davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The oasis., 1904-10-29

Gila Valley constitutes one of the richest and most productive areas in the entire southwest, and could accommodate a population of sew eraI hundred thousand people.
 On the other hand, Lower Colo rado, between the Needles and Yuma, is already denominated heir to prospective irrigation facilities, the cost of which will aggregate upwards of five millions in all, as- suming that the proposed govern ment purchase of the Imperial Canals on the California side goes through. It would certainly seem, too, as if the time had come when the San Pedro and the Santa Cruz Valleys are entitled to some of these spare millions; certainly their lands and climate, with the im- portant relation they sustain to the entire mining areas of south- eastern Arizona and northeastern Sonora. entities them to speedy consideration. All of these re- claimed lands will, under the Act governing the sale of the same, be subject exclusively to homestead entrance and continuous residence until full title is obtained.
The oasis., 1904-10-29

United States Senate, has haul said reservoir site endorsed to 1t by suc- cessive Secretaries of Interior, etc.. 1t still waits.
 A peculiar pathetic incident in this historic case, was the presen- tation to President Roosevelt last spring of petition, signed by three hundred Pima school children at Tucson. praying for the boon of having their fathers and brothers permitted to begin the erection of this reservoir at once to sate their crops It is good to remem- Der that the old chieftain of the Pimas, who in 1S53-4 plaintively asked Capt. Emory, the "Gadsden Purchase" Commissioner of the new boundary lines. what guar antees his people were to receive for the protection of their water rights" was not there. For he was told, that as friends and allies of the United States, the whole power of the government would be ex- ercised to protect them. They have kept their part inviolate, We have civilized southern Arizona in parts. The strangest of all of this border tragedy, is the fact that the urgent necessity for this reservoir, and the fact that the national honor was involved, constituted one of the chief batteries from which trenchant arguments were thrown in behalf of the National Irrigation Law. Yet seemingly the Gila Valley will be among the last to profit by it. Still the upper
The oasis., 1904-10-29

The cost of reclamation rests as a charge against the land, payable by owner in from two to twenty years. Organized colonization movements, and large investments of private capital, appear therefore, hereafter to be barred from United States arid domain.
 On the other side of our terri tory, in Sonora, a radically differ ent situation confronts us. Im- mense estates, largely undeVel- oped, comprising from ten thou sand np to million acres each. the rim of the river bottoms, neces sarily comprising the poorest lands, are the only ones occupied. Primitive irrigation methods, pre- vail, and in case of droughts total loss of crops etc.
 Surrounding each valley basin there are located succession of mountain ranges, like oval frames around an amending scrles of pie tures These ranges in almost all instances contain mineral wealth. Sometimes they prove to be camps of romantic histories, and under modern treatment yield up mil- lions of treasures, like the brown hills of Cananea and their sister ranges to the south at La Colorado.
 But great and indisputahle as Is the mineral wealth of Sonora, it's greatest economic possibilities are in it's fertile valleys. In this de velopment the citizens of the United States are if anything, more yitally interested than the
The oasis., 1904-10-29

United States government, through the Secretary of the Interior, has, under the act referred to, as we'll as by the right of eminent domain, proceeded to withdraw from pri- vate entry all available reservoir sites on the various rivers and their tributary watersheds.
 But the period of construction of these reservoirs, or whether any at all are built, must bide the time of all the various Department Chiefs involved. A case in point is the GiIa River reservoir on the upper waters of that important Arizona system: notwithstanding that ot1i- cial United States expert specified tions, covering this site, were in the hands of the Secretary of the In terior nearly fonr years preceding the act of the National Irrigation Law, and that furthermore this construction was called for by na- tional honor, under the stipula- tions of the ''Gadsden Purchase" ]" which guarantees the water rights of the Pimas. which rights have been 'civilizedV out of existence, and notwithstanding that our very solemn treaty making power, the
The oasis., 1904-10-29
THE INTERNATIONAL IRRIGATION CON-
 CRESs.
EI paso, Texas, November, $, I6, T
 and iS, 1904.
Editor>fTHE OASIS:

