304 



THE IRKIGATION AGE. 



very soon be convinced of the advantage of a gen- 

 eral supplemental irrigation system to cover his 

 entire holdings. At the present price of windmills, 

 pumping engines, tanks, and a knowledge of the 

 cost of building a reservoir on the highest point of 

 his land, no farmer should hesitate to try out sup- 

 plemental irrigation. 



The fact that the office of experiment stations 

 of the United States Department of Agriculture has 

 not taken up this subject has always been a cause 

 of wonderment in the mind of the editor of this 

 journal. There is an actual loss on every form in 

 the humid and semi-arid regions of from 20 to 30 

 per cent, due to what is known as our "dry spell" in 

 the growing season. 



Mr. Yaggy is evidently a progressive farmer 

 who has studied this out carefully and we trust that 

 the results of his work may be published broadcast 

 so that other farmers throughout the country may 

 be encouraged to adopt this system. 



Damage to crops is always a misfor- 

 'Tis an 111 tune to the world at large. Advices 



Wind That from the corn belt report that long- 

 Blows No continued lack of rain and unusually 

 Good hot spells of long duration have 

 worked havoc with the growing 

 crop. Such reports must always, of course, be dis- 

 counted to some extent, as the excitement invariably 

 leads to a certain amount of exaggeration. In this 

 case, however, there is strong reason to fear that 

 the damage is very nearly, if not fully, as bad as 

 stated. 



There is a reflection of this in the Chicago 

 grain market. Speculators take pains to be un- 

 usually well informed as to crop conditions and 

 movement. Corn is now bullish. Prices are ad- 

 vancing by jumps. So are the values of other 

 grains. Receipts are falling off, farmers who are 

 acquainted with the situation evidently preferring 

 to hold cereals back. They are acquainted with 

 the conditions and believe the damage is so great 

 and widespread that still higher prices must result. 



At the same time reports from irrigated terri- 

 tory where the farmers are not dependent upon rain- 

 fall, show that all crops are in magnificent condi- 

 tion. The promise for bumper harvests was never 

 equaled. While the drought in the non-irrigated 

 area has tended to advance prices sharply, the men 

 who farm irrigated lands are in position to take ad- 

 vantage of the situation. They will have immense 

 quantities of produce to sell and will get big prices 

 for it. This, it is true, is at the expense of those less 

 fortunate, but in it may be found a forceful illus- 

 tration of the benefits of irrigation. It makes the 

 tiller of the soil independent of climatic conditions. 



In discussing the wonderful work of" 

 Credit development that has been accom- 



to Whom plished in southern Idaho, a work 



Credit of veritable empire building, there 



Is Due are two men who should not be 



overlooked. These men are I. B. 

 Perrine, of Blue Lakes, Idaho, and H. L. Hollister, 

 of Chicago. They were the first to recognize the 

 possibilities of the country, provided water could 

 be procured for crop-growing purposes. But this 

 took money, lots of it, and neither of them was 

 wealthy enough in the way of actual cash to under- 

 take an enterprise of such magnitude. But they 

 were both hustlers, and their ability to hustle in 

 a good cause filled the bill. 



Mr. Perrine, a farmer, was naturally interested 

 from the viewpoint of a farmer. He realized the 

 crop-producing possibilities. Mr. Hollister, on the 

 other hand, a city man, saw the manifold advan- 

 tages in the line of water power which the construc- 

 tion of irrigation plants would produce. They 

 joined hands and interested capital, with the result 

 that a marvelously complete system of irrigation 

 was introduced. It will stand for ages as a monu- 

 ment to their enterprise. 



Neither man had any special advantages for 

 the work in which they embarked, beyond the pos- 

 session of an inexhaustible fund of common sense, 

 honesty of purpose, and a determination to succeed 

 in whatever they undertook. They went over the 

 ground carefully, decided their plans were feasible, 

 and then went out to win. And win they did. The 

 securing of capital was no easy task. It took years 

 of hard work. Most men would have become dis- 

 couraged, but Messrs. Perrine and Hollister never 

 faltered. More long years passed before the tract 

 was in such shape that lands could be safely sold, 

 but at last that day arrived, and the rest was easy. 



To Mr. Perrine should be given the larger part 

 of the credit for the intelligent direction of the work 

 on the ground. He knew what the land was ca- 

 pable of, and how to secure the best results, whether 

 from farm or orchard. Mr. Hollister is the man who 

 knew how to bring the country to the attention of 

 the public in the most effective manner, secure the 

 necessary volume of sales, and at the same time 

 make sure of getting a desirable class of settlers. 

 That both were unusually successful the Twin Falls 

 country gives proof. In this important work THE 

 IRRIGATION AGE may modestly claim, to have taken 

 an essential part. It will be glad to do so again 

 should Messrs. Perrine and Hollister undertake a 

 similar project. 



Messrs. Perrine and Hollister have recently 

 concluded an extended tour of the Twin Falls coun- 

 try on which they acted as guides to a large party 



