Arizona republican., 1903-01-19

fessed that there is strong ground for hope-it is the one plan which should have the unqualified and earnest sup port of every resident of the valley.
 It is criminal folly to assume that the government is anxious to construct this reservoir, and that it stands tine people in hand to haggle and quibble over unimportant details, and hang out other.
 An exceedingly encouraging factor Of the situation is that the Tonto reser- voir site is the best in the United States, and that the geological survey, for purely engineering reasons is anx- ious to be placed in position to rec ommend this site and this project to the secretary of the interior. The fa- vorable recommendation of the survey will not of itself cause the secretary 10 decide in favor of this valley, but as suredly the unfavorable recommenda tion of the survey would cause the sec retary promptly to reject the scheme. So that the negative influence of the geological survey is complete.
 It follows, then, that defeat Is certain if the committee fails to act in har- mony with the ideas of the survey, This brings us to the crux of the whole mat ter.
 The articles of incorporation as now drafted. and the general plan as adopted therein, are In strict harmony with unofficial and friendly suggestions from officers of the government, who have felt that they could with proprietJ make personal suggestions. Any radi- cal departure from the plan formulated will not meet the approval of the off, cials. whose disapproval means the end of the entire scheme of government construction.
 There are some other points which should be borne in mind, The officials at Washington are not actuated by matters of sentiment. The first con sideration with the geological survey is the fact that the Tonto site is the most superior in the country, and it is not overlooked that there are public lands available for utilizing the pro- posed reservoir. If the scheme pending should fail, and if projects for countC or private construction should fail the government in the near future will itself arrange for acquiring the site and will proceed to store the flood waters of the Salt river for the benefit of the public lands available. The ex- istence of $10,0O,0OO in the reservoir fund, and the existence of this incom- parable site, and the preference of the survey therefor, make this conclusion inevitable.
 Consequently, the Salt River valley rancher who holds back now to quis- ble for the conservation of some or the theoretical rights" which have yielded m water nor anvthino else hut litiea- tion. is rapidly shining away his day Of grace. Stubbornness and selhshness now will bear their crop of everlasting ashes in the future.
 Finally, the articles themselves spe- officially reserve to all stockholders all the rights which they now possess What more can be desired? There never yet was any project calling for human action which did not require somewhere and somehow a reliance upon somebody's honesty. If, through venality of some officer of the corpora tton hereafter, wrong should be infiict- ed upon some person or persons, meas ures are provided for punishment and correction.
 And it is we'll to bear in mind that when man undertakes to act as his own lawyer he usually has fool for client