Mr. TAGGART. They have registered between 2 and 3 inches-2 inches and a fraction. Director POWELL. Have you ever been west 50 or 60 miles? Mr. TAGGART. Yes. Director POWELL. So as to know a good deal about that country? Director POWELL. Does the rain increase going westward? Director POWELL. How much is the rain-fall within 100 miles of here, not along the coast, but out on the desert? Mr. TAGGART. The rains out on the desert are very frequent and very heavy. They have washouts there, and we seldom have rain here. That is the best comparison I can give. But it is certain the rain is very much greater as you go west, and I think you will find a material difference in a hundred miles. STATEMENT OF LOUIS A. HICKS, OF YUMA. The CHAIRMAN. What is your occupation? The CHAIRMAN. Have you made surveys in the vicinity of Yuma? Mr. HICKS. Yes, I have been located here some time. I have been engaged in the construction of irrigation works for the last year and a half. The CHAIRMAN. Have you any maps representing your works or any portion of them? Mr. HICKS. The intention is to send you blue prints so soon as we can have them prepared. The CHAIRMAN. You will forward them to Washington? Mr. HICKS. Yes. The CHAIRMAN. Can you state the amount of irrigable land in this county! Mr. HICKS. The amount to be irrigated approximates 600,000 acres, and of that we estimate that 450,000 acres will be good land. The other 25 per cent. is land of not entirely good character; it is irregular or sandy, or for some other reason broken up, so that it is not available for cultivation. The CHAIRMAN. How would you irrigate the land? Mr. HICKS. By means of a storage dam, the dam to be 100 feet high. The CHAIRMAN. Have you ample water to supply it? Mr. HICKS. Yes. The Gila River in the winter would fill any reservoir that could be built. I have seen flood places 34 miles wide. STATEMENT OF E. G. TRIPPEL, OF YUMA. The CHAIRMAN. How long have you resided in Yuma? The CHAIRMAN. Have you a report prepared by the citizens or by some organization with regard to irrigation in this county? Mr. TRIPPEL. Yes. The CHAIRMAN. State by whom it was prepared, and why? Mr. TRIPPEL. It was prepared for your use by a committee appointed by the citizens at a mass-meeting held for that express purpose. I, under the direction of this committee and with its assistance and au GILA VALLEY AND ITS IRRIGABLE RESOURCES. 407 thority, have prepared this data. It is a report which we presume will be of some use to the committee. The report is as follows: REPORT OF THE CITIZENS' EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF YUMA COUNTY, ARIZ., TO THE SENATORIAL COMMITTEE ON THE IRRIGATION AND RECLAMATION OF ARID LANDS. [Written and compiled by E. J. Trippel, secretary of the committee, under the direction and by the authority of the Citizens' Executive Committee, September 3, 1889.] Members of the executive committee: C. H. Brinley, F. S. Ingalls. F. L. Ewing, S. Purdy, C. E. Spencer, A. Frank, Hiram W. Blaisdell. Officers: H. W. Blaisdell, chairman; E. J. Trippel, secretary. This report has been prepared with the view of presenting to the Senatorial Committee on the Reclamation and Irrigation of Arid Lands data pertaining to the climate, rivers, lands, irrigation facilities, available water, storage sites, peculiar products, water supply, and such other points as are properly connected with a truthful statement of the present condition and future possibilities of the agricultural interests of Yuma County, Ariz. Immediately following the correspondence between Col. R. J. Hinton, irrigation engineer of the U. S. Geological Survey, and the gov ernor of Arizona, relative to the proposed visit of the Senatorial committee to various portions of the Territory, the governor issued a proclamation requesting the different county supervisors to take prompt action in the matter of collecting suitable data for the use of the visiting committee. In compliance with the call an enthusiastic meeting was held in the town of Yuma by the citizens on the 8th of July, 1889, and plans of action formulated to this end. An executive committee of seven were appointed and authorized to take in hand the collection and computation of the requisite data and also the direction of such additional details as might to them seem necessary. This committee, therefore, in behalf of the citizens of Yuma County, respectfully submit for the consideration of the Senatorial committee the following report, accompanied by maps from the surveys of Messrs. L. A. Hicks and J. B. Steiger, both eminent civil engineers, showing the area of fertile and irrigable land in and about the lower portions of the Gila and Colorado Valleys, and also the proposed site of an immense and perfectly practicable water-storage reservoir with a capacity more than sufficient to furnish the means of cultivation to hundreds of thousands of acres of arable land, much of which is now lying idle, useless, and unproductive. No attempts have been made to exhaustively review the subject in all its ramifications, and yet enough might be written upon our numerous and varied resources to fill a volume. It has rather been the purpose to briefly touch upon the more important points, including the many peculiar and almost unique features showered upon this really favored though apparently cruelly neglected, region. Unfortunately, however, there are among the most valuable of our natural gifts a number quite latent and dormant, and so they