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About Lake County examiner. (Lakeview, Lake County, Or.) 1880-1915 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 8, 1906)
Erik MM VOL. XXVII. LAKE VIEW, LAKE COUNTY, OREGON, THURSDAY, FEB. 8, 190G. NO. c. REPORT OF Ell G1HEER BENNETT dooU Reservoir Sites On Stream Flowing In to Goose Lake. ADAPTED CHIEFLY TO ALFALFA. Development I -cajrues Anxious to Assist the (Jovernmcnt In This Work. In answer to n request by the mVm County Development league on Do uilT &, 1'.h', for coj'y of tint re port to tho Reclamation service on tin reclamation projects in this valley, made by Mr. 8. G. Bennett engineer ill tint lU'clllllllltloll KITVloo, A. 1. pRVllt, Aotlllg chief Cngilll-er, HOtlds t tin following : Los Angeles, Calif,. July 7, r".. Mr. J. It. Llpponrott, Klllllllltll Falls, Oregon. Dear Sir: I reached Ijhkeviow, Oregon on tlm morning of Juno Ulth, Hint spent tli ilay mooting Mr. Stcluer itiul t hiT members of the Iako Coun ty (Oregon) Development Icagiie and in making Inquiries in regard to the different streams ami possible nwr vulr sites, etc. On Sunday, Juno '.55th 1 drove from Inkoviow to a point 1st tweeu Drews niul Pry Crooks near the California State line, ami arraugod for saddle horses, guide, etc., for a trip in th watersheds of these crocks. DKY CRKKK. A reservoir sito was discovered on Pry Creek near where it leaves I ho mountains. Tim arou of tho tributary watershed Im lietwoen 4D ami W square miles. Tln dam site lit approximate ly lui foot wldo on tho bottom ami about XiOfoot wide at tint Hi) foot level above tho stream lied. Tho walls of tho canyon are eoiiiposed of lava rook Tho reservoir sito in piit narrow Tho grade of tho crook alxivo the nito, howovor, seems to m small. Thoro are Hovoral bettor reservoir sites ulxive thiii point, hut the tributary wuter shod Im small. PO(i LAKl-j RKSKHVOIK SITK. An excellent reservoir nito exists at Dog Lako Valloy oil Dog Iako Crook, h Irihutaryof Drown Crook. Tho pres ent lake Im about ono ami one-half in i Ion long Htul from '.HM to i0 foot wide. Tho dam sito 1 only -0 foot wldo on thu hottoiii ami l'.M) foot wide at tho 40 foot contour. A cross auc tion of tho dam site tip to tho 40 foot ol volution U given. Thoro lit loose rock in tho lied of tho stream and on tho slopes but no bod rock in night. Tho area of tho watershed tributary to thin lako wfta estimated an 'M square milos by Mr. Wilshiro, an ex-register of tho U. S. Land OUlco at Luke v low. From my ride through tho western portion of tho watershed and tho val loy, I think it inuat bo much loss than this amount. Tho olovation of tho valley in between hovoii and eight thousand foot. Tho regulating weir would probably not need to 1x3 more than 10 feet high and uo doubt could bo built for ti few hundred dollar. Tho greater part of tho valloy id own ed by Cox and Clark and U part of what In known an X. L. Cattlo Range. It la used iu tho Hummer for pusturo for "beef cattlo." Tho use of the val ley as a reservoir aito would do little damago to tho property uh a range since tho water would probably bo drawn otf during tho month of July. DREWS CREEK. A reservoir aito ex lulu nt tho lower end of Drews Valley. The dam Bite is located about four in lion above the point whore the creek debouches upon tho plains. This creek has tho largest water shed of any stream empty lug into Goose Lako. The dam site .is about 120 feet wide at tho bottom. The right abut t men t is a lava cliff about 60 feet high. Tho left abutt ruout is about 'M feet high. Above this elevation the dam would bo live or six hundred feet long. A soooud reservoir site looted at tho point where Drews Crook leaves the mouuta ins was examined, aud a cross section made of the dam site with hand-level and tape. This cross section is here given. It Is claimed that the fall of the creek above this point averages 12 foot to the mllo. If this In true this hit would have considerable capacity but probably not enough to justify the construction of aa large a dam as would Ini necessary at this point. COTTONWOOD CREEK. A reservoir site itxlsts on Cottonwood Creek. It is located about ton miles northwest of Iakotvlow. There is al ready a small dam at this point. Ap parently tho best location for ft dam would ho four or five hundred foot le low tliM present dam site. This loca tion soems to me to I mi tho most ad vantageous observed during tho recoil iioisHiinco. The watershed of Cotton wood Crook above this point contains from to '.Ml piar miles of well wooded area. Tho average elevation of probably between 0iKi ami 7K) feet. Thorn were 7.2M second feet of water (low in this stream at the time tho ex aiiiliiutioti was made. This is said to lie not more than one-third of the average How at this tlmo of tho year, THOMAS CREEK. .J reservoir site exists on Thomas ( riM'k. A cross section of the "linn site is hero given. Tho bus in above this (lain site is not as largo as that on Cottonwood Crook but is of sulll cent sio to Justify an Instrumental survey to determine its capacity or to determine the pnssihilit ies of divert ing this