Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1896-01-16

the large reduction OF the rainfall
has very greatly augmented the
total surface evaporation and
thus tended to change the
marshes to dry land. This con-
dition is not likely to be per-
manent; but if the lands are i'm
proved so that a large acreage of
farm crops is produced each year
there must necessarily follow, as
a direct result, an increased
evaporation through the pump
ing action of the roots and thus
a permanent lowering of the
water table because we'll titled
fields always produce a larger
growth and consume more water
per day than native vegetation
does. Increased evaporation
must therefore tend to make
these lands permanently drier
than they have been in years past.
A fourth factor which has been
operating to lower the ground
water in this region and which
will continue to do so to an in
creasing extent is the growing
number of artesian wells which
are being sunk into the Potsdam
sandstone for the supply of cities
to the south, west and east of
this region. All of the wells in
Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and
Minnesota which are drawing
water from the Potsdam horizon
derive the chief part Of their sup
ply from the rains which fall upon
northern Wisconsin and north
east Minnesota, aud, as these
wells draw out the water in their
immediate localities, the water
to the northward and beneath
the lands we have under consid-
Grafton flows away downward
and disappears from the surface
leaving it necessarily drier.
1t must be evident therefore
that unless a series of years wet
ter than the mean of the past 25
years is to follow there is little
reason to expect that these marsh
lands will ever become as wet as
they were in former years, and
hence that they will ever be
adapted to cranberry culture
unless artifcially supplied with
water.
Is it then for the best interests
of these counties to abandon
cranberry culture and to give ex-
elusive attention to general
farming?
The answer to this question
depends partly upon the real
value of these lands for general
agriculture and in part upon the
possibility of an adequate supply
of water for cranberry irrigation
at a sufficiently low cost to make
this crop remunerative.
THE VALUE OF THE LANDS FOR
GENERAL AGRICULTURE.
If the marsh lands of the coun-
ties IN question remain as dry as
they now are or if they are prop
erly drained, as they can be, so
as to hold the water table from
two to four feet below the surface
OF the ground then the marsh
lands will be reasonably produc-
tive for a term of ten to fifteen
years at least and | believe can
be made permanently SO under a
judicious system of husbandrv.
But the coarse sandy lands
whose surface is more than four
feet from standing water in the
ground in wet seasons | feel con-
fdent are of doubtful agriculture
al value unless they can be
irrigated.
Then, again, should an extern
slve and general system of land
drainage be entered upon which
aimed to make agriculturally
productive even only the moder-
atelv wet marshes of this region
it is my conviction that such a
procedure would so lower the
general water table under the
marsh borders as to throw over
into the category of unproductive
lands an area which would prob
ably exceed the acreage of the
marshes which might be made
agriculturally productive by
drainage. That is to say, my
fear is that after having gone to
the expense Of draining these
lands there might be left in these
counties a less acreage of pro-
ductive soil than would exist
were much of the wet marshes
held permanently as such.
This fear is founded upon the
foot tho ,10S+ &C tho ,,,o-c1,oe, -,