206 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



and Wisconsin. The condition of the cot- 

 ton crop June 1 is reported, by the stat- 

 istician of the department of agriculture, 

 to be 95.1. Only twice within a period of 

 twenty-one years has the average condition 

 on June 1 been as high as at present. 

 This was in 1887 and 1806, when the ave- 

 rage condition of the crop was 96.9 and 

 97.2 respectively. About 72,000 acres 

 less than last year are planted to cotton, 

 making the acreage for the year 1902-03 

 about 27.. 450,000. 



Dr. True's Dr. A. C. True, director of 

 Visit - the Office of Experiment Sta- 



tions, United States Department of Agri- 

 culture, visited Fresno, Cal., May 15, for 

 the purpose of conferring with those 

 prominently interested in irrigation and to 

 view in a general way the district in which 

 his office will engage this year in the 

 preparation of a great drainage system. 

 Elwood Mead, so well known in irrigation 

 circles, is to have charge of the work in 

 Fresno county. Soil conditions in that 

 neighborhood will be studied with a view 

 to solving the problem of preventing the 

 accumulation of alkali in the soil through 

 irrigation. 



''It is clearly understood," said Dr. True, 

 "that the work of the Office of Experi- 

 ment Stations is intended to supplement, 

 and not in any way to interfere, with the 

 work already undertaken by the Bureau of 

 Soils. We take up the whole drainage 

 question and view it from the engineering 

 standpoint. Though our plans may be in- 

 cidentally related to the removal of alkali, 

 such a system as that planned by us would 

 be required even if the soil were free from 

 alkali." 



In his visit to the culture tation at 

 Tulare, Dr. True was much interested in 

 the work there, which he found progress- 

 ing splendidly. The culture station* report 

 in each state to some central station. ID 

 California the supreme station is that at 

 Berkeley and the culture stations are only 

 part of a general scheme. 



''At Tulare," said the doctor, "they are 

 introducing the Turkestan alfalfa and ob- 

 serving what it will do and what can be 

 done with it. There are some Lundred 

 varieties of grapes that are being tested. 

 Some prove unable to stand the conditions, 

 while others thrive. It is in this way that 

 the culture stations a^e accomplishing 

 good in finding out what desirable plants 

 will grow under conditions here and condi- 

 tions there. Reports are made to the su- 

 preme station of the state and thence the 

 information is disseminated to the public." 



The Charleston The Charleston Exposition 

 Exposition. c i osed May 31 an d, as usual, 



the report is that it was not a paying in- 

 vestment to the stockholders. From a 

 financial standpoint these expositions are 

 rarely a success, but from a sociologic and 

 economic one they are generally of far- 

 reaching good. The one at Charleston was 

 instrumental in calling^to the attention of 

 northern capitalists the resources and pos- 

 sibilities of the South, which will prob- 

 ably be developed. 



New Postal A bill was passed by the Sen- 

 Regulation ate j une 4 providing that the 

 postmaster-general may extend free deliv- 

 ery to cities of 5,000 inhabitants or $5,000 

 gross income, removing the present limita- 

 tion to cities of 10,000 inhabitants. 



