TllE TER-lQUyVAiy .AU,n.t,u. UlUltaUivi' AlQmriMj, JAVUA11Y 1.1003. 7 I
UTAH EXPERIMENT STATION SI EajI
a?ffirga3IE3ZlESgE:g .- : 1 1
Chansej In tlio Stuff.
Ctah nxperlment ntntlon nuf
, severe loss tills year In the
,it!on t Professor F. It. Llnftold,
took effect early In October
,,or Llnflelel hnd been with the
jtlon nil"" years, "nd nttl1 worke 1
miu, earnestly and Intelligently
r.fidt period for the advancement
ih nsrlculturc The roccnt do-
or the iHlr Industry In
nhllc n natural part of the gen
row th of tho State has undoubt
Un gtcatly furthered by tho nc
EJrs nf Protestor LlnHeld In
, i of )100 Fro'eror Llnrtell was
(harKe of the Depirtment of Anl
Bul nlryof the nxperlni"nt stn
,,,, f o lint time, until his res
Jn wns busllv occupied In pic
jthe den itmcnt for effective ex
!Hll ork He leaves the lie
Hit wl h plans for future work
-y n nturod nnd with buildings
ilapted for the needs of tho do
int ill of which will he of Im
. bene"! to his successor Pro-
j,lnrkld catno to the Experiment
i from Canada, where he hnd
,t 1 ' xin the Agricultural col
it ou ph and where he hnd had
frn I exr rlcnce as a leetuter
jt j Institutes lie also spent
tlr e nt the dairy school at the
rilD of Wisconsin bcfoie coming
lb Ills present position, ns head
( 0 pirtmuit of Agriculture In
Mont " College of Agriculture
B the Montana Fxpcrlmcnt eta
US very desirable oni which will
h hln with ample opportunity for
3pns the agricultural resojrees
jri na
ro unfortunate department of
uti Txp -Imetit stntlon Is that of
olture During the Ian eight
, ix Indlvlduils hive directed
upcrlmcntul horticultural work,
,, uence six plans for work
ken t sde and unn ade Profes
;a Nrlhtit. who was appolntod
j j'tlin of horticulturist In Oe
. i 1 r slrncd July 1 11)02, thus
I hit! oni) nine months In tho
t of the Institution IIowcer
i posltlor us elltor of the Inter
tiln 1'armer he Is serving the
ot agriculture In this region
My I ore elTectlvcl) than he could
rtlmlrurlst at the Agricultural
i mil while this Institution lost
dtul and Industrious worker, tho
his en tied by the rhanBO.
( or Wrl 'lit a sui censor Pro
il N Unit, a nulh e of Canada,
t gn uate of the tluelph Agrl
ttl college, arrived In Utah last
it He Is excellent! well pre
I 'n his subject, and has an un
'ei enthusiasm for the ndvnnce
uf i (culture in Utah Ho has
id I wheie Information and en
wi II applied We hope for
1" fro i Professor Hutt s li.
at hr ha be ome arquifntel
Ih r iltlois mil melhol-. of tills
nuutt) Proressor
In I ad much experience is a I
-at lecturer This will
i s'mtc lo I t li furn-ers
A n ultuml college "hm aim
hi jnate In tecurlng the hervlces
or or r, I) rail mi expert en
H who his worked for sev- I
no ut the Colorado Agricultural
c i MTAsshontierii, the codling
jnl other sett pests As n
xt ' tho mtlon Btnff. we nro
1 rt )ir will be nble lo do much
oinlng ilie extensive ravages
on the farms nnd In the or
jr' t tah Willi nice chinnes.
oilon staff remains tho sime as
rfporteil In the New Year's Trl
tor 1905
New Equipment.
init this joar the new barns,
il by the Inst IrfKlsliture, havo
Irel and found cry satisfactory
sinter. Rhtep feeding experiments,
this enr. experiments with sheep
snd cows have bun cnrrled on
(Mrns. nnd we And that there Is
n to spare Durlnir this jeir,
It" lx acres of InnJ provided by
lint LcKlslature has been use!
lanl Is loeited off the irravelly
t h II and Is rpilte reiircentatlve
mr t malorlty nf I'nh soils Tor
'nt time In the hlslory of the l'..
fit ititlon, Ihoroushly satlsfae
T'ults hi our flel 1 experiments
be n nhtnlned nnd wt have been
it vv ih emphasis the losou that
. """'-" y.,m.,i,v.att
2h!e If1'1. "Pcrlments upon Ih
Inritel) In vvnstlnr time, energy anl
noney. ru rea ,,f laml ure of
ouurr" In-ufflclent for the 'need, of
nil, itCr "i".,U" nna we ,rut that the
nf, .A,li,,lnur' wm " nt lo "ant
?," ; Bd' Uunal ten or fifteen ncres. so
hi L? ' our n"p"i-ate Held vork miy
satlrrattnry results
b71ihni0W. VKt.,V'on hm' ProvlIeJ
!L .1 '""' Le)flsliiute was used dur
iik the pa.t sutiMicr. Tl so pot ex
Hrlincnts are the first In the uild West
,,,! lmnH ,m)B bce" " tlfactory
fnrirers ffr'ftt UcnelU t0 Vuh
i,..!,1 Vm ',on. l'aSy heru' "Mrh h'
been arilkted 1,1th tuberculosis nnd
other ellsinses for several years wt
i!,n.f0lJ.1.carly ln lhe "Pr!ni;"of 1901
in order that no dlsenscd animal should
be brought Into the new barns A row
dairy herd of ciadc Sthorthom lows
was selected and puichnsed last sum
mer. Out experiments with this herd
are now In progress und we hope In
the near future to add much Informs.
