The Delta independent., 1904-09-23
President Is Irrig gation's. Most Stanch Friend
and Thereby Benefactor to Mil
ons Yet Unborn
he HAS LIVED IN The ARID REGIONS
And Fully Realizes Their Needs-His Great
Work Praised by the Press, Irrespective
of Politics. -BIoodIess Conquest
Of Vast Empire.
Of Vast Empire.

When President Roosevelt was Gov
srnor of New York he once remarked:
81 am of the sixth generation born on
Manhattan Island, but BELONG west
of the Missouri river
This is n key to the depth and breadth
of the Presidents knowledge concerning
nn things pertaining TO the United States.
He is the first President who ever resid.
cd west of the Missouri river. He is the
first who ever perceived the ncalculable
importance Of the arid west. and he is
chiefly responsible for the national irri-
cation act which is to transform deserts
into gardens. by chain of endless rev
enues derived from the sale of public
lands in the arid States. each arid state
in turn is to he reclaimed and populated
by independent, high minded. self-sup
porting citizens.
Roosevelt established himself. in 1854
on ranch at the hradwaters Of the Lit
tie Missouri river in South Dakota. He
was then only 20 years of age. After
II residence there of about two years ho
returned to New York. not only restored
in body. but different man mentally
and psychicnlly. He had entered into the
spirit of the West completely that he
was actually westeruiZed. There the
mountains communicated to him the Sc
cret of their strength and he learned OF
the benedcti"ns of the unclouded sun.
He made a ranch. hcrlcd cattle. mingled
with cowboys and hunted the big game
of the plains. There. too, he learned the
marvels of the arid soil when joined to
the waters of the mountain streams.
Vast A reas to he Reclaimed.
1t was such experiences ms these that
l.1 I, l,,,l. I,
with the great irrigation movement. He
thus was induced +" put the presidential
shoulder against the barred doors OF
arid America and do one of the biggest
things since the signing of our Declara-
tion of Independence. Perhaps few Of
us have more than vague consciousness
of the mighty issues involved in this act.
1T adds at once l2J.OO0.ODO acres of fer
tile soil to our agricultural and horticul-
tural area and opens up one of the most
beautiful and promising vistas ever per-
ceived by the husbandmen Of Americn.
or elsewhere. 1t might he said by caril-
crs that the reclamation of these deserts
was inevitable, sometime. But it was by
no means inevitable that they should be
reclaimed by means of public works, and
that the ownership of land and water
would be indssolnbly united. The great
est thing President Roosevelt has done
here was to write this flaming sentence:
"PRIVATE OWNERSHIP OF WAT
ER. APART FROM LAND. CANNOT
PREVAIL WITHOUT CAUSING EN-
DURING WRONG" That was anoth-
or Proclamation of Emancipation. Into
the great struggle between private greed
and public good came. at the psycholog-
ical moment. the mighty words of the
ret irI.iu nd o bn
was won.
Praise for the President.
William Il. Smythe. author of "Con-
quest OF Arid America pioneer in the
irrigation movement. and now a Demo-
cratic politician of San Diego. California,
writing of President Roosevelt's visit to
the West awhile ago. exclaimed: "Wel-
come, Theodore Roosevelt, Welcome,
because you are the President. Welcome
again, because you wrung national irri-
cation from an unwilling Congress-! And
thrice welcome. because with n stroke of
your pen you slew the dragon of water
monopoly! Much as the men of to-day
appreciate the thing you did when op-
portunity opened the door. it is only the
men who are to live, as the long genera
tions shall unfold, who may know the
full Significance of that great deed" 1t
is universally recognized. irrespective OF
politics. that the passage of the national
irrigation act by Congress. June. 1902,
could never have been accomplished il 1t
had not been for the fact that Mr.. toose-
welt SO strongly recommended irrigation
Legislation in his message to Congress
and put his personal shoulder to the
wheel to help the friends of the bill
swing the forces into line in its favor.
When his otticinl signature was duly
affixed to the measure. making it tn.
law of the land. the press from the At.
1nntic to the Pacific. from the lakes "a
the gulf. and irrespective OF religion oi
politics. sent up one hearty acclaim OF
''wcll done" II was "A sincere heart
tribute to the man, to his honesty. pat
riotism. statesmanship Americanism
Maine WED with California. and the Mis-
sissippi valley said "Amen,'' The eulo
gies, information, eXultations, predictions
and prophecies We're edfying and inspir
ing. They emphasized the Monroe doc
trine of America for Americans" Ex
tracts from many of the papers publish
ed in different parts Of the country-ap
pearing Mt the time-are here repro
duced:
President RooseveIt's Triumph.
AS the first distinctivcly ndminstra tior
EichsuTe 10 pass Dbtn houses OF congress
during the present session the nationa
irrigation bill is deserving of especial! at
tcntion nt the moment. Not that its spe
cific provisions or its passage present
anything new in matter that has Ions
been under public and legislative discus
sion aud consideration in this country
but because irrigation Legislation was on,
of the comparatively few things to whicl
President Roosevelt called the esprcia
attention of Congress in his first annua
message, and To secure which he has de
voted his energies and influence unceas
ingly for nearly seven months. His ap
provnl Of the bill 10y formally attachin,
his signature to (which he will nat
urnlIy do with becoming promptness-
will mark notable triumph for tn
President of the United Statcs.-Ne,
York Commercial.
Greatest Enact tmcnt Since the Home