Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1910-04-22
Important Work the Department
of Agriculture in Idaho will
Perform this Season
QUANTITY FOR BEST RESULTS
Very Little Scientific Data Obtainable as
to Amount of Water Really Needed
to Obtain the Maximum Yields

Don H. Bark, irrigation engineer
with the government department of
agriculture OF Idaho, was in the city
Wednesday morning of last week in
company with John U. Mcpherson,
Agricultural expert for the Idaho Irri-
cation company, on their way to Rich
field where they held a meeting for the
farmers of the Richfield tract.
Mr.. Bark has charge of very i'm
portant work in which the state and
government department of agriculture
are working together This work is
to determine ''the duty of water, or
in other words to find out from a scien-
tific basis how much water is needed on
the different soils to raise the largest
crops possible. This is a matter that
has not been given much attention in
the past but now the time has arrived
when it is important to the welfare of
the entire irrigated section OF the coun-
try to know the amount of water really
necessary to produce the largest yields.
When the rich valley lands of South
ern Idaho were first being settled there
was an abundance of water for every
one who could use it and the first set
tiers appropriated two or three times
as much as they could utilize. When
the later settlers came in and the water
supply became exhausted the question
naturally arose as to whether the old
settlers were not using much more
water then they really needed and there
by cutting short the supply of the new
comers without receiving any additional
benefit themselves. Weret the old timers
playing the ''dog in the manger" act or
not.
The old settlers have the first right
to all the water they can proftably
make use of without shadow of a
doubt but they should not be allowed to
use two or three times as much as they
need and cut the other fellow off with
out any at ALL This question will un-
doubtedly come up in the courts this
fall in one of the biggest watersuits of
history to settle the water rights along
the Boise valley. The same condition |
prevails in practically all the old set
tied sections and will have to be settled. !
If the state and government irrigation |
officials can furnish reliable information /
as to the amount of water that is real |
ly necessary to the best results, our
courts win have definite data to work |
from. otherwise it will be more or less
guess work.
OF much wider Importance, however,
viii be the results in determining the
'.duty of water" in allotting water for
the big Carey Act projecs now under
way. There are millions of acres of
rich, fertile land in Idaho that need
only the magic touch of water in right
amounts to make it very productive.
The immense quantities of food waters
that now run to waste are TO be soon
coi.trolled. stored, and poured upon
these arid lands. The Carey Get COM
paries sell this water to the settler by
the acre unit-a certain amount Of
water for each acre. There IS an
Of land that cost the com
panies nothing. so naturally they want
to make the water quite as small as
possible and cover as much land as the
land board will permit so as to have
more acres for sale, therefore, in order
to protect the settlers it is necessary
for state land board to know how much
water is needed so they can require the
companies to furnish all
that is needed On the other hand
every acre that can be reclaimed adds
wealth to the state and the general
public and helps make homes for an I
ever increasing population. As long as
there is plenty of land FOR all the
water that can be utilized for irrigation
it will not be for the welfare of the
public to require more water than IS
necessary for part of the land and
cave large areas arid that can other
wise be reclaimed by the excess of
Tater unwisely used.
Actual farming on the Twin Falls