Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-01-09

"a obHRAs Va NdltIt liluNI Vi
which goes to waste. The work in
volyed in this reclamation, 1t Is be-
lieved, will be expensive. and probably
include tunneling. A very careful
study Of this project is necessary, but
the lands when reclaimed viii be OF
very high value. and the benefit to the
state Will be far-reachlng.
AS TO STATE CONTROL.
The action OF the Idaho legislature
in accepting the national Carey act"
is an indication OF the danger which
may result from leaving irrigation or
land questions 10 be dealt with by
various states. In accepting the Carey
act which provides that when public
land, under state regulations, shall be
reclaimed by irrigation, and settled
upon, the state can acquire title from
the general government free OF cost
the legislature of Idaho slipped In a
provision, known 10 but few, TO the ef-
feet that where such lands were re-
claimed by any private company, In
case they had not been settled at the
expiration Of two years after the COM
pletion OF the irrigation work, the title
of the land should pass TO the reclama-
ton company. This was a most esregi-
Gus mistake from the standpoint Of
settlement and community building,
but would operate very nicely In the
interests Of land or irrigation compa-
MES desiring to secure large tracts OF
land. II would be an easy matter for
any company retaining land under the
Carey act, 10 make Its settlement quite
difficult. and at the end OF the two
years specified, secure patent Itself 10
large portions Of, II not the entire tract
reclaimed.
VIOLATION OF FEDERAL LAW.
The matter having been called TO the
attention OF the department at WASH
ington, II was held that the Idaho en-
actment violated that portion Of the
Carey act which says:
THAT such state shall not sell or
dispose of more than 1850 acres OF said
land TO any one person"
The secretary of the interior, how
ever, has let the erring state down
easy and has ruled that inasmuch as
Idaho has agreed with the general gov
eminent, for which purpose Governor
Morrison was recently in Washington
that in selling and disposlng OF the land
sought to be segregated the state Will
not sell more than 100 acres TO any one
person and then only to bona iide set.
tiers, the federal government Will not
Withhold title to lands,
1t would seem that In view or the fact
that the Idaho legislature In It's terms
of acceptance Of the Carey act had en-
acted a specific provision directly In
conflict with the terms Of that act. tho
general government would have been
warranted in making an example
in this case and refusing to grant
20 Idaho any patents under
the Carey act until the Idaho legisla.
ture had repealed its conflicting and
fraudulent enactment. In his holding,
the secretary Of the interior states that
should It (1Iaho) fail to carry out its
contract and violate the provisions. OF
the granting act, 1t would seem that
Congress alone has the power to en-
force the conditions OF the grant
The most that could be done by the
executive department OF the govern
ment would be to report the matter to
Congress,
SEVERAL MONTANA PROJECTS.
The government engineers have been
active In studying the irrigation pos
sibiities in Montana during the past
season. In addition to the great MIX
river project, about which much has
been written and which will be taken
up in this correspondence In detail later,
investigations have been made Of sew
eral other Montana projects. In the
country south Of the MIR river a gen.
eral reconnaissance has been in prog
ress along the Sun river. the Mussel-
shell river and the Yellowstone. par
tlcularly near the mouth OF the latter,
1t is believed by the engineers, from
the preliminary surveys accomplished
| that lands can be reclaimed In eastern
Montana and adjacent portions OF
North Dakota by divertlng the waters
| of the Yellowstone river on the north
bank in Montana. The Yellowstone is a
| great stream, flowing nearly the entire
| length OF Montana and emptyng into
| the Missouri Just after II crosses the
Montana line in North Dakota.