The daily sentinel., 1907-03-29
TO SAVE THE FRUIT CROP
Down Went the Temperature Last
Night and Danger Was
Menacing.

Hundreds of smudge fires all over
the city, at Pallsade and throughout
the fruit raising districts of Mesa
county, produced great and fruit saw
ing clouds of dense smoke last night
and many people believe that this pre-
caution alone. saved the immense
fruit crop of the valley. Never were
the virtues of smudging more fully
demonstrated.
A Cold Clear Night.
The prediction that the night would
be a clear one was completely ful-
filed, in fact the night could not have
been clearer and never would a badly
clouded night have been more hearu-
ly welcomed. ..,
the temperature began to tall Slowly
and early in the evening Observer
Guthrie and other gentlemen on duty
at the local weather station realiz-
ed that the warning to light the
smudge fires would have to be given
before morning and that the situa-
tion was very grave indeed.
Close Touch With All.
The weather office kept in close
touch by telephone communication
with all parts of the valley all during
the night and splendid arrangements
to sound a general alarm were per
fected. The fruit growers and clu-
zens in general throughout the sec
tions of the county that would De
most seriously affected by killing
frost and freeze were thoroughly
alive to the situation.
Preparations for Smudging.
The warnings to have smudge pll-
es ready to be lighted at moment
notice were generally observed.
In this city scores of citizens pre- pre-
pared smudges before night tail' ne
Chamber of Commerce, through Sec
retarv Aupperle and President Lyons
secured a large number of bales Oh
damaged hay and Mayor Bunting
placed the city teams at the disposal
of the Chamber of Commerce TO De
used in distributing the hay. during
the evening Secretary Aupperle sup
erintended the distribution OF the nay
at points in the city ranging all the
way from Second street to the falr
grounds. The fair association ono
ials had men prepare a great numDer
of smudges on the fair grounds
Throughout the city, around private
residences, smudges were prepared
by individual citizens.
Perhaps in Palisade, the heart oI
the peach growing belt, the sectlou 10
which a killing freeze woulu prov
the most disastrous, were the smuus-
ing arrangements most general ScoI
es of bales of hay were placed IN the
streets and nearly every fruit grower
had scores of small and large smudg-
es All the way between here ana
Palisade the growers were in readl-
ness ON the Fruit Ridges, in Bethel, ],
Pomona, Allen, on the mesas ana
elsewhere smudges were prepared
The First Alarm.
At midnight the local obserNatlohs
showed that the temperature was
down to the freezing point put not
low enough to damage the fruit 10
anv extent. At two O'Clock in the
morning reports from over the Nal-
, lev showed that the danger point was
being neared and the first general az
arm was sounded throughout the val
ley. In this city the hre Oeil aIIss lams
and whistles blew, at Pallsade peil9 iI
rang and whistle blew and the teIe
phone lines carried the warhllisS 70
various rural points. 1t was not long
nntu great clouds of smoke we're
sweening over the valley from end to
end. Hundreds upon hundreds ol
fires were started.
A Veritable Fog.
In Palisade it seemed as if every
body turned out to assist. Bales ana
bales of hay were burned in the pup
lie streets. So dense became tne
smoke over that end of the valley tha'
it was hard to breathe freely
In Grand Junction great volumes
of smoke were manufactured, espec,
ially did the hay in the streets a1u
the smudges at the fair grounds do
good work. The country districts sem sem
up great clouds of precious SMOKE
The Second Alarm.
i Shortly after four O'Clock the seo
ond alarm was sounded but there na'