Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1903-12-21

criticise the action Of the Las Vegas
grant commissioners for not taking
sufficiently timely and active meas
ures in the matter of a government
reservoir near this city. Judge d, v.
Long submits to The Optic for publi-
cation all the correspondence that has
passed between the commission and
the department of the interior. The
letters follow:
Explanatory.
II viii be Observed in the subjoined
that the secretary Of the
board opens this correspondence
in May. long before the patent to inc
grant was issued, but evidently in the
belief that the title would come to
the town, and this was also before
the spring floods. Was that not time
ly?
June 20th the secretary says: Il
hope YOU may be able to have an ear
~ investigation Of this enterprise
made by you, and beg to assure you
of the active support and cooperation
of the board"
June 18th the secretary writes: III
You could see today the immense body
of unusued, unappropriated water
flowing to waste down the Gallinas
and the Sapello, it would be an ire
sistible argument on the point OF wa
ter supply. II is greatly TO be regret
ted you can not at once install your
water measurement l urge you at
the first possible moment to appoint
some one here to begin operations and
measurements. Our board will GER
tainly do everything possible. Hope
you may very soon install your water
measurement"
June 18th, the next day, the secre-
tary wrote Delegate Rodey. request
ing his personal effort ut the depart
ment, saying: Il am sure Reed will re-
port favorably, but what we want
most. at once, is for the department
to install measurement Of the wa.
ter which flows down these two riv.
ers. II is now our rainy season. and II
delay follows, Ii may be carried be.
yond the time when our annual flow
goes by"
June 9th the chief engineer at
Washington writes Mr.. Rodey, speak.
ing of Judge Longs letter, evidently
sent to him by Mr. Rodey. saying:
THE matter to which he calls atten
tion has already been matter of cor
respondence with our district engineer
(evidently Mr. Reed of Roswell). and
he has been instructed to take the
matter up. l appreciate the interest
Of these people"
The fact Is that this vast field 81
irrigation, so quickly thrown upon the
department, has overwhelmed it with
work II is not case Of first come
first served" but one wherein the de
partment, acting wisely for the public
interest, must be satisfied that water
can be had to make the reservoir sue
cessful before work will begin
With all the efforts OF the secretar,
Of the board. he was unable TO re,
water measurements installed before
the rainy season.
The work to be done is to prove tt
the department that we have the wa
ter. and every possible reasonable ef
fort Is being made 70 .iis end
Las Vegas. N. Nj. May Is, 1908.
Hon. Secretary of the Interior,
Washington, d. c.,
Dear Sir-T board Of grant trust
ees Of the Las Vegas grant have had
under consideration newspaper re
port to the effect that the honorable
secretary of the interior has decided
the various points In controversy
among the land owners under tht
government acequia 10 be built in Sail
River valley. Arizona AS the points
arising in that case are of interest
to the board of trustees, they request
me to ask OF your department. II con
sistent, TO furnish the board with !
copy Of such decision. or an outline
of the same. am also requested b,