THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



7.9 



IRRIGATION IN CALIFORNIA. 



Several interesting phases of agriculture in Cali- 

 fornia appear in the report of Irrigation Investigations 

 of the United States Department of Agriculture, just 

 published as Bulletin No. 119 of the Office of Experi- 

 ment Stations. 



Professor Hilgard, of the University of California, 

 gives the results of 14 years' study of the water problems 

 of the Santa Ana valley in southern California. In 

 this valley water is scarce and exceedingly valuable. 

 The right to a single inch sells for $1,250, and irrigated 

 orange lands have sold for $1,800 an acre. He shows 

 that the gravel deposits of the river where it leaves the 

 mountains act as a regulator, the water sinking into 

 these debris fans where it is stored up without expense 

 for dams or losses from evaporation. His researches 

 show that this water feeds the artesian wells below and 

 that as the number of these wells is increased the pres- 

 sure and flow is diminished, the final result however, 

 being a considerable gain in the water obtained. These 

 studies of Prof. Hilgard will be widely read in Califor- 

 nia for the bearing they have on the interdependence of 

 underground water supplies. The recent decision of the 

 state supreme court in the case of Katz v. Walkinshaw, 

 limiting the right of a land owner to take percolating 

 water from his own land, has given the subject new 

 interest. 



The report of Prof. Hilgard is supplemented by 

 one made by Wm. Irvine, engineer of the Gage Canal, 

 giving the duty of water in the Santa Ana valley and 

 some conditions whidi influence it. An interesting 

 feature of Mr. Irvine's report is the illustrations of 

 . the canal, measuring boxes, and methods of distributing 

 water. Nowhere in this country if in the world is water 

 used with greater economy and skill than in this section. 

 The main canal and many of the distributing laterals 

 are cemented and in some cases pipes are used. Water 

 is delivered to the different tracts from hydrants and 

 carefully measured over weirs, all these details being 

 illustrated in this report. The canal was operated at 

 first without cementing but the losses from seepage and 

 growth of vegetation in the banks and bottoms reduced 

 its capacity so much that only- one-fourth of the cal- 

 culated volume could be carried through it. Since 

 cementing the loss is only about 1 per cent. The plans 

 and specifications for this work are given so that en- 

 gineers may understand clearly its character. The ex- 

 pense of cementing a channel 7 feet wide on the bottom, 

 15 feet on top, and 4 feet deep was 75 cents per linear 

 foot. 



Irrigation in central California is covered by a 

 report by A. E. Chandler, Agent and Expert. The 

 canals where Mr. Chandler's measurements were made 

 were not cemented and in some cases the losses from 

 seepage were as great as those on the canal in southern 



California before its improvement. On the Vandalia 

 Ditch 92 per cent of a discharge of 16 cubic feet per 

 second was lost in a distance of two miles. The illus- 

 trations show that the flow of water in these canals is 

 also interfered with by weeds and grass so that it is 

 probable that cementing or some other method of lessen- 

 ing seepage losses will be employed in the near future. 

 The possibilities of this are discussed by Mr. Chandler 

 in his report. He estimates that some canals on which 

 the losses are large could be cemented for a cost of 

 between $4,000 and $5,000 per mile and that the loss 

 of water in a single season in some sections has been 28 

 per cent more than the cost of this work. The products 

 of irrigation in this section have a high value. Under 

 the Pioneer Canal the orange crop was worth $137 per 

 acre; on one orchard under the Pleasant Valley Ditch, 

 $107 an acre. On this orchard water was sparingly 

 used so that the value of the crop grown with an acre- 

 foot of water was $63.79. 



This report may be obtained by applying to the 

 Director of the Office of Experiment Stations, United 

 States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. 



A recent issue of The Signal, Weisar, Idaho, con- 

 tains the following: 



"S: F. Stark, accompanied by his father, returned 

 from the line of the construction work of the Malheur 

 Butte Ditch Company Monday afternoon. They re- 

 port more than 50 teams at work and this force will 

 be increased to 100 as soon as the line is cross sec- 

 tioned ahead of the work far enough to allow of their 

 being placed on the work. Messrs. Stark and son's mis- 

 sion to the city was to secure an engineer to do the 

 work. D. A. Utter, who is the engineer in charge, is 

 employed at Mineral surveying some mines in that lo- 

 cality,, and could not do the work. 



"The construction work is under the management 

 of Hoskins & Harkins. Their contract calls for the 

 completion of their work sixteen miles by April 1st. 

 This will bring the ditch to the upper end of Dead 

 Ox flat, opposite Weiser. It is the intention of the 

 company to have the water on Dead Ox flat in the 

 spring in time for irrigation. The completion of the 

 ditch to the upper end will practically cover the en- 

 tire district, as small ditches and laterals will be run 

 in every direction from the main canal, so that it may 

 be distributed to all the ranches covered by it. The 

 bringing of the water to the ranches of that section 

 will be a matter of great gratification to them, as they 

 have waited long and patiently for the completion of 

 the big canal. It not only means much for the ranch- 

 ers of that section, but for Weiser, which is the natural 

 supply point for that section. 



"R. C. McKinney, who is the resident agent of the 

 company, reports much inquiry for lands covered by 

 the ditch, and expects a great deal of activity in that 

 section in the spring." 



Even now from far, on viewless wing, 

 Hither speeds the nameless thing, 

 Shall put they spirit to the test ; 



Haply, or ere yon sinking sun 

 Shall drop behind the purple west, 



All shall be lost or won ! 



R. W. Gilder. 





