The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-08-02
IRRIGATION rs EASY.
Water Obtainable Everywhere
in Washington.
SAGEBRUSH LAND is TOO DRY
But Wheat Will Grow where Bunch.
grass Will-High Transportation
Rates Hard on the Farmers.

In the state OF Washington, says recent
census bulletin, the most conspicuous fea-
ture OF surface relief is the Cascade range.
which trends in direction a little east of
north across the state and at distance of
from 10 to $50 miles from the ocean. This
range divides the state into two great
parts, differing in climate and agricultural
capabilities. On the Western side of the
range the annual precipitation is heavy
ana dense forest covers the mountains
and smaller hills, while east of the noun
tains the rainfall 1t much less and yegeta-
ton is comparatively scanty.
The great plains of the Columbia form
the most striking topographic feature.
Ihese extend from the foothills of the
Cascade range eastward to the mountains
OF Idaho. and from the mountainous or
broken region below the border of British
Columbia southwark across the state. The
Columbia river, coming from the British
possessions, flows in direction little
west OF south until it has fairly entered
the plain or plateau region, where it is d.
verted sharply toward the west and with
many meanderings flows for some dis
lance in the latter direction, then bends
toward the south and, southeast, describ-
ing roughly a half circle around the
greater part of these high plains. Through
out this distance the river has cut for itself
deep gorge in which it flows from 600
to 1900 feet below the general level.
These plains owe their existence, in part
at least, to extensive sheets of lava. which
IN former times flowed out over portions of
Southern Idaho, Eastern Oregon and
Washington, filling pre-existIng valleys
and burying the older sedimcntary beds,
These sneets of basaltic rocks now stretch
from the Cascade range, itself row of re-
Gently extinct volcanoes, away to the east
ward and southeastward 10 the limiting
mountain ranges which lie to the west OF
the Rockies The surface features have.
however, to large extent been modified
by reformation and erosion of the rocks.
and also by the sedimentation in lakes of
comparatively recent geologic time, some
OF which lakes have been of large area In
many places basaltic rocks are deeplv
carved by former drainage channels known
as ''coulees," having steep, almost vertical,
walls of several hundred feet in depth.
The bottoms Of these coulees, however,
are far above the level of the Columbia. to
which stream their relation is not as vet
evident. Much of the drainage on the
surface of the plains is of the lost river
type; that Is to say, the streams flow into
some small lake or swamp from which the
water is lost by evaporation, or disappears
by percolation or by channels through or
between layers of the basaItic rocks.
The water supply of the plains of the
Columbia is accordingly small. In the
river itself there is an amount sufficient
for all the needs of irrigation. should it be
hi Anoi 10 to ,v,tro L,x&
unfortunately the river is hundreds of feet
below the level of the arabic land ana its
waters can be taken out only upon very
narrow strip of sandy bottoms. The esti-
mated summer discharge of the river at
point above it's junction with the Snake is
little under %, 600 second-feet, carrying
at least twelve times as much water as the
Missouri river in Montana. Fortunately,
however for the state of Washington, crops
can be raised without irrigation nearly
every year over a great part of the plains.
Wheat is the staple crop, and when planted
in the fall and the ground properly cultl-
waited it yields heavily the rains of winter
and spring furnishing sufficient moisture
to bring it to maturity. Wherever there is
an available water supply, however, the
farmers have begun to make use of it for
irrigation in small way, especially for
watering such plants as are injured by the
long summer droughts. Vegetables, fruit
thus irrigated wherever possible. and, al
| though the farmer can be successful by de-
pendence upon the rainfall, vet it is slow
| ly being recognized that the greatest pros
perity can come only by a thorough en-
| ployment of the available waters OF the
region.
The greater part of the irrigation of
| Washington is being done on the eastern
! edge of the Columbia plains or well within
| the foothills OF the Cascade range. in Kit
| titas and Yakima counties. Here the
| rainfall is probably less than il is further
| to the east on the plains. but on the other
! hand, the water supply Is large and con-
| venientiy located. In short, there is no
| other portion of Washington which enjoys
| such facilities for the bringing out of water
upon large bodies of fertile land. The
rivers have not cut their channels into the
| late sedimentary deposits to a depth so
| great as 10 render it a matter of difficulty
| to divert water, and coming from high
| mountains, they carry during the summer
| com paratlvely large amounts of water,
| thus rendering possible the construction
| of canals covering hundreds or thousands
| of acres of fertile land.
| Besides the rivers which flow from the
| eastern slopes OF the Cascade range into
| the Columbia. the other streams impor-
| tant in irrigation are those flowing from
| the Blue mountains in the northeastern
! corner of Oregon, the principal OF these
forming the Nai!a Waila river. Northerly
| from this system of drainage and on the
! other side of the Snake, are rivers and
| creeks flowing from the mountains of
| Idaho in general westerly course and
! uniting in the Palouse or the Spokane
| river. These waters are comparatively
| little used. partly on account OF the
| topography, but mainly from the fact that
| irrigation is not considered essential. The
| floods in all these rivers occur early in the
! season, the rivers draining the lower foot
| hills having their maximum discharge IN
| March or April, while those from the
| more elevated mountains reach their high
est point in May or June.
The Columbia river, as shown by the
| diagram of river heights published in the
| annual report OF the chief of engineers for
| lSS9, as a rule increases gradually IN dis
| charge through February. March. April
and May, reaching its maximum IN June.
| 1t then declines rapidly through July,
| August, September and October. reaching
| its minimum in November or December.
| II is probable that the floods in the main
| river occur later in the season than those
| in the smaller tributaries from which
| water is taken for irrigation.
The average amount discharged by the
Columbia river has not been ascertained,