196010 desert magazine 1960 october

8/14/2019 196010 Desert Magazine 1960 October

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O C T O B E R , 1 9 6 04 0 C e n t s

. . . . m a g a z i n e of t h eOUTDOORSOUTHWEST


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To the Dutch, October is Wyn-maaml or "Wine-month . " Makessense. * * *The Chipewa Indians called Oc-t o b e r .Vtcl ii ta inon "SquirrelMonth.1 ' Also "Head-First" month,referr ing to the squirrel's habi tof descending t rees head-f i rstnot backwards l ike a l inemancoming down a te lephone pole .

Hallowe'en is for theanimals, f irst , and thekids second not lorgrown folks at all.1 w is h 1 c o u l dinvite all of you toOld Fort Oliver onOctober 31st for ou rannua l Spook Par ty ,but 1 can' t becausepeople take up toomuch room.L a s t y e a r Ishowed the visi t inganimals my extra-o r d i n a r y new l ightning bug.I reasoned that by crossingm o t h s (which always flytoward a light) with light-ning bugs (which givelight ) t h e o u t c o m ewould be moths withlights on the ir tails. Intheory, these 1'inwheelHugs, as I call them,w ou ld fly a r o u n d inc ir c le s , c h a si n g t h e i rtai ls. It worked, too. 1turned my boxful ofPinwheel Hugs loose

at the witching hour,and the sky aroundFt . Oliver was filledwith "f i reworks."OCTOBER AIR. . . and wishful thinkingThe old Indian stood at thetop of a mesa with his son,looking over the beautiful des-ert valley. Said the old chief:"Some day, my son, all thisland will belong to the Indiansaga in. Paleface all go to themoon."

Despite Harvest Moon, Apple Cider. Black Cat, Orange-Yel low Pumpkins, Jack-O-Lanterns, Glossy Black Havens andOwls, I believe the spry bushy-tailed squirrel is the mostOctoberish of a l l symbols. (Up in the nut country, thesesquirrels fil l the hollow trees with so many nuts the owlsdon't have any place to sleep day-times.)To promote my "Make Squirrels the Symbol of October"campaign. I put one of the critters in a box and mailed itacross the valley to Desert Magazine at Palm Desert , Calif.a new town which takes pride in cal l ing i tse l f "The SmartestAddress on the Am erican Desert ." The postman del iveringthe package reports that the squirre l jumped out and ran away."Why don' t you chase i t?" asked an exci ted real esta te man."Wh y should I?" rep l i ed the pos tman. "He doesn ' t knowwhere he 's going. I 've got the address r ight here on the box."

QuarterOct. 12 New Moon First QuarterOct. 20 Oct. 27

AH, OCTOBER . ..October in the Great South weste rn Desert refreshing as anocean voyage. In fact, the high-wide Mojave Desert 's isolatedmountain ranges and buttes resemble great ships put t ing intoha rbor . Cool winds and a horizon as wide as the seanowonder my Trot Opinion I 'oil (slower t han Gallup, but moresure-footed) reports that more ex-sailors decide to retire to thedesert in October than at any other t ime of the year . (Anotherinterest ing Trot fact : ex-submarine commanders prefer theSalton Sea area for retirement, probably because it is belowsea level.)Up in the high-high Desert October is followed by Wiscon-sin weatherbut down here in the Low Desert we have f ivemonths of glorious October.Enjoy yourselv es, f r iends! Rem ember in 20 years you' l l

be sighing for the "good old days." (Oee whiz1 first usedthis line more than 20 years ago.)


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Publ isher 'sNo tesF or the Desert Magazine staff

the October issue always marks theen d of the summer season and thestart of the Christmas season. Inthe desert country there are twobasic climatic periods: Summer andT h e - R e s t - O f - T h e - Y e a r . We arenow going into the latter.At this point on the calendar weremind our readers that December25th is not far away, and NOW isthe time to start ordering gift sub-scriptions as Christmas presents forfriends who share your enjoymentof the great Southwest.A Postage-paid order envelopeis enclosed with this issue of Desertfor the use of those who wouldorder gift subscriptions.A listing of Southwestern anddesert books is also carried in thisissue of the magazine (see page 36).This catalog will be of assistanceto those who like to give books asChristm as gifts. Ag ain, please or-der early, for many of the bookpublishers are slow in delivering"rush" orders during the autumn

months . * * *Our friends are once again in-vited to visit the Desert MagazineArt Gallery (largest all-desert gal-lery in the na t i on) , and the DesertCraft Shop and Bookstore, all lo-cated in the Desert Magazine Build-ing in Palm Desert, midway betweenPalm Springs and Indio. StartingOctober 15 the Gallery and CraftShop will be open from 9 a.m. to 6p.m. seven days a week. There isno entrance fee.Many of our readers would liketo see our extensive printing plantwhile they are visiting the Desertpueblo. Ask the Gallery Directorfor a guide to take you throughthe printing plant.

Cordially,C H U C K S H E L T O NPublisher

Vo lume23

PHOTO and ART credits(Unless otherwise specified below or in tex t ,photographs and art work are by authors offeatures in which they appear.)Page 6: art work by Harry Oliver. 12:Madison Devlin. 13: Map by NortonAl len. 16: Madison Devlin. 19: A. A.Forbes. 20 -21 : Frasher's of Pomona. 33:Harold O. Weight . 34: Map by NortonAl len. 40: Map by Norton Allen. 43and Back Cover: LeRoi Russel.

N u m b e r10

- m a g a z i n e o f th e O u t d o o r S o u t h w e s t -CHARLES E. SHELTONpublisherEUGENE L. CONROTTOeditor EVONNE RIDDELLcirculation manager

Content s forOctober , I960TRANSPORTATION

GHOST TOWNEXPLORATION

REMINISCENCEINDIANSNATURE

OTHER DESERTSTRAVELTRAVEL

PERSONALITY

8121719222931334042

S a m HicksNell Murbarger

Madison DevlinLillian Ninnis

Laura Adams ArmerEdmund C. JaegerWilliam E. Warne

Lucile WeightThomas Lesure

COVER The Colorado River below Parker Dam. Photographby Harry Vroman of Prescott, Ariz.Power ScootersBodie TodaySide-Trip to AuroraBodie YesterdayThe Night ChantCottonwood TreesOasis at Cashmeh AliAround the White MountainsThe Nogales EnvironsWildlife Photographer LeRoi Russel Stewart Cassidy

alsoHarry Oliver's Almanac: 2

Letters from our Readers: 4 28: Hard Rock ShortySouthwest New Briefs: 7 35: New Desertland Books

Poem of the Month: 21 41: Editorial

The Desert Magazine, founded in 1937 by Randall Henderson, is published monthlyby Desert Magazine, Inc., Palm Desert, Cal iforni a. Re-entered as second classmatter July 17, 1948, at the postoffice at Palm Desert, California, under the Actof March 3, 1879. Title registered No. 358865 in U.S. Patent Office, and contentscopyrighted 1960 by Desert Magazine, Inc. Permission to reproduce contents mustbe secured from the editor in writ ing.

Unsolicited manuscripts andphotographs submitted can-no t be returned or acknowl-edged unless full returnpostage is enclosed. DesertMagazine assumes no re-sponsibility for damage orloss of manuscripts or pho-tographs although due carewill be exercised. Subscribersshould send notice of changeof address by the f irst ofthe month preceding issue.

Address all editorial andcirculation correspondence toDesert Magazine, Palm Des-ert, California.

Address all advertis ingcorrespondence to Going -Wright Advertis ing, 560 N.Larchmont, Los Angeles,Calif.

SUBSCRIBETO

o r let ussend it to a f r iend

One Year$4 Three Years$10.50(Canadian subscriptions 25c extra, foreign 50c extra per year)

SEND DESERT MAGAZINE TO:

(mailing address)(city, state)If this is a gift, indicate how gift card should be s igned:Mail this information and your remittance to: Desert Magazine,Palm Desert, California.

October, 1960 / Desert Magazine / 3


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LETTERSFROM OUR READERSLast Choice: Indians . . .To theEditor: Several months ago you con-ducted a poll to ascertain your readers'tastes in the various types of desertanawhich you serve up. If my memory is stillgood, results favored travel, field trips,ghost towns, exploration and running apoor fifth or sixth was Indians and relatedIndiana.

Desert Magazine had been running fartoo much drivel re Poor Lo, and after an

incredible issue came out in which 34 ofthe 44 pages of Desert were devoted en-tirely to Indians, I let my subscription runout. Don't remember the exact date of thisissue, but it was one in which a lot of spacewas wasted on a museum of Indian artifactsand so on in Flagstaff.

I got in the habit of going to my news-stand and scanning the magazine, and ifthe particular issue was top-heavy with In-dian rot I would buy another publication.However, lately there has been a marked1st Choice of ROCKHOUNDSfc tMM 7 t tt6neO J& 4& le Rock Picks

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Send ForCamp InC o m f o r t B o o kC o n t a i n s 40 p h o t o s of a c t u a l c a m pm a k i n g and p r a c t i c a l t i p s on use ofpicks and axe. R ea d i t . . . m a k e c a m p -i n g m o r e fun. Po c k e t s i z e 44 p a g e s .Only 25c. Send co in , no s t a m p s .

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change for the better. More of the materialyour subscribers asked for, and lessmuchlessof the Indians. Fine! I am re-sub-scribing.The four covers by Clyde Forsythe arethe finest bit of Americana West that I haveseen in years. If I owned the originals 1would not trade them for all of the insanesmears with which Picasso has ruined goodcanvas.Incidentally, should you wonder: I knowmy Indians. I have spent most of my lifein Indian country. 1 shared my blanketswith some of the Apache Scouts who weretracking Pancho Villa in 1916. I mined innorthern Chihuahua.If you would like to see Indians as theyreally are, go up to Parker, Arizona, anyweekend and hang around the beer joints.Parker is a real Indian town.WILL T. SCOTTSantee, Calif.

Salute from an Indian . . .To the Editor: It has been very seldomthat I have had the time (or the desire) towrite congratulating a publication for thewonderful job it is doing to help acquaintthe American public with the AmericanIndian. Unfortunately, too many publica-tions still seem to subscribe to the beliefthat the Indian is an underfed and unedu-cated ward of the publicabsolutely with-out pride or ambition.

