How The People Can Co-operate 

 With the Government 



P. H. NEWELL, fltq., Chief of the United States Reclamation Service 



THE National Reclamation Act, approved on June 17, 1902, has for 

 its object not merely the irrigation of arid lands but also the subdivision 

 of the lands into tracts sufficient for the support of a family and not ex- 

 ceeding 160 acres. The execution of this Act would be a comparatively 

 simple matter if all of the lands to be benefitted were in public 



ownership. Many of the best lands have, howjever, already passed 

 out of the hands of the Government and are now held in large tracts by in- 

 dividuals and corporations. 



Some of the present owners of these lands are desirous of having these 

 lands reclaimed at public expense, the cost to be repaid in the future 

 without profit or interest, but at the same time they are equally desirous of 

 keeping the lands for future rise in value and are not willing to make con- 

 cessions which may reduce the future gains. Many of them are willing to 

 promise to subdivide the lands and put them on the market, but when called 

 upon to execute a formal contract which will insure this sub-division within 

 reasonable time they are apt to bring up various objections and to evade 

 committing themselves. Great patience and firmness is therefore required 

 on the part of the Government agents. 



On the one hand is the popular clamor, stimulated by interested par- 

 ties, to hurry the spending of the money of the Government in building the 

 works, on the other hand are the obvious requirements of the law and the 

 necessity of securing binding contracts or agreements by which the object 

 of the law will be fulfilled. 



In answer to the question, which has been asked as to how the people 

 can co-operate with the Government in this matter, the first and funda- 

 mental proposition is for the people to understand the object of the law 

 and to bring to the officers of the Reclamation Service suitable guaran- 

 tees that the law will be fulfilled on their part. No Government money is 

 to be spent in construction until definite and binding agreements have been 

 made which will secure obedience to the law. Criticism for delay or abuse 

 for not proceeding more rapidly will not suffice in the place of the definite 

 and binding contracts on the part of the large land owners. 



The owners of large tracts of land, as well as the small land owners 

 should get together and request the Secretary of the Interior, by petition 

 or otherwise, to consider the reclamation of certain areas pointing out as 

 fully as practicable the source of water supply and the lands to be irrigated 

 and stating that they are prepared to give full assurance that these lands 

 will be sub-divided and placed in the hands of actual settlers by the time 

 that the irrigation works are completed and the water is ready for delivery to 

 the lands. If this is done the subsequent work of the engineers is greatly 

 facilitated and the matter becomes largely one of feasibility of construction. 



An equally important detail to be settled by the present land owners 

 is that pertaining to existing water rights. All of these must be fully 

 adjusted so that the Reclamation Service will not be called upon to waste 

 time and money in the vain attempt to settle existing quarrels. It fre- 

 quently happens that when all of the valid claims are finally adjusted 

 these average more than the entire flow of the river or even more than 

 can be provided by complete storage. It is, therefore, impossible for the 

 Government to secure any water; time spent in engineering examinations 

 would be wasted. 



These matters of water rights are controlled by State Laws and can 

 be settled only by the people themselves. Experience has shown that 

 it is inadvisable for the officers of the Reclamation Service to attempt to 

 interfere in such matters as, like most neighborhood quarrels, whenever 

 a third party intervenes all the contending forces unite against him. 



