The record-union., 1895-05-25
NATURAL VS.. ARTIFICIAL WASH.

NATURAL VS.. ARTIFICIAL WASH.
The FL Dorado Republican of Placer
vile devotes column and half to prov
ing to its own satisfaction that the Sacra-
mento Valley was formed by natural
wash from the hills. hence the deep can
yons in mountain regions, and the fact
that ancient river beds are found high up
on the mountain flanks ergo the "llttle'
wash by the hydraulic miner amounts to
nothing, and the valley has no good
reason for objecting.
Our esteemed contemporary is amazed
at the ignorance of the people Of the
river sections on this subject and cannot
understand why they are SO agitsted over
the work of monitors and are not dis
turbed about the work of nature. It
points out the great extent Of the water
shed feeding the Sacramento; it declares
that there is one canyon on the American
that by its extent proves that 1t alone has
sent down eight cubic miles Of earth to
the valley; it tells of an ancient river
channel near Placerville buried in vol
canic cement that lies 2, 500 feet above the
bed of the American River.
Then we are told that the basin drain
ing into the Sacramento and its tribu-
taries is more than hundred miles wide,
and from the tops of the mountains to
the valley margin receives the wear Of
the elements; that the average width of
the mineral belt is but thirty-five miles.
and within that region are vast tracts
that are non-minersl; that over this area
the pioneer miners swarmed tearing up
the surface and preparing it for descent
into the streams.
That, besides, the farmers and orchard
lists have cultivated the land SO much that
Its surface is exceptionally ready to re-
into the streams the finer and most dam
aging MATERIAL that in all the mountain
ranches, too, there is wash of soil to
the streams; that. in short, the natural
wash, especially from the hillsides, sends
down far more Of fine material than all
the hydraulic mines; that every step of
domestic animal in the hills disturbs and
starts on its way some of the material of
which the valley complains; that if all
descent of matter is to be stopped then
she mountains must be depopulated.
Finally we are advised that the right
things to do are, let the rivers take any
course they choose and fill the low places
above which they now run high: cease
leveeing; thank God for the mining silt,
rs it is really blessing and will fill up
the lands beyond danger Of overflow;
divert the mining wash into the tule beds;
90 no deeper into agriculture and horti-
culture because they no longer pay, the
prices for staple products being so ex-
trsmely low.
The Republican requests us to repub-
lish its article that the heathen in the
valley may know just what is the matter,
and how to remedy it. We have given,
we think, fair synopsis. The whole
defense and assault OF our contemporary
might be logically dismissed with the
simple words, .'Well. what of it?" ALI
that is said about the fill of the valley by
nature proves nothing more than this,
that her processes are slow. gentle, spread
ever seons of time, and that life adapts
itself to them therefore without diff
Guilty.
1t might be comforting to the hydraulic
miner to have the people of the valley
abandon the river and the valley lands,
and await the action of the hydraulicker
and of nature-only. by the time the ben
efits accrued, where would be the pres
snt race of men9 We are living for to-
day; we find natural conditions that
invite us TO them; we have the right to
enjoy them without artificial disturb
ance. If all the natural wash theory is
admitted to be true, it cannot one iota re-
Iieve the hydraulicker of responsibility
for his part in Fastening natural pro-
cesses and augmenting them.
But who knows that 1t is true that the
valley was made as our esteemed con-
temporary alleges? Wherever there are
mountains there are Wales between. Whsr-