On the other hand, Desert Magazine hasdone much to help inform the public as tothe true stature of my people. I salute youfor your policy, and urge you to continuethe fine work. DAVID CHETHLAHE(TURTLE) PALADINPrescott. Arizona

Household Fixture . . .To the Editor: The quality of your maga-zine has improved so steadily it is now anecessity in our home. JOAN L. MAHERGabbs, Nevada

Trouble at the Border . . .To theEditor: During a recent trip to BajaCalifornia, I ran into a rather odd situa-tion. I had"been rock hunting around thevarious washes on the east-slope of themountains west of Mexicali, and when itwas time to call it a day I had a few in-teresting rocks which I put in a small box.

I checked out at the border, and theFIN D BURIED TREASURE!G OL D, s i l v e r , c o i n s ,jewel ry , s t rongboxes ,battle relics! M-SCOPEtransistorized electronicTreasure-Metal Locatorsdetect them all. Usedworld-wide by successfulexplorers. Exciting! Re-warding! S uper-sensitive,l ightweight M-SCOPEoffers greater depth pen-

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4 / Desert Magazine / October, 1960


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Mexican officials waved me through. ButI was flagged over by the U.S. Customs,and they proceeded to search my truckand ask all kinds of questions. They tookmy rocks and looked them over carefully,then stating that it was against the law tobring gem stones or minerals out of Mexicoto the United States they confiscated thespecimens.This is the first time I ever ran into thislaw or even heard of it. Is it an establishedrule or is it something new that has comeup ? I would like a bit of information onthis. JOHN MAXONUpland, California

(There are no Customs laws prohibitingthe exportation from Mexico or importa-tion into the United States of mineralspecimens. However, gem material mustbe free from soil of any kind in orderto pass a Department of Agriculture re-quirement an d all merchandise or ma-terial must bedeclared to a Customs offi-cer upon entry into the United States.Failure to declare can result in seizureand forfeiture of the articles to Customs.-Ed.)

A Black-Light Discovery . . .To the Editor: My copies of Clyde For-sythe's "Gold Strike" reprints arrived today,and I feel I must let you know how pleasedI am to have them. The paintings are notonly brilliantly conceived, but the lithographjo b is perfect.

May I suggest that perhaps you haveoverlooked an important selling point. Withthe use of my black-light (ultra violet Min-eralight) I discovered that the reprints re-veal an entirely different aspect, especiallythe Ghost Town. Of course, they do notfluoresce, but under black-light a certainphosphorescence appears, and the desertedscene projects an aura of brilliant desertmoonlight, clear clean air, and restful his-tory. FRANK W. SMITHERAMSanta Barbara, Calif.

Wanted: More Reprints . . .To the Editor: I have ordered the ClydeForsythe "Gold Strike" painting reprints,and I'm wondering if other suitable-for-framing reprints are available from DesertMagazine. ROY HOELKEClaremont, Calif.(The Forsythe reprints have proven sopopular that we are considering makingother desert scenes both paintings and

G u n H o l s t e r sG U N B E L T SMake your own GunBelt and Holsters withTandy s "Easy-to-Follow Patterns! SAVE MONEY with"Ready-Cut" Beit &Holster Kits.

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full-color photographs available. Thesewould be lithographed with the samehigh standards as the "Gold Strike"prints, on comparable high-quality stock.Cost per print would be modest. To helpus in our planning, we would appreciatehearing the opinion of our readers onthis matter. What desert scenes appealmost to you? What artists or photogra-phers are your favorites? Address yourcards to: Reprints, Desert Magazine,Palm Desert, Calif. Ed.)

That Indefinable "Something" . . .To the Editor: We truly enjoy good pho-tography, but artists like Clyde Forsytheand John Hilton add that indefinable "some-thing" that makes the desert so fascinating.Let's have more of them.MRS. PAT LoCASCIOLubbock, Texas

Episode at Lee's Ferry . . .To the Editor: Laura Armer's picture ofLee's Ferry in 1925 (August Desert) alsobrought back memories to me. I went toLee's in the summer of '25 to survey forbridge sites. I fell off the side of the ferryand was carried up-stream by the under-current. The old-timers told me I was verylucky to have escaped the river with mylife.We crossed the Colorado each day, sur-veying for four or five bridge sites. TheNavajo Bridge later was built on one ofour sites. G. G. BURNPrescott, Ariz.

Fascinating Owyhee . . .To the Editor: My brother and I wereborn in Owyhee County, Idaho, of whichProf. Larrison writes in the August DesertMagazine. Having in my lifetime of 65years covered Owyhee quite thoroughly onhorsebackwhich to my way of thinkingis the only way to really "see" a countryI can testify to its immense proportion andfascinating character.

Covering Owyhee County on horsebackwas done mainly in line of workbucka-rooing cattle, gathering and branding wildhorses, going on what passed for vacationtrips, visiting distant neighbors, exploringcanyons and remote areas and otherwisebecoming acquainted with our own cornerof the earth.

Four-wheel-drive vehicles, airplanes andautos now whisk people to these remotescenes in minutes, where our movementsin the past were measured in days andeven weeks.DAISY E. CHRISTENSENReno

Owyhee Road Is Paved . . .To the Editor: The Owyhee Desert mapon page 11 of the August issue shows dirtroad from Murphy via Grand View to Bru-neau. This road is now paved.ARTHUR C. DAVISReseda, Calif.

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Now In Its 4th PrintingL I E .Ghosts of theGlory TraLIntimate glimpses into the past and

i present of 275 Western ghost towns ]'Ghosts of the Glory Trail is fast becoming one of theclassics of the Southwest. . . Here are the exciting storiesof early-day mining stampedes, of cities sprung from thes a g e , and of earth-given treasure so amazing as to bealmost beyond bel ief . . .

if During years of t ravel and r esea r ch , Miss Murbargerh a s dug deep in to the r eco rds of the Old W e s t . Herinformation comes from the old-timers, from yellowedn e w s p a p e r s and long-forgotten reports.if Ghosts of the Glory Trail tells the stories of 275former b o o m c a m p s of the Great Basin region,of fortunes made and lost overnight, of courageand cowardice on the raw frontier. . . In gather-ing material for this book, the author soughtespecial ly for the human interest angle,and she has given vivid word-portraits ofm a n y of the most colorful Westerners ofthe bonanza period.

if Ghosts of the Glory Trail contains328 pages ; 24 p a g e s of rare half tonepho tographs . . . PLUS a GHOSTTOWN DIRECTORY of Nevada , eas t -ern California and western Utah, andMAPS of s o m e of the best knownmin ing camps .

$5.75(plus 15c for postage and handl ing; Cal i forniaresidents also add 23c state sales tax)

ORDER BY MAIL FROM: Desert Magazine Book StorePalm Desert California



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SOUTHWEST NEWS BRIEFS


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Jak each have the power and tractionnecessary to carry one rider and aconsiderable amount of cargo throughrough country at a somewhat greaterspeed than that which can be attainedby an exceptionally good walker.Where prominent trails exist throughfoothill country and along major water-sheds or divides in the mountains,power scooters have a definite advan-tage over the foot traveler and, in manyinstances, they are faster and morecomfortable to ride than a saddlehorse.But, away from the trails in ruggedmountains, where there is a combina-tion of rock slides, steep terrain cov-

ered with heavy brush, down timber,soft earth or an occasional stream tobe crossed, power scooters can in noway be likened to even a disreputablespecimen of a saddle horse. Un derthese travel conditions old Dobbin stillperforms marvelously, while the powerscooter either cannot navigate at all,

or requires so much pushing and lift-ing that travel soon becomes a stren-uous ordeal instead of a pleasurableexperience.Neither of the two scooters withwhich I am familiar will go into thereally rugged places where a horse canbe ridden. However, these faithfullittle machines will do some amazingthings, and I'm confident that they aredestined to bring tremendous changesto the desert because there are so manyplaces that a person can go with apower scooter where he can't go witha four-wheel drive vehicle. Thesescooters are ideal transportation wheredistances are too great to walk andwhere, as is usually the case, horsesare unavailable.T H E W E A T H E R H A D suddenly turnedhot and daytime temperatures in theChuckawallas soared to 120 degrees.Riding the scooters in the heat of theday became something of a chore, sowe began making our test runs into

TESTING SCOOTERS IN DESERT SAN Dthe mountains in the early morningsand late afterno ons. We first exp eri-mented with the scooters on the sandyfloor of the desert and found that byturning them carefully they workedfine. Sharp turns, however, usuallycaused the front wheel to dig-in, andthen anything could happen, particu-larly if a person was riding with anopen throttle. We next took them overnarrow rocky trails in the mountains,and finally rode them on cross-countrytrips where there were no signs of atrail at all. With each performancewe became more pleased with the man-ner in which the machines handledtheir loads in rough terrain.

At night the moon was full and themost exhilarating moments of the en-tire trip came as we rode the scooterswith wide open throttles in the coolnight air, skimming across miles oflevel land marred only by the old par-allel tank tracks left by General Pat-ton's armored columns during the earlydays of World War II maneuvers.We outlined a theoretical routetaken by Peg Leg Smith on his famoustrip westward from the Colorado River,and followed this on our scooters in

the hope that we might find the blackwind-swept ridge where Peg Leg re-portedly scooped up his corroded nug-gets of solid gold. Ne xt we movedcamp into the area north of Rice andmade some explorations into the TurtleMountains, tentatively searching forclues to the Los t Arch M ine. Themidday heat by this time was becom-ing more and more unbearable, al-though the nights still remained cool.With each passing day the hours thatwe could travel with any degree ofcomfort on the scooters became in-creasingly shorter.We made a swing from Rice pastERLE STANLEY GARDNER VISITS W ITH A YOU N GCHUCKAWALLA IN A REMOTE CORNER OF THECHUCKAWAUA MTS. NOTE BANDED TAIL, CHIEFCHARACTERISTIC OF JUVEN ILES OF THIS SPECIES



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the Old Woman Mountains into theDevil 's Playground country and therewith the aid of our scooters locatedan ancient Indian campground of tre-mendous size which from all appear-ances had never before been visitedby white men . There were metatesand pottery shards in every graniteoverhang we explored, and obsidianchips from a nearby field of ApacheTears were liberally strewn over thearea.The tests concluded, we reluctantlyturned our caravan back toward theGardn er Ranch at Temecula. On theway we arrived at Amboy where thethermometer stood at 115 degrees inthe shade . In spite of the tdrrific heatwe had subjected the scooters to inmaking our tests, we were happy tonote that it had in no way affectedtheir small air-cooled engines. We had

not experienced a single mechanicalmalfunction during any of our runs,and we returned home in full agree-ment that these machines will bringinteresting changes to the desert.Folks who purchase power scootersshould become thoroughly familiarwith their little eccentricities beforestarting out into isolated areas. Noperson should ever embark alone onlong trips into the desert on thesemachines. They are a reliable piece ofrecreational equipment that can bringtheir owner years of enjoymentpro-

vided he does not underestimate thewhims of the desert.A new belt should be carried oneach machine, along with a handfulof tools consisting of a screwdriver, apair of pliers, a small crescent wrenchand a one-half by nine-sixteenths box-end wrench. Each pow er scooter usedin the desert also should be equippedwith a pint of motor oil, at least onegallon of gas and a large canteen ofwater.These power scooters are tough andpowerful in use, and on firm footing

A POWER-SCOOTER NEGOTIATES A ROCK SHELF

in the field they can climb straight upa 40 percent grade. They have ade-quate brakes for making a safe descenton a similarly steep hill, and they areeasily transported long distances in apicku p or trailer. They weigh from125 to 140 pounds and require verylittle storage space in the garage.