will remain until the Government in its wisdom sees fit to quicken them into life, and by affording the necessary facilities for storing water against the seasons when it is most needed, bring about a wondrous and magical change in contradistinction to the present state of affairs. These pages are sent upon their mission with the hope of attracting the attention of the statesmen high in the councils of the nation to the plainly manifested necessities of Yuma County. It is believed that when it is once accomplished the desired results will follow as a matter of course, and thousands of happy, prosperous, and contented citizens will live to bless the practical efforts of a wise and benignant Govern. ment in effecting so thorough, so radical, and so desirable a change. CITIZENS' EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. PHYSICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL FEATURES OF YUMA COUNTY, ARIZ. Yuma County, one of the four original political subdivisions of the Territory when first established by act of Congress, on February 24, 1863, as an independent Commonwealth, forms the extreme southwestern portion of Arizona. It lies between 329 and 34° 24' north latitude and 113° 20′ and 114° 14' west longitude. It is bounded by Pima, Maricopa, and Yavapai Counties on the east, the Colorado River on the west, Mohave County on the north, and Sonora, Mexico, on the south. It has an area of 10,138 square miles (6,448,320 acres), an expanse greater than either of the seven smaller States of the Union, and larger than Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Delaware combined. For more than 100 miles it is crossed from east to west by the Gila River, which thoroughly drains the southern and western portions, eventually emptying into the Colorado at the town of Yuma, while the Colorado washes its western boundary, effectually draining the remainder. The topographical configuration of the surface includes a series of wide plateaus rising gradually from a point situated at the southwestern extremity with an altitude of about 60 or 70 feet above sea-level, to an elevation in the north and northeast very much greater, the whole sloping gently in a southwesterly direction. These plateaus are crossed by numerous mountain ranges, especially in the northern part, the ranges being separated by broad valleys, many consisting of excellent lands. The various mountain systems, though rough and abrupt in character, are highly mineralized, carrying gold, silver, copper, lead, iron, and other minerals in paying quantities. The eastern and southern portions include gradually-sloping plains covered in places with native grasses and trees, among the latter being the mesquite, ironwood and paloverde. Here and there are detached hills and mountain spurs, often of eruptive origin. All that country embraced within the county confines, situated north of the natural water-shed of the Gila River, owing to the slight rain-fall and few streams from which water can be taken for agricultural purposes, is practically worthless, so far, at least, as the feasibility of bringing large bodies of irrigable land under cultivation is concerned. The available arable region, therefore, is limited by nature to broad strips of country lying directly north of the Gila and east of the Colorado Rivers, and also hundreds of square miles of splendid land stretching directly southward from the Gila River to the Sonora (Mexico) frontier. Consequently it is upon these rivers that water-storage reservoirs must be established. It is more than probable that less is known of the physical and topographical peculiarities of Yuma County than of any other county in the Territory. According to the map of the Interior Department, issued from the General Land Office in 1883, it is shown that less than 10 per cent of the total area was surveyed by the Federal authorities. It is believed that no further surveys have been ordered since the date mentioned, and therefore, so far as official recognition extends, more than ninetenths of the country is a veritable terra incognito. The population numbers 2,500 souls and the valuation of taxable property reaches in round numbers $800,000. RIVERS.-The Gila River, though second in size to its mighty rival, the Colorado, is destined for the present, at least, to figure far more prominently in the solution of the problem of redeeming and making valuable to the husbandman the immense bodies of hitherto arid and worthless lands tributary to it. The Gila drains a vast territory. Rising in the western part of New Mexico, it flows in a nearly westerly direction through the entire Territory of Arizona. Its northern and eastern sources are among mountains covered for several months in the year with snows of varying depths, the melting of which, added to the many natural springs emptying into it at different points, form a considerable river long before it passes through Graham County. It enters the latter county in the neighborhood of the Clifton Copper mines, then courses through the Pueblo Vieja Valley and the San Carlos or White Mountain Indian Reservation, finally entering the Gila Valley some 5 miles above Florence, thence for nearly 300 miles it winds through the now famous Gila Valley, eventually merging into the large stream at Yumma. The entire course of the river is erratic and irregular, as it follows a naturally tortuous route caused by the diversified character of the country traversed. The total length from its source in New Mexico to its confluence with the Colorado, including THE RIVER BASINS IN SOUTH-WESTERN ARIZONA. 