Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1899-06-28

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the region here in question.
be referred. to here only to show it. supreme influence in the reservoir
problem of the Far West. Of the very great Importance Of irrigation,
not only to the West but to the country at large, there would seem to be
no room for doubt. To one who has seen the changes wrought in the
once desert regions of California, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado,
in what used to be as ~forbidding regions as any still remaining in that
country, there can be no doubt that the destiny of the arid section of
America is more dependent upon the waters that flow from its mountains
than upon the minerals that lie concealed within them. Already in the
greatest mineral producing States of the West, California and Colorado,
irrigated agriculture yields a greater wealth of product than the mines
1t is easy to point out many valleys in the arid regions the future de-
velopment of which, under irrigation, will sustain in each a population
greater than that at present is to be found in the States where they are
located. There can be scarcely a doubt that the ultimate extent of this
development is limited only by the capacity of the streams, and the vital
and controlling function of these streams in the future welfare of a vast
extent of the national domain is a matter too obvious to require demon
stration.
But to utilize fully this element of national growth something more
must be done than to take these streams a nature has created them. AL
ready in many sections the natural flow has been used as far as it is prac-
ticable to dc so. The only resource left is to store that portion of the flow
that runs away in nonirrigation seasons and the surplus in times of an
nual food and sudden freshets and make these also availble for use. Not
until that is done can a stream be said to he really utilized to the fullest
extent.
Here. then. is a definite reason of the highest validity for the construc-
+;n of rmmvo;ro
Another particular and definite reason is food protection along the
streams Immediately below the reservoirs. The destructive power of
mountain floods is sometimes very great, and damages of vast amount
have been wrought by them. The damage from these mountain floods
wl of course, increase with the settlement of the country. Wel[buit,
capacious reservoirs re an almost complete protection against such floods,
and their usefulness in this respect will be an important consideration in
their favor.
While there are these clear and positive arguments in favor of the
storage of the surplus flow of our Western streams, there are none of
hNSh1 aSt'Hs
few exceptions, that every artificial body of water created in the West,
by which the surplus water of its streams is held back, will be a positive
benefit. There are some who even go so far as to think that the influence
of these stored waters, which would cause tn. streams to return to vapor
in the near locality of their origin instead of flowing down to the sea,
would have a marked beneficial effect upon the rate of precipitation in
the West.
The inevitable tendency of Western development is therefore to store
the waters of the streams, and the limit of development in this direction
seems certainly to be nothing less than the final utilization of all their
flow. AS reservoirs are indispensable aids to this end, it will be seen that
their construction as an element of growth of the Western country is not
merely adesirablen- is absolutely necessary. The only question in this
connection that admits Of doubt or uncertainty is, What is the proper
agency to do the work?
XVI-RESERvOIR CONSTRUCTION IN THE ARID REGIONS.
O CAN 1T BE BEST ACCOMPLISHED?
Reservoir construction in the West can be accomplished by any Of
five agencies or by all together. Two of these are of a private nature,
viz. private individuals and companies or corporations. The other three
are Of a public nature and are irrigation districts, the States, and the
General Government. Let these several agencies be considered in the
above order.
PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS.
I;s easv 70 see that reservoir construction can not be carried on single
handed by individuals except upon a very limited scale. When a reser-
yoir is built upon any site it is important that the capacity of the site and