5J,.M.conc"nl,,R ,h0 '"f5r f'calnB nud
irattOBerrent of dairy cows to that al
ready published bj the station.
Work Accomplished.
In Keneral the work of the station Is
more and more carefully planned fiom
.?. S 5"'a,r' '" mme "J'tematlcftl!)
pursued, and as a consequence the le
rults obtained arc trustworthy nnd of n
rundainentul nalute A very encouniK
OBlne; feature of the station work Is the
unity with which the members of the
station staff labor for tho udvaneenient
of V'tah airrlculturc
Hurlng the past )ear the central sub
ject for Invesllg-atlon his been Irriga
tion. The work btRun in ljOl has bfen
cnnlltiucd und extended One hundred
plats on tho new hind recentls acquired
wcie pliciil ut a lost of over JlnQI un
der a fine and durable sjstem of Hum
Inif On these plats exhnustlvo experl
ments were made concerning tho rlht
nrrount of water to use the best time
to npply If the ncthol of npplslntj It,
and the effect of various methols of
Irrigation upon soils and crops This
Investigation is undoubtedlv the most
elnborale study of the art of Irrigation
ever undertaken The lesulls, which arc
now belnic prepared for publication, ure
of hlrh economic ImiHirtnnce
In conniction with this work, exten
Jlve lot experiments In the new vtijetn
Hon house his been conducted with the
view of uscertiilnltiR the water ieiuhe
ti cuts of the different soils found In the
Binle Tor thu work half a carload of
roll, repiesentatlve of Ranpcte und Ho
tter counties, wns shin ed to I ognn,
and other oils wrc brouuht from eon
sldcrable dlctnncet to the college This
Investigation his also yielded excellent
results
The deportment of Irrigation engl
neerlng has begun a w.iter survey of
the Stete and Is nttemptlni: to gather
nnd comi lie all available Informntlon
roneernlng the wnter condlllons In dlf
feretit louilltles This work will form
the basis for moio IntrluUe work to be
done In the stitlon experiments Intel -cstlng
Invei-tlKiitlons of the value of full
and winter Irrigation of orchnrds ure
uIfu In InoiTisa
'lhe stork 'iidustr of tho Btute Is be.
Ing studied chlelly vlth reference to the
best methods of maintaining animals
upon lhe farm The free ranges of tho
State are gradually being reduced In
slse nnd those that remain have In a
large mtaurc been overstoeked and
destroeeei. The time is upon us when
the stock Industry will have to be
changed to conform with prpsent con
ditions. This will undoubtedly rtsult In
more nnlinols being kept and fed upon
the fnrinH than Is now the rase. In an
ticipation of this change the expeil
ments now In progre-es havo boon
planned.
During last winter nnd nlso this enr
the value of the bv-producte of the su
l,ar factor! have been Inirstlgated and
some ver fnvornble results have been
obtained pertnlnlm: lo the proper use
nnd value of sm-nr-bt-et pulp and the
waste molasses of the factor). Diges
tion experiments with molasses und
frfkh sour b et pulp are throwing con.
sldernble light upon the feeding value
of thift substances Our results, It Is
In be hoped will cause the rrorc geneial
use of these bj -products by the farmers
who rnlse the beets
The now famous poultry experiments
REVIEW OF THE CROP SEA50M OF 1902. 1
( fall nf 1001 was too dry to give
Wi n good start The following
r hrwevcr, was mild nnd the crop
(il the growing season of 1902 In
tondlHon.
Iruarj -Orchards were pruned
ilLrlng the Inst week, ploughing
tesun In several localities Kail
ilniprovid nnd at the close of tho
li was In good condition Sheep
ed In some localities on account
ttliortnirv In moisture, but, on tho
i stnek pasi-ed thiough the month
'rll good condition Muny nf the
lint' wore, klllid In Weher cftun
" o J int tcsult of the extended
& of ilensi fog durliu- the first
n the- low temperature during
'l r pnrt of Jnnuiry With this
It 01 the fi nit crop pissed
th the winter without Injury.
fh The old stormy wenlher of
wnlli held back vegetation nnd In
il v Ith farm work The month
"W in tlio senson nt least ten diyo
tnnii u ual A little ploughing was
1 ill grain made some gmwth
tontituieii In pool ronditloii Krult
eri welling rapldlj at tho cloic
tnnnlli but hid not opened.
Psnl nttlc were In good condl-
rl Two or three iinusunlly cold
': irred ilurlnr the month Light
lorinr l on sovirnl mornings, nnd
inernlnrs of the 10th and 15th
B innpcritures wero general
liie nm The tool wenthei and
' (ri vented rapid growtli, but
w m damage. Tho henvy rains,
o uirel over tho northern por
" lycd fnrm work In some cases,
' vety benothlnl to vegetation
Pr tt.lt lion of thn iiouthern sec
las iuir nKlti )Ut KCerniy mf
in liep glowing uops In good
ni'in l'loui'hltig prjgressed rapld
"r t hilf of the month, bpilng
i, rnln' "f whlih wns torn
' e nit the IV h, lamii up nicely,
i r, ",frc P'onteel liming the
' ic mics and were coming up
' " lutei part of tho month
" r sown nnd enrlj potatoes
I" 'Jed during the list decade
"i at bnrlej, lucerne nnd grass
-.-, --'-'-j.-.-Ji-i-jtv.-i-ij;tl.