EdItor>THE OASIS.
 Some years ago, in the compara- lively obscure locality of Grand Island, Western Nebraska, on the banks of the Platte River, plainly dressed but very earnest body of pioneer settlers were gathered They had ploughed and sown, but not harvested. The heavens above them seemed brass. the earth beneath was becoming hot desert sand. Irrigation was an unknown term, but their deliberation, then and there, created the successive Irrigation Congresses, which for the last eighteen years have been held in nearly all the leading cities in the arid west. Through the agita- tion, thus inaugurated, came the educational process, which at last enabled us to obtain the greatest statesmanlike measure ever con- ferred on the arid region Of the United States west, ]. C., 'sThe Na- tional Irrigation Act,n under which Arizona is one of the very first to profit The Tonto basin, when completed, will compare favorably with the recent monumental enter prise of the English Government in the central Nile delta.
 The international constituency of TIE OASIS, the writer is aware, is largely interested in mining and less in irrigation. But 1t requires but a brief survey of the situation n in order that its readers will feel n business interest in progress Of irrigation.
 The cost of the maintenance of labor and live stock bears a direct proportion to cost of provisions for man and beast. Directly and in- directly, every pursuit on either side of the United States and Mex ican boundary. will reap signal advantage from an intelligently applied system of irrigation. It would probably be conservative estimate to claim, that the purely railroad and mining investments along the Arizona and Sonora boundaries today represent some $50,O00,0O0.00 in gold. It is be- lieved to be an equally conserya- tive estimate to assert that de- velopment of irrigation, applied to the available valleys and mesa areas of these same districts, would make these fifty millions equival- ent in dividend producing capacity to a hundred million investment. For the largely increased popula- tion resulting from the lands being made available, would increase re- venue and relatively decrease all operating expenses. Decrease ex. pense of staples and increase elfi- ciency of labor, because of larger populations and better conditions. Among the higher advantages ac- cruing are superior social, church and school privileges, and better roads and highways.
 All of these arguments are some what stale to anyone familiar with the results of irrigation's progress through the west. Like old lessons in spelling and grammar, however, they appear to call for constant reiteration.
 4 very unique situation con fronts the residents of the inter nn4:ornl h,r,n dnr.r l:,nnc Thn
The oasis., 1904-10-29
Whole No. 59S.


 former who have already staked millions of dollars here. The rail- road companies, the mine owners, the live stock growers and the suc- cessful commercial centers along the international border, are pro- foundly affected in their com mercial status by the prevailing situation of their immediate neigh bor, Sonora. Looked upon by many as mere aggregation of mining camps and cowboys, it Is the historic base of the civilization of the whole of Alta California" in which Arizona, New Mexico, as we'll as Nevada and California, were included. The weather stain ed Mission structures. the charm ing pictures of which TIE OASIS has presented it's readers in so unique way, has a succession of historic chapters behind them Of deep interest. High religious de- votion, mingled with ambition for empire Romance; real history and absurd legends; cruelty and real humanity. But with these 1t is not our object 10 finger.
 Sonora from the standpoint of the future irrigation capitalist and settler, presents an area of virgin soil unsurpassed in the southwest. This must be investigated to be understood, and such investigation, if intelligently pursued, will amaze ] the most skeptical. Such researches will explain why Sonora was an organized commonwealth as far north as San Xavler del Bac, nine miles south of Tucson, as early as the latter third of the lTth Century. i The ancient Padres from the vine- clad hills of Seville and the orange l groves of the Andulusia Valley, knew the land when they saw it. l Every mission site is a monument to their sagacity as practical men as well as religious devotees.
 But to the man of today, what has Sonora to offer as a field of irrigation investment? Come and see is perhaps the wisest of replies, for nothing but investigation on the ground will answer. But for the time being, and as mere out ! line, the territory immediately south of Nogales along the Sonora railway line may be referred to. This area is susceptible of being ] subdivided in two divisions. one of an average elevation of $50 feet, reaching from the sea or the Port Guaymas to Torres; the other, from there to Carbo, where the lands reach an elevation of l5O0 feet, the limit of elevation for successful or ange culture, though 1t 1t may be successful up to 1900 feet in this latitude. So far as quality is con- cerned, and also all the indispen- able requisites of natural advan- tage. these lands are equal to the choicest orange lands of Southern l California, even the color of the soil being identical
 The writer is not concerned at present with obstructive tariff laws, which strangulators of commerce, fortunately for their makers them selves, are not immutable. The l point is, that the citrus family is the most serviceable botanical a. q economical indicator of the general productive characteristics of given territory. Where the citrus family, oranges and lemons, four ishes, there the intelligent cultiva-
The oasis., 1904-10-29

Continued on page |.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11
Europe Our Market.

