Volcano weekly ledger., 1856-03-29
The Miners Ditch.

ioohlhS w tlc OiBuuildtioh Vi I" ho" DieSi
Company were published last week. The
design is to bring water for mining purposes
to the region of Volcano, from the Mokel
umne river; and we take pleasure in referring
to the project, because all citizens of this place
and vicinity, whether merchants, mechanics
or miners, are deeply interested in every
undertaking which promises to increase the
supply of the great necessity-wArER.
The new canal is to be what its name indi-
strictly Miners Ditch, cut and con-
structed upon the principle of associated
labor 1t is understood that two hundred
men agree to take one share each, and acorh
out their respective interests from the woro
ro., These men are all hardy, indus
trious, and intelligent miners all of them
have valuable claims, and all of them have
been waiting for water until to wait longer
would be good evidence that their wonted
energy was wanting. Water in the Mokel-
umne is abundant, its diversion to this local
ity has been found to be perfectly feasible,
and two hundred miners have concluded to
cut channel through which it will be con
veycd hither The ditch will be of large
capacity, 1--WE do not rccollect the exact di-
mensions that have been proposed) and will
be constructed at the expense of less labor
than most other works of the kind. There
will be but very little auming, and the dig
ging all, or nearly all, of the easiest char
acter.
1t is gratifying to witness movement of
this kind on the part Of the miners. They
are directly and yitalley interested and will
not permit the work to proceed slowly
Indeed, those who make up the company
must haze water, or abandon the claims that
contain, as they have been convinced by
thorough prospecting, their eternal for
tunes' 1t is gratifying to witness that they
have brains, as well as bone, muscle, and
sinew The keen perception to see the only
hope of salvation within his reach, the cour-
age to grasp at it, and the strength tc ac-
complish his object, be it surrounded by never
so many difficulties, is genuine character
stc of the hardy California miner; and there
Is no Just reason why the rule should not hold
good in this instance.
The water will be sold to stockholders the I
ane as to other parties, except that they
will of course have the first right to use it,
% that one member of the company will not
,e able to obtain an advantage over another.
As in other cases. the miner will have to pay
or the water lie requires, but in lieu thereof
ne will draw his proportion of the dividends
declared by the company; and if there is
anything to be made by the sale of water,
who has better right to make it than the
miner himselfg Some debts will necessarily
De contracted, in order to prosecute the work
but we do not conceive that
better basis of credit than this company will
possess could well be imagined. The work
tself will not only be held for these debts,
lirectly, but also, indirectly, the mining
,laims of the two hundred proprietors, and
many of their claims arc doubtless among
he richest in the whole State The COM
,any viii have no difficulty in procuring the
necessities required
1t is calculated that the new ditch will be
inished in the course of two or three
months from this time; two hundred men, all
will push the work forward with
pied energy. By-the-by, the Miners"
bids fair to be quite formidable rival of the
: Volcano" ditch; yet their interests viii
scarcely conflict, for there is no danger Of
more water than will be wanted being intro
luced at Volcano for years to come, if ever.
"The more the better" is the cry of every
body. With the Volcano and Miners
bitches on one side Of the Basin, and the
Jackson Water Co.'s and the new Johnson or
Aqueduct Ditch on the other, the people of
this region will begin to experience some of
the benefits derived from the introduction of
water by artificial means. A large number
Of hands are at work vigorously on the John
son ditch and the management of the enter
prize is in excellent hands
p S. Since writing the above, the engi-
necring party have returned to Volcano
They have run level line" and ind that
the prospect for bringing in the water is even
better than WAS at first SunnoSed Thc