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IRRIGATION IJ THE TERRITORIES.^
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EXritdCm FIIOM THE CALGAIU TlUBfWE
I t
«iivt>n asHciioii of country in South- ern Alhofta and Western AsBinihuia which can n<»t he tiuc'cestfully farmed continuonsiv withnnt irrigation ; and assiiiuin^ for the sake of arfjcniuent that, in a new ami sparaely nettit>d country, such as it is, the nece^sai-y vvoikh can not h« established on a siiflicientiy lar><e scale without aid from the Dominion parliament, the Hrst qui!.-.lion to consider is how far pariiani nt is in duty l)ound to render the needed assistance, uni to what ex- tent it would be justilied in expending public money for this purtorie.
To reach proper conclusivins on a matter of so nmoh moment both to the localities indicated and to the country as a whoie, we must enquire what the policy and practice of the parliament of I Canada has neen in the past in legard to proiuoting public improvements and in aiding public enterorises which, without the assist- ance of the public monies, could either not be established at any time or would still l)e in the womb of the future.
It is safe to say that during the life- time of Canada this proposition has held Kood, namely, that if it was ac- tually necessary in order to promote the prosperity of I he country and add to the general commerce and wealth that the aid of the govei-nment should be called in, then such aid should be forthcoming to a reasonable extent and within the means of the country. It is further held in Canadian practice and experience that if this aid be granted in money, the government sh(»uld not expect dividends on its in- vestment, being content with seeing the public objects of such assistance successfully accomplished.
We propose to show, as briefly a^ possible, that if the parliament of Canada is justified in voting public money and devising special legislation fi)r the beneHl of the farmer, the manu- facturer, the merchant, the miner, the shipping interests and fishing intertsis of Eastern Canada, it will be doubly justified in expending public money in establishing and operating Irrigation Woiks in Southern Alberta and Western Assiniboia. And in this connexion a glance at some of the enterprises and legislation sanc- tioned by parliament relating specially to the Eastern Provinces, is in order.
1. The Intercolonial Rail .vay of Canada, designed to promote trade be- tween tlje Maritime Provinces and the Province*; of Ontario and Quebec, waa built by the government alone, im- m(?diately after confederation, and has ever since been operated by them at ft dead loss to the general revenues of Canada. The government have alto gether an original construction invest- ment of some $44,000,000 in the Inter-colonial Railway and connected branches. They have paid interest on that investment at the rate of about 4 per cent., for various periods during the last 22 years, which would amount to about another $13,000,000. And it has, besides, lost in running the road probably a further $8,000,000. At the very least the government have invested up to this time in the Inten olonial Railway and its branches .$65,000,000. Still, the road was considered a necessity to thd development of Inter-Colonial trade in the Eastern Provinces ; it has helped to create a great inter- colonial traffic ; it has carried the products of those
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
provinces back and forth at a very cheap rate; and has thus proved a great benefactor to the country traversed. Many of its branches are purely local lines, constructed foi the convenience and advantage of certain localities alone, although built solely out of public funds. Every resident of the Northwest Territories is taxed to support the Inter-Colon lal Railway, and these local branches (including the Prince Edward Island lines), and to make good the money sunk in them and the deficits caused by cheap freight rates, of which the farmers, millers, manufacturers, lumbermen, fisheimen miners and merchants of the Eastern Provinces receive the principal if not the sole benefit.
2. Take the Canadian canals as an example of a necessary but non-divid- end paying expenditure. These have been constructed by the Government of Canada at a cost of not less than $60,000,000, exclusive of repairs. They were constructed in order to overcome the obstructions which Nature had placed in the path of successful naviga tion of the St. Lawrence, Ottawa and other rivers and waters in the prov inces of Ontario and Quebec. (The cost of the Sault Ste. Marie canal, un- tlnished, is not taken into account). They have not paid even working ex- penses, to say nothing of the cost of construction, or the interest on the capital put into them. Still, they are regarded as one of the most valuable of the Dominion's assets ; they have certainly tended to cheapen the rates of transportation for the products mainly of Ontario and Quebec ; and <^hey thus render a great public service. To the loss of capital and interest and in working expenses, on these canals, the people of the Northwest contribute every day of their lives, and will for all time.
3, Next in order we refer to Parlia. ment's Piotectiye Policy. This policy was adopted 15 years ago by Parlia- ment without reference to Northwest interests ; and in fact the Northwest Territories had nothing (whatever to
Biiy m regard to its acceptance, not having repreHentation in Parliament. Without entering into a controversy as to the merit-' or demerits of a Pro- tective Policy foi- Canada, it may he held that, whatever its advantages may be, it is not eriously denied that Protective Duties mean a conHidernble tax on all consumers — that is, on all of the five millions and odd of people con- stituting our Dominion population.
The party favoring this policy— about one halt of the whole of tne population —maintain that these duties are im-
fiosed for the benefit of the country at arge. While they may bear hard in some quarters — especially in the North- west— it is claimed that they have been instrumental in adding an iin-
Kortant element of national strength, y rendering us to a ccmsiderable ex- tent independent of the manufactured products of tther countries. It is further claimed that these duties build up the towns and cities of the Eastern Provinces, and the claim cat. not be denied. At the best, the advantage is mainly sectional ; what there is goes chiefly to the Eastern Provinces which do the manufac.uring for the whole Dominion ; and for the gain chiefly of the Eastern Provinces we in this west- ern country are specially taxed under a Protective Taritf designed for the genet al advantage.
4. There is the bonusing of Railway Companies and Steamship Linef^ The Canadian Parliament has done this on a matjnificent scale. Steamship lines are subsidized to carry passen^e s and mails and natural and manutactured
Eroducts to China and Japan, — to Ingland— to Australia — to the West Indies. Not only so but the Provincial Governments are supplied from the Dominion chest with the funds to suo- sidize subsidiary Unes of steamers on all their coasts. This is done to stimu- late trade, cheapen the cost of freight and travel, and conduce to the general prosperity of the country.
It is the same with Railways. To say nothing of the subsidies to the great lines of communication, such as the Grand Trunk, the Canadian Pacific and other lines that received enormous subsidies and bonuses, there have been heavy subsidies to ei'ery line of railway built in any of the provinces, many of which (besides the Inter-Colonial branches) are purely local lines, even the names of which are not known outside of the province in which they are constructed. These roads were so assisted ny the Canadian Parliament
exi
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ou ke he lae
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IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
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bucait-ie tUuy were declareti ro be necessary to the deveiopruenc (if th<» tributary country and il8 corauierce. Tbey were intended "to give the farm- ers access to the best markets," to cheapen the cost ot transportation of farm products, lumber, coal, minerals store Kill '<ls, etc., and thus "promote the progress and development of the country." It is claimed that in this way successive Dominion KoverumentH have rendered an immense service to the agricultural and commercial in- terests of Canada; and it is not proposed to dispute the claiui. We do know that in the Northwesr we are helping to pay what it has cost the Federal Gi)verr me.it to thus promote the pub- lic good. This cost to the country has been something enormous, there hav- ing been paid in bonuses to railways by the Canadian Parliament from first to la»i, no less a sum than $145,000,000 io $160,000,000 in cash, beside-i land grants amounting to 50,000,000 acres, equal in value to at least another $150,0(X),000. Thi<^ is in addition to un- paid loans to railways of over $21,000,- 000.
5. Ill various other ways the system of bonusing, aiding, promoting, stimu- lating, has been carried on at the public expense. Public monies and public lands have been freely given as long as Parliament could say: "This is done to promote the development and help on the prosperity of the coun- try." Take a f€W additional instances of (special legislation and special expenditures "for the general advant- age."
The Government, for instance, main- tain at great .expense Experimental Farms bringing in little or no revenue; they have Dairy Commissioners trav- elling and educating the people in cheese and butter making, and they actually engage in the manufacture of butler to show 'how to doit." The expense and labor are incurred for the general advantage but espe iaily for the beni>tit of the farming population. Bounties are paid to fi.-^hermen out of the public funds. A Fishery Intelli- gence BureHU is maintained during a considerable poition of the year to notify fishermen on the Atlantic coast of the appearance of schools of fish at certain points. Fish Hatcheries are maintained at great expense in all the Provinces. All these expenditures are claimed jo be for the general good, al though the advantage may seem to b • largely local in the practical working out. l.iO Post OflBce Department i-s kept up to a state of efflcienf^y at a heavv annual loss, the deficits for the last 2ti years aggregating $13,000,000;
but the advantage loth>« public war- riors the extra expeudituro. Manu- facturers are paid out of the treasury drawbacks on their products exported from the country; and although thitt may look as if more for the individual than the general good, no complaint is made. Lighthouses and Buoys and Beacons are erected at all important p(»ints on the coast and in interior waters for the special protection of shipping. There is no direct cash re- turn to the treasury but the interests of navigation and commerc? are hell to warrant the expenditure.