In an article in the December Worlds Work on What Europe Means to Us." U. D. Whelpley presents facts of tre- mendous meaning to the United States He says: . Always buying more than 1t sells, eating more than comes from its soil lending more than 1t borrows, and Tn every Way apparently giving more than 1t takes, Europe's constantly increas- ing population, wealth and power form a mystery, for they are the most won
 derful and fascinating of all economic phenomena.
 The United States has a population | of twenty-two to the square mile. In the past 100 years Europe has sent 40.- 0O0, 900 people to the United States and other new countries, and yet today has | A population of 103 to the square mile. | or nearly twice as many as when this emigration began. In the meantime.
 wages have increased, wealth has piled up. trade has quadrupled. and the! pur- chasing power of the people Of Europe
 has more than kept pace with all these l advances.
 | Even to estimate the annual domestic exchanges of Europe is beyond the
 reach of intelligible figures. The for
 eign exchange Is a quantity which can
 be determined with more or less ac.
 curacy, however. and its amount-$14.- | Oo0. 0OO, 900 annually-conveys an idea of the tide of commerce that nows through this heart of the world. The imports of these eighteen coun- tries amount to .000,000,000, the ex-
 ports to S6.00o, ,o00. .000. showing an ex- | cess of purchase over sales amounting | to 2. oOO. 900, ,OO0 The imports from abroad meaning from countries other than European. are to supply European tdeficiencies, and these are largely or | food and raw materials.
 About 65 per cent of the total ex-
 ports from the United States are Of agricultural product though much Of this might be regarded as manufactur- ed goods because many agricultural products are put through manufacturing processes. Roughly speaking, the American people sell $900. 0.000.000 worth | of such products year to foreign buy
 CTS. Nearly 90 per cent goes to Eu-
 rope, hence about four-fifths of the
 American goods sent to Europe supply | food and raw material. American products feed the operatives in the Eu- ropean mills and factories who ara
 making goods for all the world. They
 provision the foreign ships which car-
 ry the worlds commerce, and keep down the cost of living in Europe by
 supplementing the comparatively seam | ty supply of homegrown foods. These l agricultural products of America are now so necessary to Europeans that | they are admitted without serious re- | strictions to nearly all European mar kets
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11

selves in a clump of Azalea, or bush l honeysuck1e, whose flowers ranging as | they do, from white through all the | shades of pink to the deepest crimson. form a fitting subject for an artists brush or poets pen. But beautiful as are the flowers, our memory fingers even more fondly upon the honeysuckle apples" so dear to the boys and girls | of the country. This singular fruit" | Is really a transformation of the leaves. and if somewhat tasteless and insipid, yet serves as an excuse for many a merry outing. The Azalea is the national flower of Flanders. and was | known to the early Dutch Settlers of | this country as Pinxter blooms.
 Our attention is soon drawn from these flowers by a most delightful fra grance, which pervades the atmosphere, | and presently we perceive Calycan- | thus, or sweet-shrub bush, whose pur- pie flowers are almost hidden by glossy leaves. but whose unrivalled odor | betray their hiding place.
 High upon the rocy banks the ex- quisite Kalmia Latifolia or mountain laurel, finds home. and proudly challenges the city resi- dent to produce in his hot houses and conservatories a plant more beautiful than itself. This shrub Is highly prized in England, and Bare | wood gardens Is famous for its collec- tion of Kalmia. The Towering season Is widely advertised. and people flock l from far and near to enjoy the won- derful sight. Unfortunately. like all
 pleasant things. 1t has its bitter as well as sweet, as the leaves are said to be a deadly poison to cattle, and we arc told that the Indians formerly used
 them to destroy their enemies. or to commit suicide.
 Remarkable alike for its colum-liks form, its magnificent foliage and Its beautiful flowers, Is the Magnolia
 Grandiflora, as 1t proudly rears Its stately head above the surrounding
 trees. The flowers of stately, snowy
 white are some eight or ten inches
 across, and possess a very strong odor
 The large petals turn dark brown
 wherever bruised, and this fact the
 South American lover makes use ot
 for a novel and romantic purpose
 Plucking a fresh-blown flower, he
 with a pointed stick, writes upon thu
 petals his message of love and sends
 it to his sweetheart. Soon the words
 become as distinct on the pure surface
 of the flower as if written with inl
 on the finest of note paper. Surely nt
 daintier or more charming method wa
 ever devised. A species of Magnolii was called by the Creek Indians 'Tu , la." and was greatly reverenced fo
 its medicinal qualities. Another spe
 cles of the magnolia family is tn Cucumber tree, whose leaves and flow
 CTS equal in beauty and size tn , Grandiflora. The name "Cucumbe tree originates in the resemblance
 which the green fruit bears to a GU cumber This fruit Is intensely bit ter. and when steeped in whiskey 1 ! regarded as sure preventive O fever but If water were substitute for whiskey 1t is doubtful If 1t wou
 be quite so popular.
 If. as some tribes of Indians. an , to some extent the Eatern Buddhists { believe. trees have souls, then indee
 must the soul of an artist or poe dwell on the Fringe tree, whose yrac
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11
Towering Cree$ and $brub$
 Of Hldbdff1d
By DORA BARRON. Montgomery, Ala.

