The herald., 1895-04-24
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VIM. Tregea VS.. The Modesto
Irrigation District Case
IMPORTANT MEETING TODAY
Thousands OF Persons and Millions OF
Dollars Involved
The Consttutionality Of TIL. Wright Irrigation
Law to Be Passed Upon by the Supreme
Court Of the United States

at 2 o'clock in the audience room of the
chamber of commerce to discuss the ways
and means to bring about the early hear
ing of certain case by the supreme court
of the United States at Washington, d.
c., and to appoint legal counsel to assist
in the argument that will be educed at
that time. All parties interested in main
tanning the constitutionality of the Wright
act are cordially and earnestly invited to
be present.
The Wright irrigation law has been up
held in five of the leading cases that have
been passed upon by the supreme court
of the state of California. The supreme
court of the United States has decided to
reopen and reargue the only case involv
ing the constitutionality of the Wright
act that has ever been passed upon by
that august body.
The constitutionality of the law known
as the Wright irrigation law affects thou
sands of individuals. and literally scores
of millions of dollars worth of property
so many and to ieopardize the integrity
of ownershlpof so vast an amount of in
vested capital is not to be tolerated with
out some effort to prevent it. And this
is the object of the meeting announced
above. True. the act has not been de-
CldTcu Observation-Disclosures Dut LnC very
minor, single case that has found it's way
into the supreme court of the coun-
try is to be reopened and reargued-and
that is ominous.
To fully understand the full import of
the threatened danger The Herald pre-
sents the following syllabus OF the case:
The state of California has never had
case before the United States supreme
court involving SO much money, or one in
VIII ich her future prosperity was so much
at stake, as the case OF William Tregea VS..
the Modesto Irrigation district. This is
an appeal from the decision of on. state
supreme court, declaring the Wright act
constitutional: 1t has beep fully argued
before the United States supreme court,
both orally and by brief, yet the appeal
ing party, representing the large landed
plutocrats as well as the rich holders of
water rights, have asked through Senator
Stewart of Nevada reopening of the
case for final argument; and in Difference
to the talismanic power known as senate
rial courtesy the re-argument has been
granted at some time in the future.
The settlers in these districts, the con-
tractors who have built canals and laid
pipe to furnish water to these lands and
who took the bonds of the district as pay
ment for the same, knowing the legality
of the law had been esta blished by ii We
different decisions of the state supreme
of the district. often with the trust funds
of estates as solid investment have
now to await rhe pleasure of the United
States court to learn whether a state law
pertaining strictly to state affairs, backed
and sustained by a unanimous state SUI
preme court can be set aside to feed the
cupidity of a few rich landholders, who
prefer their lands to lie waste indeli nitely
rather than pay their proportion of the
taxes necessary for their improvements
The only difference in the legal right of
an irrigation district to levy and collect
an assessment for local improvem ents.
and that OF the city OF Los Angeles to levy
an assessment on each city lot. to pay in
terest on city bonds for school purposes or
street Improvements. is that one is in the
country and the other in the city, This
is the only difference. Any lot holder in
the city of Los Angeles who refuses to
pay his taxes. levied for interest on city
bonds. has the same right to appeal to
the United States supreme court for relief
that those holding lands in legally or
ganized irrigation district have. who APP
peal for relief on the ground that u fed
eral question is involved. Let this doc
trine be sustained by the United States
court and not one man in ten will ever
pay his city taxes.
This SUIT involves the validity of $l9.-
600. 900 bonds, now voted by those districts
The proceeds of these bonds have been
expended in buying or developing water
and piping it on these otherwise worth
less lands. TO declare the Wright act un-.
constitutional and thus invaldate these
bonds. is to ruin and bankrupt thousands
of honest men and many trust estates
and to swing back the pendulum of Cali
foria's success into the dark ages. The
friends of the Wright act are to have
meeting this afternoon at clock. at the
rooms OF the chamber of commerce, to
discuss the ways and means for meeting
the question of re-argument before the
United States supreme court.
The Wright act will add millions of pro-
ductive acreage to the state, and without
it the cactus and sagebrush will usurp
the place nature designed for the orange
and the vine. The supreme court is sup
posed to be always in session and consid-
erng the magnitude of the interests in
volved and the urgent demands for
speedy settlement of this whole question,
there is no room for postponing the re-
hearing later than May or Jnue. This
is no time for red tape formalities. Nero
could afford to frolic while Rome was
burning but our supreme court cannot
afford to take long holiday while this
great question needs a speedy adjustment.