Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-06-13
VALUE OF IRRIGATION
ARID LANDS THAT WILL BE FIT
FOR THE FARMER.
A New Homestead Law That Will Peo-
pie the Great Plains of the West
Representative Reeder's View.

Consideration of the irrigation bill in the
House of Representatives. was begun
yesterday. The western members of Con-
sress are united without regard to party
| in favor of this measure, and are heartily
| at work to secure its passage. one of the
most active and interested among them is
! Representative Reeder of Kansas Mr.
Reeder said today in regard to the bill:
No measure has been before Congress
since the enactment of the homestead Jaw
| which was of so much Importance to the
| people of the United States as this irriga-
ton bill, and it should be called not the IT.
rigation bill, but the new homestead law
That is what it is. in truth and in fact, and
IL the people-of the United States under
stood the measure they would call il the
new homestead law, and never let 1t be
Gained anything else, and would be just as
strongly in favor of it as they are today in
FAVOR of the old homestead law.
The Old Homestead Law.
The old homestead law provided an on
portunity for any man who wanted piece
of land for a home to go and take il I'M.
and if he established his home on it and
lived on it long enough the land became
his. And what We're the results of that law?
II anybody could stand on the top of The
highest building in the city of Chicago ana
see as far as he could travel over night
ana mat would take him to st. Paul on the
north, TO Omaha on the west, to St Louis
on the south and to PittSburg on the "a 81
ana see all the fine farms and rich commu-
liillts ana prosperous cities and states, and
inc enormous national wealth and resources
Whlcn nave been developed in that great
section of country in the middle west he
could point to it all and say the home
stead law did this 1t enabled the great
multitude OF men who built those states
ana who had plenty of muscle and energy,
out no money, to go out and get homes on
the land
IF We want to see what the homestead
law did in later years, look at Oklahoma
lhere is commonwealth, of over 100000
people, rich and prosperous and growing
with almost incredible rapidity which has
grown up out of nothing in ten years just
because OF the opportunities which were
opened up there for small settlers who
wanted small farms TO get them on govern
ment land.
Condition of the West.
Now, You ask what is the similarity be-
tween the old homestead law and this irri-
cation bill. Well, | will tell you Look at
Nebraska and Kansas, Why did the tide
of immigration which settled up the eastern
half of those states so thickly stop about
the middle of those states insteaG of con-
-hnuing on west to Colorado and Wyoming?
Well | will tell you the reason. 1t was
because TIE homestead settlers went mast
as far as the rain went. When they got to
the limit Of the rain belt they had to stop
because a settler cannot get a living from
quarter section of land if it is arid land
That is the condition in the whole west
today, Practically all the land which is,
open to settlement under the homestead
law is arid land. The lands which could be
cultivated without irrigation have been
settled up already and our people are now
going by the thousands to Canada and to
Mexico to get land for home when we have
a hundred million acres of arid public land
left &c Ion fho+
needs to make it available for settlement
is water for irrigation. 1t does not need that
the government should build all the distrib-
uting systems and laterals to distribute the
water among the farmers The farmers
will build those things themselves. The
settlers can build canals and bitches to any
extent, no matter how large, so long as
they only have to move dirt with shovels
and scrapers. But they cannot build great
stone dams or big fumes the irrigation
works which are necessary to be built on
such large scale are necessary to util-
ize the waters which now go to waste in
the west
Aid From the Government.
And there you have it. The national
government owns this 100000, 900 acres of
land. 1t cannot be settled unless the gov
eminent builds the great reservoirs and
dams and canals necessary to bring water
within reach of settlers If the government
would build those works, so as to furnish
water from them to reclaim the public
lands, settlers would take up those lands
under the homestead law just as fast as
the government made water available.
That is exactly what this bill provides
for. 1t provides that the government shall
build the great reservoirs and main line
canals: that the lands capable of reclama-
ton therefrom shall be open to homestead
settlement only; that the settlers who get
the land shall pay back to the government
the cost of the works, and that the pro-
ceeds from the sales of public lands and
the moneys returned in this way by settlers
on the reclaimed lands shall constitute a
construction fund for continuing the work
of reclamation.
Both the democratic and the republican
parties Endorsed the proposition in their
platforms in the last national campaign
The President strongly urged it in his mes |
sage to Congress. There is not a doubt
that the people of the country generally
favor it, The sentiment of the press is
overwhelmingly for it,"