THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



13 



Eealizing the fact that many of the new 

 "Notes on subscribers to THE IRRIGATION AGE in 

 Practical both the east and the middle west, are 

 Irrigation" perhaps turning their first attention to 

 Monthly. this subject and are not familiar with the 

 fundaments of scientific agriculture and 

 applied irrigation, it seems advisable that there be re- 

 produced in the columns of this journal a work on this 

 subject that has already enjoyed an immense sale and 

 has proven itself a mine of information to all who 

 have read its pages. 



Under the caption, "Practical Notes on Irriga- 

 tion," there will be reproduced in the columns of THE 

 IRRIGATION AGE during the ensuing twelve months a 

 series of comprehensive extracts and excerpts from the 

 "Primer of Irrigation," as published and now placed 

 on the market by D. H. Anderson, editor of this jour- 

 nal. 



For the information of those readers who are seek- 

 ing a knowledge of irrigation it may be stated that this 

 work, already adopted as a complete text-book on the 

 subject, contains elemental facts relative to the char- 

 acter of soils and plant foods existing therein. In 

 successive chapters the reader is informed as to the 

 relation of water to plant life and the origin and 

 peculiarities of arid and semi-arid lands. From these 

 basic principles the reader is carried into the field of 

 irrigation and given instruction in the method of laying 

 out land, handling the water supply, providing for 

 proper drainage, the measuring of water and other 

 kindred subjects of equal importance. 



For many years the publisher of this book has 

 made a study of irrigation and crop culture where 

 water is supplied to the soil by artificial means. In the 

 preparation of copy especial attention was given to 

 the phraseology in order that the work might be thor- 

 oughly intelligible to the reader. 



In planning for the re-publication of this book in 

 monthly installments the editor believes that it will be 

 of benefit not only to those who are now entering upon 

 the study with a view to making homes in the west, 

 but that it will be of assistance to those land owners in, 

 irrigation projects who have heretofore depended upon 

 information acquired from hearsay or from another's 

 experience and are therefore still unacquainted with the 

 elementary facts underlying this knowledge. 



The Banker's and Investor's 

 Opinion of Irrigation Securities 



Through a misdirection and consequent 

 Western loss of a portion of the matter designed 



Slope for use as a special write-up of the "West- 



Write-Up ern Slope" in this month's issue of THE 

 Delayed. IRRIGATION AGE, it has been necessary to 



hold this article for the future. One of 

 the editors of the AGE has spent several weeks in that 

 section and has secured much valuable data that will 

 prove of interest to readers. 



The West has the opportunities and wants money 

 the East has the money and few opportunities. 



Are irrigation bonds the investment opportunity 

 of the East? 



This letter from Mr. George E. Eoberts, president 

 of the Commercial National Bank of Chicago and Ex- 

 Comptroller of the Currency, seems to cover the sub- 

 ject rather fully: 



"Regarding our attitude towards irrigation bonds, we 

 would say that in our opinion the developments of the 

 last five years have demonstrated that the irrigation of 

 arid lands in the West is destined to add largely to the 

 country's annual output of food products, of which there 

 is apparently no longer any danger of over-production. 

 We regard these irrigation projects, therefore, where prop- 

 erly conceived and carried out, as perfectly legitimate 

 enterprises, and irrigation securities issued under such 

 conditions are entitled to rank with real estate mortgages. 

 It goes without saying that both the engineering and man- 

 agement of the finances must be in experienced and re- 

 sponsible hands." 



From another view point the following extract 

 taken from a letter written by Mr. John Farson, of Far- 

 son, Son & Co., bankers, New York and Chicago, is 

 interesting : 



"I give it as my deliberate judgment and after most 

 careful examination that properly issued irrigation bonds 

 have more security back of them than any bonds I have 

 ever sold. I unhesitatingly recommend them to my most 

 conservative clients." 



The rapidity with which irrigation bonds . have 

 grown in popularity with conservative investors 

 throughout the whole United States is most pronounced. 

 This article is the result of an investigation into how 

 and where the large number of irrigation bonds that 

 have been offered the public during the last few years 

 have been absorbed. The comments of the various 

 financial journals of late have been to the effect that 

 the market for the older securities was very soft, but 

 that securities of the irrigation bond class were being 

 absorbed very rapidly by the bond buying public. From 

 every side the evidence that these securities have found 

 a market pours in. For this reason it was particularly 

 satisfactory to know exactly the class of investors that 

 were buying these bonds. In other words the opinion 

 of the banker and the investor regarding these securities 

 is best evidenced by their buying them. 



The result of a canvas of representative banks, trust 

 companies, insurance companies and fraternal organiza- 

 tions of the United States disclosed the fact that the 

 majority of these institutions already held securities of 

 this class. Further it was discovered that those large 

 investors who had not already purchased were making 

 a definite and thorough study of the subject with a view 

 of purchasing in the immediate future. Such evidence 

 as this proves conclusively that irrigation bonds are 

 meeting with the approval of the most intelligent in- 

 vestors and that they are well established today in the 

 minds of the bankers and investors of the United States. 



