RURAL ENGINEERING. 1019 



RURAL ENGINEERING. 



Irrigation on the farm, A. S. Kenyon Jour. !>>/>i. Agr. Victoria, S {1905), No. 

 10, pp. 681-692, pis. 2, figs. 3). — A description of local methods of irrigation al Don- 

 caster, a fruit-growing districl 10 miles from Melbourne. 



The water for irrigation in this districl is usually stored in small reservoirs built 

 across gullies or on hillsides by the farmers. Hie author describes methods and 

 details of construction. II<' advises "fallowing, with subsoil stirring, and frequent 

 harrowing of the Burface to conserve and carry forward much water from one Beason 

 to the next;" but shows that "each farmer can carry oul for himself works providing 

 Borne small amounl of irrigation, utilizing for that purpose water which otherwise 

 would have been mainly dissipated in the air without going into the ground for use 

 by the plants." 



The duty of water varies from 2 in. for some kinds of trees to 36 in. for perennial 

 fodder crops such as alfalfa. Good drainage is found to be essential on irrigated 

 laud.-. The annual rainfall is aboul 26 in. 



The irrigation of La Campine, T. Lebens {Separate from Ann. Trav. Pub. Belg., 

 1897, No. 5, pp. 55, figs. 16). — This report, written bj theengineer in charge, describes 

 the territory concerned, the former efforts to reclaim it and pr< vide canals for trans- 

 portation, the present system, and methods of applying water. 



The entire area involved is about 5,CM acres. The u titer points out the difficulty 

 of using the same canal for both transportation and irrigation, and concludes: 

 " Where continual navigation must be provided for it will always be wise to avoid a 

 canal Berving the double purpose of navigation and irrigation. It is hard to reconcile 

 the requirements of industry and of farming." The report includes a technical dis- 

 cussion of water measurements, and four folding plates are given showing module-. 

 distributing systems, and a map of the canals. 



Notes on irrigation in South Africa, ('. I >. II. Bbaine i Transvaal Agr. Jour., 

 .', 1 1905 |, No. 18, pp. 8-21 1. — A paper read before a scientific society in Johannesburg 

 for the purpose of encouraging the practice i >f irrigation in South Africa. The author 

 discusses the duty of Mater and the problem of alkali or "brak" soil-, drawing 

 largely on American and other -on ices in the absence of local data. 



By comparison with similar conditions a duty of 285 acres per cubic foot per second 

 i- estimated. The interesting local contribution is a table of land values for dry and 

 irrigated lands in the Cape Colony. Dry land runs from 4-. to 612, averaging 

 roughly £3 10s.; while irrigated land is quoted a< highas £250, a rough average of the 

 quotations being £38 per acre. The author concludes that £20 per acre may be safely 

 invested in irrigation works, but urges that only the most promising schemes should 

 as yet be attempted, leaving the larger projects to develop later after more experience 

 has been gained. 



The work of the hydrographic branch of the Geological Survey i U. S. 

 Geol. Survey Ann. Rpt., ?6 I 1904-5), pp. 160-224, pi I, fig. l).—k brief statement of 

 the fields covered and of the work undertaken in all parts of the United Stat.-.-. 



The work* of the Reclamation Service of the Geological Survey I U. S. Geol. 

 Survey Ann. Rpt, ?6 I 1904-5) i pp. 249-299). — A summary of the projects undertaken 

 under the Reclamation Act, giving the location, approximate area of land, and 

 approximate cosl of each. 



Contributions to the study of drainage, E. R.I8LEH and G. Wi:i:v [Ann. Inst. 

 Nat. Agron., :. ser., ; {1905), No. J. pp. .'■■'. dgms. 4).— The measurements reported 

 in this article were made in the j ear- 1867-1876 on a plat of -round carefully selected 

 for "rigorously normal conditions." They show the relations between rainfall. 

 drainage, evaporation, and temperature of the air. A table covering the years from 

 1873 to 1876 is given showing the daily rainfall and runoff of the drains. 



