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NEW MEXICO 
 
 TERRITORIAL 
 
 BUREAU OF IMMIGRATION 
 
 -03ST- 
 
 BERNALILLO COUNTY 
 
 WILLIAM C. HAZLEDINE 
 COMMISSIONER 
 
 NEW ALBUaUEBatJE, N. M. 
 
 FEINTED AT THE DAILY JOUENAL BOOS AND JOB OFFICZ 
 esi 
 
BUREAU OF IMMIGRATION 
 
 OFFICERS AND COMMISSIONERS 
 
 OFFICERS 
 
 L. BRADFORD PRINCE, President. 
 RAFAEL ROMERO, Vice President. 
 
 L. SPIEGELBERG, Treasurer. 
 JOHN H. THOMSON, Secretary. 
 
 MEMBERS AT LARGE 
 
 THE GOVERNOR, ex-officio, Santa Fe. 
 L. BRADFORD PRINCE, Santa Fe. 
 
 LEHMAN SPIEGELBERG, Santa Fe. 
 T. F. CONWAY, Santa Fe. 
 
 WILLIAM KROENIG, Watrous. 
 
 BY COUNTIES 
 
 For Coif ax 
 
 HARRY WHIGHAM, Cimarron. 
 For Dona Ana 
 
 A. J. EjOUNTAiN, Mesilla. 
 For Grant 
 
 W. H. LAWRENCE, Silver City. 
 For Lincoln 
 J. C. LEA, Roswell. 
 
 B. H. ELLIS, Lincoln. 
 For Mora 
 
 RAFA.EL ROMERO, La Cueva. 
 For Rio Arriba 
 SAMUEL ELDODT, San Juan. 
 
 For Bernalillo WILLIAM C. 
 
 For Santa Fe 
 
 ROMULO MARTINEZ. Santa Fe. 
 
 SAMUEL ELLISON, Santa Fe. 
 For San Miguel 
 
 TRINIDAD ROMERO, Las Vegas. 
 
 J. H. KOOGLER, Las Vegas. 
 For Socorro 
 
 ANTONIO ABEYTIA Y A., Socorro. 
 
 MICHAEL FISHER, Socorro. 
 For Taos 
 
 THEODORE C. CAMP. 
 For Valencia 
 
 TRANQUILINO LUNA, Los Lunas. 
 HAZLEDINE, Albuquerque. 
 
REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER 
 
 BERNALILLO COUNTY 
 
 Honorable L. Bradford Prince, President New Mexico Bureau oj Immigration, 
 Santa Fe, N. M. 
 
 DEAR SIR: I have the honor herewith to present my -report as 
 Commissioner of Immigration for the county of Bernalillo. It was 
 with considerable diffidence that I commenced the work of preparing 
 the same, as I thoroughly appreciated and felt full well the great 
 responsibility resting upon me, of faithfully performing my duty, by 
 fairly and impartially presenting to the public an accurate and true 
 statement of the vast resources and various advantages of this, the 
 largest and richest county of New Mexico ; and the most serious 
 question which confronted me at the commencement of my labors 
 was how I could best accomplish the end desired, do the subject 
 ample justice, and give accurate and reliable reports upon the divers 
 'products and resources of Bernalillo county. 
 
 Primarily, I commenced by drafting a report myself, after 
 obtaining all the information I could from many of the older citizens 
 of the county, but found this to be unsatisfactory to me, and I 
 feared it would prove so to immigrants seeking information. I 
 therefore concluded that the better course would be to call upon 
 divers citizens of the county whom I knew to be most thoroughly 
 conversant with the particular subjects about which I desired 
 thorough and reliable information, and request them to write articles 
 on those subjects; and as I met with hearty co-operation from a 
 number of those upon whom I called, I ultimately adopted that 
 plan, and have the pleasure of presenting herewith a series of 
 papers prepared in accordance with the above design. 
 
 There is but little that I can add to what will be found in the 
 following pages, as the subjects treated on seem to me to cover 
 generally the points regarding which persons contemplating locating 
 in our Territory would be likely to seek information, more especially 
 as all of these articles are written by gentlemen having a thorough 
 and practical knowledge of the subject upon which they write, and 
 are in every respect full and reliable. 
 
Report of the Commissioner 
 
 Some changes have necessarily taken place since these reports 
 were written, more particularly in the town of Albuquerque, whose 
 growth has been remarkable, even for a thriving western city. 
 Competent judges have estimated that the population of this town 
 has increased at least twenty per cent, since the able article on 
 Albuquerque was written, and amongst other changes, the street 
 railroad company have completed their line, and have the same now 
 in active operation. Contracts have also been let and lands 
 purchased for the erection of gas works, two large and well appointed 
 hotels have been opened to the traveling public, and the amount of 
 the carrying business of the railroad to this point has so increased 
 as to show that the freight bills paid here during the month of May 
 amounted to over one hundred and fifty-six thousand dollars. 
 
 New and important mineral districts have also been discovered 
 in this vicinity, and manufacturing and other industries have been 
 greatly increased and developed. 
 
 Before closing, I deem it highly proper to officially call your 
 attention to the fact that a Territorial Fair will, be held in the city 
 of Albuquerque, commencing on the third and closing on the eighth 
 of October next, at which exhibits will be collected from every 
 portion of the Territory, and when especial pains will be taken to 
 have fully represented the agricultural, mineral, and other products 
 of New Mexico. Persons from abroad desiring to investigate and 
 examine the resources and capabilities of our Territory will then 
 have a most favorable opportunity to do so at a very small cost, as 
 the different railroads passing through our Territory will carry 
 persons to and from the exhibition at half rates ; and in this 
 connection I am also instructed, as Chairman of the Executive 
 Committee of the New Mexico Fair Association, to extend to you 
 and all the officers and members of the Territorial Bureau of 
 Immigration a cordial invitation to be present on that occasion, 
 and to advise you that ample space and accommodation will be set 
 apart and provided for the use and convenience of the Bureau and 
 its officers, and for any exhibit you may see proper to contribute; 
 and furthermore, to request that you will have the same represented 
 by a proper officer thereof, who can furnish information, documents, 
 etc., pertaining to the resources of the different sections of our 
 Territory to visitors desiring the same. 
 
 In conclusion, I desire to return my sincere thanks to the 
 gentlemen who have so kindly and ably assisted me in preparing 
 
of Bernalillo County. . 5 
 
 this report, and of assuring you of my hearty co-operation in any 
 and all matters tending to build up and advance the material 
 prosperity of our Territory. 
 I have the honor to be, 
 
 Yours very respectfuily, 
 
 WILLIAM C. HAZLEDINE, 
 
 Commissioner for Bernalillo County. 
 Albuquerque, N. M., June 22, 1881. 
 
 GRAPES, WINE AND FRUITS 
 
 BY MAJOR H. R. WHITING. 
 
 The Rio Grande Valley. 
 
 Extending across the Territory of New Mexico from north to 
 south, are two large valleys, the Rio Grande and Pecos. The 
 former lying furthest west; reaches from the Colorado line to Old 
 Mexico, and thence on to the gulf. The river from which the 
 valley takes its name being, after leaving the limits of the Territory, 
 and as it flows onward to the sea, the boundry between our sister 
 Republic and the Lone Star State. The stream holds its course in 
 New Mexico through broad and fertile valleys, which now and then 
 abruptly end at canons, where the channel is confined to narrow 
 limits by the high and rocky banks. The soil is principally composed 
 of silicious and other fertilizing matter, washings from the moun- 
 tains, brought down by the small creeks and rivers from the north 
 and the sudden freshets in the arroyas or gulches, which latter, 
 though dry the greater portion of the year, are subject to periodical 
 floods. By the spring and summer rises in the Rio Grande, 
 immense quantities of rich mud are distributed through the hundreds 
 of irrigating ditches over the cultivated land, adding yearly to its 
 fertility. As the floods .of the Nile to that valley, are those of the 
 Rio Grande to this, the on-rushing, turbid waters bearing on their 
 restless bosom, countless benefits to the cultivators of the soil. 
 