msdo good growth. Apricots, almonds
nnd penches came Into bloom the sec
ond week nnd chenles and plum the
third week Tho fruit crop passed
through the month In excellent condi
tion. Miy While the mean temperature
for May wis practlculli normal the
month was one of extremes several
davs of unusually low temperature al
ternating with n like period of unusual
1 warm weather. Heavj frost was
nulte peneral over the State on the
mornings of the 3rd, Cth and from the
Ulh to 21st The cold snnp of the lHh
to 21st did considerable damage to fruit
nnd tender plants In parts of Juab,
Mlllnrd. Heaver Iron. Sanpete Sevier
flarfleld, Carbon, Tmerj, Ulntnh and
Fan Juan counties. In some parts of
hanpete nnd Sevier counties sugar
beets were so bully damayed that re
planting wns nieeskary In other por
tions of the statu very little damage
resulted from thu trusts The precipi
tation was clpfUlcnt, hut sulllelent to
keep rrops In i,ood condition On the
whole, crops did well. Tall wheat, bar
ley and re wero In good londltlon nnd
leglnnlng to head nt the close nf the
month Srlng wheat nnd osts made
rood growth Tho tlrst crop nf nlfolfa
was up to the average, and Its harvest
begun in lhe southern section
Sugar beets were In excellent condition
and thinning completed Potatoes and
corn, whleh wero planted during tho
first two decades came up nlcclj. Ap
ples nnd pears bloomed during tho first
wck On the whole, the fruit crop
pasted through the month In very good
condition
June Spells of unutuallv warm
neither occurred from the 8th to nth,
md from 21st lo 24th, but there was
inough cool wenlher to make tho aver
ngo temperilure for the month only
slightly eceslve, Light frosts occurred
In elevated legions of the State on the
2nd nud 3rd nnd nf the northern coun
ties on the lSth I'otato vines nnd other
fndcr plants were nltped but no ie
rlous dnmago done On tho whole, the
lemperaluie conditions of tho month
were fnnrnb!e for growing crors. With
tho exception nf the north-central por
tion nt lhe State, lhe rnlnfnll was tno
llRht tn be of service l)r land wheat
was general! badly damaged b the
nanihTjra"TyiH fr;rereraTf3iragErsri
1 of the Itah ststloi have been contin
ued. rrof Drvden li now devoting u
considerable portion of his enemies to
establishing methods of careful selec
lion, u strain of birds of high cgs. lay
ing qualities. In this he has nlienJ
. been quite sucte-pful and It is onl a
I matter of months before the collene
tedlgrced stock will be distributed, as
far as posslbli, among lhe people of the
State Hequests for poultry Informa
tion nnd for eggs and toultry from the
slat, on stock ceiine from all over the
civilized world
The deturtment of agronomy, under
Prof I. A. Merrill's direction, has sys
teumtlxed the testing of various crops
suitable for Utah farms, nnd It Is now
In a position lo rive reliable Informa
tion concerning the best varieties of
oroLs for the State The vvorlc with va
rieties has been transfened to a piece
of land with deep soil which will maks
lhe results much more sitlsfactory than
he have been In the pust The special
work, now undertaken. Is the Improve
ment of the varieties that are already
adupted lo our climatic eonJltlons by
means of selection und breeding Such
work hits a great future before It, and
It Is hoped nothing will arise to Inter
fere with the successful continuation of
the experiments now inaugurated along
ihls line. The maintenance of soil fer
..Illy bv thu proper rotation of crops Is
also being nulled b) the department of
iigrononv, with results already ob
tained that Indicate the necessity for
n ore careful soil tieutment. If the funn
els ct Utah shall expect the fertility of
their polls to be mnlntulned This work
Is of stecial Importance In view of the
established fact that the lands upon
which unwlre cropping lias been prac
ticed are lelnc leduccd to a etnte which
Is not very different from that which
ehiracteilres the Foils cu" ihe Hast and
of Euroje, where the lands were ruined
Out Ing ccntuiles before scientific agri
culture wns developed
The station Is nlso making an exten
sive soil survej which should In time
cover every rortlon of the State Chem
ical and phv stent nnnlvsls of the soil
m tin lis taken are n arte nnd such ilnta
obtalnfd ns will lend tn it correct estl
n ate of the value of the soils for agri
cultural purposes In connection with
this vvmk the recent studv nf dry or
arid fnrirlng made by the station offi
cers should be mentioned Trotn a care
ful consideration of the soil nnd meteor
ologlenl conditions of the Slnto It has
beiome evident lo the members of the
station staff that thousands of acres of
lind that are not un ler In Igotlon cnnnls
nnd probably ncvei shall bo may bo
utilized for the growing of grain or for
certain drouth resistant fnrnge plants.
Much Is snld about the future stock
industry of the State. A contribution
to the solution of this question will be
the pluming of many of the deserts that
are now covered with sage brush, rab
bit brush grease wood nnd shnd scale
to some crop which will grow up In the
I spring and leld n fair forage until the
dry pnrt of the season comes on This
subject In worthv of the most careful
ntttn'lon of the teople cT Utah and the
station oilers have urged and do urge
lhat the Slate carry on for four or live
5 ears experiments In different parts of
the State that will test the possibilities
of nrld farming In the Stall. The Ted
eral funds cannot he use 1 for maintain
ing such stations else the station would
osert every power lo make Iho tests
In co-operation with a few firmers llv
Ing In the vlclnlO of Logan u great
number of varieties of seeds ore being
grown on the drv farms In order to
nrilve at a knowledge of the best vari
eties for this kind of fanning Different
n ethoi's of culture are alFo being In
vestigated In connection with Ihese ex
pertinents. To hive the greatest value,
rovveer, such work muit bo done In
ellffe'ent ports of tho State, for our ell.
