Letter from Walter R. Bracken (Los Angeles) to E. E. Calvin (Los Angeles), March 9, 1926

Los Angeles, California March 9, 1926. Mr. E. E. Calvin, President, Las Vegas Land and Water Co., Los Angeles, California. Dear Sir: I respectfully submit herewith an estimate which I believe will cover the rehabilitation of the eighteen hundred acre ranch at Las Vegas, Nevada, owned jointly by the Railroad Company and the Las Vegas Land and Water Company, and make it not only a productive, but demonstration ranch second to none in the west. In this case the dominant interest IS PROTECTION OF OUR WATER RIGHTS to conform to our Nevada State laws, and second a demonstration ranch for the Union Pacific System, and from the sale of all ranch products to be used by the Dining Car and Hotel Depart-ment, which should be given intensive advertising in a like manner as the Harvey House advertises their Del Rio Ranch products, we will eventually, within a few years, recover initial cost of capital expenditure, also developing a most valuable asset to the Railroad Company. This estimate runs into an exceedingly large sum of money, and much more than I had anticipated, but can be very materially reduced by the development of one department at a time, and this I would strongly recommend rather than undertake the entire development in half measures, if total estimate submitted is not approved by your- #2 -EEC self and other officials. For instance, -this year fence and put under cultivation all valuable acreage. This part of the undertaking is the most important, as it will solve our water problems, caring for the surplus water which is now flowing on other properties and will save our fields from becoming water-logged, which at this time is quite a menace. The cost of this work can be segregated from estimate submitted and the total of this, with the erection of only one house for ranch superintendent and renovating and enlarging old ranch house for mess house and living quarters for necessary ranch hands, would greatly reduce the estimate submitted. The estimate submitted covering electric energy to be used on the ranch is a segregation of attached letter from Mr. Coffey, and while this seems to be rather high, if desirous it can be reduced by our using electric energy through the Consolidated Power and Telephone Company with whom we have a ten year contract supplying them with electricity for domestic use in Las Vegas Townsite, and who also have pole line running from the townsite to the ranch. They are now paying us 04 1/2 cent per kilowatt hour for all energy used and would probably supply us with needed electric energy at the ranch for a very low figure, possibly such as would cover their overhead costs and a profit of 01 cents per kilowatt hour. This latter proposition is contingent upon the power plant having enough electric energy to meet the requirements without additional investment at the power plant, as suggested in Mr. Coffey's letter. #3 -EEC There are many other reductions that could be made from estimate in case you do not feel the entire ranch proposition should be carried through at this time, however, these can be taken up later if you so desire. There is not much that can be said at this time in reference to revenue from the ranch, especially the first year, but using the list and figures as submitted by Mr. Lewis, which I believe amounted to $131,000.00 for the year 1923 on the L.A. & S.L. unit, we have figured on this sum and as soon as it could be possible for us to supply all products as demanded by Mr. Lewis it would undoubtedly be done for an expenditure of $50,000.00, including labor and everything, leaving a profit of $80,000.00, deducting from that the interest on Investment, taxes and insurance it would leave,without any doubt, an amount to apply on the principal of between fifty and sixty thousand dollars annually, and although our estimate on this entire ranch work is very heavy, I can see that within five to seven years time we could meet the initial expenditure. Yours very truly, Walter R. Bracken