 The Grape Growing Belt 
 
 extends from about the northern line of this, Bernalillo conutv, to 
 
Report of ike Commissioner 
 
 and through Valencia, Socorro and Dona Ana counties, to the 
 Chihuahua and the Texas line. 
 
 The Valley in Bernalillo County 
 
 being from one to four miles in wfdth and susceptible, every foot of 
 it, of cultivation. In the lowest plane, formed almost entirely of 
 alluvium, all of the vineyards are now located, where they can be 
 irrigated by means of ditches, the rain fall being so uncertain that 
 this sure method is relied upon instead of the fickle showers from 
 the clouds. 
 
 The Vine and Its Culture. 
 
 i 
 The grape most generally cultivated is that known as the "Mission" 
 
 variety, supposed to have be?.n introduced by the Franciscan friars 
 and cultivated in the valley for the past two centuries. Some small 
 vineyards of the "Muscatel" are also found, but generally as a table 
 grape, it coming into marker a short time before the other. 
 
 The vineyards are almost always started from ^cuttings, planted 
 from six to ten feet apart each way, though some growers prefer to 
 trench the cuttings and root 'them for planting the first or second 
 year after, in the places where they are to remain. The Mexican 
 method of culture does not require staking or trellising, and the first 
 three years are directed more particularly to giving strength to the 
 main trunk. The vine is closely trimmed each year, all superfluous 
 wood cut away and only the trunk and a few short branches left, so 
 that a well cared for plant of a few years growth resembles a dwarf 
 tree. It is necessary in setting out the cuttings, to pack the soil 
 closely about them, to turn the water on to the plant from the 
 irrigating ditch as soon as possible, and when sufficiently dry repack 
 the dirt. There is nothing more to do the first season than to 
 irrigate the vineyards at certain intervals and keep the ground free 
 from weeds until November, when the vines are covered with earth 
 to protect them from the cold until spring. The time for uncovering 
 varies among the different growers from the middle of February until 
 the first of April. They are thus allowed to stand from ten days to 
 a month and then trimmed. But few grapes will be produced until 
 the third season, but the labor of the cultivator is increased from 
 year to year in stirring the soil, removing the suckers, staking where 
 needed, trimming, and covering and uncovering. The fourth year, 
 and from that time forward, the vines will be loaded with the 
 
of Bern a hi lo County, 
 
 delicious fruit. Were I planting another vineyard, I should not 
 plant the vines less than ten feet distant from each other : twelve 
 feet would be preferable where land is cheap, thus giving plenty of 
 ground for covering when the vines are large, and an opportunity 
 for cultivation by machinery. In many old vineyards the vines are 
 so close together that when covered there is nothing but a series of 
 hillocks and trenches not a level spot to be seen. In New Mexico, 
 where so many seeds of useless plants are carried on to the 
 cultivated lands, and distributed over them by the water from the 
 irrigating ditches, an excellent method, in small vineyards, or where 
 manual labor is so cheap, to hoe the spaces between the vines into 
 small hillocks, whose locations are changed with each subsequent 
 hoeing. Thus the soil does not crust over after watering, it is easier 
 to hoe after the first hoeing, and the weeds have no chance to take 
 deep root 
 
 Watering the Plant. 
 
 It would seem from what I have learned from those conversant 
 with the cultivation of the vine in France, Germany and Italy, that 
 in New Mexico altogether too much water is applied to the plant ; 
 that a good deal less water and a good deal more work in cultivation, 
 would increase the quantity and quality of the grape crops. This 
 may not be so, as the altitude of this part of the valley of the Rio 
 Grande is about five thousand feet above tide water, the atmosphere 
 so dry and the evaporation so rapid. I am inclined to think that 
 many years will not elapse before the hills skirting the lower level 
 of the valley on the east and west, will also be utilized to a great 
 extent in the culture of the grape, and this without irrigation. 
 
 A Fair Yield 
 
 in this country for a good vineyard is, say, from two to three gallons 
 of wine to a vine, which is worth at home, this spring, from thirty 
 dollars to fifty dollars per barrel, of forty wine gallons. With the 
 vines eight feet apart each way, there would be six hundred and 
 eighty vines to the acre, which, at the lowest estimate above given, 
 would yield one thousand three hundred and sixty gallons. This 
 is not above the average for a vineyard in fair bearing. 
 
 Benefits and Drawbacks. 
 A more congenial climate than that of this valley for the grape, 
 
8 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 or a soil more adapted to produce beneficial results in its growth, 
 cannot, I believe, be found all the wide world over. The frosts are 
 usually only severe enough to kill the insects without injury to the 
 plant J no rain falls when the plant is flowering or the fruit 
 approaches maturity. Such things as late and damaging frosts do 
 sometimes occur. Twice have they visited portions of the valley 
 during my thirteen years residence therein, singeing the leaves and 
 blossoms and materially decreasing the yield in some vineyards. 
 During July and August there may be occasional hail storms which 
 are not partial in the distribution of their favors. They are not 
 general, but may strike here to-day and there to-morrow. I have 
 seen a clean sweep of the fruit made by the hail three rows of vines 
 in width, and not a vine touched on either side ; and brings to mind 
 another instance of a small vineyard entirely stripped of leaves and 
 fruit and not a vine injured in the vineyards immediately adjoining 
 on. the north and south. These are the drawbacks the same as 
 other countries are subjected to. But New Mexico, or at least this 
 portion of it, is a land of sunshine ; and the grape, the creature of 
 the sun, rejoicing in its genial warmth, when Nature has brought it 
 to completion, is a perfect work ; rich, juicy, delicious, far superior 
 for the table, in flavor, to the best American varieties. Come to 
 the generous valley of the Rio Grande, where the fruit has reached 
 the acme of perfection, and indulge for once in a grape fresh from 
 the vine, in the early morning, sparkling with dew, and so much 
 more delicious than any you have ever eaten ; roll the delicious 
 morsel under your tongue and drink of the juice as it flows in its 
 virgin purity from the wine presses of our valley. If you do not 
 remain over to another harvest you will surely return as the season 
 again rolls around. 
 
 Locale of the Vineyards. 
 
 The extensive vineyards of BernalHlo county begin at the 
 flourishing town of Bernalillo on the north, and continue at intervals 
 through that and the towns of Alameda, El Rancho, Los Rap 
 Griegos, Candelarias, Albuquerque and Barelas, on the east. 
 Corrales. Atrisco, Pajarito and Isleta on the west bank of the river. 
 Isleta is an Indian Pueblo famous for its fruit. The counties below 
 Valencia, Socorro and Dona Ana have large vineyards at and 
 near ;he towns of Peralta. Las Lentes, Los Lunos. 
 Helen, Sabinal. Polvadera, Lemitar. Socorro. Las Cruces and La 
 Me si 11 a. 
 
of Bernalillo County. 
 
 An Effect of Wine Drinking. 
 
 Possibly some of the good people of the Atlantic States, who 
 received the Mission grape seed distributed by the Interior Depart- 
 ment before the war, had but a poor opinion of it. The story runs 
 that a Major Williams was sent to "New Mexico to study the Mexican 
 method of cultivating the grape, and found himself at El Paso, the 
 guest of the hospitable Dons of that lovely border town. Here the 
 Major, under the influence of the famous El Paso wine, purchased 
 and shipped to the department, several tons of grape seed, which 
 had been thoroughly boiled in the process of manufacturing sugar 
 from the refuse of the grape after the expression of its juices. 
 
 Wine Making. 
 
 
 
 It is scarcely necessary for the present object to give the minutiae 
 of the modus operandi of wine making as practiced in this valley. 
 Suffice it to say that labor saving processes are being introduced, 
 and the old method of treading out the grape by boys and girls, and 
 men and women, is going out of use. From the juice tramped out a 
 dark red wine is made, and the lighter kinds are produced from the 
 juice extracted by later and greater pressure. 
 
 The Wine Makers. 
 
