DUTY AND DIVISION OF WATER 



333 



tion to determine the depth to which the land has been 

 covered. 



The time during which a given volume of water flows 

 is of first importance in determining the duty of the 

 stream. A canal carrying 10 second-feet of water may be 

 filled from May 1 to November 1; and during that tune 

 may irrigate 1,000 acres of land. The quantity of water 



FIG. 92. Looking down the Bear River Canal. 



passing through the canal during the six months in 

 question would cover the 1,000 acres to a depth of nearly 

 39 inches. In fact, however, the water was used for irri- 

 gation purposes only about seventy-five days out of the 

 six months and the actual depth of water given the crop 

 was only about 18 inches. The duty of water expressed 

 as the area covered by a given volume of water, flowing 

 continuously, may, therefore, become very misleading 



