The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-01-09
RECLAIMING LANDS
SECOND REPORT OF IRRIGATION
 SERVICE.
Fredrick Fl. Newell Tells of the Work Being Done by the Gov ernment in Several Vest
 tern States.

issued as a public document. The report will give a general description of the work being done by the Government in the various Western States and Territo- ries under the national irrigation law. Actual construction has been begun in Arizona and Nevada on two great proj- ects which will reclaim several hundred thousand acres of fertile land and build 1t up into dense agricultural communi- ties. Detailed surveys have been and arg being made of numerous other projects and several of these will be taken up dur ing the coming year. By the end of the present fiscal year there will doubtless be something like B, 100000 or 2L000,0O0 in the reclamation fund for this work.
 The general idea is. as expressed in the report. that the irrigation law is safe and carefully framed act and cap be worked out to advantage. No change or amendment to the law is recommended to Congress. If after an actual trial upon two or three projects some weak point develops. then the Government will be in 6 position to intelligently advise Congress what change Is needed.
 Protest Frosts at the Head Waters.
 The forthcoming report of the Irrigation Reclamation Service calls attention to the great necessity for the protection of the headwaters of streams. It says:
 'One of the most important matters in connection with the permanent develop ment of the water resources of he coun- try, is the protection of the catchment basins from destructive influences. The head waters of many of the important streams are already included within the forest reserves and some of the important reservoir sites are thus guarded from ir,- jury. The forest reserve boundaries sho.i be extended to include the country from which comes the principal part of the rainfall. This land usually has no vsl IT cultivation. is rugged and suit able only for the production of trees"
 To belief is gaining ground at Wash ington that not only should tho forest re- serves be extended to this degree, but that the entire remaining public forest e,nds sl uld be permanently reserved. and that any timb4r cut therefrom should be under government supervision, thus absolutely insuring the water supply. both for irri- gation and power as we'll as for munich pal or any other need. The scores of de- nuded and bare mountain ranges in Wes- tern States, once thickly covered with spruce and fir attest to the baneful oper- ation of our present timber laws.
 Greatest Dam in the United States.
 The official figures of the Geological Survey show an interesting comparison of the dimensions of the big Tonto dam of the Salt River Valley, Ariz., with other great artificial reservoir structures in the country. The Tonto dam is to rise 1J0 feet above the channel of the stream. It's thickness at the base will be 1Ss feet, gradually tapering to a width of 16 feet at the curb; tho width of the dam across the canon will be 800 feet.
 The great Croton dam, which Is to sup ply New York with water, is 220 feet above the river channel and 1,S00 feet across. It was necessary in this case to dig down 80 feet to insure 8 good foundation.
 The Wachusett dam near Boston, is 129 feet above tho river channel. 1SJ feet thick at the base and $50 feet wide.
 To Irrigate Idaho Deserts.
 o The government has been making general reconnaissance of the irrigation possibilities of Idaho, under the national law, and has selected three localities for more complete study. -"The southern portion of Idaho. particularly along the Snake River, offer some of the b,st oppor- tunities for recalmation in the United States" said MT. r. H.. Newel, the national Photographer There are vast tracts of arid land along this river which could be transformed into great farming communities through the storage of its waters" ~
 I. One of the three projects selected by the government for special study is the Mud Lake undertaking. This includes large extent of desert land, and it Is believed that 10000 acres can be reclaimed through a canal heading on the North Fork of the Snake River near St. Anthony. Vari- ous trial lines have been run out by the government across the desert, showing that canals can be carried out at difer- ent elevantions and at different costs.
 The Minidoka project contemplates tine reclamation of about 5000 acres on both sides of the Snake River south of the Oregon Short Line Railroad. The Snake Is to be damned but the water cannot Do. raised sufficiently high to get it out or to the best lands, so that supplemental pumping on a large scale is proposed to reach the lands above the gravity system. The power for pumping can be derived by suitable water wheels installed near the dam. To furnish the water for these SO 900 acres storage is to be provided at the headwate"s of the Snake, utilizing Lakes Jackson, Two-Ocean, Emma, Ma tiIda and Jennie, all of which have been set aside for reservoirs.
 The third Government project in Idaho is the Payette-B Boise near the city of Boise. The Payette River on the north furnishes a large supply of water. much of which goes to waste. The work involved in this reclamation. it Is believed. will be expen- sive. and probably include tunneling. A very careful study of this project is neces- sary. but the lands when reclaimed VIII be of very high value. and the beneht ta the State will be far-reaching.
 Dangers of State Control.
 The action of the Idaho Legislature in accepting the national "Carey Act" Is dn indication of the danger which may result from leaving irrigation or land questions to be dealt with by various States In accepting the Carey Act which provides that when public land, under State regu- Iations shall be reclaimed by Irrigation, and settled upon, the State can acquire title from the general Government free of cost. the Legislature of Idaho slipped in a provision, known to but few, to the effect that where such lands were reclaimed bY any private company, in case they had not been settled upon at the expiration of two years after the completion of the irriga- tlon work, the title v the land should pass to thc reclamation company. This was most egregiOus mistake from the standpoint of settlement and community building. but would.operate very nicely in the interests of land or irrigation compa- nies desiring to secure large tracts of land. It would he an easy matter for any reclaming land under the Carey act to make it's settlement quite difficu [, and at the end of the two years specified, secure patent itself to large portions of, If not the entire tract reclaimed.
 Violation of Federal Statute.
 The matter having been called to the of the Department at Washing ton, 1t was held that the Idaho enactment