East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-04-28

Senator Newlands has just intro
duced a bill to provide $4,000 for
conducting experiments to ascertain
what crops can be most profitably
grown and to demonstrate the best
methods of cultivating such crops in
the irrigated districts that will be
opened for settlement under the terms
OF the reclamation act approved June
II, 1902, OF which act Senator New
lands was one of the most prominent
authors.
II this bill is passed by congress, it
will provide for Investigations that
will be of the greatest value to the
settlers taking up land on the govern
ment projects. Vast amounts OF irri-
gated land have recently been opened
for settlement in western United States
by private enterprise, and the opening
of the new government projects in
addition will cause a large influx of
settlers from the east.
Many of these settlers will know
little or nothing of irrigation crops
or OF irrigation methods, and unless
they have some opportunity for get
ting expert information on such mat
tiers, it is feared that many of their
first attempts at irrigation farming
may result in failure.
Such failures would be unfortunate.
not only to the settlers themselves,
but to the whole government irriga-
ton proposition, since II the percent
age of failures on any project is large,
the government will be put in the en-
barrassing position of having to fore
close on the settlers and deprive them
Of their land, in some cases after they
have spent everything they had ir
getting a start, and where their fail
ure may have been due to no fault
o. their own, but simply to Ignorance
of the new conditions.
Owing to the fact that the construc
ton work being done by the govern
n.ent engineers is of a permanent ma
ture and of the best type known tC
engineering science, the first cost o
the water on the government projects
will be relatively high. but the subse
quent cost of maintenance and opera
ton will be relatively low.
Under the terms of the reclamation
act, this first cost of project must b,
repaid to the government in the firs
10 years after the land is open to set
tlement. This will amount to as mucl
as s25 or $50 an acre, or in SOM
cases even more, so that II equal,
pro-rated by years, it will amount Z
from $3.50 to SO per acre per year.
In order to meet these payment
and to provide living for himself an
family, to say nothing of providin
buildings, fences farm tools and othe
necessary improvements, settle
must either have a reasonable amour
of capital to begin with, or else h
must be successful with his crop
from the start.
1t is the purpose of Senator New
lands recently introduced bill to Pre-
vide some aid in the way of advic
and example to these new settlers s
that they may make as few failure
as possible. 1t is said by experts VIII
have looked into the situation that II
crops that can be profitably grown
many Of the irrigation projects al
relatively few in number.
1t Is claimed that the unirrigate
farms of the Mississippi valley and Il
great plains can produce most of Il
cereal and forage crops much mo-
cheaply than they can be grown III
der irrigation, so that the productiC
of these staple crops on the irrigatiC
projects must eventually be confint
to supplying local demands.