CHAPTER XII. MILITARY POSTS AND TELEGRAPH. ORGANIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT. ITS COMMANDER AND FORCE. THE VARIOUS POSTS AND THEIR SURROUNDINGS. APACHE. BOWIE. LOWELL. HUACHUCA. MCDOWELL. MOJAVE. THOMAS. VERDE, YUMA. THE MILITARY TELEGRAPH. LIEUTENANT READE. ITS BENEFICIAL RESULTS. The first military occupation of what is now the Territory of Arizona by the United States was when, in 1847, soon after the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, (Feb. 2d, 1848) Fort Yuma was occupied; and in pursuance of the Gadsden purchase of December, 1853, by which that portion of Arizona south of the Gila was acquired, the Mexican troops and authorities left Tucson on March 10th, 1856, soon after which United States troops were stationed south of the Gila. But it was not until 1853 that Arizona north of the Gila and off the Colorado river was occupied to any extent by American soldiers or civilians. On December 23rd, of that year, Fort Whipple was located at Postal's ranch, 24 miles north-east of Prescott; and on May 18th, 1854, was removed to the left bank of Granite creek, one mile north-east of that town, where it became the headquarters of the district, subsequently the Department of Arizona. The limits of the Department as defined by general order 41, Adjutant-General's office, April 15th, 1870, are the Territory of Arizona and so much of the State of California as lies south of a line from the north-west corner of Arizona Territory to Point Conception, California. The present commander of the Department is Col. August V. Kautz, eighth infantry, Brevet Major-General United States army. There are now stationed in the Department of Arizona the sixth regiment of cavalry, the eighth regiment of infantry, and a few companies of Indian scouts. Camp Apache is on a fork of the White mountain river, in lat. 33 deg. 40 min., long. 32 deg. 52 min., altitude nearly 6,000 feet above the sea. It was first occupied in May, 1870, and made a permanent post under the successive names of Camp Ord, Camp Mogollon, and Camp Thomas, in 1872. It is situated in a valley several miles broad and 1,200 feet deep, excavated in carboniferous sandstone and limestone by that river since the flow of the basalt which caps the adjacent uplands. A second lava stream and a third flowing down the new valley have been in turn cut through by the creek, the channel of which is now but fifty to seventy-five feet below the last lava surface. The White mountains, or Sierra Blanca, on the southwest slope of which the post is situated, consist of a cluster of rounded summits, from ten to twelve thousand feet in height, which constitute the most elevated range of eastern Arizona, their tops being covered with snow during a great portion of the year. To the eastward they extend into New Mexico and connect with other chains; on the Arizona side they are prolonged into the lower range of the Mogollon. These ranges and the cliffs of the Black mesa form the divide between the tributaries of the Colorado-Chiquito and those of the Gila, the principal of which, the Salt river and its tributaries, rise in the Sierra Blanca. These rivers have cut profound cañons in the flanks of the mountains, and have hollowed out extensive valleys, in one of which Camp Apache is situated, in full view of the main summits of the Sierra Blanca, which in summer loom high up to the eastward as dark masses, and in winter as snowy crests. The mountain ranges described under the names of Sierra Blanca, Mogollon, and Black Mesa, present one and the same geological character. They consist of the original sedimentary beds, fractured and uplifted by the action of subterranean forces and of extensive outflows of lava, which, issuing from various outlets, once overspread the country, covering it with a sheet of molten matter, the remains of which are now seen in the shape of more or less isolated basaltic tables, connected with extinct volcanic craters and cones. Strata are found of more or less compact grayish sandstone, sometimes containing fossils. This stone is used at the post for building purposes, and though soft when quarried, hardens rapidly on exposure to the air. A soft, laminated sandstone of a drab color is also found, and seams of gypsum are observed in various places between the clays. Half-way between the post and the summit of the Mogollon, organic remains show the beds to be of the lower jurassic period. The winters at Camp Apache are severe, snow-storms being frequent from December to April, when spring opens warm and dry; vegetation not starting much, however, until the rainy season, which is from the latter part of June to Septem ber. During that period, few days pass without heavy showers and thunder storms, which temper otherwise unendurable heat. With the cessation of the rains, hot weather returns for a few weeks, and the autumn months are marked by disagreeably warm days, alternating with cold and chilly nights; even during the hotter part of the year, the nights are wonderfully cool and pleasant; the annual range of temperature is from 3 deg. to 104 deg.; monthly range in summer, 103 deg., other seasons, 55 deg. Corresponding with the climate, the vegetation partakes of a northern and alpine type. The soil of the river-bottoms is very fertile; cereals, especially corn, growing to perfection with a very moderate amount of labor. The success of the post gardens has equalled the most sanguine expectations. Panthers, wild-cats and cinnamon bears haunt the pine forests of the mountains; coyotes are abundant; gray wolves and foxes are often seen; deer are occasionally shot; few birds are permanent residents; the wild turkey is abundant, mountain quails less so, and a few ducks and snipes fre.quent the streams, which-in the mountains-contain many species of fish, including speckled trout; reptiles and venomous insects are scarce. The post is 230 miles from Tucson, and equally distant from Prescott; the roads, except to New Mexico, are little better than trails. There are stationed at the posts, under command of Capt. J. N. Andrews, eighth infantry, companies E and C of that regiment, companies D and E, sixth cavalry, and company A, Indian scouts; a total of 8 officers, 205 enlisted men and 40 