Rocky Ford enterprise., 1910-10-21
Will WATER
''' " 100000 20 ACRES
Desert Land, Reservoir, Canal
Co. Ready to Contract
TO CONSERVE
FLOOD WATERS
Entire Project to be Completed In
Three Years-WliI Deliver Adobe
Creek Water Next Spring

One OF the aims OF the national ir-
rigation congress as an institution IS
"to conserve the floods
One Of the aims of the Desert
Land, Reservoir & Canal company,
of which w. A. Colt is president, and
which has headquarters at Las Ami
mas. Colo. is likewise TO conserve
the floods"
The conserving of floods is merely
4 first step toward further empire
building and development in the west.
These floods are necessary for wat
er, and the water is necessary for
home building.
Las Animas is the county seat OF
Bent County, situated in the center
of the rich irrigated agricultural en-
pire of the Arkansas Valley.
A few of the specialized and intcn-
sively farmed crops showing the Won
dcrful productiveness OF this valley as
a section, might be mentioned before
the details of the Desert Land. Res
crvoir and Canal Co.'S proposition is
discussed further. that the vital con-
nection between the productiveness OF
the section, its outlet for crops, its
crop producing possibilities and cost
of production, as related to the open
ing up of 100000 more acres of land
in this section.
The Arkansas Valley starts at Can
on City. Colo, at the head of the
famous Royal Gorge and extends
down through the eastern part OF Col
orado into the western portion OF
Kansas. Bent County is approx.
mately the very center OF this cnor.
nous stretch of rich territory.
In this section, from irrigation,
practically every nature of crop may
be raised proftably, some more SO
than others.
The principal crops. and those
Bringing into the section the most
revenue. arc sugar beets. alfalfa. can
taloupcs, wheat and other small
grains.
Sugar bcets are the result OF tn,
most intensive farming. and consti-
tute the connecting link between land
capable OF being farmed intcnsivcly
and of continuous and ever increas-
ing one for 4 product OF world wide
consumption, sugar. Alfalfa. is n hay
crop OF many cuttings. and its worth
is well known to all.
The valley is the home OF the fam
Gus Rocky Ford cantaloupes. for
which at the present time the demand
so far exceeds the supply. that the
profits are exec SSivcly high.
Small grains thrive and further cs-
tablish the value OF the peculiar soil
conditions of the valley. when water
is placed on it. yields are enormous.
In the valley are located seven beet
sugar factories ready to accept the
bcets OF the section. paying for them
| at contracted price. this year not
less than S5 and up. and forming a
| demand for a crop that has led to a
wonderful development OF the valley
One OF these factories, owned by
The American Beet Sugar Company
is located at Las Animas, another
owned by the same company is To-
Gated at Rocky Ford. and another a,
Sugar City owned by the National
| Sugar Mig. Co. all OF these factories
are located in the vicinity OF the lands
coming under this project. the Las
Animas factory being only a little
| over a mile from the nearest lands.
As mentioned before, The Desert
Land. Reservoir & Canal Cos project
| involves the placing OF water on eoo,-
600 acres of land.
w. A. Colt. at the head OF the com
pany. is the one man to handle the
| project OF the magnitude OF this. His
| experience in canal and reservoir
building. and his foresight and tircless
energy in opening UP new sections
| assures the successful termination oi
project meaning more to the agri-
cultural supremacy OF Colorado. pos,
sibly, than any other one OF its kind
ever has.
The irrigation OF the valley OF the
| Arkansas in Colorado. has been lin.
tied to projects taking water directly
from the Arkansas River and placing
it on the lands by gravity, the waters
| of the river when at average flow
| would allow only so many acres to
be watered, so that some other way
of obtaining water for further lands
became necessary, and the floods oi
the Arkansas River and tributary
streams, involving enough wasted
water to irrigatc hundreds OF thou.
sands of acres was the plausible and
ultimate successor.
1t has been estimated that 57o,22t
acre feet of water pass yearly into
| Kansas from the floods of the Arkan-
sas and to use this water reservoirs
| of enormous capacity must be con
structcd and be available, and 4
means OF handling the enormous
floods during the short time that the
river was high, became necessary
| and that is the condition that made
the Desert Land Reservoir & Canal
| Co.'S project possible.
The reservoir to handle the floods
OF the Arkansas River, to which the
company has early and by far the
most feasible rights. has been selected
as the Lake Meredith Site, located
in Otero County. and which has a ca