The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1891-12-20


own own kseSss. TIE erdesss t Tor Chickens e.ry.
ant ant nave 70 hustle to ali them on time. The
s :s ana a X Sos saa S1
me 1lszeA11ox R1osxzH
The Dess ess.sssa e n II - Qsvs tAs Ara
Pusl1e LaaAs - ~ 0sasss a.A Territories.
wAsnruTox. Dec 1a-The Irrigation Con-
gress. recently held at Salt Lake City. voted 10
ask Congress to convey In trust TO the States
and Territories the public lands within their
respective limits. except the mineral areas. for
the purpose Of making the arid tracts fertile
Tho present Commissioner OF the General
Land Once Substantially approves that plan.
under the proper safeguards. and the facts he
presents indicate this TO be the wisest solution
Of one Of the great problems Of tho day.
Tho magnitude Of the interests involved In
this matter will be evident nom the statement
that the vacant public lands on July !. exclu-
sive Of Alaska and certain small exceptions.
aggregated $40. oe4. 683 acreA More than half
Of this area is regarded a. unit for farming:
but II Is believed that 10000 900 acres might
be redeemed BY artificial irrigation. 20 a. to
become productive
While these figures show that the public
domain moro or less at for agriculture a. it
lies Is still reckoned In hundreds Of millions
Of acres. yet prudence dictates immediate
measures for making the redeemable desert
regions arabic before the better lands arc ex-
hsusted. since the process will be costly and Is
not the AFFAIR Of day. Besides there are de-
erees Of fertility and accessibility in the re-
gions classed as cultivable. and the Land Com
missioner says that already "home-seeking
citizens are exhausting each others strength
and substance in q fierce struggle to obtain
title to the small remaining area on which the
rainfall is sufficient" Hence he considers .
prompt solution Of the irrigation problem as
no less important than its wise solution.
But special reason for urgency is that an
effort made at the last session Of Congress to
promote irrigation OF the arid lands resulted
In q law whose actual operation Is already
looked upon with great anxiety. As is we'll
known. Government officers have for some
years been empowered to select sites for irri-
eating reservoirs, and it appears from the
Land Commissioners report that 161 sites
547Q12 acres. OF which. however. nearly .
liza ss:. ss. Is
.ss Is restsetsd si land setu.ls
Tssn PSeeoss: Ra. sSs q as1 ssrosrS
public lands and reservations shall be grant
e &. q 81
~ + e. !; s.
Y the aHs ssss
s aa
rights granted to that section are forfeited
Gs t.
Together n the CONSTRUCTION q canals o.
whole OF such tracts. and may nle. joint
map shoTine their plan Of internal improve
tyone resernor s and forty - Canals Within
canals and ditshes, making sn .sgsresste
the desert land law, Of 1877. reclamation has
been made and final proof produced in $3.50
Now. what is the eject Of the recent law2 It
is. as the Secretary OF the Interior notifies Con-
70 give 70 private th e. s th
enormous area OF redeemable arid domain. and
this field is being rapidly seized:
r.
esen d ns elai ins tn,.ea sssss s. 81 esssIns
2. fss control q the rate. 4 BANDED over
.Sss!sns .i Be driven g ~ g.
and q OF
p Of IL ere and the % OF ss water
become distinct bodice With opposite nsrests
else The or IN
Iae but s
States eminent from which these vastly Important
Sod upon sas .appy aSa IT,
ultimate distribution.
-. The money value that viii be represented in
ing water to the fields Of the husbandmen
when the treat West teens with scores Of mil
the rivers and streams connected with this
system of t.. artlnciai IRRIGATION pass through
no the b
Which may fairly % claimed 81 another.
neste a'S %S the 20 ss sof
the enormous expense Of construeting the solid
the
undertake this task it would become one Of
the most enormous burdens Of the country:
Disputes tia. ia%i III ieo% the 70
regulate the water supply on which vast re;
flooding Of q valley might bring demand for
DAMAGES The constr4WGtion q such dams at
ss e asD1 q ad
mere necessity Tor the national Government
mafs em Ths
local enterprise regulated by local laws
table that f the is most eeonomcai and The most
judicious Plan Is to transfer 70 the States the
control beth OF tn, =, desert snds ana 81 the
subject 70 conditions which will insure this II
tiers rather than Of syndicates ORGANIZED for
speculation In the privileges Il would further
be necessary to provide for the transfer OF
these lands from States to the settlers In tracts
not exceeding 16O acres each. the State being
practically substituted for the United States in
disposing OF the lands.
Even with the general principle thus settled.
Congress will find difhcult problem in ar
aging the details OF such q system. The e:x-
and bitches would have to be transferred
Then means would have to be provided to pre-
vent States at the headwaters Of rivers from
daImins up and dIyertip,Ss such , 2 sypssiy Of
below. Again. provision would have to be
made for preventing q State from conveying to
private monopolies the water supply rights
thus given to II In trust, These safeguards
could be secured by provisions for forfeitures-
At all events. this Is tho only promising solu-
ton OF q very important question.
Broke his Leg In xBeA and Died.
F,u- he 81 fa.I Pio~s-rP,e-.
BLACK RIVER FALLS Wis., Dec. ia pecu-