Show t 1 I I SNAPSHOTS i IN Ur DIXIE I II If II f n I v i A Ae e t zw R 1 I Jr i jF ri riA A Y Ys r q I I s r t ax a w a k ks ka kap s a Cs Y s t ap x s ss 1 Leeds a settlement In the oil district 2 The first oil derrick In Dixie 3 A croquet game on the lawn of the Conger house at St StGeorge StGeorge StGeorge George In January 4 A basket In Washington county a relic of the earliest days 5 The old Barbee Walker mill and assay office at Sliver Silver Reef recently rebuilt by th the Brundage Mining Reduction company one of the landmarks of southern Utah 6 Almond blossoms in Janu January January January ary BY J A CRECELIUS Among the people living In the nar narrow narrow narrow row strip of ot country south of ot the Pine Pint Valley mountains known as Dixie the opinion prevails that the recent discovery of ot oil oU Is only a apart a part of ot the fulfilment of ot a prophecy made Dade n ade adeby by Brigham Young more than fifty i years yeas ago or shortly after the first I Mormon pioneers landed In Salt Lake I valley It Is well known that those sturdy frontiersmen had hardly h recuperated recuperated J from rom their long and weary march across the plains before their leader began to make plans for start Ins colonies In the different sections of tr what Is now the state of ot Utah One of ot the many traditions of ot the Saints In the southern part of ot the state is that upon a n certain day the great gr at colonizer singling out o t a ayoung ayoung ayoung young man from among his followers asked him to become the leader of ot a acolon colony colon soon to be planted In the valley of ot the Virgin river that at like Moses the young man hesitated and offered all aU sorts of ot excuses e for not wanting ta to undertake so 80 difficult a task and final finally finally ly 11 objected that so remote a section offered no opportunities for tor an ambi ambitious ambItious ambitious youth This last excuse the tra tradition tradition goes on was exactly what Brig Brigham Brigham Brigham ham Young wanted in fact tact knew the young man would make and that thereupon the leader laying his hand upon the young mans head revealed to o him something about the future greatness of ot what Is now Dixie that he told him of ot its delightful climate cli climate mate of ot its possibilities In horticulture hortIculture horticulture ture and declared that the time was not rot far tar distant when in wealth south southern southern southern ern Utah would far tar outstrip the north northern northern northern ern part of or the state What Brigham Young may ma have known at so early a date about the peculiar looking valley south of ot the Pine Valley Vale mountains of o how early eary he sent an exploring party part to Dixie I Ido Ido Ido do not pretend to know That he took tooka a great Interest In that section however how however however ever there can be little doubt It was in St George now the largest town In Dixie that he spent many man of ot his win winters winters winters and where at least one of ot his wives resided Another notable fact tact is that In St George tho the first of ot the Mormon temples in Utah was com completed competed pl The real l truth t of ot n the matter t probably Is that the then the head of thet the Mormon church like most people of ot othis his generation not realizing how soon Civilization from the east would crowd in upon his Its colonies and how soon they would be connected by railroads with the great centers of ot population in the east cast looked for tor a section where cotton could be grown that would supply the needs of his people Cotton In fact tact was one of ot the principal crops In the settlements along the Virgin river up to within a comparatively recent date The old cotton mill milli In Washington several miles north of at St George is still intact there having h beat be n some talk recently about remodeling it into inton a n sugar factory Cotton growing be became became became came unprofitable with the develop development ment of the mines in neighborhood The change chance resulting r f from the advent of the mining industry can perhaps best be told In the words of ot James Andrus of at St George one of the most widely known citizens ol ot southern Utah when he said Abandonment of Cotton Growing Before there was any mining car carried carried carried ried on In this section our people de devoted devoted devoted voted themselves to the pursuit of ot ag agriculture agriculture agriculture A man with a large family of children growing up had nothing to todo todo todo do for tor them then but work on the land and andIn andIn andin In that way Way cotton growing paid But Butas Butas as soon as our boys found work In the mines the price of ot labor went up and cotton coton growing had to be abandoned A person riding to Dixie today on a amail mall mail wagon from the nearest railroad station while taking In the topography of ot the country and feeling the Jars over the rough roads can get only a avery avery avery very faint idea of ot the hardships en endured endured endured dured by the earliest settlers According Accord AccordIng According Ing to the stories of ot many of them still living they the started from tram the northern part of the state with nothing but a determination to establish themselves In the south