The Greeley tribune., 1906-11-22
Practical Talk on Two Methods Of Soil Culture
by WeIl-Known Irrigation Attorney Be-
fore State Commercial Association
at Fort Collins. Full Text of
His Address Given Below.
CONTINUED from last week,

Irrigation, alone, makes agricul-
ture practical industry in the state
rather than an interesting expert
ment. Sugar production. and nearly
all other forms Of specialized produc-
tion and industry, depend largely, II
not entirely, on successful agricul-
ture, and only as irrigation develops,
agriculture, with its family OF pro-
! ductive industries, follows.
The irrigation and agricultural
development Of the state, then, for
the future, will consist largely In
the building Of reservoirs upon the
plains and along the water courses
and In the diversion of water derived
from melting SHOWS in the higher
ranges of the mountains, to the east
ern slope, thereby saving much of
the unmeasured waste of water to
the Salton sea and to tie gulf. In
both these lines beginnings have
been made, but the greatest and
most beneticent possibilities remain
to be accomplished.
ln-issO the building Of reservoirs
was commenced in northern Colorado
and has been steadily going onward
until the present time there is annu-
ally stored in that section alone up
wards of one hundred thousand acre
feet of water, which, with some
older water rights in bitches makes
| l,l l,o In ~ t,I,n r.,1
thousand acres of beets and potatoes
yearly and the maintenance of the
two starch and the five sugar fac
tories which have been established
in this locality. But even greater
projects are now being initiated. In
other parts of the state compare
lively little has been done, but along
all the streams flowing east from the
mountains opportunity waits, while
enterprise is even now organizing its
forces for the conquest.
So far the storage of water has
been confined chiefly to the diversion
of the water flowing in the running
streams in the winter time, and dur
ing the spring floods. These supplies
have not yet been exhausted and lit
tile has been done in storing the sum-
mer storm waters from mountain
gorges and carried by drainage tun-
nels and dry creeks which traverse
the plains.
Diversion Of Water.
In the matter OF giving direction
to the initial high mountain streams
formed by melting snow, so that
these volumes of water may be con-
Quoted to available places of use,
some small bitches have been built
around high peaks and through
elevated passes, also some short tun-
nels through jutting mountain
shoulders have been effected; but 1t
remains that similar diversions OF
greater volumes of water be made
from points several hundred feet
| lower upon the westward flowing
streams, necessitating longer bitches
and detours around the higher
mountain elevations or longer tun-
nes through such elevations to effect
the diversion to the eastward flowing
water ways of the eastern slope.
Along this line, too, investment
and enterprise are making inquiry
and conducting engineering investi-
cations exciting popular interest and
settlement, and procuring comb'na-
tions of capital and skill for carrying
on these great undertakings.
In the nature of the case, the con
suruction of large reservoirs, tunnels
and irrigation works now require,
in the stage of development reached,
and to further urge such develop
ment, effort and capital correspond
ingly great; but the results already
obtained in the creation of large
values in water rights and the en-
hancement of land values wherever
land can be reached by sufficient sup
plies Of water for irrigation, justities