Excerpt from The Land of Early Products, Delano, California: A Place for the Home-Seeker

It is true that some wells in this locality furnish more water than others; this is due to various causes, such as depth of well; capacity of lifting power; and in some instances lack of proper development; but it is a demonstrated fact that there has never been a dry well bored in this favored district.

We have splendid flowing wells in every direction from our town and the majority of them furnish from forty to one hundred inches of water, and do not diminish with constant pumping, but on the contrary usually increase.

Such a bountiful water supply, with its permanency guaranteed by the majestic mountain range at its source, makes the pumping plant system of irrigation the ideal one, and it is rapidly becoming the most popular, even in localities where canal water may be had. Many people have disposed of their ditch stock and installed pumping plants.

There are many advantages assigned to the pumping system; chief among which are the following:

First: It is not necessary to expend time and money in an endeavor to keep down weeds and foul vegetation that come to your land from some negligent neighbor, which is invariably the case under the canal; for where there are dozens of people using water from the same ditch, there are certain to be some careless ones, and every one under the system is sure to get a share of the seed, roots, etc., which means continuous expense from year to year, for many grasses and weeds when once sown are practically impossible to kill out.

Second: One is not obliged to apply water whether ready or not. With the canal each has his turn and must take the water when his turn comes or else lose it until next turn. Can you imagine any system more unsatisfactory than one where you must act, day or night, or, possibly both, or lose your crops, for the loss of water would mean no less than loss of crops?

Third: With the pumping plant one is absolutely independent, and can suit his own convenience about irrigating: it is not necessary to stop other work which may need attention, in order to use his turn. With the canal you are loser if you are obliged to suspend other necessary work in order to use your water and if you do not suspend other work to use your water, you will lose your crop, so it is a loss either way. With the pumping plant one irrigates when he feels so disposed, and when other work is not pressing.

Fourth: The pumping plant man is not obliged to stand his share of costly litigation, such as the majority of irrigation districts are subject to, through their fights for maintenance of water rights. Such litigation in most of the districts of California, and likely elsewhere as well, has cost almost, if not quite, enough to place a good pumping plant on each man's land in the district.

Fifth: The country which depends upon the pumping plant is free from any danger of overflow. This cannot be said of the canal district, which has been conclusively proven in many sections of California and other states. Many, many times after spending years in improving their lands and bringing them to the highest state of cultivation have the farmers seen the flood devastate their homes and leave them to begin anew. Isn't it worth considerable more to feel secure?

Sixth: Under the pump system, your neighbors are your friends. There is no occasion for quarrelling over water, the one problem of all that stands in the lead as probably the greatest breeder of trouble known to this beautiful Golden State. We pride ourselves as being a peace-loving nation, then let us also seek peace as individuals. Let us insist on peace in our domestic life and accept no conditions that will not permit of such.

Seventh: The pumping plant will enable one to produce a greater variety of crops, for there are many things that cannot be grown except where water may be appli