Arizona weekly enterprise., 1889-09-14
The Arid Committee.

Anc AFiu NeinihiNtee.
 TIE senatorial committee on arid |. lands passed through Arizona last week 1. on its flying trip through the country, 1 gathering information on which to | base future legislation upon the dis 1 position of land and water throughout the arid regions of the west. The committee from this place met the senatorial party at Yuma and accom- panied them as far as Tucson in or der to become familiar with their pro- posed line oi action upon the matters under investigation. Messrs. W. NJ. Stewart, of Nevada, and J. II. Reagan, of Texas, were the only two members of the Senate Committee present, and from the active interest they took in their labors every one they met be- came impressed with the earnestness of their purpose.
 However unfavorable the precon- ccved ideas of the senators may have been concerning Arizona, they were surely dissipated by their visit, for our wonderful resources of water, land and productions were real surprise. They found here their ideal field of oper- a.ions, where the best possible results will follow the least expenditure of capital and energy, and this conclus- ion was fully confirmed in the results shown them in the Salt river valley. They pictured in glowing terms the grand future Of Arizona with it's water supply developed and its broad, level and fertile plains brought under a high state of cultivation by small holdings, and at times they grew so eloquent upon the subject that we began to consider the distinguished gentlemen to be the victims of great misfortune that denied them some personal en- joyment of the impending happiness about to descend, like mantle Of beauty, upon this land of future milk and honey.
 The explanation given by the com mittee of the law of October 2d, 1888, reserving reservoir sites and the lands susceptible of irrigation therefrom, is to the effect that grasping speculators will be unable to monopolize the best enterprises of this kind that no one will be permitted to acquire rights within the reservoir sites for the pur- pose of being bought off at exorbi- tant figures when dams are to be con structed, nor to enter lands along a proposed canal before there is Q cer- tainty of water supply. They say the desert land law is doomed in spite of the protest of the people of Arizona and they favor the reduction of home stead entries to forty acres of land. In doing so they advance the plausible argument that we need large popu- lation to become prosperous, and far better results will follow the thorough cultivation of small farms than large ones. This is an abstract truth tC which every one can subscribe, but il the case of Arizona it is an impracti cable theory, and does not hold ou sufficient inducements to capital tt develop our sources of water supply Far better would be the plan of givinl to the canal and reservoir builders all the land that can be irrigated there from upon the condition that every acre be sold to actual settlers within ten years, at a fixed price, after whicl time the canal and reservoir will be come the property of the settlers. II such a case the works should be con structed after the plans prepared b, the engineers of the geological surve and under the personal supervision ( a government officer.
 The desert land law has accomplish ed all that has been done in Arizon in retaining the arid lands. If has been abused or it's provisions evaC ed in occasional instances it is not tn fault of the law, but of it's execution and its repeal will work a hardshi to this territory where the whole arc of public land is strictly of desc character. Our people should uni in protest against its appeal so f. as Arizona is concerned, for at lea five years longer, when we feel assure that nearly all the land susceptible irrigation will be reclaimed. The hol CTS win then subdivide their lands il to small tracts and can offer goo homes to settlers on terms that wi induce them to come amongst us.
 Upon tho whole the people ma rest assured that radical change
 our land laws is contemplated, al just what the final result will be one can imagine. That the liberal poli Of the past will not be continued al the difficulty of obtaining public Ian will be greatly increased, cannot adm of single doubt.
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 TIE nomination of T. L. Stiles, Es a former resident of Tucson, as a ca didate for Associate Justice of tl Sunre nc Cont of Woshinoton Tor