Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1913-02-08
A Plea for Justice to Western Kansas


the eastern slope of the Rocky Noun
tains. 1t has an area of 81, 144 square
miles, 400 miles from east to west and
POS miles from north to south The
average altitude at its western end is
about $3.50 feet and on its eastern
border $50 feet. The average slope
from west to east is about feet to
the mile, and there is also an inclina-
tion from north to south. The range
in elevation is from 727 feet in south
eastern Montgomery county to 1906
at Kanorado, in Sherman county on
the Colorado line. The annual aver
age precipitation and the
water from melted SHOWS = range
from Is inches in the extreme west
to A inches in the southeast.
Throughout this area the soils in
general are very productive. Their
fertility has been proven, but, as
might be expected, with such ex-
tremes in attitudes and rainfall, con-
ditions are widely different in the
west from those in the east,
A trait in human nature is to fol-
low lines of least resistance. Accord
ingly, eastern Kansas, with its gener-
Gus rainfall, was settled early and
rapid progress was made in develop
ing its resources. Condition in west
ern Kansas, with Scantier moisture,
seemed against general farming, and
for years that part of the state was
regarded mainly as a grazing coun-
try. Demand for land, however, led
increasing numbers to locate there
with the intention of farming, but a
season or more of inadequate moist
ure would cause many to emigrate.
Hence, some settlers left, while 9TH
ers stayed; then year or more of
good crops would bring additional in
habitants. This has been the history
of western Kansas, throughout the
years Its prosperity has been uncer-
tain. What is needed is to make its
agriculture in general as dependable
as science and skill have proven pos
sible. Even though its population
has f1uctuated more or less it is stead
lily increasing. Old timers who ''held
the fort" have prospered, but too
often their lessons were learned and
prosperity attained at the cost of
trying experience.
1t is my judgment that the state
should aid western Kansas in some
adequate way to guard against and
eliminate so far as may be the draw
backs and uncertainties of farming
in that region, by providing suitably
located experiment stations, county
demonstration farms and irrigation
plants, which individual enterprises
cannot afford and should not be ex-
pected to provide, to help in solving
the problems peculiar to their terri
tory.
Kansas is 81 years old, and it is
time she awoke to the advisability of
making her western portion as invit-
ing as it is possible through state CO.
operation. If it is left to indi vidu-
ais to demonstrate methods and crops
and possibilities, the process will OBJ
viouSly be slow, as indicated by past
records. Thus far the state has Iarg-
ly left the western counties to look
after themselves. devoting most of
her funds and experimental work to
the eastern half. There is no COM
plaint on that score, and should be no
curtailment in that direction, but
the scope of such work should be so
that it will include the
western end of the state. While the
stations at HAYS and
Manhattan are doing invaluable work
there is a wide stretch of country
rearlly beyond the zones of their
greatest usefulness, with different al
and conditions. No better
of public funds could
be made than in some additional
stations, not necessarily ex-
pensive to serve especially the terri |
tory for which in large measures the
experiments of the present institu-
tions are inadequate.
Take, for example, the 81 counties |
either wholly west of or transacted |
by the 10Oth meridian. Their total |
population is 124 ,616, of which 2,177 |
live in towns and cities. Counting |
four persons to a household, of the |
rural population there would be less |
than one family to the square mile, |
which would mean less than one able
bodied man for each section of land.
The population, urbane and rural, |
per square mile is AS, as against an
average for the state of 2O3 DerSOnS