Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1896-04-15
This LOCALITY
Las Vegas, the Chief City
of New Mexico--Some
of Her Resources,
Attractions and
Advantages.

ia the county eeat 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
tic preserving works, stock yards, aud the
largest sheep shearing and dipping plant
in the United States.
West of the river, the old town has the
quaint and picturesque Mexican appear
ance 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. Inc
streets are wide and we'll graded, while
sidewalks abound, shaded with growing
trees. Three parks, filed with grass and
trees, add to the beauty and heaithfulness
Of the place. Handsome and well-hlied
stores. beautiful residences, and innumera-
BILE lawns, set in grass and adorned Win
shrubbery and flowers, combine to pro-
claim a cultured community, possessed OF
all modern comforts and conveniences.
A city hall, three public schoolb 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 edifices
in any W 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. line
air is pure, dry, rarifed, and highly cleo.
trified-a certain cure for consumption, II
the disease be taken in time. Inc not
waters are a specific for liver, skin, rheu-
matte and blood disorders. Her Montezu-
ma hotel is the finest hosiery 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.
The latitude 10 about the same as tnat o.
.,HiIa tho olfitu6n 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
10 sixty-ive degrees-or wen more. VI
the other hand, in the summer, the heat Il
never oppressive, IN the shade, n p'
under one or two blankets. The sun vii
shine nine days out of every ten, the yea
ronnd. This, with the extreme dryness Of
the air, caused by the very slight precipl
tation of moisture; the reslnous aroma
rolling down from the pine-clad noun
tains; the large amount OF electricity u
the air. and the consequent ozone, result
ing from thealtitude; and the location of thu
town. land-locked by mountain and mesi
THESE all conspire to produce an atmos
nhere which is q balm to all diseases OF tn
respiratory organs. The percentage o
death from consumption is lower In New
Mexico than it is any where else in tn
United States; and no other place IN Nev
Mexico excels Las Vegas in the saiuDriI
Of its climate. Asthmatics experience
Immediate and permanent relief, In TIL
altitude.
In the way of health and pleasure re
sorts, Las Vegas is unrivaled. In a radlu
of twenty miles, in mouptal
elers and beside babbling mountain brooks
- ~. r, Tanoo Hot SnrinUG. HdrVpV'S
RI Porvenir, Sandovals Mineral Hill, ~
nero Ranch, Blake's, Sparks, Sapellt
Rociada, and other places, too nunerou
To mention, where health can be recovered
and life becomes a pleasure 70 tne ennuy'
the invalid, the over-worked business mai
LAS VEGAS has two daily and nve week.
papers, three banks, two building and loa
. associations, three hotels, many board1n
| houses, nine churches, a number Of CLUB
and ali the leading civic and social socle
ti,s: a roller four mill, capacity, fifty bar
rels per day; two wool-scouring establish
ments. cleaning 1,500,0 600 pounds OF wo'
! annually; a well-equipped wv an
: mineral and c~arbonated waters; " was
/. on and carriage factories; a saddle an
harness factory; q foundry. elet
tric light plant, three planning mill
4 and other enterprises of less Importance.
= There are eight large wholesale house
whose trade extends throughout the LEI
ritory, and into the adjoining section
value of the stocks which they carry, ca
not be duplicated west Of Kansas City ar
south of Denver. Three merchants brol
y ers nave selected the city as their distri'
utipg center, the amount OF their year
, sales exceeding, in the aggregate, the con
. bined Gales of all other such brokers
Y New Mexico. The retail merchants,
las Vegas, are more numerous, and carl
Larger and better stocks OF goods than
10 the retail merchants OF n other town
q this Territory or Arizona. /,
q Las VEGAS is the distributing point I
nearly ali New Mexico. By the Atchlst
system, she has connection Wild kans
d on the east, Colorado on the north, ARG
ma and California on the west, and Tex
= AMI Old Mexico on the south. Besld
y these. she has more stage lines, connectll
her with tributary territory, than has al
other town in New Mexico. This territol
includes the entire section east and sou
~ of the mountains, and comprises the cou
y ties of Colfax, Mora, Taos, San Mig
Is santa Fe. Socorro, Dona Ana, Graz
8. Cbayes, Lincoln and Eddy. with parts
Valencia and Bernalillo-a country larg
4 than ali New England. This takes in t
= famous Valley ofthe Rio Grande, and 7
~ less famous, but not less excellent, Vail
B. of the Pecos-the finest fruit sections
: This Territory is rich IN everything th
constitutes the Wealth of Nations. Ire
coal, lead, silver, gold, mica, limestol
o sandstone. marbles, gypsum, soda IN en-
ess variety and ~exhaustless quant1ti
= are among the several products Of I
- country which Las Vegas comman
Sheen. cattle and lumber abound, so tt
= in each OF these prime articles Of commel
, this city Is the best market 10 New Mex
SIZE handles more wool then all the OIL
towns in the Territory combined, VIII
her In hides Is truly enormo
In the same way, she stands pre-emin'