 Among those who carry on the business of wine making on a 
 considerable scale in Bernalillo county are Mrs. Josephine Tondre, 
 at Isleta ; Messrs. Franz Huning, Santiago Baca and the Jesuit 
 Fathers, at Albuquerque ; Don Lorenzo Montaho, at the Ranchos of 
 Albuquerque ; the Gonzales at Corrales and Don Francisco Perea 
 and other gentlemen, at Bernalillo. The Messrs. Louis and Henry 
 Huning, at Los Lunas and Belen, also have extensive cellars, the 
 modern methods, and make several hundred barrels yearly. 
 
 Our Future. 
 
 With the improved methods of culture and modern processes of 
 manufacture, and the influx of men of large experience from our 
 own and other countries, the valley of the Rio Grande will soon 
 become famous, and take its place at the head of the wine and 
 brandy producing districts of the world. 
 
 Tree Fruits. 
 Until within a few years but slight attention has been paid in this 
 
IO Report of the Commissioner 
 
 prart of the valley to the culture of fine tree fruits. Small July and 
 October apples, red (wild) plums, fair pears, good peaches, excel- 
 lent apricots and enormous quinces have been raised successfully by 
 the descendants of the Spaniards from time immemorial ; also by 
 the Indians of several of the puebJos. Experience has proven that 
 the finest apples and pears can be raised in this locality by grafting 
 into the native stock ; and my advice, were it worth anything, 
 would be to any one contemplating the planting of an orchard to 
 set out the stock where it is to remain, and the second year cut off 
 near the ground and graft into it with scions from fruit-bearing 
 trees of the varieties desired. In this way fruit-bearing trees*can be 
 secured much sooner than by planting the standard or dwarf tree 
 from the eastern nurseries. Trees grafted' as stated, need tying to 
 stakes for the first two years, to protect them from the high winds 
 prevailing in the spring months ; and all fruit trees on account of 
 these winds should be pruned down and the branches kept as near- 
 the ground as possible. I have known trees grafted near the 
 ground in April, to grow seven feet in height by the fall of the leaf 
 the same year and the stem just above the graft bulb to increase 
 from the ordinary size of an apple scion to one and one-half inches 
 in diameter. All fruit trees are healthy in this valley if properly 
 cared for, and yield enormously. The apricot and peach, blos- 
 soming so early in the season, are uncertain crops, but the other 
 tree fruits of the temperate zone are almost sure. In the lower 
 valley the fig and almond do well, and as far north as Valencia I 
 have known fair crops to be raised. 
 
 Nurseries and Shade Trees. 
 
 Nurseries are needed in this portion of the valley, and no 
 legitimate business would yield better financial results. In them 
 should be raised for sale, not only fruit trees of all kinds and 
 shrubs, but also a good assortment of evergreen and deciduous 
 trees for shade purposes. Though but few countries need shade 
 trees more than New Mexico, scarcely any have less. Its chief 
 reliance is the cottonwood, which, though a rapid grower, is not 
 desirable near a residence at the season of the year when the 
 inevitable caterpillar breeds in its branches. The ailantus does 
 well and I should suppose the catalpa and silver-leaved maple 
 would slso. 
 
of Bernalillo County. II 
 
 The Fruit Tree Belt. 
 
 In this belt may be included, not only the valleys of the Rio 
 Grande and Pecos, but also the higher lands on either side, and an 
 extensive range to the north of this county. I remember that when 
 the peach crop failed in the Rio Grande valley (in 1869, I think) the 
 only peaches we got that year were from the Indian pueblo of 
 Jemes, which has an altitude several thousand feet greater than 
 Albuquerque, and is about forty miles further north. Most excel- 
 lent apples are raised at Santa Fe, and could be, I have no doubt, 
 in many of the valleys in the mountains to the east, west and north 
 of us. 
 
 If, in the foregoing statement of facts and beliefs, I shall induce 
 any one to inquire more deeply into subjects upon which I have 
 merely touched, or shall have assisted in the slightest degree in 
 making known to the "outside barbarians" something of this, to 
 them terra incognita, I am fully repaid. 
 
 PRINCIPAL TOWNS OF BERNALILLO COUNTY 
 
 And Their Population. 
 
 Albuquerque 3>7 
 
 Bernalillo 1,800 
 
 Los Griegos 400 
 
 El Rancho 300 
 
 Alaineda 650 j Ranchos 350 
 
 Pena Blanca 600 Chilili 500 
 
 Ranchos de Atrisco .... 700 j Algodones 500 
 
 Corrales 600 J San Antonio 600 
 
 Cosa Salazar 400 \ Plazitas 200 
 
 Rio Puerco 600 j Barelas 400 
 
 Nacieminto 400 j Pajarito 500 
 
 Ventana ^ . . . . 400. j 
 
 MINES AND MINING 
 
 PROF. CHAS. S. HOWE, H. S. 
 
 Until within a very short time, New Mexico has been compara- 
 tively unknown. While California, Nevada and Colorado have 
 
12 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 been extensively prospected and their mines developed, this terri- 
 tory has rarely seen a prospector or heard the sound of his pick. 
 The reason of this may be found in its isolation by reason of not 
 having railroad communication with other states. Another reason 
 was that it was inhabited by another race of people who looked 
 with disfavor upon strangers. No one has ever doubted the mineral 
 wealth of New Mexico. Situated in the heart of the Rocky 
 mountains, it is in the centre of that great mineral belt that extends 
 across our continent. Colorado to the north and old Mexico to 
 the south have long been known as rich mineral sections, and there 
 would be every reason to believe that New Mexico, situated 
 between them, would prove no exception to their richness, had not 
 that fact been already conclusively proved by numerous rich 
 discoveries. But we know to a certainty that the mines of this 
 territory were worked years ago by the Spaniards. History informs 
 us that soon after the conquest of old Mexico, the Spaniards 
 pushed up into this region, conquered it and worked on an exten- 
 sive scale its mines and placers. Ruins of old cities and towns, 
 with their churches, turreted and loop-holed for defense, are found 
 scattered all over the country. Many of them are in mountainous 
 regions where the only industry possible was mining. They could 
 not have been built for defense, because the cities are large and 
 some of them must have contained thousands of people. Numerous 
 ruins of smelters are also found, giving indisputable evidence that 
 mines were once worked on a large scale. Two hundred years 
 ago the Indians, who had been enslaved and forced to work these 
 mines, broke out in rebellion and drove the Spaniards from the 
 country. So intense was their hatred toward those places in which 
 they had been forced to labor, that they filled up every old mine so 
 that no trace could be found of them. A number of years after the 
 Spaniards were allowed to return to the country, but only on 
 condition that the mines should never be opened or worked. This 
 condition seems to have been faithfully kept, and for many years 
 mining was wholly abandoned in the Territory. During the early 
 part 'of this century we hear of some of these old mines being 
 opened and new ones being discovered, but they were never worked 
 to any great extent. The Indians were hostile, transportation vras 
 expensive, and the methods of working ore very rrticle. It is only 
 within a short period that the mines of New Mexico have be^un to 
 attract attention. For two hundred years they ha\v been lying 
 
of Bern a lillo County. 13 
 
 dormant, but their rest is nearly ended. The tireless prospectors 
 will soon cover every hill and mountain. Every stone will be 
 upturned in search of mineral and the wealth of our mountains 
 once more be brought to light. 
 
 Bernalillo county contains some of the most valuable of these 
 old Spanish mines. Several districts have already been opened 
 and work enough done to prove their richness. The greatest 
 variety of minerals abound within the limits of the county. Gold, 
 silver, copper, lead, iron, coal, and lime are found in large quanti- 
 ties. Granite and sandstone for building purposes are found in 
 numerous places. Immense masses of crystallized gypsum are 
 found in the southern part of the county. The value of this mineral 
 as a fertilizer and for use in the arts is too well known to need 
 
 explanation. 
 
 Coal. 
 
 Already several coal beds have been found and there is no doubt 
 but when the country is better prospected, this mineral will be 
 discovered in very large quantities. These coal measures were 
 formed during the upper Cretaceous and early Eocene periods and 
 consequently consist wholly of lignite or brown coal. It is of a 
 superior kind and produces a great amount of heat. On the Rio 
 Puerco, about twenty miles from Albuquerque, several veins have 
 been opened which vary from four to eight feet in width. In 
 Tijeras canon one vein is nine feet thick and very pure. Other 
 veins are known to exist in these and other localities but they have 
 never been opened. There has been, no demand for coal here 
 until within a short time and consequently none has been taken 
 
 out. 
 