Thp system of granting Government aid where it is actually needed, and even where such aid makes mainly for local advantage, having been sti etched to fjover so wide a field, why should the line be drawn at Irrigation? Why should the government lands and the government monies not be utilized to promote the development of the coun- try and the interests of agriculture and trade in this certain and invaluable way ? Bringing water to arid lands means bringing wealth to the country; adding to the prosperity of the country; ensuring the yield of crops; rendering the- farmer independent of the draw- backs of climate. Are these gains not as important to the interests of the country as a whole as the cheapening of transportation in cert<ain districts or Canada ? If it is wise to run the Inter- colonial railway at a public loss in or- der that the Ontario farmer may mar- ket the product of his farm cheaply in the Maritime Provinces, and that the latter may have cheap food, on what principle can the Dominion Parliament refuse to come to the farmers' and the country's aid in Southern Alberta and Western Assiniboia by establishing Irrigation Works which will ensure crops in every season ? If the Goyern- ment and Parlinment consider it wise and profitable, in order to build up inter colonial trade, to transport coal from Nova Scotia to Dntario and Quebec at a dead loss for every ton carried over their railway, and if they think it just to tax the country as a whole for the benefit of this special trafBc, what excuse can they offer for not lending a helping hand to bi ing into abundant fertility a large area of country which only needs this assist- ance to become the garden of Canada? Is it more advisable that the Gov- ernment funds suould be expended on
'^*^ IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIVCS.
local railways in the Bast, which in some cases have no uxcuse (or bein^, than it is to nialce an earnest effort to give priceless value to niillionH of ncies of valuable lands to which nature has denied a generous rainfall ? And how long do our Eastern fellow citizens suppose we will remain content to help make up the deficiency on such tran- sactions as we have indicated, 'f we are refused this act of justice on pre- cisely the same lines of public policy ? Either abolish all bonusing, make every investment by the Government pay a dividend, or extend to this cc^un- try in connexion with the crying want of a considerable area of i erritory, the same generous principle which has been applied so liberally in the east.
Now the tens of millions of dollars already simk in bonuses, the hundreds of millions or more paid by the people to engraft the protective systsm on the Dominion, the uncounted millions spent in the construction of great public works which do not bring in a dividend, are gone for ever. What- ever the gain to the country at large in commercial advantages or the sav- ing individually to the citizen in the cost of living, one thing is certain, the Government Treasury will not see one dollar of this money returned to it, No such loss to the Treasury will result from Government financial aid to irri- gation in Southern Alberta or Western Assiniboia. There will be no loss but an absolute gain from t he start. The Govei-nraent with its millions of acres, as the largest land owner in the country, will be providing a cash mar- ket for every acre of its land that it irrigates — lands which will then command the highest prices of any that will be open to purchase.
Outside of its own lands, the Gov- ernment will not irrigate an acre of railway or private land without making the owner pay for the water; and if it be objected that the Govern- ment should not be dealing in water or engaging in unusual transactions of that character, the answer is very simple.— Refer to the Blue Books and note the Government's transactions with the mill owners and factories that line its canals; look at 'ts business transactions with all the merchants and shippers per railway from Quebec to Halifax and throughout the Mari- time Provinces; and take notice of its dealings as nearly the greatest land proprietor of the Continent, with the thousands who buy or homestead pub- lic lands and lease its timber and mineral lands. This objection, there- fore, is one calling for very slight
consideration and is no' to lie enteitninid for a moment in view of the great beneHts to accrue from the government having it in their power to (l> in a large way afid for te«»s of thousands of people a work which private capital can not yet possibly overt/Ike.
Tlie incidental j^ain to the govern- ment from l)eing in a posiLi«)n to supply water to l heir arid and at pres- ent worthless lands will be enormous. Thus of thousiJinds of fiirmers in the United States give the preference to irrigated lands over ail others, and any number cf these stand ready to enter this country (where local tax- ation is so light conipaii'd with the heavy burthens they are compelled to hear in their |»:e-enl: htmus) and to buy these lanas at reasonat)le prices; and it is a safe prediciion that Canadi- ans too will give a preference to such lands. Our iriigated lafuls would be a new and fresh attract iwri to all nevv comers Tlie Dominion would be strengthened by the flow of popul- ation into Sou' hern Albetfa. and Weatern Assiniboi t, which wojiI I tet in at ontie. And thousands «)f new settlers would come f:om outside to contribute to the t(»n>umi)lion of duty-paying goods, thus swelling the Dominion revenues at once.
What would be the gain to Central and Southern Alberta and Westeri: Assinttioia ? Siinply incalculable. Towns such as Cilgary, Macleod. Lethbridge and Medicine Hat wool i be suri-ouniecT by a num m-ous and prosperous agricultural poptilation, whose crops would be ensvired from year to year beyond all peradvenMire. At the railway or trail crossings of all our large j-ivers would soring up small towns, to be the local centies of pros- perous settlements. ('heese making, butternmking, straight farming,niixed farming, stock raising, fl.mr milling, and kindred industries would flourish beyond all precedent in (Canada. A prosperous farming population would establish the future of the towns and create a trade that could not be taken away. Whatever may be done in farming or dairying? in other parts of the Dominion would be excelled here, where the rich soil only awaits the fertilizing influence of our mountain waters to produce eveiy thing that can be produced from the earth, not ex- . epting the finest fruits. What are now the most arid paits would then be the the most fertile; and lands now un- occupied, which can not even be given away, would then be the most valu- able. The cost of production of beet.
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
mutton, cheeso, butter, hay, irrain, ere, vvuuld bu ruduced to a luininiuui, theexporieiH (M)f ulliriiKated cniiiitries buin(< repeati'l here.
When one ounsiderM for what futile pur(>i>s(^-< uri.i recklesa experiinetittt the public money of Cauad* has bi-en expemlfil in the piiHt, there ia no rea- son tor any false inode^ry on the purt of Alberians or AHsiniboianfl in put- thiK forward, respectfully but firmly, a claim on the parliament of the lio- niinion for the I'xpenditurs of a rea onabU^ sum in the construction of Iriiration worlis. We huve the beat country undei the sun, and we asR the K'lvernment to help u:!i (as they have helped other provmces and districts) in itu development. We nslc this not merely for our own advantage, but for the general K^od of the country, which is deeply iniei-ested in the pros- porous buildmur up of this portion of the Dominion. We ask for equitable treatment and the frank consideration of our wishes. We know our wants and necessities hotter than others can tell us : and we claim that, beyond all things necessary t'O the prosperity of Southern Alberta and Western As- siniboia, stands this question of the construction of Irrigation Works, and that' by the government of the Dorain^ ion.
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[No. 2 ] Having made a claim upou the Do- rainion Parliament, for the general geod of the country, to aid Southern Alberta and Western Assiniboia by the construction of Irrigation Works, it is in order to show what Irrigation has done for other countries. Al- though the application of the ptinciple may be new- in Canada, Irrigation is a very old method of promoting agricul- ture in many parts of the world. The utilization of the overflow of the Egyp- tian Nile by means of canals and ditches and t^mbanknients, dates very many centuries hack, and travellers to this day tell u.s uf the wonderful crops they have seen secured over great areas in that country 'ly means of irrigation, the methods being none of the best and the intelligence of the farmers be- ing below par. Irrigation in India has been followed ever since Europeans knew anything of the land, and there are found the remains of gi'eat canals
and waterways which must have been cudstructed at enormous cost far back in the ages, and were allowed to become useles-4, ' Many of these canal* have been restored and are now dolnff over again, under British rulers, the great work which ceuturies ago they performed under native pi inces. That Irrigation plays a great part in the development of the agricultural inter- ests of India may bet inferred from the fact that under the goverument of that country there has been expended in the last twenty-five ynars over $150,* 000,000 in reclaiming land or making it secure to the cultivators by new water supply works, and that in this way Irrigation has added to the cultivable area not less than 30,000,000 acres in the period mentioned. More than half of this hu.s been accomplished in thn last tif teen years. As regards the wis- dom of the investment we have it on good authority that "the profit thereon is large, though obtained from indirect methods, such as land revenue and the increase for industry found in the security and peace of the Empire. A considerable proportion of the works, however, have yielded a fair per cent, of profit for several years on the large capital invested. In the Northwest provinces, for example, where the Ad- ministration has been able to concern itself with some simple questions, though of great magnitude, such as the reclamation of new land, the restor- ation on purely engineering grounds of old works, the renewal and settlement of land workers or lyots, and the fram- ing and execution of simple laws and regulations based on old customs and rules, the direct profit resulting on capital in vojited has been sufficient to satisfy the oiost exacting of investors. As nearly all know, the cultivated land in China, especially in the vicinity of the great rivers, yields larger returns than any wheie else in Mie world. This is due mainly to Irrigation in which the Chinese are singularly proficient. In Italy Irrigation is a very old story. Though the greater part of Italy is
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
blessed with a generous rainfall, Irri- gation is carried on even in thotie most highly favored districts more success- fully than elaewhertf in Europe. The Italian government hasspentenormous Buma in providing the great canals, and it is no uncommon sight to see canal rising above canal in the higher elevations or hill > ides. The Italians seem, better than any other European people, to understand the value of water thus applied to the land, secur- ing several crops annually from the same land. In Francw Irrigation is common. The canals which ramify a large section of the country, are for the double put pose of internal naviga- tion and Irrigation and play a great part in developing and enriching the better portion of France. In many parts of A.ustro-Hungary there are Irrigation works, many ot them of private ownership, under which large tracts of land are either reclaimed or improved and in all cases made exceed- ingly fertile and profitable. In Eng- land, says a reliable authority, crops of grass upon irrigated fields of a total weight of more than eighty tons per acre, have been reported by trustwor- thy English farmers in one season. The alluvial lands along the upper Mersey have been fertile "water meadows" tor centuries past. Great attention has been given to Irrigation in Australia in recent years. Commis- sioners from Australia have visited the United States and Euiopean coun- tries examining the local Irrigation works, and have presented to their respective governments very elaborate reports. - Large sums have been ex- pended in constructing expensive works for utilizing the waters of the few great rivers of that vast contin- ent. It is in the United States, how- ever, that Irrigation has of late years received its greatest development and won its greatest victories, and in this connexion it may be stated that so important has the Irrigation interest become that there has been establish-
