Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1918-11-08
RAISING COTTON
PROVES SUCCESS
AROUND ARTEs|A

| ESPECIAL Correspondence TO MORNING JOURNAL
Artesia, ~ NJ, Nov. IA consider
able portion of the Pecos valley north
of Carlsbad may in time add cotton
to its crop curriculum. In former
years profitable crops of cotton We're
raised in the vicinity of Dayton, ten
| miles south of Artesia, and were
raised year after year, until the par
! ties who raised them moved away.
| Since then no one has had the temeri-
ty to try it. Every one knows that on
the Carlsbad project good crops of
cotton are raised every year, and it is
reported that this seasons crop will
bring, at present prices close to, if
not quite, one million dollars.
Thomas j. Stagner Of Artesia, has
been city justice of the peace many
years But in addition to wearing the
judicial ermine with dignity and dis
Junction he cultiVates a small farm
near town, partly as a bucolic pastime
and partly to indulge his inherent eX
pertinent proclivities. He raised to-
bacco until he succeeded in getting
good crops, but there was no market
Tor his commodity and so he dis
missed the case"
Judge Stagner reasoned that if the
vicinity about Carlsbad could raise a
crop of cotton worth a million dol
lars, cotton ought to be grown around
Artesia with at least fair success.
Carlsbad is only thirty-two miles to
the south of US, the altitude is only
little less while the difference in tenn
perature and the length of seasons is
lnconsiderable. With a view to veri-
Tying his logic the judge went out to
his little farm one morning in early
May and paced off half acre of good
ground. This ground he prepared
thoroughly and then planted it to
'Mebane" cotton. The plants grew
well and had a thrifty look from the
start, In order to make his expert
ment more complete he irrigated
about one-fourth of the plot. while
the other three-fourths received only
the moisture that came from the
clouds--not very much as this was
an uncommonly dry season.
Last week j. W. Knorr, of the state
agricultural college, in company with
an experienced cotton grower from
Texas went out to look at the crop.
me plants were strong and vigorous,
and prolific with large bolls, about
one-fourth of which were open The
Texan said the frost would open all
the bolls that were then unopen, or
they could be ginned Just as they
We're. Four men in the party, includ-
ing the experts estimated the WELD
of the little plot at a little more than
one bale and all pronounced the quail
ity fine. And what was equally sur
prising was the fact that the portion
of the plot that had not been irrigat-
ed had thriftier plants and larger bolls
than the portion that had.
Judge Stagner is undecided as to
whether or not he will raise another
crop next year. He is abundantly
satisfied with the result of his expert
ment, particularly as his judgment has
been 50 completely vindicated. But
crop would have to be carried to
Carlsbad to be ginned, and that would
De expensive. If enough farmers
hereabouts would raise cotton to war
rant the construction of a gin in this
vicinity he would plant his whole
farm. The man from Texas, afore-
said, was the most enthusiastic one
in the bunch, and he is seriously
thinking of renting a piece of land
near town and making an experiment
next season on larger scale.
If Judge Stagner's experiment has
shown that cotton can be grown sue
cessfully this far up the valley, and
the crop Is grown on even moder-
ate scale in consequence, he will be as
great benefactor as the man who
caused two blades of grass to grow
where but one grew before.