The Arizona sentinel., 1903-12-23
OPPORTUNITY IN THE DESERT.
Dallas Man Writes of Scenes of Fer tility and Beauty Near
 Yuma.
From the Dallas (Tex.) News.I


 To the News.
 From a land of snow and ice to land of sunshine, flowers and fruits, is an ex- perience that has fallen to the lot of many mortals, but it has not been the | privilege of every man to gaze upon as many beautiful things in one spot as can be seen cut here i1 Arizona. Situ- ated in the very midst of the desert, one would naturally think that the town of Yuma was most barren spot indeed, but when one lCOks upon what 1 have seen today it proves revelation to them and a scene Of beauty not to be soCn forgotten and not easily expressed in words. While here on business re- gently met Col. Townsend, civil engi- neer, and agent of the Wells-Fargo Express Company, and he kindly offer ed to drive me out to Yuma Heights, fruit farm of about 5000 acres, two miles out, and owned and controlled by a large Boston syndicate. They have made a splendid success out of what seemed an imposSibility and an under taking too great for the courage of most any man.
 When we arrived at the heights we entered Palm drive, which is beauti- ful driveway having on either side love ly fan palms in profusion, and palms that would be an ornament to the lawn of any one of the many beautiful Dallas homes.
 Tall eucalyptus and cedar trees form cd d hedge on both sides of this drive way and we finally came to spot where there was an opening in the hedge and we looked upon beautiful sight that seemed more like dream than reality, for there, spread out be- fore us were vast fields of fruits, orange trees and grapefruit trees with their branches bending and almost breaking beneath their burden of golden yellow fruit,
 Lemon trees, heavily laden with lem ons of great size, just turning ripe, fig trees, date palms, apricots and grape vines in vast array. reaching away to the distance, and even roses in full bloom in this land Of eternal sunshine, where it is said the sun shines every day in the year.
 When we looked upon this place it coor,o6 oc if cC,7,o ,ri ooptio Op cupar natural hand had waved a magical wand across the spot and converted the shifting sands of this bleak and barren desert into a veritable oasis where all is beautiful and green. Then we drove another mile across the desert sands and suddenly, as if by magic, there ap- peared before us valley covered with green fields of alfalfa; and cattle as pretty as our own Texas kline, graz ing; here and there farm house in beautiful green grove of trees These farmers get from seven to nine crops every year, and having here in Decem- Der is not unusual. [s
 While conyersing with a ranchman 1 learned something that no doubt will astonish our Texas growers. lie plant ed sweet potato vines three years ago, has not planted since, and gets a boun tiful crop each year, getting one potato tLat weighed fourteen pounds, demon strating clearly that the growers here can raise something besides cactus and trouble. And all these things are the result of irrigation, for without water this country would be what it has been for ages pasta fruitless desert. The lemons we send you grew on tree in Col. TOwnsend's yard, and as you can see, they are of unusual size and fine enough for any market.
 w. c. LandOn. YuOa Ariz