216 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



A $40,000,000 WHITE ELEPHANT 



(Continued from page 202) 



beginning, nor ever admitted up to this time in so 

 many words, the acts of everybody at this time make 

 the matter perfectly clear. The very way in which the 

 aqueduct was built amounts to a practical demonstra- 

 tion that it was not intended as a municipal water 

 supply. No discrimination as to the kind of water 

 obtained was exercised, no attention given to reliability 

 of service, through the type of construction adopted 

 and the workmanship and material employed, and no 

 provision was made for any material part of the water 

 to be used for domestic purposes. 



Not only was very flimsy and defective work done 

 on many portions of the aqueduct, as shown by numer- 

 ous visible defects and failures to date, but a tunnel 

 was even bored crossing the San Andreas Fault at 

 some considerable depth below the surface, so that a 

 disturbance along the fault may, at any time, close up 

 the aqueduct and make its repair a very long and diffi- 

 cult undertaking. 



The other view expressed against the annexation 

 is held by those who realize fully that the city of Los 

 Angeles has been completely swindled by the aqueduct 

 project. They argue that it is useless to throw good 

 money after bad, and to attempt the realization of any 

 profit from this source. 



But the most weighty argument advanced is the 

 future ill effect which the annexation of the San Fer- 

 nando Valley will have on the city of Los Angeles. 

 The lands to be annexed are so located and of such a 

 character that they can never, in fact, become a part 

 of the city. They are separated from the city by a 

 high mountain range called the Santa Monica moun- 

 tains. They are not in any way contiguous to any 

 portion of the country which will ever be built up as 

 part of the city of Los Angeles. The only connec- 

 tion by a reasonable grade, with the city is through the 

 narrows of the Los Angeles river. It is, therefore, 

 clear that this tract can never in reality become a part 

 of the city in any physical sense. 



On the other hand this annexation is sure to lead 

 to endless complications and difficulties which must 

 inevitably arise by embracing, under the municipal plan, 



the distant tract of land mentioned for the purpose of 

 irrigating it and making it more valuable. In fact, it 

 would look to anyone, whether living in Los Angeles 

 or elsewhere, that it will make Los Angeles city more 

 or less of a joke. Were it really contiguous to the 

 city and so situated that it might, in time at least, be 

 inhabited by an urban population, such a statement 

 would, of course, not be true. 



Again it is argued that the use of the aqueduct 

 water on these lands can never make the project profit- 

 able. Most of the San Fernando Valley has to con- 

 tend with a very poor climate, being extremely hot in 

 the summer and very cold and windy in the winter. 

 Very small portions of it are adapted to the growth of 

 citrus fruits or other valuable horticultural crops, on 

 account of the cold and unfavorable climate. Most of 

 the lands are only adapted to deciduous fruits, sugar 

 beets, alfalfa and general farming. 



The very fact that it is proposed to sell the water 

 for one cent per hour inch, equal to 538 gallons, demon- 

 strates that this valley will not support profitably any 

 agriculture under a high cost of water. In this con- 

 nection it must be remembered that water for irriga- 

 tion in southern California, in localities similarly situ- 

 ated to the San Fernando Valley, costs from two to 

 four cents per hour inch, even when delivered and dis- 

 tributed by mutual water companies without profit. 



Were it not for taking up an unreasonable amount 

 of space, it could readily be shown by unanswerable 

 figures that there is no profit possible to the city of Los 

 Angeles from selling water at one cent for 538 gallons, 

 particularly when the water is made available by means 

 of mediums as costly as the Los Angeles aqueduct. 



It is not the purpose of the writer to say what 

 would be best for the people to do, whether to annex 

 the San Fernando Valley or not to annex it. The pur- 

 pose of this contribution is merely to give the facts and 

 legitimate conclusions therefrom, which unfortunately 

 show that the city of Los Angeles is in something of a 

 predicament, and will not have the smoothest sailing 

 whichever horn of the dilemma it chooses. Also to 

 show that this annexation proposition is a complete 

 confession of the charge that the aqueduct never was 

 anything but an irrigation scheme to enhance real estate 

 values. 



CLOVER SEED IS NEW IDAHO MONEY-MAKER 



A HUNDRED dollars an acre from clover seed ! 

 Sounds pretty good, doesn't it? A good many of 

 the farmers in the Twin Falls country are getting it. 

 The average returns from clover are considerably 

 above $50 an acre, which also sounds pretty well, be- 

 cause any farmer can have that much. If it had been 

 generally known, when the Twin Falls region was first 

 opened for settlement, that the country was so well 

 adapted to seed growing the farmers there would be 

 millions of dollars ahead now. But they are express- 

 ing no regrets and are making excellent use of the new 

 knowledge. Clover makes fine hay and the seed is of 

 such superior quality that the markets cannot get 

 enough of it. The market is world-wide. 



Clover is not the only profitable crop in the Twin 

 Falls county, however. They are raising big, fine 

 potatoes, sugar beets for the factory at Burley, seed 

 peas for a dozen of the big seed houses in the East ; 

 also onion seed, carrot and parsnip seed. The seed 



business is more than likely to grow until it embraces 

 both vegetable and flower seeds of many kinds. 



Grain crops in this region compare with the larg- 

 est yields of the world. The average wheat crop of 

 more than 100 farmers was above 50 bushels to the 

 acre, while some made records above 80 bushels per 

 acre. Oats frequently go more than 100 and as high 

 as 130 bushels per acre. Barley and rye are propor- 

 tionately productive. 



Another farm industry that is growing rapidly is 

 dairying. Stock can be fed here with great economy. 

 With 75,000 acres in alfalfa, yielding five to eight tons 

 per acre each season, it is apparent that dairying and 

 livestock growing are important factors in the develop- 

 ment of the new country. Hundreds of thousands of 

 sheep are brought in from the mountains in the fall 

 and are fed on the surplus alfalfa hay during the 

 winter. 



Apples and other fruits are receiving attention in 



