FOREWORD 



These jottings from the journal of a ranchwoman 

 in New Mexico bear date several years removed 

 from the present, therefore may appear at first 

 glance out of date. That such is not the case soon 

 becomes self evident. Comparatively few amend- 

 ments are needed to bring them up to date. Cli- 

 mate, ranching methods and so forth are not sus- 

 ceptible to drastic changes, even when abetted by a 

 Farm Bureau, an Agricultural College, farm clubs 

 of sorts and other aids to the agriculturist. 



The writer came to the dry and sunny climate of 

 Southern New Mexico for the benefit of an almost 

 lifelong rheumatic disorder, and soon after reach- 

 ing her destination decided that the Mesilla Valley 

 was the appointed spot. She purchased a good 

 ranch in that fertile Valley, some forty miles north 

 of El Paso, Texas. Unfamiliar with the methods 

 of farming under irrigation, she yet contrived by 

 ceaseless mental rather than severe physical appli- 

 cation, above all by taking thought for the morrow, 

 not merely to avoid loss but to realize annually a 

 fair amount on her investment — enough, that is, 

 to make a tolerable record for a healthseeker unfit 

 for hard labor, and a tenderfoot into the bargain. 



All this happened before the building of the 

 Elephant Butte Dam, the nucleus of the Rio Grande 

 Reclamation project undertaken by the Govern- 

 ment, but the cost of which is ultimately settled by 

 the ranching population of the Rio Grande Valley 



