The Arizona sentinel., 1910-04-21
Possibilities or YUMA
REGION UHFATH0MED
The Soil Simply Marvellous in its
Pr0GHctiYanGSS
And the Climate is IntOxiCatingiy
SaIubriOuS
BY GEORGE n. BURTON.
in Los Angeles Times.

! It is very far from n semi-millenium since
three little open boats under the flag of Spain
first touched the waters of the western heIni-
sphere and revealed the new world 10 the
! eyes Of Europeans. 1t is only a little over a
century since the United States OF America
sprang, so to speak, like Pallas Athenc from
the brain Of love, a completely armed ad-
dition 30 the family Of nations. 1t is but
Ettlc yer haifa century since California be-
came Il part OF these United States OF America,
and less than a generation since the settle
meTt Of the Great Southwest began.
In all the l2j years since the Republic was
founded, also in the half century since CALI
fornia became one of the States of the Union.
and during every wear OF the last thirty, re-
alization OF toe vast riches Of the American
continent, or 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 cur plummet line yet.
In residence of forty years on the Coast
the writer thought he knew little about
what there is on the Coast, and as most Of
these years have been spent in and around
Los Angeles. he naturally had little con-
ceit that he was pretty wei acquainted with
the Great Southwest. Last week a trip 30 the
Colorado River bottoms. below Yunla made
hIm feel as n tenderfoot who had come in on
the last train New to him. this wonderful
region and its possibilities are pretty wei
known To great many readers of The Times
by the stories published, If not by the demon
stration of their own eyes.
Yuma lies on tie map just twelve miles
from WHERE the government is putting in the
great Laguna daW at the confluence of the
ella and Colorado Rivers. 1t is Twelve miles
from Yuma down the river to the Mexican
boundry line on the Arizona side Of the river
At one point, just below Yuma, the iDterna-
tonal boundry line runs up along the river
which there takes Il westerly trend and from
Yuma to Mexico is only a few miles.
7.' ONCE A MIGHTY STREAM.
Ages ago when the mountain ranges O!
Arizona and California lowered toward the
stars, at leas: twice as high as they co now
rains were very reGuert and came down in
torrcntial volumes all along these mountain
ridges. The Colorado River in these past ages
was a mighty stream, sweeping down debris
in tons every second of its How. The Colora-
DO sink was at that time a great inland sea,
which spread over the country on both sides
of where the river now rams. AS the erosion
of winds and stOrIas landslideS and glaciers
wore down the mountain ridges year by year,
the great river carried down q vast amount
of silt, erosion from the rocks full Of phoS-
pilates, lines and dlsintergraaed GRANTEES, as
well as the vegetation along its banks; and
this was ell deposited in what are HOW the
sinks OF the Colorado.
As the mountain tops were worn down, the
rains became less frequent and less in volume
but the erosion OF rocks and river banks, the
trees and vegetable mould tom from the
bottom of the great inland lake. This geogical
process went on from age to age to Our time.
leaving the Colorado at Yuma a stream buut
half mile wide and being at the present
time about twenty feet deep Ia the deepes.
portion.
Ii is not necessary to remind Calt?oYn:sns
that The Spanish missionaries and explorers
called this river the Colorado because 81 the
reddish color of its waters. it is the Colorado
up in the Grand Canyon in A-izUna ana
down past The Needles. Hat 81 this time of
the year. after passing the mouth of the ella,
instead OF the red river ii becomes the brown
river. ii actually looks today as if ten per
cent of its flow was silt and only ninety per
cent water