Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-02-20
BETTER DAYS FOR
WESTERN IRRIGATION
Special Correspondence.

special correspondence.
" WASHINGTON. Feb. li-lrrl.
wv cation In the west Is mani.
w testify on the up-trend The
first boom In building large
irrigation works at the west was at It's
height Is years ago. The investment
was then very popular and eastern and
foreign money readily responded to the
call OF the promoters With only
few exceptions every western state and
territory received the benefits OF this
expenditure.
But this development proved disap'
pointing on the side OF colonization II
was found that arid land. worthless
without water was still without prae'
teal value after the water had been
provided unless there was man there
10 TIL the soil. And this man did not
come In sufficient numbers
AS an investment, irrigation lapsed
into unpopuarity, and the active cam
Iaign Of reclamation by means OF pr
Yate enterprise came to an end, since
then two things have happened
The tide Of settlement has caught Up
with irrigation. There Is now but little
virgin soil open to the homeseeker eS'
cept in the valleys Of the arid region
Furthermore. the people have become
educated as to the merits OF the Nu.
gated farm. They understand What y
means 10 have their crops insured D!
the ditch, They appreciate the adNah'.
ages OF self suflicency and OF near
neIghbors offered by the small, dWeIsr
fled irrigated farm, So they are nv.
Ing into all the places prepared w
them by the enterprise Of other yeaIs
California IL getting many OF theln
But Just how many will not be KNOW"
until another census In taken, The Ial,,
roads report that they brought SPny
people TO California during lV5, "
whom only 10000 had return tlcRew,
One hopeful report comes IRON Ine
newly.reolaimed desert In the eastern
part OF San Diego county. ON jan y
1901, th0e was not a single Whlle , ,sos
in the neighborhood, ON Jan l. wv,
there was only camp with q doSy'
surveyors. jan t. 1908, saw poPun,
ton of about 1000, while on Jan L. wv,
finds about 5000 on the ground. lnp
are still coming very rapidly unu "T
other year Is likely to disclose al CIV"
larger gain, "a,
The beautiful Yakima valley IN egsu
ern Washington IN witnessing sln"'D
growth. Indeed, this holds uue ~
many parts Of the Pacific noftnNW,
drained by the Columbia river allu ns
tributaries, including eastern OIVsV'
and southern Idaho. o,A.
The Rocky mountain states ale n,'A
Ing a strong demand for their lIr,s" and
lands. Wyoming, Colorado, utah nrS
New Mexico are gaining recruits , ,
rapidly. And, perhaps, more ehcou i,I,y
Ing than anything else IL the aV.n,d
of settlement in the long-neels.e,nrs
stnte Of Nevada. Railroad and MIMI
development has much to 90 Mn" Of
but Nevada II also the bellen', ,,,on 10
the general movement OF popu''"'"
irrigated lands. 49,. cha IN.
THE lesson of all this Is that ins s ~
auguratlon OF the new national n,TsS Inc
ton policy IL well-tImed, ana u,us sr.
duty OF saving the public lanus ~, rnon
tuni settlers presses urgen'N ,.t,rd
Congress. IL can no longer DC u as m
that the people do not crave ho,,', me
the west They are clamorhB a evsr
doors OF this great empire auu .cIaIm
acre that the government shal' o who
win be promptly taken by lI'o ,~ rood
are ready to cultivate the s0' +"
faith. .ouIator IN
III we have needed the specu'asci Of
the past as sort Of advance w, Ths
prosperity, we need him no lH eng crown
land laws under which he nas true
rich should be repealed ana hem 20
Homestead law put In place Of VI, sse,tDf
that no one except the actIali, c 'o orop.
can get possession Of this pupil
erty, WILLIAM ~