184 
BRONZE OF SPRINGER 
required the hand of man to conserve, impound and distribute. Mr. 
Springer made two blades of grass grow where not one grew before. 
Hd had the vision to see the charms and richness of the almost desert. 
One of the great achievements of his life which brought him national 
prominence was the case of the Maxwell Land Grant against the United 
States Government. Mr. Springer devoted enormous study and labor to 
the preparation of this case, which he fought through all the courts of 
the land to the Supreme Court, where he made admittedly one of the 
finest arguments on land grant cases which has ever been made before 
that tribunal. 
He exerted an important influence on the industrial life of the state, as 
he was one of the first to recognize the importance of coal resources of 
New Mexico, and took a prominent part in the organization of the St. 
Louis, Rocky Mountain and Pacific Company, the most important fuel 
producing company in the west, is today one of its directors and has al¬ 
ways exerted an important influence in its affairs. 
The greatest enterprise ever undertaken in the State of New Mexico by 
private capital, the building of the so-called Eagle Nest Dam in the Cimar¬ 
ron Canyon, was carried through by Mr. Springer and his brother Charles. 
Built primarily for the purpose of storing water for their own lands, it 
will also irrigate a large acreage of adjacent lands and result in the de¬ 
velopment of one of the most important agricultural areas of the state. 
The builders of this enterprise, in investing their capital, have taken all 
the chances, while the public and the State receives a large portion of the 
benefits. 
In his early years, Mr. Springer took an important part in politics and 
served several terms as member of the state senate. His name has been 
frequently mentioned for the highest political honors within the gift of the 
State, but his inclination has led him away from the field of politics. 
His wise counsel, his cool and deliberate judgment, have always been 
sought by the leaders of the State, and his influence and counsel have 
been a most important factor in guiding the State through her territorial 
period into full statehood, and in framing her laws and constitution. 
Mr. Springer was one of the first to see in New Mexico the meaning 
of her past, the value of her present, and the promise of her future. 
In addition to his own constructive work, his assistance and support have 
been of immeasurable value to those other pioneers who have labored to 
establish and build up the educational and scientific institutions of the State. 
Some one has said that the principal assets of the State of New Mexico 
are cattle, sheep* mines, agriculture and romance, and it can be safely said 
that no other citizen of the State has played so important a part as he in 
the development of these five assets. The history of every state and nation 
is the history of the achievements and activities of her great men. 
Mr. Springer’s activities have covered the widest possible range. As 
editor, lawyer and legislator — as farmer, stockman, and banker — as 
educator, scientist and statesman — as industrial leader, railroad builder and 
