San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1894-12-14
CONTRIBUTED SCRAPS.
For the Daily LIGHT:

leAdS is concerned, Is whence Is the
necessary water to be derived.
There can be no irrigation without
a supply Of water.
The canyons, dams might be con-
structed across them, to catch any
rainfall, and then, use it for irriga-
ton purposes; but this water
would barely su flee to irrigate the
lands in the canyons. AS the rain
fall is precarious and at long inter
walls, the dams built across the
canyons would hardly reimburse
the cost Of their construction.
How many acres would Nueces
lake properly irrigate? The water
from that lake would have to be
applied lightly in order for it to
irrigate the lands in one county,
where the soil is always thirsty.
How much water for irrigation
purposes can, according to reason
able calculations, be derived from
the Nueces river.
Near it's mouth, the Nueces
river probably might furnish
good deal Of water for local irriga-
ton. Almost all rivers, after leav-
ing the mountains and hills in
which they take their rise, flow
through valleys Of varying width,
which are walled in by ridges and
hills. The valley lands on either
side Of the Nueces for some dis.
lance above it's mouth, might be
irrigated by water obtained from
that river, but the expense of get
ting the water up the ridges and
hills, bordering the valleys, so as
to water the uplands would be too
great for the benefits likely to &C.
crue from irrigation.
The upper Nueces affords but lit.
tie water for irrigation purposes,
in the months during which it is
required for irrigation. 1t would
be hardly worth while to erect
dams at great expense across the
Nueces for the purpose Of catching
and storing the freshet water for
irrigation. The freshets are too
far apart and too uncertain, to jus.
tify so great an outlay Of money
for a problematic advantage.
Does the Leona river afford an
adequate supply of water for an ex-
tensive irrigation system? By no
means. There was a freshet in the
Leona at Uvalde last spring of I'M
precedent proportions, but that
was so phenomenal an event as
never to have been witnessed at
any time in the past by the "oldest
inhabitant."
1t is worth the while to construct
dams across the Leona for catching
and storing freshet water? The
play would not be worth the can
die. The Leona can supply water
for limited local irrigation, and
that is all.
The Medina cannot feed an ex-
tensive irrigation system, but it
can supply water for a limited
local irrigation, and has been doing
so, for a dozen years.
The same is true of the San An
tonic. II the water, anywhere
near San Antonio, should be with
drawn from the river for irrigation,
there would be mparatively none
for farmers living below the point
where the water was diverted from
the river. 1t might supply enough
water for the irrigation of a limited
area.
Does the Guadalupe furnish
water sfficient to feed an extensive
irrigation system. In the months
of June, July and August the
volume of water in the Gaudelupe,
Is ordinarily, at a low ebb. 1t is,
clear then that the Guadalupe can
not furnish an extensive system Of
irrigation. There may be sufficient
water in it, for local irrigation on
the lands bordering it.
This fetches us back to the in
itial question, whence Is the
necessary water for irrigating
South West Texas, to be obtained.
Mr.. J. NJ. Mathews, with his rain
theories and apparatus, cannot
be depended on for the necessary |
supply of water for irrigating !
Texas. He has not, up
to this date, succeeded in causing |
it to rain, and should he ever do
so, there would be no necessity for
irrigation, inasmuCh as the arid |
region would enjoy an adequate
when Mr.. Mathews sue
ceeds in causing rain.
An ounce of common sense is
worth a ton Of speculation, any
day. An ounce of practically
is OF far greater value than a box