Los Angeles herald., 1910-07-30
IMPERIAL WATER
SUPPLY IS WEAK
w. H. HoIabird Declares Work
Will Be Rushed on
Clearing Canal
DREDGER Is NOW OPERATING
Intake Filled with Silt for 1900
Feet and Will Be Re-
moved
DREDGER is NOW OPERATING

The water situation in the Imperial
valley will be relieved and all the
water needed will be supplied within
week, declared w. II. Holabird, re-
ceiver of the California Development
company, yesterday.
The intake of the California Develop
ment company's canal has been filed
with silt for about 1900 feet betweeen
the headgate and the Colorado river,
from which the company draws its
water. Unless the water is made to
flow into the canal in quantities Which
come under normal conditions, the
crops of the valley will suffer great
damage.
Mr. Holabrd has just retdrned from
a conference with President Taft bear
ing on the situation, and in regard to
the extension of government aid in
permanently controlling the river. An
eminent engineer is expected to arrive
soon to study the conditions.
DREDGER AT WORK
A dredger Is now at work in the
canal, and, according to Holabird,
within a week from yesterday almost
the required amount of water will be
furnished.
Spring floods cut down the bed of
the river, and now, since the water
has fallen to a low mark, the valley
is cut off from it's irrigating supply.
Before the flood came last year
drought threatened the crops of the
valley. Holabird obtained permission
from the government to build tenn
porary dam below the canal intake to
elevate the level of the water, but
rising waters made the work unneces-
sary. Holabird was in washington
when the trouble arose this year. and
he secured a similar permit and imme-
diately telegraphed his engineer to
begin the work.
1.-THE company was without funds
when I became receiver last fall, he
said yesterday. Nobody would buy re-
ceiver's certificates until 1 notified the
Southern Pacific that unless 1t pur-
chased some of the certificates I should
have to shut up shop. The company
bought enough to keep me running
until the water rentals became due
July 1, but would take no more"
RENTALS NOT PAID
Holabird says that If the water rem
tails were paid there would be no want
of money Only about 40 per cent of
the money due July has been paid,
and S6S, 900 for water already furnished
is due.
After much difficulty in securing a
dredger, Holabird found one in Stock
ION WnlCH HdQ just SOAAAPACNSo n
This was put to work at once. A tel
egram was received Thursday from c.
K. Clarke, chief engineer that the pile
driving is progressing satisfactorily
THE river itself is higher than the
region to the west of it toward Volcano
lake, and for some time it has been
leaving the old channel and spreading
out to the west" he explained. III
has deposited several feet of silt or
the south side of our levee, so that
there is danger of its breaking over the
levee to the north when another big
flood comes.
GOVERNMENT MAY AID
I'VE are asking the government to
build a levee down the west bank of
the river for a distance of about
twenty-five miles, beginning just below
our canal, with rock wall just across
the place where the river is now leav-
ing its channel This will conf1ne it
to it's old bed and obviate the danger
of the old trouble"
Holabird has urged the people of the
valley to buy the property of the Cali
fornia Development company when
the receivership ends. He advises them
to organize under the Bridgeford act,
so that they could issue bonds on the
whole valley to pay for the plant.
Such bonds, he says, would be pur-
chased by the creditors of the COM
pany, the receivership would be ended
and the litigation might cease,