Arizona weekly citizen., 1892-10-22
ANCIEET ARIZONA.
Prehistoric Canals Drawing Water
 From ths Salt River.
Phoenix II r.ld.

The San Francisco Chronicle cf Oct. 9 contains an able article on the ancient canal system of Arizona north of the Gila river, by Mr.. R. E. L. Ro5i1son of this city. The article should be pre- served by all interested in Arizona. Lack of space forblds a reproduction oi more than ths following extract:
 Nine miles east of Phoenix three can pals have bseL taken out on the north side of Salt rIver and one on the south, IS IS shown by the map. Evidently Shere vas dam at this point. though the four canals are the only evidences that this was true. One of these d;tches ran through the site now occupied by the city of Phoenix, and must have sup piled soms of the aUcient cily that steod on tho same place. Two miles of this excavation is BOW used by the MarI- cops canal, while for several miles further they parallel. Very litt!e w0vk was necessary to clean out and prepare the old canal for it's modern use. and in | the construction of every canal TOW ID | operation iu the vallsy the builders have taken advantage of and used the | "NAHN VI NhO NIN-Out6f dllO luCIEON lAN saved thousands Of dollars both in the cost of surveying aud excavation. | The canal running south from the above mentioned point supplied the city, the ruins of which Los nEsrtes' were excsvated to some extent by the ! Hemmlpgway expedition under the command or Lieutenant Cushing in 1889. It was ten miles in length. and as l tho lard lTa- h,, oIo .l | eight feet more at the city than at the point where 1t leaves the rIver, which assume IS due to volcanic upnsaval Ol depression slncs the depopulation of the country.
 One other canal, ten miles in length was taken out 8 short distance above these, and runs in northerly direction until 1t IS lost iu the foothills. IL, too runs up hill, and at the point where Il seems to lose itself the altitude is about twenty-two feet greater than at the riv CT. account for thls phenomenon, either by the fact that through a sys- tenn of cross cuts similar to that used by the Egyptians, they forced the water up the decline, CT that the change in the surface IS due to volcanlc action.
 Whatever the changes in surface are the two rivers seem to occupy about the came position now as they did then, for bOtn above and below there are evi- dences ot dams and headgates which even time and high water could net destroy.
 I One of the most notable of these an- clent canals is one whicG taps the river on the south near the mouth of the Verde and passes out through great artificial gorge in the Superstiti tiOn mountains extending over forty miles into the desert. This one has three branches, respectively twenty, ten and ten miles in length, and from the point of their connection to the river the av- craze width of the main canals is sixty two feet, with depth of sixteen.
 Through this the water was furnished to all the country lying between the Superstition mountains and tue Gila and 1t was masterpiece of engineering sklll. With all its branches it was more than eighty miles ia length, without counting the sinuo3iiies necessary for proper distribution of it's great volume of water.
 Aicng the entire course are found the ruins of immense buildings; in fGc the country cOveTiog about 900 squere miles, IS dotted with them, showing be yond doubt that it was once thiekJ populated and in high state of cult vation.
 Now. with the exception of an occa slonal cattle ranch supported by water from deep wells, it is desert, with the glant sahuaro as its principal vegetation