The Tote-Gote sells for around$325. Selling price of the Pak-Jak isjust under $400.Gardner purchased two of the Pak-Jaks and he and I enjoy riding themaround the fence lines or cruising upand down the horse trails on the moun-

CLOSE-UP V IEW OF THE TOTE-GOTE, LEFT, AN D THE HEAVIER , MORE STURDY P AK-JAK

tain in back of the ranch . Riding ascooter is a lot of fun, and it's alsogood exercise. In fact, I think the manwho invented the bicycle exercise ma-chine years ago was on the right track,but he stopped a little too soon. In-steading of perching his creation onfour immovable cast iron feet, heshould have put two wheels under itand then inserted a small air-cooledgas engine geared sufficiently low todrive the contrivance through roughcountry. With these two or three addedfeatures the inventor could haveclaimed a better exercise machine thanthe one he settled for, and a new worldof outdoor enthusiasts would havemade him thei r hero. / / /



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NELL MURBARGER"CALIFORNIA'S BEST GHOST TO WN": remote, unpro-moted, and with the barest of tourist facilities, the sleep-ing ghost of Bodie attracts thousands of visitors everyyearpeople from all parts of the world who come to seethe tough mining camp which produced "THE BAD MANFROM BODIE" a Wild West catch phrase.

BODIE TODAYW HAT DEVOTEE of Western his-tory has not heard throughfact or fictionof "The Bad ManFrom Bodie?" Who this hombre malomay have been, whence he came, andprecisely what he did to gain so unsa-vory a reputation, no one seems toknow . But, whoever he was and what-ever he may have done in the courseof a misspent life, one thing is sure:he put Bodie on the map, and even ifthe 80-year-old town never attainsCalifornia state park status (currentlyunder consideration), America's mostfamous ghost town is doing very wellby herself, thank you ma'am!

Any time a decrepit old miningcamp far removed from large centersof habitation, 8300 feet about sea-level, and 10 miles from the nearestpaved road, can lure to its shrunkenbosom visitors from every state in theUnion and half the countries of Eur-ope50 to 60 automobile loads ofthem every day during the summeryou may be sure that such a place isknow n the world over. Especially isthis true when you consider the factthat not one penny is spent to publicizeBodie as a tourist mecca.

Three roads lead to Bodie, the bestof them turning off U.S. 395 at a pointjust past M ono Lake. The road-signhere reads "Hawthorne Nevada" anda painted arrow points to the rightdown a black-topped road. An otherroad to Bodie starts at a point sevenmiles south of Bridgeport; and thethird routea rather rugged gradecomes in from the Nevada side.

On my most recent visit to BodieI chose the first mentioned road. Afterfollowing the blacktop for six miles,I turned left on a gravelled road thatwinds up the bottom of a long shallow

canyon. Another 10 miles brought meout on a wide dry mesa from whichI looked down upon the old town.From this vantage point 1 could seeBodie's narrow unpaved streets snak-

ing through sagebrush, and flankingthose streets are a hundred time-weathered wooden buildings. Spatter-ing the brown hillside to the east oftown are as many mine dumps as thereare buildings on the flat; and on thehillside to the west rise the white stonesand splintered paling fences of the oldgraveyard. From my hilltop perch nolife was visible in the townnot a hu-man being, barking dog, or curlingwisp of smoke.But Bodie isn't completely deserted.Neither is it that most obnoxious of

all tourist traps, a "professional" ghosttown. Here are no phony gun-battlesstaged in the street every hour on thehour; no "Old Original Something-or-Other Saloons" (built after WorldWar II) ; no catchpenny hawkers, noguided tours to one-time homes of thegreat and not-so-great. In short, Bodieis just a quiet respectable old miningcamp with a lot more past than futurea place that produced in its day

close to $100,000,000 worth of goldbullion.Its present population isn't large.The watchman, Clarence Birks, andhis wife have made their year-around

home here since 1958. Summermonths find the resident populationincreased by four other persons whotake to their heels a little before win-ter's first snow comes flickering overthe sagelands. For several summerspast the old town has had two activebusiness houses. On e, an art studio, isoperated by Mr. and Mrs. MatthewBeaton of Carmel (summer residentsof Bodie since 1956). Their studiooccupies the lower floor of the two-story-and-cupola schoolhouse on GreenStreet, built in the late 1870s whenBodie was a roaring town of some10,000 inhabitants, with a main streetmore than a mile long built solidly onboth sides with one- and two-storyframe structures.The old school building is furnishedmuch as it was for Bodie's last termof school. Dog-eared maps decoratethe walls, crayon-colored Easter rab-bits parade across the blackboards,and rain-stained window blinds hang

AN AUTO APPROACHESBODIE - ON E OF 50THAT COME HERE ONA T YP IC AL S U M M E RDAY. AT THE RIGHTIS THE CAIN MUSEUM.


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askew. A few old jackknife-initialedbenches and a rusty wood-burningstove still are functional. In the midstof this departed glory, as it were, ElisedeCelles Beaton offers for sale her de-lightful water colors of desert scenesand of Bodieas well as other giftitems appropriate to the locale.The other business house, if it maybe so called, is the Cain Museum (ad-mission 50c) located in the old Miners'Union Hall erected in 1878 and sub-sequently used for meetings, dances,shows, sociables and even funerals.Here Mrs. Birks is custodian of a fas-cinating collection of Bodie memen-toes owned by Mr. and Mrs. Victor

"Goodby, God ! I'm going toBodie," a Truckee, California, news-paper qu oted a local girl as sayingon the eve of her family's departurefor the camp with the bad reputation."Not so," retorted the Bodie paper."A simple case of misplacing a com-ma. The little girl actually had said:'Good, by God! I'm going to Bodie."

Cain of Bridgeport, about whom morewill be said later. In glass cases andon the interior walls of the museumare exhibited hundreds of articles al-most unknown today but thoroughlycommonplace in the life of a 19thCentury mining camp. Relics fromBodie's once - flourishing Ch inatown,gold scales large enough to weigh abeef, guns, household trivia, old hats,pictureseven the two black-plumedhorsedrawn hearses in which Bodie'sdeparted were hauled to the cemeteryat a fee of $20 for the one-way ride.

Bodie's burying ground, incident-ally, is one of the most visited spotsin the townbut its tallest and mostimpressive tombstone honors a manwho never saw Bodie, probably nevereven heard of the camp, and is buriedsome 3000 miles away.Originally the stone was intendedfor William S. Bodey, who, in thesummer of 1859, made the first dis-covery of placer gold in this area.That same winter Bodey froze to deathin a blizzard. Wh en his body waslocated the following spring he wasburied where death had overtaken him,and the boom town that sprang upas a result of his discovery was namedin his honorwith corrupted spelling.Some years later, in a burst of civicpride, it was decided that Bodey's

bones should be removed from theirlonely resting spot to a place of honorin the city cemetery; and in November,1879the 20th anniversary of Bodey'sdeath the removal was performedwith the Bodie Brass Band providing

AURO RA :


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EARL BELL STANDS IN THE DO ORWAY OF BODIECABIN IN WHICH HE WAS BORN 69 YEARS AGOin peace amid these everlasting hills."

Elsewhere on the slope are thegraves of Rosa May and Lottie Johl,two women from the redlight district.Doubting, perhaps, the ability of SaintPeter to distinguish the fine line exist-ing between Bodie's saints and sinners,the strait-laced element of the townassisted him by pre-judgment, in which

Bodie claimed four world records:(1 ) The wildest mining camp (10,000citizens, 7 breweries, 60 saloons);(2 ) The wickedest men; (3 ) Th eworst climate; (4 ) The best drinkingwater.

it was decided whether a deceased per-son had been sufficiently righteous towin a spot in the "hallowed ground"of the cemetery, or whether his moralfiber had been such that he must beburied outside the fence, in Boot Hill.Doomed to this category were the suc-

cessive Bad Men from Bodie, murder-ers, horsethieves and, particularly, "fal-len" women.Rosa May, pert , pretty and popularat least with the menwas givena reasonably good position outside the

fence, while Lottie, a "fallen" womanwho had later married Eli Johl, Bodiebutcher, and lived with him respecta-bly for many years, won a place insidethe fencebut only after a hassle thatthreatened to split the town. Thoseseated in judgment at last grudginglyagreed to her burial in hallowedground, but only if she were buriedin the farthest-out grave of the "re-spectable" section.Thousands of tourists have visitedthese two gravesRosa May's lonelylittle mound outside the fence, and

Lottie's, far up in the weedy southwestcorner of the cemetery. Enclosing thelatter grave is a fine wrought-iron fenceerected those many years ago by hersorrowing husband . . . and this sum-mer I was rebelliously glad to see that

someone had decorated Lottie's gatewith two attractive wreaths of fernsand artificial flowers.Not far from the cemetery standsthe old Methodist Church with its highbelfry pointing heav enw ard. First timeI visited Bodie, about a dozen yearsago, the wall behind the pulpit washalf-covered with a large woodenplaque on which was lettered the TenCommandments . Later some vandalmade off with part of this sign, andto preserve the remaining portion aformer watchman stored it in an oldbuilding which could be locked.Eventually this watchman left Bodie

