The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1907-11-23
Great National Drainage Projects
I GUY ELLIOTT MITCHELL.

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AS the western desert is being made
to bloom. under Uncle SANS tutelage,
so the waste swamp places will be
made to contribute their quota to the
great total of American farm homes,
The country has authorized the appro-
priation and expenditure Of $4,000, 900
for the construction Of huge irrigation
dams, canals and tunnels to subjugate
the great American DESERT why
should it not look with equal favag
upon the redemption of the 75,000,O0
acres or more of swamp lands, now
equally as useless as the: desert, but
equally fertile and productive when
reclaimed? -.
AS a matter of fact the national
drainage idea has already made great
progress and is growing apace, SO that
1t would cause no great surprise
among those, who have kept a watch
full eye on the movement, should con-
gress pass such a law next session.
There are number of reasons why
government drainabe should appeal
to the country even more strongly
than government irrigation. In the
first place every Eastern state has
large areas of swamp lands, and in
stead of being located in the midst of
forbidding. deserts it is situated in
comparatively populous sections of
the country with transportation fa--
cilities already developed, and in the
second place the regeneration of these
lands would *be simple and cheap en-
cheering task While government ir-
rigation reclamation is costing in the
neighborhood of $50 an acre, the off,
cial estimates of swamp reclamation
run from So to Sc and 81 an acre. In
stead of being called upon to vote for
improvements of far: distant lands,
thousands of. miles away from their
constituencies, every congressman In
voting for drainage would directly, ben
eft his own state. Having already
helped the West by favorable irriga-
ton, why should he not assist the
homeseekers in his own district to Sc
cure a fertile farm?
The value Of such lands when re-
claimed-considerab has already
been accomplished by private enter
prise-runs from $50 to 5000 an acre.
With all our swamp areas thus i'm
proved, and taking $50 az albasis, we
would be anndxjng an inland empire
worth between three and four billion
dollars and adding to the country's.
productive farm area territory equal
to the great States Of Illinois and Kan
sas, or to all OF the New England
States with Pennsylvania and Mary
land added, or to the combined States
of Virginia, Tennessee and Louisiana.
The query as to whether such re-
clamation is practicable is answered
by the engineers of the irrigation
service itself whose already completed,
great topographic surveys, started.
years ago.: would s<enable them to at,
once begin active drainage reclama-
ton.
But again, even with every Eastern
state selishly interested, will congress
feel like sappropriating great sums of
money for this purpose? The huge
surplus in the treasury to-day could
not perhaps be put to better use, as it
would not only create homes and ma
tional wealth out of nothing, but give
employment to great army of men.
Direct appropriations, however, would
not be necessary any more than they
were In the passage Of the national
irrigation act. >.~-~ -..-
Last winter bill, introduced by
Senator Flint of California, was favor
ably reportedv .by the senate public
lands committee, appropriating the
money derived. from the sales of gov
eminent lands in the Eastern states,
and whi1e>the bill was not reached for
q vote, Senator Flint took poll Of