The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1920-08-05

war service demonstrated they merit
me appointment.
To Ado Half-MiIlion Acres.
Engineers of the government recla-
nation service are engaged in maxi
Ing a survey for an all-American
canal so as to double the pro-
ductive area Of Imperial valley, Cal,
the garden spot of the world. AL
though the half-million acres Of land
TINT may be added to that district be-
longs entirely to the government, prt'
vate land owners of the valley are
financially aiding the survey because
of unsatisfactory supply from the
present irrigation route.
The present water route uses a part
of the old bed of the Alamo river in
Mexico, and this crossing of the inter
national boundary causes legal control
of the water 20 be lost by the land
owners, While the expense of the
present system Is maintained by the
California people, the net results are
that they are providing free water 70
people i'm old Mexico. Likewise, they
have been obliged to protect them
selves from inundation In case of food
by building leyees in Mexico and they
have had to carry expensive material
across the boundary and pay high tar
III duties.
For ten years, the all-American ca
nal has been urged before congress.
but not until recently was legislation
passed directing That the survey he
made by the reclamation service. The
growth of irrigation in the Imperial
valley is one Of the remarkable r0-
manCes of the conquest of the desert
Twenty years ago, trauscOntinenta
travellers heard the train porter an
nouncc that they were passing through
the great Colorado desert, where moth
ing would live except rattle snakes,
horned toads, centlpedes and scorp-
ons.
Deepest Soil In World.
With a vision worthy Of "A seer some
hardy pioneers went into the valleys
fOrbidding arid areas which lie below
the level Of the sea, diverted the wa
ters Of the Colorado river and created
the most productive region in the
world
Everything that the human family
needs grows in Imperial valley l.
months out Of the year. As many hs
10 crops of alfalfa have been cut In
one year; from there comes the high
est.priced cotton I'm the world; and
there are great harvests of wheat, bar
ley. lemons oranges, dates and canta-
loupes. Except for the land surround
ing the edge of the valley, the lowland
soil Is the deepest soil that has been
discovered anywhere in the world. For
thousands of years, biologists say, the
soil was filling In there when the val
ley was nm inland sea. No rain falls
except once in two or three years 1t
sprinkles little overnight or for Il
day.
Evaporation IS the only way to get
water out Of the valley, and the old
Salton sea might be revived by an
overflow Of the Colorado river. The
reclamation engineers say that the
present irrigation projects fail 10 pro
tect the land within the valley, and
hence the movement for the new sys-
ten. by way Of an all-American en-
nal. Nature has through many CEN
turtles protected this great depression
from overflow.
The reclamation engineers In gen
pral regard the Imperial valley prof.
Get the greatest irrigation project in
the world, and the survey they are
making is solely for the purpose of
determining the route that will be fol-
lowed when the actual work Of con
structlng the canal system Is begun.
Indications are that the engineers will
decide on diyerting the water from
Laguna dam. which now furnishes the
water for the Yuma irrigation dis
trict in Arizona.
Would Cut Down Flood Menace.
These storage reservoirs would be
os value other than for irrigation. The
engineers point out that any storage
on large scale would have the bene-
fetal effect Of reducing the peak of
the food discharge In the lower Colo
RADIO thus cutting down the flood men
ace to submersible lands In the delta
region as well as In the Imperial val
ley
The work Of the engineers In sur.
veying the all-AmerlCan canal route
does not mean that the construction Of
the canal Will be started as soon
as they have completed their
work Indeed, there remains the
most important phase-the nnanc-
ing Of the project that Is found to be
the solution Of the problem The ca
nal system, It IS estimated, would cost
S3O,OOOO0O or more but the govern.
ment may Join hands with private in.
terestg in bringing about the redemp-
ton Of 100000 acres Of land-the
richest In the world
Sooner or later government officials
concedc, the canal viii be built. and
when completed 1t is expected that the
vast goyernmentOwned area Will be
opened to settlement It may be then
that because Of the wonderful produc-
fivity Of the region that the govern
ment land when disposed of will be
parceled out In small areas so as to
give everybody a chance.