 Iron. 
 
 Various ores of iron are found scattered over the country, the 
 oxides and sulphides predominating. Iron is so widely distributed 
 over the globe that ores have to be particularly rich in order to 
 pay for working. Probably at no distant day the iron ores of New 
 Mexico, found as they are in many places in close proximity to 
 coal, will be found valuable enough to work. 
 
 Among the many mining districts already opened, I will speak 
 now particularly of three or four. 
 
 Hell Canon. 
 Hell canon is situated twenty miles east from Albuquerque, on the j 
 
14 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 west side of the Sandia mountains. This mining district was 
 discovered in the summer of 1879. The ore is a decomposed 
 quartz carrying free gold, some silver and copper. The Manzanita 
 Consolidated Mining company own a group of four mines, situated 
 just south of the entrance to the canon. The Manzanita is a lode 
 of gold bearing quartz from fifteen to twenty feet wide. Already a 
 shaft fifty feet deep has been sunk, and a tunnel thirty feet in 
 length dug. The ore runs from twelve to twenty dollars to the 
 ton. One of the best known mines in the camp is the Star, owned 
 by Messrs. Strahan, Thomas and others. It was discovered in 
 August, 1879, and from the first- gave proof of great richness. It 
 consists of a free milling quartz ore, and the vein is fully eight feet 
 wide. Assays from this mine have shown from one hundred and 
 twenty-eight dollars to one hundred and sixty-four dollars to the 
 ton. Arrangements are now being made to erect a stamp mill to 
 work this ore. One of the earliest discovered lodes was the 
 Milagros. This was the first to call the attention of miners to Hell 
 canon, and it has since fully sustained its reputation. Three miles 
 from the canon is the Golden Chariot lode, a true fissure vein, 
 with well defined walls. Some of the other mines which show up 
 fully as well as these, but with less development, are the Nebraska, 
 Arkansas, Washington, Reserve and Parole. North of the canon 
 are several galena veins found in a granite formation. One of 
 these, the Indiana, assayed one hundred and seventy ounces silver 
 on the surface. It is not claimed for this district that the ore is 
 extremely rich, but that there is an immense quantity of it and it is 
 easily worked and milled. Water enough to run several mills can 
 be obtained up the canon and the sides of the mountains are well 
 wooded. 
 
 Tijeras Canon. 
 
 Tijeras cafion cuts its way through the centre of the Sandia 
 mountains, and has long been the principal route from the Rio 
 Grande eastward. It lies only twelve miles from the river and is 
 connected with it by a fine, hard road. The ores are copper, lead 
 and silver. The discovery of several rich copper lodes a few weeks 
 since has recently attracted prospectors thither and many rich 
 discoveries are reported. Galena has also been found, some of it 
 very rich in silver. This is one of the districts which has just been 
 discovered, but which will soon command attention. 
 
of Bernalillo County. 15 
 
 New Placers. 
 
 This district lies forty miles northeast of Albuquerque and 
 twenty miles from the river. The placers existing here have been 
 known many years. In former years the dirt was carried to the Rio 
 Grande on burros and there washed. The dirt is so rich that even 
 this expensive method was profitable. Over a million dollars worth 
 of gold has already been taken out and the supply seems inexhaust- 
 ible. The great difficulty here, as in other placers of New Mexico, 
 has been the lack of water. For this reason but very little has ever 
 been done with these rich deposits. The placers lie south and 
 west of the Placer mountains, and cover thousands of acres. A 
 large part of this district is owned by eastern capitalists known as 
 the Canon del Agua and San Pedro company. This company 
 purchased two old Spanish grants, the Cafion del Agua grant and 
 the San Pedro grant and claim all the mineral found upon both. 
 They are making extensive preparations to work both the placers 
 and the mines, and soon smelters, mills and sluices will be in 
 working order. As it was impossible to procure water near at hand 
 to work the placers, the company decided to bring the water from 
 the Sandia mountains, fifteen miles away. To do this required an 
 outlay of five hundred thousand dollars, but with the prospect of 
 making millions thereby the expenditure of this amount was trifling. 
 A canon on the west side of the Sandia mountains was dammed up 
 and two immense reservoirs formed to hold the water accumulating 
 from the rains, melting snows and springs. The water will be 
 carried in large iron pipes to the placers, and with a fall of several 
 hundred feet be turned against the gold-bearing sand. At the 
 present time the pipes are nearly laid, and before long, the process 
 of washing will be commenced. Besides the placers, this company 
 owns a great many mines of gold and copper. The largest and 
 richest among them is the Old Copper Mine, which has been 
 worked for a number of years, and for which a handsome sum was 
 paid outside the price of the grant. The vein in this mine is thirty- 
 one feet wide and dips at an angle of ten degrees. The ore carries 
 free gold and green carbonate and oxide of copper. It will yield 
 on an average from seventy-five dollars to one hundred dollars in 
 gold, and the greater part of it twenty per cent, copper. This 
 company probably has the richest property in New Mexico, and 
 everv effort is being made to develop it. 
 
1 6 Report of t)ie Commissioner 
 
 But the New JPiacers district includes a large tract off the grants 
 and some of the richest mines are found without their limits. The 
 Mammoth Consolidated Mining company own several very valua- 
 ble claims. This company includes a number of New York and 
 | Santa Fe capitalists, and has a capital of ten million dollars. Two 
 | million dollars have been raised for working capital, and the 
 company is acquiring a large amount of valuable property. Some 
 of its claims are the Rebel Boy, which shows a vein seven feet in 
 width, carrying copper and gold; the Blackbird, which has a four- 
 and-a-half foot vein that assays two thousand six hundred and 
 twenty dollars to the ton, besides a large per cent, of copper ; and 
 ten thousand acres of placers. The Harry St. George and the 
 Delgado mines are owned by the company. The latter is one of 
 the finest lodes in the camp. One streak in it is said to have 
 assayed fifty thousand dollars. The Keystone is #n immense body 
 of mineral and is said to be even richer than the Old Copper. The 
 Elwood, Old Lexington, Handy, Missouri, Little Quaker and 
 Fannie Vaughn are all valuable claims. Their veins vary from 
 three feet to seven feet in width, with a good showing of mineral. 
 Both contact and fissure veins are found and are generally well 
 defined. While the New Placers is a gold camp, there are several 
 silver mines within its borders. The Galena mine is the best j 
 known of these and assays one hundred ounces silver, a large per I 
 cent, lead, and from twenty-five dollars to thirty dollars in gold. 
 The town of Golden, on the west side of the Placer mountains, is a I 
 lively, thriving town of about one thousand inhabitants. It is 
 rapidly increasing in size and will soon be one of the largest mining j 
 towns in the territory. A ten stamp mill is in operation now and ; 
 others will soon be erected. 
 
 Nacimiento. 
 
