THE IRRIGATION AGE. 237 



cept money for the investigation, and the question as to whether the 

 Government shall undertake the work of building the dam is entirely 

 open and remains so. I would not ask the Government to build the 

 dam without having it perfectly understood why it was done. The 

 reason should be always given. Everything should be frank, as it is 

 in this proposition. I say now that I shall never argue that the Gov- 

 ernment is committed to this proposition because this is done, but if it 

 illustrates a great idea, shows the road to wealth, to prosperity, to 

 progress, to the place to make homes for people, nobody will be sorry; 

 and the Senator from Connecticut will be delighted, because he is a 

 good man at heart. He is full of prejudice, but he is not as bad a man 

 as he tried to make us believe he was. He does not hate the West. 



I believe all these people who are opposing it are pretty good, but 

 they have been living in a certain locality and they get in ruts. They 

 have not seen that country. Let them go there. I should like to 

 bear what they would say then. A handful of Mormons went into the 

 desert, and it looked as if living there was impossible. The history 

 of the opening of the country at Salt Lake is the most interesting part 

 of the history of the United States. They learned to irrigate the land 

 and they have made it a rich State, a garden spot, and they have set 

 an example which has done good everywhere. When, without money, 

 poor as they were, foot-sore and hungry as they traveled over the 

 plains, they could stop there and build up such a country as that, it 

 shows what can be accomplished. When you see them in their homes 

 now it makes you glad that the pioneers, if they were Mormons, did 

 such great work. 



It was because they were Mormons that they had a faith which 

 held them together, and they accomplished great results and built a 

 great results and built a great State. Now, when such results are 

 shown to a person who goes there a good deal of his prejudice must 

 melt away, and a good deal of your prejudice will melt away when you 

 see what irrigation accomplishes. Go to Colorado and see what irri- 

 gation has accomplished there. You can see what they have accom- 

 plished in various Western States. You see beautiful fields, rich 

 fruits, and everything produced by irrigation. Follow it up and see 

 how much land remains unirrigated, and you see what vast opportuni- 

 ties are spread out to American enterprise. When you see all that 

 .you will commence studying how we can devise some legislation that 

 will facilitate this great work. 



It is proposed now that we shall take some money out of the 

 Treasury and irrigate the lands for the Indians, and this investigation 

 is to determine how much money may be needed and whether it will 

 all come back to the Treasury from the Government land which will 

 be irrigated with the surplus water in excess of which the Indians 



