The Florence tribune., 1899-05-20
The Experience Of the Irrigated District
 of Europe.

The Experience Of the Irrigated District
 Of Europe.
 tFrom the Report of Elwood Mead, State En-
 gineer of Wyoming.l
 If human experience has any value we ought to heed it's lessons. Irrigated agriculture is as old as civilization. The water laws of southern Europe are the growth of centuries, during which every form of control Of streams, from exclusive state ownership to absolute private ownership, has been tried.
 It is surely worth considering that there is not an irrigated district in any of these countries where security and content have not followed attaching water rights to the land, nor is there district where separate ownership of land and water has not resulted in disastrous controversies, misery and wrong.
 The significance of these results ought not to be disregarded. When Governor Richards, in discussing the rulings of the Board of Control, said :: "In taking this advanced view of this question, 1 believe that Wyoming is blazing trail that will be followed by other States and Territories of the arid region," he had behind his pro- phesy the experience of every irrigated land old enough to have history.
 The European country which most nearly resembles ours in it's climatic conditions is Spain. Its rainfall is less than that of Wyoming, hence irriga- ton is indispensable. Spain is also the country which best repays study, since it's code of water laws is both the most concise and most complete of any country in the world where irrigation is largely praeticed.
 These laws are the outcome of the experience of thousand years in which local laws and customs, widely different in character, have operated side by side in the same province.
 The most impressive of these lessons, both to spsin and to the people of this country is afforded by the experience of the provinee Of Valeneia. Tue plain near the city of tbat osme 2 one of oldest and most celebrated irrigation districts in Spain Its works date from the time of the Moors; it's water rights are founded on custom which antedates existing property records. !" The prosperity of it's people and the success of it's institutions have been admired and commended by every writer, and all agree that they rest upon the inseparability of land and water.
 h the same province with the dis trict of Valencia is the district of Elche. Here the waters originally owned by the land holders but not made inseparable from the land have gradually passed into different hands 1 from the owners of the soil. "The land holder has no right to irrigate al all. When he needs water he buys it l the same as he does manure for his land when he wants to use it." Ths result of this separate ownership has been to impoverish water users, ant although the district has equal re sources with those which surround i the people are far less prosperous.
 In like manner the province o Murcia, where water is attached tht land, is prosperous and progressiS e while in the adjoining district 0 Lorca, where land and water have beei gradually separated, the outcome o this separation is large dividends fo water owners, languishing agricul ture, a poor peasantry, and no enter prise to develop the country"
 There is another provision, found il i European irrigation laws, which i worthy Of careful consideration by ou i legislators. Under these laws there i no such thing as 8 free appropriation Every nseg of water must pay the stat a rental therefor. These rentals are ! in most cases very small, being oni intended to pay the expenses of super vision and to prevent the salaries ( water commissioners and superinter dents becoming 3 burden to the geners taxpayer. The great value of tn system is it's influence in promotin economy. The man who pays fc what he gets will not be wasteful. also places the doctrine of publi ownership in B form to. be compr' hended by all. something not true our method of free grants in perpetuit. a The boatwomen of China have [ , need to agitase for women's rights they possess them. The boatwomal : whether she be a single woman or
 wife or a widow. is the head of il