IRRIGATION IN THE NORTHWEST 



Prof. F. H. Newell, of the Geological Survey, refers to a recent 

 report prepared under his direction, in which he discusses very briefly 

 the water supply of the public lands in the several western states, and 

 calls particular attention to the references to the states of Oregon, 

 Washington and Idaho. In his report Prof. Newell says: 



"In Oregon the great bulk of the land to the east of the Cascade 

 Range still belongs to the National Government, together with a con 

 siderable area of forest along the coast and among the high moun- 

 tains. The aggregate area of vacant public lands is estimated to be 

 55,887 square miles, or 35,767, 680 acres, this being a trifle less than 

 three- fifths of the area of the state. The principal tracts disposed of 

 to individuals lie in the valley of the Willamette and in the smaller 

 valleys to the south and . west, In the extreme eastern portion are 

 also numerous entries, in the valleys among the Blue Mountains, 

 where water can be obtained. Next to Washington, this state is one 

 of the best timbered in the West, the estimated area in forest being 

 over 20,000,000 acres, and in woodland 17,000,000 acres. Part of this 

 has, however, been burned or cut over, and the present knowledge of 

 the condition of the timber is somewhat meager, so that these figures 

 may be above the actual facts. The largest forest reserve in the 

 United States, that of the Cascade Range, lies within this state. It 

 includes nearly 4,500,000 acres. Besides this there are smaller reser- 

 vations of relatively insignificant size. 



"The greater part of the vacant public land is within the great 

 interior basin, the streams of which do not have sufficient volume to 

 cut their way to the ocean. They flow for a short distance from their 

 sources among the mountains, and gradually dry up, or flow into some 

 lake or marsh from which the water is evaporated The supply is 

 very small in comparison with the land to be supplied, and it will be 

 necessary to use storage reservoirs and well water, wherever it can 

 be obtained, in order to utilize the land. 



"Washington, lying in the northwestern corner of the country, is 

 probably the most humid of those west of the Mississippi Valley. 

 Along the seacoast the precipitation is excessively heavy, and the 

 mountains are clothed with dense forests extending inland north of 

 the Columbia. The vacant public land aggregates nearly one-half of 

 the area of the state, and in addition to this over one-tenth of the land 

 surface has been reserved for the Indians and for forestry purposes. 

 The state is crossed by the broad land grants of the Northern Pacific 

 Railroad Company, these covering much of the best farming land. 