matlc conditions vurj too much to en
able us to say that what Is true for
Cache velle is true for the whole
The alkali question Is dally rrovvlng
In Importance for some of the most
viluible lands of the State are being
ruined through alkali In co-o erntlon
with the burenu of soils of the Depirt
ment of agriculture the stitlon Is con
ducting an experiment on the reclam
ation of atknll lands This will be dls
e.u red In another portion of this paper
Numerous requests have como to the
station for Information concerning the
proper kinds of drinking waters, slnco
drouth. The Fupply of Irrigation water
decreased rnpldlv during the latter half
of the month but there wns generally
suPlclent wnter for the usual purposes,
except In parts of Juab Millard Heaver
und Iron counties Irrigated crops
rrnde rapid growth Spring wheat and
catB did well llarle and rje were be
ing hnrvested during tho Inst week, nnd
fall wheat wns ripening rnpldlv. The
dry weather was favorable for haying
nnd nn average first crop of alfalfa was
stored In good condition Corn nnd po
tatoes did well rnrl potatoes were
lendy for use during the last decade. A
gool crop of strawberries and gooseber
ries wns harvested during the first two
decades, nnd cherries, raspberries nnd
bliekborrles were plentiful the latter
part of the month The ranges were
generally In roor condition.
Jul j, Freezing tcmrerntures and
henv frosts oecuired ln the elevated
vnllevs of the 'tnte on severnl morn
ings between the 2nd and 9th badly
dnmaglng corn whent and nlfnlfn In
plnces Light frosts occurred In Cache,
Morgan. Summit nnd Carbon counties
on the mornings of the Sth nnd 19th.
but did no damage The temperature
conditions of the h it two decades were
renernlly favorable for trowing crops
Tht rnlnfnll of Ihe northern section wns
confined to the first five dnjs and wns
therefore rot nf ns much service ns It
would have been had It been better dis
tributed The precipitation of the mid
dle and southern sections while better
distributed, wns generally too light to
lie of much service. The supply of lr
rlsntlon wnter diminished rarldlv nnd
In some places was not sufficient to
cover the usual nrea Irrigated tn such
rases n pnrt nf lhe crop wns badly dam
aged On the whole growing crops did
fairly well Wheat hirvest was well
ndvanced nnd threshing begun Dry
jsnd whent irnrte n fair jleld In Cnche,
Weber nnd Davis counties, but In other
lncnlltles wns n fnl'iirc, or neirlv so
much of It bring cut for hsj Irrlrnted
whent mnde nbout the average yield
Onte r'Bi'e n full crnn The 'econd crop
of alfrtlfa wns vcrvllirht: mest of It was
rut and 'toreel In mo 1 condition th
latter pnrt of the month. Alfnlfa seet
wns nlso n short crop on account of the
drouth and grasshoppers A flip crop
of timothy wns hnrvested In the nnrth
rentnl rourtles Sugar beets nnd corn
did well Tomatoes were In good con
t'ltlon md lipenlng durlne the list dpc
ade Apricots apples peaches, rears
nnd plums were beginning tn ripen.
High winds on the 2nd blew cansldcra-
I
the tphold etldemlcs In different parts
Qf the Stale have been traced to th
use of Impure water The station has
then fore undertaken an Investigation
of this subject, which hs already been
flnlihed and Is now only nwRlttng pub
lication The results show that the
average drinking water obtained from
wells Is dangerous to the health of man
and animals
lleldes ther lines of work, numerous
minor Investigations nro In progress
In fact, a full nrcuunt of the work
done nnd going on nt the 4-tlc woull
occup) more space than The l-lbuno
can spnre for this repor Of one thing
we are certain, tint e iry mpinber ot
thp s'ntlon staff has nil thp work ho
can possibly do an then ws do not
begin to meet a sm Infraction of th
requests for experiments and Informa
tion that are mads of us
Fubllcatlant
During the year fiV3 bulletins and
ore annual report have been published.
Jo 73 Experiments In Dutter
making nnd Cheen-maklng." by F. U
Llrfeld
So 74 "Lead Ore In Sugsr Ilet
Pulp," by John A. Wldtaoe and I. A.
Men 111
No 75 "Arid Farming or Dry Farm
ing" by John A. s. idtsoe and L A.
Merrill
No 76 "Forcing Lettuce," by C. P.
Close.
No 77.' Horse Feeding," by L. A.
Merrill
Twelfth annual report.
Needs of tho Strtlon.
There are some very pressing needs
that must be met before the station
can do the best work of which It Is
capable I Irst nnd foremost Is the sub
Ject of lubllcatlons On the station
records Is material that would make
between fifteen and twenty Important
bulletins, eich one dealing with live,
subjects The funds of the station are
fo full consumed by the Payment of
salaries and wages, and the running
expenses of the experiments, that prac- I
tleally no mone is left for publications i
It seems unwise to cut down our lines i
of Invcstlpitlon In order to save money
erourh for the proper publishing of our I
results This, however must be done If
the State does not mine to our reseun
bv appropriating money sufficient to
meet our needs tn this respect. Other
stations publish the results of their ex
periments Utah ought to follow suit.
And then, the question of land has nl
read) been mentioned To do the most
effective work we must have more land
which reptesents the majority of Utah
soils, this nlso should be provided by I
the Legislature There Is also a de
mand for a sub-station to be located i
near the central part of the State,
where the problems peculiar to that
portion of the State may bo carrlet on. I
The poullrj department, which Is doing '
such excellent work. Is confined In very
ciowded quarters, and unless Its con
ditions can be Improved Its growth will
be hindered material!). Other stations
are now establishing large poultry
plants; Utah, which has a start of sev
eral years, must keep nt the head To
do that the department must bo given
better facilities for work than It now
possesses For the honor of tho 8tnte
the Legislature should look Into this
mittrr and maks a small appropria
tion for n modern, up-to-dite paultry
building
The Utah experiment station reprp
sents one of the moat Important In
dustries nf the Stnte, nnd, of course,
has many needs, the recital of which
may not be of special Interest to the
renders of the New Vcir's Tribune.
