Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-07-28
JOINT COMMITTEE MEETING.


was sadly in need of some kind of reorgan-
| ization The committee adjourned to Thursday
at2P NJ.
JOINT COMMITTEE MEETING.
| The Assembly Committees on Irrigation and
Constitutional Amendments met last evening in
| joint session. in the Supreme Courtroom, to
| listen to the arguments of irrigationists and
| ripariauists, upon the much vexed water qucs-
| ton, and the merits of the bills introduced in
| the Assembly upon this question. and which
are now in the hands OF those committees. On
| llondsy evening, it VIII be remembered, the
entire session was occupied i'll discussing the
appropriation of the waters of Kings river, and
the right 10 the use of the entire stream by the
/ riParianists, and the claims under the recent
| derisiOn of the Supreme Court of Hebron
| Polly d Co. The entire discussion was en-
tirely local in character covering only that
small section. Last night, Senator Cox,
the first speaker, illustrated his remarks by the
use of a Large map, showing some twenty or
thirty miles or Kern river and the southern por-
ton of 1ulare Lake in Kerr county. and the en-
tire session. lasting from halfpast to half past
10 O'Clock, was occupied in discussion of the
claims and rights of the use of the water in that
| small section as between Miller Il Lux upon one
side and Haggin L Carr on the other. history Of
the county was given. with its various stages of
improvement from 1868 down to the present
time-the irrigationists pleading the cause of
Haggin d Carr, appropriations. and the riparian
lists that of Miller & Lux, whom they claimed
were entitled to the water both as rfparianists
and appropriations. The arguments narrowed
down resulted Simply in d contest between these
two great firms as 70 VINO had the best right to a
total use of the entire waters of Kern river
II. s. Dixon, q Fresno iuigationist, was the
first speaker and said it was idle to talk of the
importance Of the subject of irrigation The
people of the southern portion of the State be-
lieve that the prosperity and advancement of
this State, particularly the southern portion
depended upon the right to divert the waters from
the streams for the purpose of irrigation. He
replied at length to the argument of Mr. Lillis
made on the preceding evening and said to
adept the methods he proposed meant death to
all progress and advancement. His firm owns
60 90 acres of land and y 600 head of lttIe and
claimed for that the entire flow of Kings river
claim enough water flowed in Kings
river to properly irrigate ali the land between
Kings river and the San joaquin. the lakes and
the foothills. Put that wSter by proper dis
tributioE upon all the lands and not oue-half of
il could be utilized. Il would increase the
value Of that section SIS. 900 600 and support a
population of q quarterof million people Is
il better in view of this fact, 70 let il remain as
it is 10 run TO waste to irrigate their 1900 OF
1900 acres of cultivated grounds and keep
alive 1890 cattle, or divert and distribute so
He claimed that the Mexican laws Under
which they gained their title did not deed
the2 the Elyer or any portion of it.
When he went TO Fresno eighteen years ago the
land on the plains was Inhabited only by horned
tosds ana lizards. BY the use Of water the bar
rem wastes had been made productive, the lands
brought forth ahunGent crops, settlements were
made by an industrious and thrifty people,
towns sprang into existence, school-houses dot |
ted the plains and the teGds and lizards were |
displaced BY happy and prosperous people. II