milesin which Pinacate peak is the center,there is a total population of less thanfifty persons!

The Desert Laboratory is only thirty-five years old, a new-born babe in theeternity of desert time. And the menwho labor there, seeming to realize theimmensity of the work yet undone,have chosen a life of research andstudy both intense and far-reaching.Here the desert is truly under a micro-scope and its closely guarded secretsare being brought to public view. Notnow, perhaps, but soon, desert dwellerswill give fervent thanks for the fore-sight of an immigrant boy and for thetenacity and intelligence of these de-sert men of science.

You will find at Hotel de Anza tonicrest or intriguing adventure and ultra-modern luxury in this desert oasis. Hike—explore—hunt—fish—relax.

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ON THE DESERTPIOCHE, NEVADA—

Marked revival in mining activities in thisdistrict is evident as a result of the recentcompletion of transmission lines bringingBoulder dam power to Pioche. A celebrationwhich attracted visitors from all over thestate was held here September 25 as a formalinauguration of the new power service. Pub-lisher E. L. Nores issued a special edition ofthe Pioche Record in honor of the occasion.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA—

Horse Thief basin park, recreational areain the Bradshaw mountains, maintained bythe City of Phoenix, drew more than 5,000visitors during the past season, according tothe report of Manager Ray Patton.

CALEXICO, CALIFORNIA—

According to the report of Mexican engi-neers, 70 miles of the new railroad which isto connect Calexico and Mexicali with a newport on the Sonora shore of the Gulf of Cali-fornia, has been completed. Completion ofthis line will give American sportsmen a newshort route to the famous deep-sea fishingwaters of the gulf.

AJO, ARIZONA—

Clarifying the Wheeler-Howard act insofaras it applies to the Papago Indian reserva-tion, President Roosevelt has signed a billrestoring these Indian lands to explorationand location for mining purposes. The Papa-gos will be compensated for any damages orloss of use or occupancy due to mining opera-tions.

29 PALMS, CALIFORNIA—

Publishers Bill and Clint Underhill of theweekly newspaper "Desert Trail" recentlymoved into a newly constructed buildingwhich houses not only their office and print-ing plant but provides additional space forother commercial purposes.

YUMA, ARIZONA—

For the proptection of a dwindling numberof mountain sheep and deer in the Kofa andCastle Dome areas of Yuma county, the U. S.Biological survey has asked for a presidentialwithdrawal of 700,000 acres of public domainas a game refuge. Mining and prospectingin the area will not be restricted by thewithdrawal order.

PRESCOTT, ARIZONA—

At the annual convention of Arizona Mo-hair Growers' association here, R. H. White-head of Kirkland was elected president. J. A.Medd of Skull Valley is vice president andMrs. Roy Cooper of Kirkland, secretary. At60 to 70 cents a pound, Mohair growers arereceiving the highest price in years.

f

30

YUMA, ARIZONA—

Wallace F. Beery, high ranking movie star,is reported to have bought a 320-acre tractof desert land 12 miles east of Yuma in theGila project.

ELY, NEVADA—

At the annual meeting of InternationalFour States Highway association (Montana,Idaho, Nevada and California) here Septem-ber 18, II. E. Wells of Whitefish, Montana,was reelected president and Robert Hays ofEl Centro, California, secretary.

EL CENTRO, CALIFORNIA—

Bringing promise of a new industry forImperial and Coachella valleys, the HollySugar company of Santa Ana has contractedfor the growing of more than 6,000 acres ofsugar beets in these desert areas during thewinter season.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA—

Arizona's copper and black auto licenseplates which have been in use since 1932will give way next year to a combination ofyellow and black, according to recent an-nouncement of the motor vehicle department.Arizona law stipulates that drivers must applyfor new plales before January 1.

HOUCK, ARIZONA—Poisonous herbs caused the death of two

Navajo Indian children recently, a boy agedthree and his five-year-old sister. Accordingto the report of reservations authorities thechildren devoured herbs which their motherhad ground on a stone for external applica-tion to ihe broken arm o[ an older sister.

CROWNPOINT, NEW MEXICO—

S. F. Stacher, for 28 years superintendentof the eastern Navajo reservation headquar-ters here, has been transferred to the superin-tendency of the Ute reservation at Ignacio,Colorado.

PRESCOTT, ARIZONA—

Current wage scales in Arizona as an-nounced by the National Re-employment Serv-ice office are as follows: Carpenters 11.125per hour, bricklayers $1.50, electricians $1,125,machinists $1.20, brush painters $1.00, spraypainters $1.25, plasterers $1.50, powdermen$1.00, stone masons $1.25, plumbers $1.25,sheet metal workers $1,125, cooks $.75, truckand tractor operators $.75 to $1.25, draglineoperators $1.50, diamond drillers $1,125, un-skilled workers $.625 to $.65.

