Arizona republican., 1896-12-23
TRIBUTE TO PHOENIX.
A Los Angeles Writer Praises the
 Town and the Valley.

A writer in the Los Angeles Express and made the tour of this wonderful valley makes the following compli- mentary reference to Phoenix and it's environment:
 Broad and wellkept streets; busi- ness blocks of granite, sandstone and brick; hotels with spacious verandas, elegantly furnished and managed by experienced men; banks as solid as any to be found in the country; a well conducted school system with attract i've buildings filled with bright, we'll behaved children; keen, progressive, capable business men always ready to advance the best interests of the com munity; handsome ladies dressed in the latest fashion, at home and upon the busy thoroughfares; elegant car riages drawn by spirited horses, with coachmen in livery; shade trees in abundance, churches, secret and char itable societies; all this, and you talk | about Phoenix, the rapidly growing city of the great Salt River valley Here is a beautiful valley, located away down in the southwestern part of Arizona, fifty miles long and on an average of eighteen miles wide, con- | taining nearly half million acres of arrigable land, one-half of which is now under cultivation. What has brought about all this? Water! Water taken from the Salt river and conduct ed to the land by canals. There are thir- teen of these great waterways, the longest of which is forty-seven miles, and combined making total of over two hundred and seventy miles. Then these canals have some six hundred miles of lateral ditches. The soil is as rich as can be found anywhere. For the most part it is alluvial and decom- posed granite, with some adobe along i the river. With water, and the sa- lubrious climate, it produces every thing grown in the temperate and semi-tropic countries. It is valley | of wonderful and varied resources that is certain to support an immense population. As yet agriculture and horticulture are but in their infancy but they have passed the experimental stage. Plant and irrigate-then the harvest. It would be difficult to write and talk too vigorously of this vast domain.
 Tt is little known section as yet
 but there are missionaries at work preaching about it and praising it's vir-
 tues. It is but few years since this
 broad expanse of valley was but the
 hunting grounds of the Indian and
 the grazing place of herds of cattle
 The Indian has virtually become g
 lost race, but the cattle remain. The
 latter are prepared for the market or the alfalfa grown in the valley There
 are 60,0O0 acres of this forage plant
 and it all goes to fatten stock.
 Life is cosmopolitan in Phoenix
 There is mixture of the old and the new. Governor Franklin received al
 the city hall last evening. The rooms
 were beautifully decorated with palms flowers and potted plants, presenting
 a most beautiful picture. The wealth fashion and beauty of the city turned
 out to greet the governor and welcome
 the irrigation congress delegates Int governors staff participated, dressed in full uniform; ladies elegantly at tired leaned upon the arms of gallan
 escorts; many of the charming buds O Phoenix giving promise of stately lovely womanhood were accompanied , by chaperones. Music filled the rooms
 and wit and mirth prevailed. Whil' some were content with simply prom 3 enading and greeting old and nev friends, others danced to the music 0
 the waltz. An air of elegance, cultur l and wealth prevailed throughout tn buiIding"