"Quar rels in the (Bodie) saloonswere frequent, and often accompan-ied by gun play, but these werenot taken seriously by the comm unitywhich had grown accustomed to 'hav-ing a man for breakfast' every morn-ing."THE STORY OF BODIE

and, thus far, none of his successorshave been able to locate the missingfive or so Commandments!Along Main Street, or closely adja-cent, stands the firehouse, sundry res-taurants and stores, the land officebuilding, Oddfellows Hall, and theMiners' Union Hall; and up at thenorth-end of town is a big brick-and-steel walk-in vaultall that remainsof the Bodie Bank after the disastrous

fire of 1932 swept away most of thebusiness buildings on North MainStreet. (Bod ie, in the course of her80 years, has survived two major fires.At the time of the first big blaze, inJuly, 1892, in which most of the struc-tures on North Main were destroyed,the camp was still active enough thatthe devastated section was quickly re-built. Wh en the second major fire, 40years later, destroyed the same partof town, Bodie's economy was totter-ing and the burned area was neverrebuilt.)Across the street north of the bankglowers the old jail with its threecramped, dismal and heavily-barredcells, in which have briefly reposed nota few stage robbers and other male-factors. U p the ravine back of thejail are the ruins marking the site ofChinatown.It was Earl Bell who told me ofChinato wn. Soft-spoken and white-haired, Mr. Bell lives on the streetformerly known as Park Avenue, inthe house in which he was born 69years ago. His nephew, Bob Bell,comes up from Hawthorne each sum-mer to live with his uncle. Tog etherthey prospect the surrounding hills forminerals.Chinatown, according to Mr. Bell,



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was a lively place with some 1500inhabitants amply supplied with gam-bling and opium dens, saloons, and abig Joss Temple, as well as manystores one of them occupying athree-story building. None of the localChinese labored in the mines or millsBodie's militant Miners' Union sawto thatbut a few of them did placermining for themselves, or joined theIndian squaws in reworking the tail-ings. Mostly they operated restaurantsand wash houses, and small shops.Other members of the colony kept theBottle, at 8300 feet above s e a level,has seen some wicked winter weather.At one time th e West chuckled at thisdescription of Bodie weather: "Elevenmonths of winter and one month ofhell."

town supplied with pinyon wood whichthey cut in the hills eight miles distantand hauled to Bodie on pack burros.Still others peddled fish shipped in saltbrine from San Francisco, and one oldChinaman had a big greenhouse andraised vegetables."The greenhouse was made entirelyof glass and was nice and warm insideeven when it was cold and snowy out-side," recalled Mr. Bell. "The oldman would plant his seeds inside inthe late winterturnips and radishesand beets and lettuceand after theseason was far enough advanced hewould move the plants into the openground . Later he peddled the vege-tables from house to house and every-one was glad to get them because freshgarden produce was scarce in Bodie,and a real luxury . . ."Scattered over the vacant lots ofthe town are many vehicles in variousstages of delapidationdray wagons,freight wagons, carts, buggies andothers. Man y of these were equippedwith runners where wheels normallywould have been."Winters in Bodie were lots harder

in the old days," Mr. Bell explained."Mail, freight, passengers, everythinghad to be carried on sledges. The rewere even a few dog-sled teams. Sev-eral families owned fancy cutters linedwith plush. When you took your bestgirl out in one of those plush-linedcutters, behind a high-stepping team infancy harness, and the snow sparklingand sleigh bells ringing, even a verycommon sort of fellow could cut quitea dashing figure!"In support of his statement that pastwinters had been harder, Mr. Bell dis-

played faded photographs showingBodie with only the roofs of the housesprotruding from the snow drifts. An -other picture showed the decoratedstreet and part of the crowd at one of

Bodie's Labor Day celebrations. Whatespecially attracted my attention wasa tree tall as the two-story buildingbeside which it stood. I had been toldthat no trees had ever grown in Bodie.When I asked Mr. Bell about it hegrinned sheepishly, almost like a kidcaught in his neighbor's melon patch."Th at's right," he admitted. "Treeswon't grow in Bodietoo much min-eral in the soil, 1 supp ose. This treein the picture was only a Labor Daytree. Each Fourth of July and LaborDay we would go out into the canyonsand cut a lot of young quaking aspenand bring them back to town and"pla nt" them along the street. Theyprovided shade for folks watching theparade and contests, and as long asthey stayed green the old town lookedreal nice."Due, chiefly, to the high fire hazard,camping within the town limits ofBodie is forbidden. Folks are permit-ted to camp near a spring of water ashort distance below town. The last

M A TTH E W A N D ELISE DE CELLES B E A T O N , W I T HSOME OF MRS. BEATO N 'S WATER COLOR SCENES

evening of my recent three-day visit,after the sun had slipped behind therounded hills to the west, the last tour-ist of the day had taken his departureback to super-markets and neon lights,and Bodie's half-dozen citizens hadrepaired to their homes to light oillamps and start preparations for sup-

"While Bodie has met with onedisastrous fire after another allthr ough its history, this is of minorconsequence compared to the shuttingdown of the mines."THE STORY QFBODIE

per, I sat for a long while on the wornwooden steps of the old church in thesoft twilight. Th e bevy of swallowsnesting under the eaves at last grewsilent. A yellow moo n climbed intothe sky to cast its soft light over theempty streets and the silent graveyard,and to throw strange dark shadows



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around the looming hulk of the oldStandard Mill. A little breeze beganplaying with the old church building,running its fingertips over the highleaded windows, and whisperingthrough the gaunt belfry where no belltolls.With the summer night closing inupon me, I was thinking of my pleas-

ant sojourn at Bodie and the wealthof stories I ha d been told . Stories ofthe little narrow-gauge railroad builtin 1881 from Mono Mills to BodieOne of Bodie's newspapers won-dered why the reported lack of watershould disturb the Nevada miningcamp of Candelaria it being chargedthat not more than a dozen citizensof that place ever used the commod-ity, either for personal ablution or asa beverage.GHOSTS OF THE GLORYTRAIL

ISN 'T THIS FUN? BODIE VISITOR TRIES TO GETA PEEK IN TO IN TERIOR OF A VACATED HOME.

a railroad only 32 miles long but in-corporated at a million dollars . . .stories of the seven breweries in opera-tion in Bodie at a single time, and ofthe several newspapers that had flour-ished here.But of all the stories, none hadthrilled me so much as that of theworld's first long-distance transmissionof electrical pow er. It wa sn't a greatdistanceonly 13 milesbut electri-cal energy had never been carried sofar before and most folks said it

couldn't be done, that the electricitywould "jump off" into the air.Tom Legett, superintendent of theStandard Mill, was convinced it couldbe done and proved his point! Whenthe power was turned into the systemat its source on Green Creek, aboveBridgeport, and lights began to glowin the Standard Mill and machinerybegan operating smoothly, it was anevent that made news in engineeringjournals around the world and signal-ized an entire new approach to worldprogress and development.And, of course, there had beenstories of Aurora, Bodie's Nevadaneighbor, six miles down the canyon.Bodie and Aurora had not alwaysseen eye to eyebut what rival min-ing camps ever did? Au rora was theolder by several years. It had comeinto being in 1860 when the Californiacamp was still just "the place whereBill Bodey froze to de ath ." In otherways, too, Aurora had Bodie licked40 ways from Su nday. During theCalifornia - Nevada boundary dispute

she had served simultaneously as thegovernmental seat of Esmeralda Coun-ty, Nevada, and of Mono County, Cal-ifornia; and she had once lynched fourmen all in the space of 30 minutes!Rivalry between the two towns, gen-

erally speaking, had been conductedin the spirit of good clean mining campfunbut at one point relations grewso strained that it became necessaryto station two companies of soldiersat the point where the Aurora-Bodieroad crosses the state line.Just as the fortunes of Aurora andBodie have been inseparably linked,

so have the fortunes of both townsbeen linked with the Cain family.James Stuart Cain, mine and milloperator , banker, and major propertyowner, emigrated to Bodie from Car-son City in 187 9. Here he built oneof the finest dwellings in town, stillstanding today on the lot east of thechurch . In this hom e, with its highglass windows and gingerbread trim,he and Martha Delilah Cain rearedthree children, Victor, Stuart andDolly. In 1904 Victor Cain marriedElla Cody, born at Bodie in 1882 andwho had begun teaching the inter-mediate grades in the Bodie school in1900. After their marriage they setup housekeeping in the once-fine homeacross the street from the church, andhere they lived many years.To Victor and Ella Cain, now prom-inent merchants in Bridgeport, belongsalmost the entire credit for the factthat Bodie is still an interesting placefor folks to visit, rather than only ashambles of caving cellars and crum-bling foundations. Th e Cains have ac-

quired Bodie properties one after an-other until today they own virtuallythe entire town. No r have they donethis with any expectation of profitingthereby. They simply want to pre-serve this old mining camp in whichtheir respective forebears played suchactive roles.One example of their protective in-fluence is the schoolhouse where theyouthful Ella tackled the formidablejob of teaching a flock of Bodie young-sters, some of them almost as large asherself. Years after Bodie became a

ghost town the county put the oldbuilding up for sale for scrap lumber.That this fine old structure should bedestroyed was quite unthinkable toVictor and Ella Cain, so they boughtthe schoolhouse; and instead of razingSo lawless was Bodie in its earlydays that people from far and nearreferred to it as "Shooters ' Town ."

it for salvage, they began repairing andmaintaining it, and paying taxes on it.In the same manner have other build-ings come under their protection, andfor many years the Cains have hireda paid watchman to guard Bodieagainst fire, looting and vandalism.Mrs. Cain also made an importantcontribution to public knowledge when



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she assembled Bodie's fascinating his-tory in a delightfully written 200-pageillustrated book, The Story of Bodie,first published in 1956 and now in itsfourth printing (available from DesertMagazine Book Store, Palm Desert ,Calif. For $4 .31 , cloth cover, and$2.75, paper cover, post- and tax-p a i d ) .In view of the Cain's long-time as-sociation with the welfare of this oldcamp, it goes without saying that noone is more interested than they in theacceptance of Bodie as a state park.Four years ago such action seemedimminent; but things have lagged, asthings sometimes do, and at this writ-ing the town's fate and future stillhang in the balance.I regard Bodie as the best desertghost town in California, and one ofthe finest in the West. I believe itis important that our present ease-loving generation, and other genera-tions to follow, should have the oppor-tunity to see what life must have beenlike in the barren, bleak, isolated, hard-ship-ridden, pneumonia-scourged min-ing camps of the 19th Century.Conversely, I would not wish to seeBodie "preserved" or "restored" at thecost of its weather-beaten charm.Every one of its old cabins, every out-house , to my way of thinking, should

be left standing picturesquely askew;th e old broken down sleighs andfreight wagons should be left sprawl-ing on the vacant lots, exactly as theyhave stood since the last time theywere used wheels missing, bolstersbroken, brake rods forever immobile.Heaven forbid that the beautifullyweathered pine lumber in Bodie 'sbuildings should be desecrated with acoat of paint , or her streets paved!and better the town be leveled to the

AUTHOR TAKES DRIVER'S SEAT OFDRAY WAGON

grass roots than have it turned intoanother honky-tonk tourist t rap!Preserve Bodie, yes, either withstate funds or private means. But keepit looking as it does today, faded andsplintered and battered and buffeted;but, withal, as completely honest anddown-to-earth as the miners ' brogansthat once echoed through these nowsilent streets. / / /

MADISON DEVLINAURORAGOLDEN CITY OFTHE DAWN : a few ruggedmiles east of Bodie lies the site of deserted Aurora. Littleremains to suggest that this town was once Bodie's "bet-ter." Aurora's main claim to fame stems from its havi ngbeen the local seat of government for two counties at thesam e t imeone of them inN e v a d a , theother in California.

