Imperial Valley press., 1943-03-10
: BY MARGUERITE BROOKS

exorable desert is playing its part
in molding the men of America
into the greatest war machine OF
all time
The face of the desert in Imperial
Valley has changed to meet the
changing times.
Acros sthe sands which once felt
the tread of feet of warriors lost
behind the veil of time, now tramp
the feet of the Americans prepar-
ing themselves for battle in the
four corners of the earth.
SPANIARDS TROD
Where stepped the Indian war
rior on his moCcaSined feet, now
thud the sturdy shoes of the soldier
of 1943
The same sands which long age
lost the trim boots of the Spaniard
now show the prints of the shoes
of war into which have been thrust
the feet Of thousands of peace
loving civilians.
Wheeling across the sandy wastes
where once wavered the tracks of
prarie schoonerS and OK carts, the
army today sends its war machines
laundering and roaring into the
silence once wrapping the isolated
wastes in peace and tranquility.
They cover in minutes distances 1t
took their forerunners many weary
hours to traverse.
The guns of war belch forth
their challenge in places which
heretofore have known only the
yip of the coyote and the shuttle
of little desert creatures Scuttling
through the sand. Here in the
once silent places, men prepare and
practice and practice again and
again to become the killers the
Gods of war demand. Gone is the
Silence. Gone is the peace. Gone
is the isolation.
MEN OVERHEAD
High over the desert wing the
ships of the air as men master the
technique of mastering the air.
Planes roar. and swoop. and dive IN
the air once ruled by the buzzards
and flocks of migrating ducks.
On queer little Salton sea ahght
the ships at home in the air and
on the water Their wings rock
and the salty water laps against
their sides while they await the
time to take off for another flight
a,oft into the intense blue of the
desert skies.
Yes. war has changed Imperial
Valley as much as uniforms change
the men who wear them.
Imperial Valley has become one
vast training ground. The armed
forces outnumber the civilians.
The desert has job to do and
is doing it well.
Traition says that only the strong
may live in Imperial Valley. The
weak cannot survive its rigors. The
desert forces the weak to seek places
of ease before they grow to love
4 in all its moods. The weak nev-
er can know the desert. the most
mysterious and fascinating part
of all the earth.
Not only does the desert toughen
the bodies of men. 1t also streng-
thens and toughenS the will and
determination of human beings.
The desert is nature in its grim
est mood.
FINISHING TOUCHES
The powers that be. therefore,
decided that the desert in Imperial
Valley would be a good place to
add the finishing touches in the
great task of molding civilians ints
warriors.
That is the reason that Imperial
Valley today is known to men in
every branch of the armed forces
of America.
First to come were the cavalry.
Tough army horses carried their
riders on maneuvers and drills up
and down the floor of the desert,
threading their way along the
canal banks, in and out among the
mesquite bushes, and beside the
highways Then they went away.
Artillery came next. Horses and
machines pulled the equipment
over the trails left by the cavalry.
Their flags fluttered in the desert
wind. Their bugles sounded. Then
they. too. went away.
CAME THE NAVY
Now came the Navy, using the
desert as a training ground. The
navy brought its planes and its
men. The navy brought its planes
for land and sea.
Next came the marines They,
too, brought their planes and their
men
In the meantime. the army began
10 use the desert as a testing
ground for equipment. Wheeled
equipment of all kinds was driven
mile after mile along the highways
and out along desert trails to test
II for desert warfare. Long lines
Of trucks. tanks, ambulances and
all manner OF military equipment
became familiar sights in Imperial
Valley At the wheels sat the men
delegated 10 keep them going hour
after hour. II the equipment holds
np IN ID stands these rigorous tests