154 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



Irrigation is known to be the dependence of the 

 Arid West of America for agriculture. The extent 

 to which irrigation can be practiced is enormous. 

 The total area irrigated in India is 30,000,000 acres ; 

 in Italy, 3,700,000 acres; in Egypt, about 6,000,000 

 acres. In Spain there are 500,000 acres, in France 

 400,000 acres, and in the United States some 8,000,000 

 of acres. 



I speak of lands irrigated and cultivated to crops, 

 and not merely of lands " under ditch," as it is called 

 when lands are provided with the means of irrigation 

 whether cultivated or not. This means that some 

 more than 48,000,000 acres are cultivated to crops 

 which but for irrigation would be barren and 

 unproductive in the countries I have named. In ad- 

 dition to this, there are some millions more of acres 

 cultivated by aid of irrigation in China, Japan, Aus- 

 tralia, Algeria, South America and elsewhere. 



THE AREA OF RECLAMATION. 



The field for its greatest extension is in the arid 

 region of the United States ; this is what makes it 

 most interesting to us. Major Powell puts it that 

 some 40,000,000 of acres can be irrigated in our arid 

 region ; that such land will be found to be wonder- 

 fully productive, and that their products will support 

 a population as great as that found in the United 

 States at the present time. The area of our arid 

 region is stated to be 883,312,000 acres, but that only 

 a small percentage of this can be irrigated, and only 

 about one per cent, of this area is as yet cultivated. 

 Some students of this question set the area of possible 

 reclamation as high as 100,000,000 and 200,000,000 

 acres. We need not discuss this part of the question, 

 as the argument lies in my mind it is not important to 

 set the limit to reclamation, though highly interesting 

 as a scientific inquiry. The feature I present is that 

 the lowest estimate makes it a matter of national im- 

 portance and makes the region of most value reck- 

 oned in money values. 



Say the average value of land is $83 per acre, 

 40,000,000 acres makes $3,320,000,000. Later on I will 

 show why I assume the price of $83 per acre. Put 

 the value of farm land at $30 per acre, and you have 

 $1,200,000,000 in value. In the compendium of the 

 census of 1890, that is to say in the census bulletin, it 

 is stated that the estimated value of land with water 

 rights united thereto, is $83 (and plus) per acre. That 

 is, the average value of the irrigated land in the arid 

 region is $83 per acre, and its annual average yield is 

 over $14 per acre, nearly $15, or a return of between 

 17 and 18 per cent, per annum on $83 per acre. 



IT IS ABSOLUTE SECURITY. 



Under irrigation, agriculture is made a secure and 

 sate investment for profit. Contrast, if you please, 

 the security of the farmer in the arid region, working 

 his land under a good irrigation plant, with the inse- 



curity of the farmer in the rainfall region. In the 

 latter case, during a summer drouth, the farmer goes 

 out to see his crops, turns his eyes for the signs of 

 rain, sees no prospect of rain, then he returns to his 

 house and says to his wife: " We are going to lose our 

 crop ; no rain ; the mortgage is ove :due ; we are going 

 to lose our farm," and the only moisture around is 

 that in their weeping eyes; but in the irrigated dis- 

 trict, the farmer looks over his crops in field and 

 orchard, and going back to the house says: " Wife, to- 

 night we will open the gates and let in some water , 

 we are going to have an abundant crop, as usual, and 

 this year will pay off the last dollar of our debt," and 

 in the moisture of the irrigated farm, with dry eyes 

 and hopeful hearts, they rejoice that they control the 

 means that make their crops. 



THE FINANCIAL ASPECT. 



The opportunities for investment and for making 

 grand fortunes are great. C. P. Huntington, of the 

 Southern Pacific Company, recently remarked that 

 the day for making fortunes by building railroads is 

 now passed, but that irrigation is the new industry 

 for making fortunes, and that if he were young he 

 would devote himself to the development of irriga- 

 tion as the hopeful field for making great gains. A 

 writer in a book published in 1886 says: "The Brit- 

 ish Government has spent about $70,000,000 in irri- 

 gation works in India, and works were in progress of 

 construction which would require half as'much more 

 money. The amount now invested in British Amer- 

 ica is said to be $150,000,000. The total amount of 

 income on the $70,000,000 was upwards of $5,000,000, 

 or 1% per cent, on the cost. The main motive for 

 this expenditure was to prevent famines. These 

 schemes were successfully managed by Government, 

 not by individuals. In our own country all such 

 enterprises are individual enterprises." 



On the financial side of the subject the following is 



interesting : 



Capital Annual 



Invested. Revenue. 



Ganges Canal $14,400,890 4^% 



Punjaub 15,671,000 5 % 



Northwestern Provinces 17,827,225 



Western Inundation Canal 6,532,000 



Eastern Inundation Canal 2,850,000 



Bombay and Sinde 11,113,940 12 % 



Kistnah Delta Works 2,337,135 13K% 



Sinde Inundation Canal 5,930,000 18^% 



Madras 9,467,200 22%% 



Canvery Delta Works 1,468,000 36^% 



Godavery Delta Works 3,418,525 39%% 



There are many instances of profitable invest- 

 ments in irrigation undertakings in our own country. 

 I have seen a list of irrigation companies in which 

 the increment of value is indicated by the difference 

 between the price at which the stock was originally 

 sold and the market price of the same after the 

 enterprise was made to become productive of profit, 



