PROCEEDINGS OF THE ANNUAL MEETING. 97 



But perhaps some may be asking, of what use has been all this talk 

 about western methods of irrigation, and saying we have no places where 

 it would be practicable to construct gravity ditches, and our soil, espe- 

 cially the sandy or gravely soil on which many of our orchards stand, is 

 not suitable for constructing reservoirs? But let us see if this is so. 

 Have not some of you soil containing clay enough to construct a reservoir, 

 of such a nature that a few loads of clay hauled in would make it water- 

 proof? Or do we know that a reservoir could not be profitably built of 

 bricks and other materials, or that a wooden tank could not be used to 

 advantage ; and are we positive there are no places in this state where 

 a gravity ditch could be made? On the contrary, we found a place where 

 it could be done, on a small scale, on our own farm. With the aid of a 

 common carpenter's level we discovered that a small spring-fed brook 

 could, by conducting it through sewer-pipe, less than eighty rods, around 

 the base of a hill or table-land, be flowed among several acres of lower land 

 that is high enough, however, to suffer severely from drought. May there 

 not be in some portions of the state inland lakes, not very far from some 

 stream, and yet so high above the same, and where the topography of the 

 country is such that a canal could be taken in a direction gradually converg- 

 ing toward said stream, and between which stream and canal there might 

 be several entire farms, and a portion of several others, that could be irri- 

 gated? But this would require a survey to determine, and if there was 

 nothing in the way, from the engineer's standpoint, there would still be 

 the right of way to obtain and the need of some plan of combined effort, 

 so that, for any or all these reasons, such a thing may be impracticable for 

 the present. But who shall say that no such thing will ever be under- 

 taken, perhaps in different portions of the state, when our people come to 

 realize more fully the advantages and profit, if not in certain seasons the 

 almost actual necessity, of irrigation? 



It may be needless to say that we believe in irrigation, even for Michi- 

 gan, and we have taken the first steps, at least, toward showing our faith 

 by our works, although what we did last season was so late in getting into 

 operation that but little practical result was obtained, it being the very 

 last days of July before we were able to start our pump at all. 



Having not less than sixty acres which in time we hope to get under 

 irrigation, we have selected for the work a ten -horsepower engine and a 

 four-inch centrifugal pump, the distance we have to raise water being 

 about thirty-five to forty feet. Our supply was taken from the small 

 stream already mentioned, but we found the quantity of water altogether 

 insufficient, and could only pump a few hours at a time, and that by plac- 

 ing a dam across the stream, so as to accumulate enough to supply the 

 pump. 



The first piece we attempted to irrigate was set to young trees with 

 strawberries and some potatoes between the rows of trees, all being well 

 cutivated. With about two hours' pumping we had, probably, two acres 

 with water between all the rows, which were five feet apart; and, as we saw 

 the water glistening in the sunlight, and running over the sandy soil, 

 which was so dry and hot that it had been a question whether water would 

 flow over it at all, without being absorbed, we felt that a victory had been 

 achieved, and the future of irrigation promised some practical good to 

 the fruitgrowers of Michigan. 

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