THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



VOL. XV. 



CHICAGO, AUGUST, 1900. 



NO. 11 



THE PROGRESS OF WESTERN flMERICfl. 



Federal 



Irrigation 



Comiug. 



Looking over the field at the 

 close of the century it is seen 

 that the United States stands 

 practically alone among- irrigation coun- 

 tries in having- left all the work of recla- 

 mation to the united efforts of private 

 capital, and in the prodigality of the 

 surrender of public control of streams. 

 In one respect the policy pursued has 

 been successful. It has resulted in an 

 enormous investment (not less than $1000,- 

 000.000, and some estimates make it twice 

 that sum) and the creation of taxable and 

 productive wealth of many times the 

 amount invested. We have now about 

 reached the limit of this sort of growth. 

 There will be few large private invest- 

 ments in canals hereafter until we have 

 better and more liberal irrigation laws. 

 Entrance on the coming century is con- 

 fronted by larger problems: the storage of 

 flood waters, the interstate division of 

 streams, and the inauguration of an ade- 

 quate system of public control, which will 

 insure to the humblest handler of a shovel 

 his share of the snows falling on moun- 

 tains above his farm, no matter how far 

 removed he mav be. 



National 

 Control 

 of Water 



The entire question of western 

 irrigation leads up to one 

 inevitable conclusion: This 

 is that irrigation, over and above all other 

 industries, is a matter demanding public 

 supervision and control. Every drop of 

 water entering the head gate, and every 

 drop escaping at the end of the canal, is a 

 matter of public concern. The public 



must determine, through constitutions 

 and statues, the nature of water owner- 

 ship. The public must establish means 

 for the measurement of streams and for 

 ascertaining how much water may be 

 taken for each acre of land under the 

 principle of beneficial use. The public 

 must see that justice is done in the distri- 

 bution of water among those who have 

 properly established their rightful claim 

 to it. We have thoroughly tried the 

 method of leaving all this to private ini- 

 tiative and management, and along with 

 magnificient material progress, we have 

 reaped a large crop of deplorable financial 

 results. While much must be left to the 

 action of States and communities, there is 

 still a wide field for national effort. 



The National Government alone can 

 make the best and broadest study of the 

 various economic questions related to the 

 development of agriculture on arid lands. 

 This includes not only the measurement 

 of streams and survey of reservoir sites, 

 but also a consideration of practical meth- 

 ods of applying water to the soil and of 

 social and industrial institutions adapted 

 to the environment of the arid region. 

 The nation alone can deal with the con- . 

 flicting rights in interstate and inter- 

 national streams and with the construc- 

 tion of great reservoirs at their head 

 waters, with a view to benefiting the 

 several States lying along their course. 

 The National Government is already 

 active along all these lines, and the field 

 for the expansion of its efforts is wide and 

 inviting 



