THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



341 



C. B. ADAMS, 



THE PAYETTE VALLEY, IDAHO. 



Director of Publicity and Promotion. 



When the citizens of Boise came to realize what a 

 task confronted them in arranging the details for the 

 Fourteenth National Irrigation Congress, they began 

 to look around for a suitable man to handle the depart- 

 ment of Publicity and Promotion, which is, in fact, the 

 most important work done in connection with the 

 Congress. It did not take them long to decide on who 

 was best capable of filling that position, and Mr. C. B. 

 Adams, a. well known newspaper man of that city, 

 whose portrait is shown in this issue, was chosen for 

 the position. That no mistake was made in this selec- 

 tion is evidenced by the splendid results of the work 

 of that department. It is safe to say that no one 



A Garden Spot of Unusual Attractions. 



Mr. C. B. Adams, Director of Publicity, Fourteenth National Irrigation 

 Congress. 



man connected with any previous Congress has accom- 

 plished so much as has Mr. Adams, and the people of 

 Boise and Idaho, as well as all of the delegates in at- 

 tendance, are unbounded in their praise, and have re- 

 peatedly complimented Mr. Gwinn, the Executive Chair- 

 man, on his wise selection. Mr. Adams has been a man 

 of affairs in times past in the great Southwest, and 

 was fully qualified to meet all classes of men with 

 whom it was necessary for him to come in contact in 

 arranging preliminaries and details, shaping up the 

 program, etc., of the Congress just ended. It is hoped 

 that the Sacramento people may see their way clear to 

 secure the services of Mr. Adams, who would no doubt 

 relieve them, in a large measure, of the troublesome 

 details of the Congress. 



A casual visitor, or the man who goes through 

 Idaho by way of the general route, namely, over the 

 Oregon Short Line, can secure but a faint conception 

 of the many interesting features of that state, lying 

 oftentimes close to, and in many instances far distant 

 from that main thoroughfare. 



On a recent visit to that state the writer was in- 

 vited to look over the far famed Payette valley wherein 

 lies the town of Payette; also the well known town 

 of New Plymouth. To the many who are looking 

 about for a chance to better their conditions, Idaho, 

 "The Gem State," offers as many inducements as may 

 be selected in any section of the world. This is a 

 country where the climate is ideal, and where sick- 

 ness is rare, and the death rate, as stated by statistics, 

 the lowest in the United States. In the far famed 

 Payette valley, which irrigation has converted from a 

 land of aridity into one of the most fertile spots on 

 the face of the earth, may be found many illustrations 

 of what water will accomplish on land so fertile as 

 that which abounds in this section. This valley is 

 especially famous for its fine fruits, its canteloupes, 

 now rank with those of the famous Rocky Ford 

 district in eastern Colorado. As an illustration of the 

 extent of the cantaloupe trade, a representative of the 

 express company informed the writer while at Payette 

 that their receipts on one day's shipments amounted to 

 considerably over $1,000, and this was exclusive of 

 the carload lots which were sent to remote points 

 and not included with the small ten, twenty and thirty 

 crate consignments. It may readily be seen from the 

 above figures that Payette valley is no mean sup- 

 porter of the express companies in that section. 



The water supply of the Payette valley is one 

 of its strongest and most interesting features; in fact, 

 it is stated that the supply of water in this valley is 

 unfailing, and all farmers in the valley are unusually 

 favored, as they have a bountiful supply and to spare. 

 This fact is evidenced by the manner in which it is 

 used by farmers all along the irrigation ditches. 



In this connection, Mr. Herbert Vanderhoof, a 

 well-known newspaper correspondent, publishes the fol- 

 lowing, which was clipped from a general article written 

 by that gentleman : 



"With such an abundant water supply, with a 

 climate so pleasing and beneficial as to reduce the 

 death rate, it must necessarily mean something. It 

 does. In and around the city of Payette, which is 

 located near the lower end of the valley near the Snake 

 river, land has been sold, and is today valued, at from 

 $100 to $300 per acre. In other sections of this county 

 are lands, not so well cultivated and in the raw state, 

 which are valued at from $30 to $75 per acre. 



"To return once more to the climate conditions 

 before considering the subject of farming and horti- 

 culture, I want to say that thunderstorms in the Payetbe 

 valley are practically unknown. That cyclones are an 

 unknown quantity and so are sunstrokes. Practically 

 no winds traverse the valley, and when snow does fall 

 it never measures over twelve inches and then remains 

 not more than three or four days at a time. Canyon 

 county, in which the Payettte valley is located, is 2,500 

 feet above sea level. 



