South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-04-07
Seeing America
First
By Fred Kelly.

Mother page from diary.
am hoping before | leave southern
California to find "a bona fde, well
/ authenticated case of a person who
came here from the east, stayed in
! this climate for at least year, then
went back east and voluntarily re-
manned there. If 1 could find a case
like that and also get trace Of a To-
cal1ty somewhere in the United States
where people frankly do not sleep
under blankets, l would regard my
self as a highly successful little in
vestigatOr. For such things are eX-
tremely hard TO find.
The other day l was down in the
southern extremity OF California,
within striking distance of Yuma,
Ariz. which is called the hottest
place in the United States. 1t was so
hOt--even in March-that it was diff
ficult TO sleep at all, blankets or no
blankets Yet when / asked a native
about the summer heat, he told me,
just as L knew he would, that the
weather We were experiencing was
altogether freakish and that they
usually slept under blankets at night.
He admitted th2t it was rather hot
for an hour or two III the middle of
the day, but said the nights were al
ways coOl-always a nice breeze. If
l had asked him further questions he
would have told me that 100 in the
shade there seems no hotter than 50
in the east The man was, of course.
member of the great army OF
weather liars.
He is the same sort Of man one
meets when one journeys to some
noted fishing place-the man who eX-
plains that if one had arrived just
two weeks earlier, or two weeks later,
as the case may be- there would have
fish IN I
entirely discouraged. / hope 10 find a
man who will admit that it is too hot
where he lives to sleep under blan-
kets, and that he invariably kicks the
sheet off.
Also. as 1 say, am on a quiet hunt
for person who prefers TO live in
the east. even after spending a year
in southern California. So far l have
had scanc luck in this search. Out Of
fully zoe persons of whom l have in
quired. every person has replied SUBJ
stantially like this:
Yes, people often come here from
the east. and don't like the dry climate
in summer. Then their imagination
begins TO work and they think of their
home state back east as more desir-
able than they ever did before. They
return TO the east, stay there a while
and done like il. Then they come
pack 10 southern California for keeps,
and nothing short Of actual compul-
sion could get them 10 live in the east
again"
have heard that story. with con-
crete illustrations. so often that 1
am half inclined TO believe II. Mind
you. 1t is conceded that men will
come here for few weeks. or even a
few months, and then go away and
stay away. But l am still vainly
hunt for me man who is content to
live elsev GRE after being here a full
year.
Yesterday / thought l had flushed
the case 1 was after. I fell into con-
versatiOn with a man who came 10
California last summer. He was be-
wailing the approach Of another dry
season.
June will lind me back in Penn
sylvania." he said. II am not going
10 live in a country where there are
no trees on the hillsides, and the
rivers run upside down"
The key 10 his remark about the
rivers is that in summer, when the
rivers dry up. the water sinks down
into the ground. leaving the sandy bed
OF the river on top.
As soon as l heard this man de-
claring his intention Of returning TO
the east. I rushed him TO a California
sort OF deposition as you might say.
But the native Californian punctured
my case is short order. In the first
place he pointed out, the easterner
has not been here a year, and Is
therefore not acclimated. and when
he does return to the east. what
proof IS there that he will not come
back here, just as all the others have
do~e7