100 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



feeling the first pulsations of a great na- 

 tional upheaval. We know that all appeals 

 for national aid in the work of reclaiming 

 arid lands fall upon deaf ears. Our state 

 legislature cannot be induced to pass a 

 sensible resolution on the subject, so ab- 

 sorbed are they in the welfare of men 

 ambitious for national honors. I feel safe 

 in predicting that for the present nothing 

 will be done by either state or nation in 

 this matter. Let us wait until our present 

 pressing troubles have been overcome, un- 

 til the great period of reconstruction is 

 upon us, then we may inaugurate a policy 

 of development as broad and generous to 

 the masses as that pursued by the Incas of 

 Peru. We are barbarians! 



Just now we have thousands of acres 

 already watered crying for occupants, we 

 have, as have other states, plenty of broken 

 down irrigation companies, and under the 

 present disorganized condition of public 

 affairs I neither hope nor care to see the 

 prosecution of new enterprises until the 

 ones already perfected are upon a paying 

 basis, and under every canal a contented 

 and prosperous community. 



The Irrigation Congress of the future, in 

 order that it may be a potent factor in the 

 work of reclamation of arid lands, must di- 

 rect itself to state issues, for through the 

 example and influence of the " arid states " 

 will follow all national aid and blessings. 



Why should we ask Congress to do more 

 than we are doing? We, who have been 

 on the ground for years and appreciate the 

 importance of the work and the great bless- 

 ings which would be sure to follow the 

 development proposed. 



We should all pray God that the rotten 

 methods of administration, that the spirit 

 of corruption which seems to pervade the 

 very sanctuary, the place where law is given 

 birth, might have passed away, and that a 

 broad, generous public policy, embracing 

 the best interests of the common people, 

 might be the order of the day before the 

 great rivers of the West are poured out 

 upon the deserts and started upon the 

 work of redeeming more bonds. 



Before these great canals are built by 

 the national government our national pol- 

 icy will have undergone a complete change, 

 for the work of building must go hand in 

 hand with the work of relieving suffering 

 humanity. These canals must belong to 

 the people who use them, and under them 

 millions will find homes, and the work, 



when completed, will stand as the greatest 

 monument to an enlightened nation. 



An enduring monument must have a 

 broad base and a firm foundation. We 

 must therefore first clear away the preju- 

 dices of the times due to past errors, dig 

 through the rottenness of to-day down to 

 the first principles of sound government, 

 and upon this foundation, and this alone, 

 erect a structure from whose highest pinna- 

 cle prosperity shall proclaim peace and 

 happiness to all who labor in the sunny 

 "arid West." D. W. Ross. 



Payette, Idaho, August; 1896. 



NONE of us have any time to cavil or 

 complain over what has been done 

 or has not been done by any member of 

 the association. There is no time for any 

 paper or magazine to criticise others or 

 their work in the cause. 



We are all for the same objects and it 

 matters not whether we be the "hare or 

 the turtle in the race." Both will get 

 there just the same. The slow turtle may 

 be the quicker because it does not stop to 

 see or ask what others are doing. 



It is not the breezy, gauzy, voluminous 

 continued articles that are always appear- 

 ing in the press, to the satisfaction of the 

 writer and to the great disgust of the pub- 

 lic, that do much good. 



The members of the executive committee 

 of the National Irrigation Congress are, 

 and will continue, doing their duty, not- 

 withstanding any remarks to the contrary. 

 They are men of ability and are practical, 

 energetic, pushing business men who be- 

 believe that there is a time and place for 

 all things, and when the time comes for 

 each to push it to the front they will with 

 all the manly vigor and strength and power 

 within them, making a complete success of 

 it ; not consuming too much time in its 

 development but just enough to keep the 

 anxious public on tip-toe as to what comes 

 next. They believe that in direct, con- 

 tinued and united effort, more can be ac- 

 complished in three months' time before 

 the congress than to string it out in a 

 flimsy way for twelve months. 



The work of the committee this year 

 will be found as great as any other year 

 wait and see ! 



It is true that not many conventions 

 have been held and especially in the 



