54 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



will impound 100,000 acre-feet of water and that the length 

 of the dam would be 1,200 feet at the top. Providing 

 these figures are correct, Mr. Ulrich is of the opinion that 

 the structure would cost from $750,000 to $1,000,000 or 

 from $7.50 to $10 per acre foot of water, impounded. 



Test wells are being sunk by the Otero Canal com- 

 pany near Fowler, Colorado, and if the experiments prove 

 successful a number of irrigation wells will be developed 

 along the canal to supply the ditch with water when the 

 river is low. 



"We are making preliminary experiments at this time, 

 hoping to develop wells of sufficient capacity to use five 

 second feet of water," said J. D. Craighead of that com- 

 pany. "If this can be done we will develop as many as 

 fifteen wells at points along the ditch and turn the water 

 into the Otero canal for use on the several thousand 

 acres under the ditch. The first test well was sunk at a 

 point near the west gate just east of Fowler, and we 

 were unfortunate when we struck shale at a depth of 

 thirteen feet, a few days ago. We will probe the nearby 

 ground for a more favorable location and sink another 

 well immediately. We are hoping to have better luck 

 next time." 



Before the Colorado road builders' convention at 

 Pueblo recently Prof. E. B. House, head of the irrigation 

 engineering department of the State Agricultural college, 

 amused the audience in prefacing his address with a touch 

 of humor on the advantages of the engineer who is famil- 

 iar with the irrigation terms, for instance the words, 

 "dam" and "damsite," thereby enabling him to give vent 

 to his perturbed feelings at times without violating any 

 of the rules of eitquette. 



He stated that an occasion of this sort came to him 

 personally recently in corresponding with a very original 

 sister-in-law. Mrs. House had not been maintaining her 

 end of the correspondence with her sister, so the sister 

 remitted a brief and businesslike lettter in the form of so 

 many question, like this: Please answer the following 

 questions in the enclosed stamped envelope. Are the chil- 

 dren sick? If so what with? Are you sick? If so, what 

 with?" etc. 



Professor House was delegated the honor of making 

 reply, and he did so in an equally technical manner. The 

 sister-in-law returned the questions and answers, the only 

 comment being at the bottom of the page, a conspicuous 

 "Dam" then a parenthetical explanation: "An obstruction 

 to bank up a stream." 



The professor in reply informed the sister-in-law that 

 she was mistaken and that bank wasn't an obstruction 

 in a stream "by a dam site," but however, her "dam let- 

 ter" had been received and contents noted. 



"I may not be fully apprised as to the dam informa- 

 ttion you impart," came back the reply, "but I will admit 

 that your abbreviated letter is a dam site better than 

 none." 



IDAHO. 



Hazel Sauve of Iron River, Wis., an entrywoman on 

 the Lost River irrigation project, has begun a suit against 

 the Title Guaranty and Surety Company of Scranton, Pa., 

 for $23,160 damages due to the irrigation company's fail- 

 ure to supply water. The Scranton company is the surety 

 for the irrigation company in a bond for $175,000 and it 

 is for that reason that the suit is against the surety, as the 

 irrigation company is insolvent. 



If Mrs. Sauve wins her suit there will be many others 

 against the same company. Indeed other suits are pre- 

 paring. 



The state will probably have to intervene in these 

 suits because it is morally and equitably if not legally 

 bound to protect the entrymen who were deceived by the 

 irrigation company to their heavy loss. 



KANSAS. 



Winston G. Churchill, who has invented an irrigation 

 pump that will lift water to any desired height, at a min- 

 imum cost of operation, will give a demonstration at 

 Modoc, Kan., which will be witnessed by a large number 

 of people. His pump will lift 800 gallons of water per 

 minute from a depth of 128 feet, using an 18-horse power 

 engine. Mr. Churchill is one of the leaders in western 

 Kansas for developing a pump for irrigation and will give 



a talk on pump irrigation, showing how the farmers of 

 western Kansas can irrigate at a normal cost. He claims 

 that a system similar to that used by him is the only 

 thing that will remedy the situation in the western part 

 of Kansas. The cost of placing the Churchill pump is 

 from $12 to $25 per acre for 160 acres, depending upon 

 the depth necessary to go for a sufficient supply of water. 

