Deming graphic. (Deming, N.M.) 1903-1948, 1906-08-24
Santa Fe.
Let Us Bee utify Deming.

Let Us Besutify Deming.
When walking or driving along the
streets of our little town there is one
thing that is forcibly brought to our at
tenton and that is the many coy homes
with vines trained over their porches,
grass in the yards, and trees both use
fll and ornamental, growing and flour
ishing, flowers, too, flowers that we
thought could not grow and thrive in
this climate.
Contrasting this with what Deming
was as we first knew it, one can see
great and commendab!e improvement
ia the right direction, then there were
only a few houses, one could almost
count them on the fingers Of one hand
at which any attempt mad been made
to improve the appearance of the yards
and make them more homelike; among
these we will mention the Iolgate
Place, Lindauer's, Burdick's and the
Dane Place.
1t is true that at that time water
was scarce and consequently very ex-
pensive and we were just beginning to
learn the lesson of how to make things
grow by irrigation, lessons which the
Mexicans had learned hundreds of years
ago and had put into practical use,
thereby causing "the desert to bloom
as the rose"
In many towns, ho larger than our
pwn, organizations have been effected
called THE Village Improvement
Association, which includes all those
persons who wish not only to improve
the appearance Of their own home but
who endeavor to foster and build up a
pride and interest in the appearance Of
the streets, public squares, and the gen
eral surroundings of their home town.
Many and wonderful have been the
transformations wrought by these as
sociations. Front and back yards have
been cleaned, alleys cleared of rubbish
hardy trees, shrubs and vines have been
planted, streets have been made clean
and beautiful, Objectionable advertising
signs have been removed, trees have
been protected, unsightly buildings re-
moved, public parks and Fairgrounds
established and maintained etc.
As beginning which we hope will
lead up to such an organization. let us
each constitute ourselves a committee
of one TO do what we can to improve
the appearance of the grounds around
our own homes. Too much stress can
not be laid upon what one person can
accomplish in beautifying his own sur.
roundings at a triAing expense, if the
spirit of beautiful America is only in
hls heart. Here are two instances
which we will give to prove this,
In the midst Of the wilderness of
tracks that constitutes the transfer
ward of the Pennsylvania Railroad at a
division point stands little house that
shelters switchman. Usually the lit
tie bit of land of such "shanty" is
cinder.covered or piled with the waste
OF the work. 1t was with surprise,
that | saw flash Of brilliant floral color
in passing through the yard in question
on train one hot July day | recog.
nized the flowers as those of the portu-
laca. Inquiry proved that the switch
man, Mr.. Dali, is a trueBalutitul Amer
lean. He told about his effort thus;
II bought one packet of portulaca
seed for ten cents about six years ago.
The other switchmen helped me carry
some good dirt to spread over the Gin
ders, and We made a bed and planted
the seeds. We all liked the bright flow
ers and we gathered and kept plenty
of seed from them, so that we have had
more than enough to keep up the bed,
Tor we give away every season about
hve hundred little plants "
Here was the real thing to make