Arizona weekly citizen., 1884-01-19
ARIZONA ARB0RS.
kn Immense Growth of Native
 Timber.
The santa Catalina Mountains and Their Extensive Forests-Nast Timber
 Wealth

From Ira Carter the CITIZEN reporter yesterday afternoon obtained some in formation in regard to the immense tim Der growth on the summits of the Santa Catalinas. Mir Carter was evIdeHtly very careful and guarded n his state ments, not caring to say anything that could possibly be construed into the least shade of exaggerstIon, thinking, perhaps, that a minimum statement If the facts would bequantum suff for the reading public.
 Mir. Carter has thoroughly explored these noble mountains, which stand like a mighty wall barring out the chilling blasts of the north from the tablelands of the south, and Rffording Tucson a protection from the cold winds, and giv- ing her in the midst of winter truly semi-tropical climate.
 Away up on the highest summits, among great forests of pine and oak, he has a claim and cabin where the morn ing shadows of Mount Rice, the second | highest of the range, and the evening shadows of Mount Lennon, the highest of them all, alternately occupy the same ground.
 In order to give a clear understand 1 ing of the Hay of the country" Mir. 1 Carter sketched map of the principal | ranges, divides. timber belts and water | courses, which now adorns the sanctun of the CITIZEN.
 The highest peak of the Slnta Cata- 1 linas IS Mount lemmon, situated almost | due north from Tucson, and oy actual | measurement Is LILO feet high It is 1 named for Professor Lennon, of Oak | land, who has made 20 many explora- i tions in Arizona. The second highest | peak Is Mount Rice, almost que north | of Agua Caliente, and is l06l0 feet | high. This mountain was named for | General Rice.
 The southern slopes of the Santa Ca talinas, visible from Tucson, consist of | one, single, undivided range, running | from the mouth of the Sabino canyon to | La Punta de la Sierra on the west On l this range are La Ventaua. The Finger, | Rifle Notch, the Clay Banks, and the | Church peaks, all visible from Tucson.
 About SIX miles up the S6binO are | inaccessible bluffs some five hundred | feet high The Sabine has three forks, | one running up to the divide back of | La Nentana. another eastward to Mount | Rice. and the main fork continues north l by Carter's camp, and trends westward l around to the north base of Mount | Lennon, draining as fine a timber | country as exists anywhere on the coast. ! It is from thls canyon that Mr. Elicit | proposes to supply Tucson with an pn- limited quantity of superior quality of | water.
 At the Ventsna divide there is never 1 failing stream that flows down 10 the | Canyon de Gro. This latter canyon | opens in the Santa Catalinas above Pu- | e6lo Viejo, and trends around to the | east and south, heading towards the di- | vide at the north base Of Mt. Lennon
 This canyon also has three large forks. |
 To the northeast of Mount Lennon IS | a high peak, on the eastern slope of | which is rich copper camp. North of l this copper camp IS Dr. Handy's silver | mine. To the north of this is the high | mountain oa whose eastern skirts are the | Apache Girl and Southern Belle mines. | These mines are reached by stage which | runs from Tucson and passes La Punta 1 de Ia Sierra, Pueblo NIejo. up Canyon de | Gro. skirting around the western foot | hills of the Santa Catalinas, over the d. vide to Oracle, and around to American | Flag. which IS just north of them.
 From Mount Rlce to the Southern l Belle, and thence east to the San Pedro, | are table lands and low rolling hills, ! through which a wagon road can ba ! easily constructed to the great timber | belt. Another way the timber can b9 | gotten out is through Hume down the | Sabino canyon. By other directions It | will be an imDossibility, as. to express Il l in Mr. Carters exact language, "the tim Der IS surrounded by two great belts Of | mountains"
 Considerable timber has been cut IL | the Canyon de Orc. There is a great l deal of timber in that canyon.
 In answer to inquiries as to the sIze | of the great timber belt from Mount | Lennon to Mount Rice. and thence up 1 the length of the Sabine Canyon, NIT. l Carter said the thickest part is over ten | miles in length by four or five miles | wide At least one hundred million | feet of lumber he thinks can be cut out | of this tract. There are several lesser | timber belts than this great ore of forty l square miles.
 The trees are the yellow and sugar | pines. spruce, maple, white oak and l some black oak. The spruce average 1 four feet in diameter. and wlll furnish | six to seven logs apiece, sixteen feet l long, making excellent timber.
 The spruce IS the tallest tree, plenty l of them being over 100 feet Tn | night The maple yields the genuine old fashioned sap in the spring time, 1 and Mr. Carter has succeeded in mak- ing 8 fine quality Of sugar, and will have a sugar camp again this coming spring.
 The hills are full of wild game. Tur- keys are frequently killed that welgh forty pounds. Black bear, buro-deer, mountain sheep and gray squirrels are numerous. The bear are on the ln- crease of late. Mir. Carter was belated in the woods one night last summer, and built 6 fire to protect himself During the night he counted nine pairs of bears eyes staring at him at once It was, evidently. not a poor night for bears.
 His ranch Is reached in days ride horseback from Tucson by two trails. One goes in from Fuller's ranch over the west side of Mount Rice. The other goes over the north base of Mount Lennon from OMear's station on the Oracle road. He bnilt his cabin him.
 self out of pine logs, cut and hewed by his own hands, and has sixty acres that