The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-02-27
QUESTION AS TO
C0MPANYS TITLE
City Claims Light Corporations
100000 Water Right"
HAS FILED ON THE STREAM
MONoPoLY'S EQUITY SAID TO
HAVE LAPSED.
Tie frst gun in lac active fght of

= HE first gun in the active fight OF
the Utah Light & Railway COM
pany for an extension Of its fran
chise, which is TO be fired at tonight's
session Of the city council. promises 10
the possession OF the water rights IN
Big Cottonwood which are now
claimed by the company. and which II
offers 10 trade to the city for an eNteu-
sion of their present franchise for y
period of fifty years. These water
rights are embraced in the Deseret and
Butler mill sites, and are valued by the
Utah Light & Railway company at
S1OO. OOO- An investigation of its right
to this water leads 10 the conclusion
that its title is decidedly questionable,
and that the city already has as good
a claim if not better than the company
There is not lacking evidence that
Mayor Morris and the legal advisers Of
the city are familiar with the situation.
and the signs point to a vigorous de
Tense of the rights of the municipality.
Rights Unused For Years.
The water which is in dispute was
originally appropriated by the Mormon
church for use at the old Deseret paper
mills. which were located near the
mouth of the canyon. The mills have
not been in operation for many years
and about sixteen years ago the plant
was partially destroyed by fire. Since
then so far as can be learned, no use
has been made Of the water until few
months ago. when the railway company
did some work there, announcing that
il was its intention to move its two
power plants down from the canyon
Just how the Utah Light & Railway
company acquired title TO this water
F,rr~ "a rrTz
not by filing on it as required by law.
The irrigation law of the state says:
Section 47---The water of all streams
and other sources in this state, whether
flowing above or underground, in known
or defined channels, is hereby declared
TO be the property of the public. sub
! ject to all existing rights 10 the use
thereof"
Sec. 5O.-"When the appropriation or
| his successor in interest abandons or
| ceases to use water for a period of sew
| en- years. the right ceases, and there
| upon such water reVerts TO the public
and may again be appropriated, as pro
| vided in this act; but questions of
abandonment shall be questions Of fact,
and shall be determined as are other
! questions of fact"
City Has Filled on Water.
During the administration of City En-
| Eineer George w. Snow the city made
/ three filings on the water of Big Coz
/ tonwood creek The first filing calls
| for the use of fifty cubic feet per sec
ond, and was recorded Sept 10. 1904
] The second for the same amount, was
| recorded Oct. =. and the third, for Zoe
| feet Nov. - All three state that the
| water is to be diverted from the stream
] at a point Immediately below the tail
| race of the lower plant of the two pres
-~-rmH r.
/ Railway company zone mile above the
! paper mild. the diverting works TO con-
4 sist of a dam across the channel of Big
1 Cottonwood creek, and a pipe line lead
| ing therefrom- It is believed that the
! question of abandonment can easily
| be determined. and that the city and
not the Utah Light & Railway COM
pany owns the water which the cor
| poratiOn seeks to trade for a valuable
! franchise.
Prices Jumped on Rights.
| In order to get the water into Farley )
conduit it will be necessary to take it
from the creek at a point 175 feet above
| the old paper mill, making il impOssi-
bile for both city and the light company
/ to use the same water In the estimate
| made for acquiring water rights when
the figures were made up, 200 was
| set aside for that purpose, the Deseret
J mill being put in al $4,000, the Butler
| mill at 3. 600 and the Knutson grist
mill, which is near the Deseret, at $40
! OOO When the owners were consulted,
however, the light company placed a
valuation on their property of 100000
and the grist mill people demanded
$4,000. although the latter had been Of
fered for sale for $12, 600 before the city
desired 10 acquire it,
! Mayor Morris said yesterday that
| there had been negotiations be-
/ tween himself and the light company
but that he had no intimatiOn that the
corporation would ask for a fifty-year
extension until the formal application
was made, the cOmpany's assertions in
it's petition TO the contrary Botwith-
| standing.