INTRODUCTORY. 
5 
These studies were made to get the facts necessary for an in¬ 
telligent understanding. They show that the conditions of the 
plains are changing, and with the passing of land into private own¬ 
ership, that the conditions of the open range are different from 
what they were a few years since. A large portion still remains 
public land and is likely so to do for years to come. In one re¬ 
spect it has been unfortnnate, because it is then to no one’s in¬ 
terest to protect the grasses but rather to get as much return as 
possible, without regard to the killing of the grasses and the de¬ 
terioration of the range which was inevitable. The range will sup¬ 
port fewer cattle than it used to do. A consideration of the situa¬ 
tion inevitably brings up the consideration of the range question 
as an important public factor. These introductory statements 
can scarcely be made without a word as to the irrigation of the 
plains, and to answer the numerous inquiries of this kind which 
are received. There are no running streams on the plains. There 
are many dry channels which contain water after floods. Some of 
the streams like the Republican or Cherry Creek have water near 
their heads which soon dissapears. The possibilities of irrigation 
from streams are therefore limited. It takes the water from three 
to five acres of mountain water shed to irrigate one acre of land. 
If a corresponding ratio could be maintained on the plains through 
storage reservoirs and catchment of floods, 20 per cent, would be 
an extreme estimate. 
There are almost no attempts yet made for irrigation from 
storm waters other than catching floods in stream channels and 
conducting them into reservoirs. Some small attempts have been 
made to catch water in plow furrows on gentle slopes. The result 
has been promising enough to encourage further trials. There is 
an increasing tendency to raise water by windmills. From all 
these methods small areas may be expected to be developed and 
give a small percentage of irrigated land, with the unirrigated 
lands used under range conditions. 