ed in connexion with the Department of Agriculture at Washington, D.(\, an •'Office of Irrig»itinn Inquiry," now in charge of Major Richard J. Hintc^n as Special Agent. In his report for 1802 the Special Agent thus Humrnar- ixes some of the recent achievements of Irritratiim in the United StateH: — ••In the past seven years the actual '•area of reclamation by irrigation and "cultivation has increased from nboiit " 5,000,0()() acres to at least 8,020,520 "acres. There are small areas ucat- " tered throughout the region beyond " the 100th meridian west from Green- " wich, of which no reports have been " made, sufficient in total amount to " increase the figures to over 8,600,000 "acres. Bui greater activity than this "addition of 3,500,000 acres to thn area "of cultivable land ia seen in the '•growth of important hydraulic ••works. Under ditch this office "repoits for 1891 an estimated area of ••18,286,207 acres. The largest pro- •• portion of this great addition to the "cultivable area will be made avail- "able for use within the next yeai', " and by the opening of the World's "Columbian exposition the United " States may anticipate the cultivation "by means of irrigation of at least ••17,000,000 acres of land that within '• the past decade has been declared by ••learned authority wholly irreclaini- "able, worthless for agriculture, " useless for tree planting, and hardly '• fit for even the grazing of scragcry ••sheep and broad horned steer. Under ••projected or partially constructed ••works nearly 5,000,000 acres may be •'added, making in all as now reclaim- "edorin process of reclamation not ••less than 2c,000,000 acres." This official statement gives in few words a clear outline of the great work that Irrigation has accomplished in a few years |n the United States as regards the area reclaimed or secured. Some interesting particulars will be learned from a perusal of the following table, which shows how this wonderful work
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IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
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has progrejBoil in individunl stutes:—
Undur Under oultl- ditf*h. vaiion. Acres. AoreH
Arizona ... 600,000 315.000
ralifornia 4,fiOO,000 3,.VVl.0OO
Colorado 4.200,000 1,757.102
Idnhn l.iMO.OOO 330 00a
KaiiHuH-NVuf 970 loniritudu. 000,030 t*20,0(J0
Montuna I,;2fi0,000 410000
N«)bra-ka-Wof973 1oni{ilude 200,000 40,000
Nevada 160.000 100,000
New Muxico 700,000 4*5,000
Noiih Dakota 2fi0) 2000
MrctfoD -K of Uoi^cadoH 125.000 45.000
aouthDjkot' 100,000 51,000
'I'oxas - W of 97 o longitude . . 350,000 15i),000
Ulah 736,226 423,361
WaMhInRton— E of CaRcadv a . . 175.000 75,000 Wyoming 8,038.481 180,000
Totals 16367,794 8,026,526
This was the state of things at thn end of 1891 -over 8.01)0,000 acreincttml- ly under cultivation; over 16,000,000 actually under ditch, and, us Major Hinton explaiuH, works projected or partially constructed which would bring the whole area under irrigation in 18U3 up to 23.000,000 actes. There may be added to the above table the further fact thai artesian wells are much utilized in seme States for it- rigation. Oalifornia had over 8,600 such wells ; Utah over 2,800 ; Colorado over 4,600; Texas over 1,000; South Dakota 060; the number in other States bringing the total up to over 13,096. Major Hinton's roport contAins a number of additional details of the progress made in the separate States. As these all go to show the deep in- terest taken in the question of Irrigation and the steady advance that is being made on all sides, a number of quotations are here given for the information of our Canadian readers. It will be noticed* that the facts stated relate more particularly to the advance made in the year under review— 1891. The report says:—
"In Nebraska, where "in 1891 there was not a single irrigation enterprise in practical operation, there are now (1892) several scores of separate works under way in the western counties, by mean-; of which a large area will be brought under cultivation, heretofore given over entirely to stock. In West- ern Kansas the beneficial influences, direct and indirect, have been as strongly felt as in the Dakotas. When
the work began in 1800 the countiM west of the lOOth meridian of longitude were in danger of iieing entirely aban- doned for tigriculturul purposes. . . Knrouragement has also been given, by the large work done during the nasi twenty-one months, to ngriculrur'oleD- terprisnand iiulusuy in South West Colorado, in Eastern New Mexico and throughout Texas west of the 97th meridian."
• • • • « •
"If the lines of cultivation and migration during 1801 were laid down upon a map they would show within the arid region of the United States movements so deHned as to ninke a distinct parallelograir). In the region between the 07th meridian and the foothills of the Rockies, 'almost from north to south, there has been a decid- ed growth of settlement and a marked increase ot cultivation. The more dis- tinctly thiit growth has t)een brought under the influence of irrigation de- velopment, however supplied, the more certainly it shows evidence of persaan- ent prosperity."
• • • « • «
"The increased feeling of security in the Dakotas has been followed by as marked an increase in acreage and production. The Black Hills portion of South Dakota, tor example, has al- most escaped attention during the pHndency of the present enquiry and discussion. In 1^ it was estimated that some 13,000 acres were cultivated chiefly tor forage and cereals, by mirans of irrigation supplied by small ditches. In 18'iO the area so cultivated was esti- mated at 20,000 acres. In his final re- port as geologist for the Dakotas in the artesian and underflow investiga- tion. Prof. Garry E Culver places tne area of irrigated lands in the Black Uills section at 60,000 acres. In Neb- raska and Wyoming, moving south- ward on the eastern line of the paral- lelogram, there will be found to be a considerable increase of population and a much larger proportionate in- crease of elfort in the direction of ex- tended reclamation works over the arid lands. The estimated increase for the year in Wyoming is 856,700 acres. That of Nebraska for works partially finished or in progress, shows an esti- mated increase* of 135,000 acres under ditch and of 30,000 acres under culti- vation." • ••••«•*
"Both North and South-Eastern Colorado have been benefitted by the movement under leview. Many small enterprises are also recorded in the
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
eastern portion of that State. A spec- ial developiiit'nt of Basterri Colorafto ia the growing interest and effort in and for the estiibliHhiuent of reset . >irH, both iaiKu ivnd giuall. The valley of the Arlconttas is marlced by the pro- greHS of a number of preat enternrises, one of which is disttuguished by its etfortH to utilize open deprectsions south of the river for stoiage purposes. One engineer reports seeing in the eastern portion of Ine State from an elevated point liU storage liasins, small lakes or ponds lying within the range of his vision One of I he chief objects of t his eifort is to obtain a Kupply for and store the same during tne winter months ho as to be able to keep the ditches running wh.^n planting begins in the Npiing. ... In spite of the argu uenlH relative to loss by evapora- tion and the waste cluimed to follow all attempts to bring mountain suppli- es long distances without higli altitude storage, the tendency is quite marked towards a development of storage bas- ins upon the plains. • • *• « « ••
"t'he North and South lines of the parallelogram of movement and de- velqpment already indicated runs on the north chiefly througli Wyomng and the southern portion of Idaho and further north up the valley of the Yel- lowstone and over the Rocky Moun- tains at Missoula into the PaciHc North west, east of the Cascade Range. The increasfc of population has not been large but steaay in character, while the increase in reclamation enterprises is on a decidedly large scale and the investments made and eut erprisesbo wn in construction point decidedly to an early effort to encourage ana direct active settlement. Several great areas are opened up under this north- er n line. Perhaps the most direct increase of cultivation and the system- atizing of necessary works upon the north is to be seen in the OiUitin Valley, Montana, where irrigation has practically been a success for the last 25 years. New and extensive areas that will soon invite occupation are to be found in Southern Idaho, Eastern Washington and Central Montana east and west of the Rockies. Extensive reclamation works are in progress in that state, but considerable attention must yet be given to orpfanizing ad- ministration of the water and occu- pation of the land."
• •••♦• o
"Another most notable development is in the matter of storage. Colorado is especially active in that direction The State Engineer's report for the 2
?>ear8 from 1888 to 18U0 shows the ollowing total •:—
Reaervoirs rooordod in his oflloe ap to 1800 am
nitohcHon fllo tht-rn ia88-No 2,fl7l»
KHtiinalod nnd Hia'ud niilunHu of Hamo.... 1U.022* Noof I'itoli xpprupnutiuiiH rccurdod from
1»88 to olow of IWIO 1.380
At an eHf.lniatii of 1 iniloM to each diloh
thu total will bo-mill n 6,S20
'The report for 1886 88 shows thn total of 74 storage reservoirs, most of them smaller than the later constiuc- tiouH, while a number of them are only intended for stock purposes. The increase in 2 years has been 280, nnd if we are to allow a fllmg of one half more, or 140 for the year 1801, it would Increane this class of construc- tion, more of which are under wav, to 494 storage sites. A great many of these — the majority in all probability— be- long to the clasd of plains or open valley storage, already referred to. The IncrenMe in ditches and mileage for the past yenr would rertainlv be one halt the total given foi 2 years covered bv thi* Stale Engineer's report — 600ditcn filings with an estimated length of 2,710 miles. Adding these totals together we shall have for Colorado at the close of 1891 an estimate: —
Reservoir Sites and oonstraolion 401
Of ditches constructed and under way 8,600 Uf mileage recorded and estimated 18,163
At 300 acres per mile this will urivo a
total as under ditch— aoreo 4,445,000
» «S> I'-
[No. 8.] In a paper on Irrigation published by the Agricultural Department of the Colorado Exhibit at the World's Co- lumbian Exposition entitled "The Resources. Wealth and Industrial Development of Colorado," the ad- vantages of the system as exemplified in that State are thus stated :—
"The superior advantages of Irri- gation are manifest. The farmer can raise standard crops each successive year without failure. Ills land, unlike the soil of the olde** State in rain coun- tries, requires comparatively little fertilization. Ordinarily land will hold its standard productiveness for 10 years; after that fertilization becomes more or less a necessity. The sediment deposited bv irrigation is a constant fertilizer of itself, while the yearly rotation oi crops keeps the land in a healthy productive condition. The farmer has the entire control of the making of his crops after germination, inasmuch as when he needs water he can apply it as the case require. No
.
