Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1909-12-25
BIG L0BAT0 GRANT
DEVELOPMENT ON
LARGE SCALE
-FOUR ENGINEERING
CORPS IN THE FIELD
Complete Irrigation, Timber,
Geodetic and Railroad Survey
Being Prosecuted by Allen
Company.
Especial CORRESPONDENT TO Morning JournaIl

lSpteiui SOTHchDOu0em cc " m0fuluk JOur0aiI
Abiquiu, N. NJ, Dec. 23.-The Hen
ry A. Allen company of Chicago, con-
sulting engineers who are in charge
of the construction of the irrigation
, project on the Arroyo Hondo, six miles
south of Santa Fe, n also of the
engineering and development of the
Lobato grant in Rio Arriba county,
which is owned by Colorado
Springs capitalists, have four large
engineering corps in the field, one Of
which is in charge of principal assist
ant engineer, w. F.. Calliday, and has
reached Abiquiu, relocating the old
grade of the Denver and Rio Grande
railroad.
Mr.. Calliday's corps is about to run
a location survey up El Rito creek
for a branch line to El Rito TO con-
meet with the old D. & r. G. grade.
Timber Cruisers at Work.
A party of expert timber cruisers
from the Pacific coast, in the employ
of Henry A.. Allen company, are esti-
mating and classifying the heavy tim
Der on the grant under the direction
of Assistant Engineer Mcdonald and
Geologist J. w. Reed of the same
company. The general headquarters
of this survey are at Ell Rito, where
Chief Engineer r.. w. II. Baldwin di-
reefs the general conduct of the ex-
animation, which will be a complete
geodetic, irrigation. timber and rail-
road survey for the purpose of pre-
pairing a technical banking house re-
port upon the completion of which
a. El,x1- xH,l1 he ,,aJarupittn -
Henry A. Allen and company. be-
sides handling the Lobato grant and
the Arroyo Hondo Irrigation project,
have charge of the construction of the
Washington Springs, Spa and Gretta
railroad At Washington, d.. c., and
several big water power propositions
in the west. They are consulting
gIneers for capitalists In Chicago. AL
bany and Buffalo. Colonel Henry
Allen, who was in Abiquiu in Sep
TENDER with Engineer Baldwin, was
one of the engineers selected by form
err President Roosevelt to examine the
Panama canal and Is considered one
of the greatest authorities of the day,
in the matter of irrigation plants and
mechanical and hydraulic engineer
ing, for which knowledge he was Sc
lected for the Panama canal task.
Colonel Allen will probably be in this
vicinity in a few weeks.
Work Progressing Rapidly.
Despite the snow and the unusual
cold, the work is being pushed as
rapidly as accuracy and t~horoughness
will permit, Chief Engineer Baldwin
states, and will be completed in a few
weeks.
The development and improvement
of this grant is perhaps n of the
most important projects ever d
taken in the territory. and certainly
within Rio Arriba county. The title
to the lands is unquestioned and the
of the tract are almost UNI
limited. Chamita is located near the
southeast corner just otuside of the
grant. Ell Rito is within the grant at
the northeast corner. The historic
and second oldest town in the, terri
tory, Abiquiu, within the Abiquiu
grant, is just west of the center of
the Lobato grant. The Chama river
traverses the grant, having a fall OF
almost 800 feet in its course, bisoct-
ing the tract. FL Rito creek, a tribu-I
tary, also furnishes considerable
water supply as do other
streams. The population is of Ameri-
can-Spanish descent, most of it, ex-
cept the older people. speaking Eng
lish %fluently. The agricultural and
horticultural possibilities of this sec
ton are identical with those of the
Espanola valley except that the eli
mate and altitude are superior for
potatoes. For years past, potatoes OF
the famous Greeley varieties have
been grown with success, and with
nothing but the crude methods of ma
tive irrigation. The California beans
thrive here. as do vegetables of every
variety. The fruit orchards. If prop
erly cared for, would compare favor
ably in the territory. With the COM
ing of a railroad and the advantages
of an abundance of capital, the de-
velopment of this tract OF 15O,OOo
acres means a new era for this por-
tioo nf tho coming sunshine state,