Arizona weekly enterprise., 1890-10-11
TUCSON LETTER.
THE PREPARATIONS OF THE POLITI- CAL CAMPAIGN. The Town Posted and PIacarded in True Circus Styie---Political ralk---The Changes Wrought by tho
 E10ods---The Flora
 of Arizona.
Tuc5oN, Arizona, Oct. 3. lS9O.

 EDITOR ENrEpPRIsE:- Now they come: posters everywht e;ou board fences, street corners, awning posts, telegraph poles; in offices, hotels and bar rooms; posters, red, blue, green and pink, aye, even the fashionable muave, sea green and straw berry colors; posters for would be sher- ifs, legislators, treasurers, recorders, judges and what not Welt, the time is drawing near and, as some of the candl- dates express themselves, "the agony will soon be over"
 Thiscity is, | think, to be congratulated, if not admired, for the quiet manner m which politics are discussed and the can wasting of the different candidates is car ried on, for although every one takes deep interest in the coming election, and views upon the merits of the vsriOus as pirants Co office widely differ In many cases, 1 have yet to hear an angry dis cussion or the often too frequent indul- gence in personalities. No, everything Is orderly, and the pros and cons are dis cussed m a most dignilied manner. Both parties have put forth very strong tick ct and the coming contest will be lively.
 or course each party paper does its best to advance the claims of Its respect i've candidates; such has been the GUS tom ever since elections have been shall | say invented. Still the private indlvld- ual Is allowed to have, and very often does have, serious doubts about the posi- tive assertions of candidates eSchon being "a foregone conclusion" m the coming contest [. i. l am pretty sure that the republican ticket, although very strong and really good one, will find 1t self Tn several instances undergoing the vexatious process called in the language of the poet scratching" If we consider the overwhelming majority of Mir. Shibell two years ago, and further consider that during the last two years of his officlal activity he has proven to be most ei- ficieat officer and kind and accommodat- ing one besides |, for one, fail tO see why he should not carry the same majority now. Add tO this that he has hosts Of friends of twenty years standing who will stand by him irrespective of party afiili- ation, and if one eau rely upon the open, frank, unsolicited expression of thelr opinion by about half a hundred republi- cans, men of calibre, then indeed Is the election of Mir. Shibell "ioregOne con clusion.'
 But enough of politics. What l said to THE ENTERPRISE In former cores poudence still holds good, that Is that great many influential men will not cart for party tickets but will select the men whom they think best qualified for the office they seek; for this very reason cannot doubt for a moment that our hon orable and most efficient justice Of tho peace, c. H. Meyer, will be reelected bl an overwhelming majority, although To some uuaccOuntable reason he was lg nored at the nomination of either party
 While collecting specimens for my her barium ascended this week tor the tirs lime since the overflow of the Santa Cru river, the hills enclosing this valley dl reetly west of Tucson. That the vOlum of water must have been enormous anC 3he force of the current tremendous w knew from the beginning, because all tn brdges, crossings, etc, upon the road leading west from the city had been swep away and the roads made impossible. had seen that the irrigating ditches wmcl cioss the roud leading tO the county hos pital and which at no place exceeded ter feet in width, had been demolished and river bed been formed instead, m place 100 wards wide with steep banks 2O Tee i'm height; but not till had-ascended tn Tucson mountains to a level of about 5O feet above the valley, had l any true con ception of the devastation caused by th several 30 called overilows of the pas month. From my standpoint on tn mountain | could easily trace the dee choam through which the roaring Sant Cruz forced its passage, carrying alon in it's fury houses, trees, cattle, hogs an many millions of tons of the best alluVli soil. The channel Gin some places tw which reunite again and aghn) when U wild waters forced for themselves, run very much along the old riyar be-tas remember it tO have been m loOo; we suppose the distance from Silver Lai 10 Tucson to be lll miles, and hen' northwest to the tannery again li9 mile the average width of the channel ehasm for this distance or miles
 he 5O wards and its depth . yards, (ve 1nuch underestimated) we find that tl angry waters of the Santa Cruz Ina carried away, for the most part from GU yated fields, the enormous bulk of abo 100000 cubic yards of alluvlal SO weighing in the neiRhbOrhood or two al one half million tons within an area only miles in length.
 Were it not for the still almost lmpas able valley roads and muddy rver b6n it would be a real pleasure to cole Dlants at the present season. The col ous rains of the last month have awake ed the sleeping germs of many see which had failed to develop during t last comparatively dry six or seven yea and revived many roots that for sor season had forgotten that their object nature is to send out sprouts and proI gate. I am collecting as fast as l O. pressing, drying, mounting, 9nd sh mail you with this a small album tl you may see my work and rejoice VI me that we will be able to show to great gathering of nations in 1892 ti our beloved Arizona is not the des they take, or at least took, it to be. O ofthe main features of my collection W be the wild grasses of Arizona; there many and some, on account or thelr I tritious seeds of great importance.
 As there is no work on the flora of A zona in existence, the matter of classi ing and cataloguing my collection will difficult and tedious, but in view of fact that Professor Churchill of Bost the eminent bOtauist, will kindly give his assistance, have great hopes of oy coming every difficulty
 Yours truly,
 JOHN A. SPRIN,