The Florence tribune., 1899-10-07
What Recent Government investigations Disclose in Regard to Irrigation
 Possibilities in Arizona.
Good Indians and industrious White Men Who Are Practically Destitute
 for Lack of Water.
An Exceptionally Favorable Opportunity to Inaugurate the Much-talked- of System of Federal Irri-
 gation.
IFrom the Los Angeles Times, July Io.l


 U. B. Lippincott, the representative in ros mngeies of the Photographic Office of the United States Geographical Survey fn,.e nisnes The Times the following irrigation possibilities iH Arizona:
 The Gila River Indian reservrt;on f.; sitdated about eighteen miles south of Phoe nix, and extends along the Gila River fos. a distance of nearly fifty miles. Here are the number of nearly five thousand These Indians are known throughout the Terri tory as good Indians They have always been peaceful in their habits and aDrin,,l
 tural or pastoral in their pursuits They are now eultiyating the lands where the prehistoric races built the now-ruined Cnsn Grande and its neighhoring canals Irrira
 tion has been practiced in this valley iron, prehistoric times. Many ancient iitchcs can be traced across the plain, showing evidences oI engineering skill, and testifying to the one time carried.
 The Pimas and Maricopas have been.
 mntil recently, self-sustaining nation
 They raise their crops of grain and corn with skill equal to that of the wbites
 The settlers, seeing t he results which the In
 dians have produced, through the onerntion Ol ; tne oesert land act, brought under culti- vatlon much land in the valley of the C5ila
 ad1aeent to this reservation and have built eN.enslye canals between Florence and the rallr pad station of Casa Grande. Under the provision of the United States law. all land bought under the desert-land act mnst be made productive by the application of water; Tn order to comply with the proyis- Ions of this law. the settler was coInneIled t<,
 make diversions from the Gila River at points above the Indian reservation Other lands were taken up under similar conii- TSs 1.na,s on lne upper portion of the Gila River
 lnese diversions by the whites ouiclrlv da priyed the Indians of their water suynly and for the past five years they have Ie-ss,' seft on the desert without water for their crops ana scarcely enough for their bore.s They are put in the position of either ho,;s ;s to steal, starve or be fed as public wards and the government has been forced to issue rations to them and feed them as if doas tbs soldiers. Numerous court decisionS be,.e s,.e been rendered establishing bevond crr troversy the fact that the Indian has inc prlor and the better right to the water, but the whites have maintained their water supply despite the dictates of tho co1',.. ine development of this newer civiIi1atir,, . mas become so extensive that to cut off it's many thousands of acres of fine farns ,,,i oi orehards. Evidently, the situation is a diff cult one. and the Indian Bureau is bard pressed for proper answer ~ u
 In leeo an allotment of Sa5Oo vvas r,ada <<ron the appropriation for the Indian Office pt preiiminary investigation of the ayail SS,s SewesI msser ,a supply for these Indians Mir. gation by the Secretary of fhe ntar;,,,. 5 ne delegated Arthur P. Davis to take tbe matter up in the field. The surveys x,ere ser,,y storags oi Rreliminary nature but the fuiiy demonstrated. It was shown tha+ this stream drained about fifteen tL1e..s.ls inas anls square miles of the high plateau and monn- sam region of Eastern Arizona. and that tha riyer IS remarkable for is exeaaJ;,,s i;Ls tE;aa ls Consequently, the storage possibilf ti .ies or the stream are great. Recommenda- t,,rts ,o-i were made by Mir. Davis calling for Iurtner and more accurate surveys md ;,, tne spring Of 1898 Congress passed ], seco,,J ,i apptrosprlatlon t of S20,090 for the compietion oa Sartt rh1s 1ntvestigation The hydrographics de pea .nSnt or the Geological Survey was ngain oelegated as the nrfnar <,f s., 4 v $" e.S duet these surveys. 