The Arizona sentinel., 1899-12-16
LOOKING BACKWARDS.


 entered the Great American Des-
 ert" when they crossed the Mis-
 souri river OH their long journey
 toward the setting sun, The coun-
 try was really desert without
 life, save the wild beasts and still
 wilder sayages that were monarchs
 of all they surveyed There were
 no Omaha, no Council Bluffs, TO
 Colorado, no Wyoming, no Idaho
 nor Neveda The long trali from
 the Missouri to the Sacramento
 was unbroken by habitation or
 home, ard no sound heard, save
 the midnight howl of proWling
 wolves and coyotes, and the low
 mutterings of q little band of re-
 ligious fanatics who secluded them selves at Salt Lake as they fancied--from the great outside world.
 This was but a few years ago, only fifty, a short time-as measur- ed by the pheuominaily raridly made history of the past few dec ades but long time when held be- side the tardy, slowly passing events of the first half of the pres ent century. The western hemis- phere has made brilliant run for its money during the last half. l. has built five transcontinental rail roads, that is, railroads upon which 1 one may travel from the Pacific to the Atlantic with but e change or two. It has peopled western em pire in domain. It has built large, prosperous cities, and made a great l desert bloom and blossom as the rose. It has subdned the mount aims and the wales, the forests and l the plains. 1t has driven the red ! men into the arms of the govern ment, and the wild beasts beyond l the outposts of civilization. It has l planted homes and hanlets, vil- lages and towns cities and metrop- ! olis2s and installed centers of in dustry where the echoes of sur rounding hills and mountains were awakened by proving beasts alone. And what made the change?
 Mines, prospectors and miners. The mines were concealed in the bosom of the earth, the prospeetors found them and the miners brought | their treasures to light, and these are they who opened the west, peo pied the west and caused the west to satia.e the nav Uf avrice with gold. In word mines were in the west, prospectors hit their high places and the delivers into the bowels of the earth dId the rest. And all this has been done during the past fifty feeaing years. To one who feels, rather than sees, the great change which the past few decades have wrought, 1t appears as dream, not a reality of which he is a part, He is compelled to rub his eyes, catch his breath and run 1t ali over in his mind to realize that he is in land which has rel egated savagery to the forgotten past, and broadened the domain of a fast advancing, Ioftier and better civilization.
 The o,d-time miner end the pres ent day miner can each rejoice. While the one can look back ward and note the changes which have been made since he blazed the . trails and worn the paths which now lead to thriving camps and to towns and cities and to hives of industry scattered throughout the west, the other can 5 look forward to opportunities to better his conditiou, denied to those who finger iii the woru-Out thread bare haunts of their ancestors, and dream away in idleness all exist ence unenliyened, uncheereG. by the health giving, life giving ozone of the western lofty, say scrapjng mountains. The old timer lives his lite over agaia and can find pleasure in the thought that he has led others to the feast he himself missed, while the par takers. may perchance, be prepar- ing the way f3r others 10 enjoy 8 greater. Such Is life in the far ] west-Western Mining World.