Cottonwood report. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1893-1901, 1895-10-11
DUI ! he GOVERNMENT
To Ascertain the Quantity,o Water Re
{ 9afired for the Various
ss5s Crops.

OF the irrigation in this country the
Mormons rank first in an attempt to
win from the virgin soil it's birthrignt
of harvests. These people, having left
the fertile fields of Illinois and Mis-
souri,, followed the star of empire west
ward, says the Western Rural. On
they trudged, foot sore and weary
agacross the great plains, through for
ests and over mountains. At last, 10y
dlnt of perseverance, they reached
their heaven, the great Salt Lake. But
what were their surroundings? In
front of them the briny lake, in their
rear mountains, on either side arid
plains. The soil was dry and rains
were of rare occurrence. What was to
be done? The quick discernment of
the leaders told them that artificial
watering was their only salvation.
High up on the mountain tops, where
the thunder crashed out their mourn
full cadences, sparkling streamlets had
their source. Down the mountain side
they tumbled until they ran to kiss and
wed the parched plains. The Mormons
planted their seeds and quickly divert
ed portion of the streams from their
natural courses so that the water flow
ed over the fields at intervals, and be-
hold! what had been an arid desert was
transformed into a garden land of sur
passing productiveness. Since that
time the Mormons have perfected their
system of irrigation until the country
about the great Salt Lake is of great
fertility.
Southern California in 1870 became
the scene of another irF ortant irriga-
Tn hot i
cate of hardy spectators purchased a
tract of desert land aggregating 1900
acres, many miles from any railroad,
They encountered many hardships and
reverses, but finally they mastered The
art of successful irrigation, and from
that time their success has been Won
derful. On that 5000 acre tract of arid
land that was, today stands the beauti-
full city of Riverside, Cal, one of She
greatest Shipping points for oranges in
the world and very little of the tract
can now be bought for less than $4,000
an acre.
While the Riverside pioneers were
battling with the problem of irrigation
in California the same scenes were be-
ing enacted on the Colorado plains in
the valley of the Cache la Poudre river,
about midway between Cheyenne,
Wyo., and Denver 1t was here that
the first attempt was made to carry
water upon the second bench or high
ground, and it is here today that irri
cation is as successfully practiced as
anywhere in the country. The pioneers
of this locality were the members OF
the famous Union Colony, of which
the late Horace Greeley, editor of the
New York Tribune, was one of the
chief promoters, and when they had
founded a town they properly named
it Greeley, in honor of the Industrious
gentleman who had contributed so
much toward making the colony adven-
ture a success. So there stands today
a thriving city of over 5000 inhabitants
on the sandy plains where, in 1870, there
was nothing but cactus beds and sage
brush and from the Pacific coast to the
Allegheny mountains the Greeley po-
tatoes are famous products of irriga-
ton.
Since the marked success of the I'M
dertakings referred to, irrigation has
been engaged in with highly satisfac-
tory results in wyoming, Idaho New
Mexico, Arizona, Texas, California,
Washington and Colorado, and many
thousands of acres of what was arid
waste land have been reclaimed and
81 are now under cultivation, producing
harvests the equal of any on earth
81 1t is but natural, therefore, that the
a United States government should IN
dertake, through it's agricultural expe-
rimental stations, to demonstrate the
' amounts of water required for the per
feet development of the various crops
as well as the best time and method Of
. application. Losses aggregating mil
lions of dollars occur every year in the
dry regions of the east, south and west
as a consequence of the practica
drouths which prevail in many local.
ties of those regions Competent agri
culturists claim that well-distributeC
annual rainfall of % inches is necessar!
to produce good crops, therefore, de
ficiency of rainfall during even a shor
period at a critical time may result II
a serious reduction of crops or In alb
solute failure. The most reliable safe
ri against This result is irrigation