DeVoto decried "the economy of liquidation" that had prevailed in the West since it was first settled, a philosophy that applied to aquifers and farms as well as mines. In the West "the miner's right to exploit transcends all other rights whatsoever." As for agriculture, it soon became clear that it was impossible without irrigation, and that irrigation itself was impossible without the massive dams that only the federal government could build. Which, combined with the fact that much grazing and mining occurred on public land, made westerners chronically dependent on government help. In fact, contrary to the image of rugged individualism, westerners were more dependent on help and community than any other region. Dams, irrigation, free private use of public land. It all amounted to a rugged, beautiful, and wild welfare state.
( David Gessner )
[ All The Wild That Remains: ]
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