by all true. sportsmen. The fruit Is sometimes carried in the pocket as a charm against rheumatism.
 Wandering deeper into the forest we may come suddenly upon a mass of Yellow Jessamine./ whose clusters of golden bells sets the most matter of . fact "Gradgrind,' among us to dream ing of moonlit glens and grassy dells. where fairies meet in joyous revel which lasts until the morning chimes ring out from the dainty Jessamine | bells which hang from rock and tree. In all the Southland there Is no flower , which surpasses this in beauty and fra | grance.
 The Jessamine finds. however. a strong rival in the Cherokee rose, whose graceful lengths. trailing over hedges and fence-rows. cover them with mantle of exquisite beauty. This vine Is highly recommended by Stephen Elliot for hedges. and 1t seems a pity that a plant which combines the use- full and the ornamental to such de- gree should be so neglected
 Another member of the Rose family Is the Neviusia Alabamensis. plant that so far as known, Is found only in Alabama, on the banks of the Black Warrior River. near Tuscaloosa. Its
  tiful. and the plant deserves to be widely cultivated.
 Another of our native vines, pre-emi- nent in grace and beauty. Is the Bigno' mia Radicans, or Trumpet vine. which as 1t chambers to the tops of the tales trees, and beautifes them with 1t: clusters of scarlet tubes, four or fiv' inches in length, forcibly remind on' of the tropical forests of South Ameri | ca. Unfortunately. this vine is not al universal a favorite as its beauty de serves. because of a popular belief tha 1t is poisonous, especially to cattle
 The Red Shank, or New Jersey tea is a beautiful shrub, whose feather, white flowers diffuse a most exquisit odor for the delight of its human ad mirers, while the honey which it con tains attracts multitudes of bees an butterflies. During the Revolutiona ry War, patriotic Americans used tn leaves of this plant for tea. a custor said to have been Tearned from tn Cherokee Indians. Its red roots ar used by country people for dying home spun cloth.
 Leaving the woods, we wander for while beside some rippling stream where. towering high in afr. the statel poplar waves its oddly cut leaves. an pale yellow tulip shaped blossom: while the graceful naples. as the mingle their silvery leaves and crim son flowers with the gloomy branche of the mournful cypress-fit emblem c sorrow and death~-add to the pictur esque beauty of the scene
 For a moment we stand bewildere by the wealth of beauty and fragranc which surrounds. At last the eye attracted by a mass of glowing color, and we hasten forward to lose our
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11
Americans Like Bananas.

