Arizona republican., 1907-01-19
RAPID PROGRESS Al GRANITE REEF WORKS
Diversion Constructions We'll Ad- Vanced and all Features of the Pro- iect Pushed by Engineer Martin.

Ject Pushed by Engineer martih' B. A. Fowler returned yesterday from a very interesting two days trip to Granite Reef and the Arizona head. As vice president of the Arizona Ca nal Water Users association he went | to the head with Contractor R. If. Col lins who has charge of operations there and made a careful inspection of conditions. Briefly put. he was well pleased with what he saw and is more hopeful than ever of what may be accomplished there in the near fu- tuTe. Returning to Granite Reef. where he spent Thursday night, he made a thorough inspection of the work being prosecuted there by the government, and as president of the Salt River Valley Water Users assO- citation. which association is to be the beneficiary of the governments activ- ities. he was not only pleased but was happily disappointed by the wonder ! ful progress of events and the rapidity with which Engineer Martin is carry 1 ing out the governments plans. He expected to find things going along nicely but he was more than surprised l pIished in the last few weeks since Engineer Martin really got his force organized
 i Engineer Howard Reed. who went lup to the Mcdowell gauging station q couple of days before, via Granite Reef. both going ana coming. return 1 ed home yesterday and like Mir. Fowl CT. was enthusiastic over the prog ress of the work at the diversion plant. He said the achievements of Mir. Martin within a very brief space of time would be an eye opener to anyone who had not visited Granite Reef for few weeks.
 fl At the head Mir. Fowler found the canal from the old Arizona head. down past the point where the flood breaks occur. to be in excellent condi- ton. A great deal of sand has been taken out of the canal and banked on the river side of it. raising it for a long distance some four or five feet higher than it was before.
 Further up at the point where the new Extension dam is to be built, MT. Collins has the engine and hoist set and the boiler as nearly so as can
 
 intake has been cleaned off and a large number of holes have been drill ed and plugged so that when construc- tion begins lot of rock can be blown out in a very short time. thus remov- ing it from where it is not wanted, and preparing it for use in the dam. There is also a vast amount of loose rock already available and plenty more that can be easily broken up. A an encoura cement for the project Iof the new rock dam, MT. Fowler no- ticed that the old rock dam made by MT Collins farther up. is still stand ing as firmly as ever, except that about three feet of the crest. which was composed of brush and loose rock. has been swept away. With the exception of one bent. the old frame
 work on which the little railroad ran. is still intact. though according to all preV;ou calculations on such floods as have passed this winter. the dam should have been all gone long ago.
 At Granite Reef in a general way. it may be said that Nearly all prelimi- nary work has been done except the placing of the big construction cable across the river and that will occur not long hence and is not needed yet. Furthermore a great deal has been accomplished in the way of actual construction. IL is almost impossible to describe the situation clearly to those not familiar with the plan, with
 out the use of a map. but most read CTS will understand that in a construc-
 ton for the purpc-5- .: this diversion 
 dam. a large part of the work is to be done at the two ends. There are to be sluiceways. intake basins, canal heads and gates and all their supple mentary constructions. at each end of
 the dam proper; the works on the
 north side to divert the irrigation wa ter for all the north side canals and the works on the south side of the river to divert the irrigation water for all the south side canals. The north
 side works will be much larger than those of the southsde. almost double
 in capacity. but on almost identical
 plans. The camp and seat of opera
 tions as all local residents know. and
 for a variety of reasons unnecessary
 to recite now. are on the south side
 of the river or at what may be called the south end of the dam. The order
 of building decided upon was first the
 diversion constructions on the south
 side. then the diversion constructions
 on the north side, these both includ-