Arizona citizen. [volume] (Tucson, Pima County, A.T. [i.e. Ariz.]) 1870-1880, 1873-08-02

board. The life of the farmer here i:
one long wrestle with the weather and
worms. Man born of woman is Of
: few days and full of worms at best
but when you throw in any amount
of disagreeable or untimely weather,
, the burden is scarcely ever light. He
works on the average 16 hours out OF
every "a the year round, besides 60
ing to church on Sundays to the stu
pidest sermons ever heard anywhere
outside of a Mormon conference.
About these days, our hero comes
nearer a 20 than 1O-hour per day
man. He is perfect Parsee or Fire
Worshiper the sun, earth and air
are his chief gods, and his crops his
profits. He prays for rain or sun
shine, as it may best suit him, no
matter how much his nGghbor christ
ian may be out and Injured thereby.
When I came out here the corn and
cut-worms were the overruling theme;
then came the potato bugs; then
there was a lack of rain, and now
that harvest ard hay-making is up
permost, there is quite too much mols-
ture. Whether the good man is ever
more happy in this world than we
who strive for fame or gain !" in the
saloon or newspaper business, God
only knows. Nothing, however, is
more thrilling than the spectacle of
the honest farmers contending in a
bayfield, against coming thunder
shower; nothing is more amusing
than to see him struggling with a
healthy bumblebee's nest !; and moth
ing SO gorgeous On land as to witness
him at circus or in the act Of cele-
brating the 4th of July where there
is an abundance of gingerbread and
ice cold lemonade-at the rate of one
lemon to the barrel. But, perhaps
you know how it is yourself. And
that brings me along to where "once
I was happy but now I'm forlorn."
Considerable If bachelor and more
of wanderer on the face OF the earth.
Still country 4th of July has its lit
tie drawbacks. On the evening of
the Sd, I found the orator of the day
pitching hay into stable as rapidly
as a Chinaman handles his chop |
sticks. A ferocious looking rain
storm coming just round the corner of
tim Der. I cried out in loud voice :: |
"Ben, old boy, come down and take
something" In going about in the
rural districts here,a L keep it in a
flask. You should have seen that
pitch-fork fly. The cut and dried
red tipped clover" aforesaid was
safely bat swiftly housed.
His speech was in manuscript-had
boon for sovon or eight years-and |
will do duty on many 4ths to come. |
We had quite buggy load alto
gether, and were late on the ground. |
The old bore called the declaration,
being in print, was read before we |
got there, and one Of the most vicious
storms of wind and rain ever known
on earth, drove the orator and all |
hands down town in enc grand STAN
pede. Trees were blown down, bug
gies broken up, boys run over, and
the feminine elements-as dry goods |
of all sorts-one grand wet wreck. |
Later in the day, Ben inflicted his
manuscript on several persons in front
of a corner grocery. 1t was about
the richest looking 4th of July ever
seen in any country. That storm
cleaned out all the picnics, etc., for
100 miles long and 10 wide, so far as
heard from. Since then my patriot
ism has felt so much dampened that
1 am more than ever disposed to leave
the country, Notwithstanding the Gov
ernor (McCormick) has gone back on
the Vienna expedition at the 18th |
hour. 1 should have thought his con-
stituents would have been willing to
give him month or so of rest from
that everlasting pulling and punch
ing Of pigeon-holes at Washington.
1 observed once before, I believe, that |
q delegate Especially Of an Indian
cursed Territory has more work on
his hands than ten regular mem bers
from the old States. To be compelled |
to stay at the National Capitol dur
ing the hot season, is treating your
best of servants worse than that in
ficted by the majority of other Apa-
ches; if not scalping, it is burning
him at the stake.
I was calm and christian-like up |
till the hour Of this disappointment,
and to think that I must make that |
trip all alone like a pure innocent