Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1900-11-14
SUBJECT OF IRRIGATION.
A, D. Johnson Gives Some Good
Pointers About Water.
he HAS HAD EXPERIENCE.

some practical knowledge OF securing
a water supply for irrigating purposes
out Of the quicksands OF h Rio
Grande bottom. might be Of interest.
Prof. Hadley favors a committee OF
Investigation to visit California. but. as
MIR. Aliare says, our location here and
that of California are entirely different.
| would suggest that such a committee
had better visit the Arkansas bottom
of Kansas. where the formation OF the
soil, the crops. etc, are more like ours
here In this valley. The idea Of Mr..
Alliare Of putting a large water plant
at or near the mouth OF a ditch IL very
good If a sufficient supply could be Sc
cured for a large plant in one place,
but my experience during the last ten
years has taught me that II Is a great
deal better. easier. and more econom-
zeal to ecure a supply OF water for a
number of small plants situated from
500 to loco feet apart-that IL, the
wells. A well a be procured to give
a moderate amount of water at a com
paratively small expense. but when an
attempt Is made to pump a great
amount of water to cover 800 acres a
day. you are undertaking a very diff
cult task. This ditch, or long well,
seems to be quite feasible. and would
be, IL II could be secured to a sufficient
| depth, but | have failed to be able to
secure a well over i've or six feet deep
made In this shape. There are. how
ever. three different kinds OF wells
which can be placed In the quick sands.
The first and most substantial and
..aVl.s 4. 81. atALIaa. - ~ .~ANl
This is, OF course, known to almost
everyone as a very expensive Job. The
next best, IN my opinion. Is a circular
well OF sufficient diameter to give a
required amount OF water, which I Will
term an open brick wall" This wall
Is built of vitrihed brick. back of
which gravel is filed in. No cement or
mortar whatever IL used, but ON OPEN
Ing OF from y TO u inches is left be-
tween the ends of the bricks. This will
allow the water at all stages to come in
through the sides OF the wall. as well
as up from the bottom. In sinking the
solid rock wall. all water IL shut
| from the sides. and there is none but
what Is raised from underneath. Then
again, this first water flow at river lev
- WI NN'hfs w w AoAhN pump "
a hort time. II a well can be secured
with four feet OF lift to start with, by
the time the pump has been running a
short time the well will have been low
cred to a lift OF twelve to fifteen feet,
and II the bottom Of The well IL located
In a gravel strata, as It should be,
chances are good that a well ten feet
In diameter viii supply two twelve-inch
pumps. One four-horse gasoline en-
CINE costing about $3.50 will operate
these two pumps. The two pumps
would cost about 800; the pump-jack
n walking beams about 800 more,
making $3.50, or for a safe estimate. $500
for the plant after the well and water
supply have been secured II is n hard
matter TO estimate the cost OF the ma
terial for the well. as I am not posted
on the price OF vitrined brick. with
hard brick here at $40 per thousand, a
well ten feet In diameter and about 20
feet deep can be put In for about $500.
making complete plant capable OF sup
plying two twelve-inch pumps, or
about l22,64O gallons in "a hours. II is
estimated that this would cover from
l6 to 90 acres OF ground every "a hours,
with a first cost of from $1,000 to 81, 200.
These plants could be duplicated about
200 feet apart until the necessary
amount has been secured to supply the
land under the ditch. This believe TO
be the most practical way Of securing
the water although a cheaper well can
be made with what Is called "perforat-
et casting"
h casting made of galvanized
sheet steel and thoroughly riveted to-
gether. Is pressed down into the sand
and the sand baled out from the inside.
After II has been carried down to the
desired depth, the bottom Is filled with
gravel or rock to prevent the sand
from raising. The pump can be lowered
down into these tubes, leaving them
IN an almost open body OF water, as
these castings are perforated with inch
slots the entire length. The greatest
diiieulty In putting them In would be
the encountering OF boulders or rock I'm
the sand. which quite often causes a
loss Of labor on a well, as the nine
would have to be pulled up and remoy-
ed to another point.
Another satisfactory well, which liz
very substantial and will last a life
time Is that which Is known as the
COOK Tubular well. This Is made by
sinking a series Of pipes. say six. eight
or ten inches In diameter. down to a
gravel strata through the quIck-sand.
This gravel strata below affords a good
pressure, which will raise the water IN
10 or a little above the first water lev
el. When these points are put down
INT that ora val up1 fa... - A.. - -
connected on to one powerful pump.
about 1000 gallons a minute can be
pumped from them from one years end
to another. There will be, however,
quite a loss of water In seepage from
running through the long ditch, which
would be saved " a plant could be put
In at every two or three farms.
This stirring up OF the bottom OF the
ditch with "A dredge or harrow would
cause the loss to be much greater. In
my opinion 81 would be much better 10
allow his silt from the river to remain
IN the bitches to form a sort of sedI-
ment which would prevent a great Zeal
OF seepage until the close OF the season
when late In the fall II the river does
not rise again, the pumping plants
could be started up and the ditch
worked with a dredge and this sedi-
ment from the river distributed over
the ground, leaving the dltches clean
again ready for the spring watering.
1t has been truthfully said that this
territory must sooner or later depend
on pump water for irrigation along its
valleys and rivers during the middle OF
the summer, and I think II should be
the FIRST place OF the Agricultural coll
lege to take this matter up as It's frst
and greatest problem 10 solve. They
should put la a plant at their place
auticient to supply their farm without
the use OF the river N any way. what
ever. but at the same time keep their
bitches In such a shape and connection
mat the river water can be turned into
them 1 hope that the faculty OF the
laas Cruces college VIII see its way
clear % take up this matter on a large
scale and push It through TO compile
ton,