The San Francisco call., 1906-07-15
NJ |LL|ONs At HAND
FOR IRRIGATION.
Secretary of the Interior
to Rush Work on
the Klamath Project
LOSS BY DISASTER
SPECIAL DISPATCH TO THE CALL.

CALL BUREAU, POST BUILDING,
WASHINGTON. July 14-The Secretary
of the Interior has transferred another
S1,O0O,oO0 to the reclamation fund for
the klamath project, making $4,000, 900
now Immediately available for con-
structton There has already been set
aside $4.400,000 for this project, of
which S2,000.000 is now being expended.
The greater part of this sum will be
spent in Oregon, a small portion of ir-
rlgable land being across the line in
California. Work is being energetical-
ly pushed on the construction Of an
outlet tunnel from klamath Two lines
of railroad are being built from points
In California to the irrigated region in
the klamath project.
The Secretary has also increased the
appropriation heretofore made from the
land reclamation fund of five other
irrigation projects as follows: Hondo,
n. NJ. from S240.000 to 1886, 900; Mini
doka, Idaho, from s1,300,000 to S1,550,-
600; Truckee. Carson, New, from
S3,OOO,0O0 to $500, 900; Payette, Boise,
Idaho. from s1,300.o00 to $1.490,o0o;
Lower Yellowstone, Mont, from $780,,
600 to s2,700.Oo0.
the advance In the price of labor and
building material.
The Bureau of Equipment is making
contracts for the establishment of
naval wireless telegraph stations on
the Pacific Coast, the first of the sta
tions to be at Cape Flattery. Five other
stations will be installed as soon as
possible, the navy department using
for this purpose S65, 1000.
Senator Perkins had little difficulty
IN obtaining an appropriation for
chain of naval wireless coast stations
after the admirable and convincing
demonstration of the value of wireless
communication given during the
citement in San Francisco. The de-
partment officials assert that if it had
not been for the wireless installations
on the Farallones, the United States
steamship Chicago, at Yerba Buena
Island, Point Arguello and Mare Island,
1t would have been next to impossible
to have obtained any information from
San Francisco for several days after
the calamity, and the work of relief
would have been greatly delayed. The
department indicates that wireless sta
tions work very efficiently and render
aid to be reckoned in dollars and
cents.
Preparations are being made by the
Navy Department for placing in COM
mission the new protected cruiser Mil
waukee at Mare Island. The crew for
the vessel will be assembled aboard
the independence. The vessel requires
a crew of 577 bluejackets and so ma
rines The Milwaukee Will be COM
manded by Commander c. A. Cove.
Arrangements have been made to
send out ITO emergency rations for
special trial by the infantry of device
designed by the ordnance department
70 ipc rat ha holt Of ha
soldier. A special attachment has been
made at the Rock Island arsenal. These
rations will be shipped to several posts
including the Presidio of San Francisco
at each of which garrisons two COM
panies of infantry will be equipped
with the device, which will be worn by
troops in the field.
Estimates are being prepared at Mare
Island navy yard for the conversion of
the old gunboat Marion into a coal
supply vessel. The Marion has lately
been turned back to the Government by
the naval militia and If the survey does
not call for too large an expenditure.
the ship will end its career as a coal
hulk.
1t will be necessary on account of the
death of Naval Constructor ]. j. Wood
ward, to provide a board of inspection
and survey with an officer temporarily
assigned from other duty. While the
board is conducting the trial trips of
the Nebraska and the Milwaukee, Naval
Constructor Holden A. Evans, head of
the Department of Construction and
Repair at Mare Island navy yard, will
serve on the board of inspection and
survey.
Quartermaster General Humphrey of
the army has compiled a statement
showing that the amount necessary to
be expended as a result of the fire in
San Francisco under the various titles
of appropriations for his department
aggregates S2,26S,47S.
The Secretary of War has found it
impossible to permit the army engi
neers to draw upon the San Francisco
relief fund appropriation made by Con-
gress, to replace certain tools used and
lost by the battalion of engineers dur
ing the disaster. The appropriation is