Los Angeles herald., 1905-01-08

PERSONAL Experiences of CoL Joseph d. Lynch

over period of years. but that the
loss will be made good 1 believe.
In the few remarks 1 am about to
make 1 wish to separate the question
Of supplying large city with an ade-
quate water supply from irrigation in
country like that which surrounds
Los Angeles. L shall not dwell upon
the incalculable quantities of water
we have wasted and which we might
have conserved. / shall dwell simply
upon the capabilities of our section
for an extensive agriculture.
7 believe that the average rainfall of
Los Angels county is about seventeen
inches, and 1 am perfectly aware that
last year is was only little more than
half that. But think that the sixty
inches we ;re shy, though it may take
time will come along. There is Moth
ing that bars us out from the thirty
inches in the valleys and ninety in the
mountains of the season of 1SS4-S5. If
the weather clerk pleases he may send
us such a season now.
I believe that there are regular rain.
cycles in Southern California, and that
the rain precipitation in Los Angeles is
at least seventeen inches a year-about
that of the Sacramento valley. 1t is
true that accurate details of the rain
fall hereabouts do not go back FAR
enough to give satisfactory data Tor
scientific approximation of the rainfall
The United States weather statistics do
not go back over thirty years and those
of Mr. Ducommun do not go much
further. But we are helped out by the
fact that tradition says that there was
a tremendous downpour in the famous
40. and that before the two years or
horrible drouth in the early COS there
were a number of very wet years. The
probability is that if we could collect
the statistics of the last sixty years our
standard of a normal yearly rainfall
of seventeen inches needs only four or
five wet years to be maintained. IL
must never be forgotten that the OLD
native Californians have always
claimed that it was the Americans who
brought the dry weather to this section.
They were undoubtedly barking back
to the times of the regular cycle.
1t is important that our intelligent
eagerness to provide for a fine and
ample municipal water supply should
not be misconstrued into discrediting
the ability of Industrious farmers TO
raise satisfactory crops in many por-
tions of Southern California without
irrigation and in years of scanty rain
fall. / saw a splendid corn crop raised
to the west of Agricultural park in a
pretty dry year. 1875, and when the
ground was plowed after the last rain
fall There was no irrigation, and
there were neither wells nor bitches
to give any. In the famous season or
drouth, 1851, Farmer Flood raised
splendid crops of grain when the rain
fall was only ASS inches Flood knew
his business, the crops were put in
properly, and every drop Of rainfall
was made to count. In the neighbof-
ing county of Ventura there have been
years OF no great rainfall in which
men have been known to pay $65 an
acre for bean lands and receive 500 an
acre clear profit for their crop.
| indulge in these "reminiscences to
let those who are not familiar with
Southern California know that lands
without a water right are often exceed
ingly valuable. There is no doubt what
ever that Southern California needs a
great. old-time drenching. Let us hope
that we shall get Il this year, and that
the old-time cycle viii come along, and
for my part l believe it is on the way.