 For years the Mexicans and Indians have brought very rich . 
 specimens of copper ore from the Jemez and Nacimiento mountains. 
 It was known that there was a rich body of mineral there some- 
 where, but no systematic effort was made to find it until 1880. In 
 June of that year the Nacimiento Copper Mining company was 
 formed, and prospectors sent out to search for the rich copper ores 
 which were known to exist in that range of mountains. After some 
 months of prospecting the place from whence these rich specimens 
 were brought was discovered, and several very valuable claims 
 
of Bernalillo County. 17 
 
 taken up. This property is on the west side of the Nacimiento 
 mountains. The copper occurs as copper glance and gray copper 
 in the ledges of sandstone. The white and red sandstone runs 
 parallel with the mountain side, and for a distance of ten miles 
 shows traces of copper. In some places the copper occurs as 
 fossils, mostly of trees, but in others it is in immense lodes of 
 conglomerate. A small amount of silver is found with the copper 
 on the surface, and seems to increase with" the depth. The Naci- 
 miento company now 'own over a dozen claims, on all of which 
 large deposits are found. Among these claims are the Eureka, 
 Eureka No. 2, Copper Queen, Copper Crown, Copper Prince, 
 Gertrude and Crown Prince. On the Eureka a tunnel one hundred 
 feet long has been dug. At a distance of fifty feet from the surface 
 a large vein of conglomerate, twelve feet wide, averaging twenty- 
 five per cent, copper, was struck. From that point the tunnel has 
 followed the vein along the dip. This vein can be easily traced for 
 over five hundred feet along the surface, and the indications are 
 that it runs along near the surface for the distance of a mile. In 
 Eureka No. 2, lying next to the Eureka, the same kind of ore has 
 been found, and probably the same vein will be, struck. The 
 Copper Queen shows a smaller vein, but is much richer. It runs 
 over fifty per cent., and parts of it as high as sixty per cent. In all 
 of these mines there is an abundance of ore that will run forty per 
 cent, copper. During the last few months, other prospectors have 
 gone into the camp, and over a hundred claims have been staked 
 out. A mining district has been formed, and a recorder's office 
 established. As a copper camp this is one of the richest in the 
 west. A railroad will soon be built to Jemez, twenty-five 
 miles from the mines. Large veins of fine bituminous coal are 
 found within a short distance of the mines, and wood and water 
 are close at hand. The Nacimiento company expect soon to 
 have a smelter in operation and be ready to ship bullion by 
 
 next fall. 
 
 This is a brief description of the most important mining districts 
 of Bernalillo county. Others are being opened every day. The 
 mountains seem to be full of rich veins which only wait the labor of 
 the prospector and miner to be discovered and developed. For 
 the miner and capitalist there can be no better section of the 
 country than this. Prospecting has hardly begun, and yet the 
 
1 8 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 results are astonishing. Money is needed for further development, 
 and the greatest inducements are offered to capitalis to come here 
 and open up this new country. 
 
 ALBUQUERQUE 
 
 BY W. M. PATTON. 
 
 San Felipe Neri de Albuquerque, now Albuquerque, is no doubt 
 one of the oldest settlements in the territory, and was christened in 
 honor of Francisco Fernandez de la Cueva, Duke of Albuquerque 
 who figured over two centuries ago in the history of the territory as 
 Viceroy of Mexico, in 1659 and 1660, and again from 1701 to 1711. 
 Although we have no authentic history at hand to prove that it had 
 an existence prior to the date given above, yet the petitions for 
 land grants, and their approval, from which we obtain such infor- 
 mation as we are able to give our readers, and on which the title to 
 the present town site rests its validity, gives ample evidences of 
 there being, at that time, a large and prosperous settlement here. 
 In casting about for. something tangible upon which to base the 
 theory that Albuquerque had an existence long antedating its 
 occupation by the Spaniards, we find in the Jemes mountains, about 
 sixty-five miles northwest from here, the ruins of tosvns, or pueblos, 
 which, from the class of material used, and the general outlines of 
 buildings, together with their number, leaves no doubt of their 
 occupancy, at some period, by an advanced race of people, who 
 were both prosperous and numerous. This section of country is in 
 no way adapted to agriculture, or the production of the necessary 
 subsistence to support so large a population, hence the theory is 
 well founded, that the Rio Grande valley has always, as it does 
 to-day, supplied the necessary subsistence to support these towns 
 and villages whose inhabitants followed various pursuits, such as 
 mining, manufacturing, etc. These mountains contain magnificent 
 bodies of timber, and large deposits of mineral, principally copper, 
 though gold, silver, sulphur, gypsum, coal and other minerals are 
 found in considerable quantities. Mineral springs are also found 
 in these mountains, whose curative properties are said to be very 
 remarkable, and are now being improved and brought into general 
 notice. 
 
of Bernalillo County. ig 
 
 The well founded supposition that Albuquerque was among the 
 earliest settled towns in the territory, and has ever been looked 
 upon as one of prominence, is well supported by the fact that all 
 of the principal highways, or thoroughfares, traversing the territory 
 converge here. She seems to have always been in times past, the 
 great commercial, or distributing point, for the products of the Rio 
 Grande valley. 
 
 The wisdom of those ancient surveyors who found Albuquerque, 
 or its location, to meet the requirement of their time as a supply 
 point, cr. station, at the crossing of the various highways to and 
 from the inhabited portions of the territory, has been amply shown 
 and substantially approved by later events in the history of New 
 Mexico. 
 
 The advent of a later and more progressive type of civilization, 
 bringing with it steam, electricity, and that indomitable energy and 
 enterprise that acknowledges no barrier, halts at no obstacle, nor 
 finds an impediment to the consummation of its lofty ambition, has 
 seconded the judgment of its unknown predecessors, by adopting 
 precisely the same rules that evidently governed them in their 
 search for the most central and desirable point at which to locate 
 the crossing of their highways of travel and- commerce. Just as 
 Albuquerque has been the crossing point for all of the natural 
 roads in the territory in the past, so she is destined to be the 
 crossing of all the great railroads now traversing the territory. Of 
 the people who contributed alike to the history and the mystery 
 that surrounds the earlier period of its existence, but little is known, 
 and as no amount of speculation or surmise can bring us any 
 nearer the desired information, I will pass over that period so 
 involved in obscurity, and even pass over the tedious details 
 concerning its capitulation and occupation by the Spaniards, in 
 the sixteenth century, down to 1846, when the territory came into 
 the possession of the United States, since which time, until recently, 
 Albuquerque has been an important military post, and has con- 
 tributed much to modern history. As a military post it was the 
 home and birth place of many distinguished men and women of 
 our time. Generals Longstreet, Sibley and others of Confederate 
 fame, spent the days of their frisky lieutenancy, and flirted with 
 the dark eyed beauties, in the streets of Albuquerque. Many of 
 our notable Union officers during the late war, were nondescripts 
 in uniform, and amused themselves at Spanish monte in Albuquer- 
 
Report of the Commissioner 
 
 que, in those old days of democratic supremacy before the war. 
 Mrs. Lieutenant-General Phil Sheridan found it convenient to be i 
 born here, and I might go on ad libitum did space permit ; suffice j 
 it, however, that Albuquerque has through all the changes of time j 
 ; sustained the same unbroken prestige among the sisterhood of 
 ; communities that has made up the territorial populace, from the 
 ! unwritten period of which we know but little till the present day. 
 ; The direct lineal descendants of the Spanish conquerors are here ! 
 . to-day, and by their enterprise and hearty co-operation in every \ 
 movement, having for its object the promotion of the city's interest, 
 do they attest the appreciation in which they hold the legacy left 
 them by their illustrious ancestors. Bernalillo is certainly the 
 banner county of the territory, so far as wealth and resources are 
 concerned. Her taxes are nominal, and her paper, or warrants, 
 are at par, or as good as gold. 
 
 Present and Prospective Future. 
 
 On the i5th day of April, 1880, the first train of cars steamed 
 into Albuquerque, over the Atchison. Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad. 
 From the date of this event in the history of the town, dawns a new 
 era, and marks -the beginning of a progress as remarkable as its 
 growth is phenomenal. The first shrill whistle of the locomotive 
 seems to have awakened from the slumbers of the dead past the 
 dormant energies of a people, who, for generations, have content- 
 edly tended their vines and herds in the beautiful valley that 
 stretches away on every hand, with scarcely a thought or care for 
 the morrow. Reverberating back over mountain and valley towards 
 the rising sun, it caught the ear of progress and was answered back 
 by the syndicate that moves the world genius, labor and capital. 
 
