St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-01-18
MINNESOTA'S LAKES.

Lake and Pond Drainage Diss
cussed at Length. siSs
70 the Editor of the Globe ois,
/ will attempt through your columns
to call public attention, and particularly
that of the legislature. to the following
facts: A movement is On foot to secure
Legislative permission and all appropri-
alton from the state treasury to drain a
chain OF four or five lakes in the center
of this Notwithstanding Beatty's
lake, NOrton's. and others, some of
which are meandered. About a year
ago Washington lake, one of the largest
i'll this county, was partly drained by
ditch purporting to be in accord with
state law, yet this was ineandered
lake and section rs. chapter 95, General
Statutes 1878, is supposed to prevent
such draining. Twenty years ago
this state well deserved the proud APP
pellati0n 1.-The Lake State" having then
within its confines its portion of the
largest lake Oh earth, Superior, and
over 10000 other lakes of various sizes,
set like so many jewels by the Creators
wise hand to forever beautify and fer
tiliZe the North Star state. In those
earlier years the fertility of our state
and its vast yield per acre of wheat and
grass crops were the establishment of
the newcomer The Mississippi and its
tributaries had nearly double the vol
ume they have now. The Falls of st.
Anthony roared like Niagara. Then
the farmer could reckon on regular and
sufficient rainfall one year with another
iii every part the state; lumbermen
depended OH regular snowfall every
winter without disappointment. and
steamboats, made regular trips on
streams now unnavigable. Pure, nat
ural water for stock WAS found on al
most every section.
Many of tire smaller lakes were then
so deep that pickerel, bass and other
kinds Of fish wintered easily beneath
their ice. But, alas! what a change the
past score of years has promulgated.
MyriadS IF sparkling little lakes have
been drained and have disappeared for
ever frem our landscape. Numerous
very large lakes have been either en-
tirely drained or permanently lowered
by ditching so as to lose their fish and
natural beauty. The once pretty Tiger
lake. near Norwood, Carver county, is
such an example. The average
precipitation of rain and snow
is steadily diminishing. The small
wheat yields in portions of the state
during recent years is the result OF
drouths principally. here are the
water powers that used to whirl the
wheels OF industry with Titanic force
in Minneapolis, AnOka, Jordan. Water
vile, Rockford and other points on
Crow, Cannon and other rivers? Either
destroyed or greatly impaired. Lun-iI
bermen are ilampered by lack of snoHti
to sled their logs and rain to drive them.
Farmers must often. bore hundreds OF
feet at great expense to get necessary
supply for stock. Property owners
around MInnetUnka are alarmed to find
the lake five feetfower than it was ihiil
1881, and the pretty Falls of MinnehhaF
has lost most its charms. 4
These sad results are not +with0et
causes. The principal cause is this:
"Overdrainage." The draining of many
small ponds, sloughs and marshes, while 4
tending to lesson evaporation, was hi
several cases necessity, or necessary 4
evil. But the draining of meandered;i
lakes, or even small, clear lakes not
meandered. is fearful blunder. and "a
crime againstsnatlTelk iaW,F the peppleyj
OF Minnesota and their posterity. ThesI
rain and snow falls gradually decrcas-
ing because the water surface OF the
state has been so grt atty leSSened. and
il is the principal source Of local evapo-
ration. would appeal to the patriotism
and good sense of our people TO use
every possible means TO preserve what |
lakes we have left. What short
sighted policy it is to spend money
draining these natural reservoirs of |
Minnesota. willie Dakota, adjoining us,
lras always been dfouth cursed in large |
sections, and has been begging con-
gress to appropriate large sums
for irrigation. when irrigation of
any large part of It's simply impossible.
We should guard these lakes as we
would the prosperity and beauty of the
state, for the existence of one is a guar
antee of the other. Illinois, like us. has
already suffered from the same cause.
tell us that were it not for
the eyaD0ratfonS from the lakes of
North America, the central part OF the
continent would be desert more barren
than Sahara. '1'were better than ap-i
propriating.m money for such a purpose. |
to hire meteorologiSt to lecture at
farmers Institutes on the suicidal eff
fects of Over-drainage. Who has not
noticed that the Minnesota counties
that have never known failure of |
crops are those in or near the lake |
region of the state? Yesterdays GLOBE
reported wholesale forecloSing OF farm
and violent conflict be- |
tween the Sheriff's posse and some of |
the seYictnd farmers, near Wichita, Kan.
There are no lakes or ponds in that part
of the Jayhawker state. ]
w. j. MCLEOD,
Arlington, Sibley county. Mimi, Dan.
IS, 1891.