LETTERS AND E-MAIL

and e-mail lettes Hanging Our Heads

In “Buckey O'Neill, Mr. Sensitive?” (“Taking the Off-ramp,” February '03), there is the sentence “When murderer Dennis Dilda was hung in Prescott in 1886 . . .” According to the best stylists, this is bad English. Plants are “hung” in the window and Christmas stockings are “hung” by the chimney with care, but human beings are always “hanged.”

M.W. WENNER, Prescott

The poor old editor would apologize for committing such an error, but he's not here. The grammar police have taken him away.

Teen-age Dancing

The column “He Could Have Danced All Night,” (“Along the Way,” February '03) by S.E. Turner brought tears to my eyes.

It has been more than 60 years since I attended teen dances, and the story brought back happy memories of the agony of asking a girl to dance (especially when you had little confidence in your dancing ability), and the joy of finding a compatible partner.

WILLIAM A. MARSH, Boise, ID

Peanut-loving Squirrels

We read the story about the shy Abert squirrels by Kelly Tighe (“Shy Sprites of the Ponderosa Pine Forests,” February '03). You should come to our house. About seven of them come for breakfast each morning and for dinner each afternoon.

We feed them peanuts and apples, and if we don't get out there fast enough, they climb on the back screen door to let us know they are out there. They are beautiful animals, and we know when each female has her litter. She has about three of them, and when the young ones get big enough, she brings them around to us. They will take peanuts right out of our hands, and they are clowns, too. For the cost of peanuts, we get hours of entertainment just watching them. They are our babies and part of our family. There is nothing shy about our squirrels.

MR. AND MRS. DEL PORTER, Flagstaff

Montezumas Head

I just finished reading the article “Scrambling Up Montezumas Head” (February '03). I particularly enjoyed the fact that none of the climbers in the story wore helmets. It's a well-known fact that the protection afforded by climbing helmets is vastly overrated (particularly in comparison with the durability of the bare human skull). I look forward to future articles that feature kids playing in traffic, people driving without seatbelts and hikers entering the Grand Canyon in July without water.

I hope you don't mind the ribbing, but I also hope you choose to set a good example in the future.

TODD MARTIN, Phoenix

Miles From Where?

I have been a subscriber to Arizona Highways for more than 40 years. During that time, I have always looked forward to its arrival.

Recently however, it has gotten my hackles up. Almost every issue has a map on page 1 showing Phoenix and Tucson, yet almost all articles have a note at the end telling how to get there only from Phoenix.

In the February 2003 issue, it says Nogales is 175 miles south of Phoenix. In the January 2003 issue, it says the Huachuca Mountains are 200 miles southeast of Phoenix. In the March 2003 issue, it notes that the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge is 170 miles southwest of Phoenix, and that Tubac is 160 miles south of Phoenix.

Most people in the world know where Tucson is.

I recently bought a globe of the world made in China. It has Tucson on it, but not Phoenix.

I feel the 750,000 people in Tucson would like to know how far places in southern Arizona are from Tucson and not from Phoenix.

JAMES GRAY, Tucson We agree with you. We will begin giving mileage from the nearest large city. Thanks for the suggestion.

Finding a Body

Thank you for the article “John Daw, the Navajos’ Big Policeman” (February '03) by Leo W. Banks. I particularly appreciated the account of the murder that took place near Kaibito in 1937. Even though I was only 2 years old, I will never forget that event. My father, the late Ralph Jones, was the trader at Kaibito when the body was spotted by one of the local Navajo men. Not wanting to get anywhere near a corpse, this gentleman persuaded Daddy to “discover” the body.

After that day, when my father brought any visitor to Kaibito, he would slow his vehicle to a crawl and dramatically point out the spot where the deceased was found. Then we would hear the story of John Daw and how he knew that no Navajo would ever wear the boots of a dead person. Even today, with that old road to Kaibito no longer in existence, I think I could find that gully in my sleep.

ELIZABETH JONES DEWVEALL, Phoenix

ARIZONA HIGHWAYS

JULY 2003 VOL. 79, NO. 7 Publisher WIN HOLDEN Editor ROBERT J. EARLY Senior Editor BETH DEVENY Managing Editor RANDY SUMMERLIN Research Editor MARY PRATT Editorial Administrator CONNIE BOCH Administrative Assistant NIKKI KIMBEL Director of Photography PETER ENSENBERGER Photography Editor RICHARD MAACK Art Director MARY WINKELMAN VELGOS Deputy Art Director BARBARA GLYNN DENNEY Deputy Art Director BILLIE JO BISHOP Art Assistant PAULY HELLER Map Designer KEVIN KIBSEY Arizona Highways Books WitWorks Books Editor BOB ALBANO Associate Editor EVELYN HOWELL Associate Editor PK PERKIN MCMAHON Production Director CINDY MACKEY Production Coordinator KIM ENSENBERGER Promotions Art Director RONDA JOHNSON Webmaster VICKY SNOW

Marketing Director PATRICIA POWERS-ZERMEÑO

Circulation Director LEE FRANKLIN

Finance Director ROBERT M. STEELE

Fulfillment Director VALERIE J. BECKETT

Information Technology Manager CINDY BORMANIS

FOR CUSTOMER INQUIRIES OR TO ORDER BY PHONE: Call toll-free: (800) 543-5432 In the Phoenix area or outside the U.S., Call (602) 712-2000 Or visit us online at: arizonahighways.com For Corporate or Trade Sales Call (602) 712-2050 E-MAIL “LETTERS TO THE EDITOR”: [email protected] Regular Mail: Editor 2039 W. Lewis Ave. Phoenix, AZ 85009 Governor Janet Napolitano Director, Department of Transportation Victor M. Mendez ARIZONA TRANSPORTATION BOARD Chairman Ingo Radicke, Globe Vice Chairman Bill Jeffers, Holbrook Members Dallas “Rusty” Gant, Wickenburg Richard “Dick” Hileman, Lake Havasu City James W. Martin, Willcox Joe Lane, Phoenix S.L. Schorr, Tucson INTERNATIONAL REGIONAL MAGAZINE ASSOCIATION 2001, 2000, 1998, 1992, 1990 Magazine of the Year WESTERN PUBLICATIONS ASSOCIATION 2002 Best Overall Consumer Publication 2002, 2001 Best Travel & In-transit Magazine 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1995, 1993, 1992 Best Regional & State Magazine SOCIETY OF AMERICAN TRAVEL WRITERS FOUNDATION 2000, 1997 Gold Awards Best Monthly Travel Magazine Arizona Highways (ISSN 0004-1521) is published monthly by the Arizona Department of Transportation. Subscription price: $24 a year in the U.S., $34 in Canada, $37 elsewhere outside the U.S. Single copy: $3.99 U.S., except July, $4.99. Send subscription correspondence and change of address information to Arizona Highways, 2039 W. Lewis Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85009. Periodical postage paid at Phoenix, AZ and at additional mailing office. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Arizona Highways, 2039 W. Lewis Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85009. Copyright © 2003 by the Arizona Department of Transportation. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. The magazine does not accept and is not responsible for unsolicited materials provided for editorial consideration.

PRODUCED IN THE USA

2 JULY 2003