409 its many windings, is fully 650 miles. Before reaching the eastern boundary of Yuma County it is fed by numerous rivers, among the most important being the San Pedro, a singular stream, rising near the line between Sonora and Arizona and draining the Huachuca, Mule, Caliuro, Dragoon, and Whetstone Mountains, and also the eastern slope of the Santa Catalinas. Flowing northerly for more than 100 miles it enters the Gila River at the southern extremity of Gila Cañon, in Pinal County. Along its course the rain-fall is perhaps greater than elsewhere in Arizona, being estimated at 24 inches yearly in the vicinity of the Dragoon Mountains. Certain of the ranges mentioned are during winter frequently covered with snow, which on some do not disappear until the commencement of summer. Another notable tributary is the Salt River, in itself a large stream, having its headwaters in the White Mountains, near Green's Peak. It rises in the eastern portion of the Territory, draining the mountainous region in the far north, including among others the San Francisco, Sierra Ancha, White, Apache, and Tonto Basin Mountains. Among the most important streams that feed it may be mentioned the Verde River and Tonto, Raccoon, Cherry, Cañon, Cibica, Carrizo, Cedar, Pinal, and Perito Creeks. Its general direction is west and south, until it empties into the Gila some distance below Phoenix, its entire length closely approximating 200 miles. An important adjunct towards increasing its volume is the heavy rain-fall about Prescott, amounting during the past ten years, as is shown by the reported observations of the United States Signal Service office at that place, to an average of 15.18 inches annually. Much of its waters are used in irrigating its own valley at Phoenix, but the waste water of the Salt River Valley, irrigating canals is gradually returned in part through seepage to the Gila, thereby augmenting the latter. Other rivers, like the Agua Fria, Hassayampa, etc., bring down further supplies drained from the heavily-timbered mountain region traversed by them, pouring their precious stores into the Gila. Thus for the major portion of each year the Gila carries a large stream, more than sufficient, in fact, to irrigate its own valley, a domain princely in extent. During the summer months, however, owing to the extremely dry and heated climate, extraordinary rapid evaporation, decreased supply at its headwaters due to the cessation of springs and snows, and, also, the peculiarity, during the heated term, of drying in its bed for many miles, rising and sinking at intervals as the bed-rock approaches or recedes from the surface, the available supply falls short of the demand, leaving hundreds of thousands of acres in the lurch, and that, too, at the very time when ample irrigation facilities are the most needed. For this reason alone if for no other dams and other constructions for storing water against such times are imperatively needed and should be inaugurated as early as possible. None of the streams so far touched upon are navigable. The Colorado. The Colorado River is formed by the union of the Green and Grand Rivers. The former rises in Wyoming, near Fremont's Peak, and, running southerly, joius the latter in Utah. The Grand River rises near Long's Peak, in Colorado, and, running in a southwesterly direction, meets the Green as stated. From their juncture the stream takes the name of the Colorado, and, following a general southerly course, empties into the Gulf of California. The entire length, including tributaries, is over 1,200 miles. It flows during the low-water period at a rate not exceeding 4 miles per hour, although, of course, the speed is very much greater when the river is high. Among its principal tributaries are the Rio San Juan, the Colorado, Chiquito, the Bill Williams River, and finally, as already explained, the Gila. The Colorado constitutes the entire western boundary of Yuma County, it stotal length between the Sonora line and the mouth of Bill Williams River, being about 235 miles, the latter forming its northern boundary, separating, as it does the counties of Yuma and Mojave. It is navigable during high water for nearly 650 miles, from the Gulf of Cali fornia to the Virgin River, by steamers registered and licensed through the customs district of Paso del Norte. The river is capable of affording at all periods an almost incredible amount of water for irrigation purposes, sufficient, in fact, to bring hundreds of square miles of fertile lands on each side of the river under cultivation besides supporting an enormous population. Near Yuma the current sometimes attains a speed of 4 knots per hour, with an average depth of 10 or 12 feet. The Bill Williams fork unites with the Colorado at Aubrey. Rising in the mountains southwest of Prescott it flows southerly and westerly to its mouth a distance close upon 150 miles. Its chief tributaries are the Santa Maria and Big Sandy Rivers. It passes through a region much distorted and disturbed by past volcanic influences and containing but little tillable land. Consequently, so far as the intents and purposes of this report are concerned, the Bill Williams River, being devoid of extensive agricultural and irrigation facilities, will not be further treated. ARABLE LANDS.