Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1905-07-11
MILLIONS FOR
RECLAMATION
UNEXPECTED GROWTH OF FUND
TO BE DEVOTED TO IRRI.
CATION.

washington, ~. u, July IVA rare
day in June, three years ago, was
the 18th of that month, the anniver.
sary of the battle of Bunker Hill and
the birthday of the national irrigation
law And the net result of the lat
ter, at the beginning of the present
fiscal year. is an irrigation appropria-
ton of $3O,000.OOO, with an automatic
revolving law under which the fund
is constantly increasing through addi-
tons from the sales of western public
lands and the repayment to the gov
eminent by the settlers of all expendi-
lures for irrigation construction.
The anniversary this year of Bunk.
er Hill National Irrigation day was
duly celebrated in Nevada, as in Bos-
ton, in the former commonwealth at
the Truckee irrigation project in the
presence of party of distinguished
United States senators and represen-
tatives and government officials who
witnessed the opening of the first COM
pleted government irrigation works
and the Turning of 100000 gallons of
water per minute into great govern
ment canal.
This ceremony meant great deal
for the idea of American home-mak-
ing under national auspices. Fifty
thousand acres received their first gov
eminent irrigation-the finished or
ton of vast project for the reclama-
ton of 100000 acres at cost OF nine
million dollars, under the guidance of
L. H. Taylor, federal reclamation en-
gineer for Nevada. Within ten years
the cost of irrigating this $4,000 acre
tract, $1,310,O0O, will all have been
returned to the government by the
settlers paying for the water rights
in ten annual installments to be ap-
piled by the government to the con-
tinuation of the project. The posi-
bilities of this revolving irrigation fund
are indeed very great.
Were there to be no additions to
the reclamation fund, it's present thirty
million dollars would eventually re.
claim the west. But with the large
yearly additions which have been COM
ing in, it is destined before many
years to reach the $1OO,000,OOO mark
| and become a vast fund for the re-
demption of Uncle Sans desert lands
for settlement. And could there be
| greater work than that of making
homes for the people?
Includes One.Haif Of the Country.
Almost half of the entire United
| States is comprised in the area COW
cred by these great irrigation projects,
rivalling the gigantic works of Egypt
and British India. The following
amounts have been apportioned by the
secretary of the interior in the diff
ferent states and territories:
Arizona, $3,600,O00; Arizona and Cal
ifornia. joint projects, $3,0O0.0O0; Col
orado, $2,500,000; Idaho, two projects,
| $2,6OO,0OO; Montana, $1,9O0,000; Mon
tana and North Dakota. joint projects,
$2,350,OO0; Nebraska and Wyoming,
joint rejects, S5,75O,OO0; Nevada, ST.
100000; New Mexico, $2SO,OO0 Ore
gon, two projects, $3,250,O0O; South
Dakota, s2,100,000.
Should the recommendation of the
president be carried out by congress
regarding the repeal of the timber and
| oIOuC dCl buu llC cudCllucuI Vi d GULF
prehensive forestry law, the irrigation
fund would be greatly increased. The
government timber sales during the
last two years under the timber and
stone act have been about three mil
lion acres at uniform price of ST.
SO an acre, much of the land dense
ly forested with the finest Washing
ton spruce and Oregon and California
fir and redwood. worth, according to
official reports. from $40 to $50 an
acre.
Roosevelt's Plan to Increase irrigation
Fund.
President Roosevelt's plan is to sell
only the stumpage at the market price,
allowing the land to grow up to new
forests for future crops. Every hon.
est friend of both irrigation and for.
estry will heartily support this splen'
did idea which seeks not only to pre-.
vent the wasteful forest destruction
now going on in the west. but to pro
vide an income from stumpage sales
at least ten times the amount now
received by the government.
Had the timber lands which the
government has disposed of since the
passage of the irrigation act-threc
years-been sold under President
noosevelt's plan. they would have
yielded upwards of $125. 100000. which
would have irrigated 100000 acres
, of desert and at the same time assured
the reforestation of 100000 acres O
: our best timber land. Instead, 80 pc
e cent of this has gone into the peck
cts of spectators.