Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-05-21
Attorney w. A. Hawkins Sends an Open
Letter to the Press of Colorado and
New Mexico Concerning the
Elephant Butte Dam.
FULL HISTORY OF THIS ENTERPRISE
The Light of Investigation Thrown
Upon Subject of International
Import, In Which the United
States, Mexico and England
Are Interested.

have concluded to ask you to lay befor
the people of New Mexico and Colorado
a statement of the facts connected with
and the objects of the recent reporte'
decision of Attorney-General McKenna
adverse to the construction of the dan
and irrigation system now being erected
in the Mesilla valley, N. M, by the Ri
Grande Dam & Irrigation company,
corporation organized under the laws O
New Mexico by citizens of New Mexico
and Texas, and not at all the raw-heat
and bloody bones British corporation
which has come among Us to assist by It'll
capital in the development of the re
sources of our country, as the depart
mental reports and Associated Press
kilograms inspired thereby, announce
with such apparent horror. Such re
port is entirely untrue, it's untruth il
known to its propagators, is builtupon 9
very slight foundation (that of there be-
ing English stockholders in this com.
pany) and with malicious purpose pres
emily explained.
All this "fuss and feathers" about this
enterprise which has been agitating the
press for some time, has its brigin with a
small coterie of interested persons resid-
ing in Ell Paso and of Mexican citizens
residing in Juarez, Mexico. These gen.
tlemen are trying to induce the United
States to construct an international dam
at El Paso for the benefit of FL Paso and
Juarez, Mexico, and have conceived the
opinion that the dam being constructed
by the New Mexico company is threat
to their enterprise, contending that the
immense flood waters of the Rio Grande
reservoirs. Some of these gentlemen are
inspired by patriotic desire to assist
the development of Ell Paso and immed-
late vicinity, while others of them have
their inspiration in the hope of pros
pective benefits to accrue to them indi-
vldually by virtue of their having ac-
quired at bankrupt prices real estate
which they hope will be benefited by
their scheme.
The agitation for the construction of
the international dam commenced at El
Paso and Juarez many years ago and has
been kept up very persistently. The old
scheme was to induce congress to make
an appropriation outright for such pu-
pose, and President Cleveland was at one
time persuaded to, and did, recommend
to congress in one of his messages, that
the necessary authority be given and ap.
preparation be made. At that time ii
was modestly estimated by its projectors
that it would only cost million dollars
or 80 and it was argued by it's ojectors,
and adopted by the president, that it
ought to be built in order to compensate
Old Mexico and her citizens for water
which had been diverted from the Rio
Grande in Colorado and New Mexico, by
which diversions such Mexicans In Mex
ioo have been deprived of water formerly
enjoyed by them. Congress decided
against the scheme. The probe ctors then
devised the present plan which, though
not known in all its details, embraces the
pressing of large claims for damages
against the United States for this depri
walton of water for purposes of irrigation
The exact amount of these claims is not
known. 1t is currently reported in El
Paso that they run up into the millions
ten millions being frequently named as
the amount, although this sum is also re-
ported to embrace other damages, claims
for which have long been pending. part
of the scheme was that, after making a
strong demand for the payment of these
claims, the Mexican government was to
offer to compromise provided the United
States would agree to build the dam at
Ell Paso and give one-third Of the water
to citizens of Mexico for use upon the
land formerly cultivated by them, and
one-third for use on the American side,
and that this should be accomplished By
means of treaty and that after this
treaty had been accomplished and the
liability had been fixed upon the United
States, it would be safe to 60 to congress
for an appropriation, and not until then
The scheme took with our secretary oil
state, Mr.. Olney, and upon hint, timely
given, all of the Mexicans who claimed
they had suffered from the loss Of water
for irrigation purposes, went before the
authorities of the city of Juarez and made
proofs of their loss, which were duly fileG
as claims against the United States. The
secretary of state then called upon ths
secretary of war to ascertain the amount
which the dam would cost and the latter
designated Colonel Anson Mills, retired
army officer, who has for many years hat
soft Job as the head of the boundary
survey commission of the United Statel
for deliminating the boundary between
the United States and Mexico. Oolone
Mills is given the credit for being the heai
promoter of the scheme and of being
heavily interested as an owner of rea
estate in Ell Paso and vicinity. So far th'
scheme was working smooth enough. Th'
Mexican government also detailed en-
gineers to assist Colonel Mills in gather
Ing this data and many thousands o
dollars were spent IN experiments whicl
finally resulted in joint report to thei
respective governments on the part O
these gentlemen that the scheme wal
feasible and could be completed for some
thing like the modest sum of $3,0OO,O00
Colonel Mills thereupon went to Wash
ington, as the head Of the promoting forc'
of the schemers, and has remained ther'
until very recently, urging upon th'
various departments the advisability o
the measure; in the meantime IL is al
Up0u bcCEob III "a ncO tuoS Uuo E0uA cbtnt'
which is to be benefited on the Mexican
side of the river has been largely gobblet
up by the Mexican contingent of tn,
promoters, while various citizens OF Z
Paso, interested in the promotion, hav'
quietly gathered in the very ground upol
which the immense reservoir is to be buil
preparatory to collecting large claim
from the government when the land i
taken.
In tho meantime, and about In 1888
some citizens Of New Mexico and Texa
organised the Bio Grande Dam q Irriga
tion company for The purpose Of building
: [concludsd on Second pase.1