Our requirements have been mot lib
erally In the past by the Legislature,
and we have no reason to doubt the
disposition of the coming Legislature
to deal with us In tho same generous
manner,
Conclusion.
The stitlon Is growing and Its work
Is Improving It hns now over
come, prnctlcall), the effects of the re
organisation of two yenrs ngo, so that
Us work can be conducted In the most
economical and successful manner here
nfter. The station staff desire to give many
thanks to the citizens of the Stite who
by word of mouth and letter havo given
support and encouragement to our en
deavors. Such help Is the best that the
station can get: the station Is earnestly
tr)lng to merit the confidence of the
people of the State.
bio fruit from the trees The ranges
became very dry and, In several local
Itlcs, stock was suffering from shortage
of feed
August Heavy fiost occurred In the
clovated vnlleys of the tiorth-central
1 ortlon of the State on tho mornings of
the 22nd nnd 31st, doing some damage
to spring grain, potatoes and other
tender plints. 'With this exception, the
temperature conditions of the month
were fivornble for growing ciops The
preelpltntlon of the northern nnd mid
die sections was too light to be of any
service. The rainfall of tho southern
section greitly Improved growing crops
und the ranges The supply of Irriga
tion water was generally very scant
and In some localities part of the crop
suffered Harvesting was completed
and thrashing well advanced Corn
generally did well and was In car dur
ing the last decade. Late potatoes were
not up to the nverare. Sugar beets
did well Tomatoes tlpened nicely und
canning progressed rapidly, Apricots
peaches, pears and plums made a good
yield High winds on the 10th blew
considerable fruit from the trees The
ranges were very dry In the southern
and middle sections. umcrn
September The rainfall of the north
ern nnd southern sections was goners .
I) too light to be of service and that of
tho middle section rnme too late to ba
of very much benefit to the ranges The
ground was generally too dry for fill
ploughing and seeding Heavy fro.t
occurred In the northern counties on
the mornings or the 12th and 17th On
the mornings of the 20th and 27th kill.
Ing frost was quite keneral oier he
State Late crops were well advanced
nnd but little dumag was done by th.
frosts Corn mado a good yield aid
wns cut and stored In flrst-cliss condl.
? . ""P"'""' digging , b"un
Potnto digging was sllll In propress ai
the end of the month In n fw looali
ties n light third crop of alfalfa,?":
harvested Thrashing was practically
completed. Tomatoes ripened nicelj
nnd mnde gool teturns Apples mid. i
fair yield The ranges were In very
poor condition r
Octobcr.-The ground wns generally
oo dr) for ploughing nnd very lltti. if
this was done The dry, mild weather
was very fuinrable for other kinds of
farm work The harvesting of potatoes
was completed, but sugar-beet dlgclmr
was still In progress at the close of ths
month. The dr) weather was unfnvora
ble for the Termination and growth of
fall fcriln The ranges wete In very
poor condition In all parts of the State.
November Sugar beet dlgalnn was
completed during the tlrst dei mle ntul
about the average rleld secure 1 The
lest two iWades wsie loo stormy anl
i old for iiitdour farm work Tho heavy
precipitation placed the uround In gool
condition sn furnished plenty or water
for stock Itsngs feed was very scarce
and cattle were beginning to show the J
effects of the shortage Fall grain was
only in fnlr lundltlou
L II. Mt'ltOOCH,
Section Director, U, S. Weather ilil-
renu.
UTAH SHEEPAND WOOL
The year liM was a hard and trying
one on the rsnge floekmasler. Winter
tosses In eoin sections were seveie,
nnd sheep In general came up on th.
spring tause In poor condition The
lamb crop wns fair, being perhaps a lit
tle bettet than the previous year. The
price of wool was higher un an average,
but yot did not reach th. expectations
of the growers', while sheep sheared leas
than tn 1M1 During the aprlng of HM,
a'mepman realised that they were gn'ng
to have sorlous times during the sum
n er sasson. The long drought that
prevailed In this suction tor many
years had reduced materially, tho feed
on tho ranges Irrigators had become
very much exasperated and prejudiced
against sheep, claiming they were the
caute of the shortage In witer, through
deatroylng the undergrowth on water
aheds aai In forcsta, thus causing the
flood season to come much earlier, re
sulting ln a scarcity of water during
the Irrigation season New forest le
serves had been created and the graz
Irg of sheep had been prohibits 1 oi re
structed thereon Idaho had passed bos.
tile legislation toward sheep owned In
that State and had barred Utah sheep
by pretended sanitary me-Hsures The
lutu.es of western Wjomlng were
grcnil) overstocked. For the sheep
owners there was but one wuy out of
this dilemma, and that was to ship all
the sheep poealble to leading live-stock
markets The large corn crop In the
East and the piospects for heav de
lnands for feeders buo)ed up tho hopes
of the wool-growers. Some growers be
came discouraged nnd concluded to
close out their entire holdings, while
others cut down ns close ns possible.
The consequenco was that sheep wile
thrown wildly on the market, and the
railroads ware so overcome with orders
for cars that they were entirely unable
tu move the stock when des'red Sheep
were held around loading places for
weeks, with little feed, and when placed
on the market were poor, and wero sold
at ruinous prices These owncrn who
were fortunate enough to obtain cars,
and thereby reach the market early
with fat stock, realized good prliea
while those who went on the market
lute, were met with disastrous figures
Prices received for lambs were loner
than ever known before That Is, In
brief, the history of the sheep and wool
Industry ln Utah for 1902
The new )tar opens up with Improved
prospects The reduction of flocks tho
past )car haa left a better class of
sheep, as not only were tho fat ones
shipped, but nearly all Mocks have been
culiel of old and poor sheep Tho out
look for higher prices for wool the com
ing srnson. Is excellent. Old stocks ot
wool, both domestic and foreign, which
for jnirs had been hanging over the
market, have been practically worked
off Consumers will be obliged to rely
more largely than for man) )enrs upon
the coming clip In suppl)iug their
needs Most lines of woolen goods havo
been taken freely at advanced prices,
nnd In recent mouths wools has gradu
ally ndvanecd.
