Imperial Valley press., May 16, 1908, Image 1

About Imperial Valley press. (El Centro, Calif.) 1907-current

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Imperial Valley Press.
VOL. VIII
IMPROVEMENT AND PROTECTION
OF VALLEY IRRIGATION SYSTEM
Canal Company Hope to Get Money Enough to Start Work
This Year on Cement Gates to Replace Sharp's Head
ing, But no Extensions of System Have Been Author
- ized, Great System Projected by Mr, Harriman. .
~" What amount of money the officers
and engineers of the California Devel
opment Company will be authorized
this year to expend for extension, bet
terment and protection of the Irriga
tion system In Imperial Valley has not
been determined by the big chiefs of
the Southern Pacific, without whose
sanction nothing can be done, but it Is
virtually a certainty that it will not
be a million, and the engineers will be
pleased if a quarter of that sum shall
be allowed. The published report}
that the Southern Pacific has decided
to spend a million and build a high
lino canal on the east side of the val
ley are hot-air balloons, and they were
not sent up by Epes Randolph.
The California Development Com
pany has no money to spend .on ex
tensions, and the Southern Pacific's
;present policy is to supply that oom
: pany only with funds absolutely re
quired to keep the canal system in
working order and prevent deteriora
tion or damage. The engineers would
"' like to carry out all their plans for
;t»erfection of the system and" construc
tion of permanent works, but the
financial condition of the C. D. Co. fur
bids for the present, and 'they .must,
be content to do only what is absolute
ly necessary. There will be no canal
building bcom this year, no "large
forces of men engaged in 'structural
work," consuming prodigious quanti
ties of farm products and boosting
property values to the moon.
Possible Improvements.
It is possible that Mr. Harriman
may be persuaded to authorize begin
ning of work N on a new system of ce
ment gates and controlling works on
the Alamo, to replace the temporno
structure at Sharp's heading, which
is none too, secure. The cost of that
work, completed, is estimated at $200,
000 to $250,000. The new gates will
be located several milei above
Sharp's heading and will hi hoa-1
works for the east side high line the
power canal, number one's main, the
Encina and west side and the Mexican
systems,' and will include a lock for
the dredger and a waste-way dis
charging into New River instead of
■.the Alamo.
Another piece of work deemed im
mediately necessary by the engineers
iis the building of a cement structure
;at the boundary crossing to replace
:the present ten-foot drop. The cost
would be about $20,000: \
. ' Volcano Lake Levee. V
But the only new work the C.|, D.
•Co. is absolutely sure of at present is
.the lfee at Volcano lake to divert
■ovcrf f? walVr from New River and
send it down the Hardy. Contractor
•.Sherer is busy on that job with about
300 head of stock and 200 men, jand
: hopes to have the levee completed
from the Black Dutte to tho high
ground on the Paredones by June 1.
-The overflow is already covering the
delta lands of the Pescadero and flow
ing In the numerous channels'leading
to Volcano lako, and there Is some
overpour at the break of the Abejos.
Cutting back is not progressing^rap
idly, but an early rise of the Colorado
would increase the overpour and
cause, the channel of the Abejos to
recede toward the river. The cost of
the levee cannot be estimated ox'act
ly, but It will bo somewhere between
.$75,000 and $100,000.
v Millions not Available.
Complete plans for a substantial-ir
rigation system, covering Imperial
Valley from Old Beach to the Pure
dones in Mexico, and from the mesa
on the east to about sea-levol contour
on the west, call for tho expenditure
-of $3,000,000, but no such Bum is avail
Official Roper of Imperial County
EL CENTRO, CALIFORNIA, SATURDAY. MAY IG, 1008.
able now nor is it likely to be supplied
by the Southern Pacific until the C.
D. Co. gets out from under the aval
anche of litigation which has buried
its affairs out of "sight. ■
Comprehensive Plans.
Conditioned by a* large "if," tho
Southern Pacific may furnish the C.
