The Florence tribune., 1898-12-24
THE CASA eRANoe VALLEY.
information for Those Seeking Homes
 In the Garden Spot of the West.

In the Garden Spot of the West.
 Pinal county was organized in 1875 from portions of Pima. Marieopa md Yavupat counties, and contains an area of :, ,Sgs ssqraro miles, or S,455,520 acres, one.third ot which could be made productive by systematic storage e the surplus water now running to waste. Next to Maricopa it Is the most fm- portant agricultural county i'll the Territory. It it trayersed from east to west by the Southern Pacific railroad and branch ot the great Santa Fe system is now approach ing from the north. The objective point ot this road is 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 that work will not cease until the Deer Creek coal fields are reached and connection Is made with another branch of that road rum ming from Bowie to Globe and now complet-
 Thus it will be seen that Pinal county is the theater of railroad building at the pres ent time, and inside of year Florence, the county seat, will be
 RAILROAD CENTER.
 At present 1t contains d population of about 15eo, but with the completion of these two railroads and the Butte reservoir no city in Arizona can approach 1t for naturat advantages, and Q large increase in popuia- tien will follow. Florence is at an elevation of 1858 feet aAove sea level, situated near the Gila river, twenty-kix miles northwest of the railroad station of Casa Grande, with which it is connected by an elegantly equipped dsily stage line. Going and coming stages run by the old Casa Grande ruins, and passengers are allowed a short time to ln- spect them. There are niaily handsome prt- vate residences in Florence, several prieS stores. good hotel, an excellent grated school employing four teachers, churches, secret societies, a Commercial Club, news paper the only ene in the conntyl and tile Here is held the United States Court for the district composed of Gila, 6rahafn ana PinuA counties. The streets are lined with shade trees, which impart an air of comfort on the Earmest days.
 PRODUCTS OF THE sALnRY.
 Unlike the Salt river. the waters of the .sila are fresh and pure; the soil contains no &llsaii, Is deep, rich gray ash, especially adapted to the growth Of the prune, oilNe, almond. peach, fig, pear, apricot and fruits of all kinds, which pay largely on the invest neut. lt IS also the natural home or alfalfa, which grows In tho most prolific manner. The grape does exceptionally well in this valley, and wine esd raisin culture is destin- ed to become prominent industry. Citrus fruits have been cultivated to a limited extent; there are a number of orange trees in the neighborhood of Florence which bear their golden fruit each year without pro- lection, and few date palm trees are also in full bearing; The season is from six weeks Co two months earlier than Southern Caiifor- mia, which gives fruit growers an appreeiat- cd advantage in
 THB EARLY MARKETS.
 The absence of fogs and nightly dews is g formidable obstacle to the destructive and unsightly scale-bug. and the fruits of the valley are all bright and clean All the agFi- cultural products of temperate and semi tropic zones are easily grown here, the long seasons giving a succession of crops that double or treblethe productive value of the land.
 PRICES OF LAND.
 Improved lands, with government title and water right. can be bought for from 20 to $50 per acre, according to location and in- provements- In the immediate neighbor- hood and to the south of the Casa Grande ruins there are thousands of aeres covered fopen to settlement. These are among the choicest in the valley. Water in inexhausti- bie quantity is found at a 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 Q thing of the past, and it is only mentioned here for the purpose of showing " hat can be done, and to magnify the further fact that what was once considered
 AN UsIsHABITABLR DEszBr
 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 LC defeiOD iL. AHert Is no WdrST-SCOrdEye scheme on the Pacific coast that has one-half the natural advantages and 50 few engineer ing difficulties the Butte reservoir. Here nature has built the abutments in eyer-liv- 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 paltry z220 feet l country is drained through this marrow canyon 200 miles square, representing 40,000 square miles. or larger than Maine and Massachusetts combined The rainfall is suf- hcient to ill the reservoir twice year, and the land to be brought under cultivation is practically hmitless. This may read like fairy tale, but it Is every word true, and has been verified time and again.
 CASA GRAEDE REsKzyoIR.
 The reservoir of the Casa Gransle Valley Canal company is the largest in the territory. It covers a surface of 1o00 acres, with all aver age depth of l2 feet. and contains about eight l thousand million gallons of water. It is sit i uated fifteen miles southwest of Florence l A levee of earth has been thrown up across 1 Q depression in the plain + O00 feet in length i 125 feet in width at the bottom and g feet in ! width at top, to slope on each side, and an | average height of z5 feet. The waste is regu- l lated by cast iron pipes feet in diameter, 1 set in solid masonry, regulated by gates and f tower. This reservoir cost S150,000, and SUD- plies water for G.000 acres.
 meteorolocicaI Statistics.