Arizona sentinel and Yuma weekly examiner., 1913-01-30
IRRIGATION IN 1913


 Director Durand of the Bureau of tn Census, Department of Commerce an Labor. It was prepared under tn supervision of R. T. Teele, specia agent in charge of irrigation
 The special inquiry on irrigation b,
 the Bureau of the Census was limited
 to that part of the Continental United
 States where irrigation is commonl!
 practiced, namely, the arid region, ant
 the rice district
 For the purposes of this report the
 'arld region" has been held to include
 all sections of Continental United
 States where irrigation is generally
 practiced in the growing of farm crops
 As defined in this way the "arid
 region" includes the Western parts ot
 the tier of states formed by the Da kotas, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, and of the states between these and the Pacific ocean. In parts of this great territory there is abun- dant rainfall; but in each of the states comprised in it there are considerable sections, and in some very extensive areas, where farming is largely de pendant upon irrigation. The special inquiry was also extended to the rice growing districts of Arkansas, Louisi ana and Texas, but the rice district has been treated separately in the re- ports.
 The number of farms reported irri- gated is the number of farms on which irrigation is practiced, regardless of the extent of such irrigation. The number of farms on which irrigation was practiced, for purposes other than rice growing, in 1909 in the states of the arid region, was 15S,7 ot11 per cent of the total number of farms in the same states. While the total num- Der of farms in this region, including the entire area of states in which irri- gation is practiced only in the western part, increased 31.5 per cent. between 1900 and 1910, the number of farms on which irrigation was Maceiced in- creased AIT per cent. between 1899 and 1909, the irrigated farms forming a larger percentage of all farms in 1909 than in 1899.
 The acreage reported as irrigated in | 1909 was 13,73S,4S5, which constitutes | 1.2 per cent of the total land area of the same states, 3.5 per cent. of the total land in farms, and 7s per cent of the improved farm land in farms There was an increase of S2.7 per cent. n such acreage between 1899 and 1909, rate of increase much higher han that in the number of farms ir- 'igated, the average irrigated acre lge per farm being greater for 1909 han for 1899.
 The acreage to which enterprises were ready to supply water in 1910 vas 19,334,697, or 5,596,212 acres in ,xcess of the acreage irrigated in 1909, while the acreage included in all prof cts, whether completed or in process f development, in 1910 was 31,111, JAP, r 17,372,657 acres greater than the creage reported as irrigated in 1909. The total length of ditches used for irrigation in 1910 was 125,591 miles. , here were 6,S12 reservoirs having a ombined capacity of 12,5S1 ,129 acre , eet, or nearly 1 acre-foot of reservoir ! apacity for each acre irrigated from ny source in 1909. The number of c jumping plants reported was 1896, 1; nd the acreage supplied by them was c 77625. f The total cost of irrigation enter f rises to July 1, 1910, was $307, ,S66,- 59, or $15.92 per acre of land which f lese enterprises were capable of sup i, lying with water in 1910. The in- O eases in the items relating to cost n e the most conspicuous. The total W ,st of irrigation enterprises increas a l between 1900 and 1910 by 359.S per s mt, and the average cost per acre tC ,vered increased also, although much b ss in degree. st California contained the largest c, mber of farms on which irrigation p1 as practiced, having about one-fourth jr AS per cent) of the total number, fc Id Colorado the next largest number, m ,arly one-sixth Q6.3 per cent) of the e n U! pIIql p9HueI qel0 eIIqM 'Ielol St spect, with about one-eighth 02.4 al the total. el The percentage of increase between tn S9 and 1899 in the number of farms oI 'igated was more than double that ring the succeeding decade, but the ~ solute increases during the two dec l. es was approximately equal. Ne U aska showed the largest percentage
 increase during the former period d Texas during the latter period; 1 sL