 Upon a basis of 160 acres the cost of a ditch and for its 

 maintenance is from $80 to $160 per year. Figuring a lift 

 of 35 feet with an 8-inch pump, a flow of 1,000 gallons per 

 minute can be readily obtained. 



At the forum last week there was demonstrated in 

 Wichita a most unique system of irrigation. It is a seep- 

 age system and the inventor, Mr. Jas. A. Wilson of Ar- 

 kansas City, says that it is just as near perfect as possible. 

 The system consists of tile pipe laid underground, just deep 

 enough to clear the plow, and the water seeps through the 

 pipes. By peculiar construction of air chambers this sys- 

 tem keeps the air underground, allowing the ground to 

 remain sweet. The inventor claims that this system will 

 irrigate ten times as much ground as other systems, with 

 the same amount of water. 



A great many people gave the system their hearty 

 approval after investigating it and Mr. Mueller, the Wich- 

 ita greenhouse man, is going to put the system in and 

 give it a thorough tryout. Mr. Page House, just north of 

 Wichita, now has the system in use and speaks very highly 

 of it. It is probable that Mr. Wilson has figured out the 

 principle that we have all been working for. If he has he 

 deserves the support of all. 



A local company has been formed at Plains, in Meade 

 county, Kansas, to engage in sub-irrigation, as a demon- 

 stration. Fifteen acres have been leased adjoining the 

 town of Plains for the purpose. 



At Leoti the State Board of Irrigation accepted the 

 irrigation plant from the contractors who have just in- 

 stalled it. The reservoir is 150x50 feet. It is filled by six 

 windmills pumping from separate wells. If necessary 

 more wells will be added. 



The mills are twelve feet in diameter with a direct 

 stroke and are of the latest pattern. This is the first plant 

 to be installed under the irrigation act of the last legisla- 

 ture. 



Work is starting this week at Dighton. This will be 

 followed by the plants at Tribune and Sharon Springs. 

 The ground will be irrigated this winter and sown to 

 crops and trees in the spring. In Wichita county the set- 

 tlers are taking considerable interest in windmill irrigation 

 and a number of them are already installing private plants. 



T. J. Crist, a Hamilton county, Kansas, farmer, is now 

 harvesting a good crop as the result of one of the most 

 unique and cheapest irrigating experiments used this year. 

 Mr. Crist had a large field on a side hill, with a large pas- 

 ture on the hill above it. He did his irrigating by con- 

 serving the storm water that fell on the side hill. He 

 plowed furrows diagonally across the pasture land, hav- 

 ing them terminate at a point at the upper entrance to the 

 cultivated field. A deeper furrow through the middle of 

 the field carried the water that was gathered by the 

 ditches in the prairie land, and this water fed into the 

 furrows on either side, which contained milo maize. 

 There were few rains this summer, but one good one in 

 the spring soaked up the entire field and gave Mr. Crist 

 the most profitable milo crop in his county. 



Five farmers near Great Bend, Kansas, are entering 

 into a co-operative scheme whereby they will be able to 

 irrigate some 750 acres of their farms in dry times. They 

 propose to get water for this purpose by damming \\ est 

 Walnut creek, which flows through their land. Frank P. 

 Wood, who is fathering the project, expects to irrigate 

 300 acres; W. S. Hill. 125 acres: Sam Dorfshaffer, 100 

 acres; John Wood. 150 acres, and E. B. Kellam. 100 acres. 

 W. S. Gearhart. state engineer at the agricultural col- 

 lege, is preparing the plans for the dam. 



Engineer M. K. Ellison of California irrigation dis- 

 tricts, will survey the Lombard ranch near Syracuse, 

 Kans.. for irrigation purposes. He will install three sta- 

 tions equipped with a 30-horsepower gas engine and 



