36 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



It might prove a deciding factor to give Con- 

 gress some figures on the loss that this Canadian 

 plan has entailed upon the United States the loss 

 in money and in the human energy that gets the 

 grain out of the soil. 



It will be remembered that in the 

 About spring of 1915, under an act of Con- 



Cost gress, Secretary Lane appointed 



Review cost review boards for every gov- 



Reports ernment irrigation project. The 



purpose was to determine if the con- 

 struction had been done at too heavy a cost. The 

 findings of the local board in each case will be 

 finally passed on by the Central Board of Cost Re- 

 view, of which Elwood Mead is chairman and Gen. 

 Wm. L. Marshall, consulting engineer to the Secre- 

 tary of the Interior, and I. D. O'Donnell, supervisor 

 of irrigation, are other members. E. A. Clark is 

 secretary. 



During December Elwood Mead visited the 

 Carlsbad and Rio Grande Valley projects and in turn 

 all other projects are to be looked over. This is for 

 the purpose of getting information in addition to 

 that supplied by the report of each local cost review 

 committee. 



There is no doubt but that all these local re- 

 ports are drastic in their declarations and recom- 

 mendations. For instance, it will be remembered 

 that the Carlsbad report, after recommending lib- 

 eral discount on the original construction cost, 

 ended with the sensational statement: "God pity 

 the water-users on the Carlsbad project." 



Mr. Mead is not expressing himself as to what 

 the decision of his board will be on any of the 

 projects, but with his vast knowledge of the field, 

 gained first in the agricultural department, later in 

 the reclamation work of this country and of Aus- 

 tralia, there is no question but that the central 

 board's final report will recommend discounts on 

 many of the original construction charges. 



Reasonable land prices will make a success of 

 every reclamation project. Uncle Sam can better 

 stand a loss than the water-user. If the latter is 

 burdened by useless charges, created largely by 

 reclamation mistakes, take the load off and let 

 Uncle Sam pocket the loss. But help the farmer to 

 success. That's our bread and butter. 



What From all parts of the west, wher- 



Is ever the water-users on government 



This, projects are struggling to crawl 



Bureaucracy? from under the heavy load of fed- 

 eral charges, there come protests 

 against the recent ruling requiring remittances to 



be made to Denver or Washington and stipulating 

 that these remittances must be in currency, post- 

 office money orders or bank drafts. 



It is really a petty matter, and such rulings are 

 generally the result of a trifling inconvenience in the 

 headquarters to which all payments and reports 

 eventually go. The fact that it adds to the expense 

 of the water-user to make his payments away from 

 his home headquarters weighs but little against the 

 added comfort of a few clerks. That thousands are 

 inconveninced by such rulings is of no import if the 

 bureau can lighten the labors of a clerk or two. 



But its pettiness becomes even more apparent 

 when the hardships of the new settler are consid- 

 ered. To him red tape is a bugaboo that he flies 

 from, for trained as he has been to the horny- 

 handed occupation of crop raising, bookkeeping and 

 the intricacies of filing entries and the circumlocu- 

 tion of getting at a claim by the most roundabout 

 method possible are just so many drawbacks to 

 actual occupation of the land. 



To be told that he cannot make payment at the 

 office of entry, to tell him that he cannot get his 

 certificate until the far-off official says it is all right, 

 is to add to the delay and to put the poor man to 

 additional expense and to much inconvenience. 



In the matter of relinquishment, too, it means 

 much delay, and delay always means trouble and 

 expense. 



Why not simplify these rules? Consider the 

 thousands of settlers in the matter, Mr. Secretary, 

 and not a few clerks who may be somewhat incon- 

 venienced by the old sane and simple methods. 



By the end of this month practically 

 Endorsing all of the state and district Irriga- 



the tion Associations will have held 



Jones their meetings. As predicted in the 



Bill last issue the sentiment in favor of 



the Jones bill, which proposes that 

 the United States government should guarantee the 

 securities of irrigation districts after they have been 

 carefully studied and endorsed by proper depart- 

 mental officials, was practically unanimous. The 

 convention at San Francisco acted promptly on the 

 matter and without a difference of opinion. The 

 Nebraska State Irrigation Association, held in De- 

 cember, followed with like action. The convention 

 at Portland was thoroughly in accord. The same 

 action was taken by several of the California con- 

 ventions. At North Yakima on January 10 there 

 will be the same unanimity. 



Congress is hearing from the west in no uncer- 

 tain tones on this project. 



