The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1894-12-21
IRRIGATION BY MEANS OF PUMPS
An important Subject to Farmers
and Irrigatorss
ARID LANDS CAN BE REDEEMED
The Windmill VIII Re the Cause OF Kan
sas' Redemption and Make Her
People Prosperous.

sas redemption and Make Her
People Prosperous,
That the results Of timely and intelli-
gent irrigation are a rich blessing no
well-informed person will either doubt
or deny. It might be of interest TO
many to find the exact distance that
their pump will carry the water before
diseharging the same into reservoirs, as
well as how many hours during the
average day or week their wells can fur
nish the water OF their mills perform
the work. These are vital questions in
determining the cost and and feasibil-
ity of an irrigating plant.
But will it pay a person living within
the arid belts of the "great plains" to
invest in an irrigating plant where
water is to be raised by one or more
windmiils? To answer this question in
its varied ramifcations would require
the intelligence of an oracle as we'll as
considerable time and space. Wind,
like rain, is an uncertain element in
most sections, but it is certainly more
to be depended on in this region than
in any other portion of the globe.
Consider the supply Of water that
your well is capable of furnishing, the
force and reliability Of the motive pow
er to be used, the total cost of the plant
and your market advantages. In other
words, charge to expense account a lib
eral amount for interest on the whole
cost of the plant, as well as as a reason
able amount for wear and tear. Charge
also the amount your labor is worth
In brief, charge up all outgoes. On the
other hand, carry to your credit page
the market value of your whole yield of
products, and in dry year, also credit
the plant what the rainfall which you
do not reCeive) would have been worth
to you. Add up the the two columns
of figures and the difference between
the two amounts will determine how
much you will be able to blow in for
some of the comforts of life that are
not of frequent occurrence when looked
for through the benign influence of old
Jubiter-Pluvius.
To those who contemplate putting in
irrigating plants it would be well to
take into consideration the amount of
water which can be obtained, and at
what cost, If the cost does not blacken
the eye of the looked for advantages,
contract with responsible parties for
whatever you may require and pay for
the same only when the goods are de-
livered. Talk is cheap. and the amount
of wind contained within the lungs of
the average windmill man is sometimes
adequate to the tuning Of his mill, but
the water still remains at the bottom
of the well. Start on a small scale, do
not try to do too much the first year,
as irrigation is an art that can be
learned only by actual experience,
Every available inch Of land should be
thoroughly cultivated and made to
bring forth ali that it is capable of
By this means the irrigator can sooD
determine what products are best
adopted to the soil and how much water
they will need.
In Sherman county the strong soil
will produce nearly everything if water
is properly applied. Fruit does well,
potatoes, onions, cabbages, etc, pro
duce most wonderfully under irrigation
and the irrigator will find that small
tract farming will pay and pay well.
X =
Large farms, as the worlds population
increases, will soon be a thing of the
past, and small tracts and intensive
cultivation must take their place. In
China and Japan the large majority of
the farm holders have less than an acre
and a five acre tract is the exception
and is considered a large farm. Large
families are supported on these small
tracts, and this is, Of course, due to the
methods in vogue, under which nothing