CHAPTER IV 



Opportunities for the Homeseeker of Limited Capital but Rich in Courage and Enterprise He Must 



Come Prepared to Accept the Conditions of a New and Unusual Environment To Succeed He 



Must Be One to Enter into the Spirit Which Actuated the Men and Women of 



the New West The Spirit Which Delights in the Conquest of Adverse 



Nature in Order to See the Wastes Spring Forth with Abundance 



It was a government reclamation engineer* who said : 



"The call of the West comes to us to-day insistent and inviting. The desert 

 mysterious, silent, expectant, quivering under cloudless skies holds a promise of freedom 

 and independence to the careworn and to the discouraged. It offers the uplift of 

 unmeasured distances and the individual home with that broader freedom of action which 

 comes with life in the open. Irrigation canals long enough to girdle the globe with triple 

 bands have spread wide oases of green in the arid places. Cheerful and prosperous 

 communities dot a landscape once vacant and voiceless." 



Versatility of the West. 



Not every homeseeker will be satisfied with conditions in the arid West. Not every 

 homeseeker can cope with conditions in Nevada. America is so large and the West so 

 wonderful in its versatility that there are places and opportunities suitable to everyone who 

 will but seek and find. This State holds opportunities for men and women of a special 

 type. Those who have in their blood something of the venturesome pioneering spirit, 

 who can cheerfully and courageously cope with some adversity, and, if necessary, with 

 hardships, who are energetic and resourceful, and to whom a few years of struggle is as 

 nothing if the goal of a thrifty competence is assured. 



There are many thousands of such men and women in America, who, if they but 

 knew of the opportunities here, would give this State first choice, and who would find 

 nothing but hope and happiness in the conquering of success. On the other hand there 

 are multitudes for whom it would be a mistake to come here. For them there are other 

 sections of the country infinitely better suited. But for the homeseeker, adapted to meet 

 the conditions here, there is no other land which holds for him such promise. 



Qualifications Required of the Settler. 



Let us digress briefly to discuss the qualifications which a homeseeker should possess 

 who expects to acquire unimproved land in Nevada and through his own labor and 

 resources bring it under cultivation. This is the pioneer settler. We are not here referring 

 to the homeseeker who is able to buy improved property, but to the one who must start on 

 the virgin desert, clear the sagebrush, till and plant the land, and where was waste when 

 he began will, in time and through his labor, experience and effort, transform it into a 

 homestead of trees, garden, orchard and field. 



It i* quite evident that he and his family should be of strong fiber and have that 

 in their characters which takes joy in the wide freedom of the desert; who have a natural 

 love for mountains and far-stretches of gray landscape; and who will not repine from 

 loneliness and longing for scenes left behind, but can from the day of their coming call 

 the wastes "home." 



And the homeseeker will have to possess some little capital, proportional to how 

 many are dependent upon him. It is not easy to fix any minimum. Much will depend 

 on his ability and resourcefulness. If we say $2,500, some would succeed with less 

 and others need twice and three times that. Perhaps we can give a clearer idea by 

 assuming a hypothetical case. 



The Hypothetical Settler. 



Let us assume that the settler has a wife and possibly children, none of the latter 

 old enough to be of material assistance. He writes to the State Commission issuing 

 this booklet, stating all the pertinent facts about himself; what experience he has had 

 in farming and if any in irrigation; what farming implements he has; whether any work- 



C. J. Blanchard. 31 



