THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



47 



Rather does the situation not argue for a consider- 

 able degree of recklessness in the handling of the 

 problems attaching to the administration of the 

 princely domain of 3,000,000 acres? What ground 

 existed in 1909 for placing these tremendously im- 

 portant matters, involving the destinies of many 

 people even their very lives into the hands of in- 

 experienced officials? The Governor fails "to make 

 a case." One of the contributing factors to the 

 "Big Lost River" failure was the faulty construction 

 of the dam which jeopardized the property and lives 

 of the people of Mackay. The reports rendered by 

 eminent engineers, and accepted, are matters of 

 record. If the Carey Act Code was "insufficient" 

 the General Irrigation Code is specific enough. I 

 refer to Political Code, chapter 10. Section 154a 

 provides that "any person (etc.), desiring to con- 

 struct any dam for storing water, more than 10 feet 

 high, shall submit plans and drawings to the State 

 Engineer, who shall examine them and. if approved, 

 so indicate, or in case of disapproval return them 

 for amendments in case of works of great impor- 

 tance shall make test excavations, etc., and extends 

 his authority still further. In view of the con- 

 demnation of both plans and construction of the 

 dam, by the engineers who examined it, are apolo- 

 gies based upon the "inexperience" of officials, at 

 this time, to be taken seriously? Here are the 

 \v< irds of the engineering commission : "It, there- 

 fore, appears to us that the fatal defects in the work 

 are due to plans and specifications, rather than to 

 the construction." "That the filled reservoir would 

 in my opinion be a serious menace to the town of 

 Mackay and to the Lost River Valley." We are of 

 the same opinion, but go further and believe that it 

 would inevitably lead to disaster. (Arco Adrer- 

 tiser, September 15, 1910.) 



Xow, I have permitted myself only the briefest 

 reference to the history of the project and only to 

 the extent that the '''incidents mentioned were ger- 

 mane to the discussion in hand. A volume of in- 

 terest and pathos could no doubt, be worked out 

 from the material at hand. The Federal Court of 

 Appeals has, at last, been heard from and it is now 

 squarely "up to" the Land Board to show its hand. 

 I have dealt with the case entirely from the stand- 

 point of the entryman the plight of the bondhold- 

 ers is, no doubt, an unfortunate one, but these 

 people are represented by able counsel and must 

 rind their own spokesman. The Governor has seen 

 fit to characterize myself "and others" as "adepts 

 at destruction, but mere novices at construction." 

 Such tirades mean nothing and, in the interests of 

 harmony, I will overlook the remark, whatever its 

 rather obscure meaning. I have attempted to "stick 

 to the text" in full confidence of the inherent jus- 

 tice of my contentions. If any animus has crept 

 into the discussion, I trust the gentlemen of the 

 Land Board, from the Governor down, will accept 

 my apology for such and beg them to consider that 

 ftnir \cars not to complete but to get ready to com- 

 plete covers a considerable period of an average 

 lifetime. I can assure His Excellency that, in any 

 proper measure of rehabilitation, I shall, if called 

 upon, attempt to do all that is possible to assist in 

 the work of reconstruction. 



Sincerely, 



E. F. ROHM. 



FOR THE GOOD OF IRRIGATION. 



Movement to Induce Interested States to Finish 

 Some of the Uncompleted Projects. 



An earnest movement is in progress in the West 

 which seeks to interest the states to complete irri- 

 gation projects which have gone to the wall. Most 

 of these schemes failed through ignorance in con- 

 struction work and faulty engineering and the greed 

 of promoters, who sought all the profits. 



Much of the capital raised throughout the coun- 

 try to finance these irrigation works was turned 

 over by investors in the belief that they were fully 

 protected under the Carey Act. It would have been 

 impossible to have raised anywhere near the amount 

 of money that was secured by promoters had the 

 case been otherwise. Nearly every one who bought 

 an irrigation bond did so under the impression that 

 the states, through the authority vested in them by 

 the Carey Act, were overseeing all work and that 

 it was being done honestly. The many disasters 

 in irrigation have proven this act to have been 

 worthless as far as it safeguarded investors. It 

 saved none of them. 



The states are in a measure bound to give what 

 legitimate aid they may extend to investors who 

 have lost their money in these projects, and in ad- 

 dition to developing the resources of these states, 

 state aid would prove a very good business stroke 

 for the states which found it feasible to complete 

 such projects. 



State aid may be given without bringing any 

 new debt upon the states, for we are quite sure 

 that the bondholders would willingly subordinate 

 their liens to whatever loans the state might grant 

 in order to save these half-built properties. This 

 money the states would eventually get back, with 

 interest. More important would be the great profit 

 which would come to these commonwealths through 

 the increase in the prices of productive land and 

 from the larger population which would be bound 

 to come. Another asset would be found in the 

 re-establishment of the states in public confidence. 



Oregon has already taken a step in this direction 

 by advancing $400,000 to complete the Columbia 

 Southern project. Idaho, Wyoming, the latter the 

 mother of the Carey Act, and Montana and Colo- 

 rado, however, are backward and have done little 

 or nothing. 



Under present conditions it is impossible to 

 raise any capital for irrigation enterprises. So many 

 persons have lost money in this class of securities 

 that it is only necessary to mention them to an in- 

 vestor and he is frightened away. How could it be 

 otherwise? Money must be obtained from some- 

 where. 



This situation is to be deplored since funda- 

 mentally irrigation is an industry having vast pos- 

 sibilities for profitable investment. There are many 

 communities in the West which have demonstrated 

 that by irrigation springs of unhidden riches have 

 been uncovered. Irrigation will eventually solve 

 our agrarian problem, which is to find enough land 

 to maintain our rapidly increasing population, since 

 the greater part of our arable land is already under 

 cultivation. Financial U'orld. X. Y. 



