The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-07-24

mination of the issues commenced in the
light of many State Supreme Court de-
cisions upholding the constitutionality of
the irrigation law.
According to what those who are inter-
ested say it is upon these decisions that
both foreign and local capital was intro
duced into the expensive plants in the
various districts.
The discussion has started all who are
interested in the irrigation question to
guessing as to how far it will, if eventually
sustained, affect all the irrigation districts
of the State. Many say that they are
exempt from its influence under the sup
Elemental act of the Legislature which
authorizes boards of directors to go into
the Superior Courts and have the regular
ity of all proceedings Of organization
passed upon judicially. Others claim that
the confirmation or non-confirmation by
the Superior Court has nothing to do with
the issue, but that everything rests solely
upon the constitutionality of the Wright
act.
All are agreed, though, that the whole
irrigation matter is now in frightful mud
die, and what the outcome will be no one
can surmise. 1t is not only a question
with the local capitalists as to what will
become of their expensive plants, nor of
how the foreign bondholders will come out
in their financial difficulties, but it is the
large agricultural population throughout
the various districts in the lower San Joa-
quin Valley and further south, whose very
existence depends upon the supply of
water, that will feel the effects of the mat
ter. 1t may even come to a desperate
struggle between the land owners and the
water users.
AS to the bonds which were issued it
may be stated upon good authority that
about IS, OoO, 900 out of the $40 900 900 issued
have been disposed of. Although the
majority of the purchasers are in Europe
there is much local capital invested. OF
the Central district bonds T. P. Drexel of
this City owns about $4,000 worth. W.T.
Goad, the capitalist, purchased 100000
worth and then invested another 500, 000
He afterward disposed of them all and is
not now interested. The remainder of the
$4,000 worth which was issued is dis
tributed around in small lots. R. w. Cor
rlll OF the Pacific Bridge Company owns
$3.50, 900 worth of Modesto district bonds.
In the other districts the greater part of
the capital interested is foreign. 1t was
drawn into investment after considerable
difficulty. Some of the local banks are in
terested also, but to what extent is not
known, and the officials of the institutions
decline to make any statements. 1t is
known that the Colusa County Bank is in
terested to the extent of about $25, 900.
In an interview yesterday, United States
urveyor-General Green, who is one of the
best-informed men in the State on the irri-
cation question, said:
The regulation of the use of water is the
most important matter the people of California
have been called upon to settle; but here we
are, at the end of nearly half century OF
struggle, with the question in a worse muddle
than it was when the miners in the ffties
found it necessary to make their own laws
regulating the use of water. 1t looks ike the
American people, with all their boosted lntelll-
gence, must admit that while they have an
element worth hundreds of millions OF dollars
annually, an element on the proper handing
of which the very life of the State depends,
they are incapable of making law for hand
ling it.
No man knows the law to-day; no man
knows what laws the courts will permit the
people to pass Millions of dollars have been
expended in litigating water rights, and yet no
man can even guess at what water rlgnt is.
Every time the question goes into court II
comes out more uncertain. Meanwhile the
State in all her interests suffers. Riparian
rights-the right of the last man down a
stream to have the water flow undimln1sned IN
quantity and unimpaired in quality-have been
upheld by the courts, and hence nearly all the
diversions of water by which orchards ana
vineyards flourish are made in direct violation
of laws. One of the greatest reasons 1or the
passage of the district law, now declared void,
was to create q municipal or publlc corpora
ton for handling this riparian question.
Judge Ross splits hairs on the question OF
what constitutes public use. The reclama-
ton district law has been upheld by all the
courts in the land, and the principles OF that
law and of the Wright act are more nearly
alike than black-eyed peas; they are IN iact al,
the advantage of being drawn by an edltor IL
stead of a lawyer. l drew 1T myself Lawyers
have talked about drainage Tor health ana ali
on the swamp land to be healthy or unhealthy
u-but the plain and simple intent OF the law