Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1907-05-14
Letter from Colorado.
GREELEY, COL, April 80, 1907.

Letter from Colorado.
GREELEY, COL, April 80, 1907.
Editor Democrat:
1t Is said that Colorado never has two
seasons alike. After thirty-six years
residence In the state / have never seen
anything like the past season. While
the winter was one Of unprecedented
severity in some eastern states 1t was
one of unprecedented serenity in Colora-
do. Never did our market gardeners
gather rhubarb for use out of the open
garden ground as early as March 22d.
There was an early small ice harvest,
but after New Years the ice went ont of
the ponds to the disappointment Of some,
and possibly to the satisfaction of the
artificial ice companies. The birds
came, flowers and fruit trees blossomed
in March and April, but old residents felt
certain that summer had not come and
that bitter cold would yet be our portion,
and 30 1t has proved. We have just had
our recent third snow storm when at
least six inches of snow fell, and this
morning the earth is white and ice form
ed last night half,inch thick. 1t is
claimed that the peaches of Southern
Colorado and other fruits are ruined.
A prominent fruit grower of the northern
belt has said that he thinks he will not
have one apple, plum or cherry from his
great orchard, but adds that he plans to
raise sugar beets and fatten great num-
Der of hogs. "There is no keeping a
good man down"
While the fruit growers mourn, the
general farmers are delighted with these
snow falls, as the moisture prepares the
ground for an early termination of seeds.
Within the last year or two great
interest has been shown in dry farming,
but it is noted that those who have most
to commend in dry farming are land
dealers intent on selling at a great price,
and the buyers are new corners, who
have not noted how in this state, we
have first, years of fair rainfall followed
by years of drouth, 30 that experienced
men prefer to own land "under ditch or
reservoir" Should this prove year of
fair rainfall, it may prove the ruin of
many a new conner, who, encouraged by
his one good crop, will invest largely to
his ultimate ruin.
Several of our state papers are warn
ing would-be dry farmers of the uncer-
tainties, but it is hard to convince one
who is not open to reason. Again we
hear that delightful old song of tho real
estate man, 1.-THE rainbelt is moving
west"
Meanwhile preparations are making
year by year to preserve the winter flow
of waters and the flood waters of early
summer in reservoirs, and to tap the
underfow of waters by the aid of pumps
run by gasoline engines. So precious
has water become that the right to water
an eighty acres from the irrigating
bitches now sells at $500. Numbers of
farmers are now pumping water from
wells, for irrigation. Our own farm of
90 acres is an example of this. My
partner is q skilled market gardener.
We sank crib some twelve feet square
into the water-bearing gravel, then laid a
drain pipe 1000 feet beneath some too
wet seepage land and connecting with
the we'll, and we have generous sup
ply of water. When the centrifugal
pump is started, out comes 80 inches of
water per second, enough to irrigate a
dozen rows of potatoes at time. Last
fall we raised on land once classed as
barren 400 sacks of onions per acre and
$500 of the finest celery on less than an
acre. We are still grading and improv-
ing the land, aiming to ultimately bring
most of it under cultivation. No man
can now foretell what great things are
going to happen in "The Great American
Desert"
You may have noted that Miss Helen
Gould has recently bought 100, 900
acres of land near Greeley, at cost of
$3.50, 900, and this is to be subdivided
into small farms and 100000 more
spent in developing the same and build
ing houses with the intention of provid-
ing homes for the poor of New York
city. Experts will show the people how
to grow fruits and fowls and stock and
general farm crops, and the newcomers
will be allowed to purchase their little
farms on easy terms and the unworthy
and thriftless will be weeded out. 1t
has not yet developed just where this
purchase is, but it is claimed to be
''under ditch"
One of the most wonderful things
that has happened to Colorado Is the
development of the beet sugar industry.
Here at Greeley we have sugar plant
that cost about one million dollars and
within seventy-fve miles of us there are
now seven or eight similar plants, some
of them larger, each costing about a
million and consuming in all, the beets
from tens of thousands of acres. Great
numbers of Japs and Russians have been
imported to cultivate the beets and the
factories generally pay five dollars per
ton for the beets delivered. The intense
and continued sunshine of Colorado is
most favorable to the development of
sugar in the beet. The yield of the
sugar is from - to % per cent of sugar.
Think of it; certain specimens of beets
giving almost four 100 pound sacks of
granulated sugar to the ton of beets !!
The processes of extracting sugar from
the beets are intricate and expensive;
and still some of these giant factories
produce about one sack of sugar every
minute and consume 900 to 800 tons of
beets in "a hours, the fires never going
out during the sugar campaign of 90 to
120 days. There is no night, no Sunday,
no holiday there. Do you suppose, Mr..
Editor, that the time will ever come
when a process will be discovered where
by a man can raise few tons of beets in
his backyard and cheaply manufacture
his years supply of sweet?
The sugar people have had their
troubles the past season. There was a
deep snow in October that prevented the
hauling of beets, and in the winter cars
could not be secured to deliver the beets
from the distant plantations along the
railroad tracks. The losses were euor-
nous to the sugar Corporations. One
official informed me that the losses here
alone would amount to 100000. So 1t
will be seen that soulless corporatio ms