Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1929-03-25
I'm o u r
VALlsEY

final organization.
That the vote will favor organi-
Zation Is not questioned. In fact,
this is mere formality, required
by law, and never in the history
Of the Valley has a new irrigation
project failed to secure the almost
unanimous approval of resident
voters.
Cameron county water improve
ment district No. Is comprises
approximately 1000 acres Of very
fertile land lying on the west side
of the Arroyo Colorado near Rio
Hondo. The district will secure
water from the Harlingen system.
Practically the entire acreage will
be developed as citrus project.
FIVE YEARS AGO there were
seven irrigation districts in Cam
eron county. Development of the
additional eight districts has been
due, very largely, to the extension
of Cameron county's paved road
system.
In the coastal area three new
districts have been organized, and
expect to have their systems COM
pleted and in operation within
year.
In the northeastern section two
additional systems have been Or
DE-. In Il vii "
lying between Olmito and San Be-
nito will include approximately TO-
900 acres Of rich river and resaca
lands, for which the outlets will be
the Valley and military highways.
The new district near Rio Hondo
will have an outlet over the Har-
lingen-Rio Hondo highway.
1T IS INTERESTING to note
that development Of irrigation is in
close accord with development Of
highways The highways are the
medium making such development
possible.
AS a direct result Of the coun-
try's program the acreage under
irrigation will in a few years be
at least 100 per cent greater than
in 1927 when the $6000,000 road
bond issue was voted.
The effect of the highways upon
the solder irrigation sections also is
very apparent.
Intensive cultivation is replacing
the old methods; thousands of
acres have been set to citrus fruit,
and the lands are producing more
prolifically than ever before.
THAT THE COUNTY'S program
will not be halted with the COM
pletion of projects coming under
the S6.O0O,OOO bond issue is becom-
ing more and more apparent.
Three or four years probably Will
elapse before il will be necessary
for the county to extend its system
of feeder roads. But the time Will
come when it will be necessary to
extend them.
And when that time does come
the valuations of the county, based
upon actual wealth production and
actual values. will be such that the
additional paving can be carried
without additional taxes.
In fact, at the rate irrigation IS
now expanding in the county ana
creating new valuations, the road
system will in a few years result
in a reduction Of taxes instead Of
an increase.
THE McALLEN PRESS, in COM
menting upon the various pronun-
Citations of the Rio Grande Valley
says:
What we cannot understand is
why the Spanish pronunciation,
and the first two words are Span
ish, is not generally accepted by
those who have lived in the Valley
q number of years.
sTouriSts, of course, cannot be
expected to understand the correct
pronunciation Of our Spanish desig-
nations of persons and things.
I'VE are not desirouS Of starting
widespread dissension upon so
slight a matter. nor do we expect
this paragraph to have such an
effect, but why not get together so
that We all know what the other
is talking about?
Rio Grande'. meaning great
river, and the Spaniards place the
adjective after the noun, should be
pronounced REQ Grande'. The cor
rect pronunciation of the "a in the
word 'Grande' is like that Of o. in
pond Now we're talking"
THE MUSICAL Spanish pro-
nunciation Of Rio Grande" is far
more pleasing than the harsher
English.
When the tourist gives the long
sound to the 81 in Rio" and the
"a" in "Grande" as in cat" and
completes the mangling by clipping
off the final "e." which in Span
ish has the sound of may" the
term loses the musical lit with
which it rolls from the tongue OF
the Spanish speaking individual.
BY all means the Valley should
preserve the Spanish pronunciation
of the term. and instruct visitors
and tourists in that pronunciation.
The music Of the Spanish pro-
nunciation blends well with the
balmy cline, the orange and grape
fruit groves. the waving of palms
and the mOierniZed SraDiSh arcni-