The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-12-31
IRRIGATION
SENTIM ENT
Is GROWING
Big Enthusiastic Meeting Held
at Mountain Park.
ROWLAND MAKES SPEECH
Tells of Its Advantage to the
New Country.

Guthrie. O. T., Dec. 5e.-The irrigation
Saturday afternoon at Mountain Park,
[iowa county, a meeting was held at the
school house and irrigation for the new
county was discussed pro and con. A de-
:ided feeling for irrigation ruled the meet
ng.
j. NJ Rowland made the principal ad-
dress and his talk was endorsed by ALL
He said:
The money is in the treasury at Wash
'aston awaiting cur application for 1t 10
5e utilized in the construction Of dam
End canals for the purpose of irrigation
It would be necessary To write a book
70 tell of the many benefits that would
arise through irrigation. First, 10 failure
81 crops would ever occur. and the far
mer would with one irrigation each year
.oublc his yield per acre, even of the most
favorable season, and during drouth
good crops could be produced when 9TH
srwise many crops would be a total fail
ure. Land never is too rough 10 irriS2te
providing the soil is good and the land
Is lower than the water in the dam. Near
Il All the tiliable soil contiguous to Noun
tain Park and as far south as Ped river
is wei adapted for irrigation. The best
fruits cf California and New Mexico are
produced by irrigation among the foot
bills. often when too steep to cultivate
except by hand.
The largest potatoes sold here and at
other points in Oklahoma were produced
In Colorado by irrigation. Also cabbage
and celery are shipped every year from
q nirrigation district in Colorado TO Okla
homa and many states. Why not irrigate
and produce them here:
Farmers who own bottom land say
my land is often too wet and / don't
need ii. Irrigation canals and bitches
will divide the overflow on bottom land
and lessen if not entirely cause over
flow TO cease.
Irrigation would make the farmer live
longer and better by saving the energy
lost ,by worry over failures of crops.
One-lialf or one-fourth of he land would
produce enough to support the family so
that each farmer could sell half his land
20 better improve the other half and still
have more of the products of the soil.
After the dam is constructed lake
will be formed which will have a tendency
TO cause more rainfall.
irrigation in California raised the price
of land from $40 per acre to $500 and 500
per acre in the orange belt. and the price
OF other lands were even higher.
Other benefits from the dam: One of
the main canals could pass near Mountain
Park. and in its onward course to irri-
gate the fields. whirl the water wheel
to generate power To be utilized for Hour
mills cotton gins, factories. etc.
The government will construct 1.-The
dam. also the canals and fumes. Five
hundred thousand or one million dollars
expended in the work would give employ
ment TO many men and create good
market for produce.
IF we don't take advantage Of this
offer. other parts of the country will
apply for il. as many states and terri
tories are surveying and looking out sites
for the approval OF the government to
construct reservoirs.
"Shal we take advantage of the gov
ernment's generous offer and make our
land valuable as California and other
states? Shall we make our farms blossom
rs the rose with the good things of earth?
or live from year to year wondering will
this be a dry year?
Shall We build u city with thousands
of inhabitants TO help eat our surplus
OF good things. and also 10 operate our
factories. mills and great Industrial insti-
tutionso''