The Clifton clarion., 1888-08-01
To Reclaim the Desert.

| y ever exceeded in magnitude the project of the inauguration of such a system of public works, at the expenses of the general gov ernment as will reclaim the vast tract of unproductive public lands west of the one hundredth meri- dian, by system of dams and artificial lakes, from which large portions of this area can be irri- gated. Not only will lands be reclaimed, but the storage of thls water will probably do some thing to prevent the floods which pour down the affluents of the great rivers that thread our western plains. Congress has been appealed to, and something may be done before long. The area ln- cluded is 1,300,000 square miles, and it is proposed by Major Pow
 ell to procure from congress S25O,- 900 with which to begin the pre- liminary work of selecting the sites for dams, reservoirs and canals, ascertain the amount of water susceptible of storage and the loss by evaporation, and esti- mating the value of lands to be reclaimed, and the crops they would produce. Of the whole area of 1,300,000 square miles, it is thought that at least one eighth could be made absolutely produc- tive and immensely valuable. The rainfall in this large region varies from five inches in the driest plains to thirty inches on the mountains, and even to seventy five or one hundred; and it is thought that the average rainfall of the region to be reclaimed is from fifteen to twenty inches year. The canyons which it is proposed to dam are deep and narrow clefts in the rock, and can be easily used as artificial reser- voirs. That the scheme is prac- ticable has been fully demon strated by the success that has at tended similar projects in India, where the conditions of soil, eli mate and topography are almost identical. Districts which in the early centuries of our era sup ported large populations and which became depopulated and uninhabitable by the ruin of their reservoirs and irrigation systems, are again being repeopled by the restoration of their water supply on the old plains. For some years past the Indian government has steadily directed its efforts to restoring these mighty works, and early in the present year the Kal- awewa tank, the largest and most important in Ceylon, was de- clared completed, the formal open ing by the governor taking place on February P, although the various festivities were spread over several days. The tank was constructed in 460 A. D., to sup ply the ancient capital of Anu rahadapura and the neighborhood, the water being conveyed from it by a canal fifty-four miles in length, which on its way, supplied large system of village tanks. It has an area of 1, 4,425 acres, or about seven square miles, with contour of thirty miles. On all sides but one it is surrounded by high ground, from which it IS fed. On the remaining side an enor- nous embankment was construct ed, which measures six miles in length, with breadth of 20 feet at the top and an average height of 60 feet. It is formed of large blocks of stone and earthwork, and provided with a fine spill wall 560 feet long, 200 feet wide and 40 feet high. Just beyond this we'll was the great breach which destroyed the tank at some un- known period. It was 1000 feet broad, and it is not known whether it was caused by heavy flood or by an invader. This is the breach which has just been repaired. A huge masonry wall has been thrown across, the canal has been renewed, and regulating sluices and other works have been pro- vided. The whole work has taken four years. When the work of restoration began the bed of the tank was quite hard and dry. It is now covered with seven square miles of water 20 feet deep, and supplies towns and villages over an area as great as an eastern county. and filling tanks belong