1188 New Yokk State Agricultural Society 



jiiiblic which we have tried to ])cnefit. There are in the State of 

 New York something like 275,000 acres of rcclaimable land which 

 might he turned int(j value to the extent of something like 

 $15,000,000; but the workings of our laws are so ponderous that 

 it does not seem possible to make any substantial progress in that 

 direction. 



Now, we have in the treasury of the Conservation Commission 

 almost $3,000 that we have not been able to spend hunting up 

 new trouble in these drainage matters and it gives me great 

 pleasure to put that $3,000 at the disposal of this society or any 

 particular faction therefrom. We made investigations in the 

 Wallkill Vallev where much arable land could be reclaimed, and 

 in the western part of the state, and everywhere with the most 

 complete lack of any evidence of cooperation. The Canascraga 

 Creek, which is being improved to the extent of $200,000 by our 

 Commission, has been a mechanical success from the standpoint 

 of draining the land. When we consider that an enterprise of 

 this scale is new in the East and in the hands of men who have 

 not the benefit of previous experience and training in that par- 

 ticular direction, the degree of success is most praiseworthy. For 

 instance, last July a A^ery vicious cloudburst occurred in the upper 

 stretches of the valley and when the rain began to fall in torrents 

 the farmers above telephoned to the folks down below to get the 

 cattle off the lower ground or they would lose everything they 

 had. But when the floods came down to the excavated portion 

 of the creek, the channel was able to take care of them completely 

 and the land which under previous conditions would have been 

 overflowed, was as dry as a bone. 1 have been up in the valky 

 many times myself and our assistant engineer, who has been with 

 the project since its inception, tells me that land that two years 

 ago could not be crossed is now l)eing. cultivated. 



We can do that elsewhere just as well. To be sure the law 

 ought to be changed; but at the same time somewhere in the state 

 there should bo some regieii where eveiwdue wants something 

 ddiu', where they can submerge and siid\ their differences so that 

 l)v all pulling together wo can go ahead on better and more pro- 

 ductive work in the future. I hope some members of the society 

 will take this under advisement and see if we cannot find some 