8M 2,fl7»
1.380
4M y 8,609 .. 18.169
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
crop is biirat up by continued drouth. His grai'^H, grasHea and vegetables are guperior in uuality in not having too much but just enough moisture tn times when they most ueed it."
From the same woric we learn that in Colorado by moans of irrigation, and that alone, crops of all kinds are* successfully grown in the foot hills and mountains at an elevation of 7,600 feet, or more than double the altitude of Oalgary. 8an Luis VaMey in Rio Orande County, is an irrigated district, and it has thi«) elevution, and of this it is said: "It is in this valley that (Tops of oats have attained the highest growth and cnlire fields of wheat and oats have reached the liiggesb average and the greatest m-iximum in the State." The eastern |M)rtion of Rio Orande County was considered for a long time fit^ for noth- ing but stock raising. Although at an elevation of 7,600 feet iriigation has curned it into one of the best agiiruJ- tural sertions of the 8tate.
In Boulder County, 5,000 to 14,000 feet elevation, fruit grows to perfection on all irrigated lands, and all the cereals and vegetables are surcesdf ully raised with heavy yield. Creameiii s are a success and bee culture an im- portant industry. The same U t rue of Costi'la, Delta and Eagle counties. Fremont County, which contains both mountains and pl-tius, with the aid of irrigation "yields every vegetable, fruit or farui product that can bo grown in the lit i! ude of St. Louis or Washington." Fruit lands sell at $600 to $000 an acre. Grand County at a high elevation; Gunnison Coufity 4,500 feet lo 7,500 feet altitude; Jefferson County, 1-jrpely foothills and moun- tain, make the same report. I ^a Plat te County has higli mountains in the north, foothills and high m^sir in the upppr half, broad Viillt-ys and extensivu mesas in the sunt horn half. With iniuration the yield of nil crops is enoruious in nil parts. Las Animas County has an elevation of 4,000 feet on the ploins and 13,000 in the mountains. It has
85,000 acrcfl nnd«r r«Mnroira on tb* prairie. It produoM ■uco«Mfallf all cereals, graaaes and v6g«tablM and some fruits. Dairying Is a ■ucc—t. Logan County has a greater elevation than Calgary— 8,000 fset; under irri- gation wheat la the leading prod|pet* All the cereals, grassea and vege- tables are successfully grown. Mesa ('ounty has an altitude of 4,000 fee^. Fruits of all kinds as well as all 4gri- cultural products have their highest de« velopment here on the irrigated lands. Morgan County, elevation 8,000 feet, has a generous rainfall, hut agriculturi* with iriigation is pr-eferred. Pitkin (\iunty., the altitude of the vallejra being 7.600 feet, produces under irri- gation, alfalfa, (5 tons to the acre); clover, (8 tons to the acre); timothy, (3 tons); nativegia8s(2tons); potatoes, (0 tons); turnips, (12 tons); cabbage (12 tons), and so on. Most of the small fruits grow in great profusion. Growers County (8,600 feet) has been by irrigation transformed from a cattle lange into a rich agricultural region,— all within the last 3 years —"producing all the cerealf^, ^/rasses and root crops, and the fiuits of tree and vine." la Pueblo County (« l^vation 6200 feet, the lowest altitude of the vhU* ys being 4,400 feet) "all thes.' lands are product- ive wherever water can be applied."
In 1870 there were in the state of California only 7,086 lemon trees and 38,991 orange tree;*. The following table from jtue teport of Mr. B. M. Le Long, secretary of the state board of agriculture (to use the words of Maj. Hintoii) "wlil show the amount of increase since the general adoption of irrigation" up to 1802:—
Orange Treen Loin<m Trees
Not Not
Bear- Bear- Bear- Bear- ing ing ing ing
Rotit hern 1162,357 2.6!M,000 83,572 261,313
Southern coas*;
and Hinge 16.514 07,156 8 565 4.<t,8A2
CoMKtRaiiKO 1,211 901 261 255
8»n Juaquin Val- ley 3.665 l0.69.-> 1,387 3.260
The I ay Counties 1,470 6.530 1,481 2.071
Saciatnonio 5.600 141291 l,77H 1.461
F ot i nils ll.Olfl 139,643 1,459 3.7.'6
Nor.horn 74 125 44
l.< 25.860 2.932.341 97,630 S18.981
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
Total orange and lemon treen In Cali-
fomiaftlSW 4,374,721
Of the Perris diH^rict in California, whei'Q irrigation has been liberally in- troduced, it is stated on the highest authority, that the value of the land before the district adopted irrigation wa? only froai $10 to $20 per acre. "The present selling value of the bar^ land is $50 to $75, subject to district asseismenta, while in a short time the unpianted land will bring $100." The following table, compiled by the state engineer for the purpose of making an estimate of the debt-paying ability of the district will show whether or not the district irrigation system will, pay as a commercial investment on the part of those who buy the land and make farms, orchards, homes and towns thereon:—
Value when Irrigation Value in Value in Commences 10 years 20 years
Farming lands 92,000,000 $1,000,000 ^6,000,000
Improvements 100,000 1,000,000 2,000,000
Town property and improvemoute.... 150,000 50O,C0O 1,000,000
¥2,250,000 95,600,000 $9,000,000 The total co<at of the enterprise per acre of the entire district would be aboufc 931.10, pay- able in insttilments running over 20 years.
The results of irrigation at North Yakima and vicinity in Washington state are thus summarized from Majoi Hinton's report: —
Irrigable land before the construc- tion of ditches was valued at $2 per acre. Its present value with wat« .• is estimated at $40; without water, $5, The crops are fruits, wheat, oats, potatoes, alfalfa, vegetables, hops and grasses. The yield is estimated at 50
f)er cent, more than on non-irrigated ands, however favorable the latter are situated fnr natural sub-irrigation.
In Kittikas county, Washington, the stock in West Side Irrigating Co. (one of the latest organized) is owned by about 40 farmerp, and the water is supplied to about 10.000 acres. Before irrigation the land was worth $1.26 an acre; with water supplied it ranges from $25 to $150 an acre. . . . The general price of land under ditcb would be about $60 an acre. . . . Wheat on irrigated land returns 60 bushels per acre, barley 50, oats PO.and other crops in the same proportion. In the Yakima valley there are
farmers who bayo offered the half of their holdings as a gift to secure com- plete irrigation for the remainder.
In Walla Walla county, where fruits are largely grown, the yiold per acre under irrio^ation is from $180 an acre for tomatoes to $840 for blackberries and $600 for grapes.
In Montana, under irrigation in the Gallatin valley, the average crop yield per acre is potatoes 400 bus., oats 30 to 60 bus., wheat 40, barley 50 to 100, averaging 75. Without irrigation the yield is not over one-third of those- Irrigation begins the last of May or Ist June. The largest area under irriga- tion in some parts 1:^ l.-iid down to grass and hay. Irrigated land is worth $35 to $50 per acre; land with- out water $5 tD $7. In Yellowsttme county without irrigation nothing can be grown; with ii rigation the returns are— wheat 25 to 40 bus., oats 50 to 70, potatoes 300 to 400 bus. Bosv county irrigated land is assessed at $100 and sells at $150; non-irrigated sells at $5. The effect of providing irrigation on
the settlement of the country is shown by the following paragraph taken from a Montana piper during the present year :—
"The North Pork Canal and Reser- voir Co., operating near Chinook, have completed their dam and canal suffic- iently to irrigate 9,000 acres this spring. As soon as spring opens work will be resumed, and by fall they will have canal and reservoii*s enough con- structed to irrigate fally 50,000 acres. The water to supply the rc'^ervoir^ and canal is taken from the Milk liver. Within the last three weeks over 10,- 000 acres of land on the line of the canal have been filed upon by sett- lers."
The success of iirig.-ition in Utah lU'ed not be dwelt upon. As every one knows, the Mornifj^s have turned what was practically a desert when they entered the country into one of of the richest agricultural regions in the world. The original cost of land in Utah was $1.25 ; the present value of irrigated lands averages $84. A few details are in order Here is a brief statement from the pen of Mr. H. L.
