The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1873-07-17
THE ARKANSAS VALLEY!
IT'S CAPABILITIES, FERTILITY
AND DEVELOPMENT
Lands and Homes for the Millions

In :his article we shall attempt gi'
inc tho readers Of the EAGLE living
other states. and who may contemplai
coming west 10 make a home, Il pra,
tical idea of The more. striking charar
,eristics of the Great Arkansas rive
and its valley. for within the bound
of this VALLEY are found the riches
lands. tie most ilourishing towns I'm
the most prosperous people 60 J.
found. probably. upon the America
continent. Certain il is flat il offer
the greatest Inducements for hoat
seekers orairy YET remaining in, or BE-
longing to. tie public domain.
the ARKANSAS RIVER
Isliltle less than 2.000 miles in length
being one of Tie longest and swiites
running streams upon the continent
Rising in Colorado territory, latitud
one hundred and siN and onc-half de
~rces west ofGrecnwich and longitud
thi,ty-ninc and unc-half degrees north
receiving lis waters from riyuletS ant
sgy;res thai are fed 10y the melting o
the eternal SHOWS of the snowy rang,
which rears IL rugged, lofty and snow
crowned peaks 80 miles west of. AN,
a.Oe0 feet above the base of the Rock
mountains. i; flows completely arount
the south peak. surgcs and sparklcs a
tllc base Of Mount Lincoln and rushe,
ont through q canyon in Pixies Peak
range into the valley of Eastern Colo.
RADIO and on east ward Within ten
miles of its head rise the Grand and
Platte rivers. Bearing the SHOWS OF
onc-half Colorado. il flows through the
gorge, and valley Of the mountains.
Is deep and iInpctuou,ly strong, but
entering upon iIie broad plain pasture
east of The mountains its bed widems
and lis flow from thence TO the gulf is
quiet. yet swift. In Colorado ii re-
cciycs several tributaries, most of them
rising in the mountains, among which
are Fontainc. Ga Bouic. Greenhorn.
Hueriano, ApishPa, Tinpas, Purgato-
ric, Little and. Big Sandy, etc. II en-
tiers Kansas sevcnty-iivc miles north of
the south line of the state. runs due
ecast 40 miles, DIVORCES seventy-iive
miles northeast, then angles to the
southeast, forming what is known as
Athe Great Bend. thence little south
of east through Kansas. the Indian
territory and the state of Arkansas,
complying into the Mississippi midway
between Memphis aud Wick sburg. The
Arkansas is broad and shallow
stream, with many islands, low but
wen defined banks, varying from four
iaarkablc FEATURES are that although
draining country. before reaching
Kansas, larger than all New England,
and although il carries the melting
SHOWS in June, July and August of
many thousand square miles, il never
overlows its banks. but its waters are
curiously kept within the bed of the
stream. working a great benefit 10 HE
soil of the valley for miles upon each
side The fact is the bed of the stream
throughout its source in Kansas is
composed of sand and gravel. a also
the subsoil of the adjacent lands. The
supcrabUndant water spreads itself
through This subsoil. instead of over
Rowing the country, as would be the
ease if the sIlbsoii of the wide valleys
was clay. So completely does the
porus subsoil drink up this water that
most OF the year il is easily fordabie
with teams, and there has been times
when, in the western portion of the
state ..ic river bed would go dry. al
though water could be obtained three
or four inches below the surface, where
in reality the river was flowing in the
gravel. The river at Wichita is about
800 feet wide. al Hutchinson, forty
miles further up, il is 500 feet wide.
TIE VALLEY AND SOIL.
This description will be more par
ticularly confined TO the valley lying
between The Great Bend and where the
river enters the Indian territory. Ina
Ibis area are included more particular
countics of Raymond. Reno, liar-
edgwick. Sumner and Cewley.
suntics embrace the finest, rich
watered lands to be found
1000 miles traversed by
Asas. This portion of the !
rom five to twenty miles wide.
is chiefly sandy loan. made |
ktch mineral elements as have |
Washed from the Rocky noun /
BY the a,irition of ages. II Is
3rked feature of this soil that IL con- |
lains a much larger proportion of min
eral matter than the prairie soils of IL
linois and Iowa. which are chiefly /
mould. For this reason our |
valley will improve by cultivation.
TO those accustomed TO a murky soil,
there appears Ia be in places in this |
valley too much sand. but the expert /
eucc of our farmers is directly the OPP
posite. Read what the editor Of the
American Igricultpr0list, who visited
this valley ia April of this year, has 10
say:
.sTbc soil is deep black loan. resi-
inc ON n lighter colored subsoil con-
k1iup OF loan. clay aud gravel. both
)ebil aud subsoil being 50 poruS that
surface water READILY passes through
hhem. and IN no cas- j. there ANY diff
k,ul,v experienced an crossing with
ASes and wagons or stock. amy water
~ or beds al streams. Teams
R.iysp-pross springs or creek
Nslv. without danger of
fhis porosity OF the soil.
u renders il capable of being
FL or worked Immediately after
;cayiesi rains. at the same time
10 constantly moist from cvapo-
below. and protects il from
h. Within six hours of the ccs-
of n rain IN which | Judge at
\ce inches of water fell. | saw
ITNakiug sod and cultiyatin.
Iig corn. The crops of corn.
spring and fall wheat. pota-
HI garden vegetables. which |
owing. both on new and old !
lsi,c-. in various localities in the |
~. are equal to amy that | have {
X seen elsewhere, during many
experience know of no part y
>u.euuiry kSspssin.r 4, mara ~ ! 1