The range problem Is )et a serious
one. While sheep were reduced In num
bers there are still nltogether too many
In the country tor the .limited summer
ranges
The order of reduction from 200 000 to
125 000 sheep In the Ulntnh forest re
serve, unless modified, will create a
great and unnecessary hardship upon
the wool-growers this enr. A large
number of tlockmnslers will be driven
to desperation In trlng to obtain sum
mer pasturage, and another panic on
the llve-stoek markets nnd further ruin
ous prices will be the result, That the
sheepmen will protest against this re
duction there Is no doubt, und errorts
will be mude to have the forest reserves
In Utah put under a resident superin
tendent, one who Is not eireludlced
against the wool Industry.
The claim that sheep destroy forests
In a myth. A leading Government ex
pert who wns out In this section admits
this In traveling over a private sheep
range last senson for one week, I could
not discover one tree that was barked
This range supported to the acre nearly
three times the number of sheep that
were allotted to the Uintah forest re
serve last year, and sheep were grazed
on It a longer period of time
The statement that sheep cause the
flood season to come earlier Is also a
fallacy. This can easily lie shown by
the streams that are located In Salt
Lake valley. City creek Is a protected
stream, no sheep or live stock bcltur al
lowed to graze on Its watersheds; while
Little Cottonwood and lllg Cottonwood
ere unprotected It Is well known that
the waters In City creek rise earlier In
th. reason than the Cottonwoods, and
Co down earlier. This always has been
the condition, and still Is. If th)
theories of the opponents ot sheep were)
correct, these streams should change
lelatlve positions The opponents of
the sheep are mistaken, us shown by
tho plain facts, which upset their
theories.
There Is no doubt on the part of well
Informed persons as to the cause of thu
shortage of water in Utah The direc
tor of the weather bureau states In his
report that the last sixteen years has
been the driest period known In t'tih
since Its settlement, and that tho last
three yenrs has been the worst section
of that period Lack of precipitation la
the couw of low watar, and the sheep
have no more to do with It than has the
man In the moon.
With the ranges adjusted nnd tho
forest reserves Intelligently handled,
huwever, there Is no reason why wool
growing should not continue to be one
of the leading Industries of this anl ad
joining States.
R II CALLISTnil.
Secretary Utah Wool-Growers' Association.
TO BEND TIIUNKS BY WIRE.
If even thing goes us Stephen Fowler
of tandem desires and American rail
rouds udopt his scheme the profane, pie.
tureseiue ranked lis kg use smasher will
rose Into history and the trunk of the
traveler will stand a fighting ehanco with
a ludraulle conveyor. Mr. Fowler snld
Tho London & Southwi stern has re
ccntl) put In operation an serial trans
mitter Iron towers have been ended
and from each run four cables Thrs
era placed along the main tracks nnd
run Into the station. Attached to the
transmitter Is a cage In which tho trunk
Is deposited The baggage stent puts n
Hunk In the csg, nulls a lever snd In a
minute the trunk Is by the bagynge car
ready to be taken In The principle la
lhat of the merchsndtss carriers In Amer
' sn dry goods stores "New rork Tribune
THE ALKALI LANDS OF UTAH. 1
I Y Dft. JOHN A. V7IDTE0Q, 9
I m
What It Alkallf
The grent fertlllt) of Utah soils Is tho
Indirect cause of the alknll curse In
an arid country, with scanty rainfall,
not ennurh moisture foils ns n rule to
soak through the soils nnd connect with
th. countr) drainage nnd thus to wash
tho soluble matters of the soil Into the
oceun As a result the soluble sub
stances of ugrlculturol lands remain In
Ihe suit nnd Increase with the jearn as
the disintegration ut the soil particles
continue The most gel era! definition
of nlkull Is that It Is the water soluble
t ortlon of tre soli These soluble roll
constituents ure, with few exceptions,
the most excellent plant foods nnd
man) of then are lndlsi ensable to plint
life However, when for any reason the
soluble parts of the toll are concentra
ted near the surface their action upon
lltttit roots and stems Is Injurious.
llow Alkali Is Formed,
In most Utah soils tin re Is un nbund
anco of soluble suits but the c me us.
uully so uniformly distributed through
the lower la)ers us to bo harmless to
plants hen Irrigation of such lands
Is begun the upward man ment of the
soil water, resulting from the evnporti.
tlon nt the surface, brings the solublo
raits to the surface, where the) are left
as the water cvnporatos This explains
the fact that the inujorlty of deep fer
tile soils of this Stnte, If Irrigated In
cnutlousl), will Dually become convert
ed Into alkali lands Hxcellent Ulustru
tlors of this principle nre found In Ueur
river nlle), where the alkali rises In
a mild form after a few )cnrs of Irrl
gution farming
On certain of the low lands tho no
annul illon ot ntknll takes place In
qulto a different manner Thu higher or
be nch lands found In Utah are com
pa"ratlvely shillon, the depth vurjlng
from six Inches to fifteen or twent)
feet. Those who own thcee lands fre
eiuentl) fall lo understand that lighter
and more- frequent Irrigations should be
given tin hi' shallow soils which there
lore, arc often over-Irrigated, The re
sult Is that the water souks through
the soil and thi looso gruvell) or sandy
sub-poll into the country drainage, and
is nniill) aecumulnte-d under the sur
face of the bottom lands of the valley,
ln Its passage through the poll the water
carries with It the soluble materials that
It encounters and so there Is a gradual
nrcumulntlon In the bottom lands of the
soluble material taken from tho up
lands Hvnporatlon got-s on In the water
j logged bottom soils with great npldlty
land In n short time the lowlands be
come heavily Impregnated with alknll.
