A DESERT FASHION SHOW 11 



masses of waxy white blossoms, the whole giving strongly 

 the effect of a lighted candelabra in the dazzling sunlight. 

 Full-grown Sahuaro weigh six tons or more; they are very 

 sturdily constructed, vigorous and hardy, caring not for wind 

 or weather or time. Woodpeckers make their homes in 

 the waxy green trunks of old Sahuaro, and the injuries made 

 by birds are sealed over by a coating of tissue from the plant 

 itself. These coverings often take form of water containers 

 and are so used by the Indians. The spiked armor causes 

 Sahuaro to be feared by man and bird and beast, and the 

 bold woodpecker and the hawk are almost alone in venturing 

 to nest in their trunks. 



In flower time the blossoms are produced in abundance on 

 the tips of stem and branches, large satiny blooms four inches 

 or so long and half as wide, growing solitary but in such great 

 masses of waxy white bloom as to give the effect of being 

 clustered; as usual with the Cereus, remaining open all night 

 and closing In the forenoon. The Department of Com- 

 merce at Washington is taking steps to develop the fruit of 

 the giganteus as an article of commerce. Shaped like an egg 

 and about the same size, its crimson red pulp Is made into 

 wine by native Indians and Mexicans, preserved as jam and 

 fruit in clay ollas, and after drying in the sun served as 

 delicious sweetmeats to the whites trading near by. In 

 June, when the sun is blazing hot, the Papago Indians camp 

 in forests and harvest the fruit of old Sahuaro, while the dead 

 plants furnish material for the building of their huts and 

 adobe dwellings, the "ribs" used for rafters and poles, and 

 even for fuel. The ceilings of many old buildings in Tucson, 

 Arizona, were made of Giant cactus ribs, several layers deep. 

 Many an Indian life has been saved by old Sahuaro in time 

 of severe drought. Is It any wonder that the Papago begins 

 his New Year in June with the fruiting of the Giant cactus? 



The beautiful blossom of the Sage of the Desert is the 



