, 1896-07-07
WATER QUESTION.
MUST THE PEOPLE OF WYOMING
SIT IDLY BY AND SEE THEIR
WATERS DIVERTED.
Never in the History of the State Have
the Rivers Been so Low as Now
The Wheatland World Takes a
Philosophical View OF the Stu
alton.

The great scarcity OF water in the
streams this spring is o%ccasioning much
comment. Never in the history of the
state has such low water been known in
the Big and Little Laramies at this sea-
son of the year. The Big Laramie is
now as low as it was last year in the
month Of October and is still falling
rapidly. 1t is said that 10 miles below
all. and that the Wheatland colony Is
suffering seriously by reason OF the
shortage. 1t was the shortage at
Wheatland which caused State Engi-
neer Mead to proceed T. the headwaters
Of the river last week and make his ex-
animation of the big Colorado ditch
which is robbing the people OF this
state.
The question is. how is is the mat
ter to be remedied? With each sue
ceeding year there is less timber in the
and hold the SHOWS of winter. and with
each succeeding year the people Of Colo
RADIO are likely to encroach more and
more upon the waters of the stream
Under the constitutions of both states
priority appropriations give the better
right, and it is not made obligatory
that the waters diverted shall be turn
ed back into the streams from which
they are taken. At the time the Colo
RADIO people constructed the big ditch
which diverts water from the Big Lara
ME to Chambers lake and thence into
the Poudre. all the water in that stream
had been appropriated under the laws
of Wyoming, although 1t had not all
been put to beneficial uses on account
Of delay in the construction of works.
Laramie has a recorded right to divert
10, 900 900 gallons daily from the stream
which has not yet been taken advant-
age of. and there are probably other
rights in the same condition.
Unless the matter can be adjusted to
the satisfaction Of the people of this
Ssat', thV "a''i fu'obloh 10 SolLS W Dt
a serious menace to the development
OF agricultural communities on the
lowger Big Laramie. Suit should at
once be brought and the rights Of the
people determined. If We are to lose
the water. the sooner the question is
settled the better it will be for every
body concerned. We could then build
accordingly and not be carried away by
false hopes.
In discussing the matter. the Wheat.
land World takes an encouraging view
Of the situation and says:
There is no cause for alarm at all
over the situation by Wheatland peo-
pie, and while the present shortage Of
water will probably prove injurious to
some OF the late crops. there is no rea-
SOL to consider the matter as other
than a temporary misfortune, which
can n will be guarded against in the
future. AS a matter OF fact. the oldest
settler in the county does not remem-
Der a season when the Laramie river
did not carry more water by several
times than 1t has this year, and the
chances that a season like the present
one will moi again occur in a life time.
Besides, some good will undoubted-
ly arise from the misfortune OF the
present. 1t has now been demonstrated
that adequate sized reservoirs should
be at once established and the develop,
ment company has already begun to
take steps toward completing the small
reservoir on the flats and also to con-
struct the big one on the Laramie
plains. With these established there
will be no danger for the future-none
whatever.
In conclusion allow us to remark
that Wheatland folks are not the only
ones experiencing a shortage OF water
this year. All the streams heading on
the east side of the Rockies from Mon
tana south carry only from o%ne-fourth