The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-04-17

tinued 90 as to embrace all the land lying
between the Teton. and Muddy rivers ana
below the reservoir sites.
Tho Florence Canal and Reserve ir com
pany was engaged in constructing ite i'm
provements In 1854. The SOURCE Of tn
water supply Ii the South Fork Of the Sn n
river and the canal runs easterly, n there
is opportunity for improvement in this Y
dertaking. There Ia fine land under the
line of this canal,
The Sun River Canal company contem-
plates improvements to reclaim lauda lying
between the Teton river on the north, the
Miss ouri river ON the east. the Sun river on
the south and the Rocky mountains on the
west, comprising a very extensive area, AZ
may be seen by consulting the local mans.
| The size of the constructed part OF the
canal is said to be fifteen feet wide on bot
tom and twenty-four feet wide OH top ana
four feet deep. and about six miles nave
been excavatea and the project IS incom-
plete. The source of water for the main
canal ia at the base of the mountains. on
the North Fork of Sun river, and the iino
runs easterly along the main ridge on tne
divide between Sun river and the Teton.
The Teton canal is completed for a dis
lance of twenty miles, and takes its name
from the Teton river, as also Its heading,
near the mountains, and runs easterly about
thirty miles. About midway upon the line
ia an immense flume one and one-half miles
in length and ~forty-five feet high; it is con-
nected in the center bv 1900 feet of heavy
iron pips two feet in diameter, which car
ries water over the top of the ravine. The
extensive and important part of the Sun
River enterprise is the constructing OF a
storage reservoir covering an area OF some
twenty-one square miles. This is done by
using the old Benton lake. The lake IS
tapped at the south end by a cut one ana
one-half miles in length and thlrty-hye feet
deep. Two canals, each about twenty-five
miles long, are constructed from the cut to
carry water on to the table lands lying be-
tween the lake and fort Benton.
The Chestnut Valley canal takes its head
ing at Half-Bseed rapids on the right bank
OF the Missouri river, and runs northerly
twenty miles and covers the Chestnut val
ley. This is a small canal. some twelve
feet wide and three feet deep.
The Tongue Rive, canal, near Miles City,
! and leading to the marginal lands Oh the
! Yellowstone, and fifteen miles in length,
deserves mention. as also the local improve
ments at and near Billings on the Yellow
canal above Billings, some twenty-five OF
thirty miles long in Yellowstone county.
1t would be a considerable omission not
to state that the frequency of small creeks
and rivulets leading. to fertile valleys IN
many localities furnish Opportunities for
irrigation WulGu dTo ulYCuuy aNdilCO VI Wy
the resident ranchers. GIhe aggregate of
these is considerable. In the Gallatin val
lev, so famous for its extent OF area and for
high yield of crops, all the streams are
awaited of by ranchers' bitches, and it may
be said that by far the largest part of agrl-
culture is carried on by this minute ditch
system. 1t is thought that at present up
wards of so per cent of the agriculture of
this state is maintained by irrigation from
small marginal bitches. Much and little!
The rancher, the dweller in towns, and the
miner ~rejoices that SO much is accomplished
by their individual efforts at irrigation.
The citizen who looks at the state as a
whole and sees it's needs and opportunities
will regret that SO littlo is done where SO
much more is needed. There are only
about 100000 acres under irrigation and
actually cultivated in this state. This
shows the small extent Of use Of this art III
this state. The blanks for irrigation
department at Washington to all the arid
tracts of the United States will ultimately
provide extensive statistical information of
irrigation in the arid region. but their de-
feet is they take nc note of individual low
line and marginal bitches, which in the ag-
gregate are SO important a feature. and
which this state is at present
has about reached its limitations, and we
must in the future rely upon large high
line bitches for further development of
agriculture.
Over 5000 0 900 of agricultural products
are impoi ted from the east into the arid
region. Only a small part of what Mon
tana consumes is raised in this state. 1t Is
a pity to be forced to haul hay from Iowa
into Montana.
The following suggestions from the gov
errors message (Januart, 1891, Montana)
may appropriately be introduced. He
says: Every person who is conversant
with our climate and the character of our
await a general and comprehensive system
OLA irrigation OF our lands. 1t will
beg a glad dag for Montana when
the stock interests of the state shall
be divided among ranchmen in small lots.
This will insure the proper feeding and
shelter of stock, and furnish Q nployment
to a large number of persons, who must
also be provided with the necessaries of
life, all of which will be conducive of a
more general prosperity of the state" Ag-
should be stimulated and pro-
NOTED within this state. Behold the splen-
did progress OF California ana of Colo
RADIO growing out of irrigation. These are,
not the less fol this reason mineral produce
ing states. and they are high on the roll of
homo OF agriculture and horticulture.
Let Montana profit by these examples.
Agriculture and irr CATION are lessed arts.
HoGoc waits, DER a | the earth,
Through endless G neratlons,
TIE art that calls Ter harveSts forth,
And feeds the e1pectant nations.
Thu grass crop is the most valuable crop
raised in the United States, if we consider
it in its various forms, as hay and as
wrought into stock and dairy rolucts. FAX
ing a due proportion of the annual increase
of stock together with dairy product, and
the annual value of the grass crop is not
less than 81, 100000 900. 1t is a crop of
priceless value to Montana, and yet it is
raised in small quantity, though capable of
being carried to large proportions under
irrigation in this state. 1t is the sure
winner of profit to the grower. We are far
behind many European countries in the
yield to the ace of this crop, yet not
necessarily SO, but only SO by our own
neglect and supineness. All flesh is grass,
but not all tho grass Is made for making
flesh, that flesh is heir to.
Gov. White, OF Montana, in his official
report for 1889, says: ''On we'll irrigated
farms crops of forty to sixty bushels of
wheat and eighty to 100 bushels of oats per
acre are common, and where water was
abundant even an exceptionally dry season
had no effect III diminishing the crops.
scorched plains of western Dakota
and the lower Yellowstone during
tie past summer entered the
Gallatin valley and saw richer crops of
grain and hay than any in Illinois and Kan
sas, and then realized that not one drop of
rain had moistened those crops, he was
taught by an object lesson the value of irri-
cation, as nothing else could teach it, and
vet thern are today many miIlouo pf ocrac