PULSE OF THE IRRIGATION INDUSTRY. 



163 



The people on lower Tongue river in Montana are 

 getting after the owners of the big dam at Miles 

 City, for failure to construct a fish way therein as 

 required by law. The matter was brought before 

 the last grand jury, which, although it returned no 

 indictment, gave the owners a very broad hint which 

 they will do well to heed. 



The Chicago Post has of late been paying consid- 

 erable editorial attention to the subject of irrigation. 

 In a late issue it treats of irrigation in western Kan- 

 sas, and speaks most encouragingly of the benefits to 

 be derived from a proper application of water to the 

 soil. 



The lands of the Crocker estate and the Crocker- 

 Huffman Land & Water Co., in Merced county, 

 Cal., have been purchased by Eastern parties. The 

 amount involved is stated at $5,000,000. M. F- 

 Hatch, of Chicago, and M. B. Davis, of Detroit, are 

 two of the purchasers. 



A tract of land adjoining the town of Farmington, 

 San Juan county, New Mexico, has been purchased 

 by a syndicate of gentlemen in Durango and laid off 

 in five acre tracts, which will be sold to parties wish- 

 ing small fruit farms. 



Within a few days it is understood a colony of some 

 25 families will leave Elgin, 111., for American Falls, 

 to be settled on lands recently located near the falls 

 by a big syndicate. 



Clemens Herschel, one of the leading hydraulic 

 engineers in the country, has been making an exam- 

 ination and will shortly give his opinion as to the 

 rebuilding of the Indian Creek dam in Idaho. 



The Los Angeles Herald has a forceful article on 

 the need of more truck gardeners. It claims that 

 the profits are large and the demands for California 

 vegetables are rapidly increasing. 



Articles of the Payette Canyon Ditch Co. have 

 been filed with the Secretary of State of Idaho. 

 The object is to take a ditch out of the Payette above 

 Emmett. 



Testimony in the matter of the priority of water 

 rights under the Platte and Beaver canal is being 

 taken by Referee Bennett at Greeley, Colo. 



An estate of 4,000 acres lying near Ritzville, Wash- 

 ington, has just been divided up and put on the 

 market in tracts suitable for small farms. 



A new town called Orangedale is to be built in the 

 Salt River valley, near the falls of the Arizona canal. 



Mr. F. W. Smith, of the Rio Mimbres Irrigation 

 Company, Silver City, New Mexico, has received in- 

 formation from Chicago that some thirty families will 

 come out in the spring and take up about 7,000 acres 

 of the land owned by the company and irrigated by 

 it. These people are for the most part farmers and 

 will improve that section of Grant county, raising 

 products for the local market as well as that of Silver 

 City. 



As a result of the World's fair exhibit of the Pecos 

 valley, N. M., a colony of sixty families has already 

 been organized to cast their fortunes in that locality. 

 They sent one of their number Dr. W. H. Morgan 

 to investigate the merits of the enterprise. His re- 

 port was listened to by a large and enthusiastic party 

 in the parlors of the Palmer House. His description 

 of the country more than sustained the representa- 

 tions made of this famous country. 



The preliminary survey of the Farmers' Union 

 ditch, to be taken out of Boise river about five miles 

 below Boise City, is completed. A meeting of the 

 interested parties will be held this month, when the 

 engineer will submit a report as to the cost. 



Prof. L. G. Carpenter, Commissioner Penney and 

 Assistant Meteorologist Trimble have been at work 

 rating the Poudre river. Below the head of Greeley 

 No. 2 ditch they found three feet per second flowing, 

 and near the mouth of the stream fifty feet. The in- 

 crease is mainly from seepage. 



A section of land under the Pioneer canal, near 

 Pecos, will be planted to cotton this year. Cotton 

 grows well all over the valley, but in the New Mexico 

 portion farmers will not plant a product that sells for 

 such an unremunerative figure. 



A colonization plan has been perfected in Mesa 

 county, Washington, whereby colonists may buy land 

 payable on yearly installments, interest at 8 per cent, 

 payable semi-annually. 



A Colorado colony from Weld county has located 

 at Wheatland, north of Cheyenne. They have bought 

 1,600 acres under irrigation, paying at the rate of f 15 

 per acre. 



The world's hop crop for 1893 is given at about 

 146,000,000 pounds, of which 210,526 bales of 190 

 pounds each, or say 40,000,000 pounds, were produced 

 in the United States. 



An authority announced that the State of Washing- 

 ton would send at least 1,000 carloads of fruit to 

 Eastern markets the present year. 