A side-trip to Bodie's rival camp: AURORAH/ | | O W FAR IS Aurora?" I asked the man tending oneof Bodie's still active "business houses.""Why do you want to go there?" he asked in turn.

"Jus t to see what it's like. How many miles do youfigure?"The man scratched his head and thought a moment ."About 10 or 15 , " he answered."How's the road?""Don' t know," the man answered, "I've never beenthere."Neither had I, but I wasn't about to leave this wildly

beautiful desert highland without visiting the site of famedAurora where $30,000,000 in gold had been taken out ofthe ground; a town whose two newspapers helped keep therivalry with Bodie at a high pitch; and whose opera houseattracted the best talent of the era.The gravel road leading east from Bodie winds gentlythrough sagebrush country featuring occasional outcrop-

pings of rock and gnarled trees. It leaves the canyon afew times to top some hillsand to t reat the traveler toenormous desert vistas.I had the road to myself that summer day until Irounded a turn and saw a car parked off the trail, and



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l A

two women and two girls walking through the brush. Thecar had Maine license plates.I stopped and offered my assistance."No thanks,'" came the reply. "Everything is all rightwe're just prospecting.""Gold?" I asked."Mercy no!" one of the women said. "Uranium !"The ladies had a portable Geiger counter and a metal

locator, while the youngsters carried canvas bags in whichore samples were deposited. Blue skies, fresh air tingedwith a hint of sage, a challenging game (despite the oddsagainst monetary success)what better way to spend ada y or a month?The short side-road to Aurora joins the main gravelroad at a sharp "V" angle. At this fork I found a lowhomem ade sign which reads: "Kesco Mine 4 Mi." Underthisalmost as an afterthoughtwere the words: "Aurora4V2 Mi."The first mile of the AV2 is much like the "main" road,but then things begin to change. Instead of winding aroundthe hills, the road goes directly up and over them. Theboulders become larger, the road narrower, the ruts deeper.Five miles an hour is top speed on this stretch.On the last up-pitch before Aurora, the road is fullof loose rocks. These last few hundred yards had beenrugged and the path ahead looked no better, so I left myca r on the hill and walked into Aurora.

aj?> / I FOUR AMATEUR__ V PROSPECTORSFROM MAIN E WHO SPENTTHEIR SUMMERVACATION LOOKING FORGOLD ANDURANIUM IN THEAURORA ENVIRONS

The town had mushroomed in a saucer-like depressionat the juncture of three canyons. On the sides of thesecanyons are mounds of tailings. Trail-like streets and afew sunburnt buildings are all that remain of the townitselfscanty evidence that hundreds of miners once livedhere.Everything that could be moved from the buildingshad been done so years before. There was little rubblebecause many of the building had been taken away boardby board and brick by brickcommon practice in those

parts of the West where building materials were scarce.Today the only Aurora structure that looks like it isin good condition is the brick schoolhouse perched on theside of one of the canyons. Inside though, its interior hasbeen stripped to the bare walls.My Aurora tr ip was not quite over. Returning to mycar I saw my Maine friends walking up the hill, their eyesand ears glued to the instruments on their detectors.We greeted again, and they scanned the buildings below."That ' s all that's left of Aurora," I told them. "Abou t$30,000,000 in gold was taken out of those hills. Whydon't you try your luck? You might find uranium there.""D o you really think so?" one of the ladies askedexcitedly. "Come on! Let's go down and see."I watched as they scrambled down the hill. Maybethey'll make the big strike that brings Aurora back to life,I mused. Who knows? / / /



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LILLIAN NINMIS"SWEET CHILDISH DAYS, that were as long / As twentydays are now": When Lil l ian Ninnis of Reno read Har-rison Doyle's three-part "Boy's Ey eview of the W ild W est"in this publication, she wrote in to say that girls brought-up in mining town s had fond memo ries, too. In this storyshe remembers how i t was in Bodie where she spentpart of her childhood.

BODIE YESTERDAYW E WERE Bodie kids, and for usthe rough and ready camp washome. Dad worked a 10-hourshift in the Standard Mine for $4 aday. He carried a tin lunch pail towork with him.

Some of the ore from the Standardwas a beautiful white quartz streakedwith free goldan irresistible tempta-t ion to highgraders. The women w holived along the mine road insisted thatthey could tell by the way a minercoming off shift carried his lunch pailwhether it was heavy with highgrade,or, jauntily a-swing, emp ty. An d whena suspected highgrader decided tomove his family to a newly acquired

of its day. Un pav ed Main Street waslined with business houses and woodensidewalks. There was a schoolhouse,a couple of churches and many smallwooden houses. Few miners spentmuch money on a house, for wingssprout on a miner's feet when newsof a new strike leaks out. The tow nwas dominated by the Standard Mineand Mill. The m ill, a big ramblingwooden building with side-sheds filledwith cord-wood for the steam boilers,was a constant fire me nace . If the millwhistle shreiked and the fire bellclamored, everyone's first thought was,"N ot The M ill! If it catches fire thewhole town will go!"

sleep to the lullaby of the pounding ofthe mill stamps.But, if the sleeping town was startledawake by heavy boots grinding on theroad from the tunnel, no one needed

an explanation. Th e distant yelp ofcoyotes joined the clamor of arouseddogs, lights came on and doors poppedopen to frame anxious faces. If Dadwas on shift, Mother's breath was asmothered sob as she struggled with ashawl or coat to cover her night dress,and hurried down the steps to theroad . Afraid to look at the dirt-smeared figure on the stretcher, she'dquietly question the bearers, then sagwith relief when told: "T om 's alright,

HORSE-DRAWN f \FLOATS IN


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who called it homeexcept when thatperson was chewing tobacco . Dad andhis chew would head for the backyardwhere he'd sit on the sawbuck andchat and spit with his next door neigh-bor. We girls would call "dibsies" onthe little tin horseshoes which wereon every plug of tobacco. They madedecorations for picture frames, or wehammered them onto the ends of ourhair r ibbons.

Some Bodie women had their wash-ing done by Paiute squaws, and Paiutemen sawed and split the cords of finenut-pine wood. Maggie and Gesso didthese chores for us.Mother andMaggie were old friends.On Monday morning, come rain orshine, Maggie showed up to do thewashing unless it was pine-nuttingtime. Somehow Mother always sensed

when Maggie wouldn't show up. Onthe morning Maggie reappeared shewould stop at the wood-shed on herway to the kitchen. From out the foldsof her skirt she'd lift a grimy 10-poundsugar sack half-full of pine-nuts."Well, for goodness sakes, have youbeen pine-nutting?" Mother would askinnocently."You gimme sugar?" Maggie wouldask as she held out the nuts. Motherwould push the sack aside."Give you sugar for that little dab

of nuts? I should say not!" ThenMaggie would make a trip back to thewood-shed, add a few nuts from her

cache, and start the bargaining all overagain. This went on for several tripsto the wood-shed. Finally Maggiewould dump the nuts into a lard-canand Mother would fill the sack withsugar and put several cups of freshlyground coffee into a kerchief. Whilethis was going on Maggie's eyes wouldwander over the kitchen, and a bar ortw o of laundry soap or a half-filledbottle of vanilla would be added to herbundle. When the limit of Mother 'spatience was reached, back Maggiewould go to the wood-shed, to fetchanother sack of nuts. Then the twowomen would laugh together at theirhard bargaining and soft hearts.

Bodie's Fourth of July celebrationwas a blood-tingling event newdresses, a parade, a band, a Goddessof Liberty float. I never reached thepinnacle of being the GoddessbutI did ride on a float and wave a flagwith the name of a state printed on it.

There was free ice cream at thefirehouse after the parade, and a kidcould win a dollar in a foot-race downMain Street. Once a miner who hadbet on me gave me a $5 gold piecefor coming in first.As the dusty and happy day woreon, we were treated to our one dinnerof the year at the dining room inBoyd's Hotel. With eager expectancy

an d our company manners we troopedinto the dining room to sit with otherfamilies at long tables.

Later, after the fireworks display, itwas bedtime, but Mother and Dadan d all the other grown-ups got readyfor the Grand Ball, there to polka andwaltz until it was t ime for the men togo on shift the morning of the fifth.Bodie winters were severe. Beforethe first snow fell the cellar was filledwith firkens of butter, sacks of pota-toes, boxes of apples, cases of cannedvegetables, jars of home-canned fruit,glasses of jelly and jam, and severalbig "Our Taste" hams.W e had no hospital, and sometimesno doctor . For a chest cold Motherrubbed us with camphorated oil andturpentine or set us on fire with amustard plaster, all the while pouringhot flaxseed tea into us. A bandagefor a skinned knee was torn from anold bed-sheet or pillow case, and if

we got a toothache the tooth waspulled the first time Doc Southworthcame to town. If there was serioussickness or a new baby in a home,neighbors took the kids home and fedand bedded them down with their own,or "scooted" into the house with bread,pot roast or soup. They'd even takethe washing home and do it with theirown.If a child came down with scarletfever, diphtheria or some other con-tagious disease, the schoolroom reeked

BODIE IN THE EARLY YEARS OF THIS CENTURY-MIDWAY BETWEEN BOOM AND BUST. FIRESHAVE DESTROYED HALF THE BUILD-INGS SHOWN IN THIS PHOTOGRAPH.