It Is nlso n well-known fact that the
;nnln Irrigation canals of this Stal
elclrt the foothills und rest frequently
on shallow soil The pecpngp from these
cnnnls frequently nmounte to one-fourth
or more of the total amount of wnter
carried by them This pecpnge water
also finds Its wny through the soil to
the bottom of the valley and In Its de
scent carries with It large quantities of
alknll dissolved In Its descent.
Of the two methods of alkali forma
tion this Inst, depending upon seepage
from canals or from Irrigation from
higher lands, Is by far the most dnn
gerous 1 ecnuso It frequently happens
that In time n few square miles of low
1 inds may have concentrated in them
the greater rortlon of the soluble salts
nf the soil of a large valley. In most or
the voile) s thit have been settled tor
some time the damage has long since
been done nnd the condition Ib not be.
ing Improved by the present methods of
farming Orent rtrotehen of rnph nlkn
llicsl bottom binds trny bo found In
Cache valley, In Fall Lnkn vnlley. In
Utah vnlley, ln Sanpete isllev and Se.
vler vnllp). In enrh of these districts
nre great stretches of Intrinsically fer
tile land that are now being abandoned
becnuse of the alknll
Utah Is not nlnne In this trouble. It
Is found throughout western America,
ns well ns In nil countries where Irrl
gnllon hns been practiced In India
nnd Ferynt under the direction of the
officers of the Hrltlsh Oovernmcnt, more
or I'-ss suec'-ssful ntterrpts have Tie en
mnde to reclaim these vast stretches ot
alkali lands.
Composition of Alknll.
In the nlVnll ns ordlnnrllv found In
Utah three subtnnces prcdomlnnto So
dium sulphate or Olnuber's salt, so
dium chloride or common salt, nnd so.
dlum cnrlionnte or sal soda. Of thero
three the solium sulptmto Is least dan-l-ernus
nnd Interferes with plant rrnwth
only when It Is present In very large
quantities It Is the white Inrrulntlon
on rtlsnll lands nnd known common)
i.s white nlknll. From Investigations
mnde bv this station some )enrs ngo It
lins been detennlned that sodium chlo.
ride or common "nit Is somen tint more
Injurious to plnnts thnn Is the sodium
Fulphnte; tn white nlknll a mixture of
thee luo pnlts usually occurs The so.
dlum carbonate Is th p,-qnlled blnck
nlknll nnd Is n much more dnngerous
luhstnnce Solium cnrlionnte- tends to
puddle n poll nnd to cleetro) Its tilth so
that plifnts nre not nble to grow. Tie.
pldes, II hns n corro'lvp notion upon the
plant tissues which Is shown In the
blnck ring which girdles plnnts growing
on such soils nn Inch or two above the
roll.
Chemical Antidotes.
Farly In the history of the battle
against alkali chemical means wero
used to combat this plngue; but It was
poon discovered that the white alkali
cannot successfully be removed, or Its
pctJon diminished by any cjirdlnar)
chemical scents On the other hnnd It
wns found thnt by adding ordinary land
plnster to black alkali It would be con
verted Into the much less dangerous
white variety. This discovery has been
used extensively on the alkali lands of
California nnd India nnd with the most
lie netlclnl results Sllll the conversion
of bluck nlknll Into the white variety
only ameliorates the land, but does not
cure It except when the quantity of the
black nlkal Is so small thnt the corre
sponding quantity of white nlkall has
no Injurious effect upon growing plants
Alltnll ne3latant Plnnts.
Another suggertlon that has met with
considerable favor Is to grow upon al
kali soils certain crops that have tho
power of resisting the hirmful action
of alkali, and of accumulating the
soluble sails ln their leaves and stalks
Such plants, If grown upon alkali toll
and removed from It severnl years In
succession, might removo a sufficient
qunntlty to enable our other farm crops
to thrive upon the soil thereafter.
Among sueh plants have been men
tioned the ordlnnr) grease wood, with
the numerous members of the family to
which It belongs Of highest value has
been found the Australian salt bush a
plant which It la said takes up large
quantities of alkali and at tho sime
time produces an excellent forage tor
farm animals Utah experimenters
have had considerable difficult) ln get
ting a good start of this riant, but lit w
(uses wl eie n stand has been obtained, jjM
It has dons well and does apt ear to lilm
totscs a remarkable power In the way SB
of resisting nlkall. Undoubtedly, as I
time goes on nnd such crops bemms
better undotstood many of the alkali !
lands nn) be partially reclaimed by I
i thcli nuans For ordinary cropj tho I M
111 ilts of tolerance to alkali ar. very 1 ,
small. j
Other Xstliods. I I
It Is evident however, that neither of
tht nethoia proposed nre very satis- jK
factor) Cherilcnl treatment only .
