Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-04-23
Arizona Holds
Vital Role
In War Effort
Copper Mines Important
TO u. S. Production
By WEsTBROOK PEGLER


4 10, Ariz.. April 23.-If this
"A stuff about the desert and
the copper country bores you.
why skip ii because when ! get
on a story I am like one of those
pests who say:
did ! ever tell you the ono
about the two old maids" and
keep right on regardless.
The way it strikes me Is that
Detroit and other industrial
areas and the shipyards and
Washington get thorough Gov.
erage. but this part of the coun-
try none, although Arizona In
producing vital share of what
il takes and hardly anybody
ever takes look.
In parts OF this state there
are planes aloft on business
which is none of our business
most of the time. possibly train.
ing or testing or going some
where and troops 60 by mys.
teriously in trains and others
whip along the border in cavalry
jeeps scouting for saboteurs or
whatever.
And you turn off main high
way and head into a long stretch
of desert and presently come to
such place as Ajo where thou
sands of people are gathered
about great hole in the ground
chewing off rock which then
goes through a lot of works and
comes out in the form of half
dried mud which turns out to
be concentrated copper ready
for the smelter.
ONE thing that got me here Is
" the snobbery, as / guess you
could call il, of the Papago In
dams. an American tribe ordi-
narily agricultural by trade. who
live apart in little company
village Of their own and will
have no truck with the Mexi-
cans or Americans of Mexican
complexion and very little to do
with the Caucasians.
Far from trying TO thrust
themselves into the company Of
white men. they segregate us,
as You might say. by segregating
themselves in settlements where
persons of other complexion are
distinctly not welcome except,
of course, on business or TO pass
through.
Their houses are small, UNI
painted pine jobs but they live
pretty much in the open any,
way, and their women are
always doing around the place
while the men are off in the
mine.
THEY work a spell, then quit
L and 20 back 10 the reserva-
ton, and they spend their money
on gadgets and don't seem TO
have any capacity for worry
which. OF course, proves them to
be very inferior people.
In summer when the tempera-
ture hits 80 in the pit and for
a stretch Of so days stays we'll
over 100 on the topside, day and
night the Papagoes are the
steady, durable hands.
The metal Of the tools gets so
hot the men have 10 wear gloves.
and the Caucasians get cramps
from drinking cold water and
fall out, but the Papago. he
drinks warm water and plods
right along.
For some reason they like to
scrap with the Mexicans. mostly
with their fists. and although
they are not supposed TO have
liquor, some of them get abso-
lutely blind and fall down in
the sun and just lie there, a
spectacle TO induce first degree
hangover just on sight.
There are three liquor stores
in town, and apparently there
are always some humane souls
or other breeds who cannot
olerate this discrimination
against an Indian wanting a
drink and buy it and slip il to
him on the quiet.
TI1E mine is working around
L the clock. seven days week.
and a town which had fallen off
TO a population of only 400 or
so in the idle years of 1882 to
1884 is now about 5000, and the
company trains of covered steel
dump cars pull out for the big
smelter over at Douglas loaded
with dark green. half dried mud
which is concentrate Of copper,
silver and gold.
For while the cars weren't
covered but they discovered that
the heat was drying the mud TO
dust and their copper. silver and
gold. wrested from the rocks OF
the desert and boiled down to
paste at such effort and expense
was blowing off in the hot wind
in valuable quantities.
The men get as much as S12
a day on various Jobs and all
the work you want and, although
there seems 10 be no chance OF
a snap ending of the war and
sudden closing Of the mine. the
instinct 10 lay up a little prob
ably is operating among most
Of the population.
There is less and less stuff in
the stores nowadays TO tempt
money away in needless spend
tpu and yaopIo IF tho Cnut byyoSt