Greasewood & Evening Sky

One should set up the equipment in time enough to be set for that perfect moment when sun and sky are in accord. The colors are fleeting and evasive and unfortunately do not remain in position to allow time for adjustment of tripod, leveling of camera, unpacking and inserting of film.

The silhouette in the foreground is always important. In sunlight the saguaro is a worthy subject for the most expert photographer, but when portrayed in silhouette against an evening sky this giant of the desert takes on ghostly qualities and appears like some fantastic creature from another world. The suitable and shapely silhouette (whether the saguaro, a desert tree, a broken down fence, a house, a bush, a palm tree or even a telephone pole) adds depth to a portrait of an evening sky and enhances the overall dramatic effect of the picture.

The lucky photographer may make the perfect evening study, but one should not rely on luck alone. The careful photographer will study a succession of evening skies in order to select the right position of the elements of earth and sky that make a superior photograph instead of an ordinary one.

A photographer must know his business to master the evening scene. He must be skillful with the tools of his trade, have a knowledge of meteorology, and above all the soul of an artist.

That I may have a period of two years from the date of approval of this application in which to establish a permanent home, and satisfy myself of my ability to make a living from such land. Within that period of time it is understood that: a. I may at any time after the end of the first year apply for admission to membership in the Colorado River Tribes, with all the privileges attached thereto as set forth in the draft resolution which I have read, at which time I will waive any further property rights on the reservation, or in the tribe. b. Instead of making this application, I may at the end of two years relinquish my colonization permit, and return to the reservation. In this case a land board to be estab-lished under regulations by the Secretary of the Interior will fix a fair value for any permanent improvements which I may have made on my farm and homesite, which amount will be paid to me by any successor who takes over my permit, or by the Hopi colonization group on behalf of a future colonist.

Each colonist was permitted to borrow $3,000 from the government with which to build a house, buy seed and small tools not available by rental, and out of the $3,000 food could be bought for his family until crops were harvested. The frugal Hopis used little of the loan for food, having brought their dried corn, peaches, beans and squash down from the mesa with them for just such an emergency. Large farm equipment could be rented from the Indian Service, and while homes were being built the colonists lived in the vacated Japanese barracks. Loans to a colonist were to be completely cleared up with interest inside of three years.

There were other conditions and agreements entered into which gave mutual benefit to both the colonists and the Colorado River Tribes. The invitation to colonize seemed directed largely toward the Hopi and Navajo Indians living on the high mountainous plateau and rocky mesas of Northern Arizona. Their need, at that time, was deemed more pressing than that of other Arizona tribes.

Parched and worn as are the Hopi grazing lands, and incredibly small planting fields and gardens, the Peaceful Ones have managed to exist and survive on their three mesas for many centuries. They were there in 1540 when the first Spaniards came to this country, and tree ring readings show that timbers in their sacred kivas were cut in the early 1300's. The Hopis are the only Pueblo Indians in Arizona and they live under the benevolent protection of their Kachina gods residing in the snow-topped San Francisco Peaks sixty miles westward. Time and tradition bind them to their homeland. Their sacred shrines are part of their daily lives; their remembered dead lie in rocky crypts all around the villages; tame eagles are chained to the roof-tops and their presence insures plenty of breast plumes for the macabre Snake Dance, North America's best known ceremony of thanksgiving and prayer for rain.

The Hopis have fought off attacks by Utes, Apaches, Navajos and even white men in defense of their right to live according to their beliefs, and while epidemics and starvation have kept their numbers around 3,000 they have refused to move to another location. The women are gifted potters and basketmakers, and the men weave colorful blankets and work with silver and turquoise for income.

