Arizona republican., 1904-03-22
A LARGE IMPROVEMENT
Chicago Capitalist Has Plans of Great
 Importance in This City.

Samuel Eberly Gross. of Chicago, the greatest town builder in the United States, and the hero of the legal bat tie which carried away the honor of writing the play "Cyrano de Bergsrac' from Rostand, the French playwright. is in the city, a guest at the Adams. and his visit may mean the undertak- ing of an enterprise. the primary in yestment of which will te in the neigh borhood of $2OO.OO0. with greater invest ments to follow in the future.
 Mir. Gross recognized in Phoenix an ideal place for winter homes and it is this advantage that he proposes tc, make use of. Briefly. his plan is to secure a tract of land-he estimates that it will take at least 900 acres-and transform it into what may we'll be described as a beautiful park with an abundance of foliage. well graded boul- evards and shady pathways, and then sell the property off in small parts to rich eastern clients who are seeking a suitable place for the erection of win ter homes.
 "I have many such clients" said Mir. Gross last evening, "and frequently I am asked about a desirable place for the location of winter homes. and it is to select such a place that l am now making this trip. l have been from New Orleans to California, and have now returned to Phoenix and I have found no place that seems to offer such great advantages as does this city. Combined with an ideal climate you have an active business city and beau tiful scenery. The surrounding moun- tains remind me of Egypt, the climate calls to mind the mildness of the Ned iterranean.
 'I am not in Q. position now to say definitely what I will do. I have an idea that Evill establish the winter resort here, and I also have an idea that my further investigations of Phoe- nix will increase this original idea, but just now I can say nothing definite. My plan is to establish a resort like Smiley Heights in Redlands and make it @ place that will be beauty spot in this valley"
 MT. Gross bears a national reput a. ton as a home builder and town build CT He is a shrewd business man who never says more than he means. and the fact that he admits that he has an . idea of establishing in Phoenix a winter resort may be taken as a big thing. When he says definitely that he will do so it will be a still bigger thing, and as 9 result of his efforts Phoenix will become one of the most heralded cities in the United States.
 MT. Gross began his career as a real estate agent. He is now a real es ate operator. At first he dealt in lots, sell Ing on commission. Now he deals in towns and cities. He has establisha ed twenty-five towns in the suburbs of Chiea 20. his home, and he has built over 10000 homes and sold over 70, 900 lots. He deals in houses like a mer- chant does in clothes. He has a cer- tain kind of house for the workingman. another style for the minister, another for the capitalist, and so on.
 His proposal now to stablish a win ter resort is an immense undertaking. To improve the ground before the cree ton of house he estimates would take three years and entail an expenditure of between $2OO,OOO and $3OO,OOO. A-d after this expenditure would follow the erection of houses, every one of which would be a beautiful edificc.
 f1e was famous as a home builder before he became famous as an author, and the climb ot the latter came from his suit to enjoin the production of the play "Cyrano de Bergerac" Mir. Gross. when he first began his busi- ness career. twenty-years ago, wrote a romantic story entitled, Merchant Prince of Cornvile." and it was from this comedy that Rostand reconstruct ed the "Cyrano de Eergerac"
 MT. Gross failed to secure the reco5- hilton of his play, but Rostand was more fortunate and scored a marked success with "Cyr1no." Then MT. Gross came forth. with the claim that Rostand had stolen the plot and char acters. Rostand laughed, sneered and