Arizona sentinel Yuma southwest., 1915-11-18
Yuma, Ariz., Nov. l3, IS. B. F. Fly, Esq, Yuma, Examiner,
 Yuma, Arizona.

Yuma, Examiner,
 Yuma, Arizona.
 Dear MT. Fly:
 Your gracious request that write letter for the Yuma Daily Examiner is a courtesy that commands respect, and, however meager my ability, | beg to present the following:
 My first sight of Yuma was in March, 1897, when making a tour of the world with two ladies from New England Gone being Miss Charlotte Bowditch, of the old Boston family of that name and now an all-the- year resident and benefac- treSS of Santa Barbara, Cal ).
 We spent a few hours in Yuma visiting the new water and light station with H. w. Blaisdell, who had been over four years developing the orange ranch on the mesa. Time had already favorably demonstrated the ideal con- ditionS that MT. Blaisdell eN- pected and the successful cultivation of Semi-tropical fruits including oranges, grape fruit and lemons was under way.
 November 1904 found me in Yuma arranging for the transfer of the pumping plant and ranch to MT. Blais- dell, whose constant efforts had at tracted capital to Yuma and whose interests here have continued and grown to their present proportions. The kindly assistance of Pete Hodges of Yuma at that time made us good friends and later I was shocked to read of his end at the hands of another.
 November 1911 found me in Yuma with Mrs. Taintor, who had visited this locality before with her mother, Mrs. Charles P Hemenway, or Bos- ton. We found Yuma advancing slow ly but surely, the water from the Col orado was nourishing sturdy young growth. in the Yuma valley. Years be- fore in the Nile valley I had seen the line of natural inundation marked on one side by verdant crops, on the other by the desert, seemingly un. conquerable waste Since then water from the Assouan Dam has forced back the desert line and the area un- der cultivation has greatly increased. How about Yuma?
 November 1915 finds me in Yuma. The famous Laguna Dam is doing for Yuma valley what the Assouan Dam did for Egypt The desert is being pushed back and conquered. Acres formerly arid are flowing with milk and honey. One sees the prosperous farmer with cattle and cotton, corn and alfalfa, many healthy, happy chil- dren at play, while elders blow, har- row and reap.
 The hopes of Yuma's well wishers are being realized-here the reclam- ation service is proving it's value and now wider field is to come under
 Colorado river-god, he is to con-
 he high lands and dc as mucn
 more for the mesa as has
 Cne) for the Valley. A few
 ears should find many happy, eay children where the desert now rules
 The growth of the town of Yuma during the four years just passed is marked. The fine structure bridging the Colorado for man and beast has
 
 Last evening, from several points down the valley, we could see it's full blaze of enlightenment-its signal of prosperity and hope-its splendid motto: Ocean to Ocean Highway" The new Hotel Arizona, with good, clean rooms and baths is joy to the guest s %%s~
 The buildings of Yuma, designed with taste, impress me with the sense of solidity, and the answer is 25.000 acres under water in the valley There has been steady healthy expansion no boom-the headway gained now should be increased by encouraging capital to come to Yuma; a construc- tive policy should favor enterprise.
 Tn closing may I pYnrpcc pov. or,,-e