I
i
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
the half of ecure com- ainder. vhere fruits Id per acre 80 an acre )lack berries
tion in the ) crop yield
oats 30 to 50 to 100, igation the
of these* May or 1st nder irriga- d down to ed land is land with- !'ellowstone ofhing can the returns .ts 50 to 70, ow county t $100 and sells at $5. [•igation on country is paragraph per during
and Reser- inook,have inal sufflc- acres this (pens work
I hey will nough con- ',000 acres.
re^ervoirt^ Milk liver. > over 10,- line (if the I by se»(-
in Utah every one fe turned sert when ito one of regions in :^t of land ent value 84. A few is a l)rief Mr. H. L.
A. Culraer, editor of the Salt Lake Journal of Commerce, which can not fail to impress every one:—
"As to crops raised by irrigation in Utah, I should put wheat and potatoes first, and alfalfa is among the very best. We have had yields of 4 tons of grapes to the acre, and 1,200 bushels of carrots per acre. . . . The people living here have demonstrated that ir- rigation means high cultivation; that we cau make an acre of land yield more than at) eastern farmer does. When we get water for our land we are not subject to the caprice of the climate. Forty acres here will support a family as well as 160 acres in Mis- souri and Illinois, and the Wastern family will h«^ better supported. In th»8 territory 8 and 10 acres in staple crops support families. It gives theoi enough to eat and enough to wear and a sufficient education. My brothei told me for every day's work he put on a 40 acre farm he got $10 a day in re- turn, year in and year out."
In New Mexico there has been in a few years an imaiense development of irrigation with most satisfactory re- sults. Vast tracts of country which had been surrendered to cattle and sheep are being reclaimed and promise to be among the best farm and garden lands in the United States. Under irrigation in the Pecos Valley, not until then considered of any value for cops, thb following practical results
have been reached: —
"Fcr instance, Thomas Stokes, of Look Out, Eddy Co., New Mexico, sold duiing 1891 (duiing the pist nine rronths) over $300 worth of gurden pr-oduee fioin ^ an acre of ground and has 400 lbs potatoes left. R. M. Gil- bert whose addri'i^s is Seven Rivers, Eddy Co., planted in the spring of 1891 one acre in pot at ties and gave them n<. fut tber attenlim wliatevi^r, except t) irrigate tbiMn occ isionai] y during the siunrner. When he dug them the yi^•l I was over 7,000 pounds They sold at 2 cents per lb.; su that the cash yield r'roni this one acr« was over $20y(?) Ivic. Gdl)ert sstaied that he can raise twice this quantity of potatoes to the ac e with proper culiivation.
"W. \V. Paul, of Lower PHiasco. New Mexico, raised 211 bushels oats on 2^ arres ground. Oats are selling here ai 70 cents p-r bu<lie!; cxsh yield $07 per acre. W. W. Blankenship, of Dddy
sowed 12 acres rye on Sept 18, 1800; cut in May 1891; sowed millet on the same
ground and cut two crops, the last on eptl2, 1891, making 8 crops in 12 months. The total product in cash
Sielded $64 an acre. John W. Poe, of oswell cut 600 tons of Alfalfa from 110 acres. This valued at $15 per ton, was $9,000 cash; cash yield per acre $80. Maynard Sharpe, of Eddy, sold $J5 worth of water melons from one- eighth of an acre of ground. An acre at this rate would have yielded $600. He raised a second crop on the same gtound but being pressed for help did not market any of it. L M. Holt, of Eddy Co., raised \\\ tons of sorghura on one and a half acres and 450 tons of alfalfn on 90 acres. The Alfalfa will be soH at $15 per ton, making a return of $112 50 an acre," The sugar beet is being succepsfiilly ra'sed.
"The security to stock raising which the development of water supplies un- der irrigation enterprise has produced is illustrated by the fact that over 500,000 lbs wool have been shipped from Eddy since June. 1891. It Is esti matel that over 1,000,000 lbs will be shipped in the following year (1892) George Blankenship and Edward Scroggins, of Eddy, have raisrd fine fields of cotton during the beason of 1J91. Many of the stalks bore from 60 to 90 bolls each. Such lesults can •le obtained only under :rrigation; they are impossible in any portion of the rain belt."
In connection with in igation devel- opment in that section of the United states, the Irrigation Enquiry Special Agent sivs:— "The Special Agent after " hi^ visit to Northern New Mexico " and elsewhere, exp^es^sed the opinion " that the succ^'ss of the (pen table " land reservoir system, illustrated on "the Maxwell Grant, in Southeast " Colorado, ,at Narnpa under the Buisa " River in Idaho, and more recently " in the conservat ion of water iu t he " open lagunt s which are being appro- " priated under the Bear Val ey sys- " tern in St uthern Oalifornin, will add " from thirty to fifty million more " aci-es to the arable area of the c »un " try."
The ris dcs of irrigation in Oregon have i)een eminently s itisfactory. In Klamath Co., the 8. W. section of Oregon, thn Upper Klamath Lake ij
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
the source of supply for some 30,000 acres and can be utilized to supply 200,000 acres. " The crops grown on the lands irrigated are wheat, rye, oats and barley, alfalfa, potatoes and timothy grass. During the past sea- son 2,000,000 bushels of giain were raised, being over 60 bushels per acre. The selling value of irrigated lands is from $15 to $20 per acre; non-irrigated the Government pi ice is $1.25." In Harvey County, Oregon, under in iga- tion, the yield per acre is : hay 1^ tons, wheat 60 bush., oats and barley 75 bus. In Umatilla Oounty; wheat 60 bus., com 00, Alfalfa 10 tons,'timothy4 tons, beets or carrots 00 tons. In Wallowa Oounty; wheat 30 bushels, oats 50, rye 2 tons, timothy 2^ tons, red top 3 touB.
The reports from those parts of Kansas where irrigation has been tried are equally satisfactory. Here is a report from Gray which says:—
"For grazing, 3 acres under irriga- tion are equal to 10 acres without. In orchards under irrigation the quantity and quality of fruit are equal to those of California." The yield of products in Gray Oounty is as follows:—
Without Irr'gaiion With Irrigation
Wheat and Rye. StolStonu 40 to oOtons
OatH .. ...a0to25 " sotoiao '•
CJom upto20 •' eStolOO "
Barley 10to25 " 80tol40 "
IriflhuotatoeaafailVeSoutoflyr aoOtofiOO '*
Alfalfa } to } ton in 3 crop«a year
rainy season; dry season none... 2 tons each.
In Wyoming many millions of dollars have been expended in provid- ing itrigation for the grazing tracts and for growing alfalfa and other fodder crops, thereby increasing the capacity of the land for pastoral pur- poses, lessening in all probability the area of ranches, and rapidly increas- ing the change already begun from cattle ranching to stuck and breeding farmsof a high character. "No failure of crops is known where the land is water- ed." Up to January 1, 1891, the estimated cost of ditches ' > Wyoming was $7,- 866,467, and the applications for ditch
appropriations for 1891 would necessi- tate the f>xpenditure of another $3,464,260, — and this in what has
generally been considered an exclus- ively grazing State.
Coming to our Canadian Northwest and to the district for which we claim the assistance of the government, it is found that wherever irrigation has been attempted it has been successtul. To give the particulars that are avail- able in this connexion would extend this paper unduly in length ; we there- fore reserve the data for Southern Alberta and Western Assiniboia for the concluding paper of the series.
Testimonv could be multiplied with- out end to demonstrate, by the actual sxperionce of sixteen States of the Auierican Union and tens of thousands of cultivators of the soil in those statCH, as well as by what is going on under our own eyes in Southern Albeita, that the unqualifled success which has attended the practice of irrigation in the older countries cf the world has been repeated in North America, in climates similar to those of the North- west Territories— and in these Terri- tories them8elve«i wherever irrigation has been attempted. We are perhaps more especially interested in the ten to twenty years' experience of the States lying along our frontier, and we Hnd that as great results have been achieved in Oregon, Washington, Montana, North DaKota, etc., in pro- portion to ths lands under cultivation, as in the more southern and warmer States. When objection is made to the proximity of parts of our Terri torics to the mountains, as unfavorable to the growth of cereals, fruits, etc., the obiectors can be pointed to the state of things in Colorado especially, where such crops are found to flourish, under the irrigation systi^ni, on eleva- tions of from 5,000 to 8,000 feet,— a much higher altitude than that at which we are ever likely to attempt the cultivation of grain or fruit in any part of the Territories. The fact i-i established that with the assistance of irrigation farming and gat'dening cart be succ?3sfally CHrtied on over any portion of our Canadian Northwest and that we need not regard one single foot of soil in all this vast area, within the reach of watt-r, as non cultivable. As for the vastly increased returns from the soil under irrigation the facts speak for themselves; and herp, as in Italy, it is found that even in localities where there is a liberal rainfall, the irrigation system is more convenient, more reliaiile and more profitable ; and is accordingly preferred.
tRRlGATlON m THE TERRITORIES.
cl US-
west laiiu it is has still, vail- tend lere- lern for
As regards the cost of briiiRlng water struction and maintenunte would he
to the laud niid of maintaining the greatly simpliHed and reduced to a
works from year to year, in Southern minimum of o-r.. Thn ^-'vemment
Alberta and Western Assinihoia, this could huild th. n. cedsury works and
is a question th'it actual experience make an anuu il charge per acre, «c-
alone can decide. So much depends cordiot? to the cost and the service
upon the contiguity or otherwise of needert. ind Jliere would he on the
lands to rivers and streams, the farms no "first cast" charge, and no
general chara'iter and cwst of the ••anni.Ml usspssmenl," as it is calU'd in
works, and other conditions which wiP the United States.
