The Arizona sentinel., 1904-11-23
NOVEMBER %. 1904
COLORADO and GILk VAL LEYS

In the valleys Ct the Colorado are Gila rivers
there IS room for thousands. 1t is rot too much
TO say that nowhere within the limits Of this
broad union can be found more desirable re-
gion for the making Of q home No laboriouS
clearing of the land is required it lies almost
ready for the plow. Trees ard Shrubbery have
so rapid growth that within eighteen months
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 q full month before the
California products. The bright sunshine
makes life Il luxury, and the pure dry atmOs-
phere brings health to all who inhale it, For
the establishment of colonies. such as are made
in Southern California. Arizona presents un-
rivaled opportunities Thousands of acres now
prohtleSs can be made productive by the con
struction OF irrigatlngi bitches, and there is no
lnyestnentwhlch ASSUMES larger and more per-
manent return.
The statements in this article onY ANA county
are hot eXaggeratett in fact they fall Short Of
doing justice 10 this wonderful bit of country
Pincapples dates, almonds and walnuts will do
well. Strawberries, raSpberries, blackberries
currantS, gooSeoerrieS 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 cepital seeking large and re-
muneratiVe returns than is afforded here. With
q 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
grance every form of vegetation. and where the
clear days and cool balIny nights are one long
con5inued poem of happiness and delight. we
can offer to capitalists an ideal field for invest
ment and to honeSeekers a veritable paradise
in which TO settle.
The soil OF these valleys is among the richest
on the continent. 1t 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 n soil of extreme fertility
Near the streams it is a dark alluvial mold,
well adapted TO small grains and grasses. Far
ther back there is a rich sandy loan, mellow
and porous, and especially favorable for fruit
culture. 1t has been already demonstrated
that the productive capacity OF these valleys is
not surpassed By lands Of equal area in anA
part of the United States So rapid and pro-
life is the growth of thefruits, cereals and veg
etables that the labor Of the cultivator is re-
duced to the minimum, In nearly all of them two
crops a year can be grown, and vegetation is
enc month head Of California The farmer
plants a cottonwood Sapling before his door,
and within the year he has 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, it 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 semisropic 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 it has been
demonstrated that sile soil and ciif1pfe ars
specially adapted to their successful growth.
CotLOn-growlng is no experiment in Arizona.
for il is on record that when the Europeans
first penetrated this region, they found the
Pima Indians wearing fabrics made OF cotton
grown in the ella valley.
But it is their adaptability for fruit culture
that assures to these valley lands dense pop
ulation and a prosperous future. Almost every
variety known can be raised in their fruitful
soils. The apple, pear, plum, peach, apricot,
ounce and nectarine. are of delicious flavor,
and give u 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 IL yield. The quality
is all that could be desired; and the wine,
although its manufacture is yet experimental,
is of fine flavor, delicious bouquet, and un-
surpassed by any native product a table bev-
erage. 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 Suc-
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.
In the valleys OF the Colorado the Salt and
the Gila rivers, there is room for thousands.
1t is not too much to say that nowhere within
the limits of this broad Union can be found
more desirable region for the making of a
home. No laborious clearing of the land is re-
Quired; it lies almost ready for the plow.
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 ripen and are ready for mar
ket a full month before the California product.
The bright sunshine is luxury, and the pure,
it. For the establishment of colonies, such as
have made of Southern California n garden,
Arizona presents unrivaled opportunities.
Thousands of acres, now prOftlesS, can be
made productive by the construction of irrigat
ing ditches and there IS no investment which
assures larPer or more permanent returns.