FEBRUARY, 1951 35 CENTS - Desert Magazine of the Southwest

NEW DISCOVERIES ADD TO
STORY OF PINTO MAN
New evidence of Pinto Man's existence,
including a new archeological
find of undetermined significance,
has been discovered near Little Lake,
California, only a quarter of a mile
from excavations made by the Southwest
Museum, Los Angeles, and described
by Curator M. R. Harrington
in the September, 1950, Desert Magazine.
Mr. and Mrs. Richard M. Esgate
of Riverside and their three children
— Florence, Charlotte and Dick —
made a trip into the Little Lake country
after reading in Desert Magazine
about the museum work at Stahl site,
named for Willy Stahl, discoverer of
the Pinto village remains.
They camped about a quarter of a
mile from the previous excavations,
and there in a grassy pocket between
the lava cliffs they found numerous
relics and artifacts of Pinto Man. They
collected obsidian spearheads—which
Pinto Man used instead of bows and
arrows—scrapers used to remove adhering
tissue from the flesh side of
animal skins before tanning, and some
strange clay tablets—each with a different
free-hand design. The clay tablets
appear to have been fired in a
kiln.
The artifacts and the clay tablets
have been sent to the Southwest Museum
to see if their significance can be
determined.
Pinto Man roamed today's California
desert thousands of years ago
when the present arid regions were a
green thriving forest and rivers ran
full of water. Geologists say this could
have been either in the Great Pluvial
period at end of the Ice Age more
than 10,000 years ago, or about 3000
to 3500 years ago during the Little
Pluvial period.
• • •
WEATHER UNFAVORABLE IN
MANY DESERT AREAS
Unfavorable weather conditions over
much of the desert Southwest in recent
months have created serious problems.
In New Mexico some of the
municipalities face the possibility of
domestic water rationing unless rains
come before summer.
On the Navajo reservation the Indians
face the possibility of serious
losses in some areas unless they market
their sheep prematurely.
Utah reports a normal surface water
supply, but serious freezes in some
areas have threatened a reduction of
next year's fruit crop. Great Salt Lake
now has a surface elevation of 4197.8
feet, which is .85 foot above the same
date a year ago. The lake has been
rising for 10 years.
Picture of the Month Contest...
Each month during the winter and spring season Desert Magazine
will award prizes for the best photographs taken in the desert country.
Subject material is unlimited- -landscapes, strange rock formations,
unusual botanical pictures, wildlife, prospectors, Indians, sunsets and
clouds—all these and many more invite the camera hobbyist.
Entries for the February contest must be in the Desert Magazine
office. Palm Desert, California, by February 20, and the winning prints
will appear in the April issue. Pictures which arrive too late for one
month's contest are held over for the next month. First prize is $10;
second prize $5.00. For non-winning pictures accepted for publication
$3.00 each will be paid.
HERE ARE THE RULES
1—Prints for monthly contests must be black and white, 5x7 or larger, printed
on glossy paper.
2—Each photograph submitted should be fully labeled as to subject, time and
place. Also technical data: camera, shutter speed, hour oi day, etc.
3—PRINTS WILL BE RETURNED WHEN RETURN POSTAGE IS ENCLOSED.
4—All entries must be in the Desert Magazine office by the 20th of the contest
month.
5—Contests are open to both amateur and professional photographers. Desert
Magazine requires first publication rights only of prize winning pictures.
6—Time and place of photograph are immaterial, except that it must be from the
desert Southwest.
7—Judges will be selected from Desert's editorial staff, and awards will be made
immediately after the close of the contest each month.
Address All Entries to Photo Editor
'Detent PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA
OUR DESERT NEIGHBORS
By Edmund C. Jaeger
For more than 40 years Edmund C. Jaeger has explored the
desert—on foot, by burro, and in more recent years, by auto. He has
visited its remotest areas, end made friends with its wildlife.
He writes of coyotes, kangaroo rats, tortoises and bighorn sheep,
not in the manner of an academic scientist, but as their friend, who
knows their habits of life. When he tells of his experience with a
packrat, the little animal becomes a living character in the play of
desert life.
The desert will hold a new meaning and a livelier interest for
those who make acquaintance with its denizens through the eyes
of Edmund Jaeger.
The author has autographed copies for Desert Magazine readers.
$5.00 postpaid to you California buyers add 3% tax
Palm Desert, California
FEBRUARY, 1951 37