The Florence tribune., 1897-10-09
THE CASA eRANDE VALLEY.
Information for Those Seeking Homes In the Garden Spot of the West.

t0IOFFndliOn TOT lHCSC OSSNHS
 In the Garden Spot of the West.
 Pinal county was organized 1T, 1875 from portions of Pima, Maileopa st Sn@ ass sn1are miles, or 3,435, ,520 acres, one-thlrd or MniSn Mnss could be made productive by systenattc storage of the surplus water now ruhhlhS .o waste Next to Maricopa it is the most nm portant agricultural county In the 1errltoIy. 1t it traversed from east to west Dy ths Southern Pacific railroad, and pranen 1i the great Santa Fe system is now approach ing from the north. The objective polne Oi this road is a connection with the sonora road of the same system. The southern Pacific is also building in this direction from Tempe, and it is confidently believed aI. sl,1. work will not cease until the Deer Sreek coal fields are reached and eonnection ls made with another branch of that-roau run ming from Bowie to Glsbe and now coinpiee- ed to Fort Thomas. ..,.. |. Thus it will be seen that Final county ID the theater of railroad building at the pres ent time, and inside of year Florence the county seat, will be
 ARAILRoAD CENTER.
 At present it contains population1 1 M ~. about 1900 but with the completion or tneee two railroads and the Bat.e 2. rsserr0t s ,,oturai city in Arizona can approach 1t TOT natuTai advantages and large increase Tn popu.la- tion will follow. Florence Is at aa eieValioon o of 1858 feet abSve sea level, sltuateu near .le i Qila river, twenty six miles northwest or the railroad station of Casa Grande, with when 1t Is connected by an elegantly equlppea daily stage line. Going and coming stages run by the old Casa Grapde ruins, ana nassenrars arc allowed q short time to in- spect them. Thsre are many handsome PIT yatesresidenccs in Florence, several prlck stores, good hotel, an excellent gahee grehes secret societies, a Commercial Cup, news paper (the only one in the countyl ana the handssmest court house in the Territory. Here is held the United States Court for the district composed of Gila, Grnhain Enu Pinal counties The streets are lined wI.a s.l. shade trees. which impart an ar or coniioie ' on the warmest days
 PRODUCTS OF THR VALLEY.
 Unlike the Salt river, the waters of the Sila are fresh aud pure; the soil contains no 1lkali. is a deep, rich gray ash, especially adapted to the growth or .ne p.une tr,,;t. Tug;s, of all kinds, which pay largely on the invest ment. It is also the natural home of alfalfa, The grape does exceptionally well in this valley, and wine and ralsln culture IS destln- ed to becoms prominent industry. Citrus fruits have been cultivated to limited extent; there are number of orange trees in the neighborhood of Florence which bear their gslden fruit each year without pro lection, and few date palm trees are also in full bearing. The season is from six weeks to two months earller than Southern Califor- mia, which gives fruit growers an nppreciat- ed advantage in
 THK EARLY MARKETS.
 The absence of fogs and nightly dews is 8 formidable obstacle to the destructive and unsghtly scale-bug. and the fruits of the valley are all bright and clean. All the agri- cultural products of temperate and semi tropic zones are easily grown here, the long seasons giving succession of crops that double or treble the productive value Of the land.
 PRICES OF LAND.
 water right can be bought for from S20 to $50 per acre, according to location and i'm progenents. In the immediate nelghbor- hood aud to the south of the Casa Grande ruins there are thousands of acres covered with Q heavy growth of mesquite timber yet open to settlement. These are among the choicest in the valley Water Tn nexnaustl- i ble quantity is found at depth of from twenty to thirty feet; in fact, river seems to be flowing underneath. Here IS splen- did opportunity to take up and improve land with pumping system of irrigation, which is said to be successful on small tracts. However, with the completion of the Butte reservoir, pumping will be thing or the past, and it is only mentioned here for the purpose of showing what can be done, and to magnify the further fact that what was once considered
 AN UEISHABITABLE DESERT
 Is in truth the most productive land on the globe, and that there is water in abundance to bring every foot of it under cultivation, only waiting for the magic wand of capital to develop it. There is no water-storage scheme on the Pacific coast that has one-haf  fng difficulties as the Butte reservoir. Here nature has built the abutments in ever-liy- ing rock and all that is left for man to do is to put in the headgate, the bluffs which form the gorge being only separated by peltry 220 feet. 4 country is drained through this narrow canyon 200 miles square, representing 10000 square miles. or larger than Maine and Massachusetts combined. The rainfall is suf- fieie-lt to fill the reservoir twice year and the land to be brought under cultivation is practically Hmitless. This may read like a fairy tale but it is every word true, and has been verified time and again.
 CASA CYANIDE RESERVOIR.
 The reservoir of the Casa Grande Valley Canal company is the largest in the territory. It covers a surface of 1900 acres, with an aver age depth of IF feet, and contains about eight thousand million gallons of water. It is sit uated fifteen miles southwest of Florence. leyee of earth has been thrown up across depression in the plain IA. 600 feet in length, 125 feet in width at the bottom and 9 feet in width at top, 2 to 1 slope on each side, and an average height of 25 feet. The waste is regu- lated by cast iron pipes feet in diameter, tower. This reservoir cost Sl5OlOO0, and sup plies water for 6.000 acres.
 Meteorological Statistics.
 The signal service of the general govern ment maintained a station at Florence from 1874 to 1882. The reports covering the period from July 1880, to April. 1882. gives the follow ing statistics, which may be taken as a safe guide to the prevailing temperature given
 1880. Mean. Max. Min. July y..............-.....-....s .s6.8 III 6l August ust....-.............-S6.5 -S6.5 112 60 Septernber 107 s