QUARTZSITE, ARIZONA—

On the daily trip from his camp to hisplacer claims in the Plomosa district, E. D.Ring has killed 18 rattlesnakes during thepast season.

The DESERT MAGAZINE

INDIO, CALIFORNIA—Field work has been resumed by U. S. Rec-

lamation bureau engineers in preparation forthe construction of the 130-mile extension ofthe All-American canal. H. R. Voris re-cently has been transferred from Yuma toCoachella valley, where he has establishedheadquarters for the field parties.

GALLUP, NEW MEXICO—David Jones of this city has been named

custodian of the Wupatki and Sunset craternational monuments north of Flagstaff. Hewill make his headquarters at Wupatki. Jonesis a graduate of the University of Arizona,where he has specialized in archeological re-search.

V1CKSBURG, ARIZONA—One of the largest herds of mountain sheep

reported in Yuma county in recent years wasseen by John Ramsey, local prospector, re-cently. He counted 25 animals in one groupnear the Plomosa range. This area is in-cluded in the Federal game refuge which isnow being established.

PALMDALE, CALIFORNIA—Equipped with a 3100-foot runway, an air

field is being established a half mile southof the clubhouse of Antelope Country club.The field will be used mainly by sportsmanpilots in the Los Angeles metropolitan areawho have purchased desert estates in thisdistrict.

GLOBE, ARIZONA—Wild life in Arizona is worth $20,000,000

according to estimate of State Game WardenS. L. Lewis, who spoke before the chamberof commerce here recently. Game conditionsin the state are better than they were 10years ago, Lewis said. They can be furtherimproved, he added, by taking the problemof game conservation entirely out of thepolitical system and putting the state gamedepartment under civil service.

MECCA, CALIFORNIA—One of the best-known landmarks on the

Colorado desert of California changed handsrecently when Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Barnespurchased the 80-acre tract which includesDos Palmos springs. This was one of thewater-holes along the old Bradshaw stageroute. Frank Coffey, veteran prospector, re-sided at the palms for many years and raisedfish in the pools below the springs. Sincehis death two years ago the property hasbeen unoccupied. Mr. and Mrs. Barnes havebeen making their home on adjoining prop-erty, and plan to preserve the historic oldlandmark.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA—Cotton farmers in the irrigated district of

Arizona, New Mexico and California are notgetting a fair break under the present soilconservation program of the Federal govern-ment. This is one of the reasons given forthe recent formation of the Arizona CottonGrowers' association. Carl Miller of Buck-eye is chairman and L. G. Vinson of Phoenixis secretary-treasurer.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA—Ray Lawhorn of the United States biolog-

ical survey, migratory bird division, recentlywas assigned here to open a permanent officefor work in Arizona. He will work in co-operation with state game wardens.

FLAGSTAFF, ARIZONA—Honoring the state's senior senator, citi-

zens of Flagstaff are planning to restore andpreserve the old Ashurst home, one and one-half miles east of Ashurst lake. The home,built in the 'seventies, is one of the oldestin northern Arizona.

SAFFORD, ARIZONA—Graham county farm bureau has adopted a

scale of 75 cents per hundred pounds forthe picking of short staple cotton this season.

SALT LAKE, UTAH—Citing the case of a man who drove his

new car from New York to California andhad to pay $7.00 in fees to get through onestate, Russell Singer told representatives ofthe American Automobile association in con-ference here that there is danger in the grow-ing tendency of western states to interferewith inter-state travelers. More courtesy andless obnoxious restrictions are what we need,said Singer.

TUCSON, ARIZONA—Dr. C. T. Vorhies of the University of

Arizona has traded a Gila monster of thedesert for a flying lizard from Siam. Theexchange was made with Dr. Lucias C.Biilkley of California, who plans to take themonster to Siam to be placed in a museumthere.

PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA—At a recent meeting of civic leaders plans

were initiated for the incorporation of thiscity. Petitions carrying the names of 25per cent of the property owners must be se-cured before the county board of supervisorscan call an election. According to tentativeplans, the ward system will be adopted andthe boundaries of the seven wards have beenoutlined.

PARKER, ARIZONA—The long-standing feud between California

and Arizona over the division of the watersof the Colorado river was forgotten here onSeptember 25 when high ranking officialsfrom both states met to take part in a color-ful celebration marking the completion of thenew $134,000 motor vehicle bridge whichspans the river. Clara Osborne Botzum, sec-retary of the Northern Yuma county cham-ber of commerce, cut the ribbon which for-mally opened the bridge to traffic. With thecompletion of the new span, the ferry andpontoon bridge operated by Nellie and JoeBush for many years passed into the discard.

DOUGLAS, ARIZONA—Investigating the possibilities of a trip of

exploration into the wild mountain area alongthe Chilhauahua-Sonora border where descend-ants of the savage Apaches are said to livein a primitive state, Dr. Helge Ingstad hasspent some time in this city recently. Theexpedition will be made mainly for ethno-.logical purposes.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA—Construction of a western extension of

Highway 64 by way of Boulder dam and LasVegas and across the southern tip of DeathValley to Bakersfield, California, and thePacific coast is being sponsored by civicleaders in the communities along the route.An association is to be formed to promotethe project.