sugge'it themselves. Even as regards
works acMially constructed in the it has been de-noustr iterl heyon-1 nil
United States (whether by private pos^ibility of c:ivil tii.u u- i^Mi i..ii b-.s
corporations, by bodies of farmers worked wonders in the arid lands im-
fortning mutual associations or by mediately to the smith of our xVorth-
what are known as Water Districts west T.m-; ito; i-^s. It las als j h.;en
where the peopleof acouniy or of sev- shown by acta i! expe i' Ji-e i hat in
eral counties unite to tax themselves these Tt-rritu: ics ihemst-lves thi* same
to build the woi ks), the data are de- results follow the applic.itioii of water
flcient fi»r forming a correct judgment, to arid soils. Wherever irrigat ion bus
Still, we find it stated, on good author- been attempted in Southern Aiheita it
ity, that in Arizona the first cost of has been absolutely successful. To
water has amounted to $7.07 per acre; illustrate:—
in New Mexico, $5.85; in Utah (under Many gardens in Oalguy havt been
an imptrfect system) over $15. The irrigated by means of the Oalgary
annual watei rental inditfeient locali- Waterwotk-. and ail hough thesiil of
th.^ Cdg.iry bottom h is no" hi cm re- gardetl as very favor.ihl* tithnr |ir firm or g.irden productH, I he yield of roots and vegetables with the ossist-
ties may be stated as follows: —
Utah average per acre 90 91
New Mexico •* " 154
Arizon<i " " 1 65
Colorado - by counties— Kio Oraiide Co, ave per acre.... 1 10 Boulder < o, " " ... 1 25
Kiowa Co " " ... 1 50
Montez ma Co. " " . 1 60
Prowers Co " " ... 1 10
Sagau. ho Co, ' '• ... 1 40
Weld Co, " '• ... 1 60
ance of the water has b' en most
abundant— great in size and exet-nent in quality. At the mouth of Fish Creek,on wb.at
The perpetual water right in Kiowa is known as the nid Uovrrnmfnt Co , Col., is placed at $800 for 80 acres. Farm, the owners, Messrs. Hull Bros , with an annual maintenance assess- , .„^ „ ,- , . i : i , A;t^\. * ^.^ v. i mentofl5cent8p«racre; in Prowers '/^^"^^ ^^'"'^ ^'"^ '^ ditch from P.d, Co., Col., perpetual right for 80 acres, Oveek on to a large area of land seeded $l,()00--annual assessment, 15 cents; to oats, with the most satisfactory re- Saganche Co., Col., perpetual right for yui^^. The benefit to hxy lands' was 80 acres, $400— annual assessment, 25 „^„ ,i,,t „ . . .t^ tk^ «..,f.., «-^»^ o««.,»^^ cents; Weld Co., perpetual right, eqaally great. 1 he extra crop secured $1,2(M) for 80 acies-annual assessment, »n the first year wdl repay the full cost 12i cents. of the works, which was over $2,000.
In all pr-obability these figures are as So satisfactory has the appli-jation of high as any in the United States, as water pr-oved that Messrs. Hull intend the topographical difficulties in a to go into irrigation on a much larger rough country like Colorado are pro b- sc de on their farm, Wiiicli embraces ably as great as have to be overcome savar-al thoiisiad acivs i id is one of in any portion of the continent. the m)5t v tluiblo --st ites in the North-
With this class of work undertaken, west. as proposed herein, by the Dominion On Sheep Creek Mr. John Quirk has Government in Southern Alberta and carrie.l the waters of the cret^k to his Western Assiniboia, the work of con- hay land^, and this year the difTer-ence
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
between his irrigated and liis non- irrigated land is the difference between an abundant grass and hay crop and BO crop at all.
On High River some three or four small ranchers joined to build an irri- gjition ditch, with equally gratifying results.
Captain Oardiner, rancher, on the Elbow river near Calgary, has put in two ditches this present year— one a mile in length, the other three-fourths of a mile. Twenty acre^ of oats and timothy were watered this season with most satisfactory returns, the timothy measuring 3ft. 6in. at time of cutting. T(vo bundled acres will V)e irrigated in all.
Hei% and there throna:\i Southern Alberta we hear of similar operations with equally good returns in every in- stance.
This season a large number of farm- ers and ranchets have had irrit^ation ditches surveyed for them by iMt^^srs. Child & Wilson, engineers, of Calgary. In addition to those for Captain Gar- diner we may mention the following: -
Mr. Walter Skrine, rancher, iMos- quito Creek— a | mile ditch for irrigat- ing oat field and meadow ; to cover 100 acres.
Mr. George Lane, Victor ranch, Willow Creek— 3 mile ditch for water- ing hay meadows.
Messrs. Lucas and Eastman, on the Elbow river— a ditch to water the bot- tom lands.
Mr. Scott, on Elbow river— a 1 mile ditch to'.irrigate 150 acres.
Mr. R. C. E. Hooper, on Elbow river —a 1 mile ditch to irrigate 100 acre"?.
Mr. George Patterson, on a tributary of Sheep Creek— a li mile ditch to ir- rigate 80*u,cres and for domestic uses.
We^hear also that Mr. W. W. Stew- art, rancher, of Jumping Pond, is putting in a ditch for hay lands ; and the Messrs. Alexander will aino irrig- 'ate a portion of their meadows on their ranch on Mosquito Creek.
More extensive woiks of this charac- ter have been commenced. These
include a long ditch on the Blackfoot reserve on the Bow river, near Gleich- en railway station. While we write a government engineer is making the necessary preliminary surveys. ThB work will be done mainly by the In- dians themselves under the supervision of the Indian agent, Mr. Magnus Begg. The object is irrigation of native grasses and for farming and garden ing.
Two of the join«-< stock coinpiniei' with headquarters at Calgary, that were granted charters at t he last ses- sion of P.trliament, have comni "tnced construction opt^rations in c »mpar- atively well settled districts.
The Calgary irrigation Cu. is taking w.iter from the Elbow riv.^r at a point 30 miles, by river, above its mouth, namely. In Srfc. 4, Tp. 21, ft 4, west of the i>th principal m>jridian. Its later- als will supply water to aliout 4,000 acres south of the Elbow river in Tp. 24. R 's 2, 8 and 4. The main ditch will cross the Saruee reserve, where reservoir sites will be con- structed. Thence a branch can he taken cheaply across Fish creek to the land lying l)etween Fish and Pine creeks, where some 40,000 acres can be cheaply irrigated; and l>y crossing Pine creek the area can be increased if necessary to 100,000 acres. Anoiher branch will bring W4.ters to Tps. 23 and 24, lying between Fish creek and the Elbow river. At least 85% of the land in these townships can have water supplied at a comparatively small outlay in fluming ; and water can be had from the same works to cover the flats lying between the Bow and Elbow rivers east of Sec. 18, Tp. 21, R. 1, west of the 5th P.M., namely, the town of Calgary and the Mission property. To cany out the scheme here outlined in its entirety probably $300,000 would be needed. The work will be proceeded with by sections as the funds on hand m>iy warrant. It <s thought the cost per acre will be about $7— the promoters believe it will 'cer- tainly not exceed $10— for water
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
furnished by main ditches. The sur- veys were commenced in November, 1802 ; construction was commenced on Sept. 20, 1803, and will be proceeded, with as money may be forthcoming. A relaxation of thti flnancial stringen- cy is anticipated before spring, and it is tho'ight there will be sufficient capital availal>le for the company to place water on Tps. 23 and 24, H. 1, for which there will be any demand — probably on 60% of that area, in 1804. The provisional dircictord of the com- pany are Mesars P. T. Bone, G E., J. P. J. Jnphsou and William Pearce. $26,000 ^as been subscribed, and al- ready 20% of that amouub has been paid in.
Another of the charters granted last session was to the Calgary Elydraulic Co., lid. Oonstruction work has been commenced by this compaivy. Water is taken from the south side' of the Bow river, above Twin bridges, about 10 miles we»t of Oalgary. The Bow river will be crossed to the north side by a fliima 1,500 feei. long, above Mr. Oswald (hitchlty's residence. The ditch as at presented projected will run about 0 miles, watering the Bow bottom to a point near the town of Oalgary. The work was commenced on Sept. llrh, and it is expected that the fli s' half, including the crossing of the river, w 11 bo finished this fall, and to have the remainder in such shape as to se'cuie its complenon early next t<pring. Mr. George Alexander, of Canary, ia president of the company, and Mr. H. B. Alexander secretary- treasurer.
These are all evidences of the faith the people of the country in the benefits to be derived from irrig- ation.
At all points in tbeS mthern Alberta district, where farmei s of means with properties alongside of rivers have adopted irrigation, the results have shown that the soil is capable of abundant returns, the only want being the absence of water.
