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THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



various projects, in many instances having been se- 

 cured under misrepresentation. It is the opinion 

 of the editor of THE IRRIGATION AGE that the 

 time has arrived when all the facts covering con- 

 ditions of this character should be made public, so 

 that a new start and a clean one, may be made along 

 the line of irrigation development. 



During this investigation, our representatives 

 will study government projects as well and place 

 before our readers many facts heretofore submerged 

 by the red tape of bureaucrats having control 

 at Washington and at the branch offices of the 

 Reclamation Service. Very interesting and no 

 doubt instructive information will be obtained from 

 a perusal of these various articles prepared by our 

 representatives. 



THE IRRIGATION AGE hesitated for many years 

 to expose crookedness in irrigation affairs fearing 

 that by so doing it would bring into odium the bet- 

 ter class of irrigation projects. As it now appears 

 it would have been much better to have given all 

 of the facts, several years ago, and in that way pro- 

 tect innocent purchasers whose money was put into 

 worthless projects, under misrepresentation. 



Our readers will do well to follow carefully this 

 series of articles as a lot of valuable information 

 will no doubt develop, and it will be worth while 

 to watch for what is forthcoming. 



Judge William R. King, of Portland, 

 Chief Oregon, former Judge of the Su- 



Reclamation preme Court and Chief Counsel of 

 Counsel the Reclamation Service of the 



King. United States, has been visiting the 



various reclamation projects in Ne- 

 braska, Colorado and Nevada, and will look over 

 those in other states prior to his return to Wash- 

 ington. 



Judge King addressed a meeting of about 400 

 of the water users on the North Platte Project and 

 in an interview stated that he had never talked be- 

 fore a more intelligent audience. 



. In a talk with the representative of a Denver 

 paper he said : 



"Settlers of reclamation projects have continu- 

 ally complained to the government that they are 

 forced to pay too much in a short space of time. 

 Under the present law all assessments for the main- 

 tenance of the projects must be paid in ten years. 

 Senator Borah has introduced a bill extending the 

 time from twenty to thirty years, and it is under- 

 stood that the present administration will support 

 the plan." 



Speaking of reclamation work and the policy 

 of the administration, he further stated: 



"The government has invested between seventy 

 and eighty million dollars in reclamation projects 



in sixteen different states. All moneys received 

 from the sale of public lands is being used in build- 

 ing up irrigation projects. Colorado has its share. 

 You can say for me that the general policy of this 

 administration will be to manage so that the test of 

 success of an irrigation project will be measured 

 by what is done by the man with limited means. We 

 shall do everything in our power to extend the time 

 for people who take the land, that they may meet 

 their assessments for the building and maintenance 

 of the project." 



Judge King has had wide experience in irriga- 

 tion affairs and has also had a fine opportunity to 

 study the important features, through his practice as an 

 attorney in eastern Oregon. 



Much good will come to the Reclamation Serv- 

 ice through his wise counsel. 



CO-OPERATIVE FOREST FIRE PROTEC- 

 TION. 



During the last quarter of the fiscal year, the 

 federal government entered into co-operative fire 

 protection agreements with the following states : 

 Maine, New York, Minnesota, Montana, Washing- 

 ton and Oregon. These six agreements contemplate 

 the protection from fire of approximately 87,000,000 

 acres of land on the forested watersheds of navig- 

 able streams, for which purpose $51,500 of federal 

 funds have been made available. There are at the 

 present time fourteen states which are engaged in 

 active co-operation of this kind and it is possible 

 that three new states Kentucky, South Dakota and 

 West Virginia will be added by early fall. 



The Federal government, though it has allotted 

 a total of $85,000 for the work of the present season, 

 is a minor contributor in the aggregate. Under the 

 impetus given to fire protection of navigable water- 

 sheds through this arrangement the co-operating 

 states will expend an aggregate of $3 for every 

 dollar which the Federal government spends, to 

 which may be added about $2 more from private 

 sources. 



These amounts, of course, do not represent the 

 sum total of expenditures for fire protection even 

 in these states. For in some of them the state itself 

 is spending considerably more money in the protec- 

 tion of forested lands lying outside the watersheds 

 of navigable streams. On the national forest, too, 

 the government is spending several times the 

 amount of its contribution to co-operative fire pro- 

 tection in the states which contain federal timber- 

 land. 



Aside from these governmental agencies the 

 railroads, lumber companies (both individually and 

 through their co-operative protective associations) 

 municipalities and private land owners throughout 

 the country are growing more and more alive to 

 the needs of better forest fire protection and are 

 devoting each year an increased sum to this work. 



Send $1.00 for 1 year's subscription to the IRRIGA- 

 TION AGE and bound copy of THE PRIMER OF IRRIGA- 

 TION. If you desire a copy of The Primer of Hy- 

 draulics, add $2.50 to above price. 



