308 RURAL CALIFORNIA 



ginning to the present day, is suggested in Chap- 

 ter IV. 



The history of irrigation in California as it might 

 be set forth in terms of dates and places, persons and 

 achievements would have local interest but no wide 

 significance. It will be more useful and interesting 

 to try to discern the times and ways in which cer- 

 tain conceptions of the relation of irrigation to crop 

 production under California conditions arose, in- 

 fluenced achievement and became demonstrated as 

 principles and practices of permanent acceptability 

 and importance in the agricultural development of 

 the State. 



The Spanish padres brought the irrigation idea to 

 California in 1769 and during the following thirty- 

 five years established twenty-one missions between 

 San Diego and San Francisco at all of which irriga- 

 tion was, to varying extents, provided. Although these 

 establishments occupied a linear distance of about 

 five hundred miles, they were all within the same cul- 

 tural division of the State (Eegions 2 and 3 as de- 

 fined in Chapter I) and, therefore, characterized by 

 somewhat similar climatic conditions. They did not 

 know, except by hearsay, anything about the much 

 greater areas of the State which varied severally in 

 their natural moisture from one-fourth to four times 

 as much as the padres had to work with in their fields 

 and gardens. They knew neither the parts of the 

 State where irrigation is indispensable nor where it 

 is unnecessary and therefore undesirable, because 

 they never moved far from their establishments. It 



