Arizona weekly enterprise., 1889-08-17
R. c. S G. W. BROWN.

 TIE following dispatch was sent out from Washington on the 9th in- stant as indicating the scope of the recent act of Congress in relation to the arid lands of the west and the construction placed thereon by Gen. eral Land Office:
 "Acting Land Commissioner Stone l to-day issued an important circular to all Registers and Receivers respect ing the irrigation survey. After quot ing the law he says: The object sought to be accomplished by the foregoing provision is unmistakable. The water sources and arid lands that may be irrigated by system of na- tional irrigation are now reserved, to culture, transferred to the people of the Territories in which they are sit uated, for homestead, by act of con gress, and common justice requires that they should be faithfully preserv- ed for these declared purposes. The statute provides that all lands which may hereafter Do designated or se- lected by the geological survey as sites for reservoirs, ditches or canals for irrigating purposes, and all lands made susceptible of irrigation by such reservoirs, ditches or canals, are, since the passage of the said act, absolutely reserved from sale as the property of the United States, and shall not be subject after the passage of the act, to entry, settlement or occupation, until further provided by law, or the Presi- dent by proclamation, may open said lands to settlement. Neither indi- viduals nor corporations have the right to make filings upon any lands thus reserved, nor can they be per mitted to obtain control of lakes and streams that are susceptible of uses for irrigating purposes. You will therefore immediately cancel all fil- ings made since October 2, 1888, on such sites for reservoirs, ditches or ca nals for irrigating purposes and all lands that may be susceptible of irri- gation by such reservoirs, ditches or corporations, and you will hereafter receive no filings upon any such lands. This order you will carry into effect without delay"
 At first glance the exact bearing oI this order upon the existing state of affairs in Arizona is inexplicable, but the motive is made clear by the news from Idaho that the government sur veyors locating sites for reservoir: and canals have been closely followed by engineers in the interests of pri vate parties who hope to profit by the labors of the government and locate all the most valuable sites in advance of their reservation from private en, try. These rapacious speculators, if permitted to accomplish their designs would completely circumvent the ef forts of the government in behalf o the people. The Secretary of the In terior was advised of the state of affair in Idaho and the above general orde is the direct result. It does not affec any entries in Arizona, for the reason that no reservation of reservoir site has yet been made by the governmen engineers. It is true that the orde is open to construction not contem plated by the Commissioner, and it provisions are not clear unless it i interpreted in connection with the Ida ho situation above mentioned. Tn reservation of sites for reservoirs, ca nals and ditches are made by tn engineers of the geological survey anC while the law makes such reservation from entry absolute AFTER being s designated by the geological surve, the order of the Commissioner is re troactive in annulling entries mad within the areas subsequently, reser' ed, after October 2nd, 1888. W do not share the apprehension of tl Citizen that the order will withdra from sale any of the lands in Arizon covered by existing canals. The go
 ernment can exercise no control ov,
 rights already acquired and it do,
 not contemplate the slightest inte
 ference where private enterprise h.
 already inaugurated work of the cha
 acter premeditated in the recent a
 of Congress.