The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-04-20
PROBLEMS OF IRRIGATION.
Representative Snively. Of Yakima. Tell
Of Their Solution.

of Their Solution.
Representative H. J. Snively, OF North Yakima
appointment lawyer of Yakima county, and one
Of the leading Democrats in the state legisla-
ture, Il at the Occidental hotel, having come to
Seattle on legal business. In the course of .
conversation last evening he said: 1--WE Of
Yakima are very much interested in the matter
Of irrigation. Some time ago party of Mon
tana capitalists took up q tract of land
and started to irrigate it. Then the
Northern Pacific railroad people, realizing that
In order to develop our country and get traffic
from Il, irrigation must be resorted to, Joined
forces with this Montana syndicate and formed
the Northern Pacific and Yakima Irrigation
Company. This company has now spent $780,
900 In ditch which will bring 10000 acres Of
land into cultivation, and its next work Is to
build . ditch covering 10000 acres more, max
ing nearly . million in all.
SIN addition TO that, the Oneida community
communistic organization which has cultivated
land very successfully in New York-is putting
10000 acres under irrigation. A syndicate OF
Tacoma men. of whom Allen C. Mason Is one,
will irrigate IS 900 acres; and Mr.. Mason, during
his recent trip abroad, arranged In London to
have colony OF Englishmen come out here to
settle on this tract Still another syndicate, of
which Mr. NJ v. B. Stacy, of this city, is mem
Der, will cover about 10000 acres more
$50 you can see that the prospect OF in
creasing the states wealth by developing
the hitherto arid lands II very bright
You must bear In mind that
Yakima county alone, which Is larger than
the whole state OF Delaware, has 100000 acres
Of sage brush land, which only need water In or
der to blossom like the rose. We can raise
wheat, vegetables, fruits, alfalfa, hay, and in
short all sorts OF crops on this soil. If these
large experiments in irrigation are successful,
the whole state will be wonderfully helped
One crop with which we expect to do particu-
larry well 10 tobacco, which, as you know, has q
steady market and is very profitable. We have
been growing 1t from Havana seed and Dr. S. B.
Conover, OF Port Townsend, a member of the
agricultural college commission, which was re-
Gently in North Yakima, says that he never
annexed better cigars than those made of
Yakima tobacco
s'Speakipg of that agricultural college reminds
me that we, OF course, are very anxious to have
1t located with us We know that a great deal
OF the farming land in this state must be irri.
gated, and consequently the science of irriga-
tion--and It Is q science-should be taught at
an agricultural college, To irrigate successfully
required. For example, too much water makes
peaches too juicy, and too little makes them too
dry. To determine the proper amounts OF water
for various crops is a delicate matter.
"Wcre the agricultural college located with us
the pupils could learn all these things, aud at
the same time they would be perfectly well
fitted to carry on farming under ordinary condi-
tons, while II the college were where they
would learn farming under ordinary conditions
they would not know how to irrigate."