THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



185 



"THERE'S A REASON." 



(From the Boston Commercial.) 

 IRRIGATION GRAFT. 



Certain parties in New York and Washington are 

 spending thousands of dollars per month in distributing 

 four-page supplements to newspapers generally through- 

 out the country. These supplements are delivered, ex- 

 pressage prepaid, in the offices of the publications, with- 

 out any charge whatsoever. They are absolutely free 

 to any publisher. 



Tons of paper are being printed every week, and 

 large amounts are being paid the express companies for 

 carrying and delivering these supplements, even as far 

 as Texas and Utah. 



Publishers have wondered from month to month 

 what was the cause of such unprecedented liberality, 

 nothing of the kind ever having been experienced before 

 except during political campaigns, when the national 

 committees supplied and delivered supplements with- 

 out money and without price. 



"The darkey in the wood pile" is now making his 

 appearance in the matter inserted in these supplements. 

 It turns out that irrigation of some arid lands in the 

 far West, for the benefit of a few individuals, the cost 

 of irrigating which is to be paid for by the United 

 States government, is the object of the supplements. 



Publishers to whom they are given are expected to 

 issue them with their regular publications in order that 

 public sentiment may be worked up in favor of obtain- 

 ing from the government expenditures of millions upon 

 millions of dollars, so that these almost worthless lands 

 may be increased in value and sold at enormous profit 

 for those interested. 



The newspapers are to be made the catspaw for this 

 purpose. The promoters of the scheme can well afford 

 to spend several hundred thousands of dollars, largely 

 contributed by a few railroad companies and interested 

 individuals, for by so doing the United States treasury 

 may be tapped for millions and the people of the East, 

 South and middle West taxed in order that the owners 

 of this arid land may be benefited. 



CORRESPONDENCE 



KIMBERLY, CASSIA Co., IDAHO, March 19, 1906. 

 EDITOR IRRIGATION AGE, Chicago. 



Dear Sir Can you give me the address of some one 

 where I can get cuttings of the Oiser Willow, the one you 

 mentioned in Primer of Irrigation? Hoping to hear from 

 you soon, Yours truly, 



G. W. OSTERHOUSE. 



Will some of our readers kindly furnish Mr. Osterhouse 

 with the desired information? 



BEATRICE, NEB, March 7, 1906. 

 THE IRRIGATION AGE, 112 Dearborn St., Chicago, 111. 



Gentlemen A subject which is now receiving much at- 

 tention from a large number of people is one of very great 

 importance to farmers who must pump their water for irri- 

 gation. This is the proposed withdrawal of the internal rev- 

 enue tax on alcohol used for manufacturing, industrial and 

 agricultural purposes. It undoubtedly would not occur to 

 the majority of people who are not familiar with the subject 

 just how this would benefit the irrigator, as it is not generally 

 understood that alcohol is an excellent source of power when 

 used in internal combustion engines. A gallon of alcohol 

 will produce as much power used in an internal combustion 

 engine as a gallon of gasoline and is in every way as satis- 

 factory. If the internal revenue tax is taken from alcohol 



it can undoubtedly be furnished as cheaply and probably at 

 a much less price than gasoline. It can no doubt be distilled 

 widely, and will meet with a very large demand throughout 

 the country for running internal combustion engines for pump- 

 ing or any other purpose requiring power, and it will also 

 be used for lighting and heating the home in the city or on 

 the farm very extensively. 



It comes from that which the farmer produces and un- 

 doubtedly the proposed new law will result in much benefit 

 to the agricultural classes in the way of creating an increased 

 demand for potatoes, sugar beets, corn and other products 

 of value in the distillation of alcohol. 



The proposed bill provides for the denaturizing of the 

 alcohol, rendering it unfit for use as a beverage, and it is 

 intended that this denaturizing shall occur at the time it is 

 withdrawn from the bonded warehouse, so that it would not 

 seem that any undesirable results in the way of an increase 

 in intemperance would follow the enactment of such a bill 

 as proposed. 



At least two bills providing for the enactment of such a 

 law have been introduced in Congress and the Ways and 

 Means Committee has already held a hearing, and it seems 

 to the writer that the proposed legislation should receive 

 every possible encouragement from the agriculturists and all 

 their good friends throughout the land. 



Germany has for some time had free alcohol for manu- 

 facturing and other uses and for many years now has prac- 

 tically led the world in some lines of manufacturing on this 

 account, and solely on this account. France, England, and 

 we might say all of the leading European countries also have 

 similar laws and it would seem that the United States, where 

 such a law would perhaps be of even greater benefit than 

 would be possible in the European countries, should certainly 

 give the matter the most careful and considerate attention, 

 and give the people tax free alcohol for such purposes as 

 we have mentioned. 



As I have not seen anything in your publication relative 

 to this subject, I thought perhaps you would be pleased to 

 have something along this line and if you wish to use this 

 matter you are at liberty to do so. Yours truly, 



DEMPSTER MILL MFG. COMPANY, 



R. H. YALE, Secretary. 



CAMBRIDGE, ILL., February 3, 1906. 

 IRRIGATION AGE, Chicago, 111. 



Dear Sirs In the February issue of THE IRRIGATION AGE 

 Mr. H. J. Myers desires information in regard to drainage. 

 I have had a little experience along that line of work, espe- 

 cially problems of the same description as confront Mr. Myers. 



His propo_sition to drain his land by the use of wells 

 and then running his tile into them is a plan that has worked 

 to good advantage in some localities. The topography of the 

 country controls its success or failure. Where this method 

 has been practical the country is a tableland, that is, it lies 

 at some elevation above the bed of nearby streams or rivers. 



The method employed is to drill through the rock that 

 underlies the locality until they strike water, then case the 

 drill hole from the rock up with steel or iron casing; this 

 casing keeps out surface water and the well is thus not 

 affected by water above the rock. Where they use wells to 

 drain into the water stands at from 75 to 100 feet below the 

 surface. 



There is another method employed in such cases as Mr. 

 Myers has to deal with, and the one I prefer. It is to build 

 a cistern some ten feet deep and ten feet or more in diam- 

 eter and run your tile into it. Then by the use of a wind- 

 mill, gasoline or steam engine, pump the water from the 

 cistern over a dike thrown up to prevent the water from 

 flowing back on the land. 



In this county quite a number of such plants are in suc- 

 cessful operation and the windmill is to be preferred where 

 the area of land is not too large, as the cost of operation is 

 next to nothing. 



In the laying of the tile see that they are laid to grade, 

 and the grades established by a drainage engineer or sur- 

 veyor. This is the secret of successful tile drainage. 



I own and operate a farm and these drainage problems 

 came up to me. I solved them by studying to become a drain- 

 age engineer so as to do the work in an intelligent manner. 



If this will be of any benefit to Mr. Myers he has my 

 consent to make use of it and I wish him success with the 

 undertaking. Yours respectfully. 



ABRAM A. FUNK. 



