Daily Yellowstone journal., 1890-05-15
IRRIGATION IN MONTANA.
Interesting Information From the sens
Gommittees' Report.

Int resting Information From the senate
Gommittees' Report.
Our readers have not forgotten the
visit Of the senate committee on irri-
gaIon to Miles City last August, and
tue interesting session held here, and
will no doubt be pleased to leain from
The ,ollowing extracts from The COM
mitte.'. report that the session ut
Miles City was regarded as the most
important b. Id in the Yellowstone
val ey. The report says:
Tn % ogrrss Of the inquiry through
Mputan. ~as marked by the same in
t-rts as WAS seen in the two DahO
tn Ugh il easily inteusfies as sections
practlcing irrigation were reached.
At Gl.ndive the board If trade
met your commitsee. The witnesses
here were selected by them as repre-
sentative men. At Billings tie town
and county officials met US, and very
interesting session was held. Mil rs
City, county seat Of Custer, and near
TO he UDited States post Of Fort keogh,
was the scene of the most important
se. ion of the Yellowstone Valley sec.
lioh. Army officers, fedrsl officials,
county and town officers. met the
committee ut the depot, escortlng 1t 20
tn. board Of trade rooms. An exhibit
VI irrigation. grown grain aud grasses
was made. q map aud Official report of
the county fled with the committee,
and other valuable testimony was
taken, % will be seen by the printed
evidence. Bozeman, center Of large
and well cultivated area was reached
after Billings. After 0 ride through
the valley; examining the irrigated
farms, the committee held q session IN
the town. Tue witnesses were all
practical men.
The river courses that that drain the
central basin of this land find their
b.ginning- in the sources OF tn. upl er
Missouri, with its great tribuiari.s vi
the Yellowstone, Gallatin, Jefferson,
Madison and a score more Of impof-
tant streams that sll head in sud re.
ceiva their primal supply from the
y -cipirstions and drainage of the
Upper Rocky mountain ranges. The
vslisys are usually narrow and long.
The Yellowstone Is an example, ,pr,ssn
ting as il does u tillsble valley or bot-
tom area of about 400 miles in length,
with An average width Of not to exceed
three miles: in all about 7s0, 900 acres.
The Yellowstone basin from q re-.
claimable area 10 the lower valley OF
10 QUO acres. will rise rapidly under o
system OF scientific engineering to an
agricultural capacity Of from 5000. 900
to {. .OOO. 600 acres. The tributary val
leys found there, many of which are
quite large, will furnish an additional
i,OOO. 900 acres to the area of reclsima-
tion. This is illustrated 10 y report
made by the authorities OF Custer
county, within which large portion
of the main Yellowstone valley 10 To-
Gated, That report gives the valley
land area at 3S4 900 acres and for or.
teen other tributary valleys within the
county, including the Tongue. Powder
Rosebud and Otter, II gives their val
lev areas at sol, 600 more acres.
The volume Of water TO be supplied
from the Yellowstone alone 10 estim t.
ed by the same authority for use In
the areas under consideration at 9O6,-
900 miners Inches per second, flowing
under o 8 foot pressure. The testi-
mopy warrants the statement that
the Yellowstone alone can furnish for
irrigation purposes some 4,0O0,0OO
miners inches With proper storage
this may be greatly increased, perhaps
doubled.
A Alarge majority Of witnesses concede
that under proper system OF 'rriea.
tion, storage, and distribution, land
now worth but little beyond the
government price Of sl.4 will rice
rapidly to go and $50 per acre. The
testimony was unanimous 10 mvor
Of liberal appropriations for the pur'
pose OF rapidly executing . proper
photographic survey OF arid regions.