﻿34 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  less 
  valuable 
  now 
  than 
  forty 
  or 
  fifty 
  years 
  ago, 
  there 
  was 
  pre- 
  

   pared 
  for 
  use 
  in 
  a 
  certain 
  litigation 
  an 
  extended 
  discussion 
  of 
  

   this 
  question. 
  The 
  discussion 
  in 
  question 
  applies 
  particularly 
  

   to 
  catchment 
  areas 
  in 
  Wyoming 
  county, 
  the 
  runoff 
  data 
  being 
  

   from 
  gagings 
  of 
  Oatka 
  creek 
  for 
  the 
  years 
  1890-92. 
  

  

  Wyoming 
  county 
  is 
  an 
  elevated 
  region 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  general 
  

   character 
  throughout. 
  Formerly 
  it 
  was 
  covered 
  with 
  heavy 
  

   pine, 
  hemlock, 
  oak, 
  beech, 
  maple, 
  ash 
  and 
  elm 
  forests. 
  At 
  the 
  

   present 
  time 
  the 
  forest 
  area 
  is 
  exceedingly 
  small, 
  and 
  what 
  there 
  

   is 
  left 
  of 
  it 
  is 
  so 
  scattered 
  and 
  so 
  open 
  as 
  to 
  exercise 
  almost 
  no 
  

   effect 
  on 
  stream 
  flow. 
  In 
  order 
  to 
  illustrate 
  the 
  progressive 
  

   changes 
  which 
  may 
  take 
  place 
  in 
  the 
  water-yielding 
  capacity 
  of 
  

   a 
  given 
  catchment 
  area, 
  the 
  writer 
  compiled 
  from 
  the 
  census 
  

   reports 
  for 
  each 
  decennial 
  period 
  from 
  1850 
  to 
  1890, 
  inclusive, 
  

   the 
  statistics 
  as 
  therein 
  given 
  for 
  Wyoming 
  county, 
  the 
  assump- 
  

   tion 
  being 
  that 
  whatever 
  was 
  true 
  of 
  Wyoming 
  county 
  must 
  be 
  

   substantially 
  true 
  of 
  the 
  Oatka 
  creek 
  catchment 
  area 
  of 
  27.5 
  

   square 
  miles, 
  situated 
  in 
  the 
  central 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  county. 
  The 
  

   census 
  data 
  give 
  the 
  total 
  area, 
  total 
  improved 
  area 
  for 
  a 
  por- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  period, 
  tilled 
  area 
  and 
  permanent 
  meadows, 
  total 
  

   unimproved 
  area, 
  woodland 
  and 
  forest 
  area, 
  and 
  the 
  miscel- 
  

   laneous 
  unimproved 
  area. 
  As 
  illustrating 
  the 
  changes 
  which 
  

   have 
  taken 
  place 
  in 
  Wyoming 
  county 
  since 
  1850, 
  the 
  writer 
  

   merely 
  cites 
  from 
  the 
  tabulations 
  that, 
  with 
  a 
  total 
  area 
  of 
  

   387,840 
  acres, 
  the 
  total 
  improved 
  area 
  was 
  223,533 
  acres 
  in 
  

   1850, 
  and 
  356,880 
  acres 
  in 
  1890. 
  The 
  total 
  unimproved 
  area 
  was 
  

   164,307 
  acres 
  in 
  1850 
  and 
  only 
  30,960 
  acres 
  in 
  1890, 
  of 
  which 
  

   26,960 
  was 
  woodland 
  and 
  forest 
  and 
  4000 
  miscellaneous 
  unim- 
  

   proved 
  area. 
  

  

  Again, 
  the 
  tables 
  show 
  that 
  in 
  1850 
  there 
  were 
  50,035 
  acres 
  

   in 
  clover 
  seed 
  and 
  grass 
  seed, 
  wheat, 
  rye, 
  corn, 
  oats, 
  peas, 
  beans, 
  

   potatoes, 
  barley 
  and 
  buckwheat, 
  while 
  in 
  1890 
  the 
  same 
  crops 
  

   showed 
  71,915 
  acres. 
  In 
  1850 
  the 
  area 
  in 
  oats 
  amounted 
  to 
  

   18,132 
  acres, 
  while 
  in 
  1890 
  it 
  amounted 
  to 
  29,083 
  acres. 
  Barley 
  

   in 
  1850 
  covered 
  2409 
  acres, 
  and 
  in 
  1890, 
  14,164 
  acres. 
  Again, 
  the 
  

   area 
  in 
  hay 
  amounted 
  in 
  1850 
  t'p 
  S? 
  ? 
  563 
  acres, 
  and 
  in 
  1890 
  to 
  

  

  