Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-06-21
THIRD OF LAND
IN U. S. MUST
BE DRY EARNED
Summer Tilage Has Been Prac-
ticed Since 1000 Years
Before Christ.

Dry land farming has been prac-
iiticed successfully before the dawn of
civilization, and by the Hopi Indians
in America, according to historical re-
search recently made and reprinted in
the Northwestern National bank Of
Minneapolis bulletin. The report fol-
lows:
Information concerning dry land
farming is contained in the following
excerpts from a letter written by an
authority on the subject, under date of
May II. These excerpts touch on facts
that may be unfamiliar to many OF
our readers.
Dry Land in Australia
ried on since the dawn of civilization
in Mesopotamia, in Egypt, and in
northwestern India. Summer tillage is
practised in all sections of the world
where the rainfall is below 20 inches
a year. The area adapted only to dry
land farming methods or irrigation is
enormous. For instance. in Australia
the landed area is greater than con-
~tinental United States, but less than
one-third of it receives more than 20
inches of rainfall annually. 1t is re
corded that One-third receives from 10
to 20 inches, and one-third less than
10 inches.
".25 per cent of the entire earth's
surface receives less than 10 inches
Of rain annually: 30 per cent receives
from 10 to 20 inches. and 20 per cent
receives 20 to 40 inches: or. in other
words, more than one-half of the entire
surface of the globe must either be ir-
rigated or dry farmed.
HopI Indians Summer Titled
History indicates that in Egypt,
more than a thousand years before the
possibilities had been exhausted, tillers
of the soil went to the higher plains
where they practiced intensive cult
walton. where they made. and are max
ing today, splendid crops. .
"'Prof. Clark of the University of
Arizona. makes the following state
.ment: The Hopi Indians of Arizona
make a living from Land where the
rainfall is very limited in the best Of
years. After warning with the Nava-
jos for many years.. they were finally
driven as a last resort onto some high
mesa with a precipitous wall. probably
more than five hundred years ago. The
Indians here referred to have built
UOIleS, anu Will tDF HlVst piiihiIi'N
Implements they intuitively adopted
dry land methods and have been able to
produce crops sufficient to maintain
a fair degree of prosperity,
In California and Utah
1.-The first record WI have in the
Cni'e1 States. other than the fore
when gold was first discovered. This
was followed closely by dry farming
in Utah; in fact, the people of Utah
who cannot secure irrigation. have
practised dry farming for GO years with
much success. The rainfall in that
state is under Is inches.
1.-The dry farming system has spread
rapidly. until today it is estimated that
we have approximately 50 million acres
either in upland pasture. or cultivated
according to the dry land system. You
will probably be surprised when | tell
you that of the 1903 million acres of
land in the United States. 600 million
acres do not have sufficient rainfall
to produce profitable crops of any
kind under any system of farming, and
possess no possibilities Of irrigation.
Profitable in Montana
"'No fast rules can be laid down TO
govern dry land farming for the reason
that there Is such a wide variation IN
the character of soil. winds, and tenn
perature. I have made a reasonably
thorough survey of all arid and semi
arid sections of the United States,
and I do not know of any section where
tillage can be carried on more
profitably than in the state OF Mon
tana. You know that dry farming ac-
to the latest word is carried
on most successfully in the Palouse |
section of the state of Washington. |
I am satisfied that the farmers in
the western part of North Dakota and
possibly in section of western South
will in time appreciate the
value Of summer tillage to such a de-
gree that will cause them to practise
intensive summer cultivation and pro
duce a crop alternate years"