74 ■ IRRIGATION INVESTIGATIONS IN CALIFORNIA. 



in California. But even now we see closely related to the economic life of the pres- 

 ent and future population of this valle\' the problems of forest preservation; of man- 

 agement of the public grazing lands; of storage of vast quantities of waternow worse 

 than wasted; of the disposal of arable public lands to settlers; of rights, and limita- 

 tions of rights, belonging to riparian proprietors; of litigation alike endless, wasteful, 

 and demoralizing; of the dut\' of water for different soils and crops; of the means, 

 financial and engineering, whereby the larger undertakings of the future essential to 

 the highest good may be carried out, to the end that nature's precious gift of the 

 waters shall reclaim the utmost acre, sustain the utmost family, and create the utmost 

 home. Above all, there is the problem of providing a system of just administration 

 which shall secure to all their fair proportion of that element without which their 

 lands are worthless, but with which the\' are the source of certain income and endur- 

 ing prosperity. 



No locality illustrates more full}- the evils inseparable from existing laws and 

 customs in California and man}' other States than the Honey Lake Basin. So it 

 happens that in this typical instance we may study the general problem of conquer- 

 ing the arid wilderness of the West and laying bi-oad and deep the foundations of 

 civilization. 



THE WATER SUPPLY OF HONEY LAKE BASIN. 



In considering the irrigation problem of this region we are confronted at the 

 outset by the total absence of such exact information as should form the basis of 

 anything approaching a scientific study of the subject. California has no State 

 engineer and has not had for many years. During the existence of that office there 

 was not time to examine the conditions of this remote section, since settlement and 

 investment flowed to more famous parts of the State. Until the present inquiry 

 was begun the National Government made no effort to study the resources and 

 conditions of this locality. Under these circumstances the writer has no choice 

 except to make use of such scattered and superficial information as may be had from 

 the reports of private engineers, from his own observation, supplemented by 

 interviews with the old settlers, and from such facts as his assistants in this inquiry 

 have been able to gather in a short time during the past summei'. Information of 

 this kind is sure to be conflicting and conclusions based upon it certain to be 

 disputed, but the effort will be to deal with the subject fairly and conservatively 

 and to throw as much light as possible upon the complicated questions under these 

 disadvantageous circumstances. 



The most comprehensive report upon the whole subject of the water supply of 

 this region which the writer has been able to obtain is that prepared by William 

 Ham. Hall, civil engineer, in 1S95. Mr. Hall served as State engineer of California 

 for eight j'ears, and until the office was abolished. Mr. Hall's visit to the Honey 

 Lake region was a brief one, and it is onh' fair to state that it was undertsiken for 

 the purpose of reporting upon a private enterprise, rather than upon the broad 

 public question which we are now considering. Moreover, he obtained his estimates 

 of reservoir capacities and records of stream gaging from another engineer, as was 

 necessary under the circumstances, and this other engineer was in the employ of the 

 private enterprise, for tiie benefit of which the report was intended. Albert Halen, 



