The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-09-21
NOW COMES THE
MAN WHO KNOWS
Views of a Scientist Whose
Name is Not Given.
IRRIGATION SURE TO FAIL
ATTEMPT TO DAMPEN PRESENT
ENTHUSIASM.


III ASHINGTON, Sept. 2o.-Just as
w the outlook for reclamation Of the
arid and semi-lrid wastes of the
gerat west rs SO bright, a government
scientist, whose identity is not given,
hut who is said TO De well known, sue
cveds in being interviewed IN d man
her that VIII tend 10 disheaTten some
Of the present irrigation enthusiasts.
AnCre Is one Bnase OI lne Itr.duOn
question. sand TINS OrlicIaI- IN an inter-
view published i'm the east, that ls COINS
% give trouble sooner OF later. Just now
a. rs only safe and comfortable 90 speak
about 70 IN au academic way There are
Too many bOom@ss I'm the IRRIGATION spirit
- inaSe it. wise 10 throw cold water on
their doctrines.
But here is a fact which has been OBJ
served for centuries. Genuinely arid
countries are always ruined sooner or
later bN irrigation. Permanently sue
CeSsful irrigation IS possible only I'm what
we can humid or semi-humid regions.
where thc drainage is natural from the
titNuS To me sea.
Poisons Accumulate.
'lu the arid country thc soil IS prac-
ucdllv ucVt wet down more than four
OF five feet Ia The millions OF acres
mas never been dt work the process Of
percolatOn down through the underlying
rock and soil which would drain FROM
\ lne ldnu obnoxious constituent elements.
with soil. as with animal life. there must
be process like peTspiration which shall
carry Off waste salts. Otherwise they ac-
Cumuiatc and i'm excess arc harmful Iu
aIl soil there are chemicals. some of
which arc plant foods and some plant
nelson's With natural drainage conditions
any excess or injurious salts would be
carried off But without it they accumu-
late.
Now. whom the water. either Of rain
lall or from irrigation. sOaks down a few
feet into the surface soil and then slowly
bv capillary action rises TO the surface
and is evapOrated or drunk up by the
growing plants, II HftS with it the salts
and there follows a gradual increase of
salts or alkali near the surface.
I'm the average virgin soil Of tho arid
regions or Arizona or New Mexico. for in
stance. there is USUALLY two-hundredths
ol ono ner cent OF alEali and often as
htEn as nine hundrcdths Tho waters
used tn IRRIGATION contain SlkaHi This
fact AMI the concentration or the salts
in the soil bv evaporation. are together
continually increasing the alSali denosits.
In hot weather especially the conditions
ore highly significant Of trouble Evap-
Grafton is great the water I'm the streams
sets low and the proportion of salts. in
creases. This is the time OF all neriods
Of che year when the water Is needed for
lrricatton- ] have seen water from salt
, ysg g6 A id2 6o SHOW parts Of Th6is
actually dangerous TO plant growth
Salt In Water.
An acre foot of such watcr would
contain nearly two tons of salt The
SINUS IDilRW TIC wafer ana are EfNNMdiNN
carried 90 the surface OF the soil ana
denosited there. Tt Is invariably the
case that where there is a scant supply OF
water. as there is even in The best condi-
lions. tho roots of most crops. ana eS-
DeciaUy OF trcee. hug the upper few
inches of the soil. where the alkaIi ac-
Cumulates and in time kills them.
THAT is the story. If there could be a
flooding Of the soil. SO that the water
would 60 ON down 60 bedrock and run off
underground 10 the sea. the salts that are
IN furious would time taken
and the soil would become sweeter and
sweeter wear after year. This is really
what takes place in the eastern portion of
the country.
scientific irrigation is far more inn
pOrtaut i'm the east than I'm the west
There 10 rs "a necessity. Here IL is profit
That is with irrigation the eastern farm
or could usually double his crop. and
without removing fertility or injuring his
ground. VIII lecuminous crops and ir-
riCation here the farmer can forever con-
vert air cor nitrogen OF 10. which is the
same tniugl into flesh The process is
omen to no doubt and is going on every
! oav successfully.
Problems For Scientists.
Science will have problem before IL
when the avid regions have. by short
sighted booming. been filled UP with a
population which viii finally discover
that what at first seems 20 be a most
successful process OF farming. Is a de-
lusion-that what they thought was fruit
IS in the end ashes Science must go TO
work Co tiu5 way To remove the excess
of alkaG from the soil
Thousands Of fine farms have been
abandoned because of the alkali rising in
tho soil Thousands more will be abau-
eoned iu the same way. and. unlike the
abandoned farms of New England. they
viii never be sought again by anyone de-
string to Eet back to Mother Eartn.
"Bahvlon fen by tine alkalization OF
MCsOuOtumid. The valley of the Nile
has ESCAPED because there takes place
there every wear thorough flooding.
which washes down through the lowest
DEPTHS of the soil and cleans It of all
salts that are obnoxious. There are few
places in our western country where this
can be Secured. IL Is possibly going on
around salt Lake and the lake is getting
moro and more salt every year. Complete
irrigation whore the water goes down
through the whole soil end flows on over
the rock Co the sea. Is safe and may be
followed as perpetual means of pro-
oucluC largo crops economically and
ur0ffitahIv. Under other conditions uu
Joss some remedy is discovered for re-
moving alH9lL tho result is disastrous I'm
the end. and Do inevitably comes, sooner or
later