Arizona weekly citizen., 1886-05-08
Irrigation in Arizona.

ED. CITIZES:--Being convinced tha like the state of California, the terrI.or
 cf ArizoDa's politicians will be called O
 to Tentilate the water question and tn
 construction ofreservoirs very thorough
 Iy m the coming fall political campaign
 l have thought it would not be amiss t.
 state through the CITIZEN some of th
 points they will bs called on to settle il
 the next legislature. First:
 THE WATER QUESTION IN GENERAL.
 It will be maintained by some anC
 should be made leading enc by thu
 platforms of all our local conventions
 where legislative candidates are put 1T
 nomination, that the territory. througl
 some efficient system of police force
 should take complete control of the sup
 ply and distribution of the water to hs used for irrIgating purposes within tE, territory; should construct all canals and supply diiches; regulate the price of water, and see that the purchaser gets the water delivered on the land for which It was purchased; 1t should Sur chase all vested rights in water, canals, or dltches for its distribution, and pro hloit any private enterprise hereafter in that line.
 THE CONSTRUCTION or REsEEvoIRs.
 The Territory should assume the con- struction of all public reservoirs for the storage of water for irrIgating purposes and construct all canals leading from the reservoirs tO the valleys, together with all the ditches and supply gates necessary to furnish every tract of land Its required amount of water. It should at once commence the construc- tiOn Of reservoirs and Deyer stop until all the land in the Territory is reclaimed either for husoaDdEy or stock raising; for there IS sufficient a flow from the mountGii- water sheds either within, or without the Territory; of the different streams or wet-weather gulches within the territory, to reclaim about one fourth of the area of the Territory for the pcrpose of husbandry, and the oth- CT three-four,hs for pssturGge.
 RELATIVE COST OF CONSTRUCTING RISER
 voIRs.
 l have been to some trouble in gathering data on this subject, and have figured it out that 1t will cost about one hundred millions of dollars to reclaim ten millions of acres of land for hus- bandry and twice that amount of land for grazing purposes. But will it pay the territory to do 1t?
 The Arizona canal proposes to sell water rights al Sl 75 an acre per annum with the reserved right of going that j0 cts. better after the Year of A. D., 1-iin al r.H nra fhaEa ,.-slI no trouble ID dispOsiug of their water rights.
 This would give the Territory a water rentage at Sl15 an acre of seventeen and one half millions of dollars income q year, sufficient to pay of tine principal and interest m less than twenty years and support the state government dur ing the interim without any other tax alton. if deemed best.
 THE WHOLE FEAT SHOULD BE ACCOM-
 FLUSHED IN FIVE YEARS.
 For the water can't be furnished sui ! fast to supply the demand | os settlers as rapidly as they will be ! ready Co purchase, hence the enterprise | should be prosecuted as last as possible. ! DEDUCTIONS IN FAVOR or THE |
 ENTERPRISE.
 Tine expense cuts no figure in the case, only 70 far gs procuring the joan by the | Territory, for tle water rentsgs will pay | the interest on the debt contracted. and ! leave g balance for n sinking fund to re- deem the principal in reasonable time. |
 lf VIII III no way increase taxation. ! but, on the contrary, can be made to 1 decrease taxes.
 Industrious claimants, with more I than money, can be given prefer | snce as iaborers, and thus be enabled to I earn the purchase prIce of their lands | and pay Tor water Tn advance for several | years if they desire.
 The enterprise will bring to the Terri | .ory large population of good, indus ,riOus. business, and substantial citizens | u q few years; make things lively all | JTer the Territory, and give busted | 1uslness men, ranchess and cRttlemen lere now a splendid show to get even. Will stop all monOply in water, and nip coming arrogant and troublesome mon- ,poly m the bud.
 Will have the tendency to divide up ho level land in the Territory into com small farms, and thus prenare he way for more easily conformation O the coming social. political. and na- ionRl reforms through the combination f wage workers.
 Will increase our population sufficient ? to enable us to demand an entrance nd be admitted into.the Union as q state D time 10 vote for the next President.
 Will have the effect on private enter rise sufficient to cross-b0r the TeEntory 7ith railroads built without any subsi- izing.
 Will very efIec.ually sette c the Indian uesfIon by settling the Indiuns.
 Some engineers will say my estimates re all too large; but l have taken into the fact, as I have looked ( the problem, that n portion of the aid ten million acres to be reclaimed ,ill be expensive, besides the dams, and necessary to construc. he reservoIr should be madesuilicient- ' strong to leave TO possibility for a reak and should be constructed with s lew of making them everlasting.
 PRcBLEMATICAL.
 The valley of Salt river, bounded by be Agua Eria. Salt river, and noun ans on the north, (the valley in which 'beniX is lOcated), has an annual flow of -a;er iuto 1t from the different water hecs in ihe mountains, aggrefating bout i've billions of cubic feet, suiii- tent to irrigate about 2JO,0OO acres. his will about reclaim all the land in sid valley that can't be reached by gnals from Salt river. This water can e caught and stored in reservoirs at an xpensc of about fifteen hundred thOus- nd dollars, To construct the canals nd ditcbes necessary to distribute the -ater over the valley would be compar- lively inexpensive. The Hssayampa an be made to reclaim one million cres at an expense of four million dol ITS. Lower Granite Creek valley can . @ reclaimed by constructing n reser oir at Point of Rocks below Ft. Whip le, at Bn expense not over SJ0.0CO and I aus enable the pueblo that supported 1d braced up the old robbers rOost, nder the town clock, Co put on some .Ts.
 The Santa Cruz Valley, which must mount m the aggregate to millions of cres, can be reclaimed at half the ex- snse ot my general estimate, if there re .eligihle sites for reservoirs along 1t, ' toward it's head. The valley of inc title Colorado, in Apache county.