Arizona weekly citizen., 1883-12-15
\ DAY AT THE DAM.
The santa Catarina Water Right fin sabino
 Canyon.

The santa Catarina Water Right In sabtno
 Canyon.
 Aesttrday in company with c. d. FL li1tt. J. J. Gardiner and J. J. Chatham, b CITIZEN representative visited and inspected the site of the proposed dam ID the Sabino canyon.
 The road leads out past Fort Lowell, and up the first gulch through the foot hills, which are covered with thousands of sahuaros. Then It passes into the month of the canyon. On the table land at the canyons mouth are the five hundred cords of wood against which the United States of Ameucs has re- gently brought suit in the district court. | On thls table land are two little springs or water that will be utilized some day.
 The Sabino canyon runs to the left of | high bluff that rounds of into cone | shaped hill surmounted by a knob. After passing this knob-peak 1t trends gradually around to the north and west, just how far is uncertain. It Is said to have been explored over sixteen miles. The sides and bed of the canyon are all rock Of a kind of bastard granite, many times highly mlcaceous. Sheets of this mineral can be picked out with a pocket knife as big as dollar.
 On the sides of the canyon grow the omnipresent sahuaro, and the amole, yucca, palo verde, mescal and score of other botanical specimens. The loose sandy soil of the
 bottom has growth of willow, ash,
 sycamore, cottonwood, greasewood and
 mesquite.
 The sides of the canyon are per
 Dendicular bluffs with a more or less
 number ot benches. One large bluff Tn
 particular presents q curious spectacle.
 Its color IS almost bright flannel red.
 Beneath this skirt descend number of cones of granite alternately striped white and black and as accurately as the prettiest hose. The whole is a reminder
 of sight to be witnessed when a woman
 Is in a predicsment on rainy day in trying to cross d muddy street, and has gathered up her skirts. Only in this scene, sk6.chad by natures great artist, there appear to be eight or ten pairs Cf hose behind one bug red skirt. As this hutf has no legend one will now be given. THE LEGEND.
 Once upon a time a number of l Apache young ladies visited Tucson and saw and longed for some red skirts and striped hose. They beseiged their liege | lords tlll the same were bought for them. l They laid aside their buckskin leggins and adorned their new habiliments. | The new clothes created envy in the ! breasts of all the other dusky mgidens | of the pineries of the SabinO forests, and their young men could not kill | enough mountain sheep to supply the new demand for hose. The tribe was about to become almost bank rupt, and a council of the chiefs was called. 4 medicine man, to cut the
 matter short, bewitched the girls who had the hosiery and metamorphOsed l them into granite, and the Great Spirit | whi-ked them to the top of this hill, and l there they are to this day, all standing | behind one big red skirt, with nothing visible but their hose, awaiting the day when MonteZumB shall return and release them. They were put in this prominent position as a solemn warning ! to all other Apache girls not to banker ! alter the pretty red skits and the charm | ing hose 1f the white mems daughters. ! This canyon drains the principal portion | Cf the Santa Catalina mountains. It l extends way up among the pine forests. Its waters come down from these l pineries over it's granite boulders and l sandy bars as pure and fresh as when 1t | first falls from the clouds. At intervals 1 are great basins in the granite in which are found q peculiar chub-like fish l some are more than a foot long, and weigh over three pounds. They are said to be frst-class eating.
 Great granite boulders weighing many | tons are scattered along the bottoms. They have as fine a polish as if worked ! by the hand of man. One has fiat | surface large enough to allow one danc- | ing set sufficient room to execute their l evolutions. Others are inclined so they arc fine slides.
 An old mescal pit was found little ways above the dam site. Near 1t were ] two mescal heads that had recently l been prepared for roasting. Below the l dam site IS an IndIan's grave and an- l other mescal pit. Near the grave IS the l ruins of a stone wall, whether for hut, ! pen or fort could not be discovered. Mr. Elliott, long ago perceivIng that ! Ihe lands of the Santa Cruz valley were productive whenever watered, conceived | the laudable idea of running water out ! on the table lands east of Tucson from | ,he Santa Catalina mountains, in which 1 he heard there was an abundant supply. | For that purpose he began series of ] explorations in the southern slopes of ! these mountains, and finally selected ! the Sabiuo canyon. Here on May ', ! l0o3, he located a water right. A few 1 days ago he also recorded mill site. Just at the mouth of the canyon the ] stream, which is ever flowing, runs be- 1 tween two rocky bluffs over two hun | dred feet high. It is here proposed to | build the dam.
 The dam will be one hundred feet high, and four hundred feet long. This l will back the water up the canyon one mil and about half a mile up large arm Co the west. There will be an area
 Of fifty acres of water pure as rain. ! This great reservoir will hold about two ] billion gallons.
 IL IS then proposed to run a twelve nch pipe to a point on the elevation be- tween Fort Lowell and Tucson, one mile east of the latter place, and ten miles from the dam. Here reservoir will be constructed. From the dam to the Tue son reservoir there is a fall of three hun dred feet. The reservoir is one hundred eet above the lower part of Tucson.
 One rain, it is said, will fill the great
 reservoir in the Sabino canyon, which 1 l2-inch pipe cannot exhaust in two years, thus bridging over any dry year
 that may occur. The supplying of Tue
 son with water from the Sabino can
 yon is a secondary thought with MT. FL
 iott, as he intended at first to only get
 enough water to Irrigate the table lands.
 Now, however, it IS the intention not only to do this, but to give Tucson ws-
 ter, and @ company is being organized
 t1 this end.
 Alessrs. Roskruge and Gardiner have
 male the surveys, and are now at work
 drawing up the necessary plans and specifications.
 The quality of the water is Rs pure and soft as rain water. The quantity seems to be unlimited.
 Two Big Suits.
 Charles o. Brown and other tax payers Of Pima county, by their attor-
 ID n