Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1904-05-20
PHASES OF IRRIGATION
Marvels That May Follow Pol
icy of Land Reclaiming.
DESERTS WILL BLOSSOM AS ROSES

The Great Pathfinder Dam In wyo-
ming and the Extensive valley IL
VIII Water-How Farm Life VIII
he Benetited-Enect of Reservoirs
Upon Mississippi Floods.
Secretary +. A. Hitchcock of the in
terror department has set aside from
the irrigation fund the sum of 81 .OO0.-
600 to begin building the Pathfinder
dam in central Wyoming. says the New
York World. This dam at the junction
of the Yellowstone and Sweetw8ter
rivers is the first to be begun under
the new arrangement for irrigation by
the United States government, sys-
TEN which will work astounding
changes in the aspect and the wealth
of the country.
The new dam will furnish water
enough to irrigate 250.OOO acres of land
at a cost of SO per acre. AS irrigated
land is suitable for concentrated farm
ing, this area will support 125,00O per-
sons, though not nearly so many will
at first find homes upon it, This sim
gle fertile belt along single stream
will therefore support more people
than there are today in all Wyoming.
Irrigation means closely set communi-
ties. These mean again that farm life
will not be lonely; that good schools
and churches and splendid roads can
be made by the settlers, enhancing the
comfort of rural life. Fruits and yege-
tables will abound on irrigated land.
The desert will blossom as the rose.
The income derived from the use Of
irrigated land in one place will be
used under the law to begin other
projects, so that the construction Of
irrigating works will increase at con-
stantly accelerating pace.
There are half billion acres of pub
lie lands remaining unclaimed, exclu-
sive Of Alaska. Very much of this
domain is utilizable through irrigation.
Besides, there are vast areas Of pri-
vate land available for agriculture of
higher prOductiveness through water
supply by the government. With irri-
cation there is almost no limit to the
capacity of the United States to feed
its own people and spare grain for the
world. Two hundred millions can live
in the Missouri purchase alone.
The next great problem is to get the
people on the land-as Commander
Booth-Tucker of the Salvation Army
puts it, to fit the landless man to the
manless land.
The late Mark Hanna was greatly
interested in a bill advocated by Mr..
Booth-Tucker to establish depart
ment and secretary of colonization and
provide an initial fund of $50000,0O0
to advance to actual settlers upon irri-
gated land. The experience Of the Sal
walton Army in Colorado seems to
show that poor men who have conclu-
sively failed to make in the cities
decent living for their families have
succeeded in gaining independence up
on the farm colonies in Colorado. What
these can do others can do.
Paternal government with a venge-
ance for the United States to estab-
lish settlers in the west? Perhaps,
but not more paternal than the home
stead act. Mr.. BoOth-Tucker points
out that the government would risk
nothing in advancing money to set
tiers, as the partial payment they would
make in return would not only replace
the principal but repay interest at the
rate of per cent. Thus this fund.
like the irrigation money, would con-
stantly increase and constantly as re-
paid be available in part for use in new
localities.
Another phase of irrigation is Of tre-
mendous Importance to the lower Mis-
sissippi valley-its effect upon floods.
The Pathfinder dam alone will i'm
pound the flood waters of 400 miles Of
the Yellowstone and 300 miles Of the
Sweetwater river, with their tributary
mountain streams The silt will not
get chance to roll down into the Mis-
sissippi valley and raise the river bot
tom. The water will be restrained
from joining the great June foods.
Other reservoirs upon other head
waters will tave the same effect
What might happen in the Mississip-
pi valley if the levee policy were to
continue indie finitely without aid from
reservoirs is shown by the destructive
floods of the Hoangho in China, whose
broken levee less than twenty years
ago devastated whole provinces and
actually drowned 100000 people.
The Hoangho is a river in the air;
the Mississippi is becoming one. Head
water reservoirs alone can restrain it.