TRE 1RRIGA TIOX AGE. 



107 



tern of experiment stations been estab- 

 lished as in the United States. The inves- 

 tigations of the agricultural resources of 

 Alaska were continued during the year. 

 Prof. C. C. Georgeson. a native of Den- 

 mark, who has had a long experience as 

 professor of agriculture and as an experi- 

 ment station officer in Japan and Kansas, 

 was made special agent in charge of these 

 investigations. His headquarters are at 

 Sitka. and experimental plantings of seed 

 of over 100 varieties of vegetables, grasses, 

 and forage plants have been made in the 

 vicinity. Investigations upon the "Nutri- 

 tious value of various articles and commo- 

 dities used for human food" have been 

 pursued and the result of the studies have 

 been re-published not only in this country 

 but abroad. The most radical and impor- 

 tant step taken by the department has 

 been the collection of data on the subject 

 of irrigation, which will be published in 

 bulletin form during the present fiscal 

 year. 



The report of the United States Geolog- 

 ical Survey is now in preparation and will 

 be more comprehensive, as far as the sub- 

 ject of irrigation is concerned, than pre- 

 vious ones. The topics presented will be: 

 Quantity of steam flow, this to- include 

 measurements of various streams with a 

 view to utilization either for munfcipal or 

 irrigation purposes, the q lality of water: 

 lakes and ponds, their orighu size, loca- 

 tion, etc.: irrigation canals and ditches, 

 under which will be noted the recent 

 progress in the development of irrigation, 

 especially of large structures, and while 

 a complete list of irrigation enterprises 

 cannot be given, mention will be made of 

 the more important ones, whose construc- 

 tion bears upon the utilization of the va- 

 cant public lands: pollution of streams: 

 water power: storing water, which will 

 include a description of reservoirs sur- 

 veyed and projects recently constructed or 

 under consideration, the methods of con- 

 structing dams, and other information 

 bearing upon this very important subject 

 of the storage ol floods and waste water 

 for the development of the water re- 

 sources: pumping water is another thing 

 considered, and is taken up more espec- 

 ially with reference to the utilization of 

 the water supply for irrigation purposes 

 as well as for draining swamp lands. 



Among the subjects that were 

 The Fifty- .. -. 



fifth Con- under discussion before the 

 gress. recesss of Congress was the 



Nicaragua canal bill, which has so long; 

 been a question before the public and 

 which has been the source of much con- 

 troversy. What government is to be 

 adopted in the Philippines, whether they 

 are to have home government or a colonial 

 one. was argued pro and con. A bill to 

 increase the standing army was intro- 

 duced, as was also the Pension Appropria- 

 tion bill. The proposed amendment to 

 this latter bill met with determined oppo- 

 sition. This amendment provided that 

 ex-Confederate soldiers or ther widows 

 and children should be pensioned. The 

 breach between north and south is now so 

 nearly healed that only a few prejudiced 

 northerners would object to old Confeder- 

 ate soldiers becoming inmates of the sol- 

 diers' home: but granting them a pension 

 for fighting against this government ah r 

 that is a different matter, and savors of 

 sentimentality. 



Ethan Hitchcock, of Missouri, has bien 

 appointed by President McKinley to suc- 

 ceed Senator Bliss as Secretary of the In- 

 terior. 



Will it There has sprung up consider- 



Iniure the 



Farmers? able agitation concerning an- 

 nexation, imperialism, militarism, etc., 

 among the agricultural publications of the 

 country, and our opinion regarding them 

 has been asked. We have not given the 

 matter the study and careful consideration 

 the subject should receive before an opin- 

 ion upon it is formed, and it is therefore 

 with hesitancy we speak, and if we are 

 mistaken in our views, we are always open 

 to conviction. Laying aside all prejudice 

 and party feeling and speaking with 

 frankness and sincerity, we cannot see 

 how the acquisition of new territory by 

 this country can result disastrously to the 

 American farmer, nor how it is. as many 

 claim, a departure from the previous 

 policy of the nation. The United States 

 extended her territory when she pur- 

 chased Louisiana from France, Florida 

 from Spain, a portion of Texas from Mexi- 

 co, and Alaska from Russia, and her pres- 

 ent acquirement of new territory differs 

 only in the manner of its acquirement 

 the latter being, in a measure, thrust up- 