With either a liberal rainfall or natural irrigation, wheat, oata, barley, the native grasses, roots and vegetables of every description reach perfection and compare favorably with those of any country in the world both hs regards quality and quantity per acre. It should be sta(ed that this is true of the MOST arid portions of Southern Alberta, without any exception whatever, whenever there has been a "wet" season with an abundant rainfall— a^i miy hippen once in three or four years. And that there may be no misunderstanding of the possibilities of succes-ifiil farming in this region it may be stated th^t the wheat which stood the very highest at the Millars' Exhibition in Liverpool in 1802 w 18 forwarded from Oalgary and wasijDvvii on Sheep cteek, 20 miles south of ( Jalgary. The country around Macleod, which is as dry as any in the Northwest, has in "wet" seasons pro- duced as due sampled of wheat as the eye of the expert could desire to look upon.
The small works that have been con- structed and the larger works under • way or in contemplation are confined to a section of country that is thickly settled. Thei»e, of coui*se, can accom- plish nothing for the unsettled portions of that great extent of fcountry to which we shall now refer.
The portion of the Northwest Terri- tories more immediately calling for irrigation is briefly described by Mr. William Pearce (Supt. of Mines and member of the Dominion Lands Board) as " that portion west of the "eastern limit of the Missouri Ooteau " and south of Township Thirty." The body of arid lands known as the Missouri Ooteau projects into the Canadian Territories from the south, the eastern limit extending from the International boundary between the 103rd and 104th degrees of west longi- tude and running in a north-west direction, up to the Canadian Pa- cific railway. Township 80, indicated
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
\y Mr. Pearce as thw noithern limit of the and area of tliH Territiri s, would carry it to the latitude u.^\^ po-sibly to about the vicinity of Bon- nington Station on thu fl gina and Prince Albert Rail w is- in Westorn Asiinib liut and of ('fu-stairs station on the Ualgary and E 1 nonton railway in AlbcM-ta.
A glance at the uvip show* the greater part of thisreuion to hi' .idniir- ably supplied with rivers and c-ei-ks, — the Red Deer and its muuitous branches, the Bow, the H.'lly, tli.^. Old Man's, St. iVJary's, Milk Riv.^.-, White Mud, Old Wives; be-^ided ni.H.riy lakes. The Old Man's and St. Miiy's with sundry other considucablo r iv^er^ iti the extreme 8. W. corner of Alberta unite near Lethbridge lo form the Oelly, flowing east ; the B^lly and the Bow then unite further eist to foiin the South Saskatchewan ; which thon flows north and in or n^ur Township 23, a few miles east of the 4th piincipal meridian, is joined by the Red Deer from the west and flowj^ east and north until it unites with th*- North Sa.-kat- chewan n?ar Prince Albert. It- only needs an exriiination of the ninp to convince any doubter of the extraor- dinary facilities thus afforded even in the arid region for iirigating ujillions of acres of valuable land chfliplv and thoroughly by means of these great rivers with their innumerable large and small tributaries, creeki=i, springs, etc.
. Taking Southern Alberta, for in- stance, as a special d'striet for examin- ation, it is seen that south of Township 80 and not including the B iw river's tributaries in the mountain region, there are the Rosebud and its branches, which fall into the Red Deer River ; the Kananaskis joining the Bow above Morley; Nose Creek and the Elbow uniting with the Bow at Calgary ; Fish Creek, Pine Creek, Sheep Creek, High River and its several forks, ail falling into the Bow within 30 miles of Cal- gary ; the Little Bow, Mosquito Creek
and Willow Creek flowing to the Belly; besides Pinch er Creek, Lee's Creek and other Btreams in the S. W. corner. Here are the means of irrigating hund- reds of thousands of acres ; to say noth- ng of the immense areas adjacent to the Bow east and south of Calgary,tho Old Man's near M icleod, the Belly and Siskatehewan be' ween Lethbridge and Medicine Hat, and the great tracts of territory irrigable froni the St. Mary's and Milk rivers near the Inter- national boundary. Both north and west of Medicine Ilat the possibilities of irrig ition from the Saskatchewan are very grea«, while along J he Dun- more and Lothbridge railway the country between the railway and the Saskatchewan, at present with iirtle or no population, would with irrigation offer special advantages for settlement. As regards t!ie Bow Valley, the area open to irrisji'ion is practically unlim- ited, both bee luse of the great l)ody of water in the river for irrigation pur- poses and the high elevation at which water can be taken for the use of the entire valley, which allows of perfect irrigation for all the benches Coch- rane, en the Buw River, is 23 miles west of Calgary, 33 miles west of Sbephard, 53 miles west of Langdon« 78 miles west of Gl i'chen . and is 800 ft. higher than Gleic'aen. As every traveller by railway over this tract of country knows, there is a gradually ascending grade going west. It is scarcely necessary to detail the advantages thereby offeri^d for spread ing water over the entire country — bottoms and benches— of all this vast body of excellent land. In fact, it would be difQcult to find anywhere an extensive tract of countrj' so easily irri- gated or which would give such large returns for the necessary expenditure.
The primal source of water suppiy for all ibis great area in Southern Alberta is, of ccucse, the Rocky Mountains. The rivers and streams issuing from that great storehouse will flow on for ever. As long as snow falls and the sun
mRlOATlON ' rN tHE tERRlTDRfElS.
shines water in the greatest abundance for the irrigation of the valleys and plains of Southern Alberta is ensured. On the upper Bow and in all the foothillH are natural basins f^r holding and retaining the mountain waters near their source, should this be found nedessaiy. The ridges between rivers oiTer a natural pathway for the construction of ditches irrigat- ing the sloping lands On either side. Natural depressions, coulees and lakes willprovidf storage basins on I he plains. Thus, for the great reservoirs in the mountain districts and for any aAd all reserves that may be needed elsewhere, the immenne area of mountain drain- age will al ways pi ovide an inesthanst- ible supply, while the numerous rivers, streams and creeks, aided by irrigation canals, main ditches, laterals, etc., will provide the Meaiie of distribution over the whole face of the c6untry tb Hu extent probably unsurpaMedT by Atfy system of dtstfihutiett' that is ktidwn tD 'exist. This Id true in the tiialn, though differing somewhat in detail, not of Southern Alberta illone bat of south-western Assiniboia, where fta'ext toi the South' SaskatcheWtin) the sonrce of supply is the oyT»re«9i Hills, and where numerous rlvet« and efeeks extending into the country ikiUth df the hills otter superior channels of Ibcal sopply and distribution. This in addi- tion to the immense body Uf iKAtet in the South Saskatche\«^arr whose i^Oltfmb will not be sensibly diminished by the diversions made fOf tfrigiktioti to the westward.
\nd here a mostimportailtfaef irftlfift not be omitted, namely, that the niOtinF- tain streams are at their highest when their woters for irrigation will be most needed,— that is; in midsummisr ; thus reducing the expense (if any) to be in- curredfor storage basinb to aminimum. Beside all the riverd of both Terri- tories lie immense areas of land w'iLh soil capable of producing anything and everything that ' can be grown in the temperatezone^— in a climate liecond in point of health to none on earth, —in
a country capable 6t sustaining miN lions of people, and countless herd's of horsen, cattle and sheep. Nowhere in North America can ihigation systems be so cheaply provided ; nowhere would the appllcatiott of water work greater changes foir the public good and the enrichment oif the Dominion.
White the meads of private individ- uals favorably situated for irrigating their own lands, and the capifal of joint stock companies who operate in well settled districtf^, will go a moder- ate distance towards meeting the wants of certain localities, it is not reasonable to hope for private capital to an extent adequate to the wants of the country undertaking the develop- ment of irrigiLtion systems which would mainly benefit lands utill in the possession of the Government and utaodcupied by a single settler. The greater part — nearly the whole— of the cotlhtrjr we have descCibed is held by the Oovertiment as owner, though % portion is'fiiiider tiefminable leasM to cattla comfjahies, 4nd a Certain area has beeb graAtJBd to the Oiilgary and Bdmohtoti Railway Company'. 'Ftac- tifalUly nlhe-ti>iithk bf the drid re^fion aS'tddated by Mi'. Pearcels ftoVi^i'hineht land which thei gof i^rttthent 'cah'not distWis^ of on any terms. Th« 4iie4fi6h for the gtivdi^tifnent tb d^tiSrmltie is wlid^h^r tliede lahd^ shatl'i^ti&ttlh as they ai*6, linocctitiied, ]p)r/)idU6iii||; 'rfo£h- inge^Cept, in'^Omis 06i*tlon6, a pkltry retltal fof cittlfe paeieufe ; or Witl thfe go^ernm^nt b^ b mod^rhte t^ttefhdt- tuitebf money Vehder thesis Ta'fids the most^lealtld and the tiiost pt^dtftltv^ in the Dominitihy t(rill tU6 itOVeto- merit b6 justified tn leaiving Uttds ib a com^arativfely S^orfhleatf doriditlott which can be' mad^ the fiio^ valii&'blb of all the DofilitaiOn^ OJsmitB? Wbtit exduse can they offer tbtlie dbhUtry and to Parliftmfent for ^iegiebtlrig" to brimt into l^ireficial Use an ilhm^hs^ area of excellent doH w%c(h the vfOUir toeririch this soil and givfe vitlufetd evgk>y ^ct« bf th^^ lauds li^ttSfti^ldft
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
and ooly requires to be diverted to tlie UndP
As to the government's duty in the premises we will let a good authority— an experienced government official who Icnows the country thorough- ly and who will not be accused of sug- gesting reckless experiments with government funds— speak in this con- nexion. Mr. William Pearce (Supt. of Mines and member of the Dominion Lands Board), in the papier prepared by him for the annual meeting of the Association of Dominion Land Sur- veyors in 1889 in suppoit of a compre- hensive irrigation scheme for Southern Alberta and Western Assiniboia, says:—
** It is worthy of serious considera. "ion whether any large scheme of "settlement and irrigation should " net be conducted by the Ooverment "rather than through private enter- "prise. The enhanced value of the "Unds would amply recoup the "Oovemment for the outl£.y.. What " an enormous benefit would result to "the country if settlement and pro- " ducts could be increased, even to " one half the extent which I suggest as " probable; and certainly Osvernmenfc "control is preferable for the general " advantage. Private investors would " be most anxious to secure large pio- "fits and quick returns and would pro- " bably be somewhat dilatory in, tak- " ing action whilst endeavoring to de- "monstrate to investors and possible "shareholders the advantages which " the speculation offered, The Gov- "ernment, on the other hand, once "convinced of the soundness of the " scheme, the advantage to result in- " directly from the improved settle- "ment and producing power of the " district, might feel justified in pro- " ceeding immediately and in a t- " ing a slow return of the actual money " invested. I dare say a calculation " might readily be made to show that " a handsome percentage on the capi- * tal invested would very speedily re-
" suit from increased customs and ex- "cise returns."
