San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1893-02-06
SCENES IN WONDERLAND.

Bull FighIs-Per-
sonals.
HOTEL SAN EsTEBAN,
SALTILLO, Feb. l, 1898.
To The San Antonio LIGHT:
The greatest drawback to this
country is the lack of water. The
agriculturists, stockmen, the artisans
and the citizens of the Gulf of Mexico
would give millions Of dollars if they
had full supply. The citizens Dor
dering on the Rio Grande have lost
millions of dollars the past three
years for want of water. 1T one
fourth of their loss was used in stor-
ing the surface and underground
water that is known to exist between
here and San Antonio they would
never again lose q dollar by the
drouth.
1.-THE water supply of the state
of, Coahullla, is unexaustable.
Springs gushes out from near.
ly every noun tain and valley in the
start, and II probably stored would
be worth millions of dollars to the
inha bitants."
"The under ground supply lie also
unexaustable, but there never has
been any effort made to bring them
to the surface. The only effort that
was made to. use the water for
irrigation was done by the Jesuites
They damed the streams and built
miles Of bitches and canals, and their
works are still here.
This week your correspondent met
Prot. II. Scowgale consulting irriga-
ton engineer, late Deputy United
States mineral surveyor, water COM
missioners of Colo, membe of the
American Society Irrigation Eugi-
neers, and who was in the employ of
the British government for over
twenty years as an expert on irriga-
ton In Egypt, India and Australia,
who kindly gave him the.following
statistics on irrigation and the stor-
age OF water.
"Irrigation, not only In the states,
but throughout this country, offer
the most promising field for invest
ment, and the irrigation bonds, If is
sued under proper conditions, offers
the soundest security of any invest
ment in the world. In using the eX-
preston proper conditions, 1 mean to
say that the schemes proposed must
be thoroughly practical and sound,
from both q financial and engineering
point of view. Much harm has been
done In the western states of America,
in dragging the irrigation bonds down
to the level of many of the mining
investments in that country.
Doodle and the schemes of irriga-
ton canal promoters, has brought
much suspicion upon the irrigation
bonds in Europe and the eastern
states, but In this country very little
of that class of work, except in mins
ing. has as yet been practiced; and if
we want to secure the confidence of
the capitalists of the United States,
London aud Europe, let us go
straight, for know a number of cap-
italists who would invest in this
country, In preference to the United
States or ell where.
II have Travelled over nearly every
state in this country, and heard
great deal of talk about the scarcity
of water. That was all humbug. There
is no country, in my opinion, presents
such facilities for the storage of wa
ter at as small an outlay, and the
underground supply, which undoubt-
eddy exist, has never yet been practi-
cally sought for.
Between Saltillo and Parras, state
of CoahuIla and further west, not one
acre in ten Is cultivated that might
be If the water supply that exist
there was properly handled.
Between Encomtaba on the line of
the Mexican National Railway via
Patas, Parras and Paila abundance of
water is obtainable, and although
many costly dams have been con-
structed, the methods of irrigation
are very premstive."
The great draw backs to progress
in this country is. the iudiscriminate
granting OF concessions to parties
with no capital but bond money to
pay forthe connection, and thus hinder
private capitalists from endeavoring
to bore q tunnel for water.
Irrigation is now playing q very
great part in the developing of the
western states of America, and is des
tined to do the same with Mexico, and
the president and congress that will
give encouragement to capitalists to
take hold OF this business and reclaim
the arid lands of this country, they
will make her independent, and they
| will not be dependent on their north
ern neighbors for food In times Of
drought.
II believe there is q great future for
Coahuila, If the governor and the leg.
islature offer liberal inducements to
capitalists to take charge Of the stor-
age of water for irrigation purposes.
sit is to agriculture and the soil
that Mexico must look for support;
\ =! a.