Arizona republican., 1917-02-15
IF
 YEARS ACO ARE
 NON COME: TRUE

The advantages of the Salt River valley and the irrigated land under the Roosevelt lake project have been sung widely and profusedly i'll the past ten years. Phophesies have been made of the richness which would be developed in this valley in the future years Markes of the strides which the valley has made have been reared and brought to the eye of the public frequently in the past few years. Many of the older settlers remember when land values in the valley were practically nominal. They take the great advances of the past few years as matters of mere course.
 However, it is interesting 10 LOOK back on these views of a few months or a few years ago, and to compare them with conditions as they exist at the present time. For this reason, to demonstrate the unerring accuracy of the prophecies of the residents of the Salt River valley, the following arti-
 cle written for the Republican two years ago lis reproduced in this is
 sue. Time has served to demonstrate the accuracy of forecasts made in it:
 It must be accepted as fact, that at the present time especially in the great irrigated southwest as found in the Salt River Valley, the farmer has a better opportunity to get ahead that he has heretofore enjoyed in his former home.
 What is more and better, it looks and everything indicates that indust- rial conditions are to continue to pre- vail which ywill perpetuite the .op- portunities that now obtain.
 Of course local creditors must al- ways be reckoned with. but every thing indicates that general conditions t1rbi will for iT1tI in the future even more lucrative than it has been in the past. The condi- tions that some felt possessed a degree of uncertainty are now beyond any question of certainty.
 The Arizona farmer is no longer subject to dry or wet seasons. Ample water in storage subject to the touch |, of man for an indefinite period en- ables the farmer to see his way clear.
 There has never been time when the earning capacity of the lands were so fully and satisfactorily as- sured- As the price and real value of lands are and must be governed by their earning capacity-the con stant and assured increase in agricul- tural products safeguards and in sures increased values in lands.
 It must be conceded that this is mighty good time for a young man lO Hltkt up HIS lIlIlu 0 DldkE IdTnlln2 his life work. It is also a good time for the farmer who has determination to get out of farming what he really should get. man still has to work for what he gets out of farming, but it's there if he will dig for it.
 We, however. wish to impress the reader with the facts that when We refer to profits of the farm We do not mean inflated ones, which are the progeny of our overworked bains which needs a rest from it's farm labors.
 account of the unusually favor 1 able conditions which prevail in this country farming IS continuous the year around, where livestock feeds | upon the sucoulent legumes through i out the year without shelter. any kind of good farming pays. That is the dairy COW may be wholly disre- garded and still the good farmer can make money. By the term good farmer we refer to the man who knows what he is doing and does things well.
 But saH friends, what would you think Of q merchant who would de- liberatelY refuse to handle the kind | of goods from which he derives his greatest profits. just because he could | do fairly Weh and make money with ouI HduulluS lndI special Ene2 The comparison is scarcely strong enough. | The merchant might not be prejudic- | ing his future by not handling the 1 most profitable line of goods. He | might feel that he would do as well 1 in the future without it as at present. l But the farmer who does not make | dairying strong important future Of | his farming operations is doing more | than to lose immediate profits He is l exhausting the fertility of his farm in- stead of meeting better conditions in the future of even as good: his chances for success are constantly waning. Some wonder why farmers who must know this to be a fact will disregard it and continue the ex- elusive growing of grain for the mar ket, making it the chief obpect in their farming. The answer is easy. Dairy farming as ordinarils' done on the average farm is not only confin ing, but hard work. There is an ab scnce of sentiment ir it, and with ordinary cows. not a great deal of money in sight.
 The farmer may feel convinced that the COW will maintain the fertil ity of the acres. vet it is with him n