The daily silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1903-1907, 1905-05-06
4 RE-coNouEsT OF NEVADA.

A RE-CONQUEST OF
Has Nevada always been an arid and
desert region? Its geological records, as
indelibly carved in sandstone md granite
showing the shore line. OF ancient lakes,
proclaim that it has not, but that at one
time a vast BODY of water, as great in
area as lake Erie, covercG a portion OF
the State. Today, however, the arr y
of the country il unquestioned and the
$780, 900 acres, to part of which Uncle sam
Is about to apply water, will practically
double it's wel.-irrlgated area and its ag-
%ricultural population.
Nevada's ancient inland sea is known
as Lake La Hontan; it was one of sew
eral great prehistoric lakes, distributed
among them Lake Bonneville. of which
the Great Salt Lake was the deepest por-
ton. Its area was nine times great than
the Great Salt. or almost as large as
Lake Michigan and much deeper.
The contracted remains of Lake La
Hontan, in Nevada are found in PYRAMID
la and a number of otner small en-
closed axes which were the deepest por-
tons of the ancient lake. Since these
large prehistoric lakes were land-locked
and did not over1lo :, it follows that the
rainfall whi~-. fed them was luch heav-
Ter mar 1t Is today.
Should conditions revert, many of the
important points situated in the Great
Basin would be Aopelessly flooded, sucn
for instance as the Mormon Temple,
which would std in $50 feet of water,
while 700 miles of raj road would be sub
merged.
These prehistoric lakes are said to be
of very recent o~rigin-that is, recent by
the biologists count-perhaps 81. 1900 or 49,
600 years old. Fossl.s have been found
showing the presence of primitive man
along their ancient shores and embank-
ments. which in many instances, are as
perfect in contour and as distinct as II
the waters had receded only a few years
since. These lakes incluaed such arid
and fe~ar-inspiring local ties of today as
the Black Rock Desert, Skull Valley,
Death Valley and a score of other places
where the bleached bones of man and
animal attest to an awful lack Of water.
This first irrigation work of the nation
government. which is to be celebrated
y the turning of the water into the gil
santic bitches this month, is the largest
project which has been definitely outlined
and approved under the irrigation act
known as the Truckee-Carson project.
When completed it will involve the ex-
penditure Of approximately nine minion
dollars and will reclaim so, 600 acres OF
desert land. That portion of the system
now completed consists of a canal 81
miles long TO take water from the r. uc-
kee river and convey 1t to the Carson
river. where a large storage reservoir s
projected. Just below this reservoir site
the waters of the two streams will he led
Out upon the pains py TWO canals, tn
a combined capacity of 1900 cubic feet
per second. Some $4,000 acres are to be
irrigated this spring, for which 200 miles
of small distributing bitches have ueen
dug.
The Secretary of the Interior has st
aside ST. $4,000 of the Reclamation
Fund" for the initial work, and by the
time this has been expended about 100.-
900 acres will be under canals, and the
settlers will be returning in annual pay
ments the original investment. The mon
ey thus received will be used as a re-
volving fund for the completion of tn s
project. The land has been divided into
farm units Of 50 acres. and the cost of
reclamation will be $z6 per acre. Work
is being commenced this spring on reg