Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1908-07-02

he water from the Camas Prairie
reservoir is flowing through every
inch If the canal from Camas to
Long Tom and it's first splash into
the Long Tom basin awokc echoes
that will rcsound for years to come
as marking the most important
epoch in the development and
awakening OF Mountain Home.
Few persons will realize the mag
nitudc of this undertaking which,
in effect, has been the changing of
the course of water as nature in
tended it should flow and making
it flow where it would be SUBJ
scrvient to the demands of man.
In view of this interesting fact, a
brief resume of how the task has
been accomplished will not be
amiss.
Work was commenced on the
Camas Prairie canal in the fall of
1904 and was persistently prose-
cuted day and night until January
1, 1908. At last the canal is CO I :
pletcd and is carrying water. We
say the canal is completed. Some
will possibly say that it was COM
pleted the first of this year but
such project cannot be consid-
cred completed until it has success
fully performed the work for which
it was intended. Now that water
has been delivered through this
canal an such precautions taken
and such repairs made as will
insure continuous and uninter- :
rupted flow it can be positively
stated that the canal is completed.
facts concerning this work and,
when We say facts, we stand ready
with figures to prove them. This
water way from source to end is
S 7-10 miles in length. 1t is 13
feet wide on the bottom and so con-
structed as to carry five feet in
depth of water at velocity of
three feet per second, discharging
1875 cubic feet per second. There
are few low places in the bank
which will have to be strcng thencd
this fall before a full head of water
can be turned in, but this will
entail an expenditure of less than
$500 and the canal will then dis
charge its full capacity of 1875 cubic
feet per second. This is a flow
of water sufficient TO cover 400
acres one foot deep every "a hours,
or to irrigatc 1900 acres inch
in the same period, or to irrigate
5000 acres ! ia Inches deep
every fifteen days. OF course, no
loss for seepage and evaporation
has been deducted frem this flow in
the above estitRatc, and what it
will be is at this time a matter of
conjecture. This can be better as
ccrtaincd after the canal has been
in use year. Experience with
Mountain Home lead to the belief
that the loss from sccpage in the
reservoirs and canals during the
transmission of water to the land
does not exceed 20 per cent. Com
petent and reliable engineers hold
that 20 per cent is liberal es-
innate.
Tne canal from Camas to Long
Ton was very difficult to con-
struct. Undcrg ground tunnel:
formed $3.50 feet of the canal Way.
These tunnels cost $12.25 foot OF
a total of $40, $50. There are two
and one-half miles of flume built
mostly across steep draws and can.
yons and very expensive in con-
struction. Lumber aggregatine
1, 500, 600 feet was consumed ir
this work and the contract price
from Baker & Anderson was $50
pes thousand feet delivered on tht
ground The contract price foi
installing the flume was So. so pei
thousand feet. the company furnish.
ing all nails, etc. The engineer.
of the company estimate that tn!
lumber cost S44.50 per thousand
placed in the flume, or total COS
of 500, $50. On the remaining !.
miles o canal work it is estimated
that the actual cost of excavatins
and constructing was S12, 900 pc
mile or total of $144, 600, making
the total cost of the canal from Cam
as Prairie to Long Tom S287, $50