State of things, and particularly when it is considered that the
very season of blossom and bloom of our Atlantic States was the
winter of California; but these same fields and hills have a very
different appearance in January, February, and March, clothed as
they are in the brightest verdure and no one now will pretend to
say that California does not possess within herself great
agricultural as well as mineral wealth. This, I believe, will
some day be the case with the country from the Rio Grande to the
Gulf of California, adjacent to the Gila. Senate Ex. Doc. No. 55,
33rd Congress, 2nd Session."

* * * * * * * *

In speaking of the resources of this region for a railroad, in
the same report, Gray says:

"The valley of Mesilla, extending from about twelve miles above
the true boundary of the treaty to the parallel of 32 degrees 22
minutes north latitude, lies wholly within the disputed district,
and is, for its extent, one of the most beautiful and fertile
along the whole course of the Rio Grande. The town of Mesilla,
only a few years old, contains several thousand people, and is a
prosperous little place. It was not settled until after the
cession of this territory to us by the treaty of Guadalupe
Hidalgo. Portions of the valley are highly cultivated, and
produce the grains and fruits of our most thriving States. In
connexion with the land on the east side of the river, the valley
of the Messilla is capable of sustaining a considerable
population. It is situated centrally with regard to a large
district of country of lesser agricultural capacity. The section