The times., 1899-03-15
THE TREATMENT OF
BARE ALKALI LANDS
Areas Rendered Useless by
Salts May Be Reclaimed.
Experiments Made in the Valley OF
the Yellowstone.
Results Indicate That Much Waste
Territory Nay B. Made to Pro-
ducc Rich HarNcsts.

The Department of Agriculture is con
sidering the subject of alkali and the treat
ment OF alkali lands. In report on the
matter just issued it is said that the sub
iect is one which is attracting very great
attention al the present time, as alkali has
already injured or is a serious menace to
large areas of land. II is encountered in
all arid districts the world over. 1t is al
ways a source of uneasiness in such sec
tioDs, for if the alkali is not apparent
when the lands are first irrigated, it is LA
BILE TO appear after a few years result
of the present system of irrigation. The
uncertainty itself and the serious nature
OF the trouble calls for energetic measures
for the prevention of injury and the re-
| clamation of ruined lands. Lands. which
Il few years ago showed no signs of alkali.
but, on the contrary were extremely fertile,
and upon which large amounts of money
have been expended in farm Improvements,
are now, after ten, fifteen or twenty years.
| being ruined by an accumulation of seep
age waters and soluble salts.
The experts of the Department Of Agri-
! culture declare that it is not intended at
this time to undertake a general discus
/ sion of the alkali problem, as il will re-
quire many years of constant work to OBJ
tain an accurate knowledge of the condi-
! tons over the arid regions of this coun-
try. But the results of some Investigations
! carried on during the summer of 1898. in
! the Yellowstone Valley are so important,
and of such widespread practical applica-
| tion and value. that they have been pub
| lished by the department with a view TO
stimulating interest in the subject and to
show. under certain conditions at any rate
that the means for the prevention of the
rise of alkali and for the reclamation of
alkali lands are well within the power Of
| the farmer.
The NIknIi Problem.
In taking up the study OF the alkiii
problem, the Department believes That it
was fortunate in selecting the Yellow. tone
| Valley. where the conditions are as sim
pie as can be found anywhere. There are
! said 20 be many other areas in this coun-
| try where the conditions are quite as sim
| pie. and where the matter can be brought
under just such control as thee. while
there are much more difficult problems in
| other sections due to the location and
the topography of the land, to the small
available water resources, to the texture
of the SOIL and to the kind and d stribu-
| tiOn of the alkili.
The Investigations were carried on mar
| Billings, Mont. At this place the Yellow
stone Valley is from six to ten mi es
wide The valley is about four hundred
miles long in Montana, and irrigat on IS
| spreading from a number of centres with
| in this area.
| Irrigation has been practiced at Billings
| for the past twelve or fifteen years. the
at ivriu
| plying the valley at this place, q TAX n
out of the Yellowstone River nsarly forty
miles above the town of Billings. When
| the country was first settled the depth OF
standing water in the wells was from
| twenty TO fifty feet, and there were no
| signs of alkai on the surface OF the
ground. Under the common practice of
| irrigation, however. an excessive amount
| of water has been applied to the land, and
| Seepage waters have accumulated in tle
| soil to such an extent that water is now
commonly found in wells throughout the
| irrigated district at depth of from three
| 10 ten feet from the surface. Many large
| tracts OF once fertile lands on the lover
| levels are already flooded, and aka 1 has
accumulated on them to such an ext
| that they are mere bOgs, swamps, or al
kali flats. This injury, while not very
| widespread as yet. has been so serious
where the results have appeared and the
| future is so uncertain that the owners O.
the land are naturally very much con-
cerned. This is but too common his
| tory OF many large and fertile areas in
| Utah, in southern California in Co orado
| and, in fact, in nearly all of the oder ir-
rigated districts.
| Experiments in Montana
The valley at Billings is bounded on the
l ciI Irra bl
ceous stone rising abruptly to a height of
from 200 to 500 feet above the general level
of the valley. On the south side there are
steep, ragged hills of blue slate or shale.
| This shale dips down and passes under the
| sandstone bluffs about on a level with the
| present surface of the valley. The valley
| lands have been formed by the disintegra-
| tion of both the sandstone and shale In
| places the sandstone has been entirely
| worn away, leaving the soil formed from
| the dlsintegration OF the shale exposed in
| places throughout the valley This soil is
| stiff gumbO. The shale is very deep bor-
| ings for an artesian well having been made
| to 4 depth OF 800 feet, and through the
whole depth this shale has been found In
| other parts OF the valley the sandstone has
not been so completely removed. and there
| are large areas OF sandy or loan soils with
| the gumbo subsOil at a considerable depth
below the surface. These areas are recog-
| nized as sandy soils, while the others are
cIassed as gumbo. There are mixtures. of
course, grading from one to the other. ana
| these mixed soils are the most abundant
| in the valley
Both the sandstone and the shale rocks
contain large quantities of soluble salts
| which are seen as shining crystals through
out the mass The shale, however, con
| tains very much more than the sandstone
AS the rocks have disintegrated through
| the influence of the weather the minerals
have been broken down into simple min
| eral salts that have remained as soluble
| salts in the soil. The reason for this ac
! cumulaton IS the small annual rainfall
| occurring in the arid regions. II is so lit
tie and the drainage is so slight thai the
f, salts accommodating from the disintegration
| of the rocks are not carried off into the
| nccan. as is The casn I'm thn sniIs nl thn