RURAL ENGINEERING. " 287 



tk-t', thus aiipnrontly conform ins tlio author's idoa that tho proltlenis connoctod 

 with hind drainaj^o can bo phiced upon a fairly rational basis. 



Drainage of tidal and swamp lands in South Carolina (lUin'ni. \<irs. .',r, 

 (1906), So. N. i>. tH.'i). — This is a report of the drainaj^e convention held in 

 South Carolina, at which a paper was presented by Dr. E. .Mead and C. G. 

 Elliott, sunnnarizinj,' the results secured by this Ottice in its studies in South 

 Carolina. 



" It appears from facts given in the paper that larj^e areas of rice lands, some 

 of which have been in cultivation for a century or more, have been and others 

 nuist be abandoned, or at least otlier crops substituted for rice; this is largely 

 due to changes in river conditions, including lack of fresh water reiiuired for 

 Hooding the rice fields." 



Three conditions are necessary to make (he land suitable for cultivation: 



(1) vStrengthen the existing levees, rebuild those destroyed, and make Ibeni 

 high enough to withstand tioods. 



(2) Ditch the inclosed lands, so tliat soil water can be removed to a depth 

 of 3 ft. 



(3) Install ]iumping jdants to remove all such drainage water as can not be 

 removed by gravity through sluices or trunks. 



The entire drainage i)roblem is summarized as follows : " The coastal secticm 

 of the State iiuist be drained before it will be sufficiently healthful to attract 

 thrifty and intelligent farmers. This can be done in such a W'ay as to make 

 the country sanitary, with the exception of the river lands, for .$5 per acre, and 

 for high-class cultivation for .$10 to ,S;15 per acre. The tidal river rice land* 

 which are injured by salt water should be converted into drained fields and 

 lilanted in upland ci'ops. This may«be done at a cost of $15 per acre." 



The relation of irrigation to dry farming, E. Mead (U. 8. Dept. Agr. Year- 

 hook JUli.j. }ij). .'i23-.'i38). — In this article the author discusses the question of so 

 utilizing lands in the great semiarid belt of this country as to make them sup- 

 port the largest number of people while giving them the gi'eatest measure of 

 human c(mifort. The failure and lessons resulting from the first attemi)ts to 

 farm these lands are r(>\iewed and the present reawakened interest described. 



In connection with dry farming the writer considers a small irrigation plant 

 a jn-erequisite of success, and three methods are given by which it is deemed 

 l)Ossible to control enough water to irrigate from 1 to 10 acres of every dry 

 farm: (1) Pumping from soil w-ater or underground streams; (2) storage in 

 small surface reservoirs of storm waters or the irregular flow of streams; and 

 (3) irrigation with flood water, usually in the winter or spring. Each of these 

 methods is discussed and existing successful examples given. 



The following principal conclusions are drawn: (1) That the foundation of 

 the dry farm should be mixed husbandry, in which stock raising is the leading 

 feature. (2) The dry farm slumld have a larger acreage than either the irri- 

 gated or humid farm, pai'ticularly if irrigation is to be a feature of the dry farm. 

 (:>) There are few localities where enough water can not be had for the irriga- 

 tion of 1 to 10 acres on each section. (4) Supjilemental irrigation is the insur- 

 ance of the dry farm whether the water is confined to intensive cultivation of a 

 small tract or used in emergencies on larger areas. 



The State engineer and his relation to irrigation, R. P. Teele (U. S. Dejtt. 

 Agr., Office Expt. Htan. Bui. 168, pp. 09, fig. 1). — This bulletin discusses the whole 

 subject of pul)lic control of the use of water in irrigation, since in most of the 

 arid States whatever there is of j)ul)lic control centei's in the office of the State 

 engineer. The matter is taken up by States in the order in which the ofiice of 

 State eugiueer was created. 



