Arizona republican., 1907-12-18
A VARS BUSINESS
 ON A LARGE TRACT
The Cope and Tait Ranch South of Phoenix Is Very Profitably Earned.

One of the ranches near the city which is always shown to visitors by real estate men when they desire to impress them with what almost unbe- lieVable results have been obtained from the fertile Salt River valley soil. is the farm of Cope and Tait which is situated south of Phoenix. one of the reasons for the extra fine records made on this particular ranch is that it has a steady and never failing wat CT supply from the electric light plant. In fact there are times when they have even mere water than necessary to properly irrgate the land
 The ranch, which is conducted with business like and systematic methods is one of the standing advertisements for the valley. It clearly shows what can be accomplished when the condi- tions are just right
 one hundred acres of this ranch is devoted to alfalfa, which this year has been cut seven times. Fig uring up at the end of this year. which is now practically coming to a close. MT. Cope says that they find that this one hundred acres has produced alfalfa to the value cf S4,339. Some of the land has raised tonnage of seven tons to the acre.
 This is a fine showing, but not bet ter. perhaps, than many other ranch CTS have or could have succeeded in apprcXimating with close attention to business. Some ranchers have done as well on small tracts the past year, but there are few who have made such d record on a large ranch
 one thing of particular interest in connection with the Cope and Tait ranch is the fact that 1000 head of sheep have been allowed to graze and literally feed on what would other wise have been wasted and entirely lost to the owners. After a field had been cut the bunch was turned in and cleaned up the loose hay strewn about the field. They were never kept in the same pasture long enough to eat off the alfalfa close to the ground. as they will do if allowed to remain for some tim0 and greatly injuring the stand The sheep were moved about from field to field, gathering up the waste and MT. Cope says he figures that In that way the pasture was made worth fully one dollar additional head or a total of s1,0O0 for the time the flock was on the ranch. He believes that it would pay any farmer in the val ley to have a few sheep to turn in on the alfalfa fields after cutting.
 They have finished shearing the bunch on the Cope and Tait ranch and the average was from to 6 pounds from each sheep. The total shearing aggregated somewhere near $500 pounds of wool While they have not yet sold it. they figure that it will bring about sfl0O. which proves that the wool will pay for the pasture, al- lowing as was mentioned sl per head.
 Asked concerning the increase and as to what were the figures for the past year. MT. Cope stated that they had already sold about 500 lambs which brought about $500 at 4lz cents per pound. The entire lot was sold tO Phoenix butchers and were as fine a bunch as ever were raised in the val ley. They were fat and those who de- light in going back to their mutton chops after all the turkey is gone will not be disappointed.
 Mir. Cope affirmed that as long as that supply lasted he was sure that there was no need of anyone eating goat. It is said that the Phoenix taste runs to mutton strongly and that all this bunch of lambs will be used during the month of December. MT Cope says that they kept the ewes and will have another lot of lambs to sell next fall
 If one wishes to zret at the total figuring in tho lambs sold with the al- falfa, brings the amount to S6,1S9. An other SLIGO must be added for the ! wool. making the total sum S1.239. or ! over s72 per acre for the 100 acres I which are devoted to alfalfa. Cope and | Tait have more land, part of which l is devoted to grain. One field of 1 wheat averaged 20 sacks. which ! brought approximately S49 to the acre. |
 For large tract the results are far ] better than the most of the farms in the valley, and if one will take the 1 trouble to pay q visit to the ranch ! and see how clean it is kept of weeds, 1 and how systematically it is farmed, | he will know why Cope and Tait are | doing well this year as they have in | the past. It is one of those farm | places which, when glanced over by i passerby, will cause him to at once | conclude that the proprietors are mak- | ing money.