ARID WASHINGTON AND OREGON 



Washington, us a whole, hinges on the irrigation indus- 

 try. This will be the dependence for the support of a 

 dense population, and will have an important bearing on 

 the development of other resources. 



The most important tracts of arid land lie in the 

 central part of the State. Perhaps no other locality in 

 the arid region of the West is so abundantly watered or 

 so richly favored in natural navigation facilities, though 

 rivers must be improved before they can reach their high- 

 est utility. The Columbia river, the Yakima, the Snake, 

 and the Wenatchee are the principal sources of water 

 supply, though these have numerous valuable tribu- 

 taries. The irrigable district is inclosed between the 

 Cascade and Bitter Root ranges, and the drainage from 

 these high mountains furnishes more water than can ever 

 be used to advantage. 



The most important irrigation development thus far 

 accomplished is in the Yakima Valley. Here there are 

 nearly four hundred miles of canals, some of them very 

 large. The towns of North Yakima, Prosser, and Ellens- 

 burg are the chief points in the irrigated portions of the 

 valley. A number of canals have been constructed along 

 the Wenatchee river, and a promising development has 

 been begun on the plains of the Columbia, near its 

 junction with the Snake, in the neighborhood of Keime- 

 wick and Pasco. A good beginning has also been made 

 on the Walla Walla river near the Oregon boundary, 

 and on the Snake river at the point where it flows out 

 of Idaho into the Lewiston country. For long dis- 

 tances both the Columbia and Snake flow through 

 deep channels, so that their abundant supplies can 

 be utilized only by pumping. As yet this has not 



187 



