The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1904-04-14

GrIlIment Charity Scheme
'eThe most interesting thing I saw"
said Frederick H. Newell, chief engi-
neer Of the reclamation service in de-
scribing to the New York Posts Wash
ington correspondent a recent inspec-
ton tour through the west. "was the
construction work now going on in
Nevada to convey water from the
Truckee to the Carson river, and there
to store it in large reservoir a
short distance above Ragtown This
settlement was SO named in the
days of the overland emigration be-
cause, after the caravans had. crossed
the Carson desert, they rested there to
overhaul their outfits before going up
the Carson river and across the Sierra
Nevada mountains. Near the spot
where the reservoir is now building the
emigrants went into camp, washed
their clothes for the rst time in a long
while and hung them out to dry, where
they made an impression on beholders
which has been preserved in the towns
name In general, travellers have put
their things into q more compact form
at this point, abandoning whatever was
worn out or useless before starting
across the mountains.
ITO reach RagtOwn they had come
down the Humboldt river, from which
they had fair supply of water until
they reached the Humboldt sink. Be
yond that the water was sometimes
very bad, as the country is full of al
kaline lakes, clear and of great depth,
very attractive to the eye, but extreme
" poisonous The horses and mules
would not ordinarily drink it, but
sometimes, under intense thirst, they
would rush into one of these lakes and
drink freely, with fatal results. From
the lower Humboldt over to the Carson
there is fully forty miles of very sandy,
alkali desert-rolling, hummocky land
across which the tired animals could
hardly force their way, and the road III
old times was said to be literally strew-
ed with bones and with fragments of
household furnishings dropped out on
the way to tighten loads. Many people
died on this last piece of road, and
their friends, On reaching the Carson
river, would bury their bodies in lit
tie cemetery which eventually came to
contain many hundred bodies, as was
shown by the gun barrels or other
pieces of iron driven into the ground at
the head of each grave. This land was
lately plowed up and put into alfalfa.
The farmer who did it gathered many
wagon loads of old iron, which he
dumped into the Carson river to get it
out of the way. There is now nothing
left of CRagtown but one house and
blacksmith shop.
"It is proposed, with the water to be
stored here, to reclaim this great ex
tent of desert and convert a considera-
bic pare of it into densely settled and
highly cultivated farming region The
soil, although sandy and in places al
kaline, is as a whole of good quality
and with an adequate water supply
would yield large crops. Within the
present decade it is hoped that this
desolate country will be covered with
farms and traversed by good roads,
transformation more wonderful than
anything the emigrant trains were des-
tined to find in Ell Dorado.
Zone of the curious things about this
change is that on the very land over
which the emigrants passed with so
much suffering and where so many
persons died from thirst it has recently
10 70 to- IL, md
get very fair quality Of water. To
be sure, they did not have strength or
interest to dig, and naturally they
would have supposed that if they did
strike water it would be alkaline
Such transformations as Mr. Newell
describes make the irrigation expert
ment most fascinating. One danger
must be avoided at the capitol-the
pressure which will inevitably arise
to have this reclaimed land given away
or made the basis of some comprehen-
sive scheme of government charity,
Senator HOar, for example, introduced
a bill of most extraordinary character
the other day at the request Of the
Salvation Army, and, while the senator
guarded himself by saying that he
did not desire "to be committed to all
it's Details" the bill cannot. be regarded,
coming from SO widely extended re-
Hgious Sorganiza ton, as without strong
backing. 1t proposes an issue of $780,
100000 in per cent bonds, the pro-
ceeds to be used in moving the poor
Of the great cities to the irrigated re-
gions of the west and there establish
ing them in profitable agriculture.
This particular measure will never
pass, but plans for getting the reclaim
ed land for nothing may be expected
to break forth in congress about as
soon as any of it is ready for the pillow.
The government has no purpose Of
getting any interest on it's investment
in any way. All that it hopes to do is to
get the original outlay restored by ten
annual payments from the water users.
This is liberal enough, since Uncle
Sam takes all the risks of ventures
which may cost more than settlers are
yyiJ1inO n 90 in, I'D Of this