El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-06-07
THE ELEPHANT BUTTE DAM.
Chief Engineer Campbell Tells Why
Citizens (?) Object.

CnleI Engineer CampDell IellS why
Citizens ~ Object.
| To THE HERALD: Under the call
for a meeting of the international dam
committee published in the Ell Paso
Times of June 9th, we quote as follows:
Had the Rio Grande Dam and Irri-
cation company agreed to the PROPOSE
tion submitted to them several weeks
ago, viz; to sign an agreement not to
shut off the flow of the stream until the
| international reservoir was full of
water, it is doubtful if Ell PASo would
have made any fight against them"
This is adding injury to insult. Our
ness men were insulted in the request
to sign the mentioned agreement, un-
surpassed as it was for Its unadulter-
ated gall.
There was much more in the
draft of said agreement than simply
letting the International reservoir fill
first. 1t involved the absolute relin-
the Ell Paso project of every question
of right and priority. The reader is
referred to the Times issue of May for
the full text of said agreement.
The Times now truly says that no
fight would be made on US If we had
signed said agreement. Rather 10
would have been more accurate to say
cause the latter would then have been
won wholly in favor of the Ell Paso
dam. This admission proves the in
sincerity of the opposition in raising
the question of obstructing a naviga-
ble(?)river.
It admits that it would not
object to the obstruction by the Ele-
phant Butte dam provided the Ell Paso
dam first had everything in sight.
Injury is done by presenting US in
the light of people who have refused
to listen to reason. Let the opposition
first submit a reasonable proposition.
There is another statement in the
above quotat' on with which we cannot
agree, viz; that Ell Paso is making or
has made fight against the Elephant
Butte dam On behalf of Ell Paso we
hurl back this uni just accusation to it's
source and say boldly that the latter is
(unwittingly perhaps) obstructing the
way to Ell Paso's prosperity in opposing
the Elephant Butte project.
Instead of fighting us, Ell Paso
originally subscribed $4,000 to be
This money was all expended as in
tended. Net one dollar of it was pad
to any member of the r. G. D. & 1. Co.
in salaries or for services rendered.
For three years we persistently spent
our own time and money in the promo
tlOn and have made an honest and sue
cessful effort to be faithful to the con-
fdence Ell Psso expressed in US by ber
liberal assistance as well as to follow
the hope for our own profit.
Ell Paso has been and is yet our friend.
But we are quite aware that few
(perhaps not dozen) men in Ell Paso,
some of whom are not citizens of the
United States even, have been making
a fight against us, and the quotation
above has the audacity to say that
these men are Ell Paso.
If we are mistaken, we would like to
have the Times published a list of the
of Ell Paso who will pay an at
torney to assist the United States to
crush our enterprise.
We are confident that a truly rep
mass meeting of the people
of the city would declare in favor OF
both dams and demand that the opposi-
ton to US cease.
We ask nothing but fair and candid
discussion of the merits of the case.
AS long as the press of the city is open
to this controversy, the opposition
must not hope that any its unjust or in
accurate statements will go unchal-
lenged.
1t would be difficult to believe that the
opposition is actuated by maliciousness.
No sufficient reason exists for that.
LII Wow VI IuS TlulCuiOuS sCdOSncu6S
the flow of the river made
by Mr.. Max Weber who has been one
Of, if not the leading one, of the spirits
of the opposition, we are induced to
believe that ignoronce Is the cause of
the trouble. The question of the
quantity of water is the only one of
to the Ell Paso dam. Truly
if it's champions really believed that
the Elephant Butte dam would prevent
the required water supply, the opposi-
ton could be pardOned.
If the figures given in the criticism
of Mr.! Weber's statements about the
6ow of the river appearing in the
and Tribune of June 9th are
correct land we challenge denial that
they are) it is hoped that the opposi-
tion generally and Mr.. Weber in par
ticular will get at the facts about the
water supply and be candid enough to
admit them. There will then be no
further excuse to fight US.
In the article referred to in the
Tribune of June 9th, relative to the
Rio Grande it should be noted that in
the 2lst line of second column it should
read 16,620 second feet aud in the 23d
line should read average flow. The
years given should be 1889, 1890 and
1891 not 1880, 1889 and 1891.
]. L. CAMPBELL,
Chief Engineer r. G. D. & 1. Co.
The HERALD is in receipt of the fol-
/ II