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Show THE WEEKLY REFLEX,' KAYSVILLE. UTAH I had expected to gee a Mexican or at least a. Mexican the town hugged the border if, U was as vividly American as or perial Brawley. There was th station of the n , yel Pacific lines, the water tank American crowd. Railroad shli an-- . nounced the terminal of tfle road. Backed toward the station was erltable hotel bus of the couurr r!,w a painted sign, hanging over hs'sn' advertising the Desert hotel p ? e he reached the step the Teho-"as crowded. Wait geulemen, I'm coming -- o i! When the Colorado Burst Its Banks and Flooded the Imperial Valley sf California Copyright, Bobb-Mrri- ll low-paint- ' Company ed Y AIKEN By EDNAH , infln , j a the 'larky the gravestone for a gigantic mistake, j struggle necessary to develop such hrtrBehnMi o the reins. ng AND AS HE GOES HE BEGINS TO Why, It Was only the grossest Igno- country, tinder such stern conditions, jI you wait for the second u ranee that gave to the desert the label develops of necessity strong men? et a room. suggested a j, Jlia APPRECIATE THE DIFFICULTIES OF HIS POSITION. of Tad lands. The desert is a con-- 1 evolved Rickard. "Ob, yes, I believe l011 fr. aj, the seat above, ditlon, not a fact. Here you see the that, too. exara threw his bag to tl.. I Oh, more than that .It Is not sol passing of the condition, the burial of oegro and swung onto the r 3r,a. J Synopsis. K. C. Rickard, an engineer of the Overland Pacific railIn as much for the necessity, the struggle the superstition. Are you Interested ,.wl. ed I steps. road, is called to the office of President Marshall In Tuscon, Ariz. While The mutual dependence Irrigation? I waiting Rickard reads a report on the ravages of the Colorado river, Rickard was not given to explain Is one of the blessings of aridity." ,Yailroad Sh?,s whlch he as,Um.vi despite the efforts of Thomas Hardin, head of the Desert Reclamation One of the blessings-oof Interest his profession aridity rerJe .a-- . noleI w looked company, Hardin had been a student under Rickard In an eastern colInvolved, for the stranger drew a pain- - echoed his listener. You are a phllos- pronuo;) attractive wlth Its wide encirci.n; lege and had married Gerty Holmes, with whom Rickard had fancied he ,.l He not touched had ful breath, and went on. opher. yet Sn1 1116 patch of greop was In love. Marshall tells Rickard the Overrand Pacific must to !h in at the course others Of are a spring. step thought you are, if you "huh save the Imperial valley and wlshea tb send Rickard to take I ?av th di?nlty of a lawn. western man. You are, I think? You might as well call me a social-- 1 Rs. charge. them 0 Rickard declines because he foresees embarrassment In supplanting ipped up The engineer said he was, by choice, list because I praise Irrigation in that I. airy The older mans smile was tolerant cKard I 3 Hardin, but Is won over. yes follows the Is "Irrigation the creed of the West it stands for the small farm unit 0 t ireen. Barton," he Indicated, Is the presi- Gold brought people to this country ; I retorted the one man. Is That pa. valley dent of the water companies. And If water, will keep I of its flats; the small unit It Is the I The friendly voice from above toi.j scientifically applied, CHAPTER III., m that that was the office of you want to hear about a rogue and a them here. Look at Riverside. And I small farm that theyve tried. Ill say that much, the pays. That fact brings scoundrel ask the water companies we are at the I Hosort Reclamation company. His I WJe they haven't the know-hoIs the charm What many advantages. stage primer only. The Blessing of Aridity. The window seats, Rickard could their opinion of Hardin." are way behind the ancients In Infor-lo- f Riverside? It comes to me always I next survey was more personal. He ' When Rickard left the main line at see, were filled before the cars halted, Well, what sort of a hole has he mation on that I learned the unreal dream of the socialist I saw himself entering the play at like, ihe demanded the other with school, so did subject some Imperial Junction the next afternoon by the experienced ones who had not I ko1 08 a company that was of the come