PULSE OF THE IRRIGATION INDUSTRY 



MONTANA SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS. 



A meeting of the society was held in 

 Helena, on April 12, 1898, Second "Vice 

 President F/ J. Smith presiding. Mr- 

 William Trautwine Shaw, of Gilt Edge. 

 Mont., was elected a member of the so- 

 ciety. The application for membership 

 by Mr. F. W. Sherman, manager of the 

 Gold Mountain Mining company, at Ber- 

 nice, Mont., was favorably considered and 

 the secretary instructed to send out the 

 usual letter ballots. A committee of 

 three, F. L. Sizer, Paul S. A, Bickel and 

 A. E. Gumming, all of Helena, was ap- 

 pointed tu consider the question of taking 

 action and co-operating with other states 

 interested in securing a grant of arid lands 

 to be used for the purpose of irrigation 

 developments. 



The next regnlar meeting of the Society 

 will be held in its rooms in the Merchants' 

 Naiional bank building, Helena, Mont., 

 on May 14, 1898, at 8 p.m. 



A. S. HOVEY, Secretary. 



THE BENEFITS OF IRRIGATION. 



If anything were needed to emphasize 

 the benefits of irrigation the recent drouth 

 in California would serve as an illustration. 

 A half inch more of rain would have been 

 the guarantee of a good sugar beet crop, 

 but rain cannot be depended upon and the 

 crop will therefore be seriously affected. 



The Pecos Valley, N. M., another sugar 

 beet -growing section, gives the opposite 

 view, or the result of depending upon irri- 

 gation instead of an uncertain rainfall. It 

 has a very complete irrigation system. 



The Pecos Valley Argus in commenting 

 upon the California drouth says: 



"With adequate irrigation facilities, 

 California would be placed above the plane 

 of chance as regards a beet crop, and just 



in this particular the Pecos Valley claims 

 superiority. 



Its climatic and soil conditions are equal 

 to those of any beet growing district, while 

 in addition it has the inestimable advan- 

 tage of a most complete irrigation system. 

 No seasons of dearth here due to drouth. 

 No anxious moments for the farmer as to 

 whether or not the longed-for rain is to 

 come. The water flows through his field; 

 he directs it where he wills and the crop 

 springs up. 



Here he prepares the ground, plants 

 seed and prepares for a beet crop without 

 thought as to whether the season will be 

 wet or dry. In other districts, without 

 the protection of irrigation, the grower 

 must time his work to the condition of the 

 seasons, be they favorable or unfavorable, 

 and if, perchance, it be one of extreme 

 dryness, see the months of summer slip by 

 without it being .possible by exertion on 

 his part to work out accomplishment." 



OUR ARID PUBLIC LANDS. 



The Helena Independent, of April 14, 

 contains the -following: "The Montana 

 Society of Engineers has been asked to in- 

 terest itself in an effort about to be made 

 with a view to securing large grants of arid 

 lands to the Rocky Mountain States from 

 the general government. The movement 

 originated in Wyoming, where the de- 

 sirability of state control of arid grazing 

 lands is even more apparent than in Mon- 

 tana.'' 



At a recent meeting of the society in 

 Helena, the question was laid before the 

 engineers by James M. Page; of Twin 

 Bridges, president of the society, whose 

 attention had been called to the plan by 

 Elwood Mead, State Engineer of Wyo- 

 ming. In a letter relative to this En- 