Schooled Hopis and returned war veterans know that there can be no future for their young families if they remain on the barren mesas. Unless they moved away from the exhausted and waterless land the Hopi Tribe was doomed. Bitter family quarrels arose, however, when more progressive members of the tribe spoke hopefully of the Colorado River Re-settlement Plan. There were heartaches and misgivings and even tribal curses from the priests when the first contingent of colonists gathered their flocks of sheep and cattle, and with their household belongings began the trek to the lower Colorado River country. That was in 1945. By 1948 there were 20 Hopi families and six Navajo families living there and building their homes. Now, in 1952, there are 101 Navajo families and 25 Hopi families on the Southern Reserve, and 150 more families, mostly Navajo, whose applications have been approved, waiting for available land.

The project is top-heavy with Navajos. That is what the Mohaves are saying, and some bitterness has developed between the Colorado River Tribes and their invited guests. History of the Navajo Tribe is a stormy one. They belong to the Athapascan Family, they and the Apaches, and are a strange haughty race. We are told that they were great hunters in their ancient Old World habitat, and that following bison and deer, they wandered over a land bridge where the Bering Strait now is and found themselves in the frozen north of the Western Continent. Centuries passed while they drifted southward, living on seeds and roots and game, and stopping for perhaps a generation while they planted maize and beans. They finally reached the Southwest where the Apaches formed their own tribe, and the Navajos continued to live by hunting and by raiding and robbing other Indians of that age. The Navajos called themselves "Dinne," The People, and were the scourge of the region when the Spaniards came in the 1540s.

There was little intercourse between The Dinne and the Conquistadors; all the Indians wanted from the new-comers was to be ignored and given a chance to steal the fascinating horses brought from Spain, and the foolish gentle sheep more docile tribes had accepted from the priests. Pueblo slaves captured by the Navajos had carried the art of weaving into hogans and with fleece pulled from the sheeps' backs warm covering could be made without the trouble of killing, skinning and tanning wild animal pelts. Mutton tasted better than deer or wild turkey, and the sheepskins made soft warm sleeping mats. With stolen sheep in their possession the Navajo Indians changed their way of life. They built mud and stone hogans to live in where there was feed and water for the flocks. And while the women guarded the new treasure the men, mounted on stolen horses, ranged and raided far and wide. They would strike the villages of Mexican or Indian people along the Rio Grande and drive livestock and captives back to the mountains. Treaties were worthless, and even after the United States became legal owner of Arizona and New Mexico, the raids and murders continued. Under stern orders from General James Carleton, Colonel Kit Carson with his regiment of New Mexico Volunteers entered the Navajo country in 1863 and devastated it. When he completed his tour of duty by marching troops through the sacred Canyon de Chelly, the Navajos were convinced they were licked for the time being. Carson was authorized to offer them refuge in a good farming country where they could take what sheep he had left them, if they would voluntarily come in with their families and stock for transportation. It was a fanciful resettlement plan with nothing to back it. Eight thousand Navajos were marched, driven and dragged to a desolate desert at Fort Sumner, New Mexico and herded there in confinement along with their most bitter Indian enemies. Their treatment there by both the army and Indian Service is something one would like to forget. They were starved and frozen and robbed, and given no shelter from the elements. Hundreds died of eating spoiled food issued to them. If any tried to escape back to their mountains, hostile Indians were sent out to capture or kill them. Their stock was driven off by marauding tribes, and the Navajos had no weapons for defense. Kit Carson, heartsick over his unwitting part in their betrayal, worked unceasingly for their release. He couldn't write more than his own name, but he had junior officers in his command that took down his bitter burning reproaches and his pleas to General Carleton and General Wm. T. Sherman, and those original letters in the United States Archives portray the fiery little Carson as having little regard for army red tape!

At the end of four years, what remained of the Navajo Nation was escorted back to Northern Arizona, given some sheep, seeds for planting, a lot of worthless promises, and told to get lost.

They melted away into the shadowy mountains, nursed themselves and their sheep back into the limelight. Now there are 65,000 Navajos on their 25,000 acre reservation, and goodness knows how many million sheep would be there if a compulsory stock reduction program hadn't cleared the pastures. Sheep meant security to the tribe. They sold wool at shearing time, and the lamb crop in the spring to the trading posts for essential food and clothing; they wove wool into rugs which brightened floors and rustic bunks from one side of the nation to the other; they beat silver into costume jewelry and studded it with native turquoise and kept themselves from starvation.

