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The act offered 640 acres (2.6 km²) of land to anyone who would pay a $1.25 an acre and promise to irrigate the land within 3 years. Individuals taking advantage of the act were required to submit proof of their efforts to irrigate the land within three years, but as water was relatively scarce, a great number of fraudulent "proofs" of irrigation (estimated as high as 95% for early claims) were provided.

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