Los Angeles herald., 1908-11-09
IS KING
NEAR IMPERIAL
RANCHERS SEEDING ACREAGE
TO THE STAPLE
ELECTRICITY is BIG FACTOR IN
DEVELOPMENT
Current Generated by Water Operates
Freight Line, Ice and other Fac
tories, and lIIumlnates
Valley Towns
by HUGH X. HARTUN0
Especial to The Herald.I

Ell Centro's Ten Thousand club IN
vited other valley cities to join In the
boost movement and inaugurate weekly
excursions, and when the first came
here Friday El Centro's committee
urged the visitors from the north to iHIs
spect all the cities of the valley and
see everything. The result is that all
will remain at least week.
The generous spirit shown has been
deeply appreciated by the Los Angeles
party, and it may not be amiss to say
that many OF them nave already mace
investments.
King Cotton will reign In the Imperial
valley If the ideas of wideawake busi-
ness men take shape. After repeated
experimental tests the enthusiasts see
no reason why it should not be made
leading article of shipment from here,
and plans are so we'll advanced that
cotton gin and compress may be built.
Contracts for acreage are now being
signed.
1t is also probable that within year
cotton grown in the valley will be made
into fabrics and converted into mer-
chantable goods The Los Angeles
Cotton Mills company, which has $780,
900 subscribed, expects to erect mills on
the shores of San Pedro bay where
tract of forty acres has been obtained
through the Imperial Investment COM
pany and the Los Angeles Harbor Rail-
road company. 1t is situate on the
bay at Wilmington and forms an ideal
site for the new cotton concern and
auxiliary establishments. Ten acres
are to be set aside as a site for mills.
To Bring Texas Planters
Proprietor B. ]. Lange of the Lange
Soap and Cotton Oil company of San
Antonio Tex, who has been in the
valley several months, has gone home
to Texas to bring back expert seed
raisers to work on land near the valley
cities.
Mr.. Lange will plant 100 acres of
Texas cotton on ranch two and one
half miles east of Ell Centro, and he
| expects also to bring back another
grower to put in an 80-acre tract adj
| joining.
T. A. Graham, assistant freight and
passenger agent of the Southern Pa
| cific, and Commercial Agent Knox left
for Los Angeles Friday after spending
short time investigating the posi-
bilities of cotton growing in this
modern valley of the Nile.
Both men expressed themselves as
highly pleased with the prospects of
making tue. cotton industry an impor-
tant commercial proposition here, and
stated that they would interest num-
ber Of Texas cotton growers in the
proposition.
One of the factors of growth here is
the modern equipment of electric power
| furnished by the Holton Power COM
pany, from whose plant at Holtville the
principal cities of the valley are lighted
and from which various industries re-
ceive their generative power.
The general Office of the company is
located at Redlands, and the offices of
the general superintendent, G. e. Paris.
are located at El Centro, the county
seat of Imperial county.
The electric power plant at Holtville
operates by water power, the water
being conducted from the Colorado
river through canals into a storage
reservoir east of Holtville, which is
two and one-half miles in length. The
present plant consists of one 250 K. w.
Bullock generator An additional unit
of $50 K w. has been contracted for
| and will be installed and in operation
prior to May 1, 1909.
| Another electric power station is To-
Gated at Ell Centre. This plant is used
as an auxiliary to the Holtville plant,
being operated by steam and consists
of a; battery of Stirling boilers, 600
horse power, and one $50 K. W. gen.
eral electric generator.
Make Ice for All
The ice plant is also located at Ell
Centre. The equipment consists Of two
Frick ice making machines, with
daily capacity of fifty tons. The stor-
age capacity at this time is 5000 tons,
to be increased and possibly doubled
before the opening cantaloupe season
of 1909 All ice in storage last season
was used for refrigerating cars con-
| tanning cantaloupeS, and the Pacific
Fruit express shipped into the valley
from Los Angeles and other points over
10000 tons.
A substantial transmission line runs
from the power house at Holtville to
! the towns of Ell Centro, Calexico, I'M
perial and Brawley. These high ten
sion lines carry $1,000 volts, and there
is a brick substation for the handling of
| this current at each town to which
service is given.
Electric motors are used for pump
ing water for the several towns, and
by brickyards, creameries meat mar
kets, and hotels, for refrigerating pur-
poses. The demand for electricity for
both light and power is increasing
rapidly.
The Holton Interurban railway is
owned, operated and controlled by the
Holton Power company 1t is stand
ard gauge road eleven miles in length,
carrying both freight and passengers.
Gasoline motor cars for passenger serv-
ice run at frequent intervals, and there
is daily fr .ght service.
All shipments of hogs and other live
stock from the east side come over this
road en- route to Los Angeles. Ship
ments of merchandise, lumber, etc,
from Los Angeles and other points
show an increase every month.
The Holton Power company also owns
and controls the domestic pressure wa
ter system of the towns of El Centre
land Holtville Tt is Identified with
many other interests of an industrial
character and owns and operates its
own completely equipped machine shops
at Fl Centro where all repair work for
both the power company and railroad
company is done by expert workmen.
cantaIoupes and Alfalfa
During the cantaloupe excitement of
last fall and winter many fields of al
falfa were plowed under to make pos
sihle more extensive cultivation of the
little melons. This amounted to craze.
as alfalfa and barley hay were selling
then AT S25 a ton in Imperial valley.
n The cantaloupe enthusiasts, however,
did not have it all their own way.
Though, as stated, many did plow un-
der their alfalfa fields, which course
served to provide alfalfa sod, which is
considered excellent for growing cam
taloupes, some conservative agricul-
turists quietly seeded portions of their
holdings to alfalfa. AS a result there
are probably as many acres seeded to
alfalfa as were plowed under
Present indications are that planters
throughout the valley win plant large