Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-01-26
SQUARE MILE HONESTY 1o,,,r, :,
Great Future for the
Congressman Monarv


Washington. tan a W. etc. win
acres as homestead eEou Ten cents D
place Of IGh arrre X J, r,..etir IAN seventy
Is being discussed l-rnr.. H..
Lands 'omn.i'f""s Of TIE Soma nts Of .,
House. Statements have been ct is Il
showing mat square mile * nnia rged
nuch t" allow a man IN certain .,,e
OF In" West and that $50 arres i, will
iIttI". An interesting argument lis .
made. last Friday, b"for. ibe It'll !
committee by REPRESENTATIVE Non1s, h
or wyoming. chairman Of the tJo,,.'
irflSa non Committee. III which ~ Viii.
decided ground against any hasty I'LL.
islation on this subject.
congress passed a law on tb;s ,
ton last session including Tia 1a,d.,
Western Nebraska" H. said u.',,
:; he understanding that If wooIId H.
me nature Df an experiment Af,a.
fair trial there, ana n careful invas,t
cation Of its results it may h. ,,;sa
may be wise / say. to enact eir,i,
legislation for other limited localitil.
but to forth With apply the pIan ],
great areas Of the West at this tin,,
would BE- a dangerous thing. The Va
braska law has been in no sense \ ia
monstration as vet"
Mr.. Mnndnll stated that hc had r,a1o
four or five long railroad trips rhrougb-
ont iris part Of Nebraska ana H.. Ia,
observed no indication of settlement
under this law. He saw no new housac
nor no evidence of increased ponuI,
lion. He admitted that there are vac.
areas Of the West which an eventual.
ly be classified rs grazing lands snI.Iv
irredeemable beyond any process If
irrigation. better farming methods ar
through the Introduction Of new ariI
land orops. but" Ne said. I'VE ara in
no condition ut this time and will nor
',e for many years to intelligeniIy
classify all those lands. There Is
great advance beng made on the de.
sert, today by which newly discovered
crops ard methods Of culture are con
stantly making productive and viii r.
claim millions of acres which few
years ago We're supposed to he abso-
lutcly unfit for crop growing. It woui
he a serious mistake to condemn anv
Of these lands which Will. as agricul.
tural science progresses mora and
more become suitable for homes. to III
definite stock grazing"
AS an illustration. ne stated that in
his own county of Weston living i'm
mediately west of tn South Dakota
line. some - years ago a start was
made by himself and frierds to grow
grain without irrigation. These "agr-
cultural operations We're looked upon
by the cowboys as a great joke. The
section was Cow country" and dry
land farming. well there was not even
a question that It would succeed. Now
a quarter of a million bushels of grain
and % 900 bushels of vegetables ara
produced annnally--Whcat yielding
from IS TO y bushels per acre-anl
inCrook county to the north. and also
west of the Sou:n Dakota line the crop
production without irrigation is much
more. In the northern half of Weston
county T. years ago an almost unbrok-
en- range there is now an average Of
between two AMI three farms on every.
square mile. This" he said shows
the advance We nave made in - years.
Why have we any reason to believe
that we will not make as great an adj
tlitional advance III the coming L
years and bring lands under cultivation
which are now looked upon as worth
less for farming
1T is not" ne said that there is 4
rhange in climate. but Il change in the
class of farmers: MOI n change in thH
soil but in the class Of tn" cr1HS
grown. A rn2si 'crabln portion Of this
land included IN these Ga acres home
stead bills will be found during thn
coming decade o. 50 to he suitable FIR
50 called dry farming considerable
will be irrigated in small individual
catches by damminC couleeS etc. ami
considerable portion BY private irri-
cation systems.
We are but upon the frings Of the
agricultural development of the great
west. We will. if we proceed carefully
in our land policy. ultimately cultivat"
as much land by these dry farm
methods as through irrigation. Fof
every million or ten million acres W'
reclaim through irrigation in the W'Sl
we will have Z million OF ten million
acres producing prolitably without IT.