ng
"Salt City," "Aricropolis," and others. Dupper rose to his feet and
suggested that the city be called Phoenix, because, he explained, the
Phoenix was a bird of beautiful plumage and exceptional voice, which
lived for five hundred years and then, after chanting its death-song,
prepared a charnel-house for itself and was cremated, after which a new
and glorified bird arose from the ashes to live a magnificent existence
forever. When Dupper finished his suggestion and explanation the meeting
voted on the names and the Frenchman's choice was decided upon.
"Phoenix" it has been ever since.

Before I had been in Phoenix many days I commenced the building of a
restaurant, which I named the Capital Restaurant. The capital was then
at Prescott, having been moved from Tucson, but my name evidently must
have been prophetic, for the capital city of Arizona is now none other
than Phoenix, which at the present day probably has the largest
population in the State--over twenty thousand.

Soon I gained other interests in Phoenix besides the restaurant. The
Capital made me much money, and I invested what I did not spend in
"having a good time," in various other enterprises. I went into the
butcher business with Steel & Coplin. I built the first bakery in
Phoenix. I staked two men to a ranch north of the city, from which I
later on proceeded to flood the Territory with sweet potatoes. I was the
first man, by the way, to grow sweet potatoes in Arizona. I built a
saloon and dance hall, and in this, naturally, was my quickest turnover.

I am not an apologist, least of all for myself, and as this is the true
story of a life I believe to have been exceptionally varied I think that
in it should be related the things I did which might be considered "bad"
nowadays, as well as the things I did which, by the same token,
present-day civilization may consider "good."

I may relate, therefore, that for some years I was known as the largest
liquor dealer in the Territory, as well as one of the shrewdest hands at
cards. Although I employed men to do the work, often players would
insist on my dealing the monte deck or laying down the faro lay-out for
them. I played for big stakes, too--bigger stakes than people play for
nowadays in the West. Many times I have sat down with the equivalent of
thousands of dollars in chips and played them all away, only to regain
them again without thinking it anything particularly unusual. As games
go, I was conside