Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1902-08-27
Much Business for Such Line--Great Pros
poets for Increase by the Building
Of the Road.
CAAvES COUNTY RESOURCES
Large Roswell Railroad and Express Receipts In
menss Freight In Coal, Lumber, Brick, also Of Cat
Ito, Sheep, Wool, Fruit, Agricultural Products
Ready for Such New Railway.

the county seat OF ChaVeS county, anl
therefore many have wondered at the
rapid growth and progress OF the town
which bids fair to enter the race this
decade for metropolis honors in New
Mexico. The following figures will
give at least an idea of the active and
the latent wealth of the country round
about Roswell, and which would be
traversed by the proposed Roswell San
ia Fe and Northeastern Railway.
There are tributary to Roswell $4,000
acres of fine agricultural land with an
ample water supply, about 10000 acres
more will come under the proposed Hondo
reservoir and 100000 acres are in the
artesian we'll belt. The Pecos Valley
improvement Company has approrriat-
ed in the counties of Chaves and Eddy
100000 acres which are really tributary
to oswell. The Salt Creek, the Hondo,
the Ruidoso, the Felix and Penasco val
leys, in which there is water sufficient
to irrigate 100000 acres, should also be
counted as tributary to this town. At
low estimate, there are 100000 acres
of farming land adjacent and around
Roswell for which there has been oh
tained or is now being developed suf.
ficient water for irrigation. This alone
will make Roswell big city some day.
| But there are other resources of great
Chaves, Eddy and Lincoln counties
show 100000 cattle, which actually
means twice that number. Excepting
| few herds on the western slope of the
mountains in Lincoln county, these vast
herds of cattle are tributary to Roswell.
Over 10000 cars of cattle were shipped
this year over the Pecos Valley and
Northeastern railway from Chaves and
Eddy counties. To this might be
added the herds driven in from the
Texas border counties, all Of which
make Roswell their shipping point. The
assessment rolls show something like
$50, 900 head of sheep in the counties of
Chaves, Eddy and Lincoln. The actual
number approached three quarters of a
million. There are 10000 head of
horses in the Pecos Valley. A com
paratvely new industry is the raising
of hogs of which there are 5000 on one
ranch alone.
There are $500 acres planted to ap-
Piles in the country tributary to Roswell
and many more acres will be planted
this fall, one orchard alone covering $40
acres. The crop from one orchard of
forty acres was sold this year far So, s,75O
on the trees, showing the great value of
the apple crop. j. J. Hagerman has re-
fused 100000 for the crop On his GAO
acre orchard. 1t is safe to estimate an
income of 800 per acre this year for
Pecos Valley orchards. The apple crop
this year amounts to 100000 pounds.
The wool clip was 100000 pounds.
The Roswell freight receipts for the fis-
cal year ending June 80, 1902, amounted
to $3.50, 900, of which 80 per cent was for
general merchandise, IS per cent for
livestock and wool, Is per cent for lam |
ber, II per cent for hardware, z per cent
for fruit and per cent miscellaneous. |
Shipments of brick amounted to $780, |
900 pounds, and of miscellaneous mer-
chandise to 45,000,00O pounds, all show
ing phenomenal increase over the ship |
ments of previous years. The express
Office at Roswell did business of $2l,
900 in 1900, of S45, 900 in 1901, and of
$50, 900 in the first six months of 1902.
During the fiscal year ending June 80,
land office 5O4 entries covering 7S,454 |
acres; in the year ending June 30, 1902,
there were made 936 entries covering |
14S, 800 acres.
There are $1,000 acres in alfalfa In
the vicinity Of Roswell producing IS, 900
tons annually. A fine stone quarry has
just been opened near town which ships
four carloadr Of stone daily.
The estimated population on July /.
1902, was 4,5OO. The school census OF
1901 showed 92o children of school age;
tho enrolment was 1853. The census
this fall will show 1,1oO children of
school age, and the board of education |
has made provisions for the accommoda-
tion of 900 pupils. The public school
building cost $95, 900, exclusive of the |
grounds, and there is besides smaller |
school building accommodating 100 pu-
pills.
The town has just completed a sewer
system at a cost of $35, 900. The bonds
issued for the school BUILDING as we'll as
for the sewer system sold at $1.05. The
Indebtedness OF Chaves county does not
exceed one and one half per cent of its
present assessed valuation. The asses
sed valuation of Chaves, Eddy and Lin
coin counties is $4,000, 900, while the
actual value is more than thrice as
much.
Several canning plants are to be erec-
ted soon and Mr. Hagerman Is construct
ing large evaporating plant in his $40
acre orchard.
What Roswell needs, is direct railway
connection with the capital Of the Ter
ritory and the great region which is
tributary to the three railroads which
enter the capital city. A line from Ros-
we'll to Torrance; a distance Of less than
100 miles across an easy country, would
connect the metropolis Of the Pecos
valley with the capital city Of the Ter
ritory. That such line would pay the
foregoing figures demonstrate. In addi' |
tion, the line would traverse fine graz
ing country between Roswell and Tor
rance. There are good iron prospects |
in the foothills to the west Of the propo- |
sed line and large area of timber in
the Captain mountains would be tribu-
tary as we'll as extensive deposits of
building stone. Wood is hauled into
Roswell go miles by wagon and sells at
from $500 to $40 cord. Coal sells
at $500 to $40 per ton; 200 cars were
used last year and owing to new. and
Industries about 400 cars will
be used this year.
The Roswell Santa Fe and North