Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-02-02
THE EVENT IN MERGED.

The turning of the water into the Go
acre reservoir at MERGED yesterday was
made the occasion of appropriate cere-
monial and great deal of local rejoicing.
The event signifies the completion of the
great MERGED irrigating canal-a work the
importance of which to the valley of the
San joaquin primarily, and the State sec
ondarily, can scarcely be overestimated
When we recall the FACT that but a few
years ago we rode through MERGED county
and there was not then fifty acres of cult
waited land within It's bounds, and consider
it now, with its ten thousand population,
its six and half millions of land val
ues and its vast agricultural interests, as
yet in their infancy, it seems incredible
that so much could have been accom-
plished in so short space of time
1t is due 10 the foresight, energy and
business wisdom of Dir. Charles Croker
and his colleagues in the great irrigating
work yesterday inaugurated, that MERGED,
prosperous as she is already, has entered
upon a new era of success, the vast posi-
bilities and far-reaching influence of which
can scarcely be forecast even by the most
Sanguine believers in the beneficial results
to flow from the marriage Of the water and
the soil. The great canal, the plan of
which, early in its projection, was de-
scribed in the RECoRD-UNIoN, and later,
when the work was well advanced,
will remain a monument to the faith
of those who brought it to completion,
in the future not only of the San Joa-
quin valley, but Of the State 1t required
something more than ordinary courage to
take up the construction and invest in
it the requisite heavy capital. Whatever
doubters at the outset may have felt con-
corning the work, it is certain that now no
one entertains the slightest question of the
beneicence of the scheme, and the bust
ness foresight that has made it a success
The area of MERGED exceeds over 1900
square miles, of which two-thirds is in the
San Joaquin valley proper. The county
is, indeed, the very heart of the valley. 1t
is cut into two almost equal parts by the
San Joaquin river. The plane of the val
ley lands in the county is at higher alti-
tude above the sea level than is that of
the lands of Sacramento county, approach
ing IT'S feet The MERGED river and San
Joaquin bottom lands are known as of the
richest in the State. Watered by these
two rivers, and overlooked periodically by
foundations from them, they are made ex-
traordinarily productive. These constitute
comparatively but a small portion Of the
productive lands of the county, which, In
variety of soils, is not equaled by any
other section. 1t was needed only that the
Inexhaustlble snow supply of the streams
rising in the upper Sierras on the east
should be utilized for artificial irrigation,
10 bring immense areas into new promi-
nence, and to vastly augment the agricult-
ural Importance of MERGED. The waters Of
the MERGED river have been awaited of for
irrigation for long time but the scheme,
which was fully consummated yesterday,
eclipses all Others, and affords opportunity
to extend the benefits of irrigation to all
the lands east of the San Joaquin and be-
tween the Chowchilla river, which is the
southern boundary of the county, and the
MERGED river, which flows parallel and
near to the northern boundary, and both
emptying at right angles to the San Joa-
quin'into the latter stream, which cuts
across the country from the southeast to
the northwest.
Thus all the lands east of the San Joa-
quin will, by this great new system, and
some lesser ones, be made independent of
seasons when there is lack of sufficient
rainfall. All of these lands are we'll
adapted to grain-growing in variety, and
and large portion of them to the culture
of cotton. OF the latter product, in the
MERGED river valley there have been
yields averaging l,20o pounds of seed
cotton to the acre, under irrigation once a
year.
1t is not, however, the purpose now to
enlarge upon the productive statistics of
the county. They are altogether too
elaborate TO be treated in this Al ticle. 1t
must suffice TO say that there is no county
in the State that possesses finer natural
advantages for irrigation, or indeed anv
that have so good. The water supply is
never-failing from the melting SHOWS OF
the Sierras on the east, and the invitation
to husband 1t is of the strongest character
and highly favored by the topography OF
= the region. The great canal which has
involved the outlay of so much money,
and the gate of which Mr.. Croker yester-
day raised in inaugurating the new era OF
prosperity for MERGED, supplemented by
several lesser canals that have been in
operation some years, gives MERGED as
surance Of agricultural yield no matter
what the shortage of natural precipita-
ton. The lands of the county, capable Of
supporting an immense population will
steadily enhance in value, until they will
stand second to none, If not in advance of
any others in the great valleys of Central
and Northern California, and MERGED will
In very few years TEEN with population
and be made musical with the rythmieal
beat of thousands of the engines of in
dustry, and her statistics prove her
to be Of the richest of the sisterhood of
counties
MARRIAGE.
In the HiIl-Sbaron case the S.,n-o,,,a