Rocky Ford enterprise., 1904-11-18
How irrigation Will Develop the One and Ger.
tainly Secure the Other.
ROOSEvELTS INSPIRING AMERICAN|SM
While Creating New Agricultural and Horti.
cultural World at Home. He Would
Establish Commercial Pres.
tige in the Orient.

1N. heart OF the great West has bees
tsauAed by the sincere. persistent. siise
Ave friendship OF President Roosevelt,
u had bssun. but oniy partially. TO fee
,ts great need; When this stroas. idea
American stepped up to IL and hanie,
tks golden key which il TO uniSck IL
LHaiii-ss. iatr,iI weaith-=reatsE than Ih'
eonhinsi mineFai deposits OF all The
world.
By one stroke Of hls pea he save the
UI4tei States new empire greater Ia
possibilities. for sosi to the human race
thsn all that other srrat section sliuai
ed between the Atlantic Ocean and the
Mississippi River. Th. Nasioaai irFl'
cation Act will transform ia5.0poOc0
acres Of iaai from desert to garden. l,
viii create the greatest home market ihi.
eoasfry has ever known. IL will make
happy homes for millions Of free AmeFl'
rsss II will establish forever the pres.
use Of our commerce In the Orient. I,
viii cause frcsli-ai Rooseyelt's nam.
snd his officsal acts 10 bc gratefully 70,
urnscrcd for all time TO come.
All the People Iassre.sed.
Al American citizens are essentially
Interested In the operations OF the Ma.
Usaai Irrigation Aei for the reason thai,
sa A1uurl'- pu iptnrrAg tsnir nuI Tor
-ixs commerce l. i-stinrd TO 10 simply
iaealcaisbic. The reclamation OF arid
America aions the lines Of the National
Irrigation Act means "a home ror every
n,aa who wants one" II means tha,
whcs settler cots ready TO obtain hi.
sharv Of the National heritage he will
obtain not only fertile soil. but the water
noor>ssry TO make IL a s-lt-sn.iaInIas
home and that tho wafer right IL guar
anfecd by the government OF the United
States. This Il. beyond nil comparison.
oac OF the greatest things ever attempt.
cd ly the American people.
Pregnant with great possibilities Is
this PROPOSED Irrigation OF iaj.Dpp.ocD
acres OF the peoples domain, an area
tant now supports bat a mcascr popr.
lsnon. Under irrigation farms are small
b-caus. the yield Of the land /. very
much greater In proportion 10 cost and
operating expenses than II q. where tho
clouds arc the frs; and sole rclianc. for
water supply. IL follows that there
"iIi lie dense population on our irri.
gated area and n greatly Increased mar.
hcs Tor the manufactured products OF the
rest OF the country. The railroad. and
all other Industries will profit by the
reclamation Of n region. 80 vast In cx.
'en'. and Its settlement by a prospcrou.
population.
Wealth icyond Compare,
According to the National census of
lvOo the total improved farm area of Tho
United States was iii,sDo. 600 acres, II
~ contcrrativcly estimated that the re.
claiinabic land Is not less than 125. 900.
S0 acres. Its reclamation, therefore,
WIN add much more than onc-fourth 10
tne actual cropproducing area OF the |
=
w. the tillalE land OF all the State. %
.. the Atla& Coast from Maine 10
sEirda.ex b' m1lest on OF Sew
age size irrigatcd farms, this AREA
q make G.3yp.OOO farms or more tasn
ic number in Nc United States In 1900.
The total value or all farms in 1900, in-
Guiding all improvements except build
iags, was S13. 3.1i5OOo,O00. At $3.50 per !
acre, the average value OF irrigated land.
the 125.O0O.O00 acres to he reclaimed
viii add TO the value OF the farm land
S5,3l2. 100000. II buildings are includ. !
ID, the value will be increased by S. |
800, ,OoO.OOO: while the augmented wealth |
through railroads. cities. mills and fac.
tories il beyond estimation. The an
ntlll value OF all the farm products In
1900 was s4.3I0,O 100000. The average
per acre OF products OF irrigated land
was $1i.S1. At this rate. the area TO
be reclaimed will add products worth
Sl,s51, 100000 an addition of nearly
half OF the life sustaining power Of the
country.
will Not Compete with East.
National irrigation will amount to a
series of loans by the government and
The supervision of the construction work
and water distribution. As to the qucs-
ton whether the products of the irri-
gated west will compete with eastern
farm products, 1t is only necessary to
travel through the West and see what
it raises under irrigation to understand
that there will never he any such com
petition. Irrigated farms are small and
zoo valua BILE to grow the staple products.
They are devoted to fruit culture or to
alfalfa raising. In California. for in
stnnce, where irrigation is Oldest and
where its highest types are found, the
farm unit, instead of being 100 or 200
acres as in the East, is 40, 20 and D
acres. Fine fruits, wines and dairy pro.
ducts are raised and cattle are fattened
1t Is dinicult to name a California farm
product which comes East and actually
competes with Eastern products.
We get from California, oranges, lem
ous, prunes. raisins. figs, olives, wines.
dried fruits, ctc.-luxuries; on the other
hand, the Eastern farmers derive dis.
tinst benefit from irrigation in Califor-
MIA, for it makes California, and she fur
aishes greedy market for every sort of
Eastern manufactured product, sending
her money back to New England and
throughout the East and thereby stimu-
lating manufacturing. Busy factories
end well paid, steadily employed factory
hands mean good Eastern markets fol
Eastern farm products.
Prccedcn. Cited.
Our friends the farmers of the East
were somewhat alarmed as to what the
result migth be when the tide war west
ward and settling up the eastern por
.ior. Of the Mississippi Valley, but th'