The San Juan County index. (Aztec, N.M.) 1890-19??, 1901-10-04
FOR FINE FRUITS
San Juan County Ranks Them Ali
Without Any Serious Effort.
Status Of This Sections Prospects, It's
Products and It's People as Viewed BY
An Iowa Editor.

E.A. Snyder, editor Of the Gazette,
Cedar Falls, Iowa, prints the following
as his impression Of this county gath
cred during brief visit here this
summer:
Residents of the Las. Animas, San
Juan and La Plata valleys ia Northwest
New Mexico, claim superiority Of soil
and climatic conditions for the produc-
ton Of peaches, apples, pears, prunee,
grapes, cherries, pluma and all varieties
Of fruit except the citris. The raisin
grape grows to perfection. w. N. Kight,
whose orchard near Pennington covers
nearly eighty acres, has just sold his
crop OF 100000 pounds on the place, to
the Hyde company of Boston, for one
cent per pound, or $50 per ton for apples,
peaches and pears after taken from the
trees and laid upon the packing tables,
and $40 per ton for grapes and plums;
prunes still higher, We were shown a
peach tree with large peaches upon it,
from which the product in former years
has averaged about 700 pounds
The fruit Of these valleys must now be
haulsd to Durango in Southern Colo
RADIO, or to Gallup on the Atlantic & Pa
cihc railway, 100 miles. Hundreds Of
loads are hauled by farmers from the
vicinity of Pennington, Aztec and other
points, ana sold at 80 to 20 cents for 10
pound boxes. Fruit as large and beau
tiful as can be seen anywhere, is pro.
duced here and in great abundance.
Corn, wheat and all the cereals are
raised, the leading product being alfalfa.
1t is called by residents here the greatest
H,lat
Three crops are cut each year, the yield
being five or six tons per acre, sold at
So to $40 per ton. Cattle live and tatten
upon alfalfa, and horses work and thrive
upon it through the entire year. A sim
pie mention Of the fruit product here,
would do il injustice. The size, beauty
and perfection of all kinds we have
named, as we'll as richness of flavor,
make eyes stand out. Trees are smooth
and fruit ditto; the supply Of moisture
by irrigation just when it is needed, i'm
parting fruitfulness and growth that are
more than a match for worms and in
sects, which have not arrived or do not
belong in this splendid fruit region. In
ten days of fruit eating, we have failed
to see a wormy apple, peach, pear or any
other fruit infested by disgusting worms.
Last year, they say, was the real fruit
season. Thousands of bushels could
not be picked; trees with limbs loaded
to the ground; but the sight of some of
them this season, loaded with such
beautiful, perfect fruit is surprise for
"tenderfoot,"
The distance to market, Is the great
drawback TO fruit raising IN these val
leys, but a survey is now being made Of
line from Durango down the Las An
imas river to Pennington thence to
Clifton, Arizona, $50 miles, to be known
as the Colorado & Gulf R'y A meeting
of the president OF the line @. E. Nc.
Connell. with those owning land through
which the road is to pass, was held Aug
3lst, at Aztec, the county seat of San
Juan county. The live settlers Of this
valley are more eager, il possible for
railroad, than people in Iowa for rural
free deliVeryj and the Mexican and In
dians who are quite numerous, will not
object. When the road comes it will be
doubly welcomed by those who now
haul their fruit long distance.