But too many sharp sheep hooves, too much wind and too little rain ruined the grazing, and their flocks were doomed. Stock reduction was necessary in order to rebuild the range, but it worked untold hardships on the Navajos. Their men went anywhere work could be had. They are natural mechanics, and they worked on railroads and highway construction, and hundreds of them were and are in the armed forces. Returning veterans faced a dreary future until they received the Mohave invitation to move to the lower Colorado Reservation and make new homes for themselves and their families. Once there all their skill and acquired knowledge was put to work making their forty acres pay. They owed a debt of $3,000 to the government, and a debt of gratitude to the Colorado River Tribes, and Navajos are proud-they don't like to be beholden! They worked hard to clear the books. And while they worked they shared their good fortune with hungry kinfolk back on the Navajo Reservation. With money in their pockets and truckloads of grain and vegetables they visited up there, creating a desire in other families to join the resettlement colony on the Southern Reserve.

During the first year of Hopi re-settlement I visited with them. Many were old friends of mine and their destiny was of personal importance. Superintendent Gensler, in charge of the Parker Agency had grown old in the Indian Service, and lost much of his optimism along the way. "I'll tell you better how this is going to turn out five years from now. You have three unrelated family groups here, Yuman, Uto-aztecan and Athapascan. They have been hereditary enemies in the past; their religions, customs, speech and way of life are radically different. We must all work and hope for the best!"

Two years later Mr. Gensler was dead, but in answer to my inquiries the Extension Agent gave heart warming reports: "Indian interest in colonization continues to be favorable and applications from both Hopi and Navajo tribes are in excess of available land on which to place them. Their operations so far have been a success, and they are accepted in the community not only by the Indian people, but by the town and community of Parker. They are raising grain, cotton, truck crops and cattle in addition to their principal crop of alfalfa. The indebtedness for homes and supplies is being paid off often before due."

In the year 1951 the colonists raised 500 bales of cotton on 460 acres of land and sold their crop for $82,800; they grossed $363,000 in 14,000 tons of alfalfa growing on 4,500 acres; their 250 head of cattle had a value of $63,000 and 140 head of sheep were worth $3,600. In addition to these money crops they raised small grains, vegetables and fruits for their own use. Co-operative groups bought heavy farming equipment and trucks for marketing their crops. They exchanged labor on their farms and house building, and were always eager to listen and watch when the demonstration agent came to instruct them.

Indian children excel in school activities and mix well with playmates.

For the first time in their lives the Hopi and Navajo children can be sure of schooling. They are well dressed, well fed and learning to enter the white man's world.

Arizona is proud of this re-settlement project, and point to it when other states search for a means of security for their Indian population. And Congress, usually indifferent and lethargic where the problems of Indians are concerned, approved this constructive operation, and under the urgent nudging of Arizona congressmen has voted $14,637,606 to be spent there. About $5,000,000 of that amount went into construction of Headgate Dam and its irrigation system. Perhaps construction of that dam was what the Colorado River Tribes had in mind when they broached the re-settlement subject. It is built now, and their invited colonists are prospering with use of its impounded waters. The average income of the 126 colonist families there in 1951 was just over $4,000, and with that concrete incentive 200 additional Navajo families placed permit applications.

Perhaps it was a mistake in the beginning not to allocate the permits and keep a certain quota of colonists from the many tribes named in the resolution. Up to now, all the colonists are Hopi and Navajo with the exception of two Havasupai families. The Mohaves see that before long the Colorado River Tribes, under their compulsory edict of colonists renouncing their own tribe to join that of the Colorado tribes, will have more Navajos than Mohaves or Chemehuevis!

