Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1895-08-08
A WONDERFUL MAN.
FERTILE BRAIN OF ReAvlS OF The
PERAlTA CLAIM OF ARIZONA.

Like akes-Investment OF $4,000 "a
Return $500. 600. 900.
What manner of man Is this James AID.
Olson ReavisS He paralyzed territory
and set II back in growth dozen years.
He enlisted in his service the ablest law.
yers Of the country He all but fastened
on the government judgment of between
50, 900 900 and 80, 900, 600 He touched
men like Coils Huntington. the South.
ern Pacific magnate, for means TO carry on
his campaign as claimant And, finally
he made the government spend $50, 600
and gave lawyers and experts months OF
the most difficult work in three countries
10 run him down.
Since the close of the trial, resulting in
the claim TO the Peralta grant being de-
MED, Reavis has given little attention TO
that matter. 1t is doubtful If he takes an
appeal TO the supreme court. A project
beside which the barony of Arizona was
trifling matter engages him
"You remember" he remarked as he
unrolled several blue prints, that just be
fore the trial closed in the land court said
that SO far as the grant was concerned
didn't care snap of my fingers for it;
an incumbrance on me the balance of my
lifeY Well, this is what meant.
Mr.. Reavis held up the blue prints OF
the water system of 1.-THE Casa Blanca I'm
proVemcnt company.
"The capitalists who are interested with
me in this enterprise " he continued, ARE
very glad to have the grant beaten and the
land disposed of under United States laws
They feel that way because there is a great
deal more for us I'm the development of a
water system and in the sale of water
rights than could possibly have been made
if we had obtained title to the land. y
This rather astonishing overture Reavis
proceeded to make clear
81 will show you, - he said, ''why 1t Is
TO our interest To defeat this grant II we
got the grant, it would have been impossi.
bic TO compel people To take the water
when they had bought land from us. They
could have bought the land and let il lie
unimproved as long as they pleased. Now
consider how il will be with the land un.
der government control as part of the pub.
lie domain. No one man can take up more
than 800 acres To obtain his title he
must spend SO an acre each year for five
years under the desert land act. We think
that after man has spent Sl5 an acre in
improving his land he'll not abandon
work on IL in order to take up and improve
other land near him. We are interested In
the land being improved, so that we can
sell the water 10 the land holder, 3"
With that plausible explanation Reavis
unfolded the most fascinating irrigation
enterprise that ever entered into the mind
of engineer or capitalist. The gift of state
ment which this man possesses Is almost
beyond comprehension. Ii is only after
hearing him talk that one can comprehend
his remarkable success In enlisting the
services of the ablest lawyers and the tlnan.
cial backing of the most conservative mon.
eyed men ia the Peralta grant. When the
goYcrnment experts came back from Mex
leo loaded down with evidence of forgery
and fraud. they met In Denver former
private secretary of Reavis and told him
what they had found
BY thunder" said the ex secretary, III
that man gets hold of you and talks TO you
"a hours, he'll make you believe that ev.
erything you found in Mexico Is all
wrong
Millions Of dollars roll off the tongue OF
James Addison Reavis as easily as mil,
| lions Of acres. When the Casa Blanca I'm.
provement company has carried out the
plans in full, it will have invested $50,
900, 900, and will have realized $500, 600,
900 profits from water rights, and will
have an income of s35, 000 600 from water
rents. The water right is sold once for all
The water rent is collected annually
Small ideas have no place in this strange
man 5 brain. The plans of the Casa Blanca
Improvement company contemplate three
dams and three reservoirs, all connected
and forming part of the same system. The
ella river buttes dam is to be 30 feet high
Perhaps some irrigation export will throw
| down the paper at this point with an ex
| clamation of disgust A hundred feet is
as high as the engineers have dared TO 60
with their overflow dams up to this time
The trouble in building an overflow dam
is that the fall of the water upon the outer
front or apron wears 1t away and thus
danger of injury increases with the height.
| Reavis proposes to build a dam $50 feet
high an overflow dam at that, and he has
! got an idea which will meet the wear OF
this apron He will insert in the dam
rows of steel tubes passing entirely through
IL. The first row of tubes will be little
above the bottom of the dam Successive
rows will be put In as the dam grows
higher AS the water rises In the dam the
surplus will partially escape through these
tubes. The water from the tubes will fall
in jets clear OF the dam entirely
The Casa Grande Improvement company
expects TO irrigate millions of acres In
eastern and southern Arizona, and also 10
extend its canals and supply into the state
of Sonora, Old Mexico. Its reservoirs
will drain three mountain ranges-the
Mogollons, the White and the Penal-an
extent of not less than 10, 900 square miles.
part OF IL well timbered, where the snow
collects II B. 30 feet deep. 1t will take a
tunnel 1900 feet long, about three miles,
to convey the water from the Tonic basin
TO the place where 1t Il wanted for irriga
ton.
Apparently deserted by his former
friends Of wealth and influence Roavis
talks with enthusiasm Of this grand
scheme He realizes how difficult it will
be To appeal 70 capital after his trouble
with the United States government over
| the Peralta claim He has arranged to be.
gin modestly, but with the whole plan I'm
| view. The ella river buttes dam is the
key. Reavis will begin work on that He
will lay the foundation of dam to be 800
feet high, when finished But he will
/ build only 80 feet Of IL TO begin with On
| this height he will be able To deliver wa.
1 for for irriontion