74 



THIRD ANNL AL SESSIONS 



Dry Farming and Irrigation. 



"This must be the compliment of irrigation, for notwithstanding be- 

 ing entirely different in appearance both are similar in their results, 

 consisting of two different ways of getting the same thing — moisture 

 for the plants. 



"In order to take the most advantageous profit from the irrigation 

 systems in dry lands, the water which remains in the irrigated field 

 should be used without great expense for dry farming purposes, in limited 

 areas for orchards, etc. This being located below that field, down stream, 

 even in lands a little higher than the first one. In this case the water 

 may be stored and pumped. 



"Thinking in such a manner, I used to study irrigation, observing at 

 the same time something along the dry farming line which was a special 

 order from the last president of my state in Brazil, one of the men who 

 recently brought about many improvements in my country. He revo- 



Revoiution in Farming. 



lut'onized the state of M'nas Geraes from the primitive methods of cul- 

 tivat on and established scientific agriculture, introducing there the most 

 advantageous systems of treating the soii. Unhappily for us Brazilians, 

 this exceptional man died four months ago, when by the whole country 

 he was spontaneously called to be candidate for the presidency for the 

 next term of the Republic of Brazil. 



Brazilian Student of Dry Farming. 



"The name of this man rs Joao Pinheiro da Silva, whose memory 

 we Brazilians love, as you do the memory of your greatest men. It 

 must be known by this Congress as that of the Brazilian who in an 

 official capacity was interested most in the dry farming process, prin- 

 cipally because this meeting is the first one attended by a Brazilian. 

 Joao Pinhe'ro da Silva was one of the greatest of all Brazilians in our 

 time, one of the founders of our republic, and one of its best statesmen, 



"He knew that the greatest benefactor of a country is the man who 

 makes the soil productive, and among other important problems of his 

 most excellent administration, he realized entirely the agricultural trans- 

 formation of his state. His value was too great to be confined within the 

 boundary of my country. By his death in the history of Brazil a new page 

 is opened from which, when his work will have been written, will irra- 

 diate light strong enough to shine beyond the frontier of my country, 

 and he will be known wherever the history of America would be studied 

 without regional prejudice, when the flags of American countries will 

 form together a large flag of peace and fraternity, which will wave over 

 all parts of the Western hemisphere, testifying to the world the com- 

 plete victory of the Monroe Doctrine. 



Dry Farming in Brazil. 



"Dry farming if successfully applied would be the best thing we 

 could get for northern Brazil, below the Amazonic basin, that can offer 