D. Co. with money to carry out even
mqre extensive plans of improvement
than those outlined as immediate pos
sibilities. The complete irrigation sys
tem of Imperial Valley, planned by
the engineers, contemplates a high
line canal of large capacity starting
from a point on the Alamo about 20
miles east of Sharps heading at 100
feet above sea-level, and following a
contour above the old beach line
around the east and north sides of the
i desert basin through Coachella Val
ley to Indio. The canal would be
about 125 miles long, and would serve
to^ reclaim an .area' vastly greater than
the present Irrigable area of Imperial
Valley.
This east high line canal, with the
southland west extensions provided
for in the final plans, would constitute
the greatest irrigation systenv in the
world, covering virtually the whole
of the region known as the desert of
the Colorado, an area of about 2500
square miles, or, roughly, 1,500,000
acres of the most fertile soil on the
continent.
North of the present irrigation dis
tricts, every alternate section of- laud
belongs to the railroad by grant'and
is not subject to provisions of the
desert land law. • It may be deeded on
such terms as the railroad may elect
to prescribe. The advantage to the
Southern Pacific of bringing this land
Jnto the irrigation system is obvious.
Millions Needed.
Now for the big "If" ,ih the case, li
will take millions to carry out .the
project, and at present the Southern
Pacific has. no millions available for
the work. If Congress repays to "Mr.
Harriman the $1,600,000 which he
spent in closing the break of the Colo
rado, thereby making good tne Pcesi
dent's promise on behalf of the gov
ernment, that money will be applied
to extensions of the Imperial Valley
canals, and Mr. Harriman will furn
ish the additional millions required to
perfect* the- irrigation system. Thi?
is not a guess at Mr. Harriman's pol
icy and intentions.
That the whole project will be car
ried out eventually, regardless of
what Congress ma^y do Avith the reirn
bursement bill, is an inevitable con
clusion, but it may be mr.".y years be
fore the ordinary course of events
forces expansion of the system in
that direction. The railroad may not
have the money to spare for the work,
it may wait until close settlement
of the present districts creates a de
mand for land which will insure quick
return of the investment.
The Railroad's Profit.
Mr. Harriman figures that sales of
railroad land in the new reclamation
district to bo opened by the high line
canal will return to the railroad in
time the entire cost of tho canal and
appurtenant works, and that after dis
posing of its land the railroad will
have tho canal system clear and free
as a producer of revenue.' It is a big
project, and there is big profit in It
ultimately for the owners of the Im
perial Valley irrigation system. Pos
sibly Mr. Ilarrlman may not be so de
sirous as somo of his lieutenants
have been of turning the whole tiling
over tp the settlers at cost and letting
them manage it for themselves.
A modest beginning of the work ol
bringing railroad lands into the mar
ket may bo ftiado before anything is
rlono on the high line extension; It is
feasible to throw a dam across t.ho
Alamo where the railway crosses tho
river north of Uockwood, and take out
for irrigation all the water now wast
ed froni Sharp's heading and the pow
er canaF. A canal extending north
ward from the dam would conduct
water to the region In which He the
railroad sections. Whether or not it
will be profitable to construct the dam
and canal immediately depends upon
tho area that can bo ko reclaimed.
Surveyors of the C. D. Co. are now
working in that district, and it is prob
able that they will run levels and
gather data from which accurate esti
mates of the reclainiable area may be
ARTESIAN PROSPECTS
Drilling Contract Held Up Until Deep
Hole' is Guaranteed.
Drilling for water was v not begun
this week in El Centro because the
Coachella Company, could not contract
to bore deeper than 1500 feet and sub
scribers to the fund are not content
to stop at that depth. The company's
machinery is not adapted to deeper
boring- and a hard formation puts it
out of .business. Therefore the con
tract was not signed, but a committee
was appointed last Saturday night to
make arrangements .either for secur
ing a standard drilling rig capable of
sinking at least 3000 feet, or for put
ting down with the Coachella machine
a 1500-foot hole in such. a. way that it
can be used as a starter for a deeper
well.
