The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-08-13

nidoka, Ida, Aug. 1O.-The state of
no is facing a problem of gravest
Importance, almost vital in its bearing
on the future well-being and develop
ment OF this promising commonwealth.
Properly solved, Idaho will within the
next decade experience a boom such
as it has never before known: neglected
or ignored. Idaho need never hope TO
rank among the foremost states of the
great west
Every acre of agricultural land in
Idaho that has sufficient rainfall to pro-
duce crops is today in private owner
ship; thousands of other acres are pro-
ducing crops under irrigation. But
stretching across the entire southern
end of the state is a vast desert en-
pre- which can, under intelligent irri-
CATION, be made the most fertile and
the most productive area in Idaho.
There Is no question that irrigation
IN this state can be made a success
this has already been demonstrated.
That Is why private capital and the
national government are today expenti-
ing millions of dollars in the construc-
ton Of great works. which will bring
water onto this desert and provide
homes for hundreds of thousands of
people.
irrigate $1,000 Acres.
Two years ago the Reclamation SER
vice was convinced the irrigation would
induce rapid settlement in this coun-
try. and it set to work to build a
great project which viii irTigate $1,000
acres of land. Within a year if there
are no setbacks. this great work will
be completed. and water viii be turned
INTO the big canals, possibly in time
TO produce crops next summer. This
project takes the name of Minidoka,
from the town six miles north from
the great dam, the key to the enter
prise.
From an engineering point of view,
the MinidOka project is one of the sim
plest 50 far undertaken by the gov
eminent. 1t involves no storage OF
fioOdwaters; no big reservoirs with
costly impounding dams; no especially
difficult engineering features along its
canals 1t is a simple diversion pro-
ject. built on a grand scale.
BY means OF a simple dam which will
raise the water .forty-Seven feet, il is
proposed to divert a large part of the
flow of Snake river into two great
canals, one on the north. the other on
the south bank of the river. The bulk
OF the irrigable land lies 10 the north,
extending twenty -five miles along
Snake river. and at places twelve miles
north from the river bank. Almost as
great an area across the river could
be irrigated If the water could be raised
TO a higher level. but this would in
rolve heavy expense. and win not be
undertaken at this time. Not more
than 5000 acres south of the river viii
be irrigated under the gravity system.
The entire area to be reclaimed under
the Minidoka project was government
land when the project was adopted;
a great quantity has since been home
ST cd Tx~hn ho on a
great future for this country, and by
the time water is turned on, if the
present activity continues. there will be
but little land remaining to - home
steaded. Eighty acres is the farm unit
under the project. except on lands ly-
ing within a mile and a half of the
three townsites- In those districts the
unit is forty acres. The towns Them
selves are laid off into lots and even
these lands are going like hot cakes.
particularly in the town of Hepburn.
which, by reason of its location, has
a call on the other two.
Description of Great Dam.
Work on the great diversion dam
IS well under way; il is the expecta-
ton of D. w Ross. the engineer in
charge of the project, that the dam
viii be completed early in the coming
winter, at an estimated cost of S346,-
APO. Simple in design, the Minidoka
man can make it. It is known as a
rock fiji. dam. built almost entirely of
loose rocks and gravel Little masonry
is employed in its construction. II
stretches across Snake river from bank
10 bank. at a point where the stream
has cut its way through solid lava
rock to a depth of so feet or more.
Good foundation is assured. In the
immediate vicinity is any amount of
lava rock suitable for use on the dam.
Coz = 90 ID -
sand and gravel which will be util-
lied 20 strengthen the rock work. To
make the dam water tight what is
known as a cement core is being BUILT
across the river channel This is a
solid cement wall. from five to ten
feet in thickness. built from bank to
bank The rock is dumped on one side
of the core; sand and gravel on the
other. AS the rock is thrown on. sand
and gravel are .'hydrauliced'' into the
<crevices in a way TO make the struc-
ture practically as solid as if laid in
cement. When completed the dam Will
present the appearance Of a great
rock and gravel embsnkment. twenty
five feet across its top but broaden
ing to $50 feet at the base IL is a
simple and inexpensive structure. but
one that will hold for ages. 1t is a
type of dam that has been tried and
has demonstrated it's efficiency.
The construction of this dam is in
tensely interesting. Two great aerial
tramWays have been erected across the
Snake river, Immediately above the
spot where the dam is to stand. Two
immense wire cables have been strung
across the river, from high towers on
either bank. and huge steel buckets
have been suspended from either ca
BILE controlled by chains from the
north bank of the river. These buck
cts are loaded on the bank with huge
rocks. hoisted to the cable, and run out
over the river. At the proper point the