Arizona republican., 1910-01-01
SCHARSCHUG PLEASED WITH WHAT HE SAW ON HIS REGENT VISIT TO THE
 VALLEY
As Country Land Department Editor
 of Chicago RecoSd- Herald

1 George J. Scharschug. editor of the country lands department of the 1 Chicago Record Herald, was evident ly very favorably impressed with the Salt River Valley when he visited i it recently with the senatorial inves- 1 tigating committee. The Record Her aid for last Sunday contained an in- teresting two column article written by Mir. Scharschug wherein he de- ! scribes the trip to Roosevelt, the ir- rigation system and the products of the valley. Photographs of Granite | Reef dam and the Roosevelt dam, taken by Dwight B. Heard illustrate the article.
 Among other things Mir. Scharschug says:
 Praises Work Already Done
 In it's trip of inspection. covering ! all the government projects in the west. the senate committee on irriga- tion. of which Thomas Carter. sem | ator from Montana. is chairman, found none where the work was be- 1 ing done in such practical manner Louis c. Hill, the engineer in charge, is a thoroughly practical man. and he is pushing through his immense task in manner that has won for him the entire respect of all the residents under the project.
 The storage dam and reservoir. which means a permanent water SUD- ply the year around for the project, is a wonderful piece of engineering. In order to reach the site of this dam. seventy-two miles from Phoe- nix, it was necessary to build sixty miles of road. a large part of it through almost impenetrable hills and mountains It is work of art in road building and furnishes the most picturesque and thrilling auto mobile ride in America today. One climbs and descends one continual series of winding hills. The scenery is ever changing-a panorama of desert mountain scenery which words cannot describe. Giant cactus. some of them towering forty feet. loom up like sentinels on all sides. They furnish almost the only touch of green. The reds. the pinks. the vel lows. the browns and the whites. which mark the jagged. weather worn mountains are the colors of the desert. Install High Glass Plants
 In addition to the irrigation sys- tenn. the government is developing a large amou t of power. which will be used throughout the project and will ultimately pay the owners of water rights under the project handsome profits. probably more than the cost of annual maintenance The power plants are likewise installed in a high-class manner.
 Lands under this project can be bought at from s1OO to S75O per acre for those that are irrigated Non Irrigated lands are selling at from $50 to s100 an acre Although easy payments can be obtained on all this land, no man should attempt to establish a farm under the pro- ject unless he has from s1 1,50O to B. 000 The settler will need at least this much to make his first payment. move his family. get his ground un- der cultivation and have something to live on while he brings his land to productivity.
 Alfalfa Proves Profitable
 On all irrigated lands in the west the real value can best be found by the showing it will make in alfalfa It is one of the leading crops of the Salt River valley. This wonderful forage plant is cut for hay from three to five times a year. between the months of April and October. and between the cutting season it yields a splendid revenue as pasture. as it grows practically all the year round It produces from one and one-quarter to two and one-quarter tons per acre at cutting. An average crop when sufficient water is applied is seven tons per acre per year.
 Tests Made With Orchards
 On many of the projects the de- partment of agriculture has establish ed experimental farms to teach the settlers the best methods of using their lands and applying the water.
 At Tempe there is an experimental date orchard of the government. Here | some eleven acres of dates. compris- ing over eighty varieties. are being tested. Already they are bearing suc- cessfully and proving commercially profitable, and it is believed by ex- perts that new industry will be | established in the southwest
 The main station of the United | States experimental station in Ari- zona is two miles northwest of Phoe- nix. where on d finely conducted farm all the products of the section are tested as to their best varieties and method of cultivation. and valuable