The Arizona sentinel., 1909-10-07
POSSIBILITIES OF YUMA
REGION UNFkTHOMED
The Soil Simply Marvellous in Its
Pr0daCtfYeHeSS
And the Climate is lnt0xiCatingIy
SatEbriOuS
BY GEORGE n. BURTON,
la los Angeles Times.

L
century since the United States of America
sprsSg, so to speak, like Pallas Athene from
the brain of Jovc, completely armed ad-
ditIon to the family OF nations. 1t is but
little -ver half a century since California be-
came part of these United States of America,
and less than a generation since the settle
lnent of the Great Southwest began.
In all the l25 years since the Republic was
founded, also in the half century since Cali
fomia became one of the States of the Union.
and during every year Of the last thirty, a re-
alization of the vast riches of the American
continent, OF the territory OF the United
States and of this Great Southwest has been
more and more astonishing to the minds OF
men. One would suppose that by today we
knew pretty thoroughly what the undevelop-
ed resources of the Great Southwest might
reasonably he expected to become. We have
not reached the depths of this great ocean of
wealth with our plummet line yet.
In residence Of forty years on the Coast
she writer thought he knew little about
what there is on The Coast, and as most of
these years have been spent in and aro1nd
Dos Angeles. he naturally had little con-
ceit that he was pretty well acquainted with
The Great Southwest. Last week a trip to the
ham feel as q tendeFfoot who hard come IN OH
she last train. New TO him. this wonderful
region ana its possibilities are pretty well
known 10 O gTeat naay readers OF The Times
by the stories Published, If not by the dexaon-
stratioli of their own eyes.
Yuma lies On the map Just twelve miles
from where the government is p7-tting in the
great Laguna dam, at the confluence of the
(tol< fc4
from Yuma down the river to the Mexican
boundry ine on the Arizona side of the river
At one point, just below Yuma, the tRterna-
tional bomdry line runs up along the river
which there takes westerly trend and from
Yuma to Mexico is only few miles
ONCE MIGHTY STREAM.
Ages ago when the mountain ranges Of
Arizona and California lowered toward the
stars, at least twice as high as they do now,
rains were very freduent and came down in
torrcntial volumes all along these mountain
ridges. The Colorado River in these past ages
was mighty stream, sweeping down debris
IN tons every second of its flow. The Colora-
do sink was at that time great inland sea,
which spread over the country on both sides
ofwhere the river now runs AS the erosion
of winds and storms, landslides and glaciers
wore down the mountain ridges year by year.
the great river carried down vast amount
of silt, erosion from the rocks full OF phos-
pilates, lines and dIsintergrated GRANTEES, rs
well as the vegetation along It's banks; and
this was all deposited in what are now the
sinks of the Colorado.
As the mountain tops were worn down. fhe
rains became less frequent and less in Volume
but the erosion of rocks and river banks, abe
trees and vegetable mould torn from the
banks still came down and settled into the
bottom of the great inland lake. This geogieal
process went on from age to age to our time,
baving the Colorado at Yuma a stream a bout
half Il mile wide and being at the present
time about twenty feet deep ia the deepest
portion.
1t is not necessary to remind CaliforniaRs
that the Spanish missionaries and explorers
called this river the Colorado because of the
reddish color of its waters. 1t is the Colorado
up in the Grand Canyon in Arizona and
down past The Needles. But at this time Of
the year, after passing the mouth OF the Gila,
instead of the red river is becomes the brown
river 1t actually looks today as If ten per
cent OF its flow was silt and ouly ninety per
cent water.
RlCHES OF SO1B HONDERFUL
But the object of this story is to call atten-
ton once more, and for perhaps the thou
sandth time, to the riches of the soil along
the Colorado ON both sides, incident to the
depositidg Of this mass of debris during all
the past ages. Going through the country
on the Arizona side of the river, for several
miles below Yuma, one encounters the same
type of country and soil that is found in the
Imperial Valley country around Brawley,
Calexico and other points west of the river
The fertility of the black prairie soils of Illi
nois has astonished people engaged in agri-
culture for nearly one hundred years. The
sertility of the valleys OF the Nile has been a
matter Of history for at least COCO years. Those
who are familiar with Illinois prairie soil,
and those who know what the valley of the
Nile is for agriculture. know that this lower
Colorado River region surpasses both of them.
If You ask farmer along this stretch OF
county il the soil is six feet, his eyes will
open with establishment al your ignorance.
&c win tell you no one knows whether it is
a. feet go OF COCO feet deep. 1t is practically
without bottoms 1t is SD thoroughly well
mixed with sand, disintegrated granite and
Sther rocks that it never breaks. 1t is as
easily worked as a heap of ashes, and re-
sl1onds to cultivation in way that is mar
vicious.
CUT SEVEN CROPS YEARLY.
Arizona has established an experiment
station in the heart of this big valley, which
10 some twenty-four miles long, and in spots
sen 10 twelve miles wider down on the lower
5eve3. The results are woudeTfck. Last week
they were cutting crop of alfalfa on this ex-
perin1eptal farm. and for seven consecutive
months they Will cut succeeding crops. The
saly months when the crop is not Gus here are
December and January
Cotton and tobacco grow with the greatest
luxurianee, and this rich alluvial soil VIII be
noted in very few years the ideal spot in
she whole country for dairying, hog raising
she production Of poultry and vegetables which
one hesitateS to call early or late, they will
be perennial. New potatoes will be produced
IN the middle OF January, tomatoes will be
ripe by the first of March. ripe grapes will be
gathered in the early DAYS OF May, and april
cots by the middle of the same month. Chic
kens and turkeys flourish there in the winter
time beyond all experience anywhere else.
The rainfall is exceedingly light and comes
only three or four times in a whole winter
able the dry and rot overheated climate
prevailing in the winter months, chickens are
free from the disease that make their raising
difficult elsewhere. There is no spot in South
ern Illinois or Missouri adapted to the pro-
duction of corn this valley along the Colora
do River With alfalfa and corn the butter