CATTLE-RAISING IN COLORADO. 203 



become for any purpose. It should be carefully re- 

 membered that large ranches can be managed with much 

 greater profit than small ones. 



" The ranches I now have possession of together make 

 one of the largest, if not actually the largest, in Colo- 

 rado, and are situated in the most favored portion of 

 the State. There is hardly an advantage belonging to 

 the country or the business which they do not possess. 

 They have good buildings, extensive fences, bluffs and 

 cafions for sheltering cattle in winter, and always an 

 abundance of grass and water. There are several fine 

 water-privileges and a large supply of pine timber close 

 at hand. Besides the rivers spoken of, there are 

 numerous never-failing natural springs and lakes, and 

 many excellent opportunities for storing water in reser- 

 voirs at small cost. Among others the several species 

 of the grama grass abound, and of its nutritious 

 qualities I add the following, taken from the ' United 

 States Land-Office Reports for 1869/ page 147 : 



" ' The most valuable and widely distributed of these 

 (grasses) is the grama grass, its peculiar value con- 

 sisting in its adaptation to all the requirements of an 

 arid climate. It grows during the rainy season, and 

 ripens a large quantity of seed as the dry season ap- 

 proaches, while the leaf and stem retain most of their 

 nutritive qualities in drying, forming superior feed for 

 grazing animals during the entire season.' 



" Governor McCook writes of cattle-growing in Colo- 

 rado: 



"'The natural grasses of our hills and valleys are 

 equal in nutritious qualities to the Hungarian or other 



