The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-10-14
They Furnish a Desert Indian With
Livelihood.

Iney FURNISH q Desert indian with
Livelihood.
An old Indian, known to prospectors as
"Figtree john" has for many years lived
alone beside large spring in the Colorado
Desert, in San Diego County. His home is
one of the most desolate and inaccessible
spots on the earth's surface and the last
place one would expect to find human
being living In contentment LII is close to
the Mexican line and about fifty miles
east of the hills that form the western
boundary to the waste of white sand.
At all seasons of the year the heat is in
tolerable and the awful hot wind blows
day and night. Five yards from the spring
in any direction there is not living green
thing in sight-only the binding glare of
the sandy plain stretching for miles on all
sides until it joins the foothills in SHIN
mering purple haze.
Figtree Johns place, however, is a tiny
oasis of about 200 square feet. The spring
is large one and the water pure and
fresh when it bubbles from the earth. But
it evaporates during the day almost as
FAST as it comes from the ground, so that
the surface is on ly mostened for a small
extent. On the edges Of the spring grasses
spreads its branches over the whole spot.
The tres bears fruit almost the year
around. and also serves as a shelter for
John. Blankets are spread on the ground
aud camp utensils scat cred around. But
there are always plenty of things to eat
and drink that have been brought from
the markets of civilization. and the way
John obtained these was puzzle to pros
pectors for long time. He never did any
work, and certainly could not raise nor
6nd anything to sell anywhere near his
place. But it seems Johns money has al
ways came to him without an effort. He
simply lay down aud waited.
| 1t is horrible to think about but he
waited for the pack burros of prospectors
who had been overcome by thirst aud died
in the desert. Johns place is several
j miles off the trail of prospectors goiug to
or from the gold country. and hundreds
of bleaching bones have been found in the
vicinity.
| Most of these men have several burros
and good outfits when they start, but
somehow they lose the trail or are over
taken by saudstorms. All share the same
fate-a few days Of horrible suffering and
then death.
The burros being more hardy than the
men are more able to stand the hardShips,
and when their masters lie down and die
10 the burning sand they find water by in
stinct. Since old John has been al the spring
large number have come to his place crazy
for water. Of course, he takes care Of
them and makes a,search for their owners,
or holds Them for Identification.
Sometimes they have expen sive outfits.
showing the owner to have been a tender
foot that expected to find n mount in of
gold. The provisions 10 the PACKS John
has always appropriated after a certain
time, and the burros he has sold
to people in the foothills to whom he
makes periodical trips. On one occasion
whole train of burros came to his place,
and the owners were never found, so that
John cleared several hundred dollars just
by waiting under his fig tree.
Old John is perfectly happy in his
desert ONE. and is well pleased to have
prospectors die in the desert, so long as
their bnrros come to his spring. He takes