Whether they, by personal observation and deduction, see that their invited settlers have made a paying proposition of the land, or whether outsiders for ulterior reasons fostered dissatisfaction, the Mohaves are attempting to be Indian Givers. They claim that they were rushed into the project by government officials and following their attorneys' advice they voted overwhelmingly to "repeal" their entire agree-ment. They ask that all colonists be removed from the land and that it be returned to them for their disposal. They propose to repay the government the $15,000,000 spent by it in carrying out the agreement. Perhaps their attorneys know how the Colorado River Tribes can offhand obtain this amount of money.

Records kept over a period of ten years of discussion of the re-settlement project show that every aspect of the scheme was fully and openly talked over by all parties con-cerned. The agreement was entered into in good faith and the government and the invited colonists have fulfilled their contract in detail. The Mohaves have been inclined to scoff at the scientific farming methods of their colonists, and some tribal bitterness has arisen between them and the Navajos. The Colorado River Tribes have never been so prosperous as they are now, and doubtless outside influence has been at work.

The Secretary of the Interior, sworn to protect the rights of all Indian Tribes under his jurisdiction, vetoed the Mohave appeal to void their contract. But uncertainty and fear clouds the prosperous valley settlement in the Southern Reserve. Until Congress has a clear definition of what was intended in the original reservation setup back in 1865, it is possible that no more money will be spent to reclaim land for either the settlers or the Colorado River Tribes. And while ownership of the land is being established, there are some salient points Commissioner Dillon Myer would like to see established. In an interview he told me he would like to have the clause making membership in the Colo-rado River Tribes of the colonists compulsory eliminated.

He also feels that forty acres of farming land are not enough to insure financial security for a family. He suggests that the farming area should be increased.

One of the Commissioner's desires is to see a law passed which will permit these colonist Indians to eventually own their purchased land in fee, and be allowed to dispose of it by lease or sale as would any other American citizen. Only by such responsible ownership and right of sale can Indian citizens take their place in economic community life.

Until the Secretary of the Interior and congress decide ownership of the disputed land, and the right or wrong of the Mohave desire to repudiate their tribal approved agree-ment, the Land of Beginning Again has a dark cloud over it.

Yours sincerely GRAND CANYON ISSUE:

My congratulations on your masterpiece ARIZONA HIGHWAYS, March edition, describing the awe inspiring beauty of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. The millions that have had the pleasure of seeing the world's greatest formation of beauty and grandeur have seen the Hand of God in the Creation of the World.

I wish it were so that every school and library in the United States could have several copies each of the March issue of your maga-zine.

I am buying several extra copies at the news-stands to send some friends that I know will never have the opportunity to visit the greatest of all Creations.

Roy Ramey El Cerrito, California

IN A CLASSROOM:

I just want to let you know how very much my class and I enjoy your magazine. It is especially attractive to children because of the beautiful color of your pictures. Right now we are studying the mountain states and there is a wealth of material in the magazine which I use with the class.

In one end of my classroom I have a cabinet with 30 panes of glass exactly the size of your full page pictures. I have three complete sets of pictures from ARIZONA HIGHWAYS to fit these glass doors: one set of fall pictures, one set of winter pictures, and one set of spring pictures. I change the sets with the seasons and the pictures are the "high-light spot" of my classroom.

Minni Dysterheft Minneapolis, Minnesota

COLOR CLASSICS:

I was very pleased to see your announcement of Color Classics in May issue of ARIZONA HIGHWAYS. As a slide collector I readily testify that yours will be one of the most popular slide offerings made in America. I hope to eventually have every slide you produce.

Alfred M. Canol Milwaukee, Wis.

Congratulations on your Color Classics. My first order has just arrived and I must say your slides are truly Classics, some of the best I have seen. The fact that slides can be bought from pictures appearing in ARIZONA HIGHWAYS makes Color Classics doubly interesting.

Mrs. T. T. Stevenson Knoxville, Tenn.

TO LIVE BY

When covered-wagon caravans Creaked westward, and the day Seemed too long beneath copper skies, How often did my lady (with eyes Ever eager to sight an oasis By the way) descend to the ground And pick a flower she found Growing wild. Realizing God is Everywhere men may tread, The little flower became a symbol Of His goodness, something for her To live by, besides bread.

