The Kendrick gazette. [volume] (Kendrick, Idaho) 1892-1968, 1907-02-08
a Lot Of Dirt.

struCtion Of the Lewiston SwcetWateI
irrigation dam. This stupendous up.
lifting Of the earth is one of the monu-
mental achievements of al engineering
age. Through the centuries this great
dam will stand. as eternal as the sur.
rounding hills, holding behind it the
man.crcatcd lake, which, season by
season, has made possible the actual
creation of fruit and vegetable wealth
sufficient to feed and refresh millions.
This great dam is 800 feet thick at
its base. From its apex to its base it is
100 feet deep. The cement lined well,
at the bottom of which is a mighty
gate which regulates the outflow of
water. is 100 feet downwards. 1t would
take four seconds for pebble dropped
in al the top tc strike the bottom, and
1t would take a second more for the
sound of the impact to reach the top.
Stretching out almost one.half mile
10 either direction from this great well
along the center of the crest is wag
on road. From the apex the dam slopes
gently lakeward and valleY"ard.
It's built sc permanently that this
great lake of water, instead of press,
ing against the dam, like water again.
st the sides of pail, rests upon its
sloping flanks like the tide on the
beach. There is no pressure to STRAIN
the dam, SO gently is the slope from
the bottom of the lake to the top Of
the great earthwork.
The well itself, and the tunnel
which gives the water its outlet, are
built for centuries to come. Steel might
last a lifetime; cast iron might endure
only one OF two hundred years; so
that both were discarded as possible
materials. Although costirg thrice as
much, cement was used, SO that a
thousand years from now there will
be neither rust nor decay to be mend
ed by generation which might curse
thedam builders for 6hortsigktedness
OF the six largest earthen irrigation
dams in the world, three were literally
built by hand, in Algeria and India.
Sweating coolies literally carried the
dirt on their backa, under a tropical
sun, up the mighty slope. A steam
shovel, one Of the largest made, is do
ing the digging, at Lewiston. 1t gouses
out three tons at d dip and makes
four dips minute. Each dip fills a
car. Two locomotives are hauling
trainload3 of dirt from tie shovel to
the dam. Shovel and locomotive are
being worked to The limit, night and
day shifts .bsing required to push The
work to quick completion, an electric
lighting plsit has been Installed fo1
night york Contractor c, j. Holmes
and force of men are crowdng every
thing along as quickly as possible.
1t was a iob,to get the big cho9e
and locomotives out to the reservoir
, site. a railroad had to be laid in from
: of the shovel and taken up behind e,
it was slowly pulled up from Lewiston
The locomotives had to be hauled
out by horses, presenting most TN
install sight on tic top of big Wagon
wheels.
That part of the dam already com
< pleted forms reservoir containing q
Bout sixty acres OF water, for use this
season. This part of the dam was e.
narrowed layer by LAYER, sprinkle
and rolled by30--ton rollers, pachin;
it as tight as cement. This dam is be
: ing built up in two ridges with bas
t 500 it, wide at the deepest point an.
: in between the ridges the dirt is pud
). died into dense, adhesive aolidity
4 1t takea sharp pick to even scratcl
; the wall at any point. Such compact
n ness seems IN necessary but the mos
exacting demands Of expert engineer
must be satisfied In modern reservoir
construction. THIS well is being bull
by men who have studied the famon
Z reservoirs OF Colorado for a Quarter {
a century and who are specialists i
this class Of engineering.
The reservoir will hold epoue
water to iriigste all of the land IN Ii
tproiect for si1 continuous Cry montt
" without any reinforcement from mon
tain streams which feed It.