364 



THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



THE DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN FARMING. 



It was about one hundred years ago, also, that the 

 great branches of science which have done so much to 

 transform the conditions surrounding civilized man 

 during the last few decades, began to be developed. As 

 soon as new principles were discovered, men of the high- 

 est training and intelligence immediately set to work 

 to apply these discoveries to the profitable production 

 of plants, and in consequence the growth of modern 

 agriculture has been almost simultaneous and parallel 

 with the growth of modern science itself. 



The practices of modern agriculture rest upon the 

 fundamental laws of physics, chemistry, biology and 

 geology, and are modified and improved as new dis- 

 coveries in science are made. 



last few years that the attention of the great nations has 

 been directed toward those portions of their domains 

 which are arid in their nature and require irrigation as 

 the basis of successful agriculture. In our own great 

 country it is only within the last ten years that the great 

 public has taken seriously the development of the great 

 West, the larger portion of which can be profitably re- 

 claimed only by irrigation. 



The present condition of irrigation is, therefore, 

 -practically this : All branches of agriculture that are in- 

 dependent of irrigation have been developed to a very 

 high degree and are steadily growing, while the branches 

 that are definitely related to irrigation are just begin- 

 ning their growth, and are practically in the position 

 that general agriculture was one hundred years ago. 



Courtesy Sunset Magazine. 



METHOD OF RUNNING WATER INTO ORCHARD FOR IRRIGATING PURPOSES. 



So perfect is the system of the agriculture of today 

 that it is worthy to be classed with .the great applied 

 sciences. 



THE NEGLECT OF IRRIGATION. 



The advancement of modern science has been due to 

 the efforts of the great- nations of Europe and America. 

 That is, the men who have discovered the laws of na- 

 ture and who have applied them to the art of agriculture 

 have lived in countries of abundant rainfall where there 

 was no need and little appreciation of the art of irriga- 

 tion. As a result of this fact, the scientific study of the 

 art of irrigation was neglected and it fell woefully be- 

 hind that agriculture which is independent of the artifi- 

 cial application of water. In fact, it is only within the 



THE PROBLEMS OF IRRIGATION. 



To many who have given this subject little thought, 

 it seems strange that anything needs to be discovered 

 about irrigation. They say, "If we have good soil and 

 the water in the right position and the right kind of 

 seed, all that needs to be done is to let the water flow over 

 the ground and nature does the rest." In view of the 

 neglect which the art of irrigation has suffered at the 

 hands of scientific investigators, such a reply is only to 

 be expected, yet it is an emphatic fact that the problems 

 that irrigation offers for solution are very numerous 

 and most intricate in their nature. 



Irrigation problems may be grouped into three 

 great classes: 



