Morning appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1877-1906, 1893-04-20
NEVADA'S OPPORTUNITIES
WHAT CAN BE DONE WITH
INELIGIBLE WATER
STORAGE,
An Old Sage-brushers Views OH
the Subject.
SAN Francisco April 1893.

As native son of your s1ge>brus
State, L wish TO say something
through your columns, regardin
Nevada, her resources and her ne
Z cessities.
| | predict that Nevada will amour
to nothing as long as her presen
mining operations continue to be tn
sole industry and agriculture ant
horticulture are not advanced. TIL
reasons are as plain as the first let
tiers in the alphabet. Nevada has
in the past, enjoyed the distinction
of being the very first silver produc-
ing State. She has poured out mil
lions of ounces of the white meta
but of what lasting benefit has il
been! Where are the great edifces
that make city? Where are the
great industries that form a commons
wealth! The capital invested in
Nevada went into mining and mill
ing buildings and enterprises which
at the first can rever be permanent
J or of lasting good The wealth dug
from the hill has gone elsewhere and
Nevada IS stranded. If to-day a
second Comstock were uncovered the
accruins benefit would be like toad
stool growth, sudden but not endur-
ing. \ population would flock III
and times would temporarily i'm
prove but the end would be the same
as now. When the silver pinched
out the State would again be desert
ed. Mining has done more harm
than good to Nevada inasmuch as
the treasure has been taken away
to build other States and the great
forests for miles about ~ mines
have been cut .rway t. rtt ID shafts
and tunnels that must s,en become
worthless. The only good done in
re'urn Mas the payment IF wages to
men who invested elsewhere and left
when times became dull. OF course
the first proposition ever recurring
III Nevada, is irrigation. Not only
is irrigation possible in Nevada but it
is absolutely the only salvation to the
State. Nevada, geographically, is
succession Of hills, mountains and
valleys and therein lies the secret of
her irrigation. First there are
number Of SPLENDID rivers, to say
of streams, that run mil
ions Of gallons of water annually to
he great basin to sink, unuesd in the
lesert There is not one of these
'ivers that does not run through
country full of natural opportunities
or the storage of the escaping water.
The Carson river to>day is booming
ull of the precious liquid, that should
,e arrested in dozen artificial lakes
II along its course, Thousands of
ores lies contiguous to the Carson
liver, every one of which could be
made to turn over a handsome in
ONE. Lake Tahoe, already damned
t Truckee could be raised four feet
nth very small expenditure of !
money, thereby boarding up supply
water that would reach every O
arched acre for miles along the des- G,
TT sides of the Truckee river. SO it q
with every river and stream in the +,
tate. In the mountains the springs @
nd natural rain and snow fall should
e retained in canyons and ravines.
hey would irrigate surprisingly
rye acres. Second is the consider r
ion of artesian wells. So far in q,
evada, there is hardly single pros
ect hole for artesian water. The
tile wells that are now flowing
Mount to nothing. Artesian wells
good flow are never less than 800 vi
1000 feet deep. These are the u
nd that Nevada should try. Cali ~ ~
r1ia has wells that irrigate whole
rms, but they are deep Neyada's
Information is favorable to artesian
ater and deep holes drilled in the :
lleys could scarcely fail of great MT
suits. Sa
Again there is that ever faithful! Ca
rvant, the windmill Hundreds of SET
Ilifornia farms and orchards are ir- an
gated by home made mills pump ~
9 shallow wells. In Nevada, dug an
Ills always get good supply of fri
ter. Windmills there would make shi
my beautiful and prosperous SUI
mes.
The people must not think all
Ter States 80 much more blessed