■ Subscribers to the fund say ; they
would rather give $200 ta drill from
the bottom of a 1500-foot dry hole than
spend $50 to reach that depth and
stop. It is the determination of the
men who have gone into this project
to make an exhaustive test and to
find water if they have to drill a mile,
and It Is probable that they will buy
or lease a standard rig and start
right.
BLIND PIG INJUNCTION.
Application to Make Temporary Writ
~V Permanent One Argued Before
Judge Cole.
' Several weeks ago a w temporary in
junction was issued by Judge Cole of
the Superior Court against Robert Hall
of Imperial, ; restraining him from
maintaining a nuisance on certain pro
perty in the city of Imperial by the
sale of intoxicating liquors.. Applica
tion was made later by Imperial's city
attorney; George H. P. Shaw, for a f
permanent injunction against Hall,
and this was argued before Judge Cole
yesterday afternoon. Early this week
a "lis pendens" jdocument was placed
on record in the office of the county
clerk setting forth this action of the
State vs. Robert Hall and Anna Hall,
thus practically notifying the public
that the injunction is effective, against
their property, lot 9 of block 85, of the
subdivision of blocks 67 to 83, of Im
perial, even though the ownership of
this property should change.
HEARTS BOWED DOWN.
And Voices Lifted- Up in Grief Over
Two Little Melons.
> Very little things sometimes make
a noise all out of proportion to their
size. Mr. Van Horn's first ripe canta
loupes last week were "mighty small"
melons and few on the vine, but they
kept tho wires and some other things
hot for a few days.
First an estimable citizen of Heber
had a brain storm because the exact
location of the champion melon patch
was not indicated in a four-line news
item. Then an Imperial man had a
fit because El Centro was mentioned,
and ho rushed off a telegram to the
newspapers abroad that "Heber ship
ped the first melons of the season Sat-
The Van Horu "apples of discord"
were the little, premature things
which develope from the first bloom
and are sloughed off by the vine be
fore the good fruit matures. They are
without flavor and are no good. Rome
of those discards of nature are sent
to market occasionally, but they
should not be shipped at all. Melons
were not shipped from Heber last Sat
urday, nor have melons yet been ship
ped from any place in Imperial Valley.
In about two weeks shipments may be
expected to begin.
In the meantime let tho Howl about
credit for two little near melons swell
and reverberate like the evening song
of a coyote with a uosom full of In
consolable woe and a voice saturated
with grief.
AMATEUR SMUGGLING.
Cowbpys Get Into Serious Trouble on
a Spree at Mexican.
Two El Centro men, Sam Johnson
and one Eckels, have been taken to
Los Angeles by a Federal officer to
answer to the charge of smuggling in
toxicating liquors across the line from
Mexicali. The arrests were made last
Wednesday, when Johnson and Eckels
with two companions, had driven
down to Mdfticall and were having a
huge drinking bout. When they came
across the line to Calexlco they pass
ed the United States Custom House
and declared they had no dutiable
goods. They were asked to halt
while the Custom House officer in
spected their rig, but whipped up their
horses and tried to escape. They were
pursued by men on horseback, and as
they fled before the officers they at
tempted to break or throw out of their
vehicle all their bottled contraband
goods. However one bottle escaped
their notice and it was found when
the men were captured.
The team which the men were driv
ing was one from the Depot Stables
in El Centro, and the team and vehicle
are now held at Calexico, subject to
the order of the court. C. Hubbel, one
of the proprietors of the stable, went
down to Calexico yesterday to attempt
to secure a return of his property. At
the stables yesterday it . was stated
that Johnson and Eckels, who are
stock - men, had frequently rented
teams for the purpose of driving to
the "C. M." ranch, and that it was
supposed a similar trip was planned
when the men started out for Mexi
cali. Outfits used in smuggling are
liable to confiscation.
BOUNDARY BOULEVARD.
