El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1896-12-26
THE ARTESIAN WE'LL MACHINERY.
1t Is Loaned to the Government With
Which to Bore at Fort Bliss.

The city council met Thursday night
but did not stay long as it was Xmas
| Eve. His honor was absent at his
grandchild's Christmas tree, so Mr..
Stewart graced the executive throne.
The sewer commissioners bill for S12
for the weeks work was allowed. and
| then Capt. Beall addressed the council
on the artesian water question, He
stated that he represented quite a fol-
| lowing of we'll known citizens in ask
| ing that the arteslan well machinery
be loaned the L. S. government with
which to exploit for artesian water on
the mesa at Fort Bliss. The speaker
then offered the following resolution
| for adoption. with the report of Profess
sor Hill and J. S Hart attached.
Whereas, The feasibility of secur-
| ing artesiau water on the military re-
servation at Fort Bliss has been favor
ably reported upon by RObt. 7. Hill,
who is an able and expert geologist.
and now a member of the L. S. Geolo-
gical Survey: and,
Whereas, We are informed that the
present water supply at Fort Bliss is
furnished at a cost of about So, 900 per
annum, and that an abundant supply
of pure artesian water can be secured
at said post by boring for it; therefore,
be it
Resolved. By the city council of the
city of Ell Paso, that the machinery
owned by said city for boring artesian
wells be, and the same is hereby ten
dered to the United States government
free of cost to be used in boring an ar
tesian well on said military reservation
at Fort Bliss, for the purpose of sup
plying said fort with arteSiau water;
said machinery to be returned in
twelve months from the acceptance of
the offer, and said offer to be noneffect
unless accepted in three months from
this date.
MIR. HART'S REPORT.
The probability of securing water in
the vicinity of Ell Paso, has been favor
ably reported upon by an expert geolo-
gist, Robert T. Hill, who is now a
member of the United States geologi-
cal survey Mr.. Hill's competency has
the additional force of his successful
discovery, during past years, of artes
ian water in various parts of the state
of Texas. His reputation and success
induced the city council of Ell Paso to
require his services to report upon
this locality, in relation to its confgur-
alton, and the proba ability of the exist
ence of artesian water. His report To-
Gated the best artesian strata in the
mesa lands, now occupied by Fort Bliss.
The report he made is so full and eX-
plicit that there is nothing for me to
add, except to describe the test well
started by the Ell 'aso city council, but
abandoned on account of difficulties
with the contractor, and other reasons
not connected with the success of the
projected artesian we'll.
In the first place, the ground where
the well was started was about q mile
west of the point in the valley so
favorably recommended by Mr.. Hill.
Nevertheless, the boring of nearly
seventeen hundred u,70O) feet, with
first class machinery, purchased by
the city of Ell Paso, gave every promise
of a successful realization of artesiau
water. In fact, when the well was
abandoned. the water stratum then
pierced brought water to within three
feet of the surface.
AS the boring progressed to depth
of sixteen hundred and seventy three
| (l613l feet, there was no unusual obsta-
Gle. At the lowest point the drill
was still in clay and sands, and all it
| lacked to demonstrate the theory of Mr.
| Hill, was further depth and the passing
of an impermeable stratum that would
cOntine the water under pressure.
The entire depth traversed from the
| initial wash and debris, to the deeper
sands and loose clays, gave evidence of
lower sedimentary roc<s, formed and
| forming, where water strata were sure
of pressure to be determined
At no stage of the boring was even
a detached piece of igneous rock
| found, and the hole made could ouly
| intensity the strong hope expressed by
Mr.. Hill, in his report made before the
ground was broken.
Thus Mr.. Hill has made 4 study of
| the surface, and we have peeped nearly
seventeen hundred feet iuto that
surface and have found all his pre-
dictions true. The natural inference
| is that artesian water will surely be
| tapped on the mesa lands, where Ft
| Bliss is located, as that vas the ground
most favorabIy reported upon
JUAN s HARE
Civil Engineer.
Capt. Beall urged that the council
adopt the resolution, particularly as in
this way, a way might be opened to
the solving Of the loval artesian gell