stream into Cottonwood Crook. Tho elevation of tho lied of Thomas Creek seems to lie several hundred feet greater than that of Cottonwood. It may l possible to divert this stream by a short ennui ami tunnel. GENERAL REMARKS. As fur as I could determine, there has never boon a map made of luke county, Oregon. The accompanying blue print gives approximately the area of the various watersheds tribu tary to Goose Iuko and tho area of the irrigable land situated oil the north west shore of this lake. Those areas must ls considered as approx iinately ouly. The greater part of tho laud that could Ik- irrigated is in priv ate ownership, most of tho public laud tieing in rolling hills bordering tho stream courses and would be dilll cult to irrigate. Tho laud is appar ently quite fertile. Tho grain crops look well. Small patches of alfalfa seem to indicate that this should 1m the principal crop grown in this vicin ity. Tho soil is from ono to three foot deep and is underlaid by hard clay, which seems to Isicomo saturat ed during tho wet season. This hard pan can be readily dug with it spado when it Is wet and can ls penetrated by thu roots of alfalfa and trees. About three out of five of tho home steads in this vicinty have been alutn doued LsH-auso tho people could not make a living upon the laud without water for irrigation. On tho whole 1 think that tho pros pects of a possible reclamation pro ject in tho viciuity of Lakeviow are suillcient to justify a topographical survey of the reservoir sites on Cot tonwood, Thomas and Drews Creeks to determine tho cost of reclaiming land in Oregon along the northwest border of Goose Lake. Tho people of this viciuity are very much interested in the latter and ex press their willingness to do every thing possible to help tho project along. There aro several organiza tions which have for their purpose tho development of the county. There is very little irrigation done in this vi cinity. Small patches of wild hay are irrigated along the stream courses by putting in temporary dams. There would lie few complications on ac count of water rights. A portion of tho land belongs to the old Military Road Company. Mr. W. II. Shirk, who represents this Company luLako vlow, says that tho Company would be willing to dispose of their laud at reasonable rates. 100 acre tracts In tho vicinity of Drews Creek are for sale at from $500 to $1000, according to improvements. Tho highest price nuked for land, as far as I was able to hoar, was $12.50 per aero. Tho reason I did uot make investi gation iu the Land OUtce in order to determine the amount of public land in this vicinity whs that I thought this information could probably be obtained at less cost from the Register or the Koceivor of the Lukeview Lund OUlce. I have no doubt the Lake view Dovlopmeut League would gladly fur nish this information. Respectfully submitted, (Signed) 8. G. Hennett, Engineer. It is quite uotlooable that tho days are getting longer. THE DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE MEETS. Proposition to Borrow Money From Gov ernment for Reclamation Purposes. At tho regular mooting of the Lake County Development league, held last Saturday evening at tho Court house. Some very important busi ness was taken up in tho matter of ir rigation. Hon T. V. Dunaway, Vice-president of tho N C O. Ry. Co., and lion. Jno. M. Crawley, tratlic manager of the same road were made honorary iiieni- Y " f ..' 'j - ' 4" : I . WILLIAM H. BERRY. The new treasurer elect of Pennsylvania, who declares that he Is "going to lift tho lid und see w hut's in it," referred to the allegations that the state treas ury of Pennsylvania holds more worthless paper than ready money. Mr. Ber ry's slogan in the recent campaign was. "Thou stmlt not steal." He Is mayor of Chester and Is a Democrat and a prohibitionist. He Is over six feet tall and is as big mentally as lie Is physically. For twenty years he has been a local preacher for the Methodist Episcopal churcli. hers of the League and elected vice presidents. These gentlemen have demonstrated a deep iuterest in the development of the country through which their road is projected, and for this reason they were elected to the League. During the discussion of various matters of importance to tho county J. N. Watson gave tho menils.rs pres ent a surprise, lie produced a com munication from tho Wenatchee Com mercial Club, of Wcnatchoo, Wash., which follows : Wenatcheo, Wash., IXic. 20, 1905. To all Commercial Bodies, the Press, Associations of Manu facturers, ISusiness men, Trans portutlou Companies and all Friends of tho Reclamation of Arid Lands of the United States of America. GREETING : In view of tho mauy worthy irrigation projects which the reclamation bureau of the government is unable to undertake becauso of a luck of funds at their dsiposol, the uu dersigued irrigation committee of the Commercial Club of Weuatchoe, Wash ington, most respectfully submit for your hearty co-operation in an effort to secure concerted act ion by all friends of irrigation to bring about the desired end. Kindly read it, study tho questions