88 



MONTANA 19U 



The amendments to the Reclam'ation Act ha\'e been relatively simple 

 and have been initiated larg-ely In- local ratlier than general conditions. 

 Probably the most important of these amendments is that of June 25, 1910, 

 (36 Stat., 385), relating- to advances to the reclamation [in id. 

 Amend- making an appropriation of twenty million dollars to complete 



ments to the reclamation projects and such extensions as may be .leemed 

 Reclama- necessary for the successful operation of the works ;nid 10 

 tion Act. protect v^^ater rights claimed by the l.^nited States. This act 

 also repealed section 9 of the original act, wh'ch, by attc mint- 

 ing to limit expenditures largely by state lines, tended to lack of economy 

 and forced the construction of works wdiere the need was not wholly estab- 

 lished. It provided also that ''No entry shall be hereafter made and no 

 entryman shall be permitted to go upon lands reserved for irrigation pur- 

 poses until the Secretary of the Interior shall have established the imit of 

 acreage and fixed the water charges and the date when the water can l)e 

 applied and made public announcement of the same." 



It is now possible, after a decade of experience, to point out the actual 

 effect of various requirements of the Reclamation Act, which, at the time of 

 its passage, were theoretical. The residence required led to some hardships 

 to individuals, because of the fact that as soon as survey part- 

 Effect of ies appeared in the field settlers would rush in and take up land 

 the Require- often wholly in ignorance of the probabilities of reclamation, 

 ments of In some instances these men paid from fifty to one hundred 

 the Act. dollars to .so-called land locators to point out to them the de- 



sirable spots, ^\■hen tlic surveys were completed and the plans 

 adopted, it was found, not infrequently, that many of these entries had been 



Headivorks Jocko Canal, Flathead Project. 