true. It Is a city of farms, of I represenave you, that beal-In its eyes followed the train he, was waited for the train to be made up. most glorious civilizations flourished small farms, where a man may make I distrusted if not indeed actively hatci tile scramble he spied deserting rather than the one that vacant f "Hardins in a hole himself, tbe valley folk. It amused him that in of the desert which surround-- 1 his living off his ten acres of oranges I one seem to remember that he ed spite was to carry him to his new labors, window on the sunny sidO and made entrance was so quiet as to l J or lemons; and with all the comforts them. was That a half truth. tmly lie felt again the thrill of detachment for It. A stranger dropped Into the I craclfled himself to save the valley, They were great because I ! and It , of conveniences a of within Why city I Pve that Invariably preceded his entrance peat beside him. great respect for Thomas Har- - did the Incas choose the desert when reach, his neighbors not ten miles off I I dln-Into a new country. With, the pulling Every window In the car, was open. their strength gave them the choice of A farmer In Riverside or In any irrl-th- e Yes?" returned Rickard, whose up of the porter's stool, Each red velveted, dusty seat was continent of South America? Why gated community does not have to A strong desert wind was blow-- 1 ln bad been captured by the speaker. did the slamming of the train .gates, the the Aztecs settle In the desert I postpone living for himself or his n Tbe Impression 0f distinction shnrp- curtain fell on the Tucson set scene, Ing sand Into their faces, discoloring - lly until he can sell the farm have they might preHe easily ened. The stranger wore a laundered The long line of cars .was pushing the seats and covering the floor. erupted the watered regions?. ..Then can go to churdh, can walk there; the The to off with its his compan- pongee silk shirt, open at the neck but there are the engineer turned Pullmans the Tol- - trolley - car- - which passes his door restricted by a brown silk tie; and it tecs, the .Moors.Carthaginians, and diners, steaming down' grade ion, who was coughing. And one never for-- takes him to a public library or the 'Do you m!ndthls. window being was trimly belted. There werfe but cots toward the Sink, the depression which EHs children ride to opera ..house. two neckties in the entire car, and had been primeval sea, and then des- open? For protection, Rickard .gave the I school. His wife does not need to bd I'd mind if it were not. Its always theY occupied, Rickard observed, the slighted ert, and was now sea again. Did question an Interested recog- - & drudge. The bread wagon hnd the bad Beach, rechristened Imperial Junction jit the Junction. When we get 8u,ne Beat-nltion. Was that not what we were I steam laundry wagon stop at her The beginning of the canal sysfor railroad convenience,, vps Itself taught at school? The forest held door. tem. lower than the ancient genuine where foes, animal and human. Those na-- 1 Rickard observed that perhaps he Rickard looked out upon a flat, d once the gulf had reached- - Rickard tlons grew to their strength and I did not know anything about Irrigation country, marked off in knew be ooulffflnd shells at that des- power in the desert by virtue of Its after all! He had not thought of it It Is the desert dust that nags I tangles by plows and scrapers. Far-on- Isolation. ert station should he jQok for them I , before in Its sociological relation but I He coughed again. He picked up his bag that the porter ! Going In?" I lber outh these rectangles were edged retorted man Superstition the as It touched his profession, merely b7 young willows. Rickard said he was going In. He fancied he with the tie. ..had thrown on the ground tl ml faced We are babes "Not going Into soil values, for that ' "Are you going to settle in the val- - cou,d see, even'at that distance, the breast the curtain. measured by the wisdom of the J Is a "long story , began the older man, J fa lean of The Inquisitor was a man 0f water, Its painted scene men who settled Damascus, or com- a yellow sta- ley? Irrigation is the answer which scl-- 1 ' tion house broiling under' a