The Coconino weekly sun., 1893-07-27
WITHOUT A RAILROAD.
A section of Arizona Whose Natnr"' Resources Would Furnish
 n Paving Traffic.

 that trains can now be run the entire length of the road, about thirty-fiVe miles. This road should become a DOT tion of the San Diego and Phoenix, and this portion extended to the coal fields to the northeast of Flagstaff, which could be reached with q con struction of only about 65 miles from this point. Major Powell, of the U s. Geological survey, as we'll as many other scientists, reports this coal field as being one of the most important and extensive on the continent. Veins are of unusual width, sometimes reaching thickness of, as reported by prospec- tors, as high as fifty feet exposed in the canyons. Much of it is q fine bltu- minous, and some of the prospectors who have brought specimens from that section find by experiment that it is a coking coal. Waffle it is not all of this character, there are deposits which are undoubtedly coking coal, fact of the most vital importance to the inning industry of this territory, and also to California.
 The Southern Pacific railway use upon their lines, not including the east ern portion of their system, about S7-, 900, ,OOO worth of coal annually, and no coal mines exist upon any portion of their line. There are, in fact, no valu- able coal mines, discovered or in oper- ation in California. The coal used in that state is imported from Puget sound, England and Australia.
 The completion of such road would, develop large traffic in our territory, and would open up our great pine for est to short haul to the southern val ley counties of our territory. The Missouri Pacific railroad made con tract some time since for the construc- ton of ap extension from Pueblo $50 miles west, which will reach some where in the San Juan country, which, when completed, would leave but short distance of construction from the coal fields to that line, and thus mako short line, in comparison to others, from Denver and Pueblo into the south west and the Pacific coast harbor of San Diego.
 The capabilities of the development ot the southern valley regions of this territory are almost unlimited, The waters of the Gila and Salt rivers can be contolled by reservoirs, aud water exists, if properly controlled, to water all the valley country to the Colorado river
 II Is claimed in the Touto basin an opportunity exists there to construct q reservoir 25 by 12 miles in area. one hundred feet in depth, with a dam 200 feet in length by 100 feet in height. Such reservoir alone would contain water enough to irrigate many times over the present amount of land under irrigation. This is but one of the op- portunities nature has provided for reservoirs.
 The Verde river has another location Tor reservoir something like that which exists in Touto basin.
 Engineers report that near Yuma q region, consisting Of $500, GOO acres, can De irrigated from the waters of the Colorado river, and company is being organized to do the work. This amount | of acreage would very near equal the total amount of the lands at present under irrigation in the United States. Millions of people will yet find homes in that portion of Arizona, with q soil | as prolific as that of the Nile, and we think the capitalist who will make in veStigation of the resources of e line of railway outlined as above will not dis agree with us on the prospects of traffic for such an enterprise.