scouts. Camp Bowie is in Apache Pass, Chiricahua mountains, and was established in 1862, as a protection to the stage road and adjacent springs; it is in latitude 32 deg. and 40 min.; longitude 109 deg. 25 min. and 30 sec.; altitude 4,862 feet; fifty-five miles from the nearest town-Ralston, New Mexico;-105 miles east of Tucson, and fifty-six miles from Camp Grant, the nearest military post. The post garden yields a fair supply of vegetables, and enough grama grass grows in the neighborhood to afford full pasturage for stock; the ground is of limestone formation; piñons and Emory's oak, neither over twenty feet in height, are the prevailing timber on the hills just higher than the post. The acorns of this oak command a good price at Tucson; they are eaten either roasted or raw. The wild cherry (probably prunus demissa) is found in the neighborhood of Camp Bowie, but is larger a few miles further south. The fruit is far superior to any wild cherries elsewhere known, and equal to the ordinary cherry of cultivation; but the Indians and CAMPS BOWIE AND GRANT. 311 Mexicans will not use it. The post is remarkably healthy; it is commanded by Capt. W. Wallace, sixth cavalry, companies H and I of which are there stationed, numbering 3 officers and 104 men. Camp Grant was originally located at the confluence of the Nevaissa and San Pedro rivers in 1856, being then designated Fort Breckenridge. The situation being extremely malarious and unhealthy, it was abandoned, and the new post established in January, 1873, on a plain fifteen miles in width and over one hundred miles in length, in latitude 32 deg. and 25 min., longitude 32 deg. 23 min. and 10 sec. Tucson is 116 miles south-west; Camp Bowie fifty to sixty miles south-east, and the San Carlos Indian Agency eighty miles. The post is about two miles from the summit of Mount Graham, which is 10,375 feet above the sea; Camp Grant being 3,985 feet, on a sort of mesa, sloping south-westwardly towards the plain-a region unattractive in appearance, but abounding in good wood, grass and water. Dos Cabezas, the highest peak in the southern portion of the Territory, is visible from the post. The mountain is composed of gneiss and syenitic rocks, the mass being metamorphic; its slopes are very steep. Mesquite is most conspicuous and abundant from the base of the mountain to a certain altitude, and sparse on the mesa. White and yellow pines and firs grow on the mountain tops in unlimited quantities, and to a considerable height, with trunks sometimes five feet in diameter. The juniper tree, the berries of which are used as food by the Indians, also grows on the mountains; and sparingly along the margins of the streams grow the cottonwood, oak, sycamore and willow. The sacaton and three varieties of grama grass cover the plain, where there are springs, and water at ten feet deep. The soil is generally good. The country abounds in game, such as deer, antelope, wolf, wild turkey, duck and quail. Manzanita is abundant between the oak and pine belts, and bunch grass at altitudes of 7,000 to 9,000 feet among the timber. In the moist valleys leading from the main peak, rushes and ledges make thousands of acres of excellent forage, on which stock get fat, strange as it may seem. The water is excellent for all purposes on the adjacent mountains, whose streams are soon lost in the plain, but reappear some miles below. The phenomenon of the mirage can here be seen as perfectly as on the Sahara. The warm season is protracted. The winters are in general mild, but subject to violent winds and heavy rains, alternating with very pleasant weather. The annual rainfall is over twenty inches, occurring generally in July and August and in some of the winter months, though there are very few months in which the rain is wholly absent. The post is commanded by Major C. E. Compton, sixth cavalry, of which regiment it is the headquarters. The band and companies C, G and M, of the regiment, and company I, eighth infantry, are there stationed, numbering 13 officers and 209 enlisted men. Camp Huachuca is a temporary post on the mountain range of that name, near the Mexican line, about forty miles east and south of the Santa Rita mountains, and is designed to protect the important mining interests therein. Camp Lowell is seven miles east of Tucson, in latitude 42 degrees, 12 minutes; longitude, 110 degrees, 52 minutes; altitude, 2,530 feet; on the Rillito river, on a plain or mesa which is a part of the vast extent of rolling ground stretching from the Rio Grande into southern California, interrupted at irregular intervals by abrupt and very irregular sierras, and by water courses in general dry during most of the year. Apparently regular and symmetrical as are the Santa Catarinas, Santa Ritas and other mountains near to or visible from the post, they abound in deep clefts, uninviting passages, and long, tortuous, precipitous cañons. At the camp, the alluvial deposit is about two feet in depth, resting on a calcareous, sedimentary deposit two to five feet in thickness, underneath which is a layer of gravelly earth about fifteen feet thick, and below that a stratum of clay from one to two feet thick, then a bed of gravel of unknown thickness is reached, in which, at a depth of from five to ten feet, living water is obtained. Cottonwood, alder and sycamore grew on the banks of the streams; there are forests of white pine on the mountains; the white ash and the white oak grow on the foot-hills. There are two varieties of the mesquite, which are small and stunted on the mesa, but quite large in the valley of the Rillito, and on a part of that of Santa Cruz. On the plains in the vicinity of Camp Lowell the cactus is often the only plant of vegetation, sometimes varied by the equally desolate grease wood and sap brush. Cereals and vegetables, especially tomatoes, are raised with great success. Irish potatoes fail on account of the richness of the soil, and cabbages on account of insects. Irrigation is indispensable. Black and cinnamon bears, black and whitetailed deer, antelopes, yellow foxes, raccoons, and cottontailed rabbits, are all found within thirty miles of the post. Among the birds in the neighborhood are wild turkey, sand-hill crane, duck, curlew, snipe, wood the |