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Page 12 Desert Messenger celebrates the Arizona Centennial with Voices from The Past in Quartzsite, AZ Excerpts from "In the Shadow of Saguaros" by Rosalee Oldham Wheeler Hi Jolly's camel led miners to water In the summer of 1871 two unlikely partners, a Scotsman by the name of John Gordon and a Mexican named Juan Perez were thinking about team- ing up to prospect for gold north of the Gila River. The two novices hung around bars in Arizona City (later re- named Yuma) listening to the tales of local prospectors before deciding where to strike out on their own. After hearing stories about rich gold deposits in the *S.H. Mountains, with a small supply of provisions they struck out on foot in search of a gold strike of their own. They crossed the Gila and headed north. Even though the sum- mer mornings were cool, as the day wore on it became incredibly hot so they decided to rest in the shade of a mountain that had nothing but des- ert stretching out as far as they could see. Perez announced that the area looked promising and decided to work the bottom of a nearby wash. In their excitement to fi nd gold both men had neglected to take regular stock of their canteens until John tipped his up for a sip only to fi nd just that, a sip. Per- ez's last canteen had only a scant more and they realized they needed to head back down to the Gila, or perhaps west towards the Colorado River to replen- ish their canteens. One thing for sure, they were out of water and needed to take the shortest route. After several hours of blistering heat, the two men realized they were in serious trouble. Perez was more familiar with the des- ert and suggested they should try to fi nd a tinaja. He explained to Gordon that a tinaja is a depression in a large rock formed over time when rainwater and runoff falls from higher rocks. Between rains, tinajas act as a reservoir for birds, animals, insects, and even humans. For hours, the men searched. Ex- hausted and thirsty they sat down in the shade of a paloverde and tried to think of a way out of their predicament. Then, almost simultaneously, they saw a strange shape coming towards them in a slow but steady pace. Perez and www.DesertMessenger.com Gordon worried they were seeing a de- lusional mirage. But, the "mirage" kept coming and before long they could see it was a camel ambling along in a rhyth- mical side-to-side motion. What was a camel doing way out there and where in the heck did it come from? The two thirst-craved men had no way of know- ing that this was one of the camels from a herd brought to the United States in 1856 as a govern- ment experiment for a new mode of transportation; camel trains to move mili- tary equipment and men across the desert southwest. But after the outbreak of the Civil War, enthusiasm waned for the project and some of the camels were turned loose to roam the desert. Gordon and Perez stared in amazement. The camel seemed to know exactly where it was going, as if on familiar ground. Not far from the thirsty prospectors, the cam- el abruptly turned and went behind a group of rocks, then disappeared from sight. Curious, the men followed in the direction they last saw the creature. Around the rocks, they again spot- ted the camel, drinking from a tinaja fi lled with water! After taking a long leisurely drink, the camel moved on. Gordon and Perez clamored over the rocks, rolling into the water. It wasn't very clean, but more than acceptable in their dehydrated state. After a rest under the paloverde, ' We are loaded with goodies! Furniture, Glassware, Yard Art, Here we go again! Antiques, Collectables, Linens, Jewelry. Lots of Vintage Items...and Great Prices! We will open Dec. 1st Hope to see you here! at 8am Vendor Spaces Available OPEN DAILY 9-4 THRU FEBRUARY 315 E. Ironwood, Quartzsite (next to the QIA) Gordon and Perez came out to again draw long sips from the camel's tina- ja. Before heading back to the mine, they fi lled their canteens. Suddenly Perez let out a shout as he drew out a nice gold nugget. Pressed between two fi ngers, he held it up to the sun. Gor- don couldn't believe it, gold nuggets in the camel's tinaja! Over the years, it seemed that the heavier gold had col- lected in the bottom of the tinaja. Gor- November 21, 2012 don and Perez sifted through the sandy moss and stuffed their pokes full. Early the next morning they hurried on to Yuma, excited to tell of their unusual fi nd and to show off the gold nuggets. After bartering to outfi t themselves for a longer stay at the camel's tinaja, they headed back out to the S.H. Moun- tains. Back over the Gila, then due north, they trudged back along their ear- lier footprints. Then suddenly those foot- prints separated, one set going east and the other west. These were not their tracks! Confused, Gordon and Perez wandered in different direc- tions all over the area but couldn't fi nd their tracks—the ones that would lead them back to the camel's tinaja. For months on end, they continued their search from their camp at the base of the S.H. Mountains. For several years, Gordon and Perez mined for gold and searched for sight of that elusive camel or the group of rocks where they found gold in a tinaja. To my knowledge, neither Gordon, Perez, nor some other lucky prospec- tor has bragged about fi nding a poke of nuggets in a tinaja anywhere near the S.H. Mountains. * The S.H. Mountains was the name by which the Kofa Mountains was known before the founding of the King of Ari- zona mine. According to old-timer Bill Keiser, S. H. was derived from the fact that the stage running between Yuma and Tyson's Well & Stage Stop made a rest stop in the shade of these moun- tains. There passengers could get out, stretch, get a drink, and relieve them- selves—thus the name S_ _ _ House Mountains. Refi nement demanded that the acronym S. H. be used, and thus the mountains were known until the new acronym of Kofa was adopted. Veteran Owned & Operated RVs & Mobile Homes MOBILE WASH Filtered Water • Local Business www.ServiceMagic.com/biz/BudsSuds Email: freewaytx30@yahoo.com Bud's Suds CALL for estimate! 928-750-9660