Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-12-23
Journalist Description
Of Utah Dixie Land

anywhere. So much for the people.
Now TO return to ST. George nnu
Dixie. While St George Is the cniet
town In Dixie. yet II was not the nrst
settled. The first settlers came 10
Dixie In 1857, settling at various places
higher up the river and at Santa Clara.
a town on the Santa Clara creek. i've
miles west of st. George, now inhaD-
lted by 500 German-Sw people who
are noted for their thrift and energy
SUNSHINE ABUNDANT.
The people of Dixie claim over 300
days OF clear. bright sunshine during
each year. and | can well believe their
claim to be we'll founded, for while IL
WAS winter when / was there,
cloudless SKY prevailed. during that
,!iue and the sun shone with rcmark-
able clearness 1t is owing TO this great
amount OF sunshine and the short win
tcis, added to the extreme dryncsS oil
the long summer, that the fruit grown
In Dixie has been acknowledged by cx-
perts as better than that OF other
places, being OF more delicious favor
Four crops CT figs are grown each year
peaches, grapes, almonds, pomegrln-
ates. English walnuts, and other sub
tropical and temperate zone fruits are
grown: five crops OF alfalfa 0uccrn) are
grown each year, and cotton WAS grown
for L number OF years and worked into
cotton materials at n local mill. Fruit
growing. however. has not been en-
gagged in to any great extent. com
mercially, owing to distance from mar
kets and the difficulties OF tran3porta-
ton This is now about to be changed
FOR n railroad is projected through the
county. that Will leave the Salt Lake
Route at Lund and run southcrly over
the Kiabnb plateau TO the Grand can
yon OF the Colorado river, the 6randest
and most sublime scenery in the world.
so pronounced by Mai. Powell In his
Investigations for the United States
geological survey.
On the Kiabab plateau is an Inn
nense body of timber. mostly yellow
pine, estimated by the government ex-
pert lumbermen 0t Is on a national for
est reserye) to contain upwards of four
billion feet OF timber ready for the saw
Immediately available. This timber is
the objective point of the railroad, and
the scenic portion of the Grand can
Won, which is here at Its best, will draw
many thousands of tourists annually
One, however, does not have to go as
far as the Grand canyon to see sub
lime scenery, for about IS miles east OF
St George is the Mukuntuwcap can
Won of the Virgin river, OF which Maj
GOM2ll Ol lllC tlltto k,t-ecS 6SO'Oo'NtNi
survey says; I'm its proportions 1t Is
about equal to Yosemite. but In the
nobility and beauty of the sculptures
there is no comparison
The amount of ground under cultiva-
tlon in Utah's Dixie is not great. TWO
reasons may be given for this: first. be-
cause the early settlers only cultivated
that ground that could be easily irri-
gated, great expense being necessary
to bring large areas under cultivation;
and secondly, the lack OF markets. and
difficulties of transportation. Now.
however. that 4 railroad is promised
extensive irrigation schemes are pro-
jected one of 100000 acres. and another
of $4,000 acres. The water for these
projects will be taken from the Virgin
river. and the lands lie in the eastern
and southern portions of the county.
AUTOMOBILE STAGE ROUTE.
Mention was made in the fore part
of this article of the rough mountain
road over which II was necessary TO
travel in order to reach Dixie. In less
than three months, about March l, 1910.
a inc automobile road will be In opera
| ton between ST. George and Acoma, on
| the Salt Lake Route. a distance of OF
| miles, which will enable travellers to
cover the distance In about three o
four hours While I was in st. Georg
the amount of money necessary t
make this road ht for automobil
travel was subscribed. Kenneth {
Kerr. the general passenger agent o
the Salt Lake Route at Salt Lake City
with whom I became acquainted Will
there, says of this Acoma road that
IS the finest mountain road he has SeeI
that only needed some work on the 81
George end to make 1t a perfect auto
mobile road This road will be scenic
one, and Will be the means of bringing
in a large number of visitors to Utah 8
wonderful Dixie, the land OF sunshine.