Evening star., 1942-09-13

has beautiful
light green Jeanne Barinott.
dome. On Sunday morning we went
to church and then continued west
ward.
At st. Louis we crossed the Mis-
sissippi River. Named after Louis
TX of France, the Missouri metropo-
lis was the scene of the transfer of
upper Louisiana to the United
States in 1904, when only a few
American families lived there. Now
it is a big. beautiful, busy city.
Driving through fiat Oklahoma oil
country, we could see derricks for
miles. When we arrived at Okla
homa City, I was surprised to see
the domeless Capitol almost sur
rounded by derricks. A derrick on
the south side of the Capitol drains
oil from under the building. Some
fortunate residents of the city have
derricks in their yards.
Oklahoma's round seal has five
pointed star in the center, sur
rounded by As tiny stars arranged in
clusters of 9 each. The center star
represents Oklahoma, the 46th
State, and the others are the States
in the Union at the time of her
admittance
The most attractive part of the
Capitol is the blue room. which Is
used as a reception hall for state
occasions. Everything in 1t is blue.
Huge Stadium.
About to leave Oklahoma City.
observed beautiful new tan build
ing which turned out to be William
Howard Taft Junior High School.
1t is about three times the size of
Taft Junior High School in WASH
ington and has venetian blinds. Ad-
| jacent to it is huge stadium.
We drove through the Texas Pam
| handle, the extremely fiat country
noted for its oil industry and white
faced cattle. We spent night at
Hereford, the shipping center for
the cattle of that name For miles
around we could see only denuded
| land.
In New Mexico, we travelled over
a barren plateau region and grad
ually assembled the Oregon Noun
tains, where we drove for hours
without meeting any other cars. The
only inhabitants are Indians and
Mexicans, who live in small huts
scattered through the mountain
range. Occasionally, we saw row.
ing Indian cowboy riding over the
steep mountains.
These odd-shaped peaks vary
greatly. Some are rocky and bare:
others have cactus among the rocks,
forming most beautiful scene. At
one place, we stopped to take pic
lures and to get better view.
just as I was about to step from
the car, I saw a large rattlesnake
a few feet away, ready to strike.
We forgot both the pictures and
the view.
Later that same day, we stopped
to let a large flock of sheep cross
the road under the watchful eyes of
Indian cowhands. The sheep,
anxious to reach a spring coming
out of the mountain ledge, crowded
one another, and we heard lots OF
| "bah-bahs."
Spanish Customs.
Just before arriving at Las Cruces,
N. Mex, where we spent the night,
we passed the Great White Sands.
With the mile-high Sacramento
Mountains as a background. the
white dunes, with green vegetation
mostly cactus-peeping through,
create a beautiful scene. The town
Of Las Cruces (meaning THE
Crosses') is modern, but Spanish
customs and architecture remain.
The majority of the population are
Mexican, and Spanish is spoken
everywhere.
A very odd city is Bisbee. Ariz.
1t extends through three canyons,
and many of its houses are built in
steep mountains along winding
roads. The main highway ascends
| through the town like a coil Cop
per mining is one of the chief in
dustries.
Tombstone is another unusual
| town in Arizona In its early mining
days, the sixShooter was law, and
many violent clashes took place.
One point of interest is Boot Hill
Cemetery, where 180 notorious char
acters, many of whom died with
their boots on, are buried.
The last city in Arizona on Route
80 is Yuma, where many Hollywood
celebrities 60 to get married. The
Colorado River on one side of the
town separates the State from Cali
fornia. Here all our luggage was
inspected before We were allowed to
proceed to the Imperial Valley.
Sand dunes in the valley are the
scene of many desert motion pic
lures because of their likeness to
the Sahara. The valley, once a
barren desert, has been changed
into fertile region by the ALI
American Canal, which irrigates it.
There is no winter, and each month
some crop is harvested We dined
at El Centro, q modern city about
so feet below sea level and midway
in the valley. The sidewalks are
wide and covered by high roofs, so
people can shop in comfort in the
many lovely stores.
Late in the afternoon of Friday.
August IA, we, arrived in San Diego.