RECLAIMING THE DESERT 163 



CROP DETAILS, 1927 



II 



Certainly a dramatic contrast, that between the 

 beginning of national reclamation and now, but far 

 indeed from the whole story. What is not here 

 hinted is that, perhaps characteristically, we rushed 

 into this vast undertaking unprepared by study and 

 uninformed by experience. Beginning many works 

 of unprecedented size almost together, we rose effi- 

 ciently to engineering and building requirements but 

 blundered miserably in other phases upon which suc- 

 cess depended quite as much. 



Previous to an exhaustive study made by Sec- 

 retary Work's special committee of 1924, Federal 

 Reclamation had been "investigated" an astonishing 

 number of times ("550 Congressional hearings and 

 reports from 1902 to 1923") without discovering 

 exactly why many irrigated lands served by marvel- 

 lously efficient works costing hundreds of millions 

 had been utilized only to half or less their capacity. 

 The shining generalities usually quoted blind casual 

 eyes to other and desolate facts. As against the 



