14 



In dovelopint^ this feature of its ao-ricultural Avoalth. Montana is 

 imitating- the course pursued ])y Califoiiiia. 'i'he valley lands of the 

 San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys have been producinor grain for 

 forty years without being- irrig-ated. The soil in these valleys is of 

 great depth and at one time gave heavy yields, but the continuous crop- 

 ping of grain without rotation has reduced the yield until now many 

 farmers consider themselves fortunate when the returns at the close of 

 the season's operations show no loss. The l)ench lands of Montana 

 are likely to fail to produce profitable yields at an earlier period, for 

 the reason that the soil is less deep. Some kind of a simple rotation 

 with a leguminous crop should be introduced, if possible. The rains 

 in the spring are quite abundant as a rule, and if these should fail or 

 prove inadequate, sufficient water can usually 1)0 had from the neigh- 

 boring creeks to thoroughly wet the soil during the early spring or 

 late autunm months, when such water is not used by those who irrigate 

 in summer. 



With sufiicient moisture and a thoroughly prepared seed bed, it is 

 believed that alfalfa can be successfully raised over much of the arable 

 but nonirrigable lands. The yield Avould be, as a matter of course, 

 much less than on properly irrigated land; one medium crop, and 

 under favorable conditions two, would be the average yield; but the 

 yield is of secondary importance. B}^ a simple rotation of this kind 

 the productive power of the soil could be maintained and the dry 

 farms made to 3neld for an indefinite period. For at least six months 

 every year water flows past hundreds of farms unutilized. Winter 

 water in the Santa Clara Valley, California, is worth ^2 to $5 per acre- 

 foot, and the time will doubtless come when water will have a corre- 

 spondingly high value in Montana. In this regard the vast acreage of 

 fertile bench lands for which no water is to be had in sunnner aft'ords 

 a field for profitable investigations, not onh^ in winter irrigation, but 

 in the conservation of the natural rainfall by proper tillage and the 

 introduction of leguminous crops to rotate with the cereals. 



THE GALLATIN VALLEY. 



Gallatin County, comprising a total area of 1,063,000 acres, is an 

 irregularly shaped tract of land occupying the south-central part of 

 the State of Montana. The southern portion of the county is moun- 

 tainous and extends to the boundary of Idaho and the Yellowstone 

 National Park; the land to the north is less elevated and aflords fairly 

 good range, while the middle portion of the count3' contains the rich 

 alluvial plain known as Gallatin Valley. This valley is 28 miles long 

 and about 14 miles wide. Around the upper rim the fall varies from 

 50 to 80 feet per mile, while from the Missouri River to Bozeman the 

 average grade on the Northern Pacific Railroad is somewhat more 

 than 30 feet per mile. The elevation of the railroad track at Boze- 



