The Arizona sentinel., 1903-11-18
COLORADO AN. AN.
 GIlA VALLEYS

In the valleys of the Colorado and Gila rivers | there is room for thousands. It is not too much | to say that nowhere within the limits of this | broad union can be found a more desirable re- i zion for the making of home. No labOriouS | clearing of the land is required; it lies almost ready for the plow. Trees aud Shrubbery have so rapid growth that within eighteen months 1 the immigrant can surround his abode with at | fractions which would require years to mature | in less favored climates. Fruits ripen and are ready for the market full month before the California products. The bright sunshine
 makes life d luxury, and the pure dry atmos- | pbere brings health to all who inhale it. For l the establishment of colonies, such as are made 1 in Southern California, Arizona presents un-
 rivaled opportunities. Thousands of acres now prOfitleSS can be made productive by the con- structiOn of irrigating ditcheS, and there is no investment which assures larger and more per
 manent return.
 The statements in this article onYuma county ] arc not exaggerated; in fact they fall short of doing justice to this wonderful bit of country Pineapples, dates, almonds and walnutS will do well. Strawberries, raSpberrieS, blackberrieS,
 entrants, gooSeDerrieS and all varieties of small fruits can be successfully cultivated. In- deed, Yuma county is not only the natural home of the citrus and SemitrOpical fruits, as almost every fruit, nut plant, grain, grass or vegetable which can be produced in either tropic of the temperate zones will thrive in the rich | and fertile soils.
 With the bright prospects ahead of the town | of Yuma and Yuma county there can be no bet ter investment for capital seeking large and re- munerative returns than is afforded here. With a matchleSS climate, where all forms of dis ease known to the damp and rigorous regions of the east and north are unknown, where the bright sunshine kiSSe' into bloom and fra gralce every form of vegetation, and where the clear days and cool balmy nights are one long continued poem of happiness and delight, we
 can offer to capitalists an ideal field for invest ment and to hOmeSeekerS q Veritable paradise in which to settle.
 The soil of these valleys is among the richest on the continent It is formed of the detrituS which the streams for ages have brought down from their mountain homes in their journey to the sea. By constant oVerfiOwS and change of channel, the deposit of this rich vegetable
 matter has formed soil of extreme fertility Near the streams 1t is dark alluvial mold,
 well adapted to small grains and grasses. Far
 ther back there is a rich sandy loam, mellow and porous. and especially favorable for fruit culture It has been already demonstrated that the productive capacity of these valleys is not surpassed by lands of equal area in any part of the United States. So rapid and pro- life is the growth of thefruits cereals and veg etJbleS that the labor of the cultivatOr is re- duced to the minimum, In nearly all of them two crops q year can be grown, and vegetation is one month head of California. The farmer plants q cottonwood Sapling before his door,
 and within the year he has a shade tree twenty five feet high. Alfalfa can be cut six times dur ing the season, and it is an actual fact that grape cuttings have produced within eighteen
 months! What state or territory can make such showing? The climate, 1t must be re-
 membered, is nearly perpetual summer. Snow
 never falls in these southern valleys. The far
 mer begins to plant in November, and by the
 middle of May his harvest is ready. Roses are
 in bloom, fruit trees are blooming, and the
 grain fields are a sea of green, when the fields of the Eastern farmers are covered with snow and ice.
 Every variety of grains, grasses, fruits and vegetables grown in SemitrOpic zones can be produced in the valleys of Arizona. Wheat,
 corn, barley oats and all the small grains give yield of from twenty-five to fifty bushels per acre. Alfalfa timothy, clover, Bermuda and all the cultivated grasses grow luXuriantly, the
 former giving from eight to ten tons to the acre each year. Every variety of vegetable raised in the United States can be grown in AIiZona, and nowhere are they found of better quality. Besides the products mentioned, these semi tropical valleys produce cotton, sugar-cane, to- bacco, hemp and rice. With the exception of the Sugar-cane, but little attention is paid to the cultivation of other staples but 1t has been demonstrated that the soil and climate are
 specially adapted to their successful growth. Cotton-growing is TO experiment in Arizona, for it is on record that when the Europeans first penetrated this region, they found the Pima Indians wearing fabrics made of cotton grown in the Gila valley.
 But it is their addptability for fruit culture | that assures to these valley lands dense pop ulatiOn and prosperous future. Almost every
 variety known can be raised in their fruitful soils. The apple, pear, plum, peach, apricot. Quince and nectarine, are of delicious flavor, and give a generous yield. The grape of all va rieties is at home in these sunny wales. No place in the grape-growing belt of the Pacific | coast can show so prolific yield. The quality is all that could De ueSlr6Q, ana the WlQe, although it's manufacture is yet experimental, is of a fine flavor, delicious bouquet and un-
 surpassed by any native product GS a table bev- craze. Experiments with the raiSin grape have shown that this climate and soil possess every | advantage for the production and curing of this staple article of commerce.
 Besides the fruits already mentioned, the orange. lemon, lime, olive, fig pomgranate and others of the citrus family, can be grown sue ceSSfully in the valleys of Southern Arizona. Orange trees are now in bearing In Salt river valley and at Yuma; while the banana is also being cultivated at the latter place. The Ari- Zona orange in quality and flavor will compare favorably with the best California.
 Tn the valleys of the Colorado, the Salt and the Gila rivers there is room for thousands. It is not too much to say that nowhere within the limits of this broad Union can be found a
 more desirable region for the making of a home. No laboriouS clearing of the land is re- quired; it lies almost ready for the blow. Trees and Shrubbery have so rapid growth that within eighteen months the immigrant can surround his abode with attractions which would require years to mature in less favored climates. Fruits ripcn and are ready for mar ket full month before the California product. The bright sunshine is luxury, and the pure, dry atmosphere brings health to all who inhale 1t. For the establishment of colonies, such as
 have made of Southern California garden, Arizona presents unrivaled opportunities.
 Thousands of acres, now profitlesS, can be
 made productive by the construction of irrigat-
 ing ditcheS and there is no investment which
 assures larger or more permanent returns