Deming graphic., 1921-12-13
Looking Backward
Over Many Years
BY S. A. LINpAUER


One looks upon the fair modern city
OF today-the city Of fair promise. OF
splendid public buildings. OF schools,
Of churches. of homes OF gardens. Of
broad avenues and cement sidewalks.
OF electric lights aud sewers, of mu-
nicipally owned water system. of the
cavalry troop and of the community
swimming plunge OF the fire depart
ment aud of the automobile camp. in
deed. of thousand other facilities,
oonvenlcnccs and comforts-and one
wonders what has become of the city
0f windmills Of romance and Of from
tier freedom, not Ia say OF downright
cusseduess and lawlessness. That last
happy hunting ground Of mems fancies
aud women's fears has gone as COM
pletely as though IL had never existed
gone with the Apache and the stage
Coach-gone where the woodbine twin
eth and the yeSterycars gather aeoHs
Of dim. impenctrabc mists Of tradition
And with that vanished city
have gone all but few of those hardy,
rugged argonaut spirits who built It,
reveiled In its youthful urdor aud help
lessly watched its glories depart while
another. after the manner of inexorable
fate, rose upon its figurative ruins
Few there he yet living in these quiet
and peaceful environs Of Thoreaus
New England. who recall with the vivid
abandon of youth the colorful. the un.
certain days of Demings aud southern
New Mexico's mpultlng period. Aud
these few will be- encouraged to break
ever 80 sligtly within the scope
Of this rambling sketch the habit
silence which seals their lips with re-
gard to the past Archibald Clavcr-
ing Gunter. who wrote Miss Nobody
from Nowhere Alfred Henry Lewis,
dish-waSber aud author OF "Wolfyille
Tales Bat" Masterson. gunman
aud peace officer. Colonel Head prince
among men and man among princes,
Lord Francis Francis who wrote for
private distribution only "MoccaSins
and Saddles" Gems Iawton and Chat.
fee, Colonel Red Forsythe, Colonel
Dick Hudson. sam Ashcnfelter
Colonel sam CARPENTER Frank Thur.
mond, Dan Tucker. Gus Wormscr
Tony Clark, Geronimo, Vietorio
George Hearst. Sheriff Harvey White.
hill and thousand actors in the tragic,
comedy of the good old days have.
each IN his time joined the great 81
lent caravan. The trials ami tribu-
lations Of this age are not theirs Thcyl
like their city OF undving friendships
and endless hates are history.
Dcming materializcd with the juno
tion of the Santa Pc and Southern
Pacific railways, here shortly after
1850. II was and remains the natur- (
al transportation center OF New Mex,
leo. Like Topsy II just growed, and
quickly became the trading and
recreation center of west Texas. south.
crn New Mexico. northern chihuahua
and eastern Arizona. In those DAYS
four and five hundred mule wagon
trains emerged from the Mormon col.
onies in Mexico periodically 10 do their
shopping In Dcming There were
many drinking cmporiums aud games
Of chance. much shooting and no little
killing, but no churches aud Deming
was called worse than Dodge City"
which was the classic equivalent of
worst Of all
Everyone went armed to the teeth
In those honeymoon days. Mcn thought
sooner of disarding their suspenders
than their six shooters. Even miners
underground were heavily upholstered
with Colts. There was no law save
the law OF the frou,icr-law west Of
the Pecos. Withal there ran through
all the lawlessnes> stern sense of
Justice and all real offenders found
short shrift az the hands Of their fel.
low citizens Fatty Arbuckle would
never have reached trial.
The dreaded Apache Indian occa.