Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1874-09-03
I THREATENED WATER EANlNEUN
COLOR ADO.

Mr. n &. Mcckcl, the founder Of the
Greeley colony, in a long but very interesting
letter to the New York yribuns. depicts the
cmbarrassmcnts, Of serious nature, to the
several communities. and especially to the
farmers, of Colorado. growing out of the
scarcity of water. lie states that the limit of
the supply has already been reached, and that
conflict in regard to the right to water is
now imminent. Colorado Springs, situated
at the foot of Pixies Peak, takes water from
two streams the Fountain and the Monument
the latter small and the former by no
means large. The Fountain runs south to
Pueblo 80 miles. and in its valley farms have
been opened almost through the whole dis
tancc. but the supply has always been limited.
Colorado Springs having now become Z town
of 5000 inhabitants, needs SO much water
that gri>t mill below has applied for al in
junction on the Water Company to restrain
them from divcrting the stream. 1t is under
stood tl,a, the farms on the Fountain arc about
to seek the same remedy with regard to the
W dlFl tl tllt NLlll lutO
the Fountain Il short distance below Colorado
Springs The case is to bc carried up to the
highest courts
Denver. with Il population of 10000 pco-
pie takes water from the Platte. and in some
parts of the city there is i scarcity for gardens
and shade trees. more OH account of the de-
tcicncy Of the irrgating canals than in the
supply afforded 10y the river. but ii is forcsccn
that. as the town grows, larger demands will
be made. when the farms down the Platte
Valley will he pincllcd for water, ut least dur
inc two Fall months. Through the last part
of May and through June and most of July,
abundance Of water comes out of the noun
,anS derived from melted SHOWS. 1t is mani
fest. says Mr.. Mcckcr. that when Denver shall
have IN addition of ten thousand to her pop
uation. with Il correspondent. increase of
suburban land brought into cultivation, the
absolute imi, of land will be reached. Then,
the only resource will be to construct reser-
vors in the mountains fEt4he receiving of
the surplus water, but Il p seems to be
suspicion that the reserydD will not hold
nearly as much water as sAnguinc projectors
claim. and ut the same time it is matter of
wonder that nothing is heard of reservoirs
being resortcd to in counties where irrigation
has long been practiced: as for instance in
Upper Italy. where, in the time of Virgil, q
comparatively complete system must have
been established. The ancents certainly had
tanks and cistcrns. and they make figure in
Judca, tho remains of which astonish by their
magnitude; and such are to be found in India,
any considerable amount of land.
North from Denver is q fine farming re-
eion, that is. in the valley of several streams,
and more or less trouble is experienced on
Clear Creek and on the Boulders, but rs yet
there is no outbreak. In the Cache Ia Poudre
Valley. however. ut the lower end of which
Greeley is situated. 80 miles from the noun
tains. there is trouble enough. and it has only
begun unless wise measures shall prevail, in
GLIDING just consolidation of oil interests
and storing of the surplus water. When
the town of Greeley wss located. and many
thousand acres Of land were purchased it was
seen that the Cache Ia Poudre was fine
stream. 100 feet broad, with fall of Is feet
to the mile, and it was seen, too, that not ex.
ceeding 1000 acres were under cultivation
along the whole valley, some say not more
than 500 acres. aud thus an unappropriated
stream was presented to whoever had cOur-
age and enterprise and money sufficient to
dig canals for irriga,ing the adjacent lands.
The Greeley people appropriated this river,
and they constructed two canals costing not
less than 900, 900, and having an extent, in
Guiding laterals, of more than one hundred
miles.
Immediately after the settlement the few
farmers up the river bought all the land they