Most of ot them were even without rations or the crudest implements implements ments menta for tor subduing the soil from its native state and preparing It to yield something for tor food tood There were no roads nor trails and whichever way the pioneers turned desolation stared them in the face There Thera were mile after mile of ot desert covered only with sage sagebrush sagebrush sagebrush brush mountain oak greasewood grease wood and many varieties of ot desert flowers which are of ot more interest to the botanist than to the I There was plenty of ot scenery and perhaps the most beautiful in the west Pine Valley the magnificent chain of at mountains which forms the northern boundary of ot what now constitutes the Dixie country cou try loomed far above any surrounding peak and could be seen from every eveT ravine and valley vally in Dixie Buttes mesas and pinnacles cut Into the most fantastic figures loomed up win In nil all directions but grander than all was as Little Zion which begins at the source of ot the Virgin river There Is no use us trying to describe de the grandeur of ot this work of ot nature To be appreciated appreciated appreciated It must be seen In a recent arti article article article cle in Scribners Magazine F S Del Dellenbaugh Dellenbaugh Dellenbaugh who was with Major Powell in his notable explorations of ot the southwest speaking of ot Little Zion says Description A valley practically unknown to the outside world yet rivaling in beauty and grandeur even the Yosemite the Yellowstone and perhaps tho the Grand canyon But pf what interest WAS all this grandeur to the weary pilgrims who were looking for a stream of water and anda a into which to excavate for fora a temporary hovel Some no doubt be became became became came disheartened but a majority kept up courage How well they performed their task Is now by the nu numerous numerous numerous Irrigated d settlements dotting over the Dixie country The dry sand sana responded remarkably remar k ablY to the application application I tion of ot water taken from m the Virgin river and the numerous numer streams hav hay ing their in the Pine Valley mountains and most of the pioneers lived to enjoy many of the comforts as aswell aswell aswell well as some of ot the luxuries of ot country life lite The climate of ot Dixie Is ls delightful True it Is uncomfortably warm during the months of ot July and August but perhaps not more so than In the northern north northern northe ern e n part of the state During the spring and autumn however and some sometimes sometimes times during the entire winter the small Irrigated settlements with trees heavily loaded with fruits the great silk worm trees with their thick foli foliage foliage foliage age and the fig fi trees with their large leaves reaching almost to the ground make a stranger forget target that he be Is not sojourning in a tropical country Peaches apricots plums plum figs grapes and currants grow in such abundance that the growers hardly hard known what to do with them with the result that hundreds of ot bushels are left to rot on the ground Almonds English walnuts as well as peanuts are grown at a profit by the more enterprising settlers Should a railroad ever come to Dixie however It would open a great field for winter gardening No artificial heat would be required Tho The only necessary expense would be that of putting a patch of ot ground under glass to keep out the occasional frosts and cold winds and the most delicate flower and tender vegetables could be grown In midwinter Discovery of Oil The future prosperity of Dixie does not depend upon her fruits and vege vegetables vegetables vegetables tables however how Thousands of sheep and cattle roam the hills while the mineral resources have scarcely been touched The recent discovery discovery ery ry of oil was not a discovery ry at all That there was rock in the vicinity of ot Virgin City was known to settlers for upwards oi or thirty years car carThe The sinking of the first well only dem demonstrated demonstrated demonstrated that there was oil In paying pa and it would no doubt have been done more than twenty ears rears ago if It the country had not been so inaccessible inac inaccessible Inaccessible The oil fields are arc very ex extensive extensive extensive reaching southward for miles across the Arizona line best sur surface surface face tace Indications indi ons are as a matter of fact tact found in Arizona In the vicinity of the Ft Pearce wash which Is much nearer and more accessible from St StGeorge StGeorge StGeorge George than the Virgin City fields field As In all new fields knockers were early on the ground and some of their statements are even more absurd than those tl ose who make the claim that the oil ail ailis is superior to arty any heretofore discovered discovered ered I have not seen an authentic analysis of the product taken at any considerable depth In the new field well but I do know that the tho th numerous tests made from the surface cropping during the last few years showed not only a large Der Zent cent ent of ot Illuminating oil but also a high grade of f lubricating lubricating lubricating ing oil Moreover the fact that ad additional additional derricks are now bein being shipped Into the field fi ld orare or are In process of ot con