Wichita eagle., 1888-09-07
THE RESERVOIR QUESTION.
The Attitude Of Kansas Towards the
Storing of Water.

From the Denver News.
& Col. w. E. Hutchinson, of the Wichita,
Kan, delegation, said to a reporter of
the News yesterday that considerable
been said upon the streets and about the
hotels concerning the attitude of the
Kansas people upon the reservoir ques-
ton proposed in the basin of Colorado.
He very frankly stated that the people
of his state were opposed very largely to
any scheme that threatened to disturb
the course of the mountain waters on
their way to the sea through Kansas.
But SO far as he was concerned he had
been giving the subject considerable
thought alately, and since coming to
Denver had come to the conclusion
that whilst the Endorsement of
the project by the deep harbor conven-
ton was not german to the object of its
call, he considered it of equal importance
with 1t. He could not help expressing
his wonder and admiration of the prom
Uses of enterprise purely mechanical
which promised to reverse so much of
the order of nature in the interests of
humanity.
The colonel. who is practical in meter
ology, as well as theoretical, says that
since the oceans are the sources from
which ali of our inland water is drawn,
if hundreds of artificial lakes Were Great
ed to hold the waters falling in the
mountains, the evaporating surface pre-
sented to the thirsty winds coming up
from the heated plains would be SO
greatly enlarged that such winds would
be quickly charged with water; that
when they came in contact with the foot
hills of the mountains it would be con-
densed by the cooler air about the hills
and mountains, and frequent showers
result. The frequency of this would
create new springs and streams,
which would flow off into the
depressions far to the east, and
create in turn lakes and rivers, with
abundant vegetation. These newer
effects would produce additional evapo-
rating surfaces, with increasing similar
effects, as the waters worked their way
to the sea. Old streams might become
smaller, but new ones would form i'll
great numbers. This process would re-
quire time of course. But it would evil
IDENTIFY change the entire climate of a
large section of country if major part
of the water in the Rocky mountains
was to be so held in reservoirs and ex-
posed to an evaporating surface, thous-
ands of square miles in extent, from
New Mexico to British Columbia. 1t
would involve a modification of the di-
rection and force of the winds on the
whole continent possibly, and make
draught upon old ocean equal to great
er body of water than constituted the
normal supply of the watersheds, lakes
and rivers of the Appalachian
range from the Canadas to
Texas. Under such conditions the great
plains may be largely clothed in forests.
The absorbing and radiating surfaces
changed to that degree that southern
Texas would become almost if net quite
tropical.
Said the colonel: eve live in an age
of miracles, and we in this country, with
all of our cleverness, have not dreamed
of the possibilities of the future. The
genius of our civilization is Undertaking.
the objects of our wants as If by magic.
He said the question as TO theory was
worthy of the investigation of scientists,
in order to pave the way to being prac-
tlcally demonstrated IN manner that
could harm no section while the trans
formation Of climate was being tested.