Dear Ron: I finally remembered you wanted a report on an important Desert Peak volume. I am sending two. The first on a most important working tool, Eddie Edwards: "The Enduring Desert". This book is not a catalog, but contains excellent source material on the Desert. Eddie wrote a series of bibliographic work., each of increasing size and value. They are "Desert Treasures" (1948), "Desert Voices" (1958) and Desert Harvest" (1962). Of course he wrote a number of others, such as Freemans "A Stage stop on the Mojave" (1964), La Siesta Press. The second is Carl Lumholtz, New Trails in Mexico" - An account of a years exploration in North-western Sonora, Mexico and South-west Arizona. (1912). This is by far the best work on this area at the time, and really is even until today. I continue to use It. ---Walt Wheelock E.I. Edwards: "The Enduring Desert/A Descriptive Bibliography", the Ward Ritchie Press, Los Angeles, 1969, 306 pp. Eddie Edwards published bibliographic material on the desert from 1946 until the above, shortly before his death. He published a total of four of these bibliographies, each more extensive than the preceding. In addition he published a number of other works, including Freeman's "A Stage Stop on the Mojave" for La Siesta Press. The references in these books are much more than a brief listing. For example, Randall Henderson's "On Desert Trails, Today and Yesterday" (1951) reference is a full page in a large format book. Fremont's account of his trip in 1843-44 is even longer. Edwards told Russ Leadabrand: "a bibliography in the back of a book that contains no comments about the books listed means nothing." Enduring Desert not only lists and describes books, but also magazine and journal articles, an well as minor pamphlets. Leadabrand also writes: "There is material here for a hundred monologues on desert history, folklore and traditions. Enough for dozens of magazine articles, endless newspaper items." In addition, this is a handsome volume, such as Ward Ritchie produces. The only problem is that it was produced in a limited edition and has long been out of print. However any worthwhile library should have a copy, but it will be housed in the reference or rare book section. ---Walt Wheelock

Page Index	Prev	Page 31	Next	Issue Index