involved, aud in the spirit which has prompted our sending it to you, act, persuade others to join you, pass resolutions, circulate petitious, aud bring to bear upon your representatives iu Congress eve ry bit of pressure possible in order that that body may authorize the treasurer of the Uultod States to lend to the reclamation service from time to time such fuuds as may be ueoos sary to hasten the day w hen the desert may blossom and bloom like the rose. "signed by the Bub-committee of the Weuatchoe Commercial Club Irriga tion Committee. , Tho memorial referred to In the ' above communication follows: ; ."Whereas, A great area of some 70, OOO.uiO, acres of the western half of the United States, is desert laud, to- tally unfit for settlement and cultiva tion without reclamation by Irriga tion, and I Whereas, The irrigation of these lauds by individual pioneers and or- 4 Ayj'MM gunized private capital, has already reached its reasonable limit, aud soci ologic aud economic quest ous involved aud occasioned by the congestion of European immigrauts aud our native, landless wage-earners iu the great trade centers both east and west, thus providing a vast empire where a few acres well tilled are suffi cient to maintain a large family in comfort and even in affluence, has become an issue of great moment to the whole people of the United States, and Whereas, Mauy meritorious pro jects for the reclamation of arid lands by the federal government, have been temporarily or wholly abandoned or have not been iuvostigatedby reason of a lack of fuuds, and Whereas, The slow accumulation of funds through natural chaunels of the reclamation service, will postpone the undertaking for many years to come, and Whereas, To take proper core of foreign immigrants and to carry out these plans for the betterment of our peoplo at home, the nation should ex pend every year at least as much as is now being spent on foreign exploit ations, Isthmian caual, and our naval and military establishments, - there fore, be it Resolved, That the business men and1 farmers of the Weuatchoe and Columbia river volleys, through aud by their duly authorized committee, urge that the national government make appropriations, as loaus to the reclamation fund, adequate to con struction of such irrigation systems as may bo fouud practicable for construc tion by the reclamation service ; aud it is further urged that government proceed with all expeditions practic able, to complete surveys and make the necessary plans and estimates for the construction of such Irrigation systems iu order tharthese lauds may be made available as rapidly as actual settlers will take them, build homes thereon, and repay the government for the cost of construction." Signed by the Subcommittee of the Wenatcbee Commercial Club Irriga tion Committee. The petition prepared for signers as follows : To the Honorable Congress of the United States: The nndersignad, citizens interested In the matter of reclaiming the arid lands of the West, would most respectfully petition that your honorable body enact legislation at the present session, authorizing the treasurer of the United States to lend to the reclamation service from time to time such funds as may he neces sary to construct all irrigation systems found to be practicable by the recla mation service, and your petitioners will ever pray : H;Id By Sheriff. Some days ago Sheriff Rinebart re ceived authority from San Francisco to look out for Charles S. Wallace, and arrest him if he appeared here. On last Saturday morning C. S. Wal lace arrived here on the Western stage aud registered at the hotel. Soon after his arrival the sheriff took him in charge aud w ired the San Francisco authorities. The following item appeared in the San Francisco Bulletin of Jan. 31st The police hold a warrant for the ar rest of Charles S. Wallace, who was formerly in the employ of the Gray-Lang-Stroh Company, commission merchants at 73 California street. Felony embezzlement is the charge against Wallace, and the complaining w itness is A. G. Lang, his former em ployer. Mr. Lang says that Wallace was employed as a salesman by the Arm, and was intrusted to make col lections. On Saturday last he collect ed $S0.70 and has not been seen since. The warrant of arrest was issued by Police Judge Mogan this morning. Charles S. Wallace is a son of Wallace, who once resided in Lake- view. Young Wallace is about 17 years of age. Mines are Bonded. Man Whorton and S. Gallagher were up from Pine Creek last Friday. Both gentlemen informed us that the little town of Pine Creek gives every evidence of a boom next summer. Mr. Gallagher is in the hotel busi ness there and looks forward to a prosperous season next year for his house. He inforemd us that the sale of ths Wade-Reed mine mentioned in The Examiner last week, was a sure thing, ad that the boys bad received $1000 each down, and were to get $4000 in six months, and the balance of $52,000 in two years. lie says that some expert mining men who have been there about three months tell him the prospects are good ; even bet ter than many other mines they know