Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1896-12-09
This LOCALITY
Las Vegas, the Chief City
OF New Mexico
of Her Resources,
Attractions and
Advantages.

1t has water works, atreet cars, arc and
.incandescent electric light plant, telephone
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 plant
In the United States.
Vest 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
walks abound, shaded with growing
trees. Three parks, flled with grass and
trees, add to the beauty and healthfulness
of the place. Handsome and well-hlied
stores, beautiful residences, and innumera-
BILE la W ms set in grass and adorned with
shrubbery and flowers, combine to pro-
claim a cultured community, possessed OF
all modern comforts inc 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 edifces
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 10
! 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 ia pure, dry, rarified, and highly cleo
trifed-a certain cure for consumption, II
the disease be taken In time. The hot
waters are a specific for liver, skin, rheu'
matte and blood disorders. Her Montezu'
ma hotel is the finest hostelry between
Chicago and California, and is situated In
a beautiful canyon, five miles from town,
where the Hot Springs, forty In number
come boiling TO the surface.
Tn 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
cni11n, f.1lo In fha ahadQ hHlOW forty de-
erees, while it often runs, In the sunshine
to sixty-hve degrees-or even more. VI
the other hand, in the summer, the heat II
never oppressive, IN the shade, n ne
night is too warm for comfortable sleep
under one or two blankets. The sun viii
shine nine days out Of every ten, the yea
round, This, with the extreme dryness o.
the air, caused by the very slight precipi
tation of moisture; the resinous aroma
rolling down from the pine-ciad noun
tains; the large amount OF electricity II
the air, and the consequent ozone, result
ing from thealtitude; and the location OF th'
town, land-locked by mountain and mes'
these all conspire to produce an atmos
pnere which is a balm to all diseases OF thu
respiratory organs. The percentage o
death from consumption is lower In New
Mexico thai it is anywhere else in th'
United States; and no other place In New
Mexico exceis Las Vegas in the salubritl
OF its climate. Astbmatlcs experience
immediate and permanent relief, In thi
altitude.
In the way OF health and pleasure re
sorts, Las Vegas is unrivaled. In g radiu
of twenty miles, in romantic mountain
glens and beside habhling mountain brooks
are the Las Vegas Hot Springs, Harvey's
FL P~orvenir, Sandoval's Mineral Hill, Ro
nero Ranch, Blake's, Sparks, Sapeilo
Rociada, and other places, too nomerou
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 ive week..
papers, three banks, two building and LOAF
associations, three hotels. many boarding
houses, nine churches, Q number of clubs
and all the leading civic and social socie
ties; a roller -four mill, capacity, fifty bar
rels per day two w~ool-scouring establish
ments, cleaning 10000 pounds Of voc
annually; a wei -equipped brewery an
bottling establishments; a mandatory o
mineral and c~arbonated waters; two wag
on and carriage factories; a saddle an,
harness factory; q 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
| ritory, and into the adjoining sections
while the volume of this trade, and tn
value of the stocks which they carry, cal
not be duplicated west of Kansas City an,
south of Denver. Three merchants brok
ers have selected the city as their distrib
uting center, the amount of their yearl,
sales exceeding, in the aggregate, the com
bined sales Of all other such brokers il
New Mexico. The retail. merchants, o
Las Vegas, are more numerous, and carr,
larger and better stocks of goods than d
the retail merchants Of any other town il
this Territory or Arizona.
LAS VEGAS is the distributing point TO
nearly all New Mexico. By the Atchlsol
system, she has connection with Kansa
on the east, Colorado on the north, Arizo
ma and California on the west, and Texa
and Old Mexico on the south. Beside
these, she has more stage lines, connecting
her with tributary territory, than has an,
other town in New Mexico. This t~erritor,
includes the entire section east and soutl
of the mountains, and comprises the coun
ties of Coifax, Mora, Taos, San Miguel
Santa Fe, SocOrro, Dona Ana, Grant
Chaves, Lincoln inc Eddy. with parts 0
Valencia and BernaliIlo-a country large
than all New England. This takes in tn
famous Valley ofthe Rio Grande, and tn
Of the Pecos-the haest fruit sections O
the west.
This Territory is r CHI In everything tina
constitutes the Wealth of Nations. Iron
coal, lead, silver, gold, mica, limestone
sandstone, marbles, gypsum, soda in end
ess variety and exhaustless quantities
are among the several products Of th
country which Las Vegas commands
Sheep, cattle and lumber abound, so tina
in zach of these prime articles Of commerce
this city Is the best market 10 New Mexico
She handles more wool than all the othe
towns in the Territory combined, Will
her In hides is truly enormous
10 the same way, she stands pre-eminen
In ice, gathered in the neighboring noun
tain canyons, extends east into Kansas
west jato Arizona, and south into Oh
Mexico