Arizona weekly enterprise., 1890-09-13
FINE FRUIT RANCHES.
HOME IN THE SALT RIVER VALLEY. Wonderful Showing in Two Years Growth \ Primitive Arcadia That Will
 Grow More and sI ore Beauti-
 ful as Time Rolls on.
Phenix Republican.

Phenix Republican.
 If you will be ready tomorrow morn ing at s o'clock I will give you fine ride and at the same time afford you an op- portunity to see some of the finest fig or chards i'll Arizona" said NIT. H. II. Logan to q Republican reporter Thursday. Ac- cordingly the pencil shower was ready at the appointed time and together with Mir. J. o. Dunbar of the Gazette and Mir T. 4. Jobs of the Herald started out with MT. Logan yesterday for drive over some of the famous Salt River Valley lying north west of the city. The main objective points were the fruit ranches of Wm. H. and Samuel F. Bartlett, and Logan & Adams
 The first one visited was that of Logan X Adams located on Sec. B, T. 3 N. R. ? E. nine miles from the city and contain ing young vineyard of eighty acres The vines i'll the vineyard are but two years old but their growth and crop this year would indicate them to be three to four years of age. The ranch Is under the immediate supervision Of Mir. Taylor, and his careful work is shown in the ex- cellent condition ill which the ranch is kept. When the subject of taking care of tue crop for this season became one to met MT. II. w Adams. who has general control of the firms property concluded it best to begin the work of making raiSinS Accordingly Captain Wright. an old and experienced raisin grower of Fresno. California was secured to take charge of the work A packing house and curing ] house were built trays prepared and the [ work of cutting begun. Even this early ID the season the crop is nearly all dried and cured and the work of packing is now going on.
 On account of the vines being so young as they are the raisins are not so large as the choicest Of those from California, but ln quality and sweetness they exceed either Fresno or Riverside. The skin is l very thin and tender, the raisins are clear and sweet and the work shows that raisin l growing can be made even more profita- 1 ble here than it IS in California. So much faith have the owners of this ranch Tn the success and proftableness of raisin culture that they rooted 5000 cuttings this summer. and the coming winter will ] add another eighty acres to their vine yard, making l60 ill all. Captain Wright ! says he considers grapes grown here of superior quality to those of California for ralsins and that by the time the vines are six to eight years old they will produce the finest layer raisins in the world
 Adjoining this ranch to the west, and embracing all of Section g, lies the ranch of Mir. Reuben Baxter Mir. Bax- ter has 200 acres DOW under cultivation. <! forty of 1t in alfalfa, 110 ill hay and grain. ten ln proiniscuous fruits and forty ii raisin grapes. His vineyard Is but five months old, but makes a most wonderful showing. It Is clear of any weeds and grasses, the vines are remarkably thrifty and careful inspection shows that fully 9o per cent of cuttings planted lived.
 Proceeding mile further to the west the party arrived at the ranch of Wm. H. Bartlett, which contains all of Section 30, in the same township. The ranch is un- der the care and management of MT liar " W. Adams. This ranch is one of the most beautiful and well kept the repor ter has ever seen. In Mir. Adams, Mir. Bartlett has an excellent superintendent and the neat and thrifty appearance of everything shows the skilled horticultur- lSt. Sixty-seyen acres of this ranch are now planted to the White Adriatic fig, most of which are two years old. The trees show a phenomenal growth, the trunks being from five to eight inches in diameter This year there has been pick ed two crops which have been dried and packed and the trees are now laden with third crop which will be ready for pick ing by the first of November.
 Besides this large acreage of figs there Is ralsln vineyard containing forty acres, and forty acres are devoted to promis- cuous fruits To give an idea of what can be- grown here list of some of the fruits on this tract Is given. They con sist of peaches, pears. plums, prunes, apri- 0nfr oTr lemons, times, guavas, apples pomegran- ates, and several others Besides the land already devoted to fruits over fifty additional are under cultivation, produc- ing alfalfa and grain.
 On Section 1. T. N, R. E., lying two miles south of William H. Bartlett's ranch, lies the ranch of his brother. Mr. Samuel F. Bartlett This is under the superintendency of Mr. A. J. Shaw, and is almost a duplicate of the other ranch. It has sixty acres in figs, sixty in grapes, fifty in promiscuous fruits and forty in alfalfa
 The Bartlett brothers are wealthy brok- CTS of Chicago. and being impressed with the Salt River Valley, purchased land on which to build winter homes. They be heve that this Is preeminetly the home } of the fig in America, and the success al tending their work would seem to beal , them out in that belief. The White Ad- riatic has been pronounced superior to all other varieties, and the quality pro duced here excels those of California o1 Arabia. In the last named country the figs, when dried. are put in lye, to eat a l portion of the skin so as to make it ten der enough for the market. In some To- calities the figs are placed in strong brine
 fn a ha St-I iap
 here do not require this treatment Oi
 such superior quality and tenderness are
 they that they are only dipped in cold r water for cleansing after being dried, and , they are ready for market. The skin is very tender, the seeds small, and the figs are sweeter than the imported ones
 These orchards would be revelation tC
 many residents of the Territory, and are
 well worth visiting.
 Between the Maricopa and Arizona canals the party drove by number ol ranches well worth au extended descrip- tion. On Section g, T. N, R. E., i:
 the fine stock ranch of W. J. Murphy containing 320 acres, 240 of which art ! , covered with alfalfa. On the southeast quarter of the same section is the rancl of MT. Bennett on which Is a vineyard o1
 10 acres and some of the largest peacl
 trees Tor tne1f age-Only two yearS-eYel seen. It was on this ranch that MT. Ben nett raised on one acre of land last year the enormous crop of 2976 pounds of bar ley. Alexander Silva on Section 15 has { beautiful home of 160 acres, most of it un der cultivation and producing alfalfa
 corn, sweet potatoes and sorghum. Al
 the township shows up well, notably SC
 Sections If, 15. Is, 21, 5, 6, and g.
 The water for irrigating all the vas Territory northwest of the city was no l turned into the canal until in February
 1888. Not tree or shrub had beer planted previous to that time, and oI
 most of the land the sage brush had no been cleared off. As one drives along the
 roads to-day and sees the enormous growth of trees and vines 1t seems incred
 ible of belief that all this has been ac
 complished in two years. It shows tht : wonderful future that lies before tht
 Salt River valley. The soil is of the rich est, the water supply is inexhaustible the climate is incomparable. All the de ciduous and semi-tropical fruits can bt raised side by side Under these condi | | tions who can doubt but what the popul | ation will, ere many years, reach the 300, GOO estimated by Lieutenant Gushing t'
 have inhabited this same valley ill th' prehistoric ages.