The Florence tribune., 1895-06-15

an elegantly equipped daily stage line. Going and coming stages run by the old Casa Grande ruins, and passengers are allowed 6 short time to inspect then. There are many handsome pri- vate residences in Florence, several brick stores, good hotel, an excellent graded school employing four teachers, churches, secret societies, Conner cial Club, a newspaper (the only one in the county, and the handsomest court house in the Territory. Here is held the United States Court for the disfriss Composed of -6ila, Graham and Pinalcounties. The streets are lined with shade trees, which irnpart an air of comfort on the warmest days.
 PRODUCTS OF THE VALLEY.
 Unli.ns the Salt river, the waters of the Gila are fresh and pure; the soil contains no alkali, is deep, rich gray ash, especially adapted to the growth of the prune, olive, almond, peach, fig, pear, apricot and fruits of all kinds, which pay largely on the investment. It is also the natural home of alfalfa, which grows in the most prolific man. ner. The grape does exceptionally well in this valley, and wine and raisin culture is destined to become promi- nent industry. Citrus fruits have been cultivated to limited extent; there are a number of orange trees in the neigh fa afhoud -os Florence which hear their golden fruit each year without protection, and few date palm trees are also in full bearing. The season is from six weeks to two months ear Her than Southern California, which gives fruit-growsrs an appreciated ad- vantage in
 THE EARLY MARKETS. The absence of fogs and nightly dewsis a formidable obstacle to the existence of the destructive and un- slightly scale-bug, and the fruits of the valley are all bright and clean. All the agricultural products of the tenn perate and semi-tropic zones are easily grown here, the long seasons giving succession of crops that double or treble the productive value of the land.
 PEIcEs oF LAND.
 Improved lands, with government title and wnter right, can be bought for filan Sao to $50 Fer acre, according tQ lo' tlon Id Improvements. In the
 i1aanedizte neighborhood and to the se1tb of sAe Casa Grande ruins there are nousands of acres covered with
 heavy growth of mesquite timber yet open to settlement. These are among
 the choicest lands in the valley. Water
 in inexhaustible quantity is found at
 depth of from twenty to thirty feet; in fact, river seems to be flowing under
 meath. Here is splendid opportunity
 to take up and improve land with & pumping system of irrigation, which is
 said to be successful on small tracts. I However, with the completion of the
 Butte reservoir, pumping will be a
 thing of the past, and it is only men tiohed here for the purpose of showing
 what can be done, and to magnify the
 further fact that what was once con
 sidered
 I AN UNINHABITABE DESERT is in truth the most productive land on the globe, and that there is water in abundance to bring every foot of it under cultivation, only waiting for the magic wand of capital to develop it There is no water-storage scheme or the Pacific coast that has one-half ths natural advantages and so few engin
 eering difficulties as the Butte reser voir. Here nature has built the abut ments in ever-living rock, and all tha; is left for man to do is to put in tn,
 headgate, the bluffs which form tn,
 igorge being only separated by paltr. q 22O feet. A country is drained througl q this narrow canyon 200 miles square g representing 40,OoO square miles, o F larger than Maine and Massachusett combined. The rainfall is sufficient t ' fill this reservoir twice each year, an f the land to be brought under cultiva r tion is practically limitless. This ma [ read like fairy tale, but it is ever a word true, and has been verified tim IT Q nd a0aiu