The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1895-06-12

Problem of Irrigation.
On July II, lS47 President Young
and his fellow pioneers passed through
the picturesque outlet of Emigration
canyon into the valley of the Great Salt
lake. Utah was then Mexican soil, and
The leader believed no could found what
ever character of institution should suit
him and his people. In the bitter anti
Mormon crusades of tho past it has been
alleged that Brigham Young had chains
Oh men 3 souls" There is no doubt that
religious superstition, rendered effective
by the marvellous machinery Of the
church, was pshtly the source of the
leaders, irresistible power with his own
people, but back of the religious super
stition and the church organization
stood the brain of great and masterful
man. He knew that his power, to be
material and tangible, and this some
thing he discerned to be tho prosperity
of the people themselves
Brigham Young was an organizer of
prosperity. This was the real source of
his strength. He did not aim at mere
temporary prosperity. On the contrary,
he fought everything that tended to that
end, going TO the length of actually for
bidding the opening Of the rich mines in
the mountains near ut hand, because he
abhorred the spirit of speculation. He
chose for the cornerstone of his state the
principle of industrialism, and that prin-
ciple lies there yet, at the base of no.
bic ediiicc of economic fact, reared by
human toll and held firmly in place by
the average prosperity of all who had
part Ill It's building. If the great archi-
tect and the superintendent and fore
man who surrounded him enjoyed
larger share Of the profits than the work
men, 1T Is also true that tho humbleSt
newer of stone and carrier of mortar was
paid in proportion TO the Importance of
his labors. And what fair mind can OBJ
iect to an industrial system that yields
these results?
So far as can be learned, Brigham
Young had 10 previous knowledge of ir-
rigation when lie entered Salt Lake val
ley. He quickly realized that he had
como to an arid country, which would
be hopeless for agriculture unless arti-
ficially watercd. With marvellous percep-
ton, he saw that irrigation was not a
drawback, but an advantage of tho most
important sort. He realized that it
meant freedom alike from the dangers of
the drought and Of the flood He discov-
cred that, having rich soil and ample
sunshine, and adding moisture by the
construction of bitches, it was actually
an Improvement upon nature to be able
TO turn the rain" either ON or off with
equal facility. And therefore he rightly
concluded that he had found in these
conditions the basis of the most certain
worldly prosperity and the most scion
tific agriculture.
1t remained for q later genius to re-
mark: Irrigation is not substitute for
rain. Rain is Il substitute for irrigation,
and a mighty poor one. But if the
Mormon leader did not say SO he cvi-
IDENTIFY felt it. He perceived, further
more, that irrigation was much moro
than an insurance policy upon the crops
1t brought all the processes of agricul-
ture within the realm Of known facts,
and that is science.
1t even rendered possible the control
of the size of vegetables, and this be-
came important many years afterward,
when the Mormon people added great
sugar factory to their industrial system
for 1t is important to grow sugar bccts
or about standard size to get tho best
results. Moisture is required to give the
beet a vigorous growth ut the beginning,
but when it is we'll started weeks of un-
interrupted sunshine are desirable in
order to develop the saccharine qualities
Much sunshine ut the wrong time dries
up the crop, while much moisture at the
wrong time produces beet pleasing to
look upon, but improbable at the fac
tory.
Brigham Young also realized, almost
at the first, that the necessity of careful
irrigation largely increased the labor
upon an acre of land, but he found that
this labor was generously rewarded by
the increased yield both i'll quantity and
quality. And from this fact he drew
the most important principle of his
commonwealth. which was the division
of land into small holdings Closely re-
lated TO this is the other twin factor in
Mormon prospcrity-thc diversiiicaticn
OF farm products to the last degree.
Natural conditions, even where there
Is the most abundant and we'll dstribut-
ed rainfall, are often favorable to the
production of only a few crops. But the
Mormons realized that the skillful APP
plication of water Just where and when
needed, and i'll just the right quantity,
and by the very best method, rendered
possible the widest variety Of fruits,
vegetables and cereals suited to the tenn
pcratc zone Thus Brigham Young
Taught the people thai no man shnnld