The Taney County republican. (Forsyth, Mo.) 1895-1992, 1905-06-22
ACROSS THE PLAINS BY RAIL
Some Gossip OF Very Interesting Section
by a fancy County Traveller.

When | asked what shut the noun.
tains out from our view, | was told that
1t rained more at that altitude than
where we then were, and that the view
was obstructed by either clouds or iog.
Roswell is an old town of some 1000
population, situated ten miles west of
the Pccos river, at the junction OF the
Rio Hondo and North Spring rivers,
and is very subject to overflow. The
New Mexico military academy &C.
cupies an cminence just north of town,
and ranks very favorably in attendance
and learning with the military schools
of the older states,
Roswell is the business center of the
livestock industries of western Texas
and New Mexico. Many Of the stock
men have located here and built bcauti-
full homes, and most Of them for several
miles in every direction draw their
supplies from this place, The town
has thirteen saloons, and gambling, be-
ing logalized, runs wide open duy and
night. Nevertheless it is the most
quiet place | ever saw, our own south
west Missouri towns ana villages not
excepted, | was there four months,
and saw only one drunk man, who was
being quietly marched of TO jail by tho
city marshall.
Living here is expensive. have Of
ten paid cents II pound for beans, cab
bagC, potatoes and onions Is cents for
meat and 80 to 10 cents for butter. 1t
is no uncommon thing for rancher to
own ten or fifteen thousand head ofcat.
tie and do without milk and butter the
year around. Sugar and coffee, dry
goods and notions, are cheaper here
than in Taney county; while on hard
ware, farm machinery, saddlcry and
harness the reverse is true,
This being in the arid region all
farming Is done by irrigation, the
liorrindas and North and South Spring
rivers furnishing the principal supply
of water. However, quite Il consider
able amount of irrigating is done by
using the water from artesian wells,
which range in depth from 200 TO 2000
feet North Spring river has It's source
about two miles northwest of Roswell,
and carries about twice rs much water
as the Swan at Forsyth, while South
Spring river is about half us large, aud
has its source about four miles to the
south The Rio IIondo rises in the
mountains about hundred miles west,
and runs through the south part Of
town on higher ground than the main
business center, and has on two oc.
casions Hooded the principal part of the
town from two to ten feet deep But
| 1t is claimed the storage reservoir
| which the government is building for
irrigation purposes, some twenty miles
west will protect the town from all pos
sible danger Of future ovcrIlows.
There are many good.si2cd streams
flowing out Of the mountains, but with
the exception Of the Peneasco, Seven
Rivers and ilondo, they all sink and
disappear in the desert sands before
reaching tidewater through either the
PccGs or RiOgrande rivers. The chan
mel Ofthc lIOndo at Roswell is about
fifteen feet wide and twenty feet deep
and is generally dry during about nine
months in the year, but fifty miles or
so west il is much larger and runs all
the time, and in the vicinity of Lincoln
and Captain it supplies water to irri-
gate several thousand acres Of land,
To the east ana south of Roswell and
extending 10 The town limits, is the
finest farming country, for such crops
as are adapted to it, that ever saw.
Alfalfa, vegetables and fruits are the
principal products, but IT is claimed
wheat, oats and coru will do well.
However, | never saw but one field Of
oats, and no wheat, growing, while
was in New Mexico. Alfalfa makes