The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1895-02-08
IRRIGATION MATTER.
Cooperative ~Irrlgation.

llGlDlOx111Oly
Cooperative Irrigation.
The fcllowingTis ths Gnll text of an
address delivered by j. G. Steffee Of
Wichita, Kan, at the Hutchinson con-
vention. The author has made a prac-
teal application of what he has to say
to southwestern Kansas, but there are
large tracts of land similarly situated
in western Nebraska. 1T is a very
conservative address, and worthy Of
careful consideration. We quote:
The term cooperation, as applied
to irrigation enterprises may be used
in a restricted sense and with a COM
defensive meaning, j. e.. we may use
the word to describe only a method of
employing capital and labor in the de-
relopment Of irrigable lands and the
distribution of the r products whereas
the more comprehensive definition of
the term may not only include these
elements but also the general scheme
Of developing and utilizing the irrig-
lble tracts in connection with the
non-irrigable lands of a community,
a county, the section of a state. or a
region of country. We would recon-
mend cooperative irrigation both in
it's restricted sense and in it's broader
application as a practical method of
developing the natural of
western and southwestern Kansas.
All irrigation enterprises, if success
full, must be governed by the laws of
oractlcability rather than of POSSIBLE
ity, Common sense: practical demon
stration, and the bus ness rules of
profit and loss must not be disregarded
Dr. receiverships and mortgage fore
closures will have to be considered
later, and some future Chill Nye' will
write sarcastic dissertations upon the
splendid foolishness of the founders
and promoters OF irrigation schemes,
like our present humorist Of that name
aas written concerning South Hutch
!nson and the boom" enterprises of
Wichita.
1t may be and we believe it is posi-
Die for the owner of an upland farm to
nave a pumping plant erected which
will elevate the water from a well of
more than twenty-five feet in depth,
for irrigation purposes, and for all his
neighbors to do the same. We think,
however, hat the more practical and
sensible thing to do would be for such
farmers to use their windmill as they
now are for the irrigation of small
garden plats and use the money which
the larger mills and irrigation pumps
would cost and purchase a favorably-
located tract of land where the water
supply is abundant and can be secured
by an inexpensive method, and that
they develop and operate such tract
on the cooperative or partnership
plan, and at a minimum cost as com
pared with individual irrigation
plants.
1t may be possible for. a man who
has 100 acres of irrigable land on his
farm to develop and utilize the whole
Of such tract successfully and within
his own means. but we think he will
make more money for himself and will
be more of a benefactor to his commu-
nifty, if he will call upon his less fav-
ored neighbors to assist him in the
construction and maintenance Of his
ditch or pumping apparatus. and take
a share of the crops laised as his
rental.
1t may be possible for the farmers
living upon the broad upland plains
of southw estern Kansas to hang on"
between hope and despair till some
kind of irrigation is perfected so as to
be made a success on lands Of that
class, but our advice. in the light Of
pre- sent conditions and immediate
prospects. would be. to such farmers,
chat they break out all their lands,
then move with their families into the
Arkansas valley, on to some other To-
cality favorable for irrigation, and Sc
cure a small tract OF irrigable land as
IA home, and visit their farms only for
the purpose of putting out and harv-
estingsuch crops as they can best pro-
duce without irrigation, and keep their
sur plus live stock in a common herd
Or allow them to Craze at free range
in summer and by %partnersh p feeding
in the winter season.
1t May be possible for the owner Of
a 5000 acre ranch in southwestern
Kansas TO develop and MAINTAIN 700
acres or more OF irrigable lands on his
ranch, but in our opinion he will reap
greater profits by only demonstrating
fully the amount Of his water supply
and then sell his irrigabie lands in
connection with larger tracts Of non
irrigable lands to a colony Of practi-
cal farmers and depend more largely
upon free range and winter feeding
for his cattle business.
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