desert about fifty, Rickard decided, with a I 11 aa the passing of the desert A pared with the Toltecs, or those an- - ence gives to the agriculturist who Is sun; a large water tank beyond, and desert tan of apparent Health. His eviutles back he had seen the desert who In northern of haphazard methods. n impatient trieS 8e.tt,ed in Its primitive nakedness, which not in the distance the inevitable card- face was clear cut and Intelligent recoffn zed the value of ffatlon is not a compromise, as so many cuctus I don't know." relieved. He was cassinz board- mountains, like property scene Tte tfcreero.d beUevo know nothtof .boot It It over "Just looking the country over? shifts, flat and thin In their, unreal 0M fYou I cal! It might that hues of burnished pink and. purple., A .ho landed Go admonished slowj," his compandusty accommodation train was back'r0 That was the way Itlterold. looted window Dont let yourself be carried u"!? mUOSel W,h log and switching, picking up the ion. admitted R Is a wonderful country. But I first saw It, commented the LeJLr empty refrigerator cars to carry Into away. declared the the BrandonSjMy Name. slow man ones other who the go wore who Its to a tie. Come out exponentofarldilv expect the valley for the early melon growers. ! caI1 rai remake millions the first year that be- - on the rear platform. We can see bet-compromise, Will you tell me Inst u-reptltlous. It would have been quieter Already the valley had asserted Its come the lrrlgatlonist. The man had youtorted the ter." knockers. Go worst. alow, Marshall had his way. But he industrial Importance; the late rammeanr Rickard followed to back the of the himself had stipulated that Hardin Not in one session! page of the Colorado had made It be should told of his coming. He had Those whowould pay spectacular. seen the telegram before It left the tittle attention to the opening of, a uvu u insurance policy against I Tucson nflW TTa mi wt, new agricultural district In the heart I a country slip past him. Receding acrer They were of a dreaded desert opened their ears a year back. In some districts youof unfamlllar role in this complicated Slmnn!11184 working tthis The eru the two lines of gleaming steel scheme then- -n drama of the vagary of the river which had can buy a good farm for a ticket back riTer and d8rt. but it wu was not paper as ,mpatlent not to ralIs wh,cH connected and separated alive to be as an eportively made of a part of that des- home, the farmers are so discouraged. eavesdropper. then I had from the wotld outside. He was not flvJd possibilities caprice Z Zn 8 I 8ubJeed to ert an Inland sea. Scientists were Cold feet The slang sounded oddly Tbe be& ta Utah bus slowlr yet rushing their speculations Into print ; would the sea dwindle by evaporation, as It had done before? Or would the overflow maintain the paradoxical I sole. There was not a scar on powerful face. Estracfes business methods were then not different from Sathers anC Hardins! It was a deep, rich organ. Oh, you cant class nardln with Sather," protested Rickards compan Ion. Sather used Hardin. Hardins honesty cannot be questioned. Its not moneys hes after. Ills whole heart Is In this reclamation scheme. Hardins a false alarm, growled the owner of the massive head. He makes promises. He never keeps GOES IN RICKARD J . L- - b- 1 f the-degre- e . hi.-.- - 4 I , 1 I a- -, I I Ilk-fille- d. green-parppte- d fam-whe- 1 linen-covere- d J T E-nt- 1 one-tone- rec-:alf- a. - e. at-th- e rung-dow- n w-a-s Irri-eve- - Lh.ot"W r i , - j 52lan Si 1 ' ! ' t ' " 4 s 4 sea? The flood signs were apparent. There cracks had split the desert sand; here water fissures had menaced the track; and to the south a fringe of young willows hid the path of the Colorado's debouch. The men crowding the platform wore the motley of the new country. In Tucson the uniform of the male - vltUens, with the exception ot, those feckless ones who found Inevitably that lotns is a liquid, the wilted pretense of a gentle civilization; de-- x spondent ducks and khakis and limp collars. Imperial Junction marked the downfall of the collar. The rest of the composite costume was irregular, badly laundered and torn, faded and sunburned; the