'O SOa- Al The Gila River derives it's sotrca fror, the " nlte Mountains in western New Hex;c~, and eastern Arizona which rise tT oI rom ten to twelve thousand feet Al fhe Point where 1t issues from its mountainors s1rs Dnssr, mere mere are over. twelve thousand S1uare mics draining through it's eanons- 1 The basin has been extens;velv exvinrs1 ana three large reservoir sites located and 1 si,es 2ss eui @ ane capacity of these reservoir fil.es ies has Deen determined and fiiinps have neen made under the United States 1o,,,s f Ine.r segregation from the public domain. l fess po1ns hn,.fo kfnown as the Buttes dam 15O viii store .o apoye the bed of rhe stream o..e g leSt usep. or, as it is technically ex- | pressed, l!4.o00 acre feet A dam at this nt s tba Tod'o hod De approximately 300 feet long ~ @ euo Dsu oI the stream and 800 feet at ifs | crssl. At Riverside. Ariz it was frund That | :. - esll. o9O rect long at it's base and annroxi lna.siy oov rect long on top will store fs ml1ch fhis s;. quanIity ot water, the surveys at | G., Sn,s sue Delng still incomplete. Al San | Darios' carlos on the Apache Reservation. the river .,-;I aJss .Ii olgh narrow gorge 100 feet |
 o1la 1e hs dsm sna at this point 150 feet high dam would store Ss1 0O5 acres S,,, foot d, nA.ensive explorations have been made to | nstermlne the depth of bed rock af each one roci ;s Iain 5:ln sites. At the Buttes the bed | revs-; s .uisappoIntingly deep, the depths | t 1an5ging 15g. m the center of the channel from 75 AZ AZ i15 Ieet beneath the surface of tIre stream. axis of eihs,us tha 5 the maximum depth on the nye feet, while at San CarIos ths de,,th {o .I. Icek ls believed to be substantially less tnam s.sl at either of the other dam sites
 b.,.. pS ts. rec9rus of the How of the Gila River e ,,eN been Kept at the Buttes for a humber oi years, and the estimates of avaiIabie V aser supIDiy are, therefore, based on ectual ,,arv fid,,l la not On surmise. Tho ordi- Is I.als now or this stream is ample to fin fhe.l largest of these reservoirs, and on the driest ~ seals oI which we have record it has been us great as 2O0Ot0 acre feet. ''seA tle noss;i, ani bG seen 2y the above figures that s.rehn s.ls IS very great. It is doubtful if if s.rs,,s nss any equal in this line among ul the dam sit site oi arta AImeriea The San Carlos ,,.n;. ua siiTa pafticuiarly, is one of unusual merit. The size of the necessarv daTn tha SavaiIaDle water supply, the great storsae ;ssl .;a n anu tIe proximity of aiIroad fsciii- ties are perfect; while the othar t.,, n;t... also have features of merit. '"o sisos me duty of water in Soutberp Ar;~o,e ;s,i ;s grsaIer than in California. For the rais- fwe,,t. S e ssapie crop Of alfalfa, depth of l ,rs,i;ss5 our '. M inches of water is iordiuarilv ap.' 'isu 70 the land, which is equivalent to each th aiA months of one miners inch to has;s tIhres tIe and one-half acres On this % .e odii carlos site will furnish enough ffit is so irrIg9fe over 10000 acres of land nov.t [,. s.uineo that each two acres will sup yns n na6itant this would permit of tpopuiation of 7500O souls to he snste;,,ed rom this reservoir. " De e'uS'1ine" tsDese ngures are more startling when z he , Iact IS realized that at the uresent fine .a a,i oI the canals below the San Carlos dam s..e are absolutely dry, and that the counfrv s "in .a tne APache Reservation to the month y. l..e Sait hlyer is in condition of W ithered uIougnt, with its inhabitants both white auu indian reduced almost to the condition ~ apJect want. It is estimated that lOO00 acres Of land should be irripated m inc t .5iIa Indian Reservation in order to relieve 1nc condition of the Indians This vouid ieave over 100000 acres that could he irri- e1tsu on the public domain. If 100000 acree oI .nose public lands could be SO irrigated an1 peiDg subdivided into forty-acr tracts. s9so ss 70 actual settlers, at the rate of SI0 fo w1v Psr acre, the condition of the Indian Mould De wholly relieved, and it is probable ne government would be reimbursed for its el ire outlay. In addition to this district onsring ideal conditions for irrigation. witn soil which is unexcelled, with a elsmafe that will produce crops in continue DIS rotation. will be made to support a population of 15,000. and will add to the i'ubiic u cath of the Territory. on a conser- yehfe estimate, over S6.000s000 i'