Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-09-14
To Stop the Wealth Of an En-.
pirc Flowing UselessIy to
The Ocean.
BIG SCHEME FOR IRRIGATION.
Plan to Make Great River Contribute TO
American PrOsperiU--GOyernm
Engineers Investigating.
Special Correspondence.

Special Correspondence.
Mmot. y. D., Sept Twenty-Five
years ago. Mai j W. Powell the
greatest American authority on irriga-
tlon. told the people Of North Dakota,
at their constitutional convention, some
plain facts about this semi.arid section
which they were then 10th TO believe,
but which have since proven only too
true, He told them that IN the vest
ern portion OF the state they would
have to depend upon irrigation, and
that In the eastern part they could
grow good crops with natural RAINFALL
but that IN the middle portion an en-
tire dependence upon rainfall must ulti-
mately bring disaster; that they would
have a series OF years when there would
be abundant crops and then for n
number Of years there would be scant
rainfall when crops would fall and dis
astCr and discOuragement would over
take thousands Of people. Up and
down the temperature, of agriculture
would rise and fall with tho seasons
the lean years and the fat, you Will"
he said, hug to yourselves the de-
fusion that the climate is changing.
This question Is 1000 years old. Nothing
that man can do viii change the ell
nate There Is almost enough rainfall,
but one year and another YOU need a
little more than you get, II Is flowing
rast YOU In your rivers.
These words seem truly prophetic as
the history OF the Dakotas is reviewed,
back % years. The lean years came and
the Eat yoars-thc years when there
was plenty OF rain and the soil produced
abundanty, and the cycles VI lean
years came, when the farmers watched
I'm vain for the fructifying rainfall and
their crops burned TO a brown and q
crisp and finally they abandoned their
homes by hundreds and by thousands
For three years in succession during
that period / was told land which be-
fore had since yielded % bushels OF
wheat per acre, produced Int two poor
bushels, while thousands Of acres were
never even harvested,
WASTE or WELATH,
And the wealth OF am empire is go.
ing BY In the rivers as Mai Powell stat
ed flowing uselessly to the ocean, That
Is apparent enough TO anyone visiting
the country How TO get the water
OF TO the land is the question. For the
very reason that dry farming
may succeed, but little interest
has been taken In irrigation But
the farmers of North Dakota
are awakening They are realizing
that It IL a false pride which pro.
claims that irrigation Is not needed,
ipr with irrigation they win have
safe and sure crop and one vastly moro
productive. The business men, too.
are beginning 70 SOC that small farms
intensiyely cultivated and made TO pro.
duce the maximum yield. contribute
much more 10 the growth and upbulId-
ing Of the state than do large ranches,
half famed, or Wild hay land
FORCEFUL MISSOURI
A certain western senator, In a cloak
room conversation on irrigation last
winter stated II as his belief that the
Missouri could be damned at various
points. and all It's Hc)d waters saved
for irrigation. This statesman was
from the far, far west, where all things
are easily possible The Missouri is
a vast yellow giant, II flows through
North Dakota. even in low water time.
a titanic mllI-race In which strong
swimmer may perhaps trust himself,
and be swept down stream as fast as
a man can run. In flood, when the
Rocky Mountain SHOWS are melting,
/ is the embodiment OF power If not |
tossing It's tawny name az |
Il sweeps before II millions Of tons OF |
,arth, cutting out new channels and |
building UP new lands miles and miles
n extent, Some day. Il may be pos
,lble TO put In a great dam a couple
II miles wide at one or two points,
where the river Is confined between
Ugh sandstone bluffs; but this would
e q work which, while II would create
great empire OF It's own. would make
he Nile dam, with its % millions OF