The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1907-1921, 1909-07-24

The most important news item Of
the past week was that coming from
Artesia to the effect that the electric
pumping station which will reclaim
400 Of desert from the start is con
traeted for. Ii is glad news to all of
New Mexico. iue terms are most rea.
sonable. Ii will cost $50 per acre,
which seems high at frst but shrinks
when you realize that IL changes 81 100
land into tlO0 land. OF the $1,000, 1--we
Is paid when the plant begins to run,
and the remainder in fve annual pay.
ments. The farmers, Of course, supply
their wi pumps and moters, which
are not costly. This project is but the
beginning Of hundreds OF similar ones
in all parts of the territory, and will
certainly be followed by one at Por-
tales, which comes next in the access
bility Of water. Many portions OF
Quay county are almost as good. Eddy
county has many other equally good
sites. When the plants are in working
order 1t will be generally realized that
IL ought all to have been done 4 long
time before, and that the real develop
ment Of the semi-arid country is
through the power pump. The begin
ming at Artesia Is worth more to New
Mexico than the building Of n railroad,
Get enough Of such plants and the
railroads will be mighty giad to come,
The Artesia item is even more i'm.
portant than that OF Oliver Lee and
others over in Tularosa canon, which
Is u power proposition first, and which
has much weight. Power plants are
only possible ut certain points, anc
pumping plants are possible most any
where, certainly anywhere that the
water does have to be lifted more thar
100 feet. The easier the lift, the great
er the profit in pumping Of course
There are a hundred thousand acres Of
land in the Pecos Valley where the wa
ter Is gotten at less than half that, anC
il begins TO look AZ though Dad Her
bert was right In his prediction that IL
ten years nine.tenths Of the land woul,
be irrigated by pumps. That has got
ten TO be about the ratio in California
and history has a way Of repeating II
self, in irrigation M In everything else
The ~Alamogordo News Is q mighty
bright little paper these days, but 4
really ought to pay a little more at
tention to historical accuracy. | notice
they arc springing that old gag abou
the banker and the ti0 bill. On hi
way home TO dinner he picked up
tsnner on the street, and noted thu
number. He got home just in tim
to pay IL out for a load Of wood. Thu
woodman paid Il 10 the butcher, an,
IL passed through 4 half dozen differ
ant hands, finally coming back to thu
square a little el0 loan. On careful
examination he then discovered tina
the bill was counterfeit. What wa
Lost In the transaction, and by whom
/ hrst heard that puzzle twenty year
ago In q little town In Kentucky, an'
bsfors IL was finally allowed to droI
IT never was settled) there were tire
killiaRs, q church . asunder, Oh
schools closed, aud half the people Il
town we're convinced tho other hal
wsrs dam fools. OF course che New
didat msan to start anything hk
that, but II Il is going to start 1t, !
ought TO have its dope straight, whie|
IA Is above given.
spsakisg about AIsmogordo, did 20
netiss that Item given out last wee
70 tao eAfset that Il VA about a bull
. 81, 900 club houssf That dossn
leek naeh HE thu town 10 dead, doe
~ ~ ~ vhsn tho Southwestern