The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1908-09-15
RECLAMATION
WATER MEASUREMENT AND DISTI
Canal and Lateral Maintenance


one interest is served from the same
source of supply. They are necessary
in apportioning the water among the
irrigators according to their rights.
They are necessary in defining the
right and, above all, they are required
for economical irrigated agriculture, as
the quantity of water applied to crops
influences probably more than any
other comfortable factor the quantity
and the quality of the product. The
thinking or Studious farmer-and all
successful farmers are studious-soon
learns from practice the quantity OF
water to apply that the greatest crop
yield may ee secured. II the water
SO applied were measured there would
result a tangible basis for affixing
practical duty of water to the same
class of land similarly situated. Such
information is of inestimable value to
the new settler, to the canal company,
the community and the judiciary in
assigning to any locality the quantity
of water essential for profitable agrl-
culture, and would afford protection to
the lower lands from injurious effects
of alkali and water-logging caused by
over-irrigation upon the higher LANDS.
The judiciaries of our western states,
in adjudicating water rights, are often
at loss to assign the amount OF water
required under stated conditions TO
conform with that clause of our law
making beneficial use" limiting ba-
sis of the right. The courts have fre-
uuently, through a lack OF knowledge
of the requirements of plants and SOILS
for water. entered DEGREES which have
subsequently been found unjust, and
in some cases the result has been the
awarding to a claimant an amount OF
water sufficient to cover the land each
year to a depth of thirty feet. In one
instance in my experience, the court
decreed about seven times as much
water to me different claimants as
was in the stream, decreeing 1T upon
the sworn testimony OF witnesses as
to the size of the so-called, but as yet
underlined, ''irrigating stream. Such
a decree was possible only through
lack of water measurement IN the
stream, canal or upon the farm. Inc
present methods of the practical dis
tributiOn of water are, with lew eXcep-
lions, not adapted to an equltaDle ap-
portionment The right near the
source of supply, be it lateral, canal
or river. will in ninety-nine cases out
of a hundred, receive an undue pro
norton of the water at the expense OF
the interests lower down the stream.
IF VOL do not agree with me, ask any
of the farmers who live at the lower
end. A system of distribution Wnlcn
is not founded upon accurate measure
ment or upon exactly the same condl-
tions. is not worthy OF emulatlon anu
is destined to become an obsolete prac-
tice.
The methods of distribution now IN
use aim to give to every interest its
due nroportion of water, but through
lack of knowledge Of the primary
laws of the flow OF water IN natural
and artificial channels, on the part OF
the water master, the result is d sys'
TEN whereby the water master pe'
comes a guessing agent ana aHords
equitable distribution based upon
VARYING and undetermined quantity
the irrigating stream or running lncn.
DO not misunderstood me to say that
the miners inch" is variable, but the
results obtained by unskilled hands
are not comparable. By actual meas
urement in Utah and parts OF ldano,
irrigation streams supposed to contain
according to the water master, the
same quantity of water were found 10
vary as much as 10 per cent. ANY
method of distribution making PROB
able such a result is to be condemned
and very few of the systems now III
use afford better results.
The methods of dividing water most
common in Utah are:
1. The placing in the bank OF the
canal rectangular boxes of size de-
pending upon the quantity OF water
l. fa1x ont