We have no doubt that every man and woman in these Territories wh» has given the slightest consideration to the subject will heartilyendorse Mr. Pearce's very reueonable btattment. We o£fer no apology for adding liere the estimate which Mr. Pearce made of the increased v Uue wh!ch irrigation under Government auspices would give to the lands in the arid region referred to. Says Mr. Pearce :—
" The area of this district is 66,000 " square miles and wculd according to " the above computation allowing four " sections for every settler, accomiMO- " date 16,740 families; and estimating " that each is worth to the counti y " $1,000 owing to the customs and ex- " else duties which he pays, the whole "value would be $16,740,000. The " value of the annual product of each " settler 'may be estimated at $500, " giving a tot4il value of $8^870,000, and " supposing that each settler has 100 " head of cattle, 1.674,000 cattle will " graze in this district. j., ,
"Suppose, however, that the produe- " tive power of the district could be " quadrupled (and I hope to assure you " that this may be regarded as a mod- " erate estimate of the results to be " achieved by adopting a proper sys- " tem) the nuinber of resident families " would be 66^960; the annual products " $33,480,000; the valueof these settlers "to the country $06,060,000; the num- "ber of cattle 6.606,000, the value " of which at $20 per head would be " $133,020,000. The value of the annual "products would probably exceed " largely $600 per head, as under the " system which I have in view their " products would be more valuable " than at present. We would most " certainly arrive at the highest state " of perfection in all products, cattle, " horses, hogs, poultry, dairy products, " hides and leather, nature having " richly endowed this district with the " natural conditions requibite to that " end.
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
I
Judged by the results ticcomplishad in the Htates to the south, Mr. Pearce's estitnates wouM seem t3 he well with* in the mark. Actual experience goes far beyond Mr. Prarce's expectations.
That the administration of irriga tiun HysLcms by governments may be made highly profitai'le to ilte public treasury has been established by the experience of the Government of India. In a work by Mr. .lenry Stewart, a United States civilandminingengineer, entitled "Irrigation foi the Faim, Garden and Orchard," we read as fol- lows on page 171, latest edition:—
"In favor of Government control there is both reason and precedent. By no other authority coula the conflict- ing interests of miners, agriculturists, and owners of laud to be injured or benefitted bv the enterprise, be proper- ly reconcilea. In Europe, the supreme control is exercised by, and the owners ship of the water vested in the State. The French Government in WOO, by special law reserved the owners^ ^p of ail rivers and strearoH, and gran s con- cessions to irrigation companies under restrictions. In Italy, the state has always exercised this ownership, and in Venice the springs, and even the rainfall so far as it can be stored in reservoirs, have been held to be public property. In India the springs and rainfall are accumulated in reservoirs, controlled by the Government, and the river sy ttems are also owned by it; not only this, but the details of the distributi(m of the water are also directed by government oflBcials. This is made necessary, however, by the incap icity of the ignorant inhabitants to manage anything for themselves, that calls for more than a verv low de-
?;ree of intelligence. Lest, however, t might be urged *hat Government ownership and supervision are likely to lead to failure, the actual results at- tained in India may be very properly here lited. During recent years, the RritiHh Government has spent about $70,000,000 in irrigation works, and otb'"*s are in progress of construction which will require half as much more to complete them. In almost every instance the investments have been .profitable, and in some cases enor- mously so, both in the way of water rent, and in service to the cultivators of the soil. The total annual revenue to the government from the works, is
Annual Rovenaa
ftip. o 5 "
m "
19 •*
M "
11 "
7 "
«l
18 "
38 r "
more than $6,000,000, or 7( per cent on the cost. In one case only has there been a low. The capital expended in the largest works, and the annual re- venue from them, are given in the fol- lowing table, which is derived from the official reports of the East Indian Government:—
Cpltal InvMied North Wo8tem Provln-
incea 917,887,885
Pnnjaub 15,671.000
Madras 91467.800
Bombay ABind 11,1U^M0
Oanvea Canal 14,400800
Eastern Jumna Canal .... 8,390,000 Weatem Jumna Canal .... ««,A38.000
Godavey Delta Work 3,418,585
KlHtPahDelttWork^ 8,387,185
Canvery Delto Worka 1,468,000
Bind Inundation Canal.... 5,880,000
The revenue to the government is the least portion of the profit derived from these works. The profit to the people thembelves amounts to a vastly greater sum, one in f-^ct the amount of which is not to be computed in money; for the famine, of frequent (occurrence before the completion of these works, destroyed thousands of human lives, and caused thousands of square miles of fertile land to be abandoned to
grow up to jungle. In 1868, the ranges Ganal preserved grain crops from destruction which fed a million of people; in 1874 the Soave Canal saved the crops over a large territory, which would otherwise have been de- vastated by drouth and many of the newer works water regions which have heretofore been visited wiih some of the most destructive famines mentioned in history; and the whole of this work has been undertaken and successfully managed by the Govern- ment."
We urge the Government of Canada to undertake this work of irrigation in Southern Alberta and Western Assiniboia for a variety of reasons^ any one of which should be conclusive, and regarded as a whole they are irre- sistible:—
1. The Government has a vast prop- ( rty in land lying valueless which can be rendered enormously valuable at a moderate expenditure of public money No private owner with the means in hand would hesitate a moment to make the expenditure.
2. The fact of this valuable land lying unoccupied has a bad influence on immigration and settlement and is
IRRIGATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
[^.:
an injury to the country as a whole. A change cannot come too sonn.
8. The lands if irrigated would be at once in demand liy Oanadians and by immigrants from the United States at the highest selling price of any in the Government's possessions. Mill- ions of dollars above the cost of irri- gation can be realized for them, once the water is applied.
4. Government irrigated landfc would he the best advertisement possible to put before the farmers in Washington! Idaho, Oregon, Montana. Nebraska, etc., where irrigation is a common thing and preferred to non- irrigation. The government, through its ability to borrow money at 8 to B^ per cent., can constr-jct itrigation works more ' ch^apiy^ than the joint stock company Or the individual who pay twice that price for the use of money. There- fore the government's charge for the use of water need not be half of what private parties would be obliged to collect from the consumers. Settlers from the States would consequently give a preference to irrigat<>d lands in the Canadian Territories over those in their own country; which, joined to the absence of local taxation here as against enormous rates of local taxation in the States, would turn the faces of tens of thousands of ttew settlers from the States in our direction.
6. Because there Is no form in which government money can be invested for public purposes (not railways, canals, fishery bounties, fish hatcher- ies, bonuses to ship, railways or steamship lines, pensions to govern- ment officials, etc.,) that will bring so great and so lieneficial a return to the country as a whole.
6. Because itbe requirements of the sections of the Territories referred toat)- solutely call for this measure of justice at the hand^ of the Government, and because in no other way and through no other a^ncy can the dormant we^th of those districts be as satisfac- torily or ape«QdUyd.evelopedand utilized
to the building up of our fouiiiiou country.
F)r these reasons we ask the Purlla- nient and p'overnment of Canada not to turn a deaf ear to the wishes and interests of the people of Alberta and Western Assiniboia. There is within the reach of Parliaraunt an opportunity of doingan incalculable amount of good, not for those districts alone but for the whole of Canada. There is in- volved in our proposition nothing less than a deroonstiation of what we, residing in this country, believe to be a fact: that there is not in the whole of the Northwest Territories a hitof coun- try that can not be made productive. There are no " barren lands" in these Northwest Teiiitoiles in the true meaning of that term. Thera are no • worthless *' alkali '* lands. If there are latids to which nature has denied a generous rainfall, she has lievartheless provided in another way the water necessary to the- ger- mination of whatever may be conomit- ted to the soil for the sustenance of man and beast. She haf> given the means of defying climatic changes and drawbacks. She has placed within easy reach those water supplies which alone are needed to change the arid plains into fruitful farms and gardens. It is not to be credited, therefore, that where nature has done so. rmich the Parliament and Government of the country will do nothing to supplement nature's gifts. We anticipate, for the wise solution of the problem, the seri. oiis consideration, t)oth of Parliament and Government and such liberal action as past experieiice shows has not been denied to any proposition based on benefits to acct ae not to a section only but to the wh ile of our common country.
II
I
1)
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