The Arizona sentinel., 1902-11-12
THE AMERICAN NILE.

will follow the successful erec-
 tion of dams, the digging of
 canals and the enrichment of
 lands by the system of irriga-
 tion proposed are incalculable.
 Arthur P. Davis, principal en-
 gineer of the arid land reclama-
 tion service and head of the geo.
 logical survey, who is making
 investigations on the river, is
 quoted in an interview as saying
 that it is proposed to erect di
 version dams "tO turn the waters
 from the bed of the river to the lands on the side" He has in
 view three places where these
 dams could be built, Lut says he
 iS not at liberty to make them
 public until later. Of course, the
 withholding of information as
 to the locations of the dams is to prevent spectators from gam
 ing an unfair advantage over
 those who would become bona
 fde settlers and cultivators of
 the lands reclaimed by the gov
 ernment. Notwithstanding the
 engineers reticence, and with
 out in the least refecting upon
 him, is is, however, generally
 believed and understood that his
 plans contemplate four dams
 and that their locations will be: One at Norton, Tn thls county, about sixty miles from this city
 by wagon route, with capacity to irrigate 100000 acres; a sec Fond at Bill Williams Fork, to IT, rigate 100000 acres; a third at Bulls Head, with 3O0,OO0 acres capacity; and a fourth at Black Canyon, to provide for 100000 acres. The estimated cost of these irrigation schemes is placed at $22,OOO,OO0. For this outlay could be reclaimed 200, COO acres, 800 miles of navigation provided at an estimated value of S1O, ,OO0,00O, and electric power possibilities. in the neighborhood | of S1OO, 100000 more.
 A comparison has been drawn between the historic Nile and | the Colorado river, and an inves- tigation will show that the two regions through which the rivers flow are strikingly similar from an agricultural point of view. The climatic conditions are lit tie more severe in the regions of the Colorado than those of the Nile. "Some common products are tor may bel alfalfa, wheat and grains of the sorghum class; the date palm, fig, orange, olive and pomegranate; cotton, mel ons and sugar cane."
 If the proposed plans on the Colorado river are fully carried out we will have an "American Nile" '" with grander possibilities and a greater and more intelli- gent people than can be found in the land of the Pharohs.
 While contemplating the plans as put forward by Engineer Davis the mind can hardly con- ceive nor the imagination pie ture the transformations that may take place-a dry and dusty desert into bloom and beauty for when reading them they ap- pear more like the emanations from the mind of a romancer than the deductions of scien- tist. A moments thought, how ever, will convince any one that no man can be a great engineer unless he possesses a vivid i'm agination. In working out math- ematically what can be done with the great Colorado delta, and what the soil can be made to produce by the application of water, the mind naturally and logically sees broad expanse of rich and fertile land, upon which are hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of beautiful and hap py homes and a great and con- tented people. It requires but little further thought, with facts lndisputable for it's base, to i'm