118 



THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



acre thereby ascertained ; provided, that all private 

 lands to be taken into consideration herein shall 

 be subscribed before August 1, 1917. It is further 

 understood that the association may release the 

 subscriptions of those members having full or par- 

 tial vested water rights or may make adjustments 

 by credits, provided that the remaining lands and 

 subscribers assume and repay the project cost. 



4. That all public irrigable lands in the project 

 shall be promptly opened to entry and water-right 

 application under applicable laws. 



5. That the Reclamation Service shall do any 

 necessary additional construction work upon the 

 tunnel or upon the south canal, or other project 

 works, the cost of such necessary work to be added 

 to the building charge. 



6. That at the option of the Water Users' 

 association the entire project and related works 

 shall be turned over to it for operation and mainte- 

 nance hereunder, or the canals and distributing sys- 

 tems shall so be turned over, the tunnel, diversion 

 dam, and south canal to be maintained and operated 

 by the United States, the annual operation and 

 maintenance charges to be paid prorata by all lands 

 irrigable under the project. 



7. That all future expenditures by or on behalf 

 of the United States upon the project shall be made 

 only after consultation with the Water Users' asso- 

 ciation and in the event of failure of the Reclama- 

 tion Service and the Water Users' association to 

 agree with respect thereto, the matter shall be 

 carried to and decided by the Secretary of the In- 

 terior. 



8. The association will use its powers and 

 resources, cumulatively, if necessary, including the 

 power to withhold the delivery of water, to en- 

 force the rules and regulations made by the Secre- 

 tary of the Interior under the provisions of law, 

 or by the association under its articles of incorpora- 

 tion and by-laws, for the proper care, operation and 

 maintenance of the project and for carrying out 

 the provisions of this agreement. If the enforcing 

 of any such rules and regulations shall require the 

 collection of any charges, penalties or interest from 

 persons holding land the title to which has not passed 

 out of the United States, the association shall re- 

 port such cases to the Secretary of the Interior who 

 will aid the association in enforcing such collections 

 by the cancellation of entries and water right appli- 

 cations or by other means authorized by law. But 

 failure on the part of the Secretary of the Interior 

 to enforce such collections in such cases shall not 

 relieve the association from the obligations assumed 

 by it under this agreement. 



9. The association shall use all practical meth- 

 ods to insure the economical and beneficial use of 

 irrigation water. It shall also hold the United States 

 harmless as to any damages which may accrue to 

 other land or property either within or without 

 the reservoir district growing out of the care, man- 

 agement, operation and maintenance of the project 

 by the association. 



10. The project and all its works and those 

 connected with it may be inspected from time to 

 time under the direction of the Secretary of the 

 Interior when he shall deem it necessary to ascer- 

 tain if the provisions of this agreement are being 

 carried out and observed by the association in the 



care, operation and maintenance of the project. 

 The cost of such inspections shall be charged to 

 the association and become due to the United States 

 on March 1st of each year for expenditures on that 

 account during the preceding year. 



11. The association shall maintain all the 

 works turned over to it under the provisions of 

 this agreement in* proper operating condition and 

 make proper delivery of irrigating water to each 

 farm unit entitled thereto, or at least as near to the 

 farm unit as the United States is now delivering 

 such water. 



12. This agreement may be canceled or termi- 

 nated by the association on March 1 of any year 

 upon not less than- one year's written notice thereof 

 to the Secretary of the Interior. It may be amended 

 at any time, such amendment to be ratified by a 

 vote of the members of the association in the same 

 manner as the original agreement, and all amend- 

 ments must be approved by the Secretary of the 

 Interior before becoming effective. This agreement 

 may be terminated by the United States acting in 

 that behalf by the Secretary of the Interior, at any 

 time, by at least three months' written notice from 

 the Secretary of the Interior in case the association 

 fails to carry out the provisions of law relating 

 thereto, or of this agreement, in their true intent 

 and meaning, or if the Secretary of the Interior 

 shall reasonably believe that the security of the 

 United States for the repayment to it of the said 

 construction cost, is being impaired by the failure 

 or neglect of the association to properly care for 

 and maintain the project. Upon the termination 

 of this agreement, the Secretary of the Interior shall 

 have the right to exercise all the powers in regard 

 to the project which are vested in him by law; he 

 may also at any time, after the execution of this 

 agreement, take such action as he may deem proper, 

 either by his own officers or through the association, 

 for the collection of any charges with penalties due 

 the United States, which may be unpaid. 



13. The association will keep reasonably ac- 

 curate records of water deliveries and of crops raised 

 under the project as well as such other records as 

 are appropriate to the interests of the project as 

 a whole. Copies of the official county or other 

 public records governing crop production shall be 

 accepted under this provision. 



14. The proper officers or agents of the association 

 shall have full and free access at all reasonable times to 

 the project books and official records of the United States 

 relating to the construction, acquisition, care, operation 

 and maintenance of the project, with the right at any 

 time during office hours, to make copies of and from the 

 same, or any of them. The proper representatives of 

 the United States shall have similar rights in respect to 

 the books and records of the association relating to the 

 project and its care, management, operation and mainte- 

 nance. 



This offer, which is necessarily general in its terms, 

 is, of course, contingent upon the ability of the association 

 and the department to agree upon a definite contract which 

 will set forth fully and in detail the understanding and 

 agreement pertaining to the turning over of the operation 

 and management of the project under the plan herein 

 proposed. 



I have to suggest that you cause this proposition to be 

 submitted to a vote of the water users under the project 

 at the earliest practicable time. 



Cordially yours, 



FRANKLIN K. LANE. 



