The Portland daily press., 1892-01-12

were present, and sat down to an excel
lent dinner, for which the tables were
set in the parlors of the club house.
At the conclusion of the dinner, Presi-
dent Henry B. Cleaves introduced Hon.
Charles F. Libby. Mr.. Libby spoke par
ticularly of the cattle ranches which he
visited at the time of the excursion. A
''ranch'' in the West is term of indefin-
lite application, meaning generally as
much territory as a mans cattle range
over. By crafty policy the ranch own
ers of the Southwest have secured pa
tents of all the lands where water may
be found. So it happens that man or a
company that owns 1000 acres of land in
reality have the use of so square miles,
since they control all the water to be
found in that extent of country. Mr..
Libby said thatthe cattle business was
not at the present time so profitable as it
had been in times past. The winters
are very destructive of cattle, and the
grazing grounds are quite thickly strewn
with the skeletons of cattle that have
persisted in the great storms. Mr.. Libby
gave an entertaining description of the
effects of irrigation on the arid lands of
the Southwest. These lands comprise
one-ffth of the area of the United States.
When irrigated they make excellent
farming lands; but the problem of secur-
ing proper irrigation is a great one. The
land is composed Of a grayish, gravelly
soil that will, when properly irrigated,
raise immense crops of alfalfa, oats, etc.
Sixty bushels Of oats may be raised to
the acre. The third year after seeding
the alfalfa will yield five tons to the acre
and keep it up year after year. This al
falfa is species of clover, making excel
lent food for cattle and horses.
The herds Of sheep there are wonder
full both for size and quality. Mr. Libby
found one farm with %, 900 sheep on it,
and saw focks of 1000 sheep each. He
saw 1000 thoroughbred merino rams in
| one flock. Every large ranch has also its
necleus of thoroughbred cattle, those eff
the purest Hereford and Polled Angus
being especially noticeable. The ranch
owners have been introducing thorough
bred blood to bring up the standard Of
the native herds, and the results are con-
spicuously good. In conclusion, Mr..
Libby described scenes in New and Old
Mexico.
President Cleaves next called upon
Collector Dow. Mr.. Dow said that in
travelling through the West he had not
been able to forget that he was New
Englander. Within radius of five miles
Of where he stood three generations of
his ancestors had been born; and it was
natural that under such circumstances
he should have carried west with him
many New England prejudices. In the
| West the order of life seemed reversed.
| While in the East we attend to business
for the sake of living, for the support of
wives, Parents and children; in the West
| they seem to live to do business. The
home life, especially the home farms,
seem very different in the West. Here
| in the East the memories Of parents and
grandparents cluster around the old
| farmhouses; in the West no such memo
ries cling to the ranches. The farms are
not so neat and prosperous as in the East
In ride from Portland to Bridgton
one could see more evidences of thrift
and comfort than in one thousand miles
out there.
| Ex-Alderman Mr. Edward B. Winslow
was the next introduced as welcome
guest, although Democrat. Mr.. Win
slow gave an entertaining description of
what he saw. In the great mining con-
vention the delegates from Maine had the
very front seat. They were greatly in
terested in the convention, although they
might differ in the sentiments expressed.
Mr. Winslow was greatly impressed with
what he saw in Denver on the day of the
great miners parade. Thousands of
miners were in the city, and the saloons
were all open, yet Mr.. Winslow saw but
one drunken man. MI. Winslow de-
scribed the visit of the Maine party to
the mines, giving an interesting account
OF the operations going on there. The
growth and prosperity of the city of
Denver seemed most remarkable. More
over the people of Denver were all
wrapped up in their own city and its
prosperity; and Mr.. Winslow said he
wished Portland people were taken the
same way.
Dr.. D. N. Drake of Pittsfeld was
called upon and responded briefly.
Albion Little, Esq, told how the party
started from Union Station determined
to ''see Pixies Peak or bust All the
way to Denver it was a panorama Of
fun and when they got to Denver the
enjoyment Of the trip had hardly begun.
Mr. Little advised all his hearers to
visit those regions and see the mag
nificent scenery. The mining of gold
and silver is the great business of Colo
RADIO. Mr.. Little sketched briefly the
history Of the development of mining in