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of asafetida. Every child hun g a bagof the fetid drug around his neck.Make no mistake, a self-respectinggerm would not come near a school-room smelling like ours.O ne day Dad came home with ex-citing news. A man named Jim Butlerhad found rich ore on the desert inNevada. Wings were sprouting onDad's feet, and in May, 1902, he hitthe road for the new strike. By Sep-tember our chickens had all been eaten,our house sold and some of our furni-ture shipped to the new mining campof Tonopah. Mother hired a buck-board to take us over Lucky BoyGrade to Hawthorne .Our good-bys had been said to dearfriends and relatives and there werestill traces of tears on our cheeks whenwe took our last look at the OldSyndicate Mill. Its soft brick wallswere old friends. Ma ny times, tiredfrom a long walk over the hills, wehad rested in their shade and enjoyedthe sweet fragrance of the myriads ofwild roses clinging to the crumblingbricks.Last October Fred and I revistedBodie after an exile of 57 years! Atfirst I could hardly believe it themost perfect ghost town we had everseen in all our wanderings over Cali-fornia and Nevada . The church, theschoolhouse, the Miners ' Hall allpainted a soft brown by the hand oftime. The small houses we had lived

in stood in quiet peace, enjoying theirundisturbed memories.We parked on Main Streetwherewe, as children, had run foot races.Boyd's Hotel was gone. Reading'sStore and Burkham's were gone. TheBank was gone.We found Spence Gregory at ahouse near the school. Spence and Ihad been in the first grade together.The three of us sat down on someboxes outside, and "remembered"aloud. He told us about the dreadfultime the Standard Mill burned to theground; how the families had movedon to other camps; how the sidewalkssagged here and there as if weary fromthe many years of busy moving feet.He told of the disappointment whennew people came in to rework themines and then moved away, leaving

a new corrugated iron mill to standlike a stranger in the midst of themellowness of age.I rediscovered childhood spots andI longed to give the old fire bell a tap.We examined a granite block whichhad been used in some by-gone drill-ing match. In the holes cut by long-departed hands, small plants havetaken root, and bits of grass and twigsspeak of the nesting places of tinyinsects, happily unaware that the pureblessed peace surrounding them hadas its beginning The Bad Man fromBodie. / / /

POEM OF THE MONTHDesert

ParadoxBy

EUNICE M. ROBINSONSanta Ana, California

O desert, golden child of thesun,

Jeweled at the dawn withcool night-scented dews;

Bright beauty basking in thewarmth of noon,Or washed at eventide with

sunset hues;Here air is sweet with sage

and cactus bloom,Here life unfettered roams,

and winds are free.Treasure - laden mountains

touch the cloudsAbove your calm expanse of

sandy sea.O desert, furtive child of

mystery,Secret and silent in the gray

of dawn;Athirst in the bleak and soli-

tary noon,With mystic shadows formed

when day is gone.Windswept and wild; forever

fraught with change;Here grim and brooding

mountain backdrops stand.Life pays with life; and hiss-

ing danger liesCoiled in camouflage against

the sand.O child of nature's whims!

O ancient youth!Vessel of Earth's deception. . . and its truth!Desert Magazine pays $5 each monthfor the poem chosen by the judgesto appear in the magazine. To enterthis contest simply mail your type-written poem (must be on a desertsubject) to Poetry Contest, DesertMagazine, Palm Desert, Calif. Pleaseinclude a stamped return envelope.



22/44


23/44


24/44

drawn on the chest of a naked boywho stood upon a blanket . One yaystruck him twice with the yucca leaves.The blows were gentle, causing nopain. An ear of corn with short spruceboughs was applied to the feet, thepalms of hands, back, shoulders andheads of the girls. After this the rep-resentatives of the yays removed theirmasks. The children were supposedto be surprised, but no change of ex-pression showed on their faces. Theyaccepted whatever came their way,unquestionably and in faith. Theywere a serious group of young people,learning something of the great needof human beings to keep in touch withMother Nature , to know the ways ofgrowing corn, beans and squash. Afterinitiation they could look upon themarvelous sand paintings and learn topour the sand themselves in patternsof beauty, symmetry and symbolicverity. Thus are artists made amongthe Navajos, artists who feel therhythm of the universe and the won-de r of all things animate or inanimate.They learn to sing when the MorningStar arises at dawn:

OF CORND SPRUCE TO THE GIRL CAN DIDATESDURING THE 1927 IN ITIATION CEREMONY

"Big Star, I am your child. Giveme the light of your mind that mymind may be light."The masks used at the Night Chanthad a most rom antic history. Theywere owned by a medicine man whowas the uncle of the shaman who pre-sided at the ceremony I witnessed atPinyon. Very old, handed down fromuncle to nephew through many gen-erations, they were hidden in a cavein Canyon de Chelly at the time of theNavajo exile to Fort Sumner in 1862.Years later the medicine man and hisnephew returned for the precious deer-skin masks. They were repainted forevery ceremony and finally came intothe possession of the nephew. WhenI showed him the Ethnological Reportcontaining James Stevenson's accountof the Night Chant with reproductionsof sand paintings and masks used at

Keam's Canyon in October, 1885, theshaman-nephew was moved almost totears. He said to Hubbel l :"I t was my uncle who gave theceremony 42 years ago. I helped himat that time."

I allowed the tears to blur my eyes.Being blurred, they saw as in a miragethe generations of priest-poets pouringcolored sands in patterns of hope asthey chanted the songs of the Houseof Dawn and of Evening Twilight. Idid not remain for the ceremonies ofthe ninth night. I felt that I couldabsorb no more. There was much tothink about.

I sent the films home to be devel-oped, and worked for a few days inOraibi with Ashi, who wished to giveme more sand paintings. We sat onthe floor of my room, painting cactuspeople and the four winds. Ashiseemed impressed by my ability towork, so much so that he named methe Hard-working Woman. I likedthe name. It was neither flowery norfalse. The Hard-working Woman hadlittle time for frivolity. Its nearest ap-proach came on Thanksgiving Daywhen Hubbell asked me to witnessthe doings of the ninth night of an-other Yeibichai Dance. / / /

Next installment:Ceremony" "The Unfinished



25/44

TRADING POST CLASSIFIEDS How to Place an Ad: Mail your copy and first- insertion remit-tance to: Trading Post, Desert Magazine,Palm Desert, Calif. Classif ied rates are 20c per word, $4

minimum per insertion. BOOKS - MAG AZIN ESREAD THE Prospector's Gu ide. Tells how andwhere to prospect for minerals, etc. Sendfor application to United Prospectors, 701 ViEast Edgeware, Los Angeles 26, California.OUT-OF-print books at lowest prices! You nameitwe find it! Western Americana, desert andIndian books a specialty. Send us your w ants.No oblig ation . International Bookfinders, Box3003-D, Beverly Hills, California.oPINE CONES booklet pictures tiny cones to foot

long. Unusual all-cone wreaths, Decemberevergreen s. Western Tree Cones, Corv allis,Oregon."GEMS & Minerals Magazine," largest rock hobbymon thly. Field tr ips, "h o w " artic les, pictures,ads. $3 year. Sample 25c. Box 687J, Mentone,Cal i fornia.GEM HUNTERS Atlas. Three great books for therock collector, covering the eleven westernstates. Each atlas has 32 full page maps w ithgem hunting areas spotted in color. Type ofmaterial, mileages and all highways are shown.Nor thwest $1 , Cal iforniaNevada $1 , South-west $1 , postpa id. Write for ou r selected listof books on mineralogy, wi ld l i fe, Amer icana,

and trav el. Scenic Guide s, Box 288, Susan-v i l le, California.DEATH VALLEY valuable guid e. The secrets ofDeath Valley bared. Beautiful i l lustrations.$3.50 postpaid. Travel Writer 's Passport,unique handbook for travel writers and pho-tographers, tells you how to sell your storiesand pictures, $1 postpaid. Special Offer: bothbooks for only $4 postpaid. Order todayf rom: Martin Gross, P.O. Box 302 1, GrandCentral Station, New York 17, N.Y.WILL BUY books, pamphlets on the West, Indians,Outlaws, Cattle. Top price paid for any TexasHistory published before 1895. Please stateasking price or send for a ppraisa l. PriceDaniel, P.O. Drawer 2450-DM, Waco, Texas.LOCATE ANY boo k. No obligatio n. We search;quote price. Specializ ing Western Americana.Aardva rks Desert Boo khunte rs, Box 734-D, LaMesa, California.SO YOU Want to Start a Rock Shop, new bookby Arthur E. and Lila Mae Victor, 52 pages,price $2. Invaluable information for the be-ginning rock shop, or any "thumb-nail" sizedretail business. Interesting read ing for anyone. By the same authors, Gem Tumbling andBaroque Jewelry Making, sixth edit ion, autho-r itative and recognized book of complete in-structions. At your dealers or order direct, $2each, postpaid from Victor Agate Shop, South1709 Cedar, Spokane 41 , Washing ton. 8c tax

Washington delivery.LOST MINES, buried or sunken treasure, bibliog-raphy . Our research has 41 boo ks, articles,maps covering this fascinating subject. Com-plete list $2. Earth Science Enterprises, Park-wood Drive, Madisonville, Kentucky.

BOOKS: "PANNING Gold for Beginners," 50c."Gold in Placer," $3. Frank J. Harnagy, 701 ViE. Edgeware, Los Angeles 26, California.10 VOLUMES Desert Magazine, binders, 1947-

1956 inclusive. Excellent condition. Makeoffer. Lorenz G. Trost, 1400 E. Chap man,Orange, California,HARD-TO-find books located. Mill ions availablethrough w orld -wid e contacts. Book Land, Box74561L, Los Angeles 4, California.WESTERN AMERICANA; send stamp for free listof old and rare books on the West. M. V.Denny, Box 1, Norris, Tennessee."BLACK SAND and Go ld" -$3 .95 . Authent icbook on A laska-Klondike goldrush years1897-'98. 419 pages with photographs. Auto-grap hed . Ella L. Ma rtinsen , 30 East Vict oria ,Santa Barbara, California. M.O. or C.O.D.

