Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1896-03-12
Las Vegas, the Chief City
of New Mexico Some
of Her Resources,
Attractions and
Advantages.

~ uuo WutcH Ab, bTS0I cars, aIC Ill
: incandescent electric light plant, telsphon
8 exchanges, Territorial agricultural exper
ment station, headquarters OF the Atchi
son railway system, New Mexico divisiod
) together with railroad machine shops an
tie preserving works, stock yards, and tn
largest sheep shearing and dipping plan
In the United States.
West of the river, the old town has til
quaint and picturesque Mexican appear
ance - adobe houses, narrow, crooked
streets, native people inc customs, handi
crafts and occupations; but the plaza ant
all OF the new town, east Of the river, con
stitute a distinctive American city. Thu
streets are wide and well graded, Will,
sidewalks abound, shaded with growing
trees. Three parks, filed with grass and
trees, add to the beauty and healthfulness
Of the place. Handsome and well-filled
stores, beautiful residences, and innumera-
BILE lawns, set In grass and adorned with
s~hrubbery 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. Z
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 kim
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 is pure, dry, rarif1ed, and highly cleo
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 hosiery between
p'St ~hN AAA . . cit0otCo IL
a 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 ot
central Tennessee, while the altitudesfs
nearly 8 500 feet. This combination gives
winter, during the day, the thermometer
seldom falls, 10 the shade, below forty de-
grees, while 1t often runs, In the sunshine,
to sixty-1ve degrees-or ever more. On
the other hand, in the summer, 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 r~esinous aroma,
rolling dow from the pine clad noun
tains; the large amount CT electricity in
the air, and the consequent ozone, result
ing from thealtitude: and the location Of the
town, land-locked by mountain and mesa
all conspire to produce an atmos-
phere which Is q balm to all diseases OF the
organs. The percentage of
death from consumption is lower In New
Mexico than it Is anywhere else In the
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
Ia the way OF health and pleasure re-
sorts, Las Vegas is unrivaled. In a radius
OF twenty miles. in romantic mountain
glens and beside babbling mountain brooks,
Ell Porvenir, Sandoval's Mineral Hill, Ro-
nero Ranch, Blake's, Sparks, Sapeilo,
Rociada, and other places, too numerous
to mention, where health can be recovered,
and life becomes a pleasure to the enDuye,
the invalid, the over-worked business man.
I r 49, - - L-- 49, III IL QsA- i
papers, three banks. two building and loan
associations, three hotels. many boarding
houses, nine churches, a number Of clubs,
and all the leading civic and social socie-
ties a roller -four mill. capacity fifty bar
rels per day two wool-scouring establish
cleaning 1,500,0 900 pounds Of wool
annually; a veil equipped brewery and
mineral and carbonated waters; two wag-
and carriage factories; a saddle end
factory; a foundry, cleo
trio light plant, three planning miils,
and other enterprises Of less importance.
There are eight large wholesale houses,
trade extends through. ut the Ter.
ritory, and into the adjoining s~ectlons;
the volume Of this trade, and the
value OF the stocks which they carry, can
not be duplica, !. west of Kansas City and
south of Denver. Three merchants' brok-
ers nave selected the city as their distrib-
uting center, the amount OF their yearly
sales exceeding, In the aggregate, the com-
bined sales Of all other such brokers In
New Mexico. The retail merchants, Of
Las Vegas, are more numerous, and carry
larger and better stocks OF goods than do
the retail merchants OF any other town in
this Territory or Arizona. 4
LAS VEGAS 10 the distributing point Tor
nearly all New Mexico. By the Atchlsont
she has connection with Kansas
on the east, Colorado on the north, Arizo-
ma and California on the west, and Texas
and Old Mexico in the south. Restdes
these, she has more stage lines, counecting1
her with tributary territory, than has any
other town In New Mexico. ibis territory
Of the mountains, and comprises the coun-
ties OF Colfax, Mora, Taos, San Miguel,
Santa Fe, Eocorro, Dona Ana, Grant.
Chaves, Lincoln and Eddy with parts OF
and BernaliIlo-a country larger
than ali New England. This takes in the
famous Valley ofthe Rio Grande, and the
less famous but not less excellent, Valley
Of the Pecos-the finest fruit sections Of
the west.
This Territory Is rich In everything that
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 the
country which Las Vegas commands. Il
Sheep, cattle and lumber abound, SO that
Ia each OF these prime articles of
this city Is the best market In New Mexico. |
SIZE handles more wool than all the other
towns Ia the Territory combined, while
her m In hides is truly enormous.
ia the same way, she stands pre-eminent
for her trade In grains, hay. vegetables, |
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