IRRIGATION WORK IN CALIFORNIA. XCI, 
There are numerous irrigating schemes dependent on 
electric transmission, in addition to those which were 
visited. Most of them use electricity produced from water 
power, but some are operated from steam plants. It 
matters not how the electricity is produced so long as it 
can be sold at a price to render irrigation payable. 
Writing on the subject of irrigation, Mr. Newell, Chief of 
the Hydrographic Branch of the U.S. Survey, expresses 
the following views on the transmission of power :—‘‘ The 
facility for transmitting power has revolutionized many 
industries. Such is the condition in Southern California, 
where a number of generating stations have been erected 
in various canyons, and the electric wires converging 
towards Los Angeles, make possible numerous industries 
in the vicinity of the city, and drive many small irrigating 
pumps. Cheap power means ability to pump water, and 
water supply in turn, makes possible an extension of 
irrigation, and this is the principal step towards more 
homes and a settled population.”’ 
The following extracts from the Second Annual Report 
of the U.S. Reclamation Service may also be of interest, 
because they bear on the same question. The report deals 
with projects under consideration and work carried out. 
The quantity of water which it is customary to apply to 
the land for irrigating varies considerably according to 
circumstances. Where water is plentiful it is frequently 
wasted, or has been in the past, and applied in such 
quantities as to injure plant life. It is not only necessary 
to apply water, but equally necessary to prevent the soil 
from becoming water-logged. Constant application of 
water without adequate provision for drainage has in some 
places caused much injury. The quantity of water 
necessary to irrigate an acre, as estimated by various 
water companies in Southern California, ranges from 1 
