Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-01-29
IRRIGATION.
TIE Important Problem Now Eefore the
legislature What is Being Done-visws
of a Correspondent.

of Correspondent.
EDS. RECORD UNION: A mesting of the
delegates from Fresno county with the Az
sembly Committees on Swamp Lsnds and
Irrigation was held Friday evening last. and
on being called to order Mr.. Mathews Of the
Assembly, from San Benito county, was
called to the chair. The bill introduced in
the Assembly by Mr.. Wharton was then
read, also another. The question was then
thrown open for general discussion. The first
speaker was Judge North, of Fresno county.
formerly of Riverside, and one of the pro.
jsctors Of thai colony. The Judge took the
position that the principle of riparian rights
was not the law Of this State. That the
common law" of this State was the prin.
cipie OF appropriation. That the right to
| appropriate water for mining purposes and
Tor farming has been for over twenty years
recognized as
THE CUSTOM OF THE LAND,
And has been sustained by the State Courts
and approved by the Supreme Court of the
| United States The Judge held, therefore.
| that appropriation ia the common Law OF
| California" in eontra3istinction to riparian
! rights. as the common law Of England -
and of States where irrigation is not neces-
| sary; and that as appropriation was the rule
before laws were passed for general dis.ribu-
| ton or irrigation, these later laws do not in-
terfere with the law OF appropriation, but
must be held in subordinstion therste. The
customs OF any country growing out of the
wants and necessities of the people, become
law, and are always recognized as law on
| that account; and not only has the principle
of appropriation become the law By custom,
| but it has also become the law by statute.
| The Judge desired. therefore, that the special
law enacted for Fresno county should be
| amended in two particulars to make it con.
form to the law Of appropriation as reco.-
nized By custom and provided by the Civil
Code, viz: By striking cut the section in the
law which prohibits interferencs with ripa-
rian rights, and the other section preventing
/ the operation of the general laws of apprc-
| priation in Fresno county, The next speaker
was the Hon. MIR. Griffith, of Fresno county,
member of the last Legislature, who spoke
in general terms of
THE WANTS OF THE PEOPLE
In Fresno county and of the great advance.
ment of That county in population and agri.
culture, arising from the extensive irrigation
works constructed and in operation. Bus he
| held that there should be soma law passed
making the use and appropriation of water
| for irrig alton public use, and which would
regulate the distribution in different counties
| or districts using water from the same source
of supply. He thought that in the main
| the people ef his county would be satisfied
| with the features of the bill introduced by
Mr.. Wharton of the Assembly. There were
some things in the bill that he thought
could be improved; but he recognized
| the fact that it would be impossi-
| ble to satisfy all, and therefore he would
! be willing to accept any bill passed which
would do the greatest good to the greatest
number. As delegate from Fresno county
he extended an invitation to tie members of
the Assembly committee, or to as many of
them as could go. to visit Fresno county and
see what they had accomplished through their
system of irrigation and how it YVES managed,
so that their observation of the results and
the system which produced them might aid
the committee in perfecting some bill that
would meet the general wants. The next
speaker was H. S. Dixon, of Fresno
also sent as a delegate TO aid in procuring
legislation conducive to irrigation. The
speaker spoke at length Of the
POSSIBILITIES FOR THIS GREAT STATE
In population and agriculture as the result of
wise legislation on irrigation and the hus-
banding and proper distribution of its water
resources. He also urged the necessity of
LH3 passage OF q iSW DY WHICH water or iAQQS
copld be condemned ii necessary for the pub
sic good, holding that the use of either water
or land by one or few individuals should
not be allowed to stand in the way when the
interest Of the many.is involved or leopard
ized that law should be so framed az to
compensate for the loss sustained by an indi-
vidual or the few who have to give up their
property and right to water for the benefit OF
many. This speaker admitted that all the ordi-
nary flow of water for summer use in Fresno
county has been appropriated and is used,
but that greatly increased quantities could be
obtained by proper storage. An invitation
was then extended to the State Engineer, w.
Ham. Hall TO appear before the committee
next Tuesday evening, in the Assembly
| chamber, at O'clock and general invita-.
| ton was given to all members of the Senate
and Assembly, and the public who are inter-
este6 in the subject Of irrigation, to attend at
that time.
COMMENTS ON THE FOREGOING.
1 was present at the meeting which is
above outlined, and desire permission to say
that great interest was taken in what was
said, hoping that plans either Of general or
special character would be brough5 forward
and discussed, bearing upon the law of dis
tribution of water for irrigation, but there
was great disappointment in that regard.
What was said was laudatory of irrigation
and of the industry and enterprise Of the peo-
pie of Fresno c5unty-all Of which every
man who knows anything about irrigation in
any country or of its results in Fresno county
| must admit. No attempt was made to take
| up MIR. Wharton's bill, section by section, for
discussion of its merits and demerits. No ef.
| fort was made to bring out the fundamental
idea Of the bill, SO that the committee could
| judge of its application to the present circum-
stances of the people, or whether there is
any elasticity in it necessary to provide for
| the wants of the coming millions in the great
valley, so glowingly described by MIR. Giif-
| 9Th. All | heard specially bearing upon
changes in the present l2w were, first, the
two points made by Judge North on the re-
peal of that section Of the Fresno county law
which recognizes and projects
RIPARIAN RIGHTS
Aud the other to repeal another section of the
| same law which repeals ell laws of a general
character in conflict with the special law pro-
vided for. Fresno county; next, by MIR. Grif-
| fifth. on the necessity of passing a law declar-
ing the appropriation Of water for irrigation
public use, and of providing for the proper
| distribution of water between two or more
counties receiving water fer irrigation frcm 3
common soufce of supply; and, third, by
Mr.. Dixon, who urged the necessity Of D Law
to condemn for public use not only the water
| claimed or used, but the land OF the indi-
vidual, or Of the few whose existing claims
may interfere with or be detrimental to the
general good-upon the theory that if only
the water was condemned the land would be
worthless without the water, and his pror-
erty destroyed without compensation, which
| the law would not allow.
Let us examine these propositions. First
those of Judge North. Let any man read the
laws passed for Fresno county April 2, 1866,
1 L