The San Francisco call., 1905-01-06
Steps Taken
to Interest
Legislature
Cooperation of the
Federal Power
Is Sought.
cost CONSIDERED
Important Meeting
Is Held at the
Palace.
HARMONY IN WORK
Unanimous Action
Is Taken After
Discussion.
HARMONY IN WORK

The River Improvement and Drain
age Association of California, at
meeting held yesterday at the Palace
Hotel, unanimously adopted a report OF
its executive committee, in which
plan was embodied for carrying out the
great work which is advocated by the
association. 1t was set forth in the re-
! port that 1,000,000 acres of land now
subject to ravages by floods in the val
leys of California, by the rivers, can be
reclaimed, and that the increased value
of the land, for purposes of taxation.
will yield to the State an annual added
revenue of 100000. These statements
were based upon the report of COM
mission of engineers who visited the
great interior valleys and inspected the
rivers and their watersheds. The engi-
neers are T. G. Dabney. Henry B. Rich
ardson, NJ. A. Nurse and Fl. NJ Chit
tenden.
The report of the commission of engi-
neers was before the River Improve
ment and Drainage Association in
pamphlets. One paragraph is as fol-
lows:
1.-The direct benefits to the entire Sac
ramento Valley as the result of perfect
ing the plan of improvement in the
reclamation of about 1000, 900 acres of
extremely fertile land and placing it in
a position of assured safety from over
flow, together with direct and indirect
advantages to many associated inter-
ests must be expressed in moneyed
valuation reaching at least 100000, 900,
which will assuredly justify the cost of
the work required to bring about these
results"
IL NOE aSfi,,,otod that tho xuori-s r,ro
posed by the board of engineers will
cost something like s24,000,000. The
works are, as planned, to consist of
channel rectification and enlargement
by the point action of natural and me-
chanical agencies and also the gradual
concentration and confinement Of the
volume of floods of the rivers and the
lesser streams of the Sacramento VAL
ley between lines of levees SO located
las to ultimately provide ample chan
mel area for transporting all the flood =
volume"
In the meantime. until such channel
rectification shall have been secured.
the engineers suggest that relief will
be afforded the levees by introduction
of escapement weirs to temporary by
pass channels for conducting the floods
through the basins"
Concerning the engineering plans
there was no discussion at yesterdays
meeting. Some talk took place regard
ing the means proposed by the execu-
tive committee Of the River Improve
ment and Drainage Association to Sc
cure funds to carry on the great works.
COMMITTEE SUGGESTIONS.
. The executive committee suggested
briefly expressed, that the lands within
the drainage district should pay one
third of the cost, the State to pay one
third and the Federal Government one
third but also recommended that a
method of officially determining the
cost to be borne by the different inter
ests should be provided. Nothing can
be done, so 1t was set forth, to affect
the regimen of the rivers without the
consent of the Federal Government,
and joint action Of the State and Fed
eral Governments should be secured as
the first step. Therefore it was pro-
posed by the executive committee that
the Legislature should be asked to rec
ommend to Congress the adoption of
joint resolution authorizing the ap-
pointment of a board of three engineers
of the United States army TO examine
and report upon the report recently
submitted by the board of engineers
that viewed the Sacramento and San
Joaquin rivers.
A minority report was filed by Charles
Wesley Reed and E. A. Walcott. Reed
made the principal speech in support of
the contention in the minority report
that the way to proceed directly was
to have a constitutional amendment
submitted to the people in regard to the
action that will be necessary to raise
the States share of the more than S20,-
600. 900 to be expended. This caused
some rather warm discussion, but in
the end, after the minority report had
been rejected, Reed and Walcott voted
to make the action of the association