CARRIE MARECY BORING

A NAVAJO ABROAD THINKS OF HOME

These distant places hold no lure for me. This sky is alien; not the sky I knew. The stars that float above are dim and few And even the vagrant winds are not so free. Could I but find one twisted cedar treeA single yucca cup, frost-lipped with dew, If in my searching nostrils one wind blew A breath of sage-my loneliness would flee.

Long I have been away and still I dream Of green corn growing tall beside red rocks And melons ripening on a slender vine. In vain I listen for the eagle's scream And the bleating of my mother's grazing flocks, And I long for far-off pleasures that were mine.

FERN TAPSCOTT BELL

THE STORM PASSES

The night hung clear, But the leaves were heavy And glistened yet With tears of the storm just through. The earthy odor of sated dust Rose around us like the clinging past And permeated our clothes. We stood firm In hushed awe at the changed world. Raising our eyes to the same high stars, We saw them as clear promises. All storms pass.

ISABELLE COX

SAN XAVIER:

The other Franciscan friars of Bac join me in expressing hearty congratulations and unstinted praise for your inspired and inspiring portrayal of Mission San Xavier! To employ your own words with a few necessary changes, your humble publication (which, to my knowledge, has no serious rival in the other 47 states) has never told the story of San Xavier so well before-neither has any other publication.

The sympathetic, vivid descriptions together with the outstanding photography conspired in conveying the same overwhelming and complex impression and emotions with which San Xavier itself smites every thoughtful and appreciative visitor.

Accept my sincere gratitude for your copies of the ARIZONA HIGHWAYs as well as for the rare pleasure of meeting two perfectly delightful people which your assignment afforded!

Fr. Celestine Chinn, O. F. M. Mission San Xavier Del Bac Tucson, Arizona

Yours sincerely BACK COVER "CORONADO TRAIL" BY WAYNE DAVIS.

The Coronado Trail is that enchanted stretch of highway (U.S. 666) which joins Springerville and Clifton, two towns some 120 miles apart. The Trail, a graded road, clings to some of the highest ridges of the Whites and Blues before dropping into the canyon where Clifton is located. Because of the heavy snows in winter, the Trail is closed but opens for business about May 15, weather conditions permitting. This view was taken from Blue Lookout, about halfway between Clifton and Springerville. Brand 17 Camera, 6/½" Ilex lens, 1/5th second at F.22, Ektachrome.

As one who grew up in the shadow of San Xavier del Bac; who learned from it the meaning of beauty, of art, and of a good part of life; and who carried the image of the White Dove through tens of thousands of miles of travel over three continents during World War II until it came gently to rest here in the North Country-may I express my deepest gratitude for the noble essay on the mission which Nancy Newhall and Ansel Adams prepared for your April issue. And for Miss Newhall's historic sense, her knowledge of Christian symbolism, and her at-homeness in the world of art one can only have astonished admiration, as one must for the luminous photography of Mr. Adams.

Betty Bandel Asst. Professor, English University of Vermont Burlington, Vermont Sincerest congratulations on "Mission San Xavier del Bас."

Nancy Newhall deserves the highest praise. I have never read anything quite so beautiful and charming. It is to be hoped that you can prevail upon her to use her extraordinary talents to write more articles for your very unusual magazine.

Edward J. Soehnel Rialto, California

OPPOSITE PAGE "RED CLIFFS ALONG THE VERDE," BY

ALLEN C. REED. This is the Verde River approximately two miles upstream from Clarkdale as seen from the general area of the Sycamore Canyon road in late September. On the far side of the river the railroad tracks of the "Verde Mix" wind their way from Clarkdale to Drake. The Verde is one of Arizons's main rivers and is popular not only for its scenic beauty and its well known bass and cat fishing waters but is a most valuable asset to the irrigation farmers of the Phoenix area. Camera Data: 4 x 5, Crown Graphic on tripod, F.16 at 1/10th second, Ektachrome.