Walter K. Bowker, manager of the
"C. M." ranch, has made to the Cal
exico Chamber of Commerce a pro
position in regard to street grading
which has been endorsed by that body
and the city trustees will be" asked to
approve of the project. Mr. Bowker
proposes to grade a road from the
Southern Pacific depot to the house
on the "C. M." rancti, making of it
one of the handsomest drives in the
entire Imperial Valley. The route
would be from the depot on Third
street to Imperial avenue, Whence- on
the avenue to Second street, and
thence to the ranch house. He pro
poses to grade the streets within the
city limits at actual cost, and the bal
ance of the project will be carried
through at no expense to the city. He
also offers to grade other city streets
at a reasonable cost, if the board of
trustees so desires.
SHOOTER TO BE TRIED.
Trial of the case of J. L. McDride,
charged with assault with a deadly
weapon) has been set for May 25 in
the Superior Court. Last March Me-
Bride attempted to drive 11. W. Hager
man from a piece of land near Holt
ville and opened fire on him with a
revolver. Hagerman's companion,
Geo. A. Peacock, peppered Mcßride at
long range with birdshot, but failed
to silence his artillery. McDride bom
barded Hagerman copiously and drove
him from the land. Hagertiiah la a
councilman of the City of San Bernar
dino.
An assessment of fifty cents per
share has been levied on the stock of
Water Company No. 7. Unpaid assess
ments become delinquent May 30.
ROAD TO SAN DIEGO
WILL BE MADE SOON
COUNTY OFFICERS SURVEY AND
SELECT GENERAL ROUTE.
Definite Plans Awaiting Organization
of Highway Commission in San
Diego County Next Month — Private
Capital May Come to Assistance of
the Counties.
Definite steps were taken this week .
towards securing a good highway from
Imperial Valley to San Diego. County
Supervisors Webster and Clark and
County Games spent several
days on this project, in conjunction
with J. H. Cassady, chairman of the
San Diego Board oi! Supervisors, H.
C. Bigelow, of the -Home Telephone
Company, and County Surveyor But- -
ler of that county. The outcome is a
determination that the route inspect
ed is a feasible one and that road
building must be pushed through if
the best interests of both counties are
to be served.
The Imperial Valley party left El
Centro Sunday afternoon, and,, that
evening reached Coyote Wells, where
they stayed over night because of the
prevailing high winds. The next day
they reached Jacumba, where they
were met by^ the party from San
Diego.
A through inspection of the pro
posed route from Jacumba easterly
was then made. - It was determined
that practically the route of the old
military road from San Diego to
Yuma, through this section, was the
best line yet' proposed, and the prpp
er method of procedure would be to
provide for the joint action of the sur
veyors of San Diego and Imperial
counties in fixing the easiest grades
and lines of, most economical construc
tion.
The proposed route goes across the
new No. 8 canal bridge direct to Coy
ote Wells, and thence westerly to
Devil's Canon. Four miles back in
this canon Mountain Springs is reach
ed, and three miles beyond this point
"lies the San Diego county line and the
top of the divde. A descent of six
miles takes the traveler into Jacumba,
and the route to San Diego from that
point is by Campo. ..
On the Imperial county, side of the
route, the old military trail is used
with the exception of not more than
three miles. Supervisor Clark de
clares that the Imperial Valley-San
Diego highway could be made an ac
complished fact by the construction of
from twelve to fifteen miles of road,
most of which would be located in
Devil's Canon. Much of this construc
tion would be the placing of a road
way at a level which would not be af
fected by the rush of waters in the
winter's storms.
San Diego county plans to select
a count/ highway,, commission on
June 1, and has asked tile adjoining
counties to have representatives at
this meeting, with the hope of start
ing a general concerted movement- for
improved highways, the Imperial
county supervisors have decided that
it is wise to await that action before
making any definite movement on tho
proposed inter-county highway, al
though they give the project their
hearty approval.
Mr. Bigelow, who is enthusiastic
over the possibilities of this road, de
clares that If the two counties will
■definitely determine the line for the
highway, he can interest private capi
tal to a large amount In its construc
tion, possibly to the extent of $50,000.
MOVING TO EL CENTRO
Attorney C. L. Brown has been in
Vuima tho past week, packing his ex
tensive law library preparatory to
having it moved to El Centro, where
ho has been spending most of his
time for tho past four months and has
formed a law partnership with M. W.
NO. 6