AMERICAN DATES. 



AN ATTRACTIVE) INDUSTRY THE) PALM OF THE) 

 ANCIENTS LIKELY TO BECOME PLENTIFUL 

 IN OUR SOUTHWEST IRRIGATION 

 ESSENTIAL. 



The United States mails are sometimes used for rather curious 

 purposes. A number of years ago several wagons drove up to the 

 post-office at Washington, D. C., and deposited a number of large tubs 

 containing handsome palms. Having delivered themselves of their 

 freight, the wagons drove off. The post-office people went out to see 

 what the performance meant, and found to their surprise that these 

 palms were to be sent through the mails. The local superintendant 

 at first said that the office would not send them. It was preposterous, 

 he maintained to mail such things. Each tub, full of moist earth and 

 a good sized palm, was as much as two men could handle and on 

 account of the foliage they could not be packed to any advantage. 

 Nevertheless, there were the tags on the tubs, containing the "frank" 

 of the Department of Agriculture and the proper addresses Las 

 Cruces, New Mexico; Phoenix and Puma, Arizona; Romona, Tulare, 

 etc., California and the only thing for the Washington post-office 

 officials to do was to mail them. So this was done, although it ne- 

 cessitated special arrangements to care for and water the palms. Thus 

 practically commenced date growing in the United States. 



Of these trees, about 40 are now living and thriving, 15 of them 

 having blossomed. Only 7 of these, however, are pistillate or fruit- 

 bearing trees. Since this first attempt at American date culture, the 

 Agricultural Department has followed up the question, and Secretary 

 Wilson during the past year, has had an expert in Algeria, Mr. Swingle, 

 making a thorough study of this subject and sending home plants. 

 The Secretary proposes to spend perhaps $10,000, during the next 

 two years, of the money allotted him by Congress, for the introduction 

 of useful foreign plants. The dates now being secured in Algeria and 

 Morocco are of the very finest kinds and are shipped in tubs, the same 

 as was done in the original importation. Secretary Wilson states it 

 as his belief that another American industry will result from 

 this experiment, as he believes that dates will thrive as well in Ari- 

 zona as in Arabia. 



The regions in which the date palm reaches perfection, are char- 

 acterized by deficiency of rain and a wide variation of temperature. 

 The summer heat is intense, 115 degrees or more, though in winter 



