The Ellensburg dawn. [volume] (Ellensburg, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1902-03-08
Committees Report.
The Ways and Means Com.
mittee Submits it's Report.
Read it Without Prejudice
or Personal Feeling.

ELLENSBURG, Wash, March 4, 1902.
To the Inter-Mountain Irrigation AS
ISOLATION:
The committee on ways and means to
ton of route for the proposed canal
and the devisiug of Il plan that will
bring about its construction, respect
fully report as follows:
Your committee has had three full
meetings and its subcommittee have
met many times. One of the sub-com-
mttees has twice visited Tacoma for
conference with officials of the n. T..
Ry. Co., and the other has bad two in
terviews at North Yakima with Mr..
Burlingame, an authority on irrigation
matters. The committee realized that
its most important duty was the selec-
ton of the general route for the pro-
posed canal and over this it has spent
most of its time. While many surveys
have been made and many canal lines
projected, it is pretty generally under
stood that there are but two general
schemes which are feasible. and to
select the best one of these as now out
lined, or to so modify one as to be more
effective than either. was the object in
hand.
once feasible to construct both as Il
financial and us an engineering propo-
sition. as well as economical, to main
tain after it is in operation.
First, the so-called nighttime. This
canal. from the best figures we can OBJ
tain, after careful examination of all
available data, will cost from $500, 200
to 500, 000 and will irrigate not more
than $4,000 acres of good agricultural
land. This will capitalize the scheme
at from ST. to $50 per acre. Nearly or
quite one-half of the cost of construction
will 90 for fumes and other timber
work.
A large part of the land below the
canal line is of such a character as not
to Justify its owners in agreeing to take
water from the canal at Il rental which
will afford anything like an adequate
return on the acre capitalization. In
deed. outside the boundaries of the irri-
CATION district there are not more than
ten thousand acres of good lands sus-
ceptible of irrigation from the river.
l.. l., Il in,
will in many instances be 50 long and OF
such large size as to make their con-
struction and maintenance serious
burden on the land owner and a source
of trouble and litigation between neigh
boring proprietors. In order to deliver
sufficient waterEto irrigate the $4,000
acres of good land, the capacity of the
canal must exceed the amount actually
needed where the duty of the water is
to be done. Length of laterals and the
consequent loss in transit, together with
the gravelly nature of much of the soil
through which the main canal is loca-
ted, will necessitate bringing down the
edge of the valley possibly 10000 inches,
a river in itself, much more, indeed,
than the Yakima flows during the late
summer and fall. This quantity of
water transported over the tops of some
hills, along the sides. and around the
bases of others, over canyons and gravel
beds, through fumes, tunnels and pipe
lines for distance of 20 to so miles, will
be difficult to handle and control, and
liable at any time to bring about a
great disaster through the breaking of
the banks of the canal or the collapse
Of flume.
All engineers and practical irrigation
men with whom we have consulted. adj
wise us that the construction of one
large canal, to cover lands that can be
covered by two smaller ones, will prove
financial and engineering mistake,
and especially is this so in a country 50
mountainous and broken as ours.
Next, the sO-called district canal, as
at present located and partially con-
structed. This line will cover about
20, 600 acres of good lands, all on the
east side of the river. To complete it,
will involve an outlay of at least $780,
600, and by far the greater part of this
sum will be spent for fumes. The route
is open to grave criticism. 1t cuts up
badly some good farms in the CleElum
and Teanaway neighborhoods and goes
directly through Il part of the town OF
CleElum. 1t will thus be seen that the
cost of the right-of-way will be large.
AS is well known, the line follows, for
many miles, along the high bank OF
CONTINUED on page 1.