The Arizona sentinel., 1905-01-25
COLORADO and GiLA VALLEYS

! In the valleys Of the Colorado ard 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 a more desirable TO
| gion for the making of home. No l;Sbcrious
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 az
fractions which would require years to mature
| ready for tho market a fun month before the
! Cnlifcfn:a products. The bright sunshine
makes life Il luxury. and the pure dry atDos-
pherc brings health to all who inhale it. For
| the establishment of colonies, such Us are made
| in Southern California. Arizona presents un-
| I:valed opportunities. Thousands of acres now
prUtt.6SS can be made productive by the con-
structiOn OF irrigaLing bitches, and there is no
investment which assures larger and more per:
.nanent return.
The statements in this article onYuma county
are not exaggerated; i'll fact they fall short Of
doing justice to this wonderful bit of country
Fineapples. dates, almonds and walnUts win do
well. Strawberries, raSpberfies, hlaGkberrieS,
currantS, gOoSeDerrieS end nll varieties of
small fruits car. be successfully cultivated In
deed, Yuma county IS not only the natural
home of the citrus and Semtropical fruits, as
almost every fruit, nut plant, grain, grass, or
vegetable which can be prodiced 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 una county there can be no bet
ter inve5tment for cBpitjH seeking large and re-
muner2tiSt returns than is afforded here. With
j hiatcittSs climate where all forms OF dis
ease known to tho Gafntj and rirctOue regions
of the eaSt ara npIth are unknown where the
bright sunshine K;sSc' iStto Bloom and fra
GRANGE every form IF Te2etGtfDIl, Gfd Were the
clear days and cool b;lmy nights are one long
continued poem Of Happiness and delight, we
san offer to capit5listc ideal field :Or invest
m6nt ami to homeSeekGrS u veFitablt rcradiSe
In which to settle.
The soil Of these valleys Is aIrOtg the richest
on the continent. II Is formed of the detrituS
which the streams for ages have Brought down
from their motlntain homes IN their journey
20 the sea. BY constant Overf1OwS and change
of channel, the dtp9Sit of this rich vegetable
matter has formed soil of extreme fertility
Near the streams It is u dark alluvi2l mold,
well adapted to small grains and graSsGs Far
ther back there Is y rich sandy loam, mellow
and porous. and especially favorable for fruit
culture It has been already demonstrated
tAat the productive capacity Of tl:ese 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 the fruits cereals and veg
ctJbleS that the labor Of the cultivatQr is re,
duccd to the minimum, In nearly all of them two
crops % year can be grown ard vegetatioE is
one month head of California. The };tTthsr
plants cottonTC0d SaplinS before his door,
ana within the year he has shade tree twensy;
five feet hghl 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 chowiDg7 The climate, - tflust be re-
memberCG. IS nearly perpetual summer. Snow
never falls IN these southern valleys. The far
Iner begins to PLANT in November, and by the
middle of May his harvest IL ready. Roses are
in bloom, fruit trees are blooming, and TIE
grain fields are q s5:s of green Tyhen the fields
Of the Eastern farmers IRE covered With sno'F
and ice.
Every variety of grains. ef1s-es, fruits ai1i
vegetables grown in semitrCpiE zthe5 cen be
produced in She valleys Sf AriZon;i. Wheat,
corn. barley, oats and I'll tie small grains give
yigld of from twenty-five - fifty bushels per
acre. Alfalfa, timothy, clover, f5SfInuda and
all the cultivated grasses grow lrxuri;rfTfy, the
former giving FROM eight L. ten tons to Exc acre
each wear. Every variety o; vegetable raised IN
the United States can be grown in A5iZ6Ga, isnd
nowhere are they found OF better qualify
Besides the products mentioned. these SEMI
tropica valleys produce cotton. SIlGar-Cane, to-
bacco, hemp and rice, With tfSe exception Of
the Sugar-cane, but little attention Is paid to
the cultivation or other staples bat 1t bus been
demonstrated that the so1 ftnd ciinfste arc
Cotton growing is 40 experiment. III Arizona,
for it is on record that when the EJffopEanS
first penetrated this region. they found the
Pima indians wearing fabrics made OF cotton
grown IN the Gila valley.
Bat it is their addptaDtlfty for fruit culture
that GfSsurCS to these valley lands u dense pop
ulation end prosperous future. Almost every
variety known can be raised in their fruitful
soils. The apple, pear, plum, peach, apricot,
ounce and neCtar;ne are of delicious favor.
and give generous yield The grape OF all va
rietfeS is at home in these sunny wales. No
place in the grape-growfng belt of the Pacific
coast can show so prolific yield. The quality
rs all that could be desired; and the wine,
although its manufacture is yet experimental,
fS Of 81 fine flavor delicious bouquet and I'M
surpassed by Gny native product as table bev-
erage. Experiments with the raSin grape have
shown that this clin1te 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
rceSSfully III the valleys Of Southern Arizona.
Orange tFeeS are now in bearing In Salt river
valley Snd at Yuma while the bhEarfE Is also
being cultivated at the latter place. The Ari-
zona orange in quality and flavor VIII compare
favorably with the best Californfa.
In the valleys Of the Colorado the Salt and
the ella rivers, there is room for thousands.
1t is not too much to say that nowhere within
the limits of this broad Union cttn be found Il
more desirable region for the ulalsfrR OF q
home. No laboriOuS clearing o. the land is re-
quired it lies almost ready for the plow.
Trees and Shrubb5ry have rapid a growth
that within eighteen months the immigrant can
surround his abode with attractions which
would require years 10 mature in less favored
climates. Fruits ripen and are ready for mar
lzet q full month before the California product.
The bright sunshine is luxury, and the pure,
dry atmosphere brings health to all who inhale
It. Fer the establishment of colonies, such az
have made Of Southern California u garden,
Arizona presents unrivaled opportunities.
Thousands OF acres, now proiitleSS, can be
made productive by the construction of irrigdt
ing ditcEeS and there is no investment which
assures larger or more permanent returns