construction construction construction by pet people who hays have no doubt analyzed the product already found foUn should sho ld in Itself disprove the assertion made by one ono or two correspondents j I 1 r r l that the oil Is of no value whatever With the fields so far from transportation transportation transportation tation I do not know how the product pro luct will wUl be handled It is known how however however however ever that railroad companies iI are gen generally generally generally ready to extend their lines to wherever business warrants the ex expense expense expense pense and I presume that the tho present Dixie oil promoters are preceding pro eding on that theory theon With the coming of a railroad some som something something thing almost every has been waiting for for more than a score core of ot years other properties would be de developed developed Silver Reef the once famoUs silver mining camp Is In the h heart ar of Dixie Millions of ot dollars were taken from that camp during the palmy days dais of ot the white metal and It Is I now nw generally ge admitted by mining men who have examined the ledges that the thereal thereal thereal real greatness of Silver R ef Is In the future The Dixie DL e copper mine owned by the Utah Eastern Copper com corn company company pany with a number of ot undeveloped properties surrounding it are In the vicinity of St George not to mention the great coal and iron deposits near Cedar City Resources Little Developed Whatever the cause may ma be there is perhaps not another section of like dimensions In the intermountain states where the natural resources have been so little developed and where so lit little little little tle outside capital has been b en Invested as asin asIn asin in southern Utah Colonies we were e plant planted ed more than a half century ago q o and while they grew and in jj tamn sense prospered they were u ly y Ignored by the new devices and Inventions that thit so largely help to make up modern civilization civilization The small Irrigated settle settlements settlements settlements ments In Dixie are still stUl from 65 to miles from the nearest railroad sta station tion and not until very recently were even Invaded by a telephone line Une In Inthe Inthe n the meantime many people born Itt In Dixie live Have lived there long enough to become grandparents and have never neverseen neverseen neverseen seen a railroad track to td say nothing about an electric street car or an au automobile automobile automobile Only recently one old oM fel tel fellow tellow fellow low who had not been out of Dixie for forty years mistook a typewriter for a sewing machine whereupon an another another another other old timer who prided himself upon having once lived in New York City In correcting the mistake de declared declared dared very haughtily that It wan a telegraph instrument Still another who became very veT much inter interested Interested interested ested in the destruction of ot San Fran Francisco cisco by an earthquake when told that th the water system had become he ome disconnected and that what of at It would probably be wiped out b by fire said Oh I dont believe that thai I Just looked up San Francisco on my map last night and saw saw that th the tha town Is almost surrounded by water why wh with the short distance they only need to pack water if every man takes a bucket they could put out a fire in ina ina a a short time From tho the few instances mentioned me above It should not be inferred that all allor allor allor or even a very large per cent of at the Dixie people have such erroneous notions no notions notions of ot what the th outside world is like Uke The truth is that many of or them have haver r J o f at different times been in Salt Lake as well as in other cities clUes while many who have not been be n have from their reading of ot newspapers news apers and magazines gathered a very clear Idea of or what the commercial al world Is like A Perfect Perfect Democracy In one sense at least Dixie is per perhaps perhaps perhaps haps the most typically American community In the country In that the younger generations are an amalgamation tion of or Tactically practically all nationalities othe of o othe the Caucasian race Among the early settlers were converts to the Mormon faith from all the states of ot the east and middle west as well as from the I south mg them settled the con converts converts verts erts from foreign countries and from the tho very start all nIl distinctions of at na nationality nationality nationality as well as social were entire entirely ly eliminated Families who could not speak English lived on a social soda equal equality eq equality lIil ity with those who could trace their ancestry to Colonial days From a asocial asocial social standpoint it was a complete Democracy and as the new generations grew up the children of ot Ole only a short time from Sweden inter intermarried intermarried I married ed with sons and aId daughters da of the American revolution The Tue result Is that nothing but the names remain to mark the different nationalities that hat made up the original population and even those names are gradually be becoming becoming becoming coming so trimmed off and added adde l to lo that one must mu be e a linguist to distin distinguish |