GENERAL REPORT. 13 



of the travel passes were located in the most barren portions of the valley ; 

 hence those simply passing through it receive a most unfavorable impression 

 as to its resources. 



To make this statement more clear, we will make the following divisions 

 of the valley : 



First, that portion bordering the water-courses, where the soil is con- 

 fessedly fertile and irrigation is possible. The land lying along the banks 

 of the Saguache is the best illustration of this. The soil is the product 

 (on the surface) of the immense crops of rank sedges and grasses that have 

 for centuries grown, died, and decayed there. To say that it is as fertile 

 as land can be, is not in the least overstating the truth. " Breaking it up " 

 is simply preparing a vast compost pile for " seeding ". 



The following facts were obtained from Mr. Frank Brown, one of the 

 most reliable men in the valley : Oats per acre produce 40 to 50 bushels, 

 weighing 40 pounds per bushel ; barley per acre produces 50 bushels, 

 weighing 55 pounds per bushel; "bald barley" per acre produces 50 

 bushels, weighing 75 pounds per bushel ; wheat per acre produces 30 

 bushels, weighing 65 to 68 pounds per bushel ; potatoes per acre produce 

 300 bushels, of course an unusual yield ; turnips, onions, beets, radishes, 

 and cabbages yield well and grow to an immense size. I can personally 

 vouch for the truthfulness of most of these facts. (I find, on looking over 

 a letter received from Mr. L. A. Phillips, of the "Colorado Farmer", that 

 the estimate of the crops for Colorado is, on the average, per acre, wheat, 

 28 bushels; oats, 40 bushels; potatoes, 150 bushels; corn, 25 bushels; 

 and barley, 35 bushels. This estimate is by no means a fair showing for 

 the corn of certain portions of the Territory. Fall grains have not yet 

 been extensively enough tried to test the relative merits of fall and spring 

 crops.) 



Along the Carnero, Lagarita, and Rio Grande, the soil is not so pro- 

 ductive of large crops as the Saguache region; but, to offset this, it is 

 found that the crops are perhaps less likely to be injured by early frosts, 

 and a larger variety of productions may be depended upon. In fact, all 

 our ordinary garden vegetables grow on the banks of these streams. 



Despite all that has been said of the general innutritious qualities of 