clothes of the desert soid.tr. Rickard saw buttonless shirts, faded overalls, shabby hats the ombrero of Mexico. The faces wnoVr the hats made a tearing impression upon him of youth and eagerness. He noted a significant (average of intelligence and alertness. This was not the Indolent group of men which makes a pretense of occu- ' patlon w henever a train comes in ! Going In? asked a voice at his ear. A pair of failed eyes set la a young-elface, whether early withered or well preserved he had not time to determine, was staring at him. He assured bis interlocutor that he was going in. Ills mood Isolated ttje phrase; Its significance vastly different from going onJ Buying? s k i i 1 Jc i - broad-brimme- d . d think not" It la a good time to buy. Rickard For suspected a real es'tate agent. land Is low rock bottom prices oh account of the uneasiness about the river.. People are afraid. They want to see the company redeem some of .Jts promises before, they come Ja;. and the company isnt in mnch of a I ad be sa,d let The tender hour of day was cloth- - alert, vigorous faces, distinctly5 resp0, f th I spG5kinS of the value of the soil?" Theres but one company to the ing them with mystery, softening their American type, valley, the one that brought them here, the D. R. They dont call the the gen-- 1 it is, bow it crumbles? You can railroad the company. They wont rec- pense of the next act It was a torpid imagination, he I faces ognize .that problem I Its had hard luck from the first, the D. R. At the I thugH which would not quicken over knowledged' luat ,.e Imu Deen smiru . ' dMe very start the wrong man got ld of 2 that-bere but at Imperial SITES inVmakin brought . V3 Were. pr,par I Joclion, where he had waited for the I ting the newly furrowed ground for'the I train. (delta. Heavy rainfalls are rare here, seed. The curved land knives were U There Is a club In J1? had them 1x1 spite of the vallev nlon Wer we to have op breaking up the rich mold into ridges started, a club which adStl rpular of soft soil as uncoheslve and those7 chemlcal propertIes feathery I as members who havhad a I as pulverized chocolate, It was DU7 t0 the least two years of roller the out. drained from the soil. I cant this merce, silt which had been pil- - ready. The first meeting was heldJ-last II make thl8 fored from the states through which week comprehensive, but Ive a in an emntv - .rved I bntldIng their windows. announced Pst fa J J offiee oi C,0Se to -- SiilsT1 tJ I ft? ( - 1 1 theJhllvf er r 1 twJ .r Irri-ati- on d f two or --- 1 ot -- T I were piercing the ground. Now they j grant fields. " ere abreast of a field of matured al- It Is falfa over which the wind raced is attmctinJ j fully. If Desert and grain fichU d? I land life I The panorama embraced the It is the other ho.e cyclt .They went back to their ata. After ot Ihe tort et men re- -- nL d X , idea !h TB 1 ttl dmn8 defiance against the hard the land It cla ckard leaned out of tlTwInd temPerauce hooked back up the valley which ? '2? XX?' IT14 , ho hhiy1,?.?? Scamps1?. The newcomer's survey few nlmtM ihe ether leaeed ever here, the m.a r u type. of the long line of naked mountains is shoulder. LishanA waring tAor,.i - TTia . and lean lands that formed the neck hotly shriveled. of the valley gave a snub of casual-nes- g the aeck the ancient burns that had j Superstition mountains you can see he had picked ud a crant to the questbn. spared the magnificent head. The rest over yonder. An unusually apt name. I No. Fools'" The imewer-wa- s as of the man had been shriveled and . L. The desert offers a man special ad Yes? ,ndus,rlal aad gricub swift as a ballet. Though some twisted into terrible deformity. Rick , Is it good, you mean? That tural. It !dal no accident that them I worsd than you fiud ard found thlnl; that people himself puzzling over the pile of dark rock stands ns a certain $ort t)f nijiQ fa ri T to with my Its' ruling to an effete superstition It L accompanying I suDDose vou mean ltSclf I piZI con- - Sd Jng Set How will Hardiri: receive the man who comet to supplant him and how will Hardins wife receive the man who once had t6ld her of hi love and then, tom by doubts, had run away from her expectant eyes? Theso are