Weekly Arizona journal-miner., 1905-11-01
CONGRESSMAN DICKSON A PRES
COTT VISITOR.
(From Saturdays Daily.)

81 am more than charmed with YOU
citizenship" said Frank Stoddar
Dickson, member of Congress of tn
23rd Congressional district of tn
state of Illinois, to a Journal-Mine
man last evening.
"The average person living east o
the Rocky Mountains" continued
he, "has absolutely no conception o.
what Arizona really is. He has beer
taught at school that his country ii
principally a desert waste, and you
cannot blame him for believing it, but
visit to this country will change
his mind as soon as he arrives here an6
sees it as it really is. 1t is certainly
a great and growing country, and its
advancement should not be retarded in
any way, but on the other hand should
be encouraged whenever an opportunity
offers"
In the course of his conversation he
remarked that he had spent some little
time in Phoenix and the Salt River
valley, and was much impressed with
what he saw there. He visited the Tonic
dam, and thinks that it is one of the
grandest undertakings in the world.
"Why," said he, "leaving out the
matter of irrigation entirely, the pow
er developed from the impounding of
this body of water will in short time,
if applied in a commercial sense, eco
and I am sure that it will,
more than pay for the cost of construc-
ton of the dam. The soil of the val
leys of Arizona is so fertile, said he
that it yields three and sometimes
crops per year when properly and in
diligently irrigated. This is much bet
ter than we do in Illinois. where we
think that conditions are ideal in an
agricultural way. You certainly have
the soil and the intelligent husbandry
to develop it with proper irrigation
and with your mineral re-
sources in the mountain districts, 1
IAN see nothing in your future but an
IRA of great and continued prosperity"
"The building of the great reservoirs
will attract to Arizona some of the
,est of American citizenship" he said.
Men will come here from other states
o make the country their home, and
o till the soil, and prosperous com
nunities will spring up in many locali-
les which are now barren wastes. Your
BUSINESS and professional men appear
o me to be great workers, and very
nergetic in their various pursuits
e continued, "and / take it for grant
d that a young man starting life here
lust get in and work hard to get to
he front when competing with such an
Intelligent population"
Frank Stoddard Dickson is member
f Congress from the 23rd district of
he state of Illinois, which is the
argest district of the state, embracing
en- counties, and the sixth in the way
f population. He is the youngest
lember of the present United States
congress, and is rated as one of the
sading orators of his state. The
opulation of the district is over 290,-
90, and the district extends almost
cross the entire southern portion of
he state. He is more than entertain
lg to converse with, being very bril-
ant conversationalist, and although
mailer in stature than the average Con-
ressman, especially Arizona Congress
len, impresses one as being more than
quail to the solution of any problem,
owever gigantic, that might present
self to him.
He was elected by a handsome ma
1rity in a district in Illinois which is
ated as being one of the strongest
'emocratic districts in the state, al
hough he is and always has been a
launch Republican. He leaves today
Or jerome to view the great copper
amp. He is accompanied by his wife.
One of his objects in making thor
ugh visit through the territory is to
lform himself as to the joint state
God measure, and he has already stat
d that his views have changed con-
derably since viewing the country,
nd noting its resources, development,
nd high standard of citizenship.
Full of Tragic Meaning