The Raymer enterprise., 1919-06-26

struggle necessary to develop such
country. under such stern conditions
develops Of necessity strong menf
evolved Richard. "0h. yes. ! believe
that, too"
"Oh, more than that. II is not &C
much the struggle as the necessity fol
cooperation. The mutual dependence
is one Of the blessings Of aridity."
zone Of the blessings Of aridity r
echoed his listener. "You are a philos
opher" He had not yet touched tht
others thought at the spring.
"You might as well call me social
ist because I praise irrigation In tina,
1t stands for the small farm unit.
retorted the valley man. THAT Is ons
Of Its fats; the small unit. 1t Is ths
small farm that pays. That fact bring.
many advantages. What Is the charm
Of Riverside? 1t comes to me alway.
like the unreal dream of the socialIs,
come true. 1t is city Of farms, ol
small farms. where a man may make
his living Off his ten acres Of oranges
or lemons; and with all the comforts
and conveniences Of a city within
reach. his neighbors not ten miles off
A farmer In Riverside or In any irri
gated community does not have tt
postpone living for himself or his fam
lily until he can sell the farmI He
can 60 to church. can walk there; the
trolley car which passes his dooI
takes him to public library or the
opera house. His children ride to
school. His wife does not need to BE-
drudge. The bread wagon and the
steam laundry wagon stop at heI
door,"
Rickard observed that perhaps he
did not know anything about Irrigation
after all He had not thought of II
before In Its sociological relation bul
merely as It touched his profession.
"Not going into soil values. for that
Is a long story" began the older man
irrigation Is the answer which sci
enre gives to the agriculturist who 1:
impatient OF haphazard methods. Irri
cation Is not compromise, as so many
believe who know nothing about 1t. II
Is distinct advantage over the old
fashioned methods.
II am one OF those who always
thought II a compromise" admitted
the engineer.
'Better call rain a compromise" re
torted the irrigatlonlst. "The mar
who lrrigates gives water to the tree
which needs It; rain nourishes one
tree and browns out another. Irrlga
tion is an insurance policy against
drought, q guarantee against floods
The farmer who has once operated an
irrigated farm would be as impatient
were he again subjected to the caprice
Of rain as housewife would be were
she compelled to wait for rain to fiji
her washtub. There Is no irregularity
or caprice about irrigation"
"Wonder how the old fellow picked
1t all upw unused Rickard with dis
respect. Aloud he said. "You wers
speaking Of the value Of the soil7'
Look at the earth those plows are
turning over. See how rich and friabls
It is. how 1t crumblesl You can dIe
for hundreds Of feet and still find tina,
sort Of soil, eight hundred feet down
II is dlsintegrated rock and leaf mold
brought In here In the making of 0
delta. Heavy rainfalls are rare here
though we have lad them. In spite Of
popular opinion. We're we to have
frequent rains the chemical properties
which rain farmers must Duy to enrich
their worn-out soils would be leached
out, drained from the soil. / can,
make this comprehensive, but I've Q
monograph on desert soil. II you are
interested I'll send 1t to you"
Il should like it-immensely." as
sented the engineer. still amused.
1T explains the choice of the Aztecs
Of the Incas. Of Carthaginians. the
Moors," observed the stranger. ''They
chose the desert, not In spite Of the
soil but because of 1t. doubt II they
were awake to the social advantages
Of the system. but II was their CO
operative brotherhood that helped
them to their glory. We are centuries
behind them. I'm getting out here
Imperial. II you come up to Imperial
look me up. Brandon's my name. I've
no card these days!'
"There are several things want tc
hear from you." answered Rickard
following brown necktie and pointed
beard to the platform. 'I'll be sure
to look you up. Mines Richard"
The breeze which was now entering
the car windows had blown over the
clover-leafed fields. Its message was
sweet and fresh. Rickard could see
the canals leading OF like silver
threads to the homes and farms Of the
future; "the socialism dream come