Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-07-03
MADE INTO FARMS
Millions of Acres of Swamp
Lands Being Reclaimed.
WORK OF THE STATES
Billions of Added Wealth to Result
From Gigantic Operations
Now Going On.

While the federal government is en-
gagged in adding an area twice as big
as the state of Virginia to the farming
land of the United States through the
reclamation of arid lands in the west
the states themselves are tackling the
problem of adding a very much larger
area to their farm lands through drain
ing swamps. The actual work of this
drainage has been intrusted by the gov
eminent to individuals and private par
ties. as the nature of the problems is
very different from the reclamation of
arid lands, but the work of investigat-
ing and finding what lands are sus-
ceptible of this employment has been
turned over to the Department of Agri-
culture
The work was commenced by the geo
logical survey some years ago. but it has
now been~ turned over to a spe cial bureau
in the Department of Agriculture
Parties nave been sent out this year and
will be in the field all summer. The
whole area .osbe investigated is larger
than the area susceptible of irrigation,
and the cost probably will be less. There
Is the additional advantage that the
lands, as rule. are in the center of a
market population and it does not re-
qulre long move to get settlers on the
| land. The lands are very productive
when reclaimed and, while their value as
farm lands Is raised from nothing to a
high figure. the health of the community
| is improved at the same time.
Area 100000 Acres.
There are about $4,000. 900 acres OF
| swamp land in the several states This
includes lands that are permanently
swampy. those that are available for
round zipp To
and those that are worked as farms ex-
cept In times of high water, when they
are always overfiowed. There is still an
other and very much larger class that
comes within the scope of the drainage
Investigations. These are lands that are
WI heu as farms at all seasons, but whose
production would be increased 20 per cent
by efficient drainage
me iahdS That are to be drained are
Wnolly IN the hands of the states or of
prlnate individuals. BY law passed in
1850 the general government made over
to the states all lands that were known
as swamp or overflowed lands. Much of
the swamp land was already in private
ownership. SO that the final reclamation
VIII IT, De DC rarsely state and private work.
IL Is not generally realized how MANY
acres or swamp land there are, even in
states that are not generally supposed to
De s"ampy. Louisiana and Florida are
OF OF course known as swampy states and
swamp and the latter twenty millions.
But Minnesota has nearly six million
acres, just the same amount as Missis-
slppl The two Carolinas have over six
millions between them, Wisconsin ha 8
3,3tOUOO and Virginia has 100000 and
Maryland $4,000.
Billion and a half Value.
There have been tolerabIy close esti-
mates made of the cost of reclaiming
the swamp lands and their taxation value
over this cost when they are reclaimed.
Inc estimate putting the price at only
$50 per acre for 52,OOO,OOO acres was that
1t would add a value of 81, go. 900, 600 to
the farm property. This was in the
reclamation of permanent swamp now
entirely worthless. This did not take
into account either the annual income in
farm products from this land Putting
1t at $50 an acre, this amounted to s1.579.-
$50, 900.
The grazing lands and the periodically
overf1owed lands do not show such daZ-
zl1ng figures as a reward for their rec
lamation, but they would represent an
increased annual income of about $780,
00O, 900.
Reclamation work has already been I'M
dertaken in several OF the states, and the
total amount that has already been re-
trieved from the water is about $4,000.
$50.