The weekly Arizona miner., 1868-12-26


 sink into the sandy soil and make their way, bv underground courses, Co the Colorado or
 the Gulf Its valleys are wide, rich, and
 well timbered. When we left the Gila we
 left good friend, for while travelling up 1t
 we were certain of getting water whenever
 we needed it; not so on the dry plains over
 which we passed in crossing from the Gila to
 the IIassayampa. Upon arriving at Wicken-
 burg we saw the first sign of what we most
 wished to see, gold At that time there was
 not house on the town-site; Henry Wick
 enburg, the discoyerer of the great Vulture | mine, Jas. A. Moore Simmons, Draper, ! Valentine, Geigerich (since murdered by the | 1 Apaches) "Cohor Young and "Old Fred" | were all the inhabitants then in the place. They had just finished building an arastra and were grinding a little ore from the Vulturc. Behold the change Not far from the spot
 where these pioneers then worked, slept and dreamed, may now be seen quartz mills, fine
 stores, comfortable dwelling houses and hun
 dreds of busy, energetic people. We stayed
 at wickenburg but a short time. We were
 told that "higher up" there were pines,
 and as VIC had not seen a pine since leaving
 the Golden State, we pined to see one. We
 started for Weaver or Antelope Hill, whose
 glory had then almost departed, for nearly
 all the nuggets of gold had been picked up
 and carried off Although along the lower . Hassayampa, we saw many fine valleys, the country did not satisfy us. The mountains were not high enough; there were no pines, and next to gold, we wanted 10 see pines.
 We left weaver without regret, clambered up, f up until we reached green country, with b pure cold water, pines, oaks, junipers, etc, !. Twas then our heart beat quick; we had struck it; the land of promise lay before us. l. No more alkaline deserts, no more thorny If -Actus We found mulberry trees laden with
 delicious fruit ripe cherries entrants, etc, IF We picked them, we ate them and felt happy h We saw slate, granite, quartz, and knew that if gold. too, must be close at hand. We tray fl eled on, and every step revealed some new l. beauty, something that made us think oi 70 California. At that time there were no set h. tiers living between Prescott and Weaver In Peoples Valley had been abandoned ana is house and corral burned by the Indians if Kirkland Valley was also unoccupied so wa 10 Skull, and so were al the other valleys tha <. arc now occupied Soon, we came in sigh of the Point of Rocks, al which place th [. first sign of civilization since leaving Weave ., met our gaze. Then there were no nice farm houses in Willow Valley, nothing save th
 Government herd which fed upon it's grasses After qacnching our thirst, we journeyed O to Whipple Valley, where we found one sol
 tary house. that of Rufus E. Harrington. W - lourneyed on to Fort Whpple and Preseot "0 enraptured with the beauty of the oountr = but somewhat surprised at the small numb' s,' of people in town and country, for at tn - time Prescott was rsry snaN village, ar
 the valleys surrounding it were. with thr
 solitary exceptions, unoccupied. How chang'
 the scene, since that short timel To-d'
 Prescott contains many fine stores, and ne residences; then it WAS a camp in the wilde ness, now it is a town in the midst of e .n, don of agricultural settlements and mimi nd camps. Town lots, then were yalueless, nc day they command big prices and are soug ns after with ayidity; then, we had no sa ;de mills, now we have two; there were no bri .o,, or stone houses, no court house, no fancy , to looms, with costly billiard tables; now the have all these and more. As yet. the plou heir had not pierced the virgin soil of our r ,,s- valleys, naught disturbed the death-lke ,ers leDce that reigned over and in them, sl cam the yell of tho Indian and the howl of sons coyotte. The mountains, tsss. save in VI ike lev places, were n sealed b<a1ls5o the lr,,>a vsntur1spe whites h>a h tke count l6r \ S stery hung app0 sHd 4per ssess thing. Ihe deAsis 8siire silence had only been I ower ken on the Hassayampa and Lynx Creek 4. L.. both of which streams rich gold diggi Ia, had been discovered and were being worl .s-,ed We well remember how we were impre. ,.hle with the beauty and grandeur of the mo ,;l of tains when first we venturcd among tn rich We knew we were in q strange land, l good in which formerly dwelt those simple e-minC sarrn. semi-civilized tribes who built temples to 4 was Sun, and who, probably, worked the s h be diggings that are now being worked and ,rsUn tivated the same ranches that are now b' er,ble cultivated by our people. We saw the r ashrn of their houses their hyeroglyphics, ,f ae felt ss if se were intradiBg upon ga
 ground, but the Apaehes--those demon abort destruction, that had, no doubt, extermin
 .f m Al e--f. n