El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-11-05

to confiscate the New Mexican comp,
ny's property on the preposteror
ground that its works will interior
with the navigability of the Ri
Grande. The navigability of the Ri
Graude, forsooth! Could anything b
more absurd? The Rio Grande is not
aud never has been, navigable, aud II
view of the fact that the authorities a
Washington have for years maintained
in opposition to Mexico's claim fol
joint control of the river, that the Ri
Grande is not a navigable stream, tina
a special committee of the senate ha
proved it to be non-nav;gable, and tina
to congress, especially referred to thu
urgent necessity for damming and i'm
pounding the waters of the Rio Grande
it is, in the circumstances, not surpris
ing that the shareholders in the Eng
lish company (who, it may be incident.
and the public generally look upon
such a fragrant outrage of justice as but
another instance of "American sharp
practice"-this time in the highest
quarter.
Needless to say Americans resident
in England, cognizant of the true facts
of the case, jealous of their country
honor and anxious to exonerate Amer
lean ''officialdom" from the charge of
acting mala fide, have fastened to ex-
plain to the honorable gentlemen con-
shutting the London board OF the EGG
lish company, and who have already
devoted large amount of capital and
much valuable time to the SUCCESS of
this, an American enterprise, that in
all probability the authorities at
Washington authorized the action,
knowing that it must result in q deci-
sion reconfirming the New Mexican
company's rights and titles, and only
with view to satisfying Mexico that
neither the treaty nor otherwise can
the United States federal government
prevent citizens of Colorado and New
Mexico from impounding and using
the waters of the Rio Grande for irri-
CATION; also in order to make clear to
the small baud of German, Mexican
and Texan land spectators, who, head
ed by German merchant resident in
Juarez, Mexico, have for some time
past been SO vehemently advocating
the construction of an international
dam at Ell Paso, that their scheme is
impracticable.
The leading spirits of the interna-
tional dam project are not American
nor residents in the United
States. They consist for the most part
Of small coterie, holding options over
Or owning the greater part OF the lands
that would be benefited by or SUBJ
merged by large storage reservoir at
FL Paso. These gentry have vigorous
" supported Mexico's demand that the
Rio Grande should be under the joint
control of the two republics, and have
Tor months been active in urging the
at Washington to build,
wholly at the expense of the United
States, an international dam for storing
the waters Of the river.
For reasons that may perhaps be
made public later, it would also ap-
pea-, judging by certain departmental
only recently brought
TO light, that this so-called information
ii Ell Paso dam scheme is not alto
gether lacking in official support at
and that a most iniqui-
tous ''job'' has been attempted.
Although the Elephant Butte stor-
age reservoir of the New Mexican COM
psny may be made to serve every pur-
pose, namely, supply the whole valley
Of the Rio Grande above as well as be-
low Ell Paso, on both the American and
cost than would have to be incurred by
the United States in carrying out the
international scheme, the
promoters of the international project
and their official hackers, and anxious
to profit by the millions 'Uncle Sam"
for the valuable properties that would
come within the proposed international
have not hesitated to
misrepresent the objects of
the English company, and have en-
deavored by every possible means, fair
and foul, to hav the Rio Grande Dam
& Irrigation Co.'S franchise, corporate
rights, and right of apDropriating the
flood waters of the Rio Grande set
aside on the ground that in leasing it's
franchise and undertaking to an En-
glish company, it had violated the
alien act. Having failed to do this,
they have not scrupled to investigate
an action to have the company's fran
chise. rights, properties, dam, canals
and other works confscated on the alb
surd ground that the Rio Grande is
navigable, and that in damming the
river in New Mexico, above Ell Paso,
section 7, Oh. 9O7, act of congress
1890, had been violated by the New
Mexican company. The act in ques-
ton reads as follows: