388 
was  given  the  disbursement  of  the  Reclamation  Fund,  to  undertake 
the  construction  of  irrigation  works  in  the  arid  states  as  fast  as 
the  growth  of  the  fund  permitted.  The  total  amount  paid  into 
the  Treasury  for  this  purpose  up  to  the  present  is  about  $50,000,- 
000.00.  That  expenditures  in  construction  keep  close  pace  with 
the  growth  of  the  fund  is  illustrated  by  the  fact  that  the  expen- 
ditures at  the  end  of  the  fiscal  year  1907  were  about  $33,000,000.00 
while  the  fund  at  that  time  amounted  to  about  $35,000,000.00. 
Later  figures  as  to  these  relations  are  not  available.  The  allot- 
ments thus  far  made  have  been  distributed  among  36  projects,  the 
cumulative  amounts  varying  from  $10,000.00  to  $7,000,000.00 
for  each  project. 
This  summarizes  in  the  very  briefest  fashion  the  movement  to 
date  for  national  irrigation  on  the  mainland. 
Hawaii  desires  to  share  in  some  form  of  governmental  reclama- 
tion because  she  believes  that  for  reasons  already  given,  govern 
ment  control  of  the  fundamental  elements  of  production,  namely, 
soil  and  water,  is  better  than  private  control  of  these  elements,  and 
because  she  holds  large  bodies  of  public  lands  that  will  be  affected 
111  the  coming  movement,  either  as  sources  of  water  supply,  or  as 
lands  that  will  be  irrigated. 
How  then  can  this  work  be  most  effectively  accomplished?  Is 
it  possible  to  secure  the  extension  of  the  Reclamation  Act  to  the 
Territory?  What  will  be  the  effect  of  that  extension  if  it  is  se- 
cured, and  what  are  the  alternatives  if  it  cannot  be?  These  are 
live  questions,  much  in  the  minds  of  your  territorial  officials  be- 
cause they  realize  that  the  entire  territory  is  deeply  concerned  in 
seeing  that  they  are  properly  answered.  The  final  answer  need  not 
lie  given  for  a few  years,  because  the  preliminary  steps  that  have 
been  taken  are  essential,  whatever  solution  is  eventually  adopted, 
but  it  is  none-the-less  appropriate  to  consider  the  entire  question 
and  so  to  decide  as  to  the  wisest  general  policy  to  adopt. 
The  field  of  the  Federal  service  is  at  present  restricted  by  law 
to  seventeen  States  and  Territories  on  the  mainland,  one  of  which, 
Texas,  has  been  added  to  the  original  group  since  the  passage  of 
the  Act  in  1902.  This  State  is  like  the  Territory  of  Hawaii  in 
one  respect,  namely,  that  it  can  make  no  contribution  to  the  Rec- 
lamation Fund  in  advance  of  construction.  The  lands  in  Texas 
that  are  being  reclaimed  by  the  Federal  Engineers  will  repay  to  the 
Government,  dollar  for  dollar,  the  amount  expended  upon  them, 
so  that  the  admission  of  Texas  to  share  in  the  benefits  amounts  to 
a loan  without  interest  from  the  Reclamation  Fund  to  the  lands  in 
question.  In  addition  to  this  loan  of  funds,  the  State  secures  the 
benefit  of  the  engineering  organization  of  the  Service,  this  benefit 
taking  the  form  presumably  of  a decreased  cost  to  the  land  owner 
through  the  efficiency  of  the  trained  engineers.  Some  such  form 
of  sharing  in  the  benefits  of  the  Reclamation  Service,  I presume, 
is  in  the  minds  of  those  who  desire  to  see  the  functions  of  the 
Service  extended  to  this  Territory.  In  considering  the  wisdom  of 
