The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1922-03-30

so that it pays for itself every eight
years. In all the years since 1t was
finished there has only been once
that it did not fill up to the top so
that they had the top layers for use.
That was in the year1919 and with
their better understanding of the
snow fall and drainage of the whole
basin, with their better understand
ing of how to conserve the water in
the years when there is plenty and
have some to carry over, they hope
to in a large measure avert any such
circumstance in the future. 1t Is
their policy never to waste any water
so that the reservoir may always
have quite supply in it at the close
of the irrigating season and this Is
carried as insurance against the light
snow fall the following winter, or
series of light snowfalls in several
winters. Water will be available for
use to the settlers to the upper val
ley Immediately after the American
Falls reservoir regions to orewater.
Within two years of the completion
Of the reservoir it will have been suf-
ficiently tested so that the title to
the water will be exchanged.
Reclamation Engineer
Talks
"A. F. Banks, engineer for the
reclamation department in Idaho, the
man who constructed the Jackson
Lake reservoir, spoke for few min
utes and said that two and q half
miles of the Oregon Short line rail-
way will have to be rebuilt, that the
dam in its present construction will
be made seventy-five feet high and
will food two-thirds of the town. The
power plant belonging to the Idaho
Power company will have to be pur-
chased at a cost of $1,000,000 and
they will supply their customers with
electrical energy carried in from far
down the Snake river valley, where
q different condition exists. In the
upper Snake river valley and the
lower Snake river valley, they have
just the opposite conditions as regard
to the generation of power. In the
upper valley they have a scarcity Of
water for generating power at Ameri-
can Falls, in summer season, but in
the winter season they have plenty of
it.. Conditions in the lower Snake
are just the reverse, there being
plenty of power generated in the
summer and not so much in the
winter so that by having transmisi-
tion lines up or down the valley &C
cording to the season they could help
each other.
Eminent Geologist
Quoted
Mr.. Banks quoted the geologist
employed by the government to study
the geological conditions surround
ing the American Falls reservoir site
and they find that the springs within
the reservoir basin furnished about
$500 second feet poured into the res
ervoir from the bottom. The terri
tory along side of the reservoir, that
Is the bluffs, the river bank and all
the country surrounding it on the
upper side is saturated to a higher
level than the level of the water in
the reservoir. The weight of the
water is toward the reservoir and
into it so that cuts off all danger of
any leakage from the reservoir out
luCO ZIG duJdCcHI ItITlIOIy. luo +
drainage Is into the reservoir rather
than out Of it, so the loss by seepage
will be nothing; only the loss by
evaporation from the surface of the
reservoir.
A Bond Man
Speaks
R e. Shepperd, who for several
years has represented the bond hold
ers, who financed the Twin Falls
north side project, was the next
speaker. He reviewed the financial
conditions of the country and said
that before the war the national,
debt of the United States was one
and half billions of dollars and 1t
had now leaped to twenty-five bill
lions and the interest on that debt is
more now than the whole cost of OPP h
Grating the government was before
the war. He says that in order to 4
pay off these enormous debts 1t will 4
be necessary for the United States
Continued on page six