Bisbee daily review. [volume] (Bisbee, Ariz.) 1901-1971, 1918-02-10
JOYS AND SORROWS
ON THE w AY TO
Ell PASO TOW N

/ from a little trip to Fl Paso, where
/ the gilded hotels and theatres and
halls of pleasure stretch in long array
down streets that put on metropolitan
airs. and have some considerable right
TO the same. And he is glad to get
back. The little old canyon, boiling
/ like a millrace with its stream Of
traffic. is as busy if not as big as the
average Fl PasO street; Bucky
O'Neirs point is higher than the high
est skysraper in the state of Texas;
and as for the sunshine and sand and
mountains, they are about the same
here as there But il was a pretty
fine trip. and the joys of it more than
offset the sorrows that must, it seems.
always walk with man all along his
pilgrim trail.
The first thorn in the path to FL
Paso pierced the newspaper mans
flesh at Douglas. The porter for
the FL Paso sleeper was missing from
the roll call, and as a result that
sleeper might well have qualified for
refrigerator car on the Fruit. Vege-
table. Meat and Airline road. No fire
in the car: no connections with the
engine on an accommodation train.
Well, the newspaper man sat In his
Overcoat until o'clock. and then he
got so cold he had to go to bed to keep
warm. On the way to his berth he
was met b. a gas attack. The brake
man. possessed OF more willingness
than skill. had started a big fire IN
the little stove II smoked. Some one
had evidently stopped up the chin
ney The aisles of that car became
fcgged trenches. Using his handker-
chief for a gas mask. the newspaper
man. with weeping eyes, made his
way TO the berth. or dugOut. and
crawlec under the blankets and
opened the window and survived the
smoke At midnight. however, he
walked up sunOcating with heat That
cold-stOrage berth had become an ore
smeltcr's oven; the car was a furnace
The heat was worse than the smoke.
and only by raising both windows did
the traveller survive this new peril
It seemed that the train had picked
up q porter en- route, and this cOlOred
gent. overlooking with exaggerated
ideas regarding his duty. had replaced
the brakeman's smoke screen With
real FIRE. even though the hour was
late and his passengers asleep.
But the long night were away and
the train reached Fl PasO al last on
time end running strOng. and the
newspaper man. remembering that Il
was an accommodation train, after all.
thanked the brakeman for his smoke.
tipped the porter for his heat and
babe the conductor a friendly COOdby.
FL PaSO is one of the wonder cities
of either the old or new world. Built
by faith and courage across the roll
ing sand dunes. ard along the arid
shores of the Rio Grande. il IS not
only The Pass between the L. 5. A.
and Mexico. il is a great railroad. !
business. military and social center
of the empire of the southwest. A
friend took the newspaper man in his
car to a high promintOry, from the
base OF which the city and all its
suburbs lay below like a child's card
houses upon the floor. Come, this
is not a city; it is a miracle. No farm
lands. no grass, no trees; nothing here
but the handiwOrk of man. This was
the townsite that God forgot Only 4
an arid waste had He prepared here
for His children. But these children
had wrought nightly Stately sky
scrapers and temple towers and gilt
tering spires marked the downtown
section. while as far as one could see
stretched row after row of handsome
and bungalows and vista after
vista adorned by mansion and country
house.
A great city. imposing and attrac-
tive. in spite of the absence of Mother
Natures kindly hand. But wait, Over
il all. streaming like a benediction.
was the glorious. caressing sunshine.
while the report that very day over
the telegraph wires was to the effect
that New York city's hay was frozen
as solidly as the hay at Archangel in
Russia. and that il was 10 below in
most of the cities OF the middle west
and north and east So. If nature has
been misery with some Of her gifts
20 FL Paso. she has surely given her
climate with a lavish and loving hand.
Far be it from this newspaper l.,
man TO try to tell Arizona people
about Fl Paso. They know Il more
than he will know in the
next half dozen wears. But he gained !
an impression or two while there Of
which he would like to speak. The
people of this town; the men who ,
built il. brick by brick and beam by
beam. The men who scraped the I
sand away for their skyscrspers and
yards and mansions and ce-
ment streets and palace halls. These ,
men came from every state and most
cities OF the Union; the pick Of the |
east and the north and the Pacific ,
cast Bold hearts and skillful hands. ,
They 10 things The people Of older :
cities merely talk about them. This ,
southwest is raw and new yet, and ,
therefore il is strong Its eyes are 4
liked with eager intensity upon the I
uture. and not looking back miStny
ipOn the past. So it is that the cream
If American men. moved mightily by