IRRIGATION INVESTIGATIONS. 75 



called upon for advice by rice growers of South Carolina, and gave 

 .ionic time to a .stud}- of the questions involved. 



DKAINAGE INVESTIGATIONS. 



The drainage investigations wore carried on ])y C G. Elliott, expert 

 in charge, who gave advice on a lai'ge number of important projects, 

 the carrying out of which will involve an outlay of nearly one and 

 one-half million dollars. He also visited a number of localities and 

 conferred with representatives of connuunities in regard to the engi- 

 neering features of proposed drainage improvements and the legal and 

 social issues involved in the organization of districts for the carrj'ing 

 out of these improvements. The demands on this Office for advice and 

 information concerning the l)road problems of farm drainage have 

 become too great to be attended to b}" one person and have made it 

 necessary to employ another expert. 



LEGAL AND ECONOMIC INVESTIGATIONS. 



The appropriation for these investigations requires us to report 

 "upon the laws as aflfecting irrigation and the rights of riparian pro- 

 prietors and institutions ndating to irrigation and upon the use of 

 irrigation waters, at home or al)road."' The reason for requiring such 

 repoi'ts needs no explanation to anyone familiar with Western con- 

 ditions. Many of the rivers of the arid region are long and att'ect the 

 w(>lfare of several States. The distribution of these rivers among 

 individuals, connuunities, and States is as complex a problem in trans- 

 portation as the operation of a railroad or an express system and 

 requires the same kind of systematic organization. The studies here- 

 tofore undertaken were planned to collect and present to the people 

 concerned the facts relating to the operation of existing institutions 

 in concrete form. 



The only new work inaugurated this 3^ear was in compliance with a 

 provision in the last appropriation bill which requires us to study the 

 laws affecting irrigation and the rights of riparian proprietors. The 

 laws for appropriating water by irrigators and those recognizing 

 lh(> rights of riparian proprietors come directly in conflict on the 

 streams flowing east from the Rocky Mountains. They rise in States 

 where the riparian doctrine is abrogated and flow into States where it 

 is recognized. After consulting the governors and attorney generals 

 of Kansas, Nel)raska, Wyoming, and Colorado, and the State engineers 

 of Nebraska, Wj'omi ng, and Colorado, all of whom welcomed this 

 in(|uiry under the plans pi-oposed, it was concluded to take up a stud}'^ 

 of the Platte River and gather the facts showing the numl)er of ditches 

 taking water out of the stream, the amount of the rights under the 

 laws of ap])r()priation, the use being made of the water, the value of 

 the products, the amount of seepage that comes back from the diver- 