BIG BEAR, CALIFORNIA—Discovery of a graphite deposit assaying

40 per cent and estimated at five billion tonswas reported here early in October by MarkHart and John Ragan. In the pines of theVan Dusen canyon district, just off the Mo-jave desert, lies great wealth in the newblack gold, according to geologists.

The Desert Market PlaceBuy, sell or exchange desertcraftwork, art, or property inthe new classified section of theDESERT MAGAZINE.

Rates furnished on request fromAdvertising Dept., Desert Mag-azine, El Centro, Calif.

HUMMEL'S EXOTIC GARDENS Intro-ductory offer: Rainbow collection, fifteenvaricoloured Cactus and Succulent plants.Suitable for window garden. $1.00. 4848 Im-perial Highway, Inglewood, Calif.

PHOTOGRAPHIC quality that is perma-nent. Rolls developed and printed 25c, Re-prints 3c. Mead's, Dept. D, Box 811. StationH, Los Angeles, Calif.

BEAUTIFUL 8X10 glossy photograph of TheDesert Magazine's cover $1, mailed postpaid

anywhere in U.S. Desert Craft Shop, 597State St.. El Centro, Calif.

Keep Al l Your Copies of

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N o v e m b e r , 1937 8.1

For This "Army" - 8000 Grubbing HoesContinued from Page 21

When the Yuma project was openedin 1909, the homestead unit was fortyacres. Whether or not this precedentwill be followed in the colonization ofthe All-American canal project is a mat-ter of uncertainty. Veterans of thereclamation service generally regardthis as a fair allotment.

When the Yuma Valley was thrownopen, those seeking homesteads werepermitted to file applications for thetracts of their selection. Then a draw-ing was held among the applicants foreach separate parcel to determine thewinner.

Experienced Farmers WantedCompared with the madcap free-for-

all land rushes which marked some ofthe earlier land openings in Americanhistory, the Yuma drawing was orderlyand equitable. But it failed to discrimi-nate between qualified farmers whowere seeking honestly to acquire landfor farming purposes and speculatorswho thought they saw a chance to pickup a few easy dollars.

It generally is assumed that when theAll-American canal lands are thrownopen to the public there will be a newdeal in land openings, with the elementof speculation almost if not entirely re-moved.

One of the old-timers in Imperial Val-ley recently expressed a view on thissubject which is suggestive. He said:"The Reclamation Bureau has erecteda Boulder dam which is a monument ofbeauty and efficiency. The Bureau haslaid out and developed a townsite—Boulder City—as a model which mightwell be copied by town-builders every-where. The same superb planning andmanagement have been evident in thebuilding of the All-American canal. Itis unthinkable in the light of this recordthat the Bureau would permit the finalphase of this great Colorado river proj-ect—the opening of the new lands—totake the form of an inglorious lotteryin which merit would be put on thesame level with fool luck."

That is something for CommissionerJohn C. Page and his co-workers tothink about, if they have not alreadydone so.

Veterans of the American wars willhave a 90-day advantage over other ap-plicants for these new lands. That pointis established by act of congress whichneither the Secretary of Interior nor thePresident can change.

However, in addition to being an ex-service man there are certain otherqualifications required of veteran appli-cants. An entryman under the reclama-

Rare photograph of a desert thunderstorm over the sand dunes ofthe Colorado desert.

tion homestead act, on a Federal recla-mation p r o j e c t , must possess goodhealth and vigor, and have at least twoyears' actual experience in farm work.Also, he must have $2,000 in moneyover all liabilities, or the equivalent inlivestock, farm equipment or otherassets.

What will these veterans grow on thelands? Here we enter the field of con-troversy. If the Department of Agricul-ture has its way, no farming will beundertaken on the sandy soil of thesedesert mesas until after a selected groupof expert farmers have had an oppor-tunity to carry on exhaustive experi-ments.

The Reclamation Bureau also believesin the experimental idea, but wouldcarry on this work on a smaller scaleand without too much delay.

B. A. Harrigan, agricultural com-missioner for Imperial county, who canreadily qualify as an expert in suchmatters, believes that the new lands areideal both as to soil and climate fordeciduous fruits. He would encouragethe planting of deciduous orchards asa main source of revenue.

"The conditions are right," he pointsout, "and the output of these orchardswould not compete with the crops ofother desert farmers in the Imperial,Yuma. Palo Verde and Salt River val-leys."

Large areas within the new reclama-tion project can be watered and broughtinto cultivation w i t h comparatively

small expense for leveling. There aremany sections, however, where sanddunes must be moved and barrancasfilled before the land will be ready forfarming.

