96 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



The farmers of the Portales valley have signed a contract 

 with the Western Construction Company, of Wichita, Kans., 

 to put in a $210,000 electric plant that will supply power for 

 pumping water to irrigate 10,000 acres. 



Reports from Santa Fe state that Henry A. Allen & Co., 

 consulting engineers for the Santa Fe Irrigation & Improve- 

 ment Company, have advised the abandonment of dam No. 1 

 on the Arryo Hondo project. The company proposes, how- 

 ever, to construct dams No. 2 and No. 3. 



Land owners at Taiban and vicinity are interested in tests 

 now being made for artesian water. It is reported that the 

 supply can be reached at a depth of about 35 feet, and ex- 

 periments will now be made to learn whether or not this sup- 

 ply is inexhaustible. It is claimed that if results are satis- 

 factory many thousands of acres will be irrigated by this 

 method. 



Reports from Portales state that the United States 

 Geological Survey indicate that the supply of underground 

 water available for pumping is limited, and that continued 

 dependence upon the supply will result in disappointment 

 unless steps are taken to discover the source of its waters and 

 arrange for more copious flow. The department is now 

 experimenting and will shortly submit a report stating the 

 manner in which to secure this added supply. 



MONTANA. 



The government has approved the award of thirteen 

 small contracts for the construction of lateral system known 

 as the Dodson South Unit of the Milk river irrigation project. 

 The contracts amount to approximately $54,000. 



L. M. Hatch, of the firm of Lewis & Hatch at Billings, 

 is reported to be working on preliminary surveys for a new 

 project in the northern part of the state. About 38,000 acres 

 are involved and Mr. Hatch states that if surveys and esti- 

 mates are satisfactory a company will be organized and will 

 begin work early in the spring. 



Ben Kress, W. R. Gray and E. F. Richards have made 

 application for the formation of an irrigation district at 

 Blodgett Creek, near Hamilton. It is to be known as the 

 Blodgett Creek Irrigation District. Because of a shortage 

 of water during August and September it is proposed to con- 

 struct reservoirs and ditches for use at this season of the 

 year. 



Reports from Dillon state that surveyors are at work 

 preparing for an irrigation canal to convey water to the 

 bench lands nine miles north of that city from the Beaver 

 Head river. The supply will come from the Lima reservoir. 

 About 50,000 acres may be brought under water by this 

 project. Surveyors are said to be in the employ of the 

 Beaver Head Range Company. 



The irrigation season on the Lower Yellowstone irriga- 

 tion project, Montana-North Dakota, was practically closed 

 on October llth when water was turned out of the main 

 canal. A force of over 200 men is employed on the Lower 

 Yellowstone dam which is now 66 per cent complete. Grad- 

 ing on the Northern Pacific extension is still holding a large 

 force of men and teams although the lighter work is nearing 

 completion. 



President Hill of the Great Northern Railway has inter- 

 ested himself in conditions on the government's Milk river 

 project. At a recent conference he signified his willingness 

 to head a delegation to Washington for the purpose of 

 adjusting matters in dispute and securing the early resump- 

 tion of operations. L. Newman, president of the Milk River 

 United Association, is now planning for this action. Prelim- 

 inary meetings are being held. 



OREGON. 



A petition is being circulated at Nyassa and Ontario for 

 the organization of an irrigation district. The proposed dis- 

 trict comprises about 135,'000 acres of land. 



Surveyors, said to be in the employ of Salt Lake capi- 

 talists, have been at work making surveys in Surprise valley. 

 About 60,000 acres of land can be brought under cultivation 

 by the proposed canal. 



Petitions are in circulation for the formation of an irri- 

 gation district to comprise a portion of the lands included 

 in the former proposed Malheur government project. These 

 lands lie south of the Malheur river and north of the Nevada 



ditch. It is claimed that if the district is formed capital can 

 be interested for construction work. 



F. S. Reider, of the Willamette Valley and Cascade 

 Mountain wagon road land grant, has been conferring wfth 

 local land owners in the McKay flat country, and will attempt 

 to amalgamate the two interests already organized, for the 

 construction of canals from the Ochoco river to utilize flood 

 water for irrigating the bench lands east and north of Prine- 

 ville. It is stated that he will also interest capital in a plan 

 to reclaim about 15,000 acres. 



WASHINGTON. 



The Union Gap Irrigation Company will increase the 

 capacity of its present canal and will construct a large power 

 plant. 



A gasoline drilling outfit has been installed on the W. W. 

 Robinson ranch five miles north of Ellensburg, to drill from 

 ten to twenty wells on 400 acres of orchard land. 



Reports from Chelan state that a movement is on foot 

 to irrigate the Howard flat country. The present plan is to 

 form a company, bond the land and pump water from the 

 Chelan river. 



The Lower Yakima Irrigation Company, which now has 

 16,000 acres under gravity system at Richland, will soon begin 

 improvements costing approximately $75,000. The system 

 will be extended to bring an additional 5,000 acres under 

 irrigation. 



Articles* of incorporation were filed recently by the 

 Klickitat & Simcoe Irrigation Company, capitalization, $250,- 

 000. This company will eventually water 10,000 acres of high 

 bench land, diverting its supply from the Klickitat river and 

 carrying it twenty miles. 



Farmers owning land under the Cascade canal in the 

 Ellensburg district wifl spend $300,000 in improving the 

 works to irrigate 10,000 acres of land. The project calls for 

 a tunnel from Dry creek through the hills for more than two 

 miles to a point near Indian lake. 



Work on the canyon division of the Tieton project is 

 rapidly nearing completion. Up at Bumping Lake, the river 

 is now being diverted through the outlet works and the river 

 section is being coffer-dammed and excavated. A force of 

 150 men are at work on this section. 



Preliminary surveys are being made by a consulting 

 engineer of the United States Reclamation Service for the 

 irrigation of the Quincy county portion of the Big Bend 

 district. Approximately 500,000 acres will be watered at an 

 estimated cost of several millions of dollars. 



The Okanogan irrigation project in northern Washing- 

 ton is now 96.5 per cent completed, and the Conconully dam 

 84.2. The entire flow of the south and west forks of Salmon 

 river has been 'turned into two small reservoirs at night and 

 utilized in the day time to operate hydraulic giants for the 

 purpose of sluicing material into the big dam. 



UTAH. 



The Newcastle Reclamation Company has filed applica- 

 tion for ten cubic feet of water from Big Creek in Wash- 

 ington county to irrigate 4,500 acres. 



Land owners have applied for water rights from Boulder 

 Creek, a tributary of Provo river, for the purpose of irrigat- 

 ing about 2,300 acres near Kamas. The stream will be 

 dammed. 



The Blue Ranch Canal & Reservoir Company of Theo- 

 dore has filed application with the state engineer for 24 sec- 

 ond feet of water from Rock creek, with which to irrigate 

 1,440 acres. 



Eugene Trimble, Geo. A. Snow, J. A. Melville and Prof. 

 Mead and Prof. lone were in Huntington recently looking 

 over the Buck Horn Flats proposition, where they contemplate 

 the construction of an irrigation system to reclaim 30,000 

 acres. 



F. H. Lott, J. P. Smith and Geo. C. Jones, of Denver, 

 and Wm. H. Smart, of Vernal, have filed an application for 

 the segregation of about 31,000 acres in the Salt Lake and 

 Vernal districts. Their plans include the construction of a 

 30-mile canal to supply water to lands in the old Uintah 

 reservation. The same company has applied for right to 

 divert 500 second feet of water from the Duchesne river at 

 a point near Myton. The company is capitalized at $1,000,000. 



