Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1890-02-01
IRRIGATION IN new MEXICO.
Uhe Extent of Private Enterprise-No Oc-
casiuu for Cover meat Aid
Great work ia TIE pecos
Valley.

valley.
COLORADo SPRINGS, Colo, Dec. 3l.-
The territory of New Mexico is to-day re-
oeiving much attention from cap thistS
lterestei II the establishment of irriga'
ton works Blessed with an unsurpassed
climate and rich fertile soil, New Mexico
is certainly destined through weIl-C0n-
Quoted irrigation to become dangerous
to California in the fruit |
market Of the United States. And when
she has as good railroad communica- |
ton as some OF the more northcrIy |
states, the farmers OF those states will be |
a,tonished at the amount OF grain she
will ship.
All irrigation in New Mexico will be
conducted by private enterprise, and
when people know to what an extent
money is being invested in the building
Of reservoirs and canals in that territory,
they wilt wonder that any demand Tor
government aid ever should have been
made. Your correspondent has had an
opportunity to look more particularly into
the scheme OF irrigating the great valley
OF the Rio Pecos, by which the settler
no longer runs the risk OF beng burned
up by the long droughts to which these
therNise most Desirable lands are sub
pct. In the scheme of irflgatng the
valley of the RIO Pecos nothing appears
to have been left to chance. The sIll is
rich, the climate unexcelled, and a plen-
liiul supply OF water certain. The river
rises in the northern part OF New Mex
leo, northeast of Santa Fe. 1t flow
IN a southeasterly direction to the neigh
horhood of Fort Summer, and then a
little east OF south across the territorial
line into Texas, here it forms a Junction
With the Rio Granue. Alter 1t passes the
town OF Roswell, n NJ, it runs a
tortuous course of nearly $50 miles, re-
relvlng as it goes large quantities OF
perennial spring water, which bubbles up
| along its bed out of the limestone strata
IF the country. Those springs represent
| the drainage Of the eastern slopes OF the
Captain, Sierra Blanca, Sacramento and
! Guadalupe mountains, and the waters OF
the Upper river, which disappear belO"
Fort summer. The Pecos is the second
river in size of New Mexico, and carries
more water than the Rio Grande does
below So orro, and this AT Roswell, which
| =
Careful measurements show that the
permanent supply of water is more than
sufficient to fill both canals now IN
course Of construction, which are cal
cuIated to carry 900 cubic feet OF water
per second. In addition to this, when
The storage arran gements are complete,
this supply will be more than doubled.
TO give some idea of the size of the drain
age area or basin of the Rio Pecos within
the territory of New Mexico and tributary
to the works of the Pecos lrrigatlo!
company, the following figures will bt
suggesti>e: The tract extends from the
Both parallel, embracing over ~
900 square miles, at varying attitudes
from 5000 to 10000 feet above the sea
level.
Aside from the advantages OF this vale!
as a health resort, the inducements tC
farmers to settle there are great. There is
not a single day in the whole year that
outdoor work can not he carried oil
The plow need never stop on account
of weather. The crops grow ten months
out of the year, during which time the
sun shines every day. No such thing is
known as crop failures. Twenty acres
of this richest of soils will support q
family and yield some savings besides
The farmer in the Pecos valley is not
compelled to feed his family five months
in the wear out of the earnings Of the
other seven. He does not require tC
feed his stock while his land is producing
nothing, In point of fact, this climate
is business factor of no small moment
and the farmer working under its benign
influence, can figure on his returns with
as much certainty as II any other legti
mate business 70 the fruit grower the
Pecos valley offers great inducements tC
plant his vineyard. Being IN the same
latitude as Los Angeles and San Diego
Cal, but possessing a much superior
climate, splendid crops are obtained Al
fruits grow here to perfection, and it may
be termed the home OF the grape. The
tender varieties, such as the Musca
and Hamburg, grow here in the oper
VINEYARD and Weld very large returns
The VINEYARD has realized $500 per acre
steadily for several years. The valley il
900 miles nearer the eastern markets
than California, and with direct railroad
TRANSFORMATION assured, the success Of III,
fruit grower is, with any ordinary amour
OF care, certain.
Passing on to look into the cultivation
of the ranrhman's staple, "alfal:a," :
good example is furnished by the farm
of Judge E. r. Stone, which is stuateC
near Roswell. He has 200 acres unde
this crop planted from one to three years
ago. Last season he let out - acres o
it on 81 ares, the lessee to attend to TIN
iriigating, cut and stack the product
" hlch amounted to 1888 tons. His hall
at 10 per ton, amounted to III re thar
$25 per acre There is no possibility o
overproducton of alfalfa. The countr,
is full OF range cattle, and feeders ar
always anxious to get all the alfalfa the,
can. And, as has been said OF it, it i
the one crop Which dlsappoints the farme
by exceeding his expectations.
Examining the Typographical features
Of the valley. pleasnnter situation cat
hardly be found. The general slope o
the rock formation is gradual from thu
, continental divide east to the Mississippi
valley. Nearly parallel mountain ranges
break the general formation north anC
south. The Rio Pecos has no hi4h noun
tain ranges to the east, but APPARENT,
follows line of fracture in southeaster
~ direction. The irrigable lands Of thu
valley are chiefly on the western side O
the river, which runs between abrup
banks 10 to 80 feet high. Those bank
indicate the character of the soil, which
is generally of a color shading from red
dish to chocolate brown, and never e-s
than 10 feet in depth.
Coming now to look into the irrigatinl
canals themselves and their capacity, /
truly astonishing array of figures greet,
us. The northern canal is constructed 8.