The native flora consists mostly ofgreasewood and burrowweed, with anoccasional mesquite or ironwood. Gen-erally speaking, no timber is availableeither for building or fuel purposes.Well water for domestic use may bereached at depths varying from 35 to100 feet.

Pioneering Job for OwnersThere are old-timers who have gone

through the homesteading game whowill tell you that the best forty acresin the west isn't worth the work andworry of reclaiming it for irrigation.They have traveled the road that beginswith the dream of "a little home in thewest donated by Uncle Sam" and leadsthrough hard work, disappointment andprivation to that day when the govern-ment issues a final patent to the land.They know that in the long run thehomesteader in an irrigation countrypays dearly for his little plot of ground.

But the blood of the pioneer stillflows in the veins of Americans. Therewill be no lack of applicants for thenew lands.

One of these days, perhaps two years,probably longer, the old call will bebroadcast: "Come and get it!" Andthe veterans will come trekking in fromall the 48 states to take their places

Turn to Page 33

32 The DESERT MAGAZINE

Agave Furnished Food,Clothing for Indians

To the Indians who occupied theAmerican desert area before the whitemen came, the most useful native shrubwas agave or mescal. This is the con-clusion of A. A. Nichol, assistant pro-fessor of botany at the University ofArizona, in his recent book "The Nat-ural Vegetation of Arizona."

From the agave the Indians obtainedfood, soap, a mildly intoxicating bever-age, a sugar-substitute, tonic and chest-compress, and material for clothes, bas-kets and summer homes.

The University recently publishedProf. Nichol's work as a bulletin. Itcovers the scientific classification of thestate's many kinds of vegetation and isan unusually valuable source book ofinformation in this broad field.

KEEP DESERT CLEANThough the following poem has ap-

peared in both the Nature Club ofSouthern California bulletin and thequarterly schedule of the Sierra Club,we think the sentiment expressed isworthy of repetition.Friend, where you stay, or sit, and take

your ease,On moor or fell, or under spreading

trese,Pray, leave no traces of your wayside

meal;No paper bags, no scattered orange

peel,Nor daily journal littered on the grass.Others may view these with distaste, and

pass.Let no one say, and say it to your

shame,That all was beauty here until you

came.—The Surrey Anti-Litter League.

HEARD MUSEUM IN PHOENIXOPENED FOR SEASON

Desert visitors will be interested toknow that the Heard museum at 22 EastMonte Vista road, Phoenix, has beenopened for the winter. This is one ofthe most interesting collections of Indianart and relics in the Southwest, and dur-ing the last winter season attracted5,341 visitors. A reference library inconnection with the museum containsseveral hundred books on archeologyand kindred subjects.

Open hours for the season are from10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily except Sundayand Monday. On Sunday it will beopen from 1 to 4 p.m.

Mrs. Dwight B. Heard is president ofthe Board of Trustees and Mrs. AllieWalling Brame is curator.

ANDREAS CANYON NOW OPENTO VISITORS

One of the most picturesque canyonsin the Palm Springs area has beenopened to the public as a result of therecent completion of a new road lead-ing to the palm trees at the mouth ofthe arroyo. The work was done bymembers of the Agua Caliente tribe ofIndians and a road crew under the su-pervision of H. H. Quackenbush, reser-vation superintendent, and W. C. Seatonof Palm Springs.

A small lake will be formed as a re-sult of the nine-foot road embankmentnear the entrance to the canyon. Thereis a dense grove of native Washingtoniapalms in this canyon and an ancientIndian cave nearby.

Looking Down from Nevada's High Oasis(Continued from page 13)

For This 'Army of the West"

(Continued From Page 32)

in the line. Their reward, if they win,will be more than merely a plate ofbeans or a 30-dollar-pay-check-less-de-ductions. For those who can qualify,the prize will be a 40-acre farm.

Then the war will be on again. Forthe old life in the trenches, in retro-spect, will sometimes seem like a bedof roses compared with the job of mak-ing a bushel of potatoes or a load ofpumpkins or a lug of apricots growwhere only a lone greasewood bush isto be found today.

63,410 acres in this forest division,much of it timber land. The entire areais a federal game preserve, and theestimated 250 deer, 42 elk and 20 Nel-son mountain sheep in the forest areguarded jealously by the rangers. Otherspecies of wild life, including sagegrouse, wild turkey and Hungarianpartridge are to be released in the areasoon.

Plans are now in progress to addwinter sports to the attractions of thismountain resort. Alf Engen of nationalski fame has been directing a crew ofCCC workers during the past threemonths in the construction of ski jumps,toboggan slides and other facilities forsnow sports.

Ranger Anderson told me that a newtrail is to be built to the summit by wayof Lee canyon and Deer creek. Thiswill enable the hiker to take a loop trip

over the mountain, ascending by oneroute and descending by the other. Thescenic beauty of the new route evensurpasss that of the present trail, ac-cording to the ranger's opinion.

