The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1878-04-04


49, =sssssSs=Sss5S5,54z
streams upon the continent. 1t enters
Kansas seventy-fye miles north of the
south line of the State, runs due east
40 miles, DIVORCES seyenty-fye miles |
northeast, then angles to the south
east, forming what is known as the |
Great Bend, thence little south of
east through Kansas, the Indian Ter
ritory and the State of Arkansas, emp !
tying into the Mississippi midway be-
tween Memphis and Vicksburg. The
Arkansas is a broad and shallow
stream, with many islands, low but
well defined banks, varying from four
to ten feet in height. The most re-
markable features are that although
draining country, before reaching
Kansas, larger than all New England,
and although it carries the melting
SHOWS in June, July and August of
many thousand square miles, it never
overflows its banks, but its waters
are curiously kept within the bed of
the stream, working a great benefit to
the soil of the valley for miles upon
each side. The fact is the bed of the
stream throughout its source in Kan
sas is composed Of sand and gravel, as
also the subsoil of adjacent lands.
The superintendent water spreads it.
self through this subsoil, instead of
overlooking the country, as would be
the case if the subsoil of the wide val
lev were clay. So completely does
the porous subsoil drink up the water
that most of the year it is easily ford
adle with teams, and there have been
times when, in the western portion of
the State, the river bed would go dry,
although water could be obtained
three or four inches below the surface,
where in reality the river was flowing
in the gravel. The river at Wichita
is about l 800 feet wide, at Hutchin-
con, forty miles further up, ii is 1000
feet wide
THE VALLEY AND SOIL.
Sedgwick, Sumner and Cowley, en-
bracing the finest, richest and best
watered lands to be found in the
whole 1900 miles traversed by the
Arkansas. This portion of the valley
is from five to twenty-five miles wide.
The soil is chiefly sandy loan, made
up of such elements as have been
washed from the Rocky Mountains by
the attrition of ages. II is marked
feature of this soil that it contains
much larger proportion of mineral
matter than the prairie soils OF Illinois
and Iowa, which are chiefly vegetable
mould. For this reason our valley
will improve by cultivation. To those
accustomed to a murky soil, there APP
pears to be in places in this valley too
much sand, but the experience of our
farmers is directly the opposite. Read
what the editor of the american Ag-
riculturist, who visited this valley in
April of last year, has to say:
"The soil is deep black loan, rest
ing on lighter colored subsoil con-
sisting of loan, clay and gravel, both
soil and subsoil being so porous that
surface water readily passes through
them, and in no case is there any diff
ficulty experienced in crossing with
horses and wagons or stock, any wa
ter courses or beds of streams. Teams
NAV be driven across springs or creek
bottoms fearlessly, without danger of
miring. This porositv of the soil,
while it renders it capable of being
plowed or worked Immediately after
the heaviest rains, at the same time
keeps il constantly moist from evap
Grafton below, and protects it from
drouth. Within six hours of the ces-
sation of rain, in which Judge at
least six inches of water fell saw
farmers breaking sod and cnltivating
the young corn. The crops Of corn,
oats, rye. spring ami fall wheat, pota-
toes and garden vegetables, which L
saw growing, both on new and old
breakings, in various localities in the
valley, are equal to any that have
ever seen elsewhere, during many
years experience. know of no part
of the Country possessing a more at
tractivc soil for the farmer than this"
WATER.
1t has been widely supposed that
Central and Western, if not Eastern
Kansas suffered from a dry climate.
Like many other ideas relative to the
western parts of the great Missouri
valley, we need not hardly say this,so
far as the Eastern and Central parts
of the State are concerned, is explod-
ed. If springs and water courses in
whose channels aquatic plants, need
ing for their existence constant moist
urc; if frequently occurring streams;
if rains frequently occurring and CO.
piously descending; if all these are
proofs, then there is abundant testi-
mony that all through the valley there
is ample rain fall. In fact, after all
that has been written of the Arkan-
sas river, it is almost superfiuous that
the water of all this valley region
is abundant and pure. 1t is without
doubt the best watered portion of
Kansas. On the bottom "drive wells'
or tube wells are universally used.
They consist of tube of galvanized
iron, with steel point, the lower end
OF the tube having holes on its sides,
around which is wrapped piece of
wire gauze for strainer, this pipe is
driven into the ground, through hole