CALIFORNIA. 



California was the first State to create the office of vState engineer. 

 A long series of discussions and proposals for different S3^stems of pub- 

 lic control of irrigation in California, which included National control 

 and construction, State control and construction, and various other 

 schemes, culminated in 1878 in the passage of a law creating the office 

 of State engineer for the purpose of collecting information as to water 

 resources and irrigable lands. The purpose of the law was "the 

 acquirement of data upon which the vState might formulate a policy 

 and frame legislation respecting irrigation matters."" The office was 

 continued for ten 3^ears, during which time there was much criticism 

 on account of the lack of results, and in 1887 the legislature made an 

 appropriation for salary and expenses for one year, with the proviso 

 that this should be in full for the completion of all work then in the 

 hands of the State engineer. Two large reports were issued, one on 

 irrigation in Italy, Spain, and France, and one on San Diego, San 

 Bernardino, and Los Angeles counties, Cal. Since the abolition of the 

 office there has been more or less agitation for its revival, but in general 

 the people of California seem to be quite indifferent on this matter. 



Rights are acquired without public supervision and are defined only 

 in case of controversy, and water is divided without any public 

 supervision, the only remedy when one's rights are infringed being a 

 suit to define rights if they have not been defined, and a proceeding for 

 contempt of court if any party is taking water which has been allotted 

 to another by the court. 



COLORADO. 



The oflSce of State engineer was created in 1881, the engineer being 

 given general charge of the distribution of water throughout the State. 

 The same law provided for the defining of existing rights by the courts, 

 and for filing claims for new rights with the county clerks and the 

 State engineer, the idea })eing that this filing of claims would provide a 

 record of new rights. The provision for filing claims was, however, 

 declared void on account of a defect in the title of the act. In this plan 

 the engineer is considered a purely administrative officer, and his 

 duties, so far as they relate to irrigation, were confined to general super- 

 vision of distributing water after rights have been defined. 



DEFINING RIGHTS. 



Rights are defined by the courts in a special form of procedure pre- 

 scribed by the statute. As a preliminary to this adjudication all 

 parties claiming any interest in any ditch, canal, or reservoir were 

 required to file statements of their claims with the county clerks 



a Wm. Ham. Hall's Rpt., Pt. 1, p. 12. 



