The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-01-21
WATER FOR DESERTS.
Outlook Of the Irrigation Bill as
Finally Agreed Upon.
HOSTILITY EXPECTED IN HOUSE
of the Bill, Which II
Practically That introduced
by Hansbrough.

Fron The .,o"rnss B'srea". Room on. 49, Post
Washington, Jan. 21.-The committee of
seventeen members of the senate and
house, which for six weeks has been con-
sidering the various irrigation bills, has
adopted finally the bill which the irriga-
tion states are to support in both houses.
The bill will be introduced in the senate
by Mr.. Hansbrough, chairman of the COM
mittee on public lands, which has charge
of this question in the upper house; or, it
may be that the bill will go direct to the
committee without a formal introduction,
and later be reported from the committee.
as substit ute for all pending bills.
This bill follows very closely the Hans
brough BILL introduced in the early days
of the session. For time it looked as II
the committee of seventeen would not be
able to reach ant agreement. At the
first meeting the" Hansbrough bill was
adopted as basis for discussion, and in
the days and weeks that followed 1t was
so savagely attacked that little remained
of it save the name. Then there came a
irrigation states is substantially the once
despised Hansbrough bill.
In the senate the pathway Of irrigation
will be reasonably smooth. There will be
prompt action, and the bill will probably
pass at an early date. In the house, how
ever, there may be some opposition and
obstruction. To begin with, two house
committees-that on irrigation, and that
on public lands-are demanding the right
to control the bill, and the speaker has
not yet decided which committee shall
have it,. Late developments indicate that
the speaker is not as friendly to irrigation
as there was reason before the holidays
to suppose that he was If his attitude is
really unfriendly it is believed that he
wi rafo fha az
from the senate, to the committee on ir
rigation, of which Mr.. Tongue of Oregon
is the chairman. Mr.. Tongue is opposing
irrigation, and there are certain good,
reasons for believing that his committee
will not be nearly SO likely to report the
bill favorably as the committee on public
lands. The speaker knows that this radi-
cal difference of opinion exists between
the two committees as to the merits of the
irrigation project, and his reference Of
the bill, therefore, will pretty clearly es-
tablish where he stands.
~ Oregon's Interest.
Should the bill be referred to the COM
mite On irrigation, Mr.. Tongues position
will at once become subject of wide and
pressing interest and Importance, for he
will have unusual opportunities for de-
laying and perhaps for preventing en-
tirely a favorable report Mr.. Tongue
bases his opposition to irrigation legis-
lation on the fact that his state would
probably not receive the benefit of all the
irrigation funds to be collected within it's
borders. The bill will provide that the
money with which to pay for irrigation
shall come from the proceeds of the, sale
of public lands in the arid and semi
arid regions, and Mr.. Tongue fears that
some of the money thus collected from
land sales in his state will go for the
building of bitches, reservoirs, ETC., in
other states and so he says he is
against irrigation.
In reply to his argument it is pointed
out by the friends Of irrigation that under
existing laws all money received from
the sale of public lands goes into the gen.
eral fund of the government, and for
many years has been paid out for improv-
ing harbors along the Atlantic coast,
deepening the channels of the eastern and
southern rivers constructing public build
ings, and for the almost numberless other
purposes to which this general fund is de-
voted. Under the irrigation bill all money
coming from the sale Of these lands will
be put into an irrigation fund, to be ex-
pended for reservoirs, bitches and leteral
drains in Oregon and in the other twelve
states and territories in which irrigation
will be put under way. So, Oregon will
certainly get back a considerable share
of this public land money, while under the
present law she has been getting back al
most none of it.
It is said that President Roosevelt, who
is thoroughly committed to irrigation,
will if necessary, send a special message
to congress in the event of the bills being
hung up in the house. through the I'M
friendliness of the speaker or of Mr..
Tongues committee, after its passage
through the senate. With the presidents
aid the irrigation states feel very sure OF
securing legislation at this session OF
congress. ..-..... i.
What the Bill Does.
The bill provides for prorata payment
by the settlers Of the cost Of the irrigation
works. Under the original Hansbrough
bill this cost was to be paid by an arb1-
ttrary tax of S. per acre on all benefited
land The old bill also provided that
not more than eighty acres should be sold
to any one settler; the new bill is more
elastic and says that the amount to go to
the individual purchaser shall not be less
than 40 nor more than 100 acres. The
reason for this change is apparent. In
states such as the Dakotas and Montana
one owner can easily care for 100 acres,
while in the territories Of Arizona and
New Mexico, and in certain parts of Colo
RADIO and Kansas, where fruit is to be Gull
( tivated, forty acres would be enough for a
single holder. The secretary of the In
terror is to have full authority on this
point and in fact, the entire law is to be
administered under his direction.
The Communication clause of the home
stead law is withheld from irrigated land
in the new bill. Under that clause man
may commute after an ownership Of four
teen months, and then pay for his land at
the rate Of $1.25 per acre. Many of the
big stock grazers of the southwest, taking
advantage of this clause, have acquired
no ut hnldinqs of land for grazing MIR