The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1914-05-01
FUNDAMENTALS OF DRAINAGE.
Remarks by Nathan c. Grover Before the
Drainage Congress at Savannah.

The nation must seek its additional
domestic supply of foodstuffs by reclaim
ing its waste areas and by cultivating
more extensively all its agricultural
land.
The drainage of swamps will be as eff
fective as irrigation of deserts in in
creasng the area of arabic land.
The failure of some of the private or
state irrigation projects for which pub
llc lands have been segregated is full OF
pathos. and the final record of some of
the failures has been filled with tragedy
for the thousands who have suffered
financial ruin Most of the failures could
have been foreseen and averted by an
honest and thorough consideration of
fundamental factors, but the desire for
gain was too great and caution was
thrown to the winds.
Plea to Put Drainage Reclamation on
Sound Basis.
In starting the new form of national
activity which is now proposed-the
drainage of swamp lands--a serious at
tempt should be made to put the work
on sound basis and to avoid as far as
possible the mistakes made in irrigation.
Irrigation and drainage have much in
common and are liable to practically the
same dangers--in fact. in many local
tiles not only in the West but in the
East, drainage must be accompanied by
irrigation. General methods for fnanc-
ing and managing drainage projects hav-
ing been devised, the data necessary for
designing the drainage system may gen
orally be collected in such a field sur
vey as can be made within period of
a few months, except as regards the
quantity of water for which the canals
must be designed.
Measurements of Stream Flow
Necessary.
This last determination, however, in
wolves the collection of records extend
ing over long periods. No such deter
limitations have been made, SO far as /
am informed, for large swamp areas in
the southeastern states. Designs for
drainage construction have had no other
basis than general records of precipita-
ton and evaporation, and the result has
been that drainage systems have been
, designed and partly constructed with in
sufficient capacity to accomplish the de-
sired results. Disappointment may fol-
low for thousands of small purchasers
of land who have been assured that the
land would be speedily drained.
Sounds Note of Warning.
The failure of one project will have
its baneful effect on all, and the failure
of considerable number will make the
financing and colonization of Others i'm
possible. The result will be a situation
like that which is to-day preventing the
financing and colonization of irrigation
projects, in which the intrinsic sound
ness and value of individual projects win
be completely lost sight of in the gem
eral distrust caused by the failure to
recognize the fundamental factors con-
trolling all such developments.
Let us profit, then, by the experience
of others and see that drainage work is
started in a safe and sane way. Let
us first obtain reliable data in regard to
the quantity of water that must be re-
moved from the land.
Several years should be devoted to the
determination of this fundamental fac
tor before there will be assurance that
the records cover the ordinary range of
conditions caused by fluctuations in
precipitation.
The measurement of run-off need not
and should not wait until arrangements