Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1909-02-05

| fishermen hundreds of miles. But the
Gunnison River will soon be known
no more to the fishermen. Within q
year, probably, it will be shunted or
into q tunnel. This tunnel will take
the turbulent little stream through the
heart Of Il mountain and dump 1t over
10000 acres of land. The conduit
| through the mountain will be almSst
six miles long. Work has been going
on for four years, and five miles Of the
tunnel are already completed. Forty
five miles of canals will also irrigats
G0,OCO acres of land in Grand VALLEY.
in the western part Of Colorado.
Then look at Idaho. When the cen
sus Of 1900 was taken. the government
enumerators found in that state only
10 persons to the square mile. In
Idaho the United States Owls almost
2T.C00,000 acres of land. Think what
will happen to the population Of that
state when the work now under way
Is completed and water is turned en-
| to 3T2,C00 acres of land. The Payette.
Boise and Snake rivers. in the south
western part of the state. are simply
being turned out of their beds. The
work is so far advanced that settlers
| are already beginning to file on some
Of the land that is to be benefited At
Mnidoka, another point on the Snake
River, a huge dam will divert water
TO supply 10000 acres The work is
already practically complete and water
will be turned on next spring.
Others of Importance.
An extensive system OF irrigation d.
| vices that extend along the North
Platte for nearly 800 miles will, wheaa
completed, supply water to 200,0Oe
acres Of land In Wyoming and an equil
| area in Nebraska. In fact, water was
turned on to 10000 acres this year.
Settlers are taking up land rapidly.
Besides all this. work is under way
to put water on to 100000 acres In
Montana, 10000 acres in North Dako-
to, 10000 acres In New Mexico, 10000
acres in Kansas, 100000 acres in north
ern California and southern Oregoa.
270,0O0 acres In Washington. 10000
acres in Utah, and 100000 acres In
South Dakota. And, as "a people, We
are just beginning to realize that it IL
GOOD public policy to spend money for
the irrigation Of arid lands.
Those who are best able to Judge
believe that, in this way, we shall re-
claim from 50.0OO,CC0 to 1JOOCO.OO9
acres Of land. In fact, the experts In
cline toward the larger figure. And
what does this mean? 1t means that
we shall put under cultivation 234,37S
square miles. Figuring the populatise
at the same density as that Of Kansas
eighteen to the square mile-it viii
mean that the government land will
provide homes for more than 4OO0OGe
persons. And, using the same multi
pller, more than 3.0OO.OOO persons arr
now living on land that the governmeat
Originally gave to settlers
For Intensive TiIlaEe.
But the possibilities of what mishi
be called the near present are dwarfed
by the probabilities Of the remote fu-
ture. Some day stern necessity VIII
compel us to be economical in the use
Of our land as we are just beginnln:
to learn that we should conserve what
remains Of our coal, timber and iron.
Some day we shall learn that no one
can really till 200 or 300 acres Of land.
or even 40 acres. We shall become
masters Of intensive agriculture and
produce more from few wel-tilled
acres than we do now from the great
tracts that we cultivate with little or
no realization of the great opporruni-
| ties that we overlook. We shall learn
lesson, perhaps, from the French
peasants, who let not foot of ground
escape untitled and make the fences
hold up the grapes for the sun to ripea
them.
And when that time comes the land
that the government yet has to give to
settlers may support population OF
hundreds of millions. Scientific agr-
culturists say that Texas alone has
enough land to support five times the
present population Of the United States.
The Modest Third.