The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1903-09-26

| will justify the expense, the loss can
be stopped, but the expense is too
heavy for ordinary corps, or, at least.
has been considered So AS the de-
mand for water becomes greater,
larger expense will be justified But
what is needed is a cheap but ecect-
i've means of stopping the losses from
canals. We are working on this prob
lem. Its solution means, as has been
shown, an addition of at least one
third to the area which can be re-
claimed.
Losses From Laterals.
The losses from laterals have been
shown to be nearly if not quite as
great as those from bitches. We are
studying methods of constructing lat
erals and Of making them more eco
nonical carriers of water. All the
field agents of the irrigation investi-
cations have been instructed to study
the practice of the best farmers in
the sections covered by them. The
reports from all these agents will be
digested and combined and published
in the form of a farmers bulletin.
Experiments looking to the same end
are being carried on. AS with ca
mails, the question of saving the
losses from laterals is a question Of
expense, and what we are looking for
is some cheap check on these losses,
the saving of which means the ad-
dition of another third to the re-
claimed area.
Great as are the possibilities of
saving by stopping the losses from
canals and laterals, they are not SO
great as the possibilities of saving in
use. Our measurements of the guam
titles actually used by farmers show
that some use from five to ten times
as much water as others VINO are
raisinf the same crops under similar
conditions, and who secure equally
as good if not better resurns. There
is no way of telling what proportion
of farmers use too much water, but
the measurements referred to seem
to justify the estimate that on an
average farmers use at least twice
as much water as is necessary under
present methods. If this saving cam
be made, it means doubling of the
area which can be reclaimed. and
that with little expense to anyone,
since most canals cover much more
land than they now supply with wa
ter. The department can, of course,
do nothing to enforce economy in
use. 1t can only point out the fact
that equally good returns from the
land now irrigated can be secured
with half the water in the hope that
self-interest will induce farmers to
use the smaller quantities. One
method has. however, been suggested
by our Investigations. That is to
base charges for water on the guam
titles used rather than on the acreage
irrigated.
Report From New Mexico.
"A report from New Mexico shows
that farmers who paid according to
the quantities they received used 21
per cent less water than others un
der the same canal who paid a fiat
rate per acre and used what they
wanted. A similar test in Idaho
showed that those who paid for the
quantities received used 90 per cent
less than those paying the acreage
rate-an average for the two sections
of % per cent. A large majority of
farmers receive water from ditch
companies Of some kind, and where
ever they do this means of inducing
is available. But most |
Ill use lucSG tACCCSlNt IueillNi-
ties of water in the belief that it is |
necessary TO do so. The department /
therefore, has large opportunity for
lsefulness in showing them the bene-
its of a more economical use.
THE estimate that farmers are
lsing twice as much water as is nee
,ssary is based on the measurements
previously referred to, which show
hat some farmers use from five to
en- times as much as others. But we
ire not stopping with this study OF
What is being done. We are carry
ng on experiments to get at the ac-
ual necessities of different crops un-
Ter different conditions. To estab-
ish the minimu mquantities which
must be supplied to plants we are
making determinations of the guam
tiles of water actually used in the
rocesses of growth. To these guam
tiles must be added enough to sup
ly the losses which are unavoidable
nder field conditions. These losses
till vary with different soils and
nth different methods Of cultivation,
ut it is believed that an approx