I failed to mention the fact that ourSierra climbing party was caught in ahail storm on the return trip from thesummit—but even pelting hail stonesfailed to dim my enthusiasm for thosepicturesque meadows along the ridge.And besides, I was snugly sheltered inthe hollow trunk of a huge tree whilethe storm passed over.

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GOD OF THE DESERTBy TOM HUGHES

Great brother of the sky!When early-streaming shafts of eager

lightStrike your far, frosted brow; when

morning windsCome from the stars to kiss your rosy

face;When your wild brooks turn silver in

their flight;When all your soaring crags leap into

flameAs standing there you look across the

sands,With the shadow of you reaching to the

sea—Then do we taste of awe. then do we

thrillWith wonder and o'erwhelming mystery.

Great sainted Hyacinth, whence did youcome ?

What wild debauch of beauty set youthere ?

What sky-born ecstasy conceived yourlines?

Whose chisel etched the tracery of yourspires?

Whose brush laid on your summit'smorning fires?

Your noble visage all the answer gives:Up from the burning sands a winged

godOnce spurned this mortal earth, then

pity felt,And stayed to make his home there

'gainst the sky.

THE PROSPECTORBY JEFF WORTH

"Neither Parson Priest nor RabbiProclaim the "Way to God,"

Where flaming Yucca blossomsSpring from the desert clod."

SO SINGS the true "desert rat"as he pitches camp besidethe water hole.

Content with his lot, he findscompanionship with his faithfulburros. The cares and troubles ofhis city brothers worry him notat all.

Wandering from the frozenwastes of the northland to theburning reaches of the southernborder, he follows the trail insearch of the unknown "just overthe hill."

A meagre camp, spuds, beans,bacon, flour and coffee—and theworld is his. Of physical com-forts he knows nothing, and hasno regret. Prospecting for pre-cious metal or just hitting thetrail from here to there, his lifeis complete. The glories of thestar shot heaven, the gorgeous

desert sunset, the thrill of a moun-tain cloudburst, the majestic gran-deur of snow crowned peaks—these supply his spiritual needs.

Inspiration, religion and a pro-found confidence in a SupremePower come to him from theforces which he sees exemplifiedday by day. Contact and observa-tion give him a knowledge ofNature's laws, secrets and waysthat are not to be learned frombooks nor in any other school.

Greed, ambition and artificialculture are alien forces and haveno place in his scheme of things.

When old age and infirmitiesfinally exact their toll, he oftimespitches his final camp near someisolated desert spring where thecoyotes and wolves sing a re-quiem over his bleaching bones asone who not only knew and lovedthe desert wilds but who alsorecognized his kinship with thethings of the desert and with thelittle people of the brush landswho venture forth as the brilliantstars burn bright o'erhead.

WEATHERSeptember report from

U. S. Bureau at PhoenixTemperatures— Degrees

Mean for month 86.9Normal for September 82.7Highest September 9 106.0Lowest September 26 66.0

Rain— InchesTotal for month 1.17Normal for month 75Total Jan. 1 to date 4.96Normal Jan. 1 to date 5.61

Weather—Number days clear 24Number days partly cloudy 5Number days clou ly 1

W. B. HARE, Meteorologist.From Yuma Bureau:

Temperatures— DegreesMean for month 89.6Normal for September 83.7Highest September 14 112.0Lowest September 30 61.0This was the warmest September re-corded in 60 years.

Rain— InchesTotal for month 1.7167-year average is 35

Sunshine—346 hrs. out of possible 371 hrs.Colorado River—

September discharge at Grand Canyon was467,000 acre feet. Discharge at Parker,532,000 acre feet.Estimated storage behind Boulder damOctober 1—15,220.000 acre feet.

JAMES H. GORDON, Meteorologist.

34 The DESERT MAGAZINE

BOOKS OF YESTERDAY and TODAY—a monthly review of the best literatureof the desert Southwest, past and present.

THEY KEPT FAITH WHENTHE RAIN GOD WAS ANGRY

I N HOPI-LAND, rain is god. Topropitiate the god, the dancing feetof the Hopi katchinas have tapped

the rain rhythms for centuries untold,on the high arid mesas of Arizona.

Winters the people spend in dancingritual to bring down summer rain ontheir crops. If the bean feast is ob-served punctiliously with dance andsong in the kivas of the Hopi villages,the great cloud house will open itsdoors and spill the life-giving water onthe thirsty mesa.

Of this annual rhythm of winter rit-ual and summer harvest, John LouwNelson writes in his book "Rhythm forRain" (Houghton Mifflin Co., 1937). Inleisurely narrative, enriched with au-thentic detail of a culture that is slowlygiving way to the white man's sophis-tication, the author tells the story of aHopi boy who grows to manhood inthe communal life of the pueblo.

