THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



105 



native than a continuation of these sweeping, discred- 

 iting allusions. 



A TRUE prerogative of government is to ferret out 

 fraud and punish offenders, but it is wrong to asservate 

 that fraud exists where fraud is not. It is not right 

 for Government to encourage or commission men or 

 associations to publish to the world statements based 

 on generalized opinion of some incompetent or over- 

 zealous attache statements which malign a whole 

 community. 



To BE specific, Nebraska has the section Home- 

 stead law covering semi-arid areas. Entries in terri- 

 tory segregated for the North Platte Project are lim- 

 ited to quarter sections. The territory is largely cov- 

 ered by filings and rude ephemeral initial habitations 

 abound, many of which are being replaced by better 

 structures. A zealot of the department has felt called 

 upon to photograph some of the cruder domiciles and 

 Maxwell reproduced them in his thousands of free 

 "magazine sections" of rural papers, illustrating an 

 article by Mr. Byrd, entitled "Foils the Land Thieves." 

 The pictiires are designated as "A group of fraudulent 

 land entries- Attempts to hold Government land 

 claims under the Government's North Platte Irrigation 

 Project, Wyoming-Nebraska Photographed by Gov- 

 ernment Inspectors." Probably a million or more read- 

 ers have had this abominable rot before them. The 

 whole of a prosperous and rapidly growing community 

 of good American citizens has been foully maligned, 

 and some slop-over subordinate of the Government has 

 put the Department in the unenviable position of being 

 a partner to the slander. That the calumny is unwar- 

 ranted is evidenced by Governmental attitude. No ar- 

 rests have been attempted, no formal charge of fraud 

 made, and barring possible undiscovered isolated cases, 

 it does not exist 



LET us diverge sufficiently here to observe that the 

 limited acreage and projected Federal irrigation are 

 evidence of legal cognizance of the impossibility to 

 make a living on these lands before water is ready to 

 apply, and any order or ruling compelling continuous 

 residence prior thereto is a most serious error of judg- 

 ment. Claimants will be better equipped to succeed 

 if permitted absence to work on farms already under 

 irrigation. 



COMPLAINTS come frequently of housebreaking 

 during temporary absence of claimants, and these have 

 crystallized to an opinion that over-zealous Government 

 inspectors commit the depredations to secure interior 

 views of domiciles which is confirmed by Mr. Maxwell's 

 reproductions. Also by the fact that while contents of 

 houses are overhauled, nothing is stolen. Lack of 

 definite knowledge and ignorance of the personality 

 who purported to represent the Government has pre- 

 vented an arrest for felony. The persecutions should 

 discontinue. 



It is pertinent here to suggest that while the hon- 

 orable secretary, Ethan Allan Hitchcock, doubtless ap- 

 preciates public approbation of his sterling character, 

 it is not likely he approves of any exploitation of his 

 personal endowments if conscious it is at expense of 

 thousands of innocent citizens who are honestly hoping 

 to build homes under the North Platte or any other 

 project. 



WE MAKE bold here even to remark, if in his 

 prosecutions of offenders of the law, it were possible to 

 minimize publicity without reducing vigilance, honest 

 citizens of affected districts would, for the courtesy 

 extended, cloister closely to their bosoms that deep ap- 

 preciation which sympathy of heart for the sanctity of 

 home inspires. If he will weed out the loud-mouthed 

 hypocrites, who blast and blacken whole commonwealths 

 to exploit their own assumed virtues, he will win that 

 approbation which is the most glorious jewel in am- 

 bition's crown. 



AGAIN we may remark, with appropriate consid- 

 eration for the Interior Department, if Mr. Hitchcock 

 will direct reclamation officials to devote more time to 

 prosecution of their legitimate work and not so much 

 to intrigue and "peanut politics," the work would bear 

 more dignity and reflect more credit on department 

 and the Nation. 



To ILLUSTRATE : At a recent election of a Water 

 Users' Association, approximately ten thousand votes 

 were cast. By virtue of proxies accumulated, two in- 

 dividuals, personal friends of the Federal engineer in 

 charge, cast about six thousand votes. The secretary of 

 the association, who is not even a member, makes men- 

 tion in a local paper : "It was a love feast. There were 

 no contests," etc. There were no contests for What's 

 the \\se? 



AGAIN : Government work can not move forward 

 with celerity when engineers will neglect duties to in- 

 spire inane, fawning beneficiaries or truckling volun- 

 teers to malignant correspondence. Duty is subordi- 

 nated for perfidious endeavor. With transits and com- 

 putations in subaltern hands, chief sinecures direct in- 

 sensate clowns to sinister, insidious, unpardonable con- 

 fidential essays. These cowardly excrescences are to be 

 used craftily on higher authorities with infamous corol- 

 lary and deliberate intention to deceive. 



IT WAS hoped and expected that when the National 

 Irrigation Congress formally repudiated the National 

 Irrigation Association that heads of the Reclamation 

 Service would see a drift of sentiment and divorce it- 

 self from a companionship which is detracting from 

 its usefulness. But instead it seems stricken with a 

 frenzy. Federal irrigation under that standard of 

 influence is inconceivable. It is an incompatible re- 

 lationship when considering the attributes of our Na- 

 tional Executive. 



