Arizona republican., 1904-02-14
A Grapevine Service.

Our Phoenix contemporaries, republi- can and democratic. have for the past week been industriously printing al- legged telegrams from Washington bearing upon the Tonto Dam situation. They have charged that the county is being held up for the price of the Ton to Basin damsite by the Hudson Reser- voir company; that various sums rarg- ing frcm $SO.OCo to s1OO,Coo have hsen demanded by the company. and that pending an adjustment of tho matter the government had suspended opera tions at the damsite. Fear was ex- pressed that the negotiations between the company and the government might fail. and that in consequence work would never be resumed. It was stated that Mir. Ely, editcr of The Re publican, was in Washington conduct ing the negotiations on the part of the Hudson Reservoir company. and it was charged that this paper was therefore in opposition to the interests of the valle.
 Before proceeding to a further dis cussion of this subject we would direct attention to the fact that there is at present a difference of opinicn among the republicans of Arizona whether the republican delegat tion from this terri tory to the national convention should be instructed CT not. This might seem to be an irrelevant allusion. but it is not, for it greatly simplifies the situ- ation. Both of the newspapers which are being served by the Washington grapevine service are urging tht peo- pie of the county to support the propo- sition for an instructed delegation, while The Republican has consistently stood for an uninstructed delecation. If it could be shown that The ReOub- lican is connected with any object in opposition to the welfare of the people of the valley, and especially if that connection adversely affected so vital a matter as the storage reservoir, its influence in favor of ar uninstructed delegation would very naturally be weakened.
  something that must always be done before one can proceed to the convic- ton of crime. The rest is easy.
 . Regarding the status of the rights of the Hudson Reservoir company we are uniformed. nor have We learned from Mir Ely or any one else anything of the progress of any negotiations he or others might have been engaged in. We understand. however. that the Hudson company had right which at one time was undisputed We knew incidentally that about three years ago, soon after the organization of the wa ter storage commission under an act of the legislature. that right was ques- ticned. and it was stated by one of the members of the present Water Users association that he had been informed by the interior department that the right was held to be valid. Concerning its value we have not been informed by Mir. Ely CT by any one else connect ed with the company. nor have we heard other than by rounda bout way that any sum has been demanded fot it.
 We are informed by one of the grape vine papers that an agreement has been reached by which the company is to receive s4O.OOO: we also under stand from a member of the Water | Users association that such an agree ment was reached with the consent Of | Judge Kibbey and Mir. B. A. Fowler. of l the Water Users association. now in | Washington, gentlemen in whom the l association has the utmost confidence. A letter bringing this information, we understand, has been received within | a day or two, and we have no doubt | that an alleged telegram printed yer terday afternoon was based upon it. | Sc much for this phase of the case.
 Now we come to the gross misstate- ments which have been made by our'l contemporaries for political purposes: | for the frightening of the people of the | valley into the belief that the Tonto | Basin dam was threaten There has , been at no time a cessation of opera ! toHs at the dam, as the grapevine pa- | pers well knew. There was last fall a discontinuance of work on the cemen- ! mill in consequence of the appeal made ] to the interior department by repre- sentative of the cement manufacturers. Even that work is. now resumed in | part. All the time a small army of men has been employed in the various | operations possible before the actual work of dam building is commenced. | There are now, and there have been ! fer two months, SC0 men at work in i one capacity or another about the dam | site.
 The Republican seldom wastes so l,