The Parker post., 1912-10-12
DITCH CREWS
WORKING HARD
EVERY AVAILABLE MAN AND
TEAM BUSY GETTING CANALS
PAClTY OF WATER.

BLYTHE, California, Oct 10. =
With three directors of the Mutual
| Water cmopany on the job and a
hundred head of stock and nearly an
equal number of men working on the
canal below the intake, the renova-
ton of the irrigation system is going
forward rapidly and it will be only
a few days until the bitches will be
carrying abundant water for ALL
The Mutual Water company is en-
ploying every available man and team
for work on the system. Fifty men
with teams were put to work on the
main canal the first of last week.
By Wednesday the ditch had drained
to such an extent that this force was
doubled Since that time the crew
has been added to as fast as men
and teams could be secured.
Three chifts are working the dredg-
er every minute of the twenty-four
hours and the big machine is rapidly
cutting it's way down from the intake.
| The teams are working up from the
lake, dam having been put in at a
point where it is estimated the two
forces will meet This dam keeps
sufficient water in the upper canal to
float the dredger while the fresno
crews are working in the drained ca
nal below
A L. Hobson, who with Frank Muir
ply and Ed Williams is directing the
work, states that at the present rate
of progress the bitches will be run
ming full of water in less than two
weeks. With constantly increasing
force of men and teams at work there
is every reason to believe this time
will be less than estimated
AS soon as the upper ditch is
cleaned out large number of the
teams will he put to work ON the ca
nal below the lake. These will work
down past Blythe to Rannells and con-
tinue the ditch through to the river
at the lower end of the valley. This
will perfect the drainage system SO
that the main canal can be run full
of water all the time.
Specifications are being made for a
big new dredger with capacity of
800 yards a day. This will be com
pleted in about sixty days and will be
used on the canal between the intake
and the lake. The present dredger
will then be placed on the main ditch
below the lake.
Floyd Brown lis in active charge of
the work on the bitches. He is keep
ing the work moving along with all
possible speed.
The break in the levee, which was
only temporarily repaired last sum-
mer has been filled up and re-
inforced. The levee will be strength
ened in several places to guard
against a possible break in case the
work of forming a levee district
does not progress as rapidly as ex-
pected
A big water wheel has geen ordered
by the water company and will be at
the intake in few days. This wheel
will not be installed at the present
time but will be used only in emer-
gencies such as an extreme fall in the
| river With the new dredger at work
there is hardly possibility that this
wheel will be called into use but the
company has determined to take every
precaution to guard against the re-
currence of present conditions
FIRST ICE PULLED.
The ice cream days have arrived
for Palo Verdeans. Their temperature
goes up to 10 degrees in the shade
The first cake of ice manufactured
in the Palo Verde was pulled Sun
day morning at the Blythe Creamery
and Ice company's plant at Blythe.
From now on there will be ice for
True the ice season is about over
but even during these winter months
there will at least be the pleasure of
anticipation. What old7timer in the
Palo Verde will not chuckle to him
self at least once each day between
now and next May when he thinks of
the ice lemonade or ice tea or some
thing else with ice in it, to take the
place of the lukewarm water of the
past? Walters at Hotel Blythe will
no longer have to shake glass tum
blers i'm the water pitchers to delude
the boarders.
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