The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-06-02
TRY THE UTAH
LAKE SCHEME
Government Favorable Toward
the Reservoir Proposition.
NEWELL HERE TOMORROW
UPON HIS REPORT WILL DE-
PEND RECOMMENDATIONS
Utah stands foremost among an


toward securing federal aid in re-
claiming the arid lands. Already the
Utah lake storage proposition has been
practically accepted by the depart
ment of the interior. That is. it has
I been accepted for investigation as to
{ It's engineering feasibility. Work has
oeen commenced in ascertaining the
pracUcabiHty of the scheme at this
( point. Government Engineer George
I SWendson is employed on this phase of
the matter. getting together the data
+ mat VIII finally determine the accept
ahee or rejection of the proposed reser-
vOir site
/ This important information was Civ
I en- out yesterday at a meeting of the
( irrigation commission at which Attor-
/ ney +. ). Richards, who recently went
10 Washington in behalf of the Utah
| lake scheme, made his report of what
! he had accomplished and what he had
recommended to the government His
report was most pleasing and fiatter-
! ing He stated that Utah alone of all
the states seeking benefit from the
reclamation fund, hal gone before the
! interior department with recommended
| TONS as tC what should be done in or
/ der TO properly use the fund. The other
states he says, are going before the
/ department with questions as to what
/ they must do instead of making sug-
| geStionS themselves. For this reason
/ the commission Of Utah has been high
! ~ praised by the federal authorities
/ and their proposition has been the first
! to receive attention.
To Test the Proposition.
The work of testing the practicable
/ lty of the plan is being pushed as rap
4 idly as possible. F. H Newell viii ar
/ rive here Wednesday night to look over
1 the situation and receive the report of
Engineer Swendson. Upon this report
/ VIII depend the final recOmme ndat ton
| Of the department of the interior
! In his brief presented to the Wash
! ington authorities setting forth rec
| concentrations and the legal phases
| Of the whole situation, Mr.. Richards
! laid special stress upon the Importance
/ of not interfering with any vested
/ rights, also the relation between Salt
Lake City and the various canal com
/ panies entitled TO water from the res
ervOir. His recommendation in regard
to the vested rights was with a view
! to preventing any of these rights being
/ taken from their possessors by the
/ government.
Mr. Richards also provided for a pos
Sible contingency by recommending
/ that If the Utah lake proposition were
for any reason found To be impractical
be, due attention shCUld De given 70
some other proposition without hin
drance to the progress of the lake
scheme. In line with this recommended
ton, the commission Instructed State
Engineer Doremus to communicate with
the county clerks of each county re-
questing information from them in re-
gard to any feasible site that they
might be able TO recommend. This in
formation will be kept for use in case
the lake matter is turned down, which
is not anticipated.
Richards Legal Adviser.
In view of the manner in which Mr.
Richards presented the matter TO the
b government. the commission voted &c
retain him in the position Of legal ad-
wiser 10 the organization so long as his
services should be required A res0lU-
ton was also adopted thanking him
for his work in behalf Of the commits
sion at Washington
One of the matters discussed by the
commission relative to the Utah lake
proposition was the means of increas-
ing the water supply in the lake in case
the site be decided upon. In this con-
nectiOn the feasibility of turning the
water of the Duchesne and strawberry
rivers into the lake was most strongly
talked tt matter viii be laid befOrs
MI Newell when he arrives, for his
consideration.
Attorney Richards, in his report
stated that he was most cordially re-
cefved by all the officials at Washing
ton and was congratulated upon the
push and energy manifested by Utah
IN conclusion. the report stated:
aid is Assured.
During my sojOurn 1 had very
satisfactory interview with the director
/ Of the geological survey, who had JUS
! "a a
IONA We discussed the Utah lake
proposition very fully, and he was eX-
ceedingly kind and complimentary II
expressing his views concerning the
l course we mad taken in bringing the
/ matter to ire attention Of the depart
ment. also had q lengthy and salts
factory interview with the assistant at
torney general Of the interior depart
ment and his assistant. during which
explained TO them the legal phases 81
our question, and was assured by then
that they would be greatly aided in ar
irving at a correct conclusion by rea
son of our consultations.
The secretary and other Officials
whom / met. that are interested in th'
! administration of the irrigation law
assured me that it was the desire of tn
government to give the law such q lib
eraI construction as would enable tn
greatest and best possible results Il
now lIoIif rs LU-Lt as "a O. nm
confident that if the engineering fea
lures of the Utah lake project prove t.
= be satisfactory after the preliminarl
t work. has been done the legal difncUltie
5 which have appeared TO be in the wa!
: can be overcome
Legal Phases Explained.
: Mr. Richards also presented to tn
: Commission a copy of the brief whicl
: he laid before the. secretary of the in
terror explaining all the legal phase
= Of the Utah lake proposition and max
ing recommendations as to what shoul'
be done. In this document he set
T forth that Utah lake is the natural AM
only source Of water supply for the irri
cation Of a large area OF semi-arid LAM
situated near salt Lake City, that wit