The writer has lived for many yearsamong the Hopis and he knows howthese mystic, intuitive people feel abouttheir nature gods and the exacting ritesthat must be observed to bring rain.For once the people offended the godsand for three endless years no rain fell.Then came months of desperate danc-ing, the katchinas in their masks of godsimploring rain, rain, rain.

The brazen sky was pitiless and fam-ine fed on the bodies of the faithful,so that the shrunken corpses hardly ap-peased the wolves that skulked in thevillage streets. Some of the tribe emi-grated, leaving the weaker ones to cani-balism and grave robbing. The childrenwere sold as slaves to the Mexicans.

But at last the gods relented and raincame. Life flowed back to the people.Like Job, they kept faith through theirtribulation.

Author Nelson is director of researchwith the Museum of the American In-dian Heye foundation. His descriptionsof dances and rituals are authentic ac-count? of what he has seen many timesin eight years spent among the Hopipeople. Photographs of pueblo subjectsand paintings of Indian artists add tothe interest of the book.

Though the writer's interest lies pri-marily in anthropology and folk ways,he is so impressed with the faith andphilosophy of these primitive peoplethat the sympathetic reader will like-wise be impressed.

OLGA COSTELLO

WHEN BIGHORN SHEEP WEREFOUND IN THE PINACATES

CAMP-FIRES ON DESERT ANDLAVA, by William T. Hornaday.Published by Chas. Scribner's

Sons, New York, 1908. 336 pp—72photographs.

Although this book has been out ofprint for many years and the availablecopies are mostly in the hands of libra-rians and private collectors, it is aninvaluable addition to the desert lover'slibrary.

Hornaday, nationally known zoolo-gist and wild-life conservationist, joinedDr. D. T. MacDougal, then director ofthe Desert Laboratory at Tucson, in aone-month trip into the lava-swept Pi-nacate r e g i o n of northern Sonora,Mexico in 1907. The book is a humanand entertaining account of the party'sadventures and achievements.

The author died in New York earlythis year and Dr. MacDougal is now inretirement at Carmel, Calif. GodfreySykes, handy man of all jobs who de-lights the reader with his exploits, isstill associated with the Desert Labora-tory.

Here is as fine a group of sportsman-scientists, and as entertaining an ac-count of their outing as will be foundin the desert any time or any where.

Although the party went out pri-marily in search of mountain sheep, themen of science of course had their eyes,ears and minds open. In simple style,Hornaday introduces the plants andanimals found along the way and pre-sents a fascinating picture of the color-ful craters and massive lava formationsin the Pinacate region. Exceptionallyfine photographic reproduction adds tothe interest of the book.

While the destination of the partywas northern Mexico, Dr. Hornadaypresents an interesting picture of Tuc-son as it was in 1907, and describes theanimal and plant life of the southernArizona desert in striking detail.

This is a valuable book for thehunter and conservationist as well asthe geographer and scientist. For thiswas one of the last great stands of Oviscanadensis—the Big Horn sheep. Andthe Pinacate region is liberally dottedwith volcanic craters which would re-ceive voluminous tourist-bait publicityif they were nearer a well-traveledhighway. But if they were more acces-sible this book would never have beenwritten.—J. W. M.

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November , 1937 Mention the Desert Magazine to Advertisers 35

They Helped Launchthe New Magazine - - -

No. I Subscriber No. I Advertiser

H

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•

:

* *

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PI•

It'JASPER L. TRAVERS

Every publication has a first sub-scriber, but not all of them canclaim as canny a Scotsman as Jas-per Travers of El Centro, Cali-fornia, as its No. 1 patron. Jasperheard rumors about the DesertMagazine several months before itwas officially announced. He likedthe idea, and his offer to pay ayear's subscription came unso-licited at a time when the pub-lishers themselves were not justsure about the date of the first is-sue. However, they took hismoney. That was December 14,1936.

Travers is a pioneer buildingcontractor who inherited enoughindustry and thrift from his high-land ancestors to acquire a com-fortable nestegg during the 30years he has resided in the Imperialvalley. The publishers of the newmagazine regard it as a good omento have a hard-headed Scotsmanat the head of the subscription list.

A few days after Travers paidfor his subscription, Paul Cook,Jr., of the Capital Fuel and Feedcompany of Phoenix, Arizona, sentin his check. Number 3 on the listwas another name that has a Scotchtwang to it—Mr. and Mrs. ArgyleM«Lachlan of Calexico, California.

JOHN BURKE

In these days when nearly everybusiness executive is literally be-sieged by advertising salesmenfrom all kinds of good, bad andindifferent media, it is refreshingto have a prospective advertisersend in his contract unsolicited.

And yet this is the manner inwhich the Desert Magazine ac-quired its Number 1 advertiser.John Burke, manager of that pic-turesque border hostelry at Calex-ico—the Hotel de Anza—learnedabout the proposed new publica-tion early last January, and wrotefor an advertising rate card.

