1905 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



431 



years, may be considered as having 

 come from the seed sown. 



The seed was scattered on the fallen 

 leaves, on decaying wood, and espe- 

 cially on all spots where the mineral 

 soil was exposed, and these were quite 

 numerous. About eight quarts of 

 seed were put on an acre. 



The seed received immediately sev- 

 eral showers, but from April 4th to 

 June nth no rain fell in the Adiron- 

 dacks. 



In July, 1904, an examination of the 

 ground was made. Where mineral 

 soil had been exposed, and on rotten 

 wood, the little trees were doing quite 

 well, in many places four or five trees 

 being found on a square foot. In 

 other places, however, especially where 

 the leaves were thick, they were rather 

 scarce. But over the whole ground 

 they were probably sufficiently numer- 



ous to make an evergreen forest if they 

 all contiue to grow. 



In August of this year the groves 

 were again examined. The little 

 spruces were still alive, and seemed to 

 be about as numerous as they were 

 last year. 



It is too early yet to form a judg- 

 ment as to the ultimate success of the 

 experiment. Moreover, the results 

 from a single experiment, however en- 

 couraging, are not sufficient to war- 

 rant the conclusion that spruce forests 

 can be produced satisfactorily in this 

 way. Repeated experiments are nec- 

 essary, and with these we shall prob- 

 ably learn that the seed must at least 

 reach the mineral soil. 



The evergreens in poplar groves are, 

 as far as my own observations have 

 extended, mostly balsam, a species 

 much less exacting in its requirements 

 for reproduction than the spruce. 



DRILLING TO BED ROCK 



Description of an Important Class of Work 

 in the Building of Irrigation Enterprises. 



of the least understood, but by 

 no means . the least important 

 feature involved in the construction 

 of a large irrigation project, is the 

 work of drilling parties making un- 

 derground investigations to determine 

 the character of the formations upon 

 which dams and other structures are 

 to be erected. While the use of the 

 drill is of the utmost importance in 

 determining the location of dams, it is 

 also essential in ascertaining the char- 

 acter of soil in reservoirs, in tunnel 

 and canal construction, and in sinking 

 wells. Without a knowledge of the 

 c'epth to bed rock and the nature of 

 the formation/ no contractor would 

 bid upon the work. It is not safe to 

 rely upon surface indications, and 

 even an experienced geologist finds 

 himself at fault when endeavoring to 

 predict the character of river bed for- 



mations. In each of the great national 

 projects this work is necessarily pre- 

 liminary to actual construction, and 

 frequently upon the results of the bor- 

 ing rests the feasibility of the project 

 itself. 



The drill outfit is of two kinds, one 

 operated by steam power, the other by 

 hand. The latter is used in regions 

 remote from transportation and where 

 fuel is not obtainable. As the reser- 

 voir and dam sites are usually located 

 in inaccessible mountain canyons, far 

 from railroads, the hand drill is gen- 

 erally vised in connection with recon- 

 naissance surveys and preliminary 

 studies of the project, as it can be 

 packed on the backs of horses and 

 transported over mountain trails or 

 lowered into deep canyons. 



The drill consists of a steel bit 

 screwed on the end of a hollow tube. 



