Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-04-22
MESILLA VALLEY RESOURCES
The New Mexican's Special COrre.
sp0ndent Writes of the Outlook in
This Agricultural and Horti-
cultural Paradise.
PROSPECTS OF AN ABUNDANT YIELD
Work on the Big selden Dam, Which
is to Play An Important Part in the
Future of This Valley, Will Be
Resumed About May l.

Las Cruces, N. M, April 81, l897.-Th
claim has been made that the fruit in tn
Mesilla valley has suffered material
from the late frost, but on inquiry flint
there is moro talk than fact in this par
ticular case. In talking with fruit grow
ers, it was learned that while many bios
SONS were killed the crop was not seri
ously damaged. One fruit grower toll
me that the fruit killed was only sufficien
to prevent injury to the bearing trees
and would save knocking off green frui
to prevent the branches breaking.
BUSINESS IMPROVING.
The prospects for an abundant yield o
the calebrated Mesilla valley apples
peaches and grapes is all that could BIT
wished for. The wheat and alfalfa is i1
the best of condition and farmers are
confidently expecting a prosperous sea
son. In conversation with Mr.. Martin
Lohman l learned that for the past 60
days business has been gradually but
surely growing better. AS in other parts
of the territory, the people are feeling
that the hard times are past, and that
prosperity is once more on the way. The
condition of the cattle market has much
to do with this feeling, as the market is
brisk, buyers plenty, and prices good.
The unusually wet winter has made water
plenty, given the grass an early start,
and the cattle enter the spring season in
excellent condition, thus assuring cattle
men profitable year. Favorable oondi-
tions for agriculture, fruit and cattle have
caused the clouds to roll by, the bright
sun of prosperity to beam once more on
the southwest and business men are again
feeling that life is worth the living.
In my trips over the territory l find
the same conditions in every town Wis
tied. There ia some complaining but
the majority of those talked with, ex-
press themselves as highly satisfied with
the Improvements made in financial con-
ditions since the first of the year. am
not talking to hear myself talk nor to
misrepresent any of the conditions ex-
isting9in New Mexico today, but merely
state things as I fnd them. In and
around Las Cruces the evidences of thrift
and industry are apparent to the most
careless observer and it is safe to say that
the close of the present year will find the
central part of Dona Ana oouety in bet
ter shape than for some time past.
THE sELDEN DAM.
The dam under construction across the
Rio Grande, 20 miles north of this place,
is almost com pleted, and three or four
weeks steady work will see the last stone
in place. Considerable surprise was
caused by the suspension of labor on the
dam on the 18th inst, and the Dismissal
of the men employed. The report has
gone out that the work was abandoned
because OF lack of funds with which to
pay labor and meet other obligations,
but this is erroneous. l was informed
today by a businessman who is in po-
sltion to know, that the suspension is
only temporary and operations will be
resumed before May !. The real cause
OF the apparent abandonment of this en-.
terprise was the failure on the part of
the English directors to forward the
funds now on hand in time to reach this
place by the 18th to meet the payroll and
other bills. This derelction ON the part
of the company management resulted
from the absence of the proper officials
from London on a trip to the continent,
and the contractors have been notified
that the necessary money would be forth
coming by the next mail. So soon as
this money is received work will be re-
sumed and the dam finished before the
spring freshets set in from the Colorado
mountains. There ia no intention to
abandon this enterprise, neither is there
any lack of funds to carry out the origi-
nal plans for which the company was or
ganized.
WATER rs KING.
There is scarcely any other locality in
the territory where water will do as mnch
for the farmer as it will in the Mesilla
valley. The system of ditches already in
use is ample to supply thousands of acres
of land with all the water needed to in
sure abundant crops of wheat, alfalfa
and fruit in their greatest perfection, the
only drawback heretofore, being the lack
of adequate means for keeping the ditoh-
90 filled With water the entire summer.
The dam now under construction will fill
this long felt want and shortage of crops
will soon be thing of the past.
GOSSIP ABOUT MEN AND PoLIrIos.
Most Of the local politicians are in
Washington either looking for job for
themselves or trying to keep some other
fellows from getting what they want.
This may be very exciting for the people
In Washington, but 1t makes things polit-