El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-03-02

! The director Of the reclamation
/ service Of the United States. DIT. sam
/ Vel Fortier, in Farmers Bulletin No.
263, entitled Practical Information
for Beginners in Irrigation proposes
certain tests which the prospective
purchaser of irrigated I-nds should
keep firmly in mind before investing
his money. II would be well II every
prospective investor in irrigated or
lrrigable- lands had in his pocket for
reverence copy Of this helpful bulie-
tin A careful Investigation of the.
MlmDres valley in the light Of the
suggestions Of Mr.. Fortier would con-
vince the most skepticaI investor of
the trUitfulness of Investments in this.
region. In the beginning OF this bull
leuns Mr. FOrtier uses the following
soil:
In choosing land which is to be ir-
rlgated a careful examination should
be made Of the character and depth
OF the soil, its behavior when irri-
gated the slope and eyenness Of the
surface the presence Of injurious
salts and the facilities for drainage.
One OF the best indications of tie
character Of the soil is the native veg
citation which grows on il. When
Sagebrush, buffalo grass, or cactus is
FOUND on the tract il is reasonably
certain that the soH is fertile easily
are bEt few Of large group which
grow on good soil easily irrigated On
the other hand, the presence Of grease
" OOc, saltWOrt, salt weeds, or other
similar plants is Indicative of a heav--
Ter soil, less easily cultivated. and
Co1lalhlng more Or less of the in
furious salts usually grouped under
the common name Of alkan'
Mimbres Valley Growth
The prevailing native grOwths IN
the Mimbres valley are as follows
MESQUITE, sagebrussh. buffalo grass.
gramma grass and cactus. Thus. so
Tar as the character OF the soil Is in
dicated by native growth. AIimbres Z
1a4ley lands are OF the first quality !
Tor Irrigation. The presence Of.
grease WOOD, saltWort and salt weeds I
Is practically unknown here
Further, Mr.. FOrtier says: Some /
soils are so impervious that it IS diff
ncuit TO wet more than a few inches /
peIoW the SURFACE, and others are so I
porous that the water soon percolates /
through them beyond the reach OF the /
deepest roots"
Happily, neither condition obtains in /
the Mimbres valley The soils Of the i
Mlmbres valley are for the nest parB /
OF a sandy nature which will absorb /
SUFFICIENT water in "A hours after an 4
irrigation 10 become moist to a depth I
Of two or three feet. Even the adobe /
soils Of the valley have suffi Client sand I
to render them tractable under the /
hand Of the irrigator, and abound in |
fertility.
Expense Of LeFeIing.
MI. Fortier continues: "The intend /
ing purchaser should likewise examine /
with much care the nature Of the
ground surface. The best conditions
are a smooth surface, with a uniform /
slope Of from 10 to 20 feet to the T.
mile"
The leveling expense on Mimbres I
valley lands is exceptionally low TIE
general slope Of the valley IS 25out 10
feet to the mile from northwest to
southeast Miles upon miles Of land 4
in the Mimbres valley will irrigate
perfectly in its natural condition. In
certain places the sand has blown up
about mesquite bushes, making bumps
when the mesquite roots are ]