serves to convert the more dnnrerous iS
nlksll Into b s a 1 irm'ul kinds and does M
not touch the enuse of the trouble An
alkali tolerant plnnt with the power of 1
tnklpg Into Its own structure largo V
qunntttles of salts woull not success- m
full) uvenome the trouhlc for even n K
h)pothetlcal irop ) lei ling 10 000 pounds 1
of dr matter to the acre annually, ! I
with 20 per cent mineral matter would ( B
need over nineteen )eirs to remove tho P
nlknll to the depth of ono foot from a '
soil rontilnlng 1 per cent ct soluble llr
matter inch n rrop Is not known nt jPi
the present sn that, with the best nl- f
kail tolerant crop known nt the pres-
ent the time required would be very a
much great. r Thn common notion that I
n heavy dressing of manure conquers 1 a
nlknll Is fnllni lous, for It onl) enables ! H;
the farmer to raise n rrop or two be- (if
fore the nlknll hns time to rife through 11
the ln)or of manure To remove tho I
nlkill b) flooding the land In also un- Bi
sntlsfactor) for. though small quantl- ' H
tlis ma) be rcmovid ln thnt way, the
larger portion is Immediately washed s"
back Into the poll where It remains B
until nfter Ihe flooding when by enplt- E
lar) nctlon, It rises to the surface again. S
Drainage the Sure Curo. c
The only reutly effective method of f,
rcrlnlmlng nlknll lnnds Is to remove ft
the soluble snlts from the soil This
may be done In many cases, where tho j 3
soli Is of comparatively coarse textura fi
or the location Is favorable, by making I 0
open, deep ditches ot different Inter- &
vols In the field and soaking the soil H
thoroughl). Quito a number of Utah Wl
farms have been reclaimed from the al- I N
kail scourge In this way. The better 'i
way and In most cases the best man- I M
ner of reclamation, Is to lay n system i H
nf tile drains which, under the Influence all
of heavy Irrigation, will carry off th W
poluble nlkill of the roll. It Is urged V
nrnlnst this method thnt It In very ex- '
p naive, and that the farmers of this I
State cannot nfTord It, Considering,
however, the value of nn ncre of Irri
gated land and that the great majority
of lands troubled with nlkall would bo i
among the most valuable lands In the .
State wc-e they reclaimed. It would '
seem tn le n wise Investment flnan- ,
daily, could they be reclaimed at a
modernto cost. The expense of under
draining does not need to be excessively
high Thero Is plenty of clay In this k
State and should the demand tor tile 1
drains arise capital would gladly estab- j
llsh tile factories wherever necessary. 1
ln fact, the nverare alkali lands of
the Stnte could be drained nt nn ex
pense of from 110 to SIT per acre, with
nn average cost ot perhaps 113 or tH
per ncre
There Is, of course, conpldernble hesi
tation nn the part of the farmers to I ;
undertake draining, since they are not j
certain from their own trials or from I
those of their neighbors that tho meth- '
od will bo succcstful ln moving the ex-
cess of alkali. I '
An Alkali Reclamation Experiment, I I
In order to provo tho feasibility of i ,1
this method of reclaiming nlknll land,
lhe bureau ot noils of the United States '(
Department of agriculture nnd the
Utah experiment station arc now co-
op-mtlng In nn experiment whlrh has J
for Its purpose a reclamation of a tract
of alkali land In this State. The tract
covers forty arres and Is located about
four miles west of Bilt Lake City. Un
der the supervision of Mr W. H. Itelle-
luan of the bureau ut soils, tile drains tJP
were Installed on this plat last year and I
ono heavy Irrlrntlon given the land In i I
tho fall As soon ns spring opens the
work will be tol en up ngaln The whole
tract will be lrrlnited throughout the
season tn order thnt the grentrst pos
sible amount nf nlknll can be washed
out. and then the tract will be sown to
uirrcrent crops, In order to test the tol
erance of these crops to nlkall In
three or four yenrs It In believed that
the tract will be perminently re- i
claimed. Such land. In the neighbor
hood of Snlt Lnke City, Is now worth
about US per ncre; when reclaimed it
rhould be worth from $100 to 1200 per
acre. Ah a money-making Investment
the tile draining of this nlkall tract Is i
nil that can be desired The people of '.
the State are watching carefully the
operations connected with this experi
ment, nnd there Is no doubt, should It
provo successful, that many of the
lands of this State will be drained and
the nlkall III that way removed from
them J '
Drainage not only removes alkali
from the land, but It puts It In a most
(xccllint mechanical condition, and the
probability Is that drained lowlands
will yield heavier crops under our con
ditions of irrigation than will the low
lands that are not drained, even I
though they be free from nlkall. t
During the whole of the coming sea
son work will be done on the experl- i
mental tract near Salt Iake City. Visi
tors to the city and all who may be In
terested are cordially Invited to com.
out nnd examine the work that Is be
ing done there.
The nlkall curse has blighted many f
districts In the past, and at times It V
hns seemed that to overcome It has n
bien impossible Now, however, the
conditions are such that we may safe- 9
ly believe that it Is only a matter of f
a few short jenrs until all of the more
valuable alkali lands of the State shall I
have been reclaimed by tho only per
manently cfftctlvo euro for alkali.
One fact must bo emphasized, name
ly, that when the alkali has once been I
completely removed from the soil by
drainage, It will require many genera- j
tlons, ln most cases, before nnother nc- I
cumulation occurs So that tho decoy J
and destruction of tho drainage sys- 1
terns nfter some jears, where their J
work has been iloni, is of llttla conse
quence. Need of Drainage Laws. '
In this connection another question of
prime Importance to those who aro In
terested In the alkali problems of thu j
State must ba stated. At the present
time there Is no drainage law that '
would enable a person to construct a I
lira I mi ge s)stem on his own land with- i
out. In all probiblllt), trespassing on
the rights nf his neighbors if possl- I
ble, the Legislature should pass a law i
which will enable those who favor this
method ot reclamation to proceed with
out any loss of time
It la highly probable that, beginning
with tno now") ear. the sala lea of the mi
Jortty of the Ogdcn public school teachers
will be raised,