Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1894-02-22

3ARTON 90. IRRIGATION MEETING.


quite large number of the farmers
and citizens of Barton county assem-
bled in the court house at Great Bend
Feb. 18th, to hold meeting upon the
subject.
The meeting was called to order by
L. Baldwin. D. n. HeiZer was chosen
chairman and L. Baldwin secretary.
After the object of the meeting was
stated, it was decided to have come
informal speeches upon the subject of
artificial moisture.
E. r. Moses was called for and that
gentleman responded in very interest
ing talk about the coming industry of
irrigation. He said that the great
Arkansas Valley would be settled with
dense population, SO that we would
see whole chain of towns and villages
composed of happy homes where each
family should have from to 10 acres
of land to till, with intensive cultiva-
ton by the aid of irrigation. That it
was to be new departure in civiliZa-
ton, wherein many of the present con-
ditions of society should be reversed.
That instead of the boys and girls leav-
ing the farms for the congested cities.
we would see them clinging to their
parental homes, and that the children
of the deniZens of towns would leave
their narrow surroundings and settle
in the new garden villages that are
made attractive by irrigation. He said
that it was not proposed to irrigate all
the land but that the land that should
be thus moistened would return more
| other land that is cultivated by dry
farming; that the Greeley colony form
ed in Colorado had this year shipped
out 5000 car loads of potatoes. some Of
the rate of so cents bushel.
Mr.. Heller was then called for and
responded in very instructive speech.
telling US of some of the results of irri-
walton. He had noticed that as rule
the farmers who practiced this mode of
farming were more skillful and scien-
tifc in their methods than those who
practiced dry farming. They had elm
| mated the element of chance in dealing
with this form of culture He noticed
also that they were more successful as
! the returns were sure. He spoke of
some lands in Colorado which were now
being sold to colonies of settlers for $40
per acre which were under TIE bitches
of the Arkansas river; the said lands
not being hardly worth cent per acre
before the bitches had been constructed.
He thought we were ingenious enough
to overcome the present obstacles in
western Kansas; that we shout ulti-
mately triumph over drouth and hot
winds by the aid of the waters given us
in our mighty underflow, and by the
storms and SHOWS of the mountains.
| u. T. Armstrong made some remarks
in which he said he believed in the
construction of artificial lakes and
reservoirs and dams upon these plains,
as these would greatly assist in pre-
venting hot winds; he thought irriga-
ted crops would be damaged by hot
winds as readily as crops grown by
rainfall.
/ Wall Dodge said he had known of
eornfields that had draws that were
always damp and that the corn growing
in these wet draws did not seem to be
much hurt by hot winds.
Henry Everett sad he thought we
should carry out some co operative plan
in order to get the water to the surface,
as it would be too expensive to con-
struct private irrigation plants. He
thought there should be some combined
public effort made by the people of this
county in this matter.
Several other gentlemen made short
talks, and altogether it was very sue
cessful meeting and resulted in the
| permanent organization of the Barton
County Irrigation Association, the
officers of which are as follows:
President, L. Baldwin;
Vice President, Henry Everett:
Secretary, Will E. Stoke;
Executive Committee-Senator John
Armstrong, L. Baldwin, Isom Wright,
and Wall Ii. Dodge.
RESoLuTI oNs.
/ The following resolutions were
adopted:
WHEREAs-One of the most impor-
tant methods of elevating the SO called
undef1ow waters, in such valleys as the
| Arkansas. Platte and Republican, is by
the Gravity Method, or the artificial
springs; that is by the excavation of
artificial lakes and canals leading there
from at such fall as to bring the water
to the surface of the ground; and
WHEREAs-Such theory has not been
fully demonstrated by private enterprise
by reason of too great expense, therefore