Rates had not yet been estab-lished, and no cards were available.But the publishers did not keepBurke waiting for long, and onFebruary 25, three days beforethe Desert Magazine was officiallylaunched, the signed contract ofthe De Anza for 12 monthly inser-tions was received.

"You are pioneering in a newmagazine field," wrote Burke, "andI believe your project will havesurprising success. Desert peoplewill welcome such a magazine, butI believe your biggest circulationeventually will come from distantplaces among people to whom thedesert is still an unexplained mys-tery."

20-Day Deer Seasonin Kaibab Opens Oct. 27

Regulations which will govern the20-day deer hunting season in Kaibabnational forest from October 27 to No-vember 15 this year have been an-nounced as follows:

Each hunter is entitled to one deer,which may be either buck or doe.

Hunters must have both an Arizonastate hunting license and a federal gov-ernment agreement. Licenses and agree-ments may be purchased at any of thefour established huntings camps.

The four camps which will be hunt-ers' headquarter are: Moquitch, man-aged by Jack Butler; Pine Flat, man-aged by Slim Waring; Big Saddle, man-aged by Hades Church. These are onthe west side of Kaibab. On the eastside will be South Canyon camp, man-aged by Bob Vaughn. To prevent over-crowding and accidents the number ofhunters at each camp will be limited.It will not be necessary to make reser-vations, however.

Hunting will be done under Arizonalaws and the regulations of the Ari-zona game and fish commission, andunder the federal regulations of the For-est service. Deputy Game Wardens andForest Rangers are to be stationed ateach camp.

Saddle and pack horses will be avail-able for hire at each camp. Saddlehorses will be $3.00 a day and packanimals the same rate. Guides will beavailable at $5.00 a day, a guide partybeing from two to four persons.

Meals will be available at all camps.Hunters should bring their own bed-rolls. However, a few beds will beavailable at all except South Canyoncamp.

Complete information together withsupplies will be available at Jacob Inn,Buck Lowrey's lodge and the V. T.Ranch.

Only guns using a bullet weighing 87grains or heavier will be permitted.Shotguns, revolvers and bows and ar-rows are not allowed. Automatic riflesare permissible but are not favored.

There will be no shooting within aquarter mile of the camps, or from au-tomobiles along the roads. Automo-biles must be left in camp when passen-gers are hunting.

An airplane landing field is availablefor hunters at Fredonia.

Metal tags will be attached to eachdeer killed.

Arizona hunting licenses cost $2.50for residents and $25 for non-residents.The Forest service agreement will cost$1.25 additional.

36 The DESERT MAGAZINE

"Desert Steve"Continued from Page 27

blem which was confronting the Rags-dale family.

The outcome of il all was thai whenI he next semester opened at the River-side college, Mr. and Mrs. Ragsdaleand their youngest son were all enrolledfor classes. Father Ragsdale, 53 yearsof age, reported for astronomy, psy-chology, English and philosophy. Mo-ther Ragsdale took art and astronomy.

Unfortunately, the younger memberof the family was taken ill and couldnot carry on through the course. BuiPa and Ma lugged their textbooks toschool every day until (he last examina-tion was given.

"It was the greatest experience in mylife,:' declared Ragsdale afterward. "Thething which I appreciated more thanall else was that throughout the entiretime we were in school there was nolthe slightest hint of discourtesy or ridi-cule from either student or teacher. Noone can tell me there is anything wrongwith the younger generation of Ameri-cans. I put them to the test, and I knowthe answer."

Recently Mr. and Mrs. Ragsdalebought: .%() acres of fine limber onthe top of Sanla Rosa peak, and builla big log cabin where they spend muchof iheii- time while Therman runs thebusiness at Desert Center and super-vises the operation of branch stationsal Utopia and Cactus City, which arcalso Ragsdale towns on Highway 60.

Steve's mountain domain is postedwith placards advising visitors that

"DECENT FOLKS AREWELCOME; ENJOY BUT

DON'T DESTROY"Beneath these black-faced lines are

a low lines of Steve's own poetry."But the blankely-blank souvenir hun-ters keep stealing the poems off thetrees," complains Steve.

DESERT WHIRLWINDSBy LOUISE EATON

Far in ihe distance the "dust devils"dance—

Dervishes whirling in wildest aban-don.

Now they're retreating and now theyadvance,

Choosing their footing, and bowingat random.

Where do they come from and wheredo they go?

Genii attempting their earth-hold tosever.

So do we humans in our little showWhirl for a moment than vanish

forever.

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EXTRA COPIES of the DESERT MAGAZINEare available for mailing to your friends, rela-tives, and acquaintances who are interested inthe desert country.They will appreciate your thoughtfulness insending them the No. I copy of this new illus-trated magazine of arid America.The gift magazines will be wrapped and ad-dressed and the postage paid to any addressin the United States for the regular newsstandprice of 25 cents.