-Within the county limits there are large aggregations of Government land. The majority of the most favorably situated in the valleys were the first taken, the early pioneers occupying the tracts nearest the rivers for the reason that they could be more cheaply irrigated. The mesas are entirely unoccupied, although they comprise much of the most desirable land, such especially as are adapted to the growth of the citrus and other semi-tropical fruit. Water can not easily be brought upon them on account of their elevation above the river bed. Canals capable of carrying sufficient water for irrigation would entail comparatively heavy expense, because many miles must necessarily be constructed before the water can be brought to the surface. Such outlay would prove far too excessive for the slender resources of the average settler, and so, as matters stand, they lie scorching under the burning rays of a semi-tropical sun untouched by the spade and plow. This condition of things, however, can not long continue. Neither physical nor topographical difficulties exist that can not be surmounted by the expenditure of a reasonable amount of capital, and consequently it is only a matter of time when the completion of constructions of this nature will be effected by private corporations or by the Government. There are but few points along the slopes of the many mountain ranges calculated for farming locations. Such places are generally situated where small living springs afford the means of irrigation for a few scattered acres. Above the Gila are great sloping plateaus which may in the future be placed under cultivation provided the boring of artesian wells is prosecuted extensively. As the surface inclination is toward the river, commencing many miles away from its nearest point, the bringing of water from the Gila itself is entirely impracticable and other methods must be adopted. It may safely be assumed, in view of what has just been explained, that the large bodies of available agricultural lands are confined to the valleys of the Gila and Colorado, and also to the comparatively level plains stretching from the Gila River to the Mexican line. The Gila Valley is by far the most important of the two from an agricultural stand-point. It extends from the Gila Cañon, near the junction of the San Pedro River, westerly to the east banks of the Colorado, a distance slightly exceeding 250 miles. That portion of it situated in the county of Yuma, and known as the Lower Gila Valley, is about 100 miles long by from 2 to 16 miles wide, all of which is susceptible of profitable cultivation. The river from which it takes its name cuts the valley in two. Its water-shed extends some 30 miles north and upwards of 50 miles south of its channel, the land from either extreme inclining more or less rapidly towards the stream. The Gila traverses a marvelously fertile country, very great in extent, and splendidly adapted to the cultivation of nearly all the products of the temperate and semi tropic zones, besides many of the fruits common in the tropics. Nor is this longer a matter of idle speculation, for flourishing ranches in various portions of the valley and drawing water from several important canals amply demonstrate the magnificent results that will ensue should the water supply be rendered permanently equable and adequate through appropriate storage systems. The following, taken from "The Hand-Book to Arizona," by Col. R. J. Hinton, alluding to the valley in question, is as interesting as it is accurate. This consists of a broad expanse of tillable valley land, sometimes overflowed by the river, which is at times mighty uncertain' and a steep range of volcanic hills coming close to the highways is for a dozen miles or so hot, heavy, and sandy. It is hardly fair to say sandy, as it is really a friable alluvial loam of grayish hue and loose texture. Several ranches are passed, showing that the Gila bottom is cultivable. With irrigation every square mile of the Gila valley is capable of producing prolific crops of grains and semi-tropical fruits, as well as cotten and sugar in great abundance. The river is able to furnish all the water needed, and a good deal more. It would take no very great skill in engineering, and not a very large sum of money either, to construct reservoirs or lakes in which to receive and store the overflow. There are natural basins or dry lakes into which by simple means the water could be conveyed." The lands situated in and about the Gila valley may conveniently be classified as follows: (1) The bottoms or overflowed lands. (2) Slightly higher valley lands not subject to overflow. (3) Mesas or sloping uplands. (4) High but comparatively level plains. (5) Mountains. The bottoms and higher lands.-The bottom lands, as well as those slightly higher, stretch along either side of the Gila River for varying distances north and south until they meet the more elevated mesas which rise abruptly from the valley. The bottoms lie immediately along the river and are subject to inundation annually. Immediately following the subsidence of the waters the local Indians were in former times, accustomed to plant coru, pumpkins, melons, and other vegetables. These sprung into maturity with startling rapidity, rarely failing to yield bountifully without additional irrigation. The custom is occasionally followed by resident farmers to this day with excellent results, although but a single crop can be harvested. These bottoms form, perhaps, 25 per cent. of the valley lands, and may without par |