EQUIPMENT-SUPPLIESCAM PING EQUIPMENT: Personally selected scout,t ra i l , family tents. Best quality United Statesman ufacturers. European pack equ ipm ent. Sat-isfaction guaranteed. Send 25c for catalog.Don Gleason's Campers' Supply, Northampton,Massachusetts. Good practical equipment atsensible prices.FREE CATA LOG World's finest ligh twe igh t camp-ing and mountainee ring equipment. Used onMt . Everest, Himalayas, Ande s, etc. It's ex-pensive but absolutely unsurpassed! Gerry,Dept. 107, Ward, Colorado.MICROSCOPES, NEW and used, for professionalsand hobb yists. Slides, accessories, books.Write for price list. Peninsula Scientific, 2421El Camino, Palo Alto, California.NEW TYPE tumbler rough grinds, polishes, oneoperation, no changing belts or pulleys. Sixpolished Lake Superior agates from MississippiRiver, postpaid $1. Scoop Advertis ing Service,Stockton, I l l inois.SPECTACULAR FLUORESCENCE. Ultraviolet lampsof all types for f ie ld , home and laboratory.Locate tungsten and zirconium. Make colorfuldisplays. C atalog D free. Mineral EquipmentCo., Hampden Road, Somers, Conn.

FOR WOMENLADY GODIVA "The World's Finest Beautif ier."Your whole be auty treatment in one jar. Pro-tect skin against sun, w i n d . For free brochurewr ite : Lola Barnes, 963 No rth Oak land , Pasa-dena 6, California.DRY SKIN conditions solved with daily applica-tion of G'Bye Dry. Large jar prepaid for o nly$1 . Try it now and be desert happy. NevadaRX Drug, Boulder City, Nevada.SOUR DOUGH biscuit recipe and full directions$1 . Dutchoven or modern baking. Revive thelost art. Franks Mu rdock , Dalhart, Texas.RETURN GREY hair to youthful color, in privacyyour bedroom. Guaranteed. Details free. MaryReid, Box 68, Hackensack City 2, New Jersey.ENJOY DELICIOUS salt rising bread. Send $1for complete recipe to: A'Della Whitmore,808 31st Street, Bakersfield, Calif.

GEMS, CUT-P OLISHEDAUSTRALIAN TUMBLED gemstones, 8 differentpolished baroques, identif ied, suitable fornecklace or chain bracelet. $1.10 postpa id.

Or 10 different po lished baroques, identif ied ,f rom around the wor ld. $1.25 postpaid.Bensusan, 8615 Columbus Avenue, Sepulveda,Cal i fornia.GENUINE TURQUOISE: Natural color, blue andbluish gree n, cut and polished cabochons25carats (5 to 10 stones according to size) $3.50including tax, postpaid. 50 carats (10 to 20cabochons) $6.15 including tax, postpaid inU.S.A. Write for folder. Elliott Gem & MineralShop, 235 E. Seaside Blvd., Long Beach 2, Cal.CALIFORN IA DESERT rocks. Gem qua lity. Pol-ished. Large assortment. One dollar postpaid.Pollard, 12719 Laurel Street, Lakeside, Calif.BEAUTIFULLY POLISHED apache tears $3 pound,

agate or jasper $2 pound, pure tin oxide$1.95 pou nd , plus postage. 2039 East BuckeyeRoad, Phoenix, Arizona.FIRE AGATE, tumbled, polished, will cut a 13x18mm. cabochon. $3 each tax included, postpaid.Fire guaranteed or money refunde d. DimickMining Co., P.O. Box 1795, Clifton, Arizona.OPAL, AMETHYST, etc. 10 ringsize stones, groundand polished ready to set, $5. Opals, deepred, blue, green, golden flashing in all colorsof the rainbov/, direct from the mine, 15 for$5. Kendal l , San Miguel d 'A l lende, Guanaju-ato, Mexico.GOOD QUALITY polished opalite baroques, as-sorted sizes, f ine for a ll types jew elry, $3.50pou nd, postpa id. Cody Inn Curio Shop, RR 3,

Golden, Colorado.TUMBLE POLISHED Arizona fire agates, $2.50each. Agates, jaspers, $3.50 pound, pluspostage. Apacheland Aga te Co., 501 No rth17th, Phoenix, Arizona.OPALS AND sapphires direct from Australia.This month's best buy: cut and polished solidopals ready for mounting. Two ovals each6x8, 8x10, 10x12 mm. All s ix for $15, freeairmai led. Send personal check, internationalmoney order, bank draft. Free 16 page listof all Australian gemstones. Australian GemTrading Co., 294 Litt le Collins Street, Mel-bourne, C.I., Australia.

GE MS , DEALERSVISIT GOLD Pan Rock Shop. Bea utiful spherematerial, mineral specimens, choice crystals,cutting materials, jewelry, bolo t ies, baroques,spheres, bookends, paperweights, cabochons,faceted stones, f luorescents, jewelry f indings,lapidary equipment and supplies, Navajo rugs,custom sawingby the inch or shares. Saws,up to 30-inch diameters. John and Etta James,proprietors, 2020 North Carson Street on High-way 395 north end of town. Carson City, Nev.CHOICE MINERAL specimens, rough and cut gemmaterial, lapidary and jewelry equipment andsupplies, mountings, f luorescent lamps, books.Valley Art Shoppe, 21108 Devonshire Street,Chatsworth, California.NATIONALLY KNOW and noted for large choicevarieties of gemstone, minerals, Indian art i-facts, fossils, handcrafted jewelry, etc., includ-ing unusual gifts. Retail and wholesale. Deal-ers inquir ies and suppliers offering invited.The Coles', 551 S.W. Coast Hiway, Newport,Oregon.

MORE CLASSIFIEDS I


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TRADING POST CLASSIFIEDS continuedDESERT ROCKS, wo od s, je we lry. Residence rearof shop. Rockhounds welcome. Mile west onU.S. 66. McShan's Gem Shop and DesertMuseum. P.O. Box 22, Needles, California.RED ROCK Shop has minerals, slabs, petrifiedw o o d , gifts, curios. Will trade. 2V i milessouthwest on U.S. 89A, Sedona, Arizona.RIVERSIDE CALIFOR NIA. We have every thingfor the rock hound, pebble pups, interestinggifts for those who are not rock hounds.Minerals, slabs, rough materials, lapidary sup-plies, mountings, equipment, black lights. Whynot stop and browse ? Shamrock Rock Shop,593 West La Cadena Drive, Riverside, Calif.OVerland 6-3956.

GEMS, MIN ERALS-FOS SILSFOSSILS. 12 differ ent fo r $2. Other prices onrequest. Will buy, sell or trade. Museum ofFossils. Clifford H. Earl, P. O. Box 188,Sedona, Arizona.FINE DOMESTIC and foreign crystals and mas-sive minerals. Please ask for free list. Con-tinental Minerals, P.O. Box 1206, Anaconda,Montana.BEGINNERS ILLUSTRATED catal og. Specialize dmineral, gem, crystal, fossil study collections;chemical, blowpipe, ultraviolet test kits, man-uals, field guides, other beginner accessories.25c. Mine ral Lore, 3004 Park Ave nue , SanBernardino 2, California.FOUR NATURAL staurolites, cross on both sides,

for $1 postpaid. "An ima ls" assembled fromuncut quartz crystals "Rockhound," $1.25each. Five assorted animals, $5.50 postpaid.Reasoner Rock Originals, Crown King Highway,Bumble Bee, Arizona.

GEMS, ROUGH MATERIALTURQUOISE FOR sale. Turquoise in the roughpriced at from $5 to $50 a poun d. Royal BlueMines Co., Tonopah, Nevada.GEM QUALITY golden tigereye $1 pound, Mo-jave Desert agate, howlite, jaspers 75c pound.Australian rhodonite, aventurine, rainbow ob-sidian $\ poun d. Summer special: 10 poundsCalifornia mixed rough $5. Highly polished

mixed baroques $2.50 pou nd. Postage andtax extra. Tubby's Rock Shop, 3329 MayfieldAve., La Crescenta, California.MINNESOTA SUPERIOR agates Vi to 1 inch$1.35 poun d postp aid; 1 to 2 inch $2.50pound postpaid. 3 polished Thompsonites $1postpaid. Frank Engstrom, Grey Eagle, Minn.GEM MATERIAL fro m the Mojave Desert. Yourchoice: Mojave agate, lavic jasper, verde an-t ique, palmwood, travertine (green), chapenite,onyx, opalite, jasp-agate, buds eye, and mixedjasper. 100 pounds $22 .50; 100 poundsmixed $12.50. Sample $3.50. All materialF.O.B. Barstow. Morton M inerals and Min ing,21423 (Old) Highway 66, R.F.D. 1, Barstow,California. Phone 855 1.VIRGIN VALLEY opal: Recognized world's mostcolorful specimens, a must for all rockhounds,from our own mine in the Silicon Range, Ne-vada. 4-inch vial $3. Money back if not asrepresented . Jade Rocks & Shells, Box 87,Shell Beach, California.


COLORFUL AUSTRALIAN Fire Opal; rough orcut. No deposi t, approva ls sent on request.See before yo u buy. We deal in "O pa l Ex-clusiv ely." Free list. Western Rock & Gem ,20385 Stanton Avenue, Castro Valley, Calif.

TRINIDAD JASPER 10 pounds $8.50, postpaid.Dealers write for prices on baroques. Roy'sRock Shop, P. O. Box 133, Trinidad, Calif.GEM ROUGH; mineral specimens, quality guaran-teed. Special this monthblue topaz specimen,25c postpaid. Free list. The Vellor Co., P.O.Box 44(D), Overland, St. Louis 14, Missouri.WILL TRADE mixed obsidians for agate, or sellgold sheen, silver sheen, olive green banded,spider web, feather, ambers, etc., 60c poundpostpaid. Blacks for doublets, etc., 25c poundpostpaid. Colorful commons, 35c pound post-paid. Ashby's, Route 2, Box 92, Redmond,Oregon.INDIA IMPORTER has star ruby crystals forspecimens from 75c to $1.25 per piece andalso this same material for practice cutting at$1.45 per ounce, with instructions included.Inspect these crystals for either purpose andyour money will be refunded if you simplysend them back. E. D. Skinner, Box 4252 ,Station K, Milw auke e 10, Wisconsin.

