The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1907-1921, 1911-07-15
EASTERN NEW MEX.
ICO RAIN. SOAKED
Plains Are Green AS Wheat
Fields and The Farmer
Again In Glover With the
Outlook AS Bright AS
Need Be.
DOWNPoUR ALL
OVER TERRITORY

The story Of the dry farmer in east.
ern New Mexico; the tale of his com
ing ~ the burning drought. at hi-
going, Of the hounicous prosperity.
bringing rains. and the return of the dry
farmer is told succinctlv but cloauently
iu ~" --latest issue ot the National l.and
aud Irrigation journal hv Secretary n
B llening of the New Mexico Bureau
of Immigration ~ follows;
Rain j. falling again over the great
upland country of western Texas aud
Eastern New Mexiro after two year,
or the most persistent Irouth even the
Scmi-arid west has ever known. streams
ARE funding; arroyo~ and "rerks lhn,
have been dry for many month, air
running hank.full; the water hole. lic
lillcd again. the whole rrpjon i, soak.
I'D from th" Stnkrd Plains 10 the M,Ni.
'9n border The rains ~ iho pat Iw,
months ia, demonstrated pgap IL,
wonderful drouih resistance ut the frr.
age plants and native pr"wth of ~" fni
southwest, Three months upu this whole
great arrn was n. Dry aud ~ brow u aud
bare of vrrlur", ~ u vast ,iret nf wrap
ping paper. Now y. Tar ~ M" cy" can
see It j. carpctcd with grass aud flow
cIs aud dotted here aud there with
growing crops The cattle aud sheer,
grower, who have Suffered heavy losses
during the past two wears are only lr,.
| mhilaut than the thousands "f home.
Seekers aud dry farmers who have been
clinging tn their claims with that mar.
vrlous persistence characteristic Of the
American pionerr. The same iudomii
able spirit has been manifest in New
Mexico during the trying period NJ was
shown during the dnr', days at Western
Kansas aud which finally transformed
Western Kansas from u desert into u
thickly populated farming country.
The dry farm regions IT West Texas
aud New Mexico. in fact ARE Just now
going through the same transition per
iod ~ occurred IN Kansas save for the
fact that the disastrous land ho0m nnd
th" subsequent ,lump which occurred
IN Kansas have been lacking in the
new dry farming country. II is up
parent that IN West Texas and New
McNico dry farming la, come ~ stay
six wears aga small colony ut men
lMhOsr friend, considered them cfaZ,
lundrrt"ok ~ farm without irrigation
in the country around porlnlrs. y NJ.
near the Texas border. Va one had
ever tried ~ farm any at this lnul hr
fore. hut these men rrnsonrd that il
native grass would grow knee high. 9th
~ forage crops would flourish The,
tried II aud were nsi0ni,hcd at the rr
suit, obtained. Huge Yields were had
of milo.maile, knnir corn aud uthrr
forage crops Irish POTATOES flourishcd
their truck patches did well and the,
even secured half Il bate of cotton I,
the acre The news spread like vii,
lire aud the next year an army nf hom"
seekers marched into New McNlc0, II
four wears, without advert tising ~ Ian,
manning aud in the face of prrNistcn
prophrsics of disaster, I0,OOn homosicn'
entries were made. covering over "iph
million acre, Of land The rninfnl cou
tinued abundant aud the h"me-e"kr
entirely ignorant of dry farming meth
ods Of soil prcparat ion. grew their crop
~ they had done IN the rain belt,
Then the long predicted drouth cam,
II found y great majority of the hons
sleaders without any knowledge of ho'
10 conserve moisture in the soil and ihei
crops burned up ~ failed to germinat,
This condition continued for two sci
sons. Many of the homesteaders wei
forced Ia give up aud leave the countr
hut the large majority, with the persi
ience Of the true pioneer, stuck to the
claims aud hegnn to learn the scicutif
methods 0f moisture conservation knnw
ns dry farming. In this they were Il
sisted by experts put IN the field by Ne
vi Mexico aud by the yuri0ns railroad
!" which placed trained men in the Gc
ii whose sole duty il WIS 10 teach II
q. homesteaders what to plant and VIII,
ut aud how To plant IL,
ie The results Of two wears of study ~
he experiment ARE apparent this seas
N. over the whole southwestern dry farl
~ ing region, During the period Of Il
d. drouih the word went out over q
IL country that dry farming In the soui
ch west had failed; Just ~ during the Ia
on days in Kansas the news went out III
~ Western Kansas was an unredeemal
's' desert, Yet, during the worst Of I
ee drouth the dry farming towns contlnu
as Ia grow and new settlers contnu
en TO come In. The new men came vi
lily money enough 10 tide them over b
season. They were supplied with hui
les OF books and pamphlets, telling III,