The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-09-02

Chicago, Sept flames Wilson. sec
rotary of agriculture, has returned from
a trt2 Through the western states.
where ne has been investigating condi
tIons regarding irrigation and other
matters which viii tend to widen the
scope of agricultural industry.
Mr. Wilson has been investigating
the systems of irrigation in western
Nebraska, Colorado, wyoming, Utah.
part Of Idaho and North Dakota. and
the result of his observations Will be
| frauSiht with interest to western arrrf-
culturdsts- He has gone into the cues
ton of the condition of the range morse.
he hopes to make the animal capable
! OF competing with the horses of Europe.
| Mr. Wilson is enthusiastic concern
ing the agricultural future of the west.
and CONFIDENT that hard times have
! passed for the farmers west of the Mis-
| Stsgfppf. During his months trip
! through the western states he exam
ined into the conditions existing among
| the farmers. He found THAT the latter
! mad felt the wave of prosperity. and
! that they were buying new machinery.
| nallnG mum berless improvements and
are able to pay off their MORTGAGES
INENTAtkD1INNT IfLElNTAIIA}N.
81 have been through the mountain
| states, said Mr.. Wilson. in order to
! learn What could be done regarding fr-
riSaticn i'll the range lands of western
Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming Utah.
part Of Idaho, Montana and North Da~-
loOta- The principal object of my trip
| through these states was to ascertain
to Wflah extent they could add to the
annual production by further irriga-
! ton During the course of my obser-
walton, I have found that Ahese states
have already used up the waters in
many districts without being able TO
irrigate the bottom lands They are
now agbtating the theory of GannminS
the waters in winter Various schemes
are ON foot TO bring tff5 about. Some
advocate the idea that the government
should take up the matter and pay for
the cost of damming- Some think the
| state governments should begin the
work. Others are organizing companies
and selling the stock in the east. Every
| thing points to q renewed activity in
agriculture IN these states.
Some rivers in these states are nov
being used for irrigation purposes
Among these are the Grand river I'M
New Mexico. and the Yellowstone river.
| The Yellowstone has q magnificent val
ley all through Montana. 1t Is getting
10 COST IDCi4ES 10 81 Lie AANCA OOAI VI
its banks, however, and TO build aque-
ducts to irrigate the higher lands OF
the valleys
THE RANGE HORSE
This inquiry naturally led to an in
vestigation of the condition of the
range horse Why is the horse Of the
range practically worthless2 This is a
question which has troubled western
/ agricuIturalists Vt years The range
horse can be made a profitable source
! of income. I find by careful inveStlsa-
ton over those seven states that the
grasses of the uplands, though they are
never irrigated. are very nutritious
They are just as nutritious as the blue
grasses of Iowa, provided, of course,
that the animal gets enough Of range
81 find that the animals, with rare
exceptions, have nothing to keep up
their growth in the winter or TO main
tain their quality Of sustenanee OBJ
tanned during the summer months.
reading range men agreed with me
ltnat a colt kept growing 'bOt8 summer
and winter continuously for two years
would be as large 4 colt at five years
with no feed in the winter.
"They also agreed with me that good
wintering would give them q horse
weighing 300 or 400 pounds more at TOUR
years than he is at five years old, or
without any better blood than they
have got. a LOO or 1,2O0-pOund horse
Just such a horse as is now used IN
European armies
SOME POSSIBILITIES.
Il have an agent in Europe at the
present tina investigating the require
ments for heavy draft. carriage horses
and animals needed for army purposes.
have very little doubt that if the
range horses in the western states were
properly cared for they would be able
to compete with European horses.
hope to bring about such a COMPETE
ton, and to make the market for Amer
lean horse, lively in European CJun-
tries During my trip 1 found q very
extensive interest in growing sugar
beets to make sugar Grand Island,
Neb., is on the edge of the dry belt
Sugar beets are one crop that grows
in spite Of drouths. About 5000 to 1900
acres of land are necessary to cultivate
a sufficient crop of beets to keep fac
tory in operation.
THE dry product, or the pulp. is not
being used to the best advantage At
Grand Island and Lehi. Utah, it is fed
to range steers. The amount of it that
would make two pounds of gain on a
| frst-clasS steer, worth or cents,
would make a pound of butter. but such
has not occurred to thu sugar beet
! growers.