The Holly chieftain., 1904-10-28
ARKANSAS RIVER
KANSAS COLORADO HEARI
Evidence e. State EreFr-. Csr1eo.-r
Quotes Report CT La.Ut- Zeaule7
pike-!nteres.ine f--isz;ior ets-
tissies


tissies-
Denver. Oct I5.-TRe procseIiHsS
Of yesterday II the ksrszs-CoIorada
water rights suits, nov icing h=ll Il
the Court Of Appeals EUoa al sae
state house. we're Of great FatEEes--
Professor Carpenter. safe engine.
was OF the witness STAND al tz-, ana
he introduced nore Of the testimony
he has been collecting during the lssl
two years regarding the Arkansas va
ley.
He read from historical writings.
showing that the Arkansas river IN
western Kansas frequently ran dry
even in the early DAYS The effect Of
the destruction of timbeE iards in the
mountains upon the character of the
stream was gene into IL detail Fig
ures were shown indicating tire value
of crops raised in the valley both
before and after irrigation was erten-
sire. and the Increased value OF both
products and lands during recent
years was gone into.
The testimony OF the day indicated
kansas river Is not due 10 irrigation.
but to numerous othes causes IN one
Of his statements Professor Carpenter
said that If no water was used in Colo
RADIO for irrigation al all II would not
increase the height Of the river two
inches
Al the morning session, a greater
part of the time was given up TO testi
mony regarding the history of the river
Excerpts from the Official report o.
Lieut.. Zezulon Pike, published concern
ing his explorations in 1906, were used
as they were made TO the United StateG
government In one OF the statements
OF Zebulcn Pike occurs the following:
THE water was not six inches deep
and the stream was TO- twenty feet
wide"
Statements made By DR. Elliott
Coues, an army surgeon who published
an annotated edition Of Pixies report.
was also read. In one notation Dr..
Boues says: "A queer river this. In
some seasons il is so dry you could not
wet your feet in it for miles; some
times raging food 200 yards wide"
The reports of Lieutenant Wilkinson
written at about the same time, con-
corning the same portion Of the river.
said: The stream is not over twenty
feet wide and is six or seven in depth.
S. S. Ashbaugh, the Kansas attorney,
endeavored to have most of this test
mony thrown out but il was read, the
stenographer noting the objections &
they were made. Other quotations wa=-
made from the writings Of TiDgJhy
Flint, who explored the Arkansas go
1888, and Francis Parkman, who did
NkoWiSn In 1915 ThlS4
scribed the river as being filled with
sandbars, streaked occasionally with
insignificant rivulets Of water. Fran
els Parkman was the writer OF The
Oregon Trail
Other books introdlr ed as having
/ considerable bearing On the case in
cluded the writings OF Maior Stephen
H. Long. who visited the region III
1873; book by Richard Irving Dodge.
entitled The Plains of the Great
/ West" and portions O. me writings OF
! Edward Everett Hale
I The character OF the drainage into
I the river from the mountains in early
\ years was depicted in contrast to that
! Of the present time. Professor Carpen-
ter during the afternoon testified to the
fact that where the snow formerly was
held on by the shade Of the forests, it
now melts and runs of rapidly. Where
formerly the melting of the SHOWS was
j gradual and to a certain extent kept the
river from going dry until the summe:
months. now the snow melts rapidly
and passes off in floods. This he as
cribed to the fact that the forests have
not been preserved. His testimony all
tended to show that but little of the
loss of water is direct! due to irriga-
ton.
Among the blue prints entered in
evidence, one shows the benefits de-
rived from irrigation III the counties
along the Arkansas valley. In the six
teen counties affected, it is clearly
demonstrated that where irrigation
has been carried out the population
has increased as well as the value OF
the land and products. Where irriga-
ton is not employed extensively the
population has dwindled and the value
of the land is accordingly lessened.
In 1870 it is shown that there were
forty-eight manufacturing concerns OF
different kinds in the valley, valued at
$158,O55 and paying wages to laboring
men amounting to $70,Sb6 a year. In
1880 the number of plants increased to
III, valued at $940.639 and paying an
nual wages amounting, to $391,676. In
1890 the number of plants had in
creased to 1862, valued at $6,75l, 727,
and paying wages amounting to $780,.
018. In 1900 the number had increased
to 1912, valued at $22, 1928, and pay.
ing wages amounting to $6,470,46S.
The improved farm acreage within
the prescribed territory in 1870 was
only 29,9C2 acres. The total value Of
the farms in 1870 was $7,154, 314. ".