IN DIAN GOODSFINE RESERVATION-MADE Navajo, Zuni, Hopijewelry. Old pawn. Hundreds of f ine old bas-kets, moderately priced, in excellent condition.Navajo rugs, Yei blankets, Chimayo homespuns,pottery. A collector 's paradise! Open daily

10 to 5:30, closed Mond ays. Buffalo TradingPost, Highway 18, App le Valley, Ca lifornia.ARROWHEADS TWO ancient obsidian, illustratedcatalog plus jumbo picture $1. Catalog 50c.Indian wampum, very old. Cut shell, tur-quoise, bone, Spanish and Hudson Bay TradeBeads. List 10c. Worcester, 1229B UniversityAvenue, Berkeley 2, California.ARROWHEAD COLLECTION: 15 mou nted 2 1 x 3 1 "frames, containing over 2500 superb artifacts,mostly large blades, spears and knives. 90%Nevada, balance eastern Oregon, northernCalifornia and Colorado. Museum material.Write for complete information. Worcester,1229B University Ave., Berkeley 2, California.SELLING 20,000 Indian relics. 100 nice ancientarrowheads $25. Indian skull $25. List free.Lear's, Glenwood, Arkansas.AMERICAN INDIAN color slides. Superb mu-seum specimens covering archeology and eth-nolog y of Western Hemisphere. Excellent forteachers, artists, collectors. Free list. Ame ricanIndian Museum, Broadway and 155th, N.Y. 32.FOUR ARROWHEADS $1. Three birdpoints $1.Three flint knives $2. Three spearheads $2.Grooved net sinker $1. Dri l l , scraper andblunt $1. Strand trade beads $1.25. Zunifetish $3.75. Navajo wedding basket $5.Atlatl spearhead (classified) $1. Paul Summers,Canyon, Texas.FINEST RESERVATION-made Zuni, Navajo, Hopijewelry. Old Pawn, Navajo rugs, Chimayoblankets, baskets, pottery, squaw boots. Weappraise, buy and sell Indian jewelry, Navajorugs and basket collections. Send for bro-chure. The Indian Room, 1440 South CoastHighway, Laguna Beach, California.

AUTHENTIC INDIAN jewelry, Navajo rugs, Chi-mayo blankets, squaw boots. Collector 's items.Closed Tuesdays. Pow-W ow India n TradingPost, 19967 Ventura Blvd., East WoodlandHills, Calif. Open Sundays.

THREE FINE prehisto ric Indian w ar arrowhe ads$ 1. Flint scalping knife $1. Rare fl int thunder-bird $3. Al l $4. Catalog free. A rrowh ead ,Glenwood , Arkansas.INDIAN PHONOGRAPH records, authentic songsand dances, all speeds. W rite for latest list:Canyon Records, 834 No. 7th Avenue, Phoenix,1, Ar izona.INDIAN ARTIFACTS, mounted horns, buffaloskulls, pottery, Navajo rugs, curios, l ist free.Thunderbird Trading Post, highway 80 atBrazos River, Millsap, Texas.GUARANTEED FINEST birdpoints, 30-$8.50, 100

$26.50. Priced for resale or serious collect-ors. -Prompt delivery. Will iam H ardy, Box 547 ,Englewood City 18, New Jersey.NAV AJO RUGS, genuine, direct from tradingposts. Large selection. From $11 to $660.Crystals, Two Grey Hills, Yeis; single, doublesaddle blankets. Vegeta ble dyes and anilines.Perfect Christmas gift for man's room, den,or children's room. Desert Magazine CraftShop, Desert Magazine Building, Palm Desert,California. Open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven daysa week after October 15.WANTED: IND IAN baskets, po ttery , kachinasand rugs for In dian craft center. Writ e: JohnSkinner, 6172 West San Vicente, Los Angeles,California.APACHE TRADING Post, specializing in fine In-dian pre-Columbian artifacts, pottery, beads,baskets, stone impleme nts, fetishes, etc. Nolists. George W. Stuttle, Route 3, Box 94,Angeles Forest Highway, Palmdale, California.Windsor 7-2743. Open Sundays only.

LODGES, MOTELSMELODY LANE Apartment Motel, 6259 AdobeRoad, P.O. Box 66, Twentynine Palms, Cali-forn ia . All electr ic, air-cooled, trees and patio,oppo site post office, near super-market. Day,week or monthly rates.ROCK HOUND headquarters: Moq ui M otel, Es-

calante, Utah on H ighway U. 54, phoneMArket 4-4210, Dyna and Mohr Christensen.Pack and Jeep Trips by appointment.

JEWELRYUNIQUE LOVELY bracelets of ten differentidentif ied gems set f lat on untarnishable giltH.P. mounting. Choice of "Gems of theW o r l d " or "Western Gems/' $3 each. Alsochoker-style necklaces to match, $3.75 each.Tax, postage inclu ded . Bensusan, 8615 Co-lumbia Ave., Sepulveda, California.ALUMINUM CHAINS! Dealers, wr i te for whole-sale price list on our fabulous line of non-tarnishing aluminum chains. Include $1 forsamples postp aid. Please use letterhea d orstate tax num ber. R. B. Berry & Compan y,5040 Corby Street, Omaha 4, Nebraska.LADIES! WEAR with pride the stone of legend.Apache tear bracelet $2.98, necklace $2.98,earr ings $1.98. Hobbies Unlimited, Box 145D,Sun and, California.


27/44

TRADING POST CLASSIFIEDSLADY'S SOLITAIRE birthstone r ing , 6V27 mm,round bril l iant synthetic stone in sterling silvermounting. This elegant r ing is perfect for alloccasions. State month and size (wh ole sizes5-9). O nly $7.50, tax, postage include d. Sat-is fac t ion guaranteed. W or ldw ide Gems & Min-erals, 1628 11th Street, Sacramento 14, Calif.MIXED GENUINE ruby, sapphire and spinelsfrom Burma. 12 set flat on small heart-shapelink bracelet, $2.50 each. Choker-style neck-lace to match, $3.75 each. Matching earr ings$1.50 pair. Gift box , tax, postage included .Russell's Gem Shop, 404 West Chevy ChaseDrive, Glendale 4, California.

M APSSECTIONIZED COUNTY maps San Berna rdino$3; Riverside $1 ; Impe rial, small $1 , large $2;San Diego $1.25; Inyo $2.50; Kern $1.25;other California counties $1.25 each. Nevadacounties $1 each. Include 4 percent sales tax.Topographic maps of all mapped western

areas. Westwide Maps Co., 114 West ThirdStreet, Los Angeles 13, California.GHOST TOWN map: big 3x2 feet. California ,Arizona and Nevada, with roads marked. PlusTreasure catalogue 100 items. $1 , or A mericanTreasure Hunter's Guide $2. Foul AnchorArchives, DM, Rye, New York.TREASURE MAPS: Texas treasures in color, show-ing locations of mines, sunken ships buriedtreasures and old trails. 17 "x2 2", suitable forframin g. $2 postpa id. Rem Productions, P.O.Box 1893, Fort Worth, Texas.ROUTE MAP Pacific Crest Trail, 2153 miles Can-ada to Mexico through 22 National Forests

and 6 National Parks in Washington, Oregonand California. 20-page folde r $1 . W. Rogers,2123 South Park Drive, Santa Ana, California.BURIED TREASURE and lost mine map, 72 authen-tic California locations, 19x24, beautiful four-color with f ree gold nugget, $2 postpaid.100-years-old Indian trade beads, approxi-mately 24 " strand, $4, 40 " $6.50 postpa id.See famous old Gold Rush Museum, P.O.Box 46, Amador City, California.TREASURE LETTER written by pirate in 1750,giv ing location of 10 chests of bars of gold,silver, diamonds, jewels in United States.Letter came fro m Lon don. For treasure-hunt-ers, collectors. Copy $2. Gene Wimbrow,634 West 36th, Norfolk 8, Virginia.

M IN INGFIND BORON, l i th ium, tungsten, s t ront ium andother valuable minerals with the new alwaysready fluorescent mineral detecto r. Detectoroperates in daylight, uses no batteries, fits inshirt pocket and eliminates dark box. Priceonly $12.50. Free brochure. Essington Prod-ucts & Engineering, Box 4174, Coronado Sta-t ion, Santa Fe, New Mexico.FOR SALE: Limestone deposit goo d for w hit ecement or ornamental run. If interested, wri te:112 East Bishop, Santa Ana, California.NEW! METALS and Minerals Buyers Guide for1960. Market valueswho buys what andwhere. A must for every serious miner orprospector. Price only $2 postpa id. Compre-hensive Chemical Co., Box 4ID, Rancho Cor-dova, Cal i fornia.

$1 FOR gold areas, 25 California counties.Geolo gy, elevations. Pans $3, $2.50. Poke $1 .Fred Mark, Box 80 1, O|ai, Ca lifornia.WESTERN MINING News, monthly, for miners,prospectors, claim owners, $2 per year. Sam-ple copy 25c. Box 787, Sonora, Calif.GOLD. HAVE fun panning gold in the mannerof the forty-niners. Eight ounces of ready topan ore from the famous Rose Quartz mine,pan, panning instructions and booklet, "Howto Prospect for Gold." Only $2 postpaid.Order from Rose Quartz D, P.O. Box 5006,San Diego 5, California.BIG STOCK of new and used treasure and min-eral detectors, geiger and scintil lation counters,ultra violet ligh ts. Free list. Easy terms. Al lmakes serviced. White's Electronics, 1218 MainStreet, Sweet Home, Oregon.GOLD & SILVER assays. Special high precisiontest. Better accuracy gua rante ed. $4. ReedEngineering, 620-R South Inglewood Avenue,

Inglewood 1, Cal i fornia. P LAN TS, SEEDSWILDFLOWERS SEEDS: New catalog offers over600 di f ferent k inds of wi ldf lower and wi ldtree seeds. Catalog 50c. Clyde Ro bin, CarmelValley, California.ROSSO'S CACTUS Nursery, 25399 Highway 99,Loma Linda, California, between Colton andRedlands. See the largest variety in thewor ld .GROW GIANT Saguaro Cactus in your home in7 days, planter soil, seeds, $1.25, guaranteed,

prep aid. 1914 East 18th Street, Tucson, Ar iz.CACTUS AND succulents from the deserts of theSouthw est. Free illustra ted catalo g. DavisCactus Garden, 1522 Jefferson Street, Kerr-vil le, Texas.THANK YOU for your interest in Chia. No morethis year. Another exploring tr ip down Baja,wi ll pick up mail in six mon ths. B. W. Greg-ory, Box 147, French Camp, California.SPECTACULAR DESERT Poinciana, beautifulbloom ing desert shrub. Plant now , easy di-rections, guaranteed. Seeds $1 postpaid. Box585, Las Vegas, Nevada.

P HOT O SUP P LIESWILDLIFE OF Alaska, color, 16 or 18 mm. movies,35 mm. slides, walrus, sheep, caribou, moose,goat, bear, glaciers, Lake George Breakup,wildflowers, small animals, birds, sport f ishing&

196010 desert magazine 1960 october

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