188 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION April 



nevertheless, of great value, as they fornia, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Mpn- 



enable investigators to compute, ap- tana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, 



proximately, what could only be rough- North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, 



ly estimated before. South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and 



Wyoming were recently instructed by 



Tiie underground waters of wash- tbe Commissioner of the General Land 



Office to notify all persons who have 



A brief but very satisfactory ac- heretofore entered, or who may here- 



count of the water resources of after enter> any of the i ands wn i c h 



State of Washington as represented h been segre g ated under the provis- 



by municipal supplies, deep wells, and ions of the R ec i amat i O n Act of June 



springs has been prepared by Mr. I7> I9O2 , that the leasing of such lands 



Henry Landes, of the Jnited States Qr port i ons thereof to other persons 



Geological Survey, under the direc- who have been and are conducting the 



tion of Mr. N. H. Darton, geologist business of se lli n g alcoholic liquors on 



in charge of the western section of said lands> pr i nc i pa liy to the employes 



hydrology. engaged on the Government works, 



The counties of the State are taken that Slich i easnig . e i tner by themselves 



up in alphabetic order and a general Qr ot h er s will be deemed sufficient 



statement is made concerning the loca- cause for the cancellation of the en- 



tion, rainfall, and most striking topo- trieg em bracing the lands so used or 



graphic and geologic features of each OCC upied 



county. This is followed by data con- T officers Q the ]and officeg ^ 



cerning the municipal systems, deep directed tQ iye ^ w}dest 



wells, and springs in the county. In- sM& bHd ^ ^ fact that such 



formation regarding the municipal * ^^ withdrawn under this 



water supplies is complete to the pres- ac j^ such ]ands haye been en . 



ent time, as blanks were sent to clerk, > or ^ uno ied win be 



or other officials of cities and towns ^^ in ejectment 



and practically all were fil led _out and inj J*f on> P or otherwise, 



returned. The blanks for the deep . 



wells were not returned as'generally as Th ese instructions have been called 



was desired, but almost every section forth by the deplorable conditions es 



of the State where such wells occur is istmg in Nevada, where the Govern- 



represented, and those described may ment work employs several thousand 



be taken as types of their kind in each man. Homesteaders have leased a 



county. Springs occur so very gen- portion of their lands to persons en- 



erally throughout the State that prob- g a g ed ln the h( l uor business, and mur- 



ably only a small fraction of them is der and robbery have been rampant 



represented in the blanks filled out and in consequence. The Commissioner s 



returned decision is likely to correct these con- 



'The value of the report is greatly ditions, and will undoubtedly prevent 



enhanced by a map of Washington, on their occurrence in other sections 



which is shown the mean total pre- wherein the Government is about to 



cipitation, and 16 pages of tables of engage upon similar works. 



deep wells, municipal water supplies, 



n-v, . Private I*aiids Under Government 



and representative springs. ihis pa- Reclamation projects. 



per, which is entitled "Preliminary 



Report on the Underground Waters The Reclamation Act was intended, 



of Washington," is listed as Water- primarily, to provide for the irnga- 



Supply and Irrigation Paper No. in. tion of lands belonging to the United 



States. It was plain, however, to Con- 



xo protect Government Employes. g- re ss that scarcely any project would 



The registrars and receivers of the be found in which there was not a 



U. S. Land Offices in Arizona, Cali- considerable amount of private land. 



