CHAPTER XXV. 



197 



pressure, are one-half inch iron with a valve, such as is above de- 

 scribed, over each hole. The pipes are connected and disconnected 

 by means of a Wilgus union. Both troughs and pipes can be easily 

 transferred from one portion of an orchard to another. 



As to the objections to the system, there are apparently but two. 

 The first and most important objection is the difficulty of getting a 

 suiBciently long run of water to be able to irrigate in this manner; 

 for it takes from two to four times as long, according to the nature 

 of the soil, to irrigate by it. 



Inter-Irrigation 



We think this objection would in practice amount to little or noth- 

 ing, if a community should adopt the system. If the existence of an 

 orchard depends upon it, or the successful maturing of a crop, we 

 apprehend that arrangements could be made for giving the individual 

 rancher his water in from two to four times the length of run, cut- 

 ting him down in quantity correspondingly. 



It has been ascertained that soils differ in regard to their porosity 

 and, consequently, in their absorbing power. The extremes seem to 

 be in different soils, that a single hole will soak away from five to 

 fifteen gallons of water per hour, this largely depending upon the 

 amount of moisture that there is in a soil; a perfectly dry soil re- 

 quiring much more time than the soil containing six to eight per 

 cent of moisture. This must be determined by each rancher for him- 

 self. It is done by placing a barrel containing a known quantity of 



