The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1881-05-07

$50 ~ oauCc lNo ana even three crODS
III ti!c same year on the same land.
and all estimate Of the amount of these
crops is fabulous. Their rico lands of
summer produce wheat as Il winter
crop; and so expert arc they as farm
crs tlat they have succeeded in dwarf
ing tic wheat stalk to such an extent
mat IT never once reaches eight to
fourteen inches in height. They plant
tor grain and not for straw. Some
What OF inc SSme system is in vogue i'm
china. SO much for the progress of
aSrlculturc by means Of irrigation in
the East, the cradle Of nations, and
we mi ght add tho origin Of many Of
agriculture. W.
IRRIGATION IN OTHER LANDS.
The rich yalloy or alluvial bottom
Of tho Nile has been irrigated since the
days of Joseph and his brethren, and
but for such application of water to
the soil ii could not support its in
habitants. Irrigation :isipractiscd in
Italy, France, Germany, and even
indolent Spain.
On our Western continent, if
credit the historian, the Pcruviuns,
the time Of the conquest, had made
great progress in irrigation. Indeed
II we take all accounts as true (lide
frescott's conquest OF Peru and AIexir
COZ they had a more advanced system
OF agriculture in many respects than
WAS to be seen on our continent at tho
beginning OF the present century,
Like Japan the soil was the proprriy
OF the Crown, but was annually diyiU
cd and allottcd--the one part for the
use Of The gods and their otIlciati,I~
priests; the second part for the use ol'
the Inca and his noble kindred, and
the other part for the working bees.
the people, by whom all three Darts
werG cultivated. The Inca race claim
cd to DC children OF the sun, a distinct
amt separate race, and doubtless thcy
were distinct race, most likely the
descendants from some japanese adj
Vcnturcr who had crossed the Pncitic
and brought with him the poitv of his
own government and introduced the
gystem OF agriculture from the East
with such notifications as adapted il
TO the different cline and face of the
country. Water in Peru was the
property Of the Crown, and was con-
Fcyed IN conduitS Of stone under
ground. Thus large areas Of land, on
winch rain never fell, were made
!rnlt1ul. 10 what amount of product
lvencss per acre these lands hatl nttai,
cn we arc unable to say. They must.
however, have been extremely fertile,
as more than two years supply q:
grain was found i'm the public Store
houses at the time of the conquest.
Glhc greatest crop ever grown in the
United States would not afford over
lour TO six months extra supply-hcucc
the average Peruvian crop must have
oech 1ifty per cent. greater than ours.)
30 great was this reserve store, that il
TOOK the prodiHal Spaniards, who were
al consumers and not producers, sew
eral years to disSipate. III limited
sections rain fell and less attention
was paid to irrigation. The guano of
inc PERUVIAN coast was known and
utlllzed. 1t too, as now, was the
property Of the Crown, and certain
Dcus were allotted to the use Of the
farmers of particular localities. This
country was cultivated by hand-labor
--haVlng no draft animals. It's i'm
mense productive powers were due to
irrigation, good cultivation and tcrtili
Z0tion.
On our part Of the continent the
civilized Aztecs had made consi,lcrn.
pic progress in the science Of irriya-
Coll, ana the ruins of their canals and
Qltcics may be traced in Mexico
Lower California and Texas. These
nave been Incorrectly referred to, as
the more modern work OF the Jcsuiis,
perhaps from the fact that they. dur
ing their supremacy, enyouraGcd the
use OF the developed resources thcv
found existing on their first entrance
INTO the couu!iy.
- nc mucli-abused Mormons, banisll-
cd from the Western States, souuht
refuge in the arid and raiulrss Salt
Lake valley; and, using small
amount of engineering brains, CON-
strnctcd canals and bitches, and con-
Fcrtcu this desert into fruitful garden,
yielding immense crops of grain and
covered with rich sward Of grass
that snstains immense herds of the
llncst cattle. We can but look on their
agricultural success with anazcmcut.
Dy means Of irrigation alone they can
iiVc ana support their rapidly incrcas-
ing population.
O. ~" people of some Of the adjoining
states have taken pattern after the
'',"' H.'ti@} "li'' HiIt IIS InOuSNnUS OF
acres III some Of these States, once
barren from want of rainfall, have
been made fertile by means of 'irriea-
ton. (Sce recent Reports of the Be-
partments OF Agricultural In several
or the reports referred to. are graphic
decrlptions Of canals cut for the PURPOSE
or conveying water fifteen to twenty
live miles in length. Some OF these
convey crooks and arc the property of
Incorporated water companies, who
sell the water to the farmers on their
lines ut SO much per foot OF vent OPEN
ings.
Streams Of water have in those same
states been conveyed similar dis
tance over hills and ravincs for sluicc
mining, that is to he used in washing
down hills to obtain gold. Now, were
equivalent amounts Of water conveyed
and used for farming purposes, the
profits, arising thcrclrom would far
exceed the returns from the gold
washings. When the gold is washed
out and the hill washed down, The
work is dono. But the stream, onco