The herald., 1894-03-26
A GREAT sALR-BBNBFITS OF IRRIGA
TION.

Hon. William H. Mills, the chief of
the land department of the Southern
Pacific railway, is in Los Angeles, and
his arrival suggests an sllusion to the
recent gigantic improvements, and the
sale, founded upon such improvements,
of the immense body OF irrigated lands
owned by the Crockers and the control
lers OF thu railway company in Merced
county. Here was large body of land.
absolutely valueless until irrigation had
done its perfect work. The telegraph,
the other morning, advised US that it
had been sold for $4,000, ,0O0 This is
probably an overeetimate, but there is
no doubt whatsoever that it was sold
for a very large sum, and we have res-
son to believe that that sum was in the
neighborhood of four and ons-hslf mill
ions of dollars. If it had not been for the
unstinted expenditures and dsuntless
energies OF the men who supplied this
land with ample irrigating facilities it
would have been drug on the market.
Nobody would have sought for it. The
fact that it's owners went out distance
of twentY-six miles to the Merced river
and conducted the fertilizing foods in
great volume to the places whore they
could the most good, was of itself the
best advertisemant the property could
receive. This is probably the most
serviceable ditch OF its kind in Cali
fornis, with the possible exception of
several in Kern and Fresno counties.
As the tourist passes through the mod
est town OF Merced, in going and com.
ing from Sau Francisco, he notices a
noble fountain which plays in full view
of the train. It's prismatic hues advise
the tourist and i'm migrant of the M agnid-
cent Office that water is being made to
do in that region. Commercial values
of course attach themselves to success
full achievements of this kind, and the
sale OF the whole tract to a syndicate ia
the natural result
There is a lesson in this large trans
action that ought to be brought home
to our people. As respects California,
Los Angeles is the parent OF irrigating
systems, and yet we are being beaten by
younger communities in making water
do its perfect work. Nowhere in this
county have we anything comparable to
the magnificent irrigating works which
have been created in Kern, Tulare and
Fresno counties. San Bernardino and
Riverside counties put US to shams.
We ars not within speaking distance of
our neighbors in San Diego county in
this regard. And yet our possibilities
in this line are simply lllimitable.
Great as they are we can show no work
in Los Angeles county that will compare
with the SWeetwater dam in San Diego
county.
Perhaps it may be answered that the
very non-existence of such works shows
that we have no occasion for them.
There is unq uestionsbly something in
that view OF the matter in ordinary
years. But season of retrenched rain
fall, like the present, shows what
precious heritage we have available, and
which we have not used. While the ir-
rigsting resources of Los Angeles county
are quite formidable, and while we have
hundreds of modest and useful bitches,
we have yearly allowed almost ilimit-
able quantities OF the precious fluid to
run to waste from the Los Angeles and
San Gabriel rivers, from the Arroyo
Honda and from many other sources,
1t is not straining the truth to cay that
We are wasting many times as much
water SIS We use.
1t would be hard to put limit to the
enormous amounts Of water which could
be made available by submerged dams
IN the DEVILS Gate, the Arroyo Seco,
the Los Angeles, San Gabriel and Santa
Ana rivers, This last river, of course,
mainly concerns the people of Orange
county, but in review of the neglected
opportunities of Southern California,
Orange county naturally comes into
play. Why should this inestimable en-.
dowment of water be allowed to run TO
waste? There's millions in it, and our
besotted neglect OF this great source OF
wealth is highly shameful.