The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-11-30
IRRIGATION.
Meeting OF the Irrigation Convention at
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Discussed.

Meeting OF the Irrigation Convention at
Observation-Disclosures Discussed.
HUTCHINSON, Kan, Nov. PA two
days session of the Kansas Irrigation
association opened in this city Friday.
There are several big guns" here from
all parts of Kansas. q. q. Cannon,
president of the Mormon church of
Utah, was elected chairman. He
will speak on the history of Utah
as affected by irrigation. Short
papers were read by practical irrigators
from several western Kansas counties.
Secretary Coburn. of the Kansas
state board of agriculture gave his
views on irrigation as follows:
Most Of our people are past the point OF need
ing TO be told that irrigation is q good thing or
even largely essential What they want to
learn now is the ways and means; instead of
giittering generalities they need to be told
where there is water; its depth below the sur
face: the cost and capacity of wells, and the
machinery for its most certain. economical and
rapid lifting; carefully calculated plans for
storage reservoirs. the times and methods Of
the water most Judicious application. These
and kindred problems which confront the Kan
sas farmer have never so pressed for solution
as during the last two years. Speaking for
tNoAAoeS us StlSt ioT hdil-
sas as whole. without in the remotest degree
disparaging the importance of irrigation. or
the need of giving il that large measure of con-
Sideration that We are in duty bound to give it,
am convinced there is another kindred mat
ter pressing, Of equal, if not paramount con-
sequence; although the utterauce of such
conviction may be little short of
the rankeSt heresy in the Kansas state
irrigation convention. Please do not infer
from this that am not as much and enthuSi-
aStically in favor OF irrigation as any man from
anywhere. The point make is that the mass
OF our people who live outside of this marvel
Gus Arkansas valley and beyond reach of its
wonderful underfiow should give a better APP
probation to the rainfall: to harvesting the
wealth of water so copiously, benefciently
sent their without money and without cost
and seeking land finding. il permitted to do sol
that incompatible reservoir, the ample bosom
OF mother earth, where il is always within
root reach, without wells, without pumping
without bitches: where every hour of the night
and dayits life-giving moisture is in its perfect
way ready to help endow us with such a wealth
Of flower and fruit, Of grass and golden grain as
the people OF few countries are ever given to
see. This must be attained by n deeper. more
thorough looSening, breaking up of the impervi-
ouS, compacted Sub-Soil, that il may absorb
and retain the rainfall rather than reject it,
and as is now the case, compelling it to find its
way TO the rivers and the sea, in floods that
nearly every year do millions OF damage to our
fellow-citiZenS in other states Acting on this
idea along with that of irrigation. which we
are to encourage, there can be. there is no
doubt about the wonderful future of Kan
saS agriculture. This is a part of our
great problem that be solved
by individual effort The records OF
the past ten years show that the average an
nual rainfall in Kingman county has been
inches in Ford n nd TrppO COMMITTEES
inches; even in Kearny, Greeley and Wallace
counties about Is inches; in Decatur. Osborne
and Cloud counties about - inches, and in
Manhattan more than 20 inches. Observers OF
such matters tell us that even these smaller
quantities of water while not ali that would be
desirable will, if judiyiously conserved and
utilized, well-nigh give us a crop every year
and in most years yields that are prodigious.
The sort OF irrigation problems that confront
us are in the main radically different from
those in any other like territory. Whenever
any large proportion OF our state is artifcially
watered ii must be from wells instead of
streams. and most of the help, most needed, is
along that line. In honor congress should. at
least, help US to locate and determine the
water supply; but We cannot wait on congress;
We must be up and doing for ourselves: we will
have, too. TO rely chiefly on individual enter
prise. am deeply imbued with the idea that
the way for us to irrigate is to irrigate-and to
SubSol. kansas salvation IN this direction |
must be worked out by Kansas effort. The !
lawmakers must rise with us to the Importance
of this movement and take it by the hand. By
iudicious enactments and proper financial sup
port the state should within the next ninety
days judiciously provide for a line OF progress
sive work in the way Of surveys, experimental
tion, observation. superintendent and advisory
aid. thus doing at a very small cost per capita
part of the work that the individual cannot
az tn do Tho rnaODlp in VIZ ir1S nf
will be grievouSly disappointed If this is