Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1905-12-21
What Reclamation Service is Do.
ing to Open up the '"Amer-
lean Desert"
THE SHANGHAI" PROBLEM.
Purchase of Family Bible Reveals the
Presence OF an Immense
Diamond
Special Correspondence.


from a few directly interested senator's
ard representatives who have given
personal attention to the subject. very
few persons have any idea OF the work
done by the reclamation service" II
is known In a general way that Con-
eress authorized vast work which Is
destined to add millions Of arabic lani
to the farm acreage Of the west. Be-
yond this. however. knowledge of the
progress OF the work IS limited to the
officials and employees OF the service.
And yet the plans Of the engineers VINO
have set out TO irrigate an area greater
In extent than that Of the original IL
states promise 10 add an empire to tho
United States, and that without eN-
tending the territory single mite.
Every move made by the Panama Canal
commission Is commented upon by the
newspapers in every city of the coun-
try II is seldom that word con-
corning the reclamation service Is
found In the metropolitan papers IN
spite OF the fact that the reclamation
OF arid lands OF the west viii add far
more millions 10 the wealth of the
AOnllAl9 NudU lut NtAAe'i 49,
possibly do. a resume OF the work
OF the service TO date shows that II
miles OF main canal. "a miles of dis
tributing system and 1S6 miles OF
bitches have been constructed, includ-
ing dams, headworks. etc, Tunnels
having total length of three and one
half miles have been driven, Including
more than a mile of the great Gunni-
son tunnel. More than $50 miles OF tele-
phone lines have been installed and are
In operation; l26 miles of wagon road.
many miles Of which were cut out OF
solid rock In almost inaccessible cam
yons. 147 bridges and 80 office and other
buildings have been constructed. The
works above mentioned have called for
the excavation OF 1850 900 cubic yards
of rock and earth, the laying OF 10000
cubic wards OF concrete, 1900 cubic
yards OF riprap, 10000 square feet of
paving; 10000 linear feet OF sheet pill
ing and 10000 feet of bearing piles have
been driven, There have been pur-
chased 10000 pounds OF railroad iron,
100000 pounds of structural steel 100000
pounds of cast iron, 1850 900 feet. b. m,
OF lumber and 7s.Oc0 barrels of ce-
ment. The government has erected
cement mill at a cost OF more than $780,
COO, which has already turned out $1,000
barrels OF cement and is now furnish
ing about 3C0 barrels day. The Jaw
mills operated by Uncle Sam have cut
2,SS0,O00 feet b. m, Of lumber from the
government reserves. The United States
reclamation service was organized in
1902 Immediately after the passage OF
the reclamation act. AS soon as pos
sible after a discussion of preliminary
plans In Washington, Investigations
were begun In the Is states ana three
territories which are beneticiaries I'M
der this act BY utilizing the data
gathered In previous years by the hy-
geographic branch Of the geological sur
vey the service was enabled to concern
trate its efforts upon several projects
and plans for their construction were
soon prepared for their consideration
by the secretary of the interior. Up to
the present time II Of these projects
have been approved and are under ac-
tual construction. Their estimated cost
Is near $40 100000.
The federal authorities have at last
taken hold Of the shanghai" problem
In earnest and many prosecutions of
the Maryland oyster boat shippers are
eminent III consequence. The cruelties
practised for years by these pirate of
Chesapeake bay are almost incredible.
Men by the score are captured by
crimps In Baltimore. Philadelphia and
New York ana foroiby carried to the
oyster beds where they are treated with
such deyilish brutality that when they
finally escape they are frequently
MANNED for life. 1t Is understood also
that during the past 10 years a number
of murders have been committed by the
oystermen and yet the law has seldom
reached one OF them. The state au-
thoritles OF Maryland and Virginia
have made sporadic but feeble efforts
to punish the criminals, but results are
not noticeable. Now, however, the
president himself has taken cognizance
OF affairs and the revenue cutter SER
vice has been directed to look after
the oyster fleets. In addition bills have
been introduced IN Congress to more
severely punish the crime OF ''shang-
haiing." and 1t Is believed the prac-
tise will be broken up.
A story has Just leaked out regard
ing a find which a clerk In one OF the
departments made in an old family
Bible which he purchased at an auction
OF unclaimed express parcels last week
These auctions are conducted annual
~ under the auspices of a firm OF auc-
tioneers and the clerk I'm question with
friend dropped in merely to watch the
proceedings. Finally the auctioneer
came to a package Of books and among
them was a Bible OF huge dimensions
generally known as family Bible"
The auctioneer eXtclled the good book
and asked for a bid. Bidding was
rather slow when the Washington man
was "jollied" by his friend to bid. He
said his family was religious one and
he believed there was probably Bible
IN every room in his house. However.
his friend Insisted that one could not
have too much OF good thing bid %
cents and there being no others desir-
ing the volume 1t was knocked down"
to him on his original bid
He took the sacred book, carried II
home, and told his wife 10 find place
for IT, The lady concluded to read a
chapter before retiring. Upon opening
the volume she was amazed to see that
a deep hole had been cut In the interior
of the sacred book. This hole was fill
ed with cotton. Removing the cotton
she was startled and delighted to dis
cover an unset diamond Weighing sew
eral carats and OF exceptional brilllan-
cy. The stone thus cunningly conceal
ed by some one, probably for the pur-
pose OF attempting to avoid customs
duty, turned up at an abandoned ex-
press auction sale Being too large a
stone for the wife OF a department
clerk the lucky family decided to dis
pose OF Il. II fetched the comfortable
sum OF $500, Out OF the proceeds Mrs.
Clerk is wearing a handsome fur coat
and papa and the children all have n