The San Francisco call., 1897-01-19
AN IRRIGATIoN spUABBLE.
Long Standing Conflict Renetred at
Joint Committee Meeting.

Long Standing Conflict Renetred at
Joint Committee Meeting.
SACRAMENTO, CAL, Jan. 14.-At a
joint meeting tonight of the Senate and
Assembly Committees on Irrigation it
was decided to hold similar meeting on
Thursday next at 1880 P. NJ. to hear sug-
gestions on the subject Of which those
commit tees have charge The meeting is
to be open, and outsid ers will be heard,
but must present their views in writing.
After this had been determined Dlbble
ingenuously asAed if there was not some
one present who would like to speak on
the subject OF irrigation. OF course, there
was, and the long-standing conflict be-
tween the Wright law advocates and Its
opponents was renewed, to the edification
of few mem bers and the evident disgust
of the veterans.
T. J. Blake of Modesto was the first to
take advantage of the opportunity to
castigate those who he declared were en-
gagged in Gigantic swindle." He added
that more than 100000 had already been
expended in the Modesto irrigation dis
trict and the ditch had not yet even been
cut into the district proper; it had not
even reached one of its boundaries. In
the Turlock district, he claimed, $500, 900
had been spent without bringing drop Of
water for irrigating purposes into the dis
trict. He charged that the directors who
had charge OF the expenditure of these
vast sums of money were elected by means
of what he termed the floating" vote, an
irresponsible element, which was used to
defeat the wishes of the taxpayers.
AzI
those OF c. w. Eaton of Modesto. He
stated that the figures of Blake were
wrong, and that S800,000 in NJ Modesto and
81, 200, 600 in Turiock would have to be ex-
pended before either could expect to get
any benefit from the canals now being
constructed under the su ervison of the
respective irrigation distric. directors. He
disavowed any intention of charging de-
liberate fraud on any one. but he thought
the directors were not generally men COM
petent to handle such vast sums of money,
and lost cir heads.
One of the most unjust features of the
Wright act. he said, was the clause pro-
viding only one year for the redem mption of
property sold by the irrigation district
directors for taxes. He believed the
Legislature should amend this section so
as to extend the time for REDEEM ption, and
that the penalties should be reduced. He
had a bill, which he would present at the
next session of the joint COMMITTEES on
Thursday.
He afterward explained that his bill
extended the period of redemption to two
years and made the penalty only ten per
cent every six months on the amount OF
the delinquent tax. The present law
exacts fifty per cent of the delinquent tax
and two per cent per month. His pro-
posed bill also gives delinquents whose
time of redemption has expired and
whose property is still in the hands of the
irrigation district, three months from the
passage of the bill to redeem.
J Wright, the author of the act which
bears his name, has announced that be
will appear before the committee on
Thursday. An exciting session is antici
pated, as there is promised to be some
interesting encounters between the irri
CATION district factions. and he is expected
to lead the fight on behalf of his measure