Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-13

and need protection. These forests are
distant from the irrigable lands where
the agricultural population must be es-
tablished in homes, but the farmers are
dependent upon them for their supply of
wood and lumber. They are also de-
pendent upon them for their full supply
of water for irrigation. Therefore, in
the interest of the farmers, the forests
should be protected.
s. There are great areas of pastursge
lands which furnish scant but valuable
supply of food for fiocks and herds, and
the farmers engaged in irrigation can
utilize this pasturags to the best advan-
tage. But it is also being destroyed and
needs protection, and the farmers with
permanent homes are the people pri-
marily interested in its protection.
8. The lands that can be irrigated are
narrowly limited in area, so that only
small portion can be redeemed when ell
the waters are used. The best lands lie
at the foot of the mountains and near to
them, and should be chosen for this pur-
pose. The mountain lands are not good
for agricultural lands, and the lands far
down the streams can be used only by
great waste of waters. The irrigable
lands should be carefully selected.
10. The irrigeble lands should be Sc
gregated and declared such, and the
right to use water on them should be
established, and prohibition should be
put to the use OF water on all other
lands.
IL. Irrigated lands are of great value,
varying from $50 TO 5000 per acre.
y. The size of the homestead should
be reduced to eighty acres, and perhaps
forty would be better, that the public
domain may be distributed among the
greatest number of people.
l3. Water rights are often established
that impede the development of agricul-
ture and are greatly obstructive.
IA. international conflicts in relation
to water rights are impending.
10. Conflicting rights to the use of
waters in different states are being es-
tablished, and bitter conflicts have al
ready begun. These rights are of great
magnitude, involving hundreds of mil
lions of dollars. The general problem I,
therefore, is nationalproblem.
l6. Many conflicts are arising between
committees in relation to the use of
water on the land, and between individ-
uals in the same community. The waters
should be divided by some just method.
II. Speculative water rights, where
work of value has not actually been done
and lands irrigated, should be summary
extinguished.
IS. Existing water rights should be
maintained, but those that are IMPROVE
dent and obstructive must ultimately be
condemned and the owners justly re-
munerated.
IS. Waters that are to be stored have
to be divided among the communities.
20. In many regions the people are de-
veloping agriculture where it cannot be
permanently maintained, and the foun-
dations for large claims against the gen.
eral government are beng laid.
81. Both the waters and the lands of
the arid region are rapidly being aggre-
gated in the hands of few persons or in
the possession of great corporations.
Thus q result is being secured unfavor-
able to the welfare of the great body of
people who perform the labor on the
farms-the actual farmers themselves.
%. The government need not construct
irrigating works. This increase given to
the value of the land is more than sufi-
Gent for the purpose.
%. 1t is possible to divide the arid re-
gion dependent upon perennial stream
waters into irrigation districts, so that
each one may have q catchment area and
a corr esponding irrigsble area where the