For the first time in the history Of the country, the sales of United States fruits exceeded in value the imports of bananas, lemons and other fruits which we got from abroad. Up to the present time we have always been in the debt of the foreign fruit grower. but last year the demand for American apples and prunes overbalanced the imports of fruits.
 The Americans are great banana eaters. Every year we import from 25. .O0O, 900 to 3O,000,000 punches of thls nutritious fruit for which we pay be- tween $7,00O.000 and $S,000,000.
 To this sum may be added annually about S25, 900 worth of plantains, fruit closely resembling the banana and used for cooking purposes in the South. Next in importance to bananas in the import fruit trade are lemons, for which upward of $3,000.00 is expended abroad annually, Italy being the almost exclusive source of supply. These two products, bananas and lemons, regular iy constitute in value over one-half the total annual imports of fruits.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11

and beautv combine to make it a uni versal favorite, and its waving branch es, covered with a snowy fringe. like the hoary locks of some aged man. fully Justify the local name of Grand sire's graybeard.
 The Towering Locust Is more rare, but is we'll known in the southern parts of the State. and Is endowed with I double share of beauty. being pos sessed of wealth of exquisite foliage. as we'll as lovely flowers. It was greatly admired by the botantst. Will | liam Bartram on a voyage through the South.
 The wild Hydrangea, or "sevep | barks." fourishes along the streams and Is often found near the white | Baneberry remarkable for Its ivory white fruit.
 The Clematis vitalis, or Travellers Joy. is fitly named, for surely the weary wayfarer could find no more charming resting place during the noon tide heat than is formed by this vine. as it chambers over bush and tree. filling the air with its delightful fragrance. The fading of Its dainty | white flower brings even greater beau- | ty. for the feathery white seed clusters | give to it the appearance Of mantle of snow resting on an evergreen tree. | One of the latest of our blooming shrubs is the Wych. or Witch Hazel. whose dainty yellow flowers appear late in November. In olden times this bush was a favorite with wizards and treasure because of Its myste- rious affinity for water and precious | metals and even in this advanced age. there are many who believe that if 6 forked branch of the witch hazel !s carried in the hand. when passing over | hidden treasure or over underground | streams. the tips of the branches will inevitably bend toward the water or
 metal The Witch Hazel also possesses great healing properties and Is used | in cutaneous diseases
 Lack of space forbids me to describe
 many of our equally beautiful bushes
 and trees, such as the graceful Yucca.
 the beautiful Staghorn Sumach. with its gorgeous clusters of crimson fruit
 and its waving fronds of leaves, which | in early Autumn resemble the stately
 plume in some warriors crest; the
 Pawpaw. or custard apple. with its
 golden fruit. which smells so delight fully and tastes so horribly. though
 many claim to prefer it to the Banana: the Titi, the Spurwood. the beautiful Redbud, the Carolina Laurel, with its
 crimson. star-shaped flowers resting
 like clots of blood among the glossy
 dark green leaves; the wild rose. the
 globe flower. and many others too nu-
 merous to mention. while many of our
 native vines. such as the Woodbine the Virginia Creeper. and the Wild Wiste-
 ria, are too well known by cultivation to need description.
 Not the least interesting of our
 shrubs are the many species of her
 ries. delightful to the eye and to the palate alike. The blueberry. the hack berry, two or three specie of huckle-
 berries. and last, but by no means least. we have the humble bramble, or hlac kberry. Who has not admired the fl
 dainty white flowers as they brightened the ditches and fence corners, and
 where is the child who has not spent many happy hours berry hunting. com. | ing home at night. tired and hungry with hands and bare feet torn and
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11

bleeding, but with hearts made happy by we'll filled baskets. promising a gen. erous supply of pies in the present and jellies and jams in the future. The blackberry Is Il favorite for other req sons than its lovely flowers or delicious fruit. A tea made from the root Is ef- fective in all bowel troubles. while the peculiar knots formed on branches
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11

inextricably, present quite tropical apearance, while graceful clusters of Spanish moss throw kindly veil over the leaf-branches and combine to form Ia scene of picturesque beauty rivaiing that of midsummer. and which fingers in heart and memory for weeks after the scene itself has passed away.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11
act as a charm against toothache.

act as a charm against toothache.
 Even In winter our forests and swamps retain much of their beauty. The luxuria1t grcenbriar with its glist- ening clusters of black berries. the Southern smilax, with It's wreaths of coral fruit. and the rattan vine. like the Liannas of South America, climb ing from tree to tree and binding them