4*.M) KKI'OKT <»l'' Oia-ICK OK KXrKKIMPiNT STATIONS. 



(»xainim'(l duiino- (he season. A largo iiiulcrflow of water passes from 

 the hi;^^her lands horderinjf the vallc}' on the north and accumulates on 

 the lower lands during" the season. As a result many acres now show 

 serious injurv. Drains were laid out for interccptini>" the soil water 

 from the lands of some farmers wdio sec the necessity of drainaj^e. 

 Sujjfgestions upon the drainaj^e re({uired for several farms have been 

 otl'ered, and investi<,rati()ns ha\ e heen made in the lowei- Ahtanum 

 Valley with the view to determiniiij*' what method should be adopted to 

 reclaim it as a Avhole from the injur}' which it has already received 

 from ovcrirrit^'ation and from seepa^^e fi-om hi<;iier lands. 



Kxaminations have been made of wet lands in the Grej^ Bull Valley, 

 near Burlington, Wyo., where the rapid seepa*^e of w^ater through 

 the open oravel beneath the soil has ruined portions of the richest 

 \alley land. A simple drainage plan was proposed, which met with 

 favor, and will probably be followed b}' a few of the most progressive 

 farmers. 



For the reason that the last two seasons have been cxcessiveh' wet 

 in the Central West drainage has received marked attention during 

 the past year. The absolute necessity of this improvement has been 

 forced upon the attention of farmers, especially in the States of Iowa 

 and Missouri. During the five or six years previous to the last two 

 there was only an average rainfall, while one of them (1001) was 

 unusually dry. These years were favorable for the opening up and 

 cultivating of lowlands which, wdth little or no artificial drainage, 

 produced large crops. The success which attended the cropping of 

 these rich lands under conditions of normal rainfall led to the cultiva- 

 tion of a large acreage of lands which had hitherto been neglected. 

 A considerable part of the INIissouri Vallev lands between Sioux City 

 and Council Bluti's, Iowa, are of this kind. In Monona and Harrison 

 counties not less than 75,000 acres have been rendered unproductive 

 during the past year, much of it being land equipped with good 

 improvements. The Little Sioux River, with its tril)utaries, over- 

 flows its banks when at flood height. From the fact that the banks of 

 both the Little Sioux and Missouri rivers are higher than the land 

 between them, the overflow of this stream and the water of rainfall 

 must flow parallel to both until it may be discharged into the Missouri 

 River at some lower point. The difficulties connected with the drain- 

 age of this valle}' are twofold — (1) protection of the lowlands from 

 the overfloAv of the streams, and (2) provision for disposal of the 

 surplus rainfall. 



The plan proposed for this improvement consists in straightening 

 the little Sioux River by making cuts across circuitous bends, thereby 

 adding one-half to its carrj'ing capacity. For the more complete 

 drainage of the land itself it is proposed to build a large relief ditch, 

 22 miles long, which will discharge into the Missouri River. These 

 improvements are estimated to cost $238,000, for which it is proposed 



