10 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



its life-current flows through the irrigating canal. 

 Southern California is already fit for statehood. Its 

 seven counties are larger than Illinois or Iowa, and as 

 large as Michigan. They are as large as the com- 

 bined areas of Connecticut, Massachusetts, Delaware, 

 Khode Island, New Jersey and Vermont, and of The 

 Netherlands and Belgium in addition. These States 

 and countries support 18,000,000 people. Southern 

 California has to-day but 300,000. But its population, 

 like its commercial importance, is rapidly growing. 

 The best presentation of the claims of Southern Cali- 

 fornia that we have seen was written by W. C. Fitz- 

 sommons, the accomplished editor of the California 

 Fruit Grower. 



One branch of western resources which 

 Outlook . .. , , i 



in the has never been exploited, much less 

 Oil Field. developed, as it deserves, is natural 

 oil. Everybody admits the existence of large oil 

 fields in Wyoming. Companies have been organized 

 and have obtained control of large areas, yet develop- 

 ment proceeds but slowly. Why? One of the lead- 

 ers in the enterprise explains it by saying that there 

 is one railroad alone which taps the fields, and that 

 railroad is controlled by the Standard Oil Company. 

 As a consequence, freight on Wyoming oil is placed 

 at a prohibitory figure. We do not know if this is 

 true, but it is a most reasonable explanation of the 

 fact that these great resources lie unworked, while 

 the State that nature endowed so richly is suffering 

 for the capital and population that this development 

 would bring. It is rather hard that a State should 

 be held down in a growth that would add to the 

 wealth of the whole people, in order that a little 

 group of men, already multi-millionaires, should 

 grow richer and continue to fix the price of a natural 

 product of the earth. There appear to be hopeful oil 

 prospects in Archuleta County, N. M., but they will 

 encounter the same fatal obstacle if found valuable. 



Ripe oranges from the Salt River Val- 

 lev of Arizona were received in Chicago 

 previous to Thanksgiving. They were 

 large, perfectly matured and of a rich, red color. 

 They created a good deal of surprise, as the public 

 has not yet learned to expect oranges from this source. 

 The Phoenix papers state that the Arizona Improve- 

 ment Company has 125 acres of trees now in good 

 bearing and that the season has been entirely success- 

 ful. The writer saw several new groves on both sides 

 of the Salt River a year ago and is informed that in 

 most instances the trees have done well. Phoenix 

 people count heavily upon the successful culture of 

 oranges as a factor in the rapid development of the 

 surrounding country. They argue that if the fruit 

 can be grown there land now selling for $50 an acre 

 ought to rise at once to something like the Riverside 

 and Redlands valuation which is frequently $250 to 



$500 per acre for raw land and $1,000 to $1,500 an 

 acre sometimes even higher for groves in full bear- 

 ing. In view of what has been accomplished by the 

 Improvement Company these hopes do not seem ex- 

 travagant. They should be qualified to the extent of 

 saying that the limitations of the orange belt are not 

 yet defined. It is hardly expected that citrus fruits 

 can be grown successfully in every part of the valley, 

 but it has apparently been proven that a citrus belt 

 does exist and that land will be very valuable within 

 its limits. The Arizona oranges will compete with 

 the Florida rather than the California crop, being sev- 

 eral weeks earlier in the market. Phoenix enjoyed a 

 marked growth last winter and seems likely to gain 

 another impulse this winter, in spite of the prevail- 

 ing hard times. 



There is an element in the West that is 



The Boom , , . . . 



in Gold bound to be engaged in mining, no mat- 



Properties. ter wliat con( }itions prevail. Now that 

 silver is no longer profitable these men turn to the 

 pursuit of gold, and if gold should become unprofit- 

 able they would turn to rubies and sapphires. The 

 result of the depression in the silver industry is a new 

 impulse to the chase for gold. As a consequence 

 squads of prospectors are searching the mountains of 

 Arid America for indications of the only metal that 

 now measures the world's commodities in the view of 

 bankers and statesmen. All the old camps show signs 

 of revival, while in Idaho, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, 

 Montana, Arizona and New Mexico numerous new 

 mines and districts are coming into prominence. 

 Even the old, wornout placer grounds of the California 

 Forty Niners are again patiently inspected. The result 

 is certain to be a considerable addition to the total 

 gold output. In Colorado, according to the Denver 

 press, this new phase of the industry has already be- 

 gun to excite high hopes of better times. New 

 Mexico is also getting surprising results, if current 

 accounts are reliable. 



Western Without doubt the hard times will lay 

 Railroad a heavy hand on railroad construction in 

 nustit?. the West. Economy to the utmost far- 

 thing is the order of the day with railroads, whether in 

 the hands of receivers or out of them. There are 

 three new lines practically determined upon, the 

 building of which would be a very great blessing to 

 the arid region. They are (1) the road from Salt Lake 

 City to Los Angeles, (2) the road from Prescott to 

 Phoenix, and (3) the road from San Diego to Phoenix. 

 Some construction is now underway on the latter line. 

 If all three could be built this year the result would 

 be a most marvelous development of agricultural, 

 mineral and commercial possibilities. The people of 

 California are congratulating themselves on the suc- 

 cessful efforts of the Traffic Association to secure 

 cheaper transportation to the Atlantic seaboard for 



