Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1904-08-25
Millions of Acres in Southern.
Arizona Alone viii
be Reclaimed.
GREAT PROJECT
NEAR YUMA
Thirty Miles Of Mais.. Line NJ I'll
paso u Northwestern Rail-
way to be Relocated.
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 2o~--lt Is i

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 2Q~~-it Is 4
wonderful transformation that will be
made In the far southwest, II the plans
of the United States geological sur.
I vey with regard to irrigation are car
ried out. Ever since the passage II
the new irrigation act the surveys
engineers have gone throughout this
part of Tile country, making surveys
and reconnoitering the rivers and pos
sihie dam sites for storage reservoirs
These men have inst left fer the
northwest, 10 return to this arid des.
ert IN the fall.
Millions Of acres III souttefn Ari
2ona alone win he reclaimed and re.
ducnd To wonderful fertility If fheir
plans are. carried through and their
success seems sure. A single proiafs
in this territory calls for the irrigation
of 100000 acres, while there are aes~
eral amounting to more than 100000
each. Not very much, the biggest III
them, compared with the immense
lareas that now lie under tho scorching
and burning SIM, but capable Of sna.
! porting vast population. Irrigable
lands IN the southwest are not like
4 E%
farming districts elsewhere a few
acres can be so Intensely cultivated
that they will yield greater return
than ten times as many elsewhere ana
with less risk Of a loss from d caprtc:
ious climate. On these lands sever
1 crops Of alfalfa hay can be gathered
In single year. with other yields
proportionately as great These lands
are very rich They will grow almost
anything except corn, which does nor
adapt itself readily to irrigation and
the baking soils.
The largest project in this region Il
that Of the southern Colorado, north
OF Yuma, where engineers have been
working until recently. The Colorado
Is great river, with abundant water
all the year through and after II
passes Its deep canyons It flows
through region where the water can
be easily guided over the plains. II
is expected that within four or five
/ years the lower Colorado will water
not much less than 100000 acres that
now lie worthless under the hottest
sky in the United States.
Unlike the Average Desert.
Most Of this land Is not like the
/ average American desert--that Is, 4
plain covered during the sprlngtime
with flowers and al all seasons with
sagebrush. greasewood and kindrel
vegetation hut III as bare as tho lands
/ Of Egypt above the roaeh Of the Nilc
and there are no such fenantless fsa
crts in the world as those. But hall
a million acres of the lower Colorado
once watered, will support In comfort
and even IN abundance more than ~
0nD families. Estimates Of the cost oil
this work have not been completed
but II Is not expected thnt the cns.
Of this land with perpetual water
rights will be nearly as great as that
Of breaking and subduing n similar
tract In the forest states Of The cen.
4 tral west, say Minnesota or Wisconsin,
/ while the crops will be far greater
and their value many times aa high,
A little distance west Of the Colo
RADIO. In southern California, one wat.
er company has been irrigating by
means Of an immense dam for sorie
years and Is growing rich from It's In.
/ come from farms under Its water priv
ilege. The government Is inyestigat-
ing this Elcajon valley With view 70
increasing the improvement and add.
4 Ing vastly 10 the reclaimed lands. Ar
under the national projects the lands
4 will return no continuous income of
/ great profit. The private company now
4 located there Ia fighting the project
with al the means AZ It's commend
but Ii scarcely likely 70 succeed IN
blocking an improvement that means
millions for the region nhf for The
lIttle city of San Diego.