gardener, or stockman; or, should the homeseeker prefer to prospect for mineral, or to be a lumberman, he can find among the mountain ranges of the western portion of the county, on Government land, free and open to all comers, sufficent inducement for that necessary labor which accumulates wealth in bringing to light the hidden treasures of the hills or in felling the giants of the forest.

PRODUCTS OF THE SOIL.

The amount of oats annually raised in the Mora Valley alone often exceeds 10,000,000 pounds, while 2,000,000 pounds of wheat is regarded as only a moderate yield. The following is about as the crops are annually--sometimes more, sometimes a little less:

But in this connection it is only just and right to state that the area of land actually under the plow is but a mere patch compared to the whole area of the county, which statement is necessary to explain what would otherwise appear an extreme paucity of agricultural products.

There are at least 500,000 acres of rich lands lying idle and uncultivated, all of which can be put under irrigation systems in the valleys of the Mora, Rio de la Casa, Sapello, Manuelites, Cebolla, Coyote, Rito, Agua Negra rivers, and several minor streams, all of which rivers and streams carry strong heads of never-failing water.

Fruits of all the hardier varieties grow both wild and in orchards in extravagant profusion; they also offer special inducement for the establishment of preserving or canning works.

Many other farm products are raised in this county, and of late years potatoes have been most successfully grown; so much so as to enter into active competition with both California and with Greeley, Colo., bulbs in the home markets.

Vegetables of almost every known variety are grown throughout all the valleys and on all the farms in Mora County. Cabbages of 40 to 50 pounds in weight, as solid and sound as can be imagined, are common results of the gardener's toil. The soil seems peculiarly well adapted to onions, carrots, parsnips, turnips, radishes, and lettuce, and garden truck of all sorts attains speedy maturity.

The homeseeker can purchase lands already under cultivation for $20 per acre and upward. Farming pays when such lands will readily and constantly yield 50 bushels, or 3,000 pounds, of wheat per acre, which is now selling on the ground at 14 cents per pound, and never less than 1 cent, with a surety of no failures in crop on account of irrigation.

BUSINESS FOR A RAILROAD.

Mora County stands to-day as one of the richest subdivisions in the West that is without railway communication with the cutside world.

However, the Las Vegas, Mora Valley, and Taos Railroad Company has been organized, with headquarters at Las Vegas, and, with the present active season of railway construction in New Mexico, it does seem that not much time will elapse before this project attracts the attention at the hands of capital which its merits so richly deserve, for certainly there is no more resourceful stretch of territory in the West than that now lying isolated along the Mora Valley, between Las Vegas and Taos Valley. The distance between these two points is about 100 miles.

With the construction of the proposed railway will immediately follow the installation of immense beet-sugar refineries, canning establishments, flour and oat-meal mills, planing and saw mills, and various other important industries, raw material for which will come from the surrounding country. One item alone, i. e., peas, will furnish to a cannery over 1,000,000 pounds per annum, equal to as many cans as pounds, and of as fine quality and delicious a flavor as any imported French peas. The Mora pea can be bought for 1 cent per pound, and it requires but little arithmetical effort to figure between the cost and profit on an article at 1 cent per pound for raw material and 25 to 30 cents per can for the merchantable product. Beans in great quantity are also grown in all the valleys of western Mora County, and they will assuredly prove an additional industry to that of canning peas, especially as the New Mexico market is now clamoring for both of

A very heavy export business can be transacted, and both canned peas and beans will readily sell in all Eastern cities.

In minerals the various sorts in constant demand for smelting purposes are abundant. Some of the finest specimens of copper ore ever brought forth from the treasure vaults of the Rocky Mountains are to be obtained in western Mora County. There is also gold-bearing ore, iron, galena, and other sorts awaiting exploitation and intelligent work of the prospector and miner to show their extent. Coal of a semianthracite character has been discovered in apparently inexhaustible measures, which are of sufficient thickness and of such excellence as to establish their commercial value beyond all peradventure.

FLOURING MILLS.

A considerable portion of the wheat grown in the valley is converted into flour by local mills. At Mora are flour water-power mills, that of M. G. Gordon, with a capacity of 20 barrels a day; Macario Gallegos, capacity, 15 barrels per day; J. J. Fuss, water-power roller mill, which turns out 75 barrels a day, and that of T. J. Delaney, having a capacity of 15 barrels daily. Other mills in the county are Louis Deutchman's water-power 2-burr mill at Loma Parda, yielding 20 barrels a day; the La Cueva Ranch Company's single-burr mill at Lacueva, with a capacity of 25 barrels daily, and Dr. Bowman's mill at Lucero, which takes its power from Coyote Creek, and has a capacity of 15 barrels per day.

The population of Mora County is about 13,500 people, and its assessed valuation for the year is $941,620, which is about one-quarter of its property values. Its cattle are assessed at $134,904 and its sheep at $94,989. The elevation of the county above sea level varies from 5,000 to 12,000 feet.

The climate is similar to the rest of the northern part or plateau-land climate of New Mexico, and surpasses that of any other country on the face of the globe for counteracting and curing all sorts of pulmonary complaints.

The scenery in the mountains is acknowledged to be superior to the Swiss Alps by those people who have seen both.

The hunter's paradise and the fisherman's ideal for trout fishing is here to be found. The many mountain streams abound in speckled beauties, while game, both feathered and furred, small and large, roams the hills on all sides.

M'KINLEY COUNTY.

By act of the legislative assembly of 1898-99 the county of McKinley was created out of the western portion of Bernalillo County. This act also provided that the county seat should be established at Gallup and that complete organization of the county should take effect January 1, 1901.

The new county, since its enlargement by the last legislature, embraces an area of 3,255,940 acres. As required by law, the first election took place in November, and on January 1 the officers entered upon their respective duties and the new county was duly organized. The population of the new county is about 7,000, of which 4,000 reside in Gallup or its suburban coal camps.

McKinley County covers one of the most productive coal regions in the entire West; nearly the entire county is underlaid with coal, and the mining and shipping of this product, together with its considerable cattle and sheep-raising interests, constitute the chief industry of its people.

Gallup, the county seat, is an important business point on the line of the Santa Fe Pacific Railroad, 160 miles west of Albuquerque, and is a thoroughly live and progressive town, whose people are especially devoted to its public-school interests and who take a just pride in everything that pertains to the upbuilding of a prosperous and moral community. The town is well built of brick and stone, has broad, clean streets, an adequate water system, electric lights, and has a network of telephone lines connecting with the several neighboring coal camps.

Clarkville, Gibson, and other thriving coal camps are located near by, and constitute largely the general business done at Gallup. The coal shipments from the district are made from Gallup, several railroad spurs leading out to the various mines. In the county 9 mines are in constant operation, employing in the neighborhood of 1,000 men. The coal output for the last year amounted to 531,215 tons, valued at $677,856 at the mines. The coal is shipped chiefly to Arizona and California. Clarkville is a new model industrial town, which Senator Clark, of Montana, is building for the comfort of the hundreds of employees on and about his coal mines, and one of its newest accessories is a well-equipped public library. A considerable quantity of fire clay is also mined at Clarkville and shipped to Pacific coast points.

For some years it has been known that crude oil abounded in this locality, and within the past few months the subject has received much attention, with the result that some of the best California experts and others versed in geology have passed favorably upon the proposition, and half a dozen corporations have been formed to develop the field. Several drills are at work near Gallup at this writing.

Small tracts are farmed in various tracts of the county, but as a rule flowing water is scarce, although there are many large springs. In the eastern part of the county good copper deposits have been recently opened. In the southern portion are vast timber tracts.