of that have developed into immense ly rich mines. Everybody hopes that further development will actually bear out these statements, and they have but a short time to wait now to learn the result of thorough investigation. Trouble in Paisley School. Last week The Examiner made men tion of the Paisley school as not being in a prosperous condition. Prof. G. M. Paul, principal of the schools, re signed his position lattt week, and pas sed through Lake view the latter part of the week on his way to the Willam ette valley. It seems that sentiment is divided there as to who was really in fault, some believing the teacher in the wrong and some hold out that the boys whom the Prof, caused to be ex pelled, were responsible for the trouble. Miss Lemburger, who is teaching the primary department, will continue for a while, at least. An effort is being made to secure a teach er for tho unexpired three months of the term. Telephone to Bly. The telephone line from Lakeview to Bly is now au assured thing. There has been about $1700 subscirbed iu Lakeview and the paper will be pre sented to those living along the pro posed line, and the promoters are as sured that quite a number will sub scribe. At any rate, we are advised that the scheme will go through with out a hitch. A meeting will be called within a week or two for the purpose of organizing. Final preparations will be completed at the meeting and construction work will begin as early in the spring as weather conditions will permit. FINISH EDUCA TION AT E, Lake County flight Put Finishing Touches On at Home. OUR COMMON SCHOOLS GOOD. Best of Educational Facilities are A Necessity to Proper De velopment of Minds. There isn't a county in the whole state of Oregon that is in a better financial condition than Lake county; don't pay a dollar interest on borrow ed money, don't pay taxes on half the real value of its property and the levy is only 1G mills on what it does pay. The county is rich. Its educational facilities are as good as those of any other county if there is one that doesn't maintain a high school, or in which is located a normal school supported by the state. No county or community can boast of absolute per fection in educational matters, un less it be equipped with every possibe facility, which must include either a high school, academy or normal. While we may have the very best of common public schools, there is a lim it to the efficiency of service they ren der. At this limit there exists a ne cessity for something higher. This necessity falls npon every pupil in the county when the limit, is reached, and every pupil is thus effected by the lack of possible school facilities. The intellect of every pupil in the county is an asset of the county, and a duty thus devolves upon the county to develop that intellect as though it were a gold mine or an untilled ex panse of fertile soil. Lake county has as good a right and better by way of priority to the honor of turn ing out superior minds, trained to perfection and a class of robust intel- ' ligence that would forever stand as a credit to the people of the county. Lake county can boast of raw ma terial for statesmen, educators and in fact the power that make ends meet in the world and assures longevity of the nation. To transport this raw material to some other climate for the purpose of turning out the finish ed article, at a time in life when na ture is putting on the finishing touch to robust manhood and womanhood. is imparing that strength and robust ness that nature so kindly endows the youngster of Lake county with. Some time ago we remember of reading au account of lung and gen eral vitality tests made at a prepara tion school, where it gave the 'pupil of Fjisteru Oregon, upon his arrival at the schools, a large per centage of vitality over pupils from other clim ates. The lungs were stronger and all tests were more satsfactory. This superior health condition could be re tained if the finishing touches of ed ucation could be put on and allow the pupil to remain in his native climate until fully developed iu manhood. The matter of health and vigor, while the greatest feature, there are others that should appeal strongly iu favor of maintaining such education al institutions within the county as would preclude the necessity of going abroad to be educated. The matter of cost to those sending their children, away, consequently cost to the county, and the precaution that must neces sarily be taken to provide proper homes tor pupils who go away to school, iu order to insure safety against contact with unwholesome surroundings. Born at home, raised at home, edu cated at home when you have a home iu au invigorating climate like Lake county, is a God Bend to the rising generation and a comfort to the par ents. We do not need to mention that Lake county needs a high school to i make obvious the mihieet of this ar ticle. We hope that each reader and , taxpayer will study this question, and if comment suggests itself. Space is at vniiF ' i II. . ' A forlorn hope is no hope at aU.' There is nothing of merit that' is not worth an effort. ' HUM