Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1896-07-02
LOCALITY
Las Vegas, the Chief City
of New Mexico
of Her Resources,
Attractions and
Advantages.

iH the county seat OF oan hlixuei couhLy
lies on both sides of the Gsllinas river
and, with its suburbs, has about 1000
Inhabitants.
1t has water works, street cars, arc snd
incandescent electric light plant, telephone
exchanges, Territorial agricultural expert
ment station, headquarters OF the Atchi.
son railway system, New Mexico division
together with railroad machine shops and
tie preserving works, stock yards, and The
largest sheep shearing and dipping plan
In the United States. L
West of the river, the old town has the
quaint and picturesque Mexican appear
ance adobe houses, narrow, crooked
streets, native people and customs, handi-
crafts and occupations; but the plaza and
all of the new town, east Of the river, con.
stitute a distinctive American city. The
streets are wide and we'll graded, while
trees. Three parks, filed with grass and
trees, add to the beauty and healthfulness
of the place. Handsome and well-flled
stores, beautiful residences, and innumera-
BILE lawns, set in grass and adorned with
shrubbery and flowers, combine to pro-
claim a cultured community, possessed Of
all modern comforts and conveniences.
A city hall, three public school buildings,
court. house, Masonic temple, opera house,
| Territorial Normal school and Territorial
Insane asylum are public buildings, con
structed of red and white cut sandstone,
unsurpassed in beauty by similar ediices
in any town, of equal size, in the States
An Academy, Seminary, Jesuit college,
Convent school, Presbyterian Mission
school, Methodist manual training school,
Christian Brothers institute, City high
school, three graded public schools, a kin
dergarten, a commercial school and two
music schools, besides several private teach
ers, are among the educational advantages
and facilities.
LAS VEGAS is the natural sanatorium Of
the United States, combining more nat
ural advantages than any other place In
America. Her thermal waters are the
equal OF the Hot Springs Of Arkansas,
while her climate Is infinitely superior.
There is no malaria, NO excessive heat or
cold, no gnats, rats or mosquitoes. The
air is pure, dry, rarifed, and highly elec-'
trified-a certain cure for consumption, IL
the disease be taken In time. The hot
waters are q specific for liver, skin, rheu-
matte and blood disorders. Her MonteZu-
ma hotel is the finest hnstelry between
Chicago and California, and is situated la
a beautiful canyon, five miles from town,
whore the Hot Springs, forty In number,
come boiling to the surface. gsFs
The latitude Is about the same as that OF
central Tennessee, while the altitude is
nearly $500 feet. This combination gives
a peculiar, but most happy, result. In the
winter, during the day, the thermometer
seldom falls, in the shade, below forty de-
grees, while it often runs, in the sunshine,
TO sixty-five degrees-Or even more. On
the other hand, In the ummer, the heat Is
never oppressive, IN the shade, and no
night is too warm for comfortable sleep,
under one or two blankets. The sun will
shine nine days out of every ten, the year
round. This, with the extreme dryness of
the air, caused by the very slight precipi-
tation of moisture; the %resinous aroma,
rolling down from the pine-elad noun
tains; the large amount OF electricity in
the air, and the consequent ozone, result
ing from thealtitude and the location Of the
town, and-locked by mountain and mesa
all conspire to produce an atmos-
pierre which Is a balm to all diseases Of the
respiratory organs. The percentage OF
death from consumption ia lower In New
c4tO tho ~ 40 H. "a Oio IL VaS
United States; and no other place In New
Mexico excels Las Vegas in the salubrIty
of its climate. Asthmatics experience
and permanent relief, In this
altitude.
In the way Of health and pleasure re-
sorts, Las Vegas IL unriValed. In q radius
of twenty miles, In romantic mountain
glens and beside babhliug mountain brooks,
are the Las Vegas Hot Springs, Harvey's,
Ell Porvenir, Sandoval's Mineral Hill, Ro-
nero Ranch, Blake's, Sparks, Sapello,
Rociada, and other places, too Numerous
to mention, where health can be recovered,
and life becomes a pleasure to the ennuye,
the invalid, the over-worked business man.
LAS VEGAS has two daily and ave weekly
papers, three banks, two building and loan
associations, three hotels, many boarding |
nine churches, o number OF clubs,
and all the leading civic and social socie-
ties; q roller flour mill, capacity, fifty bar
rels per day two wool-scouring establish
ments, cleaning 100000 pounds of wool
bottling establishment; a m%anufactory of
and carbonated waters; two wag-
on and carriage factories; g saddle and
factory; a foundry, cleo
trio light plant, three planning mills,
and other enterprises Of less importance.
There are eight large wholesale houses,
whose trade extends throughout the Ter
0a4 lhtO u nuJOAutuE o6CtlQQS : |
the volume of this trade, and the
value OF the stocks which they carry, can
not be duplicated west OF Kansas City and
of Denver. Three merchants brok-
srs have selected the city as their distrib-
ltins center, the amount Of their yearly
sales exceeding, in the aggregate, the COM
sales of all other such brokers in
New Mexico. The retail merchants, of
Las Vegas, are more numerous, n carry
and better stocks of goods than do
The retail merchants or any other town in
Territory or Arizona.
LAS VEGAS Is the distributing point for
nearly all New Mexico. By the Atchlson
she has connection with Kansas
On the esst, Colorado on the north, Arizo-
IA and California on the west, and Texas
Old Moxico on the south. Besides
she has more stage lines, connecting
her with tributary territory, than has any
,ther town in New Mexico. This territory
the entire section east and south
It the mountains, and comprises the coun-
lies Of Colfax, Mora, Taos, San Miguel,
;haves, Lincoln and Eddy, with parts Of
Valencia and Bernaliilo-a country larger
han all New England. This takes In the
Valley ofthe Rio Grande, and the
ess famous, but not less excellent, Valley
II the Pecos-the finest fruit sections of
he west.
This Territory Is rich 10 everything that
the Wealth of Nations. Iron,
,oal, lead, silver, gold, mica, limestone,
andstone. marbles, gypsum, soda in end
,ss variety and exhaustless quantities,
ire among the several products Of the
country which Las Vegas commands.
sheep, cattle and lumber abound, SO that
y each of these prime articles of commerce
city Is the best market ID New Mexico.
She handies more wool than all the other
owns in the Territory pambined, while
Ter In hides is truly enormous.
the same way, she stands pre-eminent
or Der TRACE in grains, hay, vegetables,
md other farm products: while her trade
o ice, gathered in the neighboriug noun
ain canyons, extends east into Kansas,
pasf {,fo rioono and south fufo O1I