Arizona citizen., 1874-05-02
MIR. WAssON,s JOTTINGs.
The Rio Grande Valley With Allu- sions to Food on the Way--The Country Between Santa Fe and Las Animas.

Las AnlmaS.
 KIT CARSON, COLORADO, April 13.-I ar rived here at 10:30 a. m. to-day, making the time from Tucson eleven days. and will be in St. Louis early in the morning Of the 15th-in all about two hours less than thirteen days. The resting time was sixteen hours at Rio Mimbres; three hours at Las Cruces; eight hours at SocorrO and, Dy the way, most excellent place for com 1ort; and fourteen hours at Santa Fe The whole distance, as counted by the stage men, Is goo miles. From Rio Mimbres to Las AnlmaS, the stages are as cOmfOrta ble aS upon any route west of the Rocky mountains, and the table accommodations the best 1 ever found on any of the many interior lines traverSed by myself. Lest I might be understood as including the EX- change Hotel in Santa Fe in this general observation, I at once exclude it as hardly comparable with the poorest way stations where food is often difficult to procure and good cooks cannot be afforded. This hotel is not at all creditable to such a city where good food is abundant, cheap and easily obtained. Excepting in Santa Fe, the regular price per meal from Tucson 10 Las AnimaS is one dollar.
 In my Santa Fe letter, ;s I touched upon the route only as far as the tornado My remembrance is thatfrOm what I said of it. the reader would think it desert. but good paSturage covers nearly every mile Of it. The trouble of crossing it is OccaSioned by want of water alone, and the reason the Rio Grande valley is not travelled here is that the bluffs hug the river close and without much labor, a passable road cam not be made. Jack Martin cOntemplates sinking another well between his place and Paraje on the river. The Rio Grande7 is crossed (forded) about four miles abOve7 Paraje and same distance below FOrta Craig, and again Gin a ferry boat @ fewl miles below Albuquerque. It would red quire a small volume to write up the Rio7 GraDde Valley in anything like a detailed manner, even only embracing what I obs served and was informed of on the way from La Mesilla to Santa Fe-the latter place being situated near the mOuntains some thirty odd miles eastward of th6j river. Comparatively @ small portion of] the valley is under cultivation, and n1 doubt much if ever One-half of it's fertilej land can be tiled with the available water.1 for it is quite certain that the river cannotj be depended upon for enough to cultivate thai much one year with another. Thej improvements generally are no betteFj than the average Tn Arizona, although aI few buildings are rather large and credita@j bly, constructed. The climate is muc6 colder than l expected. Several nights light frOSts appeared, and at Santa Fe, the morning of the 10th, ice was formed on all water, and in places nearly half an inch in thickness.
 The character of the country is very diff ferent this side than south and west of Santa Fe, the road leads into and for about fifty miles through mountains thick ly timbered with pine and juniper, with cottonwood in the ravines; and much of the route to Trinidad, in this Territory, is near and within sight of much such timber of moderate size, and the country is, com paratively speaking, well watered. The stage stations are but an average of twelve miles apart to Trinidad, and from thence to Las AnimaS, the greatest distance is seventeen. Grass is more plentiful all the way from Tucson to this place. than be- tween Tucson and the Pacific coast, and judged from observation and information, wind is also more abundant and severe. As an item relating to the stock business, I'll say that our train, from Las Animas to this point to-day, brought two car loads of fat cattle fOrthe butchers in Denver. They | were brought from the Arkansas river valley and the country thence to Trinidad. l
 The train for St. Louis is due and so this must end, and if it should happen to end my correspondence to THE CITIZEN for a couple of months, none need be surprised. 1
 J. w. < Letter miscarried and not received-ED. |