The Coconino sun., 1919-07-25

The Vests Recaii, oHlciai Pupieo ton of U. S. Army General Hospital No 20, at Whipple Barracks, near Prescott, Ariz., published a series of interesting articles written by Lieut.. J.P. Smart, dealing with the history of old Fort Whipple from its estab- lishment in Civil War days down to the construction of the general hos pital in world-war days.
 The lieutenant has made labor of love of his work, evidently having fallen under the spell of that "wide, wide land of mysteries" called
 ARIZONA
 Dun land, sun land, rope and spur and
 gun land,
 What is your enchantment that you
 haunt my dreams?
 View land, blue land, fiash-of-every-
 hue land,
 Peak and plain and canon-cradle
 dimpling gleams.
 Sad land, glad land, poor old pagan
 bad land,
 Some time to your castle we shall
 find the key;
 Wild land, mild land, slumb'ring witch
 beguiled land,
 Then you shall awaken, smiling,
 strong and free.
 Theresa Russel has summed up in the two above brief stanZas the feel ing of many who love Arizona in spite of whatever faults she may have, but who, not having the poetic gift, are unable to clothe in such very beautiful and appronriate language their thoughts of this strange land which draws them as magnet. Lieut.. Smart has aptly quoted this little gem in one of the first install- ments of his story, and adds: "How true the prophecy, so beautifully ex- pressed. We of Whipple Barracks are a part of this country which has awakened smiling, strong and free and today we will look back over a portion of the life of one of the men who helped to find the key to the Ari- zonan castle-Lieut. A. w. Whipple.
 "In 1850, following the Mexican war, Lieut.. Whipple was placed in charge of corps of engineers, sur veyors and assistants who, in accord ance with the terms of the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, started survey O1 tIlt hcAlCdu dit VI tiiC duty of the boundary commission was to make notes of the country through which they passed, with view to the building of a railroad to the Pacific, then being agitated. The party trav- eled from San Antonio to Fl Paso, and started the survey from the latter point. It was found impractical to conduct the survey to the east on ac- count of the expense and the diff culty in obtaining supplies; therefore, the start was made from the eastern border, passing through what is now Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.
 "This country was then inhabited by warlike tribes of Indians, and no resources were available except what the prairies supplied. Many times Lieutenant Whipple's party came into contact with hostile Indians, who drove off their stock and caused trou- ble after having accepted the presents and hospitality of the party. 'The original survey had been com pleted to within sixty miles of the Colorado by December, 1851, when it was suspended for want of supplies. | The party found their way to San Diego in January, 1852, where they met Commissioner Bartlett, who later | accompanied Lieutenant Whipple and his party to the Gila to complete the work. | Up to 1862 little was known of | central Arizona, its mines, forests and agricultural possibilities. It was the | habitat of the Apache, the most | treacherous and dangerous of all the | Indian tribes. The first explorers were the Walker party, commanded | by Captain Joseph R. Walker, an old | hunter and trapper. The company | was organized at Kernville, Cal, for | the purpose of exploring for gold, and | their objective was the section around Prescott and the Little Colorado. The | San Francisco mountain was their | landmark and passing aroynd it's base, they followed up the Little Colorado, but, failing to find gold, they con