Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-03-11

:
/ say TO those people whether or not they have
! right to live? This is the first tune in my life
/ that ever heard it asserted that the preroga-
! tive OF this Senate could be usurped by any
! Convention. Those who have seats on this floor
: are sent here to legislate because of their sup
! posed qualifications and integrity. Neither the
county of Fresno, nor the county of Humboldt,
! nor any Convention has right to formulate
bill, bring j: to this Senate aud say Put your
! hands TO it." The argument is made that be-
cause these bills were formulated at a CoIyeu-
! ton they must have the sanction of this Senate,
! or else those who are opposed To them are not
acting in good faith, nor IN the interest of the
whole people. Let it hc said as it may, ! shall
/ willingly share in whatever criticism may at
tach to us for asserting that we believe no bills
| formulated by a Convention IN de up wholly of
men whose i'll erests are entirely with the aD-
perpetrators Of water should be brought to this
! Senate and we asked to railroad them through,
! after they are put upon the file, under the spur
of passion and the whip OF excitement. For
/ one shall never consent TO lend myself to any
such views or scheme.
| 1t is unfortunate, Mr. President that the term
of the session is 50 short, but neither l. nor,
| apprchend, any Senator here is TO blame for
! that. And when say that, do not mean it
! in any offensive sense. There are gentlemen
! here who were members of the Constitutional
! Convention and helped 10 frame the present
| Constitution but have no doubt they well
; thought sixty days was long enough. But it is
unfortunate that this session has not been long
| enough to allow us to consider these bills prop
! erly. ] do not deny the Importance of irriga-
| ton; | do not deny that these bills ought to be
! considered But I do deny the prncticabilty
| and the policy of considering them now. And
! do say that the friends OF these measures. i'll
my opinion have not pursued the best policy
| towards having these bills fairly discussed. l
| do say that, as conceive, 1t was their duty to
| allow the bills 10 remain in the Committee of
! the Whole, then and there discuss them and per
| feet them. While know that every Senator
! has Il right to amend them again when they
: come back into the Senate, still no Senator who
! acted in good faith in perfecting the bills, i'll
! Committee of the Whole, would offer to obstruct
! them upon the floor of the Senate. But at this
! time and place to ask u to take up this import
! ant legislation and ask US to pass all else upon
! the file of the Senate or stay here two three
/ days longer, i'll my opinion. would be productive
| of no result AS have stated, do not know of
| any Senator-of those who are the friends Of
! these measures and " no are asked by their con
| stituent3 10 urge them to passage-having
! offered any amendment; and It does seem to me
| that the bills are extreme in their features.
! But there was a disposition it seemed to me-
| upon the part of others, to compromise il some
| manner and put the bills in such shape as would
| suit majority of the Senate at least The Sena-
! tor from Los Angeles n0lO says We are not
! welded to the language OF these bills" This
! is the first time during their consideration that
| ever heard that Senator make use of such
| language. On the contrary, have always un-
| derstOod the claim to be that the bills had TO
| pass as they we're drdtcR. They were drawn IN
| der instructions, and have no doubtthe gentle
| men who drew them thought they were proper
| measures But since they were brought here
think 1t IS almost universally conceded that they
| were conceived in partisan spirit; that they
{ were drawn without due reflection, and that
| they ere measures that are not calculated On
| the whole, TO benefit the state of Atorni1.
! think that have said all that Msire to say
! upon this question. As said bcfCE the prn-
/ cipal objection l have TO fu1he, considering
these bills is that donot believe this is proper
! time TO consider them. do not believe that we
! can perfect, within any reasonable time anv
bill that would be Of benefit either to those
I south, to those north or to the State
There is another objection. This question is
! now before the Supreme Court Of this State:
| especially that part OF the subject-matter Gov
! cred by the provisions of this very bill now
| sought to be taken up. In that caScWt is con-
tended on the part Of the resPondent1 Mat the
There has been dissenting option, and
| a petition for q rehcaring, which has been
! granted. While that is right in the jaws of
| the law, so to speak, and being considered
| by the Supreme Court of the State we are asked
| to pass upon a bill which actually puts an in
! depreciation upon the very law OF the land that
! the Court has now under examination. In a
! very short time the decision will become the
ultimate rule of law in this State. After that it
| will be time enough for us TO seek to engraft
! upon the statute books some legislation upon
| this subject. II seems to me that it is reason
! able that it is the part of wisdom born OF expe-
! rience, to toncede the question to that extent
| have no disposition 10 criticise the Supreme
! Court when they are considering this very i'm
| pOrtant subject Let their decision be untram-
! meled There is great deal of irrigation going
! on i'll this State now Besides there are statutes
in force that will subserve their neces sties until
/ the Legislature meets again, when we will be
better prepared to act camly, wisely and dispas-
sionately upon this great and oyershadowing
! subject.
