140 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



to which the construction 

 charges have been hereto- 

 fore announced by public- 

 notice. 



"SECOND, to fix the 

 proper charges on projects 

 where construction charges 

 have not been announced 

 where such projects have 

 reached such stage of com- 

 pletion as to make it prac- 

 ticable and desirable to 

 do so. 



"In order to properly 

 fix the amounts to be col- 

 lected, it is necessary to 

 determine whether any 

 expenditures, direct or in- 

 direct, have been, or are being, charged to the proj- 

 ects that under ordinary conditions of carrying out 

 similar works should not be so charged and were 

 not necessary for the laying out, designing and 

 construction of the completed project, and, on the 

 other hand, whether any such expenditures have 

 been omitted as, for example, by treating them as 

 a general expense to be apportioned to all projects, 

 when the whole, or a part thereof, should have been 

 a direct charge to a particular project." 



As the brainiest men on practically every pro- 

 ject where the water users have contracts insist that 

 there can be but one "proper construction cost to 

 be collected" from the settlers and land owners 

 that cost being the one fixed in their contracts in 

 accordance with the Reclamation Act it behooves 

 the settlers or their Water Users' Associations on 

 every project to insist on making their water right 

 contracts a part of the records of the revaluation 

 boards. 



Under Secretary Lane's instructions, the local 

 boards must be organized and begin work by April 

 1, and make their reports by July 1. Instructions 

 have been issued to each project manager to pre- 

 pare statements of costs of the projects, as shown 

 on the Reclamation Service books. The boards are 

 to have access to the records of the project man- 

 ager, supervising engineer, the Washington office 

 and any other offices of the Service. The board may 

 also question any Reclamation Service official about 

 costs or project work. 



Recommendations concerning readjustment of 

 charges must be made by the whole board or a 

 majority of it. 



Concerning reports on costs, Secretary Lane 

 says: 



"It is to be kept in mind by the local boards 

 that all the expenditures of the Reclamation Serv- 

 ice have been made under direction of the Secretary 

 of the Interior, on works and projects approved by 

 him, and that such expenditures have been ex- 

 amined and approved by the Treasury Department, 

 leaving for determination the question, if presented, 

 as to how much of the expenditures approved by 

 the Treasury Department are legitimate charges 

 against the water users. 



"The distribution of these expenditures to the 

 project and units thereof and under the various 



Here 



ever in 



today. This flume is now being manufactured by the Hess Flume 

 Company of Denver. This company is now replacing the metal 

 flumes on the Cascade Irrigation District at Ellensburg, Wash., 

 and three miles of flume for the Union Gap Irrigation District at 

 North Yakima, Wash. The old flumes in each case were wooden. 



headings of the accounts; 

 the pro-rating of general 

 expenses, such as, for ex- 

 ample, general surveys, ex- 

 aminations by special 

 boards, overhead charges, 

 etc. ; the question of 

 whether an expenditure 

 shall be charged to con- 

 struction or maintenance 

 account, etc., are all proper 

 questions for examination 

 and icport by local boards. 

 "All charges against a 

 project that may be con- 

 sidered improperly laid or 

 debited, or that are in- 

 equitable or questionable 



on that ground, should be ascertained by the local 

 board and reported with its recommendations." 



is a picture of the first Muginnis galvanized metal flume 

 stalled. It was put in in 1901 and is in perfect condition 



PRAISES POLICY OF THE AGE 



Editor of THE IRRIGATION AGE: As a water 

 user on the Belle Fourche project, I wish to add my 

 amen to the way your paper is taking up the Newell 

 controversy. There is not an actual farmer on any 

 of the Government projects but what should give 

 you all the encouragement possible in pushing the 

 good cause along. 



I beg to remain a subscriber to your paper and 

 a booster for the good work you are doing for the 

 irrigation farmer. 



Yours truly, 



CHARLES Mix. 



Vale, Butte Co., S. D. 



SERVICE SHAKE-UP STILL ON 



H. N. Savage, who was supervising engineer 

 of the Northern division, retired March 1. A Wash- 

 ington dispatch says : 



"The change is not regarded as a reflection on 

 Mr. Savage and his work, but is merely a shift of 

 the organization of the work to another line of pro- 

 cedure whereby much more of the detail of the work 

 will be handled directly in the Washington head- 

 quarters. It will transfer more of the direct super- 

 vision to the project engineers. 



"It is said that Mr. Savage will still have much 

 occasion to be in touch with the Reclamation Serv- 

 ice, as his broad information as to the organization 

 and specific needs of the various projects will be 

 practically indispensable to the Service, and that 

 the government may have the benefit of this, he 

 will occupy the position of a consulting engineer 

 in the Service, and will have his headquarters at 

 Billings, Mont. 



"The Great Falls, Mont., headquarters' force 

 will be cut down very materially and will continue 

 in its reduced form under the direction of Charles 

 P. Williams, with R. M. Briner as office engineer, 

 and George L. Blakeslee in charge of clerical work." 



Go over all garden and field equipment and see 

 that everything is ready to use. 