questions that worry Rickard, but h is not left long In doubt. Cet the answer, with Rickard, In the next installment. (TO BE CONTINUED ) I 'by monu-incirie- .i A aiexico me nnne nressea another 8tcld 8trutur I of th desert type. The upper floor, supported by posts, extended over the sidewalk. .Netted wire screened away the desert mosquito and gave the overhanging gallery the grotesque appearance of a huge fencing mask. From the street could be seen rows of beds, as In hospital wards. Calexico, It was seen, slept out of doors. Desert hotel, bawled the darky, reining In his placid team. Yes, sah, Ill look out for your bag. ludulged a minute of whimsical little motleybut the talk soundHtke I th,Yngneer 81111 amased. I ot I this was California territory fancy; the choice yor room? The hotels mighty of the Aztecs over home. sar to be full. Not many women ylt of the , Incas, of which his train was passing, but the The-fI Moors- . All the men soil, that dark earth those blades were I doors' brought on LotherZnf Yrved the 8traSr Thpy I d0"n t11,8 a7ay' heah. at. the chose hotel." llves the most,y was In It not not the tribute of cling desert, rlbt cmmbllng, spite of the swirl of SU bUt beCaUSC of lU 1 doubt Rlckard a other states, of despoiling Wyoming, window, to thedaWeemme a dive made from H they - were which de' I lnt0 of ravishing Colorado and Arizona? awake to the social advantaces d?st tbe hoteL The long line he hevnnd f To the west new squares were I thf. 8yst6m but it. was their co- - 'anticipated at the desk was not there.1 I brotherhood' that help'ed I rl2 leveled and outlined. I stopped to take in a vaUey lmvovaShrubby' , me -- The A.be opratIve. ll0Q 0n end the long counter had W were ar 1 glory JSlSl tangles being cleared of their ere- - Er tapped his chest centuries bar. osote bush and tough' mesqulte. Com- - But it Is exile no loneer-S- ot fn ,thera rm ettlng not her- e- been, converted Into a soda-watn the 1116 of If Imperial. you come blgh swivel stools in' front to Imperial pared with other countries, the prepa- - Irrigated country For r look e up. Brandons up I wWte towering marbled its with ration for planting was the simplest Irrigation It Is the nrnmivf stand, my name. Ive these days sUrer fixtures, were crowded with dust- Horses were dragging over the ground the man with Ideas or the n.lard I are 8everaI thlnes I want to parchd occupants of the bus. A whlte- I a railroad rail bent Into a V angle. willing to taka them, who eomZ in!! k hlch pulled the bushes by the roots this desert ted youth was pouring colored from you answered Rickard, country. If he ha, not hi was a brown necktl and and dragged them out of the way. Re- - education it Is forced pointed 8lrup8 ,nto taU Susses; there upon him. I t0 tbe Ice PIatform. farther of of a siphons, yond, ; sizzling west, could be seen the it worked out In Utah I wa. Ill be sure linking . untouched desert The surface for several years. Thats a new one on me," grinned yU Up" Mines Rickard. means He Was Going In. many miles Was cracked by water j operation. That ls,to me the rhi e H . Tb breeze " blch was now entering I Rlckard, turning toward the desk e lines, broken and baked into irregular j value of aridity. It. leather, the first promoter, was a sand clover-leafefields. Its message was waiting to announce that there was but;, the mark of sand which cakes;. The' jwind, though faker-- a pretty thorough faker. The has been Imprisoned one room left. company reorganized, but Its been In oanais With bath?? off Ieadlng like vas silver bad odorith the public ever since. carrying less 0f crit anllth I thought Lstfada was the original he ,n4uIrod- ferred to, Lstradas a recent comer-- oh. you The young-olface with the faded mean .e general. 11 started the ball The rolling, that was all Bad health, fob eyes looked at him la surprise. D. R. company, Desert Reclamation, lowing the eompllctlon, tleO hu which brought us all here. hurry. Rickard asked what company he Ing fraternally fh nt mir-jme- nt that the I The Desert Hotel "Ith re!lf tdUStJ were called. Es J!n twi? I Tote Philosophy. Always carry a little philosophy alout with you. A gilded 808 Is of little account to the big aot atuck la the mud. |