 The New Mexico Town Company laid out the town site of East 
 Albuquerque. Obtaining a title therefor, it was sub-divided into 
 1200 lots, with streets and alleys of ample width, since which time 
 Messrs. -Stover, Huning and Hazledine have added what is lAiown 
 as the Atlantic and Pacific addition, composed of 550 lots, and 
 adjoining the New Mexico Town Company on the south. Adjoin- 
 ing this again, still further south, is the Baca addition, laid out by 
 Don Santiago Baca, an enterprising gentleman, a native of the 
 territory. Adjoining these several additions on the east, and across 
 the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad track, is the Highland 
 addition, laid out by Messrs. Huning and Phelan. Adjoining the 
 
of Bernalillo County. 21 
 
 New Mexico Town Company on the north has been recently added 
 the Perea addition, laid out by Don Jose Leandro Perea, of Berna- 
 lillo, one of the wealthiest men in the county, a native of the 
 territory. The very reasonable prices at which property has been 
 held by the original owners, has had the effect of creating an almost 
 unprecedented activity in real estate ; and we might, add that the 
 uniform desirability of property, in the various additions, has acted 
 as a wholesome stimulus for sales of business and dwelling-house 
 lots in all parts of the city. Business and dwelling houses have 
 gone up with a rapidity only equalled by the surprising readiness 
 with which they have found occupants. Business in all its varied 
 branches seems to have sprung up as if by magic. Ten months ago 
 the site upon which the future metropolis of the great southwest 
 now stands was but the fallow field of the thrifty native. The 
 transformation has been truly wonderful. 
 
 Thus far the speculative mania has not to any great extent engaged 
 the attention of our citizens, but on the other hand the disposition 
 has been to encourage immigration and settlement by giving to new 
 comers the advantages of schedule rates on desirable property, and 
 with a few exceptions we have not been cursed by fancy figures, 
 parties mostly buying with a view to immediate improvement. This, 
 of course, gives a healthy tone to the present situation, and augurs 
 well for the future. 
 
 Albuquerque, like all the new towns that have been built up 
 rapidly, has its complement of shanties or hurriedly constructed 
 buildings. These, however, with the march of progress, are giving 
 way to a really permanent and substantial class of improvements, 
 with a decided tendency toward architectural, beauty as well as 
 uniformity of design, which will add materially to the appearance 
 of the town. However, it is the intention of the writer to dwell 
 more particularly upon the future of Albuquerque as indicated by 
 the present current of popular opinion, which finds its source in the 
 advantages of location and tributary resources, and which alone in 
 the natural course of human events are sufficient to make her the 
 foremost city, not only of New Mexico, but of the great southwest. 
 In the days of steam, electricity and the hundreds of other motive 
 powers that act as the drive wheels of civilization, one of the most 
 important factors in the growth, permanence and prosperity of a 
 new town, is its system of 
 
22 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 Railroads--Their Connections and Outlets. 
 
 In this connection Albuquerque has at present, and assured to her 
 in the near future, in rounded fullness the measure of these advan- 
 tages. The three great railroads now traversing the territory, are 
 centering here. The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe now connects 
 with the Southern Pacific at Deming, giving us a through route to 
 the Pacific coast at San Francisco ; extending on south through old 
 Mexico, it reaches the gulf of California at Guaymas. The Atlantic 
 & Pacific railroad, the future great trans-continental thoroughfare, 
 is already built west for over two hundred miles, with a contract let 
 for three hundred miles more, to be built the present season ; this 
 brings them to the Big Colorado river, where connection is made 
 with the Southern California railroad, running from San Diego, 
 California, north to San Francisco, giving us two more outlets to the 
 seaboard, via this route west. On the east the St. Louis & San 
 Francisco is building from Vinita west to connect with the Atlantic 
 & Pacific road at Albuquerque. The completion of this road gives 
 us a direct outlet to the Atlantic seaboard. The Denver & Rio 
 Grande railroad will shortly extend its line down the Rio Grande 
 valley, and cross here on their way to a southern outlet on the gulf 
 of California, or Mexico, most probably the latter. Thus it will be 
 seen that Albuquerque can reach out to all points, north, south, east 
 and west, by a system of railroads centering here, and giving her 
 the advantages of the various direct outlets reached by the termini 
 of these several roads, their branches and connections. 
 
 The next important factor in building up and sustaining a commer- 
 cial center is her 
 
 Tributary Resources. 
 
 Of these it is necessary to speak more in detail, in order to give 
 the reader an intelligent and comprehensive idea of their magnitude 
 and variety. The cattle and sheep interests will come first in 
 importance, from the fact that they have hitherto, or previous to 
 the new order of things in the territory, constituted almost the sole 
 industry of the native element. This industry alone has been the 
 main avenue to wealth and the support of the citizens of this 
 territory, for the last two centuries, and the evidences are on every 
 hand to bear testimony to the wealth produced through this industry 
 alone. Now that the railroads are penetrating the territory from 
 every point, the wool clip, which has been largely credited to 
 
of Bernalillo County. 23 
 
 Colorado heretofore, will be rightfully placed to the credit of New 
 Mexico, giving us actual, indisputable possession of facts and 
 figures that will rank New Mexico foremost among the pastoral and 
 wool producing states and territories of the Union. It will be seen 
 by reference to the map of the territory, that Albuquerque is 
 geographically located in the very center or heart of this vast 
 wealth producing district, and by the system of railroads before 
 mentioned, which penetrate it from every point of the compass, its 
 products are brought to her doors, where they can be again taken up 
 and distributed to the world, either raw or in manufactured state. 
 
 The next feature of importance that intrudes itself upon the 
 close observer, and to which cannot be attached too much weight 
 in the contemplation of the possibilities of Albuquerque, is the vast 
 area of irrigable lands that lie immediately tributary to, and at her 
 very doors. There is nothing that contributes more to the health, 
 growth, prosperity, progress and permanence of a commercial or 
 manufacturing center, than the support and assistance of an 
 agricultural community sufficiently large and prosperous to render 
 its citizens, merchants, mechanics and manufacturers entirely and 
 wholly independent of the outside world, so far as concerns the 
 products of the soil. This, in the natural course of things/ will be 
 the case with Albuquerque. There are already many people coming 
 in who are, by education and experience, agriculturalists, and once 
 in the hands of practical farmers, with all the improved modern 
 implements to assist them, too extravagant an estimate cannot be 
 put upon the wonderful agricultural resources of this valley. 
 
 Next in importance comes our mineral resources. Though 
 comparatively undeveloped, they already give unmistakable evi- 
 dences of an exhaustless supply of mineral wealth that will yet 
 startle the world. By a table of distances to the principal mines 
 and mining districts, Albuquerque is shown to be from fifteen to one 
 hundred and fifty miles nearer than any other base of supplies in 
 the territory. With this general outline of the resources that are 
 tributary to, and must inevitably contribute to the future growth 
 and importance of this town, we will pass on and briefly review the 
 many enterprises already in active operation, and assured to her in 
 the near future. 
 
 Albuquerque has some of the strongest and most prosperous 
 wholesale and supply houses in the territory, and in order to give 
 the reader some idea of the amount of business done by our 
 
24 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 merchants, we will give here the amount of cash receipts from 
 freights alone at the depot of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe 
 road from the sixteenth day of April, 1880, to March i, 1881 : 
 
 April, 1880 $ 9,431.98 
 
 May, " 35,722.24 
 
 June, " 33,236.61 
 
 Juty, " 42,089.84 
 
 Aug., " 71,628.28 
 
 Oct., 1881 $73,752.80 
 
 Nov., " 58,290.73 
 
 Dec., " 64,882.48 
 
 Jan., 1881 85,593.17 
 
 Feb., " 80,798.95 
 
 Sept., " 67,979.73 
 
 Making a total of $628,407.11 in ten months and a half. A pretty 
 good showing. 
 
 The round houses, machine shops and terminal offices of "the 
 Atlantic & Pacific railroad are permanently located here, as will 
 most likely be the division terminal offices, round houses and 
 machine shops of the Denver & Rio Grande railroad. The Atchi- 
 son, Topeka & Santa Fe have also large interests here, and will do 
 much for the town. Woolen mills are already under way, and will 
 be completed early the present season. A foundry and machine 
 shops, on a large scale, are under contract and are to be in I 
 operation within six months, in connection with which is to be put 
 in operation by the same parties, sampling works. A smelter with 
 large capacity is also among the probabilities the present summer. 
 A street car line is now being constructed, which is to be running 
 in less than ten days. Our hotel facilities will be the best in the 
 territory, within the next three months ; already we have excellent 
 hotels, which will, in the time mentioned, be added to by two more 
 magnificent hostelries, one of which is just now receiving the 
 finishing touches, and the other under contract to be finished within 
 sixty days. A charter has been obtained, and a company formed, 
 to put in gas works the present season. A brick machine is now 
 on the way here, which, when under way, will supply an urgent need 
 in building material. Money has been subscribed to bridge the Rio 
 Grande at this point, which will greatly augment the business of our 
 merchants, by bringing to them a large jrade, which, on account of 
 the dangers of crossing the river, is forced to go elsewhere during a 
 greater portion of the season. Two flouring mills are constantly 
 running and doing a handsome business at present, with flattering 
 prospects for a large increase in business the present season. 
 
