226 I HE 1RRIGA TION A GE. 



the proposed legislation, and announced that it should not come up 

 with his approval. The house, by overwhelming voice, decided that 

 the bill should come up, speaker or no speaker. The leaders went 

 down to defeat, and a day was fixed for the consideration and vote. 



In the irrigation states the. irrigarion forces were early divided, 

 one wanting state supervision and control of the reservoirs and 

 ditches, and the other standing for federal control. The latter side 

 won. The former represented the immense cattle ranges of the West, 

 the latter the small homesteaders. It was on this rock that the friends 

 of irrigation almost permitted their ship to go to pieces. Senator 

 Hansbrough stood at the side which favored federal control. His 

 original bill contained this provision, and caused the extended confer- 

 ences between the irrigation members referred to above. 



Among those who favored state control were the members from 

 Wyoming, a great cattle grazing state. After their defeat, the cattle 

 members tried to prevent the passage of an irrigation bill. Seeing 

 ultimately that the influence of the president in favor of the Hans- 

 brough bill was to prevail, they fell into line, and during the past 

 month of the legislative career of the bill placed no obstccles in its 

 way. After the bill had been signed by the president, Representative 

 Mondell of Wyoming went to the White House and asked the presi- 

 dent for the pen with which the official signature had been attached. 

 It was given. Mr. Mondell, however, was almost as little entitled to 

 that pen as one of the avowed opponents of the bill. Bnt the gift of 

 the pen was a small matter, and Mr. Mondell was permitted to bear it 

 away in triumph. 



It was the pressure from the White House which brought victory 

 in the house. Messrs. Cannon and Payne, for instance, two of the 

 stalwart leaders on the republican side, the one the chairman of the 

 great committee on appropriations, the other of the great committee 

 on ways and means, were steadfastly opposed to irrigation. The pre- 

 sident took them in hand, and finally they yielded to him to the ex- 

 tent of being willing to refrain from speaking against the bill. They 

 were silent during the whole of the debate, but on the roll call on 

 final passage voted in the negative. Other influential republican 

 members from the eastern states were controlled in a similar way. 

 Not aJl of them could be thus controlled, however, as the record of 

 the debate will show, but the presidential influence was great enough 

 to reach enough of them to insure favorable action. 



Within a week or two it is believed that the president will know 

 pretty well what his plans for the present season will be. With 

 $4,000,000 in cash available for the commencement of active work, it 

 can be understood that considerable preliminary progress can be 

 made this year. It is the president's desire to make a start at once, 



