Arizona republican., 1911-08-05
PHOENIX OF TWENTY.
TWO YEARS AGO
Biological Expert Recalls Miss Phoe
nix as She Was in Her
Younger Days.

ID. c., stopped last night at the hotel
survey of the department of agricul-
ture. and has come west TO make
| preliminary efforts toward the eXter-
mination of prairie dogs in the farm
ing communities about Prescott. on
his way back To Washington DR..
Fisher stopped off in the Salt River
valley To visit the Roosevelt dam, and
| make Investigations n the valley
touching the use made by the farmers
of this district of the recommended
tions Of the department for the eX
| termination of gophers.
Three years ago. DR. Fisher came
TO Phoenix TO examine the injury
which the canals and bitches had
suffered as a result of the depreda-
| tions of the gophers. These little
animals have a liking for higher
| ground. and when the dirt walls of
the bitches are thrown up. they re-
gard them as their legitimate proper
~. They take possession. and dig
and burrow around through the dirt
1T is not their digging that does
the HARM" said the doctor last night,
| to representative Of The Republi-
can. 1t is the fact that the water
in the canals follows the line of least
resistance. and when the gOphers
make hole, the water runs out
through ii. The gopher is not TO
| blame. II Is the fault of the hole.
can scarcely estimate the losses sus-
| tanned by the farmers of the irrigated
no To-
result of the activity of gophers
Three years ago there was a break
in canal on the Carson-Truckee
Project in Nevada. and before the
| water could be brought back and
confined to the canal. there was a
| loss of more than $4,000. This is
| just a sample of the cost the gophers
| can be To the farmer when he gets
! down To business. and the farmer
does nothing to protect himself.
The department is always prompt
to take such matters up, and the far
mers are given advice, which, if fol-
lowed, means the certain eXtermina-
ton of the troublesome little fell
lows. AS an example of the benefit
derived from following the advice of
after we Investigated the trouble of
the farmers on the Carson-Truckee
project in 1908. we made recommend
ations we gave them in 1908. They
seem to lack the initiative to take up
the problem, and keep right along
fighting the pest until they are rid
Of it. II seems to me that they would
rather suffer than go to the eXertion
of usirg the simple remedies we have
suggested to them"
After telling the object Of his visit
to Phoenix, DIR. Fisher settled down
To talk of old times"
Before | leave Phoenix / want to
say that ! am very much impressed
with the improvements that have
been made here since | first visited
the city twenty-five years ago. 1t
was nothing but a little frontier town
then. Didn't amount TO a great deal.
Had no railroads. and-it was just
like every other frontier town, al
though some of the people here
wouldn't like to hear me say it, Some
citizens are like some parents. They
want their city to be just little
different. just as a mother thinks
her baby is a little bit better than
any other baby that ever cut teeth.
Phoenix was little frontier town
then. | remember trip / took TO
Prescott over the old Black Cnyon
route. That was a great ride AL
most as bad as Horace Greeley's ia
nous ride with Hank Monk rat
tied around in that stage like a qui-
N mo L.,
road was so rough that had to hold
on all over To keep from being
shaken to pieces.
And Prescott. That is a fine little
city They are thoroughly progress
i've up there. They have splendid
buildings. and the people are the kind
who believe in going right ahead. I
know I'm talking like a real booster
now. but / can't help it, The coun-
try is worth IL. The summer colony
idea up there is good thing 1t
gives the people of Phoenix a good
cool place tn spend the summers. I
went over the colony. and told them
that would like to have one of
those lots myself if Prescott and
Washington were little closer to-
SNtiSi' but YOU Know tne cdrrare
out every year,-the carfare-when I
thought of it. | had to give up the
summer colony idea, and leave my
lot for some lucky fellow who lives
little closer.
ike Phoenix. and | like the peo-
pie in it. The government has done
great things for this valley. and the
PEOPLE are certainly going to do
great deal more for themselves. now
that they have the land and the wa
ter. and every possible opportunity
10 make good"
DR.. Fisher will leave for Roosevelt
tomorrow. where he will inspect the
dam. Returning to Phoenix he ex-
poets to leave for Tucson. and from
Tucson will go direct to Washington.
He expects to reach the capitol bv
the middle of August