 Our school institutions are worthy of flattering notice, and the 
 writer alludes to them, as does every citizen of Albuquerque, with 
 
of Bern a lillo County. 25 
 
 commendable pride. The Albuquerque Academy, incorporated 
 under the laws of the territory, and liberally assisted by the New 
 West Educational Commission, of Chicago, is in a flourishing 
 condition. Its board of trustees are some of our most wealthy and 
 influential citizens. The course is very thorough, including the 
 English branches, German, French, Spanish and music. Professor 
 Charles S. Howe, principal; Miss Mary Snyder, first assistant; 
 Mfs. C. Pishnot, second assistant, and teacher of French and 
 German ; Miss Eva Everett, third assistant, and teacher of Spanish. 
 This institution is nonsectarian, and is being well supported by 
 endowments and donations. It is the intention of the board to 
 erect a handsome building the present season. The public school 
 for boys, under the supervision and management of the Christian 
 Brothers, is deserving of special mention; there is also under the 
 auspices of the Brothers here a college, where a full course is given. 
 There will be erected here the present season, a magnificent 
 structure to be used as a convent school, which will be under the 
 management of the Sisters. ;IC L*DJtS8^. 
 
 The government has established here an industrial school for 
 Pueblo Indians, at which are taught the common. English branches, 
 agriculture, domestic economy, etc. This institution is under the 
 management of Professor J. S. Shearer. The government has 
 appropriated money and will build substantial buildings the present 
 season. Our church and society privileges are all that could be 
 desired in point of excellence. Our churches embrace all of the 
 principal denominations, and are receiving daily accessions to their 
 members. Our society is exceptionally good, being composed of 
 well-to-do intelligent people from all parts of the country, who 
 come here with a common purpose, and who seem to adapt | 
 themselves with wonderful aptitude to the situation and surround- I 
 ings. In conclusion, we wish to call the attention of the reader to | 
 our grand central position and the opportunities, and we might add I 
 the necessities, for a large commercial and manufacturing center at | 
 this point. We are situated about 900 miles from Kansas City on ; 
 the east, 500 miles from Denver on the north, almost 1200 "miles j 
 from San Francisco on the west, with no large commercial or j 
 manufacturing city on the south. Thus it can be seen that within a j 
 radius of many hundred miles there- is nothing in the way of a ; 
 manufacturing or commercial point to impede our progress, nor is 
 there likely to be from the fact that no other point, of even present 
 
26 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 . __ . | 
 
 prominence can sustain its claims against the heavy odds in our 
 favor of location, resources and facilities. 
 
 Distances from Albuquerque to the Principal Mines 
 of New Mexico 
 
 Tijeras Canon 15 
 
 Hell Canon 20 
 
 Sandias 25 
 
 New Placers 35 
 
 Los Cerrillos 50 
 
 Abo Pass (or Spiegelberg) 55 
 
 Jemez (Nacimento copper mines) 85 
 
 Ladrones 55 
 
 White Oaks 80 
 
 Zuni 90 
 
 Oscura (Hansonburg) 100 
 
 Magdalenas 100 
 
 Black Range 175 
 
 Mogollons 200 
 
 Organ Mountains 225 
 
 Hillsborough 250 
 
 Lemitar 60 Shakespeare 275 
 
 Socorro 72 | ilver City 320 
 
 AGRICULTURE 
 
 BY PROF. CHARLES S. HOWE, B. S. 
 
 Whatever may be the other resources of a country, its permanent 
 prosperity will depend in a large measure upon its agricultural 
 productions. Mines may bring wealth and manufactures promote 
 prosperity, but the support of the people must come from the soil. 
 Unless a state can produce food for its inhabitants it must be 
 dependent upon other states for its supplies, and in view of the high 
 rates of freight this becomes an important matter. In this article I 
 propose to state some facts and give some figures that will prove 
 conclusively that New Mexico, and especially Bernalillo county, is 
 abundantly able to produce its own provisions and become inde- 
 pendent of other sections of the country for its agricultural supplies. 
 Bernalillo county occupies a central position in the territory and 
 contains about 4,000,000 acres. The valley of the Rio Grande 
 traverses it from north to south for a distance of about eighty miles. 
 The average width of the valley is five miles. The soil is a rich 
 
 j alluvial formed by the overflowing of the river. For centuries the 
 Rio Grande has brought down the richest particles of the mountains 
 
 ; and valleys over which it flows at the north and deposited them here 
 on these bottom lands. Nothing can exceed in fertility such a soil, 
 as is proved by the abundant crops which reward the labor of the 
 
 husbandman. The climate is hot in summer and the rains few : 
 
 i ' 
 
of Bernalillo County. 27 
 
 consequently all crops have to be irrigated. This is done by a 
 system of acequias or ditches which lead from the river and often 
 irrigate a section several miles in length. The acequias are owned 
 by the community and the necessary repairs are made in common. 
 Some crops require more and some less water, and in different 
 seasons the amount will also vary ; but the river always furnishes a 
 sufficient supply. The necessity of irrigation is no drawback to 
 successful agriculture. In fact it may be said to be an advantage. 
 In sections where land is not irrigated, during times of drouth, 
 crops fail. Some crops require water at a particular period of their 
 growth and unless they receive it are greatly retarded or prove a 
 failure. Here, by opening the gate of an acequia, crops can 
 receive water at any time. Irrigation has been in use for centuries. 
 In Egypt it was practiced thousands of years ago. Most of the 
 | countries of eastern Europe irrigate their lands and the results are 
 surprising. Irrigation is the cheapest means of producing crops. 
 The fine particles of earth, held in suspension by the water, are the 
 very best material for fertilizing the soil. In many parts of New 
 Mexico land has been cultivated for two hundred years without the 
 use of any fertilizer except the water with which the land has been 
 irrigated. To-day the crops are as large and the soil as rich as 
 when the land was first brought under cultivation. Although 
 irrigation is in use to some extent in this valley, probably not more 
 than one-fifth of the arable land is under cultivation. The principal 
 occupation is grazing, and the people, naturally indolent, cultivate 
 only land enough to supply their own wants. But new energy and 
 new enterprise are being infused into the valley and it will not be 
 long before these thousands of acres which have lain idle for so 
 many years will be brought under the plough. This land can be 
 bought for from ten dollars to fifty dollars per acre. The greater 
 part of it can be irrigated at small expense and it is equal in 
 fertility to any portion of the valley. With very little labor the 
 whole valley can be made to bud and blossom as the rose. But 
 the valley of the Rio Grande occupies only a small portion of the 
 county. The valleys of the Jemes and Rio Puerco, though smaller, 
 are no less fertile than that just described. 
 
 Rising from the valley of the Rio Grande is a high plain or mesa 
 which reaches to the mountains. This plain reaches throughout 
 I the whole length of the county and is from ten to twenty miles 
 j wide. It consists of a light sandy loam, and would be exceedingly 
 
28 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 valuable if water could be procured for irrigation. No more 
 beautiful plain exists in America than this mesa lying east of the 
 river. Owing to the expense, irrigation can only be used here on a 
 large scale. But in the near future this will be no obstacle. Capital, 
 seeking a safe investment in the west, will find no more profitable 
 one 'than by irrigating large tracts of desert land, to thus reclaim 
 them for agricultural purposes. This plain could be irrigated in 
 several ways. Water sufficient for the whole tract could easily be 
 brought from the river. The melted snows and the rains as they 
 pour down the sides of the mountains arid through the canons in 
 the spring might be collected in vast reservoirs and thence con- 
 ducted over the land. Another method, and one that has been 
 successfully tried in some portions of the west, would be to sink 
 artesian wells. Water could probably be struck at a depth of a 
 thousand or fifteen hundred feet. However it is to be accomplished, 
 it doubtless can and soon will be done. 
 