sPEEcH OF SENATOR CROSS
Mr.. Cross-The question pending before the
Senate is, whether will lay aside all business
| in its order and go 10 Assembly Bill No. 40,
| which relates TO the subject of irrigation and
water rights, giving to that, on account Of It's
/ Importance, or supposed importance, preference
| before all other matters now before US Sir, if
J this is done under existing circumstances when
! there are so many measures which this Legisla-
tnre has deemed of sufficient importance TO pass
! along to a first, second and third reading, the
! reasons for it ought somewhere 10 most plainly
| most clearly and most honestly appear.
/ 1t seems that there is in this case question
about who has the right to take water. 1t is not
question as to whether there shall be irriga-
ton in the state. That issue is sought to be
falsely forced before the people for there is no
question as to whether there shall be irrigation
or not but the question is as to who shall have
the use and benefit of the waters of this State,
which, it is well known, have not beer by ma
ture unfortunately provided i'll sufficient
quantities to satisfy the wishes of all.
Now a knowledge of the true condition of
affairs in the State is the proper basis for the
! consideration ofthis measure. In the State all
! water is furnished by snow and by rains perco-
latlng at times from springs aud feeding streams,
which streams were planted by Him who, of
all, knew where to place the water. And the
question Is, Wheeler those who own lands Dor
dering on the streams, where God Almighty
planted the streams, shall have any right to the
waters so there planted, or whether the reign
OF nature shall be entirely subverted and the
waters conducted to the desert lands, there
TO be appropriated TO uses OF public necessity.
Now bordering along every stream in this State
are low lands valleys, which, by reason OF the
streams flowing through them, and the soil being
hight AID porous are made. on one or both sides
OF those streams, of immense value, like the low
! lands on the Yuba and the Feather, the cover
/ ing up of which by mining slickens has been
considered public calamity: those along the
San JOaQuiu. the Kern. the IuOlumup and the
, MERGED, and those along the sacraIuento, For
miles wide on either or both sides OF these rivers
are the most valuable lands i'll the State; made
valuable by the nature of the soil and the fact
of the living streams flowing ever onward
through them to the sea- the soil on either side
absorbing, as they pass along, water sufficient TO
tances Lying back of these low lands,
on either side, are higher lands, which
a-e adapted TO the raising of wheat;
! those lands are valuable without irrigation, for
they produce the great cereal crop of our State
the crop OF golden grain; and this GRIP, which
/ is the grandest and most important product of
! our commonwealth, is not, in the State of Cali
! fornia anywhere, SO far as am informed, pro-
! duced by the aid of irrigation Lying still back
/ OF and above these, through many of the val
/ leys, lie the desert foothills and the desert
| sandy plains, the cultivation of which, in many
| instances requires the application of large
quantities Ofwater for years until the soil is COM
! pletely saturated, as the Mussel Slough country;
ana thereafter crops can be produced, but only by
/ a continued immense expenditure of water,
! on account of the soil being sandy and desert
, in its nature, and requiring copiOus irrigation
: as compared with the lower lands. Now, the
i crops which can be produced by irrigation upon
I these desert lands are not the great crops OF
California. They are the small products of the
State. And the relation of the lower plains,
| where the great wheat crop OF the State g
grown, to the rivers natural bed, has not ye.
either been looked into, ascertsined or reported:
and no man can say what will be the effect
| upon those great wheat plains TO entirely divert
! the waters from their natural course. But
| every man does know, who has studied those
| three words which appear in the bill in ques
! ton" climate, topography and irrigation -
that, for the application of what water there is
| III the State the use of it upon those desert
lands is the most extravagsnt and wasteful use.
by reason OF the very nature Of the soil to which
water can be applied for irrigation purposes.
! Now the lands and the waters of the State
are, almost totally, in some vested in
whom vested the Courts are now considering In
| one locality there two elements and two
| classes of people eontending for the benefits of
| water. To one class those benefits have been