MILEPOSTS

MILEPOSTS A BIG-BIRD BASH

Chandler's annual Ostrich Festival — featuring daily races by the big birds, a carnival, and other activities — will be held March 1517. This colorful celebration commemorates the period from 1888 to 1916, when Chandler led the nation in (yes!) ostrich plume production. The expensive feathers bedecked many a stylish hat. In 1913, 80 percent of the nation's 8,000 ostriches lived in Maricopa County. Chandler's founder, Dr. A. J. Chandler, raised the exotic eight-foot-tall birds on alfalfa fields where the Sheraton San Marcos Golf and Country Club stands today. For information, telephone (602) 963-4571.

HOW THE BABBITTS BECAME INDIAN TRADERS

Sam Dittenhoffer, Indian trader at Red Lake northeast of Tuba City in 1891, looked forward to his semiannual buying trips to Flagstaff. There he could lift a glass with friends, mingle for a day or two with Anglos, and perhaps enjoy some feminine companionship. One evening, after buying several thousand dollars worth of merchandise on credit at Babbitt Brothers Trading Company, he went out on the town and got gloriously inebriated. Before the dawn of a new day, Dittenhoffer found himself embracing a female companion, equally soused, who had agreed to accompany him back to his lonely post in Navajo country. Across the high desert in his spring wagon they traveled, stopping occasionally to secure theclanking cargo of trade goods. They had hardly reached Red Lake when the lady's irate boyfriend, one Tom Collins, galloped up brandishing a six-shooter. After some heated namecalling and an exchange of blows, Collins fired a bullet through Dittenhoffer's heart and carried the woman back to Flagstaff.

Dave and Charlie Babbitt, who with their three brothers were involved in various businesses and looking for more, decided to take over the Red Lake post in settlement of Dittenhoffer's debt. Within a decade, Babbitt trading posts had blossomed across the Navajo reservation. They're still thriving.

EASE THE SQUEEZE

Looking for ways to reduce gasoline costs in these days of rising prices? The Arizona Energy Office has a four-page guide, Arizona Energy Facts, Ease the Squeeze: Energy-Saving Ideas for Arizona Drivers, filled with tips to help drivers save fuel and money. To obtain a free copy, write the Arizona Energy Office, 3800 N. Central Ave., Ste. 1200, Phoenix, AZ 85012; or telephone (602) 280-1402, or toll-free in Arizona, 1 (800) 352-5499.

HOW OUR GARDEN GROWS

Visitors to the Phoenix area often are surprised by its variety of flora and fauna, but a turn around the Desert Botanical Garden is a real eye-opener. The garden, at 1201 N. Galvin Parkway in Papago Park, is a showcase of the thousands of varieties of cacti, succulents, wildflowers, trees, and shrubs that thrive here. Many species of birds also can be seen at the garden yearround or when they arrive on their seasonal migrations. For those who have a little more time to spend, the garden offers an ongoing schedule of workshops, seminars, and special events. For information, call (602) 941-1225.

NAVAJO HERBAL GUIDE

A handsome guide to northern Arizona flora, full of precise line drawings and detailed descriptions, has been published by the Navajo Community College Press. Nanise': A Navajo Herbal, by Vernon O. Mayes and Barbara Bayless Lacy, describes 100 plants from the Navajo reservation and gives each plant's medicinal, household, and ceremonial uses. The handsomely rendered and accurate drawings are by Jack Ahasteen and Jason Chee; thebook also includes a section of color plates. As a discussion of Navajo herbal practices, this book is fascinating; as an illustrated description of Southwestern plants, it's a valuable reference. The book is available for $27.00 through Navajo Community College Press, Tsaile, AZ 86556; telephone (602) 724-3311.

GRAND CANYON BOOK FOR YOUNGSTERS

Lynne Foster and illustrator Margaret Sanfilippo have published an excellent bookfor preteens, Exploring the Grand Canyon. It's a guide to the geology, history, prehistory, wildlife, and plants of that fascinating region, and it contains in-thecar activities, a bibliography, and an index. Available through the Grand Canyon Natural History Association for $14.95, plus $3.00 for postage and handling. Write Box 399, Grand Canyon, AZ 86023; telephone (602) 6382481.