 Grains. 
 
 While all crops common to a temperate climate grow here, grains 
 do especially well. Corn grows abundantly and eighty bushels to 
 the acre is no uncommon crop. The rich soil of the valley is well 
 adapted to corn and makes it one of the staple crops. Wheat is 
 grown extensively. The yield is often fifty bushels to the acre. 
 The present yield in the county is about two hundred thousand 
 bushels, but this could be almost indefinitely increased. Wheat 
 would grow particularly well on the plains already spoken of. 
 Barley and oats are raised to some extent and do well in the soil of 
 
 the valley. 
 
 Vegetables. 
 
 Vegetables are raised in great abundance and find a ready market 
 in Albuquerque and other towns along the river. Cabbage grow to 
 a large size, often weighing thirty to forty pounds. Onions are also 
 very large, weighing from one to two pounds. Beets, onions, carrots 
 and parsnips grow here readily. Beans are cultivated in great 
 quantities and form one of the principal articles of food for the 
 native population. Melons develop finely and are very rich in 
 flavor. 
 
 Fruits. 
 
 The soil of the Rio Grande valley seems to be better adapted to 
 produce fruits than anything else. Apples, pears, peaches, plums, 
 and all the small fruits are cultivated. But the grape stands at the 
 
of Bernalillo County. 29 
 
 head of the fruits of New Mexico. Rich, juicy, and sweet, it 
 challenges comparison with any other grape in the world. But a 
 full description of the culture of the grape will appear in another 
 article. 
 
 Stock Raising. 
 
 The raising of cattle and sheep has been and probably will be 
 the principal pursuit of this county. For hundreds of years the 
 Spanish .Dons have made immense fortunes in this business. 
 Thousands of acres of land, rendered unfit for cultivation because 
 of lack of water, are specially adapted for grazing. The gramma 
 grass, which is sweet and nutritious, covers most of the plains and 
 provides an unfailing supply of food summer and winter. Hundreds 
 of thousands of sheep and cattle cover the large plains, but there 
 is room for many more. Wool always brings a good price and 
 cattle are in constant demand. As a rule both cattle and sheep are 
 free from disease. The warm winters make it unnecessary to 
 provide shelter or hay for their support. The number of sheep in 
 the county is 1,500,000. Many of these are partly improved. The 
 prices are from one dollar to two dollars per head, according to 
 quality. 
 
 Near the larger towns, dairy farms pay a large profit. Milk, 
 butter and cheese are in great demand. In fact all agricultural 
 products find a ready market. To the farmer who wishes to come 
 west there is no better place than the Rio Grande valley. A mild 
 climate, fertile soil, and a good market are the inducements here 
 offered. 
 
 CLIMATE 
 
 BY GEN. M. T. THOMAS. 
 
 This territory is located between the thirty-first and thirty- 
 seventh degrees of north latitude, and between the one hundred 
 and third and one hundred and ninth degrees of longitude west. 
 It covers an area of about three hundred and sixty miles square. 
 
 Its maximum elevation, or highest mountain peak, is about 
 fourteen thousand feet above the level of the sea, and the lowest 
 point in its valleys is about two thousand five hundred feet above 
 the sea level. The mean elevation of its valleys is about five 
 thousand feet. It is impossible (even if it were advisable) in this 
 
30 Report of the Commissioner 
 
 article to give a thermometrical record of the temperature, for 
 none has been kept until of a very recent date ; and we will there- 
 fore write only such facts in regard to it as appear indisputable to a 
 resident. 
 
 The spring season, when the grass starts to grow and the flowers 
 put forth their beautiful blossoms, commences from March 20 to 
 April 15. The last frost to do any damage is seldom later than the 
 last mentioned date. So that grain and other cereals and vegetable 
 products, which have been planted in March, have nothing to fear 
 from climatic changes after that time. 
 
 The sun shines more than three hundred days in the year. And 
 his rays here are very different from those in the north, where a 
 large part of the year he goes sneaking along the edge of the horizon 
 as though he feared to show his face ; while in this latitude, soon 
 after the first faint streak of daylight, he comes looming up over 
 some mountain range like an immense fire ball being shot out of a 
 mortar, and he goes sailing upward and onward almost directly over 
 head, sending his warm and life-giving rays down into every nook 
 and cranny, obliterating shade and darkness, and giving life, health 
 and strength to both vegetable and animal life. These almost 
 vertical rays of the sun, which in the low latitudes with low 
 elevations like Louisiana, render the heat almost intolerable, in our 
 high altitudes are harmless ; such a calamity as sunstroke being 
 unheard of. 
 
 We have the same dry, invigorating atmosphere that has rendered 
 Minnesota famous the world over, without the insupportable cold of 
 its winters ; and the salubrious, balmy temperature of Florida in 
 winter, without its depressing and sweltering days of summer. 
 
 To believe these sayings one has only to look at our five 
 thousand feet elevation in a mean latitude of thirty-four degrees, 
 and he will readily see that the otherwise tropical heat of summer 
 would be tempered by the great altitude, and that the universally 
 cool air of an altitude of five thousand feet is equally tempered by 
 the almost vertical rays of the sun in winter. We claim, therefore, 
 for New Mexico, the most- equable and enjoyable temperature of 
 any part of the United States, and that it cannot, for healthfulness 
 and life-preserving qualities, be excelled in any land of the known 
 world. 
 
 Fever and ague are unknown. Asthma disappears like dew 
 before the sun. Consumptives, who have a reasonable amount of 
 
of Bernalillo County. 31 
 
 breathing apparatus left, are greatly improved, and with plenty of 
 
 sunshine and outdoor life may have strong hopes of living long 
 
 enough to dry up and blow away in this climate, instead of coughing 
 
 and spitting away their substance, as they do in many of the old 
 
 states. Our atmosphere is so clear and pure that the range is 
 
 extended to great distances. Every detail of mountain scenery is 
 
 lainly visible "at a distance of thirty or forty miles. At twenty 
 
 miles distance the shape of the trees, rocks and ravines along the 
 
 sides of the Sandias are plainly to be traced with the naked eye. 
 
 From the foot-hills at its base, this beautiful range of mountains 
 
 rises up in grand proportions, its rugged face scarred with ravines. 
 
 Half-way up a timber belt is stretched along its front like a girdle, 
 
 and high up in the heavens its snow-capped range rests against a 
 
 blue ethereal sky for a back-ground, with every feature as distinctly 
 
 marked out to view, as a show bill posted on a board fence. 
 
 This may well be called "The land of sunshine," for no inter- 
 vening clouds or vapors obstruct the passage of the sun's rays, 
 whose dazzling brightness is only approached in brilliancy by 
 those of the electric light, and it would require a million electric 
 lights to approach the magnitude of the boundless mass of rays of 
 light flashing from a rising or a setting sun in New Mexico. 
 
 There is little approach to a sunset in New Mexico. The sun 
 comes down the western horizon with a rush. As it approaches the 
 earth line, broad daylight still exists and the beholder stops and 
 wonders if his course will be stayed,' or at least if he will not linger 
 as elsewhere to cast a lingering look over the beautiful landscape 
 that he has blessed with gladsome light for the past few hours. 
 But no! for an instant quivering flashes of light burst from his 
 mighty form, irradiating the whole western horizon with a halo of 
 scintilating and impenetrable light, and to all appearance the sun's 
 great body dissolves itself into long silvery flashes, which penetrate 
 the boundless realms of upper space. With this closing view one 
 involuntarily turns, expecting eternal darkness to reign henceforth 
 in all the land ; but for one instant only the feeling of awe and 
 sadness is allowed to fill the mind at th$ death of the orb of day 
 for his dying rays flashing across ethereal space with electric speed 
 lights up the lamps of heaven, and planets, meteors and modest 
 ^ttle stars rise with the beautiful moon in rendering dear reposeful 
 a beauty and a joy forever.