Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1910-10-02
TYPICAL JUMPING
PLANTS ON THE
M|MbRES
Current Number Of "GaS Re-
view Contains Interesting
and Instructive Article from
Bedichek.


> iNf 'HftA INANNNA " NfNM
Review" contains "a most interesting
ana instructive orticle on the success
Of pumping for irrigation in the MINI
bres valley OF New Mexico, by Secre-
tary X. Bediehek Of the Deming
| chamber Of commerce.
II is ~ follows.
When they first began TO talk of
pumping water Tor irrigation in the
vicinity Of Deming, New Mexico,
| there were many Thomases VINO
doubted the feasibility of pumping
| water anywhere for irrigation, much
loss INTO the desert lands Of the lower
Mimbrcs valley which were never
known TO produce anything valuable
except q little grass during rainy sea-
sons. some maintained that there
was no water 10 speak of under this
valley. others said that YOU could not
raise ANYTHING even II you had plenty
OF winter. another hat the cost Of
fuel would eat IN the profits. and
still others based their opposition on
tho very general grounds that TO
pump water FOR irrigation in this
country was tinkerinE With the plans
81 the Almighty. that to irrigate .
country which was "a manifestly
meant to be- u desert simply amounted
10 fixing into the face of Omnipotence
with ill-smelling, new-fangled ma
chinerN. and that such i~rrevCrence
would be chastised-"see IL faint
However q few hardy souls who
had the courage Of their convictions
and money enough 20 back them
went To work to raise the abundant
underflow ana convert IL into an
Gverflow The pioneers IN this ven
tnre in the Mimbres valley are: r.
G.. Ely. T. y. Shull. John Humid, Hugh
Ramsay, Charles T.. Hicks, and Dr. r.
IS. Gonnaway. These men have not
only demonstrated the feasibility OF
pumping water Tor irrigation in this
valley. but have finally convinced n
doubling community that water can
be pumped here at an enormous
profit.
The waters Of the Mimbres river
sink into sand and gravel strata about
twenty miles north OF DeminG, and II
Is only under pressure of tremendous
floods coming out of the mountains
that water Is pushed through the
usually dry bed of the river as far
down stream as Demtng. The MINI
bres river does not FLOW at Deming-
II undertlows and sometimes over
flows. While the flood waters are
utilized for irrigation, 1t Is to the I'M
derflow that the great majority OF
farmers look for their water.
In the y~icinity 81 peming the first
water-boaring strp Gum occurs at a
depth Of from ten to seventy feet.
The second sand and gravel stratum
occurs fifteen or twenty rect below
the FIRST, and the third, or main,
stratum occurs at ~ depth Of from one
hundred twenty to one hundred sew
enty feet beneath the surface. when
this third stratum rs punctured by
tl. 4.a.lI ANN ffa ttgn tA,4 Vtang in elm
well to a point about ten feet above
the watcr-leyel of glle first stratum.
A pump delivering W thousand gal
Ions If water per minute can pump
q twenty-foot head off of one of these
wells, or a pump delivering twelve
hundred gallons per minute can do il,
but when TINT IS done, the water
level cannot be lowered further. Thus,
II viii be seen that a mans pumping
is usually ten feet below the
point at which he encounters the first
water-benring stratum.
We lake as typical of Irrigation
plants IN the Mimbres valley. the
Shull well three miles east of DEM
ing and the Humid wen two and one
half miles southeast. In drilling the !
Shut we'll the first water-bearing |
stratum was encountered at "A depth
OF ~thirty-three feet. the second
stratum at about eighty feet and the |
at one hundred fifty feet. The |
aggregate thickness of these three
IS torty feet.
The well proper Is twelve inches !
In diameter and is cased solidly ex-
water-bearinR strata occur. and there.
instead of casing, the Layne screen IS
substituted. y 0ftv-fuot steel pit is
installed tWo feet Ina diameter (per- |
fQrated whore the first stratum oc-
curse AT the bottom uf which is set
"a No. tayne a Bowler pump. II
cen he seen thut the pe%rforation ol
the ptt and the screening of the two
lower strata CONNECTS these three lay
FRS uf vater-hearing materirl. SEQ that
the Won " furnished with water from
an of them
a 40 horsepower Weber old stNlr I
ttSs5l engine furnishes the power To
the pump. THE loss ina efficiency
caused hs thr altitude tfpur thou
sand three hundred feet above sto
is fifteen nor cent. \ belt from
ne run The pulley of the
pump. aud when going at O. normal
this pump delivers twelve hun
fifty CATIONS of water per min
ltc. or s~eNcuty-tiNc thousand gallons
per hour Engine naptha. which
'osts twelve cents per gallon. Is used,
10 which toul gallons are consumed
hC"~
0he lut when the pump starts is
twenty -sevcn feet. hui after "a two
hours run. the head Is pumped or
thr water stands permgueutly at
'orty-two feet When pumping at fun
"a opacity. this plant waters one and
3ne-half ceres of irish potatoes per
hour % this year It Is taking care
'f one hundred seventy acres OF poe
a. 'rs, orions and iced crops
The cost of the Shull plant lnClud-
ny everything was $4,000. This
veil with its present equipment is able
20 TAKE cars ct two hundred and hfty
,cres of ordinary crops
The Humid plant cost So, goo The
gli,r streU Ca N"ater-bcurinE mater
were encountered and NJ about The
nmc depths. but the strata were
thicker So that The Humid well was
'%uuippcd with eighty cet oi s%tIaiucr
'r screen. 1s against forty feet Inv the
'hull wen. otherwise. the wells are
bout the same.
The machinery however. is "a littlc
different The 1und well is equipped ,
With "a No 5 Layne x Bowler pump 4
.tth nine b nNr-cighths inc dis
barge. with 1 So horsepower f,
restern gas engine Engine naptha
s USED 90 This plant. costing twelve
per gallon Thirty-fiVe gallons I
re- consumed IN ten-hour run. and 1
De pump delivers fifteen hundred :
per minute. or ninety thou /
gallons per hour. OF min hum
red thousand gallons In ten hours =