18 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



FOR RECLAMATION OF LANDS IN ARKANSAS 

 AND MISSOURI. 



RECLAMATION WORK IN NORTH DAKOTA. 



A bill of vital interest to a large section of Arkan- 

 sas has been introduced in Congress by Representative 

 Macon of the First district. It provides for the use of 

 $3,000,000 of the money that would otherwise become 

 a part of the reclamation fund for the drainage of 

 certain lands in Arkansas and Missouri. In a word, 

 the bill contemplates the construction of a suitable and 

 comprehensive system of drainage lands in the St. 

 Francis basin in the states of Arkansas and Missouri, 

 under the supervision of the Secretary of Agriculture. 



Mr. Macon is enthusiastic in the purposes of his 

 bill. To a Commercial Appeal correspondent he stated 

 today that it had been estimated that there are to be 

 drained 3,000,000 acres of the finest land in the world, 

 with soil from five to twenty feet deep. The estimated 

 cost of the drainage project is $3,000,000. Mr. Macon 

 stated that he saw no good reason why his bill should 

 not be adopted, as Chairman Lacey of the public lands 

 committee of the house had committed himself in sup- 

 port of it. Mr. Lacey said, among other things, that 

 he would have opposed this measure prior to the enact- 

 ment of the Smith law, extending the irrigation act to 

 the state of Texas, as that state had given none of its 

 public lands to the Union when it was admitted to the 

 sisterhood. Therefore if Congress was willing to lend 

 proceeds from the sale of public arid lands to Texas, 

 when no equities existed in favor of that state, he did 

 not see why Arkansas did not reap some benefit from 

 the reclamation act of 1902, when Arkansas had equi- 

 ties by reason of having given public lands to the 

 government. 



The provisions of the Macon bill are as follows: 



"That all the expense of such construction, includ- 

 ing salaries, and the maintenance of works for a period 

 not exceeding ten years, shall be assessed against the 

 lands proposed to be drained in proportion to benefits, 

 said assessments to be levied and the money to be paid 

 in not to exceed ten annual installments, under such 

 laws and regulations duly enacted by the legislatures 

 of said states of Arkansas and Missouri, as in the 

 judgment of the President of the United States shall 

 be adequate to insure the repayment to the United 

 States of all money expended under the terms of this 

 act; provided, further, that all money derived from 

 such assessments shall be paid into the treasury of 

 the United States by the said states of Arkansas and 

 Missouri, and when so paid shall be covered into the 

 reclamation fund, to be used under the provisions of 

 said act of June 17, 1902; and provided, further, that 

 any money paid in by the said states of Arkansas and 

 Missouri in excess of the total amount paid out by 

 the United States when the said works are completed, 

 including the maintenance of the works, shall be re- 

 turned to the said states of Arkansas and Missouri. 



"Sec. 2. That the Secretary of Agriculture is 

 hereby authorized and directed to perform any and all 

 acts and to make such rules and regulations as may be 

 necessary and proper for the purpose of carrying the 

 provisions of this act into full force and effect." 



"Three principal pumping projects are in various stages of 

 development in the extreme western part of North Dakota," 

 said Mr. H. N. Savage, supervising engineer. "The water 

 supply is from the Missouri River, the low fall of which neces- 

 sitates the diversion of water and lifting same direct from the 

 stream by pumps. These projects are exceedingly attractive, 

 as an abundant supply of lignite fuel is found in the vicinity, 

 and no long and expensive canal system will be required. 



"It is proposed to generate power at a point located di- 

 rectly at the mines, the electrical power generated there being 

 transmitted to the several pumping stations for two of the 

 principal projects. The first pumps will be placed on float- 

 ing barges. These will, of course, accommodate themselves 

 to changes, not only in water level but to the shifting of the 

 stream, the water being conducted from the pumps on the 

 barges through pipes with flexible joints to the main canal. 

 Additional sub-station lifts will be introduced wherever re- 

 quired. The water being taken from the nearest source of 

 supply directly to the land obviates any long conduits. 



"It is proposed at first to construct works to irrigate an 

 area of about 10,000 acres each on the Buford-Trenton, Nes- 

 son and Williston projects, provision being bade in the first 

 contracts for additional machinery, so that the areas to be 

 irrigated can be increased as rapidly as found desirable. 



"Williston Project -Advertisements for power generating 

 machinery and pumps for the Williston project have already 

 been made. The bids will be opened at Williston July 9th. 

 Specifications and drawings have been prepared for the main 

 canal and distribution system, and it is expected that bids 

 for their construction will be advertised for in the near 

 future. 



"Buford-Trenton Project- Drawings and specifications 

 for the Buford-Trenton pumping machinery and for the main 

 canal and distributing system are now being prepared, and 

 it is expected that these will be advertised in the near 

 future. It is proposed to generate the entire power supply 

 for both the Buford-Trenton and Williston projects at the 

 Williston main station, which is located three miles northeast 

 of the town of Williston. 



"Nesson Project Stock subscriptions are now being ob- 

 tained by the water users' association, and it is expected that 

 a contract can be handed to the secretary within a few weeks 

 authorizing the construction of this project. 



"Great interest is being manifested throughout the entire 

 West in this extensive development of irrigation by pumping. 

 There are many places throughout the arid region where 

 water can be conducted to land by pumps, and it is believed 

 that these experiments will inaugaurate a new era in the rec- 

 lamation of arid land. Great progress has been made in the 

 last two years in the design and construction of centrifugal 

 pumps, securing efficiency heretofore thought impossible, and 

 reducing the cost of operating to a point where it is expected 

 it will make feasible the taking up of many projects hereto- 

 fore thought to be impossible financially. 



"The results of the experiments with pumping machinery 

 in North Dakota will be watched with great interest by the 

 people in many other sections of the West where the Recla- 

 mation Service has located large areas above the line of 

 gravity supply. If the results are satisfactory they will 

 doubtless give a great impetus to the development of pumping 

 systems for irrigation by private capital all over the western 

 country." 



THE APPORTIONMENT OF FUNDS. 



O\ir readers are requested to send us in the 

 address of friends to whom you wish sample 

 copies of Irrigation Age mailed, X 



A few weeks ago announcement was made of the receipts 

 from the sale of public lands in the arid states and terri- 

 tories. When it was discovered that the increment to the 

 reclamation fund was considerably in excess of the esti- 

 mates there was much rejoicing throughout the entire West. 



Letters have been pouring in to the office of the reclama- 

 tion service from settlers, legislators, and others interested 

 in the movement, requesting the allotment of funds and 

 initiation of irrigation works in various localities. 



It is not within the province of the director to appor- 

 tion reclamation funds, but merely to call the attention of the 

 Secretary of the Interior to feasible projects. The engineers 

 of the reclamation service are not losing sight of opportuni- 

 ties of extending the work, and many projects have been 

 investigated and will be taken under consideration as soon 

 as the funds for their construction become available. The 





