Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1896-12-19
RANCH AND IRRIGATION RESERVOIR.

and never fails to yield abundant re-
turns. Sugar beets have given splendid
results, and will probably develop into
an important industry. There is money
in potatoes, and oats do excellently we'll.
Wheat yields thirty to thirty five bush
els to the acre, barley sixty bushels, and
for vegetables and fruit there is no bet
ter section under the sun.
The timber land of the grant is just
receiving attention. 1t consists princi-
pally of pine, spruce and cedar. Many
saw mills have been erected recently
and the plants at Catskill supply 3d.
100000 feet of lumber yearly, all within
easy hauling distance of farming lands
The mineral wealth of the grant has
of late attracted much attention, and at
several points rich locations have been
made which give promise of big things
in the near future.
On the western border of Cofax coun-
ty is situated Ola Badly mountain,
which gives name to one of the oldest
and most favorably known gold produc-
ing districts in the southwest mining
region.
The district is characterized by the
diversity of conditions attending the
ore occurrences found therein. The geo.
logical structural features are compare
lively simple, presenting great mono
cline of easterly dipping cretaceous
strata, composed of shales and limestone
bands, which in the main range to the
west are underlaid by carboniferous
strata, and to the east disappear be-
meath the over lying deposits of the great
coal bearing Laramie formation OF the
Ration foreland.
However, associated with the up-ifted
cretaceous deposits, and probably con-
temporaneous with their disturbance,
immense dykes, or wedge-shaped masses
of trachytic eruptive matter are encoun-
tered. This dyke like mass is exposed
IN the east.slope of Badly mountain. and
in the upper canon Of the Cimarron it
appears in picturesque pinnacled pail
sades. In the east flank of the Badly
mountain numerous gold bearing lodes
appear intersecting the eruptive mass,
and which have been partially opened
upon at several localities.
The gold charged matter exhibits a
variety Of conditions of occurrence, en-
larging into cavities or pockets, and
sending off veins or chimneys into the
adjacent rock walls, which are extreme
ly rich in gold. Indeed, the productive.
ness of these ore bodies, and their yield,
thus far, compares favorably with that
OF the ric:,est gold producing districts in
the southwest.
The disintegration of the formations
bearing the auriferous lodes by the ero-
sive action of air, water and ice, has con-
centrated vast quantities of gold par
ticles in the clays and gravels filling the
adjacent gulches and valleys, forming
extensive and rich placer deposits The
latter occur on both sides of Badly
mountain, and have been profitably
worked during period of more than a
score of years.
In the west slope of Badly deposits Of
valuable magnetic iron ore, also aurifer-
GUS, occur in connection with the Gre
taceous limestones. Although other
valuable ores are known to occur, the
district owes it's chief Importance to the
rich aurferous lodes and placer deposits
occurring therein.
The foregoing is from brief report of
recent date made by the we'll known
geologist, Mr.. Orestes st. John.
The oldest and best known of the lode
mines in the Ute Creek district is the
Aztec mine, which has already produced
over 100000 in gold, and has a record
of $21, 900 production for single week.
This mine consists Of a large vein occur
ring on contact of quartzite and black
slate; the crevice between walls varies