12 



By meaas of a ditch and reservoir, eleven miles in length, 

 tapping the San Gabriel river, in Los Angeles county, forty 

 thousand acres of land which has been hitherto used only for 

 grazing purposes, is now being irrigated and converted into one 

 of the most fertile portions of that county, already so justly cel- 

 ebrated for the variety and excellence of its prodiactions. 



In Yolo county there are five main ditches, tapping Cache 

 creek in as many different places, with an aggregate length of 

 twonty-tive miles, besides a great number of branches, all capa- 

 ble of irrigating at least one hundred thousand acres of as good 

 land as the State contains. jS^icholas W^^coff, the engineer, who 

 located most of the ditches in Yolo county, and the engineer of 

 Swamp Land District No. 18, lying mostly in that county, says, 

 in a letter to the Secretary, <' the day is not far distant when the 

 waters of Cache and Fatah creeks, in ordinary seasons, will be 

 used upon the land, and not be suffered to pass into the tules, 

 except at high floods — thus assisting to reclaim those valuable 

 lands. 



The people of Colusa county are also moving in this matter. 

 They propose Jo take the waters from the Sacramento river, at 

 any point above low water mark, so as not to interfere with 

 navigation, and turn it through a canal which, including one 

 main branch, will be one hundred and twenty miles in length, 

 over an area of some three hundred thousand acres of black val- 

 lej land in that and the northern part of Yolo county. The 

 scheme is pronounced entirely practical by competent engineers 

 who have made the j^i'diminary surveys, and tlie people are de- 

 termined to accomplish the enterprise and reap its benefits. In 

 view of these facts, and the probability of other similar enter- 

 jDrises, may we not look forward to the time when most of the 

 surplus waters of our creeks and rivers during the rainy seasons 

 will be used to irrigate and render imineusely productive all the 

 higher lands of our valleys? As a secondary though very im- 

 jjortant result of the accomplishment of such a system of irri- 

 gation, great assistance would be rendered in permanently re- 

 claiming the tule lands, and the improvements of our farmers, 

 and the towns and cities on the immediate banks of the rivers 

 would be thus relieved, to a great extent, from danger by over- 

 flows. 



The mechanical and manufacturing industries of the State, 

 though partaking of the general depression of the past year, 

 and suffering somewhat from the state of the currency, which 



on the two thousand acres is $25,000, and without irrigation the crops would 

 have been an entire failure. The above is the only system of ditches for irri- 

 gation in this county. The result of this first attempt of irrigating on a 

 large scale has been so profitable and sure, many other enterprises of the 

 kind will be undertaken in this county. Californians will find out in time 

 that water is not only quite necessary, but the cheapest fertilizer." 



