Daily Los Angeles herald., 1883-10-27
The Water Question.

| The question Of the right to water in
Los Angeles county, is one Of vital i'm
portance to all the inhabitants, and
must be settled by judicial decision in
favor Of the first possessor, SO long as
that possessor uses it for domestic pur.
pose or other useful purposes. The right
to the use of water is now one of tolera-
ton, the people being the tolerant, and
the strongest battalions are permitted to
hold the fort. The decision of the for
mer Supreme Court in the case of Pope
vs.. Kinman, of San Bernardino county,
granting riparian rights to the ownsrs
of lands along the streams OF all charac-
ter in the State, was the great awaken
ing power which showed the people
that new state was necessity,
with a constitution aud code of laws
that would recognize the right of the
people to appropriate water for domes-
tic use and for irrigation, and revived
the old project of State subdivision that
should separate that portion Of the
State chat depended ou irrigation from
the portion where rivers were nayiga-
BILE.
The life and property Of the people
of Los Angeles county. and all Southern
California depend on this right to SO use
the springs and streams OF water. The
Alta, in a recent number, feeds the peo-
Pile of Los Angeles on the beauty and
grandeur of the great State Of California
and the blessedness Of keeping it intact.
While our citizens admire the great
commonwealth, they consider the beau
| ty and grandeur and glory Of the State
a very ETHEREAL diet on which to support
family and pay debts. When man
sees his orchard dying Tor lack of water
which his neighbor has compelled him
to let 60 to waste under the Pope VS..
Kinman decision, he will forget the
grandeur aud the glory and the magnifi-
cence Of the State, and will vote to
make it smaller with new laws founded
on the old Spanish law in regard to the
use Of water, which is the lifeblood of
the people. The seven counties of
Southern California form about as large
q territory as New England. and are
separated by their climate and the ne
cessities Of irrigation from the northern
counties.
The formation Of new State is an
overwhelming necessity to the people Of
Southern California. 1t is not that they
love California less, that our people
want new state, but that they love
self preservation aud prosperity more.
that they desire this change. The old
laws have ceased to protect the rights Of
the people in this part of the State. and
no new ones can be obtained from the
old State government The Investment
in water development now amounts to
millions Of dollars, and is constantly in
creasing, and demands the protection
OF law like other property. With this
assured protection, increased capital
will be invested in dams, pipes, fumes
and wells, that will promote the pros.
peritv Of the country to great degree.
The matter is one OF great unanimity
in this section. and must prevail before
long in the Congress Of the nation. The
San Bernardino Iader comes out square,
ly on the question as follows;
The great factor in Southern Cali
fornia's prosperity Is water-not water
to drink nor water for mills or fac
tories--but water for irrigation. With
out this we are at once relegated