The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1877-1900, 1891-06-25
What Irrigation Has Done In the
New West.

What Irrigation Has Done In the
New West
In 1870 the Greeley Union Colony
was founded in Northern Colorado on
barren plain and an experimental system
of ditching was begun in imitation OF the
irrigation fields in Utah Territory. Now
from !, 800 to 1000 carloads of potatoes
year are shipped from Greeley. AT
the same time was founded the city and
colony of Riverside, in Southern Califor.
mia, now the center of the Pacific coast
orange culture, the value Of its ship
ments last year being nearly $1,000, 900
The next year saw the foundation of the
Fresno Colony in Central California,
which started the rasin industry and pro-
duced last year some eighteen million
pounds Of fruit. The success of these
undertakings has been due entirely to
artificial irrigation. Their success led to
similar ventures throughout the area
west of the Rocky Mountains, and to-
day the Secretary of Agriculture reports
that in Arizona, California, Colorado,
Western Kansas, Montana, Nebraska,
New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota,
Texas, Utah, Washington, Washington.
Wyoming and this State, over thirteen
million acres are under ditch-that is,
subject to irrigation-and over seven
million acres are actually irrigated.
On the Great Plains cattle ranching is
giving place to grain raising, and along
the Pacific grain raising, as in the wheat
growing district OF California, is giving
place to fruit farming. The barren val
ley of the Great American Desert is rich
in phosphates. and when irrigated pro.
duces on the same area double the grain
raised from lands naturally moistened,
and crops of roots and vegetables from
five to ten fold greater, while in parts
they are unexcelled for the growth OF
semi tropical fruits, such as olives,
oranges, grapes, figs, prunes, as well as
hemp and tobacco. Small farms are
springing up in New Mexico, on the
staked plains OF Texas. and on the desert
lands of Arizona. especially in the valley
of Salt river. In California the change
has already produced important effects,
as is shown in the enormou;
gain in population in th'
last decade Of the eleven counties mos
interested in irrigation. This increase il
counted at 1853 per cent, as compared
with 80 per cent for the State at large.
The Rocky mountains and the Sierra
are like huge sponges that absorb thu
rainfall and deposit it below in porou
storehouses thatare waiting to be tapped
There is thus a sheet OF subterraneai
water of incalcuable extent moving nm
der the desert to the Pacific.
In the Great Plains region there ar
now some ], 400 artesian wells and fou
times as many wells showing artesia
pressure. all supplied by the drainage q
the Rockies. Even on the outer rim @
Death Valley there are thirty srtesia
wells and in the Antelope Valley ther
are Fifty such wells supplied from tn
Sierras.
One hundred million acres are b.
lieved to be reclaimable. The reclaim
able area in San Bernardino county, Cal
fornia, alone is greater than the State
of Delaware and Maryland. Much BEN
fit may be expected from the irrigatio
laws passed or proposed in Californi
Wyoming, Washington, South Dakoi
and Colorado, defining the legal prime
Piles of water rights, and providing f
their appropriation and ownership |
public bodies.
As it IT,, the entire dependence Of lar
values upon water throughout gre
part Of the country insures the rap
extention Of irrigation by private ente
prises. Already in Nebraska, Kansa
Colorado. South Dakota and! southes
tern New Mexico innnmerable' irrigati
projects on great scale are iconter
plated or actually begun.