Arizona republican., 1896-06-06
GREAT STORAGE SCHEME The Sacaton Plain to Be Watered. Plans of the Hudson Reservoir
 Company.
Immense Cutting to Be Made In the Superstition Mountains-The
 Canals Scope.

The admission is quietly made by the local managers of the Hudson Reser- voir and Canal company that an under standing has been reached between themselves and the owners of the ca nals of the south side of the river, whereby the first flow of the water i'm pounded by that great enterprise will be diverted to the irrigating of the surplus lands along the older southern canals and to the supplying of sum- mer water where now there is scar city. Similar negotiations with the canals of the north side system are understood to have come to no termi- nation.
 After the supplying of the south side necessities referred to, however there will yet, according to the plans of the company, remain a quantity of water, according to the average flood measurements of Salt river, sufficient to irrigate about 30O,O00 acres of land. This land it is proposed to develop on the Sacaton plain, on the Gila slope, east of Mesa, extending for thirty miles and more toward Florence. The land is of the very finest quality and much of it, lying beneath the lee of the ab- rupt Superstition mountain, is of a character eminently fitted for the growing of citrus fruits. It is also be- lieved to be more favored in point of rainfall than any other portion of the Salt River valley.
 The only problem has been the man her in which it may be reached. When it was understood that the greater part of the water impounded by the system was to have been sold to the older canals, the intention was to run small canal around the point of the Superstition mountains and thence out on the Sacaton plain. But under the new arrangements there is to be con- structed gigantic waterway, from the diversion dam mile above the mouth of the Verde, squarely into the mount aims. At the point specified there is deep saddle in the mountains, through which it has been demon strated by survey gravity canal can be built with a maximum cutting of seventy feet. The employment of steam dredgers of the largest size ren- ders the question of cost much less i'm portant in such work than would have been the case a few years ago. The benefit of the cut would be to throw the canal far up the hillside above the plain, the line passing not far from the Goldfelds camp. Through this canal water could be conveyed al most, if not quite, to Florence and cauld as well be supplied the Pima h. dian reservation, and the plain east of Mesa would be transformed into 8 garden
 The plans of the storage dam at the mouth of Tonto creek in the box can- yon of Salt river have not been changed since their original conception and cal for monolithic structure, 200 feet in height, with spillways on either side cut out of the solid rock, either suffi. cient to carry the maximum flood o1 the stream. From the rock excavateG from the spillways would the dam be mainly constructed.
 Somewhat collateral to this great scheme is one that provides a dam 13( feet in height to be constructed at the mouth of Queen creek or rather where that stream debouches upon the plai1 at the eastern edge of Superstition mountain. Here, at a moderate cost, in canyon widening out above narrow damsite, could economically be impounded enough water to irri gate more than 10000 acres of fine land, lying mainly within Pinal coun ty. At the head of this scheme is Will liam Pickerell of Phoenix.
 In regard to the financial condition.