Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1896-12-10
This LOCALITY
Las Vegas, the Chief City
of New Mexico--Some
of Her Resources,
Attractions and
Advantages.

AAo Nh0hp, hNohthk ~
is the county seat of San Miguel county,
lies on both sides of the Gallinas river,
and, with its suburbs, has about 10000
inhabitants.
1t has water works, street cars, arc and
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 plant
in the United States.
West of the river, the old town has the
quaint aud 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
sidewalks abound, shaded with growing
trees. Three parks, flied with grass and
trees, add to the beauty and healthfulness
Of the place. Handsome and vel filled
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 pubic buildings, con-
structed Of red and white cut sandstone,
unsurpassed in beauty by similar edidces
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, 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 h~ostelry between
Chicago and California, and is situated In
q beautiful canyon, five miles from town,
| where the Hot Springs, forty in number,
| come boiling to the surface.
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, 10 the shade, below forty de-
| grees, while it often runs, in the sunshine,
to sixty-f1ve degrees-or even more. On
the other hand, In the summer, the heat ia
| never oppressive, in the shade, and no
night is too warm for comfortable sleep,
| under one or two blankets. The sun Will
| shine min 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 reslnous aroma,
rolling down from the pine-clad noun
tains; the large amount of electricity IN
the air, and the consequent ozone, result
inc from thealtitude and the location Of the
town, land-locked by mountain and mesa
these all conspire to produce an atmos-
phere which is q balm to all diseases OF the
respiratory organs. The percentage Of
death from consumption is lower In New
Mexico than it is any where else in thf
United States; and no other place in New
Mexico excels Las Vegas in the ~salubrity
of its climate. Asthmatics experience
immediate and permanent relief, in thiI
altitude.
in the way OF health and pleasure re
sorts, Las Vegas IL uDrivaled. In a radius
of twenty miles, 10 romantic mountain
glens and beside babbling mountain brooks
- 49, IT, .-t. Harvey Ia
Ell P~orvenir, Sandoval's Mineral Hill, Ro
nero Ranch, Blake's, Sparks, Sapello
Rociada, and other places, too ndnerou
to mention, where health can be
and life becomes q pleasure to the ennuye
the invalid, the over-worked business man
LAS VEGAS has two daily and Ave week.,
papers, three banks, two building and loai
associations. three hotels, nan boarding
houses, nice churches, q number OF clubs
and all the leading civic n social socie
ties; a roller -four mill, capacity, fifty bar
reis per day; two wool-scouring ESTABLISH
meats, cleaning 1850, 600 pounds OF woo
annually a well equipped brewery AM
betting establishments: a mandatory 0
mineral and carbonated waters; two wag
or and carriage factories; a saddle ant
harness factory; o foundI,- eiec
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, ca
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 mount OF their yearl.
sales exceeding, in the aggregate, the com
bined sales Of all other such brokers l
New Mexico. The retail merchants, Q
= LE - aud IN rpr
larger and better stocks of goods thar d
the retail merchants OF any other town l
this Territory or Arizona.
LAS VEGAS is the distributing point 70
nearly all New Mexico. By the Atchlso
system, she has connection with Kansa
on the east, Colorado or the north, Arizo
ma and California on the west, and Texa
ana Old Mexico on the south. Beside
these, she has more stage lines, connectin
ber with tributary territory, than has an
other town In New Mexico. This territor
:, includes the entire section east and sout
Of the mountains, and comprises the coun
ties Of Colfax, Mora, Taos, San Migue
Santa Fe, Socorr0, DQna Ana, Gran
Cbaves, Lincoln and Eddy, with parts {
Valencia and Bernalillo-a country large
than all New England. This takes In th
! less famous, but not less excellent, Vale
: Of the Pecos-the finest fruit sections {
, the west.
This Territory is rich in everything tbs
!. constitutes the Wealth Of Nations. Irol
coal, lead, silver, gold, mice, limeston,
sandstone. marbles, gypsum, soda in end
ess variety and exhaustless quantitieI
, are among the several products of th
country which Las Vegas command
: Sheep. cattle and lumber abound, SO tbs
8 in each of these prime articles of ommerc
this city Is the best market in New Mexic'
Size handles more wool thsn all the oths
towns in the Territory combined, viii
' her in hides is truly enormou
: In the same way, she stands pre-eminei