The Crazier.

Otago Witness, Issue 1586, 15 April 1882, Page 7

The Crazier.

THE ASHBURTON IRRIGATION SCHEME.

The Ashburton County Council haa just completed a most important and notable work in the construction of about 400 miles of water-races for irrigation purposes. The system was formally opened the other day amidst much rejoicing, at which one cannot wonder ; for in the words of the county engineer upon the occasion, only "a very cold-blooded individual indeed could stop short of enthusiasm in contemplating so beneficial a work." The completion of this system of irrigation marks an epoch in the history of farming on the arid Canterbury plains. The history of the work is quite interesting and instructive. The idea of open channels carrying water through 30 miles of gravelly soil, without an almost entire loss of the element by percolation, was laughed at when first proposed ; but an enterprising landowner led the way, showing plainly that the thing could be done, and tho public body took the matter up with spirit, with the happy result of entire success, A coafcly scheme

of pipe- supply had been mooted — indeed at one time the Council almost stood committed to it ; but what would have been a most expensive undertaking, and would have performed its purpose only very inefficiently, was fortunately abandoned. The Council obtained special legislation to enable it to perform the work, which has been carried out by means of a special rate upon the landowners to be benefited. The expense has been but a trifle. There are now about 400 miles of water- race 3in operation in the county, benefiting 300,000 acres of land directly, and rendering 100,000 acres in addition valuable for agricultural purposes ; and the entire cost has been under £5000. But, as Mr Wright, M.H.K., remarked at the opening celebration, "the value of the races was not to be gauged by the amount of money expended. They were rather the keystone of the building, which might take perhaps half a century before completion." The same speaker also stated that the value of property had been enhanced by 10, 20, and even 30 per cent, by means of this supply. Now, all this should point a moral to such Councils in our own province as those of Maniototo and Vincent. The great plains of the interior require irrigation as the one thini? needful to render them excellently fitted for agriculture. Bishop Moorhouse believes that establishing a system of irrigation will prove the only means of salvation for many districts in Victoria, and he is stepping outside th< bounds of his purely religious duties to rouse the people by stirring lectures to a sense that they have a better agent than prayer — namely, self-help — to secure for their crops the moisture so urgently de sired. The need for irrigation ia not so paramount here as in Victoria ; but as on the Canterbury plains, so in Otago, if the difficulty of distribution could be got over, it would enable farming and stock-raising to be prosecuted over many thousands of acres of present gravelly and sandy desert. We admit that this difficulty of distribu tion over the whole area of the ground to be benefited is a great one, and we are not aware that it has yet been practically solved, even in Canterbury, but we are probably at the beginning of an era of irrigation which will yet be made efficacious in transforming arid wastes into smiling homesteads.