Just write the addresses on the blank spacesbelow and send the list together with 25 centsfor each name to The Desert Magazine, ElCentro, California.

To Desert Magazine, El Centro, Calif.:Please send copies of the first issue of yournew magazine to:

Name

Address

Name

Name

Address

Name .

Address AddressEnclosed is 25 cents for each of the above.

N o v e m b e r , 1937 37

ou am//7e5 ^ ^ r ^ z>

By THE EDITOR

H AVE YOU ever experienced that glorious relaxationwhich conies after a long day's hike over mountain ordesert trail and toward evening arrive at a spring of

cool water where camp is to be made for the night?Well, that is the sensation I am enjoying just at this mo-

ment. All the rest of the copy for this first issue of the De-sert Magazine has gone to the printers, and there remainsonly the pleasant task of sitting by an imaginary campfireand chatting with the companions of the trail.

For that is what this page is to be—just the informalkind of talk which you would expect from an old friend.You'll disagree with what I say sometimes, and perhapsIhink I should be locked up in the crazy house. But whowould want to have a friend, or be the kind of a friendwho never took issue on any question? The old worldwould grow stagnant on that kind of friendship.

Figuratively, the first day's trek is ended. Literally, Wil-son McKenney and I have been plodding along for manymonths wrestling with problems of circulation and adver-tising, of art work and photographs and text matter. Andnow we can relax for a moment, knowing that tomorrow wemust resume the trail which leads to another issue of themagazine, and to many others.

Being amateurs in the business of publishing a maga-zine, this has been a great adventure for us. We've frettedand argued over problems which any professional maga-zine publisher could have answered in three ticks of theclock.

But there are some compensations in being novices in anew game. We have received hundreds of in muscripts fromihose who would contribute to the magazine. We've readthem all—and found it a fascinating pastime. Not beingbound by the precedents that govern veteran magazine pub-lishers, we rejected or accepted each one with a personalletter—instead of using those stereotyped rejection slipswhich editors usually send out. I have a lol of those slips inmy trunk—and I vowed long ago that if I ever becamethe editor of a magazine I would at least tell the aspiringwriters why I could not use their stories. Perhaps when Iam older in the game I will become crusty a"d tell theprinters to run off some of those cold-blooded little noticesof rejection. But so far, my resolution has not wavered.

However, 1 do wish that the writers would realize thisis not a wild and wooly western magazine of the pulptype. They keep sending in those red-hot thrillers in whichthe hero carries a gun on each hip and speaks a languagewhich was invented in Hollywood. The Desert Magazinesimply is not in the markel for that kind of fiction.

While I do not want to claim too much modernism fordesert folks, I would like to present them through thepages of this magazine with some degree of accuracy—thatis, as men and women who speak good English, who readbooks, and who act and think like intelligent Americansof the present generation.

The truth of the matter is that the real people of thedesert are warm-hearted and generous and thoroughlycivilized—but not too civilized.

The poets have been our most liberal contributors. Theyhave literally deluged us with verse. There seems to besomething about this desert atmosphere that inspires poetry.Much of it is good, loo. Bui I have had to return thegreater part of it for the reason thai the pages in [hismagazine are limited—and we have to keep some of thespace for prose and pictures and advertisements. At that,there is enough poetry in the files now to last three genera-lions of Desert Magazine publishers.

I really haven't any grudge against the poets and theirpoems. I wrote one myself once—the world's worst. Wewould still be a world of savages but for the creative ailwhich finds expression in poetry. And so my hand is out infriendship to the poets and I hope they will not feel hurtwhen we do not publish all their offerings.

Well anyway, we are about to close the forms on thefirst issue of the desert's new magazine. "Mac" and I andthe other members of our staff have appreciated the hun-dreds of messages of interest and goodwill which havecome to us since our project first was announced manymonths ago.

We want it to he understood that this magazine is tobe published for all the desert of the Southwestern part ofthe United States. Within the limits of our space and abilitywe will give recognition to every constructive interest inthis great desert expanse. We are working on our owncapital and have no alliances or obligations other than toserve and entertain those who live on the desert, or who arcinterested in the desert.

We would like to feel that these pages will impart totheir readers some of the courage, the tolerance, and thefriendliness of our desert—that this issue and every issue,will be the cool spring of water at the end of the hard day'strek—and that you will go with us along the desert trailand find ihe journey worth while.

38 The DESERT MAGAZINE

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BEN HULSE

There is an interesting and dramatic story behind Caterpillar and the or-ganization which represents it in the desert. The story begins in a great fac-tory at Peoria, Illinois, and reaches its climax in the local farmer's fattened bankaccount.

Hundreds of patronsand friends have seen theBen Hulse T rac to r andEquipment Co. grow froma small agency to one ofthe largest and most stablesales and service organiza-tions in the southwest. Tothem and to other hun-dreds we should like to tellour story.

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