Rocky Ford enterprise., 1911-03-31
THE WATER PROBLEM
As viewed BY D. Y. BURRELL

would like to say few words on the
water question and ask you to excuse me
# talk plainly, as | believe It is better
that we should speak up now. before we
have gone into some proposition that will
prove wrong than it is to speak. up after
we have expended one or two hundred
thousand dollars more and find we have
nothing.
don't believe in the artesian well idea
because when first came here the flow
from new well could be conducted to
|'.ae top Of 20 foot derrick and would
spout from the casing with considerable
force. This pressure has been removed
and none Of the wells now are more than
near flows. and believe few years
the present pressure. as what we have
used is small quantity compared with
what we need and must have.
There is no river underflow from the
headwaters Of the Arkansas river. Where
does It get through the Royal Gorge where
for many miles the river has a rock bot
tom and above which there is much min
ing 7nd chance for contamination?
Rocky Ford lis named for the rock bed
OF the river only 2h miles from our pre-
sent city. There is no mid-channel un-
derfow here and the water under the
river in the gravel below the point is
either river water settled down into
these gravels and in time Of low water
carrying with it pollution. or it is seepage
from the irrigated lands. We don't want
the so called river underfow.
The Faw proposition. Horse creek un-
derfow. is out OF the question.
saw two dead cattle within 100 feet
Of the large Faw sump last weak and II
you would follow up Horse creek you
will find dead cattle and sheep ali along
the creek by nearly every hole Of water.
There are thousands Of cattle and
sheep ranging north and northeast OF this
point and If there is heavy rain for an
hour or two 1t does not 60 into the ground
along these slopes but rushes to the creek
carrying hundreds OF tons OF refuse. At
the creek the waters from such rain fill
the dry surface sands and deposit this
refuse. You cannot dig d trench 90 feet
long and four feet wide in the sands OF
Horse creek without finding large
quantity Of refuse. We don't want this
water.
Go to Pearl Springs and all along the
line Of the development work you will see
the soil more or less white with alkali or
gypsum and at the upper end Of the de-
velopment work you will find crust OF
this alkali or gypsum. quarter OF an
inch thick on the earth in the bottom OF
the ditch. The water SO far developed
is in bayou Of Horse creek. When
there is a food the creek divides about
this point and part Of the water flows
around through this bayou. You can see
the sediment on the inside Of the cement
sump at the lower end Of the development
work where the last food left it two feet
above the present water level. Then look
over to the bed Of Horse creek and you
will see the sands nearly white with this
gypsum or alkali. and this is the case for
several miles up the creek. We don't
want this water.
Now go up to Steele Forks and Little
Horse creek and you will find flowing
out from tho surface of the shales up
from the bed Of the creek twenty to thirty
feet. where every possible chance for
contamination is easily removed. clear,