El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-01-10
CARLSBAD 4 LIVE
PECOS VALLEY
LOCALITY
CONTINUED From rage one.S

bad and grow with very little care.
Metropolis Of Big Area.
Carlsbad is the county seat of Eddy
county and a metropolis OF a large
region besides the immediate surround
ing valley. which is a veritable para
I disc and a sample OF what the Rio
+ Grande valley will be to FL Paso when
the great Elephant Butte project is
completed and water is as plentiful
there as it is at this place. Livestock
+, on the plains country east of here con-
] tributes largely to the wealth Of
/ Carlsbad and dry farming in the re-
gion above the irrigated belt adds its
share to the wealth of the beautiful
little city nestled beside the Rio Pecos,
so much so that non-irrigated land
brings $40 an acre.
The city bears the distinction of be-
ing one of the very few. if not the only
one, in the country that got rid of the
saloon without a vote upon the ques-
ton. The saloon men saw the signs
in the atmosphere and voluntarily
agreed to retire It is but natural,
therefore. that Carlsbad should be
town Of churches. All the principal
denominations are represented in the
city and these home lovers are also
cnurchgoers and pride themselves upon
their edifices of worship.
convenience
The town has electric lights. a splen-
Gid telephone system, connected with
the rest of the Pecos valley communi-
ties. good hotels. ample mercantile ac-
commodatiOns, in fact supporting many
institutions more creditable than SIM
liar concerns in cities much larger.
The town has an altitude of 300
feet above the level Of the sea. just
enough to give it a healthy, salubrious
climate. that appeals equally TO the
well person and the invalid; the days
of sunshine are far above rs percent
and the rainfall is IA inches. enough
to take ii out of classification with
the arid region, and sufficient to aid
irrigation very largely, but not enough
TO result in a humidity that is so
often oppressive and disagreeable in
communities less favored with altitude
and sunshine.
The Irrigation Project.
The watershed Of the Carlsbed irri-
CATION project covers an area Of ZOO
square miles and precipitates enough
moisture into the nearly impervious
bottomed reservoir to enable it to dis
charge annually 49, 600 acre feet Of
life giving fluid upon the farms
spreading out below the little city in
their rural beauty. Twenty thousand
acres of land are in cultivation under
the bitches from THIS project, making
bones already for thousands Of people !
and offering livelihood for many
thousands more as the science of cul-
tjvaticp is more generally developed /
AID the country becomes more gener- 1
ally settled
That there is an ample supply of /.
water is demonstrated by tests which
have shown that three acre feet Of t
water per year is sufficient for the /
average crop. With a reservoir with a I
OF more than twice this
amount and the conditions of rainfall {
and waterfIow producing as much as
the reservoir viii hold, there is no
daEger Of a drouth in the Carlsbad I
valley The soil is fertile alluvial and
the valley varies in width, having in
places z cultivated area five miles
wide on the east side and Is on the
west, extending south a distance of
"a miles. There are 112 miles Of
leterals throughout the valley. that
furnish water to the different tracts
Of land and these extend to the towns
IF Otis, Loving and Malaga. each Of
which IS a considerable contributor to
The markets and trade Of Carlsbad. the
capital Of the region
Success of Farming Proved.
Farming in the valley is not a
pioneer undertaking; it is a proved en-
.erprise The first work was done IN
1878, when John Chisholm. of Ken
lucky, settled IN the valley above Carls-
bad ard demonstrated by cattle rails
ng and farming that he had found a
country worth while. The first settle
nent at Carlsbad was little more than is
20 years ago and the first settler was
lot long a lonesome man Others soon
ollowed and Carlsbad began to grow.
community ditch was formed and
irrigation was carried on in a small
Tut successful way. Then came the
Jig corporation that built the first big
lam, which floods later carried awav.
nd this was followed by the United /
tates, which rebuilt the dam for the
and owners at a cost of SCI an acre
CT the irrigated area, and the final !
tep for the sure and certain growth j
nd advancement of the community I
as made During the Intervening /.
even years between the time of the
estruction Of the dam operated by
riyate ownership and the completion
I the dam under government control
'ar1sbad suffered a setback, but still
here were many who continued to !
rosper and harvest good crops even
n the precipitation. aided occa sionaIiy
y pump irrigation from wells that can
e obtained at a depth of SO TO $50 (
eet
A Few "Bfg ThsnEs.1
Some Of the things the town is proud S
include a handsome public library. I
municipal water and electric light a
liant seven handsome church struc- I
1res, e hospital, a sanitarium. v
opera house, the five hotels a
lat accommodate the numerous Wis
.crs summer and winter. two strong :
anks, a wool securing plant, a cotton
IN, the only one in this section OF the
7untry;- a bottling works that sends
healthgivin9 waters all over
le country, and many other things.
lcluding the handsome homes and
aaded streets and sidewalks.
Packery Expected.
Insect pests are not numerous and
'uit grows with less care than in most
aces; the weather seldom gets cold
lough TO do any considerable damage i
the fruits and vegetables; dairy
title. chickens and livestock thrive
I'd grow under the ideal conditions
listing here; bees are also profitable
I'd hog raising is declared to be un-
sualIy successful Carlsbad has
-eams Of a great meat packing plant
) well as a cannery at no very dis
mt date.